Work application and revision day

I applied for a lot of jobs today.  It's not a lot since I don't need to write a cover letter or anything, just my CV.  I hope to find a part time one since I have half a day occupied with my food informatics project.

For the other half of the day, I made additional figures and tables for my revision of the final paper.  it is a lot to revise, so I am taking a lot of time!  Having 2 screens helps.  One or two more days and I will finish it hopefully!

A very friendly doggie at a flower shop.  It doesn't have a leash on it though..  

   

Party for my 89-old granpa

It was a party day!!  My grandfater will turn 89 soon, so the 10 of family members held a party at home.  We had a Japanese food catering with a lot of delicious foods, and had a cake.  We also had a photo-printed cookie!  It was amazing how they could print an image on the icing on a cookie.  We chose an old photo taken when my grandparents had dairy cattle and they won a prize for some of their cows.  My sister and I were small kids.  My family was surprised and liked the cookie.  Those were the days.

We also played a bingo with a prize.  My grandpa won first, then my granma did, which was great, the two guests won first.  There were prizes for everyone that my mum and I chose and wrapped together, and winners could choose which one to get.  We had a lot of fun!  It was also good that we had everone take turns to take a number card so that they feel they are participating.  I'm especially glad that my grandma had fun despite her hearing difficulty - a bingo is something that she could enjoy as well.  Inclusivity is about consideration to everone.

   

It was a very nice family gathering, and I'm glad I was able to attend it. I'm thankful that my family is in good terms.  

 

Hike in a park and Plant Breeding Conference

went to a park that's about 20 min away by car.  It's a huge park with lots of nature, trails, and stairs.  There are camping sites, grass area as well.  Many people were exercising, but it wasn't crowded at all.  It reminded me of hikes we went in parks in Michigan.

Then we got some food for lunch, then I attended an online plant breeding conference.  It's super convenient to be able to spend some time at a park in the morning and then attend a conference later in the day.  I was able to maximise my day!  The conference is interesting.  It's my second time attending the conference; the last year's was also online.  The convenience of online conferences...!  I wish they had it on weekdays, though.  It was a public holiday Thursday, but attendees cannot take a day off on Friday to make it a long weekend! 

This has 365 stairs!  Middle school students were running up and down the stairs with sweat trickling down their face and body.  It was inspiring to see how intense they are training. They are in a soccor club, not track and field!  It was very polite of them to say Hello to us.   

Beautiful lights shining through the trees

It was interseting to see some shrines inside the park as well. 

 

Data analysis, Michigan necklace, and a weekend conference

A lower peninsula-shaped necklace - a fantastic souvenir of Michigan! 

It was a data analysis day!  I had to look up old data collected in 2018 and 2019 to do some additional analysis..  It takes time because I need to remember what I did and do it the same way as I did two years ago to be consistent in methodology.

It takes some time, but I made good progress with it.  Almost done... 

Then I wrote a paragraph about Campus Edge Fellowship activities that I attened.  It was such a special group to be a part of.  I'm thankful that I was able to make a lot of friends.

It'll be a  public holiday tomorrow on Thursday.  It's kinda strange to have a holiday in the middle of the week.  Over Thursday-Saturday, I will attend an online conference of Japan's Plant Breeding Sciety. I hope to find some interesting research projects...  But why do they do it over a long holiday (if you are able to take a day off on Friday, it will be a 4-day weekend!!)  This epitomizes Japanese culture that values diligence..

Got a ukulele!

Finally I made up my mind to take up a new instrument while I wait for a chance to sing in a choir again.  I had been thinking about learning a ukulele for half a year, so it's high time, and I will probably not regret even if I do not like it or lose interest.

The mall was not crowded at all, which is great.  A friendly shopstaff helped me choose a good ukulele for me.  The size is important: a soprano is the smallest one, which has narrow flets.  Women and children often play a soprano ukulele.  A larger one is a concert-size ukulele.  It's an alto ukulele with a louder and lower sound.  It seems to be a standard size, but it looked like some flets were wide and it may be hard for me to press down some chords?

I ended up choosing a soprano ukulele, Famous FS-1G, thinking that narrower flets would be easier for me to handle.  I also chose a smaller guitar when I was playing the guitar, but still it was hard to press down some chords because my hand was small. (or maybe I didn't practice enough to be able to open it wider?  When playing the piano, I can open my hands wide open and I don't have any difficulty playing most pieces)

The wood is also important for ukulele sound - spruce, mahogany, and coa are commonly used.  Spruce makes crisp and clear sound, while mahogany makes soft and mellow sound.  Coa is in between.  I liked coa best when I looked at ukulele in Michigan, but it is expensive!  Also whether the wood is laminated or is a single board also influences how expensive it is.  I got a laminated mahogany, a typical one for a beginner.  There was a better sounding one with a laminated Ovangkol, Cotone CS3S.  It is more expensive but makes crisp and good sound.  The price difference speaks.  Ovangkol is a legumious tree spicies found in Africa.. Intersting.  But for now as a beginner, I picked a basic one.  I can get a high-end one if I become a good ukulele player.  

Anyways... It's exciting to have a new instrument!  It's also cool to carry around an instrument because I don't get to do it as a singer and a piano player.  I'm practicing the very first "You are my sunshine". 

I hope to play some songs for my aunt, who does Hawaiian dancing!

  

Chat & History course on a public holiday

It was a relaxing Holiday..  Respect for the Elderly day.  We just stayed at home because we will be celebrating my grandfather's 90th birthday next week. 

I got to catch up with a good friend of mine over a video chat. It was fun and inspiring!  

I finished taking the History course!  That's a 7 week course with LOTS of videos covering from 1750 to 1910.  Those 150 years were an era of revolution and drastic changes.  It was so interesting that I bought a used book of world history graphics to supplement my learning.  The course was only Part One, though!  I wonder if I will take the second half of it with another 7 week schedule.  I'm sure I'll learn a lot from it despite it being very depressing with wars and invasions.  

 

Visited the older family member and youngest family member visited

It was a beautiful day, a perfect one to visit my grandmother's cemetary on top of a mountain.. The view is gorgeous.  I hope she likes it there..  It's a time of year to visit and pay respect to the deceased.

We dropped by at a observation spot on the way back.  It was quite windy but was beautiful. Such a nice family outing day. 

At night, my sister, brother in law, and my niece visited for dinner.  We prepared a lot of food but we ate a lot, too.  It was amusing to see my 8-months old niece, able to sit, stand, and make some noise.  Babies grow up so fast!!

 

Vege-ful sandwich and Kyoto

I walked to the shopping mall for exercise to buy a T-shirt, had a sandwich for lunch.  It was the healthiest sandwich I have ever had!

Following that, I just chilled and relaxed, ran some errands.  It was a peaceful Saturday with a beautifully sunny weather. 

I chatted with one of my friends in Michigan and we are dreaming about living in Kyoto... an old capital of Japan with LOTS of historic shrines and temples and season's beauty.  It'd be amazing to live there!  It has been my dream to live there since high school (I considered going to Kyoto University!), and now i have a chance to choose where I live!

   

Long walk, Typhoon, and almost done revision

Tried really hard to finish making figures and revision, but a bit more work to do left... Oh well.  Things always take longer than I expect.  I will finish it sometime next week.

I took a long walk again in the new neighbourhood.  Explored unfamiliar routes is really fun. It's a brain exercise to try to remember the way I came and think which road leads to which way!

We brought in a lot of plants inside last night because of a typhoon.  It hit the northern part of Kyushu bringing a lot of rain, but it didn't rain much here.  It's windy, but it's managable.  Taking in the plants was an exercise.  I had to sleep in a different room as my bedroom was occupied by plants. 

Now it's very sunny, windy, and nice!!  The laundry will dry well for the first time in 4-5 days!!

 

Work at a cafe & mauscript revision almost done!

I really wanted to finish revision of my paper yesterday, but couldn't... I spent too much time doing extra analysis to choose the best method!

I should balance speed and quality, but I don't want to do a job that I am not 100% sure.  I would rather check everything and take my time.

I went to a cafe in the morning to do the work for a change.  It was nice to change the work environment, and I was able to focus as there was a right amount of noise of people quietly chatting and a soft mellow music.

A typhoon is approaching, which is likely to hit half of Japan.  I'm so glad I can work from home!! 

One more day, and I will finish revision on Friday!

Data analysis & Walk in a new neighbourhood

Continued on doing multivariate analysis..

It's been raining or cloudy for a week or so now and the laundry feels damp..

The pademic doesn't seem to completely sease in the near future, which is depressing, but maybe it's a good chance to establish working remotely.  I feel like I want to go to a cafe or something to work.  I've been stuck at home for 2 weeks.  I want a standing desk!!

I took a long walk in the neighbourhood while listning to a youtube video on "Acceptance and Committment therapy" by Lisa Laughman, a counselor at MSU.  Her soft voice is very calming..  And it was fun to walk around an unfamiliar area without looking at Google Map.  It makes my mind busy, pay more attention to what I see on the roads, and makes me try to remember the routes.  It's a great brain AND physical exercise, while listening useful videos.

And the sky was beautiful. Far back there, the sky was clear, and I could see the sea and far islands.

   

Manuscript revision & data analysis

Finally resumed revising my manuscript.  I think I need to learn how to do a multi-variate analysis, so I need to revisit which one to do and how to do it.

It was rainy all day yesterday!  It takes longer for the loundry to dry, but it still dries after 24 hours...

I went out for a brisk walk and did a dance workout despite rain.  Exercise is critical to good sleep and good performance! 

I emailed my former supervisor at the beverage company that I graduated, and they congratulated me.  I sent my acknowledgement section of my dissertation to them where I mentioned them as well as my former colleagues at the company.  I was very fortunate to have the opportunity to work as a researcher there after getting a BSc with very kind and cooperative colleagues. 

We made miso paste from scratch!  I will take 2-3 months until it's ready.  I drew cute beans for its storage box.  They look like common beans, of course, but what we use for miso is soybeans, not common beans. but... anyways they are colorful and fun to draw!

    

Reviewed a manuscript!

 I got a request to review a research article submitted to a journal.  It's an honour to peer review other researchers' work, and I learn a lot from reading it, too.

As expected, it took a lot of time and I ended up spending the whole day just reviewing it.  I couldn't revise my own manuscript yesterday, but it's ok.. I provided service to profession!

I played a really expensive piano on display in a music instrument store.  It's super expensive, but the sound and key touch were both fantastic.  It really felt like a real piano.  Often, inexpensive models have heavy keys and makes loud noise when you hit the keys. But this one doesn't have that at all, and makes really beautiful piano sound that is just like the real one.

In addition, the headphones that were displayed for test play were also amazing.  When I put on them and played the piano, I thought the piano itself was producing the sound and I was hearing it from it, not from my headphones.  It was hard to believe.  The headphones are developed just for an electric piano.  Amazing!!   

Awesome headphones, $200!!

A wonderful piano, ~$4,000!!  Kawai CA9900GP.  It costs like a used car.  But if you hear its sound and feel the keys, you understand why. 

 

Home baked French rolls

French rolls

It was a cloudy/rainy Sunday, so we stayed at home all day.  We baked hard bread with a bread machine!  It was my first time to use a bread machine.. It's very convenient!  I don't need to kneed and rest to make a dough.  You just put ingredients into the machine, and it will make a dough for you taking a couple hours.

If you are making a 'normal' loaf with butter milk? in it, you can continue the process to bake. And it will bake the dough in a square metal box to make a loaf.  But you can also take out the dough, shape it, and bake in an oven.  That is what we did this time; we took out the hard dough, cut it into smaller pieces, and baked it. 

We got real French rolls!!  It took 2 hours to make the dough (although the bread machine did it), and another 2 hours to shape, rest, and bake it.  Bakers are a physically demanding job!  But hand-made bread was really tasty.  I love the stretchy texture with plenty of bubble pockets.  It's hard to find this kind of bread at local bakeries; I would need to go to a fancy department store.

Laylah and Emma

Then we just chilled out...  It was gloomy with a sign of rain, but I managed to take a walk in the evening.  I listened to the interviews of the US open ladies single finalists: Laylah Fernandez and Emma Radukanu.  They are both under 20 and played really good tennis in US open!  It was impressive and inspiring!   

I finished week 6 of the history class. One more week to go!! 

 

Park, Stake, and an Old tie

Finally the weekend came!

An excursion to a park

My mum and I were going to a park for a walk, and we left... but we couldn't make it to the park!! lol  I think I set a wrong destination on the navigation.  One of those built-in navigations... it's very different from google map directions and is cumbersome to operate!  We have'nt been there really as It's a bit far away from our place.

We ended up arriving at a small park that's near our original destination, and we strolled around that area.  It was fun as well - we enjoyed viewing different kinds of trees and climbed up to the top of an observation deck, which is around 5 stories tall.  We walked less than we planned, but it was fun!  Next time we will get to the park we aimed at, now that we are more familiar with the area there. 

Steak!

Then, we went to a steak restaurant.  We had filet steak, which is lean meat and was so delicious!  I'm glad to have lean meat for the first time in a while.. as my dad likes fatty meat and he's the one who cooks...  Red meat consumption maybe should be like this - only an occasional treat, given its heavy environmental burden.

It was overcast all day with periodic rain.  It's nice that it's cool, but it's hard to dry laundry outside now!

I heard from a friend in Singapore.  It turned out that she came to Tokyo for the Olympics to accompany Singapore's athlete contingent.  I'm so glad she and her group were able to stay healthy and left safely.  It's such an unusual situation to be confined to their acommodation and play the Olympic games with no spectators.  It must've been an experience.  I hope to see her again in Japan or in Singapore soon!!  

Writing an article and taking history class

Article outline done!

I finally finished writing the outline of the article about writing research papers in English.  That was a lot of work..

It was hard to orgnize what I will write because there are many topics that I could go into.  But I should avoid points that are the same as writing research papers in Japanese.  I've never written a paper in Japanese, so I dont' know how different it is actually from my first-hand experience, but anyways...

History class 

I'm also trying to finish my history class.   I'm in week 6 and there are 7 weeks of lesson videos.  A little bit more to go.  I'm learning a lot, and I'm really glad that I took this class.  The professor gives lectures describes historical incidents in detail, their background, "why" they happened, and put them into context.  What people were thinking at that time?  What made them decide to do the thing they did?

However, I don't know how to describe how I feel when I watch the lesson videos; while I find the learning part very interesting, I am hesitant to say 'interesting' as if it were an intellectual pleasure, something that are welcome to happen.  There are too many brutal incidents and fatalities in history to call the whole story 'interesting'.  I just feel that all human beings should know history so that we will learn from it and will not make the same mistake again.

I'm glad I came across with this class with a professor that can discuss history in an engaging way.  It really helps to have somebody who can describe the story with reality and can touch on various apects of incidents, not just who was involved, but the context, consequences, and people's reactions, and what all those meant.

 I have't been able to work on my manuscript very much this week!  I still have some time as it's due early next month, but I will be efficient next week!

Flowers

"Dead pepple receive more flowers than the living ones because regret is stronger than gratitude."  -- Anne Frank

Gosh, this is so so true.

English test and other tasks

I took an English grammer test to register as a freelance research consultant!  It's so nice to find such an opportunity.  But the test was a bit nerve-wracking; it had 20 questions to be answered in 30 minutes, you cannot go back to the previous questions, and you have only ONE attempt!  If you pass, you can upload your CV to be considered. 

The questions had only a short sentence or paragraph.  They asked which choices are most grammatically correct and concise to replace a part of the passage.  I don't know how this will be important for research consultant because this test seemed to be for proofreaders and medical writers.  But this means this test is for native English speakers.  So, it's interesting that what they take to register as a writer or a checker.

I'm glad I passed!  I had a plenty of time left, and for most questions I was able to answer with confidence.  The site does not say how many questions I got right, but I was able to put in my info and upload my CV.  Phew.  I hope I'll get a project!!

Then I went back to doing some more analysis and writing the article outline as well.  I need to prioritize the latter because it is due tomorrow!

Busy Wednesday with paperwork, manuscript revison etc.

The weather has been very nice and cool.  I'm so glad that I only had 1-2 days of hot and steamy days here.

I'm getting busy with lots of paperwork, revising work, and job-hunting related stuff.  I still need to work on my paper, the last one, for journal publication.

My restlessness seems to have subsided mostly... I finally seem to have accepted and got used to my new life in Japan.

I'm taking an English grammer test to register as a freelancer for a company.  I have no idea how difficult it is, but we will see.

I need to finish writing the outline of an article this week, as well!

やることがたくさんになってきた！ とりあえず携帯契約したいなあーー 明日にはできるといいな。

フリーランス登録のための英語試験を受けます！！ 文法試験らしい。がんばろーー

日本にいることが未だに信じられなかったけど、だんだんなれて、受け入れられた、かな？ 社会保障があることはありがたい...。長期的にできる仕事がしたいな。何がしたいだろうなー でも何がというよりは、職場環境とか働き方の方が大事な気がするな。模索は続く。

  

Revise my paper and write an article

Yesterday was a work day.

I did some additional analysis on the paper we submitted.  There are some things that need a major revision, and that will take some time.  Phew..  It's good to have some things to do while I look for a job.

Another thing to work on is the article I need to write about writing papers in English.  An outline for this is due this Friday.

I hope to finish them this week!

MIchigan gummies that I gave my sister.  It's Michigan shaped and is so cute!!

Monday just flew by

I was able to talk with a friend over a video chat and catch up with her.  I'm thankful to be able to keep in touch with friends!  I miss hanging out with her, and I miss living in Michigan.

I had an interview with a recruiting firm.  I was asked what I want to do in the long run, but it's hard to know.  I wish I knew that..

While looking for a job, I need to revise one more paper!  And I want to finish the courses that I have not had time for!!

I've been tryinig to buy a SIM card and my credit card has been rejected for some reason, I don't know why.... uhh

It's been very cool these days.  We can just keep the window open and we don't need AC anymore!  It's such a nice feeling.

My sister came to visit, and I got to see my niece again for the first time in 8 months. She grew a lot and is almost standing up.  I gave her a Spartan T-shirt.  It's for 3 year olds, so she may need to wait a little bit, but I'm looking forward to seeing her wearing it :) 

A cat seemed to have hopped on my mum's car and played around.  We saw its footprints on the windshield.  It's so cute to find them.

 

A family day

I was able to see my grandparents and my uncle who are all living close to us.  It was a nice family reunion.. They are doing well mostly, though they have some issues related to their age.  Nothing beats in-person interaction, and seeing my grandparents make me glad I came back.  But at the same time, I want to live abroad again and want to work in an English speaking country.  It's really hard!

What one of my friends told me just before I left has been resonating in my mind for a while.  When she asked me why I leave the US, I said because my family is there. Then she said I can start my own in the US.  I did not think about it very deeply at that time, but it has been in my mind for quite a while.  My parents, grandparents, and sister, all have their own family, and they will be together wherever other family members will be.

I'll see where I will go next..

The weather is getting cooler, which is really nice!!

I found unbrellas of the internet game I like at a convenience store.  I like the very artistic patterns.

 

A day off - Italian, lipstick, and Kyoto

It was a relaxing Saturday.  We cleaned the apartment, then went to have Italian lunch.  I went to that restaurant for the first time in 2 years or so.

Despite the high number of cases in big cities, our city has fewer number of cases and the situation is more under control than other places.  Still, we are always wearing masks and not going outside the prefecture that much.  A little bit more of wait, and the situation will improve, I think...

I got a new lipstick for the first time in a while.  Familiarity is nice, but I've already kinda getting bored of this small city.  But it's also partly because I cannot see my friends in person.  It's nice to have family members to talk with, though.  I should look at the bright side of things!!  I want to have some work, maybe, to distract myself, feel recconnected to the society, and talk with other people outside my family.

I chatted with a friend of mine in Kyoto.  She's from Tokyo, but is working there and living by herself.  It's really nice to live in the old capital city, as there are many many historic sights there.  I think I want to live in Kansai area so that I can visit those places often.  It's a very touristy place, but is less crowded because traveling is discouraged. If I were to live there, I would probably have to choose an apartment without actually seeing it.  It's not ideal, but it's OK, I guess..

  

  

City hall and a haircut on a rainy day

I finally went to the city hall, checked in myself, got national health insurance, and applied for exemption for national pention enrollement.  That was a lot of paperwork!  Not the most exciting thing to do, but I'm glad the city hall wasn't crowded at all, and I didn't have to wait for long.  I think that's because it was rainy.  Rain is nice, it makes it much cooler. 

I also went to the police station to change my address on my driver's license.

Then I went to have a haircut for the first time in over 2 years!  It's great to have my hair cut and done professionally.  Stylists were very fashionable there, good examples to study.

I also took the second covid test just in case, 3 days after arrival to my hometown.  I'm grateful that I can take this test for free as many times as I want if moved from other cities/prefectures.  Negative result again, so that's good news.  The vaccination rate is increasing, and the number of cases decreasing.  A bit more patience, and there will be a light at the end of the tunnel.

Paper revision #1 is almost done!  Working on my paper reminds me of working in the US, my colleagues, classmates, friends, and the beautiful things about Michigan.  I really should and want to focus on the good things about my current situation, not what could have, would have, or should have, and indeed there are great things about living in Japan as well.  But I need some exciting thing (work?) to keep me engaged and focused. 

 

Job hunting & looking around

It was super hot and humid yesterday, and there was a downpour several times, like ones in the tropics!  I turned on the AC in my mother's room and worked there since it was unbearable in the living room! 

I was hoping that it would be cooler cos the temperature is lower, but the humidity offsets that.  A couple more weeks till the weather is nice...?

I started looking for a job in data science, interenational students' offices.  I'm interested in working in a global environment!  And what I'll do may not really matter...?  But I'm kinda hesitant to move away from research, just because I've done it for many years.  It's the concorde effect.  What could be an alternative?  That's another question that I'm wondering for a while now.

I also met with a recruiter at a human resource company to discuss potential positions I could apply for.  Here it is the job hunting process again~~  I just need to be patient and wait.  I sent my CV to a research consultant company, so I hope to hear back from them, too..! 

 

Home sweaty home..

It's so hot and humid!!  It's expected, but it's almost like being in the tropics.  The problem is that my dad doesn't like having the AC on during the day (it's the hottest time in the day, isn't it??), so the whole unit is hot.  There's wind that helps, but still sometimes it's not enough.  Oh I've been reminded of what it's like to live in Kyushu and what it's like to live with someone, both good and bad.

The good thing is that I don't have to cook and food is delicious, and it's nice to have someone to talk with.  It's a quiet neighbourhood.

I edited my article, updated my resume and CV, and took some history course classes.  I feel like to learn some more data analysis skills, but I'm not sure which one to start with.  I'd rather know which one is useful because there are so many programming languages and softwares out there, and each one takes a long time to get used to.  But maybe not.  I could start a random one and start playing with it.  That experience will perhaps be useful sometime in the future..?

Pandas-olympics-themed sweets I got at the airport.

 

 

Flying home and settling down for now

After 2 weeks + 2 days in Narita, I flew back to my hometown.  It was a beautiful sunrise at 5:30 after a thunderstorm. I will miss this hotel.  This was way better than a usual shoebox business hotel.  There was a service to ship packages from the hotel as well as shuttle service to the airport!

On the way to the airport, I saw a few other similar hotels like Hilton and ANA in the mountains. There are no shops or supermarkets within walking distance, so it'd have been very inconvenient to stay there for a long time (unless you have money to order UberEats or something every day!).

My flight was kinda crowded... not full, but the front half of the plane was almost full, and the middle seats were empty in the rear half.  I got a lot of sweets as a Tokyo souvenir as my mother asked me.  I'm glad some shops were open.  

Then I came back.. took a PCR test again for free!  I couldn't believe how smooth it was.  There's much more improvement in the system compared to last year, when there was no testing either when arrived in Japan or my hometown.

So.. that was very smooth.. My father picked me up at the station, and I was settled.  We did some DIY to build my temporary office like carrying some shelves around and making a nice table .  It was actually fun.  It's still surreal that I'm back here in Japan.

The sky was beautiful!