Fall Down Seven Times, Stand Up Eight

"Fall down seven times, stand up eight."

Dad, dad, dad... I can hear you, but has your voice grown so dim? Or perhaps has mine grown too loud?

What a night. 

Abbey gets home and takes me out to the Brookline Pub. We get hit on, multiple times, NATCHY, and like the nice kiddos that we are we build egos and grant confidence. Oh you sweettalker. Oh you charmer. Oh stop. 

We got a free fuckin' bucket o' burr. Miller High Life. Me fav. Hoagies n' beers. Man... this is the fuckin' life fo sho... BUTT it doesn't stop there. See what I did there? Butt? HAHA. Get it?! Like 'but,' butt with two Ts. I'm so fummy. Anyhoo, YOGABUTTS. ALL OUT ON DISPLAY. Barbell pierced nipples on perky little jiggly titties unencumbered by bras... I am so fucking lucky to have a girlfriend that's almost as big of a pervert as me... Older woman wanted Abbey, blatantly. Two young bi or gay bartenders wanted her, OBVIOUSLY, we both had our share of attention from the dudely type but I shared just one bartender with her, the other being a crush by me but clearly crushing on Abs -only- and then a few other (what can I say) lovely young lasses that seemed to fancy gaining my attention and maintain eye contact while engaging in probing conversation.

"Time is on your side so use it wisely to bring others with you on your rise to the top."


I keep hearing this in my head over and over...

Weird little synch while seeing Shredder among numerous posts among 60+ tabs of tumblr archives open right whilst researching the phrase "Fall Seven Times And Stand Up Eight." Synchronicity, we call that. Not a coincidence. 60+ tabs? That have been open for 3+ days? Looking up the phrase... just so happen to see it among rows and rows of posts amid a randomly chosen 1 of 60 tumblr archive? Yeah. Come on now... Anyhoooooo....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_proverbs

七転八起

"It should be 七転び八起き (nana korobi ya oki), but if you want it more concise you could make it 七転八起(sichi ten hatsu ki).

 Note:
七 (seven) is pronounced in either nana or sichi.
転 (fall, rotate ...) in either koro(bu) or ten.
八 (eight) in either ya or hachi/hatsu.
起 (rise, stand up ...) in either oki(ru) or qui.

The second one (七転八起) is made up of only Chinese characters, and in this case the different pronunciation is applied to each character, while conveying exactly the same meaning."

弱肉強食 -- (jaku niku kyō shoku)
Literally: The weak are meat; the strong eat.
Meaning: Survival of the fittest.

I need some friends. A team. 

Do you want to be on my team? 

Oh look! Another beer... how'd this get in my pocket... tee hee... teeheehee... don't worry. It was from the free bucket, that we free-paid for. The one bartender girl brought me another special ($2.25) Coor's Light without my directly asking and then "accidentally" left our bucket of 5 High Lifes (High Lives? - It's a brand though... High Life... plural should be High Lifes... as wrong as that may seem...) off the bill? I'd asked for the bucket shortly after she'd replaced my empty so methinx she felt bad for bringing another without asking what I'd like or if I was done... No harm done though, leaving both the 3rd beer and the entire off the bucket won her a delicious tip and the aim of casual returned service.

*Dane Cook voice a la girls who "just need to dance"* I JUST NEED TO WRITE. I just need it out of me. I don't know how much longer I can let paranoia and past instances of plagiary and thievery beguile me from releasing my secrets into record. 

shit. i'm too tired (11:08 -- Abbey's Birthday Hour/Minute) i'ma cuddle up behind her and go asweepies... can't decide if should publish this now and edit tomorrow or edit tomorrow and publish then... perhaps shower........ yes..... shower........

OH SHIT. I HEARD MY AMIIBO ALERT BEEP FROM NOWINSTOCK.NET. 

Got a hit for an in stock at Target... for Jiggly puff, initial investigation reveals little, further investigation pending shower...

4.6.15 -- Happy 21st Birthday, Jacob!! 

4.7 -- frying fish at 4am. What else would I be doing?

4.7 - 5:56p -- Am I falling behind? Is this too disjointed? Will I be able to edit it together? -SHOULD- I? Why should I? 

Listening to 'The Moonlight Sonata.' My all time favorite piece of classical music with 'A Night On Bald Mountain' a very close second. 

Windows are open. Fans are on. Most dishes are done. The kitchen is mostly clean. There's still two portions of fried fish in the fridge for later.

I hope Abbey enjoyed her fried mushrooms! ^_______^

Talked with Channing last night. Always what the doctor ordered. Man, I gotta hang out with that kid more. 

"Wa (和) or harmony, then, is a key value in Japanese society. One can indeed live a life in the pursuit of individual happiness and self-actualization while at the same time living a life that values being a part of a community and contributing to the society in which one lives." 

"Fall down seven times, stand up eight."

自主制作アニメーション『the TV show』

Good things come in threes, apparently. What kind of a monster would I be if I didn't share these things? This is top-notch animation, a truly unique experience. I highly recommend you watch it.

DyE "Fantasy" by Jérémie Périn

Haven't really been in the mood to post something that I didn't write or create firsthand for a while, but this was just too unique not to share.

Without spoiling it for you, I'd like you to note the two distinctive halves to the narrative, and hopefully agree with my assessment that either half could stand alone by itself. Combined together, simply sublime. Any time I'm on the internet, this is exactly what I'm hoping to find.

Personally, this is one of the most beautiful and sublime images I have ever seen.

100 Days In Japan (Hopefully)

A chance to go to Japan for 100 days AND GET PAID TO DO IT.
A chance to go to Japan for 100 days and BE PAID TO WRITE ABOUT IT.


This is literally like a once in a lifetime, dream-come-true sorta thing.


"On 24th December 2011, after completing its mission of travelling 100 days and reporting from all over Japan, the Travel Volunteer will transform into Santa Claus and deliver Christmas Presents to displaced children in the Tohoku region!" This is tailor-made for me. I've always wanted to be Santa Claus when I grow up. Santa Claus in Japan? That's so perfect it's scary!

Getting paid to blog... Is this real-life?

I'm filling out the application form now.

I filled out a good portion of the form, but I'm holding off on submitting it because I wanna make sure it's PERFECT. This is a completely sublime chance and I'm not about to let it slide through my fingers thanks to some poor grammar or an incomplete thought. I'm goin' at this samurai style. One slice, one kill. Everything in my entire being. Burning myself up completely and leaving no trace.

I'm going to list all of my Japan related hopes and dreams and put them into the appropriate section on the application. I hope they don't think me too greedy... ^_____^ I have a lot I want to do!

大和魂

Why I should be chosen.

I'm extremely personable. Charismatic, even. I love meeting new people and I get along with just about everyone I meet. Going to Japan has been a long-standing goal of mine and I've been completely engrossed in Japanese culture for well over a decade. I love absolutely everything about Japan. I even hope to pick up more of the language, and I anticipate I'll be able to do so relatively quickly/easily thanks to being fully immersed in Japanese-speaking society. Such a beautiful language. Both spoken and written. Name something Japanese-related, and I'll bet you that I love it. Samurai, sushi/sashimi, anime, video games, martial arts, Nintendo, Ghibli, robots, Zen, manga.

I love eating, working out, , watching movies, playing videogames, photography, writing, blogging, drawing, learning, and of course, learning about Japan!

Another trait that makes me a good candidate for selection is that I regularly maintain a blog now anyway, so it would be an extremely easy transition. I love to write! Especially on the internet! Some other pros to choosing me: I have a job that would understand. I have a safe place for my belongings during the 100 days.

I can't say it enough times and enough ways: This would literally be like a dream coming true for me.

In addition to all of that my birthday is actually on Christmas Eve and I've always wanted to be Santa Claus! I'm rather tall/large and I can grow a beard quickly, we might only need to dye it! To the kids I'll be the real thing!

What is my dream?


Like I've said, THIS literally would be my dream coming true. Getting to go to Japan for free is one thing, but for 100 days and essentially being paid to blog about it? Absolutely perfect. I've also always had what I thought was an unrealistic dream: to one day become Santa Claus. However, seeing as how as part of the package is transforming into Santa and handing out presents to the kids, this too will come true and combine with being in Japan to be simply sublime.


The only way this could fulfill even more of my dreams is if I also learned how to control my ki and fly and then went Super Saiyan! Haha! 


Here is a huge list of things that any one of would fulfill the function of my dream. I'd be happy with absolutely any single one.

- Simply going to Japan.

- Finding, acquiring and learning to wield an authentic Katana.

- Dressing in full Samurai regalia and getting pictures of it.

- Kendo

- Sumo

- Zazen

- Visit and sit in a real authentic onsen, get to wear (and maybe keep) a yukata and zori during/afterward.

- Meeting Akira Toriyama

 - Have him draw me DBZ style, get to keep it.

- Eating superfresh sushi and sashimi, and maybe learning how to slice some.

- Meeting and getting a picture with Shigeru Miyamato.

- Miyazaki Museum

  - Pictures/memorabilia

  - Meeting and getting a picture with Miyazaki.

- Visit Pokemon Center

- Pictures/video of the legendary Shibuya crossing.

 - Akihabra/Harajuku

- Osaka

- Tokyo

- Obtain authentic kimono and hakama. Tabi too.

- Picture of me with Mt. Fuji in background and a cherry blossom tree.

- Meeting and getting a picture with Kentaro Miura.

- I would like to retrace all or at least a portion of Basho's trail.

- Visit the grave sites of Akira Kurosawa and Shunryu Suzuki. (If located in Japan.)

- Meeting and getting a picture with Utada Hikaru.

- DOING THE OSAKA BANG THING!!!

- Learning how samurais and monks shaved their heads. Getting one.

- I would like to impress at least one local with pronunciation.

- Practice a character/phrase with calligraphy.

- Green tea ceremony.

- Aikido.

- A holographic Pikachu a la Hatsune Miku. (That one's for free, Miyamoto-sama. ;D)

- It would be an honor to run the Ninja Warrior course.

- I would like to be on a wacky Japanese game show.

- DRESSING UP AS SANTA CLAUS AND GIVE GIFTS TO ALL THE CHILDREN!!

- Learning to fly!

- Going Super Saiyan!

There is so much I want to do in Japan that this list could go on forever and ever. So I'll summarize again: simply being in Japan will be a dream come true. 

I thank you for taking the time to review my application and I thank you in advance if I am chosen, I promise I will do my very best at exemplifying why everyone should go to Japan. It will sincerely be my pleasure. It already is.

Hayaku: A Time Lapse Journey Through Japan

Hayaku: A Time Lapse Journey Through Japan from Brad Kremer on Vimeo.

Osaka Bang