An Unexpected Risk of Wearing a Mask

Autumn arrived late this year, but the weather is getting colder by the day.

One of the things that troubles me when the cold weather sets in is air conditioning.

Over the past few years, my throat seems to have become more sensitive. Whenever I enter an air-conditioned room, my throat quickly becomes sore, and I start coughing.

During the summer, the indoor air may have been somewhat more humid, so my throat did not bother me quite as much. But now that the humidity is dropping, things are getting rather uncomfortable.

So, to avoid bothering people around me, I end up wearing a mask.

The trouble is, I have never liked wearing masks. I put one on when my throat starts to hurt and I feel a cough coming, then take it off once my throat feels moist again and the pain subsides.

I repeat this process throughout the day.

Even on the train, I keep putting my mask on and taking it off as I get on and off.

Naturally, I take it off when I leave the train. But yesterday, just as I was about to get off, something rather alarming happened. When I removed my mask, one of my wireless earbuds came off with it.

Normally, I use both hands to carefully remove my mask without disturbing my earbuds. But yesterday it was raining, and I had an umbrella in one hand, so things did not go quite as usual.

Fortunately, I was still on the train, and the earbud had stayed inside the carriage. Unfortunately, it had rolled under one of the seats.

In a panic, I crouched down, got on my knees, and peered under the seat. Luckily, I managed to find it.

Who would have thought that wearing a mask could involve such an unexpected risk? The experience only made me dislike masks even more.

Anyway, I was relieved that I had not lost my rather expensive earbud.

And I suppose I was also lucky that everyone sitting on that row of seats was a man.

Apparently, even something as simple as taking off a mask requires a little caution.

English	日本語・解説
set in	（寒さや季節などが）始まる、本格化する
sore throat	喉の痛み
humidity	湿度
feel a cough coming	咳が出そうになる
earbuds	イヤホン（特に小型のもの）
carriage	鉄道車両（主にイギリス英語）
crouch down	しゃがみ込む
peer under	～の下をじっと覗き込む
Who would have thought...?	まさか～とは思わなかった
rather expensive	かなり高価な、少々値の張る

#MaskProblems #DailyLifeInJapan #AutumnInJapan #WirelessEarbuds #CommutingInJapan #EverydayLife #JapaneseDiary #PersonalEssay

Leaning on the Kindness of Others

As the mornings grow colder, I find myself turning my attention to organizing next year's medical research meeting. Having tried to handle almost everything myself, with the help of AI, I finally realized that some things simply cannot be done alone. Asking others for help does not come naturally to me. Yet perhaps it is precisely because I struggle on my own first that I come to appreciate the kindness of those who lend me a hand.

Over the past few days, I've really begun to feel the cold in the morning air.

It rained almost continuously throughout September this year, making me feel as though an entire month had somehow disappeared. But then again, autumn is traditionally the rainy season in Japan, so I suppose I just have to accept it.

Today falls between two national holidays, and the train is less crowded than usual.

I can't help thinking how pleasant it would be to take a day off at a time like this and enjoy a long weekend. Unfortunately, that's not an option for me.

Now that my lecture at the end of last month is over, I have no major events scheduled for the rest of the year.

At last, I can turn my attention to preparing for next year's research meeting.

To begin with, organizing an academic conference or research meeting is not really a job for amateurs. It requires considerable administrative expertise. Yet because these meetings also require specialized medical knowledge, we inevitably find ourselves involved in their organization.

And when someone from a relatively small department like mine takes responsibility for hosting such an event, much of the work ends up falling on that person's shoulders.

I've been working on the preparations with the help of AI. But when we reached the stage of planning the actual operation of the meeting, even AI warned me that I was trying to do too much on my own.

It was simply unrealistic to expect myself to handle everything.

So I finally decided to ask the people around me for help.

Of course, one might reasonably ask why I didn't do that from the beginning.

But that's just the way I am.

Unless I've tried everything I can and reached the point where I have to admit that I simply cannot manage on my own, I find it difficult to swallow my pride and ask others for assistance.

Perhaps it's only after going through that process that I can truly appreciate the kindness of those who offer to help.

Looking back, the same was true when I organized an academic conference several years ago.

Nothing worthwhile can be accomplished entirely on one's own. It takes the support and cooperation of many people to make things happen.

It's such an obvious truth, yet I've found myself appreciating it all over again.

And I have a feeling that whether this upcoming meeting succeeds or fails may depend, to a considerable extent, on whether I truly take that lesson to heart.

Come to think of it, I now slightly regret having taken on two presentations myself, including the president's lecture, simply to help fill the program.

I suppose that's another example of my bad habit of believing I can do everything myself.

Leaning on the kindness of others.

Perhaps that's the only way to keep things going.

Leaning on the kindness of others. Perhaps that's the only way to keep things going.

・・・

Lean on the kindness of others	他人の親切や情けに頼る
Fall between two national holidays	祝日に挟まれる、飛び石連休の中日に当たる
Fall on someone's shoulders	責任や仕事が一人にのしかかる
Swallow one's pride	プライドを抑えて頭を下げる
Lend someone a hand	誰かに手を貸す
Take something to heart	教訓などを真剣に受け止める
Come to think of it	考えてみれば、そういえば
Keep things going	物事を何とか続けていく

#Kindness #Gratitude #AskingForHelp #LifeLessons #AcademicConference #MedicalResearch #WorkingWithAI #JapanesePathologist #EverydayReflections #PersonalGrowth

AI and the Moral Values of the Bad Guys

As November begins, I find myself thinking about how rapidly cybercrime is evolving with the help of artificial intelligence. AI was supposed to make our lives better, but criminals have been quick to exploit it. And when even governments are suspected of wrongdoing, whose sense of right and wrong can we trust? Perhaps one day, we will end up asking AI itself to decide.

Today is the first day of November.

I turned the calendar page, and now there's only one page left.

How quickly time passes.

Speaking of speed, crimes seem to be happening faster and faster these days.

AI has dramatically accelerated the discovery of computer security vulnerabilities, and cyberattacks exploiting them can apparently be launched so quickly that humans barely have time to respond.

I used to think of AI as something that would benefit humanity, but the bad guys are always quick to find ways to use it for their own purposes.

Years ago, there was a novel called The Bad Guys (Warui Yatsura) by Seicho Matsumoto, a famous Japanese mystery writer.

It seems that the world is full of bad guys, far more than we would like to imagine.

Apart from the data breaches that have recently been making headlines, there have also been reports of cyberattacks suspected of involving a certain foreign government.

If those suspicions are true, we are talking about bad guys operating at the national level.

If an entire country is involved in wrongdoing, perhaps the people responsible no longer consider what they are doing wrong at all.

To them, it may simply be normal practice.

Even people who commit crimes may have their own sense of morality.

But if their moral values are shaped to justify their own interests and objectives, conventional ethical standards may mean very little to them.

If they say something is right, then, in their eyes, it is right.

In all of this, AI itself is not necessarily the one doing anything wrong.

In the end, we may find ourselves living in an age when we ask AI to decide what is right and what is wrong.

Perhaps the day will come when humans can no longer agree on what is right, and we turn to AI for the answer.

・・・

Moral values	倫理観、道徳的価値観。個人や集団が善悪を判断する基準。
The bad guys	悪い奴ら。やや口語的で、原文の親しみや皮肉のある響きに近い。
Cybercrime	サイバー犯罪。コンピューターやネットワークを利用した犯罪。
Security vulnerability	セキュリティ上の脆弱性。攻撃に利用され得る弱点。
Exploit	悪用する。技術的には脆弱性を利用して攻撃すること。
Wrongdoing	不正行為、悪事。必ずしも法的に犯罪と確定していない行為にも使える。
Data breach	情報漏洩、不正な情報アクセス。
Conventional ethical standards	一般的な倫理基準。社会で広く共有される善悪の判断基準。
Justify	正当化する。自分の行為を正しいものとして説明する。
In their eyes	彼らの目には、彼らの価値観では。

#ArtificialIntelligence #AI #AIEthics #Cybercrime #Cybersecurity #MoralValues #GoodAndEvil #DataBreach #TechnologyAndSociety #SeichoMatsumoto

I Couldn't Write My Blog Today

Some days, life simply gets in the way of writing. After spending the day with visitors, I barely had time to keep my daily blogging streak alive. Meanwhile, watching a Japanese television drama about aging has left me feeling rather uncomfortable—perhaps because it touches on something I would rather not face.

I had visitors today, so I didn't have time to write my blog.

For now, I'm just posting a few words to keep my daily writing streak going.

I intend to write a proper post tomorrow, so please bear with me.

Right now, NHK is airing a drama called The Troublesome Elderly (Rōgai no Hito), and I must say, I find it rather irritating.

Of course, it's not that there's anything wrong with Makiko Uchidate's original novel. Perhaps it's simply that Shiro Ito is far too convincing in his role.

Or rather, I suppose it's actually a good drama, in the sense that it reminds us we need the courage to confront our own aging.

Perhaps what makes the drama so uncomfortable is that it forces me to see something of myself.

・・・

English expression	日本語・ニュアンス
life gets in the way	日常の用事などで思うようにいかない
daily writing streak	連日執筆・更新の記録
bear with me	どうかご容赦ください、よろしくお付き合いください
rather irritating	結構不愉快、少し腹立たしい
far too convincing	演技がうますぎる、リアルすぎる
in his role	役柄において
confront our own aging	自分自身の老いと向き合う
something of myself	自分自身にも通じるところ

#DailyBlog #BloggingLife #Aging #JapaneseDrama #NHK #RogaiNoHito #ShiroIto #MakikoUchidate #LifeReflections

Another Baseball Season Comes to an End

The 2026 baseball season is over. From the Dodgers and Brewers in America to the Hawks and BayStars in Japan, it gave me more excitement than I expected.

The Milwaukee Brewers have won the World Series, defeating the Tampa Bay Rays after eliminating Shohei Ohtani's Los Angeles Dodgers in the playoffs.

When your favorite team loses in the playoffs, the season seems to end right then and there, at least for you. But when the team that beat yours goes on to win the championship, you can console yourself with the thought that your team was practically the runner-up.

And the Brewers were certainly strong.

Television commentators and newspapers have praised their strength, and even Ichiro Suzuki has spoken highly of the team.

With so many young players on their roster, they seem likely to remain competitive for years to come.

Meanwhile, in Japanese professional baseball, the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks won the Japan Series, defeating the Yokohama DeNA BayStars in what might be called a showdown between two IT companies.

I grew up hearing stories about legendary Nankai Hawks players such as Katsuo Hirose, Tadashi Sugiura, and Katsuya Nomura. I was also fond of Yasutake Kageura, the fictional baseball player in Shinji Mizushima's long-running manga series Abu-san.

So I once had a special attachment to the Hawks.

I rarely go to crowded places, whether concerts or sporting events, but I even went to Seibu Stadium and the dome to cheer for them.

Well, perhaps that doesn't make me much of a devoted fan, but I certainly considered myself a Hawks supporter back then.

Naturally, I should be pleased that the Hawks have won the championship.

But since the team moved to Fukuoka, my interest has gradually faded, along with much of my emotional attachment.

These days, as a resident of Kanagawa Prefecture, I support the Yokohama DeNA BayStars, and I had hoped they would win.

Still, the Hawks were incredibly strong.

The BayStars came so close on several occasions, only to fall just short of victory. It was disappointing, but the difference in strength between the two teams was undeniable.

I hope the BayStars will come back stronger next year.

After all, simply seeing your favorite team reach the playoffs is already something to celebrate.

Being able to enjoy postseason baseball in both America and Japan all the way through October felt like getting not just one rare bonus track, but two.

I'm not even what you would call a particularly passionate baseball fan.

Still, baseball gave me plenty of enjoyment this year, and the extended postseason felt like an unexpected bonus.

One final note: I was born in 1963, so I have no personal memory of the Nankai Hawks' championship in 1959.

Sometimes, being a casual fan is the best way to enjoy the game.

・・・

1. Eliminate (verb)

To defeat a team or player so that they can no longer compete in a tournament.

日本語：敗退させる、勝ち抜いて相手を退ける

2. Console oneself (phrase)

To make oneself feel better after experiencing disappointment or failure.

日本語：自分を慰める、気休めに考える

3. Runner-up (noun)

A person or team that finishes second in a competition.

日本語：準優勝者、準優勝チーム

4. Roster (noun)

A list of players who belong to a sports team.

日本語：選手名簿、登録選手

5. Emotional attachment (noun phrase)

A strong personal feeling of affection or connection toward someone or something.

日本語：愛着、思い入れ

6. Fall just short (phrase)

To come very close to achieving something but fail to succeed.

日本語：あと一歩及ばない、惜しくも届かない

7. Postseason (noun)

The games played after the regular sports season to determine the champion.

日本語：ポストシーズン、シーズン終了後の優勝決定戦

8. Bonus track (noun)

An additional piece of music included beyond the main tracks of an album; figuratively, an unexpected extra pleasure.

日本語：ボーナストラック、思いがけないおまけ

#MLB #WorldSeries2026 #JapaneseBaseball #BaseballMemories #Japanese pathologist

My Trousers Are Getting a Little Tighter Again

 

Winter is finally approaching Japan, and it is time to bring out my old suit again. But every year, I face the same small anxiety: will the trousers still fit? I have been wearing this winter suit for more than ten years, and somehow I managed to squeeze into it again this year. Still, I am beginning to wonder how much longer I can keep doing so.

Yesterday, Kogarashi Ichigo, the season's first cold winter wind, swept through the Kanto region, signaling that winter is finally on its way.

And yet, until just the day before yesterday, I was still wearing a polo shirt under my jacket. There is no doubt that the changing of the seasons is coming later and later.

It was chilly again this morning. When I stepped out onto the balcony to take a photograph, I felt a sudden shiver.

I have a medical conference to attend today.

I am giving a lecture, and since it is rather cold, I decided to wear a winter suit.

Whenever it is time to change my wardrobe for the season, I always worry about whether I will still be able to fit into my trousers.

Sure enough, they were a little tighter again this year. But I managed to get them on, much to my relief.

These days, I rarely have an opportunity to wear a suit.

I occasionally buy a new jacket, but I have stopped buying new suits altogether.

I have been wearing this particular suit for well over ten years.

The fact that I can still wear it may mean that I have somehow managed to maintain my figure, if only just barely. But even if I got away with it this year, who knows what will happen next year?

I would like to keep wearing this suit until the year I retire.

So perhaps I really should make another attempt to lose some weight after all.

The suit has lasted more than ten years. The question is whether my waistline can keep up.

 

・・・

Kogarashi Ichigo (木枯らし1号) — The first officially recognized cold, dry wind of the season, signaling the approach of winter in Japan. 日本の冬の訪れを告げる、その季節最初の冷たく乾いた風。

signal — To indicate that something is happening or about to happen. 何かの始まりや変化を知らせる、兆しとなる。

feel a shiver — To experience a sudden trembling sensation, usually because of cold or fear. 寒さや恐怖でゾクッとする。

much to my relief — An expression used when something turns out well after a period of worry. ほっとしたことに、安心したことに。

altogether — Completely or entirely, often used when stopping an activity. 完全に、すっかり。

maintain my figure — To keep one's body shape or weight relatively unchanged. 体型を維持する。

get away with it — To manage to do something without suffering the expected consequences. 何とか切り抜ける、うまく済ませる。

waistline — The measurement or shape of the body around the waist. ウエスト、胴回り。

#HealthyAging #WeightLoss #AutumnInJapan #EverydayLife #JapanesePathologist

Comparing Myself to Others Won't Change Anything, But Still...

We all know that comparing ourselves to others doesn't really accomplish anything. Yet sometimes, even when we know better, we can't help doing it.

Social media has made it easier than ever to catch glimpses of other people's lives. We see their achievements, their happy moments, their busy schedules, and their expressions of gratitude. Of course, what appears on social media is rarely the whole story. Most people choose what they want others to see, and understandably, they tend to share the good things rather than the bad.

Still, knowing this doesn't necessarily prevent us from feeling something when we read those posts. Sometimes it's admiration. Sometimes it's encouragement. And sometimes it's a faint, uncomfortable feeling that is difficult to put into words.

I write a personal blog almost every day, but I don't spend much time posting on Facebook or Instagram. To me, there is a subtle difference between the people whose blogs I choose to read and the people whose social media posts appear in front of me.

Perhaps the real question isn't whether we should compare ourselves with others, but why we continue to do so, even when we know there's little point.

I often receive email notifications when someone posts something on social media.

There's nothing wrong with people sharing their achievements or good fortune. Depending on the content, I may even enjoy reading about them. But quite a few of these posts don't exactly make me happy, so I rarely go out of my way to open them.

I remember once leaving a comment on someone's post:

"You have so many wonderful things happening in your life. That's nice."

The reply came back:

"Well, I only write about the good things that happen to me here."

I remember thinking, Ah, I see. That makes sense.

Perhaps my comment rubbed that person the wrong way, because I stopped seeing their posts afterward. I don't know whether they stopped posting altogether or simply blocked me.

Anyway, catching glimpses of other people's thoughts and everyday lives sometimes creates little ripples in my mind.

I know I should simply tell myself, My life is mine, and theirs is theirs.

But somehow, it isn't quite that easy.

As for me, writing this blog already takes just about all the time and energy I can spare. I can hardly imagine writing lengthy posts on Instagram or Facebook as well.

When it comes to blogs, I tend to read those written by people who share similar interests or ways of thinking. Like-minded people, you might say. And if I don't enjoy what someone writes, I can simply stop reading.

Social media is a little different. Sometimes we follow people simply because we happen to know them, even if only slightly. Their posts then appear in our feeds whether we particularly want to read them or not.

Still, there are people who know how to write about themselves with remarkable grace.

Some are extremely successful and unbelievably busy, yet somehow manage to describe their hectic lives without sounding the least bit boastful. Others never fail to express their gratitude toward the people around them.

I find myself reading their posts.

Sometimes I think, That's quite impressive.

Or perhaps, So I'm not the only one going through this.

And I feel a sense of understanding, even sympathy.

Comparing my own life with someone else's isn't going to get me anywhere. Still, if something in their experience can help me improve myself, I suppose there's something worth learning from it.

Are human connections becoming weaker these days? Or are we simply so busy that, even when we want to connect with others, we no longer have the time?

In a society like ours, perhaps social media does serve a useful purpose after all.

Perhaps the point is not to stop comparing ourselves with others, but to learn something from those comparisons without losing sight of our own lives.

・・・

compare oneself to others	他人と自分を比較する。日常的な自己比較を表す自然な表現
go out of one's way to	わざわざ〜する。I rarely go out of my way to open them.
rub someone the wrong way	人の気に障る、反感を買う。悪意のない言葉が相手を不快にさせる場合にも使う
catch a glimpse of	〜をちらりと見る、垣間見る
little ripples in my mind	心に生じる小さな波紋。「心のさざなみ」を比喩的に表現
like-minded people	考え方や志向が似ている人々。「同好の士」に近い表現
boastful	自慢げな、鼻にかけた。without sounding boastful で「自慢話に聞こえずに」
with remarkable grace	驚くほど品よく、自然に。自分の成功を嫌味なく語れること
lose sight of	〜を見失う、忘れてしまう
serve a useful purpose	何らかの役に立つ、存在意義がある

#SocialMedia #ComparingOurselves #SelfReflection #HumanConnections #EverydayThoughts #PersonalBlog #LifeLessons #Mindfulness #JapaneseBlogger #ColoKen

Data Breaches and the Market Value of Personal Information

Personal data breaches seem to be happening endlessly. As even Japan's bullet train reservation services are affected, I find myself wondering how much of my own information is already out there—and what my personal data is actually worth.

Unauthorized access exploiting vulnerabilities in computer software has led to an endless series of personal data breaches.

Now, even a reservation service for Japan's Shinkansen bullet trains has reportedly suffered a data breach. I wonder whether my own information has been exposed, but at this point, I have no idea what I should do about it.

To begin with, I no longer know how much personal information I have registered, where I have registered it, or which IDs and passwords I have used for each service.

I must have entered personal information into services I haven't used for years. In fact, I may have been even more carefree about registering my information in those days, when I trusted these systems without a second thought.

When these problems first began attracting attention, experts offered advice such as changing passwords. These days, however, they seem almost at a loss themselves, reduced to telling us to be careful of suspicious emails.

After all, their own personal information has probably been leaked as well. Perhaps there is little they can do about it either.

When I think that many of the people I pass on the streets every morning and evening have probably had their personal information exposed, I find it frightening. Or perhaps, more than anything, it makes me realize just how completely we have all been drawn into this computerized society.

Criminal groups sometimes demand ransom payments from the companies they attack. The amounts can reportedly reach billions of yen, but how is the value of personal information determined in the first place?

I have no real idea what the market value of personal information might be. Surely, its value differs from person to person. So is it priced in bulk, as a package of personal data?

Meanwhile, some of the people whose information has been leaked are preparing to file a class-action lawsuit. They are seeking compensation of 50,000 yen per person if an image of their driver's license was exposed, and 30,000 yen for those whose other personal information was leaked.

How were these amounts calculated, I wonder?

Years ago, magazines used to have pen-pal sections near the back, where people's names and home addresses were openly printed.

Back then, we hardly gave a thought to the possibility that such information might be used for criminal purposes. It is one of those memories of the good old days.

Today, dating apps have more or less taken the place of those old pen-pal columns. And I imagine that the personal information stored in these apps includes much more detailed descriptions of people's individual tastes and preferences.

Although it is not really my concern, I cannot help hoping that such deeply personal information has not been leaked as well.

Some things about us are simply too personal to have a price tag.

・・・

Data breach	情報漏洩。個人情報の流出を指す一般的な表現
Vulnerability	脆弱性。ソフトウェアなどのセキュリティ上の弱点
Unauthorized access	不正アクセス
Without a second thought	深く考えずに、疑いもせずに
Be at a loss	途方に暮れる、どうしてよいかわからない
Ransom payment	身代金の支払い。サイバー攻撃でも使用
Market value	市場価値
In bulk	まとめて、一括して
Class-action lawsuit	集団訴訟。日本の集団訴訟と米国の制度には違いがある
Pen pal	文通相手
Dating app	マッチングアプリ
Tastes and preferences	個人の好みや嗜好
Too personal to have a price tag	値段をつけられないほど個人的な

#DataBreach #PersonalInformation #Cybersecurity #DigitalPrivacy #IdentityTheft #Ransomware #OnlineSafety #データ漏洩 #個人情報 #サイバーセキュリティ #情報セキュリティ #プライバシー

It's Never Too Late to Have a Dream

A news report on local elections got me thinking about the future. Even in my sixties, I have discovered that it is still possible to dream of something new.

This morning's news reported the results of mayoral and other local government elections apparently held yesterday in various parts of Japan.

I was surprised to see how many of the newly elected leaders were relatively old—or rather, about my age, in their sixties. Yet they were enthusiastically talking about their visions for the future of their communities.

What voters expect from their leaders is not just a record of past achievements, but what they will do in the years ahead.

People look forward to a better future for their communities and share that dream with their elected leaders.

The day before yesterday, an idea suddenly came to me.

After I retire, why not renovate my house and turn part of it into a small café where dog lovers in the neighborhood could gather?

Of course, it would not be that simple. There would be many issues to consider, including hygiene and food safety regulations. I have no idea whether the plan could actually become a reality.

But when I asked AI about it, I learned that the idea might not be entirely unrealistic.

There would certainly be things I could and could not do, and the result might be quite different from what I have in mind.

But more importantly, isn't the real point that even at my age, I can still have dreams if I choose to?

The practical details, including how to finance the project, are matters for the future.

My home is in a relatively quiet, out-of-the-way part of Kamakura, a historic city south of Tokyo. Making a profit there would be almost impossible, so figuring out how to run the café without losing money would be a major challenge.

I will take my time thinking about how to design the café and what kind of business it should be.

At least one thing is certain.

Even at my age, I have found something new to look forward to.

It's never too late to find a new dream—and perhaps the joy lies in having something to look forward to.

・・・

It's never too late to...	～するのに遅すぎることはない。今回のタイトルの中心表現
local government elections	地方自治体の首長などを選ぶ選挙
a record of past achievements	これまでの実績、功績
a vision for the future	将来像、未来への構想
turn A into B	AをBに改装・転用する
dog lovers	犬好きの人たち。dog ownersより広い意味
become a reality	現実になる、実現する
out-of-the-way	中心地から離れた、やや奥まった場所
without losing money	赤字を出さずに
something to look forward to	これから先の楽しみ、待ち遠しいこと

#NeverTooLate #NewDreams #LifeAfterRetirement #DogFriendlyCafe #Kamakura #SecondChapter #人生の楽しみ #定年後の暮らし #犬好き #鎌倉暮らし

When in Japan, Do as the Japanese Do

 

A rainy visit to Ginza reminded me how clean and orderly Tokyo is—and how international the city has become. Watching tourists from around the world, I found myself thinking about the old saying, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do."

My wife and I went to Ginza to buy a gift for my mother's 88th birthday, a special milestone in Japan known as beiju.

I pass through Tokyo's major railway terminals every day, but it had been quite a while since I last got off a train and walked around one of the city's busy shopping districts.

Or so I thought. Come to think of it, I had been to Shinjuku just the other day.

Anyway, despite the heavy showers that kept coming and going under the influence of Typhoon No. 30, Ginza was packed with people.

As I had noticed in Shinjuku, what seemed like 70 percent of the people walking around were foreign tourists. I was particularly struck by the variety of nationalities represented.

Tokyo has truly become an international city.

 

And yet, what impresses me most about Tokyo is how clean it is.

There is hardly any graffiti, the subway stations and trains are clean, and above all, there are plenty of public restrooms.

I remembered my recent visit to New York, when I had a hard time finding a public restroom. When I finally found one, I was astonished by how dirty it was.

Apparently, one of the things that makes foreign visitors nervous about coming to Japan is wondering whether they are following all the local rules and customs.

But watching these tourists behaving so politely and considerately, I felt that they, too, were helping to maintain the beauty and cleanliness of the city.

They seemed to be putting the old saying, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do," into practice.

Or perhaps, in this case, I should say, "When in Japan, do as the Japanese do."

Somehow, I found that rather satisfying.

A beautiful city stays beautiful when everyone, residents and visitors alike, does their part.

・・・

• beiju (米寿) — The traditional Japanese celebration of a person's 88th birthday. The character 米 (rice) can be broken down into elements resembling the characters for eighty-eight (八十八).

• railway terminal — A major train station where multiple lines or services connect.

• shopping district — An area with many shops, department stores, and restaurants.

• be packed with people — To be extremely crowded.

• be struck by — To be strongly impressed or surprised by something.

• graffiti — Writing or drawings on walls and other public surfaces, often without permission.

• local rules and customs — The social expectations and accepted ways of behaving in a particular place.

• When in Rome, do as the Romans do — An English proverb meaning that visitors should respect and follow the customs of the place they are visiting. The Japanese equivalent is 「郷に入っては郷に従え」.

• do one's part — To contribute one's share of effort toward a common goal.

#Ginza #Tokyo #JapanTravel #JapaneseCulture #WhenInJapan #TravelEtiquette #CleanCities #InternationalTokyo #銀座 #東京 #外国人観光客 #郷に入っては郷に従え

Experience Goes Beyond Knowledge

A lecture by a former colleague reminded me that medical expertise is built not only on knowledge, but also on years of clinical experience, collaboration, and the willingness to share what we have learned.

Today, there was a meeting of the Kanto Branch of the Japanese Society of Pathology.

A former junior colleague from my university department, now a professor at another university, was scheduled to give a lecture on inflammatory bowel diseases, including ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. I had been looking forward to attending it.

The lecture was fascinating and highly informative, and it reminded me once again just how capable he is.

Beyond the content itself, however, I was overwhelmed by the sheer number of images he presented.

There were numerous endoscopic photographs and images of surgical specimens. It was clear that this collection represented years of accumulated experience, built through close collaboration with clinicians.

We can acquire knowledge by reading textbooks, but that knowledge alone cannot match the experience gained from examining actual cases with our own eyes, thinking carefully about them, and learning from each one.

Experience goes beyond knowledge.

And perhaps this is even more true when that experience is the product of collaboration.

There is, of course, a limit to what any one person can experience in a lifetime.

How we accumulate those experiences and put them to use varies from person to person. But today's lecture was an excellent example of how years of accumulated experience can be put to full use.

What impressed me even more was that he was not simply displaying what he had collected. He was taking the additional step of sharing what he had learned with others.

I, too, have spent years steadily collecting cases and observations, presenting them in lectures and putting them into books.

But have I really been able to communicate the value of my accumulated experience to others?

Today's lecture left me reflecting on that question.

Experience becomes even more valuable when we find a way to pass it on to others.

・・・ 

go beyond knowledge	知識の域を超える。surpass より穏やかで、知識と経験の対立を強調しすぎない表現
a former junior colleague	かつての教室の後輩。日本の医局制度を知らない読者にも理解できる表現
the sheer number of images	圧倒されるほどの写真の多さ。sheer が驚きを表す
accumulated experience	長年にわたり蓄積された経験
close collaboration with clinicians	臨床医との密接な共同作業
put something to full use	蓄積した知識や経験を存分に活用する
pass it on to others	他者や次世代に伝えていく

#Pathology #MedicalEducation #ClinicalExperience #InflammatoryBowelDisease #UlcerativeColitis #CrohnsDisease #LifelongLearning #MedicalKnowledge #病理診断 #医学教育