Spring Cleaning [春の大掃除]

In Japan many people do their big cleaning at the end of the year. In the US we do it in the springtime.  It feels so wonderful outside, so it's great to open the windows and enjoy the day from indoors and out.

This spring, we've been cleaning out our house, getting rid of things we don't need, so we can enjoy the things we really care about. I can't say we are minimalists, but we are working on moving in that direction. Of course while cleaning up we found things we were looking for, things we forgot we had, and things we never even knew were here!

There's a point of advice Miu keeps repeating, "If even one thing doesn't have a place to be put away, the room will get messy." So we're trying to find a home for all of the things we really want to keep, so our rooms won't get messy (for a while anyway).

単語集
get rid of　処分する、捨てる
work on　取り組む
minimalist　断捨離主義者
direction　方向
put away　片付ける、しまう
messy　散らかした、汚い


わかった？確認しよう！
アメリカで一年の大掃除はいつする？
片付けたらどんなものを見つけた？
言われたアドバイスによると、どうして部屋が汚くなる？

このブログを聞いてみてね！ 

Gardening [畑]

I planted vegetables in my garden this year! I don't have a lot of space, but I think its enough. This year I'm starting out simple, with okra and shiso. I'm going to plant tomatoes in our green house too. In the future I want to grow beans and peanuts too.

When I was a kid we grew corn, tomatoes, and string beans. I remember digging in the dirt and watering the plants in the evening. It's really nice to be growing vegetables again.

単語集
plant　植える・植物
enough　十分
green house　ビニールハウス
bean　豆
string beans　インゲン豆
dig　掘る
dirt　土


わかった？確認しよう！
今年何を畑に植える？
将来的に何を育てたい？
子供の時何を育っていた？

このブログを聞いてみてね！ 

Kochi Castle [高知城]

I visited Kochi Castle the other day for an English guided tour. I learned a lot of facts about the castle from the guides. One of the cherry trees at Kochi castle is the sign for when they start blooming and when they are in full bloom. I was lucky to see the trees in full bloom. There are some interesting points to see when visiting Kochi Castle. Outside the main gate there are some katakana characters hiding in the wall. It's fun to try to find them. Since Kochi gets a lot of rain every year, the castle has special gutters to keep the water moving. You can see the gutters and the stains on the walls from the water that came off them. There are also iron spikes and trick gates to stop attackers. I was interested in the black walls on parts of the castle. I asked if they were painted black, but they are actually burned! This is to stop pests from eating the wood. I had a great time learning about Kochi Castle.

I hope if you visit you get a guided tour too!

単語集
the other day　先日、この間
cherry tree　桜の木
bloom　咲く
in full bloom　満開である
character　文字
gutter　溝
stain　染み
spike　先の鋭くとがったもの
gate　門
burn　焦げる
pest　害虫

分かった？　確認しよう！
カタカナの文字はどこにある？
高知城は雨水からの損害をどのように防いでいた？
高知城に攻撃から守るための物はどんなのがある？

このブログを聞いてみてね！ 

My Christmas experiences in the USA [私のアメリカでのクリスマス経験]

In my house we decorated a tall Christmas tree with many ornaments. Every year we got a new ornament to put on the tree as a present. We also put up stockings over our fireplace. The night before Christmas we would finish wrapping our presents for each other and put them under the tree. Each of us gave everyone else a present or two. So I gave a present to my dad, a present to my mom, a present to my brother, a present to my sister. My brother gave a present to my dad, a present to my mom, a present to my sister, and a present to me, and so on. Then on Christmas morning we would find those presents and presents from Santa as well. Our stockings would be full of candy and small gifts too.

We always took it easy on Christmas day, staying home, playing with our new presents and toys, and spending time together as a family. The next day we sometimes went to play with our friends and see what new toys they got for Christmas.

In Japan there are lots of images of fried chicken or turkey dinners around Christmas, but my family didn't have a special dinner for Christmas. We had our big feast with a roast turkey for Thanksgiving, so we didn't need to repeat it. We did always make cookies though. The three kinds of cookies our family always made were speculaas cookies, Russian teacakes, and rocky road fudge bars. When I think of food at Christmas, I think of those cookies.

単語集

decorate　飾る
stocking　クリスマスプレセント専用ソックス
fireplace　暖炉
wrap　包む 

分かった？　確認しよう！

どういう風にプレゼント交換した？
クリスマスの日はどんな事をした？
私の家族はクリスマスにどんな食べ物をよく作って食べていた？

このブログを聞いてみてね！ 

Hidaka Mohei Marathon [日高村のもへいマラソン]

Hidaka Village has a running event every November. It's called the Mohei Marathon. The name comes from our village mascot, Mohei. He is a ninja that trained in a cave in our village.

The event has a half-marathon section, a 10k section, and a 3k section. I've run in the 10k section a few times. I don't really like running long distance though.

When I was in school we had to run a mile. A mile is about 1.6 kilometers. I was surprised that in school here students have to run 3 kilometers.

I'm happy to see many people that like running. And I'm happy to see so many people, about 1400 runners, come to our village every year. Good luck to everyone participating!

単語集

village　村
cave　洞窟
section　部
distance　距離
though　でも・けど
mile　約1.6キロメートル
participate　参加する

分かった？　確認しよう！

日高村は毎年何のイベントを開催している？

いつ頃開催する？

「もへい」という名はどこから来た？

マークはどの部に参加したことがある？

マークは走るのが好きと言っている？

マークは何を見て喜んでいる？

このブログを聞いてみてね！

Thanksgiving [サンクスギビング・収穫感謝祭]

My favorite American holiday is Thanksgiving. Most people have a big dinner with their family. Popular foods at Thanksgiving are turkey, potatoes, sweet potatoes, cranberries, and dessert pies. A lot of people watch American Football on TV or play with their kids outside.

At Thanksgiving we have a chance to think about the things we are thankful to have. I'm thankful for my family, my friends, my education, good food, and my home. What are you thankful for?

I've read that people are happier when they think about what they're thankful for. I think it's good idea to make a list and read it every morning. That way we start our day off well. It's easy to have a good day when you focus on the things you do have.

単語集

popular　人気ある
turkey　七面鳥
thankful to have/thankful for　あってありがたいなと思う
education　教育
start（何か）off　始める
focus on　～に集中する・～に注目する

フレーズ分解

a chance to think about the things we are thankful to have
a chance to think　というのは「考える機会」という意味です

the things we are thankful to have　の意味は「持っていて、ありがたいなと思うもの」

I've read that people are happier when they think about what they're thankful for.
I've read that～　 私は～と読んだことがあります
people are happier when~　～の時人々はより幸せになる
they think about what they're thankful for　彼らは何に感謝するかを考える

分かった？　確認しよう！

マークの一番好きなアメリカの休日は何という？

この休日には大きなご馳走をするけど、その人気の食べ物は何がある？

この休日には何について考える機会？

マークは毎朝何をしたらいいと言っている？

このブログを聞いてみてね！

Welcome to our Home on the Web

Hello from Hidaka!

I'm Mark, from English Builders. This is a holding page while we put some content together. If you happen to find this before we have anything substantial up here, sorry about that and hold on tight!

We'll be bringing you language learning content and tidbits of what life is like in Kochi Japan.