September 2002

September 29, 2002

It's been pretty busy this past week: I've been putting in a lot of hours on my book (the most recent one!) and the web page has kind of been on the back burner...I'm still planning on redesigning it to look a little more professional.

I've been having some really interesting conversations with students lately, and I've been trying to get a bit of an idea of the issues here. I have been speaking with some of my female students about women's issues.

It's funny how unwilling many are to even talk about such things, and how oblivious the vast majority seem to be as to whether there are any issues at all.

This is not absolute, of course, and some students have given me a bit of a glimpse of what life is like for them. When I asked one woman recently if she had heard of "the glass ceiling", she laughed and replied, sadly, "A glass ceiling suggests that there is at least hope..." She likened it, instead, to a concrete ceiling.

September 27, 2002

An classic moment in class yesterday:

Aaron: "Please ask each other three questions to start."
Student 1: "What is your hobby?"
Student 2: "I like internet."
Student 3: "What is your favourite internet page?"
Student 2: "I like erotic pages."
Student 1: "Ah! I am interested in these pages. How do you find erotic pages?"
Student 2: "There are many many erotic pages. I have CDROMs also...65 CDROMS; American women, asian women..."
Student 3: "What is your favourite kind of women?"
Aaron: "So! Let's talk about the weekend. Ahem. What are you doing next weekend?"

September 25, 2002

Ok, so I said to Nancy that I would put up more pictures today...but it appears that that might not turn out to be entirely true.

Laura has pointed out that I seem spend more time writing about doing things than I actually spend doing them. Point well taken.

As such, we are going to the Imperial Palace today...I hope that is an adequate excuse for not putting up more pictures. There's always tomorrow :)

September 24, 2002

Wow, busy weekend! On Sunday, the Daigo hike, and then all day yesterday traipsing around town with Sam and her host family, checking out Yasaka Shrine, Gion and Kiyo-Mizu Dera. Fun stuff!

I also put a few more pictures up on the Aikido page. I'll be putting up some pictures from Kiyo-Mizu Dera, Daigo and Yasaka Shrine very soon.

September 22, 2002

Laura and I went for a hike up in the mountains around Daigo (in the South East corner of Kyoto) today. Although the overcast weather wasn't great for pictures, it was ideal for hiking...which was good; the hike took us for two kilometers straight up the mountainside. Although we were ultimately bested, we have resolved to return to take in more of the many sights in the area.

Daigo is home to Kyoto's oldest standing wooden structure (and that's saying a lot) and is home to another of Kyoto's 17 UNESCO World Heritage Sites. We'll be going back soon, better prepared for the climb and on a better day for pictures.

We also just endured a Japanese video store for the first time. Although the selection of Anime is the best I've ever seen (of course), the place was pulsing with migraine inducing J-Pop at near-fatal decibel levels...all part of making the experience seem exciting, I suppose. It's also fun to try and decipher the names of all of the Hollywood movie titles: Pointo Burayku (Point Break), Een Za Rain obu Faya (In the Line of Fire), Rodo obu za Ringuzu (Lord of the Rings) and of course Sutaa Wohzu Epishodu Wan (Star Wars: Episode One).

I also just heard from my cousin Sam, who is on exchange here, and I'm going to be meeting up with her tomorrow...fun! I'll be sure to take lots of pictures!

September 20, 2002

Well, the news I'm sure that everyone has been waiting for has finally come in; it's true, scientists in Geneva have finally succeeded in creating anti-matter. Work is already underway on my new, improved, anti-Aaron.

This new anti-Aaron will be able to tell jokes that are funny, he will be practical, successful and very efficient. Unfortunately, should I ever have the pleasure of meeting this new anti-Aaron, we will both be destroyed in a sudden explosion of gamma rays.

September 18, 2002

It seems that it is a small world after all...my cousin Sam just landed in neighbouring Osaka just yesterday afternoon. Looks like she's in for a really good time as she gears up to see Kansai.

Fall weather has finally descended on Kyoto...and the temperature is finally back in a familiar range. I'm anxiously awaiting the autumn colours of the Japanese maple to reach the city's many temples. Many people seem to agree that besides cherry blossom season, autumn is Kyoto's most beautiful time of year.

September 15, 2002

We went to a spectacular curry restaurant in northern Kyoto last night...yum.

As you can see above, I'll soon be putting up some pictures from our China trip. Seeing as most of our pictures barely even saw the light of day, I thought it would be cool to put some of them on the website.

I think the site is also on its way toward a redesign...when I get the chance. The current layout was really just thrown together so I could go ahead and get some pictures up, but I think I'd like to put something a little nicer together. If anyone has any suggestions for improvements, let me know.

September 13, 2002

Finally got the pictures of Hiroshima up, and with that, I'm almost all caught up. Just the pictures from dinner in Kibune and our day in Nanzen-ji, whew!

Mike commented that I should colour-correct all of my photos on the Aikido page, and although I sneared at first I can't argue with the results. All of the pics on the Aikido page have been retouched, and I must say that I think they are vastly improved. I also colour-corrected all of the shots on the Hiroshima page, which look much better, too. Although it means more work for me, I like the results...even if Mike and I will be the only ones to notice any difference.

Seriously, though, Mike, thanks for the tip!

September 12, 2002

I have, at long last, put together the Daimonji-yaki page...complete with a slide show of the action. The Hiroshima page is next...

Happy to hear that September 11 seems to have passed by without event...even though the U.S. was on Code Orange, and still is.

Laura and I are back into the swing of things at work, and life is getting back to normal here.

September 11, 2002

Where were you one year ago today? I still remember pretty vividly that horrible feeling as we began to piece together what was happening, as people got the news any way that they could.

Do you remember any September 11 epiphanies you had? I recall talking to so many people after the incident who felt shaken, who were all of a sudden questioning things they had never questioned. Above all, people seemed to be asking, if I were to be killed at my desk tommorrow, just like those people, would I be happy with my life?

A year can be a long time, and although the shock of the event has passed, the uneasiness has not.

I hope that this day finds everyone well. Take care.

September 9, 2002

Had an excellent Aikido class this evening...and had the pleasure of watching some people at my dojo do their tests...quite an impressive show. In that spirit, I finally have some pictures up on the Aikido page...I was very happy to get those developed.

I also got a bunch of new pictures from Hiroshima and Miyajima, so of course, if you've all ready seen it you should check out the Miyajima page you should check it again...and if you haven't, what are you waiting for? My favourite picture is the one of Laura waking up after the worst night of her life. She wasn't a fan of the "Big Holiday".

September 7, 2002

Laura came with me to Aikido class today and took lots of pictures...so very soon I'll have fun stuff to put on the Aikido page. We were training in the old training hall today, which was really cool. Can't wait to develop that film.

Also just put up the Miyajima pictures...but I'm still working on the pages for Daimonji, Hiroshima, Nanzen-in and Kibune. Hard to keep up! I also put up the beginning of a 'peeps' page...which has a link on the left.

I also brought back a bunch of pictures from Thailand and China, which are eventually going to make their way onto the page.

September 6, 2002

I went grocery shopping yesterday, and had a little reminder about how crazy the Japanese can be about packaging.

Laura requested a banana. Just one. I didn't think her odds were so good on that one, as the grocery stores package all the fruit and sell by the package, not by weight.

Well, Laura apparently isn't the only one who likes to get single bananas. I found a banana, individually wrapped in a beautiful celophane gift bag, complete with a decorative label and sealed with a golden bow. It was laughably excessive...but Laura was happy to get her one, perfect banana.

September 5, 2002

Well, we have returned. The journey was pretty exhausting (we flew direct from Detroit...which meant 15 hours next to a fat man) but we are back.

Although the circumstances were unfortunate, it was definitely good to see friends and family.

I'll be back to posting things on the page soon.