happylife

The garbage truck in Vancouver

I remember I was very much astonished to see the garbage truck in Vancouver for the first time. It is almost twice as large as the Japanese one. The surprising point is not the size but its dynamic movement. It has two arms in the front part and they move just like a gigantic robot in sci-fi movies. The way it collects garbage is really dynamic and powerful. It stops at trash cans in front of each house and apartment in the town. The arms hold the each can full of garbage and pick it up over it's head to throw all its contents into the tray at the rear of the truck. To tell the truth, I found this garbage collecting scene this morning after a long time because it had been rare for me to be up in this period of time. When I tried to take pictures in which the garbage was just thrown into the tray, the driver told me not to take pictures. I don't know the reason why he refused it. Is it a kind of industrial secrets?

What is organic?

Organic food is so popular that we can easily find special shelves tagged with "organic" in most supermarkets. Some of my friends insist organic food and do not hesitate to pay additional costs. They say organic food is healthy, safe and delicious, but I can't easily agree with this idea because I am doubtful about organic. What on earth is organic? Is there any definition or regulations of organic? It is clear that no food cannot exist without any chemical inputs in the present world. If a farmer grew an apple without using pesticides and only with his family's compost, it cannot be called "organic" in the strict sense of the word. There are lots of possibilities where chemical substances get mixed; from the helicopter of his neighbor farmer using pesticides, from the water of an upriver factory, from his son who ate a chemical snack bar and so on. I think it's necessary to define the level of organic just as a Geiger counter does for radioactivity, but I have never heard of such instruments or rules. Considering the three major points of organic food, healthiness and safety cannot be judged easily; it takes longer time. How about the taste of organic food? To tell the truth, I'm not confident to distinguish an organic apple by tasting. It seems that there is only one difference between organic and not-organic. It is the price tagged in the supermarket. Can we really believe it?

Anti-theft system

It was almost two years ago when I bought my car at a used car dealer. I paid $4,000 and I think I have gotten value for it. I am almost satisfied with my car because it runs well without any critical problems, but I don't like it very much because it is remodeled badly here and there. The ex-owner seems to have been a young, stupid and awkward guy. He must have spent a lot of money for this car, but the value of it didn't improved but rather deteriorated owing to his poor wiring. The interior light was changed into automatic; it goes on automatically when I open the door, but it goes out soon and there is no switch to turn it on again. It's very frustrating when I need to read a map at night. Actually, I had to open the door some times at a rainy night just to read a map. His worst "improvement" to my car is the anti-theft system. We can't start the engine without clicking the rear window heater switch. It's a kind of drag that I have to explain about it whenever I leave my car in a garage to change oil or do some repair. Alarm system is also installed and it can easily be turned on by clicking the wireless switch on the car key. I usually don't use it, but it sometimes goes on automatically, and I am frightened by the super noisy alarm. He should have known that a car is in the best condition when it was made in the factory.

To take out food

I usually live on my own cooking. My cooking is not bad but my repertory of recipes is so limited that I feel sometimes bored with it. As I am living alone, the cost for cooking by myself is not so reasonable. I sometimes spoil foods in my refrigerator. It's really a waste. With this thing and that I eat out a few times a week. Chinese take-out restaurants are very convenient because they serve various menu items for a reasonable price and we don't have to eat it at one time; we can take it out. I often go to this restaurant and take out three items with noodles. The weight of the plastic container comes to more than 1Kg and I can enjoy three dining with it in my room. Plus, I can eat a lot of cooked vegetables which is important for my health. The cost for each dining is only $2! This is the best way I know to take nutrition with little money. I can't forget to say that it can be used as a topping for precooked Chinese noodles or fried rice. The combinations of foods I can enjoy with these take-out menu items are almost infinitive.

Canadian English

In Japanese compulsory education system, we have to learn English at least for three years in junior high school. Most people keep learning it for more three years in senior high school, and some more years in university or college. Plus, it's very popular in Japan to learn English after graduating schools. I think the average total years we spend for learning English comes to ten years. Anyway, most English we read or listen in Japan is not Queen's but American. We are not used to original English. It sounds strange like a dialect such as Indian, Australian, Philippine and so on. What makes it difficult is that English of English people is really fluent. It is not only strange but also fast. I think that Canadian English is between American and English, and it is closer to the former just like the geographical location. It is almost the same as American English, but we sometimes smell the flavor of Europe just like in this signboard.

Dining in Chinatown

It is often said that Hasting, the north eastern area of Downtown Vancouver, is the most dangerous area in this city. We can see lots of people dressed in rags and shouting F words meaninglessly out there. Some people are trading drugs and few people keep the traffic rules. I can't help getting nervous when I visit there. Chinatown in Vancouver is adjacent to this Hasting, therefore it is not always a safe area, but I sometimes go there because there are lots of good Chinese restaurants. They serve delicious food for very reasonable price. We can be full for about $10 for each person when it costs more than $20 in the Downtown area. This dish is Chow Mein with BBQ pork and pak choi. It is almost two servings and costs only $5. The only issue is that each menu item is so much in volume that we can't enjoy various items at one time if we were not in a large party. When I visit there alone, I have to have my leftover wrapped to take out.

The heating system

Vancouver is located at higher latitude than Tokyo, but I feel it is rather warmer. The warm sea water is one reason for that, but we can't forget the role of the great heating system in this city. Central heating system is so popular here that most buildings have its own boiler. We can easily find this kind of chimneys giving off white steam when we walk around in winter. I think it's really a great system because it's effective, cheap and safe. Though my apartment is more than thirty years old, it has own boiler system. On the other hand in Japan, we have only separated heating system for each room in most houses except for large sized buildings. Kerosene heaters, gas heaters or electric heaters are used in each room. As most wooden houses in Japan are drafty, they are colder with these ineffective heaters. They are very dangerous because they can easily catch fire in case of abuses or accidents of the heaters. Furthermore, we have weekly earthquakes. I know why central heating system is not so popular in Japan. It is the issue of space. A boiler needs a spacious room and most houses in Japan don't have it. The issue of space is traded off with safety. What a sorrowful reality!

Burnaby

I drove to Burnaby yesterday afternoon. Burnaby is a small city located in the east of Vancouver. It was only a thirty-minute drive from my apartment in Downtown, but the scenery was quite different out there. It was a silver city still covered with heavy snow. I was surprised to find that only a distance of thirty-minute drive to inland changes the world so much. Some of my friends in Vancouver often say that it is very cold this winter, but I don't think so. I've understood the reason; all of them are living in Burnaby or in the more eastern area. The sea water works as a heater in winter season though it looks cold, and the heat from the heater decreases in inverse proportion to the square of the distance from the sea. Plus, we can't forget the influence of the altitude. Burnaby is mostly on the hill top though it is not so high. If the temperature is decreasing in this rate, how cold is it in the inland area of Canada?

To search by lyrics

Thanks to music related services on the Internet, we can listen to music with its information such as its title, player and so on. However, what are you doing when you came across favorite but unknown music on the radio or in a cafe and you wanted to enjoy it again? My tips is using Google; just google the phrase you remember in the music with a keyword "lyrics." For example, when I came across a song which I liked but didn't know what it was in a cafe the other day, I googled "let the rain fall" with "lyrics" and I got to know the song information as "Come Clean" by Hilary Duff. Of course, I downloaded the song from iTunes Music Store and I can enjoy it with my iPod whenever I like. The great point of this tips is that we can get not only the song title but also the complete lyrics. How convenient!

Sticky snow

I feel that we have more snow this winter than usual, but it wouldn't remain here for a long time if it snowed heavily. Because of the warm weather, it melts soon and the surface of snow fields look like this picture. This is the slope facing towards False Creek in front of my apartment. The snow of yesterday has already been melting partially and the grass surface can be seen just like holes. Though I tried to walk down the slope, it was so steep and slippery for me on skiddy shoes. No one except for a dog was playing there because it was obvious to get muddy. Anyway, it was really a fine day and I cloud enjoy the shining scenery after a long break. It might be an illusion but spring seems to be coming close and my feeling has become better. How much the weather affects our feeling!