ChanomiTalk

In Japan, when you think summer, you ostensibly think… marathon TV, right?  Who needs festivals when you have a 27-hour TV marathon and a 24-hour TV marathon to entertain you.  It’s more than Jerry Lewis could have wished for.  It’s live TV throughout, plus they get one celebrity to run a 100 km marathon during the broadcast.  Whether he or she will arrive before the end of the TV marathon is always in doubt.  So, what’s the difference?  The 27-hour marathon is done just for fun.  No charity, just raking in the advertising dough, exploiting as much of its celebrities as possible.  This year, they tied it in with the 30th anniversary of talent Tamori (Kazuyoshi Morita).  The 24-hour marathon is for charity.  They even have a special song they sing at the end every year, preferably along with their dead-tired celebrity marathon runner.  The song itself was written during a previous 24-hour marathon and is quite famous (title: Sarai).  So forget the summer festivals and fireworks.  Avoid the heat and humidity.  Don’t fatten yourself up on festival yakisoba, okonomiyaki, kaki-gori and beer.  Stay inside with your air-conditioner and TV set.  Because it’s marathon time.

I often get asked why I choose to wear my hair…uhhh…no hair, why I chose to be bald. and most recently why I have chosen to grow a beard.  Well both come with many answers and preferences. Which I will share now. Well, about being bald, many many years ago I wore many different hairstyles and I even changed them almost once a year, that is, until my last hairstyle until now. I grew it long enough to where it was past my shoulders and then decided to dreadlock it. I thought it would look really cool.and it did. 🙂 Unfortunately, during that process I damaged my hair directly at the root, and It stopped drowing well on certain parts of my hair because of that choice. I had always said, “If I ever started balding I am just gonna shave the whole thing off” because I didn’t wanna be one of those guys with the half moon going around the sides, or doing the “comb over”, or the big blank spot at the back of my head. So it’s been about 10 years since that happened and I have worn a bald hairdo since. And honestly, it’s become preferred. No more are the days spending 10 or 20 minutes managing hairstyles. Now I just get up and my day begins the second I jump out of bed. No fussing around anymore. Though, from time to time whilst shaving my head I tend to take chunks of my scalp off the top by aggressively shaving. And that is all I have to say about that.

 About my beard, well, for the last 8 years I had to work for a company that had strict facial hair policies I can’t say I agreed with. I don’t think anyone company should have the right to say how someone is grooming, save working in the food business. So when I finally quit my last job I have finally been able to grow facial hair and intend to grow it until I feel it’s time to shave it off. I must also mention, I am also influenced to have a beard by hero of mine, Darrell Lance Abbot also known as Dimebag Darrell, he had one of the most awesome beards I have ever seen. Will I grow it that long. Only time will tell. 🙂

Moving is always a long and difficult process. Over about two weeks, I slowly packed and moved a lot of small things in my own car. Then, I had a moving company come. They moved all of my big furniture but were unable to pack the rest of my things in one day. So, I had to have them return a second day to finish the job. I am so happy that it is over because now I can finally take a rest. More importantly, I can now enjoy my new place.