-
A sleepy commuter
This sleepy commuter was completely crashed out on the Mita line last night. When I snapped his photo, the flash went off but he only stirred a bit then settled back into his snooze. I wonder if he got off at his station?
-
Struggling with kanji
Oyama sensei is on holiday in Canada this week. We’ll have a substitute teacher tonight. But instead of a regular lesson, Oyama sensei left us a page-long composistion to translate. We’ll discuss it in class tonight. I’ve finished deciphering the first three sentences. This makes me realise how few kanji I actually know–there’s a lot…
-
Heat island nation
Every summer we hear about the “heat island” effect of too many buildings, air conditioners, cars, heat-absorbing asphalt and other inconveniences of the modern environment. The average summer temperature has increased 3 degrees Celcius in the past ten years. Tokyo’s supposed to have some rules about roof gardens and open/planted land per square foot of…
-
People on roofs
People do weird things on roofs in Tokyo. Across the tracks, on top of an office building, a man is practicing the trumpet. He comes out to play at lunchtime once or twice a week. He’s not too bad, though he’s not really playing more than scales and phrases. On a nearby apartment building, Tod…
-
Yokohama daytrip
I literally dragged Tod out of bed this afternoon at 1 (he’s quite heavy!), got him into the shower and out of the house by 2. We went to Yokohama. So much has changed since the last time we trekked down there. Before there was lots of construction around Sakuragicho station but MInato Mirai 21,…
-
Kitano Jinja festival
For two weeks, a tinsel draped signboard at the end of our street has reminded us about the Kitano Jinja matsuri around the corner from us. Saturday 8/24, 5-9 pm. Rain or Shine. The main selling point was “Dad, we’ll have beer at good prices!” By 8 pm, the lanterns leading up the stone stairs…
-
Another mad cow
Another mad cow. This one is #5. It was noticed during the Agriculture Ministry’s testing process this week so it hasn’t been sold or served. They didn’t say it wouldn’t get mixed into cowfeed, though. That happened with one of the other mad cows earlier this year. I was really hoping to have some tasty…
-
Nippon Scam
Nippon Ham, meat packager and owner of the baseball team the Nippon Ham Fighters, is in the news this week for scamming the government. They bought 5 tons of cheap, imported beef and passed it off as domestic during the mad cow beef buyback program. So what’s their penalty? They’ve announced that the founder/chairman &…
-
Japanese TV is silly
Japanese TV is silly. This afternoon I watched as two young male TV talents met the lovely spokeswoman for the upcoming Pan Pacific Swimming Championship. They challenged her to a high-stakes Jenga game. If she lost, she had to go out on a date with one of the guys. To add to the hilarity, each…
-
Obon approaches
Obon holidays are upon us and the city is emptying out. Everyone’s going back to their hometowns, vacationing overseas, or at least not going to work. Businesses and restaurants are closed. Yesterday’s trains were virtually empty; I got a seat on 3 out of 4 I rode. I should try to find a festival with…
Archives