One Year Closer

A First Grade Papa Sudo (with a model) posing for a magazine cover shoot

You know when things that are hopelessly ridiculous try and get serious and it just makes them that much more ridiculous? Well, unfortunately that is the way that my final post in Japan is headed.

Up until now, I have not made any reference to the incredible tragedy that this country went through a few months back. The truth of the matter is that here in Tokyo, you would never know. I have felt a few small earthquakes which were an occasional reminder, but it wasn't until we were at Hide and Yuka's place and watched some of the absolutely harrowing footage of the airports, streets, trains, and displaced people that I was reminded of what happened here. Masako pointed out the occasional escalator that isn't working or only a few lights in a train station being on. It is not because they don't work, it is because they are conserving energy. I couldn't help but think of the light in the middle of Henry street back home that works when it feels like it. We are not conserving energy...it is broken. It is a matter of pride here in Tokyo that things are NOT broken.

In Tokyo, the travel time between trains and cars is incredibly different. It generally takes longer to get to places by car, and the trains are always on time (unlike my beloved muni that guesstimates when it will show up within a half hour window). The trains here are to the second. They have to be to keep this place moving. For Tokyo to stop or slow down there would be consequence. With that in mind I cannot fathom the ultimate consequence of what happened here after the tragedy. As with everything else it is a matter of pride that this country is not broken..........not in aesthetic, not in function and not in spirit.

The airport in Sendai that we saw covered by the merciless black water is open again.........the road to Iwate is clear........the trains are always on time.

The other night I had a long conversation with the Japanese playwright Daisuke Fujisawa, and I asked him where he was when the earthquake happened. He said that his latest play was set to debut the night after the tragedy and he was in rehearsal. He was so focused on directing the stage that he did not even notice the quake. When he fully realized the magnitude of what had happened, he still opened his play on the night of March 12th, one day after the tragedy. It was a controversial thing to do, but for him failure was not an option. To be beaten and to wallow in sadness instead of picking up and carrying on would be a disservice not only to himself, but to his fellow countrymen.

I asked that question to everyone I could...where were you when it happened? Most people were at home or at work and had a story about things falling, buildings rocking, and how it lasted so long it seemed like it would never end. Each person I have asked has persevered in their own way. The air of uncertainty is lifting and this country is not broken.

The Dahruma

Early on in the trip I learned of the Dahruma. He was a man born into wealth who found his life meaningless and went deep into meditation. Legend has it he sat in the same place in front of a blank wall for nine years. The statue of the Dahruma is a common item and comes in all sizes. we spent an hour taking a lesson and then painting the patterns on his face ourselves. You paint in his right eye and wish for something, and when that thing comes true you can fill in the left. The statues are designed in a certain way that they will always find themselves right side up. This is the lesson of the Dahruma. No matter how you find yourself down, you must always return to your feet. Failure is a huge part of life that each person experiences, but failure means absolutely nothing as long as you keep trying. To not try is unforgivable.

So here I am, one year closer to flowers, in the middle of Tokyo trying to have a clear thought about all of this. I always compare everywhere I travel to where I'm from, and when you do things like compare the subway systems of other cities to that of the cities of California, you are definitely treading into comic territory. It is the easiest thing in the world to find your own personal shortcomings and that of the places you live by visiting a place like Japan.

I noticed is how things like escalators and trains have hardware that is assembled with regular philips head screws instead of the security screws that we see all over San Francisco that you need a permit to get the bit for. I am not saying that some jerkoff with a Dewalt could take these things apart in SF, I'm saying some jerkoff with a Dewalt WOULD take these things apart in SF.

Would I change it if I could?

I am not going to apologize for being a hopeless Californian. There is no other place in the world that I want to live, and there are no words for how much I love my city, my state and my country. The only thing I can say is that I am incredibly blessed to have a family on this side of the globe that give me a window into these thoughts and feelings. Besides, if things in SF weren't thrashed what would me and my dad have to laugh about?


I didn't start traveling the world until my late 20's and now I am officially in my late 30's realizing that the reason why I have such a compulsion to do so is because being away for these short periods is the only way to have somewhat of an omniscient sense of who I am and where I am from.

The other day in Akihabara I was messing with a little radio and I turned the dial ever so slightly and heard the American top 40 dj Rick Dees say, "so and so will have been on earth 37 years this coming monday the 30th and I wish him the best". It was so strange I turned the dial away and walked away pretending it didn't happen........but it did. I have come too far to believe in things such as coincidence and superstition. The world is simply a place where the beautiful and bizarre happens more often than it doesn't.

Beautiful meat from Nagoya

On my last night here we had an incredible dinner at home. The amazing meat I had on my birthday two years ago was shipped here from Nagoya and we had dinner together as a family. Yuka's mom sent me a bouquet of flowers for my birthday. Two years ago I was given flowers on my birthday and it seemed funny to me, but getting them today was just stunning. The arrangement could have been fit for miss America it was so huge. I couldn't help but sit and just stare at them.
Say what you will, throw all the rocks you want, but I seriously can't remember the last time I felt this touched.

So I have to leave here tonight and I usually spend the last day in Japan being sad that I am leaving Japan. I admit that I am sad, but only because I am so overwhelmed by the example set by the people in this country............ especially my family.


One year closer

with love,

Aaron D. Guadamuz
May 30, 2011
Tokyo, Japan

A new standard of freshness

On Friday, we went to the home of a friend of Masako's parents named Yamada who is 86 years old. Masako and I rode in separate cars with her parents and I was with her mom. She explained to me how Yamadasan was a master koto player and a teacher. When we arrived, Yamadasan had prepared an impressive collection of her own artwork and artifacts from the past.

It was definitely the first time I have ever been able to hold items that should be in a museum and look at them up closely.

This comb is made of pressed turtle shell and the pattern is inlaid gold

This coin dates back to the late 1800's

This is a tiny piece of a painting that was badly burned in WWII that Yamadasan restored with her amazingly intricate embroidery.

We then headed over to Ropongi and walked around for a few hours before we headed to Our friend Hiro's office

I hope to someday master the art of satanic kung fu

At Hiro's office there was lots of food cooked and drink passed into the night. I met a fellow American named Kevin who lives in Brooklyn and has a career that is almost the exact same as mine (I do recognize in the insult game that we have been playing for our entire lives, I am leaving Tacorda open from downtown right here). This was actually the largest gathering of English speakers I have come across at one time in Tokyo. As always........good times

Good times at Hiro's

I spent the day in Akihabara with my father in law, the computer genius (and fellow hardcore Rush fan) Okuyamasan, and Tetsu, the man of iron. Unfortunately, the great Yuichi fell ill but guaranteed that my electronics would be ready by Monday. The intriguing thing is that I have no idea what those electronics are.

Akihabara is my paradise

When marketing a device like the outdoor scanner or any product for that matter, is there any better face to use than that of Bronson?

A few years back in Akihabara, an otaku went wild in the streets and killed 10 people with a sword. He said it would not have happened if he had a girlfriend. He was recently sentenced to death. Papa Sudo took us down the street and showed me where it happened.

An otaku crime scene

A few hours later we met up with Masako and her mom and went to Shinagawa to eat dinner at Makino. They specialize in conger eel, which they kill, fillet and serve immediately. You grill it yourself at the table.

Me and fellow Rush enthusiast Okuyamasan at dinner in Shinagawa

Okuyamasan speaks English very well and when I asked him how he learned he told me that Rush was his English teacher. He said their lyrics are very difficult to understand and by the time he figured out what Neil Peart was trying to say, he had a good command of the English language. Haters........once again...........back up

It began with an appetizer of salmon roe, eggplant, egg, and what I came to know as "night squid" because it has a natural light and schools of them can be seen in the water at night

Then came the sashimi

Grilled oyster

The definition of fresh.

This sets an entire new standard for fresh meat. From now on if my meat is not still moving when it is put on the grill, it will look like the pre-made sandwich section at trader joes (if you are ever thinking of grabbing one of those for lunch, you would be better off buying the local paper and eating it....trust me). Just so you know, that nasty bloody part you see beating there in the video is the heart, and as the only gaijin (foreigner) at the table, it was my duty and honor to eat it. Masako's dad said that this eel is minus a brain, so even when cut up on a plate, it is too stupid to die.

Papa Sudo grills the idoitic eel with mastery and authority

Fried fish and chicken

Topped off with a turtle risotto

Masako served me a bowl of the turtle risotto and told me that it is known to give you energy. I said I could certainly use that since we were out late at a party with intellectuals, playwrights, financial gurus, captains of industry and professors last night. She then said no,no,no.....a different kind of energy.....wink ,wink....

Less than 48 hours left and a typhoon is on it's way.....there is never enough time

As American as Fried Chicken

Round' here. we eat sushi for breakfast

The other day we were in the hip hop section of a record store and the first line of a song that came on was "I got this little problem / I smoke weed too much!" which caused me and Masako to give each other the deer in the headlights look. It got me thinking that if that can make it on to wax, I should definitely resume my rapping career. Check out this rhyme I came up with.

Get yourself some fresh fishes.………bitches

On this trip I have been actively trying to learn and speak Japanese. I have even been authoring a little book/zine about it. The tentative title is "don't be a ?@!#.……learn Japanese!"

Here is an excerpt from my forthcoming book.

I am trying my best to be actively involved in conversation and fit in, but I feel like this is what I look like everywhere I go here.


Remember when you were growing up and you heard all those ridiculous rumors and myths about Japan, like how ridiculously expensive fruit and produce is here? Well, I feel it is my responsibility to dispel that myth right here and now.

This melon is only $129.16 USD

Bub's fame knows no bounds

After a day visiting some of Masako's old friends in Nikotama, we got back to the office and met up with Yuchan (Yuichi) for the first time on this trip. I have made two animated films about this man and we barely said hello and got straight to business...

.........Otaku business, that is.

I actually felt bad for Masako. After translating this session about electronics she looked like she was ready to kill herself. She is a VERY patient woman.

Ended the night going to pizza with Yukachan and Hidekun.....good times

Otaku Heaven

After spending the morning at Yodobashi Camera in Kawasaki, we took the train to Akihabara.

If you have never been you must go (if you are an Otaku). It is a wonderland of electronics, toys, weird "adult" stores, maid cafes, arcades and general weirdness. We are going back on Saturday with a group of people and my "consulting" team which includes the one and only Yuichi Noguchi. We ended up in the top floor of a building that got dorkier and dorkier floor by floor until you eventually ascended into Otaku Heaven.

Only a serious Otaku Pimp can sport Akbar Bling

We then went to Tokyo station and ended up walking a very long time around the Emperor's Palace.

I was checking out the guards stationed at the different posts and saying that I want to get a running start and hop two or three fences until they are in full pursuit of me, and then when they get close, just run away as fast as I could. (We saw something similar happen when a drunk topless guy made it on to the field at a Fresno State Bulldog's game last year and danced until security got within a yard of him and then jammed. He soon had about 20 or 30 guards chasing him and went several yards until he was tackled and arrested. It was by far the best action on the field that night.) The only purpose of this would be to cause a stir. I then said that I would probably get caught because I would not be able to stop laughing, and I would get deported like my name was Russell Brand (he got deported from Japan the day I arrived for some mysterious reason). It would be like the time Eyad and I tried to short a Chinese restaurant one dollar (even though we had plenty of money). We ran and when we looked back the waiter was in hot pursuit of us. We got caught because we could not stop laughing. We gave him a dollar and he went away. I feel no regret about it either and if I had the chance to go back and do the right thing.............I wouldn't. Good times.

We eventually ended up in Hibiya park, where we some how came across the liberty bell.

It had all the writing about Philly on it and everything. I found this to be enormously confusing only to become more confused when we stumbled across Oktoberfest in the middle of May.........in Tokyo!!!

I had no choice but to sample the "black chorizo"

Had ton katsu with Ma and Pa Sudo tonight and then ended up at Hide and Yuka's watching a program where a Japanese comedian investigates paranormal activity and secret societies in the USA. Before you knew it I had an American dollar out pointing to the symbols of the illuminati hidden in the patterns. In the words of our fallen hero John Denver.........thank God I'm a country boy.

Fish Market and Shibuya!!

Today Yukachan was off work and drove us around town. First stop was the fish market and we ate lunch there. I didn't get to see any of the huge tuna that you see on those shows. I guess you have to get there at 5 in the morning to see that stuff. I saw the first ever Yoshinoya restaurant.


I wonder if the proprietor of this modest shop knew that years later there would be a franchise of his store on every other block in Los Angeles.

Spent the rest of the day in Shibuya!!!

One of my favorite areas of Tokyo.

Apparently Bubba is famous everywhere. We were in this one clothing store for a few minutes and the first thing I thought was, "Do you have any mens clothes for men?"

I dragged Masako and Yuka into a humungous guitar shop and test drove the Jim Root custom strat at ear shattering levels.....actually I turned it way down after the nice man tuned it for me. In case you are wondering Jim Root is the guitarist from Slipknot. Great sounding guitar.....would never buy it just because it is his custom model. Unfortunately, photography was prohibited. I went record shopping and got some great records at disc union.


I love coming halfway across the globe and finding some of my buddies' records.

After about 5 hours we headed back and went to have Yakiniku with Hide and Yuka.

Amazing, amazing, amazing.

Ate cow throat, cartilage, stomach, tongue, diaphragm.....you name it.....I ate it

Yuka has a book that she is learning English from. Apparently.....

FISHING SUCKS!!!

Tomorrow, we are going to one of my favorite spots on planet earth. The Otaku wonderland known as AKIHABARA!!!!!