Our Work Here Is Done

So Akemi's last official day teaching Bikram Yoga in Japan was this past Friday at the Machida studio. To celebrate I met up with her and several of her students/friends at Trafalgar British pub in Machida (Tokyo). Barowners Aki and Masa Nakayama took her class for the very first time that day to see what all the hubbub was about, then opened the pub early in honor of Akemi's last day. I think they were sorely remiss that they hadn't started taking yoga before, but I think they wore mostly just sore (hardee-har-har!). Here's a couple pics. Cheers ! (oh, and "namaste")...






BTW, I don't follow baseball so closely, but congrats to the Red Sox for pulling off another World Series! That team has a HUGE following here in Japan, so it was like seeing our hometeam win. Right on!

Out And About In Y-Town

On the evening of my return from the ship, Akemi and I met up in Yokohama after she got off work for a little mischief-making. Good fun on a school night! Check it out!

Captions for the pics below, from top to bottom:

*Life is good at "Stove's"
*Me and the Captain, makin' it happen!
*Who doesn't love sake?
*Japanese salarymen tying one on at a local ramen shack
*A rarity in Japan - a near-deserted street
*Psssst...hey you...interested in buying some used underwear?
*The Evil Empire, open 24 hours
*The best night cap in the world - beef bowl at Yoshinoya!

Sailing The Seven Seas

Or actually just one sea, the Pacific Ocean. This past week I actually got to be a real sailor and go TAD aboard America's only forward-deployed aircraft carrier, the USS Kitty Hawk, for a few days as she steamed for Hokkaido, Japan. What a great experience! Being at a shore command, I often forget in the midst of whiny family members that I'm actually part of an organization that really goes out there and fights wars. I treat these guys and gals everyday and never get a chance to see what they actually do - so this was quite a treat. And when they do flight ops, they're not playing around. Watching night touch and go's was surreal. The sky was full of thousands of stars and the only artificial light was that from the planes and a handful of lights on the flightdeck along with the glow-in-the-dark vests of the deck crew. The whole affair is choreographed like a ballet - nothing is out of place because if it is, people die. I got to witness quite a few other spaces on the ship and treated some patients as well, also an interesting experience as the ship rocked from side to side. I stayed in a stateroom with four other dudes, mostly young officers, so it was really more like a college dorm room. In fact some guys worked nightshifts, so the room was constantly dark like a cave. No problem, though, as I slept like a baby with the gentle sway of the ship. Since I am departing the Navy in December I'm really grateful that I had the chance to do this. Incidentally, the Kitty will be decommissioned next July. So fair winds and following seas!

Below are a few pics from my trip (the better of the ones I managed to snap off). If I were a real plane-geek, I'd tell you what kinds of aircraft you're looking at, but you can probably tell better than I can! On my last day, I rode a helo off the flight deck back to Yokosuka so there's also a couple pics from that trip as well. Enjoy...

Chiba Surf

Last week, 10-12 October, Akemi and I packed up our dogs and the surfboards and drove out to Chiba peninsula for a 2-day surf trip. We had a really great time. Akemi booked a lodge called Pochi House, a dog-friendly summer rental cottage only a block from the beach in an area called Kamagai. The lodge was actually big enough for 10-12 people (3 bedrooms), but since it's off-season now we got a really reasonable rate and we had it all to ourselves, and it included two dinners and two breakfasts prepared by the owner who is also a farmer. So we enjoyed the freshest local seafood and produce. Only down point was that the lodge had a small cockroach problem, so I affectionately dubbed it "Roachi House". The surf was great - it was like being back in Sandbridge, Virginia Beach - no waiting in traffic, no waiting for a parking spot, free parking, and no competition over waves. There were miles and miles of surf - more waves than anybody could ask for. The water was noticeably cleaner as well. That area is all sandy-bottom beach breaks, unlike Shonan area near us which is partial reef-break and has a lot of tannic acid in the water from all the seaweed. The surf was pretty choppy, but in the waist-to-shoulder size range with enough power and speed for a shortboard. I got to put my 6'2" board to good use for once. Here's a couple pics from the lodge. Sorry - no photos of the beach because we were busy surfing and keeping the chihuahuas out of trouble...

Saturday, In The Park...

"It must have been the Fourth of July!" (cue the trumpets) Well, no, not really, but last Saturday my clinic staff did throw a little impromptu, non-mandatory, non-Navy related BBQ at one of the seaside gazebos on base. A good time was had by all! Highlights included a stunt ala Jackass involving yakitori and circling seahawks, and an informal Capoeira (Brazilian dance/martial art) demonstration courtesy of HM1 Wyche and HN Purdy, both good kids. Check out the photos...

At The Movies

Here's reviews of two movies I've seen recently through Netflix, one keeper and one stinker...


Fantastic 2005 documentary about the American Quadrapalegic Rugby Team and their fight for the gold at the 2004 ParaOlympic Games in Athens. Don't let the title throw - this is a thorough, heartfelt look at these guys confined to wheelchairs for a variety of reasons, how they've come to terms with their situation, and how they've made the best of their lives despite the fact. You don't feel sorry for them at all; what you do feel is deep admiration and respect. These guys kick ass! The "stars", if you will, are Mark Zupan, the team captain, and Joe Soares, the coach of the Canadian team, once also a star on the American team who "defected" to the Great White North after he was booted off the American team because he was getting older and could no longer make the cut. He's the film's adversary (but not really because you get to see his softer side) - and his story is bigger than life; a writer couldn't have come up with a better script if this were fictional! The movie also shows some kids with recent injuries that have permanently paralyzed them and how they make it through recovery. You'll never again take being able to bend down and tie your shoe laces for granted ever again! I won't give away the ending, so definitely rent (or buy) this one!


This movie is a big turd! I don't know how consistently-decent director Richard Linklater ("Slacker", "Dazed and Confused", "Before Sunrise / Sunset", "School Of Rock") managed to have taken a phenomenal book and totally destroyed it. I think the big problem is that he took a book that is essentially a documentary and turned it into a mostly-fictional drama. It doesn't work, and most of the salient points of the book are lost on the general audience. If you happened to have read the book, you may pick up on subtle points conveyed in the movie, but for the most part this film is only complementary to the book and doesn't stand on its own two legs. This movie is also bloated with big name stars (e.g. Bruce Willis, Suzanne Arquette, Ethan Hawke), which are totally wasted in trite parts. I think it was just a vehicle for most of them to say "hey, look at me, I'm vegetarian and I'm a better person than you because of it". Well, I say the acting sucked, with the exception of Greg Kinnear who can do no wrong, and the plot was a big piece of crap. Go read the book and forget that this movie ever existed! Better yet, check out "Supersize Me", a hilarious look at the horror we know as McDonalds, and "Thank You For Smoking", Big Corporate America's perspective on us, The Sheep. Both films are infinitesimally better than this steaming pile. 'Nuff said.