insomnia

The weather has been up in the mid/high 30's for the last few days....The heat is exhausting, add humidity to that and it's even worse.
But today it's slightly cooler, as it rained last night...thank God for small favors.
I haven't been sleeping much recently, probably due to the heat...or I've been thinking too much...or who knows. Insomnia is a killer, but at least a good way to get in my prayer time.
Must go and work out
God that was a boring post

More bad/sappy poetry:

You intrigue me
Endlessly
Frustratingly
Inexplicably
Confusingly
You move me
Deeply
Frighteningly
Intensely
Disturbingly
You get me
Clearly
Understandingly
Intimately
Completely
So why am I so scared

Yeats

I would spread my clothes beneath your feet
But I, being poor, have only my dreams.
I have spread my dreams beneath your feet;
Tread softly, for you tread on my dreams.
W.B. Yeats

I've loved this poem since I was a kid...I wish I could write something so purely simple, yet achingly beautiful.
What a genius

koenkai dinner

Had a dinner with our Koenkai and some of our fan club members the other night (koenkai - support group...aka active members etc...) Did a completely accoustic set for them, no mics or any equiptment but our guitars, bass and Mike's turk (Turkish drum). Great fun. Sang for almost an hour...I even played one song on guitar. I don't usually play on stage, so that was a nice change.
One of the koenkai members has a little boy that is absolutely crazy about the band...goes to as many shows as he can and has memorised all the lyrics to most of our original songs from our CDs... Such a cute little guy.
He's always shy for the first little bit and hides his face..but when he warms up enough he'll start shouting "I love you Niki". Gene and Mike were keeping him amused during the dinner by playing all manner of silly games with him. Towards the end of the evening he came and sat with me and ended up falling asleep in my arms. It's funny cuz he was really rowdy most of the evening, but as soon as he sat next to me he was completely still and silent. He was shy, I think...either that or I have a wierd effect on people. hmmmm
Pictures below :)

I was hungry...what can I say

such maturity astounds me

Mike and Gene...gotta luv em

One of our Koenkai members and I

thot for the day

I need a man to sweep me off my feet and fill my head with dirty thoughts
Any takers
;-D

Psalms 68:13

I love this verse:

Though ye have lien among the pots, yet shall ye be as the wings of a dove covered with silver, and her feathers with yellow gold.

smile

Last night I chatted for the first time with someone I've never met before.
It was one of those conversations that leave you smiling and happy for hours after. I went to bed happy. And woke up at 6 am with the rain coming in my room(my bed is directly next to a big window) still smiling.
For some reason I couldn't go back to sleep, so I laid there, stared out my window at the rain, took p&p time...it was very refreshing.
Today was hectic. I ran all around town doing business, sat next to a guy on the train with breath so bad I wished I had brought a gas mask or breath mints to offer, no, force on him. YUCK

The last two evenings we've played at dinner shows for some more Lions clubs.
We sold all our CDs that we brought last night. I had to walk around to each of the tables wearing HEELS from HELL selling them. At least the pain was worth it. As much as stillettos look sexy they're horribly uncomfortable. You would think I'd be used to it by now. Sometimes during our concerts I'll take my shoes off on stage cuz they distract me from singing my best...the Japanese think I'm some sort of freak when I do that. Ha.
Who cares...comfort is best
I'm hoping I'll have something interesting to blog about soon. Audrey tagged me on her blog, so I'll have to get around to answering that one.....

I'm still smiling

I love you dad..Happy Fathers day

Niki = "I don't even want to look at this disaster"
Nick = "Dare I eat that??"
Mike ="Is that supposed to be cake?"

Have a good laugh at yourself...serving my fig mess

FIGS FIGS FIGS FIGS FIGS FIGS.....I HATE YOU

(Disclaimer: I actually like figs...or at least I did)
Picture in your mind the most foul home-made cake you ever had in your life...mulitply that by about 100 times and you'll be semi close to what was the mess I created today.
It all started a few weeks ago when we were given a box of dried figs...this box, mind you, was a 40 lb box of figs, so as you can imagine....WE HAD FIGS. Figs for breakfast, lunch, snack and dinner if you were so inclined. There were a fair amount of jokes flying around about the "inevitable" after indulging in a few too many.
So the other day I noticed that the unending supply was not diminishing as fast as it should have been, and seeing as we were planning a Fathers Day celebration, I decided to look online for a recipie for a Fig cake.
I searched, found one and set off this morning to create a culinary masterpiece... a Fig Spice Cake. Little did I know...ack ack
First problem was that our baking scale went missing, so I wasn't able to measure the exact amount of figs called for...(4 lbs) And I, being the "spontaneous" cook that I am, decided to guess.
The batter was delicious.
There were an awful lot of figs inside of it, tho.
When the cake was done and it was time to flip it....it did a cracking/crumbling number on me...so I promptly put it back in the pan and decided to ice it in it's baking tray.
So I'm off on my merry way this afternoon, not knowing what a Pandora's box I had waiting for me.
Tonight when it came time to serve the nicely iced cake....OHMIGOD....it looked more like an Apple crumble or something like that....the cake was a mess of crumbs and cooked dried figs falling apart everywhere.
I was embarrased, humbled, horrified, disgusted etc...(insert appropriate adjectives here)
Oh God
And to top it off, now there are toilet jokes flying all over the place.
It is complete.
My Vodka/Diet Dr. Pepper (DON"T LAUGH....I LIKE IT) is medicinal for me tonight.

Harley

Played for a Harley Davidson gathering last night. About 200 bikers were there. It was at a beautiful campsite right on Ashinoko lake, up in the mountains. We sang outside. Thankfully there was no rain...the last time we did this gig it rained and was quite a muddy mess.
Harley dudes are excellent fun. Their personalities are very different from your average reserved Japanese...they're free and outgoing and LOVE TO PARTY, plus they're very open to witness to, so that makes these kinds of gigs real enjoyable. They BBQ'ed while we sang and most of them ended up getting up dancing.
During our second stage they lit this huge bonfire which was right behind us, only about 10 feet or so. At first it was burning pretty steady, but then they had the brilliant idea to pour gasoline on it while we were singing and all of the sudden from on stage we all felt this huge rush of heat...a little worrisome, that it would ruin the guitars or equiptment. TG nothing like that happened.
We're in the process of making another DVD of our band's live shows, so we filmed the gig. If nothing else, it looks cool with the big fire burning behind us. But I sounded like....ahem...last night. Having a little trouble hearing myself in the monitors. Hopefully they'll dub over the sound if we end up using any of the footage.
I love Harleys :)...only ridden on one once, but it was GREAT. We've been playing for Harley Davidson and their associate companies for about 6 or 7 years now. Very enjoyable gigs.

Happy Fathers Day

I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you....
Oh and did I mention that I love you?

I swiped this from EPZ's blog... hope you don't mind...
(note that these are not in order of importance)

10 years ago, I....
1. was living in LA
2. wanted to be a famous singer
3. had really bad hair
4. was queen of the white whales (aka fat)
5. loved to walk around the house singing wannabe Mariah Carey scats

5 years ago, I....
1.had the measles
2. was modeling
3. was singing in our band
4. cut my hair really short
5. went to Mexico for the first time

Today I ....
1. am generally happy
2. am occasionally lonely
3. ate too much
4. worked out
5. smelt the first gardenia blooms

Tomorrow, I will....
1. go to Hakone and sing for a Harley Davidson gathering
2. work out
3. take P&P time
4. drink a beer or two..or three
5. spend 4 or so hours in the car with the loveable lunatics, Mike and Gene

Snacks I Enjoy:
1. Strawberries or cherries
2. Diet sprite
3. Dried fruits (any kind, but especially pineapple)
4. mentos (mint flavored)
5. Dried squid

5 Locations I'd run away to:
1. Greece
2. Tahiti
3. Mexico (I'd go back)
4.France
5. Italy

5 Bad habits I have:
1.Walking too fast
2. Picking at my split ends
3. Being too blunt
4. worrying
5. impatience

5 Things I like Doing:
1. Going down to the Hub for Long Island Ice Teas
2. Ice skating
3. Going to the beach or pool
4. reading at Starbucks
5. singing

5 Things I would Never Wear:
1. spats (never again dear God)
2. legwarmers
3. jeans that are skin tight all the way down to the ankle
4. shirts with bad Japanese English on them
5. flourescent orange, pink or green clothing (anything flourescent for that matter)

5 Movies I like:
1. Brother Sun, Sister Moon
2. Hair
3. Much Ado About Nothing
4. My Best Friends Wedding
5. Troy (what can I say...I'm a sucker for a naked Brad) ;)

5 Books I like:
1. the Bible
2. Under the Tuscan Sun
3. A Year in Provence
4. Dear and Glorious Physician
5. The Complete works of Shakespeare

Biggest Joys at the Moment:
1. Our Band
2. the fact that I'm going to the US/Mexico later this year
3. The blooming gardenia bush
4. witnessing
5. life

Gardenias

Do you remember that night
Not so long ago
When twilight had fallen
And the scent of gardenias
Was heady in the evening air
How we sat there, you and I
Saying nothing but understanding
Everything that the other was thinking
How I held my breath
And prayed that this moment would stay with me
Long after you had gone
To wherever it was you were going
How I memorized every minute detail
The pressure of your hand
Your profile in the moonlight
The feeling of my head resting on your shoulder
The nearness of you
Knowing that this was the finale
Last dance had been played
The song had come to it's crescendo
It was time to pay the fiddler

(Maybe this explains why
The scent of gardenias
Now makes me cry)

weekend highlights

Been away for the last two days to the mountains for some gigs. Spent the night up about 4,500 feet at this cool lodge sorta thingie where we did a show.
Had a wonderful experience that evening of finding a dead fly in my red wine. I nearly gagged and still feel ill thinking about it. The joys of nature.
But it was beautiful up there, so green, so quiet. And I didn't see any snakes while hiking, thank God for small favors.
I'm paranoid of snakes. (memories are flooding back to me of the time one of the boys put a snake in my tent during a camping trip...Audrey, I'm sure you remember that one)

That was the first day, the second day we drove down to Kofu and performed for a Lions club dinner party at a hotel. Most of those men were bigwigs from the local winerys they have there, so the wine was free flowing. Pretty good stuff. And they gave us about 10 bottles as omiyage (presents). Cheers
But I guess I tired myself out and have been in bed today with a fever and virus of some dubious sort. Am doing a little better now, TTL.
I am thoroughly enjoying the dialogue from the last batch of pics I posted. Pics are great. I'll try to keep up with posting them.
You must excuse my strange faces, tho. Its a special talent I have.

Myself, Nick, Ambie and Hick...

I thot Gene's smile was rather attractive. NOT

the full team...BBQers :)

Or maybe it was the wine....

The beer was getting to us

I adore Mike ha ha ha ha

BBQ fun...Dad, Mike and a friend

BBQ

BBQ last night...was great
TUNS of food...yakisoba, steak, yakitori, BBQ chicken, grilled veggie delights, sushi...and of course plenty of wine, beer and what have you.
We had a few friends over and a some of our neighbors showed up as well. Mike and I did a bunch of the grilling. We managed not to argue and actually did a decent job of it. I thank you kindly Mike, if you're reading this ;)
Took millions of EXTREMELY foolish pics so will post them as soon as they're downloaded onto the computer. Prepare yourself.
Have a big dinner show tonight downtown...leaving soon so must go figure out what to wear.
Sigh...I need a man...(I'll leave this particular rant at that)
peace love dope

Early summer days

Warmth is a wonderful thing. Early summer days...beautiful blue skies...deep blue. The heat's not too intense yet, and neither is the humidity, thankfully. I'm blessed to live right next to one of the most famous parks in Tokyo. The city we live in is like the "bohemian" city of Tokyo. Unlike other places, it's a lot more hippy chic than anything else. There are great walking streets and lots of little jewels to discover if you take the time to look.
I've lived here for quite a few years, so I've discovered quite a few fave hang out spots.
Walked a lot today, the weather was perfect for it. But I was rather stupid. I had the "brilliant" idea to break in my sandals, as I have to do this every year...you know, toughen my feet up to wear them for the coming months. NEways, I was expecting some pain today, but OH MY GOD not this much. I have feet full of blisters. I think I have 4 on each foot. How I'm gonna be able to wear shoes for the next few days, I haven't figured out yet. But hopefully my feet will toughen up enough so that I won't have to go through this again.
As I was walking home I considered going barefoot and carrying my shoes back...but OUCH the roads were HOT!!! So I had to grit my teeth and bare it
All the while saying to myself "I'm strong...I can take pain"...yeah right
I've been gorging on whipped cream and dried figs today. Ack. It's lovely.
I'll diet tomorrow.
I sorta got bangs cut yesterday
It looks....interesting I think

Pray

A very good friend of ours has been diagnosed with breast cancer. She got this diagnosis a few years ago, yet kept it a secret so as not worry us. She's in a pretty bad state now. She needs a miracle and our prayers. It's very hard to watch someone so full of vitality now be reduced to a suffering vicitim of cancer. Please pray for Harumi.
I heard the news tonight. It made me cry. Alot.

haiku

Little brother dearest (aka Satan) has inspired me to compose a haiku. One that I hope will be infinitely more edifying than his last haiku he posted on here. AHEM (oh how I laf you Chris)

Raining cats and dogs
Sandals sodden to the core
I am soaking wet

I've been in bed the last two days with fever and all manner of evilness...but am doing a bit better now, TTL, albeit a bit weak.
And the great energy I'm expending at the moment to type this has exhausted me.
Sigh...I need to paint my toes
Goodnight

new tunes

Seems like the rainy season has begun....I'm not looking forward to the next month. I like the rain, yes, especially when it's pouring. But a constant drizzle for almost a month is not my idea of a good time.
Coming down with something nasty in my throat. Some kind of virus going around and I can feel my tonsils and sinuses fritzing out. Pray that it doesn't last too long. I have a show tomorrow night. Ack.
How will I sing.
On another note....
Been practicing some new tunes for our band. It's a constant process of learning new stuff to keep our "groupies" (ha ha) and regulars interested and entertained. Most recent addition is the song "Lord of the dance"...No...not Michael Flatley's one. It's an old Celtic song, but the words were changed in the 1960s to the story of Jesus' life. I've always loved this song since I was a kid, so it's with much joy that I now get to perform it.
Plus the arrangement is really cool. And the harmonies.
Hopefully it's gonna go on our next album which we're in the beginning stages of making.
OUCH my throat.
sleep is the thing for me now...
Goodnight

chuckling

There's this slightly amusing sign that I see whenever I ride the trains in Tokyo...something to the effect of:
"If you notice any suspicious or unclaimed baggage or people, please notify the train authorities without delay"
Tell me, how does one recognize whether person is "unclaimed" or not.
Could this possibly be discrimination against singledom...or rather just a case of bad grammar. :-)
I chuckle inwardly

Gene and Hik