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09.06.04
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I went down to Harajuku and Shibuya today
because I had to take Jack to the dentist
for a checkup. He hated it--kicked and screamed
and spat the whole time--like a little blonde
Incredible Hulk. Oh well, at least he didn't
have any cavities, and I got to take a lot
of pictures.
09.02.04
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Today we had lunch at our friend Samantha's
place on the far side of Tokyo. On our way
there we saw a young guy on one of the station
platforms, squatting and leaning back against
a pillar, his head hanging between his knees,
and obviously not feeling very well.
Karen then made an interesting observation
about Tokyo: it's okay to be sick in public.
Because so many people use the trains--have to use the trains--there are bound to be
sick people getting on and off everyday.
In the summers you see the young pregnant
women hurling on to the tracks from a combination
of heat and morning sickness. All year round
if you happen to be lost in the evening,
you can pretty much follow the trail of salary-man
vomit back to the nearest station, hot on
the heels of the little blue-suited corporate
minions staggering home after their requisite
after-work dinner and binge drinking sessions.
Of course people get sick all the time
in
Canada too, but I guess they do it
in their
cars, or pull over to the side of the
road
I suppose. Although I know that some
of the
late-night buses returning to the suburbs
from the bar district in downtown Vancouver
are notorious for drunken vomit extravaganzas.
So, this is just something to keep in mind.
If you're ever in Tokyo and have food poisoning
or morning sickness or drank too much don't
worry about it. Just get on the train and
get on with your business. Nobody will think
twice about it.
08.29.04
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We are slowly chipping away at the monumental
task of breaking down our home and moving
back to Canada. Karen has unleashed her extraordinary
sales skills and has been selling all of
our odds and ends to people in the local
foreigner community. I guess it turns out
that there are a lot of people here, fresh
off the plane, who need to furnish their
apartments but don't have much money saved
up yet.
A young couple from Tennessee came by today
to pick up a rice cooker and we managed to
dump a whole load of cutlery, plates, books,
closet rods, and a flat iron on them. What
a relief! It feels so good to divest yourself
of all of the clutter around your home.
We managed to take a break from all
of the
wheeling and dealing to attend a local
street
dance festival, and that's where today's
pictures were taken.
Enjoy.
08.25.04
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In a new twist on the old 'I gave at the
office' cliche, my young son Jack has invented
'I gave at the Seven-Eleven but now I want
it back'.
A lot of the convenience stores in our neighbourhood
have little donation boxes by the till for
charities ranging from seeing eye dogs for
the blind to forest preservation. Because
Jack loves to put money in slots--vending
machines, games, you name it--I've gotten
in to the habit of slipping him a one yen
coin, like a penny, when we're at the store
so that he can put it in the donation box.
There's nothing altruistic here, I'm just
trying to entertain my kid.
Well the other day when we were all out buying
ice cream at Seven-Eleven Jack got a bit
overzealous and snatched the 500 yen coin
that I was using to buy the ice cream and
before I could stop him he had donated it
to the 'save the pandas' foundation.
We hummed and hawed for a moment, but then
decided that we just had to get that coin
back so that we could buy our ice cream.
I managed to wrench the box out from under
the till where it was fixed down, to the
nervous giggling of the sympathetic shop
girl, and Karen and I then proceeded to bang
and twist and shake the thing trying to get
our 500 yen out. During the course of this
box shaking we were of course doing our best
to do the Japanese thing and constantly say
things like "Oh, we're so sorry"
and "Oh my, how embarrassing,"
but really we didn't give a shit because
it was all kind of funny.
After trying in vain to fish the coin out
with a chop stick for a couple of minutes
I eventually just succumbed to my base instincts
and knocked the box upside down on the counter
until half the contents spilled out through
the little hole and I was finally able to
retrieve my coin.
In perfect Japanese form, none of the other
customers or staff passing by acted as if
they saw anything unusual or out of the ordinary.
They all just walked right on past without
a word or a second glance, as if it was everyday
that they saw two freakishly giant foreigners
and a blonde kid in a dirt-stained tank top
banging a save the pandas donation box off
the counter top at Seven-Eleven.
Anyway, in the end we all got our ice cream
and Jack, in a weird kind of way, learnt
the true meaning of giving.
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