Haloween

Halloween is coming soon. I can find "Jack O' lantern" in many places in this season. But I cannot understand why many Japanese celebrate it.

We are greatly influenced by American economics and culture. So, Halloween is a typical issue of them, I think.

There are a lot of Buddhists in Japan, and there is a custom that celebrates Buddha's birthday. (It is April 8.) But the number of people who celebrate it is not so many, it seems that the popularity of it is less than one of Halloween. Some people don't know when it is celebrated.

I have learned that many Americans celebrate Saint Patrick's day on March 17 through VOA special English.

Now, I have concerned that the following events might happen in Japan in the future.

"Cities all over Japan are coloured by green(Irish color), and people say "We are a little bit Irish on this day" each other."

"Five separated socks"

Yesterday, I bought a pair of "five separated socks". I like these socks, so I wear them everyday.

Now, in Japan, the popularity of "five separated socks" has been increasing (at least, I think so). These socks are very suitable for Japanese weather because the air has a lot of humidity.

Once a person has learned their comfortableness, he/she can't help stopping to wear them, I think.

I have heard that a well known Japanese musician "Sakamoto Ryuich" said he wears them for his health.

If you have never worn them, I recommend you to try them.

"Cosmos"

This season, I enjoy "Cosmos"（コスモス「秋桜」） along my home course during weekend bike ride.

Here is a road for walking and biking along Ongagawa-river(遠賀川). I ride my bike at least one hour every weekend using mainly this course.

When I hear the name of "Cosmos", I rememeber "Yamaguchi Momoe"s this song. This song is a message from a women who is spending a day with her mother before her wedding.

"Sanma"

Last Sunday, I ate a "Sanma"（サンマ）. It is a representative taste of Autumn in Japan.
The most popular way to cook "Sanma" is to broil by a fire. And most people eat it with grated daikon (Japanese radish)（大根おろし） and soy sauce.

At this time, I broiled "Nama-Sanma"（生サンマ） over the charcoal fire（炭火）.　

In the past, fish shops in Kyushu had sold "Sio-Sanma"（汐サンマ）, but they hadn't treated "Nama-Sanma" . "Sio-Sanma" is kept with a lot of salt not to be worse. So we, people living in Kyushu, generally could not eat "Nama-Sanma".

Today, it takes less time to bring "Nama-Sanma" to Kyushu from Tohoku area than before because of the advance of traffic system. So, we can eat "Nama-Sanma" now.

("Sanma" is taken in Tohoku area, it cannot be taken in Kyushu, Chugoku , Shikoku and Chubu area. And still now, "Shio-Sanma" has been sold in fish shops.)

"Kaze no Tani no Naushika"

Last week, I took out "Kaze no Tani no Naushika (manga verion)"from my bookshelf to recommend my 14-year-old son to read it.

It is in seven volumes, so long and great manga story. And it is more complex and has more characters than the animated movie version. It is more interesting than the movie, I think.

Noguchi Yukio is a well known professor for inventing the word "Buble economic（バブル経済）" and a simple way for desk work called "Chou-Seiri-Hou(超整理法)". He wrote a paper about the manga version in his book named "Chou-Seiri-Nissi（超整理日誌）" He praises it very much, quoting "The Lord of the Rings". (I learned it through his this book before the movie was released. I have been impressed by Noguchi's great knowledge.)

"Naushika(manga version)" is translated into eight languages that might include your native language. And if you are in Japan, you mighe be able to borrow it at a pupblc library in your city (but, probably Japanese version).

I recommend you to read "Naushika", and after that, you should read the Noguchi's paper.

"Beto-chan" died

"Beto-chan" died on October 6.

For almost Japanese(about more than 40-years-old), "Beto-chan, Doku-chan" might be well-known Vietnamese. They were born in Vietnam in 1981 as conjoined twin brothers. It was said that the residual effects of weed killer used by the American forces made them abnormal bodies.

In the nineteen eighties, the movement to support them had occured in Japan. They visited to Japan to receive several medical treatments. And they was operated to divide their body under the supports of the Japanese Red Cross into two in Ho chiming-city, Vietnam in 1988. The operation was successful, but the consciousness of Beto-chan had not returned.

P.S. I heve learend that posting a newspaper archive without author's consents may touch copyright problem. So I deleted the photo of archive. Instead, I post a head-line that I wrote by a "Fude-pen".

VOA Special English

Every day morning before going to my office, I write down the VOA Special English program recorded on my computer without seeing its text to learn English. It takes about one hour. And I listen to its program by using i-pod on my way to my office. They are good practices to learn English.

As you might know it, its announce speed is two third of standard English, and is written in about 1500 basic English words.

My favorite program is American Mosaic. It is formed by three parts, a new topic in the USA, a listener's question about the American life and music corner. I often take information about popular music in the USA there. It is very useful.

I think the Special English is good teaching materials for non-native speakers in English, so I have often recommend my acquaintance to listen to it, but by now, no one have started it yet. It is very unfortunate thing.

There are a lot of class of English conversation like NOVA in Japan, but its fee is very expensive. But to listen to the Special English is almost free, everyone with a computer can start it. Why many Japanese people do not use it, or know it, I think.

By the way, I have learned that a racial incident has happened in the South in the USA. Its name is Jena 6 case. Why, even now, these racial problems are happening in the USA, I don't know. These problem in the USA have no end and no complete resultion, I think.

In Japan, there are also discrimination problems. But it is difficult for foreign people to understand it because discriminated people have same skin, same hair color and same eye color of dicriminating people, there is only reason that they are born and live in particular area, and have particular ancestors.