Does my bum look big in this?

Ahh... just blogging away... I haven't blogged for a while. I sometimes feel like I have to have something so very interesting, so very Japanese to write about before I can blog. It's funny though how sometimes life is just so normal over here. I go to work. I live in the suburbs. I catch up with friends. I go to the occassional movie in English. It's just really quite normal somedays. I was laughing with a friend just recently about how people back home might think "Wow, they're living in Japan, how exciting", yet the reality is I often go home on a Friday night after work and the gym, put on a pair of tracksuit pants and settle into some takeaway and a DVD with Wayne. And I love it!

One exciting thing that did happen this week though, was I got an email from the Japanzine to tell me that two of my photos had made it into the finals of the "Gaijin Eye" photo competition! One of them was a picture that I took when I went photograph training in a Sumo Beya (stable). You can see it above. The other was a Geisha picture I took in Kyoto while we were on our honeymoon in March. The issue will be coming out soon (also available on-line) so keep an eye out for it!

Wayne finished work for the year yesterday. His final week was at an elementary school. As usual, he was used as a climbing gym by the younger kids. He was pretty happy that after the week was over, he had only been patted on the balls once (by a girl I might add) and only had one "half-hearted" attempt at the "koncho".

Mmm.. the "koncho" I found someone else who can explain it better than me. He writes:

Roughly translated, koncho means "illigitimate enema." That is probably the
worst translation of all time. The kids make a fake gun with their fingers, and
shove it up my butt! If I could translate the word Koncho, and I think I can, I
would call it a "Foul proud that invokes immediate anger." Its lightyears beyond
what I was used to as a kid, the "purple nurple." A short squeeze of the nipple
was always sure to get a chuckle. Let me tell you, there ain't no one having a
laugh after a koncho.

Actually, the guy does a whole rant about the koncho, which is pretty funny. You can find it at:
http://jesterinjapan.blogspot.com/2004/11/zen-and-art-of-koncho.html

I think Wayne was actually warned in his teacher training over here about them.

So, Wayne's now on holidays. I have four more days left. We will be spending Christmas up in Nagano, skiing with a couple of my cousins and some of their friends. My brother and his wife will then come to visit for a few days and after that, one of my cousins will come to stay with me. Our little apartment will be cramped for a while, but it will be great to have visitors.

This weekend, I'm trying to get all my Christmas presents bought, all my Christmas cards written and sent and my "nengajo" - new years cards, designed.

So that's what's going on in the suburbs of Japan lately..... Until next time, watch out for those Koncho!