Gallery Archipelago is currently showing work by Naoko Funaki. Naoko’s 20 photographs are smartly placed together- Portraits of beautiful women, scenes of nature, and animals. A sense of melancholy pervades all of the work, but not in a despondent or gloomy way. The pictures are quiet photographs of quiet things. There are no sounds in them, and I wonder if anything besides the sound of the shutter was heard when they were taken.
Gallery Archipelago is a great venue and worth the time it takes to find it. Her show will be up until June 2nd.
(yes her photo has been on this site two times before.)
Today all over Kanda there was some mad mikoshi hoisting put on by all kinds of “probably yakuza” ojisans and blue collar folks. I walked from Kayabacho to Ochanomizu today and came across several different portable shrines being carried by all kinds of Japanese men and women and then in the best way each one had their own token White Gaijin really enjoying the day until I stepped in with my camera. Then he looked away and put his face real close to the hair of the man in front of him.
What is interesting to me is that all was cool while the 20 other Japanese people with cameras were photographing the scene but when another obviously non-Japanese man takes a picture it is different.
If you are not here this is hard to understand but if you are not secure in who you are and think that you need to define yourself by going full-on head first into the symbolism and culture of the place you choose to live and you trip over yourself trying to impress the natives with just how awesomely you are both Like and Not Like them, then it must be really unsettling when someone else a lot like you gets within a certain proximity.
Sorry to ruin your japanese-ness time
Kevin took some pictures of an illuminated AND animated “We are working on the road here” sign, and so I’ll add these pictures to your new-found knowledge of Japanese safety signs.
A life-size Dummy with one functioning arm is Creepy. But an animated LED gif of a glowing man waving a warning flag in an eternal loop is freaking awesome.
WORKING HARD OR HARDLY WORKING?
The man at the front of the construction work did not seem as enthusiastic about his job (the job of standing there) as his mechanical partner that faced oncoming traffic at the rear.
The cafeteria at the school I teach at offers a daily A lunch and a B lunch. A is usually fish and B is meat. They also serve ramen, curry, and udon/soba (I hate both). Last week I went with the B lunchez every day so Ch-Ch-Check it:
MEAT: Breaded pork (?) that is topped with some cold wet shredded daikon.
MEAT PLATE SIDES: raw shredded cabbage and three cold french fries. And 3 pickle slices.
THINGS IN A SMALL BOWL: Two squishy potato(?) things and two “coins” of carrots.
RICE: Yes.
MISO SOUP: Warm
DRINK: O–i Ocha. Green tea from the vending machines at one end of the room.
DELICIOUS POINTS OUT OF FIVE: The pork was ok and the squishy things are alright as well. The cold wet daikon shreds are a little too strong and too cold and too wet. THREE
MEAT: OH GOD SOMETHING THAT LOOKS LIKE THE INSIDES OF A TAUNTAUN.
MEAT PLATE SIDES: Cold slippery onion slices, shredded cabbage.
THINGS IN A SMALL BOWL: Potato salad.
RICE: Yes.
MISO SOUP: Hot.
DRINK: More Oi Ocha.
DELICIOUS POINTS OUT OF FIVE: A good solid THREE point FIVER because the meat was surprisingly better tasting than looking.
MEAT: Hot and round meatloaf (Hamubaagu) with a fried egg on top. Plus Sauce (soosu)!
MEAT PLATE SIDES: Cabbage, part of a small, hard potato. Four green beans.
THINGS IN A SMALL BOWL: Same as Monday no?
RICE: Yes.
MISO SOUP: Good Enough
DRINK: 500ml of sweat that someone added a teaspoon of sugar to. That person then poured the mixture into a bottle and then they slapped on the greatest label ever and let it chill in the vending machine until I bought it because everything else good was sold out.
DELICIOUS POINTS OUT OF FIVE: How about a FOUR? It was good enough !
MEAT: They called it Shabu Shabu but really it was pre-slightly-boiled thinly cut pork with sesame sauce on it. Maybe that is Shabu Shabu but they did not let me boil it myself so it was not.
MEAT PLATE SIDES: Onions, cabbage, Three french fries.
THINGS IN A SMALL BOWL: Some tofu that is like a sponge, and 1 cents of carrot.
RICE: Yes.
MISO SOUP: Yes.
DRINK: Iemon tea that I bought at the AM-PM across the street in the morning. It came with a free tenugui of Japanese design that was made in China.
DELICIOUS POINTS OUT OF FIVE: The sauce made the meat. Like always there was just enough to eat. How about FOUR again because I am getting bored writing this.
MEAT: Breaded chicken cutlet.
MEAT PLATE SIDES: Some Cold spaghetti, cabbage (!) and some bitter peas and corn and carrots.
THINGS IN A SMALL BOWL: Jagaimo! Meat n’ taters in some cold broth. GOOD.
RICE: No I mean YES of course
MISO SOUP: Yes with lots more seaweed than any other day
DRINK: Another bottle of tea bought because of the freebie towell and also because I like it.
DELICIOUS POINTS OUT OF FIVE: Oh Heck–>FIVE because the chicken was pretty good.
SPECIAL MESSAGE
The only thing that would make this shirt even better is if Helvetica was written in Arial!
HAH HAH
AWESOME!
