Shinkansen through Hyogo.

Shinkansen through Hyogo [HD click here]. from optima05 on Vimeo.

I shot this with my Iphone 3GS going from Kyoto to Shin-Osaka on the Nozomi. I was playing the song in the BGM on my Ipod while looking outside and decided to take a video clip. I did some minor color correcting/sharpening in After Effects, but nothing major.

Click the link to check the video out in HD.

Perception.

Hello everyone,

The other day, I was asked by my co-worker as we casually walked outside to grab a bite for lunch if I recalled the story to the movie, "Avatar." To those that have not seen it, please do not read below, as you may spoil the story for yourselves!

I did remember the story pretty vividly, but the first thing that came up were my thoughts on how it related to me. I responded, 'Yeah, I think I do. It reminds me a lot of a the video games these days. I used to play one just like it.' She responds, 'Just try telling me the story as you remember it.'

I gave it my best shot and gave her a summary of how humans needed a new natural resource that an alien race has and controls. Humans sent a group of individuals to assimilate into their society, gain knowledge of how this energy is created, and locate the source to steal it for themselves. Over time, the group sent to study this society realized the faults of their own, thus wanting to escape and become one of them. (There are more prominent themes to the story, but I decided not to explain each character's motive)

My co-worker responded in surprise, explaining that when she thinks back to a movie's story or background, she can hardly remember what happened. She explained that when she watches a movie, she can only remember the emotional feel of the movie and whether it had a good or bad ending. She recalled the movie "Chicago," stating that while it had a good presentation, she cannot recall what the story was about or whether it sought to prove a point or teach a lesson.

She then asked me if it was typical of me to analyze a movie in such great depth. I told her that I thought it was typical of me, but I figured that this was what most people did anyway. To both her and my surprise, I guess this wasn't the case.

Question: Watching a movie and analyzing it can both be good and bad, as it can have a tendency to influence ones thoughts. If a majority of viewers watch mass media in a particular way, how do you think it would affect society as whole?

Superficial.

Hi everyone,

Just standing near the entrance of the train station and looking around, I notice every woman carries a glitzy handbag or wears trendy clothes. Men walking by also dress as equally stylish. A group of women in their 20's walk past me and are headed to Marui, ready to grab the next latest product trend. Another group of women sitting at the nearby Starbucks gab about their boyfriends, whether it be about how much they make, what kind of job they have, how they look, or whether they see an imminent future with them. A few men standing around talk about their latest experiences with women, whether at a Konpa (a meet up based on dating), or by meeting through some other means. A couple passes me heading towards the nearest new hotspot for delicious food, while a man next to me is playing with the latest Playstation Portable waiting for his next train to arrive.

Japan as a society moves quickly. Whether it be the next latest fashion trend or the newest piece of technology, people must have it. The Japanese are judgmental of your looks, your power, and your status. The pressure to to maintain these things, as well as follow the rules society dictates is even greater. When you live in a place where people keep quiet about their personal lives and show a second face, all the superficiality is just a mask for concealing their true selves. Society here is very materialistic, basing their happiness on obtaining or consuming the latest goods. People will do whatever they can to keep up with the next wave. While many others try to rally against this and pursue their own happiness outside of the norm, it is highly looked down upon.

This superficiality extends to even the communication. While it seems everyone is showing a kind face, you really do not know their true feelings. The Japanese like to call this type of face "humility," but is it really so? Boasting about yourself is not highly looked upon, in addition to making others jealous or making them feel green with envy. If I happened to sound boastful of something I was happy about, I was sometimes greeted with a genuinely happy compliment.. but other times greeted with a nonchalant counter-argument or realistic remark to bring me back down.

With a country so rich in technology, latest fashion trends, convenience and wonderful delicacies, I always thought, "Why are people so depressed out here? What would push as many as 30,000 people to commit suicide like this?" While I believe many countries suffer from this problem, I think Japan is especially difficult due to the pressure to conform.

Could this entire problem stem from the superficiality of the society? If the pressure from society to conform did not exist, could people live more freely and happier? Could it be that people are convincing themselves that they are happy, even though they are not?

Categorizing.

Hi everyone,

It has been about 8 months since I first arrived here in Japan. Just casually walking streets, you'll find a variety of people that will pass by. Whether it be through their dress or style, or even their mannerisms to you when they greet you, you will generally find that people are all similar. This is only when looking at things on the surface. There's no telling what kind of people they are like, because you never know if they are showing you their true face or not. How can you tell what kind of people they are? How can you more easily be able to judge a person's character?

While there are many types of ways to "categorize," a majority of Japanese people like to believe in blood type (ketsueki-gata). What does this mean? People will categorize each other by the blood types (Thanks Wikipedia):

• A (Best traits: Earnest, creative, sensible / Worst traits: Fastidious, overearnest)
• AB (Best traits: Cool, controlled, rational / Worst traits: critical, indecisive)
• B (Best traits: Wild, active, doer / Worst traits: Selfish, irresponsible)
• O ( Best traits: Agreeable, sociable, optimistic / Worst traits: vain, rude)

Now you may ask, what does all this mean? Basically, it is easier to understand a person's personality by categorizing them into one of these four. If you talk to any Japanese person, chances are they will know their blood type and try to find a correlation with it and people around them. Watch any television show and they will judge your romantic compatibility horoscope with another person with this information. It is interesting to look at these traits, because they are all generally written. Anyone can apply to each of these descriptions, but many people here believe that their dominant traits are described just within these categories.

Much like blood types, another wildly popular subject in Japan is the Western view of birthdays/astrology. Similarly to how it is believed in the West, the Japanese also will categorize or judge a person's character based on this information. Turn on the TV, and you will usually see a horoscope forecast for that day and given sign. Go to the bookstore and you'll see a variety of literature dedicated to people born on a particular day/time/location, their romantic compatibility with other signs, or even descriptions of what is believed to be their future.

While many Japanese believe this to be true, could this just be an easier way to make more sense of the people around us? Could this just be making things easier to see and understand, without having to go through the hassle of getting to know a person? Does this alleviate stress by attaching 'truths' to a person without really knowing who they are? Does this give confidence to people in order to deal with others better?

Our financial security, our jobs, our family lives, our love lives, our future.. these are all common problems that we face each day with other people. There are so many uncertainties in this world, but these are ways to make things easier to understand everyone around us, including ourselves. They alleviate the stress of knowing the unknown. People spend hundreds of dollars on analysts who specialize in these areas, hoping to get a better understanding of their surroundings.

When it becomes so simple to categorize people in this manner, do we disregard the way they were raised? Do we disregard their current mental state? Do we disregard their core values? While it may be easier to deal with others using these categories, we should not forget that people are still people, and we are a product of our environment and the experiences we go through.

An outsider opinion regarding modern views of society.

Hello everyone,

Before leaving the US for my move here, I was somewhat unaware of how mentalities differed between the two countries. Granted that Asian countries have become more Westernized, I came to Japan with no expectations of it being that way. Unfortunately, some of these Western influences (both good and bad) have somehow made its way over here. Today I wanted to discuss several impacts I have witnessed of Western pop culture on Japanese and American society.

Pop culture references from the US, such as "Sex and the City," "The OC," and "The Desperate House Wives" have all found some kind of popularity here in Japan. An abundance of females watch these television shows, possibly thinking that these are representative of the modern American woman. Strong, liberated, opinionated, and independent are probably some of the words that come to mind from viewers in America. There is a bit of glamor and envy in many women who aspire to be as "strong" as the characters of Sex and the City. To my surprise, however, some of the Japanese viewers have described the women as "selfish," "superficial," "inconsiderate," and "not willing to cooperate." Keep in mind, that not all Japanese saw it this way, as many actually fancied the idea of being just like the portrayed "modern woman."

My very brief experience of watching Sex and the City before coming to Japan did not phase me, but it has been quite eye-opening as of late. I used to think that the empowerment of women was just part of the evolution of American society. Now looking back, I have realized that a lot of this may be working to destroy what were originally good core values for marriage and relationships. The ones that work most against these traditional/core values are the characters "Carrie" and "Samantha" (save for the character "Charlotte," the only one who maintains these values). They appear strong and independent, but seem to control things on their own terms, at times with complete disregard for their male counterparts. At some points during the show, the main character is so self-absorbed and concerned with her own issues, that she doesn't even bother listening to her close friends. They seek some kind of love or affection, but like to remain emotionally-detached enough to prevent themselves from becoming too hurt or vulnerable. Throughout the story, they are getting involved in on and off relationships and are consumed by the plethora of material goods and brand-name fashion items around them. I heard these characters eventually realize that they need "grow up" and let go of their independence, selfishness and greed in order to find marriage, but literally years after the series began. Could this idea of being "strong" just be a cover up for them actually being "weak?"

In my opinion, a fully-engaged relationship is lowering your barriers, opening yourself up, and always thinking of your partner's happiness before your own. Unfortunately, with the onset of this post-feminism movement, new phrases such as "co-dependency" diagnose this type of behavior as very bad. It defines attachment, your partner's happiness being tied to your own, and dependence on one another as a major factor for disappointment. It reinforces that you maintain your own ground and keep your feelings independent of one another. If you are in an abusive relationship, I see this as being true, but can this behavior be applied to all relationships? Is this cold and distant view of relationships a healthy outlook?

The major difference between both cultures likely has to do with the definition of "strength." While the Japanese association of strength is more "patience" and "understanding," the Western association of strength has more to do with being vocal and "taking control of the situation." While Japanese women have become more vocal than men as of late, it is largely still a male dominated society. Sure, there is a need for equality, but when one starts to feel entitled to being selfish or greedy, where should the line be drawn? With "post-feminism" movements abound, the desire for women to be able to handle things on their own has gained huge momentum. Could this face an extreme and be potentially destructive of Western traditional marriage and its core values?

Hikosaemon's - "How to argue with Japanese people."

Here's a rather interesting video I found about difference in communication styles out here. Enjoy!

Japan's current job system and the future.

Hi everyone,

It has been a while since I posted, but today I would like to discuss a few things I have thought about Japan's job system recently. After a few encounters with many working professionals in Japan (including my own relatives), I have pondered a lot about the good and bad of this system and its future.

Japan's traditional system focuses on company loyalty over technical skills. Most focus on hiring based on that person's educational background, and not their skill-set or abilities. If that person happened to graduate from a university such as Todai or Keio (The Harvard & Stanford of Japan), it is likely you can get hired at a very good company and work your way up to the top of the ranks. They will of course train you along the way, but part of the training includes working long hours, strict discipline, and intentional work harassment (as many would see it in the US). The norm is for an individual to work extremely hard under these conditions for the first 10 years of their career, only to finally settle in during their 30's. The work load will lessen over the years and their salaries will increase dramatically as they maintain higher positions as managers.

Salaries will often times include an employee's bonus in the figure, but can change based on that employee's performance. The bonus is paid twice a year, usually on the 6th and the 12th month. Retirement fees are paid through what is called "Nen-kin" (It is the 401k equivalent in Japan) and can only be received after 20 years of consistent working. You must also pay what is called "Jyuuminzei" while living here after your first year, but it is determined by how much you make during a year's time. It is probably the equivalent of paying state/federal tax.

A friend of mine was previously a headhunter at a well-known job hunting agency out here in Japan. When I asked her about this system, she brought up a few good points:

• If you come from a good school, it is pretty much guaranteed that you will find a good job at a company.
• Your pay will be determined by the amount of time you are with that company, instead of how well you know your trade.
• Japanese systems are known to get easier with time and will pay better as you climb the system.
• It is assumed that sticking to your job as a "Sei-Shaiin," or full-time employee, will grant you a lot more stability.
• The Japanese government protects your employment - laws make firing an employee much more difficult.
  

And a few bad points:

• Japanese salaries tend to be 1/3 of American salaries (or the international standard) starting from the bottom of a company.
• Japanese companies recognize loyalty and brand recognition, unlike American companies that will pay according to your skill or merits.
  
• Your private life is not valued; Your working life takes precedence.
  
• You must work your way up, earning your boss's trust ("Settai" Appeasing the client/bosses, "Nomi-kai" Drinking with the boss, and "Zangyou" working of long hours).
  
• Age discrimination usually takes place - If your boss/co-worker is older than you, it is an absolute must to pay them your respects (saying "No" is not allowed), despite them being right or wrong.
• If the individual happens to lose his job in his/her 40's or 50's, many with this type of job background usually do not have a skill (They tend to know a lot of general information, but lack a specific trade); therefore, finding a job can be extremely hard because of old age discrimination/lack of skill.

After learning about these specifics, I started to ponder about American systems as well. Certainly there has to be some major positives or negatives about the American system.. Here is what I came up with for positives:

• Your pay will be of international standard (or 2-3 times more than Japanese standard).
• Your private life will be respected.
• You will be respected by your ability and skills, not by your age and educational background.
• Your opinions are respected; You are able to more freely voice them (without going overboard).
• As long as you maintain your trade/skill, laws in the US prohibit work hiring discrimination.
  
• Power harassment and sexual harassment are also more strictly enforced.

And negatives:

• Your skills and abilities are valued, but having skills that become outdated cannot guarantee you a job.
• Even though discrimination is illegal, it still exists in the US.
  
• Despite how hard you worked to get your education, studying hard is not enough. You have to be able to prove your value to a company and why they need you.
• It is easier to fire an employee in the US. Japan has stricter laws that protect their employees from being let go.
• Salaries will be higher, but responsibility will also be as well. Typically when a company lets go of their employees, the highest paid are the first to go.
• Being a full-time employee does not guarantee long-term stability.

With the globalization of Japan and the significant increase of in International/American companies and foriegners living here, can the Japanese system survive? While the American system has its merits, is there anything that can be improved to grant the stability of the Japanese system?