What did Jimmy Eat?

There’s something admirable about bands that are committed to creating new material (only holds true for bands that write their own music, and doesn’t apply to pop acts who buy material from others to keep gas in their Escalades). Far too often acts like Maroon 5 and Gavin DeGraw live for years off of one piece of good work but come up short on their second album, thrown together between European and Asian tours (btw Gavin’s is due out this "winter"). One exception to the "too little too late club" is Matt Nathanson, whose August release, "Some Mad Hope" came 4 years after "Beneath These Fireworks". The new album is a great collection of songs ripened in his charismatic live performances.

Three great bands have also announced new albums for 2007, conveniently timed around my birthday.

Jimmy Eat World’s "Chase the Light", an attempt to top "Futures", is scheduled for release at the end of October, but to help generate buzz ahead of the Indie band’s fourth full length album they’ve offered the single Big Casino to radio stations and loyal fans who preorder the CD. I highly recommend the new single, which is an indication that the AZ based band will continue combining entertaining lyrics with a mature blend of sounds

Stereophonics also has a release scheduled in October, "Pull the Pin", but with a larger fan base (mostly UK based) they’ve chosen to hold the studio version of the first single, It Means Nothing until one week before CDs hit the shelves… plenty of live versions exist online for those interested in hearing the new stuff. Appears they are sticking with the harder sound that produced "Language.Sex.Violence.Other" as opposed to the acoustically driven earlier releases (tracks like Maybe Tomorrow, Have a Nice Day, Just Looking, and Traffic).

Matchbox Twenty has suited up one more time with the release of a pseudo greatest hits + 6 new songs album, "Exile on Mainstream", whispering "we couldn’t find 10 songs we liked out of our latest trip into the studio – but here’s what we came up with"… so long as iTunes will let me buy the 6 new tracks apart from the ones I already own, I prefer this concept as opposed to releasing a full 12 track CD that flops. And if Travis' "The Boy With No Name" is any indication – a Greatest Hits album no longer represents the creative death of a band, just a sort of hibernation.

I've had little success creating the next natural 5 song shuffle, so I scrapped the concept and reverted back to a classic "my favorite songs" format - that way my recommendations aren't limited to iPod's terrible shuffling program (something about 5 songs that guaranteed atleast one spoiler song - although it has helped me thin out my playlist). To capture expat tv tendencies I've also added a "my favorite shows" list, which now includes a hilarious british comedy called "IT Crowd" - big surprise NBC is stealing the concept for a 2008 premiere... you can catch some of the Season 1 brit episodes at http://www.channel4.com/4od/index.html

"Team. Team, team, team, team, team. I even love saying the word, 'Team'. You probably think that's a picture of my family. Uh uh. It's the A-Team: Bodie, Doyle, Tiger, The Jewellery Man." (Dedicated to B.A. Baracus - thanks for reading).

Subways are Fun

*As promised - a picture of the owner of the Beatles bar below Shinagawa station - notice he's poking his fingers through his lenseless glasses and making a funny laser sound.

Although my last week in Japan was sans Sheri and avec a sushi boatload of work, it still produced some incredible experiences.

On Sunday, when I'd usually be going back to work in Doha, my friend and I ventured out in the Tokyo morning, sweatrags in hand, to Tokyo Baptist Church (http://www.tokyobaptist.org/announcements/index.htm). It was a refreshing change of pace from Doha, where the churches still meet in relative secrecy. Most of the congregation travels from far across Tokyo to attend one of 3 services, a mixed bag of locals and expats. The pastor speaks English but the projections overhead include Japanese subtitles. The sermon was a moving discussion on the power of greed to corrupt the church, covering Jesus' letter to Laodicea in Revelations. Quite a piercing topic, which included statistics showing Japan to be one of the wealthiest nations in the world - where people are often too focused on their jobs to pursue meaningful relationships. I think a lot of Americans in the audience were able to relate, and my friend and I had plenty to talk about as we walked out of church and headed to the neighborhood Subway (sandwiches not trains) for lunch.

Subway sub shops in Tokyo are very like those in the US and in Doha, with a few exceptions. In Doha you can top off your footlong Turkey on Wheat with some sweet corn and ketchup; in Japan your options expanded to include soy & wasabi sauce and french fries (steak finger variety). I tried both that morning and was pleasantly surprised. After all those years of being fed chips with my sandwiches, I never realized how declicious lunch could be when french fries are invited to the party. If you choose to add the soy sauce and wasabi I recommend the 6 inch variety, after the 8th inch it lost it's novelty value and I needed a second serving of Sprite to muscle through the rest of the sandwich. Had I left some of the sandwhich behind I risked further chuckles from the group of Japanese girls next to us, who acted like they had never seen anyone order a footlong sandwich with fries and cookies (remember in Japan normal portions are quite modest, so we must have looked like total Americans).

After our American sized lunch we headed to the other neighborhood Subway (train not sandwiches) and traveled to a small shopping district with authentic and pricey handicrafts - everything from stationary and wooden children's toys to fine kimonos and pottery. I'm terribly indecisive when it comes to buying souvenirs, which has helped prevent me from accumulating a house full of trinkets, but also means I spend a lot of time just wandering through shops picking up items, walking halfway to the register, only to have my second thoughts remind me of some practical purchase I could make back home. Luckily Sheri and I had done our souvenir shopping in Asakusa, so I didn't feel bad about leaving empty handed - especially since my friend bought a handmade wooden cheese grater as a wedding gift... provided a contact high for the shopping addict in me.

We spent a long time inspecting handicrafts, so had to rush back to Shibuya in time to catch a matinee showing of Transformers. Apparently buying movie tickets 2 minutes before showtime has universal repercussions - namely sitting by yourself between two armrest hogs... but what an incredibly entertaining film! I was impressed how accurately Hollywood managed to capture the epic battle between Optimus Prime and Megatron that occurred amongst the landscape of my parent's living room that Saturday back in 1987 (still waiting for the release of the Battle Beasts full length feature - another Hasbro collection you can find on eBay). I was a bit put off by how the movie portrayed Qatar; for the record, Doha's highest point is 350feet above sea level (ie NO mountains), we have running water and mobile phones, and the locals prefer Prada sunglassea and Landcruisers to AK-47s and donkey carts... although that would have made for a far less entertaining scene set for Vortex's dramatic first assault.

There were atleast 10 moments in the movie where my friend and I burst out in laughter amidst akward silence in the rest of the theater - apparently the subtitles did a poor job of conveying our humorous American references for the Japanese audience. The locals did find one of the jokes quite hilarious - "It's a robot. You know, like a super advanced robot. It's probably Japanese"... seriously, after seeing some of their cell phones I wouldn't be surprised.

The day before I left Japan the local 7 eleven ran out of my new favorite afternoon snack, vanilla ice cream with a chocolate center wrapped completely in crispy cone material. So I decided to try another ice cream bar, that looked identical in the package art. One of the admins confirmed my suspicions later that afternoon, while the concept was similar (ice cream with filling inside a cone covering), the contents were considerably different. If someone ever offers you soy bean paste ice cream, pass. I typically prefer to separate my dinner and dessert.

On my trip home (18 hrs door to door for those keeping track), I reflected on the last 4 months of my life... what an incredible adventure. I'm thankful for all of these experiences, which have shown me that the world may look like the same ice cream bar on the packaging, but when you bite in it often hides a unique surprise you didn't expect to find.

Stay classy Shinagawa.

Okonomi-whateee?

After a quick shower at the hotel Sheri and I headed back to Ebisu on Sunday night to meet up with friends from work and see a typical expat apartment in Japan. My friend lives in a quiet area about 10 mins walk from the train station, in a trendy apartment complex with great views of Tokyo. After a brief discussion of options, we headed out for dinner at a new place down the street, only to find that the menu consistented primarily of parts of the chicken that we throw away back where I come from. We only knew what the restaurant served because my friend's girlfriend was along for the adventure, and she speaks fluent Japanese... don't leave home without your translator. So we headed down the street, into a rainstorm, and ended up running in to a small restaurant that serves "Japanese pancakes" - which we learned, are NOTHING like the delicious pancakes we had tried earlier in the day (see Good Honest Grub from earlier post). The real term for the meal is Okonomiyaki, and the meal is prepared on a teppan plate in the center of your table... consisting of various unrecognizable vegetables, seafood, egg, and plenty of dried seaweed on top, after passing on the Soy salad starter we each received I was hungry enough to make quick work of the pancakes, but I think it's an acquired taste. I will say that experiencing a foreign city with friends who are familiar with the town makes it much easier to explore new things without feeling too vulnerable. The rain was still coming down when we had finished eating, so we hustled down to the train station, but after having gone nearly 2 months without seeing a cloud in Doha, I'll admit I actually slowed down in places to enjoy the cool shower. It's the basic things in life that often bring us the most joy, especially so far from home(s).

Ebisu is definitely our favorite section of Tokyo, so much so that Sheri made a hair appointment with an Aveda salon we walked past on the way to dinner, and while I went to work on Monday she was out finding fun little shops and setting out on her own adventures in her new Japanese haircut (quite a nice cut). We met up at the hotel and headed out for a nice dinner in another area, Roppongi - which is a bit edgier, with a lot more "neon" than the other areas we had visited. Our destination for dinner was a Tepan-Yaki restaurant down the stairs and down the street from Roppongi, within sight of Tokyo tower (which is amazing at night). The restaurant is called "Panic", which I thought was a great name for a Tepan-Yaki joint... I made a reservation to sit at the bar where the food is prepared, so we took our seats next to some locals guys who were a few courses and drinks ahead of us. The other 5 tables were empty. We took our ENGLISH MENUS - big plus, and since you can only fit about 20 people in the entire shop, there is only a chef, a waiter, and a dish boy... a small operation, but as we soon discovered, there's a reason they have been open since I was in elementary school. It’s not about the flash of Tepan-Yaki “performances” at the likes of Benihana – it’s about the food, which was incredible. We started with fresh Bruschetta cooked on the tepan in front of us, with red tomatoes and thickly sliced bacon on garlic bread, then moved to Beef, Tomatoes, and Garlic, progressed to the famous thinly sliced Japanese Beef, sampled some friend noodles, and ended on fresh flame touched pancakes topped with icecream, caramel, and chocolate sauce... this might be a good time to remind you that forks are typically not provided in Japan, chopsticks are the universal utensil... but can make things quite frustrating (like at the Okonomiyaki restaurant) - so Sheri was very happy to see the waiter bring out a fork for the main course. If you find yourself in Japan for at least one night, make sure you get reservations for and directions to Panic Tepan-Yaki... potentially the best meal I've ever had / definitely top 3.

Just when I thought I had this Tokyo train system figured out I hopped on the wrong train Tuesday morning, and was so focused on finishing my book, Prince Caspian, that I went 4 stops in the wrong direction! Made for a good laugh around the office, especially among the Japanese admin assistants, who are never shy to share a laugh with you, or call you out for leaving before 6pm, which is the official quitting time in Japan (most folks stay later) - of course we do get to start our day shortly after 8am, and I am far more productive in the afternoon, so I actually prefer the late start / late finish approach here. On a positive note, the extra time during my Tuesday commute did let me finish my book, and now I've started enjoying some podcasts on my iPod in the mornings. It's about 40 minutes from the time I leave my hotel room until I arrive at work, which gives me enough time to enjoy an episode of "Renewing Your Mind with RC Sprouls" or "ESPN's Pardon the Interruption". On a whim I actually added a new Video blog to my iPod before my trip to Japan - it's the first episode of a new HBO show called "Flight of the Conchords", and it's hilarious. It reminds me of the dry humor of The Office, but the main characters are musicians from New Zealand so they use a lot of the same jokes/phrases that our Australian friends from Doha have taught us - even including commentary on the relationship between Australia and New Zealand that's spot on with what we've heard our Aussie friends talking about. I checked and sure enough someone is posting episodes of "Flight of the Conchords" on YouTube, so I encourage those of you who enjoy a good laugh but don't have HBO to look it up online before the YouTube Gestapo remove it for copyright infringement.

Tuesday was Sheri's last day in Tokyo, but she managed to find a hidden shopping area in Ebisu, complete with a Japanese IKEA-like store where she got some pillows and other items for the villa in Doha (I love calling it the "villa"). She also found me a sweat rag – aka a small thin washcloth that guys carry around to help wipe off the sweat that accumulates on long walks between the train and air conditioning – very handy; I should pick up a few more for Doha (see earlier post about sweat & Doha). We rode the train back to the airport where we proceeded to get in the wrong line about 5 times, each time greeted with a kind smile a few English words, and directions to the place we ought to have been in the first place. Once we had checked Sheri's bags in we grabbed a bite to eat on the terrace cafe, called the American Diner, where I had a hotdog for the first time since leaving the states and we took a stroll along the observation deck before heading back downstairs. On the way to the security check point we stopped into a bookshop for a copy of the Great Gatsby for Sheri's trip home (only lasted her to her connecting flight in Osaka, apparently she's a quick reader). The shop next to the bookstore was a really great pen shop with some other odds and ends; I plan on making a pen purchase on the way out of town with any money I have left over...

Sheri was sad to leave me behind for another week, but was admittedly looking forward to going back to Doha (quite an incredible concept): where folks speak English, use forks, and drive big cars (aka care less about the environment).

The rest of the week has flown by, with a visit to a 5 story shop in Kawasaki called Bic Camera - behind California Pizza Kitchen where I've eaten twice in 4 days... Bic Camera is known for having, you guessed it, the newest and coolest cameras at good prices, especially with the current exchange rate (finally found a place where the dollar has improved in value). I've done quite a bit of pacing through the Digital SLR aisle, with lots of beautiful cameras that would take great pictures on our upcoming vacations... like any wise husband I need to ensure I have Sheri's approval - she has saved me from plenty of hasty binge buys, and vice versa. (side note I finally bellied up to the bar and got a digital SLR last night... so you may see the quality of blog pics improve).

Over the weekend my two coworkers and I hit the train station with beers in hand (yes we did work on the weekend and yes you can drink beer in public in Japan - still two very strange concepts which offset themselves in Kool and Tuffness), and headed into town where we met up with the rest of the group: the Japanese girlfriend (aka translator from earlier post) and his old college roommate & mom who came into town on holiday. We headed to a restaurant called Two Torches, which was a 10 minute walk from my hotel, into an area I hadn't yet explored. We had reservations for 7:45, but all of us were late to the meeting point and we ended up an hour late for dinner (tourists)... good thing tardiness is standard operation around here, and our Japanese translator phoned ahead to ensure our table would still be waiting for us. When we arrived we were brought out onto the patio, to a long table with plenty of room and a great view of the river. As dinner cruises floated by we ordered from a number of individual vendors within the restaurant - Yakitori (meat skewers), Noodles, Sushi , Veggies and Alcohol - each variety with it's own stall and owner... all of the food was very fresh and delicious. The beer came out in large communal bottles (like those you get for Sake bombs in the states, was that Lute Olsen), and the locals taught us that in Japan you don't fill your own glass/mug, instead you fill someone else's to signal you're ready for more. We picked up on that custom quickly and when dinner finished, we walked back to the train station by my hotel (Shinagawa for those not paying close enough attention), where we found the 2nd destination of the night - nicknamed the Beatles bar, since no one really knows what it's called - it's a tiny establishment in the basement of the Shinagawa train station... hidden amongst other tiny shops and restaurants, it has 6 tables, 21 chairs, one crazy owner and a four person live band. When you consider that the 3 bar stools were being used to hold bags from the locals who came straight form work, we were lucky to find enough room for the six of us, and it was an absolute blast. The band was quite entertaining, playing loud rock music with plenty of guitar solos and audience participation. They sounded great considering they each operated their instruments nearly upright to make room for the 19 customers inside. We actually happened upon the Beatles bar on the week of its 30th anniversary, you'd be hard pressed to find anything in Qatar that's 30 years old. We didn't have to order drinks, the owner came around with more giant bottles of communal beer for the table, and then put his fingers through his glasses (black rims but no lenses) and we all followed suit with a chorus of grunting and laughing. Once I get the pictures on my computer I will be sure to post a photo of the owner, definitely a man who loves his job. Only downside to hitting up a local place like the Beatles bar is that the band and owner have to catch the train home, so shop closes at midnight... which was still plenty of time to have a great night. Enjoying life appears to be a truly universal concept.

If Symptoms Persist

Apologies about the significant lack of posts from Japan - plenty of things going on, just not enough time to capture them online... so without further adieu -

Sheri arrived in Tokyo last Wednesday, I took a train from Shinagawa out to Haneda airport... which involved an elaborate series of jumping off the train - checking for the airport sign, then jumping back on the same train and continuing to the next stop where I would repeat this process all over again. I managed to find the right train and arrived as Sheri picked up her luggage. It was nice to be reunited with my wife, who after her 14 hour journey was very ready to get to the hotel and recuperate. The ride back to Shinagawa was much easier now that I knew which train to take, and soon Sheri was thrust onto the streets of Tokyo in all of its crowded, neon glory. We decided to leave her bags in the hotel room and walk up the hill to Outback Steakhouse (not energetic enough to try any local places just yet). Outback was quite busy for a Thursday night, and considerably much smokier than any Outback I'd been in previously. Smoking is like the national past time here, so the 30 minute wait for a table seemed like an eternity... the menu was entirely Japanese, but we successfully used the point and nod method to order our food. We then walked our steaks off around the hotel/train station, and found a street filled of local restaurants (noodles, sobu, sushi), packed with the afterwork crowd. We then headed back to the hotel and snuggled in for the night.

I woke up around 1am shivering, at first thinking that my wife was making herself at home in Tokyo by taking all of the covers, only to find that I already had the sheet and comforter pulled around me. I didn't think much of it and went back to bed... at 3am I woke up in a sweat but freezing cold and knew something was wrong... I got up to get a glass of water and went back to bed. The alarm rang at 6:15 for work, and I was in terrible shape. I tried to shower but was too weak to stand. It became apparent that the minor sinus pressure I had been fighting for over a week with Advil Sinus had flourished into a full blown infection. I would need to find medical treatment in Japan! Not exactly an exciting proposition. Sheri, being the great wife she is, went down to the pharmacy and bought some Tylenol and a thermometer, which confirmed a 101F temperature. A team of coworkers and Sheri got me an appointment at a local British medical clinic, and the hotel manager helped explain the directions to our cab driver... who managed to find the clinic through nearly 30 minutes of un-air-conditioned traffic, all the while ignoring the Japanese instructions from his dash mounted GPS unit. The doctor's office was very contemporary, with low rise couches, pamphlets on why circumcision violates a baby's human rights, and posters depicting the immoral nature of eating mistreated pigs and baby chickens - apparently a progressive twist on the "cover your cough" signs at my old pediatricians' office. The doctor invited Sheri and I into his office / exam room, and within 3 minutes he had checked my ears, nose, and throat, determined I had a sinus infeciton and prescribed a 10 day supply of antibiotic... which had me back on my feet within 24 hours. I'm sure if was frustrating for Sheri to fly 6000 miles to spend her first 2 days in Tokyo watching her husband fight off an infection. I on the other hand was very happy she was there, it's bad enough to be sick away from home – at least I had somebody to help me sort things out.

We quickly got back on schedule Saturday afternoon, when I had regained enough energy to make a go of it - heading to the Imperial Palace (think Last Samurai) and touring the Higashi-Gyoen/eastern garden of the Imperial Palace, which is the only area open to the public. The walk from Tokyo station reminded us how intense the humidity was, and after about 10 minutes of walking up the hills of the Higashi-Gyoen we headed straight for one of the rest houses, complete with coke machines and air conditioning, providing much needed shelter from the heat. We decided to take the next path out of the gardens and try to find some lunch, because breakfast was quickly wearing off. So we headed back to Tokyo station, and headed North to Ueno, expecting to eat at a little sandwich shop that I had found in the Lonely Planet guide. 2 hours later we had stopped talking to one another and given up on the sub shop - we headed back to the hotel much worse for the wear, and in desperate need of showers and sustenance. We decided to keep dinner simpler than lunch, and tried an Italian place in the shopping area next to our hotel... best decision of the trip thus far. Great food, which has become one of many themes here in Tokyo. With some new found energy we decided to head back to the area where the doctor's office was, called Ebisu - and we walked out of the station into a tremendous festival. As best as we could figure out - at the end of July many of the towns go down to the local Shinto shrines, put the gods in heavy altars and bring them into town to party down with them. Dancing, eating and drinking were a-plenty, and we took advantage of this unexpected opportunity to grab a grilled squid on a skewer and cup of beer while watching some of the local dancing... we found out later that my friend from work had been there that night and got video of the "salary men" dancing in their suits with brief cases on the sidewalks behind them... these guys work hard and apparently play harder. The squid was a bit chewy, especially the tentacles, and be careful to not eat the beak... but where else can you chow down on calamari this fresh?

On Sunday we successfully located another Lonley Planet restaurant, not without a few tense moments... but we're glad we took the chance. Halfway between Ebisu and Shibuya along the major thoroughfare, is a 99 Yen store. Take a right and follow the alley for a few hundred meters and you'll find a quaint, Canadian owned establishment called Good Honest Grub. Probably 8 tables in the whole place, 2 downstairs, and 6 upstairs - where we ended up. We ordered a substantial brunch, complete with French toast, pancakes, BACON, eggs, toast, and fresh fruit smoothies that lacked the commercial feel of a Jamba Juice - although the seeds were a bit overwhelming near the bottom of the glass. The french toast was incredible, the best I've ever had (sorry Dad), it was made with french baguette and had visible pieces of egg from the fresh batter. Unfortunately for Sheri her pancakes were delivered to the wrong table, and by the time the young lady realized she didn't order pancakes she had successfully eaten half of Sheri's breakfast. But the pancakes were also worth the wait, and after about an hour we were stuffed, and back on the road walking another click North to the Shibuya station, where we caught a subway to Asakusa - a small Tokyo suburb with superb shopping and the largest Buddhist temple in town... when we exited the station we were greeted with a thunderstorm, fortunately some of the shopping avenues are covered, unfortunately it was Sunday afternoon - so it was busier than the Mercury Room on New Years Eve. We managed to find some really unique shops and gifts, snapped a few wet photos of the temple (really no as big as you might think for the "biggest temple in town"). By far the most interesting shop was the tortoise shell store we happened upon near the end of our tour of Asakusa. If the plastic food store had been open it may have given the tortoise shell shop a run for it's money - but apparently it's closed on Sundays, otherwise I could have bought some tasty artwork. The craftsman at the tortoise shell place was sawing real turtle shells right there in the shop, shaping them into various pieces - mostly jewelry and hair pins, really incredible stuff... at first I wondered how they obtain the turtle shells, but then I remembered some advice my friend Spencer once shared with me - "don't ask a question if you don't REALLY want to know the answer".