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Credits: TheTalkingDad.com & FeedWind.comRecent Posts: M Thomas Apple Author Page
Barnard’s Star has a Hoth. No Tauntauns, though.
In their presentation, the researchers jokingly compared the planet to Hoth – the icy planet made famous in one of the “Star Wars” movies, when Luke Skywalker’s steed (a fictional lizard species called a Tauntaun) dies and he must stay warm by burrowing into its intestines. Yay, science. And only six light years away! Which, […]
Icy Montreal sidewalks still a problem after recent winter storm, residents whinge
Residents across the island are complaining about the state of city sidewalks. They say they are dangerous and that the city is taking too long to clean them. OK, the original article doesn’t say residents are whingeing. But they are. Wow. And here I thought this was an American thing. As for me, I dealt with […]
Why bother with geneaology? Here’s why
I blog a lot about space — asteroids, planets, the cosmos in general — but I also write about my ancestors. In fact, I think everyone should find out more about their past. There are plenty of reasons why you should find out more of your family history. One thing, though: the 23 and me […]
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Category Archives: Japanese
The end is the beginning
Our daughter is now leaving nursery school. From her birth to my wife’s maternity leave to my paternity leave, from building a new house to finishing a doctorate to switching jobs, from one daughter to another (who’s a completely different … Continue reading
Come out, damned spot!
One aspect of bathrooms in Japan that surprised me at first was the water everywhere around the sink. I mean, everywhere. Not having a habit of waiting for people to wash their hands in public lavatories, I found it a … Continue reading
The Ugly Duckling in Japan
Tomorrow is “Coming of Age Day” in Japan, when 20 year olds celebrate officially becoming “adults” in Japanese society. Today, my family went to a performance by a local civic group of The Ugly Duckling, billed as “a moving story … Continue reading
O-shougatsu
New Year’s lasts one night of drinks and one day of college football in the US, but in Japan the holidays lasts for three days. Actually, for many the New Year’s holidays start on December 29th, giving the typical worker a … Continue reading
Taking Leave: 2015 in review
Taking Leave: 2015 in Review! Continue reading
More updates on Amazon Japan’s child porn and abuse images
I previously posted in October about the child abuse images and pornographic materials being openly sold on Amazon (also on Rakuten and Tsutaya). An online protest was started shortly thereafter, and Amazon Japan responded by (partly) removing the most offensive items. … Continue reading
The Joy of Reading
We were eager to have books readily available for our kids…and not just available, but in a location where the kids could choose the books they wanted, when they wanted. So we arranged for the cubbyhole built into the staircase in the living room, and we had two small bookcases put into the kids’ play room.
It was up to us to provide the materials… Continue reading