The Quiet Ripple Defines The Pond

Cell phone stuff necessitates a visit to Softbank my er service provider. I am accompanied so that I  can understand something – not that I understand much cell phone stuff in any language. After long discussions the phone man  surprises me by bringing out a big bag of rice, which he offers to me. I am taken aback.

Hi tech

Apparently I have accumulated 60 points that I can redeem for 6 kilos, er 2 bags, of rice or an electric fan.

Do you get  sacks of potatoes from your cell phone company in Britain, or a year’s baguettes in France, or 6 gallons of Cheese Whizz in the US? Why not?

03 Should I Stay or Should I Go

So I live in an incredible apartment, loads of space, great kitchen, incredible views, great neighbors but is it a little too American? The style of apartment caters expressly for the US population of Okinawa. I am in Japan and I occasionally hunger for something more er Japanese.

Wind back a year or so. On my drive to work along the sea, I notice a house being built on the edge of the beach and I thought, “Hmmmm, that would be an incredible place to live.” Lo, this house is now rentable and I went to visit it today.

The style is blockhouse

Living bit. The furniture would go.

The place has never been lived in. The owner’s son refuses to move school and so the family is stuck in Naha for a few years.

Tatami dining place

Bathroom

View from the bath

The deck

View from deck

Huge roof terrace. Plenty of room to strip the willow.

View from the roof terrace

There is an upstairs bedroom with terrace  and this thing.

Sleeping space with port hole in the roof kinda of the second bedroom

Kitchen – no oven.

Amazing indoor courtyard that I could fill with flowers and vines.

View from main room. Swim every morning.

So, I feel I should go for this place. It is cheaper than where I live now. Mind you, I imagine there are others interested. There is also the associated hassle of moving and the fact that Japanese houses have little wall space for furniture. I would have to shed some furniture weight. Probably no bad thing.

What do you think?

I am normally very unsympathetic towards people who moan about jet lag. I think this is because I have spent a lot of time with particle physicists who are always on planes. I remember Carlo Rubbia calculating that he had a mean average velocity of 80kph.

However on return from San Francisco this time, I have suffered badly. It has taken a long time to readjust. Basically I fall fast asleep at 6pm, usually when someone is speaking to me, and then wake up at 2 am.

The advantage is that I have witnessed a lot of dawns.

One morning early I walked forth
By the margin of Lough Leane
The sunshine dressed the trees in green
And summer bloomed again
I left the town and wandered on
Through fields all green and gay
And whom should I meet but a colleen sweet
At the dawning of the day.
No cap or cloak this maiden wore
Her neck and feet were bare
Down to the grass in ringlets fell
Her glossy golden hair
A milking pail was in her hand
She was lovely, young and gay
She wore the palm from Venus bright
By the dawning of the day.

On a mossy bank I sat me down
With the maiden by my side
With gentle words I courted her
And asked her to be my bride
She said, “Young man don’t bring me blame”
And swiftly turned away
And the morning light was shining bright
At the dawning of the day.

A morning dove

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtAXRTGX3ss

Off-scale is a modern adjective of which I was not sure if I approved.  I have just got back to my apartment in Okinawa after an epic trip back from SF. It is 1:30 am.

There has been a mega typhoon through whilst I was away. Rats – I love typhoons. I run to the barograph to see how low the pressure got. Whoa! Gold medal to Bolaven!

I have never, never seen anything like this. Nunc Dimitis!

Off-scale!

It is Sunday. James and I take Lazlo the dog for a walk around the Panhandle. Lazlo is a good doggy but comes from the wrong neighborhood, or hood. He comes from Pit Bull city. He is exuberant, muscular and very aware of what is going on around him. My first take was, “Get rid of that dog before something bad happens.” but that would have been wrong.

Love your neighbor as yourself

James and Martha have committed to training him correctly, more than I ever managed with the many dogs in my life. He walks to heel on the leash, sits, lies down and is very obedient.  He is also affectionate and fun. Good Lazlo.

We then go to the Alemany St market to eat street food and look at the stalls selling everything.

Fillipino chicken – $0

$1 – I could eat this for the rest of my life.

I then drive down through the golden hills that border 280 and through the redwood forest around 17.  Big blue skies, Range Rover unhurried V8, deer grazing by the road, Red Tailed Hawks and Turkey Vultures glide around as gangs of Harley executive bandits thunder past me,  aaaaaaaaah California.

We play in an Irish bar in the center of Santa Cruz. Some of my favorite people are there.

The Humours of Santa Cruz

Old, good friends, Bob and Mary, take me to dinner in a restaurant that overlooks Monterey Bay. We drink champagne and talk hard as the sun goes down. I eat fish ceviche and then scallops, it is better than anything I ate in my last sojourn in France. Thanks Bob and Mary.

Quality

Then I swoop back,V8 propelled, to SF, er feeling groovy.

I have to get up early to move my car because Monday is street cleaning on Fell. I go to Whole Foods to look at the food displays and marvel at the variety of produce.

Wheeee!

Americans love Kale

And roots

I then stroll down Haight. A movie is being made. There are 100 people hanging around waiting. Movie making must qualify as the most boring job in the world.  My destination is the Pork Store Cafe, founded 1901, a cafe that serves only-in-America breakfast.

Stuff to put on food

I get two pork chops, garlic grilled with two eggs over easy,hash browns and English muffin. I know ,I know this goes against everything, but I love it. The servers are smiling and witty, the coffee replenished effortlessly, the food delicious and probably best of all is the rhythm. You sit down; a glass of water and menu is delivered. As soon as you have made up your mind, Oceanbreeze, my server is there and shouts “Pork chop!” to the cook.  The food is suitably, time wise,  there, sizzling from the grill.

Yay!

Oceanbreeze appears with the check just as you are contemplating moving on.”No hurry, take your time.” But the timing is perfect – I am ready to go. It is a masterpiece of stage management.

A peasant becomes fond of his pig and is glad to salt away its pork. What is significant, and is so difficult for the urban stranger to understand, is that the two statements are connected by an and not by a but.

One of my goals in life is to eat in every restaurant on Irvine St in San Francisco. I worked hard at this when I spent  a few months there in 2010. Being in the city, I added a new restaurant to my life list.

ipse loret

San Tung is  famous, not only because it’s name sounds like the name of physics Nobel laureate Sam Ting, and is already packed with Chinese Americans when I get there at 12:00. These people make a lot of noise. The table next to me is populated by Chinese American SFPD, all having a great time.

A Jewish woman had two chickens. One got sick, so the woman made chicken soup out of the other one to help the sick one get well.

I order Happy Family, $9.95. First I get a big pot of tea. Next I get a plate of kimchi. Then I get a bowl of soup and finally rice and a Happy Family which is a huge stir fried plate of, squid, chicken, shrimp, assorted vegetables. I think this is San Franciscan Chinese food that was never eaten in Xanadu. Who cares, it is delicious and for $9.95 has to be one of the great deals in town.

Not a very good photo

As I have mentioned before my most prized possession is my flute. Made in the 1820s with exquisite craftmanship, she is still going strong. However from time to time little ailments crop up which need doctoring. Ah, San Francisco, city of little shops. Maybe it stems from the time when San Francisco was the only place that made stuff from Chicago to Hawaii that you can find any profession, artisan, craftsman you want in the city. I have had shoes repaired by devoted Italian leatherworkers, chairs reupholstered by strong fingered Poles but my favorite artisan is Daniel Deitch. He and his wife Yukari repair woodwind instruments from a tiny shop way out on Clement.

Go there for your woodwind needs

My flute has been weakened by the heat and humidity of Okinawa and the C key and short F key no longer close effectively. It is a wonderful feeling of security to know that Daniel can fix it and of course, this being the US, fix it fast with a smile.

Daniel and Yukari neither actually smiling

Their tiny workshop is littered with amazing instruments in various stages of repair. Sitting in the corner is someone making very low-frequency sounds with a bass saxophone made of wood. It is a delight.  Thank you.

All better

Deflated at SFO

In Okinawa I drive a little Nissan that has I think a 1 liter engine – very respectable by Okinawan standards. In California I drive a Range Rover – it has a V8. As luck would have it the suspension deflates terminally on the day I arrive. A friend valiantly leaves it at the airport for me but she is very low when I get in from Japan. The Range rover suspension consists of four inflatable rubber cylinders, one for each wheel. These rubber bags, like all rubber things, puncture and when that happens the suspension shuts down. The car is driveable but only at 20 mph. The drive into SF is very hairy but I make it to my wee But and Ben on Fell.

My place in San Francisco

Ben has sent info about a possible repair shop; for yes the problem has been anticipated. Another challenging drive – 2 ton truck with no suspension – through downtown SF terminating at John Gardiner Automotive. I have no appointment but John is just another of those great Americans who say, ” Ok lemme look at it and I will see what I can do.” It is 5:00 pm. I am anticipating total suspension change demanding thousands of dollars resulting in  probable scrapping of truck. I am sad.

John phones next morning. ” Come by and pick her up at lunchtime. It’s all good.”

Back on her feet

I love America. So fast, so friendly,

I take my car to have her hair done.

At the Spa

Rub down

Another thing I like about the US is that you plug the gas hose into the tank hole thing, flick a catch which keeps it pumping until it is full whereupon it turns itself off. This takes about 20 mins so you have time to get a smoothie and a burger.

Time for a nap

So my first post from California is quite rightly about cars. I love my big V8.

Two colleagues Shawna and Sam are about to leave. They have been fantastic and so we have party.

Like this but better

It has been a truly beautiful day and as evening draws in the sea goes an incredible blue.

Flowers to embellish crazy cocktails. All picked from hedgerows around the apartment.

Sam, Shawna, Alison

USA, Middlesborough, Kashgar, Romania

We hang out on the terrace on starry hot Okinawan night. We Strip the Willow, which is perhaps not the best dance in 30 degree heat. I have to ask people to leave at 1:30 because I am 60.

Next day 

I have a headache

There was a leg of lamb, a huge lump of roast beef and tons of Okinawan stuff there a few hours ago.

Dead Terminator cocktails

Quite a night