My famous brother!
Wow, this is way cool: My brother Darius, who works as a park manager in upstate NY, was interviewed on a local news story about the big popularity of outdoor camping this year. The segment is entitled, “Summer Staycations Spiking.” I’ve embedded the news clip below. Check it out! Dotto appears about 47 second in. He says:
“Memorial Day Weekend is the, ya know, unofficial kickoff and we are busy.” said Chenango Valley Assistant Manager Darius Talandis. “We have the families that come and will stay for 2 solid weeks.”
Way to go, DT!
Kiss this winter good-bye!
Wow, is it hot here in Japan these days. We haven’t had a flake of snow since the end of January, and it feels almost like spring is here. Weird! I’m especially bummed because no snow means no snowboarding! We had a great January, and things were looking up for a long season, but in the past few weeks all has come to a screeching halt. Luke was supposed to participate in a kids giant slalom ski race today, but the event was cancelled… Oh well.
Here is an article from today’s Japan Times that talks about this national heat wave. Notice that in Shizuoka yesterday, the temperature hit 26.8 degrees celcius! That’s 80 degrees fahrenheit for all of you living in the States! 80 in the middle of FEBRUARY????
Wow.
What’s the weather like where you are? Please leave a comment below! Let’s enjoy chatting about the weather!
Early heat wave spurs warnings
Kyodo News
Temperatures shot up to summer levels Saturday as warm air moving in from the south set record highs in more than 105 places throughout Japan, prompting the Meteorological Agency to issue an avalanche warning.
The agency said the unseasonal heat wave could cause avalanches and mudslides in snowy regions, and that violent winds and tidal waves would pose a danger in northern areas through Sunday.
The heat shocked many on the Pacific coast, where Shizuoka hit 26.8 and Odawara, Kanagawa Prefecture, hit 26.1 in the afternoon, making their winters feel like early July.
Tokyo logged 23.9, its highest this year, just after 2 p.m.
The sudden surge in temperatures is already being blamed for cracking a frozen lake in Ishikawa, Fukushima Prefecture, where two people fishing went missing.
Meanwhile, in Yurihonjo, Akita Prefecture, a mountain stream flooded four houses as meltwater and heavy rain caused it to overflow.
Itoigawa in Niigata Prefecture logged a record high for February of 23.6 as early as 1:40 a.m., the agency said.
On the northern Pacific coast, strong winds forced the suspension of train runs in many areas.
Erimo Cape in Hokkaido was hit by 128 kph winds at around 2 p.m., while Nikko, Tochigi Prefecture, recorded 121 kph gusts at around 11:30 a.m.
The Japan Times: Sunday, Feb. 15, 2009
(C) All rights reserved
Update: February 17th
Woohoo! Finally, it snowed! We got about 25cm last night (10 inches). Boy, was I a happy camper this morning when I opened up the living room curtains. Actually, now I can brag that I’ve managed to turn Murphey’s Law in my favor- by taking the trouble to blog about this recent heat wave, it’s only natural that it should snow that very same evening! Ha! It’s like when you go out to the park for a picnic and you don’t want it to rain, so you shlep around an umbrella ’cause you know if you don’t, it’s going to pour…
Here is a picture of a happy me this morning before heading off to work:
Obama mania hits Japan
Wow, what a day yesterday! It seems like the entire world was watching and celebrating Obama’s inauguration, the new American Renaissance. Here in Japan is no different. From the hula-dancing “Obama Girls” in the fishing villiage called Obama ( it means “small beach” in Japanese), to the latest bestselling book, a collection of Obama speeches meant to help you study English, the new American president is top of the news. News outlets are doing lots of “person in the street” interviews, and here in Toyama City, a reporter came to my school yesterday afternoon to get the reaction of the American teachers (me and my colleague Susan, who is from Hawaii). After being asked all sorts of Obama questions, the reporter asked if the other foreign staff could join us in a group photo, which you can see below in this article from today’s Toyama Shimbun:
From left to right are: Stephen (from the UK), Kevin (above him, from Canada), me, Susan, Lee (from Canada), and David (from New Zealand). The caption reads, “Here are some local foreign teachers reading about Obama’s inauguration ceremony.” When we saw this photo this morning, we had to laugh because of the way the reporter staged the shot. Of course we don’t read this newspaper! Still, it was a goof. We were having a good time cracking jokes about how contrived the situation was.
Here is a rough translation of the article. The headline says, “Chance to change history- Happiness spreads as President Obama begins his term in office”. That centered vertical title says, “Teachers from America and other countries based in Toyama ponder the impact on the economy and foreign affairs.” The first part of the story mentions comments from teachers working in Toyama. Then the good part:
An instructor at TCFL, Gerald Talandis Jr., watched the ceremony live on TV at 2 am. “Obama’s message is one of empowerment- that people can do anything they want if they work together”, he said. “His inaugural speech was very positive. People accept Obama because he comes across as a sincere, passionate person. I expect him to rebuild America like before.”
So that’s a rough translation. I actually said a lot more than that, and more eloquently (I thought), but most of it got lost in translation, I guess. I’m not totally sure if this translation is spot on or not, but it’s close enough. Anyway, just thought you’d find this interesting.
Oh, and one more thing: My sister Vi, who lives in DC, attended the historic event. Here is a link to the photos she took. I had a great time showing these to my students today in class! They really enjoyed seeing a real participant’s point-of-view on the entire thing. Great job, Vi!
Insane gas prices
In Japan we’ve been dealing with super high gas prices for years, while those of you in the States (dad, mom, Vi, DT, et al), have been living a life of comparative ease- until now! Check out this article in today’s NY Times. Wow! I was shocked when I saw that photo- up to $5.69 for a gallon of gas in the USA???!!! What is that??? This is way way higher than just last year, when I visited you all. I remember feeling shocked when I saw $2.70/gallon; now it’s averaging over $4???? How are you dealing with this?
Here in Japan, gas prices just shot up again. I figured it out, and we’re up to about $5.89/gallon ($1.55/liter). We’re dealing by driving a lot less. I’ve been riding my bike to work almost every day. Thankfully it hasn’t been raining much… But what about you guys? How do you manage with such insane prices? Let me know by leaving a comment below.
1st snow of the season
It’s midnight, and I’m off to Tokyo in 7 hours!!! I’m so busy and nervous now, but I can’t sleep. I’ve just finished packing and will be off to be soon. If I get a chance, I’ll be posing some photos from the event. My first ever presentation is on Saturday evening, 6pm Tokyo time (that’s 5 am EST). My slides aren’t even done, but I’m not too worried about that. I’ll have time tomorrow to finish it up.
Before I go to bed, we had some good news today: it snowed for the 1st time this season! This is the earliest I can ever remember is snowing here. We NEVER get a dump in November. Way cool! I hope this year makes up for last year, snow-wise.
Starbucks comes to Toyama City!!!
Well, there’s a lot going on in Japan these days; Let’s see… what do we have here?
The prime minister resigned because his political opponent wouldn’t meet with him…
A new leader is being elected this weekend, and the talking heads on TV news shows are in rare form…
Typhoons are blowing through and around the country on a weekly basis…
Zzzzzzzz… snore… zzzzzzzz…
Politics? Extreme weather? Meh…
You know what big story is really rocking our world here in Toyama?
Da da da da da da DA!
Starbucks coming to Toyama City for the first time!!!!!
Yes, who cares about national elections or extreme weather when I can walk outside of my office at work and in 5 minutes be drinking a Grande Carmel Macchiato?
I know, I know what you must be thinking: “Starbucks: big whoop! They have those every 15 feet where I live!”
Well, here in Japan, Starbucks is THE place to hang out and be seen! The cool of the cool, la creme de la creme. Up til now, we’ve had to drive 40 minutes to get our coffee fix, to a big shopping mall on the other side of the prefecture. Now, set in this brand new shopping mall I CAN SEE FROM MY OFFICE (see slideshow below), we have all the lattes, frappachinos, and sweet sweet snacks we can consume!
Whoo hooo!!
This new shopping center just opened up today, and during my lunch hour I wandered over and took these photos with my cell-phone camera. Check ‘em out!
Probably this weekend I’ll be coming down here with the family. I hope to bring a video camera with me, and I’ll be able to give you the grand tour! I know you can hardly wait!
Oh, to see bigger versions of the photos, click here.
Extended family news: Dotto Completes a Triathlon
In a bit of extended family happenings, my brother Darius (Dotto) just emailed me some great news: On Sunday, August 5th he competed in and finished the 5th annual Cayuga Lake Triathlon in our hometown of Ithaca, NY.
The event was held at beautiful Taughannock Falls State Park. I’ll let him describe his experience:
Congratulations, DT! Keep up your good work! You’re an inspiration to all of us.
Hello! My name is Gerald Talandis Jr, and I'm the webmaster of this blog. I'm using it as a tool for staying in touch with family in friends around the world. I've been in Japan since 1993 and currently teach English at 
This is my wife, Shinobu. She's originally from 
Luke was born on July 29th, 2001. He is now an elementary school student and loves sports, like his mama. Each week, Luke swims, plays soccer, and goes to a gymnastics class. He is also studying English and dreams of visiting the USA someday and becoming an Olympic swimmer, like his hero Michael Phelps.
Our daughter Max was born on March 7th, 2007. She is currently attending nursery school and is learning to walk, talk, and eat by herself without making a mess. She is growing by leaps and bounds, and loves Micky Mouse, Hello Kitty, and Anpanman.