Hi, friends,

That was my second time to read it.
"One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
I got much a stronger impression than when I read it a long time ago.
Maybe the energy of the people.
Maybe the passion of the author.
Actually it's hard to finish.
A couple of times I tossed the book away from me.
But the next moment I would realize I was in the village of Macond again.
That means, I think, I was drawn to the story.

If you register as a member of "FUJI TV CLUB", you will receive FUJI TV newsletters called
"Abia-do" four times a year.
You can get a lot of information about FUJI TV programs, including the
interviews of the drama actors and actresses.

I have a column called "Book Review" in it.
It's fun to think what book I shall introduce to the readers every time.

I selected "One Hundred Years of Solitude" in the column a couple of month ago.
I'm now thinking of a book for the next issue.
I have just read "The Broken Window" by Jeffery Deaver and "The Power Of
The Dog" by Don Winslow.
They are good but my search is still going on.

I really want your information.
If you have a good book to recomend please get in touch with us.
I'd like to share the pleasure of reading with you!

Clarence

Hi, friends,

I really think "anko" is the most variable player in the world of Japanese
food.
The Japanese culture can meet other cultures through anko.

Anko is a traditional Japanese sweet.
It's a sweetened bean paste or jam made from red azuki (beans).
I remember how my grandmother used to boil beans in a big pan long time ago.
I used to wait for a long time, dreaming of the good sweet anko.

Well, why I say anko is the bridge over cultures...
Please look at this.

This is "an-pan" or sweetened bean paste bread.
In Japanese "an" is from anko, and "pan" means bread.

You see the anko inside.
I think this is almost art, a blending of Japanese and Western culture.

This is  another example.


Japanese anko meets the Chinese steamed bun.




Actually I don't know the exact origin of the Anko-bun.

But when you buy one at a convenience store at a very cold night in Tokyo,
I'm sure you can feel happiness by this mix-cultural food.

Japan meets West.


Anko meets strawberry!
I like this very much.

Who did imagine strawberry inside anko?
I respect this brave creativity.

Well, anko itself is this.




When you come to Japan, I recommend trying this strawberry-anko sweet.

That is, in a sense, one of the good examples of how Japanese culture is
innovating, accepting other cultures.

Clarence

Hi, friends,

I'd like to invite you deep into the brain.

A shot from the left side.
Inside the skull, you can see the cerebrum, the frontal lobe, the brain stem
and so on.
As I'm not an authority, I can't tell you exactly where they are located.

And this is a shot from up above.
Can you see the mysterious world of the human body?
For me?
From a medical point of view, no, I can't see anything.
But my doctor, checking this MRI scanning photo, said "I don't see any
anxious shadows.  That means your brain is healthy".

Yes, this is my brain.







It was few years ago.
One day I suddenly came to think "I want to see my brain!"
I asked my doctor and he told me "Considering your age, I would also recommend you to
do so".
So I applied for the medical center to get my brain scan.

It was somehow interesting to see inside my body, especially my own brain.
Though it is very very close to me, usually it is invisible to "the owner".

I'm wondering why I'm fascinated with the human brain...
I think people of my generation remember the TV drama series "Ben Casey" in
the 60's.
Ben Casey is a young surgeon at a hospital.  Every week he faces a different challenging surgery and miraculously solves the problem.
I really loved this drama when I was a child.

Growing up, I didn't become a doctor but I may still have a somewhat
'medical mind'.

Well, it's almost time to go to the MRI center to see the new brain photos
this year.

Clarence

Hi, friends!

Many gifts and souvenirs from Asian countries to our office...I showed them here to you  last autumn.
Almost four months passed since then, today I'm going to show you the new comers.
Here we go "Contemporary Asian Collection #2" !
 

Chinese art craft "Small folding screen" with 12 beautiful women.
On the left side, there is a woman playing the 'koto' and other women are listening.  The woman in the center looks like she is dancing to the music.
When you look at it from the back...

There are four other women.
According to the explanation, these women are servants in a master's house.
Really Chinese, isn't it?

Typical Korean chopsticks and spoon.
Whenever I use these metal chopsticks, it makes me wonder if Korean people don't feel they are heavy while eating.
Japanese chopsticks are lighter than those of Korea because Japanese ones are made of wood.

Panda bears.
They are almost everywhere in the world of gifts.
In this piece, a Panda is eating his favorite bamboo leaves.
The scene is painted on a small round piece of glass.

Here, panda bears go into pins.

They all look sleepy...also in these pins, bamboo leaves should be with panda bears.
This is of course from our Chinese friends.
 

This is a jewel box from Korean friends.
A mirror is attached inside the box.
I often see these art crafts when I go to Seoul.
Big, small, for all sorts of purposes...very interesting.

Letter holder from China.
Traditional faces are on it.
Very useful.
I'm usually using this at my desk.

Paper weight.
When a group from a Chinese university visited our office, one of them gave this to me.
I'm sorry I forgot to ask the meaning of the characters written on it.
 
This seems to be a lucky charm in China.

Oh, by the way, China is celebrating its New Year's right now.

Happy New Year!

Clarence

Hi, friends!

Do you know "Sea Hares" ?

We call them "AMEFURASHI" or "UMIUSHI".

Strictly speaking, AMEFURASHI and UMIUSHI seem to be different kinds of creatures.
I used to play on a seashore when I was a kid.
When I found an AMEFURASHI (or an UMIUSHI),  people around me always said "this is AMEFURASHI but another name is UMIUSHI.  You have to remember both names".
This is the reason why I still can't tell the difference between them.

I can find these AMEFURASHI-like, UMIUSHI-like creatures when I scuba dive.
They move slowly at the bottom of the sea.
Touching them, I can feel the smooth surface.
Sometimes they spit out a purple liquid when they sense danger.

  *My scuba diving friend, Mr. Imai took these pictures.

I don't think they have many fans because some of them don't look so attractive.
But I like them because they are humorous.

One day when I was launching under water with my diving gear, I saw two Sea Hares, big and small, on a sea weeds.
They were swinging back and forth, giving their bodies to the tide.
They looked like they were having a nap in the spring water.

So I made a Haiku with this scene...

アメフラシ　春藻に親子　寄り添ひて (*in Japanese characters)
Amefurashi Harumo ni Oyako Yorisoite

Sea Hares,
Father and son on a sea weed
Together in the spring water!

Clarence