187. Norikoの誕生日

<p>My Birthday Story: Hello everyone, this is Noriko from Nihongo Story Time. I’m a Japanese teacher who teaches Japanese online.I have many different projects.</p><p>This podcast is Nihongo Story Time, a beginner podcast where I speak a little slowly.</p><p>I also have another Nihongo Story Time on Substack, where you can read Japanese blogs and essays.</p><p>And I have my main podcast, Japanese with Noriko, where recently I’ve been talking about more difficult topics for intermediate and advanced learners.</p><p>I also have my website, Japanese with Noriko.</p><p>There are so many things, so I’m busy every day.</p><p>How are you everyone?</p><p>Today’s story is about me.</p><p>When is your birthday?</p><p>When your birthday comes, do you feel excited?Do you feel happy?</p><p>I actually really like birthdays.</p><p>I’m an older woman now.I’m not young anymore.</p><p>But I still like birthdays.</p><p>When my husband and family say “Happy Birthday,” it still makes me happy.</p><p>My birthday is in May.</p><p>In 2026, this year, I turned 53 years old.</p><p>I’m getting old now. Maybe half of my life is already over.</p><p>But actually, I didn’t feel sad about it.</p><p>That weekend, I celebrated a lot.</p><p>First, my husband and I went to a restaurant for dinner.It’s one of my favorite restaurants in Liverpool.</p><p>We ate delicious food there.</p><p>I think I drank cocktails too.</p><p>And presents.A present for myself.</p><p>I bought many books.</p><p>I love reading books.</p><p>Recently, whenever I have free time, I go for a walk, read books, go for another walk, and read more books.</p><p>Honestly, I don’t really want to look at social media very much.I don’t want to watch YouTube too much.</p><p>Actually, I still watch it, but much less than last year.</p><p>Instead, I use that time for reading.</p><p>For my birthday, I bought many books from Amazon Japan.</p><p>That made me very happy.</p><p>How do you celebrate your birthdays?</p><p>Some people say:“I don’t really care about birthday celebrations.”“I don’t need presents.”“I don’t want to celebrate.”</p><p>And that’s okay too.</p><p>That’s all for today. See you again.</p><p><br></p><ul><li><p>誕生日（たんじょうび） — birthday</p></li><li><p>お祝い（おいわい） — celebration</p></li><li><p>わくわくする — to feel excited</p></li><li><p>ドキドキする — to feel nervous/excited</p></li><li><p>若い（わかい） — young</p></li><li><p>人生（じんせい） — life</p></li><li><p>暗い気持ち（くらいきもち） — gloomy feeling</p></li><li><p>週末（しゅうまつ） — weekend</p></li><li><p>お食事（