Summer walk.

Today I took a walk. A silly walk. One that was surely too long...but the clouds were out and it's such a rarity in Los Angeles, I felt I should take advantage. For the last 11 years, I've thought that sooner or later I'd head on the sandy journey from Long Beach to Seal Beach, and today seemed an excellent time. Out of work and out of patience...a long stroll would do me fine. And I can't help feeling that I'm saying goodbye to the LA area soon. No maudlin feeling to it, but suddenly think it's time to do a few things I've always meant to do. A little naive as it turns out, as you can't walk from Long Beach to Seal Beach...at least not via the shore! Any map might have told me this, but I'm fond of flying by the seat of my pants. So I walked to the very end of Ocean Blvd., which unhappily ends in a huge marina. Suppose I could have taken a swim to the other shore, while dodging yachts and sailboats. About this time, the clouds became fickle and Catalina-bound...and left me in the harsh sun. And for the first time ever, I cared not a whit what people thought of me - sun umbrella out and proudly carried! Good thing too. As it is I'm burned; can't imagine the blistered mess that might have occurred otherwise. Funny how a pleasant stroll can turn into a test of endurance.

At any rate, beside the mild irritation at not reaching my goal, and the concern for my skin's health, I listened to some fabulous summer music. For sunny days, for walking along shorelines, for drinking margaritas under an umbrella, for reading a book in the backyard, for having friends over in the hazy mosquito-filled twilight...I recommend:

Tuca's "Dracula, I Love You" (you have to take one or two added steps at the marvelous Loronix's Happy Hour to get this file), which I was turned onto through Kevin Pearce's rather wonderful blog "Your Heart Out".


Orlann Divo's "A Chave Do Sucesso", an absolutely amazing and sunny album. Recommended to me by a dear friend.


Thievery Corporation's "Babylon Rewound" , a remix album of "The Richest Man In Babylon". This was acquired from emusic - a curiosity pick - and am quite happy with it. I still feel emusic is under-accessed. Start with the editors' picks and then lose control from there. Last time I visited the site, it was for a Slim Gaillard fix.


And by various artists, the "Achilifunk - Gypsy Soul 1969-1979" comp . Amazing! This was referred to me by another great friend, and the blog upon which I found it is one of those, "Where the hell did the day go?!?" sites. The music-curious could get lost in the spiraling snowball effect.


Believe me, great music to get sunburned to ^^ And these blogs/sites are ALL stunning. Please check them out.

Studio Ghibli and komuso.

A few friends and I were watching "The Cat Returns", which is a constant favorite in the dvd collection. While some Ghibli fans deride it for being too simplistic, I think it's quite charming. I see it as a continuation of "Whisper of the Heart"; to me, it's the story that the young girl finally writes about the Baron (to see a Ghibli filmography, go here). There's a ceremonial parade scene in Cat Returns, where the Cat King arrives to thank Haru for saving his son. In the procession, a cat stately stands there playing a flute with a basket on its head.



There's also a later scene in which a similar (or the same) cat is in the King's orchestra.



I've seen similar images in plenty of other places, and know the basket is a cultural reference; but, this particular night, not knowing what the hell it meant became irksome. So I googled "basket flute Japanese" and found this site.

Mystery solved!

To quote the site: "The origin of the shakuhachi, according to one theory, has been traced back as far as ancient Egypt and is presumed to have migrated through India and China before entering Japan in the Sixth Century. Its popularity, however, was short-lived and it wasn't until the Thirteenth Century that it was revived by the Fuke sect of Buddhism which sought to replace sutra chanting with sui zen or "blowing zen." Not until the Edo Period (1603-1867) did this instrument reach its final and most decisive phase of development. During this era, marked by the disintegration of feudal Japan, the shakuhachi was favored by swelling numbers of uprooted samurai warriors (ronin) who joined the ranks of itinerant preachers known as komuso ("Priests of Emptiness and Nothingness"). The komuso wore large baskets (tengai) over their heads to symbolize their detachment from the world. Violent clan struggles which marked the late Sixteenth Century forced some of the komuso to organize themselves into a society for self-protection. Members of the Fukeshu sought to deceive the shogun -- Japan's supreme warlord -- with forged documents giving them exclusive rights to play the shakuhachi and to solicit alms with it. In return for this privilege they agreed to spy on the activities of other ronin. Legend has it that these komuso, forbidden to carry their revered swords, redesigned the shakuhachi from the root of the bamboo making it longer and stouter for use as a club as well as an instrument for spiritual attainment."

At any rate, The Cat Returns is a fun film; it's perhaps the only anime film I prefer to watch with English dubbing, as the actors seem perfect (for instance, Peter Boyle playing Muta, or Cary Elwes playing the Baron). Charming and perhaps every little girl's dream. A visit to the Cat Kingdom? Sign me up!

And finally, Muta ever-so reminds me of Shazbutt. I miss her attitude: