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May 18, 2009

Uh oh...

Today was a Happy Monday, but I have had no time to visit blogs or decide on what I would really like to talk about... Japanese style present wrapping, religion,manga, historical figures... I have quite a line up!

I try to stay focused on good things but there are times when you need to talk about what is happening despite how you feel about it...


The new strain of influenza has hit Japan too.  The sudden increase in numbers of people who are infected surrounds the area that I live in.

The local government has advised people to stay indoors if possible, gargle, wash hands thoroughly and wear masks.

Most of the schools in the vicinity,  including universities, will stay closed for at least a week.

It's hard to see in this picture but there are several schools in my area as well...
                                                          (Can you see the blimp?!)
Anyway, today I went to search for masks...all sold out.  There were news clips on TV with people making long lines to buy masks... which to me seems kind of weird because I'd prefer to avoid crowded areas.

In related news, the Japanese government has totally "lost face" with this outbreak (currently over 100 patients).  They were going to keep the influenza virus at bay...
                                              
At bay...
This is Suma Beach...one of my nearby bays.

According to this article in the Japan Times (click here) the Japanese government thought it was something that would come from the outside...  

Anyway, chin up and move forward in a calm way.  The universe might be telling us that we need a little time off.  Stay at home and be grateful for our families and stuff...






7 comments:

Carol Murdock said...

That is frighting I'm sure but the less you stress about it, the stronger youe imune system will be against it! I'll be thinking of you!

Jelica said...

I thought of you yesterday when I read in the news that there are many new cases of swine flu in the Kobe area. I guess the best thing to do is stay home, tackle that pile of books from one of your previous posts and you always have internet to connect to the outside world.

I hope it will soon be over! Good luck and don't forget to wash your hands.

Tess Kincaid said...

Stay well, dear bloggy friend!

Delwyn said...

Tulsa,
about those masks
when I went to NZ I thought I should have some - all sold out here too but the interesting thing is that the usual ones you see the Japanese wearing will not stop the virus coming in to you. They only help the spread of droplets in the air from an infected person.
You have to get a more dense fabric ( I bought mine from a hardware shop - my husband uses them for dust allergies on the building site) you can check on the internet to get the correct grade.

I saw the Osaka news last night - scarey...
and
wash your hands often, use that antibacterial hand wash that you can carry around.

Will you be going to work as usual?

Take care
Happy Days

I_am_Tulsa said...

Thank you everyone for the kind words! Unfortunately, work does call and I have a regular cold right now so things aren't a good as I would like them to be...but I will take all of your advice!

Delwyn, the masks are a becoming an issue here too...Thank you for the tip, I will check the internet!
Arigato!

Anonymous said...

Dear Tulsa,

I hope you will be free soon:-)

I have a question for you as a specialist on the East: when I was in Bejing last year I saw some people draw characters on the ground with water. They would soon evaporate, of course. Is this some kind of Chinese/Japansese art form?

I_am_Tulsa said...

Anonymous,
Thank you for stopping by!

I'm not sure if what you saw in China is the same thing as what I have heard about or seen But...I have heard of many people in China practicing calligraphy outside with water and brush. It saves paper and ink (and you get to go outside). It may not seem very exotic but it is very ecological.

If I were to choose a philosophical reason, it would have to be shogyo mujyo = all things are transient.

I haven't seen this in Japan but my calligraphy teacher did something similar using diluted ink/water and newspaper.

I hope I have been able to help!