Japanese Surgeon's Daily Life

JAPANESE MYTHOLOGY

　　The coming Feb.11th is Japan's Foundation Day, which is defined in Japan's mythology. Japan's mythology had been taught in the regular class of elementary school until the end of the Great East Asian War, but the U.S. prohibited to teach it during their occupation. They had difficulty with Japanese toughness in the war and plotted to take the backbone out of Japanese.
　　One of my grandfathers was a Buddhist priest. Another was a locally noted educator, who gave his grandchildren nicknames after the name of a god from Japanese mythology. I wasn't able to understand my nickname at that time, but the incomprehensible word was deeply carved in my mind. I unexpectedly remembered my nickname when I was 10 years old or so, and studied the meaning of my nickname. From then on, I learned about mythology, but it was scrappy.
　　I recently got an introductory book about Japan's mythology and I started learning it. I just wonder why my grandfather nicknamed us with a god's name. As mythology education was formally prohibited, he might want us to learn the mythology some day in the future by ourselves. He might get away with it for us, grandchildren.
　　The recent archeological research revealed that a considerable part of the mythology is based on fact. Researchers are struggling to draw a line between the fantasy and historical facts.
　　Do you know that the present Ten-noh is the 126th and if you date back his ancestors, it reaches to a god. It's a great mystery till when it's imaginary and after when it's actual.

(Vocabulary)
toughness (肉体的・精神的な) たくましさ,粘り強さ
scrappy (英) まとまりのない, 乱雑な

Baby Seat

　　I have a 10-month-old granddaughter. I have been eager to see her, but the pandemic has deterred me from visiting her. The other day, her parents told me that they would bring her to my house and they received PCR tests and the results were respectively negative.
　　I was so happy and bought a baby seat for her. Car owners are required to install a baby seat by law when they travel with under-6-year-old kids.

Earthquake Alert

　　Last night, precisely today, a big earthquake broke out and its epicenter was roughly 200 km from my hometown. It was about 1:08 am and I was sleeping then.
　　A loud alarming sound from my smartphone suddenly started just after I felt asleep. I noticed it, but I was so sleepy and stayed still in bed. 20 seconds later, my bed began rocking and I think it lasted 20 seconds or so. I understood that a huge earthquake happened at a not-so-distant place. As there was nothing happening in my room like something dropping, the bookshelf falling, and so on, I fell asleep deeply. I knew about the magnitude of the earthquake in the morning from a news program. It said the quake was considerably big, but luckily human injuries were few.
　　To my further surprise, the earthquake advisory worked perfectly. I had about 20 seconds to brace for the upcoming earthquake and this short time would be useful to reduce the disaster, though I didn't prepare anything. The warning system built in the smartphone forcibly booted my smartphone on the condition of its sleep mode and alarmed me. It's a great and essential system in the frequently earthquake-happening countries like Japan.

 

Full Harness Type Safety Belt

　　Japanese industry is strictly regulated and protected at the same time by the Industrial Safety and Health Law. It was revised and the simple safety belt is set to be replaced by the full harness type safety belt. I don't need this type of safety belt, but all employees are required to wear it when entering the factory. So, I put it on and took pictures. Does the belt suit me?

(Vocabulary)
Full Harness Type Safety Belt　フルハーネス型安全帯
Industrial Safety and Health Law 労働安全衛生法

New Year's Eve

　　Today is the eve of the New Year Day. My family used to get together in the living room and spend time over unusual and special dishes. The TV broadcasts special programs and we have an option on Netflix, but I feel a little lonely this year. Two daughters of three left home and they have their family respectively now. The youngest one is in Oxford and I expected that she would come back to Japan temporarily, but COVID-19 became an obstacle.
　　The Japanese Government requested us, citizens to stay home during the vacation and refrain from attending meeting people whom you don't see on a daily basis. I hope that the COVID-19 pandemic will end soon in the coming year.

BREAKFAST IN A BAKERY SHOP

　　Today is a weekday and my day-off, but I have chores. I'd like to spend relaxing morning hours before chores and hit a nearby bakery. My home town is a highly competitive area for bakeries. They are always producing new works brimming with originality. I understand that they are struggling, but it is good for customers. I can enjoy various kinds of bread every day. There were a few customers on the weekday morning, and I spent a relaxing and comfortable time there. I have to deal with some chores at the city office today. I could charge myself for tiresome red-tape work.

(Vocabulary)
be brimming (over) with sth ＜液体など＞であふれている; ＜自信など＞で満ちあふれている

Prep for Winter

　　I exchanged tires of the Model 3 to ones for winter-use. Today was a little early but the tires which were supplied to the car were considerably worn. The tires shop person advised me to buy new ones for next spring. In addition, the winter tires would be near the limit. I have to buy summer tires in the spring and then winter ones in late autumn next year. Tires for Model 3 are higher than usual ones, I can't risk myself and my fellow passengers.

(Vocabulary)
fellow passenger　同乗者

 

A Consideration about the Electricity Fee in my Model 3

　　It's been just two years since my Model 3 was delivered. Its mileage and electricity consumption is shown in the following picture.

mileage: 74215km
electricity consumption: 11576kWh
156Wh/km

　　What do you think of these data. The price of electricity is 30 yen/kWh in Japan and my car comes to need 4.68 yen per km. Taking an average of 180 yen of the price of the high octane gasoline in Japan together, my car is calculated to run 38km/L. This is considerably low-priced and helpful.

VISIT TO MY FRIEND

　　I went to Okayama City on business, where I had lived during my university days for 6 years. I strolled around some nostalgic places where I used to go in those days. At last, I visited my friend's grave. His ashes had been placed in his family's grave at his death, but something unhappy happened and his soul was moved to the communal memorial tower to be able to get services performed in perpetuity by the Buddhist temple for the repose of his soul.
　　Only 40 years ago, we shared the same time as medical students, chatting over much stuff facetiously, as if not knowing that life is limited. I became overwhelmed with grief. I told him in front of the memorial tower that I'd go to your place in not such a long time and to wait for me until then.

(Vocabulary)
services performed in perpetuity by a Buddhist temple for the repose of a departed soul 永代供養
in perpetuity (法) 永久に
facetiously ふざけて

Wine Delivered

　　I received some boxes of wine from an importer today and I'll show you their picture below. Some of them are my friends'. A marketer visited my house the other day and my friends and I ordered them after tasting. I always try to think outside the box and I don't want to do what everyone else does. It's not easy to find wines to my tastes and I sought the way to choose wines after tasting. Currently, almost all of the wines I drink are from his company.
　　My family is a party animal and they used to get together at my parents' house for New Year Celebrations, but my parents live in a care home now. In addition, due to the concern about the recurrence of the new strain appearance, certain restrictions might be imposed in December also in Japan. Regrettably, my family and relatives wouldn't be able to have a party though enough wines are waiting.

Bridge Viewed From Below

　　I'm currently working as a company doctor in a huge manufacturing company. I'm entrusted with keeping all employees healthy and secure and I regularly patrol various workplaces, checking harmful particles in the air and organic solvents like toluene.
　　The following pictures show a bridge under which I passed on the way back. I used to be indifferent to such a structure itself before I became a company doctor, but I wasn't what I used to be. I was interested in the path added under the bridge for maintenance work. I was gazing at the small parts of the bridge until the ferry boat passed under the bridge.

(Vocabulary)
toluene 芳香族炭化水素の一つ。染料・火薬・医薬・合成樹脂・合成繊維の原料。また溶剤として重要。

Rurikoji Temple

　　We dropped in at the famous temple of Rurikoji. My wife visited it for the first time and was enthralled with the beauty of the Five-Storied Pagoda, which was designated a national treasure. It was built 600 years ago and survived several times from earthquakes and indiscriminate bombing by the U.S. It had a 5-layered roof and its reflection on the pond in front of the pagoda was really beautiful.

(Vocabulary)
enthralled by/with 魅了されて, 心を奪われて
indiscriminate 〈攻撃・殺人・暴行などが〉 無差別の, 手当たり次第の; 〈人が〉 見境のない, 思慮に欠けた

Nakahara Chuuya Museum

　　I visited Nakahara Chuya Museum in Yamaguchi City. I knew the presence of this museum the last time I visited this city. I'd wanted to visit the museum at that time, but as I was not alone, I gave up visiting. I was so sorry then, but I could tour the museum this time. He is well-known but to the few as a poet and translator.
　　A teacher of my junior high school days was a fan of him. That's why I knew about him. His active period was only 3, 4 years because he died at 30 years-old due to tubercular encephalomeningitis. I'd never read his works, but I learned about his life from his chronological record and it stirred me to read his works.

(Vocabulary)
well-known but to the few　知る人ぞ知る
a chronological record 《of somebody's career, of the development of an event》 年譜
chronological 年代順の, 年代順に配列した
stir [他]〈人〉を駆り立てる
stir somebody to/into action ＜人＞を行動に駆り立てる
stir somebody to do something ＜人＞を駆り立てて＜…＞させる
[同意] stir up

The Doigahama Site Anthropological Museum

　　The Doigahama Site Anthropological Museum is designated as a historic spot by the government, which is a graveyard ruin of the Yayoi Period (10th or 4th century B.C. to 3rd century A.D.). By the elaborate works of excavating, human bones of 300 Yayoi-period people and lots of burial accessories like items made of seashells were found. The museum's main attraction was the Doigahama Dome. I was able to see how the site had been at the time of excavating there. After all the genuine human bones were recovered, the detailed replicas of them were crafted and returned to their original place for exhibition. The following pictures seem to show human bones, but they are imitations and don't worry. However, those bones were so real that it felt uncanny. The bodies were set to the direction of the sea. Did they want their spirits to come back to their original place? I remembered the scene which I saw in the Hirota Site (LINK). This burial form was just the same as that in the Hirota Site.
　　A few imaginary human robots were exhibited in the main hall of the museum. Their faces have been investigated using various scientific techniques. Their faces were so human-like and I received a sense of uncanny recognition. I wondered what they ate, wore, and enjoyed. What scenery did they view around the site. I imagined their lives for a short time.

(Vocabulary)
anthropology 人類学; 文化人類学; 人間学
historic spot 史跡
site 遺跡
uncanny 不可思議な, 気味の悪い
The uncanny valley is a term used to describe the relationship between the human-like appearance of a robotic object and the emotional response it evokes. In this phenomenon, people feel a sense of unease or even revulsion in response to humanoid robots that are highly realistic.

Tsunoshima Island

　　Tsunoshima island is known for its beautiful bridge connecting the island and the mainland. Several TV commercials have been shot on the bridge. We crossed the bridge and pulled off at the opposite end of the bridge. There was a monument and its description surprised me, which was written about the recent archeological research on ancient physical distribution.
　　According to the description, 1843 pieces of mokkann wooden plates along with lots of earthenwares were discovered from the former sites of Heijo-kyo in fall 1963. "Mokkann" is a narrow strip of wood on which an official message is written and used in the Nara period(710-784). Heijo-kyo was located in present Nara city and it was the capital of Japan at that time. Seven Ten-nohs (the 43th to the 49th) reigned there. By the way, one of the mokkanns was an invoice attached to the cargos which were sent from this island to the imperial palace. It had the sender's name and the shipping date of Mar. 29th in 746 (converted to the western calendar). The material was wakame seaweed (Undaria). That is to say, people on this island had paid wakame seaweed as the tax 1200 years ago. The noble people in the palace would love the seaweed from this island. This historical fact would be an honor for the inhabitants.

(Vocabulary)
physical distribution 物流
earthenware 陶器、土器

Senjoujiki and Shrine

　　We dropped in at a few scenic spots, a camp site and a shrine facing the sea of Japan. This camp place is called "Senjoujiki", which means the area of a thousand tatami mats. It indicates the vastness of the land, but it might be funny for people who know extensive plains.

(Vocabulary)
area 面積, 広さ
[＋area of]
The lake has an area of 2,000 square miles. その湖は面積が2,000平方マイルある．

Nagato Coast National Park

　　The 126th Ten-noh throned 4 years ago. Ten-noh is often called "emperor" internationally, but Ten-noh is perfectly opposite to the image which you imagine from the general sense of "emperor". That's why I insist on writing this way.
　　I heard of the renewal of the palace and a picture which was drawn by a famous Japanese painter would be hung on the wall of the reception room. The picture apparently depicts the beautiful scene of the Nagato Coast. I've never seen the coast and I'd like to visit there. A part of the coast is not reachable by land and it is the best scenic area. I took a sightseeing boat to visit the site, but the waves' condition wasn't good for sightseeing, and the boat returned at half way. The waves are usually rough in winter on the Sea of Japan. The waves in the following pictures were relatively mild, but those outside of the bay would make the tourists sick. We took lunch in a restaurant adjacent to the pier. The seafood was really great.

(Vocabulary)
by land 陸路で

Mt. Kasayama, Myojin-ike pond

　　We came by another sightseeing spot which was not in our plan but the boatman of the sightseeing boat recommended us to visit. It was the crater of a dormant volcano, Mt. Kasayama, whose lava is considered to have formed flat islands closely off the coast. The pond in the following picture is also considered to be the vestige of the eruption. The pond seems to be connected to the sea and the water is supplied and circulated from the sea. Fishes in the pond were sea fishes and they apparently formed their closed ecosystem in the pond. To my regret, fishing in the pond was prohibited.

(Vocabulary)
boatman 船頭; 貸しボート屋（の主人）
vestige 痕跡, 名残
They want to destroy every vestige of colonialism.
彼らは植民地時代の痕跡をすべて破壊したがっている．
ecosystem 生態系

Shipyard Ruin

　　The Hagi clan used to own their shipyard but it was closed and abandoned after building only two ships. The site is now being excavated and showing up in front of our eyes. Viewing the overall scenery, I felt the pioneering spirit of people.

(Vocabulary)
shipyard 造船所
show the spirit [enterprising mind] of the citizens of Osaka.
浪花っ子の心意気を示す

A Reverberatory Furnace

　　A reverberatory furnace was preserved as it used to be on a hill and we dropped in at the site. The furnace had been researched by the Hagi clan. They couldn't accomplish the plan, but their motivation should be highly evaluated.
　　Japan had long adopted its restricted trade policy until the latter half of the 19th century. This was a contributing factor to about 250 years of the peaceful period. On the other hand, Japan's military power didn't develop due to the peaceful days. Japan didn't need to develop arms.
　　The condition had completely changed when several military ships showed up around Japan in the 19th century. People of integrity in this area collected various information from other countries and knew that Japan had been on the brink of being invaded. They started to research and develop the technology of casting and forging. Three furnaces of those people are preserved in Japan and I've visited one of them before(link). Viewing the incomplete furnace, I thought that I'd like to visit last one some day.

(Vocabulary)
reverberatory （炉が）反射式の