So I was at the gym the other day & saw an ad for an upcoming episode of "1000 ways to die" on Spike network. And it showed a clip of a guy in a Sumo suit just like the one I wore at the Japan Festival, so I had to watch. Apparently the show is all about stupid people doing stupid things that causes them to die in a really stupid way. This was no exception. Apparently a guy with a huge ego & sense of entitlement challenged his resentful coworkers to a "team-building" round of Sumo. On top of a building. Next to a very steep hill. He beat one of the women, & in celebration, lost his balance & toppled off the edge, rolling down the hill. He landed in a road & was hit by a speeding car, causing massive damage & hemorrhaging, and he died. Tragic, yes. But I take issue with the show's reenactment, which portrays the guy rolling down the hill, then standing up & celebrating his survival in the street, just before the impact. Having been in one of those suits I can tell you: you cannot stand up in them without assistance. They're too heavy & bulky & awkward. You have to be lifted. I call foul! In any case, I am quite thankful that neither Patty nor Joe nor I died in that hot, sweaty suit.
Today was the annual Japan Festival of Greater Kansas City, and to me it was the best one yet! The weather was cool & gorgeous, with an unbelievably blue sky & fluffy clouds. A koi banner marked the day:
We were then greeted by a large torii (gate) in the lobby of the Carlsen Center. This made me long to go back to Miyajima. But to make it more authentic, they really should have flooded the lobby. And had deer milling around begging for food. Also, monkeys.
The usual cosplayers & mischief-makers were in attendance. A few girls wore animal ears & tails (bear, fox, wolf); including one who I would have SWORN was Cat from work, in a tight leopard dress with tail & ears to complete the look. Something about Japanese culture draws some strange & socially-awkward kids (myself excluded, of course). In my first year Japanese class, a girl showed up wearing a fox tail more than once. Here's a giddy "schoolgirl":
And an extensive bonsai exhibit. KC has a local bonsai club. I wonder if there is a counter-club for bonsai killers such as myself? The gentleman I spoke with gave me the key to what I've done wrong: since bonsai are trees, you really need to keep them outside. (With the challenge being to keep them alive over the winter, of course.)
A bazaar with many toys, home goods, crafts, jewelry, Kokeshi dolls, textiles, dishes & more! I bought my first two Kokeshi dolls. Not that I need to start another collection, but I saw these two & they really spoke to me. Beautifully painted, with great color & expression.
An exhibit of a variety of kimono & yukata, and samurai armor:
Display of model shrines (I was surprised that I have visited all but ONE of the shrines on display: Himeji-Jo near Osaka & Kyoto, Nijo-jo in Kyoto, Itsukushima Jinja in Miyajima, Todai-ji in Nara, Horyu-ji & Kasuga-taisha in Nara, Tosho-gu in Nikko, & Kinkaku-ji in Kyoto...I've missed only Ginkaku-ji so far (Had it not been for rainy weather in Kyoto that slowed me down, I would have made it!).
Custom t-shirt printing. Choose a design & they'd add your name & print it on an inkjet transfer, and iron it onto a shirt for you:
Cosplay contest entrants. As strange as cosplay can be, these were some elaborate costumes; the kids really went all-out. I didn't recognize any of the characters. I think the second-place finisher (the girl in black, second from the right) is dressed as a popular visual kei artist, Hide:
This is the room where I presented, later used to show anime such as Evangelion. (This was the first in the tetralogy of Evangelion Rebuild, which premiered in Japan on 9/1/07, and is the only movie I've seen in Japan.)
As you can see, it was a large room–glad I didn't see the view from the back until later or I may have chickened out!
Here's a description of my presentation. It was expanded from the one I gave to the JAS group in May. (And they changed the title to one they thought would draw more fans!):
“Hello Kitty and Other Japanese Characters” – The Use of Characters to Promote Products, Prefectures (States in the US), Cities and Almost Everyting! – Jen Rarey
Ms. Jen Rarey works for Hallmark Cards. Jen’s discussion will explore the proliferation of cartoon characters used in Japan for advertising and informational graphics, hypothesize why characters are so fully embraced by Japanese society – and how and why this differs from their use in the U.S. She will share many photos taken on her “scavenger hunts” for characters in central Japan.
Jen grew up near Columbus, Ohio and earned a BFA in illustration from The Columbus College of Art & Design in 1997. Since then she has worked for Hallmark Cards as an artist, art director, and creative director. A member of the Heart of America Japan-America Society, Jen has both studied Japanese and traveled in Japan. Her enthusiasm for Japanese culture and expertise in character design will make for an especially interesting combination. You definitely won’t want to miss her presentation!
Attendees at her presentation will be treated to a fascinating look at character design in Japan and how it differs with the United States’ use of cartoon characters. Jen will share her knowledge of this cultural phenomenon, including the history of character design in Japan and her own influences as an artist (Disney, Sanrio/Hello Kitty and Miyazaki, to name a few). Attendees will be impressed with an amazing montage of character photos that include anime, manga, advertising and informational graphics."
After a slight hitch in the first presentation (the tech guy forgot to bring me the adaptor required for my laptop), I really enjoyed speaking to the group, and both groups were excellent audiences: attentive, engaged in the topic and ready with some great questions. What I learned from presenting to JAS in May was that my photos were a big hit, so I had added many more images & also some video clips from Anpanman, Ultraman, Pokemon & Qoo—as well as some funny & obscure characters. The woman who introduced me was Japanese, originally from the Yokohama area, and said she learned some things from my talk, which made me feel really good. Kelly, Renee, Joe & Ian all came out to support me, and much to my surprise, Helen Hall was in the audience! I hadn't seen her in several years—6 at least—since she shadowed me when I was an artist in the humor studio. It was really great to see her again! I also saw Chieko, Carrie, Mickey, Patty W & Patty M—as you'll see in my next post. I was hoping to catch Sachie & Kazuyo but missed them in the chaos. The festival was wonderfully crowded.
IN THIS CORNER, WEIGHING IN AT...none of your business... AND STANDING 5'1" TALL, JEN THE DESTROYER! (Looking all the more fearsome in the adorable Boo t-shirt.)
AND IN THIS CORNER (wait, the ring is a circle!), LOOKING SMART IN HER JAPAN-AMERICA SOCIETY MATSURI JACKET,
PATTY THE PUNISHER!
You'd better hope that green tea has steroids, Patty!
The suits were at the ready:
But getting into them was quite difficult! Patty accidentally put both of her legs into one Sumo leg, unintentionally creating the "Sumo Mermaid." By that time we were laughing so hard, we're lucky we didn't wet our mawashi (廻し)!
Finally, proof that I'm as bada$$ as I think I am. (Joan: HOLY CRAP THIS IS FUNNY, that suit is going to eat you alive!)
Patty's Christmas card photo:
Seconds before I almost accidentally fell over on Patty:
And despite all that, we're still friends!
The action seemed a lot faster, more bloodthirsty, and less ridiculous in real-life! It is so hard to move in the costume without losing your balance & toppling over, and once you fall over, you CAN'T get up or even roll over. The suit is too heavy & awkward. You feel like a turtle, which is apparently a very difficult thing to be. Of course, all this adds to the fun. Hopping is the most effective means of moving about. Which just makes everyone laugh harder & be even less stable. We drew quite a crowd!
ROUND 1: JEN VS. JOE
Renee wasn't dying to break any bones in a frivolous manner, so I volunteered to go up against Joe. (I'm not gonna lie, they didn't have to twist my arm. And in the end, everyone tried on a costume.) Here's Renee with one of the skins:
Nothing like taunting your kids when they're helpless:
...and getting a taste of your own medicine!
Renee is easily one of the funniest people I know, and it was pretty hard to control my laughter enough to take photos while she was hamming it up:
But when Joe threatened to topple her, the party was over:
Next it was Ian's turn. He was hilarious:
Even as Joe threatened to pile-drive him:
Easily one of the most fun moments of the whole Japan fest! Thanks to Patty W & Joe for flattening me, to Patty M for taking photos & video, and to Renee & Ian & everyone for the laughs. I might just have to invest in a couple of Sumo suits... I love the smell of hot, sweaty gym padding in the morning. Speaking of morning, I was not feeling so good the next day, with serious pain in my head, neck & shoulders. The last time I was taken down, I was off the mat & my head smacked the ground. Hard. Pretty much jangled my brain.
There's a balloon fest in south Overland Park this weekend; if the rain holds out tonight, I might have to check it out. I've been entranced by balloons since the Memorial Day festival in Gardner (my posts: part 1 / part 2), and especially after the sweet ride in Albuquerque. The photo above, from the KC Star, shows "night glow," when the balloons are lined up & the burners are turned on & off, causing them to glow & flicker like giant candles. Awesome!
In honor of Memorial Day, the 2nd annual Kansas City Hot Air Balloon Invitational is being held at the aptly-named Celebration Park in Gardner this weekend. I talked Kelly into going with me, and we sat in the grass on a hill with the dogs & ate barbecue & watched the balloons inflate & take off, a few at a time. The cool thing was that you could actually get close enough to touch the baskets, talk to the pilots (is that what they're called?) and feel the heat from the burners. If you were anywhere near the field, you were surrounded by the 28 balloons. So glad the shibas didn't freak out, although it would have been understandable given all the chaos. Good dogs! And huge thanks to Kelly for shiba-wrangling for me so I could get up close to the action.
After dark, a bunch of the balloons lined up for "night fire," where they took turns illuminating the balloons with the burners. It was magical!
