Wednesday, December 24, 2008

I LOVE CANADA

After a surprisingly pleasant flight (Air Canada, which is why it was particularly surprising), I finally arrived...
in.....Vancouver? I didn't quite recognize the city what with the unusual volume of snow, but nevertheless it's good to be home. Now my only concern is the possible cancellation of my flight out to Calgary tomorrow (apparently when Air Canada has to prioritize they choose to maintain international service...somewhat ironic considering that on monday I benefitted (if you can consider a 5-hour delay benefitting) from the same decision which may keep me grounded on thursday). Anyways, fingers crossed, and glad to be back in the country after 7 months.

Monday, December 22, 2008

DELAYED

stuck in an airport, by no fault of my own whatsoever...
but so excited to be home in 12 hours!!

Sunday, December 21, 2008

the last hoorahs

I was SO excited to take the bullet train (shinkansen) to the Hakone (renowned for its abundance of hot springs) region earlier this week:too bad the view once we got there was so dreary (but as it was the hot springs we were after anyways, Chelsey and I were more than satisfied with our excursion):Also,went out to Gonpachi (the 'Kill Bill' restaurant) for dinner on Friday with the girls as the five of us were all leaving within days of each other...
...I'm not the hugest sushi fan, and I'm assuming that I won't like much other sushi after having dined at Gonpachi-the food was amazing. The company wasn't bad either.

last jobs in tokyo

Spent the last 3 days working (31 hours total-the real sucker was the 15 hour day yesterday)...experiences included 'winning' a watch in a studio's christmas draw, conducted by a somewhat unconventional santa claus:I also shot outside a unique, chandelier-filled cafe on Friday: and the most beautiful beachfront studio on Saturday:

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

rollin'

Started the morning off with a few hours at the National Museum of Modern Art:If you think the building looks kind of lame, that's because it is lame, and the art wasn't nearly as good as the flyer I found for the modern art museum in Kyoto. Anyways, after that we were off to Tokyo Dome for the day, where we had an amazing dinner at the California Pizza Kitchen, got kicked out of a hot spring/spa due to Chels' tiny tattoo on her butt, AND rode on a roller-coaster that went through a ferris wheel and part of a building, as well as a linear one:
**BONUS dorky photo:
Conclusion: roller-coasters are good for the soul and japanese spas are prejudiced and sometimes just plain MEAN

Monday, December 15, 2008

art/food/fashion (the best things in life aren't free)

haven't been blogging; HAVE been exploring...Tokyo Midtown mall & park & 21_21 design center (where I saw the Second Nature exhibition)Also, went for Indian food at Lonely-Planet-recommended Moti's...really just had some curries with our gignormous Naan bread:aaaand explored the Daikanyama shopping area, home to all things cute & quirky (overflowing with hipsters and fashion-lovers who come out in full force unhindered by recent economic turmoil)...

Monday, December 8, 2008

a day at the beach

a rosy tint had just begun to spread amongst the clouds,when we arrived at the deserted (save for some dedicated surfers) Chiba beachfront this morning,where I was joined for one of my 20+ shots of the day, by the most charming co-star a girl could ask for;
12 hours after our 5am meeting time (and countless preposterous jogging and yoga 'pose' imitations later-the job of the day was a sportswear catalogue), we stopped off for linner (lunner?) on our way back into the city.I'm not exactly sure what the name is for this kind of food, but it involved clams and small fish on mini barbecues at every table...oh, and I also found half a crab in my miso soup. yummm

Saturday, December 6, 2008

the new (sunday)

*Chalo!India; a new era of indian art* exhibition at the mori art museum (no photography permitted)
*museum entrance also included admission to the 52nd floor City View and rooftop Sky Deck...

the old (saturday)

******************aoyama cemetery******************imperial gardens & environs

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

falling for colour

Enjoyed some beautiful weather today with a stroll through the most wonderful neighborhood oasis (park),then it was off in the boys' van to a casting, then onto the train only to spend two hours waiting for one of the girls' vans to pick me up. As such, I managed to make considerable progress with my reading of Sherlock Holmes; The complete novels and stories, Volume I whilst lounging about the Excelsior Caffe [sic] (a two-story joint, the upper of which was identified as a 'smoking' area, which I found curious). My evening then took me to a variety of castings, none of which varied particularly from the usual casting proceedings in which I find myself engaged monday to friday. Apparently there is a saying in Thailand which ought to be applied here; "same-same, but different."

Monday, December 1, 2008

O.K.? Thanks.

My workday-the entire 16-hour ordeal of it-was a study in the truly ridiculous. Mediocre hair and makeup, explicit instructions as to the position of ever hand, foot, limb, etc., and, without fail, the subsequent dissatisfaction of the party who had issued aforementioned instructions, along with the tragic misuse of what was undoubtedly an exorbitantly expensive studio, left me with only one choice if I was to avoid a bonafide fit: I just had to laugh. To this, the 'stylist' in the process of repositioning my arm 3mm to the left responded by asking; "what's funny?" Ummm..this is ridiculous? A plastic mannequin would be better suited to performing this task? This entire setup is remarkably inefficient? No, I couldn't think of anything to say to her. For I was fairly certain that I found myself the sole party present whose intellect was entirely focussed upon the UTTER RIDICULOUSNESS of the situation.

A dozen dense dufuses all in a row..when faced with such an assortment of japanese-catalogue-photoshoot crewmembers, amongst which at least one suit-clad headboss male is always sure to be found, one's only law-abiding resort can be laughter. My laughter in Guangzhou was consistently met with more smiles and more laughter. My laughter in Tokyo today was met with concern (I have surmised that un-provoked laughter must be considered rude). It shouldn't have surprised me, after the makeup artist sumimasen(excuse me)-ed herself for letting out what was apparently an offensively obvious sigh of exhaustion heading into hour 13. Oh, the intrigues of a city in which an accidental bump on the street or in the metro is superseded by a curteous, apologetic bow, rather than quick (guilty) glance away and step in the opposite direction.

Consider this post my second foray into investigation of Japan's alarmingly high suicide rate; what people seem to be lacking is a 'healthy'-by which I mean, mentally healthy-sense of humor. A grasp of sarcasm-the lowest form a wit, but a form of wit nonetheless-would also prove beneficial, I'm sure. However, as much sarcasm involves saying things one may think freely but only express verbally under the guise of humor, I'm guessing that might be too much to ask. I wonder if they have the expression 'speak your mind' in japanese? Well, at least they have fleecy rubber ducky printed bathrobes:BONUS CONVERSATION SNIPPET: Makeup/Hair Lady (pushing hairpin into my scalp): Does it hurt?...Yours truly: Well, it's poking right into my head...M/H Lady: O.K.? Thanks.