What to do...what to do....

The powers that be have decided that this year's Christmas party for staff and students will be held at a local hotel.  I presume they'll hire out a room typically used for small wedding receptions.  This is quite a change from a three years ago when we held a pot-luck dinner at a local community centre.

The regional manager also tossed in another request: the teachers and local school manager are to entertain the guests.  In the past we resorted to a Xmas trivia quiz.  Unfortunately the students started to memorize the answers.  So one year we did a shortened version of the Monty Python "Cheese Shop" sketch.  The students were mostly bemused so the following year we were told to put together presentations about Xmas at home using Powerpoint slides.  Now we're being asked to do what the teachers at the Yamagata school are doing: perform a few songs accompanied by some kind of instrument.  Great...none of us down in Yonezawa can really play any musical instruments.  One guy has stage fright.  The other guy can't sing to save his life.  I haven't played a whole song on a guitar since junior high school.

On Tuesday evening our school manager had a sort of serious sounding conversation on the phone with someone.  My interest was piqued when I heard my name a few times.  After she hung up, taken a deep breath, and sighed, she wandered over and asked if I could play the guitar for the Xmas party.  I cautioned her that she had to choose easy songs to play.  "How about that Eric Clapton song about heaven?", she asked.  I checked the chords online...it could be doable. "Or something people could sing along to...like 'Country Roads'?", she continued.  That, I had a bit more confidence in.  She continued on, "...and I'd like to sing 'Diana'.  Can you play that?".  Okay.  That one had me stumped.  How a 26-year old could go about choosing to sing that song was beyond me.  I've seen fellows in their late 50s and 60s tackling that song at karaoke but never anyone really young.  Nonetheless, I said I'd look into it.

At the end of the discussion I think I got saddled with learning three songs; Country Roads, Diana, and that Clapton tune.  I can probably figure out how to play the Clapton tune.  But part of me would rather tackle The Tragically Hip's "Bobcaygeon".  Which raises a small dilemma...while I'd get more satisfaction out of playing and singing "Bobcaygeon", no one in the audience would have a clue what the song is about or why I chose it.  What to do....  Maybe I should just do both tunes.  But first I need to get my hands on a guitar.... 

So Someone Has Tried Their Hand at Brewing Beer

Last weekend I met up with a friend to go over a few e-mails.  She wanted to check with me to see if she had understood the contents of them properly as they were written in English.  After that was done we settled down to having a few drinks.

After we had finished a round at the place we had met, she asked me if I knew about Gokuraku Brewing.  I professed I wasn't aware of the company.  It turns out they are running a brewhouse restaurant and bar not far from her home.  Given the interest I displayed she guided me there to sample their beers.

The place is probably an old workshop or small factory which was converted into a microbrewery and restaurant.  The ceilings are high but the place is not too brightly lit.  So it's a comfortable place to be.

Initially I was going to order a glass of their "ukogi" beer.  "Ukogi" is a name applied to several species of plants in the genus Eleutherococcus.  The species typically grown in Yonezawa is E. sieboldianus.  Its Japanese name is "himé ukogi".   Anyways, I was dissuaded by my server who suggested a flight of beers instead.  In it are the two beers the company brews; ukogi beer, and Tateyama apple beer, and a sample of Sapporo, a commercial brand,

As much as I like to promote local products, I find it a bit difficult to recommend these beers.  They both suffer from a strong acidic aftertaste.  My friend says that they've improved since their initial offerings.  I sense there is some potential here but I believe the brew master might want to refine his skill making a decent pilsener or lager instead of starting off with esoteric flavours.  Nonetheless, I hope he can do well enough catering to the curiosity seekers so that he can afford the time to refine his brewing skills.

Waking up to a Drumbeat

I was awakened by a distinct sound this morning.  It was the sound of a drum being hit.  Soon the sound turned into a steady drumbeat.  Then I start to hear chanting.  I cracked open the shoji and took a look outside.  Some kind of ceremony or ritual was taking place in front of small Shinto shrine on the property next door.  Given that this is the first time I've seen any activity in front of this structure, I grabbed my iPhone and shot the following video.  If you've got a sharp ear and you'll notice the difference between this chanting and that which is done by Buddhist priests....

(You can also listen to it here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/8936205@N02/29835085493/)

A brief update....

I was back in Vancouver in September.  Spent two weeks there and had a wonderful time.  Met up with plenty of friends and enjoyed reconnecting with everyone.  I also was introduced to someone whom a friend had confused me with.  At a reception last year my friend said "I just saw one of your relatives here".   I had no clue what was going on because I was quite sure none of my relatives were in attendance.  Turned out the mistake happened since I share the first name as another fellow my friend was thinking of.

Anyways...I was thinking of writing a post which involved a somewhat grisly subject.  It had stemmed from a conversation in Yonezawa where I was trying to impress upon the locals how bad a road kill skunk smells.  One fellow quickly one upped me; he had witnessed an accident in Tokyo involving a drunk man and an incoming commuter train.  Enough said.  I've decided not to go into further detail.

On that note I'm going to excuse myself....

- * -

Side note: As I logged on to this site today I was shown a blank page with the message that the page wasn't being displayed because my browser doesn't support Javascript.  Actually, I use a script blocker...end of story.