Back from another successful trip to the land of the rising sun. Quick and dirty this one was (one week and a whirlwind tour of Tokyo for a friend who had never been to Japan), and fruitful: Trevor received his seventh degree black belt.

Other highlights:

It was sakura season, and our favorite park in Kichijoji was the place to be. I can never get enough.

Also took my friend to the most important Buddhist temple in Tokyo, Senso-ji, in another favorite haunt of mine, Asakusa.
 

I love going to Asakusa because of its shitamachi spirit, and the tiny, less than pristine old-school nomiya that fan out from the temple grounds are the best part of that. Always plenty of beer, plus great, uninhibited conversation. I also love the cheap and delicious traditional foods that are served at different spots. This was some of the best nikujaga I've ever had.

When I go to Japan, the food is always the star. I try to go to new places as often as possible, but those old favorites seem to take precedence, like the torched saba with lemon at Shirube in Shimokitazawa.

While I hate having to leave the amazing food every time I come home from Japan, I did discover something wonderful to bring back with me: a new favorite drink! Shochu and salty plum -- a match made in heaven.

And though inexpensive and plentiful alcohol is a big plus, we also tried this for the first time. None of our friends seem to be able to tell us exactly what it is; in fact, the closest we can get to a proper English explanation is "beer waste." Even this doesn't explain exactly what is in it. It tastes kind of like iced tea and IPA mixed together -- anyone know what makes it tick?

Anyway, so much awesome -- too much to ever cram into a blog post. I'm already looking forward to next time.

Worst Album Covers of All Time

And in keeping with the visual theme...

So, I saw Haywire over the weekend.



Seriously a good time. Directed by Steven Soderbergh, it has super fun casting, with Ewan McGregor, Antonio Banderas, and Michael Douglas, and MMA fighter Gina Carano in the lead. I loved the clean and lean look of the film, and I especially liked the lack of jump cuts in the fight scenes, which lent them precision and a gritty realism; it felt like a European action flick. Really well done.

OMG, and I so get the Michael Fassbender thing now. Holy everything that is holy. And let me just say straight up: I am a sucker who would totally be killed by Fassbender's sexy, charismatic British freelance assassin Paul. Oy vey. This is why: I was talking to Trevor after the film about Fassbender's role and how I thought he was made out to be a bit more sympathetic than the other black ops guys, and he laughed at me. "Paul is charming and handsome, but he was willing to frame an innocent person and kill her for money! Now you know what it's like to be a man around a beautiful woman." Touché.

But wait a minute: not only is he charming and handsome, he can kill a man with his bare hands while wearing the hell out of a suit. Hot. Oh wait, that also describes my husband. No wonder.

I first noticed Fassbender in the passably entertaining X-Men First Class as Magneto (also starring man-harem lifetime member James McAvoy as Xavier), though I had seen other films that he had smaller, ensemble roles in, like 300 and Inglourious Basterds. Most recently I saw him again in Steve McQueen's beautifully shot and acted, but sometimes wincingly trite, Shame. This film was when I starting sitting up and paying attention to Fassbender as an actor (I know what you're thinking, and no, really, it was the acting!). The sterility and quietude of a film like Shame requires someone who can convey a bevy of human emotion over the course of several uncomfortably long close-up still-shots, without speaking. He nailed it (and okay, yeah, that pun was intended). I was riveted.

Anyway, I digress. Haywire: fun, action packed film well worth the unspeakable amount of money you pay now for a movie ticket. The Fassbender Sexy: confirmed. And he's not only beautiful, but he's absolutely flawless as an actor in this film, as well as Shame. Looking forward to seeing if future projects and personal conduct deem him man-harem worthy.

Another wonderful thing about my trip to Nihon: Trevor passed his sakki test for Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu -- which was administered at the Japanese main dojo in Nodashi, Chiba-ken -- and received his fifth degree blackbelt! He is now a licensed Bujinkan instructor. I am so proud of him. Congratulations to my sweetness!

Check out his East Bay Bujinkan page for more info about Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu.

My sweetie-pie is co-teaching a Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu basics seminar on Saturday in San Francisco. Be there or be square.

It looks like I missed the rumored special appearance by the supremely lovely Neko Case at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass last weekend. Look at this!













Why didn't I see Neko? I avoided the event crowds in Golden Gate Park's polo fields this last weekend. Why? Thing is, I saw most of the folks who played this year's festival last year, and while sitting under the sun with BBQ and beer through a weekend of free honky-tonk I saw last year and such sounded just fine, the insanity of getting home did not. Last year, after being passed up by two buses at the bus stop because they were too full, Trevor and I walked over three miles through das ghetto to BART to get home.

Alright, so that was fun too. I guess I'm just bitter for missing out and looking for an excuse. Aha! I would have never known on which stage she was playing and at what time! Okay, that's better.

But nevermind spilt milk. Good things are afoot this weekend!

Friday is Guitar Player Magazine's Guitar Hero Competition at the Great American Music Hall. Looks to be a fun show at a beautiful venue (one of my favorites), but it also looks like I can watch it as a webcast for free. Next...

Saturday my very own private ninja will be taking in a seminar in Sacramento led by Shihan Luke Molitor. Meanwhile, I will be shopping the legendary thrift stores of Cali's capital and drinking strip-mall coffee. After the ninjaing and scoring of righteous deals on fabulous finds is through, we will most likely take in a pint or two and something delicious in nearby Davis with our good friend James, who is driving down from our college town of yore, Chico. Yee-haw!

Sunday, Japanese dark and drone trio Boris will be playing a free show at two o'clock at Amoeba Records in San Francisco, but I'll be catching them at The Independent that evening at eight. Bay Bridge retrofit be damned -- this one is worth the crawl home when the powers that be close the majority of the Eastbound onramps 'til six in the morning.

A pacifist is not really a pacifist if he is unable to make a choice between violence and non-violence. A true pacifist is able to kill or maim in the blink of an eye, but at the moment of impending destruction of the enemy he chooses non-violence.

Takamura Yukiyoshi, founder of Takamura-ha Shindo Yoshin-ryu

Saw the new Jet Li film, War, last night. Lured by the terrifying premise of an all-out gang war between a branch of the Yakuza and a Chinese Tong -- and thus the promise of kickass martial arts action -- we found instead the film was kind of a dud.

However, abysmal fims like Romeo Must Die and The One were saved significantly by the presence of Mr. Li, and this was no exception. While there was really bad acting, cliche after cliche, and hardly any hand-to-hand combat scenes (and waaaay too much gun play), the scenes with Jet Li showcase how fantastically cool he is. He really is smooth, and I think he should play bad more often.

Also, set in San Francisco yo!

The verdict: The Bourne Ultimatum did loads better with a mere PG-13. Wait for DVD.