My picks for the top 10 posts from 2007

One of the great things about keeping a blog is that there is a quick reference of the things that happen in our lives. Though it turned out to be quite time consuming (mental note, shorter posts) it was quite interesting to see the highs and lows of the year. A lot happened and it's always tough to say one post is better than another, but I tried my hardest.All you need to do is click on the title to relive each memory with me (and then the back button on your browser to continue on), here we go;

To Start we'll go with my pick for the worst post of 2007;

A Normal Post While it was actually a pretty special post, it was the first time I mentioned the imminent arrival of Ken, I also thought it would be funny to do up a picture in Photoshop combining elements or Ritsy's face and my face (and my nephew Mac's body). The end result was like Frankenstein's monster and probably severely traumatized some readers. So, it gets the worst of 2007 award.

Now the best picks;
10. A funny thing Fracturing your leg while playing basketball is not what many would consider good news to break (ouch! pun not intentional)- but this makes the list because of its relevance to my life. It was a pretty monumental happening!

9. A concert There was a few good party posts last year. A couple with Manami and Tet-chan's family and a couple at my student Josh's house. This one makes the list because it was quite a nice and unique musical show with a fantastic setting! Later Josh gave me a CD with the recording of the performance- a great touch.

8. Japanese Beauty At times I have been known to ramble. But every now and then a pearl of wisdom comes from this tendency. Japanese Beauty is very beautiful and speaks of the ways in which I appreciate Japanese culture- I can't believe that it was actually I that wrote it!

7. Princesses and Cherry Blossoms A nice post simply because of some beautiful pictures. 'nuff said.

6. Pete and Mari's wedding At the beginning of last year Pete and Mari had their wedding party locally. It was really interesting time and there was some nice pictures.

5. Lillooet This was my second Lillooet posting but I liked this one a little better as I took a little more of a humorous approach in recounting my story. Though some of the humour may be better understood if you read the first one too. And it really does look like the tv is eating him I think....

4. The Tokyo Series As there were a few series this year I tried to pick the best post from each group. The first was the trip to Tokyo. I picked this one because of the pictures of the old Kabuki theater in Ginza that apparently will be torn down. Beautiful looking building though.
3. Ise Another of my trips this year back in August. Man it was hot- and Ritsy was having a bit of the morning sickness still on the boat- but it was a great couple of days up there- and it's just great to explore Japan really. My choice had my favorite pictures from Ise, though I was actually torn between this one and the old shopping street.

2. Aunt and Mom's Visit Sorry ladies, you will have to settle for second place! It was awesome to show the ladies around Japan a bit, and selfishly I was able to see a lot of stuff I haven't seen before. There were actually a lot of great pictures from the series- but I'll go with my favorite location Todaiji- the home of the great Buddha in Nara. Honorable mentions go out to Kohfukuji and Hatasan in Fukuroi.
1. Ken Of course the arrival of your baby- especially your first is just a special moment- and I took a lot of time and recorded the events leading up to his birth quite nicely.

There it is the highlights of my blog world for 2007.

Now it's time to build a new year of memories.

Oh, Canada! (Volume 2)

Since I can't go home for the Obon holidays as I had hoped, I am stuck remembering Canada and preying for my next visit to come soon. In honor of this I wanted to help my Japan-living friends understand a little more of Canadian culture so here is the long awaited part 2 of Oh, Canada!

Ritsy+ me + toque = Synergy

1. Toque; It's not a beany... this is a beanie....
It's not a knit cap.. I tend to imagine a knit-styled baseball cap
It's pretty clear...
It's called a toque!

Yes, she is wearing Red Pants!

2. Totem Poles; What is more Canadian than the artistic works of the Native Americans. Though many won't recognize the style of a lot of the paintings- they are very much unique and beautiful and we can see a lot of that style in the Totem Poles. Always a tourist favourite, the Totem poles have been referenced for over 200 years in historical writings, but it is believed that the history goes back even further. It is difficult to say there is one meaning for totem poles, the reason behind each one being erected is probably routed in the history of whichever tribe built it. Either way they are a big part of the true Canadian history.

3. French; Yes- Canada is a bilingual country! Our great history is riddled with tales of the battle between France and England for control of the great big county. Even as recently as 1995 there was a referendum- or decisive public vote about whether or not the French speaking Province should separate from Canada. The vote was won by the slimmest of margins- wikipedia says by about 1% (HERE). But I digress, while the East coast has a larger presence, the majority of Canada does not use French in any way shape or form. I just remember French class as a course I had to take to fill out my graduation requirements! That said- it is a large part of our history as a country and I do wish that I studied harder- just please don't expect me to be able to understand very much French!
4.Hockey; We love hockey. There is no sense in denying it. It is a fast paced, under-appreciated game. Nothing tops going to the stadium for the first time and watching a game live, once you understand the rules and you get behind a team, you understand why the games get more physical sometimes and you end up enjoying a solidly played, potentially beautiful game. Recently there has been a big crack down to make the game more accessible to the average sports fan (aka- the Americans :-)) and the game is looking more exciting and clean than ever- please give it a try!

5. The final bit we will give some quick facts about Canada;
- Tallest Mountain - Mount Logan 5,959 meters
- Longest River - MacKenzie River - 4,451 kms long
- Tallest Building - CN Tower - 553.33 meters
- Largest Lake (fully in Canada) - Great Bear Lake -31, 328 kilometers square
- Largest City - Toronto - population 2, 500, 000
- Some famous Canadians - John Candy, Mike Myers, Dan Akroyd, Jim Carey, Mike Myers, Avril Lavigne, Alanis Morisette, Neil Young, Pamela Anderson, Shania Twain, Keanu Reaves, Bryan Adams. I could just keep on going...
- Most handsome Canadian.. This guy...

Another Peace-bringing solution from Todd

Well Steve O said that I get a little political sometimes in the blog, and I had an idea while reading today- so I guess it is political time!

Reading the Vancouver news online today, I noticed a little article (here) where Canadian immigration officials are asking Sikhs named Singh and Kaur to change their names. The reasoning is that it will avoid any confusions as there are too many applicants with the same name.

Predictably, this is causing an outrage. Are they going to ask Chinese named Chang to change their names too? The final answer is completely ignorant, lazy and (okay I'll say it -) stupid! Our names are part of who we are, they are more than just a word that hangs around us, they encompass every second, every year of our lives. To callously say "you must change your name to come into our country" is just the wrong answer to a problem.

This is not to say I don't understand the problem encountered by immigration. There must be an incredible amount of confusion, and as recent statistics suggest, Indians are becoming the #1 immigrant into Canada recently- the problem will only grow bigger.

In such times the best answer is to come up with a timely, inoffensive solution to the problem. To adapt to the system around the issues in a way that is just and fair for all involved. My thoughts are it's time to create a new system- called the Canadian Identification Name [CIN]. The people get to keep their names as their true identity, but they have to take an extra step and in advance fill out registration paperwork with the Canadian embassy or immigration authority to register a special name that will uniquely identify them. Of course, the Canadian government can charge a fee to the applicants to cover the costs of implementing the new system (and probably make a little money) and they will basically have this name added into the Canadian database so that it is a separate word, that they can proudly hold with their new Canadian identity. In police reports their names can turn up like this: Gobhinder Singh (Paul). The government would include a fingerprinting in the application process, so that they can easily be cross referenced to their new CIN should trouble arise. They can also regulate the usage of the names - like a website regulates nickname usage (though I don't think he will pick Paul89 if that moniker is already taken) so there is no repetition.

Thank you very much! Canadian government please remember to send my royalty check for this idea to my address in Japan!

Happy Canada Day (Oh! Canada! issue 1)

Okay this is almost late as there is about 10 minutes left in Canada Day in Vancouver, but late is better than never. Well as Canada likes to do things just a little bit better than our neighbours to the south, we beat them by 3 days to celebrate our great country- picking the 1st of July for the event. In honour of my great countries birthday I will do a special entry in the style of my "That's Japan" Posts- I like to call Oh! Canada! (meant to be said while rolling your eyes into the back of your head)

Whether you imagine Canada as a vast land covered in a thick sheet of ice, or populated towns filled with people wearing Roots and drinking Maple Syrup lattes, chances are you have never been there. Let's get right down to it!
1. Donuts; While for most of my life I had thought that the love of donuts was more of an East Coast of Canada characteristic, it seems that recently Canada's biggest food chain, a donut shop named after a former Defenceman for the Toronto Maple Leafs has finally managed to get a foothold in Vancouver as well. Tim Hortons is a national staple, probably more Canadians eat their donuts and drink their delicious coffee than people use Maple Syrup or eat spring salmon.
2. We do say 'eh?' a lot. I never noticed this living back home, but the word 'eh?' tends to escape from my mouth at a rate of once per every 2-3 sentences. There is nothing to be ashamed about, most cultures have a version of it, Aussies (and sometimes Americans) say "hey?", in Japan the say 'ne?', well you get the idea. so give us a break already, eh?
3. Mounties. The National Police force in Canada is called the RCMP- short for Royal Canadian Mounted Police. So often when depicted in movies, the usually bumbling police officers show up riding their horses (Untouchables...). Well I have only ever seen a cop on a horse on special occasions or in select areas like parks and beaches. While their history is on horses, they do in fact have cars now.

I wanted to get to my usual 5 points, but time constraints ( I have to go to work now) mean that I can only post 3 at this time. I will get back to my beautiful country in the not too distant future. Happy Birthday Canada!

The Stawamus Chief

In Squamish- a town which lies at the halfway point between driving from Vancouver to Whistler is a very popular hiking area known affectionately as 'The Chief'. There are three target peaks that you can hike to which entail hiking up long trails that go straight uphill. Finally having to climb around rock usually needing to hold onto chains that have been nailed into the rock. It is quite popular and a fun 1.5- 3 hour hike(depending on which peak you choose). The view from the top is just amazing.

Naturally at the top you need to take a rest. I can't believe I did the hike with those skate shoes on!

You can see Ritsy standing here at the top next to a Rock Cairn. I could never figure out why people make those things....
The hike is long and at times tiring, but in the end when you see a viewpoint as beautiful as this of Howe Sound, you remember why you did it in the first place!

Whistler remembered

I was trying to remember exactly how long I lived in Whistler and I realized that it must have been about 3-4 years in total. What a beautiful place to live - a popular, bustling, beautiful ski resort only about a 1.5 hour drive from Vancouver! The winters are just amazing especially on fresh powder days, and the view is amazing. The lifestyle was very fun, but it does get a little wearing, there is a lot of partying involved- I think it is the first time a lot of people leave home and end up going just nuts- much like going to college! Another great thing about Whistler of course is that it is where Ritsy and I met!

In this picture, Ritsy would be standing about 100 meters away from the doors to the Brewhouse, the restaurant we worked together at. Unfortunatel it won't be in this picture, it would be behind the photographer. It was a pretty crazy place to work, the winters would get downright busy with the huge seating capacity and the fact that it doubled as a pub and a restaurant.
This is a picture from one of the staff parties, with some of our ex-coworkers, Kayo, Emi, Marie-Lou, Eddie (Ritsy in the background) and our chef Clarke (he is the big man in the picture) he looks pretty scary, but he really was a great guy to work for!
On top of those fun times, there was apparently a bit of snowboarding to do up there. The view was just amazing, I sometimes loved sitting on the ski slope and resting and enjoying it.
It was an amazing place to live and holds some great memories, but there definitely came a time to leave. Of course, I didn't stop adventuring I simply moved on to Japan from there! I hope to get back there when the Olympics are on in 2010, it should be a blast!

A part of the drive to Whistler (I think it's Britannia Beach)

Lillooet 2- The Revenge

After watching bro-in-law juggling 13 monkeys, 8 elephants and a giant bag of rocks, we headed out into the surrounding mountains for a nice drive and my sister and I stopped for a couple of pictures.

As we headed back into Lillooet, the clouds seemed to be showing signs of forboding as if something very dark and evil was about to happen.
And then it did on wrapping up the trip, I went to my friend Scott's home to find him being eaten by his tv set...

Naturally I saved him and there was much rejoicing!

Lillooet- A Canada moment

Mac looking 'Hapi'

I wasn't the only one to make the difficult decision of leaving Vancouver and my family and friends 2 years back. My sister and her husband decided that it would be a good idea to move into the interior and live in the Coast mountains in a town called Lillooet.

I had a pleasure of visiting her, my Nephew and Brother-in-Law last year, and want to share some of the pictures from that great trip!

The drive up there was an amazing winding trek through BC's coast mountains and there were many beautiful moments, I stopped to take this picture.
I arrived in Lillooet and was breathtaken by the town completely surrounded by mountains. I also liked the tree in this picture.
Sean amazed me with his ability to juggle Mac and 23 bananas, he is just warming up in this picture.

I am having troubles uploading pictures at the moment, so will post more later!

Tuesdays ramble

1. Hockey - Got a call from Chris on Saturday with a couple of options for the evening, either drinking with Adam again or watching more hockey. Being a Canadian and having to work the next day, I chose the hockey and volunteered to be designated driver so the boys could pack back a few brews. We found Tomoko there to take in the game as well and we cheered for Pete Wright and his buddy Dave. Unfortunately as they were the two biggest and best players on the ice for their team they were picked on madly by the referee with the big head (didn't take picture, his head was too large), and Peter was given a 10 minute misconduct for shooting the puck after the whistle (some of the worst reffing that I have seen, some even muttered the 'r' word). Needless to say the ref killed the game, I guess he was trying to protect the smaller Japanese players by calling tight, but he ended up making calls on clean hits that were just to hard for his liking (he told Dave- "It's because you are big" --- can you imagine a ref in NHL telling a player that's ridiculous!). Well our spirits severely dampened by what turned out to be a 2-2 tie we hit Denny's for a little after game grub.

2. Kyoto - I complained about my Prime Minister's comments about the Kyoto treaty but it seems I was too quick to react. Thankfully in Canada the Conservative govenment doesn't hold a majority of the seats in the Parliament so the House was still able to vote in favour of Kyoto's emissions regulations. I had neglected to save the link, but I did see that Harper acknowledged (naturally after he read my blog) that the environmental problem is one to be reckoned with, I guess he just didn't like Kyoto's method as he heavily rallied the Conservatives to vote against it.

3. Basketball - Pete, Chris and I hit the ball courts on Sunday for what turned out to be a good day of gaming. We played two matches and I thought I played alright, though I am far from the pro that my colleagues are. Chris actually blogged about it here, though I think he had fired up his photoshop a bit because I don't remember being as excellent as he reported . Anyway, we had a wicked time and my bones ached for the next two days (yes, that includes today), but it kind of aches in a good way.

A bittersweet week

Last week was one of my more stressful ones in a while, but I survived it. The biggest stresses involved having to wade through the complicated and confusing process of the Japanese government system.

The first had a happy ending though. In Japan, most individuals never have to worry about the tax returns as their company will fill it our for them (lucky bastards). But as my work is comprised of 4 part time jobs (last year anyway) I had the pleasure of trying to do my own taxes. Luckily enough I found an add that the local International center, the Hamamatsu International Cultural Exchange had a free tax consultation with English translator. So on the 1st I set out and though arriving late (my stress) was still able to get help and after filling out a small stack of paper work I was almost done. The guy helping was so nice, he spent about 5 minutes trying to convince me to think of some tax write-offs to lower my tax load. Could you imagine a staff member of Revenue Canada doing the same? I think not. Well I wanted to get the taxes done with so I finally had him calculate and I will get back 13,000 yen! Thanks a lot to a nice guy and the ever-helpful Christina at HICE!

I had the opposite experience on Friday. Back on January 4th, the first day it was open after winter holidays, Ritsy and I went down to immigration to apply for my Visa extension and found the place packed. Actually Ritsy had to stay in the car and wait for a spot, so I went in alone. The office looks like it was built back in 1978 and the last time they cleaned it was about a week later. There is no clear signs about where to line up and no number taking system etc... So I basically stood there for about 15 minutes without any clear idea of where to hand in my forms. Finally Ritsy came in and stopped a nice helper lady behind the desk and she took my information and photocopied my Passport and told us to go home as they can't help us that day. So we left. Well on Feb 2nd I was getting a little antsy because my Visa expires on the 8th, so I asked Ritsy to call them. They said they didn't have my application! The man on the phone then proceeded to get argumentative and basically said that she was lying that we ever came in. So, Ritsy's blood was boiling now and she called their Customer Service to complain about the man on the phone. Then we headed to the office. When we got there, the staff already knew about our complaint and pulled us into the back room. Rather than being productive and helping us meet a solution, he was abrasive and told us basically that we shouldn't have gone home (though we were told to- the girl obviously was new and didn't have the right training, so I don't think it's her fault) and he kept going on about how they hadn't stamped my passport. To me this conversation was completely useless they obviously made some mistake and he was getting defensive. He then pointed out that we hadn't brought the right paperwork with us originally- fair enough, they should have called us and let us know about that rather than throw out my application (which is what I think they did). Anyway, we are sitting in this office and Ritsy, god bless her, wasn't taking his crap and he was getting angry and starting to raise his voice- I couldn't understand but I remember hitting the table and gesturing for him to calm down. Well in the conversation he said 2 things that stick out, 1. he offered to go to court to settle this ( they were by now admitting they remember us coming in- so what is there to settle???)and 2. He said "I don't care if your husband overstays his Visa" like he was challenging us. Finally I convinced my wife to ask him what we can do now to move past this silly spiral of an argument. Then the bastard started being nice to us. At that moment I imagined this man as a Samurai sitting in front of us, ready to go to battle to gain the upper hand. But I was so proud of Ritsy when we left she exclaimed "He is not forgiven" and she called Nagoya again and told them all the garbage that was said. Oh, did I mention this bastion of Customer service was the branch manager? Unbelievable!

Well I felt very deflated after this whole encounter and had a tough time getting my spirits up for the kids classes I had to teach next (sorry!). But that evening's class that I teach at Carlsson really cheered me up. That staff is always so calm, eager to talk in English and funny that I was feeling a lot better by the time I left!

Sorry for the long rant- but the story needed to be told! Back to more Hamamatsu highlights next entry.

Stewart McKay- RIP

Some bad news arrived in the evening from my friends back home.

A good buddy from the cooking days passed away from Heart Failure. I haven't heard many details and a search on the web suggests that he actually passed away on December 14th of last year. We had regrettably fallen out of contact with Stewie, so it makes sense that it probably took a while for the word to get through to us, though I am not positive that I found the right obituary. I also truly regret that the old days predated any of us owning a digital camera so I don't have easy access to a pic of Stewie, but when I find one I will edit it into this picture!

Stewart was a guy with a warm and honest laugh and smile and was always a pleasure to chat with especially after work over a cold beer. He was the kind of guy that never had anything bad to say about another person and I never saw him lose his temper. We had far too many laughs together to start listing the times here. I had often thought about him and wondered how he was doing and it is sad that this is the first news I have heard from him in a long time. I will always think of him in a positive vein and he was always stick with me and be remembered. Rest in Peace old buddy!

My Country's Prime Minister is an idiot

From this source.... CBC

Now I didn't vote, so I will be the first to acknowledge that I have no right to complain, but I have not read one bit of news about Canada's PM that endears me towards him.

When are these jerks going to get their heads out of their butts and acknowledge that global warming is a real threat! Kyoto might not be the best solution in the world, but it is a definite step in the right direction. If politicians are worried about the effects on the economy it simply shows short-sidedness and unwillngness to think "outside of the box" to find ways to stimulate the economy in a more ecologically responsible way!

Harper's letter dismisses Kyoto as 'socialist scheme'

Last Updated: Tuesday, January 30, 2007 | 10:15 PM ET

Prime Minister Stephen Harper once called the Kyoto accord a "socialist scheme" designed to suck money out of rich countries, according to a letter leaked Tuesday by the Liberals.

The letter, posted on the federal Liberal party website, was apparently written by Harper in 2002, when he was leader of the now-defunct Canadian Alliance party.

He was writing to party supporters, asking for money as he prepared to fight then-prime minister Jean Chrétien on the proposed Kyoto accord.

"We're gearing up now for the biggest struggle our party has faced since you entrusted me with the leadership," Harper's letter says.

"I'm talking about the 'battle of Kyoto' — our campaign to block the job-killing, economy-destroying Kyoto accord."

The accord is an international environmental pact that sets targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.... (to read more follow the link at the top)

OKAY! I swear the next post will be about Japan again!

Bits and Pieces 2

Nothing special has really happened so far this week, so a few short topics;

1. Bike Ride
I didn't really get my required exercise in through the weekend, so I took my bike out for a bit of a ride. I went to Cainz Home which is a home center- like Home Depot or Rona back in Vancouver. The ride is about 6 kms and includes a killer hill that should help condition me a little bit for the Forest Park mission. I did alright on the hill but about 2/3 of the way up I had to get off and push the bike. On the ride, there used to be a couple of farms with a bunch of trees with funny things hanging from the branches like mirrors and CD's. While they were probably there to scare away birds- I was hoping to use them for comedy in my blog. Tragically they were taken down from the trees.Cainz is a great place to shop, anything you need for around the house. Furniture, landscaping, lumber, even pets- yes it was at this Cainz home that we found the irreplaceable Santa;
2. Pickton. Back home in Vancouver there has been an interesting trial of a pig farmer that had allegedly murdered a large number of hookers. The details can be pretty gross, but it amazes me that this sort of sick person can walk the same earth as we do. Well if you want to read about the Pickton trials just click here.
3. Hockey All Star Game. Okay I have only watched the Super skills competition so far, but Vancouver's only representative Luongo looked good so far, good job! I think it is a travesty that the Sedins are left out of the game though!
4. What it takes. I was thinking during my bike ride yesterday about what it takes to live in a foreign country. It boils down to Patience, Hard Work and a Positive Mentality. You need to be patient with learning the language and becoming more functional and a part of the environment (it is easy to have the illusion that you don't need to learn Japanese when you teach English but it isn't entirely accurate). You also need to be patient with meeting people, networking and making friends. All our best friendships take time to develop and basically will always take time. The Hard Work comes into play with establishing yourself with a job and learning the language. The positive attitude helps you get by day to day. Sometimes it is easy to question your decision to live somewhere else, but it is more healthy to accept that you made the decision and not to waste time asking 'what if...'. You made the decision stick with it! If you aren't happy with the way things are at the moment, then work to make it a better situation, or move again.

That is all for today, have a great one!

Hockey Night in Hamatown

Sunday was mostly spent resting the head after a night of drinking (of course after I made it through my classes- sorry to my students!). But I was glad that I called Chris up because he reminded me that our other friend Pete had invited us to watch him play some hockey. He even promised to score some goals and get in a fight for us.

Well even Ritsy was interested to go and watch- it's pretty dry for watching live hockey around here.

So when Ritsy got home, we hopped in the car and picked up Chris, then headed off to the Miyatake Sports Center to watch some hockey. Our plan was to have some McDonalds on the way, but we changed our plans and settled for some kaiten sushi nearby. What a great call! My hungover body was so happy to be taking in sushi, I automatically felt 5 times better by time we left. Incidentally if you ever have a chance to eat kinme(gold eye red-snapper) nigiri do it! It's delicious!

Pete literally letting off some steam between periods.

The game was actually pretty interesting, I think even first time hockey watcher Chris was enjoying it. Unfortunately Peter Wright's team only had 8 men so couldn't actually change a whole line out at a time. So by the third period the team was really slowing down and looking exhausted against a fully stocked opponent. They got up to a 5-3 deficit, but then the other team started scoring like mad and it was a 9-3 final I think. Pete was great though, he had some great stick handling, could muscle the opponents out of the way, and even tried a Mario Lemieux style behind the feet shot. Well I want to check out a game when he has some more players! Or even better yet try to learn to skate and play too! We'll see....
Incidentally if anyone was looking to buy a single Ice Skating item, they have it for sale at the center. I wonder what the one item is, I hope it is a skate...

A quick one

A view of the Lions Gate Bridge from Stanley Park in Vancouver.

A short post today. My laptop that keeps dying and then coming back to life has decided to die again. Well it kind of works but I have to shake it to help the Hard drive move, a little counterproductive.

Warren sent me this link to some beautiful pictures. This winter, it sounds like Vancouver is having some of the worst weather I can ever remember it having. Back in December there was a severe windstorm that devastated Stanley Park, one of the great destinations for people. Thousands of tress were blown down, and this Flickr slide show really captures some of this devastation. I heard during this windstorm my mother was without electricity for a day and a half!

Another thing that happened this winter is BC Place stadium, which usually looks like this, couldn`t seem to handle the extreme weather conditions and the roof ripped. Very tough year back home.