• Daily Life

    Prayers Gonna Pray

    I’ve been praying a lot lately, which is bloody hypocritical because I don’t really believe in having to rely on an imaginary friend. It’s been a rocky start to 2024 for Japan, beginning with the deadly New Year’s Day Noto Earthquake, a fatal crash at Haneda Airport the following day and general doom and gloom thereafter, despite the Nikkei index headed toward a record high, surpassing the lofty level it held when I first came here in the bubble era. Not much is going right personally or professionally, and that’s driving me to seek any sort of assistance that’s out…

  • Strine Scribes - Strine Songs - Unknown Nichigo

    Sending a Message

    Alright, I hadn’t known this before, but when I arrived in Japan in the mid-1980s, all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, I stayed in Bunkyo-ku, not far from Gokokuji Temple. Unbeknown to me at the time, and not until today, in fact, right around the same time, Australia’s biggest band, and then one of the hottest acts globally, INXS, had also filmed the music video for their hit, I Send a Message, at the same temple. I’d come to Japan with few expectations, but among the images I had were those from a couple of INXS videos from around the time. I…