Plowing Through

Yes, I know 'shamusen' but about Yoshido brothers I have heard firstly from you( I have just watched their videos at the youtube:) )

Frankly, I couldn't say I don't like sound of shamusen nevertheless I don't try to like it. But its sound sounds natural.

'Shamusen' is more traditional than 'ENKA'. I guess 'ENKA' appeared after World War II. Meanwhile, 'shamusen' maybe date back to 'Edo Jidai'( Edo Period 1603-1868) or perhaps more past.

In the beginning of my life at Japan, when I was in elevator of the my apartment building togather a Japanese I couldn't know what I must say as I was leaving elevator. I say 'sayounara'(which means 'good-by') or 'mata-ne'( which means 'see you') when I leave my friends. But I couln't say this words someone that I don't know. By the time, by listening Japanese, I catched what I should say. In the daytime they say 'shi-tsu-re-i-shi-ma-su'(its pronunciation is a little bit difficult if you try to learn from book but if you once hear it from a Japanese its pronunciation is easy and beuty) in the meaning of 'excuse me' and in the evening they say 'ya-su-mi-na-sa-i' or in the polite form 'o-ya-su-mi-na-sa-i' in the meaning of 'dood night' when they leave elevator.

Mata-ne :)

Hi Lewis! I realy like my inner vision which came to my mind instantly at reading ´sprouting´something (the smile) from the edges of your lips! Nice expression, really nice and flexible language, nice lesson, clever and fruitful teacher. Yes, not the one have had such ballanced account with the student, you score the success!

Hi Anita! I have sent you a small greeting this month. There was no intention to hidden myself as an incognito. (Actually, I´ve been seen quite a lot here for the last five years.) According to the new Rules at the ´Sign in´ process I didn´t manage to put in my name there. You see I am still very litlle skilled at using the computer. Hey mate, I often feel with my intuition of somebody who I do know and lately I mused in my imagination you would come to Bojnice and would be able to look me out. (Remember your BBC office visit!) I sit in the state health-insurance company next to LIDL in Prievidza. You can´t miss it!
Sincerely, marianna Slovakia

Hi Lewis,

It has been a quiet day at the office today; I have not got lots of emails to plough through so I can get back into the swing of commenting. Thank you for your wonderful entry.

My family is well, thank you. To start with my daughter, she graduated with first-class degree in psychology from the University of Reading in 2008. She took a gap year and went backpacking around South America in February 2009. She felt in love with Rio de Janeiro, settled down there, taught English and volunteered at one of the biggest favelas (slums) in Rio, called Rocinha. She arrived home from Rio exactly on my birthday this March. At the moment she is studying for her Master’s degree as a distance learner and taking a CELTA course in London. She is flying back to Brazil in October.

My son turned 19 this February. He is doing well at high school. It is his last year and he does not know what to do in the future. We will see...

My husband and I have changed our company's profile, and we do not work in agricultural any longer. It has been a year and an half since we opened our LED lights showroom, where I work.

Well, our garden is very nice mainly in the spring when the trees are in blossom and the flowers are colourful. It is my son who keeps looking after and mowing the lawn since I have been a working woman. This is the first year that we have not grown any vegetables in our garden because we have no time for it. What a pity! But in my father’s garden there is a bumper crop of potatoes, tomatoes, cucumbers and so on. His peach trees bore so much fruit this July that we were not able to eat them all. Lewis, you should take a peek at pictures of my palm trees that I have facebooked today. I bought palm seeds on the island Majorca in 1998 and sowed them. The palms in the photos sprouted from those teeny weensy seeds. They have not flowered yet but maybe will one day.

Well that is all I have time for today. Looking forward to your next post with interest.

Have a nice weekend, everyone! Take care,

Anita from Slovakia

PS: Dear Marianna! I have read your greeting. Thanks. Anyway, I was just kidding about your incognito. I will visit you when I have the chance to go to Prievidza again, promise. See you.

Hi lewis! it's impressive the way you play with words in order to give us the large sense of them. thanks you. Of course we caught the theme!

Hi Lewis,

I'm so amazed how agricultural terms can be used in daily life; and I'm glad to be one of them sowing the seeds of ideas ....I liked Dominique's description of farming in her home country, it seems that people work really hard to bring their food home, specially when talking about Africa, well, it is known that poverty is much spread in many African countries and their main source of food are livestock and farming and these are practiced at most with traditional or low technology.

Besides its constraints, I think Africa is so diverse! its people, its language, its fruits, its colors, its nature.... just as Dominique has shown us ... and new things are found !!!!

English is a very rich language, It feels like it's a never ending learning from useful and common expressions, new (at least for me) vocabulary, slangs (one of the reason why I find it very interesting) ... I get a lot of this blog, though. It's also great to keep in touch with people around the globe.

Thank you very much!
bests,
xx

Hi, Lewis: Is there some reference to the start of the spring in your theme? Please, let me know.Beatriz. Argentina.