fastpicket's recent activity
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Comment on Why you can't stay focused (and how to fix it) in ~health.mental
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Comment on What books helped you deal with the anxiety of life's uncertainties? in ~books
fastpicket LinkI think Alain de Botton's Consolations of Philosophy might be the best English-language overview of the major schools of philosophy that help deal with life's anxieties: It is a very accessible...I think Alain de Botton's Consolations of Philosophy might be the best English-language overview of the major schools of philosophy that help deal with life's anxieties:
In Consolations, de Botton attempts to console the reader through everyday problems (or at least help them to understand them) by extensively quoting and interpreting a number of philosophers. These are categorised in a number of chapters with one philosopher used in each.
Consolation for Unpopularity (Socrates)
Consolation for Not Having Enough Money (Epicurus)
Consolation for Frustration (Seneca)
Consolation for Difficulties (Nietzsche)
Consolation for Inadequacy (Montaigne)
Consolation for a Broken Heart (Schopenhauer)
It is a very accessible book, and although it has a focus on Western philosophy, it covers a lot of what you are interested in.
I ended up reading the English language versions of Seneca's letters and Epicurean philosophers after this book, as they really help me deal with the anxiety of living in an uncertain world, and finding contentment.
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Comment on There is no evidence that CBD products reduce chronic pain, and taking them is a waste of money and potentially harmful to health, new research finds in ~health
fastpicket LinkI know I'm not the only person on Tildes living with chronic pain, so I found this of interest. I'll fully admit my bias that this study (which seems sound) aligns with my experience of spending...I know I'm not the only person on Tildes living with chronic pain, so I found this of interest. I'll fully admit my bias that this study (which seems sound) aligns with my experience of spending hundreds of euros on CBD products, for no therapeutic effect.
Whenever I tell the 'true believers' of CBD this, I'm confronted with 'you must have tried the wrong strain' (tried several), 'you must have taken it wrong' (I didn't), etc. Turns out the most likely answer is that it simply doesn't work, and for some people it can work as a placebo.
There is no evidence that CBD products reduce chronic pain, and taking them is a waste of money and potentially harmful to health, according to new research led by the University of Bath.
CBD (short for cannabidiol) is one of many chemicals found naturally in the cannabis plant. It’s a popular alternative treatment for pain and is readily available in shops and online in the form of oils, tinctures, vapes, topical creams, edibles (such as gummy bears) and soft drinks.
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“CBD presents consumers with a big problem,” said Professor Chris Eccleston, who led the research from the Centre for Pain Research at Bath. “It’s touted as a cure for all pain but there’s a complete lack of quality evidence that it has any positive effects.”
He added: “It’s almost as if chronic pain patients don’t matter, and that we’re happy for people to trade on hope and despair.”
For their study, published this week in The Journal of Pain, the team – which included researchers from the Universities of Bath, Oxford and Alberta in Canada – examined research relevant to using CBD to treat pain and published in scientific journals up to late 2023.
They found:
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CBD products sold direct to consumers contain varying amounts of CBD, from none to much more than advertised.
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CBD products sold direct to consumers may contain chemicals other than CBD, some of which may be harmful and some illegal in some jurisdictions. Such chemicals include THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), the main psychoactive component of the cannabis plant.
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Of the 16 randomised controlled trials that have explored the link between pain and pharmaceutical-grade CBD, 15 have shown no positive results, with CBD being no better than placebo at relieving pain.
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A meta-analysis (which combines data from multiple studies and plays a fundamental role in evidence-based healthcare) links CBD to increased rates of serious adverse events, including liver toxicity.
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Dr Andrew Moore, study co-author and former senior pain researcher in the Nuffield Division of Anaesthetics at the University of Oxford, said: “For too many people with chronic pain, there’s no medicine that manages their pain. Chronic pain can be awful, so people are very motivated to find pain relief by any means. This makes them vulnerable to the wild promises made about CBD.”
He added that healthcare regulators appear reluctant to act against the spurious claims made by some manufacturers of CBD products, possibly because they don’t want to interfere in a booming market (the global CBD product market was estimated at US$3 billion in 2021 or £2.4 billion and is anticipated to reach US$60 billion by 2030 or £48 billion) especially when the product on sale is widely regarded as harmless.
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“What this means is that there are no consumer protections,” said Dr Moore. “And without a countervailing body to keep the CBD sellers in check, it’s unlikely that the false promises being made about the analgesic effects of CBD will slow down in the years ahead.”
The study’s authors are calling for chronic pain to be taken more seriously, with consumer protection becoming a priority.
“Untreated chronic pain is known to seriously damage quality of life, and many people live with pain every day and for the rest of their lives,” said Professor Eccleston. “Pain deserves investment in serious science to find serious solutions.”
I post this not to start an argument or invalidate anyone's solutions, as pain can be a very emotive topic. But many people are sold this product as a miracle cure-all, and it can be crushing to find out it's no more effective than drinking a glass of water - less, because a glass of water is good for your liver.
I hope this research is of value to those who are trying to find solutions to manage their chronic pain disabilities. I hope you are all doing well ❤️
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There is no evidence that CBD products reduce chronic pain, and taking them is a waste of money and potentially harmful to health, new research finds
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Comment on Elon Musk on racism, bailing out Donald Trump, hate speech, and more - The Don Lemon Show (full interview) in ~tech
fastpicket (edited )LinkVideo Summary From briefly scrubbing the video, every time Recall's summary app says 'Musk provides evidence' or 'Musk cites statistics', it seems to be bullshit. He says things like 'I've seen a...- Exemplary
Video Summary
From briefly scrubbing the video, every time Recall's summary app says 'Musk provides evidence' or 'Musk cites statistics', it seems to be bullshit. He says things like 'I've seen a study' etc, so just like any AI summary, it's quite limited in any analysis of tone, body language, or facts.
Elon Musk on Racism, Bailing Out Trump, Hate Speech, and More - The Don Lemon Show (Full Interview), created by putting the video through Recall's summarizer.
Intro (00:00:00)
- Don Lemon introduces his interview with Elon Musk and explains that it will be released on various platforms without restrictions or ground rules.
- Musk welcomes Lemon to Tesla headquarters in Austin, Texas, and mentions the company's rapid construction project.
- Musk affirms his stance as a free speech absolutist, allowing for the widest possible range of expression within legal boundaries.
- Lemon emphasizes that there are no conditions on the interview and that he welcomes Musk's willingness to engage in a lengthy conversation without sound bites.
- Musk clarifies that SpaceX has a significant facility in South Texas for building and launching SpaceX Starship, while Tesla plans to start production at a large Starlink factory near Austin.
- He assures that there will be no closures of facilities in California.
News on X (00:02:23)
- Elon Musk considers Twitter the primary source of news and information globally, particularly for real-time events.
- Twitter is expanding its content offerings to include long-form posts, essays, entire books, and up to 4-hour video segments.
- Musk emphasizes the importance of diverse viewpoints on Twitter and aims to include prominent figures from across the political spectrum, allowing users to form their own opinions.
- Despite identifying as independent, Musk votes based on issues rather than political affiliations.
- The name change from Twitter to X is permanent.
- Since his acquisition, Musk highlights improvements such as increased usage, added features like long-form text, video, and audio calling, and algorithm enhancements.
- Musk dismisses the notion of Twitter becoming a platform for conservative views and conspiracy theories, reaffirming his commitment to all viewpoints.
- Musk criticizes the previous management for alleged bias towards the far-left, citing his personal experience with hate tweets and conspiracy theories from right-wing users.
- Musk reveals a significant disparity in account suspensions and suppressions, with right-wing accounts being affected ten times more than left-wing accounts.
- Musk points out the overwhelmingly Democratic political donations by Twitter employees, indicating a strong left-leaning bias within the company.
Donald Trump and Endorsing a Candidate (00:10:07)
- Elon Musk met with Donald Trump at a friend's place for breakfast.
- Musk stated that he did not go there to meet Trump.
- Trump did most of the talking during the breakfast.
- Musk stated that Trump did not ask him for money or a donation.
- Musk mentioned that he does not plan to donate to any candidate.
- He does not want to influence the election monetarily.
- Musk will not loan money to Trump to pay his bills or legal expenses.
- Musk might endorse a candidate in the final stretch before the election, but he has not decided yet.
- He is leaning away from Joe Biden but has not made a secret of that.
- Musk's decision to not endorse anyone is not related to concerns about losing his security clearance if Biden is reelected.
- Musk clarified that not endorsing anyone does not mean it is an endorsement of Trump since there are other potential candidates.
- He will provide a detailed explanation if he decides to endorse a candidate.
- Musk thinks it is unlikely that he will contribute or donate to any candidate.
The New Tesla Roadster (00:13:04)
- The Tesla Model Y was the best-selling car globally in 2022, despite being more expensive than competitors.
- The Tesla Cybertruck has over a million orders and is considered a once-a-decade product.
- The Tesla Roadster (second generation) will be a collaboration between SpaceX and Tesla, Inc., featuring rocket technology.
- It will accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in under 1 second, making it faster than any existing sports car.
- The Roadster will have a drive-by-wire yoke similar to modern aircraft controls.
- Elon Musk believes the Roadster will be unique and unlikely to be replicated by others.
Relaxation and Video Games (00:16:46)
- Elon Musk relaxes by spending time with his children and friends.
- He enjoys playing video games, including Diablo and Quake.
- Musk appreciates the ability to play online with friends in different cities.
Tweeting and Drug Use (00:17:54)
- Elon Musk uses Twitter as a "player versus player" platform and sometimes posts controversial content while sober.
- He occasionally uses ketamine, prescribed by a doctor, to help with negative chemical states in his brain and believes it should be considered as an alternative to Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) for depression.
- Musk takes ketamine in small amounts once every other week and does not abuse it.
- He attributes his occasional depressive mind states to genetics and does not consider it a chronic condition.
- Musk does not believe his mental health issues will affect his government contracts, clearances, or Wall Street's perception of him, as his focus is on execution and value creation.
The Great Replacement Theory (00:23:19)
- Elon Musk discussed immigration policies and the "Great Replacement" on "The Don Lemon Show."
- Musk clarified that he does not endorse the "great replacement theory" but believes the Democratic Party benefit from immigration policies that increase legal immigrants in the United States, as they tend to vote Democrat and can influence electoral outcomes.
- Musk acknowledged that his understanding of the impact of illegal immigrants on the census and electoral votes may be inaccurate.
- Musk stated that he had previously apologized for posting about a conspiracy theory targeting Jews related to the "great replacement theory", and stated that he would be "cautious" about making similar statements in the future.
- Musk stated that he believes some groups funded by Jewish philanthropists are indeed anti-semitic and drew a connection between the original targeting of Jewish people by the "great replacement theory" and its current use by Democrats.
- Musk emphasized that the "great replacement theory" is a Neo-Nazism trope referenced in several extremist manifestos, including those of the Buffalo and Christchurch mass shooters.
- Musk defended quoting a tweet that referred to a "Hispanic invasion," stating that quoting something does not imply agreement with its content.
Content Moderation (00:30:03)
- Elon Musk believes that the media is not a good judge of character and that people should not care about their opinions.
- Musk supports the use of Community Notes for content moderation and believes Twitter has a responsibility to follow the law and be transparent about its content display.
- Musk disputes research suggesting an increase in hate speech on Twitter since his takeover, claiming a decrease in hateful content views.
- He advocates for moderation and transparency rather than censorship, drawing a distinction between illegal content (which Twitter removes) and harmful but legal hateful content.
- Musk emphasizes his commitment to freedom of speech and opposes censorship beyond legal boundaries, arguing that removing non-illegal content promoting hate and violence would constitute censorship.
- He believes Twitter should adhere to the laws set by citizens and encourages those seeking legal changes to engage with their elected representatives.
- Musk acknowledges the presence of hateful content on Twitter but argues that its low readership renders it inconsequential.
- He suggests that Twitter's vast size and open posting policy contribute to the existence of hate speech on the platform rather than active promotion by Twitter.
- Musk rejects the idea of shutting down the internet or Twitter, reaffirming his support for freedom of speech, even for those he disagrees with.
- He recognizes the need for guardrails and Twitter's responsibility to comply with the law.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) (00:39:15)
- Elon Musk warned that lowering medical standards due to Diversity, Equity, and Unclusion (DEI) programs could lead to increased medical errors and potential patient harm.
- EDIT TO CORRECT Lemon disputes claims that standards are being lowered for minority or women doctors at Duke University, citing specific evidence to the contrary.
- Musk pivots to the importance of maintaining high standards in the airline industry, particularly in light of incidents like the Alaska Airlines mid-flight door malfunction.
- Lemon rejected the notion that women and minority pilots are inherently less intelligent or skilled than white male pilots and stresses the significance of evaluating individuals based on their skills and merits.
- Musk cites statistics that indicate a low percentage of female and black pilots.
- Musk stated that he was for treating people based on their skills, integrity, and talents rather than implementing DEI initiatives.
- He cites studies suggesting that companies with diverse leadership teams and workers report higher innovation and financial success, countering the argument that promoting DEI leads to financial losses.
- In response to a lawsuit alleging racial harassment and retaliation against black Tesla, Inc. employees, Musk expresses surprise and highlights the positive atmosphere at the Tesla Fremont Factory plant, where he resided for three years.
Trans Rights and the Woke Mind Virus (00:51:25)
- Elon Musk believes that the term "woke" has become divisive and corrosive to society as it blames everything on race.
- He suggests that society should focus on treating people as individuals and move on from constantly rehashing the past.
- Musk acknowledges the legacy of slavery and racism in the United States but believes that constantly talking about it will not solve the issue.
- He supports free speech absolutism and believes that people should be able to choose their gender identity and pronouns without being mandated to do so by others.
- Musk recognizes that opportunities are not equal for everyone and that he has experienced discrimination despite being a white man in South Africa.
- He considers the "woke mind virus" to be fundamentally racist, sexist, and evil because it focuses on gender and race rather than people's skills and integrity.
Advertisers on X (00:59:45)
- Elon Musk prioritizes preserving freedom of speech on Twitter, even if it means losing advertising revenue, and most advertisers are returning, leading to rising advertising and subscription revenues.
- Musk attributes his intensity to his upbringing and believes his purpose is to extend consciousness into the future and make life multiplanetary.
- Despite personal challenges, Musk considers his family life to be okay and hopes to be remembered for his positive impact on humanity.
- Musk emphasizes the fragility of civilization and the importance of preserving and extending it, driven by concerns about civilizational risks and a desire to understand the nature of reality.
- Acknowledging past mistakes, Musk would use a time machine to rectify them if possible.
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Comment on Travelling to Japan for eleven days in May. Stay in Kyoto or Osaka other than Tokyo? in ~travel
fastpicket LinkI made a longer comment about a short itinerary in Japan. You can check it out if you want general tips or more information, but I'll repost the bits for Tokyo, Osaka, Nara and Kyoto, which should...- Exemplary
I made a longer comment about a short itinerary in Japan. You can check it out if you want general tips or more information, but I'll repost the bits for Tokyo, Osaka, Nara and Kyoto, which should hopefully help.
I'll write up a week long itinerary (making the assumption you're American so it's a week, sorry if that's not true). The food is great, the people are lovely, the culture is fantastic, and it's a relatively cheap holiday if you're using USD.
(Skip past the Tokyo section to get to bullet points for each location - Tokyo's only so big because it's the biggest city in the world.)
Suggested Itinerary
- Tokyo (5 nights)
- Osaka (day trip) on the way to,
- Nara (2 nights)
- Kyoto (day trip/s) while staying in Nara
- Tokyo (rest of trip).
Start: Tokyo
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Time: The rest of your lives. But if you've got limited time, 2-3 days when you're fully awake.
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Accomodation: Recommend Nestay Inn 101, 202 or 303 in a suburb called Otsuka. AirBnB is illegal now in most of Tokyo, and I've had a few major strikeouts last time I was there. They are really cracking down. Nestay started up as a way to fill the gap in the market for short stay accomodation. The apartments are the size of Tokyo apartments, have all the furnishings and fun shower/toilet room you'd get from an authentic Tokyo apartment, with the benefit that you don't have to pretend to be someone's brother and sister in law if asked by nosy neighbours who will definitely report you to the cops.
Otsuka is a great place to stay because it's right at the top of the city's main rail line, the Yamanote line. Very convenient and super chill, with great food and drink around. Plus the station complex has a great drug store, and a Uniqlo for the inevitable things you need/forgot, plus delicious Japanese pastries for breakfast/a pick me up. Be very careful though - sometimes what looks like cream cheese or custard is actually mayo. If in doubt, get something with sugar on it! There's good Japanese siphon coffee at Cafe Colorado, and the best yakitori (grilled chicken) I've ever had is at an izakaya called Yakitori Kuroutadori. The owner/chef is a lovely man. It's one of the few izakayas to have craft beers in Tokyo, and as long as you show him 'no organs/offal/heart/livers' on Google translate, he'll look after you.
Tokyo doesn't have a central city - it's a collection of five major cities. Of those, the coolest/most fun is Shibuya.
From Shibuya Station: Shibuya station is the home of the famous scramble crossing (you can get a really good photo of it from the world's busiest Starbucks), the 109 building, which is home to some of Japan's most popular brands, and it's also got some really cool boutiques. The Hachiko Statue is a really great meeting point, and getting a photo with him brings good luck.
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Fashion: If you like feminine presenting clothes, you'll probably find it pretty hard to find anything to fit you, but there are some great women's shops in the three blocks all around Shibuya Station. My wife had some luck at some of the boutiques where things were one off pieces and a little longer. It's fun to window shop and try things on, even if they're hilariously short. If you like masculine presenting clothes, I'd recommend BEAMS if you want to get some cool Japanese streetwear. Just be mindful that you'll be cooler than any man in America, so use responsibily.
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Drink/Eat: Shibuya has a lot of izakayas (traditional Japanese pubs that serve food), but they're not that great. Recommend getting a drink at one of the hotels/cafes overlooking the Scramble crossing, and then going on to Izumizushi. I have eaten sushi almost everywhere in Japan, and this is, by far, the best place - far better than the Michelin starred places you have to book months in advance. When you go, ask for 'omokase', which means 'I leave it up to you [the chef]'. You'll get a selection of the day's best. This is worth splashing out for.
From Harajuku Station: Harajuku is gateway to some really cool cultural experiences, and is genuinely the coolest places in Tokyo. It's also a funnel into the city's largest tourist trap. The most important advice I can convey is do not walk down Takeshita Street, opposite the station. This is the only place in the entire country where you risk getting scammed. It's not that it's that dangerous, it's just a gross, packed, tacky street in an otherwise beautiful part of the city.
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Make sure you start off by walking down Omotesando. Omotesando is the name of the main street, but it's grown to become it's own suburb/culture. It's like... where actual Japanese people shop for luxury goods/go to have a nice time (as opposed to Roppongi, which is where Westerners/white expats go and pay twice as much).
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Omotesando has beautiful little streets, branching off of it, like the famous Cat Street. The main street has every big luxury brand store you can imagine, so at the very least it's fun to have a look around. There's a very chic shopping complex called Tokyo Plaza Harajuku - some cool shops, nice cafe, a lot of people just go there to hang out after a long day's shopping. My favourite coffee shop in Omotesando is Lattest, which serves the best coffee I've ever had (the signature Lattest), and is just really nice and chill. If you wander around Omotesando Hills, you'll see where the really rich and famous live in Tokyo. The houses are small by our standards, but by Japanese standards they're mansions. It's always fun to see how people manage to squeeze supercars into tiny parking spaces.
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Meiji Jingu Shrine is really special, and just over the road to the west of Harajuku station. It's a good way to end a day around the area, especially close to closing time of the shrine when the crowds have dissipated. It's dedicated to the Emperor Meiji, who modernised Japan, and it's the biggest/most impressive and peaceful large shrine in Tokyo. It's also really close to my favourite ballpark, Meiji Jingu Stadium, so check the schedule and see if the Tokyo Swallows are playing.
Other Tokyo Activities/Sights:
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If you get off at Tokyo Station, you'll see i) a very beautiful, restored station that was once the biggest in Japan, ii) and ii) you'll be right next to the Imperial Palace. Naturally, most of the palace is closed off to the public, but a tour of the gardens is really nice, and they'll show you what buildings they can. Touristy, but pretty neat, especially because the current emperor is a really nice man.
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Tokyo National Museum has more beautiful prints, ink art, armor, swords, ancient bronze buddhas, and neolithic stone carvings than you can possibly take in in one day. It makes the Met's Japan section look hilarious, cause the Met is like 'oooh this print is from 1895!', produced for Western diplomats, whereas the National Museum in Tokyo holds the country's Designated National Treasures, going back thousands of years. If you have any apetite for art, sculpture, design or the artistry of Japanese weapons or armor, it's well worth a visit. Plus, it's in a big, nice park called Ueno (kiiinda like Tokyo's Central Park, but less pretty), which is a nice place to walk around.
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I hate gardens, plants are boring, etc, but Rikugien, a centuries old feudal warlord Japanese garden, is such a special place to go. It's not the world's oldest Japanese garden, but it's extraordinarily beautiful, and peaceful. The founder of Mitsubishi bought the gardens from an old samurai family, restored them, and donated them to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. Sitting by the lake drinking tea is really, really nice - as is the fact that it's not just a tourist attraction, people go there to have a walk with friends, take their kids out, etc. It's a magic place.
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Senso-Ji, in Asakusa, is the largest/most impressive shrine outside of Kyoto and Nara. I like it better because outside of festival periods, there are way less other tourists. Most of Asakusa has little shrines and temples around it, so it's as close as you can get in Tokyo to seeing some Shinto and Buddhist stuff (apart from small local shrines, which are really special).
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Shinjuku is as close as Tokyo gets to 'the city'. It's the centre of some major businesses and the hub of national government. Although it has a boring name, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building offers the only free really high-rise view looking out to Mt Fuji. I really liked it the first time I went, but I had a very clear day and it was sunset - your mileage may vary.
Osaka:
It's the Chicago of Japan. It's dirtier and grittier than Tokyo, but it is on the main Shinkansen line going across the country, so it's an easy stop off. I kinda don't like Osaka as a town, but there are two reasons I stop off there most times. The castle is the only Japanese castle that's actually cool to visit (unless you wanna go waaay off track), and people go nuts over the street food.
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Osaka Castle was the biggest, baddest, craziest castle at the end of Japan's warring states period (around 1600). It got bombed during the WWII, but because of that, they rebuilt a painstakingly accurate replica that's more beautiful than most of the preserved castles around. The best thing about it is, because the insides are rebuilt, they turned it into a museum and actually explain what happened at the castle, how it was used, and make it less boring. The preserved ones are just empty wooden beams, so I way prefer visiting here. Plus, I just think it's the prettiest, but Himeji is also on your way, so you might like that better. Osaka Castle was where people ruled from, and Himeji was just a backwater hick castle, so depends what you're into.
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Dotonbori is where Osaka's famous street food mostly is. It gets pretty rowdy at night with the drunk after work crowds and sex workers, but the drunk guys are not aggressive, and the prostitutes won't bother you. If you go during the day, you can skip that part, you'll just miss the 80's neon lights. Osaka's most famous for takoyaki (balls of batter filled with little bits of octopus) and okonomiyaki (literally, 'whatever you like', a savoury pancake with... whatever you like on it). Plus there's all sorts of delicious food on a stick in Dotonbori, so if you're into food, it might be worth a stop.
Nara!: Nara's the ancient capital of Japan, and I think it's way more beautiful than Kyoto to base yourself in. Kyoto is only 50 minutes away by train, so by staying in Nara, you can cycle around, see all of the beautiful old shrines, palaces, and temples, feed the deer, and escape having to pay Kyoto prices for accomodation/food.
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Rent a bike: Best way to see the city. It's small enough that you can cycle anywhere, and it's a great way to see beautiful ancient buildings without having to get the bus.
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Feed the deer!: Nara's deer park is world famous, but you'll probably see deer curled up around the temples and shrines as you're biking around. You can buy little packs of deer cookies from street vendors for 300yen (about two bucks), and the deer are friendly guys.
Kyoto: Cards on the table, I am not a huge fan of Kyoto. It's the only place in Japan that is genuinely overcrowded, hectic, full of tourists everywhere you go, and annoying to get around. Every year the city struggles to deal with more and more tourists, and hasn't come up with an answer. The transport network is mostly buses rather than having a good subway or train system, which is a pain in the ass. Staying there means extremely jacked up prices, for worse quality accomodation and food than you'll find in Nara (or any other city in Japan).
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Fushimi Inari and Kinkakuji are the only things on this list of top attractions that (I think) are better than other ones you'd see in other parts of Japan, and both are unique and beautiful enough to put up with the hoardes. With Fushimi Inari, I usually take people really close to closing time, so that they can get their iconic picture without other tourists in the way. It's also quite beautiful and peaceful doing the walk through the torii gates without people around.
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Gion is the famous Kyoto old town, where the imperial court and shoguns would be entertained by geishas. This still happens, but it's the Prime Minsiter and CEOs, and it costs them hundreds of thousands of dollars. So, that's out of your price range, but you can try fugu (pufferfish), and Yasaka-Jinja is a beautiful shrine at night time. If you see any women in geisha make up, they are young, trainee geisha. It's considered extremely rude to take photos, distract them, etc. Every tourist bus/tour gets told this, and most of them ignore it. Other tourists will be following them around, so you'll probably see them from a mile away. Use your peripheral vision if you encounter a travelling pair. It's not like they bite or anything, they'll just be exhausted from having phones shoved in their faces all day and having to be polite.
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Activities: If you want to try traditional Japanese art forms like ikebana (flower arranging), cha-no-yu (tea ceremony), pottery, or archery (kyudo), Kyoto is the most accessible way to do it. You can book a class through TripAdvisor if any of that stuff interests you. I've done a few with friends and they've been pretty cool, but not like, life changing spiritual experiences. Just good fun.
General Tips
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Buy a Japan Rail pass. The most important thing for enjoying Japan in a short period of time is being able to get around, whenever you like! You can get these from many sites, and you redeem it when you arrive in country at some of the major stations. The easiest are probably Shinjuku Station, Shibuya Station, or Tokyo Station, as there's lots of signage. Don't hesitate to ask JR staff for help locating the JR EAST Travel Service Centre in those stations to claim your pass, as the stations can be very confusing. This pass guarantees you unlimited travel on all JR (nationally owned) railways, simply by holding up your pass at the gate. You can also book seats on any non-first class shinkansen car, which means you don't have to book flights/trains in advance. Given that each shinkansen seat is approx 50USD, and Tokyo trains are around 15USD a day, you'll make your money back very quickly.
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Travel by shinkansen (bullet train): I'd recommend booking a seat the afternoon before you intend to go. You can just rock up and hope there's a seat, but sometimes (rarely) you'll miss out, so if you've got limited time I'd suggest that.
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Don't sleep on convenience stores (konbini): Kinda like New York bodegas, with waaay more stuff. 7/11, Family Mart and Lawson have delicious meals ready to eat, snacks for the day, coffee in a can (although there are 4 million vending machines in Japan, so you should be good). They're not like American convenience stores. Lots of the Japanese populace go to konbini for a healthy, tasty lunch or dinner if they're tired from work - the quality is great. Definitely stock up before a train trip. Also, konbini are some of the few places in Japan that have trash cans. There aren't public trash cans in the streets, because people are expected to be responsible and carry their trash with them, so it can make it annoying if you are walking around. Konbini are your saviour.
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Language: Nobody's gonna expect foreigners to have good Japanese, but they'll be absolutely delighted if you try. Especially with greetings and saying thank you, they'll think you are the best people ever. Use arigatou for regular interactions with servers and customer service people (they bring you a different size/bring you food/after you've ordered), arigatou gozaimasu for the end of an interaction (paying etc, saying goodbye), and arigatou gozaimashita if you want to really convey your sincere thanks (if someone gives you directions, if you've had an excellent meal). Chuck in a little bow if you're feeling confident, and they'll faint. If food is really good, it's kinda good manners to say 'oishi!' (o-ee-shee) within the hearing of the staff and chefs so they know they've done a good job. This can be done with your mouth full - in fact, it's more polite, cause it means the food is so delicious you can't even wait to finish your first bite. Usefeul for restaurants where you're sitting opposite the chef.
The Japanese for English is 'eigo' (eh-go). Most Japanese people can read and write English very well, but are extremely shy/bad at conversation. Writing things in Notes and using Google Translate will help a lot.
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Comment on What a bunch of A-list celebs taught me about how to use my phone in ~tech
fastpicket LinkI found this article fascinating. I've recently been on a mission to cut out mindless scrolling, texting, and notification-distraction from my life, because I realised how badly it was impacting...I found this article fascinating. I've recently been on a mission to cut out mindless scrolling, texting, and notification-distraction from my life, because I realised how badly it was impacting my life. And it had destroyed my attention span.
I clicked on this link pretty prejudiced about getting any meaningful life advice from the habits of A-list celebrities, but I was surprised.
I recently read a long and torturous book by a tech commentator and artist about disconnecting. At the end of it all, their advice was 'replace your phone with birdwatching'. They also acknowledged, in a small way, that they were privileged to be able to just do nothing, whereas most people couldn't afford to (financially or socially). It left me infuriated. Of course we'd all like to sit around doing nothing all day and watching birds, or whatever our version of that is. But we fucking can't! We're not Bay Area artists-in-residence who get paid to tell other people in tech that tech can be a bit bad for us.
I got more out of this short article than I did that long, drawn-out series of essays. For those of us who do have to do things like banking, read emails, and would very much like to stay in touch with our connected social circles, this was actual, practical advice.
Boiled down, it's simple. Use it, but be aware of how you use it. Not being able to carry it everywhere with you, at every second, and be drawn in by those dopamine hits of notifications, likes, and replies, is a good strategy.
I think this article lays out a good middle path between cabin-in-the-woods and just abandoning yourself to the inevitability of having your attention dragged away by the attention economy. Hope some of you enjoy reading it.
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What a bunch of A-list celebs taught me about how to use my phone
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Comment on Why do you think that there isn't a male-led/focused feminist-style movement? in ~life.men
fastpicket Link ParentI read something over on reddit in my early twenties that really helped me. It let me identify why I was so scared of asking for help, displaying vulnerability, and showing emotions: This was...- Exemplary
I read something over on reddit in my early twenties that really helped me. It let me identify why I was so scared of asking for help, displaying vulnerability, and showing emotions:
As men are socialized, we receive many mixed messages from both men and women concerning how we should handle our emotions. On one hand, we are explicitly told by both men and women that we should be secure in showing our emotions, be they sadness, anger, or whatever. This is an example of an explicit attitude. Another way to think about this: it is a feeling or a behavior that a person wants to have.
On the other hand, both men and women levy sanctions against men who openly display emotions (except for anger). These sanctions are not formal, and typically present as insidious forms of social rejection (e.g., exclusion or gossip). These sanctions stem from negative implicit attitudes toward men who openly display emotions.
Another way to think about this: an implicit attitude is your actual behavior or feeling in a given situation. Negative implicit attitudes toward emotional men are disturbingly common among participants in social psychology experiments, although the exact reason for this is unknown. It has been hypothesized that presenting behaviors that are not gender normative guess would be that an "emotional male" violates the gender norm of the "emotionally neutral breadwinner."
Interestingly, negative implicit attitudes toward displays of emotion in men are independent of peoples' explicitly endorsed attitudes. Thus, men are faced with quite a conundrum. Someone may explicitly endorse progressive attitudes, encouraging me to be secure about showing my emotions. However, the same person may feel deeply disturbed when these emotions are shown because they harbor negative implicit attitudes regarding male displays of emotion.
This behavior is unfortunately all-too-common among men and women alike. As teenagers, we get called "pussy," "bitch," or "fag" by other boys when we show emotions aside from anger. As grown men, we don't get called names... instead, someone "forgets" to invite us to their bachelor party, or we get passed-over for a promotion because we are viewed as "ineffectual" by our male and/or female supervisors.
This was written over a decade ago, and I was really hoping it would be dated by now. In my own experiences, it's still mostly true.
I think what's changed is how I respond to it. I do see a therapist, and I talk about it openly, with my friends, family, and at work. My wife and my friends all give me positive affirmation for saying how I'm feeling. Learning how to describe feelings that weren't 'I am angry' or 'I feel bad' took me years, but it has really paid off.
And I think over the decade that's passed, I benefitted from some extremely effective role models and mentors. Men and women both, they encouraged me to open up more and have the courage to be vulnerable. I wasn't met with sanctions, I was met with admiration for my bravery. Coming from people that I really respected and wanted to be like, this meant a lot.
The other side is that there has been a cost. I used to have a lot of 'bro'-like friends (worked in a very male-dominated industry). I'm also a lower middle-class person, so you probably know what I mean with groups of male friends like this. Talking shit, being real tight with a friendship group of men who are all in the same boat. It was nice. I still miss it.
It's not like I made a concious decision to cut them out, but I just drifted away from them over the years because they would relentlessly target anyone showing 'weakness'. That's not good for tough times, and life is full of tough times. They're out of my life now. My friends are way more diverse, accepting, and supportive. But still, I do really miss being in a solid friendship group of guys. I just wasn't willing to do what was required to maintain my place there.
I ended relationships with some girlfriends over their implied requirement for me to 'man up' and shoulder the responsibility of earning the money and just being stoic. These were women who definitely said out loud they wanted me to be more emotional, then found it confronting and unmanly when I was.
If I had have overlooked that, I never would have met my wife. If I hadn't have started therapy, I'd still have the emotional range I had at 21 - 'angry', or 'sad, but don't know why, and I can't talk about it.' If I hadn't started going to the doctor regularly, they woulda missed something that could have been fatal. Even in my career, I've changed jobs sometimes just because a boss has thought that if I needed help with problems outside of work, I was being a little bitch. This has led me to way better working relationships with more accepting people. It's made me a better boss now that I'm managing young people people. They feel comfortable coming to me when something blows up in their life and they need to vent, or need a break from work.
I've tried to nurture relationships with people that allow me to express my full spectrum of feelings, and that I can be there for when they do the same. I think the benefits far outweigh the losses. But I'm not gonna pretend it's easy.
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Comment on <deleted topic> in ~tildes
fastpicket (edited )LinkI can't speak for the whole community, but I love an emoji here and there. In casual chat, I way prefer them to sarcasm tags, or having to expand your text so that it's unwieldly. One thing I've...- Exemplary
I can't speak for the whole community, but I love an emoji here and there. In casual chat, I way prefer them to sarcasm tags, or having to expand your text so that it's unwieldly.
One thing I've noticed on Tildes is a fair bit of misunderstanding, I think because people put so much time and effort into their thoughts. Two people agree, but because everything is written up in studied prose, someone making a silly joke or having a laugh can be misinterpreted. Comments can be a bit stuffy and impenetrable, and light-hearted meaning can be lost, especially for non-native English speakers
Emojis are great at conveying quick nuance to make things a bit clearer for everyone. I've found I'm using emojis more and more at work to communicate to young staff that I'm not mad at them, cause a formally punctuated Teams message will often read as someone being pissed off. I use them a ton at work when I'm chatting with people in other countries, as they are a good cross-cultural way of conveying meaning without using my nation's weird idioms
Emoji users of Tildes, I stand with you 🫡
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Comment on The bizarre story behind Shinzo Abe’s assassination in ~humanities
fastpicket (edited )Link ParentOne of Abe's greatest claims to fame was his relation to Kishi. It gave him huge familial power, gave his faction the ability to appeal to an imagined-perfect past, and shaped his political...- Exemplary
One of Abe's greatest claims to fame was his relation to Kishi. It gave him huge familial power, gave his faction the ability to appeal to an imagined-perfect past, and shaped his political thought. His aspirations towards emulating Kishi were intentional, not accidental.
I'd say less of Abe's extreme-right-wing views were shaped by the Unification Church than it was a marriage of convenience. They shared similar conservative views on social policy, but Abe was a well known leader of the 'there were no war crimes/there were no comfort women/the war was actually good, and we shouldn't be ashamed' movement in Japanese politics long before it's alleged he became deeply enmeshed with the Church.
Things like continued visits to Yasukuni, trying to remove Article 9 of the Japanese constitution (which outlaws Japan launching a war of aggression to settle disputes), pushing textbooks that erase Imperial Japanese Army/Navy war crimes, revoking the apology to the Korean government on 'comfort women' (sex slaves en masse, as part of Imperial Japan's war policy) a week after it was settled... these were all deep features of Abe's political thought, policy, and character, even before his second, more successful stint as Prime Minister.
Abe was such an ultra-conservative that, in the hours after his assassination, the leading theory for his death was that he was killed for betraying 'the cause' as he failed to overturn Article 9. The assassin was an ex-Japanese Self Defense Force member, and early analysis was that he was likely an aggrieved person who also shared extreme-right-wing views.
If that had have been the case, we wouldn't be looking at the most successful political assassination of the 21st century. Abe would have been deified, and members of his faction would be emboldened to carry on his policy. Figures in Japanese politics are often more powerful as kingmakers after having 'retired' than whilst they're in legislative power - even moreso when they can be invoked as ideals personified (ala Kishi). But in the days following his death, as more and more details came out, it was clear his legacy would mainly be on the deep corruption of the Unification Church/LDP linkage.
What's more, as soon as Yamagami's motivations became clearly 'this person hurt my mother, nobody listened to me, I was driven to a desperate act', Japanese public opinion turned favourably towards him. Die-hard LDP supporters could at least understand his grievances, and Abe's link to it. And even the normally very-malleable Japanese press started asking every LDP politician 'do you have ties to this Church?', leading to resignations, continued scandals to this day, and a much-weakened extreme-right faction in Japanese politics.
So in answer to your hypothetical, I'd say that interactions between the Church and LDP may have been a mutually re-enforcing loop of very conservative social thought (role of women, homophobia, etc). But Japanese society and norms being shaped towards 'well, the Pacific War wasn't that bad...', 'I've never heard of [war crime]/[war criminal]': that was all the LDP, and, in our century, Abe.
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Comment on Tourist destinations that are more than just a nice view? in ~travel
fastpicket (edited )LinkI would definitely recommend Japan to anyone that's looking for more than nice views. I'll write up a week long itinerary (making the assumption you're American so it's a week, sorry if that's not...- Exemplary
I would definitely recommend Japan to anyone that's looking for more than nice views. I'll write up a week long itinerary (making the assumption you're American so it's a week, sorry if that's not true). The food is great, the people are lovely, the culture is fantastic, and it's a relatively cheap holiday if you're using USD.
General Tips
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Buy a Japan Rail pass. The most important thing for enjoying Japan in a short period of time is being able to get around, whenever you like! You can get these from many sites, and you redeem it when you arrive in country at some of the major stations. The easiest are probably Shinjuku Station, Shibuya Station, or Tokyo Station, as there's lots of signage. Don't hesitate to ask JR staff for help locating the JR EAST Travel Service Centre in those stations to claim your pass, as the stations can be very confusing. This pass guarantees you unlimited travel on all JR (nationally owned) railways, simply by holding up your pass at the gate. You can also book seats on any non-first class shinkansen car, which means you don't have to book flights/trains in advance. Given that each shinkansen seat is approx 50USD, and Tokyo trains are around 15USD a day, you'll make your money back very quickly.
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Travel by shinkansen (bullet train): I'd recommend booking a seat the afternoon before you intend to go. You can just rock up and hope there's a seat, but sometimes (rarely) you'll miss out, so if you've got limited time I'd suggest that.
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Don't sleep on convenience stores (konbini): Kinda like New York bodegas, with waaay more stuff. 7/11, Family Mart and Lawson have delicious meals ready to eat, snacks for the day, coffee in a can (although there are 4 million vending machines in Japan, so you should be good). They're not like American convenience stores. Lots of the Japanese populace go to konbini for a healthy, tasty lunch or dinner if they're tired from work - the quality is great. Definitely stock up before a train trip. Also, konbini are some of the few places in Japan that have trash cans. There aren't public trash cans in the streets, because people are expected to be responsible and carry their trash with them, so it can make it annoying if you are walking around. Konbini are your saviour.
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Language: Nobody's gonna expect foreigners to have good Japanese, but they'll be absolutely delighted if you try. Especially with greetings and saying thank you, they'll think you are the best people ever. Use arigatou for regular interactions with servers and customer service people (they bring you a different size/bring you food/after you've ordered), arigatou gozaimasu for the end of an interaction (paying etc, saying goodbye), and arigatou gozaimashita if you want to really convey your sincere thanks (if someone gives you directions, if you've had an excellent meal). Chuck in a little bow if you're feeling confident, and they'll faint. If food is really good, it's kinda good manners to say 'oishi!' (o-ee-shee) within the hearing of the staff and chefs so they know they've done a good job. This can be done with your mouth full - in fact, it's more polite, cause it means the food is so delicious you can't even wait to finish your first bite. Usefeul for restaurants where you're sitting opposite the chef.
The Japanese for English is 'eigo' (eh-go). Most Japanese people can read and write English very well, but are extremely shy/bad at conversation. Writing things in Notes and using Google Translate will help a lot.
(Skip past the Tokyo section to get to bullet points for each location - Tokyo's only so big because it's the biggest city in the world.)
Suggested Itinerary
- Tokyo (2-3 nights)
- Osaka (day trip) on the way to,
- Nara (2 nights)
- Kyoto (day trip/s) while staying in Nara
- Hiroshima (1 night/day), then down to
- Kurokowa Onsen, Kyushu (1/2 nights), then train/fly back to
- Tokyo (rest of trip).
Start: Tokyo
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Time: The rest of your lives. But if you've got limited time, 2-3 days when you're fully awake.
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Accomodation: Recommend Nestay Inn 101, 202 or 303 in a suburb called Otsuka. AirBnB is illegal now in most of Tokyo, and I've had a few major strikeouts last time I was there. They are really cracking down. Nestay started up as a way to fill the gap in the market for short stay accomodation. The apartments are the size of Tokyo apartments, have all the furnishings and fun shower/toilet room you'd get from an authentic Tokyo apartment, with the benefit that you don't have to pretend to be someone's brother and sister in law if asked by nosy neighbours who will definitely report you to the cops.
Otsuka is a great place to stay because it's right at the top of the city's main rail line, the Yamanote line. Very convenient and super chill, with great food and drink around. Plus the station complex has a great drug store, and a Uniqlo for the inevitable things you need/forgot, plus delicious Japanese pastries for breakfast/a pick me up. Be very careful though - sometimes what looks like cream cheese or custard is actually mayo. If in doubt, get something with sugar on it! There's good Japanese siphon coffee at Cafe Colorado, and the best yakitori (grilled chicken) I've ever had is at an izakaya called Yakitori Kuroutadori. The owner/chef is a lovely man. It's one of the few izakayas to have craft beers in Tokyo, and as long as you show him 'no organs/offal/heart/livers' on Google translate, he'll look after you.
Tokyo doesn't have a central city - it's a collection of five major cities. Of those, the coolest/most fun is Shibuya.
From Shibuya Station: Shibuya station is the home of the famous scramble crossing (you can get a really good photo of it from the world's busiest Starbucks), the 109 building, which is home to some of Japan's most popular brands, and it's also got some really cool boutiques. The Hachiko Statue is a really great meeting point, and getting a photo with him brings good luck.
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Fashion: If you like feminine presenting clothes, you'll probably find it pretty hard to find anything to fit you, but there are some great women's shops in the three blocks all around Shibuya Station. My wife had some luck at some of the boutiques where things were one off pieces and a little longer. It's fun to window shop and try things on, even if they're hilariously short. If you like masculine presenting clothes, I'd recommend BEAMS if you want to get some cool Japanese streetwear. Just be mindful that you'll be cooler than any man in America, so use responsibily.
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Drink/Eat: Shibuya has a lot of izakayas (traditional Japanese pubs that serve food), but they're not that great. Recommend getting a drink at one of the hotels/cafes overlooking the Scramble crossing, and then going on to Izumizushi. I have eaten sushi almost everywhere in Japan, and this is, by far, the best place - far better than the Michelin starred places you have to book months in advance. When you go, ask for 'omokase', which means 'I leave it up to you [the chef]'. You'll get a selection of the day's best. This is worth splashing out for.
From Harajuku Station: Harajuku is gateway to some really cool cultural experiences, and is genuinely the coolest places in Tokyo. It's also a funnel into the city's largest tourist trap. The most important advice I can convey is do not walk down Takeshita Street, opposite the station. This is the only place in the entire country where you risk getting scammed. It's not that it's that dangerous, it's just a gross, packed, tacky street in an otherwise beautiful part of the city.
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Make sure you start off by walking down Omotesando. Omotesando is the name of the main street, but it's grown to become it's own suburb/culture. It's like... where actual Japanese people shop for luxury goods/go to have a nice time (as opposed to Roppongi, which is where Westerners/white expats go and pay twice as much).
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Omotesando has beautiful little streets, branching off of it, like the famous Cat Street. The main street has every big luxury brand store you can imagine, so at the very least it's fun to have a look around. There's a very chic shopping complex called Tokyo Plaza Harajuku - some cool shops, nice cafe, a lot of people just go there to hang out after a long day's shopping. My favourite coffee shop in Omotesando is Lattest, which serves the best coffee I've ever had (the signature Lattest), and is just really nice and chill. If you wander around Omotesando Hills, you'll see where the really rich and famous live in Tokyo. The houses are small by our standards, but by Japanese standards they're mansions. It's always fun to see how people manage to squeeze supercars into tiny parking spaces.
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Meiji Jingu Shrine is really special, and just over the road to the west of Harajuku station. It's a good way to end a day around the area, especially close to closing time of the shrine when the crowds have dissipated. It's dedicated to the Emperor Meiji, who modernised Japan, and it's the biggest/most impressive and peaceful large shrine in Tokyo. It's also really close to my favourite ballpark, Meiji Jingu Stadium, so check the schedule and see if the Tokyo Swallows are playing.
Other Tokyo Activities/Sights:
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If you get off at Tokyo Station, you'll see i) a very beautiful, restored station that was once the biggest in Japan, ii) and ii) you'll be right next to the Imperial Palace. Naturally, most of the palace is closed off to the public, but a tour of the gardens is really nice, and they'll show you what buildings they can. Touristy, but pretty neat, especially because the current emperor is a really nice man.
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Tokyo National Museum has more beautiful prints, ink art, armor, swords, ancient bronze buddhas, and neolithic stone carvings than you can possibly take in in one day. It makes the Met's Japan section look hilarious, cause the Met is like 'oooh this print is from 1895!', produced for Western diplomats, whereas the National Museum in Tokyo holds the country's Designated National Treasures, going back thousands of years. If you have any apetite for art, sculpture, design or the artistry of Japanese weapons or armor, it's well worth a visit. Plus, it's in a big, nice park called Ueno (kiiinda like Tokyo's Central Park, but less pretty), which is a nice place to walk around.
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I hate gardens, plants are boring, etc, but Rikugien, a centuries old feudal warlord Japanese garden, is such a special place to go. It's not the world's oldest Japanese garden, but it's extraordinarily beautiful, and peaceful. The founder of Mitsubishi bought the gardens from an old samurai family, restored them, and donated them to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. Sitting by the lake drinking tea is really, really nice - as is the fact that it's not just a tourist attraction, people go there to have a walk with friends, take their kids out, etc. It's a magic place.
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Senso-Ji, in Asakusa, is the largest/most impressive shrine outside of Kyoto and Nara. I like it better because outside of festival periods, there are way less other tourists. Most of Asakusa has little shrines and temples around it, so it's as close as you can get in Tokyo to seeing some Shinto and Buddhist stuff (apart from small local shrines, which are really special).
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Shinjuku is as close as Tokyo gets to 'the city'. It's the centre of some major businesses and the hub of national government. Although it has a boring name, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building offers the only free really high-rise view looking out to Mt Fuji. I really liked it the first time I went, but I had a very clear day and it was sunset - your mileage may vary.
Osaka:
It's the Chicago of Japan. It's dirtier and grittier than Tokyo, but it is on the main Shinkansen line going across the country, so it's an easy stop off. I kinda don't like Osaka as a town, but there are two reasons I stop off there most times. The castle is the only Japanese castle that's actually cool to visit (unless you wanna go waaay off track), and people go nuts over the street food.
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Osaka Castle was the biggest, baddest, craziest castle at the end of Japan's warring states period (around 1600). It got bombed during the WWII, but because of that, they rebuilt a painstakingly accurate replica that's more beautiful than most of the preserved castles around. The best thing about it is, because the insides are rebuilt, they turned it into a museum and actually explain what happened at the castle, how it was used, and make it less boring. The preserved ones are just empty wooden beams, so I way prefer visiting here. Plus, I just think it's the prettiest, but Himeji is also on your way, so you might like that better. Osaka Castle was where people ruled from, and Himeji was just a backwater hick castle, so depends what you're into.
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Dotonbori is where Osaka's famous street food mostly is. It gets pretty rowdy at night with the drunk after work crowds and sex workers, but the drunk guys are not aggressive, and the prostitutes won't bother you. If you go during the day, you can skip that part, you'll just miss the 80's neon lights. Osaka's most famous for takoyaki (balls of batter filled with little bits of octopus) and okonomiyaki (literally, 'whatever you like', a savoury pancake with... whatever you like on it). Plus there's all sorts of delicious food on a stick in Dotonbori, so if you're into food, it might be worth a stop.
Nara!: Nara's the ancient capital of Japan, and I think it's way more beautiful than Kyoto to base yourself in. Kyoto is only 50 minutes away by train, so by staying in Nara, you can cycle around, see all of the beautiful old shrines, palaces, and temples, feed the deer, and escape having to pay Kyoto prices for accomodation/food.
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Rent a bike: Best way to see the city. It's small enough that you can cycle anywhere, and it's a great way to see beautiful ancient buildings without having to get the bus.
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Feed the deer!: Nara's deer park is world famous, but you'll probably see deer curled up around the temples and shrines as you're biking around. You can buy little packs of deer cookies from street vendors for 300yen (about two bucks), and the deer are friendly guys.
Kyoto: Cards on the table, I am not a huge fan of Kyoto. It's the only place in Japan that is genuinely overcrowded, hectic, full of tourists everywhere you go, and annoying to get around. Every year the city struggles to deal with more and more tourists, and hasn't come up with an answer. The transport network is mostly buses rather than having a good subway or train system, which is a pain in the ass. Staying there means extremely jacked up prices, for worse quality accomodation and food than you'll find in Nara (or any other city in Japan).
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Fushimi Inari and Kinkakuji are the only things on this list of top attractions that (I think) are better than other ones you'd see in other parts of Japan, and both are unique and beautiful enough to put up with the hoardes. With Fushimi Inari, I usually take people really close to closing time, so that they can get their iconic picture without other tourists in the way. It's also quite beautiful and peaceful doing the walk through the torii gates without people around.
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Gion is the famous Kyoto old town, where the imperial court and shoguns would be entertained by geishas. This still happens, but it's the Prime Minsiter and CEOs, and it costs them hundreds of thousands of dollars. So, that's out of your price range, but you can try fugu (pufferfish), and Yasaka-Jinja is a beautiful shrine at night time. If you see any women in geisha make up, they are young, trainee geisha. It's considered extremely rude to take photos, distract them, etc. Every tourist bus/tour gets told this, and most of them ignore it. Other tourists will be following them around, so you'll probably see them from a mile away. Use your peripheral vision if you encounter a travelling pair. It's not like they bite or anything, they'll just be exhausted from having phones shoved in their faces all day and having to be polite.
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Activities: If you want to try traditional Japanese art forms like ikebana (flower arranging), cha-no-yu (tea ceremony), pottery, or archery (kyudo), Kyoto is the most accessible way to do it. You can book a class through TripAdvisor if any of that stuff interests you. I've done a few with friends and they've been pretty cool, but not like, life changing spiritual experiences. Just good fun.
Hiroshima: Recommend staying a night here to a) break the train trip down to Kyushu up and b) see the memorial/peace park.
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The Peace Park and atomic bomb dome are really beautiful, tasteful and important. I'm glad I did, although I don't think I'll be going back. Similar to Auschwitz, it's extremely moving and sobering.
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Hiroshima Castle is a beautiful one, if you don't feel like stopping in Osaka. The city's pretty walkable and the food is great.
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If you have a night there, check and see if the Carp are playing if the season is still going (if not, try and catch a game in Tokyo, at Meiji Jingu, not the Tokyo Dome). NPB (Nippon Professional Baseball) games are the most fun, atmospheric, unique sporting events I've ever been to. If you like baseball, I think you'll really get a kick out of seeing the differences between MLB sluggers and NPB technical guys, and the fans are the best. Plus they have people with kegs strapped to their back to come and refill your beer!
Kurokowa Onsen: This is a beautiful, secluded, hot springs town right in the centre of Japan's most rural and lush green island, Kyushu. I really think it's worth going out of your way for. I wasn't a huge fan of ryokans (Japanese traditional inns) until I was persuaded to go to Kurokowa Onsen. I stayed at a cheaper one, but if you can afford it, now would be the time to splash out. It really feels like stepping back in time and it is so relaxing and nice. Plus, there's a Japanese phrase that translates to 'the best friends are made in the onsen', and I have met so many nice, kind people in hot springs.
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If you've got any tattoos, it's not a big deal if you're not Japanese. If you see a Japanese person with big, colourful tattoos, you've accidentally stumbled into a yakuza onsen. This is super unlikely but did happen to me once. Extremely low likelihood, so don't worry!
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Nobody cares about your junk. People are way more naked in Japan than in America. Baths are gender segregated, and you have to wash and soap yourself with the shower head and the bucket, on a little stool, before you get into the onsen. If you get into the hot spring bath without washing yourself and completely rinsing out all soap suds and shampoo/conditioner, people will think you are a disgusting barbarian, and the owners will have to pump out all the water and start again. So make sure you get all those suds!
If you liked train train travel, great! Hop on the shinkansen and head back to Tokyo. You can do the train trip in one day, but it's a long ass day, so I like to spend the night in Kobe, which is home of Kobe beef and is a super pretty port town with amazing lights around the harbour. If you don't have time/didn't like the train, no worries! Just head to Fukuoka and get a cheap airfare back to Tokyo.
Hope that's given you some ideas. Honestly, most of the time I go, I just spend a week in Tokyo because there's so much to see and do, but for people with limited time, you can see a lot in a week!
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Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
fastpicket (edited )Link ParentOne of the really frustrating things about The Dawn of Everything is trying to explain its thesis simply. It really does take the entire book to lay out the issues, explore them, present evidence,...One of the really frustrating things about The Dawn of Everything is trying to explain its thesis simply. It really does take the entire book to lay out the issues, explore them, present evidence, and unravel (my estimation) the vast majority of pop-history.
But the people that consume pop-history, written by non-historians/anthropologists/archaeologists are the least likely to engage with a technical, long-form book that genuinely requires its whole length. I think Graeber and Wengrow did a fantastic job to bring it down to a level where I could understand it, but it took a lot of mental effort, because - as you say - it was shocking to know how much baseless biases I had that are directly contradicted by evidence they present again, and again, and again.
The second most frustrating thing is I've seen people (here, as well as in reviews) dismiss the book entirely because Graeber (RIP) was an anarchist activist. He was also one of leading anthropologists of the 20th and 21st centuries, and people seem incapable of separating out his activism (and activism-adjascent books) from this scholarly work.
At no point did I feel like the authors were trying to push an agenda. The structure was just 'Misconception, origin of misconception, actual evidence that is available (particularly in the last twenty years), judgement on the likely makeup of a particular society or social structure.'
It's fantastic, and it's very frustrating that so many people will never touch it because of their prejudice against Graeber.
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Comment on Terry Pratchett was fantasy fiction’s Kurt Vonnegut, not its Douglas Adams in ~books
fastpicket (edited )Link ParentI'm so glad. The philosophy of Banks' work often comes second to the funny ship names and the colourful characters, but he was a deeply thoughtful man. If it's of any help, my suggested reading...- Exemplary
I'm so glad. The philosophy of Banks' work often comes second to the funny ship names and the colourful characters, but he was a deeply thoughtful man.
If it's of any help, my suggested reading order would be:
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The Player of Games
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Use of Weapons
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Excession
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Inversions (a Culture book that is written from the perspective of a primitive society - fascinating idea and amazingly executed, this one is really underappreciated in my opinion)
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Matter (often criticised for being too dense with little pay-off - I see it more of Banks' commentary about how little individuals can impact truly great events)
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Look To Windward
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Surface Detail (chronologically, the latest book in the universe's timeline, but I like to read it second-last)
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The Hydrogen Sonata
The last book is very much about death, dying, what comes after, when should civilisation stop intervening and just give up, what might people do if the rapture was scientifically provable, slightly mysterious, and coming rapidly. Banks wrote it while he - unknowingly - had terminal cancer, and was diagnosed after it was finished. He died shortly after its publication, but I always find it a really beautiful note to end on, even if the thematic linkages were unintentional.
Good luck, and watch out for the pairing of a Special Circumstances agent and an offensive Drone. Their appearance either heralds a very good day, or a very very bad one.
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Comment on Terry Pratchett was fantasy fiction’s Kurt Vonnegut, not its Douglas Adams in ~books
fastpicket (edited )Link ParentSure, I can give you my answer simply, and go into more detail if you want. There are - there are several large supporting characters from species that are biologically immortal, and view Culture...- Exemplary
Sure, I can give you my answer simply, and go into more detail if you want.
It seems contradictory to the more materialist grounded universe and cynical about the lives of intelligent beings to a degree I couldn't square. I can chalk it up to the fact that it would completely change the worldbuilding to have these ageless beings everywhere.
There are - there are several large supporting characters from species that are biologically immortal, and view Culture people as weird for having death as part as their lifecycle. The Homondans and the Morthanveld (from Look to Windward and Matter) are examples of this.
The Culture books are mostly told from the perspective of Minds, AIs and humans of the Culture. And broadly, the people of the Culture view the desire for immortality as a kind of immaturity. They generally view people striving after living forever as deeply weird, and this is explored explicitly in two books - Use of Weapons and The Hydrogen Sonata. Death is a part of the universe, and trying to pretend otherwise is a bit childish - but by no means banned, like everything in the Culture.
From the author, in his essay A Few Notes on the Culture:
Implicit in the stories so far is that through self-correcting mechanisms, the Culture reached a rough steady-state thousands of years ago, and has settled into a kind of long-lived civilisational main sequence which should last for the forseeable future, and thousands of generations.
Which brings us to the length of those generations, and the fact that they can be said to exist at all. Humans in the Culture normally live about three-and-a-half to four centuries. The majority of their lives consists of a three-century plateau which they reach in what we would compare to our mid-twenties, after a relatively normal pace of maturation during childhood, adolescence and early adulthood. They age very slowly during those three hundred years, then begin to age more quickly, then they die.
Philosophy, again; death is regarded as part of life, and nothing, including the universe, lasts forever. It is seen as bad manners to try and pretend that death is somehow not natural; instead death is seen as giving shape to life.
While burial, cremation and other - to us - conventional forms of body disposal are not unknown in the Culture, the most common form of funeral involves the deceased - usually surrounded by friends - being visited by a Displacement Drone, which - using the technique of near-instantaneous transmission of a remotely induced singularity via hyperspace - removes the corpse from its last resting place and deposits it in the core of the relevant system's sun, from where the component particles of the cadaver start a million-year migration to the star's surface, to shine - possibly - long after the Culture itself is history.
None of this, of course, is compulsory (nothing in the Culture is compulsory). Some people choose biological immortality; others have their personality transcribed into AIs and die happy feeling they continue to exist elsewhere; others again go into Storage, to be woken in more (or less) interesting times, or only every decade, or century, or aeon, or over exponentially increasing intervals, or only when it looks like something really different is happening...
By the end of the series - particularly with The Hydrogen Sonata and Surface Detail - other civilisations' views on death, immortality, digital afterlives, and dimensional transcendence are explored. In the universe of the books, civilizations generally enter a period of lassitude where everything is completed, there's not much else to be done, so it's time to collectively explore what's next - the Sublime, a sort of extra-dimensional retirement. It's not a hand-wave sci-fi heaven. It's complex, and even the very advanced civilizations of the galaxy don't fully understand it. The Hydrogen Sonata is devoted almost solely to exploring the implications of it. The Culture's own section for studying the Sublime is colloquially referred to as The Department of What the Fuck?
The Culture, by the end point of the series' timeline, is regarded by other civilizations as being a bit weird for not stepping into the enfold, and continuing to be 'in play'. Philosophically, there are some interesting comparisons between Theravadan and Mahayanan Buddhism, but I'm not sure if that was intentional by Banks.
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Comment on Terry Pratchett was fantasy fiction’s Kurt Vonnegut, not its Douglas Adams in ~books
fastpicket (edited )Link ParentCan I recommend Iain M. Banks's Culture books as a happy medium between Adams' cynical detachment and Tolkien's serious sincerity? They are my favourite books ever. Nothing I've read has ever come...Can I recommend Iain M. Banks's Culture books as a happy medium between Adams' cynical detachment and Tolkien's serious sincerity?
They are my favourite books ever. Nothing I've read has ever come close to the tone, so it's very hard to describe. Pratchett-but-sci-fi is as close as I can get, but even that's not doing the originality and philosophy and heart of the books justice.
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Comment on What’s a value that you hold but also struggle to live up to? in ~talk
fastpicket (edited )Link ParentI think you're being too hard on yourself here and viewing this as a binary. You've framed saying something directly confrontational as success, and not saying something as failure. Direct...- Exemplary
I think you're being too hard on yourself here and viewing this as a binary. You've framed saying something directly confrontational as success, and not saying something as failure. Direct sometimes works, if the person is comfortable with confrontation and experienced in managing it. But intervening in these situations and standing up to something that's not right is more complicated than that. You can still be true to your values without confrontation.
I worked in a very male-dominated workplace with a lot of issues pertaining to sexual harrassment, racism, homophobia and transphobia, etc. I am always comfortable directly calling out bad behaviour and intervening, because that's just my personality. But what I learned through going through bystander intervention training with my coworkers is that many felt the same as you - 'I should say something, but I can't, so I suck.'
This training was brilliant, and it was about empowering people who aren't necessarily comfortable with direct confrontation to perform effective bystander interventions. It was built around 5 D's I think - Direct, Delegate, Distract, Delay, Document. This video is kinda similar to the training we received, but this online resource covers much of the same material.
You don't have to be confrontational to make a difference. You can find your own way, and often the gentler, more subtle approach is much more effective.
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Comment on Let's talk about the rise of ‘-core’ and ‘girl’ aesthetics in ~life.style
fastpicket (edited )Link ParentThis quote from the Barbie movie was very insightful for what it's like to be a woman in male dominated spaces:This quote from the Barbie movie was very insightful for what it's like to be a woman in male dominated spaces:
Barbie: Why are these men looking at me?
Ken: Yeah, they're also staring at me!
Barbie: I'm concious, but it's my... self... that's I'm concious of.
Ken: I'm not getting any of that, I feel what can only be described as admired. But not ogled! And there's no undertone of violence!
Barbie: Mine very much has an undertone of violence.
I think it was you who commented on my (since-deleted) post about reclaiming my attention, suggesting meditation.
I meditated for 15 minutes a day, a month straight. I experienced exactly what the person in this video experienced. Thinking I'd 'fixed' my attention span, I stopped. Things are slowly regressing back to before I started meditation. It does seem to be the most important factor.
I'm struggling to find a way to make it sustainable, but it is just inescapable that I need this practice as much as I need to drink water and to eat, in order for me to live a mentally healthy life