If you spend as much time glued to your computer or a smart phone as I do, you’ll have caught the meme that’s currently making the rounds of social networks, featuring six photos of a person or place as viewed from [typically] six different perspectives. I’m not a big fan of memes in general, but I saw the Tokyo version this afternoon.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I hate remakes. Film remakes, to be precise. Let me say from the start that I’m not entirely against the idea of remaking a film, because some of them turn out okay. The Departed was better than Infernal Affairs, and some remakes like Ocean’s Eleven (2001) and True Grit (2010) are just different takes on the same story. There is one upcoming remake, however, that I cannot forgive — 47 Ronin, staring Keanu Reeves.
This may look like just another company logo in need of some spiffing up, but I thought it was pretty appropriate. The company is Tokyo Electric Power Company [TEPCO], the firm managing the Fukushima nuclear power facilities. TEPCO fell out of favor with the Japanese people so fast it made heads spin. They’re being forced to compensate families that were displaced by the disaster last year and could face losses of over $20 billion for the year. Now, it appears that the Japanese government will be taking a 2/3 stake in TEPCO — the world’s fourth-largest power utility — for $15 billion, in what will be the largest non-banking bailout ever. The slogan to the right reads [slightly cut off] “Toward a Society with a Dream.” TEPCO’s dream has faded, just like the sign.
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I’ve written a lot about Japanese universities, both as an observer and as an enrolled student. During my time at Waseda, my Japanese language skills weren’t quite advanced enough to understand everything that was going on around me, but I was aware of shifts in the Japanese university environment that have drawn attention over recent years. I read two articles this week that raised some issues.
Ladies and gentlemen, a bad few days is always trumped by waking up from a nap at 11pm and finding that it’s snowing heavily outside.
I know I just posted a photo and promised real content soon, but…come on.
Blurry, fuzzy, low-resolution. Still awesome.
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I’m sorry to post two photos in a row, and that there’s been such a break in content recently. I’ll be back to posting soon enough. It’s been pretty busy around here, what with school starting up again, the job hunting season ramping up and people visiting over winter break! Back to reality. This shot’s artsy title is “Two Cats Sleeping on a Maserati GranTurismo MC” and it’s of two cats sleeping on a Maserati GranTurism MC. This car — one of my favorites out there — has been next door for months and I only now just noticed it. The cats like it too.
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So, back in November, a old building next to my apartment building became a new parking lot. This month, an old parking lot next to my building is becoming a new apartment building. What a way to run a railroad, huh? Anyway, they broke ground this morning, shattering what was actually a really nice sleep. Here’s the picture from the top of my stairs after about an hour of work. I always go on about how fast construction happens in Tokyo — let’s put it to the test in real time. I’ll be posting shots of the progress. Maybe I can show them to my new neighbors…who I’m sure I’ll never meet.
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