Letters from Steve
Steve, the son of our close friends, lives and works in Japan. Steve is from the Madison area and is a bright, very warm and compasionate person with a good sense of humor. It is hard to know Steve and not like him. He teaches at Toyo Univiersity, is married to Yukiko and has a clever 5 year old son named Seiji. He and his family live just south of Tokyo. During the recent earthquake/tsunami tragedy in Japan Steve wrote regularly to his family and friends sharing, up-dating , and providing personal insights into what was going on.
While all of us have viewed the tragedy of Fukushima on video and in the news, I thought it might be interesting for you to “see” them up close, through Steve’s words.
-Madison Horizons Rotary member, John Thoman
Sun March 13
I see I made a mistake in my last email. The seismologists' prediction is for the next 3 days, not 24 hours. I am sorry about that. FWIW, Honshsu is about 2/3 the size of California (so it's a big place). There was an M6.6 aftershock last night, which we felt here as something like an M3, but it did not cause any damage as it occurred in the mountains of central Honshu.
Sun March 13
Well, we dodged one minor bullet: the daytime blackout was cancelled but we'll lose power from 5-10 tonight. Yukiko made a batch of bagels for our dinner and we have our camping lamp (my Christmas present from Bob!) ready, plus candles. The roads were jammed this morning and all gas stations are closed for at least two days in order to conserve fuel and divert gasoline to the devastated areas. No word on whether or not trains will resume service tomorrow.
In the meantime, there was a magnitude 5 earthquake north of us (north of Tokyo), which was a bit lower than quake here (in our town) on Friday. Everyone is praying that was the aftershock seismologists were expecting and that things might start to quiet down now.
Love you,
Steve
Sun March 13
The prime minister has just announced that rolling blackouts will begin tonight. Each area in this region and northward will be without electricity for the better part of at least one day, probably more, the next week or so. If you do not hear from us via email, and there is nothing in the news about another quake, please do not worry. It is probably just the blackout (or I will have passed out from trying to keep up with the energy of a 5-year old!) Love you all very much, Steve
Sun March 13
Thank you so much for your notes. We love you and really miss you right now.
It is 7:30 on Monday morning now. We are fine.
The blackout for our area has been extended. We will be without electricity from early this evening until ten p.m., in addition to the daytime blackout.
In the meantime, it's just been announced that all trains into and around the Tokyo metro area are going to be shut down for the day. This means millions of people cannot go to work, but I think that is good- I have no plans to be apart from Yukiko and Seiji for the next couple of days. (Right now we are all but certain NOT to send Seiji to preschool this morning.) The train companies made the decision at the request of the government to save power and in light of the chance for another quake in the next couple of days.
Mom & dad: You remember Mr. Kokarimai, of course. I am a bit worried as I have yet to hear from him, even though I sent him email messages. Everyone in his family, outside of himself and his wife, are based in Iwate, one of the prefectures directly hit by the quake. Villages in Iwate have been completely destroyed. He often goes up there. I will let you know when I hear something.
Steve
Mon March 14
Well, there's been a new explosion this morning at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. My friend Adam has decided to flee from Tokyo with his wife and mother-in-law and head via bullet train to the western-most of the four main islands, Kyushu. Personally, I don't see any news that says we are at the point where evacuation is necessary. In the meantime, we are 50 miles west of Tokyo. If we did have to leave, I think we'd throw our already packed bags into the car and drive to Mie to Y's parents, unless we were certain we could get a train ticket easily. Anyway, you asked to be kept updated, I hope these notes don't sound melodramatic. I am working at home, with the radio in the background. As you know, more and more bodies are being recovered each hour now and it is horrific and heartbreaking. We've been told there will be a blackout this afternoon, but who knows.
Love you all, S.
Mon March 14
Hi, Just got word from Dr. Kokarimai that he is okay. He sent me a postcard from Narita Airport where he was stranded on Friday enroute to Vietnam when the quake hit. He had to stay out there for two days (I don't know if he could get a hotel room anywhere) and had been frantically trying to reach his brothers.
Happily, although it took him 48 hours to confirm, his brothers and their families in northern Japan are all okay, although several of their supermarkets (they own the region's largest supermarket chain) and homes were destroyed. Most of the family is without power or running water and are homeless, but he cannot get up to the region to help them.
Needless to say, we are relieved he and his family did not suffer any injuries.
Tue March 15
Looks like tonight's blackout is going to happen from 6-10 (i.e. 4-8 am Central Time). We've had multiple announcements with lots of details about it. Y and S plan to be asleep by 9, and I am scheduled for a 10pm Skype session with a client in Tokyo.
Have a great day, everyone, and thanks so much for your messages. As I've said, we are merely inconvenienced right now, if a bit tense, but would happily live this way forever if it could undo what's happened up north.
Tue March 15
Good Morning,
Sorry for getting onto the Net later than usual, but I was awake until late last night.
We are ready to hit the road if we determine we should and will keep you updated. We are about 200 miles south, as the crow flies, from the Fukushima reactor. The news says it takes radiation 10 hours to reach Tokyo, we are 50 miles south of Tokyo.
In minor news, as expected, our grocery delivery did not contain meat and soy items that are produced in the north, and supermarket supplies of items from up there, and of things in general, have dwindled quite a bit.
Last night before the blackout-that-never-happened I told Seiji he had to protect me from ghosts. He said he would "because daddy's afraid of ghosts and they know it!" Then he pointed out that if he's protecting me the ghosts might try to sneak up behind him, so mommy would have to protect him. He noted that, "Mama's tough, daddy. She's tougher than you and me!" Hmm.... Anyway, we've been spending our evenings playing games like Zingo and I Spy, and we have our Curious George flashlight on hand (along with the world's coolest and most powerful camping lamp, thank you Uncle Bob!)
WE LOVE YOU AND MISS YOU ALL!!!
Wed March 16
Good Morning (US) / Good evening (Japan),
We had a couple of significant tremors here today and I got an email from a New Zealand friend who said they have had over 5000 aftershocks since last month's quake and that everyone down there is pretty jittery. We understand that.
Seiji and I walked to the post office, convenience store and super market together today. The p.o's, banks and other businesses are all closing early to save energy and are keeping a lot of lights off inside, too. Supermarkets and convenience stores have stopped carrying frozen foods to save power and less bread is being baked. Lots of empty shelves and closed gas stations. Most homes are using less electricity as well so neighborhoods are that much darker this evening.
Everywhere we went people were very friendly, but there is also a lot nervousness.
When we came home Seiji and I played in the garden for a long time. He was playing tsunami rescue; after flooding some plastic flower pot "houses," he rescued the stranded people. Since becoming a parent, I am amazed by how much of "play" is really just recreating what kids see around them. (Just call me Master of the Obvious!)
Wed March 16
Good Morning (US) / Good evening (Japan),
We had a couple of significant tremors here today and I got an email from a New Zealand friend who said they have had over 5000 aftershocks since last month's quake and that everyone down there is pretty jittery. We understand that.
Seiji and I walked to the post office, convenience store and super market together today. The p.o's, banks and other businesses are all closing early to save energy and are keeping a lot of lights off inside, too. Supermarkets and convenience stores have stopped carrying frozen foods to save power and less bread is being baked. Lots of empty shelves and closed gas stations. Most homes are using less electricity as well so neighborhoods are that much darker this evening.
Everywhere we went people were very friendly, but there is also a lot nervousness.
When we came home Seiji and I played in the garden for a long time. He was playing tsunami rescue; after flooding some plastic flower pot "houses," he rescued the stranded people. Since becoming a parent, I am amazed by how much of "play" is really just recreating what kids see around them. (Just call me Master of the Obvious!)
Thur March 16
Hi Family,
Before I even got to the train station we had two minor earthquakes this morning. That did not make me feel good at all about leaving Seiji and Yukiko.
Right now, I've just started a task I don't want to do for several reasons. Like every Tokyo-area university, Toyo is having difficulties accounting for all it students. So, every faculty member has been given a list of 25-30 students and we have to call them. We've been given a script to use. Only one of the names on my list has a permanent address in Fukushima- one of the tree prefectures devastated by the quake and home of the nuclear reactor you are watching in the news- and I've just talked to his father who said he and everyone in the family are unharmed.
In the meantime, the start of our new academic year has been pushed back a month, to the second week of May, but we will have orientation events and placement exams in the last week of April. So, I'll be working at home for most of April, which is good- I can take Seiji to preschool and pick him up often!
The entire nothern region east of the Japan Alps (i.e. on the Pacific side) is without electricity, and every major highway and railway has been destroyed in multiple spots. Tokyo trains cannot run at full capacity yet and the rolling blackouts are continuing, with no plans to end them for a at least a few weeks. Neither the national government nor the Tokyo government want an influx of college students overtaxing the rail system and, frankly, neither students nor faculty want to try to commute daily in these conditions. Meanwhile, as mentioned, Tokyo-area campuses don't know the fates of many of their students at this time and many faculty and staff don't yet know the fate of loved ones from the north.
It was strange to be in Tokyo today. Even 12 days after the quake, there were whole neighborhoods with power blackouts (3 hours at a time, rotating) and all businesses are using litltle or no artificial lighting as well as operating at reduced hours. Tokyo station was very dark and had fewer people in it than I've ever seen - and it was 9am on a weekday. I also saw a lot of damaged buildings in Tokyo today, and even our campus suffered some minor damage. My office was a mess (yes, even by my standards.) Books were all over the floor, two tea cups had broken and my desk lamp crashed on my keyboard.
I also learned today that after the quake, our university and the surrounding neighborhood were without power for 18 hours. So, Toyo's president authorized the activation of the back-up generators in one building so that the heat could be turned on and then he sent staff around the neighborhood to let people know they were welcome to come and spend the night where it was warm. He also had staff run out to the local 7-11 and buy out their stocks of instant foods to feed people and the staff found towels so people could at least wash up in the bathrooms.
Well, gotta start making phone calls again.
Thur March 17
Sadly, but not so surprisingly, my university cannot account for all of our students. Since students often communicate with professors with emails different from the ones on record or the ones the university sets up for them, faculty have been asked to send messages to students whose email addresses we may have asking the students to confirm they are okay and to kindly inform us if they know of any classmates who have been harmed or are missing.
In the meantime, next week's graduation ceremony has been postponed and the commencement of the new academic term in 3 weeks is in doubt, pending news of students from the devastated regions. Last December, I taught a special class to a group of students from the same private school in Fukushima- where the reactor is- who had all been accepted to our department. We don't know their fate, yet.
Thur. March 1
An article, worth reading, this article provides an argument as to why there is such a low crime rate in Japan
Stop, Thief! Thank You.
Why so little looting in Japan? It's not just about honesty.
By Christopher Beam
Posted Wednesday, March 16, 2011, at 6:27 PM ET
To read this article go to:
http://www.slate.com/id/2288514/
Thur. March 17
Hi Family,
We've decided to go to Mie early tomorrow AM to spend a few days with Yukiko's parents. What persuaded us in the end was not the reactor news, but the realization that we are going totally stir crazy being pent up inside every day with no where to go. Gas stations out here are all shut down, so we can't drive, and nothing is open. We're going to ride down to Mie with my friend Joe and his family in their tanked-up van. Seiji's pumped b/c he gets to take a road trip with his buddy Tristan, I am looking forward to walking around outside a lot. I just talked to Stuart who says life in Mie is normal.
Sadly, but not so surprisingly, my university cannot account for all of our students. Since students often communicate with professors with emails different from the ones on record or the ones the university sets up for them, faculty have been asked to send messages to students whose email addresses we may have asking the students to confirm they are okay and to kindly inform us if they know of any classmates who have been harmed or are missing.
In the meantime, next week's graduation ceremony has been postponed and the commencement of the new academic term in 3 weeks is in doubt, pending news of students from the devastated regions. Last December, I taught a special class to a group of students from the same private school in Fukushima- where the reactor is- who had all been accepted to our department. We don't know their fate, yet.
Thur March 21
Hello My Lovely Family and Friends,
First I want to thank you so very much for your concern for me. I am very touched. I also wish to apologize for a generic message to you all. But it seems the best way at the moment to get my message to you.
Things here in Sendai have been rather surreal. But I am very blessed to have wonderful friends who are helping me a lot. Since my shack is even more worthy of that name, I am now staying at a friend's home. We share supplies like water, food and a kerosene heater. We sleep lined up in one room, eat by candlelight, share stories. It is warm, friendly, and beautiful.
During the day we help each other clean up the mess in our homes. People sit in their cars, looking at news on their navigation screens, or line up to get drinking water when a source is open. If someone has water running in their home, they put out sign so people can come to fill up their jugs and buckets.
Utterly amazingly where I am there has been no looting, no pushing in lines. People leave their front door open, as it is safer when an earthquake strikes. People keep saying, "Oh, this is how it used to be in the old days when everyone helped one another."
Quakes keep coming. Last night they struck about every 15 minutes. Sirens are constant and helicopters pass overhead often. We got water for a few hours in our homes last night, and now it is for half a day. Electricity came on this afternoon. Gas has not yet come on. But all of this is by area. Some people have these things, others do not.
No one has washed for several days. We feel grubby, but there are so much more important concerns than that for us now. I love this peeling away of non-essentials. Living fully on the level of instinct, of intuition, of caring, of what is needed for survival, not just of me, but of the entire group.
There are strange parallel universes happening. Houses a mess in some places, yet then a house with futons or laundry out drying in the sun. People lining up for water and food, and yet a few people out walking their dogs. All happening at the same time.
Other unexpected touches of beauty are first, the silence at night. No cars. No one out on the streets. And the heavens at night are scattered with stars. I usually can see about two, but now the whole sky is filled. The mountains are Sendai are solid and with the crisp air we can see them silhouetted against the sky magnificently.
And the Japanese themselves are so wonderful. I come back to my shack to check on it each day, now to send this e-mail since the electricity is on, and I find food and water left in my entranceway. I have no idea from whom, but it is there. Old men in green hats go from door to door checking to see if everyone is OK. People talk to complete strangers asking if they need help. I see no signs of fear. Resignation, yes, but fear or panic, no.
They tell us we can expect aftershocks, and even other major quakes, for another month or more. And we are getting constant tremors, rolls, shaking, rumbling. I am blessed in that I live in a part of Sendai that is a bit elevated, a bit more solid than other parts. So, so far this area is better off than others. Last night my friend's husband came in from the country, bringing food and water. Blessed again.
Somehow at this time I realize from direct experience that there is indeed an enormous Cosmic evolutionary step that is occurring all over the world right at this moment. And somehow as I experience the events happening now in Japan, I can feel my heart opening very wide. My brother asked me if I felt so small because of all that is happening. I don't. Rather, I feel as part of something happening that much larger than myself. This wave of birthing (worldwide) is hard, and yet magnificent.
Tue. March 22
Hi Family,
We arrived home about 30 minutes ago, at 7pm local time. We left a few hours later than planned but made great time. As expected, we saw a lot of trucks heading north to the devastated regions, they are labelled with special signs that get them through the access points up there. We saw a lot of buses carrying police, fire and other rescue-related people from cities in western Japan.
As we pulled into our area tonight we were relieved to see things looking a bit more normal. A lot of stores were open, though not nearly as brightly lit as normal, and we saw gas stations open, the first we've seen here since March 11th.
Wed. March 23
Hi Family,
Before I even got to the train station we had two minor earthquakes this morning. That did not make me feel good at all about leaving Seiji and Yukiko.
Right now, I've just started a task I don't want to do for several reasons. Like every Tokyo-area university, Toyo is having difficulties accounting for all it students. So, every faculty member has been given a list of 25-30 students and we have to call them. We've been given a script to use. Only one of the names on my list has a permanent address in Fukushima- one of the tree prefectures devastated by the quake and home of the nuclear reactor you are watching in the news- and I've just talked to his father who said he and everyone in the family are unharmed.
In the meantime, the start of our new academic year has been pushed back a month, to the second week of May, but we will have orientation events and placement exams in the last week of April. So, I'll be working at home for most of April, which is good- I can take Seiji to preschool and pick him up often!
The entire nothern region east of the Japan Alps (i.e. on the Pacific side) is without electricity, and every major highway and railway has been destroyed in multiple spots. Tokyo trains cannot run at full capacity yet and the rolling blackouts are continuing, with no plans to end them for a at least a few weeks. Neither the national government nor the Tokyo government want an influx of college students overtaxing the rail system and, frankly, neither students nor faculty want to try to commute daily in these conditions. Meanwhile, as mentioned, Tokyo-area campuses don't know the fates of many of their students at this time and many faculty and staff don't yet know the fate of loved ones from the north.
It was strange to be in Tokyo today. Even 12 days after the quake, there were whole neighborhoods with power blackouts (3 hours at a time, rotating) and all businesses are using litltle or no artificial lighting as well as operating at reduced hours. Tokyo station was very dark and had fewer people in it than I've ever seen - and it was 9am on a weekday. I also saw a lot of damaged buildings in Tokyo today, and even our campus suffered some minor damage. My office was a mess (yes, even by my standards.) Books were all over the floor, two tea cups had broken and my desk lamp crashed on my keyboard.
I also learned today that after the quake, our university and the surrounding neighborhood were without power for 18 hours. So, Toyo's president authorized the activation of the back-up generators in one building so that the heat could be turned on and then he sent staff around the neighborhood to let people know they were welcome to come and spend the night where it was warm. He also had staff run out to the local 7-11 and buy out their stocks of instant foods to feed people and the staff found towels so people could at least wash up in the bathrooms.
Well, gotta start making phone calls again.
Love you all, and thanks for reading my updates.
Sun. March 27
Sadly, Japan is not without looting or rudeness, it turns out.
My friend Prof. Kokarimai sent me an email today describing the loss of his brother's home and several branch stores of the family supermarket chain. His brother's family was able to run to higher ground a few minutes before the tsunami wiped out their home and two branch stores, and damaged a third. The other night someone robbed the latter store of its cash box which contained sales and paychecks worth $7.4 million.
Today one of Yukiko's long-time friends who lives in one of the devastated areas could finally call to us she and her family, and miraculously, their home, are all okay. However, she told Yukiko that there is rationing and long lines for everything and people are cutting in lines and scamming to get more than what they are allotted and there's been some petty theft of belongings at night. (She also described her family's ordeal to Yukiko, including watching her relatives' and neighbors houses crumble to pieces. I can't imagine.)
I think this is all ultimately a piece with human nature as we've seen it for recorded history and worry it will likely get worse before it gets better. Life in the devastated areas has to be incredibly stressful and literally painful, due to lack of electricity, sufficient water and an unusually long winter. We have been colder than usual the past 2 weeks, and we live in a mild climate. Up north it is just plain cold, and damp.
Wed. March 30
Mom and dad, that tsunami footage you sent via the Dutch website almost numbed my mind. I kept waiting for the water to recede and I found the gradual, yet relentless progression of the water to be possibly more horrible than if a single giant wave had struck, like something out of a disaster movie.
Here's an update of some things here. The hardest to read news is in the first paragraph.
According to today's paper, hundreds of kids are not only orphaned but the last known living member of their extended families. An official said that 68 kids were orphaned by the Kobe quake in '95 but almost all of them could be placed with another relative. Not this time. Authorities are starting to release photos of the kids (but not their locations or names) in the fading hope that someone will come forward to claim them. The story featured a picture of one 4-year-old girl who has been writing letters to her mommy & daddy every day telling them what she is doing and what she will do with them when they come to pick her up. They cannot find any other relatives, including her sister, even though the girl keeps talking about them. (Remember that the quake struck in mid-afternoon when schools and preschools were in session.) Meanwhile, there are men and women who are searching for their lost children and spouses. Yesterday's paper showed a 40-year old man and his sister-in-law who have been going to every evacuation center and hospital they can get to looking for his wife and 7-year old daughter. And, of course, the papers continues to print the names and ages of the latest known victims all in the almost completely diminished chances that someone will come forward to claim the bodies.
In news of the merely inconvenient: Supply chains have been disrupted, as you may have heard, so Tokyo shops have shortages of a lot of products besides just food items from the north and packages from overseas do not seem to be getting through at all (Mom and dad- we still have not received the package you sent around the time of the disaster.) Almost every port north of Tokyo up the Pacific Coast has been destroyed or debilitated and priority is being given to getting relief supplies to the devastated regions. Tokyo Disneyland has been shut down since the 11th, to repair damage and to preserve electricity and b/c, of course, no one is in the mood to go there, anyway. Tokyo metro area electricity is reaching only 80% capacity so rolling blackouts continue and businesses in the region continue to keep most lights off and have reduced their hours. Almost every train is running late, due to frequent slow downs and stoppages caused by earthquake tremors. (They are programmed to automatically do so whenever a tremor occurs.)
Anyway, we just feel blessed in every way to have left essentially unaffected by all of this. The stress and inconvenience feel like luxuries when we look at the paper every morning.
Apr 7, 2011 6:22 pm
Subject: Re: earthquake: we are okay
Thanks, D, and thank you all, for your notes. As D says, it really is brutal for the people in northern Kanto (the greater Tokyo metro area, we live in the southern part) and Tohoku (the north east, the area that suffered the most devastation.) For us it is a bit nerve-wracking and reminds us to make sure our "survival" kits are packed and our evacuation plans secured. Needless to say I did not like leaving home this morning.
It is going to be a hot summer. The news in today's paper, besides last night's quake, was that we are going to have reduced electric capacity through the summer. The Kanto region has been at 78-82% capacity since March 11 and the paper says we should expect those levels to remain the same from now through the summer, and probably into the fall. So, schools, companies and trains will not be able to run air conditioning at normal levels, or sometimes even at all. Ugh. Happily we will be home for most of August! But, July and September are going to be a major drag.
Noticed yesterday that supermarkets in our area are limiting how much individuals may purchase and they are out of many items. Restaurant menus are also unable to offer all items on their menus. This summer we may have to bring back a lot of batteries, as I have not seen them on any store shelves for three weeks now. (Luckily we had stocked up a bit in February, but if we lose power for a long time we'd probably need more before too long.)
Well, today is the first day of classes. Time to go enlighten young, energetic minds that are thirsty for knowledge. Oh, wait, sorry, that was last night's happy dream. Time to go to class...
Apr 8, 2011 10:29 am
Update
Hi Everyone,
Well, classes started at Toyo today. The main subject of conversation was last night's quake- everyone was woken up by it, of course, a few people said things fell on them. Some university faculty were out today for funerals and our students from the northern region cannot yet make it down here for the start of the term.
As I mentioned before, the summer is looking to be exceptionally unpleasant due to reduced power in the region so I am glad our term started on time. Other schools will have to make up for the late start by extending classes and exams well into August but with little to no air conditioning. Teaching and giving tests in 100-degree temps with 90% humidity? NO THANKS! I'll be in Wisconsin with my family. Anyway, there are small crews of contractors working around campus repairing cracks and breaks from last month's quake, it is a blessing that last night's quake was when they were not on the scaffolding. Some of it fell down. Meanwhile, hallways are dark as the university, like everyone else, is using as little electricity as possible.
An American I know in the business department had bad news, good news and horribly sad news from his wife's side of the family, who ALL live in Fukushima and Iwate, the areas with the most destruction and where the towns were totally wiped out by the tsunami. Bad news: Her parents, uncles, aunts, cousins and grandparents ALL lost everything- their homes, cars, possessions are gone and they are living in shelters, they cannot even get out of the area to come down to Tokyo to relocate. Good news: Miraculously, none of them were hurt. Sad news: One uncle's family had left the region the day before for a family trip. While they were away their house was wiped out by the tsunami and they have since learned that no one they know in town- not a single person among their friends, neighbors or colleagues- survived. I can't imagine how sad and disorienting that would feel.
I also learned that there was a lot of damage last month in Katsushika, the Tokyo district where Y and Iived for 2.5 years. A lot of homes were without power or even running water for up to two weeks and a lot of houses have since been condemned by the government. One of my law department colleagues, an adjunct lecturer from New Zealand, found out yesterday her and her husband's house out there has been officially declared "half destroyed," which means a large sign is posted on the street-side of the house warning visitors they enter at their own risk! Turns out the foundation cracked and is now unlevel and there are cracks in several walls. She said that they could feel the house rocking a bit on the uneven foundation. (And they are still living in it because....???)
According to today's paper, out of 3157 schools in the areas devastated by the quake, only 155 could open this week for the start of the new term. Many of the remainder are completely destroyed. Kids are being sent to other schools as close to their home area as possible. On that note, the odds we'll actually be called upon to host a child and his family are quite low, as great pains are being made to keep these kids as close to their home region as possible (within reason, of course.) Furthermore, many people have requested NOT to be relocated far away, even if only temporarily, and I cannot blame them.
At next week's faculty meeting we'll be informed of the volunteer opportunities organized by our university. Joe and I hope to participate.
Finally, I have been put in charge of a sub-committee in my department, I even have two (senior!) colleagues whom I am supposed to direct in fulfillment of our assigned tasks. One of our duties is to organize the clean up and remodeling of the documents room and study on the 13th floor. Last month's quake knocked over all 12 book cases, whose fall was broken only the 4 computers and 2 printers next to them. The stabilizing bars connecting the bookshelves were even bent and they tore through the spines of books when the shelves went down. One of the doors cannot be opened to the room, either. I have a small budget to use and plan to hire undergrads to do the heavy lifting. The U's general budget will cover the costs of contractors to repair the walls and floors.) (And in case you are wondering, being appointed sub-committee chairman in a university department actually is not as sexy as it sounds...)
Love you and miss you all very much,
Steve
Fri, Apr 8, 2011 10:01 pm
Subject: Fwd: Next Week
Below is an email I received from Emeritus Prof. Kokarimai yesterday and that I thought might interest you. I like his comment about me choosing not to "run away"!
As you know, his brother (mentioned below) was a tank commander in the Philippines and when his tank was knocked out in a battle against MacArthur he fled to the jungle where he survived for nearly a year before making his way back to Japan after the war. His family, in the meantime, had been informed of his death and had held funeral services 9 months before he came back. After recovering his health, he built up his father's single butcher shop into northern Japan's largest supermarket chain. The family relies on Prof. Kokarimai to mediate between family members on business issues and he oversees the trusts and investments they set up.
Love you,
Steve
PS The figures he gives for costs of new stores seem too high (the amount he states would be over $5 billion.) If this seems like a strange mistake for an economist to make, it is b/c Japanese count large numbers in units of 10,000. For example, what we call a million is called "100 ten thousands" in Japanese and they combine Arabic numerals with Japanese characters for the numbers ten thousand, thousand and hundred. Even professional economists have to pause sometimes or use a calculator when making the conversions (to say nothing of lesser mathematically talented people like me.)
Thank you for your proposal. Then I would like to knock on your door at 12:40 on Wednesday as I want to avoid the busiest lunch time. Let us go out for lunch immediately.
Today my hometown is being occupied by a sudden blackout owing to the rather big aftershock happened last night.
Japan is confronting some kind of uncertainty these days I hope you won't run away to America even though the nuclear power plant in Fukushima has a possibility to blast!
My home town looks like an isolated land even now. I could make contact with my former student who engaged in sea farming at Yamada Bay by cellular phone. Then I went over to the coastal area by car in order to see him. I was truly shocked with so many piles of rubble every corner of Yamada Cho, Shimohei-gun, Iwate Prefecture. I saw him in the midst of trash here and there. It is the case that he lost all of his fishing boat, sea-farming rafts on the sea, workshop, and his own house. He is now staying at his friend's house together with his daughter. In this sense, their standard of living must be a little bit better than those evacuated persons who are living at their shelters. However, he said to me that he couldn't draw any future plan as he lost all of means of production by the monstrous tsunami. But I believe that he will come back to his former business.My brothers' supermarket in Morioka lost two coastal branch stores at once. Necessary costs of opening a new store needs 3 hundred million to 5 hundred million yen. Worse, owing to the strong earthquake, an uncountable number of goods on shelves fell down onto the floor within the stores. It contributed to a huge amount of losses occurred at a time of earthquake.
See you soon.
Regards,
Kiyo
Apr 12, 2011 10:26 pm
Subject: crash, bang, boom
Here's a photo of my department's document room, which I am tasked with getting back into order and re-organizing. I have to choose which publications to throw out, but I get a team of students as my chain-gang to do all the manual labor. (Ingrid, want a temporary overseas working-vacation? I can make it sound fancy for your resume!)
We had two M4 quakes during class today and then many students were late for later classes due to train delays and stoppages. This is going to be the "new normal" for the foreseeable future.