on Dec. 18, 2021

It's a lovely day again.

The sun is shining brightly.

The sky is so blue.

But what a cold day it is!

I enjoyed walking in the bright sun.

Looking up at the beautiful, blue sky,
I wondered when COVID-19 pandemic
will move　a step toward resolution.

Will the day come when we can enjoy
our normal life?

I should say NO.

The new variant, omicron, was discovered,
which means, I'm afraid, we might have
new variants one after another.

I hope it's my needless worry.

=============

Christmas is coming around.

Do you have any plans for Christmas?

on Dec. 11, 2021

What a beautiful day again!

Blue sky, bright winter sunlight and no wind.

I aired out futon.

I did a lot of washing.

I cleaned my rooms.

I walked to the supermarket in the sun.

Many trees are leafless.

I walked over the fallen leaves.

What a peaceful day!

I'm grateful for the peace and quiet
of daily life.

How is the weather where you live?

on Dec. 4, 2021

We have a long spell of fine weather
here in Tokyo.

It's quite warm in the daytime,
though we are in winter.

I talk with my elder sister on the phone
every night.

She lives in our hometown, a remote rural
area of Niigata, where they have much cold
rain, sometimes frost or sleet these days.

My sister is wondering when snow falls.

She lives alone and to live in the snow areas
is very hard for her.

===========

Today I bought ten lottery tickets---
年末ジャンボ宝くじ.

I buy only 年末ジャンボ宝くじ every year
but I've never won except the booby prize末等.

That's OK.

I'm looking forward to the lottery on the last day
of December.—on New Year's Eve.



（ケヤキ）

on Nov. 26, 2021

Not a cloud is to be seen in the sky.

What a beautiful day!

I walked to my daughter's house humming
and looking up at the sky.

I couldn't help feeling thankful for everything.

===============

By the way, my daughter bought a toy---
Amazon Alexa,
which is a smart speaker.

Alexa speaks, sings and answers my questions!
Alexa is an AI toy.

What an interesting toy it is!

Have you heard of Alexa?

(near my apartment)


( the toy Alexa)


(written around noon, today)

on Nov. 21, 2021

It's Sunday today.

I spent Sunday morning listening to the radio
----dozing from time to time.

I'm sorry I'm getting forgetful these days.
Besides my memory is failing.

Are these signs of dementia? （認知症）

I became 79 years old on Nov. 17.

My American pen pal Anne sent me a birthday card.

It made me so happy.

Thank you so much,
Anne, my pen pal!