In the end of 2022

The year 2022 is going away soon. Having had a nice dinner for the NY Day's Eve with family members, I am settled down at my room listening to St. Matthew's Passion. It is the time for me to leave some sentences reflecting this passing year and viewing the coming year ahead. Hopefully, words of hope. I have been reluctant to do it because all coming up in my mind is something ominous and depriving me of hope for the future.

As for the past years, I have lost good friends and a family member. 

Glenn NN6T has fought against cancer for years. I have been informed about it from him for years. Together with his faithful wife, Susan, he has lived a good life even though he could have lived longer without cancer. We have shared the same friends through ham radio like Ed W7GVE or Kemp K7UQH. I was sad not to be able to hear his vivid fast Morse code on 40m early in the evening. 

Ellen W1YL also has lived her life in her own way. A legendary CW operator and a pioneer in ham radio in the US after WWII. In her last several years, she could operate W7RN through the remote control thanks to Tom K5RC and her other faithful friends. She sounded like a teen age girl operating radio, very vivid and sociable. Even though I have not known her in person for a long time enough to write anything like an obituary, she has been a good company to share the pleasure of this extinguishing hobby of Morse code. She has never complained of her situation and has loved her life independent from anyone. 

Alan AC2K has become a good friend of mine since I met him in person at FOC dinner in Seattle in 2012. A stout looking and sociable guy. Whenever the band was open to NA here, I often could hear him on any bands. Since he moved to Tucson AZ a few years ago, we met a bit less often. He seemed to have enjoyed his retirement there, however. It was a shock for me to hear he had suffered from leukemia in the beginning of this year. He seemed to have had hope for recovery. It was good for him that his family had been with him until the very last moment. I sure missed his vivid and sociable way of operation. 

My father in law was a tender and affectionate person. I owe him so much and am sorry I could not repay him for those things. He was a man of efforts in life. Even thouogh I have not visited him too often in the past, he always welcomed me with that gentle Sanuki dialect, the local dialect of my wife's birth place. Several years ago, when he and his wife have decided to go into a nursing home, I heard from my wife, he has ordered to clean up and to repair their old house. I thought it was in order to prevent from crime to the house where no one was supposed to live. But that house was, I guess, the product from their hard work throughout their lives. After having it cleaned up beautifully, as the last work of his life, he got out of it. 

All of these people have lived their own lives eagerly and faithfully. They are now freed from their worries, anguishes or anxieties. Here, I would say "You have lived good lives. I would follow you in sometime."

One of the biggest changes in my life was that I quit ham radio this August. Honestly, I am unhappy to have left it. Of course, still missing chances to say hello on the air to good friends, I believe everyone should reach the stage of life to say farewell to it, willingly or unwillingly. A lot of friends have told me they would miss me. So did I feel the same way. If such a saying is allowed, however, we may be missing our good old days when we have had great time together on the air. 

I have been told by a few friends that our authority would deregulate the licencing system, which I have thought to be very problematic as I wrote in a post regarding the reason why I quit radio. It might encourage me to return to the hobby. But, so far as I know, the system even after that deregulation is still far from the global standard. Very bureaucratic and having ham radio as a tool for concession for certain people in JARD or in the administrative offices. I thought I would get another licence to renew my call sign before it is allocated to another guy. But so far, I won't do that very soon. In stead, I would write down an article of the reception system of Morse code and the pleasure of communication with it before I get too old. Now quite some people have the same idea but are not perfect in understanding it from point of my view. It is also important to investigate what brings pleasure in that old mode communication and to verbalize it in own words. Without that, this hobby won't be delivered to young people who know how to easily and more efficiently communicate others in the internet.

As you may know from the posts in this blog, my main stage in life is in garden farm, tiney one, and the kitchen. I used to ask myself it was what I should spend this time of my life. But, standing on soil itself has become a pleasure for me. Looming threat of food deficit is another motivation for that as well. Learning about the ecology how the vegetables and plants are growing is stimulating me a lot. It will take me long time to learn how to do farming after the naturel farming method. But I would practice it without chemicals and least fertilizers. It is inwardly satisfying me a lot. It is another pleasure for me to see my wife enjoying the dishes I prepare with the crops from my garden farm.

As a former doctor and a high risk person, I have been studying on COVID19 pandemic. As a trait of RNA virus, SARS CoV2 pathogen has undergone a lot of mutations. Those with less virulence and more infectivity seem to survive and to build a surge world wide. Except for in China and Japan, it seems to have been settled down. Sure hope it goes that way. But who knows? This localization of contagion surge may reflect the hosts' susceptibility. It may change with another mutation strain. They say a lot of mammals species have been infected with this virus, which means there is more reservoir for this virus(es). The reservoir may cause mutations which could occur another pandemic. As you know, zoonosis viruses other than SARS CoV2 which could cause other pandemics amount up to 800000 in the world, they say. Rampant development of nature may free such pathogen(s) invade into human sociey in the future. 

Another concern about COVID19 is that people often neglect the problem of long COVID. In the US, a report says, 4 million people could not go for work due to it. IN Japan, 1.6% of all infected suffer long COVID serious enough to bother daily life activity. I am afraid it could become a burden to the social security in the future.  

I am often excited to read about new findings in immunology/virology, even though I could not catch up all of them yet. Just for fun, I would go on reading papers and books about them. In the phylogeny of SARS CoV2, we are experiencing the real story of evolution. With my rotten ability, I don't know how I could go on studying it but sure will try.  

As for music, no cello practice any longer. With the carpal tunnel syndrome like symptoms subsiding, I may start playing it again. It would be just for own fun but not for ensemble etc. I have been obssessed to practice more and more and to catch up other ensemble members. Now, being free from that obsessive intention, I am rather feeling happy and could enjoy listening to various kinds of music. The song pieces of Mahler and Richard Strauss were good harvests for me this year. Understanding the aria, choir and recitative in St. Matthew's Passion has been a object this year. I am making a bit of progress, even quite slow. With understanding the phrases in it, I could be as if in the scene Jesus had been in the New Testament. I would go it on.

As for politics/economy in our country as well as in the world, I should talk a lot about them. Cutting it short, I guess it is not very rosy. I am afraid there are leaders all over the world who dare to tell lies or conspiracy. And certain percentage of people are resonat with them. I am afraid it is a crisis to democracy. I don't know how to deal with it by myself. Just speaking out whenever I could and am required to. Our government now accumulates liabilities while the BOJ, the main bank, is falling into insolvency. The need for social security is climbing up. But the government decided to double the expense for military expansion. They pretend to strenghthen self defence with missiles reaching the other countries' military bases. They would execute preemptive strikes with those missles. They say we are going into the prewar era from the postwar era. 

I might have pretended to live fairly intellectual life. It is not the reality. I often spend time purposelessly watching Youtube at own room. In the end of the day, I would reflect it. A lazy retiree in a countryside in fact. Knowing my ability, physical and intellectual, is on the way downward, I still try to fill my life with more pleasure.

Our family is doing fine. My wife seems to have decided retiring next year even though the process is tough. Then I might be a bit more free from the duty as the chef, hopefully. I would carry on the journey of life searching more excitement and pleasure.

Thanks for visiting this mannerism blog. I appreciate your comment whatever it might be related with. Wishing all of you a very Happy and Healthy New Year in 1.5 hours.

Shin 

Another osechi braised pork with boiled eggs.

Magnolia is already budding. A bit earlier than usual year.