Word of the Day: 余波 = After-effect or Fallout

I was looking for a way to say aftershock or after-effect, and my 首席 came to the rescue：余波　（よは）、which is literally "the wave that remains (after the winds have subsided)."

Great word!

Here's an example from Mainichi Shimbun:

毎日新聞社の英語版ニュースサイト「Mainichi Daily News」（MDN）が掲載した記事が「低俗すぎる」などと批判され、同社が記事を削除するなどした問題をめぐり、ネット上で余波が広がっている.

Here's my rough translation:

The fallout from Mainichi Shimbun's deletion of articles published on its English language news site "Mainichi Daily News (MDN") that had been criticised for being "excessively vulgar" is spreading on the Internet.

Vocabulary list:

掲載した 【けいさいした】 (n) (1) publication (e.g. article in paper); appearance; insertion; (vs) (2) to insert (e.g. an article); to run (e.g. in a newspaper)

低俗 【ていぞく】 (adj-na,n) vulgar
批判される 【ひはんされる】 be criticized for; get rubbished; get stoned
削除する 【さくじょする】 (n,vs,adj-no) elimination; cancellation; deletion; erasure; DEL (key)
余波 【よは】 (n) (1) waves that remain after the wind has subsided; (2) after-effect; aftermat

広がっている 【ひろがっている】 (vi) to range; have sprawled

Expression of the Day: Blind Turtle Floating Log

Yesterday's expression about a colt coming from a gourd reminded me of another 4-character expression in Japanese that I love:

盲亀浮木 【もうきふぼく】 unlikely event; rare occurence (lit. "blind turtle, floating log")

This reminds me of an incident I'll never forget that happened a few years ago when I went to Argentina for a summer internship. I was kicking myself because I had forgotten to take the phone number of a good friend Juan Ignacio whom I had met in Buenos Aires a few years earlier and gradually fell out of contact. On the second day after I arrived, I was apartment hunting and accidentally missed the subway stop where I was supposed to get off. While I was on the subway, feeling depressed and lonely, someone suddenly called out my name and grabbed my shoulder! It was my friend JuanIg, who just happened to be on the same subway car and didn't even know I was in Argentina. (He said he never takes that line but for some reason I can't remember he wound up on it.) Everyone else was looking, I think, as we excitedly reconnected and expressed our surprise, but it was a great moment. I remember thinking of the chances of that happening: going to a foreign country, taking a random subway, missing my stop, and bumping into the one person in that city you know, etc. Pretty slim! Definitely rates a 盲亀浮木 in my book!

Anyway, this expression is apparently based upon a Buddhist quasi-parable used to demonstrate the slim chances of being born in a life in which there is possibility of attaining enlightment. The metaphor involves a blind turtle surfacing a countless number of times and the chances of that turtle one day hitting upon a floating log in such a way as to go right up into it. Or something like that. There are a lot of interpretations that I've come across on the Internet but the way I see it (admittedly reflecting a way of thinking that is distorted by the 70s and far removed from that of the Boddhisatvas...), it's a good reminder to appreciate the opportunities we have been given in our lifetime.

I recently saw a video of a guy from New Zealand who was born without limbs and he spoke about how, even though he would rather have limbs if given the choice (he gets credit for being honest), he is thankful for the doors that his condition has opened for him in life and forced him to focus on what's really important, i.e., connections with other people, etc. Very heartfelt and moving.

Last weekend, I met a deaf guy here in Tokyo and I've been learning a lot of Japanese Sign Language from him during our conversations. My rudimentary ASL is helpful but only gets me so far, and he has been amazingly patient and we've been able to communicate much better than I had expected. (The fingerspelling 指文字 itself was a formidable challenge, but I found a good site on line and finally succeeded in getting the entire syllabary down.) It was great to be able to listen to what he had to say about growing up deaf in Japan. I was surprised that his parents who are both hearing didn't learn sign language. I had met another deaf Japanese guy in NY a couple years ago and he told me that his parents wouldn't let him sign in public because they were embarrassed...but according to the guy I just met, that mentality still exists but is thankfully getting rarer, at least in the cities and with younger generations. As we were signing on the subway, we were getting a lot of stares, so I was imagining how that must be to experience that on a daily basis growing up. (He drew the picture attached to this post, btw.)

So now that I'm looking back on 2008, I'm thankful for the opportunity to come to Japan and be able to learn so many new things every day, meet interesting people, eat amazing food, and visit places I've always wanted to go. So even though life isn't "perfect" by any stretch, the rarity of a life that affords such wonderful opportunities and the ability to connect (and reconnect) with such great people is something I definitely have come to appreciate these past few years. So thanks, New Zealand guy; thanks, JuanIg, and thanks, blind turtle!

Phrase of the Day: Horse from a Gourd!

Today I was talking to some co-workers about how something was unexpected and I was searching for a phrase that meant "out of the blue."

I knew 藪蛇 【やぶへび】but that wouldn't work because it has a negative connotation; it is literally translated as "snake from the thicket/bush," and means something like "stirring up a "hornet's nest" or "bringing unnecessary trouble upon oneself."

(Another good expression using "yabu" is 藪の中 【やぶのなか】 which is "the inability to discern the truth due to conflicting testimony," which is derived from the Akutagawa Ryuunosuke story "In A Grove," upon which the movie Rashomon is based in part. Another good expression is 藪医者, which is literally "doctor from the bush" and means "quack (doctor)"; I have no idea whether this is in common use, but I like it!)

The only other expression that I could think of was 亀毛兎角 【きもうとかく】(lit. "fur on turtles and horns on rabbits"), but she said she had never heard of it. In any event, it probably wouldn't work because it's apparently used as a metaphor for things that do not exist, or to express absurdity.

She then suggested the following, which she assured me was commonly used, or at least readily recognized:

瓢箪から駒 【ひょうたんからこま】 (exp) something very unexpected; something said as a joke actually happening (lit: a colt/chesspiece/spool comes from a gourd)

I like it...and I'm looking forward to the next opportunity to use it, whenever that may be!

Prove it! 立証 and 反証

I learned a couple really useful litigation-related words today:

立証 【りっしょう】 (n,vs) establishing proof; demonstration; substantiation

反証 【はんしょう】 (n,vs) proof to the contrary; disproof; counter-evidence

Example One:

被害の立証が困難なため、申請を見送るという

Due to difficulties in establishing injury, the motion/petition was continued/postponed.

Example Two:

裁判長は、事故原因とされた「脇見運転」の反証として検察側が提出した動画を証拠採用し、法廷で上映した。

The presiding judge ruled that a video submitted the prosecution was admissible and could be shown in court to disprove "distracted driving" as a cause of the accident.

Key words:

被害 【ひがい】 (n) damage
立証 【りっしょう】 (n,vs) establishing proof; demonstration; substantiation
困難な 【こんなんな】 (adj-na,n) difficulty; distress
申請 【しんせい】 (n,vs) application; request; petition
見送る 【みおくる】 (v5r,vt) (1) to see off (e.g. to the station, an airport, etc.); to escort (e.g. home); to farewell; (2) to see out; to send off; (3) to let pass; to wait and see; (4) to let a pitch go by (baseball); to watch a batted ball go into the stands


裁判長 【さいばんちょう】 (n) presiding judge
事故原因 【じこげんいん】 (n) source, cause of an accident
脇見運転 【わきみうんてん】 (n,vs) looking aside while driving; taking one's eyes off the road ahead while driving
反証 【はんしょう】 (n,vs) proof to the contrary; disproof; counter-evidence
検察側 【けんさつがわ】 prosecution
提出した 【ていしゅつした】 (vs) (1) to present; to submit (e.g. a report or a thesis); to hand in; to file; to turn in; (n) (2) presentation; submission; filing; (P)
動画 【どうが】 (n,adj-no,vs) (1) animation; motion picture; moving image; video; (2) in-betweening (in anime)
証拠 【しょうこ】 (n) evidence; proof
採用 【さいよう】 (n,vs) (1) use; adoption; acceptance; (2) appointment; employment
法廷で 【ほうていで】 at the bar of justice; in facie curiae
上映した 【じょうえいした】 (n) (1) screening (a movie); showing; (vs) (2) to screen a movie

Word of the Day: 笊法

While discussing the enforcement of certain environmental statutes today, a co-worker said that, in practice, many companies are able to circumvent some of the strictures/provisions. I knew that loophole is 抜け穴　"nukeana," which literally is like a secret door, apparently.

I wondered whether there was any way to refer in Japanese to the law itself, though. I guess I was looking for something akin to "toothless law." It turns out there's a great term for this: 笊法 【ざるほう】 (n) (uk) law full of loopholes. I love this one because 笊 literally is a "porous basket." Very expressive!

Slang: ゾンビ会社 "Zombie Business"

I learned a slang word today that is probably no longer in current use in Japan, but is relevant longer in current use in Japan, but is relevant to what the US is experiencing right now. According to an article I read on http://www.reason.com/, "Twenty years ago, Japan's economy was plagued by struggling markets, liquidity concerns, and frozen credit. In response, Japan tried bailing out its banks, investing in infrastructure, and propping up "zombie businesses," firms that would have failed without government intervention."

Perfectly conveys the idea!

Phrase of the Day 学級崩壊

One of my co-workers teaches a class on trade law at a private university here in Tokyo, and he asked me if I wanted to teach a class for him. The previous week, I had given a presentation at Administrative Training on the Japan-China-Korea Investment Treaty (日中韓投資取り決め）that is currently being negotiated by my section colleagues at MOFA. Since he hadn't taught a lesson yet on investment treaties, I gave a lecture based on the presentation I gave.

Hoo-boy, what a trying experience! When I walked in, it seemed as though about 1/2 of the students were sitting in the back 2 rows: bad sign. While the regular professor was taking care of housekeeping matters, it seemed like no one was paying attention, instead talking to each other, texting on their cellphones, etc. I walked up to the podium and noticed that the girl in the front row had her head down on the desk and was asleep; if it were my class back in the States, I'd have chucked her out of the class (or at least told her to wake up), but it was a bit awkward because the regular professor didn't seem to know how to keep discipline and they took advantage of his passivity (受身を利用する　＝　うけみ　を　りよう　する）.

I was actually really surprised how discourteous 不謹慎（ふきんしん）the students were, considering how many times I've been told how the Japanese are so polite to strangers and respectful of their elders, etc. Maybe things are different once they get into university because it's like a vacation compared to high school!

As I was talking, I was a bit unnerved at the people in the back of the class continuing to talk, etc. but I charged ahead. At one point I was talking about "retaliatory measures/actions" and I inadvertently said 回復行為　（かいふく　こうい）(recovery action) instead of what I should have said: 報復行為 （ほうふく　こうい）, so I felt like a total idiot afterwards when I realized what I said. No wonder I got blank stares when I said that!

(For the record, and as penance, I'm forcing myself to distinguish among the following:
回復 kaifuku = recovery
復習 fukushuu = review
復讐 fukushuu = revenge
報復 houfuku = retaliation
仕返し shikaeshi = reprisal; tit for tat; requital

The most unnerving thing was the blank stares. I recognize that my Japanese isn't fluent, but I figured I had given the same lecture before without any problems and everyone seemed to understand it then, so I was surprised to see all these looks of apparent incomprehension on their faces. I was also a bit annoyed that people would blatantly talk, text-message, etc., throughout a guest lecture. Still, it seemed like at least 2/3 of the students were paying attention, so I guess I shouldn't complain.

Then it all just went to crap.

As I was giving my lecture, there were 2 rather lengthy announcements about the protests at nearby Yasukuni Shrine...and then right before I could get into the interesting stuff and the recap, there was an emergency drill 避難訓練　（ひなん　くんれん）...ack! So before I could give a conclusion and give the take-away points and *hopefully* end on a positive note with people leaving the class having learned something, the buzzer goes off and we're being told to leave immediately.

So not the best experience, and I seriously doubt I'll volunteer to do it again....and it definitely made me miss my students back at George Washington University School of Law, who were spectacular (for the most part), now that I look back. I guess I should be more appreciative once I'm back in DC!

Anyway, this phrase sums the experience up:

学級崩壊 【がっきゅうほうかい】 (n) class disruption (e.g. due to discipline problems); classroom chaos

This one will also work: 混沌（こんとん）としている = to descend into chaos

Hope my next lecture doesn't turn out so poorly!

Word Of the Day: Tied/Untied

At dinner, someone mentioned the difference between Overseas Development Assistance that is tied to business interests, and assistance that isn't...so I was wondering how to say that in Japanese. I couldn't find it in my dictionary, but eventually stumbled upon it while looking up something else. Just as you would expect:

紐なし援助　＝　｛ひもなし　えんじょ｝　Untied Aid　（lit. "aid without strings")
紐付き援助　＝　｛ひもつき　えんじょ｝Tied Aid　（lit. "aid with strings")

(紐 is also used in 紐帯 【ちゅうたい】 (n) important connection; important social foundation; tight relationship (lit. "cord/string and obi"))

I admit that I get a little rush whenever a metaphoric usage is the same in a little rush whenever a metaphoric usage is the same in another language.

Phrase of the Day: 出る杭は打たれる

Today I went on a site visit to a platform in the middle of Tokyo Bay where Haneda Airport is constructing a new runway by driving piles below the surface of the water and positioning "jackets" onto the piles to create platforms onto which the runways will be built. It was amazing to be out there where they're pounding these huge things w/ these gigantic cranes, etc. (definitely not something I thought I'd be doing when I woke up this morning.) I asked the guy in charge how to say "pile driving" and he said "kui-uchi."

I realized that "kui" = "pile" as well as "stake," so I asked him whether on the work site there was a policy of 出る杭は打たれる 【でるくいはうたれる】 (exp) the stake that sticks out gets hammered in; the best policy is to keep your head down.

OK, bad pun 駄酒落(iK) 【だじゃれ】, but he seemed to appreciate it (maybe the connection hadn't occurred to him), and it was gratifying to give him something to laugh about. Plus, when it comes to seizing an opportunity to make a bad pun in another language, well, I can't resist (誘惑に負けてしまった).

On a side note, I think commentators (Westerners and Japanese) make *way* too much of the expression/cliche' about the stake that sticks up getting hammered down. In my view, the expression is used as a *lamentation*, i.e., that it's a shame how there are currents in society that suppress free expression and individualism, a sentiment that is readily recognizable in Western cultures. It's not as though people in Japan currently use the expression to champion the idea of suppressing individuality. So if such an interpretation seems at odds with its actual usage, perhaps the opposite conclusion can be made about an intrinsic Japanese character, if there can be such a thing, given the inherent faultiness in making such a sweeping generalization.