Inspiration For Longevity

Hello again! I hope you enjoy my recording of the classic, "Leaving on A Jet Plane." That song has always had special meaning to me as it was the first song I learned on the guitar. I only wish I could match the wonderful recordings by John Denver and Peter, Paul, and Mary! These photos are from Jindai Botanical Garden, such a gorgeous place!  As I think I may have mentioned, my current job at the American School is over at the end of this year. While I could stay and work as a substitute teacher, my preference is to have a regular position, so I get the joy of working with the same students on a consistent basis.  There is a wonderful web site that lists most of the top international schools in the Tokyo area: https://www.international-schools-database.com/in/tokyo Call it luck or call it persistence, I recently hit the jackpot when I discovered an amazing gem, The Tokyo International Progressive School, or TIPS, https://www.tokyoips.com/ This is from their main page: TIPS i

Happy Spring! Sorry to be out of touch! It has been a busy spring! Several people have asked me to record my singing. Here we go! Although I certainly am no pro, I have really enjoyed working on my guitar and singing skills. More to come! The cherry season has come and gone in our area. However, the good news is that I was able to capture some of the incredible beauty of the cherry blossoms. What a treat!  The top photo was taken at Rikugien Garden, a gorgeous garden in the Tokyo area.  The second photo from the top was taken from the entrance to the American School, the school where I work. The third and fourth photos from the top were taken in the Tama Cemetery.  I have the good fortune of walking through that cemetery on my way to work. A real joy! The three photos at the bottom were taken at the Jindai Botanical Garden, one of my favorite gardens close to our house. I hope you enjoy the music and the photos. All the best, Bob

I made this recording of the Cat Steven's song, Father and Son, on my Yamaha P-515. This has always been my favorite of his songs. I love the melody and I love the lyrics! These photos were all taken with my new Canon RF 100-500 lens. I am particularly pleased with these photos as the conditions were pretty tough. When I started photographing early in the morning, it was in the high 30's, with winds ranging from 10-15 mph. Chilly!  I thought it would be fun and interesting to do a review of my first nine months in Japan. This is going to double as my email message that I will send to folks in my data base. GREETINGS! A special greeting to the North Eugene tennis players and their coaches as they embark on the spring season. I wish I could be there to cheer you on! Another special greeting to the staff at Willamalane. I hope your tennis programs are going well! A third greeting to current and retired staff at North Eugene High School. I miss all of you! Lastly, to everyone else,

I just made this new recording of Moon River on my Yamaha P 515. I hope you enjoy it! For the last three years or so, I have been using the Canon R5 mirror-less camera with the 800 lens. While that has been a wonderful combination, it has not been ideal for small bird photography. With that in mind, I was fortunate to be able to purchase the Canon 100-500 RF lens. I had previously purchased the 2X RF extender. That extender doubles the longest focal distance from 500 to 1000.   I put this combination to the test last week. I first went to a small park that is a two minute walk from our house. That is where I photographed the small yellow birds that are appropriately called the Japanese White Eye.    I then went to the Tama Cemetery, which is also where I was able to photograph the other birds. That location is also very close to our house.   The other change I made was to follow the advice of an experienced bird photographer. I set up two "pre-sets,"  one of which is for eye

Setsuko had her total knee replacement surgery last Tuesday. The operation was successful and she is recovering very well. She will be coming home from the hospital this Thursday. Yeah! The pictures were taken with my iPhone 15 Pro Max, and are all from the Tama Cemetery, which is  very close to our house. I do not know the name of the person in the first picture. The engraving is part of a beautiful tombstone. I made this recording of "Bring Him Home" on my Yamaha P-515. I am very proud of this recording as I think it is the best recording I have ever made. I think the reason is simple. I practiced and practiced this piece!  My plan was to play this song at an "Open Mike" event at the school where I work. I also offered to play background music as people were arriving. I thought I would be playing "Bring Him Home" later in the evening. However, with other performances and karaoke songs, I never got the chance. Here is my replacement! With these recordings

IMPORTANT! For some odd reason, the music formatting has changed on these Blogger posts sites.. To listen to the song, first click on "READ MORE," and then click on the small box with the arrow in it that is in the upper right corner of the post screen. When you hover over that little box, it will say "pop-out." That will open up another window with a box in the middle of the screen. Click on the "play" arrow and the song should start. Please let me know if this does not work. Sorry about this! I made this recording of Leaving On A Jet Plane on my Yamaha P-515.  So many fond memories tied to the song! It was the first song I learned on the guitar and the only song I have memorized for the guitar. When I am feeling lonely or a little sad, this song does wonders for me! The pictures are of the world famous Tokyo Tower. What a gorgeous site, especially at night! In just a few minutes, I am going to be joining my first Climate Emotions Conversation. Thi