News and current affairs　-Afternoon on the Islands of Langerhans-　Haruki Murakami

　　　　
　　　　When you ride in a taxi and absentmindedly listen to the radio news, sometimes there are really startling things. It's not about the content that startles, but rather the announcer's ordinary use of words. For example, when they say "There's a truck chafing "Niku-zure""肉擦れ" on the downhill lane near the such-and-such interchange on the highway, causing a three-kilometer traffic jam," you momentarily think, "Why would a truck chafe"Niku-zure" "肉擦れ"?" But if you think about it, it's obviously a "load shift. "Niku-zure""荷崩れ" " If a truck were to chafe or a motorcycle were to get athlete's foot, society would be in big trouble. There was also a news report that said "Yesterday, Japan and the Soviet Union held talks on hourly wages."”Zikan-kyuu-kyougi”"時間給協議 At that time, I also deeply pondered, "Why would Japan and the Soviet Union talk about hourly wages?" But when I listened to the explanation, it was about "deputy director level"”次官級協議” matters. There are all kinds of mishearings in the world. It's somewhat strangely amusing, so I was smiling to myself in the back seat of the taxi. "Did something good happen to you, sir?" the driver asked. "Huh? Oh, well," I lied and evaded the question, but these very personal little quirks can make people feel quite happy. A long time ago, there was a radio announcer who mispronounced the time announcement twice. "I'll announce seven o'clock. Sorry, it's eight o'clock. No, I'm sorry, it's nine o'clock. I'll announce nine o'clock." I listened to that broadcast and laughed alone for a while, but that announcer was undoubtedly scolded severely by his boss later. He might have been teased or bullied by his colleagues and given the nickname "Seven-Eight-Nine Something" for several years after that. In retrospect, it's a pity, but it's also funny. If there were one of these types of incidents every day, life would be quite enjoyable.