Koreas

Aya and I had a short trip to Seoul in South Korea from March 4 to 6, 2024.

According to her advice, we enjoyed Korean food, such as boiled chicken and カルグクス. Basically, the places we visited were decided by Aya, who got information from Japanese YouTuber, カオルちゃん.

I only had one request to visit the border between South Korea (Republic of Korea) and North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea), which was accepted by her.

We were really impressed to see the reality of North Korea through binoculars from the observation point on the hill in South Korea. Some villagers were walking between the fields. Everything there was monotonous.

Seoul was a well-developed city, but was not as clean as I expected. To us, the capital looked a little bit dusty. I would say that I am not a big fan of Korean food, unchanged from my impression from my first trip to South Korea almost 30 years ago. It is true, however, that visiting foreign countries is the best way to realize the wonderfulness of our home country, Japan.

A new member: Chouchou

A month ago, we fell in love at first sight with a cute dog and decided to adopt him the same day. On our way home, my wife suggested that we call him Chouchou because he was so fluffy, like a hair ornament. I later found out that the word "Chouchou" means "your favorite" in French. No wonder everyone agreed with her suggestion.

We thought he would come to our house soon, but he could not because the next day he was found to have a cold. He recovered a few days later, but then it was discovered that he had skin lesions due to fungus.

It has been more than four weeks since we paid money for him. We had no choice but to wait for the vet's approval. It was a relief for us that he was doing well, and we went to the pet store many times to hug him, even though we had to wear disposable gloves.

Finally, he is coming here the next day. Aya and I are leaving for Seoul, South Korea early tomorrow morning to do some sightseeing, but it would be okay because we are used to waiting for him. We are looking forward to hanging out in Seoul and meeting him afterwards.

Happy New Year 2024

We left home early in the morning on January 1, 2024 and went to my parents' home in Hikone, Shiga Prefecture. It had been almost a year since we had visited them together, and the first time since Mom's stroke.

We did nothing special for a new year's day. We just chatted and ate, which was a really fun time. Later, Dad and Mon told me on the phone that they really appreciated our short visit.

This kind of short stay used to be our routine, at least once a month, but it is becoming less common as they (not only my parents, but also my children) get older. I know that life is like that, but I hope that we can have a moment like this as often as possible.

PS. On the way to Hikone, I got a Gyarados, a doragon-type monster in Pokemon Go on the first day of the Year of the Dragon in the Chinese zodiac.

Best Teacher Series

I am very proud to announce that my lecture on physical examination in patients with heart failure has been released as an e-learning content of the Best Teacher Series by the Japanese Circulation Society.

I hope that more and more physicians and medical staff involved in the treatment of heart failure will become interested in the physical assessment of jugular venous pulsation and heart sounds.

P.S. I have been suffering from nasal discharge due to cold since the beginning of December, so my tone seems to be nasal.

Double wins

The Hanshin Tigers won the Japanese Baseball Championship. In addition, Sota Fujii, a professional shogi player, achieved the complete victory in the eight titles.

The last time the Hanshin Tigers won the championship was in 1985, when I was a senior in high school. Yoshiharu Habu, a shogi legend and the current CEO of the Shogi Association, won all seven titles in 1996, when I was about to finish my first internship as a doctor. It was a long time ago, but I still remember both of them.

I can't say that I am an avid Hanshin fan (although I do like shogi), but these two events are an incredibly great moments for me. I won't forget them.

I look forward to experiencing more of these great events in the future.

Mom discharged home

It was the 1st of July when my mother had an attack of sabarachnoid hemorrhage. The grade on admision was V on a scale of I to V, with V being the most severe. Statistically, the survival rate was extremely low (4 out of 36 patients with this condition).

I could not decide whether she should undergo emergency surgery, but my father decided that she should. It was enough for her to have a successful result, although it took three months to complete rehabilitation.

She seems to have mild dementia, but it couldn't be better because she has no difficulty walking and eating.

Mom, your new stage has just begun. Have fun with Dad. I would love to support you both.

Pokemon Go

To tell the truth, I have been into Pokemon Go.

It was two years ago, in September 2021, that my young son, Kosuke, advised me to join the free game. I started playing Pokemon Go on my smartphone without thinking too much about it. The funny thing is that he got tired of the game more than a year ago.

I am an early riser, waking up at around 5 a.m. and leaving home at 5:20 a.m. to catch the first train at the station in my residential area. It would take me 10 minutes to change my clothes, wash my face, brush my teeth, and shave my face. After that, I spend the remaining 10 minutes of the precious 20 early minutes playing Pokemon Go without drinking coffee or eating breakfast. Can you believe that?

My ultimate goal is to get to level 50. I am not sure how long it would take to reach to the final stage, but I'd like to achieve my dream of becoming the master of Pokemon Go, no matter how hard it would be.

E Nngl J Med

The New England Journal of Medicine stands as one of the most prestigious medical journals globally and has served as an invaluable resource for physicians worldwide, akin to a comprehensive textbook. I take great pride in our three previous publications within the Journal, each falling under the category of Images in Clinical Medicine.

Presently, I have submitted three new articles, spanning the categories of Images in Clinical Medicine, Correspondence, and Clinical Problem-Solving.

Of the three, the one I thought might be accepted the most was the last to be returned with a rejection decision next day. As expected, the correspondence was also rejected for publication a week later.

To my surprise, the image case has been on the submission site for almost a month. I am an optimist, but as far as this journal is concerned, I think there is a 10% chance of acceptance. I look forward to hearing the final decision of the journal.

Dear Mom

It was early in the morning on Saturday, July 1st, while I was creating content for my homepages, when my cell phone unexpectedly started ringing. It was Dad, saying that Mom suddenly had a headache. I heard her groaning from behind the phone. I asked Dad to call an ambulance, and he did.

Mom was diagnosed with a Grade 5 subarachnoid hemorrhage and underwent emergency surgery via catheter after a discussion between me and an on-call neurosurgeon while I was driving at an alarming speed on the highway to get to the hospital.

We are really happy to say that the surgery was successful and she is in an acceptable condition considering her poor condition before the surgery. I really hope that with rehabilitation she will recover to the near level she was at before this the accident.

This month went by faster than ever. I took a day off several times and went back to my hometown to help Dad once or twice a week. I also gave 5 lectures at scientific meetings on weekends this month, although I cannot remember much about them.

So far, everything is going better than I expected. Thank you all and thank you God. We are looking forward to Mom's return home.

A quarrel

My wife and I had a terrible fight last week, which I thought was the first time in the 24 years we have been married. I took a day off that day and the fight developed in the morning after our daughter and son left home for school. I was not sure what caused it, but I bet it was something trivial. I was worried about something that had never bothered me before.

After she left home for her part-time job, I hung around Osaka without a plan. On my way to the Shiba Ryotarou Museum, I received a message from Junko. By exchanging some opinions, we resolved our misunderstanding.

On my way home, it started pouring rain, so I decided to have dinner at a small restaurant or Izakaya. When I left the bar, my feeling returned to the previous one, that she is the most wonderful and respectful lady in the world.