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Showing posts from June 6, 2010

Honshu and Okinawa

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I am back. I spent 10 days in Japan, 5 days for work on the main island of Honshu and 5 days of solo adventure in Okinawa. Travel is so invigorating dispite the uncomfortableness. Jetlag, anxiety, crowds, and other discomforts aside, it is mind-expanding and rewarding. Work went well. I flew a new airline (Skymark) from Tokyo to Naha. I am always wary of strange discount airlines and all the traps they set. However, I had a great expereince with "Sky". I was actually shocked. Super easy checkin at the airport, no extra fees even with extra luggage. The primary mission in Okinawa was to visit the Peace Park and the suicide cliffs of Okinawa. From what I understand, at the end of WW2 the inhabitants were encouraged to commit suicide rather than surrender to the Americans and get tortured and eaten. Besides other types of suicide, they jumped off the cliffs at the Southern end of the main island. If you have seen the original color footage taken at the time, I am sure you ...
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I took the plane out yesterday for a while. Being alone in the air is really quite an experience. After I landed I hung out with the mechanic. I always learn more about the aircraft and he encourages pilots to come by and learn more about the planes. I guess they call it hanger flying. I start my new job in Duluth on the 21st. It is pretty exciting. I won't be doing much travel until after the 4th of July. There is too much to do before I start the job to realistically get much of it done, so I move forward the best I can. Sunday is canoe trip day. Hopefully the weather cooperates.
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I went the the Rochester Hamfest this past weekend. It was great regrouping with company founders, hams and homebrewers. I caught up with a lot of people (it seems like) I hadn't talked to for 10 years or more. People stay the same. It is quite a community. I may not remember the callsign, but I remember the faces. I took a bunch of stuff to the scrap yard afterward. Thousands of hours of technical toil, reduced to price per pound. Sigh.