Small trip to Carmel

Last weekend, I went to Carmel south to Monterey in respond to my wife`s request. She just wanted to go there to feel its atmosphere in order to compare other towns. When I left my apartment, it was around 2 o`clock, but highway 17 was a little bit busy due to the merge of lines from 3 lines to 2 lines just before Santa Cruz Mountain. This is usual, so I was well prepared for that, but it would be dangerous for those who do not know that because busy traffic comes suddenly and drivers have to handle that immediately. If you are less focused, you are going to cause a crash easily. When I was on highway 17 on the middle of Santa Cruz Mountain, I felt something wrong in my stomach. As time passed, I got to feel stomach pain unfortunately, and had been feeling it until I got to a downtown at Carmel. After that, I got to feel better gradually fortunately. Although I went there without any background information, what I thought firstly was that this town is place for adults in terms of restaurant, and shops other than beach. What I thought secondly was that this town is for artists because when I moved from main road, I could see many shops selling drawings. When we looked around shops, we happened to find a shop selling wide variety stuffs of Turkey. At this shop, my wife found very beautiful lamps, called Turkey mosaic lamp. This lamp usually made with many color pieces of glass which cover a core lamp, and its design as well as layout are beautiful. If you turn on light, light goes through each color and you can enjoy colorful lamp. Therefore, my wife was dying to want it impulsively, but I asked her to consider it deeply because voltage of power outlet is 110 AC volt but it is 100 AC volt in Japan. We, of course, are able to bring it back, but it is design for 110 AC volt, so it would be less illuminated or would not work in a worst case in Japan. After all, she decided to buy dishes in internet after we went back home. This time, we just stayed for two hours, and we could not enjoy this town fully, but we could feel its atmosphere well. That`s enough for us at the moment actually. At last, I have to say something important for those who concern restroom when visiting somewhere, do not worry about it, public restrooms are available. Moreover, they are maintained clean well. That`s important for those like me. It would be better for you guys to check locations in internet before you go there in advance. 


By the way, a few weeks back, somebody talked about "t" in the middle of name of "Montery", some people who are not born but live in California for long time said that "t" is silent, but an American who moved to California recently said that "t" is not silent but pronounced softly.
From point my view by listing to radios and watching TV news, "t" sounds silent. Last week my wife asked it to her English teacher who are an American and live here since she was born. According to her, "t" is not silent, and pronounced softly but clearly depending on people. So, "t" is not silent and the later are right.

Intorelance to a pineapple

These days when I go to the whole food market, I usually see a whole raw pineapple sold at $3.99. I had been thinking to buy it someday but I actually hesitated to buy a whole one because it looks big and I do not seem to be able to handle it. However, last Saturday, I bought it finally on impulse because I got intrigued with a pineapple somehow. At the following day night, I pulled the head of it, pealed it with knife, and cut it into good sizes. At one taste, it was really tasty, sweet, sour, and delicious. I was really feeling happy until I got something bad. After 30 minute later, I got to feel stomach pain gradually. As time passed, pain became strong, and it was really as painful as I could not move at all finally. I had to lie down on sofa. Fortunately, I could got asleep soon because I was a little bit tired due to walking at evening. One hour later, I woke up and felt better.

I got one thing for sure that the pineapple was something wrong because I have eaten only it at that night except a bottle of beer. So I checked immediately if someone has similar experience of feeling stomach pain after eating pineapple. And I found that many people around the world suffer from similar stomach pain. Additionally there is a dedicated web page, forum, chatting board about that. If I say from a conclusion, some enzyme which is contained in raw pineapple causes stomach pain for peoples, but not everyone. Almost all people can handle it. I`m a minority.


According to the reference, stomach pain is most likely related to allergic reaction of body system. I did not know this until recently, but pineapple is one of fruits which cause stomach pain due to allergic reaction. However, what we need to pay attention here is that some enzyme causing issue is contained only in raw pineapple, and it is gone after processing with heat. That`s why I can eat canned pineapple. According to scientist, stomach pain generally happens within one hour after eating it. Generally speaking, stomach pain is the results of inflammation in digestive system. When peoples who suffer from this eat raw pineapple, a body detects some material in raw pineapple as something bad which should be resolved and eliminated from the body. In order to do that, immune system reacts and tries to kill that substance by creating and increasing many antibodies against that. And peoples feel stomach pain during fighting between antibodies and some substance. According to the reference, one things to be made clear is that intolerance and allergy are different. If people suffer from not only stomach pain but also other digestive symptoms, then it is allergy against pineapple. However, if people suffer from only stomach pain, then it is just intolerance to pineapple. Most effective treatment seems to be avoiding and stay away from pineapple, although it is not essential solution.


Until recently, I did not know I am intolerant to pineapple. I am really shocked because raw pineapple is really tasty and affordable price now.


Reference 
http://www.livestrong.com/article/422674-pineapple-stomach-pain/

Deepest ocean expedition

Some of you may know a deepest ocean expedition last month. James Cameron, a famous movie director, dived into Mariana trench which is the deepest place in the earth. Supported by the national geographic, he spent hours hovering over the bottom and collecting sample, sucking sea creatures for study on the surface and video. One of his purpose would be search for a new 3D movie as well. Mt. Everest is about 5 miles above the sea level, but the deepest place in the Mariana trench is 8 miles below the sea level, so you can see how deepest it is. In higher mountain, oxygen density decrease as you go up. Some people can reach there without any mechanical support, although it is ultimate condition for human being. However, if you go down under the sea, oxygen density decreases, and water pressure increases, and light is gone finally. Obviously, it is impossible for human being to get to the deepest place without any machine support. You can know how ultimate place it is.

 Link
 
When I first heard of this, I was really excited about this because the surface of the earth is already explored but deep ocean is not explored yet by human being. As far as I know, some ancient fishes, creatures are still living there possibly. We do not know it yet but I think that we still have romanticism in the deep sea. Until recently, space explores has been focused and they are already done as much as possible so far except some high energy physics phenomenon. However, I think that ocean explore will be focused thanks to this expedition. 

Topics to talk

Recently, I often go outside to eat lunch with my colleagues. I really place value on this time to communicate each other except works in the office. This is not only for my English lesson, but also for knowing each other like topics about hobbies, status, etc. Actually it is very fun because engineers in the bay area generally have high motivations for getting better and express it openly without hesitating to say it. I like this culture here in which we can say own opinions even though their opinions are wrong. On the other hand, saying nothing is considered to be worse than saying something wrong. Of course, we have to consider it seriously before say something in formal situations like meeting with customers. In the office, any ideas are welcome regardless of whether ideas are right or wrong. Additionally, engineers here have curiosities for anything, and try to capture things logically and essentially. Therefore, it is very fun to talk, although it is not always the cases. If I had stayed in Japan, I would have never experienced this kind of opportunity.

However, a problem which I have and feel recently is that I can not say my opinion deeply because of lack of knowledge when I was asked about something. Fortunately, I can provide topics every time when I go to lunch, but I can not continue to talk about it and can not attract people, and I usually hear what my colleagues say unless topics are not related to Japan. Some people might say that I should talk about Japan every time, but it is boring not only for me but also for my colleagues. Otherwise, my colleagues would get sick of it. 

Therefore, I strongly feel that I need to be able to familiar with many topics deeply as well as I can talk deeply. If I could tell deep understanding about something during lunch, my colleague would be happier than ever before, and they would invite me more. In order to be able to do that, I have to make efforts to read news in many field and write own opinion day by day. Without doubt, online news like CNN, BBC is better to look at because they provide us many latest topic from world, domestic, politics, entertainment, technology, travel, and so on, every day. So I should check it out every day as long as time permits.


Here, I have never posted my opinion about latest news but have posted my experiences since I opened my blog. However, I try to post the former as well as the later. It is because it is obviously better to think about something and write it down a lot in order to talk about it during lunch.

X rat check on my chest

Last month, I took an annual medical check which is common in Japan as long as you are employed by a company. I got results at the end of the month, but something was not good. According to results, something shadow was found on a picture of X ray. However, a doctor told me that it was difficult to tell whether this was real one or not because a vain perpendicular to the picture sometimes comes out as a shadow, so I needed to take one more X ray check with several angles just in case. I had to make an appointment for this, but I could not do that for two weeks because I was preoccupied by an idea of what I am gonna do if this is a real cancer or a tumor. I definitely understand in my mind that an earlier check is better, but I could not until two weeks later when I did it finally. This is one of weaknesses of human that we can not do something even if we feel that we have to do it. And I got a phone call from the doctor that it turned out be nothing. I was really relieved mentally by hearing that. 

For one month, I was suffering from this mentally. So I strongly realized that living healthy is very important in our life.