George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
The things you lean on / are things that don't last
User ID: 107
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
2hr ago
Just as an aside, I think I have pretty much always had real wasabi here in Japan. Like shaved off the thing into a little bowl. I quite like it when I can find something to eat it with, but you know what I like better? Yuzu-koshō, which is an actual lingering spice but to me has a better range of foods that it can be eaten with.
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
2hr ago
As a man who's lived in Japan 25 years, and who goes to sushi restaurants regularly, but does not eat the sushi that is served in these restaurants, I do not know. I do know that the people around me who eat sushi and enjoy it have various levels of quality in mind to rate sushi and sushi restaurants, and sushi restaurants outside Japan are always relegated to "not really sushi" by these people. Even in Japan people are finicky. There is a conveyor-sushi up the road from me where we sometimes go, and if my father-in-law ever is up to visit and goes there with us he will either not eat or eat one or two pieces grudgingly and you can see he is trying to hold back his disgust. (Edit: Because he thinks their sushi is shit. He only goes to places he thinks have high quality sushi.)
Japanese tastes are not my tastes. Fatty tuna or マグロ maguro is generally held to be a delicacy. But then so is Kobe beef which I find interesting but it doesn't feel like eating beef to me when I eat it. More like something you would eat on another planet where they bring out something and say "We have tried to create something that is similar to your earth-food, but we feel we have improved upon the taste and texture" in their alien language that you can understand for some reason. You then eat the wagyu Kobe beef and you see what they mean, but you know that you will enjoy more that tenderized beef off the grill at your buddy's house more. A lot more. And where are the baked potatoes? Not in Japan, I will tell you that right now. I won't even get into chawan mushi or natto or namako or the many other foods that I see people eating and enjoying as if they are all part of an elaborate prank to get me to also eat it and rave about it. I refuse.
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
3hr ago
Quick question, what does "Make out with" actually mean in 2024? I assume both you and she share the same meaning in your heads when she writes it and you read it. Like deep kissing? Heavy petting (is that a term anyone uses?)? Groping around underneath clothes?
Either way my humble advice would be to text something similar to "I'm sorry you feel that way. For my part I enjoyed spending time with you. Take care." Then delete this woman's contact information from every device you own and never, ever contact her again. You're probably attracted to the edginess and always will be, and hey aren't we all. But you don't want that kind of volatility in your life. Move on.
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
3hr ago
Wrong reply, sorry.
I must have missed that discussion. Also the idea of black samurai may seem good to some, but it's almost completely fabricated nonsense, and the author of African Samurai has lately been repeatedly pilloried by Japanese historians. At best his book is historical fiction that takes many liberties, at worst it's an alternate reality account.
Edit: spelling
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
3hr ago
Agreed. It was absolutely horrible. Part of the sloppiness was maybe because it was pissing down rain and they weren't expecting that. But the bizarre non-binary TV clips and essentially Greatest Showman vibes from everything else made me feel like I really am just out of touch with anything related to entertainment now. And what's with a black French female pop star named Aya Nakamura who is in no way Japanese? I guess I'm glad there's no outcry of Cultural Appropriation, but I can't help imagine if a white guy with dreadlocks and calling himself Abdou Njie had jumped up and started rapping the heavens would have fallen. The Japanese TV announcers even pointed out awkwardly "Her name is Aya Nakamura but she has no connection with Japan."
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
10hr ago
The "Law of Merited Impossibility" can be summarized as: "It will never happen, and when it does, you bigots will deserve it." This phrase captures the idea that those advocating for certain social changes often dismiss concerns about potential negative consequences by asserting that such outcomes are impossible. However, if those feared outcomes do come to pass, they are then justified as deserved by those who opposed the changes.
I'm beginning to find my purpose on the Motte.
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
1d ago
Or a leader people respect. But I see what you're saying. My little hypothetical wasn't meant to describe Trump, by the way, though reading through it it seems an obvious jab at him. I do think Trump leads through ethos and that little drop of Retsyn that certain leaders have, that no one since Obama has had in the Democratic party. Both Reagan and Clinton had it. You don't have to have good policies to have that vibe where people just, in hearing or watching you, think they're in good hands, that they're going to be okay. Trump has it for his party but he doesn't cross the aisle well.
Harris definitely does not have it, at least for me, and though usually I can see why even people I disagree with are inspired by whatever speaker (I see the appeal in certain faith healers, for example, even if I don't share it) but I can't with Harris.
Edit:
The phrase “If only the Tsar knew” reflects a historical sentiment often expressed by Russian peasants and workers during the reign of the Tsars, particularly in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The phrase embodies the belief that if the Tsar were only aware of their suffering and the injustices they faced, he would intervene and set things right. It underscores a naive faith in the benevolence of the ruler and a disconnect between the people and the oppressive structures of the regime.
Had to look it up, as usual for me in these parts. Thanks for the new phrase.
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
1d ago
I agree in principle with what you write here. And my answer would be the latter is a better indication, if for no other reason than that Harris doesn't strike me as a leader, but a follower bent by whichever way the Democratic wind seems to be blowing at the time. This is another reason I'd like her to be subjected to focused questioning by an impartial interviewer. How much of her is True Believer? My suspicion is there's no belief system in place other than to preach platitudes to a besotted choir.
So what's more transnational than... the Olympics? The Olympics in Paris begin in less than 24 hours. So far a Japanese gymnast has already been put on a plane back to Tokyo before her first somersault. Why? She admitted to smoking and drinking. Notably the age of doing either in Japan is 20. She's 19. The issue I believe is the Japan Gymnastics Association bylaws which forbid these vices. (As far as I know she only admitted to drinking in Japan.) Also at least one Russian man has been arrested for plotting to disrupt the games, and an Australian woman (not an athlete) has aid she was gang-raped by men who "looked African." Also sex is back on the list of possibilities for athletes, after the rather celibate Tokyo games due to COVID restrictions (no word on whether that Japanese gymnast also ever had sex during training.)
Edit: Breaking: Arson attacks on French rail lines.
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
1d ago
To me this is a foreign perspective. To say that a politician being compelled to address difficult questions signifies weakness doesn't value intelligence, or the ability to reason, to say nothing of dignity, honor, or ethics--it valorizes the effectiveness of, for lack of a better word, the bully or charlatan. Which, hey, the bullies best at their role always have a nice following of toadies. Followers who, outside his presence (and it's usually but not always a him) try the same strategies but less effectively. And bullies can get things done, but then so did Charles Taylor, Papa Doc Duvalier, etc etc. But once they're gone, regardless of whether you liked their policies (which they themselves probably didn't care about except in as much as they kept them in power) there's suddenly a big hole that will not be filled. Because what to fill it with? Not ideas, surely. Not policy, or vision, or core values. No one agrees in what these are, they just agree they want that hole filled so they and theirs can hang on to power. I'm not saying this is your perspective, necessarily.
I gurss guess I'm not being clear. I'm happy to defend the institution. And I've already suggested there's hopefully a story here that we cannot glean from just viewing the bodycam. I'm suggesting that this appears to be a needless killing and if it is, that should be acknowledged unflinchingly.
Here you go. This link is nothing you couldn't find on your own, but it's a start. Health insurance is one of those things no one necessarily bugs you about until you're sick, but I'd definitely recommend staying on top of it and getting it now (whichever type you decide to get.)
As you seem to intuitively realize, doing things and facing challenges is a good way to build self-respect. I'd also advise getting out of the house (when you do arrive to Chiang Mai, which is currently hot, though not unbearable).
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
2d ago
Good times. Commutes can be good for the soul. Like anything really that can otherwise seem tedious or difficult. Also driving is fun, get a car you like. I like convertibles.
As someone who has done the leaving home thing at least twice and whose only tether now is one aunt, an estranged brother, and a few good friends with whom physical distance is really irrelevant, I understand the reflectiveness. Still technology now makes getting in touch real-time even by video trivially easy. I just deleted a longish paragraph where I talked about the old days but no one wants to read that shit. Hug that dog.
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
2d ago
Don't worry about it. Not all women are, some are but not all the time. It doesn't matter. I'm sorry if this is a weak or unhelpful take but I feel like I have to say something because every time this type question is posed here there are multiple dudes-who-have-been-burned-by-women who make all sorts of generalized dismissive comments and I want to balance these out. Keep crossing those state lines and put it out of your mind. (And don't message her again.)
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
2d ago
Just because I'm a pedant, I believe it's asymmetry, though your spelling is much more entertaining.
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
2d ago
hopefully this one will survive
Shit man, sorry to hear about past experiences, and fwiw I (and I expect all here) also hope this.
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
2d ago
I was like this for a while--a beer, while making dinner, or two, or three. Hey I have gin, or vodka, let's do martini. Then it was 3 beers five nights a week, and more on Saturdays.
I've been on the wagon now almost a month, mainly because I got COVID, which started me off, but then my buddy back home decided to do a 30-day-dry and started sending me daily counts: 1, 2, 3, etc. So now we are doing it together and I'll be damned if he will go longer than I will. So yeah it gets down to just competitiveness, but if it works...
Mornings I feel better. I have cheated once or twice in this heat and had a few non-alcohol (0.00%) beers to fool myself, but they weirdly mess with my head. My wife says "Just have a beer," so no real support there. If you want a cheering section, DM me, but probably someone you know and trust is better. Never hurts to be accountable to others, or at least one other.
Finally I don't announce that I am doing this (except here, now, to hundreds of strangers). Just my friend, and now my wife who kept asking. Keep it on the down low is my advice. I don't have a theory on this, it just seems right. Good luck, if you decide to do it. I am not sure when I'll drink again. Maybe after the 30 days. I still like a nice drink, and especially as I say, in this blasted heat.
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
2d ago
Apparently I'm an idiot. You're right, that's the event I was referring to.
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
2d ago
I believe she did, yes, to the same union.
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
2d ago
I'm done. I'm not going to argue.
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
2d ago
No, that isn't my point. What's yours? Is there a question you're not asking?
Yes I remember that from the Cornel West Henry Louis Gates, Jr. brouhaha several years back, and I sided with those officers. Of course they didn't shoot him.
George_E_Hale
insufferable blowhard
2d ago
You and I are talking (typing) at cross-purposes. And for my part I'm not "accusing" you of anything, except possible pointless hostility. Maybe not even that. You're looking at this as a political strategist. I'm simply making a comment in due process and justice (though again, I don't yet know what that should be as I just clicked in and still haven't watched the full video and do not necessarily think my armchair opinion should be the last word anyway. I've made that caveat.). I agree that releasing this footage was shittily political.
At age 22, I joined the US Peace Corps and moved to southern Africa and lived in a village of about 500 which was 145 km off any paved road. Dry, bright, intense heat, and surprisingly cold in winter (July, etc.) Everyone there knew my name, which isn't George. There was only power from around 8am-5pm except when they forgot to buy diesel for the generator (which was often.) There was sometimes no water because whoever forgot to buy diesel for the borehole pump. There was only one phone at the nearby school, which I wasn't allowed to use except emergencies for some reason. There was no radio except AM sometimes at night, and the only English radio was Voice of America when that came on. And this was in 1992 so there was no Internet to speak of. For entertainment I read Dostoevsky or whatever. They sent us Newsweek every month, but it was about two weeks out of date. I remember taking a chair out of my sitting room and putting it out in my yard and drinking vodka and watching satellites among the vastly increased number of stars in a place so remote. I did a bit of writing. I drew pictures. The 19-year old nanny of the woman who lived behind me liked to dance topless at night in my last six months there. My nemeses were camel spiders who would come out at night, and about which I have many horror stories. Once I killed with a shovel a couple of puff adders on the volleyball pitch (which was essentially just a bunch of sand). In Christmas vacations (December, so hot in the southern hemisphere) when my PCV acquaintances were out rambling around in Madagascar or Johannesburg, I would sit like the introvert I was in my house with with the windows open and listen to the villagers a kilometer off singing traditional songs that everyone knew except me. You could see the light from the bonfires and whatever. I took up smoking, and drank a good bit of beer, and read by candlelight. When I went anywhere far, I had to hitchhike. I have a lot of bizarre stories about that as well, in some of them I should have died. Anyway when I left my US home to go to Africa I was leaving friends but the girl I loved didn't love me back, we had all just finished university and people were going their own ways, and I figured it was time to GTFO. It was, too. Three years, I was gone. Japan came a lot later.
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