Happy Birthday to...

another birthday for my dear friend Noriko. is this my 4th year in a row to be able to help celebrate her birthday and the cherry blossoms? at our age, it is hard to remember but i won`t let her forget she is one year older than me or is that "i"? i just returned from some cherry blossom sightseeing. my first stop was the Sakuradori (Cherry Blossom Street). i think it is about 70% in bloom. from there i i went by train into the mountains and back. i stopped by Noriko`s favorite bakery/dessert shop to buy 3 slices of different cakes for her birthday cake. she will get to choose and then her Father and i will get the also-delicious-looking left-over slices. soon we will take her Father to dinner...okonomiyaki...i think we went there last year also.

it rained all day yesterday and luckily i took an umbrella today as i got rained
on a little. the sky was so blue when it was blue today when the sun was shining. i was able to get many beautiful cherry blossoms photos. a highlight was as i just arrived back at Noriko`s front yard...a partial rainbow (niji) and then all of the sudden you could see the whole bow of the rainbow. i stepped inside the genkan (front entrance of the house) and called to Noriko and her Father. her Father came outside and was treated to a beautiful rainbow. Noriko missed it but she did see it and Tony in a photo and video.

time to go for a birthday dinner and then to visit Noriko`s Mother at the hospital.
hopefully she will receive some good news from her third and last endoscopic
procedure.

we will, we will, rock you at Koshien, "street live", a waterfall and...sakura

well, i arrived a week ago but the most important thing is the high school baseball game on tv right now. it is the bottom of the 14th and the score is tied
at 3-3. the sayonara runner is on 3rd with one out. if he scores Kagoshima wins.
and Kyoto goes home...hard hit ball to right field but the runner is held at 3rd as the right fielder throws a lazer strike to home...as he did back in the 8th. what will happen? i went to Koshien two days ago and saw two exciting games both ending in 1-0 scores. back to this game, a short fly into the left field foul area and...the left fielder dives and makes the 3rd out. on to the 15 inning. but for me it is time for dinner. tonite`s special is nabe or nabemono. more later.
later is here. dinner was delicious. as for the game, it was called a draw
after 15 innings and will be started or replayed as the first game on the schedule for sunday morning. i think i will go to see it live. and speaking of live i went to see the regular thursday night at Senri-chuo PAL Street live. 5 very entertaining musicians performed from 4pm until 7pm. each singer/guitarist played a few songs and then the next and so and so until each had played two sets.
they were all very good but my favorites were Ryo and Kamata Junko who i saw several times last year.

today i walked to Minoo taki (waterfall). Noriko`s Father went to his senior Day Care center which allowed Noriko a little break as it did on wednesday for his first day back since feeling under the weather. Noriko had to go to her friday school, St. Thomas University for some back to school preparations and i walked to the waterfall again. it is always a nice walk for me. today the trail on the opposite side of the stream was open so i took the path less traveled. i was hoping to meet an o-saru-san (wild monkey) on the path but none today.

and finally, the sakura (cherry blossoms) are starting to bloom. i took a few photos two days ago, more yesterday and a few more today. the mountain cherry blossom trees are not in bloom yet but the wild mountain camellias are.

Day 5, no cherry blossoms blooming but...

another fine-weather, lazy day here in Minoo. the biggest excitement so far was waiting for the recyling man to drive nearby so i could rush out to meet him with old newspapers, books, and cardboard boxes. he comes by every tuesday. and for my effort (two trips) from the front yard down the path to the street...40 yen.

Noriko`s Father is singing to a cassette tape...patriotic songs from around 1945. the high school baseball spring tournament is on NHK. and soon it will be time for lunch. later, i will go for a walk to the Sakura Tunnel Street to check on the cherry blossoms. as the soon was coming up this morning i was watching the cherry blossom tree next door but as they say "a watched cherry blossom doesn`t bloom".

yesterday Noriko`s Father and i went for another walk, a much longer than i thought walk but we made it up the hill and back down and home again. along the way we greeted every dog that came our way. and at the top of the hill we strolled thru a playground full of kids. Noriko`s Father was enjoying the energy of the many children running and jumping by us. yes, i have lots of photos and videos but am not sure how to use Noriko`s computer for that. hopefully by the time the cherry blossoms bloom, i will be able to insert a photo or two.

Day 2 in Japan...what about Day 1 and how did i get from Tokyo to Osaka?

Day 2 is starting off cool and cloudy with a big possibility of rain on this Easter Sunday. i am planning to walk to Minoo Station in the early afternoon and then take the train to Ishibashi where i will change to a train heading for Umeda (Osaka) but transfer at Juso to go to Kyoto. today is the last day for the Hana-toro. i will explain once i see it.

back to how i got to Osaka on friday. things were going good and all schedule until i could not get on the flight to Osaka Itami Airport (the domestic airport close to Noriko`s home but also called Osaka International). but before that i decided to try the Japan Airlines flight to Osaka Itami but to get there i had to quickly take the shuttle bus to the other terminal for their 630p flight. i boarded the shuttle at 545p and it only took about 10 minutes. well, the nice JAL counter agent said they had seats but...just a moment. after talking with another agent she came back to tell me that there was an "embargo" on their flight during the high season for airline employees flying standbye...not good. so, i ran back to the shuttle stop to go back to the ANA counter to see if there was any chnace i could get on their delayed 555p flight to Osaka Itami...they were completerly full. now what do i do? no more flight to Osaka Itami tonite and the one flight tomorrow looks full (and i cannot use JAL). so, i decide to take the limo bus to Tokyo`s Haneda Airport as they have flights on the hour to Osaka Itami starting at 7am. and sinced there was not an early morning bus from Narita, i took the 710p bus to Haneda arriving around 820p. it was there that i found out the airport is closed from midnite until 5am. now what to do? it is very cold and windy outside. there is a hotel at the airport so i went to check on that...about $200...no thanks. and then i noticed two more flights to Osaka Interntional Airport (KIX) at 9p and 940p. i called Noriko and told her i was going to try the 9pm flight but i had no time to check on if there is a limo bus from KIX to her area after 10p. well, to make a long story short...there was and i was able to catch the 1030p bus to Osaka Itami and got off at the Hotarugaike train station at 1130p. Noriko arrived a few minutes later. and all was well. and to make things better we stopped for takoyaki as i had had not time to eat. there is one more highlight to catching the flight from Haneda to KIX and will explain later.

Day 1 was a beautifully sunny day. no cherry blossoms blooming yet. there are a few camellias in bloom. i think next week there will be all kinds of things in bloom. Day 1 was filled with some delicious food for breakfast and lunch prepared by Noriko and then at a nice "buffet" restuarant for dinner after visiting Noriko`s Mother in the hospital after visiting Noriko`s Father`s family ohaka (gravesite) for o-higan. more on all that later as i figure out how to use Noriko`s computer. i took a nap after dinner around 7pm and woke up at 2am and then back to bed until 7am. i must have been a little tired from the previous day(s) adventure getting to Minoo. Noriko`s Father was happy to see me and...we are glad he remembered who i was.

today is hopefully the day

it is just starting to get sunny here in the south bay. just about finished packing and having a little breakfast. i should be leaving for LAX in about an hour. hopefully my next post will be from somewhere in Japan.

possibly last sunset before flying west to the far east

if all goes well i will be on Northwest Airlines flt. 1 to Tokyo's Narita International Airport tomorrow afternoon arriving the next afternoon (the 21st) around 430p. from there i will try to make the ANA flight at 555p to Osaka Itami International Airport arriving around 7pm. (yes, it is does say "international" right on the side of the building although i think most people think of it as the domestic airport...yes, that was me, me who has 20 years in the airline industry thought i had gotten on the wrong flight a couple of trips ago)  and if all has gone well including Steve picking me up after he helps out in his son's 2nd grade class, Noriko and her Father will be waiting for Tony and i. hopefully we will stop for takoyaki on the way to my second home in Minoo.  the cherry blossoms should be opening around the end of the month.

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below is a cherry blossom viewing map of Japan.

i think the Kansai area which includes Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe is forecasting prime viewing of the cherry blossoms (さくら）(sakura) between the 25th and 31st of March, give or take and allowing for rain and wind and the will and whim of the cherry blossoms.

St. Patrick's Day... downtown LA-style

and so this is Christmas, i mean St. Patrick's Day.  it has been a long but tremendously fun day which starting as usual with the Tom Morton Show on BBC Radio Scotland.  today's topics including ending up or starting off in the wrong place or the miscommunication of the two...i also learned many ways to eat a mango without getting all sticky messy. Tom didn't read my input...have someone you love prepare it for you.  but, he did read a little of my email regarding today's St. Patrick's Day plans and also the past saturday's St. Patrick's Day Parade and Festival in Hermosa Beach which included the very entertaining Wrath of McGrath.

i took Metro bus 444 at 930a for the hour long ride to Pershing Square in downtown LA.  the parade was starting somewhere near the 10 Freeway at 1130a where it would proceed down Main Street and with one turn on 5th, it would end up at Pershing Square.  as i walked down Main Street the thought entered my head "what if they threw a parade and nobody showed up".  fortunately closer to the start of the parade there were more people, more kids, more green, more crazy people in green.  and of course, our homeless people.  more photos later.

today's "headliners" at Pershing Square were the  Young Dubliners who really rocked, Celtic-style...and just plain rock-sytle.  more about them and the pipers and the Laker Girls and Grizzly Adams and that guy from Terminator 2 who was trying to kill our Governer, and the bunny (not the Governor and the bunny) and the dancing horses. more later time for dinner.  no cabbage and whatever else the Irish eat on St. Paddy's Day.  Siochan leat...

...ceol 's craic

did i mention the Elliott Caine Quintet yesterday at Fisherman's Village in Marina del Rey?  excellent latin jazz and afro-cuban jazz and straight-at-ya-jazz.  they had to fight the wind playing and i had to fight it on my rollerskates (and it always seems to be against the wind coming and go) but it was worth it. Elliott is super-talented trumpet player.  i feel i can call him Elliott because we talked on one of the band's breaks.  he was having a burger. i shared him with my love of live music and the good jazz festivals in Japan.  i also met Javier the excellent sax man.  i think he went with the shrimp and fried rice. he has played with the legendary Poncho Sanchez.  i brought a sandwich from home knowing the food there is not the best and a bit pricey...i think they cater mainly to tourists off tour buses but i digress. Bill, the bass player gave me his business card it case i took any good photos.  i wish i could have gotten a more close-up photo of him especially since i have always been pro-bass since sitting in front of Brian Bromberg at a Border's in-store concert over 10 years ago. (but the first time i remember noticing and liking the bass was in the Michael Frank's song "read my lips"). i am always waiting for a bass solo.  Bill did have one in the third set that was good but too short.  i think he too was having trouble with the cold wind blowing thru the marina. ok it is really time to eat.

Elliott, Javier and Bill of the six man Elliott Caine Quintet.  or maybe it is Elliott Caine and Quintet?  or maybe it's a music thing or new math.

seems like only yesterday ... oh yeah, it was

it was a fine, slightly windy, slightly cool, slightly cold at times but a fine day for a St. Patrick's Day Parade and Festival.  i am not sure if it ranks high in polls for best St. Patrick's Day Parades but it is always entertaining to watch local parades.  it reminded me of the one i saw last year on the 4th of July on Bainbridge Island which is a 30 minute ferry ride from Seattle.  this one was smaller but seeing local girl scout troops and little league baseball teams march by or shall i saw stroll by giving candy to children sitting curbside was nostalgicly (hmmm, maybe that is not a real word) fun.  i remember the happy-go-lucky Irish Setters from a few years ago at my first Hermosa Beach St. Patrick's Day Parade and Festival.  back then it was a 2-day festival with vendors and a entertainment area for kids but this year it was taken over by the City of Hermosa Beach and for some reason became only a parade and then music on one stage.  the music was also very entertaining and provided by Wrath of McGrath .  unfortunately the wind from the ocean was very cool/cold. sometimes, you could feel the sand from the beach which is a good thing if you are on the beach but not such a good thing when you are sitting/standing 30 yards from the beach. the stage was in front of the bike path by the ocean and there is not much to block the wind... except for sitting behind someone. i stayed for two sets and heard the bagpipers twice and saw the cute young dancers of the Kelly School of Irish Dance twice before putting my skates back on and skating back against the wind to Redondo Beach.  do not try to adjust your sets... this dog does have a slight green tint as did it's twin sister. 

there was lots of people out enjoying the day.  both Irish bars along the Pier Avenue Promenade had people waiting in line to get in. there was lots to look at in Hermosa Beach yesterday (as there always is) but much more green... and pink.

you gotta have some pipers in a St. Paddy's Day Parade.

what's a portmanteau? and who is Kobukuro?

 "Yell"

time for a brief introduction to...Kobukuro.  this is the duo's first hit song called "Yell". Kobukuro is a portmanteau of the two singer's family names. a portmanteau is a word or morpheme whose form and meaning are derived from a blending of two or more words to make one word. Kentaro Kobuchi and Shunsuke Kuroda are the names of the two guys who make up the singing duo. Kobukuro was formed in 1998 when the two street musicians met in while performing on the streets of Sakai (south Osaka).  they released about 3 albums before signing a major record deal with Warner Music Japan in 2001.  "Yell" reached #4 on the record charts that year.  i became a fan when i heard them do a collaboration with Sato Chikuzen for a cover of the Stardust Review song, "Mokuren no namida" in 2004.  but the first cd i bought of theirs was the 2005 hit "Sakura".  their story is a wonderful story.  two musicians meeting by chance

forming a duo and playing as street musicians and then within 8 years they are selling out concert halls and stadiums for every performance.   of course my dear friend Noriko is one of their biggest fans...and member of one of their private exclusive fan clubs. i still remembering watching the dvd of their sold-out performance at the Budokan in Tokyo.  Noriko told me the story of how one of their Mothers was a good singer and had a rare opportunity to sing in the Budokan after winning a singing contest. the sad part was that she died before seeing her son sing there in sold-out performance. it brings a tear to my eye just thinking about that.  i am sure i will corrected on this story as i might not have all the details exactly correct by... Noriko... if she ever reads this.  i will correct any unintentional misinformation at that time.  Noriko and i had the good fortune to see them live last October as a part of their annual "Blowin in the Wind" concert at

Banpaku Kinen Koen (Expo Park) in Osaka.  that concert lasted about 7 hours and featured many top musicians.  i actually went to the park the day before the concert to hear the rehearsal as well as visit and take photos of the cosmos and sunflowers.    and by chance i met and got to shake the hand of a good friend of Kobukuro and fellow musician (also with a good story) named Baba-san..."come on and do it do it do it do it boys..."   currently Kobukuro is on tour again.  i think Noriko has a pair of hard-to-get tickets for one or two of their concerts.  and i think i might get to go to one with her on May 15th. several of their songs have been used as the theme to some popular Japanese dramas (dorama).  last year Kobukuro won the Grand Prix award at the Japan Music Awards for their song "Tsubomi" (flower bud) which was the theme song for the wonderfully touching drama called Tokyo Tower.  so now you know a little more about what and who is  Kobukuro.  i will add another video soon so you can see their transformation.  one things that is the same is their down to earth personalities, humbleness and incredible musicmanship.  and yes, Kuroda is the tall one and Kobuchi the shorter one.  i think Kuroda is about 6 ft 4in.  an interesting little fact about them is that they were born 5 days apart in March of 1977.  Kobuchi turned 31 on the 13th of this month and Kuroda will turn 31 on the 18th.  

 if the Budokan sounds familiar...the Beatles were the first rock group to perform in the arena/concert hall  in a series of concerts in June/July 1966.  their appearances were met with opposition by some who thought the appearance of a western pop group would defile the martial arts arena.  by 1978, however, the Budokan gained worldwide fame when Bob Dylan and Cheap Trick used the concert hall to record their live concert albums in 1978 and 1979.  i have seen two concerts at the Budokan.  the first was Willie Nelson in 1983 with my friend Katsu and the second was Kenny Loggins in 1984 with my girlfriend Yukiko. memories.  i have a photo of me standing in front of the Budokan.  on the marque is キニーロゲンズ...Kini Rogenzu or something like that.  i will try to find that photo and once again i will correct any unintentional misinformation.  that was 24 year ago.

White Day (at least in Japan)...think, marshmellows

Noriko reminded me that today was   .  i had forgotten all about it as... it is not so popular here in...The States.  or shall i say no one i know has even heard of White Day unless they are Japanese. here in the good old USA, it could be misconstrued to have a day called White Day but if you follow the link, you will find out it is a nice and sweet holiday...especially for women in Japan who gave chocolates back on Valentine's Day.  it has been a long time since i was in Japan on March 14th.  but if all goes well, i will be there for Easter. i checked on flights to Tokyo for next week and most flights are full but hopefully i will find one with one seat (Tony will be in my backpack and doesn't need one his own seat).                

so back to Boston on tuesday after a quick 45 minute flight up from Philadelphia. i left the hotel around noon and returned around 5pm.  first the Public Garden which was a convenient 5 minutes walk from the hotel. and then across the street to The Public Commons.  back to Charles Street.  up a street or two in the Beacon Hill area before finding a cross walk over to the park along the Charles River.  it was sunny and cold but fortunately not-too-too much wind.    Arthur Fiedler    1894-1979.   conductor for 50 consecutive years of the Boston Pops

there were many joggers enjoying their not-too-too-cold training runs before the big Boston Marathon which is about a month away. back over another crosswalk and then to the fashionable Newberry Street.  and then over and down Boylston back to the area of the hotel. from there i walked back to Chinatown where i picked up some take-out food to take back to hotel.  another good day of walking and photo-taking in Boston.  i didn't make it to Faneuil Hall Market Place.  if it was warmer or if i was dressed more warmly, i might have ventured back out after dinner but then again we had to leave the hotel at 515a in the morning.  here is Tony getting a free ride in the Public Garden.

Javid, Naoko, Taiko, Tony, Charles, Bahamas and home again

Javid, Naoko, Taiko and Tony in San Diego's Seaport Village on a beautiful sunny sunday afternoon. more about them, more about there, more about Boston and the Charles River and the gorgeously blue/green water of the Bahamas (as seen from the air) and more about my flight home last night, and my vacation/ days off and possible next few day's schedule and more...more, more, more, how do you like it, more, more, more (The Andrea True Connection, 1976)...more or less.

 beside the Charles River on tuesday...38F

 above the Bahamas on wednesday...82F

PEZ museum...closed

so i thought i was finally going to make it to the world famous PEZ Museum in Burlingame... and Burlingame is where? it is the city to the south of San Francisco International Airport. our flight was a little late and by the time i checked in the hotel, the musuem had already closed. i did take the trolley over to downtown Burlingame to get some dinner and some breakfast for tomorrow morning's early departure to Charlotte. i walked back to the hotel for some fresh air and also because the trolley which is actually a bus that only looks like a trolley car makes many stops at many hotels. the walk is about 10-15 minutes while the trolley takes about 30 minutes. time for dinner. tomorrow (saturday) i will end up in Pittsburgh. i am hoping the hotel is next to an Eat-n-Park. and then on sunday, i will have all day (from noon) in downtown San Diego. and then it's back to the commuter hotel in Philly on monday night. and then tuesday, i have one flight up to Boston.
more later from somewhere or when i return home sometime.

Brandon's first baseball game and first hit

Brandon's first baseball uniform shirt (#4)...The Angels of Torrance.





Brandon's first baseball game. the Angels vs. Royals. March 5th. Lago Seco Park. the game started around 430p and by that time it was already starting to get rather cool especially with the wind blowing and especially for those fans in shorts (Steve and I). Brandon's little sister Taylor was bundled up in a purple parka and was still cold. the game lasted about 3 innings and i believe the score was tied or pretty close to being tied when the game was called around 6pm. no night games here. Lisa showed up just in time for Brandon's second at bat but here is Brandon's first hit...first pitch...hard hit line drive that ended up in right field...he eventually made it to second. go Brandon, go Brandon, go Brandon.

i think everyone got to play and i think everyone had fun.

it has been 40 years since my first game. i will try to find my first baseball photo from way back then and add it to this blog entry but that may take awhile to find. i had my glove in my backpack today... just in case.

Happy Hinamatsuri Day

today is one of the five seasonal holidays in Japan called Hinamatsuri or Girl's Day.

Hina Matsuri is an occasion to pray for young girl's growth and happiness.  Most homes with girls display dolls for this Doll's Festival and dedicate to them peach blossoms.  Hina Matsuri is also called Momo no Sekku meaning festival of peach.  Hina is an old word meaning doll and matsuri is festival.  Momo means peach and sekku is another word for festival.  so get out your dolls and play with them! or at least set them up in a display.

this is something i found in a local newspaper called Sushi and Sake:

1. Jinjitsu, January 7th.  a rice porridge is eaten on the seventh day to insure good health for the New Year.

2. Joushi, March 3. The Girl's Festival; the Peach Festival

3. Tango, May 5. The Boy's Festival; the Iris Festival

4. Shichiseki, July 7. The Bamboo Grass Festival

5. Chouyou, September 9. The Chrysanthemum Festival; chrysanthemum flowers are offered to ward off evil.

 

it looks like it is going to be a beautifully sunny Hinamatsuri Day here in LA.  if i can get to my local Japanese market, i will buy some sakura mochi to eat.

Leap Day Rollerskating Journey with a eclectic soundtrack on my iPod

Leap Day Skate

leap day has come and gone and will not return until Obama is getting ready to run for his second term : )

this year i celebrated the extra day by rollerskating from Redondo Beach to Santa Monica Pier.  it was supposed to be a summer-like day but the morning started off gray and cool. i waited for the sun until late in the morning before driving to and dropping off Chris' car at hotel. from there i walked down to the beach around Avenue I (not me) to start my journey to the north.  my first stop was the restroom near the dog park.  for some reason the light fixture in the restroom intrigued me and so it is was used at the beginning of the above video ... just in case you were wondering what that was at the beginning of the video. mostly i took photos until i arrived at the canals at Venice Beach.  many photos can be found on my webpage. it is the "more moments" in the "links" section to the right.

i saw the blues singer on the pier about two years ago when i was at the pier for their thursday night Twilight Concert Series.  i think the cheerleaders were from Arizona but not sure why they were there.  the cute singer/dancer/entertainer 

is only 10 years old.  she has so much energy.  i saw her last summer at the same place...making a lot of money.  as for the pianist, i think i saw him a few years ago on the Santa Monica Pier playing a keyboard (as opposed to the piano/synthesizer thing).  my favorite but not the crowd favorite was the Italian musician who sang in Italian, English and Spanish.  i can't remember his name although i did drop a dollar in his guitar case and made sure he was not Eros Ramazzotti.  coincidently Eros was one of the many singers i was listening to on my iPod during my skating trip. and speaking of Eros, here he is in a duet with...

here is the official list of musicians listened to while skating:

Nightnoise, Colin Hay, Stephen Bishop, James Taylor, Jerry Douglas, Tozy, Coldplay, The Flaming Lips, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Umberto Tozzi, Aimee Mann, Joshua Radin, Paul Brady,Rosie Thomas, Supertramp, Herbie Hancock, Jon & Randy, Five for Fighting, Jeff Buckley, Ron Sexsmith, John Mcdermott, Tommy Makem & Liam Clancy, Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova, Kim Mclean, The Fray, Ryukyu Underground, m-flo, Kathleen Edwards, North Sea Gas, The Blue Nile, David Sylvian, Yumi Matsutoya, Robert Plant & Allison Krauss, Sean Na'auao, Chris Bathgate, Moby, Tom Waits, The Coral, Annoushka Shankar & Karsh Kale, Dean Owens, Simply Red, Tuck & Patti, Yoshida Brothers, Jennifer Warrens, Alan Pasqua, Brian Bromberg, Nina Simone, Duke Special, Josh Ritter, Oka, Jake Shimabukuro and Eros & Cher.