Yup, that's her.
icon
My man jorge hooked me up with this cool software for makin' one's likeness into an icon. Love it.
suitengu
Went with Hiroko to Suitengu Shrine. "Suitengu" is written with the characters for 'water' and 'heavens'; it is the shrine of the ocean. Water is also associated with birth, as the baby sits in a big bag of juice. Dogs are said to have easy births, so a couple of times a month, on properly auspicious "dog" days, all the pregnant women in their 5th month come here to get blessed for a safe and healthy birth, and to get a blessed obi -- a belt you wrap around your stomach to ensure a safe and healthy birth. Seems back in the day, they used to monthly change the rope hanging from the bell you ring when praying at the shrine. Pregnant women who took a bit of that rope and wrapped it around their stomachs supposedly had an easy birth, and so the rumor spread, and now you can buy, in one convenient set for only 3000 yen!
A nafuda to place in your home shrine
An obi
A quick and efficient blessing in the coolness of the inner shrine
As you can see the place was packed; you could never tell that Japan has a declining birth rate!
health check this out
Ah, the joy of nationalized healthcare in Japan. For a couple of days every year, the large multipurpose meeting room upstairs is, with a few simple curtains and an army of white-coated nurses, turned into a full-bore medical clinic.
I arrived slightly before noon, dropped off my urine sample, completed the questionairre about my health (no I do not "Feel the pain in chest, when swallow it", nor die I "have irregular bowels, or bloods in stool") and got in line. Getting weighed whilst fully clothed is always amusing, even better when I seem to have gained both a kilo in weight and half a centimeter in height. Still growing!
Blood pressure was better: 135/82 -- still a bit high, but it's coming down nicely thank you.
Eyes okay, three vials of blood let's-do-that-lying-down-thanks, chest xray, EKG, quick chat with the doctor ("Lose a couple more kilos, keep excersising, you're fine."), hearing ok, and we're done!
I arrived slightly before noon, dropped off my urine sample, completed the questionairre about my health (no I do not "Feel the pain in chest, when swallow it", nor die I "have irregular bowels, or bloods in stool") and got in line. Getting weighed whilst fully clothed is always amusing, even better when I seem to have gained both a kilo in weight and half a centimeter in height. Still growing!
Blood pressure was better: 135/82 -- still a bit high, but it's coming down nicely thank you.
Eyes okay, three vials of blood let's-do-that-lying-down-thanks, chest xray, EKG, quick chat with the doctor ("Lose a couple more kilos, keep excersising, you're fine."), hearing ok, and we're done!
healthy
Have my yearly health checkup on Friday, so for lack of significant motivational ability, I have focused these past few weeks on the short-term goal of getting better results than last year.
Short of genetic manipulation to rid me of my tendency for high blood pressure, I have few options left, which include:
Short of genetic manipulation to rid me of my tendency for high blood pressure, I have few options left, which include:
- Getting up at 6am every day and spending 30 minutes in the basement dojo; 15 minutes sitting and 15 minutes working through staff and sword basics.
- Avoiding food after 10pm, no exceptions. (Well, okay, the occasional exception.)
- One piece of 86% dark chocolate on Sunday evening. (And the occasional cookie when someone brings back boxes of them from some exotic foreign land.)
- Fighting Fitness on Monday and Wednesday, Honbu Dojo on Tuesday and Friday.
- Water. Lots of water.
because
Interesting class -- I showed up an hour late (dealing with end of 2Q stuff at work) and it was a hair short of sweltering in the dojo, but we dove right in.
Started with shin as always, and everyone looked pretty good. Spoke a bit about getting some more extension without necessarily stepping/sliding forward, that is getting maximum reach without closing the distance too much.
Then we did sa, and everyone looked really good. The key is to stay fluid, and keep the hips moving forward (left) without pulling them back and then moving in again. Very hard to keep the draw and cut one smooth motion, but it feels really good when it works.
Finally we went through yochuin. First and most important: do NOT look at the foot you may or may not be cutting! Watch the person onto whom the foot is attached, and get off the centerline; open up the left side of the body, retract the left shoulder and left knee and extend flat -- tsuka flush with the arm and a straight extention of it. Reach deep and force him back, then follow him in and finish him. A simple kata, but quite involved and as always many details easily missed.
Most important is to simply do the kata as it is intended. First believe that the kata "works"; kata exist in a made-up world of marginal reality, where the enemy moves in a specific way, to which you react in a set way, and you win. Later on you get to play the "what if" game -- what if he does this and not that? What if he's standing? What if I did this first? But for now, we just do the kata, and instead of second-guessing it -- this is easier, this feels better, why wouldn't I do this? -- we just do it and try to figure out why it works, how it works.
There is nothing wrong with the kata; there is everything wrong with us.
Started with shin as always, and everyone looked pretty good. Spoke a bit about getting some more extension without necessarily stepping/sliding forward, that is getting maximum reach without closing the distance too much.
Then we did sa, and everyone looked really good. The key is to stay fluid, and keep the hips moving forward (left) without pulling them back and then moving in again. Very hard to keep the draw and cut one smooth motion, but it feels really good when it works.
Finally we went through yochuin. First and most important: do NOT look at the foot you may or may not be cutting! Watch the person onto whom the foot is attached, and get off the centerline; open up the left side of the body, retract the left shoulder and left knee and extend flat -- tsuka flush with the arm and a straight extention of it. Reach deep and force him back, then follow him in and finish him. A simple kata, but quite involved and as always many details easily missed.
Most important is to simply do the kata as it is intended. First believe that the kata "works"; kata exist in a made-up world of marginal reality, where the enemy moves in a specific way, to which you react in a set way, and you win. Later on you get to play the "what if" game -- what if he does this and not that? What if he's standing? What if I did this first? But for now, we just do the kata, and instead of second-guessing it -- this is easier, this feels better, why wouldn't I do this? -- we just do it and try to figure out why it works, how it works.
There is nothing wrong with the kata; there is everything wrong with us.
most expensive?
Hmm...I've never been to Moscow, but I HAVE been to Seoul, and I have a really hard time believing they are both generally more expensive than Tokyo. The Most Expensive City In The World rankings are out for 2006, and Tokyo has dropped to 3rd. I'm not buying it!
To give a sense of just what life costs in various cities, Mercer priced out the cost of a two-bedroom unfurnished apartment, a cup of coffee served, a fast food meal and an international paper. In Moscow, the apartment will run you $3,000, the coffee $5.27, the paper $3.40, and the burger with fries $3.87
$3000 (JPY348,000) will get you one hell of a tiny "2 bedroom" in my neighborhood! I doubt they are considering: square footage including storage, cost of utilities (free heating in many NY buildings), and that unfurnished in Japan = ZERO appliances (no refrigerator, stove, oven, washer/dryer, air conditioners, etc.)
$3.87 = JPY452. I challenge you to find a meal for less than 500 yen, unless you want to be eating cup noodle all the time.
Sure, I think the FX rate is doing most of the damage, but still, I'm not convinced, as much as I would love Japan to get cheaper. Besides, I get paid in yen and want to buy dollars for saving, so the FX rate keeps moving against me!
passed!
I have successfully passed the JSDA Internal Administrator exam and am now registered as a fully qualified Internal Control / Sales Manager! W00t!
study
Study. Study. Study. Much studying. Lots and lots of studying. I haven't studied this much since...I was actively trying to learn stuff. Test is tomorrow, so after doing some jo training on Saturday afternoon, I spent all Saturday night at Starbucks.
Today P and I helped Aki move into her new place just up the street in Shirokane. We did some shopping at D2, then had lunch at Miri's. I hit Starbucks again for some studying and then came home to do some cutting in the basement. It was most stinky -- soakin' targets in the summer is nasty work.
Today P and I helped Aki move into her new place just up the street in Shirokane. We did some shopping at D2, then had lunch at Miri's. I hit Starbucks again for some studying and then came home to do some cutting in the basement. It was most stinky -- soakin' targets in the summer is nasty work.
fighting gloves!
Got me my very own pair o' fightin' gloves! Loads of fun to pound on a heavy bag in the dojo with these baddies. I even love the blue tinge left on my fingers after my sweat has sucked the glove dye to stain me.
solid gold shoe inserts
Because you need this. two and a half million yen for:
solid. gold. shoe. inserts.
And they only weight a kilo!
solid. gold. shoe. inserts.
And they only weight a kilo!
minami osawa
Had to cruise out to the boonies for our annual distaster recovery test. (Jenn and P went shopping.)
We have an alternate business site out in Minami Osawa, so we had to go out there and make sure all the PCs and apps and whatnot worked. Assuming there's an earthquake, we're supposed to go (walk?) out there and...keep working, I guess.
Afterwards Coach gave me a ride back (seeing as he lives across the street from me) and we got lunch at Miri's.
We have an alternate business site out in Minami Osawa, so we had to go out there and make sure all the PCs and apps and whatnot worked. Assuming there's an earthquake, we're supposed to go (walk?) out there and...keep working, I guess.
Afterwards Coach gave me a ride back (seeing as he lives across the street from me) and we got lunch at Miri's.
toshogu, nikko
Jenn wanted to check out Nikko, so we hopped the train up to Tochigi and checked things out. The main attraction Toshogu is a series of shrines and cool buildings housing the spirits of The Tokugawa family; the first shogun of Japan Ieyasu, his grandson, etc. It's a giant world heritage site, and despite the lovely random vending machines are power lines (only in Japan?), it's damn impressive. 15,000 artisans labored for 2 years to build an incredible assortment of carved, painted, gold-gilded wooden buildings. Weather managed to stay not rainy, but was lovely muggy and we was dead tired on the train home.
alien tonchan
15th week checkup and we have: a spinal column in a bag of juice. There were some skeletal arms and legs in there, too, but Tonchan looks way too much like an alien. Not sure if boy or girl yet, either. Maybe next time.
various
Various updates: been working a fair amount, and studying. Gearing up to take the Internal Control/Sales Manager Exam, so haven't been practicing much.
I have been getting up early every day for the past several weeks and sitting for 15-20 minutes. It is very boring.
Hiroko is working on a nice gut, btw. I know I'm not supposed to call it a gut; she makes the distinction that my gut is fat and therefore isn't going anywhere, whereas hers is a 'bump', and once the little alien comes out, she'll be back into fighting style.
Tsuyu, aka typhoon season, has begun. It is rainy and muggy and hot and generally nasty.
When the rain clears up, I need to fire up the BBQ again. I use domestic charcoal, but I'm thinking I need to mix in some wood chips and get the cool smokiness. Also, I want to try BBQing some ostrich meat. Just because someone at work described it as "More porky than chicken, more chickeny than pork."
I have been getting up early every day for the past several weeks and sitting for 15-20 minutes. It is very boring.
Hiroko is working on a nice gut, btw. I know I'm not supposed to call it a gut; she makes the distinction that my gut is fat and therefore isn't going anywhere, whereas hers is a 'bump', and once the little alien comes out, she'll be back into fighting style.
Tsuyu, aka typhoon season, has begun. It is rainy and muggy and hot and generally nasty.
When the rain clears up, I need to fire up the BBQ again. I use domestic charcoal, but I'm thinking I need to mix in some wood chips and get the cool smokiness. Also, I want to try BBQing some ostrich meat. Just because someone at work described it as "More porky than chicken, more chickeny than pork."
hiroko & dad
After hanging out with grandma in the hospital, we went to get some sushi with the parentals Kuroda.
club sandwhich @ royal host
Took the train up from Ueno to Tsuchiura to see grandma in the hospital. Not doing much better -- still can't move her left side, though she is eating and talking. After grandma had lunch Hiroko and I walked down to RoyHo for some lunch.
grandma sakayori
Hiroko's mom's mom, Grandma Hisae Sakayori, had a stroke and is in the hospital. Hiroko and I went up to see her today. She was conscious, but could not move her left side, except she could wiggle her left foot a bit. She's eating, but her blood pressure is way too high. 86 years old, and everyone is quite worried.
knocked up
Kevin sent Hiroko this lovely tee. Thanks Kev! You can see from her expression how much Hiroko is enjoying it, seeing as how she's got a nice gut going on. Well okay it's not a gut; mine's a gut because it's full of fat, whilst hers is full of baby.
company dinner
Various new folks on the team at dinner, so we rented out Cuisine 219 in Aoyama and had a lovely time of it. Still can't figure out if it was supposed to be French, Italian, or some blend of California Fusion -- menu in French, wines from Cali, lots of pasta...
Nice evening so I just walked home. Took about an hour; pleasant stroll through Aoyama, Nishi Azabu, and Hiroo.
Nice evening so I just walked home. Took about an hour; pleasant stroll through Aoyama, Nishi Azabu, and Hiroo.
show off
Jenn took her tour group to dinner at Hashimoto's Toyoda and then they came up to the dojo to check out class. Did some kata, kumitachi, and ended with some cutting. I managed not to embarass myself too much and I think they had fun.
oden
A wee bit of shopping in Azabujyuban, and hiroko wanted oden. So we got oden.
On the way back we ran into Spike, taking his daughter home from the office.
my muji bag
Went to the Bystedt's to get some kid and mom stuff before they move to Australia at the end of the month. Scored a stroller and some maternity clothes for Hiroko.
Barely made it in time for zazen, and then met Hiroko at the big Muji in Yurakucho to buy more maternity clothes and stuff. We spent enough money that I got a free bag, which as you can see I designed with my best Japlish.
jenn & zach
Jenn's in town once again, slummin' at the Hotel Kuroda. We met Zach and got some yummy almost-entirely veggie dinner at a cool soba place in Hiroo, right across the street from Aiiku Byoin, the hospital where in about 6 months Hiroko will give birth to Ton-chan: Ultimate Warrior.
(I have decided that until we figure out if the kid's a boy or a girl, I will refer to my child as Ton-chan: Ultimate Warrior. Got a nice ring to it, no?)
garreth rollin bannevans
He came into this world at 7 pounds, 14 ounces, and 21 inches long -- congrats Packy and Kelly!
back to basics
In Japanese, hisashiburi means "it's been a while!" Today I met Kiyo-kun for lunch at Miri's. Haven't seen him in a couple years. He's graduated (amazing!) and working at some company, training on his own with a small group. After lunch we went back to my house and goofed off in the dojo; always fun to play with him as he's such a budo-freak; worse than me. Also good to see that even though he's grown up a bit he's still fairly immature and dorky kid at heart!
Later in the evening I met up with Elvis and we headed down to Machida to do some proper cutting with Roger and the Toyama-ryu guys. Haven't seen many of them in a while and they're such a nice bunch of folk.
As expected, I cut like ass. I mean seriously, I have never cut that badly in all my life. Just couldn't even do the basics. And after three rounds and some pointers I was thinking "This is great! I'm always teaching and telling people this stuff, but now I'm lame and being told basic pointers like grip and angle and technique!" Feels so good to realize how much I suck, and to go back to the basics; forget all the crap I think I know and just let someone teach me and start all over learning from scratch! Will make an effort to motivate down there at least once a month!
Later in the evening I met up with Elvis and we headed down to Machida to do some proper cutting with Roger and the Toyama-ryu guys. Haven't seen many of them in a while and they're such a nice bunch of folk.
As expected, I cut like ass. I mean seriously, I have never cut that badly in all my life. Just couldn't even do the basics. And after three rounds and some pointers I was thinking "This is great! I'm always teaching and telling people this stuff, but now I'm lame and being told basic pointers like grip and angle and technique!" Feels so good to realize how much I suck, and to go back to the basics; forget all the crap I think I know and just let someone teach me and start all over learning from scratch! Will make an effort to motivate down there at least once a month!
crowded
Managed to make it to practice not too late and had a nice session working in the corner. Only a few folks on the floor, so I could zone out nicely and do my own thing. Last 30 minutes we did kumitachi as always, so Gosoke had me teach. *sigh* I think some folks are generally unclear on the concept and really need a good bonking on the head with a hard piece of wood. It may look and feel cool to rush quickly through a fancy sword-fighting pattern with your partner, but it certainly doesn't make for much practice when you just slop through the moves with no regard for what the other guy is doing.
Much better to get as fast as you realistically can and actually react to each other, i.e. evade/block/counter once you have been attacked. What generally happens is you know you do A, he attacks B, so you counter C. And so you do A and then C, and somewhere in between he's done B, and oh looky there what a neat kata! If you actually watch the other guy, wait until he's committed to burying his piece of wood into your soft skull, and then at the last possible moment evade and counter, you discover 1) You're not nearly as fast as you thought, and 2) you need alot more practice. Especially if the guy swinging for your head actually tries to hit you in the head instead of just putting the sword out there for you to duck under.
After practice I went by Miri's to get some dinner but the place was totally packed, and so after a quick PB&J I went home and straight to bed.
Much better to get as fast as you realistically can and actually react to each other, i.e. evade/block/counter once you have been attacked. What generally happens is you know you do A, he attacks B, so you counter C. And so you do A and then C, and somewhere in between he's done B, and oh looky there what a neat kata! If you actually watch the other guy, wait until he's committed to burying his piece of wood into your soft skull, and then at the last possible moment evade and counter, you discover 1) You're not nearly as fast as you thought, and 2) you need alot more practice. Especially if the guy swinging for your head actually tries to hit you in the head instead of just putting the sword out there for you to duck under.
After practice I went by Miri's to get some dinner but the place was totally packed, and so after a quick PB&J I went home and straight to bed.
ok bokujo 2
OK, now we're just getting silly! Went to OK Bokujo again with some guys from work. This place is just so camp it awesome. Stuffed ourselves silly with BBQ meat, many a beverage was consumed, and we were back on the street by 10:15. Still too early to call it a night, we headed over to a local grungy old-man bar, nursed bevvies and trash-talked work until closing.
A quality evening as can only be had in Tokyo!
A quality evening as can only be had in Tokyo!
akibabes
We cruised the main and backstreets looking for laptop bargains. Yodobashi Camera and Sofmap Mac both had the white Macbook (the black being totally sold out) but the cheapest was near 180,000yen. On a whim we ducked into Mouse Computer and there it was! A sweet 14.1 inch laptop with duocore processors, dvd writer, and all the trimmings for only 140,000yen.
We swung back through Yodobashi to get a laptop bag, and then on the way back to the station, we ran into the lovelies.
We swung back through Yodobashi to get a laptop bag, and then on the way back to the station, we ran into the lovelies.
turkey @ cravings
Met the Zacchinator at Temple U and headed directly to Miri's for some quality turkey sandwhiches, and then off to Akihabara!
philosophy of action
Weather was a bit cloudy and muggy, but with the wind it was alright. Went to Hongo Sanchome to sit with the Dogen Sangha group. Did some lovely zazen and then during the chat afterwards Peter told a really bad zen joke:
Zen monk walks into a bar and orders a 300 yen beer. He pays 500 yen, gets his beer, and asks the bartender for his change. To which the bartender replies: "Change comes from within."
[ba-dum tish!]
After zazen, the sky was a lovely blue and the sun was shining like an early summer day. Elvis and I got on the train to head back to chez Kuroda. When we got out of the station at Shirganetakanawa the rain was blowing in sideways. We sludged to Starbucks to wait for BalletGirl, and then braved the rain to get home.
In the basement dojo we had a most excellent cutting session, and then cleaned the dojo nicely.
Meanwhile, Hiroko ate an entire plate of french fries.
Zen monk walks into a bar and orders a 300 yen beer. He pays 500 yen, gets his beer, and asks the bartender for his change. To which the bartender replies: "Change comes from within."
[ba-dum tish!]
After zazen, the sky was a lovely blue and the sun was shining like an early summer day. Elvis and I got on the train to head back to chez Kuroda. When we got out of the station at Shirganetakanawa the rain was blowing in sideways. We sludged to Starbucks to wait for BalletGirl, and then braved the rain to get home.
In the basement dojo we had a most excellent cutting session, and then cleaned the dojo nicely.
Meanwhile, Hiroko ate an entire plate of french fries.
ask not for whom the bell tolls
ok bokujo
Hiroko was out on a Girl's Night, so after practice I took Elvis for some eats. We were going to get some greasy Chinese food at the standard dive, but decided to try OK Bokujo (OK Corrall), a cosplay (dress up) all-you-can-eat yakiniku (Korean BBQ).
It was as cheesy as we had hoped. The meat was plentiful and the hour just flew by as the helpful staff (dressed up as a nurse, a leopard, a maid/cat, a couple of high school girls and china dresses, and giant pink panda-looking thing) and the drunk clientele keep things lively. And for a small extra fee, you can dress up in the costumes, too! I was frightened to find out that they had a china dress big enough for the drunk dude at the next table to fit into. Luckily, by the time he started to try it on, our time was up and we left.
happy mother's day
A shout out to all the great moms -- first of course to MY mom, who is, naturally the First and Ultimate mom, specifically for managing to raise me without resorting to infanticide.
Second is my other mom, Auntie Em, for often being the anti-mom; letting me stay up late and eat too much crap and spend my money unwisely. Third is Hiroko's mom, who has proven that whether Japanese from the rice fields or Jewish from
And finally, happy mother's day to the new mother: Hiroko is 11 weeks pregnant. Dunno if it's a boy or a girl yet, so we've nicknamed the little alien Tonchan (ton is the kanji for piggy). Tonchan was recently spotted waving and breakdancing inside the womb, and Hiroko has serious cravings for broccoli and potatoes.
Anyone with any child-support paraphernalia (toys, clothes, wooden train sets, XBOX360, PS3, etc.) feel free to donate! Due date is December 6!
drunk salarymen
On the way to the train station from Honbu Dojo after class, with Urabebe and Mr. Medicine, and we encounter a stumbling drunk group of three salarymen. The worst of the three falls into the flower bushes, taking a bicycle with him. His two friends almost go down with him attempting to stand him back up. Ah, the cute, sweet innocence of public drunj!
karatsu day 2
After another massive breakfast and a lovely bath, we headed out into town. The weather was a bit sketchy, but we checked out the castle and then the various attractions around town, including the massive floats used every year for the festival. Finally we walked down "pottery lane" and checked out the various pottery and historical displays by the local artisans, and bought some cool stuff.
Finally walked back to the train station and checked out the local shops, got some lunch at the local pizza place (!), and got the train to the airport for the flight back to Tokyo.
Finally walked back to the train station and checked out the local shops, got some lunch at the local pizza place (!), and got the train to the airport for the flight back to Tokyo.
iki day 2
After a gut-busting breakfast, we got in the van with the Grandma who runs Hiryama Inn, picked up three of her grandkids, and headed for the glass-bottom boat to take us to an even smaller, unpopulated island.
In the afternoon we got on the big ferry and cruised over to Yobuko, ate some local seafood, and took the bus to Karatsu.
In the afternoon we got on the big ferry and cruised over to Yobuko, ate some local seafood, and took the bus to Karatsu.
Left Sakamotoya and headed to Nagasaki Station to get on the ubercool Special Express Sonic train. Leather seats, wooden snack tables, and slippers; who needs the bullet trains with kinda local luxury?
We arrived at Hakata, grabbed some noodles at the station, took the bus (dude sitting in front of me had on the best t-shirt) to the port, and hopped on the superfast to Iki island.
We checked into Hirayama, lounged about, bathed in the hot springs, ate, lounged some more, and then finished off the evening with a facial and foot massage. It ain't easy, but it's a livin'.
We arrived at Hakata, grabbed some noodles at the station, took the bus (dude sitting in front of me had on the best t-shirt) to the port, and hopped on the superfast to Iki island.
We checked into Hirayama, lounged about, bathed in the hot springs, ate, lounged some more, and then finished off the evening with a facial and foot massage. It ain't easy, but it's a livin'.
nagasaki
Got up way too early for the start of a holiday and got to the understandably crowded Haneda Airport with plenty of time to get on our 8am flight. Landed in sunny and beautiful Kyushu, took the bus into Nagasaki, and checked into Sakamotoya.
The day was still young, so we wandered around Nagasaki, getting lunch in Chinatown and checking out Glover Gardens, Dejima, and all the other cool foreign-devils-in-old-Japan attractions. Rode the cool romen-densha and enjoyed the stunning weather before heading back to the inn and feasting.
A good start to Golden Week with only minor sun-burn on the balding head.
The day was still young, so we wandered around Nagasaki, getting lunch in Chinatown and checking out Glover Gardens, Dejima, and all the other cool foreign-devils-in-old-Japan attractions. Rode the cool romen-densha and enjoyed the stunning weather before heading back to the inn and feasting.
A good start to Golden Week with only minor sun-burn on the balding head.
mitsui museum
Kinda crappy weather, but Hiroko and I walked through Ginza and down to Nihonbashi to check out the Mitsui Memorial Museum. Three hundred years ago the Mitsui family started up a simple shop and that grew into one of the largest enterprises in Japan. The Mitsui family felt one of their duties was to preserve the finest of cultural artifacts for all, and the personal collections of the various Mitsui branches have been brought together under the museum.
The museum itself is small, occupying the top floor of the brilliant bank originally build early in the 20th century. But the collection is stunning; pottery, scrolls, swords...anything and everything, with several national treasures.
After the exhibition we hit DPNYC, swung by the dojo so that I could grab my sword, and headed home.
The museum itself is small, occupying the top floor of the brilliant bank originally build early in the 20th century. But the collection is stunning; pottery, scrolls, swords...anything and everything, with several national treasures.
After the exhibition we hit DPNYC, swung by the dojo so that I could grab my sword, and headed home.
gosoke review
Gosoke has been reviewing all the kata with the various instructors who rarely, if ever, come to honbu to train. I showed up late, as I do every week. He had already gone through the first 10 kata, so I jumped in for the next 10. He went through each kata, highlighting the key points and what to watch for when teaching. Verified a few points, clarified a few more, gave me some more homework to crank on, too.
After practice I went by Miri's for a nice burger. Everytime I've gone by the past few weeks she's got a private party going on, so finally tonight I was able to get in. Damn but that girl can grill a fine burger.
After practice I went by Miri's for a nice burger. Everytime I've gone by the past few weeks she's got a private party going on, so finally tonight I was able to get in. Damn but that girl can grill a fine burger.
I am not a literary man. That is to say, I am literate. And often I am quite literal.
I do read quite a bit, and in two languages. Not just the required readings of labor and life; I read for pleasure. My definition of enjoyable reading is twofold.
The first kind involves the joy of gaining knowledge through reading. Into this group I lump: anything technical including books on programming languages, circuit-building, and assorted geekness, words about words i.e. Safire's On Language column, cookbooks and other DIY, and anything historical, the more Japanese arcane the better.
My second kind of enjoyable reading is that which I simply enjoy for the process and experience of reading. It started with Where The Wild Things Are, progressed up through A Wrinkle In Time, rampaged through The Chronicles Of Narnia, the entire fictional works of Haruki Murakami (in both Japanese and English), and is now settled comfortably around Altered Carbon and Hardcore Zen.
As I said, I am not literary. I have known only two writers in my life, both roommates in college and both incredibly more intelligent than I. Daboo wrote a story about a child and a balloon that reminds me of the joy of seeing the world from the perspective of a five-year old. The Schwa wrote a story whose title was the sum total of the story itself, the rest of the text contained in one massive footnote. It struck me as sublimely ingenious, if a little inaccessible.
These men are literary. They read, they write. They read some more.
Notice that I have not listed any of the contemporary fiction rags; magazines whose design seems constructed with the simple purpose of announcing from your coffee table "You did not, and could never, read me. But my existence makes you exemplary of the culturally needy generation-Y to which you belong."
These magazines are generally an odd form factor (huge, or tiny), type-set and laid out by someone who studied something avant garde at RISD and whose idea of stylish I generally pronounce as 'illegible.' The lack of actual content, of words worth reading, is more than made up for by the complete lack of kearning, the jumble of typefaces that slash across artistic photographs, and the adherence to a theme that changes issue per issue, from "Love" to "War" to "My Roommate Plays Backgammon."
I have met several of these so-called designers, artists, "writers". Their paltry ramblings and headache-inducing creations fill my burnable trash recepticle.
Through that magical intersection of luck and timing, my wife introduced me to the guy who for a time edited the magazine produced by her company. He was cool; insightful, a writer. He contributed to Kuhaku, he wrote a book about the cultural phenomenon of Manga. And he knows Murakami Haruki personally.
Oh yeah, and he had this new fiction periodical to show me: A Public Space.
Immediately I was suspect.
Size: oddly small. (check)
Cover: arsty photo called Matress Flip. (check)
But then I opened it. And then I started reading. And then I read some more. Short stories. A smattering of poetry. And It Was Good.
For the last time: I am not literary. But I dabble in the occasional word (natch; this blog) and I enjoy a clever turn-o'-phrase and I certainly don't mind stories short enough to consume during my short subway commute.
And I got me a subscription to A Public Space.
I do read quite a bit, and in two languages. Not just the required readings of labor and life; I read for pleasure. My definition of enjoyable reading is twofold.
The first kind involves the joy of gaining knowledge through reading. Into this group I lump: anything technical including books on programming languages, circuit-building, and assorted geekness, words about words i.e. Safire's On Language column, cookbooks and other DIY, and anything historical, the more Japanese arcane the better.
My second kind of enjoyable reading is that which I simply enjoy for the process and experience of reading. It started with Where The Wild Things Are, progressed up through A Wrinkle In Time, rampaged through The Chronicles Of Narnia, the entire fictional works of Haruki Murakami (in both Japanese and English), and is now settled comfortably around Altered Carbon and Hardcore Zen.
As I said, I am not literary. I have known only two writers in my life, both roommates in college and both incredibly more intelligent than I. Daboo wrote a story about a child and a balloon that reminds me of the joy of seeing the world from the perspective of a five-year old. The Schwa wrote a story whose title was the sum total of the story itself, the rest of the text contained in one massive footnote. It struck me as sublimely ingenious, if a little inaccessible.
These men are literary. They read, they write. They read some more.
Notice that I have not listed any of the contemporary fiction rags; magazines whose design seems constructed with the simple purpose of announcing from your coffee table "You did not, and could never, read me. But my existence makes you exemplary of the culturally needy generation-Y to which you belong."
These magazines are generally an odd form factor (huge, or tiny), type-set and laid out by someone who studied something avant garde at RISD and whose idea of stylish I generally pronounce as 'illegible.' The lack of actual content, of words worth reading, is more than made up for by the complete lack of kearning, the jumble of typefaces that slash across artistic photographs, and the adherence to a theme that changes issue per issue, from "Love" to "War" to "My Roommate Plays Backgammon."
I have met several of these so-called designers, artists, "writers". Their paltry ramblings and headache-inducing creations fill my burnable trash recepticle.
Through that magical intersection of luck and timing, my wife introduced me to the guy who for a time edited the magazine produced by her company. He was cool; insightful, a writer. He contributed to Kuhaku, he wrote a book about the cultural phenomenon of Manga. And he knows Murakami Haruki personally.
Oh yeah, and he had this new fiction periodical to show me: A Public Space.
Immediately I was suspect.
Size: oddly small. (check)
Cover: arsty photo called Matress Flip. (check)
But then I opened it. And then I started reading. And then I read some more. Short stories. A smattering of poetry. And It Was Good.
For the last time: I am not literary. But I dabble in the occasional word (natch; this blog) and I enjoy a clever turn-o'-phrase and I certainly don't mind stories short enough to consume during my short subway commute.
And I got me a subscription to A Public Space.
bbq
Much cooking and eating of meat was done at the traditional Kuroda Feast. Didn't even bother with gyoza, as the new Weber grill was in fine form all evening long, providing a never-ending stream of beef, pork, and chicken. Little Maya and Daisuke ate so much BBQ they passed out on the couch!
In the early afternoon, we assembled a posse and made short work of several targets in the yard. Random passers-by were much amused and confused by the white boys swinging swords, but the neighbors must be used to my antics by now.
As folks started pouring in, we fired up the grill and put out the chili (black and white), guac, salsa, veggies, grandma's hand-bottled umeshu (plum wine) and child-proofed the loft by spreading out the futon and lettin' 'em go nuts. Millie, Amy, Conan, Kairi, and Daisuke had an amusing time as the parentals inhaled food at an alarming rate. Ah, the gluttony!
move as one
Today in class we did a couple of reasonably interesting things. First, with basics we did variations on basic cuts to get the feel of cutting from the hips. From a regular right-foot forward stance, bring the sword up, and then keeping the feet in place open the left knee, open the hips, and drop while extending the arms. Right hip moves forward, left hip back, and the key is to not use arm strength, but just let the hips turn, extend the arms, and drop in place, so the resulting cut is more of a pull cut, ending in a nice sideways (hanmi) stance.
From there, step the left foot forward, raise the arms and sword again, and then stepping forward with the right foot cut straight out. This time, as the left foot steps forward, the left hip and shoulder square up so that the bellybutton faces directly forward. As the right foot steps, the right and left hips move in, forward, and the again the arms merely extend, the power coming from the hips driving forward, not turning sideways.
Repeating these two cuts really gives a good feel for mawaru (turning) versus ireru (entering or putting in/forward.)
Then we did a couple of kata. On suigetsu, we focused on the height of the blade at different times, and driving the thrust with the hips not the upper body. For Inchuyo, it's all about the movement of the hips and right arm. The right arm never stops moving, clear the saya, deflect as the body moves right, then continue sweeping around the head as the hips reverse and enter forward left. Keeping the motion slow but smooth is much better than two fast but separate left-right movements with a clear break between them.
From there, step the left foot forward, raise the arms and sword again, and then stepping forward with the right foot cut straight out. This time, as the left foot steps forward, the left hip and shoulder square up so that the bellybutton faces directly forward. As the right foot steps, the right and left hips move in, forward, and the again the arms merely extend, the power coming from the hips driving forward, not turning sideways.
Repeating these two cuts really gives a good feel for mawaru (turning) versus ireru (entering or putting in/forward.)
Then we did a couple of kata. On suigetsu, we focused on the height of the blade at different times, and driving the thrust with the hips not the upper body. For Inchuyo, it's all about the movement of the hips and right arm. The right arm never stops moving, clear the saya, deflect as the body moves right, then continue sweeping around the head as the hips reverse and enter forward left. Keeping the motion slow but smooth is much better than two fast but separate left-right movements with a clear break between them.
tsuba
Gosoke gave me this amazing tsuba.
Not entirely sure what I'm supposed to do with it though. I know it's quite valuable, too nice to actually use, but I certainly can't sell it!
happy birthday mona!
Went to the Stedt's for Mona-chan's first birthday. She got loads of stuff, but her favorite was the baby mirror. Of course, being a girl, I couldn't get near her without her crying, so I hid behind the stuffed animals to distract her enough so that she wouldn't cry.
yardwork
The Parentals Kuroda drove down to some much needed yard work at Azabu Third. Dad brought his tools, we walked down to D2 to buy a ladder, and the trimming began. When we finished, I didn't realize just how big the front yard is!
ebt!
Got together with some of the old EBT/Morgan Stanley gang. The JustZed has finally transferred out from NY, and Norichan is moving TO NY and The Stedt, Spike, and Toddychan continue to brag about their daughters.
I didn't even show up until after 9pm as I now have to work for my money, but the old gang is still in full effect, and by the time we left folks was right and properly drunj.
shibuya back street river
Nice weather so I popped over to Shibuya to see Yamazaki-sensei and pick up some order-made tsuba. He lives in the back streets of Awashima, where time stopped 50 years ago.
Kids were fishing for crawdaddies in the river as parents hung out sipping beer and enjoying the blossoms. Bits of Tokyo like this make the city so cool. And then five minutes on the bus and I was in the throngs of Hachiko, packed with Sunday shoppers, high school kids, hawkers and gawkers and general typical Shibuya mayhem.
shizan again
Had cutting practice for the first time months.
Got up reasonably early, got to the dojo by 9:30.
AM session we had three, so we took our time and everyone got about six targets. All beginners, and they did well.
After they all cut, I took requests and demonstrated a few kata. Did sha and sa and managed to cut just fine. Amazing how a good sword makes me look like I know what I'm doing.
Folks started showing up for the afternoon session, Presley and his visiting-from-America Tall Dad came by as I was busy cutting down some bamboo for a mekugi. Five folks for the PM session, including the father-daughter unit of the K family. Dad was doing ok but his 14 year-old daughter was thumping! By the end of the session she was nailing the cuts and had gained some confidence. Greatest thing is, because she doesn't have alot of physical strength, she just lines up the blade and swings true; nice and clean, no mess no fuss. If only everyone could cut so effortlessly!
Got up reasonably early, got to the dojo by 9:30.
AM session we had three, so we took our time and everyone got about six targets. All beginners, and they did well.
After they all cut, I took requests and demonstrated a few kata. Did sha and sa and managed to cut just fine. Amazing how a good sword makes me look like I know what I'm doing.
Folks started showing up for the afternoon session, Presley and his visiting-from-America Tall Dad came by as I was busy cutting down some bamboo for a mekugi. Five folks for the PM session, including the father-daughter unit of the K family. Dad was doing ok but his 14 year-old daughter was thumping! By the end of the session she was nailing the cuts and had gained some confidence. Greatest thing is, because she doesn't have alot of physical strength, she just lines up the blade and swings true; nice and clean, no mess no fuss. If only everyone could cut so effortlessly!
sick hiroko
I have successfully done what all husbands are destined to do: I have completely recovered from my cold and transmitted it entirely to my lovely wife.
Hiroko has a sore throat and rumbling cough and has lost her voice. She took off work yesterday and still feels and sounds terrible today.
Such a loving husband am I, I even share my cold with her.
"In sickness and in health" indeed.
Hiroko has a sore throat and rumbling cough and has lost her voice. She took off work yesterday and still feels and sounds terrible today.
Such a loving husband am I, I even share my cold with her.
"In sickness and in health" indeed.
akiba in la machina
The Eng came by in his brand new 430 Spider, so P jumped in for some hi-quality photo ops.
Then we tested the limits of Sunday Tokyo driving by hauling seriously quicktime to Akiba for some much needed geek shopping.
The Eng was immediately in his element as we browsed from hi to low; otaku heaven full of anime figures, high-end home stereo equipment, giant-screen plasma TVs, DVDs, and a coffee break in "Fairie Garden", a maid cafe on the roof of a building housing a role playing bookstore and a PC repair shop.
Finished the day with a tour of the massive Yodobashi Camera and sped through the rain home, the 'rari's small trunk full of goodies.
hanami
Flowers and Nancy and booze in Shinjuku Gyoen on a perfect Saturday afternoon.
A couple more photos.
healed...mostly
Finally getting over this cold. Still have a wee bit of a cough, but in general I don't feel like ass, which is an improvement.
Went to class for the first time in forever. Gosoke was in fine spirits and I took things slow. Worked through the basics, and then ran through all the kata a couple of times. Using my cutter for iai, and damn that's a beefy, heavy blade. Then again I'm totally out of practice, and besides that I suck, so it all balances out.
Went to class for the first time in forever. Gosoke was in fine spirits and I took things slow. Worked through the basics, and then ran through all the kata a couple of times. Using my cutter for iai, and damn that's a beefy, heavy blade. Then again I'm totally out of practice, and besides that I suck, so it all balances out.
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