RICKY DLS 英会話 blog

Two days, two visits to the veterinarian. Yesterday I took Atomo to the vet because he needed his follow-up leukemia vaccine (has to be administered three weeks after the first one). I have decided to get my cat’s vaccines from a vet that’s three blocks from my home and, for more serious issues like a full health-check or diagnosis I’ll take the time to travel South and visit my first vet. Before pricking Atomo he checked his general condition like body temperature (Atomo hates that!!), internal organs and mouth. When he inspected Atomo’s ear with a special lamp - something my previous vet never bothered to do - he went “Oooh! What is that?!” With a long q-tip he took samples from both of Atomo’s ears and what emerged were quite large, black chunks of something. We observed that nasty stuff on a white sheet to see if it was moving or not. It didn’t. So scabies were out of the question. This morning, when I returned to the vet with Zafiro - he needed his follow-up FVRCP-C vaccine - I inquired about the result of Atomo’s ear exam. The vet said since they weren’t parasites they’re probably just Atomo’s particular ear condition which tended to be unclean. He examined Zafiro’s ears and they were completely clean. Hmm, it seems strange and I’ll def look into that until I get a clear answer. I’ll keep you updated. Stay tuned.

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Are you thinking of getting a dog? You can adopt one here from this public dog shelter in Sapporo. Adorable dogs of all ages and types are waiting for a loving home. Don’t waste your money on expensive dogs from pet stores that breed dogs for business. Spend it in a meaningful way on dogfood and toys for a dog who is now in a shelter, longing to meet that special person who will adopt him/her and provide a better life. These dogs were taken off the streets and in the shelters they survive but they’re far from living the enjoyable lives they deserve. Dogs are loving and loyal companions. Adopt, don’t buy.

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This is a typical Japanese hot spring with several tubs containing different types/temperatures of water, simple and neat. The wash-stations have stools and are the equivalent of Western showers
Whenever I feel like immersing myself in Japanese culture I either go to sing karaoke or to a hot spring. I mean of course I live in Japan but going to typical places like the abovementioned intensifies the experience. What is really different from thermal waters in the US is that there they are almost exclusively located in spa hotels and the biggest difference is that we wear a bathing suit at the spa. In Japan everybody is naked as a jay bird! To be honest, it took me some time to get used to that form of nudism. These days I soak confidently - and naked - among all other onsen-goers even if the hot spring is crowded as it was the other day during my visit to a popular downtown onsen (a real one, not a sento). Actually there were so many women in that bath that in every bathtub I had to crouch, with my knees pulled to my chest, because the space was very limited. A welcome escape was - you would never guess - the sauna, for it was spacious, real spacious, and contained a large flatscreen TV! What is unique in Japan is that boys up to about eight years blithefully join their moms in the women’s bath. It makes sense though. They’re still kids and should be under the supervision of a parent, rather than by themselves in the men’s bath. Another thing that I really appreciate is that in a Japanese hot spring we wash our bodies BEFORE entering the water. That keeps the whole experience nice and hygienic!

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The Chinese New Year starts on the first new moon of the lunar year which means - today! Millions of Chinese are flocking back to their hometowns from all parts of China and from overseas as well. I have never attended a Chinese New Year celebration but I imagine it to be one noisy, big, crazy 15-day-party! The Chinese love big crowds and noise, in other words, they’re a bit crazy - I’m sure of that after four visits to the Asian giant! Chinese people usually move in groups of four, five or more. That’s why in restaurants all tables seat at least six people. Going for lunch alone or even to a coffee shop, as it is common in Japan, is very unusual there. The Chinese are extremely sociable and outgoing. In Beijing, every time we entered a restaurant we were immediately surrounded by two or three English-speaking waitresses, not only serving us food and beverages but also talking to us enthusiastically about their country and lifestyles. Most of the English-speaking waitresses were university students and had part-time jobs at restaurants. From the way they talked about their country I got a pretty good picture about patriotism in China. Their enthusiasm was contagious. By the way, 2009 is the year of the Ox which stands for prosperity through fortitude and hard work.

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Street scenes from Cuba
For over a month nobody saw or heard anything of Fidel Castro and many speculated that the 82-year-old ex-Cuban leader had passed away in silence. The day after Obama’s inauguration, however, Fidel spoke. In his recent edition of his “Reflections” essays he ponders on the possibility of not being around in four years and he praises Barack Obama as an “honest man”. It seems ironic to hear these words fom somebody who has betrayed his people for five decades, promising them freedom and equality and delivering little more than misery. As far as the shutdown of Guantanamo Prison is concerned, I welcome and appreciate Obama’s decision and I signed a petition about two years ago to have the prison closed. It holds suspected terrorists and is infamous for the harsh interrogation techniques practiced there. On the US mainland such methods are unlawful and hence the prison was moved to Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, a small stretch of land that belongs to the United States. Torture is an interrogation method used in totalitarian countries and should never be applied in the US or any other country that calls itself a democracy.

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I went to the convenience store this morning and the first thing that caught my eye were a bunch of new chocolates including new melty kisses going by the ambitious name of “gold beans”. I tried them, couldn’t help it, Meiji’s marketing and positioning strategies are working on me, lol, and they taste like, well, melty kisses! Another hugely popular confectionery is “nama (raw) caramel”. The original one from Obihiro still prompts hundreds of people to wait in line in front of Daimaru every morning and afternoon to snatch one of the sought-after boxes of soft caramel pralines. Recently dozens of other makers have copied the popular concept and the original name as well. Lack of creativity I’d say. They could at least have come up with a new name. By the way - have you noticed all the strawberries on offer this month? They are leftovers from expected but unplaced orders of Christmas cakes and are consequently used and worked into all kinds of confectionery including a strawberry&cream-mochi sold at Lawson throughout the month of January (highly recommended!). Even as I strolled around the basement floor of Daimaru I noticed that most cakes this season contain strawberries. I stopped at Ishiya, yeah, that’s the shiroi koibito maker, but since I’m not big into these white lovers, I opted for a tiny white square cake with a big red strawberry and silver sprinkles. It was the one that struck me, and what struck me even more was that the salesclerk wrapped it into a beautiful box as if it were a precious gift (I should be used to that by now!) and then handed it to me in a gorgeous shiny purple and black bag … The bag is worth more than the cake I thought. PS: The cake was delicious, it was actually a Japanese version of strawberries & cream.

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I went to the theater earlier this week and watched “CHE”, the documentary of the world’s most controversial revolutionist, Ernesto Guevara. While watching the movie I was surprised to realize that the movie was based on a book I read more than ten years ago: El Che, 800 pages of fine print, a collection of Guevara’s detailed diaries during the guerilla war in Cuba. Back then I devoured the book page after page and couldn’t stop wondering whether he was hero or predator, humanitarian or terrorist, philanthropist or assassin. One thing’s for sure: Noone could have portrayed Che (=Ernesto Guevara) better than Benicio del Toro. Not only is he an amazing actor and deserves another Academy Award for his performance, but the physical resemblance to the real Che is striking (see pictures). Real disappointing though was Demian Bichir’s performance as Fidel Castro. He projects very little and looks like a character with a timid personality, not like the leader of the Cuban revolution. Bichir is a well-known actor in Mexico and should have done a lot better. In any case, this movie is all about Benicio del Toro, real outstanding, don’t miss it. And this was just the first part! I mentioned the flick in my lessons and got tons of questions concerning Ernesto “Che” Guevara: 1. Q: Why does everybody call him “Che”? (his real name is Ernesto) A: In Argentina people have a habit of saying “che” in between sentences, it could be translated as “well”, a kind of filler. Hence, the nickname. 2. Q: Che was Argentine. Why in the world did he fight in the Cuban revolution? A: He was traveling across Latin America, from the South (Argentina) to the North (Mexico). It was in Mexico where he met Fidel Castro and together they planned and later achieved the Cuban Revolution. 3. Q: After the revolution was accomplished Che left Cuba. Why? A: Noone knows for sure and accounts differ considerably. The most credible version is that he stopped getting along with Fidel. The latter slowly, gradually turned into a power-hungry dictator. The Cubans, basically, had traded one dictator (Batista) for another (Castro). Bye-bye revolution. Che left, went to Congo, Africa to stage his next revolution, was bitterly disappointed by the lacking team-spirit of the Congolese, went on to Bolivia to fight another guerilla war and was eventually killed. He was 39 years old.

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Zafiro LOVES water and always tries to take a bath with me. At the sound of water he immediately comes running and plays with the stream. It took me some time and effort to teach him that the water bowl is for drinking, not for taking a footbath and splashing around! Look at the picture: Zafiro sitting at the rim of the bathtub, fascinated by what’s going on beneath. By the way - what looks like blood in the water is a chili-bathsalt!

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This is what a bicycle parking area without a roof looks after a night of snowfall. Ouch!

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Rain in December, and now rain in January, that’s unheard of. Does anyone still deny climate change? This weather - cold rain and wind - for me is the nastiest of all. I perceive it as a lot colder than temperatures below zero with dry air. On days like this the humidity crawls under layers of skin and remains there until you either take a hot bath or remain in front of a heater for the rest of the day. It was this weather that really put me off in Shanghai last year and I vowed never to return there in January. Seems like my least favorite atmospheric conditions found me, right here in Sapporo …

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