Paddler With No Water

What's Missing?...

2012-01-23T13:02:00.000+09:00

Recently I've found a type of bread I like sold in the pastry section at the local Onuma department store. This particular type of bread is white bread with a bit of rye grain mixed in. So it's not as sweet as most of the usual white bread I've experienced here. Plus, it's sold in an unsliced loaf form which is not square! That's utter heresy! Virtually all bread loaves in Japan are box shaped with a square or rectangular cross sectional shape. I suppose the idea of a slice of bread with only two 90˚ angle corners would befuddle most Japanese who haven't traveled abroad.

The other thing which I haven't found yet is good old brown bread. Never mind whole wheat or 60% whole wheat bread. I thought I once located brown bread at my local Yo-ku Benimaru supermarket. On closer inspection I found I had been deceived. It was chocolate bread. Given that I'm allergic to chocolate I can safely say I won't be trying that product.

So I found myself with bread, milk and eggs. It took a while but I realized I had pretty well everything I needed to make French toast. My latest trip to Yo-ku Benimaru found me happily in possession of a spice jar of ground cinnamon and pure Canadian maple syrup. The maple syrup I chose was the less expensive of the two brands they had on sale. Both were in 250ml bottles but one cost at least ¥500 less. Nonetheless, this morning I was able to enjoy French toast for breakfast. But there was one thing missing.

I realize not everyone does this: I like to spread peanut butter on pancakes and French toast and then top off the mess with maple syrup. Yes, some of my friends back in Canada thought that was odd. So there I was enjoying my breakfast and thinking "There's something missing here...". Yup. I wanted peanut butter. French toast with real maple syrup is good. But I like mine with a bit more oomph.

Amongst the expats I work with we've come upon the topic of peanut butter at least once. I don't remember if I've been told that it's sold at Yamaya. Yamaya is a liquor supermarket store which sells import foods on the side. I think it's the only place in town you can buy cheddar cheese in a form other than cracker sized slices for ¥198. I recall buying a brick of US cheddar cheese there for about ¥498. The problem is that Yamaya is quite a distance away from where I live and I don't have a car yet.

So I did a quick search online for "peanut butter". Aside from the usual suspects (Wikipedia, et al) I came across this blog entry which talks about different spreadable peanut products available in Japan: http://www.rockinginhakata.com/2009/02/16/936/. Frankly speaking I wouldn't touch Skippy peanut butter with a ten foot pole back home. But I guess asking for Adam's natural unsalted peanut butter (http://www.adamspeanutbutter.com/) is just plain out of the question. So I may have to compromise. The alternative is make your own but I don't own a food processor (never did own one back home either) so I don't think this recipe will be one I'll try: http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/cda/recipe_print/0,1946,FOOD_9936_75311_RECIPE-PRINT-FULL-PAGE-FORMATTER,00.html.

Anyways, enough about food...I'm getting hungry again!

Connections...

2012-01-16T01:14:00.002+09:00

Statue of Nitobe Inazo, a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

The last couple of days I've made a few connections which had escaped me (one for a while and one overnight). The latter one I'm going to leave off of this blog entry given the subject matter. Nonetheless, the connection I hadn't figured out for a while was why Victoria, BC and Morioka, Iwate prefecture would be sister cities. Victoria is a city located on the sea. Morioka is landlocked and not all that close to the ocean. In comparison, Vancouver's Japanese sister city is Yokohama. Both cities are harbour cities.

It wasn't until I saw a photograph I took of a signboard at the entrance to where this statue is located did I make the connection between the two cities. Nitobe Inazo, educator and diplomat, was born in Morioka and he passed away in Victoria, BC. Yes, I believe he is also the namesake of the Nitobe garden at UBC in Vancouver.

Of course I had read that Nitobe had passed away in Victoria in the Morioka Hall of Distinguished Citizens but I sure hadn't made note of the significance of that fact with respect to the question of Morioka's sister city. In fact, I had seen the Victoria-Morioka friendship totem pole after visiting the aforementioned hall and was only then made aware of the relationship between the two cities. So here I was sitting at home a month later, uploading the photos I took in Morioka and finally making the connection.

Brunch Has Been Delayed

2012-01-09T13:24:00.002+09:00

Frozen raw eggs, a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

One of those weird moments in life: The shells on these eggs had cracked and so they ended up becoming frozen solid in my refrigerator. I was going to make soft boiled eggs but decided to warm them up just enough to be able to peel them. Now I'm waiting on them to thaw out so I can cook them in a frying pan. Frankly, I've never had eggs freeze solid on me before.

Of course this isn't a reflection on how cold it actually is here. Generally outside temperatures hover around zero ˚C. Since it snows constantly there usually is cloud cover. So you don't get those crisp clear and cold winter days like one encounters in the Prairies or Eastern Canada. Mind you, we have rather thin cloud cover right now: last night I was able to observe a full moon (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8936205@N02/6664551727). With that in mind the temperature projections are in the -8˚C to -11˚C range this week.

あけましておめでとうございます。

2012-01-04T22:14:00.002+09:00

あけましておめでとうございます。, a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

Okay...So this shot is with the back side of the banner showing. Can't be helped. It's at the end of the bridge and trying to take a shot of it from the other side would involve defying gravity.

I did make it out to Uesugi Jinja (shrine) on New Year's day. I had caught a cold earlier in the week and still hadn't really recovered from it. But after a conversation with one of my local acquaintances I decided that going on a subsequent day just wasn't in the spirit of things.

The visit to the jinja was very different from my one previous memory of New Years in Japan. That happened back in the 1970s and for whatever reason I believe our family went to the Kawasaki Daishi temple. That within itself is a bit odd because it's a Nichiren temple and we're not members of that sect. What I remember from that day are the crowds, the large number of monks chanting "Namu Myo Horenkyo" and a couple of men who looked like WWII Japanese Army vets seated by the side of the road. I couldn't read the signs they had placed before themselves and my dad wasn't interested in explaining them to me. All in all the experience was a fair bit different from what I had this year in Yonezawa (without having to mention there wasn't an iota of snow in Kawasaki that day).

PS: The kanji on the banner can be read as "Bi" or "Bin". It represents the name "Bishamonten" (毘沙門天), the Japanese Buddhist god of warfare. In Buddhist mythology he is known as Vaiśravaṇa, the chief of the Four Heavenly Gods. Uesugi Kenshin, a daimyo lord of the Uesugi clan prior to their arrival in Yonezawa, was a fierce samurai and Buddhist who was believed by some to be an avatar of the god.

Iwate Prefecture Post-Earthquake Posters

2011-12-30T17:50:00.002+09:00

2011 Iwate - Post-Earthquake Posters, a set on Flickr.

After uploading these photos I came to the realization I don't want to upload any more until after New Years. There's a quality to these posters which demands that they be given a bit of space and time so those who view them can contemplate all that happened. So rather than crowd them into a tiny spot in an almost endless stream of images I'm going to stop, share and let others gaze on these much like I did in the hallway between a shopping plaza and a hotel in Morioka.

PS: While the text on each poster tended to be of the inspirational variety that wasn't the overall impression I had of them. For me there was a strange resilience in the faces where the subjects seemed to exude strength but also a sense of almost apologetic humility. I don't know. What does one feel when photographed in front of the face of such calamity and tragedy?....

The Magic Number...

2011-12-26T21:29:00.002+09:00

So when my Amex statement arrived a few days ago I thought I had it figured out as to how I would pay it: I'd go down to the bank or post office and transfer a payment as per the instructions on the bill. It should've been that simple. No. Things didn't turn out that way.

I guess a portent of things to come was the reaction from my office manager on Saturday when I told what I was going to do. Her response was that "What?!" which makes no attempt to hide confusion and skepticism. She had never attempted to do such a transaction. "Too complicated", was her remark. That conversation came back to haunt me today when I got to the banking counter at my local post office.

First off, the clerk at the post office explained that it would be cheaper to do the transfer using the ATM because the service charges are lower than if I do the transaction using my account passbook at the counter. Okay. I have no problem with that. I go to the ATM, pick the "English Guide" option and pick the best looking option: "Remittance". There didn't seem to be anything else fitting the bill for what I wanted. So on my first try I run into a requirement to enter a recipient transfer number. That isn't on the bill. I withdraw, take a seat and ponder my next step.

So I phone American Express. I press '2' for service in English and get a Japanese speaking customer service representative (who I assume can't speak English). I ask for an English speaking rep and she checks for me. "There's no one available to take a call because of call volume", she reports. So, I step up to the plate and try to get the information I need from her whilst carrying on the conversation in Japanese. She provides me with the bank code and bank branch code. I figure I have what I need and I thank her.

So I attempt to do the transaction with the information I've gathered. No luck there. I have too many digits to enter. I try a couple of permutations but give up my station at the ATM once I notice there are others waiting to use it (the small post offices usually only have one ATM). I decide to head off and pay my gas bill. After doing that I head into another post office.

After another failed attempt to make the transfer I walk up to the post office banking counter and ask the clerk what it is I have to do. I show him the information I have and he asks if I'm trying to do an international bank transfer. No. "In that case there's an option on the ATM you an use with your cash card", he explains. Ah, this might be the turn in the right direction. I explain I'm not a local once things start getting complicated. He kindly writes down the text I'm supposed to hunt down on the ATM menu on a piece of paper for the option I need to choose.

Armed with that I return to the scene of my previous defeat at the hands of the ATM. This time I weather the menus in Japanese. Voila! The option I need is there. I navigate my way to the point where I enter the Amex destination account and the amount of my payment. A small alarm bell goes off in my head. Why haven't I been asked to enter my credit card number. No sooner said than done I'm asked to enter my phone number. I duly do that and receive a confirmation screen. Everything seems to be in order. So the magic number that sealed the deal is my phone number? When I think back to the time I called Amex I recall that their system told me they had confirmed my identity based on the phone number I was calling from. Now that is interesting.

So what did I learn today? One, yes, Virginia there may be options on the post office ATMs which don't get shown when the user switches to English. It's either that or the translation becomes misleading and you miss it. I suspect the former. Two, having an IVR system identify customers by their phone numbers is an interesting tactic. They do ask for a PIN so it's not a completely wide open access point to one's accounts. But it is a bit of a surprise when first encountered.

There you have it...the magic number when dealing with Amex Japan.

Let's see now...

2011-12-25T12:35:00.001+09:00

Let's see now..., a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

This lesson jumped about a bit. "Tomb", "mummy" and "kingdom" were in the homework assignment I reviewed in class. "Cattle", shrimp and eel were part of the textbook lesson. The part about "cow", "bull" and "cattle" was to clarify something in the textbook. Most ESL students aren't taught right away that female cattle are cows and male cattle are bulls. They're simply taught "cow". That caused a bit of consternation because in this particular lesson the textbook used "cattle". The question of "What is 'cattle'?" inevitably came up...

This is all too weird. A Christmas day blog post based on a photo taken on Dec 7th... >.<

Coming down nice and fluffy

2011-12-23T16:18:00.001+09:00

Coming down nice and fluffy a video by dtk_guy on Flickr.

I think I've reached saturation point of taking photos and videos of this kind of snowfall. I'm waiting for the real big dump which takes the concept of snowfall to (literally) higher heights. I could go down to the same corner today (Dec 23rd) and shoot the same video. Nope. Need something a bit more dramatic now.

On a side note: today is the Emperor's birthday so there is a national holiday today. Not that it makes much of a difference in the daily flow of things. I suspect schools are still in session today. If I had to guess what offices would be closed I'd say the post office, city hall, and various branches of the civil service.

More later...

100 servings!

2011-12-14T23:35:00.003+09:00

100 servngs!, a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

Yup. I managed to consume 100 servings of wanko soba at the main Azuma-Ya restaurant in Morioka. In case you're wondering about the scale of the photo, those bowls are about the size of a small miso soup bowl. They each contained about a mouthful of soba.

The way wanko soba is consumed is quite the thing. Your place setting has your main bowl for eating soba, a "spittoon" for excess soba "shiru" (sauce), a side order of tuna sashimi, and a number of things you can add to your soba. There are rules to eating: you remove the lid from your main bowl (hang on firmly!) and your waitress drops a serving of soba in it. You eat that and she replenishes it. Repeat the process. After your third serving you're allowed to drain your bowl (I think that was the rule). You can add stuff such as "tororo" (ground yam), ground radish(sic) and mushrooms, a concoction containing beans, wasabi, green onions, bonito flakes or other "condiments". The general trick seems to be not to chew on your soba. Just swallow.

The pace of replenishment is quite brisk. The next serving is in your bowl pretty well the second you finish the previous serving. Just the thought of that makes me feel full. Each time the waitress drops some soba in your bowl she'll say something like "Hai, jyan, jyan" or similar. At some point it becomes a bit maddening as you swallow your soba, take a breath and watch the serving land in your bowl.

The only way to end this cycle of consumption and replenishment is to place the lid back on top of your bowl. Once you've done that then your meal is finished. In a way it's a relief when you throw in the towel and call it quits.

Anyways, for my efforts I was rewarded with a small wooden plaque noted with the date of my accomplishment and the number of servings I had consumed. Everyone gets a printed certificate with the date and number of servings but those who get to the century mark get the wooden plaque. I found out about the wooden plaque when I was at 90 servings and about to call it quits. At around 98 servings I just about heaved. Luckily I was able to quash that impulse and I hung in there for the last two bowls. I certainly didn't regret putting the lid on the bowl at that point in time.

Other things about my trip to Morioka:
1) It's still funny watching people who drive expensive import cars having to get out of their vehicles to walk around and get their parking lot tickets out of the machine mounted on the right side of the parking lot entrance.
2) I wasn't aware that Morioka was the hometown of Yonai Mitsumasa. His life is celebrated in the city hall of notable citizens. One of the other people recognized in the hall is Nitobe Inazo. He is the person whom the Nitobe Garden at UBC in Vancouver is named after. I learned that Nitobe passed away in Victoria, BC. Also he had married an American woman in a Quaker wedding ceremony. He was an exceptional educator and also a diplomat having served as an under-secretary of the League of Nations.
3) Another Individual mentioned a fair bit in Morioka is the late Miyazawa Kenji. The name "Ihatovo", his Esperanto version of the old name for Iwate, "Ihate", pops up in a lot of places. It turns up a on banners promoting tourism for the city and Iwate. I know of Miyazawa from the anime movies "Night on the Galactic Railroad" and "Ihatov Fantasy: Kenji's Spring". The latter is a biography which depicts all of the characters as cats.

My guide for this weekend trip to Morioka was Mr. Ito, a friend of my father. He had met my father when he had visited Vancouver and Victoria about 10 years ago. Victoria has been a sister city with Morioka since 1985. One story Mr. Ito told me had me laughing: Years ago when he worked for the city of Morioka he often went down to Tokyo for various meetings. He and his compatriots always seemed to get a chuckle out of the Yamagata contingent when the meetings were held in the winter. The Yamagata folks would show up wearing their big rubber boots (which usually are calf high if not almost knee high). One winter the Yamagata delegation showed up wearing rather normal dress shoes. When asked where their boots were they replied they had left them stored in coin lockers in the train stations back home.

Anyways, I've written enough for today...

ttfn!

And it keeps coming down...

2011-12-10T08:41:00.001+09:00

And it keeps coming down... a video by dtk_guy on Flickr.

This was the scene outside my apartment yesterday afternoon. It started coming down around lunchtime. Michael and I had gone to Kappa Sushi and it had been sunny that morning but overcast and cloudy by the time we sat down. About 10 minutes later I looked out the window and the scene outside was like a blizzard! Needless to say the bike ride back home was entertaining. No spills or falls though.

Anyways, I got to witness the city's road sprinkler system in action. They have pipes set into the main roads with sprinkler heads flush with the road surface. The system serves to keep the snow from accumulating on the streets. Although I still wonder about the danger of the whole darn mess being turned into a massive skating rink.

Most parking lots also have sprinkler systems to clear off the snow with. As for individual households and small businesses: there's always the soaker hose. Yes, those hoses which people in North America use to sprinkle water onto their flower beds are used to keep driveways and sidewalks clear of snow in Yonezawa. I know there are companies advertising driveway and parking spot heating systems but I haven't seen any evidence of any in use so far...

Poor Jenny...

2011-12-07T23:47:00.001+09:00

Poor Jenny..., a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

"Jenny" is the character depicted in the flash card with the phrase "put away your book"(sic). I taught at the Yamagata school last week and was quite surprised at the reaction to her I got from a class of four boys aged 8-10. I had them open their text books to a dialogue page which introduced the phrases "How old are you?" and "I'm seven years-old". The artwork depicted a birthday party for Jenny. The boys all reacted with protests like "I hate Jenny!", "I don't like Jenny", etc. I've never had any of the kids I teach at the Yonezawa school react like that so I was a bit befuddled.

Later on I came up with a possible explanation: boys that age don't always get along with girls. I'm guessing that the boys in question look at the "Jenny" character as being just like the girls they see at their regular schools. Thus the dislike for her. There could be other reasons but I can't seem to think of any right now.

There are a couple of positive things I can spin out of that situation: One, the boys obviously know the phrases "I don't like..." and "I hate...". So they certainly are learning English. Two, the people who worked on the "Let's Go" children's text books seem to have succeeded in creating a realistic multi-ethnic cast of characters...I just don't think they ever would have foreseen what I experienced....

All for ¥2082

2011-12-04T23:04:00.001+09:00

All for ¥2082, a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

Alright, I did the math and I'm not sure what to make of the result. I bought two steaks today for ¥400 each. I checked the packages and they weigh about 10oz. Using an exchange rate of ¥75 per C$1 I calculated that they cost $8.53/lb or close to $18.77/kg. Checking the label I believe they're rib eye steaks. Having gotten this far I have no idea if that's a good price or not anymore.

Carrying on with the food theme: I was thinking of making a baked dessert for the upcoming office potluck Christmas dinner. Then I remembered I don't have an oven. So I think I'll make chili con carne. Or maybe I should make something which will definitely raise some eyebrows: SPAM musubi. I know of a store in town that sells SPAM. Hmmm...maybe that'll be my contribution. That or a ramen salad. If I'm going to make that I need to bug my sister for her recipe.

One thing I haven't had a chance to do this past week is head over to Yamaya and see if they sell long grain rice. If I get really lucky they might sell basmati rice. I bought some vindaloo curry mix there last month so I figure there's a small chance they do sell long grain rice. But I don't know if I'm desperate enough to use something like Uncle Ben's instant rice if that's all they sell.

One thing I haven't bought much of since I've arrived is bread. The simplest explanation is that I don't have anything to make toast with. I suppose I'll have to invest in a toaster oven sometime or another. I saw that I've inherited a stove top toaster grill pan but Michael told me that Zubeda found out that the gas range has a sensor which detects if what you have sitting on it is overheating. It gives a beeping warning and he says she told him it would then shut itself off. I suppose I could try out the grill pan and see if I have a bit more luck with it. Which leads me to the next problem...trying to find something other than bleached white bread. I've heard you can get bagels so I suppose there is a small chance that one can get brown bread (rye, sourdough, and whole wheat are probably out of the question).

Anyways...enough talk about food for now...

Mini anyone?

2011-11-28T22:57:00.002+09:00

Mini anyone?, a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

For starters, I sort of have my doubts I'll see a Mini on the road once February rolls around. Though I don't have any doubts it could be driven but I just think it'll be a rare sight.

Second thought: I sort of wonder how much the inspection fees will be for those Minis. I believe once the age of a car gets above a decade the fees start getting quite high in relation to the value of the car. The fees for a car from the 1950s or 1960s probably would be astronomical.

Today was a pretty quiet day. I had a less than fulfilling time trying to keep abreast of the score of the Grey Cup game being played in Vancouver. Apparently the CBC wasn't broadcasting the game. So I was left clinging to the live blog on the CBC web site for information. I can't get live streaming video from the CBC website so I wasn't expecting that but the utter lack of video coverage from other sources was quite disappointing. Nonetheless I'm glad that the Lions won. It must of been quite a lot of fun in Vancouver this week.

After the game I wandered off, got some cash out of the nearest post office ATM, paid a bill at the nearest branch of Yamagata Ginko (bank) and then headed into a shop selling coffee which I've walked by many times but never gone into. It was a nice little boutique style shop. They were selling coffees from a variety of places. I picked up 200g of their Colombian beans. Will see how it tastes tomorrow morning.

My co-worker Michael had shown a bit under the weather on Saturday. He cancelled the Mexican food night he planned at his place and stayed at home on Sunday (I had gone to the gym without him). This afternoon he sent me an e-mail asking if I could cover his evening classes. I said I'd do that for him. So I signed onto the Japan Post website to reschedule the delivery I had requested for this evening. It goes without saying I was a bit surprised when I got a phone call around 6:30pm from a fellow saying he was at my door with a package. Looks like the updated delivery request didn't get to him. Oh well. I directed him towards and school and signed for the package on the street corner.

The first class was a smooth affair. No problems with that one as Michael had left the materials on his desk and everything was in order. The second class was a bit trickier. The lesson was only 60 minutes long and was like a private lesson but there were three students. And one fellow had only attended two lessons in the past twelve weeks. So for his benefit I backtracked in the text and essentially scrapped my lesson plan. The next thing which made this a tricky class was the fact that they're not exactly the most talkative trio. So getting them to say anything in English was like pulling teeth. It took about 25 minutes to get them warmed up. In the last part of the class they were a bit more relaxed and it wasn't a such a chore to keep a modest level of energy running in the room. For me that is an important aspect of teaching. We're a conversational English school...the whole object of the exercise is not for the teacher to be talking for the length of the lesson.

That's it for this edition. I'm still waiting for that first big dump of snow for this year's winter.

Same Same but Different

2011-11-24T13:56:00.001+09:00

Same Same but Different, a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

I tried these "donut holes" at MisDo this morning. They're okay but they're nowhere as good as Timbits. Now I really miss Tim Horton's.

I suspect this weekend is when the civic election is going to be. I guess I'll find out once the noise pollution from those speaker equipped campaign vans ends. I did have a chuckle when listening to one. I caught it at the point where the tape was going on about "Sorry for disturbing you....(yadda yadda yadda)...Thank-you very much. Thank-you very much. Thank-you very much.". Yes, the recording had someone saying "Domoarigato" repeatedly.

Kimura Supermarket...It's not all Bad

2011-11-21T09:23:00.000+09:00

One thing I picked up yesterday at the Kimura supermarket I visited was a package of FG-1E fuses for the neon light in my "washiki" room (Japanese style room with tatami flooring). I had originally thought it was the tube which was burned out but after replacing it and finding the new one didn't light either then I knew the problem was the fuse. I was going to hike up to Yamada Denki or somewhere else equally distant but I'm happy I found the required fuse at a store within walking distance.

One other thing about shopping here: often produce is labelled with the name of prefecture where the produce was grown. Thus I chose not to buy the daikon (giant radish) which was grown in Tochigi and Ibaragi. Those two prefectures are in the Kanto region south of Fukushima. A co-worker was going on about a report from an international team of investigators who said that there shouldn't be any produce from Fukushima being sold due to radioactive contamination. They found a hotspot down in a field in Chiba last month and the aforementioned two prefectures are north of Chiba but south of Fukushima. Just being safe...

Yes, I did buy this...

2011-11-20T19:04:00.002+09:00

Yes, I did buy this., a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

Okay...the last time I saw "Oh My" as a product name it was...oh, never mind. ;)

I made a quick run down to the nearby Kimura supermarket today. I forgot that they don't sell Starbucks coffee there. I think it's sold at the Yamazawa supermarket. Then again, I could be wrong it might be Max which carries it. Maybe I should just have Michael buy me some whenever he goes up to Yamagata. Anyways, I came home with onions, ground pork, some peanut flavoured snack food and this pasta. As I had said in the description of the photo, perhaps I should've bought penne at Yamaya but the idea of there being Hello Kitty branded pasta was silly enough so I fell for it.

I suspect that Yonezawa's civic elections are coming up soon. I've heard a number of cars going around blaring away messages of some form or another. I think I heard one mention someone's name (it followed up with "Thank-you" and other pleasantries). I also saw a sign board near the Machi no Hiroba square which has spots for candidates to put up their posters. I'm a bit amused at the idea of late fall, early winter civic elections here...it'll be fun to see if voter turnout is related to the weather conditions on voting day. The more snow they have, the less voters they have(?).

For the record: I believe the iTunes Canada store has a better selection of content than the iTunes Japan store. There are no TV shows available on the iTunes Japan store. There are plenty of Western movies (subtitled in Japanese of course). And you can dig up some obscure Western artists on the Japanese side. I checked and found that they had three albums by Art Bergmann (former K-Tels/Young Canadians front man) on sale. I really have my doubts that there are any native Japanese who know who Art is (I've seen him in concert with both YC and his later band, Poisoned).

Upside Down Miffy

2011-11-19T08:54:00.001+09:00

Upside Down Miffy, a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

AKA: "Dororia". James is quite proud of his idea of taking a Miffy plush doll, flipping it and giving it a new moniker. He uses it a lot in his kids classes. I'm not quite sure if it serves as a classroom "aid".

Oh yeah, in the foreground of the photo is the deck of vegetable and fruit flash cards. At the top of the pile is the infamous butternut squash. He's got most of his young students able to regurgitate that vegetable name but we all have doubts any of them will ever see a real one. I do think I remember seeing them back home. I think the Sunset Grill in Kits would sometimes make a butternut squash soup. But I can't say if I've ever eaten a dish using them.

The fun thing about that deck of flash cards is that it uses the British names for eggplant and zucchini. I know what an aubergine is if asked but "courgette"? That's the first time I've come across that word. ;-)

First Time on the Road

2011-11-15T22:08:00.000+09:00

Tonight at work I mentioned that I wanted to head out for a bite to eat before teaching my last class. My coworker James piped out "Why don't we go for a drive?". At first I was a bit hesitant but once we headed out from the office I said "Sure". James' vehicle tonight was his second family car, a Subaru Stella which his wife usually drives. It's a small boxy little vehicle. I can't say there's anything like it in North America.

So, once behind the wheel I managed to pull the usual trick of trying to turn on the blinkers and ending up turning on the windshield wipers. That was before I got out of the parkade. I didn't make that mistake again once we were on the road since it's raining tonight.

As far as the car goes I didn't quite get used to how its braking goes. I'm used to the power brakes and ABS system on my former vehicle, a Subaru Legacy Outback wagon. If I pressed on the brakes of the Stella it seemed like we were going to stop on a dime. I couldn't quite find the point where I could step on the brakes without the car coming to a lurching halt, or worse yet, seem to be on the verge of locking up.

One thing I had noticed a while back is how much darker the roads are over here. They're not using sodium street lamps over here. That took some getting used to when behind the wheel. The other thing was that the lane markers seemed to vanish in the rainy conditions. Anyways, I was quite happy to putz around the city at 40kmh as that is the speed limit in most of the city.

It was nice to be able to get out on the road again. I've seen enough crazy stuff on the road here while walking around or cycling so I'll certainly be very careful and defensive whenever I get behind the wheel of a car.

A Big Shopping Trip...Of Sorts

2011-11-14T20:48:00.001+09:00

My big shopping trip, a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

First off... I've noticed a pattern of sorts with the precipitation here: It usually falls heavily in the morning and then lets off in the afternoon. That isn't always the case but it happens enough to make it worth one's while to sit out the morning rainfall and then head out in the afternoon.

So I didn't get out and about today until after I had lunch. First I picked up a few items to fill out a package I'm going to ship home. Then I looked, unsuccessfully for brown kraft paper to cover the box. I guess I'll just send it without that detail. One thing I picked up along the way, well, two actually, are a couple of packages of Kit-Kats which have "Otoshidama" envelopes attached to the packaging. "Otoshidama" are the Japanese version of the famous red envelopes which are used to distribute money to the little ones. I also tried to find a pair of boots but didn't come across any I liked.

After I got home I changed into clothes suitable for bicycling and headed out once more. At the bike parking area I met my co-worker Michael. I told him what my plans were and he mentioned a couple of shops which sold boots. One is called "Workplace" or "Workman" and is on the way from our place up to city hall. The other place he recommended is called Shoe Plaza and he said it was quite far off. I told him I was planning on heading up to Uniqlo. Turns out that Shoe Plaza is almost next door to there. He also mentioned that Yamaya, a liquour store with some imported foodstuffs, was next to Uniqlo and was worth checking out. So off I went.

The second I walked into Uniqlo I tossed a pair of gloves into my shopping basket. I've only brought a pair of leather gloves from Canada so I wanted something else less fancy. Next I came across some nice lined water resistant jackets. But they were kind of pricy at ¥9800 or so. On a rack around the corner I came across similar but not as heavy jackets for about ¥5600. Next I picked up a flannel shirt, pair of winter socks and a fleece sweater. That all added up to more than ¥11,000. I managed to squeeze that all into my backpack.

I suppose I was a man on a mission when I walked into Shoe Plaza. I quickly found the corner for men's boots and started pricing them out. The tall ones which come up to under your knees generally run about ¥4200 and up. My buddy James had suggested that I not pay more than ¥3000 but the ones in that price range weren't all that great fitting and the treads didn't look all that hot. Anyways, I bought a pair of boots for about ¥4500 and managed to squeeze that purchase into my backpack.

The last stop was Yamaya. That's where I picked up the made in America pasta sauce, made in Malaysia curry sauce and the Japanese micro-brew pale ales. I saw that they had cheese but balked at buying any after looking at the prices. ¥398 for 150g of French Brie. I told Michael that it was a bit dear and he commented that he's probably been here too long. To him that price was reasonable. He once picked up some Stilton for another co-worker for ¥1500. Ouch.

So there you have it. The genesis and execution of my "shopping spree". If my finances look good near the end of the month then I'll probably get myself measured for a "winter suit". That's a suit, made to measure, with a bit heavier lining in the jacket and thicker material for the slacks. Unlike Canada, made to measure suits are reasonably inexpensive. Suits are still pretty well de rigueur in a lot of company offices here so there's a bigger market to serve.

=================================

Random thoughts and observations:
1) The signal stop line often isn't right up close to the cross walk. Often it's about two car lengths back. The reason for that is simple: the streets are generally narrow, the corners tight and thus they have to figure in the extra space necessary to allow large vehicles to be able to make a left turn. I watched a JR bus today take a corner and just barely squeeze past a car stopped 2-3 car lengths from the intersection.
2) In Canada the post office used to make it a policy not to feature any living person on their stamps other than the living monarch. That has changed in the past few years. In Japan that policy obviously isn't in place. They're taking orders for AKB48 premium edition stamps. These are not cheap things at ¥5700 a pop (the sets contain two sheets of ten ¥50 stamps). What is AKB48? They're basically a conglomerate of 48 idol singers (all female) arranged into 3 teams of 16 girls each. Each team corresponding to the letters in the group's name. Plus I've read that there are sub-teams associated with the numbers. Yup. Marketing is a wonderful thing.
3) Getting a driver's licence in Japan is not an inexpensive process. A friend says that Japanese ex-pats will come back to Japan for the purpose of renewing their licences. Otherwise one could be looking at paying up to the equivalent of $3000 in driver training to get a new licence.

Takatama Station

2011-11-07T20:26:00.003+09:00

Takatama Station, a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

Looking at this photo you'd think this place is in the middle of nowhere. Actually, it sort of is. But not that much. Takadama/Takatama is south of Tendo and this station is the nearest JR station to the Yamagata Traffic Safety Centre (Koutsu Anzen Senta-). I made my second trip out there today in order to write my driver's licence test. My goal being to obtain a Japanese driver's licence.

The trip out there was relatively uneventful. I took the 0911h train from Yonezawa to Yamagata instead of the 1041h train because the latter one would give me a five minute margin on catching a bus. I figured I'd take it easy and grab a bite to eat and a cup of coffee at the Yamagata station.

One thing I forgot about and which I got a good reminder of at the Starbucks in the Yamagata station...In Japan, Christmas season starts the second the Hallowe'en decorations come down. At the Starbucks they had removed their Colombia blend VIA instant coffee and replaced them with 12 packs of Christmas blend. Plus their music selection consisted entirely of Christmas songs and carols. I think I caught a version of "Hark the Herald Angels" done to a reggae beat. I wasn't subjected to the same thing at the Lotteria downstairs where I had their bacon and egg sandwich. I like that particular item: they use a mustard mayonnaise sauce which is quite tasty. Their place mats were advertising a couple of upcoming anime movies and their tie-in products. One of titles is the "K-ON!" movie. I wonder if that thing will get screened in Yonezawa. Maybe not.

Things went relatively smoothly at the Traffic Safety Centre even though I hadn't taken my passport with me. I figured since the fellow there had photocopied it last week then I wouldn't need it. Turned out he wanted it. Nonetheless we managed to get by without it. For some odd reason he asked questions about all the visa stamps I had in my passport. So I ended up answering questions about each one (and my somewhat wanderlust ways). Then he had to ask why there were no Canadian entry stamps. He got the gist of my explanation that Canada Customs reads our passports electronically via the code on the photo page. After that there was another round of questions pertaining to Canadian driver licencing, road tests, written tests and driver training. The last bit involved an eye exam and my forking out some money to get the actual licence. The best part of the process: as someone possessing a Canadian driver's licence I don't have to write a test or take a road test. I had the option of writing a test and I gracefully declined. The reason for this is that the Japanese view Canadian licence requirements as being strict enough to warrant allowing a straight transfer from a Canadian licence to a Japanese one. The Americans aren't as fortunate. I'm not sure if I have this right but my American co-worker said that he's never heard of an American pass the test on the first try. Though I have a vague recollection he was referring to the times when a road test was part of the process for Americans. I think today they just do the written component.

So at the end of the day I went out for dinner and ordered a self-celebratory beer. The next question will be whether I can snare a credit card issued by a Japanese bank. My American friend suspects I might have a better chance if I put my Japanese driver's licence particulars on a credit card application form rather than an alien registration card number. Unlike North America there is no such thing as a credit rating in Japan. It all boils down to how much money you make, how much money you have and whether or not you have some semblance of being a permanent residence. One of the other teachers, who has been here for 10 years, has yet to succeed in getting a Japanese credit card...but he doesn't have a Japanese driver's licence. We shall see how it goes.

Other stuff... I taught my first "Bunny class" on Saturday. I think I've gained a small amount of appreciation for what a kindergarten teacher has to go through. Mind you, my class was made up of 2-3 year-olds and their mothers. They weren't as gung-ho zany as the class of 3-5 year-olds two doors over. My youngest "student" hasn't turned two yet. I think his birthday is next month. It goes without saying that the really little ones cling to their mothers.

That's it for now....'til later!

All for Naught...

2011-11-01T17:00:00.001+09:00

First thing in the morning..., a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

I've been thinking I'd get a Japanese driver's licence since prior to my arrival here. I reviewed the instructions on how to do it and found that the information on the Canadian web sites was out of date. It no longer is possible to exchange an international driver's permit for a Japanese driver's licence. One has to get a translation of their foreign driver's licence made and then go in to write a short test.

I got the translation made up a few weeks ago. That involved a trip to Yamagata which was a bit of an adventure in finding the Yamagata office of the Japan Auto Federation. All said and done I managed to get the translation.

Last week I got all my stuff ready to head out to the Yamagata Koutsu Anzen (Traffic Safety) Centre which is the equivalent of the Motor Vehicle Branch back home. It's located north of Yamagata in a city called Tendo. On Saturday we sussed out I could get there via Yamagata. There's a bus which runs out there three times a day from Yamagata station. Earliest departure time is 7:22 AM. Catching that bus entailed getting up early enough (5:00 AM) to catch the 6:09 AM train from Yonezawa to Yamagata. Hence the photograph.

So I trekked out to the centre. Got there just as it opened. Asked for directions to where to get a driver's licence transfer done. When I got there I was asked if I had an appointment. Oops. That was one thing we had missed when my friends and I had looked at the web page. So all I managed to get done was have my documentation photocopied and make an appointment for this coming Monday. Luckily it didn't take too long so I was able to catch the bus heading back to Yamagata station...the next bus would've been at 12:42 PM.

The fun part about this process...if I pass the test then I still have to make a return trip to collect my driver's licence. They don't send them out in the mail... (x.x)

Cheese Mentaiko Rice

2011-10-25T00:21:00.002+09:00

Cheese Mentaiko Rice, a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

I had this dish last week at a local restaurant. The owner of the place shares the same given name as me, including the kanji it is written with. I see him every now and then at a darts and pool bar he used to own. We go down there with the thought of shooting a few games of pool and having a drink or two. The last two times that has turned into "nomihodai" (all you can drink) sessions which suspiciously seemed longer than the actual 90 minutes they're supposed to be.

Oh yeah, I finally have a home Internet connection. The NTT guy checked the phone line and said it was okay. Yes, that's all he did. Then I waited for the modem to get delivered. I gave up and went shopping. Of course the delivery guy had come by 15 minutes before I got home. So I called in to reschedule the delivery. That was at around 3:50pm. At around 9pm I called in again and set up a request for a delivery tomorrow morning. A few minutes later I got a knock on the door and there was the delivery guy with my modem.

Anyways, it's 12:21am and I'm off to catch some sleep....

Things I Meant to Mention

2011-10-05T13:28:00.000+09:00

Just thought I'd jot down a few small things which might be worth sharing:

1) Yes, I have seen a woman in this city taking her cat out for a walk on a leash.
2) Urban revitalization in small cities is probably next to impossible to accomplish in Japan. I've been told that the city governments can't place a lien on a property on account of unpaid property taxes.
3) The above may explain why the old downtown core of Yonezawa is in decline. Most of the new businesses have set up shop on the main road which runs about 7 blocks north of the old downtown. That's where one will find Book-Off, the Aeon(sic) department store, Yamada Denki, the movie cineplex and other businesses which have set up shop in the last 10 years or so.
4) There is no Starbucks in Yonezawa. There are at least two Mr. Donut shops though.
5) Public transportation in the city is a haphazard affair. There are buses but they tend to run quite infrequently. Walking, cycling or driving are the main methods of getting around here.
6) One can get home ADSL service as long as there is a phone line coming into the premises. You don't need to get home telephone service to get internet service. I actually haven't asked if cable TV companies here offer home internet service. I know my internet provider offers TV service as part of their package. I suspect they offer IP phone service...or at least home phone service.
7) For some odd reason the city won't set up automatic payment of city taxes from one's post office bank account. They'll only set it up to work with an account held with a private bank.
8) I had to purchase an extra pair of training runners to wear at the gym I joined. You're not supposed to wear shoes in the gym which have been worn outdoors.

That's it for now...

Local Garbage Collection Schedule

2011-09-29T15:17:00.002+09:00

Local Garbage Collection Schedule, a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

Yes, I doubt this type of system would work in Vancouver. Here one separates their garbage into "burnable", "non-burnable", items marked as "pura" (plastic), PET bottles (plastic bottles), recyclable, hazardous and a couple of other categories. Back home I remember seeing all sorts of plastic and other things stuffed in the recyclable paper bin or the metal and glass containers bin. The folks who can't figure out a simple system like that would be likely be very challenged with this system.

One minor quirk: the plastic bags for disposing plastic and PET bottles are the same. But the pick-up days for those items are on different days. So technically speaking one shouldn't be tossing PET bottles in with one's plastic materials. I've made that mistake but luckily the garbage collectors overlooked it.

Another point of interest: The system is partly a "pay as you go" system. "Burnable", "non-burnable" and "Pura/PET" garbage has to be disposed of in officially marked plastic bags. These are sold, at a slight premium in local supermarkets, convenience stores and (I think) grocery stores. Hazardous and recyclable materials can be disposed of on designated days without any official wrappings or seals. But large items must bear a sticker indicating that you've paid for them to be picked up. Those are on sale at convenience stores.

So, as one can see, the system appears bewildering at first glance but you can suss out how it works in short enough order.

Yonezawa Matsuri

2011-09-24T16:13:00.001+09:00

Yonezawa Matsuri Cosplay Competition, a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

I actually didn't know there was a cosplay component to the Yonezawa Matsuri. I only caught the very end of it. Afterwards I had some takoyaki (not very good) and checked out the local sports club. In the evening I checked out the "Battle at Hasedo" show held on this same stage. I sampled a skewer of grilled Yonezawa beef after the show. That was really good. Plus it was nice to have something hot then. The temperature had come a fair bit (compared to Sunday night where I was still running the air conditioner).

The festival week took a tough beating as a typhoon passed over Japan during the week. There were handful of casualties in central Japan but luckily the storm did not inflict as much damage as it was projected to.

Takahata and Other Things

2011-09-15T21:09:00.000+09:00

Today was my first day teaching on the premises of ASE, a semiconductor component design and manufacturing company, in Takahata. They're located north of Yonezawa, two stops along the line. Today was a warm day and it didn't help that the air conditioners are set to 28C in the building. Plus there wasn't an air conditioner in the classroom. I'm back in Yonezawa now and I'm exhausted. It was a long day.

One thing I forgot to mention: On Tuesday I did a load of laundry and as I was hanging my clothes out to dry on my balcony I spotted an elderly fellow wandering around the parking lot looking for something. He spied me and gave me a shout to ask if I could see a pair of his underpants on my balcony. It was windy that day and I guess one of his briefs had gone missing. It wasn't on my balcony so I have no idea if it ever did turn up.

Anyways, I need to get a bite to eat. A glass of beer would be nice too. Maybe next time I'll describe the next most nerve wracking experience I've had here: Figuring out the arcane rules of garbage disposal.... XD

"Home Sweet Home"

2011-09-12T13:13:00.002+09:00

"Home Sweet Home", a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

Things are slowly coming together. I replaced the map of Yonezawa which was hanging on the wall with the Canadian flag you see here. On the opposite wall I've hung the team Canada hockey jersey I bought for the 2010 Olympics. Other things I've bought to make the place more cosy: a place mat, soap dish, and slippers. On the practical end of things I'm wondering how the previous teacher managed to get through life without a kettle. Though I think Michael mentioned that she tossed hers out.

On Saturday night I went out with a group of ex-pats and locals to take part in a poker night held at the Crescendo Restaurant. It was my first time playing Texas Hold Em and I certainly did not have good poker instincts. I folded on one hand where I could've had a flush and tried to fold on a hand which I ended up winning with a four of kind. Plus I got beaten on the hand where I had been dealt a pair of kings...Ryo had been dealt a pair of aces Oh well. Things turned out well. I came in third and thus broke even.

Got my estimate for this month's electricity bill. It's a whopping 701yen. If only BC Hydro's rates were that low. Oddly enough, my usage level is about the same as it was in Canada: 27kwh.

That's it for now...Feel free to post comments if you like and thanks for "dropping in"!

Oh! It's an Earthquake.

2011-09-09T14:11:00.000+09:00

Yup. We do get earthquakes in Yonezawa. There was a slight tremor last night. Actually, I wouldn't even call it that. It was more like a light shake. James, Michael and I were at Crescendo, a local eatery/bar, and we were engaged in a conversation with the proprietress about plans for our Saturday event. All of a sudden the customer at the bar exclaimed "Oh! It's an earthquake". Sure enough the hanging lamps in the place were all swaying.

Had the time this morning to make a bento lunch to take to work. It was a simple one: rice, tamago-yaki, and some umeboshi (pickled plums). My fridge is too small for me to store enough groceries in it so I can make super-duper lunches.

One thing about the radiation risk in this city: The general consensus is that the mountain range separating us from Fukushima is relatively effective in ensuring the winds off the ocean don't affect this city. Yonezawa is under the influence of what blows off of the Sea of Japan which is on the western side of the Tohoku region.

Oh yeah, my co-worker James is a Fukushima refugee (of a sort) in that he has had to abandon his home and move to Yamagata. Last night he confided that it might be 50 years before his old neighbourhood is considered safe to live in. He used to commute back and forth from his home to the Yonezawa school. Now his wife and kid have moved over to this side of the mountains. There are a number of Fukushima people who have moved over here. Michael, another one of my co-workers and originally a Vancouverite, has commented that our apartment building wasn't that full prior to the earthquake. Now a lot of the vacancies have been snatched up by people from Fukushima.

That's it for now...Need to prepare for a lesson for my little "monsters". ;-)

Just a Short Update...

2011-09-08T14:37:00.000+09:00

Having located yesterday the bicycle I have inherited from the previous teacher I decided to make use of it today. First off, the thing is not a work of beauty. It has suffered its share of neglect what with the long winters in Yonezawa. There is plenty of rust on the frame and seat stem. The front brakes squeal loud enough to peel paint off of passing cars...okay. Perhaps they're not that bad but they're certainly not silky quiet.

Once I got the thing running I had to deal with two things: riding a bike where the cars are on the other side of the road and the instability of the bike once its speed falls below "cruising" speed. It's sort of like an acrobatic plane once its wing speed stalls...the thing will glide like a manhole cover. All said, I managed to stay upright from home to The Daiso and back.

All said, I won't be using that bicycle in the winter. If you search for "Yonezawa winter" you'll see why really quickly. Apparently it snows solidly for two months in the winter and there is snow on the ground for at least three more months. Fun. (^_-)

Firsts...So Far

2011-09-06T13:04:00.000+09:00

First time so far for...
1) Watching someone driving a Subaru mini-sedan run a red light and make a right turn. That takes nerve...trust me.
2) Seeing a live "wild" praying mantis...see my previous blog.
3) Coming up 500yen short to pay for groceries...Oops! The fellow looked at what I had selected and said "I guess you're making curry tonight". Thus the milk and bananas were jettisoned.
4) First taste of Kirin's "Aki Aji"(sic) seasonal beer. It's sort of like a red ale, a'la Rickard's Red. Not bad. I was going to grab the tall can but this "conbini" was selling Yebisu beer so I grabbed a can of that too. First time I had come across Yebisu in this town.
5) So far I'm surviving my first round of teaching kids. First class was total anarchy. Will need to tighten that one up. The others were okay. Will need more materials to keep them interested. Eg: Flyers with pics of food to cut up and paste when teaching names of food, etc.
6) Came across a sign saying that a particular intersection was a location used in the movie "Swing Girls". Click on the link to watch the bit of the movie which starts off at that intersection: Watch it on YouTube

That's it for now...Need to review lesson plans. ^_^

Praying Mantis

2011-09-05T13:33:00.001+09:00

Praying Mantis, a photo by dtk_guy on Flickr.

This character was taking its time on the flight of stairs leading up to my apartment. It's the first time I've seen one of these outside and not in captivity. Can't say I was expecting to see one in this part of Japan.

Greetings from Yonezawa, Yamagata Prefecture, Japan

2011-09-01T05:57:00.001+09:00

The title says it all. I've arrived safely in Japan. It was more or less an uneventful trip. Customs officer didn't ask me a single question. The oddest thing to happen to me on the trip: I was tapped on the shoulder by someone sitting across the aisle and back one row from me on the plane. It was a young woman and her first words were "It is you!". Turns out it was Takako who I had met at the English/Japanese conversation exchange club I had frequented in Vancouver. She was on her way home to Japan. She wasn't originally going to be on that flight but had changed flights after breaking up with her boyfriend (it's a long story).

Anyways, that's it for now. No photo today as my camera is in my luggage which is being couriered over to here from Narita.

千奈美さんからのメッセジ。

2011-06-30T14:15:00.001+09:00

千奈美さんからのメッセジ。, a photo by d.yaro on Flickr.

最近私はたいてい携帯電話で写真を取っています。なんでかいつもカメラを持っていないのですから。まぁそれでいいだろうな。

Monto community centre

2011-04-20T02:27:00.001+09:00

Monto community centre, a photo by d.yaro on Flickr.

The admin of the ABC Wide Bay group (http://www.flickr.com/groups/abcwidebay/) on Flickr asked to have this photo added to the group. I was pleasantly surprised to find out the group is really affiliated with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. http://www.abc.net.au/widebay/

Spot the wallaby

2011-04-19T11:23:00.001+09:00

Spot the wallaby, a photo by d.yaro on Flickr.

It's pretty well dead in the centre of the photograph. Taken while driving around in the Awoonga Lake area near Gladstone, Queensland. Anyways, I've almost finished uploading all my Australia and Fiji vacation pics. It only took me about two months to accomplish that...

木曜会お花見

2011-04-11T14:30:00.001+09:00

"Sakura tags on a sakura tree", a photo by d.yaro on Flickr.

Yesterday was the 27th annual Mokuyokai "Ohanami" held at the Asian Studies building and Nitobe Gardens at UBC, Vancouver. Feature activities were Japanese tea ceremonies, shakuhachi and koto performances, "kamishibai" storytelling, "origami" (paper folding) lessons, and the opportunity to try on "yutaka", traditional Japanese cotton robes. Turn out was pretty good in spite of the cool weather. The above shot was taken just around the corner from the entrance to Nitobe Gardens. Unfortunately my camera was uncooperative (claimed there was insufficient battery charge even though it was showing it as half charged) so I didn't take many photos.... http://www.flickr.com/photos/8936205@N02/sets/72157626346444875/

Candle light for Earth Hour 2011

2011-03-27T13:58:00.001+09:00

Candle light for Earth Hour 2011, a photo by d.yaro on Flickr.

I turned off the lights and lit the candles...but my iMac remained lit because I was downloading some stuff. If finally went into sleep mode after about 15-20 minutes.

March 20, 2011 - A Day in the Life of....

2011-03-21T15:28:00.001+09:00

March 20 2011 - #1 a photo by d.yaro on Flickr.

Today was a "A Day in the Life of..." day as per a Flickr group I check in on once in a blue moon. I simply went about and captured a bunch of images which don't necessarily tell a story about the day. Nothing fancy. Some of the images are a bit whimsical. Others are attempts at capturing what seemed to be unusual or interesting. The set of photographs which I've uploaded and made public are here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/8936205@N02/sets/72157626313309752/with/5545406453/

Enjoy...

"Free Libya"

2011-03-18T09:10:00.001+09:00

"Free Libya" a photo by d.yaro on Flickr.

I saw a headline somewhere today saying that the UN Security Council had approved a "No fly zone" over Libya. That'll be welcome news for these protesters.

Spider

2010-07-18T14:54:00.001+09:00

Spider
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

I had two photos I thought of adding to the "Flickr Today"(sic) group. I opted for the photo of the boat I took (posted here in Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/8936205@N02/4804067190/) instead of this one. I don't know. Perhaps this one was my "picture of the day"...

Sail is Set But Hard Aground

2010-04-23T02:04:00.001+09:00

Sail is Set But Hard Aground
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

As of the night of April 19th this boat was still onshore at Kits Beach in Vancouver. It, and three other boats, was driven ashore by a wind storm on the night of April 7th/8th. They dug out the sand around the keel of the boat I photographed here but it still had yet to get afloat. All it did was heel over to its starboard side and plant its keel deeper into the sand. I think it's going to take an extreme high tide to get this one floated off the beach...

Articles posted on the CBC website about this incident are here: www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story /2010/04/08/bc-wi... & www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story /2010/04/08/bc-ki...

The four boats are/were:
"Ad Astra" - catamaran or trimaran broken up on the beach April 9th.
"Karanga-lita" - white hulled boat floated off the beach the next week.
"Tuesday Sunrise" - blue hull with yellow trim. An boater ran his boat aground at Kits Beach on April 16th thinking that the TS was in "distress". Still on the beach on April 18th.
"Gini 2" - White hull and wood deck. Dis masted as of April 18th. Presumed to be abandoned.

An Awning of Sakura Blossoms

2010-03-06T14:58:00.001+09:00

An Awning of Sakura Blossoms
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

This photo is just a small hint at the magnificence of the sakura blossoms at the Burrard Skytrain station in downtown Vancouver. They form this awning of blossoms over the path that runs by the south side of the station entrance. When seen from the north side they seem to cascade down the slope.

At the Burrard Skytrain Station

2010-03-04T12:33:00.001+09:00

At the Burrard Skytrain Station
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

When I took this photo I didn't noticed the "embellishment" on the photo I had photographed. Ah... Public art that the birds don't think much of.

"Go Auntie Bev"!

2010-02-15T05:36:00.001+09:00

"Go Auntie Bev"!
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

Feb 12th - Our club participated in the procession of dragonboats and outrigger canoes which followed the Olympic flame from the ferry dock on Granville Island over to Yaletown dock on the north side of False Creek. I was a spotter on one of whalers which originally was supposed to ferry media folks across but ended up being unused. Nonetheless I had gone up to get hot dog in the Granville Island Public Market and spotted this trio on my way back to the whaler. I love the expressions of their faces. They're genuinely excited and really, really happy. Sums up the whole day...

First Ride On the Canada Line

2009-08-20T14:48:00.001+09:00

First Ride On the Canada Line
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

The joys of modern technology...and its mismanagement. I was on the phone with my ISP's tech support group for about 20 minutes trying to work through their labyrinthine maze of hoops to get back access to their self management page for my internet account. They had changed their system but didn't convert their accounts. Oh joy. Well, at least I got it done relatively quickly. But not quicker than the amount of time it took me to ride the new Canada Line from the Vancouver Centre station to the Broadway & Cambie station. The new line is quite neat...and yet kind of funny. Compared to the subway systems I've rode on elsewhere the Vancouver system is like...a dinky toy. And I almost laughed out loud when riding the train and overhearing the staff member reporting back to "Control" to say that the train was full. It wasn't, not even by Vancouver standards. No part of my body was in direct contact with that of any other passenger. It was a far cry from the experience I had on the Metro in Manila. There we were packed on board like sardines.

Anyways...Here's hoping the blog link in Flickr stays working. It went south over the winter and I never bothered setting it back up again until now. Keeping fingers crossed.

So it goes...

2009-03-14T14:07:00.000+09:00

This morning I went to the Starbucks across the street from my office to get my morning "usual": a doppio espresso and a pumpkin scone. I sat down at the counter next to the barista's area and noticed this scruffy looking fellow a couple of bar stools over from me. He was yapping away about something and I ended up catching wind of what he was saying. He'd been given a ticket for riding the train without a ticket and had been threatened with jail if caught again. In between that he was complaining about being homeless and having been slapped with a ticket for panhandling. I just lent him a sympathetic ear though he was tending to get a bit too vocal. Ruby, the store manager tried to get her message across to him that his conduct wasn't the best but he seemed to be in a state where he just wanted someone to listen to him. He complained back to her that he needed to get downtown but he had a load to carry. If anything he wasn't in the best of moods.

Anyways, I headed out of the shop and before I got to the crosswalk I remembered I had some left over "FareSaver" transit tickets left in my backpack. I'm not about to use them this month because I've purchased a monthly transit pass. When I got back to my desk I took my jacket off, logged back onto my computer, took a bite out of my scone and still couldn't get the idea of the unused transit tickets out of my head. So I said to myself "What the heck!", grabbed the tickets, put on my jacket and went back out towards the Starbucks. I found the fellow complaining to a woman at the bus stop about his predicament. I went up to him, tapped him on the shoulder, handed him the partial booklet of tickets and told he could have them. I didn't have any use for them.

And so it goes... To me the idea of slapping several hundred dollars of fines for transit fare evasion on a homeless person (who I suspect may be an outpatient from a mental health institution) is a touch farcical. That sort of punishment should be dealt out to the kids who think they're being so clever by cheating the system. Or the "normal" folks who think nothing of boarding a train without paying the fare. Whatever. That was the situation and that was what I did. I don't particularly care if it was the right thing or not. All I did was take action.

Fierce Looking Fellow...

2009-02-11T14:15:00.001+09:00

Fierce Looking Fellow...
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

Doesn't quite fit my mood right now...just plain tired. Was up pretty well almost all of last night on account of work. Fell asleep with the laptop in my lap and the phone under my chin. Good thing I wasn't snoring or else my cover would've been blown.

Anyways, I'm a touch annoyed because I wasn't able to blog this video: http://www.flickr.com/photos/8936205@N02/3265122712/. I'm too tired now to describe this video in depth. But I did get a cute picture of the same cat sitting in front to the big entrance gate of a condominium building looking like it was waiting for someone to let it in.

Floatplanes - A Comparison of Digi-Camera Video

2009-02-02T10:41:00.001+09:00

I shot the first video clip back in December or January using my little Canon SD1100. I uploaded the video onto my machine and was a touch disappointed because I had captured a scene where a floatplane had to delay its take-ff thanks to some dummy in a boat crossing its path. The second video was taken Jan 31st. I just wanted to see how much better video my Canon S5 IS could capture. Where does this lead to? Well, if I get a digital SLR I'll be looking for one that can shoot HD video. (^_-)

Punk Goes 'Round And Back Again

2009-01-31T13:32:00.001+09:00

Punk Goes 'Round And Back Again
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

Short entry this time: I was trying to sneak in a photo of these young ladies but couldn't pull off a decent one. One of them yells "Stop taking pcitures" so naturally I went over to show them that the pics were crap. Then the one with mohawk says "We'll pose for ya for smokes or money". Done deal. You can't tell with this photograph but the one in the middle would have trouble making it through an airport metal detector. She had a lot of piercings on her person.

Ambulance on the scene...

2009-01-30T11:52:00.001+09:00

Ambulance on the scene...
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

First time I've ever called 9-1-1. A woman crossing the street here got knocked down by a GMC Suburban driven by a fellow making a left turn. I didn't see it hit her. I was walking away from the vicinity of that crosswalk. I heard a short scream and I turned around to see a pedestrian falling backwards onto the street surface.

So yeah, I called 9-1-1, got asked a bunch of questions and then waited to the ambulance to arrive. A police cruiser, fire engine and ambulance were dispatched. The victim wasn't bleeding or in anguish. She was obviously shaken by the experience and one fellow, a total stranger to her, kept her company and comforted her.

So there you have it. My incident of the day...

That Photo Was Taken Yesterday

2009-01-29T15:21:00.001+09:00

Snow On Pine Needles
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

The reason why I didn't get to upload it was because my ADSL modem conked out on Monday. I phone my ISP's tech support line and from his end things looked okay. We went about testing the modem and had no luck with it. So he booked me an appointment with an onsite technician on Tuesday.

Well Tuesday came and went. I wasn't contacted by the tech who was supposed to make a housecall at my place after I got home from work. So today I phoned tech support and stated that I wanted to get my hands on a new modem. I said I intended to ship the modem back to them. That resulted in my phone call being transferred to their LNR (Loyalty and Retention) department. The end result of my conversation with the agent there was that they were going to send me a new modem (which I requested that I send to my work address). It's supposed to show up in 3-4 days.

So tonight, I headed back from work and stopped off at a co-worker's place to borrow a spare modem he had on hand. When I got home today I found a parcel delivery notification from my local Canada Post service counter. So I went to claim my package. What the clerk brought out was a plain white box. Then she said another package for me had arrived at the store and brought out a package which looked more like what I had been expecting to receive. Off I trundled back home...

It turns out the mystery package contained a modem and a letter from my ISP explaining that they were going to do a network upgrade on Jan 26th and my old modem would no longer work. The modem in the package was the replacement. Great. So why hadn't the tech I had phoned on Monday known about this? Who knows. All I can say is obviously the right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing there...

Checking Out the Scene

2009-01-24T17:51:00.001+09:00

Checking Out the Scene
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

I just couldn't find the camera setting to get what appears to be blue lights to show up in the photographs as the mauve colour it was to the naked eye. I obviously lucked out with this photograph. The light fixture on the left hand side reads "MARKET". This area is part of the shopping plaza area of the new Shangri-La Hotel in downtown Vancouver. The hotel officially opens tomorrow. The shopping complex has been open for about a month.

Today was a rough day: Was awakened by a phone call from work at 3:40am. I worked from home until 10am, went to the office, had a 15 minute lunch break, worked until 5:45pm, had a half hour dinner and then plugged away until 9:30pm. I got home at 11:30pm because I spent an hour or so wandering around taking pictures. I just got engrossed in finding things and scenes to take pictures off and lost track of the time...

After Work Photo Shoot

2009-01-23T16:55:00.001+09:00

Window Display - Hudson's Bay Company Department Store
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

I was just going to get some video images of the Scotiabank tower. Instead I ended up with about 90 more images taken from around the Hudson's Bay Company department store, up Granville Street, up Smithe Street and then up Burrard.

I hardly ever walk by the HBC building and even then I don't pay too much attention to their window displays. But I found the current displays to be quite different and well done from a point of creativity. So I took the time to snap a few photographs of them. After I got home I realized the HBC's display windows are a bit of an oddity, if not a throwback to an era long gone by. The Sears (formerly Eatons) store basically looks like a giant bar of soap and as such doesn't have the large window display areas the HBC has. There are no other department stores downtown.

Anyways, the set for the photos from tonight is here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/8936205@N02/sets/72157612885185060/. Right now it just contains the ones I took of the HBC displays. I'll be uploading the remainder of them tomorrow.

A Row of Lights

2009-01-21T17:11:00.001+09:00

A Row of Lights
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

I wasn't thinking of taking many photographs on the way home tonight but things changed after I had a burger (with yam fries - very tasty!) on the way home. The fog started getting thicker and things started taking on an eerie look. I haven't opened up all the results of the efforts in Flickr. I'll do that in a few days time. But up front I should say I was trying to capture images of things that don't look quite the way they usually do. I did speed up my exposure time so I lost a couple of shots, especially the one of a guy and gal carrying a sofa. She obviously didn't have as much strength as he did so they had to stop while she tried to get a quick breather in. I did take a photo of them sitting in their sofa when they had set it down on the sidewalk but I fell short on two points: 1) the flash from the camera reflected off the fog and 2) I took a dead on shot when I could've gotten a more interesting shot if I taken the photo from one end of the sofa. Oh well. Them's the breaks.

Icebreaker Outrigger Race

2009-01-18T14:57:00.001+09:00

If You're Still Looking for Nemo...He's On Your Head.
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

I suppose it was appropriate that one our crew members was wearing a toque with "Alaska" emblazoned on it. Because it felt cold enough. Today was the day for this year's Lotus Icebreaker Outrigger race. It's a short (less than 6km) V-12 outrigger canoe race hosted by the Lotus Paddling Club in Burnaby, BC.

The one thing I enjoy about the Icebreaker race is the simple fact that it's held in the dead of winter. It's nice to get out and paddle when the temperatures are in the single digit range and there's snow on the ground. I think if paddlers from warmer climes found out we do this sort of thing they'd have us all committed to an asylum. There they are paddling in sun and surf while we're running the risk of being numbed by hypothermia.

Oh yeah...I don't think outrigger paddle makers would be too interested in advertising their wares using photographs of paddles sticking out of snowbanks...

Now Where Was I?...

2009-01-09T13:01:00.000+09:00

Had a good laugh at work today: We noticed that calls were being recorded for one of call centres where the call monitoring software is running but supposedly there are no calls being routed to its switch. Turns out there are calls being routed to it...and out of it. I looked at one such call in the list of monitored calls and I said to my co-worker "I bet you that's a call to our conference call number". He gave me this incredulous look as I clicked on the recording to play it back. Yes, it was a call to the conference bridge number ("Please enter your passcode followed by the number sign"). We're so easily entertained.

Missed getting a photo of all the firefighters milling around in their dress uniforms outside of a local firehall. I was going to take a shot when a bunch of cars turned in front of me obscuring my view. When I was ready to take the picture my camera shut itself down telling me its battery charge had run out. I was not happy about that....

A Glimpse of 2009 Vancouver Polar Bear Swim

2009-01-02T12:15:00.001+09:00

This year is the first time I've ever gone down and watched the insanity which is the annual New Years Day Vancouver Polar Bear Swim. I read somewhere that this year's edition is the 89th one. Last year we cruised off the beach in a double hulled outrigger canoe ("V-12" canoe) but went back in when we realized we'd be waiting for another hour. We didn't have enough coffee and Bailey's to keep 12 people warm that long!

Anyways, I had no wish to go in the water. I got unceremoniously dumped into English Bay of Kits Beach in late November when the solo outrigger canoe I was on "huli-ed", i.e.: flipped over. I had no time to tell if the water was really cold because I didn't spend more than 10 seconds in it! Mind you, the temperature then was about 5-6 degrees Centigrade warmer then than it was today. But it certainly wasn't as warm as the water in Hawaii!

More Snow...

2008-12-27T09:13:00.001+09:00

Actually, it's stopped snowing now. The original weather forecast had been rain but there was a drop in the temperature so we had snow since early this morning. Anyways, since it's stopped I can hear someone shoveling the snow outside our apartment building. Which is nice. Because I'm not volunteering to do it again. At least not for a while. Did my share on Christmas Eve. It had been done early that day so I did the afternoon/evening round. I wasn't shoveling light, fluffy stuff. It was the compressed stuff that would've been in danger of becoming a layer of ice.

What I found interesting (as opposed to tiring) was the reactions of people who walked by. A couple of people said "Thank-you". A couple of people engaged me in brief exchanges of chit-chat. Some walked up the parts I had cleared and waited for me to stop briefly so they could get by me. And then there were the ones who didn't walk up the part I had cleared and stomped up the part I would eventually be shoveling. Those people I just didn't quite understand. I guess it hadn't occurred to them that they were, even to a small degree, stomping on the stuff I would be shoveling and likely contributing to making it more arduous to remove. Or something to that effect...

Dr. David Suzuki, The Sylvia Hotel and Stuff...

2008-12-20T18:07:00.001+09:00

The Sylvia Hotel
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

Tonight was one of those odd nights in life: One steps out the door and things happen. The initial plan for my evening stroll was simple - take my camera and to down to Lost Lagoon to take photographs of the Christmas tree mounted on the fountain dias and then head home. As it turned out, I did the first two things and then walked down to English Bay. Took photographs of the Sylvia Hotel and then went inside for a drink.

What happened after that: I ordered a pint of the Winter Ale. As I was enjoying my drink I was approached by a fellow asking if I was Japanese. I said "Yes, but I was born in Vancouver". He asked if he could join me for a drink. The conversation that followed lasted several hours. It didn't really have any direction. We talked about subjects ranging as far as the history of the British in North America, to the Second World War, quantum physics (I did Google the Higgs boson particle: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_Hadron_Collider), LSD and Dr. David Suzuki. My new found friend had a point of contention with Dr. Suzuki (and he noted that I resembled a younger version of him) which turned into a point of embarrassment for him when I went over all the points in my life which intersected with that of the good doctor. I won't go into the details here. The whole escapade ended in an arm wrestling challenge which ended in a draw.

Anyways, there you go. Step outside the safe confines of your home and who knows what will happen. Such is the big adventure called "life"...

Postscript: Other nonsense we covered - US intervention in the Japan-UK alliance that cummulated in the Washington Naval Treaty: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Naval_Treaty, the significance of the British victory on the Plains of Abraham: http://www.ccbn-nbc.gc.ca/_en/index.php and the Heisenberg Principle: http://www.thebigview.com/spacetime/uncertainty.html.

Snow, Snow, Snow, Sundin????

2008-12-19T11:46:00.000+09:00

Okay... Mats Sundin will not be in a Canucks uniform this Saturday. I'm going to be seeing them play the Chicago Blackhawks that night. Taking along a Japanese friend who had never been to see a hockey game until I took her to see the Vancouver Giants play the Tri-City Americans about a month and a half ago. Now she's going to see the big boys play in a big league game. Hopefully she'll have a good time at the game. As for Sundin...I really expected him to sign with the Rangers. Oh well. So much for all the goodies we could've taken off their hands.

As for the snow... Can someone take it off our hands now? Ship to Florida or Texas. What? They got their share already? Oh. Strange winter...

Okay...Happy, Sort of, and a Touch Embarrassed

2008-12-13T00:59:00.000+09:00

Yes, I did submit a request for tickets to events at the 2010 Winter Olympics. I picked a package, a number of single event tickets, alternative choices, doubled up the quantities to pairs for all my choices and submitted the request. I had aimed for the events that weren't marked "high demand" and picked events on days which I think I can arrange to get time off from work to see. Nothing fancy. I had done this at near the end of the request period so I didn't bother with the "big ticket" events such as men's ice hockey medal or playoff games.

A couple of days ago I received the e-mail telling me "Congratulations you've been allocated tickets". Great. I go to the website and try to logon. Can't remember my password. Try the password reset mechanism. Wasn't sure what I had entered as the answer for my account's security question. Took several stabs at getting a password reset but no e-mail arrived telling me if I had succeeded.

The next day I called the ticketing centre and patiently waited on hold for about 10-15 minutes. Maybe more, maybe less. I got the agent to reset my password. Went in, checked my account, saw what I was allocated, printed it off and that was that. Then I checked my e-mail account and found the password reset request from the previous night had arrived while I had been on the phone.

If you read the comments attached to the story on www.cbc.ca/bc about the ticket allocation announcement and subsequent start of scalping of said tickets then you'll come across a few people who are very happy with what they got, a few people who got nothing and a lot of vociferous comments from naysayers and what-nots. Given that environment, I'm a bit embarrassed to say that I got everything I had requested. Yup. I got all my first choices. I feel sorry for those who struck out. Really. Because I had submitted my ticket request just several days before the deadline. I guess I chose wisely and was thus rewarded. It's not always the rabbit that wins the race...

Half a minute earlier...

2008-11-26T13:47:00.001+09:00

Half a minute earlier...
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

This photograph would've been interesting. Well perhaps....

It was about 4:30pm in the afternoon. I had taken a couple of photographs of the mist enshrouding Swangard Stadium and the NW corner of Burnaby's Central Park (which actually isn't the geographical centre of Burnaby). I walked a bit and was standing on the NE corner of the intersection taking in the view of the North Shore mountains. I thought to myself "That would make a nice photograph. Those clouds are so interesting looking." As I was letting that thought pass through my mind a saw a bright streak of white light pass from east of the mountains (the right side of the photograph) and then vanish in the west. It must of been visible for less than a second or two. I was dumbstruck for a moment. Then I realized I had most probably witnessed a meteor (or very large meteorite) burning out as it entered the Earth's atmosphere. Later on I theorized it could've been space junk too. But I like the meteor theory better.

This event does highlight a bit of why I take photographs. Partly I'm trying to capture images that are visually appealing. Partly because I'm a bit of a "documentarian". I collect images and data just like I collect objects. Somewhere in me is this part of my character that says "You live in the now so it never hurts to create a record of those moments". Sometimes those images do tell a story but more often than not there have to be accompanying words that define the context the image comes from. If not for these words then the photo I've posted would be just a so-so image of clouds enveloping the local mountains. Which wouldn't be all that much to write about.

^%$#@! YouTube

2008-11-17T17:32:00.001+09:00

The two videos I shot in Cambodia and which I've uploaded to YouTube include this one. Unfortunately the darn upload process got hung when it hit 94% completion. I let the session sit overnight, not being sure if it actually was hung or not, and was essentially annoyed when I found that it really had come to a crashing halt. The second video got uploaded on the first try which is good because the thing is in a 9.4MB .avi container. The file size limit for the service being 10MB. Given the amount of time it took to upload the thing I really wasn't in the mood for another crash at 90%+ completion.

Anyways, that's my rant of the day. Will think of something better to say next time.

Dressing a Wreath

2008-11-13T12:35:00.001+09:00

Dressing a Wreath
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

The young girl in the photo I took probably doesn't have a clue as to what the full significance of the day's activities were, including the placing of the plastic poppy to make a wreath. In time she'll get to know though.

I was reading an article today on the CBC website about a graveyard in Gaza for Canadian soldiers who had died while serving as peacekeepers during the Suez Crisis in the 1950s (http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2008/11/10/f-gaza-war-cemetery.html). The article is quite nice and very touching. The one vitriolic comment posted a reader, accusing the author and the article of being anti-Israeli propaganda was...mind numbing. Thankfully it was removed by the moderators.

Remembrance Day 2008

2008-11-13T01:16:00.001+09:00

IMG_5946.JPG
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

My quip about Remembrance Day which I posted in a forum I frequent: "My left arm may show up on the six o'clock CBC news. I was holding my umbrella over Vancouver City Police Const. Usui to try and keep the rain off of him at today's Remembrance Day ceremony. The CBC cameraman did take a short shot of Const. Usui with me standing next to him. I'll never know what will come of that since I don't have cable TV and thus I don't watch TV news." The officer in question is the fellow in the dark VPD uniform. He'd just got back to work after suffering from a cold and needed to try and stay out of the rain...

Third Shutout in a Row...

2008-11-10T15:20:00.001+09:00

Third Shutout in a Row...
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

...And I think the guy wearing the pads is happy. Not a bad shot considering I'm sitting in the sixth row of the upper bowl at GM Place. Anyways, the game itself wasn't exactly thrilling but it did have it's moments. My buddy Steve and I had this running schtick regarding a comment he had read somewhere from some enthusiastic fan claiming that Bieksa was a Norris trophy contender. It turned into a game between us of comments such as "Don't worry, he's going to break the game open with an end to end rush". Well...it would've helped in that game. There was a lot of dump and chase hockey going on.

PS: If you check my photostream in Flickr you'll find two photographs I took that are close in time to the two goals the Canucks scored. One was taken a split second after Salo scored and one was taken a split second before Daniel Sedin scored.

A bit of room...

2008-11-08T10:57:00.001+09:00

A bit of room...
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

As per the comment I posted in Flickr... I managed to pull out of that parking spot without making contact with the two cars around me. To get an idea on how much room I had, the round white object in the left photograph is the lid of a McDonald's soft drink cup. I probably had about a foot in front and maybe 4 inches in the back.

Years ago I managed to deftly steer a dragon boat into its berth at a local marina. It involved approaching the back tip of the berth almost head on and then stalling the port side of the boat in order to turn it so that the starboard side came to rest against the dock. I pulled that trick off and one guy in the boat turned to me and said "I bet you don't have any problems parallel parking".

Gas for Under a Dollar a Liter

2008-11-06T16:54:00.001+09:00

IMG_1128.JPG
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

With my PetroPoints discount it turned out to be 96.4¢ per liter. I've forgotten when it was last under a dollar a liter. It's been that long. Anyways, that within itself is no big deal.

What's interesting from my perspective is that I took this photo using my Canon SD1100. I put it into night snapshot mode and turned off the flash. I zoomed in a bit and held the camera at about a 30°angle facing upwards. Given that I did that quickly, since I didn't want to look like a complete idiot, I think this photograph turned out pretty good. The colours look good and the image of the sign, the price and lettering is quite crisp. Given that the SD1100 is by design a "point and click" camera I'm quite pleased with the result.

Morning Sun - Nov 4 2008

2008-11-05T15:08:00.001+09:00

Morning Sun - Nov 4 2008
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

It's an odd photograph with which to mark a historic day. Sure it's the US election I'm referring to. People can say "But you're in Canada so it doesn't matter to you" but in my mind it affects everyone. We're all interconnected. Whether or not its the beginning of a change for the better or the waning days of the great empire...only time will tell. I'm just savoring the moment. A new US president has been elected, it's raining again, I'm gazing at a photograph I took of the sun trying to burn off the late fall cloud cover and I'm listening to the song "Horses in My Dreams". It's all so strange...

"He Shoots! He Scores!" Argh!

2008-10-31T16:22:00.001+09:00

Close-up - Tri-City's Third Goal
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

Well...This is a photo I took of the visiting team scoring. Actually, it's a complete fluke that I managed to get a photo of the goal before the puck hit the ice behind the Vancouver Giants goaltender. Of course, I wasn't ready to take photographs when the Giants scored two goals in the following period. In each case a Giants player broke in alone against the Tri-City Americans goalie. On one goal our guy out-hustled two of their defenders to get to the puck and on the other goal our guy completely undressed the defenceman who was meant to stop him. Deked him out and left him hung out to dry.

Anyways, I took a Japanese friend to see the game. It was the first time she'd ever seen a hockey game in her entire life. I think she enjoyed it because I asked her if she'd like to see more games and she answered in the affirmative. I did manage to explain a few things to her: Yes, it's called a "puck" and when I said "Pretty goal", I did not say "Pretty girl". :D I think it'll be a while before she gets the hang of what is meant by "icing" in hockey.

The Little Things in Life - #2

2008-10-26T05:08:00.001+09:00

Out Photographing the Fall Colours
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

I wasn't the only one out taking pictures of the trees. The man in the picture approached me a few minutes before I took this photograph and asked me to take a picture of his son and him together. He said to me in his slightly accented English "Oh you're a cameraman.." but I had to protest with "No, I'm just doing this for fun". Anyways, he was very pleased with the photograph. Probably not so much with the quality of the photograph but probably more so that he had a memento of the time he had spent together with his son that day.

The Little Things in Life

2008-10-24T15:41:00.001+09:00

The "Chinese" Pose
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

Today was the last day working at the Starbucks across the street for the young lady in the photo. She's off to a new job as a manager at a new Starbucks store in town. I think I found out from her yesterday morning when her last day was going to be. I didn't think much of it and simply told her "Congratulations and good luck!".

It was after I had gone for lunch with a co-worker and we were back on our way to the office that I thought about getting a card for her and having the other regulars in our office who know her to sign it. So I did that. Then Tara said that she'd track down a little gift for our friend. I bought a couple of "scratch and win" lottery tickets (the contest name appropriately was "Coffee Break") and added them to the card.

Anyways, when I first visited the Starbucks shop this morning she was on a conference call. So I said I'd return. When I went back I hauled along a few of the people who had signed the card. I presented her with the card and Tara took the picture. Yes, she was quite surprised. She didn't have to but she bought a round of coffee for all of us. Later on she came by and told us that she did win some money with the scratch and win tickets...$2. ^_^

So there you go... The little things in life do matter...

The End of the 2008 Outrigger Racing Season

2008-10-22T15:16:00.001+09:00

IMG_0949.JPG
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

For our club the last race of the year has been the Bridge to Bridge race held in Victoria, BC. It's a long haul of a season that starts off in January with the Ice Breaker race at the Lotus Club in Burnaby, BC. On account of the travelling I did this year I think I did a smaller number of races this year: Duel in the Desert, Jericho Iron, small boat races at the CORA Canadian Championships, Liberty Outrigger Race in New York, NY, Length of the Lake and Bridge to Bridge. All in all it was a good season. I think I've lowered my time on the 10km distance by about 10 minutes (if not more). I think I'm a bit more comfortable with paddling solo but there's still a lot of room for improvement.

Anyways, the photograph shows the tools of the trade for me in outrigger paddling. I'm using bigger surface blades that are designed for OC6/team paddling in conditions that are at least moderately active in terms of wave action. The blades are carbon fibre and the shafts are wood. They are considerably lighter than the first all-wood blade I used when I started outrigger paddling. And they're not exactly cheap. Those two blades represent an investment in equipment that is close to $500(CAN). I'm also using a relatively long 52" paddle (the one without a decal on it) for OC6 paddling. I know of a couple of guys who use 50" paddles and they're at least my height, if not taller. I suppose it's all a matter of taste.

I'll still be out paddling on weekends until December. We'll probably do some V-12 paddling around New Years and in January. Then the whole cycle starts off again with the Ice Breaker V-12 races at the Lotus Club in late January...

Hi Ho, Hi Ho, It's Off to Vote We Go

2008-10-15T12:43:00.001+09:00

"X" Marks the Spot
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

At this point in time I believe we're stuck with yet another Tory government. I haven't looked at the latest results as I'm a bit nervous about the chances of the incumbent Grit in my riding. Yes, I voted for her. In all the elections I've been through in my riding I think I voted NDP once, maybe twice. Anyways, I did my duty and cast my ballot this morning. The polls closed about an hour and half ago. Not that I'd be influencing any Canadian votes with my blog. Ha, ha...

I think I convinced at least one co-worker who normally doesn't vote to go out and cast his ballot. My message to him was one of "It's something you should do as part of your civic duty...and think of those who live in places where they don't have the privilege of being able to vote". His argument for not voting in the past was "Well my vote won't change anything anyways". I suppose the underlying theme to my counter-argument was "It's not all about you".

G-O-O-O-A-A-L!!!!

2008-10-13T14:20:00.001+09:00

One Goal Coming Right Up!
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

I had the pleasure of being a spectator at the Vancouver Whitecaps victory over the Puerto Rico Islanders at Swangard Stadium today. The significance of the game? It was the USL-1 Championship game. The game would've been played in Puerto Rico but their facility was deemed unsatisfactory by FIFA. So the venue ended up in Canada.

From a photography point of view I learned that I should've zoomed in a bit more when I took most of my shots of the game play. I probably would've ended up with more workable material to zoom-in on and crop for close up shots.

Anyways, I did luck out with the shot of the first Vancouver goal. I had just enough resolution to the photo I took to allow me to crop out the photo attached to this blog entry. Not bad for a "point and shoot" camera.

Wow... 30 Years Eh?

2008-10-12T17:54:00.000+09:00

Tonight I attended a high school reunion function. Actually, not just any but rather the 30th year reunion of my high school graduating class. Our graduating class was quite large. Something like 800 students I think. There were so many of us the graduation ceremony was held over two nights. So, taking that into consideration the reunion reception was attended by a much smaller number. I don't know how many showed up. Probably a hundred or so. Anyways, none of the guys I hung out with everyday during my senior high school days showed up. Two of the people who I had known since grade 1 did show up. That was really neat. There was one guy who claimed to know one of the people who started the fire that burned down the high school whose graduating class got merged with ours. That's why our grad class was so large.

I did make a point of finding out if there was going to be reunion this year. It was important for me in that most of us are still around. The number of those who have passed on is relatively small. Which goes to show that we're all living good lives and have taken care of ourselves. I suspect the list of those who have passed on will be longer when the next reunion rolls around in ten years time.

nb: Went paddling this morning on the club OC1. I was told it was 3°C this morning. I made darn sure I didn't flip the boat and end up in the drink...

One Down... 83... Err...81, More to Go.

2008-10-10T16:26:00.001+09:00

Wha?! It didn't go in?
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

Yup. The NHL season is now really started. Those four overseas games were a nice gesture towards the European fans but tonight the real show got going. In my neck of the woods the Vancouver Canucks started off on the right footing and I was there to witness it.

Prior to the game they had a memorial tribute to the late Luc Bourdon, a player who died in a motorcycle accident during the off-season. I'll admit I shed a few tears as the team captain Roberto Luongo presented the last game jersey Luc wore to the members of Luc's family, plus his girfriend, who were present at the game. The players had given away their jerseys to fans after the last game of the 2007-2008 season (Bourdon had played in that game) but the club managed to obtain Bourdon's jersey from the fan who had received it. I shed a few more tears as Tom Cochrane and Ken Greer from the band Red Rider sang and played a touching rendition of their song "Big League" as part of the tribute.

As for the game: At least the Canucks showed up to play. The Flames outshot the 'Nucks in the first frame but it was the locals who were up 1-0 at the end of the first period. Two goals in the first two minutes of the second period essentially flattened the Flames. By the time the third period rolled around the 'Nucks were on a roll. They added another 3 goals to their total in that frame to round out the score at 6-0. A good win. Hopefully the Canucks will play this way every night.

Postscript: Best laugh out loud comment I found on cbc.ca about the Saturday rematch game (Flames defenceman Robyn Regehr missed the Thursday game to be by his wife's side as she gave birth to their son):

thealbertananalyst wrote:
Posted 2008/10/11
at 2:31 PM ET - Wow...congratulations, Regehr! Chances are that parenting your new son will be a much better experience than playing with Calgary and losing to the Canucks AND the Oilers all through the year.

Go Oilers! :P

Autumn Leaves

2008-10-09T16:17:00.001+09:00

Autumn Leaves
Originally uploaded by d.yaro

Yes, autumn is definitely upon us. Night temperature is currently 8° and daytime high about 11°. We don't get the bright coloured fall leaves like they do out in eastern Canada. After all, most of the forests around here are made up of coniferous trees. This shot I took because tall trees with bright red fall leaves are definitely uncommon out here...

そうか。。。

2008-10-08T15:54:00.000+09:00

I followed the link to the NHL web site off of the web page for a blog I follow here. They had a couple of articles there about the coming demise of the old Philadelphia Spectrum. That in itself was sort of interesting but the part that caught my eye was the bit where they mentioned the Flyers beating the Soviet Red Army team 4-1 back in the mid 70s. I think they quoted Bobby Clarke and Ed Snider going on about how significant that victory was. Which is interesting. Because I, like probably a lot of other hockey fans in Canada, have probably forgotten about that result. The real gem in that series for many Canadian hockey fans was the New Years Eve game between the Habs and same Red Army team. And that game ended in a draw. One would think the victory would remain more deeply etched in the collective memory but for me that isn't the case. I suspect what it boils down to is this: The process was more important than the result. I know as a paddler I don't remember results that well but I remember the races where I busted my guts paddling some long forgotten boat down a race course to a finish line. The Habs-Red Army game was something I'll remember as end to end action with numerous missed chances for both teams (trust me, the chances the Habs missed hurt), The Flyers-Red Army game...if I'm not mistaken the Soviets returned to their dressing room as a protest against a hit and had to be coaxed back out to finish the game. The fact the Flyers won became an overlooked fact. In short, winning is good but sometimes it isn't good enough when it comes to what becomes memorable in sport...

VIFF - Day 12 - アキレスと亀 (Achilles and the Tortoise)

2008-10-07T14:57:00.000+09:00

Tonight probably marks the end of my attendance at this year's Vancouver International Film Festival. I'll check Wednesday's schedule to see if there's anything else that piques my interest. On Tuesday I have an outrigger practice to go to and Thursday night I'll be attending the home opener of the Vancouver Canucks 2008-2009 NHL season. I don't have super high expectations for this year's team but I don't want them to hit rock bottom. Then again, hitting rock bottom might be a real wake up call for the team's management. Oh well. There's a very small part of me that wants to see the Habs win the Cup this year because it's their 100th season.

As for tonight's movie: It was called アキレスと亀 (Achilles and the Tortoise) and it's the latest movie made by Kitano Takeshi (aka: "Beat" Takeshi when he's in front of the camera). The movie starts off with a short anime clip describing the mathematical paradox of Achilles never being able to pass a tortoise in a race. The film then follows the life of the main character, Kuramochi, in three stages of his life: as an elementary school student who likes drawing, as an art college student and as a middle aged artist who is both an artistic and commercial failure. Figuring out the grand metaphor of the movie shouldn't be too difficult by now. The film is reflective, sad, funny, zany, absurd and touching at all sorts of different points in the story. Yet I found it to be a much more well composed and satisfying package than Kitano's previous outing, 監督バンザイ！("Kantoku Banzai!" or "Hurray for the Director!"). I believe this movie, along with "Kantoku Banzai!" and "Takeshis" completes his restrospective/introspective series of movies. You don't have to have seen the other two movies to enjoy this one but I don't think it would hurt to see them either. As for myself, I've seen them in the order they came out with "Takeshis" being the first one of the trio released. (Now will someone please re-release "Sonatine" on R1 DVD with English subtitles.)

I thought about seeing another film tonight but ended up deciding not to. Did drop in at HMV and picked up a copy on DVD of Kinoshita's classic movie "Twenty Four Eyes"...

VIFF - Day 11 - "Fifty Dead Men Walking"

2008-10-06T12:33:00.000+09:00

Let me count how many movies I've viewed in the past 10 days...9. Which means I should've purchased a 10 feature pass to this year's VIFF (Vancouver International Film Festival). Though I have to admit this year I've watched more VIFF presentations than I have in the 8 or so years I've attended the festival. I think my past record peaks at about 5 or 6 screenings.

Today's festival fare which I attended was "Fifty Dead Men Walking", a film with a bit of controversy already riding its wake. Which is understandable considering its subject material: a fictionalized telling of the story of an informant working for the British who has risen within the ranks of the IRA. It seems that if you do a search in Google with the film's title you'll find more results about the controversies surrounding the movie than about the movie itself.

What I felt the film impressed on me was not anything about the nature or background of "The Troubles". I saw the story as being one focused on a person who, rather unremarkable at the start of the story, manages to survive progressively dangerous and difficult situations. As a crime thriller movie the film worked well. The tension that surrounds a character with the burden of protecting his young family while he carries on his work as an informant is projected quite well in the script.

I'm not quite sure how this film fares in terms of any claim to neutrality with respect to describing the context of the story it tells. There are somewhat obligatory shots of Republican and Unionist trappings, footage of confrontations with riot police and the British army along with glimpses of Gerry Adams and Ian Paisley. Those clips are short enough to provide some indication of the context of the story and they seemed to be concentrated in the first half or so of the film. News clips are interspersed in the mid to latter part of the film to depict the impact of the main character's actions. For me those snippets weren't enough to make me feel that the film was taking sides. But that's just my take on it...

PS: The very first ever VIFF film screening I attended: Otomo Katsuhiro's "Akira" at the Hollywood theatre on Broadway. That was back in 1988 or 1989 I think. I don't remember if the movie was subtitled in English or dubbed in English. But it was packed house...and the audience laughed at the scene where a bandaged Tetsuo makes his way down a hospital corridor to the strains of "Da! Da-da-dan!" playing in the soundtrack.

歩いても歩いても and Joy Division

2008-10-05T13:36:00.000+09:00

歩いても歩いても ("Aruitemo Aruitemo") is one of the movies I took in at the Vancouver International Film Festival this week. (An aside: the English title is "Still Walking".) The star of the movie is Abe Hiroshi. Yes, that actor who starred in Trick with Nakama Yukie, the TV series "Dragon Zakura" and, yes, "Godzilla 2000", amongst a bunch of other TV shows and movies. Anyways, there is a scene in the movie where his character is sitting in his old room in his parents home wondering why they bothered to haul out all of his old belongings. Amongst the things in the room was a poster on the wall: a poster with the "JOY DIVISION" across the top and the cover art from that band's LP "Unknown Pleasures" below that. For whatever reason my mind crossed the line between "It's just a prop" and into the territory of "What is the significance of that poster being there". Of course there was no significance in the poster being there. It was simply there because it's old and something that a youth in the late 1970s/early 1980s Japan might have acquired. Anyways, that prop proved to be a bit of a distraction for me because it got me wondering whether or not I still have that Joy Division "Love Will Tear Us Apart" poster I bought oh so many years ago. Luckily, for the sake of my enjoying the rest of the movie, I didn't dwell too much on that thought for too long.

PS: Okay. With respect to the write-up the film got on the VIFF web site: Sorry Tony Rayns but I never thought of Abe Hiroshi as being a "comedic actor". The TV series "Dragon Zakura" was hardly an exercise in slapstick. But that's just my observation...

The Calm Before...

2008-10-04T14:44:00.001+09:00

IMG_2093.JPG
Originally uploaded by achales

...whatever happens...as far as this blog goes.

Oh yeah: Yours truly is the fellow in the back seat of the OC2 (2 seater outrigger canoe) in this photograph. It was a bit before 7am on September 20th, 2008 and the challenge facing my buddy and I was to get this thing 16km down Okanagan Lake on the first leg of a 100km race. For our team the odyssey ended 9 hours and 2 minutes after we started.