Congratulations to local author, Seán Michael Wilson! -- Kirk
2021-02-25 09:30 JST 2021 Congratulations to local author, Seán Michael Wilson! -- Kirk ↗ View original post on Facebook For a link to the original post on Facebook, open this page on a computer. Reactions: 30 · Comments: 2 · Shares: 2 ← 2021-02-24 18:04 JST 2021-02-25 14:43 JST → Around this time … 2021-02-28 09:56 JSTHere's more about the upcoming Costco opening from Kuma Visit.-- Kirk 2021-02-27 08:33 JSTHere's and interesting post from "Untapped Kumamoto." If you're unfamiliar with this informative page, please check it out. -- Kirk https://www.facebook.com/untappedkumamoto/posts/2214803265316676 2021-02-26 22:32 JSTKirk here. A while ago I posted about MINAMATA, the Johnny Depp movie about Eugene Smith. I don't have anything new to report about the movie but I'd share this article about Smith. It think it's pretty good for the most part but I noticed one problem: "However, the disease was first discovered in 1956, after the Chisso Corporation conducted their own test and found a severe amount of heavy metals (mostly mercury) in local water bodies. "As far as I can tell, everything after the date, 1956, in the above sentence is wrong. Here's a much better summary of what happened in 1956 from the Wikipedia page:"On 21 April 1956, a five-year-old girl was examined at Chisso's factory hospital in Minamata. The physicians were puzzled by her symptoms: difficulty walking, difficulty speaking, and convulsions. Two days later, her younger sister also began to exhibit the same symptoms and she, too, was hospitalised. The girls' mother informed doctors that her neighbour's daughter was also experiencing similar problems. After a house-to-house investigation, eight further patients were discovered and hospitalised. On 1 May, the hospital director reported to the local public health office the discovery of an 'epidemic of an unknown disease of the central nervous system', marking the official discovery of Minamata disease."https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minamata_diseaseSo, the "discovery" was the first official report about there being some kind of health issue. It's true that Chisso did its own testing and the hid the results, but that came a good deal later.Other than that, the article is fine, as far as I can tell.Is Minamata Based on a True Story? Was W. Eugene Smith a Real Photographer? 2021-02-25 20:59 JSTHi friends.If you are Kumamoto residents, you might know 水前寺公園 Suizenzi park also has lots beautiful plum trees. Yes, it's the beautiful season to visit there.If you visit there on this Saturday evening, you can enjoy the beautiful plum blossoms and beautiful lightning.It will be held till 8pm. The people who wear kimono don't need to pay the entrance fee in February but unfortunately you should wear mask too.Hoping you enjoy the beautiful spring colors and spring light both ーAtsuko(*ˊ˘ˋ*)♡ https://matsuri-no-hi.com/matsuri/33634http://www.suizenji.or.jp/ 2021-02-25 14:43 JSTMINIATURE LIFE EXHIBITION 2 Tatsuya Tanaka Main WorksContemporary Art Museum, Kumamoto, Gallery I,IIDates January 29(Fri)－March 14(Sun), 2021https://www.camk.jp/english/I saw something about this on TV. Looks interesting. -- Kirk 2021-02-25 09:30 JSTCongratulations to local author, Seán Michael Wilson! -- … (this post) 2021-02-24 18:04 JSTKirk here. Here's something from KUMAMON about an exhibition that is in progress and ends of on March 7th. 2021-02-24 12:08 JSTJoe Tomei here, this from the Mainichi about foreign eligibility for vaccinationshttps://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20210212/p2a/00m/0na/046000cThis looks a bit tricky for non-Japanese speaking residents so as it comes closer, I hope we can give more details.FAQ: How foreign residents can get coronavirus vaccinations in Japan - The Mainichi 2021-02-24 11:00 JSTKirk here. First, financially, Kumamon rocks! https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20210209/p2a/00m/0bu/020000cSecond, here's something about an online event (not my thing but . . .)Even with COVID-19, Kumamoto Prefecture would like to thank everyone online - KUMAMON 2021https://finance.yahoo.com/news/even-covid-19-kumamoto-prefecture-020000570.htmlSales of Japan mascot Kumamon's goods reach record high of $1.62 billion - The Mainichi 2021-02-23 22:56 JSTNoyaki (the burning of the fields) in Aso is usually done with good control but sometimes there are accidents. In the past, people have become trapped in the flames and lost their lives. Today, the flames spread to nearby forests. According to the video report at the following link, it took a couple of hours (helicopter deployment, etc.) to get the fire under control.https://rkk.jp/news/index.php?id=NS003202102231811180111Click on the following link to see previous posts about the noyaki practice and how this ancient practice is what gives the Aso area its distinctive appearance.https://www.facebook.com/page/123734781033296/search/?q=noyaki-- Kirk 2021-02-23 11:30 JSTKirk here. The history of the controversy surrounding the Kawabegawa dam goes back decades. It's something we've discussed on the page many times in past years. I won't try to review the history but I'll add a few links to the bottom of this article for those who might be interested.https://www.nippon.com/en/news/yjj2020111900164/Scrapped dam may have limited flood damage from Kumamoto rainshttps://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/08/26/national/kuma-river-dam-flood-damage-kumamoto/Some previous Kumamoto International posts that include the word "Kawabegawa":https://www.facebook.com/page/123734781033296/search?q=kawabegawaEnglish summary of governor's statement from in which he said that "we should withdraw the existing plan for the Kawabe-Gawa dam, and should pursue other flood control measures which do not require the construction of a dam" (that is, the opposite of his most recent decision):https://www.pref.kumamoto.jp/uploaded/attachment/17697.pdfThe last pdf is not dated, as it should be. I can't recall offhand the date of the decision but it's been about a decade now, I think. Until today, I wasn't not aware of the existence of such an English summary. I think it's an interesting historical document in view of recent events.Kumamoto Governor Supports Dam Construction