Japanese Children get Blessed and Gifted (with candy!) Prayers and Blessings for Children Aged 7, 5, & 3

My family and friends back in the USA often ask me, "What's life like in Japan?" The question is impossible to answer, not least because for me it's not all that different from life anwhere. I suppose, though, that they mean, "What's different?" Those of you following my blog may have already glimpsed a bit of rural Japan through my eyes as an outsider. Here, then, is one more difference.

Japanese, like anyone else, value their children highly, and some seasonal festivals celebrate birth, development and coming of age of their sons and daughters. Shichi-go-san means 7-5-3 and is one such celebration.

Although Shichi-go-san is really on November 15th, it's not an official holiday, so parents choose the weekend before or after to take their girls of 3 or 7 years, or their boys of 5, to the local Shinto shrine. The kimono-clad little girls look like beautiful, elegant dolls walking the streets hand-in-hand with their parents. Boys too, dress in fine style, wearing traditional Japanese jackets and trousers, haori and hakama.

Shichi-go-san was originally limited to the samurai class, but spread to the general population in the Edo Era of the 17th century. On November 15th, families visit the Shinto shrine, where parents and priests pray for the children's health and development. Specific details of the children's appearance act as landmarks in the children's growing up. Traditionally, both boys and girls no longer shave their heads after turning 3 years old. Going out in public wearing hakama is first permitted when boys turn 5. And girls of 7 can at last stop tying their kimono closed with cords, using instead the more elaborate and elegant obi for the task.

Shichi-go-san is an important day for families of small children. Relatives may gather for the event, perhaps even coming from far away. Playing the good host or hostess is not the loving parents' only expense. Girls' kimonos are often family heirlooms, handed down from generation to generation, but the requisite trip to the beauty parlor for a full work-up can cost thousands of yen, more if renting a kimono. And, having gone to all the trouble of looking good, a trip to the photography studio is an expensive must. Finally, after visiting the shrine, good children are treated to chitose ame, or Thousand-Year candy, served in a bag decorated with symbols of luck and longevity like turtles, cranes, pine and bamboo. The candy, too, represents the parents' prayers for a long and prosperous life for their children.

Shichi-go-san is a time when mothers and fathers dress their children up in their holiday best and proudly present them to the world. The best place to see families celebrating in Tsuruoka is the Shonai Shrine in the heart of Tsuruoka City Park on November 12 and 13. Chances are good that, if you were to ask, no one would mind letting you take a picture or two of their little ones. They might even insist that you join the photo!

Here's a terrific link to Shichi-go-san homepage.  ¶ 11/07/2005 02:46:00 PM 0 comments links to this post

  iPod nano: Just in Case The other day I awoke and plugged my 60G iPod photo into my laptop to suck up all the podcasting goodness I'd scrounged through the night. Instead of "Phil's iPod" appearing on my desktop, there was nothing but the non-stop whirrrrrr-clunk, whirrrrrr-clunk as my 'Pod tried to get it's act together. Five minutes, then ten--no change. The hard drive seemed to be out of commission, and AppleCare agreed to send someone for it.

Whenever I've asked AppleCare for service they've said "one to two weeks" but had the computer back in my hands in just a few days. But without my music, audiobooks and podcasts drive time seemed interminable. I've come to rely on my 'Pod for news, information and entertainment more than my computer or my TV. By lunchtime I was at the end of my rope. Luckily the local electronics shop (Super Denkodo) had just gotten a few 2G iPod nanos in. I snatched one up and quickly loaded up my audio life.

When people said in the early reviews that the iPod nano was "amazing" and "sexy" and "irresistable" they weren't kidding. I went to the store to buy one out of necessity, but when I opened the box and lifted out my shiny black nano I was blown away. And everyone I've shown it to since has been equally impressed. What an unbelievable and terrific piece of hardware! It's so small, light, and easy to use that I'm not sure I can ever go back to my 60G iPod photo for daily use.

I've had only a little trouble with my nano. The controls are so sensitive that when I try to listen to it in my shirt pocket my body heat wreaks havoc with the volume control. Since I doubt that it's just my sexual magnetism, I decided I'd have to get some kind of case. I knew from the MacCast that the black nanos were especially susceptible to scratches, so I left the shipping film on until I could come up with some kind of protector. Although the nano was so new that there were no cases on the shelves yet, I was determined to maintain its beauty and elegance at all costs.

I found a product online from Micro Solution called iPod nano Film Kit #04 for about $11 plus shipping. The small package which arrived within a few days and included two adhesive films each in the shape and size of the click wheel and of the button. In addition, there were two heavier films that cover the face of the nano, with a hole for the click wheel, and two more for the back. These aren't adhesive but seem to use the natural attraction between the nano and the film. The instructions are all in Japanese, but it doesn't seem that complicated.

Relieved to finally have "official" protection, I sat down after work to apply the film. First I peeled the click wheel film off its backing, to which it and the button film were really stuck. I was a little nervous because the adhesive seems too strong. In fact, just removing the stubborn click wheel film from its backing stretched it a little and as a result it didn't apple perfectly to the nano, which you can see in the photo here. Not a huge thing, but not perfect.








The full front film applied much more easily. The transparent film has its own blue film layer on top, which I haven't removed yet, but which is beginning to peel off as you can see. I think it's meant to be removed, but I'm leaving it on for a little while more for added protection. When I finally take the blue film off the clear film will still be in good shape.

In taking off the nano's original packing film I touched the beautiful black surface and left a couple of fingerprints. I used a soft tissue to try to remove them, and left minute scratches in the finish. Aaaaarghh!!! The nano's finish really is much too delicate. The full body film, though, applies easily, if you can keep dust motes from getting between the film and the nano. To really do it right you need a "clean room." The transparent film for the back has an alligator texture that doesn't really show up well in the picture here.






A few days after applying the Micro Solutions film, the nano case I ordered arrived. The BI-NCASE/BK from BrightonNet is a soft leather case with a fold over cover. At roughly $22 bucks it was a little pricey, but I loved it when I first saw it. It was small, soft and simple.


After a day or two of regular use it dawned on me: it had to have been designed by someone who'd never tried using the nano with the case. The fold over flap has a hole for the headphone cord, but no way to see the nano or access the controls while it's in the case. To turn it on or of, adjust the volume, or make a selection, you have to take out the headphone jack and remove it from the case--each time. It's a pain in the neck.

You can try pressing the click wheel to start and stop tracks through the closed case, but press on the wrong place and you'll go to the next or previous tune, or get lost entirely and have to start all over again. Oh, and pretty much forget about using the lock switch on the top of the nano. It's out of reach without taking the nano completely out of the case. If the maker had cut in from the edge of the flap rather than making a hole, the case would be much better. I wish I could get my money back. The manufacturer said in an e-mail to ask the retailer. We'll see.

The case is simple and elegant; it's just not functional. For the time being I'm relying almost exclusively on the Micro Solutions film until the other (better?) case I ordered comes in. More information then.

BTW, it's been 10 days and I'm still waiting for my repaired iPod photo. It was under warranty and engraved, but I wish they'd just replace it with a new 60G iPod that does video. I'd be happy to call us square, even without the engraving! ;-) No chance of that, I guess.

What is it with me and hard drives lately, anyway. My new PowerBook's HD died within a few months of buying it, and then my iPod photo's HD. I'm gentle as a mouse with my stuff, so I wonder what's going on? Thank goodness for AppleCare!  ¶ 11/03/2005 04:13:00 PM 1 comments links to this post

  Tsuruoka City Readies for Winter
Strange wooden structures and straw wraps not just decorative

Visitors and residents new to snow country may have been surprised by construction taking place in public and private spaces around the city. Yuki-gakoi, or snow fences, take several different forms and are characteristic of winter in Shonai.

Perhaps one of the most beautiful forms of yuki-gakoi is the central bamboo pole ascending alongside the tree trunk and towering above. Rough ropes then stretch from the top of the pole to the various branches below, strengthening and supporting them when weighted down with snow.

Another common style used for hedges, shrubs, and smaller trees consists of a wooden frame around the outside of the tree, or stretching above the hedge, which is then covered with wooden or bamboo slats. The slats are either nailed down or, more traditionally, secured with rough rope.

The large trees in Tsuruoka City Park seem to be wearing skirts these days. City gardeners have lovingly wrapped each tree trunk in a straw mat which forms a band two or three feet wide, as if to ensure warmth and comfort throughout the frigid winter months. In fact, rather than providing warmth or protecting the trees from the weight of fallen snow, these skirts, called komomaki in Japanese, are said to attract pine beetles, which infest the warm soft straw and leave the tree untouched. Park officials then burn the mats in spring, helping to keep the beetle population in check.

The strangest of all yuki-gakoi is doubtless the straw capes fashioned to protect the stone Buddhas and statues.Then again, maybe it's not so strange. During the rest of the year the statues are dressed in red capes and locals place gifts of food and sake at their feet lest they hunger or thirst.

As an outsider, it seems to me that snow fencing is more elaborate and widespread than strictly necessary. Local residents may do the work themselves, or hire a landscaper at fairly expensive rates. In any case, yuki-gakoi and komomaki are some of the unmistakeable signs of the onset of winter.  ¶ 10/31/2005 03:54:00 PM 1 comments links to this post

  The English-Teacher-in-Japan's Mac Toolbox 4 For the foreigner newly arrived in Japan, nothing beats a good bilingual dictionary. And unless you've already mastered the Japanese writing system, you will probably want one that has alphabetized pronunciation of Japanese words so you can sound them aloud. I still remember when I first came to Japan and the kerosene that fueled my room's heater ran out. I checked my dictionary and found that kerosene is called "toyuu" in Japanese, checked my Japanese textbook's shopping chapter and found that asking for things is "____ kudasai," and I was all set. Muttering "Toyuu kudasai . . . toyuu kudasai . . ." under my breath so as not to forget, I set off down the street carrying my red plastic fuel can. You can imagine my delight when my careful "Toyuu kudasai" produced desired results at the gas station. Within minutes I was back home with a full fuel can and able to remove the early-spring chill from my one-room apartment. Success!

When hand-held electronic dictionaries first came out in Japan they were designed exclusively for Japanese students of English, and didn't show any pronunciation for the Kanji (pictogram character) translations, meaning that they were almost useless to beginning and low-intermediate students of Japanese. I'm told that electronic dictionaries are more foreigner-friendly now, but I've gotten by with my traditional book-form dictionary, along with software for my Mac that is not only a dictionary, but also a full-fledged translator of phrases, sentences and paragraphs.

Translation software is notoriously bad. When my students rely on software or online translation sites, they submit sentences like, "It went to Tokyo. Soba was eaten." That's because Japanese often relies on contextual or conversation flow cues to communicate the subject of the action; it doesn't require a grammatical subject to the degree that English does. In other words, in Japanese people say, "Went to Tokyo. Ate soba," and this is perfectly natural and correct. The listener or reader infers that it is the speaker who went to Tokyo, and that soba is what he or she ate. Not all that difficult for humans to figure out, but just about impossible for a computer. Having more detailed information to begin with, maybe English to Japanese translation is slightly easier for the computer. I'm not sure.

In any case, a translation sofware title called Korya Eiwa 2005 has been a great help to me in my work and in my life in Japan. Today I'd like to share that with you.

Korya Eiwa 2005 for the Mac is published by Logovista. It boasts a number of functions that are particularly useful for those working with both Japanese and English, though the program is not currently marketed toward English speakers. It's far too feature-rich to explain everything here today, but I'd like to give you just a sample of what it can do.

Korya Eiwa can put a Smiley icon in your menu bar allowing you to access its functions easily and without interrupting your workflow. Click on the icon and this is what you'll see:Type a word or phrase into the window, and press return or click on the far left button （一発）and you'll see results below almost instantly. Korya Eiwa knows if you've typed a single word, in which case it looks it up in the dictionary.Here, the dictionary offers a number of translations for the English word book both as a noun and as a verb.

If you type in a phrase or sentence, the software opens the translation panel and offers (only one, unfortunately) a Japanese or English translation, depending on what you typed in.
The final piece of the puzzle is English to Japanese webpage translation.

If you type in an internet address, or drag a URL from the address window in Safari or Internet Explorer, Korya Eiwa will translate the English webpage into Japanese when you click the Browser Translator （ブラウズ翻訳）button on the bar, hit the return key, or hit one of the four buttons at the bottom of the above window. The button with the blue E slightly higher than the red J yields this result:The original English remains, but under each English title or paragraph you can see Korya Eiwa's best efforts at Japanese.

The button that has the E and J perfectly side by side provides yet another possibility: This is the same webpage as above, only now all the graphics have been removed and the original English text and Korya's Japanese translation are side by side, sentence by sentence. This is great for checking the accuracy of the translation with a bilingual friend.

The final mode I'll address today is the HL button for webpage translation, which translates only titles and HTML links. This can also be useful.

There is much more to Korya Eiwa 2005 than I've outlined here. But all is not peaches and cream. I find the Japan-centric nature of a product which could be equally useful for non-Japanese studying the language annoying. Why is there no option for an English language interface? Why are there no instructions in English in the manual? Why are help panels available only in Japanese?

Clearly Logovista intends that this product be used primarily by Japanese people. They seem to forget that Japanese is one of the most popular foreign languages for students around the world. Having created a Japanese-English translation product, one assumes that they have skilled English speakers that could whip up an interface, a manual and help panels in a matter of days. That they don't seems to me narrow-minded, and perhaps even a bit chauvinistic. Non-Japanese don't count, it seems to say. On the other hand, maybe they just fear having to offer product support in English, though as I wrote above, they ought to have enough English speakers around, especially since nearly all of their software is translation and dictionary stuff.
Korya Eiwa is a terrific dictionary and translation program with an amazing number of useful features. Users without significant ability in Japanese, though, will face a daunting task in installing the software, deciphering the manual and then using the software.

Amazon sells Korya Eiwa 2005 for a very reasonable ¥7352, though it is not clear whether they can ship outside Japan. The Logovista website at first glance seems to sell a download version of Korya Eiwa, but on further investigation they just introduce a number of other stores that sell the product. In my experience trying to buy Korya Eiwa a few months ago, the download version was only available for Windows platform. I ended up ordering the boxed version. Once again, I can't confirm availability outside Japan. Even online download sales are often geographically restricted based on your credit card billing address. If you know where to buy this product in the US, Canada or Europe, please let me know.

It's also important to remember the limitations of MT. Computers can be a useful step in the hard work of translating between Japanese and English, but people have to be the final judge, whichever way you are translating. I was quite offended once when the telephone company responded to my e-mail request for billing information with a MT'd English answer that had obviously not been checked in even the most cursory fashion by a human. (It took me several days to work out that "following moon bill" meant "next month's payment.")

We are easily decades away from true human-free computer translation. In the meantime, Korya Eiwa can be a valuable addition to your English-Japanese communication arsenal. Drop me a note if you use this program and let me know if you like it or hate it. Happy translating!___  ¶ 10/27/2005 02:31:00 PM 3 comments links to this post

  Local elections end in victory, defeat My town, anyway, seems cleaner and fresher today. It's probably due not only to the torrents of rain over the weekend, but also to the completion of the local elections for Tsuruoka City Council. No more campaign trucks with their accursed strapped-on speakers! No more amplified screaming 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., "SUZUKI! SUZUKI! VOTE FOR SUZUKI!"

Today I arrived for work at City Hall to see cameras and reporters gathered around the front entrance, and a line of male dignitaries dressed in black obviously waiting to welcome someone. Bemusedly climbing the stairs to my office, I found that almost every chair was empty and the usually bustling third floor was quiet as a cemetary. "Where is everyone?" I asked.

"They're all downstairs greeting the newly elected city councillors," was the answer, along with a "Why aren't YOU there?" kind of stare. I didn't know. . . I'm not wearing a tie today. . . The election only finished last night--How the hell . . .? Half a dozen excuses sprang to my lips but I bit them back and put on my Mr. Innocent face.

The election's been over for all of 17 hours, and the results are already published in the newspaper, the winners notified, and the opening ceremonies begun. What monumental feat of organization and efficiency, what great technological achievement of the 21st cenury, what in the world could facilitate such quick action on the part of the usually sedate Tsuruokans? I had to ask.

"Do voters use machines to make their choice?" No.

"Do they have computers and vote online?" No.

"Do they use machine-scorable forms like the tests we took in school?" No.

"Well, how then?"

"Voters write the name of their choice for city council vertically in Kanji on their ballots by hand. When the polls closed at 8 last night, the ballots were transported to a central location, where local officials separated them into stacks for each candidate, then counted the ballots in each stack. By midnight they had the numbers."

Midnight? Yep, 12 a.m. Roughly 70,000 votes were tallied and the winners made public in just four hours. Amazing. The system of allowing each voter to place only one vote, rather than one vote for each council position, means the counting is easy.

Since no one challenged the incumbent mayor Tomizuka, his name wasn't even on the ballot and he won without a fight. There was more competition, though, for the city council seats. I wrote in another post that the majority of candidates usually win, but Tsuruoka City now includes five newly-absorbed towns and villages, each with its own councillors who all stood for (re-)election for their sub-district of new Tsuruoka City, but each had far fewer seats than when they were independent municipalities. Here are the number of newly-elected city councillors compared with the number of candidates who ran for each district within new Tsuruoka City:

• Old Tsuruoka: 23/30
• Fujishima: 4/8
• Haguro: 3/8
• Kushibiki: 3/6
• Atsumi: 3/8
• Asahi: 2/6

Much tougher than usual, I think. If I were to offer an opinion, I think 38 councillors for a city of this size is ridiculous. Last I heard the salary was 500,000 yen/month for each of them. What a waste of money! Furthermore, every one of the half a dozen female candidates lost. Generally speaking, it was men in their 50s and 60s who were elected, though the top two vote-getters were from the younger generation at 40 and 37, respectively.

That said, congratulations are in order to a city that managed such a smooth merger and transition, followed by an election on a rainy day that still managed to bring out more than 60% of the electorate. And, of course, let's not forget our city environment. We can all now breathe a sigh of relief, and our blood pressure can drop back to normal as the air is filled once again with only the sounds of a Japanese fall and the regular comings and goings of the people of a small northern city.

And to my 29-year-old friend and former student Yuki who failed to win his seat in Fujishima, condolences. Tsuruokans seem to prefer older representatives. Your time will come again.

To you, dear reader, until next time . . .  ¶ 10/24/2005 04:21:00 PM 0 comments links to this post

  Musings on Fall in Japan, Elections Today I thought I'd take a break from talking about Macs in Japan, in spite of the interested response I've gotten from readers here and abroad.

Fall, in my opinion, is far and away the best season in northern Japan. If you know anything about the hellishly hot and sticky summers and cold and wet winters here, you know that that's not saying much. But if it seems barely habitable for the rest of the year, autumn in Japan blesses us with fresh air, comfortable temperatures, cheaper prices at the market, half a dozen national holidays, and an overall sense of well-being and contentment. The school/work year (which starts in April, not September) is half over, and it just feels like there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Sure, there's the misery of winter still ahead, but it all feels somehow like we're over the hump and it's downhill from here.

There seem to be few festivals or activities to celebrate fall here in this part of Japan. There's no Halloween, "Labor Thanksgiving" day on 11/23 is a far cry from a north American Turkey Day, and no one seems to be interested in parades. There are plenty of official holidays--Culture Day falls on 11/3, Sports Day on 10/10, and Fall Equinox on 9/23, Respect for the Aged Day on 9/19, and the Emperor's Birthday on 12/23. But nothing really happens in my village. Nothing, that is, except the Imo-Ni-Kai.

We all gathered at the local community center (each neighborhood has one, usually adjacent to the local primary school) just before noon on Sports Day. The kids were kicking around a soccer ball outside, while the adults sat on tatami floors at 10 low tables catching up on the latest gossip. The ladies of the neighborhood brought out their giant pots full of delicious Imo-Ni, a stew made of pork or beef, taro potatoes, carrots, onions, seasoned with broth and miso or soy sauce. The women of each block had joined forces to create a culinary masterpiece, which they proudly presented to the judges at the party. Nobody seemed offended when the judges awarded each pot a special title such as, "Too Salty," "Weak-flavor," "Uh-oh!" and so on, culminating with "Best of Show," and other games followed, each resulting in laughter and prizes. The kids were particularly keen on the fishing contest results, since they'd started fishing a nearby creek at the crack of dawn, competing for biggest, most, best and so on. Although other prizes were little widgets and household supplies from the 100 yen shop (like the Dollar Shop in the USA, but with better stuff), the fishing prizes were really cool fishing rods, reels and other supplies. The winning kids were delighted.

I filled my belly. Japanese pickles and sticky rice supplemented the stew, and, of course, the sake flowed freely. I went home by early afternoon to continue getting ready for the week's classes, but the men, young and old, partied on through the afternoon and into the evening. When I took my dog Amy for a walk at 6 p.m., I saw the last of the revellers being hauled off in a van for a post-binge bowl of soba noodles at a nearby eatery.

[Binge drinking is one of those things that is tolerated, and even sometimes encouraged in Japan. When I first moved here, people routinely took me out for drinks and insisted that I get hammered. I didn't have the maturity or willpower to resist, and I wanted more than anything to be just one of the boys. More than once I found myself back home bowed low before the porcelain god.]

Amy began barking at about 8 in the evening. Half a dozen of the revellers were banging on my front door. When I opened it, they pointed to Hiroki, one of the college students who boards in my house, lying unconscious in their van. They dragged him in and layed him on the tatami in my living room. He spent the next two hours moaning, crying, kicking at the dog, vomiting and stertorously breathing. It's not the first time, so after a few minutes of arranging wet towels and a puke bucket and patting his shoulders reasurringly, I returned to my room to watch TV. I am so glad I don't drink like that anymore. Better him than me, though I think he drinks too much, much too often.

*****

ELECTION SEASON
Election season is here, a result of a merger of Tsuruoka City with five neighboring villages. We need a new mayor and city council. Unfortunately, election campaigns are run like those in a banana republic. Cars and trucks with loudspeakers on the roof roam the streets screaming the name of their candidate. "SUZUKI! SUZUKI! TARO SUZUKI! SUZUKI OF THE LIBERAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY! SUZUKI! SUZUKI! VOTE FOR SUZUKI AND THE LDP!" [fictional candidate, of course] To anyone living in a house more than 20 years old with single-paned windows and thin, uninsulated walls, it sounds as if the loudspeaker is IN the living room! The concept, common sense in the USA, of "peaceful enjoyment" as a human right and property right has yet to visit us here. I'm always tempted to put signs in my yard and a placard around my neck telling them to Go To Hell. Unfortunately, anything that can be construed as "interference" with the election process is seen as un-democratic and treated as a serious crime by prosecutors.

There are a few, though not many, good points worth noting about Japanese political campaigns. Political signboards are limited to designated places, sizes and times, and other strict restrictions on advertising ostensibly mean that wealthier candidates can't use their money to overwhelm the public. Some effort has been made to prevent money from determining the outcome of elections. (If it were completely successful, though, there wouldn't be as many political "dynasties" in elected office. Something like half of the national parliament members are sons and daughters and relatives of previous members.)

Unfortunately, campaign restrictions also deny the public easy access to detailed information and debate which might help voters make better-informed decisions. There are no local debates or TV spots, and most years the number of candidates in Tsuruoka only exceed the number of seats by 2 or 3 people, so a large majority of candidates win a spot on the City Council.

As a non-citizen I, of course, do not have the right to vote. Consequently, I don't pay as much attention to election campaigns and to politics as I might otherwise. As a resident, though, I am grateful that the legal campaign season where speaker-clad trucks fill the air with noise pollution lasts only a week, and even then only permits broadcast from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. If I had my druthers, though, I'd at the very least require such trucks to stay more than 1 km away from any school, or better yet prohibit moving altogether, and require a permit for stationary amplified sound within city limits allowed only in public parks and squares.

Tsuruoka City, with a population of about 150,000, will elect 38 new city councillors and a new mayor, each for a 4-year term. Usually in a municipal election each councillor represents the whole city; there are no electoral districts. This time, however, in deference to the five villages which were absorbed into Tsuruoka City on October first, those villages will become districts, with a certain number of seats reserved to each village. It's a one-time deal. In the next election all candidates will be at-large, as is apparently standard throughout Japan.

One other interesting point: rather than casting one vote for each of the positions available, voters cast only one vote for city council. The 38 people who get the most votes will be the 38 city councillors. I'm not sure I understand all the ramifications of this, though my initial reaction is negative. If 38 elected positions are to be filled, why doesn't the voter get to express his opinion for each of them? Or at least for a specific number that represent a particular part of the city?

Were such a system implemented in the USA, it would favor conservatives and the wealthy. Districting is an important system that allows minority neighborhoods to elect officials that represent their specific point of view to the city, state, or nation. That would surely not happen if they were subsumed into one large block. Maybe in Japan such considerations are unnecessary; there are very few neighborhoods anywhere in the nation dominated by ethnic, religious or economic minorities.

That's all for today. There's surely more to share with you, and I am still answering questions that you've e-mailed to me. For the reader/listeners who requested some Japanese lessons on my podcast, I'm still working on the first one. I've been cursed with mic trouble, then computer trouble for the last 3 weeks. Hopefully I'll be back up and running by next week. BFN.  ¶ 10/17/2005 01:12:00 PM 0 comments links to this post

  The English-Teacher-in-Japan's Mac Toolbox 3 Hello again. Today I'd like to talk about speech software, that is, software that can make your Mac speak aloud.

If you've been around Macs for awhile, you already know that they are capable of speaking. You can choose a voice in the Speech preference panel (Apple menu-System Preferences-Speech-Text to Speech) from 23 options ranging from semi-human sounding to ridiculous. To hear your text spoken by the Mac, type it into Text Edit, highlight ("select") it, and click on Edit in the menu bar, go down to Speech and then to Start Speaking.

Fun, but perhaps not particularly useful. Unless you are disabled, or studying English as a second/foreign language, it's probably little more than a novelty.

Did you catch that? "Unless you are . . . studying English." It seems that no matter what language your Mac boots up in, Mac OSX can only speak English, unless you input, say, Spanish, words spelled as if they were American English. That seems to leave students of non-English languages out in the cold.

However. . .

A company called Create System Development has a software title called DTalker (Document Talker) which will speak Japanese! I discovered this title a couple of years ago, but I wish I had it a decade ago. One of the great frustrations of learning a language that uses pictograms (called Kanji in Japanese) as opposed to a phonetic "alphabet" is that you can't sound out the words when you see them. Aaarghh! But DTalker let's you hear most Kanji even if you don't understand them. DTalker will read aloud to you nearly any Japanese word, phrase, sentence or document that is on your Macintosh.

DTalker 2.1 does one thing only: it speaks Japanese. As far as I know, this is the only Japanese screen reader for the Mac. Once you have it set up, it will read from the Mac clipboard. Highlight some Japanese in a document, then go to the menu bar and click Edit, then Copy, and DTalker will read the selected text.

This is the main DTalker window. Except for the title, it's all in Japanese. That's a little frustrating, since this utility is obviously well-suited for learners of Japanese; a choice of interface languages would make life easier for non-Japanese users, and probably increase Create System's sales, too.

Type or Copy/Paste Japanese text into the window, press the play button and you'll hear it spoken aloud. Or, open (cmd-O) or drag a Japanese document to the window. Or, and this is the best, you can choose "Read Clipboard" (クリップボード読み上げ) from the center menu (読み上げ対像), and any Japanese you highlight and put into the clipboard by going to Edit-Copy or by the keyboard shortcut Command-C. In just about ANY PROGRAM, as long as DTalker is running in the background.

You can choose from 8 different voices, and each voice's settings allow you to adjust the pitch, speed and volume for that voice, along with a click box to choose whether DTalker should also read English words with a very Japanese accent, or pass them off to the Mac OS. (Getting to the setting panel is not intuitive: first click the Settings 設定 button under the picture, then click again directly on the picture to get there.)

There are a few annoyances in the program:

• no English interface option
• stuck at v2.1, and Mac development seems to have ceased
• cmd-H doesn't hide the program, must use the menu bar
• must turn on Read Clipboard setting every time you run DTalker (bring DTalker to the front and press Cmd-R)
• closing the DTalker window by clicking on the red button doesn't just close the window, it Quits the program

I hope that Mac development starts up again on this wonderful little program; the Windows version is updated regularly. Drop Create System a note asking them not to give up on DTalker for the Mac, if you're so inclined.

As I said, though, this is the only game in town, as far as I know. The advantage of not having to track someone down and ask every time I want to know a Japanese word's pronunciation, or (and this is a special kind of hell) look up the word in a Kanji dictionary. I know that it's a lot of money for a 1-act show, but to me DTalker 2.1 is worth the ¥7,980 at Amazon Japan. Unfortunately, I don't know of any source to buy this title outside of Japan. Amazon Jp doesn't ship this one overseas. Let me know if you have any information. Until next time . . .
_____  ¶ 10/08/2005 09:51:00 AM 4 comments links to this post

  The English-Teacher-in-Japan's Mac Toolbox 2 Word Processors for the English MacFan in Japan

Hello again. Well, your response to yesterday's discussion of English speakers using a Mac in Japan was very positive, so I think I'll make a little series out of it. I apologize that yesterday's post was long-winded, and in some places difficult to follow. I hope that by limiting future articles to a single software category I'll be able to keep it shorter and simpler.

Yesterday I recommended Pages (part of Apple's iWork(日本語版)software package). Pages is not just a word processor, it's also a page layout program like an Adobe Illustrator lite. It has many templates for easily putting together newsletters, handouts, calendars, worksheets and so on. The program is OS language aware--if you boot up your iBook in English, Pages' menu bars and help are all in English, even if you buy the program in Japan. (Don't worry about the 日本語版-"Japanese Version"-in this case.) Pages does documents containing both Japanese and English very well. It can even open MS Word files, and it can export your work as MS Word files if you are trading with Windows users. At 8,190 yen for both iWork's Pages and Keynote presentation software together, it's a bargain.

Another popular Apple word processor is the aging AppleWorks suite. It is included with every new "consumer" Mac, meaning iMacs and iBooks. If you bought your Mac in an English speaking country you already have it. Unfortunately, as mentioned previously, AppleWorks on a Mac bought in Japan is Japanese only. Unless you are already familiar with the program, or else confident in Japanese, you will want a word processor that processes Japanese, but functions with English as its interface language. You can buy the English version of Appleworks from Apple Store Japan online, but iWork is a better deal.

One other major word processing software with a good reputation for multi-lingual performance is Nisus Writer Express 2.5. The most recent version has overcome numerous stability problems and is receiving favorable review across the net. Best of all, you can buy it online for about $70 and download it. The site is set up to accept credit cards from a variety of countries, meaning your Japanese credit card should not pose a problem. (This isn't always the case when buying download products on the net!)

Finally, let me go back to MS Office. The English version of Office either from the Apple Store or Amazon Japanruns about 51,000 yen. I think that's just too much. If you already have an older version of Word, Amazon Japan sells the English Upgrade Versionfor 13,080 yen. If you feel comfortable dealing in Japanese as your main language, you may be eligible for the Japanese academic version of Office 2004 Macif you're a full time student or teacher in Japan.

Because I not only teach, but also work at a city hall translating documents between English and Japanese, I needed to be able to read and write Word and Excel documents. My answer was to purchase the Microsoft Office Standard Student and Teacher Edition 2004 Macintoshwhile I was home in the States.

(You may be able to buy it at the US Amazonsite with your Japanese credit card, but they only ship software within the US borders, so you'll need someone to forward it to you if you can't get to America. Technically, full time students/teachers outside the US are not eligible for the academic pack, but when I bought one at CompUSA along with a computer and a bunch of other software titles, no one asked for proof my my status as a teacher. One great advantage of the academic pack is that you get three serial numbers. This allows you to install Office 2004 on your desktop at home, your laptop, and your computer at school. Historically, MS has wanted us to buy Word 3 times in that case.)

If you trade documents between English and Japanese versions of Word and Excel, and between Mac versions and Windows versions, that makes for a pretty complex situation, as far as compatibility goes. Pages and some other word processors claim to read and write documents in MS format, but none are perfect. Even MS Office itself has a few compatibility issues across languages and platforms, though it's the best choice.

If you are new to Japan and anticipate that most of your word processing will be producing your own stuff--worksheets, handouts, tests, letters and so on--Pages (or Nisus)will meet your needs and delight you. If, however, you will be trading files with co-workers using different languages and different computing platforms, you'll probably need to invest in MS Office soon. You may be able to persuade your company to foot the bill as I did.

Good luck with your multi-lingual word processing on the Mac. Full disclosure: The Amazon links here will take you to the product pages. If you choose to order from Amazon I would get a few pennies because I'm an Associate. If that makes you uncomfortable, go to their respective home pages and search for the product you want, bypassing my links.
  ¶ 10/04/2005 04:10:00 PM 0 comments links to this post

  The English-Teacher-in-Japan's Mac Toolbox 1 Hi, folks. One of the frequent questions I get from native English speakers here in Japan concerns computing. There seem to be a lot of misconceptions, and a general dearth of information concerning Mac users here.

I grew up just as computers were transitioning from a phenomenon to a commodity. In high school I took a semester programming course in BASIC and the entire class had a single Radio Shack TRS80 computer to use among us. At home, I had a Commodore 64 followed by a Commodore 128 that I'd loved more as an idea than as a user. Commodores were unspeakably cool, but I wasn't geeky enough to program and wasn't coordinated enough to be a good gamer. As a word processor the Commodore was okay, but it was my suitcase-sized Brother word-processing typewriter that I lugged to Japan in 1991.

Shortly after arriving I discovered I needed more than just a glorified typewriter. Keyboards sold in Japan are significantly different from US keyboards. The space bar is smaller, and an extra vertical column of keys on the right make the Enter and Shift keys significantly farther away from Home Position. If you're a touch typist you'll definitely want a US keyboard.

So my dad sent me a Mac from the US which was my introduction to real computing. Now, fourteen years later, I have owned a couple dozen Macs, including several generations of iBook and iMac, Powerbooks and PowerMacs. I usually recommend that newcomers to Japan invest in a Mac. Why? Mac computers are very difficult to find outside Tokyo and other major cities. Mac software is even more difficult to find. Apple refuses to sell from their US online store to Japan. Why go to the hassle of using a Mac? Here's what I think:

1. The Mac is multi-lingual out of the box. That means that you can buy your Mac at any Japanese Mac outlet (admittedly few and far between unless you're in Tokyo) or online at the Japanese Apple Store (where they DO offer US English keyboards!). Right out of the box, it's got both Japanese AND English, along with about 20 other languages. By this I mean that the OS can be set so that the menu bars are in English, crucial for those not yet fluent in written Japanese.

The advantages don't stop there, either. Nearly all Mac software that has been written for Mac OS X (Ten point four is the current iteration of the Mac OS) will install no matter what your primary language is set to. Japanese programs for Windows are customarily installable ONLY on the Japanese version of Windows, a significant handicap for cross-cultural multi-lingual expats like us. In some cases you may have to change the Mac OS setting to Japanese to get the program to install or to be usable, but it's just not a big deal. It often doesn't even require a re-boot of the computer, just change the setting, log out and log back in to get into a Japanese environment. This costs nothing. Essentially, Apple sells you 20+ OSs when you buy the disk. With Windows you have to purchase each language version separately. (I realize I'm exaggerating a bit here, but Japanese software only installing on Japanese versions of Windows is a huge problem.)

2. An iMac or iBook will include a lot of the software you will need. You will get software for audio editing, video editing, editing and organizing digital photos, playing and managing music from CDs and the online iTunes Music Store. For some unfathomable reason, Apple Japan doesn't include a language-aware word processing program (the Appleworks included with an iMac or iBook bought in Japan is Japanese only), but you can download cheap or free word processors and avoid the 48,000 yen that MS Office English runs at the Apple Store. However, I recommend Apple's 8,190 yen iWork that includes Pages, a word processing program along with Keynote, a presentation program which kicks PowerPoint's butt. I use Keynote in my classrooms every day. iWork, by the way, is OS language aware, meaning that if you boot up your Mac in Japanese, all the iWork menus are in Japanese; if you boot up in English all the menu bars and help panels in the program are in English! Also included are Internet browsing software, a program to make video DVDs, the ability to burn CDs, an excellent mail program, and a couple of games.

3. A Mac usually "just works." Plug in a printer you bought cheaply at the local electronics shop (denkiya) and your iBook knows what to do with little or no configuration. Same with a digital camera. Many scanners are also "plug and play." Be careful, though, to look for Mac OSX Compatible when you buy peripherals and you should have no problem. Smaller accessories like USB hubs, mice, card readers and so on usually work even if they don't specifically say "Mac Compatible" on the box. Just keep in mind that any free software in the box is probably not Mac compatible, unless specifically noted. [Adobe programs like Photoshop, Elements 3.0, etc., and the MS Office suite are NOT language-aware, thus definitely Japanese only. You CAN buy the English versions in Japan, but there's no upgrade or cross-grade paths to make them less expensive. If you decide these programs are necessary for you, they are best purchased at home. A nasty note to the companies involved wouldn't be amiss, IMHO.]

4. Connecting to the net is fairly easy with a Mac. The Mac OS walks you through the connection. In addition, most large Japanese Internet Service Providers (ISPs) now have step-by-step instructions for getting online with your Mac. Even for those that don't, the Internet system is cross-platform and you should be able to figure it out if you've done it a time or two. You may run into trouble if there are any services out there that still require specific software to get online.

An entry level iBook (a laptop) runs 119,800 yen, add iWork for 8190 yen and for 127,990 (with free shipping) you're ready to rock and roll. Be sure to order it with the US English keyboard; aftermarket iBook keyboards are not easy to change out and not easy to find. This means you'll have to order direct from the Apple Store online, and pay in cash at a local 7-11, by bank transfer, or by Japanese credit card. Rather than order online (the site is in Japanese only) you can phone the Apple Store at 0120-27753-1 and get English help in ordering.

Finally, if you're feeling rich you can bump up RAM memory, and Hard Disk capacity. Maxing out these options will send your price to 201,700 yen, plus iWork, roughly $2000 US. Even that isn't all that bad.

There are some things to keep in mind when choosing your computer for Japan. With a Mac, you'll probably have to get any help online. Mac users are friendly, helpful people who will usually give you their attention free of charge. MacOSX.com, for example, is a free troubleshooting site. In Japan as elsewhere, Macs, unlike Windows machines, are not ubiquitous. People who can answer your questions are relatively rare, especially in the Japanese countryside. New Macs come with 90 days of free telephone support, last time I checked. Beyond that you'll have to fend for yourself. Not to worry, though. The Mac OS is fairly self-explanatory and the Help panels are quite good. And the online Forums at Apple.com are terrific places to look for answers, or even to ask a question or two.

Your Mac will probably not need repair in its first 3 years, but laptops get more banging around than desktops, so you may wish for a 3-year service contract from Apple if you buy an iBook or Powerbook, though the 31,500 yen price is off-putting. Apple computers have one of the best reliability ratings of all computers, according to Consumer Reports. My experience, though, suggests that reliability is about 80%. Usually, the repair, if it comes at all, comes just after the 1-year warranty expires. If I'd bought the service contract I'd still have been okay.

Choosing a computer for your few years in Japan is an important decision. Macs are tops for their multi-lingual abilities. On the other hand, if you are already comfortable with Windows, or if you are generally all thumbs when it comes to machines, you have to weigh the benefits of multi-lingual cababilities against the difficulty of finding assistance in times of stress. It may be that using the slightly less user-friendly Windows OS may be a better choice if you anticipate needing a lot of help getting up to speed.

Look for another post soon with other software which I think is useful for English speakers living in Japan.

Am I long-winded or what???? Sorry to go on so long. Write if you want more information.  ¶ 10/03/2005 02:40:00 PM 7 comments links to this post

  Liberal vs Conservative--Is that the only way? Y'know, it's late at night and I've already had too many beers. So I'll keep it short and maybe expand on the ideas in a later post.

I'm a conservative. You know--small government, low taxes, individual freedoms and responsibility, family values. But recently I've been listening, via podcasts, to a lot of Air America Radio. Recent titles include The Randi Rhodes Show, The Al Franken Show, and Morning Sedition. In the five years and some months since GW Bush took over the presidency of the US I have lost respect for him and his policies continually with every passing month.

I can't prove it, so you'll have to take my word for it, but I anticipated (from the comfort of my quarterback armchair) a lot of what has happened since 9/11. Bush's over-reaction of taking America to war, the spiraling insurgency in Iraq, the decreasing security of Americans around the globe as a result, the takeover of Islamic religious fundamentalists in Iraq (not yet complete, but likely), and the egregious infringements on personal liberty and privacy within the US that have followed. In fact, I even foresaw the abuse and atrocities commited by a few US military people, telling a relative in the US it was only a matter of time. I was not alone. Others in the media, left, right and center, were calling for caution.

Bush's downgrading of FEMA, installing of unqualified cronies into important political positions, and consistent distortion of the truth to further his own agenda have led me to believe that the time has come for him to be sidelined by Congress, either through impeachment, or an ongoing blockade of his policies. Surely, his gross incompetence has now become apparent to anyone not blinded by rose-colored partisan glasses.

What strikes me now is the opportunity provided by Bush's incompetence for both the Democrats and the Republicans in Congress and throughout the nation to seek common ground. There is so much that we can agree on, starting with putting an end to GW's self-destructive policies at home and abroad. If we were busy and united in promoting the causes which we share, we'd have little time to fight over the other things.

No one that I know, liberal or conservative, wants the government dictating religious observances or dogma. Surely that could be a starting point for a search for common ground. No one I know thinks that assault weapons, rocket launchers and mortars should be available for purchase at Wal-Mart. Common ground. And few people I talk to think that abortion is a wonderful means of contraception, the more the better. Common ground. Everyone wants only the taxes that are absolutely necessary, and then that money wisely used. Everyone wants good schools. Everyone wants a secure homeland, a stable economy, a comfortable home and a decent job with health and retirement benefits.

So much common ground!!! We may disagree on the means to achieve these goals, but surely we have a basis for calm, rational discussion. And compromise.

Many of the facts of GW's leadership lead both conservatives and liberals to question the direction he is taking our nation. Moves to undercut social security, the spiraling national debt, the violence carried out domestically and abroad in the name of "the war on terror," the expensive and unwinnable "war on drugs," the erosion of personal privacy, the degradation of the national infrastructure. Mercenaries hired by the GWB administration make ten times the salary of a US soldier in Iraq for doing the same job, while those same mercenaries go house-to-house in New Orleans turning citizens out of their homes and confiscating their meager weapons of self-defense. These things should be of grave concern to ALL Americans.

Unbelievable opportunity thrust into our hands. Ironically, the GW Bush presidency could serve as the catalyst for a new generation of cooperation and progress rarely seen in US politics.

That can only happen, though, if cooler heads prevail. Both conservative and liberal commentators and columnists, pundits and analysists, have resorted all too often to childish name calling and unproductive rants. One radio personality this week said of Bush, "He's such a baby," and then went on to rant and rave as if he, himself, were pre-pubescent. Friends, we MUST raise the level of discourse.

Yes, we find the lies, deception, narcissism, cronyism, and insensitivity of this administration abominable. Yes, we want judges and justices that will uphold and protect Americans from tyranny, even presidential tyranny and "tyranny of the majority." But we must be both intelligent and mature in our fight. We need to find our own Karl Roves, with savvy and spunk to manage both the battles and war into victory, but simultaneously commited to an ethical standard which professes that the means are just as important as the ends.

The characterization of Republicans as "small government, low taxes" is not accurate. (How much has the deficit grown under GW?) Neither is the characterization of Democrats as "tax and spend." (Who was the last president to balance the budget and create even a budget surplus?)

All Americans want taxes as low as possible with services as high as possible, though we may disagree on where exactly that line may be. No problem! Where we agree let's get moving, where we disagree let's try to find reasonable compromises. But let's not let ideology warp our perceptions or our actions. Focusing on the goals and then reasoning together to find acceptable paths to those goals will make our nation great once again. For in the eyes of the world, we have most certainly stumbled. An unjustified war based on the manipulations of corrupt politicians, a natural disaster that exposed the ugly underside of American poverty, racism and political cronyism, an inconsistent foreign policy based not on promoting democracy and human rights, but on serving the interests of the multi-national corporations that fund the political machinery, government contracts that enrich friends of the ruling elite, an an environmental policy seemingly destined to poison the soil and envelop America and the world in a choking cloud of dust, toxins and heat.

Make no mistake. The world does not see America as great today. We must do better. And it seems we cannot while GW Bush is at the helm.  ¶ 9/16/2005 09:03:00 PM 3 comments links to this post

  English in the Japanese jr hi classroom My greatest frustration teaching English to junior high schoolers as a native speaking helper has always been with the Japanese co-teachers. I'm sure it's not limited to Japanese people, but most teachers I've worked with have not, themselves, been teachable. The native speaker usually teaches only one class in every 3 or 4 in a Japanese junior high. The Japanese teacher often erases any benefit when he or she demeans the native speaker's advice as simply "his accent" and returns to incorrect patterns once the native speaker has gone.

I would never demand that my students speak with the same accent that I have. It's perfectly acceptable to speak English which bears the marks of one's origin. IF, that is, it still falls within the boundaries of accepted "correct" English. Few things make me crazier than teachers passing along to their students English that sounds like this: "I WON-toh tsu puREH BEHsu BO-ru tsu MO ro" and telling their students it means "I want to play baseball tomorrow."

Furthermore, English teachers working with native Japanese speakers should take extra care to always and only model correct rhythm and intonation in *every* English utterance, because of the wide gap between English and Japanese in this area. And yet I still hear teachers every week enunciating and accenting every word with no regard to the words' functions in the sentence. And since native speakers connect words together to form 'legato' phrasing, teachers should also be modeling and teaching this, as well.

It's easier to forgive a teacher that writes mis-spelled words on the board. At least with mis-spelled words the students can correct the teacher, and a skillful teacher can make a game of it. Unfortunately, mistakes of pronunciation, rhythm and intonation remain uncorrected in most classrooms. And Japanese teachers of English seem uninterested in mastering and then teaching these most important of English skills. Is it any wonder that so many Japanese students claim that listening comprehension is the one skill they never seem to master!? They almost never hear it!!!Unless they spend significant time abroad, they only hear natural English for the few seconds in class when the native-speaking teacher (or the CD or cassette) model a few words, phrases or sentences.

One more common error of English teachers and then I'll quit for today. Time and again I've seen teachers fail to initiate students into using proper verb tense until it's too late. I can't even count the number of students in my high school and university classes who show up without understanding how simple present tense is used in English!

A teacher I observed yesterday instructed students to answer the question, "What do you have for dinner?" with what they had eaten the previous night, never explaining that present tense in English is generally used for regularly occurring lifestyle actions, and rarely (if ever) for something that occurred in the past. A significant percentage of those students will NEVER understand how present tense is used, even if eventually taught several weeks or months down the road. I know. I see them in my university courses all the time.

Short of hiring native English speakers to take over English classes full time in the junior high schools, Japanese teachers of English must recognize that the greatest benefit from having native speakers in the classroom occasionally is to the teacher, not the students! It is the teacher's chance to improve his/her communication skills, and to get correction on language issues.

Teachers with the humility and hunger to acknowledge their insufficiency and continually strive to improve their skills are not as common as one might hope. Teachers need not have mastered English to be good language learning coaches, but they themselves MUST be lifelong learners, and that attitude must be passed along to the students.

Lastly, the native speaking English teachers must also remember that they are teaching a foreign language, as opposed to a second language, i.e., English taught to immigrants in a NY classroom. Few students will be able to accurately reproduce the teachers' accents. Nor should they be able to.

Like the Japanese teachers of English, the native speaking teachers must also demonstrate humility, acknowledging that their own English may not be perfect. (A British friend had to correct his habit of substituting /f/ for the th sound when he began teaching in Japan.) That humility should extend to broadening one's English to include words, phrases and pronunciations that are "native," but to someone of another English-speaking culture. I regularly teach "Good day" even though that is rarely used in my American homeland.

Focusing on the issues that directly affect the students' ability to understand and produce English that communicates should be key. Word order, vocabulary, tense, subject/verb agreement, rhythm, intonation and pronunciation are all vitally important. None of these, at least, should be discounted or relegated to the "well, if there's any extra time at the end of the semester" box. These, at least, are not optional.  ¶ 9/13/2005 04:35:00 PM 0 comments links to this post

  Hello and Welcome Hi, and welcome to my blog and podcast. Listen to my first podcast for a more detailed introduction. I'll try to get more information out there as the days go by.

I'm Phillip in Japan, a US citizen residing long-term in Tsuruoka City of Yamagata prefecture in northen Japan, on the coast of the Japan sea. Look here for notes regarding life in semi-rural Japan, teaching English, and an ex-pat's rather cynical and opinionated rant on life in the US from the outside looking in.  ¶ 9/11/2005 07:43:00 PM 2 comments links to this post