Tubby Beaver 209 Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 how much pressure do you get to take part in that? I don't think I'd do it.....I'm not a nice person Link to post Share on other sites
Chriselle 158 Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 Lots of passive aggressive pressure actually. I have quite a few weekends away for work, camping and skiing and so on.... but still get a bit of well disguised grief from the neighbors. I think it's next year .... but one of these years I have to be the leader for a 2 year period. Total pain in the ass. Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 Just spent two hours (usually takes 15 minutes) out with the local 2nd Sunday of the month cleanup crew.....WEEDING.... drenched in sweat, and pissed off that my wife and kid are still in bed. They should be out there with everyone else, too. I'd better get a bloody nice breakfast.... I reckon all the community stuff folk get sucked into is one of the main reasons for 少子化 (fewer children, NOT a "falling birthrate" because that's actually going up slightly) and 過疎化 (depopulation of the countryside). Its much easier to avoid communal activities and the time and energy they consume if you are single or at least have no kids and live in an apartment in the city. Having kids invariably means lots of contact with other parents and that's where you get sucked in, if you're not in already through family ties where you grew up. A lot of it is two wrongs making a right. We all have to do it, so you have to do it too. Nobody ever says it, but the birthrate in Japan collapsed in the 1970s and 80s, so its got nothing to do with any recent development, like smartphones/gadgets, AKB, the loss of lifetime employment, or young folks having no money. The main reasons must be lifestyle related. Every Japanese adult will know about the communal stuff because they will have seen their parents do it. Link to post Share on other sites
joshnii 2 Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 I love the way when you speak to people on a one to one basis they all seem to hate doing it. But they all do it. Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted July 13, 2014 Author Share Posted July 13, 2014 We have been to a few meetings but I haven't done anything like that yet. Haven't been asked. Get on fairly well with neighbours and seen out and about more. My Japanese is pretty good so when people do talk they seem to relax pretty quick. I suppose not having kids means we have avoided a few things too. I did make it clear to the guys at the meetings though that I'm happy to take part in stuff and just to ask*. I suppose it might just take a bit of time before people get settled in with the idea of me around. (* sort of hoping that didn't mean tons of early morning stuff. A few times a year maybe... ) Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted July 13, 2014 Author Share Posted July 13, 2014 Just had a quick walk round the garden. A fair few new weeds showing through. One of them 10cm. It was most definitely not there yesterday. Mad! This kind of week doesn't actually look too bad. Looks like a bit of fern I suppose. Link to post Share on other sites
snowdude 44 Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 We have so far done the communiry clean up just once this year and will have I think two more times. So I am happy with that. I have school swimming touban once as well other than that nothing really. There are other things but we are normally askef if we want to do or not. Our turn to be Kumichosan is not for another 9 or 10 years which is good as that will be a right pain i the arse because both my wife and I work full time unlike most other houses here where they have only one person working. I do like the people here they are very nice and leave you to do your thing and dont kep asking us to join n with everything. Main reason almost all of the 23 houses here ave people not originally from this area so they are not all closely joined like where we lived before in Kofu. People here actually have a life unlike our previous place which is good. Link to post Share on other sites
foreversnow 5 Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 Small dilemma today. I sewed heaps of seeds a few weeks ago and now they are all coming up, the problem is I can't tell the weeds from the seedlings????? Got any solutions Go Native Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 I'll leave all that shite to the missus......I'm not going to any meeting and Im sure as he'll not doing any bloody work. Link to post Share on other sites
snowdude 44 Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 Small dilemma today. I sewed heaps of seeds a few weeks ago and now they are all coming up, the problem is I can't tell the weeds from the seedlings????? Got any solutions Go Native If you know what the plants or what ever it is you sowed,looks like when small then look for them and try to weed around them, For example, carrots have a very distinct shape unlike most any other weed or vegetable once it starts to grow a bit so easy very to tell. Another one is if the weeds are not to bad yet just leave it a little longer until what ever you set is big enough to distinguish. If you sowed them in rows it should be easy to see the difference, but if you sowed them loosely all over the place then it will be difficult until they are big enough. Good luck with the weeding. I have the weeding job all the time it never stops! Link to post Share on other sites
BagOfCrisps 24 Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Ponder why weeds grow faster than pretty flowers and plants. Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Survival mechanism...they take advantage of new/open space....grow quickly to get pollinated first and ensure another generation Link to post Share on other sites
griller 9 Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Very clever isn't it Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted July 15, 2014 Author Share Posted July 15, 2014 They sure are persistent! Link to post Share on other sites
Nisoko 6 Posted July 15, 2014 Share Posted July 15, 2014 Can't you just pick them and tempura them up? Link to post Share on other sites
Hyst 1 Posted July 15, 2014 Share Posted July 15, 2014 I am so happy my garden is placed 56 o North - but fear how it looks when back Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted July 15, 2014 Share Posted July 15, 2014 Can't you just pick them and tempura them up? Just make sure they are not 脱法ハーブ. Link to post Share on other sites
muikabochi 208 Posted July 15, 2014 Share Posted July 15, 2014 Hey, what is 脱法ハーブ? Seems to be the boom news story right now doesn't it. Link to post Share on other sites
Chriselle 158 Posted July 15, 2014 Share Posted July 15, 2014 Get someone to hide the car keys before you partake... Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 It's actually been dry here for a day or two so I got a few hours in with the weed whacker yesterday. The ol spinning blade of retribution. They were four feet high in places. Rainy season has really lived up to its name round here this year. It makes me super grumpy. Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 Hey, what is 脱法ハーブ? Seems to be the boom news story right now doesn't it. It's those legal highs......fake weed etc. there has been a spate of people buying it, getting off their face them mowing people down in the street. It's quite nasty actually, chemicals that are soaked onto inert plants, dried and then smoked like dope.....but it sends people loopy! Much better with the real thing....a mate of mines was right into it and he would do all sorts of weird stuff while on it Link to post Share on other sites
Thundercat 60 Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 It's actually been dry here for a day or two so I got a few hours in with the weed whacker yesterday. The ol spinning blade of retribution. They were four feet high in places. Rainy season has really lived up to its name round here this year. It makes me super grumpy. It's amazing how different it can be from place to place and year to year. We've had almost no rainy season at all around here. Literally only a few days of rain. I don't envy you at all Wiggles. It's definitely my least favourite time of year. Link to post Share on other sites
634-maru 4 Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 It's not like I'm taking records, but we seem to have had a lot around here. Link to post Share on other sites
snowdude 44 Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 In the last 6 weeks we have had rain most of the time and in fact rain due this afternoon. Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 In my limited knowledge of Hokkaido seasons, we didn't have one last year.....it was very pleasant June thru July.....but we did this year.....very grey, cold and rainy. Even my usually upbeat missus was feeling the depression of every day being grey, cloudy n rainy! One of the reasons we don't live in Scotland It wasn't humid mind you. A few ALT's complaining about how hot the classrooms are, but compared to classrooms down south, the ones up here are fridges!! Link to post Share on other sites
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