Friday, December 14, 2007
Fatboy, fatboy! Fatboy, fatboy!
This is what I'd like to think my music video would be like were I ever to make one. The band is Pizza of Death, a thrash metal outfit from Tokyo. I'm especially fond of where the dude running just stumbles, gets up and jumps over some bushes. Why?
Because he can.
--Matt
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
The City
Coolest map ever or only coolest map in this space-time continuum? We report, you decide.
OK, technically there should be a section cut out of Potrero Hill for the Dogpatch neighborhood, plus Duboce Triangle needs to be sandwiched between Mission, Hayes Valley and Upper Market, but kudos on separating Parkside and Sunset since they usually get lumped together. If anyone's wondering, I lived on the 'K' in Parkside.
Goddamn I miss SF...
--Matt
OK, technically there should be a section cut out of Potrero Hill for the Dogpatch neighborhood, plus Duboce Triangle needs to be sandwiched between Mission, Hayes Valley and Upper Market, but kudos on separating Parkside and Sunset since they usually get lumped together. If anyone's wondering, I lived on the 'K' in Parkside.
Goddamn I miss SF...
--Matt
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Ever Vigilant
I'm starting to lose individual socks in the classic "Oh my god, are pixies making off with my socks?" sort of way. This is mysterious to me because the distance between the washing machine outside my front door and the place I hang moist clothing is about ten feet. How many places are there to lose socks within a few paces of the washing machine? But, as stated, the machine is out in front of the apartment in the hallway and anyone can reach in and take things. This being Japan...well, this country doesn't exactly have a shining record when it comes to undergarments and larceny.
This is my official warning to any Japanese undergarment thieves out to steal me gold--I have two frying pans, several heavy books, lots of empty cans of coffee, an iron and a coffee bean grinder here and I don't think any of that will feel good when thrown or swung at your head.
--Matt
This is my official warning to any Japanese undergarment thieves out to steal me gold--I have two frying pans, several heavy books, lots of empty cans of coffee, an iron and a coffee bean grinder here and I don't think any of that will feel good when thrown or swung at your head.
--Matt
Of Zaibatsu and Keiretsu
The following article from Mainichi's English daily edition caught my attention tonight and got me looking into just what happened to the fearsome Japanese zaibatsu:
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/national/news/20071208p2a00m0na014000c.html
Though I was too young to have any interest at all in the economic happenings of the 80s, when I first became interested in Japan in adulthood I came across plenty of scary articles and literature from that decade about the economic menace that Japan posed to the US. There was some cause for concern since Japan was buying up dollars at a prodigious rate and Japanese real estate holding companies were grabbing land stateside by the handful. In many of those fear-mongering articles the term zaibatsu was brought up often and referred to the old family-run vertical monopolies that existed in Japan since the Edo Period.
The truth of the matter though is that the zaibatsu haven't existed for quite some time in their original capacity as all-powerful, untouchable entities in the Japanese economy. The original four companies that qualified as full-blown zaibatsu were Mitsubishi, Sumitomo, Mitsui and Yasuda, but as many as a few dozen other "baby zaibatsu" existed up until WWII. Those four names are pretty familiar with anyone who's spent time in Japan or follows international business, and one of them, Mitsubishi, should be familiar to most anyone in the world not living in the bush. They existed as family-owned holdings right up until MacArthur and his crack team of post-occupation economic mercenaries wiped the smaller zaibatsu from the Earth by seizing their assets or completely reorganized them while the big four only got broken up like monopolies in America a couple decades previously. The big boys didn't share their little brothers' fate only because MacArthur needed them to rebuild Japan.
When the occupation ended ten years later, Japan's constitution prevented the zaibatsu from reforming entirely, but the US overseers had in the end tried to use Japan and the big four as a blunt economic instrument against Asian Communism and thus rescinded many of their restrictions on the conglomerates. What occurred then was not a reversal back to vertically integrated zaibatsu monopolies, but rather a shift to the keiretsu, a horizontally integrated business system that's nearly as powerful as their predecessors. To give an example of what this means let's take Mitsubishi who survived the occupation to become one of the six major today. Before the war Mitsubishi controlled shipping, auto manufacturing, chemical and banking companies. Mitsubishi could transport their chemicals anywhere by the ships and cars they produced and then financed the entire operation with their bank. Today the Mitsubishi keiretsu no longer has such power over the means of production in such a vertical way, instead spreading its influence over Japan and the world with a vast net of subsidiaries. Obviously when you drive a Mitusbishi car you know it's a product of that company, but I wonder how many Japanese know that Mitsubishi owns Tokio Insurance, Japan Oil, Nikon Camera and the Kirin Beer brand. And now apparently they own KFC Japan...
A quick rundown on the the five other major keiretsu in Japan--I think you'll be surprised by this list:
Fuyo Group--Canon, Hitachi, Nissan, Ricoh, Yamaha, etc.
Mitsui--Fuji Film, Suntory, Toshiba, Toyota, Mitsukoshi (largest dept. store chain in Japan)
Sumitomo--Asahi Beverages, Mazda, NEC, Hanshin-Keihan-Nankai Railways (basically the entire public transit infrastructure in Kobe and Osaka)
Daiichi Kangyo--Fujitsu, Hitachi (partnership with Fuyo), Isuzu, Tokyo Electric Power
Sanwa--Konica-Minolta, Kyocera, Orix, Toho Studios, Keisei Railways (a major rail line in Tokyo), Kobe Steel
Jokes are often made about the Illuminati or a secret Jewish banking cabal that controls the economy of the US and we all have a good chortle about it. In Japan it's six companies that pull the strings on most everything that goes down in the country. I'm looking around my room and realize that most everything in it is a product of these companies: my kerosene heater is from Daiichi; the wreck of a TV on my table is a product of Sumitomo; the AC outside and monitor I'm looking at now are Mitsubishi's doing. The beer in my fridge even a product of a keiretsu. Madness in all directions.
--Matt
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/national/news/20071208p2a00m0na014000c.html
Though I was too young to have any interest at all in the economic happenings of the 80s, when I first became interested in Japan in adulthood I came across plenty of scary articles and literature from that decade about the economic menace that Japan posed to the US. There was some cause for concern since Japan was buying up dollars at a prodigious rate and Japanese real estate holding companies were grabbing land stateside by the handful. In many of those fear-mongering articles the term zaibatsu was brought up often and referred to the old family-run vertical monopolies that existed in Japan since the Edo Period.
The truth of the matter though is that the zaibatsu haven't existed for quite some time in their original capacity as all-powerful, untouchable entities in the Japanese economy. The original four companies that qualified as full-blown zaibatsu were Mitsubishi, Sumitomo, Mitsui and Yasuda, but as many as a few dozen other "baby zaibatsu" existed up until WWII. Those four names are pretty familiar with anyone who's spent time in Japan or follows international business, and one of them, Mitsubishi, should be familiar to most anyone in the world not living in the bush. They existed as family-owned holdings right up until MacArthur and his crack team of post-occupation economic mercenaries wiped the smaller zaibatsu from the Earth by seizing their assets or completely reorganized them while the big four only got broken up like monopolies in America a couple decades previously. The big boys didn't share their little brothers' fate only because MacArthur needed them to rebuild Japan.
When the occupation ended ten years later, Japan's constitution prevented the zaibatsu from reforming entirely, but the US overseers had in the end tried to use Japan and the big four as a blunt economic instrument against Asian Communism and thus rescinded many of their restrictions on the conglomerates. What occurred then was not a reversal back to vertically integrated zaibatsu monopolies, but rather a shift to the keiretsu, a horizontally integrated business system that's nearly as powerful as their predecessors. To give an example of what this means let's take Mitsubishi who survived the occupation to become one of the six major today. Before the war Mitsubishi controlled shipping, auto manufacturing, chemical and banking companies. Mitsubishi could transport their chemicals anywhere by the ships and cars they produced and then financed the entire operation with their bank. Today the Mitsubishi keiretsu no longer has such power over the means of production in such a vertical way, instead spreading its influence over Japan and the world with a vast net of subsidiaries. Obviously when you drive a Mitusbishi car you know it's a product of that company, but I wonder how many Japanese know that Mitsubishi owns Tokio Insurance, Japan Oil, Nikon Camera and the Kirin Beer brand. And now apparently they own KFC Japan...
A quick rundown on the the five other major keiretsu in Japan--I think you'll be surprised by this list:
Fuyo Group--Canon, Hitachi, Nissan, Ricoh, Yamaha, etc.
Mitsui--Fuji Film, Suntory, Toshiba, Toyota, Mitsukoshi (largest dept. store chain in Japan)
Sumitomo--Asahi Beverages, Mazda, NEC, Hanshin-Keihan-Nankai Railways (basically the entire public transit infrastructure in Kobe and Osaka)
Daiichi Kangyo--Fujitsu, Hitachi (partnership with Fuyo), Isuzu, Tokyo Electric Power
Sanwa--Konica-Minolta, Kyocera, Orix, Toho Studios, Keisei Railways (a major rail line in Tokyo), Kobe Steel
Jokes are often made about the Illuminati or a secret Jewish banking cabal that controls the economy of the US and we all have a good chortle about it. In Japan it's six companies that pull the strings on most everything that goes down in the country. I'm looking around my room and realize that most everything in it is a product of these companies: my kerosene heater is from Daiichi; the wreck of a TV on my table is a product of Sumitomo; the AC outside and monitor I'm looking at now are Mitsubishi's doing. The beer in my fridge even a product of a keiretsu. Madness in all directions.
--Matt
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Know Your Factions
Before I came to Oita as a JET I joined the prefecture's Yahoo! JET board, started to make myself known and got the impression that the community here was pretty tight. Someone had previously mentioned "factionalism" briefly, but I didn't know what to make of it--truth or petty grudge? Well, I know now that it is indeed true and that there are several factions of JETs around the prefecture's various geographic regions.
What does this mean really? Sure, people that live nearer to each other are going to form bonds easier than those who live farther away due to the logistics. In this case though many of these factions display some of the worst characteristics of rival high schools/universities such as being, at best, socially apathetic towards people teaching and living in other regions. At worst it results in people boycotting parties to avoid certain people or actually showing up and just being wet blankets.
This all played itself out recently at a birthday party in Oita City for "The Two Rachels"--two women named Rachel who also share a birthday. It was a costume theme party of sorts where everyone had to come dressed as something that starts with an 'R' or 'L', which they claim is the Japanese 'R'. For future reference, they have it backwards and in fact 'R' is how the letter 'L' is expressed in Japanese. Anyways, I know you're dying to know what I went as so I'll let you know I went as...Luxembourg! Yes, that Luxembourg, the tiny tax haven in the middle of Europe. The costume of two cardboard flags and a large 'L' also made up in the flag's colors took me about thirty minutes to make while the research on what the hell is in Luxembourg took me about forty-five. Anyways, the party. First off, turnout was pretty low and when I asked about it to various people they would say "Oh, so-and-so was looking for any reason not to come so she wouldn't have to see person X", and "Nobody in City Y wanted to come so I'm here only to represent them." The people that did come broke into small groups based largely on geography and effectively locked others out with impenetrable inside jokes and local gossip. I went out to get some air and found a few kindred spirits who also couldn't stand the exclusive little chat groups. One of them summed it up nicely with "That's the fucking JET community for you." Indeed.
The following is a virtual cut-and-paste graphic and explanation I made up for a friend I was talking to about this:
Exhibit A will familiarize you with the major factions within the Oita JET community: the largest faction is Oita City since it's the seat of the prefecture and all that; the next largest is the hot springs resort city of Beppu and the Kunisaki Peninsula to the north; moving along, Nakatsu and Usa on the north coast is sizable as well; on the east coast is the Usuki/Tsukumi/Saiki Faction; bordering Fukuoka and Kumamoto Prefectures in the west is the Hita Faction; finally there is the creamy nougat center that is all, what, 5 of us in Kusu, Kokonoe, Kuju and some of Bungo-Ono City that have no real faction. For us in the center we have to lodge ourselves into another faction of our choosing by driving or riding there and making our presence known. The other JET in town, Rachel, for example, has joined the Beppu Faction.
The formation of these factions really is purely geographic. Despite cars, trains, buses and hot air balloons, whenever a mountain range is involved there is invariably a social divide in Oita, and conversely wherever there is flat land there is interaction. For example, Hita is surrounded by mountains to the north, east and south and don't often associate with anyone in my neck of the woods or Nakatsu. Nakatsu to Usa is a coastal plain and the two cities are socially linked. Anyways, should you get the factions together at a party they divide up into their respective groups like at Friday's party and just chat amongst themselves.
I wish folks could grow up and become a bit more inclusive.
--Matt
What does this mean really? Sure, people that live nearer to each other are going to form bonds easier than those who live farther away due to the logistics. In this case though many of these factions display some of the worst characteristics of rival high schools/universities such as being, at best, socially apathetic towards people teaching and living in other regions. At worst it results in people boycotting parties to avoid certain people or actually showing up and just being wet blankets.
This all played itself out recently at a birthday party in Oita City for "The Two Rachels"--two women named Rachel who also share a birthday. It was a costume theme party of sorts where everyone had to come dressed as something that starts with an 'R' or 'L', which they claim is the Japanese 'R'. For future reference, they have it backwards and in fact 'R' is how the letter 'L' is expressed in Japanese. Anyways, I know you're dying to know what I went as so I'll let you know I went as...Luxembourg! Yes, that Luxembourg, the tiny tax haven in the middle of Europe. The costume of two cardboard flags and a large 'L' also made up in the flag's colors took me about thirty minutes to make while the research on what the hell is in Luxembourg took me about forty-five. Anyways, the party. First off, turnout was pretty low and when I asked about it to various people they would say "Oh, so-and-so was looking for any reason not to come so she wouldn't have to see person X", and "Nobody in City Y wanted to come so I'm here only to represent them." The people that did come broke into small groups based largely on geography and effectively locked others out with impenetrable inside jokes and local gossip. I went out to get some air and found a few kindred spirits who also couldn't stand the exclusive little chat groups. One of them summed it up nicely with "That's the fucking JET community for you." Indeed.
The following is a virtual cut-and-paste graphic and explanation I made up for a friend I was talking to about this:
Exhibit A will familiarize you with the major factions within the Oita JET community: the largest faction is Oita City since it's the seat of the prefecture and all that; the next largest is the hot springs resort city of Beppu and the Kunisaki Peninsula to the north; moving along, Nakatsu and Usa on the north coast is sizable as well; on the east coast is the Usuki/Tsukumi/Saiki Faction; bordering Fukuoka and Kumamoto Prefectures in the west is the Hita Faction; finally there is the creamy nougat center that is all, what, 5 of us in Kusu, Kokonoe, Kuju and some of Bungo-Ono City that have no real faction. For us in the center we have to lodge ourselves into another faction of our choosing by driving or riding there and making our presence known. The other JET in town, Rachel, for example, has joined the Beppu Faction.
The formation of these factions really is purely geographic. Despite cars, trains, buses and hot air balloons, whenever a mountain range is involved there is invariably a social divide in Oita, and conversely wherever there is flat land there is interaction. For example, Hita is surrounded by mountains to the north, east and south and don't often associate with anyone in my neck of the woods or Nakatsu. Nakatsu to Usa is a coastal plain and the two cities are socially linked. Anyways, should you get the factions together at a party they divide up into their respective groups like at Friday's party and just chat amongst themselves.
I wish folks could grow up and become a bit more inclusive.
--Matt
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Saying Hello to the Neighbors
Aha! Another misleading title that more than likely has you thinking I actually went and talked to the other people living in my apartment building, no? Sorry, no cigar. Truth is I've met the neighbors already and they're either really boring, alcoholic womanizers or just plain creepy.
No, the neighbors I'm referring to here are my neighbors in Kokonoe-machi, the next town over that's sandwiched between Kusu and the famous hot springs resort town of Yufuin. I've ventured into Kokonoe a few times in recent months to view its spectacular scenery, soak in its top-of-the-charts hot springs and eat the best damn hot dog this side of the big blue Pacific. Actually, the thought process to even go to Kokonoe always starts something like this:
Matt's Tummy: "Damn, you know what I could really go for, brain?"
Matt's Brain: "I hope it's not more beer to kill me with."
Matt's Tummy: "No, spaz, I want a hot dog."
Matt's Brain: "Oh, well that's OK as long as it doesn't have any foot and mouth disease in it or something. You're not planning on getting that as a side dish, right?"
Matt's Tummy: "Of course not...because they use all-beef franks and you can only order the spongiform encephalopathy on that. I thought you were the smarts of this outfit?"
Matt's Brain: "Just shut your piehole. Well, if you want that dog so bad let's just spend the whole day in Kokonoe then."
Such uncompromising deliciousness! Yes, that's melted cheese on top, not just some shredded cheese sprinkled on as an afterthought.
Regular Odd Couple those two are. The reason I spend a whole day in Kokonoe instead of just enough time to eat and bathe is that it's a bit costly on the gas and time to just blow in for those two minor things thanks to the town's geography. Kokonoe actually has less population than Kusu, but thanks to its stunning vistas and abundant natural springs it generates much more income than my humble agricultural town. The vistas people come to see are only possible though because the town is virtually entirely mountainous. Villages in Kokonoe lay cradled in steep-walled valleys no more than a few hundred meters wide or perched on mountainsides high above said valleys, so you can imagine that getting around involves a lot of climbing, hairpin switchbacks and narrow roads all of which take more time than I personally care to be in my jalopy.
Plenty of things to spend several hours in town seeing though. There must be a good thirty onsen to soak in, all with their own sensational gimmick. I've been to two only, but one was located on a cliff edge overlooking a 100-meter drop while the other one had no scenery to speak of, instead tapping into a special naturally carbonated and iron-rich water source that feels wonderful. I don't recommend taking a white washcloth into that water though lest it come out orange.
What most people come to Kokonoe for though is the scenery that is easily the most beautiful in the prefecture. Alpine meadows, reed-lined streams and massive unspoiled tracts of...whatever that tree is in Japan that turns gorgeous shades in the Fall. If you want to add a little man made engineering excitement to your trip to balance out all that icky nature stuff then there's also the Otsuribashi, the world's highest suspension bridge. To give you an idea of how tall it is, if you took the antenna off the Empire State Building it could park underneath the bridge with ten meters to spare. I haven't actually crossed the bridge yet as it costs 800 J-bucks to do so, but I'm told it's a hoot. There's also the fact that it doesn't actually lead anywhere, just from one parking lot to another parking lot, but that doesn't stop--get ready for this--hundreds of thousands of people from coming to see it. The thing was only finished a year or two ago and it's already poised to pay for itself by the end of the fiscal year. Good for them, I guess.
My (leased) car parked in front of what would be some of the most beautiful pasture land I've ever seen except the area is now tasked only with being beautiful, much like myself. *vogue* Next, a Kokonoe vista in the Fall. Note that this shot is taken from the hot dog stand. Imagine if I'd actually, like, gone to a vista point.
And no trip to Kokonoe is complete without a stop off at The Place On the Way Down the Really Twisty Mountain Road With the Waterwheel and Neat Shrine Behind It. That's the Japanese translation of the name, you can totally believe me on that. This place is perched on a cliff maybe a hundred and fifty meters off the valley floor and can be identified immediately by A) the large waterwheel spinning on the side of the building and B) by the people with painted faces BBQing dango (mochi balls) over hot coals. There's a foot bath next to the railing overlooking the valley and it's a great spot to eat said BBQ dango or read a book, both of which I've done there. Maybe most important of all is that this place emanates happiness--people are always grinning like a three-eyed monk with a plate of crackers. In other words, the shop has a good vibe.
One of the face-painted denizens of TPOtWDtRTMRWtWaNSBI doing his thang cooking dango. The next pic shows the waterfall shrine located behind...that place and the giant geta-style sandals out there for, I'm sure, a very good reason.
And that's about it for Kokonoe. Oh, I also want to mention for my autophile buddies out there that this town is a great place to see hot Japanese sports cars in many tunes thanks to the fabulous driving roads. And no doubt they're also coming for the hot dogs.
--Matt
No, the neighbors I'm referring to here are my neighbors in Kokonoe-machi, the next town over that's sandwiched between Kusu and the famous hot springs resort town of Yufuin. I've ventured into Kokonoe a few times in recent months to view its spectacular scenery, soak in its top-of-the-charts hot springs and eat the best damn hot dog this side of the big blue Pacific. Actually, the thought process to even go to Kokonoe always starts something like this:
Matt's Tummy: "Damn, you know what I could really go for, brain?"
Matt's Brain: "I hope it's not more beer to kill me with."
Matt's Tummy: "No, spaz, I want a hot dog."
Matt's Brain: "Oh, well that's OK as long as it doesn't have any foot and mouth disease in it or something. You're not planning on getting that as a side dish, right?"
Matt's Tummy: "Of course not...because they use all-beef franks and you can only order the spongiform encephalopathy on that. I thought you were the smarts of this outfit?"
Matt's Brain: "Just shut your piehole. Well, if you want that dog so bad let's just spend the whole day in Kokonoe then."
Such uncompromising deliciousness! Yes, that's melted cheese on top, not just some shredded cheese sprinkled on as an afterthought.
Regular Odd Couple those two are. The reason I spend a whole day in Kokonoe instead of just enough time to eat and bathe is that it's a bit costly on the gas and time to just blow in for those two minor things thanks to the town's geography. Kokonoe actually has less population than Kusu, but thanks to its stunning vistas and abundant natural springs it generates much more income than my humble agricultural town. The vistas people come to see are only possible though because the town is virtually entirely mountainous. Villages in Kokonoe lay cradled in steep-walled valleys no more than a few hundred meters wide or perched on mountainsides high above said valleys, so you can imagine that getting around involves a lot of climbing, hairpin switchbacks and narrow roads all of which take more time than I personally care to be in my jalopy.
Plenty of things to spend several hours in town seeing though. There must be a good thirty onsen to soak in, all with their own sensational gimmick. I've been to two only, but one was located on a cliff edge overlooking a 100-meter drop while the other one had no scenery to speak of, instead tapping into a special naturally carbonated and iron-rich water source that feels wonderful. I don't recommend taking a white washcloth into that water though lest it come out orange.
What most people come to Kokonoe for though is the scenery that is easily the most beautiful in the prefecture. Alpine meadows, reed-lined streams and massive unspoiled tracts of...whatever that tree is in Japan that turns gorgeous shades in the Fall. If you want to add a little man made engineering excitement to your trip to balance out all that icky nature stuff then there's also the Otsuribashi, the world's highest suspension bridge. To give you an idea of how tall it is, if you took the antenna off the Empire State Building it could park underneath the bridge with ten meters to spare. I haven't actually crossed the bridge yet as it costs 800 J-bucks to do so, but I'm told it's a hoot. There's also the fact that it doesn't actually lead anywhere, just from one parking lot to another parking lot, but that doesn't stop--get ready for this--hundreds of thousands of people from coming to see it. The thing was only finished a year or two ago and it's already poised to pay for itself by the end of the fiscal year. Good for them, I guess.
My (leased) car parked in front of what would be some of the most beautiful pasture land I've ever seen except the area is now tasked only with being beautiful, much like myself. *vogue* Next, a Kokonoe vista in the Fall. Note that this shot is taken from the hot dog stand. Imagine if I'd actually, like, gone to a vista point.
And no trip to Kokonoe is complete without a stop off at The Place On the Way Down the Really Twisty Mountain Road With the Waterwheel and Neat Shrine Behind It. That's the Japanese translation of the name, you can totally believe me on that. This place is perched on a cliff maybe a hundred and fifty meters off the valley floor and can be identified immediately by A) the large waterwheel spinning on the side of the building and B) by the people with painted faces BBQing dango (mochi balls) over hot coals. There's a foot bath next to the railing overlooking the valley and it's a great spot to eat said BBQ dango or read a book, both of which I've done there. Maybe most important of all is that this place emanates happiness--people are always grinning like a three-eyed monk with a plate of crackers. In other words, the shop has a good vibe.
One of the face-painted denizens of TPOtWDtRTMRWtWaNSBI doing his thang cooking dango. The next pic shows the waterfall shrine located behind...that place and the giant geta-style sandals out there for, I'm sure, a very good reason.
And that's about it for Kokonoe. Oh, I also want to mention for my autophile buddies out there that this town is a great place to see hot Japanese sports cars in many tunes thanks to the fabulous driving roads. And no doubt they're also coming for the hot dogs.
--Matt
Monday, December 3, 2007
Blasphemous AND Educational!
The script is taken from Al Franken's Lies and the Lying Liars. Brilliant.
--Matt
--Matt
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
