This is indeed a landmark in downtown Eastside area Vancouver, one a few of these classic diners left as everything becomes condos & chains
I’m so in love with living where I am in the life I have reinvented that I don’t “miss” Vancouver or Victoria but sometimes, it’s nice to have a little peek at parts which I recall fondly.
In this case to freshly delivered paintings by Timothy Wilson-Hoey of the Ovaltine café neon sign in downtown eastside Vancouverwhich now hangs by my inside desk (you’ll no doubt not be surprised that i have several desks) and Don Mee dim sum restaurant sign in Victoria which will go to the barn studio.
I recall stuffing myself with dim sum with my buddy Neal here in Vancouver
Both acrylic on wood panel and quite wonderful. (There’s one more and three more on the way… We’re getting quite a gallery of originals go in here at Tsuchida Cottage).
Exit by the gift / coffee shop :) ¥500 per ticket.
One more note: my family here doesn’t *really* know much about where I come from – and we talk about taking a trip one of these years – but in the meantime, these are a couple hints and we will close the loop whenever (if ever) we cross the Pacific.
PS Now there’s a painting of a bonfire next to the woodstove so it feels like a fire even when there’s not / Timothy Wilson Hoey is the painter.
Important: Painter Timothy Wilson-Hoey has a great Instagram going with “paintings of the day“ & shop at https://instagram.com/ocanadaartstudio
Pausing in the Kura barn from arranging dongles, cables, tripods – trying to upgrade tech aspect of telling stories – Dave starts with Kiana Brassest singing in the background while adding notes about decades of story making & thoughts about continuing with vigor.
Then into a recent Osera magazine cameo from a fermented foods tour (including saké, beer, cheese, wine, miso, shoyu…) in Maniwa, Okayama (which is also sorta son Ichiro’s first publication).
oh! a curious cameo of us in Onsera magazine learning about saké making from a handsome gent in Maniwa, Okayama
Next onto recent books by post including:
“Waiting for Now” world-traveling “Scarborough dude” Ken Bole *often very* candid letters from Japan, Nigeria, Thailand, Canada etc to friends and family (with numerous coincidences and intersections with my own life).
connecting generations and traditions with letters, books, postcards and rambles
“High White Notes” – David S Wills’ brand-new literary biography of Gonzo writer/journalist renegade Hunter S Thompson – available from his Beatdom publishing imprint + riffs include namechecks for Dr. HST’s book of letters “Proud Highway” and references to Joseph Conrad (re: Importance of dedication to art), Henry Miller (re: Big Sur etc), and Jack Kerouac (re: enemy of my enemy is my friend – if he could get write about drugs and get published…)
“First Third” – beat, prankster, railroader, hero “Adonis of Denver” 50th anniversary of Neal Cassady’s partial autobiography, inscribed by his daughter Jami Cassady on behalf of Neal Cassady Estate –including postcards with noted photos of, and by, the elegant poet, photographer, lover and muse Carolyn Cassady – with the aim of “Keeping the legacy alive” ++ a bit about Ken Kesey & the Merry Pranksters Further bus.
Be like your heroes of something… photo by Wang Ping (screenshot from a FB post obv)
Finally, a whole rundown of poets Gary Snyder and Wang Ping spending time together at Kitkitddizze in Sierra Nevada –working on translation, amplification and edification including coffee, Han Shan poems, Hanko stamps, sons Gen and Kei, Lagunitas IPA and gyoza dumplings and cowboy steaks, the history of Axe Handles poem (and translation thereof), Snyder’s new book “This Present Moment” and me at “home” (finally) in a red velvet robe with coffee cup by potter Marty Thurston Kendall of Utah knowing while our journey is our own, there is precedent for path before (like I can be 91 hanging out with my son Ichiro, living well and making poems in a barn).
Gary Snyder and sons Gen and Kei kicking back at Kitkitddizze homestead with Lagunitas IPA and dumplings by poet Wang Ping (who took the photo)
so much history right here for me and all of it witnessed by this glorious gingko tree – photo by Ryoko Olson, painting by me
A journey of 30 years starts with a single act quitting a terrible mushroom farmer job and hitchhiking to a cow farm to shakedown gear & head into eveywhere.
Years later, you meet a remarkable girl, throw a raging party with international renegades, goats are swapped for the cows, the espresso is top shelf and the gingko tree measures the changes.
Postcards available on site (at Rural Caprine Farm, Mac Kobayashi, farmer)
PS in reply to a comment, keeping here for keeping:
Yeah travel gets complicated and strangely enough, amongst all the “public health conundrums” and just been in one place for a long time, I’ve had the most incredible 18 months of my life, I almost just accidentally. But Japan is a wonderful place to visit, it’s easy to get around and such a variety of geography and culture and everything from ultra-modern to old-timey coexisting next to each other.By the way, in my endless folder of “almost finished but not quite” essays to put up on my website is a practical guide to traveling while dealing with chronic/complex illness… A few airport/airplane/travel hacks (for lack of a better word) I’ve used to skate around the world while dealing with #MECFS etc
My world switches rapidly between black and white and Technicolor depending on the hour. Do you have this one in your collection yet? Do you know anytime you see something of mine you’d like, I’ll make you a postcard of it. I’d like to imagine I’m on your refrigerator
Yup, accidentally a fisher-person with “made in Greece” fisher’s cap and a fishing vest (gift from Cmdr Bob) perhaps foreshowing a future hobby :) oh that’s the wood stove behind me, now with safety fence – its so great!
+ finding stride, making things and preparing for others +
Yeah, don’t know, maybe you noticed but im making a lot of audio/video recently, and semi-importantly – trying to step-up my technical production standards. It’s not really my forté. Requires lots of adapters, extenders, dongles and testing… I just like to do the part where I tell stories.
First, a snappy yet functional outfit to fit the autumn rain (rare here in our area), a bite to eat, another coffee, half an hour of paperwork (during which I try to ignore all the emails I haven’t replied to and resist the urge to edit another video clip I have on standby about a few new books I received my post), and go sort-ganize to get ready for another shoot tomorrow.
This next dispatch introduces and shares some artifacts from my 1996/7 documentary film about hemp in all it’s forms. specifically the segment from Olympia WA’s capital dome in the midst of California’s groundbreaking proposition 215.
setting up all the lights, mics, cords and tripods etc isn’t my fave part of the project but i’m sorta figuring it out – since this photo, put “sof boxes” over the lights and really relying on a couple of iPads and lightning lav mic as the Canon DSLR with fancy mic isn’t getting along with my flow so far
Will set up the clip in studio, roll the film clip, and come back with a few pieces of ephemera, catch ups about some of the faces you’ll see & foreshadow the following week’s live Q&A chat with hopefully a special guest or two if I can figure out some technology. Ugh.
I’m at the hospital for most of the day on Thursday which means Friday is going to be a rest and recovery day.
fondly, dvo
PS have you watched my recent videos/listen to recent audio? No big deal, just think you might enjoy.
Here’s me messing around setting up the studio – with all sorts of cords, dongles, tripods, lights and mics – in prep for an Uncle Weed Storytime shoot.
Time to “Hit the Road” with Uncle Weed! From my historic barn studio in Japan comes an intro video – crafted via telegraph, typewriter and mimeograph －riffing about cannabis-inspired travel from Palau to Jamaica, Nepal to Cascadia… + previews of the HempenRoad, amplification of activists, writers, artists and culture everywhere.
Overall, a preview of what’s to come to the Cannaverse from my archive including Campfire Conversations, Hero Dossiers and Open Studio. Settle in, hang out and importantly, participate by sharing where you wanna go, what’s inspiring you, how we can effectuate positive change in the world.
I’m collaborating with some pals on a new Cannabis Community project – its all metavers-y and NFTs and such as and while that’s not my forte, sharing stories from rambles, campaigns, and creative riffs is (fer sure) so here’s the firestarter video to spark the project series. Links below to get in on the hi-jinks. So happy to be getting studio barn set-up with all the wires, dongles, adapters, extenders, lights and mics. Catch all the topics in the riff below and come on along!
Blurb: From an eclectically-decorated historic barn studio in provincial Japan, Uncle Weed gives a rapid intro about schemes and plans for various Cannaverse Club series starting by checking down a list of travels from Palau to Jamaica, Nepal to Cascadia, plus annotations about Amsterdam – and previewing the HempenRoad doc film.
Further, shares an overview of credentials; ergo, publications in a batch of cannabis magazines, hemp books, and all sorts of ancillary media, events… Plus sneaks in a few hitchhiking signs, hot springs snapshots, and hints about pioneering biznesses.
Also riffs about what it means to be a “cannabis creative” and shares affection for making scrapbooks, postcards and storyboards, then onto “upgrading your hero file” by learning about artists, writers, musicians, and activists who sparked positive change in their communities and the world beyond.
Finally, an invitation to participate by suggesting ideas, sharing inspirations, pitching adventures, and charitable endeavors.
So I have several typewriters but the one I pulled down for the video has a bit of a problem where the carriage doesn’t go all the way right so, while I was typing in the video, it was only “sort of typing“.
Here’s the artifact and you can see there was some stuff typed the other day when I did a test shoot and then typing on top of the typing and then scribbling and then stamping. And finally a snapshot :)
Everything about building a brand, community and marketing is on these cards.
++ Social Mrktg Fu Cards ++
This is not a thread or enticement to join a mailing list, membership or chat server.
Just gateways to a bigger world. Ergo:
Choose a topic card, a story or spiel may follow – or likely already exists – at archive
Tip: see Community Feasthouse pod feed for archive of audio marketing/branding/community-building interviews, spiels, prezos etc for scattered among other media bits &/or Social / Start-up / Community for written variations – you’re smart, you’ll figure it out
Thinking about “going home in October” or even more, going far away with this video version of the audio-first podcast.
+ Lost the Plot (Finding Home) – Postcard #85 podcast, but video(!) +
Take some spoken word poetry and add some shaky tuktuks and random trains with assorted filters and voila, ya got a podcast you can watch AND listen to if that’s your thing.
+ Lost the Plot (Finding Home) – Postcard #85 podcast, but video(!) +
Blurb: Thinking about “going home in October” or going far away via freeverse poetry backed by trains from Moncton to Sri Lanka and tuk tuks from Kerala and Thailand, read by a weary fella in barn in Japan.
Note: Postcards from Gravelly Beach, literature podcast, est 2006, now with 85 dispatches, each handcrafted with affection.
Thinking about “going home in October” or even more, going far away from home via freeverse poetry, read directly from scribbled travel scrapbooks and backed by trains from Moncton to Sri Lanka and tuk tuks from Kerala and Thailand, by a weary fella in an olden barn in provincial Japan. Fondly home.
Inky stamps, each with significance, Otherwise, why even stamp?
Though i’m not an Egyptologist officially, I do know that the old-timey Egyptians believed you died a second time when people stopped talking about / remembering you.
As such, i’m keeping the folks (from CCCP, Albania, Yugoslavia, Romania and so on) in these passports alive in a sort of way by making them into postcards and sending them on special missions out into the world
you can find the full freeverse poem “Flood’d” elsewhere in this archive if curious
With relevant snippet of handcrafted poetry on reverse (Flood’d).
Passports, party membership & ration books, now postcards
Are you in the diplomatic club of mysterious goodness? $5/mo gets you handcrafted art & story.
Burning sage, sharing global postal arrivals, variety of historic & alt passports, dropping needle on Ginsberg’s Howl, digressions on reconciliation, exhaustion & <3 for pals & family.
Poets, Passports, Postcards in the Cascadia Consulate
Feeling weary, burning sage and obviously *not at his best* Dave meanders through topics including (not necessarily in this order):
Passports galore! From CCCP, Yugoslavia, USA, Albania, Romania and *alt* passports from The Matinee Band https://thematineemusic.com and Cascadia Bioregion https://cascasdiabioregion.org / with my *important photo choosing process* {and yes this dear old grain storehouse is the Setouchi Consulate of Cascadia}. Come get your passport stamped (just not right now).
First spins of Allen Ginsberg’s Howl on red vinyl (thanks ScurvyDawg) along with ephemera and riffs about the “6 Poets at 6 Gallery” (legendary reading) and how you can do something like that, i.e.: 1) make a poster and postcard, 2) invite folks, 3) pass a hat for wine.
* Indian Residential School Survivor’s Society (donate)
* Brother on Diego Garcia and flashback to Ghandruk, Annapurna district, Nepal
* Miracle of Death” and being weak and making art through the transition
* Larry’s Dark Star Ranch and not knowing whether a particular beast is an Elk or a Deer (indeed! we collectively know so little)
Other rambling meanderings about feeling a bit exhausted from this year of house renovation, firewood (first fire and making firestarters) and getting adorable son Ichiro into school, plus so many medical appointments and endless paperwork to get properly settled. Whew.
How to find my address: tip = anywhere/everywhere.
Yes I do send a lot of postcards. You can join the club if that’s of interest ($5 gets you a piece of handmade art each month) https://daveostory.com/shop
Plus thanks for Banghi and Maddog for holding books and records (support book stores and humans)
So much, so little, such nothing and everything and anything. Settle in.
Fondy, daveo, Tsuchida Cottage
PS tips of how to improve lighting and sound welcome (memo: there is no natural light in the barn, i want to make well-lit 2 camera videos with quality sound with as minimal processing (moving stuff and files around) as possible. hit me up with ideas
Postage stamps of postboxes, from Japan and France. ¥70 is just right for international postcards.
Meta + Diplomacy.I bought them all including the example ones.
Also some classic Japanese kimono ukiyo-e designs (possibly noticed in earlier dispatch) for the stash at home.
Grateful that the kind lady at the little local (Shinogoze) post office indulges me covering the box with $30 worth of hand-picked stamps ++ added some inky stamps on standby special for New Year’s cards.
In this case, she hand-cancelled and covered the stamps with extra tape as the package was a little bit non-adhesive.
As for shipping packages, due to lack of planes and congested shipping channels, getting stuff to Canada tough. Small packets only, 2kg & 90cm WHD max. No parcels, no surface/sea/SAL :( #denied
The bottom box is repacked into two smaller boxes, the top one is huge slabs of vinyl weighing in at 2.2 kg and can’t be broken out so it will wait for safer passage
Just a little bit excited because we have/get to visit a notary public! To drop a significant amount of ¥ for a stamped single photo copy of a gov-issued document to send to a different gov (a Canadian tax agency if you’re curious) so can check off appropriate boxes. This, dear people, is the career choice I missed out on.
I mean, being a notary, (mostly) you sit at a mahogany desk with an assortment of stamps and embossers, possibly a magnifying glass – mostly for effect, and people come and give you money, you stamp things (after looking at them first of course).
Noting, in some jurisdictions, its basic, i.e.: the “mailboxes etc” franchisee is a notary, or remember when i worked at Kinko’s, there was notary services (but not sure anyone ever used).
Some places though, it’s rather expensive and complicated but when you need a notary… you really need a notary, kind of like an emergency locksmith (another great skill because you can double as a jewel thief).
Related: My Mom at times was a notary in state of Utah and I have her embossing certification stamp – all heavy and metal – but being an honest Cub Scout, I would never think to circumvent proper guidelines and use illicitly. I do use for arts and crafts from time to time. (If you want to see evidence, you’re going to have to ask nicely).
Here in Japan, if one were to become a bilingual notary with certified (by embassies etc.) translation services, would be a really sweet gig.
I might whisper this into my son’s ear each night in the bathtub. Might also be something about being an “emergency locksmith” as noted above.
Folks who imagine what emigrant / “ex-pat” life entails have a strange impression that American Express offices still exist &/or embassies are helpful outposts.
But “NO” is only answer for any service/question/request/anything from the Canadian Consulate/Embassy here in Japan.
Aside:
Note: this photo isn’t technically at the same time but since I mentioned him, here’s a cute picture
Well, my son just blew me a kiss on the way out the door to nursery school. Yes, I’m doing really good at parenting & teaching important things. Thank you for asking. So this means, change out of my luxurious pajamas into trousers & possibly a tie for my big outing to a notary.
Update: the notary office was the fifth floor of a nondescript building with various usual plexiglass separators, metal desks, fluorescent lights and trays with pens and stamps. The finished dossier was four pages & about 15,000¥. Importantly, I won the “best business card” game. I mean I really have the best cards going anywhere and I always win this very important ritual in Japan. {Plus I want them to remember me because we often need these sorts of services. Look at me, relationship building :-)}
Tea/juice made from pine needles
Back home after a stop at a stationery store, folding laundry and drinking pine needle tea.
Thinking about pals Cam, Chris & others making lovely progress in their professional endeavors. Cheering from the sidelines. Next: organize paperwork to send to gov offices.
I *really* took this snap to look “executive” and share with a friend for a laff (cause I’m far from any sort of executive-ness)… & Yes I’m actually in the stationery store restroom and I am not wearing a tie (obviously). but, these posts look better with some photos added so here we are
PS While at the stationæry store, I picked up a sweet new ink stamp from the discount bin, as well as yet another roll of washi paper masking tape.
I also have a video shot last week in the barn, but then kind of went into “crash mode”. Wanna finish that up before it’s too “stale”… It’s no big deal, it’s not like anyone’s waiting anxiously for me riffing topics about CCCP passports, miracles, Ginsberg’s “Howl” on red vinyl. [Retroactive update: this video “poets, passports and postcards in the Cascadian consulate” is now completed and available for your viewing amusement]
mixed-media art library, global diary, project dossier and whole life documentation
