Skimboarding 2008 Session #08 - Farewell Chigasaki, Japan!
November 4, 2008
What you see in the above photo is a mysterious rock out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. It is the symbol of Chigasaki. I have no idea how it was formed or what it really is. Despite skimboarding this place for the past six summers, I never investigated its meaning. And I do not want to know. I always imagined it as a great shark’s dorsal fin. The rock is very mysterious, for as you walk further from it, the stone actually appears closer to you. Such is the scene of my first ever skimboarding in Japan back in June of 2003, and my final session in October 2008.
Cosmos in bloom at Showa Kinen Park in Tachikawa, Japan
October 21, 2008
I had been to Showa Kinen Park in Tachikawa, Japan many times before last weekend, but only to play frisbee golf. So when I visited the park this past weekend to photograph cosmos hill, I quickly realized I have been missing out on the best parts of it. Aya and I rented bicycles at the entrance gate as Showa Kinen Park is huge, several kilometers long. This allowed us to visit more areas of the park than we would have had time to just walk to. Our first destination was cosmos hill, which I didn’t think I’d be impressed with at first.
THE KARATE KID [1984] review
August 18, 2008
In the summer of 1984, in Cape Cod, Massachusetts I went to see THE KARATE KID with my grandfather. The only moment I can remember clearly is walking out of the theater into the parking lot, at twilight time, seeing other kids doing the crane pose. Like all the other kids who just saw it, I was totally stoked to try karate. I believe every single kid who saw THE KARATE KID that summer left the theater doing some kind of karate motion.
Few movies have achieved such iconic status as THE KARATE KID. Pieces of dialogue from the movie are burned into pop culture. No doubt everyone knows “wax on, wax off.”
THE DARK KNIGHT [2008] review
August 3, 2008
WARNING: SPOILERS
Right after the Joker was captured at about the half-way point of THE DARK KNIGHT, I was already thinking to myself, “the most badass film, ever.” Then the film totally changed gears and became an incredible psychological thriller and statement on the effect of terrorism on modern society. I was not prepared for this dual-genre film, and it blew me away leaving me walking out of the theater knowing it will enter my pantheon of unforgettable movie going experiences.
Star Wars Celebration Japan 2008!!
July 30, 2008
Like for many people of my generation, STAR WARS is the greatest genre series of my life. In fact, the whole past decade of my life has been based on, and around, STAR WARS. I have literally flown to other countries to be able to see the release of the prequels on time. And also like many other STAR WARS fans, Episode III brought a significant close to the STAR WARS chapter of my life (read my Episode III journal). Since 2005, STAR WARS has greatly waned in my consciousness. Thus, I only found out about Star Wars Celebration Japan 2008 at the last minute.
And lucky that I did! For a mini-revival in STAR WARS is about to begin with the release of the CG animated CLONE WARS movie in August 2008 and the related TV series soon after. I write this post now while listening to the Episode III soundtrack. Thusly I went to Makuhari-Messe in Chiba, Japan with UK Mike caught in surprise at this sudden burst of STAR WARS energy. [Read more]
Skimboarding 2008 - Session #03 - Hiratsuka
July 23, 2008
The waves were significantly bigger this time at Hiratsuka, which always makes for more fun for the skimboarder, as well as the chance for bigger wipeouts! But here’s a secret—big wipeouts are fun. They may look like they hurt, but most of the time you are falling into deep water so it’s just a matter of keeping your mouth closed so as not to drink in any water.
Besides the larger waves, the biggest conditions difference was that the sand was a bit softer, no doubt because of the larger waves crashing on the shore and carrying sand all over the place. This meant I ran a step slower than in the previous week’s session. It also meant that my ears ended up being full of black sand! Usually I get a little, but this time the amount of sand coming out was a bit disconcerting. Aya hadn’t experienced this before, so I had to reassure that this was normal for skimboarding Shonan area beaches.
Searching for a Spontaneous Apocalypse
July 3, 2008
I wrote “Searching for a Spontaneous Apocalypse” for a summer school class in 1999 when I was a graduate student at the University of South Florida. The assignment was to take one book of the Bible and depict it artistically (painting, poem, short-story, collage, etc). I chose to write a short-story in spontaneous prose style about the events of the Book of Revelations set in present time. I wrote it all in one sitting, taking about 6 hours, maybe less, between the hours of 9pm and 3am.
I consider it to be my very best writing, and not just because it received extremely high praise from the professor of the class. This work came at the height of my long creative period at the end of the 90’s when my mind was focused and spilling out words almost constantly. I believe it to very closely reveal how I actually think and perceive the world in my own mind. (some exerts from the story are real)
This story is best read all in one sitting, which will take about 15 minutes.
SEARCHING FOR A SPONTANEOUS APOCALYPSE
Long hours spent alone at night
allow for ample time to explore all thoughts in mind and
uninterrupted thinking is only slowed by sadness that is being constantly fought against. To all
poets on Sunday nights, the world seems particularly sad. Others enjoy “family night” or feel a
sickness well up in them as their work week—which kills them—comes onto their horizon
again. Sad poets contemplate the nature of reality and at once realize the tragic nature of it all,
and then think its all love too.
GHOST DOG [1999] review
May 23, 2008
Like GHOST DOG said, it’s all about moments. Just a series of moments. It really struck me when GHOST DOG read that from the code of the samurai he follows so truly, for all my life I’ve been just setting up a series of moments. You can’t keep everything perfect forever, but for a single moment, you can. And then it passes, as does GHOST DOG.
I was totally IN for this movie. Loved the silent no dialogue opening, just GHOST DOG walking between people in rhythm, they didn’t even notice him as he slipped between open door, sidewalk and trash can. I could feel him feeling it. RZA’s score punctuated every image on the screen.
Amazing that the director, Jim Jamarsh, let scenes breath like the first time GHOST DOG talks to young Pearline. … They are just letting a scene between GHOST DOG and a little girl go on like that talking about books? … Total human moment, which served to humanize the previously ghost-like GHOST DOG.
…Loved how he and French speaking only Ray assumed absolutely correctly what each was saying every time.
…Just because there aren’t many of them left. Exactly the reason why you shouldn’t.
GHOST DOG is a powerful poem/meditation/haiku/imprint of a movie. … As RZA’s last piece of music played over the credits, I stood out upon my balcony surveying the vastness of Tokyo before me, and could feel the fading spirit Ghost Dog talked about.
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