September 2003

September 29, 2003

And just like that, a week goes by. Laura and I are moving to our new apartment in Sakyo-ku the day after tommorrow, and the lead-up has been hectic. Everything is now in a box or a bag, and it finally seems like we're ready to ship out.

I set off a false alarm about my article in Black Belt Magazine; I mentioned that it had already been published, but as it turns out it's in the November issue, which hits newsstands on September 30th. My mistake!

Please note that - as might be expected from a change of apartments - my address will also be changing. I will be in the new apartment as of the 1st, so please refer to my contact page for my updated information. Please send lots of fun packages and letters to my new address!

The move also means that there will be a bit of an interruption in my internet access...I'm not exactly sure for how long. Maybe in the interim I will get the chance to put together some pages that I haven't had the chance to do.

I'm very excited that our new apartment will be next to Nanzen-ji temple...my favourite in the city, and one that has open meditation sessions every now and then. Hooray!

Moving out of this apartment will be strange; Laura and I have now lived in this place for longer than we were in Toronto, and by the time we take off in May we will have been in Kyoto for twice as long as we were in the GTA. It all serves to remind one that life is a one-way trip, always moving inexorably forward. This move feels like one little step forward, and in a way feels like it's one step closer to the airport, so to speak.

There are still, however, many things to do before we go...

Keep in touch, and I'll write more when I'm reconnected with the outside world.

September 21, 2003

And just like that, it was autumn. Something changed in the air yesterday, and today it has become unmistakeable; like the flick of a switch, summer is over.

Laura and I are planning on taking a little time off this autumn, as last year we really didn't get the chance to take in our fill of Kyoto in Fall. Just like spring, this city undergoes a beautiful transformation in the autumn, with the vibrant colours of the maples highlighting the landscape one last time before the long winter. Living so close to the temple district (I guess it could be argued that the whole city is a temple district) will be perfect, as we will be walking distance from some of my favourite spots in the city.

We got a package from Laura's sister Melissa yesterday, filled with books and magazines...I had forgotten the simple pleasures that an English magazine could bring. Evidently she had some troubles getting the stuff to us, as the package was returned to her with specific forms to be filled out. She had to list all of the authors' names, the titles and the names of all of the magazines, and then had to swear that she wasn't, in fact, sending us a big box of pornography.

The irony of it all is that I wake up every morning to find my mailbox stuffed with pornographic fliers, and when I go to the convenience store, a full half of all the magazines on the shelves are pornography. How can the government be concerned about pornography getting into the country? And why do they need the book titles? Is there a banned book list here or something?

September 18, 2003

I only had a very short time to throw some pictures together, so this page is temporary, but to get a peek at the Yoshitsune Festival, check here. It needs a lot more work, and I haven't even had the time to develop my film yet (these pics are digitals), but it's at least something for now....maybe I'll have some more spare time in...oh...I don't know....a few months? Busy, busy, busy.

September 17, 2003

We had another hectic couple of days this weekend, but it was great. I had a three hour Aikido practice in the old dojo on Sunday, and then on Monday I was a part of an Aikido demonstration at Kurama Temple. Kurama Temple was having a festival celebrating Minamoto Yoshitsune, a famed general from the 12th century who had been raised in the Temple. The demonstration was held right on the front steps of the main temple building, and was preceded by a long ceremony inside the main hall. I'm working on a page for it right now, which I should have done pretty soon.

September 13, 2003

It's very interesting to see how life changes in such a short time. I had been planning to write a little something reflecting on this second anniversary of the September 11th attacks, but somehow the day slipped by me. Where was I this September 11th? I was in downtown Kyoto, training for my new job at my school. When I came out of the subway station, my attention was grabbed by a parade marching down one of the main streets in downtown Kyoto. The import of the particular date that day firmly planted in my mind, I was sure that this must be, in some way, connected with the disaster that had befallen the Americans just two years before? Surely it must be?

It was a seniors parade. They wanted to make Japan a brighter place by cleaning up in their communities and by being generally cheery people. Seniors from every district of the city were represented. Commemorative tissue packages were distributed. There was much rejoicing.

Yes, much has changed. I still remember sitting at my desk in Toronto, worrying on that day as all of the air traffic from the U.S. was diverted to Canada. We all thought long and hard about how we would feel about being killed as we sat at our desks that day. But then, I wrote about that last year.

What's different now is that living here has made that but a distant memory. People here are more worried about keeping the streets a little cleaner. They're not contemplating what regime should be toppled next, or what enemies lurk around what corners, but about how to make society a little more cheerful here. I have the tissue package to prove it.

September 11th was a non-event here, with most of the questioning being centred on why cultural assets weren't protected in Iraq during the war, and why the U.S. hadn't rejoined UNESCO yet (they are notably absent from this list ... why's that?). Having the whole thing fizzle has been an interesting experience. I've felt all at once isolated from the realities of the world, but also from the fear that is fueled in the North American news media. I don't know that I'm sorry about that.

September 9, 2003

Mike sent me the next installment for the Music Page, a review of Sage Francis' album "Personal Journals". Go to the music page to check it out. By the way, for those of you who haven't noticed, the 'Tunes' page has a permanent link on this page, just in the left column. Some may notice, also, that I have taken the music samples down from my site...no, the RIAA didn't come after me. I'm actually running out of web space...again. I'll be looking into getting more space in the future.

I was sad this weekend to go to Peku's goodbye party in Ishiyama. Peku and I worked together at my school for over a year, but she left us in August to pursue a career in childcare, which in Japan involves a lot of study and a very rigorous exam. Good luck Peku!

September 6, 2003

What a hectic week its been...not a spare moment to do anything, it seems. I had a bit of a surprise in Aikido today; my test for 1st kyu got sprung on me...I hadn't been expecting it until Monday. Things went alright, though, and I think that I might have done okay. At least that gets the test out of the way, and it's one less thing for me to think about. Laura was a little disappointed she couldn't watch the test as we had planned for Monday, and it also means that we weren't able to film this one. My next test will be for black belt, and should be in March.

After the test, a sensei from another dojo (the same one who put on the shugyo training camp) invited me to take part in an Aikido demonstration and Buddhist ceremony as part of an upcoming festival in Kurama...it sounds really interesting. The one bad part is that by the sounds of it I'll be getting thrown on a stone floor...not on mats. Ah well, we can't have everything, I suppose. The festival's on the 15th, and I'll be dragging Laura along, so look out for pictures of that soon.

September 2, 2003

Work is all finished on the Fuji page, so please check it out! The next big trip Laura and I are planning is to cycle around Lake Biwa, Japan's largest lake. We're still in the planning stages, but weather permitting, we'll be going this month.

September 1, 2003

I got started on the Fuji page, though it is far from done. There's an awful lot to say, and I've only just gotten my pictures developed today, so check it out be keep an eye out for the completed page in the near future.