The goal will never come, but it will be much farther away if we don't walk towards it.
Practice is a means of inviting the perfection desired. -Martha Graham
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Wednesday, May 7, 2014
A Medicinal Conclusion
A short while ago I was in my apartment and I picked up my phone to a number I didn't recognize. It's not uncommon that I miss phone calls from an unknown number. I don't have voicemail (because that's a little intimidating in Japan and isn't needed enough to justify the extra cost), and I usually assume it is a wrong number. But this time I answered and pieced together the meaning of a very excited voice on the other end. It was the medicine man.
It has been well over a year since the pharmaceutical company came to my door and somehow convinced me to take a box of medicine in an old house system of making first aide available. Mostly painkillers and bandaids from what I can gather, the idea was that they would check the box every few months and then I would pay for what I had used. I didn't really understand this at the time, but it's fun to participate in Japanese activities so I thought I would give it a try and go along with it. They were very persuasive, especially for not speaking the same language. Maybe I'm easy.
It sat in my closet for 14 months until this gentleman actually got a hold of me. I told him I was in my apartment right then and he excitedly decided to come right away. Three minutes later he was at my door. I brought him the box and said I hadn't used anything. We kept saying things to one another, having parallel conversations, neither one of us wanting to be rude enough to outright give in and say we didn't understand. But luckily, our game of enthusiastic charades paid off. I was able to express that I will never use this medicine because I don't understand it, and because I will be going back to America in about the same amount of time that I have had this box unchecked by your company, maybe it would be a good idea if you took it back with you.
He nodded his head excited, kneeling the whole while in my entrance hallway with all his papers and handheld computer, calculating the things in the box, saying lots of things enthusiastically, some that I understood, some I didn't. He said he was very surprised, he had never had a foreign customer before. Boo.
Eventually he had done his calculations and pulled out his portable printer, barely larger than a ruler. He sent the information from his computer to it, and printed out a form for me to keep as a souvenir, along with his business card. I feel very lucky to be able to keep something from this experience, though I don't anticipate I'll need to contact him to play this game again. But then this week has been slow.
It has been well over a year since the pharmaceutical company came to my door and somehow convinced me to take a box of medicine in an old house system of making first aide available. Mostly painkillers and bandaids from what I can gather, the idea was that they would check the box every few months and then I would pay for what I had used. I didn't really understand this at the time, but it's fun to participate in Japanese activities so I thought I would give it a try and go along with it. They were very persuasive, especially for not speaking the same language. Maybe I'm easy.
It sat in my closet for 14 months until this gentleman actually got a hold of me. I told him I was in my apartment right then and he excitedly decided to come right away. Three minutes later he was at my door. I brought him the box and said I hadn't used anything. We kept saying things to one another, having parallel conversations, neither one of us wanting to be rude enough to outright give in and say we didn't understand. But luckily, our game of enthusiastic charades paid off. I was able to express that I will never use this medicine because I don't understand it, and because I will be going back to America in about the same amount of time that I have had this box unchecked by your company, maybe it would be a good idea if you took it back with you.
He nodded his head excited, kneeling the whole while in my entrance hallway with all his papers and handheld computer, calculating the things in the box, saying lots of things enthusiastically, some that I understood, some I didn't. He said he was very surprised, he had never had a foreign customer before. Boo.
Eventually he had done his calculations and pulled out his portable printer, barely larger than a ruler. He sent the information from his computer to it, and printed out a form for me to keep as a souvenir, along with his business card. I feel very lucky to be able to keep something from this experience, though I don't anticipate I'll need to contact him to play this game again. But then this week has been slow.
 |
| thanks for the good times |
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
Eating Beans with Chopsticks Kind of Day
When I'm in Japan, and have an afternoon with some time, I sometimes eat my beans with chopsticks while laboriously translating kanji from food containers using a new website I found and google translate. Today I slowly deciphered the label of some rice seasoning that had been sitting, almost gone, on my refrigerator for about 4 months. "Please use soon after opening." Whoops. I also finally decoded, "Please refrigerate after opening." Luckily, I'm still here. Stronger everyday.
Monday, May 5, 2014
Children's Day in Japan
Some winters can be really hard. How many winters will I have in my life and what will they ask of me?
My grandfather has been through many winters and surely this one asked a lot of him. Every time I speak with my parents I ask them how he is doing, wishing that there wasn't so much distance between us. But over the past few months, I've been hearing better and better news. Yesterday my parents told me that he had gotten back on his motorized scooter and was riding around the neighborhood. My father said that my mother had gotten him a hat with a cord so that he'd be protected from the sun and it wouldn't blow away. And they are going to get him a walker attachment for the back of the scooter so that he can get off and walk around at the places where his whim takes him.
Learning from his winters. The joy of spring.
My grandfather has been through many winters and surely this one asked a lot of him. Every time I speak with my parents I ask them how he is doing, wishing that there wasn't so much distance between us. But over the past few months, I've been hearing better and better news. Yesterday my parents told me that he had gotten back on his motorized scooter and was riding around the neighborhood. My father said that my mother had gotten him a hat with a cord so that he'd be protected from the sun and it wouldn't blow away. And they are going to get him a walker attachment for the back of the scooter so that he can get off and walk around at the places where his whim takes him.
Learning from his winters. The joy of spring.
Sunday, May 4, 2014
Searching a Timeless Day
When the world ceases to ask things of me, I ask things of myself. The wind is calling, the sun is beckoning. Find me, find me.
Saturday, May 3, 2014
A New Way to Start the Day
Perhaps it's Japan's distance from the west that makes things like granola a bit of a mystery. There is a paucity of breakfasts cereals and grains in general, but the recreation of these western classics is often intriguing. In the past I've tried green tea and sweet potato cornflakes, and enjoyed bean and tofu granola, but this may be the most unconventional yet. Vegetable granola.
But why not? Just like it's bean/tofu predecessor, it is quite delicious. It just takes a bit to switch from the expectation of fruity nutty granola to the taste of peppers, carrots, tomatos, green beans, and pumpkin. Thank you, Japan, for opening another world of possibilities.
Friday, May 2, 2014
A Tour Concludes
Our tour has now both officially and unofficially closed. After a post-tour tour to Yokohama for a filming of Sado-san's TV show, "Daime no Nai Ongakki," we are now home (well, most of us). I experienced a commuter flight to Tokyo yesterday morning, an afternoon of tech rehearsals and a live filming in the evening, a walk through the park by the water in Yokohama, a post concert toast with the orchestra and crew and cello get-together (it was great to play with them for all 15 performances of Russian music) and my first Japanese overnight bus experience, complete with blankets, free wifi, and curtains to block out the light. We arrived in Osaka at 7am and I had 6 hours to enjoy before my cello arrived at HPAC at 1pm. So I enjoyed Osaka and Osaka Castle in the morning light.
 |
| ferris wheel with large digital clock in nearby amusement park |
 |
| by the water |
 |
| love in the shadows |
 |
| sky over the water |
 |
| modernity in Yokohama |
 |
| morning Tae Kwon Do in Osaka Castle Park |
 |
| flowers venders and the castle in the distance |
 |
| field trip! |
 |
| water surrounding the castle |
 |
| good mix |
 |
| opera banners at HPAC on to the next project |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)