where's my Erlenmeyer?

Got a kick out of reading this today:

Who's the Scientist?

PS. Bonus points for anyone reading (without a PhD) who remembers what an Erlenmeyer is. (I mean, before you Google for it.)

Nothin Beats Meat

Fire + Meat = Heaven!

I know that Japanese have a reputation for favoring fish over steak, but that could easily be due to economic reasons. (Fish is a LOT cheaper than beef, and vegetables too, actually..) But luckily there's a place I can fulfill my inner instinct for freshly cooked meat--Yaki Niku!

The above photo is proof of my addiction--I went to the restaurant solo. This might be par for the course in Korea (where this type of restaurant heralds from), but not in Japan. I'm hard core. .. or something.

Anyway.. snapped the shot, a little slice of Tokyo. Enjoy.

paper

If you want a more sane version of Cheryl Crow's "use only one sheet of toilet paper" suggestion, how about:

http://thesecomefromtrees.blogspot.com/

.. but where do the stickers come from?

Place your orders!

Hello! I'm writing from the blissful land of Home Internet. Much like the cell phone post, I get to use the internet before I know how much it costs, so.. I'm happy. ... and would you believe it, despite being an email addict since 1991 (no joke), this is the first time I've paid for internet access. (no joke.) So.. I guess that means I'm getting old. :)

Place your orders! I have too many photos and too many bloggish topics to choose just one, so please help me out! Post a comment if you want to see something.. photos.. wacky photos.. food photos.. non-photo-philosophy.. whatever you want. Here at T,TDV we aim to please.

Here's a little something.. uh.. to whet your curiosity..

Japan & WW2

I just stumbled upon a thought provoking view of Japan. I'm curious to hear the thoughts of any Japanese people who read my blog.

Although I haven't seen the plaque in the photo, I expect it is still on display. I think most Japanese people don't think so hard about "Why", they think more about "How". ... so from my perspective, there are still many things they didn't learn from WW2. Of course, there are many many Japanese people who will feel bad if they see the plaque in the photo, because it goes against their personal philosophy. But most of those Japanese (the free thinkers) wouldn't actually take action to remove the plaque.. only a crazy guy would do that! (Whereas, in the US, the fight to have it removed would be in the news. ..and an even more liberal example: in Europe, the people who removed it would be heroes.) The majority of Japanese people would read it and say "Oh, yeah, whatever, I guess so.."

(At least, that's my opinion.)

New apartment: Quaint!

Finally! A chance to update the blog. Things have been whirlwindishly busy the past few weeks--to be expected with moving an starting a new job, and all, but... not what I enjoy.

So yes: I moved! I have a 1K again (translation: 1 bedroom + 1 "kitchen", and to prove it 1 door in between), but this time I have two or three new Tokyo features!!


Shot looking through the bedroom


My "shoes off" area + storage, GENKAN 玄関

(My old apartment also had a GENKAN--not a new feature.)


My "not quite a kitchen"

(My old apartment also had 1 burner, but it had an ounce more counter top space. Not a new feature.)

So what's new? First up, a "Unit Bath"!


Shower while on the toilet, if you like!

My previous apartment had a seperate room for the toilet. Actually.. the toilet room took a lot of space, but I realize now it provided one important feature: dry toilet paper. Hopefully I won't ruin too many rolls due to stray showering.. Getting a shower curtain would help... (add that to the list)

And what else? The astute observer already asked--why's there a ladder? ==> Loft!


Shot looking back towards the kitchen


Floor 2: computers, underwear, and empty suitcases

Note the rail on the upper right--that's where the ladder hangs when not in use. (It's also how you trap people from being able to get down.) Eww... bad idea.


Taking a peak from the top of the ladder

The loft is empty now, but it'll be my little computer room soon. A bed would fit up here, but the girl who showed the apartment thought in summer it would get pretty darn warm up there (the angled roof is facing south). Also, I wouldn't want to navigate the ladder if I was extremely tired, or otherwise impaired, just to crawl into bed. .. also, I'm really groggy in the morning.


The ceiling light, and a window for light that tilts open

I'm on the 2F in a neighborhood of 2F, so the roof & skylight get a lot of sun. Nice!

There's also a balcony/veranda, where my AC, gas on demand water heater, and ... WASHING MACHINE now reside. Not much space for anything else. I'm planning a laundry post soon, so stay tuned.

... so what else is new here? Quaintness!


Old folks playing morning croquet


Bakery and (mostly) pedestrian shopping* street on the 5 min walk to the station

*enlightened shopping. (There's a video game store, and a CD shop.)


Old Japanese house view from balcony

Note the sign where I can chain up my bicycle. I should add, there's a convenient 7-11 about 100 meters away (T: a meter is about a yard), and, luckily, it's not directly visible. (No glare from the sign at night) ... (which on second thought probably wouldn't matter since there's huge glare from a light illuminating the next building's exterior stair-case.)

So, that was the 1 hour blog post tour of the apartment. Any questions?

New office

When they said "Ethernet configuration by hand" they weren't kidding.

New office--and I'm not talking about software. Windows: yes, I'm lucky to again have a window, but it's hard to see anything from behind the pipe ducting. The architects who designed this interesting building took the middle of the 3 words "Institute (of) Industrial Science" to heart..

Oh O-HANAMI

Yes, I am back in Japan. Just in time for a unseasonably early OHANAMI, or cherry blossom viewing.
This is OHANAMI 

The cherry trees blossom only for about 1-2 weeks, so the public parks get crowded on the 1 or 2 weekends of the season. One responsible person for each party arrives early, claiming a good spot by putting down their plastic tarp (usually blue). Then they wait a couple hours for everyone to arrive.

In many ways, one can make analogy to the state of one's brains after a 12 hour flight, and corresponding 12 hour time change. After traveling to the magical land, laden with your blue plastic baggage, you must suddenly plop everything down, claiming your space. Eventually, after enough time to recuperate, you awaken to find yourself surrounded by friends and beer, with flower petals in your hair polite enough to cover your dandruff.

What I'm trying to say is "Sorry for not posting in a long time. I'm almost over my jet lag. I've been busy (I got my visa & an apartment). Now resuming our regular broadcast."

Priority to Party 

Yesterday's OHANAMI was pretty serious. I was in Yoyogi-koen, which is renown for attracting artistic-minded Japanese folks, even when it's not cherry blossom season. Despite it being much colder/cloudy than optimal, the place was packed, and there were even live DJ's spinning tunes. Impressive.

TTFN

Tokyo: Ta Ta For Now! I'm gone, but I'll be back soon... Check the other blog, ReconstructionInMA, for updates!

I've been offered a job for a year, with a new research lab, in part of town I've never lived in before... it's exciting!

Until I get back, here's some of the food I'll be missing.. Please leave a comment if you want to know what any of these dishes are!


1

2

3

4

5

... am I the only one who wonders..?

 

This lady had a video camera set up, pointing towards the only entrance to the Tokyo Regional Immigration Bureau, where visa & foreigner permits are issued. ... Does anyone else find this strange and disturbing?

So much for a routine..

Most sincere apologies to everyone who's been checking the blog recently. Perhaps I don't need to say it, but my "routine" didn't last. I guess that means I should wait longer than 3 days before calling it a routine.

And maybe I take this paragraph to give a big "Booooo Booooo Booooooooo" to the Picasa and/or Blogger team at Google. There's a bug that prevents convenient posting of photos.. the process is still possible, but it requires many steps. (For me: export to a local folder to a smaller size/rotation, then add/browse each one using blogger's photo dashboard button) "BlogThis!" used to work, but at the moment it's broken, and the usually responsive/acknowledging tech support at Google are keeping mum. Boo. Grade: D - (just a hair away from F+)

So in retaliation, I've uploaded a bunch of fun Tokyo photos. Enjoy. (And don't forget to read the next post, which I also made today)


This is on the shopping bag from a "foreign super" [market] where one can buy expensive food items from around the world. Note the prolific hyphenation and non-standard English.


Yo! Baby I want you I need you!


This had to be documented. Never will I score under par again. Thank you, oh thank you, Nintendo Wii.


I didn't believe in demonic ducks until I saw their red eyes for myself! There's also some pretty strikingly yellow eyed ducks. (Sorry, hard to make out in this photo)


The plums are blooming early this year. Global warming = mild Tokyo winter.

"TuWeeN DoNaTsu" = twin donuts. Red bean paste "anko" with custard creme on top. Yum!


Bottled water in a can. Fresh! (It's for emergencies.)

4L of whiskey. ..at a super market. Liver say "Ouchie."


More questionable liquor. I've decided that if it comes in a paper box or a big 2L plastic jug, it's for industrial purposes only.

Charisma Tamago. Tamago = egg. I'm not sure what the Charisma part means. Maybe tofu.

Attack of the Ku Ri Su Pi Ku Ree Mu

Attack of the 50ft Diabetes Risk-Factor

I'd heard that the super-sweet US chain store would be invading Asia soon, and apparently they arrived in Tokyo just as I was leaving in November last year.


It's the Not-Quite-USA

Look at those umbrellas--that's people winding around in line to get into the store! It winds around like a line for a roller coaster.




But: The line wraps around the building!! Not only do you have to stand in line in the rain to get a doughnut, but you have to stand in line in the rain to get a chance to stand in line in the rain to get one!! Wow.

The line was moving pretty slowly, and people leaving tended to have at least one dozen donut boxes (usually 2 or 3) so I assume they were getting goodies for the whole office. It was 10:30 am on a Tuesday, so .. ... or I could be wrong, and Japanese insulin companies are currently a BUY BUY BUY

I'm curious if the wise people at Krispy Kreme adjusted the formula to make the donuts better-suited for Japanese tastes, but I'm not patient enough to stand in line long enough to find out. (At least, in the rain I'm not.)

PS What does that building in the foggy background remind you of? Anything different about it?

Routine

No hits on the quiz. Guess I wrote too many words last time, and no-one saw the photos. :P

The past few days I've stumbled into a routine: Mid-morning is email and blog time. Pre-mid-morning is breakfast, then Japanese at a coffee shop. That caffeine stuff really works! Wakes me up. But it makes my tummy hurt a little. (Official T.M.I. Advanced Warning!) It also seems to make me poop. So... I guess Mid-morning isn't just email and blog time. Ewww

20070207 daily Tokyo scenes

(The above ^^ is a photo album link. Goofy white box means photo album.)

What I Learned Today (so far) : the difference between ReeZaa and ReZaa. The first is light energy, the second is a primitive material. ... any guesses?

Track in Japan

Back in Japn.. It is a strange feeling, to see my life and to see Japan in a different way. I tend to think of my life as being on a railroad track, going straight in one direction. I try to avoid thinking about the concept that life isn't like that--that the future can turn. The idea that my life could be bad even if I do everything "correctly" to make a good life--it's scary. Equally as scary, for me, is the idea that I could change to be anything I wanted, if I thought hard about who I am and what I want. I like the idea of a track--it keeps me from worrying (maybe that's also Japanese style, maybe part of why I like it here) But right now I have no track.. It wouldn't be bad if my railroad track had a choice between only two new directions, but it's frightening to think that the track is splitting into a million different tracks. "Now Entering Track Land"

Being here now, in this new state of mind, without a job or daily work requirement (which was my track), I can see that track--I can describe the track I was on. I don't speak Japanese very well, because on my previous track I didn't need it. It is difficult to learn kanji and new vocabulary, and I didn't _need_ it on that track, so I stopped studying. But now, I see so many tracks where it is better to have good Japanese ability. I want to understand more now. I can see many tracks I could take where I'd _need_ more Japanese. It makes me want to study more now.

But the part that is missing the most right now, to help me find the next track, is my concept of who I am. If I know 100% what I want, then finding the right job/track/etc would be easy. Even if it was a track with challenges, I would have less stress, because at least it would identify the challenges I should overcome. (Such as learning Japanese.)

Let's analyze the situation: my life. :) So far I've been studying science, because it seems to fit well with how my brain works. It is my nature to seek efficiency and to analyze (thus, I'm writing this paragraph). And, on the track of science, for people who love science, the biggest track leads to being a professor.

However, I am not perfectly suited to be a A1 professor, because I'm not great at research. I am not good at active learning, or studying, because in my life I either understood immediately or I didn't understand it very well. If I can see it, and it logically makes sense, then I usually immediately understand. For example, language is difficult for me, but geometry is easy. Politics is boring and complicated, but computers are exciting and complicated. ... The connection to being a professor is this: research is the process of actively teaching yourself. It is looking at a question repeatedly from all different angles until the answer is found. In this case, "different angles" means looking at the problem using a new background. Learning a new background means forcing yourself to understand the same thing in a new way--to speak a new language of science. Language. The active learning required to do that is the part of research I can't be self-assured about.

Also, I _tried_ to be a professor. I decided, "well, maybe I am good enough, perhaps without being able to do the big research stuff" and I applied to schools where research is less important. Not A1 research schools, but smaller universities and colleges. But even there I was not accepted.

... failure is stronger when one's heart is not behind the effort. ... Also, when the heart is not behind the decision to choose that track, one looks at "fringe benefits," or the extra things that your life gets from the job. For example, maybe a doctor gets bored with his work, but he continues because 1) it is good money and 2) he likes golfing on Tuesdays. But I couldn't see many fringe benefits from being at a small college.

I learned two things in my failed interviews. 1) Working a smaller university does not mean big money. It is hard work, for low money. [People take that track for reasons other than money.] 2) Working in a university is very much like being part of a business. In a classroom, it never seems like money is important--learning is most important, right? But the school is a business which needs to make money, and a professor has responsibilities to keep the business working. Teaching is a relatively small part of being a professor.

By listing those two things, I'm not saying that money is the most important thing for me. But I do think that money helps to make a comfortable life. I have strengths and a personality that would make me be happy in a job teaching students, but what about the rest of being a professor? The rest is business, which isn't exciting. Business means making money, and money helps.. So best idea is to find a job where my strengths are fulfilled, and the business part makes good money.

There is an expression "Follow your heart, and the money will follow." I think that only really works if you start your own business. I'm not ready for that, so for now I'll seek a job which could prepare me to do that.

------------

And now for something completely different.


Like a corndog... without the corn

There are a lot of bakeries near my friend's house. This is a "Hot Dog Stick," I think. The fried breading coils around the dog. It's like a doughnut, without the sugar, and with meat... and a stick.


Wiener Roll!

Complete with ketchup and mustard!

Compare this to the photo of the Chicago style hotdog below, to see why many people think this is funny. Plus, the above is a bakery item.

QUIZ!! What's inside this one?

Boston => Chicago => Tokyo

Wow! I'm back. (And looking for a job) I'm still jet-lagged, and I'm still in shock.. ..but today I'm back on the internet, and I'll try to fix all the photos.

For now, here's what's been going on in my life, the past couple days:


The south part of Evanston, my "home town" north of Chicago. I'd forgotten just how big Lake Michigan is. It looks even bigger from 10,000 feet.


It's the airport version of a Chicago style dog. Tomato slices instead of wedges.. a little skimpy on the relish. (Skimpy onion I don't mind.) And I had to ask for celery salt. But it had a nice touch: a little charbroil-after-boiled effect. That was a redeming quality. Plus, they didn't go and try to put ketchup on there, and the poppy seed bun was pre-warmed in a steamer. Very edible. ...it'd been a long time since my last real hotdog.


Happy Puppy! (And no, I don't mean the video game website.) It was my third "You're back in Japan" moment.

... And for all those curious, the first was all the school kids in their uniforms commuting at 4:30 on the train. The second was realizing that while the price of almost everything in Japan is high, the quality is also high. ..and I think the value is better. Net result: higher quality of life. Maybe you've gotta live here to appreciate that. ...and I mean, it's true for 90% of the people here--the middle class. The middle class in Japan has a higher quality of life than the middle class in the US.

JA NE... time to get rolling. Hopefully the photos will work. (cross your YUBI)

hand truck

 

In Japan, this is not how you move a box. Maybe because I am tall, it is much easier for me to use a hand truck, like this one. 

Texas Okra

Texas okra. Just to prove my claim "Yes, we really do eat okra."