Category Archives: Japan Cottage Musings

musings via video recorded from Tsuchida Cottage (and related locales), Okayama with personal updates, current projects, cozy greetings

Japan Cottage Musings

BC Invasion trip / energy vs expectations and plans #driBC

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Feeling a little bit antsy and in a tizzy about all the plans and options for upcoming “BC Invasion trip [April 11 ~ May 25] to Vancouver & Victoria etc areas. #driBC

So, first I’m very grateful for everyone’s participation & interest and for simply remembering me after i disappeared with illness and other life conundrums.

Keeping Expectations Balanced with Priorities

Next, extending a warm invitation to come meet us at various parks and gardens where we’ll be with a picnic blanket and a thermos of coffee at checkpoints in:

  • Langley/Surrey: current til April 19
  • West End / DT Vancouver: April 19 ~ 25
  • Metchosin: April 25 ~ 29
  • Victoria / Oak Bay: April 29 ~ May 3
  • Pender Isle (Woods & Sparrow): May 3 ~ 10
  • Fairview / Kits: May 10 ~ 12
  • North Van / Lynn Valley: May 12 ~ 17
  • Langley / Surrey: May 17 ~ 25
  • Home to Tsuchida Cottage: May 25/26

“Main point” of the trip is for my darling wife and adorable son to meet family as well as to reconnect with hugs and gifts with so many of you wonders.

Especially eager to meet kids for Ichiro to hang with at wonderful playground. Also, so grateful for recent friends coming to visit and participating in our life.

My big concern is “crashing” with this illness which puts me out of action for days/weeks. Good news is: doing the best i have in years thanks to some recent treatment protocols and modalities.

PS great article in The Atlantic about #MECFS

I’m doing my best but/and if we can’t meet, no big deal – its complicated and folks have lives/jobs etc, please come to Japan! A safe, efficient, interesting, amusing, and somewhat affordable destination where we will be happy to welcome you with tea and goats.

Very eager to avoid micro-planning on phone robot and dealing with the social media diaspora if you know what i mean. Oh, there’s a GDoc, hit me up if you want access.

Fondly, from Tsuchida Cottage

dvo + ryoko and ichiro

us at the goat farm… heading your way

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Craft Sessions, Japan Cottage Musings, Post'd (cards + letters)

Festive Greetz Cards Scrapbook Time (backwards)

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In front of a wood stove, Dave stashes cards from the “string of honour” into archival book while recounting tales of the wonderful folks who sent greeting cards and letters to Tsuchida Cottage.

Very grateful for your friendship and lovely correspondence.

Along with banter about:

* having several scrapbooks on-the-go at all times

* special collections and on-going correspondence

* topsy turvy start to the year

* “lap projects” like mending and scrapbooking

* thoughts about last year (lots of paperwork!)

* theme for this year (letting go)

and usual digressions, meanderings and anecdotes (i.e. hanging stereo speakers and maybe something about solar panels). Oh, there is a Dymo LabelMaker in action.

Very grateful for your friendship and lovely correspondence.

Meanwhile I’m trying to tidy up the room a little bit so here are albums of postcards/greeting cards etc., duly annotated by Dymo label.

PS if I’ve missed sharing your card I probably shared under separate cover / somewhere else, or will do another time (thinking of you Astrid in Germany who’s art is already hanging up).

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Field Notes, Japan Cottage Musings, Japan Life/Travel

Japan Renegade Travel Musings (specifically *not* Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka)

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Oh look, adventure Ted is having a beer, sashimi and plotting good times…

Adventure Tour Guide Ted Taylor and DaveO riff in a historic Kura barn in Tsuchida, Okayama, Japan talking about exploring… well off-the-beathen-ish-path Japan – specifically not Tokyo, Kyoto, & Osaka (sure those places are great or whatever but plenty of info) so let’s explore elsewhere with places, tactics, tips and musings. Alas, no “b-roll”, links, edits, but plenty of digressions and pretty great hats.

Despite what dashing Ted Taylor tells ya, you can/should hire him for adventure tours (seriously) plus dig his most excellent journals at: Notes from the Nog blog

Continue reading Japan Renegade Travel Musings (specifically *not* Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka) →

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Japan Cottage Musings

Tiger Year 2022: Flashback Musings in Present Moment

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A meandering rundown from the kura barn about New Year routines, foods and rituals in Japan, plus usual gabba gabba about postcards, lucky numbers and postal obsessions… but this time featuring various hats and even more personal translucency, unnecessary archaeology, remarks about improving the campsite, being a good hubbo and papa, health situation, life admin tasks, blank sheets, re-caps of projects: poems, pods, vids, trips – and various anecdotes about wonderful pals, probably you ya beauty.

Very important annotations

Special hellos to friends in places where I left pieces of my heart – important for a rambling type with out that “regular hometown” vibe.

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Japan Cottage Musings, Japan Life/Travel

Charcoal, Poetry & Postal + topics of varied interest

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it’s cardigan season so let’s discuss a bonanza of topics, shall we?

While the industrious senior ladies are cleaning the house, I fire up a machine to tell you about the following items:

several pleasing items
Continue reading Charcoal, Poetry & Postal + topics of varied interest →

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Japan Cottage Musings

Poetry & Design from Several Small-ish Books

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let’s hang out and enjoy some poetry and whatnot

“In the studio barn, anxious on account of an impending medical and other “life admin” project, Dave reads from a variety of slim-sized (mostly) books of poetry, discusses book layout, design and publishing styles and pathways, relates some anecdotes about writers & how the books came to be here. Plus a few musings and projects of his own – while trying to calm a weary head and body.”

Maybe I’ll make you a mix tape

(I will add a proper list of books and writers, soonish, not right now, but of course if you just watch you know about the books cause you’ll hear all the poems)

Continue reading Poetry & Design from Several Small-ish Books →

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Japan Cottage Musings, Scrapbooks + Journals

Kura Scrapbook Hangout w/ cards & letters

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come along for a hangout, no big deal

Adding recent postcards, cards and letters to an “accordion” style scrapbook with various tapes and stamps in kura barn studio while listening to records (Aztec Camera and Belle and Sebastian) and discoursing on recent trip to Shimane, the role of monarchy in commonwealth countries, importance of friends, fondness for invitations, sending postcards to self, putting everything on casters, discarded records, and hats – many many hats.

Kura Scrapbook Hangout – Japan Cottage Musings

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Japan Cottage Musings

Musing: Painted into corner (of a blank canvas) #video

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Spontaneous riff with usual lousy video and dodgy audio but solid stories

Diary musings including: brain fog; trips to Shimane and Kyoto (Minka Summit); pals Ted and Ed and a big dog; recent books (Alex Kerr, Robert Whiting, Miles Copeland, Dave Bidini) + classic Japonica books; ++ sorting out my head about “what comes next” (answer equals anything; seitai treatment; MECFS awareness (and other awarenesses month); sortganzing ephemera; new records, old records; how are you? etc – all from kura barn a spontaneous rambling blur on another sunny day in Okayama.

Accidentally features Leonard Cohen and Mxmtoon.

Did you notice my sweet black globe and green ship lantern?

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Healing Ramble, Improving Campsite, Japan Cottage Musings

Improving the Campsite (odds and ends diary)

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+ Improving the Campsite, odds and ends from Tsuchida Cottage +

A little bit lost – &/or found – of late, but the dishes are finished, laundry started and the rabbits ointment is applied so saying “Hello. How are you?”

Plus a few other life annotation about *improving the campsite*, curbing ambition with gardening, wild boars, geolocated signpost, illnesses, funeral, taxes – goodtimes!

Also noting that i’m putting “Postcard as a Service” shop on hiatus, cancelling everything, tidying up here and there and attempting to find a little bit of peace in my aching head with yard, garden and barn projects.

Peace to all of us.

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Japan Cottage Musings, Personal Musings

Schemes and Dreams for Year of the Tiger – Reiwa 4 / 2022

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oh hai, just us talking about stuff like scrapbooks and schemes

+ Schemes and Dreams for Year of the Tiger – Reiwa 4 / 2022 + 

No surprise whatsoever, Dave, surrounded by scrapbooks, well-designed books, unfolded laundry, impressive selection of washi tape and a vessel of homemade miso – and feeling a little tired – looks ahead to 2022 with schemes and dreams including: 

  • compiling/creating a book called “a circumnavigation, of sorts” with freeverse poetry, snippets of diaries, scraps of letters, forgotten lists and possible scribbles; 
  • (the usual of) taking care of health and being a great husband and papa; 
  • making more scrapbooks and collages; 
  • maybe even some paintings of post boxes, payphones and portals. 

Plus tidying up digital odds and ends, stepping up some skills and figuring out how to space out and rest and relax (per Doctors’ orders).

Ichiro makes an appearance as Dave also sends a special *hello* to those who are dealing with some health challenges including uncle in Michigan, a young postcard maker in Sri Lanka, and Larry sensei, and possibly you. 

Finally, after reviewing a litany of scrapbooks of plans, poems, correspondence and other oddities from years past, offers encouragement to share your intentions for the year ahead and reflections on years past in whatever medium you fancy. 

[UPDATE] Feb 1, 2022 (due to sickness and reevaluation): basically canceled 90% of what I ambitiously planned. Recalibrating to “improve the campsite”, ergo: spruce up yard and garden a little bit, finish Kerouac video, make some washi paper, get better at writing Japanese, and maybe repair some broken ceramics with gold.

Note: Oh yeah, calendars and sweater thanks to Shawn P.

just staying alive, yup

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