Ten

I started writing this blog exactly ten years ago.

I had experimented with the earliest versions of blogger/blogspot from 2000, and registered cosmicbuddha.com on January 6 of that same year, but updated it manually until April 21, 2003. Then the blathering began.

Blogging has been extremely fulfilling for me. I used to do it because it made me want to go out and find things to write about, both online and otherwise. In the back of my mind, however, there was always a secondary purpose of leaving a record of my life and thoughts.

I started blogging when I was a salaryman in Japan. One of the things I started regretting quite early on during my time there was not being able to speak with my grandfather much before he passed. He got me into university there, told me what he wanted me to do before going back to the states, and left a trusted relative in charge of wiring me 20,000 yen (~$200) every month until graduation (which tided my hustling ass over more than a few times when things got hard).

He died before I graduated. Hell, he died before I could ever really speak with him in Japanese. And yet, his presence all around me… He left an empty house near our university (for a few years at least) which I would sneak into and take showers at (my dorm didn’t have showers and the communal bath closed many hours before I would get home from work), or throw parties at, much to the consternation of my other relatives. He was so well known by people at the university and around town, it was like having an instant upgrade wherever the hell I was at: “Oh, you’re Yoshida-sensei’s grandson? Here, take this fruit as a present,” or, “Oh, you need to get into the library archives but don’t have a permit? Well, I knew you’re grandfather, so just walk right in!” The thing is, I knew very little about my grandfather.

I gather he was a good man, and yes, that is the most important thing, but sometimes, I just wanted to know more. And so, I don’t know if anybody has read this weblog from start to finish… I suspect not. But I intended to leave a record, and a record I have left. The posts on this blog are just snapshots (sometimes literally) of my life and my thoughts, but maybe if you view enough of someone’s work you can become familiar with them in some way….

I was here.

I am here.

This was the first ten years of my documenting it openly.

Tabasco? Wasasco? WASABI-O!

Last year, I wrote an e-mail to my Santa Claus impersonating buddy in Japan (impossible to find a link for you, dude – there are at least 7 “Santa Daves” on Facebook and even a “Big Wave Santa”) telling him that they had brought a Tabasco-like wasabi sauce to market: Wasasco. He recently tried to find some, but couldn’t. I remembered that I’d seen something similar at Big-C, so went to check it out.

Wasabi-O, possible intentional copy of a trademark-infringing Japanese product, from Thailand (Tabasco --> Wasasco --> Wasabi-O) Do unto others, bitches!
Wasabi-O, possible intentional copy of a trademark-infringing Japanese product, from Thailand (Tabasco –> Wasasco –> Wasabi-O). Do unto others, bitches!

OK, the most shocking thing about this product is that it is not only edible, it is FUCKING DELICIOUS! Serious noms. It’s like the perfect dip for potato chips, creamy and atomic. I could see doing capfuls of this for losers of drinking games.

The thing is, Big-C had a whole shelf of these bottles on clearance, so I hope the Wasabi-O company isn’t going under or something. Time to go stock up, because the last favorite hot sauce I had here, Wolf, which tasted kind of like Cholula and Tapatio mixed together, just disappeared one day. Although I’d stocked up on half a dozen bottles of that, it didn’t last a year. I’m going to Big-C to buy up their stock, I guess.

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It occurs to me that McDonalds is possibly vindicated from Adam’s online criticism from a decade ago.

Golden Shower at New City Hall, Maha Sarakham

C. fistula - binomial nomenclature courtesy of the man himself, Carl Linnaeus
C. fistula – binomial nomenclature courtesy of the man himself, Carl Linnaeus

 

The Rachapreuk tree has naughty names (only for perverted minds?) in English (golden shower tree), Latin (Cassia fistula), Spanish (caña fistula), and translated Chinese (sausage tree). It’s name in Ayurvedic medicine is aragvadha, or “disease killer,” and it’s the national Flower of Thailand as well as the state flower of Kerala, India. It blooms at the hottest time of year here in Thailand, and I think serious modern research into its medicinal properties is long overdue.

There is only one true replacement

I really don’t know why everybody is suggesting exotic alternatives and roll-your-own solutions… If you want a replacement for Google Reader that closely replicates it in its prime – social functions and all – do not pass Go, do not collect $200, go directly to The Old Reader and get in line to import all your feeds.

Everybody who suggested any other sites without mentioning this one needs their web pass revoked.

I got an e-mail telling me my import was finished, and within 5 seconds of logging in, I knew this was the best choice for me and probably any other Google Reader addicts not using a touchscreen. ’nuff said.

 

Homeland Arrival, Imminent

The Old Reader

I guess it takes a long, long time to import RSS feeds.

Yahoo JP’s feeble attempt at getting fugee traffic from Google Reader is laughable with a 300 feed limit — webnerds eat 300 feeds for a light snack, you fools!!

The Old Reader, please be good to me.

 

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UPDATE: I signed up for updates regarding an upcoming alternative I hadn’t heard about until recently, Hivemined.

I also feel like I got scammed by NewsBlur, which claimed to offer free accounts and then  took me to a page that said: Due to overwhelming demand, free accounts are temporarily suspended. By going premium you get full access to NewsBlur.

Oh, and it also filled out part of a credit card payment form for me, from the “free account” info I provided:

NewsBlur

Dicktards. I’ll try and cancel that account as soon as possible, but don’t expect much from liars like these.

UPDATE 2: By visiting the root address, I was able to get as far as importing my OPML file, which allowed me to update 64 feeds (!!) after clicking through a full-page nag screen with another credit card payment opportunity… This guy wants money and not much else, it seems (somebody has to feed his dog you greedy fuckers). There’s nothing wrong with that in itself, but he should at least be up front about it and not pull this bullshit temporary suspending of free accounts. I was able to cancel my account, at least, which the site says is “permanent,” but considering his definition of “free,” I won’t hold my breath.

Highway to Kosum

This photo was taken when I was cruising down the highway in the old Crown to meet Max, Mina, and Nam, who were at a friend’s second house out in the countryside.

Can you see the wing mirror?
Can you see the wing mirror?

Sometimes the sky here is really awesome. I watched a thunderstorm last week off in the direction of Roi-et that had the most regular lightning I’ve ever seen.