A Brief Introduction To Japanese Culture (Part 1)

Hello. I am very excited to bring you all a new series of anthropological blog posts. I received my PhD in Ethnomusicology — with some focus on the traditional musics of  East Asia — so I thought that a little course on the general features of Japanese culture would give you a better idea of why I fell in love with it in the first place.  So in reality I am welcoming you to a welcome a series on Japanese culture, and its particular intellectual and material features.

So… what are we referring to when we speak of tangible and intangible Japanese cultural things?

The stereotypes are ninjas, sushi, samurai, certain types of animation, Mt. Fuji, hot sake (pronounced saw-kay, not “sack-y”) and so on, the “obvious” things that have entered into our own cultural consciousness: Japan “is” basically what we think of it as viewed from afar. So what I will try to do, as a researcher on Japanese creative culture, is let Japan itself speak to you. So if we are talking about Japan, then let’s talk about talking itself: Japanese language.

Japanese is indeed a fascinating language. Plurals don’t exist, so “pen” and pens” are implied by context. There are also no articles, so a, an, and the aren’t an issue. It is also possible to make a sentence or even have a conversation without ever mentioning a subject, using only verbs to get your point across. While English uses the subject-verb-object format (“Edna saw an elephant”), Japanese uses subject-object-verb, (“Edna, an elephant saw”). This incidentally is where director George Lucas got the idea for the Star Wars character Yoda’s speech patterns. Once again, if Edna is implied, you don’t even need her in the picture to tell people that she is seeing an elephant. It may also be the case that Edna saw several elephants (no specific singular or plural).  

It is also impolite to use declarative sentences in some situations, depending on the predicate. This is based on whether one ends the sentence with “yo” or “ne”: yo being a marker that indicates declarative information originating from the speaker, and ne being like the Canadian “eh?” implying a shared understanding of the information. If I say “Edna wa tsuteki desu yo” I am saying “Edna is wonderful”, yet by using yo I am not giving you the chance to be properly self-effacing, and thus the feeling is I am kind of “forcing” the compliment on you. But if I say “Edna wa tsuteki desu ne” I am saying “Edna is wonderful, wouldn’t you agree?” which allows the listener, Edna, to participate in the compliment; what you might call the “socio-spiritual” freedom to choose a response: e.g, ie… watashi wa futsuu desu, “No… I am just ordinary,” a polite response that allows for the opportunity to refrain from arrogance.

There are three writing systems used in Japanese: katakana for foreign loan words, Chinese letters (kanji) for the core of Japanese grammar (nouns, adjectives, verbs), and hiragana for grammatical endings, words without kanji, and situations where the reader may not know the kanji, e.g. children’s books. Oddly enough, the easiest to read, katakana, is often the hardest to interpret, as it is sometimes unclear which meaning is implied, e.g. prey, pray, or play, since Japanese has no “r” or “l”, rather something in-between the two. Japanese is a syllabic language, so there is no singular M or S, etc., thus Edna goes from two syllables to three: Eh-ju-na, Eh-zu-na, or some other possible form. Names can also sound like Japanese words, so I personally must mispronounce my last name so as not to be rude (the German name Schnee, when pronounced properly sounds like a Japanese command to die).

Though all Japanese speak a shared language of standard Japanese, the dialect diversity is such that people from different parts of the country speak a number of dialects with a surprising amount of difference between. Though only a two hour bullet train ride away, people in the eastern area of Japan (Kanto: where Tokyo sits) use a distinctly different set of verb endings than people in the West (Kansai: where Kyoto, Osaka, and Kobe sit). Even between Kyoto and Osaka (45 minutes apart by ordinary express train) you hear noticeable differences. A colloquial dialect is known by the suffix “-ben”, ergo Osaka dialect is “Osaka-ben.” It is all still Japanese, but the variety in suffixes can create some confusion, especially among foreign learners of Japanese. In Osaka, the standard Japanese word wakarimasen (“to not understand”) can be stated as wakara-hen, while a word such as omoshiroi (“interesting”) can be stated as omoroi.

So to summarize: Japanese culture begins with the most basic cultural phenomenon, Japanese language: how the idea of Japan and its culture is shared between individuals and/or promulgated in society. To speak Japanese is to already be in culture and coloured by (what I consider to be rather wonderful) inherent cultural traits.

Mr. Show Quiz (Part Two)…

As mentioned in the previous post I am a big fan of science fiction film and television trivia. This includes the Nineties cult classic sketch comedy show Mr. Show With Bob and David, which gave many now famous comedians and actors the chance to shine in front of a mass audience (the show was a late night feature on HBO). Few these days even remember the show ever existing, so a bit of knowledge about it can make you lethal to your competitors in a trivia contest.

The following then is the second part of my overview of each episode in the series.

Be Advised: the show was a late night comedy from the mid-Nineties. Thus the quiz contains themes and words that may be offensive to some readers.

S3E4:

1). In the Beatles-esque “Hard Day’s Night” style running scene who are Bob and David running from? A group of angry feminists. 

2). What was built in honor of Nostradamus? “Nostradamus And His Constant Chum High School.”

3). In the motivational teen band “Indomitable Spirit,” what disability does lead singer Fran (comedienne Sarah Silverman) suffer from? Being a woman. 

S3E5:

1). In the promotional ads for Mr. Show in Season Three, what is the name of Bob and David’s educational presentation? “Take A Bite Out of Herpes.”

2). On the religious TV show “Swear To God,” what question does Reverend Winton Durpree ask his congregation to ponder? “What is up Satan’s ass?”

3). Who were the Fad Three? A group of Beatles-esque teens who became famous for being photogenic.

4). What does political hunger striker Panjit Puujiran  pray for every day? A lot of food. 

5). Dr. X’s Doomsday Telethon Orchestra consists of how many members? A conductor plus a single trombonist.

S3E6:

1). According to country singer C.S. Lewis Jr., what should you never do? Mess with God’s America.

2). What “controversial” question does Galileo The Monkey ask via sign language? “Why are you blowing up the moon?”

3). In the Famous Mortimer sci-fi film “Streak Dome 97” who is being held hostage? Pope Stephanie The 12th. 

4). In accordance to the Protocols of The Elders of Elders, all TV must be what? “nice… for the nice people.”

S3E7:

1). What does Kedzie Matthews think the problem with bells is? They are weird. 

2). What is the Worthington Law? A person that makes more money than you is better than you, and therefore beyond criticism.

3). According to the mobster sketch, what number is arguably the highest? 24. 

4). Thanks to coercion from the mob, scientists believe what? There are at least 24 stars in the cosmos.

5). Why does Mr. Sallini win the marching band music competition? Because mediocrity doesn’t make people feel inferior.

S3E8:

1). How does Channel 6 get the breaking news on a forest fire? By starting it.

2). According to the music channel teens, which countries comprise Europe? “Europe,” Berlin, France, and England, all fit into a United States-shaped map.

3). According to the US propaganda film “Red All Over,” inside every fifth American boy lies what? A system of pulleys operated by a small Communist dwarf.

4). What other issue do the propaganda films address? Frigidity in women.

S3E9:

1). What is the theme of Bob and David’s country song about Native Americans? That white people forgive them for fighting for the land being stolen from them. 

2). What avant-hard balloon act performs for The Last Indian at his tribute show? Le Balloon Sportif. 

S3E10:

1). What is the name of the heavy metal band? Titannica. 

2). What is the problem with the Call In show

S4E1:

1). Why is David Cross prescribed medical marijuana? Due to stress from having to work with Bob Odenkirk.

2).What veteran actor plays professor Peens? Michael Mckean, who starred in what legendary comedic film? This Is Spinal Tap. 

3). What “reparations” are given to the victims and relatives of the Holocaust? Cloned Hitlers as manservants.

4). What does Tamara need to do and why? “She needs to respect her baby, because Life is precious… and God, and the Bible.”

5). What is Derlin Whittier’s final thought? “Before I die, I’m gonna f**k me a fish…”

S4E2:

1). What is the name of the Mr. Show version of the Playboy Bunnies? “The Mr. Show Objects.”

2). What do the Mr. Show Boys Clubs of America do? Include girls in the club, but don’t allow them to actually participate in any of the activities.

3). What party activity do the heavy metal band Wyckyd Sceptre engage in, though they are homophobes? Homosexuality.

4). What is the name of the episode (8) of the sci-fi series “Racist In The Year 3000”? “The Argos Checkmate.”

S4E3:

1). What is the song that David sings in the blooper reel that includes the lyric “emotion lotion”? Super Star Machine.

2). What is the major blooper David shows? Bob engaging in prostitution.

3). What does a young Bob call an abortion? A Gagortion.

4). What contests do Rhonda and Del Crow enter their unborn daughter into? Pre-Natal Beauty Pageants. 

5). What side job does Del Crow have to take in order to make ends meet? Kiss the elephants’ asses at the circus.

6). What special feature does the fancy restaurant The Burgundy Loaf offer? You can defecate into a box at the table while dining. 

S4E4/5:

1). What is the name of the Goodfellas movie parody? Pallies.

2).What are the Fairsley Foods 3 Golden Promises? Our stores are not constantly on fire, employees are free of active sores or lesions, and homeless people do not defecate in the aisles. 

3). What keeps happening during The Story of The Story of Everest? Thomas keeps on knocking his mother’s thimble collection off the wall.

4). How does David describe an eclipse to the blind woman? Like beautiful angels taking a beautiful nap.

5). How does the Dalai Lama beat the kids from the fat camp at the Summer “Olympican”? By rapping. 

S4E6:

1). What do Bob and David get the audience to do in memory of a deceased crew member? Hold their breath. 

2). Why does the cast have an intervention for David? To expose how badly Bob runs his interventions.

3). What investigative unit targets minor crime? The Car Wash Change Thief Action Squad.

4). What does the sign on the legendary Mother of Pearl diamond say? “Don’t steal.”

5). What body part does erotic magazine publisher Garry Flank focus on? The perineum (aka “taint”). 

S4E7:

1). What are the Mr. Show Smarty-Pants? A giant vat of custard used as punishment for being educated on current events. 

2). What does God come down to Earth to do? Narrate an audiobook.

3). What is the name of the unexplained mysteries show? Probings. 

4). What actor from this episode would go on to be a main cast member in the hit TV show “30 Rock”? Scott Adsit.

S4E8:

1). What do the African-American residents of Mississippi receive as reparations for slavery? A greeting card and a one-way bus ticket out of the State. 

2). What crime show is featured in this episode? America’s Dumbest Juries.

3). What do Edmund Premington’s adventure stories inevitably focus upon? The various effects his emotions have on his multiple scrotums.

4). What promotional gift do Bob and David give away during their fundraising drive? Fake poop.

S4E9:

1). Who is the alien child “He Who Watches All Television” based on? Clint Howard’s character Balok in the original Star Trek episode “The Corbomite Maneuver.”

S4E10:

1). What is the name of the entertainment news program investigating Josh Fenderman? Genuine Hollywood Factual Report. 

2). What motivational action did John Fenderman’s parents take? Building a glass mansion on a hill overlooking an economically disadvantaged area, so the impoverished could see the family’s lifestyle and be inspired. 

3). Who is goth rock character Marilyn Monster based upon? The real life rockstar Marilyn Manson. 

4). What is the name of goth rock rock pizza parlor chain Marilyn Monster owns? Marilyn Mozzarella’s Pizzarella Pie Parlour.

Mr. Show Quiz (Part One)

As many of you know, I am a big fan of science fiction film and television trivia. This includes the Nineties cult classic sketch comedy show Mr. Show With Bob and David, which gave many now famous comedians and actors the chance to shine in front of a mass audience (the show was a late night feature on HBO). Few these days even remember the show ever existing, so a bit of knowledge about it can make you lethal to your competitors in a trivia contest.

The following then is a (relatively) comprehensive overview of each episode in the series.

Be Advised: the show was a late night comedy from the mid-Nineties. Thus the quiz contains themes and words that may be offensive to some readers.

Season One: Episode One (S1E1)

1). What hit show is series co-star Bob Odenkirk most known for appearing on? Breaking Bad (or its spin-off Better Call Saul). 

2). What hit show is series co-star David Cross most known for appearing on? Arrested Development.

3). What hit crime show did series regular Mary Lynn Rajskub become known for? 24. 

4). What super-famous cartoon character is series main cast member Tom Kenny known for voicing? Spongebob Squarepants. 

5). What is the name of the one man show David presents music from? Hitler Sings. 

6). According to Bob, what are all the US states? Illinois, Indiana, Winketin, Tazini, and Chim-Cham.

S1E2:

1). What metaphor does Senator Tankerbell use to describe excessive arts funding (which is eventually turned into a musical)? An erotic story about a milking machine.

2). What problem does former homosexual and Christian conversion therapist Burton Quim have? He continuously and intentionally “relapses” into being gay.

3). What did the 13th Apostle of Christ (Marshall) do? Give presentations and sell motivational material to become rich and successful in life.

4). What is Globo-Chem’s corporate motto? “We own everything, so you don’t have to…”.

5). Which famous comedian makes his first appearance on Mr. Show in the episodes musical? Jack Black.

S1E3:

1). What does “The Unauthorized Biography of Mr. Show” consist of? Bob writing increasingly angry letters to David, who himself is wearing a dress, and writing to Globo-Chem for free products.

2). Which famous comedienne makes her first appearance on the show as David in a dress? Sarah Silverman. 

3). What is the name of the instructional (gay) pornographic film? Ramming Speed. 

4). What does Third Wheel Jerry think the definition of “honeymoon” is? To charter a boat and send it out into the ocean unmanned. 

5). What (then) relatively unknown ground-breaking comedienne is visible in the background during an audience portion of the Third Wheel Jerry sketch? Margaret Cho.

6). What did method actor Borden Grote do to prepare for a role in a movie about abuse in a psychiatric institute? Have the front part of his brain replaced with bubble wrap. 

S1E4:

1). Where is the Pope Hall of Fame located? Within a wing of the Football Hall of Fame. 

2). What problem does political performance artist Spank have? He is unable to defecate on the American flag.

3). What is Benjamin Franklin’s solution to people potentially defecating on the American flag? Make the flag itself out of fecal matter. 

4). What fascinating TV show do Bob and David watch on TV? Live footage of themselves being murdered, though the Bob and David themselves watching are not murdered.watching 

S2E1&2:

1). What do Bob and David declare Mr. Show? A Sovereign micro-nation.

2). What do the cast of Mr. Show, apart from David, think doesn’t exist? A talking junkie.

3). What do Mr. and Mrs Applesway think is the problem with their son Jimmy? He is not enthusiastic enough about the merchandise in their family run adult video store. 

4). What monosyllabic song does the soul duo 3X1 – 1 sing to the woman feeling suicidal? Ewww, Girl, Ewww…

5). What does the music channel WPCBCN’s name stand for? The White People Co-opting Black Culture Network.

6). What past criminal act do 3X1-1 thinks gives them street cred? Loitering.

7). What are the Homage Awards? Music awards given to white artists who co-opted black culture.

S2E3:

1). What teen show features three adults pretending to be teens, who complain about the issues they have with teenagers? No Adults Allowed.

2). Who does (adult) Kenny The Teenager think sang The Beatles hit, “Eight Days A Week”? The Nazis.

3). How are Craig and his fellow teens trying to contribute to society? Through crocheting, and making homemade fudge for the blind.

4). Though comedian Dave Chapelle is famous for portraying a black White Supremist on his eponymous show, what slacker-hating black Klu Klux Klan Grand Wizard character shows up on Episode 3 of Season 2 of Mr. Show? Marjoe Crawley.

5). What is the name of Jesus Chest Superstar parody? Jeepers Creepers Semi-Star.

6). What actress made famous by the movie Basic Instinct throws the first stone at Jeepers Creepers? Jeanne Tripplehorn.

S2E4:

1). What is the motto of the GV Corporation? “Where ideas can hang out, and do whatever…”. 

2). What does Van Hammersley do? Teach history, economics, science, and mathematics through billiards.

3). According to Senator Tankerbell, what problem do the Great Lakes have? They’re cluttered with water.

S2E5:

1). What did Bob Odenkirk’s parents force him to do? Make bets with them. 

2). What shocking revelation did Hitler make in 1938? That no one had ever touched his anus. 

3). What is the terrorist plot “Operation: Hell On Earth”? The song Carribbean Queen by Billy Ocean will be played on a loudspeaker from a rented van at 8:15 pm. 

4). Who is Famous Mortimer in the news sketch? Future King of Queens and Ratatouille star Patton Oswalt. 

5). What does Will Hawkins blame his father for? Making him a success in the little chocolate basketball business. 

6). How is Fartin’ Gary (Cross) heckled? By funnier farts from his rival Fartin’ Rudy (Odenkirk). 

7). What Kids In The Hall actor makes an appearance in this episode? Dave Foley.

S2E6:

1). What was Dickie Crickets a star of (in 1922)? Megaphone crooning. 

2). What was Kid Jersey’s megaphone crooning hit in 1925? Penicillin.

3). A fictitious couple meets at the end credits of the show and then gets married. What real life married couple plays the fictitious couple? Mr. Show main cast members Tom Kenney and Jill Talley.

S3E1:

1). What “Heaven’s Chimney” cult leader opens the show? “The Bob” (Bob Odenkirk). 

2). What does (comedienne Karen Kilgarif) pray for? That her houseguests won’t suspect she is serving a coffee substitute.

3). What is one of the special features of the new Devastator roller coaster? It spends 2 entire minutes underwater…

4). According to the film “The Limits of Science” how do we know what is true? Facts begin as dreams dreamt by a wizard.

5). According to the doctors, why is “Kevin” in a wheelchair? Because he is a lazy Satanist who loves pornography. 

S3E2:

1). What Canadian province is written on a map as “Sasquatch”? Alberta.

2). According to that same map what is the province of Saskatchewan famous for? The world’s largest indoor ladder.

3). What is the province of Manitoba renamed? Saskatchewan 2.

4). What is the province of Ontario renamed? Saskatchetario. 

5). Who is Tatiana? the “Weather Hermaphrodite.”

6). According to advertising, what is located south of Santa’s Village? The Cock Ring warehouse. 

7). What are the Cyrus Dewey Awards? An award the silent film actor Cyrus Dewey would give himself for making “such a brave choice” in portraying a mentally challenged character. 

8). What is Bob Lamonta’s sandwich consist of? Peanut butter, eggs, and dice. 

S3E3:

1). One of the twin girls introducing the show is Stacie Chan, who would go on to be nominated for an Emmy award for her work as ‘Jade Chan’ on what animated show? Jackie Chan Adventures. 

2). What social group is consumed by a deadly East versus West Coast feud? The world of ventriloquists. 

3). What does the newscaster mistakenly call the East Coast rapper? Professor Pickles. 

4). In the shoe store sketch, what did the job interviewee steal from NASA? Space plans. 

5). “(The Altered State of) Druggachusettes” is a parody of what (real life) semi-psychedelic children’s television series? H.R. Pufnstuf.

6). What pink, multi-eyed Druggachusettes character can taste colors? “Hallucino-Jenny.”

6/6 Film Festival: Part Two

As previously mentioned this weekend I am having a little private film “festival” and re-watching six movies related to a chosen theme. And since you may not have heard of these films or have access to them, I thought I would provide a little rundown of the proceedings in two parts. Today’s remaining three films (plus a last minute bonus addition!) continue our focus on “Women With Unique Problems,” in this case: a Japanese assassin, an Antarctic paleontologist, a tourist in Mexico battling flesh eating plants, and a giant moth.

Each individual faces problems forced upon them, and attempt to solve them with whatever limited resources they have at hand. Also, a reoccuring theme across such films as a genre is how the women have correctly sussed the situations they are in, and are usually ignored to the peril of those who refuse to listen to their advice or warning. 

4). The Thing (2011 version): 

This film is actually the third in a series, starting with The Thing From Another World (1951), followed by its remake The Thing (1982), which itself went on to become a classic from a golden age of sci-fi (1977 – 1985), which saw the release of such movies as Star Wars, DUNE, Bladerunner, The Thing, ALIEN, and many others.

In this film Kate Lloyd, a vertebrate paleontologist (and protagonist of the film), is summoned to the Antarctic by a Norwegian research team in order to examine the remains of a frozen alien. This bug-like creature turns out to not only be alive, but also extremely violent, and reproduces by invading host cells and copying them (essentially “shape-shifting” into the form of the very host they infect [a rather gory and disturbing process]). By the end of the film it is revealed that this version of The Thing is a prequel, one which sets up the first scene of the 1982 remake (the fleeing husky being chased by helicopter). It is interesting to note that, in order to not emulate the protagonist from the 1982 version (Kurt Russell), Kate is modelled after Ellen Ripley from the ALIEN franchise, a subordinate who is ignored to the peril of the rest of her crew.

5). Lady Snowblood: this classic Japanese vengeance movie concerns Sayo, a rape victim who was jailed for murdering one of her attackers, becomes pregnant with a daughter (Yuki), who is raised as an assassin in order to seek revenge on her mother’s behalf (after Sayo dies in childbirth). It was also the core inspiration for Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill movies, and is also a classic jidaigeki film, an “era-drama,” meaning a dramatic story involving samurai, loyalty, feudal intrigue, and such. In this case, Lady Snowblood is a genre of jidaigeki known as chanbara (sword-fighting film). A key feature of Yuki’s quest is how she is, in a manner of speaking, the final gasp of a feudal society moving in the modern era (from the 19th to 20th century), as the film is set in the early part of Japan’s Meiji Era. Her samurai-like skills, and fatalist dedication – combined with the choreographic beauty of her work and the film’s cinematography – create a visually gorgeous depiction of one woman seeking justice in a changing, yet yet continually unjust world. She is clearing out the filthy remnant to make way for what is next (which ends up being a modern nation with Imperialist intentions for the rest of Asia).

6). MOTHRA: 

Our sixth lady in the series is not human, but rather a giant Japanese moth. 

After nuclear tests are errantly done on an inhabited island a team of investigators are sent, and discover a tiny pair of twin fairies (sho-bijin: “small beauties”) tasked with guarding a giant egg (the god of the island). The sho-bijin are kidnapped by the expedition leader, and thus the sho-bijin summon the god (a giant caterpillar) within the egg. This caterpillar eventually reaches Japan and transforms into the dai-kaiju (giant monster) Mothra, who then lays waste to all before her until some benevolent humans themselves rescue the sho-bijin, draw Mothra to a local airport, and she safely flies away with her tiny friends. 

I have been a huge fan of Japanese dai-kaiju films for a long time now, and got to fulfill a bucket list item by seeing a Godzilla film in Japanese while actually living in Japan (I understood at least 50% of the dialogue, so that was also pretty damn encouraging for my language studies). The world may value cars and mansions and such, but for me there is no greater wealth than living in a place like Japan and enjoying the vast cultural treasures that are their fine art and popular cinematic traditions, music, literature, etc. So much amazing stuff…

7). The Ruins: 

A tourist named Amy and her friends are exploring the jungle when they come upon a small ancient Mayan temple. As they approach it some local villagers shout wildly at them in a language they do not recognize, and soon one of the group is murdered as he approaches the villagers to try and communicate with them. Amy and the rest are now stranded on the temple, as the villagers refuse to let them leave the clearing in which the temple sits. It soon becomes clear why they are so animated: the temple is covered in flesh eating vines. It now becomes a race against time and nature as the group battle the encroaching vines, and dehydration, and try to figure out a plan of escape without being killed by the villagers.

In this case it is Amy herself who jeopardizes the group, as she inadvertently comes in contact with the vines before knowing what they are, and triggers the villagers into violent action, including euthanizing one of their own children after coming into contact with vines Amy throws at them in anger.

Amy is played by actress Jena Malone, most famous for her role as Johanna Mason in the Hunger Games film franchise. Malone does a great job of playing up how out of her element Amy is, and how she deals with the fact that they are all essentially doomed because of her actions. 

In a few weeks time I will be having another little recreational mini-film festival of early 20th century comic shorts, so I hope you will enjoy following along on the blog…

6/6 Film Festival: Part One

Hello, and welcome to my “6/6” Film Festival.

This weekend of Jan. 6 I have decided to have my own little private film “festival” and re-watch six movies related to a chosen theme. And since you may not have heard of these films or have access to them, I thought I would provide a little rundown of the weekend in two parts. Today’s three films – and indeed all of them – are going to focus on “Women With Unique Problems,” in this case: a 17th century Puritan teenager, a warrant officer battling super-violent aliens in space, and a Japanese zombie trying to survive a world full of cruel humans.

Each woman faces problems forced upon them, and attempt to solve them with whatever limited resources they have at hand. In each case they are ignored when they offer what may be the most beneficially impactful information or action at hand, and the results are as tragic as heroic.

1). The Witch:

This film asks a simple question. What if you were a 17th century teenage Puritan girl, and suddenly you were suspected of being a witch by your own family (after the strange disappearance of your infant brother)? Then-newcomer Anya Taylor-Joy gives a great performance as the girl (Thomasin), who must deal with puberty, the excessive religiosity of her parents, and the slow break down of the family as their crops fail, the younger children become more fractious, and as it turns out, the family’s 210-pound billy goat Black Phillip possibly being the Devil himself. Thomasin’s battle against the chaos within her family, and the dark forces seemingly gathering around outside, makes her decisions pretty much inevitable, if not unavoidable. 

2). ALIEN 3:

This third installment in the ALIEN film franchise is certainly not the greatest, but in my opinion decent if viewed as a kind of interesting “set-up” to the events of the fourth film, “ALIEN: Resurrection.”  

The franchise features actress Sigourney Weaver as Lt. Ellen Ripley, a warrant officer and sole survivor of an encounter with a violent alien life form (ALIEN). After being rescued by deep-space salvagers while in a decades long cryo-sleep, she is legally forced to accompany a team of soldiers to a terraforming colony that has gone radio-silent, a colony that just so happens to be on the same planet Ripley encountered the alien. After most of the team is wiped out, Ripley destroys the colony and escapes to the mothership, where she must battle a giant mother (Queen) Alien in order to save a small girl, an android, and an injured soldier from certain death (ALIENS). After doing so Ripley and one of the aliens end up being the lone survivors following the ship’s escape pod crash on a harsh planet containing a penal colony filled with inmates genetically predisposed to psychopathy (ALIEN 3).

As the alien starts killing the inmates Ripley also discovers that there is also a Queen implanted within her, and must figure out how to kill both, since the penal colony is a decommissioned foundry and there are no weapons beyond simple tools. Time is running out, and Ripley must also contend with the fact that the corporation for which she worked has sent a “rescue” team in order to capture the alien for bioweapons research, or do such research on Ripley herself. 

The ALIEN franchise are not the first sci-fi horror films, but certainly the most famous, due to the ferocity of the aliens themselves, and how they are implanted by a face-hugging parasite then burst out through their victim’s chest. Ripley had previously spent so long in cryo-sleep that her daughter had grown old and died in the interim, so this new “pregnancy” of Ripley’s (and the fact that the alien on the loose won’t harm her in order to facilitate the birth of a new Queen) provides her with the opportunity to rid the Universe of the aliens once and for all, as far as she can tell. The alien is eventually killed, while Ripley herself kills the Queen within by diving into a pool of boiling lead. 200 years later genetic material found on site is used to clone Ripley, and the Queen within her (ALIEN: Resurrection), and once again mayhem ensues. 

3). Miss Zombie: this 2013 Japanese horror film is my favorite zombie film of all time. Though such films are usually either straight horror or comedy, this one is more social critique, as it turns the genre in on itself. For example, the standard zombie film features a small group of humans struggling to survive a mass outbreak of some virus that turns humans into zombies. In this case a doctor and his family own a zombie (Sara) with a low viral count, which are captured, domesticated, and then used as domestic servants or “pets.” As the zombie herself goes through abuse and even rape, it is she who must figure a way to survive in a world full of monsters, i.e. the humans that mistreat her. But one day the family’s young son drowns, and the only way to revive him is to be zombified, which eventually leads to his estrangement from his own mother, and a growing bond with Sara. Though this movie is a dark comedy, it is more dark than comic, but a fascinating take on what it means to be human, as demonstrated by a former human herself. 

The Two Minute Rule

Hello everyone! I hope your 2024 is off to a great start, and you have some big plans ahead. But unfortunately many give up on their big plans mere days into a new year. Why is that? The resolutions and goals you set may be healthy and noble, but they just always seem to fizzle out almost immediately. In my opinion that is because such resolutions and goals have not been developed into habits first.

In the book “Atomic Habits” by James Clear, the author points out that while goals are results, habits are the systems that produce results. Thus, if you have a great system in place, your original goals (and even greater, unimagined ones) will automatically result. This is a pretty big claim, so how can we know this to be true? 

Because a strong habit produces immediate and clear results, whether they be good or bad. A strong habit has four elements, what Clear describes as its four “laws”: they are simple to understand, irresistible (you want to do it), easy to do, and feel good doing. So the author spends the rest of the book explaining how to conceptualize and develop the habits that will lead to your best living: how to be constantly improving rather than struggling.

One handy tip is the “Two Minute Rule.” When you start a new habit it should take less than 2 minutes to do. This ritualizes the process so you can easily expand it to 5 minutes, then 10, then on to 30, and so on. Thus you need to standardize the habit before optimizing it. It is kind of like Exposure Therapy. If you are overly afraid of spiders, then a psychologist will help you find ways to slowly “negotiate” that fear within yourself: look at pictures of happy cartoon spiders, then look at regular pictures of non-venomous spiders, then take a trip to the pet store to look at tarantulas in their cages, and so on. 

The Two Minute Rule can be seen as a similar kind of negotiation, and it totally works. If you seek to limit something you want to do, you end up wanting to do it longer as well, because it satisfies at least two elements of a strong habit (easy and desirable). These negotiations become a fun game in themselves and can be used for anything. If I am too tired to tidy my office I can always “compromise” by merely putting one book back on the shelves. At that point I usually say to myself, “well since I am doing one book I can always just grab the other ones on the desk and put them away too…” which almost always leads me to tidying the whole office anyways. You can literally get most anything done if you start doing the easiest, funnest version of it for a minute or two

So if you are serious about making 2024 a significantly better year than 2023 I highly recommend reading “Atomic Habits,” or start using the Two Minute Rule right away. In fact, here is my January Challenge to you:

Try doing some household task for only 30 seconds, in an easy and fun way. If you do it a few times a day, just for fun, the results will be clear…

2023 FIFA WWC: FINAL!

So after a couple of weeks of exciting football we were down to the last couple of Quarter Finals and the Semi-Finals:

1). Semi-Final #1 (Spain vs. Sweden): In a thrilling final minute in normal time Spain’s Olga Cormona scored a gorgeous arc-ing goal, beating Sweden 2 – 1 and heading to their first Final.

2). Quarter Final #3: Australia vs. France… no score at the Half, after both some great Australian attacks and great goal line defense by the French. They eventually go to a thrilling Penalty Shootout, 10 rounds (20 kicks, the longest P-S in women or men’s World Cup history), and Australia wins it in front of a wild hometown crowd. This means they will face England or Colombia in the Semi-Final…

3). Quarter Final #4: England defeats Colombia, setting up what could be an epic Semi-Final with Australia (set for tomorrow morning). Absolutely fantastic series of games from the Round of Sixteen up to now, so who knows what will happen. If Australia goes to the Final and WINS it in front of their home crowd they will be permanent legends in their nation’s sports history. Go Matildas!!

4). Semi-Final #2 (Australia vs. England): After (European champions) England go up 1 – 0 in the first half Australian mega-star Sam Kerr equalises with a gorgeous goal from a lonnnng way out, and the Aussie fans are getting an absolutely fantastic game for their money. England gets yellow-carded for time wasting (including bringing a second ball onto the pitch knowing full well the Aussie goalkeeper has one in her hand), but in the end it’s England going into their first Final ever with a 3 – 1 win.

Sweden played Australia in the match for 3rd place (beating the hosts 2 – 0), leaving only the Final left tomorrow morning: Spain vs. England for the whole tournament. It is hard to say who will be victorious. Spain have won once, drawn once, and lost three times in their last five meetings with England. Spain has also won four times and lost once in their last five matches, while England have won all five. But Spain know how to build plays up from practically nothing and have been the most successful in the tournament at keeping possession of the ball, so I am predicting a Spanish victory. The odds are against them, but I have a feeling Spain will find a way. ¡¡Victoria para España!!

RESULT: … 30 minutes in Olga Carmona puts it into England’s goal, and it’s Spain 1 – 0 at the Half. They hang on and win the game.

¡Enhorabuena, España!

2023 FIFA WWC: Round of Sixteen!

After an amazing couple of weeks the 2023 FIFA Women’s World (soccer) Championship has been an incredible experience, with a lot of great and shocking moments. Not only did Brazilian superstar Marta daSilva (aka MARTA) not score a goal during the tournament, but Sarina Bolden scored The Philippines’ first ever World Cup goal!! A wonderful little header off of a corner kick, New Zealand’s goaltender could not control it as it practically bounced off and back away from her face after it had flown through a gap in her arms. The Philippines held on, and in a stunning 1- 0 upset achieved their first ever World Cup win. Pagbati !!!

And not only did Panama’s Marta Cox score her country’s first ever World Cup goal with a gorgeous bender, Colombia’s Linda Caicedo – a survivor of ovarian cancer she was diagnosed with at age 15 (!!) – has become the first person to play in the U-17, U-20, and FIFA World Cups within a single year (!!) (and scored a goal in Colombia’s 2 – 0 victory over South Korea).

Most unbelievable though is not only did Sinclair or Marta not score the record-breaking goal… but Canada, superteam Brazil, and world number two GERMANY are out of the competition (!!!), with Brazil being taken out by Jamaica, the first Caribbean team to ever go beyond group play. Meanwhile, thanks to the stats, MOROCCO (No. 77 in the world) are through to the Round of Sixteen in their first World Cup ever. The women are putting on an incredible show, and who knows what magic is going to occur in the upcoming Round of Sixteen.

As it stands the following games are set:

A Side: Switzerland vs. Spain, The Netherlands vs. South Africa, Japan vs. Norway, and Sweden vs. the USA in what could be an epic game.

B Side: England vs. Nigeria, Columbia vs. Jamaica (aka The Reggae Girls), host Australia vs. Denmark, and France vs. history making Morocco.

I predict Spain with a big victory over the Swiss and The Netherlands going past South Africa to meet each other in the Quarter Final, with The Netherlands going past everyone else in their on the way to the Final. This means that Japan goes past Norway while Sweden somehow beats the USA (who themselves are looking for their third Championship in a row). It seems unlikely, but I have a feeling the USA will be so busy attacking they may leave some defensive gaps that Sweden could exploit. Sweden has beat them in the past, so the USA can’t let a lot of time pass without getting those goals happening. Japan meets Sweden (maybe?), and goes on to meet The Netherlands.

Meanwhile England beats Nigeria (though Nigeria is definitely a contender if they play their own style of game), Jamaica goes past Columbia and eventually England. Australia and France win their games meaning France goes past Australia to meet Jamaica, and eventually on to the Final against The Netherlands. Finally, The Netherlands win the whole thing.

RESULTS:

A-SIDE: Spain, The Netherlands, and Japan win. Spain thus meets The Netherlands in the Quarter Final. Sweden and the USA go to a Penalty Shoot-Out, and after five shots each SWEDEN wins (after the US goalie stopped the ball, but it was over the line when she did). So it’s Japan vs. Sweden in the Quarter Final.

B-SIDE: England stays drawn with Nigeria 0 – 0 with an English player (Lauren James) being red-carded (sent off the field) for stomping on the back of a Nigerian player at the 86th minute. So England then resumes with 10 players against Nigeria’s standard eleven. The game went to a Penalty Shoot-Out, with England going through. It was a great game for Nigeria, as they fought hard to keep the score even for so long. Australia and Denmark were then up right afterward, with Australia winning 2 – 0. A beautiful moment occurred when Australian star Samantha Kerr finally came onto the pitch, and the crowd of more than 75,000 people (!!) stood and roared with approval. Kerr is widely considered to be the reason or motivation for Australia (and New Zealand) getting the chance to host this competition, guaranteeing completely packed stadiums, and the drama surrounding whether she would be able to come back from injury and play.

Now England will play Colombia, who went past Jamaica (and become the second South American team to ever make it to the Quarter Finals… and Australia will play France. Meanwhile, Spain went past The Netherlands 2 – 1, and Sweden went past Japan with a 2 – 1 score as well… so as always my predictions are fairly incorrect.

2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup

Well folks it is finally off and running… the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Championship (soccer), being held this year in both Australia and New Zealand. Though the men’s championship is the largest and arguably the most prestigious sporting event in the world, the women’s championship series is equally as important and exciting, if one comes to understand the key players and how the game is developing globally.

For example, both Brazil’s legendary Marta and Canada’s Christine Sinclair are looking to become the the first person ever (male or female) to score a goal in six World Cups. Sinclair failed to do so in Canada’s opening game against Nigeria, so Marta has a golden chance today in her game against Panama in a few hours. And before that game happens Germany will be playing Morocco, the first North African team to appear in the WWC (which will feature defender Nouhaila Benzina, the first woman ever to wear a hijab at the tournament). All teams will be competing to take the winner’s trophy from the USA, who themselves are looking to win an incredible three World Championships in a row!

The competition also includes newcomers Viet Nam, who put on a great defensive performance against world champions USA… including a great stop by their goaltender Trần Thị Kim Thanh against American and international superstar Alex Morgan. Viet Nam lost the game 3 – 0, which is still a respectable score considering their lack of international experience. People were expecting a rout much like the USA’s 13 – 0 defeat of Thailand a few years back, but Viet Nam held the USA to 3, which took an incredible and valiant effort on their part. That is the beauty of soccer; even a losing match can be an epic display of greatness.

So if you are not a soccer fan, tune in to the 2023 Women’s World Cup anyways, and get to know the players and what is at stake for each team. It is a great game played by great people, and worth every second of your time.

Me? I’m cheering for Marta, Germany, Christine Sinclair, Japan, and Canada.

R.I.P. Wayne Shorter (1933 – 2023)

It is with a heavy heart that I inform you that one of my jazz saxophone heroes Wayne Shorter has passed away at the age of 89.

What can be said about about this towering genius that hasn’t already been said a million times before? His modern, plaintive saxophone tone was completely original, many of his compositions are not only standard jazz songs, but the cream of the crop amongst the most legendary standards themselves, e.g. the wistful minor-key waltz “Footprints.”

I had the chance to sit down one-on-one with Wayne for a couple of hours many years ago, and our conversation was so incredibly uplifting to me as fellow saxophonist, gleaning treasures from the mind of a transcendental jazz master. His improvising, composing, all that he did, was like no other, and his passing marks the end of a significant era of jazz saxophone playing.

Now that both front men from the iconic late 1960s Miles Davis jazz quintet are gone we can be extra-thankful that we were around to see or hear that music in the first place, with our beloved Wayne Shorter recordings at our side to carry us through this sad moment.

R.I.P. Wayne… and thank you from the deepest part my soul for all the beauty you brought…