This page shows archived posts for Gary J. Wolff's blog from
April-June,
2018.
Enjoy...
Cheers,
Gary
June 24,
2018 - Today's Dale Carnegie quote
"You can make more friends in 2 months by becoming interested in other
people than you can in 2 years by trying to get other people interested
in you."
—from the top-selling book "How to Win Friends and Influence People" by
Dale Carnegie (1888-1955), American writer and lecturer
June 17,
2018 - WARNING:
Vegetable gardening may be hazardous to your health!!
A 23-foot-long python has swallowed a woman in central Indonesia, a
village official said Saturday. The 54-year-old woman went missing
while checking her vegetable garden near her village on Muna island in
Southeast Sulawesi province on Thursday evening, according to the
village chief, Faris.
On Friday, her family went to look for her at the garden, but found
only her belongings, including sandals and a flashlight, said Faris,
who uses a single name.
The family and villagers launched a search for the woman, and found the
snake with a bloated belly about 50 yards from where her belongings
were found.
The villagers killed the snake and carried it to the village.
"When
they cut open the snake's belly they found Tiba's body still
intact with all her clothes," Faris said. "She was swallowed
first from
her head."
Videos posted on some websites showed villagers slicing open the
python's carcass to reveal the woman's body.
Faris said the victim's garden, about half a mile from her house, is
located in a rocky area with caves and cliffs believed to contain many
snakes.
Reticulated pythons, which are widespread in Indonesia and other parts
of Southeast Asia, grab onto their prey with dozens of sharp curved
teeth and then squeeze it to death before swallowing it whole.
June 9,
2018 - Thee Blackdoor Blues, Club Que, Shimokitazawa, Tues. June
5, 2018
On Tues. night I had the pleasure of hearing the amazing punk rockers
Jocelyn Guzman from Mexico and Naoto Sutou from Japan. By all means,
don't miss Jocelyn's passionate on-stage antics in the "Dirty Water"
song, beginning at the 15:30 mark! Cheers, Thee Blackdoor Blues. Best
wishes to you!
Thee Blackdoor
Blues, Club Que, Shimokitazawa, Tues. June 5, 2018
(If player above is not visible, you can view video
@ YouTube here.)
June
1, 2018 - Mt. Fuji 2018 climbing season congestion forecast
For anyone interested in scaling the nation's highest peak this
climbing season (opening 1 month from today), Fuji-san's official site
has posted a calendar of the forecasted most congested climbing days,
as well as the most crowded times of day from the 8th station to the
summit for the Fujinomiya, Subashiri, & Yoshida Trails.
The site states that one of the dangers of climbing the busiest and
most congested Yoshida Trail is: "Being in high risk of falling over
like dominoes or hit by falling rocks." As one of my Facebook friends
aptly commented, "It makes one almost want to be a part of it." Ha-ha.
Mt. Fuji 2018 forecasted most congested climbing days (image courtesy: fujisan-climb.jp/en)
May 18,
2018 - Rambling Steve Gardner, live at Lown in Shimokitazawa, Tokyo
Mississippi
Roots and Bluesman Steve Gardner is without question Tokyo's most
accomplished harmonica playin' & finger pickin', slide playin'
blues guitarist. For more on Steve and his music, including his videos,
photos, blog, & live gig schedule, head on over to: http://www.ramblingsteve.info
Rambling Steve
Gardner, live at Lown in Shimokitazawa, Tokyo
(If player above is not visible, you can view video
@ YouTube here.)
May 13,
2018 - 7-Eleven electric mini-cars (セブン-イレブン 電気ミニカー)
7-Eleven stores in Japan are using single-seater, 50-cc Toyota electric
cars for their home delivery service aimed at helping the country’s
aging population do their grocery shopping.
According to 2014 estimates, about 26% of the Japanese population are
aged 65 and over. With the disappearance of smaller, local shops, there
are increasing numbers of people who struggle with their daily shopping.
The 7-Eleven electric mini-cars cost about 700,000 yen ($6400), have a
6-hour charge, and have a range of around 50 kilometers (31 miles).
Founded in 1927, 7-Eleven is based in Irving, Texas (a suburb of
Dallas), and is owned by Japan's Seven & i Holdings which operates,
franchises, and licenses some 64,319 stores in 18 countries, as of
January 2018.
Of those 7-Eleven stores around the globe, 20,260 of them (31% of the
total) are located in Japan, more than any other country in the world.
2,601 of the Japan stores are in Tokyo alone.
Sources: japantoday.com; wikipedia.org
7-Eleven electric mini-car in Japan
April
30, 2018 - Koinobori (鯉幟, carp streamers) along the Edo River (江戸川) in
Tokyo
It's that magical time of year in Japan again... GOLDEN WEEK!!
According to ancient Chinese legend, a carp once swam upstream against
the rapid current in the Yellow River to become a dragon. Because of
the carp's strength and determination to overcome all obstacles, in
Japan it was chosen as a symbol for Children's Day (こどもの, Kodomo no
hi), May 5, one of the 4 national holidays during the week-long Golden
Week holiday period.
To celebrate Children's Day, "koinobori (鯉幟)," or carp streamers, are
flown around the country in honor of Japanese children in the hope that
they will grow up healthy, strong, and happy. These wind socks are made
by drawing carp patterns on paper, cloth or other non-woven fabric.
They are then allowed to flutter in the wind. Landscapes across Japan
are decorated with koinobori from April to early May.
Yesterday I had the good fortune of seeing some of these HUGE flying
carp along the banks of the Edo River (江戸川) on what was one of the most
beautiful days in Tokyo so far this year.
Koinobori (鯉幟, carp streamers) along the Edo River (江戸川) in Tokyo
And here's a video of 35 flying carp along the Edo River I made several
years ago, complete
with background music, courtesy of the "Memoirs of a Geisha"
soundtrack:
35 Flying Carp
along the Edo River in Tokyo
(If player above is not visible, you can view video
@ YouTube here.)
April 21,
2018 - Never a dull moment in the world's largest metropolis!
One of the biggest culture shocks I had when I first arrived in Tokyo,
and that even after all these years still haven't completely adjusted
to, is the overwhelming propensity for most people to wear BLACK… black
suits, black coats, black bags, black shoes.... and of course, black
hair. So when you navigate the trains and subways on your everyday
commute, it's a sea of black.
Well, I'm happy to report that in the past several years, we've finally
begun to see a bit more COLOR. Never a dull moment in the world's
largest metropolis!
Colorful Tokyo commuter
April
8, 2018 - Spring 2018 Tokyo Flowers video
Spring flowers in Tokyo are therapeutic to my heart and soul. I hope
you enjoy them as much as I have...
Spring 2018 Tokyo
Flowers
(If player above is not visible, you can view video
@ YouTube here.)
[This year's gorgeous Tokyo cherry blossoms already got their own
special attention here.]
April 6,
2018 - Sayonara 70-day-old beard!
Well, it’s back to the work grind tomorrow after a long, enjoyable
2-month spring vacation. Thus, today I lost my 70-day-old beard (in
stages) and had a lot of fun playing around with different styles.
Ha-ha.
If you have a preference, please feel free to cast your vote by writing
the number of your preferred look, along with any thoughts, in the
commenting section below.
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