OMG it's summer!!!111!!!!ELEVENTY!!!1111!!

Apparently some vague signs of summer have been spotted back in Blighty so everyone has flown into a panic. Summer hasn't been seen there since about...ooh, last August or so. So it's not surprising that they are worried and don't know how to cope. They are now in an "Amber Heatwave" situation in the south east, because the temperature may reach....32C max and 18C overnight min (it's nothing like that warm over most of the country). Genuine question: do they have a "Blue cold snap" warning in winter which also "requires social and healthcare services to target specific actions at high-risk groups"?

It is interesting to see the emphasis on overnight min as well as the more exciting daily max. It's still rainy season here, so our max temperatures are reasonably cool. However, we probably won't see much below 20C overnight until mid-October or thereabouts. Here's the latest weather forecast, which I hope is self-explanatory despite the language:

The temperature values don't tell the whole story, as it is also phenomenally humid here, making it feel much worse.

Further south in Okinawa, summer is still some way off, but it's a good bit hotter already:


Okinawa, of course, is famed for the extraordinary longevity of its oldies - high even by Japanese standards.

Meanwhile, mt is "enjoying" 40C plus. There are certainly places in the world where a few more degrees of warming would not be welcome. The UK is not one of them.

[jules' pics] 7/02/2009 12:39:00 AM

flower sex, originally uploaded by julesberry2001.

Another plain weed, and the common ole buppyfly that's the size of a swallow. You might need to look at the larger size image to see the pollen on the butterfly's wings that is getting rubbed into all the right places.

[picture taken near our house in Kamakura]

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Posted By jules to jules' pics at 7/02/2009 12:39:00 AM

Taking the piss

Rumours have been flying for a little while, but Debito actually got on the case and phoned up the police to confirm it - they are actually rounding up foreigners leaving bars and dragging them off to police stations and demanding urine tests. It seems they have some new toys that they want to test.

Of course, they have absolutely no right to do things like this without a warrant, but that has never stopped them abusing foreigners in the past. A common example is the random ID check. By law, they have no right to demand an ID check on a foreigner unless they have grounds for suspicion. However, there is nothing stopping them from asking for ID, and if the foreigners refuses, well that is suspicious behaviour! (Having said that, I've never encountered such an ID check in my 8 years here, but some Tokyo dwellers report over a hundred of them, often the same policeman in the same place as a regular event.)

No doubt the usuals will say Debito's only doing it for the publicity. I for one am grateful for his efforts.

[jules' pics] 6/30/2009 09:06:00 PM

Kamakura Daibutsu, originally uploaded by julesberry2001.

Only a 10 minute bike ride from home and just 200¥ for a "worship ticket", the Kamakura Daibutsu is a National Treasure. At lesser temples, the staff Zen-ishly sweep the gravel and flagstones in the early morning. At the Daibutsu, however, they have invested in a leaf blower. Unbelievable Noise Pollution! We took several photos, but this one got the most hits on flickr so its reward is to be blogged.

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Posted By jules to jules' pics at 6/30/2009 09:06:00 PM

Panasonic to sponsor anti-whaling protests?

You might be surprised to hear that such a bastion of Japanese society would sponsor the new Sea Shepherd boat, but here it is in full technicolour (click on it for a larger pic, the logo is clearly visible on the near outrigger):


And here is the story about how this boat is joining forces with the Sea Shepherd expedition to harassment Japanese whalers.

Of course the sponsorship predates this announcement. I predict some rapid strategic re-painting.

[jules' pics] 6/28/2009 05:57:00 PM

gargoyle, originally uploaded by julesberry2001.

The other day we found a shrine not on the Kamakura tourist map. Too small to be included I suppose, but google maps on my iphone knew it was there. It had some nice carvings, and the gargoyles were rather cute and only slightly scary.

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Posted By jules to jules' pics at 6/28/2009 05:57:00 PM

[jules' pics] 6/28/2009 05:52:00 AM

James, originally uploaded by julesberry2001.

Thirteen years ago on midsummer's day, James and I got wedded. It has taken me a whole week to take a half-decent photo of him, to show you just how well marriage has suited him.

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Posted By jules to jules' pics at 6/28/2009 05:52:00 AM

Ouch

This looks like pretty serious news for the Hadley Centre - a 25% cut in their funding. It seems to be effective immediately, with the MoD reneging on their existing 3 year deal. No doubt there is a desperate scramble underway to pick up funds from alternative source.

It's a shame, as the HC had always seemed to be one of the more secure and stable research centres in the UK (ref previous posts 1, 2, 3). If history is a guide, there will follow several years of budgetary struggles, low morale, reduced productivity, drawn-out redundancy processes and some of the best staff will give up on the place and find something else to do.

Incidentally, there seems to be some huge "stimulus fund" sloshing around in Japan right now, to the tune of $50m annual funding per project, but I think we didn't bother to apply because there wasn't any way we could find the necessary scientists to spend the money on...

[jules' pics] 6/24/2009 09:11:00 PM

fragile opportunists, originally uploaded by julesberry2001.

Unlike some, these tiny flowers have real character. I have previously seen them flowering colourfully in the cracks between ancient flagstones that pave temple grounds. These ones were found dangling elegantly from one of the pots in our "garden". The next day they were completely gone, thanks to an overnight rainshower.

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Posted By jules to jules' pics at 6/24/2009 09:11:00 PM

[jules' pics] 6/24/2009 01:27:00 AM

butterfly, originally uploaded by julesberry2001.

B is for butterfly but the blue pattern on its wings makes a V in this picture. The Japanese for V is Bwee. It gets even more confusing when bwegetarian lunch at the canteen is described as stuffed pork parcels.

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Posted By jules to jules' pics at 6/24/2009 01:27:00 AM