a weekend of images

I really enjoy photography and usually bring my camera along wherever i go. But this weekend, I wasn't really up for living life behind the viewfinder. So as Murphy's law would have it, I missed out on some fantastic shots...so here is a recap of the best and worst photographic moments of the last 4 days....all of which you will have to imagine in your head, as there is no evidence.

1) Friday afternoon at school: the "shi-shi mai" dance...which is 2 people under a rug with a dog mask attached to the front of the rug, dancing as if they were the dog. Meanwhile 4 people (2 kids, 2 adults) beat on taiko drums. This was so cool. Actually there were three different performances with three different groups on Friday. Turns out the dance groups go door to door at various schools/businesses/residences over the 3 day weekend and dance for donations...more money for their organization...which I hear means a vacation or some other such thing for the group. When I get back home, I totally need to start a shi-shi mai dance troupe...maybe i can get people to pay for my next vacation.

2) Saturday Afternoon, the "running of the chosas": My town's autumn fest was this weekend...which is when the farmers celebrate the year's harvest. The chosas are portable shrines...carried on giant logs by the men of the various neighborhoods. Since my town is super small, there are only 3 chosas. I guess the town's autumn fest is the equivalent of our homecoming....because all the people who have moved away from town come back to participate in this festival. Basically, the men carry these shrine things, someone beats a drum, and the men sing a song while running around as a group carrying the heavy shrine...I mean we are talking 40-50 guys carrying the shrine...en masse...it is utter chaos..and the fact that no one is hurt, and the shrines aren't accidentally dropped is a complete miracle in my opinion.

3) Sunday Afternoon, out with my friend T, walking a deserted beach searching for seaglass and terracotta beads. Sometimes I really miss my jewelry business, but this year is proving to be a great opportunity to experiment with all sorts of new mediums...especially found objects from the beaches.

4) Sunday Afternoon, on top Shinduyama watching a storm rolling in: Shinduyama is one of the bigger mountains in the area, and from the top one can see for miles...on a clear day, all the way to Kyushu. Sunday was not one of those clear days. The tail of a typhoon was sitting offshore just waiting to pounce. T and I watched as dark clouds (what i imagine clouds of locusts to look like) came rolling from the sea, slowing as they approached us, then rising up to go over the mountain. The whole thing was very beautiful and totally surreal. I mean we could have been trapped in a horror movie and the clouds would be the invisible source sucking souls out of everyone it passed...essentially that is what it looked like. It was amazing.

5) Sunday Afternoon, coming down from Shinduyama: Going back to the horror movie theme...well, hiking up the mountain wasn't too bad...I mean no rain...going back down was a different story...the mountain had gotten completely covered in clouds, and we were walking thru a dense fog, one which you could not see more than 10 feet in front of you. Now couple that bit of absurdity with an overabundance of spiders...I mean the movie Arachnaphobia had nothing on this mountaintop...Luckily it seems there is an unfortunate park employee that must have to go thru all the trails early in the morning and clear them of spiders...as all of the webs and massive spiders could be seen on the side of the paths, and there were no direct run-ins. Overall, it was hideous.

6) Monday morning, driving thru my town with my parents: One fantastic reminder that Japan has rednecks too. So we are stuck at a stoplight and I am admiring a little garden off the side of the road. You know standard garden, some flowers, some lettuce, vegetables of some sort. All of the sudden I realize that the poles that have been placed in the garden for the purpose of a scarecrow are actually "real" dead crows...I was like...Oh MY GOD!! there are dead crows (huge ones I might add) hanging upside down in that vegetable garden...What the fuck??? And how did they die?? I mean, guns are illegal in Japan...and there isn't any hunting, because Japan is a series of islands, and pretty much everything huntable is dead...including the crows. So how wierd and creepy are those crows? I'm so going back and getting a photo...maybe it can be my halloween card for next year.