National Chopsticks Day!

Mood:

I'm not very skilled with them yet, but it's cool that it has a national holiday.I refused to even try to use them when I was little. But, not too long ago, I tried to get into it. I'm a lot better than I used to be. Then again I don't use them all the time. As it is, I use/hold knives a bit weird too.I use them kind of like a left-handed person does, yet I tend to like to use my right hand with a lot of things. I've also been told that I'm actually ambidextrous, but I hold it even a bit odd for a left-handed person.Maybe I'm just 'different' with utensils in general...Hopefully, in the future, I'll get chopsticks down more. Even if it's oddly done. You can also cook with them, which I find kind of cool.

Felt like it was too cold to walk today, as well. I'm getting my sit-ups in, though. I think tomorrow's supposed to be warmer, so hopefully I can do those walks then. 

Tonight I tried another thing we got while we were at Costco a few days ago. It was pesto tilapia. Very tasty stuff.Had it with some small egg rolls and broccoli on the side. All of it seemed really good together and kind of filling.But, put together it ended up being low in calories, too. That's really nice. Ended up being about the amount of calories I'm shooting for in a meal. 

Today, I started watching Fukuie Keibuho no Aisatsu or Lieutenant Fukuie's Greeting. It's very interesting. Probably not the best so far, but good. I like that there's a female lead in this one. A lot of the detective shows tend to have the women as 'assistants' to the main character or a supporting character. (Yet they appear smarter than the lead...Go figure.) There are only a few that I've watched of detective/crime Jdramas that have a strong female lead. So, that's good to see. It's based on the same character from the same-titled novel by Ohkura Takahiro, it focuses on Lieutenant Fukuie and the murder cases that she handles. Her supervisor, Ishimatsu, is often exasperated by her unorthodox investigation methods. He tolerates her eccentricity since the glory garnered by her case closures are shared by him. The ME helps her out a lot with getting records, info that other investigators don't want her to have, driving her, etc. (He's in the background of the pic.) This episode was about a screenplay writer wanting to commit the perfect murder. He killed 2 people in the process. She asks very direct/blunt questions and isn't flustered or embarrassed by what others say to her. People have compared her to Colombo. I, honestly, don't see that.

I skipped Naruto Shippuden since it was labeled 'filler' and it was considered a special by other people. I'm getting tired of having them rehash everything so often.There's only so many ways a flashback can be looked at. They need to move on. I also read that this may be the last filler of the series. Well that would be nice. But, that also means it might end soon...I guess I'll just have to see. Maybe they'll get back to the battle next time. 

In Hitman Reborn, Ryohei won the Sun Guardian ring. Lussuria was scared that he'd die if he lost, since Varia 'erases' all their weak members. He was attacked by Mosca, but survived and later Varia will take him back. Then, it was the battle over the Thunder ring, which was Leviathan vs Lambo. I thought it was cool in the anime as well that they showed Lambo from 20 years in the future. He only comes out when Lambo from 10 years in the future uses his bazooka on himself. Lambo in present time is 5 years old. He doesn't seem to be able to do much, but he's stronger than he looks. He's also kind of the comedic relief of the show, although he's a very important character since he can travel through time as well. Without him it wouldn't really be a series...The weird thing is he not only travels to the future, but to different dimensions. So, things might seem the same, but aren't. I hope they explain more about his bazooka and his family in the manga. He has special skin from being struck repeatedly by lightning throughout his life. Lightning passes through him and discharges around him, missing vital organs. Meaning lightning/electricity can't do much to him. In fact, I think at one point he starts to really like being electrocuted. It's creepy.Anyways, as the 20 years in the future Lambo, he almost defeated Levi. But, he switched back to being the present 5 year old Lambo at a critical time. (The bazooka's effects only last for 5 minutes counting from that first time you use it. So, if you use it twice within that time, you'll still only have the 5 minutes from the first time you used it. Not an added 5 more.) Levi was about to skewer him alive when Tsuna stepped in and said he will not just sit there and watch while a family member is murdered. That was the end of the chapter. He didn't step into the ring, so technically he might not be disqualified. But, I think if I remember correctly they do disqualify him, but later Xanxus wants to fight him anyways for the Sky ring. 

Wrote more of the 6th story of my nightmare anthology. Played my clarinet. Did a lot of Irish tunes. Sounded pretty good this time. Apparently, my cat Rosie really loves to listen to me play. Every time I do, she runs from wherever she is and either sits right next to me on my bed (I put my chair next to my bed when I play) or on the heat vent in my room. It's like she has to listen to it up close. She also gets a really happy look on her face. (Sometimes she falls asleep to it.) I find it kind of odd that a cat enjoys it so much...But, it's nice. She's gotten more into it lately. Maybe I'm getting even better?

日本語

Studied the kanji: 坂 and 板. If 坂 is by itself it's pronounced as さか (saka). Sometimes it's pronounced as はん (han) in compounds. It means: slope, hill, incline. If 板 is by itself it's pronounced as いた (ita). Sometimes it's pronounced as はん (han) or ばん (ban) in compounds. It means: board, plank; sheet (of metal), plate (of glass), pane, slab; stage (i.e. at a theater). 板挟み or いたばさみ (itabasami): being stuck between a rock and a hard place, being in a dilemma, being torn between conflicting demands. 板塀 or いたべい (itabei): wooden fence, board fence. 板書 or ばんしょ (bansho): writing on a blackboard. 黒板 or こくばん (kokuban): blackboard. It can be a bit confusing when they use the same main 2 radicals. But, I know one adds a kanji/radical that means ground or soil or earth, and the other one adds a kanji/radical that means tree or wood. Very similar to their actual meanings with the radicals.