I know the subject line almost sounds blasphemous coming from me, but let's face it. Star Trek, as wonderful a series of series and movies that it is, is not life. That point especially hits home right now during the Japanese nenmatsu-nenshi holidays (a group of holidays that center around the end of one year and the beginning of the next). You see, right now the station that broadcasts Star Trek in Japan is taking a break during these holidays to do other things like show specials. No matter how much I scour the TV schedule, I can only find two hours of Star Trek, and both of those are disconnected episodes, one from Voyager and one from one of the other series that I cannot recall at the moment. Both are labeled as "Best of..." episodes. We shall see.

So I am having to face the fact that there will come times in my life when I will be cut off from Star Trek. It was not easy, but I did find something to take its place. I am speaking of Star Wars, of course.

Thanks to a generous birthday gift of the Trilogy on DVD, I will somehow be able to keep my taste for quality science fiction satiated while Star Trek is on hiatus.

Today I watched Episode 4: A New Hope. I even watched it twice. The first time I watched it as it was meant to be watched. The second time I watched while listening to George Lucas, Carrie Fisher and two audio visual guys do a lot of explaining as to how they made the movie. Some of the extra information they gave I had already heard, but there was a lot of new information (new to me, anyway) that I was happy to learn.

To me, the difference between Star Trek and Star Wars is the difference between fantasy and reality. I can sit and watch an episode of Star Trek and think, "This could really happen sometime in the future." With Star Wars I am able to open my mind to a new universe (galaxy, anyway) and completely live out a fantasy without having to worry about trying to fit the science into the fiction. It is just pure fun.

I remember the first time I saw Star Wars it was near the end of its run at the theater. I had heard some of the guys at my school talk about it and I begged my father to take me to watch it, which he graciously did. The only bad thing was that, as I said, it was near the end of its run and I was not able to see it again for quite some time. But I instantly fell in love with it. At that time there were no such things as VCRs or DVDs (at least none that I knew about). I believe they showed it again at the theaters before Episode V was released. But it did not matter. For Christmas that year I wanted Star Wars toys. I remember getting a Darth Vader, probably about a foot high or so. I also recall getting some Stormtrooper action figures. I have no idea where any of them are now. They probably did not survive after all these years. But at least one of the Stormtroopers survived through eighth grade. I had to share a locker with someone and I recall more than one comment on the subject.

Star Wars is like Star Trek in that they will both last forever. (I just read on the Internet today that Georgetown University is offering a course called Philosophy and Star Trek. I sure do wish I could take it.) Even if George Lucas does not make the third trilogy, these six movies will always be considered classics, not to mention all the spin-offs, fan fiction (licensed and unlicensed) and other permutations. Of course, I hope he will make the third trilogy, but the theory is that Star Wars is the tale of Anakin Skywalker, and with Darth Vader dead in Episode VI, I am afraid there will not be any more. Be that as it may, I will always own a copy in whatever form they come out in. Right now we have DVDs. Who knows what will come out in ten years time.

In any event, I did have some questions and comments while I was watching the movie today. I wrote them down.

There are sounds near the beginning of the movie that make it sound like an Imperial cruiser is hooking up the rebel ship, but then in the very next scene the ship is still being overcome by the cruiser. What is up with that?

I wonder what it will take to manufacture blasters / phasers / phase pistols / whatever. And I wonder what will it take to set them all to stun. And I wonder if that would somehow satisfy people in using a stun setting instead of the current weapons that can seriously maim or kill. Call me a peacenik at heart, but it sure would be great to not have so much carnage in the world.

I still cannot understand why C-3PO and R2-D2 and Obi-Wan Kenobi do not recognize each other in light of what we know from episodes one and two. I suppose that is one of the things we have to look forward to in Episode III next year.

Outside of the Cantina, C-3PO and R2-D2 lock a door that they hide behind. A stormtrooper knocks a few times, declares it locked and decides to proceed to the next door. It seems to me that in real life they would be more persistent. I know from personal experience that the modern day stormtroopers (AKA TSA agents) do not let simple things like locks stop them from opening baggage.

What is the science behind a tractor beam? Or is this something else we have to think of as pure fantasy?

At the end of the movie, why does the Death Star orbit the planet to get to the moon rather than simply blast through both? That is what I would do if I were an evil imperial governor.

That is all for now. But I have a lot to look forward to during this nenmatsu-nenshi season. If I get past Star Wars, I still have Lord of the Rings and the Indiana Jones trilogy on DVD.

But I still cannot wait for Star Trek to start back up!

Today we went to an onsen to wash and relax. One of the less pleasant rituals at an onsen is checking one's weight. I topped the scales at 105.25 (the digital scale fluctuated between .2 and .3) kilograms. That is, roughly, 231.55 pounds. And though it is said that muscle weighs more than fat, that does not matter to my physique.

I have tried dieting, or at least some facsimile thereof. I gave Shuko complete reign over what I ate and how much, etc. It did not work. I used to go to a pool several times a week to walk around with the old ladies. That did not work. I still go for a walk almost every night, weather permitting. That does not seem to work. I am not a big eater. I do not eat many snacks. But I put on the weight.

That did not used to be the case. Before I was married I was 120 pounds. Shuko says she can remember reaching all the way around me. But since I got married I just started packing on the pounds. The Japanese call that "shiawase butori," putting on weight from happiness. I call it "sutoresu butori," putting on weight due to stress.

Regardless, it looks like it is here to stay. I have contemplated going to work out at a gym, but I hate to do mindless, repetitive actions, especially when there is little or no perceivable result, which is what I am sure would happen were my shadow ever to darken the doorsteps of a gym. It just seems like such a waste of time.

So I give up. I am no longer going to look for the next fad diet (I would not be able to follow it anyway). I am not going to "work out." The only thing I am going to do is continue my nightly walk. I have found it to be relaxing in a way.

And if I keep gaining weight perhaps something good will come of it. Believe it or not, I truly enjoy being Santa Claus at Christmas parties. Well, at Christmas parties where no one knows me. And this year, for the first time, when I went for my walk on Christmas Eve I put on my Santa suit for my walk. I waved to all the cars, lots of people called out "Hey, Santa" and waved at me. Two cars even stopped and asked if they could take a picture with me. (Digital cameras on cell phones have a use after all.) So as my girth widens, perhaps I can grow a beard and during the Christmas season die my hair and beard white. And hey, as time passes, I probably will not have to even dye my hair. It will just turn naturally white. Either that or fall out. I have seen bald Santas before.

How long does it take to grow a beard anyway?

It seems as if my children have the same thoughts about Christmas gifts as they always do.

Video games.

I remember as a child how happy I was to get my Atari. In fact, I don't even think it was a real Atari. I seem to recall some kind of Sears brand rip-off that would play Atari games. I am sure there was some kind of licensing deal, but at the time I did not know anything about that. I just wanted to play video games. By today's standards they were quite simple, but in a way, I like it like that. There was a paddle (I think that is what we called it) that I could rotate to send my on-screen paddle (I cannot even begin to recall what we called that) up or down as the electronic blip moved from side of the screen to the other. There was probably a button as well, though I do not have a clear memory of it. But for most of the games we (I) used a simple device known as a joystick, with a red button in the top left corner. That was all I needed.

My children have at least three (possibly four) game consoles, several GameBoy and GameBoy like hand-held games, and controllers in all sort of shapes and contortions, including, of all things, bongo drums. They even have something they hook up to the machine that allows them to dance to a certain beat. But even the "regular" controllers are too much for me. It seems that there are at least ten buttons on each of those things, not to mention two joysticks on some of them. How anyone can figure them all out is beyond me.

And this Christmas they want even more. I hear the words "Play Station II" quite often. And apparently there is something called a PSP that is supposed to be popular this year. I only have vague ideas of what that is. Luckily, the adults of the family (which include Shuko's mom) have all agreed that there will be no new game consoles this year. And I think we are also staying away from new game programs as well, though I am less sure of that. One of the children, Rebecca, I believe, is going to receive some hand-held game or other. (I do not do the shopping.) Supposedly it will be in her name, but available for all to play. And I do not know how this is supposed to work, but somehow since Rebecca gets a new game, Jeff is supposed to be willing to give one of his older games to Sarah, and all three are going to be happy.

Do not ask me how it is supposed to work. Shuko has it worked out in her mind, and that is good enough for me, for now. Come Christmas morning when we start hearing the complaints, there might be a different story.

But the gift we are giving to one of the children that has me most excited will probably be something that in the end I will wish we had never touched. Jeff is getting a trumpet for Christmas. He has played the trumpet for only a short time, but he seems to be very interested in learning to play. So far he has used a trumpet that they provide at the school, but he is not allowed to bring that home very often, so he does not get as much practice as he probably could otherwise. So Santa, at our urging will leave a brand new, shiny trumpet for Jeff. The really cool thing is that Jeff is under the impression that trumpets cost at least $3000, so he will be getting a real treat.

Sarah is still young enough that we do not really have to spend a lot of money for her to be impressed. Thank goodness. But due to influence from her two older siblings, I do not believe that will last for long. The longer the better.

One of the things that I had a hard time getting used to after coming to Japan was going out to eat. Certainly, to begin with, we had so little money that it was not much of a problem. We just did not go out to eat. But we went out sometimes, and it was very hard to get used to.

The first problem was that Japan is a smoker's paradise. It was almost impossible to find a restaurant that had a non-smoking section, let alone a completely non-smoking restaurant. I did not like to go out to eat and more often than not, Shuko found it was easier to just not ask. But things have changed. Japan has since passed an anti-smoking law that requires most public areas to be non-smoking or at least to separate smokers from non-smokers. Most of the places we go to nowadays are at least tolerable, and some are even completely non-smoking environments. So that has made dining out easier.

But there was another reason that I did not enjoy dining out. It is the Japanese teishoku. Looking up the word in my handy little dictionary, a French term (at least I assume it is French, it certainly is not English), "table d'hote" (the "o" has a little roof-top doohickey on top of it, sorry, I do not know the real name for the mark or how to make that show up on the computer) is the only "English" definition given. I took French classes for two years in high school and another quarter in college, but I have no idea what a "table d'hote" is. But if I were to simply explain teishoku, I would say that it is a set meal. And when I mean a set meal, I mean it is set by the cooks in the back.

In an American restaurant, patrons sometimes go on and on explaining what they want. "I'll have the steak dinner," just does not cut it. They are asked how they would like the steak cooked, what kind of vegetables they would like, how they would like their potatoes and what kind of dressing they would like on their salad. In other words, they get what they want, for the most part.

But in Japan when ordering a teishoku, that is all you have to order. Indeed, it is all you are allowed to order. There are no substitutes to worry about. The steak is cooked to the restaurants specifications. Very small portions of vegetables and/or potatoes are apportioned out and the house dressing reigns supreme on the salad. And a lot of the stuff put on the special teishoku trays are not exactly what Americans are looking for when they go out to eat. I have since learned to eat just about anything (with two exceptions -- one Japanese and one fruit) and though I enjoy being able to choose what I eat, I have grown to love the surprise and savor the challenges.

But interestingly, when Shuko lived in America, she found the American way to be burdensome. She did not want to pick out what to eat. Put simply, "Chicken or fish?" as the airlines ask was and is sufficient for her. Of course she is used to it and can order what she wants in America. I think half the time she argues with me it is more for the sake of the argument than anything else. But I have often wondered if this is another symptom of the fundamental difference between the way Americans and Japanese think. Americans like to think they are somewhat in control of their destinies. Japanese are much more able to "go with the flow."

I once heard one guy's idea for a hamburger chain. Customers order their hamburgers based on size and all the condiments are set out like a buffet so that the customers can fix their hamburgers the way they like them. Sounds like a good idea to me. But I wonder how well it would go over here in Japan.

Over the past few weeks, I have been really struggling with a decision. To most people it is probably a trivial decision, and in fact, it is trivial, even to me.

I subscribe to the Daily Yomiuri, an English language Japanese newspaper. I cannot even begin to count the number of times people have been surprised at seeing me with an American newspaper. It is just one of my pet peeves. I painfully explain that it is not an American newspaper, but rather an English language newspaper. But that is a different subject.

For the low, low price of only $30 a month, I am able to get the Daily Yomiuri, well, daily. Except for one day a month, a so-called "press holiday," presumably because nothing happens one day a month. No. The excuse they use is that their carriers need time off. But some of the great features included in the Daily Yomiuri are national and international news, features from around the world, a crossword puzzle and two (that is right, two) comic strips, one of which is a bunch of repeats (Calvin and Hobbes). It comes a day late and is centered on Tokyo, making the TV listings obsolete at best, a waste of paper at least.

But the thing is, I can get all of that, and a whole lot more on-line. I have been advised by some to read more newspapers in that way. And I must say, there is something to that. Virtually every newspaper, every news organization, for that matter, has a web page from which anything can be read. I subscribe to three comic services that allow me to read well over 200 comic strips a day, and one of the services even includes crossword puzzles (yes, that is plural) that I can either solve on-line, or print out.

So why should I stay with a hard copy Daily Yomiuri? The best reason I can come up with is that it is quite portable. I can take it almost anywhere. Also, there are times when I cannot take the time to sit in front of the computer. I am not sure I would have the discipline to check with the different news organizations each day. And then there is the strain on the eyes that a computer screen gives you.

But I read an article just the other day (on-line) in which the writer said he saved $45 a month by canceling his newspaper subscriptions and going on-line. Perhaps the guy was bragging, but he says he is confident that thanks to the Internet he feels he is more well informed than most of the people he personally knows. Saving $30 a month doesn't sound like much at first, but that is $360 a year that could go to something else. It would make it a lot easier for me to start reading books again, as well. As it is now, I have this psychosis known in Japanese as being kichomen. That is, I have to have everything in order. (Some might not think that if they looked at my desk, but Shuko says I am very kichomen.) So if I have newspapers backed up, I want to get them out of the way before I do any entertainment reading. I cannot even remember the last time I read a book for pleasure.

So I think I am going to do it. Maybe even call it a New Year's Resolution (or should it be a News Year Resolution -- my jokes are so punny!). I even know where to put that $30 a month so that it will be saved. Wish me luck. One of my other little quirks (besides being kichomen) is what the Japanese call being mikka bozu. That means giving something up quickly. But I need to be more informed and I need to read more.

And before anyone writes and says that I should stop watching nine hours of Star Trek each week, forget about it. That will never happen.

Shuko and I were married in Tokyo on July 5, 1991. Gramma Letty and Grampa Bill came to Japan for the wedding. It was the first trip to Japan for both of them, and to tell the truth, I was still quite the Japanese novice at the time.

We did not have much time, only a couple of weeks, and a lot of that was to be spent in preparing for the wedding, doing the wedding and then getting ready to move immediately back to America. But we wanted to experience something of Japan while they were here. We had Japan Rail Passes, so theoretically we could go anywhere we wanted to if we had the time. I asked if there was anywhere special that they wanted to go, but their knowledge of Japan was kind of limited (as was mine at the time). The only suggestion they came up with was a trip to Hiroshima, but that is about as far away from Tokyo as you can get and still be on Honshu, the main island of Japan. We could possibly get there and back in a day, but we would have been on the bullet train all day. There would have been no time to actually visit Peace Park or anywhere really. So that idea was out.

The only thing left to do was to turn to our Japanese experts, Shuko and her mom. About the only thing we could come up with on such short notice was a visit to Kamakura, a town that hosts the Daibutsu, or Great Buddha. I am sure it is not the largest statue of Buddha in the world. I am not even sure it is the largest in Japan. But for some reason or other it is famous, and Kamakura is not so far away from Tokyo. So away we went.

My impressions of the Daibutsu are that it was not so big. However, I may be confusing that day with some other day and some other statue. I do not mean any offense to Buddhists, but if you have seen one Buddhist temple, you have pretty much seen them all. I am sure there are some with great historical significance or some other reason for there being, but for the most part that is true. The biggest impression I have is of the time we were leaving the compound in which the Daibutsu resides. Just outside the gates there is a large road with lots of cars passing by. Yet while I was inside the gates I did not notice it at all. Walking out on to the road (into the world?) the noise and confusion hit me almost like a ton of bricks, the impact was so large.

We still had some time and we went to visit somewhere else. I assume it was another temple famous for something or other, but for the life of me I cannot remember what it was. I do remember, however, Gramma Letty (who was not a Gramma at the time) looking off into the distance and saying, "That is a pretty big lake."

I agreed with her. "Yeah. That's the biggest lake in the world. It's called the Pacific Ocean."

Hey, if the British can refer to the Atlantic as "The Pond," I see nothing wrong with Gramma Letty referring to the Pacific as "The Lake."

It has taken me over a month, and there were times when I did not think it would ever happen, but as of the moment I began to write this message, I was completely caught up on e-mail.

Yes, when I arrived back in Japan from my trip to the US, I faced over a thousand e-mail messages (very few of which were spam -- I have set up a pretty good filter). And while "catching up," I was still receiving three to four hundred messages a day. It took a lot of work and there were quite a few threads on several mailing lists I belong to that I just deleted after looking at the first few messages and determining that they were of no interest to me.

There were times when I thought I was near my goal and I was down to a couple hundred messages, but then something would come up and I would not be able to read for a while. My inbox would reach back over 500 or even 700 at one point, if I recall correctly. I tell you, it was not a pretty sight.

But now I look at my Inbox and my Comics box and I see nothingness. I love that. Unfortunately, early next year I will be going on another trip, albeit a shorter one here in Japan, and though I will strive to keep my Inbox clean until then, I know that when I come back, I will have to go through all this again.

Sometimes I wonder if it is worth it all.

I saw David Lee Roth in concert once. It was right after he left Van Halen. And that was before concerts were so ridiculously high priced. I can't imagine paying as much as some "singers" are asking. I honestly don't know why anyone would pay more than for a CD, or at most, two CDs. After all, you can keep the CD and listen to it forever (or at least for a long time) whereas the concert is a one-time deal. But I suppose the market has spoken. There are enough people out there that are willing to pay those prices that I will never be able to go to another one.

A while back I wrote about how getting the Christmas decorations up and ready was so troublesome. But today we discovered that some of our decorations were stolen over night. In the grand scheme of things, it was not a lot of money and it does not matter much. But still, when I realized what had happened, it felt like I had been stabbed in the heart. I found out right before one of my classes had begun and it was really difficult to do that class. I am feeling a little bit better right now, but I will be sure to lock our doors and windows tonight.

Most of the decorations that were "stealable" we bring in every night. But we had a ladder with three Santa's climbing up. Since it was attached to the wall somewhat, we did not even think of bringing that in. But the three Santa's were stolen. I am of the opinion that we should take down everything that is outside and forget about it. Shuko wants to try to find the same decoration so that we will not give in to the robbers.

We even called the police. I hated to ask them to come for something so trivial, but I thought it was necessary. It is not the first time we have been victims. We have a couple of vending machines outside of the classroom and both money and drinks have been stolen in the past. The vending machine company is responsible for those, so we were not directly affected, but it is still on our property. There is a bank right across the street from us and so sometimes at night there is a police car watching the vicinity. I wish they were there more often.

Better yet, I wish I could protect myself. But Japanese law does not allow that. Not that owning a gun would have prevented what happened last night, but I felt so much safer with the cop's gun in our classroom for the time he was here.

As for my Christmas spirit, it is gone. I did not have much before. I do not know if it will come back this year or not. I hope so, for my children's sake, but right now I just feel lousy.

One of the things that Jeff found most fun to do while we were in America was to ride some go-karts. He loved it so much that we went back two more times. And what was so surprising was how good he did it. I did not even know he could drive. Not that they are that hard to make move.

Actually, it was the first time I had ever ridden in a go-kart. Well, that is not exactly true. I do not remember if it was sixth or seventh grade (or perhaps even fifth), but I was invited to a birthday party of a classmate named Gary. We were pretty good friends. A lot of other guys were there as well. Gary had a go-kart and we were all taking turns riding it. When it was my turn I sat down and promptly stamped on both pedals, gas and brake, at the same time. I do not remember the results of that, but I do remember it was bad enough that Gary made me stop and he instructed me (somewhat) in the ways of go-kart riding. Then I was off again. Only this time I headed right into the path of an incoming car (another classmate who was running a little late). I was able to stop in time and of course the driver of the car did, too. But I must not have gotten my driving lessons quite right because I took off again, heading across the same path as the car that had, coincidentally, also started up again. Somehow, we both got our brakes working and we both stopped. But much to the chagrin of the rest of the kids, Gary announced that that was the end of the go-kart riding that night. I can still hear Carlton say, "Oh, man." If I recall correctly, it was Carlton who was coming in the car that I inadvertently played Chicken with. But that part of my memory is kind of fuzzy.

Another part that is fuzzy is my first roller coaster ride. According to Grampa Bill it was at an early age and so traumatizing that I have never ridden one since. Well, that is not exactly true, either. I have ridden them several times at the behest of Shuko, but I did not have a good time.

But getting back to the go-karts, Jeff, Rebecca and I agree that opening a go-kart / arcade / karaoke / snack shop / mini-golf amusement place would be very profitable. But Shuko has determined that it would not work. She agrees that people might come once or twice, but there would not be a lot of repeat business. So I am going to have to find another way to make my millions. Any suggestions?

I watched this episode of Star Trek: Deep Space 9 today, and it is easy to see why readers of TV Guide voted it the best Star Trek episode of all time. (Personally, I do not know that I would go that far. I would want to have the whole of Star Trek available and I would want to go through all of the episodes in order to rank them.) This is the tale of the love of a father for his son, and of a son for his father. I tried to hold back while I was watching, but I could not. I was able to keep it down to a few sniffles to begin with, but by the end of the episode I was bawling. Shuko was in the room with me, but she does not watch Star Trek.

And that is too bad. I think many people think of Star Trek as just a shoot 'em up with aliens, and it is so much more than that. In fact, the shoo 'em ups are such a small part of Star Trek. "The Visitor" proved very much that there is great human drama involved in Star Trek. Tony Todd was excellent in the role of Jake Sisko as an old man. Tony Todd has also played the role of Worf's brother in both Star Trek: The Next Generation and Deep Space 9. He has also played Harvey Lipshultz's son in Boston Public. He must be very familiar with familial situations.

My congratulations to the writers, producers and actors that put this wonderful episode together.

I admit that I watch entirely too much TV. My viewing habits certainly raise the average viewing rates higher than they should be. And despite what some people think, I watch more than Star Trek. One of the shows I watch, and one which Shuko also enjoys, is Boston Public. FOX TV Japan has only shown through the second season so far, but they are showing the second season for the third time around now.

Jeri Ryan, probably best known for her role as Seven of Nine in Star Trek: Voyager, but also known as the ex-wife of Jack Ryan, who for scandalous reasons involving said Jeri, declined to run as the Republican nominee for Senator of Illinois, plays Ronnie Cooke, a lawyer who, at the invitation of one of the teachers at Winslow High, visits the high school to speak to a class about a career involving the law, and subsequently decides to quit her law firm so that she can become a high school teacher at a much lower salary.

(I wonder what some of my former English teachers would have to say about that long sentence. I have no idea if it is a run-on, if it grammatically correct, or what they would say. I sure would like to know, though.)

As I wrote, this is the third time this particular season is being shown, and each time it comes up that she used to be a lawyer, I tell Shuko, "Ari enai," which means, that would never happen. I mean, of course, that no high powered lawyer would ever give up the money and prestige that comes with working at a big law firm to work at a public high school. The first couple of times I said that, Shuko disagreed with me saying that it could happen. Now when I mention it, she kind of laughs. I am not sure if it is because she has decided to agree with me or if it is because she has decided that it is not worth arguing over. But I still feel it is true.

Perhaps a lawyer who is much older than Jeri Ryan, who wants to slow down and impart some wisdom may decide to try his or her hand at a prestigious private high school, but I cannot imagine a lawyer in his or her prime giving up all of what he or she had worked for. I know I would not. And maybe that is the problem. I look at things from only one perspective. Mine. Maybe someday I can broaden mine.

I did something tonight that may be against international law, if you believe in such. I have not researched, so it may be completely legal. Obviously it is legal in Japan, or I would not have been able to do it.

The family was out to eat at Seijiro, a kaiten sushi restaurant, kaiten sushi being about the closest thing to fast food sushi as you can get. We were about finished eating when they called out that they had a shipment of minke whale. It was pretty expensive at 525 yen for two small pieces, but hey, how often do you get a chance to eat whale? It is not like they do not have it every time we go. I have actually eaten whale meat before, and it is pretty good. I hope they have it again sometime soon.

Growing up, our family always had at least one cat. The first cat I remember was named Sen. My grandmother's cat was named Sen-Anne. You would have to check with her on the correct spelling. But even after these cats died, we always got another one. I think the most we ever had at one time was five, some that were strays picked up by one sister or other. My grandmother had up to three at a time, if I recall correctly. I never really thought that much about it. Cats were always just part of my life. I never really cared much for dogs. To me, they are big, noisy, smelly, dirty and troublesome. It is sometimes pointed out that not all dogs are big. Granted, but in that case the dog is small, noisy, smelly, dirty and troublesome. I just do not like them. I can tolerate them, but I do not really like them or want one.

Shuko, on the other hand, prefers dogs. She grew up in an apartment, so she never had one, but that is what she says she prefers. Sometimes I think she just says stuff to be contradictory to me, but maybe she really does like them better than cats.

At the moment, though, it is a moot point. Rebecca is allergic to both dogs and cats and we live in a rented house, besides, so we cannot have any pets. No big ones, anyway. We do have a few goldfish. I am not sure how many, two or three I guess. But the really mysterious part is how those goldfish stay alive. I have never seen anyone feed them. The water is completely green so I can only assume that no one cleans it either.

On the other hand, my children have some virtual pets called Tamagocchi. Actually, my son does not have one. His kept dieing and so he threatened to throw it away. I said I would take care of it, and have ever since.

Here is a brief introduction for those not familiar with Tamagocchi. They are in the shape of an egg (tamago is the Japanese word for egg) and they also serve as a digital watch (uocchi is the Japanese word for watch -- get it? Tamago and uocchi put together become Tamagocchi.) When it is activated a little egg pops up on the screen and then hatches. The owner can name the Tamagocchi, but that is not the end. They require a lot of care, including feeding, exercising and cleaning up the poo-poo. The latest ones, including the one I rescued from Jeff, are capable of making friends with other Tamagocchi through infra-red sensors. If you do not take good enough care of them, they may get sick, or even die. They also may need some discipline from time to time. All of this is controlled by three buttons.

When I rescued my Tamagocchi, the first thing I needed to do was to name it. This can sometimes be hard to do, because there is only space for five Japanese characters. Being the avid Star Trek fan that I am, I decided to name him after my favorite Star Trek character, Worf, the only Klingon to become a Star Fleet officer.

Worf was brand new to me and I kept asking my daughters for advice on what to do when something new happened on the screen. If you take good care of your Tamagocchi, he (or she) will eventually marry and have a child. And so it was with Worf. I was hoping that he would have a boy so that I could name him Alexander, but it was not to be. He had a girl which I named Hoshi, after the communications officer on Enterprise, NX-01. What I was not quite prepared for was oya-banare, or the time when the parent leaves the child. One morning I woke up and Worf was gone, leaving little Hoshi to my tender care.

And so it goes with Tamagocchi. Unlike my children's, I have been able to care for thirteen generations of Tamagocchi. Starting with Worf and Hoshi, I have since taken care of Alex, Kirk, Deanna, Picard, Sisko, Archer, Janeway, Uhura, Spock and Riker. Kira is currently 6 years (days) old, and will probably be married in two or three days so that either Chakotay or T'Pol we be born. But to be fair to my children, Tamagocchi require more care than my children can reasonably give them because they are not allowed at school. I have tried to help Rebecca and Sarah at times, caring for theirs while they are at school, but they forget. Rebecca has gotten up to eight or nine generations before dieing and having to start a new line, so I have surpassed her record. I suppose I can keep going forever, unless the Tamagocchi are programmed to stop at 99 generations. The display kind of looks like there might not be any room for a third digit. And of course there is always the problem of batteries running out.

It does not seem that Shuko and I will ever agree on any real pets, but the Tamagocchi are pretty fun, too. And they do not smell. That has to be worth something.

We have finished a major portion of our Christmas shopping, all that which will be going to America. In fact it has all been sent. I find it hard to believe that Shuko and I were able to get it all done in one day. Shopping, wrapping and shipping. I just hope everyone likes what we got them.

A few notes on what's happening:

1. Boxes were shipped by EMS. I am not sure what the letters stand for, but it is supposed to be fairly quick, so look for packages arriving in a week or so. Cousin LeAnne's is being sent with Gramma Letty's, which brings us to...

2. You may have noticed that Grampa Bill's name was not mentioned. That is because I ordered his over the Internet. To tell you the truth, I do not have a clue as to when it is supposed to arrive, though. It may get there before or after Christmas. It may come in a plain brown wrapper, or it may state on the package what is inside. Regardless, I am sure that it will not be wrapped. But it is the one gift that we bought for someone that I think will be enjoyed.

3. Someone is getting a piece of clothing that is marked "LL" for the size. Please do not be insulted. "LL" in Japan is an "M" in America. Just think of the "LL" as a monogram.

One good thing is that Christmas shopping in Japan is a might easier than in America. The crowds are not as big and it is a much more pleasant experience. I did make one mistake when I temporarily thought that Cousin Lisa's baby was a girl, but we remedied the situation and bought a more appropriate gift than we had at first, though I doubt the parents will be thrilled with the gift. As for everyone else, we tried to get stuff age appropriate gifts, but if they are not, too bad. I think it would be quite difficult to exchange these items from Japan in America.

Now all I have left is a present for Shuko. Shuko can take care of the rest on her own.

Not much of a blog, but that's what it for today.

Any agreement? Disagreement?