MJ was "out of this world"
Being a loyal listener of Michael Jackson for my entire life, I am pretty sad to see him go. I know that he was not likely going to be able to put out any new music worth listening to, though I secretly hoped his upcoming shows in England would jump-start his career. I even remember reading last year that the Jackson 5 were going on tour, but obviously that didn't ever happen. I guess since we all die, there should really be no surprise, or shock in what happened, so I will take a little time to reflect by going over my MJ-favorites and memories.The Videos
The video that I distinctly remember of MJ's was "Thriller". As a young child it seemed like a full-on movie, and definitely scared me! I was a fan of most of MJ's videos though, and some that really stand out in my mind are "Leave Me Alone", "Black or White", "Scream", and"Earth Song".
Leave Me Alone
My Favorite Songs
Just a few weeks ago a couple friends and I were singing some MJ at a karaoke establishment in Tokyo. According to my Ipod, my most listened to Michael Jackson song is "Billie Jean", followed by "Somebody's Watching Me", "Leave Me Alone", and "Scream". I think that I have to say that "Leave Me Alone" is probably the song I would choose as my favorite right now. I love "Black or White", but the rap in it is so corny that it can't be my favorite. I do think it is hilarious how Macaulay Culkin does the rap in the video, though.
The Truckee River in mid-June
A couple days ago, with temperatures reaching around 74 degrees here in Truckee, I convinced my sister to take a walk with me down to the Truckee river for a dip. The local mountains still have some snow left on them, making for a beautiful setting for a refreshing swim.The cold water takes some time to get used to
My first submersion was accomplished by falling backwards
Sami went head first
Heaven
This was the first time I wore my watch in water since I bought it in late January. Stupidly, I used to wear my last watch all the time, even while showering. I somehow didn't think the soap-scum stuck to it was that bad. I can't believe I used to think that way just a few months ago!
On the walk home, a freight train got between us and our neighborhood 
Sami contemplating the free ride to Reno
Too bad, you missed it! 
These days hitchhikers can give their thumbs a rest
Last week I caught a ride from my sister to Truckee. Being in Truckee would allow me to see my mom for the first time in three months, and also be in a good position to find a ride along I-80 to Elko, Nevada, where I would be getting a car from my uncle. I would never ask my family to drive me that far (320 miles) when there actually are other transportation options.
Greyhound: The Dirty-Dog
Greyhound passes through once a day, picking up in Truckee at 5:00PM and arriving in Elko at 12:50AM (assuming the unbelievable happened and there wasn't an issue on the "Dirty Dog"). The non-advanced purchase price is a steep fifty two dollars. Definitely not worth the money.The California Zephyr
Amtrak is also an option, as the California Zephyr line runs from the Bay Area to Chicago. It picks up at 2:38PM and gets to Elko at 9:44PM daily. The non-discounted price is an extremely steep eighty-one dollars! No way I'm paying that!
Of course, being a penny-pincher, and not having an income, I had been searching Craigslist's rideshare posts for anyone offering rides that would get me from Truckee to Elko. I originally found a ride on the Bay Area Craigslist that a man posted who was driving from the East Bay to Chicago. He said that he would pick me up and drop me off in Elko, and that he already had a woman and her dog going the entire distance with him. This was the only option I had, and at an agreed rate of twenty dollars, the price was right. Then one day while on the Sacramento Craigslist site I saw a post from a couple of people who were driving from Davis to Salt Lake City. Their schedule fit mine well and so I contacted them and arranged to get picked up at a gas station in Truckee.
The two people who picked me up in their grey Honda Civic were statistics PhD students from Taiwan. They were really friendly and we introduced ourselves before loading up and getting on the freeway. It was really funny because one of the first things they asked me when we got in the car was "What is the difference between toast and bake?"
"As a verb?" I asked as I smiled.
"Yes!"
I went on to explain clearly and slowly the differences and after that they asked, "Well then, what is roast?" I didn't know how to define that very well so I told them to look it up!
Another thing they mentioned was that, apparently, I enunciate very well on the phone. They went on to add that I was easier to understand on the phone than anyone they had ever talked to in America. I guess I am used to talking to people in/from foreign countries, however, I didn't know these people were foreigners when I called them. I have to admit that they definitely drove like they were from another country. There were many instances that I wanted to point things out to them along the drive, but decided not to so they would just pay attention to driving. We got to Elko in good time and I stayed with some family before taking my "new" car back to California.
1996 Audi A6 Quattro
For 2,200 dollars, a special family deal, I was able to get into my cousin's old car. The drive back to California took me around five hours including three stops. One of the nicest things is even with my long legs I fit very well in this car. I have test driven many cars I like but have never been satisfied with the leg room. This car, though, gives me ample space to stretch out, and it is an automatic transmission giving my legs lots of rest and comfort! Oh ya, the other side has some dents, but they are nothing to brag about so I won't be posting a picture.
12:34 PM by
Ren
, under
Japan
Small country, BIG apples!
One of the toughest things about living in Japan is the difference, and cost of produce. The different varieties of items available are just as vast as what we are used to in the USA, but the selection is sometimes much different. Living on a budget, I would often go to the Japanese equivalent of "the dollar store" where food and produce are also available. One is able to get produce such as three carrots, a piece of broccoli (imported from the USA), around a pound of small potatoes, a small bunch of bananas, a half, or whole head of cabbage (depending on the market rate), and more for a buck. The apple Sami is modeling with in the above picture probably goes for two to three dollars. I think it is similar to a Fuji.
Japanese Coronas
I probably wouldn't have this picture if it wasn't for Sami's new-to-Japan eyes. She reminded me how peculiar it is that Coronas in Japan come with a package of fake lime. I have never tried it, but once got a weird look when asking a bartender if my corona would come with a real lime or not. Apparently he had never heard of the fake stuff sold at stores!
Horizontal cereal
Cereal is another thing that is a lot more expensive in Japan than it is in the USA. I don't think this is common, but some boxes of cereal are printed on horizontally.Kid's size beer
From my experience and observations in Japan, one can buy alcohol at any age, but for must be twenty years old to consume it. Drinking in public is legal so I imagine people use these little cans for taking on picnics. I think I have never seen a Japanese picnic without beer.
The moon shining on a wing as we fly over the Pacific
Monday morning in Japan I woke up around 8:30 AM on Ryan's floor dreading the long day of travel ahead of me. We had lots of time before I was to take off, so he generously made me a big breakfast. It was so big that I needed to saran-wrap the portion I couldn't eat. In the cupboards was a brand new box of saran-wrap which I attempted to open. However, as I slid my finger in a flap of the cardboard to get it to break loose, I was deeply cut by the blade used to cut the plastic. For the first time in my life I "sprayed" blood, getting it on my arm and sleeve. That, along with my neck which had gone stiff the morning before, put me in very poor traveling condition. 
A lounge at Narita airport
My flight ended up being fantastic because I was the only person in my row of two seats. Just like my last flight from Tokyo to San Francisco, where I was upgraded to "economy plus", I ended up with a great seat! I had all of my stuff sprawled out on the seat next to me, and had the comfort of two trays to use to set my complimentary bottles of Chilean wine, as well as other stuff.
Looking down at Ukiah and Lake Mendocino from my seat
All of this room ended up costing me, though, because I left my wallet on the plane when we got to San Francisco. This really frustrated me as there was $735 in my wallet, worth more than anything I own. As I tried to board the train for downtown I realized that I had nothing to pay with. I called the lost & found, and they told me to go to Northwest Airline's baggage office to talk to them about my claim. I had to take SFO's monorail to that distant part of the airport, and just before arriving I got a call on my cell phone from a jolly-voiced, flamboyant male employee of Northwest saying, "Hello Reeeeennnnnn.... I think I've got something you want....come over here sweetheart." For a moment I stopped thinking about my wallet and just thought "I am truly back in San Francisco." I then asked him how he got my number and he said he found it on the business cards I made for the sole purpose of getting into a party a month ago in Tokyo. Anyway, I went and found the man and graciously received my wallet, which was somehow $100 short. As I noticed that I stopped, and wanted to say something, but realized there was no way of proving this and I was already $635 dollars richer than I was ten minutes before that so I had to just accept that the cleaner, who originally found my wallet, probably gave him/her-self a Benjemin for their troubles. I am lucky they didn't take it all and just trash the rest in their big garbage bag.
Now with most of my cash and belongings in my possession I was ready to get on BART to go downtown. When I got there I got out and made my way to the bus depot where I took a Santa Rosa bound Golden Gate Express bus. This was a total of $14 compared to $32 on the Sonoma County Airport Express bus. With Ukiah being my final destination, I did some research and realized that one can get to Ukiah via BART and Greyhound for cheaper than one could go to Santa Rosa on the Sonoma County Airport Express (cheaper by a dollar, but you get much more distance for your money!).
Another problem arouse in San Francisco when one of the two wheels that was holding my 75 or so pounds of luggage started to malfunction. It was totally unusable by the time I got to Santa Rosa, and I still had to walk a mile to get to the place I was getting picked up at. At one point, I have no idea when, but the wheel completely fell off! This left me rolling on just one wheel, and had the opposite side of the bag dragging against the sidewalk. That suitcase is going to have to be demoted to being used a storage box from now on.
The reason I was able to settle for the low-budget bus ride to Santa Rosa was because by brother-in-law goes to law school there and was able to take me with him back to Ukiah. I relaxed for a bit before going to bed and getting some real sleep for the first time in 30 hours.
Enjoying the Mendocino Coast
The next day I was asked to deliver a bicycle to Fort Bragg in a brand-new truck. I said, "sure," and got behind the wheel for the first time since April 2nd.
An American automobile
I took a break at a world-class trail/park along the coast between Albion and where Highway 1 starts going up the Navarro River. It was so nice, and a reminder why I believe California is the most beautiful place on Earth.
I never get sick of looking at this
As you can see in a blog entry from earlier this year, the last time I was on the Mendocino coast I saw a bunch of whales. I was pretty sure that this time I saw some as well, but it ended up being a group of porpoises. They were all swilling in a group which would make the water move in a current in the direction they were going. They were even jumping out of the water, but I couldn't get a picture of any of them airborne.
I know two families with property that look over this
A bench the trail leads to
This reminds me of Shelter Cove
Different angle
Can't wait for some sea-kayaking this summer
The traditional gardens at Waseda University
During my current stay in Tokyo I have had a lot of time to search out some of the area's best places to relax while enjoying some nature. One of my favorites has always been this one at Waseda University where I would sometimes fall asleep and miss class. Sami and I ate a little food while relaxing on the grass for around an hour.Good place for picnics
A little pond
Pretty fish
Many photo op's :)
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Next: Joushi Park in Sakura City, Chiba Prefecture
I was introduced to this park by Miho one day when I was at her house and I asked her if there was anywhere we could walk to that would take all day. She told me about this park and I really came to like it.
A large, open grassy area I've picnicked on three times
Large, open, grassy areas are not very common in the Tokyo area so this place is really special to me. It has ample room for many people to have picnics, play frisbee, teach kids how to ride a bike, etc. The picnic Sami, Miho, and I had
Big hug!
Sami taking Miho's bike for a test ride
_____________________________________________________Theme park: Disney Sea
While Sami was here, I was forced to splerge and spend money as if I had a real income. One of the more expensive, yet very fun days was at Disney Sea with her, Miho, and Yumi (Miho's sister).
Yumi and I on the monorail
I had been to Disney Sea once before, but it was at the end of November and was freezing! This time it was a comfortable Spring day, which made it very nice.
A newly finished hotel
Park enterance
We went on all the big rides and saw some fun shows
Journey to the center of the Earth
Tower of Terror
With an "Aristocat"
After taking a picture with this character we moved out of the way so others could also strike their pose. The next people, a couple in their twenties, insisted on getting the character's signature on a purple napkin. The pen that the couple gave the character was a professional grade, thick-tipped, felt pen and the man let the character use his back as a solid surface to sign on. As you will see in the following picture, he was wearing a white jacket and lots of ink seeped through the napkin on his jacket. Am I bad for thinking "that's what you deserve for wanting a character to sign a napkin"? Maybe they were getting it for a young friend. I'd like to think that, anyway.
I also spent many quarters in "Treats" in Garberville, California as a kid playing "Moonwalker". I seem to remember you would walk around as Michael, fighting off bad guys, and saving children from being abducted. I remember there was a "super-move" you could do where Michael would dance around the whole screen and possibly even do the signature crotch-grab, which would eliminate all enemies in the screen at that moment. Good times :)
I also spent many quarters in "Treats" in Garberville, California as a kid playing "Moonwalker". I seem to remember you would walk around as Michael, fighting off bad guys, and saving children from being abducted. I remember there was a "super-move" you could do where Michael would dance around the whole screen and possibly even do the signature crotch-grab, which would eliminate all enemies in the screen at that moment. Good times :)
All I can say is I hope he never violated any kids. I think it would be more likely that people were just trying to take his money, but being that Michael clearly was an odd individual, I can see how people could jump to harsh conclusions. I am also guilty of criticizing celebrities during their downward spirals, so it doesn't bother me that people do it to MJ as well.
