Golden Week

Yesterday I went to the river with Kieran and I spent most of my time laying on the smooth stones listening to the birds sing. IN the distance I could hear the drums and whistles of the festival. Its children’s day, so there are little taikos (floats) being pulled by kids and their parents parading thought the entire city. This is a picture of the one in my neighborhood. This week is “Golden Week,” a week full of holidays. Green day, Constitution Day, National Day, and Children’s Day.
I’ve been hanging out with my friend Michelle and her friend visiting form Canada, Ashley. Ashley is a stuardist and got a roundtrip to Japan for under 300 dollars. She has told me fascinating things about Airlines. For example, if a plane that is to go from Kansas City to Chicago cant go because of a technical problem, and the aircraft has to cancel all its flights that day, then a team of people in front of computers will look for another aircraft at the Kansas City Airport that might have less people to fly that day, and cancel all THAT aircraft's flights, giving that aircraft to the Kansas City to Chicago people, because it will involve less people missing their flights and that means less reimbursement. It's all numbers. SO, if your flight is canceled because of technical problems, it may not have been your plane, but another that had more people to carry. Fascinating.

I planned to make frames during this week, but plans have changed. I’ve been working with this lovely old man at the Hardware store called “Dick” (and, of course, there is a ‘Big Dick” and a “Little Dick” in neighboring cities, believe it or don’t) and this old man, who I thought would have my wood cut by this week, told me he hasn't even stated and it would be ready next week. I don't know why (exept that he was busy), the language barrier can get pretty frustrating, but I said ok and now I have this entire Golden week to paint and relax and read “Children of the Mind,” the fourth book in the Ender’s series, and eat blueberry bagels. I just found a tiny store that sells bagels. If there is an American food, that I like, it might be bagels and cream cheese (tofuri cream cheese if possible). They don't really do bagels here. There is one restaurant that sells them (and thankfully, it’s the one where I teach the 10 year old every week!).


I saw “V for Vendetta” and “The New World” the other day. I recommend them both. The music in The New World almost made me cry. And Pocahontas was so beautiful, and I have a new respect for our ancestors, native and European. It really was a great movie.

Here is a pencil drawing I made the other day. It is a crossed vajra, shell, pinecoan, dokomo demo mushroom (a stuffed cell phone character that a student gave me) and two dust bunnies. And here is a painting I worked on yesterday. It’s almost done. Any title suggestions?