We attended a retirement party for Dorothy's aunt. The following is a discussion on retirement with our daughter.
Naomi: What is retirement?
Me: It is like taking a long vacation from working.
Naomi: What do you do when you retire?
Me: Well, you can use the time to just enjoy life. Take vacations.
Naomi: You mean like when we go to Seattle to visit Ojiichan and Obaachan?
Me: Yes, that's right.
Naomi: So how old do you have to be to retire?
Me: Most people are in their 50s or 60s.
Naomi: So if you don't make it to your 60s, does it mean that there's no retirement?
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Onomatopoetic Words
Onomatopoetic words are that are used to represent sounds. Remember those old Batman shows where every time Batman or Robin punched the Joker words like BAM! or POW! would splash onto the television screen? These are examples of onomatopoetic words. The English language has its share of such words, the most common being sounds that animals make.
The Japanese have taken such words to the extreme though. They've even grouped these words into four categories: gitaigo (a word that represents an action), giseigo (a word that represents a sound made by animal, person or thing), gijoogo (a word that represents a human emotion or psychological state) and giongo (a word a word that represents a sound of nature). These words are used frequently in the ever-present comic books in Japan.
The following are some examples of onomatopoetic words in the Japanese language:
1. bari bari
2. boro boro
3. deko boko
4. doki doki
5. fuwa fuwa
6. gari gari
7. giri giri
8. gucha gucha
9. guru guru
10. hoka hoka
11. iro iro
12. kara kara
13. niko niko
14. peko peko
15. pera pera
16. pika pika
17. pon pon
18. ten ten
19. wai wai
20. wan wan
Match the above words with the meanings below:
a. the sound that a dog makes
b. blinking lights
c. the state of being very dry
d. being very soft and wet (flooded carpeting)
e. excited fast beating heart
f. a state of noisy exhuberance (noisy kids)
g. fluent in a language
h. this and that
i. just in the nick of time
j. to be bumpy
k. to be dotted
l. to be hungry
m. warm, heated (a warm bento)
n. the sound of scraping
o. being worn out and old
p. to have a full stomach
q. smiling
r. round and round in circles
s. fluffy
t. the sound of tearing paper
Check back for the answers in a future posting.
The Japanese have taken such words to the extreme though. They've even grouped these words into four categories: gitaigo (a word that represents an action), giseigo (a word that represents a sound made by animal, person or thing), gijoogo (a word that represents a human emotion or psychological state) and giongo (a word a word that represents a sound of nature). These words are used frequently in the ever-present comic books in Japan.
The following are some examples of onomatopoetic words in the Japanese language:
1. bari bari
2. boro boro
3. deko boko
4. doki doki
5. fuwa fuwa
6. gari gari
7. giri giri
8. gucha gucha
9. guru guru
10. hoka hoka
11. iro iro
12. kara kara
13. niko niko
14. peko peko
15. pera pera
16. pika pika
17. pon pon
18. ten ten
19. wai wai
20. wan wan
Match the above words with the meanings below:
a. the sound that a dog makes
b. blinking lights
c. the state of being very dry
d. being very soft and wet (flooded carpeting)
e. excited fast beating heart
f. a state of noisy exhuberance (noisy kids)
g. fluent in a language
h. this and that
i. just in the nick of time
j. to be bumpy
k. to be dotted
l. to be hungry
m. warm, heated (a warm bento)
n. the sound of scraping
o. being worn out and old
p. to have a full stomach
q. smiling
r. round and round in circles
s. fluffy
t. the sound of tearing paper
Check back for the answers in a future posting.
Friday, May 12, 2006
Conversations with Kids - Part I
Here's a conversation with Ethan, our 5-year old son, and Naomi, our 6-year old daughter, this evening at the dinner table:
Me: Wow, those lemon grass chicken sticks are sort of spicy.
Naomi: What are you talking about?
Me: Those things in front of you. Right there. Those things that look like taquitos.
Naomi: Yeah, you're sweating.
Me: You want to try one. Ethan has one. Maybe you're like mom and can handle spicy foods.
Naomi: Yeah, I'm a little bit like you and a little bit like mom. So maybe I can eat spicy foods like mom. (Proceeds to put one of the chicken sticks on her plate.)
Me: In other ways you're more like me.
Naomi: Like how we don't get cavities. (Unlike mom who gets cavities easily)
Me: That's right.
Ethan: But Dad, how come I get cavities easily even though I sweat like you?
Me: Wow, those lemon grass chicken sticks are sort of spicy.
Naomi: What are you talking about?
Me: Those things in front of you. Right there. Those things that look like taquitos.
Naomi: Yeah, you're sweating.
Me: You want to try one. Ethan has one. Maybe you're like mom and can handle spicy foods.
Naomi: Yeah, I'm a little bit like you and a little bit like mom. So maybe I can eat spicy foods like mom. (Proceeds to put one of the chicken sticks on her plate.)
Me: In other ways you're more like me.
Naomi: Like how we don't get cavities. (Unlike mom who gets cavities easily)
Me: That's right.
Ethan: But Dad, how come I get cavities easily even though I sweat like you?
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
The Toire
After having arrived at my cousin's place in Osaka after a long bus ride and a taxi ride, it was natural for my son Ethan to want to use the bathroom. We were escorted to the bathroom.
"Ethan, do you want me to stay?" I asked.
"No, that's okay," was the reply. So I closed the door and left.
After about 10 minutes, we began to wonder if Ethan was okay. Perhaps he was having difficulties with the toilet. It was a Western style toilet so I never thought to give him pointers on the use of the toilet. I decided to go check on him.
Knock. Knock. "Is everything okay in there?"
"Yes, Dad. I'm done," was the reply. He didn't sound troubled, but I didn't hear any movement either so I decided to take a peek. Opening the door slightly I could see that he was still on the toilet, his feet not quite touching the floor swinging back and forth like the tail of a happy pup.
"Are you finished? Or are you just roosting?" I inquired.
He started to push himself off the toilet, hands on the seat like a gymnast dismounting from a pommel horse. "But Dad it's so warm."
I had no idea what he was talking about. The bathroom was your typical Japanese bathroom. A small room with a toilet with a tank that had a wash basin built on top. The room did feel a couple of degrees warmer than the rest of the house - maybe because it was small and cozy.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"Dad, the toilet's warm," was the reply.
I felt the toilet seat. It was warm. The toilet seat had a seat warmer! Ethan had a big smile on his face, "See, Dad."
Meet the Toto Washlet. [Note: the brand name Toto is synonymous with toilets in Japan much as Otis is to elevators here in the U.S.]
The last time we were in Japan nine years ago perhaps one of my relative's home had such a toilet. This time around nearly all of the homes had a Washlet, likely the most sophisticated toilet ever made. The list of features available with these toilets is almost endless: adjustable water jet nozzles, massage options, blow dryers, heater, air conditioning, air freshener, auto lid, pressure sensitive seats, self cleaning nozzles, and germ resistant surfaces. See this link for more information on toilets in Japan: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_toilet
As you can see, using the the "toiretto" or "toire" (from the word "toilet) in Japan can be quite a comforting experience.
"Ethan, do you want me to stay?" I asked.
"No, that's okay," was the reply. So I closed the door and left.
After about 10 minutes, we began to wonder if Ethan was okay. Perhaps he was having difficulties with the toilet. It was a Western style toilet so I never thought to give him pointers on the use of the toilet. I decided to go check on him.
Knock. Knock. "Is everything okay in there?"
"Yes, Dad. I'm done," was the reply. He didn't sound troubled, but I didn't hear any movement either so I decided to take a peek. Opening the door slightly I could see that he was still on the toilet, his feet not quite touching the floor swinging back and forth like the tail of a happy pup.
"Are you finished? Or are you just roosting?" I inquired.
He started to push himself off the toilet, hands on the seat like a gymnast dismounting from a pommel horse. "But Dad it's so warm."
I had no idea what he was talking about. The bathroom was your typical Japanese bathroom. A small room with a toilet with a tank that had a wash basin built on top. The room did feel a couple of degrees warmer than the rest of the house - maybe because it was small and cozy.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"Dad, the toilet's warm," was the reply.
I felt the toilet seat. It was warm. The toilet seat had a seat warmer! Ethan had a big smile on his face, "See, Dad."
Meet the Toto Washlet. [Note: the brand name Toto is synonymous with toilets in Japan much as Otis is to elevators here in the U.S.]
The last time we were in Japan nine years ago perhaps one of my relative's home had such a toilet. This time around nearly all of the homes had a Washlet, likely the most sophisticated toilet ever made. The list of features available with these toilets is almost endless: adjustable water jet nozzles, massage options, blow dryers, heater, air conditioning, air freshener, auto lid, pressure sensitive seats, self cleaning nozzles, and germ resistant surfaces. See this link for more information on toilets in Japan: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_toilet
As you can see, using the the "toiretto" or "toire" (from the word "toilet) in Japan can be quite a comforting experience.
Sunday, May 07, 2006
The Keitai Denwa
One of the biggest changes that Dorothy and I noticed in Japan since our last visit nine years ago is the proliferation of cell phones, or as they're called in Japan "keitai denwas." But then again this change should not be that surprising - even here at home cell phones and their use have changed considerably. We only got cell phones seven years ago before the birth of our first child so that I would be reachable any where, any time.
My first memory of cell phones were objects that we called "car phones." There were a few people in my office where I worked 15 years ago who had them. They were usually grey, brick-shaped phones that were powered through the cigarette lighter in cars or could be operated on their own. Somewhere in the past 10 years the term "cell phone" has become the generic term for these phones. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_mobile_phones
In Japan, these phones are called "keitai denwas" or more simply "keitais." The word keitai means portable with the kanji characters for keitai coming from KEI meaning "carry" and TAI meaning "belt." http://www.cjvlang.com/Writing/writsys/signs/keitai.html
This literal translation of keitai would be a better description of cell phones here in the U.S. than in Japan. It's much more common to see cell phones carried on the belt here than in Japan. Most of my male relatives in Japan seemed to carry their phones in a pocket. Other observations include:
1. Not as many variations on the shape of the phone (many seemed to look like my Mom's Cingular Erickson phone).
2. High quality digital cameras and the storing of photos on their phones seemed to be more common.
3. Many of the phones were decorated with tags like we have on key chains.
4. Much more text messaging, perhaps even more text messaging than phone calls. I think text messaging is less expensive than making a call and perhaps much of what can be communicated can be done so through short messages. Another reason for the popularity is its outgrowth from the popularity of pagers in Japan from the mid-80s to the mid-90s. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_cell_phone_culture#Teenagers_and_keitai
5. Cell phone usage in cars is not allowed. There are also signs in may establishments that request phones to be placed on "manner mode." Trains have signs requesting phones to be turned off near senior priority seats because of the risk of cell phone radio waves interfering with pacemakers and other medical devices. Why isn't this more of an issue here in the U.S.?http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_cell_phone_culture#Negative_aspects
My first memory of cell phones were objects that we called "car phones." There were a few people in my office where I worked 15 years ago who had them. They were usually grey, brick-shaped phones that were powered through the cigarette lighter in cars or could be operated on their own. Somewhere in the past 10 years the term "cell phone" has become the generic term for these phones. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_mobile_phones
In Japan, these phones are called "keitai denwas" or more simply "keitais." The word keitai means portable with the kanji characters for keitai coming from KEI meaning "carry" and TAI meaning "belt." http://www.cjvlang.com/Writing/writsys/signs/keitai.html
This literal translation of keitai would be a better description of cell phones here in the U.S. than in Japan. It's much more common to see cell phones carried on the belt here than in Japan. Most of my male relatives in Japan seemed to carry their phones in a pocket. Other observations include:
1. Not as many variations on the shape of the phone (many seemed to look like my Mom's Cingular Erickson phone).
2. High quality digital cameras and the storing of photos on their phones seemed to be more common.
3. Many of the phones were decorated with tags like we have on key chains.
4. Much more text messaging, perhaps even more text messaging than phone calls. I think text messaging is less expensive than making a call and perhaps much of what can be communicated can be done so through short messages. Another reason for the popularity is its outgrowth from the popularity of pagers in Japan from the mid-80s to the mid-90s. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_cell_phone_culture#Teenagers_and_keitai
5. Cell phone usage in cars is not allowed. There are also signs in may establishments that request phones to be placed on "manner mode." Trains have signs requesting phones to be turned off near senior priority seats because of the risk of cell phone radio waves interfering with pacemakers and other medical devices. Why isn't this more of an issue here in the U.S.?http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_cell_phone_culture#Negative_aspects
Tuesday, May 02, 2006
Our Family Visit to Japan
Starting with the photo in the upper left corner and going from left to right row-by-row:1. We stayed with relatives for the entire trip and slept five across in a tatami floor room. Ryan usually found his way in between Mom and Dad, and managed to wake us up with his nai-nai request at least once most nights.
2&3. It was the peak of the cherry blossom season in Osaka. We attended the opening of the Japanese Mint Bureau grounds on April 12 for cherry blossom (sakura) viewing. The sakura are located on the grounds along the banks of the Okawa River. http://www.pref.osaka.jp/koho/brand/no6/sl/24sakura.html
4. Only managed to get a few photos of us in a shinkansen (bullet train). A picture of a still shinkansen from outside wouldn't have done it justice anyway. We have videos that'll give you a better feel for these trains that reach top speeds of about 185 mph. The 90-mile trip from Osaka to Okayama took about 45 minutes including three stops on the nozomi (super express) train. http://www.japaneselifestyle.com.au/travel/shinkansen_history.htm
5. A view of Okayama Castle from the Korakuen. Okayama-jo aka U-jo, Crow Castle, because it is one of two castles in Japan that is painted black. The Korakuen is one of Japan's official "Great Gardens" - there are three such gardens. http://www.japaneselifestyle.com.au/travel/okayama.htm
6&14. A view of the Yojima Bridge, the 4th of six bridges spanning 5.8 miles between Honshu (Kurashiki city) and Shikoku (Sakaide city) that make up the Great Seto Bridges. On Yojima, there is a Fisherman's Wharf area that is sort of a mini version of "Fisherman's Wharf" areas like those in Seattle or San Francisco. The bridges were constructed in 10 years at a cost of about $7.7 billion (assuming $1 = 130 Yen). http://web-japan.org/atlas/architecture/arc22.html
7. Beaver's Bakery is Tetsuya's (my cousin) bakery located in Kurashiki. In our humble opinion, it is the best bakery in Japan!
8. Muscat Stadium (capacity of about 30,000) is located in Kurashiki. Although Kurashiki (where Casey's relatives live) is not home to a professional Japanese baseball team, a small number of pro games are played there each year. We attended the game between the Yomiuri Giants and the Yakult Swallows on April 18. We rooted for the underdog Swallows to no avail as the Giants prevailed 1-0. The highlight was the release of thousands of noise making balloons at the end of the 7th inning stretch.
9, 10&13. Another highlight for our kids was the Kaiyukan (aquarium) in Osaka. It's an interesting aquarium with a 9-meter tall central tank display that houses a whale shark (9 years ago there were 2 such sharks in the tank). It's touted as one of the largest aquariums in the world. There are some 30,000 specimens of plants and animals representing 580 species in the aquarium, including dolphins, both sea and river otters, penguins and a sun fish. Headphones with narrations in English are available. http://www.kaiyukan.com/eng/profile/index.htm
11. Wish we could have gotten more pictures of the amazing train stations. Even in the smaller urban areas such as Okayama (population of about 1.9 million in the prefecture) the train station is home to several lines and plenty of shopping both above ground and below ground. The picture is of Casey and Ryan at the Hankyu train platforms at the main Umeda station in Osaka. Including the Hankyu line there are 5 private train lines, the JR line, a subway system with 7 lines and a monorail system in Osaka. There were something like 8 slots for Hankyu trains that were coming and going every couple of minutes. The slots were designed so that doors can open on one side to let passengers exit and open on the opposite side to take on passengers. http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4006.html & http://www.osaka-u.ac.jp/eng/accessmap.html
12. A highlight of shopping in Japan is the appealing cakes and pastries on display. The cake in the picture was Ryan's birthday cake. He celebrated his 2nd birthday during the trip.
15. Kurashiki is known for its Bikan-chiku area where several rice storehouses remain from the 18th and 19th centuries that were used to store rice harvested from the area around Kurashiki. The storehouses are located along the tree lined canal in the photo. http://www.osaka-u.ac.jp/eng/accessmap.html
16. The last photo is of us in front of the Okayama train station at the statue of Momotaro, Peach Boy. Momtaro is the main character in a well-known (at least to Japanese) Japanese fable about a boy found inside a giant peach in Okayama. Of course, the area is well known for its peaches with the peak peach season being in late summer. http://www.pref.okayama.jp/kikaku/kokusai/momo/e/momotarou/momotarou.html
Riddles, jokes and giggles
While we were in Japan recently, a highlight of one evening was exchanging jokes and riddles with Tetsuya who was familiar with American riddles having spent some time in the U.S. Here are some of the riddles that we exchanged and a few other gems.
Q: What is black, white and blue?
A: A zebra holding its breath.
Q: Why was 10 scared of 7?
A: Because 7 8 9.
Q: What kind of room has no windows and no doors?
A: A mushroom.
Q: Why would you put a saddle backwards on a horse?
A: To see where you have been.
Q: What do you get when you mix a grizzly bear with a kangaroo?
A: A coat with fur pockets.
Q: What do little girl grizzlies wear in their hair?
A: Bearettes.
Q: What do dinosaurs have that no other animals have?
A: Baby dinosaurs.
Q: What has no fingers but many rings?
A: A tree.
Q: What is black, white and blue?
A: A zebra holding its breath.
Q: Why was 10 scared of 7?
A: Because 7 8 9.
Q: What kind of room has no windows and no doors?
A: A mushroom.
Q: Why would you put a saddle backwards on a horse?
A: To see where you have been.
Q: What do you get when you mix a grizzly bear with a kangaroo?
A: A coat with fur pockets.
Q: What do little girl grizzlies wear in their hair?
A: Bearettes.
Q: What do dinosaurs have that no other animals have?
A: Baby dinosaurs.
Q: What has no fingers but many rings?
A: A tree.
Monday, March 06, 2006
Happy Juice!
Ryan has developed his own vocabulary, not unlike most almost 2 year olds. Here are some examples:
1. Blanket: bing-bing (if you say it fast enough it sort of sounds like blanket)
2. Fish: fi-fi (any fish is fi-fi because the name of our goldfish is Fifi)
3. Water: wahwah
4. Train: choo-choo
5. Toe lint: lin-lin (he likes to pick out the lint that accumulates from a day's worth of socks wear)
6. His Milk (or Formula): nai-nai (Chinese kids' word for milk)
7. Apple Juice: happy juice!
And there are many more!
1. Blanket: bing-bing (if you say it fast enough it sort of sounds like blanket)
2. Fish: fi-fi (any fish is fi-fi because the name of our goldfish is Fifi)
3. Water: wahwah
4. Train: choo-choo
5. Toe lint: lin-lin (he likes to pick out the lint that accumulates from a day's worth of socks wear)
6. His Milk (or Formula): nai-nai (Chinese kids' word for milk)
7. Apple Juice: happy juice!
And there are many more!
Tuesday, February 21, 2006
Blinders On - Gas Cap Not
A man is leaving a Chevron station in Kent, Washington with his gas cap on the trunk of his late model Japanese car. He's in a rush like the rest of us, having endured the gas attendant tell us, "it should be up in a couple of minutes" to "we're not sure when the pumps will be up again."
After taking note of the man's gas cap where it should not be, we tried to get his attention to no avail. It was hard to tell if he didn't see our waving from our minivan in the lane beside or if he just chose to ignore us. Nevertheless, when the signal turned green we were both off into the night, we to the left and he to the right.
But as we drove off, we could see the gas cap fly off the back of his car. We drove off talking that we should go back and rescue the cap in the hope that the man would return in search of his cap. So we u-turned and returned to where we parted ways.
As we turned down the street to park, who should walk by, but the man missing his gas cap. Apparently, he did not take note of our waving, but somehow did hear or see his black gas cap get yanked off into the night.
We parked and I started out to the intersection, but I did not get more than 20 feet when I heard the most awful plastic crushing sound. The man was cursing. He clearly was not happy. From what I saw it looked like he was just beaten to the cap by a very large SUV. I thought about talking to the man, but given his demeanor at the moment, I thought better of it and walked back to my family.
The intersection is now known to us as the "scene of the crime."
After taking note of the man's gas cap where it should not be, we tried to get his attention to no avail. It was hard to tell if he didn't see our waving from our minivan in the lane beside or if he just chose to ignore us. Nevertheless, when the signal turned green we were both off into the night, we to the left and he to the right.
But as we drove off, we could see the gas cap fly off the back of his car. We drove off talking that we should go back and rescue the cap in the hope that the man would return in search of his cap. So we u-turned and returned to where we parted ways.
As we turned down the street to park, who should walk by, but the man missing his gas cap. Apparently, he did not take note of our waving, but somehow did hear or see his black gas cap get yanked off into the night.
We parked and I started out to the intersection, but I did not get more than 20 feet when I heard the most awful plastic crushing sound. The man was cursing. He clearly was not happy. From what I saw it looked like he was just beaten to the cap by a very large SUV. I thought about talking to the man, but given his demeanor at the moment, I thought better of it and walked back to my family.
The intersection is now known to us as the "scene of the crime."
Tuesday, January 03, 2006
Happy New Year!
Welcome back to all of you who were away for the holidays. Hello again to those of you who didn't travel, but may have noticed little activity on our little blog over the past couple months. Now we can all exhale.
We had our usual stack of Christmas, New Year's and holiday cards from family and friends to read through. This is probably my favorite part of this time of year. To be able to see pictures of friends' children and read about the past year. One of my high school teachers who I have kept in touch with is always good for a few witty phrases and comments from the past year. Here are a few that she passed on this year:
On the subject of weather - weather to give a person the weary dismals; the breeze had some little cold teeth in it; the heavy sky sagged with drizzle.
A native addressing a totem pole - "Don't be so proud. I know you from a plum tree."
On vocabulary - "sociopath" The trouble with words like that is that if you can pronounce them you think you know what they mean.
On faces - His face was fat and smooth, full of water and cities; a fellow with a face he'd gotten a lot of mileage out of.
On voices - If Tom talked any slower, he'd talk backward; a stained glass voice.
On principles - By definition, a prejudice is a principle that the owner does not intend to examine.
Father Earth? - the mountains where the earth pulled off its shirt and displayed its naked massive limestone shoulders, bulging lava pectorals, powerful granite biceps.
On time - Some things take longer to be a long time ago; just when is history anyway?
On religion - Atheism is a nonprophet organization.
On people - certain things among the shadows of a person's life do not have to be remembered -- they remember themselves; the chances we take getting born so accidentally; if you don't get smarter, getting older is more trouble than it's worth.
In case you haven't guessed, Mrs. C. is a retired English teacher.
We had our usual stack of Christmas, New Year's and holiday cards from family and friends to read through. This is probably my favorite part of this time of year. To be able to see pictures of friends' children and read about the past year. One of my high school teachers who I have kept in touch with is always good for a few witty phrases and comments from the past year. Here are a few that she passed on this year:
On the subject of weather - weather to give a person the weary dismals; the breeze had some little cold teeth in it; the heavy sky sagged with drizzle.
A native addressing a totem pole - "Don't be so proud. I know you from a plum tree."
On vocabulary - "sociopath" The trouble with words like that is that if you can pronounce them you think you know what they mean.
On faces - His face was fat and smooth, full of water and cities; a fellow with a face he'd gotten a lot of mileage out of.
On voices - If Tom talked any slower, he'd talk backward; a stained glass voice.
On principles - By definition, a prejudice is a principle that the owner does not intend to examine.
Father Earth? - the mountains where the earth pulled off its shirt and displayed its naked massive limestone shoulders, bulging lava pectorals, powerful granite biceps.
On time - Some things take longer to be a long time ago; just when is history anyway?
On religion - Atheism is a nonprophet organization.
On people - certain things among the shadows of a person's life do not have to be remembered -- they remember themselves; the chances we take getting born so accidentally; if you don't get smarter, getting older is more trouble than it's worth.
In case you haven't guessed, Mrs. C. is a retired English teacher.
Stats Redux - January 3, 2006
Here is an update on our stats from November:
Price of Gas: $1.95 per gallon and holding steady (can't believe that the price of gas is higher in Seattle and Portland)
Price of Milk: still $3.79 for hormone free milk at Trader Joe's
Bridge Toll: still $3 on nearly all Bay Area bridges, although they will go going up to pay for overruns on bridge replacements/repairs
Today's High Temperature: 57 degrees F (with rain)
Dow Jones Average: 10,847.41 (up 129.91 on the 1st trading day of the new year)
Shopping Days to Christmas: only the department stores know this one now
Dinner Tonight: Salmon Pie (also now known as Ethan's Super Salmon Pie in the Walnut Creek Presbyterian Church Cookbook, but originally Mom's recipe)
Average Commute Time: still over an hour (in a 3-person carpool)
Cost of Area Homes: still over $600,000 but unchanged
Movie Ticket: assume that it's still around $9, although it's been some time since we've watched anything but NetFlix rentals
Vacation with My Kids: an Adventure
By the way, Happy New Year!
Price of Gas: $1.95 per gallon and holding steady (can't believe that the price of gas is higher in Seattle and Portland)
Price of Milk: still $3.79 for hormone free milk at Trader Joe's
Bridge Toll: still $3 on nearly all Bay Area bridges, although they will go going up to pay for overruns on bridge replacements/repairs
Today's High Temperature: 57 degrees F (with rain)
Dow Jones Average: 10,847.41 (up 129.91 on the 1st trading day of the new year)
Shopping Days to Christmas: only the department stores know this one now
Dinner Tonight: Salmon Pie (also now known as Ethan's Super Salmon Pie in the Walnut Creek Presbyterian Church Cookbook, but originally Mom's recipe)
Average Commute Time: still over an hour (in a 3-person carpool)
Cost of Area Homes: still over $600,000 but unchanged
Movie Ticket: assume that it's still around $9, although it's been some time since we've watched anything but NetFlix rentals
Vacation with My Kids: an Adventure
By the way, Happy New Year!
Friday, November 18, 2005
Stats for Today - November 17, 2005
Here are some stats for our household and locale:
Price of Gas: $2.37 per gallon and falling for the moment after reaching a high of about $3.07
Price of Milk: $3.79 per gallon and holding
Bridge Toll: $3 (except on the Golden Gate where it is already $5)
Today's High Temperature: 73 degrees F
Dow Jones Average: closed at 10,766.33 (up 46.11)
Shopping Days to Christmas: 37
Thanksgiving Dinner Item: Ham
Average Commute Time: 1 hour and 10 minutes (in a 3-person carpool)
Cost of Area Homes: $600,000 plus
Movie Ticket: $8.75 and higher
Time with my Kids: Priceless
How do these numbers compare with yours?
Price of Gas: $2.37 per gallon and falling for the moment after reaching a high of about $3.07
Price of Milk: $3.79 per gallon and holding
Bridge Toll: $3 (except on the Golden Gate where it is already $5)
Today's High Temperature: 73 degrees F
Dow Jones Average: closed at 10,766.33 (up 46.11)
Shopping Days to Christmas: 37
Thanksgiving Dinner Item: Ham
Average Commute Time: 1 hour and 10 minutes (in a 3-person carpool)
Cost of Area Homes: $600,000 plus
Movie Ticket: $8.75 and higher
Time with my Kids: Priceless
How do these numbers compare with yours?
Thursday, November 17, 2005
New War Anthem?
Just saw a commercial today on television with the lead singer of Green Day saying something like, "anything successful is built on a series of mistakes." Could it be that we've stumbled on what could be used as the basis for a new series of talking points regarding the War in Iraq?
Monday, November 14, 2005
On-line Travel Writing
Just wanted to share an on-line travel magazine that covers all facets of travel. The site also will take submissions with the enticement that their site has a broad reach (they aren't able to pay).
One current listing on their site that caught my eye was a review of Karin Muller's "Japanland: A Year in Search of Wa." I think I'll have to check it out.
http://www.worldhum.com/
One current listing on their site that caught my eye was a review of Karin Muller's "Japanland: A Year in Search of Wa." I think I'll have to check it out.
http://www.worldhum.com/
Tuesday, November 01, 2005
About the Name of Our Blog
The name of our blog comes from a Japanese children's song about a turtle. Here's the first verse:
Moshi moshi Kame yo,
Kame-san yo.
Sekai no uchi de,
Omae hodo,
Ayumi no noroi,
Mono wa nai.
Doshite Sonnani,
Noroinoka?
Hello Turtle,
Mr. Turtle.
In all the world,
there is none,
who walks as slow.
Why are you so slow?
Moshi moshi Kame yo,
Kame-san yo.
Sekai no uchi de,
Omae hodo,
Ayumi no noroi,
Mono wa nai.
Doshite Sonnani,
Noroinoka?
Hello Turtle,
Mr. Turtle.
In all the world,
there is none,
who walks as slow.
Why are you so slow?
Sunday, October 16, 2005
Back Yard Wonders
You just never know what you'll find in your own backyard. We found a praying mantis one weekend recently when we were pruning one of our trees. It was about three inches in length and was a yellowish-brown color, not the usual green color that we are accustomed to seeing. After we finished with the tree, we put the praying mantis back on the tree and watched it climb out of sight. Here's a photo of the mantis looking back at us seemingly saying, "so long."
Thursday, October 06, 2005
Hey, Chuck!
The City of Santa Rosa completed a summer-long tribute to its favorite son, Charles "Sparky" Schultz. In celebration of the 55th anniversary of the Peanuts comic strip, the designing of 55 unique statues of Charlie Brown was commissioned. One last viewing of all of the statues was possible with the assembling of all 55 statues in a field near the Schultz Museum. We couldn't resist taking our kids to this unique event. Here we are with the original Chuck.
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Truth is a Person
The senior pastor at our church gave his final sermon at our church this past Sunday. A couple weeks back he announced that he was moving onto a church in Minnesota after 13 years in California.
Much of the sermon had applicability in the secular world, but there was one message that resonated given all that has taken place the past few weeks. Truth is a person.
Our government, our leaders, the "for profit" news organizations have been guilty of doling out the truth as one would dole out scarce grain to the hungry. But truth is a person, not a commodity.
Truth is George Jones of Beaumont, Texas who was filmed by a C-SPAN crew. George was outside his home on street with no life, a street that looked like it had been cleared by a superhuman sized street cleaner. He was busy cleaning his grill. "We're gonna barbeque our venison and other meat before it goes bad. We're gonna have ourselves a barbeque this afternoon. Me and the couple of neighbors who are still here."
The C-SPAN reporter continued with the questions, "Have you heard that they're evacuating the entire town? Are you staying? What are you going to do about water?"
George seems unfazed by all these questions. "I don't know why they turned off the water. We're here and doing okay. This is not like New Orleans. We're not nine feet below sea level. We survived Rita and ain't going nowhere."
Later, the C-SPAN crew is at a checkpoint on the outskirts of Beaumont where people are queued trying to get back to their homes to see what's left. The skies look clear and it's apparent that the brunt of the storm has passed. The security forces are not letting anyone through and those that push on are warned that there is another checkpoint down the road with troopers waiting who will just turn them back. At least one truck charges through with the driver obviously upset.
The truth is Les Sheffler who is sitting in his SUV with barely a quarter tank of gas with no idea about the location of the nearest shelter. Sitting next to him is his slightly frail looking 83-year old mother. "They're not telling us anything. Where we are the roads are drivable. Maybe it's worse in town, but they're not telling us anything. This doesn't make any sense. This just convinces me that I made the wrong choice by leaving. Next time I won't leave. I'm all prepared to make it through the next few days. "
"What are you going to do about water?" asks the C-SPAN reporter.
"I have a whole swimming pool full of water. I also have 35 to 40 gallons of drinking water stored just for this. I have a freezer full of food and a generator. If I can get in there I can save the food. I have gasoline stored and cars in the driveway with tanks full. If my roof is leaking I could cover it with tarps to prevent a total loss. This is all only about 4 miles from here and they won't let me in. This just doesn't figure. Next time I won't leave."
Much of the sermon had applicability in the secular world, but there was one message that resonated given all that has taken place the past few weeks. Truth is a person.
Our government, our leaders, the "for profit" news organizations have been guilty of doling out the truth as one would dole out scarce grain to the hungry. But truth is a person, not a commodity.
Truth is George Jones of Beaumont, Texas who was filmed by a C-SPAN crew. George was outside his home on street with no life, a street that looked like it had been cleared by a superhuman sized street cleaner. He was busy cleaning his grill. "We're gonna barbeque our venison and other meat before it goes bad. We're gonna have ourselves a barbeque this afternoon. Me and the couple of neighbors who are still here."
The C-SPAN reporter continued with the questions, "Have you heard that they're evacuating the entire town? Are you staying? What are you going to do about water?"
George seems unfazed by all these questions. "I don't know why they turned off the water. We're here and doing okay. This is not like New Orleans. We're not nine feet below sea level. We survived Rita and ain't going nowhere."
Later, the C-SPAN crew is at a checkpoint on the outskirts of Beaumont where people are queued trying to get back to their homes to see what's left. The skies look clear and it's apparent that the brunt of the storm has passed. The security forces are not letting anyone through and those that push on are warned that there is another checkpoint down the road with troopers waiting who will just turn them back. At least one truck charges through with the driver obviously upset.
The truth is Les Sheffler who is sitting in his SUV with barely a quarter tank of gas with no idea about the location of the nearest shelter. Sitting next to him is his slightly frail looking 83-year old mother. "They're not telling us anything. Where we are the roads are drivable. Maybe it's worse in town, but they're not telling us anything. This doesn't make any sense. This just convinces me that I made the wrong choice by leaving. Next time I won't leave. I'm all prepared to make it through the next few days. "
"What are you going to do about water?" asks the C-SPAN reporter.
"I have a whole swimming pool full of water. I also have 35 to 40 gallons of drinking water stored just for this. I have a freezer full of food and a generator. If I can get in there I can save the food. I have gasoline stored and cars in the driveway with tanks full. If my roof is leaking I could cover it with tarps to prevent a total loss. This is all only about 4 miles from here and they won't let me in. This just doesn't figure. Next time I won't leave."
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
Our Summer Vacation - The Yellowstone Leg
Ethan was sitting on Dorothy's lap when the photo was taken to answer a question posed in our first blog entry. The photo was one of last decent ones that we got out of our digital camera before it succumbed to the rain squall that drenched us.This was our second visit, but first with our kids. We didn't cover nearly as much of the park this time, but did manage to squeeze as much as we could into parts of two days. I think the kids will not forget Old Faithful (left, best picture that we got), but mainly because it was cold and wet. Although we didn't venture enough to see bears, there were sightings of geese, one coyote (although the kids may have missed this one between the yelps of "where? where?"), eagles nesting, elk, deer and bison. Perhaps when the kids are older we'll spend more time and get in a hike or two.
We arrived in West Yellowstone on the fourth day of our travels to overcast skies having driven through rain on Highway 20 from Idaho Falls. In Idaho Falls we heard so much about this place called Yellowstone Bear World, but paying money to feed bears didn't strike a chord with us. From the highway, Bear World looked like a Six Flags amusement park surrounded by log cabins.
Enroute to West Yellowstone we made reservations with a hotel that was listed in the AAA book as a Fairfield Inn, but upon calling we found that it had gone independent. You could tell this in their pitch to us, even being so enthusiastic about their new make-it-yourself waffles that were now part of their continental breakfast, the same make-it-yourself waffles that seems to be the staple of every hotel chain continental breakfast this year. In the end, their homey hospitality won us over.
Note: In the Bay Area, you might want to check out the geysers at Calistoga or the bison in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco.
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Something is rotten in the state of Denmark
Case 1 - FEMA has already awarded millions of dollars in contracts without competition. Several of these contracts have gone to companies with connections to the current administration. One of these companies is Shaw Group, Inc. , who is on the client list of lobbyist and former FEMA director Joe Allbaugh. The same Joe Allbaugh who helped to identify college buddy Michael Brown to be his successor. So let me get this right. One college buddy has a hand in what will most surely be the costliest disaster in U.S. history, and the other buddy has connections to a company that could be profitting from this disaster. I suppose this is exhibit one for the saying, "it's who you know, not what you know."
Case 2 - The Davis Bacon Act enacted in 1931 requires paying workers at least the prevailing wage rate in a region. In the New Orleans area, the prevailing wage for construction labor is about $9 per hour. On September 8, 2005, President Bush suspended Davis Bacon for Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida citing a need to reduce costs for reconstruction efforts in these states. So does this mean that the efforts by residents in these areas are worth less than $9 per hour? Does it make sense to reduce wages for people who are in great need? Are there regulations that limit what profits companies can make from disaster recovery efforts?
Case 3 - The founders of our country struggled with the concept of political parties and what role they should play in government. People such as Thomas Jefferson thought that political parties would do more harm to the republic than good. Fastforwarding to 2005, it seems that nearly every decision is made with the political party, Democratic or Republican, in mind. Will it hurt my party? Will it hurt their party? Even if intentions are good, it's too easy these days to be cynical about even the best of intentions. Perhaps this has always been the case, but living in the information age means that we know so much more now and what we see is perhaps not too appealing.
Case 2 - The Davis Bacon Act enacted in 1931 requires paying workers at least the prevailing wage rate in a region. In the New Orleans area, the prevailing wage for construction labor is about $9 per hour. On September 8, 2005, President Bush suspended Davis Bacon for Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida citing a need to reduce costs for reconstruction efforts in these states. So does this mean that the efforts by residents in these areas are worth less than $9 per hour? Does it make sense to reduce wages for people who are in great need? Are there regulations that limit what profits companies can make from disaster recovery efforts?
Case 3 - The founders of our country struggled with the concept of political parties and what role they should play in government. People such as Thomas Jefferson thought that political parties would do more harm to the republic than good. Fastforwarding to 2005, it seems that nearly every decision is made with the political party, Democratic or Republican, in mind. Will it hurt my party? Will it hurt their party? Even if intentions are good, it's too easy these days to be cynical about even the best of intentions. Perhaps this has always been the case, but living in the information age means that we know so much more now and what we see is perhaps not too appealing.
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