1:34 p.m. I've blown it. Again.

I've lost control of myself being rushed by time, acted in haste and as a result, made a wrong decision. Moreover, I caused everyone trouble to cover up for me. Am filled with remorse and guilt. Sigh.

The End

Caterpillar

12:32 p.m. I had to get up early for a morning meeting, but since I had some time after that I'm finishing up my dragon scale fingerless gloves!

Just one more row of single crochets and pikots will get me a pair of self-made, hand-knitted dragon scale fingerless gloves. Can't wait to wear them!

It seems like Air Spinel is coming out in Tokyo Shinbun-hai this weekend, by the way. Hmmm. Worth calling, I guess.

The End

Caterpillar

5:29 p.m. Today is Setsu-bun known as the bean-throwing festival. That means it falls on Risshun, the first day of spring accaording to our traditional seasonal calendar.

Still, it's cold and I'm glad that I can wear my completed gloves. I'm showing them off but the reactions are good so far, though they were responses from women over sixty.

The End

Caterpillar

3:21 p.m. Kisaragi-sho would probably end up with Satono Arthur, the most favored, so I will call Tokyo Shinbun-hai instead.

Freshness is the key to Tokyo 1600m, so I would go for Prodigal Son as my key horse. Like Air Spinel when he ran Kyoto Kinpai, it's his first time to race with older horses and he is fresh back from a 3-month's break. On the other hand, Air Spinel might have a lesser chance of winning. I will keep him on the wheel, with Black Moon, Leukerbad and Youn Man Power.

The End

Caterpillar

9:24 p.m. If I'd put Air Spinel on the wheel for insurance, I should also have put Black Spinel on the wheel too, as Black Spinel had a better chance than Air Spinel. Two Spinels... getting confused.

But Prodigal Son did very well despite the 22 kilogram gain in his weight.

The End

Caterpillar

5:35 p.m. Makahiki seems to be appearing in this weekend's Kyoto Kinen.

Interesting. Wonder how he would perform in his first race after the crushing defeat of Prix de L'arc de Triomphe.

He could win, possibly, as the race is annually run with a small number of horses and if so, it is likely to become a race for him.

The End

Caterpillar

4:50 p.m. Yuichi Fukunaga is leaving the turf for a while, again.

Actually, I've been watching the race when he fell off from the back of Suzuka Major, right after the horse shot out from the barrier in Kisaragi-sho. There's no way to know what really happened in the barrier, but it seemed that the horse bucked to the left while Fukunaga lost control and fell to the right side of the horse, landing on the course on his right shoulder or elbow. According to the news, Yuichi has injured his left elbow ligament (that means he must have turned before he hit the turf), and is unable to ride for a while.

Sometimes I really think he should become a trainer or something.

The End

Caterpillar

5:57 p.m. Looks like we don't have to worry about snow in Tokyo. Good.

I discovered today that zippers don't quite shut completely when the pull tab is errect.

I've always wondered why my zippers were so often down when I'd unmistakingly pulled them up, but I realized that it was down when the pull tab was not flat. So I checked with Cow who laughed me off. Why hadn't anyone told me about this until today? Why? Why??

The End

Caterpillar

5:06 p.m. My friend's grandson who is four years old goes to a nearby kindergarten. Lately, he's learned a greeting song in his English class and has performed it in front of his mother. It goes like this: Hello, how are you, hello how are you... But when his mom urged him to sing on, he sang out "Datte mitte choooo!!!" leaving his mom puzzled.

I met his mom today and was asked, what the original English words may be. I had no idea. So I took a wild guess and said, "It could be 'nice to meet you, too!' possibly."

Currently, his mom, grandma and I are all searching for the song on YouTube to solve this mystery.

The End

Caterpillar

5:27 p.m. Okay, the barrier draw for Kyoto Kinen in which Makahiki has entered has been announced.

Action Star in post number 1, Yamakatsu Raiden in 2, Makahiki in 3, Smart Layer in 4, Win Inspire in 5, Satono Crown in 6, Shonan Bach in 7, Angreifen in 8, Mikki Rocket in 9 and Garibaldi in 10. Makahiki is the most favored not to mention, followed by not Satono Crown who won the Hong Kong Vase but by Mikki Rocket.

So, wonder what's it gonna be for Makahiki? He can't possibly lose here, given his career. Just hope that the race will be run as western Japan is in for another snowy weather this weekend.

The End

Caterpillar

11:06 p.m. It's been a holiday today so have been making another pair of dragon scale fingerless gloves. This time I've used good yarn (not from 100 Yen shop) in gradation. Have finished right hand quite nicely.

As for my call for Kyoto Kinen, I'd key Makahiki. He would easily win as long as he's not overweight or lack training, which is unlikely since the trainer has put Ryan Moore on his back. On the wheel would be, well, Mikki Rocket, Satono Crown and Smart Layer. Hopefully, Satono Crown would blow it at the start to cash out on Smart Layer.

The End

Caterpillar

11:04 p.m. Makahiki has lost in 3rd place. That means something.

True, his position was a disadvantage compared to the winner Satono Crown, who went up front in an average lapped race. Though I think Makahiki would have won if he was in the same state as last spring. The fact that he was even defeated by Smart Layer who raced in a similar position casts a dark shadow on his future.

It might just prove unfounded, but considering the fact that the crew appointed Moore as the rider bothers me. That means the trainer didn't have confidence in his horse. Must keep an eye on their actions.

The End

Caterpillar

4:46 p.m. Oh darn, I've ran out of yarn. Currently am stuck at the thumb hole of the left hand of the new dragon scale fingerless gloves. Very frustrating. Almost as frustrating as the responsive design web page I'm working on.

Another thing that disappointed me is that the Makahiki crew used the track condition as an excuse for the horse's loss. It's something you hear when favored horses lose, but didn't want to hear that from the crew of a top horse like Makahiki. Or wasn't he, as a matter of fact.

The End

Caterpillar

4:11 p.m. Have bought yarn so I can proceed on the gloves, yay!

By the way, they were doing an exclusive of Oguricap on NHK last night. In a program called Professional, I think. They said it was the first time they were closing up on a horse as a "professional" not human.

I don't really trust what they say on TV, but it was nice to revisit Arima Kinen, Oguri's last run. That was dramatic. I even have a cut-out photo of him pinned up on the wall.

The End

Caterpillar

2:46 p.m. I suddenly remembered that I had to buy my commuting pass yesterday, while I was on the subway home. Ugh. I usually buy it at a terminal station which was in the direction I had left behind me. Well, the good thing is, you can buy them from a hi-tec vending machine nowadays, so it doesn't really matter which station, ha!

As I got off to change trains, I dropped by the nearest ticket vending machine only to find out that it didn't accept magnetic passes like mine. Pardon me, so the world is now moving around just for all you folks who have prepaid ic cards like Suica or Pasmo, am I right?

Had to get out of the station once, climb up three flights of stairs after I roamed for thirty minutes to find a specific vending machine, in order to get my ne pass. Humph.

The End

Caterpillar

11:18 p.m. I had another morning meeting.

Our clients are mostly people living in the neighborhood, so there are times we have morning meetings. Well, in fact, quite often. I've always thought it wasn't fair having to get up two hours earlier than our clients since it takes at least an hour and a half for me to get to the office, while they mostly live in an area within five minutes' walk. Moreover, most of them probably sleep sound and pleasant whereas I fight against interruption repeatingly.

Wish I could just move nearby, but to make that possible I need to work harder with more morning meetings. Facing ultimate dilenma here.

The End

Caterpillar

5:17 p.m. The barrier draw for this year's first G1, February Stakes has been announced. So let's take a look.

Sound True, last year's Chapions' Cup winner is in post number 1, White Fugue is in 2, Gold Dream is in 3, Kopano Rickey is in 4, Asukano Roman is in 5, Moanin' is in 6, Bright Line is in 7, Denim And Ruby is in 8, Best Warrior is in 9, Kafuji Take is in 10, Nonko No Yume is in 11, Nishiken Mononofu is in 12, A Shin Bakken is in 13, King's Guard is in 14, Katy Brave is in 15 and Incantation is in 16.

Hmmm... February Stakes, a race I haven't won in a looooong while. Let's see what I can do this year.

The End

Caterpillar

12:25 p.m. They say the horses that drew the outer barriers have the advantage in this race. But I can't find a horse that has a better chance of winning among them. Katy Brave might possibly come within 3rd place, though he needs to at least, recover from the weight loss of the previous race.

Considering all, my key horse would be Gold Dream. On the wheel are White Fugue, Kopano Rickey, Moanin, Kafuji Take and Nonkono Yume.

The End

Caterpillar

11:22 p.m. I've been finishing up my left-over work until now. Ugh. My shoulders are stiff.

At least I got the key horse right for February Stakes, though it's a small compensation. The lap seemed to be a bit tight, so that was unfortunate for Kopano Rickey, but apart from it the horse is apparently over its peak.

As for Moanin and Nonko, I don't know what to say. One thing I'm sure is that I won't buy their tickets any more.

The End

Caterpillar

5:19 p.m. I am drained... Nothing could come out of me any more.

It seems I worked myself too hard yesterday, that I couldn't move when I tried to get up this morning. My limbs and back ached and I just couldn't move.

I used to recover with a good night's sleep, but that hasn't happened for a long time. Is it because I can't get good sleep, or simply because I've grown old, I have no idea. Guess it's not the time to be criticizing about Kopano Rickey going past its prime. It's me going past my prime.

The End

Caterpillar

4:01 p.m. Thankfully, I have recovered from my exhaustion and pain. So it takes at least two nights, I reckon.

Also thanks to Miyarisan, a probiotic I've mentioned here before, I haven't had any symptoms of cedar pollen allergy so far, while my clients come to the office wearing masks that cover the bottom half of their faces. If they'd only trust me and take Miyarisan. Pity.

The End

Caterpillar

3:46 p.m. All of a sudden, it struck me that February is going to be over in a week and that nothing had changed in my life since before New Year.

I thought I had reset my biological clock during my stay at the business hotel, and I became able to get up at seven every morning. However, I've got back into my former life style in just a month. Lately I've been struggling to get up every morning again.

Guess I need to refresh my mind again.

The End

Caterpillar

2:23 p.m. Sales calls tend to be annoying usually, but I had a pleasant call today.

The salesperson on the other end was a jolly fellow saying he had a great offer for my smartphone. I told him politely as I always do with sales calls, that I was on a very cheap plan and had no intention of changing it. Most of the time I hear sighs of disappointment after that, though this jolly fellow was different. He said, "Oh, I'm pretty confident that I can offer you a cheaper deal!" I nearly laughed out loud to hear him say that with a happy, give-it-a-shot-won't-you tone. Not to mention I declined saying, "Well, I'm pretty sure I can beat yours."

He returned an "aw" and "Please call us if and when you change your mind," and we hung up the phone both in a pleasant tone. I'm pretty sure he would make good sales.

The End

Caterpillar

4:52 p.m. The barrier draw for Nakayama Kinen has been announced, so let's take a look at it.

Neo Realism drew post neumber 1, Meiner Milano is in 2, Vivlos is in 3, Real Steel in 4, Ambitious in 7, Tsukuba Azuma O in 8, Logo Type in 9 and Nuovo Record in 10.

Not much impact in the draw itself. I was rather shocked with the news of Mihono Bourbon's death.

The End

Caterpillar

12:10 p.m. So my call for Nakayama Kinen.

Key horse would be Neo Realism. He might not win, but has the highest possibility to come within 3rd place. On the wheel would be, Vivlos, Real Steel, Ambitious, Logo Type and Nuovo Record. This way, it could be any horse who has the chance as long as Neo Realism does his work.

Though the expected winner in my opinion is Vivlos, so it would be fun to buy a wheel of exactas with Vivlos on the first place.

The End

Caterpillar

9:47 p.m. Durrrr... Sakura Empereur! Look what you've done!

No, No. It was all my fault. I'd swept past his name on the racing form too caught up in Real Steel and other big names. I should have noticed that Empereur had a certain advantage in this race. And if I was buying Nuovo Record, I should have bought him instead.

Neo Realism, I didn't think would actually win, especially with the lap so slow along with his 15kg weight gain. Perhaps it's thanks to Mirco. In other words, Vivlos might have performed better if the rider was Mirco, though I can't deny there might have been the risk of injuries.

The End

Caterpillar

5:51 p.m. Cow is fumbling with the mail address I'd set on the lap-top.

While I cope with pending tasks of my own, this guy calls me to read the image authentication, tell him the password of the account because he couldn't log in with the one he had, then makes me read the instructions on the confirmation log. Eventually, he reached the web mail account page and let out a sigh of relief.

Excuse me, mister. I haven't got all day to help you get to the web mail account page, just because you forgot the password.

The End

Caterpillar

3:09 p.m. Because many of us shop online these days, it's causing me a bit of a trouble.

Hobby shops that handle handicraft goods or comic tools and materials are growing less and less, it's getting hard for me to drop by and buy these things on my way or back from work. That means I have to spend my precious off time to go out to get them. This causes the trouble as I only have one day off in a week and usually I have many other things to cope with, such as cleaning, washing, checking out the races, finishing up left-over work, etc., etc.

Since the lack of delivery drivers are also causing a social problem, I really hope this will be solved in a plausible way.

The End

Caterpillar