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Google reminded me this morning that today marks the 434th anniversary of the Gregorian calendar. A bit of digging around informed me that 明治5年10月1日（which is equivalent to November 1, 1872） saw the announcement that the Gregorian calendar would be adopted in Japan the following year. It must have been confusing - I mean, I get confused by daylight savings time, and that's just one hour on a single day.
A beautiful surprise was that the numerically numb current Japanese names for months used to be much more poetic; we're now in Kaminazuki (神無月, "Month of the Gods" - I know, 無 is a negative, but it's complicated). Halfway down this Wikipedia page is a very informative list.
Below left is a calendar from 1729 (try and figure that out!) and right is an official pamphlet explaining the transition to the Gregorian calendar from 1872.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_calendar

The typhoon has weakened from a category 5 to a 4 and is still expected to pass to our north tomorrow morning. We are not predicted to be hit directly by it, but it is powerful enough that Kumamoto is in the purple area you see on the image -- highly likely to experience tropical storm winds in the next 36 hours.
-- Kirk
http://tropicalstormrisk.com

I have some bad news and some good news about the typhoon:
Bad news: The storm is now a super typhoon -- category 5.
Good news: At this point, it looks as though it will not come close enough to Kumamoto for the wind damage to be severe.
Nonetheless, even if the winds are not extremely strong here in Kumamoto, flooding and landslides from heavy rains may be more likely. Moreover, if there is an unexpected change in the path of the storm, that could be bad news for us. Stay tuned.
-- Kirk

The Kumanichi published a trilogy regarding three women, each strangers to each other, who were thrown together with their dogs as they shared refuge at the Techno Research Park after the quakes. The three also shared striking similarities: all are from Mashiki, are in their 70s, and before the quakes lived alone with only their dogs for company. I'll introduce just the first of the stories below.
Shibata Sumiko, 75, has lived for 11 years with her miniature dachshund, Cookie, who was given to the couple by a relative who wished to encourage her faltering husband - six of them alone since her husband entered a care facility. The Techno site was closed at the end of May, and she was forced to move to the town gymnasium refuge, a facility which did not accept pets. Fortunately, she found someone to care for Cookie during the two months she spent there before she was finally moved to prefab refugee housing and reunited with Cookie. She remarked, "Based on average lifespan, I have another ten years. Talking with others, they exclaim, 'Let's rebuild and be neighbors again together!', but I doubt if that is realistic." The article notes that Cookie at that point seemed to bow his head with nostalgia at his old life.
All three articles are linked to below. - William
http://this.kiji.is/155502235930591234?c=92619697908483575
http://this.kiji.is/155504679854540280?c=92619697908483575
http://this.kiji.is/155504690591024629?c=92619697908483575
『被災者日記』愛犬と寄り添い再びー避難所で出会った３人① - 熊本日日新聞
テクノ仮設団地で暮らす柴田澄子さんと愛犬のクッキー＝益城町 　熊本地震で自宅が被災し、益城町の避難所で偶然出会った女性３人は、ペットと寝泊まりできる仮設テントで約１カ月、共同生活を送りました。全員１人暮らしの７０代。プレハブの仮設住宅、みな...

This is about a sushi shop in Osaka (not Kumamoto) that put considerably more wasabi on the sushi they prepared for foreign guests than they normally would. People on a Korean website called this "wasabi terrorism" and took it as an act of hostility toward foreigners. The shop owners admitted that an employee had been serving wasabi-laden sushi to foreigners but said that this practice arose from repeated requests from foreign customers for more wasabi.
I tend to think that this was probably not a case of hostility toward foreigners but rather an example of stereotyping and bad assumptions. Don't assume that every foreigner wants what a few, or even a majority, have requested. Ask! If you have difficulty communicating and are not sure what the customer wants, prepare the food normally!
-- Kirk
P.S. Here's the URL of a Japan Times article about the matter:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/10/03/national/osaka-sushi-chain-apologizes-excess-wasabi-served-non-japanese-denies-ill-intent/
http://news.tbs.co.jp/newseye/tbs_newseye2882648.html
　大阪の寿司店が外国人観光客にわさびを大量に入れた寿司を提供しているとして、インターネット上で批判されていた問題で、運営会社がこれを認め、謝罪しました。 　この問題は、大阪・中央区の寿司店「市場ずし 難波店」で、韓国人などの外国人観光客が訪れた際、通常より明らかに多いわさびが入れられたとして、インターネット上で「わさび爆弾」などと批判されていたものです。 　「市場ずし」の運営会社はホームページに謝罪文を掲載。３日朝、取材に応じた難波店の店長は、「一部の職人が外国人にわさびを多く握っていた」と認めたうえで、差別的な意図はなかったと説明しました。 　「外国の方が来たら、ほとんどが『ワサビ、ワサビ』...

This morning's NHK reported the names of Japanese scholars listed as "2016 Thomson Reuters Citation Laureates." The list includes Hiroshi Maeda, currently with Sojo University and formerly a researcher at Kumamoto University. He is one of three Japanese scholars who has been recognized by the organization as a likely candidate for a 2016 Nobel Prize, announcements for which will begin soon.
http://stateofinnovation.thomsonreuters.com/2016-citation-laureates
For my tastes, NHK is a bit too fixated on the nationality of the laureates (i.e. how many Japanese win). On the other hand, I have to admit that I would be happy to hear that a local had scholar received this honor.
-- Kirk

Predictions for the typhoon are considerably less dire today. The current prediction is that it will be a category 1 (not 4) when it is closest to Kumamoto and, judging from images of the predicted path, it may be far enough north so as not to be a major problem for Kumamoto.
The image is from
https://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/western-pacific/2016/Typhoon-Chaba
The site I have referred to earlier
http://tropicalstormrisk.com
is offering similar projections.
-- Kirk

This shows a category 4 typhoon (one step away from a "super typhoon") making a direct hit on Kumamoto in 60 hours (early Wednesday morning).
-- Kirk
http://tropicalstormrisk.com

The 158 households in the Chono and Hakamano districts of Aso received some good news yesterday when their water supply was restored for the first time since 4/16. Prior to the quakes, both villages received water from the same spring, but damage to piping was compounded by June's torrential rains, which choked off the spring. Yesterday's water supply comes from a well dug to replace the spring. This was particularly welcome for cattle farmers, who had to truck in up to a ton of water daily for their cattle. Below is a happy cow and a happy rancher, enjoying the infrastructure we all take for granted. - William
http://this.kiji.is/155167482396853750?c=92619697908483575
断水５カ月半ぶり解消　南阿蘇村の２地区 - 熊本日日新聞
５カ月半ぶりに断水が解消された長野地区で、あか牛に水を飲ませる農家の山口達志さん＝１日午後、南阿蘇村　熊本県南阿蘇村の長野・袴野地区（１５８戸）で１日、地震から５カ月半ぶりに断水が解消された。熊本地震と豪雨で水源が埋まったため、新たな仮設井...

TropicalStormRisk.com updated its predictions since my last post. Unfortunately, the needle is moving in the wrong direction. Now the prediction is for a Category 4 storm! A storm that lands as a Category 4 would be a more powerful storm than Katrina when it hit New Orleans in 2005; Katrina was a Category 3 when it landed. Category 4 cyclones have wind speeds of 209-251 kph or 130-156 mph. Moreover, the prediction now shows the storm landing just north of Kumamoto City. To use a bowling analogy, this is Kumamoto's "strike zone." As I have written before, typhoons and hurricanes in the northern hemisphere spin counter clockwise. For this reason, winds coming from a cyclone slightly to our north come from the ocean to strike with full force. When a typhoon passes slightly to our south the winds to have to travel over the Aso mountains before the hit people in Kumamoto City.
So, let's all hope for the best but those of you in vulnerable areas or those of you who are planning to travel at that time should be aware that you might need to change your plans in order to insure your safety.
-- Kirk
http://tropicalstormrisk.com

If current predictions are correct, it looks like Kumamoto will be hit by a strong typhoon early in the morning on Wednesday. I checked the Japanese JMA site and it also indicates that the storm system should pass over Kumamoto before daybreak on Wednesday morning. Currently, TropicalStormRisk.com (see attached image) says that the storm is predicted to be transitioning from a Category 3 (winds of 178-208 kilometers per hour) to a Category 2 (154-177 kph) as it moves over Kumamoto. Of course, these are just predictions; no one knows for sure exactly what will happen. I'm hoping for the best but it's probably a good idea to err on the side of caution and assume that we will be hit by a very significant typhoon.
-- Kirk
http://tropicalstormrisk.com

Last night I recorded a documentary about Masahiko Nakashima, the person who is producing these high-quality videos in an effort to help raise money to rebuild Aso Shrine. In the documentary, it said that the goal is to get the word about the need to rebuild the the shrine to people throughout the world. That reminded me to check to see if the YouTube videos have English subtitles and, indeed, they do. If you cannot see the English subtitles here on Facebook, please view the video on YouTube and use the "CC" (closed caption) function to select the English subtitles, which are very well done. You may need to use the gear-shaped "settings" button to choose the English subtitles.
If you are interested in donating, please got to
https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/charmaine-minami-1
This page has been set up by Charmaine Minami, one of the editors of this page.
-- Kirk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpDr8czgR7c
#3【料理旅館つるや 若女将 工藤亜貴子さん】 Akiko Kudo - Cuisine Ryokan Tsuruya Proprietress-
阿蘇神社の側で１００年以上を続ける老舗旅館の若女将、工藤亜貴子さん。阿蘇神社が壊れていても、周りからでも前に向かって歩いていかなくてはいけないと強く語っていただきました。 Akiko Kudo the owner of the Ryori Tsuruya Ryokan tells us how the local...

Sorry to hear that your English school couldn't recover from the quake, Jerry.
I'm sharing this on the page in the hope that doing so will allow more people to see your post.
-- Kirk

Kumanichi reports that the two-car diesel train which had been stranded at Aso's Akamizu Station on JR's Hohi Line since the main quake of 4/16 has been loaded onto trucks and sent to Kitakyushu for refurbishment. The train had been running passengerless to Miyachi Station when the quake struck and was derailed; after being rerailed, it was able neither to return to Kumamoto nor continue to Oita due to landslides and bridge outings, so it was parked in Akamizu.
The article notes that train service was restored between Oita and Kumamoto's Kurokawa in July, but restoration of the remaining portion remains undecided. This has placed a burden on local residents, who must now use buses to access Kumamoto City, greatly increasing travel time.
http://kumanichi.com/news/local/main/20160929013.xhtml
震災で脱線したＪＲ車両撤去　阿蘇市の赤水駅－熊本のニュース│ くまにちコム
熊本日日新聞社が取材した熊本のニュース。新聞紙面に掲載前の記事もお伝えします。

Today is Kirk Masden's birthday. I do not know how old he turns, just that it is far older than I. Kirk has been and remains a pillar of generous support for so many, and his self-effacing calmness pays tribute to his intellect, his Midwestern upbringing, and his decency.
I invite all Kumamoto International members to wish Kirk a very happy birthday here, below. - William

To American expats reading this page,
Regardless of who you favor in the upcoming election, expats like us should vote. This service makes it easy to prepare the document that you need to mail in to register to vote from Japan. I just filled it out myself. It was painless and easy. Now all I need to do is sign it, mail it in and wait for my ballot to come in the mail.
-- Kirk
P.S. Believe me, if we all vote, this is going to be HUGE, I promise you. ;)
The October surprise that will end Trump
The 8 million Americans abroad almost never vote, but now they can decide the election with a new dead-easy voter registration tool. Help make this page famous by sharing and make sure the most global Americans decide this election.

William has already posted about the typhoon that is approaching but I'd like to chime in too. The image you see is the prediction for 96 hours (4 days) from today. That would be Tuesday night. The good news is that the predicted route seems to be far enough south that Kumamoto would not get the worst of if (though that is bad news for Kagoshima). On the other hand, the bad news is that the prediction is for a VERY significant storm -- a category 3 -- when it is closest to us. Hurricane Katrina, which devastated New Orleans in 2005, was a category 3 storm when it made landfall. (It had been a category 5 but, at the time of landfall, it had weakened to a 3.) So, a category 3 storm would be significant. I'm hoping that it turns out to be milder than expected and that it misses Kyushu entirely but I think it's wise to be aware that this storm system may turn out to be very dangerous. More to come . . .
-- Kirk
http://tropicalstormrisk.com

We received an inquiry about how to meet people in Kumamoto:
"I would like to meet more foreign friends living in Kumamoto or Japanese who can speak English.
Do you have any suggestions about what I should do? Should I join the Yahoo! group that you made?
Do you hold gatherings for foreigners?"
I have never tried to organize a get-together for reads of this Facebook page and it's been a long time since I did something like that for the mailing list. If some of you who are reading this post would be so kind as to offer a suggestion or two I would really appreciate it.
-- Kirk
P.S. Joining the Yahoo group (https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/kumamoto-i/conversations/messages) might be a good idea. I think that if you post an inquiry to the group, you will probably get quite a few responses. In that group there are quite a few people who don't like to post publicly but who are happy to respond in a private e-mail.

Typhoon 18 expected track. Another thing to keep an eye on.

A note from the Kumamoto International botany desk:
It is that season again when the whole neighborhood smells like bubblegum! What could it be? Look around a bit and you'll find an unassuming evergreen festooned with thousands of tiny orange blossoms. This is the fragrant olive (kinmokusei, 金木犀 - or, if white, the ginmokusei 銀木犀 - not actually related to the olive). Japanese gardeners are careful to cultivate plants which invite enjoyment in every season, and the pervasive, delightful fragrance of the fragrant olive stretches from late September through October.
Kanji fans might have noticed that 犀 is normally pronounced "sai" in Japanese and means rhinoceros. The name derives from China, where apparently the bark of the plant was considered to resemble the skin of the rhino (the Javan rhinoceros used to range through southern China but is now on the verge of extinction with only some 60 animals left).
The tree is relatively unattractive, but the fragrance is heavenly and a harbinger of autumn. Enjoy it while it lasts! - William https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osmanthus_fragrans
Osmanthus fragrans - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Osmanthus fragrans (lit. "fragrant osmanthus"; Chinese: 桂花, guìhuā, and 木樨, mùxī; Cantonese Yale: gwai3 fa1; Japanese: 木犀, mokusei; Hindi: सिलंग, silang), variously known as sweet osmanthus, sweet olive, tea olive, and fragrant olive, is a species native to Asia from the Himalayas through southern C...