A new compooooter

I am using a nearly 4 year old windows 7 BTO which has been great.
Absolutely no trouble since the the final repair ( see my post on July 25 2012)
after trying to fob me off with a crappy MOBO.
Now as I gave up my teaching job and am working from home doing online stuff I really need to have a backup 'puter to use in case this oone decides to go haywire or something.
Going for a windows 10 laptop from Mouse computer

Specs look pretty good and I want to try the SSD to see how much better (maybe) they are. Don't need such a  high spec machine so at this price seems good.

Waddayaallthink?

Made by a company called mouse computer
I shouldn't be put off by the picture on this home page

http://www.mouse-jp.co.jp/m-book/


 but...... well..... can you trust him?

Still thinking about it ......will make a decision soon

Engrish

Had to laugh at some of these

http://www.engrish.com/

Maybe I will post some on this blog myself.

Nexus 7

I don't have a tablet so I was thinking about getting one.
I was after a Nexus 7 but as the new version was coming out I decided to wait a couple of  months to get the latest.
It was released yesterday on Google Play Japan store BUT..... the price!

27,800 !!!!!!!

Do I want to pay that much for a glorified reader?
An iPad mini only costs a little more.

Actually almost the same price difference between Nexus 7 2012 and the latest about ￥5,000


C'mon Google what's with this?

Henry ford designed the Model T to bring transportation to the masses.
A car at an affordable price although with some limitations. ( You can have any colour you want as long as it's black). The nexus 7 filled the same niche. But now with the price increase I doubt if it will be the "taker over the world" that the original was.

I believe that this will be a dud for Google unless the price comes down to near the original or at the most ￥21,000.

Also within just a couple of weeks some problems are surfacing with the touch screen as well as the keyboard input.


I for one am looking for something a bit more affordable, which I am sure will be available soon, as other companies jump on this price increase.

Sorry Google, your new Nexus 7 is not for me, not at that price

Immigration law change...Stuck in Japan?

I am now 61 and it is likely that I will not be re-hired by my school that I have been working for, for a long time. So unemployed from next year.

I have not paid into the Japanese pension scheme. When I came
here there was no real consideration given to foreigners married to Japanese.
There was no guidance to tell me what to do so I just did nothing.
My fault I guess. Ignorance is no defense.
I continued to pay into the UK pension scheme however, so I have
the right to claim a full state pension.

So I am now considering whether I should move back to England, if, or when my wife's parents pass away, which might not be so far in the future. Living in Japan on my UK pension will be practically impossible.

I took a quick look at how to return to England and was shocked to find that the immigration laws have been changed.

Some articles that relate:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/new-immigration-rules-accused-of-splitting-up-families-8324254.html

http://britcits.blogspot.jp/2013/02/todays-links-new-uk-immigration-laws.html

https://www.change.org/petitions/theresa-may-new-uk-immigration-laws-are-tearing-families-apart-change-them-now



Now it seems that I can return to England with my wife, only if I meet certain financial stipulations, which I don't.

I have been married for 36 years and now if I want to return to England I have to go without my wife.

That is ridiculous.

She speaks great English, actually lived in England for 12 years, contributing to the national health, paying taxes, but now will  not be allowed back in.

So, what to do?

I guess I have no choice. Seems like a British citizen like me who chooses to marry a non British national signs away any right to return to their home country unless you are rich.

Don't need you, thanks.


I guess I am stuck here unless the rules change again or I win the lottery.
How I will survive is something on my mind so I guess I have a lot of thinking to do.

I sure need that cuppa now.

Turtle

Went for a walk in my local park and came across an egg laying turtle

She was using her hind legs to push the eggs into a hole that she had dug.
After laying she covered up the hole very neatly like you couldn't even tell
that the ground had been disturbed.
Awesome!

Sakura

Everyone is going crazy over the sakura


I even took a picture

Well I didn't say it was of cherry blossom


OK ......if you must

The end?

Saw an ad on the train today.

FINAL MOVEMENT

Hmm...a medical problem?

I'll try to get a photo

More snow pics

Taken at my local park

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow..

First snow of 2013 today Jan 14th.


A view from my house.
Notice how the snow sets off the electric power lines nicely.

Mochi update

History has a habit of repeating itself

2 dead, 13 hospitalized after choking on mochi in Tokyo

NATIONAL JAN. 03, 2013 - 06:54AM JST ( 0 )

TOKYO —

The Tokyo Fire Department said Wednesday that 15 elderly people were hospitalized on Tuesday and Wednesday after choking on mochi rice cakes. Of those, two died—an 83-year-old man from Suginami Ward and a 68-year-old man from Shinagawa Ward.

On Monday, the National Police Agency and the Fire and Disaster Management Agency appealed to elderly people to be careful when eating mochi during the New Year holidays.

The cakes, a traditional New Year’s food, cause choking incidents among elderly people every year. Authorities said elderly people should cut up their mochi into small chunks and eat it with great care, and in the presence of someone else.

http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/2-dead-13-hospitalized-after-choking-on-mochi-in-tokyo

2013 arrived

Hi there
A new year has started.
How do you feel?

It is a really nice sunny day.
No wind, getting warmer gradually.

Hopefully a year free from ( big) earthquakes.
Mount Fuji...are you waking up this year?

A new government...well almost new.
A recycled PM, same old faces

Anyone have any predictions.
I predict that maybe, somebody might possibly, read my blog.

First ......New Year News

Death from Mochi ( Rice cakes )

This warning was put on  ( www.japntoday.com)

Authorities appeal to elderly to be careful when eating 'mochi'

NATIONAL JAN. 01, 2013 - 06:53AM JST ( 6 )

TOKYO —

The National Police Agency and the Fire and Disaster Management Agency on Monday appealed to elderly people to be careful when eating “mochi” rice cakes during the New Year holidays.

The cakes, a traditional New Year’s food, cause choking incidents among elderly people every year. Authorities appealed to people across Japan to cut up their mochi into small chunks and to eat it with great care, and in the presence of someone else.

Last year on New Year’s Day, emergency services in Tokyo took 13 elderly people to hospital after they choked on the “mochi.” Two of them died.

Nice way to start the New Year.

Maybe there should be a government warning put on them.

Anyway... hope for a good year all round.

Bye Bye Fuji

This is a comforting report

(Reuters) - Japan's Mount Fuji may be sitting on a large, active fault that could trigger a magnitude-7 earthquake, changing the shape of the mountain and devastating nearby communities, the education ministry said on Thursday.

A survey commissioned by the ministry found a 30-km fault beneath Japan's highest mountain, believed by many to be sacred, and research results indicate it was likely to be active, a ministry official said.

If the fault sets off an earthquake, it could lead to a major landslide and hit communities at the foot of the 3,776-metre-high mountain. Further research was required, the official said.

A magnitude-9 earthquake and massive tsunami hit northern Japan last year, leaving nearly 19,000 people dead or missing and causing the world's worst nuclear disaster in 25 years.

An earthquake in 1707 caused Fuji to erupt and killed an estimated 20,000 people.


Well. so long Fuji.. nice knowing you



Link to the report

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2012/05/11/us-japan-fuji-idUKBRE84A0JS20120511

Cherry Blossom Time

It's come in this area
I live near a fairly big park and last Sunday there seemed to be an endless stream of people
going to the park from the station and back.
I wonder how much room there was in the park?

But it looks nice.

Variety is the spice..

One thing about living in Japan is that you can find almost anything.
I have seen really old British cars that you would never see in England except at an enthusiasts rally. But here I have seen old minis and a Humber running on the road.
Saw a Riley the other day and unbelievably a Hillman Imp. One that actually was running.

How these people maintain these old cars I really don't know.
Must cost a bomb for parts, if they can be found.

I'll try to keep my camera with me so I can post the actual sighting if I can.

Told you!

http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2012/02/fukushima-crisis-awakes-after-reactor-heats-up-mysteriously/

This is just the start. You wait. There will be trouble in all the other reactors as the fuel that has melted down starts to heat up again. Probably it is still at a very high temperature somewhere down there. When is the rest of the world going to wake up and try to help with this. It is not just a Japan problem it is a global problem.

Unprecedented, yes. But if enough resources are focused on the problem it surely can be dealt with. It has to be dealt with. This is not something that can just be ignored and hope it will go away.
Get moving..get going. Bury it, remove it. Chuck the reactors and fuel in to the Earths magma..whatever  ..DO SOMETHING. This stuff has to be got rid of however much money it takes.

Toilet

Another most welcome thing about Japan are the toilets.
Today I installed my new toilet.
I had one of these "spray your butt" things for 5 years.
I didn't think that I needed one at first but came to really like it.
Recently it started to do strange things. The spray wouldn't stop or the seat was
cold, or wouldn't work at all.

Repair is out of the question as it would be much more than buying a new one.

Looked on Rakuten and found a very similar one for a good price.
http://item.rakuten.co.jp/murauchi-denki/4984824884120/

Ordered it ( with a 5 year guarantee) and it came about three weeks ago.
However, the water fitting needed changing or I could order another part which would make the
installation much simpler. That cost me a 2 week wait and 800 yen.
Finally it came and I was able to fit the new one today pretty quickly.

Now ..back to normal.. heated seat, butt spray..what else could you ask for.

Electricity

Want to know the daily situation in Tokyo?

http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/forecast/html/index-e.html

Good doughnuts?

There is a shop that sells doughnuts near where I live
It is called Natas
I wonder if they know that natas backwards is SATAN !
Satan doughnuts.....

The Train

Living in the city ( Yokohama to be exact) most people use the train especially to go to work rather than a car.
There is a "train culture" that eventually becomes clear the more you use the train.
My main train line is the Sotetsu line which runs from Yokohama to Ebina.
If you want some information on this line you can read about it here.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sagami_Railway_Main_Line

I am sure that if you ask anyone they will tell you their train story.
Here is mine.

I was riding the Sotetsu line and I had been able to get a seat.
In front of me a man, probably in his 30's was standing reading a book and chewing gum.
I though nothing of it, as I was also absorbed in reading something, when I heard a 'plop'.
I looked up from what I was reading to see a lump of chewing gum stuck on the handle of my bag that was on my lap.
Of course I was surprised, as well as somewhat taken aback ,and I looked up at the man in front of me.
He was looking down at the gum. Saying nothing, he picked the gum up, put it back in his mouth, and nonchalantly started chewing and reading again.
I was speechless ( fortunately) so I just sat there taking in what had just happened.
My stop came soon, so I got up and got off the train, thinking to myself, only in Japan.

Perhaps you are thinking to yourself what you would have done under the same situation.
But remember there is a train culture which affects everyone, including myself, it seems.