Gotta love Craig!
Can't say I agree with just about any of Ms. Palin's policies, but I can see why McCain picked her. I still think Obama is gonna win tho.
-JCH
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Naughty Alaskan librarian
Friday, August 29, 2008
Gnarls Barkley - Who's Gonna Save My Soul
I really like this group - I think the lead singer has an amazing voice.
And this is one of the most original music videos I've seen in a while.
Enjoy!
Learn Japanese Now from Koichi via eduFire!
a new way to learn a foreign language - via the web and webcam.
Interesting site -check it out if you want to learn a new language.
http://www.edufire.com
or for my friend's site above:
http://www.edufire.com/tofugu
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Best Tennis Team in All of Japan
Best Tennis Team in All of Japan - 2.jpg
Originally uploaded by Jason In Japan.
Go Taisha Go!
The boys tennis team at my main Jr High went all the way to the All-Japan finals and won, getting the trophy for best Jr High tennis team in the whole country!
Basically, you start out at the prefecture level - the kentaikai - where you compete against teams from your local area. Taisha won.
Then you move on to the regional competitions - a gathering of teams from 5 or 6 prefectures - in our case, the Chugokutaikai, comprising of teams from Shimane, Hiroshima, Yamaguchi, Okayama and Tottori. Again, Taisha won.
So then it's on to the zenkokutaikai - the All-Japan finals. And Taisha WON!!
It's kinda like winning "nationals" in America. America has 50 states; Japan has 47 prefectures.
So a big CONGRATS to my boys - four 9th graders and four 8th graders who did Taisha proud! And their coach, Matsumura sensei, who I've known since I arrived. He's a good guy and they all deserve the win!
Picture above is their arrival back at school during summer vacation - a bunch of kids and staff hung around until their bus pulled in at 5:30pm and we had a little celebration ceremony.
Picture below is them after winning the local Shimane competition.
Way to go guys!!
Japanese Barack Obama with Will Smith on J TV
Some random silliness I captured while surfing channels the other day.
Enjoy!
-Jason
You can read more info in the description box on this video's YouTube page.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
more from the Mighty Pat C
one of my favorite YouTubers, Pat Condell, with another of his trademark diatribes.
Entertaining as always.
-JCH
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Rural Japan Life (RJL) - Vlog #1 - A day at the beach
Welcome to my new series of video logs (vlogs).
After all the great feedback I got during my vlogs about being a JET, I've decided to keep making vlogs, mostly about my life here in rural Shimane.
I hope you enjoy these new videos.
-Jason
アメリカの方言：ハワイ弁
this one is for the students that check out my blog.
One of my favorite vloggers on YT - he has a channel in English as well at Tofugu.
Enjoy!
-Jason
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Trailer
I haven't read the later HP books, so I look forward to each new movie, as I think they have all been uniformly excellent.
Looks like these last few films are gonna be really dark and serious.
-JCH
WATCHMEN - MEET THE CAST
The more I see about "Watchmen" the more excited I get.
3-6-09 - gonna be a big date next year.
I miss going to Comic Con so much.
Monday, August 11, 2008
watching the Olympics
I'm caught up in Olympic fever at the moment. Since Japan's main TV stations are government owned, and I only get like 6 channels out here in the sticks, I see ALOT of Olympic coverage. It's on all the time.
Of course, since they mainly cover events involving Japanese athletes, I'm seeing a lot more badminton, judo, archery, and fencing than I would ever see watching in the States.
But I'm also getting my fair share of gymnastics, swimming, track & field, soccer, baseball and other sports I know.
Just today I was home for lunch and I caught the men's swimming 4x100 relay - it was a fantastic race, with an incredible finish and I found myself shouting at the TV, cheering on the American team.
If you missed it, I'm sure you'll see the replays of it forever - it was quite a memorable race.
Here is a great article about it I stole from the MSN homepage:
BEIJING -- The U.S. men's 4x100m free relay team won gold Monday in the most exciting, most record-breaking, most amazing, thrilling, unbelievable relay anyone could ever imagine, evidence of exactly what Jason Lezak, who swam the greatest anchor leg in relay history, had to say when it was all over:
"People always step up and do things out of the ordinary at the Olympics."
This was even so much more. Extraordinary in every regard.
The U.S. men -- Michael Phelps, Garrett Weber-Gale, Cullen Jones and Jason Lezak -- set a world record, finishing in 3:08.24. France took second, Australia third.
The victory gave Michael Phelps his second gold medal here in Beijing -- in a race that had shaped up to be one of the most difficult on his quest for eight. The French and even the Australians had widely been considered prerace favorites.
"He's on a mission to win eight," Jones said of Phelps, "and we're happy to be a part of it."
The French, moreover, had been smack-talking before the race.
Jason Lezak storms from behind as the U.S. men win gold and smash the world record.
Afterward, asked on television who's talking now, Weber-Gale said, "We are. United States of America."
"C'est le sport," one of the French racers, Fabien Gilot, said afterward, which means literally, "It's sport," but which, in this context, really means, "That's why they race the race."
American swimmers had won every edition of this relay in the Olympics from 1964 through 1996. In Sydney in 2000, the Aussies won, the Americans finishing second. In Athens in 2004, the South Africans took gold, the Dutch silver, the Americans bronze.
So this, for the Americans, meant redemption as well.
In particular for Lezak, who had swum the third leg on that 2000 relay, anchor in 2004.
"I had more adrenaline going than I ever had in my life," Lezak said.
"America has a great tradition of winning that relay," he also said, adding just a moment later, "All of us knew what we're capable of, but to actually do it, to get that tradition back -- it's a phenomenal feeling. Still, right now, I'm in disbelief."
Understandable.
Swimming is a sport that translates elegantly into numbers, and the numbers from this one race will be studied and analyzed for years to come:
Before the preliminaries at these Games, the world record in the 4x100 relay stood at 3:12.46. That mark was set by an American team swimming in 2006.
One day ago, during the prelims, a U.S. team broke that record, swimming 3:12.23. (Under Olympic rules, the swimmers in the prelims get gold medals, too. Nathan Adrian, Matt Grevers and Ben Wildman-Tobriner swam with Jones.)
One day later, in the Olympic final, to go and then chop 4 seconds off that mark is -- well, it's not done. It took 20 years for the record to drop 4 seconds to the 3:12 range. In 1988, at the Seoul Olympics, an American team lowered the record to 3:16.53.
But that's not all.
The times in the prelims were so fast that it took 3:13.8 to get into Monday's final. Russia, at 3:14.07, didn't make it -- a second and a half off the world record, and not good enough for the Olympic final. Incredible.
During the final, five teams went under the mark the U.S. team had set in Sunday's prelims -- the Americans, French, Australians, Italians and Swedes. World record-breaking times for the Italians and Swedes -- and no medal.
Incredible.
But that's not all.
Phelps swam the lead-off leg for the Americans. He swam 47.51. The world record, going into the race: 47.50, by France's Alain Bernard, lining up Sunday to swim the French anchor leg in the relay.
Phelps and the Americans swam Sunday in Lane 4, the French in 5, the Australians in 3.
To Phelps' left, in Lane 3, Eamon Sullivan of Australia pulled lead-off duty as well. He touched ahead of Phelps, in 47.24 -- a world record in the 100m (lead-off legs are eligible for national and world records).
Phelps' mark is now the American record. His prior personal best had been 47.92, at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials.
The fastest Olympic lead-off split before Sunday: South Africa's Roland Schoeman, with a 48.17 in 2004.
If swimming translates into numbers, it also is about so much more.
Weber-Gale caught, and passed, the next Australian swimmer, Andrew Lauterstein. At 200 meters, the United States was in first.
Then, though, the French, behind Frederick Bousquet, surged. At 300 meters, it was France, the United States, Australia.
Bernard was off the blocks first.
Then went Lezak.
At 350 meters, Bernard was .18 of a second ahead.
One lap to go.
The noise inside the arena was ferocious.
And at the other end of the pool, the Americans were going berserk.
"I was just pounding on the blocks, saying the f-word, saying, 'Come on!' " Weber-Gale would say later.
"It's not for television," Jones would say of what he was yelling.
"I was going nuts," Phelps said. "You know, as soon as he came off that last wall, I just started going crazy. You know, Jason also said before, 'You know, this isn't a 4 by 100, this is a 400. We're a team.' "
In the pool, Lezak had seen Bernard hit the far wall first.
"I'm not going to lie," Lezak said. "When I flipped at the 50 and I still saw how far ahead he was, and he was the world-record holder 'til about two minutes before that, when Sullivan led off with the world record, I thought, it really crossed my mind for a split second, there's no way.
"Then I changed. I said, you know what, that's ridiculous. This is the Olympics. I'm here for these guys. I'm here for the United States of America. It's more than -- I don't care how bad it hurts, or whatever, I'm just going to go out there and hit it.
"Honestly, in like 5 seconds, I was thinking all these things -- you know, just got like a super charge and took it from there. It was unreal."
Which, indeed, it was.
At 30 meters, Bernard was still ahead.
At 20 meters, Bernard was still ahead.
But Lezak was closing.
At the wall, Lezak got his hand out in front. He touched a mere .08 of a second in front of Bernard.
Before Sunday, the closest finish in the event in the Olympics had been in Sydney, when the Australians beat the Americans by .19 of a second.
With the pressure of all of it on him, Lezak threw down the fastest split of all time, 46.06.
At the Olympics, people step up and do extraordinary things.
****
Enjoy the Olympics - Go Japan! Go USA! :)
-Jason
Of course, since they mainly cover events involving Japanese athletes, I'm seeing a lot more badminton, judo, archery, and fencing than I would ever see watching in the States.
But I'm also getting my fair share of gymnastics, swimming, track & field, soccer, baseball and other sports I know.
Just today I was home for lunch and I caught the men's swimming 4x100 relay - it was a fantastic race, with an incredible finish and I found myself shouting at the TV, cheering on the American team.
If you missed it, I'm sure you'll see the replays of it forever - it was quite a memorable race.
Here is a great article about it I stole from the MSN homepage:
BEIJING -- The U.S. men's 4x100m free relay team won gold Monday in the most exciting, most record-breaking, most amazing, thrilling, unbelievable relay anyone could ever imagine, evidence of exactly what Jason Lezak, who swam the greatest anchor leg in relay history, had to say when it was all over:
"People always step up and do things out of the ordinary at the Olympics."
This was even so much more. Extraordinary in every regard.
The U.S. men -- Michael Phelps, Garrett Weber-Gale, Cullen Jones and Jason Lezak -- set a world record, finishing in 3:08.24. France took second, Australia third.
The victory gave Michael Phelps his second gold medal here in Beijing -- in a race that had shaped up to be one of the most difficult on his quest for eight. The French and even the Australians had widely been considered prerace favorites.
"He's on a mission to win eight," Jones said of Phelps, "and we're happy to be a part of it."
The French, moreover, had been smack-talking before the race.
Jason Lezak storms from behind as the U.S. men win gold and smash the world record.
Afterward, asked on television who's talking now, Weber-Gale said, "We are. United States of America."
"C'est le sport," one of the French racers, Fabien Gilot, said afterward, which means literally, "It's sport," but which, in this context, really means, "That's why they race the race."
American swimmers had won every edition of this relay in the Olympics from 1964 through 1996. In Sydney in 2000, the Aussies won, the Americans finishing second. In Athens in 2004, the South Africans took gold, the Dutch silver, the Americans bronze.
So this, for the Americans, meant redemption as well.
In particular for Lezak, who had swum the third leg on that 2000 relay, anchor in 2004.
"I had more adrenaline going than I ever had in my life," Lezak said.
"America has a great tradition of winning that relay," he also said, adding just a moment later, "All of us knew what we're capable of, but to actually do it, to get that tradition back -- it's a phenomenal feeling. Still, right now, I'm in disbelief."
Understandable.
Swimming is a sport that translates elegantly into numbers, and the numbers from this one race will be studied and analyzed for years to come:
Before the preliminaries at these Games, the world record in the 4x100 relay stood at 3:12.46. That mark was set by an American team swimming in 2006.
One day ago, during the prelims, a U.S. team broke that record, swimming 3:12.23. (Under Olympic rules, the swimmers in the prelims get gold medals, too. Nathan Adrian, Matt Grevers and Ben Wildman-Tobriner swam with Jones.)
One day later, in the Olympic final, to go and then chop 4 seconds off that mark is -- well, it's not done. It took 20 years for the record to drop 4 seconds to the 3:12 range. In 1988, at the Seoul Olympics, an American team lowered the record to 3:16.53.
But that's not all.
The times in the prelims were so fast that it took 3:13.8 to get into Monday's final. Russia, at 3:14.07, didn't make it -- a second and a half off the world record, and not good enough for the Olympic final. Incredible.
During the final, five teams went under the mark the U.S. team had set in Sunday's prelims -- the Americans, French, Australians, Italians and Swedes. World record-breaking times for the Italians and Swedes -- and no medal.
Incredible.
But that's not all.
Phelps swam the lead-off leg for the Americans. He swam 47.51. The world record, going into the race: 47.50, by France's Alain Bernard, lining up Sunday to swim the French anchor leg in the relay.
Phelps and the Americans swam Sunday in Lane 4, the French in 5, the Australians in 3.
To Phelps' left, in Lane 3, Eamon Sullivan of Australia pulled lead-off duty as well. He touched ahead of Phelps, in 47.24 -- a world record in the 100m (lead-off legs are eligible for national and world records).
Phelps' mark is now the American record. His prior personal best had been 47.92, at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials.
The fastest Olympic lead-off split before Sunday: South Africa's Roland Schoeman, with a 48.17 in 2004.
If swimming translates into numbers, it also is about so much more.
Weber-Gale caught, and passed, the next Australian swimmer, Andrew Lauterstein. At 200 meters, the United States was in first.
Then, though, the French, behind Frederick Bousquet, surged. At 300 meters, it was France, the United States, Australia.
Bernard was off the blocks first.
Then went Lezak.
At 350 meters, Bernard was .18 of a second ahead.
One lap to go.
The noise inside the arena was ferocious.
And at the other end of the pool, the Americans were going berserk.
"I was just pounding on the blocks, saying the f-word, saying, 'Come on!' " Weber-Gale would say later.
"It's not for television," Jones would say of what he was yelling.
"I was going nuts," Phelps said. "You know, as soon as he came off that last wall, I just started going crazy. You know, Jason also said before, 'You know, this isn't a 4 by 100, this is a 400. We're a team.' "
In the pool, Lezak had seen Bernard hit the far wall first.
"I'm not going to lie," Lezak said. "When I flipped at the 50 and I still saw how far ahead he was, and he was the world-record holder 'til about two minutes before that, when Sullivan led off with the world record, I thought, it really crossed my mind for a split second, there's no way.
"Then I changed. I said, you know what, that's ridiculous. This is the Olympics. I'm here for these guys. I'm here for the United States of America. It's more than -- I don't care how bad it hurts, or whatever, I'm just going to go out there and hit it.
"Honestly, in like 5 seconds, I was thinking all these things -- you know, just got like a super charge and took it from there. It was unreal."
Which, indeed, it was.
At 30 meters, Bernard was still ahead.
At 20 meters, Bernard was still ahead.
But Lezak was closing.
At the wall, Lezak got his hand out in front. He touched a mere .08 of a second in front of Bernard.
Before Sunday, the closest finish in the event in the Olympics had been in Sydney, when the Australians beat the Americans by .19 of a second.
With the pressure of all of it on him, Lezak threw down the fastest split of all time, 46.06.
At the Olympics, people step up and do extraordinary things.
****
Enjoy the Olympics - Go Japan! Go USA! :)
-Jason
Sunday, August 03, 2008
Final JET advice vlog
This is the final vlog in a series I did over the past two months offering advice to new JETs coming to Japan this summer.
I had a lot of fun doing these vlogs, so I will continue to make vlogs.
Enjoy!
-Jason
I had a lot of fun doing these vlogs, so I will continue to make vlogs.
Enjoy!
-Jason
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