Happy Holidays!

Christmas is in the air here in Tokyo. The skyline will be lit by vivid spotlight colors through Christmas night. There is Christmas music now being piped into lots of stores and other public spaces, candy canes are in the windows, trees are twinkling everywhere you look. I'm a little bit surprised at how much it resembles home- except that maybe it doesn't. Maybe here it's all about the beauty of the lights in the darkness, and not just hyper-consumerism. I guess we'll find out.

Anyway, I created this link to express the true meaning of Christmas:

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=9633583092

What are YOU thankful for?

I'm taking a break from the kitchen and thinking about Thanksgiving. Over the years, I've had my Thanksgiving celebrations in different states, different homes, and with different folks. Sometimes it was just with family, sometimes with family and friends. Always family. When the kids were little, we wanted them to understand how blessed they were to enjoy food, family and a warm home, so we spent the day as a family at the Salvation Army, helping to serve turkey dinner to Ithaca's hungry. I'm not sure it was the same year, but once we skipped the big Thanksgiving dinner, and ate a simple meal of PB and J and soup, and gave the money we would have spent on a big meal to the local food pantry. Unfortunately, those were only two "blips" on an otherwise average life screen.

Both sides of my family have a new holiday tradition that I really love and look forward to. My side of the family draws names to give one gift at Christmas, and lately we've been giving gifts to our recipient's favorite charity. I've given to the American Cancer Society, a community center, a Rochester School for the Deaf, an eye bank, Doctors Without Borders, Heifer International, and a church- all at the request of my brothers and parents. The other side of my family chooses 3 or 4 charities and we just put envelopes out at Christmas and then send away the donations at the end of the year. We have been doing this for years, because we recognize that we don't need to buy more "stuff" to give each other. Others have a greater, more serious need.

I write about this to maybe plant a seed of change in your family tradition. Every little bit helps. On this Thanksgiving day, I am thankful that I am in a position to do a very tiny part in helping others in need.

Other things I am thankful for?
Here's a short list:
my large loving family
my many wonderful friends
learning opportunities
health
the ability to laugh, and to find humor in just about anything
people who are striving for justice and peace
Al Gore
musicians and artists who help reveal the beauty and wonder of our existence
forgiveness

Happy Thanksgiving! Blessings to you.

Elton John at the Budokan!

Let me tell you how wonderful the Elton John concert was tonight. He played at the famous martial arts arena, the Nippon Budokan. The Beatles were the first western rock group to play music there in the 1960's, and at the time it was very controversial. The Japanese fans of martial arts felt that bringing western rock to their arena would somehow taint their beloved space. Well, after the Beatles opened the door, they were followed by a host of other huge performers including Bob Dylan, Ozzie Ozbourne, KISS, Linda Ronstadt, Celine Dion, Beyonce, and the list goes on. There are many "Live at the Budokan" recordings out there. It's a huge space that seats 15 thousand people. Anyway- on to the concert!!

Elton John came out on stage with a bright red tux dinner jacket with long tails, a frilly white shirt and bright red matching shoes. It was just his grand piano and him- plus a little bit of synth strings and bass that a couple of folks added from beyond the stage. We were way up in the "nose bleed" section, so it was impossible to see anything up close because there were no large screens or cameras or recording/projection systems. However, his presence was engrossing, and I hardly ever took my eyes off him, or even moved for the 2 and 1/2 hours that he played and sang. He started with "Your Song," his first hit from the early 70's. It was so beautiful (still) that I had tears running down my face. That song stirred up a wild mix of emotions in me-nostalgia, sadness, homesickness, happiness, joy...I was transported by his music to my youth, and those crazy days when as a middle schooler I felt all those emotions in every 5 minutes of every day! He ended the concert with "Don't let the Sun Go Down on Me." And then came back out for "I'm Still Standing," and finally "The Circle of Life," from the Lion King. What a finish! So powerful! So moving! What a pianist! I am completely in awe and totally jazzed that I got to see him. Matt was ecstatic. In between the start and finish he played a bunch of oldies but goodies (I'll list as many as I can remember): Candle in the Wind, Tiny Dancer, Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word, Bennie and the Jets, Honky Cat, Roy Rogers, Ballad of the Boy with Red Shoes, Sacrifice, I Guess That's Why They Call it the Blues, Philadelphia Freedom, Daniel, and my all time favorite, Rocket Man. Just look at that list. He took lots of interludes in the songs, and played a couple of pieces that were just for piano. His voice is not quite what it used to be- but I could forgive him a few lowered/altered notes- geez the man is 60 years old now.

There were several people who were with me in spirit during the concert- Sarah, my sis-in-law because she and I talked earlier in the day, and I know that she could have sat there and sung along with almost every song, remembering every word. Kelley, my college room-mate and buddie, because she and I wore out my Yellow Brick Road album in our dorm rooms and apartments. Chris, my oldest son, because his head would have exploded with the thrill of listening to Sir Elton Play for 2 and 1/2 hours, and Anne and Bill, because Bill took me to a concert this past summer that took me down the same kind of memory lane. Remember The Little River band? Plus A and B would have been right there singing all the words too.

So every where I go it seems I take all of you with me.
If you ever get the chance to see Sir Elton, DO IT.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone. Make a list of all the things you are thankful for.
Cheers to all.

Cellphone vigilantes try signal disobedience - International Herald Tribune

Cellphone vigilantes try signal disobedience - International Herald Tribune

I read this article a few weeks ago and was so amazed by this story, reading it through my new eyes of appreciation for Japanese cell phone etiquette.

In Japan, there are areas where you must turn your cell phone completely off. No one who has any manners uses their cell on a train or bus. AND if people who are in a station or on the street speak too loudly into their cell phones, other people turn and glare at them. If a cell phone even rings on a moving train, (a rare occurance) folks are truly annoyed. There are set rules for phone use here, and they don't seem to cause any difficulty, and these folks LOVE their cell phones. Everyone has one. They are fashion accessories. I don't know how cell phone use became part of the Japanese politeness culture, but it's really astounding how a little consideration for others goes a long way.

When did we Americans forget this?
Some may argue against such strict rules of public behavior- that it infringes on individual rights. The Japanese know how to work and live together in harmony. There are sooooo many of them. All in one place!! They have to have these rules to make it so.

JUMP Trips and Naval Bases...

At right is a picture Matt took of his own, hugely enormous size 12's inside a pair of Japanese slippers on his JUMP trip this week.

Check the flickr photos on the far right for more JUMP pics that Matt took.

On Wednesday morning, Matt and Nate set out on their 3-day school JUMP trips. Matthew and the rest of the 10th graders from ASIJ took a 5-hour bus ride to Joetsu. Joetsu is on the "other side" of Japan- on the Western coast, by the Sea of Japan. It is near a national park and a ski resort. They stayed with families in groups of 3 or 4. Matt stayed the first night with a family that had 3 generations under one roof, a pretty common family living arrangement here. During his stay, he helped the family build and install bamboo tripods to support trees on their property to protect them from the winter snow. The first morning before breakfast, they fished on the shore with large nets, pulling in small and tiny fish. A few of the braver souls ate some of the tiniest fish whole- right out of the nets.

Also during their visit, they took a nature hike up the ski mountain that Matt said was pretty difficult. He was commenting to me about some of the other "private school" kids. He said they whined all the way up the hill. I guess being a rugged outdoorsman is all relative! The first night in Joetsu, they were treated to a Taiko performance, and then were given instruction on how to play a piece- so matt got to drum! He said he "owned" in the Taiko piece. (That means he performed very well- for those of you who don't understand the hip kid lingo.) At one point during the 3 days they had a tug-of-war, and musical exchange with with a local school, they made candles, and Christmas cards with wildflowers. During their crafts session, the local news station was there, filming them. Matt is sure they were on the evening news. He said his family was very friendly, kind and welcoming. The second night they stayed in a Japanese hotel with a larger group of students. They packed a lot of activity into 3 days. He had a great experience. Glad to be home, though.

Nathan's trip was very different, but still good. He traveled by bike 60-70 km. from ASIJ in Chofu along the Tamagawa river, and then turned North along the Trumagawa to Kawagoe. Kawagoe is a town with a rich cultural and historical importance. They stayed in a traditional Japanese ryokan in the old part of town. There are some structures in Kawagoe that still exist from the Edo period and several ancient shrines that survived the famous fire of 1917. They visited other historical sights like the Bell of Time and the candy store alley.

He was traveling for 7 hours on Wednesday, and sent me a couple of text messages at the end of the day. The first one was, "I got to school fine and spent 7 hours on my bike." I replied, "How was it?" He replied,"I hurt."

Luckily, the teachers took good care of them, and made sure they ate well and on the second day, after walking around and sight seeing, he soaked for a long time in a hot bath. They returned yesterday and he took the train home, arriving at about 5:15. Today he's not feeling terribly well. His throat is sore and he's achey. It's raining, so I'm thinking we will all just stay in and take it easy. I am going to attempt to turn a questionable chicken casserole I made last night into chicken soup.

So what did I do for 3 days with no one here but me??? I had dinner out with my Japanese teacher on Wednesday. She noticed that the boys did not come home at their regular time during our lesson, so she suggested we eat out at a place near the station. We ate a variety of food, and we shared. She ordered for us, as the menu was in Japanese. I got a bowl of udon with a pounded rice cake in it. The soup and noodles were ok, although the noodles were a bit gummy (which is normal) but the rice cake was like nothing I have ever eaten. It was pasty and gummy and tough to chew, and tasteless and rather revolting. I think that the texture of Japanese food is the thing that Westerners find most disturbing. There are textures here that we Americans rarely if ever encounter. Words like gummy, rubbery, slimy, squeaky...words that just don't describe regular American cuisine.

Thursday I went to Atsugi Naval Air Base and visited my old friend, Becky (Rececca Riley)and her 3 young girls. Becky Riley was our first regular babysitter when Chris was little. Visiting the base was like coming home. The military wives who live right next to, right across from and down the street from Beck and the girls greeted me like old chums. What a lovely group of women. They share babysitting, food from each others' pantries, shopping, adventures, good times, bad times and consequently deep friendships that are wonderful to see. I had the opportunity to go to a very nice Japanese park with 7 cars of Moms and 18 children. What a hoot. We had a picnic in the sun and watched as the kids went down a very long, winding roller slide. The best part of my day was just being with American women in their relaxed, welcoming way, and having baby time with Ava! She is a great baby- very happy, easy going and sweet as sugar. The twins, Allie and Keely are a handful, very busy and demanding, always competing, and they really enjoyed the park. Becky has her hands full, but she's got a very stong network of gal pals to help her and give her a break from time to time. She is also a very loving, devoted and patient Mom. The girls are lucky.

Friday it was yoga, a lunch date with 2 new friends and a hair cut with Hiro. I got home before the boys did. It was nice to be alone some of the time while they were gone, but it's even nicer to have them home.

Saturday night with the Chiba Singers

I had my first conducting opportunity in Chiba on Saturday night. I left the house a few minutes before 5:00, and it was a good thing, too. When I traveled to Chiba with Marcel L'Esperance, we took a rather round about way to get there. I looked at the map, and thought I could get there more directly, but I was wrong. Remember the story I told early in our adventure, when everyone got off the train but Robin and I? Well, it happened again, only I know better now, but I was reading a book and wasn't paying attention. AND it happened at the same place. Luckily, this time, I had the presence of mind to hop off at the next stop and figure out how to bypass the loop from hell and back. No worries! I hopped the next train that seemed to be heading again in the right direction, but still had help from a woman who watched me studying my map with crinkled, worry-face. She came over and sat next to me and told me that I still had to get on an even different train to get all the way to to my stop, Inage, near Chiba. I was starting to nervously check my watch, because I was supposed to meet Yoko Sugita at the station at 6:30. Just then she called to say that she was stuck in traffic, so it worked out fine. Cell phones are great. (Now I know why Marcel went the way he did!)

Before we started rehearsal, Yoko and I were chatting, and I admitted that I was a little bit nervous. She seemed surprised, and asked me why I should feel that way after all my years of experience. I told her that I had never rehearsed a group IN JAPAN before. She just laughed, patted me on the arm and said, "Our faces are different," then she patted her heart, "but our hearts are the same." That's all I needed to hear. I had a great time. I think the group did too, as there were many smiling faces and some chuckles during rehearsal. My job is to work with them on the Birthday Madrigals by John Rutter. It is a 5 movement piece; a jazzy contemporary arrangement of Shakespearian texts. Not easy music by any measure, but really nice stuff. At one point during rehearsal, one of the men told me how to say "from the beginning" in Japanese. It is: a-ta-ma ka-re. Atama meaning head, and kare, from. Later in the rehearsal, they cheered when I used it. A smiling singer told me it was nice to hear me speaking Japanese. They were so welcoming, and patient- a very kind, dedicated, and hard working group. Much like the Trumansburg Community Chorus!
As we left the room, I took off the bright blue slippers I was required to wear, put them on the shelf with all the other bright blue slippers, found my huge shoes lined up admid the smaller ones and thought to myself- "How great is this?"

A word about Japanese singers. Singing in English is hard for them. It's not like native English speakers singing in Italian, or Latin or Spanish...some of the sounds we use in English are just not used at all in Japanese. They don't use "L", or what I call the "ugly American R" or- (and this is the trickiest one) "Th." On Saturday evening, there were times when it was hard to tell they were singing in English AT ALL. Their vowels are even slightly different. Wow. I have my work cut out for me. But I only get about a year- or at most a once a month rehearsal until June to work with them on it. We were fixated on notes and rhythms, unfortunately.

"Our faces are different, but our hearts are the same." I love that. Thanks Yoko.