RANDOM8



Little Kanji, from the taiko group, flings a ball down the alley. Me, Yoshie + Kanji (big sis, little bro), Chika + Suguru (same) and Nagisa, all went bowling a week ago. We had the gutter-guards put in for Suguru and Kanji which meant those who would've done terribly normally did better than those who would've done alright without them. It was fun times!


Shoko's big dog, Daikichi (or Dai-chan). Shoko took me to her absolute favourite place in the ken (more favourite than the previous places that we saw in the autumn)...it's a gorgeous hike through bamboo and other trees unknown to me to the top of this huge hill from which you can see Kudamatsu on one side and neighbouring Tokuyama on the other. About halfway up the hill Shoko let Dai-chan loose and man that can dog run. Energy for daaays. Just tore all over the forest without missing a step.


Angela Aki - the only taste of "J-Pop" that I've really taken to. She writes her own songs, plays her own piano, and sings with her own voice. A rarity in pop these days, I think. She's half American, went to uni there, and is fluent in English. She also has a lovely down-to-earthness which I judge from her appearences on TV. One time she was playing one of her songs with a full orchestra at this beautiful concert hall and she walked out in jeans, t-shirt (not a tight sexy one, but a regular, kind of baggy t-shirt) and a zip-up hoody sweater. Awesome.

Below are two pictures (in a series of 5) that Mike or Anna took while I was napping in their apartment over winter holidays. I discovered them by accident later when I was previewing that pics on my camera.