Hamilton's Spindletree (Euonymus Hamiltonianus) マユミ（檀）

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

The arils and seeds are all gone but they're still beautiful, aren't they? These are fruit capsules of Hamilton's spindletree (Euonymus hamiltonianus). Their four-lobed shape and pretty pink color always makes me smile even without the content. 

I've been observing the Hamilton's spindletree tree since September last year when the fruits were still green. The fruit capsules then turned to pink, splitting open to reveal the red arils in November. These capsules have finished their role but are still pretty enough to catch my eye.  

A good thing about photographing plants is to make people talkative. When I was photographing the fruits in September, two women approached me asking what they were. I said they were the fruits of Hamilton's spindletree but the women insisted they cannot be fruits but buds to flower soon. It was fun talking with strangers about little things.

2025/1/17

2025/1/17

Kenilworth Ivy (Cymbalaria Muralis) ツタバウンラン（蔦葉海蘭）

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

I thought "Oh, it's you again!" and then felt terrible about myself, being aware that I was venting my frustration at these innocent kenilworth ivy flowers (Cymbalaria muralis). But there's a reason. I was looking for henbit deadnettle, one of my favorite flowers, all along this morning because I'd seen someone's post about it last night. So, I thought perhaps I might be able to see bright pink henbit deadnettle flowers this morning but instead only this hardy kenilworth ivy. I feel very sorry about this and so have posted these photos.   

2025/1/16

2025/1/16

Earwax May Mean Something to You 耳垢の話

英語の後に日本語が続きます。(I wrote this post originally two years ago and have made changes for this publication.)

Which type is your earwax, wet or dry? I got interested in the type of earwax a few days ago when I went to an ENT clinic because I felt slight pain inside my right ear.

Japanese Camellias (Camellia Japonica) ツバキ（椿）

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

A Japanese camellia tree in my neighborhood has produced one flower to another, creating the beautiful contrast between the red blooms surrounded by the deep green leaves against the blue sky (2nd photo). I also found something. Small bugs were on the stamens on several blooms, basking in the sun. 

2025/1/14

2025/1/14

Jurojin - God of Longevity 寿老人！

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

The stoneware and the dish are both on show at Tokyo National Museum and about Jurojin. Jurojin is the god of the elderly and longevity in Japanese Buddhist mythology based on a real person who lived in ancient times and is said to be six feet tall with a very long head and a long white beard (as you can see in both!). 

It's been a while since I last saw see Jurojin. His funny face always makes me smile and feel happy. Jurojin is one of the seven lucky gods in Japan. If you're interested in these gods, read "Japan is Diverse! - An Analysis from Seven Lucky Gods Perspective."

Juro, God of Longevity  色絵寿老置物

Dish with painting of Shoulau, God of Longevity

Pink Plum Has Started to Blossom 紅梅咲き始め

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

This is the first plum blossom I've seen this year, indicating spring is approaching. Plum trees are generally in full bloom from February to March like those in the third to fifth photos. 

2025/1/11

2025/1/11

Red Chokeberry (Aronia Arbutifolia) セイヨウカマツカ/アロニア（西洋鎌柄）

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

I'm not certain but believe they're red chokeberries. The berries have been there since autumn last year and at that time I disregarded them because of the presence of flowering dogwood's more gorgeous autumn leaves nearby. Now, however, the red leaves are gone and red chokeberries' bright red has finally attracted my attention. They're edible (but not tasty) according to the internet. 

Double Flowered Japanese Camellia (Camelia Japonica) 八重つばき（八重椿）

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

I thought this was a camellia sasanqua until yesterday but I may be wrong. The more I looked at this, the more it looked like a Japanese camellia because (i) the petals are thicker than those of a camellia sasanqua; (ii) the leaves are bigger than those of sasanquas; and (iii) the leaves are less toothed than sasanquas'. The thing is I couldn't tell for sure because there was no flower on the ground yet, which is the easiest way to tell which is which. I need to wait for a while to see how the flower dies. 

The Japanese camellia was unpopular in the Edo (samurai) period among samurai because the flower falling off in its entirety (unlike a sasanqua flower, which dies with petals falling off one by one) reminded samurai of beheaded human heads. 

2025/1/9

2025/1/9

Wintersweet (Chimonanthus Praecox) ソシンロウバイ（蘇秦蝋梅）

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

The wintersweet buds I saw two weeks ago have started to open fully and smell fragrant. The flowers (or more specifically tepals) are all yellow including inner ones, telling they are not usual wintersweet (whose inner tepals are red) but Chimonanthus praecox f. concolor. The flowers of Chimonanthus praecox f. concolor are a little larger than the usual ones and more fragrant. 

2025/1/8

2025/1/8

Japanese Camellia (Camellia Japonica) ツバキ（椿）

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

I've been enjoying beautiful camellia sasanquas since last year and when seeing them, I've always thought of another camellia, i.e., Japanese camellia. Can you tell which is which? 

Camellia sasanquas bloom from November to March while Japanese camellias flower from January to April. There's also another difference (as I've written many times), i.e., how a flower dies. A sasanqua flower dies with petals falling off one by one whereas a Japanese camellia flower falls off in its entirety. Now, I can tell which is which but until a few years ago I couldn't. Learning enables you to appreciate things around you more deeply. 

2025/1/6

2025/1/6

Camellia Sasanqua and Omikuji

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

This is not a post about a white double flowered camellia sasanqua but pieces of paper tied to the tree. They're omikuji or Japanese fortune telling paper slips. You can buy one (2nd photo) in almost every shrine and temple to learn if you have good or bad luck in the year, for example, as follows:

1. Very lucky (大吉; dai kichi)
2. Lucky (吉; kichi)
3. A little lucky (小吉; shō kichi)
4. Good luck in future (末吉; sue kichi)
5. Bad luck (凶; kyō)

Each omikuji also tells you about the fortune about specific matters including the following:  

• Wish
• Person waited for
• Lost item
• Travel
• Business
• Study
• Investment
• Dispute
• (Romantic) relationship
• Move
• Childbirth
• Illness
• Marriage

The slip I drew says that I will have good luck in future, i.e., sue kichi, which is not so good but that's okay because the "wish" section says that although taking a bit of time, my wish will come true.

Even if you draw an omikuji saying bad luck, don't worry because you can keep the bad luck within the premises of the shrine or temple by tying the slip to a designated area (e.g., a tree). If the slip says you're (very/a little) lucky, however, you can keep it in your purse or bag to keep the luck with you or tie it to the designated area so that the fortune has a greater effect. 

By the way, I'm atheist. 

Omikuji or Japanese fortune telling paper for 2025