Busy, busy...

it's so easy to get down this time of year, this sometimes feels like me:

Coincidence?

Thanksgiving passes and it snows...

In Psalm 46 of the King James Bible, published in the year that Shakespeare turned 46, the 46th word is "shake" and the 46th word from the end is "spear."

Dorothy and the Scarecrow point and take off on yellow brick road just as "see you on the dark side of the moon" come around the first time...

Lincoln and Kennedy both have 7 letters in their name...

When Dorothy pounds on the Tin Man's chest, the heart beat starts...

When you google "coincidence" most of the entries have to do with supposed coincidences of 9/11...

"In reality," says mathematician John Allen Paulos, "the most astonishingly incredible coincidence imaginable would be the complete absence of all coincidences."

Knock that around for a while...

New Season

Well cross season is officially over.  I had some fun, but never felt like I had great fitness.  My power improved through the season, but I wasn't able to get the quick top-end recovery needed for cross success.  No worries tho.

Ski season is now upon us and Big Sky is now open.  Had a great weekend as it is still kind of warm here.  Enjoyed a nice ride yesterday and got out for some trout slaying on Saturday.  Aside from the cold feet, I really enjoyed it and even landed a reasonable rainbow.  Plus, I got to check out the Yellowstone River just upstream from Livingston with my boy RevP.  It was great to see him this weekend!

School is continuing well and will finish up for the semester next week.  The up side is that I can focus on my experiments, but the down side is that I will need to take my qualifying exam.  Good times....

With that in mind:

Cross racin

So I helped put on a race this past Saturday.  Turned to be a bit muddy and loads of fun!  Here is a link from the local paper:  The Chronic--what--cle of Bozeman.

Our good friend, Marjo, who is now Dr. Marjo after a successful defence, took this rad picture of me:

Otherwise all is well.  

Shout out...

Things are continuing and with Thanksgiving and the end of the fall semester very near that can only mean one thing:  

Sandy (seen below) turns a year older than I am today!

Happy Birthday!

May the next year be filled with knowledge, friends, happiness, joy and of course bike gaming in your "new" age group!

My uncle Joe

Everyone has some great memories from being a kid.  For me some of the best are spending time in the Summer on the Cape at G&P's with my Uncle Joe, Aunt Elaine and their boys, Matt and Jon.  Baseball was played in the street, soccer in the yard, windows were accidentally broken, hermit crabs were chased, and fish were caught on the jetty.  Little did I know at the time how much these memories would stay with me.  

As I grew older, my Uncle and I would often get into conversation in the evenings while watching baseball.  I always enjoyed these conversations immensly even though he and had very different views on things there was always a fundemental common ground that we both appreciated.  Luckily for me I got to experience this one last time this past Spring when I visited him and Aunt Elaine.  

For several years, my Uncle has been in a tremendous battle with cancer.  As is too often the case, the cancer won out on 27 October and he is no longer with us.  I am very greatful to have the memories of him that I do and it is with great pride and honor that I say he is part of my family.  I will never forget him and the impact he had on my life.  May he now find the peace that his battle had to have made difficult over the past years.  And may my aunt and cousins find peace and happiness in his memory.  

Home

I have made it home and am very glad to be here. The trip was pretty easy and the jetlag is almost gone. The weather here has been awesome--cool, dry and sunny. Lola has definitely grown in size and in personality while I was gone.

I fell off the back posting in the second half and will work on some more updating. Until then, I have a weekend to enjoy...

Math joke

I can't seem to find the energy for an actual post, so here a joke that I find really funny. Must mean I'm a dork, but that's not news after all...

Busy bee

Working to start posting, but had some stomach issues over the weekend. Not sure what is going on and hope to feel better soon.

Whirlwind

So we have been all over Japan since Anna arrived about 2 weeks ago. I promise an update with pictures very soon. In fact, after she leaves on Tuesday I will post daily until I am caught up.

In the meantime, tonight is the final night of the Nagaoka Fireworks Festival. It was unreal last night. Over a couple of minutes, each set would build to a spectacular finish. Then a small rest of a minute or two. This went on for 2 hours!

I cannot believe the time to return home is approaching so fast!

Traveling light

Off to pick up Anna shortly.

Last evening I was out and about and I realized that it was much clearer than it had yet been since I was here. I did not have my camera, but I was able to see mountains in the distance that I had not noticed before. So I got a cold beverage from a nearby vending machine and watched the sun go down. Later in the evening, there was two thunderstorms: one directly over us and the other over the mountains. I was able to see them both very well from my window. It definitely seems that the weather has changed and Yama-san announced to me that the the rainy season has officially ended. Now much like MT, we are due for afternoon thunderstorms.

As I mentioned, I am off to pick up Anna in a couple hours. Then a couple days in Tokyo, Sumo in Nagoya and a couple days in Kyoto. We will then either come to Nagaoka or directly to Shinjo before 4-5 days here in Nagaoka before she returns home. From then I have only 2 more weeks before this adventure is over. I am not ready for it to be over yet!

Lost count....Umi no hi today

So today is a holiday to honor the ocean. Schools have just let out for the summer and town seems quiet today. Had a good weekend and looking very much to AJD arriving tomorrow.

Here are some pictures of my apt. Outside:


















Strange locking mechanism:


















The entry way/kitchen:
























Half of the living area:


















The other half of the living area:


















It might be almost a week before I update again. In the meantime, here are some other pictures:

Days 27-29: Warming up

It's hot today. I mean hot. And humid. Have I mentioned that it is humid here before? That is one of the things I do not miss living in the Intermountain West. But it is here and I will gladly endure it for a few more weeks.

Over the next days I will try to post pictures of the mundane portion of this adventure; my apt, neighborhood, etc. Getting started:

I am living in this building you can see at the end of the street. Just in front of it is the old guy who is out stretching every morning, at least the mornings I happen to go out for coffee at 630.


















This is the main street nearby. I still cannot get used to looking the "right" way when crossing. Good thing I am now paranoid about getting hit and I check like 5 times anyway:























Lots of nice gardens nearby:


















Here is where I do most of my marketing:


















The streets are narrow and the power lines just look like a mess:

Day 26: Crazy rides

So I went exploring on the bicycle yesterday afternoon. I regret that I did not bring my bicycle as there is tons of good riding around here. Too late now. Anna arrives in a week and we will tour around and then only two weeks of nose-to-grindstone to get "something" to consider an accomplishment while I am here. Anyway, back to the bike. I rode up the road past the institute which then goes into a slot canyon. They are building a tunnel or have a tunnel planned in the future to get through. However for now it is a nice cruise up and a pretty ripping downhill. Then I ventured to the north a bit before turning up another road. I suspected that this road would do much the same thing and end. However, this road climbed up and up, much like Little Cottonwood Canyon. I kept telling myself I would go just a little further. Between the fact I was on a cruiser bike and wearing flip-flops, it was difficult. And I left the battery at home...

Unfortunately, I also left the camera at home...

So this morning, I hopped on the bike to ride to the institute and this passed me:


















How crazy is that?

Day 24 & 25: Developments

Since my last post, I went out for a few drinks with the guys. It was really fun and they fed me some different foods than I have ever had, some of which I am not in a hurry to try again namely sakura and natto. We also had a fair amount of shochu which was all good until I awoke not feeling so hot on Friday. Luckily, Yama-san was also not feeling so hot.

So now with experiments running, we take pictures daily and analyze them to determine size, area and circularity. Here are some crystals initially:























And here we are after several days:
















As you can see there is a significant difference. Now that we are up and running, I am going to have to process several hundred images like this that are generated every day. Good times at the computer...

Day 23: I found Dennis

As in Hopper, Dennis Hopper. Get it? I am positive that there is a gene for bad humor and I have it. Tho, I do not consider it bad humor!

Anyway, I found him. These guys are everywhere!


















OK back to the cold room. BTW, I am sure that the swings from +27C to -20C are not healthy.

Days 18-22: The Jack Handy edition

So we are back up and running. I have been trying to do so with my head down in order to get as much done as possible before AJD gets here (less than 2 weeks!). I spent a good chunk of the weekend getting good sleep at night which is more challenging than I anticipated. Initially, I was really tired in the evening, but would wake up at sunrise--430AM here. Now I sleep right through until my alarm goes off. Then in evenings I usually get some exercise, eat dinner and Skype with AJD before crashing hard. Not very exciting...

I was dying for a good cup of coffee and so I set out this AM to try to find a coffee shop. I settled with a Starbucks at the station which was next to the McDonald's with a KFC on the other side and down the corridor from the Body Shop. I got lost on my way home...

My desk is by the window on the 2nd floor. Usually in the morning I open the window because it is a billion degrees in the office when I get here. A frog--of which there are millions right now--climbed up and jumped into the window after looking at me through the glass for a while. As I moved toward him, he jumped out the window and flew out of sight to the ground a good 20' below. I went and looked for remains, but did not find any so I must assume he hopped away. I have decided to name him Dennis...

Now I am off to get the proper garbage bags. Sorting garbage is a full-time occupation here.

I don't have any new pictures because I haven't downloaded them in a while, but here is one from yesterday. Or is it today? Regardless, hopefully they will keep it up.

Days 16 &17: Happy 4th

A quick message to wish everyone State-side a happy 4th. It is usually one of my favorite holidays because it usually involves spending the day outside doing something fun, followed by a BBQ or good food, then fireworks in the evening. Not this year...

Don't feel bad for me tho, because Nagaoka is home to the fireworks festival which has three nights of fireworks displays among the biggest in the world. Plus, AJD will be here to see it with me. I am counting the days until she arrives and trying to keep busy with the research.

During the slow times this week, I have been able to find quite a few articles to learn more about my area of research at home. Plus, several have been authored by scientists here, so I am able to discuss the findings with them firsthand--always cool!

Anyway, I am off to the market to celebrate my 4th. Enjoy the weekend and the start of this year's Tour de Farce; we know that Bill will be watching it daily at the Rockford files...

Day 14 & 15: Research...Anniversary

So it is not officially our anniversary in the proper timezone in the US. Happy 2 years to us!

The past few days have been routine:
Get up
Exercise
Breakfast
Ride electric bike to Institute
Research stuff for my these b/c the library is kick-ass and the cryostat still isn't working
Eat lunch
Go for a walk
Continue research
Get tired between 4 and 5pm probably b/c it is 1 to 2am at home
Play on the internet
Go home
Go for a walk/ride to explore for at least 1 hr
Eat dinner
Read and sleep

Pretty exciting! Actually yesterday was pretty cool. The institute was opened to 40 students--about 5th or 6th graders. They all took turns at different stations where there were short presentations and demonstrations. All of which were very interesting. I was not able to understand what was said, but since science is universal I was able to follow what was happening.

Kamiisi-san explaining climate change:














Nakia-san taking a group into the cold lab to freeze soap bubbles:














Hirasima-san and Iwamoto-san walking with me in a nearby park after lunch:














And a picture of the locally used equipment for my father-outlaw:

Day 13: Not so lucky :( . . .edit

I arrived at the institute this morning to find that the fan has gone out on the cryostat machine used to create the temperature gradient needed for the experiments. Unfortunately, we will not get any support on it until tomorrow at the soonest. Looks like we are stuck in the mud....

So I just made it home. I left early since there was nothing for me to do. They were setting up for a group of 40 students to visit tomorrow. I tried to help, but it was taking longer to commute things that it was for them to set up themselves.

The institute is on the top of a hill just outside of town--maybe 3km. As I got to the bottom of the hill I turned toward the mtns instead of town. I had a beautiful ride to the end of the road and discovered some hiking trails. Then as I was coming back into town, I cruised by the ski area and discovered a back way to return to town. It was pretty cool. So I was cruising around for over an hour. To go from my Seven in MT with all my gear, to a cruiser with 85% humidity wearing Carhartt's with flipflops was definitely a challenge. Overall, the day was a wash...

Days 11 & 12

It is the rainy season here in Japan, so "I have a my patch and bell to remind me of where I am at." Sorry for ending in a preposition; it is the wrong story anyway. Rainy season:


Thus, today I will spend some time reading as it is expect to rain 2-5 cm today.

I am in Nagaoka to work with scientists at the Institute for Snow and Ice Research Center which is run by the Japanese National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention. Thus, a primary goal of these scientists is to investigate and mitigate natural disaster, namely avalanche. Here is the institute:















In 2004, the mid-Niigata Prefecture (of which Nagaoka is part) was hit with a massive earthquake. There were many landslides. You may remember the story of the boy who was found after being buried by one for 5 days. Anyway, Kamiisi and Hirasima (lower right of nect picture) took me out to investigate the area and to see the new avalanche protection devices in the area. Here is an area where a landslide occured; notice the old road in the second picture:














The repair work has happened very quickly and even the creek was effected. Also, notice the stress that the snow puts on the trees.



















The next stop was to investigate a site near a local Shrine which one of the locals described as only a source of revenue.



















Here is another site where it looks like half the mountain came down.














And perhaps the most devastating was an area where a landslide dammed a river causing major flooding. The pressure has been relieved with a new dam, but some of the houses still remain. Notice the roof-line of the second...














While this disaster was extremely devastating, significant further damage had to be mitigated as the area was now even more avalanche prone. Thus, several tunnels were built, snow fences constructed or replaced and in some cases, such as the area of the new dam, re-building was not permitted.



















It was very interesting to see both from a snow safety standpoint and a tourist. I learned that the Japanese move very quickly. The amount of work that has been done in just 4 years would take decades in the US. Plus, it seems that the goal is to bend the will of the land to do certain things. Though if that were completely true, the mountains would be bulldozed.

Seems like there is a break in the rain...just kidding.

Day 10: Group picture

Yikes, already 10 days into a 66 day trip! That means it is 15.2% over; not surprising since each day is just over 1.5%. Be home before I know it which means I must be sure to take advantage of every opportunity. Last night I returned to the apt about 630PM. I intended to relax and have a beer before going for a walk into town to possibly buy some hangers and a clothes-line. However, it was suddenly 8PM and I was just too tired and lazy to go anywhere, so I read my book instead. I am looking forward to the weekend to hike some nearby hills and explore on my electric bicycle. Pictures to follow. Off now to give a presentation to introduce myself, what I do and why I am here. I must remember to speak slowly.

Here is a picture of everyone in the entire program from last week's orientation: