Podcasts about Niigata

Jonny and Ben return with a midweek special, to round up the eight games played from J1 Matchday 13 on Tuesday. After beginning the episode with a quick look back at Kawasaki's ACL Elite quarter final win (Spoiler Alert: They won their semi final, too!), we begin our J1 wrap with the game Jonny was at: Gamba Osaka's win over incumbent leaders Kyoto (to 14:45). Then we move on to Kashima going top, and Kashiwa second, with away wins (to 23:10), Shimizu and Machida both moving up after also winning on the road (to 30:50), Tokyo Verdy's second straight win, and Hiroshima Crisis Watch after their home defeat at the hands of Niigata, plus the only draw between Shonan and Fukuoka.

Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. said Monday it now aims to restart a reactor at its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Niigata Prefecture, central Japan, in the fiscal year starting next month.

We round up two full rounds of top flight fixtures (with a focus on the weekend's Matchday 4) in this week's episode, towards the end of which we're joined by Neil Debnam to chat about the early days of Shigetoshi Hasebe's reign at Kawasaki. We begin with the games involving the top three - new leaders Kashiwa, who climbed to the summit with a win away at Urawa, then Shonan's draw at Yokohama F.Marinos and Hiroshima's narrow win at home over Yokohama FC - before moving on to Kashima's win over FC Tokyo, and the battle between promoted sides Okayama and Shimizu, then away wins for Machida, Gamba Osaka and Fukuoka (their first of the season), before wrapping up Part 1 with the draw between Niigata and Cerezo Osaka (to 1:03:35). Then Neil joins us to discuss Kawasaki's 1-0 home defeat at the hands of Kyoto - Sanga's first win of the year - and Frontale's prospects in the ACL Elite Round of 16 against Shanghai Shenhua, before we wrap up the episode with a look at the fixtures in J1 Matchday 5. Please check out Neil's Frontale Rabbit blog.

On February 19th, the Niigata District Court handed down a sentence of 14 years in prison to a former employee of an organization, who was charged with crimes including sexually assaulting and injuring a woman with a disability while transporting her in Sanjo City. The court ruled that “he repeatedly committed the crime, taking advantage of the fact that the victim could not resist, which is despicable.” Episode Notes: ‘Former Niigata NPO employee sentenced to 14 years in prison for sexually assaulting a woman with a disability': https://barrierfreejapan.com/2025/02/24/former-niigata-npo-employee-sentenced-to-14-years-in-prison-for-sexually-assaulting-a-woman-with-a-disability/

Welcome to our previews of the 2025 J1 Season! In Part 1, after some housekeeping at the start of the episode, we chat with Lewis White about Tokyo Verdy (to 32:05), and to Ryo Nakagawara about Machida (to 1:01:00) and FC Tokyo (to 1:40:20), before Jonny and Ben discuss Niigata (to 1:56:23) and Kashima. For each club, we follow the same format: A brief review of 2024; the club's major moves in the transfer market; thoughts on the manager; a player to watch and prospects for the new season. You can read Ryo's terrific work in his Shogun Soccer newsletter, and follow each club's ins and out through Jonny's Google Doc.

We're kicking off the year with exciting stories and tasty adventures! Here's what's on today's episode:

Episode 175.  Join us this week for another wide-ranging sake interview.  We are welcoming Lucas Smolic, the founder of the Sake Brewers Guild, to the podcast.  Lucas started in engineering but found his way to sake which evolved into a deep passion for sake brewing.  This inspired the development of the Sake Brewers Guild with its mission to make learning the skills of sake brewing accessible to all. Among other things, we discovered that the Guild is supporting and connecting sake brewers on ALL SEVEN continents (yes, including Antarctica!). As we chat, we taste a savory Tokubetsu Honjozo from Takeda Shuzo - a brewery in Niigata, Japan that welcomed Lucas for an internship. If you've ever considered giving sake brewing a go yourself, this episode is not to be missed!   #SakeRevolutionSupport the show

Kobe lifted the Emperor's Cup for the second time in their history after a 1-0 victory over Gamba Osaka in Saturday's final at the National Stadium, and Alan Gibson joined Jonny and Ben to recap a cagey game won by Taisei Miyashiro's 64th minute goal, and then chat about potential offseason personnel changes at both clubs (to 39:10). Then Alan shares some nuggets from his trip to Kashiwa on Sunday (to 45:15), we round up Urawa 1-1 Kawasaki, and look ahead to ACL and J1 Matchday 37 action on the horizon (to 1:00:30). Then in Part 2, Jonny and Ben hand out Player of the Season awards for Tosu, Sapporo, Iwata, Kashiwa, Niigata and Shonan. Please follow us on Bluesky!

「佐渡島の金山」労働者の追悼式で黙とうをささげる参列者。 A ceremony was held for the first time on Sunday to remember all those who worked at the now-defunct gold mines on Sado Island in the central Japan prefecture of Niigata, including those from the Korean Peninsula.

A ceremony was held for the first time on Sunday to remember all those who worked at the now-defunct gold mines on Sado Island in the central Japan prefecture of Niigata, including those from the Korean Peninsula.

生稲晃子外務政務官【ソウル時事】韓国政府は２３日、新潟県佐渡市の「佐渡島の金山」の世界文化遺産登録を受け、２４日に同市で開かれる労働者の追悼式に参加しないことを決めた。 The South Korean government has decided not to attend Sunday's ceremony to remember those who worked at the now-defunct gold mines on Sado Island in the central Japan prefecture of Niigata, South Korean diplomatic sources said Saturday.

The South Korean government has decided not to attend Sunday's ceremony to remember those who worked at the now-defunct gold mines on Sado Island in the central Japan prefecture of Niigata, South Korean diplomatic sources said Saturday.

The Niigata Nippo reported on November 19th that in order to deepen understanding of disabilities, a civic group and university students in Higashi Ward, Niigata City, produced a short film "Voice ~ I want to hear your voice ~". A person involved said, "We hope that this will be an opportunity for people to learn about the real daily life of living together with people with disabilities.” The film collects candid opinions about the image of people with disabilities and asks the question, “What is a disability? The film asks the question, “What is disability? The filmmakers hope that the audience will learn about the real daily lives of people with disabilities. Episode Notes: ‘ What is a Disability? Niigata Civic Group and University Students Produces Film About the Lives of People with Disabilities': https://barrierfreejapan.com/2024/11/21/what-is-a-disability-niigata-civic-group-and-university-students-produces-film-about-the-lives-of-people-with-disabilities/ 「Voice〜あなたの声がききたい〜」: https://youtu.be/AjWGRT5UHYw?si=Kf0FGhFV7S1FqPfg

Mal Premierenzeit im Catch-Club. Drew und Dida sprechen das erste mal über Sendai Girls. Diese hatten nämlich ihre Big Show in Niigata und da dachten sich Drew und Dida, es sei der perfekte Zeitpunkt, darüber zu sprechen. Viel Spaß! Der Catch-Club im Netz: https://linktr.ee/catchclub

Kelly and Taylor are back to discuss Tokyo Joshi's latest adventure in America with TJPW and Defy's show Bright Eyes!Then they run through everything else that's been happening in joshi in the last two weeks, including Sendai Girl's Big Show in Niigata, big title changes in DIANA and WAVE and much more!There's of course a review of the standings of the First Annual Jumping Bomb Audio Joshi Fantasy League!Then they break down the packed next two weeks in joshi, highlighted by Historic X-Over II, TJPW's The Mountaintop, a Marigold Korakuen Hall show, and Airport Pro Wrestling!Check it out!Please follow us on twitter: @jbombaudioYou can support this podcast at http://redcircle.com/jumping-bomb-audio/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Kelly and Taylor are back to discuss Tokyo Joshi's latest adventure in America with TJPW and Defy's show Bright Eyes!Then they run through everything else that's been happening in joshi in the last two weeks, including Sendai Girl's Big Show in Niigata, big title changes in DIANA and WAVE and much more!There's of course a review of the standings of the First Annual Jumping Bomb Audio Joshi Fantasy League!Then they break down the packed next two weeks in joshi, highlighted by Historic X-Over II, TJPW's The Mountaintop, a Marigold Korakuen Hall show, and Airport Pro Wrestling!Check it out!Please follow us on twitter: @jbombaudioYou can support this podcast at http://redcircle.com/jumping-bomb-audio/donationsSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/jumping-bomb-audio/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this week's bumper episode of the pod Jonny is joined by special guest (though we still think of him as part of the furniture) Sam Robson, to review that wet, wild and wooly Levain Cup final that saw Nagoya triumph on penalties over Niigata. It was also a seismic weekend in the J1 title race, and its advantage Kobe after the defending champions won on Friday night, with Hiroshima slipping up at home on Sunday to Kyoto, who themselves, like Shonan at FC Tokyo, practically sealed their safety. The guys chat about the ramifications at both ends of the table, round up all of the games, then look ahead to another national team squad selection, and the Matchday 36 slate.

▷Noism×鼓童「鬼」特集！ ▷Noism設立当初の伝説 ▷小松崎正吾、Noismでの修行時代?! ▷Noism・鼓童共に共通する「生命力」 ▷「鬼」の中で起こる「無言の会話」 --- stand.fmでは、この放送にいいね・コメント・レター送信ができます。 https://stand.fm/channels/671ee1e45f7e8bea6c582726

A memorial service was held Wednesday to mourn the victims of a powerful earthquake that hit Niigata Prefecture, central Japan, 20 years ago.

A former village in central Japan that was hit by a powerful earthquake 20 years ago is continuing to stage traditional bullfights as a symbol of the region's reconstruction.

Ema Shin is a Melbourne-based artist who was born and raised in Niigata, Japan. After studying printmaking at Tama Art University in Tokyo, Ema completed a Master of Fine Art Degree at Aichi University of the Arts in Aichi, Japan. Her recent solo exhibition, Hearts of Absent Women, is a celebration of the lives and energy of anonymous women refracted through personal experiences with her own culture as well as Australian society. Her inter-disciplinary practice, application of historical techniques, and use of tactile materials result in contemporary artworks that express femininity and sexuality through embroidery, three-dimensional fabric sculptures, tapestry, and printmaking. Over the span of her career, Ema has exhibited prolifically in Australia and in various other countries around the world.  https://www.instagram.com/ema.shin Cover photo credit: Oleksandr Pogorily Contact us: thecreativitycafe21@gmail.com Paige Baldwin Ando https://www.instagram.com/wholeselfcreative https://www.wholeselfcreative.com Jordana Matsuda https://www.jordana-matsuda.com https://www.instagram.com/jordana.matsuda

J1 returned with a bang after the international break, and on our new episode Jonny and Ben round up all the action from a drama-filled weekend. We begin at the top with the pulsating draw between Kashima and Hiroshima on Saturday night, a result that allowed Machida to return to the summit after they claimed a terrific away win over Fukuoka, with Kobe keeping pace after cruising past Cerezo Osaka on Friday night, though Gamba Osaka's title hopes were dealt a major blow as Maciej Skorza returned to the Urawa dugout and led Reds to a win at the Suita City Stadium (to 40:10). Next we shift our attention to the relegation dogfight, with Kyoto continuing their excellent recent form to maintain their gap above the bottom three, though Tosu and Sapporo both lost, to further dent their faint hopes of survival. Iwata stunned Kashiwa to move within a point of safety behind Shonan, who were never at the races in their loss at Niigata. We finish our Matchday 30 roundup at the National stadium (to 1:20:10), then wrap up the episode with a look at upcoming ACL and domestic fixtures, including an intriguing-looking J1 Matchday 31. You can get tickets for our live show as part of the Yokohama Football Film Festival here, we'd love to see you there on October 12th!

Paul Denhoed is a paper researcher and papermaker, originally from Toronto, Canada. After receiving a Japanese Government Scholarship to study Japanese hand papermaking, he has been living and working in Japan for more than 20 years. He has worked at Oguni Washi as a production papermaker and taught papermaking, bookmaking, and art history at Asia University. He currently works closely with Imai Hiroaki of Oguni Washi in Niigata on production papermaking projects and in-depth papermaking workshops. He also offers papermaking and bookbinding workshops at universities and schools in the Tokyo area, and works with a group to maintain a kozo field (previously maintained by Richard Flavin) in nearby Saitama prefecture.

A Block is OVER, and finished in dramatic fashion! Night 15: August 12, 2024 from the Aore Nagaoka in Niigata, Japan. A BLOCK MATCHES Gabe Kidd vs Callum Newman Zack Sabre Jr. vs SANADA Shingo Takagi vs Jake Lee EVIL vs Shota Umino Tetsuya Naito vs Great-O-Khan

The sister city relationship between Galveston Island and Niigata, Japan, has flourished since 1965 through shared challenges and cultural exchanges. As their 60th anniversary approaches, we'll explore how these distant port towns exemplify resilience, culture, and global unity.Galveston Unscripted What is Galveston Unscripted?Follow Galveston Unscripted on Spotify or Apple Podcasts! More history content on Visit Galveston!

In Episode 31 of the podcast we head to Akakura Onsen in Myoko Kogen to speak with design maker Liam Mugavin. Originally for Australia, Liam is the cofounder of A.I.R. Myoko – a ski in, ski out chalet which combines design, gastronomy and other artisanal influences to offer a different type of experience when it comes to ski accommodation in Japan. Liam's background and continued work as a designer maker underpin the concept of chalet he operates, along with his business partner and other members of the team. Extending the ‘artist in residence' concept he undertook with Australia House – part of the Echigo Tsumari Art Field festival held in Niigata – and similar programs around the world, Liam and the team at AIR invite artists and upcoming chefs to reside at the chalet each winter. We discuss of that in the first half of the interview before moving onto Liam's current project, the relocation and restoration of a 170 year old ‘kominka' (traditional farmhouse) in the second half of our chat. With restoration nearing completion, the building will act as Liam's design workshop - an extension of the artist residence concept. Checkout the A.I.R. Myoko website for bookings and to get in touch with Liam, and if you have not already, make sure to also check out Episode 17 of the podcast, in which I spoke with snowboarder Billy Halloran about the ski resorts of Myoko Kogen and his lodge, The Greenhouse Myoko. You can also find images and a map showing you where we are in the snow country on the episode page of the Snow Country Stories Japan website.Snow Country Stories Japan is a bi-weekly podcast about life and travel in Japan's legendary 'yukiguni'. For more information about the show and your host, visit our website - www.snowcountrystories.com - and make sure to subscribe, rate and review the podcast and follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

In this week's JTET, James Taylor and Jon Steele reviewed Niigata v Nagasaki in the Levain Cup playoff round (to 12:55), and a couple of league games: Yamaguchi v JEF (to 22:10) and Kagoshima v Okayama (to 36:05). They picked their Most Bravo Players (to 41:20) and looked ahead to J2 round 20 (to end).   *To get some pass notes on any of the games that we don't discuss on the pod, feel free to join our dedicated JTET/JTSC Discord server here: https://discord.gg/pngqMZ7hwD

In Episode 30 of the podcast I speak with outdoor guide Iida Taka about Oze National Park. Straddling four prefectures of the snow country – Gunma, Niigata, Fukushima and Tochigi – Oze National Park is relatively small at 373 squared kilometres however its smaller size is in fact one of its attractions. Known for its lakes, wetlands, moors and marshes, the park is ringed by mountains ascending over 2000 metres with areas of dense forest. As such, visitors to Oze can enjoy varied environments including unique flora and fauna within a confined area. Taka is an experienced outdoor covering many destinations in Central Japan including Oze National Park. Originally from Izu, Taka's journey to becoming an outdoor guide involves stints in Australia, New Zealand and Canada before pursuing certification in Oze – a park she is very familiar with and keen to introduce to international visitors. Based in Nagano, Taka operates Nozawa Onsen Tours in the popular ski resort and hot spring town of the same name. Offering tours that reveal the long history and culture of the village, along with the surrounding environment, Taka reveals a side of Nozawa that many if not most international visitors miss.We discuss the national park in the first half of the interview before moving onto the tours Taka offers at Oze and Nozawa Onsen in the second half of our chat. For more information, visit the Nozawa Onsen Tours website or Instagram - links are above - and of course you can find information, images and a map showing you where the national park is on the episode page of the Snow Country Stories Japan website. Snow Country Stories Japan is a bi-weekly podcast about life and travel in Japan's legendary 'yukiguni'. For more information about the show and your host, visit our website - www.snowcountrystories.com - and make sure to subscribe, rate and review the podcast and follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

With J3 Toyama still alive in the Levain Cup, and taking on Sapporo in the 1st Leg of the Play-Off Round this midweek, we've decided to put out Mike Innes' 'J-Talk: Short Corner' as a standalone pod again this time! After a quick intro from Jon (to preview J2 Nagasaki's Levain Cup tie against Niigata the same evening), Mike takes his usual forensic look at the weekend's J3 action. Mike then turns his attentions to Toyama's midweek date with destiny, and previews all of the upcoming weekend action in J3 (Round 16). Hope everyone enjoys the mini-pod, and the midweek football - a J2-focused JTET is coming later this week as usual!

Episode 167. If we think about sake, usually an image of a glass bottle pops to mind.  But if we scratch the surface and investigate a bit more the way that sake is packaged and shipped, there is a world of variety out there you may not have considered! This leads us to our latest series we are calling "Funky Packaging"... think of it as sake beyond the glass bottle.  Cups, bags, paks, and today's packaging - the Kikusui Funaguchi "Smart Pouch".  It's kinda like a Capri Sun and a boxed wine had a baby.  This is definitely not your old school glass sake bottle.  The spout allows for quick and easy dispensing with no oxygen exposure and the pouch itself stands up on it's own without a box.  Listen in as we explore another variation of funky packaging.  #SakeRevolutionSupport the Show.

In Episode 29 of the podcast we return to Niigata Prefecture and onto Niigata City to speak with Jenya Yuss. Jenya works for Edge of Niigata, a travel company based in Niigata City and operating tours and experiences in the city and wider prefecture. As such she's an ideal person to introduce to the story and the reasons to visit Niigata.When Japanese think about the snow country, Niigata is one of the first prefectures to spring to mind. Subject to very heavy snowfall, Niigata is synonymous with that snow along with its rice, sake and seafood. Situated on the coast of the Sea of Japan and at confluence of two rivers, Niigata City has long been an important trade and port city that connected Japan to the outside world. A place through which people passed along with traded goods. A mix of the traditional, industrial and grittier elements you'd expect of a port city.Jenya and I discuss the city and its history, her own story, travel experiences offered by Edge of Niigata along with tips of onward journeys further into the snow country by train and ferry. You can find more information on the Edge of Niigata website or follow them on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. More information including links to everything we discuss in the episode, images and a map showing you where in the snow country we are, are on the episode page of the Snow Country Stories Japan website. Snow Country Stories Japan is a bi-weekly podcast about life and travel in Japan's legendary 'yukiguni'. For more information about the show and your host, visit our website - www.snowcountrystories.com - and make sure to subscribe, rate and review the podcast and follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

Mokuhanga today can be made in so many ways. So many inspirations, so many people creating beautiful pieces from all over the world. Coming to you from Obihiro, Hokkaido, I have been traveling around Japan for over a month. Coming back to Japan is always an inspiring act and it is already like a second home to me. What brought me back to Japan this time around was the 2024 International Mokuhanga Conference held in Echizen City, Fukui, Japan. Meeting with so many mokuhanga artists, carvers, and printers inspired me and makes me want to be a better artist and to make a better podcast. On this episode of The Unfinished Print I speak with one of the mokuhanga artists who also attended the 2024 IMC. Jason Fujiwara. Jason lives and works in Tokyo, Japan where he creates his mokuhanga. Jason and I speak together about how he approaches his work, his inspirations, the idea of cultural identity in his prints , his time at the 2024 International Mokuhanga Conference, and Jason even asks me some questions. Please follow The Unfinished Print and my own mokuhanga work on Instagram @andrezadoroznyprints or email me at theunfinishedprint@gmail.com  Notes: may contain a hyperlink. Simply click on the highlighted word or phrase. Artists works follow after the note if available. Pieces are mokuhanga unless otherwise noted. Dimensions are given if known. Print publishers are given if known. Jason Fujiwara - website, Instagram Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858) - born in Edo, Hiroshige is famous for his landscape series of that burgeoning city. The most famous series being, One Hundred Famous Views of Edo (1856-1859), and the landcape series, Fifty-Three Stations of the Tōkaidō (1833-1834). His work highlights bokashi, and bright colours. More info about his work can be found, here.  Ōiso: from the series The Tōkaidō Road - The Fifty-three Stations (1851-52) Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) - is one of the most famous Japanese artists to have ever lived. Hokusai was an illustrator, painter and woodblock print designer. His work can be found on paper, wood, silk, and screen. His woodblock print design for Under The Wave off Kanagawa (ca. 1830-32) is beyond famous. His work, his manga, his woodblocks, his paintings, influence artists from all over the world.  Poem by Sangi Hitoshi :  the series One Hundred Poems Explained by the Nurse (n.d.) David Bull - is a Canadian woodblock printmaker, and educator who lives and works in Japan. His love of mokuhanga has almost singlehandedly promoted the art form around the world. His company, Mokuhankan, has a brick and mortar store in Asakusa, Tōkyō, and online, here.  The Forest In Summer: From the Series "My Solitudes." (2007-9) Ema Shin - Based in Melbourne, Australia, Ema Shin hails from Niigata, Japan. She pursued her education in printmaking at Tama Art University in Tokyo. Currently, her work spans across various mediums including papier-mâché, embroidery, tapestry weaving, bookmaking, urauchi, collage, and mokuhanga. For more information, visit here.  Soft Alchemy (Fertile Heart) Woven tapestry, cotton, wool, 21" x 31" x 2.3", Matthew Stanton photography. (2019)   Terry McKenna -  is a mokuhanga printmaker and teacher residing in Karuizawa, Japan. He received guidance in the art form from Richard Steiner, a prominent mokuhanga printmaker based in Kyoto. Terry established the Karuizawa Mokuhanga School, a renowned residency dedicated to mokuhanga education. For further details about Terry and his school, here. Additionally, you can read Terry's interview with The Unfinished Print, here and Richard Steiner's interview here.    Beauty (2010)   mokume - is a woodblock printing technique where, by using heavy pressure on wood which contains a heavy grain, the artist can reveal the grain in their work. Below is a fine example of mokume technique by Osamu Sugiyama:     10 Views of Mt. Fuji - Moonlight over Shinobino Moor (13"x16.9")   bokashi - is a mokuhanga technique, where the pigment fades from a heavy colour to a softer, broad colour. Made famous by prints designed by Hokusai and Hiroshige, this technique is, for me, the most popular technique utilized by  mokuhanga printmakers. There are various types: Ichimoji-bokashi or straight line graduation, used in the above mentioned Hiroshige and Hokusai prints. Ichimoji-mura-bokashi or straight line gradation with uneven edge. Ō-bokashi or wide gradation, Ate-nashi-bokashi or gradation without definition. Futa-iro-bokashi or two tone gradation, and ita-bokashi or softer-edge gradation, where the block is cut in a specific way to achieve this style of gradation. All of these styles of bokashi technique take practice and skill but are very much doable. Below is a fine example of bokashi by Paul Binnie:     Flowers of a Hundred Years: Bubble Era [of 1990] (18.5"x13") (2024)   ukiyo-e - is a form of multi-color woodblock print and painting  primarily associated with Japan's Edo Period (1603-1867). Originating in the 17th century with prints featuring only a few colors, it evolved into a sophisticated system of production and technique by the Meiji Period (1868-1912). However, with the emergence of photography and other printmaking methods, traditional ukiyo-e production ceased by the late 19th century, leaving behind a rich legacy in Japanese art history.    Procreate - is a popular digital art app designed exclusively for iPad and iPhone. It offers a wide range of tools and features that allow artists to create digital illustrations, paintings, and designs with ease. Some of its key features include a variety of brushes, layers, blending modes, and advanced editing options. Procreate has gained popularity among digital artists due to its intuitive interface, powerful capabilities, and ability to produce high-quality artwork.   A2 - is a paper size part of the ISO 216 standard and is commonly used for posters, architectural drawings, and other large format prints. Its dimensions are 594 x 420 millimeters or approximately 23.4 x 16.5 inches.   Pansion paper - is a medium-heavy kozo paper, varying in size  and weight and is predominantly used in printmaking.    Ralph Kiggell (1960-2022) : was a highly influential figure in our world of mokuhanga printmaking. Originally from England, Ralph resided and practiced his art in Thailand. Renowned for his innovative approach, Ralph pushed the boundaries of mokuhanga through his creation of exceptionally large pieces, intricate jigsaw carving techniques, and vibrant color palettes. He also played a pivotal role in promoting mokuhanga globally through his involvement with the International Mokuhanga Conference. His legacy will be deeply felt and cherished by the mokuhanga community. You can explore Ralph's work, here. You can read his obituary in The Guardian here and his interview with The Unfinished Print, here.     White Orchid (n.d.)   Keiko Kobayashi - is a mokuhanga printmaker and administrator of the International Mokuhanga Conference. She lives and works in Tokyo, Japan. More information can be found, here.    花喰い(6) 蝋梅に四十雀 (2024) 4"x4"   nengajō -  (年賀状) what began as a way for Japanese nobility to communicate with faraway friends and family during the New Year festive period, has become a way for all people to send New Year greetings to their own friends and family. More info, here.   Kay Watanabe - is an artist located in Brisbane, Australia. Her creative endeavors span across various mediums, including mokuhanga and other printmaking techniques, painting, drawing, and photography. For further details about Kay and her artistic journey, visit here.      Heaven And Earth (2019) etching on paper    Roslyn Keane -  is a mokuhanga printmaker and baren designer situated in Sydney, Australia. Her artistic creations lean towards abstraction and often feature large-scale pieces crafted using a diverse range of techniques. For additional insights into Roslyn's work, her KBB barens, and her The Stables Print Studio, visit, here.     Transition (2019/20)    © Popular Wheat Productions opening and closing credit - eating in an izakaya in Himeji, Japan with friends recorded live in 2024.  logo designed and produced by Douglas Batchelor and André Zadorozny  Disclaimer: Please do not reproduce or use anything from this podcast without shooting me an email and getting my express written or verbal consent. I'm friendly :) Слава Українi If you find any issue with something in the show notes please let me know. ***The opinions expressed by guests in The Unfinished Print podcast are not necessarily those of André Zadorozny and of Popular Wheat Productions.***                

In this month of may we continue our focus of Our Lady, and devotion to her, by following her on her journeys throughout the world where she appeared and gave messages for a particular time. This week we are focusing on Our Lady of Akita by our Guest Akita Manassa, who visited the Shrine personally and reports on her experiences that she had there, and how she was named Akita.   Furthermore, the message of Akita is discussed, and her very important messages that she gave us for our time. This apparition, these series of messages and aparations were encountered by Sister Agnes Katsuko Sasagawa from 1973, and has diocesan approval within the Diocese of Niigata and hence the Holy See. In this episode Our Lady was very prophetic about the time in which we currently live, listen and enjoy this episode to discover what she told Sr Agnes.   Learn more about Our Lady of Akita: https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/library/message-from-our-lady--akita-japan-5167        – The Show is Live on the following Platforms Television   TV Maria: tvmaria.ph  Radio Platforms: Voice of Charity Australia (1701AM): www.voc.org.au    Radio Maria Australia: https://www.radiomaria.org.au/  Cradio: www.cradio.org.au  Social Media:  @thecatholictoolboxshow Facebook & Instagram - Partners: Parousia Media: www.parousiamedia.com EWTN Asia Pacific www.ewtnasiapacific.com - SUBSCRIBE to our weekly Alert and Newsletter: www.thecatholictoolboxshow.com Get your copy of "The Art of Practical Catholicism" by George Manassa: Get your copy of "The Art of Practical Catholicism Series" by George Manassa: store.parousiamedia.com/the-art-of-practical-catholicism-your-faith-guide-george-manassa-paperback/  https://store.parousiamedia.com/the-art-of-practical-catholicism-2-your-faith-guide-george-manassa-paperback/    Book George Manassa to speak at your parish or event now: www.parousiamedia.com/george-manassa/    DISCLAIMER This Episode does not count as Medical, Psychological or professional advice. All the contents within the parameters of this episode are simply the personal views of the host and guest(s) and any personal advice reflected should always be verified by your relevant professional. In no way is this a substitute for seeking any professional advice and we urge that you seek relevant professional attention at any stage. Please seek the guidance of your doctor or other qualified health or other professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition. Never disregard the advice of a medical professional, or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on this episode or read on any online media. If you are experiencing any emergencies please call  000 OR if you need assistance call  13 11 14 within Australia Or your national emergency service  

ゴールデンウィークが終（お）わって普通（ふつう）の生活（せいかつ）に戻（もど）りました。今回（こんかい）はそれぞれのゴールデンウィークについて報告（ほうこく）しました。遊園地（ゆうえんち）へ行（い）き、ジェットコースターの恐怖（きょうふ）を克服（こくふく）しようとしたとらくん。ギネス記録（きろく）もあるほどの怖（こわ）いジェットコースターにチャレンジした結果（けっか）はどうだったのでしょうか？一方（いっぽう）私（わたし）は、生徒（せいと）に会（あ）いに新潟県（にいがたけん）へ一人旅（ひとりたび）をしてきました。何（なに）もないと思（おも）っていた新潟（にいがた）ですが、訪（おとず）れた村（むら）は想像（そうぞう）と違（ちが）う不思議（ふしぎ）な、面白（おもしろ）いところでした。のんびりした新潟（にいがた）と、ドキドキのジェットコースター。全（まった）く違（ちが）う、二人（ふたり）のゴールデンウィークの対比（たいひ）をお楽（たの）しみください。 Golden Week has ended and we've returned to our regular lives. In this episode, we reported on our respective Golden Week experiences. Tora-kun went to an amusement park, trying to overcome his fear of roller coasters. How did his challenge on a terrifying roller coaster, even with a Guinness record, turn out? On the other hand, I took a solo trip to Niigata Prefecture to meet with students. While I thought Niigata would be uneventful, the village I visited was surprisingly different from what I imagined, full of mysterious and interesting places. Enjoy the contrast between the relaxing Niigata and the thrilling roller coaster, showcasing the completely different Golden Week experiences of the two of us. The script is available here: https://www.makiko-japanese.com/ I will update this episode on Youtube as soon as possible!! Please check out and  subscribe to our youtube channel: ⁠www.youtube.com/channel/UChu8-tNd_4RyWo-iE5cr-Ow⁠ email, comments, requests, also Japanese lesson inquiries: toranomaki.nihongo@gmail.com にほんごのかいわのレッスンもしています。メールでれんらくください。 Please follow our Instagram, @toranomaki.nihongo --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/toranomaki-japanese/message

Our new episode features a full breakdown of all nine J1 Matchday 9 games played over the weekend, beginning with Machida returning to the top of the table after a controversy-tinged Tokyo Derby victory over FC Tokyo, and Cerezo Osaka slipping off the summit after their first loss of the season, away at Nagoya. We then move on to a trio of 1-0 away wins for Gamba Osaka, Kobe and Niigata, before Tosu's big day out at home against Kashima, as Sagan hauled themselves off the foot of the table. The three Matchday 9 draws round out our review, before we look ahead to the upcoming midweek and weekend action.

Phish Free > 10:19 99-07-31 Niigata, JPN Phish Roggae 7:34 99-07-31 Niigata, JPN Phish The Squirming Coil 10:28 New Year's Eve 1995 Phish Rocky Top 2:43 99-07-23 Columbus, OH Phish Fee> 8:36 98-08-11 Burgettstown, PA Phish Maze 15:21 98-08-11 Burgettstown, PA Phish Harry Hood 15:08 99-09-18 Chula Vista, CA Phish Frankenstein 5:12 99-09-18 Chula Vista, […]

We're back with a full review of J1 Matchday 3. We begin in Hiroshima, where Sanfrecce went top on goal difference after putting Tosu to the sword (to 15:15), before moving on to the three teams who won for the first time this season over the weekend - Cerezo Osaka, Kyoto and Urawa (to 46:45). Then Machida and Kashiwa kept the good times rolling, and kept pace with Hiroshima (to 1:01:40), before finishing with wins for Kobe and Niigata, and the only draw of the matchday down in Fukuoka.

In Episode 24 of the podcast I speak with Shoko Baba, a member of the international sales team, of one of the snow country's most celebrated sake breweries, Hakkaisan. Located in the heavy snow area of Minami-Uonuma, Hakkaisan Brewery produces high quality sake that reflects the pristine surrounding environment and traditions of this beautiful area of Niigata. Shoko and I discuss the heritage and pedigree of Hakkaisan including their celebrated snow-aged ‘Yukimuro' sake, while also delving into the importance of sake in the culture of Niigata and more broadly, in Japan. We discuss Hakkaisan's fantastic Rydeen Beer and their wonderful facility Uonuma-no-Sato, along with exciting enterprises including Niseko Distillery in Hokkaido and Brooklyn Kura in New York. The brewery takes its name from nearby Mount Hakkai or in Japanese, Hakkaisan. Standing 1778 metres / 5834 feet in height, Hakkaisan is home to the little-known but fantastic Muikamachi Hakkaisan Ski Resort. The location of the mountain and ski resort subject it to heavy snowfall each winter making it an ideal destination for skiers and snowboarders wanting to dive into some deep stuff without the crowds. I provide information about Muikamachi Hakkaisan – one of my favourite ski resorts – following my chat with Shoko. Make sure to check out the episode page on the Snow Country Stories Japan website for more information, images, videos and a map showing you where in the snow country we are today.This episode is the last of Season 2 of the Snow Country Stories Japan podcast. A big thank you to everyone who is listening. I'll be taking a short break and returning with Season 3 in late March / early April. I will announce the return date as soon as possible and in the meantime, I will upload some bonus episodes. I hope you enjoy!Snow Country Stories Japan is a bi-weekly podcast about life and travel in Japan's legendary 'yukiguni'. For more information about the show and your host, visit our website - www.snowcountrystories.com - and make sure to subscribe, rate and review the podcast and follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

We're back with our next group of teams to wrap up our second week of previews. Ralf Seidl guests in Part 1 to chat about title contenders Urawa (to 37:05), before we shift our focus down the table and look at Kashiwa (to 56:00) and Niigata.

Episode 19 of the podcast takes us into the deep snow country of Tokamachi in Niigata, where we venture into the beautiful, heavily forested hills and minor mountains of that area, and onto the secluded Mithila Museum to speak with its director Hasegawa Tokio. An avant-garde musician and artist, Hasegawa-san founded Mithila Museum in 1982, and today, the museum houses one the world's major collection of Mithila or Madhubani art while Hasegawa-san remains an active, innovative and legendary musician. We discuss his story, how the museum came to be, his music and of course, his love for life in the snow country in today's interview.Originating in the Madhubani district of Bihar – a northeastern state of India – Madhubani art is created by local women and defined by its geometrical and contrasting patterns, bold lines and colours and broad themes ranging from cosmological and ritual practices to the images of everyday life. The museum houses one of the world's largest collections of Madhubani art, along with Warli and Gond art. Hasegawa-san was a founding member of the avant-garde music group ‘The Taj Mahal Travellers' during the 1970s and to this day, is an active and innovative musician. Released in 2019, ‘Stone Music' includes recordings of performances in Japan, India and Taiwan. Blending Japanese drums, flutes, keyboards, electronic sounds, Indian instruments and captivating vocals, the music is both real and tangible while also evoking the cosmological and metaphysical terms Hasegawa-san so often speaks in. Chapter markers are at:00:00  Episode Introduction04:10  Who is Hasegawa Tokio?09:31  The Three Worlds of Hasegawa Tokio16:43  Himalayan Moon: Choosing Life in the Deep Snow20:16  Mithila Museum: Founding & Purpose22:59  The Importance of Mithila / Madhubani Art28:59  The 'Stone Music' of Hasegawa Tokio34:54  Mithila Museum: Opening Days & Times36:31  The Value of Life in the Snow Country41:15  Episode CloseYou can find more information on the episode page of the Snow Country Stories Japan website or via the Mithila Museum website or YouTube Channel. Hasegawa-san's 'Stone Music' album can be purchase via the Bandcamp website while you can also watch the recent live performance on YouTube.Snow Country Stories Japan is a bi-weekly podcast about life and travel in Japan's legendary 'yukiguni'. For more information about the show and your host, visit our website - www.snowcountrystories.com - and make sure to subscribe, rate and review the podcast and follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

Episode 18 of the podcast takes us once again to Niigata Prefecture and the snow country area of Matsunoyama. Famous for its very heavy snowfall, Matsunoyama is a place in many ways defined by that snow. In this episode I speak with Kamimura Shotaro, a regional revitalisation coordinator based in Matsunoyama. Shotaro's work tasks him with revitalisation of the community and as such, we discuss the multiple challenges being faced by the people of Matsunoyama while also exploring the opportunities of life in the deep snow. This episode highlights the reality for many communities in the snow country and across Japan. Communities that are struggling to sustain themselves in the face of depopulation and an ageing population, changing economies and lifestyles, and climate change. But there is also cause for optimism, something Shotaro and I discuss in the second half of the interview including reasons to visit Matsunoyama including Matsunoyama Onsen – considered one of Japan's three great medicinal hot spring towns – along with Echigo-Tsumari Art Field and the big snow of the small resort, Matsunoyama Onsen Ski Area.  We recorded the interview on a very wet day in a charismatic roadside tea house named Matsunoyama Chakra.Shotaro's website ‘Snow Notes' documents and educates about life in both Matsunoyama and wider snow country. He publishes some pages in English but obviously, most pages are in Japanese. I recommend the online translator DeepL for Japanese to English translations. You can also find links everything discussed in this episode and more information including a map of where Matsunoyama is located on the episode page on the Snow Country Stories Japan website. 00:00  Episode Introduction 03:49  Matsunoyama, Niigata: Where It Is & Life in the Deep Snow10:55  Shotaro's Story12:26  Challenges Impacting Matsunoyama17:56  The ‘Satoyama' Concept 23:10  Local Identity & Climate Change 27:34  Looking Forward: Three Possible Futures30:18  Matsunoyama Onsen33:24  Echigo-Tsumari Art Field35:48  Matsunoyama Onsen Ski Area38:17  Episode CloseSnow Country Stories Japan is a bi-weekly podcast about life and travel in Japan's legendary 'yukiguni'. For more information about the show and your host, visit our website - www.snowcountrystories.com - and make sure to subscribe, rate and review the podcast and follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

Phish Stash 13:05 Phish 97-12-30 New York, NY Phish Fluffhead > 18:02 Phish 99-07-31 Niigata, JPN Phish The Squirming Coil 8:53 Phish 99-07-31 Niigata, JPN Phish Birds of a Feather 15:29 Phish 98-04-04 Providence, RI Phish 2001 16:41 Phish 98-04-04 Providence, RI Phish Brother 13:34 Phish 98-04-04 Providence, RI Phish Piper 19:50 Phish 98-07-06 Prague, […]

Sara is a team lead at thoughtbot. She talks about her experience as a professor at Kanazawa Technical College, giant LAN parties in Rochester, transitioning from Java to Ruby, shining a light on maintainers, and her closing thoughts on RubyConf. Recorded at RubyConf 2023 in San Diego. -- A few topics covered: Being an Assistant Arofessor in Kanazawa Teaching naming, formatting, and style Differences between students in Japan vs US Technical terms and programming resources in Japanese LAN parties at Rochester Transitioning from Java to Ruby Consulting The forgotten maintainer RubyConf Other links Sara's mastodon thoughtbot This Week in Open Source testdouble Ruby Central Scholars and Guides Program City Museum Japan International College of Technology Kanazawa RubyKaigi Applying mruby to World-first Small SAR Satellite (Japanese lightning talk) (mruby in space) Rochester Rochester Institute of Technology Electronic Gaming Society Tora-con Strong National Museum of Play Transcript You can help correct transcripts on GitHub. [00:00:00] Jeremy: I'm here at RubyConf, San Diego, with Sara Jackson, thank you for joining me today. [00:00:05] Sara: Thank you for having me. Happy to be here. [00:00:07] Jeremy: Sara right now you're working at, ThoughtBot, as a, as a Ruby developer, is that right? [00:00:12] Sara: Yes, that is correct. Teaching in Japan [00:00:14] Jeremy: But I think before we kind of talk about that, I mean, we're at a Ruby conference, but something that I, I saw, on your LinkedIn that I thought was really interesting was that you were teaching, I think, programming in. Kanazawa, for a couple years. [00:00:26] Sara: Yeah, that's right. So for those that don't know, Kanazawa is a city on the west coast of Japan. If you draw kind of a horizontal line across Japan from Tokyo, it's, it's pretty much right there on the west coast. I was an associate professor in the Global Information and Management major, which is basically computer science or software development. (laughs) Yep. [00:00:55] Jeremy: Couldn't tell from the title. [00:00:56] Sara: You couldn't. No.. so there I was teaching classes for a bunch of different languages and concepts from Java to Python to Unix and Bash scripting, just kind of all over. [00:01:16] Jeremy: And did you plan the curriculum yourself, or did they have anything for you? [00:01:21] Sara: It depended on the class that I was teaching. So some of them, I was the head teacher. In that case, I would be planning the class myself, the... lectures the assignments and grading them, et cetera. if I was assisting on a class, then usually it would, I would be doing grading and then helping in the class. Most of the classes were, uh, started with a lecture and then. Followed up with a lab immediately after, in person. [00:01:54] Jeremy: And I think you went to, is it University of Rochester? [00:01:58] Sara: Uh, close. Uh, Rochester Institute of Technology. So, same city. Yeah. [00:02:03] Jeremy: And so, you were studying computer science there, is that right? [00:02:07] Sara: I, I studied computer science there, but I got a minor in Japanese language. and that's how, that's kind of my origin story of then teaching in Kanazawa. Because Rochester is actually the sister city with Kanazawa. And RIT has a study abroad program for Japanese learning students to go study at KIT, Kanazawa Institute of Technology, in Kanazawa, do a six week kind of immersive program. And KIT just so happens to be under the same board as the school that I went to teach at. [00:02:46] Jeremy: it's great that you can make that connection and get that opportunity, yeah. [00:02:49] Sara: Absolutely. Networking! [00:02:52] Jeremy: And so, like, as a student in Rochester, you got to see how, I suppose, computer science education was there. How did that compare when you went over to Kanazawa? [00:03:02] Sara: I had a lot of freedom with my curriculum, so I was able to actually lean on some of the things that I learned, some of the, the way that the courses were structured that I took, I remember as a freshman in 2006, one of the first courses that we took, involved, learning Unix, learning the command line, things like that. I was able to look up some of the assignments and some of the information from that course that I took to inform then my curriculum for my course, [00:03:36] Jeremy: That's awesome. Yeah. and I guess you probably also remember how you felt as a student, so you know like what worked and maybe what didn't. [00:03:43] Sara: Absolutely. And I was able to lean on that experience as well as knowing. What's important and what, as a student, I didn't think was important. Naming, formatting, and style [00:03:56] Jeremy: So what were some examples of things that were important and some that weren't? [00:04:01] Sara: Mm hmm. For Java in particular, you don't need any white space between any of your characters, but formatting and following the general Guidelines of style makes your code so much easier to read. It's one of those things that you kind of have to drill into your head through muscle memory. And I also tried to pass that on to my students, in their assignments that it's. It's not just to make it look pretty. It's not just because I'm a mean teacher. It is truly valuable for future developers that will end up reading your code. [00:04:39] Jeremy: Yeah, I remember when I went through school. The intro professor, they would actually, they would print out our code and they would mark it up with red pen, basically like a writing assignment and it would be like a bad variable name and like, white space shouldn't be here, stuff like that. And, it seems kind of funny now, but, it actually makes it makes a lot of sense. [00:04:59] Sara: I did that. [00:04:59] Jeremy: Oh, nice. [00:05:00] Sara: I did that for my students. They were not happy about it. (laughs) [00:05:04] Jeremy: Yeah, at that time they're like, why are you like being so picky, right? [00:05:08] Sara: Exactly. But I, I think back to my student, my experience as a student. in some of the classes I've taken, not even necessarily computer related, the teachers that were the sticklers, those lessons stuck the most for me. I hated it at the time. I learned a lot. [00:05:26] Jeremy: Yeah, yeah. so I guess that's an example of things that, that, that matter. The, the aesthetics or the visual part for understanding. What are some things that they were teaching that you thought like, Oh, maybe this isn't so important. [00:05:40] Sara: Hmm. Pause for effect. (laughs) So I think that there wasn't necessarily Any particular class or topic that I didn't feel was as valuable, but there was some things that I thought were valuable that weren't emphasized very well. One of the things that I feel very strongly about, and I'm sure those of you out there can agree. in RubyWorld, that naming is important. The naming of your variables is valuable. It's useful to have something that's understood. and there were some other teachers that I worked with that didn't care so much in their assignments. And maybe the labs that they assigned had less than useful names for things. And that was kind of a disappointment for me. [00:06:34] Jeremy: Yeah, because I think it's maybe hard to teach, a student because a lot of times you are writing these short term assignments and you have it pass the test or do the thing and then you never look at it again. [00:06:49] Sara: Exactly. [00:06:50] Jeremy: So you don't, you don't feel that pain. Yeah, [00:06:53] Sara: Mm hmm. But it's like when you're learning a new spoken language, getting the foundations correct is super valuable. [00:07:05] Jeremy: Absolutely. Yeah. And so I guess when you were teaching in Kanazawa, was there anything you did in particular to emphasize, you know, these names really matter because otherwise you or other people are not going to understand what you were trying to do here? [00:07:22] Sara: Mm hmm. When I would walk around class during labs, kind of peek over the shoulders of my students, look at what they're doing, it's... Easy to maybe point out at something and be like, well, what is this? I can't tell what this is doing. Can you tell me what this does? Well, maybe that's a better name because somebody else who was looking at this, they won't know, I don't know, you know, it's in your head, but you will not always be working solo. my school, a big portion of the students went on to get technical jobs from after right after graduating. it was when you graduated from the school that I was teaching at, KTC, it was the equivalent of an associate's degree. Maybe 50 percent went off to a tech job. Maybe 50 percent went on to a four year university. And, and so as students, it hadn't. Connected with them always yet that oh, this isn't just about the assignment. This is also about learning how to interact with my co workers in the future. Differences between students [00:08:38] Jeremy: Yeah, I mean, I think It's hard, but, group projects are kind of always, uh, that's kind of where you get to work with other people and, read other people's code, but there's always that potential imbalance of where one person is like, uh, I know how to do this. I'll just do it. Right? So I'm not really sure how to solve that problem. Yeah. [00:09:00] Sara: Mm hmm. That's something that I think probably happens to some degree everywhere, but man, Japan really has groups, group work down. They, that's a super generalization. For my students though, when you would put them in a group, they were, they were usually really organized about who was going to do what and, kept on each other about doing things maybe there were some students that were a little bit more slackers, but it was certainly not the kind of polarized dichotomy you would usually see in an American classroom. [00:09:39] Jeremy: Yeah. I've been on both sides. I've been the person who did the work and the slacker. [00:09:44] Sara: Same. [00:09:46] Jeremy: And, uh, I feel bad about it now, but, uh, [00:09:50] Sara: We did what we had to do. [00:09:52] Jeremy: We all got the degree, so we're good. that is interesting, though. I mean, was there anything else, like, culturally different, you felt, from, you know, the Japanese university? [00:10:04] Sara: Yes. Absolutely. A lot of things. In American university, it's kind of the first time in a young person's life, usually, where they have the freedom to choose what they learn, choose where they live, what they're interested in. And so there's usually a lot of investment in your study and being there, being present, paying attention to the lecture. This is not to say that Japanese college students were the opposite. But the cultural feeling is college is your last time to have fun before you enter the real world of jobs and working too many hours. And so the emphasis on paying Super attention or, being perfect in your assignments. There was, there was a scale. There were some students that were 100 percent there. And then there were some students that were like, I'm here to get a degree and maybe I'm going to sleep in class a little bit. (laughs) That is another major difference, cultural aspect. In America, if you fall asleep in a meeting, you fall asleep in class, super rude. Don't do it. In Japan, if you take a nap at work, you take a nap in class, not rude. It's actually viewed as a sign of you are working really hard. You're usually working maybe late into the night. You're not getting enough sleep. So the fact that you need to take maybe a nap here or two here or there throughout the day means that you have put dedication in. [00:11:50] Jeremy: Even if the reason you're asleep is because you were playing games late at night. [00:11:54] Sara: Yep. [00:11:55] Jeremy: But they don't know that. [00:11:56] Sara: Yeah. But it's usually the case for my students. [00:11:59] Jeremy: Okay. I'm glad they were having fun at least [00:12:02] Sara: Me too. Why she moved back [00:12:04] Jeremy: That sounds like a really interesting experience. You did it for about two years? Three years. [00:12:12] Sara: So I had a three year contract with an option to extend up to five, although I did have a There were other teachers in my same situation who were actually there for like 10 years, so it was flexible. [00:12:27] Jeremy: Yeah. So I guess when you made the decision to, to leave, what was sort of your, your thinking there? [00:12:35] Sara: My fiance was in America [00:12:37] Jeremy: Good. [00:12:37] Sara: he didn't want to move to Japan [00:12:39] Jeremy: Good, reason. [00:12:39] Sara: Yeah, he was waiting three years patiently for me. [00:12:44] Jeremy: Okay. Okay. my heart goes out there . He waited patiently. [00:12:49] Sara: We saw each other. We, we were very lucky enough to see each other every three or four months in person. Either I would visit America or he would come visit me in Kanazawa. [00:12:59] Jeremy: Yeah, yeah. You, you couldn't convince him to, to fall in love with the country. [00:13:03] Sara: I'm getting there [00:13:04] Jeremy: Oh, you're getting Oh, [00:13:05] Sara: it's, We're making, we're making way. [00:13:07] Jeremy: Good, that's good. So are you taking like, like yearly trips or something, or? [00:13:11] Sara: That was, that was always my intention when I moved back so I moved back in the Spring of 2018 to America and I did visit. In 2019, the following year, so I could attend the graduation ceremony for the last group of students that I taught. [00:13:26] Jeremy: That's so sweet. [00:13:27] Sara: And then I had plans to go in 2020. We know what happened in 2020 [00:13:32] Jeremy: Yeah. [00:13:33] Sara: The country did not open to tourism again until the fall of 2022. But I did just make a trip last month. [00:13:40] Jeremy: Nice [00:13:40] Sara: To see some really good friends for the first time in four years. [00:13:43] Jeremy: Amazing, yeah. Where did you go? [00:13:46] Sara: I did a few days in Tokyo. I did a few days in Niigata cause I was with a friend who studied abroad there. And then a few days in Kanazawa. [00:13:56] Jeremy: That's really cool, yeah. yeah, I had a friend who lived there, but they were teaching English, yeah. And, I always have a really good time when I'm out there, yeah. [00:14:08] Sara: Absolutely. If anyone out there visiting wants to go to Japan, this is your push. Go do it. Reach out to me on LinkedIn. I will help you plan. [00:14:17] Jeremy: Nice, nice. Um, yeah, I, I, I would say the same. Like, definitely, if you're thinking about it, go. And, uh, sounds like Sara will hook you up. [00:14:28] Sara: Yep, I'm your travel guide. Technical terms in Japanese [00:14:31] Jeremy: So you, you studied, uh, you, you said you had a minor in Japanese? Yeah. So, so when you were teaching there, were you teaching classes in English or was it in Japanese? [00:14:42] Sara: It was a mix. Uh, when I was hired, the job description was no Japanese needed. It was a very, like, Global, international style college, so there was a huge emphasis on learning English. They wanted us to teach only in English. My thought was, it's hard enough learning computer science in your native language, let alone a foreign language, so my lectures were in English, but I would assist the labs in japanese [00:15:14] Jeremy: Oh, nice. Okay. And then, so you were basically fluent then at the time. Middle. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. Hey, well, I think if you're able to, to help people, you know, in labs and stuff, and it's a technical topic, right? So that's gotta be kind of a, an interesting challenge [00:15:34] Sara: I did learn a lot of new computer vocabulary. Yes. [00:15:39] Jeremy: So the words are, like, a lot of them are not the same? Or, you know, for, for specifically related to programming, I guess. [00:15:46] Sara: Hmm. Yeah, there are Japanese specific words. There's a lot of loan words that we use. We. Excuse me. There's a lot of loan words that Japanese uses for computer terms, but there's plenty that are just in Japanese. For example, uh, an array is hairetsu. [00:16:08] Jeremy: Okay. [00:16:08] Sara: And like a screen or the display that your monitor is a gamen, but a keyboard would be keyboard... Kībōdo, probably. [00:16:20] Jeremy: Yeah. So just, uh, so that, they use that as a loan word, I guess. But I'm not sure why not the other two. [00:16:27] Sara: Yeah, it's a mystery. [00:16:29] Jeremy: So it's just, it's just a total mix. Yeah. I'm just picturing you thinking like, okay, is it the English word or is it the Japanese word? You know, like each time you're thinking of a technical term. Yeah. [00:16:39] Sara: Mm hmm. I mostly, I, I I went to the internet. I searched for Japanese computer term dictionary website, and kind of just studied the terms. I also paid a lot of attention to the Japanese professors when they were teaching, what words they were using. Tried to integrate. Also, I was able to lean on my study abroad, because it was a technical Japanese, like there were classes that we took that was on technical Japanese. Computer usage, and also eco technology, like green technology. So I had learned a bunch of them previously. [00:17:16] Jeremy: Mm. So was that for like a summer or a year or something [00:17:20] Sara: It was six weeks [00:17:21] Jeremy: Six weeks. [00:17:21] Sara: During the summer, [00:17:22] Jeremy: Got it. So that's okay. So like, yeah, that must have been an experience like going to, I'm assuming that's the first time you had been [00:17:30] Sara: It was actually the second time [00:17:31] Jeremy: The second [00:17:32] Sara: Yeah. That was in 2010 that I studied abroad. [00:17:35] Jeremy: And then the classes, they were in Japanese or? Yeah. Yeah. That's, uh, that's, that's full immersion right there. [00:17:42] Sara: It was, it was very funny in the, in the very first lesson of kind of just the general language course, there was a student that was asking, I, how do I say this? I don't know this. And she was like, Nihongo de. [00:17:55] Jeremy: Oh (laughs) ! [00:17:56] Sara: You must, must ask your question only in [00:17:59] Jeremy: Yeah, Programming resources in Japanesez [00:17:59] Jeremy: yeah. yeah. That's awesome. So, so it's like, I guess the, the professors, they spoke English, but they were really, really pushing you, like, speak Japanese. Yeah, that's awesome. and maybe this is my bias because I'm an English native, but when you look up. Resources, like you look up blog posts and Stack Overflow and all this stuff. It's all in English, right? So I'm wondering for your, your students, when, when they would search, like, I got this error, you know, what do I do about it? Are they looking at the English pages or are they, you know, you know what I mean? [00:18:31] Sara: There are Japanese resources that they would use. They love Guguru (Google) sensei. [00:18:36] Jeremy: Ah okay. Okay. [00:18:38] Sara: Um, but yeah, there are plenty of Japanese language stack overflow equivalents. I'm not sure if they have stack overflow specifically in Japanese. But there are sites like that, that they, that they used. Some of the more invested students would also use English resources, but that was a minority. [00:19:00] Jeremy: Interesting. So there's a, there's a big enough community, I suppose, of people posting and answering questions and stuff where it's, you don't feel like, there aren't people doing the same thing as you out there. [00:19:14] Sara: Absolutely. Yeah. There's, a large world of software development in Japan, that we don't get to hear. There are questions and answers over here because of that language barrier. [00:19:26] Jeremy: Yeah. I would be, like, kind of curious to, to see, the, the languages and the types of problems they have, if they were similar or if it's, like, I don't know, just different. [00:19:38] Sara: Yeah, now I'm interested in that too, and I bet you there is a lot of research that we could do on Ruby, since Ruby is Japanese. [00:19:51] Jeremy: Right. cause something I've, I've often heard is that, when somebody says they're working with Ruby, Here in, um, the United States, a lot of times people assume it's like, Oh, you're doing a Rails app, [00:20:02] Sara: Mm hmm. [00:20:03] Jeremy: Almost, almost everybody who's using Ruby, not everyone, but you know, the majority I think are using it because of Rails. And I've heard that in Japan, there's actually a lot more usage that's, that's not tied to Rails. [00:20:16] Sara: I've also heard that, and I get the sense of that from RubyKaigi as well. Which I have never been lucky enough to attend. But, yeah, the talks that come out of RubyKaigi, very technical, low to the metal of Ruby, because there's that community that's using it for things other than Rails, other than web apps. [00:20:36] Jeremy: Yeah, I think, one of the ones, I don't know if it was a talk or not, but, somebody was saying that there is Ruby in space. [00:20:42] Sara: That's awesome. Ruby's everywhere. LAN parties in college [00:20:44] Jeremy: So yeah, I guess like another thing I saw, during your time at Rochester is you were, involved with like, there's like a gaming club I wonder if you could talk a little bit about your experience with that. [00:20:55] Sara: Absolutely, I can. So, at RIT, I was an executive board member for three or four years at the Electronic Gaming Society. EGS for short, uh, we hosted weekly console game nights in, the student alumni union area, where there's open space, kind of like a cafeteria. We also hosted quarterly land parties, and we would actually get people from out of state sometimes who weren't even students to come. Uh, and we would usually host the bigger ones in the field house, which is also where concerts are held. And we would hold the smaller ones in conference rooms. I think when I started in 2006, the, the, the LANs were pretty small, maybe like 50, 50 people bring your, your, your huge CRT monitor tower in. [00:21:57] Jeremy: Oh yeah, [00:21:57] Sara: In And then by the time I left in 2012. we were over 300 people for a weekend LAN party, um, and we were actually drawing more power than concerts do. [00:22:13] Jeremy: Incredible. what were, what were people playing at the time? Like when they would the LANs like, [00:22:18] Sara: Yep. Fortnite, early League of Legends, Call of Duty. Battlegrounds. And then also just like fun indie games like Armagedtron, which is kind of like a racing game in the style of [00:22:37] Jeremy: okay. Oh, okay, [00:22:39] Sara: Um, any, there are some like fun browser games where you could just mess with each other. Jackbox. Yeah. [00:22:49] Jeremy: Yeah, it's, it's interesting that, you know, you're talking about stuff like Fortnite and, um, what is it? Battlegrounds is [00:22:55] Sara: not Fortnite. Team Fortress. [00:22:58] Jeremy: Oh Team Fortress! [00:22:59] Sara: Sorry. Yeah. Oh, yeah, I got my, my names mixed up. Fortnite, I think, did not exist at the time, but Team Fortress was big. [00:23:11] Jeremy: Yeah. that's really cool that you're able to get such a big group there. is there something about Rochester, I guess, that that was able to bring together this many people for like these big LAN events? Because I'm... I mean, I'm not sure how it is elsewhere, but I feel like that's probably not what was happening elsewhere in the country. [00:23:31] Sara: Yeah, I mean, if you've ever been to, um, DreamHack, that's, that's a huge LAN party and game convention, that's fun. so... EGS started in the early 2000s, even before I joined, and was just a committed group of people. RIT was a very largely technical school. The majority of students were there for math, science, engineering, or they were in the computer college, [00:24:01] Jeremy: Oh, okay. [00:24:01] Sara: GCIS, G C C I S, the Gossano College of Computing and Information Sciences. So there was a lot of us there. [00:24:10] Jeremy: That does make sense. I mean, it's, it's sort of this, this bias that when there's people doing, uh, technical stuff like software, um, you know, and just IT, [00:24:21] Sara: Mm hmm. [00:24:23] Jeremy: there's kind of this assumption that's like, oh, maybe they play games. And it seems like that was accurate [00:24:27] Sara: It was absolutely accurate. And there were plenty of people that came from different majors. but when I started, there were 17, 000 students and so that's a lot of students and obviously not everyone came to our weekly meetings, but we had enough dedicated people that were on the eboard driving, You know, marketing and advertising for, for our events and things like that, that we were able to get, the good community going. I, I wasn't part of it, but the anime club at RIT is also huge. They run a convention every year that is huge, ToraCon, um. And I think it's just kind of the confluence of there being a lot of geeks and nerds on campus and Rochester is a college town. There's maybe like 10 other universities in [00:25:17] Jeremy: Well, sounds like it was a good time. [00:25:19] Sara: Absolutely would recommend. Strong Museum of Play [00:25:22] Jeremy: I've never, I've never been, but the one thing I have heard about Rochester is there's the, the Strong Museum of Play. [00:25:29] Sara: Yeah, that place is so much fun, even as an adult. It's kind of like, um, the, the Children's Museum in Indiana for, for those that might know that. it just has all the historical toys and pop culture and interactive exhibits. It's so fun. [00:25:48] Jeremy: it's not quite the same, but it, when you were mentioning the Children's Museum in, um, I think it's in St. Louis, there's, uh, it's called the City Museum and it's like a, it's like a giant playground, you know, indoors, outdoors, and it's not just for kids, right? And actually some of this stuff seems like kind of sketch in terms of like, you could kind of hurt yourself, you know, climbing [00:26:10] Sara: When was this made? [00:26:12] Jeremy: I'm not sure, but, uh, [00:26:14] Sara: before regulations maybe. ha. [00:26:16] Jeremy: Yeah. It's, uh, but it's really cool. So at the, at the Museum of Play, though, is it, There's like a video game component, right? But then there's also, like, other types of things, [00:26:26] Sara: Yeah, they have, like, a whole section of the museum that's really, really old toys on display, like, 1900s, 1800s. Um, they have a whole Sesame Street section, and other things like that. Yeah. From Java to Ruby [00:26:42] Jeremy: Check it out if you're in Rochester. maybe now we could talk a little bit about, so like now you're working at Thoughtbot as a Ruby developer. but before we started recording, you were telling me that you started, working with Java. And there was like a, a long path I suppose, you know, changing languages. So maybe you can talk a little bit about your experience there. [00:27:06] Sara: Yeah. for other folks who have switched languages, this might be a familiar story for you, where once you get a job in one technology or one stack, one language, you kind of get typecast after a while. Your next job is probably going to be in the same language, same stack. Companies, they hire based on technology and So, it might be hard, even if you've been playing around with Ruby in your free time, to break, make that barrier jump from one language to another, one stack to another. I mean, these technologies, they can take a little while to ramp up on. They can be a little bit different, especially if you're going from a non object oriented language to an object oriented, don't. Lose hope. (laughs) If you have an interest in Ruby and you're not a Rubyist right now, there's a good company for you that will give you a chance. That's the key that I learned, is as a software developer, the skills that you have that are the most important are not the language that you know. It's the type of thinking that you do, the problem solving, communication, documentation, knowledge sharing, Supporting each other, and as Saron the keynote speaker on Wednesday said, the, the word is love. [00:28:35] Jeremy: [00:28:35] Sara: So when I was job hunting, it was really valuable for me to include those important aspects in my skill, in my resume, in my CV, in my interviews, that like, I'm newer to this language because I had learned it at a rudimentary level before. Never worked in it really professionally for a long time. Um, when I was applying, it was like, look, I'm good at ramping up in technologies. I have been doing software for a long time, and I'm very comfortable with the idea of planning, documenting, problem solving. Give me a chance, please. I was lucky enough to find my place at a company that would give me a chance. Test Double hired me in 2019 as a remote. Software Consultant, and it changed my life. [00:29:34] Jeremy: What, what was it about, Ruby that I'm assuming that this is something that you maybe did in your spare time where you were playing with Ruby or? [00:29:43] Sara: I am one of those people that don't really code in their spare time, which I think is valuable for people to say. The image of a software developer being, well, if you're not coding in your spare time, then you're not passionate about it. That's a myth. That's not true. Some of us, we have other hobbies. I have lots of hobbies. Coding is not the one that I carry outside of the workplace, usually, but, I worked at a company called Constant Contact in 2014 and 2015. And while I was there, I was able to learn Ruby on Rails. [00:30:23] Jeremy: Oh, okay. So that was sort of, I guess, your experience there, on the job. I guess you enjoyed something about the language or something about Rails and then that's what made you decide, like, I would really love to, to... do more of this [00:30:38] Sara: Absolutely. It was amazing. It's such a fun language. The first time I heard about it was in college, maybe 2008 or 2009. And I remember learning, this looks like such a fun language. This looks like it would be so interesting to learn. And I didn't think about it again until 2014. And then I was programming in it. Coming from a Java mindset and it blew my mind, the Rails magic also, I was like, what is happening? This is so cool. Because of my typecasting sort of situation of Java, I wasn't able to get back to it until 2019. And I don't want to leave. I'm so happy. I love the language. I love the community. It's fun. [00:31:32] Jeremy: I can totally see that. I mean, when I first tried out Rails, yeah, it, like, you mentioned the magic, and I know some people are like, ah, I don't like the magic, but when, I think, once I saw what you could do, And how, sort of, little you needed to write, and the fact that so many projects kind of look the same. Um, yeah, that really clicked for me, and I really appreciated that. think that and the Rails console. I think the console is amazing. [00:32:05] Sara: Being able to just check real quick. Hmm, I wonder if this will work. Wait, no, I can check right now. I [00:32:12] Jeremy: And I think that's an important point you brought up too, about, like, not... the, the stereotype and I, I kind of, you know, showed it here where I assumed like, Oh, you were doing Java and then you moved to Ruby. It must've been because you were doing Ruby on the side and thought like, Oh, this is cool. I want to do it for my job. but I, I thought that's really cool that you were able to, not only that you, you don't do the programming stuff outside of work, but that you were able to, to find an opportunity where you could try something different, you know, in your job where you're still being paid. And I wonder, was there any, was there any specific intention behind, like, when you took that job, it was so that I can try something different, or did it just kind of happen? I'm curious what your... The appeal of consulting [00:32:58] Sara: I was wanting to try something different. I also really wanted to get into consulting. [00:33:04] Jeremy: Hmm. [00:33:05] Sara: I have ADHD. And working at a product company long term, I think, was never really going to work out for me. another thing you might notice in my LinkedIn is that a lot of my stays at companies have been relatively short. Because, I don't know, I, my brain gets bored. The consultancy environment is... Perfect. You can go to different clients, different engagements, meet new people, learn a different stack, learn how other people are doing things, help them be better, and maybe every two weeks, two months, three months, six months, a year, change and do it all over again. For some people, that sounds awful. For me, it's perfect. [00:33:51] Jeremy: Yeah, I hadn't thought about that with, with consulting. cause I, I suppose, so you said it's, it's usually about half a year between projects or is It [00:34:01] Sara: varies [00:34:01] Jeremy: It varies widely. [00:34:02] Sara: Widely. I think we try to hit the sweet spot of 3-6 months. For an individual working on a project, the actual contract engagement might be longer than that, but, yeah. Maintainers don't get enough credit [00:34:13] Jeremy: Yeah. And, and your point about how some people, they like to jump on different things and some people like to, to stick to the same thing. I mean, that, that makes a lot of, sense in terms of, I think maintaining software and like building new software. It's, they're both development, [00:34:32] Sara: Mm hmm. [00:34:32] Jeremy: they're very different. Right. [00:34:35] Sara: It's so funny that you bring that up because I highly gravitate towards maintaining over making. I love going to different projects, but I have very little interest in Greenfield, very little interest in making something new. I want to get into the weeds, into 10 years that nobody wants to deal with because the weeds are so high and there's dragons in there. I want to cut it away. I want to add documentation. I want to make it better. It's so important for us to maintain our software. It doesn't get nearly enough credit. The people that work on open source, the people that are doing maintenance work on, on apps internally, externally, Upgrades, making sure dependencies are all good and safe and secure. love that stuff. [00:35:29] Jeremy: That's awesome. We, we need more of you. (laughs) [00:35:31] Sara: There's plenty of us out there, but we don't get the credit (laughs) [00:35:34] Jeremy: Yeah, because it's like with maintenance, well, I would say probably both in companies and in open source when everything is working. Then Nobody nobody knows. Nobody says anything. They're just like, Oh, that's great. It's working. And then if it breaks, then everyone's upset. [00:35:51] Sara: Exactly. [00:35:53] Jeremy: And so like, yeah, you're just there to get yelled at when something goes wrong. But when everything's going good, it's like, [00:35:59] Sara: A job well done is, I was never here. [00:36:02] Jeremy: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I don't know how. To, you know, to fix that, I mean, when you think about open source maintainers, right, like a big thing is, is, is burnout, right? Where you are keeping the internet and all of our applications running and, you know, what you get for it is people yelling at you and the issues, right? [00:36:23] Sara: Yeah, it's hard. And I think I actually. Submitted a talk to RubyConf this year about this topic. It didn't get picked. That's okay. Um, we all make mistakes. I'm going to try to give it somewhere in the future, but I think one of the important things that we as an industry should strive for is giving glory. Giving support and kudos to maintenance work. I've been trying to do that. slash I have been doing that at ThoughtBot by, at some cadence. I have been putting out a blog post to the ThoughtBot blog called. This week in open source, the time period that is covered might be a week or longer in those posts. I give a summary of all of the commits that have been made to our open source projects. And the people that made those contributions with highlighting to new version releases, including patch level. And I do this. The time I, I, I took up the torch of doing this from a co worker, Mike Burns, who used to do it 10 years ago. I do this so that people can get acknowledgement for the work they do, even if it's fixing a broken link, even if it's updating some words that maybe don't make sense. All of it is valuable. [00:37:54] Jeremy: Definitely. Yeah. I mean, I, I think that, um, yeah, what's visible to people is when there's a new feature or an API change and Yeah, it's just, uh, people don't, I think a lot of people don't realize, like, how much work goes into just keeping everything running. [00:38:14] Sara: Mm hmm. Especially in the world of open source and Ruby on Rails, all the gems, there's so many different things coming out, things that suddenly this is not compatible. Suddenly you need to change something in your code because a dependency, however many steps apart has changed and it's hard work. The people that do those things are amazing. [00:38:41] Jeremy: So if anybody listening does that work, we, we appreciate you. [00:38:45] Sara: We salute you. Thank you. And if you're interested in contributing to ThoughtBot open source, we have lots of repos. There's one out there for you. Thoughts on RubyConf [00:38:54] Jeremy: You've been doing programming for quite a while, and, you're here at, at RubyConf. I wonder what kind of brings you to these, these conferences? Like, what do you get out of them? Um, I guess, how was this one? That sort of thing. [00:39:09] Sara: Well, first, this one was sick. This one was awesome. Uh, Ruby central pulled out all the stops and that DJ on Monday. In the event, in the exhibit hall. Wow. Amazing. So he told me that he was going to put his set up on Spotify, on Weedmaps Spotify, so go check it out. Anyway, I come to these conferences for people. I just love connecting with people. Those listening might notice that I'm an extrovert. I work remotely. A lot of us work remotely these days. this is an opportunity to see some of my coworkers. There's seven of us here. It's an opportunity to see people I only see at conferences, of which there are a lot. It's a chance to connect with people I've only met on Mastodon, or LinkedIn, or Stack Overflow. It's a chance to meet wonderful podcasters who are putting out great content, keeping our community alive. That's, that's the key for me. And the talks are wonderful, but honestly, they're just a side effect for me. They just come as a result of being here. [00:40:16] Jeremy: Yeah, it's kind of a unique opportunity, you know, to have so many of your, your colleagues and to just all be in the same place. And you know that anybody you talk to here, like if you talk about Ruby or software, they're not going to look at you and go like, I don't know what you're talking about. Like everybody here has at least that in common. So it's, yeah, it's a really cool experience to, to be able to chat with anybody. And it's like, You're all on the same page, [00:40:42] Sara: Mm hmm. We're all in this boat together. [00:40:45] Jeremy: Yup, that we got to keep, got to keep afloat according to matz [00:40:49] Sara: Gotta keep it afloat, yeah. [00:40:51] Jeremy: Though I was like, I was pretty impressed by like during his, his keynote and he had asked, you know, how many of you here, it's your first RubyConf and it felt like it was over half the room. [00:41:04] Sara: Yeah, I got the same sense. I was very glad to see that, very impressed. My first RubyConf was and it was the same sort of showing of [00:41:14] Jeremy: Nice, yeah. Yeah, actually, that was my first one, too. [00:41:17] Sara: Nice! [00:41:19] Jeremy: Uh, that was Nashville, Yeah, yeah, yeah. So it's, yeah, it's really interesting to see because, the meme online is probably like, Ah, Ruby is dead, or Rails is dead. But like you come to these conferences and yeah, there's, there's so many new people. There's like new people that are learning it and experiencing it and, you know, enjoying it the same way we are. So I, I really hope that the, the community can really, yeah, keep this going. [00:41:49] Sara: Continue, continue to grow and share. I love that we had first timer buttons, buttons where people could self identify as this is my first RubyConf and, and then that opens a conversation immediately. It's like, how are you liking it? What was your favorite talk? [00:42:08] Jeremy: Yeah, that's awesome. okay, I think that's probably a good place to start wrapping it. But is there anything else you wanted to mention or thought we should have talked about? [00:42:18] Sara: Can I do a plug for thoughtbot? [00:42:20] Jeremy: yeah, go for it. [00:42:21] Sara: Alright. For those of you out there that might not know what ThoughtBot does, we are a full software lifecycle or company lifecycle consultancy, so we do everything from market fit and rapid prototyping to MVPs to helping with developed companies, developed teams, maybe do a little bit of a Boost when you have a deadline or doing some tech debt. Pay down. We also have a DevOps team, so if you have an idea or a company or a team, you want a little bit of support, we have been around for 20 years. We are here for you. Reach out to us at thoughtbot.com. [00:43:02] Jeremy: I guess the thing about Thoughtbot is that, within the Ruby community specifically, they've been so involved with sponsorships and, and podcasts. And so, uh, when you hear about consultancies, a lot of times it's kind of like, well, I don't know, are they like any good? Do they know what they're doing? But I, I feel like, ThoughtBot has had enough, like enough of a public record. I feel It's like, okay, if you, if you hire them, um, you should be in good hands. [00:43:30] Sara: Yeah. If you have any questions about our abilities, read the blog. [00:43:35] Jeremy: It is a good blog. Sometimes when I'm, uh, searching for how to do something in Rails, it'll pop up, [00:43:40] Sara: Mm hmm. Me too. Every question I ask, one of the first results is our own blog. I'm like, oh yeah, that makes sense. [00:43:47] Jeremy: Probably the peak is if you've written the blog. [00:43:50] Sara: That has happened to my coworkers They're like, wait, I wrote a blog about this nine years ago. [00:43:55] Jeremy: Yeah, yeah. So maybe, maybe that'll happen to you soon. I, I know definitely people who do, um, Stack Overflow. And it's like, Oh, I like, this is a good answer. Oh, I wrote this. (laughs) yeah. Well, Sara, thank you so much for, for chatting with me today. [00:44:13] Sara: Absolutely, Jeremy. Thank you so much for having me. I was really glad to chat today.

Jonny Nicol is back to take you through another action-packed weekend of J1 football. In part 1 (start to 16:30), Jonny was joined by Neil Debnam to discuss Hiroshima against Kawasaki, and Frontale more generally.   In part 2 (16:30 to 30:05), Jonny reviews 4 games (Fukuoka v Niigata, Urawa v Nagoya, Kashima v Tosu, Gamba v Shonan) and reveals his Player of the Round.   Then, in part 3 (30:05 to end), Jonny looks at the remaining 4 games (Kyoto v Sapporo, Kobe v Kashiwa, Yokohama F. Marino v FC Tokyo, Yokohama FC v Cerezo), hands out his Under-23 Player of the Round, and previews the matchday 25 fixtures.   Thanks to Jonny for another excellent episode, and to Neil for his guest appearance this week. Thank you to everyone who downloads and listens, especially our Patreon subscribers for their support. Hope everyone enjoys the episode!  

With summer holidays in full swing, Jonny Nicol files solo this week to bring us a full review of last weekend's J1 action (Round 23 of the top-flight season). In Part 1 (Start to 12:38), Jonny reviews a trio of big games from the Round 23 slate (Kawasaki v Kobe, Yokohama Marinos v Gamba Osaka, and Nagoya v Kashima), as well as revealing his Under-23 Player of the Round. Then in Part 2 (12:38 to 19:53), Jonny casts his forensic Nicol-vision over three more matches (Kashiwa v Cerezo Osaka, Fukuoka v Yokohama FC, and Niigata v Shonan), and announces his overall Player of the Round. To finish things off in Part 3 (19:53 to Finish), Jonny talks about Hiroshima v Urawa, FC Tokyo v Kyoto, and Sapporo v Tosu, then gives us an in-depth preview of the forthcoming Round 24 fixtures. Hope everyone enjoys the pod - special thanks to Jonny for taking time out of his well-earned vacation to record this week!

After the short summer break, J1 was back with a vengeance last weekend, and guest host Jonny Nicol is on hand to run us through all of the key points from a busy (and very hot) Matchday 22 in the Japanese top flight. In Part 1 (Start to 08:45), Jonny reviews four of the weekend fixtures (Shonan v Hiroshima, Nagoya v Niigata, Kashima v Sapporo, and Cerezo Osaka v FC Tokyo), and reveals his pick for Player of the Round. Then in Part 2 (08:50 to 18:34), Jonny looks back at four more of the Matchday 22 games (Kawasaki v Gamba Osaka, Kyoto v Kashiwa, Tosu v Fukuoka, and Urawa v Yokohama Marinos). Jonny also hands out a gong for Under-23 Player of the Round (and it's a name that JTET listeners will also be familiar with). To conclude this week's pod, in Part 3 (18:38 to Finish) Jonny sat down for a chat with Jon Steele (nope, me neither). The boys discussed Yokohama FC's home game against Kobe from the weekend, answered a listener question or two, then worked together to preview the upcoming Matchday 23 slate (all games taking place this coming weekend). Hope everybody enjoys the show!

Warren comes up with a messy, messy review, but don't let that deter you, because night 5 was something special! Night 5: July 21, 2023 from the Aore Nagaoka in Niigata. A BLOCK MATCHES Gabriel Kidd vs. Ren Narita Chase Owens vs. Hikuleo Kaito Kiyomiya vs. Shota Umino Yota Tsuji vs. SANADA B BLOCK MATCHES Tanga Loa vs. YOSHI-HASHI Great-O-Khan vs. El Phantasmo KENTA vs. Will Ospreay Kazuchika Okada vs. Taichi

We're in Niigata, Japan, with Greg Goodmacher, a freelance writer and hot spring addict. We talk about competing in the International Snowball Fight, exploring the Murakami Garden Exhibitions and visiting Sado Island.  Show notes & our 1-page guide are at https://WeTravelThere.com/niigata  Acorns invests your spare change automatically on every purchase and earns Found Money at participating retailers. It's a great way to save for travel. For a limited time, sign up at wetravelthere.com/acorns & we'll both earn $5.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen sat down for an exclusive interview with Bloomberg News. She speaks with Bloomberg's Annmarie Hordern on the sidelines of a Group of Seven gathering of finance officials in Niigata, Japan. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

 US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen sat down for an exclusive interview with Bloomberg News. She speaks with Bloomberg's Annmarie Hordern on the sidelines of a Group of Seven gathering of finance officials in Niigata, Japan. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.