Nagoya! and SCANDAL!

It's annual sumo time in Nagoya!

Every summer, the whole sumo contingent shuffles out west to Aichi prefecture, the city of Nagoya for the July tournament. And it's happening right now. Here is a great explanation of the fun going on there this week. When I read this, I was shocked to realize how CHEAP tickets can be for a tournament. As low as 200 yen? Stop. That is just insane.

Of course it probably means sitting on a cushion in the balcony, but seriously? Who cares. I'd love to be there.

Today, Thursday, is closing in on the tail end of the tournament. And WHOA. This month has been ROCKED with scandal!

I can't believe it. The highest ranked native Japanese rikishi has actually been KICKED OUT of the sport. Seriously. Kotomitsuki is gone. Done. Get the skinny on that HERE.

A gambling scandal it is. Fuji Xerox has dropped their sponsorship of the sport. And they weren't alone. They were the fifth company to drop out. Plus, shockingly, NHK, the national radio corporation, dropped theirs, too. They aren't broadcasting the July tournament.


I'm going to research this whole thing more and get back with a more complete explanation tomorrow.

Sheesh. I go on one little sumo vacation, and BAM. The whole sport practically falls apart.

Kanji part Deux

Just a short kanji post today. Summertime fun is keeping me too busy to be a blogger.

This is the kanji for "power." Chikara is one way to read it. It also can be read ka. It's part of the word katana, which is the word for sword. It's also the kanji for the number nine. I don't really know why the number nine is powerful. Wish I did. It's kind of fun to draw. Make the left stroke first. Then the thin horizontal stroke, and then without lifting the pen/brush, sweep downward. Three strokes, but only one pen-lift.

Simple, beautiful. Powerful.