Apropos

Japan Today are reporting this: Man breaks into Tokyo apartment, threatening foreign resident with knife - Japan Today https://share.google/gslGj3frvzsVjExfH Some commenters assume the assailant is Japanese, despite no information provided in the story. About 20-seconds of searching reveals the following: “外国籍”男がアパートに押し入り住人男性に頭突き　包丁手に英語と片言の日本語で「財布よこせ」　もみ合いになり逃走　東京・中野区 - ライブドアニュース https://share.google/RmlqwbEhzDSf3PHvL Update: Unsurprisingly, the comment (including the above Japanese) was removed by the moderators at JT. The original story, however, has not been emended. One suspects this comment is not long for the world: JT, do your readers a favor- and your job- by updating the story to include reporting identifying the attacker as a foreigner.

Plus la meme chose

Writing in the 1890s, Hearn observes "Of the nine or ten English papers published in the open ports, the majority expressed, day after day, one side of this dislike, in the language of ridicule or contempt..." The "open ports" are the five Japanese ports opened to foreign trade in the 1850s and home to foreign concessions, entire 'alien' communities enjoying complete extra-territoriality, a colonialist arrangement regarded by most Japanese of the day as a national embarrassment and insult. The foreign community rarely traveled beyond its narrow precincts, and in its interactions with Japanese was insufferably haughty and condescending. As for "the language of ridicule or cotempt", one may simply peruse the comments (and the occasional article) in Japan Today to discover how little has changed. * Just imagine: "nine or ten English papers", some publishing morning and evening editions daily for a decidedly small readership.

Snowy Day

Snow atop grave monuments, downtown Niigata.

Rice: Great Kids, Cool Project, Nice Price

Bought 4kgs of rice today from students of a Niigata City primary school who live in a farming district and had planted and harvested the rice themselves. Pretty cool.

A Different Kind of Lunch

Lunch Set

Grilled saba and karage lunch plates. Simple izakaya fare to warm body and soul.

Niigata Artist Fukiya Koji

In the lobby of an historic hotel in Niigata City, I am pleased to discover an exhibit of works by local graphic artist Fukiya Koji.

玉子あんかけうどん

Most tasty, this noodle dish from udon chain 丸亀製麺.

Because Election Season

Government shifting away from inclusion of foreigners | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis https://share.google/dpsGVK9b29FshsTru Onoda Kimi heads the relevant industry, and there she is, to the left of the PM, with a smirk?, or is that her Giaconda Smile? If you suspect Kimi has immigrant heritage, noticing her coloring, perhaps, or facial structure, she does indeed: she was born in the US. Japan doesn't allow dual citizenship, but one is confident Kimi has satisfied Japanese law in that regard. (No point exploring the possibility of irony in Kimi's public service.)

Windbreak

This belt of pine forest was planted in the late Edo period as a buffer to shield Niigata from fierce winter winds barreling across the Sea of Japan.