A close and real encounter

😁 https://www.facebook.com/555124414/posts/pfbid0auN1nfUmUurXu8wqS1tXUWMyMs8zfoYHkNmvZuZiNh5LeL3oCeAh47fwViAihDTjl/?

The link is from my original post on Facebook republished for blogger post.

 This is too precious not to share, it might be a bit long, but here it goes.😁😅😎

I finally was able to meet in the flesh, out in the wild, some entitled, dimwitted, one-celled creature from the land of the free and the home of the brave. How did I know where they were from? These nitwits got their names and address plastered boldly on their luggage, and a confederate flag sticker on one of the pieces of luggage, which was, by the way, very bright orange.

Anyway, I just arrived on this train platform waiting for my transfer train. As I had run from another platform yet missed the previous train, I was sweating profusely. The weather today was also warm, sweltering already.🥵 So I decided to get a cool refreshment. I saw an ice cream vending machine. Perfect! I chose my ice cream and hurriedly peeled the packaging and proceeded to take a bite of the cold treat. I enjoyed that first bite; the chocolate and wafer coating was still crunchy. I am still in the process of chewing; I did not even have my second bite when suddenly somebody tapped on my back, or shall I say, a claw was poking my back. I was still about to turn when I heard this high-pitched voice, I assume that was the natural voice of these cretins, irritating at that, and would even make a banshee's wail sound like music to your ear, asking me, "Do you speak and understand English?" When I was fully about-faced, there in front of me the organism of fantasy, I was face to face with this speck which I had only seen on social media or TV. I was surprised to see that she was a tad shorter than me, so, literally, I was looking down at her. My answer was affirmative to her query as I took my second bite of the cold afternoon delight - Oh, this was not a euphemism - it was truly a delight in the midst of this rising temperature. I heard a "grrrr"; this maggot can growl! She then pointed at me, angrily asked, "Do you mind?" Naturally, I was confused with that. "Mind what?" I shoot back. The shrill voice spoke again, "Do you mind not eating your ice cream in front of my kids!? We never feed them between meals, and now you are eating in front of them. YOU,"  pointing her ghoulish finger at me again, shaking, "YOU are ruining their appetite!" I looked around to find those children. There I saw behind her a slender, lanky man, as slender and lanky as a pole. More like a cross between Gollum and the Slender Man. Accompanying him were three doe-eyed creatures as lanky as the man, arms and legs like twigs; Baby Groot would look bigger beside them. I continued munching my chocolate wafer ice cream while I looked up to the lanky guy then looked down to this blonde shrub.

"Surely, madam, I will stop eating, but that will be right after I get my second ice cream! There's a chocolate mint ice cream in there waiting for me." She then huffed and puffed, turned her head to look up to SlenderGollum Man, probably asking for support. Another surprise for me because from this line drawing came a booming voice, not deep but a high pitch one that sounded like perpetual gargling. He said, "You're a rude Jap! You're not allowed to eat in public!" "So, get rid of this vending machine then," I replied. He stepped forward; it was here I saw the orange luggage he was carrying behind together with his gaunt tadpoles. "Just do me a favour, will you? Don't show any food in front of my kids!" "Cover this vending machine then if you can't get rid of it. It's in full view of your kits. (Yes, I said "kits" ^.^😎) I can get all the ice cream I want plus, you did not give me any rule book, or statute or even a memo for that matter that I can't be within the sight of your runts there when they're in between meals." He balled his hand and fingers into a fist and actually stomped his feet. I then finally heard the infamous line uttered by the hag, "You're so rude, you have no consideration, I will call the person in charge here, or the police, or the train station manager." "You do that, lady, it will surely make my day and I hope some people around are taking a video of this. But maybe next time, I've got to run; my train is here and my ice cream is melting." I ran towards the sunset, to the waiting train crowded with commuters, away from that weird and crazy, hopefully once-in-a-lifetime experience.🤣🍻😂😎🤘 That was Monday.

Raw and unedited series on my way to work 1 (Kamakura, Kanagawa, Japan)

One of the public high schools I teach is located in Kamakura. I usually get off at a train station one stop before my usual station. This is my view while walking towards the school.

 Mt.Fuji showed up after a few days of rain, sans the snowcap. Warm days ahead.

The poppy (I think) beauty ^.^

                                                                      

                              

Spring is peeking, it is still a cold February. Some areas in Japan are covered in snow. Well, let’s talk about this flower. This type of flower grows in spring time even towards summer time. They grow wild and they grow everywhere, from pavement cracks, the crevices on concrete walls, just anywhere.

I liked this flower so much. It is some kind of a poppy, I’m not sure what kind but I used to like it. Maybe I shouldn’t use the past tense, I still like it! I love its colour. It reminds me of the corals. When the wind blows it dances with the wind displaying its vibrant colour. A proud flower as it can be… then I learnt something about this flower, something close to being sinister. 

One spring/summer day when I went to the kindergarten where my daughter attends this particular flower is at its abundance like decors along the pathway. I so admired its beauty. When I went inside the school a picture of this dainty flower greeted me on their bulletin board. Lovely! Then I used my google translate to check what information they provided about this flower. I want to know more about my favourite flower in Japan.

The information shocked me. It turned out it was an advisory, a warning to parents not to let their children touch or get in contact with this particular flower. Attractive it may seem but this flower can cause itchiness that leads to rashes! Similar to a poison ivy, I guess. I usually picked this up, take a close-up picture, admire its beauty, and I even handed it to my daughter.

The price of beauty probably. Maybe the flower just wanted to be left alone and be admired from a distance. The rose has thorns yet people continue to handle it. I haven’t experienced any rashes yet nor my daughter when we picked this flower. I pray we won’t.

This is still my favourite seasonal flower. The one I always look forward to. It is like a promise. The Little Prince has his rose on his planet, I have this fleeting beauty from spring to summer on this planet, the blue sphere called Earth.

 

米津玄師 - 海の幽霊 Kenshi Yonezu - Spirits of the Sea

"星が降る夜に　あなたにあえた

あの夜を忘れはしない

大切なことは　言葉にならない

夏の日に起きたすべて

 

思いがけず　光るのは

海の幽霊"

When summer comes, I longed for the sea. I miss the salty sea. I was born in the sea. I thought I could survive anywhere. I guess I did, but my body is longing for the sea, the saltiness of the sea, the feeling of being free when floating. It is the closest of flying when you are floating and swimming in the sea.

The spirits of the sea is summoning me.

EIKEN P-1 Vocabulary crossword

This is first of the series. More to come...if I don't feel lazy or something.^.^

-copyright to the owner of the Ghibli image from "Howl's Moving Castle"

ARTICLES: a/an, the, no or zero article

A lot of English language learners are confused in using the articles. Here are some few things to remember:

a/an

We use a/an with singular countable nouns:

1 the first time you mention a thing / person.
- I saw an old man with a dog.

2 when you say what something is or what somebody does.
- It's a nice house.
- He is a teacher.

3 in exclamation with What...!
- What an awful day!

4 in expressions of frequency
- I have classes three times a week.


the

We use the:

1 when we talk about something we've already mentioned.
- I saw an old man and a dog.
The dog was barking.

2 when it's clear what you're referring to.
- My classmate opened the door.
- The children are at school.

3 when there's only one of something.
- The moon goes around the Earth.

4 with places in a town, (for example: movies and theater.)
- I'm going to the movies tonight.

5 with superlatives.
- It's the best restaurant in town.


no or zero article

We don't use an article:
1 when we are speaking in general (with plural and uncountable nouns).
     Compare:
     I love flowers. (= flowers in general)
     I love the flowers in my garden. ( = the specific flowers in my garden)
- Women usually talk more than men.
- Love is more important than money.

2 with some nouns, (for example: home, work, school) after at / to / from.
- She's not at home today.
- I get back from work at 5:30.

3 before meals, days, and months.
- I never have breakfast.

4 before next / last + day, week, etc.
- See you next Friday.


😎

adapted from GRAMMAR BANK p.137 English File (Intermediate) LATHAM-KOENIG, OXENDEN 
Oxford University Press

Answers to the passage "SHARK ATTACK"

41. 3 there have been two serious shark attacks on people off Maui.

42. 2 Because the sea conditions were very dangerous.

43. 4 because she bled a lot and couldn't get first-aid treatment.

44. 3 Sharks attracted by the births like to eat baby whales.

45. 3 because sharks have weak eyesight and low intelligence.

Vocabularies:

- Maui ( (/ˈmaʊ.i/; Hawaiian: [ˈmɐwwi]) - the second largest island of the Hawaiian islands.

- whether or not - used when someone does not know which of two possibilities is true.

Example: I still don't know whether or not I'm going back to school. I want more holidays.

- unavoidable (adj.) - impossible to stop from happening; something you can't avoid.

- yard (noun) - a unit of measurement. There are 3 feet in a yard. One yard is equal to 0.91 metres.

Learning English

I will be updating my blog in a couple of days. I am going to redesign it for students who are learning English, especially to my students in Seirinkan HS. Have fun reading!

a couple of days - "a couple" literally means TWO, but when used as a context, like in this sentence, it could mean a period of 2 days to 5 days. (It really depends if I am lazy or not.^.^)

Absent!

Wow! My writing skills have gone down! Almost a year without writing anything. No excuse about it.I just became lazy.Now, i have to shake the dust, get rid the rust in my brain and go back into writing again. It's therapy after all.hehehe! ^.^
For those who bothered to read this, aside from meself, I'm going to have a guest writer soon. Do wait for it.

Of memories and falling in love...^.^

Falling in love improves your memory, restores the nervous system & relieves stress.
— iTweetFacts™ (@iTweetFacts) December 3, 2013

My memory could be really good now because I fall in love with my Satomi-langga everyday.^.^