Join us for tea at Tsuchida Cottage, Okayama for our 1st wedding anniversary. We’ll play some songs, catch you up on projects, share some scrapbooks and stories, plus update about baby including gender if curious. Was a live stream… not its not :)
Originally live-streamed via Facebook on April 21, 2020 / check out original post for allll the comments and more fun etc.
With a French press coffee, pyjamas and slightly out of focus, Dave talks about general geography of Japan and specifically shares reasons why he loves living in “just right” Okayama including: sunny weather, hot springs, geo-diversity, endless museums, access to Kyoto/Osaka/airports + Setouchi islands and San-in coast, jazz clubs, peaches & peach boy folk legend, and most importantly community with wife (and baby coming) and goat farmer Mac.
Wearing a smoking jacket at Tsuchida Cottage, Dave riffs on recent activities including: planting vegetable garden, playing piano, buying baby clothes, and sort-ganizing archives including digging out loads of books. As such, shows books by Douglas Coupland, Nick Bantock, Gary Snyder, Ethan Hubbard, and reads from Jack Kerouac’s American Haikus, plus riffs about Tintin, fire lookouts and mailing postcards.
Roll around Japan with ambient train window views from various locations and rolling stock including the Thunderbird Limited Express towards Kanazawa and a Shinkansen service from Yokohama towards Osaka. In situ sound with no narration or drama rather a rather meditative “space cruise” looking as rice fields, towns and stations go past, and occasionally abstract from the speed, plus the whooshing of zipping through tunnels. That’s all. Enjoy the ride.
Recently my “whole life archive” from 4X+ years of creativity arrived after a trans-Pacific journey to my home is Tsuchida, Okayama, Japan… so, I made a little video spiel – or tried to rather – while sort-ganizing the artifacts the “kura” (grain barn). However, the video was out of focus and the sound well, non-existent (guess i don’t know how to use this new gear… sigh).
This clip (which i didn’t know was filming) of puttering around in schleppy work clothes (and a fine hand-crafted hat) exists… so, here’s a little clip mixed with still photos of putzing around my life’s worth of books, records, scrapbooks, tools, trinkets and whatnot and finding some interesting things (while trying not to be overwhelmed by all the memories and dauntingness of it all).
No narrative per se, just an excuse to play you a song and say hello… carry on.
I was *clearly* saying something fascinating here :) – probably about Kerouac, scrapbooks, artifacts, vinyl etc and likely say “personal archeology” & ”intrepid” + mention stash of amusing hats, lounge wear and of course, smoking jackets but, you will just hafta trust me (or don’t, that’s cool).
Importantly this song: pal George H. wrote music and sings/plays (but says its not “finished” so don’t tell him unless you wanna tell him you LOVE it) – the words are mine from escapades in NYC 1990ish. Anyhow, thanks for coming along for this flashback.
Rolling various local quirky trains from rustic Sitayama station towards the mountains on Toyama and Unazuki Onsen station – not chronologic or accurate, just ambient views of rolling stock, carriage interiors, watching from windows, as well as catching trains going by.
Mixed with music by Dan Mangan, “Tragic Turn of Events (demo)” from “Nice Nice Very Nice (10 year anniversary)”
Note:
Sitayama: https://goo.gl/maps/i4Vq3xfG7weVfx9M9
Unazuki Onsen: https://goo.gl/maps/crnF9NC2hZ5jKFJ58
More space cruises – by train, tuk tuk, float plane and occasional taxis – from global locales
Hempen Road / chapter 4: Olympia (1996/7)
Hemp cannabis pioneers and activist in Olympia, WA, USA (ala OlyWa) are featured in this chapter of 1996/7 documentary film in which host/producer Dave Olson (hello) visits with interesting characters including:
Hempen Road / chapter 3: Portland (1996/7)
Hemp cannabis pioneer entrepreneurs in Victoria, Canada are featured in this chapter of 1996/7 documentary film in which host/producer Dave Olson (hello) visits with interesting characters including:
Hempen Road / chapter 2: Eugene (1996/7)
Hemp cannabis pioneering entrepreneurs and activists n Eugene, Oregon are featured in this chapter of 1996/7 documentary film in which host/producer Dave Olson (hello) visits with interesting characters including:
* Todd Dalotto, Hungry Bear Hemp Foods
* Carolyn Moran, Living Tree Paper
* Bruce & Diedre Mullican, Sow Much Hemp Continue reading HempenRoad / chapter 2: Eugene (1996/7)
Ambient views from various trains’ windows rolling past rice fields, towns and stations in and around Toyama, Japan (mostly) – No narration, action, plot or really context of any kind, just views and the pleasant clackety-clack of trains (with various station announcements if you really wanna know where the train was passing) on a journey in May 2019.