This page shows archived posts for Gary J. Wolff's blog from
January-March,
2023.
Enjoy...
Cheers,
Gary
Mar. 24,
2023 - Spring has sprung!!
The springtime flowers in Japan bring a non-stop exhilarating display
of brilliant colors and sweet fragrances to titillate the senses. The
plum blossoms begin in mid-February, followed by the absolutely
breathtaking cherry blossoms, and then a continuous overlapping of
blooming periods for azaleas, camellias, wisteria, magnolias, peonies,
roses, tulips, pansies, irises, hydrangeas, etc. that last well into
mid-summer.
What you see now in the album linked below is just the start, so
I'm planning to add more pics to it in the weeks ahead! Stay tuned and
check
back soon!
Updates:
- 39 new pics added Mar. 27
- 13 new pics added Mar. 31
- 8 new pics added April 4
- 14 new pics added April 12
- 15 new pics added April 18
- 19 new pics added April 19
- 19 new pics added April 30
- 10 new pics added May 8
- 22 new pics added May 18
- 13 new pics added June 5
- 24 new pics added June 22
Mar. 17,
2023 - Happy 70th Birthday to Mr. HAA3
Congrats to my lifelong good buddy on completing 70 laps around the
sun and his promotion to septuagenarian status! All the best to you, my dear friend,
for
many more wonderful years ahead. Luv ya, brother...
Happy 70th Birthday
to Mr. HAA3
(Background music: "World on a String" by Neil Young)
(If player above is not visible, you can view video
at YouTube here.)
Mar. 10,
2023 - Spring is in the air!
Spring is in the air!
Feb. 28,
2023 - Emma Jo, Live in Tokyo, Feb. 27, 2023
Kansas City country singer/songwriter Emma Jo thrilled the crowd in the
Crocodile live house in Tokyo on Mon. Feb. 27, 2023 as part of her Asia
tour! This amazing rising star knocked it outta the park! Don't miss
her pretty pink boots in the "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" song!
Emma Jo, Live in
Tokyo, Feb. 27, 2023
(If player above is not visible, you can view video
at YouTube here.)
0:00 Tucumcari on My Mind
3:19 Folsom Prison
6:39 Queen of the Silver Lining
11:25 In the Ozarks
16:00 Kansas City in the Autumn Time
20:00 I’ve Been Everywhere
24:01 Straight into Mine
29:43 These Boots Are Made for Walkin'
34:27 Walk
39:03 Jack & Jim (encore song)
Feb. 27,
2023 - 2023 Cherry Blossom Forecast
Because of a mild winter and warmer than normal temperatures which are
expected to continue into March, this year's cherry blossoms are
forecast to bloom 7-10 days earlier than in a typical year.
Cherry blossoms can be viewed virtually everywhere in Japan, but the
secret of catching them at full bloom is surfing the cherry blossom
front, as it progresses from southwest to northeast across the
archipelago, as seen in the map below.
This year in Tokyo the cherry blossoms are expected to begin opening up
on Mar. 17, with full bloom expected 1 week later on Mar. 24. Can't
wait!
I finally got a
(round tuit).
For the past year I've been wanting to pull together all the pics &
video clips I have of my lifelong good buddy who went to be with the
Lord a year ago today. So now I am finally honoring that wonderful guy
whom I admired so much.
If you get a chance, you might appreciate my tribute page for Tom (whom
I liked to call T-squared) that I just uploaded today. Miss you,
T-squared!
20s – Learning
30s – Experimenting
40s – Mastering
50s – Reaping
60s – Guiding
70s – Leaving a Legacy
80s – Maximizing Your Zone of Genius
90s – Savoring a Life Well Lived
The Stages of Life
(Source: Dan Miller,
48days.com, Episode 869, Feb. 10, 2023)
Note: I'm not at liberty to say which stage of life I just entered. I'm
afraid that top secret is highly classified...
Feb. 10,
2023 - Tobu World Square (東武ワールドスクエア)
The Tobu World Square theme park (東武ワールドスクエア), an open-air
architectural museum, exhibits 1/25 scale reproductions of world famous
architectural structures and historic relics. The park displays
skillful & authentic miniature replicas of over 100 architectural
structures from 22 countries, including 48 registered as World Heritage
Sites.
The next time you're in Japan's Tochigi Prefecture, you can visit the
world's most famous landmarks in less than 2 hours and save all those
airfare and lodging expenses.
Jan.
30, 2023 - Diamond Fuji viewing season from Tokyo
The first 2-week Diamond Fuji viewing season of the New Year from Tokyo
has now begun. Diamond Fuji (ダイヤモンド富士) is a phenomenon which occurs
when the sun sets into or rises out of Mt. Fuji's cone, setting off
sunbeams that resemble a glittering diamond. Several years ago I
totally geeked out and put together a listing of the best high-rise
spots in Tokyo to view Diamond Fuji with recommended dates, sunset
times, and links to Google maps: Diamond Fuji Viewing Spots, Dates, and Times in Tokyo
Diamond Fuji, Jan. 29, 2023, 16:54 pm
Jan. 28,
2023 - Mt. Fuji in Winter
I just love it when Fujisan puts on her beautiful white winter coat…
(and so very thankful I am not attempting to climb the nation’s tallest
peak about right now)
Mt. Fuji white winter coat
Jan. 24,
2023 - Your daily dose of humor
A woman was flying from Melbourne to Brisbane. Unexpectedly, the plane
was diverted to Sydney.
The flight attendant explained that there would be a delay, and if the
passengers wanted to get off the aircraft, the plane would re-board in
50 minutes.
Everybody got off the plane except one lady who was blind. A man had
noticed her as he walked by and could tell the lady was blind because
her seeing eye dog lay quietly underneath the seats in front of her
throughout the entire flight.
He could also tell she had flown this same flight before because the
pilot approached her, and calling her by name, said, "Kathy, we are in
Sydney for almost an hour. Would you like to get off and stretch your
legs?"
The blind lady replied, "No thanks, but maybe Max would like to stretch
his legs."
Picture this:
All the people in the gate area came to a complete standstill when they
looked up and saw the pilot walk off the plane with a seeing eye dog!
The pilot was even wearing sunglasses. People scattered. They not only
tried to change planes, but they were trying to change airlines!
Have a great day and remember... THINGS AREN'T ALWAYS AS THEY APPEAR. A
DAY WITHOUT LAUGHTER IS A DAY WASTED!!!
Pilot with seeing eye dog
[Note: Snopes.com has rated the above story "false", but I felt it was
just too cute NOT to post, ha ha.]
Jan. 8,
2022 - S.O.S.: Slower, Older, and Smarter
An Airbus 380 is on its way across the Atlantic. It flies consistently
at 800 km/h at 30,000 feet, when suddenly a Eurofighter with a Tempo
Mach 2 appears.
The pilot of the fighter jet slows down, flies alongside the Airbus and
greets the pilot of the passenger plane by radio: "Airbus, boring
flight isn’t it? Now have a look here!"
He rolls his jet on its back, accelerates, breaks through the sound
barrier, rises rapidly to a dizzying height, and then swoops down
almost to sea level in a breathtaking dive. He loops back next to the
Airbus and asks: "Well, how was that?"
The Airbus pilot answers: "Very impressive, but watch this!"
The jet pilot watches the Airbus, but nothing happens. It continues to
fly straight, at the same speed. After 15 minutes, the Airbus pilot
radios, "Well, how was THAT?
Confused, the jet pilot asks, "What did you do?"
The Airbus pilot laughs and says: "I got up, stretched my legs, walked
to the back of the aircraft to use the washroom, then got a cup of
coffee and a chocolate fudge pastry."
The moral of the story is: When you’re young, speed and adrenaline seem
to be great. But as you get older and wiser, you learn that comfort and
peace are more important.
This is called S.O.S.: Slower, Older, and Smarter.
Dedicated to all my senior friends ~ it’s time to slow down
and enjoy the rest of the trip.
Hi Gary, I love your site as it is so informative. On August 1st, 3 of us will be attempting to climb Mount Fuji. My husband and I are comparatively fit
Hi, I have some questions about reserving a hut on Mt. Fuji. I'll be in Tokyo a few days before climbing season and am attempting to climb on July 1st.
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(round tuit). 
