• Strine

    All Quiet on the Whetted Front

    Lots of appetites where wetted today, in a quiet and pleasant day. A long sleep was followed up by playtime with the bird. Then it was a short stint in the garden. By this time, Mrs. Kangaeroo had risen. So, it was a shower and off to Costco, visiting the secondhand store along the way. Upon returning, it was Death Machine time, for an unexpected and awesome ride.

  • Strine

    Not Everything About Winter is Cruddy

    Winter sucks….for the most part. Winter is cold, dark and seemingly endless and colorless. For someone whose daily routine involves rising early and cycling, winter is not exactly the pleasantest time of year. And the cold mornings start from November and linger on until deeply into April at least, and sometimes even May, so more often than not, it’s chilly at least. January ends today, so on the calendar the winter doesn’t have much more time to eat away at us. Winter can’t end soon enough for the Aussie garden at Kangaeroo Corner. Many of the plants are feeling the…

  • Strine

    Costly Bloody Crash!

    Kangaeroo’s accident this week continued to have reverberations. Although both Kangaeroo and the bloke he collided with rode away apparently unharmed from their predawn collision, costs have since mounted. The crash gave greater urgency to updating the chain and gear sprocket on La Cangura, which had been showing signs of wear for a while, and there was also a sneaking suspicion that the gear wire could probably do with replacing. That proved to be precisely the case with a visit to the Y’s Road bike store later in the day. The good news was the sprocket and cassette are still…

  • Strine

    Ouch! Taking a Tamagawa Tumble

    「Ouch!」 「バカヤロー!」 「ごめんなさい。」 「日本は左通行だよ。バカヤロー!何考えてんかよ?バカヤロー!」 Kangaeroo took a Tama River tumble today and it was entirely his fault. Taking his normal pre-dawn ride along the Tama River Cycling Road, Kangaeroo caught a glimpse of an oncoming runner just late enough to be able to swerve away from her and avoid striking her…. ….only to slam straight into another cyclist coming from the opposite direction. The immediate aftermath was the aforementioned conversation. It seemed like the other bloke and his bike were OK. We rode off in opposite directions. La Cangura is scratched and her wheels wobbly. The Wahoo mount destroyed beyond…

  • Strine

    A Sobering Thought or Two

    January 7 is a landmark date in Kangaeroo’s life. The foundation stone of his life was laid on that date. There’s no real need to go into details. Everything started from there, and the foundation is the bedrock for living to this day. Times are not great for many ordinary people anywhere nowadays. Most, probably. But on a broad scale, they are not too bad for Kangaeroo. If nothing else, Kangaeroo has health. Physical life began a long time earlier. But that alone was not sufficient. Mental and spiritual wellbeing were missing. They are largely here now….for the most part.…

  • Strine

    Bumping Into the Candyman

    Today was supposed to be a day for a new beginning. It was: just not the way it was meant to turn out. After today, Kangaeroo will be bigger and bolder. Rather than in a metaphorical sense, though, it will be a literal increase in size following a day of comfort eating to try to feel a bit better and then to compensate after gorging. An early rise was supposed to spark a trip downtown, but instead saw a return to bed. A day dedicated to seeking professional options was utterly fruitless and ended in a bitterly depressive downward spiral.…

  • Strine

    Kicking Off 2023 With Central Tokyo Loop And Super Sunshine

    If nothing else, 2023 sure started far better than the awful year of 2022 did, and eventually led to a wonderful ride focused on a central Tokyo loop. Just as had happened 12 months ago, Kangaeroo headed off on the first day of the year before the dawn. Unlike 2022, when sleet and snow had been the order of the day, 2023 was bright and clear, a much more attractive prospect even if it was still equally as cold and dark as it had been the previous annum. The objective for the day was to take part in the Half-Fast…

  • Strine

    Winter Welcomes Bountiful Birds to Tokyo’s Tama

    Winter hit Tokyo for real. Just less than a week away from Christmas, the mild weather has ended. At least for today. It’s cold and bleak. And dark. December in Japan is dark. In Tokyo, it doesn’t get light until about 6:30 in the morning. And by 4 p.m., it’s dark. Only a few days to the winter solstice. The days will slowly start to get longer. But the new year also ushers in the cold. Still, there is some brightness on the horizon. Kangaeroo’s garden has attracted some lovely visitors. Among them, Japanese tits and brown-eared bulbuls. The birdbath…

  • Strine

    There And Back Again: Oz 2022

    Kangaeroo made it back to Oz for a while in 2022. The circumstances behind the trip weren’t the greatest. But the time spent Down Under was fruitful and poignant. Kangaeroo got to catch up with lots of childhood friends. And deeply explored the places that had played an enormous role during the formative years. Thanks to an enormously kind and helpful seller on gumtree, Kangaeroo also got to move around outer eastern Melbourne on a Malvern Star! In many ways, the time spent in Australia was magical and Kangaeroo extends his deepest gratitude to all the friends, family, people, places,…

  • Strine

    Give Me, Give Me チョコレート!

     元気がなくて、めちゃくちゃへこんでいるし、怒りが治まらない!  これまでの経験によると、こういう時にどんな薬より最も効果的な対応策が何といっても「チョコレート」である!  しかし、暴食ってあまり良くないので、目で食べるという選択をし、気分転換を祈っています。  以前、イタリアで見かけたチョコレート市場の思い出のギャラリーだ。一生忘れられない!