Thursday, November 20, 2008

Tokyo smoking and Jazz

Am I tired?
Oh ya.
You should see the pic in colour. When it popped up on the screen I had an "Oh Jeeze " moment.
B&W is bad enough I think you'll agree.
Back to smoking in Japan.
It seems that it's not as accepted as it thought. Sure you can smoke in Wendy's and any coffee shop you care too, but not apparently on the street.
I first came across the sign below in a smoking room in Osaka airport a couple of years ago.
I saw it again yesterday.
Hard to read from this picture, but have a look.
Odd.Buildings like the one below are scattered all over Japan.
They're "Love Hotels"
No not places where desperate salary men meet up with hookers (maybe that happens too), but neutral ground for couples to get amorous.
Property prices being what they are in Japan, many people live with their parents well into their 30's. These places provide a private spot for a "liaison" for everyday folks still leaching off mom and dad.
Having your cake and eating it Finally a bit of Japanese Jazz courtesy of the bar on the 70th floor of the Royal Yokohama Park Hotel.Quite cool to come across a trio of 60 something Japanese hipsters.
To my untutored ear they were pretty good.
Before the Jazz I had sushi with my Japanese team.
I'm back in Hong Kong for a couple of days and then off to Beijing on Tuesday.
I'm going to start the "Big Mac Meal" economic index again in these times of economic meltdown...quite appropriate don't you think?
Tokyo: 650 Yen- $6.84
Pricey.
Over and out.
T

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

If threat to functioning of the dangly bits doesn't put you off the cigs, then nothing will...

Cigarette smoking and erectile dysfunction.

Erectile dysfunction (ED, formerly referred to as impotence, is a common (especially in diabetic and older men) and distressing condition. Several risk factors have been identified; among these are smoking, hyperlipidaemia, hypertension and diabetes mellitus. These risk factors are shared with atherosclerotic vascular disease (e.g. ischaemic heart disease). This observation underlies a common vascular pathology. Smoking may cause ED by several mechanisms, including adversely affecting intrapenile blood flow. In this context, it is important to be aware of the link between smoking and ED since this information may motivate smokers to quit. In this context, it is relevant that there is evidence that quitting may restore/improve erectile function.

Jeremy JY & Mikhailidis DP.
Bristol Heart Institute, Bristol Royal Infirmary, University of Bristol.
J R Soc Health. 1998 Jun;118(3):151-5.

TR-HW

Terry said...

Good lord
Is there no end to what damage smoking does?
By the way.....do you actually get any work done?
Or does this web surfing qualify as "billable" research?

Anonymous said...

No, it is "practice management".

Duly chastised.

TR-HW

Anonymous said...

In my defence, I have been at work for 11 hours and 21 minutes. I am extremely bored.

TR-HW

Anonymous said...

OK I just finished work. And so to bed. The hamster wheel awaits tomorrow. Round and round and round and round....

TR-HW

Anonymous said...

Yesterday was exceptional, one of my clients got threatened, so the balloon went up and it was telecons at dawn today.

Anything nice on this weekend?

TR-HW

Terry said...

Sweet blissful sleep
That's what's on this weekend.

Anonymous said...

sleep and more smokes :) ?

Manya