Where I've been

Not so much in the "Blogosphere".

But I have found Ethiopian food in Tokyo.

And gotten inspired, fluxed my way through unknown tomorrows

And gotten myself involved in International Education somehow.
Go figure.

My afternoons revolve around a small International School in Tokyo and some sushi.

I'll share them both if you bring me some Burt's Beeswax.

Two things without cheese

Right about now (official Tokyo Time)
It's:
01:02:03 04/05/06

That's kinda cool. If you're into that sort of thing.
Also. In stupid irony news, I spent two years in South America and nothing bad ever happened, no mugging, no theft, no violence (toward me), no kidnapping, etc. South America is supposed to be one of the most dangerous places ever, mind you. I move to Japan, supposedly one of the safest places in the world and what happens???
My IPOD gets stolen!!
.
.
By Peruvians!!!
Jonny is sans music and full of irony.
Have a silent miserable day.

Tokyo and Astronaut

Headless disconnected understanding
misinterpretted intention
overcompensation for lack of fear
with overstimulated esthetic
Found Hiding Places
unexpressive stares and rock formations
mascarading as personality
Competitive hipness richness shyness newness slimness
Harness whatever meaning you can find
in lost fishbowl souls who will one day
attain contentment
Realize anecdotes are no substitute for experience
Not everything in the universe can be reached
with the Tokyo Subway
But on brisk Japanese evenings
punctuated by cold beer and solitude
looking everywhere for some hidingplace to
coil up in beside some hot green tea and
bodies more hip rich new slim
than i will ever try to be -
It feels like even the moon
is on the Yamanote line.

P.S. New Pictures Up:
Cambodia / Vietnam / Tokyo / DesignFesta

Ch Ch Ch Ch Changes Continued

The things in my life, basic every-day blase.
The times, the days, the commuting routes and cityscapes
They are a changing.
Bob Dylan would be proud.
More as the concrete hardens.

p.s. It's cold as fuck in tokyo.

SouthEastAsia

Wandering through Vietnamese Mekong Delta highways on raggedy busses and climbing angkor wat temples steep cliff jagged history
Thai nights dancing hip hop gorging myself on my wet dream of thai food come true and
even Bangkok is full of good people if you know where to look
Cambodia lies still in a special little place in my heart
and after all the history, all the genocide, coups, kidnapping, violence
comes a country -Finally-
a country with a heart, whose Cambodians realize what is important in life
and is not trying to be Koh Disney-Hilton the way Khao San Road has dwindled
into a lonely planet on europe's shoestring.
Even I got sick of myself haggling over 20 cents while buying a shirt.
And all I have to show for it, (18 days in this part of the world) are mosquito bites, a shaved head, and a slight (unnoticable except in the correct lighting) tan.

what

It's cold all of the sudden.
Japan seemed to forget about autumn
there was only one week of hoodie-weather and now all my layers
aren't enough.
I'm keeping busy, working 45 hours every week. I don't not like it, but it's wearing on me.
Double negatives and design festas full of designers from all over the world.
Annie-chan and I went to a waterfall at the base of Mount Fuji
when we arrived, it was snowing.
Ate hot soba noodles and tried to hitchhike back to Shizuoka.
December feels distantly constraining.

What Life?

Tokyo. 2005.

Here I am.
Teleported to the land of superlatives.

• I somehow ended up in the largest metropolitan area in the world. The population of greater Tokyo is over 34,000,000.

• The most expensive city in the world. Expect to pay $6 for a cup of coffee at a non-chain cafe. 10 minute taxi ride: about $30. Spending $200 in a DECENT (not extravaggant) evening: easy.

• The most dangerous city in the world in terms of risk of natural disasters. (Considered more than 4 times as vulnerable than #2 on the list: San Francisco).

• Avergage commute time for Tokyoites: 47 minutes.
• Jonathan's commute time: 51 minutes exactly. (More Tokyo than most Tokyoites)
  

• There are 21,000 Ramen restaurants in Tokyo. (who figured that out?)

• Tokyo Disneyland is the most popular theme park in the world. Every year it attracts over 16 million visitors! (as a comparison, 2.8million people visited Tokyo, 4.5m to New York, and 11.5 m to London)

• Most seizures ever caused by a TV Program: 700 kids had to be hospitalized in December 1997 for seizures caused by an episode of Pokemon. Broadcast on: TV Tokyo of course.

I like it here, it feels new and breathable and between the medicoracy (or is that genius?) of the design and fashion and style, myriad sushi and other inklings of culinary marvel (such as whale, jellyfish and blowfish) whenever I desire, and immense learning, both language-based and life-based, I'm not planning to be bored anytime soon. I have a great job(s), and though I work a lot, I'm quit happy here in superlative antfarm land. However, having my designing/sewing and writing projects is definitely a necessity.

Though I miss affordable fruit.

(this melon costs $200 DOLLARS!! Damn. I could live in Bolivia for 4 months for that much.)

But It's sooo Perfect....