Mie's Tokyo Tidbits

Matrix re-enactment

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At Shibuya now waiting for the other group of 'agents' to arrive from Ikebukuro.First 2 pics are of the plan being explained to eager participants...they will join the Ikebukuro group and head to Akihabra for the final Burly Brawl fight scene.Last 2 pics are agents on the Yamanote and the movie shows the Shibuya group getting on.Unfortunately, Dav and I cant join today, but we're here now to watch the gathering. It's pretty cool to see all these Matrix fans. Have fun everyone!

at home

just a small home party with close friends and Dav (yeah!) and relaxed friends...like sleeping relaxed friends! What a great complimemt!

I haven't forgotten

My gosh, it feels like I haven't posted for quite some time, eh? Well yeah, I've been enjoying all my time with Dav...but we're still dealing with 時差惚け (jisa boke - jetlag) We did well tonight though; we went to a local eatery @ Musashi Koyama and then went to our favorite bar Gekko. He is fast asleep now and I got this urge to say `hi' to you so here I am typing in the dark! (@ what point does blogging officially become defined as addicting?) I am so happy for the weekend cuz we have both been working as usual so far (Dav works by computer).Now we finally got some play days (^-^)

told ya!

got my Dav in Tokyo now.All mine for a while!

ワーイ　ワーイ！！

I just have to let the whole world know (well, OK, I realize TT isn't that popular, but you know what I mean, right?) that my Dav has JUST LANDED in Narita. I'm all smiles and will be meeting him at Tokyo station. You can be sure I'll send ya a post!!

bullet train

This is way early for me but I am attending a seminar in Niigata starting at 9. I am on MaxToki 305, leaving Tokyo @ 7:12 and arriving @ 8:37. Things have modernized since the first blue and white round-nosed shinkansen models...beginning with this route's name (MaxToki).The train's front is super sleek and mean looking and my car is double deck. 'Byuuun' as they say here instead of 'vroom'

my sweet tooth

Went out to dinner after work with Risa and Kumiko (from work). Had Mexican food with huge Margaritas sitting outside in Ginza. I love summer!For dessert, Kumiko took us to Okame, a Japanese dessert place.My favorite.I had mattcha anmitsu with shirotama - a bowl of jelly squares made from seaweed with mochi balls and adzuki beans, green tea ice cream and fruit...heaven...although still doesn't beat ujikikdoki (shaved ice with beans).I am sure I will blog that as it gets really hot.

*special* dates

As most of you know, on July 5th will be the First International Moblogging Conference. I'm gonna participate, and in addition to being excited about it in general, it got me thinking more seriously about moblogging, what I am doing, and how it influences me. I also started fantasizing about art projects to try out with fellow mobloggers and how to play around more with GPS. Well, so far, I've just been thinking since having a full-time job just seems to eat up all my time...

Now, as most of you have pieced together, Dav arrives in Tokyo on June 24th!! Yeah! And thanks to Dav's quick and witty web skills, one project that we've eagerly wanted to work on now has a concrete date. Check out the First International Love Hotel Moblogging Conference, slated for July 3rd. Sign up and let's show the world the fun and creative uses of moblogging!

New Shoji

I'm at my parents' house to have dinner for dad's day...but am also enlisted to help with 'shoji no harikae'...hmm... the annual renewing of the shoji. It's usually done in winter but my mom and I prefer to do it when its warm. It's a pain in the butt b/c the shoji they have is extra super large and not easy to do. But we manage. Now it's a crispy white and the living room is brighter!

Ageha

So I finally went to Ageha and partied until 6am! That was Friday, but I wanted to explain the pics and didn't want to type on my phone, so I'm posting now that I'm at my parents' and have a computer.

My Nu Balance friends put up a tent and had aromotherapy, mattresses to lounge on, and lots of feel-good music. Ageha is huge...can hold 3,000 people easy. There were 2 big music dance rooms but the music was only OK. However, I really liked the space in general...having space to dance, walk around and check out stuff and even see the sky! Yes, one of the best things is there is a deck and pool that overlooks the bay. I kind of felt I was back in SF. People were relaxed and enjoying themselves... it wasn't a "scene" for which I usually have very little tolerance.

So the pics: the first one is this woman in a great outfit...that's a, ah, you know, a big male 'thing' shall I say, on her head. She was walking around in a very sexy glittery outfit serving shots. The next two red pics are from the hidden secret room that you can ONLY access by walking through one of the stalls in the women's bathroom. It was the cutest room decked out in pink with cushions, another big male 'thing' to hug and hold on to if you wanted, and the walls were covered with very explicit erotic/sex manga scenes. Only for us girls...sorry guys! Since cameras aren't allowed in Agaha (but I got my phone in), these are very special photos...I didn't want to take too explicit photos and get a long list of yucky comments so I'm purposely being tame here.

It was crazy how early it started getting light...maybe 4am or so? Anyway, here are photos of the deck, a close-up of Yuki, and inside Nu Balance's chill tent.

All in all, it was great fun but I was tired. It took forever to get home cuz it is way out in the middle of nowhere!

Waku waku

When I met up with Gen last week, he gave me a cool book called Waku Waku - Onomatopoeic Photo Book by Tom Verlinden. Here's a link - it's the 7th book down.

Japanese has a lot of onomatopoeic expressions and this book appears to be geared towards Japanese who want to know how to say such expressions in English. I want to use it to explain to non-Japanese people why my vocabulary is so full of such words. It's a part of how I describe things and I tend to use the Japanese words even to non-Japanese speakers because they are so ピッタリ (pittari) and impossible to replace with English words. I think the first time I used one on Dav was when I emailed him one bone-chilling evening after a perfect bath, and I said I felt ポカポカ (poka poka). No English word worked for me, so that's what he got.

Here are some of my favorites:
gocha gocha (in a jumble or mess; Tokyo in general, Shinjuku specifically)
niya niya (grinning...like the Cheshire cat)
bata bata (running around, unsettled...kinda like me trying to do 6 things at a time)
fuwa fuwa (furry and fluffy. think of your perfect pillow or blankey)

Or:
labu labu (in love, as in Dav and I are labu labu) Sorry, just had to use that one! And I'm waku waku (excited with anticipation) that Dav will be here in 12 days ^ .. ^

Scenes on the way home from Shibuya

No matter how many times I pass through, the energy of this place tickles me. If you want to start a trend or feel the pulse (or one of the pulses) of this funky and fantastical city, just stand and observe Shibuya.

small world...

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I'm @ Enoki.I planned to take Gen here (whom I 'met' through TT) and I was w/ Kathy (from high school and is visiting from NY) having coffee and said I was meeting him and she says she knows him from college! So we are here together w/ Gen's friend Negi-san.AND walking around Shibuya earlier, we bumped into another Tokyo high school friend by chance! VERY weird but totally cool.Last pic. is my first cell phone deco attachment...a customer here (Enoki) had it on her phone and I said it was so cute and she gave it to me.Such sweet people here. I will attach it w/ love and gratitude.

a street store in Shibuya

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Lots of funky kitch.Plastic deco stuff, bizarre knicknacks, random accesories...something for everyone.

unhappy cat

This cat belongs to a neighborhood house and I've seen him fluffy with cat attitude.Maybe his owner thought this new cat hair cut would be good for summer but he doesn't seem very pleased.Don't bother suggesting cuz I ain't doing this to my kitties (they'd be sure to make me regret it)

Using this posting to show how it's done

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At Tokyo PC Users Meeting talking about blogging. So we're doing our own live posting!

on the way to Tokyo PC Users Meeting

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and spotted the sun's beautiful reflection on a glass bldg. Sorry pic quality isn't great but it blinded me. In front of the bldg. is the crazy Shinsei Bank.They say the design (as if chunks of the base is missing) reflects their management and why they are in trouble.

Neighborhood Project

I'm such a slow poke! I've been wanting to include my beloved neighborhood in Bob's Dynamic Duo
Neighborhood Project. Granted my little old phone doesn't take shots that aren't up close very well, but still.

So here is the link. Check out Nishi Koyama.

You know it's summer when

you see すいか (suika, watermelon) at the corner fruit stand, and you start seeing the I9 (kori, shaved ice) signs. As my friends know well, I'm crazy for 宇治金時 (ujikintoki) = shaved ice with azuki beans and powdered green tea.mmm!