Japanese Surgeon's Daily Life

Day 2

　　Today, I was put in an FIV at the most dangerous point. FIV means "First Intervention Vehicle", which is usually located at the start of each special stage containing two medical personnel, motor sport fire and track marshals, and it may be required to enter the special stage in the event of an accident.

　　In the picture, the car number zero is at the starting point of the special stage. The driver of this rally car was what you call the representative of the Japanese rally drivers. His time would be the target of the entrants.

　　I was ready in the 4-wheel drive off-road vehicle with sticker saying "FIV". I could see only the start of the rally cars today.

Japan Rally Championship Day 1

　　I joined the Japan Rally Championship as an official on Apr. 29th and 30th. It's like an annual occasion for me to be involved in the motor sports. This event has been staffed by mostly volunteers. I am usually asked to be ready for emergencies at the starting point of the special stages where the entrants drove their cars as fast as they could. So, I couldn't see the most exciting scene in the race up to now, but today, another surgeon attended and I was free from the surgeon's duty. I was put at a blockage point, where I had only to block other cars and people from entering the course. I'll show you some pictures with comments.

　　In the first picture, a few dozen officials are given instructions, radios, fire extinguishers, and so on. The blue cases are a folding table and chairs.

　　Can you see the two yellow tapes in the second picture? The entrants had to turn right here and I was put on the other side of the tapes to stop people from stepping into the course. The rally cars run into this curve at their possible maximum speed. The next picture shows the latter half of the curve. As you know, the road changes from blacktop to unpaved. Additionally, they must turn at the acuter angle than right-angle. This point is one of the most exciting ones.

　　The next picture shows our side of the yellow tapes. During the time which the rally cars weren't coming, it was really relaxing. I could read books in a comfortable breeze. The yellow small car was also the role of the barricade, because of the possibility that a car careened out of the course.

　　The last picture was shot at the outside of the forest. Lots of foreign people are apt to think of Japan as an industrial nation, but it's not true. Driving for a short time, you can see such idyllic landscape anywhere except a few big cities like Tokyo and Osaka.

(Vocabulary)
staff …に人員を配置する
staff sth with sb  ＜部署など＞に＜人＞を配置する
He staffed his entire department with women.  彼は自分の部署を女性だけで固めた．
be staffed by sb 〈組織・部署は〉＜人＞がスタッフである
The store is staffed by volunteers.  その店のスタッフはボランティアだ．
radio  [C,U] 無線（通信）, 無線機
a police radio  警察無線
blacktop  [U] アスファルト [同意] Tarmac(英)(商標); the blacktop アスファルト舗装
careen 〈車などが〉暴走する;〈人・国などが〉暴走する, 歯止めがきかない
idyllic  牧歌的な, のどかで幸福な

Chinatown

　　It was the last day. We had to fly back to Japan. I was really sorry to say good-bye to my friends who live in Kobe, because I might not be able to see them again. On this trip, we made friends with each other and we had some really good powder snow though the weather was not so good. I found that lots of local skiers wore the wide, long and thin skis, which looked nice and suitable for powder snow. Next time I'll try them.

　　The first picture was shot through the window of my room. Cherry trees around Burrard Skytrain Station were fully in bloom. I wondered whether the cherry trees in my hometown had burst into bloom. I was afraid that I'd miss the season of the cherry blossom viewing party, for I'm a party animal.

　　We decided to have brunch in Chinatown, because the Chinese dinner we had had the previous night was really good. The second picture shows the entrance of a shop complex, on the second floor of which there was a big Chinese restaurant where we went on a taxi driver's advice. I have heard that the security of Chinatown was not good and I have always kept away from there, but in the daytime it would be all right to step in the town. There were several medical clinics and various shops in the building. The order was done by checking the box of dishes on the sheet that you'd like to eat. The 4th picture was of the order sheet. After a few minutes, the sheet shown in the next picture was brought to us. The next five pictures were the dishes we ordered. The number of customers gradually increased and people around us were unbelievably noisy, but the dishes were really good except for the delay of serving time of dishes.

　　Can you notice a lady who was checking her smart phone in the last picture? She was our group leader who had successfully planned our trip, though unsuccessful privately (grin). After brunch, she began speaking to us about the weather in Japan. At this moment, we didn't recognize that we were in a serious situation. You subscribers will know that later and will be astonished to know the story line of this trip. We were just at the end of chapter one of the trip, though we didn't know that then.

(Vocabulary)
check   [他](米) …にチェックマークをつける
Check the box that says "No." 「いいえ」のボックスにチェックをつけてください.

The Last Ski Day

　　Happy time would pass really fast. Today was the last day when we could enjoy our stay in Whistler. Looking back on the past six days, we didn't have even one cloudless day with brilliant sunshine. I'd like to have taken lots of pictures for two couples, Mr. & Mrs. K. and Mr. & Mrs. W., who visited Whistler for the first time, but I couldn't.

　　Today, Mr. & Mrs. W. chose a walk and shopping in the village rather than skiing. Our group leader visited a physical therapist's clinic. Mr. & Mrs. K. and I went up heading to the summit of Blackcomb mountain. I was going to take pictures on the summit, even if we had to wait for the sun's appearance for some time as long as we could put up with the bitterness. When we got to the summit, a strong wind blew a blanket of dense fog and clouds around us and surprisingly we could view the Black Tusk, the most symbolic pinnacle of volcanic rock located in Garibaldi Provincial Park of British Columbia. The goddess of the mountain might smile on us.

　　When we were skiing down the slope and passed under the Peak2Peak gondola, we happened to find that one of the Peak2Peak gondolas has a window in its floor. Height scares me, but I'm a man of curiosity. I tried to get on, and was predictably filled with fear. I just wanted to show the picture to my friends.

(Vocabulary)
blanket  一面に覆うもの [＋blanket of]
a blanket of snow  一面に積もった雪
a blanket of fog   一面の霧
thick/heavy/dense fog  濃霧, 深い霧
pinnacle
《[C]通例単数形で》 (経歴などの) 頂点, 絶頂, 脂の乗りきった時期
reach the pinnacle (of sth)  （＜経歴など＞の）頂点に達する
(建築物の) 小尖塔(せんとう), ピナクル;  (高山の) 峰;  大きくとがった岩
predictably  予想どおり（に）; 予測しえたように, 予想にたがわずに

5th Ski Day, Lunch

　　We brought our lunch up to the mountain today too. That's because most of the menu items in the lodge were too oily for us. To my surprise, my friends grew accustomed to having lunch in the lodges and they used the hot water provided for tea bag users to prepare cup noodles. The instant noodles packed in a cup or pot are called "cup noodles" in Japan, but I don't know what they are called in Canada. Is "cup noodles" the acknowledged name? Anyway, the combination of rice balls, hot noodles and a bottle of domestic beer was perfect.

　　The weather was not so good in the afternoon. We got back soon after lunch and whiled away the early evening. As for me, I rushed to the jacuzzi, which was one of the best amusements.

　　The second picture was of the driver's seat on the shuttle bus. I visited here after a 4 year interval and found that shuttle buses had become very stylish and clean. Judging from the logo, "Fuel Cell", printed on the bus, the buses must be driven by electricity. It will contribute to green action. As for the drivers, I often saw Indian people working. It was the same for taxis. I didn't know why, but the security of Canada is great and they can communicate with English. I wondered whether these ideas might be the reason.

(Vocabulary)
while away sth  ＜時＞をのんびり過ごす
fuel cell:   a piece of equipment that combines two different ELEMENTS, such as OXYGEN and HYDROGEN, to produce electricity in order to supply power to a vehicle or machine

5th Day, Peak2Peak Gondola

　　As you know, Mt. Whistler and Blackcomb were the places for the 2010 Winter Olympics. The Peak2Peak gondola was built for transportation between both mountains. This gondola directly connects busy points on both mountains. Before the construction of the gondola, the skiers had to go back to the base if they wanted to move between the mountains. It was 2008 when I last visited there. I saw a gondola which was placed in front of the lodge.

　　I used the Peak2Peak gondola two days before when it was cloudy and foggy. To tell the truth, it was lucky for me, because I don't like heights. To the contrary, however, it was temporarily clear when we got on it today. I was so scared but I could barely conceal my fear. Look at the picture. All my friends looked happy to be enjoying the magnificent view of the Canadian mountains.

　　I heard that the midway point of the gondola is the highest in the world. When we passed the lowest point, I was going to look at the bottom of the valley between Whistler and Blackcomb mountains even for a few seconds. However, I could only glance at it for a moment. I managed to take snapshots of the gondolas, the valley and Whistler village. Lastly, I'll show you the URL linked to the picture that I took 4 years ago.

http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2008/03/ski-helmet-mar-.html

(Vocabulary)
last [副] この前, 前回に
They last won the trophy in 1992.   彼らが前回優勝したのは1992年だ．

Canadian Medical Service

　　When I arrived at the emergency hospital, her treatment had already finished, but I knew from her what it was like. As many as 7 staff members were involved with her treatment, and their roles were seemingly strictly arranged; some only helped her take her clothes off, some just took her to the consulting room using a wheelchair,,, and so on. How inefficient it was!

　　I wanted to attend to her even in the consulting room, because I was interested in the consultation and treatment in Canada, but she is a woman. I refrained from being there. After the consultation, it was proved to be not serious. I was relieved to hear that.

　　She paid the consultation fee and was told to go to a pharmacy, where she would get some medicine. I accompanied her. She was a wonderful English speaker, but I thought I might be handy knowing more technical terms than her and naturally I wanted to see what things were going on.

　　At the pharmacy, I was surprised to see the pharmacists working slowly. Though no one but her was waiting for the medicine, she had to wait for a small bottle of tablets for more than 30 minutes. When she received the medicine, she was told to go to the physical therapist's clinic to get a knee brace. She was fed up. If the pharmacist had been smart, she could have got it during the time she was waiting for the medicine.

　　To my surprise, the analgesic which was prescribed for her contained a kind of narcotic. In Japan, narcotics are not used against benign pain. It is used for pain from malignant diseases. Additionally she had several bills from the orthopedic surgeon, the pharmacy, the ambulance, the physical therapist's clinic, and so on. What a complexity! Moreover, it was incredibly expensive. It was more than ten times higher than that of Japan. The ambulance fee is free in Japan. I heard that poor people couldn't consult physicians in the States, and I realized firsthand that it was true. Common Japanese people make a contract with a travel insurance company when they go out of Japan. Of course, Ms. O. had a contract and her injury would be fully covered. I learned that such kind of insurance was essential to travel overseas.

　　She started consulting the physical therapist for the last two days in Whistler. When I went out for skiing leaving her alone, I felt sorry, but there was no other way. Looking back a few days ago, the tall foreigner with his crutches waiting for a shuttle bus, whose crutches I was interested in, might be visiting the physical therapist's clinic. Finally, I could see and handle the crutches from Canada, which were produced in China though, and learn how to control the toboggan.

http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2012/03/woodrun-nanami-or-shichimi.html
http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2012/03/rescue-stretcher.html

(Vocabulary)
firsthand (経験・知識が) 実体験に基づいた, じかの; (説明・報告などが) 目撃者［当事者］による
first-hand reports from former prisoners  元捕虜自身による説明

A Tragedy

　　The story started when our leader, Ms. O. dropped her glove from the chairlift, Jersey Cream Express. She had the good grace to give it up and bought a replacement at Glacier Creek Lodge. On the next ride on the same chairlift, however, I found something from the chairlift which looked like her lost glove. I told her that and we decided to recover it, but the point was hard to access. We explored into the bush, but, , , . From now, I'll explain each picture below. The number stands for the order of the pictures.

1. The silhouette which looks like a bear is our leader, Ms. O. We looked for the glove around one of three posts of the chairlift, but in vain. This area wasn't packed and it was really hard to evacuate from. I managed to get out, but she was trapped in some heavy snow that had accumulated the previous night. At that time, she unfortunately twisted her right knee. We called for the rescue team.

2. A lady climbed up to us with her big skis on her shoulder. We were so surprised to see her physical strength because we expected that someone would ski down from uphill to us. Now, at first she positioned her skis with tips up crossing in the snow to show other skiers our existence on the ski slope. Next, she questioned Ms. O. about her ID, her condition and her medical history like drug allergies, and so on. At last, she started digging a grave-sized hole, and I couldn't understand what it was for.

3. Another staff member came to us with a toboggan. They put it in the hole and held it. I finally understood what she did. By the way, when hearrived, he asked her, "Did you hear a pop?" I learned the word "pop" at that time. Japanese has lots of onomatopoeic expressions and it makes it difficult for foreigners to learn Japanese. I knew that "pop" matched lots of Japanese words depicting sound.

4. The right knee of Ms. O. was about to be fixed by a knee brace.

5. Our leader is always really tough and stubborn, but she was silent with her eyes downcast. I deeply realized that she was a woman. (grin) However, she was apparently thinking of her job schedule after coming back to Japan. She wasn't depressed.

6. She was ready to be transferred to the base. Then I found us on the trail of a Black Diamond, called "Blowdown". Black Diamond means the most difficult as I wrote the other day. I wondered how they took her to the ambulance. The answer was simple. They schussed on the BLACK DIAMOND! Wow! Incredible. They seemed to schuss down to come across the Green (the easiest route) and Ms. O. was picked up by a snowmobile, which took her to Olympic Park, where she was put in the ambulance.

(Vocabulary)
odd   《[名]の前でのみ》(靴・ソックス・手袋などが) 片方だけの
odd socks/gloves  左右ばらばらのソックス［手袋］
have the good grace to  潔く～する
pack [他]〈雪・土など〉を押し固める
pack sth down  ＜…＞を押し固める
Pack the soil down firmly.  土をしっかりと押し固めます．
twist [他]〈手首・足首など〉をくじく, ひねる, 捻挫(ねんざ)する
twist your ankle/knee/wrist   足首［ひざ，手首］をくじく
position  (特定の位置に) …を置く, 配置する
Position the cursor before the letter you want to delete. 削除したい文字の前にカーソルを置きます．
position yourself  位置につく, 陣取る
onomatopoeia  擬音（語）, 擬声（語）, オノマトペ
toboggan təˈbɒgən  a light wooden board with a curved front, used for sliding down hills covered in snow
stubborn  負けん気の強い
be silent with one's eyes downcast  シュンとして黙っている
schuss ʃus  直滑降する; 直滑降

(Vocabulary from comments)
sustain 〈損害・損失など〉を被る, 受ける,〈傷害など〉を負う
Two of the firemen sustained serious injuries.  消防士のうち2人が重傷を負った．

Rescue Stretcher

　　Firstly, I don't know the exact name of the stretcher used on the snow. So, the title of this entry might be wrong, but you'll see what I mean. The picture was shot at the upper end point of the chairlift, Jersey Cream Express. I found a stretcher placed near the control room.

　　Long ago, during my student days, I had worked for two days as a temporary staff member of the rescue team on Mt. Daisen. When we transfered an injured person to the base, one snowplow in the front controlled the direction of the stretcher. Two other persons, likewise a snowplow in the rear, prevented a runaway. Therefore, the rescue stretcher of Japan had no steel handle, but the Canadian stretcher had it as you see in the picture. I wondered how they used the stretcher. I wanted to see the scene whereby an injured person was transferred, knowing that it may sound imprudent.

　　Snowplowing is hard work for the legs rather than skiing with the skis parallel, and this ski area is incredibly vast. The rescue personnel must be tough. Even if they were tough, however, it would be a difficult and tricky operation to take a person on the stretcher to the base.

　　To my surprise, 30 minutes later, I came to witness their devoted work. The right person on the chair is our leader and this picture capturing her and the stretcher means something significant, when viewed in hindsight.

(Vocabulary)
snowplow  ボーゲンで滑る；除雪車（機）、（スキーの）全制動
runaway  暴走
whereby  《関係詞として先行詞にかかり，「それにおいて…する…」などの意味となる》
a new system whereby patients pay directly for medical care  患者が医療費を直接支払う新しい制度
knowing that it may sound imprudent  不謹慎かもしれないが
imprudent  (金遣い・決定などについて) 無分別な, 無思慮な, 軽率な
tricky  〈状況・仕事などが〉 面倒な, 扱いにくい
Getting everyone to use the new computer system will be tricky. 全員に新しいコンピュータシステムを使わせるのは面倒なことだ．
when viewed in hindsight  後から考えれば
hindsight /ˈhaɪndsaɪt/  後知恵
in/with hindsight (with the benefit/wisdom of hindsight とも)  今にして思えば, 後になってわかったが, 後の祭りだが

(Vocabulary from comments)
toboggan  təbgən    トボガン (先端を曲げた木製のそり)

Lunch

　　I'll do a piece on lunch at the restaurants in the mountains. I couldn't take pictures of the show windows of the cafeteria, but they served a variety of dishes that were unknown to us. We tended to choose oily, high-caloric or highly-sweetened, what you call western, dishes from curiosity at around the beginning of the stay. The first picture shows the lunch on the first day. I don't remember the name of the dish and the soup. I wore my ski boots and was unstable in walking and I had spilt the soup a little. A bottle on which "Kokanee" is printed is one of the Canadian beers.

　　The second picture shows what they say are Japanese noodles, but I couldn't define its name. My friend said, "The taste was not bad! It's OK." As for me, I ordered consomme beef soup. Some might wonder if that was all? Actually No. We brought rice balls that we prepared this morning as we cooked too much rice the previous night. Now, we had lunch today in Glacier Creek Lodge in Blackcomb. Shortly after we started eating, I found people around us having a quick look at us. I was afraid at first that we weren't allowed to bring food in the lodge, but that was not true.

　　We wrapped rice balls with thin sheets of dried seaweed, which is called "Nori" and is very popular and everyone in Japan knows it. People around us seemingly looked at them as if they were grotesque. (grin)

(Vocabulary)
piece   (新聞・雑誌の) 記事, (テレビ，ラジオの) （1本の）ニュース
write/do a piece (on/about sth)  （＜…＞について）記事を書く
Robert wrote a short piece on the earthquake.  ロバートは地震に関する短い記事を書いた．
highly-sweetened  糖分の多い
from curiosity  物珍しさから
consomme beef soup  ビーフコンソメ
glance at sth/sb  ＜…＞をちらっと見る
glance at よりも have a quick look at のほうが日常よく用いられる
I had a quick look at my watch.  腕時計をちらっと見た．

4th Ski Day

　　The first picture was shot from the terrace of the condominium early in the morning. Our room was situated over the entrance of the condominium and this picture shows the entrance. You see that it's snowing. Snow had already accumulated an inch. The next picture was taken with the shutter kept open for a few seconds. Don't you think it's beautiful or romantic? I love seeing such scenes over a cup of hot chocolate.

　　My condition was perfect due to the rest for a day, but the snow was too much. We were going down on the compacted snow, but lost our way in the heavy fog. I'll explain the sixth picture. The left side of the orange markers was the compacted trail for beginners and intermediates. I was going to lead my friends there, but looking back, there was no one behind me. Additionally I couldn't find our leader who was a good skier. I wondered if she might be ahead of us, but actually she was almost buried halfway down the hill. I really regret that I didn't take a snapshot. The second person from the right was the leader in the last picture.

　　Let me explain the sign of the ski area. All trails or areas are classified into three groups by the challenge level. A green circle means the easiest route. A blue square is likewise intermediate. A black rhomboid (usually called a Black Diamond) stands for the most difficult. We were entering the intermediate level of Jersey Cream Trail just now in the last picture.

(Vocabulary)
compact  …を圧縮する, 固める
compacted  圧縮された, 固められた
intermediate  中級者
challenge level  難易度
rhomboid  長斜方形 (隣り合う辺が平行四辺形の方形); ひし形の, 斜方形の

3rd Ski Day

　　I took a rest for a day to remove the muscle pain. In the morning, I firstly managed to start washing clothes using the electric washing machine and dryer provided with the room. It was rather bigger than the average Japanese machine. Our chef also had some difficulties in using the enormous electric oven the previous night, because he usually uses a gas oven of Japanese average size. However, such difficulties are also lots of fun.

　　At noon, I went out for lunch and a walk. Walking around was really refreshing and must be good for my legs. Not only the crowded village paths, but the forest trails with few walkers were great. Everything unusual to me was really delightful.

　　I enjoyed a hot tub and the swimming pool from about 3 o'clock. As I wrote before, the hot tub and pool were located just in front of the backdoor. I was waiting for my friends there.

　　I forgot to upload the picture of my new boots in the last entry. They fit my feet better than I expected. It was toward the end of the ski season and the shop didn't have a wide selection of boots, but I could buy some desirable ones. I was relieved.

2nd Ski Day

　　Do you know what looks like dog dirt? I found it at the meat shop in the IGA on the previous evening. I hadn't seen it before, and I wanted to try it even more. It was a kind of salami and nice. Unknown food is also full of fun.

　　The second picture was shot when we were preparing for skiing behind our condominium. One of the features of this condominium is that the visitors can go out and come back with their skis on from the backdoor. Additionally it was provided with a heated pool and a hot tub. A hot tub after skiing is incomparably comfortable. You can see a small part of a heated pool in the picture. We were going down to the base of Blackcomb and going up by the chairlift.

　　The sun emerged from behind the clouds and we headed for the summit of the Blackcomb area to view the scenery, but when I arrived at the top, a blizzard had started to blow. The third picture shows our get-away from the col, the highest point we could reach by chairlift.

　　The last picture is of me in the 7th Heaven ski area. The upper half of this area has no trees and the lower half is rich in woods. Here is my most favorite area in Blackcomb mountain. By the way, did you notice my new boots? They fit my feet and were really nice.

(Vocabulary)
dirt   (インフォーマル) (犬の) 糞(ふん)
dog dirt  犬の糞

Miserable Boots

　　The ski areas of the Whistler and Blackcomb mountains are  large enough and are seldom crowded. It means that the skiing distance per unit time will increase. There's no comparison between Japanese and Canadian ski areas. After 2 hours of skiing, we took a rest at the biggest lodge in the midst of the skiing slopes.

　　When I took my skis off, I felt something pop, but I didn't mind it at all. I just wanted to take a seat and have a bottle of beer as soon as possible. When I entered the lodge, I surely heard the pop, but I ignored it again, imagining that ice or something attached my boots had fallen off. At the exact moment, however, an uneasy sensation around my right toes occurred. Look at the first picture, and you'll see that the tip of my right boot was blown away. Having examined the opposite boot, I found a crack shown in the second picture. I was so astonished. My friends, including people around us, told me that I would be severely injured if the crack had been made during skiing and in that sense, I was lucky. I realized that.

　　I went down by gondola to the village and bought some new ones. As I walked, the boots fell to pieces and finally they became what appears in the last picture.

(Vocabulary)
there's no comparison   (話)  比べものにならない
pop  ポン［パン，パチッ］と音を立てる
The wood sizzled and popped in the fire.  火の中でまきがシューシュー，パチパチと音を立てた．
uneasy  (人が)不安な, 心配な; 気にかかる, 不自然な

1st Ski Day, Blue Sky

　　I posted the picture shot from the terrace of our condominium at first. The sky was blue, an extremely clear day. We finished breakfast and went out. We could use the backdoor facing the Blackcomb skiing area, but we headed for Whistler village by bus because one of us had to rent a set of skis in the village. Therefore we decided to ski on Whistler mountain.

　　The second picture shows all of us except the person who released the shutter. That person appears in the last picture. He was a really nice guy and we chatted every night over the excessive use of alcohol. I won't write any details about him, but he taught me really good lessons in life.

　　The last picture was shot on the Emerald Trail on Whistler mountain. Finally, the weather during our stay in Whistler was the best today. I regretted that I didn't take more pictures of everything at that time. I mistakenly thought we would have five more days and would be sure to have another chance to take pictures in the sunshine.

　　By the way, take a look at my boots. This picture became the last picture of my boots. The details will be explained in the next entry. Bad news will come up one after another.

(Vocabulary)
release the shutter  （カメラの）シャッターを切る
could use something  (話)  ＜…＞が欲しい, あるとよい
I could use a drink.  飲み物が欲しいなあ．

Canada Again

　　I'll visit Vancouver and Whistler again for the first time in 4 years. I could manage to have enough span of vacation this March. My daughters are also lovers of Whistler and I'd like to take them with me, but they have their own respective schedules. My wife doesn't want to visit anywhere which is cold. Several other friends once planned to join us but something came up. Additionally, I'm so sorry that my mentor who taught me English, how to ski and how to get to Whistler, can't join us due to health problems. Consequently, the total number of the group is only 6. However, I'm going to enjoy staying in Canada in a boisterous atmosphere.

　　It was 2008 when I visited Vancouver last time. The streets of downtown Vancouver were closed here and there for construction work of the subway line. I thought that it was due to the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games. In Whistler, the Gondola line connecting the summits of Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains were under construction. It might not be true, but I heard the height from the bottom of the valley between the mountains is apparently the highest in the world. I'm scared of heights, but I'm going to try the gondola at least once.

　　The pictures show the construction site and the model of the gondola, which I took in 2008.

http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2008/03/a-signboard.html

http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2008/03/a-construction.html

http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2008/03/ski-helmet-mar-.html

Japanese Way of Thinking

　　The craftsman's name, which I picked up in the previous entry, is Mr. Masahisa Tsujitani. I'll continue the story about him in this entry.
　　To tell the truth, he was invited from a foreign manufacturer of the shots, offering 20,000 dollars per week under the condition of passing the technical license of making shots.
　　"I rejected it. My shots wouldn't be crafted without the cooperation of casting professionals and the techniques of Japan-original must be protected", he said. It's a strong will that pursues a goal, never gives up and overcomes difficulties with originality and ingenuity. Great!
　　A profound sense of humility to state that his achievement is not accomplished by himself even in front of big temptations. Japanese people will regard his way of thinking as beautiful. On the foundation day of Japan, I hope that such a way of thinking will survive forever.

(Vocabulary)
originality and ingenuity  創意工夫

Shot

　　Today's title is about shots of the shot put. Don't you have anything which you know nothing about but you want to know something about it. Shots are one of those objects for me. Golf ball manufacturers are supposedly competing for the longest reach for their golf balls. Then, how about shots? Are you indifferent? Shot putters would desperately want to get the shot which flies farther.

　　According to a sports-related magazine, in both of the Atlanta (1996) and the Sydney (2000) Olympic games, a craftsman's-made shots swept all the prizes; gold, silver and bronze. In such cases when Japan is exclusively too excellent, the rules are often modified. In the shot put world too, the regulations for the shots were changed. However, the craftsman never became downcast and in the next Olympic Games in Athens (2004) his shots swept all the prizes again.

　　What would become of his shots in the next Beijing Olympic Games (2008)? You might be convinced of his shots' landslide win, but the craftsman didn't offer his shots to the Beijing Olympic Games, even though he elaborately crafted them. He witnessed the Japan-bashing in the AFC Asian Cup in China and the Chinese people's stone-throwing at the Japanese Embassy and he felt that China wasn't qualified to be holding the Olympic Games. That's why he denied offering his shots.

　　He is going to offer his shots to the London Olympic Games this year. I hope you'll recall the craftsmanship embedded in the shots.

(Vocabulary)
shot putter  砲丸投げの選手
downcast  ふさぎ込んだ, 意気消沈した
bashing  (人・団体などに対する) 激しい批判, バッシング

Key for Longevity

　　Nowadays, more people are aware of the importance of regular exercises. People who go jogging are frequently found around my neighbourhood. Sometimes, I wonder whether I can start, but I don't want to wear outfits which show my body shape and lines too clearly.
　　By the way, several marathons are held across Japan today. Those events had been held for only athletes for a long time, but now they are open to the public. The event named the Ehime Marathon will be held in my prefecture too on Feb. 5th. This marathon is so popular and highly competitive that more than double the number of people were trying for 7000 positions. My acquaintances, who belong to my Lions Club, will take part in the marathon and I'll go and support them.
　　By the way, I wondered who was the oldest who completed the full marathon and looked for one on the net. According to an article, 100-year-old Briton, Fauja Singh, became the world's oldest marathon runner, completing the race in Toronto in eight hours, 25 minutes and 16 seconds in October 2011. Ginger curry, tea and "being happy" appear to be the key to finishing the race.

He says;

"The secret to a long and healthy life is to be stress-free. Be grateful for everything you have, stay away from people who are negative, stay smiling and keep running."

I agree!

Long-awaited Saddlebag

　　I have been waiting for the delivery of a saddlebag for my bicycle for a couple of months. I bought one before and wrote about it here, but it didn't fit my bicycle. So, I threw it away and ordered a new one. Though I haven't attached it yet to my bicycle, it looks like it will fit well. The bag will help me carry stuff like a spare tube and repair tools.