Arghhh!

When I was a child, one of my favorite manga was Dokaben. Dokaben is a story about baseball teams in high schools. They play baseball to win the National High School Championship. Most of the characters scream “arghhh!” at crucial moments.

I was a child. For a child, high school students were almost adults. I assumed when I was an adult I would scream “arghhh!” at crucial moments like the characters in Dokaben.

My wife is working for theaters as a stage lighting artist. Sometimes she needs to work till night. In that case, I have to eat dinner alone. When I lived by myself, I didn’t wash dishes after meals. I would wash the dishes when I prepared to make the next meal. But I can’t be lazy like that now.

If I wash the dishes immediately after the dinner, that is OK. But if I lie on the sofa, I don’t feel like washing the dishes. It is bothersome. The sofa is too comfortable to leave. But I have to wash the dishes.

Then I scream “arghhh!” and stand up. Then I wash the dishes.

Don’t invent a time machine. If I knew I would grow up to be an adult who screams when I wash dishes, then as a child, I would have cried.

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Picture by Masaya Itagaki

Hiropon

 Hiropon is the name of an illegal drug, but it was legal until a few years after WWⅡended. Before that, Hiropon was very common in Japan. In an old manga, there is an episode in which a child mistakenly takes Hiropon, and she is stoned. It was a comedy manga.

The theatrical person and writer Ramo Nakazima wrote a book about his experiences with illegal drugs. He said Hiropon is the worst drug ever.

             Older people than me know “Hiropon” as the name of an illegal drug. If you didn’t know, the sound of the “Hiropon” is a pretty word. It sounds like a joyful toy for children.

When I was a script writer for not-famous young comedians, we talked about Hiropon. A young comedian liked the sound of the word “Hiropon.” She wanted to use the word in her performance. She showed the performance to the manager. The manager scolded her very loudly. The manager was older than me. He knew Hiropon is not a laughing matter.

A few years ago, I went to a theater to watch a performance by clowns. There was a shocking clown at the theater.

His stage name was Hiropon. Maybe his real name might be Hiroshi or Hirokazu. But he is too young to know Hiropon is the name of an illegal drug.

But it could be a good thing. The name of an illegal drug has been forgotten by almost everyone. A new era is about to come.

 

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Picture by Kagehisa Muzirushi

Symmetry

 

I have three cats.

One morning, when I was brushing my teeth, I saw a strange cat approaching in the mirror. I assumed a stray cat had come into my home. I was surprised and looked back to see the cat.

Actually, it was my family’s cat, Konatsu.

It was strange, but when I saw her in the mirror, I assumed she was a different cat.

Her cat pattern is not symmetrical. Everything in a mirror is mirror-reversed. When I saw her through the mirror, I thought she was a different cat.

If your cat is not symmetrically patterned, please look at the cat through a mirror.

You will hardly recognize the cat.

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Handsome Effect

When I was an elementary school student, one of my favorite TV animation series was Galaxy Express 999. The “999” is pronounced “three nine.” It was very popular at that time. They made a movie version. I asked my mother to take me to the theater. I watched that, and I was surprised.

The main character, Tetsuro, had a different face from the TV series. In the TV series, Tetsuro had a unique face. But in the movie version, Tetsuro had a handsome face.

Now I am an adult and work for a kind of entertainment business, I know why it happened.

Tetsuro is a brave and gentle boy. In the TV series, they could show his charm over a long period of time. But in the movie version, they had to attract the audience in a short time. One easy way to do that might have been by changing the main character’s face to be handsome.

But I was a child then. I couldn’t accept the new Tetsuro. I was confused in my seat in the theater.

By the way, a young woman sat in the next seat to me. She looked like she was alone.

Galaxy Express 999 is a story about a journey from Earth to the Andromeda Galaxy. They take the Express 999 space train. There are two main characters. One is Tetsuro. The other one is a mysterious, beautiful lady, Maetel. Naturally, Tetsuro started to love Maetel. In the middle of the movie version, Tetsuro declared his love to Maetel in the dining car. It was a very awkward but very sincere declaration. But Maetel didn’t answer him with any words. She just kept silent with a sad face. This was the key of the main story.

At that time, I surely heard the woman next to me talking to herself.

At that time, I was a child, and I couldn’t understand what she was saying and why she was talking. Later, when I reached puberty, I understood what it was all about.

The woman next to me was answering Tetsuro’s declaration instead of Maetel.

I am a man. From the point of view of men, Galaxy Express 999 is a story about a journey with a mysterious, beautiful lady. But from the point of view of women, the story might be a journey with a young, brave, and gentle boy. If you can choose the boy’s face, handsome is better.

I don’t know if the woman next to me knew Tetsuro’s old face. But changing Tetsuro’s face to be more handsome might have increased the female audience.

Good-looking characters have the power to increase an audience. First of all, I am not sure, but if Maetel was not a beautiful lady, I might not love Galaxy Express 999 so much.

Of course, we can easily make products without good-looking people. But we need other attractive aspects to increase the audience without good-looking people.

This is a tough problem.

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Minors Should Not Drink Alcohol

 When I was a child, one of my favorite manga was Pro Golfer Saru. The main character is Saru. He is a child, but he is also a talented golfer. He plays golf with rich adult golfers for money. He needs to support his younger brothers. One of the younger brothers always has a bottle of alcohol. He always drinks alcohol and gets drunk. A minor should not drink any alcohol. But I thought that was the most interesting part.

 They started a TV animation series of Pro golfer Saru. Of course, I watched the animation. But I found a difference. My favorite character, Saru’s younger brother, didn’t have a bottle of alcohol. He had a bottle of mineral water. He always drunk the water. At that time, I felt they had lost the most interesting part.

 Now I am an adult. I know why that happened. Even in a fictional story, we should not show a minor drinking alcohol on TV. Alcohol is dangerous. If a child drinks alcohol, it could become a life-threatening situation. Japanese TV regulations ban scenes with minors drinking alcohol. Even if an adult actor plays that role, if the character is a minor, the character can’t drink alcohol.

 I am studying Chinese. I watch many Chinese dramas. I found that the regulations are not strict in China. In some Chinese dramas, there are scenes with a child drinking alcohol. I don’t know why.

 It can be assumed that Chinese regulations don’t cover that issue even now. Or perhaps in East Asia, there is a tradition of drinking medicinal wine. You can buy medicinal wine in Japanese pharmacies. I believe China also has that tradition. So, I guess the concept of drinking alcohol could be different in China.

 Japanese manga are popular all around the world now. Your Home Is My Business! and Hikaru no Go are Japanese manga. China made TV drama series based on these stories. I enjoyed both of them.

 I wish Pro Golfer Saru could be dramatized in China.

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Picture by Yukinko

 

My Recommended Language Studying Method

 I have heard an American joke that “the best way to study Japanese is by being born of Japanese parents in Japan and growing up in Japan.”

It sounds like a meaningless joke. But sometimes, a joke includes some truth. “Being born” and “growing up” are the best ways. However, we can try a second or a third way to study a foreign language.

Overseas study might be a good way. But it might be expensive. If you want to work in a country, you need a working visa. Furthermore, it might be a big decision. You have to say goodbye to your family and friends for a while. I studied overseas when I was young. It changed my life in many different ways.

 Having a boyfriend or a girlfriend who is a native speaker from the country is another good way. Actually, I have never experienced that. I heard that it is a very effective way to study a language. But if you already have a partner, you should give up on this study method. Studying should not disrupt your happy life.

 One-on-one lessons are also a good way to study. But they could be expensive. We have to pay a lot of money to good teachers.

 Taking a class is a good way at a reasonable price. If you loved classes in school when you were a student, you would also love taking a language class. If you hated school, I am not sure you would love a language class.

 The above ways are my recommended language studying methods. I, at least, have tried almost all these ways in my life. I am sure they are effective.

 The following method I actually tried too. I found it was also effective and fun.

 Repeatedly watching foreign TV dramas is my recommended language studying method.

 First, you should find a foreign drama series you like.

 You should watch that drama in the foreign language with no subtitles. You will find it difficult to understand the story. But if you are studying the language, you can guess the story. I think the most important key to studying a foreign language is guessing. If you are not a native speaker, it is impossible to fully understand all the lines in a drama. But you can guess.

 Second, watch the same drama with subtitles in the foreign language. The subtitles will help you understand the story. That process links pronunciation and letters. 

 Third, watch the same drama with subtitles in your mother tongue. I am sure you can now understand the full story. You will find places you misunderstood or had listening problems. The translators needed to make subtitles with fewer words. Sometimes they needed to omit the original lines. You will find some original content this way.

 Finally, watch the same drama dubbed in your mother tongue. This is the most fun option. You can fully enjoy the drama. I think the best translators and best voice actors cooperate in the drama. It might be an artistic masterpiece.

 I recommend this method to you because most of my readers are theatrical people. We practice the same story and the same scenes again and again. I think you will like this method.

 But I also have a warning for you. Watching a drama repeatedly is one of the effective ways to study a foreign language. But I also recommend other standard listening, writing, and speaking methods. This is just an additional way to study.

 Furthermore, this learning method has risks. In general, the conversations in a TV drama might happen in emergent situations. Or the conversation might be acceptable between people in a close relationship. You can’t use these words to people you meet in everyday situations. It could be rude.

 For example, the phrase “shut up” is very common in English dramas. But one of my American teachers said, “I have never said that phrase to my family nor my friends.”

 “Damare” means “shut up” in Japanese. Actually, I have never used that word in my life. But in TV dramas, the characters use the word very often.

 Reality and dramas are different. But still, the watching dramas method might be one way to enjoy studying a foreign language.

 If you are studying a foreign language, please try it.

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Picture by Pinkari

Ambidextrous

I am a right-hander.

But I was once in the hospital for a long time as a patient. And I needed to take care of my mother who had Alzheimer’s for a long time. I had a lot of time to kill. So, I tried to be a left-hander.

Now, I mainly use my left hand.

Every morning, I measure my grip strength for both my right and left hands. At first, my right hand was stronger, but my left hand gradually became stronger.

I kept using mainly my left hand for eight years. One day, my left hand was stronger than my right. I was surprised.

Now, when I measure my grip strength, my left hand wins once a week. When my left hand wins, I use my right hand that day.

My goal is for the strength of my right and left hands to become equal.

On TV, a professor said, “If a person mainly uses the opposite hand to their dominant hand, that might make the person a genius.”

I have never been a genius.

But if I had to eat a meal at a small table with many people, being ambidextrous would be useful.

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Picture by Koharu586