This page shows archived posts for Gary J. Wolff's blog from
April-June,
2021.
Enjoy...
Cheers,
Gary
June 18,
2021 - The Moment Kids In Israel Are Told They Don't Have To Wear Masks
Anymore
The Moment Kids In
Israel Are Told They Don't Have To Wear Masks Anymore
(If
player above is not visible, you can view video
at YouTube here.)
June 10,
2021 - R.I.P., my dear friend!
Best wishes in the next stage of your eternal journey up there on the
big playground in the sky. Thanks for your loyal friendship and for
touching our lives in a very profound way the past half-century. Will
always luv ya like a bro....
Lawrence "Larry" Jerome Jones
July 14, 1953 - June 10, 2021
(the rest of the photo album is here)
In celebration of my old UT college buddy's big 2021 birthday. Have a
grrrreat day, JP!
[Be sure to crank up your volume to hear one of our favorite, most
memorable songs from our college days, "Won't Get Fooled Again" by the
famous British rock band, The Who!]
Never a Dull
Moment, Vol. 5
(If player above is not visible, you can view video
at YouTube here.)
May 26,
2021 - The 2nd worst ripoff of the century!
Boy, did I get a BIG surprise today after ordering my Wendy's Jr. Bacon
Cheeseburger (ベーコンチーズバーガー) for lunch. The advertising sign made it look
so lush and
delicious, but what an amazing disappointment it turned out to be.
What I received was completely different from what I expected. Oh, in
case you're interested in the #1 ripoff of the century, that was a
Spicy Shrimp Whopper
at Burger King a couple years ago: Burger King ripoff of the century!
As a working musician playing gigs in a city of nearly 12 million and
using public transportation to go to and from live shows, my success
depends on the art of packing and personal mobility. I usually carry a
couple or sometimes three guitars, spare strings, a handful of
harmonicas, holders, slides and picks, a small amp, mics, all sorts of
wires to plug into do-dads for this and that, CDs for sale, a bag of
energy drinks and tonics and a Snickers bar, just in case, all stacked
and packed onto my “rolling rig”. (Every musician has their own rig for
gigging around. Some roll and some don’t. But we all carry more or less
an amazing pile of musical "stuff".)....
May
16, 2021 - Japanese Girls' Spring 2021 Softball Tournament
(日本の小学生女子春季ソフトボール大会)
Because my own dad, Walter F. Wolff,
was a world-famous fastpitch softball pitcher, I was thrilled to see
these Japanese elementary school girls yesterday playing such a
high-level game at such a ripe young age. In particular, I was VERY
impressed with the skill level already attained by these young female
pitchers. Amazing!
And who knows? Because women's softball is an official Olympic sport,
maybe some of these young girls will become future Olympians!
Japanese Girls'
Spring 2021 Softball Tournament
(If player above is not visible, you can view video
at YouTube here.)
Walter Wolff strikes out 17 straight hitters and 20 of 21 for the game
as Metallic of Houston defeated Yazoo, Mississippi 3-0 in a 1965
tournament in Lake Charles, Louisiana. (American Press staff photo by
Sam
Guillory)
Here are just a few highlights of Dad's amazing softball career:
At age 16, started his LONG pitching career which
spanned a remarkable 5 decades
Pitched in 6 world softball tournaments
Pitched 3 times in Mexico, including in the Mexican
National Softball Tournament in Poza Rica
Toured New Zealand as a pitcher with the Western U.S.
All-Star Team
Once struck out 20 of the 21 batters he faced,
including 17 straight, in Lake Charles, Louisiana
Inducted into the Houston, Texas Softball Hall of
Fame in 1986
Pitched against (& beat) Eddie Feigner and his
world-famous 4-man "King & His Court" softball team in the Houston
Astrodome
Inducted as an Honorary Member of the United Softball
Club of Auckland, New Zealand
More details on Dad's softball pitching days, including a photo gallery
and the full
story are here: WalterWolff.com
May
5, 2021 - Koinobori (鯉幟, carp streamers) along the Edo River (江戸川) in
Tokyo
It's that magical time of year in Japan again... GOLDEN WEEK!!
According to an ancient Chinese legend, a carp once swam upstream
against
the rapid current in the Yellow River to become a dragon. Because of
the carp's strength and determination to overcome all obstacles, in
Japan it was chosen as a symbol for Children's Day (こどもの, Kodomo no
hi), May 5, one of the 4 national holidays during the week-long Golden
Week holiday period.
To celebrate Children's Day, "koinobori (鯉幟)," or carp streamers, are
flown around the country in honor of Japanese children in the hope that
they will grow up healthy, strong, and happy. These wind socks are made
by drawing carp patterns on paper, cloth, or other non-woven fabric.
They are then allowed to flutter in the wind. Landscapes across Japan
are decorated with koinobori from April to early May.
And here's a video of 35 flying carp along the Edo River (江戸川) I made
several
years ago, complete
with background music, "Going to School" from the awesome "Memoirs of a
Geisha"
movie soundtrack:
35 Flying Carp
along the Edo River in Tokyo
(If player above is not visible, you can view video
at YouTube here.)
April
25, 2021 - How to stay alive during a routine police traffic stop
Unless you've been living in a cave, you're probably already familiar
with this controversial news topic which has recently
captured the attention of the American public, as well as millions of
other folks around the world. In the humorous video below, stand-up
comedian
and Hollywood actor Chris Rock has some important tips on what to say
and do when you're
pulled over by a police officer.
This video is arguably more pertinent today than it was 11 years ago
when it was first made. Rock has hosted the Academy Awards twice, in
2005
and in 2016. He has won 4 Emmy Awards and 3 Grammy Awards, and was
voted
the 5th greatest stand-up comedian in a poll conducted by Comedy
Central.
Chris Rock - How
Not To Get Your *ss Kicked By The Police!
[Click on 'CC' button to stop Poiish subtitiles, or
click on Settings (gear) icon to change subtitles to English.] (If
player above is not visible, you can view video
at YouTube here.)
This amazing 200-hectare park, right on the Pacific coast and only 2
hours from Tokyo by train, is without question one of the most
remarkable parks I've ever seen. The park is most famous for its 4.5
million "baby blue eyes" flowers (nemophila, ネモフィラ), whose
translucent-blue
petals peak every spring in late April, drawing TOO many tourists.
The park features blooming flowers in all 4 seasons including a million
daffodils, 170 varieties of tulips, narcissuses, poppies, roses,
zinnias, sunflowers, kochia (summer cypress), and cosmos flowers. The
park also includes cycling trails on an exclusive right-of-way and a
small amusement park with a Ferris wheel and roller coaster. Park
website: https://hitachikaihin.jp/en
April 12,
2021 - Yamanote Line Challenge (山手線・チャレンジ)
I did it! (barely), and I’m calling it, "30 Stations for 30 Years."
Saturday was my 30th anniversary living and working in Japan, so like
thousands of other folks through the years, I decided to challenge
walking around to all 30 stations of the circular 34.5 km Yamanote
Line, Tokyo‘s busiest and most important train route.
The all-day trek took 14.5 hours, and the last couple hours after dark,
with the blisters on the soles of my feet and the excruciating knee
pain, I felt kinda like a zombie walking among the living dead.
The only main difference between this and the pain I had to endure back
in my mountain climbing days is that Saturday I didn’t have a 20 kg (44
lb) backpack to lug around as well.
So at the end of the day, it was no surprise that I had logged over 60,000 steps and nearly 44 km
(a full marathon is 42.2 km (26.2 miles))! And although I could barely
walk yesterday, the good news is no one had to summon an ambulance for
me and I was able to check off another item on my bucket list.
So just in case there was still any question in the minds of my family
or friends, the Tokyo Wolffman has indeed lost his ever living mind…
April 15 update:
I finally got around this morning to uploading my pics from last
Saturday's sightseeing jaunt. It’s mostly a lot of buildings, 30 train
stations, and a lot more of the concrete jungle, but I tried to weave
in a bit of nature and Japanese culture as well along the way, ha ha...
Yamanote
Line Challenge - April 10, 2021 photos
April 5,
2021 - Tokyo Mega
Illumi, April 2021 (東京メガイルミ)
Without question, Tokyo‘s best kept secret. Opened in October 2018 and
located at the famous Oi horse race track, this illumination event
claims to be a place "for healing by illumination." So it’s time to
cast aside those blues and cheer up with the most magnificent
illumination spectacle I’ve EVER seen. Don’t miss the rainbow-colored
fountain light show and the crystal cherry blossom tunnel. Open till
April 11. Best part is it only costs ¥1000 ($9). Yee Hah!
Tokyo Mega
Illumi, April 2021 (東京メガイルミ)
(If player above is not visible, you can view video
at YouTube here.)
0:00 Front entrance
0:31 Twinkle Tunnel
1:26 Twin Kuru Kuru Fantasy
1:54 Wonder Media Trees
2:42 Animated colored light collage
4:26 Tokyo Twinkle Map
6:13 Tokyo City Keiba light tower
7:34 Rainbow-colored fountain light show
10:30 Aurora Forest light show
12:22 Tokyo Time Tunnel
17:11 Colored terrace rice fields
21:12 Crystal Cherry Blossom Tunnel
22:53 Meiji Surprise Maze
24:07 Taisho Romantic Garden of Lights
25:55 Rose Garden
27:08 Blue & white twinkling light pathway
Let's have fun learning English! Edutainment lesson plans on this page
are optional, but if you take the time to do them, they will not only
improve your overall English communication skills, but will also
broaden your cultural horizons to help you become a more successful
international citizen in today's global society!
Hi Gary, I love your site as it is so informative. On August 1st, 3 of us will be attempting to climb Mount Fuji. My husband and I are comparatively fit
Hi, I have some questions about reserving a hut on Mt. Fuji. I'll be in Tokyo a few days before climbing season and am attempting to climb on July 1st.
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