Hello everybody!

Recently, my job is very busy and I was forgot that tomorrow is Christmas Eve. I’m not preparing any presents for my family. Above all, my son went to Ski by our car. Then I can not go out till day after tomorrow.

How is your Christmas Eve, everybody? Why all Japanese celebrate Christmas even they are not Christian?

Yesterday was winter solstice. From today, it will be bright in the morning little by little. It is good to me because I can expect bright morning when I get up. Now it is still dark, so I can imagine the delight. May be Christmas Eve start the same meaning.

Control of bid rigging may be bad thing. However, if we rely on only bid, some body bid very low cost and low quality. It’s cost back to us later. We need fair evaluation system with bid.

Control of bid rigging (dango) is becoming very strict in Japan. For long Japanese people didn't think it a very bad thing. We took it for granted as a necessary evil. We are not living in a society where a winner takes all. Our social-culture was based upon "live and let live" idea. But the time has changed, we are following after American way of market oriented capitalism. Of course, a bid rigging in public works is a very bad thing since it uses tax money.

Yesterday, I took day off and had a medical check. I have to do medical check at April, but my job was very tight, then I extended till now.

天地玄黄san. Yes, U.S. still have many success story. Many Japanese are willing to go there to get their dreams.

Some body has each reason to want back to Japan.
Happily, I have no chance to live at U.S. and know only S.E.Asia. It’s means there are some advantages during the area. It’s may be same advantages as American or European people in Japan.
In Japan, may be Asian people feel same as Manaita’s friend.
Do you feel socio-cultural differences? And how about Marsy, do you feel same?

Many Japanese go to America and some return and some do not.

I think America is a good place for challengers. The father of my friend went to America long time ago from europe with a very small money in his pocket. He worked hard and finally became a doctor. It was a dream-come-true for him which he could not make it in his home land.

If you are in Japan, you do not think about racial prejudices, but if you go to America, you are a minority group. A difficult problem waits you.

Hello everyone, I'm newbie. I have to study English for some reason, so have decided to enter here.

>Marsy
Nice to meet you, Marsy. One of my friend lives in Carifornia for several years. She already has even the green card but is saying that she wants to go back to Japan in the future. It makes me feel odd, because when she has left Japan she was supposed to expect the land of liberty. After all, Japan might be the best place for Japanese people, I think.

Anyway next time, I want to talk with you about anime and video games. See you!

Hi!　I've never been abroad. People call a person like me xenophobia? Actually, I enjoy walking around Tokyo very much but I hate travels by cars, trains, aeroplanes, ships etc. Further more, I love Japanese ladies so much and I can't spend even a day without them. ^^
Thank you

Hi! Marsy-san. How long have you stayed in America? Are you bored and want to come back to Japan? I've never been to America and will not go to America either, not because I do not like America but I am just a lazy man. I do not like travels.

I spend most of my time reading Chinese classics and history. Books written with all 漢字 are very difficult to understand but 漢字 is a very unique language and has dignities and good tastes.

If you visit Japanese temples and shrines, you may find old stone monuments built during the Edo period. Many monuments have inscriptions on them written in difficult 漢字. I used to pass by without trying to understand them before, but now I stop and try to read them. I can read roughly one third of them. It is a great pleasure for me.

I will talk with you again.
Thank you

Hi! 天地玄黄.
Oh! You were started to study Chinese history after your retirement. May be I have no such power after my retirement.
My plan after retirement is to emigrate some wide country such as Australia and do small farm.
At this time, I wander if my plan become true or not.

Hi! Karl-san, my handle name 天地玄黄 is taken from a Chinese classic 千字文 which was edited about 2000 years ago as a text book to teach Chinese characters to their children.千字文 and 論語 were the first two books which came to Japan via Korea. 天地玄黄 means the colors of the sky is black and the earth yellow. The phrase comes at the top of the book. After my retirement two years ago, I started reading Chinese history books and classics to understand about them. Our relations to China and Korea were difficult at that time and I wanted to know more about them. As you say, many things we have now are originally from China and 漢字 may be the most important assets we received from China.

Hello天地玄黄. Sorry, I don't know how to pronounce your name. Sonds like this name came from some famous Chinese old proverbs.

When I read your message, I remamberd a case which I explained about Japanese culture to HongKong people. Thay said, Japanese culture are similar with Chinese culutre. At that time, I said "Of cource. Almost all Japanese culture came from China. There are less original Japanese culture ".（＞ロ＜）