La Japoneisa: A Change?

Recently I have noticed a change in my approach. Not a general approach to things but rather to people. I don't seem to fall in love with them on the first sight anymore, it appears that they are compelled to undergo a deeply hidden internal inspection of some sort and eventually grow on me. Or not grow. Thus (the growth) it happened with Keiko, it happened with Renchan and so it also happened with Leechan who had turned from an annoying little squeaky monkey into an adorable entity and I feel rather protective (in an older-sister's-responsibility and educational sort of way) over her.
And I wonder how this occurrence had come about. Perhaps this change could signify inner revolution in the self? Maturity of some sort? Could this eloquent transformation mean onset of formation of more profound and more lasting attachments to human beings?

La Japoneisa: The Aches and Pains of the Just

Every morning I wake up and I feel my hands ache with the first movements of my body’s dawn. They ache from kusakariing (cutting the grass), they ache from turning the soil over, from carrying baskets full of weeds, from chopping the bamboo or breaking the pieces of wood behind the chicken coop. And maybe even from cooking for twenty people at a time.
I think it was two weeks ago I was washing my face in the morning and was wondering why is feels as if I was scrubbing it. I thought that perhaps there is still some sand left in my hair from our trip to Sado and it fell onto my skin and stuck. But this sensation would now take place every morning and every evening. Every time I’d wash my face, I'd feel something scrubbing against my skin as if I was using a skin peeling implement of some sort. And last night I finally came to understand. My hands, after five weeks of hard work at the house and the fields, have become covered in mame (blisters, not beans) and the skin on my palms had toughened so much that it scrubs my face each time I try to wash it.
Palm readers, come and see the truth of the earth and life, read the history of universe scribbled onto my hands.

La Japoneisa: POKERON, THE MOUNTAIN IMP

Today I have established my company under the name Pokeron, the Mountain Imp.
I'm going to be making chopsicks and chopstick cases, letter knives and letter knife cases and knit woolly hats. And I'm going to sell them to whomever who would like mountain bamboo made goods or wolly hats. Any ideas for any more mountain bamboo goods? Or woolly goods? Socks! I'm going to make woolly socks and scarves too.
Would anyone like to have some mountain bamboo goods and cases, letter knives and woolly hat and socks? All hand made with love and personal and individual care?
Please let me know.

Bo and I went to the karate practice today. V.v.v exciting! Though when we came to Sugeoi Shogakko there was no one there, the school was locked up and deserted. But we had a nice one to one training session anyway and it was so cool to be wearing my toilet roll outfit again that the fact that there wasn't a proper legal training didn't really matter.
Happy.

Otherwise my day was spent with the chickens in their coop and behing their coop, tidying it, piling the messy pieces of wood and only now I have come to fully appreciate my dad's passion for communicating with it. So warm, so friendly...
...and the piles seem so neverending.

La Japoneisa: One Ordinary Sunday

Ichioka san called last night and told us that finally he has found a karate dojo.
Training is tomorrow and I am very excited. Yay!
Today I even found a shinkyokushinkai karate gi top. Will have to ask Wayne if I could borrow the gi trousers that belonged to the top that he had uzurped.

Also I might become a carpenting apprentice. Spoke to Mason today, and he said that when I've mastered my Japanese I could maybe become an uchideshi in Kyoto and learn carpentry and then restore all the houses in Iya :-D.

It was a wonderful Sunday today. All the guests, and there have been a lot of them in the last few days-Mason's friends that he had brought with him from an adventurous cruiseship, lot of funky people, especially Al and Natalia and Thomas, well anyway, all of them left, Mason together with Hana chan, Wayne and Bo went to help out clean the surroundings of the local school close to here (consisting of approx. sixteen students and five teachers) and so they all left and Annie and I had the whole house to ourselves and it was wonderful. Quiet and peaceful, once we've cleaned it we could actually see the house and it was empty and clean and beautiful.

La Japoneisa: Nagashi Somen

Beautiful hot morning brought us a beautiful day of ancient traditions and summer happiness.
While everybody else was getting ready for the Nagashi Somen, preparing the bamboo, cooking the somen noodles I got to drive wildly around the narrow roads of Iya in our pajero. And I sang. I was alone, sun shining on my way, and I sang at the top of my lungs to the mountains around me, to the rocks, birds, lizzards, spiders and snakes and I was happy.
Came back from my little trip with Luka (Mason's adorable girlfriend) and her family and all was set. What was left for us to do now was grab a bowl, a pair of chopsticks and wait for Lee chan to throw the somen down the bamboo tube so we could catch it somewhere in the course of its journey towards the collender on the other end of the bamboo. Omo san joined us and it was so much fun.
The guys, while i was on my driving duty, also learned how to make bamboo pots, chopsticks and whirling thingies that my dad, who once was in possession of a similar item, called 'pupampareno' and the strange name carried a childhood magic with it which still sparkles around everytime someone whirls it into the air.
And I made chopsticks. And then I sew a case for them and I am going to make and sew more and then am going to sell them at the Kochi Sunday market.

La Japoneisa: Return to the Mother...Silence of the Sounds of One's Heart.

Our first day back, Bo's, Wayne's and mine.
There is so much work to do though still all loved up with our amazing holiday the work was done with love and appreciation and joy of return. The burning energy that can eat one alive on the inside was let out in the air and sparkled my every movement, filled in the spaces between the letters of the words I uttered and with a satisfactory look I turn back to the clean field, to the stockd up bamboo in the wobbly shelves and am ready to begin the begun quest tomorrow again.

La Japoneisa: EC: Finally at Home

And so we finally made it home.
Its peaceful, quiet, all one can hear is the silence of the mountains...and semi.

Our return journey, mostly spent on service stations standing in rain, left scars and so today, with the news of two tayphoons coming our way and (my) feeling of failure, we found ourselves at the Nagoya train station with juhachikippu in our hands, ready to continue towards the grandeur finale.
The finale indeed grandeur was, marked by innumerable getting on and offs local trains (maybe 15??), airconditioning and station soba.

And now it is 9.55 pm, we are back and happy, my heart sings, my soul shines with sunrays and I am soon off to bed, though this time I have no one to hold hands with >__<

La Japoneisa: EARTH CELEBRATION Day 4

I was still drunk when I woke up four hours after falling into peaceful unconsciousness under the influence.
How cool it is to open your eyes and the first thing you see are endless skies, sand and bright blue sea and all it takes is to take off your clothes, and one top, one pair of trousers and twenty metres later you are in the sea, among the jellyfishes.
It was hot and I was drowsy with dehydration, in possession of no other liquids except for more alcohol and sea water. Not good.
We packed The Palace for the boys had to leave today and decorated with all our bags, once again looking like a bunch of Christmas trees, we made our way to the bus stop and got on the overloaded bus of sweaty bodies and hounded looks as remains of a vigilant all-nighter, heavily proceeding forwards. What a great change from the previous bus journeys screaming with life and joy; in the empty gazes out of the window to a distant nowhere, in the silence of the body postures one could read the lines of last night's novel. Dehydrated I could hardly stand straight, for most of the journey I saw circles in front of my eyes and weak at the knees I tried to keep my self upright though all I really wanted to do was to noiselessly pass out into the tranquillity of the unknown.
By the time we rebuilt The Palace again in the port-park-campsite and found a convenient store I was shaking and very close to just dropping to the ground. Somehow though, through all the colourful circles that now appeared in my field of vision continuously, I managed to march on in the front tracking the combini and thankfully no one had noticed what a pathetic creature I'd become. It took one piece of disgusting margarined butter bread, a bottle of Calpis and five minutes on a bench in front of the shop to partly rejuvenate and slowly gaining my energy, I was ready to rejoin the army of happiness and harmony again.






Once more there were happy faces squinting in the bright sunshine, though what until then might have seemed to have been an ostensibly profligate attempt at a fashion statement had become a means of chaste necessity; one could see an unconstrained assortment of head covers and other protective devices in a great range of colours, shapes, sizes and only think about their previous possible applications.





































































































The dancing and the singing and celebrating continued yet for another day,
　
though after Renchan and the boys had begun their return journey at lunchtime, I was left by myself to quietly contemplate the windy routes and enigmatic intentions of fate. And so I did and enjoyed in silence the baking sun, in stillness I looked at all the beautiful souls surrounding me, the strangers who have for just a little while become one family, until the extraordinary world of ours got covered by the soft greyness of coming dusk. Then it was time for KODO. With the magical fairy lights in the trees the fire in my soul was awoken and my eyes shone with expectation into the darkness in front that soon was litten by the thunders of life from under the drummers' arms.

La japoneisa: EARTH CELEBRATION Day 3 "I am a kite!"...or "Where did you get that Abdulah?"

We were woken up into a beautiful cloudless day on a beach that was not for free. A couple of campsite guys, armed with pens and blocks of receipts, stopping at every tenttlement, were chasing after all the cheapskates that tried to escape the law of the land. Like us. After we paid, for the next hour we were all coming up with ideas how we should have avoided paying. Humphr.
This was the point where the party split into two parties. Party of practical sensible people, Wayne and Bo, who decided to pack their stuff and move to the little illegal campsite by the port and then us, Ren, I, Kei chan and Ryuji chan. On my toothbrushing mission I slyly asked the camp maintainers about where does the campsite begin and where does it end. Thus we picked The Palace and moved it fifty metres further down the beach and we were set for the next couple of nights. Safe.
We let the boys run around the beach and get stung by even more jellyfishes and Ren and I went to hitchhike to central Ogi. The merciless sun followed our steps up the hill covered in palms and huge flowers, swaying in the breeze that would occasionally bring to us the sounds of cars to pass and not stop. As we were walking on one car suddenly stopped and in it were two young guys who were happy to share their vehicle and share their Ogi no mizu which made my face cringe and sent fire down my throat, and after few minutes of drive the guys left us at the port, burning and buzzing, ready to celebrate the earth.


We walked, we talked, we sat and quietly enjoyed being one with this world of our hearts.
Everybody around us seemed to be loved up with the amazing atmosphere of which humming energy filled the air and travelled from one to another until one was all, allure that belonged to one belonged to everybody, thoughts were shared and charmed with good will and harmony they were sent around with a smile, a look, a touch, tenderness and friendship inconspicuously tiptoeing into every individual life around.



The dusk brought with it threats of a storm of which arrival we were watching with anguish, the mighty wind bringing on its wild wings sounds of the lightning over the dark horizon with no boundaries, stretched into eternity of our existence. And so we laughed and danced until we danced the rain away and the celebration continued and softened by the balm of traditions (ten years old Okinawan shochu ;-)) we eased into the night, dancing around the fire, jumping over the fire, the life was ours and no one else’s.


















Maru chan, darling old man from Niigata, Ren’s and mine guarding angel, the boys from Kyoto Journal, Ben (“I am a kite!”) and Jacob, interestingly weird peace girl Cherine, the wonderful musicians and bongo players were the persons of our breathtaking experience and shall remain in our memories that perhaps sometime we may live once again and anew.
















The night was delightful, my heart sang, and with the sounds of the tidying waves, under the starry sky, hand in hand we slowly walked the wet sand into our dreams.



"Where did you get that Abdulah?"

La Japoneisa: EARTH CELEBRATION Day 2

EARTH CELEBRATION
Day 2 (19th August 2005)

THE PLAN AND THE SECOND PART OF THE JOURNEY
The exact plan remained rather unclear for quite some while, veiled by everybody's individual visions determined by individual quotas that we all had to meet in order to succeed.
The end result resembled a packet of sardines in a tin on a very slow assembly line; all of us, Bo, Wayne, me, Ren and Ren's little brother and cousin, squished in Ren's mum's red seven-seater on route 19, marked by endless rows of traffic lights (mostly in red mode) everywhere where it was possible to put them, pensively proceeding forwards in a sluggish sort of way.

Only two or so hours into the journey I realized why there were so many traffic lights on the motorway. It was not a motorway. Doh!3 but again, you are listening to the person who thought that the kettle was a rice cooker.
We headed for Nagano, through the beautiful mountains covered in mist, alongside the river lined by huge grey stones, the scenery so picturesque that I had to admit the fellow travellers lucky that I didn't drive, for if I did, we'd very probably end up at the bottom of that beautiful rocky river bed, staring at the hills together with all the happy fishes and frogs.
We were doing quite well, timewise, considering all the traffic lights and all the people, er, women (oh, I really shouldnít be saying this) who did not understand basic rules en route, but two hours later we were still two hours away from Naoetsu and two hours away from the last ferry's departure and so after a mutual consensus we agreed to pay the 2000 Yen road tax and fiiiiiiiiii of we were and oh how wonderfully fast we were, sparkles left in the smoke of the fire ball we've had become.
Arrived at Naoetsu, deloaded all the backpacks, bags, fags, surfboard, two bottles of okinawan shochu, sleeping bag, hats and plastic food bags, bought the tickets, boarded the boat and sunbathing on the top deck, with closed eyes and finally peace in our hearts and harmony in our souls we were carried on the sleepy waves of the Japanese sea, accompanied by flocks of seagulls scaving for food, towards our future.



"TWO LUCKY BUGGERS"
As we were approaching the port at Ogi, Sado-ga-shima, we spotted a little tent-town among few trees, possibly a park, right by the port. We had heard that it was possible to camp-no-fee but that was on a beach, and this seemed like the last sort of place someone would like to sleep, with the seaweeds and dead smelly fishes, away from all the action and fun and life. And so we stood around a bit, looking helpless and lost with all the luggage hanging off all possible hanger-like places, hands, fingers, necks and rope loops, then we talked a bit and stood around again to finally decide that, since the last bus (transport organization??) to the campsite has already left, we shall take the taxi. But consisting of six elements we'd have to take two taxis (too expensive) and still there was the surf board (the inadaptable element). And so as Ren decided to walk to the campsite with the board I had decided to join the two of them for after spending the whole day in various rather uncomfortable positions in the car, legs on the front window, legs outside the window, legs crossed, legs folded, legs under the dashboard, legs legs everywhere and all the time knowing I had legs and that there were two of them, I felt a desperate need to move and loosen the awareness of possessing two legs.
As Bo later mentioned, she didn't even realize how they suddenly found themselves in the taxi with two kids and all the backpacks around and on them, and off they were to the campsite which none of us really knew where it was.
Ren, the surfboard and I started walking the direction we were pointed towards but then we saw lights back in the port and heard music so we decided to have a quick look before we'd continue on our journey.
It turned out that the lights were the centre of all the 'fun and life', it was the flee market, right by the fringe-performance stage, with people talking and laughing and walking around in the fairy-lit-darkness, it boasted with lively colours and foreign smells, it silently screamed out the excitement of being and becoming.



In this Babylon Ren, about whom I have heard so much though whose real intriguing him was slowly unfolding in front of me and would flaunt itself every time in a different light, managed to find some friends, two girls, who were very sweet and cute and offered us a lift to Sobama beach, where we in the end had to drive by ourselves since they couldn't leave their stall. Upon our arrival to Sobama we found out that Bo and Wayne had not registered and rolling further down the road we found them walking towards the beach which apparently was not a part of the camping site thus was for free, and where they'd built our tents. "You will love your tent!" told us Wayne when we got out of the car. Fine, I thought. "It is a great tent!" he said again and something in his eyes, or perhaps his smirk made me think. They led us to the camp and there we saw three tents, all good. Then we came closer and I could suddenly see what he was talking about and burst out laughing. The tent we found in Mason's shed was so cool, iglu-style construction though with no walls, only a square floor to which the sticks were attached and were covered with a little bit of a roof. The Palace.
We dropped our bags, Ren and I covered one quarter of our Palace with a kaya (mosquito net), another one with Ren's rainbow hammock netting and ran hurray back to the flee market where 'the poi people', accompanied by the sexi bongo drummers with long dreads and no shirts on, were just beginning their fascinating performance, their game with fire.



And everybody seemed in peace that was shining in their eyes, inner happiness was read on their smiling lips, swaying, dancing or just sitting in silence the people with their music found their way into every single heart and I among all felt in the right place, in amity with all the world around me I felt this immense serene love I wanted to reveal and share with each look, each movement and glimpse.

La Japoneisa: EARTH CELEBRATION Day 1

EARTH CELEBRATION
Day 1 (18th August, 2005)

“You look like a sea turtle without an ocean.”

Woke up at 4.45am to wake the rest of the crew up at 5 so we could leave at 6 and get some nice rides with the workers or other early birds. Was so excited! Bo was excited as well and I believe Wayne was excited too, on the inside. Then he had a coffee and was excited on the inside and on the outside like the rest of us and with hearts singing of life and happiness we hopped down the road. On the way we stopped at Mason’s shed and found a tent. And so then all was even better than well, for now we had two tents for four people, what seemed just perfect.
And so we hopped on down until Annie, bless her goodwilled excitedness for our mission, picked us up in the Pajero and dropped us off at Oshima, where we actually stood at least some chance of getting a hitch.
And so we started walking. We walked down, and across the bridge, met Manabu on his way to work who didn’t offer to give us a lift and so politely we didn’t ask, and walked on through the tunnel until we found a wider part of the road somewhat resembling a car park where we sat down, faces turned towards the rising sun and eyes shining with expectations of adventurous happenings, and waited.



After a few minutes and few cars had passed a little white k-truck drove wildly towards us, wildly it pulled to the side and slightly surprised, slightly amazed and innerly satisfied with the course of our journey right from the beginning we sat Wayne in the cockpit, dumped our bags and tents in the back of the truck and with Bo we climbed to sit with them. Hair blowing in the wind (remembering a scene out of Bridget Jones’ Diary I attempted at tieing a scarf around my head to at least slightly remain looking like a sane human being), holding onto anything we could hold onto not to bounce out onto the road, we headed down the curvy routes which I got to know and ride on as if my own as far as Kazurabashi.

HITCH 1: Oshima -> Kazurabashi
7:25
In Kazurabashi we stood in front of the building site for a little while to see Eiji san go to work and being unsuccessful in our quest we moved further down the road where we found a car park to display our pretty black and white 方面 signs.

HITCH 2: Kazurabashi -> Ikeda
7:46 8:35

After about twenty minute overall wait we were picked by a very nice man in a black car who knew the people from Kazurabashi Hoteru where we go for an onsen and so we had a nice little chat.



Or Bo had. It had become a sort of an unwritten rule for Bo to sit on the front seat and lead the cultural and intellectual exchange while Wayne and I feebly participated from the back or went chrrrrrrrrr and rejuvenated.
All good and all happy.

HITCH 3: Ikeda -> Kobe
9:23 12:50

We were dropped at a petrol station and on a hitchhiker’s high we bravely posed on the side of the dual carriage way with our signs glued to our chests with the wind and thumbs stuck out. And we waited again. And waited some more. And then we noticed that we were standing on the wrong side of the road hitching the wrong direction >__< (doh!).
When we eventually started hitching in the correct direction I decided to cross the road for I thought that’d be a rather good idea but still, no one would stop for us. Humphr. All three of us had our own ideas about an ideal way to hitch and so for a little while we scattered alongside the road, perhaps slightly annoyed. Travelling with a couple, especially when you are not one of the couple, can imaginably become irritating at times and so perhaps the acquired space was good. And then it happened. Tralalalling down the road (in the right direction), under the burning sun and heavy backpacks Bo and Wayne, thirty metres in front of me, were approached by a man. The man, as I caught up, turned out to be a sweet guy who stopped at the next car park and walked all the 500 metre way up to us to tell us that he can take us all the way to Osaka. And we were skipping with happiness once again. This time, for a change, it was Wayne to be sat in the conversation seat and so we heard everything one can hear about all possible football clubs and teams and pitch positions in the world, about heavy metal music and all the likes and dislikes of our host and Wayne. Wayne’s yesterday-stung-by-a-big-horrid-and-ugly-bee leg was with the heat and all the walking getting more swollen and painful and so soon it was me in the conversation seat, struggling but enjoying and being praised (always good *chuff chuff*).

HITCH 4: Kobe -> Osaka
13:13 13:43

Juji san, with utter goodness-shined-through persona, left us at the services in Kobe for there were apparently none around Osaka, but we were content enough with this development for we never even dreamt of such luck. There we took out our directories again and again we waited. We smiled at all the drivers getting out and getting in their cars in hope they shall be charmed enough to pity us enough to pick us up. Didn’t really work that well but we persisted anyway for it felt nice. And then we were lucky again when a van stopped by us and a bold smiley hippie man with no teeth but a big smile on his face nevertheless, told us he could take us to Osaka. And so once again, happily, we got on. The seven-seater was spacious and comfy and so Wayne could put up his leg and relax, Bo conversed in the front and I just sat quietly enjoying the journey. The ride that I thought was rather cool Bo found rather, hm, disconcerting and after hearing what her conversation with the driver was about I guess I would do too and I would hold onto the seats in front of me and handles around me, and with clenched teeth and firmly shut eyes wait for it all to pass.
Conversation (approx.):
Ryuji san (the driver): I spent the last three days in the hospital.
Bo: Why were you in the hospital?
Ryuji: Because my face is bad.
Bo: Ha ha! Seriously…why were you in the hospital?
Ryuji: Because my face is bad.
Bo: What is wrong with your face?
Ryuji: Eeeer…my head is bad…eer, I dunno.

The guy was up since 2am, driving, after three days spent in hospital and drinking shochu. But still, he got us to Osaka safe and he was smiley and seemed happy. All good.

HITCH 5: Osaka -> Nagoya
13:58 16:25

The sun was up and bright and we were dancing and singing (or I was) at the services full of joy, waiting expectantly for our next ride that was so definitely gonna come soon. The vibes were good. The service men were smiling and waving at us and soon enough they waved and shouted that they’d gotten us a ride!
The driver was an old man of seventy, very serious looking, very well dressed, one of those people with substance that have lots of money and of course, have to play golf. He was taking us directly to Nagoya.



On the way we stopped at another service station from which we had a view of the biggest lake in Japan and where he got us a lot of yummy goodies, specialities, sweets and a bread for a 1000 Yen. Wow! And so he drove on, and we all chatted, some more some less and as we approached Nagoya it started to rain (Birmingham of Japan Wayne called Nagoya and I remembered my last visit here, not the drunken unconscious part-since can not remember much of it-but the horrid never-ending rain that got me into that state in the first place). This man owned a house in Palm Springs, flew to Kochi by his jet and owned a car shop in Nagoya where we had to stop before he’d drop us off at Ren’s so he could change his car.



While we were all amazed looking at all the pretty cars in his shop, taking pictures in his red Pontiac, he changed the Volvo for this beautiful Mercedes Benz with leather seats and gorgeous smooth acceleration and so we reloaded and continued to Atsuta Jingu where we, saying our goodbyes, invited him to Chiiori and he gave us his meishi (business card). We finally arrived, the first part of our hitchadventure accomplished with a cherry on the cream. Our self-satisfied excitement was weaved with a respectful awe, pride and consequent feelings of bravada and grandeur when we learned, after Ren had glimpsed our posh granddad's meishi, that this man belongs to the Yakuza! I feel honoured (for surviving, I guess ^_^).

Kilometrage:
Total time: 9 hours
Costs: none

By train:
Total time:
Costs:

There was no one at home and so we piled our bags in the corner by the door, sat on the steps, talking, smoking, reading, watching rabbits on a garage roof (bizarre??), waiting for Ren to return from Tokyo to let us in. Tidlidoo tidlidoo no one was coming and so we sat and waited and sat and waited and then called Ren to find out that the door was open what Wayne claimed it wasn’t (doh!2).

Finally we got in and finally Ren arrived, with a backpack, textile bags full of various things hanging from each of his hands, a turquoise hat on his head and a huge grin on his face.

La Japoneisa: The Birthday Day

I slept in. Woke up slowly and enjoyed the attained peace.
Spent the whole day cutting bamboo so we had something to heat our bath water with and now it is nicely stocked up on one of the two shelves outside of the bathroom.

And then i sat on the porch, looking accross the valley at all the trees, the remains of mist, listening to the cikadas and the sense of content was growing stronger and was being rooted deeper in me.

And I was the Birthday Girl so I could have two pieces of my チョコ　チップ birthday cake!

Tomorrow, Bo, Wayne and I are off to Sado-ga-shima, or the Sado Island to which we are going to hitchike to see the Earth Celebration (アース　セレブラチオンーAss Serebrashion). Big yay! In Nagoya we are meeting Ren, Bo and Wayne's friend, and if I'm lucky I might catch Ethi in non-busy mode and he will take me for 600¥ beer, or so he promised.

(a v angry praying mantice)

La Japoneisa: Awa Odori and the Dreams of Love and Chocolate Cake

Herbert walked into my dreams last night. A bunch of memories from the past formed new memories of the unconscious present and it was nice. When we were leaving 4 Aston Street last summer we hugged and I said I was going to miss him. He said I wouldn't. And he was right. There wasn't one moment I would feel my heart ache or long for his presence, his love; all I felt was a sort of relief, lightness of the mind and soul and somewhat of freedom. Freedom from love.?
Now, after one year had passed, I found myself thinking of him so intensly and felt such a strong need to see him again, and yes, after one year I found myself missing him so much it hurt.
On this journey I also met En. I met him in town of Banska Bystrica with some other people and we agreed on meeting a little bit later. I had a plastic bag with me and was going to go home and get changed, but then as I saw him sat at the crossroads under my grandma's house I realized there wasn't the need to get changed at all and so I wondered to him and we walked up the hill on which my old school stood. We got halfway up and sat in the middle of a green meadow, munching a chocolate cake with double cream I had in my plastic bag. And else.

With thoughts of last night my day had started. One full day of Awa Odori.
Met Bo at the Chiiori main house, we packed, made sure we had all we needed, a sarashi, sexi three size bigger white pants, tabi, our pea green yukata with kanji on it saying 'abarembo' (fool) and greenishyellow obi, we had breakfast and off we were to 'taiko no tokoro' ('the taiko place') where we were to meet the rest of the crew.
We got there and with the help of the senior awa odori dancers got all dressed up and pretty in some sort of a care place in the basement where they also had foot massage mashines(:-D)!! With Bo we were saying how much we enjoyed not really knowing what's the plan and what would be going on, and, knowing now, it is only good that we didn't.
What followed were, to cut long story short, ten hours of dancing, getting on the bus and dancing again until we collapsed in total exhaustion back in the bus and eventually in our beds at about 2am the next day.
Though what a wonderful day it was!
The dance began locally, we danced at old people's homes, at care centres and my heart was full of joy which I tried to spread around with a smile on my face; then there were various car parks or dubious road-rests with many or none observers and then finally we headed for Ikeda where the main festival was held. It was amazing! The whole place was one moving mass of bodies, clipitty-clopping feet, colours of centuries of tradition and hungrying smells of local specialities. Groups from all over Tokushima-ken gathered here to present what they have been practising for weeks (re: us) and even months, to bring the dance to utter perfection and perfect it was. The drum beats lead the way and happy colourful figures followed in line in front of the exciting eyes of celebratig people of all ages.

On the bus one the way there the guys, Manabu and Satoshi, asked me how old I was. And so I sad, inside rather reluctantly admitting the coming of the age, that tomorrow I was going to be twenty four. And that was it. On our way back, where some still had the enregy to chat and laugh, and some, like me and Bo, were slowly dozing off in our seats, I was suddenly brought to consciousness by the shouts and screams 'O tanjoubi omedetou! O tanjoubi omedetou! Happy birthday! O tanjoubi omedetou! Happy birthday!' I looked at the clock in the front on the bus and it was exactly midnight. And my heart felt do warm. Smile that crept onto my face, changed into a grin that would not leave and I was so happy for this was the best birthday present I could ever have been given.
The calmness of mind, the sense of alone but belonging somewhere, that I've been waiting for but has been eluding me for all these weeks, suddenly settled and I felt in peace. I felt on the way which has definitely become the right way. My way.

La Japoneisa: She's a Legend!...or About How I Almost Threw Up

This morning I stuffed my face with three pieces of lovely freshly baked bread toasted into a lovely toast with butter and yamamomo jam and honey, drank some soya milk and at half eight off i was to hitch a ride with Masao san to his soba restaurant Senkichi, where Bo had been working for the last few days, helping out during the time of Obon, with Wayne's support yesterday. So today it was my turn.
And so I depacked numerous packs of spring onions, filled little plates with grated daikon and wasabi and these onions chopped into little pieces, prepared onigiri and then washed and washed and carried and washed and placed the onigiri on plates and washed and placed some more onigiri on some more plates and carried and washed and carried and carried and washed and washed and washed util it was 5pm and Hana chan came to pick me and 33man Yen heavier kitty up. I was happy. And I knew we all will be happy with the kitty and the whole world. And then I sat in the back of the pajero with Hana and Keiko (a trial-perhaps-to-be-Japanese-Chiiori-staff) on the front seats and we headed for Oboke to buy eggs and pick up a guest from the train station.
I have heard myths and stories about Hana chan's driving abilities and after an approximately five minute ride I begged Keiko to let me sit on the front seat, I held the door handle and closed my eyes waiting for the pain to end and the belief that this would eventually happen kept me going and kept me from throwing up.
She's a legend!

Steve's email has been staring at me white from my Yahoo! inbox for days now. And I am determined not to open it. All the recent emails of his made me feel bad about myself, drained and exhausted, even physically sick. And so that's it and it is so sad. But it. Period.

La Japoneisa: Obon or Oku Iya Natsu Matsuri

Today I played a little bit in the pumpkin field and helped Wayne build netting over the soya beans by our chicken coop. The chicken coop remains mostly unfunctional and the netting, according to Wayne the Field Master, needs more work on it. Humphr. They both look very pretty though.

As the late afternoon of heated laziness approached I was off to pick up Bo chan and then the two of us rode my favourite friendly little k truck up and down the windy mountain roads. We were off to get ready for the local natsu matsuri-summer festival. Hurray.
I had a shower! I wore clothes suitable for civilization! I wore make-up! And suddenly these small and simple joys of life are no more difficult for me to understand.
We slipped into our pea-green yukatas and enjoyed being clean and pretty and celebrating.



















And then we danced and danced (supposedly looking like men) and talked and danced and laughed and danced (happilly looking like women again)


and ate wonderful festival food (and my Rice Day was after arrival to the matsuri with no regrets postponed to some rather unclear future time). Long live life, reason and healthiness come along!

The evening came to its end under the starry lights of beautiful hanabi (fireworks) and we walked our way home with happiness in our hearts looking forward to be dancing soon again.

It was a fun day today.
Bo and Wayne went to help Masao at Senkichi again and so Wayne left us a piece of scrap paper with directions of what needs to be done around Chiiori since no one is to go to the fields these days.
And thus I finished the pumpkin field which looks clean and lovely now, one can even see the pumpkins, which is good because now we can see how many more we have got to eat.
Also, Wayne suggested looking at and eventually cleaning the field under the house with the palm in the middle of it. If we have time. Which we didn't.
But I really wanted to make Wayne happy and so I collected all my bravada and some bamboo sticks and decided to continue on improving the slightly functional soya-bean-netting-construction, which I claimed I would not do the day before because I thought it was too complicated and I am a blonde in the end.
Nevertheless, I did indeed collect all essential materials, the bamboo sticks, two saws, one hammer and the few little witts I've got in my brain and worked. And I worked all afternoon, arms and hands aching in cramps, sweat trickling down my face I managed to build this palace for the SoyaBean Princess and my heart was bursting with pride.

La Japoneisa: Wanderings, Wonderings and Wonders

Melvin, the orange babe, might have not escaped!! There is a greenish leafy thing stuck to a little branch and that might indeed be Melvin!

The Cocoon has born us a beautiful butterfly.


A big spider with as big as him prey sat on a curtain in the kitchen. Took pictures. Couple of hours later there were only legs of the poor grasshopper-the-prey scattered on the kitchen floor.











And my Japanese might be improving slightly for can understand when foreigners speak it. Does that count?

Plans for near future are exciting; hitchhiking to Sado Island for an Earth Celebration. Big yay!

Ian called from Amami Oshima, am vry happy for him because he sounds very hmmm happy:-) and it is so nice to have him, well, quite far away but still very close.

Today another cool guest arrived, Bjorn from Germany. It provides a sudden and unexpected feeling of security, strengthens one's belief in love and truth to meet people who are so strongly devoted to their path of, hmm, fate (as Bjorn had called it)...and I shall call it uncoincidental coincidence perhaps, in my belief in reason behind every happening in one's life.

I shall read Celestine Prophecy again. Feel a strong need for guidance. And revival of a certain way of thinking. Seems to me that the year of a lifestyle I was forced by given circumstances to adopt left bigger scar on my mind and soul than previously believed.

La Japoneisa: My Prune Day...or Remains of My Last Week's Dinners and Remains of the Past

Last night the staff meeting was opened by Bo sharing about what a nice poop she's just had. On the same note I offered to stay at the house and work there, clean up and tidy, because I had planned a Prune Day for today.
For about a week I was experiencing a bowel-non-movement and so Annie, to my deepest pledges, returned from a shopping trip with a bag of prunes and a box of soya milk (which actually had nothing to do with the Prune Day itself) for me and I was ready (regardless of possession or not of soya milk) to begin the purgation.
I began to clean, swept the floors, hang the futons and ate prunes.
There was a moment when I looked five months pregnant, and then indeed there were moments of subtle ache and sudden lightness.

Subtle ache was brought, together with the remains of last week's dinners, also on the virtual wings of technology and its impact surprised me in midst of all this air of calmness and freedom of being. I believed, and very much enjoyed, the peace of all previously accounted moments, though a great storm went through, vandalized those parts of my heart and left them deserted. And dead ashes remain.

La Japoneisa: Death in the Fields.

Just came back for my lunchtime, er, lunch and siesta.
Was at Mason's fields early getting one of them ready to plant soba-getting closer and closer though it seems rather neverending. A small field, or so it looks. Also it looks safe and innocent, or so I thought.
Until a couple of hours ago when happily digging I found some strange looking roots.
The roots looked like bones.
After realizing that these indeed were bones of some sort I started recognizing soil that resembled fur (what initially I viewed as some strange type of weedy plant) and soil that resembled rotting flesh. Didnt smell or nothing really. Only when I stood myself right above it. Then it did smell rather bad. I wearily moved sideways to continue digging to discover a skull of this creature, now possibly identified as either Pochi I. or a carcass of a racoon dog. Or maybe something else.
Im no wussypussy, it was me to catch, kill, gutt, cook and eventually eat the fish in Norway and it was me to chop the Jackie-victimized-chicken's head off, but this aquaintaince was somewhat different. It was rather disgusting. And during the lunch images of this occurrence kept creeping into my head and that wasnt nice either.
Hopefully I will happen to see some huge scary bug today so the dead thing stays out of my dreams.
No cheese nor chocolate before bed either.

La Japoneisa: There are some strange people in the world.

I just found a very strange comment under my last blog. Anyone read it???
Why would I want to advance my life anymore?? Or at least at this moment.
And I've already got a Bachelors anyway (though this comment does not indeed imply death to my ambitions).
How can you get any degree without books or tests etc I wonder. Maybe it's for free as well. Hmmmmmm.

La Japoneisa: Dead and Pathetic*

Was up early, together with Bo chan and Wayne, who finally arrived-brought himself to Bo, Brought me a socket adapter (yay yay yay yay) and brought lots of cheese and Cadburry's chocolate as a present to all survivers. Hurray for Wayne, the Obi One Kanobi!

Together the three of us went to the fields and worked ourselves through the whole morning under the baking sun into tiredness-featured-self-satisfaction, inner pleasure and belief in harmony and peace of life within survival.
*are mosquitos once you kill them.

I am rather fascinated by the development and the reach and quality of thought processes in my current establishment.
My whole me seems to be overwhelmed, I could call it, by the environment and under the influence the self seems to be finding the way. Very slowly.
I guess what I expected was that the moment I arrive I will be overcome by sudden peace and harmony of the mind and soul, utter excitement and full understanding of myself and the others. However nothing was coming. I was like a bulk of stone, not feeling anything, unmoved and static, just being and existing though not living the new, the else.
It took me time to realize it, but it did come, I know now. I am one with the world, living it the Asian way. Just like their movies. Slowly, expectantly, without any sort of graduation though consistently moving forwards.
Towards something that remains covered by the mist, unveiled but beautiful. Untangibly but definitely there.

Bo and Wayne went for a nap at the Inkyo, Annie took two of our guests, the British couple, to Suzuki san (whose husbands voice sounds like a woman's) for soba making and Hana took the rest of them, the cool Japanese guy Tomo, the cool Singaporean guy Dan and his very uncool wife of the name Judy, with a PhD and of a voice of a five year old mentally retarded child, to the post office. And so I was left home alone, well, with the Don's of which Lee was very adorably asleep and Don was doing something and so was I, indulging in the hottly quiet and calm siesta time.
And this was the time when the coolest guest, since my arrival to Chiiori, appeared on the doorstep. Kodanisan brought him, thinking, that as he could not answer the gaijin's questions, he might like to consult other gaijin, despite the fact that the questions were strictly local-knowledge-oriented.
And that is how we met Jean Francoise (called himself Jeff, but I refused that and indulged in the melody carrying the original name) from little town in southern France, right on the border with Spain.
He spent three hours sat on our porch, talking and drinking fine red wine with Don, discussing serious worldly political issues. I looked after him, gave him some soup and some onigiri. And then I just looked at him and listened and talked and was feeling the unbelievable balance and calm that his person was surrounded with, that was shining onto me. And I felt at peace.

The siesta finished, Bo and I went to the fields to continue our mission, Jean Francoise followed to get onto the road back to Kazurabashi. He left with our email addresses in his pocket and 'See you on the road.' And I felt happy and content and on the right track.

Other events featuring today were Melvin the Orange Catepillar's escape and Pochi licking (and assumingly quite enjoying licking) my armpits.

La Japoneisa: The Village Cleaning, a Snake and The Fleemarket II.

This morning we were all up rather early. By 7.45 am we all stood in front of the house wearing our Chiiori uniforms consisting of matching sari headscarves, purple modesty towels, Chiiori Project T-shirts; armed with kumas (kuma=a grass cutting tool) decorated with scraps of sari to match our headscarves and towels, we were ready to boogie.
The mura soji (village cleaning) was done fast, roads were rid of the weeds...uhm, and that was it really. Then we all sat on the side of the clean road, ate ice cream and munched watermelon and drank beer.
Omo san saw a snake in the middle of the road and so he called Hana chan and me to have a look and so we watched it go accross and hide in the concrete road supports. It was black and maybe a metre and half long and, according to Don (Weiss), not at all dangerous. The dangerous ones are black with a diamond pattern on their back, short and fat and you have to go to hospital if you get bitten.

The afternoon was marked by my return to the fleemarket. On the way there, since Mason and Don have started to continue without me, I did some kata in the middle of the road and was happy. Hot, sweaty and happy.
Cleaning the house was kind of more fun with both don and Mason, the communication between the two was mostly　amusing.
D: This is BB King. (pause) Oh no, wrong cover.
M: It sounds like BB King.
D: Yes, it does, but I think it's the wrong cover.
(pause)
D: This sounds like BB King.
M: Yes, but like a female BB King.
D: Yes, but it sounds like him...
M: Yes, like a female one.

And so we cleaned, we scrubbed and washed and were back for cold but tasty dinner and Annie offered to give me a foot massage which but be so enjoyable if only Lee, the Weiss's little 'attention whore' as Bo chan named her, would stop jumping around and screaming and laughing in her unnerving squeeky voice. And she probably won't in the next three months (>__<). Dad, in his today's phonecall, suggested tieing her to a tree in a game on Indians. Hmmm...an idea to be seriously revisited.

La Japoneisa: Fleemarket, Grasshopper and a Toothbrush

Last night Mason came to Chiiori.
Today I was supposed to join him in his clearing-the-house-for-the-Weisses action but Mason slept till 10am and so I made shortbread. And cooked lunch.
In the afternoon though I had to give to my obligations and followed Mason to his house above Mason's fields.
The place was packed with things however at that point I still did not know what kind of things they were; what I saw were piles upon piles, mountains of stuff covered with dust of years and travels. Slowly our act upon the intention uncovered billion years old magazines, inhabitated books with inhabitators-stuck-pages, boxes of all sorts of ware. I was sat by the pipe that provided the whole village with fresh mountain water and an old modesty-towel-turned-zokin, big yellow bucket and inconsistent music coming out of an ancient stereo were my companions for the next four hours. I was also armed with a toothbrush, a memorial of my status of slavery and previously agreed obligations, and was labouring off a punishment for something I have not done, working off the hours from my money-ownage. And so I sat and washed and washed and washed inumerable amounts of japanese style trays, couple of antique tobacco boxes from Laos and then more and more things until I found myself right in the middle of Iya fleemarket.
And I watched a dead grasshopper. The grasshopper was green and had an army of ants struggling with him (to gain a more personal outlook the grasshopper had to be bestowed with a gender). The second time I looked the ant was 20 centimetres further left! The third time I looked the grasshopper's head seemed to have been falling off and this fact was confirmed when I closely watched the ants undo the head and their further attempts at moving this head into their ant house in the concrete floor.

In the evening Koji gave us a call and was wondering whether BoChan and I were to join Awa Odori tonight. Suddenly I felt this warmth at my heart that one feels when they begin becoming a part of something greater, or even a part of something.


And so we drove and danced, then drove again, spoke a little and then drove once again to dance a little more and I cried for a way to capture these twilight of life.
For the last couple of weeks I've been banging my head against the wall, against everything there was available really, for neglecting the need of owning a socket adapter as my camera ran out of juice, as did everything else, and I was not able to catch all the moments of beauty and joy that I'd like everybody in my heart to live with me.
Wayne, coming on Monday, is one of my only hopes (never thought an ordinary Englishman would reach such a high status in my eyes, but extreme situations require extreme solutions).
My second hope is Mum the Great. The third one is Wayne's mum.
This is the time where, I have to admitt, I truly came to deep understanding and full appreciation of a Mother's Day for they all deserve it. I wish I could be such a selfless creature one day. All the chocolates and packages of other random goodness that came my way since there was the need to...I guess it is only now that I see so far as the sender. And i am grateful.
And then there is, as one of the last resorts the 37 of Don Weiss's unpacked boxes and if that fails, it is Bangkok and Mason's fleemarket.

La Japoneisa: Chicken or an egg?

Today I received my first salary. And in foreign currency!
From now on I am a valuable member of society, an independent individual, a proud graduate, an adult.
I am ¥5000 closer to paying off my debts to my wonderful maman, though indeed, there are debts that I could not pay off in hundreds of millions interglactical light years: such as life.
Since no one has really agreed on whom to pay back for this item I shall do so to the one who I feel is the most closely engaged in this matter.
Thank you mummy.

Feel very happy and very important today because:
-mum's postcard came (happy happy-my first postal item)
-Ethi called from Nagoya (happy happy-my first phone call)
-Madoka called from Tokyo

La Japoneisa: The One Where I Cut the Grass Again (and drove a Pajero)

And so I cut the grass again and again and again the whole day until the lunch and the dinner had stopped me.

We had a Finish guest called Nuuti [naughty]. I have offered that since I am extremely and believably hopeless at Taiko, all who want to go shall go and I shall take Nuuti to the onsen (not really a purely selfless offer but I dont think there was a better choice anyway really). To my surprise all the Taiko determinists were not so determined anymore, but I was still the driver of the night. However the sight of a fun-filled K-truck drive down the hill and tanuki spotting on the way back disappeared from the sunlit mountainous horizon when BoChan decided to join the onsen party. "Veronika, can you drive a Pajero?", Annie asked and to my modest ops and feeble defence she replied that its so easy anyway since its got an automatic.
And so off we were, Nuuti, BoChan and me, on the adventure of the day. Bo at one point asked me whether I needed a phonebook to sit on and I think this really explains the whole journey in this gigantic monster that one can hardly go forwards with.
Chicks in K-truck rule!

At the onsen I descovered a massage chair. Oh, and its so good! Forget the European crapchairs that everybody is so excited to sit in to get shaken from side to side and come out with ants crawling all over them from head to toes. This chair knew exactly what to do and how to do, knew where it hurt and knew that shaking will not do it.
And so after all the hard work followed by exhausting though reviving onsen times, my good book, peace on my mind and love in my heart I finally can sleep to the mountain songs a deep and healthy sleep of the just.

La Japoneisa: My Day Off and Awa Odori

Today I had a day off which was a very fantastic occurence since was v v v exhausted. I think I still havent had the time to deal with the sudden change of environment and climate and co-habitation and so my yasumi nichi was very welcome. I managed to uzurp the peeshi (PC) for the whole morning and spent all of it updating this live journal and only then realized that my back hasnt been aching since I left uni until now when I again sat in front of the peeshi for more than 20 minutes.
Went to have a nap to the Inkyou (Bo and Wayne's house) and really got into For Tibet, with Love (the beginner's guide to change the world).
Since I have become a fulworthy staff member here at Chiiori my existentialist crisis somewhat eased away, though this book awoke still more thoughts or wonderings about what shall be done-to me, by me...to the world, so it doesnt lose its face completely in the eyes of our surrounding galaxies. And slowly I feel my mind calming down and finding its peace and in this peace finding the way.
My day's challenge today was to take Jackie Chan for an afternoon trip around here so I could see where can one go nd what can one do and how wonderfully can one get lost in the wilderness of the end of the world. Jackie indeed seemed very excited but absolutely failed in the task of finding a beautiful spot trail written in a-girl-who-used-to-work-at-Chiiori-in-year-2002 made map. Thus we returned to the main road (Jackie pulling towards certain death or v. close down the hill and completely useless in helping me go up the hill) and headed for the river-trail which was by the grave stones by the road mirror. It was nice and hot, butterflies floated heavily around and Jackie kept refusing to go. It was strange. I found it impossible to get him go into the forest again, he would flinche at every little sound, at every unexpected movement of a branch and fighting my thoughts about wussypussiness of a retarded dog I gave in, wondering, that perhaps I should trust animal instincts (reminding myself of their reactions before earthquakes and such). The moment we got onto the road he seemed to be overcome by madness! its madness!!! and would not stop pulling and not listening to me (except for Jackie sit!, which wouldnt help when you needed to tie your shoelace as he moved immediately aftewr he sat down) and so the whole village (Im sure of the unseen allseeing eyes) must have had a nice performance of a useless gaijin in the real world.

This evening BoChan and I went to AwaOdori, the local dance practice and it was so good. The group was essentially the same as the Taiko group and I felt myself indulging in the feeling of becoming a part of something in something. The drummers were playing, I could feel the sounds coming out from somewhere inside of me, maybe from the heart (to heart).?
And then the sensei taught and we danced and danced until we felt our arms almost falling off, stopping for a brief moment, and then cntinued, getting eaten in by the deep rythmic sounds of the drums. Sensei said I was jouzuna (good at it) and so I happilly continued in my karate-adopted (tensho resembling) movements and enjoyed.
(Apparantely have earned the status of kakkoihito (cool person) for driving the K-truck too.)

La Japoneisa: The Future

Suddenly my enlightenment plan that was becoming clearer everyday I had to spend locked inside of my room, with every word of my dissertation I had to type, or with every sentence of every new essay I had to create or every minute I had to study for an exam, begins to seem vaguer and vaguer and all the ideas my head and mouth were full of seem to be disappearing in this strange fog of pennyless-all-on-my-own fear. No bravery.
From the western half of the world all appeared so distant but also so easy and I felt heroic and invincible. And now, from the eastern periphery it all looks so so so difficult, almost touching on the 'undoable' term which makes me even more scared, but of nothing else except for my own weakness and failure.
And I find myself once again standing still and wondering (when I thought all this was done a long time before and finished and almost sealed off with my plans and dreams) where to go or even more importantly what to do to get myself out of this perceived hole of insecurity.
I guess this is the right time for another good and deep thunk.

La Japoneisa: Work, Work, Work,...Fun.

This morning then I was sent to finish off the kusakari, cut the kusa in front of the carpark. It was very satisfying again, since the progress was being made rather quickly. Since I came, except for building the chicken fence (of which progress was also quite visible as one could see less and less opportunities for the chickens to run away), I have been most often engaged in a rather destructive action and oh how enjoyable it is. I never thought it would have been but perhaps the fact that there is a combination of both destructive and constructive force makes it ever more attractive.
So yes, now I have a blister between my thumb and pointer, at the base of my pointer and two blisters between the third and fourht finger, I have my arms covered in hundreds little cuts from the thatch and in this one week I also managed to cut my head open on the tomatoe supports.

Anyhowz, in the afternoon, after a nice nap in midst of the heat, HanaChan and I were sent to weed Mason's fields. They look old and not cared for and just left to be. Hard work, but there was Pochi (a neighbour's cute funny foxlike dog) and there was HanaChan with whom I had such a laugh. We decided that if our new WWOOFer is boring we shall send him to the mountain on the opposite side of the valley to go and search for a hatake (cultivated field) that is definitely there. And cakes usually do have a graduation ceremony (mixing sotsugyoushiki and soudan suru) on which you are most likely to eat something salty.

La Japoneisa: Chores and Neighbours

Have been kusakari-ing (grass cutting) for the last two days. You can actually see the house now when walking towards it and the price for this luxury is blistered hands, cut arms and a rich mosquito experience. One gets used to all the other bugs, caterpillars, worms wandering around or enormous flies/bees/wosps buzzing over their head, but mosquitoes never (shinda ka was ii ka desu yo (dead mosquito good mosquito).
The grass was about 1 metre high and the thatch even more, but oh how satisfying it is to do this job. You sweat, you are dead tired, your arms and hands ache, but then you lift your head up and see. And the view is the reward.

It is interesting how much things here get done pro forma.
Well, they get done because they have to be done, of course, but the moving engine is often the neighbours's or community approval. OmoSan and IchiokaSan come every now and again for a cup of oocha and (sometimes constructively at other times not so constructively) contemplate on the work we have done.
Obon (a summer festival of the ancestors' souls returning home-somewhat similar to our All Saints' Day) takes place in mid August and to show respect to the ancestors everything has to be clean and tidy. And so we were kusakari-ing.
But then Omo and IchiokaSan come and they criticize how we do not pick up tomatoes often enough (every day-which we do) and how if Wayne (BoChan's boyfriend) doesn't get back soon enough everything (grasscutting, soya, soba planting, tomatoes, cucumbers, everything) is gonna go AWOL.
With Bo we supressed the feminist flames growing and bubbling inside us and decided to show them! Today, we do as much kusakari as possible and tomorrow we shall, from early morning, begin work at Mason's fields in order to get them ready for soba, which is being planted on the 15th August. However, the plan changed as Bo said that They (Omo, Ichioka, whole village really)'d rather see us finish one job than leave that and begin something else. Which is fair enough.
I guess, though, that we just have to struggle along, and us, four women, show them all how it's done and that it is done really well, even without a male present.

Another neighbour came by this afternoon, sat at the table in front of the huse when I finished kusakari and was getting ready to cook dinner. MitaniSan.
I've never met him before and we had a friendly (v. simple talk) when I came to sit down to have a cuppa. I assume I took on a role of a host as HanaChan got up and went off to continue working. Then MitaniSan started saying some words in English, one of them being wife, but I could not really understand anything else. I though then that he was perhaps asking me whether I was married, so confident in my Japanese, knowing that to marry is kekkon suru, I asked him to talk in Japanese to me. But he was even more confusing then as he started using a sign language as well and was giving me thumbs up with his left hand. I was rather confused and was trying to guess what he was trying to say to me. Than as he was showing me thumbs up with his left hand he started pointing his right hand towards his groin, mumbling something. HanaChan just went pass and so I asked her to help me understand what he was trying to say. At one point I even found myself wondering whether he was trying to ask me if I was a boy >__< He wasn't. He was just asking me whether I had a boyfriend. Fuuuh!

Apparantely, according to Bo's words, he is the most creepiest and at the same time the most helpful neighbour we have.
Also, he is an alcoholic. But he can take us fishing. Yay!