Wednesday, February 15, 2023

"The Intern" (2015)

Feb. 16, 2023



就労前の二時間を自己の能力開発に充当するよう努めている。内訳は「仕事に資すること」だ。自己開発の時間を軽視して、いきなり業務を始めると、一見業務が先に進んだようで、実際には、インプットよりアウトプットが上回り、ビジネスパーソンとして消耗していることが多い。忙しい時こそ自己研鑽は身を助く。

今朝はAnne HathawayとRobert de Niro主演のThe Internを視聴した。1時間ほど見進まったところだがなかなか面白い。実は最初は乗り気でなかった。God Father Ⅱの若くて美しいDe Niroを知る自分としては、老いた往年の名俳優に出番を作ってあげる映画が痛々しさを感じさせるのではないかと恐れたからだ。心配は杞憂におわった。

映画は男ヤモメが定年後、若い女性の起業家が興した会社で創業者担当のインターンとして再就職する話だ。初めはDe Niro扮する初老のBenをバカにしていたAnne Hathaway扮する創業者のJulesだが、時を重ねる内に少しずつ自分に足りなかったことに気付いていくという物語だ。

経験と知恵と包容力によるさりげない内助の功を、恩着せがましい老害とみる視聴者には何から何までが鼻について堪えがたいに違いないが、老年街道を驀進中の身としては、再就職先でのDe Niroの一挙手一投足が、将来の自分自身のロールモデルともなりうるので、メモ用紙と鉛筆を握りしめて後半も視聴したいと思う。

現代アメリカの若者の在り方、考え方、言葉遣い、初老のビジネスパーソンとしての関与の仕方、これらを吸収するのが狙いだ。まる。

I try to allocate two hours before work to personal development. I make sure the effort will contribute to the betterment of my professional performance. If you neglect your self-development time, you can deplete yourself quickly. Output surpasses input. In no time, there is little left in you. Self-development helps you all the more when you are busy.

This morning I watched "The Intern" starring Anne Hathaway and Robert de Niro, which I've only been watching for about an hour. It's turned out to be quite interesting. I was actually reluctant to watch it at first, as I knew the beautiful young De Niro from Godfather II and feared that a film that gave an old actor a chance to play a role could be a bit painful. My fears proved unfounded.

The film is about a widower, who, after retirement, rejoins a company started by a young female entrepreneur. He is made an intern working closely with the founder of the company. At first, the founder, Jules, played by Anne Hathaway, doesn't expect much of the elderly Ben, played by De Niro, but as time goes by, she gradually realizes that something about him makes her more 'centered'. 

Some viewers may find Ben's helpful support based on experience, wisdom as patronizing and totally uncalled for, but for those of us who are on the road to old age, De Niro's every move at her new job can serve as a role model for our own future selves. So, I will grab a pen and paper to watch the second half. 

The aim is to absorb the way of being, thinking and speaking of young people in contemporary America, and also how an elderly re-hired can work with them.


Thursday, February 9, 2023

The National Pastime

Feb. 10, 2023


I read an interesting article entitled “The National Pastime.” According to the article, baseball is not America’s national pastime anymore. Two things caused its decline. One is professional football’s availability on TV in the mid-1960s. The second is its slow pace. Numbers support the argument.

The article got me wondering what’s Japan’s national pastime. My guess is soccer though I have no numbers to back it up. It is simply a speculation based on my observation. In my neighborhood I see many kids playing with soccer balls. But those playing baseball tend to be older and smaller in number. Suppose my observation reflects reality, one reason for soccer’s greater popularity may be attributed to the fact that you only need a ball to do it, and also that it’s fun to practice solo. Baseball requires many tools. You need someone to throw a ball to you when you want to practice hitting a ball. Soccer allows you to practice hours on end all kinds of exciting tricks without anyone to practice them with.