Category: general

You know, ones that can actually open.

Calling it a “renovation of unprecedented scale,” East Japan Railway Co. (JR East) has decided to switch from its slick, wide-view windows, which cannot be opened, to good old-fashioned retractable windows that allow natural ventilation.

[…]

The 209 series was touted as a “next-generation commuter train” when it debuted in 1993 and was the first train developed by JR East following privatization of JNR in 1987.

The windows were considered especially cutting-edge. Special heat-absorbing glass makes curtains unnecessary, while the window itself provides an excellent view, twice as wide as the traditional style. Automatic air conditioners control ventilation, and two small windows at the end of the carriages can be opened about 60 centimeters for natural ventilation.

The fixed windows lower the noise level inside the trains, and because of their simpler structure, they even cost about 100,000 yen less than the retractable type.

As a JR official said, the windows were supposedly “a two-birds-with-one-stone tech- nology that made both passengers and JR happy.”

Then it all came crashing down.

In March 2005, a 209-series train carrying about 1,000 passengers was hit with an electrical problem and stalled between Omori and Kamata stations on the Keihin Tohoku Line. The air conditioning cut out. Over the course of the next two and a half hours, the motionless train became a steaming sauna.

Sixteen passengers had to be taken away in ambulances.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport states that train windows “must allow for necessary ventilation.” So JR East decided to renovate.

It’s too bad they can’t figure out some way to open those wide windows. The view is rather nice.

Here you go.

A middle-aged Tokyo man found to be living with 10 younger women said he attracted them by reciting an incantation that came to him in a dream.

[…]

“I had a dream that told me I would become attractive to women if I recited a particular incantation,” it quoted the man as saying.

A rapid series of weddings and divorces left the man with a large group of ex-wives, mostly in their 20s and 30s, who shared his surname and continued to live with him.

Or should I say, Takitate!! Gohan 1…

Wow.

Just…wow.

I laughed so hard I almost cried :>

Today I got off work a little early (ran out of things to do), so when I got home I quickly planned dinner, then changed my shirt and carted my bike out to the car. The weather was beautiful–cool but not cold–and I had to ride.

I decided to go to the Greeneway. I don’t really know why, but I just wasn’t in a Canal mood. I parked at the golf course, taking the very last available space. (There would have been one more if some idiot hadn’t parked across two spots.) Then I headed up the old Greeneway, through the tunnel, and over the new bridge that looks out over the Hammond’s Ferry construction. Still no buildings (that I can see).

I kept up a good pace (well, about 10 mph) the whole way up to Pisgah Road. Better yet, I didn’t stop until I got there. Even better still, once I got to Pisgah Road, I lingered for maybe 15 seconds to stretch and take a drink of water, and then I turned right back around and headed back. On my way back I averaged 15 mph (it’s more downhill, so I was able to go into third gear).

And here’s the kicker: I didn’t stop all the way back!

The ride was 52 minutes total, for 10.5 miles. I didn’t realize how tired my legs were until I got into my car. The maneuver almost deposited me on the ground. ;>

I’m working in Robert’s office on my projects (the one I was working on yesterday is done, after a cool 96 hours). Today Robert was searching for check acceptance services on Google and found this. He was so shocked and awed that he emailed Seth Godin, and Seth blogged it.

Kinda nifty.

Damn, why am I so tired?

Ah well. Sean’s already asleep; I may as well join him :D

The sucky point of a project. The point where I’m So Tired of It but It’s Not Quite Done and Actually There Are Issues I Really Need To Resolve but I’m Just So Bored.

Joy.

Pushing through this and completing the project will prove that I am a mature adult who can function properly in the workplace!

Horiemon’s been arrested.

What with the email and everything else, it’s really looking like he’s guilty, which is a huge shame. When I first heard about Horie, I thought he was so cool. I was trying to explain who he was to Robert the other day, and finally Robert said, “So he’s Japan’s Michael Dell.” I guess that’s a pretty good description.

I sincerely hope he’s innocent, but it’s looking more and more like his company is successful solely due to unethical and illegal business practices :/

MSNBC has a good roundup of events.

And apparently they can make a lamp out of anything!

Customers frequently ask the store to make lamps from sentimental items such as jockey boots, football helmets and law or medical books.

One customer had a lamp made out of the antique cast iron water pump from the family farm.

Melanie Turner said she had David Shannon turn a piece of handblown purple glass into an electric lamp that resembles an old-style oil lamp.

“They provide good, old-fashioned service,” said Turner, who lives in Millersburg but works in Lexington. “Things are done one at a time, and in today’s world that means a good deal to me.”

Apparently there has been a huge recent trend of middle-aged Japanese men falling in love with Filipino hostesses and following them back to the Phillippines, only to be unable to thrive in the workforce, to run out of money, and to have their new wives leave them. These “desperate Japanese” end up appealing to the Japanese embassy for help.

The lower cost of living in the Philippines allows them to enjoy a good life initially, but unable to speak English or the local language, the men, mostly in their 50s, cannot find work and use up all of their money in a year or two, he said.

[…]

The consular official said the embassy had dealt with less than 50 “Desperate Japanese” until 2000, arranging their return to Japan, but the cases had risen in the last five years with the number rising to around 180.

[…]

He said “Desperate Japanese” as a phenomenon was almost exclusive to the Philippines, adding that the “Philippine pubs”, found even in rural Japan, provided comfort to the men facing a midlife crisis.

“These men, they may have been victims of their company’s restructuring and may have felt isolated at home,” he said.

“So they may have been heartened by a young Filipina at the local hostess bar and decided: ‘what the heck, I’ll go to the Philippines.'”

I subscribed to 101 Cookbooks because it showed up in my Gmail Web Clips and sounded interesting. Since then I’ve really enjoyed the recipes and the insight into food culture.

Today they’ve got a Best of Show post by Heidi Swanson, founder of the site:

This time each year the NASFT Winter Fancy Food ambles into San Francisco and takes over both massive halls of the Moscone Center. I kid you not – there is mile after mile of artisan cheeses, chocolates, teas, crackers, cookies, jams, jellies, spices, juices, wines, beers, wound tightly up and down a hive of aisles. This is all the stuff you will eventually see in places like Dean & Deluca, Whole Foods Markets, and Williams-Sonoma. I walked and talked my way from 10 a.m. this morning until 5 p.m. and still had an aisle or two to go when they flashed the lights for last call.

How awesome would it be to go to a food convention for work? :D

This.

See that AOL email address? Yeah, that doesn’t exist. It’s an advertisement in AIM. When I click on it, a browser opens and takes me to the signup page for AOL Mail.

What’s really annoying is that sometimes this will pop up by itself, when I don’t even have mail in my actual email account.

I have always used AIM’s mail alert feature, so I wouldn’t have to leave Outlook open, but if this stupidity keeps up I guess I’ll have to turn it off. My OCD won’t put up with it. It’s like a blinking AIM window; it’ll drive me nuts until I can make it go away somehow.

So I thought I’d try out imstar* and see how close to my actual appearance I could get an avatar.

Here are the results.

It’s hard to make one of these avatars overweight. They have great options for changing the shape of the body, but the options only go so far in terms of girth. I guess they figure nobody would want a fat avatar.

The face is hilarious. I was limited by the software: you have to purchase hair and eyebrows, and I couldn’t find the right styles. That hair is totally ugly, but it’s the closest I could find.

As for the general face, there are face shape, eyes, nose, mouth, and cheeks and chin adjustment options. I messed with them until I got them as close as I possibly could to my own face, but it still doesn’t look a thing like me.

And they only have four pairs of glasses in the shop!

Oh well, that was a fun waste of two hours. Now to get down to what I’m supposed to be doing…

There’s a new IM client called imstar* that boasts 3D, moving avatars. It’s supposed to add realism to your interactions. What really gets me is the fact that you can change your avatar’s outfits by going to an online store and buying new clothes.

You want your Avatar to look her best right? Ergo, you must shop! Welcome to the starpoint Galleria where shop after shop is jam-packed with all the coolest, latest looks no matter what your style. This is yet another place where you can express yourself at imstar*- your Avatar can dress any way you want.

You’ll find all the best jeans at “Denim Daze” and make-up at “Glamourstar*.” Need a new coif? Hit the “Head Shop”, and if athletic wear is your thing, try “Sportster.” There are contacts (at the “Eye Pod” shop) and shoes galore at “Shoe Fetish.” There are more stores, more styles, more stuff than you’d ever dream of. You can even shop for more animations and more moves–can you do that at your local mall? The whole mall is searchable, just type in what you’re looking for and bam.

Are you afraid to commit? You can try before you buy. Don’t be caught with your pants down–after twenty minutes, if you don’t pay, the clothes will simply be returned to the store. Oh, and a little hint- if tons of people buy an item in the store, it could sell out, just like at the real mall. So get the goods while you can, they won’t always be there for the buying.

Is that scary, or what? I guess with stuff like this there’s no point in living in the real world, is there?

Players of MMOs are already familiar with this concept. :>

So, China’s going to build the sun! And apparently other scientists around the world are building “similar devices”. (via Slashdot)

Scientists believe that deuterium can be extracted from the sea and an enormous amount of energy can be obtained from a deuterium-tritium fusion reaction under huge temperatures of 100 million degrees Celsius. After nuclear fusion, the deuterium extracted from one liter of sea water will produce energy equivalent to 300 liters of gasoline.

If a device is developed that can withstand temperatures as high as 100 million Celsius degrees and control a deuterium-tritium reaction, it will be as though an “artificial sun” had been created able to supply infinite, clean energy for human beings.

I guess we didn’t learn anything from Spider-Man 2.