This weeks PhotoFriday is “Greenery.” Maybe it’s too obvious, but my first thoughts were about green, verdant forests with bubbling streams and soft light. I have a few of those in my library but in the end went with this one taken in Kamikochi, Japan.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Pristine.” I’m entry number 132.

• The Myth of Japan’s Failure – "Japan has succeeded in delivering an increasingly affluent lifestyle to its people despite the financial crash. In the fullness of time, it is likely that this era will be viewed as an outstanding success story."
• Man Embraces Useless Machines, and Absurdity Ensues – Technology: making life simpler.
• Merry – Sat here with my newborn son and wife, with all my family staying nearby, this post rang bells. It's sometimes important to realise what you have.

For this weeks PhotoFriday, “Slick,” I was going for the ‘superficially impressive’ meaning of the word. To be fair, I have no reason to believe that these guys are not deep and meaningful types… They were seen in Tokyo last year.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Animal.” I’m entry number 220.

This weeks PhotoFriday theme is “Animal.” This animal was fast moving hence the slight blur but it was amazing to see this little fellah at such a short range. This was in Kamikochi, Japan. (I really wanted to include a picture from the Muppets but, for obvious reasons, I prefer to use one of my own images…)

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Inside.” I’m entry number 186.

I’ve been busy and not had the time to enter the last few PhotoFriday’s, but here I am with an image for the theme “Gold” (always believe in your soul). I have quite a few pictures with bits of gold (you’ve got the power to know) in them, but here, in Kyoto, we have a whole pavilion that’s made of the shiny stuff.

Sorry for the Spandau Ballet puns (you’re indestructible).

This kind of feels wrong. Posting my PhotoFriday entry, this week for the theme “Sundown,” actually on a Friday is very much out of character for me. As an added bonus, I really like this image. It was taken in Kyoto, Japan last year.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Many” (quite by chance, it was also taken in Japan). I’m entry number 177.

This weeks PhotoFriday theme is “Many.” I saw these many pastries of some description in Tokyo.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “My World.” I’m entry number 171.

This weeks PhotoFriday challenge is “Lines.” I have a lot of pictures that have lines in them but fairly few where it’s the most prominent feature. My first choice of image was of my old, broken MacBook hard-disk but then I realised that I had already used it for a PhotoFriday last year! So I switched to the above picture, taken in the Tokyo Forum.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Ride.” I’m entry number 155.

When I initially thought about this weeks PhotoFriday theme, “Ride,” my mind first went to cycling. Only I couldn’t find an image that showed bikes in motion which seemed to defeat the point. So, instead, I went for this picture that I took while riding on the Tokyo subway. (It might be a bit of a stretch but I really like this picture!)

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Elaborate.” I’m entry number 161.

• ‘Useless’ Is A Loaded Word – "In almost any life situation where you need to get something out of another person, being a dick is never the right method to go about it. Using loaded words like ‘useless’ or ‘worthless’ is being a dick. We will listen to your feedback and thank you for it, but unless it is some urgent issue that will affect every user, it’s most likely getting shoved to the bottom of the pile in favor of doing things to make the friendly customers happy."
• Don’t blame inflation for all the price rises – Summary: food and gadgets are cheaper, entertainment is considerably more expensive.
• We should stop running away from radiation – "A sea-change is needed in our attitude to radiation, starting with education and public information."