Almost Infinitely Transparent Blue

Aside from the sheer joy of being on a bike, today also provided added delights. I rode amid unseasonal warmth. And the skies were so azure I stole the title of a Ryu Murakami novel for the blog headline.

Mrs. Kangaeroo worked a night shift and was knackered. I left her to sleep, went to physio and then a gentle ride under the pristine skies.

Despite being deeply into winter and what is traditionally the coldest part of the year, I could wear shorts and was sweating by the time I finished the ride, aided in part by fierce headwinds and lack of fitness and strength after months out of the shadow.

There’s a dryness to the Tokyo winter that sometimes makes the landscape look almost like Australia, and the Tama River bank showed that to full effect today.

Unfortunately, I got to see my right leg in a reflection of a store window I rode past and the muscle atrophy was all too clear. One good aspect of that, though, is the fun it will be to build back up, which I am guessing I will do largely on bikes.

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    Today I got a message from someone who really inspires me to be a better person, and it has thoroughly made my day. That message has now gotten me away from writing in the third person because doing so makes me sound like an even bigger tosser than I am. As I sit here with a warm, fuzzy feeling, it was also a nice reminder that I should tell people how they’ve made my life better. Cold, bleak, dark and windy, with not much else nice about the day, I’ll brighten it up a bit more with a snot block, which as far as I know, is only obtainable in…

  • Ending With the Seed of An Idea

    Sometimes, Kangaeroo can come up with the seed of an idea. Thanks to a bit of a search a few months ago, Kangaeroo has got plenty of Aussie native plant seeds to try and grow. Growing them will be a late-winter, early-spring initiative. But preparations are already underway. Will be interesting to see how the Kangaeroo Cove shapes up when the northern spring hits.

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    「Naughty」と「Nice」コリアの五輪メダル表で北朝鮮が豪フリーペーパーに激怒

     オーストラリア東海岸3都市に無料で配れるフリーペーパーmXが2012年ロンドン五輪メダル表に「Naughty Korea」と「Nice Korea」と北朝鮮と韓国をそれぞれ表示したことに対して北朝鮮の国営通信社である朝鮮中央通信社(KCNA)が猛烈に怒りを示した。  KCNAはmXのメダル表が「イジメ」「オリンピック精神違反」「浅ましい」など、同紙を強く批判した。  「Naughty」は「悪い」という意味が「Nice」の反意語としてよく使われ入るし、その場合「やんちゃ」というニュアンスもある。  批判に対してmXが配布されているシドニー、メルボルン、ブリスベーンの各編集長が共同声明を発表した。  「mXはニュースに対しての非礼な解釈がよく知られている。表は、世界が二つのコリアがどのように見られていることをユーモアを込めて示そうとしただけで、北朝鮮でも韓国でも選手や国民に対して軽蔑する意図が全く無かった」といった。

  • Got Rich On The Sheep’s Back

    Australia is said to have gotten rich on the sheep’s back. オーストラリアは「羊の背中に乗って」豊かになったと言われている。 Australia is a wealthy country and has been for most of the time since colonization, mainly because it has bountiful mineral resources. オーストラリアは植民地化以降ほとんどの時期で裕福な国でしたが、その主な理由は豊富な鉱物資源にある。 But before things like gold, iron ore, diamonds, uranium, lithium and the like starting bringing in the bikkies for Australia, the squattocracy raised merino sheep that fuelled the then thriving textile mills of northern England that were making Britain an industrial superpower in the 19th century. しかし、金、鉄鉱石、ダイヤモンド、ウラン、リチウムなどがオーストラリアにもたらす莫大な収入よりも前、19世紀のイギリスを産業大国へと押し上げていた北イングランドの繊維工場を支えていたのは、squattocracyが飼育していたメリノ羊だった。 The squattocracy were wealthy farmers who stole the land they used to get rich and then used their financial clout to wield political influence. スクワットクラシーとは、土地を奪って富を築き、その財力を使って政治的影響力を振るった裕福な農場主階級のこと。 Example Australia reckoned…

  • Grinding Again

    Work has resumed for 2025, so I am back at the grindstone. I love my company immensely, and my aim this year is to be a great co-worker in a team that contributes to fantastic results for our employer. My teammates are enormous in drawing out every skerrick of talent I may possess, and I hope to be able to do the same for the people I get to work with. And while I’m doing that, I want to enjoy every moment I get to spend on a bike, even if it is as dark and bloody freezing as it is around this time of year.