Tuesday, May 16, 2023

サンマテオだより

割り込み記事で近況をお伝えします。

5月の上旬に計画していたバルセロナ旅行をキャンセルしたので、毎日ほぼヒマこいています。

朝、ネコの散歩に出かけると… もう野良アサガオが咲いていました。
アサガオの開花って短日性のはずですが、この野良は多年生で冬を越すし、もう日本の常識は通じません。
でも綺麗だから許す。駐車場の管理に来る人々も、この野良アサガオだけは草むしりの対象にはしません。

あと、今年は柚子の花がたくさん咲きました。
儂の剪定がヘタクソで、隔年結果性のクセを修正できず…。
去年は「裏の年」で 10 個くらいの収穫でしたが、今年は摘果しなけりゃ樹勢が弱るけど 100 個はいけそう。

で… ネコの散歩は、あいかわらずこういう感じです。
写真を撮るから声をかけたら、全員がカメラ目線をくれましたが… 言うこときかない奴もいます。

たとえば、この日のニャーゴさんは「もっと遊びたい!」と、帰宅を拒否。
寝っ転がって『てこでも動かないぞ』のポーズ。これ、ちーちゃんもやります。

そういえば、ニャーゴも毛がモフモフってきたよね。野良で迷い込んできた時は酷かった。
でも未だに下腹部の毛の薄いところをなでるとブチコロス!って怒ります。(笑)

ネコを散歩させる佛教会第弐駐車場には、日本語学校の生徒さんが育てる… 今年はイネじゃない!
これ、向いてないって言ったんだけど… ポットでジャガイモを育ててます。
ネズミさん除けにネットを巻き付けています。うちのネコに警備させたほうが早いかも。

でも土の範囲に限界がある鉢植えで、馬鈴薯を育てるのって、どうよ?
みんなは甘藷も育てたかったようですが、さすがに諦めました。(苦笑)

どうせならトマトにすればいいのに。実以外は毒があるからネズミさん来ないのに。

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そして、ダウンタウンへ出かければ… 今日も今日とて、変な色のクルマが。

何この「これ以上鼻の穴は拡がりません」みたいなデザインのクルマは?
…しかも、鼻の穴、黒いし。(爆)
そもそも電気で走るんだから、テスラみたいに鼻が無くてもいいはずだよね?
扇風機マークだけど、塗りが凄い。パイプ修理のエポキシパテみたいな、便所の下水配管みたいな灰色。
買う奴も買う奴だけど、こんな塗装色を設定する扇風機メーカーも、なんだかなぁ…。

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変な色の扇風機マークを観た後は、ランチにやってきました。
ザ・バレルビストロです。靴の修理屋ビクターさんと一緒に、店の前でランチ♪

儂はマッシュルームのリゾットを試してみたかったので、それを。
MUSHROOM RISOTTO Arborio rice simmered with green peas, mixed mushrooms and light cream.
見た目が水の量を間違えて炊いた赤飯みたいですが… 予想通り、とても美味しいです。

リゾットだけだと食感がぼやけているので、カリカリのガーリックブレッドを添えて。
このガーリックブレッドも風味がしっかりしていて、いけてます。

ただ、相変わらず分量が多いので、余りは持って帰って家人に与えました。

ビクターさんが選んだのは、フラットブレッド。フィレミニヨンとルッコラ載せで。
FILET MIGNON FLATBREAD Pecorino truffle cheese, arugula, fried onion, ginger soy glazed filet mignon.
これも3分の1くらいもらったけど、フィレ肉がやわらかで美味しかった。ルッコラの苦味もいい相性。

こうして平和な日々が過ぎていきます。

でもこの記事が公開された一週間後には2週間ほど帰省します。日本へ行くのはいつでも楽しみ♪

【記事後悔後追記】

岡山のせんせいが見たがるから… もうワンカット。場所はサンマテオダウンタウンの立体駐車場の1階。
買い物の時に近道するのに、駐車場を通るんです。日が当たらなくて涼しいし。

いちおう写真屋さんだったので、基本的には何でも2枚は写すんですけど、これっきゃないです。
ぁぁ、なんて大きな豚鼻。大きいだけじゃなくて黒いし。(しつこい?)
屋根に蓋がついてるのは判りますが、ドアが4枚なのかどうかは判りません。
そもそもこれ、電気自動車でしょ?こんなのにまで興味あるんですか? >せんせい

あと、前にライセンスプレートが無いのは加州ではわりと普通。今は、ホントは違法。
昔はフロントにプレートなくても、後ろに付けていれば全然オッケーだったんですが… この人、罰金 198 ドル。

・・・って、良く見たらナヴィシート側に「ライセンス待ち証書」が貼ってあったしぃ。
これ、ライセンスプレート待ちの新車ですね。…あんまり新しく見えない色。wwwww

EU は、あの横長なプレートを、この大鼻をふさぐ形で付けるんですね。日本でも辛そう。

【記事後悔後追記にさらに追記】
これ書いてる30分前くらいの、撮れ撮れの写真を御覧に入れます。親馬鹿ですね。

2年前『ふたりのメイワク』としてご紹介した、我が家へ同時にやっってきたふたりのキジトラさんは…
こんなに大きくなりました。左が メイワク、右が ニャーゴロー(ニャーゴさん)です。

こうやって座っていると同じくらいの座高(というのか?)ですが、ニャーゴは頭がデカい。手も大きくて爪が怖いくらい凶暴だし、元・野良生活のためか顔立ちがキツい。メイワクはぼんぼん育ちで、まるでTっ子(爆)

またいい写真が撮れたら、どっかで御覧いただくと思います。

7 comments:

  1. In your lovely "San Mateo Newsletter," your adorable cats, the charming morning glories and yuzu flowers, and the carefully cultivated potatoes (an essential ingredient in oden in western Japan) with mouse repellents installed, all caught my attention. I'm also drawn to the delicious-looking bistro you mentioned. HOWEVER, I don't think I can avoid passing by this "strange-colored car" that you challenged me with (lol).

    First of all, based on the design you described as "its nostrils won't expand any further," the 4 Series is almost certain. The only exception is the M3 sedan, which has the same design but lacks a sunroof option (the M series typically doesn't have a sunroof due to weight reduction and lowering the center of gravity with a carbon roof as standard; however, if the carbon roof is replaced with a regular metal roof, a sunroof can be installed, but hardly anyone wants an M car with a sunroof). So I can exclude the M3 sedan.

    Hmm, it's a bit unfortunate that the left side door mirror is somewhat obstructing, making it difficult to determine if it's a 2-door or 4-door, but I would guess it's a 4-door based on the sunroof installation. Another disappointment is that the shape of the alloy wheels is not clearly visible, but based on the faintly visible design, it could be a 420i GranCoupe or a 420d xDrive GranCoupe, with the body color being M Brooklyn Grey (Metallic).

    I'm a bit curious as to why the license plate is missing, but the location where this car was discovered seems to be a typical parking lot, right? I'm not familiar with the U.S. vehicle registration system, but it feels like an unregistered new car.

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    Replies
    1. Yamada Denki sensei,

      No, my cats are not so adorable, the blue flower is a weed and it’s everywhere in our area, put potato in a pot is simply stupid, and the food at The Barrel is better than average but not superbly outstanding. …and the strange Gray Sewage Pipe colored electric car is… the car itself is running everywhere, often saw at San Mateo station for recharging, but this Gray Sewage Pipe color was the first time I found. Usually this car (i4?) is either white or black, sometimes gun metallic. However, I didn’t know they are selling solid gray… well, Porches or Audi are selling this kind of Sewage Pipe gray, but they are Volkswagens. Or West German cars are now keen to sell Sewage Pipes? That is a new question…

      So, the owner of this sewage pipe is waiting the license plate, but how he/she can install it??
      I don’t see any appropriate space for the license plate on the pig nose… What a strange car. At least the designer did not consider about the license plate in the States (or anywhere else).

      Delete
  2. Oh, Meiwaku and Nyagoro, the two cats, are quite adorable. Especially the cat breed that resembles a traditional stray cat in Japan, it brings back nostalgic memories.

    Speaking of nostalgia, our beloved dog is named "るん." This name is actually taken from a cat. My late uncle, who used to live in Okayama, was a huge animal lover. My uncle would pick up a stray cat from somewhere and keep him at my grandmother's house (later on, my uncle moved to Narashino, Chiba, but the cat stayed in Okayama).
    It's an outdated term now, but because he was a stray cats, my uncle called him "るんぺん" in the beginning, but lately, my uncle took the first half and named the cat "るん." It looked exactly like your two cats.

    He was a free-spirited cat. When he wanted to go outside, he would scratch the window, begging for it to be opened. Once I opened it, he would quickly go out without even saying thank you. He would be away for hours, but he would come back on his own terms, scratching the window again, pleading for it to be opened, and silently sneaking in without saying thank you. And one day, he went out as usual and never returned...

    I was sad when he was gone, so I made up my mind that if I ever had a pet, I would definitely name it “るん.” That's why our current dog is named “るん.” It's a nostalgic memory from over half a century ago.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yamada Denki sensei,

      If you see those two kitties in person, you will be disappointed or you will be shredded.
      Meiwaku doesn’t like humans, only comes to me when I is hungry. Nyagoro is friendly but if you mistakenly touch his sensitive spots, your hand needs first aid kit and probably followed by ambulance.

      Ah, now I know the name るん comes from… I expected your puppy’s name was bade on るんるん♪ but the original one was a cat, looks like my brown tabby brothers? Amazing.

      These days, especially in California, cat owners don’t allow their cat to go out because it shortens their lives by…
      1) eaten by raccoons, mountain lions or other wild animals.
      2) mistakenly ate poisonous plants or animals.
      3) bit by rattle snake.
      4) encountered and exposed by skunk.
      The fourth one is critical and damaging the owners too. (lol)

      I am quite sure both the cat version and dog version of るんs had or is having a good lives by warm and wealthy owners. Lucky them.

      Delete
  3. Yamada Denki sensei,

    The 4 series BMW picture was taken at downtown parking lot, I always walk through this route to go supermarket to avoid severe weathers. Usually those flog green Mercedes or shocking pink BMW’s are parking in the next block, therefore this sewage gray BMW supposed to be a different owner…

    I didn’t know all the 4 series are in this abnormally big nose design. I recently thought the car designers of Toyota are taking bad drugs then new Crown or Prius became strange. So… the designer in Bayer also having bad drugs too. Also, I can’t believe the board members of those car manufacturer approved this design to be mass production.

    And… if the front license plate is seriously required on this car, it looks like a tissue-paper stuffed nose to stop bleeding… California is easier to fix it though. You can buy black background with yellow letters license plate instead of regular dark green letters on white.

    I briefly checked the images of “BMW 7 series.” Indeed… it’s humungous piggy nose with the mean looking eyes like 100 series of Shinkansen. This designer was having cocaine, morphine, cannabis and tobacco at the same time when he drew the sketches for sure.
    Sensei, you did a good decision. If I were invited to have a ride of this new 7 series… I’d rather walk back to the hotel because I can’t bear people watching me in this car.
    M850i Gran Coupe is quite normal sports car. But… accidentally, I saw a picture of this car with ‘almost’ sewage gray… it looks like a bit metallic but still…

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  4. Yamada Denki sensei,

    Ikoyan is cute because he is chubby stubby, walking slow and probably the brain is slow too. However, BMW 7 series cars are not cute because it can hit elderly and give them deaths. Such kind of weapon can’t be that unbelievably ugly shape of eyes and nose holes… again, the designer took quite an amount of propophol during he sketching the new car, then the board members were in the funky party and mistakenly approved that design…

    I understand Rolls Royce shares engines and finances with BMW, but… I am so sad Phantom is sharing the engine of fan maker… and I’m still uncertain how the silence plate is appropriately installed. If it’s equipped with engine, it needs water cooler usually. Then, if the license place is in front of that big nose holes, it’ll be eliminating the breathes, right? (lol)

    No worries, sensei. The 9 series looks very charming to me. It may be super expensive but that is the goal for you as “”いつかは9シリーズ.
    9 series are still remaining the charming ones besides 7 and 5 went to the junkies’ favorites.

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  5. Indeed, Icoyan may have a fierce look, but he (or she!?) is chubby and stubby. However, based on my assumption, he seems to walk quite fast, rather than slow. Although his thought process may be slow, he doesn't seem like a character who is just cute. Still, he would be cuter than BMW's current 7 Series. I still can't understand why BMW released an ugly car design like that.

    In the first place, BMW's motto is "The Ultimate Driving Machine," but that is just a slogan. The truth is, "No matter how good the performance is, if it looks uncool, it's not a BMW." Bimmer enthusiasts would agree with that. I know that the interior of the current 7 Series is highly advanced, but I can't forgive that front mask...

    BMW introduced the 7 Series with a V12 engine in 1986. Since then, the phrase "Someday with a V12" has been circulating in my mind. Throughout my history of owning BMW cars, I've had three 7 Series models and my current M850i Gran Coupe (along with two 3 Series for Midori-san, totaling six cars), all powered by a 4.4L twin-turbo V8 engine. The current 8 Series does not have a V12 option, but the 7 Series had the V12-powered 760Li. However, as indicated by the "Li," these are all long-wheelbase versions, which are unnecessary for me as a single occupant who never carries passengers in the rear seats. However, it's worth mentioning that in Germany and the American market, there are short-wheelbase 760i models available (which were not imported to Japan). I even considered parallel importing a 760i from Germany or America, but when I informed the dealer about it in advance, they mentioned that the main maintenance wouldn't be covered under warranty, so I reluctantly gave up on the idea.

    In the period of the previous generation of the 7 Series, the V12 models were available in Rolls-Royce cars and the M760Li, which was the high-end model of the BMW 7 Series. However, the current 7 Series no longer offers the V12 engine option, and I predict it would be difficult for BMW to continue producing the 6.8L version of the V12, as found in the Rolls-Royce Phantom, in the future.

    ReplyDelete