The Challenges of Life

 





More lillies from the Jindai Botanical Garden. Ah, the simplicity of this kind of beauty. If only life could always be so simple! I remember a comment my mom once made to me. "Bob, you are just like your father. You always have to make life so difficult!"

Just when I thought that maybe I was invincible, I threw out my back. So much for invincibility! I had been sitting in the car for an hour or so. I got out of the car and mistakenly lifted a box full of lemonade bottles in an awkward way. I immediately felt that twinge in my back; that is always a bad sign. Sure enough, within an hour or so, I was stiff as a board! 

It is now just over a week later. My back is much better, although it still gets stiff when I am sitting. I have set a new world record for the number of stretches performed in a week! Fortunately, with plenty of warm-up time, I have been able to continue running and cycling and swimming and strength training and tennis. 

I have started my job at the American School. Last Friday, I met the student I will be working with. We had a great time getting to know each other! It also did not take me long to find the tennis courts! I will be volunteering with the tennis teams, starting this coming Tuesday. Old habits do not die easily!

The first book the 10th grade English class will be reading is the classic play, "The Crucible," by Arthur Miller. I have had fun reviewing that play, researching Arthur Miller, the Salem Witch Trials, and McCarthyism. It is scary to realize how easily people can be swayed to judge and interpret situations inaccurately. Even scarier is to realize that this is still very possible today!

My birthday was yesterday! A young 67! My supervisor at the American School made my day when he said I do not look a day over 40! Setsuko took me to a wonderful restaurant last night. The Japanese sure know how to do it right when it comes to a tasty meal! 

I gave myself a nice birthday present when I took 5 seconds off of my best time for the stairs sprint that is in the middle of my run. Another victory in the "let's stay young" race!

I hope this finds you happy and healthy!

All the best,

Bob

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

New Year's Greeting!

Image
I recorded this version of Born Free on my Yamaha P-515. This song has always been special to me for a number of reasons. I love the message and loved reading the book and seeing the movie. I have always loved the lyrics and the melody. Lastly, it was the first song I learned on the piano.  In 1976, I rode a motorcycle from Seattle to San Francisco. Each night, I camped on the coast. Before losing the light, I would practice this song on a melodica, a flute-like instrument with a short piano keyboard. My mom inspired me to try this instrument as she used to play one on our sailboat.  After I returned to Alaska, I took piano lessons. I will never forget when I hit my first chord to match the first note of this song. I fell in love with that harmony! The pictures are from a recent day I spent with my friend Rohan in the Shinjuku area.  Thank you to Rohan for your guiding! The Godzilla figure is perched up high on a building. The other two photos were taken at a very photogenic cemetery.
Read more

Here's To Longevity!

Image
I recorded "All I Ask of You" on my Yamaha P-515. This song brings back such wonderful memories. Setsuko and I saw a live performance of Phantom of the Opera. This song has always been one of her favorites! These pictures were again taken during our Kyoto trip. The beauty just keeps on coming! Speaking of favorites, I would today like to talk about longevity. Specifically, I would like to share some thoughts about a very informative book I just finished, "Outlive," by Peter Attia. At times, it was a challenging read as he gets pretty technical when it comes to the science and medical background he provides. However, that challenge is well worthwhile; he provides a ton of good information. The book is organized into the following sections: Part 1: The Technical Elements of Disease, the Medical Field, a Roadmap for Reading the Book Part 2: Nutrition, Cancer, Heart Disease, Memory and Alzheimer's Disease Part 3: Exercise, Stability, Nutrition, Sleep, Emotional Heal
Read more

It is Lucy Thomas Time!

Image
    These photos were taken at a Festival we attended last Saturday night. The top photo was taken during a very cool live performance. I was mesmerized by the beautiful clothing they wore! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dXWmHR7pPA The above link is to an amazing performance by Lucy Thomas when she was 13 years old. She has a voice that is out of this world! I dare you to not get goose bumps when you watch that video!  Lucy is now 19 years old. She just came out with her fifth album and is due to be starring in the musical "Rosie" in 2024. Without a doubt, she has one of the most beautiful voices I have ever heard!  She has also recorded some gorgeous duets with her sister. What a talented family! I love her song selection as she has recorded a number of songs from musicals.  One of the things that is so amazing is the passion she puts into her singing. She sings with a maturity that is much more typical of someone twice her age.  The good news is that you can access almost
Read more