Norwegian Wood

Anyone attempting to bring a Murakami Haruki novel to the silver screen deserves to be recognized for undertaking a fantastically difficult task. Much of what happens in The stories presented to us is made both complex and enjoyable not only by the originality and depth of the characters in the books but also the forces, both social and circumstantial that prod and push them into sometimes incredible situations. Murakimi's use of nature and geography- a very Japanese trait- also becomes a living, breathing entity which encapsulates the the story and gives it the surreal feeling that almost anyone who describes his stories inevitably feels.

While Anh Hung Tran’s cinematography is absolutely amazing and the panoramic scenes imbibe us with the elemental power of breathtaking beauty, the movie's characters fall far from short from the depth in which Murakami describes them. There is almost no hint as to how the relationships between Toru Watanabe and Naoko, Midori, Reiko, Kizuki, Nagasawa and even the Storm Trooper and the circumstances of his life; both in the past and present, as well as the forces that contribute to all of his interpersonal relationships with these other members of the cast drive them along to the inevitable outcomes described by Murakami in his book.

The actors and actresses for the most part do a very good job and you can feel the tension and desperation as they  portray the difficulties anyone experiences (especially teenagers) when  having to deal with each other, the needs, desires, differences in personality and of course, the baggage that comes along with life. There was, I felt, a lack of angst, futility and boredom that is so often described in the novel.

If I am to point out the one part of the movie I found to be most distressing it would have to be the lack of any serious development of Reiko's part in the tale. To me, Reiko; as an adult the one anomalous character of the group- something apparent in almost every Murakami plot, was wholly left out of picture and the scene where she and Toru couple completely missed the mark in depicting the way our innate sexuality provokes us, heals us, confounds us or completely destroys us.

NYD

1. 1. 11.

Waking up to the bright and glorious morning of the new year and viewing the awesome aftermath of nature's onslaught, I am confronted with the desire to leave my surroundings in their ethereal beauty and the unavoidable necessity of spoiling this evanescent picturesqueness.

There are, or at least there ought to be, moments when you just want the inexorable sweep hand to just take a vacation as opposed to those moments, of which there are far too many, where the push of the fast forward button is all you can think about; a speedy escape from all the troubles that assail you.

Yet now, with the opening pages of this book called 2011 we have a multitude of those very same said choices and moments before us. How will we balance the inevitable marring of the pages as we write upon them day after day with the desire to keep the penmanship pretty and grammar correct? The syntax of our actions during the next year will undoubtedly get mixed up from time to time, but as long as we keep the mistakes to a fair minimum, they will most likely be forgiven or even better; overlooked.

I am quite happy to put 2010 behind me. I don't know if I learned anything new about myself during the year, but I did learn a lot about the way I was behaving and it's effect on the people around me. I've got plans for this year, who hasn't? I have this one last chance to get it all straightened out and back on track. Like many games, races or competitions it often comes down to those final moments...and I'm in the homestretch.

Oh, by the way, what do you guys think about internet dating? Pathetic or potentially good?

Good morning happy campers

Now that my readership is almost at nil. a natural recourse when you don't post anything for nearly eight months and I ought to give some kind of award to the seven of you who keep checking in, I feel that writing here is more narcissistic than ever and since I am my biggest fan, that jibes quite well with the way things are.

Have you ever been to summer camp, a school trip away from home or a package excursion to some far away land? Why is it that the folks who run these things feel the need to fill your day with endless activities and routine? For a couple of summers my mom packed me off to summer camp to get me out of the city and to keep me away from trouble, I suspect, and during those summers there was almost no moment when the campers weren't being herded like cattle on a drive across Texas. Reveille would sound. Yup, that's right, pardner. We actually had a bugle call, not a live bugler of course, it was recorded. Except for Monday mornings when someone thought it clever to play this song,

thus ensuring an extreme dislike for Mondays forever afterwards. The cowboys, um, counselors would rouse us, take us to the feeding trough, exercise us, hose us down, drive us to the watering hole, feed us again, lather- rinse- repeat...

A simple routine that has stayed with me for many decades far into my mid-life crisis:

wake up, Make the bed -everyday without fail, put on the coffee, jump into the shower, make and of course eat Breakfast, wash the dishes, etcetera, etcetera.

Whether we have them provided for us or not, most of us tend to fall into familiar patterns. Daily stuff like deciding what we want for dinner or choosing the right tie. Weekly grocery shopping or Sunday night dinner at the local Chinese restaurant. Those pesky monthly credit card statements that scream at you like a howler sent by an angry parent. Holidays, birthdays and anniversaries that all keep us running from one event to the next.

Well I, for one, am going to do my best to break up this conspiracy of Swiss watch manufacturers and Calendar makers. My one and only resolution for the new year is to be on the alert for anything that will break up the rhythm of repetition. Like Captain James T Kirk, I will...well, you know.

What will you be searching for?

Late in the Evening...

There are a lot of people all over the world who are sharing emotions right now... Some of are feeling happiness and bliss and others are engaged in argument and anger. There are the supplicants, searching for an answer or some kind of divine interference and there are those like me... People who are feeling the unbearable burn; who are looking for solace. People and friends and neighbors who just didn't have the sense or foresight to avoid a Brioschi battle in the middle of the night.

My experimenting with cooking and an attempt at an eclectic mix of western and Asian style of food preparation has gone awry.

Thai curries are unforgiving!!!!!

Tonight I have heartburn and an agony that is unmatched by any other except for those of you who ate at the local Burrito stand, but it is the morrow I fear and I hear the voice of Johnny Cash in the back of my mind foreseeing my future.

The Taste Of Love Is Sweet

When Hearts Like Ours Meet

I Fell For You Like A Child

Oh,But The Fire Went Wild

Nah' ain't gettin maudlin yet, but I sure do have a a lot of limbo room...

I will be visiting soon.

...Dave's not here

What a F'kin week!

The Chinese govt. has refused me a visa so I cannot attend my friends wedding.

My motorcycle is in the shop and I don't know when I will get it back.

My car must have it's bi-annual inspection and I would rather sell it than go through the trouble of maintaining it (The cost of an inspection here can be more than $1500.)

My hair is growing and I can't find a shampoo that doesn't make me smell like a two bit whore. (Even dogs are wary of me...)

Classes at the university have started and although I welcome them, (At this point in the game any distraction is received with open arms.) I am amazed at the innocence of college freshmen.

They actually trust me to teach them. Lordy are they in trouble...

There are some good things that have come my way.

I have been cooking my ass off and eating some of the best damn food I have eaten in about three years.

I have gotten reacquainted with friends that I haven't hung out with in a very looooong time.

I have lost about seven pounds. (I don't have enough money for both food and booze- guess which wins?)

I bought a box of condoms as a sign of good faith...I'm not really sure if I remember how to use them. Probably like riding a bike.

Don't ring my doorbell tomorrow, don't call my phone. Stay away from my mailbox and don't ask me for directions.

I'm logging off and shutting down, so please don't try to jack into my system.....

Talk again soon,

NYD.

There and back again...Again

... ...Staring.

I sit; just staring at this screen trying to figure out the best way to get all the bullshit that's tangled up in my head, heart and guts unraveled and out into the open where it can be examined and an attempt to make sense of it can ensue.I guess one just has to start with the truth as it is and not as we see it...

My wife has left me and I don't believe she is coming back.

OK, so I put a little opinion in there, but the fact still remains that I have once again done something to make another person fall out of love with me. I am Crispy-less.Maybe I ought to have taken Tom Robbins' advice and told her I was going for Juniors cheesecake [WARNING: Obscure reference posted], but somehow I reckon that it wouldn't have made a difference.
I am gonna give this place another chance and see where the third version of this creation will take me.
Looks like were off on another adventure, The Misplaced Divorced man in Japan Ver: 3.0 ....Don't expect much. Unless I'm on a motorcycle it takes a ridiculously long time for me to get out of second gear...

See ya soon.

\(^o^)/*

"And he sailed off through night and day, and in and out of weeks, and almost over a year to where the wild things are."

True to my word.

Hello. Long time since I been around these parts, hmmm.
I haven't been fucking around and ignoring my responsibilities as one of the bloggeratti. I have been up to things that are way more serious than talking about the merits of bolongna over sardines in a sandwich.

I can safely say that this has been one of the busiest months in my life. There have been a multitude of obsacles and events to overcome and attend to and although I haven't cleared the board of all my responsibilities, I have made them a lot more manegable.

I had to attend a funeral. I have to give a talk. University Curriculum updated and the start of classes yadda yadda yadda...

I am more than just a little bit curious about the way different cultures handle the passing of loved ones and relatives. America has it's own ceremonies and customs, but what I experienced earlier this month made the little hamsters powering my brain go haywire.

I know that I outght to enlighten you on the mysterious differences between life here in Japan and way the hell over the water back in America, sohere's one more thing you might find interesting.

The Japanese funeral, while basically the same as any other funeral I've attended- the robes of the clergy and the chanting and incantations differ in style, but not content and meaning- has one major difference. It is a participatory ceremony. In the states, everything that has to do with the care of the deceased is handled by professionals and in japan it is much the same except for one stage of the process.

In Japan those who mourn the passing assist in the cremation and entombment of their loved ones. This was a bit unusual for me; as you might have already suspected.

The casket is removed from the hearse by six pallbearers and placed on a pallet inside the creamatorium. Remove all the dark and sinister images from you heads, my brothers and sisters. The buildings look much the same as a modern church in any middle class neihborhood. The priest (Buddist) does his thing and afterwards, the pallet is loaded into the oven. After about 45 minutes (everytime I remember this part of the day I imagine the sound of a little bell, like those old kitchen timers calling me 'cuz the turkey is cooked) The pallet is removed (and here is where things get odd) with the remains of the body. You see, Not all of the body is turned to ash. The skull and many of the larger bones partially remain and the mourners take turns removing the bones and by passing them to each other with special bamboo chopsticks; placing them in a box. Once the bones have been collected the rest of the ashes are swept up and put in the box as well. Then we all jump in a bus and head over to the cemetary and stand around while the priests place the bones into the family crypt. Light a joss stick for respect and head back for more ceremonies.

I didn't know the woman well. I had only met her once. She was my wife's great aunt. I didn't have anything to do with the way she lived, but I helped her on her way afterwards. I guess that's what it's all about. We need someone(s help to come into the world and we need other to help us leave it.

I'm gonna get back to business and I promise, scout's honor (yeah, I was a scout) that I will be visiting you. I need the break from life you folks provide. For now though I'm gointa dist off my guitar. You people aren't the only thing I've been neglecting.

Cheers!

Not a final cut.

I am just too darn tired, so tired, bone tired, to do anything that involves thinking.

So I am going to put the world on hold until things start making sense again.

Stay cool!

A letter to the Editor

Dear blog.

I really am amazed at the amount of time that has passed since we have last spoken to each other. I want to apologise, but I can't. If I start feeling guilty about everything then I will also have to say "I'm sorry" to the stack of TIME magazines on the table, the two novels sitting by the bed, my e-mail account and this semester's syllabus

I have been quite busy with two things that have taken up an incredible amount of my time. The first is an hour long talk I have been asked to give. The topic is complicated and made more so because I have to do the whole darned thing in Japanese! The other thing that has been keeping me away from you is a game called FarmVille. I know, I know. It sounds like I have been stepping out on you, but it's not like that. I really had nothing nice to say, so I decided to say nothing. FarmVille is just a diversion. something that lets me fritter away some time without any mental effort. You, on the other hand need quite a lot of attention.

Am I saying you are high maintenance?
Well, I guess I am, but that doesn't mean I don't love you.
Okey doke, it's Saturday here and I have to get going to work. I will write again soon, promise!

Your bestest friend,
NYD

The Hamster Spins

Fight ignaranse, uh, Eliminate stewpididty. Er, reduce vapidatee
Aw shit, just go out and antagonize a blockhead. It'll make you feel better!


It sometimes takes me an awfully long time to get my brain my mouth and the fingers, rat-a-tap tapping at this keyboard like a drunken hermanphrodite's ill fitting dentures, to agree with each other. Well, maybe agree isn't the exact word I'm looking for. Continuity sums it up better. Different parts of me seem to run at various speeds; a revolt against the timekeeping conspiracy that was wrested from the Swiss in a hostile takeover by a Japanese consortium in the mid-seventies. a random determination of lunar, martian and bio-degradable calenders all vying for dominance of my breakfast schedule.

I guess that I scared off some of the more straight laced people who aren't coming here looking for lesbians or David Hasselhoff Yeah, I dare you to click the link. You know what happened last time.
Where the hell is my guitar? Oh, here it is, good. I have started to become accustomed to typing with a guitar on my lap. It's not as much fun as a six foot tall Swedish model, but she doesn't slap my hands away when I get all touchy.
Been thinking about promises. Been thinking 'bout a lot of shit, but giving your word to someone seems to be at the top of the list these days. That's because I agreed to something and now I don't know how happy I am doing what I said I would do. I detest people who break their word and I have always voiced my opinion and peppered people who ran away from their responsibility with caustic remarks. No, not over little things like not being late for a Sunday brunch and a Little hangover helper or returning that damned Best of Polish Beer Drinking Polkas CD you borrowed four months ago, but things that need a handshake or the kiss of Don Coreleone's pinky ring.

Of what value is a vow? How do you measure the price of a promise? Does obligation outweigh happines? Honor over freedom? These are just some of the wheels spinning around in my head while my body is preoccupied with attacking the wild vegetation around my home, my in-laws house and the farm fields .

Misplaced Note: After reading the comments (thank you all very much.) I re-read this post and I can understand how one might have been mistakenly led to believe that I was talking about marriage (possibly mine) when in trality I was thinking about all kings of agreements; from spitting on your palm and shaking hands as a kid to signing that million dollar contract that floats around somewhere between Avarice Station and Lala-Land.

Keep your promises or don't make 'em at all.

NYD.

Livin in Lilliput.

This is for Grant the bunny master.

Just don't ask me how I got here. I am, after all, Misplaced.

Now go check out the quote I left next to my avatar.

I really will be back soon... With Tempura and sauce!

Addendum: Here is a link for all the ladies who wanted to see sexy men in action Just remember that I am not responsible for the background music.