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Felt like the same ol' winter to me. I did see a couple of cherry blossoms here and there, but the weather was still pretty darn chilly all day, even though the sun was out!
Supposedly it should be warmer next week, and I'm sure before I know it I'll be moaning about the heat and humidity. First world problems?
OH! I just got an alert that we'll have a full moon this week! Enjoy that!!
Last Friday I had the good fortune to take part in an opening ceremony for trainees newly arrived from the Philippines. These 11 young men will spend the next three years working in Japan, learning the trade of carpentry, specifically home building. Before they begin their on the job training, they first must take over 100 hours of practical Japanese training, training that we here at FS are happy to provide. Good luck gentlemen! がんばれ！
Sort of. Well the weather has been pretty odd for the last year at least. It was warm during the winter (for Hamamatsu), and then the first couple of days of March were downright cold! But now the rain has come and with it a bit warmer weather. I've seen cherry blossoms blooming here and there, and my ears were filled with birdsong early this morning. I think it's a sign of warmer days ahead.
I have a lot of hobbies. I draw, I write music & poetry, I take photos. (I take a lot of photos) And because I carry a laptop around with me all the time, I use a lot of different software to assist me in my hobbies. One piece of software I recently stumbled upon is called Aurora HDR. Its main job is to expand the dynamic range of photographs, sometimes to make them "pop", sometimes to achieve interesting effects.
Long story short; I tried out the demo, liked the software, and paid for the "Pro" version so that I can access all the bells and whistles. When I registered the software I put Japan as my location, because, well, that's where I live.
On Tuesday, I received an e-mail from the COO of the company who puts out the software asking if I can help them with their upcoming Japanese language version of the software, specifically they need someone to Beta Test the Japanese UI, and they also need their support website translated, could I introduce someone?
Lucky for both of us Four Seasons not only teaches language, we also translate. So I could offer him our services, and he can trust that one of his actual users is overseeing the work. Looks to be a definite win for everyone!
Yesterday I received word that one of our oldest friends passed away. He was just 4 days short of his 67th birthday. Brendan was from Ireland and came to Japan about 30 years ago. He taught at Uminohoshi High School for many, many years, and taught quite a number of our business courses over the years. His good cheer, sharp wit and hard-headedness will be forever missed. He is survived by his wife and daughter.