Gary J. Wolff's Blog Archives
July-September, 2021
This page shows archived posts for Gary J. Wolff's blog from
July-September,
2021.
Enjoy...
Cheers,
Gary
Sept. 22,
2021 - Korakuen (幸楽苑) ramen shop robot
Watch this cute little robot deliver orders to tables in this Tokyo
ramen chain restaurant. The future is HERE! Restaurant servers, your
job is in jeopardy...
Korakuen (幸楽苑)
ramen shop robot
(If player above is not visible, you can view video
at YouTube here.)
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!
Cheers to one of my all-time favorite musicians, a remarkable fella I
had the pleasure of rooming with in our college days and hearing his
wonderful tunes and lovely voice almost every day. My favorites in
those days were songs by John Denver and Neil Young. And now, decades
later, he still has his stuff!
HAA3, with the
Shepherd Pickers
(If player above is not visible, you can view video
at YouTube here.)
0:00 Go Rest High On That Mountain
5:43 Little Mountain Church House
7:42 In Constant Sorrow
12:04 Jesus is Just Alright
15:53 Spirit in the Sky
18:53 Everybody Hurts
And a big TEXAS-size hug to his videographer for her excellent camera
work. Thanks for sharing, my
dear friends...
Thirty years ago this month, along with a bunch of other crazy friends,
I climbed to the top of Mt. Fuji's Yoshida Trail, the busiest and most
popular of its 4 trails. Because one of the most visited pages on my
entire website is the Climbing Mt. Fuji (富士山) Frequently Asked
Questions (FAQ) page, I felt it was about time to go back and refresh
my data.
To put it into perspective, from the 5th Station trailhead to the top
requires an elevation gain of over 1400 m (4600 ft), equivalent to 3.7
Empire State Buildings or 4.7 Abeno Harukas Buildings (あべのハルカス),
Japan‘s tallest in Osaka. Needless to say, this climb seriously kicked
my rear, but I was thrilled to learn that this sexagenarian's body
could still pull it off.
I hope you have time to check out the stunning beauty of Japan’s
tallest peak, which is also one of its 3 holiest peaks: https://flic.kr/s/aHsmWveVV5
(on the Flickr page, click small right arrow in upper right for
automatic slideshow viewing)
Climbing Mt. Fuji's
Yoshida Trail - Aug. 24-25, 2021
(If player above is not visible, you can view video
at YouTube here.)
Aug. 9,
2021 - Shikinejima
(式根島), one of the 11 exotic tropical islands of Tokyo
Even
after 3 decades in Dai Nippon, it still blows my mind that one can
enjoy such a beautiful tropical paradise less than a 3-hr boat ride
from the world's most populous metropolis. Shikinejima (式根島), only 3.7
sq km (1.4 sq mi) in size, is the smallest of 11 islands that extend
some 1000 km south of central Tokyo.
Blessed with not only gorgeous white sand beaches, snorkeling, rare
birds, hiking trails, and the Milky Way, this tiny island is also
famous for its seaside open-air hot springs whose temperature varies
with the tide, determined by the amount of seawater that mixes in with
the hot water in the natural rock baths which are free and open 24/7.
Heaven on earth.
Shikinejima (式根島), one of the 11 exotic tropical islands of Tokyo
The full photo album is viewable here: https://flic.kr/s/aHsmWsbhAn
(on that page, click small right arrow in upper right for automatic
slideshow viewing)
Shikinejima (式根島),
one of the 11 exotic tropical islands of Tokyo
(If player above is not visible, you can view video
at YouTube here.)
Yesterday I climbed Japan’s highest and holiest peak for the 4th time.
Well, this time only to the 5th Station. And by bus.
Since it'd been 6 years since my last visit to the Fuji Subaru Line 5th
Station (also by bus), I felt it was about time to go back and refresh
my data.
But also for mental therapy purposes, I was fortunate enough to escape
Tokyo‘s hot and humid concrete jungle to spend a day hiking around, and
really, really nice and refreshing to breathe cool, crisp fresh air for
a change.
From the 5th Station, I hiked up to the 6th Station Safety Guidance
Center, down past the Seikanso mountain hut to the Sato-goya mountain
hut at the Yoshidaguchi Trail 5th Station, then back to the Fuji Subaru
Line 5th Station.
I also took time to hike around part of the Ochudo Nature Trail, a
level course that partially circumnavigates the Mt. Fuji volcano. It
was SO green and lush, with the Hakusan rhododendrons in full bloom!
It was a magnificent, fun-filled 7 hours in God's country. I hope you
enjoy my pics... especially the Mt. Fuji toilet paper and the Eruption
Veggie Curry dish I had for lunch, with the white rice piled up in the
shape of Fujisan, ha ha…
Mt. Fuji 5th & 6th Stations
(view full album here)
July 29,
2021 - In loving
memory of Larry "LJ" Jones
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....
In loving memory of
Larry "LJ" Jones
July 14, 1953 - June 10, 2021
(If player above is not visible, you can view video
at YouTube here.)
July 17,
2021 - Mt. Fuji's climbing season opens for the 1st time in 2 years!
In celebration of Mt. Fuji's climbing season opening for the 1st time
in 2 years, I was reminded of this breathtaking view I was lucky to
capture a remarkable decade ago of Japan’s tallest peak, as seen from
near Mt. Kita-dake, Japan's 2nd tallest peak, some 60 km (37 mi) away.
And unbeknownst to me at the time, I found out later that my longtime
good buddy George was standing at the summit of Fujisan at the exact
same moment, worshiping the same sunrise as me. Wow, what an incredible
coincidence. Happy trails and best wishes for Covid safety to this
year’s Mt. Fuji climbers...
Mt. Fuji at sunrise, 5:31 am, Aug. 14, 2011,
taken from near Mt.
Kita-dake
July
3, 2021 - TODAY’S ENGLISH LESSON (今日の英語レッスン)
- I wondered why the baseball was getting bigger.......then it hit me.
- To write with a broken pencil is…….pointless.
- When fish are in schools, they sometimes…….take debate.
- A thief who stole a calendar…….got twelve months.
- When the smog lifts in Los Angeles…….U.C.L.A.
- The professor discovered that her theory of earthquakes…….was on
shaky ground.
- The batteries were given out…….free of charge.
- A dentist and a manicurist married…….and then fought tooth and nail.
- A will is a…….dead giveaway.
- If you don't pay your exorcist…….you can get repossessed.
- With her marriage, she got a new name…….and a dress.
- Show me a piano falling down a mineshaft and I'll show you…….A-flat
miner.
- You are stuck with your debt if…….you can't budge it.
- Local Area Network in Australia: …….The LAN down under.
- A boiled egg is…….hard to beat.
- When you've seen one shopping center…….you've seen a mall.
- Police were called to a day care where a three-year-old
was…….resisting a rest.
- Did you hear about the fellow whose whole left side was cut off?
…….He's all right now.
- If you take a laptop computer for a run, you could…….jog your memory.
- A bicycle can't stand alone:…….it is two tired.
- When a clock is hungry…….it goes back four seconds.
- The guy who fell onto an upholstery machine…….was fully recovered.
- He had a photographic memory…….which was never developed.
- Those who get too big for their britches will be…….exposed in the end.
- When she saw her first strands of gray hair…….she thought she'd dye.
- Acupuncture: …….a jab well done.
- You can tune a piano.......but you can't tuna fish.
- Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
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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