-
Mystery Weasel = Masked Civet
My neighborhood wildlife spottings started in December 2002 and it has always been a mystery to me what this long tailed grey critter was. Tanuki? Badger? I called it the Mystery Weasel in my first post and wrote about another sighting of the same animal on July 2006. After seeing four of them together two…
-
Good Luck in the New Year
Yesterday I went to Yoyogi Park to work on a new comic hooping act but got distracted as I entered the gates, Healthy Matsuda, one of Tokyo’s licensed buskers (Heaven Artists, dont’ get me started) was setting up do a comic mime performance. I grabbed a hot tea from the vending machine nearby and plonked myself in…
-
Totality
Phases of the eclipse, captured by Tod. Last night was the first time I’ve experienced a full lunar eclipse. It was beautiful. We rushed out of the house at 21:45 to catch the first bite taken from the moon. Japanese word for lunar eclipse is gesshoku, 月食, which is literally moon eating. What a meal. With a…
-
Hiroshima
We’ve just returned from a three night trip to Hiroshima-ken. Starting in one of my favorite towns in Japan, Onomichi, we walked hundreds of stairs, took in the sunset view from the hilltop, said hello to the ominous monkeys, noted the economic upturn of the shopping arcades, ate pizza, Onomichi ramen, and Thai food. On…
-
Tottori Dunes
Tottori Dunes is the only desert environment in Japan. It’s a funny place, a large expanse of sandy hills with the ocean on one side and mountains on the other. It’s a fifteen minute drive from downtown Tottori. This was not how I expected a desert to be. I imagined that desert had to be…
-
A Dam Walk
After a couple of days of migraine, I needed a chance to breathe fresh air, so Tod & I took the train to Okutama on Sunday. We asked at the sightseeing office about local highlights and they suggested we head a little way out of town to the Ogouchi Dam. I think there may be some spectacular…
-
Jumping Grandma
The Frisk campaign launched on 9/1 and a friend spotted me on the train that very day. The next day, I found myself on the Yamanote line with Heather….and there I was, leaping for Frisk. My tattoo has been Photoshopped out and I’m wearing a white wig and some daggy clothes, so it looks nothing…
-
Skipping Past Middle Age
The new haircolor, but all the old wrinkles. Yesterday I experienced a difficult blow to my self-image and ego. I was at a photo shoot for what will be a national ad campaign in Japan. I was thrilled to get the gig; it was my first official, not-for-a-friend modeling job. I was asked to bring…
-
Towelkets
Allow me to introduce you to one of my summer necessities, the towelket. I cannot imagine this season without these lightweight cotton terry blankets. They are perfect for sleeping on and under in the sticky Tokyo heat. I splashed out and bought new ones yesterday and realised I’ve never seen them outside Japan. Japan has…
-
Audition
A few weeks back, a friend connected me to his agent for a specific hoop-related project (which hasn’t come together yet) and now the agency has been contacting me about other jobs. I’ve been in Tokyo for 13 years and have never once been to a modeling audition or even considered myself modelling material. But…
Archives