Not Getting Work

Work has trickled off. I am applying for jobs, but nobody is interested in me with my reputation.

School is keeping me busy. I need this.

I am cooking for the girls. They hate my cooking, but are being brave and eating it without complaint through kindness for me.

Cop A Gander At These Rippers Too...

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    今日は初めて「ワルツィング・マティルダの日」

    「ワルツィング・マチルダ」はオーストラリアの非公式な国歌というほど国内外で知られている歌だ（もしかして本当の国歌より有名かもしれない）。 　そして、オーストラリア、クィーンズランド州の田舎の町であるウィントンは4月6日をワルツィング・マチルダの日」に働きかけている。ＡＢＣによると初めて「ワルツィング・マチルダ」が公の場で演奏されたのがウィントンで1895年4月6日だったのだ。同運動支持者が全国の放送局を「ワルツィング・マチルダ」を放送するように呼びかけている。 　同曲は、テンポが良くても歌詞の内容がちょっと暗い。浮浪者が羊を盗み、警察及び農家にばれて捕まえられるより小さな池で自殺して以降幽霊が「ワルツィング・マチルダ」と続くという物語。そもそも「ワルツィング・マチルダ」の意味は、田舎で歩き回り出稼ぎする。 　歌詞には死語を含めて多くのオージー英語が使われている。例えば、jumbuckが羊のこと。そして、billabongが小さな池。Swagmanは浮浪者。それにtucker bagが食べ物を入れる袋を示す。

  • Far Canal! Had No Idea Boating Is This Much Fun!

    Tokyo is a city built on rivers and streams, and much of its history is built around waterways, yet it took until last weekend to finally enjoy a really decent yakatabune boat ride. I’ve been here for decades and been on cruises and even ridden in yakatabune, which are long, flat boats with tatami mat rooms used mostly for sightseeing cruises, but I hadn’t really cruised on one. I’d always associated them with geisha asobi, parties with geisha, and raucous, bawdy boat trips (and a look at the cruise options available will show that I’m not wrong), but that’s not really my thing these days. But I shouldn’t have put…

  • Happy Bird-thday, You Pterror!

    Today is Dino (the dinosaur)’s third birthday. Our little rosy-faced lovebird has been with us for three years, and has been pretty much a constant companion since the early days of the pandemic. She is my best mate, but at the same time, the bane of my life. She demands ceaseless attention, unless she’s laid a few eggs or found herself some paper. If she has laid, as she did to mark her third birthday, she tends to sit on the eggs in a corner of her cage. If she’s about to lay, the preceding couple of weeks are nearly constantly filled with picking up after her as she will…

  • Dark!

    It was already light when I woke at 4 a.m., but in lots of ways, it was also really dark, literally and figuratively. We had powerful winds carrying rain clouds over the Japanese capital, casting a bleak pall. But the winds also ensured the rain held off. And the YouTube algorithm picked up on a topic that touches a really raw nerve for me. I won’t write about it here because Mrs. Kangaeroo doesn’t want me to use this blog for nasty topics, but watching what came up on my feed left me feeling dark, bitter and resentful. Of course, the bleakest darkness is Monday morning! But it’ll be all…

  • Autumn Perfect For A Fall

    Autumn is finally upon us, just days before its scheduled calendar end, but that doesn’t mean it’s still not ideal for a fall. And taking that literally, I decided to head out for a ride on the Death Machine, the nickname I give to my recumbent bicycle for its propensity to make cycling strenuous and dropping a doddle. I woke well before dawn, but my bravado withered with memories of riding in the dark, which is harder on the recumbent where you’re laying down and vision is always harder, even in the best of conditions. So, I waited until almost sunrise before starting, and was rewarded with delightfully blue skies…