apricot-days

[apricot-days]

2023.07.08

It's been a long week. Alan got sick on Saturday night and his suffering has been unpleasant to say the least. Restless nights. Raging fevers. Runny noses. Raspy coughs. Luckily for him the worst has passed. Today was all about chasing cats and having food fights.

Some things we learnt during the ordeal.

1. Alan isn't slowed down by fevers.

2. Alan hates having his nose wiped.

3. Sweet tasting medicine doesn't make it easier to administer.

4. Ine likes the taste of baby sweat.

5. It takes only 5 minutes for the ambulance to arrive.

6. How to write music baby let's go to the fucking moon next stop Glastonbury!

[apricot-days]

2023.03.14

[apricot-days]

2023.03.13

Whilst I'm not always thrilled about work or confident in where I'll be over the next few years, I am very happy with my lot in life right now.

In Japan we equivocate wealth and status with success. We all start in a hole and our job is the ladder to freedom. Previously shuttered opportunities and promotions open up to you as you age, earned through loyalty and commitment to an organisation, usually measured in decades. Improving the quality of your life can be a slog. For many it's a slavedom. In my industry it's a myth. I don't foresee myself getting a cushy managerial position in my early fifties, and I likely won't be able to afford that holiday home in the countryside. But whilst the youthful years of many are spent dragging boulders for old-timers, I get to take the scenic route lugging just a rucksack full of books. There is no castle on the mountain I'm climbing but when I get there I'll have everything mapped out.

That's the misnomer about success. Freedom doesn't have to come from finances. I want to liberate myself by fostering a culture of appreciation for the moments I am afforded. Dad once told me "I work to live, not live to work" and it's something I never forgot. Growing up we didn't enjoy the extravagances of great wealth but we had everything we needed. I get to enjoy my mornings with my family. Overtime doesn't exist. I have no looming deadlines or bosses breathing down my neck. Work stays in the classroom. My happiness comes without an asterisk.

I'm confident in where my future is headed even if I can't see the path clearly. There are exciting changes to be made, challenges to overcome and things to learn. Most importantly our expectations are managed and satisfied. There is no ladder to success for me; it's a stairlift that I'm already riding.

[apricot-days]

2023.03.11

We went to Little World today. I'm not sure how to describe it really. It's like an amusement park without any of the rides or attractions. You walk around in a big loop looking at buildings from different countries and nibble on overpriced food. In Germany you can buy sausages and beer for example. The most interesting was Africa(?) where they had an assortment of creative crocodile related foods. Crocodile sausages, crocodile ramen, crocodile sandwiches etc. If the goal is to show the Japanese people a slice of life in these other counties, surely they should attempt to offer something more authentic. Maybe instead of eating the crocodiles the crocodiles eat you, or at least try to. There were some glimmers of hope for Little World though. Their UK exhibit was perfect. What better way of representing the selfish Brexit biddy than by divorcing from the park itself and fucking off back to Blighty.

[apricot-days]

2023.03.04

I've been cutting my own hair or having it cut by my wife since 2017. Today I cut it completely by myself. It's one of those spur of the moment things. I'll look in the mirror in the morning and just decide it's going to happen, and by the end of the day it'll be done. Shocking I know. Making decisions to cut hair.

Most people book them in advance. Some people even regularly schedule haircuts every month or so. I prefer to have it done for free. At first it was a little daunting, and there have definitely been some calamities. However, by and large the results are more or less equivalent to a professional jobby. I'm a simple man with simple needs.

[apricot-days]

2023.03.03

I haven't posted in a while. I'd be lying if I said I'd been any more busy than usual, or that I had nothing to write about. I think it's more just indicative of my personality. For example, I also haven't really played much piano recently. I'd rather keep doing this than give it up though so I'll try to post more often.

I had an idea to write about our recent house search. We went and looked at a beautiful old place on top of a mountain overlooking the city. It needs a lot of work to be honest but I fell in love. In the moment it's easy to make commitments. It's not really a lie per say; it's what you want and you're happy to take on the challenge. But the question really isn't whether to take on the commitment, it's whether you have upheld them in the past.

I've been focusing on my behavior in the past, and it's been helping to inform my decisions in the present. I'm still not good at sticking with things so I need an elbow in the neck from time to time. I'm hopeful that one day I'll own that house on top of the hill.

[apricot-days]

2023.02.09

We're halfway through test week now. Thursday was the worst. They're little ones so testing as a concept is already enough of a struggle. I feel bad because they're doing exactly what I ask them to do; if they don't understand something they should ask for help. It's only one day a year but I really loathe to bash my head into this wall.

[apricot-days]

2023.02.03

Today was Setsubun. I know it's a special day that is observed nationwide, though the significance it has on Japanese culture is still not entirely understood. People throw beans around the house and shout to banish the demons, then spend the next 2 hours cleaning them up. They also eat sushi rolls. This year I actually enjoyed eating mine. It was filled with soy meat and kimchi.

[apricot-days]

2023.01.28

We had a takoyaki party for dinner. Fuyumi wanted to add cheese to it so we did. It wasn't bad. I drew up an anatomy of the takoyaki incase you wanted to know how it looked.

[apricot-days]

2023.01.26

A feverish Alan went to the doctors today. It was a most unassuming illness. I'd anticipated a sick baby to be louder and more agitated but he was mostly subdued by the fever. He didn't sleep well, nor did his mother, but he didn't raise hell like I'd imagined a sick baby would. He definitely felt it though. Besides the odd wry smile his face would slump like lasagna.

I'd almost forgotten that COVID was even a thing until we arrived at the clinic. The thought of my baby being infectious was not new to me; he's adorable as fuck and everyone says so. Though I will admit it was a bit much for him to be treated like a disease emitting fart balloon. We had to wait in the car and call the office before we were sent round the back for his appointment. They asked us some questions and shoved a swab up his nose. He didn't like that.

Results were negative so we just went home. His fever had already started to subside and it looked like nothing serious was going on. Mother and child slept together for the best part of the afternoon and I did the shopping. 6/10.

[apricot-days]

2023.01.25

Last week I started learning the piano. After work today I learnt how to play White Moon. It's pretty fucking cool. I can't remember the last time I played music. Must have been when I was still at school.

[apricot-days]

2023.01.23

[apricot-days]

2023.01.22

Today we semi-hosted a tortilla party. I'd originally introduced some friends to Mexican exoticism when I made them a few crunch wraps after their latest baby was born. The food obviously left an impression because they insisted that we organise an event where I could teach them how I made them. Ha! As if there were even a recipe to recite.

The process is simple enough I explained. You cook/produce a filling and then wrap it up. You can toast it or not. The reason I'm so good at making them is because it's pretty much impossible to fail. They had a little brainstorm but couldn't come up with many ways to use the tortillas. I'm not entirely sure they read the memo. I'll give them a point for creativity at least, because nobody on earth ever thought to make tortilla pizzas before today.

[apricot-days]

2023.01.21

Alan realised that there are two ways to watch the sumo; lying on your back or lying on your front. Congratulations on taking your first step towards full automation! The flip occured initially in the morning around 11 o'clock, an act which left him with horrendous trouble positioning himself any other way.

"Not on my back!" he would wail.

"Anywhere but the bouncer!" he would cry.

Long in to the night we would engage this endless game. For poor little Alan the journey has only just begun, and he has yet to learn the most valuable lesson yet: what comes up must also come down. For now we will just see how long he can fly.

The water beckons to the fish in the river but the fish desire to fly. They leap and bound towards the ground and find themselves in a pickle. They flail and flail their mouths agape as the water trudges along. "Save us! Help us!" their cries ring out, while the river watches them drown.

[apricot-days]

赤ちゃんはみんなカワイイ

地域の児童館や交流場に行くと質問責めに会います。　

ハーフ���すか？　パパは何人?　英語話せるの？

コミュニケーションだとは分かっているし話のきっかけになる。私ももしかしたら同じ事に興味を持って同じ質問をするかもしれない。　　　　　　　　　　　それはいいんだけど

“やっぱりハーフは可愛いね〜”

って言われると、いやいやおたくのお子さん可愛いですよ。ってか赤ちゃんという生き物が可愛いじゃん🫠すべての赤ちゃんがカワイイんだぞ‼‼と思っちゃう

見た目や国籍で　“��別”　扱いがなくなる優しい社会になって欲しいと願います🙏

[apricot-days]

2023.01.17

This past summer and autumn were great for our morning jungle walks. I've never seen so great a concentration of grasshoppers in my life. The kids would freak and scream the whole way, it was hilarious. Our winter walk this morning didn't yield such great results. The last insect, the ladybug, made an appearance. As did the orange tree, the bicycle and, refreshingly, a digger too. Now that the rice fields are cleared we were treated to dog poop and rubbish galore. I suppose the kids needed to learn those words at some point.

[apricot-days]

2023.01.15

I've been watching the Pokemon films in chronological order. They're not great. My favourite parts are the ending credit scenes. They really capture the scale of the world and portray the journey that I wanted to go on as a kid. Plus there's no dialogue.

Today we visited friends and I played some rounds of the TCG with G. He got me into the game and is my sole playing companion. I don't think I could play with anyone else to be honest. He puts up a real good challenge.

He loves everything about the franchise. If he were to review the Pokemon movies he wouldn't be able to pick a single favourite part. That's true magic. There are just some things that an adult can't filter. Like all of the scenes in "Jirachi- Wish Maker" where May hums that fucking lullaby.