Lophophora? You okay?

I saw on CNN that Japan is getting hit really hard and being evacuated because of a deadly tropical storm. I'm worried about you. Please check in with us if you can. I'll be thinking of you and worrying until I hear you are alright.

Hope everything is ok with you all.

Joan, were u referring to this news ... http://www.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/asiapcf/east/07/10/asia.storms/index.html ? here is a general map of Asia ... http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/asia/asiaall.htm to be able to see the area being divastated by those storms. map of Japan... http://www.ease.com/~randyj/japanmap.htm.

if not mistaken, i read somewhere he is from Narita, Japan.

wherever he is... i hope is is fine and not affected by the storm. having hailed from Southeast Asia myself, i know how devastating those storms are.

His posts indicate that he's living in Tokyo, and from what I can gather, they are either already having bad storms or they will soon hit there. I have trouble figuring out the time zones. Here's a snippet from CNN's site:

"Though weakening and downgraded from typhoon status, Chataan was expected to reach Tokyo by early Thursday, bringing with it torrential rain and the potential to cause major disruptions"

Here's the link I was reading from:
http://asia.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/asiapcf/east/07/10/asia.storms/index.html

if not mistaken, they are 16 hrs. ahead of us. anyway, here is a url for time difference ... http://times.clari.net.au/location.php3/Asia/Tokyo

Oh, I didn't see that about the storms. Wow - that's something. He was posting some pictures to the PDB earlier - I saw them in that forum. I didn't note the date/time they were posted, however.

He just posted a bunch today.

"eyes"

Whew! Then that must mean he's okay.

Hi all!

Sorry, I didn't have this forum in my list, so I didn't know I was the object of concern.

Bless you all!

And thankfully, my area, Tokyo metropolis, was not that badly hit, not compared to the Phillipines, Micronesia, and the Gifu area south of me. I think 5 fatalities here in Japan, and hundreds of homes flooded. Not to discount anyone's suffering, but actually pretty small potatoes compared to some of the things we get here (the Kobe earthquake comes to mind.)

Back in the mid 80's I was on vacation on Mindoro Island in the Phillipines (a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve called Puerto Galera, rich in orchids and butterflies) when one of the worst typhoons this century hit the Straights of Batangas. It was the off-season, and I was the only foreigner on a small resort on one of the islands in the bay. The winds knocked down many of the huts and several people were hurt (one child very seriously) by coconuts zooming past our heads like cannonfire. We all huddled in the only concrete building on the island, the bar, and watched as an over-laden car ferry desperately tried to make it to the harbor, failed, and sank in the churning seas about a half mile offshore, taking over 250 lives. I spent the last three days of my vacation helping the locals and the military gather bodies that washed up in front of my now roofless nipa hut. It's sad, but because I was European, it was assumed I had great medical knowledge, and I became the de facto doctor for a day, until the injured could be got across the bay into town where the was a real doctor. And me with only half-forgotten Boy Scout First Aid - I felt so inadequate, I was almost in tears! (Since then, I've religiously taken yearly brush-up courses in CPR and EFA from the Red Cross during Japan's Eathquake Preparedness Week.) Not exactly the most relaxing vacation I've ever taken...

On Wednesday (my Wed. probably your Tues.), I made my usual preparations for gale-force winds: all potted plants down snuggly against walls or brought inside, and taller garden plants staked in tripods. Not much damage, but a just-blooming Lilium henryii slipped its twisties and was broken in half. Darn! I was hoping to post pictures of it next week...but still, compared to losing your house, or even worse, a loved one, a lily means absolutely nothing.

Anyway, once again, thank you all, thank you all so much for you concern. I'm deeply touched...

Lophophora,

u mentioned the Philippines, i am originally from the Philippines. i am very familiar with Batangas City, one of my sister-in-law is from that area. she inherited a property from her parent when they died. the property is a resort area for tourist. it is white sand beach with blue lagoons. across the Pacific ocean we Mindoro is visible in sight. u've brought back fond memories of good days gone by :).

btw... welcome to DG! am sure u will enjoy it here. see U around... ma vie

Hi MaVieRose!

Yes - the Philippines (got the spelling right this time - sorry) is a beautiful country! Mindoro is probably my favorite island, although I've also enjoyed Marinduque and Palawan several times (the swallowtail butterflies on Marinduque are world famous, and bird-watching on Palawan is out of this world!!) I've always wanted to see the highlands of Mindanao, but was warned away. Let's hope they can find peace there soon.

You live in Hesperia - that's near Victorville, right? I'm from San Diego, so it's pretty much the same: brown year 'round. What a difference from the lush green beauty of the Philippines! I wonder if I could ever live in the desert again...
A friend of mine is retiring in two years to Baguio - now that would be nice!!!!

yes. i do miss all the orchid and lots of tropical plant we left behind when we immigrated to the US, some 30+ yrs. ago. whenever i visit, my cousins who owned orchid nurseries wanted me to carry back some. it breaks my heart cause i can never take them with me due to customs regulations on both ends. :(.

yes, i live in the desert where everyone told me i can not grow anything. so far, i've proven them wrong. i use my common sense and do plenty of research to meet the plant's basic requirement to be able to make them grow properly. thankful to lots of DG members who shared some plants to make the desert a haven for some tropical plants. neighbors here often tells me my garden is more like a nursery rather than a garden. i live in an apartment, hoping to be able to buy a house soon. most of my plants are grown in pots. u are right! Hesperia is next to Victorville.

San Diego is the hang out of my son, who lives in Menlo Park. most of his college buddies are in San Diego. my son would love to live and move to San Diego some day soon.

what would a Californian do in Japan? just curious. so glad that finally somebody can affirm the facts i do mention about the Phils.

my neck of the wood in the desert isn't brown... all green, filled with annual and perennial flowers, liliums [both asiatic and orientals], a few orchid and some tropical plants.

Baguio! the favorite hangout of foreigner in the Phils. cause of the cooler weather.lovely place Baguio is, but i hate the zig-zag road which scares the living daylight out of me LOL! i was there the last visit i did way back in '96.

u're far luckier, cause it is only an hour plane ride from Tokyo to Manila. do u enjoy the night life in Manila? whenever i come visit the Phils., my cousins and i do night club hopping. we all love to dance specially the latin beats. nice body language ;) and romantic expression as one dances the tango :)!

i will never recommend for u to go to the Mindanao area. i wouldn't venture myself to go there either. although, the Mindanao area is the best spot to get the lovely and rare orchids being displayed all over the world. nice talking with u. later... ma vie

So glad to hear from you Lophophora. When I saw on the news about Japan getting hit, I thought of you and wanted to make sure you are okay. We are a family here you know, and you have just recently been adopted into it.

Thanks JoanJ!

It's great to be family...

So when do I get my chocolate chip cookie care package???

;-)