4:15 p.m. I'd like to send my condolences to Trading Leather and his crew. It was a sad accident and it automatically reminded me of Silence Suzuka. That also happened on Tokyo race tracks.

His career proves that he was a great champion horse and his record will certainly go down in history. He was a brave horse, boldly facing his challenge in a foreign country. I hope his body returns to his home safely to rest in peace.

The End

Caterpillar

4:18 p.m. Suddenly chilly. Season has moved two months overnight.

My friend coming back from Germany over the year-end has sent me a message mentioning, "Soumillon was great. So that's the good example of a good jockey?" Well, looks like she's doing her homework in preparation for Arima Kinen.

Good, good. Am going to send her a reply that unfortunately, Mr. Soumillon is not going to ride Epiphaneia in Arima Kinen.

The End

Caterpillar

5:19 p.m. Oh god. Thanks to all the stress brought by JoOusama, Cow and my clients, I've caught cold.

I've been wanting to take some time off though I knew I won't have the slightest chance. Well, since I've probably hit the bottom with this cold, there's nowhere else to go but up. Yeah. Let's look at the bright side. Right, Lemaire?

The End

Caterpillar

4:42 p.m. The barrier draw for Champion's Cup, newly renamed from Japan Cup Dirt has been announced.

Kopano Rickey, probably the most favored is in 14, while Imperative coming from the U.S. is in 1, Best Warrior in 2, Chrysolite is in 3, Wide Bach is in 5, Grape Brandy is in 6, Hokko Tarumae is in 8, Nihonpiro Ours is in 10, Wonder Acute is in 11, Roman Legend is in 12, Incantation is in 15.

It's the first time the 1800 meter dirt track is used for a grade one race, so no one exactly knows what's going to happen. Tokai Stakes run in the beginningof the year, should be the closest data you can get I believe, as the race was run on the same course though it was in grade 2. I must do some research on this, bu I'm not sure if I could finish the task in time for the race, with my ailing body and a stuffed nose. I can't breathe if I don't keep my mouth open. Ugh.

The End

Caterpillar

3:04 p.m. I've been out drinking last night with my friends from Scotland and Deutscheland. I had such a good time chatting about families, the pension system and the future of Scotland over an all-you-can-drink at a cheap Izakaya, then we spent a wonderful time singing Bony Tyler and Remioromen and Yuzu together. I was still recovering from my cold, but I feel very good today even with a hoarse voice and ears that I can't pop. Just shows what good venting out stress can do to you.

3:14 p.m. Have just discovered that Just A Way is coming to Arima Kinen which is great because it's definitely going to make the race more interesting.

3:17 p.m. Cow and I are gawking at the news of Yuga Kawada riding Epiphaneia in Arima Kinen, since his partner Harpstar is not going to be in the race and Fukunaga is riding Just A Way. This is a apparently a downgrade from Soumillon.

The End

Caterpillar

2:19 p.m. My ears have become better as well as my stuffed nose through which I can now take in a bit of air, so that I don't necessarily have to keep my mouth opened all the time. Still, my voice is hoarse, perhaps from the dryness and the low temperature.

Was surprised to see Roman Legend to be second favored in the win odds. Isn't he a popular horse? But I haven't forgotten that I vowed to myself after last year's Japan Cup Dirt, never to trust his popularity again. Just because he's popular, doesn't mean he'll perform well. I was going to key Chrysolite earlier this week, so might as well bet on him rather than Roman Legend.

The End

Caterpillar

10:24 p.m. I pondered my idea of keying Chrysolite over and over and eventually, decided to change my key to Kopano Rickey. I mean, seriously, if Kopano Rickey pops out of the barrier without incident and take the lead, who would be able to overtake him? Suppose Kopano Rickey went overpace. Still, there aren't more than 2 horses that can overtake him.

But the truth is, Kopano Rickey didn't take the lead. Not to mention, he didn't win either. Instead, Roman Legend came in 3rd place. So he wasn't just a popular horse after all.

The End

Caterpillar

3:30 p.m. News says that JRA is going to change the system of barrier draws for Arima Kinen. They've announced to adopt the big soccer match style, letting their presenters draw a horses to enter in the race. The representative of the chosen horse's crews can choose the barriers of their preference. I'm not usre if I got this right, but this is how I understood it from what it said on the JRA webpage.

If my recognition is correct, that means there will be chances for fixed draws and frauds. JRA proclaims fair operation in Japanese horseracing, though we, Mr. N-jima, Cow, our friend from Kobe and I have never believed in it. Now that they've foolishly decided to perform that in public through broadcasting on BS Fuji, I'll make sure to check out what really happens. Not tomention, that includes what goes on behind the scenes.

Oh god, I bet Gentil Donna is going to get the inner barrier while Gold Ship is thrown to the far outside. Well, we'll see.

The End

Caterpillar

3:35 p.m. God, amd in a mad rush. My preparation for the two meetings looming up this afternoon has not yet finished. I don't even know why I'm doing this right now. Perhaps it's showing my feelings that I want to get away from it all.

Between my tight schedule, I've been peering into 100 Yen shops and drugstores, but I haven't found any place that sells disposable pocket warmers made by the manufacturers on the list I mentioned here earlier. Why? Why? Time is ticking and am getting worried if I would ever be able to send them.

The End

Caterpillar

3:22 p.m. Cow is belatedly learning how to operate Windows 8.1 for his client. Both of our computers still run Windows 7, which we prefer to the newer version of the OS, but Cow has been forced into a position to use 8.1.

I'm rather surprised that he still gets clients with such low motivation to work, but also think it would be good for him to learn something new. I doubt if he'd have taken the time and trouble to learn about the new OS if he wasn't forced. I hear a lot of Ohs and Ahs and Ughs, though he seemed to be enjoying the meaninglessly tablet-wise desk-top interface of 8.1. Have fun, Cow. Just sit back and enjoy the ride.

The End

Caterpillar

5:01 p.m. Last night I watched a program called "Za! Sekai Gyouten News" on Nihon TV (channel 4). I'd programmed my HDD recorder earlier to record it while I was at work, so I could watch it after I came home, because I knew they were doing a show about dyslexia.

The term dyslexia has only become heard in Japan in the past several years, perhaps after Tom Cruise had come out. Until then, children (and adults) who had trouble merely in reading and writing, were regarded vaguely to have some sort of LD or simply, had been too lazy at school. I had a chance to help a dyslexic boy learn English some years ago, and the topic grabbed my attention so I decided to record it and watch it.

The program was centered around this episode of a man named Satoru Inoue, born in 1962 in Osaka, who suffered from the symptoms of dyslexia throughout his younger days, while the term dyslexia wasn't even introduced to Japan yet. I'll put a link to the program's webpage though it's only in Japanese. Why Can't I Read? My, the video reminded me so much of the boy I helped.

The End

Caterpillar

4:28 p.m. I don't think it would attract much attention as it's a fillies' race, but we're having another grade one race this weekend. And the barrier draw for Hanshin Juvenile Fillies has been announced.

I have no idea which horse could be the toughest at this point, so am just going to write about the top five of current win odds. Let's Go Donki is in post number 11, Caught Charmant is in 13, Roca in 1, Kokorono Ai in 4 and Shonan Adela in 16.

As I've said, I have absolutely no idea how and why this Let's Go Donki has become the most favored while she's only won her first race. These are fillies, folks. Anything could happen.

The End

Caterpillar

2:05 p.m. I was wondering why Let's Go Donki was the most favored, but it seems the situation has changed a bit today, and the filly with the most favored win odds this afternoon is Roca by 3.1 to 1. Apparently, the fans know that it's a fillies' race.

Sorry, I haven't made any decisions for this race yet, as I'm going to call it this evening after work when I can settle down to it with some uninterrupted chunk of time. Right now, I'm more concerened about the Challenge Cup (G3) starting 3:45 at Hanshin Race Tracks. Eishin Hikari is entered, and although his trainer says that the horse isn't expected to insist on taking the lead, that's what we want to see. Well, what I want to see. He should perform well, considering he'd drawn an inner barrier in a small field of only twelve horses.

The End

Caterpillar

10:33 p.m. Again, the lap time was slow, too slow for a mile G1 race. Quite hard to believe, considering it was a fillies' race, but come to think of it, things have changed since the Hanshin coursses have been renewed.

I keyed Kokorono Ai, hoping the race would become wild. The outcome contradicted, and became another instantaneous force contest, just like Champions' Cup. What an uninteresting fillies' race.

Added to this, I've just discovered that the next G1 race, Asahi-hai Futurity Stakes is going to be run at Hanshin Race Tracks. Asahi-hai has been run on Nakayama turf as long as I can remember, but it has suddenly been moved to Hanshin. That means we might be seeing another instantaneous force contest.

The End

Caterpillar

4:53 p.m. I am depressed. My motivation has dropped to the ground, I don't feel like doing anything and I haven't won a race this year. Well, to be precise, haven't won a grade one race so far.

I tried to look back and figure out what went wrong and where this all started, evertually reaching this summer's Takaraduka Kinen. Gold Ship in first place, Curren Mirotic in second and that Virxina in third. Of course I remembered those top three horses that had prevented me from winning the biggest payout of my life, but couldn't help myself checking the results again to see who came in 4th. Hit THe Target! Aw, that hurt. I actually had a trifectta of Gold Ship, Curren Mirotic and Hit The Target only to lose by a neck.

If Hit The Taget had stretched a bit further, say, well, at least a neck, my life now might have been different, and I might have not been so depressed.

The End

Caterpillar

6:26 p.m. As depressed as I may be, I've tried haniging on the best I could. I've done nothing but work today, although I admit I was far from focused.

I know no one wants to read such a depressing blog but the rain is making things harder for me. I can't believe it actually snowed in Tokyo in the small hours, only if it was for a brief moment. It rarely snows around this time of year. Wish it might as well have been next week, because then we could have had a white Christmas even in Tokyo for the first time in 37 years, if I remember the last time correctly.

My only tiny hope for now is that I'd hit the bottom somehow so that things might start improving a bit, starting with clear skies tomorrow. Oh god, the wind is battering on the shutters now, and I have to walk to the station in this weather. Seems I still have a long way to go.

The End

Caterpillar

4:56 p.m. The whole nation is hit by a snow storm while we're having mostly clear skies, partly cloudy. At least it cleared. I should be grateful for that.

It's already past mid-December and Cow has been urging me to design the greeting cards for New Year. I haven't even started yet, drrrrrr. Have just been reminded that am having a morning meeting tomorrow. I don't want to come to work, I don't want to work, I don't want to work, I don't want to work. I wish by repeating my inner voice it would somehow magically, miraculously, drive away all the things I don't want to do.

The End

Caterpillar

4:20 p.m. For the past several days, I've been having a hard time keeping my eyes opened, not because I'm sleepy. Have been wondering why, but think I found the answer.

As I checked the weather for tonight and tomorrow, my eyes stopped on the humidity row of the chart. The humidity of Tokyo as of 3:00 p.m. today, says 33 %, with the previous three hours also reported as 32 %. That must be it. I must be having dry eyes. Don't feel like buying eye drops only for such reason, so must hang on somehow.

Just sprayed ome water in the office, though am not sure if it could bring out much effect. Well, at least I've tried.

The End

Caterpillar

3:14 p.m. The barrier draw for Asahi-hai Futurity Stakes at Hanshin has been announced, though again, I have no idea which horse might be gaining attraction, so will just skim the top five off the win odds chart.

Danon Platinum, the most favored is in post number 2, Ash Gold, Orfevre's sibling is in 9, Clarity Sky is in 14, Bright Emblem in16 and Navion in 8. There aren't any horses that seem to stand out at the moment. If the track conditon stays dry and firm, Danon Platinum might perform well, but it's hard to imagine Ebina winning a grade one two weeks in a row, so perhaps he won't win.

Anyway, can't be fiddling with it now as I've got other things pending.

The End

Caterpillar

2:00 p.m. Cow has asked me what I would do if I could go on an adventure. I said, of course I would. Then, he asked me what kind of character I would be, if I were to play a role in an adventure role playing game like Dragon Quest. I thought a while and answered, I would want to be a wizard, but an attacker would probably suit my personality better.

Then, he asked me what character would suit him most? So I told him, that there actually is a character that reminds me of him. What's that, he says, and here's what I told him. The inn keeper.

And then, I told him not to distract me and leave me alone while I design the New Year greeting cards, as I've been too distracted lately, to even forget about the Geminids meteor showers last week.

The End

Caterpillar

10:13 p.m. The track condition of Hanshin race course was soft, thanks to the rain that fell quite heavily yesterday in Tokyo, too. It wet my converse, seeped through it and soaked my socks, that I thought my feet would freeze. So I thought the turf won't recover completely by this afternoon, and bet on a wheel of Danon Platinum, Quezaltenango and Ash Gold keying Bright Emblem, hoping that Bright Emblem would not reach the top because of the sticky track condition.

Mr. Ebina must have been reading what I wrote, or heard about it from someone else. Contrary to my expectations, Danon Platinum has won, bringing 2 wins in a row for Ebina and also for Deep Impact descendants. The lap didn't look slow, but well, will have to check that out to be sure.

The End

Caterpillar

4:20 p.m. Feel like am completely lost. Work is piling up towards the end of the week and haven't been winning a race in so long.

Of course I would love to win the final grand prix race, Arima Kinen, but am not even sure where to start.

Now I have to face the cruel truth of finishing up the design of the New Year greeting cards. Well, since I must get it over sooner or later, might as well face it now.

The End

Caterpillar

10:22 p.m. My plan today was to finish up the remaining work by evening and spend the rest of the day pondering about Arima Kinen, but there were some drastic change in plans, thanks to my cooperative parents, and am still working on my preparations for tomorrow. Grrrrr.

It's going to be a difficult race to call this year. Difficult indeed. Almost every horse has a chance to win. For the moment, though, Epiphaneia seems the closest to winning. The odds prediction backs this up too, as he was the most favored this afternoon. Now the most favored is replaced by Just A Way. Reflects how undecided fans are.

The End

Caterpillar

3:20 p.m. Things are getting complicated, with meetings rescheduled here and there. Afraid I can't keep up with the rapid changes. Messages and phone calls to return, work to get done, greeting cards getting printed by my side, with Cow fussing which of the two designs we should print. Couldn't be bothered so I told him to print both patterns, and we can divide them randomly later.

Such is my day that I haven't had the chance to take a closer look on the members of Arima Kinen yet. How come there are always something barging in to prevent me from even looking at the racing form?

I was going to write about how my beloved Gold Ship should be ridden in order to stage a dramatic come back, though the comments at the press conference of his new rider Iwata, has withered my passion. This man seems to have no intention to listen to anyone. I mean, ANYONE.

The End

Caterpillar

1:38 p.m. Merry Christmas, everyone! Hope you're all enjoying a nice cozy Christmas. As for me, I've been boasted by an 11-year-old kid in the neighborhood about his trip to some tropical resort. Drrr. My butt has been stuck on the office chair and haven't moved an inch except for going to the bathroom.

So haven't been able to check out the barrier draw live, even though I've announced I would some days ago. But here's the draw anyway, so let's take a look. Tosen Ra in post number 1, Virxina in 2, One And Only in 3, Gentil Donna in 4 (as expected), Lachesis in 5, To The World in 6, Last Impact in 7, Meisho Mambo in 8, Win Variation in 9, Fenomeno in 10, Satono Noblesse in 11, Denim And Ruby in 12, Epiphaneia in 13, Gold Ship in 14, Just A Way in 15 and Ocean Blue in 16.

Rumor has it that Gold Ship has left his training partner behind by 5 lengths, though I know too well not to trust such infromation. Intentional or unintentional, now that Gold Ship has drawn the outer post, the few options he's got left are either to stick him into the field with an early sprint to the finish, or to charge up the outside hoping for a fast lap. With 10 grade one winners, golly, it's become a tough race to call.

The End

Caterpillar

4:47 p.m. Darn, I haven't been able to do any searching on Arima Kinen yet. Have still got tomorrow to work, so I will need a miracle to win that race.

Will have to check the track condition on Saturday and Sunday, but I have a hunch that it's good and firm. If it stays that way until the race, it would become a factor to support the instantaneous force runners, such as the Deep Impact descendents. It would definitely not merit Gold Ship or Fenomeno, who perform better on soft tracks.

I'm leaning towards the idea that it will all depend on the lap. If it becomes slow, it will become another instantaneious force contest whereas, the front runners will parform well if the lap gets a bit more speedy. Slim as the chance may be, it will become a wild race if the lap gets murderously high.

The End

Caterpillar

4:00 p.m. This year's meeting all finished, have cleaned out the office spic and span. This year's work is finally coming to an end.

And as I've been busying myself with all that, haven't made up my mind yet for Arima Kinen. But there should be something in it for my fellow viewers, so I've roughly listed up the horses that might benefit from high, medium and slow laps respectively, in approximately about 5 minutes. High lap; Tosen Ra, To The World, Meisho Mambo, Gold Ship, medium lap; Tosen Ra, Lachesis, To The World, Epiphaneia, slow lap; Tosen Ra, Lachesis, and perhaps Epiphaneia.

Hmmm... Tosen Ra seems to be good under all circumstances. Not that I believe this list blindly. It's just a springboard for further pondering. I also have a feeling that it might end in a way that I don't expect, with Gentil Donna winning to have a perfect grand finale of her career. Why else would they have gone through the trouble to put her in an inner post?

The End

Caterpillar

11:58 p.m. Drowned. Finished.

Didn't think the lap would be so tight, so I keyed Epiphaneia and bought a wheel. And the outcome turns out to be the worst scenario I'd imagined. Okay. So Gentil Donna has drawn the inner post, now she's won Arima Kinen to bring her perfect career to an perfect ending. Are you satisfied now? Because I feel terrible.

The End

Caterpillar

Cow had subtlely avoided deepening his wound by declining Mr. N-jima's invitation to join him and the guy from Kobe for Tokyo Dai-shohten, an integrated grade one dirt race held at Ohi Race Tracks. But I was stupid enough to go...

And get cut down to my bones. Jesus. What am I doing? How am I going to live from now on?

The End

Caterpillar

11:55 p.m. Have just got home from Shinjuku where I met some old friends from elementary school. We get together sometimes to talk about what's been going on to each other, and well, bicker about our misfortunes. Not to mention it was my turn to bicker today.

While I was crying in my coffee, I received an e-mail from my old classmate in NY that I'd sent a surprise Christmas present to. She said that she'd recognized my name on the package and had sent me a message. Oh my god. After all these years she's remembered me! It really was a pleasant surprise, but in my current state of mind, am not sure if I could send her a sensible reply.

The End

Caterpillar

10:32 p.m. Have just been to the post box at the corner and dropped in the greeting cards.

Haven't done a bit of cleaning this year, since I've had a problem more serious to consider. I've always felt decision making quite difficult because I'd never been given the chance to decide on my own when I was a child. And I feel it's getting even harder as I grow older.

One thing I know for sure is that I don't want to sing so egocentrically like the Japanese folk-rock singer who is now roaring in Kohaku Uta Gassen blasting from the kitchen radio.

The End

Caterpillar