This That and Whatever Comes to Mind

It's here!

As of yesterday, the rainy season has arrived in the Kanto area, according to the weather people. So what happens? We had a gorgeous sunny morning...go figure!

I have come the the conclusion that we shouldn't call it the rainy season, but the monsoon season. My reasoning? Last week, during an English lesson, my student asked me when the rainy season was in Seattle, and she was very surprised to learn it's in the winter.

Japan turns subtropical in June..today's humidity proves that...and the rains are the beginning of the hot season. This is just like other Asian countries...India, Cambodia, the Philippines for example. And the rain clouds definitely come from the south, bringing lots of moisture that sticks around throughout the summer...after the rains are gone, it's just hot and humid.

Due to all of this, many Japanese just assume that everyone's rainy season is in the summer. It takes me awhile to explain the geography around Seattle and that, although the surrounding areas get snow, this turns into a cold rain around the city. Another example I bring up is Southern California, which also gets its only rain in the winter...I have memories of the winter thunder storms from the 3 years I lived in the LA and Orange County areas.

So I will rephrase my beginning sentence: As of yesterday, the monsoon season has arrived in the Kanto area, according to the weather people.

A quiet Friday afternoon

A gray day...quite warm with high humidity...a preview to the monsoon season which is forecast to start next week in the Kanto area where I live. Unfortunately the rains are very necessary to help the rice grow...at least, it's a warm rain, although some days can be a little chilly....will keep a fleece pullover out just in case.

Went to Zushi this afternoon...had to go to the banks, and I was surprised at how quiet it was around the station and the local shopping area. I mean, it's Friday which is usually not a good time to go to any bank, especially in the afternoon....long lines are a given. But today, I didn't have to wait at either of the banks I visited! Proof, perhaps, that the economy has not recovered as much as the government wants us to think....

Had lunch at Lapereau for the first time in 3 weeks...cabbage and potato pasta with anchovy sauce...trust me, it tastes oh so much better than it sounds with super crunchy garlic scattered throughout. A couple of older ladies were at the other end of the counter, and they talked and talked and talked the entire time I was there...I had to laugh as they bowed to me on my way out...their way of apologizing?

And of course, the big news today is the start of the 2010 World Cup...football to most of the world and soccer to those of us from the US. Not a fan, but still excited that it's all happening in Africa! Go, South Africa...you've done a great job so far, and I will be watching with the hopes that all goes well throughout the month. And may you go all the way to the top!!! Wouldn't that just be so wonderful?

Running out of new material to read...picked up Stranger In A Strange Land for the umpteenth time, but debating whether I really want to read it again. It's the only Heinlein I kept when I cleaned out my shelves some years back...I guess because it's the first of his works I read...back in 1967...when I lived in LA that year I took off from college. I can still remember how shocking it was to my 18 year old psyche and how it pales compared to the DH series of today, for example. Still a good read, though...yes, I think I will continue with it.

Ah, the sound of the ocean...one of the best things about this time of year is being able to sit with the window open on the beach side of my apartment. It's only a little after 9, but sitting here listening to the waves washing up on the shore is making me very sleepy. Guess I will take Zip home early tonight and go to bed myself....my next door neighbor's fox terrier comes over a few nights a week to sleep on my sheepskin for as long as I let him....more on him another time.

Come to think of it, my first lesson tomorrow is at 6:30...gads, what a way to start off my Saturdays! G'nite, world!!

Dad and his machines Chapter 1

My dad was famous for having the volume up full blast...not only when listening to music, but the tv, too. The people who lived in his Bothell WA neighborhood could always tell when he was at home...especially during stock car racing season! I'm sure most of them thought it was just because he was old and hard of hearing....I'm not denying that, but it started many many years ago.

I personally don't remember it, but according to my mother, Dad kept his speaker right next to my crib when I was a baby...she said I could sleep through anything! Even in the days before stereo, when you only needed one speaker, he liked the volume up...classical and big band music were his things in those days.

A little off subject...those were the days when we still had 78rpm records...I know I'm dating myself...^-^ One thing I do remember about my short life in San Francisco (until I was 6 when we moved to Japan) was sitting on the floor, up against my parents' bed (we shared the one bedroom in our apartment) listening to Winnie the Pooh songs on yellow plastic 78rpm records...they were really thick, I guess, to keep little ones like me from breaking them.

The record player and speaker were in the bedroom...if I remember correctly, the bedroom door faced the living room. That means my crib was just inside the door... I was probably able to sleep because of the vibrations from the speaker...LOL

When we moved to Japan, Dad naturally brought his big speaker with him...I think he built it himself...and it sat in the Japanese version of our veranda (a narrow wooden hallway along the side of the house facing the front yard), turned toward the living room. On a nice evening, after a busy day at work, he would turn the speaker around toward the yard, put on a record, sit outside with his martini in hand and entertain the whole neighborhood until dinnertime...hey, we were the only foreigners around, and I'm sure everyone thought we were a little nuts.

Dad was the kind of person who had to have the latest, and have it before anyone else....especially when it came to machines. He was also an innovator. Living in Japan, he was able to purchase the newest equipment when stereo came into being...anyone remember Teac tape decks? What he did next was pretty amazing...he took a Japanese cabinet and turned it into his music center:

This picture is the closest I can find to what he used...the sliding doors on the top were where he kept his tools and miscellaneous stuff, the small drawers underneath were under the big doors in the middle...he took the drawers out, glued the front pieces together and put hinges on the bottom so they would open out...this was where the record player and system controls were. Then when you opened the big doors in the middle, lo and behold, double tape decks! Not one, but two open reel tape decks!!! Records and tape reels were stored in the bottom drawers.

I always remember how cool he was when he asked guests if they would like to listen to some music...they would look around trying to find the equipment...he would walk up to the tansu (cabinet), fling open the big doors and stand grinning from ear to ear as his friends ohhed and ahhed over his system! And it always sounded good, especially when he cranked up the volume...!

As this is turning out to much longer than I had planned, I will be back another day with Chapter 2.