A night to remember!

the night was as always in Ginza
Just a decade ago, I was heading to the center of Japan from Osaka full of dreams.
I was going to start my career as a journalist which at then I had no idea how sacrificing but exciting the job is.
April 1st of 1995 was my debut date, though I was just a kid out of college feeling some sense of responsiblility to be an answer to the world in need. Ten years ago, my dream was to become a foreign correspondent, just because I thought that was natural of an inexperienced boy who lived in a foreign country for over 13 years.
But as years have gone by, reporting on how the Japanese society has become crooked with so many sad crimes and scandals attracted me to be a member of the current events division of my company.
Now, I'm working on covering natural disasters, not just of my country, but of the world which haunted millions of people throughout the world. But living in a country which has experienced so many disasters, I take pride in how I face the assignments on a regular basis, which so many journalists of other countries can not experience!
It's encouraging the cherry blossoms of Tokyo was announced its flowering today. And for a reward, I had a nice time in Ginza discussing all night on how this country should be steered with my senior supporters.
And I will never forget how anxious I was to be what I am now. I still have many years to become matured. See what I can accomplish in the next ten years! More excitement, right? Just can't wait for more!

Kachi wa Kachi! A win is a win no matter how you win!

GOAL! Bahrain scores? Well, not quite...
We all know Bahrainese strikers have more decisive skills to shove the ball into the goal mouth. But this time they did it to the wrong goal! The Japanese team did have chances to do it themselves, but they always end up short in the final efforts of the attack.
It was a barely won victory as the final score was 1 to zip with this own goal by Bahrain's best player as the only score.
Japan has risen to the second spot among the four teams, just a point behind Iran and two points ahead of Bahrain. North Korea lost again today at home, letting Iran pick up another three points.
So the first half of the preliminaries to the World Cup is over. How did Japan do? We're in second, not bad right? WRONG.
We played two games at home and both were won with difficulties. The next game will be set for June, and the first will be played in Bahrain. Can you imagine how hot it would be there?
And in today's North Korea - Iran match the North Korean crowd almost turned into rioters as they were not satisfied by the judges made by the refs. Their last match at home is against Japan and the desperate North Koreans will play their guts out to win... And the last game of the preliminary is against the undefeated Iranians.
What a tough series the second half will be! Can't wait till June for the excitement!!

Nanohana (rape blossoms) in Hibiya Park
No announcement of cherry blossoms' flowering in central Tokyo today, but I saw many signs of spring as I spared a moment from work to take a walk in the park.
The season I like the most is arriving!

No destructive tsunami... fortunately!

Went back to my office at noon.
Fortunately there were no reports of severe damage by killer tsunamis, but the magnitude 8.5 (JMA) quake was deadly enough to take away lives of thousands in the closest island of Nias.
http://ioc.unesco.org/INDOTSUNAMI/2803sumatra_eq/sumatra_eq.htm

The tsunami warnings issued by the JMA and PTWC seem to have transmitted to the Indian Ocean countries smoothly though it was the first ever day that such service had been done to the area in need of such information.
(see http://hide3diary.blogspot.com/2005/01/fill-absense-in-indian-ocean.html)

Why there were no large tsunamis, is a mystery, but we must be careful of loss in faith... That's why we fear false alarms. Not just the authorities giving out the warning, but we broadcasters too. I just hope from my heart, the residents at risk of lives will listen to these warnings the next time.
Without belief, trust, and understanding of the viewers, what we are trying to accomplish here will never come true. Saving as many lives as we can, of ones in danger, is the ultimate objective of we broadcasters!! ...and this is of course why we all take pride in what we do!

A real nightmare...

M8.5 (JMA) quake near Sumatra
Just as I was going to sleep, info about a large quake striking the Indian Ocean at around 1:10 AM JST jumped in!
The JMA put it at a magnitude of 8.5, the USGS at 8.7. Rushed to my office, and ran around for about five and a half hours to cover the story... There's reports of deaths in the Nias Island of Indonesia, but none of a large tsunami. ???

Well, I was told to rest a while, so I'll take a nap and see what kind of updates are coming in when I wake up... Zzz...

Story from Kyodo pasted below

M8.7 quake occurs near Sumatra, killing nearly 300 people
JAKARTA, March 29, Kyodo - (EDS: UPDATING DEATH TOLL)

Nearly 300 people were killed on Indonesia's Nias Island after a powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 8.7 rocked the northwestern coast of Sumatra Island late Monday and triggered tsunami warnings in Indonesia, Thailand and Sri Lanka.
A physician on Nias Island told a local radio station early Tuesday he confirmed the bodies of 296 people. Other island officials separately said about 500 houses were destroyed.
''A great earthquake occurred'' at 11:09 p.m. local time, the U.S. Geological Survey said, adding the magnitude 8.7 quake, up from an initially estimated 8.2, ''has been located in northern Sumatra, Indonesia,'' about 1,400 kilometers northwest of capital Jakarta.
Indonesia, Thailand and Sri Lanka issued tsunami alerts following the quake.
U.S. Geological Survey officials said the quake is believed to be an aftershock of the Dec. 26 killer quake which rocked the same region and triggered tsunamis in the Indian Ocean. Almost 300,000 people were killed in the quake and tsunami disaster.
According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, the latest earthquake measured a preliminary magnitude of 8.5, compared with the Dec. 26 quake's magnitude 9.0.
''The energy of the latest earthquake was about one-sixth of the previous one, but I have never heard of an aftershock of this size,'' said Katsuyuki Abe, director of the University of Tokyo's Earthquake Information Center.
The latest quake was felt in Medan and Padang and other areas on Sumatra Island, local residents said. Indonesia's Metro TV reported that power failure hit Banda Aceh, the capital of Aceh Province.
In Singapore, the quake caused tremors in many parts of the country, a Singapore meteorological agency official said. But the National Environment Agency said, ''There is unlikely to be any other impact on Singapore.''
Police said they received more than 1,000 phone calls from people in the small island-state inquiring about tremors that were felt in many parts of Singapore, causing residents to evacuate high-rise buildings.
But there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage.
India said it is taking all precautionary measures with its defense forces on full alert to meet with an impending disaster. It is advising people living along the coastal areas of its three southern states and the Andaman and Nicobar islands to evacuate from their houses.
Home Minister Shivraj Patil spoke with chief ministers of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh and asked them to issue a tsunami alert and evacuate people living along the eastern and southern coasts.
Defense Minister Pranab Mukherjee told a private television news channel that armed forces including the navy and coast guard are on full alert and all systems are in place. The emergency control room of the home ministry has already been activated to coordinate the disaster control activities, media reports said.
Some Indian experts said the tsunami would take at least three hours to reach the Indian coast.
The Japan Meteorological Agency said the quake induced a small tsunami on Cocos Islands in the Indian Ocean.
The Japanese agency said it relayed quake data to Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, India and Malaysia, which were seriously affected by the last tsunami disaster.
The latest temblor came shortly after a Japanese scientist who was involved in a study on the Dec. 26 disaster that devastated Aceh Province warned that a powerful earthquake may occur in the central to southern part of Sumatra in the future.
''Aceh (in northern Sumatra) is stable at the moment, but there is a high possibility that a large-scale earthquake may happen in the middle or southern part of Sumatra,'' Wataru Azuma of the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology told reporters in Jakarta.

Safety, that's all I care for...

patients from plane being helped (From Kyodo News)
It was a sloppy day, raining for hours and I was just winding up remaining business I'd left over from last week and from months ago.
A news flash came in during the evening news hours, as a EVA Air plane made an emergency landing in Narita Airport.
The plane landed after about fifty were injured in air turbulence. I felt relieved that no one lost their lives. Really...

We always have to be alert for airplanes. There isn't a disastrous accident for years. There's reports that the Japan Airlines have repeatedly made minor mistakes these recent months. I know they can straighten up, but there's something strange going on the airline industry. False security is the greatest foe.
I hope the airway will remain safe as always!!

Take me out to the ball game...

this ain't no football game!
The baseball season had begun this weekend, but since I'm a big fan of the Central League, I didn't pay so much attention to the opening games of the Pacific League. (The Central League opener is set for this Friday)
But today's papers were filled with news of a historical defeat. The Rakuten Golden Eagles were routed 26 to zip on Sunday after winning its first ever game on Saturday.
The team is a new face in the league. It was born after the merger of two teams which almost led to a critical situation of merging the two leagues into one, because without the Eagles, there would only be five teams in the Pacific League and it was expected that wouldn't pay up.
The merging of the leagues didn't happen, and instead we will still have the Japan Series at the end of the season and the exciting battle between the two champions of the leagues will still decide who's number one. We even have interleague games which for years we've longed for!
The crushing defeat of the new team had an impact strong enough to attract many to a new page of history in the sport. Just a little pitiful for the Eagles as they lost another one tonight, but just like me, I think many are lured in already out of sympathy!

Driving back to reality!

so much for a brief escape from reality...
Joined my friend's plan to see our classmate's 45 days old baby. Oh boy, these creatures are the cutest things on earth, aren't they?
Yesterday at the barbecue party there were two three year olds and a one year old. These guys just run and fool around like crazy (no offense... I mean the "cute" kind of crazeeee), but hey, they're just adorable. And these are kids of my friends!!
...I really feel I'm missing some kind of life here. At least some of my best friends are having a life I once dreamt of...

Well, it was another beautiful day today. After I took my friend to Narita Airport I had a four hour drive back home without using the highway. Though there were heavy traffic on the way, it was quite comfortable just because I didn't have any reason to rush. After going through the Narita Kaido (Route 296) , as I moved into the Chiba Kaido (Route 14), I rode past a familiar block...
It was where I used to visit frequently at night when I was in my first year in Tokyo!

Japanese journalists use a somewhat troublesome way of gathering news items. "YO-UCHI" (meaning "night attack" in Japanese) as we call it, is a traditional way of getting exclusive info in Japan. It's very simple...but not simple as it seems! We just go to the residences of sources to talk to them and draw out exclusive stories. But whether the sources kindly respond to our ambushes at night, just depends on how reliable the relationship is. This is the real hard part... Many times you get yelled at, and turned down. But sometimes by repeating the visit, or sometimes by doing it in the morning, the relationship gets better and conversations start. Sometimes you never get to speak to the source even though you ambush the house for years...

Four years ago, as a news reporter covering police work, I was doing these kind of ambushes night after night. The block I passed by today at Funabashi was one of the spots you could find me, four years ago, waiting outside for the source to come back home. The Ramen restaurant I used to eat in while waiting was gone already...
Four years... that's history for me...
At that time of my life, I had a dream to marry a girl, whom I later proposed to... The road to marriage didn't go well and I initially lost my dream. But reality went on, and the road of life continued. Lots of regrets, but exciting discoveries too. Well at least I have a chance to do it again! I'll go on, just like I did today continuing on the Chiba Kaido, which runs through the area I've covered as a reporter four years ago.
A run through many memories I can't forget, back to reality that will start from tomorrow... again!!

Good night sweet pie...
My friend had another fantasy... A girl Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.
She taught me how to sleep... just adorable...

Springtime!

Hmm.. What should I start with!
The weather was refreshing today, and everything was just fine at the riverside of Tamagawa.
An outdoor luxury was waiting for me there, as my friends had organized a barbecue party for a gang of my college days' pals. Now that's just what you need in a beautiful day like this!
Beef, sausages, squids, yakitoris, and colorful sets of vegees, you name it! Of course we had them with cans of beers! Delightful isn't it!
I remember having barbecue parties more often, living in California where the sunshine is more cheap. But you know, it's not bad having severe winters (sorry to all in northern Japan), and bold summers (sorry to all in the basins) as we can appreciate the warmth of spring and the coolness of autumn.
The four seasons in this country enhances the value of recreations we can enjoy in our brief cease-fires from our everyday battles in the business world.
OK, what's next! According to the forecast, in Tokyo, the cherry blossoms are supposed to bloom tomorrow. The best days to view them will be a week or two after the announcement of its blooming.
More fun awaiting, right!?

Even the ducks are having a pleasant swim!

Nightmare!

J'ai regarde le football aujourd'hui! Oops it wasn't French I have to learn, it was German pardon me. Ich habe fussball heute zugeschaut! How's that for a start? But learning German may not be worthwhile anymore...
Since it was freezing when I went outside to shop, I decided to stay most of the day inside to see the broadcasting of one of my favorite sports: soccer.
The first game on the menu today was North Korea inviting Bahrain, and the second was of course Japan visiting Iran. In both games the eastern Asian team got beaten by a goal count of 2 to 1 and a big yellow signal has been switched on for both teams.
The Japanese will play Bahrain on the 30th, but watching how the Bahrainians played the North Koreans today, the match is gonna be a real serious one on Wednesday. Bahrain is on the roll tying against the ferocious Iranians and sneaking past North Koreans at a visitors' game.
With tonight's game, Iran has probably secured its ticket to Germany and the rest must battle for just one more seat.
I sure wanted to go and see some games in Germany next year, but without OUR TEAM there, the feast will not be worth while to run around for rare tickets... Too fast for conclusions, but Wednesday will be a very important day for the Japanese soccer fans, as it will decide whether it'll be an exciting year or not in 2006!

Game winning goal by Iran in the second half 

Bahrain over North Korea on a visitors' game

the very best of the Eagles (released 1994) 

One of my favorites in a night like this...
rest assured my sweetie wherever you are...

Desperado
by Don Henley & Glenn Frey performed by the Eagles (1972)

Desperado, why don't you come to your senses?
You been out ridin' fences for so long now.
Oh, you're a hard one, but I know that you've got your reasons.
These things that are pleasin' you can hurt you somehow.

Don't you draw the queen of diamonds, boy! She'll beat you, if she's able.
You know the queen of hearts is always your best bet.
Now it seems to me some fine things have been laid upon your table,
but you only want the ones that you can't get.

Desperado, oh, you ain't gettin' no younger.
Your pain and your hunger, they're drivin' you home.
And freedom, oh, freedom. That's just some people talkin'
Your prision is walkin' through this world all alone.

Don't your feet get cold in the wintertime?
The sky won't snow and the sun won't shine.
It's hard to tell the nighttime from the day.
You're losin' all your highs and lows.
Ain't it funny how the feeling goes away?

Desperado, why don't you come to your senses?
Come down from your fences, open the gate.
It may be rainin', but there's a rainbow above you.
You better let somebody love you...
You better let somebody love you, before it's too late.

Relief...

a real gap from yesterday... but I like these quite a bit!
Awarded with several days off, I woke up at 3 o'clock in the afternoon today.
My brain was mostly dead throughout the day, and I just realize there's limits in how many days a human being can work in a row without a holiday.
I sometimes feel I've wasted time by doing nothing all day, but in the other hand, I believe a complete recess is necessary for me to go on with my job without any peace of mind.
A day just to... Listen to music, watch TV and hop on my car to get some burgers.
A brief travel through time... spend time like a college boy to refresh my spirit...
Next week I'll return a fighter as always, not brave but at least somewhat decent in my mind!

SOUSHEE!!

OOTORO!! ( ^ p ^ ) dribble dribble
I was partly dead today as my head was banging because of yesterday's beer.
But after the regular working hours, with my colleagues I was heading for Ginza, where all the "grown-ups" hunt for delightful extravagance with their earnings. Our target was a five star sushi restaurant as it's quite common to fetch down some sushi for rewards.
Yes, I've worked my ass for several weeks and I deserve a treat!
The highlight of the luxurious meal was this Ootoro, the fattest part of tuna. This white marble of fish meat just melts in your mouth with its richness hitting your senses.
Yum, yum... ( ^ ~ ^)
After having some Scotch whisky at a bar, I was on the last subway heading home, still recalling the unforgettable flavor.

The fun part...

To be honest, I'm drunk quite a bit!
Writing this after a closing party with too much beer as always.
The live broadcast went fine! Yes, it didn't proceed as planned, but that's the charm of this job, right?
There were discoveries we came across at the last moment of the broadcast. Can't give up this job with all the excitement!
At the rewarding party, we reviewed what we've achieved and what we've left behind. There's always something to learn and with a splendid group of colleagues, our endless quest for a better way of broadcasting continues!!

and in the studio we can't hear the music...

inside it's music to your ears...

Dubbing finished!

the high-tech editing room
In another gorgeous editing environment, telops and subtitles were inserted to the recording rapidly and securely.
These kinds of operations are done everyday in these rooms for tons of programs, but I witness these kind of professionalism only when I'm involved in making special programs. Not bad to see the process of producing a program from the start.
Tomorrow will be the last of it. The broadcasting!

Marunouchi Building packed with people
I'd forgotten it was a three day weekend...
I wasn't among the smiling shoppers in the Marunouchi Building of central Tokyo, as I just stopped by on the way back to my office from a press conference.
Yes, I'm a little sad working on holidays missing all the fun out there, but on the other hand I'm happy I have a job to do.
Still don't have any idea if I'm making any contributions to society, but always eager to do so through my job of reporting...

All's fine!

recording studio!
Though natural hazards always get in the way, the producing process of the show continued without hesitation as the broadcasting day draws closer and closer.
The recording process of my part was postponed because of the earthquake, but not for long, as I started it at around 4:30 PM and finishing it by 5 PM. It was a short stay at the recording studio.
I always dream of listening to a Rolling Stones CD or watching an adventure film DVD here with all the expensive surrounding speakers jumping into your ears! Well so long for that!

Another quake...

Quake at 10:53 West of Fukuoka
I was supposed to be at the recording studio at 11 o'clock, but just minutes before the appointment I intercepted a message from the devil...
At 10:53 JST an earthquake of magnitude 7.0 struck Northern Kyushu. A tremble of 6 minus in the Japanese scale was recorded in Fukuoka and Saga prefectures.
An 75 year old lady lost her life being crushed by a collapsing wall and hundreds were injured. Many fled a small island of Genkaijima partly destroyed by the quake. Fortunately no tsunami was observed, though a tsunami watch was issued temporarily.
I rushed to the news center to deal with the special newscast but little by little I felt how fortunate the people of Kyushu were with limited casualties. Compare it to the damage in the Great Hanshin Earthquake, at the magnitude of 7.3 killing thousands instantly. True, today's earthquake is just about one-thirds in magnitudes (An addition of 0.2 in magnitude equals double in seismic size) but it was the first time in recorded history (by means of JMA=Japan Meteorological Agency observation) that a quake of more than the Japanese tremble scale of 5 minus has hit Fukuoka or Saga.
The surprise attack could have caused more damage, but there seemed to be no serious destruction nor panicking in the streets. Very fortunate! And what a relief it was for us covering the story. But one big concern... We mustn't be too overconfident that trembles of scale 6 minus or earthquakes of magnitudes 7 wouldn't lead to serious damage.
Surely a magnitude 9 quake will bring devastating damage as it done in the Indian Ocean, but a quake of M6.8 have killed dozens in Niigata last October.
Filled with outdated buildings and bunches of people, a smaller quake can cause serious damage in the city. Remember the 2001 Kabukicho fire in Shinjuku?
A packed city like Tokyo or megacities in other areas is filled with vulnerable spots and carelessness in our biggest enemy!

Admire Fuji!

In yesterday's (Saturday) main race, Wakaba Stakes in Hanshin Race Course, Admire Fuji earned a ticket to the Satsuki Sho (Grade 1 race of Japan Racing Association, the first race of the Triple Crown).
The favorite in the Satsuki Sho will unanimously be Deep Impact which overwhelmed in each of the 3 races it appeared on. This includes the Grade 2 preliminary race, the Yayoi Sho two weeks ago, run in the same race course and same length as the Satsuki.
The jockey, Yutaka TAKE didn't even try to use his whip and the horse won without a sweat. TAKE rode Admire Fuji today and he probably knows which colt has the better capacity to win. I guess he'll ride Deep Impact in the Satsuki, but as a supporter of the underdog, I believe there's never "absoluteness" in horse racing.
A small change in the pace of the race will alter the conclusion and also staying in good shape for months is not so simple for the delicate animal.
The final target of the spring will be the Nippon Derby raced in the end of May, and this year's race will be one of most exciting in these several years!

Admire Fuji wins Wakaba Stakes 

Admire Fuji (No. 5) slips out in front! 

Time to rest a little...

Let's go on! right? Doraemon?
Went to work after sunset.
It wasn't my duty to be there, but tonight we talked about how the live part of the show will go, inviting one of the guests to our editing room. The professor saw the video-taped part of the show and discussed with us on how the live part should roll.
It's always interesting to hear reactions from experts and though I'm not invited to have a role in structuring the scripts of the live part, being present at the discussion was good reference for the future. Let's see how the show will end up!

Graduation time!

karaoke!
Since Saturday can wait, I stopped by the farewell party of our staff graduating this spring.
They're going to step out to the rough seas of the business world as freshmens in society.
It was well over 2:30 when I got to the party, but they were still having modest conversations...
With all the stress I had these few days, transforming it into some kind of turmoil wasn't difficult!
Singing and roaring blew up the calm mood, and personally I think that's how parties should be! uh...well... to be honest, it's OK if it's fun for me. (^v^)! The party went on till 6:30 in the morning...

Wish all of them have lifetime experiences building up professional skills and expertise in the areas they've chosen. When I was a freshman, I wanted to quit and runaway to another world so many times, but results, whether they are good or not, supported me to go on.
Seeing yourself learning and growing was a real pleasure. And now, I think this was not just for myself, but maybe for many others that have supported me.
Look where I am now! I've learned a lot and achieved many things. In return, starting to support many of the younger is something I should set about, of course, along with the pursuit of the ultimate never ending!!