shimoda

Had a chance to go down to Shimoda for an overnight. I stayed at the White Beach Hotel, a converted love hotel owned by some folks I know. The hotel is seconds from the beach, and it really is beautiful – not at all like the beaches you find near Enoshima or Kamakura. The sand is clean, the water is clear. The beach is riddled with huge rock formations poking up here and there and hollowed with caves. The water was warm and swimmable, even in late October. I stuck my feet in the sunburned sand and the waves lapped at my toes.

Mito

I had a week off, but couldn't get it together to take the whole time and do something with it. Mostly, it's because of laziness, but also because of the cats. With Pudgy having died so recently, I don't want to entrust the little darlings to a stranger, and it's hard to ask a friend to look after them.

Anyway, I decided to go to Mito for a night. K would feed the munchkins, and I thought it would be a good idea to check this town out. I'm generally down for random towns, so off I went. I input a few geocache coordinates into my GPS, and I hopped the train north.

After checking in to the Toyoko Inn, I went and found a cache on the Sakura River, an uninspiring concrete lined trench cutting uniformly through town. The cache was well hidden, though. The second one was more interesting - it was at the site of a former water tower, and looked transported from a Disney fairy tale, all pastel and obvious decoration. I also walked past some nice red brick buildings, and a big prefectural library.

Then I went to the movie theater and watched Wanted. Truly horrible. Skip it.

Thursday, I went to check out Kairakuen, which is supposed to be one of the top three classical gardens in Japan. There was a cache there that I couldn't find, but it was nice to walk around the grounds. Truthfully, though, the garden was a little boring. I preferred Ritsurin Koen in Takamatsu on Shikoku. Perhaps if I went during plum season I'd feel differently.

After the garden, I had a stroll around Lake Senba. Track team junior high schoolers were training, running the lake course. A few older folks having an amble. Maybe the best part of the trip, this just walking.

Me Voy

When I was in Spain, my friend Fran would stop in at the house between deliveries (he drove for a fabrica) and drink a cup of coffee and then leave again. He always said, "bueno, me voy", as he was leaving.

"Me Voy" felt a little difficult to translate. It means "I'm off", but that seemed a bit too flippant when looking at the rest of the lyrics. More literally, it means "I go", but that sounds a little strange in English.

by Julieta Venegas

Porque no supiste entender a mi corazón
Because you couldn't understand my heart
lo que había en él
And what was in it
Porque no tuviste el valor de ver quien soy
Because you didn't value seeing who I am
Porque no escuchas lo que está tan cerca de ti
Because you don't listen to what is so close to you
sólo el ruido de afuera
instead only the noise from outside
y yo que estoy a un lado
and I am off to one side
desaparezco para ti
invisible to you

(Chorus)
No voy a llorar y decir
I'm not going to cry and say
que no merezco esto
that I don't deserve this
porque es probable que
because probably
lo merezco pero no lo quiero por eso
I deserve it but I don't want it, that's why

Me voy
I go
Que lástima pero adíos
What a shame but goodbye
Me despido de ti me voy
I'm leaving you and I go
Que lástima pero adíos
It's a shame but goodbye
Me despido de ti
I'm leaving you

Porque sé que me espera algo mejor
Because I know something better waits for me
Alguien que sepa darme amor
Someone who knows how to give me love
de ese que endulza la sal
which sweetens the salt
y hace que salga el sol
and can bring out the sun
Yo que pensé
I thought that
nunca me iría de ti que es amor
I would never leave you, that this love
del bueno de toda la vida pero
was good enough for a lifetime but
hoy entendí que no hay suficiente para los dos
today I understood that there's not enough for us both

(Chorus)

A blurb and illustration over at the blog of pomposity.

interlocking hearts

Once upon a time, there was an evil five headed dragon who terrorized people with violent storms and earthquakes. One of these quakes shook the seas and created the island of Enoshima. Shortly thereafter, the goddess Benzaiten appeared in the sky. Enamored with her great beauty, the dragon fell in love with her and asked her to marry him. She demurred, citing his bad behavior. Or so the story goes.

Today, Enoshima is a beach destination for the denizens of Tokyo, who flock to the area for the surrounding sand and surfer-chic cafés.

The island is also replete with temples, shrines ,and sightseeing spots, many dedicated to the goddess Benzaiten and her would-be suitor. Inspired by the dragon's love and the beauty of the island, many couples in recent years have been professing their own love here with a visit to Lovers' Hill.
Walk on to the island - there's only one land route. Travel along the road that rises straight in front of you, running the gauntlet of seafood and sweets vendors giving way to pretty shops and restaurants. Soon, you'll pass through a great torii, a gate marking the entrance to a temple or shrine. This is Enoshima Shrine.

A path branches off to the right. Follow this winding road up, up. On your way, check out the remarkable views across the water, and stop to nicker at one of the cats that wander the island. You'll soon start to pass a few locks fastened to the railing, attached by lovers in a rush to profess their affection.

You'll pass a temple festooned with the likeness of the fierce dragon. You may want to stop and pay your respects to the lovelorn monster.

Continue up the hill. The locks fastened to anything viable along the way will multiply until they reach a critical mass. You'll find yourself at the lovers' bell, looking out over the ocean.

Write your message of forever togetherness on your lock and cinch it tight amid all the others. Ring the bell to profess your devotion, seal it with a kiss.

Pudgy lovely

She was a lovely, darling girl, with beautiful eyes and beautiful coloring and a sweet nature. She wasn't very cuddly but sometimes, just sometimes, she would jump up and sit on the arm of the worn old easy chair next to you, and prrr.

oregon

One of the nicest things I did this summer was an impromptu camping trip with Birch and Cory.

We packed a haphazard assortment of food, coolers, tent, sleeping bags, and flashlights, and drove west out of Corvallis toward Sweet Home at 8:30 p.m.
After 45 minutes of highway and another hour, almost, of bumpy, unmarked, potholed dirt road, we turned off at the pine tree and parked in a little clearing.

I had never been to this place before, but B. had been with Tyler, and was going by memory. We collected all our gear (oops! too bulky and heavy) and set off galumphing into the night. After about fifteen or twenty minutes of wandering through the woods (me with my GPS), we decided to pitch camp in a clearing that was - we thought - near the trail. A creek tinkled nearby, though we couldn't see it, and we put up the tent by flashlight. Luckily for us, it was a very easy tent to pitch, a pup tent belonging to Birch.
We made a fire and roasted taters and ears of corn with lots of Earth Balance margarine, and had chips and salsa and juice. Girl Scouting came in handy here, as we foraged for firewood and I made layers of tinder, kindling, and big log pieces for fuel. Then we tied the food up in a tree, just in case.

Snuggled up we three in the pup tent, we all slept til mid-morning.

Vietnamese coffee boiled on the campstove and granola with wild blackberries tucked away, we zipped up the tent and tromped down to the lakes.
The lakes were nearly deserted, save for a lonely fisherman on one shore. We beat our way through the brush, jumping over fallen logs and swatting away spider webs. Finally, an out-jutting log was pronounced a satisfactory swimmin' base, and we hung our bag on a tree and teetered out over the clear water. From there, we slathered on the sunscreen, sharing the space with curious swimming salamanders and skating water bugs. Plop! went C., into the lake. Splash! followed B. I eased into the water slowly, then all at once.
I dropped my camera in and it fell all the way to the bottom and I had to go under and retrieve it, and I didn't even care.

THE 'ME' MEME.

I AM: U.S.American and Japanese. The 'merican side is Irish-German-France-NativeAm-etc.

I WANT: café con leche and fruit.

I WISH: I could quilt.

I HATE: intolerance and pomposity.

I MISS: my mom, dad, and sister.

I HEAR: coffee percolating, the shower showering, the shutters rattling.

I WONDER: how Scooter is doing.

I REGRET: regretting; it's a waste of time.

I AM NOT: as decisive as I'd like to be.

I DANCE: in the living room and on the train platform.

I SING: all the time. Loudly.

I CRY: at the news, reading books, watching movies.

I AM NOT ALWAYS: proactive.

I MAKE WITH MY HANDS: baked things, like cakes and muffins and cookies. And bottlecap magnets.

I WRITE: less than I should. For a dinky newspaper. And a few ballogs.

I CONFUSE: myself trying to speak two foreign languages at once.

I NEED: to procrastinate less.

I SHOULD: get back to a lot of people.

I START: retiling the bathroom floor. Sort of. Well, we bought the tiles.

I FINISH: things long after I start them.

Ho Chi Minh City, Saigon, Vietnam