WataruTenkawa

A naturalized Japanese citizen, former Dutch guy from Michigan via San Francisco. Car-free Tokyo resident since 1978. Thriving on a no-mammals diet for more than half a century. #Translation #Tokyo #Bruckner #Opera

Public Key

npub1uzac0mqj5y2m8p3f309wadds7xr86le6rwtde34kulr484spd8us680a7e

NIP-05 Address

WataruTenkawa_at_social.vivaldi.net@mostr.pub

Profile Code

nprofile1qqswpwu8asf2z9dnsc5chjhwkkc0rpna0uaph9kuc6mw036n6cqkn7gmyeuw4

Author Public Key

npub1uzac0mqj5y2m8p3f309wadds7xr86le6rwtde34kulr484spd8us680a7e

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Last Notes

2024-08-08 10:12:33

USGS earthquake map of southern Japan. Such a variety of place name spellings. Is it Kagosima or Kagoshima? Koti or Kochi? Fukuoka or Hukuoka? Tokusima or Tokushima? Something to please or displease everyone.
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/112/925/849/331/844/005/original/20241890e763cdcc.png

2024-07-29 04:30:31

I enjoy engaging with people in the Fediverse, but I especially appreciate those of you who share enough information in your user name, photo, and/or profile so I know who you are and how we came to know each other. The rest of you are somewhat of a mystery.

2024-07-28 06:35:55

People will die from tomorrow's heat if this proves true.
あす29日、関東以西で40℃続出の見込み歴代最高気温に匹敵する恐れも https://news.livedoor.com/article/detail/10471884/

2024-07-06 01:49:40

Sagawa guy just dropped off 16 bottles of wine and a brand new hell-kicking desktop PC. Living the Old Man Life to the hilt.

2024-07-04 13:28:44

My kind of person. 102 years old and still working. She walks every day and has been a pescatarian since childhood.
#Vegetarian #walking #pescatarian
https://www.businessinsider.com/healthy-102-year-old-centenarian-research-backed-longevity-tips-2024-7

2024-07-04 06:54:58

Heading out to buy a small bottle of champagne-like drink so I can toast with my wife at dinner time. She'll maybe ask, What's the occasion? and I'll remind her that July 4th is the day of our first date, some 41 years ago.

2024-06-29 00:04:40

On my second try at BlueSky and liking it much better than the first round. I post different stuff there than here, but not very much of it. @wtenga.bsky.social

2024-06-03 11:56:04

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@npub1pxt…pdwx
Kalium in Japanese. But we tend to use the native spellings (pronunciations) of place names as well (Firenze not Florence, etc.).

2024-05-15 12:42:42

"Over 80,000 foreign nationals work part-time in Japan's three major convenience store chains, data collected by Kyodo News showed Wednesday, in a trend likely to continue amid labor shortages from an aging population.
Foreign workers now represent around 10 percent of the part-time labor force across branches of Seven-Eleven Japan Co., Lawson Inc. and FamilyMart Co. convenience stores, according to the data."
https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2024/05/add6bc8342d2-over-80000-foreigners-working-at-convenience-stores-in-japan.html

2024-05-05 12:52:16

This sounds similar to what happened to a good friend, who got hooked on running because of the weight loss but today can hardly walk up a short flight of stairs.
I was a running addict – but pushing myself to the limit led to two knee replacements | Rod Gilchrist https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/article/2024/may/05/running-addict-knee-replacements-fitness

2024-04-24 02:25:48

Does this look like an eel to you? Looks like something else to me.
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/112/323/814/692/412/149/original/8a7313668f8c7f0e.webp

2024-04-22 03:35:57

The young Japanese woman (right in photo) who was my roommate in San Francisco in the 1970s, and who became the initial impetus for my deciding to move to Japan, returned to Japan in the 1980s and wrote hit songs for pop stars including Tahara Toshihiko and Shonentai. Years later, my own daughter appeared on NHK in a trio of singers accompanying a performance by Higashiyama, the Shonentai leader. Is this a case of life coming full circle?
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/112/312/749/494/976/502/original/28fbfb1ea7e4591d.jpg

2024-04-18 00:11:21

"RIO DE JANEIRO - A woman brought a 68-year-old man in a wheelchair into a bank branch and tried to get him to sign for a loan, but he had been dead for hours, Brazilian police said on Wednesday."
https://www.straitstimes.com/world/woman-wheels-corpse-into-brazil-bank-to-sign-for-loan

2024-03-27 13:15:38

Deciding to give my wife a break from cooking, I came home from Kichijoji Atre with these morsels for dinner, along with assorted fruits.
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/112/167/824/180/066/354/original/6587e316f2010b15.jpg

2024-03-02 10:17:03

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@npub1y0k…dhyh
I get your point, but...I'm 81 and still working full time as a sought-after Japanese-to-English translator. My work is much more fulfilling than sitting around idly. I am quite happy to work until I die.

2024-01-31 13:47:15

"When your body recognizes that adenosine isn't binding, your body responds by creating more receptors. A 2012 study found that within three days of consistent caffeine ingestion, the number of adenosine, nicotinic, and muscarinic (a chemical that modulates neuronal excitability) receptors is significantly increased....
So while coffee will still provide a number of health benefits -- potentially reducing the likelihood of cancer, diabetes, Parkinson's, etc. -- the energy and memory boost provided is basically gone.
Unless you periodically hit the reset button. The same study found changes in adenosine receptor levels typically reverse after a 7-day caffeine break. Taking a week off reduces your tolerance and increases the boost you will feel when you start drinking coffee again."
https://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/decades-of-research-shows-coffee-makes-you-healthier-happier-but-if-you-want-to-boost-your-energy-level-memory-theres-a-7-day-catch.html
#coffee

2024-01-11 04:10:37

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@npub1u27…3qfq - Japanese people who comment on things from politics to local gourmet
- Storm chasers and other weather people
- Members of the punditry class besides the few humorless scolds we have here
- Nuclear power advocates
- Ukraine war commentators
- China experts

2024-01-08 01:15:59

More evidence that attempting to limit Chinese technology advances by restricting exports is destined to backfire
"Chinese companies are strengthening their presence in light detection and ranging sensors crucial to self-driving technology, greatly exceeding Japanese and American counterparts in related patents and controlling more than half of the global market.
The intense competition in developing electric vehicles in China has spurred more sophisticated lidar, which serve as the "eyes" for automated driving." https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Automobiles/China-extends-lead-in-lidar-tech-crucial-to-self-driving-cars

2023-12-20 00:12:23

The "Doctrine of Discovery," issued in 1493 by Pope Alexander VI, stated that any land not inhabited by Christians was available to be "discovered," claimed, and exploited by Christian rulers.
The Catholic faith and Christian religions could be exalted and spread everywhere, and nations could be overthrown and brought into Christianity, the decree stated.
It became the basis of all European claims in the Americas and the foundation for U.S. westward expansion, which would be cited in federal court cases against Indigenous people in the 19th century.
https://www.axios.com/2023/12/19/us-white-supremacy-roots-catholic-doctrine-book

2023-12-15 00:30:03

"The FDA believes this wasn't just a matter of poor hygiene at the factory. The lead was deliberately added to the cinnamon. They say it was "economically motivated," a way of making the cinnamon cheaper.
This is remarkable. A pouch of applesauce contains something like one gram of cinnamon, which costs less than a quarter of a cent on the global market. But it's cheaper to use less cinnamon and make up the weight with lead?
What's even worse is that the FDA suspects this is a routine practice—but only for cinnamon shipped to poor countries. It was only caught this time because the cinnamon supplier screwed up and accidentally delivered a tainted batch for applesauce that was destined for the US, where we have the ability to detect lead contamination. Everyone else is out of luck."
FDA: Applesauce was deliberately tainted with lead https://jabberwocking.com/fda-applesauce-was-deliberately-tainted-with-lead/

2023-12-11 08:15:06

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@npub1pwx…xk5j When I started in the translation profession in Japan nearly 40 years ago, clients would send documents by fax, some of them quite long. Once they arrived safely without jamming or running out of paper, we would translate them, print out the results, and fax them back. I was so happy when people started getting modems so we could send documents by our local version of Compuserve.

2023-12-05 13:13:32

Mikan growers in Japan, faced with a drop in sales, have been turning to avocados, which command a higher price and are increasingly popular.
https://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXZQOUB139CW0T11C23A0000000/

2023-11-26 00:05:36

"Japanese chemical group Nippon Shokubai will scale up production as early as next year of a main component in rechargeable zinc batteries, an emerging alternative to lithium-ion batteries, Nikkei has learned.
Mass production of separators for zinc batteries remains rare, and the development could give a major boost to the supply chain, helping to popularize a low-cost storage option for renewable energy."
Zinc batteries, a lithium alternative, set for new part supply in Japan https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Materials/Zinc-batteries-a-lithium-alternative-set-for-new-part-supply-in-Japan
#batteries #renewables

2023-11-21 10:15:44

Was just reminiscing with my young family about primary school in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Our classrooms always had a bad smell, which was deeply embedded in our old wooden desks and chairs. It was a mixture of child sweat (in an era when we only bathed on Saturdays, ahead of Sunday church services) and child vomit, which our janitor Mr. Hollemans would come into the room and dutifully clean up, before spraying some kind of disinfectant, which also added to the mix of odors.

2023-11-21 00:08:55

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@npub1m34…njzz Biden just posted for the first time less than an hour ago and he's already got two million followers.

2023-11-20 23:57:35

US President Biden, VP Harris, and their spouses have now started posting on Threads. That Boot-edge-edge guy has been there for some time, too.

2023-11-18 01:47:19

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@npub15qw…3p2z
LOL, you were one of the main reasons I found Bluesky so unbearable that I deleted my account. I'm happy for you that you have found a place where you feel comfortable.

2023-11-09 04:25:14

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@npub1nlc…rv60
Tumblr of late has been recommending to me blogs that are straight-on porn. I wonder if this is a last-ditch attempt to revive it or just no longer caring.

2023-11-06 02:13:54

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@npub1grx…uxfe I was alive and living in Michigan, as a Lions fan, for their NFL championships in 1952, 1953, and 1957, when they had players like Bobby Layne and Hopalong Cassady.

2023-11-05 13:15:44

On my way to Kichijoji this afternoon, I took a long route along Itsukaichi-kaido in front of Seikei University. There I saw around seven trucks and a bus carrying Japan's notorious rightwingers, on their way to create a fuss somewhere. They were followed by several unmarked police cars. They turned down Seikei-doori, and then Inokashira doori, where this phalanx of police were waiting to prevent their further passage into the main Kichijoji shopping area. Very disruptive of traffic. I could hear them howling loudly on their speakers even from far away. (Photo by Kichijoji Mondo 吉祥寺もんど)
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/111/358/090/866/687/674/original/35580afad80cf040.jpg

2023-10-30 04:24:43

Ever since Russia invaded Ukraine, a steady stream of such rickety vessels without insurance protection have been joining the dark fleet (as the vessels are also known) — and many of them have been having accidents. This situation poses enormous risks to law-abiding ships, the environment and the unfortunate countries controlling the waters in which these accidents occur.
Because Western sanctions have banned trading a wide range of Russian goods and put a cap on the price of Russian oil, Western insurers — who dominate the market — no longer insure such shipments. Thus, companies that still want to engage in this lucrative trade have been turning to shadow vessels instead — ageing ships with obscure ownership that lack international certification and Western insurance.
https://www.politico.eu/article/russia-shadow-fleet-oil-tankers-ships-accidents-ukraine-war-sanctions/?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication

2023-10-25 22:43:21

From a Mexican news source. Acapulco before and after Hurricane Otis hit, the first cat. 5 storm to directly impact a city of a million or more.
#HurricaneOtis #Acapulco #México
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/111/298/062/600/274/107/original/7e38841383fc92d6.jpg
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/111/298/062/978/198/088/original/e88e5549a307f4b2.jpg

2023-10-19 08:46:29

The Sakurajima volcano today, erupting just before 5:00 pm, as seen via webcam from Tarumizu
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/111/260/798/207/594/770/original/377a53c3b4d08374.jpg

2023-10-17 01:57:48

Haven't posted one of these in a while. Sakurajima volcano (Kagoshima) erupting a few minutes ago, via webcam
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/111/247/867/655/932/957/original/e196c7acc12ec3d7.jpg

2023-10-13 05:25:38

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@npub1k9a…m3yh The 1337 character limit was recently instituted by Vivaldi, as a fellow instance user pointed out in another comment.

2023-10-13 05:19:06

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@npub1k9a…m3yh I think the character limit is a server-specific setting. Do you show a different limit in your post composition interface?

2023-10-13 05:15:12

When did Vivaldi Social start allowing longer posts? Big if true!
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/111/225/995/508/477/132/original/c3ba844666f3f1d4.jpg

2023-10-08 11:56:19

In a thread on Threads, people were talking about how old they were based on their past experiences. My reply:
I grew up with radio, long before we had a TV.
I saw military trucks on the highway during secret preparations for the Korean War.
Several friends got polio.
I saw Elvis's first live TV appearance, on the Ed Sullivan Show. Then the Beatles.
I saw Jack Ruby kill Lee Harvey Oswald on TV when it happened.
I marched with Martin Luther King Jr. in NYC.
That old.

2023-09-30 23:51:43

This article about clouds and how they form is fascinating. I'd heard before that clouds are the hardest weather element for forecasters to predict. They form around "seeds," of many kinds; and scientists are just starting to understand the role of trees in cloud formation.
https://arstechnica.com/?p=1972385
#Climate #Clouds #Trees

2023-09-23 11:46:05

Things I like about the RSS reader Feedly:
- A button for posting articles directly to Mastodon (which I do a lot)
- The AI tracking feature, which serves full articles on topics of your choosing
- The Today feature that cycles through the most recent articles from each of your folders
- The mute filters for hiding topics you don't care to see

2023-09-15 08:08:01

As we approach Respect‐for‐the‐Aged Day, the number of centenarians in Japan has been announced as 92,139, a number that has continued to grow for 53 straight years. At the rate things are going, some day they may outnumber small children.

2023-08-30 00:24:38

"The Spanish-language station Univision Chicago said a reporter and photographer were **filming** just before 5am Monday in the city’s West Town neighborhood when three masked men brandishing firearms robbed them, taking their television camera and other items."
The story (from The Guardian) is interesting in itself, but this use of **filming** also interests me. I often struggle to translate 撮影, but is **filming** still acceptable? (There are obvious reasons to avoid **shooting** here.)

2023-08-14 03:46:28

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@npub17nk…6qq2 @npub1x7v…gxm8
This is not actually NRP saying it but the administrator of @press.coop, as far as I can tell, since every account on the server posted the exact same message at the same time.

2023-08-08 08:16:35

Richard Nixon announced his resignation on this day, August 8, 1974. It was also the day my then wife and I moved from Michigan to San Francisco. The only other time she had made a major move, from Rochester NY to Michigan as a child, was the day JFK was assassinated.

2023-08-04 00:58:12

The answers are all correct.
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/110/828/614/794/394/315/original/d88b31ed62c635de.png

2023-07-18 10:18:58

Our youngest son took this train to Atami, in a "Premium Green-sha" seat, and just came back with lots of nice omiyage. https://www.jre-travel.com/article/00191/
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/110/734/594/173/797/969/original/d37431673671c5a7.jpg

2023-07-14 11:52:54

Niece lives outside Las Vegas and sister lives in Bakersfield. (But it's a **dry** heat. We could be worse off in Tokyo with the humidity factored in.)
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/110/712/285/590/663/542/original/9b746781f29282d7.jpg

2023-07-10 04:55:34

河野太郎大臣、Threadsアカウント開設　「Twitter使いにくくなった気が」 https://www.itmedia.co.jp/news/articles/2307/10/news094.html

2023-07-04 04:38:33

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@npub1rkj…ufed Of course they are important, but they matter only if using social media is itself actually useful or enjoyable. Policy for policy sake is a dead end. I think you and I both remember Google+ and how it started out good but eventually became more about policy than content.

2023-07-04 04:32:11

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@npub1rkj…ufed
I use it to keep up with events (esp. local ones like new shops opening) and with friends (including those I have made using social media). I'm trying to ignore the policy issues and focus on enjoyment/usefulness.

2023-07-04 01:35:41

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@npub10xg…h39u
Congratulations, and yes, it is reallly nice.

2023-07-04 01:30:58

July 4, 1983. I took a young lady (21) out for our first date, at an izakaya in Asagaya. As we talked, we soon shared a feeling that our relationship could be a lasting one. Forty years later, we still feel that way.

2023-06-20 06:55:48

(It also astounds me that Reidy and so many other journalists continue to provide their content to Twitter free of charge.)
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/110/575/221/924/144/497/original/1804c7bcc231c587.jpg

2023-05-28 11:19:38

As long as I've lived in Japan (45 years), most homes have had a bath that automatically fills to the preset level at the touch of a button and maintains the preset bath temperature. They also play a melody and announce when it's 5 minutes to bath time and again when the bath is ready. My questions: Do other countries have these? If so, how common are they? If not, why not?

2023-05-15 08:48:06

**「どうしてチンパンジーには人間にならなかったのか」という子供の質問に対し、先生が「チンパンジーの運動能力がいかにすごいか、いかにチンパンジーに素晴らしい生物か」を熱弁し「チンパンジーとしてやっていけなかった連中が人間になったのだ」と語る先生、めちゃ正しい**
https://junsakura.tumblr.com/post/187910034529/%E3%81%A9%E3%81%86%E3%81%97%E3%81%A6%E3%83%81%E3%83%B3%E3%83%91%E3%83%B3%E3%82%B8%E3%83%BC%E3%81%AB%E3%81%AF%E4%BA%BA%E9%96%93%E3%81%AB%E3%81%AA%E3%82%89%E3%81%AA%E3%81%8B%E3%81%A3%E3%81%9F%E3%81%AE%E3%81%8B%E3%81%A8%E3%81%84%E3%81%86%E5%AD%90%E4%BE%9B%E3%81%AE%E8%B3%AA%E5%95%8F%E3%81%AB%E5%AF%BE%E3%81%97%E5%85%88%E7%94%9F%E3%81%8C%E3%83%81%E3%83%B3%E3%83%91%E3%83%B3%E3%82%B8%E3%83%BC%E3%81%AE%E9%81%8B%E5%8B%95%E8%83%BD

2023-05-12 04:56:07

DeepL sometimes really fails and this is one of those times
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/110/353/919/259/925/212/original/ecffe5200f533321.jpg

2023-05-07 11:56:46

日本らしく
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/110/327/267/424/525/720/original/87fee89a86cd013d.jpg

2023-05-06 11:12:39

*Pain au raisin and cheese omelet for breakfast
*Croissant aux amandes with 10 am coffee
*Chinese lunch with geppei (moon cake)
*Wife's pasta genovese, prawns al ajillo and fish tartare followed by baked sweets for dinner
I walked more than 4 km today; how could I possibly have gained so much weight??

2023-04-28 13:31:43

「現在、市公式ツイッターでは「むさしの防災・安全メール」からの自動連携により、防災・安全情報などを投稿しています。この度、ツイッターのサービス内容変更により、4月29日（土曜日）以降、一部の防災・安全情報などが配信されない可能性があります。」
https://www.city.musashino.lg.jp/shiseijoho/koho/1043943.html

2023-04-16 07:51:22

The combination of plummeting occupancy and higher interest rates will make refinancing tougher for property owners, who may simply hand back the keys [to banks]. Banks could "end up with lots of offices" to try to sell at deep discounts. "This will bring back memories of the global financial crisis." https://theweek.com/finance/1022658/gathering-storm-banks-threatened-by-office-meltdown

2023-04-16 01:01:25

Not normally a fan of Noah Smith but this is perceptive and a great reason to like being on Mastodon.
https://michaelmizrahi.com/the-internet-wants-to-be-fragmented
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/110/205/778/686/358/745/original/0698c9c80718c564.jpg

2022-11-22 04:55:55

Shinjuku, Tokyo in 1978, the year I arrived and started working very near this spot. No high-fructose corn syrup users in sight.
https://social-cdn.vivaldi.net/system/media_attachments/files/109/385/665/861/877/413/original/c864b831aab59ec9.jpg