Saturday June 25th 2005
So far like many things in this country..government reforms...the long awaited economic recovery this years rainy season has been a non -event.
I recall my first taste of the rainy season back in 1999.Weeks of grey leaden skies.Monsoonal rainstorms.Puddles drowning poodles and small kids.This year apart from the obligatory showers that force every one to buy or steal umbrellas nothing...nada..zilch.
Its as if the climate control skipped.Switched straight to summer mode .High humidity.Searing sultry temperatures.30degree plus heat.
The rice paddies planted so incongruously between houses and any available space have already begun to dry out.Some areas further south have started to enforce water restrictions.
Checking Out Chekhov
Was given a collection of Anton Chekhovs short stories to read which i noted earlier.My only previous experience of his work was in Phillip Lopates book "Getting Personal" where he tells about trying to teach 10 and 12 year olds 'Uncle Vanya'.
As i stated earlier Chekhovs stories revolve around relationships,failings,longings, and perceptions-the differences between appearance and reality.Though set in 1890s Russia the themes are pretty universal.I found them a little depressing maybe because I read them all at the same time and wasnt reading much else..stories of unhappy people trapped in circumstances in which they have little control or are forced to do things for their family or the sake of their livelihood.
Anyway i thought i would cheer myself up with the latest offering from Ben Elton titled 'Past Mortem'.Probably his darkest effort yet.It begins lightly and entertainingly enough.Then you realize the murder/mystery /love/story is being used as a vehicle to address the issue of bullying and its results upon its victims and others.
Eltons earlier novels dealt with issues such as the environment(Stark) or drugs (High Society) in a light-hearted,satrical manner.Obvivously due to the subject matter Past Mortem is more serious and at times the writing is pretty graphic.While not in Chekhovs league Elton does share his gift of insight into human nature.As with his earlier books there were passages that provoked me to smile and grin in recognition.
It will be interesting to compare this thoughtful book with Nick Hornbys latest centered on suicide.Two advance reviews Ive read dont appear particularly promising but what do critics know..
Still plodding warily through some essays by George Orwell..damn dry some of them.More comment when i finally finish them.More out of a sense of duty than any enthusiasm.I think its his continual Marxist socialist arguments that appear to me outdated.
Bada Bing
Speaking of being outdated.I happened upon the first series of 'The Sopranos' the HBO tv series.Just released here on DVD.Well better late than never.Spent the last 2 Saturday mornings engrossed in the first couple of episodes.Intriguing.Certainly a different New York to that which the women in Sex and the City inhabit.
Random Thoughts
Make Mine a Minke
A fast food chain in Hokkaido began selling whale meat burgers this week.
By coincidence the International Whaling Commission began meeting this week too.The meat comes from so-called research whaling.Surely studying an endangered species by further depleting its surviving numbers is pointless.One company offical is quoted as saying "People in other countries may think eating whale is strange but it is our culture".
Using the "cultural card" in this case is as illogical and ridiculous as trying to justify research whaling.
Just because something is part of ones culture doesnt necessairly make it reasonable or justifiable in principle or even lawful.
Female circumscision is part of some cultures. Can one reasonably condone its continued practice.
Ive noticed some Japanese get very touchy about criticism be it whaling or visits to shrines that contain Class A war criminals.In fact discussion about controversial matters is limited.It seems criticism is taken personally,an affront to ones character and identity.
Rather than deal and discuss issues of friction a defensive mode is adopted.
Rather than seek a compromise a"but its our culture" pose is struck or in the case of educational textbooks a tit for tat position is adopted.
Its interesting watching this countries reaction to international criticism.
Saturday, June 25, 2005
Monday, June 06, 2005
The Kids Are Alright (well some of them)
Monday 6 June 2005
Had to teach a class of kinder kids (3-5 year olds) at another school last week.Absolute hell.You can have up to 8 rioting,attention deficit,high on food additive kids yelling at 120 decibels for 40 minutes.High frustration.Little in the way of educational value.More like baby-sitting at this age.Think Sartres 'No Exit'.Think Murder.Think Anarchy.Kids karate chopping each other while another rips open the plastic deodarizer container and commences to eat the contents...mmm.
There are 3 categories of kids classes.Kinders 3-5 years,Juniors 5-8 years probably my most least hated age group and the Seniors 8-12 more serious and less extroverted than the juniors.
Actually my favorite kid is a man to man student a 3 year old girl Mii.
Mii is pretty sullen and never cracks a smile.She has a listless,world weary air which for one so young is to be commended.Even encouraged.
She speaks more English than some of the adult students in my regular classes.Obvivously she has things worked out and has decided things cant get much better from now.
What lies ahead for Mii?...An educational system bent on rote learning,six day school weeks punctuated by exams and cramming, graduating to a short pointless career opening supermarket doors bowing and grinning in a banal manner then onto a loveless marriage 1.3 kids and then the obligatory rounds of shopping,coffee mornings with the girls and English conversational school lessons that seem to make up a typical Japanese womens days.
Random Thoughts
1.In 2004 for the first time in Japan there were over 1 million people aged 90 years or over.
2.For the fifth straight year the number of suicides has topped(pun intended) 30,000 people.One expert said if you took into account the number of unsuccessful attempts the number would be nearer 300,000..about the population of my hometown in New Zealand.
3.The rainy season is almost upon Japan again.A month long period of rain and high humidity..not my favorite time of the year.
4.Am currently reading and enjoying a short story collection by Chekhov.Full of doom,bitterness,failed relationships and lost oppurtunities.Must give it to Mii to read...
Had to teach a class of kinder kids (3-5 year olds) at another school last week.Absolute hell.You can have up to 8 rioting,attention deficit,high on food additive kids yelling at 120 decibels for 40 minutes.High frustration.Little in the way of educational value.More like baby-sitting at this age.Think Sartres 'No Exit'.Think Murder.Think Anarchy.Kids karate chopping each other while another rips open the plastic deodarizer container and commences to eat the contents...mmm.
There are 3 categories of kids classes.Kinders 3-5 years,Juniors 5-8 years probably my most least hated age group and the Seniors 8-12 more serious and less extroverted than the juniors.
Actually my favorite kid is a man to man student a 3 year old girl Mii.
Mii is pretty sullen and never cracks a smile.She has a listless,world weary air which for one so young is to be commended.Even encouraged.
She speaks more English than some of the adult students in my regular classes.Obvivously she has things worked out and has decided things cant get much better from now.
What lies ahead for Mii?...An educational system bent on rote learning,six day school weeks punctuated by exams and cramming, graduating to a short pointless career opening supermarket doors bowing and grinning in a banal manner then onto a loveless marriage 1.3 kids and then the obligatory rounds of shopping,coffee mornings with the girls and English conversational school lessons that seem to make up a typical Japanese womens days.
Random Thoughts
1.In 2004 for the first time in Japan there were over 1 million people aged 90 years or over.
2.For the fifth straight year the number of suicides has topped(pun intended) 30,000 people.One expert said if you took into account the number of unsuccessful attempts the number would be nearer 300,000..about the population of my hometown in New Zealand.
3.The rainy season is almost upon Japan again.A month long period of rain and high humidity..not my favorite time of the year.
4.Am currently reading and enjoying a short story collection by Chekhov.Full of doom,bitterness,failed relationships and lost oppurtunities.Must give it to Mii to read...
Monday, May 23, 2005
Theres Something About May
Sunday 22 May 2005
Nothing of note to report since I last wrote.May brings out the lethargic side of me.Its as though Mother Nature draws her breath after the excesses of cherry blossoms before hurtling headlong onto summer and the rainy season.This brief hiatus results in some fairly unpredictable moody weather.Low humidity days full of energy followed by petulant,sullen sweaty ones.
Did watch a reasonable video recently.'Pieces of April` with Katie Holmes ( late of Tom Cruise and Dawsons Creek fame)..Was well executed.What I liked was what John McTiernan(director of Die Hard movies) calls "the reveals".This movie doesnt treat you like a kid with great clunky music or huge neon flashing arrows to let you know whats going to happen.Rather you learn about Aprils dsyfunctional family through more subtle means..a photo, a gesture,a camera angle.Slight but enjoyable.
Things that make you go WOW
Ocassionally you see,hear,read,experience or more rarely meet someone or something that stays with you.You think about it at odd times or something else triggers its memory.
I encountered this when I was meandering through an exhibition on the human form at a local museum one recent Friday.
The exhibits included some early bits and pieces from Egypt and the usual crowd pullers ie a pretty Renoir and a minor Van Gogh.The Impressionist school is very popular over here in Japan seems there was some cross-influences going on..but thats for another future blog entry...
However the piece that struck me was towards the end of the display.
It was a life size plaster and resin relief by an American artist John Ahearn.Seems he`s developed a method of making moulds and casts of the local populace.Not just their head and shoulders either.In some cases whole body moulds.He then colorfully and realistically paints them.
The piece in question was oval in shape.It depicted 2 brothers.The elder had his arms encompassing the younger one.The elder brothers head rested on the youngers shoulder.Very simple but effective.While I stood there admiring the detail I noticed it also drew other people over to it.They were also attracted to it,maybe it was the shape or theme of a family circle...
Random Thoughts
The Tiger Cafe behind the NHK bulding in Sakae central Nagoya does a reasonably priced cambert and walnut wholemeal sandwich.And a better than average cup of coffee thanks to a shiny silver Italian machine the size of a small wheezing steam locomotive.
One can sit on the sidewalk in comfortable wicker chairs grazing and gazing at the natives laden down with their designer bags and labels or admire the cars parked kerbside.
Or pause and snigger derisively into ones cup as you notice the tall Ukranian girl from the floor above your apartment arm entwined with a Japanese gentleman old enough to be her father being frogmarched down the street..And i thought my job was bad..mmm...
Sunday 22 May 2005
Nothing of note to report since I last wrote.May brings out the lethargic side of me.Its as though Mother Nature draws her breath after the excesses of cherry blossoms before hurtling headlong onto summer and the rainy season.This brief hiatus results in some fairly unpredictable moody weather.Low humidity days full of energy followed by petulant,sullen sweaty ones.
Did watch a reasonable video recently.'Pieces of April` with Katie Holmes ( late of Tom Cruise and Dawsons Creek fame)..Was well executed.What I liked was what John McTiernan(director of Die Hard movies) calls "the reveals".This movie doesnt treat you like a kid with great clunky music or huge neon flashing arrows to let you know whats going to happen.Rather you learn about Aprils dsyfunctional family through more subtle means..a photo, a gesture,a camera angle.Slight but enjoyable.
Things that make you go WOW
Ocassionally you see,hear,read,experience or more rarely meet someone or something that stays with you.You think about it at odd times or something else triggers its memory.
I encountered this when I was meandering through an exhibition on the human form at a local museum one recent Friday.
The exhibits included some early bits and pieces from Egypt and the usual crowd pullers ie a pretty Renoir and a minor Van Gogh.The Impressionist school is very popular over here in Japan seems there was some cross-influences going on..but thats for another future blog entry...
However the piece that struck me was towards the end of the display.
It was a life size plaster and resin relief by an American artist John Ahearn.Seems he`s developed a method of making moulds and casts of the local populace.Not just their head and shoulders either.In some cases whole body moulds.He then colorfully and realistically paints them.
The piece in question was oval in shape.It depicted 2 brothers.The elder had his arms encompassing the younger one.The elder brothers head rested on the youngers shoulder.Very simple but effective.While I stood there admiring the detail I noticed it also drew other people over to it.They were also attracted to it,maybe it was the shape or theme of a family circle...
Random Thoughts
The Tiger Cafe behind the NHK bulding in Sakae central Nagoya does a reasonably priced cambert and walnut wholemeal sandwich.And a better than average cup of coffee thanks to a shiny silver Italian machine the size of a small wheezing steam locomotive.
One can sit on the sidewalk in comfortable wicker chairs grazing and gazing at the natives laden down with their designer bags and labels or admire the cars parked kerbside.
Or pause and snigger derisively into ones cup as you notice the tall Ukranian girl from the floor above your apartment arm entwined with a Japanese gentleman old enough to be her father being frogmarched down the street..And i thought my job was bad..mmm...
Saturday, April 30, 2005
Catcher on the Fly
Friday 29April 2005
Todays the start of Golden week the longest period of annual holidays for the local worker drones.Roads are choked,planes ,trains and other forms of public transport are booked to over-capacity as leeming-like the hordes stream back to their home towns and grandparents before literally turning around and heading straight back home again.
Traffic congestion and jams up to 40km in length arent uncommon.Because of the way the calendar falls this year the holiday period is slightly longer..peak congestion is predicted for May 3 or so. If todays weather is any indication it'll be a good time to travel.
Im collecting my thoughts under a shady tree in Shirotori Park,a local Japanese style garden.It has this lovely lush lawn..green almost unnaturally steroid green that goes down to one of the artifical ponds.The gardens come complete with its own traditional Japanese tea-house,ponds,Japanese bridges and waterfall.the ponds are stocked with ducks and koi or goldfish.Some of them are quite large.In various colors such as pink,orange and yellow.
Its fun feeding the koi though they make these disgusting,urgent sucking noises as they compete for the fish pellets you can purchase at the tearooms.
Today with the temperature around 28degrees, a light zephyr keeping the humidity down its very pleasant.Being a Friday the gardens are virtually deserted..the odd guilty salary man and his furtive looking secretary seeking a few snatched seconds of solace.
Enough babbling...I finished "Faithful" the Bosox book celebrating their 2004 World Series year. A good read though Ive found my thoughts and vocabulary littered with the odd baseball expression such as "double-play" and i wear my 2 pairs of work shoes on a weeks rotation.
Currently reading some short essays and articles by George Orwell who apart from being a novelist also wrote and commented on various issues of his day.Still also being entertained by the exploits of Don Quixote.Its ingenious and totally unbelievable how many coincidences and stories can be linked into one story .The 40 minute odd ride to work seems just long enough to polish off 2 to 3 chapters and marvel at the writing.Im still only about half way through too.
Coincidences
Speaking of coincidences while reading 'Faithful' I happended to glance up and see a Giants/Dragons game on TV.The Tokyo Giants are the Japanese equivalent of the New York Yankees having one of the biggest payrolls and are the most popular team in Japan.The Dragons are the local Nagoyan team who won the Central League last season.I dont follow the local baseball its so slow and with only 6 teams its very repetitive with 160 odd games each year.
Anyway...one of the Giant players was none other than Gabe Kapler who played for the Boston Red Sox last year so it was nice to place a face to a name id been reading about over the last 2 or so weeks.
Turn the Page
Another example of life intersecting my reading occurred after Id read a blog article about Jimmy Page of Led Zep fame.The article which described the chance sighting of Page in a London KFC was well-written and funny containing a humorous analysis of Pages order and eating habits.That same afternoon picking up the months edition of Uncut magazine who should adorn the cover but none other than Mr Page complete with a free cd of guitar classics chosen by him....kismet..serendipidity...go figure..
Train in Vain
Pretty horrific train accident occurred near Osaka this week.One of the worst post-war rail accidents.106 people killed over 400 odd injured when a 7 car train derailed and slammed into a nearby apartment building.Seems the 23 year old driver had overshot the previous train platform and was speeding to make up for the 90 seconds he was behind schedule...the crash investigation continues..
Random Thoughts
Ironic that my English language school should have wallpaper in the new kids room covered in French words ..zut alors et merde..whatever next? must have been a cheap job lot...
Todays the start of Golden week the longest period of annual holidays for the local worker drones.Roads are choked,planes ,trains and other forms of public transport are booked to over-capacity as leeming-like the hordes stream back to their home towns and grandparents before literally turning around and heading straight back home again.
Traffic congestion and jams up to 40km in length arent uncommon.Because of the way the calendar falls this year the holiday period is slightly longer..peak congestion is predicted for May 3 or so. If todays weather is any indication it'll be a good time to travel.
Im collecting my thoughts under a shady tree in Shirotori Park,a local Japanese style garden.It has this lovely lush lawn..green almost unnaturally steroid green that goes down to one of the artifical ponds.The gardens come complete with its own traditional Japanese tea-house,ponds,Japanese bridges and waterfall.the ponds are stocked with ducks and koi or goldfish.Some of them are quite large.In various colors such as pink,orange and yellow.
Its fun feeding the koi though they make these disgusting,urgent sucking noises as they compete for the fish pellets you can purchase at the tearooms.
Today with the temperature around 28degrees, a light zephyr keeping the humidity down its very pleasant.Being a Friday the gardens are virtually deserted..the odd guilty salary man and his furtive looking secretary seeking a few snatched seconds of solace.
Enough babbling...I finished "Faithful" the Bosox book celebrating their 2004 World Series year. A good read though Ive found my thoughts and vocabulary littered with the odd baseball expression such as "double-play" and i wear my 2 pairs of work shoes on a weeks rotation.
Currently reading some short essays and articles by George Orwell who apart from being a novelist also wrote and commented on various issues of his day.Still also being entertained by the exploits of Don Quixote.Its ingenious and totally unbelievable how many coincidences and stories can be linked into one story .The 40 minute odd ride to work seems just long enough to polish off 2 to 3 chapters and marvel at the writing.Im still only about half way through too.
Coincidences
Speaking of coincidences while reading 'Faithful' I happended to glance up and see a Giants/Dragons game on TV.The Tokyo Giants are the Japanese equivalent of the New York Yankees having one of the biggest payrolls and are the most popular team in Japan.The Dragons are the local Nagoyan team who won the Central League last season.I dont follow the local baseball its so slow and with only 6 teams its very repetitive with 160 odd games each year.
Anyway...one of the Giant players was none other than Gabe Kapler who played for the Boston Red Sox last year so it was nice to place a face to a name id been reading about over the last 2 or so weeks.
Turn the Page
Another example of life intersecting my reading occurred after Id read a blog article about Jimmy Page of Led Zep fame.The article which described the chance sighting of Page in a London KFC was well-written and funny containing a humorous analysis of Pages order and eating habits.That same afternoon picking up the months edition of Uncut magazine who should adorn the cover but none other than Mr Page complete with a free cd of guitar classics chosen by him....kismet..serendipidity...go figure..
Train in Vain
Pretty horrific train accident occurred near Osaka this week.One of the worst post-war rail accidents.106 people killed over 400 odd injured when a 7 car train derailed and slammed into a nearby apartment building.Seems the 23 year old driver had overshot the previous train platform and was speeding to make up for the 90 seconds he was behind schedule...the crash investigation continues..
Random Thoughts
Ironic that my English language school should have wallpaper in the new kids room covered in French words ..zut alors et merde..whatever next? must have been a cheap job lot...
Tuesday, April 19, 2005
Hold Me Closer Tony Danza
Friday 15 April 2005
Glorious Friday spring morning.22degrees.A light wind tickling the last of the cherry blossoms."Peachy" as some of my younger colleagues would utter.The blossom front is on the retreat up north to Sendai and Hokkaido.
Abandoned my apartment.It reverberates with drills,grinders,and heavy equipment.Ocassionally the sky darkens.Partial eclipse,no its just one of those elevator things complete with gawking peeping Tom workmen.I cheerily wave back at them.Nothing is going to destroy the good vibes engendered by todays weather.I'm currently sitting in a park under aforementioned fading flora.Brushing away the petals which stipple my pad as I chronicle the events of the last week.Shouldnt take too long.
I`m about halfway through 'Faithful' a book by 2 die-hard Boston Red Sox fans.Its a game by game account of their 2004 World Series season.One of the authors is Stephen "some people have accused me of having an overactive imagination" King and a fellow writer and friend.Both long term fans.Thus far its been highly readable and entertaining .I've put aside Don Quixote and a couple of other tasks as I reach the climax of the book.Yes I know that the Bosox finally erased the so-called Curse and not only beat their foes the Yankees but also won the World Series for the first time in 80 odd years in fairy tale like circumstances.
Think 'Fever Pitch'.Think rip off movie.Think Nick Hornby.Think Drew Barrymore.Think Farrelly Brothers.Think how unoriginal.
Im no baseball fan but im betting any one who has supported a bad luck team will find something in common with these two.The book records their thoughts through diary entries and emails about the team,baseball and related things such as pro sport,terrorism,society and steroids.Some of their superstitions are funny e.g hitting the mute button,turning round or wearing ones cap inside out,or even turning the tv off to provide more mojo.
An interesting feature is that all the Japanese players in the MLB who are mentioned even Matsui who plays for the "Evil Empire" get good wraps.I'll have more to write when i finish it.
Move It On Over
The other event was my place of employment moved .Yesterday.From its cockroach infested location to a more spacious spot across the hall.Decked out in fresh paint and Hello Kitty pink carpet.Its all very clean and smells of paint and carpet glue.We have an enlarged teachers room with its own sink.Luxury.There are however no windows.The existing ones have been covered with signage.The Voice Room where students can (but dont,wont,cant) freely converse and discuss the issues of the day in a friendly ,supportive environment (I jest not) is now a boring sterile space.There are also 2 new Kids rooms.My company seems to think of kids being a new revenue stream or cash cows .The powers that be seem to have forgotten that Japan has an ageing greying society with an almost negative birthrate and increasing marriage age and decreasing family size.Still Im no Thomas Malthus so who am I to question policy.
Speaking of policy.Our company made the paper again.Seems its been avoiding paying almost one billion yen in social and medical insurance to the government.Annually.The government report is due out May or early June or maybe will be swept under the carpet.It may result in multi-billion backpayments to the government.Im crying crocodile tears...
Apart from 'Faithful' i read an insignificant book called "Polite Fictions..Why Japanese and Americans seem rude to each Other".Written by 2 Japanese women who i presume have married Americans.Its a bit dated ..1982..and a little stereotypical.There are also the odd jarring JapEnglish errors e.g "more oftener".Putting these aside there are some interesting bits.
Seems Japanese regard conversation like a bowling lane.Each person takes a turn to bowl a topic.The topic may or may not have anything to do with what went before or even after.Theres a pause while the pins are reset and the next person bowls.Its slow, methodical.Very disconnected and deferential.Unlike"American" conversation which is portrayed as a tennis game if only 2 people participate or a volleyball game if there are more than 2.In the tennis example the server hits a topic which the receiver must return.Conversation is related and linked.If its a team conversation anyone can contribute.No turn taking no deferring.More spontaneous.
In practice its difficult no well nigh impossible to get a natural "American " conversation.Its learned habitual and difficult to change.Usually its one student dominanting .The other students sit silently.Mutely.Meekly.Silence is seen as being polite.Hell of a way to spend 40 minutes in a Voice class .No sense of continuity.No expansion.No initation....
Bugger its my day off and im ranting about work...off for a coffee and a read....
Glorious Friday spring morning.22degrees.A light wind tickling the last of the cherry blossoms."Peachy" as some of my younger colleagues would utter.The blossom front is on the retreat up north to Sendai and Hokkaido.
Abandoned my apartment.It reverberates with drills,grinders,and heavy equipment.Ocassionally the sky darkens.Partial eclipse,no its just one of those elevator things complete with gawking peeping Tom workmen.I cheerily wave back at them.Nothing is going to destroy the good vibes engendered by todays weather.I'm currently sitting in a park under aforementioned fading flora.Brushing away the petals which stipple my pad as I chronicle the events of the last week.Shouldnt take too long.
I`m about halfway through 'Faithful' a book by 2 die-hard Boston Red Sox fans.Its a game by game account of their 2004 World Series season.One of the authors is Stephen "some people have accused me of having an overactive imagination" King and a fellow writer and friend.Both long term fans.Thus far its been highly readable and entertaining .I've put aside Don Quixote and a couple of other tasks as I reach the climax of the book.Yes I know that the Bosox finally erased the so-called Curse and not only beat their foes the Yankees but also won the World Series for the first time in 80 odd years in fairy tale like circumstances.
Think 'Fever Pitch'.Think rip off movie.Think Nick Hornby.Think Drew Barrymore.Think Farrelly Brothers.Think how unoriginal.
Im no baseball fan but im betting any one who has supported a bad luck team will find something in common with these two.The book records their thoughts through diary entries and emails about the team,baseball and related things such as pro sport,terrorism,society and steroids.Some of their superstitions are funny e.g hitting the mute button,turning round or wearing ones cap inside out,or even turning the tv off to provide more mojo.
An interesting feature is that all the Japanese players in the MLB who are mentioned even Matsui who plays for the "Evil Empire" get good wraps.I'll have more to write when i finish it.
Move It On Over
The other event was my place of employment moved .Yesterday.From its cockroach infested location to a more spacious spot across the hall.Decked out in fresh paint and Hello Kitty pink carpet.Its all very clean and smells of paint and carpet glue.We have an enlarged teachers room with its own sink.Luxury.There are however no windows.The existing ones have been covered with signage.The Voice Room where students can (but dont,wont,cant) freely converse and discuss the issues of the day in a friendly ,supportive environment (I jest not) is now a boring sterile space.There are also 2 new Kids rooms.My company seems to think of kids being a new revenue stream or cash cows .The powers that be seem to have forgotten that Japan has an ageing greying society with an almost negative birthrate and increasing marriage age and decreasing family size.Still Im no Thomas Malthus so who am I to question policy.
Speaking of policy.Our company made the paper again.Seems its been avoiding paying almost one billion yen in social and medical insurance to the government.Annually.The government report is due out May or early June or maybe will be swept under the carpet.It may result in multi-billion backpayments to the government.Im crying crocodile tears...
Apart from 'Faithful' i read an insignificant book called "Polite Fictions..Why Japanese and Americans seem rude to each Other".Written by 2 Japanese women who i presume have married Americans.Its a bit dated ..1982..and a little stereotypical.There are also the odd jarring JapEnglish errors e.g "more oftener".Putting these aside there are some interesting bits.
Seems Japanese regard conversation like a bowling lane.Each person takes a turn to bowl a topic.The topic may or may not have anything to do with what went before or even after.Theres a pause while the pins are reset and the next person bowls.Its slow, methodical.Very disconnected and deferential.Unlike"American" conversation which is portrayed as a tennis game if only 2 people participate or a volleyball game if there are more than 2.In the tennis example the server hits a topic which the receiver must return.Conversation is related and linked.If its a team conversation anyone can contribute.No turn taking no deferring.More spontaneous.
In practice its difficult no well nigh impossible to get a natural "American " conversation.Its learned habitual and difficult to change.Usually its one student dominanting .The other students sit silently.Mutely.Meekly.Silence is seen as being polite.Hell of a way to spend 40 minutes in a Voice class .No sense of continuity.No expansion.No initation....
Bugger its my day off and im ranting about work...off for a coffee and a read....
Saturday, April 09, 2005
Trees Company...
Friday 8 April 2005
Well the cherry blossoms have finally made their all too brief annual appearance.They`re at their peak this weekend about 7 days after they first bloom.Prompted by increased temperatures and intense media attention they petulantly put out their pink petals.
The local park, adjacent to my train station where I make my daily pilgrimage to the chalk face will be packed these next few nights in homage to the florid flowering flora.
Crowded with drunken rosy-faced salarymen.Crowded with budding under-aged students with their portable karaoke boxes.Crowded with party people.
Crowded.Vomit.Beer.Petals.
At 7a.m these mornings the park is relatively serene,echoing with the sound of crumpling beer cans as the local homeless divide the spoils of the night before and crows scrap over leftover food or greedily swallow the drying deposits of vomit that dot the park.
Oblivious to all this activity one can spy the odd huddled body covered in spent petals lying on the blue tarp sheets that serve as picnic sheets under the trees.Another victim of gross intoxication .
By 8a.m the park is taken over by dogwalkers,commuters and students criss-crossing to work or college.
Random Thoughts
The Aichi 2005 Expo which opened in March has had a few hiccups.The ban prohibiting patrons bringing their own food into the parks has been lifted..ostensibly it was to prevent food poisoning but in reality it was to secure a captive market for the high prices the Expo`s food stalls were charging.Anyway that ban has sensibly been lifted.There remain problems.
One of my students handed me an English version of the Expo site map.It was riddled with Japanese -English errors.You would think with all the money and resources squandered on this project someone would have proof-read the map.Some examples.."the low-ride bus is thoughtful of handicapped people"..even if you disregard the non-pc use of "handicapped" how can an inanimate object like a bus think?...the phrase "wide-ranging tourist " is used.Is this an obese tourist?One can go on an "aerial stroll" when you ride the gondola...sounds kinda risky.
Oh there are more ...
...you should ask assistance from the guides"lightly"mmm like i was going to ask them "heavily"?In the event of an emergency happening you should follow the guides and not use "self-judgement to evacuate"And so the list goes on ..grab that dictionary and find any random word and put it in.Meanwhile "you should not make a dangerous action" nor" ravage" in the park.
Its embarassing and frustrating.Its supposed to be world-class and professional.The Japanese Government wants a permanent seat on the UN Security Council..well until they sort out the teaching of English and proof-reading and bring the standard up I dont think its appropriate even without taking any political or historical considerations into account.
I would more than happily have voluntereed my services to proof read any written material for the Expo.In fact I helped a number of students who were working as volunteers to check their English before they worked.
Im not the only one critical of signage and mispellings..a local monthly magazine included a photo of a sign at the Expo which stated "No Smorking"...sigh
Paint
The start of spring apart from signalling the coming cherry blossoms also heralds the start of the annual painting season.Buildings all over the city get a face lift and new paint job before the onset of the rainy season.This year is no exception and my 14 floor apartment building is also undergoing this lenghty process.
There are ropes and pulleys and gantries and scaffolding and cones and flashing lights festooning the sides of the building.It looks like a space shuttle launch site.It means hammering and drilling.
Banging.Dust and noise.For three months.From 8 a.m to 5p.m.7 days a week.Unless it rains.
It means no sleep-ins.It means nosy workmen.It means strange people on my balcony.
Change
Spring also means change.The end of the last financial year March 31 and the start of the new one on 1 April. New jobs, the start of the new school year..the closing of poorly performing businesses and the opening of new ones.
My school will shortly move across the hall and occupy an old opticians offices.We finally get to have our own kids room..this means we can hold our own classes of up to 8 kids..Im over-joyed.
Speaking of failing businesses the KFC outlet which occupied part of the ground floor of my apartment building suddenly closed March 31.
April 1 bye bye Colonel.The life sized replica of the Southern gentleman was loaded unceremoniously loaded onto a truck.I fondly saluted his departure while workmen continued to gut the premises of its equipment.At the time of blogging the retail space remains vacant.
Well the cherry blossoms have finally made their all too brief annual appearance.They`re at their peak this weekend about 7 days after they first bloom.Prompted by increased temperatures and intense media attention they petulantly put out their pink petals.
The local park, adjacent to my train station where I make my daily pilgrimage to the chalk face will be packed these next few nights in homage to the florid flowering flora.
Crowded with drunken rosy-faced salarymen.Crowded with budding under-aged students with their portable karaoke boxes.Crowded with party people.
Crowded.Vomit.Beer.Petals.
At 7a.m these mornings the park is relatively serene,echoing with the sound of crumpling beer cans as the local homeless divide the spoils of the night before and crows scrap over leftover food or greedily swallow the drying deposits of vomit that dot the park.
Oblivious to all this activity one can spy the odd huddled body covered in spent petals lying on the blue tarp sheets that serve as picnic sheets under the trees.Another victim of gross intoxication .
By 8a.m the park is taken over by dogwalkers,commuters and students criss-crossing to work or college.
Random Thoughts
The Aichi 2005 Expo which opened in March has had a few hiccups.The ban prohibiting patrons bringing their own food into the parks has been lifted..ostensibly it was to prevent food poisoning but in reality it was to secure a captive market for the high prices the Expo`s food stalls were charging.Anyway that ban has sensibly been lifted.There remain problems.
One of my students handed me an English version of the Expo site map.It was riddled with Japanese -English errors.You would think with all the money and resources squandered on this project someone would have proof-read the map.Some examples.."the low-ride bus is thoughtful of handicapped people"..even if you disregard the non-pc use of "handicapped" how can an inanimate object like a bus think?...the phrase "wide-ranging tourist " is used.Is this an obese tourist?One can go on an "aerial stroll" when you ride the gondola...sounds kinda risky.
Oh there are more ...
...you should ask assistance from the guides"lightly"mmm like i was going to ask them "heavily"?In the event of an emergency happening you should follow the guides and not use "self-judgement to evacuate"And so the list goes on ..grab that dictionary and find any random word and put it in.Meanwhile "you should not make a dangerous action" nor" ravage" in the park.
Its embarassing and frustrating.Its supposed to be world-class and professional.The Japanese Government wants a permanent seat on the UN Security Council..well until they sort out the teaching of English and proof-reading and bring the standard up I dont think its appropriate even without taking any political or historical considerations into account.
I would more than happily have voluntereed my services to proof read any written material for the Expo.In fact I helped a number of students who were working as volunteers to check their English before they worked.
Im not the only one critical of signage and mispellings..a local monthly magazine included a photo of a sign at the Expo which stated "No Smorking"...sigh
Paint
The start of spring apart from signalling the coming cherry blossoms also heralds the start of the annual painting season.Buildings all over the city get a face lift and new paint job before the onset of the rainy season.This year is no exception and my 14 floor apartment building is also undergoing this lenghty process.
There are ropes and pulleys and gantries and scaffolding and cones and flashing lights festooning the sides of the building.It looks like a space shuttle launch site.It means hammering and drilling.
Banging.Dust and noise.For three months.From 8 a.m to 5p.m.7 days a week.Unless it rains.
It means no sleep-ins.It means nosy workmen.It means strange people on my balcony.
Change
Spring also means change.The end of the last financial year March 31 and the start of the new one on 1 April. New jobs, the start of the new school year..the closing of poorly performing businesses and the opening of new ones.
My school will shortly move across the hall and occupy an old opticians offices.We finally get to have our own kids room..this means we can hold our own classes of up to 8 kids..Im over-joyed.
Speaking of failing businesses the KFC outlet which occupied part of the ground floor of my apartment building suddenly closed March 31.
April 1 bye bye Colonel.The life sized replica of the Southern gentleman was loaded unceremoniously loaded onto a truck.I fondly saluted his departure while workmen continued to gut the premises of its equipment.At the time of blogging the retail space remains vacant.
Monday, March 28, 2005
Space...`No-one gets a life rehearsal as specks of dust we`re universal'...Indigo Girls
Monday 28 March 2005
Space in its various guises has figured one way or another in my last couple of weeks.Bear with me.
The first incident occured one Saturday morning .Cleaning my apartment.I came upon a dusty Indigo Girls cd.Fallen behind a bookshelf.Forgotten.One of the tracks was 'Galileo' their tribute to the great thinker and philospher.I'd just finished (finally)Stephen Jay Goulds book which featured Galileo.It was as much a chore to finish the book as it was cleaning my apartment but I felt duty-bound to do both.
The second tenuous link with "space" turned up in Philip Wrights book simply titled "Tank".Very interesting even riveting reading at times.Wright examines its history from WW1 to the first Gulf War.He looks at the tank not only from a military view but also its role as a social and political icon.The book opens with a chapter about the famous Tianamen Square photo and ends some 440 pages later suggesting the SUV is the suburban desendant of the tank.In between Wright traces the development and use of the tank,its leading thinkers such as Fuller and Liddell Hart, current thinking and leading practitioneers such as the Germans notably Rommel and the Israelis who used tank tactics so decisively against their Arab neighbors particulary in the Six Day War.One thinker described the tank as " a mobile protected space with a direct fire weapon."
The third albeit more disturbing incident occurred in of all places a Starbucks cafe.Late last Wednesday morning.I was happily sipping my insipid lukewarm overpriced beverage, complete with eco-friendly toxic plastic container trying to feign interest in my colleagues monologue about the latest work injustice.Sitting near us to our right was your typical salaryman.He was of the small furtive variety with matching receeding hair and battered brief case.Nothing unremarkable.He sat staring at us the entire lenghth of our visit till his antics forced us to leave.
Anyway at one point he fished out from his briefcase a portable razor.He then proceeded to shave or rather hold the loudly buzzing razor on his bottom lip.And left it there.Oblivious to the glares I gave him.The razors noise made polite conversation well-nigh impossible.No one else seemed perturbed.
Maybe attending to ones bodily needs and functions in a public place in Japan is tolerated.Its not uncommon to see men urinating in streets or women applying makeup and using eye lash curlers on trains.
Surely theres some line between public and private space where certain things cant be done?
Is it ok to breastfeed in public, change an infants diapers in Mcdonalds or publicly pick at various orifices and examine the results left on your fingertips..yeech..maybe Starbucks needs to have a non-shaving zone as well as a non-smoking zone...
Of more serious import are the curent 'space' disputes Japan has with three of its neighbors..Russia,South Korea and China over various contested islands.Such disputes can only harm relations particularly with South Korea which since the joint staging of the World Cup seemed to be improving...meanwhile President Putin has put off visting Japan in part due to the ongong territorial disputes...
Random Thoughts
Still waiting for the first sign of cherry blossoms,the weather has been cold and it snowed last Monday seems the blossoms are late arriving this year..
Space in its various guises has figured one way or another in my last couple of weeks.Bear with me.
The first incident occured one Saturday morning .Cleaning my apartment.I came upon a dusty Indigo Girls cd.Fallen behind a bookshelf.Forgotten.One of the tracks was 'Galileo' their tribute to the great thinker and philospher.I'd just finished (finally)Stephen Jay Goulds book which featured Galileo.It was as much a chore to finish the book as it was cleaning my apartment but I felt duty-bound to do both.
The second tenuous link with "space" turned up in Philip Wrights book simply titled "Tank".Very interesting even riveting reading at times.Wright examines its history from WW1 to the first Gulf War.He looks at the tank not only from a military view but also its role as a social and political icon.The book opens with a chapter about the famous Tianamen Square photo and ends some 440 pages later suggesting the SUV is the suburban desendant of the tank.In between Wright traces the development and use of the tank,its leading thinkers such as Fuller and Liddell Hart, current thinking and leading practitioneers such as the Germans notably Rommel and the Israelis who used tank tactics so decisively against their Arab neighbors particulary in the Six Day War.One thinker described the tank as " a mobile protected space with a direct fire weapon."
The third albeit more disturbing incident occurred in of all places a Starbucks cafe.Late last Wednesday morning.I was happily sipping my insipid lukewarm overpriced beverage, complete with eco-friendly toxic plastic container trying to feign interest in my colleagues monologue about the latest work injustice.Sitting near us to our right was your typical salaryman.He was of the small furtive variety with matching receeding hair and battered brief case.Nothing unremarkable.He sat staring at us the entire lenghth of our visit till his antics forced us to leave.
Anyway at one point he fished out from his briefcase a portable razor.He then proceeded to shave or rather hold the loudly buzzing razor on his bottom lip.And left it there.Oblivious to the glares I gave him.The razors noise made polite conversation well-nigh impossible.No one else seemed perturbed.
Maybe attending to ones bodily needs and functions in a public place in Japan is tolerated.Its not uncommon to see men urinating in streets or women applying makeup and using eye lash curlers on trains.
Surely theres some line between public and private space where certain things cant be done?
Is it ok to breastfeed in public, change an infants diapers in Mcdonalds or publicly pick at various orifices and examine the results left on your fingertips..yeech..maybe Starbucks needs to have a non-shaving zone as well as a non-smoking zone...
Of more serious import are the curent 'space' disputes Japan has with three of its neighbors..Russia,South Korea and China over various contested islands.Such disputes can only harm relations particularly with South Korea which since the joint staging of the World Cup seemed to be improving...meanwhile President Putin has put off visting Japan in part due to the ongong territorial disputes...
Random Thoughts
Still waiting for the first sign of cherry blossoms,the weather has been cold and it snowed last Monday seems the blossoms are late arriving this year..
Saturday, March 12, 2005
Should I go or Should I stay now?
Friday 11March 2004
Indecisions bugging me.So...like I work for this English conversation school company.Big.Impersonal.High turnover.Low brow.For the last 6 years.On a yearly contract renewable at the company`s pleasure.Sometimes a small bonus to sweeten the new contract.Usually not.C`est la vie.Most instructors dont renew their first contracts.Not a career option more an extension of college or university playing at being professional.A living but not a life.Safe,sedate,boring,banal.
Last week I received a company letter.In a nutshell i`ve to begin paying into a universal Japanses pension fund.My company neglected to tell me this some 6 years ago.The company`s only targeting those with 5 or more years servitude with it.Its not a trival financial deduction either..about the same as one months rent..each month.
If I agree to pay Id be bringing home less than someone who`s been here only 2 years.Yes I know you can eventually claim and get a refund when you leave the country but thats not the point.I have a pension fund already.I have no more security of tenure than a person who`s on their first contract.If I leave within six months of starting a new contract theres no benefit to either party.
My company says its a universal system yet is only forcing those with longer service to join...will it make up the 5 years that Ive not paid into the fund..If its universal all employees should be made to join not just the more experienced ones...maybe im naive..maybe its a sign to change jobs ,companies even countries.
The thought of moving 5 years worth of accumulated junk, books, cds etc is giving me ulcers.I'll have to see what the repercussions are...maybe an NHL type lockout..
Random Thoughts
Spring,Sprang,Sprung
The local meterological service predicted cherry blossoms will be doing their brief thing again around March 31 this year..Already the daphne bushes at the base of my apartment building have suddenly exploded into bloom.Even up on the 5th floor you can get the ocassional cloud of seasonal sickly sweet lemony scent drifting into the apartment mingling with the everpresent year round acrid diesel,carbon monoxide fumes and greasy KFC chicken stench from the outlet below.
Movie Trailers...
Dvds as Ive noted before usually have a host of extra features including here in Japan both the original English and Japanese trailers.Ive noticed that the Japanese trailers usually do a pretty fine job of revealing the whole story and giving away the plot.For example the trailer to 'Field of Dreams' shows Kevin Costners character playing baseball with his dad...the director/producer Ron Shelton on the dvd was surprised both the trailer and theatre posters revealed the whole point of the movie..no alarm.. no surprises
The same thing occurs with the trailer of 'The House of Sand and Fog'..you dont need to see the movie..any sense of antcipation or doom or dread is destroyed by the trailer..i didnt need to understand all the Japanese spoken to understand what the story-line and outcome would be...sigh
Incidentally I enjoyed `The House of Sand and Fog` some nice flawed believable characters who thought they were in the right.
Also enjoyed `Code 46` with Tim Robbins and Samantha Morton a kinda futuristic cloning plot by Michael Winterbottom..one of the cities used to show the near future was Shanghai with both its modern centre and various skyscrapers overshadowing the older residential areas..the night shots reminded me of BladeRunner..plus the langauge they spoke was a jumble of English mixed with Chinese,French,Spanish which could well be the way people will speak..no dominant unified language just a hotchpotch of well-known phrases lifted from other languages and cultures.
Of note also was the appearance of former Clash member Mick Jones doing a version of their classic song which provided the title for this weeks blog...great stuff plus you get the full version on the DVD as an extra..could possibly be one of my top 5 songs .....
Indecisions bugging me.So...like I work for this English conversation school company.Big.Impersonal.High turnover.Low brow.For the last 6 years.On a yearly contract renewable at the company`s pleasure.Sometimes a small bonus to sweeten the new contract.Usually not.C`est la vie.Most instructors dont renew their first contracts.Not a career option more an extension of college or university playing at being professional.A living but not a life.Safe,sedate,boring,banal.
Last week I received a company letter.In a nutshell i`ve to begin paying into a universal Japanses pension fund.My company neglected to tell me this some 6 years ago.The company`s only targeting those with 5 or more years servitude with it.Its not a trival financial deduction either..about the same as one months rent..each month.
If I agree to pay Id be bringing home less than someone who`s been here only 2 years.Yes I know you can eventually claim and get a refund when you leave the country but thats not the point.I have a pension fund already.I have no more security of tenure than a person who`s on their first contract.If I leave within six months of starting a new contract theres no benefit to either party.
My company says its a universal system yet is only forcing those with longer service to join...will it make up the 5 years that Ive not paid into the fund..If its universal all employees should be made to join not just the more experienced ones...maybe im naive..maybe its a sign to change jobs ,companies even countries.
The thought of moving 5 years worth of accumulated junk, books, cds etc is giving me ulcers.I'll have to see what the repercussions are...maybe an NHL type lockout..
Random Thoughts
Spring,Sprang,Sprung
The local meterological service predicted cherry blossoms will be doing their brief thing again around March 31 this year..Already the daphne bushes at the base of my apartment building have suddenly exploded into bloom.Even up on the 5th floor you can get the ocassional cloud of seasonal sickly sweet lemony scent drifting into the apartment mingling with the everpresent year round acrid diesel,carbon monoxide fumes and greasy KFC chicken stench from the outlet below.
Movie Trailers...
Dvds as Ive noted before usually have a host of extra features including here in Japan both the original English and Japanese trailers.Ive noticed that the Japanese trailers usually do a pretty fine job of revealing the whole story and giving away the plot.For example the trailer to 'Field of Dreams' shows Kevin Costners character playing baseball with his dad...the director/producer Ron Shelton on the dvd was surprised both the trailer and theatre posters revealed the whole point of the movie..no alarm.. no surprises
The same thing occurs with the trailer of 'The House of Sand and Fog'..you dont need to see the movie..any sense of antcipation or doom or dread is destroyed by the trailer..i didnt need to understand all the Japanese spoken to understand what the story-line and outcome would be...sigh
Incidentally I enjoyed `The House of Sand and Fog` some nice flawed believable characters who thought they were in the right.
Also enjoyed `Code 46` with Tim Robbins and Samantha Morton a kinda futuristic cloning plot by Michael Winterbottom..one of the cities used to show the near future was Shanghai with both its modern centre and various skyscrapers overshadowing the older residential areas..the night shots reminded me of BladeRunner..plus the langauge they spoke was a jumble of English mixed with Chinese,French,Spanish which could well be the way people will speak..no dominant unified language just a hotchpotch of well-known phrases lifted from other languages and cultures.
Of note also was the appearance of former Clash member Mick Jones doing a version of their classic song which provided the title for this weeks blog...great stuff plus you get the full version on the DVD as an extra..could possibly be one of my top 5 songs .....
Saturday, March 05, 2005
Where have all the homeless gone?
Nagoya City is holding the 2005 Expo which starts later this month.The theme`s caring for the environment.Ironic.Site development involved the clearing of forest providing refuge for an endangered species of Japanese bird.Sigh.
Theres been a furious amount of construction prior to the opening.A new airport has been built.I can think of at least 2 more unnecessary shopping complexes (one complete with ferris wheel) which have been built in anticipation of the increased tourist demand to shop.There`s also been the erection of overhead signs dividing footpaths into pedestrian and cyclist zones.Perversely this seems to have increased the number of collisions Ive observed as both parties stray onto the others territory.Once again the main culprits appear to be old ladies on foot or pedal-powered who consider themselves above such mundane things as road rules.
Anyway more disturbing has been the recent disapperance of homeless people and their blue tarpaulin covered structures from highly visible public places such as parks,under overhead bridges and Central Park in Sakae in the middle of Nagoya.Police and local government officals have been steadily removing these tent-like villages.Today around the TV tower in Sakae council workers were raking soil and grass seed over an area formerly occupied by a row of tents.
I dont know where the occupants have been relocated but i can hazard a guess as to why.It wouldnt do to let foreign tourists see how one of the worlds richest economies deals with its underpriviledged and poor.Better to hide them away than deal with the problem via any welfare or benefit policy to help them.
One of the recently dispossessed has set up digs in my apartment stairway.His collection of plastic bags and neatly rolled up futon in a corner while he spends his day looking for bottles and cans to recycle.
Hunter Thompson and Arthur Miller
Both men made their own unique contribution to literature.Ive read stuff by both.Judging by obituaries alone you`d think Thompson will be the more missed and more valued.Yet how can you compare 'gonzo journalism" with Willy Loman...its like comparing ColdPlay to Zevon
Random Thoughts
I watched "The Fog of War" a dvd length interview with Robert S McNamara former Secreatary of Defence during the Kennedy era as well as Korea and Vietnam.Although completed prior to 9/11 and the Afghan and Iraq wars the parallells were obvivous.Unclear objectives,increased military involvement,no clear exit strategy..sounds all too painfully familiar.Add to this the younger McNamaras striking physical similarity to Rumsfeld and you have an absorbing informative 90 odd minutes.
I never realised that on 10March 1945 over 100,000 Japanese in Tokyo were incinerated or that 50 square miles of Tokyo(the equivalent of New York City) were razed to the ground by a massive B29 raid equipped with incendiary devices..shades of the firebombing of Dresden..
Nor did I know that 40% of Nagoya was also destroyed.One of McNamara`s life lessons or tenets is that "in order to do good you may have to engage in evil."A thought provoking movie with an obvivously intelligent still sharp 85year old man justifying and making peace with himself and his decisions.Im sure after his death more interesting things will come to light about Vietnam and other conflicts.
Books
Recently read Douglas Couplands "Hey Nostradamus".The first novel of his Ive read.There were some intersting characters and ideas such as immortality,God, and relationships floating about in this "Columbine school masacre-like " story.I`ll probably read another of his sooner rather than later.
Also read James Gleicks "Isaac Newton" an easy 191 page read.I cant say I really grasp completely Newtons principles but the book left me wondering what this eccentric gifted man could achieve today given computers,scientific instruments and financial backing.You tend to forget that something as simple as paper and printing we take for granted had to be invented so that things could be recorded and passed down for others to build on.As Gleick points out the Renaissance wasnt just about rediscovering the old laws and theories propounded by people such as Aristotle it was more about moving on from them and either proving them correct or finding alternatives to the earlier ones.Gleick put it far more concisely.sigh.
Theres been a furious amount of construction prior to the opening.A new airport has been built.I can think of at least 2 more unnecessary shopping complexes (one complete with ferris wheel) which have been built in anticipation of the increased tourist demand to shop.There`s also been the erection of overhead signs dividing footpaths into pedestrian and cyclist zones.Perversely this seems to have increased the number of collisions Ive observed as both parties stray onto the others territory.Once again the main culprits appear to be old ladies on foot or pedal-powered who consider themselves above such mundane things as road rules.
Anyway more disturbing has been the recent disapperance of homeless people and their blue tarpaulin covered structures from highly visible public places such as parks,under overhead bridges and Central Park in Sakae in the middle of Nagoya.Police and local government officals have been steadily removing these tent-like villages.Today around the TV tower in Sakae council workers were raking soil and grass seed over an area formerly occupied by a row of tents.
I dont know where the occupants have been relocated but i can hazard a guess as to why.It wouldnt do to let foreign tourists see how one of the worlds richest economies deals with its underpriviledged and poor.Better to hide them away than deal with the problem via any welfare or benefit policy to help them.
One of the recently dispossessed has set up digs in my apartment stairway.His collection of plastic bags and neatly rolled up futon in a corner while he spends his day looking for bottles and cans to recycle.
Hunter Thompson and Arthur Miller
Both men made their own unique contribution to literature.Ive read stuff by both.Judging by obituaries alone you`d think Thompson will be the more missed and more valued.Yet how can you compare 'gonzo journalism" with Willy Loman...its like comparing ColdPlay to Zevon
Random Thoughts
I watched "The Fog of War" a dvd length interview with Robert S McNamara former Secreatary of Defence during the Kennedy era as well as Korea and Vietnam.Although completed prior to 9/11 and the Afghan and Iraq wars the parallells were obvivous.Unclear objectives,increased military involvement,no clear exit strategy..sounds all too painfully familiar.Add to this the younger McNamaras striking physical similarity to Rumsfeld and you have an absorbing informative 90 odd minutes.
I never realised that on 10March 1945 over 100,000 Japanese in Tokyo were incinerated or that 50 square miles of Tokyo(the equivalent of New York City) were razed to the ground by a massive B29 raid equipped with incendiary devices..shades of the firebombing of Dresden..
Nor did I know that 40% of Nagoya was also destroyed.One of McNamara`s life lessons or tenets is that "in order to do good you may have to engage in evil."A thought provoking movie with an obvivously intelligent still sharp 85year old man justifying and making peace with himself and his decisions.Im sure after his death more interesting things will come to light about Vietnam and other conflicts.
Books
Recently read Douglas Couplands "Hey Nostradamus".The first novel of his Ive read.There were some intersting characters and ideas such as immortality,God, and relationships floating about in this "Columbine school masacre-like " story.I`ll probably read another of his sooner rather than later.
Also read James Gleicks "Isaac Newton" an easy 191 page read.I cant say I really grasp completely Newtons principles but the book left me wondering what this eccentric gifted man could achieve today given computers,scientific instruments and financial backing.You tend to forget that something as simple as paper and printing we take for granted had to be invented so that things could be recorded and passed down for others to build on.As Gleick points out the Renaissance wasnt just about rediscovering the old laws and theories propounded by people such as Aristotle it was more about moving on from them and either proving them correct or finding alternatives to the earlier ones.Gleick put it far more concisely.sigh.
Saturday, February 19, 2005
Muses on Music
Saturday 18 February 2005.Muses On Music
Been preoccupied.A little.Trying to compile a music survey.To choose 5 singles.Intolerably difficult.Somewhat problematic.Totally pointless and of no real consequence.Perhaps.But it did get me thinking and encouraged me to re-read Nick Hornby's "31 Songs".
He describes his relationship with music thus"Sometimes very occassionally songs,books,films and pictures express who you are perfectly.And they dont do this in words or or images necessairly; the connection is a lot less direct and more complicated than that."
Indeed.Ive been wondering what factors determine whether one song makes the top 5 while another tune gets discarded.Is it the associations and the fact that it retains memories beyond its 3 minute length?Do you take into account its durability though as Hornby says"a 3 minute song can only withhold its mysteries for so long".Do you factor in the number of times you play it on a weekly or monthly basis?or count or discount the fact you play it to cheer yourself up or motivate or inspire or even use it like an emotional blanket and wallow in some musically assisted depression?
Then again should I care my final choices will be met with ridicule or derivise snorts.Obviviously not.One mans Dylan is another mans Prince.How can you defend or put into words something so deeply personal.Needless to say its taking longer than I imagined to whittle it down to 5 singles.
Literature vs Pulp Fiction
Some books like some music remains with you.You return to them.Weeks or months later.You marvel at a certain phrase or word choice.You wonder how the author came up with that combination.Ponder,even read it aloud, examining it like some precious stone or painting.You even shamelessly drop it into conversations whether its appropriate or not!
Other books less well crafted and roughly hewn are consequently less memorble and require less effort to read.You consume them as you would fast food and they produce the same short term satisfaction.Again theres a parallel with pop music which the eminently quotable Mr Hornby states"nearly all of it trashy,repetitive,slickly produced,inane,and juvenile."
Like most things in life a healthy balance of pulp and well-crafted literature is essential.
The odd fix of Clancy,Grisham and their ilk lets one appreciate more weighty authors.I cant deny I derive enjoyment and relaxation from so-called airport bookstore writing.A constant diet of Dickens or Woolf would blunt and dull my appreciation of their skills and my enthusiasm to devote the required concentration would similarly decline.
Random Thoughts
While Im all in favor of the convenience and ease of downloading music via the internet I dont think the thrill of finding some lost treasure buried deep in the bowels of some decreipt shop can be dismissed easily.Browsing in a cd store last weekend I came across the latest offering from ex Talking Heads frontman David Bryne.I wasnt looking for it specifically.In fact I doubt if Id have found it on the internet.
Not only does downloading lack any real social interaction but Id rather have something physical I can hold and take home to play rather than some digital zeros and noughts stored on my hard drive.Still try and tell that todays generation.. I sound like a dinosaur!
I realised the other day I havent really written anything in detail about my current employment so this lapse shall be the subject of several bytes in the near future....
Been preoccupied.A little.Trying to compile a music survey.To choose 5 singles.Intolerably difficult.Somewhat problematic.Totally pointless and of no real consequence.Perhaps.But it did get me thinking and encouraged me to re-read Nick Hornby's "31 Songs".
He describes his relationship with music thus"Sometimes very occassionally songs,books,films and pictures express who you are perfectly.And they dont do this in words or or images necessairly; the connection is a lot less direct and more complicated than that."
Indeed.Ive been wondering what factors determine whether one song makes the top 5 while another tune gets discarded.Is it the associations and the fact that it retains memories beyond its 3 minute length?Do you take into account its durability though as Hornby says"a 3 minute song can only withhold its mysteries for so long".Do you factor in the number of times you play it on a weekly or monthly basis?or count or discount the fact you play it to cheer yourself up or motivate or inspire or even use it like an emotional blanket and wallow in some musically assisted depression?
Then again should I care my final choices will be met with ridicule or derivise snorts.Obviviously not.One mans Dylan is another mans Prince.How can you defend or put into words something so deeply personal.Needless to say its taking longer than I imagined to whittle it down to 5 singles.
Literature vs Pulp Fiction
Some books like some music remains with you.You return to them.Weeks or months later.You marvel at a certain phrase or word choice.You wonder how the author came up with that combination.Ponder,even read it aloud, examining it like some precious stone or painting.You even shamelessly drop it into conversations whether its appropriate or not!
Other books less well crafted and roughly hewn are consequently less memorble and require less effort to read.You consume them as you would fast food and they produce the same short term satisfaction.Again theres a parallel with pop music which the eminently quotable Mr Hornby states"nearly all of it trashy,repetitive,slickly produced,inane,and juvenile."
Like most things in life a healthy balance of pulp and well-crafted literature is essential.
The odd fix of Clancy,Grisham and their ilk lets one appreciate more weighty authors.I cant deny I derive enjoyment and relaxation from so-called airport bookstore writing.A constant diet of Dickens or Woolf would blunt and dull my appreciation of their skills and my enthusiasm to devote the required concentration would similarly decline.
Random Thoughts
While Im all in favor of the convenience and ease of downloading music via the internet I dont think the thrill of finding some lost treasure buried deep in the bowels of some decreipt shop can be dismissed easily.Browsing in a cd store last weekend I came across the latest offering from ex Talking Heads frontman David Bryne.I wasnt looking for it specifically.In fact I doubt if Id have found it on the internet.
Not only does downloading lack any real social interaction but Id rather have something physical I can hold and take home to play rather than some digital zeros and noughts stored on my hard drive.Still try and tell that todays generation.. I sound like a dinosaur!
I realised the other day I havent really written anything in detail about my current employment so this lapse shall be the subject of several bytes in the near future....
Monday, February 07, 2005
`Willows Are Never Broken By The Snow` (Ancient Japanese Proverb Nobody Knows)
7 February 2005 Monday
February 3... Setsubun.Supposed to be the start of Spring in the traditional Japanese calendar.Of course it coincides with the coldest week of the year weatherwise.We had snow Wednesday.About 5cm.Just enough to be irritating.Trains were delayed.The balcony was covered in a thin layer of powder snow.My cacti sulked.
Random Thoughts.
Went out for dinner this week.Out by subway for 20minutes into the depths of Nagoya.One of the outer most suburbs.Complete with its own Gap, English schools, supermarkets and coffee shops.
Which got me to thinking..Where does one take girls who work at Starbucks for coffee?
Me: You wanna go for a coffee.?
Her:Duh thats original havent you noticed Im working as a slave for 800yen an hour serving overpriced mediocre lukewarm bean dust in paper cups ?
(sigh... probably wasnt going to work anyway)
During the week I watched the classic western "The Big Country".Gregory Peck`s character was nicknamed "The Dude" on account of his fancy clothes by one of the uncouth tobacco chomping cowboys.I wonder if the character in the Coen Brothers movie `The Big Lebowski` is a nod to that movie..a kind of homage of sorts.
Ive been parking my bicycle besides this old battered blue womens bicycle for the last 3 weeks or so.Its been carefully locked and has another chain and lock tethering it to the metal gate.It doesnt appear to have moved since I first noticed it.
How did it get there?
Why is it still there?
What happened to its rider? Was it stolen?Is it abandoned?
To be left.Collected by some zealous city worker .To end its days rusting.In North Korea.Where it will no doubt be sent to spend its final days.
February 3... Setsubun.Supposed to be the start of Spring in the traditional Japanese calendar.Of course it coincides with the coldest week of the year weatherwise.We had snow Wednesday.About 5cm.Just enough to be irritating.Trains were delayed.The balcony was covered in a thin layer of powder snow.My cacti sulked.
Random Thoughts.
Went out for dinner this week.Out by subway for 20minutes into the depths of Nagoya.One of the outer most suburbs.Complete with its own Gap, English schools, supermarkets and coffee shops.
Which got me to thinking..Where does one take girls who work at Starbucks for coffee?
Me: You wanna go for a coffee.?
Her:Duh thats original havent you noticed Im working as a slave for 800yen an hour serving overpriced mediocre lukewarm bean dust in paper cups ?
(sigh... probably wasnt going to work anyway)
During the week I watched the classic western "The Big Country".Gregory Peck`s character was nicknamed "The Dude" on account of his fancy clothes by one of the uncouth tobacco chomping cowboys.I wonder if the character in the Coen Brothers movie `The Big Lebowski` is a nod to that movie..a kind of homage of sorts.
Ive been parking my bicycle besides this old battered blue womens bicycle for the last 3 weeks or so.Its been carefully locked and has another chain and lock tethering it to the metal gate.It doesnt appear to have moved since I first noticed it.
How did it get there?
Why is it still there?
What happened to its rider? Was it stolen?Is it abandoned?
To be left.Collected by some zealous city worker .To end its days rusting.In North Korea.Where it will no doubt be sent to spend its final days.
Sunday, January 23, 2005
Im turning Japanese I think Im turning Japanese I really think so
Sunday January 23 2005
I read `Hokkaido Highway Blues` by Will Ferguson over the last week or so.Going back and forward to work via train.I didnt find myself "laughing out loud in recognition".The author trots out every stereotype and chestnut in the book-literally.Towards the end I was trying to spot which tired cliche he'd drag out next um maybe it`ll be the pachinko parlor oh no its the xenophobic anti-American drunk businessman reading manga who fought in WW2 and wants to strike up a conversation using really bad English....yawn.
Maybe its because Ive been here the same length of time as Will-san.
Maybe its because it seems so unoriginal.
Maybe its because of his hypocritical attitude towards the locals generosity;on the one hand he decries their willingness to share yet on the other hand is quite willing to take full advantage of it....not so much a 'travel ferret` as a `travel rat`.
Maybe I could write something equally banal by merely thumbing through a travel guide(he mentions Lonely Planet) drop a few place names and invent a few one dimensional caricatures.
Maybe I could get Bill Bryson to call me 'gifted' too.'Gifted can to my mind include 'intellectually challenged'.
As for his so-called insights yeah they are deep"When you are pinned to the centre every journey is a circle" or even deeper,"One runs through ghosts in Japan and the past is always there.." wow
Random Thoughts
The new Secretary of Education in the States is a woman with the surname "Spellings".Somehow I cant see literacy rates rising.
Out of sheer boredom and a spasm of creativity I decorated another Japanese Tobacco Company cigarette vending machine.They are emblazoned with the stupid slogan "Taste Your Delight".With the aid of an indelible black marker this can be changed to the more honest "Taste Your Death".Its my personal program of revenge against a company that has bastardized an innocent Joni Mitchell song (among others) to coerce people to adopt cancer as a lifestyle.
"Your music collection is a little outdated"...sigh yes Im sorry I still play The Smiths and The Beatles and Godforbid the occasional Mozart on the basis that its not of this decade or century.
Can music age well or badly like wine or fashion?...now that Will Ferguson is an insight.
I read `Hokkaido Highway Blues` by Will Ferguson over the last week or so.Going back and forward to work via train.I didnt find myself "laughing out loud in recognition".The author trots out every stereotype and chestnut in the book-literally.Towards the end I was trying to spot which tired cliche he'd drag out next um maybe it`ll be the pachinko parlor oh no its the xenophobic anti-American drunk businessman reading manga who fought in WW2 and wants to strike up a conversation using really bad English....yawn.
Maybe its because Ive been here the same length of time as Will-san.
Maybe its because it seems so unoriginal.
Maybe its because of his hypocritical attitude towards the locals generosity;on the one hand he decries their willingness to share yet on the other hand is quite willing to take full advantage of it....not so much a 'travel ferret` as a `travel rat`.
Maybe I could write something equally banal by merely thumbing through a travel guide(he mentions Lonely Planet) drop a few place names and invent a few one dimensional caricatures.
Maybe I could get Bill Bryson to call me 'gifted' too.'Gifted can to my mind include 'intellectually challenged'.
As for his so-called insights yeah they are deep"When you are pinned to the centre every journey is a circle" or even deeper,"One runs through ghosts in Japan and the past is always there.." wow
Random Thoughts
The new Secretary of Education in the States is a woman with the surname "Spellings".Somehow I cant see literacy rates rising.
Out of sheer boredom and a spasm of creativity I decorated another Japanese Tobacco Company cigarette vending machine.They are emblazoned with the stupid slogan "Taste Your Delight".With the aid of an indelible black marker this can be changed to the more honest "Taste Your Death".Its my personal program of revenge against a company that has bastardized an innocent Joni Mitchell song (among others) to coerce people to adopt cancer as a lifestyle.
"Your music collection is a little outdated"...sigh yes Im sorry I still play The Smiths and The Beatles and Godforbid the occasional Mozart on the basis that its not of this decade or century.
Can music age well or badly like wine or fashion?...now that Will Ferguson is an insight.
Friday, January 14, 2005
`Coz you have to believe this will be your year"...Friday January 14 2005
My all too brief work break from Dec 29-Jan 5 was busy as I juggled DVD watching,reading,writing the odd New Year card and paper mache activities.
DVDs
I rented Big Fish and Elelphant with a few lesser titles over the break.I enjoyed Big Fish..Tim Burton is a very visual director as opposed to one who concentrates on words as he said in the commentary ,film is a visual medium and he isnt a writer..in fact there are a couple of scenes in the movie that are virtually devoid of the spoken word but the actors notably Albert Finney and Jessica Lange managed to convey more because of this absence.He also noted that theres too much reliance today on cg effects.He used where possible the real things including a seven foot giant man to give the actors something other than a blue screen to work with plus he maintained that audiences intuitively knew when things were false or artifical.
As for Elephant loosely based on the Columbine school shootings it was deliberately low-key and understated which made the resulting killings all the more difficult to comprehend..the film was criticised for not pointing the finger at the causes.Personally I think thats crap..there are various things hinted at.Its up to the viewer to decide..Im sick of movies that rob their audiences of intelligence and lead them by the nose through a plot..were the killers mad or bad..i cant say for sure..
I usually rent DVDs if possible because they have extra features such as directors commentaries explaining why they did this or that and left things in etc...Unfortunately the only thing I learned from the commentary of `In the Cut` was that New Zealand director Jane Campion is a very ill mannered obnoxious opinionated woman.Right from her opening sentence producer Laurie Parker was interupted continually by Campion who literally hogged the commentary they were doing suposedly together.It wasnt only her grating accent and monotonal voice that annoyed me it was Campions constant intrusion into Parkers conversation that got my hackles up.Near the end Parkers reduced to a few grunts of approval as Campion prattles on.It would have been nice to hear something from the production side rather than Campions lofty pretentious arty farty dribble.Besides which the video was pretty crap.
Paper Mache
Due to the inclement weather I didnt get much done as it took far longer for the glue,gesso and paint to dry than I calculated.Still I managed to finish a couple of things which now adorn the Voice Room at work including a little Cloud 9 which Im quite chuffed with.There are 2 more things almost complete while Ive got a blue moon piece on the drawing boards..must see if I can get photos on this blog.
New Years Day
Spent a quiet New Years Day happily reading the best American Magazine Articles of 2004...the local Shrine was crowded with locals making their first and probably only visit to the shrine this year and taking the oppurtunity to pass around fake 10,000yen notes they`d copied on their home computers the night before..
Tsunami
If theres one Japanese word thats entered the worlds collective vocabulary it must be tsunami.While not directly affected by the events of December 26 I do know people who are waiting for the return of others who`d been holidaying in that region.I havent felt compelled to donate either despite the appeals of such humanitarian leaders as Sandra Bullock,Leo di Caprio or George Bush.seems to me the world is more than willing to rush aid to immediate natural disasters while almost wilfully ignoring festering man-made disasters such as Rwanda,the Congo or Dafur..wheres the equality,the justice...where is the love?
Footnote
Im almost mobile again thanks to the good doctors and physios at NTT Hospital.I`ll have a slight permanent limp and my right foot will be a flat-foot but then I always fancied myself as Sam Spade.....I can lose the temporary cast this week and the crutches next week thank God so if you see me limping on the street walk on by.....
DVDs
I rented Big Fish and Elelphant with a few lesser titles over the break.I enjoyed Big Fish..Tim Burton is a very visual director as opposed to one who concentrates on words as he said in the commentary ,film is a visual medium and he isnt a writer..in fact there are a couple of scenes in the movie that are virtually devoid of the spoken word but the actors notably Albert Finney and Jessica Lange managed to convey more because of this absence.He also noted that theres too much reliance today on cg effects.He used where possible the real things including a seven foot giant man to give the actors something other than a blue screen to work with plus he maintained that audiences intuitively knew when things were false or artifical.
As for Elephant loosely based on the Columbine school shootings it was deliberately low-key and understated which made the resulting killings all the more difficult to comprehend..the film was criticised for not pointing the finger at the causes.Personally I think thats crap..there are various things hinted at.Its up to the viewer to decide..Im sick of movies that rob their audiences of intelligence and lead them by the nose through a plot..were the killers mad or bad..i cant say for sure..
I usually rent DVDs if possible because they have extra features such as directors commentaries explaining why they did this or that and left things in etc...Unfortunately the only thing I learned from the commentary of `In the Cut` was that New Zealand director Jane Campion is a very ill mannered obnoxious opinionated woman.Right from her opening sentence producer Laurie Parker was interupted continually by Campion who literally hogged the commentary they were doing suposedly together.It wasnt only her grating accent and monotonal voice that annoyed me it was Campions constant intrusion into Parkers conversation that got my hackles up.Near the end Parkers reduced to a few grunts of approval as Campion prattles on.It would have been nice to hear something from the production side rather than Campions lofty pretentious arty farty dribble.Besides which the video was pretty crap.
Paper Mache
Due to the inclement weather I didnt get much done as it took far longer for the glue,gesso and paint to dry than I calculated.Still I managed to finish a couple of things which now adorn the Voice Room at work including a little Cloud 9 which Im quite chuffed with.There are 2 more things almost complete while Ive got a blue moon piece on the drawing boards..must see if I can get photos on this blog.
New Years Day
Spent a quiet New Years Day happily reading the best American Magazine Articles of 2004...the local Shrine was crowded with locals making their first and probably only visit to the shrine this year and taking the oppurtunity to pass around fake 10,000yen notes they`d copied on their home computers the night before..
Tsunami
If theres one Japanese word thats entered the worlds collective vocabulary it must be tsunami.While not directly affected by the events of December 26 I do know people who are waiting for the return of others who`d been holidaying in that region.I havent felt compelled to donate either despite the appeals of such humanitarian leaders as Sandra Bullock,Leo di Caprio or George Bush.seems to me the world is more than willing to rush aid to immediate natural disasters while almost wilfully ignoring festering man-made disasters such as Rwanda,the Congo or Dafur..wheres the equality,the justice...where is the love?
Footnote
Im almost mobile again thanks to the good doctors and physios at NTT Hospital.I`ll have a slight permanent limp and my right foot will be a flat-foot but then I always fancied myself as Sam Spade.....I can lose the temporary cast this week and the crutches next week thank God so if you see me limping on the street walk on by.....
Thursday, December 30, 2004
Stiff Little Fingers..What I did on my Christmas NewYear Hols.
Thursday 30 December 2004
Im currently on holiday from December 29 to January 5 2005.
Well I survived Christmas Day intact.It was a Saturday this year which means I didnt have to work being one of my days off.I spent the previous day, Friday (duh)hobbling round paying my overdue residential tax which was due about 2 months earlier and various other pressing things I could no longer put off including the purchase of a roasted chicken,champagne and some painkillers.
All were consumed the next day tho I dont recommend mixing champagne and painkillers unless you want to spend the best part of the day passed out .
I received what I think was a final demand for payment in badly translated legal English from the local taxation department.I think they have the power to deduct tax owing directly from your bank account.Residential tax payments have to be made on a quarterly basis something my employer somehow neglected to tell me.
Anyway apart from paying the outstanding debt I also made it over to Tokyu Hands a wonderful department store which has just about anything you could ever want to purchase,including those hard to find 21cm rubber stoppers that go on the end of crutches and prevent you from slipping over lino and hazardous wet ceramic tiles.Unfortunately I have worn one of the aforesaid rubber stoppers out and as the orthapedic ward is closed till January 5 I had to find my own short-term
replacement.Which I did with the assistance of about 3 attentive staff.I also lugged home about 4 litres of liquid glue to be used in one of my more creative ventures....paper mache.
Paper Mache
I cant recall my first paper mache creation maybe it was the pig I made in Teachers College for an optional art course..God knows how it was graded.Since then when I have had the oppurtunity and creative urge I create the odd paper mache creature.
At my current place of servitude I have decorated a room with various creations including a flock of 5 flying pigs of various sizes and a mutant fish resembling a cross between Nemo and a piranha.It gives me something to stare at other than the wan ,often vacant faces of petulant teenagers and angst-ridden menopausal women who occupy the space which serves the dual purpose of torture chamber and babysiting room.
During the Christmas break I am finishing off a couple of clouds and a sign for the room itself.
I thought paper mache was a low brow thing kids did till I went to Florence and saw some amazing creations made of paper mache including a life size replica of Davids hand and various animal masks.There were two small shops given over completely to paper mache creations including some masks which used either oil paint or gold leaf paper.I spent the best part of an afternoon watching an elderly Italian woman patiently put the finishing touches to what appeared to be a unicorn-like creature mask.
Of course such things put what I do in the shade.Theres no comparison.What I like about paper mache is the relative low cost of the basic materials,for one thing I dont use gold leaf sheets.I had contemplated using silver oven foil as an alternative but it looks cheap and tacky.If nothing else the visit to Florence gave me lots of good ideas and inspiration.Theres a one week workshop/course available in Florence you can enrol in where you get to design and make a mask under the guidance of a local professor and his daughter.I was thinking of taking it sometime in the future.In the meantime as a way of relaxing and exercising whatever creative ability you have I recommend paper mache.Its a great way to get your hands sticky without going blind.
It can be very time consuming when you consider you have to wait for each layer of paper to dry and the finished product needs sanding and at least 2 coats of gesso (a bonding agent that seals the paper mache).Then finally the part I really like is applying the final touches usually 2-3 coats of paint and the same number of coats of varnish to seal the whole thing from dust and moisture.
Other Holiday Activities
As well as catching up on sleep and paper mache I have a number of books to read and videos or dvds to watch.Im currently reading a couple of things including a book by Stephen Jay Gould about " the misconceived gap between science and the Humanities" which is alot more interesting than this would at first suggest.Actually it a hell of alot more interesting than Stephen Hawkings "Brief History of Time" which although only 150 pages long was a very difficult read and at times I used it as a cure for my recurrent bouts of insomnia. Im balancing this by reading "2004s Best American Magazine Articles" a series of writing from American writers on various things such as interrogation methods,the identity of the man falling from the WTC building and the space shuttle disaster among other diverse subjects.
As for videos Ive got a few in mind I want to see including "Elephant" Gus van Sants take on Columbine and "Big Fish"..Tim Burtons latest production..I like to get the dvds and listen to the directors or actors commentary..often like the one thats included in "The Hours" dvd you get an insight into say.. why certain symbols were used and some things included or left out..seems whats left out is almost important as whats in.
2004 in Books
Finally some books that I enjoyed in this past year as I either killed time on the train to work or just escaped the mundaneness with.
First was Bill Brysons "A Short History of Nearly Everything" which presented science in its various guises in an informative entertaining way.The book has lead me on to other more 'sciencey 'stuff and writers such as Stephens Jay Gould and Hawking and other fascinating people such as the Haldanes and one Mr Newton a man of some gravity by all accounts..hopefully I`ll get to his Pulitizer Prize winning biography early in the New Year.
Secondly there was Philip Lopates "Waterfront" a meandering walk through and around Manhattan Island by one of its more famous resident writers.The book traces the history of Manhattan Island and its attractions and distractions including Central Park,Battery Point and the United Nations complex.I found the book really interesting.Lopate has a very matter of fact relaxed writing style and as hes a long-time inhabitant can add his own insight into the various development and redevelopment battles that have occurred on this valuable bit of real estate.I found myself wanting to go and see for myself the places he described..who knows maybe one day.
Finally "Stalingrad" by Antony Beevor a book about the destruction of a city that seemed to echo the current situation in Fullajah,Iraq.Although the death toll and numbers involved in this action were huge Beevor has somehow managed to maintain my interest through his research and detailed analysis of the struggle.I found myself using salt shakers and buttons on my kitchen table as I read to keep track of various indivduals and units he mentioned.Seems theres a lesson from history here that the American military and leadership should have learned...
Im currently on holiday from December 29 to January 5 2005.
Well I survived Christmas Day intact.It was a Saturday this year which means I didnt have to work being one of my days off.I spent the previous day, Friday (duh)hobbling round paying my overdue residential tax which was due about 2 months earlier and various other pressing things I could no longer put off including the purchase of a roasted chicken,champagne and some painkillers.
All were consumed the next day tho I dont recommend mixing champagne and painkillers unless you want to spend the best part of the day passed out .
I received what I think was a final demand for payment in badly translated legal English from the local taxation department.I think they have the power to deduct tax owing directly from your bank account.Residential tax payments have to be made on a quarterly basis something my employer somehow neglected to tell me.
Anyway apart from paying the outstanding debt I also made it over to Tokyu Hands a wonderful department store which has just about anything you could ever want to purchase,including those hard to find 21cm rubber stoppers that go on the end of crutches and prevent you from slipping over lino and hazardous wet ceramic tiles.Unfortunately I have worn one of the aforesaid rubber stoppers out and as the orthapedic ward is closed till January 5 I had to find my own short-term
replacement.Which I did with the assistance of about 3 attentive staff.I also lugged home about 4 litres of liquid glue to be used in one of my more creative ventures....paper mache.
Paper Mache
I cant recall my first paper mache creation maybe it was the pig I made in Teachers College for an optional art course..God knows how it was graded.Since then when I have had the oppurtunity and creative urge I create the odd paper mache creature.
At my current place of servitude I have decorated a room with various creations including a flock of 5 flying pigs of various sizes and a mutant fish resembling a cross between Nemo and a piranha.It gives me something to stare at other than the wan ,often vacant faces of petulant teenagers and angst-ridden menopausal women who occupy the space which serves the dual purpose of torture chamber and babysiting room.
During the Christmas break I am finishing off a couple of clouds and a sign for the room itself.
I thought paper mache was a low brow thing kids did till I went to Florence and saw some amazing creations made of paper mache including a life size replica of Davids hand and various animal masks.There were two small shops given over completely to paper mache creations including some masks which used either oil paint or gold leaf paper.I spent the best part of an afternoon watching an elderly Italian woman patiently put the finishing touches to what appeared to be a unicorn-like creature mask.
Of course such things put what I do in the shade.Theres no comparison.What I like about paper mache is the relative low cost of the basic materials,for one thing I dont use gold leaf sheets.I had contemplated using silver oven foil as an alternative but it looks cheap and tacky.If nothing else the visit to Florence gave me lots of good ideas and inspiration.Theres a one week workshop/course available in Florence you can enrol in where you get to design and make a mask under the guidance of a local professor and his daughter.I was thinking of taking it sometime in the future.In the meantime as a way of relaxing and exercising whatever creative ability you have I recommend paper mache.Its a great way to get your hands sticky without going blind.
It can be very time consuming when you consider you have to wait for each layer of paper to dry and the finished product needs sanding and at least 2 coats of gesso (a bonding agent that seals the paper mache).Then finally the part I really like is applying the final touches usually 2-3 coats of paint and the same number of coats of varnish to seal the whole thing from dust and moisture.
Other Holiday Activities
As well as catching up on sleep and paper mache I have a number of books to read and videos or dvds to watch.Im currently reading a couple of things including a book by Stephen Jay Gould about " the misconceived gap between science and the Humanities" which is alot more interesting than this would at first suggest.Actually it a hell of alot more interesting than Stephen Hawkings "Brief History of Time" which although only 150 pages long was a very difficult read and at times I used it as a cure for my recurrent bouts of insomnia. Im balancing this by reading "2004s Best American Magazine Articles" a series of writing from American writers on various things such as interrogation methods,the identity of the man falling from the WTC building and the space shuttle disaster among other diverse subjects.
As for videos Ive got a few in mind I want to see including "Elephant" Gus van Sants take on Columbine and "Big Fish"..Tim Burtons latest production..I like to get the dvds and listen to the directors or actors commentary..often like the one thats included in "The Hours" dvd you get an insight into say.. why certain symbols were used and some things included or left out..seems whats left out is almost important as whats in.
2004 in Books
Finally some books that I enjoyed in this past year as I either killed time on the train to work or just escaped the mundaneness with.
First was Bill Brysons "A Short History of Nearly Everything" which presented science in its various guises in an informative entertaining way.The book has lead me on to other more 'sciencey 'stuff and writers such as Stephens Jay Gould and Hawking and other fascinating people such as the Haldanes and one Mr Newton a man of some gravity by all accounts..hopefully I`ll get to his Pulitizer Prize winning biography early in the New Year.
Secondly there was Philip Lopates "Waterfront" a meandering walk through and around Manhattan Island by one of its more famous resident writers.The book traces the history of Manhattan Island and its attractions and distractions including Central Park,Battery Point and the United Nations complex.I found the book really interesting.Lopate has a very matter of fact relaxed writing style and as hes a long-time inhabitant can add his own insight into the various development and redevelopment battles that have occurred on this valuable bit of real estate.I found myself wanting to go and see for myself the places he described..who knows maybe one day.
Finally "Stalingrad" by Antony Beevor a book about the destruction of a city that seemed to echo the current situation in Fullajah,Iraq.Although the death toll and numbers involved in this action were huge Beevor has somehow managed to maintain my interest through his research and detailed analysis of the struggle.I found myself using salt shakers and buttons on my kitchen table as I read to keep track of various indivduals and units he mentioned.Seems theres a lesson from history here that the American military and leadership should have learned...
Saturday, December 18, 2004
So this is Christmas...Saturday 18 December 2004
SO THIS IS CHRISTMAS
It doesnt feel like Christmas for a number of reasons.First and foremost for the first time in 3 years there is no sense of anticipation or expectation..no I dont mean what Im going to get present-wise I mean theres no new Lord of The Rings movie or even if one wants to slum it no Harry Potter movie to look forward to this year.I remember seeing the first LOTR movie back in 2001 in New Zealand in a suburban theater..some of the locals pointing out during the screening look thats me..as their brief movie career as an extra flashed across the screen vaguely reminding me of a meteorite shower that I saw in the early hours of one chilly midweek dawn recently.But I digress...I saw the second or the sequel in London paying nearly thrice the price I did in Christchurch and about half in Scunthorpe to see it again.If I recall the London ticket cost about 8pounds while in Scunthorpe it was about 4pounds give or take two trips to the refreshment counter.I saw the third and final chapter in Japan and in Rome as I had a couple of hours to kill before my train trip to Florence..unfortunately the movie was in Italian but still entertaining watching and hearing Gollum, Frodo and the rest speaking Italian..
The second reason it doesnt feel like Christmas is Im in Japan. Im used to hot weather at this time of the year,not the gloomy cool wintery days of grey concrete Nagoya where the sun gives up its daily struggle and packs up by 4pm not even bothering with a half-hearted dusk or polluted sunset.
The third reason it doesnt feel like Christmas is that it goes on for soooo long.Its just a 2month sales campaign as far as supermarkets and companies are concerned guilt tripping you to unload yourhard earned winter bonus buying all manner of year end and Christmas presents.theres very little evidence of the real meaning behind Christmas..really it should be relabelled Christ missed.`Do they they know its Christmas?` how can they theyre either Buddhists or practising capitalists.
Another thing thats also done to excess over here is the amount of Christmas illuminations..seems theres a competition to put on a display akin to a supernova.The main throughfares of Nagoya are literally draped with lights enough Im sure to induce an epileptic fit if one is susceptible to strobe lights.As well as this visual assault theres also the audio assault on ones ears as Christmas carols are blasted out 24/7 by all manner of shops and public institutions.
MEDICAL UPDATE
Well having spent the last month with my right leg encased in plaster I was finally relieved to have it removed yesterday..Friday.I still have to use crutches for the next 4 weeks tho as I undergo rehabilation.This involvess twice weekly visits to the hospital where a burly physio-therapist manipulates my ankle.I can move it and bend it 10degrees but need to improve that to 25degrees.Theres still a lot of swelling and bruising and the ankle is this fashionable purple-yellow color.All credit to my physio tho Hiroshi (for thats his name )speaks a clipped aplogetic English and has fingers of steel nor did he budge once as he took my withered limb and began to twist and bend it trying I think to encourage the blood flow and circulation into the gnarled limb..not a job I'd want to do.So far Ive been impressed by the professional manner and care of the medical staff here particularly considering Im a foreigner who speaks not a jot of Japanese and yet they are the ones apologising ...kinda humbling.
It doesnt feel like Christmas for a number of reasons.First and foremost for the first time in 3 years there is no sense of anticipation or expectation..no I dont mean what Im going to get present-wise I mean theres no new Lord of The Rings movie or even if one wants to slum it no Harry Potter movie to look forward to this year.I remember seeing the first LOTR movie back in 2001 in New Zealand in a suburban theater..some of the locals pointing out during the screening look thats me..as their brief movie career as an extra flashed across the screen vaguely reminding me of a meteorite shower that I saw in the early hours of one chilly midweek dawn recently.But I digress...I saw the second or the sequel in London paying nearly thrice the price I did in Christchurch and about half in Scunthorpe to see it again.If I recall the London ticket cost about 8pounds while in Scunthorpe it was about 4pounds give or take two trips to the refreshment counter.I saw the third and final chapter in Japan and in Rome as I had a couple of hours to kill before my train trip to Florence..unfortunately the movie was in Italian but still entertaining watching and hearing Gollum, Frodo and the rest speaking Italian..
The second reason it doesnt feel like Christmas is Im in Japan. Im used to hot weather at this time of the year,not the gloomy cool wintery days of grey concrete Nagoya where the sun gives up its daily struggle and packs up by 4pm not even bothering with a half-hearted dusk or polluted sunset.
The third reason it doesnt feel like Christmas is that it goes on for soooo long.Its just a 2month sales campaign as far as supermarkets and companies are concerned guilt tripping you to unload yourhard earned winter bonus buying all manner of year end and Christmas presents.theres very little evidence of the real meaning behind Christmas..really it should be relabelled Christ missed.`Do they they know its Christmas?` how can they theyre either Buddhists or practising capitalists.
Another thing thats also done to excess over here is the amount of Christmas illuminations..seems theres a competition to put on a display akin to a supernova.The main throughfares of Nagoya are literally draped with lights enough Im sure to induce an epileptic fit if one is susceptible to strobe lights.As well as this visual assault theres also the audio assault on ones ears as Christmas carols are blasted out 24/7 by all manner of shops and public institutions.
MEDICAL UPDATE
Well having spent the last month with my right leg encased in plaster I was finally relieved to have it removed yesterday..Friday.I still have to use crutches for the next 4 weeks tho as I undergo rehabilation.This involvess twice weekly visits to the hospital where a burly physio-therapist manipulates my ankle.I can move it and bend it 10degrees but need to improve that to 25degrees.Theres still a lot of swelling and bruising and the ankle is this fashionable purple-yellow color.All credit to my physio tho Hiroshi (for thats his name )speaks a clipped aplogetic English and has fingers of steel nor did he budge once as he took my withered limb and began to twist and bend it trying I think to encourage the blood flow and circulation into the gnarled limb..not a job I'd want to do.So far Ive been impressed by the professional manner and care of the medical staff here particularly considering Im a foreigner who speaks not a jot of Japanese and yet they are the ones apologising ...kinda humbling.
Saturday, December 11, 2004
Amo,Amas,A marmot...Yours sincerely wasting away.Saturday 11December 2004
Vancouver Island Marmot....I first became aware of the plight of this endangered animal in 2001.Marmots are the largest members of the squirrel family and can grow as big as your average housecat.The V.I marmot has chocolate brown fur with contrasting white patches.They live in small colonies underground and hibernate in their burrows 7 months of the year from September to May.Since being listed as 'endangered' in 1980 their numbers have fallen dramatically due to a number of factors including clearcut felling,increased predators such as wolves and weather fluctuations.Currently there are approximately 30-35 V.I marmots in the wild and the captive population in four breeding centres stands at around 93.For more info check out the Marmot Recovery Foundation website at www.marmots.org where you can find out much more including how to adopt your own marmot and buy a stuffed marmot soft toy among other things.My own stuffed marmot Bob has his own frequent flier card and has racked up mileage points to England,Italy and more recently Prague.He`s also toured round Japan rating Kyoto as his favorite place mainly due to the food..Bob being vegetarian liked the variety of greens served there.
Yours Sincerely Wasting Away
Still getting about on crutches..incidentally its a great way to build up your upper body particulary your arms and lose weight at the same time...cant remember having such a flat taut stomach for a long time,maybe due to the lack of junk food and effort it takes to get to and from work..dont know if its my ribs sticking out or the emergence of a six-pack ...I got a second cast last Friday and have to return to the hospital again this Friday to see how things are healing.The second cast was necessary as the first had become somewhat loose due to the fact my leg has shrunk..that became apparent when the first cast was removed revealing a swollen bruised ankle and heel area and according to the doctor in his broken English `the ugliest toes he had ever seen` .The second cast is obviously tighter and has put more pressure on the heel in an effort to manipulate the heel bones back into their correct position.I just hope it doesnt come to surgery as its already cost me literally an arm and a leg.I would love to get rid of the cast and crutches prior to Christmas .
One good by-product of this whole sorry affair is the amount of Japanese Ive had to learn..the words for first second and fifth floor i now know and can pronounce like a local(of course Im buggered if the lift stops on the third or fourth floor!!).Ive also figured out that the Japanese word for xray is `rentagin` the surname of the inventor one Wilhelm Rentagin of the 1890s if my googling is accurate.The Japanese for plaster cast is `gyps` a shortened form of the word gypsum or plaster in English..logical enough..now if I could just get my head round kanji Id be set....
Yours Sincerely Wasting Away
Still getting about on crutches..incidentally its a great way to build up your upper body particulary your arms and lose weight at the same time...cant remember having such a flat taut stomach for a long time,maybe due to the lack of junk food and effort it takes to get to and from work..dont know if its my ribs sticking out or the emergence of a six-pack ...I got a second cast last Friday and have to return to the hospital again this Friday to see how things are healing.The second cast was necessary as the first had become somewhat loose due to the fact my leg has shrunk..that became apparent when the first cast was removed revealing a swollen bruised ankle and heel area and according to the doctor in his broken English `the ugliest toes he had ever seen` .The second cast is obviously tighter and has put more pressure on the heel in an effort to manipulate the heel bones back into their correct position.I just hope it doesnt come to surgery as its already cost me literally an arm and a leg.I would love to get rid of the cast and crutches prior to Christmas .
One good by-product of this whole sorry affair is the amount of Japanese Ive had to learn..the words for first second and fifth floor i now know and can pronounce like a local(of course Im buggered if the lift stops on the third or fourth floor!!).Ive also figured out that the Japanese word for xray is `rentagin` the surname of the inventor one Wilhelm Rentagin of the 1890s if my googling is accurate.The Japanese for plaster cast is `gyps` a shortened form of the word gypsum or plaster in English..logical enough..now if I could just get my head round kanji Id be set....
Saturday, December 04, 2004
Social Cripple/ Enjoy Every Sandwich Saturday December 4 2004
Having broken my heel in a freak accident in Prague on November 12th I`ve had to struggle manfully on crutches since that ill fated(ill-footed) day.
One advantage of being unable to walk and being confined to a wheel chair is the ease with which one can pass through security checks and long lines of fellow passengers at various international airport terminals.Apart from the uncomfortable envious glares and the odd overzealous guard feeling under the seat for the 2 kilos of semtex and 5 kilos of drugs I would recommend this mode of transport.
As for crutches well thats another story.The old wooden pair I was outfitted with at Yogoto Hospital here in Nagoya have little in the way of padding and cut deeply into my tender armpits.It took a week or so before they toughened up to bear the weight of my frail atrophying body.Other joints and muscles also protested at being employed to lug me around.
I received a 30 minute hands-on lesson in crutches use from a rehabilitation nurse Hironori who thankfully possesessed more patience than English vocabulary.I practiced negotiating going up and down a set of stairs and other obstacles which require 2 different techniques and the concentration of a fighter pilot or F1 driver to avoid smacking into a wall or falling flat on ones face.
I didnt realise how valuable this lesson would be until 2 days later when I had to return to work.I have to hobble through 3 subway stations and 1 JR train staion on my way to and from work.Only 2 of these public utilities have lifts so each day Im confronted with a considerable mental and physical hurdle.
I must say the subway and train staff and the general public are very caring and tolerant as I clatter my way through the crowded commuter masses.My one bete noir are the old Japanese ladies who push past me or try to board the carriage as Im getting off or bear down on me in a crouched heads down position refusing to change paths forcing me to take evasive action,curse, stop completely or all three simultaneously.They seem totally indifferent to vacating the priority seating set aside for the less mobile or child-bearing members of society.If Japan is to become completely barrier free it should install more lifts and ramps at public facilities and cull or eradicate all old ladies from society.
These past few weeks have been an eye-opener in the sense that I never realised how much a burden lack of mobility and a physical impairment can be on the quality and enjoyment of your life.Even simple things I took for granted such as posting a letter,shopping or showering become onerous and exhausting.As for the outlook yesterday Friday December 4 I had the old cast removed and replaced by a newer one that is pushing (hopefully) my heel back into place.I`ll know more on December 17.
Enjoy Every Sandwich
To cheer myself up I bought a newly released cd (the title is above ).Its a collection of Warren Zevon songs sang by various artists.Its actually pretty mediocre with only a few reasonable contributions from Bruce Springsteen"My Rides Here" The WallFlowers"Lawyers,Guns and Money" and Adam Sandlers rendition of "Werewolves of London".I wouldnt recommend it, you`d be better spending your money on some of Zevons own earlier cds.Theres a string instrumental bonus track15 which is somewhat sombre to round the cd off but its hardly an essential purchase.
One advantage of being unable to walk and being confined to a wheel chair is the ease with which one can pass through security checks and long lines of fellow passengers at various international airport terminals.Apart from the uncomfortable envious glares and the odd overzealous guard feeling under the seat for the 2 kilos of semtex and 5 kilos of drugs I would recommend this mode of transport.
As for crutches well thats another story.The old wooden pair I was outfitted with at Yogoto Hospital here in Nagoya have little in the way of padding and cut deeply into my tender armpits.It took a week or so before they toughened up to bear the weight of my frail atrophying body.Other joints and muscles also protested at being employed to lug me around.
I received a 30 minute hands-on lesson in crutches use from a rehabilitation nurse Hironori who thankfully possesessed more patience than English vocabulary.I practiced negotiating going up and down a set of stairs and other obstacles which require 2 different techniques and the concentration of a fighter pilot or F1 driver to avoid smacking into a wall or falling flat on ones face.
I didnt realise how valuable this lesson would be until 2 days later when I had to return to work.I have to hobble through 3 subway stations and 1 JR train staion on my way to and from work.Only 2 of these public utilities have lifts so each day Im confronted with a considerable mental and physical hurdle.
I must say the subway and train staff and the general public are very caring and tolerant as I clatter my way through the crowded commuter masses.My one bete noir are the old Japanese ladies who push past me or try to board the carriage as Im getting off or bear down on me in a crouched heads down position refusing to change paths forcing me to take evasive action,curse, stop completely or all three simultaneously.They seem totally indifferent to vacating the priority seating set aside for the less mobile or child-bearing members of society.If Japan is to become completely barrier free it should install more lifts and ramps at public facilities and cull or eradicate all old ladies from society.
These past few weeks have been an eye-opener in the sense that I never realised how much a burden lack of mobility and a physical impairment can be on the quality and enjoyment of your life.Even simple things I took for granted such as posting a letter,shopping or showering become onerous and exhausting.As for the outlook yesterday Friday December 4 I had the old cast removed and replaced by a newer one that is pushing (hopefully) my heel back into place.I`ll know more on December 17.
Enjoy Every Sandwich
To cheer myself up I bought a newly released cd (the title is above ).Its a collection of Warren Zevon songs sang by various artists.Its actually pretty mediocre with only a few reasonable contributions from Bruce Springsteen"My Rides Here" The WallFlowers"Lawyers,Guns and Money" and Adam Sandlers rendition of "Werewolves of London".I wouldnt recommend it, you`d be better spending your money on some of Zevons own earlier cds.Theres a string instrumental bonus track15 which is somewhat sombre to round the cd off but its hardly an essential purchase.
Saturday, November 27, 2004
Talking About The Man... November 27 2004
I first came across Warren William Zevon when I bought a copy of `Bad Luck Streak In Dancing School` way back in 1980 at a local garage sale.Im not sure why I bought it maybe it was the West Coast music names I recognised on the back of the cover..Linda Rondstadt, Jackson Browne, Joe Walsh and David Lindley..forgive me I was going through my 'Eagles phase`, if I concentrate I think I can still remember a few lines from `Lying Eyes`.
Anyway,in my callow youth I was and still am some 20 odd years later attracted to his lyrics theres a certain wilfulness and self destruction evident in many of his songs tinged with a very black sense of humor.Death also features prominently in his later albums such as `My Rides Here` and his last album `The Wind` 2003.He has an original take on relationships,guns,alcohol and life in general.To my eternal regret I never saw himm live in concert tho to my knowledge he toured New Zealand at least once.
He died in September 2003 almost a year after being diagnosed with mesothelioma, a rare form of lung cancer that incidentally also killed Steve McQueen.He lived by all accounts a somewhat wild if at times tragic life and collected a wide or wild variety of friends among them Hunter S.Thompson, Carl Hiaasen(who dedicated his novel `Skinny Dip` to him) Martin Scorsese and someone called Bob Dylan.Allan Jones in his obituary (Uncut Take 78 November 2003) describes him as `a cross between Randy Newman and Lee Marvin`.The name of this blog comes from a song off his album `Life`ll Kill Ya.`. For more info check out www.warrenzevon.com or www.artemisrecords.com
Anyway,in my callow youth I was and still am some 20 odd years later attracted to his lyrics theres a certain wilfulness and self destruction evident in many of his songs tinged with a very black sense of humor.Death also features prominently in his later albums such as `My Rides Here` and his last album `The Wind` 2003.He has an original take on relationships,guns,alcohol and life in general.To my eternal regret I never saw himm live in concert tho to my knowledge he toured New Zealand at least once.
He died in September 2003 almost a year after being diagnosed with mesothelioma, a rare form of lung cancer that incidentally also killed Steve McQueen.He lived by all accounts a somewhat wild if at times tragic life and collected a wide or wild variety of friends among them Hunter S.Thompson, Carl Hiaasen(who dedicated his novel `Skinny Dip` to him) Martin Scorsese and someone called Bob Dylan.Allan Jones in his obituary (Uncut Take 78 November 2003) describes him as `a cross between Randy Newman and Lee Marvin`.The name of this blog comes from a song off his album `Life`ll Kill Ya.`. For more info check out www.warrenzevon.com or www.artemisrecords.com
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
My first post.23 November 2004
Tuesday 23 November 2004. Why Blog?
Several people recently read some things that I'd written and suggested I make my thoughts more widely available so here goes...criticism and feedback is welcome contact me at pookie_san99@hotmail.com.
Contents.
The odd rant,music,books,videos dvds Ive seen,read,listened to.Things I`m interested in such as sumo,paper mache,Scunthorpe United Football Club,the Vancouver Island Marmot...(Canada`s most endangered animal) and other bits and pieces that occupy the 650,000 odd hours I`m here on Earth.
Why `Porcelain Monkey`?...indeed why ..its one of my favorite Warren Zevon songs from his 2002 album `Life`ll Kill Ya`.Of Mr Zevon much more soon...
Several people recently read some things that I'd written and suggested I make my thoughts more widely available so here goes...criticism and feedback is welcome contact me at pookie_san99@hotmail.com.
Contents.
The odd rant,music,books,videos dvds Ive seen,read,listened to.Things I`m interested in such as sumo,paper mache,Scunthorpe United Football Club,the Vancouver Island Marmot...(Canada`s most endangered animal) and other bits and pieces that occupy the 650,000 odd hours I`m here on Earth.
Why `Porcelain Monkey`?...indeed why ..its one of my favorite Warren Zevon songs from his 2002 album `Life`ll Kill Ya`.Of Mr Zevon much more soon...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
