Took an alternative route home the other day, by wandering some of the streets around Nishi Funabashi. Nishi Funbashi has a little red light district and lots of storefronts that are disintegrating before my very lens. I will surely wander around the station in the near future.
I just happened to be crossing from Chiba into Tokyo as the sun has slipping into the horizon. It was a beautiful, to watch it slip, by the time I got off at the next station, it was gone. Till the next glorious sunset.
For immediate release ! ! !
A miniature Mt. Fuji has been found on a local politician in the Ichikawa area of Japan. Do not be alarmed, everything will be all right.
This little Stitch was sitting snugly amongst the aloe vera plants around the corner from my house. He was so patient, and comfy waiting to be spotted and taken home, again. The other are layers of sun burnt papers pasted to a light post in Ichikawa. Time will only tell what is to become of both.
I was a little sidetracked yesterday as I made my way down the sunny streets to Ichikawa station. There wasn’t much time to grab my camera, so I only clicked off a few as I made my weekly pilgrimage to the best Nepali curry I’ve come across. Its amazing that even though I walk the same streets all the time, I am forever reshooting and finding new things of interest. You have to got to love it.
Thank you Ichikawa!
The Japanese really have a thing for Beaujolais Nouveau. You see the ads up at all the supermarkets and liquor shops. TV stations run reports on the new Beaujolais Nouveau that has reached Tokyo, so I decided to buy a decent bottle this year at my local discount liquor store Kawachia. I settled on a 3150 yen bottle (about 30 bucks) and instead of catching the bus back to my home I strolled on down the main street with a bottle in one hand and a camera in the other. The weather was clear, which contrasted so nicely with the utterly crappy cold weather of Thursday. So raise your glasses on this sabbath with me and drink in the freshest of the vine.
The power of the nature to fight back is lovely to witness, in
this metropolis called Tokyo.
Fight the Power that be, with flowers
This Sunday was beyond gorgeous. The air was dry,and the breeze was coo. I could sit in a t-shirt and
not be cold. The weather these past few days in Tokyo has been completely schizophrenic. Cold, and rainy
followed by hot, and muggy, followed by weather that we should be having in late spring. Like I usually
say, I shouldn’t complain, because it will be bloody cold before we know it.
After getting some things done in the house, I grabbed my camera, and hopped on my bike
to see what is to be seen in the park. The park was rumbling with smiling faces, all enjoying
the fab weather, like myself.
Soak it all in. Let that vitamin D come on inside and warm your heart.
I was quietly working on my computer when I was overwhelmed with blaring sirens. The sirens, didn’t
cease. They just kept on coming and coming. I peaked out of my balcony, to my surprise, to see
the whole street filled with emergency vehicles of all kinds. Ambulances, police cars, and fire trucks as
far as my eye could see. I grabbed my camera, and said a quick prayer, as I rushed out the door.
Luckily, the fire in a neighbors apartment was put out quickly, but it felt as if I stepped into a
war zone. Wet asphalt, hoses running along the street, the hustle and bustle of the workers and
many onlookers trying to see what happened. I pray that everyone was ok.
As my best friend Jerry is lucky enough to be in Berlin on the 20 year anniversary on the
tearing down of the Berlin Wall, I got to thinking about walls. The walls we build around us, sometimes
made of concrete, and barbed wire, other times they are the walls we erect to keep people
from becoming to close to us. I hope that we all can tear them down, and replace the walls
with doors, and windows. Let these doors and windows be the conduits of ludic communication.
This is the mission of lucid communication arts.
Today’s sunset was quite bland.
You know the ones I’m talking about. The ones that will fade into
nothingness as soon as its over. This one from a few days ago is not. I noticed this pink light
filtering into my computer studio. I just had to pick up my camera and snap off a few.
Capturing the lit up sky with a chunk of an apartment building.
This one will be remembered.
I guess this one political poster had been hung for a bit too long.
The image has reverted back to its negative state.
Both of these images come to you courtesy of Ichikawa city.
A town on the outskirts of tokyo, that is in constant flux of building and rebuilding.
Ichikawa’s main station is in need of repair, but that makes for some interesting found compositions.
The washer in the second image was sitting atop a red-orange post box, longing to find its nut.
This is a summer fashion and style piece I did for the hipster magazine Imagozine a while back. It has finally come out and will be available though the Imagozine website and Borders Books. If you are feeling hit go out and get yourself a copy. I will post the article’s text below the picture. A special shout out goes to my lovely models Azure and Yoshimi for making it a day to remember out in Tokyo. Hugs girls!!
Hot, hot, hot was the day when I met the 2 hip models Azure and Yoshimi at Naka Meguro station in the heart of Tokyo. We were out for a day of fun. Ummm, I have always wondered what do glamour girls do when they are not walking down runways, being prepped for a glamorous photo shoot or being shown into the VIP lounge at a club. Like most other girls they GO SHOPPING.
First these 2 stylish Tokyoites. Azure with 2 big bushy pig tails came dressed in a beautiful zig zag print short dress. A pair of vintage sunglasses helped to keep the blistering sun off her eyes. I admired her sandals but she remarked later, ” I can’t remember where I got them.” Ah the life of a model. Yoshimi was rocking a Monoprix top, French, but picked up in Vintage shop in Tokyo. A pair of fresh sandals bought somewhere in the back streets of Shibuya. These girls are ready to hit these steamy streets and see what we can find.
As we walked along the canal to Azure’s favorite shop in this part of town. The clack clack of the sandals could barely be heard over the semi, Cicadas whining of a 2- stroke engine. “It’s HOT,” moaned Yoshimi. This is an often repeated mantra in the muggy summers in Tokyo. Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE bitches about the heat.
10 minutes on foot from the station. Here, in Tokyo everything is stated in time from the station. We ducked down to a basement store. I was Indy Jones like looking for the LOST TEMPLE OF FASHION, cause by the time we turned into the Janus store ( www.janus-nakameguro.com ) , It felt like a subterranean cave. The rush of chilled air soothed our over heated bodies. The girls browsed though the rack pulling some clothes that they wanted to try on. The cool grey cement compliment the luscious earthy colors. Janus clothes hug the body tightly to show off all the curves. Which looked fab on these trend setting models. Azure gleamed with exitement, “WOW that looks HOT on you, Yoshimi!” After an impromptu fashion show with bulb flashes galore, the girls end up buying some sexy gear. They each pick out something to take home an add to their already flashy collections.
Back out into the heat of the day. The sun was now blistering down on us. Lots of passerby’s used umbrellas to keep from being roasted. We stop into a couple shops, one in particular was full of all sorts of vintage goods in an old car mechanic shop. Azure’s dress was a perfect match for the day glow 60’s pattern on the vintage bedspreads. The narrow isles were packed with toys, furniture, lamps, if you can imagine it, it was probably there tucked in somewhere.
“OH my, I think I’m going to pass out, all this shopping has me famished,” declared Azure. So, we pop into a Luigi’s Cafe for lunch. You know the kind of place, lots of trendy types, hiding behind designer glasses eating stunningly prepared food. Yes, these models DO and CAN eat quite a lot. They need the energy to hit the pavement all day. Food was all fresh, curries, Thai noodles, focccia, quite the eclectic fusion cuisine.
Like the girls the day went fabulously well. It was fun hanging in Tokyo with too vivacious ladies. Popping into stores. Trying on some super sexy gear. Trying not to overheat in the powerful midday sun. It’s one of the best ways to see this metropolis. Link up with someone who knows all the hip spots, and let your feet do some walking. Catch up with all of you next time in Tokyo.