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This indicates that Kumamoto has a low probability (about 30%) of experiencing tropical storm winds within the next three days as a result of the approaching typhoon:

http://www.tropicalstormrisk.com/

Official "One Piece" mikan will go on sale this fall. For details, see the article, which is in English.

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2012-08-24/nami-mikan-oranges-from-one-piece-manga-sold-in-real-life

A category 4 typhoon is approaching Okinawa. I think that Katrina, the hurricane that hit New Orleans, was a category 4 when it hit. I hope the folks in Okinawa are OK. This storm probably won't cause too much trouble in Kumamoto (I hope) but it's a good idea to keep an eye on it. This image comes from the following site, my favorite for following typhoons:
http://www.tropicalstormrisk.com/

Fujii Mizuki of the "Fujikaki" pair is from Ashikita in southern Kumamoto. The pair will be competing for a gold medal tonight at 11:40:

http://tv.yahoo.co.jp/program/59430312/

Here's some video of the "White Dragon" (白龍; hakuryu) that will be part of tomorrows festivities in Kikuchi and a link to some information about the festival that I just posted to Kumamoto-i:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/kumamoto-i/message/12035

There will be a festival in Yatsushiro on Saturday.

The weather in Kumamoto will get worse with the approach of the typhoon. Thankfully, though, it doesn't look like the storm presents a serious threat for Kumamoto. You can keep an eye on it here:

http://www.tropicalstormrisk.com/

Click on the following link to see the details about this bike that's being sold:
http://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/397458986985368?notif_t=share_wall_create
HYPERDRIVE 500

In Japanese, you can write from top to bottom, left to right, and, on vehicles, front to back. ("OK TAXI," Kumamoto, Japan)

There's nothing like a teddy bear in a police suit to strike fear into the hearts of Kumamoto's shoplifters. (Anti-shoplifting poster, Kumamoto, Japan)

There'll be a fireworks show in Tamana on the 3rd (Friday).

Here's a detailed article about members of a Chinese who came to Kumamoto to learn about Minamata disease:
http://ajw.asahi.com/article/asia/china/AJ201207270071
Here's the URL of the original Japanese article:
http://www.asahi.com/international/intro/TKY201207250672.html
China trying to learn from Japan's experience of industrial pollution - AJW by The Asahi Shimbun
BEIJING--Decades of rapid economic growth in China have come with an environmental price: monumental industrial pollution.

Please click on the images to see explanation in English. All of this information comes from the following pdf: http://www.livikuma.com/up_file/topic/1207/24121550_1.pdf

RSS Graffiti (the application I use post content from the Yahoo Groups page to this Facebook page) occasional publishes the same item twice. I don't know why. I hope the problem will clear itself up soon.

INJM - Day 3 of Kyushu trip - Volunteering in Oita
As always, for more info please check out homepage http://itsnotjustmud.com or our facebook page, http://facebook.com/ItsNotJustMud

Usage of this page picked up with the flooding and mudslides. Of course, I would have preferred a peaceful, safe world in which demand for information did not increase at all. Still, I'm happy if the page helped to fill in a few information gaps during the crisis.

These still images are from television programs that discussed the failure of Kumamoto City to tell citizens of the Tatsuda school district to evacuate. Please click on the pictures to read the English captions that tell the story of what went wrong.

We've been having some discussion on Kumamoto-i about English education in Japan -- specifically the assumption that native speakers are better teachers of English than non-native speakers. If you're interested in this topic, check out the following link and the followup messages in the thread:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/kumamoto-i/message/11980
Yahoo! Groups

The students could only work doing the morning on Wednesday but I'm sure their help was deeply appreciated.

This is a "pointing a video camera at the TV" video with occasional commentary in English.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3Cjr60ud_E
Oita and Kumamoto Flooding
More video of our local news coverage provided by Zero. The devastation is incredible.