純粋だった少年時代

　８月２０日、今日の日の出は ５時０５分、太陽高度は６６°、日の入りは１８時２８分です。夏至と比較すると正午の太陽は１１°も低くなり、昼の時間は１時間１６分短くなります。今の季節、庭のあちこちに「びっくり草」が、その名の通り、何もなかった所に急に芽が出て咲くので驚きます。６０年ほど前、亡父が植えたもので球根のため毎年咲き、咲くたびに花が好きだった父を思い出します。

　ところで、今宵は東隣の岩鼻のお祭りです。昔からたくさんの花火が上がり賑わいます。私は幼児の頃から岩鼻に縁があり、当時は倉賀野に保育園や幼稚園がなかったので岩鼻の保育園までバスで通いました。今思うと両親に感謝です。

　小学生のとき、母に小遣いをもらい、岩鼻のお祭りに往きは上信バスで行きましたが、夜店でスイカを買ったら帰りのバス賃がなくなり、暗い夜道を重たいスイカを抱えて倉賀野の家まで４kmほどてくてく歩いて帰ってきたことがあります。「美味しいスイカを家族と一緒に食べよう」と、私にも純粋なときがあったのです。

　そう言えば、一人暮らしのため、最近はスイカを食べてません。スーパーで切り売りもありますが、スイカは家で切って、皆で楽しく食べたいものです。今度、来客があるときは前もって用意し、目の前で切って一緒に食べたいです。若き日、インドでもスイカをよく食べました。インドの人はスイカのことをタルボジャと言ってました。

Dear my friends who are crazy about big fireworks, watermelon and great music.

　The simultaneous interpretation into English for our mutual understanding will be done after my breakfast in Japan time.

......................................................

　Today, August 20th, sunrise is at 5:05am, the sun's altitude is 66°, and sunset will be at 6:28pm. Compared to the summer solstice, the sun's angle will be 11° lower at noon, as the result, daylight hour will be 1 hour and 16 minutes shorter. At this season, "Surprise plants" are popping up all over the garden, and it suggests name, they are surprising as they suddenly sprout and bloom where nothing before. My late father planted them about 60 years ago, they are bulbs, so that they bloom every year, and every time they bloom I am reminded of my father who loves flowers.

　Not change the subject, but tonight is the festival at Iwahana, just to the east town. Since long ago, the area has been bustling with fireworks. I have had a connection to Iwahana since I was a toddler, since there were no nurseries or kindergartens in my Kuragano-town at that time, I would take the bus to Iwahana nursery school. Looking back, I am grateful to my parents.

　When I was in elementary school, I received some pocket money from my mother and took the Joshin Bus to the Iwahana-Festival, and I bought a big watermelon at a night market and didn't have enough money for the bus fare back, so I ended up walking 4km to my house in Kuragano-town, carrying the heavy watermelon along a dark road alone at night. There was a time when I was so innocent so as to eat delicious watermelon with my family."

　Come to think of it, I haven't eaten watermelon recently because I live alone. Supermarkets sell it by the slice, but I like to cut it at home and enjoy eating it together. Next time when I have guests, I'd like to prepare it in advance, and cut it in front of them, and eat it together. When I was younger, I also ate watermelon in India. Indians call watermelon talboja.

　　

自然の脅威を感じる・・・人間には対処できないか

【倉賀野町を流れる烏川の水量も少なくなってる。】

　本当に暑くて暑くて皆さん大丈夫でしょうか。お見舞い申し上げます。今日はずいぶん水分補給し、ずいぶん汗をかきました。生きるためには水が必要ですね。私は氷を入れた水を飲んでました。

　今日の午後は予定通り、地区の「のびのび健幸クラブ」がありました。体操後、私がピアノで弾く前奏を聴いて曲名を当ててもらい、その後、全員で歌いました。曲は1、北国の春、2、夏の思い出、3、箱根八里でした。

　その前に、暑さを吹き飛ばすため、手慣らしで今日から始まった高校野球の「栄冠は君に輝く」を元気よく弾いたら意外と好評でした。

Dear friends

　It's extremely hot today, I hope you're all okay. I pray that you all are healthy. I've been hydrating a lot today and sweating a lot. Freshly, we recognize that water is indispensable to live. I'm drinking iced water. Of course, in the evening I will "Bottoms up" with draft beer with thinking of you.

　This afternoon, as scheduled, we had our local "Relaxed Health Club" event. After gymnastics, everyone listened to introductions I played by the piano and tried to guess the name of the song, after which we all sang together. The songs were 1. Spring in the North, 2. Summer Memories, and 3. Hakone Hachiri.

　Before that, to warm up my hands and blow away the heat, I played "The Crown Shines on You," which is a famous song from the high school baseball game that started today, as the result, it was surprisingly well received.

涼しい喫茶店で憩う

　群馬県の今日の最高気温は３９．９度と発表されてます。確かに余りにも暑いので午後４時より、涼しいお気に入り喫茶「さんぼ道」で１時間ほど休息してきました。

　暑いからでしょう、客は私一人です。静かな環境で本を読みつつ、また、暫くぶりに定番であるショパンのノクターンB mollを語りかけるつもりで弾き、飲み物も定番のアイス珈琲で心身ともに冷やしリラックスしました。

　写真の如く、この喫茶の南東側は今では少なくなった広大な自然環境に恵まれ、写真をクリックすると臨場感が出ます。この景色を見るだけでも、ここに来た意味があります。皆さん、立秋まであと9日です。猛暑が続くのは先が見えてます。日の入りは確かに早まってます。

Dear my friends who like to see nature and great music.

　The highest temperature in Gumma Prefecture today was announced to be 39.9 degrees in Celsius. It was certainly too hot, so I decided to rest for about an hour at 4pm at my favorite cool cafe, "Sambo-michi."

　Perhaps because of the extreme heat, I was the only customer there. I read a book in the quiet environment and, for the first time in a while, played Chopin's Nocturne in B minor by the piano, as if talking to you. I also had my standard iced coffee to cool and relax both my body and mind.

　As you can see in the photo, the southeast side of this cafe is blessed with a vast natural environment that is rare in the city these days, therefore, if clicking the photo gives you a sense of realism. Just seeing this view makes us worthwhile. Everyone, there are nine days left until the beginning of autumn in Japan. The scorching heat is finally here, I guess. The sun is certainly setting earlier.

日々、体力を鍛え、山岳行きに備える

【遠望は春、群馬県庁最上階から撮った谷川連峰です。画像をクリックすると臨場感が出ます。】

　連日、猛暑が続いています。皆様、いかがお過ごしでしょうか。夜間も湿度が不快にさせてます。このため、就寝中に汗をかき、どうしても睡眠不足がちになります。私は年のせいか、昔のように８時間連続して眠れることはなくなりました。実は、食事をすると眠くなってしまうことがあります。ですから、細切れで合計すると、どうにか７時間を確保しているようです。

　光陰矢の如し。今月もいよいよ終盤です。来たる８月７日は「立秋」です。私たちを載せ公転を続ける地球は着々と黄道十二星座の「やぎ座」から「水瓶座」の方向へ進んでいます。８月になり、夜空が澄んで見える様になったら確認しましょう。深夜に、この星座たちは頭上に近いです。ただ、「水瓶座」は北半球で見ると上下が逆さまです。この頃になると平野では残暑でも、山は涼しくなるでしょう。私は予定してる赤城大沼周遊ウォーキングは「立秋」過ぎに、同様に「谷川岳」天神平・天神峠の散策と楽しみな谷川温泉も８月中旬です。

　以前は、県内外の山へは、山岳の名人Ｔさんに度々連れてってもらいました。しかし、高校で山岳部の顧問であり、私の英語の先生でもあった彼は早世してしまい、近年これほど寂しいことはありません。今回の赤城大沼一周ウォーキングと谷川天神平も可能ならば同行してくださる方がいれば楽しいと思います。現地までは、今回車検が済み、新たなタイヤ【245-35-19】に交換し、新たなバッテリーを積載した水色の愛車ＴＴに活躍してもらいます。

Dear my friends who are crazy about moutaineering and great music.

　The simultaneous interpretation into English for our mutual understanding will be done after my breakfast in Japan time.

......................................

　The heatwave continues day after day in Japan. How are you all doing? The humidity is uncomfortable even at night. Because of this, I sweat while sleeping and I tend to get a lack of sleep. Maybe it's because of my age, but I can't sleep for 8 hours straight like I used to. In fact, sometimes I get sleepy after eating due to living alone. So, if I add up small amounts, I somehow sleep 7 hours.

　Time flies. This month is finally coming to an end. August 7th is the beginning of autumn in Japan. The Earth, which carries us on its orbit, is steadily moving from the direction of Capricorn to Aquarius. Please check them out in August when the night sky becomes clear. Late at night, these constellations are close overhead. However, Aquarius is upside down when viewed from the Northern Hemisphere such as Japan. In this season, even if the heat remains in the plains, the mountains will be cooler, I guess. I plan to walk around Mt. Akagi Big Lake after the beginning of autumn, and I will also explore Tenjindai and Tenjin Pass on Mt. Tanigawadake and of course, visiting the exciting Tanigawa Spar in mid-August.

　In the past, I was often taken to mountains in and outside the prefecture by Mr. Todokoro, a mountaineering expert. However, he was the advisor of the mountaineering club in high school and also my English teacher. Regrettably he passed away young, so I have never felt so lonely in recent years. I think it would be fun if someone could accompany me on this trip around Lake Big lake in Mt. Akagi, and Tanigawa's Tenjindaira. To get there, I will be using my light blue Audi TT Quattro, which has passed inspection, has new tires [245-35-19], and is equipped with a new battery.

刻々と変化する入道雲の表情

　午前中の暑い中、庭で「ミンミン蝉」が鳴き、私は植木が枯れるのが心配でホースで勢いよく井戸水を根元に与えました。午後の空には、ご覧の通り、入道雲が現れ、果たして夕方はザーと一雨あるでしょうか。

　もし、夕立になれば、自然は良く出来ており、植物たちは息を吹き返します。これは丁度、私が夕食前にジョッキーで生ビールをぐっと喉を通すのに似て、よく浸み渡ります。

　ところで、写真の入道雲をよく見ると、何か大きな動物に似てませんか。目や口のような形に見えます。「植物が枯れる心配はない。」と優しく語りかけているように見えます。

追伸…群馬県では東部の桐生市方面で夕立があったと伝えられます。

　

Dear my friend including in the Southern Hemisphere

　In the heat of the morning, the Minmin cicadas were chirping in my garden, and due to the heat, I was worried that my many plants would wither, so I used the hose to forcefully spray well water at their roots. As you can see, cumulonimbus appeared in the afternoon sky, so that I wondered if there would be a sudden downpour in the evening.

　If there was an evening shower, nature would be well-timed, and the plants would come back to life. It would be just like me and Barry taking a draft beer at a Jockey before dinner, and it would soak in.

　By the way, if we look closely at the cumulonimbus in the photo, doesn't it resemble some kind of large animal? It looks like eyes and a mouth. It looks kindly like saying, "The plants won't wither. Don't worry."

P.S.: It is reported that there was a sudden shower in the eastern part of Gumma Prefecture, such as Kiryu-City.

いよいよ真夏です。・・・長い一日を有効利用したい。

【写真は真夏の太陽のような「百日草」です。 】

　今日から、子供たちにとって楽しみな夏休みに入りました。同時に、関東地方が梅雨明けです。今朝は朝から真夏の太陽がじりじり照ってます。梅雨であった今までは湿度か高かったですが、今日からいよいよ暑さが本格的になります。こまめな水分補給を励行し、工夫して暑さ対策を施し、健康的な夏の一日一日を過ごしましょう。

　今日７月１９日の日の出は４時４０分、正午の太陽高度は７４°、日の入りは１９時００分【いずれも群馬県】です。昼の長さは、夏至に比較するとすでに２０分短くなっており、太陽の位置は３°ほど南へ戻ってます。このように地球の動きは季節を先取りし、既に秋に向かって公転しています。これについては、深夜に空を見上げれば有名な星座たちが地球人の私たちに示唆してます。

　深夜の上空には、いよいよ「夏の大三角」を構成する一等星のデネブ【白鳥座・稚内市上空】、ベガ【琴座・織姫星・仙台市上空】、そして、アルタイル【わし座・彦星・フィリピン・ミンダナオ島上空】が大きく私たちの日本列島を覆っています。特に、デネブを中心とした白鳥座が北の空に向かって大きく羽ばたいてます。

　一方、すでにお気づきの人もいるでしょうが、早朝には東の空に「明けの明星」金星が一際明るく輝いており、恰も「朝の時間帯を身体や頭を鍛えるために有効利用しなさい」と我々に促し、自らも明るく輝き、模範を示してます。これからの季節は、涼しい早朝の１～２時間に創造性を磨きたいものです。

Dear my friends who are crazy about an effective way of living during the summer and great music.

　The simultaneous interpretation into English for our mutual understanding will be done after my breakfast in Japan time.

.....................................................

　Today marked the start of the summer vacation that children hoped. At the same time, the rainy season has ended in the Kanto region. The midsummer's sun has been scorching since this morning. The humidity was high so far during the rainy season, but from today the heat will finally become more intense. Be sure to drink plenty of water, take measures to protect yourself from the heat, and spend each day of the summer in a healthy way.

　Today, July 19th, sunrise is at 4:40, the solar altitude at noon is 74°, and sunset is at 19:00 [all in Gumma Prefecture]. The length of the daytime has already become 20 minutes shorter than at the summer solstice, and the position of the sun has also moved back about 3° to the south. In this way, the Earth's movement is ahead of the new season, and it is already revolving towards autumn. If you look up at the sky late at night, famous constellations will hint to us earthlings.

　In the late-night sky, the first-magnitude stars Deneb (Cygnus, above Wakkanai-City, most northern place in Hokkaido), Vega (Lyra, above Sendai-City), and Altair (Aquila, above Mindanao land, Philippines) that make up the "Great Summer Triangle" are covering the Japanese archipelago. In particular, Cygnus, with Deneb at its center, is spreading its wings toward the northern sky.

　Meanwhile, as some of you may have already noticed, Venus, the "morning star," shines particularly brightly in the eastern sky in the early morning, which is urging us to "make good use of the morning hours to train your bodies and minds," with shining brightly herself and setting an example herself. During this summer, it's the best opportunity to hone our creativity in the cool early morning hours.

　　

暑くても、しっかり対処し、明るく過ごしましょう。

　私の家の前の倉賀野町上4地区集会所「ふるさと」の掲示板に出ていた「シルバー川柳」です。

　高齢になると現実には、日々、生活面でいろいろ不都合なことが起きてきます。それらは身体面、精神面、経済面、夫婦関係などでしょうが、それを悩みとして深刻に捉えず、ユーモアとして生活できれば、年齢を重ねても、楽しい毎日になるのではないでしょうか。

　一般論として、私も含め、日本人にはユーモアのセンスが不足してると言われてます。英語圏では、会話中、５分に一度は人を笑わせるユーモアが大切な要素と言われます。確かに、以前に、ニュージーランドからホームステイとして滞在してたスペンスさん一家はいつも明るく話されました。

　皆さん、今日も日本列島は猛暑と予報されてます。同時に、気圧も湿度も高くなるようです。私はこのようなとき、手拭を冷たい水で絞り、背中など汗を掻いたところを拭き取ります。それにより、暫くの間、本当にさっぱりします。

Dear my friends who are crazy about humor in daily life and great music.

　The simultaneous interpretation into English for our mutual understanding will be done after my breakfast in Japan time.

.........................................

　This is "Silver Senryu" that was posted on the bulletin board at "Furusato," the community center for the Kuragano-town Kami-4th district in front of my house.

　As we get older, we face many inconveniences in our daily lives. These may be physical, mental, financial, or marital. However, if we can live with humor and not take them too seriously, I think we can enjoy our days even as we get older.

　It is generally speaking that Japanese people, including myself, lack a sense of humor. In English-speaking countries, it is said that humor is an important element in daily conversation, making people laugh once every five minutes. Indeed, the Spence family, who stayed with us from New Zealand, always spoke cheerfully.

　Everyone, it is forecast that the Japanese archipelago will be extremely hot today. At the same time, the air pressure and humidity will be high. When I'm in this situation, I wring out a towel in cold water and wipe the sweat off my back and other parts of my body. This really makes me feel refreshed for a while.

..............................................................

【Silver Senryu】 interpretation is as follows.

My wife wakes me up while I'm sleeping and makes me take sleeping pills.

I forget which part of my body is disease so that have to ask the doctor.

Even if I save money, I can't spend it because I'm bedridden.

When we got married, my wife's voice was beating fast to me, but now I feel dizzy.

By doing exercises to relieve back pain, I am suffering lumbago.

 　 

フォークダンス音楽は心までうきうき

 　午後２時頃より、吉井の日帰り温泉・牛伏ドリームセンターまでドライブし、汗を落としすっきりしてから、今度は喫茶「さんぽ道」でアイス珈琲を味わいつつ、リラックスしました。客は他に一人いただけなので暫くぶりにピアノを弾かせて戴きました。

　テーマ曲のノクターンb moll、この曲に対し躍動感が欲しかったのでフォークダンスのコロブチカc moll、マイムマイムa moll、オクラホマミキサーa moll、栄冠は君に輝くB dur、ベサメムーチョc moll、雪が降るd mollで１５分程でした。

　音楽はメロディーやハーモニー、そして対位法を味わうことは美に繋がります。一方、テンポやリズムに乗った曲も楽しいものです。「さんぽ道」の前で、ママのお父さんが畑を耕していたので、お会いし、暫し外でも寛ぎました。

Dear my friends

　Around 2pm, I drove to Yoshii's day spa named Ushibce Dream Center to wash off the sweat and relax, then went to my favorite cafe "Sampo-michi" and enjoyed iced coffee. There was only one other customer, so I played the piano after a long interval.

　First of all, I began to play my theme music "Nocturne in b minor", and I wanted to add some dynamism to it, so I played the folk dances Kolobchka in c minor, Maim Maim in a minor, Oklahoma Mixer in a minor, The Crown Shines on You in B major, Besame Mucho in c minor, and Snow Falls in d minor for about 15 minutes.

　Appreciating the melody, harmony, and counterpoint of music leads to beauty, but on the other hand, music with a good tempo and rhythm are also fun. In front of "Sampo-michi", Mama's father was plowing the field by tractor, so I met him and relaxed outside for a while.

吉井ドリームセンターまで、愛車でドライブ

　余りにも暑く、汗を掻いたので午後になってから「吉井牛伏ドリームセンター」で一風呂浴びてきました。このためサッパリし、夕食のビールが美味しくなりそうです。こんな時は一人でなく、誰かと一緒に楽しく飲みたいものです。

　ところで、私だけ風呂に入ってさっぱりしたのでは申し訳なく思い、出発前に車を水洗いし、ピカピカにしてから山名経由で往き、帰路は中山峠経由でした。

　このため愛車も快適だったことでしょう。走行距離は未だやっと1万６千Kで、車として調子の出るのはこれからでしょう。人間もこれから本調子になりたいものです。

Dear my friends who like bathing in spa and driving

　It was so scorching heat that I was sweating, so in the afternoon I took a bath at Yoshii Ushibuse Dream Center. It left me feeling refreshed, and the beer at dinner will taste even better. At times like this, it will be nice for me to enjoy a drink with someone like you, not alone.

　By the way, if I was the only one refreshing in the bath, I felt bad so I washed my car before leaving my home, The blue car became sparkling clean, and it was heading out via Yamana-town, and via Nakayama Pass on the way back.

　This must have made my car feel comfortable. The mileage is still at just 16,000km, so the car will be in good shape from now on . I hope I'm in good shape as well, as a person.

https://ttsreader.com/ja/...

Rehydration is indispensable. 水分補給が欠かせない

This glass is truly mysterious, the water turns blue and the ice looks like it is floating.
   　

　光陰矢の如し、早いもので今日で７月が終わり、今年の５８％が過ぎ去ろうとしています。７月を振り替えると、日本列島は連日、猛暑続きであり、私たちは熱中症を避けるため、こまめな水分補給が必須です。

　調べてみると、一般成人が1日に体内から失う水分量は、合計「約２．５リットル」と言われてます。内訳は、尿で約１．５リットル、呼吸による水分喪失が約０．９リットル。とりわけ、夏季は汗を含め前述より多くなるので、これに見合う水分補給が必要です。それにしても、このグラスは水が青く見え、しかも、氷が浮いてるように見えます。

　私は罹ったことがありませんが、熱中症の症状は、めまい、失神、立ちくらみ、筋肉の硬直、大量の発汗、頭痛、吐き気、倦怠感、意識障害、けいれん、呼びかけに対する反応がおかしい、真直ぐ歩けないなどと言われます。

　意識がある場合は、涼しい場所へ移動し、衣服をゆるめる。顔、両腕、足などを水で冷やす。太い血管が流れている場所を冷やすと効果的に体を冷やすことができるでしょう。重症の場合は救急車を呼びましょう。

Dear my Facebook friends

　Time flies, and today is the end of July, with 58% of this year already gone. Looking back at July, the Japanese archipelago has been experiencing scorching heat every day, so it is indispensable for us that we drink plenty of water to avoid heatstroke.

　According to research, the average adult loses a total of about 2.5 liters of water from their body each day. The break down is

as follows, about 1.5 liters through urine and about 0.9 liters through breathing. In particular, in the summer, the amount of water lost is greater than the above, including sweat, so it is necessary to drink enough water to compensate for this.

　I have never had heatstroke, but the symptoms of heatstroke are said to be dizziness, fainting, lightheadedness, muscle stiffness, excessive sweating, headache, nausea, fatigue, impaired consciousness, convulsions, strange responses to calls, and inability to walk straight.

　If the patient are conscious, move to a cool place and loosen the clothes. Cool the face, arms, legs, etc. with water. Cooling areas with large blood vessels will help cool the body effectively. If it is severe, call an ambulance.

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