where the wild things are

I can't wait to see this, too.

ponyo!

You've got to see it!

In Japan being an "otaku" (nerd) is not very cool. If you are into anime or manga, you usually hide it and only enjoy it with other otaku friends. But somehow being an otaku for Ghibli movies is acceptable; or it seems so at least for people in my generation. If you are wondering what Ghibli is, it's the name of the studio Hayao Miyazaki owns which created Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away and all the other beautiful animation films. We grew up watching their movies, dreaming of riding the Cat Bus someday, of flying on a broom, of finding a castle in the sky.

Ponyo also lets you dream and makes you smile. It's a very cute movie that doesn't end with just being cute.

By the way, somehow I like the Japanese trailer better, maybe because they play the theme song.

neapolitan; spaghetti, not ice cream

Today's dinner!

This is spaghetti fried with vegetables and bacon (or sausage) in ketchup. We call it "Spaghetti Neapolitan" in Japan, and yes I believed it came from Naples, Italy, for a long time.

I can say nothing about American people who think California rolls are really Japanese, can I?

Then I think California rolls are one of the best American inventions, and hope Italians enjoy our Spaghetti Neapolitan as much as I enjoy California rolls.

Here's a video on how to make Spaghetti Neapolitan. It makes you hungry.

i heart viento y agua

Mexican moka is one of my greatest discoveries in America, and so far Viento y Agua makes it the best.

I can spend hours just sitting at this cafe, and at the end somehow still feel I've had a productive day.

a bird on the trash

We see cats and crows on the trash in Japan. That's why at the apartment our family used to live in, every resident took turns getting up early and standing by the trash bags so no birds could vandalize them and scatter garbage around. We aren't supposed to take out the trash at night, either, because cats might dig in during the night.

But I've never seen a seagull on a garbage can in Japan.

I guess it's not so much about living in America as living by the ocean.

the getty villa

Last weekend, we went to the Getty Villa in Malibu. It was my third time to get the tickets--they are free, but you have to reserve room for you. The first time I planned to go there, we ended up arriving in Malibu terribly late; the second time, my friend was sick and we canceled it. So it was "sando me no syoujiki" (third time luck) for me, and after hearing a lot about its beauty, I was expecting a lot.

Which maybe I shouldn't have.

It was a very pretty place. Great architecture. Beautiful flowers. I guess my problem was that I expected the Getty Center, that wide-open view. The Villa felt a little too small, and a little too crowded. Everything looked gorgeous, but it was just too much cramped in such small space, with too many people. Maybe it's Malibu; the place has that feeling of cramped-ness despite its beauty and luxury.

Perhaps, I would've enjoyed it in a different way if I was more interested in art. I like to look at paintings, but not so much at pots and vases. The only things I enjoyed at the Villa were the big chimaera statue and the tongue-sticking creature.

I wish I had better eyes for art.

True I wasn't as impressed as I thought I'd be, but it was still an experience. And I enjoyed watching people if not the art or the scenery. They were all over! (Well, we were...).

And I got another pig to add to my collection. If you're wondering, it's a rattle that babies used in ancient Greece.

on being a stuff person

When I helped my friend move out, I was amazed at how much she'd accumulated in her room in four years. She had all her necessities in that small space--and unnecessities. It was space full of stuff. Stuff like a plastic SpongeBob keychain that must've come with a fast food meal, half-used notebooks with the blank pages to write in, class handouts and paper menus from restaurants. Stuff that makes you constantly ask, if you're just helping out, "Can I throw this away or not?"

Well, maybe not if you're a non-stuff person. Those things are on the borderline only when you're a stuff person who collects and keeps, like a hamster getting ready for winter. If you're a stuff person, you can call nothing trash. Everything has its own memory. Nothing is completely worthless. Who knows, I might use this tomorrow, next week, or--years later.

But the truth is, you won't. You will never use it or even really pull it out of the drawer that's always full until your next move when you spend a few minutes wondering if it should go to the trash bag. It should, usually, and if you can't make up your mind, a non-stuff person around you will with a head shake and a desperate sigh.

I know this very well, because I'm a stuff person, too, even though I tried to pretend I wasn't at my friend's apartment. I shook my head and threw things away like I was used to doing that, but there was always a moment of hesitation when I picked up something and looked at it. Looking, I guess, is bad already. Non-stuff people don't look. They just pick and throw. That's what our other friend did (or could), and without her, we might still be cleaning the room.

I came home that day, and was shocked my room looked just like my friend's, only without the typical mess before a move. It was full of stuff. It scared me to think about the day I needed to move out of this room. It kept bothering me for a few days, so I finally decided to clean my room. Or more like throw things away. I went through piles of paper I had in the corner of my room, books, letters. The trash was filled immediately, and there seems to be a bit more space in this small room; and yet I know there are drawers that haven't been checked, boxes not yet opened. They probably contain more unnecessary stuff--but then, who knows it's unnecessary? After all, we humans have thrown away too much; that's why we're recycling now, isn't it?