Holy Shakuyakukanzoto! Hachiko's Gone!

There Was a Dog Statue Here

 

 

The early morning walk, across the Kin Bridge, was for a reason.

In 2011, a photo was taken at this location late in the afternoon.

Hachiko, the most loyal and faithful dog in Japan, was there back then.

In my blog post, I mentioned, it would be best to take a photo of it, in morning light.

Thousands of dog lovers, read that blog.

Hopefully, somebody took my advice and, snapped a shot of Hachiko before it was too late.

Somebody must have came along and bought the dog statue.

And, they decided to replace it with a lion.

It was too early in the morning to ask where the dog statue went. Nobody was there.

One of these days, I'll have to go ask.

That dog statue must have weighed a ton and, I bet it cost someone a ton of money.

They couldn't have carried it too far away.

I'll find out where it went.

Shakuyakukanzoto

 

 

That's a new word in the ever-expanding vocabulary.

Don't worry, it's not a cuss word; you can use it around the children.

It happens to be, one of the medicines that got prescribed, to me.

Curious by nature, I researched them all.

The other three, you might call, traditional Western medicines or, drugs.

This stuff is a little different.

It's Chinese herbal medicine, manufactured in Japan.

All my other medicines, come as pills.

Shakuyakukanzoto, is like grains of dirt, in little aluminum pouches.

You rip open the bag and dump it down your throat.

It's sort of like swallowing a mixture of sand and brown sugar.

So, it's a good idea, to have an open bottle of water, standing close by.

Some folks, mix it with tea or, juice.

Kinda whimpy. Don't you think ?

Dosages and Precautions

 

 

Doctors, medical personnel, drugs and (recently) massage therapists, I don't fool around with.

Sometimes, you can't fix yourself and, have to go get help.

That's a last resort type of thing for me.

When, I turn myself in, they have to get the benefit of my doubt.

Then, I turn around and check them out. So far, the people are good.

Drugs ?  Eeeh, maybe.

There are warnings about this herbal medicine but, I like it the best.

It shouldn't be taken along with other medicines, without consulting a medical professional.

Got that covered.

Adverse reactions. None yet and I'm being monitored, whenever I feel like.

Use in Elderly Caution:

Shoot. Okinawans live to be 100. I'm just getting to be middle aged.

Pharmacology:

This deserves a quote, directly from the manufacturer, Tsumura Company:

"Administration of Shakuyakukanzoto in the duodenum suppressed tetanic contraction of

gastrocnemius induced by frequent stimulation of isolated tibial nerve in cramp model rats."

Whatever the hell that means, I ain't worried because, I'm not a rat !

More about Shakuyakykanzoto

Health at Yahoo

Tsumura Company English (PDF)

A Free Movie on You Tube ! What Will They Think of Next ?

This Could Be Legitimate I Suppose

 

Here's something you won't catch me doing often.  I watched a movie on my computer.

A little typhoon, soaked me twice in the last 24 hours so, I decided to stay close to home today.

Out behind my office, I have a small back porch.

And, I was conducting some tests on a lens I'll be doing a Mad Mike Review on.

It has already been used in some bars, on beaches, flowers and wildlife.

But, I need to play with it awhile longer to give everyone an accurate assessment. 

       

    Adjusting the aperture settings to show the difference in background was what I did here.

Snails, gardens, red tiles, all became subjects, besides these banana leaves.

Processing my photos on one computer, I made the mistake of checking the morning mail.

Somebody had a link on Facebook to Hachiko: The Most Faithful Dog in Japan.

A Whole Hour and a Half Free Movie on You Tube !

 

 

Not a real big fan of TV, movies or, that character Richard Gere, I sorta watched.

See, I was running in and out, whenever it stopped raining smoke and take more photos. 

That Richard guy stinks in the movie but, the dogs were great actors.

I almost fell out of my chair, laughing when he got sprayed by a skunk.  What a dummy !

Between doing business and goofing-off, watching the movie, I missed him dying.

If you like dogs, this movie could bring tears to your eyes.

If you like Richard Gere, don't cry.  He was just supposed to be acting. 


There's no telling how long this will last but, the free movie is here:

A Statue The Most Loyal and Faithful Dog in Japan: Hachiko

Today for Travel Photo Thursday: A tribute to the most famous dog in all of Japan, Hachiko the Akita.

This dog, a Japanese Akita, became famous for waiting at the train station for his master to come home.

They had a routine, Professor Ueno would take the train, everyday, from Shibuya Station to go to work at the University of Tokyo. Hachiko, would wait for him to return, everyday.

Well, one day in May of 1925, the Professor died and didn't return but, nobody told the dog.

Hachiko, even though, adopted by a new family, escaped and kept going back to the train station, waiting for his master to return.  How long ?  How about until he died in March of 1935, a few years later !

There are bronze statues of Hachiko the Akita, books and movies about him, even video games.

People often use Hachiko, as an example of loyalty, to teach their children as they're growing up.

Hachiko is a National Hero and every year on the 8th of April there is a ceremony dedicated to him at Tokyo's Shibuya Train Station.  That's this Friday, for those who'd like to participate.

Learn more about HACHIKO THE MOST LOYAL AND FAITHFUL DOG IN JAPAN HERE and see if there are any dogs as famous in your culture. I think, Scotland has one. Australia, too.


NOTE: This Statue of Hachiko, in Okinawa, is located on HWY 329 on the left side of the road just after crossing the Kin Bridge, heading north. A better photo could be taken in early morning light.