Posts

Kirk here with an iguana update. This happened in Asagiri, in the Hitoyoshi area. (Note to headline editor: I think "captured" or "found" would have been better than "on the loose captured.")
2-meter-long iguana on the loose captured in southwest Japan - The Mainichi
KUMAMOTO -- Local police on Sept. 22 captured a roughly 2-meter-long green iguana that had escaped from a house in the Kumamoto Prefecture town of Asa

William Our friend Patrick Ijima-Washburn has provided this wonderful photo of Mt Unzen, on the Shimabara peninsula across from Kumamoto, taken from Aso. Unzen is a dormant (for the moment) volcano, part of the arc which stretches from Okinawa up through Hokkaido and then around the Aleutian Islands down through the Americas - what is known as "the ring of fire."
Unzen is famous for an eruption in 1991 which generated a pyroclastic flow that killed 43 people.
Shimabara is easily accessible from Kumamoto via ferry (and the ferry is cheap and fun - bring bread for the seagulls). The town itself is very walkable. It is particularly famous for its "武家屋敷" (samurai house district). Multiple historic residences are on a street lined with canals filled with koi. Note the residences' entrances, which were designed to prevent unwanted intrusion from ninja.
Panoramic photo courtesy of Patrick. Koi photo ripped from the Web.

Kirk here with some Yamaga school lunch news.
Cockroach, Slug Found in School Lunches in Kumamoto Pref.
KUMAMOTO — A cockroach and slug were found in school lunches served this month at an elementary school in Yamaga, Kumamoto Prefecture, the city’s board of education said Friday. The pests were found at the city-run Kamoto Elementary School, according to the board’s announcement. A 1-centimter-...

Atsuko here.
Yesterday was the autumnal equinox and the weather was crisp and autumnal.
This is the autumn share of the countryside in Kumamoto, my home town of Nagomi machi.
I love the white higanbana. Kumamoto is now in the season of delicious persimmons and chestnuts. I also made o-hagi (rice cakes).
How to make Ohagi
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=4290988224307910&id=123734781033296

Sean here - Teen Powered could use one maybe two more teens leaders who are energetic, intelligent and not afraid of thinking differently.
Would really prefer a girl/women as we have enough boys/men at this time. This is an A list group of teens who are planning the 3rd annual Ezuko 2023 Trick or Trash Halloween Party
A great opportunity for the right young adult. Massage me, or Yuri, our volunteer [email protected]@gmail.com
Art by Haru

Kirk here. This post is not specific to Kumamoto. It's about the difficulty of unsubscribing from mailing lists in Japan vs. the U.S.
Here's what I've noticed: Unsubscribing from mailing lists (that is, promotional e-mails you don't want) is harder in Japan than in the U.S. The reason is that, in Japan, you have to be able to log in to your account with that company just to say "don't send me any more stuff." I first noticed this with Yahoo!Japan (which, by the way, is a particularly egregious spammer) but have since noticed that quite a few other companies follow this "spam-will-continue-until-you-are-able-to-log-in" policy too.
Today I noticed it with AU (cell phone company). I no longer have an account and don't remember my log in information so the only way to stop the e-mails seems to be to call the company. This will be my second time to make such a phone call just to get e-mails to stop coming.
In the States, by contrast, I haven't had difficulty canceling similar promotional e-mail services. Basically, they seem to be set up so that they automatically know that the link you clicked on to cancel is actually from your e-mail address and that's enough proof for them. A world of difference!
Of course, in slightly different ways, American companies also employ a sort of "make-staring-easy-but-quitting-hard" technique to increase profits. Amazon is one such example:
Amazon Prime is too damn hard to cancel, says FTC lawsuit
https://www.fastcompany.com/90913194/amazon-prime-lawsuit-too-hard-cancel-easy-signup-ftc
Generally, I would agree the commonly-voiced opinion that service in Japan tends to be very good. Clerks are usually friendly and helpful. I would have to say that I prefer typical Japanese retail service to that of my own country, the U.S. But, Japan's vaunted service has it's limits. One example is the kind of thing we see with this smiling tanuki from AU. It looks friendly and nice and everything but the effect is to make customers suffer though a tedious cancelation process unnecessarily. If AU and similar companies were truly interested in providing good service, they'd make it easier to quit!

Yesterday was the SL Aso Boy's last hurrah, after 18 years. -- Kirk
ＳＬあそＢＯＹ１８年ぶりに豊肥線走る　沿道には多くの鉄道ファン【熊本】 (23/09/22 18:45)
来年３月での引退が決まっているＳＬ人吉の蒸気機関車が１８年ぶりにＳＬあそＢＯＹとして豊肥線を走りました。２２日は、その雄姿を一目見ようと沿道に多くの鉄道ファンが訪れました。多くの鉄道ファンが見守る中、...

William There are few choices for international schools in Kumamoto, but as a Lutheran school (which is about as undogmatic as Christian sects go - their main dogma is "'Sup?," ) Kyushu Gakuin is about as good as it gets. It is a very old school, one of the first in Japan to be based on English. It also has a pretty good baseball team that, most years, get your hopes up by qualifying for Koshien and then quickly dashing them.
A fundamental force at the school, Isao Kotegawa (or "Kote-chan," as he's known) published a photo of a group of Kyugaku students in San Francisco back in 1979. It must have been a shock for all involved! (And another photo - this is how old the school is!) The church is still there, but the classroom building is now modern.
If you are raising an international child, Kyugaku would be a good consideration for JHS and HS.
https://www.facebook.com/isao.kotegawa.3

William Addiction - whether to alcohol, drugs, or even sex! - can happen to anyone. Kumamoto is fortunate to host Kikuyo Byoin, which focuses on treating these issues. Its spacious grounds are located in a secluded, wooded area - more like a resort than a hospital. The staff are kind and professional, and the food is very good. Days are spent with meetings on experiencing addiction and how to manage it. The hospital accepts national health insurance, which means it is probably cheaper to stay there than at home. PM me if you have any questions. https://www.kikuyouhp.jp/?fbclid=IwAR0Gscy96HzsQnKvzOH8_rkO7ThXZA32ZOdi2413-ZsnuiK49nvpgwWKs-I
私たちは患者様を病気をもった人というだけでなく、同じ社会のなかで人権をもって生きている人、生活している人という全人的視点から、患者様の立場に立った治療や援助を行います。

Red spider lilies from Kuma Visit there. These flowers have two Japanese names: manjushage (曼珠沙華) and higanbana (彼岸花). One theory about the etymology of manjushage is that it's part of a Buddhist sutra with origins in Sanskrit. According to the theory, in the sutra, the sound of the Sanskrit word for "red" was translated into Chinese characters and that was then brought into Japanese. No wonder Japanese can seem pretty darn difficult at times!
https://www.otani.ac.jp/yomu_page/b_yougo/nab3mq0000000rnh.html
The other word, "higanbana," means "the flower that blooms around the time of the Autumnal Equinox" which is September 23 this year. That's today! Right on time!
https://www.facebook.com/kumavisit/posts/693189695601412:693189695601412

Kirk here reporting that Hiromi Chida, founder of Kuma Visit, got written up in Kumanichi Spice. Congratulations Hiromi! The article mentions her Facebook page, which I hope most of you already know about:
https://www.facebook.com/kumavisit
It also mentions her multilingual radio program The Kuma Post, which is broadcast on Kumamoto City FM from 12:50 to 1:00 PM on Sundays.
https://fm791.jp/program/105
I must confess that I haven't listened to it yet but I will soon!!
P.S. Hiromi, please let us know when the program will be in English for the most part.

Kirk here. More air service between Taiwan in Kumamoto.
China Airlines launches flights between Taipei and Kumamoto
China Airlines has launched flights between Taoyuan Airport (TPE) in Taipei and Aso Kumamoto Airport (KMJ) in Kyushu. The Taiwanese airline is operating the route with two flights per week using A321neo aircraft every Monday and Friday, with two additional flights scheduled to take off on Thursdays....

William China Airlines will launch flights to Taipei. This jumping off point might be of use to other places of the world, much as Seoul is now. (And - wow! - Ive never seen such an empty flight!)
China Airlines launches flights between Taipei and Kumamoto
China Airlines has launched flights between Taoyuan Airport (TPE) in Taipei and Aso Kumamoto Airport (KMJ) in Kyushu. The Taiwanese airline is operating the route with two flights per week using A321neo aircraft every Monday and Friday, with two additional flights scheduled to take off on Thursdays....

Quoth the newspaper: "The commercial land price increased by 32.4% in the adjacent town of Ozu, the highest in the country."
Wow! -- Kirk
apannews.yomiuri.co.jp/business/economy/20230920-137849/
Land Prices Rising in Areas near Planned Semiconductor Plant Sites
With the average value of land showing a clear sign of recovery as the COVID-19 pandemic subsides, a rise in land prices is conspicuous in some industrial areas. This trend is especially seen in locations where semiconductor plants are planned to be built.

語学に興味のある方へ、ぜひ最後まで読んでください
Kirk here. This article says that Kumamoto City is planning to begin using ChatGPT regularly in October. The city began testing usage of ChatGPT in June and 68% percent found it useful and said that that wanted to continue.
The article only described how ChatGPT will be used in very general terms (writing drafts of messages, etc.). Personally, I'd love to have more detail about exactly how they are using it.
I can't give you detailed examples of how city employees use the service but I can give you a sample usage that I think should be quite useful to Japanese students of English. One thing that's hard about English is that relatively simple words can be used in many different ways (in different idioms or with different meanings in different contexts). This tends to make it difficult to find a definition or explanation that fits the particular context you have found a word in.
I think ChatGPT goes a long way toward solving this problem. First here's a prompt I wrote to ask ChatGPT for help in understanding the usage of "blew" in a sentence:
--- beginning of prompt ---
Please answer the following questions about the use of the word "blew" in the following sentence or passage:
I was amazed by his performance. His trumpet playing blew me away, man!
1. この文の適切な和訳は何でしょうか。
2. In this sentence or passage, what is the part of speech the word I'm asking about?
3. What is the root, basic, or dictionary form of the word I'm asking about?
4. Can you explain, in simple English, the meaning and special characteristics of the usage of the word I'm asking about in the sentence or passage?
5. この文におけるこの言葉の意味や使い方の特徴を説明できますか？
--- end of prompt ---
And here is ChatGPT's response:
--- start quote ----
Sure, let's go through your questions about the word "blew" in the sentence:
1. この文の適切な和訳は何でしょうか？
この文の適切な和訳は、「彼の演奏に驚嘆したよ。彼のトランペットの演奏は本当にすごかったんだ！」となります。
2. In this sentence or passage, what is the part of speech the word I'm asking about?
The word "blew" in this sentence is a verb.
3. What is the root, basic, or dictionary form of the word I'm asking about?
The root or dictionary form of "blew" is "blow."
4. Can you explain, in simple English, the meaning and special characteristics of the usage of the word I'm asking about in the sentence or passage?
In this sentence, "blew" is used figuratively to mean that the person's trumpet playing had a very strong and positive impact on the speaker. It means that the performance was so impressive that it amazed and deeply affected the speaker. The word "blew" here is used to express a sense of awe or astonishment at the quality of the performance.
5. この文におけるこの言葉の意味や使い方の特徴を説明できますか？
この文では、「blew」という言葉は比喩的に使われており、その人のトランペット演奏が話し手に非常に強い印象を与えたことを表現しています。これは、演奏が非常に印象的で、話し手を驚かせ、深く感銘を受けたことを意味します。ここでの「blew」は、パフォーマンスの質に対する驚きや驚嘆を表現するために使われています。
--- end quote ---
Pretty darn good, in my opinion. If you copy my prompt, replace the sentence and word with whatever usage you'd like to ask about, then paste it in the a ChatGPT chat, I think you'll find that it works quite well.
ChatGPT is a large language model (LLM) so questions like these are right up its alley, so to speak. Come to think of it, lets ask ChatGPT about this usage of "alley."
--- start prompt ---
Please answer the following questions about the use of the word "alley" in the following sentence or passage:
ChatGPT is a large language model (LLM) so questions like these are right up its alley, so to speak.
1. この文の適切な和訳は何でしょうか。
2. In this sentence or passage, what is the part of speech the word I'm asking about?
3. What is the root, basic, or dictionary form of the word I'm asking about?
4. Can you explain, in simple English, the meaning and special characteristics of the usage of the word I'm asking about in the sentence or passage?
5. この文におけるこの言葉の意味や使い方の特徴を説明できますか？
--- end prompt ---
And, here's how ChatGPT responded (it really nailed it):
--- start ChatGPT answer ---
Certainly, let's break down the use of the word "alley" in the sentence:
1. この文の適切な和訳は何でしょうか？
この文の適切な和訳は、「ChatGPTは大きな言語モデル（LLM）ですので、こういった質問は、言わば彼の得意分野です。」となります。
2. In this sentence or passage, what is the part of speech the word I'm asking about?
The word "alley" in this sentence is a noun.
3. What is the root, basic, or dictionary form of the word I'm asking about?
The root, basic, or dictionary form of "alley" is also "alley."
4. Can you explain, in simple English, the meaning and special characteristics of the usage of the word I'm asking about in the sentence or passage?
In this sentence, "alley" is used figuratively to mean an area or topic that ChatGPT is very knowledgeable or skilled in. It's not referring to a physical alley or street but is a metaphorical expression. The phrase "right up its alley" is an idiom that means something is well-suited to someone's skills or interests.
5. この文におけるこの言葉の意味や使い方の特徴を説明できますか？
この文では、「alley」という言葉は比喩的に使われており、ChatGPTが非常に知識が豊富で、得意とする領域やトピックを指します。物理的な路地や通りを指すのではなく、比喩的な表現です。「right up its alley」というフレーズは、何かが誰かのスキルや興味にぴったり合っていることを意味する慣用句です。
--- end ChatGPT answer ---
「チャットGPT」熊本市が10月導入へ　熊本県内の自治体で初　業務効率化狙い　｜熊本日日新聞社
　熊本市は19日、対話型人工知能（AI）「チャットGPT」について、10月から熊本県内自治体で初めて本格導入する方針を示した。6月からの実証実験を受け、参加した職員の7割近くが「作業効率が向上した」と回答。業務効率....

Kirk here. This isn't an endorsement; just some information I came across and thought some people might be interested in. I was reading a Japanese news article about preparing for the influx of foreigners to Kumamoto with the arrival of TSMC:
https://www.yomiuri.co.jp/local/kumamoto/news/20230920-OYTNT50126/
The article mentions a company in Yamaga called SparkLingual, that is described as "operating a site (or sites?) that present information to foreigners who live in Kumamoto." (熊本で暮らす外国人向けの情報サイトを運営する「スパークリンガル」) Since providing information to foreigners who in live Kumamoto happens to be a hobby of mine, I thought I'd check it out. I couldn't find anything in English that fits the description in the article but I found the company website. One of the things they do is intercultural consultation. That seems to be the work that led them to be mentioned in the article. They also seem to be involved in with interpreting, translation, and language teaching -- and are looking for employees (or at least their website gives that impression):
http://sparklingual.com/english/index.html

Hello Everyone 😃
Olivia here, 😃
Helping a friend posting work opportunity in Kumamoto.
A Kindergarten in Kumamoto is looking for a Japanese Hip hop dance instructor who can teach elementary kids around 1st & 2nd graders.
After school program.
The person needs not be a real professional as long as they have passion to teach kids.
Please contact this e-mail for further details:
[email protected]
Look forward to hearing from you !
🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶

William Death happens. It is inevitable, but without death, there would be an overwhelmingly lot of animals.
A zebra died at the zoo recently. He will be missed.
シマウマ「ミヤコ」死ぬ　熊本市動植物園に2006年3月来園　19歳、死因は調査中｜熊本日日新聞社
　熊本市動植物園（東区）は20日、グラントシマウマの雌ミヤコが死んだと発表した。19歳で死因は調査中。園によると、シマウマの寿命は野生で約20年、飼育下では約25年という。

Kirk here with something for people interested in improving their Japanese. As you can see, NHK's NEWS WEB EASY site provides articles with furigana (to show the readings of words). Moreover, they let you control what you see. You can turn the furigana on and off and you can choose between simplified Japanese and the original article. I think it's a great study tool. (I wish I had something like this when I was getting started.) This article is about kids in Amakusa learning about renkon (lotus roots).
By the way, if you're interested in studying Japanese online, don't forget about the free classes offered by the prefecture. The application deadline is coming up soon!
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/pfbid0351BYWuyW9CUnigt11pzfrCTj5cC2d4rUTBPS1sxZcxtYGxUetXpnUd6et1zYaVmXl
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/easy/k10014186961000/k10014186961000.html

William Bit of lighting on the castle.