2010年08月30日(月)～１９日（木）

2010年08月30日(月)

口蹄疫終結で、子牛のセリ市始まる

４ヵ月もの間の苦渋の期間を終え、再出発だ。 気候温暖の宮崎の地が　再び　おいしい宮崎牛の生産地として復活してほしい。 この病気、地元では、もともと地元の人が外国の水牛を持ちこんだのが原因とみられているが、マスコミは伝えていない。

Miyazaki back in saddle with livestock auctions
MIYAZAKI (Kyodo) Livestock auctions resumed Sunday in Miyazaki Prefecture as farmers hoped to give the vital industry a fresh start following a four-month foot-and-mouth disease epidemic that finally came to an end two days ago./
The first foot-and-mouth case in the outbreak was confirmed in the town of Tsuno on April 20./
The highly contagious disease, which only attacks cloven-hooved animals, then spread to 11 municipalities in Miyazaki Prefecture, including Miyakonojo, one of the biggest livestock centers in the nation.(Japan Times)

“漬物の日”も　あった　

８月２１日は、“漬物の日”だったようだ。 愛知県の「あま市」（初めて知った市だが）の神社で祭りがおこなわれた。 日本の中央に位置し、古くから物資の中継地点ということもあって、漬物の生誕地らしい。 'God of pickles' Aichi shrine blesses veggies soaked in brine Pickles of all kinds were recently gathered from different parts of Japan and brought to Aichi Prefecture, where the "god of pickles" is enshrined./ Kayatsu Shrine in the city of Ama is known as the "birthplace of pickles". According to priest Tomoharu Aoki, 43, pickles were born by accident when vegetables offered to the shrine fermented with salt that was also being offered./ Legend has it that Prince Yamatotakeru, a mythical hero, had been touched by pickles offered to him by locals as he was making his way to a battlefield.(Japan Times) 海の塩と新鮮な野菜のコラボレーション、日本が誇る食材ではある。     2010年08月27日(金) 日本のプロ野球は　来年から国際試合球に近いボールを使用する。 ボールとバットの一定のスピードの下で、ミズノ製のこのボールは今より約１メートル飛距離が短くなるという。 某スポーツ紙は、年間１０４本のホームランが減るだろうと報じた。 外国のメデｨアは、日本人フアンの心のどこまで届くか　とボールの行方を冷静に見ている。   Japanese Pro Baseball to change to ball with less flight Japan’s twelve professional baseball teams will be switching to a new ball design for the 2011 season, Nippon Professional Baseball announced on August 23rd./ The NPB publicized the decision to change baseballs as an effort to find a ball that feels closer to the types of balls used in international competitions./ Mizuno made it openly known in a press release that their baseball does not travel as far as others, ～.(Examiner.com)     2010年08月26日(木) 学習塾　中国へ進出 中国での生産が多くなりつつある日本企業だが、中国人従業員に日本語を教えるために日本の学習塾が進出を始めている。 生産効率をあげたり、ストライキが多発しつつある現状への対応。 生産方法や集団でのモノつくりに優れた日本のノウハウを、同じく優れた日本語とともに“輸出”する時が来たか。 Japanese cram school looks to Chinese workers FOSHAN, China--A Japanese company sees a potentially lucrative business opportunity stemming from the recent labor strife that has shackled foreign companies operating in China. / The idea is to tap into the eagerness of Japanese companies to strengthen communications with their Chinese workers to avert labor clashes and discourage them from quitting. / Kyoshin dispatches Japanese teachers to five other Japanese manufacturers in China, as well as local universities and high schools. / But recently, labor problems have erupted in China, including strikes at factories operated by a parts maker affiliated with Toyota Motor Corp. and a subsidiary of Honda Motor Co. (Asahi.com)   2010年08月25日(水) 2010年08月25日(水) この暑さ　いつまで 猛暑が続き、屋内で寝ている間の死者まで出る。 山形市が過去の日本の最高気温の記録地だったようだが、数年目に 岐阜県の多治見市に　７０数年ぶりに代わっているようだ。 ４０度を外国で経験したが、湿度がなく、不快感もなかった。 ”毎年夏は、暑さを避けてひと月ほど外国に”という生活は、、、無理か？ Heat defies tradition, rewrites record books According to traditional belief, Aug. 23 is "shosho," the day when summer's heat begins to wane, but conditions across the nation were still scorching on Monday./ From Aug. 11 to 20 this year, the average temperature in western Japan was 2 C higher than normal for that time of year. It was the region's highest average temperature for the period since records began in 1961./ In eastern Japan, the mid-August average was 1.8 C above normal, and was the second-highest on record for the region.(Daily Yomiuri)   2010年08月24日(火) 韓国で　ブルーベリーブーム ？ ブルーベリー入りのお餅つきまで。 “癌や心臓病予防にも効果的”と、健康志向の高まりは、韓国は日本に負けず熱心。 日本からの苗木から始まった“スーパー・フード”とも言われるブルーベリー栽培もさかん、という。 いいものは何でも取り入れる姿勢に、かっての日本の姿を見る？   Blueberries a Big Hit in South Korea Summer camp kids get a hand with an old Asian tradition, with a twist - pounding rice cakes infused with blueberry juice./ The 1,500 tons of blueberries harvested this year on 1,000 South Korean farms are not enough to meet demand./ The berries were virtually unseen on the Korean peninsula until just a few years ago, but that has changed./ Blueberry farming began several years ago with seedlings from neighbor Japan. (Voice of America)   2010年08月23日(月)優勝旗　春に続き沖縄へ 夏の高校野球で春・夏連覇を成し遂げた沖縄の興南高校。 ９２回の歴史で６校目の偉業。 見事な集中攻撃を　穏やかに見つめる監督の顔が印象的だった。 沖縄をひとつにした若者たちの偉業に拍手。 プロ野球もこれぐらいのスピードで試合が運べば、子供のフアンも増えるのに、と思っていたら、女子のプロ野球も始まったらしい。 おっちゃんやおばちゃんのプロ野球界、大丈夫？ Konan earns Koshien title Konan became only the sixth school in the long history of Japanese high school baseball to win both the spring and summer national tournaments and first since Daisuke Matsuzaka, now with the Boston Red Sox, helped Yokohama do so in 1998./ "Our team and the people of Okinawa were looking forward to this day," Konan manager Masaru Gakiya said of the first summer title by an Okinawan school./ "My boys completely made Koshien their home and got better every game.     2010年08月20日(金) 豆腐に　ワイン？ ワインを語るほどグルメではない。 だけど、和食にもワインがあうのはわかる、しかし、豆腐にもねえ、、、。 もともと、紅や白やのワインの違いは、生産地が肉か魚か、どちらを主食にしていたかの地理的違いらしい。 いずれにしても、世界のベスト主食・和食は、あらゆる酒を受け入れる度量があるということか。 今夜は、ビールに代えてワインといこう。 East meets West at the dining table It might seem unconventional, but wines can find great partners in Japanese food./ This month, I take a look at how to best combine washoku (traditional-style Japanese food) and wine./ Although in general, whites work best with Japanese food, if you're hooked on reds, then yakitori or grilled unagi (eel) make excellent pairings — especially if you're eating them with a sweet-and-sour teriyaki sauce. (Japan Times) 2010年08月19日(木) 夏山での事故が今年も起こる。 目の前１０メートルの山小屋が雨と霧で見えなかったり、水の流れのない川床が一瞬にして濁流で覆われる。 だがしかし、栄華の巷、下に見て、しばし、仙人気分で自然に溶け込むのも避暑の一策か、、、。 もっとも、学生時代はそんな余裕はなかったけれど、、。 World apart: Climb above the clouds in the Hida Range of Japan's Northern Alps, and breathtaking vistas like this await you under a cobalt-blue sky.  Getting high in the highlands High in the Northern Alps of Japan there are snowfields in August. Up above the tree line, wherever the bare geology dips into cirques, thick blankets of dirty white stretch out between the peaks and jagged ridges like caught clouds./ No matter how tired you are in the mountains, the view can take your breath away and leave your heart beating wildly./ Sunrise from the summit is breathtaking, and, as it's not a weekend or holiday, there's plenty of room for us to watch the whole of the surrounding mountain panorama being slowly illuminated.(The Japan Times)