Tag: life

Progressive Lenses

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"Lineup" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4.5, 1/20 sec, ISO3200
 “Lineup” Cedar Park, 2018

こんばんは。How’s it going?

Today I received my new glasses in the mail, which was a nice surprise because they were scheduled to arrive on Saturday. Yay! In the photo above, they are the ones in the middle. 👓

I am pretty happy and excited because this is the first time for me to use glasses with progressive lenses. For the past year, I’ve been alternating between distance glasses and reading/computer glasses, which was ok, but a bit inconvenient. But now with these new progressive lenses, I shouldn’t have to keep switching! The big difference now is during driving. When I used to drive, I’d just use my distance glasses, but that meant the dashboard area was kind of blurry. But now the dash and center console is sharp and readable. It’s great! 😄

Even though the progressives are convenient, I am going to keep using my reading/computer glasses for when I am in front of the big monitors. That’s because the progressive lenses’ focus area is not large enough to cover a huge portion of the computer screen. However, I think I can retire my old distance glasses, or maybe keep them in the car just in case. 🤔

"New on Right" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4.5, 1/20 sec, ISO3200
 “New on Right” Cedar Park, 2018

FYI, I have been buying my glasses from Eyebuydirect.com for a few years now. They are super inexpensive, but I’ve been very happy with the quality. If you want to give them a try, please use this link, which includes my referral code. 🙏

I hope you had a nice day!

またね～

Chicken and Health Check

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"JFC" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4.5, 1/50 sec, ISO3200
 “JFC” Cedar Park, 2018

こんばんは。How’s it going?

Tonight we had everyone’s favorite meal: karaage (Japanese fried chicken). White rice, karaage, and miso soup are perfect for a cold day like today… it warms you up and lifts your spirits! 😊 The rain and chilly weather are such a shock since last week was so warm and nice. But I guess each day of bad weather means we’re a day closer to summer 2019. 😀

In other news, I went for my annual health screening at work. It’s a basic checkup, with a blood test to check on cholesterol, glucose, etc. And my health is actually improving for the most part! The bad cholesterol has gone down, the good cholesterol has gone up, and blood pressure is in a good range. In fact, everything was trending towards better health, with the exception of one measurement – I gained 1 pound. I blame the karaage. 😜

"Bandage" Austin, 2018
Photo info: Motorola Moto G (4), 3.64mm, f/2, 1/30 sec, ISO160
 “Bandage” Austin, 2018

I hope you had a nice day!

またね～

New Driver and Percussion Concert

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"New Driver" Pflugerville, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.6, 1/3500 sec, ISO200
 “New Driver” Pflugerville, 2018

こんばんは。How’s it going?

Today Bay took his driving test and passed! So now he has his provisional drivers license and can legally drive by himself and have one passenger with him. 🚗

Instead of using a driving school, I taught him myself using the “Aceable” parent-taught program. It was a lot cheaper than the regular driving schools, but you need to have some discipline (and nerves of steel at first) to go out and practice consistently and keep records. I used Google Calendar to keep track of all the hours we spent, so it wasn’t too difficult.

I’m not sure if Koa and I will do the same thing or if he’ll go to a driving school. We’ll see!

Speaking of Koa, he had a percussion concert in the evening. They sounded really good for their first live performance of the pieces, and they have another month to prepare for their show up in Indianapolis, so I think they will do awesome up there.

"Percussionists" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/125 sec, ISO1600
 “Percussionists” Cedar Park, 2018

I hope you had a nice Monday!

またね～

Farmers Market Sunday

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"Fresh Veggies" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/640 sec, ISO200
 “Fresh Veggies” Cedar Park, 2018

こんばんは。How’s it going?

Today was a day, which started off with a trip to two different Farmers Markets. The first one was one we hadn’t been to, but it was very small – just a few different vendors selling crafts and honey. So, we decided to head to our normal Farmers Market over by Lakeline Mall. Not only do they have fresh veggies and meats, but also a wide variety of homemade pastries, coffee, and other prepared foods.

"Pasta Flavors" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/1600 sec, ISO200
 “Pasta Flavors” Cedar Park, 2018

We tried some gyoza and soup dumplings. They were yummy but not exceptional. I guess the wrappers were a little too thick than what we are used to.

"Soup Dumplings" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/180 sec, ISO200
 “Soup Dumplings” Cedar Park, 2018

After the market, we had some free time in the middle of the day, so we spent it doing household stuff like laundry, watched a little tv, and I went for a nice afternoon run around the neighborhood. Gotta keep in a little bit of shape!

For dinner, Mariko made a delicious stir-fry with chicken, jalapeños, and greens. おいしかった！

"Spicy Stir Fry" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.6, 1/45 sec, ISO3200
 “Spicy Stir Fry” Cedar Park, 2018

In the evening I volunteered at the high school band fundraiser event at the stadium. The Marching Festival is a huge event, and I spent three hours working at the concession stand as a cashier, which was a challenge for me because my math skills are sub-optimal. 🤣 Since there was no register, all calculations had to be done mentally and it wore me out. Haha. But I enjoyed it and helping out the kids was fun.

"Amazing Cloud" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: Motorola Moto G (4), 3.64mm, f/2, 1/15 sec, ISO1000
 “Amazing Cloud” Cedar Park, 2018

My shift ended at 11 pm, and then it was shower-time, relax-time, and reading-time. A long but fun day! And you know what? The afternoon run gave me energy to carry me through the evening. Yay for exercise! 💪

I hope you had a nice Saturday!

おやすみなさい

Appreciating Things That Can’t Be Seen

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"Anko" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.5, 1/125 sec, ISO500
 “Anko” Cedar Park, 2018

こんばんは。How’s it going?

So today I was thinking that I turn off a lot of lights that are left on here at home. Turning off lights is just natural… we should conserve energy! When we leave a room, we should turn off the light, right? But sometimes I feel like I am the only one in the house that does it since I am constantly doing it. 😡

But then I thought that there are probably many times that everyone else turns off the lights, and I wouldn’t ever notice this since there is nothing to see. 🤔

So now I wonder about other things that I cannot see, for instance when others tidy up or put things away, I wouldn’t really notice it. I should try to recognize and appreciate when the house is clean because someone must have cleaned it… the house doesn’t clean itself, does it?

Sometimes when I’m on the other side of the equation, tidying up the house, closing cabinets, etc. and no one notices or says anything, I feel a little unappreciated. But you know, I shouldn’t mind not receiving recognition since it might be difficult for others to notice the things that cannot be seen. It’s enough to be satisfied with contributing to a healthy living space even without receiving praise. 😌

Anyways, that’s my “deep thought” for the day.

******************

"Fajita Taco" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.5, 1/125 sec, ISO3200
 “Fajita Taco” Cedar Park, 2018

In other news, it’s National Taco Day today! 🌮 And as you can see from the photo above, we did partake. 😀

By coincidence, Mariko decided to make fajitas for dinner (she didn’t know about the occasion). Well, since it is taco day, we had to put the fajitas in tortillas. Respect the taco!

I hope you had a good Thursday. 😊

またね～

Boot Time

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"Boot Time" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.2, 1/4 sec, ISO3200
 “Boot Time” Cedar Park, 2018

こんばんは。How’s it going?

I can’t believe it’s already October! And summer’s been over for over a week? That’s crazy. Of course, we had a cold spell for a couple of days and it felt like maybe the heat is gone for the year but, no, this week is going to be warm again. That doesn’t mean that I can’t start wearing my Docs though, after all, the office where I work is usually frigid so some foot warmth is definitely welcomed. 😄 But it’s so warm out, I’ll have to keep wearing my Birkenstock sandals as well. 😎☀

I hope you had a great day!

またね～

Sense of Place

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"Cloud" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: SONY NEX-6, 37mm, f/9, 1/1250 sec, ISO100
 “Cloud” Cedar Park, 2018

こんばんは。How’s it going? Today’s blog post will be a bit of a ramble, but hey, it’s my blog, so here goes.

I’ve been lucky so far that I have been able to travel for vacation, and also on rare occasion for work, and I now recognize certain distinct affinities I have for different places. For instance, when I traveled to Japan for the first time, I immediately felt like Japan was somewhere I wanted to live. So much so that I gave myself a deadline of 6 months before I moved there.

On the other hand, when I returned from trips to Morocco and Spain, I didn’t have that feeling at all. It was really fun to visit those places and experience a bit of the culture, but I never felt a deep connection. I’m sure it has to do with being Asian in a non-Asian country, although I haven’t thought too deeply about it yet. 🤔

The same can be said of my trips to Stockholm. I’ve visited twice and although I loved it there, felt safe and free, I was simply just a visitor. The thought of having a life there never crossed my mind. Nevermind the complications of having kids and a family… but even if I were single, I don’t think Europe would be on my list of places to live.

And how about my hometown of Torrance? I love visiting family there and am happy I grew up in Southern California, but I have no desire to live there. It’s just not interesting to me… and speaking about the USA, I’ve lived in Texas for almost 20 years now. Honestly, living in Austin never even occurred to me as a possibility before we moved here. It’s a wonderful place, and the people are so friendly and warm. But no, I have no real affection for, nor interest in, Texas and the moment we have the freedom to leave, I’ll be the first one on the plane. 😆

But back to places that I feel a real affinity for. Obviously, there’s Japan. Whenever I visit, I feel right at home, even though I can only understand maybe 25% of conversations. But I love it there. When I lived there I never considered leaving. It’s somewhere I want to live again. (My dream hasn’t died, haha)

Interestingly, I felt a similar feeling towards China when I visited there last month. After returning home, I felt that same blue feeling (could it be like homesickness?) that I felt after returning from Japan after my first visit there. That’s how I know I feel a real connection to a place – after returning, I have that melancholy feeling. It’s like I am living in a dream. 😌

Anyways, that’s pretty much what’s on my mind these past few days. Thinking about a connection to a sense of place I suppose. Although I live in Texas, I feel like it’s a temporary situation… just waiting to move on really. Someday. 🛫

I hope you had a nice day, and thanks for reading!

またね～