i’m hungry, too.

kyoto-takarazuka theater and kyoto scala-za which have more than seventy years of history, as well as kyogoku to-ho theater with fifty years of history are now closed as of january 29th 2006.

they showed great movies from “golden-era” in order to show their appreciation to all the customers who have adored the theaters.

these are the some of the brilliant movies that i missed a chance to see in the theathers…

“japan’s longest day” director Okamura Kihachi (1967)

“yojinbo” director Kurosawa Akira (1961)

”until the day we meet again” director Imai Tadashi (1950)

“seven samurai” director Kurosawa Akira (1954)

anyhow, the letters on the sign(left) are good-looking fonts, don’t you think?

sad to see them go.

]]> http://www.plastiquemonkey.com/2006/01/30/sayonara-scala-za/feed/ http://www.plastiquemonkey.com/2006/01/29/ill-set-you-free/ http://www.plastiquemonkey.com/2006/01/29/ill-set-you-free/#comments Sun, 29 Jan 2006 19:21:46 +0000 yuka http://www.plastiquemonkey.com/?p=76
(click to enlarge)

i drew this in november 2004, for my drawing show “nonchalant” at the sleepless goat cafe in kingston.

sorry rabbit, i didn’t realize that money is so heavy.

beautiful.

makes you want to drive through the prairie fields.

surrounded by nothing but the sound and the atmosphere.

kompakt mp3

you can even mix it yourself: kompakt kittens. i like 0+5+N+C.

i drew this in november 2004 in kingston. i really like to draw on newsprint, especially with ballpoint pens. the ink sinks in well. it gets old, wrinckled and changes colours just like me.

drawing on newsprint takes me back to my elementary school days. our monthly review tests were printed on that kind of paper and our teachers encouraged us to draw on the back our papers if we had time left over. the drawings always turned out great because we weren’t trying hard to create art but to have fun and kill time. i think that’s how you can free your mind.

election day special:

i drew this portrait of paul martin in MSPaint back in 2001. it was a strange feeling to draw with a mouse, ’cause my eyes sit on the arrow point rather than my fingers. it felt so indirect and sensational. plus i can draw badly, which is great.

his photo was on the cover of the globe and mail. he seemed very fond of donuts. now that he’s going to lose the election, donuts are probably on his mind again.

so i made foccacia with olive and herbs.

this was my first try making foccacia. the best part was definitely poking the dough with my finger. it tastes as good as it looks.

but (you might not be able to tell from the photo) it turned out too thin, not fluffy like i wanted. oops! this inspired me to bake thin-crust pizza! you fall seven times and get up eight times.

usotsuki ha yokunai yo

i really miss meron pan (”melon bread”). meron pan is a sweet pastry: cookie dough (like a sugar cookie) on top of bread dough. i used to buy meron pan at Family Mart (convenience stores) in japan. at one point, i was so addicted to them i was eating one for lunch almost every day. now i’m living in canada, where no one’s even heard of meron pan.

sushi is the best-known japanese food in canada, but i hardly ever ate it in japan. i like sushi but it was mostly for special occasions. once in a while my dad would bring some home after “settai” (business dinner) as an omiyage, but otherwise…

what i miss most is everyday japanese foods like meron pan. even T&T (the asian grocery store in vancouver, calgary, etc) doesn’t carry it. Nakamura Bakery in J-town (toronto) makes it, but i’m in saskatoon, so what can i do…

of course, i decided to make it myself. “don’t have it? you make it!” — that’s my motto. my first attempt (above) went relatively well. as is often the case, it was whole a lot tastier on the second day. the meron pan recipe called for a dash of melon essence, but i couldn’t find any so i had to substitute lemon essence. so i guess i ended up making lemon pan. hahaha!

at a french cafe in sapporo, japan.