The 8th Anniversary of the East Japan Earthquake

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A Day of Horror: The March 11, 2011 Japan Earthquake-A Foreigner's Perspective, Climate Change, climatologists, e-book, e-book price reduction, earthquake, Eastern Tohoku, environment, Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, Global Warming, humanity, Japan, March 11 2011 earthquake, meltdown, meteorologists, Mother Nature, nuclear crisis, nuclear meltdown, Progress, radiation, reconstruction, recycle, The 8th Anniversary of the East Japan Earthquake, The Great East Japan Earthquake, tsunami, writing

I deliberately avoid posting about politics on social media.  I’m not qualified to talk about climate change or global warming, or what impact humanity has upon the environment. I’ll leave that to the climatologists, meteorologists and scientists of the world. The city where I live in Japan has a good recycling program and I do my part. In this post, I’m not going to share my personal views on the topic of whether or not climate change is real. My opinions would be inappropriate and irrelevant.

What I do know, based on personal experience, is that on March 11, 2011, Mother Nature had her say, and had a lot to say, when she unleashed her fury upon the Eastern Tohoku region of Japan. I witnessed the fourth largest earthquake in recorded human history. I live thirty-six miles west of the site of one of the world’s largest nuclear meltdowns. I lived it. I was terrified by it. I am still haunted by it. I will probably never be free from the memory of it in some capacity.

The Earth doesn’t care how we feel about climate change. It does what it wants to do, when it wants to do it, and it doesn’t give a damn what we mere humans think of it. It makes the rules and we have to suffer the consequences; good or bad, instigated by us or not. We are at its mercy. It’s the price we pay to live on this wondrous ball of life rotating on its axis in space.

If you’re interested in knowing more about the events of March 11, 2011, and its impact on the environment and the people of southern Tohoku, from someone who was there, then I respectfully encourage you to read my book. It’s available through Amazon in most countries where Amazon operates. I recently decreased the price of the book rather significantly, but Amazon retains the right to fluctuate the pricing when necessary. Thank you for understanding. You can access the book directly through the link provided on the “My Books” page of this blog.  My humble thanks to all who have already purchased and read the book. Your kindness and consideration is truly appreciated and will not be forgotten.

Year-End Update

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Amazon, authors, book, Buddhist, Christian, Happy New Year, Holidays, Japan, Merry Christmas, Progress, Publishing, Shinto, Short stories, writing

Well, it’s been a whirlwind end to the year here in Japan.

I haven’t been able to pay as much attention to finishing my novel as I had hoped, but I manage to chip away at it here and there when breaks in daily life and work allow.  Alas, my self-imposed year-end deadline for publication will not be met.  On the bright side, my school will be closed for the New Year’s holiday, so hopefully I’ll have a few days, at least, to fuss over the book.

I’m happy to announce that I have reduced the price of both my non-fiction e-book, and my fiction e-short story on Amazon.  Amazon still reserves the right to fluctuate the pricing, give or take, however.  You can access direct links for both books from this blog.

New Year’s is a big deal here in Japan.  Many businesses will be closed for several days on average, starting on or around New Year’s Eve.

My school is open today, Christmas day, because Christmas day is a regular business day here in Japan.  Less than 1% of the population of Japan is Christian.  Most are Shinto and Buddhist, so the Japanese celebrate Christmas differently than the west.  It’s strictly a secular celebration here with no religious meaning.

Please have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.  Best wishes for a safe, happy, healthy and peaceful 2019.

Brad

March 11, 2011 (Reblogged from my Facebook page).

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7th anniversary, A Day of Horror: The March 11, 2011 Japan Earthquake-A Foreigner's Perspective, Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, Fukushima Prefecture, honor, Japan, March 11, March 11 2011 earthquake, memorial, nuclear meltdown, Progress, radiation, remember, The Great East Japan Earthquake, tsunami, writing

Here in Japan we remember all those who lost their lives in the East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami seven years ago today.

I ask your prayers for all of the victims and their families and friends who remain and mourn their loss. Some people lost their entire families on that day.

I was thankfully spared the horrors of the tsunami that day because I live farther inland in Fukushima prefecture. But, I remember the earthquake well (too well) and the subsequent radiation crisis at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant which I live roughly 36 miles from.

Thankfully, radiation levels have dropped dramatically in the past seven years, but the threat of long-term radiation exposure continues to haunt me and plague my psyche.

I wrote a book about my personal experiences during the earthquake and nuclear crisis. It’s available in e-book form on Amazon in the U.S., Japan and Europe, etc.  You can access the link from the “My Books” section of this blog or search for it on Amazon in your country.

Koriyama (where I live) and Fukushima prefecture in general are recovering, slowly but surely. However, a lot of work still needs to be done. The courage and dignity of the Tohoku people is incredible to behold. We are all in this together and have been walking hand in hand on the path to recovery.

Please keep the people of Northeastern Japan in your thoughts and prayers today…and always.

Attention Amazon Kindle Readers!

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A Day of Horror: The March 11, 2011 Japan Earthquake-A Foreigner's Perspective, Amazon, Amazon Prime, e-book, Ghost Story, Horror, KDP Select, Kindle, Kindle Owners' Lending Library, Kindle Unlimited, Review, Short stories, The DiVacci Curse, The Great East Japan Earthquake

My nonfiction e-book and my fiction e-short story are now enrolled in KDP Select on Amazon.  This is good news for Amazon Prime, Kindle Owners’ Lending Library and Kindle Unlimited members.  Check em’ out!

For those who have already purchased and read my e-book and e-short story, thank you very much.  If you like what you read, then I encourage you to write a review and post it on Amazon.  I would be honored and grateful for your kindness and consideration.  If writing a review is not your thing, then please spread the word among your family and friends, co-workers, distant relatives, ex-spouses, etc.

As always, direct links to both books can be found on the “My Books” page of this blog. Thanks for reading.

Have a fun and safe summer!

Most humbly,

Brad

Remembering Sir Roger

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007, Audrey Hepburn, Humanitarian, James Bond, Knighthood, Queen Elizabeth, Sir Roger Moore, UNICEF

It has been a sad week.  On May 23, Sir Roger Moore passed away.  He wasn’t the original James Bond, but he was my favorite and the Bond that many of us grew up with.  He was one of my film heroes.

He was also a hero in real life.  Besides his illustrious acting career, Roger Moore was also a humanitarian.  He helped better, and possibly save, the lives of thousands, if not millions, of children around the world due to his UNICEF efforts.  He became an ambassador for UNICEF in 1991 after having been introduced to it by UNICEF ambassador Audrey Hepburn earlier in his acting career.  His efforts with UNICEF earned him a knighthood from Queen Elizabeth.  You can read more about his UNICEF accomplishments on the UNICEF website.

When I was a kid, Roger Moore was the “King of Cool.”  His Bond taught many guys like me how a well-mannered, sophisticated gentleman should act.  I was a small-town boy from southeast Louisiana.  My view of the world was limited. I was filled with pride and excitement when I first learned that Roger’s first Bond film, “Live and Let Die,” was partially filmed in New Orleans, Louisiana (a mere one hour drive from my hometown). Roger Moore’s James Bond opened my eyes to the world and showed me many exotic locales like England, Italy, France, Greece, Egypt, Brazil, Thailand, China, Jamaica and the The Bahamas just to name a few.  Henceforth, my desire to travel abroad and see the world was ignited.

Fiction or Fact: Which is More Horrifying?

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Amazon, Bradley Lobue, Fukushima, Japan, Kindle, March 11 2011 earthquake, November 22 2016 earthquake, Tohoku

Being new to the whole “Blog Thing,” I was wondering where the inspiration for my next, and second, blog entry was going to come from.  Well, I got that inspiration this morning as I was woken up at 6 A.M. by a 7.4 magnitude earthquake; the largest of its kind since the “Big One” on March 11, 2011.  My area was still receiving frequent aftershocks until six hours after the initial quake.  The aftershocks have died down and are less frequent now, thankfully.

The quake triggered a small, and fortunately benign, tsunami that didn’t do any major damage aside from raising the inland river levels a tad and likewise raising a few eyebrows.  We were lucky this time.  However, today’s quake definitely raised my blood pressure and got my heart pumping.  Flashbacks to 2011 infected my thoughts, especially as the images on TV today showed a small wave moving through rivers and streams in the region.  I live many miles inland in the interior of the Tohoku region of Japan.  Major tsunamis, like the March 11, 2011 wave that devastated the northern coast of Japan, are not a big concern for me where I live.  If a tsunami were to ever reach my area, then it would probably be as a result of the Apocalypse, and that’s not a joke.