From now, I’d like to write about anything for 10 minutes. I don’t know but this is a kind of writing practice. Just writing my thoughts one after another for 10 minutes. Just 10 minutes. Japanese sometimes refer 3 minutes as a time of cooking cup noodles. So, I can make nearly 3 cup noodles in 10 minutes. Cup Noodles reminds me of different tastes of Cup Noodles. There are a lot of different versions of Cup Noodles. Tom-Yum-Kun Cup Noodles, or like that. The very basic, traditional taste of it is definetly “Soy-Sause” taste. It is as foundamental as tuna for sushi. However, the taste what I love is not Soy-Sause, It’s “Miso” taste.
Please enjoy the taste when you visit Japan
“Miso” taste seems no that familiar like “Soy-Sause” or “Sea-Food” here in Japan. I don’t know why though, people recalls Cup Noodles’ taste as “Soy-Sause”, “Sea-Food”, “Curry” or “Tomato”. In my opinion, Cup Noodles looks American thing (which was actually invented in Japan), Miso seems to Japanese to us, and there are tons of different such kind of Instant Cup Noodles on the shelf in Japanese convenience stores. However, let me speak with a loud voice, I do love the taste of Miso Cup Noodles. It’s so good that I’m always eating it with rice balls (Onigiri: Japanese Original Fastfood in my dictionary). You just cannot believe how do they get along with so well. That’s the real beauty of Cup Noodles, and I come to feel like, Oh, however I try to pretend me as a global person, I’m Japanese after all. I really do love the Miso flavor. Miso, what a lovely taste you are.
Oh, I just have 3 minutes left to finish my article. By the way, I have once watched a documentary TV program of the Cup Noodle. After they invented and tried to sell it, they couldn’t sell it well because no one tries to eat ramen with such way. So, the sales people went to Fire Department or Hospitals where people can’t sleep becuae of their emergent work, then they really loved it’s quickness or fast-food, convenience, and gradually Cup Noodle has accepted in Japan and now it is loved around the world.
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Hello everyone. Today, I’d like to introduce a song which is very fresh and trendy in today’s Japanese music scene. The artist name is “Vaundy”, who is a university student but thought to be a great and very talented musician. I haven’t heard his songs that much, but a month ago, one of my students used a song called “怪獣の花唄(Kaijyu No Hanauta)” in a school festival and I was very impressed with the song’s beautiful and emotional melody line. So, today, I’d like to make an original translation for this great song, and try to analyze the song’s message.
My English Translation Lyrics of “Kaijyu No Hanauta” by Vaundy
思い出すのは君の歌 (omoidasunowa kiminouta) What I recall is your song 会話よりも鮮明だ(kaiwa yorimo senmeida) It’s more vivid than conversations どこに行ってしまったの(dokoni itte shimattano) Where have you gone? いつも探すんだよ(itsumo sagasundayo) I’m always trying to find
思い出すのは君の歌(omoidasunowa kiminouta) What I remember is your song 歌い笑う顔が鮮明だ(utaiwaraukaoga senmeida) A face of singing and smiling is so vivid 君に似合うんだよ(kimini niaundayo) It just suits you ずっと見ていたいよ(zutto miteitaiyo) I want to see it forever
でも最後に見たいのは (demo saigo ni mitainowa) But what I want to see for the last きっともう君の夢の中 (kitto mou kimino yumenonaka) Is perhaps in your dream もう一度(mouichido) Once again また聞かせてくれよ (mata kikasete kureyo) Please let me listen to again 聞きたいんだ (kikitainnda) I wanna listen
もっと (motto) More 騒げ怪獣の歌 (sawage kaijyu no uta) A Song for Monsters, Be louder まだ消えない(mada kienai) It hasn’t disappear yet 夢の歌唱えて(yumeno uta tonaete) Sing the dreamy song 君がいつも (kimiga itsumo) You are always 歌う怪獣の歌 (utau kaijyu no uta) Singing the Song for Monsters まだ消えない (mada kienai) It hasn’t vanished 口ずさんでしまうよ (kuchizusande shimauyo) I still find myself humming
思い出すのは (omoidasunowa) What I do remember is 君がいた (kimiga ita) That you were there ギター持ってる (gitaa motteru) Holding the guitar 君がいた (kimiga ita) You were there 忘れられないんだよ(wasurerarenaindayo) I can’t forget it だから僕が歌うよ (dakara boku ga utauyo) So I want to sing
でも最後に見たいのは (demo saigoni mitai nowa) But what I want to see for the last きっともう君の夢の中 (kitto mou kimino yumeno naka) Maybe in your dream もう一度 (mouichido) Just once again また聞かせてくれよ (mata kikasete kureyo) Let me just listen one more time 聞きたいんだ (kikitainda) I wanna listen
もっと (motto) I need more 騒げ怪獣の歌 (sawage kaijyu no uta) A Song for Monsters, Be louder まだ消えない(mada kienai) It hasn’t disappear yet 夢の歌唱えて(yumeno uta tonaete) Sing the dreamy song 君がいつも (kimiga itsumo) You are always 歌う怪獣の歌 (utau kaijyu no uta) Singing the Song for Monsters まだ消えない (mada kienai) It hasn’t vanished 口ずさんでしまうよ (kuchizusande shimauyo) I still find myself humming
落ちてく過去は鮮明で (ochiteku kakowa senmeide) A falling past is vivid 見せたい未来は繊細で (misetai miraiwa sensaide) And a future I want to show is sensitive すぎてく日々には鈍感な君へ (sugiteku hibiniha donkanna kimie) And for you feeling dull for days passing away
ねぇ、もっと (ne motto) Hey, More
騒げ怪獣の歌 (sawage kaijyu no uta) A Song for Monsters, Be loud まだ消えない(mada kienai) It hasn’t disappear yet 夢の歌唱えて(yumeno uta tonaete) Sing the dreamy song 君がいつも (kimiga itsumo) You are always 歌う怪獣の歌 (utau kaijyu no uta) Singing the Song for Monsters まだ消えない (mada kienai) It hasn’t vanished 口ずさんでしまうよ (kuchizusande shimauyo) I still find myself humming
ねぇ、僕ら (ne bokura) Again, we are 眠れない夜に手を伸ばして (nemurenai yoruni tewo nobashite) Reaching out for a sleepless night 眠らない夜をまた伸ばして (nemuranai yoruwo mata nobashite) Extending a night that never sleeps 眠くないまだね (nemukunai madane) I’m not sleepy yet そんな日々でいたいのにな (sonna hibide itainonina) I just want to spend such days 懲りずに (korizuni) I never learns but 眠れない夜に手を伸ばして (nemurenai yoruni tewo nobashite) Reaching out for a sleepless night 眠らない夜をまた伸ばして(nemuranai yoruwo mata nobashite) Extending a night that never sleeps 眠くないまだね (nemukunai wo madane) I’m not sleepy yet そんな夜に歌う(sonna yoru ni utau) I’m singing in such night 怪獣の歌 (kaijyu no uta) Song for Monsters
Again, it’s a very beautiful and mysterious song. As a Japanese, hearing this song, I couldn’t help thinking of my youth, teenage years. As always, a great Jpop song’s lyrics has sometimes very abstract lyric and thanks to that, these can remind us many kind of things and interpretations.
So, What is the “Song for Monsters”? Is the monster, me or you or him or her? However, we need to listen such great songs not by brains but hearts and body I think. Then, I feel like the song is a message song that says we should’t forget what we felt when we were young even after you became adult. Maybe monster is a metaphor of our youth, and “A song for monsters” can be also translated into “a song of monsters”. So, when I heard the line of “A song of monsters, be louder” it felt so emotional and I was almost crying. We shouldn’t forget a precious days of monsters.
Anyway, thank you very much for reading. Here is a gig live video clip of Vaundy and can see the live ver. of the song. His voice is so great that it can be felt even better than the original version.
A song for monsters starts from around 4:37
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These days, I really feel something wrong on my usage of social media, or you could say, the relationship between me and my smartphone. Coming back from my workplace with exhausted feeling and lying on the bed without having supper, start watching a video clip whose thumbnail says “You Must Watch This Otherwise…”. Actually these videos are not boring in a way, but you can easily forget the content because you don’t even pay for it, and you are lying on the bed. Since YouTube might recommend you the next video like forever, YouTube videos hack your dream and you realize you fell asleep during watching and the sound of a video still go next to your pillow. Then I think, how awful, meaningless life I have lead these days.
Since it’s almost free to access any contents which seems worthy at the time, at one glance, smartphone is definitely a magic tool human has ever invented. It can be a TV, movie theater, book, newspaper, game, phone of course, radio, calendar, reminder, mail, dictionary, …you name it. So, you can fulfill your satisfaction with 5G speed. However, on another level, can’t we say these are “virtual” experience? We used to enjoy a kind of real experience. We needed to turn on the TV and watched one program with family members, we needed to rent a video from a video shop, we needed to look up a dictionary and found interesting words. However, these experiences has almost gone now. We can’t make a failure, which would be the best part of our experiences and learning.
If you are happy with today’s 5G, IoT kind of environment, that’s just great, so go for it. However, there must be people like me who feels rather uncomfortable for today’s too convenient, less experience situation. We can learn most from stupid and shameful mistakes. When you find yourself checking customer or viewer’s review, it can be said that you lose the opportunity of the real experience because you would never make a big mistake as long as you check the review. I do love review things, but you know, basically our life can be evaluated by any Amazon customer’s reviewers. So why do we always try to avoid making mistakes which is actually the only way for us to make our life really meaningful?
Then, here is my solution. I deleted almost all Social Media apps from my iPhone.
Even a Plane can fly in the screen
I felt I really need to do something for me to lead a meaningful life with real precious experiences. So, My decision is like this. I will spend more time with the real experiences which can be troublesome or a huge mistake. But then, I realize I can get much more healthy and great information for my life. I would not watch Spain’s sightseeing videos, but I would rather try to go to Spain. Instead of watching boring video clips, I would rather read books, travel with my car, and have lunch with my friends and family. That must be the best solution to have a good relation ship with social media or smartphone in this era I think. If you feel the same way, why don’t you try it together? Let’s face our life experiences more that is much much cooler and more interesting than virtual experiences.
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I’m so tired using social media and now I think I’m not in a good condition. 3 days of continuous holidays totally killed me, I mean too much rest can kill sometime. Too much holiday can kill you mentally and make you so depressed. Then you think of all the faults are on Social Medias. Why I need to worry about notification every time? Why should I watch worthless videos on YouTube? I admit there are some good videos, but I cannot remember them all. I have no idea how many videos I have watched, but that would be so depressing number.
Then I think I can finally understand the feeling a person who try to quit cigaret. They always say to me how hard it is to quit cigaret, but I couldn’t imagine what would it be felt. However, now I can totally understand that. Social Media is a new addiction. Social Media kills you. It’s so unhealthy. Sometimes, I suddenly feel so sad because I’m nobody in the social media. I feel like I have no impact in this life and world. But, it’s actually not true. In the working place, you’re shining in an actual human relationship. You can realize how you are contributing to the world.
However, if you use too much social media, you can’t think of you positively. World seems so dark in the bed, you felt so alone. You would be overwhelmed with the endless information like tsunami. Am I highly sensitive person? Maybe so. However, I can definitely say the over using smartphone can kill people mentally much worse way with smoking. I really think this is wrong. Why you try to prohibit smoking but social media or too much using smartphones? I know many people are suffering from this kind of mental trouble.
So, I’d like to quit watching YouTube seriously. I used to declare the same thing here, but it didn’t last for 2 months. So, this time, I’d like not to break the promise at least until 3 month like October. I don’t want to use smartphones as much as I can. Then, I ensure that I can change myself to the positive ward.
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Hello and I’m 29 years old now, and becoming 30 in this December 23rd. Becoming 30 sounds like becoming a new creature or “evolving” thing in the Pokémon world. However, I still don’t know what kind of person do I want to be or what is my life goal. That’s 30 to me. You are nobody but want to somebody. That’s what 30ish me thinking these days.
A professor whom I really respect once told me that the most students would have realized their calling or ideal life style around 30 years old, then that became a kind of curse to my life. I need to find out what I want to aim by 30 or like that. But, please laugh at me. This is so funny but I still don’t see anything in the coming future.
Have you ever wished you’d made a different choice? My answer is yes and no. I can say that I’m happy living this life. But sometimes, I dream of myself being a totally different kind of protagonist of my life. What if I couldn’t have met my precious friends? What if I was brave enough to go New York and live as a standup comedian. What if I didn’t have a steady job like I have today? What if I became a cafe owner? What if I got married with ex girlfriend? What if I haven’t followed what my parents said to me? What if…
Actually, the process dreaming of my imaginary choices is such a fun thing. I’m feeling so good dreaming of different types of me in the same age to me, and wonder, do I have any kinds of regrets? No I don’t. I can’t say it with 100% of my confidence though. I can say with 75%.
Our life is created by countless choices or decision makings of my or somebody. We maybe are affecting each other everyday. We have no idea when we would die. So, maybe we need to try to change our life during we live, not after dead.
Let’s celebrate every choices more. Our life is full of choices and that makes the life much more interesting or fun to live. As long as not a crime, we can do anything that we want to choose. And for that, thinking about today’s question would be a meaningful one. Please try with your version.
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Hello everyone. It is terribly hot these days in Japan. I’m OK because I live in the northern part of Japan, but if you live in Tokyo, the temperature can kill you. Every person seems like soft-boiled people in Tokyo when I visited a week ago and of course including me though. The funniest and confusing scene I saw in Tokyo was everyone wore masks even in the station in outside. WHY JAPANESE PEOPLE…? Then I thought they will die soon due to not COVID but heatstroke.
Anyways, recently I’ve received an email of inquiry. Since I could hardly have received such email so far, I was so happy by receiving email(you can send me from the “contact” page in the menu). Then I was so happy that I asked the person what do you want me to write about in this blog. Then the person kindly suggested me that the analysis of Japanese song lyrics can be a good topic since the person feel something important can be lost through Google translating.
Then I thought, that would be great! And the person said “Perhaps some of back number’s would be great!” Great! I love back number too! So, let’s start with the latest hit song: Suiheisen!
“Suiheisen” is loved by many people especially by Japanese High schoolers.
Listing to the song, we can feel some sad and happy, such mixed feelings. But to me, a sad atmosphere outweighs the positive one. Watching the MV, a Japanese female high school student throw everything away and walk into the sea, I couldn’t understand what the MV wants to describe. Bullying or something? I thought. However, the song was actually dedicated a certain kind of people. You can check the caption by the artist just down below the video page.
The spreading of COVID-19 gave a huge impact on our daily lives, and we were forced to have had a tough decisions as a back number. And then, Inter-High School Competition (High School national tournament for sports clubs) has canceled for the first time of its long history, and some high school students who strived for holding the tournament gave a letter to us. Mr. Shimizu, who worked hard for the tournament of track and field when he was a high school student, realized that the tournament was supposed to be held in his home town Gunma prefecture, and their band’s song “SISTER” should have been played in the opening ceremony, and then he tried to do something for them and suddenly he created the song “Suihensen” We would like to publish this song today of October 18th, when the opening ceremony of the tournament should have been held.
Then, everything made sense to me. That’s why the song is such a moving song.
Here is a song lyrics in English and Japanese. The song lyrics are so deep to get simply for even Japanese. The words are simple though, the combinations are so poetic that it can be understood easily. Absolutely, the song is a kind of song that the interpretation can be dedicated by each of us, but mainly the core of the song is to embrace the sadness or darkness in our lives. Here is my translation of the chorus part, which is very difficult to translate and understand.
水平線が光る朝に In the morning when the horizon shines あなたの希望が崩れ落ちて Your hopes collapse into pieces 風に飛ばされる欠片に While the broken pieces are blown with wind 誰かが綺麗と呟いてる Someone is saying those pieces are beautiful 悲しい声で歌いながら Singing with a sad voice いつしか海に流れ着いて 光って Those pieces would reach the ocean and shine someday あなたはそれを見るでしょう You would see it あなたはそれを見るでしょう You would see it
Above all, my analysis of this song is that this is a kind of a fight song for the people who somehow disappointed deeply with something in their life. Generally speaking, we don’t say it’s beautiful when somebody is collapsing, but the song seems to say such kind of things. In short, as long as we live, we face many kinds of difficulties and sometimes we overcome or lose or collapse. However, as long as we live, the song would tell us our lives are still dazzling like sea glasses found in the sea shore.
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About three months of being absent, I could finally come back to this site. What happened in these months? Who cares. I was just spending so lazy time that I couldn’t even remember how to log in this site and have many troubled time due to my laziness. However and fortunately, I could come back now. The theme is “REBORN” now. I’d like to write about anything that I think worth to write and what I want to write!
by the way, this is my new instagram account with my sweetheart living in Tokyo. We live in the total opposite sites in Japan. So, you know, upsidedown. This account is our challenge to make our dreams come true. If you could follow us, you would glimpse interesting and humorous way of our living in this era. Thank you for reading!
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End of the fiscal year makes us really busy and stressed out. There are so many things left to be done. Murderous March is literally killing us in Japan. March is also known for the season of hay fever, so the creativity of Japanese really drop seriously in this season.
We all tend to think like “why should I do this with crying… I should’ve done this much more earlier” in this time. So, how can we change this kind of regrets? There is a “Parkinson’s law”. Let me quote from Wikipedia.
Parkinson’s law is the adage that “work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion.”[1] It is sometimes applied to the growth of bureaucracy in an organization, but can be applicable to all forms of work.
In other words, we tend to put off our works as much as we can. When you asked a work and it’s deadline is April 1st, you would try to check if it’s 16:45 or 23:59. Then, you suddenly realize it’s Thursday, you would offer him/her alternative deadline of Friday 23:59. Moreover you could think like he/she cannot check the work on Friday night, so how about April 4th? Or like that.
The most of us, sadly, are such kind of type of people. We don’t want to work hard naturally. A book author once called this kind of people “las spurt type person”. Hmm… maybe so. And he also says, if you really want to be a person who will do things as soon as possible, you should become a “rocket start person”. This is the person who will do a 80% of work immediately and try to do 20% in the rest of time until the real deadline.
Do you want to change? No pain, no gain.
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Unlike to the other states, it is winning prizes with authority that you need to to be a real writer in Japan. Of course you can be an essay writer if you are famous in some territories or genres. However, it seems necessary for you to win an important literature prize in Japan if you really want to be a fictional writer.
There are several important literature prizes. The most famous ones are “Akutagawa Prize” and “Naoki Prize”. Former prize is thought to be the most important literature prize for pure literature, and the latter is for entertainment literature in Japan. These are the most important prizes so that you could be immediately become famous when you win the prize.
As for the Akutagawa Prize, you can receive a special watch and 1,000,000 yen as an option. Once you win the prize, everyone would call you as Akutagawa Prize winning author or like that. I’m fond of reading the prize laureate fictions, but I have no idea how can you get the prize. The winners are people from very young to very old. When you really get the literature and describe with a solid fictional world, maybe you would receive the prize.
It’s one of my foolish dream though. I hope someday I can win it.
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Good evening dear readers. To be honest, it’s very cold right now here in Hokkaido. The outside temperature is around -10 to -15 degrees Celsius. But of course, it doesn’t mean the temperature inside my house. It was 13 degrees Celsius when I came back home 30 minutes ago. I turned off my stove at 10 o’clock and then it was 20 degrees Celsius. Anyway, I turned on it again so it’s 17 for now. Much better. But my hands typing this is freezing and a bit shaking.
Today is a Japan’s National Founding Day. Compared to the United States, we don’t have the exact founding date, so it is set as the enthronement day of the Meiji Emperor in 1872. Anyway, it’s a holiday for most average Japanese people like me. But, it’s just so cold here. However, anything has Brightside, right? So, let me list up the bright things to do in this very cold winter season.
Enjoy Winter Sports I don’t own TV, but the real important information just flow into me in the right timing. I’m talking about the winter Olyimpic in Beijing. There, many athletes representing each nations shows great battles which I am not that interested in. People seems to be very happy when some athletes get gold medals, and seems to be unhappy when they get 9 places. But they often argure like “We are not pursuing the number of medals but the athletes moving great performances.” How dare you. Anyway, absolutely those athlets arouse our motivation for winter sports. In terms of that, I’m highy motivated, so I’m enjoying snowboarding (it really hurts when you are teh very begginer and fall down many times though). Since I started snowboarding, I began to hope more snowy days.
Drinking Hot Drink in Cold Place How about drinking a Hot Milk or Hot Chocolate or Cocoa. The air of winter is very sevear, but at the same time, it is ultimately sophisticated air, and never be more pure in all seasons. You would definetly love the taste, and you can only enjoy the ritual only in this several months.
Sorry but this is all I hit upon with. You can add your own tips in this comment section. Thank you very much for reading this and I hope your winter would be the great one. My hands are still cold but I’m excited to go snowboarding from now♪
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