More on language and values, and a bunch of Japanese words that are fun to learn (?)

The study of language is never merely about learning vocabulary words and grammar -- if done right, those who acquire a second language will also learn plenty about the beliefs and ideas of speakers of that language. The Japanese tend to have a strong sense of the way things should be done, and often these convictions are reflected in the words that they use. In Japan, people seem to have a shared "common sense," called joshiki (JOH-shki、常識) that they can all access, which is one reason Japanese are more in harmony with each other than people in other parts of the world. In Japan, it's quite an insult to say joshiki ga nai 常識がない about someone -- saying that a person lacks common sense that everyone should have. There's usually a "right" way to do things here, and this is embodied in the words chanto ちゃんと (properly, as it should be) or chanto shita ちゃんとした (proper, correct), as seen in sentences like, chanto shita shigoto ni tukinasai ちゃんとした仕事に就きなさい (find yourself a proper job) or, chanto benkyo shite kudasai　ちゃんと勉強してください (please study [like you're supposed to]). Finally, one of the best compliments you can make of a person is that they are shikkari shiteiru　しっかりしている (she-KAR-ree sh-TE-ee-ru), which means someone who is steady, hardworking, and does what is expected of them.

The word shikkari しっかり (stable, reliable) is actually one of a complex class of very descriptive words that can be quite challenging for foreigners to learn because they're all so similar to each other, yet their meanings are so different. Another word from this group is sappari さっぱり (sa-PAH-ree, fresh, clean), as in the phrase "Sappari shita!" さっぱりした！ (I feel so refreshed!), said after you get out of a hot bath. If you closely resemble someone else in your family, you could use the word sokkuri そっくり to describe how similar you are, for example anata wa John ni sokkuri desu　あなたはジョンにそっくりです (you are the spitting image of John). Other words from this group include gakkari がっかり (gah-KAH-ree), the feeling of being let down or disappointed; kossori こっそり (koh-SOH-ree), doing something secretly; and pittari　ぴったり (pi-TAH-ree), describing a perfect fit.

For all fans of our new G-Collections Download Edition games, we're happy to announce that even more titles are now available for purchase as downloads. Now you can opt to buy six more titles either as downloads (with Virtual Mate 2.0) or on CD-ROM (with no online registration requirement at all). The new download versions are great for people with broadband connections, and are designed to be easily backed up on CD-R so you can keep your game securely for years to come. And the convenience of download your game directly can't be beat!

Leaving Tokyo now. I like to take the Shinkansen (i.e. the Bullet Train) when I can, since it's so fast and comfortable.

This was soon after the London bombings, and Japan had carefully closed all trash cans to keep people from putting bombs inside them.

These trash cans were still in use on the platform. They have been augmented somewhat to make it easy to see inside them, to improve security.