midwinter; cold season; coldest days of the year
living in peace; living a quiet life; being content with one's present position; being satisfied with one's lot
by a hair's breadth; in the nick of time; touch and go; close call; critical moment
to step on; to trample down; to tread on
side street (often parallel to a main street); back street; alley; alleyway
depending on; dependent upon; relying on
anthology; collection of works
deeply in love with; madly in love with; heads over heels in love with; to be crazy about
men's (fashion, wear, etc.)
company expenses; at company expense
opening and shutting; opening and closing
acknowledgment; acknowledgement; letter of thanks
used; second-hand; old; Middle Ages (in Japan esp. Heian period)
canary (esp. the island canary, Serinus canaria)
wild grasses; field grass; wildflowers
fine food; high-quality food; gourmet; epicure; gastronome
superb piece of work; masterpiece; exquisite item; perfection; unique article
complete collection; large collection; complete works
study (of something); discussion; discourse
soulful (esp. of music); having a lot of soul
fire fighting; fire department; fire brigade
handling cargo; loading and unloading
job hunting; job searching
coal mine; (coal) pit; colliery; coal-mine shaft
risky speculation; big gamble; large bet
(squad of) police; police force
to pull (the puppet) strings; to direct things from behind the scenes; to stretch out (and keep going); to linger on
crafty; tricky; sly; sinister (look)
to suck up to; to curry up to someone