I just bought a place in Hakuba, Japan

[TJ OZ 0]

Well I’m back in Melbourne now and once again would like to thank everybody for their kind words. I had a great trip and after only having been to Hakuba in the winter, I fell in love with the place again as a great retreat in the summer. Swimming in the Blue Lake with all the fish jumping up around me looking up at the green runs of Kashimayari confirmed to me that I had made the right decision.

The place we bought looked even better than I remembered. We must have been the first to see it, as I couldn’t imagine any one passing up the opportunity to buy it. I am pretty pleased with myself, as what was just an idea about 15 months ago has been turned into reality. Persistence, passion and I suppose some good luck to find great business partners has all come together. We have a lot of hard work in front of us I do not doubt but I know it will be worth it when I am riding down one of the numerous mountains in bottomless powder later on this year. I met up with a few of the locals during my stay and had some great nights out. There is the best sushi place I have been to 100 metres from my new door. I was escorted around to meet my new neighbours, which gave me such a nice feeling of being involved with the community here. Children are safe to walk around and play in the streets. This ski change has given me a new challenge in life but more importantly it has given me the inner peace that I have been yearning for. I have been working my life away, now its time to live.

As a long-term forum member I know that what I have just done is probably the dream of most here. Don’t forget, you can do it too.

 

By the way window cleaner, your sacked before you even started. This was on page two (ruthless employer).

[damian 0]

 Quote:

I had a great trip and after only having been to Hakuba in the winter, I fell in love with the place again as a great retreat in the summer. Swimming in the Blue Lake with all the fish jumping up around me looking up at the green runs of Kashimayari confirmed to me that I had made the right decision

You wouldn’t be trying to fill hotel rooms in the region would you

Enjoy your new life in Japan. I don’t specifically know the people of Hakuba, but I do know plenty of very kind and friendly Japanese people. Your post reminded me of that.

[TJ OZ 0]

Le spud. Reading your recentposts has been somewhat of an inspiration to live life as opposed to being a slave to work and society norms. I hope that I too can inspire others to get out and try something new.

Cheers mate

[damian 0]

Mate, you're nice for saying that. And there I was thinking I posted a lot of over opinionated aggravating smart arsed insulting bull.

 

Its good having plans and pulling them off. Sometimes it takes a year or so to come together, but the act of making decisions and planning and then doing is an important thing is life. So many people are scared of those three things (No one on this forum. You probably wouldn't be on this place if you were scared of decisions, planning and acting. Except for TimTam who wont move a little bit north to the snow country in Japan even though he has 18 months left in the country).

[bushpig 0]

Mate, it's all about decisions. And I made mine.

[damian 0]

Yeah mate, you [censored]ing Tim Tam, you decided to buy loads of new snowboarding gear and then remain living in the most snowless arse end of the nation. Great decision.

 

You know when you get married and breed, freedom to ride when and what you want is gone. You know that don't you?

[bushpig 0]

 

I know there's no arguing with you. Who said I plan to marry and breed any time soon? Me and BPG are planning to head off outta Japan and do some other stuff for a while. My decision and plans are made!

 

BTW, 2 boards is not exactly loads of snowboarding gear! 1 more than I need, but not really all that much.

[damian 0]

I bet you and BPG are going to travel utterly snowless countries for the highly overrated benefit of culture? One of those bloody tropical Asian countries with ancient temples and jungles. Or Africa? NOooooo!

 

You will breed, nearly everyone is doing it these days. It is by far the most rational and popular method of giving ones life some purpose and justifying 9-5, 5 days a week in the machine, with two days to watch tv and drink a bit of booze. By the time you edge over 30 years old you will start seriously asking yourself what the hell is the point of it all unless you have children? I did. But there are alternatives! You can search for meaning in life by:

 

- creating life (breeding)

- risking life (the mountains are a great place to do that)

- drugs (a worthy pursuit, my friend)

 

Some people then choose to compliment their decision with a good dose of religion as well.

 

You will have to decide one day soon, Tim Tam. You wont believe me now, but you will literally sit up in bed one morning and ask out loud with a desperate strain "what the bloody hell am I here for?"

 

(you don't have to choose, some people just let shit happen, but they usually get what they subconsciously want anyway)

 

I hope you and BPG visit my hut in your travels.

[bushpig 0]

Mate, we aren't going to visit a bunch of countries for the benefit of culture. That is an entirely unenticing prospect to me. I'd rather get out and see nature and go boarding/surfing/hiking, whatever outdoor stuff there is to do as well as meet people along the way. Not saying it's gonna be a huge 4 year world trip either spud! We both have our reasons to want to get out of Japan. Mine is that I've been here too long (9 years) without a break, and I wanna get out for at least a while! If we get anywhere near you then we will definitely visit your hut!

[farquah 0]

In that case Die Kartoffel I will start now preparing for my desecnt into becoming a drug addict father, trying to find god in the Himalayas whilst crouching behind a boulder and letting the shit happen!!

 

P.S and congrats TJ......hope it provides all you want.

[sunrise 0]

potatoes are female in German?

[farquah 0]

 Quote:

Originally posted by sunrise:
potatoes are female in German?

My mistake.....but guess it depends which potatoe you`re talking too!!

Just checked and they are in fact "Die"(should never have doubted myself!! )......which makes Spud gender confused!!??

[damian 0]

 Quote:

Originally posted by farquah:
In that case Die Kartoffel I will start now preparing for my desecnt into becoming a drug addict father, trying to find god in the Himalayas whilst crouching behind a boulder and letting the shit happen!!

Mate, you can't do all of it. And once you make your choice, you can't change either, it effs is up for everyone else involved. Imagine hoping to find purpose by creating life then later feeling yet unfulfilled and choosing to find additional meaning by risking life through BASE jumping. Or worse, buying a Porsche!

Sunrise: you made me laugh!

TJ - how many rooms in your hotel? You could put in a titty bar. Hakuba could probably do with one of them

[soubriquet 0]

You`re missing something here, spud. We decided to create life, then she decided to take it away. So it changed.

 

Your points 1, 2 and 3 are not mutually exclusive. Nor are they fixed and immutable.

[damian 0]

yeah, I know, I just put in a few of the obvious ways to seek purpose and meaning: through the purity of near death or through the doors of reality opened by certain illegal substances.

 

At the moment I got no kids, no mountains, no opium and a desk job. So I ask myself, what the F is it all about?

 

And I believe you, sometime our object of meaning is taken away from us (you). Leaving little choice but to change.

[johndknm 0]

Congrats on the place. U R living my dream! Wheres the place ?? pm me if u need. Ive not skied for a year and a half (baby and new business and need 2 weeks at end of jan/feb

JD

[SnowJapan.Com#4 5]

First of all just like to say congrats to you TJ OZ and hope it all goes well.

 

About this thread. Some people have felt strongly enough to mail us about it, suggesting it might be 'stepping over the line' on what is allowed on here.

 

I want to say that we do appreciate the way you have gone about posting on here, TJ OZ. Thank you.

 

Everyone is of course free to contact other forum users, but we do need to point out that these Forums are definitely not the place to go about requesting bookings or publicising any particular business whatever it may be. The other thing is that we need to be very fair across the board in the way we go about what is and what is not allowed on here, and we hope for everyones understanding.

 

Thanks for your cooperation.

[panhead_pete 27]

Hey TJ is your place the log cabin style one?

 

SJ Moderators - Im a member of a few other forums where there is a "business" thread forum where people who have a business relating to the forum can post thier details that way supporting those who support the forum by posting in the threads. Just wondeering if that might be a good thing here. Just a thought.

[damian 0]

As I read SJ4's perfectly legitimate post I got a rush of embarrassment thinking that he was going to conclude that people disapproved of may references to drugs as a path in the search for the meaning of life. That I would have understood (and it was a joke if anyone took it seriously). But I was surprised to read that the motivation of the post was messages from forum users about TJ, with a new commercial interest, 'stepping over the line' on what is allowed on here. Had he mentioned the name of the business, or asked for patronage, fair enough. But he didn't and it is interesting that some people have jumped quite quickly in protest none the less. I certainly don't question SJ.com's right to point out such things, they did the right thing (not that they need me to reasure them). I simply wonder without requiring an answer, how many people that felt strongly enough to make contact in protest are themselves actually running accommodation businesses in Hakuba? I guess TJ just got his first reality check in the competitive commercial politics of gaijins in small Japanese towns that also play on the WWW.

[SnowJapan#Andrew 6]

panhead_pete

 

Right now that is not going to be something we will be doing.

 

If a business wants to reach our large audience, there are ways of doing it. In the case of an accommodation, it's a listing on our Places to Stay section. (You'll notice that even those places that are listed on our Places to Stay section though do not post on the Forums with messages about their business).

 

If we were to have a very slack policy on this subject, the Forums would literally be overrun with "ads"* (as well as all that spam and nonsense we were talking about in another thread). And no-one wants that - it would be good for no-one in the long run.

 

So we take quite a strict position on this issue. Everyone may not agree with the policy, but I really think that it is the correct one given all the circumstances that we find ourselves in.

 

Thanks.

 

(* when I say "ads", I include sneaky stuff too. Some people are very sneaky)

[SnowJapan#Andrew 6]

le spud

 

A few people had talked to us about the thread (not necessarily people based in Hakuba I might add) and we had already discussed it ourselves as well...

 

I don't want to go into details for obvious reasons but I can understand how some people may not be madly happy with other new businesses posting and getting a lot of exposure on a thread, however innocent the original post may be. In my work with Snow Japan and having a fair few contacts with people from all of the main ski regions, I am increasingly exposed to the "politics" that goes on. And what is really interesting is how there are different flavours going on in each town/region. Oh, so many stories to tell

 

But while it is all very interesting, from the point of running Snow Japan, I try as much as possible to take a step back from all the politics, as I think it is our job to present an untainted view of everything and realise that that is one of the strengths of our site.

 

Not sure if I'm making sense, bit tired.

[SerreChe 2]

SJ#s, the more of a focal point (popular) SJ becomes the worse the politics are gonna get, be it with resorts and their weather/snow data, or with pension owners etc... The price of success. Good luck !

 

When snow becomes a business, people are willing do go to untold lengths to make some dough (not saying this is the case here). Has SJ lost its innocence ? Do not worry, it only hurts the first time.

[SnowJapan#Andrew 6]

It's true, things are tending to be get more complicated out there! All the more reason to stand back from the local politics, do things the way we think are best and fairest and keep to our concept.

 

[SnowConnection 0]

I went to "the" great Hakuba where I stayed at "a" nice inn and had delicous lunch at "a" restaurant. I was happy. Does it make sense ?

 

And, "an" internet cafe. (laugh)

Ref: http://www.snowjapanforums.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php/topic/1/6951.html

[SnowConnection 0]

I tell you a story. About 2 years ago, I found a famous commecial portal site which had a good list of oversea ski resorts. The site told please to put reader's comment. I put some comments on some "remote" ski resorts with my HP URL, because my HP had more helpfull travel info. Few days later, my comments were deleted because they seemed to judge my HP is a commercial one. Today, I checked the portal site who has still not have any info on those "reomote" ski resorts. It was un-happy for both the portal site and the readers, I beleive.