What time is it? It's party time...

Calling all Japanese: party in Kagawa!

Monday was a holiday. Like most holidays here, I'm not sure what it was for, but enjoyed the day off work nonetheless.
Amberlyn and I had just gotten back from a single adult conference at Goshikidai and had been home for a while when I decided that I needed to stretch my legs and go for a walk.

So, I coerced my lovely roommate into going for a walk around our little Kanonji mainstreet area, in the direction of some loud music/noise that we couldn't make out very well.

And this is what we found -- a full parade down the main street with a big stage/festival area complete with street vendors selling hotdogs at the end. It was great -- Amberlyn and I just sat on the curb and watched in our gaijin stupor. We got lots of nods and smiles from performers, and after meeting a few of them who spoke a little English, found out that the performers were from all over Japan. Our friends in the first picture were from a city north of Hiroshima. We met a few others from Okayama and surrounding.
Whilst dancing around like idiots, Amberlyn and I were found by Jonas and Ryoma, along with his wife and kid. Although I was mildly embarrased, (sometimes I'm just genki here because I know I can get away with it all the time.) we kept jumping around and scored some free noise makers and bells from people walking by and eventually ended up in the middle of an oh-so-japanesey dance at the end of the street. Three performers were teaching the crowd a dance when the lights went out, fireworks lit up the stage and 30 men in red fudoshi made their way onto the stage. (Fudoshi: thong speedo loincloth set. You really should do a google picture search.) The did a manly dance and then hoisted big wooden platforms onto their shoulders and took them out into the crowd. The other picture at the top is one of a guy and his baby riding on the platform these guys were carrying. Amberlyn and I, who were pretty close, found ourselves invited to be hoisted up and down around the street. Yes. I. Was carried princess-style on the backs of scantily clad Japanese men.
I don't think it gets much better than this.

Kingdom Come (coldplay)

one.. two.
steal my heart, and hold my tongue
i feel my time, my time has come
let me in, unlock the door
i never felt this way before

and the wheels just keep on turning
the drummer begins to drum
i don't know which way i'm going
i don't know which way i've come.

hold my head, inside your hands
i need someone who understands
i need someone, someone who hears
for you i've waited all these years

for you i'd wait, til kingdom come
until my day, my day is done
and say you'll come, and set me free
just you'll wait, you'll wait for me.

in your tears, and in your blood
in your fire, and in your flood
i hear you laugh, i heard you sing
i wouldn't change a single thing

and the wheels just keep on turning
the drummers begin to drum
i don't know which way I'm going
i dont know what i'll become

for you'd i'd wait, til kingdom come
until my days, my days are done
say you'll come, and set me free
just say you'll wait, you'll wait for me
just say you'll wait, you'll wait for me
just say you'll wait, you'll wait for me.

and I could write a book/the one they'll say that shook/the world

And I could write a song

A hundred miles long

Well, that's where I belong

And you belong to me

And I could write it down

Or spread it all around

Get lost and then get found

Or swallowed in the sea

And I could write a book

The one they'll say that shook

The world, and then it took

It took it back from me

And I could write it down

Or spread it all around

Get lost and then get found

And you'll come back to me

Not swallowed in the sea

the streets you're walking on

A thousand houses long

Well that's where I belong

And you belong with me

Not swallowed in the sea

You belong with me

Not swallowed in the sea

You belong with me

Not swallowed in the sea

I don't know which way I'm going, I don't know what I've become

Look at the stars, look how they shine for you

OOOOoooooooooooosaka!

Lights will guide you home

And ignite your bones

And I will try to fix you

And high up above or down below

When you're too in love to let it go

But if you never try you'll never know

Just what you're worth

Lights will guide you home

And ignite your bones

And I will try to fix you

Tears stream down your face

When you lose something you cannot replace

Tears stream down your face I promise you I will learn from my mistakes

Tears stream down your face And I

Lights will guide you home And ignite your bones

And I will try to fix you.

emotional b(l)ender

I guess you could say that I'm getting ready to come home -- if by getting ready to come home, you actually mean, thinking about it more and more and wondering what I'll miss when I'm there. Wondering what I should be doing about it. Wondering about people I will never see again and whether or not it's worth it to try to stay in contact with particular people, etc.
I spent the morning at a "recording session" for PEnglish -- my boss's latest and greatest project. Today we were on location at Ichinomiya beach, which I've been told is the prettiest in Kagawa -- I believe them, in the morning and at night. My evenings there have been full of fog and watery air. This morning was all heat and splendor, waves so calm I chuckled at the plight of a lone boogie-boarder. Maybe he just needed a floatation device. Did you know that crabs crawl sideways? At least the little ones there did. They're the beach combers that hide in holes until all is quiet, then scuttle to the next hideout wave of sand again and again. I am sunburnt. And my boss had the audacity to smack the back of my neck right where it was burnt. Luckily for her, I had been aloeing regularly.
In case anyone was wondering, it is hot here, with a fury and humidity unlike others I've known. Friends (american) of mine claim to thrive on it, but they're lying.
Tomorrow I'm headed off to Osaka to catch my favorite band do their thing. The show isn't sold out, which makes me wonder about Japanese people in general. How can they not know that coldplay is so great? The cultural divide expands. I'll be back with pictures of the show/Osaka on probably Tuesday. Ta!

belated birthday

Yesterday was amazing. By some miraculous planetary force, my roommate just happened to make a rainbow chip cake (my favorite) and I got a belated birthday present from an adorable person that I work with. It was kristen's birthday, take 2.
Other than that, the daily grind is sort of mind-numbing. I haven't actually been teaching very many classes out here -- rather, I'm creating videos of super zoomed-in shots of my mouth saying English words phonetically. My colleagues call me kuchi-san -- Japanese for ms. mouth -- which sort of takes the edge off doing some of the most ridiculous work ever.
Here are some happy pictures of me in Hawaii with my fam.
Love them!