Monday September 5, 6:37 p.m.

Recently, I've been listening a lot to Taeko Onuki albums...she's the one on the right with her "Romantique" album in 1980. Internationally, she may be known for her version of "Shall We Dance" from the Japanese movie of the same name with Koji Yakusho. Just above me is "Boy Soprano" made by singer Miharu Koshi...if you had read my blog last year or earlier this year, you would've known that I had also gone on a small slow spending spree of her albums for a while.

The interesting point about these two is that both had started out firmly in the late 70s as City Pop singers with happy-go-lucky synths and guitars wailing behind them, and both had hit a wall musically not too long after. Onuki switched over to a new label with her "Mignonne" album, the first of her French titles, only to have nothing happen. She disappeared for about 2 years to do a re-think about her career. Koshi had continued a little longer in the same vein but also came to that vital fork in the road when things started getting stale for her.

It took members of the Yellow Magic Orchestra to kick-start the two singers into a whole new direction. Haruomi Hosono helped Koshi move into a virtually avant-garde or avant-pop mode which got her music emulating nearly operatic arias and the German language. Meanwhile, Oscar winner Ryuichi Sakamoto got Onuki to move into a more French idiom of pop and chanson. Arguably, Onuki's music in the early 80s was the more approachable of the two, but both took on a patina of synth-pop thanks to The YMO's influence.

I can hardly say this about other J-pop songs but I think Onuki's oeuvre approaches that of beautiful music as hard as it may be to imagine in a world of Arashi and AKB 48. I would gladly recommend any of her stuff to foreigners. Her music now spans nearly 40 years. And with me owning one of her Best albums and some of her originals, I can hear how she has changed over time. With her light and fast City Pop work to her richer and more powerful French Pop and then finally to slightly frailer but even more tenderhearted recent material, Taeko Onuki is one of those underrated geniuses in Japan.

Monday September 5, 6:22 p.m.

Just a couple of lessons today. I had Mr. Swank for the first time in several weeks at his company earlier today. He was looking a lot more sprightly than his wife did back on Friday. He had lost weight and added a pepper goatee. Obviously, his month in Hawaii did wonders for him. He did say that he was mostly eating salad although he wouldn't admit to a crash diet. He did say, though, that he and his family had gone for hamburgers and Korean BBQ a couple of times. And he gave a souvenir in the form of a Mr. Spock Christmas tree ornament. But the killer was a killer app on his iPad...he was able to download software which converted his iPad into a Geordi LaForge PADD, complete with the late Majel Barrett's voice as the Enterprise computer. He was one happy fellow.

I've got Miss Genki in about half an hour and then I'm done.

The bossman's response to my resignation of sorts was pretty good considering. He is sorry to see me go, and in fact, he related to me that one other teacher who only goes to in-company classes was heading home for basically the same reason. With that done, I can now inform the Sisters of State next about my departure.

Monday September 5, 6:15 p.m.
The day after the major pork gluttony at Otandon, I headed off to Futako-Tamagawa to teach The Jyuppies. But that ride from Otemachi to Futako-Tamagawa Station on the Hanzomon Line was one of the longest ones in my life, thanks to some sort of gastrointestinal difficulty. The stabbing pain just kept coming in waves. I'm not sure what it was....bad milk, didn't cook the pork long enough, whatever...I just knew that the minute of reckoning was coming up soon...or down...soon. By the time I got off at the destination, I was breaking out in a cold sweat and wondering if I would be able to even teach the couple. Luckily, there was the washroom in the RISE satellite building which housed the bicycle parking lot. Let's say I got a lot of stuff off my chest, so to speak, but the pain was still echoing through me. I kinda realized what women must go through with menstrual pains. I grabbed for my aspirin....which said very boldly on the label that this was good for menstrual pains...and swallowed a couple of them down. Sure enough, within 10 minutes, I was right as rain. I taught The Jyuppies as if nothing had happened. I would've gladly done a commercial for the company for no money at that point.

Monday September 5, 6:10 p.m.

Japan seems to be emulating the United States in terms of their fates with recent storms. Most of New York City managed to escape the worst of Hurricane Irene despite the dire "Armageddon"-type hype. Tokyo also escaped the worst of Typhoon Talas despite its seeming on-target heading for the Kanto. Instead the storm slammed into central Japan instead. And the destruction was horrific. It basically ripped into Wakayama, Mie and Nara Prefectures like a gigantic water saw with several dead and dozens missing. NHK's Sunday news at 7 did the rare 1-hour newscast, almost totally devoted to one of the worst storms in recent memory. It was almost like watching a different country.

Monday September 5, 2:44 p.m.
It was the first time I'd ever been to Hatchobori in my nearly 17 years of residency in The Big Sushi. I could imagine the reason. The neighbourhood on the Hibiya Line is a commercial one and so the sidewalks are mostly lined with office buildings. And of course, on Saturday, it was pretty much dead there. However, The Bohemian invited me for a bit of shabu-shabu at this Korean place called Otandon. The kanji is right there.

These are the fixins for shabu-shabu. There is the plate filled with veggies such as tofu, Chinese cabbage and mushrooms. But the main star here is the thinly-sliced pieces of pork. The Bohemian told me more than once, as his apparently obsessive-compulsive nature forces him to, that this was the prized Yamato Pork (yes, I can hear the "Star Blazers" theme even now). Even the fat is delicious.

Although this might look more like nabe one-pot cooking, we did our shabu-shabu techniques which just meant swishing the pork slices in the boiling broth for about 5~10 seconds before dipping them into either the ponzu or sesame sauces. Both are equally delicious. I think the two of us went through about 5 or 6 plates of the pork before we both cried "Uncle!" The Bohemian, being the Bohemian, smuggled the last plate of pork along with the veggies into a plastic bag, so that his family could partake it the next day.

Finally, we wrapped up with a bowl of makgeolli, the currently trendy Korean liquor. It looks milky but it's made of fermented rice so it can be a country cousin to sake. It's very easy to drink which can be a dangerous thing. And sure enough I suffered a bit of a hangover the next day.

During our 4-hour feast, I told The Bohemian that I would be leaving for Canada permanently at the end of the year. Things got awkward for a few minutes as he took it all in. Of all of the people I had to inform, he and the bossman were the ones I was worried the most about. The Bohemian had always told me....repeatedly, as is his wont....that he always prized my friendship. Telling him my plans was a bombshell and so he told me for several minutes....again, repeatedly...that he was very sad about my decision to leave, and entreated me to call him as much as possible in the remaining weeks to go out for dinner.

I'll be honest with you. As you might guess, he likes me more than I like him. I mean he's a friend and all, but he has had those tics about him which annoy me to no end. His obsessive-compulsiveness is one thing. And he once had this rather unfortunate predilection to flirt with the waitresses at any restaurant we went to when he had absolutely no reason to do so. All he did was embarrass everyone within the blast radius: me, him and the waitress. And I think he still has the heart and mind of a 12-year-old boy...he has an underdeveloped filter when it comes to what he says. Still, he has that rather odd puppy-like devotion to me...he's even offered to help me move.

As he admits himself cheerfully/ruefully, he's a bit of a loser. He hasn't had a steady job in more than 4 years and depends on his parents for the basics. He also told me for the first time on Saturday that he doesn't get along with the vast majority of his fellow Japanese...which explains his departure from his old job at IBM. And he's been kinda ousted from various organizations: a school here, a gym there and even an Internet social group. He told me that he didn't want to belong to any group that would openly make rumours about him, but I think there's also another side to this story. Then again, I'm not exactly all that far different from him....I just have a much stronger moral compass.

Still, that Saturday night at Otandon, we probably had our deepest conversation in our long complicated relationship. We went into the motivations of my departure, the reasons behind his ostracism and our opinions on life abroad. I'd always thought that The Bohemian had a bit of a racist streak within him, and when he made a disparaging generalization about Mexicans, I put my foot down...nicely but firmly. I warned him about making overgeneralizations about different ethnic groups and he listened respectfully. I don't know if he changed his mind about his opinions...I frankly doubt it...but he has no doubt about what mine are.

Despite everything about him, though, I hope he can find some measure of satisfaction in his life. He's not that much younger than me...in his early 40s....maybe that window of opportunity for the "good life" has closed forever, but he's gotta find some sort of balance somehow.

Saturday September 3, 8:30 a.m.

Listened to the 2nd of my 4 CD purchases of City Pop last night. This time, it was Junko Ohashi's "Full House" originally released in 1979. Cozy, who owns his own copy, told me it was a bit jazzier than her other albums of that time. I think he meant "jazzy" in the broadest sense of the word, though. If I were to be more specific, I would treat the album as VERY funky. And in the liner notes, the singer herself had requested her writers to make it more like Chaka Khan. And there is a lot there that reminds me of ol' Chaka. Again, Junko belts it out of the park...in fact, so much so that I had to lower the volume even further on my Discman. The album is separated into a "Funky" and "Mellow" sides, but honestly speaking, there really isn't much of a difference. The horn section dominates on both A and B sides, with a couple of ballads thrown in.

Well, it looks like Typhoon Talas will probably bypass Tokyo and Chiba entirely, although the winds did whip up a bit last night. But when I came to the I-Cafe this morning, it was warm, sunny and humid. Not exactly weather to hunker down in. I'm here for the next several hours and then it's off to see The Bohemian for shabu-shabu tonight in the Hatchobori neighbourhood on the Hibiya Line. He will be the 2nd of two people I will inform about my permanent departure, the first being the bossman. Not sure how either will take the news. However, I am somewhat relieved that MB did take the news pretty calmly.

PM Noda has picked out his Cabinet. Nothing special to report except the attestation ceremony at the Imperial Palace and the customary showing-off of the Prime Minister and his crew on the grand steps are becoming a disturbingly annual custom.

Friday September 2, 5:08 p.m.

It's been quite the day of commuting today. Over to Funabashi to see The Bass, then across to Hiroo for Swank, then to Nihombashi for The OL and finally back to Nakano-Sakaue to teach that new student, The Kimono Nurse...that last student will be here in about 20 minutes. And to add on top of that, there was some major disturbance on the Chuo/Sobu Lines which screwed up the Tozai Line. The weak point in the Tokyo transit system is something like the global economy. If the Chuo Line catches a cold, the Tozai Line sneezes. In any case, the Tozai was slow and packed...just like constipation.

Looks like The Egg won't take no for an answer. He wants to reserve my apartment as his hotel for next next week even though my place is now pretty much at fleabag level. Ach...his funeral. Still, it will be good to see him and his wife on this side of the Pacific.

Typhoon Talas seems to have fizzled out at least where Tokyo is concerned. We've had a few spritzes but nothing major in precip, and certainly no winds. In a way, I kinda feel like Anderson Cooper in Lower Manhattan last weekend when Hurricane Irene kinda stood him up.

Anyways, The Kimono Nurse is here.

Thursday September 1, 9:22 p.m.

Heard a huge cascade of precipitation roaring down the walls outside while I was teaching that fellow for his presentation. Not sure if it's still raining now. Still, I've heard that Typhoon Talas may be veering around the Kanto, so we may get the rain but not so much the winds.

And I got to see Mrs. Thursday for the first time in 3 weeks. Not surprisingly, we ended up gabbing for virtually the entire class on the usual "NCIS" but also on "Glee" for which she has become a casual fan...not exactly on the same level as Miss Genki. I also got a couple of juices from her as an omiyage from her trip to Camp Yokota a couple of weeks ago. Nothing like Gatorade Perform 02 and Lime Diet Coke.

I will now head on home and look forward to a busy day tomorrow. I've got The Bass, Swank, The OL and that new nurse who I gave a model lesson to yesterday.

Thursday September 1, 5:40 p.m.
Had my 90 minutes with Paddy at the nearby Vie De France cafe/bakery. Paddy has definitely gotten padded up in the 18 months since I'd seen him last. That British cooking (?) must be very filling.
We spoke on the whole spectrum of things: my permanent departure, his future in London, and movies & TV shows. It was good to have had the chat with him. He actually had just come back from The Cat's place up in Karuizawa which saved me any potential guilt trip since I basically have given up on any chance to travel up there one last time to see them due to my financial situation. Unfortunately, he's back to the UK on Saturday which means that was probably the final time I'll ever see him in Japan again.
Well, I've got my student from the insurance company in about 15 minutes, and then Mrs. Thursday will arrive for the first time in 3 weeks. She had a test to complete so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she passed.

Thursday September 1, 1:15 p.m.

Started to reap the benefits of my CD purchases this morning by listening to Taeko Onuki's "Cliche". As I've mentioned before, "Cliche" is the 4th album in her "French Titles" period in the early 80s. I've yet to get the first three albums, but after listening to this very short CD (just 36 minutes), I can say with some confidence that it probably has the most amount of French influence. A number of the tunes have that lilt and ennui of French Pop, thanks to the arrangement by Ryuichi Sakamoto and Jean Musy. One track, "Hikari no Carnaval" has the smack of chanson, a favored genre of music in Japan. Although Onuki keeps the songs within the French idiom, she does play around with the beat. The opening track "Kuro no Clair" has a very epic, lush feel with those synthesized strings, but the second track, "Shikisai Toshi" is a cute, bouncy piece. Very much a keeper.

It may be September, but the humidity is still killing us here in Tokyo. It's just the prelude to Typhoon Talas. It's actually not going to attack the Kanto head-on as originally forecast but the right edge will still give a mighty hip check to us in the next couple of days. I think it'll be the folks in the Kinki Region that'll get the brunt of the storm.

September 1, along with last month's O-Bon season, will have an especially deeper meaning this year because of March 11th's quake. Today just happens to be the 88th anniversary of The Great Kanto Earthquake which brought down Tokyo like a pyramid of cards. The day has been annually been the time for earthquake drills all throughout the country. And the capital has put on the largest drills ever made starting from this morning. PM Kan, in what will probably be his last big act as the leader of the country, was taking care of things while soon-to-be former Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda was in the control centre before he takes over the reins as Prime Minister.

As for me, I've got social issues to contend with. The Egg has been keeping me updated about his plans for coming to Japan next week. And Paddy will be seeing me this afternoon for coffee between my lessons with The Bossa Novan and yet another presentation student from the S-guys. Paddy's on a brief business trip from London and he's coming up from Shinagawa to meet me. I'm not sure if The Cat has informed him about my permanent departure from the scene.

However, I have sent word to the Movie Gang about my situation. I'm waiting for the fallout.

Wednesday August 31, 4:58 p.m.
Well, Yoshihiko Noda has officially become the 95th Prime Minister; yep, I was off by 5 Prime Ministers when I made my last entry about him yesterday. So, the morning wide shows were all vivisecting him, finding out what makes this guy tick. The media went to see his younger brother, who is a councilman in Funabashi City Hall, and then they openly wondered aloud about the relatively low-key wife of the PM. They've already gotten into the habit of referring to her as Japan's First Lady. She's already made an impression by not making one. Two PM's ago, there was PM Hatoyama's wife, a former member of the Takarazuka acting troupe, who definitely came across as being sweet but loopy....especially with that Chibi Maruko-chan hairdo and that bubble skirt that she'd worn when she and her hubby had visited the United Nations. Then there was PM Kan's wife who was frankly a bit of a battleaxe with her stinging comments about her husband and his compatriots. Taming of the shrew, indeed. But the new PM's wife has yet to be seen since her husband's surprise win on Monday. And the production assistants for all of the networks had a heck of a time trying to find any footage or photos of the new First Lady. They had to settle for a few-second shot of her beside her husband painting in one eye of a daruma taken all the way back in 1993.

Wednesday August 31, 4:41 p.m.

It's been a muggy one here in The Big Sushi today. The temperature kept itself below 30 degrees but the humidity was at least 70%. Hurricane Talas is also making its way up toward us; should be here by tomorrow night.

Since I did get my monthly stipend, I used some of it to add to my moving costs in the form of some more J-Pop CDs of the 70s and 80s. At Tower Records in Shibuya, I bought a couple of albums. One is called "Flying" by Sumiko Yamagata. I'd never heard of the lady in all my 30 years of J-Pop enthusiasm until I came across her in that "Japanese City Pop" book. Cozy showed me a few of her early albums that he just had sitting around in his office. Apparently, she started out as a folkie judging by her looks: fluffy sweater vest, short bangish hair and bell bottoms. But as the book writes, with "Flying", she made that transformation into City Pop princess: a more mature blown-dry hairdo and silky dress. Also according to the write-up, her music took on that more modern AOR approach. Kinda reminds me how Olivia Newton-John metamorphosed from Australian country music kid to American disco queen.

Also at Tower Records, I picked up another one of Junko Ohashi's albums called "Full House". Cozy also had this album and he told me that this disc was a bit more jazzier so I should be enjoying this one for sure. Then I took the Hanzomon Line up to the bookstore area of Jimbocho where my favorite old music haunt, Tacto, was. There, I quickly snatched up The Best of Hitomi Tohyama for a heavy 6,300 yen. There were other original albums by her at far less expensive prices but only the 2-CD set had the song "Our Lovely Days", the tune that spurred me to look for her in the first place. So I plunked down my yen. When I looked at the liner notes, I found out that "Our Lovely Days" was co-written by none other than Burt Bacharach himself; yep the melodic hooks definitely scream Bacharach. I also threw in another Taeko Onuki disc. "Cliche" is the 4th in her series of French titles from the 80s whose songs were arranged by Ryuichi Sakamoto. I've yet to listen to any of them since I still have to work today. But hopefully I can at least listen to a couple of tunes tonight before I hit bed. I can guarantee I won't last through an entire album since I'll probably be ready to drop out by the time I get home.

Tuesday August 30, 8:54 p.m.

Finished with S-Fluent. Did a pretty good job with his presentation but will need to vary his tone of delivery a bit more. He and his compatriots will be giving their in-company presentations tomorrow, so he (and I assume, his buddies) is feeling a bit nervous. Understandable, so I told him about envisioning his audience naked...may not have been the best advice for a guy who's married with 3 kids.

Just about ready to call it a day. I've got a pretty easy day tomorrow. Just 001 and Kirk in the evening but I plan to get out and get some CD shopping done. My latest paycheck was pretty small but I figure I can only live once, so let me die with some good music.

Tuesday August 30, 7:14 p.m.

Haven't really talked about the weather in any great detail in the last few entries. I have to say that it seems like the heat wave for Summer 2011 may be over (knocking on lots of wood). The last several days have seen warm but not excessively humid weather and the nights have been gloriously comfortable to sleep in. This time last summer, we were still in the middle of a record-smashing heat wave that lasted for another month.

But the big meterological news is that Tropical Storm/Typhoon Talas is supposedly well on its way to hit the Kanto within the next couple of days. The next three days have been showing nothing but umbrella signs. Just wonder if there will be high winds to add to the heavy precipitation. Generally, typhoons are not quite as epic as the Atlantic hurricanes but they still carry quite a punch if there is a direct hit. In the past, Okinawa was the prefecture that acted as the local whipping boy for these storms but in recent years, Typhoon Alley seems to have veered even further north into our neck of the woods.

Tuesday August 30, 6:19 p.m.

Finished up with the model lesson. Speedy just informed me that she's a lock. She's also a nurse with an interest in bossa nova, like the Bossa Novan, although she merely listens to it and not play. I just hope that the bossman doesn't get too nuts when I tell him that I will only be able to teach her for just a few months before I take off for home for good. Speaking of which, I will have to get started on that letter of resignation to deliver to him tomorrow night.

Tuesday August 30, 4:47 p.m.

Just waiting for my model student to get through her second written test. We usually have any potential students do an introductory and a Level 1 test just to get a baseline of their grammatical abilities before the actual model lesson. I've never been a big fan of doing model lessons although I will tell anyone who is checking out a conversation school as a student to demand one. Basically, it's just the usual irrational fears that bubble up within me....kinda like actors having to go to auditions.

It's been a fairly busy day although nothing compared to the five lessons of yesterday (thankfully, the 6th...Mr. Swank....did a dotakyan so I still got paid for his lesson). I had the usual session with The Beehive, so it was talk about the new Prime Minister and last week's whipping boy, Shinsuke Shimada. Then I met up with The New Yorker for the first time in about 3 weeks.

After this model lesson, I just have S-Fluent, the really good presenter to do his dry run with his presentation.

Speaking of the new Prime Minister, I found out from the Beehive that he is a local guy...in fact, he's from Funabashi City in Chiba Prefecture just next door to my home of Ichikawa. I learned of some of the lore of Yoshihiko Noda as he was going up the political ranks. As recently as a decade ago, he used to stand in front of JR Funabashi Station handing out flyers and introducing himself. Apparently, one story had him speechifying in front of a station for 13 hours straight. If he had indeed been doing that a decade ago, there is a pretty good chance that I even walked by him, although I've always made it a habit to completely ignore politicians.

I listened to some of his talk last night when he had addressed the DPJ throng soon after his runoff victory over the Industry Minister, Banri "Crybaby" Kaieda. He has a rather interesting way of giving his sentences this short but intense delivery. And he admitted that when it comes to charisma, he has little to none. In fact, he referred to himself as a dojo (stress on the 2nd syllable), a common slimy loach, and that he would never ever look like a kingyo or goldfish. That's OK by me. As long as he can somehow tackle all of the problems plaguing this nation, I can get used to dull and pedantic.

I even found out that PM Noda is a kohai of Mrs. Travel and Mrs. Alp from their old high school. Mrs. Travel, in fact, had seen the man at a reunion some years ago, and would have to agree with the man himself that he doesn't exactly stand out in a crowd. In any case, Noda has just officially been voted in as the 90th Prime Minister and now it's just getting that new Cabinet together either by Friday or next Monday.

Monday August 29, 6:34 p.m.

There has been a book out in the stores here titled "A Geek in Japan" by a Spanish fellow over the past several months. Apparently, the contents are based on this guy's blog which talks about the author's adventures and descriptions of life in this zany country with plenty of his own photos. It became one of the most popular sites in the Spanish-speaking world, which therefore begat the book. He's probably raking in the dough.
Perhaps I should re-label the title as "A Lucky Bastard Geek in Japan". I'm sure as hell not hearing anything from any greedy publishers.

Monday August 29, 6:26 p.m.

Looks like my social calendar for September is getting that special feel. After several years, The Egg and his wife will be visiting Japan from the 8th. My old friend asked if my apartment is available as the DIY B&B. Although it will sound very unwelcoming, I had to decline him. My place frankly has gone downhill over the years, and certainly women won't find it too homey. And I'm sorry, but frankly even with my best cleaning efforts, I don't think my place will just do it anymore as a crashpad. At least, The Egg gave me an out by stating that his wife preferred to find something in the form of a proper hotel near Tokyo Station. Believe me, that's fine with me.
Also, a family friend has informed me that he and his wife will be visiting at the end of next month. They won't be needing my help in terms of accommodations thankfully but I hope to see them for dinner. Plus, of course, there are the usual meetings with the Movie Gang.

Monday August 29, 6:01 p.m.

Just found out over the wire that "Ghostbusters 3", a movie that had been flitting around in the ether for years has finally gotten the official green light....with or without Bill Murray, which could be a significant plot point in the new movie.

Now I don't think the original "Ghostbusters" was a gutbuster at all...aside from one well-placed joke late in the movie, and the 2nd movie was even more in need of laughs. But I think what the two of them had was heart in terms of the characters, the special effects...and of course, that theme song (although I distinctly remember its performance on the Oscars of that year as being one of the low points in the show). In fact, I did buy the double-pack DVD set a couple of years ago and still enjoy watching at least the first one repeatedly.

Dan Ackroyd mentioned that the movie will be one where the old Ghostbusters, who now frankly have Slimer's girth, pass the baton to a new generation. Apparently one name has already been bandied about...that of Ashton Kutcher, aka Mr. Demi Moore. As for me, I wouldn't mind having the first Asian ghostbuster in the form of Masi Oka. And why not have a female ghostbuster? I think that Felice Renee Smith from "NCIS: LA" would be a nice addition.

Monday August 29, 5:08 p.m.

After Yajima's lesson, I decided to take a look up at Akihabara and was surprised to discover that there was still a hokoten going on. Apparently, the cancellation of the pedestrians' paradise was a temporary one after the March 11 earthquake.

Of course, this was the hokoten post-killing spree by that psycho a couple of years back. No performances of any kind, but at least all of us had lots of space to walk around. And the crazy cars were out. These are vehicles tricked up and decorated by otaku in tribute to their favorite characters. There were a few parked on one of the main streets which garnered quite a lot of attention by cellphone-wielding folks.

This young maid immediately shielded her face when she noticed that I was about to take a picture of her. Perhaps she is in the Maid Protection Programme.

Monday August 29, 5:01 p.m.

My gradual dissemination of my permanent departure from these shores is continuing. I informed Yajima yesterday at the end of the lesson. He kinda had this deer-in-headlights look in his eyes and there was a brief awkwardness. Of course, I knew that my private students would react in different ways but it still kinda feels bad that I have to let them know....even if I am being considerate in letting them know almost 4 months before D-Day. And then today, I let The Godfather know. He was nice enough to respond that it was too bad but he understood the situation. I still have to tell the Movie Gang, Speedy and The Sisters of State. No idea how The New Yorker or The Carolinan will take this.

Monday August 29, 4:51 p.m.

Besides the annual political winds of change, we've got the real thing happening as we speak. As labeled here on the map as Typhoons 11 and 12, the more imaginatively named Namundol and Talas are coming north. It looks like Namundol will be bothering Taiwan and mainland China, but Talas looks like it's making a straight line right for us in the Kanto. According to the timeline map in the above picture, it may strike sometime in midweek. Should be interesting. I don't think there will be quite the hype that Hurricane Irene was generating. And the hype was probably the only thing that Irene had been generating to epic levels as it relatively gently scoured through New York City. Anderson Cooper looked almost disappointed as the CNN meterologist revealed that Lower Manhattan would probably get flooded but only that. Aside from 12 hours of straight rain, Irene would basically snub The Big Apple. I can only hope that Typhoon Talas will do the same as its Atlantic big brother.

Monday August 29, 4:33 p.m.

"Allo...I bid you welcome to Maison De La Crow where you can 'ave all the crow you want to eat. May I interest you in our special for today: Japanese Prime Ministerial Candidate Crow with extra ticks and mites for extra crunchiness?"

Yup, don't bet on me for your political choices. I kinda feel like that guy who had bet all his money on The Vancouver Canucks to win The Stanley Cup in 4 straight earlier this year. I'd thought that it would be the relatively popular but dumb former Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara who was gonna get the top job in Japan with the runnerup being crybaby minister Kaieda. Instead, it was current Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda who grabbed the brass ring of Nagatacho.

But I'm not alone in at the crow buffet table. A lot of the media thought it would be a two-way race between Maehara and Kaieda. There were an unprecedented 5 nominees for the DPJ presidency which had the pundits predicting...and predicting correctly...that there would have to be a runoff vote after the initial vote since noone was probably gonna get the 200 votes needed to get that majority amongst the DPJ parliamentarians. But the surprise started when the two-way turned out to be only half-right. Maehara got left in the dust in 3rd place! And here I had been ruing that Japan was gonna get its own Dan Quayle. But then again, things were looking bad for Maehara when it had been announced that the posse of Ichiro Ozawa, the blacklisted but still potent kingmaker within the party, was gonna support Kaieda instead of Maehara.

During the runoff, The Godfather and I were having our weekly talk at the Tully's in Tameike-Sanno, and we were discussing about how the party leadership elections would go. We were both surprised (and relieved) that Maehara got dumped. But then half an hour later, the runoff results came out on The Godfather's cellphone, and in the upset, Yoshihiko Noda got the nod. So, unless there are any major surprises tomorrow such as a successful assassination, the current Finance Minister will become the future Prime Minister. And he's the guy in the center in the bottom photograph. Not exactly photogenic but as long as he's competent, I'll take him anyday. May be wishing too much here.

Thursday August 25, 5:14 p.m.

For years, I've been hearing about goya champloo, which is one of the most famous dishes in Okinawan cuisine. Its main ingredient is goya, or bitter melon, and as the name suggests, this vegetable, which looks like a warty cucumber, has got a taste which would pucker anyone's mouth if that person had the bad luck to ingest it as is.
Goya champloo is a stir-fry dish consisting of sliced goya, sliced fatty pork, tofu, eggs and bean sprouts all mixed together. I seasoned the pork with soy sauce and sake beforehand. And then I just added a bit of salt and pepper. Mrs. Alp, who was the student who had kindly presented me with the goya on Tuesday, also suggested the secret ingredient to hold it all together....soba tsuyu...the flavored dipping sauce for soba noodles. A lot of folks use miso but Mrs. Alp swears by soba tsuyu. And sure enough, the tsuyu has that combination of rich soy sauce, salt and sugar to add that kick. Since it was the first time for me to whip this stuff up, it came out a bit soupier than I had intended but still, it made for a satisfying dish on a summer day.

Thursday August 25, 4:55 p.m.

Please take a good look at this fellow. Perhaps by this time next week, he will be the new Prime Minister of Japan. His name is Seiji Maehara, and he used to be the Foreign Minister in PM Kan's government until a scandal forced him to vacate the post earlier this year.

He looks young, and is indeed young for a guy who may be getting the top job...I don't think he's even reached 50 yet. And frankly, he's a bit of a dumbass. I don't have many high hopes for Maehara. PM Hatoyama was wishy-washy, PM Kan was in over his head with all that has happened this year, but Seiji Maehara strikes me as being just plain dumb. A few years back, when he was an up-and-coming politician and the leader of the then-Opposition Democratic Party of Japan, he pulled a Chicken Little by ranting and raving over a supposed e-mail that showed a parliamentarian of the then-ruling Liberal Democratic Party in a compromising situation. The e-mail proved to be a false one and Maehara had to resign in humiliation. But second and even third chances are given liberally in Japanese politics, and Maehara came back to have posts in the Cabinet. But his time as Foreign Minister was cut short when it had been found out that he had accepted political donations from a foreign resident which is a no-no and summarily had to resign once more.

However, after another few months in the political wilderness, Maehara announced his candidacy to become leader of the party, and now the pundits are predicting that he will get it next week. Prime Minister Kan will most likely announce his resignation tomorrow since all of his conditions have been met for him to step down. It's time to pass over the bull's-eye. And since the DPJ have the majority in the Lower House, whoever gets the leadership of the DPJ gets the Prime Ministership.

Oh, I just hope he isn't our equivalent of George W. Bush.

Wednesday August 24, 8:05 p.m.

One down, one to go. Finished my lesson with 001...just the usual gab with her about the usual Arashi. I've just got Kirk and then I'll be done for the day.

Heard about Jack Layton's passing today. When I was back in Toronto in March and April, that was the first time I had actually seen anything of the leader of the NDP. People had told me that he had looked far more robust, but even at that time, he was looking fighting trim for a guy who was going through cancer. But then I saw his very final press conference on YouTube today and realized that this was a guy whose days were very numbered. During the debates for Prime Minister in the Spring, he came across as the most amiable and most likely to chum around with. But, though it sounds cold, I'm glad that he didn't become PM because of the obvious final results. I wouldn't have been able to imagine the chaos of having to go through another election to replace Layton.

Wednesday August 24, 5:41 p.m.

Since I had most of the day off, I went over to Oshiage to see how Tokyo's latest architectural behemoth was doing. Tokyo Sky Tree is now basically complete although it won't officially open until next May. The last time I'd been there was last April when it had just passed the 450 m mark. Now it's at its mature 634 metres....and with a baby brother building next to it.

Kinda too bad that I won't be here next year to see the grand opening, but then again, I had my opportunities granted when the CN Tower opened up way back in 1976.

Wednesday August 24, 4:56 p.m.

Last night at 10 p.m., a severe-looking man came into a room filled with journalists and photographers and even flashes to send the most battle-hardened media watcher into seizure. And for an hour, he held everyone spellbound as he explained his errors and deeply apologized. Nope, I am not talking about Muammar Khadafy (as if he would ever be humble in front of the world media), but about Shinsuke Shimada, probably one of the most recognized figures in the geinokai, or the Japanese world of show business.

Just imagine David Letterman in the States hosting 6 weekly TV shows with those shows scattered throughout the networks, and you'll get an idea of how prevalent Shimada is on TV. And all this doesn't include the various specials and commercials that he appears on. In Japan, there isn't that presumed barrier about TV stars appearing on rival networks that firmly exists in the United States. Anyone who is in the upper echelons of TV stardom is pretty much required to have at least a half dozen programs. Shinsuke Shimada hosts those 6 variety shows, two of which have his name stamped onto the title, and there is one of his shows tonight on Fuji-TV called "Hexagon", a quiz variety show starring some of the allegedly dumbest tarento this side of a box of table legs.

Well, those show may now be history for the next little while at least. Fuji-TV may be or may have been sweating mighty bullet trains about what to do for its 7 p.m. time slot tonight. The reason is that last night at that press conference in Shinjuku, Shimada promptly resigned from show business. And though the media attention around this resignation may have rivaled that of the departure of Johnny Carson from "The Tonight Show" in the early 90s, the circumstances were far from happy last night.

Apparently, all this has come about due to some past dalliances between Shimada and the yakuza. It had come to light in the past few days that some years ago when one of the kings of Japanese TV had been in a spot of trouble, he had got in contact with an old friend who turned out to be a gangster. That gangster, who had earlier denied that he had been one, in turn, contacted a fixer to resolve the problem. The problem was apparently resolved discreetly. It may have involved the incident in which Shimada had punched out a female manager in one of his companies back in 2004.

Well, any established contact between show business and organized crime is a definite no-no, according to the media and entertainment....although I think anyone who's been anyone in show business prior to 1985 (when the yakuza were officially considered persona non grata by the government) most likely has had some sort of relationship with the J-Mob. I've always thought that there was a bit of a buddy-buddy relationship between the two, just like Frank Sinatra and the Mafia in Las Vegas. Now, the e-mail which showed the contact between Shimada and his gangster buddy was way back almost a decade ago. But it was enough for the president of his management company, Yoshimoto Kogyo, to call him in immediately after one of his programs and discuss the matter before Shimada decided to call it quits after more than 30 years on the telly.

Shinsuke Shimada had first started out as one half of a comedy duo back in the late 70s and rode the first wave of a comic duo boom. He and his partner became regular players on a popular "Saturday Night Live"-like variety show called "Oretachi wa Hyokin-zoku". And when his duo broke up in the mid-80s, he morphed into a popular host of TV shows starting with a Best 10 music show. His quicksilver Osakan wit and stylish looks basically got him to the top of TV.

My take on him, though, was ambivalent at best. I was never a big fan of manzai comedy, and though a lot of the natives here enjoyed his straight-talking style and his occasional live chewouts of celebs and civilians (on his talk shows), I initially and up to the time of his press conference last night found him to be another arrogant self-righteous celebrity. And that incident of him clocking one of his employees far from impressed me although he did hold a press conference in which he deeply apologized. However, after seeing his press conference last night and then witnessing former actress-turned-TV personality Miho Takagi tearfully showing gratitude to him on a Fuji-TV morning wide show for all of his encouragement during a tough time in her life, I'm wondering if I should just label him as just a flawed mercurial person. Apparently, despite all of the pompous bluster that he has shown on his programs, he has also helped a lot of his junior colleagues through their careers on TV.

Shinsuke Shimada may have left the stage last night and left some huge (scheduling) holes, but I don't really think any of us have seen the last of him. Just like superheroes...and supervillains...in the comics, Japanese celebs have often found a way to return to glory. Plus, Shimada's contrition in front of the cameras does get bonus points in a society where the deepest apologies go a long way to reforming a person in front of public eyes. Still, as the reporters have said all this morning, there is still a lot of the maelstrom surrounding the departed Shimada that has yet to be revealed.

Monday August 22, 8:29 p.m.

Ahhhh....doesn't this look appetizing! A nice hearty bowl of ramen to finish off the day. Well, I would be able to eat this if it were just a bit cooler and less humid. As it is, I would probably end up melting into a puddle of cholesterol.

The reason for the picture? Well, I had my lesson with Miss Genki. And once again, we eschewed the text for something heartier. She and her sister had just come back from their Guam vacation last week and we ended up talking about what they had noshed on during their 4 days there. Baby back ribs, Chinese crab, tons of food. What else is new? Our conversation went through the myriad dishes of dim sum before we came onto the talk of ramen. And so of course, I just had to mention the Ramen Museum near Shin-Yokohama Station. For someone who adores ramen like Miss Genki, it was a bit of a shock to find out that she had never been to the Mecca of All Things Noodly. So, I took her to the website and she took down the images as if she were really eating a bowl of the stuff. As for me, I would like to go there myself one last time before I head on back to The Great White North, but I just can't be sure considering my financial picture.

Speaking of other people who have seen better days, CNN is reporting that Muammar Khadafy is currently missing. No surprise there. I think the term is "...gone into hiding". I just didn't think that the regime would fall this fast but then again the media may be jumping the gun on this. I'm sure when I get home I'll be seeing "BREAKING NEWS" ad nauseum posted up in black & yellow all night.

Just got word from Swank in Hawaii. Looks like she may cancel her first lesson this Friday since she may be rather busy decompressing after a month in The Aloha State. Can't say I blame her. After enjoying an entire month in paradise, I think she would need some time to recover.

Monday August 22, 5:01 p.m.

Did want to mention that The Godfather proudly informed me that his second child into the world last Friday. For all the horrible stuff that had been put on the poor man over the past few weeks, I think this news has been very welcome. Anyways, I won't see him til next Monday. It's looking like a busy Monday though with Cozy, The Bossa Novan, The Godfather and then Mr. Swank squished in between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Speaking of Mr. Swank, his wife should be back in action this Friday when I see her for the first time in a month since coming back from their annual vacation in Hawaii. Over the past few weeks, Swank has been uploading various pictures from The Aloha State to her Facebook page. Must be nice to be rich.
Looks like most of this week will be characterized by night classes, except for The Beehive tomorrow and then Swank and The OL on Friday.

Monday August 22, 4:46 p.m.

Still unseasonably cool although the humidity is definitely up there. I actually wore my casual otaku jacket although by the afternoon it was definitely helping to build up a sauna around my body. Starting from tomorrow, the temps are gonna gradually be rising again until Friday when we'll back into the heat wave once more. A number of folks around me actually thought that the summer was gonna be over, but I know from long experience that nowadays Tokyo summers last well into September.

On Saturday, I got a call from my old friend, The Cat, from up in Nagano Prefecture. I've known her for almost 20 years when she was a working-holiday student in Toronto hanging out with us in our university club. She is one of the friends whom I've already told about my intentions to leave Japan for good this December. As usual, The Cat asked me a number of questions on English since she also teaches kids as a part-time job. She also informed me that Paddy is planning to come back to Japan soon to check up on his mother who's been ailing of late. I'd never heard anything about this from Paddy in his last e-mail last week, so I'm assuming that he may not have time to see me which may explain why he hasn't told me about his plans.

Today I had Cozy for his usual 8 a.m. session. The rains were coming down this morning although things have become far drier since then. After reading my comments on Mixi concerning Junko Ohashi the singer, he promptly fed his nostalgia genes and ordered 3 CDs by her via Amazon, and then showed them to in class. Nice to know that I can influence people this way.

Since I have a huge hole in my schedule between Cozy and Miss Genki in about 2 hours, I visited Akihabara for the first time in several weeks. Checked out Tower Records and the like before having my usual doner kebab for lunch. Saw the usual maids on the main strip giving out the leaflets. I guess Maid Cafes still pull them in.

Over the past several days, I've been watching the situation in Libya. As one talking head put it on a BBC show, noone can predict as to what will happen between Khadafi and the rebels. But to noone's doubt, the endgame is here. The rebels have entered Tripoli, neighbouring Tunisia has even formally declared that the rebels are now the provisional government, and when Khadafi's mouthpiece started blaming the entire world for this mess, I kinda figured that the Colonel's days...or hours....were numbered. And indeed, CNN is reporting that a number of his sons have been captured, and that the country was now on the brink. Should be interesting when I get home. I don't believe that the Battle for Libya will be won by tonight my time but I think several things will be in play that might enhance it when the time comes.

Saturday August 20, 1:58 p.m.

Just had to mention that the cops had finally found the body of that Japanese girl who had fallen over Niagara Falls last week. Her name was Ayano Tokumasu of Aichi Prefecture. A memorial page has been set up on Facebook for her, and the lass actually had her own Facebook account which wasn't visited by her too often.

Saturday August 20, 1:41 p.m.

Gloriously cool today thanks to a major storm that swept through the Kanto yesterday. I couldn't quite believe it on Thursday when I read the 3-day report and discovered that although it would be hitting 32 C at 9 a.m. on Friday, the temps would be plummeting to well below 30 C by the afternoon due to some seriously heavy rain.

Well, sure enough, I did get my Gatorade at the nearby vending machine by my home at about 9 yesterday since I was losing water again as I had done everyday for the past 2 weeks. But during my lesson with The Bass in Funabashi, the clouds just got darker and darker until they finally exploded and let loose with a torrent of precipitation which continued into the evening. It was all coming down in sheets and my umbrella just kept my head dry on my way home.

Finally decided to try out the McBarbers in my neighbourhood for the first time. I was starting to take on that heavy metal roadie look so I figured that I didn't want to have the bossman lecture me on my hair and tried the place out. As the name would hint, it is one of those discount barbers, and as you can see from the picture, all one has to pay is 990 yen...you can actually get change from giving that one bill. When I entered the place, I was the only customer so the barber quickly got me seated in politely and in a friendly way, and just asked some simple questions of confirmation in terms of how much I wanted cut off. Then it was off to the races. Bring out the scissors and clippers and within 10 minutes, 5 months' growth of hair was all over me and on the floor. Luckily, I didn't have to suffer the itchiness of walking home with hair bits running down into my underwear; the barber had one of those vacuum hoses to suck everything up.

10 minutes and 990 yen. It took a sixth of the time and a fifth of the price that I'd once paid at my old salon. Economically speaking, I was certainly showing my wisdom but I felt rather bad that I could no longer go to that old place with the friendly stylists, complementary cup of tea and shampoo/scalp massage. Financially, I really could no longer justify it although I had always appreciated this service in this country. The last time I'd been there was in late February, just a couple of weeks before the big quake. I had a hack job on my scalp in Toronto during my escape there in April and then I just held off on a cut for almost half a year. I think it was just as well that I just hadn't made any more contact with the salon and just have them assume that I had gone back permanently. Not really good with the goodbye thing.

On YouTube, I went over some of the media coverage of 9/11 since we're almost at the 10th anniversary. Even though, it's almost a decade since that day, watching the ABC/CNN coverage still brings goosebumps. Frankly, I'm not sure what things are gonna be like next month on the 11th.

Thursday August 18, 1:52 p.m.

Before I left for work this morning, I was switching between the latest episode of "The Mentalist" (the one where Cho goes on a rampage on his old gang) and today's "Piers Morgan Tonight". The latter show had Christine O'Donnell, former wannabe witch (and I mean this literally if you can watch her 1999 appearance on Jay Mohr's old show) and attempted Congresswoman representing The Tea Party. I only saw the first several minutes when I came to the decision that the interview was devolving into a verbal slap fest. And so Mr. Jane won out; as it turned out, I'd just read that O'Donnell walked off the set. No surprise there. It kinda looked like Piers Morgan was sinking his teeth into some red meat....Larry King, he is not.

Thursday August 18, 12:48 p.m.

Another hot one out there. If it weren't for some of the breeziness, I would probably be taking on the consistency of cheese fondue outside. As it is, I'm doing OK here at Speedy's since he's got the air conditioner working again.

I just have the one student today: The Bossa Novan. I'll have to put on the kid gloves to a certain extent today. Perhaps I was a bit too fast with her last week. In any case, once we hit 4:00, I'll be out of here and back home. Yup, Mrs. Thursday isn't in the house this week and I don't have The Carolinan tonight. For that matter, it's gonna be a quiet end to the week. Just only have The Bass tomorrow since The OL is off to a hot spring with her family up in Nagano Prefecture and I've got bupkiss on Saturday.

Strangely enough, I got another contact from Facebook. My ol' student, Miss Honolulu, contacted me from Perth, Australia, her home of several years. She was a good friend of MB's as well. Speaking of whom, he and The Satyr should be heading out to New York City sometime this weekend.

CNN had a feature about the hidden dangers of Yosemite National Park. Apparently, people who were destined to become the losing end of Darwinism have ended their lives needlessly by trying to get that great picture by the waterfall, not caring about the rangers' safety advice. At this time, my Sunday morning student, Yajima, and his wife are traveling in that very park. But he seems to have a pretty good head on his shoulders....unlike that poor girl going over Niagara Falls earlier this week.

Wednesday August 17, 6:30 p.m.

Looks like I got another cancellation. I was supposed to have another one of the S-series but he's canned his lesson for tomorrow night. So I've just got The Bossa Novan tomorrow afternoon. I did tell The Businesswoman about their mutual interest in Brazilian music; maybe someday they can meet, but I'm not sure how The Bossa Novan is feeling about her lessons so far.

The Magician was fine. Luckily, we had to do one of those Snakes N' Ladders type of games to wrap up the text so it was basically a lot of practice there. We haven't even finished half of it and she won't be showing up til mid-September for her next class so we're looking at October probably for a new text.

Not sure if the Canadian authorities have found the body of that Japanese girl who had gone over the Falls. Apparently, they're frantically trying to track down her family back over here. At this point, if they haven't found her by now, she's pretty much a fatality.

Wednesday August 17, 3:45 p.m.

Saw The Businesswoman for the first time in over 5 months, i.e. before the quake. She had been extremely busy at her university but with summer vacation, she finally had time to get some down time in. She's lost quite a bit of weight and gained some rustiness in her English ability but she was OK otherwise. We of course did some catchup on our respective situations because of 3/11.

The bossman was kind enough to bring over The Colonel....Sanders, that is. Had a couple of regular wings plus some sort of spicy number and a mountain of fries. I think dinner is now out of the question for tonight. Y'know....you just get that craving for all those secret herbs and spices but once you're satisfied, you can go on for another 6 months before KFC gets back at you.

Wednesday August 17, 1:42 p.m.

Well, from the musically sublime to the ridiculous....I just found out that there had been a hostage-taking incident in Shibuya involving Johnny Kitagawa. Ol' John just happens to be the head honcho of Johnny's Entertainment, probably the largest aidoru company in Japan taking care of the male aidoru groups such as SMAP and Arashi. Apparently, some nutbar forced his way into Johnny's place...not sure if it was the office or the home at about 9:45 a.m. Happily though, the police were able to defuse the situation quickly and the babbling freak has been taken into custody. Effeminate boys and ardent female fans can sigh relief.

Wednesday August 17, 1:02 p.m.

Still going on about my J-Pop oldies craze here. The picture on the left is that of Hiromi Iwasaki, probably one of the best pop singers in terms of pure vocalic talent. Apparently there are two celebs with the same name in Japan; this is the one who had her aidoru heyday in the mid-70s before turning into a pure pop singer going into the 80s. Of course, the pic is from her younger days since she's now over 50. At that time, she was noticeable also for the waist-length hair and the bangs...a hair style that was very popular amongst young women who were not interested in looking like Seiko Matsuda. And unlike the Queen of Aidoru, Iwasaki didn't have turn on the cutie and pouty looks, although she was attractive. She had this powerful voice with good range which the songwriters helped her with when she got out of the aidoru phase of her career. And sure enough, for the past several years, she has been performing onstage in various musicals, notably the Japanese rendition of "Les Miserables".

Iwasaki is one of my favourite singers here and has been for 30 years. The very first song of hers that hit my ears was "Sumire Iro no Namida" (Violet Tears), a ballad that was her big hit of 1981. And I think she performs ballads better than her more uptempo tunes. She seems to struggle for breath when she tries something with a faster beat.

In any case the reason I mention her is that I was listening to one of the many albums I possess of her, "Diamant" earlier this morning. Listening to old tunes has been one way that I've been using to beat the heat in my apartment.

Wednesday August 17, 12:38 p.m.

Another steamy one in The Big Sushi. 10 straight days of 35-degree-plus weather out there. It still won't approach the horrors of last summer but I am looking forward to some of that autumn weather. One thing about moving out and about on the streets...make sure you have your handkerchief, a package of Gatsby wipes and a vending machine near you.

With 001 cancelling today, I have The Businesswoman in about 90 minutes, followed by The Magician and then Kirk. Nicely spread out in terms of schedule and with the gap left by 001, I even have time to get a small dinner.

Tuesday August 16, 8:58 p.m.

Finished that 2-hour with S-Fluent. And yep, he's very fluent. Very adept with the language due to his many years in America. Will be looking forward to his next two lessons.

I've heard about that 19-year-old Japanese student who fell over Niagara Falls. If they can't find her by now, I'm afraid there is very little hope left. She'd be staying in Toronto, I heard.

And I finally got word from my old friend, Paddy, who's living in London with his wife. He assured me that they hadn't gotten dragged into the riots of last week, but he didn't mince words about what to do about the thugs. You'd think a guy who had lived several years in The Big Apple would be kinda inured to that sort of stuff, but....

Tuesday August 16, 5:46 p.m.

Still have quite a bit of time before the next student enters. I did a bit more research on this new musical target, Hitomi "Penny" Tohyama. I checked the Wikipedia writeup and found out that she's had quite a few albums released. And she not only has a community devoted to her on Mixi but also the lady herself has an account and occasionally chimes in. Plus, she's got an Ameba blog. I haven't joined this community since I still have to listen to some more of her stuff on YouTube. I did have a chance to listen to one of her tunes called "Our Lovely Days" which is indeed a lovely City Pop ballad. But still have more to hear.

I bought myself some cola to help get me up for this next lesson although I am well aware of the possible sugar crash. Just hope that this fellow is interesting enough.

Speaking of City Pop singers, I listened to Junko Ohashi's Best album last night since I had that rare moment of nothing on TV and no pressing need for pressing clothes or prepping lessons. That last sentence may not have sounded too complimentary to her but really I do have an interest in her stuff as well. Her most famous songs are "Silhouette Romance" and "Tasogare My Love", two pretty ballads with the latter being strongly in the Showa Era kayo kyoku vein of things. However, they don't really reveal that before and after those hits in the late 70s and early 80s, she had a streak of funkiness in her songs on the level of a Wild Cherry in which she could really belt a lyric out of the stadium. I've also been collecting her old albums of late as well. However, strangely enough, my favorite tune of hers hasn't even rated a mention on any of her Best albums. And her 1987 disc called "DEF (D-something or other, Emotion, Fragrance)" didn't have anything particularly noteworthy except for the first track called "Nemurenai Diamond" (Sleepless Diamond...yep, I can't figure it out either) which just has that sophisticated pop feel to it which I've always been drawn to....kinda like Swingout Sister. It's something that hasn't been usually attached to Ohashi but she really pulls it off well.

I've got the distinct feeling that I'm gonna need extra boxes for the CDs when I finally move home in December.

Tuesday August 16, 5:01 p.m.

Well, I've just got another one of the S-series for my other student tonight. I had a marathon session involving three of them back on Saturday....really wrung me out by the end but nice folks all. According to the bossman, this new guy tonight is supposedly the best of the lot, and his presentation notes show it....very concise phrases in point form on his PowerPoint slides. And he even did some volunteer work in Compton, LA...and survived. Still, these are 2 hours in the evening so I'll have to grab some caffeinated stuff before I start the lesson or I may end up doing some rather embarrassing such as dozing off in front of him.
Also got the news that 001 has cancelled her lesson for tomorrow. But I still have The Businesswoman for the first time in several months....let's say this, the earthquake hadn't happened yet when I'd had her last class. Then, it's The Magician with a couple of hours now vacant due to 001's cancellation and finally Kirk.
Newswise, the interesting feature today is in Osaka where the cops found a can which had been sitting beside a telephone pole for a few days. The contents were a lot less innocuous....body parts, including a human head, two right feet and various other gory gems. At first, I had thought it was a Yakuza gang sending a message to those who would dare cross them but now it looks like it may be a personal conspiracy. Apparently, according to eyewitnesses, there were a couple of guys and one woman who had been handling the can.
I listened to that Taeko Ohnuki album last night. "Signifie"was a remarkably short album....just 36 minutes, and a lot of the songs are actually on her Best album. Still, it's nice to know that I do have the original. I think it is quite an interesting disc by Ohnuki for an album that had been released in the early aidoru-saturated 80s. Although I wouldn't really peg it as City Pop, it is notable for Ohnuki's whispery vocals and the French Pop-influenced melodies....something that reflects, according to the Japanese Wikipedia write-up on the album, the New Academism boom of the time. O-h-h-h-h-kay. In any case, I now have that urge to get her previous album, "Cliche".
As I've said before, that City Pop book I got at Towers several weeks ago has been a musical godsend to me. I've discovered a number of artists that really never got on my radar although their heyday was at least 25 years ago. Now, I'm trying to look up artists such as Hitomi "Penny" Tohyama and Tomoko Aran. I actually did come across their albums at Tacto yesterday but I guess their rarity has jacked up their prices.

Tuesday August 16, 4:48 p.m.

An unusual day in that I didn't have the Beehive for the 2nd week in a row. Instead, I had The Godfather in the afternoon. As you may have read in the last entry concerning him, my latest student fell prey to a con artist recently although the money that had been stolen wasn't all that much considering how high-powered he and his colleagues are. Still, the fact that he was victimized was understandably galling to them. Well, when we met earlier today, there was a reckoning of sorts...the fraudster actually showed up out of the blue at a meeting last Monday for the victims to regroup. Obviously, the jerk wasn't welcomed with open arms but they did take the opportunity to grill him. He didn't show much remorse aside from some watery eyes (Seiko Matsuda tears, I call them), according to The Godfather, but he did fess up to his fakery on some points in his resume such as attending Berkeley to get his PhD (he actually had just audited a few courses there), and he even apologized to my student. The Godfather saw some hint of sincerity in the person that he has considered to be not a bad person basically but someone who is very troubled. The picture The Godfather painted of this guy seemed like something out of "The Talented Mr. Ripley"....a sociopath who had yearned for the good life and would do anything to get it. And the conman did get it for a while. He had used the stolen money to rent himself a luxury weekly apartment in Aoyama and to enjoy the cuisine at a number of Michelin 2-star and 3-star restaurants throughout Tokyo.

The Godfather wasn't totally satisfied with the outcome of the discussion. With the cost and notorious slowness of the Japanese justice system, it was decided that it would be no use to charge the conman. However, he and his fellows warned him that if he were to show up within The Godfather's rarefied business community again, they wouldn't hesitate to target him with a lawsuit. Frankly, I don't think someone like this Ocean's-Eleven wannabe is gonna go straight at all...most likely, he'll disappear for several months and then will try to find another mark.

Monday August 15, 5:24 p.m.

Well, I guess I've made it to 4,000 entries! I should celebrate this some way. Perhaps with a very nice bento tonight when I head home. And to think, it took just 8 years.

I had The German for her last lesson before she heads out to Hokkaido on the Hokuto-sei express...kinda like the domestic version of The Orient Express without the mystery. However, she'll get a nice French dinner in the club car. I teased her a bit by saying that perhaps a Sean Connery-type may ask to sit with her. She's definitely a student who would be happy never to use the text. We spoke on everything from the oversized amounts in an American restaurant to the current problems in London.