My Essay
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SURPEISE on Father's Day!
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Last Sunday
It was the father's day in Japan.
My daughter said,
"We tend to forget the father's day,
because it comes after the Mother's day."
I was so disappointed that I buried myself to working
in front of computer.
One hour later,
I sensed someone approaching behind.
My daughter, my son, my wife were standing there
with two big boxes in their hands.
I was surprised.
And
I was impressed when I opened them.
A Harley die-cast model was in there.
( 17 july 2005)
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Road trips make us young and positive
Road trips gives us a chance to meet new people
Road trips make us strong and active
Road trips give us a clue to success in a new life
That's why we're still on the raod.
( April 2004 )
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There are plenty of fish in the sea.
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There are plenty of fish in the sea.
There are plenty of cattle in the field.
There are plenty of stars in the sky.
There are plenty of Harleys in Sturgis.
There are plenty of friends in my eyes.
There are plenty of memories in my mind.
(2004 Jan. 7)
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Forever riding,
Forever learning,
Forever dreaming,
Forever young.
(2003 03 Aug)
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My daughter is 13 years old.
Today, as soon as she came back from school early, she went to the elementary school where she had attended.
Do you know why?
In Japan,
on Saint Valentin Day,
a girl give chocolate to a boy closest to her heart and she can confess her love to him.
I mean,
she can say, "Be my boy!"
And my daughter made it.
She went there to present him with this chocolate which had been made by her and mom.
I got a little as tasting the previous day.
I have never eaten such a sweet chocolate.
Now she has an enchanted smile.
I hope she will find and choose a good guy as Mom did.
From my friend, Pennie.
Ahhhh, young love!
It is the same here on Valentines day.
There is much chocolate being sent around here today also.
As well as cards and flowers.
It seems that this young girl of yours is growing up to be a young lady.
It makes us old......
(14 February 2003)
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Riding on a Harley Davidson !
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I learned to ride on a Harley Davidson.
On that first ride in USA, I don't remember doing any ride myself.
But I do remember that my world changed from a familiar, comfortable space
to the vast empty rider's world.
What an intense delight it is to ride on a Harley Davidson!
I'm not sure why it is so different from an automobile,
but
it must come from the intimate presence of the air
streaming past and around you.
You can thrust your arm out of the motorcycle
and press back against the flow of air;
you can lean to the side,
and the air will force tears from your eyes
and rush into your lungs.
And you can look straight into space, down to the earth, and up to the sky,
with nothing between you and the whole world.
Harley Davidson is not a protective shell, as an automobile is,
but an extension of your body, moving as you do.
Riding on a Harley Davidson
is
the purest experience of the traveler on earth's surface.
(7 January 2003)
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A Bath Time Story with My Son
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For two days a big typhoon has been approaching my town.
We have had much rain.
I rode back my Harley Davidson listening to the sound of thunder from my office.
(Of course, that morning it was fine.)
My son Keisuke played at sandbox in the park without any umbrella.
We returned home getting wet through.
"I'm home." we said together and laughed.
We took a hot bath. ( It is Japanese custom. )
We washed each other's body with soap.
"Did you have a good time today?"
"Yes, as I dug a hole in the sandbox, much water came out. The deeper, the more."
"Sound interesting.
You found another aspect in our ordinary life.
If you can see what everybody see and think what nobody think,
you will be a Nobel Prizes Winner someday."
"How about you? Dad?"
"I found we should be broad-minded enough to enjoy the elements, including sudden change of weather."
"Why?"
"Why?...Because we are alive."
"..............."
"Yes, alive on the mother earth."
We talked about what it is like to be a man.
(October, 2002)
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This is the last night of our adventure.
5 thousand miles down a few hundred miles to go.
I have stayed away from the web site so I would not influence it or be influenced by it.
I look forward to seeing our journey through another eyes and culture.
Before his arrival,
Haji said "I have 15 months experience and ride like a tortoise in Japan."
I was concerned.
In America, you ride like a tortoise,
you end up "Road Kill".
Haji has ridden 5 times longer than he had ever ridden in one day
and in conditions he had never experienced,
through heat and cold, hail, high winds, and rain so severe that the lightening was our only guide to the road,
through it all Haji handled himself like he was born on a bike.
Haji likes American "Nicknames" and his skill and perseverance have earned him one.
To all who have followed our adventure let me introduce
"Haji Davidson" my friend and brother rider,
I look forward to our next adventure.
From Pat Shine (17 August 2002)
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18th Marriage Anniversary!
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18 years have passed since I got married to Akemi.
I spend a beautiful life with her.
For 18 years, almost everyday I say,
" I love you."
I like to say, " I love you" like Americans.
But she seldom says that.
I never forget the day she said in a weak voice,
"Me, too".
It was the day when our first baby in her stomach came near to coming earlier than we had expected.
That baby is now taller than her mother, Akemi.
I know well she has a sweet heart.
Her sweetness always surrounds me softly.
The other day, my sister said to her,
"Hi! Akemi.
This summer my brother is up to something again.
He always tries to do what he wants to do.
He is a dream-maker.
But he is happy and lucky enough to get married to you.
You always allow him to do what he wants to do.
You have a big and sweet heart………
You are the best wife for him.
I am relieved."
I said to myself,
"Me, too!"
(20 July 2002)
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The Philosophy of A Man in his Forties
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Don't talk about the past a lot.
Don't complain about the present a lot.
Don't give up the future at all.
過去を熱く語りたくないし、 今を愚痴りたくもない、明日を夢みていたい。
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Have a lot of adventures!
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Our principal makes it a rule to give a morning speech every month.
He always introduces a book to all of the students.
True, it sounds good for students, but I am fed up with it.
What is the most important thing for students?
I want him to say,
"Have a lot of adventures!"
In Japan,
most teachers tend to tell the students not to do this and that.
To teach survival techniques is one thing,
but to avoid taking any risk is another thing..
Teachers, especially principals, tend to pay too much attention to
avoiding their responsibility.
As a result,
Students tend to forget to cherish wild dreams.
I don't know the best way to solve this problem.
But I believe
we, adults, have to enjoy ourselves and have a dream.
We need to show young people how great our life is.
Is it difficult for us to do it?
Well,
I want to say to my students,
"Experience a lot of adventures, when you are young."
(19 July 2002)
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Have you ever heard of this American slang?
"Sunny side up"
Its meaning is "(of an egg) Fried one side only, not turned over in the pan".
and
Do you know this phrase?
"Look on the sunny side of something."
Its meaning is "Think something optimistically"
American riders love this phrase.
"Sunny side up, Rubber side down"
In this phrase,
"Sunny" stands for sun or sky.
and
"Rubber" stands for wheels
Its meaning is that
when riders ride a bike, the wheels are on the ground, the sun is above your head.
They don't like being turned over,
They like to take it easy.
In short,
"Happy Safe Riding".
That is why my policy is "Keep the Sunny Side Up!"
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In California,
I have seen a bumper sticker whose letters were
"Keep On Truckin' "
I do know the meaning.
Driving pick-up trucks is more fun than driving cars.
Everybody in California loves pick-up trucks,
so do I.
But one of my friends told me another meaning of this phrase.
What he said made me love this phrase more.
"Even if you have any problems,
don't let your problems get you down.
Keep moving on."
It impressed me a lot.
That is why I named the subtitle of my homepage
"Keep On Harley...forever !"
Its meaning is
"Be gentle but wild
and
stay young!"
Are you ready to hit the road?
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The Concept of My Homepage
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Nowadays
everybody says we Japanese are poor at speaking English
even if we have studied it for 6 years.
Why can't we Japanese speak English well?
Is this because of our poor English curriculum, which is made
by the Ministry of Education?
Or
the Japanese English teachers' speaking skill isn't good enough?
I think that is an excuse.
It is all the same even if we discuss this matter from this side of view.
I think it is because of our comfortable society
that we manage to earn our living without speaking English.
If you want to speak English, you have to use it with fun.
We'd better use English as often as possible.
That is why I decided to make this homepage in English.
American life style, Harley Davidson, Pick-up trucks.
I focus on my favorite themes.
Most importantly,
I want to enjoy myself and have fun.
I am one of the Japanese English teachers.
I know well how you have learned English in Japan.
Compared with other homepages made by an American,
I use easy English on my homepage.
Don't worry about English.
Don't hesitate to read English.
If you like the American life style, Harley Davidson, Pick-up Trucks,
I am sure
you can enjoy this homepage.
You'll have improved your English ability without knowing it.
Let's get your kicks on the route to success.
(July 4 2002)
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