DHA (Omega-3)

Since I'm on the topic of supplements, an important one that we give our son is DHA (omega-3) in the form of strawberry-flavored fish oil. I found it while looking for a lemon flavored product recommended by a friend.

After we started giving our son DHA, his work and behavior at school improved. Makes sense since DHA is important for brain development.

I take omega-3 capsules as well. I would use the oil myself if it weren't so expensive. Ever hear of fish burps? Well, strawberry burps are better. heh

苺風味！

Melatonin

I've been using melatonin since sometime in August 2007. Melatonin is a natural hormone that regulates sleep. Levels can be affected by age, blindness, and other issues. After over 5 months of use, there have been no apparent side effects. Only 0.5 milligrams of melatonin helps me to maintain a steady sleep pattern. It is inexpensive and sold along side vitamins and other supplements.

Before using melatonin, my internal clock believed the day was longer than 24 hours. After a week, that really messes up a sleep schedule. Using melatonin simply resets the clock and basically ends the day.

(My tablets don't look half as tasty as that molecule!)

ChiRunning

I've decided to learn how to do "ChiRunning." ChiRunning is supposed to be a mindful, less strenuous way to run. So far any running has been strenuous to me, possibly due to having large, wide, flat feet. After a short distance it feels like my calves will explode. I've improved a tiny bit by making some adjustments, so I'd like to learn more about running technique. After all, one day I might need to run to save a life; maybe my own.

From what I gather, ChiRunning involves using gravity to create forward motion, landing mid-foot, and keeping the lower legs relaxed.

I've also read that walking and running barefoot can help one to learn to run with less impact while strengthening the feet. Also, that expensive, high-tech shoes that totally support the foot and supposedly reduce shock can actually weaken the feet and lead to injury. Part of the problem being that the shoes cause the feet lose the ability to sense the ground and impact and don't allow the arch to act as a natural shock absorber. The shock then transfers to other areas of the body.

父の誕生日

お父さん、誕生日おめでとう。楽しんでね。

もう平成二十年です。

Just be thankful that we don't start counting from 1 at birth!

Crawling

Without taking a breath, I managed to do an 8-metre front crawl today, starting from a streamlined glide (けのび). Changing the position of my head (and mind) a little and locking on to a reference point with my eyes helped a lot. I still can't believe how some people all but pop out of the water. How do people just hold their heads above the water?!

I also did the back crawl with breathing. That goes well until I splash water up my nose. It's also a pain to crash into a wall head first. Just the thought of that makes me stop early. heh

木刀を買った

I received my bokutou* today. Now what? hahaha There are some people within a short walking distance from my flat who practise with these things. Gotta check em out.

My sister told me that our Japanese relatives told her that we had samurai in our family way back. Look at us now... No longer carrying finely crafted swords; reduced to a collection of Ginsu knives that can cut through a can and still cut a tomato into paper thin slices. What the heck is "Ginsu" supposed to mean anyway?!

* 木刀 (ぼくとう) (n) wooden sword;

Stomp

We just got back from the theatre. We saw "Stomp". Basically, people banging on anything and everything including themselves. heh It was very good.

Theatre is the one thing that keeps my son on the edge of his seat, other than video games.

We also saw "Slava's Snowshow" a while back. Some of the effects were intense. At times, the effects and participation spanned the entire seating area.

audio test clips

This is the "Waterloo" voice acting, UK version.



This is the "Waterloo" voice acting, New Jersey, USA version.

Laptop Incliner

An inexpensive* way to reduce neck discomfort, this book holder raises the top of the screen to eye level. The edge of the holder is a little uncomfortable on the wrists, but that could be trimmed off or padded. It doesn't matter if you use the mouse most of the time. The typing angle is good for people who must hunt for keys. heh

*Artificial plant not included.

Yeah, that's a Linux fish.

Breaking Wind

Travel tip: If you plan to stay in England any length of time, make sure you have a good vented umbrella. Nevermind the rain; the wind has been getting pretty strong. I've seen many damaged or straining dinky umbrellas. I'm glad I have a "super" umbrella. (Kmart, $12.99 plus tax. heh)



"Boy with umbrella in the wind"
William Henry Hunt (1790-1864), British
The most pitifully helpless figure on a rainy day was the unwary person whose umbrella the wind had turned inside out.

日本語で

日本語で (To make that more clear, it says, "nihongo de.")

Whoever gets this message, if I haven't done some blogging in Japanese, please leave a comment to remind me to do so. I had originally started blogging to practice writing in Japanese.

これから洗濯しなければならない。失礼します。(ワープロ馬鹿w)

Great "Swim"

Today was a breakthrough day for my son. He put his face in the water to practice swimming. That is something that I just started doing as well. I guess he figured that if I can do it, anyone can do it!

We've been to pools in Guildford, Woking, and Basingstoke and not once did I do a proper swim stroke. heh At least we got to see some natives in the wild.

Gaming Hardware

We own two Nintendo DS's and a Playstation 2 was loaned to us by a native. Since this PS2 uses the PAL TV standard, we won't be able use the game discs for it in the US which uses the NTSC TV standard. That makes the Memor32 card particularly useful to us.

The Memor32 card with free Memento "firmware" for the Playstation 2. This card has 32MB of memory that can be used to save game data. The data can also be moved to/from the card onto a PC via a USB interface. Even better, the card allows one to play backup copies of game discs. There is then less worry about damaging expensive original discs. At this time, game ISO's do need to be patched with a free Memento utility that takes a split second to work. It is just about perfect so far.

The R4 card for the Nintendo DS. This card uses standard microSD memory. It can be used to backup multiple games onto one cartridge, making it easier and safer to play while traveling. If you don't need to swap cards, there is less of a chance of losing the cards. It can also be used to run homebrew software.

We also have Linux and Windows laptops and "real" games that you can actually touch. heh Maybe we are getting a little carried away?

Da Fonz

We saw the Fonz in person! He starred in a Peter Pan panto. Even though the entire building was evacuated once during the show, we had a brilliant time. ^_^

It went swimmingly.

I just got back from my first swimming lesson. Since I'm here to write this, I should say that the lesson was successful. I didn't die once.

I float quite well with a woggle. heh I had progressed from a tube to the woggle and a floaty board thing. I thought I was cool until I was instructed to have a go without the floaty things. Still, I survived in water as much as 1 metre deep!

The hardest part for me was blowing bubbles under water. I should be able to master swimming if I can avoid drowning.

Trolley Tree and the Minimalist Unicycle

These pictures were taken in the town centre close to our flat. A tourist must have been responsible for this modern art after a long visit to a pub. Of course this is not the result of proper British behavior. heh

Make it quick. I'm about to go to bed.

The blogging begins and it has nothing to do with shuumai, but I won't rule it out.

Well, I had started blogging a little on Culture Splash, but I left my login info about 3500 miles away. For some reason password recovery isn't working for me. 待たせたな。w

I'm American by nationality and part Japanese by blood. (Born in Germany even.) I plan to stay here in England roughly September 2007 to July 2008. After 4 months I'm still in no hurry to return to the US. heh

Yeah, I'm about to fall asleep, too. Really. おやすみなさい。