today, this week

So I just got finished doing a private lesson in Shimokitazawa with Naoko. She's really nice and I feel bad getting paid for talking, but I want some studio monitors(http://www.krksys.com/v3/vseries2_v4.asp). However, I am charging her less than I usually do and going much longer than usual, so I'm hoping that makes up for it.... Anyway, she paid me today and wrapped the money in a pretty intricate manner in some tissue paper. That made me happy - i took some photos - maybe I'll get arount to posting them(i'm going to try and worry about getting writing done regularly before I make any promises about taking/posting pics again........) Anyway, she gave me a Miyazaki movie last time(laputa), which was really good. That led me to watch more miyazaki(naushika) - i think i"m going to have his filmography done by the end of the month at this rate. He really captures something that I haven't quite been able to nail.
In other news - we recorded a few rough rough versions of some songs we're working on - you can email me if you want to hear it and I'll send you the mp3s if you like..... no vocals, no bass, not even completed skeletons so don't expect anything particularly listenable.
I'm working on vacation plans for golden week - i think i"M going to take a trip out into japan by myself - i haven't done that in a while and think it'd be good both for me and my japanese. Although it's going to be ridiculously crowded, I think I might just head into kyoto with all the other tourists. Naoko said she's going to go to shizuoka with her sister and her dog. I asked her how she transports her dog and she said she carries it in a little bag - cute.

I visited a bookstore yesterday that has a ton of used english books(a pretty decent political science and econ section) and bought a hirohito biography and albert camus' 'the stranger'. I haven't read any fiction in about a year, and he's been on my list of people to read, so, uh, yeah.
Vicente warned me the owner(an american or canadian) was a "dick", and he wasn't too far off the mark. They do have a book club there, though - I might be a geek and sign up. the website is www.gooddaybooks.com

I've watched a few movies recently and I think I'm going to start using this blog to attempt to "review" what I watch to help me with a. my writing skills and b. as a decent reference of what I've seen so I know which directors I've enjoyed etc. Hopefully you(all two of you) might gain something out of it as well.


Films I plan on writing about
laputa/naushika/tonari no totoro
hanabi
seppuku
ran
gohatto

tomorrow i'm meeting sayuri in the morning and going to todai at night - not sure what's in store for the interim period - i've been really wanting to get a japanese telecaster - might do so pretty soon maybe i'll hit up ochanomizu(the section of tokyo with lots of used guitars) tomorrow. i also need to buy some more dress shirts. I don't know how to ask for them to measure me, so I'm a little shy about doing so. it needs to happen, as my other shirts are getting pretty worn.

that's all for now.


japanese word of the day :
kashikomarimashita(formal): certainly