For Donald Trump, hearing “You’re Fired,” the term he made famous with his popular Apprentice television show, must be an unbearable traumatic experience.

A 2017 book, The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump, by a group of mental health professionals expressed the opinion that Trump’s statements and behavior exhibited characteristics associated with a narcissistic personality disorder –– poor self-esteem, lack of empathy, feelings of shame, interpersonal distress, aggression, and significant impairments in personality functioning.

His pathological narcissism will be on full display as the final days of his Administration unfold as this aggrieved and vengeful personality who has refused to accept that he has lost the election and has promised to fight the results in court, alleging, without evidence, that a massive electoral fraud had robbed him of victory.

For Trump, who once said “I win, I win, I always win. In the end I always win;” losing the election has not just political consequences. He faces potential legal and financial investigations for his actions as he vacates the White House.

Wounded and unrestrained, there appear to be no limits as to what he will say or attempt to do in his final 76 days in office.

Buckle-up and stay tuned for the final act of Trump’s reality show. 

Earlier this week Keiko and I visited Omotesandō, one of the nicest (and most expensive) areas in Tokyo, located in the city’s Shibuya and Minato wards.  

The most well-known feature of the area is the long and beautiful tree-lined Omotesandō Avenue, a fashion shopping mecca that is home to nearly every global luxury brand housed in impressive examples of modern architecture.

While Keiko went off to a zumba class at a nearby park, I embarked on a window-shopping and people-watching walk from the Meiji Shrine entrance at one end of the avenue up to Aoyama Street.

l had lived in the Aoyama area in 2002 when I was responsible for Avaya’s FIFA World Cup sponsorship and went on to explore the old neighborhood.  Noting the many major changes in the area over the past twenty years, I was pleasantly surprised to find the Oakwood Aoyama Residence still there.

On my return route to meet Keiko at the Meiji Shrine, I detoured through Takeshita Street and other side streets, the famous center of Tokyo’s teenage and pop culture, that are lined with many trendy shops.

On a fine fall day, it was a wonderful experience; a fun trip down memory lane.

I know that many family, friends and other blog readers in America are really stressed and obsessed about the 2020 Presidential election.

Considering that anything you can realistically do to influence the result is done, my advice:

Accept the fact that the political opinion “experts,” analysts and pollsters really have no idea what will happen.  We live in a world where strange things happen that you cannot immediately and confidently explain.

So, just relax and forget it.  Get a good night’s sleep and prepare for dealing with the consequential reality of uncertainty whatever the results.

The other day I was talking to my dog Toma on our daily early morning walk and said: “I don’t know how I’m going to get through this.” Then I heard another voice: “Neither do I. But you will.”

At age 77 I keep surprising myself with optimism and happiness flowing from a sense calm and contentment despite the moments of silence, doubt, fear, boredom and invisibility associated with growing older.

In fact, I have discovered that growing old is filled with big surprises.  The move to Japan, despite the pandemic, is a great adventure and I have more energy and hope than I imagined possible.

In an effort to keep my brain from deteriorating, I have my blog. While I realize that not many read it or care what I think, I enjoy writing and expressing my feelings and opinions.  It is an emotionally and intellectually healthy exercise even if a bit like releasing a balloon in space or putting a message in a bottle in the ocean!

Also ignoring the political chaos in America has been most beneficial for my physical and emotional well being.

Some months ago The Atlantic’s “Dear Therapist” columnist, Lori Gottlieb, wrote “Bingeing on up-to-the-minute news is like stress eating—it’s bloating our minds with unhealthy food that will make us feel sick.”

I have been following this advice; blood pressure and anxiety level in check; living a peaceful Zen oriented life.

The U.S. election results? ‘Que Sera, Sera.’

Last night Keiko and I celebrated Japan’s fall buckwheat harvest with a filling and nutritious meal of Soba, a spaghetti-like noodle made of 100 percent gluten-free buckwheat flour that is called Tokyo’s “original fast food.”

Keiko selected a neighborhood family-run sobaya (soba shop) just blocks from our home for my first taste of the city’s time-honored soba culture since moving here last year.

For my soba selection I ordered a bowl of hot broth with slices of duck breast (kamo-nanban) accompanied by warm sake.  Keiko opted for tensoba, soba served with seafood tempura.

In addition to healthy and flavorful noodle dishes, the shop also features some first-rate side dishes. We started with an order of succulent fried oysters.  (I’ll be back just for the oysters and a beer soon!)

The decision for a soba meal was a health-based choice as we have both been working on diet and conditioning.  In my case, I have been steadily losing weight through daily fat-burning health walks/jogs, regular strength workouts, and recently more serious diet adjustments.  I plan to be at 82 kg in February 2021.

I love ramen, the signature Japanese noodle dish.  Unfortunately, ramen is anything but a healthy meal given that it is a high-sodium, monosodium glutamate-laden dish.  But in moderation, oh such an enjoyable eating experience!

In contrast to ramen as well as the thick wheat udon noodles and traditional pasta, Soba noodles are high in nutrients and low in fat and cholesterol with a distinctively nutty and earthy flavor.  Soba noodles, served either chilled with a dipping sauce or in hot broth as a noodle soup are a good source of manganese, fiber, protein and thiamin with many health benefits.