購入したデジカメが豚に真珠、となるだろうかという疑問が確信に近づきつつある最近、撮った写真群です。
スーパーカー。童夢-0やランチア・ストラトス（のミニカー）を見てときめいたころのことを一瞬思い出しました。五反田の商店街に置かれているのが実は著しくバランスを欠いているのだが。そしてそれがまた西洋から来た人にはえらく受けたりするのだが。他にも 祠＋アヒルのベンチ とか ワインバー＋きつねうどんをすするサラリーマン とか。 彼らが”It’s so Japan!” 「これこそ日本だ」 と叫んで写真を取りまくる姿を過去幾度となく目撃した。古いものが取り壊され、おしゃれで新しい（と我々が自負する）ものと同居する姿がここしばらくは増えつづけるだろうから彼らもうれしいだろうなー
アメリカでは既に相当な評判だというLost in Translationを早く見たい。
最近クセになりつつある田燕居でのデザート、緑豆のあんみつ。緑色の豆がこんなにおいしいなんて！グリーンピースはいつだってご飯からのけておいて叱られていたのだが（親だって別に好きだったわけではないんだから入れなきゃいいのに、と今気がついた。ああそうか、料理する側にとってはお手軽なのだ、色がつくから。理不尽だ）、ここに来てようやく枝豆以外の、豆の価値を再発見できた。
左側の人は自前の毛を使ったということか？想像したくないけどどこから持ってきたのだろう。 日本人の、日本人による、日本人のための広告に外国人（白人）が起用される（英会話学校以外で）、という広告形態が減る気配が無いし、そのグロテスクな姿のままとてつもなく洗練されていっているのでむしろ目立たなくなっていたりする。これをネタに誰かphoto-blog作ってないだろうか？見たい・・・いっそ自分でやってしまおうか。これが週末起業の第一歩かな。すごくもうからなさそうだけど。
以前、ハリウッドスターが出演した日本のコマーシャル映像を集めて公開していたホームページがスター達の（もしくは所属エージェントの）弁護士の圧力で次々と閉鎖に追い込まれた、ということがあった。スケールは違えど、これらの広告に出ている人たちはモデルとしての履歴書にその経験をどれだけ書けているのだろうか。
・・なんやかんや言って、結局一番西洋にかぶれているのは自分だ。その病に深く冒されているから、それについて知りたいのかもしれない。病人が自分の病気について知りたがるようなものだ。中国語を学んでいるのも、自分or西洋という２極化したものの見方しかないことを自覚し始めて、第三の視点を持ちたい、と思ったこともあるのだろう。On Off or Beyondでのエントリーを思い出した。世界で二番目の大国になった今でも、日本ではまだ海外との比較で相対的に自国の問題点を語ることが多いのは、少々残念な思いがする。
While I read your longer comment on the Last Samurai and this comment today, I realized these conversations over the blog is another scary, liberating, surprising element. It sometimes induces unexpected reaction(I read your new comment with great interest) and/or shed some new light on my seemingly dissected issue (now I am starting to notice the power of commenting).
Posting a comment was never an easy task for me, previously. “Do I have any info to offer?” “Am I just trying to get attention?” – there I always got stuck. While I still think these questions do have a valid point, it seems I was stuck in the “I” mode – always thinking from my point of view, which easily becomes another self-indulgent source and makes my communication narrower.
Communication is interactive, and this is what I am going to learn at Real Living 101.
It seems I have had a rather clean negotiation compared with you..in my case, the hardest part comes in when the Japanese side expects the counterpart just to do their duties(nothing to talk about), while the other side thinks it should be discussed (something to talk about)..
You went to see Nemo? I am interested in it, I think the biggest asset of Pixar(the production company) doesn’t lie in the uber-sophisticated CG but in the imaginative charactors and storylines. If technology itself can attract people, Final Fantasy wouldn’t have failed in such a spectacular way. Someday I will blog about this.
Sounds like we are attending the same class, Real Living 101. And we are surprised that acceptance is just as scary as criticism. I guess the objective of this class is to learn to live with, or maybe even enjoy surprises!
I kind of like this wordless state that we seem to be in. Mentor, coach, associate, conspirator, collaborator, companion, ally, confidant, co-player, open secret society. Can’t seem to find the perfect word. If we find a cool word, than people would discover it quickly and use it so that it loses the original flavor.
Amazing memory? I am often told that I am very absent minded. I guess I got used to focusing of intense isolated dialogues, because despite of my lack of interest in such work, my highest skill lies in business negotiation, especially interpreting nasty business negotiation session between Japanese and American. And before I learned to make myself unavailable, I frequently had to interpret such sessions.
Oooooh! I’ll check out the “Zoolander”! Thanks for the intro! I won’t bore you with my story about going to see “Nemo” today, but one thing though, internet reservation worked out perfect at Cinecitta in Kawasaki. Waiting in line is such hassle with kids, but today, for the first time in Japan, we walzed right in!
The honor is mine, Fujiko san.
I also have several people from whom I learn new things as well as attitudes – perspective and ways to handle tough situations. And I am happy to declare that you are among one of them, since I started blogging. I thought about using the word mentor, but…now I found out it is too uni-directional, I will look for a better word.
I used to listen only to the words from the established people, like Ryu Murakami, Banana Yoshimoto, Yoshio Kataoka, and Randy Taguchi. Just reading their works and literally passing their words as my words. I think I didn’t have much knowledge about mutual relatinship. Only recently I have started being aware of the importance of interacting with people, listening to their words and telling my thoughts (not exactly something said or written by other people but my own thoughts). Sometimes it is scary to open myself to acceptance and criticism. But it is hundreds of times more fulfilling than just observing and pretending I know a lot without being hurt.
Having said that, I must admit I am still in the trial mode. I added the link to your website on the right bar..since you are always one step ahead of me regarding taking action, this time I think I took the lead…:-)
And here I took a break and checked your blog and whoa, what a comment! I am so glad my opinion worked as an appetizer to induce your longer comment, and I read that part with pleasure. You have an amazing memory!
By the way, yesterday I watched the comedy “Zoolander” directed and starred by Ben Stiller, and it is hilarious. Cynical and warm – like the films from Coen brothers and P.T.Anderson.
I’m glad I’ve checked out your blog before having my last meditation of the night. This time of the night is precious to me. Younger kids asleep (finally!) hours to spend at will, working, thinking, day-dreaming (at night), reading, watching DVDs.
By now, it’s probably obvious that without your leave, I have designated you one of my “coach”. The distinguished characteristics of my coachs are that: 1. s/he is searching for the meaning of life (at least that’s what appears to me) 2. his/her actions, reactions to life strikes chords in me, which helps me to understand myself better, thus gives me choice in the way I live my life.
Lying on a beach somewhere south and warm…. Great! Carribean? Fiji? Okinawa? Look forward to your photographs and your usual comic strip kind of humour later on this year.
As I’ve commented to you in your “Last Samurai” entry, there is always this matter of timing. And as in coaching, go down the valley, climb the mountain. I am happy that you are on ascent this year as you’ve already started by physically climbing a mountain for glorious view. And I am happy that I am on descent. Through fear of death, I will discover, and when I am through with the descent, the way must climb, this time higher than ever.
Wow Fujiko-san, you are as energetic as ever! Your comments are the important sources of my imagination and stimulation. Thank you for this great Otoshi-dama (Now I became an uncle a week ago, I’m gonna worry about it as well..) It seems you are kicking a good start as well. Actually I couldn’t take any sleep at all(dozens of Oyajis shouting, whining, and stumbling all night kept me awake. I should have recorded the noise and used it as the ring tone of my mobile).
No dream at all, so I told the fellows my usual daydream(lying on a beach somewhere south and warm…). I said “I wish it happens..” but then changed to “I’ll make it happen.” Yes, this is it. I can make it happen!
Acceptance was my keyword for the past year. Accepting my negative side is essential for me to face the past and connect it to the present and to the future. But it is also easy to get self-indulgent, so “make it happen” might be a good phrase for this year to put me into more active mode. Thank you for the inspiration, and let’s try to make “now” always the best!
Isao-san, Happy New Year to you too! Enjoyed your photos and comments. Looks like you’ve got a great start. Was the first dream of the year 2004, that of Mount Fuji? Eagle? Eggplant? (This is to confuse the non-Japanese readers.)
My start was full of dark premonition, starting from the last hour of the previous year, and throughout the first day of this year. But hey, live and learn! Therefore my word for the year is, acceptance. Along with that word for the year, the phrase for this year for me would be “Never give up, never surrender”, as the “historical documents” say.