Can't complain

Sometimes it takes an outside perspective to really get to know your true self. When someone turned around to me and said, “You complain a lot don’t you.” It made me realize, yes I really do. I brashly brushed it off by playing up the Englishman stereotype but it really struck a nerve. I do complain to much, far too much and so I think it’s time to reflect on the good instead.

Once again I’m very busy with work, I’ve spent the weekend working and it’s only going to get worse till mid February but there are a few positives to come out of it as well. List time.

1.     I’m finally getting back into the wet labs. I’ve been sent a plasmid construct from Liverpool to do some recombinant protein work. A what to do who with a whatnow? A plasmid is a small circular piece of DNA that contains a site where the DNA sequence can be readily manipulated. These plasmids are readily taken up by bacteria, which will then express whatever genes are encoded by the DNA sequence on the plasmid.

In this case we have combined a protein gene with a sequence from a virus that leads to the gene being over expressed so we get bucketloads of the stuff. The protein itself has been tweaked slightly so that specific sites can be labeled, in this case with heavy metals. My hope is that this will improve their scattering power when I run experiments with Josie.

2.     My labeling studies are also going well. I’ve found the equipment I need, gathered the components and just need to do the final few reactions. Hopefully this will produce some really exciting results in the upcoming experiments.

3.     The two guys who came out from Liverpool when I started here are back. It’s great to see them again and it’s also great to not have to wrestle with Josie by myself. Not only can I focus on other things but it's dropped my stress levels down a notch. In just one day we’ve managed to pin down a potential fault in Josie’s circuitry, one of them is an electronic engineer so what was a nightmare map of circuits to me was a doddle for him. Also they brought mushy peas and granola. I’m eternally grateful.

4.     I’ve come to appreciate that I have met some really sound people out here. Even if I can’t see them all the time I do get is fantastic so I should just enjoy it and not worry about afterwards.

5.     All that energy wasted moaning has been put to good use and I have found meaningful outlets, work arounds to blocks to my enjoyment and so on.

All in all it’s been a decent week and I’m going to try and maintain my positive attitude in the coming month. A short but indulgent post I’m sorry but I think it’s good to get these things in writing. In light of this new exploration into the self I produced a Johari and Nohari window that you can fill in if you have the time. I love learning new things and I’m a bit of a narcissist so please indulge me.

http://kevan.org/johari?view=marcusct
http://kevan.org/nohari?view=MarcusCT

Ja mata kondo ne.

Ja mata kondo ne.

Hachikita ni ita, skitte mimasu

This weekend I embarked into the northern winter wonderland of Hyogo prefecture with my colleagues from work for a short two-day ski trip. Our destination was Hachikita, one of the biggest and most popular resorts in the region. I was a little nervous since it was my first time doing any sort of winter sport, but still very eager as it was something I’d wanted to try since I was small.

A quick peruse of the resorts website the night before revealed that there were rental places with my shoe size so all systems were go. It was an early start as the drive would take us about 3 hours but I still wasn’t over jetlag at this point so rising early didn’t prove too difficult. As we got closer the temperature dropped considerably and soon we were surrounded by a wide snowscape. The northern region of Hyogo is particularly pretty at this time as it is much more rural with many snowcapped mountains and fields of white.

 

After a brief stop to put chains on the car we were up the mountain and ready to get kitted out. Snow sports are absolutely huge in Japan and now I finally understand why. It’s actually not incredibly expensive to do. Hire of all the gear, ski’s, boots and clothing, as well as a lift pass came in at under 8000 yen. This combined with the shear number of ski resorts, all those mountains are good for something ey, makes the whole thing much more accessible than in the UK.

Testament to this was the large volume of people on the slopes. Not just numbers but also a range of ages, from toddlers to pensioners. I went with Ski’s on the advice of friends, it was apparently easier to pick up, and after getting kitted out I was left to my own devices. I didn’t have a clue what I was doing but I did enroll in a ski school to get the basics. Sadly I missed the morning class so I just dosed around on the nursery slope till the afternoon.

 

The afternoon was much more fun however. I Joined a mother and her small child in the absolute beginners class (初めてです。) to learn the fundamentals. I quickly grasped how to stop and was told to progress to a different class as I was a little more advanced than my class mates.

The second class had me joining three kids between about 10 and 14 (I think) and was a good giggle. The instructor was really chatty and the kids kept spouting phrases at me in English followed by much laughing. It was a bit annoying but I know I do the same since I really want to practice my Japanese. After learning how to stop and turn safely I went to my first proper slope and after a few goes I could slide all the way down without falling.

 

By 4:30pm it was time to leave and after meeting up with everyone we bundled back into the car to set off for our accommodation for the night. I was pretty happy with how the day had gone, I didn’t fall over too much an even had an excellent opportunity to practice my language skills, all the classes were taught in Japanese though I guess they were fairly visual.

That night we stayed in a Ryokan, traditional Japanese guesthouse, in the wonderful Onsen (hot springs) town of Yumura. Yumura has a long history, having been established as an Onsen town over 1100 years ago. The temperature of the springs at the source is an impressive 98⁰c and many tourists buy eggs from nearby shops to cook in the springs. Alongside the river the are also many places to bathe your tired feet. The whole town has a great aesthetic feel of old time Japan and it really was very scenic.

Inside the ryokan we donned our Yukata and bathed our weary muscles in the inns hot tubs, also fed from the hot springs. Onsens are definitely one of the best things about doing any kind of sport in Japan.  I went back to the room to get changed again and on my way heard one of the older members of staff mumble something I doubt was too kind about rowdy foreigners when she thought she was alone. Classic 本音　(ones true feelings) and 建前　(ones public feelings) in action.

After that it was back up to the second floor to get our lavishly prepared traditional Japanese meal. Sadly the area is particularly famous for crab and beef, two things I couldn’t eat but was assured were delicious, however as the meal consisted of about 12 different dishes I didn’t go hungry. Well fed we went back to our room, I think our boss had hoped for a night of drinking and chatting but everyone was wiped and asleep by about ten.

The following day we were up early and after a quick soak in the tub it was time for breakfast. As with dinner it consisted of many small dishes. Most of it was fine and in fact I quite like miso in the morning but I still can’t stomach rice. Fish no problem, tofu, ok, but rice just doesn't sit right. My boss asked me what a normal English breakfast was like so I decided to try and explain egg and soldiers to his amusement.

We headed back to the slopes and they were as packed as the day before. I was now faced with a dilemma. Do I ski, which I’d picked up fairly quickly and thus could see a lot of the mountain, or do I give snowboarding a bash. My ego got the better of me. I’d really wanted to try snowboarding and I figured since I’d skateboarded for like 4 years it couldn’t be too difficult right?

Wrong. I spent the morning on my bum. I could go forward but I just couldn’t figure out how to turn the board to stop and so rather than crash into anyone I just threw myself at the floor. After a frustrating two hours I joined the guys for lunch, taking a break from the assault on wrists and rear.

Now I had a choice. I could try and get some lessons again but then I’d lose another two hours and not get to see much. I opted to figure out on my own and, rather stupidly now I look back at it, took the ski lift to the top. I strapped on my board and just went for it, worst come the worst I could just go down on my bum.

I’m not sure how but I realized that I actually found it easier to ride switch, opposite foot forward. Suddenly I had more control and could brake and turn a bit. Now that I could control my speed a bit I made my way to the bottom. I still fell over but not quite as much. Feeling a bit more confident I rode up to the top again, the height and incline not quite as daunting as before. It was a lot of fun now I could pick were I was going and how fast to go. I’m glad I kept at it in the end, though my body isn’t, boarding was a lot more fun than skiing once I could bomb it down the slope safely. I definitely want to go again though maybe once my bum has recovered a bit.

 

 Mata kondo ne.

Tanoshikatta Takarazuka

Here’s to returns. Starting the New Year has heralded my return to Japan, return to work, but also a return to great new friends I’ve made. Much though I’ve claimed not to, I have missed this place a bit. So I’m back with a couple of important resolutions. The first is to make better use of my time in general and the second is to apply myself at work a bit more.

As far as making good use of time I’m talking particularly about my free time. I complain too much about not seeing enough of Japan due to working so much. But is that really what’s been holding me back? Unlikely I just need to make better use of the time I’m given. So in response to that I headed out to a little place called Takarazuka with a friend.

I had been here before on a rather geeky pilgrimage to the Tezuka Osamu museum. I love the area it’s just got a great vibe, much more vibrant than the Concrete Jungle’s that constitute mort of Japan’s more populated areas. This time I was off to see one of Japan’s famous, though slightly less traditional, performing arts. It is called Takarazuka, named for the City of it’s origin, and it is wonderfully bizarre.

 

Established in 1914 by the director of the Hankyu railway service, Kobayashi Ichizo, it was initially intended to draw more business to Takarazuka, the terminus of the Hankyu system. His idea was to put on shows loosely based on western Broadway musicals that were becoming popular at the time. In a reaction to more traditional Kabuki Theater, which was deemed a bit old fashioned, women would play the entire cast. Women playing men are called otokoyaku and those playing women are known as musumeyaku.

Whilst this may sound empowering for women the original Takarazuka was originally a fairly sexist affair, with Kobayashi setting up the Takarazuka stage school to teach “young women to become good wives.”  This has however been turned on it’s head as many of the actresses have gone on to stay in show business for a long time taking on managerial roles that are traditionally male dominated.

It is in fact this reversal of roles, obviously all the male characters are played by females, that has lead to the wide spread population of Takarazuka amongst Japanese women. Some 90% of the audience consists of women, something I learnt very quickly when I found on the ground floor there were 5 women’s toilets and only one for men. Part of the reason maybe that it offers them a release from the traditionally patriarchal Japanese society, showing that gender roles can be cast aside. Another theory is that the otokoyaku provide an image of the ‘Ideal Japanese man’. It is not secret that the interaction between the sexes is somewhat strained in Japan and a big part of this is the women’s disinterest in the archetypal Japanese male.

Right so I’ll end the history and sociology lesson for there and get back to the actual revue. The performances are held in the Takarazuka Grand hall, a short walk away from the Hankyu station along the aptly named flower road. Admittedly it being winter it wasn’t so pretty but I have been there before in summer and it’s a very attractive area. The halls exterior isn’t anything special though it does fit in nicely with the architecture of the surrounding area. The inside however is lavish. Giant, lush read carpets, a huge entrance hall with various shops and cafes, chandeliers and even someone playing a grand piano. It definitely puts the new floral to shame.

I’ll just take a moment to mention the fans. So like absolutely anything in Japan there are some serious hardcore Takarazuka fans. Within Takarazuka there are multiple performing troupes and within these troupes there are particular stars. Fans clubs tend to form around particular troupes and their stars with the clubs going to multiple shows, dressing in costumes almost as lavish as those worn by the performers and even attending after show tea parties.

Takarazuka shows are drawn from a wide variety of influences. Some are based on famous western plays, musicals, operas and even novels. There are then those based on ore traditional Japanese dramas and legends. In addition to this there are some based on other areas of Japanese media, particularly Shojo manga (comics for girls to over simplify) and a play has even been produced based on a video game.

The show we went to see was based on the novel Resurrection, the last long novel by Tolstoy. I’m not going to lie it was a bit of a heavy subject matter to try and see in another language and I could follow maybe 30-40% of what I was hearing. Still there were many other things for e to take away. Firstly the stage was huge and the sets were incredible, large moving pieces coming from above the stage and the sides as well as a large revolving central area, I’ve never been to any big theater productions and the set logistics themselves were pretty breathtaking.

 

Then of course there were the costumes. The military outfits, noble suits and intricate ball gowns were also very impressive. Sadly I wasn’t close enough to see much more of the details, like the supposedly extensive make up used by the otokoyaku to make them look more manly, quite the contradiction I know.

The shows are also quite interesting linguistically. Japan has particular conventions regarding the way in which men and women speak and the two styles are quite different. This is a constant pitfall to people learning the language as often guys end up speaking like women due to the majority of Japanese language teachers being women. The otokoyaku speak in a very stereotypically manly way whilst the musumeyaku speak in an overtly feminine manner.

 

The play lasted for an1 hour 30 minutes and then after a short interval there was a one our review. This was a much more typical song and dance affair, entitled cannon, with wild, glittery and gaudy costumes, can-can lines and bright lights. The crowd started to really get into this as the troupe showed off their singing and dancing prowess. I wasn’t overly impressed with choreography but I just have high standards, thanks mum, the whole show was hugely entertaining none the less and the costumes in the finale where something else.

It was a rather peculiar experience but still something I enjoyed massively. I’m glad I didn’t go alone though, for one I’d of stuck out even more than usual as a lone foreign male, but also I definitely needed to talk about it and make sense of the spectacle I’d just witnessed. I think I could go again though perhaps I’d do well to see what the show was actually about beforehand.

Mata kondo.