Happy Mid-Autumn Moon Festival!
今日は中秋節です。中秋節は中国で始まって、秋の実りを祝う祭りです。祭りの間、月餅を食べる伝統があります。今夜、夕飯が遅かったのに、おなかがいっぱいのに、中秋節だから月餅と中国式のデザート・スープをたくさん食べてしまいました。食べ過ぎましたかな？目も開けていられないくらい眠いけれど、まだおなかいっぱいで、横になれないのが辛いでーす。＾＾；
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
目が疲れた～
L&Bが帰り道に私を迎えにくれたけど、電車に乗って帰ったほうが良かったかな？何でいつもあの二人と一緒にいると、私が存在しないようにあの二人しかわからない話が続くの？盗み聞きでもないけど、盗み聞きしている気がして、ぎこちない感じがする。何年も前からずっと同じようなことが繰り返しているから、慣れると思うけど、毎回同じく落ち込んでしまう。弱いですね。
家に着いたのが22時位で、おなかペコペコでした。でも、テーブルに日本交通しんぶん社からのパッケージが目に留まりました。何だろう、何だろうと思いながら、封筒を開けました。8月のJR時刻表？
手紙が挟まっていたページを開いたら、見覚えのある景色が見えました。6月におばさんと北海道へ旅行したときに登別温泉で出会ったフォトグラファが撮ってくれた写真でした!(^0^) 一応連絡先を書いてあったけど、本当に贈ってきてくれると思わなかったです。ありがとうございます。良いびっくりでした。(^_^)
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A mysterious package from the Jpnese transport publishing co. was waiting for me when I got home late tonight. It was the 3cm-thick, B5-sized August edition of the JR train timetable!?!? I flipped open the book and found what appeared to be a letter slipped between pages 2 & 3. I removed the piece of paper and saw a picture of a familiar scene. It was a photo taken by the photographer my aunt and I met when we travelled to Noboribetsu, a hot-spring town in Hokkaido. Yes, I had given the guy my address & email, but I didn't think he would actually send me a copy, especially overseas. Thanks Watanabe-san!
Friday, September 21, 2007
久しぶりに一人で過ごす夜
両親は旅行へ、妹も弟たちも用事があるので、今夜は私一人で静かな、ゆっくり過ごしてる夜です。いつも人に囲まれている環境に慣れて、今夜はちょっと寂しく感じます。だれか友だちに「食事に行かない」とか、「一緒に映画でも見ない」と誘いたいと思いながら、近くに住んでいる一緒に遊べそうな友人が思い浮かびません。こっちの友人の中で、お出かけ好きな友人が少なく、ちょっとかなしいなぁ…日本で過ごした時間を懐かしく思います。
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Busy busy weekend.^^
Gee, I'm beat! Farewell party for a friend at yum cha and karaoke yesterday, played badminton this morning then tennis in the afternoon and had some fun with Apfc's adorable, fat, cuddly bunny, Punky, who kept hopping up and down around my feet...hehe, so funny!
Time for bed, I think! (-_-)...zzz
Time for bed, I think! (-_-)...zzz
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Chatswood Spring Fair
This dragon led the morning's parade, followed by Chinese lion dancers and musicians, bagpipe band, marching band, jive dancers, Korean community group dressed in traditional attire,...a very multicultural affair!^^
Beware: Magpie season!
The warm Spring weather is back, and I sense the scary magpie breeding season approaching. 'Scary' because they keep watch and attack anything that appears to encroach on their territory.
I was walking home from the station one fine September day, and as I emerged from the tree cover a crazy magpie that lived in a gum tree in our neighbour's yard came after me, several times. I ran for the house as fast as my legs could carry me but that wasn't fast enough. The second time it swooped down, it smacked me on the head! Thank goodness our house was just around the corner. I ran for my life but that didn't stop the clever creature. It came at me again! There was only minor bleeding, but boy was that a frightening experience. After that, our neighbour called for help on having the nest relocated into the bush or something. Nevertheless, I always make sure I wear a hat or carry an umbrella when walking down that stretch of road. Apparently, magpies tend to go for the eyes, so someone came up with the idea of wearing an ice-cream bucket on your head with eyes drawn on the back. I wonder if anyone actually tried it...
I also remember almost being hit by a miner bird. I was in primary school at the time, and Mum had dropped me off near the driveway of the staff carpark. The school is also called 'The Bush School' because it was like being in the forest. That carpark and the driveway leading to it was surrounded by trees and was miner bird territory in the Spring. More than one kid was hurt by a bird there. So the lesson is, my friends, to "slap on a hat" - especially in September!
I was walking home from the station one fine September day, and as I emerged from the tree cover a crazy magpie that lived in a gum tree in our neighbour's yard came after me, several times. I ran for the house as fast as my legs could carry me but that wasn't fast enough. The second time it swooped down, it smacked me on the head! Thank goodness our house was just around the corner. I ran for my life but that didn't stop the clever creature. It came at me again! There was only minor bleeding, but boy was that a frightening experience. After that, our neighbour called for help on having the nest relocated into the bush or something. Nevertheless, I always make sure I wear a hat or carry an umbrella when walking down that stretch of road. Apparently, magpies tend to go for the eyes, so someone came up with the idea of wearing an ice-cream bucket on your head with eyes drawn on the back. I wonder if anyone actually tried it...
I also remember almost being hit by a miner bird. I was in primary school at the time, and Mum had dropped me off near the driveway of the staff carpark. The school is also called 'The Bush School' because it was like being in the forest. That carpark and the driveway leading to it was surrounded by trees and was miner bird territory in the Spring. More than one kid was hurt by a bird there. So the lesson is, my friends, to "slap on a hat" - especially in September!
Friday, September 14, 2007
Work, work, work!
It's been an extremely busy and tiring week, at work and outside of work. The end of my 3-month probation period is coming up and I'm working on completing the performance goals my boss & I decided on a couple of weeks ago, which is making me feel unusually nervous.
Outside of the office, I've joined a new badminton group that plays every Wednesday night. This week there were 2 courts available but not enough people turned up to fill them both. I ended up being on court for virtually the full 2 hours, which was great, as I was in good form that day, particularly my serving which has plagued me of late, and won the majority of the games I played. However, it tired me out terribly!
On top of an extra badminton session, I had 2 voluntary proofreading assignments, both with tight deadlines and due within a few days of the other. What timing! I spent a whole afternoon editing 2 relatively short Word documents, mainly because I decided to insert my comments and explanations in Japanese. I guess I didn't have to put in as much effort as I did, but since it was for hardworking Japanese junior high school kids (yes, I'm still getting requests from my ex-supervisor in Jpn), I wanted to give them all the help I could. The second assignment was to proofread an English translation of a Chinese newsletter article. This was a first for me and though it took longer than I had expected, due to my unfamiliarity with the terminology used, it was a good exercise. It was very interesting to see the different grammatical mistakes made by Chinese and Japanese learners of English. Maybe I should've majored in linguistics rather than business...
My youngest brother is at the stage where he has to select his university course preferences. I was looking through this year's university course guide with him, and wished that I had put more thought into what degree I truly wanted to do. I had considered a wide range of options including Optometry, Nutrition, Architecture, Statistics, Astronomy, etc. (maybe too wide?) but I doubted my own strengths and opted for the broader and more practical degree of Commerce, majoring in Finance (among others).
My parents had urged me to pick Law because they thought it would be useful. I myself wasn't particularly keen on the idea, but thought I may as well give it a shot and, being the dutiful daughter that I am, applied for a combined B. Com/LLB degree. (And it didn't help that I got the marks to get into the course.) I ended up dropping the Law degree within a week. To be honest, I wasn't especially interested in Finance either and didn't want to do Accounting coz Mum's in that field, but I did like working with numbers.
Don't take me wrong. I'm not disappointed with what I chose to do. What I learned at university has come in handy at times, plus I made some great friends.^^ In retrospect, I should have used more 'heart' rather than just go with the flow.
Outside of the office, I've joined a new badminton group that plays every Wednesday night. This week there were 2 courts available but not enough people turned up to fill them both. I ended up being on court for virtually the full 2 hours, which was great, as I was in good form that day, particularly my serving which has plagued me of late, and won the majority of the games I played. However, it tired me out terribly!
On top of an extra badminton session, I had 2 voluntary proofreading assignments, both with tight deadlines and due within a few days of the other. What timing! I spent a whole afternoon editing 2 relatively short Word documents, mainly because I decided to insert my comments and explanations in Japanese. I guess I didn't have to put in as much effort as I did, but since it was for hardworking Japanese junior high school kids (yes, I'm still getting requests from my ex-supervisor in Jpn), I wanted to give them all the help I could. The second assignment was to proofread an English translation of a Chinese newsletter article. This was a first for me and though it took longer than I had expected, due to my unfamiliarity with the terminology used, it was a good exercise. It was very interesting to see the different grammatical mistakes made by Chinese and Japanese learners of English. Maybe I should've majored in linguistics rather than business...
My youngest brother is at the stage where he has to select his university course preferences. I was looking through this year's university course guide with him, and wished that I had put more thought into what degree I truly wanted to do. I had considered a wide range of options including Optometry, Nutrition, Architecture, Statistics, Astronomy, etc. (maybe too wide?) but I doubted my own strengths and opted for the broader and more practical degree of Commerce, majoring in Finance (among others).
My parents had urged me to pick Law because they thought it would be useful. I myself wasn't particularly keen on the idea, but thought I may as well give it a shot and, being the dutiful daughter that I am, applied for a combined B. Com/LLB degree. (And it didn't help that I got the marks to get into the course.) I ended up dropping the Law degree within a week. To be honest, I wasn't especially interested in Finance either and didn't want to do Accounting coz Mum's in that field, but I did like working with numbers.
Don't take me wrong. I'm not disappointed with what I chose to do. What I learned at university has come in handy at times, plus I made some great friends.^^ In retrospect, I should have used more 'heart' rather than just go with the flow.
Sunday, September 9, 2007
Taronga to Balmoral
The wintery weather has returned. It was cold and raining on & off all week. Even though I walked to and from work every day, I didn't have to take out my umbrella once...lucky!^^
Although the ground was wet & muddy, I'm thankful that it didn't rain during the walk. Thank goodness too that I remembered my hiking boots, which I haven't seen for close to 10 years, and was able to find them at the very last minute.^^
Just after 10am, we met up with the group of about 10 walkers who were waiting for us at Taronga Zoo Wharf and we hit the track without delay. The track from Taronga to Balmoral (photo above) is approximately 6km and meanders along the coast, passing spectular lookouts and several spots of historic interest. We also spotted some interesting native wild flowers of which I unfortunately was not able to capture on camera to show you. Maybe another time, when I'm not with such a big group of people. We stopped at Clifton Gardens for a short break then continued on through what was the Submarine Mining Corps Base in the 1890s, made our way tp to Georges Head which was used as part of an outer line of harbour defences in the 1870s, before finally arriving at Balmoral...in good time for lunch! The vege burger and fries were oh so good...mmm...(^-^)
After a brief stroll along the beach enjoying the sea breeze, we caught the bus back to the zoo. By that time, my legs were feeling as heavy as lead...geez I'm so unfit! Though come to think of it, I did play badminton twice last week...Anyway, thanks for a great day (and your tasty muffin with mixed-nut spread), AC, and apologies for dozing off in the car ride home! (-_-)'
More photos here
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