xrc comments

Come on people, wake up! They tell us to save energy. Don't worry, I'm very strict in that sense. But, has anyone walked down the streets of Ginza, Shinjuku, Ikebukero or Machida (probably every other big city as well)! The stores (small shops) have the doors open while blasting the outside with cool air. Why hasn't this been an issue. The small shop next to me doesn't have a door. In the winter the heat is blasting...in the summer...the aircon is chilling! Why don't you ru the aircon while leaving your windows open and see how much your electric bill is!!!!! Someone is missing something.

We always hear about the excuse that Americans need guns to protect themselves. So far I have NOT seen any stats on how many lives had been saved because of having a gun. What happens if a robbery is thwarted? Does the person trying to commit the crime get shot? get arrested? or even get reported? If only a few hundred cases showed guns helped, then the whole premise is out of wack. And I don't think banning guns has anything to do with being a socialist!

Yes, raise the electric bill an average of 8.47%. Yes, Well, what about saving money! I went to the shopping mecca of Machida (still considered Tokyo) and ya know what. as I walked down the streets, most shops had their doors open...yes, with AirCons running full blast. Now it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out how much electricity is being wasted. Even where I live in Sagamihara the shop two doors down DOES NOT have a door....in the summer it's Airconed...in the winter it's heated. I asked them (a small shop) how much they pay a month for electricity and they said about ¥150,000 (a month). Why do they do that? Because it will attract people walking by when they feel the fresh cool air blowing out onto the street. Are they too lazy to open a door? They do have automatic opening doors, don't they? I doubt the shop sells that many drinks to pay for it! The Japanese are afraid to go against their old habits....then they demonstrate against nuclear power....

I understand that most of you all have kind intentions. I guess the way of teaching English in elementary and junior~senior high schools is part of the problem, at least in the old days. Teaching English in Japan is much more than reading and writing and listening. They all have to work in conjunction. The days of rote (memorization) are long gone. One has to become a psychoanalyst when teaching English here to break through the invisible wall of Me=Japanese You=Gaijin. Fear, shyness and lack of being able to express your own ideas (since elementary school) have made the task of teaching much harder.

As a STEP test examiner...I just hand the students the cards, I have a booklet with all the questions and answers. Even the degree of level of answer. Ex. 5 is the highest and then what the sentence should be...even examples of 4...3...etc. Do I really need to teach? No.

I also teach at Community Centers (4 of them actually) of course the students are all nice, polite elder mostly housewives. Some have been in my classes for more than ten years. One class has been going for almost 13 years. There are some that never said anything but read the paper (handouts) or textbook. I've ran into them on the street and said, "Hi, How are you?" and they froze up with fear...and couldn't muster up even the basic greetings. I mean after over ten years every Wednesday class. Let's also take into consideration how one feels about his or her teaching ability when such things happen.

There are others who are almost shocked if I say any violent word just in pertaining to news, a knife, someone hit someone, a gun shot...as if I were saying I liked those actions. Most in this society have grown up super protected, and in "Hello Kitty Land World"! "kawaii" "kawaii" They don't want to see anything else besides what they already know or is in the safe box area.

Students sit next to/near me on the train studying English, yet no~one even says, "Hello, How are you?" Which of course could began a conversation in English. I've even asked students sitting next to me on the train (they were studying an English textbook) and they'd just give me the cross hands "No" gesture...and I've never asked anyone in the years since then.

I haven't been to a movie in ten years or so. I never saw any mention that "Batman" movie had anything to do with the murders. Smith & Wesson does, but who stops using them!

Yeah, I saw earthquake clouds at the BBQ on Sunday and told everyone to be ready for a quake within two to 12 hours. Most people laughed and told me what kind of clouds there were etc. Surely, we did have one. That is my seventh or eight hit (or more) ...pics of clouds to prove it too! Been seeing them for over 25 years. Of course not every and all earthquakes.

Ummm downloading stuff from the net....1) do you use it to make a profit? 2) what about those that are just barely paying their bills? They will be shut out. Yes, the Japanese have a long way to go but...hey Americans earning over $250,000 a year don't want to pay more taxes.... Where in society does the guy fit making $20,000 a year? and I'm talking someone in their 60's with no benefits, no savings (not because of buying crap but that's the way life is....) If he/she downloads a CD or a movie they are going to become criminals? I say hands up to the so-called "Pretenders" that are trying to say what they think!

accidents happen!

They don't really tell you too much in the Japanese News do they?

I once saw a 20's-ish lady wearing a t-shirt saying..."F _ Me?" You know what I was thinking.

yes, I took some pics of earthquake clouds in the afternoon. (that day) They were almost prefectly shaped (I've seen EQ clouds a few times) but not exactly UFO flat shaped as usual. I still told my wife and said "Hey I saw some EQ clouds this afternoon. Then sitting here on the 2nd floor in the computer, music room the house started shaking....at 9:06PM. Oh shit! I left my camera downstairs...ran down to get it but by the time I got back upstairs it was over. Second time in a week that I saw EQ clouds. My first time was way back in Nagano after skiing...in 1983 or '84. Everyone thought I was crazy, until we got to the minshiku and were in the hotspring bath and it started shaking! I even got the March 11th 2011 big on video. Ya know what made the video more powerful. The sound of the two metal sliding shutters that were in their side place slamming together like hard cymbals... with the stereo and monitors and guitar cords hanging from the shelf...thought that was it. ah well...

Yes, better with Saddam who posed NO threat to America...never came out and ever said anything about attacking America... a waste of money except for the weapons dealers, our main business and tax drain... Americans think everyone has the same up-bringing and values and life as them, but they have no clue (religious,tribal, social, territorial etc.) ... No electricity for hours a day...no fresh water...great Democracy we have given them...and left.... America still hasn't apologized for the thousands killed in Vietnam. Forget Laos...Nixon said "We never dropped one bomb on Laos" go take a look at the bombs found....never mind that...the drop off place for wasted fuel tanks from jets... Yeah yeah, a real American would tell the truth!

Yes, I've been feeling the ground moving every day & night since Jan. 1st. Am I a dog? I've become very sensitive....even today I asked my wife while we were sitting under the kotasu table if she felt movement. Actually, the ground is always moving but as most said, we don't normally feel it. I know the bumps of the street if the cars or trucks pass by or the wind (since I live in a old house)...but it is/was the ground beneath moving. I did manage to capture the March 11th on video cam here as it happened. And on a few other occasions as well. Had my camera on the kotatsu on Jan. 1st but was charging my battery. Still had time to go into the kitchen and run upstairs and film the monitors swaying back and forth...

ummmm don't know where he got his cash. perhaps if it wasn't taxed beforehand...well...that's a problem. But, actually, do you think it's wrong to save your cash at home? I don't think so. In my case I just make enough to live on, but find no wrong doing if ya want to keep your cash at home. What is the interest rate anyways? ¥0.025?

Speed Test here: (Mac) or.... http://www.speedtest.net/

I use JCom 160 mbs cable for the net.

My speed test showed: 40.25 Mbps DL 6.20 Mbps UL

One never gets the full speed as advertised.

Though I feel it's pretty fast.

An excellent lunar show. I sat outside and watched almost the whole eclipse. I took about 45 minutes of video the video is O.K., but not as clear as the naked eye. I had to run into the house to charge the two extra batteries and ran back out in a flash to change them. The moon was high in the sky. Some wispy clouds swept in during the first 20 minutes or so given it a mysterious look. The half time shadow was distinct. Not so cold either. What a great experience.

Please please I need the yen rate to go up to ¥120 to the $.... Who controls this? Heard way back when (1983~) the yen was ¥150 to the dollar, everything would be fine....and now in 2011 Honda, Nissan & Toyota loses $400,000,000 dollars for each yen increase. And they say China is manipulating the currency.

I stop stop after just one kiss....

I heard about 3?% of soldiers coming back from Iraq are homeless...with no jobs or benefits....thank you America for bringing a nice word called, "Democracy" to a country that doesn't have hardly any....shit, America still censors pictures and words and giving the finger as if no-one knows what that means...

tax and legalize drugs...then we'd have enough for free medical, education and a few who would probably die from using too much...ummm cigarettes & alcohol are O.K. though.....duped or a good pay off?

Wish the yen rate would go up to at least ¥110 to the dollar. (Yes, I'm dreaming) Some (most of) my savings is in Dollars (from my Ma passing away)...and I sure ain't gonna change it at this yen rate...

"Mission Accomplished" ???? yeah, help break down the US economy.... what a waste of tax payer money. Did they ever find that pallet load of new $100 dollar bills that somehow got misplaced? A car bombing last week, still hundreds dying. One person in the US might be assassinated (not even an American nor from a Democratic country) and we want to start the "War" machine. Power outages. Originally had a No-Fly zone in northern Iraq to give our help to the Kurds...and now what? We sure don't help them now when Turkey is going into Iraq to chase the Kurds down....ummmm

Sure wish the yen would go up to ¥110 to a dollar.

I don't mind paying a higher tax for such things (I don't want to pay taxes for the arms race). But, I think the higher income people should take a little more responsibility to pay more taxes. Me, I living almost to the poverty level now. Hope Japan isn't like America in this sense. G.E. makes millions and doesn't pay any taxes. And the rich use loopholes to get out of paying taxes. Then they wonder why America is having problems.

The "Sun" my friends. An hour extra of light. Great...offices, streetlights won't need to be on. And we can stay at the beach until almost 9:00PM instead of 7:30.

I'm always hearing announcements over the town loudspeakers whether it be, we just had another aftershock and take care of your kitchen appliances, stove and gas or there's going to be a power outage from 6:20~10:00AM...although my power never went off. I see the train lines listed which are running or at what percent on TV. Most of this at the town level. Oh, here comes an announcement now. They start at distant loudspeakers about one kilo away and get closer after about the third or fourth time. This is about TEPCO rolling outage and the area of town and time affected....I haven't seen any looting either. As far as English info. Well, the net magazines and news sites have lots of English. NHK BS1 runs a sub channel in all English... I'm living...but not working. No big gripes yet.

I wonder how much meth she had on her. Here in J-Land if they find any amount, even if it is NOT enough to even get high on, you are busted. KInd of a waste of time and tax payer money.

There are lots of Chinese illegals in Japan. And probably she didn't want to go back to China I'd figure.

I have a regular yen account and another one that is in dollars. I went to the bank to cash a $630.00 income tax (govt) checkto put in my regular account...besides the terrible yen rate which would really have given me about $500.00 worth of yen they also wanted a ¥3,100 transfer fee. Glad I forgot my inken (stamp) and didn't do it. I had my friend deposit in his American bank account to get the whole $630.00, sorry to say the yen rate for dollars now is (at the bank) about ¥79.?? bad bad bad...

ah come on "accidents will happen"!