(Wednesday, July 5, 2023)



Something's wrong with the future of the Angels. Many people call the team Field Hospital, because
there are so many players who got injured and are now in the Injured List. Let me pick up some
famous names. Mike Trout (left wrist injury), Zach Neto (short stop), Brandon Drury (second base),
Logan O'Hoppe (catcher), Gio Urshela (third base), Max Stassi (catcher). They're all good batters.
The present Angels are, in a sense, fighting with the farm team members. David Fletcher has just
come back from the Injured List and now plays short stop.

　At present nobody knows for sure how bad Trout's injury is. I guess he'll be in the Injured List tomorrow.
Because he often remained on the bench when Ohtani was the starting pitcher. I heard that the manager
Phil Nevin didn't have to worry about the team, because Ohtani is such a unbelievable pitcher and the
team would be able to win without the long-time slugger Trout. So tomorrow Mickey Moniak will play
center field instead of Trout. Moniak is both a good fielder and a powerful batter. Let's see what happens.

Now the game between the Angels and the Padres is going on, and the Padres leads by 2-0. Ohtani
got a double over the right fielder and lost 2 runs. Before this Rendon hit on the knee by his own
batted ball and left the field. The Venezuelan-American third baseman Escobar took his place. Why
do they have to have so many injured players? Are they cursed? But their poor batting has nothing
to do with a curse, I guess. They can't make a good use of the opportunity. I don't feel like watching
the game anymore. Am I going to eat breakfast with just viewing it on TV? I can't believe it! Ohtani got
a two-run homer and a solo homer successively. Now the Padres leads by 5-1. No more chances for the
Angels and Ohtani can't go on pitching. He's now the losing pitcher. Possibly he used all his energy until
the start of this month. Too bad. He's now left the mound and being treated with his fingernail. I'm sorry.
It was not a problem on his fingernail, but a blister of his middle finger. What's wrong? Working too hard?

When you don't know how to express your idea in English, what would you do? You stop trying to
use the phrase of a similar meaning? Or you call your English-speaking friend to ask what to do?
I usually check it out in the web-dictionary to know the appropriate word or phrase. Maybe I can
use it or I can change the content and try to use some other English phrase. However if you try to
use a web-dictionary too often, the English sentences you make become unnatural.

Oh, have I forgot all about the baseball game? No, the TV next to me still shows the game, but I'm
not interested in it. Is Ohtani going to stand in the batter's box again? Or will he stop batting because
of his injury on his middle finger? Just by his finger trouble? It's impossible. If they don't have Trout,
Ohtani, or Rendon, can you still call them a team? In my opinion the manager Nevin must resign his
important post, because he's the one who made the team go wrong. Just as they fired Joseph
Maddon Jr. in 2022. He didn't have good relations with the GM Perry Minasian and the team owner
Arturo Moreno. Maddon resigns, or the other two idiots resign, which was the better idea?

　Shohei Ohtani was not in the batter's box. I guess he was mentally shocked, not physically damaged.
Even if he had some trouble with his middle finger, it was his first experience to get two successive
home runs. I think the other players on the Angels have been putting too much burden on Ohtani.
This must be the end of the Angels' success story, I believe. I hope Ohtani will play for the Los Angeles
Dodgers. He should not stay in the Angels where nobody else is going to feel responsible for what
happens in their games. Shohei loves warm places, so the New York Yankees are not the right team.

　Tomorrow they're having the last game out of the planned three games. I hope some of the young
players on the team will struggle hard to get the regular positions. Although the team is not going to
pay them much money, this is the a good chance for them to go up the stairs. I'm very sorry for those
who got into the Injured List, but young players have to take advantage of this situation. Good luck.

I thought that I was going to take a shower before going for an evening walk. But I was working
on my homepage and it took me some time, so it's already 18:26 and it's getting dark outside. Do I
really have to go for a walk this evening? I don't think it's a good idea, but I'd like to. It's been humid
today too, so I think I sweated a lot and need to take a shower before going out. You usually take a
shower after coming back from en evening walk. Yes, I think you're right. OK, I'll think about it.

　I've just been back from the planned evening walk. Very interestingly I don't feel that it's a long
walking course which used to make me feel it was tiring. It's important for you to get accustomed
to what seems a little difficult. While I was walking I met a golden retriever girl. She was seven years
old and very friendly to me. Maybe she soon understood that I liked dogs. The owner of the dog
asked me if I'd like to keep another dog again, and I answered I couldn't accept the idea mentally.
She was such a cute girl and sat beside me very gently. She was so big, though.



Where was he found? When the rescuer arrived, he was eating bones. Were they from a
Chinese restaurant or so? I'm afraid he had eaten a lot of food that went bad. Somebody must
have abandoned him there at the garbage dump. Now he's safe and let's take him back home.
　He was living there alone, but he was in good health. After visiting the vet clinic, they went
out for a walk. He enjoyed the outside air and got more and more curious and playful. He loved
licking the rescuer's hand. Maybe because it was the first hand that helped him.
　Now he's been washed and cleaned up, what he has to do is wait for a new good family to
come and adopt him. He looks so cute. I hope he'll be happy in a new family in the future.



Yesterday the slugger Trout was in the Injured List, and today another slugger Rendon hit on
the knee by his own batted ball and was in the Injured List for the third time during this season.
A famous saying goes, "What happens twice will happen three times." You can say that again
in the Angels. Do you think Shohei Ohtani will be a batter in tomorrow's game? He left the mound
today because of the blister on his middle finger. Do you think he'll complain about that? "Oh, it
hurts. I can't hit any more home runs. Let me get into the Injured List." Sorry, I can't make it sound
funny. Ohtani will never be absent from usual games. So he was taught by his high school teacher.
That's a Japanese way of thinking about baseball, quite different from the American style. Maybe
in America coaches will say, " Don't work too hard. You should take a rest." That's impossible in
our country Japan. Ohtani is now a great pitcher in the U.S., but he was born and bred in Japan.



After being rescued, how did the world look to him? There was a rainstorm and after that his
mother and siblings had gone and they never came back. He was left there alone, but still he waited
for them to come back to pick him up. However the one who picked him up was the human rescuer.
At first he was so scared that he was not willing to come out of his hole. But in the end he decided
to come with the rescuer. On the way they visited one of the shelters of the rescue association, and
he made a lot of friends there, which made him very happy.
　After coming home the rescuer let him take a warm shower because he was so dirty after the
rainstorm. Now that he was cleaned up, it's time for a proper dinner. He ate very slowly and his
stomach was full now. Before taking a shower he met a cat in the house. He was OK, but the cat
seemed to be scared. The next day they went to the vet clinic. He was completely healthy. Now he's
waiting for a new family to come and adopt him. Hope he'll live a happy life in the future.

(Thursday, July 6, 2023)

It's Thursday today. It's a weekday and usual people go to school or work. Tomorrow's the last
day of the week, so everybody is now looking forward to having the weekend. Are they going on
short trips? However after the weekend comes blue Monday, which makes us really blue. We
Japanese seldom go out on the weekend. It's time for many of us to take a rest before the new
week. However people in western countries try to have a happy time on the weekend. It's time
for them to refresh themselves and get ready for the new week to start.

The line-up of the Angels for this morning is as follows: 1) Mickey Moniak (center field)
2) Eduardo Escobar (third base) 3) Shohei Ohtani (designated hitter) 4) Jo Adell (left field)
5) Michael Moustakas (first base) 6) Hunter Renfroe (right field) 7) Matt Thaiss (catcher)
8) Luis Rengifo (sedond base) 9) Andrew Velazquez (short stop) P) Patrick Sandoval. It's a little
bit difficult to check the exact spellings of the players' names. Now I'm very happy to find Shohei's
name on the starting lineup list. Let's make the players on the Injured List feel relieved to win the
last game with the Padres. Now the young Angels, go for it! Be sure and win the game.

　Sandoval left the mound at the bottom of the 5th inning. Then José Soriano took the mound instead
to get a big home run. Sandoval might have hit the table back in the locker room. But at the top of
the next inning, the Angels' catcher Thaiss also hit a big home run to equalize with the Padres. Now
it's top of the 7th inning and Jacob Webb took the next mound. Here he gave another run to the
Padres, which is now leading by 4-3. Ohtani hasn't made any hits out of his four at-bats. Oh, I
didn't notice that the pitcher of the Angels is now Christopher Devenski. Now the bases are loaded.
Finally he walked the next batter and gave one more run to the Padres. Most of the relief pitchers
of the Angels are useless. The screw up the games. By the way, the manager Phillip Nevin complained
about the umpire's judges and was told to leave the field already. This is his 4th time. He's short-tempered.
I'm a little sorry that the Angels lost all the three games with the Padres, but it's OK. I don't care.



He was abandoned in the dried-up sewer without good food and water. It was a remote area
that he had to live in. He was so dirty that the rescuer gave him some food and hurried back to
the vet clinic. He had no medical issues. The came back home and the rescuer let the little boy
take a warm shower and cleaned him up. After that he had a proper dinner for a guest and started
sleeping in a soft cushion bed. It's a tub-type of bed for dogs. He looks so sleepy. OK, go to sleep
now and have a good night sleep. You'll find a good family for adoption in the near future.

Not a few people who know baseball say that the manager of the Angels Phillip Nevin should
be fired and that Shohei Ohtani should play as the second batter, not the third batter. I don't
know the difference between the second batter and the third batter, but they know how important
batting order is. Maybe the pitcher would throw different balls to the batters of different order.
When Ohtani played as the second batter, he's done a lot of great jobs and he's hit many homers.
But now that he plays as the third batter, how many hits do you think he made out of his 12 at-bats?
Only one! During the three successive games with the Padres, he's done nothing important for the
team. Maybe the same thing could be said about Trout. When he's the second batter, he's so good.
But when he plays as the third batter, he has too many strike-outs.

　Anyway many people blame Nevin for having done something strange and having done nothing
when he needed to. Something's wrong with his way of choosing pitchers. I sincerely hope that
Joseph Maddon Jr. is coming back to the Angels to take Nevin's place.



I'm sorry for Nevin, because he was suddenly nominated as manager of the Angels. Actually he
was not used to managing the players. I understand he's gone through a lot of difficult situations.
However not everybody can manage the baseball team. You should choose a proper person.
Maddon will be able to take care of the sick team. Nevin will make it worse, sorry to say.

(Friday, July 7, 2023)

July 7 is the Star Festival. I found a very interesting article about Tanabata, which goes like this.

　Tanabata is based on the legendary meeting of two stars, Hikoboshi and Orihime, which are
represented by Altair and Vega, respectively.
After their marriage, Hikoboshi and Orihime ideled away and didn't work. An angry god split
Hikoboshi and Orihime apart from the two banks of the Milky Way.
However, the god permitted Hikoboshi and Orihime to reunite once a year on July 7.
So Tanabata is held on that day every year, and it is said to be the day when lovers can reunite.

　But I have one more important thing to tell about Tanabata. We often have rain on July 7, and then
the two lovers can't see each other. So we hope it won't rain that night so that they can meet. When
I was a little boy, there was a very big festival held in Hiratsuka City. Still now the city is famous for
its Tanabata Festival, although it became smaller in scale. Every year on that day I went to Hiratsuka
with friends and enjoyed eating a lot of food at various stalls. Grilled corn was our favorite. Yakisoba
too. Do you know cotton candy? We call it "wata-ame" in Japanese. It was also loved by many kids.
I've never been to the festival in Hiratsuka since then. Do they still have the festival there?



　It's a fantastic story that we've had for a long time. Young people today seldom expect romance
from each other. If it rains, we can't meet? We have umbrellas, so we don't care about the rain.
We used to say, "If it rains, it means stars are crying for us," That's too funny?

There are a lot of clouds in the sky, but we have sunshine coming through them. It means
that the clouds in the sky don't stick to one another tightly. The clouds are not crowded.
　For today's lunch I ate fried udon with plenty of vegetables and pork cutlet with shredded cabbage.
I know I ate too much for lunch, but I also ate a lot of vegetables that were good for my health.
　
This morning the Angels didn't have a game. I hope the holiday will make them active again.
Ohtani isn't going to pitch for another game before the All-Star Game. He's not going to take
part in the Home Run Derby. He thinks that it will damage his finger blister and himself. He'll be
in the All-Star Game on July 12, which we're not sure. We're sure that Trout can't participate in
the game. This season there are too many injured players on the Angels. Too many.

I think the sun has disappeared from the sky. It might start raining at any time this evening.
I feel it's getting a little darker now. Yes, I have to remember that we're still in the rainy season.
The Japan Meteorological Agency predicts that the rainy season this year will come to an end
around the middle of this month. It might be a little bit earlier than usual, maybe in ten days from
now. Are you going to go swimming this summer? I won't go alone. About 10 years ago in Yokohama
I used to swim at the swimming pool on my way back from school. When I was a little boy, I was
a very good swimmer, and free stye was my favorite. But now I'm no good at free-style swimming.
I've forgotten how to breathe nicely. According to my ex-wife, I was not floating well. My ex-wife
used to be a professional swimmer who had been in the swimming meet in Los Angeles. So if I
go swimming and try to swim in the sea, you might see me drowning at the beach.



When the rescure arrived at his place, he was eating off scraps of food. And he looked like
a dirty piglet because he had been living in that terrible situation alone. After giving him some
food and water, the rescuer drove him back home and let him take a warm shower. Now he's
such a beautiful dog. He's quite different from the tiny piglet that the man saw in a far place.
　Now the vet found no medical problems about him, he became very playful and was loved by
people walking outside. When he came home again, he had a proper dinner to eat. Now he's
looking for his new forever home. I sincerely hope that he'll be adopted by good people.

It's already past 5 o'clock in the evening. I haven't decided yet whether I should go for a walk
or not. Instead I've eaten ramen for the second lunch. I should call this an early dinner, right?
It's completely cloudy outside now. Will it rain soon? I'm not sure about that. Should I carry my
umbrella with me? No, I don't need to, because there's a convenience shop near the walking road.
　I hope while I'm walking, I'd be able to meet a dog and talk to him or her. This time I'll have to
ask his or her name. I've been watching animal videos for many years. I watched one just now.
When I see a stray dog rescued by good people, I feel like keeping a dog myself. I guess my life
is a little too lonesome. That's why I feel I need a company to live with. It's a difficult question
to solve. If it's a mixed breed who was found somewhere in the city, I wouldn't have to pay a lot
of money on my friend, but if it's a pure breed I'd have to pay as much as \200,000 or so. I'm
now not very rich, so I have to think of the money I have to pay for my pet. I'm so sorry.



The rescuer drove a long way and finally arrived at the site. It took him all day to get there.
However it was not so difficult to find her. As soon as she saw the rescuer, she came up to him
as if she was asking him to take her back home with him. Of course the rescuer was very happy
to have her in his car and hurried to the vet clinic. Everything was OK with her and she could
get home and there Arra was waiting for her new friend. The cat was also waiting, but he or she
didn't like to play with dogs except for Arra. After taking a warm bath and got flea repellent spray,
she had a delicious lunch. Now she's so beautiful that someone will adopt her soon.

I haven't been to the dentist for some months. I think I have to make a reservation to go see
the doctor, but I'm afraid my health insurance card isn't valid any more. I already applied for the
bank transfers. So the health insurance fee for July must have been transfered to the proper
bank account. However my bank hasn't let me know about the transfer. That's why I'm not sure
that my health insurance card is still valid. If I go to the dentist, they'll tell me everything about it.

This afternoon I got an email from one of the banks that I have a business with. They advises
me to be careful with false mails form major banks or companies. They ask me to reregister my
personal information. They just want to steal the personal data. I receive that kind of emails
almost every day. Sometimes I can't tell if it's real or not. But basically it's not possible for anyone
to ask me to tell my personal information by email. It's too important to give them by mail.

(Saturday, July 8, 2023)

There have been a lot of false information about Shohei Ohtani on You Tube. Some say that
Ohtani has been suspected of doping. Some say that he's going to get married at the age of 25.
Others say that he has been hospitalized because of too much stress and frustration. Maybe the
only truth is that he'll get better after taking enough sleep. They should be responsible for what
they say and should know how terribly Ohtani will be damaged by their false information. Some
say that Ohtani is a monster, but actually he's a usual human being with a sensitive mind. He's
not the Incredible Hulk who is just an imaginary creature. I've found an article as follows:

"Why is Shohei Otani called the unicorn?"
Shohei Ohtani is called the unicorn because he is a rare gem who can play as both a pitcher and
a hitter in the WBC and Major League Baseball as well as Japanese professional baseball.
He is also known for his angelic, charming personality and humble attitude, which fits perfectly
with the image of his current team, the Los Angeles Angels.
His widely know nicknames in the USA include 'Showtime' and 'Shohei' as well as 'The Unicorn'.
He has been hailed by teammates, coaches, fans around the world and the medea as the most
influential player to rewrite baseball history.
He is the only player in MLB history to hit 40 home runs and strike out 100 in a single season,
and is a leading candidate for the 2023 MVP (Most Valuable Player ) award.
And he is fast on his feet, stealing bases so fast that catchers give up on the throw.
He can throw, hit and run like an angel!
He is truly a different dimension, a one-of-a-kind athlete.

A very impressive article, isn't it? I didn't copy and paste it here, but I retyped it for my webpage,
so most of the sentences are burned into my mind. Now I know that retyping an article is a good
way of learning English effectively. "Imitating famous paintings will make you a good artist,"
someone said a long time ago. The same thing could be said about anything you do.

The MBL game between the Angels and the Dodgers started 11:10 this morning. The Dodgers
lead by the score of 4-0, including three home runs. The starting pitcher of the Angels was Canning.
He was no good. I couldn't feel much energy from him. Everybody on the Angels is not energetic
at all. If the Angels lose today's game, somebody has to take the responsibility. Manager Nevin is
going to resign? General manager Perry Minasian might be replaced by Maddon? Ohtani could be
traded to some other team like the Dodgers? But now on top of the 4th inning, Ohtani and Ward
made hits and after that Moniak hit a 3-run homer. Now the Dodgers lead by the score of 4-3.
It's now getting a close game. Here I felt a little bit of energy from the weak team.

Now the Angels are in a critical situation. The Dodgers' pitcher has changed because they have
to pitch Shohei Ohtani. But I'm very sorry to see Ohtani watch the last strike. I hope he should
have been more aggressive then they have good chances. We can't expect a good job from the
monster batter in today's game. Well, I'll stop watching TV. I've changed the channel to see the
movie "Jaws," which is more exciting than a MBL baseball game.

The weather has been changing gradually. This morning it was little cool with a refreshing breeze
coming in. But now it's getting more and more humid. When I felt it was a little cool, I turned off the
air-conditioner. However I need cool air coming down from it, I've just trun on the air-conditioner
again. Many people who come and visit Japan hate Japanese humid summer. For us Japanese
people it's something that we hate most in the summer time. Today there are some small devices
to protect your body from the humidity. Just hanging them from your neck or putting them at your
back seems to work so much. I've never tried those high-tech devices, though.



　There are some smart devices for dogs too. It's very dangerous for dogs to take a walk under
the hot summer sun. It's so easy for them to get sick because of the summer heat. It's called
"a heat stroke." 4 year ago my dog suffered from a heat stroke. Although I took him to the vet
clinic ASAP, it was too late. The doctor let his fever go down, but he stopped breathing late in
the afternoon. A heat stroke is so critical that we have to be very careful about that.



　The video above was shot on May 12, 2019. Of course the dog in the video was Ryoma. Every
time he went out for a walk, he paid a visit at my parents-in-law's apartment. My father-in-law
enjoyed giving Ryoma some dog snacks. But it seemed that he didn't feel fine around this time.
About 5 weeks after this, Ryoma passed away. I hated the humid summer. I hated myself too.



The little cute girl must have been spending many scary and lonely nights. She didn't have
her mom or her siblings to live happily with her. She cried when she felt someone getting close
to her and came out of the dark to say hello to the rescuer. She had black fur, so it was a little
difficult to spot her. However she was lucky enough to be held by the rescuer who drove to her
place all the way from the city. Maybe she took a warm shower first and then had a proper meal
donated for rescued animals by a lot of viewers and supporters. It must have been her first
yummy food she had ever had. Congratulations!
　Then she went to the vet clinic and the doctor found anything wrong about her health. She
was such a beautiful girl with beautiful black fur. Now she's looking for a new family who'd
like to adopt her as a precious member of the family. I wish her good luck and lots of happiness.
　
In today's game against the Dodgers Shohei Ohtani hit just one hit. When the next batter Ward
made an infield hit, Ohtani reached the second base. While the judges watching the instant replay
carefully, the second baseman Mookie Betts came to Ohtani to shake hands. Maybe he wanted to
say, "Are you OK with your finger, Shohei?" Not only Betts but also the first baseman Freddie
Freeman looked happy to exchange some words with Ohtani. Shohei Ohtani has a lot of friends
in many other teams. That means that he's loved by many people. He belongs to no team.



In today's game Betts played second base, but he's usually a very excellent outfielder. Today he
hit two successive home runs, and Freeman hit one home run. They're great hitters.

　Today Ohtani made just one hit out of three at-bats. Some people say that the reason why he
can't do good jobs at present is that he's tired out after running too hard from WBC. Ohtani has
been doing too many things for the team. As a matter of fact, Mookie Betts was on the national
team as an outfielder, but he's not a two-way player like Ohtani. That's why he's doing great jobs
for the Dodgers now. We just hope that Shohei is coming back to himself ASAP. Go for it!



She was really an abandoned dog in a faraway village? When the rescuer arrived at her place
she was such a good girl who was used to people. She must have been a yard dog.
　During the long drive, she got sleepy. When they came back, they soon went to the vet clinic.
Nothing wrong was found about her health, so they came home and the little girl took a warm
shower. After she was cleaned up to be a beautiful girl, it was time for her to eat proper dinner.
Then the dog of the house Arra showed up and became good friends with her. I hope she will
find a good adopting family and have a happy life in her forever home.

(Sunday, July 9, 2023)

I don't know what they mean, but while I was sleeping some words came to my mind. Anyway
I got out of bed and now writing the words on this page so that I might not forget them exactly.
"These are the messages delivered down to every soldier by the Emperor." What do the
messages mean? I'm not a soldier, but the words came to someone who lived in the past of myself?
Well, everything I experienced a few hours ago is exactly here. Look at this when you need to see
the words. I have to go back to sleep again. It's 4:11 in the morning. What am I doing?

Of course the Angels lost the game against the Dodgers. They were not one organazed team.
Manager Nevin is still going to stay in the position? It's obvious that he's not the right person to
manage the baseball team although he might have been a great player himself.
　Everybody including me has been worried about Shohei Ohtani. He might be in trouble both
mentally and physically. It's true that he's been too exhausted do incredibly great jobs. But the
former Japanese slugger who was explaining the game in the broadcasting box said, "Many people
might worry about Ohtani's condition and want to decide that he's in a kind of serious slump with
no home runs during successive 4 to 5 games. However it's not true. The number of home runs
he hits in a short period of time has nothing to do with his physical condition. Such situation often
happens to any baseball player. So you just have to watch him and cheer him up sitting in front
of the TV screen." He was completely right. Actually Ohtani his his 32nd home run in today's
game. He made 3 hits out of his 5 at-bats. We don't have to worry about him. He can manage
all by himself. I think it's a good idea for him to take part in the All Star Game as a batter, and
take a good rest for the second half of the pennant race. What do you think?



　Well, what a great player he is! I wasn't expecting any home run from him in today's game.I knew
he was going to start doing incredible jobs after taking a good rest. People tend to expect too
much form Shohei Ohtani. After hitting his 32nd home run, he didn't wear the famous soldier's
helmet. It showed how he felt about what he did. He sincerely wanted the team to win the game.
Hitting a home run or not is not an important question for him. He's a real baseball player before
a home run monster. By the way, do the Dodgers really want him for the next season?

What is more surprising is that Mookie Betts his a leadoff homer in today's game. Yesterday
he hit two home runs and today another one. Freddie Freeman also hit a home run today too.
There are so many good batters on the Dodgers, which is quite different from the Angels. Will
Ohtani look better in the red uniform or the blue uniform. The Dodgers are a very rich team and
they can pay a lot of money for Ohtani. Both of the two teams belong to the city of Los Angeles.
Ohtani once said that he loved a warm city on the Pacific Coast. The only important difference
is the color of their uniforms. I like the manager Dave Roberts who was born in Okinawa in 1972.



　The last photo was made by image processing. Ohtani might get angry to see this. But a lof of
players and the manager Roberts will be happy to see Shohei in their blue uniform. Downtown
Los Angeles is not far from Anaheim of the Angels. It's about 40 kilometers from each other.
My city Chigasaki is about 50 kilometers southwest of Tokyo. Similar situation, right?

However I don't think the Angels are not utilizing Shohei in an effective way. It was Ohtani
himself who chose Anaheim to start his MLB career. I agree that the top people on the Angels
are only interested in earning money, not in making a strong team for their fans. I want to say
to the owner Arte Moreno, "The team is not your diamond collections. You can't spend a lot
of money to get famous players like Rendon and Trout. I know you need Shohei to help your
business. It's OK that you do your own business, but managing a baseball team is not yours."
Now the Angels are like a field hospital. So the top people of the team have to take good care
of the players on the team. Buying and selling is not for the players on your team.

The most important position in baseball is the pitcher. I was a coach of a softball team. In
softball games especially, the pitcher plays more than 90% of the players roles. However the
most influential person is the manager, of course. I'm not going to blame Nevin for his poor
tactics. When I see his worried look, I hope someone takes his place. Both in baseball and
softball, different coaches make quite different teams.
　I said I wouldn't blame Nevin, because it was not his idea. He had to take Maddon's place.
If Maddon comes back to the team again, will the Angels suddenly start winning games? I'm
sure they will. However it's not a possible idea, because Maddon doesn't get along well with
the general manager Perry Minasian and the owner Arturo Moreno.

　Do you know that the Disney Group are said to buy the whole team again from Moreno?
They just regard them as a pure baseball team, but as just business chances. Is it OK for
Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse to dance around before the bench of the Angels? For them
baseball is a business which brings them lots and lots of money. But for the players, baseball
is just everything they need, just their lives. I don't think they're interested in Disneyland any
more. Moreno once said that he didn't want to pay luxury tax for the team. For Moreno, what
matters is money, money, money. But for players, good health is much more important.



I was surprised to hear Moniak complain about the Angels' situation. He said, "We still have
a lot of things to do to make our team stronger. We haven't done anything effective to win the
game." Shohei Otani has been doing his best for the team, but only a few players try their best
together with Shohei. Ohtani looked a little sad after he hit his 32nd home run. Actually he didn't
put on the soldier's helmet this time. Does this mean that Shohei already knows that he's going
to be traded by August? Or has he already decided to leave the Angels after the usual season?
I'm a little bit sorry to see Ohtani say goodbye to Trout. But I don't care which team he's going
to move to. Los Angeles Dodgers or New York Mets? Any team will do as long as they really
want to welcome Shohei Ohtani as a two-way player. And I'd like to say to the Mayor of the
Anaheim City, "You should give up rebuilding the city related to Shohei Ohtani, because he's
leaving your city. He's not interested in Disneyland U.S.A."

　The Los Angeles Dodgers have been built on the firm structure, but the Angels stand on a
faragile land. The Dodgers have been playing professional baseball, but the Angels haven't. The
players on the Angels are not very bad, but they're not eager to win. "We will win!" they should
say. And one more thing. I want them to say to all their fans, "We're sorry to have been rude."

(Monday, July 10, 2023)

On my way back from an evening walk, I stopped at the dentist's to make a reservation for
the next visit. It's going to be July 23 at 12:00 noon. On the previous day, I'll have to go and see
the doctors at the hospital, a psychiatrist and a doctor for diabetec tract medicine. So I'll have
to be very busy on those two days. Can I call them "clinic weekend"?

　But before that I'll have to check if my health insurance card is still valid. Maybe tomorrow I'll
call the City Hall and ask them to make sure of the validity of my card. In my smart phone, I
have an application called "Mynaportal" which will tell me about my personal information. I
checked the application to know if my health insurance card is valid or not. But I didn't know
the answer to my question. Even if I ask in my mind, it's just an application installed in the
phone and can't answer my question like a woman at the information desk.



The little girl was hiding in the sewer with no other friends staying together. She must have
had a very lonely time without anythint to eat or drink. She didn't want to drink any water, but
she was starving. The rescuer was happy to see her eating a lot.
　On their way back home, she suddenly started to crying loud. The rescuer worried about her
health and they hurried to the vet clinic. There was nothing wrong to worry about, so they went
home to let her take a warm shower. After the shower she became so fluffy. Then she ate a
proper dinner and now she's waiting for a new forever adopting family. Good luck, Little Girl.

I called the City Hall around noon but they didn't know anything about the health insurance
system of the mutual aid association. They only deal with national health insurance. So I called
the Mutual Aid Association Kanagawa Branch and asked them what was wrong with my case.
They answered, "You had to pay for the first three months using the pink transfer forms in the
envelope delivered to your house." Now I understand my big mistake. I thought I had to pay for
the first two months and the fee for the third month (this July) should be paid by account
transfer. I had completed account transfer contract procedures when I visited the Mizuho Bank
near Fujisawa Station this May. But the insurance system is not so strict that it's still valid though
I didn't pay the money by the deadline on June 30. The woman at the desk told me that I could
still use the transfer form I had and pay the designated amount of money. That's what I did. Now
I feel relieved I could solve the problem. I don't have to worry about the medical fee when I go
to the hospital and the dental clinic at the end of this month.



This video shows the scene when Shohei Ohtani made a triple against the Dodgers. Not only
the Angels fans but also the Dodgers fans got crazy about the hit. Everybody was happy, which
surprised the people related. Are there any other baseball players who make all the people happy
by their performances? Maybe Shohei is the only one at present who can become a superhero.

There is a rumor that Shohei Ohtani will move to the Seattle Mariners. I think the Dodgers are
taking the initiative in getting Ohtani as a new influencial member. Why the Mariners this time?
Ihiro Suzuki is one of the top people of the Mariners, and some media doubt that Shohei doesn't
like the situation. He'd like to play in a strong team without any Japanese players. In that sense
the Dodgers are the best place for him to live an exciting baseball life.



He should have looked happier, but he always think more of the team than himself. So he must
have been very happy to hit his 32nd homer, but it wasn't good enough to let him make a smile.
I think the most important element when he chooses his new team is who the manager is. Of
course Maddon is the best, but Dave Roberts of the Dodgers is also fantastic. Nevin's no good.

I've been watching a movie entited "Black School Rules" on TV. Do you understand what the
black school rules are? Those are school rules that are too strict. They're out of common sense.
When I was a teacher in Chigasaki City, school rules differed from school to school. My school
was famous for its strict rules. For example, we decided the length of girls' skirts. We were too
much interested in different makers of boys' uniforms. We were very sensitive about colors of
hair rubber bands and types and colors of shoes. In the teachers' meeting, someone proposed
that they should have school bags. Some of us were against the idea, though in vain. Now there
are few schools that push strict school rules on students. But the school I worked for in Ebina
City was trying to make school rules stricter and stricter. Don't they know they're out of date?

　In a school in Yokohama, teachers said that we should think much of how students feel, what
they think, not how they look or what they wear. One of the teachers told me that once in
Yokohama City it was almost impossible to keep them in narrow cages. So the teachers gave
up strict school rules. As a matter of fact, they go on a school trip wearing casual clothes, not
school uniforms. Casual clothes reflect their characters and I was very happy to see them.
In Chigasaki we used to have too strict rules, in Yokohama we set the students free, and in
Ebina they're inviting stricter rules. I don't quite understand why there are so many differences.
I believe school teachers should live according to common sense. Stop being crazy adults.

(Tuesday, July 11, 2023)

This year the MBL All-Star Game will be held in Seattle on July 12. Today's the previous day
and the Home Run Derby is going to be held. All the 8 hitters will take part. Mookie Betts of the
Dodgers is one of them. I hope he will win the championship. Shohei Ohtani will be just watching.

　Now the Home Run Derby is getting into semi-finals. After a long while, the derby has finished.
The winner was Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Toronto Blue Jays. It was his first championship.
All the contestants must have been so exhausted. We have to thank all of them for letting us
observe an exciting derby. Congratulations on your great performances, Guerrero Jr! Oh, we
can't forget the runner-up of the derby. It was Randy Arozarena of the Tampa Bay Rays. You
must remember his self-satisfied look with his arms folded. In Japanese we call it "doyagao."



　Who wonders why Shohei Ohtani didn't take part in the Home Run Derby. He's the home run
king of the MLB at present. He's a coward who is afraid of his name spoiled by many fans? No,
nothing is untrue about this. Ohtani has been thinking about his team the Angels. He's now the
leading pitcher of his team, so he has to make many more winning games before the Angels go
on to the post season. If he had taken part in the Home Run Derby, he would have lost a lot of
energy which he should use for the second half of the pennant race. Maybe he wanted to hit many
surprising home runs before many fans at T-Mobile Park (formerly known as Safeco Field). But
he's such a smart guy and knows what he should do, not what he wants to do. Maybe tomorrow
he'll pitch and bat at the same time. That's enough to make us his fans happy. Good luck, Shohei.

Maybe both in Japan and America, here comes a quiet and lonely situation after the festival is
over. But in case of the MLB, after the All-Star Game comes the second half of a harsh pennant
race. Do you think the Angels will be able to go on to the post season? I don't think the players
are fully motivated. They finish their at-bats very easily. Even if they have a big chance, nobody's
going to go and take it. "Take the chance!" That's what I'd like to say to the members of the Angels.
I don't think Rendon and Trout are coming back soon. The same thing can be said about the other
players on the Injured List. Is it possible to change most of the players? Or is it wise of them to
change the manager? Manager Nevin is the only one to be blamed?

　Are they serious in thinking that they'll have to say goodbye to Shohei Ohtani after the pennant
race? Will they do a good job without the help of Ohtani? Maybe Shohei thinks that he doesn't
care which team he works for. He thinks he has to do everything he can for the team he is supposed
to belong to. He's just become 29 years old. How many more years can he play in the MLB. Then
what he has to do is do his best as a two-way player to make a history. In about 7 years, he'll be
mentioned a legend, which means he has already stopped playing baseball himself.

Don't think that Shohei Ohtani is divine. He's just a human being who can get hungry, injured,
mentally and physically damaged, love somebody, and so on. Don't expect him to be perfect, because
he tries meet your expectation. In so doing, he might more seriously get damaged. Now it's time to
give him a good rest. After taking the rest, he'll be himself again.
　A lot of teams would like to have him as part of their teams. But there is only one Ohtani. After
this season is over, I think he has to decide the next team he'd belong to. Maybe he's not interested
in the great sum of money they offer. He wants to understand the atmosphere the new team has.
At the T-Mobile Stadium many fans including children were shouting, "We want Shohei!" Of course
it means that they'd like Shohei to come to their team to play there.

　When he was in Hanamaki Higashi High School, did the manager Sasaki know that Shohei would be
able to do something great in the United States? But before going over to the MLB, he has to train
himself on a professional baseball team in Japan. You can't suddenly start swimming in the vast
ocean. Before becoming a great swimmer, you have to practice swimming in the swimming pool.
So once again I'd like to ask Mr. Sasaki and Mr. Kuriyama if they knew about the great possibility
that Shohei had in himself. Or were they afraid to see Shohei change into a baseball monster in
the Major League Baseball? I'd like him to be always healthy and have a happy life as a usual person
accompanied by a nice woman who'd take good care of him. Is this too cheap an idea?

(Wednesday, July 12, 2023)



He was alone inside the abandoned building and hiding. He was very hungry, but not very
thirsty. Maybe because there was snow on the ground and it was cold, which didn't dehydrate
the little boy. After that they drove home and on their way they paid a visit to the vet clinic.
He was healthy and it was poop time outside the clinic. When they got home, it was time for
a warm bath. And after being cleaned up, it was a proper dinner time. He was a lucky boy. If
nobody had found him in the building, it must have been difficult for him to live.

Now the MLB All-Star Game is being held. So far Shohei Ohtani had two at-bats, but he
hasn't make a hit yet. He says that he wants to hit a home run. However every pitcher of the
National team has been trying hard not to let Ohtani hit a home run, so it must be very difficult
for Ohtani to do the great job. Ohtani has received the highest number of votes in fan voting
for the American League. So the commentator at the TV studio in Tokyo predicts that Shohei
will have a chance to hit at his third at-bat. But the managers of the both teams will have to
think of many super players who gathered in Seattle. Ohtani is not the only valuable player.
　The All-Star Game is over and Shohei Ohtani was struck out by swinging for the first at-bat,
and was walked for the second at-bat. Kodai Senga didn't have a chance to take the mound.
Anyway Ohtani seemed to have a good time talking to various players on both teams.

According to the weather forecast this morning, today we were having a tropical day in Kanto
Area today. It's not cool in the air-conditioned living room of my apartment. I set the temperature
to 25 degrees Celcius, but I think I should change it down to 24 degrees. Or I think I have to clean
up the air-donditioner. Then the air coming out of it might get cooler than now.
　I haven't clean up the air-conditioner for a long time, so I'd have to ask the professional cleaning
service to take care of it. I once saw the advertisement on TV and it said the cleaning would cost
around 8,000 yen. I'm not sure if it's a proper price or not. About half an hour ago, I reset the
temperature to 24 degrees Celcius. I feel much cooler now. No need to clean it up?

Now that the MLB All-Star Game is over, the MLB players have got into a long break. It's about
two days. The pennant race will start again on July 15. Professional baseball players in the United
States make a lot of money, but their jobs are too hard. Some of them are tired out or injured and
put in the Injured List. The Angels are in serious trouble having too many players in the Injured
List. Some people are afraid that they've been cursed this season.

　As I have been insisting, it's not a problem of being cursed. They just have to change the manager,
the General Manager, and the owner of the team. There's a rumor that the present owner Moreno
is planning to sell the team to the Disney Group who used to own the team from1997 to 2003. In 2002
they won the World Series and held the celebrating parade in Disneyland. At that time the exact
name of the owner was the Walt Disney Company. At that time they might have thought that the
baseball team never makes a lot of money. Did Moreno think the Angels would produce a very big
profit? And now again the Disney Group are planning to make enormous sum of money by making
the best use of Shohei Ohtani? Don't they know he's leaving the team to play somewhere else?

　I understand baseball is a big business. You need a lot of money to manage a baseball team. You
have to pay unbelievable sum of money to invite famous players. You have to spend lots of money
on baseball equipments. You have to have a very splendid idea to manage the team. If you succeed
in doing everything, you'll gain much more money. However inviting a lot of people including kids to
Disneyland and inviting a lot of baseball fans to the Angel Stadium are as difficult as each other.
I'm not a business person, but I know it's a stupid idea to try to do two things at the same time.



When Ohtani was at bat, there was roaring voices from the audience saying, "Come to Seattle!"
I have some news about Shohei's playing for a different team. If the team was in the American
League like the Seattle Mariners, there is no problem. But if the team belonged to the National
League like the Los Angeles Dodgers, the number of home runs the Ohtani hit in the Amerian
League might not be counted any more. Still does he have to move to the Dodgers? If he is to
be traded, he'll be starting to play in the National League at the beginning of August. So the best
solution is that Ohtani stays in the Angels until this season is over. After that he can decide as a
free agent which team he's playing for during the next season.



What's that? The rescuer found a puppy wandering around the dangerous road. When the
rescuer came up to the little boy, he kept distance for a while. But then suddenly he opened
his mind and asked for belly rubs. They soon visited the vet clinic and there was no problems
about his health. When they came home, the rescuer tried to give him proper food, but he didn't
have a good appetite. So he took a warm shower first. Before that the rescuer gave him some
mineral water. That was what he wanted. He drank a lot of water. Maybe he didn't eat anything
because he was very thirsty. OK, then, have a delicious dinner and start looking for a new home.

(Thursday, July 13, 2023)



I'm sorry that it's been such a long video we've been watching. They didn't explain about the
dogs and the situation they were in, so I can't say anything about the video. I don't know if they
were male or female and how much damage they had on themselves mentally and physically.
When the rescuer saw them on the road, the bigger one didn't seem to be able to move the body.
It just lay on the road and I thought it was possibly run over by a car. But I could see some blood
on the body of the smaller one too. I couldn't understand why it could stand up when the rescuer
gave them some food. Was it really seriously injured? The rescuer took them two to the vet clinic,
but the doctors didn't say anything about their health. There were no telops on the screen and I
didn't understand anything about the poor dogs. They had a proper dinner and some water at the
resucuer's home and of course they took a bath to be cleaned up. I wondered if it was OK to let
them take a bath when the rescuer didn't know how badly they had been injured. Good luck.

Now I've been out with a bag of burnable garbage because today's a garbage day. When I went
out of the building, I noticed that it was much cooler than yesterday. If there's a typhoon coming
toward Japan, the warm wind might be coming into Japan from the typhoon in the south. I checked
it out on the Internet and knew there's no typhoon born in the Paific Ocean at present.
　When I looked up at the sky, there were a lot of clouds and I felt it might start raining at any time.
What's this weather? The weather forecast on my smart phone tells me that it's going to start
raining early tomorrow morning. It's not going to be a mid-summer day today. The highest temperature
today will be 28 degrees Celcius this afternoon. We might not need an air-conditioner.
　Still now I'm using an air-conditioner. As I said before, I'm no good at staying in a warm humid room.
Last night I couldn't sleep well. I usually use a portable cool air fan. Last night I poured some water
in the device. It's supposed to use like that. If you pour water, you're having a cooler air. If you only
use a bigger cool air fan, you'll be able to avoid wasting too much electricity. I'll try that tonight.

This morning my blood sugar level was 199 mg/dL, which was too high. I guess it's because I had
too much sushi for dinner last night. Do you know that susha has high calories? I have to be careful.
I think I should take my parents-in-law to Sushiro less often than before.

　Months ago while I was working for a school in Ebina City, I went to school by car every day. On my
way to school I often stopped at a convenience store in Samukawa Town to buy something to eat.
I used to eat the snacks while I was working in the teachers' room. It was against the most important
rule for those who have diabetes that they should not eat snacks during the day. But I broke the
important rule to be obeyed. I went around in the school building and ate snacks after that. I think I
was doing something good and bad at the same time. That's why my diabetes didn't get better.

　In Japan we have interesting words that go "kobaraga-suku." Literally it means "I'm a little hungry."
in English. When you're a little bit hungry, you'd feel like eating snacks. That's very dangerous thing
to do. The custom of eating snacks every day piles up to make your health go wrong. I know it's very
difficult not to eat anything even when you're a little hungry. Can you do that? Before the doctor says
you have diabetes, you'd never be careful about your health. Even if you know you have diabetes and
get accustomed to the situation, you'd think little of eating snacks during the day. If you want to get
better, you have to give up eating snacks, even a few. I don't eat any snacks at home now.

Near Ebina Station opened new food shops like "Gyoza no Ohsho" and "Yoshinoya." Gyoza no
Ohsho was opened on May 19, and Yoshinoya on May 12. It was after I retired from the Junior High
School in Ebina City. I noticed that those two shops were being built in the middle of the rice field.
I've never been there, but someday I want to visit Gyoza no Ohsho. Yoshinoya is everywhere, but
Gyoza no Ohsho can't be seen near my house. I like its gyoza and ramen so much. How long does
it take to drive from my house to the shop in Ebina? It's about 30-40 minutes, hopefully.

Now is the time for my car to be inspected at a garage. The vehicle inspection sticker is due in
the middle of August. It will take them one night two days to complete the inspection, so in order
to make it just one day, I've planned to visit the car dealer to talk about the inspection beforehand
at the end of this month. The due date will be August 19, so we'll be making a reservation around
the beginning of August. How much will it cost me? Perhaps around 100,000 yen. What the hell!



He's about 2 months old, but he's being raised to become a fighting dog. He already has scars
on his face and body. He has already started to be trained for a dog fight. Inside the abandoned
building, he was tied with a rope at the choking point so that he might become aggressive to
become a good fighter. Of course he dosn't want that and he hopes that he'll have a happy life
with a new human family. He loves cuddles, belly rubs. He needs affection and love. Now he's
become friends with Arra. She's lived with the rescuer for a long while. She's a warm-hearted dog.

(Friday, July 14, 2023)

Last night it was too hot to get into sleep easily. Do you know the Meteorological Agency call
such nights "Tropical Nights"? Tropical nights are when the lowest temperature between the
evening and the next morning is over 25 degrees Celcius. Today is the recyclable waste day and
they collect cans, bottles, plastic bottles. When I go out, I think I'm going to see how the weather
is like outside. I mean if it's hot or cool.
　I've just been to the garbage site and noticed that it's a little bit humid outside. However I can't
tell exactly how the weather is like this morning. Is it cool or humid? Anyway it was a very hard
night that I had. After coming back from the garbage site, I measured the blood sugar level. It was
as high as 215 mg/dL. It was my first time to see the result of over 200 mg/dL after I quit my
teaching career. I've thought about the reason why it was so high. Yesterday I didn't go for an
evening walk, I ate cornflake with milk after dinner, I couldn't sleep very well. I'm not sure.

Now the whole world is interested in which MLB team Shohei Ohtani is moving after this August.
Do you know the trading deadline is August 1 in America? Even if Shohei isn't traded by that day, it's
impossible for the Angels to let him stay in their team. When Ohtani went to the All-Star Game, most
people in Seattle cried out, "Come to Seattle, Shohei!" Answering the interview, Ohtani said that
he surely heard the cries but that it was a complicated feeling that he had about that. He had a
complicated feeling on "Come to Seattle." It means that Seattle couldn't be the final destination. Is
that right? But if he moves to the Dosgers, he'll have a difficult problem. The Dodgers belong to the
National League, so his home run record will be gone. 32 home runs is just an American League
record. I don't think he's going to accept that. We shouldn't say, "It's so interesting." Because it's
a very serious question that Shohei Ohtani has. The Mariners are a very good team, but they're not
going on to the World Series. Then it might be a good idea to ignore the home run record while he
was on the Angels and move to the Dodgers to win the championship of the World Series.

　Now I measured the blood sugar level. I was surprised at the difference of the results. Last time
I measured the blood sugar level at 7:14, it was 215 mg/dL. And this time the result at 8:22 was
161 mg/dL. I understand the reason of this. I already had an insulin injection and took diabetes pills.



How did the local person spot the little girl near the tennis courts? Who abandoned her there?
The cruel guy didn't leave any food and water nearby. I'm really sorry for her, because she rushed
to the rescuer and jumped up at him/her, which means she was once kept in a house.
　She was such a small dog, weighing less than just a kilo. The rescuer let her take a warm shower
and the next day they went to see the vet. The doctor found that she had a hernia, but maybe she
didn't need an urgent surgery. It might be naturally recovered, because the vet didn't look so
serious. She went home where Arra was waiting for her. I said that I thought Arra was a girl because
she seemed to have a big breast. But in this video the telop called Arra "he." Oh, my.

The second half of the MLB pennant race will start tomorrow. The Angels will play against the
Houston Astros tomorrow morning and Shohei Ohtani will be the starting pitcher, For both Ohtani
and his team, tomorrow's game will be very important. In the first half of the pennant race, they
won one game less than they lost. So if they win tomorrow they will have won and lost the same
number of games. I'm sorry, but it's been a little difficult to talk about this in English. If I have a lot
of mistakes in the passage, please be lenient with me. I'm not the best English teacher.



The little boy was found in a big city. Nobody tried to help him when they saw him starving
at the corner of the parking lot? At first when he saw some food in the bowl. The rescuer was
afraid that he didn't have a good appetite, but soon they knew that he'd just been starving and
wanted to have something to eat. Now the lunch time was over and they headed home.
　On their way they stopped at a park and made some new friends. First he was quiet and shy,
but soon he became curious and playful. Then after that the rescuer took him to the best vet
in town. Nothing was wrong with his health and it cost the rescuer about $150. Not an easy job.
Then they went home and the little boy took a warm shower. After being cleaned up, he met
Arra and they became good friends. It seemed that Arra liked him. But things weren't the same
as the cat. Both he and Arra had an endless appetite and now they were full. Have a good night
sleep, both of you. Of course enjoy a quiet night, Mr. Kitty. Hope he'll be adopted soon.

I took a long walk this evening. I wondered if I should go or not, because I was afraid it might
start raining at any time, but luckily it didn't. Most of these day the sky was full of rainclouds.
The rainy season hasn't finished here in Kanto District. If I should take a long walk tomorrow,
I'm not sure. If the Angels win the game, then I think I'll walk even if it rains because I'm happy.
　While I'm walking I often see people walking their dogs. One of the women I saw was taking
two golden retrievers. I thought I had seen one of the dogs many times before. The golden
retriever I often saw didn't like Ryoma and barked at him. He didn't like Ryoma, so he didn't
like the owner, I mean "me," either. So I didn't talk to her. It might have been a different dog.
　In most of the cases, if the owner is friendly, the dog he/she is walking is friendly. The dog
I mentioned was very hostile, but very exceptionally the owner was quite friendly to me. It
could happen some time. Ryoma and I didn't notice, but we had something he didn't like.



The rescue people call her "Mountain Princess," which sounds so cute. She's such a beautiful
girl. Who could have thought of abandoning her in the montains? Even though she was surrounded
by lots of snow, she couldn't live drinking melted snow. So she licked the snow to show the
rescuer that she was thirsty. "Give me some water, please," she might have been crying.
　At the vet clinic, she was on the scale and weighed as heavy as 4.5kg. She might become a
very big dog. She looks like a mountain dog puppy. Don't you think so?
　She was covered with long fur, so it wasn't easy to clean her up in a short time. But after the
bath time she was now a very beautiful mountain princess. She was starving and ate a big dinner.
I'm quite sure that she'll be adopted in the near future, Hopefully at a home with a large garden.

(Saturday, July 15, 2023)

It's 3:27 in the morning of July 15. I can't tell you the reason why I'm working on the computer
at this time of the day. One thing I can surely tell you is that I suddenly woke up at about 3:05 in
the morning. I remember in my dream I was watching the baseball game between the Angels and
the Astros which hasn't started yet. Ohtani was still pitching at the bottom of the 9th inning and
the score was even, 2-2. Someone on the Angels hit a goodgye home run making Ohtani the
winning pitcher. Maybe it was the story I personally made in my mind. It's impossible for Ohtani
to stay at the mound until the very end of the game. What will happen, we don't know, though.
Well, I think I'll have to go back to sleep when I think of my health.

By the way we usually use the word "go" when we talk about the amount of rice we boil.
According to the website, "1 go" is a cup measuring about 150 grams. I usually make 3 go of rice,
but these days I made it a rule to make 4 go of rice. Now I've realized that 4 go is too much to
make delicious rice. So very recently I started to make 3 go of rice, which tasted so good. You
want to know the difference? 3 go is far more different than 4 go, which I can't tell you by words.
Why don't you try and taste them? The most important thing when you make boiled rice is the
amount of water you pour on rice. You have to be careful not to use too much water. Too much
is no good and too little is no good either. Especially when you go on a camp, you shouldn't forget
about that. Because you don't have an electric rice cooker near the river or in the mountain.

The Angels couldn't win the game with the Astros. The members on the Angeles including
Shohei Ohtani didn't look eager to win the game. Most of them looked tired. Now that the
shortstop Zachary Neto (22) was back after a long absence. nobody looked happy about that.
Anyway it was the Angels to get two runs first, but Ohtani had a pitched ball and 3 walks and
the Astros took the chance to turn the table. Finally they won the game by 7-5.
　The Angels now have less responsibility to go on to the post season. It means that they have
to give up entering the post season and start building their team again. The only way for them to
make their team stronger is to trade Shohei Ohtani to a strong team like the Dodgers and get
4 to 5 promising young players. They have to say goodbye to Ohtani, but it's their destiny.
They have been managing the team very badly. They just wanted a few famous players and gave
up raising young players, especially pitchers and catchers. Do you think it's a good idea for the
Angels to let Ohtani move to the Dodgers? I think it is. They can't keep Shohei to become rich.

In today's game the third baseman Luis Rengifo made a big error, which made it even more
difficult for the Angels to win the game. It was quite exceptional that Shohei Ohtani looked very
discouraged after the "elementary" error. Why do so many players make errors in the Angeles.
The don't practice baseball hard and sincerely? I read an interesting article about Rengifo. Do
you know that Ohtani's good friend David Fletcher was sent back to the Minor League again?
Why Fletcher, not Rengifo? Some say that the manager Nevin like Rengifo because he's a utility
player, not a very good batter, though. However Fletcher's also a utility player. I hope tomorrow
Rengifo's name won't be on the starting list. I don't like players who easily get struck out when
the team has a great chance. Rengifo's that type of a player, I'm sorry to say this.　



　The famous saying goes, "Tastes differ." Yes, it must be true. People have likes and dislikes.
For example, I don't like Ward, Moustakas, Escobar, Thaiss, Wallach, and so on. They don't look
aggressive. If you don't have many aggressive players on the team, it'll be impossible for the team
to be winners. I don't like Shohei Ohtani because he's a little too selfish. Why does he have to
decide what kind balls he pitches? It's the catcher's job. Right? So I think it's Ohtani who's been
breaking the conbination inside the battery. That's why he can't be a winning pitcher. Talking about
good personality, I believe Trout is the best. Many people insist that Ohtani is the best, but I think
they're wrong. Of course I admit that Ohtani is a very talented athlete, but something's missing.
Still I'm one of his fans. People can't be perfect. Let's stop thinking that Ohtani is divine.

(Sunday, July 16, 2023)

A You Tube video says that the manager of the Angels Phil Nevin is going to use Rengifo as
the second baseman for today's game. In yesterday's game he made a big error and was relieved
as disciplinary punishment. Do you remember the scene in the dugout where Rendon tried to
encourage Ohtani by giving him a fist bump, but Ohtani didn't answered his smile. It was obvious
that among the members of the Angels, there is a kind of dissonance, as between Ohtani and
Rendon, or between Ohtani and Rengifo. Ohtani hates players who just smile and try to erase
their errors after making terrible mistakes. Both Rendon and Rengifo are famous for their poor
abilities to take care of the batted balls. There's a certain rumor among the mass media that
Shohei Ohtani will be traded to another team by the beginning of next month. Trout will be sorry
to hear that, but I agree to the idea. Ohtani has been supporting the team for a long time, but the
Angels are betraying him. What are they doing? Do they regard him as just a young Asian boy?
However they shouldn't forget that baseball is an American sport but that it's been supported by
a lot of Japanese players. I doubt there's a sense of discrimination behind Ohtani's case.

Just one homer turned the game around. At the bottom of the 9th inning, the top batter Ohtani
hit his 33rd home run, which completely changed the atmosphere of the stadium. After that most
players did great jobs and tied the game 12-12. And the most exciting scene came at the bottom
of the 10th inning. Ohtani was walked intentionally, but the next batter Taylor Ward hit a grounder
to the second base. The Astros tried to get two runners out at once, but failed to let the Angels
win by 13-12. What an incredible game! Most of the fans at the stadium were too excited to have
drinks and snacks. I was eating some sheets of seaweed while watching the game on TV.

　Once again, Ohtani-san, congratulations on your 33rd home run. We all know that you've been
having a annoying time not to make many hits for the team. You couldn't make your 8th winning
game yesterday, but you had a trouble with your finger tip. Everybody hopes you'll come back as
a reliable pitcher after your finger recovers. There's a rumor that you'll be traded and you're moving
to another team. But for us your fans, any team will do as long as they offer you a right place. We
sincerely hope that you'll have a good time on your new team. Take good care of yourself.



　Listen, Ohtani-san. Every slugger is having a hard time to hit the cext home run. They feel tired
after the hard work they did during the first half of the pennant race. We all know you also feel
exhausted as a two-way player. But this is what you decided to do yourself. We can't help you.
The only thing we can do is just cheer for you either in Japan or in the U.S. We also have our own
dreams, but yours is much bigger than ours. Never give up and go for it. We'll be staying by your side.

　I'd like to say to Manager Nevin, General Manager Minasian, and the owner Moreno, "Why don't
you stop thinking of trading Shohei Ohtani, and try to ask him to stay on the Angeles. If he's in
your place, the City of Anaheim will be putting the Mayor's plan into practice. The plan to build
Ohtani Town and invite lots and lots of people to both Disneyland and the Angel Stadium. The new
owner will be the Disney Group, and then they'll have no enemy. But never sell the team again."
If Ohtani leave the Angels, maybe a lot of fans will also be leaving Anaheim. Because the most
possible team that Shohei Ohtani will belong to next is perhaps the Los Angeles Dodgers. The
big city is about 40 km from Anaheim. It's easy for the fans to move to Los Angeles.



One of the Beatles' songs goes like this: "It's been a hard day's night. And I've been working
like a dog. It's been a hard day's night. I should be sleeping like a log. But when I get home to
you, I find the things that you do, will make me feel alright." We can easily imagine that Shohei
has also been going through a hard day's night. That's why there was no smile on this face after
hitting the 33rd home run. When he gets home tonight, he'll make a little smile and be happy.



I found a different type of video about rescuing a male puppy. But the content was too terrible
to watch, so I decided not to introduce it here. In the video a little boy was abandoned in a dirty
drain. He couldn't get out of the drain by himself, but nobody wanted to help him out of the drain
because it was too dirty. Then a man came to rescue him and washed him with clean water. After
that a human boy tried to give him some food. It looked like naan in India, but the puppy didn't seem
to want the bread. I'm not sure, but the naan didn't taste good for dogs. I felt terribly sorry for the
dog, so I decided to write about him here and not to introduce the video. I'm really sorry for many
poor dogs who have been abandoned without any clean food and water. May God help the poor boy.
I hope he'll be loved by a lot of good people and have a happy time with them. Good luck.

Why do they think nothing of spitting on the ground? I'm talking about the major leaguers. In
one of the comments on an article someone said the same thing. I hate their arm tattoos either.
It's just a differene of culture? These are the customs that American people don't feel anything
about? Most of the Japanese baseball who have played in the Major League are well disciplined and
never jog to the first base. Japanese baseball players always run to the first base as fast as they
could. In yesterday's game the short stop of the Angeles Rengifo didn't run after the loose ball
as quickly as possible. The manager Nevin got angry about that and let him get out of the field.
It could never happen in Japan. If you did the same mistake, you'll surely be thrown away from the
team. I'm not exaggerating. I think American baseball players should learn howe to behave on the
field. I'm always surprised to see so many paper cups scattered around in the dugout of the Angels.
Don't you think it's quite different from the meaning of their team name? They have to be angels.

It's been spreading all over the world in a few years. Lots and lots of people were killed by the
unknown virus, which is still alive somewhere in the world. At first we believed the disease started
in China. Some believed it came from the private marketplace, and others believed it was from
the secret laboratory that specialized in biological weapons. Perhaps all the evidence was gone
now, so nobody knows the truth. I think it was the virus made artificially in the Chinese laboratory.

　Covid-19 stands for Coronavirus Disease 2019. Do you think it's safe now? Don't we really have
to wear masks in order to avoid breathing in the dangerous virus? We're not sure until the cold
winter comes at the end of this year. Even if the virus is almost dead, some other dangerous creature
might come into our lives quietly. Virus is not such an easy thing to deal with.

　We're also afraid of catching flu. There are various types of flu. Some are extremely dangerous to
human bodies. Do we have to get a different shot when the flu season comes? How about side effects?
I'm very much worried about it. Many people are.