"Let's get drunk and tell each other everything we're too afraid to say sober."

If you can't figure out that I have wine on my mind right now, then that's a point for me. (Of course, you'd only be able to do that if you followed me on both Facebook and Twitter, but.)

I'm on a mission to learn more about wine, which is a good excuse for me to drink a lot more (wine, of course). Except it's not as exciting a prospect when you come from a family in which everyone who's ever died has died from some liver-related problem. Not cool.

(Note to self: Never attempt to go up against an entire bottle of sparkling wine by yourself, because in the end, you're going to lose.)

The realization that I only have three months left in Japan with generous financial support has struck tonight, which means I really need to get cracking at reading all the books piled up on my desk. In the meantime I have two options for this opened bottle of sparkling wine: put some saran wrap on it and stick it in the fridge, or finish it all off tonight. Take a guess which option I'm going to take...

日本での発見 / Discoveries in Japan #29: 明日館 / Myōnichikan

Although I'm not a huge fan of the Arts and Crafts movement, I enjoyed visiting the Jiyū Gakuen Myōnichikan (自由学園明日館), the building of the school established by Hani Motoko and her husband Yoshikazu (羽仁もと子、吉一) in 1921. Founded upon their Christian beliefs, the school sought to educate young people in an environment that taught them to be free and individual thinkers, where socially-bound values such as educational background or social status didn't define the importance of each student in the community.

Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and his student, Endō Arata (遠藤新), the building features beautiful woodwork and a lovely use of space. There is a sense of being grounded, with the building's straight lines and an emphasis on the nature of, and the contrasts among, the materials used. I usually find the style kind of cold, but in the daylight today, it felt both calming and welcoming...

でもなんか最近、頭も体も心もメッチャ疲れてる気がする。気をつけないと、オレこの間々バラバラになっちゃうかも。ここ数日間は雨が降ってても生暖かくて、この間々梅雨になるんだな〜ってノンキな事言ってるし······

自炊 / Live Below the Line

Cooking for oneself and living below the line are two separate things, but lately I've been thinking about food waste and budgeting, especially with the curious Live Below the Line challenge going on.

日本に来てから何度も人に「自炊してるんですか？」って訊かれる。「当たり前じゃん？」って思うけど、他の人は違うんだろうか。個人的食費の節約のポイントはまとめ買いとか、下準備とか、特売利用とか、献立を前もって考えるとかって書いてあるけど、食品や世界経済に関する事も考えていいんじゃないんだろうか。一人一人が何をどう食べるかによって、結構社会に色々な影響をもたらす様な気がする。

きみにまほうをかけました。/ I cast a spell on you.

「きみにまほうをかけました」の歌詞（かし、lyrics）は、そのたった一つ（たったひとつ、just one）のフレーズを何度も（なんども、many times）繰り返す（くりかえす、to repeat）。マジ？これが本当に（ほんとうに、seriously）歌詞なの？？

でも何度か聴いたら（きく、to listen carefully）その意味（いみ、meaning）が分かった（わかる、to understand）。本当は「きみ」に魔法（まほう、magic）をかけたんじゃないんだ。本当は自分（じぶん、self）に魔法をかけたんだ。

その気持（きもち、feeling）、分かる。例えば（たとえば、for example）、誰か（だれか、someone）の気持を変えたい（かえたい、want to change）と思う（おもう、to think）。でも他の人（ほかのひと、other people）の気持はコントロールできない。そんな時は、「その人に魔法をかけた」と自分を説得（せっとく、to persuade）するんだ。自分に魔法をかけるんだ。

[I had a recent discussion on Facebook whether to buy a song where most of its lyrics consisted of five words. Is a song in which the writer only put in so much effort as to come up with just five words worth 99¢? The song was by an artist called 転校生（てんこうせい、transfer student), and it was used as one of two theme songs (both by 転校生) for the film『暗闇から手をのばせ』。]

日本での発見 / Discoveries in Japan #28: 角田光代 / Kakuta Mitsuyo

I'm sure I'm not alone in wanting to read the original book before watching the movie based on it. My discovery of Kakuta Mitsuyo (角田光代) originated from that reason, though sadly my efforts came to naught...

Kakuta Mitsuyo is a writer whose humorous and frank style I appreciate. Her novels『対岸の彼女』(2004, Woman on the Other Shore) and『八日目の蝉』(2007, The Eight Day) have been translated into English, and she also has a piece in the collection titled March Was Made of Yarn (2012).

I'd meant to read『空中庭園』(2002, Hanging Garden) before I watched the film, but I missed the library copy—so instead I read her essay collection『愛してるなんていうわけないだろ』(1996, There's No Way I'd Say I Love You) to prep myself, and after watching the movie I read her collection of novellas titled『まどろむ夜のUFO』(1996, The UFO on the Night of Restless Slumbers). Reading her works I realized how much I enjoy reading fiction and non-fiction by a writer, seeing elements from her life emerge in the world she creates (though it feels voyeuristic when it's a lonely world)...

東京レインボープライド２０１３ / Tokyo Rainbow Pride 2013

It took me seven months to visit Yoyogi Park, but I finally did—which means I got to check out the Tokyo Rainbow Pride 2013 events on Sunday, April 28. I admit, I missed the actual parade—but I did get to see a whole lot of people checking out the booths and also see some of the performances, including the one by Harp and Soul (pictured).

The events seemed to attract an unusually high number of non-Japanese people, though I guess it's hard to measure that accurately. (That, I suppose, is the reality of "standing out" in a foreign country—you're just more noticeable than the others.) There were also an impressive number of booths at the event, including those from Change.org, Department H, Google, Greenpeace Japan, TENGA, and the embassies of Brazil, France, Germany, and Sweden, among others. The collection did seem somewhat haphazard, but when we're acting for a common cause, who really cares?

What did strike me was the reality that the movement to raise awareness about LGBTQ issues is very much an import from the West, as so much of the organizing force behind the event seemed to take its cue from similar events seen in cities like San Francisco. That's not a bad thing, of course—anything to get people to talk about these issues helps. In that sense, it'll be exciting to see how Tokyo Rainbow Pride develops in the coming years.