Category Archives: Uncategorized

Youngest son Ben as a very small child would sneak into our bed very early in the morning, put his lips very close to my ear to whisper,”Do you like poisonous mushrooms?” Mushrooms on Okinawa are ludicrously cheap, $1 for … Continue reading →

In my dotage I often find strange prompts  remind me of my childhood. Vidi Proust Madeleine. The most recent  was a watering can. I had the choice of buying a much cheaper plastic version but I simply could not resist … Continue reading →

Last week was the Festival for the Old Folks in Japan. We all got a day off. Today I was asked to represent the University at thean event to honor the old folks of Tancha, the village in which the … Continue reading →

So some people like to eat chocolate and chocolates. I no longer have this urge but since my arrival on Okinawa another substance now plays the same role for me as chocolate plays for others. SPAM. I wrote about the … Continue reading →

In California, some of the Gas Stations posted the intriguing sign “Full Service,”  a proposition that seemed more suited to a massage parlour than a garage. What it means is that someone else pumps the gas for you and for … Continue reading →

So tonight is Tsukimi or moon viewing night. I think this coincides with the concept of Harvest Moon in the western way of looking at things. There is certainly a beautiful moon tonight. I believe that the tradition is to … Continue reading →

Well, I suppose so and indeed I have now been doing Yoga classes for a few weeks just down the road from my apartment. It really is wonderful. We do 90 minutes of exercises resulting in the sensation that you … Continue reading →

There are few possessions that I own or have owned about which I give a toss.There is however a select band, a coterie, of stuff for which I feel real affection. One of those rare articles has just passed. My … Continue reading →

Truffaut, Renoir, Chabrol, Blier, Lelouch, er Malle, um Klapisch and now Arin Pillot. A long time ago I made a publicity clip for CERN with a young French film student called Cedric Klapisch. He went on to be one of France … Continue reading →

It has been quite fun observing the hurricane excitement on the east coast of the US. I feel vaguely superior in the condescending European  “Oh yes, so I heard ” tradition. Ours are of course much better. The last one … Continue reading →