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Yesterday was OX Day (“doyo no ushi no hi” ). On this day of summer every year, people all over Japan go out to eat eel. Because of the coronavirus, however, more and more people are choosing to take the eel home rather than eat it at the restaurant. People can also buy pre-cooked eel at a supermarket. I didn’t go to shopping yesterday, but my wife did. She said that there was a lot of eel on the shelves of the local supermarket. In my family, everyone likes eel, but we usually don’t eat it on “doyo no ushi no hi” because we forget when it is. The date changes every year. (by Prof. Douglas Jarrell)
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Notes
offensive いやな、不快な;
Nutella ヘーゼルナッツとチョコレートのスプレッドの商品名で、フランスの家庭には欠かせない人気食品;
hazelnut ハシバミの実;
James Bond イアン・フレミングによる英国の秘密スパイ007;
step in: [命令法で]お入り;
Gallic: ガリア (人)の、フランス(人)の;

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Can you give a baby any name you want? It depends. The government of Canada has the authority to ban any name they consider offensive or inappropriate; in reality, however, this rarely happens. This is not the case in other parts of the world, where strict laws apply. A French couple wanted to name their baby girl Nutella, but this was rejected by the French authorities the name Nutella was the trade name of a spread that is commonplace in Gallic homes. Sweden rejected Superman, while Mexico ruled out James Bond. Not surprisingly, Adolf Hitler is banned in Germany. In Denmark, parents must choose from a list of 7,000 approved names; names that have been rejected include Monkey and Pluto. New Zealand stepped in to prevent a pair of twins from being called Fish and Chips. (by Tania Pattison)
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