Friday, January 31, 2020

Rabbit in the Moon Can Drive You Crazy

 A little Late Posting Full Moon Photos


astronomy, full-moon, Okinawa, rabbit


For those who may have been wondering, I didn't miss the full moon this month.

All three days of the moon's appearance I was out there morning and night shooting it.

It's the rabbit in the moon and research into its appearance that held me up on this blog.



faces, moon, full-moon, rabbit, National Geographic


For years I've been taking photos of the full moon and always try to catch the rabbit.

Example A above, shows the rabbit facing to the right and stirring something in a pot.

The image comes from National Geographic's "Why Do People See Faces in the Moon?"

The article goes on to explain different stories about appearances on the moon worldwide.

The rabbit bent over stirring, facing to the right has been the position I've imagined.



Others May See the Rabbit Differently



Suppose someone told you the rabbit could be seen facing the left and stirring the pot.

A good friend of mine demonstrated his view of the moon rabbit using my photo.





He shows the rabbit (in red) facing towards the left and, once you see it you'll never forget.

People don't just make these things up. There are other folks who see the rabbit this way.



moon, rabbit, left


Somebody called Left Field Wanderer (who wasn't watching) got me this image.

You can see how the rabbit earned that honorable position on the moon by reading the story.



Even Wikipedia Got Visited



 astronomy, folklore, full-moon, rabbit, photography


Here I must make a confession. Wikipedia isn't my favorite source of information.

Back in college, the professors would give you an "F" for using Wikipedia as a reference.

Since that Wiki-leaker guy came along, I guess the Wiki folks have more authority.

Anyway, sometimes researching Okinawa things, Wiki is the only resource available.

Somewhere along the way, I have even done photography for the Wiki people.

They use my images so, this article was where the rabbit above came from.




Things Can Keep On Getting Tricky




The rabbit on the moon doesn't always sit with his ears pointing upwards. WHAT!!???

If the moon is rising, you'll notice the critter standing or squatting in an upright position.

When the moon is setting (going down) in the west, the rabbit turns upside down.



astronomy, full-moon, rabbit, upside down


Normally, I do the research and try to explain some of the weird things I post on this blog.

Usually, in a few hours, I'll come up with a story that any layman would understand.

Along with that, I'll throw in links that can be used to verify my theories or findings.

After a few days of Googling and coming up empty-handed, I found other stuff to do.

 Go to festivals, drink beer, sample foods in restaurants, and, sleep a lot. 

At Live Science, I located their Moon Rabbit photographed upside-down.

There you can learn about "Pareidolia" causing people to see images on almost anything.

 "In one famous case from 2004, a woman who claimed to see the face of the Virgin Mary in a grilled-cheese sandwich was able to sell the sandwich on eBay for $28,000, according to NBC News."


The only place I could find some explanation as to why the rabbit turns is Stack Exchange.

This was even after checking the Children's site at NASA.

That was just in case I fell asleep in school while they were teaching us about the moon.

In somebody's layman terms, um, it all depends upon your perspective.

That's the end of my story about the rabbit in the moon. I'm in a hurry.

This post had to be completed before the end of the month because it's someone's birthday.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KATHLEEN!





Friday, January 17, 2020

EARTHQUAKE in OKINAWA !

Flashback from a Friday in 2010



This morning several Facebook friends reminded me of this February 2010 blog post.

Apparently, a 4.0 or, bit stronger earthquake happened last night and I missed it.

People DON'T PANIC!  Little earthquakes happen all the time. Adapt!

OK back to 2010


earthquake, Okinawa, peaceful, scenery, island




We had this earthquake around 5:30 this morning, right here in my hometown.

 Well, it actually shook everybody's hometown on the whole 65-mile island.

CNN and Fox and maybe even that Hiraldo Guy like to be the first, along with NBC, ABC, that

 Fat Guy who wants to run the Republican Party, and Bill O'Reilly, Conan, David Letterman,

 Dr. Phil, Capt. Kangaroo, Al Gore, The Flying Nun and everybody else who wants to be the

 first to report the news all gets family and friends of mine upset because just like breaking

 wind, 

BREAKING HEADLINE NEWS is usually BULL!

Gee, I hope I didn't leave anybody important out. If I did, sorry, it was intentional.

Here's what really happened in the Not-So-Breaking-News, from a survivor of the tragic

 aftermath. The ground shook. The house did, too. Not even 30 seconds, I think.

Everybody survived. If anyone was injured, it must have been an accident. There was one dead

 bird in my kitchen. He was still warm when I took him away from the dog eating him. I guess I

 should start closing the doors during earthquakes. Keep the damn birds from using my house

 like an earthquake shelter and stealing my Rye Bread. Bet that's why the dog killed him.

That's all the breaking news from my part of the world. Everyone's fine and I even answered

 half of the 157 emails I got today asking about the earthquake before I got this great idea: Do a

 Blog. Thanks for caring, everyone!

Live on the scene, in the aftermath of the OKINAWA EARTHQUAKE. It's over.




Thursday, January 2, 2020

Happy New Year! It's the Year of the Rat

New Year, 2020, Rat, Chinese, Zodiac, Okinawa

First Blog of the Decade



Things can get hectic over the holiday seasons in Okinawa, Japan.

And, I've been busy (mostly) procrastinating, as far as writing goes.

Maybe, that'll change with a brand new decade to work in. We'll have to wait and see.

In case you haven't heard, 2020 is the Year of the Rat. It's a Chinese Zodiac thing.

The greeting above was borrowed from the Chinese Zodiac Organization.

Visit them to learn all about Rat People, in case you married or, are dating one.

You could research your animal sign and learn lots about yourself, too.

It sure beats talking to a psychiatrist, I'm sure. And, I save a lot of money that way.




New Years Day Sunrise Photography




Forget about Christmas, all the shopping, gift-giving, eating and drinking that was done.

That was a long time ago and, we're into the month of January 2020 already.



islands, New Years, morning, 2020, sunrise, Okinawa


New Year's Eve I behaved.  Only one bar was visited and, I consumed just one beer.

My alarm was set to wake up at 0430 but, I automatically got up at 0330 AM.

Someone was coming to pick me up, at the office, 0530 to go shoot cameras.

Sunrise wouldn't be the pink, orange, grey and red scene I hoped to see.

Clouds on the horizon pretty much discouraged all the folks waiting for sunrise.

We hung in there and, this is the scene Mother Nature gave us to welcome the New Year.

Four islands off Okinawa's east coast are visible out there. They are the Yokatsu Islands.

Pictured are Henza, Hamahiga, Miyagi, and Ikei Islands. See More Here.




Departing Our Mountaintop Location




We were the last visitors to head down off the special location for photographers.

From there various parts of this island were visited and, I took over 125 more photos.

Being busy, sleep-deprived, and having other things to do, I just downloaded the camera.

When things slow down to a crawl around here, the rest of the images will be processed.

It's customary for families to gather on New Year's day and celebrate together.

Plenty of grandchildren were there, we had lots of food and drinks and I was ready to leave.



Wait There's Something We Have for You!





birthday, cake, Japanese, family, Okinawa


In case you can't read Japanese, here's a quick translation:

Grandpa Mike Happy Birthday

My birthday is January 2d and, yes, I was born in the Year of the Rat.

There were some gifts presented to me and everyone sang the Happy Birthday song.



One Last Surprise



This morning I discovered (through Facebook) my story about Handugwa was re-published. 


folklore, article, story, Handugwa, Stars ans Stripes, Okinawa



This article was first published by Stars and Stripes a few years ago.

They revived it for the New Year's 2020 edition and, didn't inform me but, that's alright.

Maybe, this will inspire me to start doing some travel writing again.




So far, I'm having a Happy New Year and hope you are, too!