病気 SICK

What's going on? Many people came down with some sort of cold this week. One is a coworker, one is my brother, my mom, several friends, and all of them are in incongruent locations around the world. It must be a fall cold. The kind that marks the transition from summer to winter. I do not have a cold. It must be my state of stagnation that has saved me. That's right. I am slightly jealous that I don't have a good healthy cold like the rest of you. Colds and viruses are not bad things really. They can make you feel sick, clog your nose, make your eyes watery, or make you have a fever, but a vicious cold, can leave you feeling much better in the long run. The media and your coworkers will tell you that you need to take drugs for cold symptoms, but I beg that you forgo these short run benefits. I am a purist. Whatever doesn't kill you only makes you stronger...ideally. Let that virus attack you head on. Enjoy the fever. Think about what is really happening with a virus; it attacks certain types of cells. These cells have grown old and weak and are on their way out of your body anyway. Cold viruses are part of the larger system of life and exist for a reason.

A secong interview was organized for me yesterday, this time from the local cable access channel, CATV. Last week an article about Taiko and myself was written for the Sankei Shinbun, a Yamanashi prefecture-wide daily newspaper. It had photo of two of the elementary school members and myself at practice. The camera flash was reflected in my eyes making me look somewhat psychotic with respect to the drum, but I am happy to have been in the paper. I don't think my taiko story is going to the national level, fortunately. The interview for the newspaper article went terribly. Work was not so good that day, and I was too tired to explain myself properly in Japanese. On the other hand, the newspaper interview was a good chance to think about myself and what, really, I am doing with Taiko. I was more prepared for the cable interview because of it, and this time I had something to say, or so I thought. Kids are great, they let you know exactly what you did wrong. My pronunciation in Japanese was next to incomprehensible, "sugoku warui" is what I was told by some of the kids as they laughed at me. Ugh, I feel like a Christopher Guest movie; 49% awkward and 51% funny, except that I am the joke. I am a characature of myself. I am going to play Japanese drums for a hometown performance; a once in a lifetime event, feeling as insecure as the Junior High School students I teach. I am not ready. It wasn't supposed to be like this. I feel like a Kevin Smith movie; 49% rational, and 51% apathetic. However, thanks to the suave editing of the Sankei Shinbun, CATV, and this blog site my story will continue. Finally, if you happen to be in Colorado Springs on October 28th, please drop by the Pikes Peak Center at 8pm to see Fujisan Kaen Taiko perform. It will surely be an exciting concert.


The "Pre American Tour" concert in Fujiyoshida August 28th, 2005. Photo courtesy of David Edelstein.