apple iPhone 3GS

Today, Apple's iPhone 3GS was released in Japan. I have gotten it. After touching this cool gadget for a few hours, I remembered a phrase "Invention is often the mother of necessity" in Jared Diamond's fascinating book "Guns, Germs and Steel"

"Invention is often the mother of necessity"? Is vice versa real, isn't it? I thought so. However, Diamond wrote about a good example for the phrase. It is the Thomas Edison's phonograph. When he built his first phonograph, he made ten of aims of it. His aim was to "preserve the last words of dying people", etc. but not the "reproduction of music". When other entrepreneurs created jukeboxes, Edison objected to this arrangement of his "serious" invention. He didn't invent the phonograph for his necessity of wanting to listen to J.S. Bach's English Suite.

Is there relationship between the above example and the iPhone? The reason why is: As I used my iPhone for the first time, I was convinced that this tool wasn't created by the necessity for recovering conventional cell phone's shortage. This gadget makes a user realize "A daily life will become less interesting without iPhone" by using it. Invention is often the mother of necessity, I also think.

Actually, I didn't think that I would buy it last month. I already have a cell phone and I was satisfied with it. In addition, I work for a telecommunication company and iPhone's carrier in Japan is the rival of my company. To have iPhone was out of the question for me.

Why did I change my mind? On 9th of June, Apple introduced iPhone 3GS, not iPod touch 64GB. I was longing for the iPod touch 64GB because my iPod was an old version (released five years ago, b/w screen and only 20GB storage which isn't enough for me), therefore I was disappointed at the news.

However, after knowing that iPhone 3GS series have a 32GB model, my disappointment gradually changed. At first, I thought that 32GB wasn't enough for my music, pictures and movies (50GB). So I had wanted iPod touch 64GB, not already-released 32GB. But did I need to carry all of my music, pictures and movies? Actually, is 32GB model enough for my selected library? As a trial, I made my selected library from 7000 tunes, 9000 pictures, 100 movies. The size of it is under 30GB.

Next, I begun to survey the communication charge system of iPhone in Japan. Judging from a conclusion, iPhone's communication charge isn't new burden for me. I can purchase iPhone 32GB cheaper than iPod touch 32GB. The difference can make up the added cell phone charge. So "my old cell phone charge + iPod touch price" is nearly equal to "my old cell phone charge + iPhone price + iPhone communication charge for two years". The communication function and available area of iPod touch is limited, but iPhone isn't. Same price, Higher function.

The last reason that I want iPhone is the attractive applications and functions. They make get my life, in paticular in a commuter train, better. Not only reading blogs by Google RSS reader, but also reading downloaded public domain novels with beautiful font for free (my cell phone isn't available for them.) Enjoying my family's and friends' pictures and my son's movies (my cell phone is available for them but not smoothly and smaller screen size than iPhone).

Today is Friday. However, I'm looking forward to Monday. I want to know how my commuting life is changed by iPhone?

Top tunes on my iPod in May, 2009

1. Elvis Costello / Radio, Radio
2. Elvis Costello / You Bowed Down
3. Elvis Costello / Pony St.
4. Wendy James / Puppet Girl
5. Wendy James / This Is A Test
6. Elvis Costello / No Action
7. Elvis Costello / The Other Side Of Summer
8. Stevie Wonder / Superstition
9. Paul McCartney / All Shook Up
10. Rufus Wainwright / California
11. Flipper's Guitar / The Chime will Ring
12. Radiohead / Airbag
13. The Script / We Cry
14. Yellow Magic Orchestra / PERSPECTIVE
15. Bach, J.S. / Inventions No.14 in B♭-maj. BWV 785（Takahiro Sonoda）
16. Bach, J.S. / Sinfonias No.14 in B♭-maj. BWV 800（Takahiro Sonoda）
17. Billy Joel / The Longest Time
18. Paul McCartney / Don't Get Around Much Anymore
19. Prince & The N.P.G. / Sexy M.F.

Last month, I realized that I love Pete Thomas's drumming, so I made a playlist of him on my iPod. Consequently, the Top seven tunes and No.10 are tunes he played his drums. My most favorite of the playlist is No.6.

No.7 is the special song that I am attached to among Elvis Costello's works. I have been fond of it since it was released in 1991. Apparently, I have a tendency to love the songs that were inspired by The Beach Boys. For instance, The Beatles / Back in the USSR, Dukes of Stratosphere / Pale and Precious, L<>R / Now That Summer is Here, etc. Costello's song is one of them.

Whenever I hear the word "groove", I remember No.8. There are many tunes that cannot remain the great feeling when they are interpreted to musical scores, this tune is the typical case, I think. This tune's drums, bass, guitar and brass section have awesome "groove" and nobody can't write it down to a musical score.

No.13 is the one which my English teacher (English lady) told me. No.15 is miraculous music: there is merely only one short phrase and it is repeated, that's all. But I feel not boredom but ethereal melody. J.S. Bach's talents made many works like this tune.

Haruki Murakami "1Q84"

Spoiler Warning: I didn't reveal the essence / the ending of this story on this entry, but write about some parts of this story. If you want to read Murakami's latest work without any advance knowledge, I recommend you to leave this entry.

For non-natives of Japanese: In Japanese, the pronunciation of "9" is the same of "Q". Why "1Q84?" not "1984"? After you read this book, you'll find the meaning.










[Introduction]
In 1984, Tokyo. Aomame (female), nearly thirty years old, is an instructor at a luxury sports club. She also has another job requiring "expertise and training". Having done the job, she gets out of a taxi on a heavily-congested Metropolitan Expressway, and begins to walk towards the emergency stairway to the ground.
Tengo (male), nearly thirty years old, is a math teacher of a prep school and sometimes submits his novels into contests for new novelists. An editor he knows approaches him to rewrite a prodigious novel "Air pupa" which was wrote by a female senior high school student.


[My impression]
Like other Haruki Murakami's full-length novels, this work made me to want to discuss it with other people who have read this novel. As usual, he never explains to readers the meaning of the curious and heart-swaying story. It is open to interpretation, depending on us. Yes, I understand that many people think that his works don't need interpretation but impression. In both case, I want to ask and tell readers "What do you think about the events / the sentences of "1Q84"?"

Compared to other Murakami's works, this book mentioned many groups that has clear real models (for instance, Jehovah's Witnesses(Wikipedia) and The Yamagishi Association (a agriculture commune) ) and concrete place-names appeared. That adds to the realism and shows up unreal aspects of this story. However, his new style of camera-eye describing which was apparent in "After Dark" isn't found. I think that this work doesn't show Murakami's new frontier - for example, new describing style or new composition of a story, etc. This work is the successor of "Kafka on the Shore" due to the same styles of using two main characters.

Needless to say, for me, this novel is incredible excellent for being a unpredictably page-turner story, simple and wonderful appropriate metaphors, and sentences which has good rhythm and are easy to read. Such Murakami's work's brilliant characteristics have not diminished yet over time. Through fifteen hours of reading, I never felt boredom but felt seamless stimulation. I feel it is difficult to find such novels.

Nonetheless, I am not satisfied with one point. I anticipated his answer to events in this novel: violence to females and kids (not only physically but also mental). Ordinary, a story has a beginning and an ending. However, I feel that this work has a beginning but doesn't have the ending of the events. (This is my feeling, maybe other people have other feelings.) Due to this point and other points (I refrain to explain them in detail now), I think this novel have not completed. There is possibility to release the sequel in future, I anticipate.

Above all, I want to discuss this Murakami's latest work – How do you think / feel about the events / the sentences? When is the English version released?

Top tunes on my iPod in April, 2009

1. Ryuichi Sakamoto / behind the mask (live_2009_3_28)
2. Ryuichi Sakamoto / to stanford
3. Paul McCartney / Don't Get Around Much Anymore
4. Ryuichi Sakamoto / ice
5. Yellow Magic Orchestra / Behind The Mask
6. Ryuichi Sakamoto / disko
7. Ryuichi Sakamoto / glacier
8. The Beatles / Here, There And Everywhere
9. The Beatles / For No One
10. Ryuichi Sakamoto / +33 (live_2009_3_28)
11. Elvis Costello / No Action
12. The Beatles / Taxman
13. The Beatles / Eleanor Rigby
14. The Beatles / She Said She Said
15. The Beatles / And Your Bird Can Sing
16. The Beatles / I Want To Tell You

1. is the live version that I listened to admiringly for its unique arrange which is different to the original that I loved from the start. This tune was released on iTunes Store the day after the concert, I think the world is getting better. 5. is the original of 1., it was pulled up in this ranking because I found its attraction again by 1.

3. became to one of my heavy rotations since my friend played it on his iPod at a Japanese hotel of Izu. Paul McCartney's talent made the tune transformed from Duke Ellintong's jazz standard to a cheerful rock'n roll number.

8. to 16. (except 10. and 11.) are obviously the consequences of reading "Here, There and Everywhere" by Geoff Emerick. Revolver is a great album, I admit it time and again.

I always listen to the drum line of 11. mainly even its melody also good. The drummer, Pete Thomas, may be my most favorite drummer because of his drumming like singing.

A classical ryokan(Japanese style hotel) in Izu

After a 4-hour train journey, I visited a classical ryokan (Japanese style hotel) with my friends. This ryokan, Ochiairou-Murakami is not appropriate for me, ordinary people. This was constructed by skillful carpenters who were ordered to by a millionaire. He asked them to make a ryokan as you like, no matter how much it costs. So the construction and art of this ryokan is extraordinary fine, of course the accommodation fee is so expensive. However, one of my friends knows the ryokan owner so we were able to stay there for a reduced cost. Therefore we could stay there in other world.



constructed in 1933 to 1937.




Entrance. Japanese younger people sometimes feel classical Japanese design is tired and old-fashioned, not beautiful. However, I feel this design as modern, simple and beautiful.




The room we stayed. This suite room contains other one small room and one classical western style room with a table and chairs. May I stay in such a luxurious suite?




Small lighting window made with wood and paper. This design is also modern, simple and beautiful. All of the rooms window designs are different.




Library room. One of my traveling dreams was to stay at a hotel which has a library room since I had read Haruki Murakami's short novel whose story was set in a library room of a hotel. My little dream has come true.


Hot spring bathes are also marvelous. There are outside natural bath and a private bath which you can reserve. Both bathes are popular Japanese style Roten-buro, which is located outside of the building (Of course there are shade screens surrounding the bathes, but sometimes in men's bath there aren't any so as to enjoy the good scenery).




Dinner was perfect for its taste, amount and looks. This is an hors d'oeuvre.




Serving eleven dishes, I was satisfied with all of those. The best one was this raw fish on the bamboo dish. I think the chef choose the best fish at the marketplace.

After dinner, we talked about our favorite music with iPod+spealers till 3:00 am.




Breakfast was also such a lot!! We had enough.




A ryokan staff opened our room window for receiving April's confort breeze. Pleasant breeze and neat Japanese garden made us calm and happy.

My friend and me participated in a tour of this ryokan building at 10:00.




Partition slide between rooms and corridors. As usual, those designs are all different.
A tour guide explained to us that carpenters of this building used precious materials. For instance, a wood board was made of a log which had been treated for becoming a perfectly flat board for thirty years.




I was impressed with this design because of the designer's playful spirit – normal designers would have never thought of such a design for a classic Japanese lighting window. It was based on a legend of a female spider in the area.




Going out of this ryokan, we went to Jyoren Falls by a rent-a-car. The falls fed us a cool and comfortable atmosphere.




For lunch, we had Japanese noodle soba with wild boars soup. I'm a big fan of soba so I visited many soba restaurants, this was one of the best dishes.

We separated at 15:00. The stay was full of delicious dishes, relaxing bath and delightful conversations.

Ochiairou-Murakami seems to be the best hotel that I have stayed at. I have traveled to fourteen nations in the world and received good accommodation at almost every location, for aspect of building's beauty, cleanness, design, dinner and bath. Of course rack rate is also No.1... Anyway, I would like to stay this in ryokan again, after I grow up more and become the man who is appropriate for this ryokan (be more gentleman).