I played golf yesterday as a member of the competition committee in the rain, but it seems that getting soaked while playing a round of golf is not good for your body.
In the evening, the four of us enjoyed dinner with Nonchan and Tomo-kun. In the middle of the night, however, something strange happened to my body. Symptomatically, I have a headache and mild nausea. In other words, it’s like a hangover.
This happens several times a year, but last night I had a glass of draft beer and a cup of sake, so I didn’t drink a lot of alcohol, but I must have been sick from playing in the rain. It was a painful night. Fortunately, things are back to normal now.
I was going to run this morning, but I’m not in very good shape, so I gave up and decided to postpone it to tomorrow.
I ran again this morning. I ran 6.10km on my usual course, which has accumulated 28.64km in five runs this month, bringing me to 71.35km left with 22 days to go.
Last night it was cold at dawn and I couldn’t get a good night’s sleep probably because of it. The comforter seemed to be too thin. It wasn’t until about 4 a.m. that I finally realized this and changed the comforter to a thicker one. Thanks to this, I was able to get a good night’s sleep, but my alarm went off after an hour.
I was sluggish and it took me a while to get up, so I thought about stopping running today, but if I don’t run when I can, I’ll be far from achieving my goal. I was about 30 minutes later than usual, but I was able to finish the race today.
Yesterday, I went to a day trip hot spring with Sun for the first time in a long time, I think it was about 10 days ago that the facility was closed due to a voluntary restraint order. It had taken away a great deal of fun for both of them. Even though it was reopened, the cut-off time for day trip bathing is at 16:00, so it seems that there are not many opportunities to use it. How long will it take for things to get back to normal?
In today’s Tokyo Shimbun, Satoshi Shirai, a thinker and political scientist, appeared in the “Writer” section of today’s Tokyo Shimbun, page 8, in the reading column. The book “Capital as a Weapon Theory” has been featured. The subtitle of the book is entitled, “To Speak After Corona”.
Times are about to change drastically with the global transmission of new coronaviruses. Now we are starting to talk about “before/after Corona”. It seems that the present situation must be the end point of one of the modern capitalism that has been. This is the end point of globalization.
In the past, the plague pandemic shook the feudal society of medieval Europe and opened the door to modernity. Whether modernity, which began with the plague, will end with a new coronavirus, is still anyone’s guess. However, it is written that the essence of modernity is industrial capitalism, and the sight of many factories shutting down and airplanes crawling to the ground gives us a glimpse of exactly what the end of capitalism will look like.
Satoshi Shirai is said to have made one thing very clear. That is, what the scientific and technological developments of the last few decades have advertised was a lie. Artificial intelligence surpasses humans, or genetic engineering can manipulate life at will. And man becomes God. There was even a discussion about Homo Deus, but he said that those of us who don’t understand how viruses work, and of course can’t control them, are unlikely to be gods, fortunately or unfortunately.
It is also said that, because of capitalism, today’s science has been so deeply dominated by the possibility of commodification that biology has been subordinated to its medical applicability, and a large number of biologists have emerged who have no interest in the phenomena of life itself. In “Homo Deus,” a person acutely points out that the essence of “talk to be a kami” seems to have been “talk to be a moneymaker.
At the end, Satoshi Shirai writes.
Although Marx died 140 years ago, “The Theory of Capital,” written in the face of the remarkable development of industrial capitalism, foresaw that our intellect, sensibility, and even our souls would be swallowed up by the capitalist system.
I hope this book will help you to put the “post-Corona” perspective into perspective.
I ran this morning. It seems that the fatigue is finally coming off. I was able to get up this morning feeling refreshed and was able to get started before 5:15am.
After running my usual course and accumulating 6.10km, this month I’ve done 22.54km in 4 runs and I’m now at 77.45km with 23 days to go.
It seems that the sluggishness in my body up until yesterday was simply due to a lingering fatigue. Looking back, I went out golfing more times during Golden Week than I’ve ever gone out in my life, three times in eight days, so it must be exhausting. What’s more, I changed my golf form, which put a lot of strain on my body.
The Shinnumaizu Country Club, where I serve as a competition committee member, has also seen a severe drop in visitors due to the declaration of a state of emergency due to the spread of the coronavirus. In other words, the company is in a very difficult situation from a managerial standpoint. The restaurant is also closed. I think the best thing we can do as club members is to go out and play the course as much as possible.
The employees are really struggling. Led by the manager, they are trying to overcome this crisis by accumulating their wisdom and efforts to the fullest extent. Even though Shinnumaizu Country Club has a solid management base, it must be suffering under the prolonged state of emergency. I’m hoping that the golf course will somehow return to the same condition it was in before.
I asked Taku to proofread the manuscript, which had been asked to be written by the Ophthalmologist’s Association.
When I read the comments, I was impressed that he was an expert.
As a lawyer, Taku is very strict about the use of the term. It is natural to say that it is natural, but it was an unexpected point to the layman. And there were some obvious mistakes. It’s unavoidable that my manuscript has a lot of copyediting from the Internet. Some of them are serious mistakes, but without knowledge, you won’t notice them. In some cases, it was within eight days, whereas it should have been within eight weeks. I didn’t realize it until it was pointed out to me.
I couldn’t work yesterday morning because of my body condition. I was prescribed melatonin-related medication as a new sleep inducer, but it didn’t work for me at all. I was definitely able to sleep, but the next day I spent the entire morning feeling lightheaded and half in a dream. That’s not going to do the job. My body feels sluggish and my head feels light-headed, which is probably a side effect of the medicine. Apparently I’m hypersensitive to this kind of medicine. I will have to report back to the doctor who prescribed it next week to have it changed.
Yesterday was the end of the Golden Week in May. Since the last day was a holiday shift, work already started yesterday. From today on, things will be completely normal.
Nevertheless, due to the spread of the coronavirus, a state of emergency has been declared and people must refrain from going out on an emergency basis. Fortunately, Shizuoka Prefecture is not in the severe category of infection spread, so some facilities have returned to normal business from today.
The hardest part for Sun and I was that the day spa facility was closed down. When we have time, the two of us go out and soak in the hot springs, which is the best part of the day, but it seems to finally start again today. I’m going to go out after I confirm that they are open again.
The restaurant, run by a familiar chef, was also closed, but it should have reopened today. I’m looking forward to going out to the store again. The Japanese-style hamburger set meal is a big favorite of mine.
I wasn’t sure whether to run this morning, but I couldn’t get rid of the fatigue and the nerve pain was so severe that I didn’t run this morning. It’s not that it’s inconvenient for my daily life, but I have pains due to the posture of my body, which limits my movement and makes me feel frustrated. It’s really troubling.
In addition to the Chinese medicine prescribed by the Chinese medicine doctor who saw me last week, I was also prescribed a sleep inducer, which I took for the first time last night. My doctor told me that the sleeping pills I had been using were not recommended for long term use, so I was prescribed a medicine with a different mechanism of action.
I took a sleeping pill that was introduced to me by an acquaintance before, but it didn’t seem to suit me at all and I couldn’t work the next day because my head was foggy all morning. Because of that memory, I continued to be hesitant to take the sleeping pills that were recommended. Last night I took the plunge and tried taking it.
Unlike conventional drugs that act on substances in the brain, the sleeping pills used this time are drugs related to melatonin. I was worried about the side effects, but I was relieved to find out that I could use it for myself without any problems.
Yesterday was the day of the holiday shift, and I was busy revising the manuscript in my spare time. I had been asked by the director in charge to write the preface to Volume 2020 of the County Ophthalmologist’s Bulletin.
I was told that I didn’t care what the content was, but since my fellow ophthalmologists read it, it couldn’t be an essay. It should also include content related to your area of expertise. At first I had no idea what I was going to write, but I was relieved to be able to write it in my own way.
The manuscript is a little over 2,500 words. Since it contains content related to the legal system, I asked Taku to revise it for me. I sent it to Taku by email last night, asking him to check it out if there was anything wrong with it. The deadline is only a week away.
This morning I ran with all the energy I could muster. On May 4, after a quick lunch and a short break, I started running around 2pm. However, I don’t know why, but I felt sick a little before 4km and squatted down.
The temperature was high and it was muggy, but I wonder if the cause was heatstroke. Or maybe it was the low blood sugar because I didn’t eat much, including a cup of ramen for lunch, and I sat on a sidewalk block for nearly 20 minutes and couldn’t move.
In the end, I was forced to abstain on May 4. I’ve never seen anything like this before. Maybe it’s simply a decline in fitness due to age, or maybe I’m not sure, but I faltered.
So I was worried this morning, but I decided to take it slow and got up at 5am and started running. Today, I ran 6.14km, which adds up to a total of 16.43km and brings me to 83.56km with 25 days to go.
I’m a little behind schedule for my goal of running 100 km a month, but it’s not a delay I can’t make up. Anyway, I’m relieved that I was able to finish the race today. Looking at my running watch records, I found that the first kilometre or so of my run was really slow – 8 minutes a kilometre – but after that my pace picked up a bit and I was maintaining 7 minutes a kilometre and then 6 minutes a kilometre at the end.
About a month ago, I changed my golf form a bit and started hitting with my whole body, which was good, but I was really bothered by the muscle pain in my lower abdomen that I hadn’t had before and the pain in my inner left thigh that didn’t go away. That’s why I’m feeling the strain of running.
If the symptoms don’t go away, I sometimes worry that I won’t be able to continue running. I am acutely aware of the decline in my physical strength.
The marathon will likely be cancelled for the rest of the year, so it looks like I won’t be able to participate. We just have to keep working on it bit by bit for next year. It’s a battle against physical decline.
■By the way, today is the duty day. According to the doctor who was on duty yesterday, the outpatient clinic was very crowded. It seems that the patient who endured much patience during the consecutive holidays finally came to the hospital because he could not stand it anymore. According to the doctor, some patients were seriously ill, and the hospital must have had a hard day.
Today is less crowded than yesterday. The patient is in a state of coming to the hospital without interruption. Usually every year, children and parents who have returned home are sick and often come to see a doctor. This year, movement was restricted due to the spread of coronaviruses, and there are currently no homecoming patients among those patients.
When I was watching TV while eating lunch in a hurry, only rebroadcast programs were playing. It is difficult to shoot new programs because of the fear of infection. I watch the same program three or four times. If it is a rebroadcast, you do not have to pay the performance fee to the performers. Even if the TV station can cut costs, the talent will have a hard life.
Money must be around the world, so the flow must not stop. If you only ask people to refrain from going out, the world will really dry up. Financial compensation is essential.
If the situation continues, it is likely that more people will die for economic reasons than they will be killed by the coronavirus. If that happens, it’s a political responsibility.
Even if the infection is over, society will not be restored. When society changes drastically, weak ones fall. Now is the time for politics.
Today is the end of the consecutive holidays. I am on duty tomorrow, so I have to start working in the morning. So, today was my last day off, but I couldn’t go anywhere far, so I went to a nearby place and enjoyed playing golf with four of my best friends.
The golf course is only a 15 minute drive away, which is really helpful. Today, four of my best friends, Mr. Nagakura, Mr. Sakaguchi, and Mr. Kounodou, played the round. The first half of the tournament was as inconsistent as ever, but I was able to overcome a few problems in the second half and was able to get a score of 44 to get under 45. I played from the back tee, so I did a good job.
Due to the restaurant being closed, the only lunch we had was a sandwich. So it started at 8:14 and was already up by 12:15.
I’m not familiar with it, but according to those who are familiar with the situation on golf courses abroad, it seems that lunch is not often taken at restaurants, so the way lunch is spent between the first and second half of the day is quite different. On foreign golf courses, you eat something like a simple hamburger and then continue playing, so the whole day’s play is over in between four and five hours, as it is today.
Once they experience this style of play, I suspect that many players will find it futile to kill an hour or more for lunch on the way out. As a golf course, having the cost of the meal consumed at lunch may help sales, but a day out of the ordinary in an emergency situation like this may change the mindset of many players.
Because of the spread of the coronavirus, the way of life has changed in many ways. I think it is possible that the style of society could change drastically when the infection is over if we find out that what we used to take for granted is actually possible to spend time in a different style, although not to say useless.
The biggest lifestyle change, of course, has to be working from home. The murderous Yamanote Line commute congestion was never going to disappear forever, but when I have no choice but to work from home under such an emergency situation, I find myself wondering what a waste that hellish commute was.
It is very difficult for us to change our daily lives without a strong force of our own, just as it is for society. Changing a habit is akin to being reborn, so it’s impossible to do it without a great deal of effort.
The people who get things done must be the ones who are able to change their own habits, even if they are not in such extreme situations. It’s rare for people to be able to push themselves that far. It is impossible for a human being to change without getting stuck in a rut.
In that sense, I think the coronavirus crisis is going to change the lives of a lot of people. Of course it can change in a good way, but I think it can also change in a negative way in many cases. However, there is no way to escape from this. We have no choice but to take a stand.
What will society look like when the infection comes to an end? The new society, and what the new life will look like. It depends on each person’s determination to make a difference in their life.
Today, May 4th, is Greenery Day, and we are in the middle of a series of holidays. I was going to run this morning, but it started to rain, probably around 4:00. By the time my alarm went off, it was raining pretty hard and I eventually stopped running.
Last night we had an online Zoom meeting at 7pm with fellow Rotary club members. Due to the spread of the coronavirus, I haven’t seen nearly 30 members in almost a month without a regular club meeting.
It is soothing just to go to a regular meeting and see your cheerful faces, but the time has passed without that. It’s not like we’re discussing or debating anything, but it’s one of the things I appreciate about Rotary clubs that we can take some time to relax, even if it’s just for small talk.
Last night I hosted and emailed everyone, and there were seven people who attended.
In the free version of Zoom, the meeting time is set at 40 minutes, so it is not possible to discuss difficult problems for long periods of time, but in many cases this may be just the right time to try to have a fruitful discussion within this constraint. It is not a matter of discussing it at length.
Now that a state of emergency has been declared, non-essential outings are restricted. Many museums are also closed for the time being.
On May 2, Mr. Hideaki Furukawa wrote an article on the mission of museums and art galleries in the Culture column of the Tokyo Shimbun under the title of “Virus Peril and Culture”. The subtitle of the article says, “A chance to meet the beauty that dwells in life and sex.
At the time of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake in 1995, the author said, “Museums are also mental and physical shelters for modern people” through a discussion about whether museums are useful in times of disaster.
The curator of a museum or art gallery is called a “curator” in English. The original word “cure” means to heal or to relieve. In other words, museums have a mission to serve society well.
In this book, the author, who has been involved in the art industry, wants to emphasize the role of museums and art galleries in the current self-restraint of families and societies that have become stagnant in a sense. It is at times like these that museums can become places where we can confirm that beauty and emotion are closely related to “what is life” and “what is life”.
Japanese politicians are notoriously unenthusiastic in their support for these museums and art galleries. In response to the request for voluntary restraint of activities due to the spread of the coronavirus, Germany and other countries have provided generous support to performers and artists, but in Japan, there has been almost no response. The difference is exactly as different as heaven and earth.
It’s not just the differences between politicians that are the problem, it may be a reflection of the differences in the way society as a whole thinks about art.
We can’t live without bread, of course. At the same time, it is also true that bread alone does not come to life.
In times of emergency such as the one we are experiencing now, it is important to reconsider what we need to do to survive.
It’s my fourth consecutive holiday from today. However, since I am on duty on the 6th, I will end up having three consecutive holidays. Yesterday, I had a chance to see the congestion on the Tomei Expressway, and it was just deserted. Looking up and down from the top of the bridge, there were only a few cars driving by, giving the illusion that it was New Year’s Eve.
In response to the declaration of the state of emergency, everyone has refrained from going out. The current situation may be unavoidable, but it’s really hard for self-employed people who can’t operate with only stingy public compensation. I think it’s hard for the so-called salary takers to understand, but as long as the company doesn’t go out of business, or if you’re a civil servant, as long as the country doesn’t go out of business, your income won’t be cut off.
Regarding the uniform benefits, Prime Minister Abe has said that it is strange to provide benefits to civil servants because they are not affected by the declaration of a state of emergency. This is certainly true.
Maybe Abe can’t imagine what it would mean for his income to be cut off. This is because I don’t think Abe has ever been in such a situation in his entire life. The only way to deal with anything other than what you’ve experienced is to mobilize your imagination. If there is a chief executive with little imagination, the public is truly unhappy. It’s because the arguments don’t bite.
Watching the current debate in the Diet, there is a clear lack of compassion or love for the people in the government’s answer. Both the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister, who just happen to be living the same kind of life, and yet lack the wings of imagination. From now on, the people will suffer even more searing pain.
The outcome of the election is what it’s all about.
Last night, several board members of the prefectural ophthalmology association held an online meeting for the first time in Zoom. President Kawamura prepared the meeting, and there were four members in total. It was a discussion meeting to see if it would be possible to run various future meetings online instead of at the venue as we have been doing. Meetings include talks, but Zoom’s screen sharing feature allows everyone to see the content of the presentation on the speaker’s computer screen.
I don’t think you will act in the same way as you did in the past when you got over this crisis. It will make a big difference in the way you work.
■I was not able to run this morning. I finished a novel by Agatha Christie that I was about to read.
I got under the covers as usual and started reading on my Kindle, but I couldn’t stop halfway through and couldn’t fall asleep. I finished reading this book in one sitting.
However, this was not good. I think I’ve become sympathetic. After that it was hard to fall asleep, I dreamed over and over again and couldn’t get a good night’s sleep, I set my alarm at 5am, but I couldn’t get up and feel like running.
It is no use crying over spilt milk.We’ve only passed two mornings this month. If I finish work today, it will be my fourth consecutive holiday from tomorrow. But I don’t have any particular plans.
SUN had made many plans to go to Kochi, which she had never been to before, but she cancelled the whole trip in accordance with the policy of refraining from going out.
■Last night I read a novel by Agatha Christie, published in 1944 under the name Mary Westmacott, called “Absent in the Spring”. When you think of Agatha Christie’s book, it’s a mystery, so you might expect a murder to happen, but that doesn’t happen in this one.
In this book, the incident doesn’t happen in a way. The horrible truth lurking in the midst of a truly peaceful everyday life is somewhat chilling, but it’s by no means an unrealistic story.
Truths, such as those in everyday life, remain hidden in many cases. We may be living our daily lives in assumed truths. It’s just an assumption. You might say that you are living in a mindset that wants to believe that.
One day, the coverings that had covered my daily life, which I had assumed to be the case, were being peeled off one by one. The main character’s surprises are spelled out throughout the book.
The main character, who is thought to have been reborn, returns to her home country and eventually begins to live her daily life as before, which seemed like a reversal in a mystery.
