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Alumna:
UNC-Greensboro
Nara Women's University
Manchester Metropolitan University
Tegaki E (sketchblog)
Shiny:
Dictionary of Japanese Art and Architecture, Lunch In A Box, Sequential Tart, Isamu Noguchi, CLAMP, Apple, Tom Bihn Designs, Threadless, Uniqlo
Music:
GLAY, DREAMS COME TRUE, Misia, Natalie Imbruglia, Gackt, L'Arc-en-Ciel, Spitz
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Actually, they've posted an official setlist from the Fillmore show, so here it is for my own recollective purposes:
1. VERB
Encore
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GLAY 2008 VERB TOUR - SAN FRANCISCO
I'll try to be organized about this... haha.
We arrived at The Fillmore at about 5:30, and that turned out to be a good thing: pretty soon after, the line wrapped around the block and out of sight. It was a bit chilly on the sidewalk, but the wait wasn't so bad. When we got inside, we managed to get a spot right up close to the stage, on the right side (Takuro's side!). There was another 30-minute wait for the concert to start, and everyone was getting really excited watching the techs set up and do the sound tests. About fifteen minutes past eight, the lights went out and GLAY came on. Even though I'd been staring at the stage for 45 minutes, it didn't hit me until that moment just how close they were. Takuro was about fifteen feet away from me! I must admit I lost my head a little bit and screamed just as loudly as the rest of the female fans in front of me. It didn't take long for me to lose my voice. The third song (thank heavens, someone shared a copy of the set list!) was 'Glorious', which was just brilliant since it's the first GLAY song I heard back in high school. They played a nice chunk of older songs, 'Kuchibiru', 'Shutter Speeds', 'Ikiteku Tsuyosa', and 'Soul Love' as well as 'Beautiful Dreamer' from the album The Frustrated, and about half of the songs were new to me-- 'Starless Night' was one I especially liked. I can't wait to get the albums. Teru was his usual energetic, sweet self, and Takuro was awesome, of course. He and Hisashi both had some great solos, and Jiro bounced around mostly at the back closer to the drums. ('Shutter Speeds' is not a song I ever got into before I saw it performed, but now I enjoy it because it's a chance to see Jiro really act out onstage, and he's adorable.) Most of the audience seemed to be die-hard fans, which was great because a lot of them knew the usual moves, and there was much jumping up and down without any risk of getting shoved around. The energy was incredible-- I didn't even feel myself getting tired, not even towards the end or during the cheering for the encore (although I didn't have any breath left to cheer; all I could do was clap). I don't think the venue was completely full, but just about everyone there knew GLAY well, because Teru let the audience sing parts of several songs and it was loud and clear. He talked a little in English at the opening, and then said (in Japanese), 'Okay, that was the easy part! Are there any people here who speak Japanese?' and this deafening affirmative yell came back, to which he replied 'Oh good, that's a relief!' Later on he asked if there was anyone who could speak Japanese and English, and the majority of the people around me (and me, eheh) threw their hands up, to which he laughed in shock and proceeded to pick a girl from the front row, bent down and asked her if she could translate for him, and from the mic we heard this female voice exclaim 'EEH?!' and they both cracked up. So he moved over to another girl and she translated roughly, 'It's thanks to all of you that we're able to be here tonight'. Awww. The encore was similar to the one I saw before-- everyone clapped and chanted 'encore, encore' and after just enough time to make us nervous, they ran back out having changed into tour T-shirts. Well, except for Hisashi. I'm not sure why; if Jiro could get a T-shirt over that crazy hair of his, Hisashi certainly could too! I loved the glittery skulls on his guitar strap, though. At the end of the encore Teru, having gotten everyone to scream themselves hoarse ten times over, said that they hoped to come back again soon. Please let it be true, because I'll be there!
Oh, and I got my tour T-shirt (and it actually fits me, YES) and they handed out free posters to everyone as we came out of the building. That was just about the most fun I've ever had. I kind of want to pinch myself.
Also, I think I've been spoiled for any giant lives full of thousands of people. There is just no comparison to being fifteen feet from GLAY!
Thank you and goodnight. Boy are my arms (and neck and shoulders) gonna hurt tomorrow.
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I always feel terrible for ignoring this blog for such long stretches... I don't know why, exactly, since nobody reads it. Common sense dictates that I either focus 100% of my blogging energy on LiveJournal, or hop on over to a slightly more community-oriented host, like Blogger. Common sense has very little say in the matter, however, since this page has been trucking along for seven years now and I just can't bring myself to abandon it. Even online, I am a creature of habit and perpetual homebody.
Things are a bit more exciting right now, though: I've got tickets to see GLAY in San Francisco next month, which is right up near the top of the list of Things I Never Thought Possible, and I absolutely cannot wait. No matter what, it's going to be a blast. My outfit is planned, I've got comfy shoes for standing (both on the sidewalk and inside the venue), and I'm racking up a mental tally of swag to purchase, should it be available. All that's left is to triple- and quadruple-check my itinerary, save a little spare cash for Japantown, and put those GLAY albums in my stereo on 'repeat'.
I think I've found myself a new (to me) fandom-- Transformers just refuses to let go of my head. It's a bit frustrating, though, since 1) I'm a bit late to the party and 2) apparently finding quality fanfiction is like shoe shopping: Time-consuming and usually fruitless. The Saiyuki fandom has spoiled me worse than I realized. There's a ton of material out there, though, and at least it's not quite as huge as, say, Harry Potter, but it's been around for a very long time. We'll see how long it holds my interest, I guess.
There's a new album among the ranks of my favorite CDs at long last: Coldplay's Viva la Vida just blew me away at first listening. I'd never heard anything by Coldplay before, except for the odd song on the radio which never really appealed to me, so this album was a real surprise. Every single track is lovely, but the title track is my favorite, along with 'Life In Technicolor'. It didn't hurt that 'Viva La Vida' almost immediately suggested itself as a sort of soundtrack for Ellen Kushner's novel The Privilege of the Sword, although I hope it doesn't stick so completely that I can't listen to it without conjuring up the book. I'd prefer to just enjoy the song for its own sake, after a point.
Let's see, what else... ah, at long (long, LONG) last I am the proud owner of FLCL in its entirety! That is indeed something to celebrate, since I'd passed up buying it several times on account of being too miserly to cough up sixty bucks on the spot, and then upon its disappearance from Amazon.com I mourned it as being out of print. Happily I was wrong, and have learned a valuable lesson: When in doubt, always check AnimeNation. My collection of must-see animation is slowly becoming more respectable.
That's really all I can think of, for now... I refuse to give up entirely on my wish to visit Yokohama for the Triennale this fall, but it will depend largely upon airfares and the availability of free accommodation. Fingers are still crossed.
In the meantime, there are always more kanji to memorize.
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お久しぶりでーす！
...Yeah, this is an unfortunate habit to have fallen into. I need to make an effort to put more entries here. At the moment I'm feeling a bit chuffed: The practice sessions on the Kanji Box application (for Facebook) seem to be paying off! I've noticed just this week that it's been much easier to read my friends' blog entries, and compounds I hadn't recognized without my dictionary are clicking into place in my memory at last. Success! Must set aside thirty minutes on a daily basis to challenge myself. I WILL improve my day-to-day reading level. I will!
Other than that... there's a new Thai restaurant in town, it's very close by, and it's fabulous. Having a nearby source for curry and gyouza is a wonderful thing.
Lastly, I just bought Paprika, which I didn't get to see in the theater. I can't wait to watch it; was going to just rent it but then remembered that Satoshi Kon films always need multiple viewings to be fully appreciated (which is why I already own most of the others). At Liza's recommendation I started watching a series called Dennou Coil on YouTube; it's very interesting and different, but of course Mad House's fantastic animation and Takeshi Honda's character designs and crisp style make it a lot of fun to watch, even in a low-res YouTube window. I'm awfully behind in watching good anime these days, which is silly since I have enough time on my hands to see most of what's worth watching... next I'll have to catch up on Eureka Seven, Mushishi, and xxxHOLiC.
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I couldn't find the backups I swore I'd saved on my hard drive, so I just finished downloading webarchives of this here blog. Perhaps they were burned on an older backup CD...? At any rate, wow. This thing (and my writing/journaling style) has come a long way. I ought to seriously consider doing away with those links to individual archive pages, but every time I look at them I get all nostalgic. I am such a weenie. XD;
The Transformers DVD is now gloriously my own; I've watched it three times and gotten to all the easter eggs. The lack of deleted scenes was very disappointing-- strangely enough, I genuinely liked the humans in this story (I didn't expect to, and certainly not to like them more with each viewing) and wanted to see as much extra footage/dialogue of theirs as could be cobbled together. Here's hoping the sequel will come through for me. All that remains is to buy the score album, but that will probably have to wait a bit until all this holiday shopping is out of the way. My list of things to buy is always growing faster than I can cross off its contents.
I saw a strange thing today: In a Better Homes & Gardens magazine, a photograph of a renovated room with a large brick fireplace over which were hanging twelve or so framed Yoshitomo Nara prints (at least, I assume they're prints rather than originals). It's not often that I come across even the tiniest glimpse of his work here, so it was about the last thing I expected to see in a room photographed for something like BH&G. It was kind of cool.
Last of the random topics... my Flickr account has maxed out, so I'll likely have to upgrade to a Pro account. I really like using Flickr, but at the same time I'm loathe to encourage myself to spend much more time fiddling with it than I already have... which is silly, honestly, because it's a great resource. When I take the time to browse around I always find some great and inspiring photography, and it's far better than just aimlessly scouting the internet for photographers' sites. I just need to get with the program, so to speak, and figure out how to make the best use of Flickr's features with my own photos.
In the meantime... I wish I had someone around to help me with this self-taught CSS thing. It's not exactly one of my natural talents. My poor website deserves better!
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Well, I'm pretty sure I was one of the very last people to squeeze into a showing of Transformers before it left theaters-- boy, do I ever count myself lucky! I hadn't even realized how much I'd been prepared to be disappointed by the movie until it was over. It left me reeling, dazed and awed.
The thing is, I'm quick to admit that I still enjoy watching episodes of the cartoons I grew up with (Masters of the Universe, Thundercats, etc.) but it's always a tongue-in-cheek sort of enjoyment: I remember loving those cartoons but also get a kick out of how cheesy, how silly, or how terrible they are. I have no idea how I managed it, but I seem to have completely forgotten just how much I used to love the Transformers cartoons. The difference is that it turns out I still love Transformers exactly the same way I did when I was six. No qualifications! Watching that movie didn't just bring back a fond memory of something I used to love; it was like being rocketed back in time. (Hearing Peter Cullen's voice certainly helped.)
I was reminded of something a friend once said to me, during a discussion of precisely why Transformers was a good show: Optimus Prime is the ultimate 'good guy'. He's a hero not because of some ulterior motive or crucial turning point in his past, or in spite of some darker side, but simply because it's who he is, in much the same way that Megatron is the 'bad guy'. Simple. And I'd expected that to have worn thin over the last twenty years, but watching that movie I felt exactly the same starry-eyed elation I remembered from those six A.M. cartoons. Turns out Optimus Prime is still my hero. I could do worse.
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Instead of going to Bele Chere last night, we went to see the Simpsons movie. I probably saved some cash, and we laughed really hard. (I'd feel more disappointed about missing Bele Chere altogether, but I dislike going after dark, and on Sundays there are far too many children and usually fewer food options-- and of course the food is my main concern. Ah well.)
There don't seem to be very many movies coming out soon that look more than 'interesting' to me. Rush Hour 3 is the only one that comes immediately to mind... a bit depressing, that. (Not that I don't really enjoy Jackie Chan films, just that /surely/ there's more to look forward to? Summer's not even halfway over!)
Not much else to say-- I need to keep reading The Snow Fox, and finish up some more letters to put in the mail.
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I have the best sempai in the whole wide world. :) (Sometimes, I think she can read my mind.)
I read some of Shiga Naoya's short stories recently, and they really were impressive. My favorite Japanese fiction to date, actually, with the possible exception of Banana Yoshimoto's Tsugumi. 'The Shopboy's God' and 'An Incident' were particularly beautiful, I thought. Now, though, I'm trying my hand at Basho's 'Oku no Hosomichi' and it's like trying to read Shakespeare without knowing the first thing about Greek mythology-- every other sentence requires a desperate plunge into the footnotes. I'm afraid I'll have to read it twice before I can cruise through and attempt to appreciate the imagery properly! (And to think I was proud of myself for becoming familiar with some of the more conventional poetic euphemisms, like drenched sleeves. Ahaha.)
In other news, there's this book the whole world seems to be reading right now... the internet (by which I mean LiveJournal) is strangely quiet. It's kind of awesome to know that practically everyone I know is reading the same book this weekend. Week. Man, I hope more people finish it soon, I'm going crazy sitting on my thoughts. Mostly, though, it's just hard to convince myself that that was really The End of the Harry Potter series. I don't think I've ever been so attached to a series of books that was still being published when I discovered it, before, so it's a very strange feeling: Like leaving a wonderful place you won't ever see again. There are very few experiences I enjoy more than looking forward to, and reading for the first time, a new book that I know is going to captivate me and whose characters I know I'll love. Usually I have to make do with single novels or trilogies, but this time there were seven, and I had to wait a very long time for the last three. The upshot of that being, I became much more attached to the characters than I would have had I read them all over the course of a few weeks. Now I'll have to find someplace new to visit, but it's hard to wrap my brain around that just yet.
Of course, watching Sense and Sensibility was probably not the best way to attempt distracting myself from thoughts of Book 7. Alan Rickman-- er, that is, Colonel Brandon-- is so kind! So discreet! So incredibly handsome in black trousers and overcoats!
...Which reminds me. Snape's outfit in the OotP movie is beyond awesome. Just thought I'd mention.
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Ah, I'd feel guiltier about neglecting the poor pita for nearly a year, except for the fact that I've done almost nothing of any interest. But I /did/:
Visit a friend in Chicago, and see the Tutankhamun exhibit at the Field Museum. That was definitely a check on the list of Things To See Before You Die.
Cook lots of pasta and stir-fry dishes, and figure out how to make fried rice in a non-Japanese kitchen.
Watch a ridiculous number of movies.
Become addicted to Doctor Who (well, the new series, anyway).
I have been slowly but surely organizing myself, reading what I've always meant to read, psyching myself up to move, and now it's time to organize my cobwebby corner of the internet as well. Hopefully this will include a reincarnation of my website-- I've got my fingers crossed.
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Today ended amazingly-- after dull work and uneventful (happily) babysitting, I hopped online and remembered that I needed to mail Suzanne-- so I get on MSN and there she is, and there Kate is, and they're on the phone talking about me (so they say, ahaha) and then Suzanne calls me, and we talk for ages about everything and nothing and Japan things, and then Kate calls and we do the same. It was almost as good as all three of us having a conversation together, I swear. :) I so needed that.
Balance has been restored to the universe; now I go to sleep. Tomorrow, I make okonomiyaki!
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Holy cabin fever, Batman!
............
... I really really miss living by myself.
... oh who am I kidding, I also miss my tiny kitchen full of Japanese snacks.
A LOT.
(But mostly I just miss it because it was all mine.)
And dear God in heaven do I ever miss riding my bicycle.
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current music: Mika Nakashima, 'Glamorous Sky'
Contents: One Japan vs. Croatia soccer match + one nice long phone conversation with Liza + chicken salad sandwiches and watermelon = a very good Sunday. :D
I think I'll finish it off with an episode or two of Honey & Clover.
(We watched MST3K last night too; must have more of that soon. Good times.)
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Holy cow. Um, I'm alive?
XD I've mostly just been reading. Lots of reading. And still 'catching up' on all the movies I didn't get to watch for two years-- plus some. I've become a DVD commentary junkie, of sorts. And I'm slowly building my Leiji Matsumoto animation collection... doing my best!
It's kind of frustrating to tell yourself 'oh, I shouldn't buy these books, I should get them from the library instead' and then find out that the county doesn't /have/ them. I know my tastes in reading material have been getting more obscure, but it doesn't keep me from feeling let-down, a little. I miss my Buncombe County Library card! But I'm finding other books in the meantime-- history, mostly, there's one on India that I think I'm going to check out next time I go, but they did have Kij Johnson's newest novel as well. So it's not that big of a deal. I just wish they had more of those books that seemed to abound when I was little, the big ones full of photos and chapters on geology and ancient civilizations, and rainforests and volcanoes. Now they're all outdated or just plain missing from the shelves... is it because nobody's ordering them, or because nobody's writing them? I hope it's just the former.
I'm missing Japan so much, I finally started noticing the things I had wanted to come back to: fresh air wherever I go, not just in the heart of nowhere; green green trees and grass instead of concrete and little stunted shrubs; not having to mentally exhaust myself five days a week; REAL and INEXPENSIVE FRUIT. (Peaches are coming next month! South Carolina peaches!) And space to sprawl! Although I don't actually /want/ to let myself 'sprawl' too much now, if that makes any sense. I liked some of that discipline that was imposed on my movements, the ways I held myself and arranged my belongings. It made sense, and it made me pay attention. I like paying attention; it means I make fewer blunders and lose fewer things.
Ah, but I do miss Yasuragi-tei. Even when the weather's gorgeous here, and I can sit outside and see the trees and the mountains, I wish that I could ride my bicycle along that path under the trees and the willow-branches, and see the buildings go by, and the boats. I'm a mountains kind of person, but I really did enjoy being by the sea. It's just too bad it wasn't a more natural coast. Nonetheless, I loved knowing it was there.
I do wonder if I should try to live on Sado... as a JET? Could one do that, without having to drive a car? I'd hope so, but I can see where it might not work out. Still, the idea of it appeals to me... mountains, snow, sea, and lovely little towns. Failing that, Nara would be a nice place to be, while so many people I love are nearby. I don't know. But I do know that I need to try my original plan first, or else I'll never get ANYthing done. So I'm just toying with daydreams, really. It's always been one of my favorite hobbies; the subject matter's just different now. It's relaxing, though. I mean, what could be /more/ relaxing than Sado in the spring? Or summer, even... or Nara, in any season? Even when it was too hot to sleep, I loved the cicadas and the sounds of the deer... and knowing there were whole mountains covered with trees, just up the road. It's a wonderful feeling. I can't wait for the cicadas to start singing here.
In the meantime, there's plenty of drawing to do, and scraping-together of money as well. More than that, it's silly to think I know what I want until I go and take a stab at it. I think too much. (So it's good to watch movies, instead!) I'm just enjoying being able to see my (Asheville) friends whenever I like.
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As usual, instead of being up-to-date I'm rambling about stuff that happened a year ago. XD Better late than never, I guess!
One Saturday for lunch Liza and I went to one of the restaurants in Billboard Place-- the Italian place with the white chairs and wooden walls, it was. We had the lunch set with bread, salad, pasta with capers, and dessert. We'd never had capers before, but they were really good. We were totally stuffed, too. After that we wandered around BP for a little bit, window-shopping, then Liza had to go back to teach and I continued for another hour or so on my own. I love BP on Saturdays-- my weekend was close enough to make little difference, and I had time to relax and not be irritated with the Saturday shopping crowds (which were more interesting to watch, anyway). A couple of the shops on the second floor near the back of the building were my favorites-- mango and another one whose name I don't recall, right next door. Very retro-elegant and different-looking. There was one jacket in mango, a dusty midnight velvet, that I really wanted. It had strange pockets and long sleeves with lots of buttons, but it was so expensive! (Everything in that shop was expensive. And elaborate.) The shop next to it had amazing blazers (for guys, but I liked them best) and really interesting blouses. I still wish I'd been able to get a jacket or guy's shirt with a rampant griffin or lion on it; I loved that look.
One Saturday in late spring the weather got really warm and sunny, and we wanted to be outside. So we bought lunch in Isetan, potato salad and noodles and dumplings, and took it to the river to sit on a bench. Then we unrolled Etsu's picnic bag/blanket and took off our shoes and socks, and lay on the bank soaking up the sun and fresh air. It was so peaceful, and everybody was out enjoying themselves. Eating lunch by the river was always the best way to unwind.
There was a Monday last winter when Will and I had to meet Meiko and Liza in Furumachi for our haircuts, so we walked together across the bridge and I followed Will-- snow was so thick and falling so fast, I could barely see! Nothing looked familiar, it was all so covered in white silence. It was really cold and wet, so it was awfully nice to reach the black-and-white apartment and take off our wet shoes and coats and sit back on the couch with the radio playing. Will got his hair cut first, then he took photos of mine being cut. After we finished and cleaned up, Meiko took us all in her little VW over to the restaurant 37, behind the shinkansen tracks. In all that snow the little white building looked buried, and the empty inside with those old exposed beams and white walls was cozy and quiet. We sat at the big trestle table in the back alcove, and had pasta with cream sauce and bacon, and cream sauce and mushrooms, and beer and wine. It was delicious!
That reminds me: The Saturday night I spent with Takeshi and his friend Satoru(?), we ate at 37 too (and sat at the same table). We all had imported beer and three different kinds of pasta, and the conversation was hilarious. Takeshi's friend was really nice and funny (and his English was great). Then we walked to Don Kihote and poked around, messing with all the weird merchandise.
Another Saturday with Liza, we went back to my apartment and watched a couple of Samurai Champloo episodes. That's what was great about my Saturday schedule-- the worst was over first, then I had all the time in the world to get in my weekend frame of mind, and even get things done before I had to teach again. In retrospect it was far better than teaching on Mondays, although the three-day weekends would have been an equal trade, I still think. But Saturdays were good days at work, mostly because Liza was there too, and we could get lunch at Isetan and go to the river, or go to Cappricosa's or KFC and eat in Benten Park, or try some new place nearby.
I wonder if they're done 'renovating' Benten Park. The cherry trees there are so tall and pretty, it would be a shame if nobody can sit and enjoy them this spring.
Hmm... I think I've got enough out of my system for a while. I'll edit this entry with more details, anyway. Time to write some letters now.
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Er... nothing to see here. Sorry. I'll have a real post as soon as I can get my thoughts together. XD;
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2. 誘惑
3. グロリアス
4. 生きてく強さ
5. GIANT STRONG FAUST SUPER STAR
6. STARLESS NIGHT
7. AMERICAN INNOVATION
8. Lock on you
9. SORRY LOVE
10. HOWEVER
11. 口唇
12. 彼女の"Modern…"
13. SHUTTER SPEEDSのテーマ
14. ピーク果てしなく ソウル限りなく
15. BEAUTIFUL DREAMER
1. SOUL LOVE
2. ROCK'N'ROLL SWINDLE
3. Suffragette City
4. ACID HEAD
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