#means its 2 years since i was walking around kyoto all day in the heat half dead from heat stroke just started my period so i was having | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

ghosthunthq · 5 years

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Memento (Part 1 of 2)

For: @seoulsborne123

By: @csakuras

——

The trees on the mountain path shimmered with morning dew. Gene passed through a row of red-orange torii gates lining the path, so dense that they practically made a vermillion tunnel.

Fushimi Inari Taisha. He had come here first thing in the morning, to beat the crowds and the heat. Gradually, he made his way up the mountain, snapping pictures now and then.

It was like he’d entered a different world. He could sense it, in the trees, in the shrines, in the thousands of torii gates. This was sacred ground.

This place is fantastic, Gene thought. You’re really missing out, Noll. Told you you should’ve come.

He knew his thoughts would not reach their intended recipient. Their abilities had weakened enough by now that their telepathic link no longer stretched across oceans. And yet, throughout his trip, Gene kept trying. Maybe it was just habit. He’d grown used to the fact that, no matter where he went— even when he was alone— he would always be able to reach his brother.

Which meant this was one of the few times in his life that Gene was truly alone.

On one hand, it was liberating. Being able to go anywhere and do anything he liked without anyone to caution or complain. But now, nearly a week into his trip, he was starting to realize just how isolating that could be too.

After making his way through another tunnel of torii, Gene stopped by a small shrine to catch his breath. The hike was tougher than he’d anticipated, and the humidity didn’t help. He sat on a mossy rock and sipped from his bottle of tea.

He sensed it before he saw it. A familiar tingle up his spine. He turned to his left, just in time to see it appear from behind a tree.

A white fox. Said to be the messengers of the Inari Okami, he had seen many statues of them along the way, many of them holding keys in their mouths. This fox didn’t look quite as fearsome; actually, it looked downright adorable.

“Hey, there,” Gene said. “Come to check on me?”

The fox stood still, staring at him.

“I’m no threat, I swear. Just visiting.” He gave it a disarming smile, and a short bow for good measure.

It sat, tilting its head curiously at him.

Slowly, Gene set down his bottle of tea and raised his digital camera, getting the fox into frame.

“Shhh…just hold still a second, okay?”

Briefly, he wondered if this might be considered disrespectful. Well…hopefully he wouldn’t be cursed afterwards.

The camera clicked, and the picture was taken. The fox didn’t seem perturbed; it merely stood and wandered away, having seemingly lost interest, and disappeared in a sunbeam.

Gene looked at the preview screen of his camera. There was no sign of the fox anywhere in the picture, even when he zoomed in. No smudge of light or anything. Just background scenery.

He smiled wryly. Gene knew that a camera couldn’t capture everything that he saw. Not even SPR’s high tech cameras could do that.

It was a shame. Noll might have actually liked to see this one.

The main reason for this trip was a client’s request, of course. And some research on the side. But also, Gene had hoped to visit his ethnic homeland someday, so he had been grateful for the opportunity.

Their ethnic homeland. Unfortunately, Noll hadn’t been interested enough to join him. But Gene still wished he could share what it was like. In one form or another…

——

It was on the weekend after the Agawa case. Mai brought Naru tea in his office as usual, but instead of leaving right away, she spoke up.

“Oh, by the way, I forgot to tell you something. I mean, I would’ve told you when you first came back, but we had that case… Anyway, Mori-san already approved it, but since you’re my boss, you should know too.”

Naru sipped at his tea. “Please get to the point.”

“I won’t be here next weekend.”

He blinked. “Huh?”

Mai grinned. “That’s right, this time I’m the one going on a trip! To Kyoto!”

He stared at her, looking a bit lost.

She took a moment to enjoy that rare look on his face before explaining. “It’s my school trip. Do you have those in England? My whole class is going for a few days.”

Understanding dawned in his expression. “I see.” Then he nodded. “I will make note of it.”

“Come to think of it, you went to Kyoto too, right? A little after I started working here? How was it?”

“Hot.”

She waited for him to continue, but that seemed to be all he had to say about it.

Then again, he didn’t exactly go there to sightsee, did he? He had gone to search for Gene…

“Wait, does that mean Gene went to Kyoto too?”

Naru nodded. “I’d been retracing Gene’s steps during his trip, and learned that he had gone there to meet with a spiritualist. As far as I know, the man was one of the last people to have spoken with him before the accident. I went to ask if he had any idea where Gene had planned on going next.”

“Did he know?”

“No. It seemed they only discussed mediumship or trivial matters. If it had gone that easily, I would have found him much sooner.” Naru sighed.

And then, within only a few short months of them meeting, Naru would have left. And Mai would have never found out anything— about Naru’s identity, why he was here, or…about Gene. Selfish as it was, she was almost glad that things played out the way they did.

“Hey…” she began, hesitantly. “Do you think I could meet with that spiritualist too?”

Naru frowned. “Meet him? Why?”

“I guess…I’m just curious. Maybe if I talk to him, I could find out where Gene visited in Kyoto. I could see the same things, walk the same places…and stuff.” She blushed and shook her head. “N-nevermind, it’s stupid. You wouldn’t understand anyway.”

She took her tray and quickly exited his office.

What was she thinking? There was no use trying to explain something so sentimental to him. As if he’d even care.

——

Later that afternoon, John dropped by the office for a quick visit. Mai welcomed him eagerly; she had been hoping they could talk.

“Hey John, you lived in Kansai for a while, right? Do you have any recommendations for places to visit?”

John did indeed have a few recommendations, beyond just the usual tourist sites too. Mai took notes, nodding with excitement.

But partway through, the door to Naru’s office opened, and he poked his head out.

“Mai. Bring me a large trash bag.”

“Huh? Right now?”

“Yes, right now.”

She pouted.

John gave her an understanding smile and whispered, “We can talk again later, Mai-san.”

She sighed. “Sorry.”

Grumbling, she found a trash bag and took it to Naru’s office. “Here, I got you the—” she stopped.

A heap of maps, travel guides, notebooks, and paper was piled on top of Naru’s desk. As she watched, he rummaged through a desk drawer, pulling out another handful to add to the pile.

“Bring it here,” he said.

She closed the door behind her and walked up to the desk. “Don’t tell me…you’re throwing all this away?!”

“I found Gene. I don’t need them anymore.”

“That’s true, but…you should at least sort them for recycling!”

“Then I’ll leave that to you.”

Mai groaned. She just had to create more work for herself.

Having cleaned out his drawers, Naru sat on the edge of his desk, sifting through the pile. He gave each item a cursory glance before tossing it into the trash bag she held open for him.

This might take a while. She was tempted to just leave the bag with him and return to her conversation with John, but since Naru hadn’t dismissed her yet, she decided to stay for now.

Besides, she was curious what had spurred on this sudden cleaning spree. It had to be what they talked about earlier, right?

“I kinda forgot you still had all this stuff,” she admitted.

“Yes, well, I didn’t have time to throw them out before I left for England, and I didn’t have time when I came back, as someone immediately forced me to take on a case.”

Jeez, he was still holding a grudge about that?

Mai peered inside the trash bag. “You know…this stuff has been here since before I began working at the office. It feels weird to see it all go away. Like it’s the end of an era…”

She thought back to all those times she caught Naru in the office, pouring over maps. She used to think it was just a weird hobby. But she should have suspected; that look of concentration he had while tracing his finger over roads, mountains, lakes…she should have known the reason couldn’t be so frivolous as that.

Naru tossed several travel books, clicking his tongue. “Madoka had plenty of time while she was here,” he muttered. “She could have cleaned this out herself.”

“She probably thought you’d complain about her touching your stuff,” Mai sniffed. “Besides, she was busy. Actually teaching me stuff.”

He frowned. “…She never cleaned Gene’s desk either.”

Now this got her attention. “Gene’s desk?”

“At the Pratt Laboratory. I didn’t get around to cleaning it before I left for Japan, as I had too many other things to worry about. But I assumed Madoka would do it eventually. And yet when I returned, after the funeral, I found it exactly the way it was two years ago.” He shook his head. “Ridiculous.”

Mai gulped. If she were in his position, coming back to see that desk unchanged after all that time would have felt like a punch in the gut. “So…you cleaned it out yourself?”

“What little there was to clean, yes. It was mostly odd scraps of paper he had doodled on. He was active in the field, but the rest of us generally took care of the paperwork.”

She bit her lip. Now she felt torn. It seemed like such a waste. Gene would never put pen to paper again. To her, even little doodles would be priceless.

“But…if there wasn’t even that much stuff, it couldn’t have hurt to just leave it that way, right? Did you even need the space?”

“That is not the point.”

She looked at him, inviting him to explain.

He sighed. “My parents are free to preserve Gene’s bedroom as they wish. But we don’t need a shrine in the workplace as well.”

There was something about the way he said that. Not quite annoyance, more like…a deep discomfort. It made her hesitate. But at the same time, the dismissiveness of his words bothered her.

“And why do you get to decide that? Gene was an important member of Mori-san’s team, right? Are you saying her feelings don’t count, just because she’s not family?”

Naru paused. “…Even so, it’s been two years.”

“You don’t get to decide how long it takes!”

“It’s just paper.”

“Maybe to you, it is. That doesn’t mean you have to remove everything that reminds you of him!”

She had been wondering for a while. Why exactly Naru decided to return to Japan. He said it was for research, and that might really be all it was. But she also wouldn’t be surprised if he was just running from something.

“Is that what you think I’m doing?” he asked, narrowing his eyes.

“Isn’t it?”

A bitter smile crossed his face. “I see his face every time I look in the mirror. What other reminder do I need?”

Mai shut her mouth. She couldn’t argue against that.

An awkward silence passed. Naru lowered his gaze back to the notebook in his hands, flipping through the pages. Mai looked away.

When he finished flipping through the notebook, Naru tossed it in the trash and picked up another map. “Okinawa,” he said, looking at it with disgust. “He made me go to Okinawa.” This also went in the trash.

Mai rolled her eyes. “It couldn’t have been that bad.”

“I never intended to come to Japan in the first place. But he ended up dragging me here after all.”

“He didn’t drag you, Naru. Complain all you want, but no one forced you to come here. You made a choice.”

He scoffed. “The only other choice was to leave things to the incompetent police. He would have never been found.”

“But he was. Thanks to you.”

That was one thing she could say in his favor. Whatever his reasons— whether out of brotherly love, or merely because he wanted to dissect his brother’s brain— despite all the odds, Naru didn’t give up. She could admire that level of dedication.

And now, this clearing of the past seemed to signal a new start. His life had been in stasis for nearly two years, devoted to the search. Now, he could finally live for himself again. So, did that mean…that this time, he was here because he actually wanted to be?

Mai glanced at him. Maybe that was just wishful thinking. But it would be nice, if that were the case.

Minutes later, Naru was flipping through another notebook, when he stopped to tear a sheet out of it.

“Here.” He held it out to her.

“Huh?” She took the paper. “What’s this?” On it was a name, written in romaji, and a phone number.

“The man I met in Kyoto.”

She gasped and looked at him in surprise. “You found it for me?”

“It turned up while I was cleaning. It’s going in the trash anyway, I don’t care if you feel like salvaging it.”

“Uh-huh.” She wasn’t entirely sure she believed that excuse. Mai turned back to the paper and read the name out slowly. “Suzuki…Akitarou?”

“I’m surprised you could read that much,” Naru smirked.

Mai glared at him over the sheet of paper. “What’s the kanji?”

“I don’t remember.”

“Pfft. Even if you could, I bet you couldn’t write it.” Mai grinned, in better spirits now. “So I should just give him a call, ask if we could meet? Can I tell him I work for SPR?”

“Yes. He might be more willing to see you if you mention my name.”

“Which name?”

There it was. The ‘Are you an idiot?’ look. “Oliver Davis, obviously.”

“Well sorry. How was I supposed to know you didn’t introduce yourself as Shibuya Kazuya?”

He sighed. “It doesn’t take more than two brain cells to figure out that if I went asking about my identical twin named Eugene Davis, using an alias would be pointless.”

“My bad. It’s just that you have sooo many names, it’s enough to confuse a girl.”

“I have, at most, three.”

“Not counting nicknames, you mean.” She laughed, and waved the piece of paper. “But thanks, Naru. I appreciate it.”

#Ghost Hunt #GHW2019 #Naru #Oliver Davis #Mai Taniyama #csakuras #seoulsborne123 #submission

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designresearch-semester2 · 3 years

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Knowledge Gathering _ Contextual Research

*Global Warming / Greenhouse gas emissions

The atmosphere of the Earth is a magnificent cocktail of gases, water vapour, and particles that constantly mix and mingle. It provides us with oxygen, shields us from solar radiation, and regulates our weather. It's a fine line to walk, and all life depends on it. Several gases in the atmosphere act as a blanket around the Earth, trapping heat from the sun. As a result, they are referred to as glasshouse gases. Greenhouse gases are naturally present in low concentrations. Without them, too much heat would escape, causing the planet's surface to freeze. However, human activities are rapidly increasing the amount of these gases in the atmosphere, causing temperature to rise and the climate to change.

According to the IPCC, natural disasters such as droughts, floods, heavy snow, cold weather, and typhoons are being blamed on rapidly increasing glasshouse gas emissions caused by human activities after the Industrial Revolution. For example, glasshouse gas emissions in 2004 increased by more than 70% compared to 1970, and atmospheric glasshouse gas emissions have increased significantly since 1750.

The international community has signed a climate change agreement, recognising that global climate change and its negative effects are a common concern for humanity, and fearing that human activity will significantly increase the concentration of glasshouse gases in the atmosphere, negatively affecting the global ecosystem and humanity. In order to fully implement these climate change agreements, the Kyoto Protocol, which went into effect in 2005, agreed to first set goals for reducing glasshouse gas emissions in developed countries and then fulfil their obligations. Internationally, the Kyoto Protocol has agreed to define glasshouse gases as six gases and to reduce them.

*What is New Zealand’s contribution to climate change?

Title: New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions (percentages) Fugitive emissions are from the leakage, burning and controlled release of gases in oil and gas operations as well as escaping gases from coal mining and geothermal operations. Agricultural methane is mainly from livestock digestive systems and nitrous oxide is mainly from manure on the soil.

When historical emissions from deforestation by early settlers are included, New Zealand is currently responsible for about 1% (or 0.01°C) of total global warming (around 1°C) that has occurred since pre-industrial times. While this is small in absolute terms, it is more than 15 times our share of the global population and more than five times our share of the global land area. The glasshouse gas profile of New Zealand distinguishes it from many other countries.

Globally, carbon dioxide is the most significant glasshouse gas, but livestock production accounts for nearly half of New Zealand's reported annual emissions, and it has caused more warming to date than emissions from fossil fuels.

* Summarise

- Although New Zealand has a small population and its overall glasshouse gas emissions are 0.2 to 0.3 percent of the world's population, its per capita emissions rank 12th among advanced countries.

- In contrast to other countries, agriculture (farming) generates 49 percent of glasshouse gases, which is significantly higher than the 12 percent generated in agriculture in other developed countries.

- The energy sector's emission ratio is 43 percent, which is lower than that of other advanced countries because renewable resources such as hydroelectricity, wind power, and geothermal power account for 69 percent of electricity production.

- Emissions from the transportation energy sector, which accounts for 19% of total emissions and 45% of energy sector emissions, are increasing.

* Market research & Competitor Audit

[What are the efforts being made to reduce glasshouse gas emissions?] * An individual effort -Plastic diet: Plastic Diet is a youth-led organisation dedicated to reducing single-use plastic waste and consumption.

Values & guiding: These are solutions-focussed communities and movements, promoting possible solutions rather than solely focussing on the problems of plastic.

-Increase the room temperature by one degree, decrease the temperature. Increasing the cooling temperature by 1 degree and lowering the heating temperature by 1 degree will reduce CO2 by 231 kg per household per year (46.2 trees per year).

-Reduce your shower time by one minute. Reducing shower time by one minute will reduce CO2 by 7kg and CO2 by approximately 700kg per year for two showers per week (140 trees per year). -Leave out unused outlets. Save electricity for one month a year (11% of household power is standby) Empty rooms turn off the lights. -Choose an energy-efficient product. When purchasing home appliances, make sure that you have the first grade of energy consumption efficiency. -Use eco-friendly materials. The products used in the home purchase eco-friendly products to save resources and reduce greenhouse gases. -Reduce waste. Reduce waste and recycle waste must be collected separately. -Reduce the use of cars and use public transportation. If you are going to use a car, maintain the eco-driving habit. (Quick acceleration, sudden departure, the sudden stop is prohibited) -Don't damage the forest recklessly. One pine tree absorbs 5kg of CO2 a year. I don't do anything that destroys the forest recklessly. -Cook as much as you want. The amount of food waste left by food is 20,000 tons a day. -Vegetarian diet one day a week

* Government efforts in terms of the policy.

-Emission Trading Scheme

: It is a system that allows the government to annually assign emission rights to workplaces that emit glasshouse gases and evaluate the actual emission of glasshouse gases from assigned sites to allow transactions between sites for extra or insufficient emission rights.

* Global Warming &Vegetarianism

- The climate crisis requires more than just energy conversion. Changing from meat-based food culture to a vegetarian diet can help to reduce carbon emissions. Dietary changes are just as important as energy conversion during a climate crisis.

"It's time to talk about meat consumption." (Greenpeace)

According to World Food Organisation statistics from 2013, glasshouse gases from livestock account for 14.5 percent of glasshouse gas emissions from artificial activities, totalling 7.1 gigatonnes per year.

The livestock industry uses a lot of energy to grow feed, keep livestock warm, and slaughter.

The livestock industry is also associated with "black carbon," which has a warming effect 25 to 30 times greater than carbon dioxide. When black carbon settles on glaciers, it increases heat absorption and accelerates sea ice formation. Black carbon is primarily produced during the burning of rainforests. Methane produced during the livestock extinction process contributes to the climate crisis. The livestock industry accounts for 30 to 37 percent of methane emissions, or 56 to 86 times the warming effect.

The weather has returned to its normal state (new normal), with no unusual changes. Climate change will inevitably accelerate when permafrost begins to melt and methane trapped within it escapes into the atmosphere. According to the 2016 World Economic Forum, the scientific community believes that after reaching the peak of glasshouse gas emissions in 2020, the global temperature can be prevented from rising as a result of the climate crisis by sharply reducing the rate of increase. This means that global carbon emissions should be cut in half this year, from 20 gigatonnes in 2030 to half this year. Energy conversion alone is insufficient. According to the scientific community and the environmental movement, a drastic shift to a vegetarian-oriented diet is required.

This is since changing the meat-based food culture can reduce carbon emissions without requiring a significant amount of time or money. It is beneficial to one's health and has the added benefit of protecting animal rights, but vegetarianism has grown in importance to deal with the climate crisis.

* Product & Technology review

Since I decided to make an app to aid a vegetarian diet to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, I researched different types of vegetarian diet based apps.

1. 21-day Vegan Kickstart

This simple and direct app contains everything you need to begin transitioning to a vegan diet. The app is also reliable because it is curated by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.

It actually provides 21 days of full meal plans, a recipe library approved by expert dietitians, grocery lists, nutrition tips, and much more. It includes delectable recipes from all over the world.

It includes step-by-step instructions and photos, as well as the complete nutrition facts for each recipe. Cooking demonstrations will help you get the recipe details right, and daily messages will keep you on track and motivated.

Features:

- Delicious, healthy, all-vegan recipes

- Preparation made simple with high-resolution step-by-step photos

- See the ingredients for each step you need with just a tap

- Ability to mark your favorite recipes to come back each time with ease

- View recipes full-screen, with step-by-step instructions

- Recipes from all over the world

- Daily messages to inspire you and keep you on track for 21 days

Pros:

- This app makes it fun and easy to try out a vegan diet, especially if you've never tried it before.

- It provides nutritionally complete meal plans as well as nutrition expert tips and tricks to help you take care of your health.

- It is completely free to download and use.

Cons

- While this app is great for people who are just starting out on a vegan diet, other apps may have more in-depth recipes for seasoned vegans.

2. Oh she glows

Oh She Glows is a plant-based recipe app that encourages you. Elegant photography, crisp design, and a healthy amount of white space allow vibrant food colours to stand out. To find and try a variety of delicious recipes, search by season, dish type, and other criteria

Angela Liddon, a New York Times bestselling cookbook author, is the app's presenter. She shares her most popular recipes from her award-winning blog, OhSheGlows.com, in the app.

You can print recipes for later use when you're out shopping or cooking. Personalize your recipes by adding your own cooking notes and removing ingredients and directions as you go.

Features:

- Stunning Photography: Beautiful full-screen high-resolution photography.

- Advanced Search: Search with ease using dish type, meal, recipe title, or ingredient keywords.

-Favourites List: Create your own favourites list with your most-loved recipes.

-Advanced Filtering: Filter your recipes based on dietary/allergy info, season, dish type, and more.

-Cook with Ease: Strikeout ingredients and directions as you cook so you don’t lose your place.

-Customizable Notes: Add your own notes to the recipes if you make any changes.

Pros:

- Each recipe includes nutritional information.

- You can sort the recipes by season and holiday to find the most relevant recipes quickly.

- Trending recipes displays the top five most popular recipes that other users are preparing at any given time.

- There is an anti-lock feature, so you won't have to keep unlocking your phone with wet or food-filled hands.

Cons:

-This app has more than 160 recipes, whereas other apps have a greater number of recipe ideas.

3. Vegan Amino

Vegan Amino focuses on the social aspect of being vegan. The app connects you to a vegan community. You can create a profile and chat with others who follow the same diet as you.

You can use the app to find influential vegans and follow your favourites, or you can build a following for yourself by sharing your own tips, tricks, recipes, and more.

The app also includes a recipe library for you to try out. Having trouble getting a dish just right? Post a question about it, and other vegan cooks will respond with their tips and techniques.

The app also includes a vegan encyclopaedia with links to recipes, vegan blogs, nutritional information, and restaurants.

Features:

- CHAT with other vegans and meet new people

- DISCOVER new cooking tips and other vegan lifestyle hacks

- GET the latest news and updates on vegan products

- SHARE your creations and ideas

- LEARN from and CONTRIBUTE to our vegan catalogue - an encyclopedia of all things vegan

Pros:

-Chat, recipe sharing, and showing off your vegan creations are just a few of the community features that allow you to connect with other vegans.

-You can check out and contribute to the vegan catalogue, a place where you can learn and share everything vegan.

-It is completely free to download and use.

Cons:

- If you're looking for a way to connect with other vegans, this is the app for you. Other apps are better suited if you're looking for a recipe database or vegan restaurants.

#https://apps.apple.com/us/app/vegan-amino-for-veganism/id1098634664

#https://kickstart.pcrm.org/en

#https://ohsheglows.com/

#https://www.downtoearth.org.in/blog/going-vegan-can-help-reduce-greenhousegas-emissions-49341 #https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-49238749 #https://www.downtoearth.org/go-veggie/environment/top-10-reasons #http://ko.veganism.wikidok.net/wp-d/5a5a311ef87514ca38eed8e7/View #https://www.agmatters.nz/topics/climate-change-basics/

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