Japanese Phoneme Problem

     Phoneme - a sound used by a language that can be utilized to make words.  Different languages use various phonemes and leave others out.  Japanese does not have a phoneme for an "L" or an "R", but combines them together into a liquid sound that is kind of hard for American english speakers to make (I actually took several years to learn how to speak Ryoko's name properly and I still have to concentrate on it).  This is often the cause of jokes directed at Japanese individuals who attempt to speak English, which I find particularly annoying.  "Rice" becomes "Lice", and you can imagine what "Broccoli" and "Celery" come out as.
     I have found many instances of this mispronunciation while in Japan and thought you would like to see one of the more recent examples.

     While I find the humor around the spoken mistake to be annoying, a printed error is just downright funny.  The company that produced this product had ample time to investigate the proper spelling, and their lack of follow through is humorous.
     This product apparently is a bag made with Calcium Carbonate.  It should react with environmental acids and do two things, break down and neutralize the acid.  A very good idea with not so good advertising. . .

     One more thing, since so few people have commented on my posts, I erroneously assumed that few people were viewing it. But I have gotten feedback that more postings would be appreciated.  With that in mind I would ask that readers post a short comment so that I can have an idea of just how many there are of you.  Thanks.

The HORROR!

It's hard to type while curled up in the fetal position!  I have to stop trembling in fear and disappointment to explain.  I have been living in Japan now for more than a month and each time I go shopping for food, I noticed something missing.  The local supermarket is just a short walk away and we go there often for day to day needs.  For the first week I just learned the layout and tried new things, and then I went looking for BACON.  I found the closest  thing to BACON, a type of ham cut to look like BACON.  I cooked it up and made an omelet with some American cheese (another item of scarcity in Japan) and to my dismay, it had none of the deep rich mouthwatering savor that I am accustomed to.  I started feeling a little anxiety, but figured that another store would have the real deal.  So then began the hunt; York Mart, Takashimaya, Lawson, Family Mart, Big A, even Seven Eleven with none of them satisfying my need.  Then I learned about Costco.  Surely an American style warehouse market will have American style BACON!  So after begging Ryoko (I have to do the dishes for the entire month of October. . .) we went today and found - - -  the same limp ham.  The same lack of savory goodness.  My soul has withered and now whimpers from somewhere near my left kidney (who would have thought that a kidney could be the souls safe room?).

The real scare is that I still have 10 more months to go. . . . . .  WITHOUT BACON!

Chop Stick Rubber Band Gun!

Last weekend, Yuta was bored and asked if we could make a few rubber band guns from chop sticks and have a battle around the house.  We looked up how to build them and made a few, we are still finding rubber bands all around the house (at least I am).  The activity was a success, which led Yuta to take pictures of his collection of weapons (at that point he had 2 pistols and a rifle/shotgun he had invented) and show them at school.  Yuta's fourth grade teacher was very impressed with the idea and asked if Yuta could bring them in the next day.  Upon seeing the rubber band shooters, the teacher then asked the class to bring in the materials to make one for themselves the very next day.  Yuta led the class and each student made a rubber band pistol.  They then broke into two teams and had a battle!  I am very happy with this teacher, he is so much cooler than I am!  Yuta is now a bit of a hero in the class, the students had quite a bit of fun. . .

Typhoon Man-yi

     Today we survived typhoon Man-yi!  The rain started last night and the wind picked up as well, until this morning when the real event started.  The wind blew over a tall flowering plant on the far side of the driveway from the house and kinked over a few of the potatoes and eggplants, but that appears to be all the damage we incurred.  We were lucky to be on the eastern side of the center and so did not receive the full brunt of the storm.

     On another note, I have started jogging!  On one of my early morning excursions, I was running past the nearby middle school and witnessed the baseball team greeting the coach.  The team was on the field practicing and the first player to see the coach called out.  All the players stopped what they were doing, faced the coach, and when one of them called out, they bowed.  The coach bowed back and then instructed the boys to continue.  I was impressed and happy to see a fellow teacher receive that much respect.  I can only assume that the same situation applies to classroom teachers.  No wonder the Japanese students we see in America do so well, they have such a profound respect for themselves, their teachers, and the institution of education.
     For my next post I plan on interviewing my son to see how cleaning the school on a daily basis affects his educational outlook. . .

Earthquake!

     Last night at around 4 in the morning, Ryoko and I felt an earthquake that was large enough to feel, but small enough to be no big deal.  Saku-san, my mother in law, did not even register the event and it was too small to wake up Yuta.  The fact that Yuta did not wake is not really surprising as he is entering the age where sleep seems to take a deeper hold, and it takes a small army to wake him up.  As I was rolling Yuta around his bedroom to start his waking ritual this morning, I accidentally bounced him off of the wall.  When the dust settled I noticed that he had cracked his left eye open and I jumped on the opportunity to ask about the earthquake (I did not want to wait until after dunking his head in the cold water bucket).  He mumbled something about inducing a 'quake in my head', and that seemed to be the only one of interest to him at that point. Ryoko and I are light enough sleepers that the P-wave will often push us into consciousness and the rest of the quake can be experienced.  These little earthquakes are exciting to me as an Earth Science teacher, I find the experience exhilarating. . .

First Week

     Our first week in Japan has been mis-slept away!  The first week is always the worst as Jet-lag hits quite hard.  The worst time of day is around 5:00 PM when my body just gives out and I cannot, for the life of me, keep my eyes open.  I have days were I swear somebody must have carried me to bed as I have no recollection of how I got there.  The worst time of night is around 3:00 AM when my body wakes up and refuses to go back to sleep.  I have memorized the wood grain pattern of the ceiling of the bedroom. The effect is wearing off rapidly now and I believe we will be sleeping like normal very soon.
     The weather here has been hotter than I have ever felt before.  We had a record setting 39 degrees Celsius (102 degrees Fahrenheit) on our second day in Japan.  With the humidity caused by the surrounding ocean, my pores are certainly getting a work out.  I owe a deep and sincere gratitude to the inventor of the Air Conditioner!
     I have driven for the first time in Japan.  Ryoko and I took a trip to the local store at 6:00 AM (Jet lag induced earliness) and I nervously took the wheel.  All went well and I anticipate that I will be a regular driver soon.
     There is a battle in my digestive system between my American bacteria and the invading Japanese bacteria.  It is a minor reenactment of WW2 with all the expected bathroom casualties.  The Americans are holding out as I keep sending them vast quantities of coffee to bolster their spirits, but the invaders are too numerous.  Wave after wave of Japanese marines wash up on my duodenum and have whittled away the entrenched Americans.  Even with their resolute attitude and vast courage, my home grown boys are bound to "loose" this battle.  Thankfully the toilet here has a bidet already built in, so it is easy to keep the battle field clean. . .

Farming is a risky business!

We have just learned of a most sad occurrence, the corn has been pilfered!  Apparently there is a critter that resembles a raccoon in Japan called a Palm Civet.  They also appear to enjoy corn much like the Raccoon does here.  Oba-chan was upset to find her crop decimated by this bandit of the night. . .