Typhoon No.18

Typhoon No.18----we number typhoon each year instead of naming them.

The typhoon No.18 was so scary because it was one of the biggest ones for the first time in ten years and it was the first one in two years that landed on the Japanese archipelago. Usually once a typhoon reaches on the land from the sea, its power weakens to a tropical storm and leaves to the Japanese sea. But this No. 18 was different. It kept its power and brought many damages here and there while it were moving up to the northern part of the Japanese archipelago.

It first landed on this Nagoya area early in the morning. It brought with strong wind and huge amount of rainfall. The horrifying sound of wind and rainfall made me awake. Since we closed most of the window shutters, I poke outside from the small window. Jesus, the rain and the wind turned to a huge monster and were hitting all the trees and beating the neighboring houses. Gee, better not look outside. That was terrifying. I turned on TV and watched the weather report and all of a sudden, the electricity went out. It was past five in the morning and still dark. I picked out the flashlight and went back to bed where my husband unbelievably was sleeping without being disturbed the scary sounds. I woke him up but he just spoke to me, "It's all right. We are safe." and went back to sleep. How come he was so confident. I tell you I really felt nervous during the next few hours.

As the rain and the wind got weak, I learned the typhoon was getting away in the distance. I opened the shutters and got outside to check if any part of our house was damaged. I should have taken some photos of our garden just after the typhoon. We didn't have any trees fell down but there were the ponds all over. There were no serious damage in our neiborhood.

Since the typhoon hit our area very early in the morning, the every transportation in this area had stopped from every first train and was informed on every local radio and TV news which helped people leaving home to work from getting into confusion. Then it was really sorry for commuters in Tokyo area because the typhoon hit this area just around the rush hour , that stopped many parts of city transportation systems.

This typhoon brought about many damages to many cities and towns. And I am sorry this typhoon is not the exception that had some people dead and injured. It was so distressing. We are so helpless before the wild nature and who made the global abnormal weather over these years and who should be blamed for and what we should do about it. We've got to think it over before it is too late.

Some photo images from the Mainichi daily news.
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/photospecials/graph/typhoon18/

Busy night airport

I love driving whether it is daytime or night.
It's fun to see how my car navigation system is leading me to the destination.

I left home 7:30pm and got to the airport 45minutes later.

Then I enjoyed strolling around the shopping center and went out to the deck to see the airplanes taking off and landing.

Many airplanes mostly from Asian different cities land here at Chubu International Airport between 8 and 10 o'clock. I love watching the busy airport and I love to waite for my husband in the arrival lobby than to see him off in the departure lobby. It took quite a while and finally he showed up at the gate -----but only with his carry-on baggage. Cathey missed loading his luggage at Hongkong for transit.

He got used to this kind of mishaps after all but isn't it funny what a "luggage priority" sticker for?

Priority for mishaps? Haha! Anyway it's good to see him in good shape.
His luggage arrived home in the following afternoon.

Something beyond medical examination?

I was a kind of unabashedly ambitious about what I was going to do while my husband was away for about three weeks. He is now on the way home from Chennai, India and will be land home tomorrow evening.

And what have I achieved then? Well, I wasted almost 10 days in bed.

What had happened to me was that I got the hives all over-----from top to toe on the following day he left! What do you say about this! I had no idea what had brought me the hives. I am not allergic to anything. The doctor gave me the medicine after all but this made me feel worse and caused a bad headache and finally I had to throw up more than once. The doctor ran a blood test and a urine test but there was no negative result. I felt hopeless while I was in bed without getting any sleep. Then it was so nice that some of my friends sent me e-mails from their cell phones to mine. Their messages were encouraging in general but partly filled with funny and innocent jokes to make me smile. They examined me as follows. According to them, subconsciously I was not able to accept my husband being away for such a long time and the mental stress caused the hives! Hmm, interesting! Their explanation sounded much reasonable than the doctor's as far as I feel great now just in time for my husband's coming home.

And also I feel just grateful that my blog friends, without knowing anything about this, left me kind and sweet words for my not having updated my blog for these days.

Happiness is having friends, indeed.

Speaking to myself-----

Once I've been away from blogging for these weeks, I feel like I'm in the midst of an awkward silence. I think I'm stuck! I am looking for the chance to make a step forward!

Much better!

I'm surviving!

I'll be back in a few days.

It's a good bye again!

I drove my husband to the airport again. This time he flies Cathey like "somebody" did the other day! He will land in Mumbai, India tonight. He is in charge of the workshop longer than usual this time. How can I live without seeing him for three weeks! But I've got to survive!!!
I'll make my days creative and active and he should be happy to hear about what I do while he is away! Should I give him a surprise?

Refreshing!

One of my ex colleagues and a good friend of mine now opens her own school of home computing after they remodeled their old annex next to their house. It has turned out to be very cozy and comfortable space having two rooms: one for six computers and one for a table and a sofa for enjoying a coffee break. How I wish I could come to her school only if I don't have to drive one and a half hour for one way. Her town is surrounded by mountains and fields. Most of her students are housewives and seniors and I'm pretty sure she is a big help for them. She has plenty of skills and more than anything else she is a nice person. I visited her and her husband who are both good friends of mine along with other two friends and we enjoyed BBQ party, talking , walking down to their rice field in fallow being full of cosmos flowers at present. I picked up some vegetables from their field. Everything I had that day was such a rewarding experience.

After the check up

Thank you for sharing my apprehension for a medical checkup. It took three hours to complete and oh, I was just so starving when I got free. I already knew from my previous check up that they give me a light meal ticket so I couldn't wait for this lunch time. It was good anyway that I put "real" food besides barium in my stomach.

The doctors were ready to have an individual meet-up just for a brief explanation on what they see from the data they got for the present. I felt just easy to know the data showed no problem as far as they saw for that moment. The complete date was not really ready for one day. And within two weeks, they will send me a file to show every data in detail with explanations and also some advice if necessary. In fact, they keep all the data starting from my first check up. The title of the file says "The History of my Health"! What a big title! Is this a correct English, I wonder. Sometimes we just make up so to speak, "Japanese English" which makes native speakers in English get any idea or burst into laughter.

(a file in a picture is the one from the previous check-up)

By the way

I feel quite hungry now. I'd better go to bed otherwise I might eventually pick up some thing to eat and ruin the check-up tomorrow because I am not supposed to eat or drink till I finish it tomorrow.

Well, once a year my husband and I make it a rule to have our medical check-up. To tell you the truth I don't like it especially I hate swallowing barium in a stomach examinations, screening by mammography and a pap test. People of our age starts medical problems whatever minor or major.

People talk about their own health concerns more frankly and I think I should have a medial check-up not only for myself but for my family. When we are spending every day life in a good shape, we don't realize how precious it is to be healthy. Thanks to mass media, the catchphrase "Early detection, rapid cure" are well known to those of our age.

According to the 2009 “World Health Statistics,“ published by WHO, the life expectancy of Japanese as of 2007 was 83 years and surprisingly by gender, Japanese women have ranked top of the life expectancy table for 23 consecutive years with a life expectancy of 86 years, while Japanese men were in third place with 79 years.

Generally speaking most Japanese can have a medical check up in accordance with the National medical insurance system though there are many different conditions depending on your position as an employer, an employee, a non-worker, a dependent etc.

I don't know whether I will be lucky enough to live up to 83 years. If I don't get any serious diseases, I may have the possibility but who knows. The thing is why not be more careful about my health and enjoy the rest of my life.

Let have my fingers crossed for tomorrow's check-up. Good-night!

Just for filling you in!

Thank you for sweets words as for my not having updated my blog for a week!!!

I already have several topics I want to share with you. Here are some photos.

I'm always visiting each one of my dear friends. Then, time is up!

I'm so anxious to update my blog , visit you all and I love to feel each one of you much closer! Wait for me! I might come up all of a sudden when I find enough time.

Have a nice week!