Daily Snapshot

Travel, Hiking & Writing To Good Health

I feel fortunate to have stumbled upon this website and I can tell you why; I thrive when I can share my experiences that I believe may guide others. So ‘posting’ on a forum where I can reach out to many like minded friends is a dream come true. This is not to be confused with the loosely used common term, ‘support groups’. Baring your soul with writing is precious. And free. Physical exertion of your muscles pumps you with oxygen and ‘happy hormones’ and is also free.

Here is who I am; I am 75 year old uber-active female, a naturalized proud US citizen with a wonderful man whom I call my hiking buddy and husband of 43 years. Steve and I truly believe that we have discovered the fountain of youth and the esoteric serum for surviving under massive pressures. Pressures of family, running and ultimately selling a large business, loss of one of our sons while the other one is still reeling from his own emotional setbacks. Then came the work of downsizing into a small condo from a huge house and belongings. Sharing thoughts, emotions and experiences became our source of sustenance that kept us going.

In early 2013 our 32-year old son was brutally taken away from us by forces that we could not defeat. Since then, I’ve produced and shared stories, putting my emotions into Amazon’s digital Kindle e-books. Another forum that I am forever thankful for.

Steve and I urge all retirees and those contemplating retirement to push your minds and muscles into venturing into various activities. Consider the activities that Steve and I have been doing together. Experiencing adventures together is important because all the adrenalin and serotonin sparks all new fires between you and your buddy. Many of our traveling and hiking adventures resulted in the books I published.

Advice # 1: Use your free frequent flyer miles to new destinations and get out of your comfort zone. We always book Alaska Airline mileage partner airlines to destinations months before, as a commitment. The accumulated air miles are a valuable part of your wealth. Do not let these free miles expire. Claim them for self-use, or at least transfer, gift or sell them. On a 2014 trip we flew to Tokyo, climbed Mt Fuji, then flew on to Dubai and continued westward circumnavigating the globe back to Seattle. On a 2015 trip to Dubai, Istanbul and Marmaris, Turkey, we traveled to Central Anatolia and climbed Emler Peak.

Advice # 2: Before you travel research exotic tours which in many cases are far different from the usual tourist packages. Sometimes prepaying them holds your commitment solidly, as we did on a few occasions. If we hadn’t prepaid the overnight Refuge on El Teide Volcano climb in Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain, we could have easily backed out. But we didn’t, even if we fell short a few hundred feet before reaching the peak. We explored Tenerife and its culture.

Advice # 3: Always keep a journal (digital or pen & paper) to write your experiences, emotions and feelings. Because those fade away if not recorded at the time. When our return flight was delayed on the Denver Airport tarmac due to thunderstorm for 90 minutes, strapped sitting in our seats, jotting down my thoughts about our Mount Elbert (highest point in the Rocky Mountains) climb in Colorado, I didn’t let the annoying delay spoil the joy of our achievement. A faint storyline and characters are now being fleshed out in my mind. It will be about unsolved murders and guaranteed to thrill my readers.

Advice # 4: I know that I could not be the only one who is humbled by grief. I danced with grief in my own way by writing about afterlife and unexplained paranormal connections. Steve and I firmly believe that we had one of those chilling encounters on a climb in the Cascades, called Hawkins Mountain. Do not allow yourself to be swallowed by grief. Face it squarely in the face and hope that those loved ones that we lost are still hovering around us.

Advice # 5: Flaunt your ‘senior’ age. You earned it! Our wrinkles represent memories, good and bad but mostly our legacy.

Call Me Old-fashioned, But…

I think it’s discourteous to answer your phone and talk to someone else while you and I are having coffee. I even think it’s discourteous to look at your phone while you and I are having coffee.

I think it’s discourteous to be looking across the room while you’re being introduced to me and you’re shaking my hand.

I think it’s discourteous to break into a conversation that I’m having with someone else without waiting patiently to be recognized. (I know you’re there; I’ll be with you in a second.)

I also think it’s discourteous to keep on talking with someone endlessly while I am patiently waiting to have a word with you.

I object to the new trend of printing everything (magazines, ads, websites, etc) in grey ink and especially on a light-colored background and in tiny print. Are you trying to minimize ink costs? Or are you just trying to make it harder for me to read? You are succeeding. I don’t like white printing on black backgrounds either. Didn’t anyone ever tell you that is very hard to read?

It annoys me when I’m waiting to get into your parking spot and you get into your car and then sit there for 15 minutes while you do whatever the hell it is you’re doing in there.

I hate paying the equivalent of $75,000 a gallon for aftershave lotion.

Do you know the definition of inkubaiter? This is when a company sells you a printer for $149.95 or less and then charges you $18.00 for each ink cartridge (plus shipping and handling) that you seem to need every time you print about 25 pages. I hate it when that happens.

I hate ordering an item for $5.95 and then having to pay $9.95 for shipping and handling.

I hate having to pay $126 a month to water my grass, another $175 a month to have it mowed and then $42 a month to have the clippings hauled away.

I don’t like micro-managers. A micro-manager is a guy who thinks you should sneeze the way that he does.

Why do so many people complain about their jobs? I hear working people talking about TGIF. I’m happy to admit that there have been times during my working career that I was a member of the CWFM club. That’s the acronym for Can’t Wait For Monday. Many times in my career I loved my job so much that I was eager to get back to work on Monday to get on with some project or other. Doesn’t anybody enjoy their work any more?

I hate being expected to tip 15-20%. For years and years, 10% was normal and acceptable. Now a nice dinner for two that used to cost maybe $40 costs $100 or more. Using the 10% guideline, the $4 tip should now be $10. That sounds fair to me. Why should it be $15 or $20? When a dinner costs $200, will we be tipping 25-30%? When a dinner costs $350 will we be tipping 60%?

Well maybe you will, but I won’t because I won’t be around.

Cherry Blossom Season Japan

Sakura – Cherry Blossoms – Japan 2015

The end of March begins the Cherry Blossom season throughout Japan. (Okinawa starts in January) The blossoms are spectacular and only last for a few days. This is our windy rainy season and not long after the blossoms appear the wind creates a beautiful flowering carpet along the tree line paths. If you’re a traveler who missed this week’s introduction do not be disappointed, as Hokkaido the island to the north will begin their celebration early next month.

We had our dear friend Margaret from Atlanta visit last week and during our travels found a few budding trees here in Yokohama, Tokyo, and Kyoto. Although a little disappointing because the full blooms were not ready for her picture taking, she only missed by a few days. I promised to send some photos of the places she visited with the now colorful display.

Hanami – picnicking under the blooming cherry tree is a custom that began during the Nara period in 710. The blooming and then falling blossoms represent a spiritual life cycle that is widely celebrated throughout the country.

I took off on a five-hour trek to view different areas of Yokohama. A combination of 11.2 miles of walking and a few train connections I managed cover a large area of the city.

I began at the Children’s Park in Hodogaya, which was occupied by you guessed many school children sitting on mats enjoying the time away from the classroom. (The Cherry blossom season usually coincides with the start of the new school year.) I discovered this park back in January during one of my walks. Adjacent to the park is a beautiful well-maintained British cemetery for the WWII veterans who died in Japan during the war. Prince William visited last month and a few days later Miwa and I hiked over to take a look. The city of Yokohama donated the land and the park is maintained by England, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the U.S.. To me it had the same feeling of peace and reverence as Arlington National Cemetery.

My next stop was Hinodecho near the bay area. They have a beautiful display along the river. Here there were food and alcohol booths along the pathway. This is the one time of year you can openly drink alcohol beverages in public without fear of breaking the law. It was noon and the pathways were filled with people out to enjoy a picnic during their lunch break. There were several boats cruising along the river with a camera in every hand. This was a joyous time and many people smiled and said “Konichiwa” to me as I passed by taking pictures of all the activities. There were lanterns strung along the river for night viewing, which I imagine will be well attended for the next few evenings.

I walked back to Sakuragicho and boarded a train to Ofuna for a two-hour hike back home. In the basement of a department store I purchased a lunch to eat somewhere along the way. Ofuna has a canal that runs to Totsuka with very nice wide walkways. I make this walk a couple times a month and today was the best by far. The temperature was approaching 70 degrees and I was wearing a short sleeve shirt for the first time this year.

Totsuka is a small suburb city and I was very surprised by how many people were out and about, especially since it was approaching 2 p.m.. Almost every space along the canal was filled with special picnic mats. There were tents with children eating sweets and many people walking their dogs. After an hour I found an available bench and sat down to eat my lunch. It was heart warming to see the many young fathers caring for their children. In traditional Japan the dads previously were not active in rearing their kids. Times have changed and I see many men enjoying their time, some acting goofy just to entertain the toddlers. The office workers were in their suits along with many elderly in their jogging outfits. Young people were taking selfies with their smart phones and the vendors were calling out for us to sample the wide variety of food offerings, a true carnival atmosphere.

The birds were singing and I spotted several heron sitting in the water cautiously eyeing the disturbances along the shore. Only another hour of walking and I will have made it back home. Even near my home the trees were just as colorful.

It seems it cannot get any better than today’s experience, but tomorrow will be another adventure.

For March I managed to walk 460,000 steps or 205 miles. Last year Miwa and I joined “Enjoy Walking Yokohama”, a city sponsored program to get the over 55 set to walk around the city. There are over 80,000 participants and events with prizes for achieving our goals. As a result of this program my weight is now at what is was during graduation from Parris Island in 1966. My new project during the walks is to map the suburbs of Yokohama in English. I hope to have it completed later on this year.