Blast from the past!

Something that I'm continually amazed about in my elementary and junior high school students is their serious lack of geography.  Most of my students can easily find Japan, but then asking them to find South Korea, or China is difficult.  I've heard that geography is a weak subject in the US as well and I wonder where and why my interest in other countries and maps came from.   Instantly I could think of three things.  

1. National Geographic Magazine: Which my grandfather religiously subscribed to for decades.

2. An illustrated history of the world:  A great book that was a present from my Grandparents, that had lots of changing maps and current events happening simultaneously throughout the world. This book is I'm sure the reason I can take Japanese History and quickly compare it with historical events around the world at the same time.

3.  The computer game, "Where in the world is Carmen Sandiego", Which I first played on the apple IIe in elementary school.  Carmen was a great game that allowed kids to take on the role of a detective trying to catch the international criminal Carmen Sandiego as she ran around the world stealing things.  

You would need to go to a new location and gather clues by talking to people.  People would tell you things like 

"I heard Carmen is going some place cold" and " She must be headed to a big country" and finally  "I'm pretty sure they don't speak English where she is headed" 

You would then talk to your travel agent and have several options of destinations.  A. Canada  B. South Africa  C.  Russia (or the U.S.S.R as it was known then).  

You would then chose your destination.  If you chose wrong it wasn't a big deal.  You would fly to the place and people around town would say "No, Carmen hasn't been here"  You would then fly back and try again.  Eventually you would get the correct answer, but you were racing against the clock to catch her, so every wrong flight cost you precious time!  

The game has gone through several updates and a variety of subjects.  Her most recent game is a Math game that is available on the Nintendo Wii.  I would really love to see an updated version of this game or a mobile app.  Geography and maps change so often it is really important to have current data.   For now, we can all just wonder  "Where is Carmen San

dieago really?"

Here is a funny picture of Waldo, or Wally from the "Where's Waldo/Wally" books.  It got a laugh out of me.  Poor Carmen :(

New Word:

Balneology
bal-nee-ah-luh-jee

The science of the use of therapeutic baths.



Japan is a country that is in love with the hot-spring.  Going to a hot-spring for a weekend is a past time that is enjoyed year round and by people of all ages.

Inside many of these springs there are detailed charts and graphs that have the exact chemical content of each spring as well as certifications from hot-spring associations.

In times past hot-springs were often sought out for their healing properties so it is no doubt that Japan has been a balneology practitioner since very early times!

So next time you feel guilty about that weekend getaway to your favorite hot-spring, simply tell your boss and coworkers that you have been called away to partake in a balneology conference!  

I wonder.....

Pop-culture Icon

Stan Lee

Stan Lee is an American comic book writer and character designer who has been a cultural Icon for the last 60 years.  Stan Lee has created some of the most famous American super heroes.  His best known creations are Spiderman, The X-Men, The Fantastic Four, Iron-Man, The Hulk, and The Mighty Thor.  All of which have been made into major Hollywood movies over the last few years.

Stan Lee's creations were unique at the time, because all of his heroes had very human flaws and problems as opposed to earlier superheroes who were near perfect in every way. 

Spiderman was much more interesting when he also had problems with his boss, or was on the rocks with his girlfriend.  The Fantastic Four were more interesting when they had family problems and then a resolution that would bring them all closer together.  Because of this human aspect his characters have entertained three generations of comic readers. 

Stan Lee has always been very connected with his fans.  He has taken time to share the joy his work has brought to people all around the world.  Recently Stan Lee has appeared in a cameo role in nearly every superhero movie that he inspired. My favorite cameo so far was in the last Spiderman movie, where he plays a school librarian listening to music.

 

See if you can recognize him! 

Stan Lee with some of his heroes.

 POP!

This week I've decided to focus on the word POP.  As in pop-culture, pop-music, pop-icon, and pop-art. Pop is short for Popular, which can mean "made for, or appealing to everyone".  In theory, Pop-culture is something that everyone likes or at least understands.  Do you think this is true?  Let's discuss pop!

Discussion question 1:  Who do you think the biggest international pop-star is? 

Discussion question 2:  Is being a movie star the same as being a pop-star?

Discussion question 3: Can you think of a pop act or group that you have no idea why they are popular or famous? Who are they? Why?

 BREWING!

Recently many of my friends back in the US have been very busy doing interesting things.  For example:  My friend who lives in Portland Oregon enjoys brewing his own beer.

Portland is the micro-brewery capital of the United States, so it is common for people to make and enjoy their own home-brews.   Many beers are as unique and various as the kinds of people who make them. Most brewers make and customize their own recipes to their own tastes. 

Last weekend my friend entered his home-brew in a local competition.  It didn't win but it was fun to see all of the different beers and brewers gathered together.

Currently my friend is brewing a hefeweizen, or wheat beer that he has titled "Dad's Heffe" Wheat beer has a light taste that is great with a squirt of lemon and is excellent drinking in spring and summer.

Many of you may be asking so just how is beer made?  I asked my friend and he gave me a 5 point 101.  Here is what he said.

Dad's Heffe

First you need to gather your ingredients, which consists of grains, hops, water, yeast, and other "secret" ingredients of your own.

THE PROCESS:

1. Steep the grain, like tea.

2. Boil the resulting liquid (5 gallons about for us). 1 gallon=3.78L

3. Add hops to the boiling liquid. The amount of time the hops boil and how much hops are added gives the beer much of it's aroma and flavor. We used .8 oz of Hops for 5 gallons.

4. Transport to a fermenter and add yeast (it sits for about 2 weeks to a month depending on the beer). The type of yeast and the temperature it ferments at impacts the flavor greatly.

5. Put the now flat beer into a Keg and carbonate for about 2 weeks

6. Enjoy

Pretty cool right?

For those of you interested in beer history and making here is a book that I read about a year ago that was really interesting!  Did you for example know that beer has been around a very very long time, and is one of the things that set Homo-sapiens apart from neanderthals?

 

 The book is:  A History of the World in 6 Glasses, by Tom Standage

Review!

With spring in the air many of us are thinking about starting something new or reviving something that we normally do with new energy.  Those of you coming to class know that we have been working on the idea of "workshop" both as a place and as a tool for self-improvement.  By chance a good friend of mine sent me this picture and story that fits in with both perfectly.  

A Weekend Workshop

My good friend Mr.R lives and works in Seattle.  He has a fine love of coffee as every self respecting Seattle resident does.  So Early last Saturday morning Mr.R roused himself from bed got hit elitist cup of joe from his favorite little shop and headed out to start his day.  Today was different than most days because Mr.R had signed up to do something totally new. 

Mr.R had found a unique and interesting two day workshop that was sure to make this weekend memorable.  He had by chance found a metal working workshop where he could learn some basic skills.  The workshop promised that by the end of two days he would have a beautiful new kitchen knife to show for his efforts. 

After two full days of sweating and working like a dog.  Mr.R was able to make this.  

He went on to say that he had a lot of personal help from the workshop teacher and that working with metal is very interesting, but also very complex.  He told me that he has a new found respect for the amount of work that goes into making such everyday, but important tools!  Not a bad way to spend a weekend:  You learn something new and have a nice new tool to take home as well!  Kudos to you!

Aren't these amazing!

Last week one of my students brought some hand made Kyoto sweets to class for everyone.

Kyoto as you may or may not know, is famous for their sweets and especially their sugar candies. 

Here are some Kyo-Yasai liquor filled bon bons!  Can you name all the vegetables?  How do you say sora-mame in English anyways?! Everyone chime in you your Kyo-Yasai guesses!

Review Challenge!

For those of you who have come to class in the last week or so here is a good chance for you to read and review some of the things that we went over.  Can you remember all of that vocabulary?  Let's see how you do!

I have a very large soft spot for Lupin the third and the Castle of Cagliostro.  It was the very first Japanese Anime that I saw when I was a child.  The first time that I saw it I was about 12 years old and starting to outgrow cartoons.  When I saw this movie I was surprised that an animated movie could be so cool!  I was basically hooked on Japanese anime from that moment on.

The main character is Lupin who is a gentleman cat-burglar based on French novelist Maurice Leblanc's "Les Aventure de Arsene Lupin"  Lupin is supposedly the grandson of this legendary gentleman thief, who was renowned for not only his ingenious crimes that would part beautiful women from the money and jewelry but also their hearts.  Although Lupin is a thief and a criminal he is after all a gentleman and will spend most or even all of his loot to uphold the honor of a lady or give the money to a truly deserving cause.

Lupin III is much like his grandfather in that he may have grand and ingenious plans for a theft, but over the course of the story he finds something even more valuable;  the love of a kind and beautiful woman.

I have seen most of the Lupin movies and have even read most of the classic comic books done by famous comic artist Monkey-Punch, but Castle of Cagliostro remains my all time favorite Lupin story.

The story goes:  Lupin and his partner in crime Jigen discover a large number of near perfect fake money.  They decide to try and steal the printing plates for themselves and become insanely rich. Lupin traces the bills back to a small European country called Cagliostro.  While trying to find a way to break-in and loot the castle Lupin runs into a princess who is being forced to marry against her will so that the evil Count Cagliostro can learn the true secret behind the his family's power and wealth. 

Lupin quickly decides to change his caper from finding the goat-bills, to saving the princess.   Over the course of the heist Lupin also bumps into his ex-girlfriend Fujiko as well as teams up with his arch rival Inspector Zenigatta of the international police agency.  Together they all work to take down Count Cagliostro.  In the end the count runs out of time and meets an ironic end.  Lupin discovers the secret of Cagliostro and sets the princess free to live her own life.  Lupin with his gang then make a clean get away into the setting sun.

Review Vocabulary:  Soft spot, cat-burglar, thief, break-in, loot, caper, heist, a get away

So, how did you do?

Two years ago I decided to do something "Japanese" so I started my new hobby and passion of Aikido.  Aikido is a defensive martial art that uses a collection of joint locks as well as throws to move the attacker away from you and onto the ground.  Pretty cool!  To help focus our movements we do a lot of wooden sword drills or Kata.  These Kata have their roots in the sword schools and training yards of feudal Japan.
Last night I was lucky enough to have a private Aikido lesson with my teacher so we were able to practice several Kata together in depth and discuss the theory behind the motions.

Something that continues to amaze me is the difference between Eastern and Western sword philosophy.  Arms (aka weaponry) and Armor have fascinated me since I was about 8 or 9 years old and even now I find my self an eager learner.

Here is a quick Arms and Armor 101.
In 15th century Europe Armor was very thick and heavy.  Weapons were also big and heavy so that they could penetrate such heavy armor!

The main philosophy was to have thick enough armor to deflect an opponent's blow and then counter with your own heavy weapon.  It was also common to use your armor and or shield as a weapon as well, to either disarm, stun or batter your opponent!

This armor took a long time to put on and was almost impossible to put on by yourself.  Modern armor enthusiasts say that to put on a full suit of armor with help, takes about 15min.


In Japan at about the same time (Sengoku-jidai) the theory was totally different!
Armor was lighter, weighing only half as much as its European equivalent, and mobility was more important than stopping power.  Japanese sword technique stresses attacking exposed or weak areas in armor and moving around to your opponent's flanks for an attack.  Most sword technique also stresses a two handed grip on a sword.  I'm learning that with proper sword posture it is very hard for an opponent to close and attack you!

If you had armor of this quality, you were probably rich enough to have servants assist you in putting it on, but that does not mean that you couldn't do it yourself in a pinch.
I love instructional diagrams and this one is almost as good as one I found in Hikkone castle several years ago. Enjoy!

hi·a·tus


1.a break or interruption in the continuity of a work, series, action, etc.

2.a missing part; gap or lacuna: Scholars attempted to account for the hiatus in the medieval manuscript.

3.any gap or opening.

4.Grammar, Prosody . the coming together, with or without break or slight pause, and without contraction, of two vowels in successive words or syllables, as in see easily.

5.Anatomy . a natural fissure, cleft, or foramen in a bone or other structure.

WOW!  I have really had one of these haven't I!