2:13 p.m. Obaba has revived. My aunt had visited Obaba yesterday, and according to JoOusama who got a detailed report call from her, Obaba is now breathing normally by herself without the oxygen mask that had been attached earlier this week. Thin and frail as she was, Obaba even responded to my aunt's voice.

Good, good. That's more like her. Though situation hasn't changed that much and she's still weakening. But she's got to live. She's having her ninety-first birthday in a couple of days.

The End

Caterpillar

3:14 p.m. It wasn't just Obaba who was weakening. Cow had ordered me to buy Chinese cabbage at the direct-from-the-farm greengrocery's near the station, so I bought a round fat one there on my way to work today. The fifteen-minute walk from there to the office was an unexpected nightmare. I discovered that the Chinese cabbage was heavier than I'd thought, especially when carrying two thick books and a lunch box in my backpack and hanging an umbrella from my arm. My arms were quivering by the time I got to the office.

Oh, God. My muscles have weakened to quite an embarrassing level.

The End

Caterpillar

1:50 p.m. Japan Cup, Japan Cup, Dirt, this week. Transcend, probably the most favored, drew number sixteen which seems to be a bit of a disadvantage considering Hanshin race track, while Espoir City who'd probably be the second favored, drew a number six, ideal gate to start for a front runner.

Seeing Victoir Pisa sink into thirteenth place after the Dubai World Cup and Espoir City going out of shape after his overseas expedition, am suspecting Transcend to bite the dust some time in his career. Only, am not sure if it's tomorrow or not.

The End

Caterpillar

Am torn between Transcend and Espoir City while handicapping Japan Cup Dirt. There could be a possibility that these two fast horses would leave the whole field behind, but cannot possibly buy them both since they're the most favored and the second favored. That won't get me back enough money to cover my losses up until now.

Eventually, keyed Espoir City.

Oh, God. Espoir has been miserably defeated to third place by Transcend and even Wonder Acute... Don't feel like doing anything any more. Feel so useless.

The End

Caterpillar

4:28 p.m. Couldn't use PC since Cow was at it most of the afternoon. Now that I have a chance, cannot come up with anything. Thought I had a million things pending on my mental to-do list, but just can't seem to recall any of it. How come?

Oh, yeah. One thing that's been bothering me since last week was, what should I bring Obaba for her birthday present. Am planning to visit her this Friday if I can make some time, and I'd like to bring her something nice and encouraging, for her birthday earlier in the week. However, since the old lady is now hooked up to an IV, I'll have to exclude pureed food which were my first idea of presents before she was put under an oxygen mask. Now my choices seem to be very limited.

The End

Caterpillar

3:47 p.m. Work is slow this week. Had two meetings for tomorrow cancelled. Am not winning a single race this season. How am I going to make it through this year?

4:14 p.m. Have tried the race simulator which I found at JRA website to relieve my agony. I set my bet on a couple of trifecta with Deep Impact on top and clicked "watch the race" to see the spring Tennou-sho. Deep Impact swept the outside to earn an easy win, as expected, but it was Strata Gem who came in second and Lincoln in third. Oh, God. Am losing even on a simulator...

The End

Caterpillar

2:22 p.m. Gee. Had another cancel. My client called up to tell me that he had to go to the doctors' since he'd had a jammed finger. Said that he might even have a fracture, though I doubt it since his voice didn't reflect much pain. Anyway, told him to go see the doctor, and get better soon.

Since I got some free time as a result, have been searching if there was any possible way that I could download American TV dramas from Amazon instant video. Unfortunately, Amazon Japan seems to be uninterested in offering the service to Japanese users. Do they think that Japan actually is a Galapagos? Is that why they don't sell Kindle Fire in Japan?

The End

Caterpillar

3:45 p.m. Am thinking of bringing Obaba a calendar since she doesn't have any around her. Perhaps it might encourage her to get better.

On the other hand, it might make her give up hope of living all together when she sees that there's a whole year ahead. What's in it for an old lady her age, when she can't move, eat, drink, or even speak on her own?

Maybe I should bring her something else. But what?

The End

Caterpillar

2:26 p.m. Brrrrr. Shivering in cold. Decide to put off visit to the hospital because it's in a remote area near mountains which means it would be much colder there than it already is in Tokyo. No way.

I should have done so earlier since JoOusama had been to the hospital earlier this week, to remind Obaba that she, and only she, remembered Obaba's birthday. Besides, postpning the visit would give me some time to ponder about her birthday present.

The End

Caterpillar

2:20 p.m. We're going to see a total lunar eclipse tonight. It's said to be seen throughout the nation with the eclipse starting around 9:45 this evening, followed by the peak of the eclipse coming around 11:31, until it finally ends around 1:18 tomorrow morning. That is, according to Yahoo! News.

2:31 p.m. Have just checked the forecast and it said we're having clear skies tonight, here in Tokyo. Great condition to watch the eclipse. Hope you all enjoy the show.

The End

Caterpillar

6:36 p.m. Did everyone see the lunar eclipse? It was magnificent. The moon started thinning a little before ten while I was walking home. Around midnight, I got out on the veranda to see how the eclipse has developed, and my, my. There was a bull's eye with a redish pink pupil, mysteriously fringed with white gold. I stood ther in the cold watching it for some time, until the emerging golden light became larger. Ancient people who had no idea what was happening must have been terrified at the sight.

Why is it that our jaws become slack when we look up at the sky? We must have seemed quite foolish from the man on the moon.

The End

Caterpillar

2:22 p.m. The back of my neck aches a bit from the lunar eclipse viewing. Didn't think I'd watched for so long, but my neck is pleading that it was too long.

As for the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies held yesterday, Joie de Vivre, Buena Vista's younger sister, has swept the race. Obviously, she has a higher potential than the other fillies that ran in the race. Still, must keep in mind that she is not Buena Vista. Her father is Deep Impact which means that her magic is going to wear out with time.

The results of my betting? Needless to say at this point.

The End

Caterpillar

2:50 p.m. My friend had brought advent calendars for me and my other friends when she came back from Germany for a short stay. Have been letting the neiborhood kids open it since the beginning of this month, and now about half of the windows are opened, with a week and a half left to go. Kids seem to enjoy it very much.

Every year as the season grows nearer, the idea of digging out our Christmas tree crosses my mind. Though I usually dismiss it because the thought of convincing Cow terrifies me enough. Well, maybe next year...

The End

Caterpillar

5:15 p.m. Cow has completely forgotten to upload my "Murmurs" for yesterday. I had dutifully taken pictures of my advent calendar to pick out the one best shot while stupid Cow fiddled with his game, only to find out that he hasn't uploaded neither the picture or my article up until now.

What has he been doing? Santa says not to pout, but cannot let it pass.

The End

Caterpillar

2:05 p.m. Oh, God. While Cow had been completely forgetting modifying our website, I had completely forgotten about the the annual Geminids meteor shower. It was said to be at its peak around two this morning...

There's nothing I can do now. I don't have a Delorian time machine, nor can I go back in time like Marty in Back to the Future. I'll try not to forget the Quadrantids meteor shower on January 4th or 5th next year.

The End

Caterpillar

3:03 p.m. Cow has gone out to buy groceries.

3:03 p.m. Cow came back. That was quick. Apparently, he'd grabbed a blanket and took it with him, instead of bringing his eco-bag... To make the situation worse, his fly was open... Those who'd been viewing this "Murmur" for the past couple of days must be thinking we're some dumb couple.

The End

Caterpillar

1:48 p.m. Just been urged by Cow about designing the new year cards. I know, Iknow. I've been thinking but haven't come up with a satisfactory design yet. 2012 would be the year of the dragon, so have been drawing a couple of dragon drawings however, those haven't lead me to a post card design yet.

1:52 p.m. Suddenly remembered that have seen lamp posts, I think, with dragon decorations at the foot on Nihonbashi. Perhaps that could give me a clue.

The End

Caterpillar

7:53 p.m. Unbelievable. Last night I stopped at a cigarette vending machine to buy a pack since had run out of cigarettes. I dropped in two hundred yen coins and one fifty yen coin, pressed the button for my brand dutifully following the voice guidance, and touched the ID reader with my Taspo. The next second, I heard a beep and a clink that must have been my ten yen change and reached my hand into the box at the bottom to collect my cigarette pack. Nothing. There was nothing. Confused, I collected my change and looked at the brand button. My jaw dropped as a red lamp shone triumphantly in the dark, announcing that my brand was "SOLD OUT." Stupid machine had swallowed my two hundred and forty yen for nothing...

I was expecting that I'd win the Asahi-hai Futurity Stakes today, as I had been through such unfortunate incident, but reality hit cold. Must be totally out of luck.

The End

Caterpillar

3:46 p.m. Still, it's the year-end grand-prix race week. It's impossible to stay unexcited no matter how bad my luck is. Cow and I heard the news that Yutaka Take was going to ride on Red Davis, and have been wondering since, why the horse didn't participate in the classics although he'd beaten Orfevre and won a grade three.

Have done a quick search and reached a conclusion. He was castrated... That's why they couldn't register him in the classic races while Orfevre won them all...

The End

Caterpillar

4:25 p.m. It's getting dark. The year is getting nearer to the end but nothing to get me excited as usual. No Christmas parties to celebrate, no year-end parties to reward my devotion to work, except that Cow is making a cake (to him, "decorating the sponge" seems equivalent to "making a cake") on Saturday. Apparently, cake making (cake decorating) has become his new hobby, and he enjoys it about once in a couple of months these days.

The problem with it is, that Cow makes cakes precisely the same as before. It was nice at first, but after having eaten five or six same cakes, am beginning to get tired of it. What you need Cow, is challenge. Innovation. Something new.

The End

Caterpillar

1:24 p.m. Why do everything seem to fall on one single day? I had a call yesterday, to rearrange a meeting schedule from Wednesday (that's today) to Thursday. Have just received email from another client demanding to change his meeting schedule to after three, Thursday. Actually, there is an opening between three thirty and five so I could squeeze him in, but that forces me to go non-stop from two thirty to five forty without even a potty break again, with yet another session to go.

Work had been slow for the past half of the week and then, out of the blue, this. Just like Meiner Kitz scratched from Arima Kinen due to nosebleed this morning.

The End

Caterpillar

1:53 p.m. Body aching. The train got delayed and had to run to make it to my morning meeting. Am getting old. Running half a mile from the station to the office have done more damage to my body than it'd have done in my twenties.

There's one good news, though. We have a tradition of bringing gifts to show appreciation to people who'd helped and supported us, usually at the end of July and at year-ends. They're known as O-chu-ghen and O-seibo, respectively. Fortunately, my client had remembered this tradition (young people aren't familiar with it) and brought me a gift. It's always nice to have gifts. Especially, when you can't expect to get any for Christmas...

The End

Caterpillar

7:14 p.m. Holiday today. Spent most of the afternoon trying to find out where I should bring my used batteries to no avail. Finally, I decided they must have a collecting box in some supermarket since have seen it before, and set off to take my chance. I tried three supermarkets without success fighting against the biting cold and the battering wind, before I reached a local branch of the ward office. There, I found a security guard at the entrance. Tired as I was, I asked him if there were any collecting boxes for used batteries around here to which he answered, "We don't collect 'em any more because you can put them out as nonburnable garbage."

It turned out that nonburnables had already been picked up yesterday in our neighborhood, which had been the last service for this year. According to the half-torn paper sign stuck at the collecting spot, the next service was supposed to be January 12th. Wish I'd known that earlier.

The End

Caterpillar

2:23 p.m. It's Christmas Eve. But no parties, no Christmas tree, fancy decorations, or presents. Still, had a piping hot bowl of fast-cooked Miso-Ramen with a bunch of Chinese cabbage and a dropped egg instead of roast chicken, and am perfectly content. Oh, and we're having cake later.

One more thing and my Christmas will be complete. The victory of Arima-kinen, of course. Have checked the last training video of each horse thoroughly last night, and came to a conclusion that should not bet on Victoire Pisa, Rose Kingdom, Hiruno D'amour, Pelusa, King Top Gun, To The Glory, Rulership and Eishin Flash.

My mind is set on Orfevre in first, Buena Vista in second, Jaguar Mail, Earnestly and Tosen Jordan on third. Perhaps a bit of Red Davis but am being skeptical about him? her? As for Pelusa, he scratched from the race this morning, though wasn't counting him in in the first place. Let's have a nice Christmas, everyone!

The End

Caterpillar

9:32 p.m. Terrible. Orfevre has won his fourth grade one but I've lost the last grade one of the season. That means I've only won a race throughout the year...

I thought Saint Nick would bring me a present, too, though apparently he seems to have forgotten about me. Or was I not a good? I hate Christmas.

The End

Caterpillar

2:42 p.m. Last day of work in despair. Nothing to look forward to. Year-ends and beginnings is the worst time of year for me. Family gathering held annually at the beginning of the year is nothing but a torment to me. No one in the family thinks about each other but they gather just to blot out their guiltiness.

Cow has mercifully decided to take the work off until January 5th. At least it's a relief to be able to go bet on Kinpai next year.

The End

Caterpillar

It was a few minutes past six yesterday, when I got a call from JoOusama. She said she'd just returned home from the hospital to the answer phone message. The doctor had called, asking her to come back to the hospital again because Obaba had passed away.

Have been to see her at the funeral home today, tucked up in a simple Paulownia coffin. She looked like one of those wax figures from Madame Tussauds', with her cheeks smeered with foundation that was darker than her skin color. She must be discontented about it. She preferred lighter color.

The End

Caterpillar

Have been to the crematorium. We surviving relatives, six in all, picked up the remaining bones of Obaba, placed them in an urn called Kotsu-tsubo. After we shared an exquisite dinner at a Japanese restaurant, JoOusama, Tono and I brought Obaba home for the first time since she'd been carried onto an ambulance in March.

Obaba must be happy. She longed so much to go home on the hospital bed. She's gonna stay home for at least forty-seven days from today, until we bury her under our family grave where grandpa is already there waiting.

The End

Caterpillar

7:04 p.m. Have seen Tokyo Daishouten at home on TV. Have thought of going down to Ohi race tracks, but am in the mourning period so I dismissed the idea. Besides, thought Smart Falcon was going to have an easy win again, which meant that the payout was going to be very little.

Smart Falcon did win actually, though it was a close battle against Wonder Acute who'd lost the race by a nose, three point five centimeters, to be precise. Good I didn't go. I probably wouldn't have bet on Testamatta who came in third.

The End

Caterpillar

The mourning period usually goes on for a year after your family member has passed away, with the first forty-nine days considered to be crucial, while the gate keeper Enma questions the deceased every seven days until the forty-nineth when he decides which to send that person to, heaven or hell. During that forty-nine days, the surviving family members are supposed to mourn the death of their beloved, and solemnly pray so the deceased will be allowed to go to heaven.

Have always wondered what effect the living can bring even if we prayed and prayed, when the deceased was to be judged of their behavior in their living days. I cannot see how my going to the Kinpai race during this mourning period would affect the judgement, though I guess I should be mourning for Obaba's death and praying for her good outcome based on the tradition, and am undecided about going although I had promissed I would earlier. Well, think I'll check out the barrier draw anyway, before making up my mind.

The End

Caterpillar

I had been putting off the annual year-end cleaning, but decided resignedly, that had to face it today since it is the last day of 2011. I must tackle window cleaning at least, because Toshi-gami-sama (God of the year) comes in from outside and I surely hope it would be a better year for me.

I can leave the rest of the cleaning to wait. It's gonna consume a lot of time and energy to get rid of all the things that have piled up in my room over the years, that I'd never finish it by the end of the day.

The End

Caterpillar