English teachers in Japan

The recent NOVA problems have led to new found interests in Foreign workers, especially English Instructors, among Japanese news media. NHK jumped on the bandwagon and aired this segment a little while ago.

It's in Japanese but the interviewees speak English.

The report sums up the few problems that one might have living and working in Japan, mainly how difficult it is to get on "social insurance", AKA medical insurance, how fragile the one-year employment contract actually is, and how the big corporations only care about their money, not the teachers nor the students.

It's a known issue among experienced teachers in Japan that NOVA is one of the worst places to work for. But new expats always fall prey to the easy job. On top of that most Japanese only know NOVA - the McDonald's of English language learning.

wake up and...

drive!

Do you remember a long time ago there were a series of car commercials with the catch phrase "Wake Up and Drive"? I can't recall what manufacturer it was from but that's exactly how I felt getting up today. I want to jump into my roadster in the driveway and go very very far away, with or without a destination at the end of the journey.

OK, I admit there are certainly more pressing issues elsewhere. I know I've been obsessed with the new ride. But hear me out, today I had my first tail slide, unintended. Although tame it'll be with more "wheel" time. I know it. Here is why. While it's prone to possible trouble on the open road with other traffic under similar situation, its every spin was surprisingly predictable. It almost wants to teach me, "There, hop in and let me take control for a bit. This is how it's done." I'm getting familiarized with it. The relationship is going to be a mutually appreciative one.


See the mud on the rear tires? Well maybe you can't, but if you squint you'll see the cause of today's tail-happiness. Vroom... vrooooom...

This is going to be the last post about this car for a while.

Why Mazda Roadster (MX-5 Miata)...

is the right car?

nimble handling:
"the Best Handling Car in Britain." - Tiff Needell, Fifth Gear presenter and former Le Mans racer, referring to the 2nd gen Mazda Roadster, the one I now own.

experience:
"Mazda Motor Corporation announced the production of the 800,000th MX-5 Miata. Total global production of the MX-5 Miata reached this milestone on January 30, 2007 — 17 years and nine months after production commenced in April 1989." - Daily Auto Insider

quality:
"The roadster formerly known as the Miata returns to the 10Best winners’ circle for the second straight year, its eighth trophy since Mazda modernized the concept of the affordable droptop sports car in 1990." - Car and Driver

reliability:
"the number of 10-year-old MX-5s you see in pristine condition should answer any doubts over durability." - whatcar.com car review.

fun:
rear wheel drive, convertible, 150 horses, light-weight, short-shift gearbox, feel-the-road steering, need I say more?

hello Mazda Roadster!

aka Miata MX5 in the US of A.

I've been looking for a car since April after my contract ended with former employer who provided a smallish underpowered farmer-oriented vehicle. Now, after three months, I finally found a cool ride with an easy price tag:

The Mazda MX-5, also known as Miata (IPA: /mi'αrə/ or /mi'αtə/) in North America and Roadster (IPA: /'lodostα/) in Japan, is a sports car built by Mazda in Hiroshima, Japan, since 1989. Its introduction was a significant development in the motor car industry that revived the roadster segment of sports cars, with other companies promptly introducing roadsters to their model ranges, such as the MG F, and the third-generation Toyota MR2.

There have been three generations of the MX-5, consisting of major stylistic and mechanical upgrades. The first generation, designated NA, sold over 400,000 units. It was produced from 1989 to 1993 with a 1.6-liter straight-4 engine, and from 1994-1997 with a 1.8-liter engine. The NA can be recognized by its distinctive pop-up headlights. The second generation (NB) was introduced in 1998 with a slight increase in engine power; it can be recognized by the fixed headlights, and the glass rear window. The third generation (NC) was introduced in 2005 with a 2.0-liter engine; it can be recognized by the fender bulges over the wheel wells. wiki-link

I managed to find an affordable (used) one. It was delivered yesterday to my school. Loving the exhaust note right now!

Wisps of the Iris Nebula

Explanation:
Like delicate cosmic petals, these clouds of interstellar dust and gas have blossomed 1,300 light-years away in the fertile star fields of the constellation Cepheus. Sometimes called the Iris Nebula and dutifully cataloged as NGC 7023, this is not the only nebula in the sky to evoke the imagery of flowers. Still, this beautiful digital image shows off the Iris Nebula's range of colors and symmetries in impressive detail. Within the Iris, dusty nebular material surrounds a massive, hot, young star in its formative years. Central filaments of cosmic dust glow with a reddish photoluminescence as some dust grains effectively convert the star's invisible ultraviolet radiation to visible red light. Yet the dominant color of the central nebula is blue, characteristic of dust grains reflecting starlight. Dark, obscuring clouds of dust and cold molecular gas are present on the left of the image, and lead the eye to see other convoluted and fantastic shapes. Infrared observations indicate that this nebula may contain complex carbon molecules known as PAHs. As shown here, the bright blue portion of the Iris Nebula is about six light-years across.

APOD
Thomas V. Davis (tvdavisastropix.com)

honest to god, this is what I thought would happen everytime

Elderly couple killed while burning fallow rice paddy

OSHU, Iwate -- An elderly couple was burned to death after a fire they set to burn off dead grass on a rice field here got out of control, police said.

At around 8:30 p.m. on Friday, a local resident found farmer Keizo Ito, 82, and his 78-year-old wife Fukumi lying on the bank of a reservoir in Oshu. Police pronounced the couple dead at the scene, and concluded that they had been burned to death.

Investigators suspect that the couple died while burning off a fallow rice field they owned near the reservoir. The fire burned the rice field and the bank of the reservoir, totaling about 200 square meters. (Mainichi)

Nova in trouble again

Nova handed suspension order over tuition fee practices

The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry on Wednesday ordered major English-language school operator Nova Corp. to suspend part of its business operations for holding back money from students who canceled their contracts, ministry officials said.

The ministry issued an order prohibiting Nova from soliciting customers or accepting applications for contracts exceeding one year or new contracts exceeding 70 hours. The suspension will be in place for six months.

It is the first time for the ministry to issue a business suspension order to an English language school under Japan's special transaction law. People who are currently taking lessons at the language school will not be affected by the order.

Ministry officials explained Nova operates a system in which students buy points enabling them to take lessons. When they buy a large number of points in advance, they can take lessons at a cheaper price.

However, when people canceled their contracts before finishing their courses, the company lowered the amount of lesson fees it returned to them. In addition the company didn't inform people about the procedures for canceling contracts. (more)

entire US govt has failed

what a beauty

Kazumi trying on her uchikake (打掛 or wedding kimono).