Second language learning may delay decline of or even improve congitive functions in elderly

I like learning foreign languages, mostly English, since young days. I am not sure what I have achieved with it, though. The other languages than English, like German, French, Russian or Spanish, seem to end in failure with me so far. I still go on struggling with German in order to listen to and understand Matthew's Passion etc.

At this age in mid 70s, unless making efforts to resist it, I feel knowledges of English are lost day by day. It is an aging process and quite physiological. Training with any second language may, however, delay aging or even improve our cognitive functions. The review shown below concerning the papers regarding the aging cognitive decline with learning a second language seems to support the hypothesis told above, even if the results are not consistent and they should be confirmed further with imaging studies. It may be necessary to study this subject with the same cohort longitudinally for years. Of course, comparison with the group without second language learning may be informative.

 

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34867264/ 

As for my own experience, it is always stimulating to read certain paper or book written in English. When confronting any ununderstandable word or phrase, I would imagine what it means considering the context or the related lexicology. Even when looking up for that in a dictionary, I always go on expecting the answer. It is often not tiring but interesting to me. When I imagined or expected it right, it gives me a rewarding sensation. Intellectual pleasure, however small it may be for me.   

I recently realized that rewarding sensation is identical or, at least, close to that I feel in the QSOs on CW. That process has been repeatedly described in this blog. Morse code is only a system of symbols, but not a language with its specific grammar as often mistaken. But the relationship between certain language, that is, always English, and Morse code is quite strong. Something like abbreviations inherent to Morse code or sounding characteristics of certain words suggestive of its language counterpart etc. There could be inseparable bonding between these two.

If the hypothesis in the previous paragraph is correct, CW conversation might be of help to resist intellectual aging process or to improve our cognitive ability. Simple correspondence of Morse code to the character won't make it, I am afraid.

So too bad I could not practise CW at present. Instead, I would carry on reading papers and books in English. I am reading Merkel's autobio English version titled as "Freedom". Very attractive one. 

This post should be the very last one in this blog this year. Thanks for visiting. Again, I wish you all peace and good health in the coming new year.

Chicken meat cooked with salted malt

Malt is a material made from crops like rice fermented by Koji mold, that is in academic term, Aspergillus oryzae. It is surprising such fermented material could be used as seasoning in cooking etc while other generera of Aspergillus could be higly pathognic for human being especially in critical condition.  

This dish is cooked chicken meat processed with salted malt and potato starch. Lightly salty and thick flavored with malt. In refrigerator, it could be preserved for a few days. A good source of protein. We, old goats, need daily intake of high quality protein like this in order to prevent from frail or sarcopenia in the elderly. If this salted malt is available there, try it!

You, the believer of single malt, this is not the material for whisky! 

 

Former President Jimmy Carter has passed away

I believe Jimmy Carter has embodied the best part of the US as conscience and good will on behalf of the people. He has let us believe politics could be reliable. RIP President Carter.

Barack Obama's words of condolence for him;

 For decades, you could walk into Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains, Georgia on some Sunday mornings and see hundreds of tourists from around the world crammed into the pews. And standing in front of them, asking with a wink if there were any visitors that morning, would be President Jimmy Carter – preparing to teach Sunday school, just like he had done for most of his adult life.

Some who came to hear him speak were undoubtedly there because of what President Carter accomplished in his four years in the White House – the Camp David Accords he brokered that reshaped the Middle East; the work he did to diversify the federal judiciary, including nominating a pioneering women’s rights activist and lawyer named Ruth Bader Ginsburg to the federal bench; the environmental reforms he put in place, becoming one of the first leaders in the world to recognize the problem of climate change.

Others were likely there because of what President Carter accomplished in the longest, and most impactful, post-presidency in American history – monitoring more than 100 elections around the world; helping virtually eliminate Guinea worm disease, an infection that had haunted Africa for centuries; becoming the only former president to earn a Nobel Peace Prize; and building or repairing thousands of homes in more than a dozen countries with his beloved Rosalynn as part of Habitat for Humanity.

But I’m willing to bet that many people in that church on Sunday morning were there, at least in part, because of something more fundamental: President Carter’s decency.

Elected in the shadow of Watergate, Jimmy Carter promised voters that he would always tell the truth. And he did – advocating for the public good, consequences be damned. He believed some things were more important than reelection – things like integrity, respect, and compassion. Because Jimmy Carter believed, as deeply as he believed anything, that we are all created in God’s image.

Whenever I had a chance to spend time with President Carter, it was clear that he didn’t just profess these values. He embodied them. And in doing so, he taught all of us what it means to live a life of grace, dignity, justice, and service. In his Nobel acceptance speech, President Carter said, “God gives us the capacity for choice. We can choose to alleviate suffering. We can choose to work together for peace.” He made that choice again and again over the course of his 100 years, and the world is better for it.

Maranatha Baptist Church will be a little quieter on Sundays, but President Carter will never be far away – buried alongside Rosalynn next to a willow tree down the road, his memory calling all of us to heed our better angels. Michelle and I send our thoughts and prayers to the Carter family, and everyone who loved and learned from this remarkable man.

Again the ancient tomb named Bentenyama

I have had a few chances to visit my former office in the next town south to ours for the past week. 

On the way, there is an ancient tomb named Bentenyama among the farm fields. I used to see it everyday on the way to and from the office. I have written about it once or twice in this blog. It will have been 30 years next spring since I first started commuting to the office, even though I put an end to it 12 years ago. Time sure flys fast but also I feel it was dauntingly long time ago.

The tomb is believed to be built by a powerful family in this area even though the name is unknown. It was 4th or 5th century, they say. There are a number of same kind of ancient tombs around this area. This one is rather a small one. The diameter is about 10 meters. A few meters high. A small shrine is on the top to enshrine the ancestors, which must be placed there later. 

Whenever I see this tomb, two things come up in my mind.  

                                                            

Firstly, the man of power might want to convey his power to the others in the area. At the same time, the guy might be concerned about the world after death and prepared for that with this tomb. He must owned some kind of religiousness, even though it is a question if it was right attitude or not. 

Secondly, the people, the descendants, in this area must first worshipped the anscestor buried in this tomb and then started worshipping as an object of their primitive religion. This ethos must have been delivered from generation to generation. The tomb is well maintained by the people in the area. The grass grown on it has been cut and the tomb still looks neat. Even though the worshipping is declined. They sure has lost faith in ancestors but still may have a religious attitude toward this tomb.    

Thinking of these, I am kind of relieved as if I were told I would return to the soil as the ancestors have done. There is a serene and quiet stage waiting for me. I am not sure what it is but would let me rest away from all the worries and anxieties in the world. 

On the way commuting to and from the office, I often kept the roof window wide open and listened to this piano trio by Ropartz. I might have already mentioned aboout this music before. Listening to it, I felt as if I were flying freely over the rice paddies. 

 

On Christmas

On Christmas in 1979, I and my wife have headed to a festive reunion with family and those who had been involved with the sanatorium my aunt managed around WWII. A couple of dozens of people have attended it at parent's home, maternal, not too far from this present place. 

We have just started our residency at a med school hospital nearby. It took only 20 minutes to drive from the dorm we lived to that parent's home. We didn't have a car those days and should come there by train and bus. It took almost a couple of hours. I would like to attend that meeting in order to introuce my wife to them. We were in honey moon period. I was a kind of proud of her and of starting career as a doctor.

We should walk about 15 minutes from the bus stop to maternal parent's home on a street, unpaved those days. Walking on the way, we could see the mountain range in Nikko area, about 40 or 50km west of there, over harvested farms. This photo was taken about 20 years ago, much later than that trip. I believe the mountains were snowed like in this photo.   

We didn't expect what would happen to us then. Only describable in more than tens of pages here. We were rather optimistic and hopeful for our future. 

Even reaching the last chapter of my life, in this season, I always recall that beautiful mountains shown on the photo. Even if our lives have not been as what we dreamed of those days, I am overwhelmed with gratitude to family, people around me and the supreme being. Even if I would writhe on the ground from now on, I would not forget what I thought in Christmas in 1979. 

In Christmas, another thing I always remember is the famous Christmas Concerto by Corelli. I have mentioned of this concerto grosso in a previous post. I have played this music a number of times. In some occasions as a solist of cello. In a year or two since I started practising cello, I have had a chance to play it with some orchestral members. It was a Christmas party at a women's university, with which our orchestra cooperated. At the student hall, the trees in the campus and a few buildings were seen in the darkness. Very chilly without heating or with inefficient heating, I believe. Of course, our mind was invariably warmed. When the last movement of pastorale was over, having cleaned up the hall, we went back home in clusters of close friends. 

Again, I wish you all the best for this season, either in good shape or not. Let's believe something good is prepared for us next year. Even without it, let's remember anything blessing us. Thanks for visiting this blog in this passing year. You will be welcomed anytime here. 

 

A problem is solved

Today was the day to have my former office delivered from the borrower to me. I have known him, a pediatrician, through a music circle. When I was thinking to retire and asked him to let me know whoever would take over my office. He answered me he himself would do. Everything went smooth after that. I don't know why but have not seen him in person for the past 12 years while he rented it. 

The office was modified a little bit by himself but sure reminded me of the days when I was working there. I had worked there for 17 years before retirement. It was almost perfectly well preserved even after having been in use for the past 12 years by the borrowing pediatrician. It was no sweat for us to determine what item should be discarded. To my unexpected pleasure, he and his wife were grateful to me. They have given me a bottle of wine and confection for souvenir. He has had a health issue for a year or so and has been wondering when he should retire. The reason why he cared for the office so carefully must not only because it was a rent office but also he would go on working there further. Anyhow, he decided to retire this month. Considering of what conflict he has had in his mind before deciding retirement, I had only few words to cast to him. I only thanked him for having used it in such a  wonderul way. It is me who should thank him.

So one of my problems which should be answered this year is solved. I would look for anyone who would take it over for now. Having built it for almost 30 years, I was thinking to pull it down. But as it is maintained in very good condition, I would not do that. In addition, it was a building which I was involved with from scratch. Moreover, my father was so pleased to see me working at own practice. It has been his dream to work with me. He has worked at various medical facilities before retirement. 

When construction of the office has started, he regularly visited there as if it had been his own office. Actually, he has attended to the office a few times in a week and has done a simple work on behalf of the clerk in lunch break.

My father standing at the building in construction.

Even though it was not intended in the beginning, I could do a bit of so called filial piety. It might not be correct. I was helped by him.

This is the newly built office in 1995.

Season's Greetings 2024

It is already the winter solstice today. Freezing cold but still sunny outside. It is the time for me to summarize things in this passing year and to prepare Season's Greetings for friends. With time flying away so fast, I feel more distance from what's going on around me as well as in the world. I am afraid this greetings might sound manneristic to you but, as a milestone of life, I would do it here again.

I was blessed with good health throughout the year, which enabled me to have studied and practise organic/natural farming. Even though the farm size is small, it has been a hard work for me. But it was a pleasure. Having cropped a lot of vegetables, I could deliver some of them to friends and family members even it it was not much enough. I have been anxious about what went on with this property since no one would take it over. Recalling young toddler days at this place, I was convinced that it would only return to a forest breezy and rich with wild animals. That thought has soothed me a lot. This is a step for me to leave this world.

Together working in the farm, I have studied a bit about organic/natural farming. Mostly on the theoretical aspects. Certain amount of knowledges is now accumulated in that field even though there are a lot to be investigated, for example, on the soil bacteria and their functions. It is amazing that the relationship between plants and the environment, especially, the soil has been thrown light to with science. The microbacteria in the soil and their close relationship with plants are definitively important in growth of plants/vegetables, they say. I was surprised to know microbiome is in the roots of plants and even in their seeds. I could not help comparing it with mitochondria, an important organelle responsible for energy metabolism in eukaryote animals including human beings, which are believed to originate from certain microorganism invaded in the cells in the process of evolution. Synbiosis between them is crucial. We could not live without that interdependent relationships. This fact may give a key for solution to a lot of problems in the world.

It was a bit too late for me to learn about it. But I still would like to practise the organic/natural farming in the tiny farm so far as I could. "The stronger prey the weaker" society and world won't last long, I am afraid. It is not sustainable. Synbiosis should be the motto in every aspect in our lives, I believe. 

An egg plant has bloomed in this summer. I love those vegetables/plants. Maybe, I look like a dad looking at his children when I see them in the farm.

It takes a few years to have the ground soil suitable for organic farming. I wish I could start it a bit earlier. But they say it is never too late. I would go on fertilizing the soil with grasses and compost produced at the same place. 

My wife has attained a pace in her life since having retired a couple of years ago. She has been involved in the local community. In addition to working together for various events with the people in the community, she has worked distributing pumphlets etc from the local government. Of course, I am employed sometimes. If it is said favorably, the community bonding is so tight. Since the average age of the habitants is increasing year by year, however, I doubt this system could persist for a long time. Actually, such an old fashioned relationship in the community could hardly be found in the city area. 

My brother, working as a psychiatrist in Tohoku area, is going to retire possibly next year. He seems to be perplexed at how and where he should go on after retirement. He and his wife will be visiting here in the New Year's holidays. I am not sure what I could advise him but would tell him we would suppport him whatsoever in the next step of life. Possibly, as if our parents were still alive.

I have been relieved a lot by classical music. As written in the recent post, I have been listening to Nocturnes by Faure at night. It covers almost his whole life as a composer. We could listen and understand how he has lived his life from these works. Nocturne is not a strict form of music but is suitable to express own thoughts straightly. We could hear romantic songs in the early ones but later more sufferings, pains or even anger. Typically with Nr 1 and 11, there is a basso continuo of sorrow. I bet even though he has lived in the social circles at least for some part of his life, he has had depressive state, even not pathological. I have not conquered all of the piano sonata of Beethoven yet as planned in the beginning o this year. Still wondering what pianist is the best. I should decide it before getting too old. Studying Matthew's Passion remains an assignment given to myself early this year. It may take me a long time to accomplish it but is still worth doing.   

Ham radio...I am often told to come back on the air. But, honestly, I am inclined to ask myself what it is for me. I would come back to this old hobby with a smaller set up later. I won't depict about it precisey here but the licensing system in our country is becoming extremely contrary to what it should be. I just wonder when people realize that it is causing absolute decline of ham radio. It seems it's an aspect of the decline due to corruption and collusion among politicians, bureaucrats and business. This ham radio related matter might be only a light problem compared with the others so serious.

Well, it is enough for now. I only wish all of you good health and pleasant holiday season. If you would keep in touch with me through this blog or in facebook, it is more than the most pleasant thing for me. 

Yours, 

Shin Onisawa

Pianist Kazutaka Tsutsui

I have acquainted with this pianist about a quarter century ago. It was at a piano circle based on the internet regularly held for amateur pianists and, in some cases, for chamber music string players in Tokyo.

At one of such a meeting, I could not forget him playing the famous Barcarolle by Chopin. Grand scaled, gorgeous rendition. At a time, I asked him to play the 1st movement of the 2nd piano trio by Brahms. Even though I was ashamed to be far from his viruosity, I have enjoyed that ensemble. His pianism was light touched and transparent. While playing in the trio, I was really surprised to listen him playing the complex texture of music of Brahms in that way.

He was from a science field in his academic career. He was a laureate of the 1st prize at a concours for amateur pianists when he was young. He used to play a Beethoven's concert with an orchestra. Now he seems concentrated on performance with antique as well as old pianos.  

 

At the page of his profile in his site, he says his motto is to convey compassion and gentleness to people. These are apt to be forgotten in the modern mechanized society, as he says. 

With a fine copy of the prototype piano, Cristofori's piano, he plays a baroque piece, Sounata III by L. Giustini. You may hear his motto in this performance.

Here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65uPK7tFTqA&t=2s

He has posted a lot of his performances in addition to other topics in his blog as follows, even though in Japanese. You may enjoy listening his perormances.

Here.

https://bergheil.air-nifty.com/blog/

Through outward shape to the essence

A trivial topic on Morse code...

 In Dec of 2014, I have posted the following sentences in facebook. 

 I have enjoyed QRQ navigation with Mitch WB0GKH and Bill W6QR on 40m this evening. About 35WPM. QRQ seems to effectively activate my brain. We should synchronize thinking with the movement of fist in QRQ. Much fun. I should sometimes train myself with that speed, even though I won't take it like a sport. I have forgotten that fun for a while. I have finished the session tonight with a bit slow bug with Don WB6BEE as usual haha.

This short message has brought me back to those days. Happy and pleasant. As if it were endlessly continuing.

A blog post I made in my Japanese blog around the same time as the post shown above reminded me of saying by a good old friend Bob Warmke W6CYX. I was calling CQ on 15m and he called me to tell he could not resist giving me a call when I ran "a bait". A straight key or a bug key sending is so attractive to him. He actually bit the bait at that time. I was almost forgetting this episode but now clearly remembered of that. Actually such a bait was often worth using when the band was deadly silent and there was no answer to CQ with an electric keyer or even a memory keyer!

What do these two episodes tell me? I enjoyed QRQ but was more interested in slow Morse code sent by hand keys. The latter is more unique for the sending individual. It is like agogic in music performance. It makes us more relaxed and feel the sender's personality. Or even the sender's psychological status. There used to be some friends who wanted me to send Morse code with a hand key in QSO with him, whether a straight or a bug. Now I fully understand why they wanted me to change the electrical key to a hand key.

Considering further, I should say what key to use is a kind of external issue. More important is what to talk about. That refers to an inner richness in communication. Del W8KJP used to be a masterful user of bug key years ago. But his health issue made him giving up using that bug key with fluence and fine nuance. He started using a key board. I have enjoyed talking to him even more after that.

Through the simplest system of mode in communication, we enjoy understanding each other and sharing things and experiences. It might be the ultimate goal of Morse code communication.

Being asked if I have achieved that myself, however, I must say I am ashamed and embarrassed to have been away from the goal.

"Is Paris Burning?"

A documentary program titled as "The 20th Century on Film" has been on the air from NHK from 1995 to 1996. It was without any unnecessary direction but in matter of fact style. That style rather impressed us. The first half of the century was a time of war. It has shown millions of people hurt, killed and starved in the war. 

The year 1995 was when I started own practice at a place unfamiliar to me. I made a big debt to a bank for that. For the coming several years, I have worked hard literally without taking a day off throughout a year. Around that time, I was annoyed by malaise such as low grade fever, which later turned out to be male menopause. With the debt and responsibility for work burdened on my shoulders in addition to that unspecified malaise, I have struggled at work. 

It was a few years since the bubble economy had ruptured. Our country was going into deflation, which later lead to the debt monetization by Abe administration. It has piled up an astronomical amount of national debt which could not be easily refunded. Neoliberal economy together with the monetization has caused a big economical disparity among the people, most of them going into poor. It was the time when this economical derangement started.  

Personally, the only good thing we had during the time was that we could live together with my parents. Hopefully, it has been one of the happiest terms in their lives surrounded by us and their grandchildren. It has not lasted too long, though. Father has died in 2004 while mother has in 2011. 

The theme music of the program titled as "Is Paris Burning?" after a renowned film of liberation of Paris in WWII is so poignantly dramatic. Whenever listening to this piece, I remember myself absent-mindedly watching the program on TV as well as what has occured with me and the society around that time. How would this time be recalled by another program "The 21st Century on the Film" in the end of this century? Hopefully, less conflicts and less injustice in the world, even if not completely in justice. 

Cancer in young generation is increasing

A japanese physician in the US has reviewed a few epidemiological studies regarding the occurence of cancer among young generation. 

Here. 

 https://www.mricg.info/single-post/cancer-before-age-49-increases-by-80-over-30-years-revealing-why-younger-cancer-patients-are-on?utm_campaign=00052660-c7c0-4517-9e01-a5d1b72ac75c&utm_source=so&utm_medium=mail_lp&cid=cb295832-5da4-4df1-9b7b-5c4884619177

These studies amaze me a lot. Those young generation have been believed to be far from cancer. Developing cancer should be their own problem but also a burden to the society. The patients might need social security for some time in stead of contributing to the society as work force.

Caricinogenesis is not a simple process but a multiple factor event. The cause of this increment of cancer patients among youth should be carefully investigated. As a general rule, they should avoid alcohol, tobacco or prcessed food etc and should be encouraged to do regular exercise and to take balanced kinds of food including vegetables. HPV vaccine should be given them to avoid cervical cancer.   

I am concerned about exercise deficit. One of the latest issue of JAMA has published a large scaled paper regarding the relationship between exercise and mortality rate. Of course, regular exercise lowers the mortality rate in every generation whatever the cause might be. It has not investigated on the reason of exercise deficit. I suspect the digitalization of life may deprive them of time/chance for exercising. The virtual world smartphone might make them feel they are living in the real world. 

I really hope some researchers would investigate what brings this low physical activity and on possible relationship with their immersion in the internet. 

It is a kind of self-reflection for myself as a recent post says. Discard smartphone and go outdoor for activity!

Miraculous potatoes

We have already had frost early in the morning for the past couple of weeks. Most vegetables except for onion, spinach or broccoli etc would wither by this time in a year. Potatoes are not exception for that. I have harvested all of the fall potatoes.

But there are a few plants of potatoes standing up and even blooming with green leaves at a corner of the garden farm. They are spontaneously growing there every year. 

                           

They were descendants of potatoes discarded there years ago. With continuos cropping such as potato, there could be proliferation of bacilli harmful to it or deficit of certain nutrients, and eventually the growth of the vegetable won't be good there. It is famous as monocropping difficulty in farming. I am intrigued how this plant of potatoes have not only evaded it but also grown even better than the other ordinarily planted ones. A big puzzle! 

With seed plants, as organic farming texts say, seeds contain microbiome within them, which derive from the soil the seed cropped plants. That is a reason why certain plants could grow better at the place wheere seeds were cropped. I am wondering, even though potato's "fruit" is not really fruit but a portion of root, if the same kind of mechanism is working with this potatoes in our garden farm. How could they be free from monocropping disorders? 

I am only amazed at this potatoes. It is beyond my understanding, and possibly, beyond knowledge of science. I would keep them at that place and see what happens with them next year. 

Our garden farm is almost in hibernation. I still have works to build the farm beds for next season.   

PS;When I looked at the potatoes right now, all of them were withered. The chillness was more than they could put up with and/or it was the time for them to die, I don't know. However, they have definitely lived much longer in this cold weather than the other ordinary plants and it was programmed in nature.

Free from intoxication of the internet for a day

 Yesterday, the internet was shut down at our home. Asked the provider, I was told that the carrier was responsible for that. They promised us to pass along the problem to the carrier today. No reply from either the provider or the carrier this morning. While communicating with the personel at the provider customer center for a few times, I felt desparate at solving the problem. But, all of sudden, while talking to him on the cell phone, without intervention by the carrier, I found the internet line was restored. The same kind of trouble with the internet might happen in the future. How should I do in such a case? I knew the customer center personel was not capable of finding solution to such a problem. I felt the infrastructure of the internet was not very resilient in our country or, at least, with the provider we contract with.

Without surfing the internet last night, I felt a bit helpless being shut down from the information sources. I have spent the evening hours reading a paper on psychopathology, given by a senior psychiatrist, an alumni of the same medical university. In the new classification of diseases, ICD11, he seemed to emphasize humanistic or philosophical psychopathology reinstated its seat in psychiatry. When I was a med student, I was going to major in psychiatry and might have been involved in such a change. 

In the rest of night hours, I listened to the whole nocturnes by Faure. Thirteen of nocturnes were composed spreading from his young age to the last few years in hi life. It is interesting how his style has been changed during that long span of life. Simple monophonic pieces like that of chopin to complicated pieces featuring more of dissonance. Consistently, there seems a feeling of elegy among most of them. Nr1 is typical for elegy beginning with downward melody accompanied with simple harmony in bass. Nr11, composed for a memory of Noeml Lalo, is an elegy itself. Another characteristic of them is that the later pieces sound abstruse in a sense with dissonance use. I used to be surprised the same in the piano part of the 2nd movement in his piano trio. 

Anyway, being free from obsession to wander around the internet, we could spend time for valuable things. The internet gives, on the other hand, a tool to communicate with others like this blog. I won't go away from this intoxicated world. It is still necessary for me to spend some time away from it, though.

Farming, season, SNS involved political movements

It is surprising that November is almost going away. It was the day of the earliest sunset here yesterday. In 3 weeks, it will be the wintersolistice. Not too far from starting spring. Before that, there are a lot of things to do. One of the tasks is preparing the greetings for the end of the year. Time is sure passing so fast that I am not really ready to do that. Despite of the mannerism, I would do it in a week or two.

I have harvested a half of potatoes planted in September. Not so prolific but sufficient for cooking until next harvest in June next year. Some of the potatoes will be used as seed in March. Over one hundred onions have been planted. I have built a farming bed with only pretty large amount of rice straw and dried grass plowed into the soil. The organic farming theory says chemical fertilizer would inactivate mychorrhizal fungi around the roots of plants/vegetables, which are essential for the latter growth. Too much nutrients would cause diseases/infections/infestations to the plants. Very interesting world. It is a bit too late for this old amateur farmer to practise it but never too late, I believe.  

The other day, CNN News said the young people in the US are apt to believe in the "Influencers" in the internet while neglecting mass media etc. They might not read books on politics/economics, either. Most of the Influencers are right winged. Consequently, young people should own the same kind of view regarding society and politics, I am afraid.

The same thing is going on in our country. The young generation approves the conservative right wing. Sometimes, even ultra right winged faction. They always criticize social welfare and blame those poor people who need social security. It comes from their firm belief in self-responsibility theory. They tend to sympathize the Influencers who assert on certain problems in the society, which actually require us deliberation and could never be concluded so easily. They tend to believe in conspiracy theory but not science or any academic considerations. 

The self-responsibility based pattern of thinking is identical to or comes from the neoliberalism. Survival of the fittest view. It is causing most of the disparities in the world. Yes, those young people have been born and grown up in the world the neoliberalism has ruled since around 2000 or earlier. Their tendency to simplify the problems in the society and to assert about them has an affinity to fascism. 

Thus, we are living in the era of post neoliberalism. The neoliberalism has left a large economical disparities among people as well as countries. It may bring us chaotic situation and, in the worst case, even another world war, I am afraid. I would tell young people that the self-responsibility theory would harm them but also the society/world. This situation is linked with the internet which echos among the same kind of people. Certain SNS is apt to be occupied by some politicians ambitious for dictatorship or politics oriented business owner/executive. It is highly challenging to the democracy, I am afraid

So that's the story at present. I should have fixed the photo uploading system with this computer. Or should I replace this old computer to a new one? Without uploading capability of photos, I am not very motivated to renew this blog. No, I won't put an end to it, though. Sorry for long winded address on politics/society. 

A very happy Thanksgiving to you all.  

The 46th anniversary

 It is our wedding anniversary for the 46th. I could hardly believe it has been that long since those days.

At the campus of the med school where we had the residency.

Repeatedly uploaded here.

Have we had any hope for future? Possibly, no. Just getting used to normal routine as doctors. Have spent the days of training. Everything was new to us. We owe much to the senior doctors or the patients themselves. Most of senior ones have already passed away. I should have said words of thanks to some of them. 

Most of all, I should thank my wife for her efforts as a wife, a mother and a specialist in psychiatry. It is more than an abstract idea of gratitude but memories of concrete facts. I firmly believe it is the time when I should support her. Who knows I, myself, could be the one who should be cared for by her.     

I don't know how long we could go on living this countryside. Maybe, until either of us could not drive a car or get seriously ill. For tht time being, I hope this days of Indian summer blessed with good health may continue.

Preparing special curry and rice with a piece of cake, a humble dinner, we would congratulate today. Forty six years have passed. 

Hatred to Microsoft and the earliest memory in my life

My camera is not recognized by the PC when I try to import pictures into it. I am trying to fix it with no success yet. When I inadvertently introduced the application of One Drive of Microsoft, everything seems to have started malunctioning. Deleting One Drive is not easy and could cause problems with previously imported pictures. Damn Microsoft!!

That's why I have not uploaded some new photos yet. When the problem is fixed, a number of posts will be up here.

This is a picture painted by a Russianm, Ivan Shishkin, in late 19th century. Already uploaded it in facebook. It sure reminded me of the sanatorium, which used to exist at this place. I was born and spent early childhood, and later latter half of my life. Among pine trees, there were small cottages for tuberculosis patients. My aunt has established it in the WWII in based on belief in Christianity when tuberculosis was not treatable and a fatal illness. Poor patients have gathered that sanatorium from all over the country. No effective medicine and no doctor at the facility. A few doctors used to visit there in certain interval. Maybe, I have already mentioned about it before.

My parents have known each other there and married when my father has come from the service in the military. We, three of siblings, were born there. My very first memory in my life is the hymn sung by the patients and the staff in acapella coming through the pine trees. It was breezy as well. Otherwise, only doves were sometimes singing. A very quiet and serene place.

At age 4 or 5 years, I have moved to Tokyo together with the rest of the family. The life in Tokyo is totally another story. I still fondly recall the life spent among the pine trees. It is literally the base of my life.

I have forgotten to mention why I wanted to upload this painting with my own memory. As I often wrote, I had been working in the farm garden in the most hours in the daytime, if not long enough like a real farmer. I know our children or any others won't be able to keep this property when I ceased working here in the near future. It was a kind of anxiety for me. However, now recalling of this pine tree forest, I am sure this place is destined to back to such a forest. Hopefully, it would be so peaceful and comfortable to visitors as it used to be, if any. Beyond my life, of course, it is of no use to worry as for own property or anything belonging to me in this world. 

A pine tree forest with gentle breeze coming through. Only doves singing in deep voice are echoing... Imagining of that, I am again captured by peaceulness. This painting has lead me to that consciousness. 

 

 

Harrell playing Arpeggione sonata

Lynn Harrell at a recital in Tokyo. It might be, judging from the stage and reflective board on the back, at the small hall of Tokyo Bunkakaikan in Ueno around 1980. A video of a program by NHK, possibly.

I have never listened to him in his young days. A true virtuoso. He played effortlessly such a difficult piece as Arpeggione sonata by Schubert. That piece should be played like a humming piece sung at a downtown street in Wien. His cello sounds like that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blALvCjzUIc

Tokyo Bunkakaikan is an old concert halls facility which is close to my mother school. It is located at a corner of Ueno park next to the Ueno station. The park was a walk place for me in student days. I used to attend there for a various concerts then. In my jr. high days, I was a regular member of Tokyo Philharmonic with my father for a while. It was in '60s. Still a lot of fond memories. Harrell, seemingly warm hearted person, has died 4 years ago. I seldom visit that concert hall and even Tokyo now. Time has passed.

GAZA 2035 project

I have heard that, if Trump takes the seat of POTUS, his son would be involved in the development of Gaza, nearly 90% destroyed and more than 30K Palestenians killed, into a resort area. I felt nauseous at it. Does this news mean that?

 

 https://www.thenation.com/article/world/gaza-2035-aec-neom-saudi/?fbclid=IwY2xjawGSJD5leHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHfAt8tA-p9JHV_L5ULRY0Fc9KhCnCBK3uHUcRmJ6ule_GLp8b6FK5XU3Xg_aem_V0EqF33t8T0rJgTDwsrJVQ

I don't think such a project would come true. It would become a cause of further and more massive conflict. 

I still recall that a lot of industries in the US have been involved in the reconstruction in Afghan and Iraq after war. The biggest one was a division of Halliburton which was managed by the former vice president of Bush administration, Dick Cheney. 

The US still exports arms to Israel. I heard that it had been amounted up to 20 billion  USD. I know it has all started by the Hamas attack last fall. But Israeli counterattack has reached the level of ethnic cleansing as this report says. Endorsement and support to Israel by the US seem to aggravate the situation. If some faction of the US should be involved in this horrible project in the Middle East, it would leave incurable injury in the area and the faith in the US might fall down on the ground, I am afraid.

A missing comment

Scrolling down the previous posts in this blog, I found a comment by John AC4CA to a post regarding music of Piazzolla. Just did it by chance. It was a short but still considerate comment. I have mistaken reading it. Very sorry for that. It was 2017. As already written, he has had his wife in a facility due to her Alzheimer and was living alone at home. Whenever we met on the radio, we talked about music which we were playing as well as listening. He loved playing piano and said Chopin was his favorite. In each conversation, again not long enough but very impressive, I felt, even though he had lived a solitary life at home, he had himself fullfilled with ham radio, birdwatching or music. Of course, seeing his wife Jackie at the facility as well.

I should have talked to him more, especially on how he has grown up. He told little about such a thing. Suffering from neuroendocrine tumor, which has become treatment resistent year by year, and having his wife in a facility as told above, he must concentrate on the life at present. No room to recollect the past, I believe. 

How has he felt on Piazzolla? I have lost the chance to ask about it to him. Sorry but there have been full of such mistakes in life. He has passed in Feb 2023.

One of my Piazzolla's favorites. Already uploaded in a past post. 

I would ask anyone who would give me a comment in this blog as follows. I am trying to answer every comment and please be patiently waiting for that. If you have not got any answer from me, it could never be anything other than my mistake. Please identify youself in a way we both could understand if possible. If you are new to me, add that in your comment. Any comments will be much appreciated. 

On a rainy day

Having posted on poor growth of sweetpotatoes at a field last month, I found there were a little bit better harvest of sweetpotatoes in the other fields recently, despite of apparently overgrowth of the vine. It is always miraculous how they grow and are cropped. Before it gets too cool, the rest should be cropped. I should go on working hard in the farm.

Plants of taro are ready to be harvested as well. Potatoes, spinach, broccoli or carrots are growing. They may be harvested by Dec. 

The global warming is becoming closer to us. The summer vegetables have been affected by it. I have seen several vlogs of farmers who complain of poor harvest of summer veggies. They have been sold at higher prices at store. The fall/winter vegetables should be planted, they say, a week or two later than ususal. It seems the winter is coming quicker than before. The summer has been directly taken over to the winter. No long break of fall this year. 

Early in this hot summer, rice was run out at stores. There are a number of reasons why it has occurred. One of them was the relative crop failure due to the abnormally high temperature last summer. The price of rice has risen even by 50%. That high cost is still carried on despite newly harvested rice is in the market now. The cost of rice has been kept irrationally low. Rice farmers have had hard time with the cost for years. On the other hand, the main food for people in our country, rice, should be reasonable. It is an issue that politics should handle with. It should be argued at the other post.

I would point out that the government is trying to replace rice plants to a new spieces or its crossbred descendants. It is a newly developed one which absorbs Cadmium, Cd, much less than previous old spieces. 

As a researcher in agriculture says, there is an area which is polluted with Cd. The national agricultural research center has developed a new rice spieces, which irradiation of heavy particle beam inactivated the gene responsible for absorption of Cd. They are trying to replace the ordinary species to this new one or its descendants. Cd pollution is limited only certain areas in our country. The new species has another serious defect. It is genetically lowered in absorption of another mineral Mn. Mn has an important role in in photosynthesis as well as resilience against pathogens. When this new species is grown, they should add Mn as a fertilizer component. Relative Mn deficit could cause growth issue and liability for infections. Those new species might not grow well in global warming. 

Irradiation could damage the other genes unknown yet. It may cause the other serious issues. Natural selection occurs in a long time scale. Our ancestors have chosen species which work well for us. Artificial gene manipulation with irradiation could result in "magnificient" failure in the future. 

Why do they popularize this new species of rice in our country? To get more money! The farmers, subsequently the consumers of such rice, should pay for the pantent. There should be other factors involved in this new rice species. They are invariably related with money!

OK, that's about it. Even though I won't renew posts so often, I am getting along fine. Today, the rain has kept me indoor and let me write this post.  

Excessive vine growth of sweet potato and a dish of the hypertrophied vine

Plants' growth are told to divide two phases, nutritional growth and reproductive growth. In the former phase, a plant grows individually at its trunk, vine or leaves. In most cases, the latter phase follows it. It leaves crops or fruits. 

The former growth is accelerated with meteological factors and low carbon/nitrogen ratio in the soil. High nitrogen from too much fertilizer is often a cause of this phenomenon.

In the excessive vine growth with the sweet potatoes, the latter, that is, too much fertilizer won't be the cause. Regardless of the remnant amounts of fertilizer, it has occurred in the same manner at different fields. Another evidence that the weather, most likelily the hot spell in the past spring/summer, may be the fact some of Marie Gold planted at different places of the garden, of course, without any fertilizer has shown the same excessive growth of the trunk/leaves. They have bloomed very few flowers. The typical case is shown in the following photo. The two trunks have grown large in unusual way while some flowers are out in the other few plants. I have never seen this overgrowth in the past.  

This is only a hypothesis that global warming is influencing our tiny garden/farm. But we should be careful about such a thing. We are the crops brought by the reproductive growth of the crops. If those crops grow only in the nutritional growth but not in the reproductive growth, it may cause famine.

Last night, I have cooked the overgrown vine of sweet potatoes with chicken as this photo shows. My wife at first prejudiced that it could have been like a menu people used to cook in the war time without much food. But she was pretty happy at this dish when it was cooked. This recipe was published by a lady in Shikoku, my wife's birth place, as an old one from ancestors.    

 

Failure of sweet potato growth

It is the time to harvest sweet potatoes now. As a conclusion, the crop was not very good this year. 

Excessive vine growth has occurred. They say it is due to excessive fermentation and/or too much rain. One of the fields was due to hyperalimentation due to the remnant of fertilizer for the previous vegetable. I am not sure what has brought the problem at the other fields. A climate issue? It is beyond my capability to avoid this excessive growth in such a case.

Some of the poorly grown fruits were bitten by bugs. Vegetables or generally any plants have a system of immunity against such infestation of insects. Those subnormally grown ones are liable to the problem. 

The other day, I was surprised to know, in the case of famine or of war involving our country, our government had a plan to have golf course or school grounds converted to farm and to grow sweet potatoes. The self sufficiency rate of food is only 38% now. Considering of importing the farming materials like fertilizer and its resources or seeds etc, it drops below 10%. This fact has not well known to the people. The government won't do with this subtle crisis without such a terrible plan to grow sweet potatoes. 

As my experience with growing sweetpotatoes this year tells, it is not easy for amateur instant farmers to grow such as sweet potatoes which is told to be a rather easy crop. I would propose the administration officers/politicians to grow sweetpotatoes at the garden of the Diet by themselves.

Now some people are aware of this issue but still only a minority. Food security issue is going on in our country in subtle and serious way.

The over grown sweet potatoes's vine.

 

A T shirt and hectic days

It was 1991 when I visited Cambodia for ham radio operation of XU0JA, usually regarded as DX pedition. After a Hungarian team had operated there, the station was managed by a girl named Sokun, personnel of PTT. I happened to know her operating XU8DX by hersel n 15m SSB. She did not know anything of ham radio. It was necessary to support the station XU8DX there. In 1990, I asked Atsushi JF3NRI and James 9V1YC to visit there and to bring some support items like the PA tubes of the amplifier etc. They have done a good job. It was my turn to visit there a year after. I have spent a hectic as well as pleasant week over there together with a couple of JA friends, JH1OJU and JH0FBH. It was only a few years after the civil war had ended. There was curfew in Phnom Penh. I still remember the streets were vacant after the curfew from PTT to the Hotel Cambodiana where we stayed. I have already written about our trip there a few times already. 

Some friends were supportive to us. Eric W6DU, the president of NCDXF, has prepared T shirts with the logo of NCDXF for us before departure. We have worn it all the time throughout the trip. Mine has been found deep in a drawer recently. This is it;

My call as XU/JA1NUT was printed above the NCDXF logo. But it has disappeared in this 3 decades. XU0JA QSL is here. 

It was the days when I was crazy with DXing. With some free time and finance, I could spend much time for ham radio. This was one of the events I devoted to those days. 

Honestly, I sometimes wonder if it was a right decision or if I should spend time and energy for the other things in the middle of my life when I was able to do anything I wanted. Such as restarting practising cello earlier and so forth. I know it is of little use to reflect the past in that way but such an idea of reflection still often comes up in my mind.

I find myself trying to balance my mind convincing myself it was meaningful for me to have had good company through ham radio. Eric was one of them. Blood boiling experience in ham radio was also priceless for me. In this chapter of my life, the other pleasant things like farming or listening good music are being prepared for me. I should never complain of the past.

Now this T shirt is worn by me while I work in the farm. Another hectic days. 

Life's most important task

This is a poem a german missionary of Catholic, Hermann Heuvers, has introduced in his autobio. Heuvers has stayed in our country as a teacher at a university pastoring a church from 1920s through 1960s. When he once returned to homeland, a friend of his gave this impressive poem to him. In 1977, while he served Mass on wheel chair, he developed acute heart attack which lead to death. 

It sure leaves a lasting impression on me. I was going to put this into the previous post titled "The beginning of real retirement". I was too shy or even scared to compare our lives to this way of in devout belief. 

It is still an excellent wisdom of life in old age. I would share it to you here, not in relation to the previous post. I still would spend or try to live the retirement ahead with the motto this poem depicts. This translation comes from a site by Nobuko Muth.

Quote~~~

 What is this life's most important task?

To grow old with a cheerful heart,

To be still even when I would like to be active,

To be silent when I would like to talk,

To have hope in times of frustration,

To carry my cross in humility and serenity of heart,

To put aside envy even when I see younger people walking God's path full of health and energy,

To humbly accept help from others when I would rather work for the sake of others,

So when I can no longer be useful for others because of frailty I need to gently and humbly accept the heavy burden of old age as a gift from God.

I have an aged heart that has been in use a long time and now God is giving it a final polishing so that I can return to my true home all shining.

To gradually release myself from the chains that bind me to this world is indeed a wonderful work.

When I cannot do things let me humbly accept these circumstances in humility.

However for my closing years God has kept for me the most important work of all, and that is:

~~~End of quote

This translation is ended abruptly leaving a few more sentences untranslated. I dare finish it in my way as follows;

My hands could do little to the others

Only I could do until the end of my life is to join my hands in prayer

Praying for God's mercy over to all the people I love

When I have done all I could do, I may hear God telling me in dying bed,

"Come here, thou, you will never be abandoned."

~~~

I have learned about this poem from my sister 4 years elder than me several years ago. As I and the folks are getting older, this beautiful verse hauntingly comes up in my mind. My sister and borther in addition to my wife and myself are stepping into the elderhood. May all of us spend the last chapter of our lives as this poem indicates.