mizanation

that's all for now.

i just got some great news, kamida-san just finished making my new wallet. can't wait to see it! will post pics later.

peace out.

finally the goat arrived!

hiro and i ordered the super-sized goat combo.

first, goat stew. the stew was great!

some kind of dish made out of solidified goat's blood.

goat sashimi. raw goat is a little tough, but tasty.

and last but not least, sliced raw goat testicles. they were actually pretty tender.

nothing puts a smile on my face like goat testicles!

we decided to take hiro out for a going-away dinner. he wanted to try okinawa's famous goat stew, "yagi-jiru." we invited dr. bj to come along.

yagi-jiru is an okinawan specialty. the soup is known to make men very virile. kinda like viagra soup.

the taste is very pungent and even most locals don't like to eat it. luckly, i love goat, so i was looking forward to this.

looking over the menu.

heart-warming picture of a goat mother and child. i guess it's supposed to get you in the mood to feast on their flesh.

goat figurines.

hiro saying goodbye to some ladies.

this is hideki. a very deep and interesting dude and all-around cool guy.

zen's bar is where many of the local bikers hang out. he has been a part of the biker community here for over 10 years.

today, members of the philippines chapter of american steel were here.

hiro with a member from the okinawan chapter.

these guys were awesome.

hiro with the president of the okinawan chapter.

zen-san decided to throw a going away party for hiro at his bar.

when i got there, the bar was full of members from the okinawan chapter of the american steel motorcycle club.

these guys are a bunch of rough and rowdy dudes who you don't want to mess with. they are completely politically incorrect and shockingly offensive, but at the same time, unbelievably respectful. what i was impressed with the most was how loyal they are to their biker family. the respect that they gave to the elder members of the club was incredible. at the same time, these guys were fucking awesome to hang out with. there was all-you-can-drink beer and by the end of the night, everyone was pretty shit-faced. they made me feel like a part of their family and i feel lucky to have been able to see a part of okinawa that isn't in the travel guides.

thanks, american steel.

so, our good friend hiro is leaving okinawa. hiro is an authentic bad-ass. he's from japan, but has lived half his life in the united states. he is a true mix of japanese and u.s. culture--he loves harleys and heavy metal, but also is trained in japanese tea ceremony and is a 2 degree blackbelt in judo. you don't meet a lot of people like hiro, and even when you do, you don't know them for long because they keep on going to their next adventure.

he rode his harley to okinawa and was originally going to stay for just a week. unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it), he got hit by a student car driver, breaking his leg and sending him to the hospital. his leg eventually healed up and in the meantime, he made a bunch of good friends here on this island. what was originally supposed to be a week long drive through okinawa became a 5 month stay.

now, the time has come for him to get on his bike and go on another adventure. even he doesn't know where he is going next--maybe the u.s., maybe france or even australia. wherever he goes, i'm looking forward to hearing about his crazy escapades.

a couple nights ago, i visited my friend mitch's new art cafe. mitch is a really cool dude. he's a self-taught jazz piano player from baltimore and has a real nice herbie hancock sound on the fender rhodes. this guy is sick on the keys. he has also lived in okinawa for half his life.

his cafe is super dope. it's got sick custom made leather furniture and a rotating selection of artwork on the walls. right now, he is showcasing an indonesian artist.

we discussed his ideas on jazz theory and we talked about the music scene here. we're gonna get a jam session together with some other local musicians and hopefully start a jazz/hip hop/fusion band. something like return to forever + head hunters + roots + miles electric. should be fun!

what are the chances that i would meet someone on this island who has the exact same musical perspective that i do? everyday, i'm surprised by the people i meet here.

going to a mcdonald's in okinawa is a pleasant experience. the staff is always friendly, the food is well prepared, the facilities are sanitary. plus, the bring the food to you, which was a welcomed surprise for me.

they even have the mcrib here!

service with a smile.

dark animal, that's salt!

makeman finally opened!

great success! i got my powerdrill! now, i can rock and roll.

a couple mornings ago, we went to makeman.

they are having a sale this week and every day of the week, they are selling certain items at rock bottom prices. today, i have my eyes on a nice power drill.

the only problem is only 20 people get it at this price. 30 minutes before the store opens, i have to get in line and get a ticket.

so, we got up early in the morning and headed towards makeman.

we saw dozens of kids walking to school.

we got to makeman, and got in line.

a lady came by and gave us a ticket. kinda like willy wonka and the chocolate factory.

now that we have our ticket, we don't need to wait in line. we went back to the car, ate a bento and took a nap.

the other day, i made some curry.

i like to grind my own garam masala and luckily i found most of the spices i need here in town.

gotta run to the furniture store, but here are some pics of a flea market i went to a couple weeks ago. i took the pics with my phone so they don't look great but i wanted to show you guys how colorful the streets are here where i live.

^^^ wow, that's pretty cool. i will try to make it to the one on sunday.

i had a crazy day and crazy night last night. will upload pics later!

good news, i removed the lens and put it back on and auto focus works again! updates later.

i'm gonna keep it old-school manual today.

so, my beloved Nikon D40 is having auto-focus issues, which makes things annoying.

probably gonna have to get it fixed. please be patient while i work out the technical difficulties.

dips are very, very wobbly. i'm thinking i need to put some sandbags on the legs.

click here to find out what the mystery package is:

http://www.mizanation.com/ddplus1/pullup/1.jpg

http://www.mizanation.com/ddplus1/pullup/2.jpg

http://www.mizanation.com/ddplus1/pullup/3.jpg

http://www.mizanation.com/ddplus1/pullup/4.jpg

http://www.mizanation.com/ddplus1/pullup/5.jpg

are you gonna tell us what this is miz?

i'm thinking of sending a prize to the first person who guesses what it is. so, i'll give you guys a couple more days.

*edit* someone guessed it. so, contest is over. look at my post below to see what it is.

next to the candy factory, there was a little wedding chapel on the beach. japanese people love to get married on the beach.

this couple just got married at the chapel and are getting their photos taken on the beach.

it was a nice day, sunny but not too hot.

i got my feet wet a little.

we drove through the sugarcane fields to get back to okinawa city.

that's it for now, perhaps more later....

japanese toilets are pretty interesting. let me give you a little tour. not all japanese toilets are like this, but sometimes you will see toilets like this in people's homes or in a store.

many store bathrooms have disinfectant spray you can use to wipe the seat.

this is the interesting part. with this control panel you can control several options to liven up your toilet experience. the button with the red square is to stop whatever the toilet is doing. on the right of that is to turn on a little nozzle that comes out and sprays warm water right at your ass hole. to the right of that is a button for women that sprays water at the coochie. the button to the right of that turns on a dryer that dries your ass. the dial on the right controls the power of the water stream.

ok, many foreigners make the mistake of thinking that you can just let the water stream do all the work. this is not true! you have to wipe first. the stream is there just to give your ass that extra bit of cleanliness. if you don't wipe first, it can get pretty messy. so, please, wipe then use the water spray.

also, to help conserve water, there are two flush settings on many japanese toilets. for number 1's, you pull the lever back towards you. for number 2's, you push the level forward away from you.

they have the factory in the back.

and of course, what's a japanese corporate sign without a touch of engrish?

next, we went to a nearby okinawan candy factory. that big red dome is a giant traditional okinawan hat. kinda like an okinawan sombrero.

this is one of okinawa's most famous candies. it's made out of okinawan sweet potatoes, which are purple.

okinawan salt is famous for its nutritional value and its taste. many people believe its one of the secrets of okinawan longevity and vitality.

candies shaped like shisa.

more candies...

they had a bunch of shisa figurines. in okinawa, you see shisa everywhere. they are always outside peoples houses and are one of okinawa's most famous symbols. they are lion-dogs that guard the entrances to homes and businesses. i have two small shisa that i put next to my computer to guard it from viruses and spamware.

next, we went to the yomitan cliffs.

the cliffs are made of limestone.

there were a bunch of people fishing off the face of the cliffs.

in 1990, okinawa was hit by a super-typhoon. this rock weighing 100 US tons was tossed over here. here i am trying to move it back.