A bit of information about how the castle structure is being reinforced. -- Kirk
2018-11-18 17:36 JST 2018 A bit of information about how the castle structure is being reinforced. -- Kirk Shock absorbers make Kumamoto Castle a tower of strength：The Asahi ShimbunKUMAMOTO--Quake-stricken Kumamoto Castle is turning into a tower of strength, as hefty reinforcement https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201810160039.html?utm_i … ↗ View original post on Facebook For a link to the original post on Facebook, open this page on a computer. Reactions: 18 · Comments: 0 · Shares: 2 ← 2018-11-17 17:34 JST 2018-11-18 22:17 JST → Around this time … 2018-11-22 14:34 JSTNow that the dilapidated housing across the street has been cleared, construction has started on a mansion all the neighbors agree is far too ambitious for the lot. As it will require a strong foundation, deep holes are being dug using a collection of monstrous machines which I'd seen before but didn't know the name of in any language. So I ventured over to ask.The young worker who kindly responded to my beckoning said 「チヤック」- "chuck" -and, noticing my confusion, gave me its more formal name: 「全周回転機」(ぜんしゅうかいてんき). A somewhat prolonged Google search provided it's English translation: "casing rotator." (It's also called a "chuck" in English.) Basically, a huge pipe with teeth is lowered into a gigantic rotator to dig, and an immense crane drops a weight with a device at the tip that looks like a stork beak that snaps shut when it hits the bottom and is raised to empty its contents, and the process repeats. The casing will be left in place, filled with concrete, and - voila!- a foundation.The problem is that it creates localized tremors equivalent to maybe M2 repeatedly, all day. My dog loathes earthquakes, so he is not a happy pup. Below is a schematic of the apparatus and links to a Youtube video of how it works and an English-language explanation. And I learned some new words today in two languages. - Williamhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=87&v=6MY7XqvoNcshttp://www.n-sharyo.co.jp/business/kiden_e/topic20120709.html 2018-11-21 15:34 JSTMy favorite bakery, a shop called Biggi, which is run by a lady who learned her craft in Germany, bakes bread for these hungry athletes when they are in Kumamoto.For more about the bakery:https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/1842977225775701-- KirkGerman squad tests their 2020 pre-olympic training location in Japan 2018-11-20 09:47 JSTThe Abe administration is moving to create new categories of foreign workers. Until Abe's most recent proposal, the "polite fiction" (tatemae) that Japan does not issue visas for low-skilled workers was maintained by carving out exceptions for people of Japanese ancestry and then by creating "training" or "intern" programs that are more about providing labor to certain industries than actually training people. Now, the government is poised to step farther away from the no-low-skilled-labor fiction by setting up new categories for foreign workers that are intended to satisfy the demand for manual labor in a number of industries. Unfortunately, the idea that foreigners are only temporary, disposable laborers is being maintained and Abe is asserting that this is NOT an "immigration" policy. To learn more the latest policy proposals, see the following article:https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Japan-Immigration/Abe-bets-big-on-adding-foreign-workersIn regard to Kumamoto, the following article points to the heavy reliance on foreign labor in the agricultural sector here:"Ikuo Kabashima, the 71-year-old governor of the southern prefecture of Kumamoto, agrees that the presence of foreigners is indispensable for the survival of the Japanese farming industry. 'Without foreign laborers, Japanese agriculture is unimaginable,' he said.In October 2017, the Kumamoto Prefectural Government set a goal of establishing 'agriculture that links us with the world' and applied to be certified as a national strategic special zone. The concept entailed foreigners working at farms and fruit-sorting sites during the busy season, while gaining expert knowledge by studying Japanese language and agriculture at universities and other institutions."-- Kirkhttps://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20181116/p2a/00m/0na/002000cShrinking Japan: Asian interns carrying the weight of agriculture industry - The Mainichi 2018-11-19 09:40 JSTThis is a basic introduction to basashi. The article includes the following factoids:"Consuming meat, equine or otherwise, is a fairly recent acceptable practice in Japan. For more than 1,000 years, eating meat was punishable by law. On January 24, 1872, however, Emperor Meiji led by carnivorous example and publicly announced that he ate meat. He saw animal protein as a means of modernizing and enhancing the population’s health and strength, particularly with regards to the army."This is a very rough simplification of a rather complex history. I took a look at the following Japanese Wikipedia article to try to improve my understanding of the prohibitions and taboos against eating meat:https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/日本の獣肉食の歴史One of the points made in the article is that, although there have been taboos and prohibitions against all forms of meat at various times, meat has been consumed to some extent throughout Japanese history. Also, the strongest taboos have been against raising animals for slaughter and that consuming the meat from wild animals (deer, boars, etc.) was relatively more acceptable. Another point made is that animals with more legs were considered to be worse. Fish --> no legs so no problem. Birds --> two legs, not as good as fish but not terrible. Four-legged mammals --> least acceptable. These taboos had to do, in part at least, with Buddhist thought.This got me thinking about about the raising of horses and cattle in Aso:https://www.aso-sougen.com/now/01/keep_02.htmlI took a look at the short article above and got the impression (though I couldn't find a complete explanation) that the area was famous for raising working animals: horses for military use and oxen for other kinds of labor. So, while the practice of burning the fields in the Aso area to provide fodder for horses and cattle seems to have a very long history, the reasons for raising those animals seem to have changed in the last 100 years or so.All this makes the bashi tradition that much more interesting to me. As I understand it, it has roots in the the Siege of Ulsan, which Wikipedia says started on December 22, 1597 and lasted until November 23, 1598:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katō_KiyomasaIn that siege, Kato Kiyomasa and his soldiers are said to have slaughtered and ate their horses to survive. It is my understanding that this led to the practice of consuming horse meat in Kumamoto. I'm not sure, though, how the local traditions was or was not affected by prohibitions against the consumption of animal flesh, particularly in regard to domesticated animals.-- Kirkhttps://www.atlasobscura.com/foods/basashi-horse-meat 2018-11-18 22:17 JSTCommunities all over Japan have a lot riding of the success of their yurukyara -- mascots with people inside. Today on NHK's evening news show, a good deal of time was spent discussing a kind of ballot stuffing that has been alleged in the election of this year's number one yurukyara. First, here's a link to the NHK video (in Japanese):https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/20181118/k10011715301000.htmlThe images you see are from that video. NHK focused on claims that Yokkaiichi got municipal employees to vote en masse for their character. Kumamon came up in the context of a discussion of the motivation for such cheating: money. Kumamon is known to have brought the prefecture lots of money in merchandise sales and to have been effective in promoting the prefecture. Kumamon's status in this regard was significantly enhanced by its (his?) victory in the first yurukyara contest, which was held in 2011. So, the idea is that Yokkaiichi has been willing to cheat in order to reap similar benefits. Here's an English article describing claims against Yokkaiichi:https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20181112/p2a/00m/0na/013000c-- Kirk 2018-11-18 17:36 JSTA bit of information about how the castle structure is being …Shock absorbers make Kumamoto Castle a tower of strength：The Asahi Shimbun (this post) 2018-11-17 17:34 JSTHere's another rugby-related item.-- KirkKumamoto Castle Park to reopen for 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan 2018-11-17 13:48 JSTUmmmm. Insecty . . .An article in the Kumanichi says that the vending machine can be found on the Kokai Shopping Street (Kokai Shotengai) where it is a "mushi dekinai" item (a pun on the word "mushi" [insect] and the expression meaning "cannot be ignored").https://kumanichi.com/news/705976/The banner says "world's first edible insect vending machine" but I think they just assumed that this HAD to be the first, though it isn't. A quick internet search turned this uphttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mud6YeaUhMIn fact, it's not even the first in Japan. See https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1999/aug/11/jonathanwattsThe Japan News article (URL at bottom of this page) seems to defend the "first" claim by saying that it's the first one to be put in this kind of market. OK . . . but that's not what the banner says!! :(This reminds me of the description of the caldera in Aso. It's correct to say that it is "among the largest in the world" (世界最大級のカルデラ) but that is sometimes simplified to become "the largest in world" (世界最大のカルデラ). But, hey, it's too good to check (unless you happen to be a foreign, kuki ga yomenai curmudgeon like yours truly ;) )!!-- Kirkhttp://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0005343536?fbclid=IwAR0lDTORD09H6h_3lYRmIMZyrPMZ4sKKRAgKAAk4IBfaFyeR4EAhdeiy1Xw 2018-11-17 12:02 JSTFrom the Tangentially Related to Kumamoto Desk: The exterior of my rambling house provides many nooks for the neighborhood's stray cats, and I'm welcoming - my dog, much less so. Every neighborhood has someone who feeds the strays, usually elderly, lonely females. But the tolerance Japan shows towards our feline friends is to be admired. Here is a story of a pair of pussies smitten with art but stymied due to their species. - WilliamCurious cats bring fame to Japanese museum that won't let them in 2018-11-17 07:30 JSTNext year!-- KirkKumamoto grateful for opportunity to host Rugby World Cup matches | The Japan Times 2018-11-16 17:23 JSTAfter having been tragically destroyed by Godzilla in 1996, Kotsu Center never fully recovered. (Film at link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYuIEa5DvJs - Kumamoto shows up at about 2:20.) But after much effort, area revitalization is being realized, including establishment of a public activity zone called "Hanabata Hiroba" (花畑広場). Below is a schematic of this new realization. Our friend Sean Benward noted that there will be a Christmas bazaar from 12/5 through 12/9 in the open space area, with many shops and restaurants taking part. A link to the event with details is here: https://xmas-kumamoto.com/shop-information?fbclid=IwAR3c5qLre_LjVt0XNpFGpRJ9dsHtSTpfiJ9oAwXG7MpvlJNxuca4O_9aU_sand more info about future events heading into holiday season here:https://kumamoto-guide.jp/hanabata/events/search- William
