Life in progress

Category Archives: Japan


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One-Liner Wednesday – Priorities

In Akihabara, Tokyo, they take their video games somewhat more seriously than their fast food.

Photo by me, November 2015

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If you would like to participate in this prompt, feel free to use the “One-Liner Wednesday” title in your post, and if you do, you can ping back here to help your blog get more exposure. To execute a pingback, just copy the URL in the address bar on this post, and paste it somewhere in the body of your post. Your link will show up in the comments below. Please ensure that the One-Liner Wednesday you’re pinging back to is this week’s! Otherwise, no one will likely see it but me.

NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, like Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.

As with Stream of Consciousness Saturday (SoCS), if you see a pingback from someone else in my comment section, click and have a read. It’s bound to be short and sweet.

Unlike SoCS, this is not a prompt so there’s no need to stick to the same “theme.”

The rules that I’ve made for myself (but don’t always follow) for “One-Liner Wednesday” are:

1. Make it one sentence.

2. Try to make it either funny or inspirational.

3. Use our unique tag #1linerWeds.

4. Add our very cool badge to your post for extra exposure!

5. Have fun!

#1linerWeds badge by Dan Antion


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eXpedition – #AtoZChallenge

I like to think of myself as a world traveller, but there are only two places I regularly go – around my own province of Ontario, and Japan.

Yes, I know “expedition” doesn’t start with “X.” I cheat on this letter almost every year. It’s just the way I roll. Apparently also the way I roll is to post when I’m falling asleep, and this entry is no exception. So, tonight, I’m just going to post something really neat about my last trip to Tokyo.

If you were around for my 2014 trip, you might remember a video I posted: the traffic camera at the Shibuya intersection, made famous in the movies Lost in Translation and Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift among others.

Since I stayed a five-minute walk from the intersection last time I visited, I set up a “meeting” with my family at home. I emailed them early one morning, just before I left my hotel room, and had them watch the traffic camera. Although I walked around the intersection in almost every direction, only one screenshot was captured. This was me just before the lights changed–I walked directly across, towards the camera. Apparently it’s surprising that I didn’t hear Alex scream with excitement when Mom waved to him from across the other side of the globe.

I’m beside the lamp post in front of the yellow store front.

The only picture anyone took of me while I was in Japan was taken from 6,447 miles away. That’s one hell of a zoom lens. HA!

Here’s the traffic camera. It’s fun to watch:

***
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“A delightful read!!” ~ Cheryl Lynn Roberts, 4 stars, Amazon Canada review

“A short funny tale of two friends” ~ Ritu, 4 stars, Amazon UK review

“Quirky and charming.” ~ Bobby Underwood, #11 top reviewers on Goodreads – 5 stars

Click the picture to find it on Kindle, or get it on Kobo here: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/all-good-stories


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One-Liner Wednesday – Elvis has left the … ladies’ restroom?

Possibly the funniest thing about this picture is the looks I got when I came out of the bathroom stall: I couldn’t turn the shutter sound off on my phone camera.

Care to attempt a caption… or five?

PLEASE click the picture to read the note on the sign.

_____________________________________________________________________________

If you would like to participate, feel free to use the “One-Liner Wednesday” title in your post, and if you do,
you can ping back here to help your blog get more exposure. To execute a ping back, just copy the URL in the address bar on this post, and paste it somewhere in the body of your post. Your link will show up in the comments below. Please ensure that the One-Liner Wednesday you’re pinging back to is this week’s! Otherwise, no one will likely see it but me.

NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, like Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.

As with Stream of Consciousness Saturday (SoCS), if you see a ping back from someone else in my comment section, click and have a read. It’s bound to be short and sweet.

Unlike SoCS, this is not a prompt so there’s no need to stick to the same “theme.”

The rules that I’ve made for myself (but don’t always follow) for “One-Liner Wednesday” are:

1. Make it one sentence.

2. Try to make it either funny or inspirational.

3. Use our unique tag #1linerWeds.

4. Add our very cool badge to your post for extra exposure!

5. Have fun!

#1linerWeds badge by nearlywes.com

#1linerWeds badge by nearlywes.com


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Song-Lyric Sunday – Cities In Dust, The Mortal (Cover)

The theme for this week’s Song Lyric Sunday, a prompt from the lovely Helen Espinosa, (find her post here and join in today! https://helenespinosa.wordpress.com/2016/10/30/song-lyric-sunday-the-devil-in-i-by-slipknot/ ) is “scary.” The song I’ve chosen isn’t really scary, as such, but it’s about as Goth as you can get.

Originally written and recorded by Siouxsie and the Banshees in 1986, Cities In Dust may arguably be one of the most popular Goth songs of all time. Still haven’t heard it? Well here’s your chance.

I’m so excited to be able to share with you The Mortal’s cover of the song. Sakurai Atsushi, the vocalist, translated the verses into Japanese for his version of it. In my opinion, the arrangement of the song is even better than the original. Add to that the fact that I WAS ACTUALLY AT THE CONCERT in the video:

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My name is on the ticket!

and it’s even more awesome. The video was filmed at the NHK Hall in Tokyo, in November, 2015.

Here’s the video (subbed in English), and below are the lyrics.

Courtesy of A-Z Lyrics:

Cities In Dust

Water was running, children were running
You were running out of time
Under the mountain, a golden fountain
Were you praying at the Lares’ shrine?
But oh, your city lies in dust, my friend
But oh, your city lies in dust, my friend

We found you hiding, we found you lying
Choking on the dirt and sand
Your former glories and all the stories
Dragged and washed with eager hands
But oh, your city lies in dust, my friend
But oh, your city lies in dust, my friend
Your city lies in dust

Water was running, children were running
We found you hiding, we found you lying
Water was running, children were running
We found you hiding, we found you lying
Your city lies in dust, my friend
But oh, your city lies in dust, my friend

Hot and burning in your nostrils
Pouring down your gaping mouth
Your molten bodies, blanket of cinders
Caught in the throes
And oh, your city lies in dust, my friend
Oh, your city lies in dust, my friend
Oh, your city lies in dust, my friend
Oh, your city lies in dust, my friend
Your city lies in dust, my friend
Oh, your city lies in dust, my friend…

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Song-Lyric Sunday – Grieve, by Chachamaru

When I saw Helen’s prompt for this week was the Blues, my mind went directly to one of my favourite Bluesy songs, “Grieve,” by Chachamaru.

Yukihiro “Chachamaru” Fujimura was the reason I went to Japan for the first time, in October of 2005. He was playing lead guitar at the time with a singer named Gackt; I went to two of their concerts when I was there. After the one in Hiroshima, I gathered up my courage and asked one of the crew if I could meet Chacha. Since I wasn’t asking to meet the star attraction of the show, and I told him I’d traveled all the way from Canada just to see the concert, the nice man told me he’d see what he could do. He got on his radio and asked backstage if I could go back. The answer was no, unfortunately. I did, however, have my copy of Chacha’s only solo CD in my purse, so I asked if I could get it signed. My CD disappeared and as I was waiting, the man’s radio beeped and he asked me how to spell my name.

This is what I got back

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Basically, my CD cover met the man. I was thrilled. It remains, to this day, one of my most precious possessions.

I’m amazed I found “Grieve” on Youtube after all these years. It’s a fan-made video with pictures of Chacha and the audio of the song. Lyrics, translated to English, to follow.
P.S. Chacha, if you read this, please make another album! I’m still waiting! 😀

Grieve, from the album Air

Music by Fujimura Yukihiro
Lyrics by Nishida Masafumi

Staring at a person passing through
From a wet window
With a drop trickling down it
Holding back those tears in my misty eyes

Some day I’ll wear this far away dream out
Before I knew it, I remembered the lie

The days that the map we drew was ruined
In the rain are repeating

Alone and stricken with downpouring, subsided love
I begin my journey
I hold only to those memories of innocent times

The same wind is blowing on both of us
We go through the same nights

How I love you, oh darling…
Don’t you hear me calling

I’m searching for a person
That I can’t meet a second time
Everyone can hear the song I’m singing
I still don’t want anything
My answer is only the sound of rain

The same wind is blowing on both of us
We go through the same nights

How I love you, oh darling…
Don’t you hear me calling

I’m searching for a person
That I can’t meet a second time
Everyone can hear the song I’m singing
I still don’t want anything
My answer is only the sound of rain

I’m searching for a person
That I can’t meet a second time
Everyone can hear the song I’m singing
I still don’t want anything
My answer is…

(Lyrics courtesy of JPopAsia: http://www.jpopasia.com/chachamaru/lyrics/13911/air/grieve/ )

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K’lee and Dale’s Cosmic Photo Challenge – Architecture

For this week’s Cosmic Photo Challenge,  the prompt is “architechture.” Since I don’t have a lot of fancy tools at my disposal for altering photos, I decided to choose a building and pick it apart. I thought what better place to look than Japan, where aesthetics is everything.

Here’s a picture I took in December of 2014, of the Disney store in the Shibuya section of Tokyo. Click on the pictures for a closer look:

 
If you’d like to participate in the prompt, click here for Dale’s page, and/or here to go to K’lee’s place. Go on – it’s fun!


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K’lee and Dale’s Cosmic Photo Challenge 3 (A First for Me)

Odaiba, Tokyo, Japan December, 2014

Odaiba, Tokyo, Japan December, 2014

 
I took this picture at sunrise from my hotel room. The original was far more faded; I brought up the saturation to make the colour of the sun in the reflection of the windows pop. I only wish I had been able to get a clearer shot. You can see how long the shutter was open by observing the lights of the cars going by on the highway.

The three, in this case, (because the theme today is “three”) are the two buildings and the cars. Yes, a bit of a stretch, but it’s the best I could do in a pinch.

P.S. If anyone knows of any good (and cheap or free) programs for altering photos, I’d love to know. Thanks!

This post is part of K’lee and Dale’s Cosmic Photo Challenge. To join in the fun with your own digitally altered photo, click here:  https://diaryofaninternetnobody.com/2016/04/11/klee-and-dales-cosmic-photo-challenge-4/