Rainy Season in Japan

Japan has entered its rainy season, a month-long period when it will rain most every day as the country does its best impersonation of Seattle. The word for rainy season is tsuyu, written with characters that mean “plum rain,” and there are several theories about how this odd name came about, including that it comes from the fact that Japanese plums ripen around this time of year, or that the kanji for plum resembles the character for “every day” (as in, I can’t believe it’s going to rain every day). Although I complain about the dreary weather, the rain is important to Japan’s rice growing, and odd years when very little rain fell have been followed by bad rice harvests. Incidentally, if you ever want to know what the weather will be like tomorrow, do what Japanese kids do and throw your shoe as hard as you can. If the shoe lands upright, it will be a nice day tomorrow; if it lands on its side, look for clouds; and if it lands upside down, it will rain.