電武士

Painfully beautiful might seem an odd choice or words to describe a song, but for the final track of retro-pop band Keane’s latest release I think it work best. I wonder when these lads are going to make it to Japan??

looking at my sparsely populated calendar I realize I might be pushing the boundaries of the word “blogger” in the actual sense, and have decided to downgrade my status to “wannablogger”. but after the accident (and unfortunate loss of both hands) it’s been hard to maintain the same frenetic blogging pace I enjoyed until recently. sure, i can manage to curl my toes pretty well to hit the right keys, but working that damn shift key is still proving to be beyond my, shall we say, pedestrian abilities.

The more I follow the news of the war in Iraq and watch Bush on television, the more his high approval rating–though slipping now–amazes me. I have a difficult time believing that even 10 percent of the population–or whatever percentage includes Dittoheads, xenophobes and radical conservatives–can still support him and his administration after so much wrongdoing, deception, and scandal have come to light.

The reason for this must be that I’ve fallen so out of touch with my country of birth, and don’t properly grasp the broad, grass roots support behind the high figures. However, having something like this forwarded to you by a well-meaning but tragically misguided friend in Texas puts things back into perspective.

“Featuring the freshest sounds from the international scene as well as the finest home grown talent from Japan,” SAMURAI.FM acts as a portal for Japan to the rest of the world and the rest of the world to Japan.

Some of the best electronica and club music in Tokyo can now be enjoyed in the comfort of your own Internet. Check out my boyz DUBSTRAKT and other Japanese artists like “Zenbient” DJ Hideyo Blackmoon, streaming now…

…is one of the better areas of the expansive Homestar Runner web site, a Flash playground created by two artists, Matt and Mike. Thrill to the exploits of Strong Bad, The Cheat, Homestar Runner and others as they embark on great adventures like looking at a thing in a bag and answering email. (Just be sure not to get your drink spiked with sanka.)

After a week of rain and chilly temperatures it looks like Spring is finally here. Rie and I enjoyed an afternoon at Shinjuku Gyoen and bumped into this fellow who I seem to meet on the streets on Shinjuku every few months. He also appears in the O-shougatsu video from 2001, climbing the steps to Hanazono Jinja.