Natural Disasters

 Japan is a country of natural disasters.

There are many earthquakes almost every day; most are too small to feel, but sometimes there are bigger ones. Then there are volcanoes that are active; they just smolder away, occasionally erupting, so we don't forget about them. Of course, some earthquakes trigger tsunamis!

Then there are the weather disasters, typhoons, which used to be at the end of August and September but are getting earlier and earlier. Rains that cause floods and landslides are getting more common. And thunderstorms that shake the house are more normal than they used to be. Last week we had tornado warnings for this area!

I was always grateful that out of all the natural disasters Japan has, wild fires are few and far between. I actually don't remember any in the past 30 years, although I'm sure there have been some.

The summers here are very humid, and I think this stops wildfires from forming. That's just my theory! But between February and April, the land is a bit drier, and the possibility of wildfires is higher. This year has seen quite a few fires!

I was shocked at the size of one wildfire. Thousands of firefighters were bought in to tackle the blaze. Many people had to be evacuated. There was one death reported. 

Another country that I don't associate with wildfires is Korea, but they are battling a massive fire at the moment, too. That fire killed at least 26 people, destroyed homes, and even a 1000-year-old temple.  

I'm saddened by these disasters. Life is hard enough for most people but having to recover from such disasters is hard.  As I wrote on the blog about March 11th earthquake and tsunami, I don't know how people recover from these disasters. 

This post has gotten a bit heavy. Sorry, but these news stories were on my mind.

Just to finish on a lighter note, this was our dinner last night!

Butadon (pork meat) and miso soup

We were eating when David asked what I had written on my blog (he saw me writing earlier). I told them, David and Christopher, about the mouse in the miso soup. Let's just say they both checked their soup very carefully. Me? I was wondering if I had any toy mice lying around....ideas!!!!