Everywhere I look in society I see madness. I see 4 dollar a gallon petrol prices yet people still drive their large trucks as fast as ever, seemingly unaffected, unaware, or uncaring. Politicians calling for change with an arrogant and stubborn population. It’s not entirely their fault though. The required change is fundamental and difficult. The house needs a good shaking.

Here I sit, a stranger in a stage land. Only the truth can guide me home.

When riding the trains (or at least the JR variety) they have been showing this cartoon recently that I’ve found quite funny called ダーリンは外国人 - My darling is a foreigner. It’s based on a manga and I picked up the first two the other day. I’ve only read about 60 pages into the first volume (of 5) so far and it is quite entertaining.

One of my favourite parts that I’ve read so far is when she is comparing a regular Japanese’ response and Tony’s (the main character) response when it comes to service. This example is a glass of wine with lunch that doesn’t taste good. The average Japanese response is more of a commenting on the flavor to the person dining with them saying something like “This wine is a bit….”.

But this guy! He calls the waiter over and asks for the manager. The manager seeing the foreigner automatically speaks to the Japanese person. At which point he has to interrupt with something to the effect of “Hey! Shouldn’t you be talking to me! I’m the one that is complaining”. He assumed that the foreigner doesn’t speak Japanese…

A common pattern in Japan sadly. A belief that foreigners can’t possibly speak Japanese, which simply isn’t true. I know there are people who have lived here for 5+ years and don’t speak a word of Japanese, which to me is unacceptable. If you are going to live in a foreign country, part of your responsibility as a foreigner is to learn to speak the local language. Unless of course you like 差別 (Discrimination), and want to be treated special. Me? I just want to be treated like everybody else.

Packing is depressing.

Shinjuku station is huge. It is the busiest station in Japan, perhaps even in the world. Surrounding it are lots of places to spend you money which illuminate quite nicely at night. However outside of the east exist there is this building that looks very unsuspecting.

It is very close to two underground exists. I found it because there is a place at the entrance that sells bubble teas and crepes. Being as it was hot and it is Mango season here in Japan I thought I would indulge in a マンゴミルク (Mango milk) tea, which my choice of black tapiocas or colored ones. I decided to play it safe and go with the black tapiocas giving the vibe building.

Inside it felt like a dead and dying mall. I pictured what it must have been like when it first opened, probably around the time of the Tokyo Olympics in 1964, and it was probably pretty nice. Inside there was only stairs that have been blocked off and a discount Zara store. Somehow people came down the stairs sometimes but never went up. Walking through the back entrance into a Zara discount store, the music was loud and the store a mess.

Our goal was the third floor today. Rumor had it there was a movie theater in this building. We ride the rickety elevator up and the doors open. The floor is covered in pink checkered carpet and a small line of movie goers has formed. We have a choice of three movies, mostly Japanese films. The concession stand is mostly lit and the pop corn in machine is sitting there with pre-popped popcorn waiting to be ordered under a heat lamp of sorts.

We get our tickets and to my surprise there is no assigned seating, which is normal in Japan. We purchase our ticket and it is like the rest of the building, blast from the past. A past that I had never before experienced. On the ticket is the name of the theater, the screen number (2 of 3), a stamp with the date and time, and a seating number.

When it comes time to enter the theater I do not know what to expect. Everybody is standing around waiting for them to start calling out seating numbers. They start calling out “Tickets 1 ~ 10 can now enter” and I start to move towards the front.

We get in the theater and it has 10 rows of 7 (split in a 4||3) with a smaller screen. At this point though I was half-expecting a 20″ black-and-white television. There is a small No Smoking sign on the front left. People are walking in with bags of McDonalds to enjoy during the movie. Apparently you do not have to sneak food into the theater here. A school bell rings. Everybody quiets down and the film begins…

I have signed up to donate as many copies of Jisho and Byoyomi as needed for the PMC challenge, for research and treatment of cancer. The idea is simple: people buy software bundles (auction or otherwise) and all proceeds, minus eBay fees etc go to charity to help fight cancer, i.e. I nor Seth (the guy organizing this) makes a dime.

There is a lot of really great software and donors on the list (I am towards the middle). When the auctions start it will be a good time to get that software you’ve been craving for a while and help raise money to fight cancer!

You can get more information on the PMC Software page.

It is kind of neat to know that something that I have worked on and built could help people and also motivate people to raise money to research and treat cancer. I hope it’s a huge success.

One thing that always perplexes me is people’s desire to convert people to their side, to their political viewpoint. If they can’t convert them to their personal viewpoint they often try to silence them in their opposition. Examples of this could be communism in Japan from 1922 ~ 1946[1], democracy in Burma[2][3], or even communism during the Cold War in the United States.

They do it mostly for perceived political stability i.e. the current governing body doesn’t get its authority questioned. However, I would argue that limiting their freedoms, even if they oppose you, will provide one with the exact opposite of the desired effect i.e. your authority will be questioned at every turn.

If you ask yourself a simple question, who is the largest threat to a country’s government?
A) current members of the government
B) members of the public who like the current government or don’t really care one way or another
C) people who disagree with the current government but can voice their opinions
D) people who disagree with the current government but are silenced one way or another

Most would answer C. My answer is A and D - the people you least suspect or the people from whom you are inviting it.

History has shown us time and time again that leaders of countries are often betrayed by their second in command. They are already so close to the top, and once they are at the top they needn’t worry about possible punishment. Further more they also carry some clout within the body itself and as such can are positioned to make changes easier and smoother.

The choice a silenced dissident vs. a vocal dissident seems counter-intuitive - let me explain. A group of people who can express their opinions and wills freely, without fear of punishment will voice that opinion. This has a number of benifets: First it gets a lot of political unrest out of those being political. Just voicing their opinion will do wonders for them to think that the government is listening to them and that they are making a difference; Second it allows the current administrating body to keep a pulse on what the public thinks. Most governments that have this problem don’t care what the public feels about a particular subject, but even appeasing them ever-so-slightly would keep most happy - as they see “progress” towards their viewpoint.

Lets contrast this with a group who is suppressed. Straight off the bat you don’t know who is a potential member of the group you want to suppress. As such - every person automatically has to become a member of that silenced group by default. They must then prove that they are not a member ideologically in order to live normally. Almost immediately the ruling party has not only pissed off the suppressed group, forcing them underground to organize and plot. In addition they’ve also just alienated the entire population.

The only viable option is to allow political dissidents to voice their opinion, and listen to that voice. Government should represent the ideals of society and if the those ideals aren’t met or worked toward, it will be replaced. If the the demands by dissidents are just and change is needed, it must occur. If it does not occur the governing body’s time in power is limited.

[1] Communism was actually illegal in Japan until 1946 when it was legalized by the American occupation.
[2]Myanmar recently just recently extended the house arrest of Aung San Suu Kyi, a democracy advocate for another year. See the Seattle Times for more information.
[3] Myanmar. The current junta in Burma renamed Burma to Myanmar. As the United States government does not recognize the junta as the legitimate rulers, they do not officially recognize Myanmar.

A large portion of the book covers the flaws and mistakes in nutritionalism. That is eating a food for its nutritional value and not the food itself. That food is more than the sum of it’s vitamins and minerals. It’s not the carotene that makes a carrot healthy for you, it’s the carrot.

Perhaps the most scary thing about the book, is the waking up to the fact of how wrong the industry is. How processed the food, or rather food like substances as Pollan calls them, in today’s supermarkets are. The labels on food-like-substances that say FDA qualified, which if you read the fine print allows the makers of said food to make most any claims they want to. Disgusting.

Perhaps the best observation in the book is on state of the gas station. He says:

“Don’t get Your Fuel From the Same Place Your Car Does

American gas stations now make more money selling food (and cigarettes) than gasoline, but consider what kind of food this is: except perhaps for the milk and water, it’s all highly processed nonperishable snack foods and extravagantly sweetened soft drinks in hefty twenty-ounce bottles. Gas stations have become processed-corn stations: ethanol outside for your car and high-fructose corn syrup inside for you” (Pollan, 192)

Towards the end of the book he gives a number of food algorithms. Not hard fast rules, but algorithms that can help you eat real food. I have reproduced a few of the ones I liked the most below. Please keep in mind that there are generally a page or five to explain them, but even at face value they are pretty good.

• Avoid food products containing ingredients that are a) unfamiliar, B) unpronounceable, c) more than five in number, or that include d) high-fructose corn-syrup
• Shop the peripheries of the supermarket and stay out of them middle
• Get ouf of the supermarket whenever possible
• Eat mostly plants, especially leaves
• You are what what you eat eats too
• Pay more. Eat Less
• Eat meals

These are simple things that we normally don’t think about. Things so simple as eat meals have been lost on us. It should be a given, but many people fall into the trap of snacking. All day. Pay more. Eat Less. That is eat higher quality foods, but as they cost more - you will naturally eat less. You will probably be more apt to eat slower (and taste!) your food as an added side bonus.

There are so many good things to say about this book I can’t do it any justice. You really should read it. It will change your complete outlook on food. Unless you like to getting your food from the same place your car does.

To maybe wet your appetite here is a talk given by him.

Check it out.

Most people travel around Japan and it is one of Japan’s big travel seasons. Roads are full of cars (even with the high cost of gas and movement at a snail’s pace) and hotels are more expensive. However, as a 貧乏な大学生 (destitute college student)、I’m not traveling so much. So I did the next best thing and went to Shinjuku so I could be surrounded by all of the people traveling and silently wish it was me.

Ok so I did make up that last part, I am actually quite content to explore Tokyo more. This city is incredible and my visit to the Shinjuku Imperial Garden adds one more item to the list of rocking things in Tokyo. Normally it costs ¥200 to enter, however on this day it was free. There was also a huge festival (I guess that’s what it would be called) about the environment and environmental education. It was very encouraging to see so many people, old and young alike, taking an interest in the environment. Maybe there is hope after all.

Part of the festivities

Yumi holding my chin down as whenever I take the self-portiats like that my head always ends up looking up a bit and it looks funny. As you can see we work well together.

People were picnicking with their families and climbing on some of the trees.

I should also note that global warming was in full swing that day. I mean - it started off pleasant but by mid-day it was around 25°C outside.

The heat was enough that I went and saw a movie, 砂時計　（Hourglass). It was my first time watching a Japanese movie in theaters and I must say that for a love story, it was completely different than what I was expecting. It wasn’t bright or bubbly or happy at all.

–

Side note - I’ve updated the about page and there is now a contact form on there. So people that need to contact me and don’t know my email can…contact me.

Today though in Yoyogi Park there was a huge Earth Day celebration. This year the theme was “Shift Green”. Unfortunately I arrived too late to see any of the speeches and what not so I just made a single lap through the events. There is more info at this website.

What’s amazing to me is that Japanese hippies look (and smell) just like american hippies. I was expecting maybe a bit more of a Japanese twist, but they seemed to be pretty much the same. I wonder if it is just standard affair for hippies to dress the same or if they (the Japanese hippies) get inspiration for their american counter-parts or what the deal is.

I did rather like the song this guy was sing so I made a video for y’all to watch below.

Remember: protect the environment - without it we can’t survive.

Also Birthday wishes to my dad. Happy Birthday!

We went to, I forget the name in Japanese, but it’s an old red brick warehouse that has been converted into a shopping center. As we got close to it we could hear music. It sounded like a show was going on. Once we got there, we could see a huge crowd standing next to the gates to get into the live (without tickets - like us) listening to the music and watching him perform on the large screen next to the stage.

It was a fun two and a half hours or so conversing almost entirely in Japanese. It’s kind of shocking how far my Japanese has come in last almost 2 years now. It’s even shocking how far it has come in the last 7/8 months in Japan. I’ve still got a long way to go though - learning more academic words and the basic words that I’ve missed somehow.

An odd thing of note, kind of funny actually I think, and only worth noting as it has happened twice in the last week. I’ve noticed that when people comment on my Japanese (saying that it is good or something of that sort), I seem to have this habit of not understanding the next sentence. It’s like I’m subconsciously trying to prove them wrong or something.

It’s late. I’ve got to study for biology and my kanji quiz tomorrow. I bit you all goodnight.

Update: Replaced photo with a better one from Mai.

At Tully’s in Sakuragicho

Purikura with one of her friends that lives in the area.