William I found a meteorite. Seriously: It is a meteorite. What should I do with it?
Posts
Carlton. Today marks the acceptance for the 3rd tranche of reservations for Covid booster shots in Kumamoto. Those eligible will be age 65 or older who received their 2nd shots before July 21, 2021 or those under 65 who got their 2nd jabs up to and including June 27, '21. If you have not received a "ticket" or voucher from the government authorizing you to get a shot you are out of luck to the best of my knowledge.
I was part of the 2nd group and, after going on-line at the vaccination website last week, made a reservation and received my shot 4 days ago. It was a Pfizer dose, equal in volume to the first 2 shots, and I have had no side effects to date apart from the temporary sore shoulder where I was stabbed by the needle.
The clinic I went to was entirely unbusy and probably only doled out about a dozen shots for that day. That seems to be the case for all the small clinics and hospitals involved in this project. Kumamoto continues its steady and measured pace of distribution.
I heard that there may be a or a few mass vaccination sites with Moderna medication opening from February 14 in order to speed up the process. I hope so since I imagine many people are getting rather impatient.
William How the Kumamoto Clamshell Scam unfolds is interesting to observe. As suspected, clams originating in other Asian countries are temporarily planted in Ariake sea and when harvested are then claimed to originate from that area.
As a Californian, I can understand the dilemma. California makes excellent sparkling wine that cannot be termed "Champagne" is it is not from the Champagne region of France; thus, it is termed "sparkling wine" or "cava" though it is really the same thing (and saves you money!) So the question is: when is a clam from Ariake termed to be actually from Ariake, and how much is that distinguishment worth? (The graph regarding who flows what to whom reminds me of the meth flow from my home state - just a reminder that it could be quite worse.)
https://kumanichi.com/articles/549507
William A magical point arises when the westward setting sun alights the westward facing windows with majestic goldenness. Our friend Kubota-san has provided us with such an image (but you really had to be there!)
William A "gomaki" (護摩木) is not something you're likely to confront in everyday life: it's that little stick upon which Shinto priests inscribe prayers and promptly burn in the belief that said prayer will take the express elevator to heaven (but at least you don't have to swallow it, as Catholics must do with the offering).
Aso Shrine in Ichinomiyamachi yesterday conducted this festival. Questions of belief are irrelevant here. What is is the tradition of ancestors and subsequent respect.
https://kumanichi.com/articles/549326
Fiona here with a recommendation for a really good pizza place in Kikuyo. Horikawa Pizza serves authentic Italian pizza (the chef trained in Naples) and offers indoor and outdoor seating as well as takeaway service. It's open for lunch (11am to 3pm) and dinner (6pm to 9pm), closed on Tuesdays. There's ample parking and it's also close to Sanrigi station.
https://horikawapizza.com/
William Tomochi （砥用) might be considered a "town" were it not in perpetual peril of sliding down the hill into Midori Kawa, which knives through as a river does impatient with better places to go. Tomochi embodies that kind of feeling akin to when you've tilted your chair back to the point where you're going to fall backwards but somehow don't and retain that position for a thousand years. Tomochi is more of a thing of the mind than it is an address. There is, to say, no "there" there, a land in which the concept of "flat" remains completely foreign, more of a concept than a location. My wife's maternal side hails from Yabe, a basin offering bounteous agricultural opportunities, and Yabe people have long looked down on her paternal side's Tomochi people, both literally and figuratively (and Yabe people have long learned to figurate everything). Tomochi is, though, a hidden treasure, harboring many stone bridges and trailheads of paths heading out to Kyushu hinterlands more hinterlandish than itself. Buses headed out that way depart from Kotsu Center. Spring, when the trees are blossoming, is a nice time to visit. (My wife's mother was said to have remarked every time she saw the "aka bus" heading out of town how lonely she was for her homeland.) http://misato.town/footpath.html?id=6perpetuall
Kirk here with a little note on the Winter Olympics. I'll be following Kumamoto's own Miyabi Onitsuka -- the amazing snowboarder this southern prefecture has produced. Her first event is tomorrow (Saturday). See the attached images for the schedule.
Here's a blurb about her:
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Took up snowboarding when she was five at an indoor practice field (Alts Bandai Snow Park), in Fukuoka City, Japan, winning her first domestic competition in the first grade. Signed her first sponsorship deal at seven. In 2017, she begged the park operators (Hoshino Resorts), to make a world-class training slope where she could base herself - and they did, calling it "Miyabi Park." (nitrosnowboards.com; olympics.com, 22 Nov 2021)
--- end quote
Source: https://olympics.com/beijing-2022/olympic-games/en/results/snowboard/athlete-profile-n1043812-miyabi-onitsuka.htm
William A note from the Kumamoto International Desk of Kanji At Which Even Native Japanese Through Hands: This is the year of the tiger. One would think it would simply be rendered 虎、but we aren't so lucky. A kanji often used is lifted from the Nihon Kokugo Daijiten of around 1005-07 AD: "寅," pronounced the same, "tora." Impress your friends with this knowledge.
https://japanknowledge.com/articles/blognihongo/entry.html?entryid=491
William Kato Kiyomasa was not the type on whose pointy end one would want to end up on, as his famous feud with Ishida Mitsunari portrays. A notable adventure of his was to invade Korea in 1598, where he reputably killed a tiger; he'd apparently planned to bring its meat back to his sovereign, Hideyoshi, but ate it on the spot as food was short. (Legend has it that Hideyoshi had hoped both would die there, thus eliminating a couple who threatened his new shogunate.)
Kato Shrine, next to the castle, would like to remind us of the good parts of this story in this, the Year of the Tiger, by erecting a tigerish façade suitable for photographs. Just hope you don't meet the real Kato in person: He'd run you through before giving a thought about breakfast.
https://kumanichi.com/articles/548192
Kirk here with a follow-up to William's posts about what this Asahi article is calling Kumamoto's "clam scam." It's a fascinating, and also rather disturbing, issue in a number of ways. For quite a long time now, imported live clams have been given a quick bath in Kumamoto's waters both to reinvigorated them and, more importantly, to make it possible to stamp them, illegally, as "produced in Kumamoto." Recently, TBS's Hodo Tokushuu did an exposé on the issue. You can watch it on the web (though it is in Japanese):
https://www.tbs.co.jp/houtoku/archive/20220122_2.html
Hodo Tokushu (報道特集) is a very good-quality news program that features mini-documentaries ("tokushuu") of over 20 minutes each. I'm a fan and I happened to see the Kumamoto clam exposé when it was first broadcast. One interesting thing is that this was all a well-known secret until TBS quite publicly spilled the beans. By that I mean that anyone who knew anything about Kumamoto's clam (asari) industry knew that clam production had declined precipitously in previous decades but could also see that lots and lots clams were being sold throughout Japan with the "produced in Kumamoto" (熊本産) label. The discrepancy between production numbers and sales numbers was an obvious red flag but, for the most part, most media outlets and politicians chose not to see what was going on.
In its recent exposé, however, Hodo Tokushu laid everything out in the open -- the emperor, er, make that "Kumamoto's oyster industry," has no clothes! Faced with a lot of obviously naked oysters politicians and media that have heretofore been complicit in the "hear no evil, see no evil" approach to the problem are suddenly indignant.
That's my main point for this post. It's true that it's a very serious issue but a separate scandal that, as far as I can tell, isn't being talked about is why government and the media have pretended not to see this for so long. In a way, that's an even bigger scandal than what people in Kumamoto have done to try to make a living selling imported clams.
I'll write about another important aspect of this issue some other day.
https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14538401
Clam scam delivers economic blow to Kumamoto | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis
The figure for the clam harvest in Kumamoto Prefecture, which is renowned for producing some of the nation’s plumpest and tastiest “asari,” simply didn’t add up, prompting an investigation by the central government into false labeling.
William There is a cat. And a door. What could go wrong? (says no one with knowledge of cats).
A cat at Kumamoto Station has learned his presence will open doors due to the door's automatic sensor, so the staff shut down the automatic function and has asked patrons to do things manually.
This brings one paws.
Kumamoto has a long history with cats. Just Google 吾輩は猫である (Wagahainekodearu - Natsume Soseki novel; he was famous for sleeping in so many sites in Kumamoto there's probably one near you).
https://kumanichi.com/articles/547192
William In the midst of studying about Ariake Sea, this stunning photo arose. More later about its ecology, ecosystem, economy, and history.
William We have launched the Facebook page KumaBiblioPhilia, a place for Kumamoto residents to share books. Please have a look. https://www.facebook.com/groups/526074871977069/?multi_permalinks=526079305309959¬if_id=1643702165734341¬if_t=feedback_reaction_generic&ref=notif
Kirk here with another COVID-19 update. The number of new infections annouced today is 1092, up from yesterday but not a new high. Yesterday was the last day of January so the Kumanichi publised the folllowing graph with monthly totals. It makes the differences between earlier flavors of COVID, Delta (August), and now Omicron crystal clear.
P.S. William shared this link with me privately. Otherwise, I'm pretty sure I would have missed it. Thanks William!
https://kumanichi.com/articles/545218
William To understand Ariake Sea is to understand Kumamoto and to know that it is the canary in the coalmine. It is not so much of a sea as a bay - a narrow body of water surrounded by four prefectures: Kumamoto, Saga, Fukuoka, and Nagasaki. And it is dying.
The canary here is the catch of asari clams. In the below graph, dark blue is Kumamoto, and as can be seen, the catch has dwindled to basically zero. Yet the shellfish remains a required element of miso-soup centered Kumamoto breakfasts. To feed this need, Japan has turned to imports, mostly from China and Korea. However, asari are a bit like champagne: produced in Spain, for example, the same item must be called "cava."
Kumamoto governor Kabashima has requested that the Prefectural Fisheries Cooperative Association suspend shipment of asari produced in Kumamoto for two months, saying that foreign-produced clams are being distributed under the guise of being produced in Kumamoto. Better in my opinion would be to restore Ariake Sea by reclaiming the water-purifying wetlands which have been sacrificed for unused farmland and unneeded seawalls.
https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/6c27cb3fdf49312e331acf62f8ab22ceb449b532
Kirk here. The number of infections confirmed today is 594, about half of the peak. Good news. I hope we're over the hump.
By the way, what follows is a quote from an e-mail I received from the International Center in Kumamoto City. The consultation service described here is something to keep in mind if you occasionally have questions related to life here in Kumamoto that you need help getting answered.
=== start quote ===
【Consultation】
If you have any troubles in daily life in Kumamoto, please consult Kumamoto City General Consultation Plaza for those who are from overseas. Multiple languages are available.
Kumamoto City General Consultation Plaza for those who are from overseas
（Managed by Kumamoto International Center）
〒860−0806
4-18, Hanabatacho, Chuo-ward, Kumamoto-City
The 2nd floor in Kumamoto International Center
Opening time : 10 am - 6 am
Closed Day ]
The 2nd and 4th Monday, New Years Holidays（December 29th ～ January 3rd）
TEL:096-359-4995（Direct one） FAX:096-359-5112
URL http://www.kumamoto-if.or.jp/plaza/
E-mail：[email protected]
熊本での生活について困ったこと、分からないことがあったら、「熊本市外国人総合相談プラザ」に相談してください。多言語で相談できます。
熊本市外国人総合相談プラザ
（運営 熊本市国際交流振興事業団）
〒860−0806 熊本市中央区花畑町4−18 熊本市国際交流会館2階
開設時間 午前10時～午後6時 休館日 第2・第4月曜日、年末年始（12月29日～1月3日）
TEL:096-359-4995（直通） FAX:096-359-5112
URL http://www.kumamoto-if.or.jp/plaza/
E-mail：[email protected]
（一財）熊本市国際交流振興事業団ホームページです
William Kumanichi introduces a group of college students primarily from Kyushu Luther Gakuin University volunteering to support children not attending school due to problems such as family environment or mental health - a number which is increasing due to the coronavirus.
Volunteers are currently being sought for a three-day activity session for children from February 12th. Those interested should contact Omi-san at the Kumamoto YMCA, 096 (353) 6391.
不登校の児童生徒の支えに 熊本県内の学生グループのボランティア｜熊本日日新聞社
不登校の児童や生徒たちの支えになろうと、熊本県内の学生らでつくるグループがボランティア活動に取り組んでいる。メンバーの一人で、熊本大法学部１年の野尻有紗さん（１９）＝熊本市＝に、活動内容や参加しての...
Kirk here with a note about a local artist we lost in 2018:
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Chimei Hamada (1917-2018) was a printmaker and sculptor that represented postwar Japan. Having gained popularity with “Elegy for a New Conscript” series, based on his own harsh war experience, he then did not only focus on the society as a motif but gradually started including motifs like human beings or the “self” as well, and so presented prints diverse in character.
---- end quote ----
Source:
https://www.tokyoartbeat.com/en/events/-/2021%2FD680
Currently, an exhibition of his work is in progress but, unfortunately, it's in Kanagawa Prefecture, not here. Here's an English page about it:
https://magcul.net/260499?lang=en
Finally, here's a link to a previous post about Mr. Hamada:
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/photos/a.129499733790134/871582739581826
William Live in Kumamoto as an American long enough and talk will eventually turn to the "Kumamoto Band." In a nutshell, an American educator, LL Janes, arrived in Kumamoto in 1871 to establish the first school of foreign learning, the Kumamoto Yogakko (熊本洋学校). The first three years saw instruction in topics such as mathematics and English, mostly to sons of former samurai, but in his fourth year (and due, apparently, to curiosity of his students), Janes began to teach (not proselytize) Christianity.
On January 30, 1876, about 40 of these students gathered at Hanaokayama to hold a prayer meeting and declare their determination to devote themselves to Christianity and serve the country. They became known as the "Kumamoto Band" (熊本バンド). Many of them later played very important rolls in the Meiji-era government and the establishment of modern education and democracy in Japan. (Janes also introduced the YMCA to Japan and had trouble translating the word "youth," which did not exist at that time.)
A ceremony is held every January 30 at a small memorial park on Hanaokayama to commemorate this event. The hill is a repository of Kumamoto history; if you haven't explored it nook and cranny, you should. Kumanichi has the story of this year's event.
https://kumanichi.com/articles/544085
