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