Engrish Bus

Me on NPR (Audio Version)

Thanks to my friend Wren for pointing out that the audio of my letter being read on-air exists here. Go listen!

Me on NPR

If you were listening to NPR’s All Things Considered last Thursday evening, you might have heard Melissa Block read a letter I wrote about a story they did on a buffalo hunter in Alaska. In brief, the story was about a man, Steven Rinella, who did a lot of research on the bison and ended up winning a lottery to hunt one in Alaska. He wrote a book about the experience and then did a little story on NPR.

Here was my letter:

As a hunter who sometimes struggles to explain the deeper elements of a hunt, I really enjoyed your story about Steven Rinella in Alaska. Hunting, to most of us who do it, is far beyond just shooting and killing. For me, it’s about knowing where my food comes from, being a witness or participant in the process of death, developing close family relationships, and, as your speaker noted, finding a connection to the history that is both my ancestors’ means of survival and the animals’ cultural relevance.

Running Log 12/2 – 12/8

12/2 5:22am 13k ~1:07 (stopwatch malfunction)
12/3 5:49am 8k 43.14.3
12/4 5:56am 5 x ~300m hill sprints 1.51.9, 1.47.1, 1.47.7, 1.48.6, 1.50.4
12/5 off
12/6 6:54am 13k marathon race pace 58:43.4
12/7 off due to Japanese test
12/8 off (still in Naha)

Total: 37k

Check out that 58:43 13k on Saturday. If only I can hold that pace (I can’t) for another 29k I’ll post a goal-breaking marathon time.

The Yen Carry Trade

You may have only noticed this if you work in Japan, but the yen-to-dollar exchange rate has changed drastically in the last year. When I first arrived in Japan, 16 months ago, it would take about 120 yen to get 1 US dollar. Today it only takes 93 yen to get 1 dollar. I am paid in yen and my salary hasn’t changed, which means I’ve received a handsome raise without a promotion. If I sent home 10,000 yen in August of 2007, it would get me $84. Now 10,000 yen is worth $107. That’s a 28% difference.

I hadn’t thought much about why the yen was gaining so quickly on the dollar (after all, both economies are tanking, so why the disparity?) until I received a Wall Street Journal article last month from my friend, Gordon. It detailed the yen carry trade, which is something I’ve done a bit more research on. This is how it works:

Japan’s government offers super-low interest rates, like 0-.5%. So a lot of big-time investors borrow (sell) tons of yen, then exchange and invest it into a country that pays higher rates. Often this happens with countries known as the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, and China) because they are growing fast and in need of investment money, thus they pay high interest rates. But some investors simply invest the money in U.S. treasury bills, which usually offer a rate in the 3-5% range.

But the economies of many countries are suddenly troubled, which means the big investors are getting really nervous. They’re now ‘unwinding their positions’ in both the invested country and Japan. They’re divesting their money in growing nations because it’s no longer safe, then they’re buying back yen to cover their loans. So a lot of people are buying a lot of yen. Yen is in demand. And it’s getting more expensive for outsiders.

And to that I say, "Keep it up!"

Dressing Up Hair

If you're a guy headed to a formal event in Japan, take note of what you should do with your hair:

Running Log 11/24-11/30

11/24 off
11/25 5:53am 8k 42.53.2
11/26 5:20am 13k 1:06.19
11/27 5:42am 5 x ~300m hill sprints 1:58.2, 1:47.5, 1:52.1, 1:49.9, 1:48.1
11/28 off
11/29 8:31am 11k 51.17.8
11/30 7:49am 16k 1:23.34

Total: 51k

I did some research on different training plans this week, keeping in mind that I need to incorporate some short distance sprints. I found many links to a guy named Hal Higdon. At his website I found tons of training plans and settled on his Advanced 1 plan. My new weekly day off will be Friday, followed by a marathon race pace run on Saturday and a longer, slower run on Sunday.