A Journey of 1,000 Miles…

…began with that proverbial first step today. That first step cost about a grand… that would be a lil over 1,000 Yankee Dollars… but who’s counting? (Hint: me. Every last penny, when you come right down to it.) But already I digress. I intimated I’d be beginning a dental odyssey with a post on the subject late last November. Well, the adventure has begun…

Actually, it began about two weeks ago, when I went into Dr. Thompson’s office to have molds made for an “appliance,” which I would be required to wear during a CT-scan of my entire head, a precursor to the surgeries that will begin in the very near future. The appliance came back from the appliance-manufacturer a week ago, the CT-scan was scheduled at Roosevelt County General Hospital, and things began in earnest today.

Consuelo... Bagging It

I stopped by Dr. Thompson’s office this afternoon, picked up the appliance, received a lesson on how to place the thing in my mouth when the scan took place, and then toodled off to the hospital.

Consuelo holds The Appliance. Dontcha LUV medical terms, Gentle Reader?

I checked in at the hospital, filled out the usual administrative forms, and walked a short distance down to radiology. After checking in yet again…this time with the radiology folks… I had enough time to read several columns in a three-month old copy of Time before being called back into the rear of the radiology area, where the real action was to take place.

The CT Machine

The real action was anti-climactic, at best. The scan took all of about four minutes…I probably spent longer talking to the technician and snapping these pictures than I did laying on the table during the actual scan.

Christine, the CT-technician

The machine itself is impressive, but I was dismayed to note it was manufactured by Toshiba, and not General Electric. It’s actually impressive, in and of itself, that Roosevelt County General actually has such a machine, which, as you might imagine, Gentle Reader, is one pricey piece of equipment. I imagine Roosevelt Co. General will recoup their investment rather quickly, however. I inquired as to the cost of this four-minute procedure while checking in and was told “oh, somewhere between $700.00 and $900.00.” Yikes! This procedure is the only part of this 1,000 mile journey that’s covered by my insurance, and that’s a great good thing. Every lil bit helps, lemmee tell ya.

So. The CT-scan is done and I’m awaiting scheduling of the first series of bone implants, otherwise known as a “sinus lift.” On both sides of my face. That sounds like Big Fun, doesn't it?

I’ll keep ya in the loop. Or not, depending. Medical war stories are much less interesting to those who aren’t living them, I’ve heard.

“And You Can Wear It, Too…”

So closes the song “U.S. Air Force Blue,” as sung by the Mitch Miller Singers back in 1957. I much prefer the official USAF song, but this ain’t bad. The film clip features front-line aircraft from the era, including the venerable F-86 Sabre, the F-100 Super Sabre, F-102 Delta Dagger, and F-104 Starfighter. Bombers include the B-47, the B-52, B-57, and B-66.

Just to put things in perspective…I was 12 years old when this short was released and living in Ankara, Turkey. My Dad was the AFOSI detachment vice-commander in Ankara at the time. A little over six years later I would put on Air Force Blue and wear it for the next 22 years.

My, how time flies!

(h/t: AFA’s Daily Report)

Happy Birthday Bobby!

Eleven years old today. This is SN3's "official" fifth grade photo from November of last year. I think he looks a lot more like Mom than Dad. Which is probably definitely a good thing for him, Gentle Reader.

"Kafir" Speaks... and You Should Listen

Via Uncle Jimbo at Blackfive, a video by Kafir Alalazoo:

Which, coming hard on the heels of my link to Zombie yesterday, is kinda-sorta the antidote to moonbat infestations of epic proportions. Or not. Coz the video doesn’t offer any solutions, it simply points out and articulates what most of us are feeling…like “What’s wrong with these people?” Still and even, if more folks hear the other side, perhaps minds will be changed.

I’m not holding MY breath.

Before I go… you should check out Kafir’s YouTube channel. Some good stuff there, like Mark Steyn’s entire CPAC speech, in five parts. And other good stuff, as well.

Hits and Misses

I'm glad it's Monday, even if it's yet another Federal holiday whereupon our gub'mint servants get to lounge around all day while the rest of America's wage-slaves trudge off to the workplace, keeping the world safe for capitalism.

That sounds rather cynical, doesn't it? The thought's in keeping with my mood though. So is this (pardon the lead-in ad, please):



Why yes! Yes, we did have a rather ugly run-in this weekend. Why do you ask?

Zombie Time!

The inimitable and irreplaceable Zombie documents last week's Code Pink protest in Berkeley in a two-part post that begins here. Zombie posted nearly a hundred photographs, although I didn't actually count 'em. But there are a LOT, and they are fascinating.

Photos such as this:
Not everyone's cuppa. I was mesmerized, albeit not in a good way, to say the least. There are also more than a few good pics of the counter-demonstrators, of which there appeared to be many. Good on 'em. All is NOT lost...
(h/t: Lex)

Your Local On the Eights...

Well, that sure was a bust, and a classic example of “weatherman-hyperbole.” Why do they DO that, Gentle Reader? Our “2 to 4 inches by daybreak...” never happened. It wasn’t even close. What we did get was interesting, though. One doesn’t often see thunderstorms in February, but that’s exactly what we got last evening. Nothing serious, as in “severe” (I love that particular euphemism), just your ordinary, run of the mill God’s Own Light Show, with Thor providing the crashing soundtrack. Entertaining.

So…that’s the current radar WX map, above. You’ll note there’s no precip within 100 miles of El Casa Móvil De Pennington. Not altogether a bad thing, especially the absence of precip of the frozen variety. Ah…but rain? We could always use more rain. Speaking of which...

One of my faves, that is…

Sounds Like Big Fun, Eh?

From the National Weather Service…

Sandia/Manzano Mountains- Central High Plains/Estancia Valley- Conchas Lake/Guadalupe County-Quay County-Lower Rio Grande Valley- Lincoln County High Plains/Hondo Valley- Capitan/Northern Sacramento Mountains-De Baca County- Chaves County Plains-Roosevelt County-Curry County- Guadalupe Mountains of Chaves County- including the cities of... Sandia Park/Cedar Crest... Moriarty/Estancia... Santa Rosa... Tucumcari...Socorro... Carrizozo... Ruidoso... Fort Sumner... Roswell... Portales... Clovis 3:03 p.m. MST Fri Feb 15 2008

...winter storm warning remains in effect until 5 p.m. MST Saturday...

Rain changing to snow tonight will accumulate 2 to 4 inches by daybreak... and up to 8 inches over the high country of Lincoln and southwest Chaves county. on Saturday...expect an additional 1 to 3 inches...with heaviest amounts extending along a line from Lincoln county to near Tucumcari and eastward to the Texas line.

In addition to snowfall...patches of light freezing rain will develop late Friday night into Saturday morning near the Texas border.

Expect reduced snowfall amounts over the southern Chaves county plains... with snow changing to freezing rain and rain during the day on Saturday.

Those planning to be outdoors tonight and Saturday should prepare for the full range of winter weather. Consider delaying travel if possible. If you must drive tonight and Saturday... expect roads blocked or obstructed by blowing and drifting snow...with local visibilities reduced to near zero at times. Snow covered roads will become slick...especially on bridges...over culverts...and in shaded areas. Leave plenty of time to reach your destination safely...and expect travel delays en route.

As my title sez: Sounds like fun, eh? Glad I’m all stocked up and have no earthly reason to venture out anywhere. You sure as Hades wouldn’t know this was coming just by looking out the window were you me, Gentle Reader. It's bright and sunny outside at the moment, albeit a bit on the chilly side.

OTOH, this could very well be weatherman-hyperbole. We all know how that goes, eh? I’ll keep you informed.

Random Notes

Pwn3d… I sat down to read my e-mail this morning immediately after lighting off the coffee pot and before I'd consumed my first cup, in keeping with the Ritual de lo Habitual around these parts. And the first thing I read was this, from The Second Mrs. Pennington (in part):

Have you sent Bobby a birthday card yet? I know he would really like one ;-).

Aiiieee! I immediately replied, thusly:

Sweet Jesus! I forgot his birthday. I can't believe I did that. I'm such a lousy father and grandfather and I'm SO embarrassed. Thanks for the nudge, and check your inbox in about ten minutes or so. There will be a gift card from Amazon in there shortly.

The only problem is I didn’t really, actually forget… his birthday isn’t until Tuesday next. Chances are pretty danged good I would have remembered between now and then. Chances are equally as good I might have forgotten, though. Old Age can really be a beeyotch, at times.

Please. Remind me… yet again, Gentle Reader… to NOT attempt anything that requires the least little bit of actual thought before I pour… and consume… that first cup. I have a tendency to embarrass myself, otherwise.

Yanno?

―:☺:―

So…yesterday was quite the gorgeous day, kinda-sorta. For mid-February, anyway. It was at least 68 degrees or so, complemented by bright sunshine around 1100 hrs yesterday morning. Albert The Propane Guy stopped by and filled up my tank around that time and we both agreed it was a brilliant day, especially considering what was in the offing for today…as in: we’re under a winter storm watch and it’s colder than the proverbial well-digger’s nether regions, as I type.

So, I did what any red-blooded, All-American biker would do when gifted with a brilliant day in the middle of February. I uncovered Miss Zukiko, dusted her off, and took her out for a spirited run that lasted about an hour and a half. I should have taken pictures of the poor girl when I uncovered her. You wouldn’t believe what over two months of accumulated dust looks like on a dark blue motorcycle. It took me nearly 15 minutes to dust her off and make her presentable. It was that bad, and words cannot begin to convey how dirty she actually was. But that didn’t affect her willingness to run, once she was cleaned up. At all. We both had a great time… And, you know what’s best about a ride in mid-winter?

I left home with a clean face shield.

I returned with a clean face shield.

Nary a bug-splatter. Not a single one. And that is nice!

It was still nice enough, weather-wise, when I returned to El Casa Móvil De Pennington that I sat outside and had a cigar while letting the lady cool off before I covered her up again. It was just a wee bit too early to pop a beer, so I made do with what was left in the coffee pot. That worked.

―:☺:―

Today’s Pic: More Kyoto. This photo is the front view of this pic. It was pretty danged crowded that day, as you can plainly see, Gentle Reader. The crowds didn’t dampen my enthusiasm one whit… I was stoked beyond belief as we walked up the stairs and on to the temple grounds, to use the vernacular of the time…

Horror Isn't Always Ugly...

I’ve deviated from my usual practice to publish this pic at full-size because of its horrific beauty. Click for larger.

Originally posted by Pierre J to his Flickr photo stream and used under a Creative Commons license. This photo of a French thermonuclear test in Polynesia is one of four. You can view all four pics in this set here. More on French nuclear testing here, including video.

(h/t for the photo: Chap, yet again today.)

~~Tiny Bubbles... In the Wine Space...~~

You might could accuse me of being easily amused, Gentle Reader. “Nolo contendere” would be my reply, especially in the case of Zero-G Alka-Seltzer. Fascinating.

Now is that cool, or what? (h/t: The Speculist, via Chap)

Happy St. Valentine's Day

A re-re-run: Creepy Valentines. A couple of illustrations from a site that’s gone belly-up. Which is too bad, because I've linked this site for the past two years...

I don’t mean to imply you’re creepy, Gentle Reader. But, OTOH, I got quite a few hits yesterday for the search term “creepy valentines.”

I know it wasn’t you.

I’m glad this “special day” is here and will be gone with the sunset this evening. Why? So I won’t be exposed to Creepy Valentines Day advertisements on my teevee every 17 minutes. From these guys. You know, the people who tell ya there’s “…only one gift guaranteed to get women to take their clothes off…” with “all that spa stuff that women just love,” the bottom-line being “she’ll think you spent weeks planning it.” Yeah. Right. To say these ads insult male intelligence is only scratching the surface. And were I a woman receiving a V-Day pajamagram, I’d seriously RE-consider the quality of my relationship. That goes for Vermont Teddy Bears, as well… perhaps double. I’ve read both businesses are owned by the same company. Which may or may not be true, but the ads for both products look very similar, so I tend to believe what I hear. About which…

Yet another business to add to my list of places to visit when I begin my post-retirement career as a midnite fire-bomber.

OTOH (and I never run out of “other hands,” ya know), here’s something good from PostSecret…

So. Enjoy your Hallmark Holiday Valentines Day.

Merchandise YOU Can Use. Maybe.

An occasional correspondent sends this along, and I thought you might find some of these products useful…

Like this:

Just the thing if you find yourself in a hot ‘n’ heavy political discussion with a ‘bat. Or maybe your mother-in-law. Pull this out, offer ‘em a piece…and things should be all over but the shouting, eh? Well, discounting the possibility of a beating about your head and shoulders, if the discussion you're attempting to end is really with your M-I-L.

―:☺:―

This lil item on your immediate left, on the other hand, is something I have little or no use for these days. Assuming, of course, the product is meant to be a shared experience, as the packaging would seem to indicate.

You, Gentle Reader, are probably in a much different boat (and arguably a much better boat) than I.

―:☺:―

I might could change my…ummm… situation, were I to buy a ton of this stuff on the right.

Ya think?

Nah. Probably not. I probably would just get the sh!t slapped out of me, were I to offer a piece of "Get Lucky" gum to some unsuspecting sweet young older thang.

―:☺:―

And finally, I have absolutely NO use for the product on the left, nor do I know anyone (nowadays) that would. You have to squint to read it, but the gum comes in "Fresh Fruit Flavor." Heh.

I used to know folks that would buy a ton of this stuff, not that there's anything inherently wrong with that. But I left SFO five years ago… ya know?

All this merchandise and much, much more...available here.

Really.

Update: ...later that same evening. Dunno how I missed this, but I did. And I just had to rectify the oversight, of course. I might get one or two of these non-permanent tattoos. They're right up my alley.

Gnarly. Yes.

Upside Down, Yet Again

Check this out: Ow' to Speak Clintonian: Foreplay. And there’s a LOT more where that came from… I’m bookmarking this guy toot sweet, most ricky-tick, and raht now!

(h/t: Lex)

―:☺:―

Via Blog-Bud Becky… another one of those famously-addicting quizzes:

One of these days I’m gonna have to give some serious thought as to why I find these things so damned interesting. On the one hand, it makes me think I’m overly narcissistic (is that redundant?). OTOH, I love seeing other folks results, so it ain’t just narcissism. As I said: this requires thought. But not today.

As for the hour of the day I supposedly am? Well, if we wanna be literal… I was fast asleep at 1002 hrs this morning. And I never, ever eat breakfast. Never have, never will… food literally makes me ill first thing in the morning. Breakfast used to be a half-pot of coffee and four cigarettes. Now it’s a full-pot o’ coffee, but no cigarettes. Some things change for the better, eh?

As for the 10:02 a.m. hour, my circadian rhythms, and all that: I’m upside down again, mostly because…

―:☺:―

… I stayed up ALL night watching the reek associated with the VA-MD-DeeSee primaries. And like Morgan, I’m feeling sorry for Hillary. Really. Mainly coz Barack scares the living shit out of me. There’s absolutely NO doubt in my military-mind he’s achieved true phenomenon status and that, Gentle Reader, is damned hard to fight…whether your name is Clinton (for the near term, Dem-side) or McCain (in the general election). It’s also the scariest thing about democracy… Example:

As for all these recent Obama victories, I couldn’t be more excited. What’s more, it seems that several of Mrs. Clinton’s formerly certain superdelegates seem to be tempted to join the Obama bandwagon. I just hope that all this momentum is going to come to fruition. I hope that the change of which Mr. Obama speaks so elegantly is real. I hope he really can offer the opportunity for the people to take back their government. I hope this all isn’t a dream. I hope we really are the change we’ve been waiting for.

Momentum. “Change.” People “taking back their government.”

I call “Bullshit.”

It’s ALL emotion where Obama is concerned and smells (stinks, actually) of demagoguery, as in... a good-looking, articulate guy with a rhetorical flair and a great smile, yet who is absolutely devoid of substance... and that guy is now anointed as the front-runner on one side of our election process? What else would you call this, other than demagoguery?

But it’s still early days, and I’m holding out my own sort of “hope.” I hope the media start calling Obama out and demanding some specifics about his brand of “hope” and “change.” Or at least giving Hillary a couple of column inches or 30 seconds of teevee time when she does the calling-out, which she has been doing.

I might be waiting for Godot.

(Note: I’m not assuming you’re stupid, Gentle Reader. I have some younger readers who may not have been… ummm… “exposed.” Just think of my obvious reference as being “for the children.” We might be doing a whole helluva lot of things “for the children” in the near future… I’m just Getting With The Program.)

―:☺:―

Today’s Insignificant Inquiry: Am I too picky?

That collection of romaine stems is what I throw out when making my evening salad and the quantity is significant (I eat what’s in the bowl, obviously). I hate stems. One assumes they’re edible, otherwise they wouldn’t be in the package, nu? But I don’t consider stems like those you see to be edible…which leads me to ask the question.

Speaking of Insignificant Inquiries... why doncha go over and welcome occasional reader (and frequent commenter here at EIP) Ashley to the blogosphere!?! Her blog is less than a week old… remember what it was like the first week you began blogging, assuming you do this blogging thing? 'Nuff said.

―:☺:―

I’m still playing with Pandora radio. And I’m still loving it, too. We’re riffing on Santana this morning, and it’s great good stuff. There IS a downside to Pandora, though. I’m hearing way too much stuff from my oft-lamented vinyl collection, which, as you may recall, is in the custody of SN2 due to space limitations in El Casa Móvil De Pennington. If ever there was a reason to get out of the RV and re-assume a conventional life, this is IT.

―:☺:―

Today’s Pics: Kyoto, again (We're almost done, Gentle Reader!). This time it’s a couple of oh-so-narrow residential streets the Nipponese are famous for. And these are streets, not alleys. I've long wondered how long it takes the owner to park that car in the pic on the right. Or get it out. One has to be a patient sort to drive (and park) in Japan. You just don't know how good we have it here in the USofA until ya see how the “other half” lives.

As always, click for larger, if the spirit moves ya.

Bits and Bytes...

Via Blog-Buddy Mike, the best thing since sliced bagels:

The Music Genome Project®

On January 6, 2000 a group of musicians and music-loving technologists came together with the idea of creating the most comprehensive analysis of music ever.

Together we set out to capture the essence of music at the most fundamental level. We ended up assembling literally hundreds of musical attributes or "genes" into a very large Music Genome. Taken together these genes capture the unique and magical musical identity of a song - everything from melody, harmony and rhythm, to instrumentation, orchestration, arrangement, lyrics, and of course the rich world of singing and vocal harmony. It's not about what a band looks like, or what genre they supposedly belong to, or about who buys their records - it's about what each individual song sounds like.

Since we started back in 2000, we've carefully listened to the songs of tens of thousands of different artists - ranging from popular to obscure - and analyzed the musical qualities of each song one attribute at a time. This work continues each and every day as we endeavor to include all the great new stuff coming out of studios, clubs and garages around the world.

It has been quite an adventure, you could say a little crazy - but now that we've created this extraordinary collection of music analysis, we think we can help be your guide as you explore your favorite parts of the music universe.

We hope you enjoy the journey.

Tim Westergren
Founder
The Music Genome Project

“OK,” sez you, “That’s interesting. But what GOOD is it?” The Good, Gentle Reader: Pandora, Radio from The Music Genome Project. The link takes you to a search box, where you can type in the name of a song, an artist (a band or solo artist), a station, or Listener Profiles…if you want to find folks who like the same sorts of stuff you do. Once you type something in the box Pandora returns suggestions, including “stations” that features artists and music that “match” the style of the artist you entered. Here are a couple of screen shots:

I’m listening to variations on a Roxy Music theme this morning, after listening to the Stones for about three hours last evening. And the music selections are waay-cool as well as being spot-on, Gentle Reader. Eerie, even. This approach to music analysis works! One of the better things, IM(NS)HO, is the fact I haven’t heard one single track I would place in the over-played, beat-to-death category. It’s all good, so far.

The service is free, but you have to create an account to continue listening after the first five or six songs have played. I now have an account, and Radio Paradise has some serious competition in the Inter-tube Radio department.

Highly recommended. Thanks, Mike!

―:☺:―

Here’s a quiz you might wanna take if you’re not too sure what was going on in the world the year you were born. I’d post my results but they’re all too predictable…three separate atomic bomb items (Hiroshima, Nagasaki and… Alamagordo? Close, but no cigar.), Big Bang Two ends, Truman becomes Prez, and so on. History… as inscribed on cave walls with charcoal, ya know. (h/t: FHB)

―:☺:―

There used to be an old commercial that went something along the lines of “What sort of man…(wears) (drives) (smokes) (something).” One would ask that very same question today about what sort of person supports a certain presidential candidate upon seeing this video from a Houston teevee station. It’s all about that flag…and the face superimposed thereon. In case you didn’t chase the link, that’s a still on the left (no pun…).

It’s been pointed out by others that Obama didn’t hang that flag himself and most certainly never even knew it was (still is?) there. But he knows now, and it would be appropriate if his campaign staff, if not Obama himself, distance themselves from such an overtly Leftist… and by definition, anti-American… political statement.

There’s not a frickin’ thing that’s romantic, endearing, or heroic about Ché Guevara. Nothing. Nada. Zip. Unless you happen to be one of those pseudo-radical wanna-bees. Like maybe this guy. I’d bet good money there’s a Ché garment of some sort in one of his dresser drawers, if not under the shirt he’s wearing right now…

―:☺:―

Today’s Pic: Yet another Kyoto trip photo. The garden at Ryōan-ji, perhaps the most famous Zen garden in all the world. You didn't think I'd missed it, didja, Gentle Reader?

A Road Trip of a Different Sort, Part Deux (and Last)

Where we left it:

“The five of us paid our respective bills and were off into the night, destination unknown but hopefully warm. We had a place to stay.”

If you’d like to begin at the beginning, just scroll down… 

It was just after 2300 hrs when we walked out of the wine bar and one of the guys told TSMP we had to hurry as the busses and trams quit running at midnight. We walked up the street to a trolley stop and stood… huddled and freezing in the cold night air… waiting for a trolley. 


We didn’t wait long. A nearly empty trolley soon arrived, but not nearly soon enough for my liking. It was COLD, Gentle Reader! We rode the trolley for what seemed quite some time…possibly 25 minutes or so, with very few stops… until we reached the end of the line. The city had faded into a suburban landscape and we were on the outskirts of town, in the foothills that surround Kyoto. We got off the trolley and followed our hosts as they quickly walked up a small road that led into the foothills. The road was narrow and quite steep and our pace was quick. I was nearly out of breath when we reached the top of the hill. One of the young men opened a gate, walked into a small yard, up a few stairs, and opened the door to a small house, gesturing for TSMP and me to follow. We left our shoes in a small entry way and went into the house.

It was a very small house…consisting of perhaps three rooms but I only saw two, one of which was the bathroom. All five of us were in a common room which was maybe 12 x 12 feet…if that. The room was traditional Japanese, which is to say it had tatami mats and was very sparsely furnished. The dominating feature was a low table in the center of the room (quite similar to the illustration, but not nearly as elegant), covered with a large quilt. The rest of the room was bare for the most part, and TSMP and I put our knapsacks against one wall and waited for a brief moment for what came next. One of our new friends went over to the table, pulled the quilt back to expose a rather large red light bulb affixed underneath the table, and switched the fixture on. I was semi-surprised to see the table was positioned over what looked like a footwell…which was exactly what it was. Our two male friends then sat down at the table with their feet in the small footwell and motioned TSMP and I to join them. The young woman had gone into the kitchen upon our arrival and was still there… so TSMP and I took our places at the table, which was large enough to sit at least six people. Once we were seated with our feet in the footwell… quite comfortably, I should add… we pulled the large quilt covering the table around our upper legs. It was then I noticed it was quite cold in the room and our friends hadn’t taken their coats off. TSMP and I left our coats on, too… she in my borrowed USAF parka, and me in my field jacket. It couldn’t have been more than 45 degrees in that room, if that.

It was about that time our young lady friend returned from the kitchen, carrying a large lacquered tray with five cups and a large steaming pot of green tea. She kneeled at table side and poured five cups of tea, passing each one to its recipient and took her place at the table. Conversation began almost immediately between TSMP and our three new friends, rapid and punctuated with lots of “So’s!” and “Ah’s!” and little bits of laughter here and there. Every so often TSMP would translate some of the conversation for me but I sat silent and smiling for the most part, largely oblivious to the actual content of the discussion. But it all seemed good…there was a great deal of smiling and nods of approval being passed around amongst and between the five us…among “other things.” 

It turned out our hosts were students at a university in Kyoto, so TSMP and they had lots in common. It also turned out that I didn’t mind the chill in the room, even though the room didn’t get any warmer during the course of the night…at all. But everyone’s feet were quite warm. That red light bulb (which was actually a low-intensity source of radiant heat), in conjunction with the shared warmth from our five pairs of feet under the table and the quilt around our thighs made for a very warm and intimate experience. TSMP later told me such an arrangement was quite common in Japanese homes, and this wasn’t the first time she’d “been there and done that.”

Conversation continued on into the night until the tea was gone and most of the company began to yawn and nod off. It was nearly 0200 hrs when TSMP and the young woman rose from the table and went into the other room, returning with a couple of heavy quilts. TSMP explained we were going to sleep in the common room. And we did just that…. on the tatami mats, with folded clothes from our knapsacks as pillows, fully dressed and under heavy quilts. It was wonderful.

We awoke in the morning around 0700 hrs to more green tea as we each took our turns cleaning up in the small bathroom. TSMP and the other girl had some semi-intense conversation, which resulted in TSMP jotting down a few notes in her small notebook. And then…less than an hour after we woke up… the five of us were off to the trolley line where we caught a trolley back into the city. Our friends got off the trolley before we did, and the good-byes were brief but intense and heartfelt. TSMP and I were grateful indeed for the kindness and hospitality our friends showed us. I only wish I had thought to take pictures…

It’s at this point the tale turns conventional in most all respects. The notes TSMP had taken while she and our young woman friend were talking were all about finding a hotel, and that was our first order of business after we ate breakfast. We were very fortunate. We found a small, inexpensive ryokan in a fairly nice neighborhood in the central city. The first thing we did after checking in was bathe… in a proper Japanese tub, with lots and lots of hot water.
 

It was good to get clean, not to mention getting warm. And one does get warm, both during and after a Japanese bath, let me tell ya, Gentle Reader… You emerge from the bath looking for all the world like a main course at Red Lobster. The Japanese bath and its rituals could be the subject of a separate and lengthy post all on its own (this will do, for now), but suffice to say most Americans are stunned at the temperature of an average Japanese bath, which is many degrees above what we consider reasonable and comfortable. Like the saying goes: “you get used to it.” And once you no longer have access to Japanese baths…you miss it, too.

And then it was out into Kyoto to do touristy things. And there are many, many touristy things to do in Kyoto. This was TSMP’s second or third trip to Kyoto and she knew where the high points were…and so we went, concentrating on the architectural treasures of ancient Japan, without forgetting or ignoring the food, the beer, the sake, etc., etc.!
 

These pics are from Kiyomizu-dera, which means “Pure Water” in Japanese…

Main Gate viewed from rear

Fountain of health, longevity and success in studies. I forget which stream I drank from...probably "health." It sure wasn't "success in studies..."
 

Monk praying inside shrine

I did mention we were traveling “on the cheap,” didn’t I? Proof…

Mickey Dee's

We stayed in Kyoto for three days or so, IIRC. Then it was on to Nara, which is even more ancient than Kyoto. Here’s TSMP surrounded by one of Nara’s most endearing attractions… the tame deer that roam Nara Park.

TSMP and some very pushy deer

From The Wiki:

Tame deer roam through the town, and especially in Nara Park. These deer might be considered "tame" if the visitor does not have any "shika sembei - Deer Biscuits" when they see them.

The people at the ryokan in Kyoto helped us find accommodations in Nara and we arrived in Nara with reservations for another ryokan, thanks to the friendly and helpful owners of the place we stayed in Kyoto. I might be slow at times, but never let it be said I don’t learn from experience. Our stay in Nara, lasting for perhaps two days but no longer, was uneventful and ordinary. We did lots of sightseeing, ate lots of good food, and generally enjoyed ourselves.
 

We didn’t hitch back to Tokyo… once was enough for both of us. No, we caught the milk-train back to Tokyo instead, a journey that took an incredible 12 hours… in third-class accommodations…which is to say hard, upright plastic seats. The Shinkansen, by contrast, makes the same trip in little more than four hours. And costs four to five times more than the milk-run. So, in keeping with our economic status at the time, we opted for the cheapest way out.
 

TSMP at Nara Station

We arrived back in Tokyo in the early evening and took the local train back to TSMP’s apartment, where we immediately and unceremoniously fell into bed. We were beyond tired…we were exhausted. We didn’t bother to eat, we didn’t bother to do anything…except sleep. We unpacked the following morning while sharing our adventure with TSMP’s room-mate (another Sophia U exchange student), who had to be extensively back-briefed.
 

All told, TSMP and I did a week in Kyoto and Nara, food, lodging, and transportation included, for around $200.00. That doesn’t sound like much today…and it really isn’t, in fact. But keep in mind: the year was 1975, and 200 bucks in 1975 is equal to about $770.00, today. Still…that’s pretty danged cheap for two people spending a week on the road in Japan. You couldn’t do that for that price today. I wouldn’t even want to try…

We still had a day or two of Christmas vacation left, but that was soon over and it was back to school for TSMP and back to work, for me. But, Wow! What a great time we had…

I'll close with this... just a simple street scene, taken in Nara.

A Road Trip of a Different Sort

So…here’s that girl I used to know again, this time in Kyoto during late, late December of 1975, or perhaps New Years Day of 1976 or shortly thereafter. Memory fades, and it has been over 30 years, ya know. That’s her traveling companion immediately below, taken in much the same spot as the first pic, from a slightly different angle.

As it is with most things, there’s a story here.

Long-time readers know The Second Mrs. Pennington and I met in Japan. She was on her second foreign exchange student tour, this time as a sophomore at Sophia University (photos) in Yotsuya … a borough of Tokyo. I was on my third tour of Japan with quite a different institution, stationed at Yokota AB. Just how we came to meet is a story in and of itself, but I’ll save that for another time.

It came to pass that TSMP, like all college students, had an extended break over the Christmas and New Years holidays that year. The Air Force, in its infinite wisdom, granted the troops nearly as much time off over the holidays as the college kids received. The usual drill was married people got Christmas week off and single folks got the following week off. So it was we found ourselves with a week or so off, and so it was we decided we’d go to Kyoto for New Years. It was a spur-of-the-moment decision, and we broke every rule there is about traveling in Japan, or anywhere else, for that matter. We had no reservations. We had no specific itinerary. We didn’t have any means of transportation, save for my very used 350cc Yamaha, and it was winter…not the time of year for an extended road trip on a bike. We had very little money. So… we did what any poor but adventurous couple would do: we decided to hitchhike.

And that, Gentle Reader, is simply not done in Japan. Never. Ever. Except by Americans who don’t know any better.

I should note this wasn’t the first time I’d thumbed in Japan…my Buddy Dan in Florida and I hitched from Wakkanai to somewhere around Sapporo and back to Wakkanai a few years before this lil adventure. And we had had a great time. So, after recounting my story to TSMP, she agreed to go with the flow.

Early one morning we loaded up a couple of knapsacks with all the warm clothes we had (it was cold, Gentle Reader… in the high 30s or so) and set out for the train station. We took the train from Musashi-Koganei (where TSMP had her apartment) to the end of the line, which was near the main road between Tokyo and Kyoto. Our trip would take about three and a half hours, by express train, had we decided to take the train.  

Drive-time would be slightly longer, and we estimated we could make it to Kyoto in about six or seven hours. We were fairly accurate on that count… we made it to Kyoto in about six hours, catching just three separate rides. Our last ride was from a young guy who went completely out of his way to drive us into the heart of Kyoto instead of letting us out on the highway on the outskirts of the city. Our driver vigorously and intensively chatted up TSMP in the process, I should add, during the entire two hours we spent in the dude’s car. All in Japanese, of course, of which I understood only about every 97^th word or so…but I knew what was going on. Some things don’t require words to understand…

So… after we exchanged addresses and such our new friend dropped us off in the middle of Kyoto in the late afternoon. We went and got something to eat and set about on our first task: finding a place to stay. What I didn’t tell you, Gentle Reader, is it’s tradition in Japan to return to the ancestral home for New Years… it’s the biggest travel-time of the year. With predictable impact on the hotels, any hotel, every hotel. As in: “no room at the inn.” Remember, we had no reservations of any sort. Afternoon turned into evening, evening turned into night, and our door-to-door inquiries at each and every hotel were fruitless. Everyone was booked solid. We were starting to get a bit concerned, as you might imagine.

Digression. We wandered into a part of downtown Kyoto which seemed simply loaded with small hotels, and I thought we’d struck gold. TSMP, OTOH, was highly agitated and refused to enter the first of about six hotels we encountered on this block. She simply exclaimed “NO, Buck! I’m NOT going in there!” with little or no other explanation. So… I went in this little hotel and was greeted by an elderly woman who gave me a big smile and vigorous north-south nods when I asked, in English, if she had a room for the night. “Cool” sez I to myself, and stepped outside to get TSMP. TSMP and I re-entered the small lobby and the old woman’s demeanor changed completely, as in: she threw us out. Quickly. Unceremoniously. Pretty damned close to rude, for a Japanese woman.

Rinse, repeat, for the next three hotels on that block. Then it finally dawned on me what was happening, and what TSMP was too embarrassed to tell me. I was trying to get us a room in a whore house. Three of ‘em, to be exact. And TSMP was furious that I couldn’t read in between the lines. So much for my perceptional abilities at the ripe ol’ age of 30. We left that neighborhood most ricky-tick, and by the time we were three blocks away we were both doubled over with laughter at the situation, the reactions of the whore house madams upon seeing TSMP, and the whole delicious irony of my absolute thickness. But the situation was anything but funny...

It was late by this time…around 10:00 at night, and we still had no place to stay and our prospects were pretty bleak. We spotted a wine bar cum coffee shop and went in to get a cup, warm up, and think about our options… which at this point were “slim” and “none.” Or so it seemed. And then our luck changed.

The coffee shop we were in was small, consisting of a small bar and perhaps three tables in the room…total seating capacity of 12, or less. There were two young, long-haired guys and a girl drinking coffee at the bar, and we took seats next to them. TSMP struck up a conversation with the girl, asking if she knew of a hotel near by where we might find a room. The answer was “no,” there weren’t any…and if there were, they’d be all booked-up, what with this being the holidays, as she implied we should damned well know. And then it struck me…perhaps we could make some sort of arrangement here. I just might have something I could trade in return for accommodations. I made some discreet inquiries of the two young guys through TSMP and my hunch was rewarded. One of the young guys took a used matchbook out of his pocket, scribbled something on it, and slid it across the bar to me:

I smiled, TSMP smiled, and our three young friends smiled. The deal was done. The five of us paid our respective bills and were off into the night, destination unknown but hopefully warm. We had a place to stay.

To be continued…

A Sunday Starter...

Milwaukee gets its ass kicked by a blizzard…and you are there… Time-lapse Video: Winter Storm. The vid isn’t available for embed…sorry… so you’ll have to chase the link. Here’s the description:

HOW IT WAS DONE: JSOnline set up a camera in a fourth-floor meeting room at the Journal Sentinel and captured one image every 10 seconds from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday, producing this time-lapse video of the action along 4th and State in downtown Milwaukee.

Fascinating. (h/t: One of Wired’s blogs)

Back in a few. I was up late, I slept late, but the first cup has been consumed and now it's off to make the rounds and think about what I'm really gonna put up today for your edification, illumination, and general amusement, Gentle Reader. Doubtless my subsequent sentences will have fewer words... I make much more sense when I'm fully caffeinated.

Around The Horn

Via Blog-Bud Barry… “Nectar of the demigods: B-list-celebrity-endorsed foodstuffs.” I went through the list and was surprised to find I’ve consumed more than one of these items. And no, Paul Newman’s stuff ain’t here, coz Newman is anything but a B-List kinda guy. (Full disclosure: there are three bottles of Paul Newman’s salad dressings in my cupboard, and one bottle of his Sockarooni spaghetti sauce, which just happens to be the best store-bought sauce there is.)

Back to the subject at hand… This seems right up my alley:

Sammy Hagar Cabo Wabo tequila

He's every Van Halen fan's second choice for lead singer, but Sammy Hagar doesn't need to slog it out on the road any more—in a way, he's getting the last laugh. His VH partners invested in his Mexican bar way back when, but when it faltered, he bought them out. Fast forward a few years, and Sammy's got an incredibly successful tequila—Cabo Wabo—to go along with his place. Last year, he sold an 80 percent stake to Campari, and presumably got even more stinkin' rich. In a related note, former VH bassist Michael Anthony has his own line of hot sauces.

Level of celebrity: Unusual. Drinkers still love him, but a VH tour with Sammy wouldn't generate nearly the excitement that last year's David Lee Roth-led tour did.

Appropriateness of product to celebrity: Hagar and tequila go together like Roth and Van Halen, which is to say very well.

Likelihood of consumption by non-fans: Drink enough, and you'll be a fan.

Marketing hyperbole: Sammy pimps like a madman for Cabo Wabo. Bikini chicks onstage with his band, the Waboritas, serving tequila? Oh yeah, he's got that.

Buy it at: Many liquor stores.

I think I’d try a shot or two in a bar before I laid any money on the table. I tend to be rather very picky about my likker.

―:☺:―

Another pick-up… this time from Jeff, aka FHB. Is this Morgan, unmasked? (You gotta stick with it to the very end to get the reference.)

Nah. I forgot. Morgan is in Kallie-forhn-eee-ya, not Tennessee. Unless it’s umm… maskirovka on a grand scale. Could be. That beard looks sorta fake.

―:☺:―

This concerns me just a wee bit:

I know the risks of an “always on” network connection…my previous 384Kb connection was also of the “always on” variety. But I seem to be getting a lot more intrusion attempts ever since the fiber connection came through. It could very well be coincidence, and I suspect it is. But that doesn’t lessen the pain of re-booting an XP system a couple of times a day just to ensure you’re rid of various and sundry Trojans and such.

There’s a VERY special place in Hell for the folks that write this malevolent crap. Too bad we can’t send more of these folks to The Big House. Hell may be eternal, but Bubba is immediate and often. And the sort of punishment I have in mind, informal though it might be, would be just.

Just sayin’, ya know.