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Mar 13, 2020 7:45:33 GMT -6
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Post by Stormrider on Mar 13, 2020 7:45:33 GMT -6
Well, Desi tells me her first exchange student from Germany says Coronavirus is all over in Germany and the Netherlands where she is going to school. Germany didn't react as quickly as that article says.
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Mar 13, 2020 10:57:58 GMT -6
Post by Andorinha on Mar 13, 2020 10:57:58 GMT -6
Thanks for the articles, Stormy and Fan. Good reading! Got watching Sumo back in 1966 while stationed on Okinawa -- only one US channel, boring programs, so I watched the three Japanese channels. Lots of good Samurai movies, and Grand Sumo! Still a good way to learn Japanese culture, while escaping the angst of our new era... www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/tv/sumo/tournament/202003/day5.html.
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Mar 13, 2020 11:24:55 GMT -6
Post by Stormrider on Mar 13, 2020 11:24:55 GMT -6
I understand the sumo wrestlers are highly honored, too. I didn't realize they could grab hold of their belts while wrestling. What are those stiff tassles on their belts?
The announcer pronounces their names so easily. Is he Japanese that he can say them so easily and quickly? He sounds like an American English speaker.
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Mar 13, 2020 12:56:14 GMT -6
Post by Andorinha on Mar 13, 2020 12:56:14 GMT -6
Yes, sumo "warriors" are national celebrities, and the sport is heavily ritualized. The belt is the muwashi, and provides classic handhold types and combination-holds that are basic to "good sumo." But tripping, arm bending, arm throws, dodging to let your opponent collapse forward under his own momentum are also allowed. No fisticuffs, but face slapping is legal.
The tassels, sagari, mark a "protected zone" where grabbing the opponent is forbidden, supposedly...
The highest ranking referees carry a small dagger, this signifies their willingness to commit suicide (seppuku/ harakiri) if they allow their biases to interfere with honest judgements. I don't recall ANY such suicides, so sumo must be entirely free of referee bias.
My favorite announcer was not on for day five. He has a squeaky sort of nerdish voice, and he is Japanese-American, likes to use catch phrases like "That's all she wrote for Kawabushi! He just got his nose rubbed in the dirt!" Today's announcer has a better trained voice, and lived a long time in England, though he does sound more American than British. I think he is fully Japanese.
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Mar 13, 2020 14:32:34 GMT -6
Post by Stormrider on Mar 13, 2020 14:32:34 GMT -6
I didn't realize they could touch the muwashi, but I can see that there really isn't any other good grips they can get on each other. Surprising to me that tripping, etc., are allowed! That seems rather dirty fighting to me.
Can the referees really guarantee their free bias judgements? Harakari was something the kamakazis were good at. But I guess it is a matter of their honour after all. If they are going to be biased, would they even be honest enough to commit harakari?
Aw! next time your squeaky nerdy voiced announcer is on, send us a link so we can enjoy his take on announcing, too!
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Mar 13, 2020 14:36:34 GMT -6
Post by Stormrider on Mar 13, 2020 14:36:34 GMT -6
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Mar 14, 2020 9:17:17 GMT -6
Post by Andorinha on Mar 14, 2020 9:17:17 GMT -6
Apparently squeaky-guy ( Raja Pradhan, note Indian name ) alternates with the smoother-voiced announcer: www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/tv/sumo/tournament/202003/day2.htmlI got Raja confused with another announcer who is American-Japanese. Raja is Japanese born, father is from India. Not sure where Raja learned his English, with its sometimes quaint catch-phrases. Yeah, tripping in Sumo, not like our boxing, more a form of wrestling. I remember wrestling in junior high school, where we used leg sweeps to trip opponents... Except for some shortages on TP and alcohol wipes, we have not seen any real runs on grocery stores, yet... But, I'm glad I've always had an emergency supply of back-packing rations on hand, about two months worth of freeze dried goodies.
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Mar 14, 2020 15:28:08 GMT -6
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Post by Stormrider on Mar 14, 2020 15:28:08 GMT -6
This announcer was your favorite guy? He does have a slight Japanese accent "toonament". He sounds like a small man.
Are they shaking salt or sand in the sumo ring? I wondered why they bang their belts and guess it is to shake/wipe the salt/sand off.
I was watching the referee and saw a paddle in his hand. I didn't see him for long, so didn't notice a sword. Is he offering the winner money at the end of each match? Is that a formal signal or response from the winner before they accept it?
I noticed one wrestler with a hairy back and that surprised me. I thought orientals were very hairless.
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Mar 15, 2020 3:24:57 GMT -6
Post by Andorinha on Mar 15, 2020 3:24:57 GMT -6
Yeah, I like the way he uses English phrases. The Gyoji, referee, carries a "War Fan," Gumbai. These fans were made of wood and metal, and were carried by commanders. They could be used to signal troop movements, and, if the commander were suddenly attacked, he could wield the Gumbai like a small hand axe. Many of the Gumbai used today in Sumo are highly prized antiques and may be several hundreds of years old. The Gyoji do not carry swords, just a small 6 to 9 inch dagger thrust into his belt, usually on the left side. This illustration shows the basic costume and gear of a high ranking Gyoji. Notice black handle of the dagger slid into the white waist belt, next to his left hand.: www.shutterstock.com/image-illustration/gyoji-sumo-referee-1399126085The salt throw is a ritual act that further purifies the fighting platform, and confers good luck. The slapping may "clean" the hands, but it is mainly done for the same reason a gorilla beats its chest just before fighting -- makes an impressive gesture/ noise to intimidate the foe. My older, meaner, evil sister used to make such gestures just before beating me to a pulp... The Japanese are a highly variable people, some are very hairy and have full beards if they choose to wear them -- others have very little facial/ body hair. Too bad they do not have an audience for this tournament, otherwise you could study the faces, complexions of the spectators to see a great deal of variation in eye/ nose shape, skin tones, jaw structures, even head shapes. There is one guy who looks like a 35 year old Paul Newman, but with straight, black hair. Additionally, modern Sumo wrestlers are drawn from around the world these days, some of the hairiest warriors may be "Caucasian" in origin. Kaisei is from Brazil, Tochinosin is Georgian-Caspian Sea guy, and there is a Bulgarian as well, Aoiyama.
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Mar 15, 2020 8:14:24 GMT -6
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Post by Stormrider on Mar 15, 2020 8:14:24 GMT -6
The salt throw is a ritual act that further purifies the fighting platform, and confers good luck. The slapping may "clean" the hands, but it is mainly done for the same reason a gorilla beats its chest just before fighting -- makes an impressive gesture/ noise to intimidate the foe. My older, meaner, evil sister used to make such gestures just before beating me to a pulp...Oh no! Poor Andy! How much older was your sister than you? Did she just haul off and pummel you to a pulp for no reason (just because you existed) or did you do something to merit the thrashing? I hope she grew out of her meanness and evilness as you two grew up! The judge's outfit is very beautiful. No wonder I didn't notice the dagger since I was looking for a smallish sword in his hand. Each bout between opponents goes rather quickly. I wish they would last a little longer. Are they paired up in weight classes like American wrestling? I wonder about the white envelope or card at the end of each sumo round. Did the winners pick their next opponent or was that a prize for their victory?
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Mar 15, 2020 10:13:59 GMT -6
Post by Andorinha on Mar 15, 2020 10:13:59 GMT -6
LOL -- we finally got along after I became bigger, around age 12 -- what, me cause any trouble?
No weight classes. You fight all the other tournament participants. Enho is about 98 kilograms, smallest one wrestling in the top division, a great favorite with the crowds. He usually wins more than he loses, based on his speed, technique and luck! Some of his wins come over 200 Kilogram opponents. The bouts have a lot more posturing, belt slapping, leg stamping and maybe one or two false starts -- but once they do collide, it is usually over in just a few seconds or maybe a minute. In these vids we get an edited version just showing the moment of action and decision.
The white envelopes are from company sponsors, and contain cash supplements. Before each bout there are Company Banner Bearers who parade around the platform to advertise their products -- like Honda, Sony etc.
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They have closed all the public facilities here in our community, sob, no pool, no exercise rooms, no restaurants. Grocery store starting to have a lot of empty shelves...
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Mar 15, 2020 10:44:13 GMT -6
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Post by Stormrider on Mar 15, 2020 10:44:13 GMT -6
On Friday, I ordered pick up at Walmart. The fastest day to pick up was Today Sunday. But last night, I got a text that my order was cancelled. They said I could re-order. I tried that but, there are no dates available for 7 days! I looked at items on the app and nearly everything is marked sold out.
Yeah, no human secretions, spit, snot, sweat, sneezes, coughs allowed. Schools closed, but people are still going on Spring break vacations! Desi said, they should have the quarantine extended a week after Spring break for those picking up the virus or other things while on vacation.
2 brothers in TN bought all kinds of cleaning, sanitizing, and paper products from Amazon and all their local stores. They accumulated 17,000 items. They are trying to sell them for high prices, but I don't think they are getting many buyers at those prices. They thought they'd set their families up good. No sales, so now they "say" they are donating everything to hospitals, nursing homes, and other needy places. Jerks! And serves them right.
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Mar 15, 2020 15:39:29 GMT -6
Post by Andorinha on Mar 15, 2020 15:39:29 GMT -6
Have only encountered one item of price-gouging, so far: Probiotics, normally $4.99 a bottle, suddenly shot up to $11.99 per bottle on Amazon... Good thing your brothers are donating surplus stuff to hospitals! Yeah serves 'em right! ______________________ Here's a clip of my favorite announcer, Raja -- trying tackle a Sumo wrestler: www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/tv/sumo/tournament/202003/live_2.html
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Mar 15, 2020 15:41:33 GMT -6
Post by fanuidhol on Mar 15, 2020 15:41:33 GMT -6
LOL -- we finally got along after I became bigger, around age 12 -- what, me cause any trouble? No weight classes. You fight all the other tournament participants. Enho is about 98 kilograms, smallest one wrestling in the top division, a great favorite with the crowds. He usually wins more than he loses, based on his speed, technique and luck! Some of his wins come over 250 Kilogram opponents. The bouts have a lot more posturing, belt slapping, leg stamping and maybe one or two false starts -- but once they do collide, it usually is over in just a few seconds or maybe a minute. In these vids we get an edited version just showing the moment of action and decision. The white envelopes are from company sponsors, contains cash supplements, and before each bout there are Company Banner Bearers who parade around the platform to advertise their products -- like Honda, Sony etc. ______________________ They have closed all the public facilities here in our community, sob, no pool, no exercise rooms, no restaurants. Grocery store starting to have a lot of empty shelves... My younger brother and I stopped fighting when I decided he just might be able to beat me. Twelve/thirteen sounds about right. We older sisters know when it is in our best interest to stop that. Very interesting stuff you have been talking about. I googled Raja Pradhan and found him in a video with Female Sumo Wrestlers. www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/tv/sumo/sumopedia/67/Yeah stuff is disappearing off the shelves. What got me scared the most was my usual brand of coffee was sold out. Sold out on Sam's Club online, also. Did find it at Walmart.com. Hoping that we do receive the order.
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Mar 15, 2020 16:04:32 GMT -6
Post by Andorinha on Mar 15, 2020 16:04:32 GMT -6
Oooo! Thanks for the Raja vid! Knew about women's Sumo, but have never seen Raja interacting with them.
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RE Fan's: "My younger brother and I stopped fighting when I decided he just might be able to beat me. Twelve/thirteen sounds about right. We older sisters know when it is in our best interest to stop that."
Yep, older sisters -- very clever beasties! Only after it became apparent that I could out-muscle her did my sister start shaming me for trying to swat a girl -- it did work, we just yelled at each other after that.
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