Can’t find the damn cats…


Okay already… enough with the #^&( typhoons… sigh…

We’ve had one count ’em ONE day of sunshine since we’ve been here; NOW we’ve got THIS screwing up my schedule, so I’ve actually got a couple of hours off…

Oh yeah, this is Typhoon Lupit…

On a lighter note- in the last post I posted a bunch of car and truck model names. Well, I’ve done some more ‘investigation’ of this (read I went as asked somebody).

According to Haruji-san, it’s different versions of the SAME model…

He took me down to the local Toyota dealer, and (now understand I don’t speak Japanese, the dealer didn’t speak English, and Haruji’s translations are “close”) this is what I came away with….

As an oh by the way, car dealers over here dress JUST like their US counterparts… perfectly coiffed helmet hair (never moves in the wind at all), long sleeve dress shirts with French cuffs, obnoxious cufflinks, obnoxious ties, expensive shoes, etc…

In the US, we have, for example a Ford Taurus, it may be a Taurus, Taurus L, Taurus XL, or Taurus XLE; so four models total…

Over here, that could be as many as TWELVE different models with different names, based on interior trim level (the more “expensive” the name, the higher the level), engine/drivetrain package, and/or exterior trim levels.

There is even a baby SUV called “Terios Kid”, named after a popular VIDEO GAME!!!

That thing has chrome everything, wings, nav system, mag wheels, and a cloth interior that replicates the game characters. It’s marketed to the young male population, and I about fell out when Haruji called a “pimp car”… J

Now Haruji is a character himself- He’s about 5’2”, either 75 or 76, and survived the Battle of Okinawa as a child by walking the length of the island with his family. I asked him one time about his education, and he held up his hands and said, “these are my education…

He owns four businesses, three of which are run by his sons. His other business is providing port services to the Navy and others that use the military port at Naha. He is also a car nut, and has a hot-rodded 20 year old Nissan Skyline with twin turbos that he built himself (and claims he has never been beaten, after riding with him init, I BELIEVE him).

He is also pretty well connected over here- We needed a 100 ton crane on a Japanese holiday weekend on short notice, two hours later it showed up, driven by the President of the crane company! I am NOT about to get Haruji mad at me…

Now back to your regularly scheduled BS…

Comments

Can’t find the damn cats… — 9 Comments

  1. I’m back in the States the 1st of Nov Julie… Heading back in now, don’t know when I’ll get to log back on.

  2. Good to hear from you and that you’re still above water. I’ll be looking for more posts when you get home.

  3. You didn’t by chance make a stop at “Smugglers Cove” at Camp Lester did you?

    Skul

  4. Well, I’m still above water…

    Julie- will do

    Gia- It was- 🙁

    WSF- Dumb yes, stoopid no 🙂

    Crucis- still treading…

    Skul- Not this trip, but I know where it is 🙂

    Fuzzy- Will do