Cocoka- Kazuki Hagimine’s page-

Now soccer is one of the most popular sports in world. It has been popular in European countries, and it has been spread out in Korea and Japan around 2002 World Cup. European soccer leagues, especially English Premier League, Serie A, and Liga Española, are at the top level in soccer leagues in the world. A large number of players from all over the world have moved to these leagues. It means soccer has become a global sport. In spite of this good aspect, racism still remains in soccer. Many players are hurt to hear these remarks. Criticism against miss plays is acceptable, but against race is absolutely unacceptable. There are three possible solutions to eliminate racism; strict penalties for clubs, penalties for players and education for players and coach.

              First of all, UEFA should set more strict penalties for clubs when its players or fans discriminate other players in the pitch. For instance, fine the clubs. This penalty may be easiest, but it can be very good chance to think about racism for not only the clubs but also players and fans of other clubs in the world. For more mean discrimination, to eliminate the clubs from Champions League and other International competition. These serious penalties are not used to rule the clubs, but they should be used for clubs and its fans to understand how terrible discrimination is.

              The next solution is penalty is for players. When players say something discriminating words, the players are to get more strict penalties than that of clubs. This is because players are more responsible for their statements. More importantly, players’ attitudes affect children more seriously. As an example, when children watch a game and see a good player discriminate other player from a certain country, they would think, ‘Even such a good player do not respect that player, I also will be against these people.’ Players have to do their best in matches, and at the same time, they should try to be good models for children. Children watch and imitate top players’ play and behavior. Soccer players have to keep these facts in their mind.

              Finally, education for players and coaches is the most important and effective solutions for racism. Disappointingly, penalties for both clubs and players are not the best way to remove racism. To understand that respect each other is the key. For the first step, establish an ethical committee for players and coaches. It will offer them some lesson of important issues, such as racism, behavior and so on. And then, these educated players should send messages for young players how important it is to respect others. As it is mentioned above, children learn how to play and act from top players. Therefore, these messages will play an important role in the future, when young children become soccer players.

              In conclusion, to make racism in soccer is possible. Players always have to remember that racism is no longer a problem only in their leagues, but all the other leagues might have same problem in the future. To stop racism, give the clubs some serious penalties is effective at some length. Penalties for player will be good chance to think again about how influential they are. And it will also bring them opportunity to reform their conduct. Most importantly, education offer need to be given to players and coaches. Children and young players do not know how terrible discrimination is. Messages from their favorite players are far more effective than teachers. With these three solutions, soccer can be a true global sport where no discrimination is existed.  

The number of people who read books is decreasing because of the rapid growth of TV, mobile phones and other media. Also more and more people, especially among young people, check news on the Internet. Many people do not even read newspapers, so it is only natural that many do not read books. However, reading books enriches your vocabulary and way of expressions. You will have an advantage in communication through reading books. In addition, from novels and fictions, you acquire broadened imagination and thoughts. It is always brilliant to have various kinds of imagination and thoughts. Finally, you may feel something special from autobiographies and biographies, because they are often full of precious experiences. Some of them will cheer you up. Others will be your strong partner when you are in trouble. After all, reading books has three main advantages.

First of all, learning refined vocabulary and phrases are definitely one of the strong points in reading books. They are useful when you explain or describe something. For instance, if you want to describe a beautiful scene you saw before to your friends, you can use the vocabulary or phrases from books. Your description will be more appropriate and more convincing. Moreover, your rich vocabulary and way of expression enables you to speak correctly. It allows you to talk with people from different generation in a proper way. It is rude to speak to elder people and young children in the same way as you talk to your friends. It is better to shift the speaking pattern. You can learn how to speak in a good manner from books. From the communicative points of view, wealth in vocabulary and phrases are extremely practical.

Second, from novels, you will have two opportunities to broaden your imagination and thoughts. While you are reading books, you are imaging the situations of characters or the landscapes where characters live. As an illustration, when you read the Lord of the Rings, you imagine their countries and the scenery of the way to their destination.  Besides, you will be guessing what will happen next, or what these sentences imply as you are reading detective books. Also, from novels and fictions, you get new or different ways of thinking for something. As an example, the thing which seems to be not so important to most people, but it may be a fatal factor to the main character. To understand the difference in value expands your thoughts.

Most importantly, autobiographies and biographies are the best text books for you. These books are written about famous or successful people who have come through tough times. They are abundant in valuable adventure and recover. When you are in trouble, you can learn how to overcome difficulties from them. And, when you are so depressed, these books will encourage you. These famous people also have difficult times before. What’s more, they give you important suggestions what to do now or when you are young. The advice from them will be an excellent guideline for you. As a result, you will have much positive effects through autobiographies and biographies.

In conclusion, reading books gives you a good deal of remarkable influence on you. It is a marvelous opportunity to get more sophisticated vocabulary and phrases, which leads you to be better in communication. By reading novels and fictions heighten your imagination and thoughts. Diverse imagination and thought in everything make you more attractive and richer in depth. Lastly, you can read autobiographies and biographies for future reference. They can be the most excellent precept when you are in despair. As I mentioned above, there is no way but read books.

As well as FIFA World Cup, UEFA European Football Championship is the biggest football competitions in the world. FIFA World Cup, which is often called World Cup, is held every four years, and UEFA European Football Championship, which is widely known as EURO, is too. While the championships is being held, not only many football fans in the world but also those who are not crazy about football become excited, and some fans even get excited before the championships start. Both World Cup and EURO are regarded as the greatest and the highest level championships. However, when regional point, condition of players and quality of matches are taken into consideration, EURO offer people more exciting matches than World Cup does.

In the first place, when we think about these international championships, the location and participating countries play important roles. Countries from all over the world take part in World Cup, and every country in the world can be a host country. On the other hand, only European countries can join in EURO, and as a matter of fact, host countries are in Europe. It is clear that the number of people involved in World Cup is more than that of EURO.

Another important factor to consider is condition of players. Since many countries participate in World Cup, host countries of World Cup, such as South Africa, Korea and Japan, can be far away from, some countries. Therefore players have to take long flights to get there. Also players have to get themselves used to new environment, climate and food, which can be big stress for them. As a result they cannot concentrate on football. Their condition is not as good as when they are in the club teams. In contrast, EURO is held inside Europe, so players only need a short move. There is no worry about jet lag, climate and food. Consequently they become the best condition and perform their best which leads to the high quality matches. As we can see, EURO supplies better condition to players.

Finally, quality of matches is a vital element of the competitions. First of all, participating countries level of EURO is obviously higher than that of World Cup. Even though World Cup qualifying in every continent is extremely tough and difficult, and qualified countries are strong, it is fact that most of top level countries of football are in Europe, for instance, Italy, France, Germany and Netherlands. Furthermore, level of countries in Europe is quite equal. It means top countries do not always win matches against other European countries. For instance, in EURO2008 qualifying, England was beaten by Croatia, and lost the way to EURO final. Similar big upset matches often happen in both group and knockout stages. In addition to it, top and equal levels make it easier to organise the group of death. Whereas group stage of EURO is exciting, that of World Cup is not stimulating as EURO. As a consequence of high and equal level, all the matches of EURO are definitely attractive.

In conclusion, for these reasons, EURO is more brilliant than World Cup. When we consider the place, well conditioned players and high quality matches, EURO is more appealing to us.

What if you got 1 million yen? Answers of recent people may differ from that of ten years ago. Ten years ago, they might have answered they would save it for future. However today many of them will answer they would spend it. In last ten years, more Japanese people spend money on themselves than they did. This is evident by the increasing of high-class brands’ shops, caring their appearance, and giving their children expensive materials.

              The most remarkable case is the coming of luxury brands. It indicates that they are focusing on Japanese market and recognize Japan as one of the most important markets in the world. From late 1990s, a good number of brands, such as Louis Vuitton, Cartier, and many of others came to Ginza, Tokyo, and opened their shops. The latest example is Giorgio Armani. It established the Ginza Tower in 2007. Every single floor sells Armani clothes, accessories and furniture. In addition to Tokyo, this phenomenon also happened in Shinsaibashi, Osaka. World famous high brands opened their shops there from 1998. Most importantly, both in Tokyo and Osaka, the number of brands shops has kept increasing. It means the shops are successful. Besides, these brands have established their own corporation in Japan. All of these facts imply that Japanese people definitely spend money to buy those goods.

              Other significant trend is that Japanese people’s attitude toward caring appearance has significantly changed and spent money for the appearance. More Japanese have taken it to action to become the ideal appearance. The typical case is dying their hair. Ten years ago, there actually were people who had colored hair, but what is important is that almost all of them were adult women. Today, it is no longer unusual for boys and men to color their hair. Surprisingly colored hair children can be seen. Secondly, people buy expensive clothes and accessories to make themselves better. As it is stated above, luxurious brands’ shops have kept growing and more people buy its goods. Today, even students have got Louis Vuitton or Chanel wallet. The third example is more aesthetic stores appeared. These shops used to target on women, but today they widened targets to men. Young people have accepted this kind of stores, and, as a result, men’s and women/men’s aesthetic stores are not strange anymore.

              The final example is that today’s parents do not hesitate to ‘invest’ to their children. Parents buy their children high-tech and expensive video games, such as Play Station 3, Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS. All of them cost more than twenty-thousand yen. To our surprise, many of children have got all of them. Needless to say, they’ve got their own mobile phone as if it is a matter of course. Next investment is education. More parents let their children go to private primary school which often cost three times more than municipal school. Recent boom of establishing of primary school by Kwanseigakuin, Ritsumeikan, Doshisha and Kansai University is the obvious evidence for it.

              In the last ten years, Japanese people’s attitude toward to money has changed. Growing number of brands’ shops and corporations signifies that more people spend it for luxurious goods in center of Tokyo or Osaka. The desire to be more beautiful or cool might existed ten years ago. Also that of today is same as it used to be, but what is different is that today, people actually have come to put the desire to action. Children have got much richer environment than before. If you got 1 million yen, what would YOU do?

  On Saturday, I went shopping to Shijo, Kyoto. Frirst, I visited the depertment store, Fujii-Daimaru, and checked some shops there for a little while. Soon afterward, I went to some of my favorite shops on Teramachi street and Kyogoku street. I checked out some of shops for hours Finally I bought a T-shirt and a pair of jeans. The second day, Sunday, my friend came to my house, and we talked about our recent events, which were mostly about job-hunitng. At that time, I was depressed with my bad results, but after expressing my feelings to my friend, I got cheered up. In the late afternoon when the sun was still shining, we went to river side fields near the Yodogawa-river and palyed a catch there. We played for a few hours. On Monday morning, I spent a little time doing the gardening. Afterwords, I worked on my homework. On Tuesday, I practised baseball with my teammates. We went to the ground where a baseball club practised. We uesd to belong to that club ten year ago, so the coach seemed happy with our reunion. Since we’ve got a match on Sunday, we played for 6 hours.

  Modern paintings’ various of aspects attract me. Although there are and used to be many famous and skillful painters, my favorites are Monet, Renoir and Matisse. Monet is a French impressionist painter. His paintings are simple and easy to understand because most of his paintings’ theme are landscape and waterlily pond. Unlike religious or histrical paintings, I need not to have any specific knowledge to understnad the paintings. For example, when I see La Grenoiullere or waterlilies ponds, I understand what they are at  first sight. I simply see and enjoy them. My other favorite is Renoir, who is also a French impressionist. Similar to Monet, his paintings’ theme are simple. He mainly drew people, who look warm-hearted and happy. Especially girls in ’women in black’ are so clam and look kind. When I see them, I feel as if they watch me with deep care. As a result, I feel relaxed. I also love Matisse paintings mostly beacuse they are powerful. The first time I saw his painting, ‘A Young girl in green in red interior’, I found it just colorful one. However, as I saw it closely, its colorfulness gave me some power. I felt that it shouted or screemed to me. Since then, I have become crazy about his paintings. Finaly, modern arts’ policy is also attractive to me. Their policy is keep creating something NEW. It requires very storng spirit. When the first impressionist, Monet, appeared in Frence, many people criticized him. However, he kept drawing, and poeple came to accept him as well as other impressionists. And so was Matisse. His paintings were called ‘fauve’, which was uesd to censure them. But now Matisse is regarded as one of the greatest painters. In my opinion, to create something new is hardest thing to do. You need deep ideas and to be skillfull enough to make them into figure. In spite of its difficulties, modern artists actually do. To think about them, modern art often cheer me up.

topic sentece: Modern paintings’ various of aspects attract me.

1. warm paintings and simple theme

a. Monet

-La Grenoiullere and waterlilies

b. Renoir

-women in black

2. colorful and powerful pantings

a. Matisse

-A Young girl in green in red interior

3. Painters’ spirit and policy

a. keep creating something NEW

-impressionism

-fauvism

At the moment, I’m very busy with job hunting things. Possibly, I will have some interviews during the Golden Week, I don’t know if interviews will be held though.

If I don’t have any interviews, I’d like to go to Tokyo. There are two things I want to do there. First, I want to go to the National Museum of Western Art and see ‘Venus of Urbino’ by Tiziano. It is one of the most precious paintings and has never been to outside from Europe before it comes to Japan this year.

Second, I want to visit my friend who lives in Tokyo. He started living there from this spring and worked in the clothes shop.  My friends, him and I used to talked and talked about anything happaned around us. So I want to visit his place with my friends and talk a lot about jobs. 

I hope no interviews held during Golden Week,  and want to go to Tokyo. Hopely I can get good jobs right after that.