Hiroshima Part #1

I am continuing today with my retro diary of an April trip to Japan. The final stop on my three tiered jaunt through the land of the rising sun found me in Hiroshima. I doubt few adult people in the world can hear the name of this beautiful and charming Japanese city and not immediately think of August 6, 1945. Its a day when Hiroshima, chosen only because of cloud cover over another Japanese city, became the epicenter, literally and figuratively, of the world's glimpse at the incredible destructive power of the atom. It stands today, rebuilt, as a testament to the resiliency, fortitude and positive attitude of the Japanese people. While strolling through the tree lined streets of Hiroshima on a pleasant, sunny spring day, I was hard pressed to find residue of the the city's tragic past in the faces of the smiling Japanese people I passed, many of them offering a smile and a "Konichiwa". As an American, I expected to be treated much differently by the Hiroshima citizens, or at least the guilt I felt gnawing at my stomach, against common sense, portended a much harsher treatment. Instead, I was awed by the ability of the Japanese to forgive, and stunned with how they view the dropping of the bomb. After talking to several Hiroshima tour guides, it seems that they accept what happened as a consequence of their actions in the war, and deem it an acceptable price to pay for taking part in World War II. They harbor no ill will towards America, and in fact, have turned the greatest simultaneous mass human killing in history into a world wide cry for peace. When visiting the Peace Museum, one can't help but wonder if the entire world had the optimistic outlook and forgiving hearts of these Japanese people if war would be a thing of the past.
As I mentioned earlier, Hiroshima has been rebuilt, and appearances lead me to believe its a thriving, mid sized Japanese city, much like a Columbus, Ohio or Richmond, Virginia. There is, however, one stark reminder of this city's dalliance with the atomic devil. Its called the A-Bomb Dome, and its one of the largest structures in the city, hard to miss, but its size isn't what gripped me as I stared upwards at the twisted mass of metal near the top of the dome. Largely left untouched since that fateful day over 65 years ago, its a monument to the city, those killed by the bomb, and those that survive today. It is located only a few thousand meters from where the bomb exploded, and was one of the few buildings in the entire city left standing after the explosion. The Japanese originally wanted to tear it down, but as they came to terms with the disaster, they came to embrace this building, and its sobering glimpse at a horrific moment in history.

Elvis

Asia, and Japan in particular, is a strange place for Westerners. Asians have been exposed to Western culture and have inculcated Westernity(is that a word?) into their own cultures, but never in a predictable or rational way. Exhibit A of this strange mixture was the group of dancing Elvis's that I had a chance to see when I was in Tokyo. Wandering through a large park on a Sunday afternoon, I heard English music coming from one of the entrances to the park. As I got closer, I could tell that it was American 50's music, and even closer inspection showed a group of people dancing. Oh, but these were not just ordinary Japanese people dancing...no, this was a group of men, all dressed in black, with the pompadour hairdos and dance moves to boot. Apparently, they were having a "dance off" with another group of Elvis impersonators. I found that this goes on every Sunday, and has become something of a tourist attraction in this part of Tokyo. They were serious too...one man had his hand in a cast but was still jumping around and doing impressive dance moves, with little regard to the injured hand. Impressive....or something. I just wonder what these guys do during the week? Are these Japanese businessmen? Do they tell their families about this "hobby"? Do they dress this like this all the time? Do they impersonate other singers? Meatloaf? Elton John? Prince? Lady Gaga?

Cherry Blossoms

This will be the first of several retro blog entries pertaining to my trip to Japan in April. My trip was planned to coincide with the famous blossoming of the cherry trees that takes place yearly during the first week of April. The window to view these blossoms is very small, as the small pink flowers are at peak intensity for about a week, before falling off the tree. The Japanese treat this time of year as a celebration, gathering under the cherry trees with coolers full of Sake and sushi and enjoying the gorgeous views. It was almost sensory overload, as standing in the middle of a path lined with cherry trees on both sides, all one could see was a sea of pinkish flowers. The smell was also sublime, as the the vast number of blossoms inbues the air with a sweet and fresh fragance that takes over Tokyo.

The Fortune Cookie

I recently ordered Chinese food from an Asian restaurant down the street from my condo. This was to be my first taste of Chinese food since leaving China. I made sure to order two dishes that I ate all the time in China - egg fried rice and beef lo mein. After anxiously tearing open the containers and digging my fork(no chopsticks....I was too hungry) into the food, the first tastes revealed a lot. Not good:( I definitely enjoyed the Chinese version of each of these dishes much more than the American counterparts. I was dismayed at the thought that American Chinese food was ruined for me, that I would never again be able to enjoy the culinary treats offered at PF Chang's or some small dive Chinese restaurant. So the next night, I ordered from a different place, just to see if it was indeed American Chinese food itself, or perhaps(hopefully) just a bad restaurant. The second time around it was much better. I slept much easier that night knowing that two years in China hadn't irrevocably altered my Chinese taste buds. It also led to an interesting discovery. Fortune cookies aren't eaten in China, as most of you know, but its only at American Chinese places that they are given away. Notice where this fortune cookie is made...ironic, don't you think?

Perspective

This is the artwork that hangs on the wall directly outside my bedroom in Chicago. Its the first thing I see in the morning when I wake up, and its the last thing I glance at before going to bed. What is it? Its a reminder, a series of echoes from those who came before me, those who inspired me and created in me a sense of duty and work ethic. It suggests to me how fortunate I am to be doing a job I love, a job that is safe, not physically demanding and fulfilling. I am a teacher....my father and grandfather were both coal miners.

The helmet belonged to my grandfather, a man who endured the rigors of a West Virginia coal mine for over 35 years. One of my lasting memories of Grandpap Held was his incessant coughing, a souvenir of this life spent underground, breathing in coaldust. The lunchpail top is my father's. My father also worked in and at the coal mines for over 30 years. My father's job was shift work, which meant for the better part of my life, he changed his sleep schedule every week. Dayshift meant he worked from 8 to 5, afternoon shift from 3 to 12 and midnight shift from midnight to 9 am. I don't know how he did that for so long, but that's why he's my hero. And now, when I wake up to go to work, no matter how tired or grouchy or lazy I might feel, I can look at that wall and be reminded how lucky I am to work in the teaching profession. Thanks Dad, thanks Grandpa, I only I hope I can live up to your examples that hang proudly next to my bedroom, and that resonate loudly in my heart.

Only in America #35

The Snuggie. Just the saying the name is enough to elicit giggles. Only in America could someone become a millionaire by throwing sleeves on a blanket, creating ridiculous commercials and selling something that has become more punchline than product. Then there is this item I saw while strolling the aisles of my local grocery store:

Is there really a huge market for this product? First of all, if its cold enough to wear a Snuggie, why would you be at the beach? And if you did want to wear your Snuggie to the beach, how is this one any different than the original one? I know, I know...I am just angry because I didn't think of it first...but come on...

Then there was this in a Starbucks restroom...

English is Hard

If you read my last entry I hope you were as disappointed as I was in all the misspellings on my speeding ticket. Its kind of scary when you think about how important details are in maintaining, say, the safety of a bridge or flying a plane...lets just hope the person responsible for editing the speeding tickets is not the same person building our bridges or flying our planes.

In the hopes of helping myself deal with this, I looked through a list that my English teacher colleague gave me in China. It puts into perspective how perplexing our language truly is...and it helps clarify how difficult learning English as a second language must be.

You think English easy??

1) The bandage was wound around the wound.

2) The farm was used to produce produce.

3) The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.

4) We must Polish the Polish furniture.

5) He could lead if would get the lead out.

6) The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert.

7) Since there is no time like the present, he thought it was time to present the present.

8) A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum.

9) When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.

10) I did not object to the object.

11) The insurance was invalid for the invalid.

12) There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row.

13) They were to close to the door to close it.

14) The buck does funny things when the does are present.

15) A seamstress and a sewer fell down into a sewer line.

16) To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.

17) The wind was too strong to wind the sail.

18) Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear.

19) I had to subject the subject to a series of tests.

20) How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?

Let's face it - English is a crazy language. There is no egg in eggplant, nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in pineapple.

English muffins weren't invented in England or French fries in France. Sweetmeats are candies while sweetbreads, which aren't sweet, are meat. We take English for granted. But if we explore its paradoxes, we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square and a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.

And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing, grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham? If the plural of tooth is teeth, why isn't the plural booth, beeth? One goose, 2 geese. So one moose, 2 meese? One index, 2 indices?

Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend? If you have a bunch of odds and ends and get rids of all but one of them, what do you call it?

If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught? If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat? In what language do people recite at a play and play at a recital? Ship by truck and send cargo by ship? Have noses that run and feet that smell?

How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites?