Would convenience make us happy？

I'm addicted to making beer lately. Actually, it takes two weeks for fermentation and adds two more weeks for second fermentation after bottling. In addition, it requires to pay attention to sanitization and temperature. It goes without saying buying beers at liquor shop is cheaper, easier and faster compared to making beer by myself. 

However, I want to say "It's fun".  It's not dout convenience, it's more about the fun. I think it's fun to learn how to make beer and to serve my beers to my friends and get opinion. It's impossible to do same thing by buying beer. I think people who enjoy in home vegetable gardens have same feeling.

Why do people feel happy with inconvenience and pain things even though there are a tons of convenient and easier ways.

I think the key is that "Convenience" and "Fun" feel similar, but actually these are completely different, isn't it?

"Easy" and "Convenient" things solve inconvenience and pain. However, does it makes us happy?  The answer is not always "Yes" isn't it?

For instance, even though computers improved and we can work more efficiently, we never get our free time. Even though transportation technologies improved and we can move much faster than current, our business trip time would be shortened. It's unwelcome favor, but latest air craft  allow us to use computer during our flight then we have to work instead of relax. Our free time is shortened and we would get more stressed, wouldn't we?

Also, many mothers are still saying "no time" ,"so busy" and "I'm tired" even though they use tons of products to help their house chores like automatic laundry machine, robot cleaner, microwave and ready-made dishes.

I think these examples are typical cases that if people want to get only efficiency in their daily life, people never feel happy even though they use any convenient products and services.

In addition, if we keep having "easy" and "convenient" experience, it would be as normal things and we can't realize that we are happy.  Also, once we lose these convenient stuff, we would become anxious in our daily life.

Meanwhile, even though it's difficult, tough and hard, there are a lot of fun things.

Not only making beer and home vegetables, but going outdoor and camping and making cake and well-prepared dish take much time and are difficult as well. However, we can spent our own time and have a joy of achievement.

Yes, it's filled with a variety of joys.

There is big a difference between thinking of "waste of time and no meaning" and "Interesting and fun to do"

Whether it has a value or not is entirely dependent on if people can reconsider their value based on their own feeling, not thinking of efficient priority. 

Actually, there are big values and fun in the things that we cut before as inconvenient things. Also, there are a lot of things we can do from today like to stop using smart-phone and talk to people who live in local area while traveling and to stop using transportations and walk to enjoy the changes of the seasons.

I hope to change my mind and to live more slowly for more joy.

Reference "Yukkuri de iindayo" by Shinichi tsuji

http://www.din.or.jp/~honda/book9-51.htm 

Written in Oct 02 2012 and revised

日本語

最近自家醸造ビールにはまっている。１次発酵に２週間、ボトルに詰めてからの２次発酵に２週間もかかる。加えて殺菌処理も気を使うし温度管理もシビアです。もちろん買った方が安くて楽チンですぐ飲めるのは言うまでもない。

でも楽しいのだ。便利か不便かという価値観ではなく楽しいか楽しくないかということだ。好きなビールがどうやって作られているのかを知るのは楽しいし出来たビールを友達に振る舞まって感想を聞くのも楽しいのだ。これは買って来たビールには出来ない喜びだと思う。家庭菜園でいろんな野菜を作ってる人も同じ気持ちだと思う。

ではなぜこれだけ世の中には便利でラクチンなものがあふれているのにひとはあえて不便でめんどくさい事を逆に楽しいと思うのでしょうか？

キーワードは「楽なこと」と「楽しいこと」は似ているようで全く違うという事ではないでしょうか。

「楽」や「便利」はいろんな不便やめんどくさい事を解消してくれます。でもそれが幸せに結びついているか、というと必ずしも「ＹＥＳ」とは言えないのではないでしょうか。

例えばPCが進化して早く効率よく仕事ができるようになっても私たちの自由時間は増えません。乗り物が進化して早く移動出来るようになっても出張日程を短縮されるだけだし、ありがたい事に飛行の中でもPCが使えるようになって仕事もできるようになりました。逆に時間に追われてストレスが増えているのかもしれません。

また、世の中のママも全自動洗濯機、掃除ロボット、電子レンジ、スーパーの総菜などママの仕事を楽にしてくれる物があふれていますが相変わらず「時間がない」「忙しい」「疲れた」と言ってますね。

効率だけを求めるといくら楽で便利な物を投入しても幸せに感じる事ができない典型的な例だと思います。

また、「楽」や「便利」ばかりが続くと、それが「当たり前」になり、「幸せ」と思えなくなりがちです。逆にそれがなくなるととたんに生活が成り立たなくなります。

一方、反対に、難しくても、大変でも、苦しくても、楽しいことはあります。

ビール作りや家庭菜園だけでなくアウトドアでキャンプしたり登山したりケーキや凝った料理を作ることは不便で手間ひまがかかるけど自分らしい時間が過ごせたり達成した喜びなどいろんな楽しさに満ちあふれています。

それを「無駄なこと」「意味がないこと」などと考えるか、「おもしろいこと」「楽しめること」などと考えるか、では大きく違ってきます。

それに価値があるかどうかは、効率優先ではなく、自分の心の価値を大切に考え直すことができるかどうかで決まります。

例えば旅先でネットで調べないであえて地元に人に話しかけてとっておきな情報を手に入れたり、乗り物に乗らないであえて歩いて季節の移ろいを見つけてみたりと今まで私たちが無駄と切り捨てていたところに実は楽しさが隠れているという事を今一度見直してゆっくりと生きて行きたいですね。

 

What is a professional ?

I watched the movie "Jiro Dream of Sushi" on DVD lately. I learned what is a professional for the first time for a long while. This movie is a documentary movie directed by American director David Grelb.  This movie is focused on Jiro Ono and his son's longstanding insistence on sushi. He runs sushi restaurant Sukiyabashi Jiro in Tokyo which is awarded a prestigious three-star Michelin Guide rating for five years consecutivly. 

There are tons of luxury sushi restaurants in Tokyo and these restaurants not only have high quality sushi, but also good interior and amazing hospitality.  I wonder how JIro got the three-star award even though his restaurant is tiny with only ten seats, no-restroom inside, serving only sushi and unfriendly attitude compared to these other competitors. Does his sushi have a remarkable taste? My interest is only this point.

I've never been there, but I think through this movie, the main reason is not only sushi taste itself, but also his amazing persistence  for preparation process "Shikomi" to get high quality sushi item and also his challenging spirit is another reason which never stops even though he is eighty-six years old.

It's no wonder that sushi chef insistence on sushi stuff(neta), but his persistence  for preparation is also amazing. He roasts the best see weed by high quality bincho charcoal every day and he mixes many kind of high quality rice and cooks them separately for each customer. In addition, he puts his glove when he goes out to protect his hands. As you can see, there are a lot of JIro's amazing persistence  for preparation than you could count. So, these incredible insistence with uncompromising stance makes his sushi amazing.

In addition, his inquiring mind is not ordinary that he is thinking how to make his sushi better all the time and he tries so many times. He was sent out to an apprenticeship to local fancy Japanese-style restaurant when he was seven and he has been standing at kitchen about eighty years and he is now eighty six. However, he still tries to improve himself. It's not easy to follow his style isn't it? His succeeding son Yoshikazu respects him and tries to be his father's assistant in their restaurant. In other words, he is true professional guy who we can't find in present Japan.

Now, Japanese society needs a person who has amazing persistence and passion to improve like him, don't we?

He gives young people candid advice like "young people seems to look for a job that fits to them and look for a job that they can express their individuality. However, it's not good way of thinking. The original meaning is that people should adjust to a job"

I feel  his karma as professional sushi-chef from his words that I don't think I'm perfect even though I'm eighty six.

I believe that this movie is good and easy to understand for young people. So, I hope this movie will be released in Japan. I recommend to watch it if you have a chance.

Written in Oct 24

http://www.magpictures.com/jirodreamsofsushi/

日本語版

プロフェッショナルとは

最近DVDで「Jiro Dream of Sushi」という映画をみた。久々にプロフェッショナルとは何かという事を学びました。この映画はミシュラン日本版で３年連続３つ星を獲得した鮨店「すきやばし次郎」の店主、小野次郎さんと後を継ぐ息子さんたちの寿司に対するこだわりに焦点を当てたアメリカ人監督のDavid Grelbが製作したインタビュー中心のドキュメンタリー映画である。

東京には高級寿司店が数えきれないくらいありそれらの店では鮨の質だけでなく店の雰囲気、サービスも当然一流である。そのような店を押さえてなぜ不便な地下にあってトイレも無く１０席ほどしか無いこじんまりとした店で握り鮨しか出さない無愛想な店主の握る鮨が5年連続で３つ星を取れたのでしょうか？それほどずば抜けた味なのでしょうか？私の興味はその１点でした。

私はもちろん次郎で食べた事はありませんが映画を見て感じたのは単なる鮨の味だけでなくそこにたどり着くまでのプロセスに対する拘りが圧倒的でまた８６歳になった今も更に向上しようとする姿勢にあるという事かなと思いました。

鮨屋ですからネタに拘るのは当然として、ただそれだけではなく最高級の海苔を毎日炭火で炙って最高の香りが引き出せるように仕込んだり最高のシャリを作る為に最高のコメをさらにブレンドしてお客際の来店に合わせて分けて炊くなど次郎さんの仕込みに対する並外れたこだわりは枚挙にいとまがない。他にも外出時には手を保護するための手袋を欠かさないなど小野二郎さんの妥協しない仕事への凄みが味となり表れているのだろう。

あとこのような桁違いの拘りに加えて日々もっと美味しくするにはどうしたら良いのかという事を考え実行して行くという姿勢が尋常ではない。７歳から地元の料亭に奉公にでて８０年近く厨房に立ち続けて来て現在８６歳。それでもさらに向上しようとする考えはなかなか真似出来る物ではないですね。跡を継ぐ息子の禎一さんもそんな偉大な父親を尊敬し今でも店では彼のサポート役に徹しています。まさに彼は今の日本にはいなくなった本物の職人だと思います。

今の日本の社会に必要なのは彼のようなこれぞ職人と呼べるような仕事に対するこだわりと向上し続ける気持ちを持った人では無いでしょうか？彼は若い人たちに対してこのような苦言も呈しています。今の若者は「自分に合う仕事」を探そうとし、「自分らしさを表現できる仕事」を求めようとするけどそうではなく「仕事というものは、本来、自分の方が仕事に合わせるものだ」と。

二郎さんの「この年になっても完璧だって思ってないからね」という彼の言葉に、職人という生き方の業のようなものを感じます。

この映画は若いひとにも伝わると思うのでぜひ日本でも公開して欲しいと思いますね。機会があればぜひご覧ください。

 

Japanese people's diligence is in danger of unraveling

It has been five months since I came here in Los Angeles and I feel there are some differences between Japan and the U.S. in business style.

First, American people's greeting is so casual regardless of age and a position.

In Japan, we never use casual greeting like "cheese!" to our boss.

Next, there is no custom to exchange their business card before their meeting starts in the U.S. Even if they do this, they don't treat cards politely. Besides they don't bow and they shake hands instead.

In addition, there are some differences in e-mail writing. For instance, Japanese people usually use some phrases of the compliments of the season or acknowledgements before main part, but in the U.S, they skip these phrases.

If people who use greeting phrase too much American people must consider as a person who can't organize the main points.

 As you may know, there are a lot of differences in business style between Japan and the U.S.

I think the biggest difference is their diligence.

Generally speaking, Japanese people are hardworking. Basically they work overtime without complaint. Even though after overtime working, Japanese people go out for drink for the sake of their friendship. That's because they have a lot of loyalty to their company. It is no exaggeration to say that Japanese people's diligence made today's Japanese economy developed after W.W.Ⅱ.

They worked hard with slogan "Oitsuke Oikose"(Catch up and then over take) They made a lot of good products with low cost and they exported them to advanced countries.

However, too much hard working caused a lot of negative effect.

To begin with, family ties disappeared at home and it drove Japanese workers into a suicide. The total amount of suicides was 32,000 last year.

After all, GDP ranking rose, but people never felt happy. I wonder why Japanese people work so hard. Thus, I researched about the reason on the internet.

According to internet information, Japanese people didn't work so hard in the Edo Period. Now in Japan, there are a lot of part time workers. So we Japanese think "Part time worker" as new style.

However, it has already existed in Edo period; namely, there were a lot of people who didn't have a regular job, but at the Meiji period, Japanese government imported a western style for increasing productivity.

American government used to use slaves to increase their productivity, but at the Meiji period, it has been prohibited already. Japanese government had to find another way. So finally, they tried to give Japanese people a brain wash by strong education. They used "Hatarakazarumono ku bekarazu" (Don't eat without working) as a catch phrase from the Bible. Consequently, Japanese people completely became diligent.

Opposite to Japanese people, American people aren't diligent. In other words, American people basically prioritize their family than work.

Working overtime too much means totally incompetent.

Finishing work on time is evaluated more highly than working over time.

Besides, they don't have any loyalty to their company. So, American people's unfettered individualism is well known to the world. I think they can't understand why Japanese people work so hard until they have to commit suicide.

However, luckily, we Japanese people realized that working harder never make us happy. According to Yomiuri news paper, 61% Japanese people don't think that Japanese people's diligence will continue. That means they realized what the most important thing for their life is. It is useless to work over time without regarding their family. Also, young people don't think that they want to buy expensive car and home with long term loan.

GDP is not necessary for us. It's only for company and government.

I hope Japanese government and companies will change their mind and take action immediately to improve their law.

Written in 2009 and revised Oct 2012