5:34 p.m. I was tied up in preparation for my meetings in the evening when Cow let out a cry of disbelief. Apparently, his lap-top didn't launch as he pressed the power button. The screen showed a light gray blank with some white horizontal lines stretching across the display. I told him to try booting again which he did, with a terrified look on his face. It didn't work.

5:39 p.m. I was going to seek for more information on the planet I wrote about yesterday, but the situation has changed with another lap-top crisis hitting us from out of the blue. Cow has invaded this desk-top where I am now being rushed off. He needs to do a thorough search on the present condition of his lap-top, to decide what we can do about it. Perhaps we will have to get a new one, though Cow seems to be thinking merely of getting a new display to plug onto his lap-top. That is if, the hard disk is working properly.

The End

Caterpillar

11:42 a.m. Enjoying a quiet and glorious Saturday morning since I have only one appointment for a meeting in the afternoon. The weather's fine, pretty dry but not too hot, not too cool and Cow has been taking apart the lap-top into parts... He was taking it apart when I left him yesterday. He seems to have put it back together and tried booting it again this morning, though in vain. The next thing he did was to try to connect his lap-top to the display which is usually plugged into this desk-top computer. However, he couldn't find out whether it worked or not since he had to run. He is now on an errand to take Moma-Cow for her once-in-a-while visit to her ancestors at the cemetery.

11:55 a.m. Horrified to come to realize that we might be having another lost data crisis. We've kept back-ups for this desk-top as far as I'm concerned, but what about the lap-top? Am not sure if Cow had kept it covered, which possibly could point to the terrifying truth of data loss in case the hard disk was broken... AAAaaaaarrrrgggh!

The End

Caterpillar

3:10 p.m. Just called Cow to check how his lap-top has been. When he connected it with the desk-top display and booted Saturday afternoon, it didn't work however, as he tried booting one last time after he'd released it from the display, it showed the black screen which fortunately gave him the chance to launch it via keyboard. Not to mention we burned all the crucial data onto the CDs right away, having learned a lesson from the former data crisis of my lap-top.

3:20 p.m. Cow has asked me to hang up and call him back five minutes later before I drew out any information about the lap-top, since he had to go for a wee. Cumbersome prat.

4:00 p.m. The Sprinters' Stakes, the first G1 race of the season, has sped through ending in an astonishing inversion of the 2nd, 3rd and the 4th place after a long inquiry while Cow back on the phone, explained that the lap-top no longer responed to the booting commands. At least we backed up the data.

The End

Caterpillar

4:33 p.m. Cow has read aloud a headline in the evening papers alarming us to keep our eyes on the compressor units. According to Cow, the article told that many compressor units are being stolen, presumably for the purpose of taking out copper and other valuable metal to sell them. But then, what are we supposed to do? Strap 'em with chains and somehow tie them to our roofs or balconies with a padlock or something? I wonder how much those burglars earn in a day for stealing compressor units. I wouldn't do it if it didn't pay at least 20,000 yen per day, considering the renatl car and labor cost, even if they didn't chanrge me for any crime. Besides, I don't think I'll enjoy stealing compressor units and taking them apart into pieces every day. Sounds so boring.

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Caterpillar

3:02 p.m. Cow has just had a brainwave, why don't we take out the probably unaffected hard disk drive out of his lap-top and replace it with the ruptured one on my lap-top? That would presumably revive my lap-top which would give us a lap-top to use for the meantime until we get a new one, though the machine is just enough to get by when it comes to speed. Marvelous! Why hadn't he come up with it earlier?

3:15 p.m. Cow's idea had shot us high in excitement, but our hearts sank when we realized that the HDD on my lap-top was a PATA while Cow's was an SATA... I guess that's what they call wishful thinking.

The End

Caterpillar

3:32 p.m. Our friend, Oggy has dropped in. Oggy is Cow's old friend from primary school and a computer whizz who gave me the unused Mac Power PC. He must have seen the recent "Murmur." Thank God. He's here to help us with the lap-top crisis. A friend in need is a friend indeed.

5:25 p.m. Cow has been struggling to figure out the cause of the crisis with Oggy's help. They seemed to have checked the battteries and the HDD, which I had been suggesting for a couple of days now, while I was having a meeting with a client, and eventually seemed to have confirmed that there didn't seem to be a problem in both of them. However, Cow told me that when they were plugging the HDD to the desk-top to check it, the desk-top seemed to be testing or repairing some program. So according to Oggy, there might be a chance for the lap-top to move like nothing happened, if we put the HDD back on again. Hmmm. Let's hope for a miracle.

The End

Caterpillar

6:48 p.m. Looks like certain brands of cigarrettes are going in the spotlight after the raise in price. They are old brands manufactured by JT and thus comparatively cheaper than others. There are three such typical brands called Wakaba, Shinsei and Echo and they have been priced less than 200 yen for a pack before the raise. I've read a news on the Internet a couple of days ago, that a vast number of smokers are now changing their favorite brand to the former three because of their price. As a smoker who has been smoking Echo for over twenty years now, I don't like to see these people to suddenly start buying Echo just because they're cheap. I have smoked Echo because I like the taste, not because it's cheap. And because Echo lovers were minorities, I had to cope with waiters and waitresses too curious to keep quiet when they see me smoking the brand. From now on, I'll also have to cope with them smirking that I'm one of those cheapskates who just can't quit smoking.

The End

Caterpillar

3:36 p.m. As I turned to Cow if he could come up with anything to write in the "Murmur," the stupid prat started to show me Calah Payer, his favorite site that deals with nature, science, social topics, UMA and other mysterious stuff. Then he went on endlessly showing me the movies on this site at which point I burst out yelling at him that I don't want to see them NOW. He retorted that he was just trying to help offering various infos on a platter so I may be able to expand from whatever the topic. He has now skulked off to the seat at the table behind me.

3:43 p.m. As a matter of fact, Cow, I DON'T HAVE TIME TO EXPAND. I am trying to finish this off by 4:00 p.m. since there is a mountain of things left to do, due to your invasion of this desk-top. And the annoying thing is, that he's putting all the blame on me. Great.

The End

Caterpillar

1:32 p.m. Have been wondering what to do with my down jacket for several months now. I want to get it cleaned of course, though the idea of paying more than 2,000 yen for a UNIQLO down jacket which must have been less than 4,000 yen seemed so ridiculous and has kept me away from the cleaners.

1:37 p.m. Have learned from my client that can wash down jacket at home. She works in a company that deals with textiles and seems to be familiar with the features of textiles. I was afraid that the down might end up in clumps inside the jacket if I washed my jacket at home, but my client has assured me that I would have no problem as long as I used the dry-clean mode of the washing machine and hang it dry for a couple of days before it's completely dry. She also told me that now was the best time of year to do the cleaning, since the temperature will drop during night in a few weeks with night dew wetting the jacket. Right. Will watch out for the weekly forecast and try cleaning down jacket at home.

The End

Caterpillar

11:04 a.m. So I've braced myself up to wash my down jacket and it's raining... Must give today a miss.

12:16 p.m. Have checked the weekly forecast on the midday news which told that we'll be having cloudy but partly sunny skies of 30 percent chance of rain from tomorrow to October 14th, Thursday. Hmmm. 30 percent chance of rain gets me a little on the antsy side, but it'll give me four days to dry the jacket. The following Friday and Saturday seems to be cloudy with 40 percent chance of rain. Think will wash down jacket tomorrow so will be able to finish it up before Friday if all goes well.

2:23 p.m. We have no grade one race today though there are two prep-races running. Am going to watch them carefully on TV since they're going to be an imporatant step for the upcoming grade one race, Tennoushou.

The End

Caterpillar

10:34 a.m. Have washed my down jacket. Just hung it out on the veranda to dry. Hope nothing goes wrong.

3:32 p.m. Am recalling the prep-race for Tennou-sho held yesterday. Had watched it intensively, especially because my could-have-been Japanese D'erby horse Pelusa was running. As the TV show host recalled the Japanese D'erby, my mind projected the image of the starting gate with Pelusa left behind by three lngths. Right. His start was terrible. I focused on the start since I feared the horse's bad start could have become a habit already. The gates opened. And he did it again... He finished 5th without running the race properly. Considering the gap at the start, Pelusa could have won the race if he had shot out the gate. But this lagging apparently seems to have established within the horse as a habit. As long as it has, cannot risk keying him for the autumn Tennou-sho.

The End

Caterpillar

3:42 p.m. Since I was told by my client that I should keep the down jacket outside for a couple of days to dry it off completely in case I'm washing it at home, have left my down jacket hanging on the veranda since yesterday. But it's overcast. Looks like it could start raining any minute. Besides, the chance of rain has risen up to forty percent. As a matter of fact, it had rained pretty heavily early this morning. And now I'm regretting my own decision. Should have TOOK IT IN. Stupid me.

The End

Caterpillar

1:21 p.m. Good thing it didn't rain yesterday. As luck would have it, my down jacket was still safe and dry when I got home around 10:30 p.m. Thanks to my good behavior.

3:31 p.m. Oh my God. Have just purchased a new lap-top. I've been on the watch for discounts the past three months and having been convinced that Dell was not going to offer a better price, I had made up my mind to buy an Inspiron 15 for 59,800 yen if no changes were made by the end of this month. However, it was Cow who told me that he wanted to place an order today when I came in. Seems he couldn't stand taking turns fighting over the one left active desk-top any longer. So we've purchased two new lap-tops at Dell this afternoon with Cow out right now, on his dad's bycicle to complete the payment. I will pay him the amount for my Inspiron tomorrow. It's not a small expenditure for me, but I'm pretty much satisfied with the spec of the computer, with 320GB HDD, a 4GB memory, Intel Corei3 2.26 Ghz cpu, graphic chip, super-multi DVD drive, 64 bit Windows 7, wireless LAN port, 15.6 TFT screen, a web camera in cherry red (only color available but who cares since have no plans to show it off to anyone). Am happy. It's the first PC I've ever bpught with my own money. Own money that have earned in the past three years of strive and struggle.

The End

Caterpillar

1:56 p.m. The radio has just delivered the great news that the last of the rescue crew who went underground to the miners in Chilie had returned above ground, with all thirty-three miners safely rescued. Welcome back, miners! Congrats to their families! And congrats to those who fought hard to save their lives! It's wonderful. Most channels in Japanese TV have been relaying from Chilie since last night and every time they showed a miner returning above ground, hugging their wives, parents or their children, it seemed to reflect the warmth, love and the strong bond within an ordinary family. It made me wonder, what if I were in their place? I mean, what if I were the miner underground? Would my parents greet me like all other families when I get back on the ground after more than two months of captivation under ground?

2:12 p.m. The answer is too obvious and dangerously sarcastic. I'm pretty sure that they would neither collapse with joy or hug me with relief. More likely, I doubt they wouldn't even turn up at the scene...

The End

Caterpillar

1:27 p.m. As I came in, I noticed two cadboard boxes stacked up on the table. Yeess! Yeeeeessss! The lap-tops! They're HEEEERRREEE! I didn't expect them to arrive so quick, though.

5:36 p.m. Mmmm. New lap-top is beautiful. Have had a client coming in the afternoon so started setting it up from around 3:30 or 4:00, with Cow doing exactly the same right next to me. Since neither of our computers were equipped with recovery discs, we had to burn one ourselves which took us about an hour in total. We were asked to prepare an empty media with at least 8GB capacity however, the closest we'd got were a bunch of DVD-Rs which can only contain 4.4GB. Cow had only wasted five or ten minutes before he was certain that the computer would automatically divide data and burn them on multiple devices in such cases, so we used two discs respectively, and have made system recovery discs. Everything nice and smooth up until now. Think will install mailing and other softwares including Skype tomorrow. After all, our new lap-tops have web cameras (though am not intending to use it).

The End

Caterpillar

12:07 p.m. A client has fallen sick and cancelled our meeting in the morning so have been downloading, installing, setting up mailing software and Skype. The install and settings have been successful so far, including the video chat via Skype which turned out to be actually a bit enjoyable. Though I still have a big load left. Getting iTunes up and running on my new lap-top. Must finish after lunch because another client is expected around 3:30.

12:24 p.m. As I downloaded all the email data from the mail server, the folders of my new mailing software fattened within seconds eventually receiving more than fifty mail for each account I had... It makes my heart sink just to think that I have to shuffle through those pile of email to decide which to save or delete.

The End

Caterpillar

11:39 p.m. Had been struggling to suck out music files from iPod and am exhausted. Having found out that the freeware I had newly installed could not handle an iPod nano 5th generation after a good deal of fumbling, I've downloaded a different software. This one seemed much easier to handle, sucking out music files with simple actions in a few seconds and storing them onto iTunes however, I later discovered that it was a shareware with only the first hundred files uncharged. I have around 260 songs in my iPod which means I'll have to take in the remaining 160 songs onto iTunes from CDs again. Have finished about 240 or so and am thinking of calling it a day.

11:48 p.m. Still, today was a memorable day since Apapane had won the Shu-ka-sho to establish herself as a triple crown winner, though I couldn't buy any betting tickets since Cow had failed to log in to Skype before the race. That didn't bother me much because Saint-Emilion, one of the horses I was going to bet on, had dropped behind at the start and I would have lost anyway. I wonder if slow starts are becoming a trend these days.

The End

Caterpillar

3:50 p.m. While I was briefing through today's news, Cow had barged in hopping to Calah Payer... Why is he doing this? He has his own new lap-top now, I thought, but kept it to myself since he could possibly burst out again saying he was just trying to help. The movie he played showed a report about movie reshape.

3:51 p.m. Aaaawww. This is amazing. You can make a young man in boxers running after a pick-up truck look thirty percent more masculine, with just a little fiddling of what they call a ‘muscularity control slider.’ If you're interested, check it out at Calah Payer and see it for yourself.

4:01 p.m. I guess you can't trust what you see on the screens any more these days, not that I've trusted them until now. I mean, by using this tracking and reshaping system, Cow could look shrunken like Yoda while I could run around on the screen with a body like Arnold Schwartzenegger or Jet Lee or Angelina Jolie, whoever I want to be. Cow said I can even look like a worm with an Angelina Jolie's head. Thanks, but I'm not a worm.

The End

Caterpillar

4:37 p.m. The Orionids meteor shower is said to be seen this weekend. According to Nippon Meteor Society (NMS), it is supposed to be at its peak at one in the morning of Friday, October 22nd. Though unfortunately the moon on Friday, will be thirteen days old thus almost a full moon and it can't be regarded as a very good condition to observe meteor showers or watch stars. In fact, the NMS states the condition on their website as "terrible," and suggests to look up at the eastern sky after midnight for observations in order to avoid excess light coming from the moon.

4:49 p.m. Have just picked up the news. The unlucky conditions have daunted me a little, together with the seasonable coolness that finally seemed to have settled in and might stay until the weekend. But still, it's a meteor shower in a while. Am looking forward to seeing it.

5:00 p.m. At least there's one plus point. The weekly forecast had predicted that we're going to have clear skies later in the week. Sure hope so.

The End

Caterpillar

7:28 p.m. As I returned home yesterday, I saw a 350 ml Thermos bottle proudly standing on the kitchen table. I knew right away that JoOusama must have got her one. It was in a different color though, actually in dark brown. I did tell her that the Thermos bottle I got was very nice and I was very much satisfied with it, when she asked me what it was while I carefully took off and washed all the silicone rubber accessories a few weeks ago. She seemed interested, at least at the time. Then, the new Thermos on the kitchen table... Apparently, she's a copycat. But I doubt if she can keep it hygienic.

The End

Caterpillar

3:44 p.m. It's been raining since morning and I have to say I'm skeptical about the weather recovery. Wish it'd clear up by night regarding the Orionids meteor shower though my chances seem to be very slim. I've seen on the news that serious damages are caused by heavy rain in the southern part of our nation, with two elderlies dead and a few others missing. My condolences to the people in Kagoshima.

4:03 p.m. Have picked up the news on the Net of Haneda Airport starting (actually re-starting) operation of their international terminal early this morning. The opening of the terminal is followed by the regular international flight services which are planned to start from the end of this month, expected to grow the number of Haneda users. Since Haneda is located not far from the hearts of Tokyo (at least not as far as Narita), I guess it's no longer a dream to hop a flight to an exotic foreign country for the weekend. As for me, it's not even a dream yet, considering my earnings...

The End

Caterpillar

4:05 p.m. To my dismay though not unpredictable, thick clouds covered the sky last night and no stars were to be seen, not even a twinkling. One time I thought I saw a streak of light, but eventually found out that it was just the light from the street lamp reflecting on the wires stretched over our balcony, wires that were the remains of what once used to be a pergola. Too bad for the meteor shower fans. Maybe next year we'll be lucky enough to see it. There's always a next time. Well, perhaps not always... Let's just hope for a better view next year.

4:35 p.m. Just remembered that the Geminids and the Ursids meteor shower are coming up in December. See, there's always a next time. Hurraaaay!

The End

Caterpillar

11:14 a.m. It was almost time for a morning meeting with my client, but I was a bit worried since she had been cancelling and re-arranging the schedule for a couple of weeks now. Then, the phone rang. She cancelled again... As I was being obsessed by the thought that she might be giving a second thought on our project, perhaps on the verge of breaking up our business relationship, she told me the reason of her cancellation. "Actually, I'm pregnant," she said, "and I'm having a morning sickness. I'm very sorry but I'm afraid I'll have to cancell our meetings for this month. Think I'll be all right by the next, though."

11:56 a.m. So she's a mother-to-be! Congratulations! Gee, that's great news! She's contributing to the growth of our shrinking population. What will I do now by the way, when she comes in next month? Should I prepare some cushions? Blankets? Oh, God, oh God. Don't know anything about maternal care...

The End

Caterpillar

5:24 p.m. Have watched Kikka-sho on TV at home. Cow had called up Mr. N-jima Saturday afternoon, but he seemed to be tied up and couldn't spare the time to go out to WINS. Thus watched TV at home. I was pretty sure about Rose Kingdom. If he didn't win this race, who would? Perhaps because the horse and his rider was too confident as well. They took position in the back half of the field while the race dropped to a slow pace by the time a third of it was behind them. Rose Kingdom and his rider, the genius Yutaka Take, didn't move until the last corner when Big Week was already nailing the front horse. They stormed down the home stretch but too late to catch Big Week. Big Week finished first, with Rose Kingdom in second and Beat Black (who?) in third.

5:32 p.m. Well, too late for me, too. Had keyed Rose Kingdom but left out Big Week from the wheel. Sigh. Feels like I'm screwing up in exactly the same way over and over every year...

The End

Caterpillar

3:45 p.m. It's gloomy and a bit cold. After all those crazy heat, seems like we're suddenly thrown into late autumnal weather with winter right around the corner. It won't be long before peolple start wearing masks to protect themselves from flu.

3:51 p.m. Speaking of flu, Cow has just picked up a news about malicious computer viruses that has recently been spreading. Trend Micro has announced that certain files under the names of ‘mstmp’ and ‘lib.dll’ are spreading malicious programs. They have found over a hundred Japanese companies already infected by this program, which by exploiting the vulnerabilities of Java, redirects the viewers from safe websites to a foul one where another program is downloaded by viewing the site. So far, reports of infection are concentrated on Japan leading to the possibility that this country might be targeted... For what purpose? I hate those self-indulgent people who spread viruses.

The End

Caterpillar

3:33 p.m. Oh, no. The weather forecast on the radio is saying that the temperature is going to drop down to the tens this evening, with tomorrow's high only going up to fourteen degrees celcius. That's the average of around March.

3:48 p.m. The evening paper has just been delivered. There's a headline in bold print dancing on the front page saying, " LONG COLD WINTER AFTER HEAT WAVE? La Nina Goes On, Already On The Verge Of Pressure Patterns Of Winter" Noooooooo!

3:56 p.m. The radio has somehow featured jazz today and was playing standard numbers all day. Good old familiar tunes had once lightened me up in the afternoon however, now my heart is sinking to the thought of not having pulled out my electric carpet at home yet. Flawless Cow has already set his this morning. But not me. Had no idea it would be so cold besides, I had no time to prepare since had to come in early today. Now I'm terrified to have to spend the night in cold.

The End

Caterpillar

1:33 p.m. The picture of Cream Anmitsu on the top page of this site suddenly seems too cool and refreshing and I realize for the first time in a couple of months, that it's about time to replace it with something that can make you feel warmer. Must think of something.

2:30 p.m. Have come across a Japanese blog (LoverQ though it's only in Japanese) with an article about how a tiny dent on a Japanese beer can had stirred up curiosity on the Internet. There's a small dent right above the ring part of the pull-tab in order to make it easier to pull it open. Small thing, but it puts a grin on my face just to think that there's some product developer behind these things, working overtime tackling with it pulling a serious frown over his face to make things easier to use. A customer-friendly approach, I think, is one of the specialties Japanese take pride in.

The End

Caterpillar

4:10 p.m. Likewise the dent on beverage cans (they are not only seen on beer cans but on numerous other cans), there may be a lot of gadgets that are already familiar to us, but perhaps not to people in other countries. I'd love to show you some other examples though I've got to go now, since am running late for my meeting.

6:06 p.m. Meeting is over. Now I've got more urgent things coming up. Maybe I can show you the examples some other time... when? I don't know.

The End

Caterpillar

2:38 p.m. An unseasonal typhoon which is said to be the second late in our recorded history, is hitting Okinawa and now inching up north, expected to get closest to Tokyo from late Saturday to early Sunday. If worst comes to worst and it makes a slight change in its course curving just a little bit to northeast, they say it might even land on Kanto area almost automatically meaning that Tokyo might have to suffer a huge storm this weekend.

2:48 p.m. But then, what will happen to the Tennou-sho? The forecast said there is a good chance the typhoon would pass Tokyo and out onto the Pacific Ocean by Sunday morning. But races are run from morning with the grade one Tennou-sho starting at 3:40 p.m., as the eleventh of the twelve races run. In addition, there are twelve more races run on Saturday, unless JRA scratches all of them off due to bad weather. Will the JRA cancel the Tennnou-sho? Have never heard of a grade one race being cancelled and think that JRA would possibly do anything to avoid it, though you can never be too sure...

The End

Caterpillar

1:42 p.m. The rain is getting heavy. It's a typhoon after all. The forecast warns that it's yet to hit the peak which is predicted to be around 6:00 p.m. Is it a mere coincidence that it falls on the time I'm about to leave for home?

1:45 p.m. Oh my God. JRA has called off all twelve races that were supposed to have run today at Tokyo Race Course! They have announced the races are rescheduled on Monday, November 1st. No re-drawing straws for the post positions. What about tomorrow??

1:53 p.m. Considering the turf condition, I assume I must find the king of heavy tracks.. but who? Which horse? While I am panic-stricken by the fact of finding the best heavy tracker in the horses running the Tennou-sho, Cow is grumbling about Yamada Denki, an electronics retailing shop, that their website is taking too much time to display itself. Papa-Cow is offering his sugar-bowl savings to get a new LCD TV for their cubby living room, with Cow doing a thorough research on a cost-effective one. Nice son, you got there.

The End

Caterpillar

1:28 p.m. Got up late. Must hurry and finish washing clothes, then check email since am supposed to meet Cow and Mr. N-jima inside WINS at 2:30. However, am not either panic-stricken or terrified as usual, because have done my homework and already decided which horse to bet on. My conclusion, is Buena Vista, Eishin Apolon, Pelusa, Earnestly and Cosmo Phantom. After a good deal of pondering last night, I figured tough horses are tough no matter how bad the turf condition may be.

1:43 p.m. Uh-oh. Am running late...

10:42 p.m. Am home. I won. Didn't get much money back since the odds were not that high, but still a win is a win. Besides, it's been a while since have last won. Am simply happy. Though it took me some time to find the right slot to put in the betting tickets on the pay-out machine. As I've said, it's been quite a while since I last won.

The End

Caterpillar