... PMT (the athlete has entered another marathon and the
girl, ever oblivious to her charms, has decided to attend
holding a little "Love" placard)... back from my
walkabout,(more sugarcane shots); emptied and photographed
the seed packages so they won't be confiscated by the
airport goon squads... reediting the 8-12-5#4 addition to
[21211]... still overcast/hazy outside but lovely music on
the NHK-TV (giant flutes and stringed instruments played
with big wooden triangles)... walked down to the port and
tried some fishing: there was a fellow by the newly cast
concrete structure in front of the new bicycle-rental hut,
scaring-away the crows with a tube-like device that launched
a little, lit firecracker... put the pinhole out... 18 days
and 3 kg of rice to go until Ishigaki *sigh* ... locating
more and more, mostly ancient, tombs often hidden in the
middle of sugarcane fields until harvest time, which
empathizes the morbid aspect of island crops being 'fueled'
by ancestors: their bones like the denuded, brittle
sugarcane stalks, bundled and trucked-off to be crunched,
shredded, vital juices extracted all the while, the crows
squawk and clamber over the bones, sucking the sweet death
nectar... PMT... but who knows, maybe life here really _is
that desirably insular... toast with peanut-jelly and a
pineapple ring then started-out on my walk but it started to
rain a little and it's kinda cold again, so back indoors for
more coffee, two soft-boiled eggs and toast... more
parliamentary TV boredom... more Zola: << Ah! to go away, to
go away without the loss of an hour, to live at the world's
end in all the bliss of their passion! She clapped her hands
for very joy. He, still smarting from his defeat, at the
Salon, and anxious to recover from it, longed for complete
rest in the country; yonder he would find the real 'open
air,' he would work away with grass up to his neck and bring
back masterpieces. >> the rain is now arriving in rolling
sheets... getting a little annoyed with the weather so had
the big instant noodle bowl (Y180: cooks in 3 minutes (3):
www.acecook.co.jp): pretty good, predictably salty and
nicely spiced: a lot of these in the shops)... might try the
walk now: the residents in the complex across the way
(there's a stainless-steel plaque on the lower corner of the
building; at first I'd guessed it was maybe a company
retirement home but there are quite young families there),
get regular deliveries of presumably free supplies and food
four or five vehicles arrive and their payloads are
divvied-up on the ground... and there was a monster Harley
chopper in town yesterday! spotted weasel #3 attempting to
dash across the road... did a shortened paved-loop walk that
passed by the little sub-village to the West there's a
little noodle place with only rough seating outdoors and a
big Orion beer banner that I thought might indicate a
social-nightspot but no, it's only open for lunch
(11:30-1:30) and the other two cafes/bars weren't open much
past 5 p.m.... so maybe the insularity/privacy is
deliberate... eerily quiet in town... I shouldn't bother,
but I've replied to the Island Studies list: << The
weather's suddenly turned rather blustery, (there's been a
quick succession of six broadcasts in town! a tsunami
warning!), so I can spare a few moments from this unique
live island research to tell you that the style of the
Hateruma posts is both deliberate and appropriate. (If you
actually read them you'll learn why.) Grant McCall just
doesn't care for my long missives. Thorne Abbott offered the
pithy remark, Mahalo! Colin Mellor added immeasurably to the
discussion of islands by contributing: Onya Grant!! And
stern Wayne Bernhardson would be less diplomatic. All
scintillating, thoughtful and respectful observations that
have been very helpful ;) Perhaps what they'd really prefer
are short, pointless, dry-declarations with much collegial
breast-thumping, typical of old-world tenure-seekers on
mostly defunct dot-edu listservs... notice I don't say,
those posts only belong on faculty-lounge bulletin boards...
but of course, there's obviously ample room on this
crotchety list for that amusing, antiquated attitude as
well. >> SOS message from Canadian Consulate: << Dear
Canadian citizen, As you may have heard on the news already,
a powerful 8.9 magnitude earthquake with a depth of 24.4 km,
struck off the east coast of Honshu, Japan on 11 March 2011
at 14:46 local time (00:46 Ottawa time). The US Geological
Survey indicated that the quake was centered 130 km east of
Sendai, 178 km east of Yamagata, 178 km east-northeast of
Fukushima, and 373 km northeast of TOKYO, Japan. A series of
significant aftershocks, ranging in size from 5.8 to 7.1
magnitude, have struck the same area over the past few
hours. 2.) A tsunami warning and watch has been issued for
coastal Japan. It is expected that these warnings and
watches could take as much as 6-12 hours before they are
lifted or possible impacts are known. 3.) According to
media, the earthquake is reported to have caused violent
shaking and triggered at least a 10 metre tsunami which
impacted parts of coast Japan near the epicentre, flooding
farmland, possibly sweeping away some homes, crops,
vehicles, and triggering fires. Media also reports that
several people were buried in a landslide, at least one
person has been killed, power was cut to four million homes
in and around Tokyo, many sections of Tohoku expressway
serving northern Japan have been damaged, and bullet trains
to the north of the country have stopped operating. In
addition, Tokyo's Narita airport is closed, flights halted,
and passengers have been evacuated. The Tokyo underground
has also halted its suburban trains. Media have also
reported that eight military planes have been dispatched to
the area to survey the damage. Prime Minister Naoto Kan has
ordered the military to do all that is required to act
quickly and effectively to respond to the earthquake. The
Japanese Government's Cabinet is expected to meet shortly.
Please take precautionary measures by avoiding low-lying
areas, shorelines of rivers and coastal regions for the next
24 to 48 hours. Also, please be certain to follow any safety
instructions issued by your local municipalities in the
various regions of Japan. For additional information please
refer to the Japan Meteorological Agency website:
http://www.jma.go.jp/en/tsunami/joho.html As this earthquake
is receiving media coverage by international media outlets,
you might consider contacting your family and friends back
in Canada to advise them of your safety status. It is
possible that the telephone network is now congested due to
an increase in the volume of calls, and that people should
keep trying until they can get through. Stay safe, Consular
Section, Embassy of Canada, Tokyo, Japan. >> no one bothered
to tell me what was going on here... no Teppan this morning,
just further tsunami news... currency exchange rate is
already up to 81.8 yen; may as well spend 'em, they won't be
worth much by the time I leave... did the paved-loop walk
(hazy veil all around the island); some brief moments of
sun; short nap; out for groceries: buckwheat(?) noodles
(Y200), 3 tins sardines (Y390), instant coffee (Y700), 8
eggs (Y200)... on the way to the Nishi sunset I exchanged a
little broken English at the second hippy enclave (the rasta
look), almost across from the sewage plant... perhaps I've
mistaken politeness for friendliness it doesn't seem that
I'll ever be invited into anyone's home: something that has
always happened on the other islands -- the televised
tsunami wreckage continues unabated on all four channels;
the Yaeyama islands seem to now be out of danger... still
it's heartwarming to observe at least part of this hellish
world being simply washed away; let's hope it happens in the
'corporate-land'... historic tsunami: 1771 - Yaeyama
Islands, Okinawa, Japan: An undersea earthquake of estimated
magnitude 7.4 occurred near Yaeyama Islands in Okinawa,
Japan on April 4, 1771 at about 8 A.M. The earthquake is not
believed to have directly resulted in any deaths, but a
resulting tsunami is thought to have killed about 12,000
people, (9313 on the Yaeyama Islands and 2548 on Miyako
Islands according to one source. Estimates of the highest
seawater runup on Ishigaki Island, range between 30 meters
and 85.4 meters. The tsunami put an abrupt stop to
population growth on the islands, and was followed by
malaria epidemics and crop failures which decreased the
population further. It was to be another 148 years before
population returned to its pre-tsunami level. >> ...the new
miso is surprisingly sweet; I read that there's a very spicy
kind as well... another bulletin from the Canada Consul: <<
On March 12th, the Prime Minister of Japan declared a
nuclear emergency following a problem with the cooling
system power supply at nuclear reactors at the Fukushima
plants. The emergency declaration followed the March 11th
8.9-magnitude earthquake off the country's northeast coast.
We strongly advise you to follow the advice issued by the
Japanese authorities and not travel near the Fukushima
Nuclear Power Plant in Okumacho. Japanese authorities have
widened to 20 kilometres the precautionary evacuation zone
around the plant following an explosion on 12 March.
Canadians within the evacuation zone should follow
instructions of the authorities and evacuate immediately.
You should reconsider your need to travel to the Chiba,
Fukushima, Miyagi, Aomori, Iwate and Ibaraki Prefectures and
surrounding districts until further notice due to the
disruption to essential services caused by the earthquake.
You should reconsider your need to travel to Nagano and
Niigata Prefectures due to the threat of further earthquakes
and the risk of avalanches. Canadians in these areas,
particularly tourists and short-term visitors, should follow
the advice of local authorities and carefully consider their
ongoing need to remain in the area. If you require
assistance, please let us know by sending an e-mail or
calling us at 03.5412.6200. If you require immediate
emergency assistance after Embassy office hours (09:00 -
17:30 JST), you may call 03.5412.6200 and your call will be
transferred automatically to our Emergency Operation Center
in Ottawa, Canada, or you can call directly at
1.613.996.8885. They are available 24/7. We also suggest
that you contact your family in Canada and inform them of
your situation. Best regards, Consular Section / Section
consulaire, Embassy of Canada / Ambassade du Canada, 7-3-38
Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-8503, Tel/Tl:3.5412.6200
Fax/Tlc:3.5412.6289, www.japan.gc.ca (English)
www.japon.gc.ca (franais) www.voyage.gc.ca E-mail/courriel:
[log in to unmask] >> ... now the 'experts' are
appearing on TV explaining what happened; people couldn't
have had much prior warning judging by the number of
vehicles and vessels swept away; parts of NE Japan seem to
still be getting clobbered by waves/aftershocks; one news
anchor is wearing a hardhat: it seems people will at least
help each other here in times of distress unlike in N.
America where misfortune only invites ever more predators
(especially the officious kind)... did my paved-loop walk
but stopped by the wind turbines (I really need to find out
their names again 'big' and 'little' something or other --
it might also be written in kanji on the sides of the
turbines), and made a mono recording from the shelter of an
adjacent tomb: very nice! more there than I'd guessed but
maybe too much wind-flutter but what the fck: there's even a
vague pulse that startled me at first when I had the
low-profile mics nestled against the tomb enclave ;) -- was
going to make a second (stereo) recording to capture the
phased-sounds between the two turbines but couldn't find a
good spot and wanted to hear the first recording: the sun
came out and I caved-in and bought two cans of Orion Rich
(Y190 ea) and a bottle of peanuts (*tsk* from the closer
store for Y335)... by the time the wife (and someone else;
not so 'polite' now that I've paid the last month's rent),
had finished cleaning the adjacent units and I could sit out
in the sun, it had clouded-over a waste of beneficial
chemistry that didn't really improve my mood much... two
soft-boiled eggs and a slice of toast... another 'warning'
from the Canada Consul (does this somehow absolve them of
responsibility and hinder legal-recourse? maybe it's better
not to register with the gov't), regarding the nuclear
emergency following a problem with the cooling system power
supply at nuclear reactors at the Fukushima plants.... the
heatwaves from the bonfires in the evacuation sites make the
people huddled around them look like they're shivering... J
says to 'hurry home' but the airport's closed indefinitely
and besides there's only HS/TSA terrorists, hostile, lying
cops, an injustice system and obnoxious neighbors waiting
for me (and I always fear, with good reason, that I won't be
able to get my work 'home' or that I'll be prevented from
returning, or that I've been sent some officious ultimatum
in the mail that I haven't been able to respond-to -- have a
good trip the HS goon said)... the news stations seem to
'borrow' each other's TV footage and blot-out the prior
logos... the goat has found a nice sheltered spot to
huddle-down in behind my unit she seems more at ease being
closer to people... new noisy victims in unit 'A'... a bowl
of plain rice: leave the chopsticks standing upright so as
to resemble funerary incense (that I burned during
Thailand's tsunami: Island 2.0)... the P.M. means business,
he's wearing a blue jumpsuit; still more amazing footage of
entire houses being washed down streets along with dozens of
cars; there's a TV graphic that displays the size of the
quake M9.0 and a 3000 figure next to a flared-inverted 'Y'
character that might indicate the death-toll so far...
wandered into town looking/listening for something to record
and found myself playing the croquet game with some friendly
pensioners! they gave me a red wooden ball numbered 1 which
had to be hit with a metal mallet, between 3 rectangular
metal brackets in a gravel playing field and then to the
goalpost/home: they eventually learned that I was from
Canada and staying in a guesthouse, and although they asked
me other questions that was as far as we got... I may have
won one game but I'm not sure as there may have been two
teams (red and white) involved (everyone applauded, and I
bowed, when hitting the home stake)... the game ended
abruptly with the balls, mallets and brackets being
gathered-up, wooden panels in the community building slid
shut, and metal bolts (the heads of which were painted
safety-red,) placed in the open bracket holes: I'm thinking
it might be a timed physical therapy regime... there's the
evening tune, right on schedule, with no announcement...
down to Nishi (hippy enclave #1 was visiting enclave #2), to
see only a brief blaze through a slit in the clouds: hard to
imagine this same water peacefully lapping onshore caused so
much damage... found another nice anthropometric piece of
coral and took many b&w (12hr-double-exp) shots of the
textured seawall... pinhole out; waxing gibbous moon...
shower this morning; soaked/washed clothes out to dry; last
clean sheet on bed; instant coffee; TV news searching for
normalcy: many trains are still not operational; food
shortages... confirmed death toll: 3200 (although estimates
are over 10,000)... no Teppan this morning... carried the
recording gear around to the wind turbines but was
disappointed to see that they weren't spinning: sat for a
while in the sun (on my green Lamu kikoyi: Island 3.0),
hoping they might begin but even though the truck with the
loudspeakers on top, came by and noodled around with
something, there was no electricity generated today... there
were only a couple of notices up around town, so I assume
the couple of dozen people who showed-up were 'texted':
attended a little informal concert at the Kukuru coffeeshop
(an exceedingly cool traditional house: hippy enclave #1):
everyone had a little candle stuck in a glass of beach sand
their young child took great delight in blowing them out --
quite good! a sanshin instrumental and intricate harmonizing
and guitar/ukele/mini-wind-keyboard improvisation of what I
assume were standard folk songs: the closing number was
Marley's No Woman No Cry, mostly in Japanese: made some nice
recordings from down the road a bit in with the cicadas
[31411~ the 'respiratory' sounds are actually children
blowing soap bubbles with various devices ]... we joined
hands while seated in the courtyard and meditated on the
earthquake victims a hand squeeze travelling the circle with
all the rasta references there had to be pot but perhaps
after the concert was over and the larger audience left...
another Consul message: << On March 12th, the Prime Minister
of Japan declared a nuclear emergency following a problem
with the cooling system power supply at nuclear reactors at
the Fukushima plants. The emergency declaration followed the
March 11th 8.9-magnitude earthquake off the country's
northeast coast. We strongly advise against non-essential
travel to Tokyo and surrounding areas, as well as the
prefectures of Chiba, Miyagi, Ibaraki, Iwate, Aomori and
Fukushima due to damages caused by the March 11 earthquake
and subsequent tsunamis. Sendai City, Fukushima City and
Aomori City have been hardest hit. Reports indicate that the
earthquake caused extensive damage to infrastructure in the
north-eastern prefectures of the country. Power and
telecommunications have been disrupted. Transportation
routes, emergency and medical care, as well as water, food,
and fuel supplies may also be affected. Canadians
travelling to affected areas should contact their airline or
tour operator to determine whether the situation will
disrupt travel arrangements. They should also exercise
caution, monitor local news and weather reports, and follow
the advice of local authorities. The Tokyo region also
experienced significant shaking. Travellers should be aware
that transportation routes, power and telecommunications
systems could be affected in some areas. Travel to and from
Narita International Airport may be difficult. Temporary
rolling blackouts in Tokyo and neighbouring areas are
occuring. We advise against all travel within 20 kilometres
of the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant. Following damage to
the Fukushima nuclear power station in Okumacho, Canadians
are strongly advised to follow the advice issued by the
Japanese authorities and respect the 20 kilometre evacuation
zone within the vicinity of the Fukushima Nuclear Power
Plant... >> a new (English speaking) visitor (her fifth)
from Osaka... many diagrams on TV of nuclear fuel rods... No
Teppan... cool, overcast and breezy this morning want to go
to the wind turbines and record material for the children's
concert discs: seems less than ideal as it's very windy but
the turbines _are spinning today (maybe it wasn't windy
_enough yesterday)... said hi rather than o-hi-o (they
caught me by surprise), to last night's performers who were
coming out of the gift shop (...now, I'm bored and wish I'd
been more responsive; they did run to the doorway to greet
me ... perhaps the social scene is mostly DOCOMO text-based
and informal meetings determined on-the-fly... a little
frustrated, also with the jostled weather, I bought two
Orion Specials and the dress-shaped
fishy-squid(?)-snacks...); the nuclear spokesperson is
fielding questions on TV and he's sweating profusely...
unfortunately, Japan will block any information that might
alarm the populace: governments like institutions are really
only interested in preserving themselves... channel 2 now
seems to be displaying nothing but text-messages(?) and the
others are just replaying previous news items except the
nuclear exclusion zone seems to have expanded to 30km... so
is Atwood's Year of the Flood seeming prophetic? or the
Mayan 2012 endtime? I've effectively been denied any sort of
future anyway; if there is a meltdown I may be upwind of
it... assuming I make it out of here unscathed it might be
nice at some point to actually make the little books about
little islands that I've recently claimed I've made there's
likely enough resolution-info in the massive pdf pages to
produce fine-screened matchbox-sized offset books and maybe
a SD card mp3-edition of all the recordings which could be
packaged in a uranium-glass box with a few iodine tablets
;)... a preponderance of gov't 'public-service' TV ads
suddenly (we can pull together? and the economy is on the
skids)... the news-reader needs a manicure but now they're
pointing at reactors numbered 6 and 7!... more beer and
snacks, oh dear... getting tired of all these
nuclear-TV-schematics which like art-museums are
pointless... started to make some short clips of the
sugarcane blowing in the wind but the batteries all went
flat... it's definitely getting brighter earlier: pinhole
in: quite blustery outside this morning... instant coffee
with black sugar... missed the morning-tune; still no
Teppan; 4m seas later today...Every year on September 1st,
Japan marks Disaster Prevention Day, marked to commemorate
the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923, which killed more than
100,000 people in and around Tokyo, along with the 1995
quake in Kobe, which killed more than 6,000 people... and
now the eruption of Mount Shinmoedake on Japan's southern
Kyushu Island... Shikata ga nai Theres nothing we can do
about it.... walked down to Nishi (white caps) and then
ccw-direction around the paved-loop, noticing many swallows
swooping low over the roadway and only one wind-turbine in
operation (too windy perhaps)... 442 nuclear power plants in
the world: the largest consumers of nuclear energy are the
U.S., France, Japan, Russia and Germany, followed closely by
South Korea, Canada, the Ukraine, the United Kingdom and
Sweden... a short walk into/around town: not quite so windy
and a little warmer: an announcement at 3 p.m.: bought a
package of lemon free zone chewing gum (Y110:
www.lotte.co.jp: flavour doesn't last very long)... BBC
Bejing hour 17710... a little sun by late morning so I went
to my nest in the tall grass by the wind turbines and made
some recordings [31711] and considered the ever encroaching
threats from the Obstruction & Oppression operatives: two
Orion Special X (Y360), snacks (Y130), and toothpaste,
avoiding what looked to be the Chinese Lion brand, (Y290)...
might be another Kukuru concert coming up, but I'm not
sure... chatted a little, mostly about the vegetables one
had harvested, with 3 fellows on the road coming back from
Nishi; gave a 12hr-card out in response to my 12hr-hat...
another Consol message: << On March 12th, the Prime Minister
of Japan declared a nuclear emergency following a problem
with the cooling system power supply at nuclear reactors at
the Fukushima plants. The emergency declaration followed the
March 11th 8.9-magnitude earthquake off the country's
northeast coast. We strongly advise against non-essential
travel to Tokyo and surrounding areas, as well as the
prefectures of Chiba, Miyagi, Ibaraki, Iwate, Aomori and
Fukushima (see regional warning below), due to damages
caused by the March 11 earthquake and subsequent tsunamis.
Sendai City, Fukushima City and Aomori City have been
hardest hit. Reports indicate that the earthquake caused
extensive damage to infrastructure in the northeastern
prefectures of the country. Power and telecommunications
have been disrupted. Transportation routes, emergency and
medical care, as well as water, food, and fuel supplies may
also be affected. Canadians traveling to affected areas
should contact their airline or tour operator to determine
whether the situation will disrupt travel arrangements. They
should also exercise caution, monitor local news and weather
reports, and follow the advice of local authorities. The
Tokyo region also experienced significant shaking. Travelers
should be aware that transportation routes, power and
telecommunications systems could be affected in some areas.
Travel to and from Narita International Airport may be
difficult. Temporary rolling blackouts in Tokyo and
neighbouring areas are occuring. Canadians in need of
assistance should visit our Assistance for Canadians in
Japan page. We advise against all travel within 80 km of the
Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant. Following damage to the
Fukushima nuclear power station in Okumacho, Canadians are
strongly advised to follow the advice issued by the Japanese
authorities. An evacuation order is in effect for the zone
within 20km of the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant. Japanese
authorities recommend that people between 20km and 30km from
the plant remain indoors with windows and doors closed and
refrain from using ventilation systems. There is no
radiation health risk to Canadians traveling into or out of
Japan, provided they have not been within the evacuation
zone established by Japan. Given the evolving situation,
Canadians living within 80 km of the plant are advised that
they should, as a further precautionary measure, evacuate
this area. The directions of the Japanese government and
local emergency response personnel should also be followed
by all Canadians in Japan. Information on the status of
nuclear facilities in Japan can be obtained on the websites
of the Japan Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) and
the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. If you require
assistance, please let us know by sending an e-mail or
calling us at 03.5412.6200. If you require immediate
emergency assistance after Embassy office hours (09:00 -
17:30 JST), you may call 03.5412.6200 and your call will be
transferred automatically to our Emergency Operation Center
in Ottawa, Canada, or you can call directly at
1.613.996.8885. They are available 24/7. We also suggest
that you contact your family in Canada and inform them of
your situation... >> ... note that an 8oz tube of toothpaste
doesn't quite last three months... long paved-loop walk:
short vid clip of the school marching-band; wind turbines
are angled towards the West and churning slowly: groceries
for the next/last 5 meals: 8 more eggs (Y200), snacks
(Y130), tinned mackerel (Y150), okinawan noodles (Y130),
Orion Special X (Y180); a few low-res shots and post to
Digital Humanities Day-in-the-Life blog: << exclusion zone
now 80 km around Fukushima Nuclear Power plant: this island
has uniquely provided wifi access so 90+ day island journal
excerpts are posted to various mailing-lists including the
12-list [To subscribe to 12-list, simply send a message with
the word "subscribe" in the Subject: field to
[log in to unmask]]. For this blog I'll shortly
begin my usual daily walk around Hateruma: the most
southerly inhabited Japanese island, and take/post a few new
photos, although in fact I've already taken thousands, and
produced many film clips, audio files, and watercolours for
my Global Islands Project publication. Once you stop paying
cultural institutions or fail to entice new ponzi recruits,
you find yourself adrift -- excluded -- with little else
than mailing-lists or blogs I recently counted nearly 100
that I've subscribed-to that no longer exist I've
unsuccessfully applied for hundreds of academic positions
that often have been pre-assigned... while at some point you
stop asking for help: thrashing around in the cybersea since
the mid-80s and encountering similar drowning victims
willing to cling to any passing new cultural institutional
notion that might temporarily save them... I've chosen to
embrace the exclusion, reject the vapid institutionalized
corruption, and research/understand the fascinating complex
cultural reality of the island paradigm. More to follow...
Buy my books!... >> have now completely walked through the
bottoms of my sneakers as my feet are black (bring small
tube of shoe-goo on trips? also good for repairs)... elderly
lady stopped me to laugh about my playing the croquet game
went by the courtyard same time today but didn't see
anyone... well, for some reason the new wind-turbine
recordings won't combine with the children's concert
material on any of the three discs! -- I can try it with the
better HHB deck at home... note: reload Fela Kuti onto SD
(not playable message)... well that's weird, the yen is
actually strengthening: The yen has been gaining as currency
traders bet that Japanese companies and investors will sell
some of their foreign assets to bring money home in the wake
of the devastating earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis.
Japan's public and private sectors are deeply invested
overseas because of near-zero interest rates at home. A flow
of money back to Japan would boost demand for yen. But each
tick higher in the yen threatens the country's exporters by
making Japanese products more expensive for foreign
buyers... the Digital Humanities blog isn't relaying the
correct date/time but just noticed this project originates
from Canada where cultural funding is restricted to corrupt
institutions and their complicit cronies not much attention
is paid or warranted, for projects once the insiders have
circulated taxpayer monies amongst themselves... Teppan is
back! but I was so intent on installing Gimp that I missed
recording the opening address from the mother and daughter
actors who presumably had encouraging words for the Japanese
people (who really all do seem to be pulling-together
without skipping-a-beat and bearing-up under horrific
circumstances)... I notice the beer cans have Japanese
braille at the opening (could it be read with your lips?):
on Orion Special X it seems to say OSK... did an abbreviated
paved-loop walk thinking I'd head down to the beach or
observation-tower and fly the camera-kite but... I might get
to that yet... thinking of heading straight to the Sols and
avoiding the Tokyo radiation and the corporate-land
terrorists; I'd only need more minidiscs (and this _is the
only minidisc-country!), batteries, maybe doxycycline
(although Bellona is apparently malaria-free), and ship a
lot of weight home... artcrit is nattering about Japan as if
I wasn't here... I'm afraid I'll be pushed into such a small
dark place that my only remaining possible final voice will
have to erupt from within a barrel... took yet more photos
around town, many like those sequestered, domestic views I
made in the 80s along with some close-ups of shisa...
apparently Kindle/Amazon won't accept feeds that don't
contain text, so that rules-out the 12hr-project both as a
periodical and a published blog too bad... mostly cloudy but
sat in a bit of sun listened to more of my old island
recordings and marveled at the intricate design of the JTA
inflight magazine... started to listen to music through the
eee PC (linux music manager) and lastfm: not too bad... nice
full moon, dark sky for the pinhole and many stars and
private murmurs from houses... D lost his wallet and I
replied: << I've thought about bringing/losing 'fake'
wallets with expired IDs and a little money to islands to
see if they're returned: I have a feeling they might be
here: doors, bicycles, scooters, cars are rarely locked and
many leave the key attached by a cord... >> did the
abbreviated paved-loop: cloudy and hazy with quite a few
snotty visitors with maps, in town... I see the Kukuru
performers are still here nice to have a big outdoor raised
platform/deck on which to sprawl... Japanese snowboarding
competition on TV... a glorious day on Pemichi beach with
the kite-cam: fairly interesting stuff finally after
struggling with the tiny, cheap camera which produces
unnecessarily huge files, over a gig at 30fps: sound was
high-pitched theramin-like: may go again tomorrow... need to
buy a bunch of 2 gig SD cards... goat woke me up a little
past 2 a.m.... noodle-making on TV: very laborious...
another huge vegetable/rice pot for me: goat is still crying
about something.... PMT... two fried eggs with fish flakes
on toast... sunniest day yet! fellow down at commune #2 told
me the concert, or what ever it is, starts at 10 a.m. but I
think it goes to 7 p.m. so I can still spend the day at the
beach and be back to record the event in the early evening;
not much wind thus far for the kite-cam... well, I had the
beach all to myself! lovely day (made a little table for my
awarmari (Y1600: a different, less harsh brand;
www.yaesen.com), with ice from a block of drifted styrofoam;
no wind (even the wind turbines were shutdown), no kite-cam)
but I went home too soon (planned to stay overnight), in
order to catch the 'event' at the cafe, but there was
nothing going on, so I had a beer at both nearby shops (the
sister charges Y230!!)... moved the (small, of course),
cinder block that the goat was tethered-to: she seemed much
happier perhaps there wasn't anything tasty left to eat
where she was... the extent and severity of the tsunami
damage is mind-boggling I think I'd just leave (what if
there's another 'quake?): there are cars on the roofs of any
buildings left standing: scratched and muddied snapshots
shown on TV... was hoping the ya-sai would be delivered
without having to ask... TV: US forces in digital-camo
presumably leaving for Japan: many collection-box efforts
underway... the 'father' of the pregnant girl's child has
arrived at the cafe: everyone eavesdrops: I wonder if the
grill is actually turned-on (easy to add the sizzle-sound
later)... pre-amp just started to make clicking-noises at 50
_and 29 dB settings but replacing the battery seems to have
fixed the problem... windy this morning swooping swallows on
the road, turbines spinning and many white caps on the water
which was rushing-in between the breakwater gaps...
noticed that a concrete tomb was torn-up (!) -- left in a
mound of small chunks, presumably to be carted-off... so
far: 7 rolls b&w single-exposure taken and 5 rolls b&W for
multiple-exposure; have a previously exposed roll from
Mooseonee in the Minox now; took a few shots this morning of
a recently ploughed-under, harvested sugarcane field and a
big pile of sand... pretty sure I was reading L'oeuvre
before I had to restore my computer but I can't find it now
<< L'uvre is the fourteenth novel in the Rougon-Macquart
series by mile Zola. The title, translated literally as "The
Work" (as in work of art), is often rendered in English as
The Masterpiece or His Masterpiece. It refers to the
struggles of the protagonist Claude Lantier to paint a great
work reflecting his talent and genius. L'uvre is a highly
fictionalized account of Zola's friendship with the painter
Paul Czanne. Zola and Czanne grew up together in
Aix-en-Provence, the model for Zola's Plassans, where Claude
Lantier is born and receives his education. Like Czanne,
Claude Lantier is a revolutionary artist whose work is
misunderstood by an art-going public hidebound by
traditional subjects, techniques, and representations.
Zola's self-portrait can be seen in the character of the
novelist Pierre Sandoz. The book is often blamed for ending
the friendship between Czanne and Zola. The story of a
groundbreaking artist unable to live up to his potential
must have seemed intensely personal to Czanne; no
correspondence exists between the two after a letter in
which Czanne thanks Zola for sending him the novel. The
novel covers about 15 years, ending in 1870. Besides
depicting the bohemian art world of 19th-century Paris,
L'uvre explores the rise of Realism, Naturalism, and
Impressionism in painting. Zola also looks at contemporary
sculpture, literature, architecture, music, and journalism,
as well as the commodification of art. >> ok, found it...
big celebration of his son's school graduation at the main
house but I was not invited... downloading more Clinical
Jazz and AGP recordings from archive.org: great stuff!...
should really have made my warm tomb film Monday night there
may not be much sunny weather before I leave for Ishigaki...
death toll estimate now 18,000; many tearful people in the
evacuation centers... PMT... had the rice 'n' veg pot
(maybe 2 and a little, servings of rice left), followed by
two fried eggs with fish flakes on toast plus instant
coffee: still sounds blustery outside... was looking forward
to having the last (Thai) pineapple ring from the tin in the
fridge but it had suddenly turned black... << Claude then
accurately came to this conclusion: That objects have no
real fixed colour; that they assume various hues according
to ambient circumstances; but the misfortune was that when
he took to direct observation, with his brain throbbing with
scientific formulas, his prejudiced vision lent too much
force to delicate shades, and made him render what was
theoretically correct in too vivid a manner: thus his style,
once so bright, so full of the palpitation of sunlight,
ended in a reversal of everything to which the eye was
accustomed, giving, for instance, flesh of a violet tinge
under tricoloured skies. Insanity seemed to be at the end of
it all. >> ... out for a walk... tried to ask a young fellow
on skateboard from commune #2 what the names of the
wind-turbines were but I don't think he knew (but maybe his
'sugarcane-harvesting-boss' did who drove by in a
mini-pick-up): he wanted me to accompany him to the soba
noodle shop at the port but I had just eaten (and he
smoked): once again I clearly shock younger people with my
non-apparent age (maybe I should lie), in this case I was a
similar age as his father: I've forgotten-now but he
supplied the name of my apparent hair-style so weird that it
matches-up with such a variety of cultural-norms, ie., in
Thailand it resembled a very young and different boys'
coming-of-age hairdressing-knot... ); offered to meet for a
beer at 5 p.m. here but it won't be inside: he doesn't seem
all that trustworthy and struggling to maintain the
conversation, I completely forgot my rule about telling
people as few people as possible when I'm leaving... the
United States, France, and Britain have been bombing Libya
with cruise missiles, B-2 stealth bombers, F-16 and F-15
fighter jets, and Harrier attack jets. There is no reliable
estimate of the number of civilians killed... I see now that
there's a second part to the instant miso soup mix much
better... the first morning ferry should arrive in Ishigaki
before 11 a.m. giving me time to walk to the guesthouse by
their 2 p.m. check-in time (still no response regarding my
emailed question about the location of the annex WRT the
mainhouse but presumably it's close-by)... still quite
chilly out for shorts but I don't want to have to wash
anything else in a bowl, (this attire seems to attract some
pointed notice but as mainland Japanese visitors on
occasion, also seem to favour shorts, I assume it must be a
combination of oddities: and it's interesting to see the
English language malapropisms/misuse -- no, there's a better
term for the indifference/delight in presumably just seeing
English-despite-its-nonsensical-meaning on T-shirts:
Jennifer Cornflakes or Indianapolis Las Vegas King Eagle 500
(many on Teppan: I've learned so much from that show!)...
the main shop has restocked the big bright yellow biscuits
and de-skined peanuts-in-a-bottle: the continuing depiction
of tsunami devastation on TV is quite awesome but now
there's baseball as well... the 'evening tune' has developed
a severe warble (must be a cassette tape): no sign of the
skateboarder so I picked-up some nice sashimi and tofu; all
for me... realized today that my joints have finally
pretty-much adjusted to extended floor-seating... another TV
nature programme with Japanese elk? and soaring eagles...
ok, I'm again into what must be the tastiest/crunchiest
peanuts ever, and the awamori probably helps not so sure
I'll get another beach-day to drink-it-with... I notice
that the recently downloaded mp3s from Cronica are all VBR
which I'm not sure will play on the Cowan or maybe it's the
mp3-CD player that has trouble with them... well, someone
came-by at 7 p.m. somewhat-speaking my name and knocking on
the door and there was a female voice in the background--
maybe the Kukuru singer, or more likely the wife?... why not
pretend that I'm not that easy to know, but it's just silly
language/pretense... feels warmer and not so windy this
morning... milk and spinach have been recalled due to
excessive radiation: it might be best not to eat anything in
Tokyo: I've attached my fierce shisha drawing with elongated
tail as Canadian flagpole and kanji thanks to the wall above
the no-smoking sign... GIP in the UK
[http://resoundfalmouth2011.tumblr.com/]... Under extreme
circumstances, U.S. military force may be turned against
American civilians. An unusually explicit 1945 U.S. military
field manual described tactics for suppressing riots or
protests when State and local officials are unable to
control the situation. "Domestic disturbances are
manifestations of civil unrest or tension which take the
form of demonstrations or rioting. These public
demonstrations or riots may reach such proportions that
civil authorities cannot maintain law and order by usual
methods. Such disturbances may be caused by agitators,
racial strife, controversies between employees and employers
concerning wages or working conditions, unemployment, lack
of housing or food, or other economic or social conditions.
A city held by any organized rioters will be attacked
generally in the same manner as one held by enemy
troops."... Julien Meyer is currently working in the Amazon
([log in to unmask]), doing research on whistled forms
of languages... PMT... another consul warning: < Nuclear
Emergency in Japan: The Japanese Government is working
closely with the (IAEA) and is taking extreme efforts to
manage the radiation event. The Public Health Agency of
Canada recommends that travellers monitor the updated
situation reports about the event posted by the Japanese
government and the Western Pacific Regions of the World
Health Organization. For more information on Japan and
travel security, visit the Foreign Affairs and International
Trade Canada website: Recommendations: The Public Health
Agency of Canada advises travellers: 1.) to follow the
advice of the Japanese government particularly where it
concerns the ongoing or future protective measures around
the nuclear facilities. 2.) to observe an evacuation zone
of 80 km around the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station
as a precautionary measure, given the evolving situation.
3.) to avoid consumption of spinach and Chinese colza from
Fukushima, Ibaraki, Tochigi and Gunma Prefectures and raw
milk from Fukushima Prefecture. 4.) to follow the advice of
Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare regarding
food and water consumption and protective measures such as
potassium iodide (KI). 5.) to choose foods produced and
manufactured in other regions less impacted by the current
emergency as an extra precaution.
[http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/tmp-pmv/thn-csv/japnuc-eng.php]...
>...the 'morning tune' is also horribly warbly... out for my
walk: around the island past the spinning turbines, then
poked around a few spots I'd missed in the NW corner of the
island; chatted with an English-speaking dump truck driver
who wanted to know why he saw me walking around the island
every day; then decided to buy both the sugarcane workers'
woven bamboo conical hat (Y1670: I switched the tags from
Y3500: I like the idea of going through airports/immigration
with this hat and a facial-germ-mask) and the Hateruma folk
song CD (with Patiloma button: Y2300 www.kubotamakoto.com
www.ahora-tyo.com): home for a rest and coffee then I might
try and see if the observatory is open the sky is
clearing-up a bit -- so I can stamp my moleskin book:
mission accomplished: still a lot of clouds so I wonder if
there will be star-viewing tonight... Kakogawa and Kanazawa
baseball teams on TV... I will have to tell the sister that
I'm leaving (i-ki-mas Ishigaki) on Monday (ge-tsu-yo-bi) as
I don't think there's much communication amongst the family:
they probably won't believe that I've never used the washing
machine (Y100 I think)... a lot of butterflies today and two
long broadcast messages in the windy evening... << All his
available time was again devoted to his large canvas, and he
no longer went into the same fits of anger over it, but
seemed to resign himself to that eternal task, evincing
obstinate, hopeless industry. However, his eyes retained
their crazy expression--one could see the death of light, as
it were, in them, when they gazed upon the failure of his
existence. >>// finished the current pinhole roll: light
drizzle this morning... current death estimate 23,000: run
on bottled-water in Tokyo... Koh Besuma Hateruma Chura is
what Mae-san calls this island, and I've seen island
T-shirts with Besuma on them, but there's no applicable
reference to these names online... it takes about 30 minutes
to walk to the port, so if I plan to leave here at 9 a.m.
Monday, I can still catch the ferry if something goes wrong
with my ride, but of course I'll be antsy if he's not ready
in time... brightening-up some: I'll photograph my
collection of empty Japanese peanut bottles and sake bottles
(very, limited editions (my DNA is in/on the bottle: notice
how the yellow in the weathered labels has untypically,
faded first); and do my sink-laundry tonight: shower in the
morning... speed-cooking contest with many tiny portioned
ingredients on TV and many advertised home-remedies ~ Mahora
Quoria Dr Veil wrinks and white; must be TV baseball season
strange how the camera so very often shifts to the
manager/coach's expression (today Seisei and Seisho teams: I
like the, maybe springtime spandex underclothes; the popular
aluminum bats just seem to result in wilder hits; they don't
seem to be especially good at catching/throwing the ball
although the uniforms look great and the Seisho pitcher
seems to inspire some infield-confidence; plastic coloured
megaphones, one to yell-through and one to wave -- but seems
like baseball should be played/observed like a raked zen
garden in near-total silence) ... yesterday I felt a little
sad at leaving the island but I'm ready now: long run back
to second base... curiously no ants for a while but one
cockroach this morning which I crushed on the tea-kettle...
assuming that I understand the new sign at the port, there
seems to be a pretty steep fee for bringing vehicles to the
island, about Y4000 and up... noodles with sardines: pretty
miserable day ... thinking I'll just give the shisa drawing
to the sister-in-the-store along with my departure
mention... or maybe not, I'll just have some more sashimi
and beer... up early, a little after 2 a.m... shower and
drying clothes/ (cap with hair dryer); instant coffee... may
have some leftover/left-behind as well as chilis, black
sugar, fish flakes, instant noodle packages (which I
inherited from a departed guest), soya sauce, vegetable oil,
peanut-jelly... not bad, should finish-off the rice, two
eggs and okinawan noodles with mackerel tomorrow, my last
eating-day on the island... may leave my worn-through and
dirty sneakers behind too... I can vaguely hear someone
snoring next door which reminds me that I haven't recorded
myself sleeping on this island... although it's generally
been too cold to have the window open at night, and I've
already recorded the ambience out-back during the
morning-tune: so perhaps a sleeping-session in Ishigaki
then... << It had summoned him, and he had come, and yet he
could not see it in the depths of the darkness. He could
only distinguish the bridges, with their light framework
standing out blackly against the sparkling water. But
farther off everything became confused, the island had
disappeared, he could not even have told its exact situation
if some belated cabs had not passed from time to time over
the Pont-Neuf, with their lamps showing like those shooting
sparks which dart at times through embers. A red lantern, on
a level with the dam of the Mint, cast a streamlet of blood,
as it were, into the water. Something huge and lugubrious,
some drifting form, no doubt a lighter which had become
unmoored, slowly descended the stream amid the reflections.
Espied for a moment, it was immediately afterwards lost in
the darkness. Where had the triumphal island sunk? In the
depths of that flow of water? Claude still gazed, gradually
fascinated by the great rushing of the river in the night.
He leaned over its broad bed, chilly like an abyss, in which
the mysterious flames were dancing. And the loud, sad wail
of the current attracted him, and he listened to its call,
despairing, unto death... >> but of course he hangs himself
in front of his big painting... tsunami dead & missing toll:
27,000... Aspergillus is a genus of molds that causes food
to mold and also associated with water damage in buildings.
it is toxic and can cause infection... likely the last
Teppan recording today: gosh, about 800 LP4 minutes in
total! plus maybe another 325 minute LP4 disc [11811] with a
variety of sources gradually becoming only Teppan... I _did
watch a lot of television here... pinhole in... more
evacuations: radiation particles from the Japanese reactor
have been detected as far as Iceland... rare product
placement on Teppan (usually brand names are obscured): Star
Draft Beer, but it might be just a (substitute) reference to
Southern Star (or maybe they're hoping for sponsorship)...
the pregnant girl has gone into labour... and the
morning-tune sounds like it's repaired... out for a walk...
only one wind turbine in action as it's pretty windy... the
(what I think is,) the asphalt plant was in operation today:
hoppers and conveyor belt transfer sand and three grades of
gravel toward a scrapwood-fired furnance... said Ishigaki
ikimas asahte to the other lady in front of the sister's
shop: have no idea whether she understood me or didn't
care... will try the phrase again on the sister this
afternoon: perhaps I try my luck at fishing one last time...
it's going to take me a while to pack all this stuff up
tomorrow... more baseball on TV interrupted by nuclear-news:
General Electric, the US nation's largest corporation and
maker of Japan's failed nuclear reactors, last year had
worldwide profits of $14.2 billion. They paid no taxes - and
claimed a $3.2 billion tax benefit, thanks to fierce
lobbying and innovative accounting... Risei and Gijutsu
teams playing on channel 2... The evidence Hara Shimoda
Kaiduka remains can be traced back 3700 years. Pottery
excavated here, "Hara Shimoda ware" is called, has become an
important evidence that the system closely related to
Indonesian culture and the culture of Yaeyama region...
Kaiduka Hara Shimoda is located toward the left hand went
down further towards the north coast road fringing. The
discovery was initially thought to what the 14th century,
about 3700 years ago and now has an estimated 1800 BC
ruins... There's a disused phosphorus mine and this mineral
in the soil is apparently what makes the 'black sugar'
unique. Chatted with the visiting Kukuru performer couple at
Nishi and lamented my limited language skills to the lack of
ghost-town encounters: little over 500 inhabitants on the
island today compared with 1500 in the 1960's; and many are
elderly; there was another funeral yesterday... more nuclear
diagrams on TV... forgot that it's Sunday and so no Teppan;
much more to pack... Hotoku plays a Kanji-team: crow
knocks-over my display of sake/peanut bottles...
/:b
Island 6.0 is now available online!
====================================
http://bbrace.net/islands/island6/island6.html
http://bradbrace.net/islands/island6/island6.html
Global Islands Project -- ongoing series of multi-media
pdf-ebooks/field-recordings -- a pastoral, pictorial and
phonic elicitation of island parameters. An intensive
examination of small islands and their paradigmatic
solutions to globalism.
Your (Art)world is based on mutual relief at your common
corruption. Maybe some cultures are based on even worse. But
that wouldn't change the bad faith of it and as years go by,
you wake at night in terror of your whole life being an act
of bad faith, where everything is self-interest and nothing
more, where every human interaction is driven by a silent,
even subconscious calculation of some ulterior motive, to
the point that a sea of bad faith has taken over your whole
life, there's no small island left from which you can even
try to build a bridge of good faith, because even that
effort becomes suspect, even good faith is nothing but
self-interested, even altruism is nothing but solipsistic,
even your professed agonizing right here right now is
nothing but a gesture, made to the conscience in order to
assure it that it exists.
http://bradbrace.net/id.html
http://bbrace.net/id.html
Island 1.0 is Ambergris Caye, Belize
Island 2.0 is Koh Si Chang, Thailand
Island 3.0 is Lamu, Kenya
Island 4.0 is Narikel Jingira, Bangladesh
Island 5.0 is Isla Mais, Nicaragua
Island 6.0 are The Grenadines, West Indies
Global Islands Project:
Island 1.0 -> http://bbrace.net/islands/island1/island1.html
or http://bradbrace.net/islands/island1/island1.html
-- over 800 images and hour-long audiotrack -- 69mb -- (acrobat 6)
Island 2.0 -> http://bbrace.net/islands/island2/island2.html
or http://bradbrace.net/islands/island2/island2.html
-- over 535 images and hour-long audiotrack -- 78mb -- (acrobat 6)
***
http://www.archive.org/details/global_islands_project_island_1.0
http://www.archive.org/details/global_islands_project_island_2.0
http://www.archive.org/details/global_islands_project_island_3.0
http://www.archive.org/details/global_islands_project_island_4.0
http://www.archive.org/details/global_islands_project_island_5.0
http://www.archive.org/details/global_islands_project_island_6.0
***
Global Islands Project -- ongoing series of multi-media
pdf-books -- a pastoral, pictorial and phonic elicitation of
island parameters...
Vientos del pueblo me llevan
Vientos del pueblo me arrastran
Me eparcen mi corazon
Ye me aventan la garganta
http://www.bbrace.net/id.html
http://bradbrace.net/id.html
bbs: brad brace sound
http://69.64.229.114:8000
http://www.bbrace.net/undisclosed.html
Waters Colours:
http://bradbrace.net/webgallerywc/wc.html
Eroticized Japanese/Malaysian Snack Foods:
http://bradbrace.net/greenscreen.html
Additional GIP texts/blog:
http://bbrace.net/wordpress/
http://bradbrace.net/wordpress/
12 mailing list:
You cannot politically defy the institutions when all you
really wanted was to be clasped to their bosoms and hope in
time to be cherished under the very framework of oppressive
values you are thinking of overcoming. That would be
co-optation, revolution only in the sense of a circulation
of elites rather than the extirpation of the very impulses
of elitism.
To subscribe to 12-list, simply send a message with the word
"subscribe" in the Subject: field to
[log in to unmask]
/:b
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