Idiot In Exile

Still Here

2009-02-23T09:25:00.002-05:00

Yes, I know what some of you may be thinking. "Just wait till he grows up so you can indoctrinate him like you did his father.

Let my introduce you to Keta. He is the first son of my friend and his wife. Keta smiles a lot.

I might to if I had a bald man looking at me from way above.

Retrovertigo

2009-02-10T04:52:00.002-05:00

Now I'm finding truth is a ruin

Nauseous end that nobody is pursuing

Staring into glassy eyes Mesmerized

There's a vintage thirst returning

But I'm sheltered by my channel-surfing

Every famine virtual

Retrovertigo

Last Christmas

2008-12-25T08:58:00.002-05:00

Christmas in Japan is for lovers. December 24 is the time when you supposed to take your "woman of interest out on a romantic date. If not the 24th at least the 25th. No one seems to know why this came about but here it is.
I have also noticed that the song "Last Christmas" by Wham is very popular here. As a matter of fact I have herd at least five different renditions of the song while frolicking in the public.
There is Whams version of the song, then there is the new rendition by the female singer who I no longer remember the name of. Along with this there is a "Boy vocal group" that sings a horrific version of it. Then there is the "muzak" version that you hear in highly sterilised places like the dentist. At one department store I heard a metal guitar version of it that rocked. If there was a video of this version I would pay good money to see it. I'm sure a studded cup or spandex were involved.
I once herd this song in a pub in Australia when I was there is April but that is another story.
My coworker came into work the other day singing this song and could not explain why he was doing so.
Last week I was trying to teach my students how to sing "Up on the house top", which they did OK at. But when I started to sing "Last Christmas" they all joined in with gusto.
It's been a quiet Christmas here in Japan and these are the things that stick out for me.
Happy Christmas

Jon

Just for you...

2008-12-22T09:25:00.002-05:00

Yes sometimes folks get it all wrong but it sometime feels so right. Who am I to make corrections to these types of things? This year I get Christmas off because it falls on a Thursday (which is my day off regularly.) The only plans I have is to make some phone calls and express my holiday wishes to people. Watch out, you may be one of these people!

Christmas in Japan is uneventful for the most part. New Years is the important time for the folks here. For me New Years is uneventful but that's not a bad thing for me. Don't get me wrong I like a good party when I can find one. But to me it's no big deal.

My hope, like many others, is that 2009 won't be as weird as 2008. For me it was a odd year for many different reasons. Not much could happen in the next few days or the next year that would surprise me. So what has this taught me?

All these events have led me to the overwhelming conclusion that in the deepest darkest recesses of my ever omnipresent consciousness that "I don't know what is going on." Of this I'm sure of beyond a reasonably doubt. There are folks who make clams that all is fixed in the universe.

That would mean all is static, which does not work well in a dynamic universe. It works well for my Aiwa T.V. that has been broken for that last few months but that's neither hear nor there.

My point is that there is a liberation to the "I don't know" idea. It's OK. I do have a scepticism towards those who say they do.

I once met a man who I had just met and had only said a few words to. Later that night I heard him say to one of my friends that I didn't know shit. Yes, I thought. The truth at last!

The ironic thing was it was his wedding anniversary and I congratulated him on it and it was one of the few things I said to him that night.

Who knew?

Here

2008-11-30T06:36:00.004-05:00

Here is a nice picture I took the last time I was in Tokyo. This garden was located smack dab in the city right next to Tokyo Dome. This garden was created (or paid for) by the emperor of Japan a long time ago.(I can't remember the date)

II.

This is where I ended up the last time I went to Yokohama. Good beer but after two I felt like I was going to explode because of the thickness it had. Good thing I didn't eat any sour kraut! The train ride home might have been interesting.

Just finished reading "John Adams" today. Good book! It's amazing how politics hasn't changed that much since his time. What was also interesting was the different views the founding fathers had about how the government should or could be run.

That's all for now.

River

2008-11-23T07:39:00.006-05:00

This pic was taken next to a river that is near my apartment. I walked all along this river today until I started to get tired and then I decided to make my way back home. (The long way)

It was a nice walk but not so nice as to take a lot of pictures. Nice view of the hills in the distance though. This city is surrounded by these hills. Kofu sits in between them and at times it feels isolated by them.

Back to the band question:

I think I've found my new look for my new band. The folks at the P.I. may not be into it but I feel that they will come to love it like I have.

2008-11-13T06:49:00.007-05:00

This is why I love the 80's

And this is why I don't love the 80's

Today's reading "John Adams" by David McCullough. It is amazing how little we all know about the founding fathers of our country and what they did for us.

I'm glad the election is concluded and also that nothing untoward happened. As most of us feel, I hope that things will get better, but I also realise that the president and/or the government has only so much control over things. But still I hope for the best.

Believe me it's hard to resist commenting on the things that have happened to the U.S. in the last few months and I'm not speaking about the election. No I'm speaking about the housing @#$% up that we are in. Don't get me started! At this juncture I usualy become sarcastic and sinicle in my blog. Well not today. I hope this blog has giving you a laugh or at least a smile.

But be that as it may, don't expect to see me in neon spandex in the near future. On the other hand you may see me in black leather wearing a studded cup and beating a bass drum with the skull of a investment a broker from Wall street. Maybe even one of those poor saps form Leimen Brothers. The name of my new band will be called "They eat there young."

Sorry! Sometimes I just can't help myself.

Peace, love and joy at a .05% interest rate:

Jon

What in the world has happened to the world?

2008-10-27T13:05:00.002-04:00

Bad news from home and then more bad news from home. Weird feelings coming across the ocean and then the news came in the form of a phone call, then a email.
Maybe this is why I have a bad feeling about coming home. Our minds can pick up small details about many different things that we see and hear. Somehow our minds put all these pieces together to from a impression. And our harts feel the sting of this.

Say What?

2008-10-09T09:18:00.002-04:00

Today is the first day of my Fall break. I hope to record some music that has been floating around in my head for some time now. I also plan to go to Yokohama on Friday and Tokyo on Monday.
In six months I will be going back to the U.S.. It will be a different place for me but not too different. Not only will I be a different person but those around me will be different but not too different.
So what will I do when I get back? I must say that I'm not too sure about that. Education has been under attack from all fronts for some time now and I'm not confident that this attack will stop anytime soon. Most see "musical education" as redundant and it is also one of the first things cut from the budget of most schools. Besides I don't want to try to make Pop Stars out of anyone. Because when it comes to music that is what most young people care about. It's always "so and so didn't know how to read music so why do I?" I say because "so and so can write hit songs and I can't teach you how to write hit songs. If I could I would not be teaching you at this school. As far as I know there is no one out there that can teach you how to write a Hit song. I can show you how to write a song but for it to be a hit is not up to you or me.
Let me make this clear, you don't have to know how to read music to be a good musician, but as a music teacher it would be a disservice to you if I didn't teach you it. Or maybe I should leave a good music education to the elite class like "back in the good old days."

Awake

2008-10-05T07:34:00.002-04:00

It's been a long time since my last blog. I can't believe it's October already. In about six months I will be coming home from my stay in Japan. Of course this brings up many questions for me, like what will I do for a job? Will there be any "good" jobs left when I get back? Will the U.S. be in a depression? Some of you will be thinking it will be if X candidate gets into office. But I don't think that matters too much. Ask yourself: "Who controls the money in the U.S. ?" To say that it's the "Rich" is understating the question. "Rich" is a vague term as is corporate. We all get our loans for the same source. (There was a time when corporation could expand on there profits alone with out the need to "go in debt".) In my opinion we need to look at the organization called

"The Federal Reserve". Make no mistake, there is nothing Federal about the Federal Reserve.

The folks who run this "bank" are not elected, but our banking system and our national debt all stem from this source. If they want, at any time they can recall there loans and can control the amount of money that flows in the country. This is sort of what happened in the late 1920's.

(By the way the gold standard won't work because gold can be horded. Also try to find out how much gold is in Fort Knox. The last figure was in the 1950's) This is not conspiracy propaganda.

And if it is then include me in the likes of "Ben Franklin, George Washington, Abe Lincoln, Andy Jackson, Jesus Christ and many others.

In other news, my friend Yuta's wife has just given birth to a baby boy.

And Remember: Things are not as bad as they seem.

They are worse then that.

They are also better then that.

Live at Budokan

2008-06-19T07:48:00.003-04:00

The top pic is of me at the famous Budokan. This is the place where The Beatles first preformed in Japan. It is also the place where numerous live albums have been recorded including "Cheep Trick", Deep Purple", and Ozzy Osbourne, among others. As far as I can tell not too many concerts take place there now. The band Asia will be preforming a the CC Lemon hall, which I happen to run into last week in Tokyo. As far as I know the concert is sold out. Not only that but I would not be able to take off work to go see it because it falls soon after my summer break.

By the way: For those of you who don't know, I will be coming home Aug 3rd thru the the 16th. Hope to see most of you then. It will be nice to see my friends and my family.

Tribute

2008-06-01T09:26:00.002-04:00

When I first started getting serious about guitar, one of my major influences was this album. Or maybe I should say this guitar player. Randy Rhoads was not only a influence but a inspiration to me. It's been over 20 years since his death and I feel it's time to pay my dues to this man.
One thing that still amazes me is the difference between the studio albums and the live performances. Randy did not just reproduce what was one the album, but he redefined it. The recording was the score but the live performance was the life of the music. For me this was not just "cool " music to listen to, but it was a way in which a person can progress as a musician.
I never respected Ozzys music until this album came out.
One thing I want to make clear is that my guitar playing does not sound like Randy's. But from what I have read about him as a guitar teacher he would not want me to sound like him. "Find your own voice." For me that is what this album represents. On the other hand, when playing Crazy Train, it's best not to stray away from the original solo too much. Some things are best left just as they are.

Golden Week

2008-05-08T08:04:00.002-04:00

Budakon and Monkey magic.

Last Saturday I went to Tokyo during Golden Week. This is a special week because three national holidays occur during it and I get time off of work.

My friend Yuta and I spent Sat and Sun walking around Tokyo. A large part of Sat was spent in Shibuya, which is famous for it's crowded intersection by the train station. When most people see videos of Tokyo (including Lost In Translation) this is one spot that you are most likely to see. Although it does not represent the whole of Tokyo.

While in Shibuya, we ended up at a great music shop. It's been a long time since the two of us have spent time in a music store. We started to reminisce about the times when we were really into the rock "guitar thing". This place was amazing! Every type of guitar or effect that we could think of this place had. They even had a "stick", which is a combination of a base guitar and a electric guitar that is played by taping the strings. I'm tempted to buy one of these things.

I did buy 3 cds in Tokyo. 10,000 Days by Tool, The Sermon on Exposition Boulevard by Rickie Lee Jones and Symphony of Psalms by Igor Stravinsky. The Tool was good although I've heard most of it before so I knew what to expect. As for the other two I have not gotten through listening to them. I'm sure the Stravinsky is a better rendition then the one I bought in March.

The Rickie Lee Jones is good so far but it was late and I did not get through the whole CD. If you are interested in her music I would recommend her "Pirates" album or CD or MP3. If not the "New Kids on The Block" have a new one coming out soon.

As golden week comes to a end I'm well rested and happy. Just seeing a monkey on stilts is enough to make any man happy for a long time.

Why

2008-04-24T06:52:00.002-04:00

Why?

1.Blogger is better then when I began.

2. I like Iron Madden

3. Too lazy to sign up for facebook

4. I may have something better to talk about besides "Left-wing/Right-wing politics".

5. I promise not to be too ambiguous with my post.

6. I will not be the "nice guy" you use to know.

7. I will not post You tube videos.

8. I will not pretend to know the solutions to all the worlds problems.

9. I will talk about music. Sorry but that's what I know best. Or maybe you would prefer the influence of "The Age of Enlightenment" on pre-American politics that became the founding principles on which this "Republic stands".

10. There will be blood!

Peace

When I'm With You

2008-03-20T10:24:00.002-04:00

It has been said that a picture speaks a thousand words. Well then this pic says it all!

2007-12-15T02:46:00.000-05:00

This is the End

2007-08-31T06:09:00.000-04:00

Well I have become fed up in dealing with "Blogger". I've tried to fix the problems that I have been having with it but nothing seems to work. For all the trouble I go through just to put a picture on this thing I might as well send the photo to people by email.

Not only that I don't think I am a very good blogger. Part of it is my falt and part of it is Bloggers fault for making such a piece of shit site. So to all of you who kept up with this blog and for those who pretended to keep up with this site, I bid you good day and goodbye.

J.C. Bell