The First Two Weeks

The weekend after moving, Andrew headed off to work on a film project in the McCauley neighbourhood.

The film was called A Raven’s Song. We were lucky enough to be able to shoot part of the project inside the Sacred Heart Church of the First Peoples.

Here’s Wes Doyle prepping the drone cam for the master shot of the church.

It sounded like a swarm of bees.

Then we filmed a box-cutter fight in the alley near the Italian Centre. All in all it was a pretty kick ass weekend.

Meanwhile, Andrew was also getting the publicity together for The Thousand Faces Festival.

The Festival celebrates mythic art. Here’s Tim Mikula as Dionysus (or Bacchus?) at the Mythic Poetry Brothel out behind the Alberta Avenue Community Hall.

The lovely Megan Dart was also onhand to look deep into our souls.

Finally we found time to cook up our first meal in the new house. You can’t beat grilled meat and potatoes (especially when you can’t find all your cookware).

We also recorded a new episode of I Don’t Get It—Edmonton’s Dance podcast. It felt good to be back inside the blanket fort and behind the microphone.

Speaking of dance, we got to See Mile Zero Dance’s SHO-TEL. Here’s a taste …

Jeff Carpenter spells poetry all night from Room 125, whilst dancers toss paper bags and tasty toast ’round his fort. PS: Listen to the podcast for more.

Andrew darts from the mannequin tub in 125 while running to see the live smut band in Room 111 (with $3 beer in the mini-fridge–help yourself)

Fawn takes a look at Patrick Ares-Pilon’s infamous PEEPS whilst dodging the antics of MZD making delicious toast.

Jodie Vandekerkhove flies through Room 125

While Gerry Morita hovers in a prom dress just outside the door (seriously, check out the podcast—we can fit in many more details there!).

The Move

The sun was up, the UHaul was picked up (successfully), and the troops descended on the Elmhurst. In the swell of goodwill from our friends and family, we stuffed a UHaul, 3 pick-ups, and 2 sedans with all our worldly possessions and set them forth to Alberta Avenue.

Brother Eli consults with Fawn on the driving of the Uhaul.

We drove up to find another family already residing on our premises…

…A filming family (hello Wes).

They were shooting a music video.

For a band called The Wet Secrets.

This guy was in charge (he’s pretty cool, or so they say).

They were doing things like hanging curtains outside of windows with binder clips.

Even with the tents and glut of equipment, doesn’t that tall skinny house look like a sweet place?

Also, this weirdo loitered around the whole time.

He took this cool 3D pic of us (Thanks Fish Griwkowsky)!

While the film crew was hard at work, we decided to play outside.

Our dear pal Steve poses for a rare pic with le Fawn.

Rains practices her postural wood-chopping.

And the boys light a fire.

While also posing nicely. Handsome lads, no?

Hours later, Andrew revisits the empty Elmhurst apartment.

Where Fawn has been cleaning with a bottle of vino (which cleans everything).

So long Elmhurst. You were so good to us.

Back at the Tall House, the film crew has gone, leaving one notable souvenir.

The Preamble

Before the real move, there was a the preamble. We may have seemed distracted and distant—as this kind of decision tends to make people—but we also had a chance to glimpse the method in the madness of this past month. Thus, we are giving you some context to our Big Move: What happened in the days before, what made us joyful and crazy, and what also fared as predictions for the days to come.

We visited with some lawyers and saw the historical land drawings for our property in West Delton. 119 Avenue was formerly Genessee Avenue (which was way classier sounding).

Fawnda decided that the lawyers were too much to handle, and escaped to Calgary for a quick trip to reunite with some of her most beloved peeps.

They came from Japan bearing wondrous and delicious gifts.

Meanwhile, Andrew was whooping it up with our amazing realtor (Conrad Bitangol), and getting the keys to the house.

A lot of keys to the house.

Blank slate: The kitchen and living area.

The second floor (a.k.a. The Master Bedroom and stuff)

View #2 of the second floor (there’s more in there than a master bedroom, but we’ll keep it all for ourselves thankyouverymuch)

And the loft above. So warm and bright. We imagine it to be our own greenhouse/hot yoga den.

AND there’s the finished basement suite (with separate entrance), where all our besties and family can stay when visiting.

Meanwhile: Fawnda went to New Brunswick on “Business.”

To Fredericton, NB, to attend the PACT Conference.**

** To play with theatre people.

Back in #yeg, three time zones away, Andrew was getting ready for the Edmonton New Media Awards (a.k.a. #yeggies), where our I Don’t Get It Podcast had been nominated in the Best In Arts & Culture category. The awards took place at the Avenue Theatre (which is being sold and possibly torn down, at a great loss to the Alberta Avenue community). The theatre, incidentally, is a one minute walk from our house.

We won! WTF?! Thanks #Yeggies. You know how to make a dance podcast feel special.

“Victory tastes like metal,” says Andrew, who was the sole member of our podcast crew onhand to accept the award. Many kudos to our fellow nominees and thanks to #yegdance for being so freaking awesome. We like this beat and we want to keep at it.

 

BeginAgi’n, like Michael Finnegan

May 16, 2014. 8pm, MST. In 24 short hours the UHaul will be returned to its proper locale, and we’ll be settling in to our new digs in the Alberta Avenue area. We bought an ancient house in one of Edmonton’s oldest, grittiest, and most vibrant communities. Follow our year as we begin a new story: Fawnda and Andrew Do Life on 118th.

Kama kama kama kama kama Kamakura

Kamakura is a very special place—not only for the Japanese, but also for M-san and Fawnda. Not only was it their first destination together outside of Tokyo’s limits 5 years ago, it was also the last place they visited before Fawnda left. Incidentally, the little coastal town is home to the world’s largest outdoor seated Daibutsu (Buddha). It’s also features lots of tiny Buddhas, caves, an island the serves squished octopus, and many other delights. Please enjoy these scenes from Andrew and Fawnda’s last day trip outside the big big city…

As you can see the giant Buddha is quite the tourist attraction.

Which is why we had to snap this shot.

And this one. Isn’t he lovely. Please also note the stylish moustache.

Hasedera Temple was up the mountainside and after the trek it was time for a quick smoke to help catch our breath.

As with most temples the detail work was astounding.

And so was the view of Sagami Bay (?).

It’s nice.

Hasedera Temple is also known for its popular bamboo grove.

That kept us entertained for hours — well for a while anyway.

Not all the Buddhas in Kamakura are large.

But what these guys lack in size they make up for in numbers.

Maybe they will grow if worshipers keep watering them.

They even keep a few of these little guys tucked away in the cave of mystery.

Just watch your head.

And mind the bats. Or maybe the bats were just in our mind. That happens sometimes.

After Hasedera we made our way across the bridge to Inoshima Island for a bite

Of pressed octopus.

And it was everything we dreamt it would be.

FYI: this is what you’re supposed to do incase of an earthquake or a tsunami. Write it down.

To finish off the night we made one last stop at Hachimangu Shrine before heading back to homebase.

The Ultimate Land of Cute

One of the most profitable entertainment industries in Japan has to be Disney—in the land of all things cutesy, it’s no wonder that there’s more than one of the famed amusement parks within Tokyo. Being more “adult,” we decided to spend an evening at DisneySea (the Land with less kiddies and more booze). Basically, it’s got all the same attractions as California’s Disney Land, it’s just all in Japanese. Imagine Harrison Ford’s Indiana Jones shouting at you in Japanese from the Temple of the Crystal Skull and you’ll start to get a picture… Of course we couldn’t snap too many shots on the actual rides, but we can tell you that the view of Tokyo from the top in the Tower of Terror is magnificent—even if it’s only visible two or three seconds before you free-fall 8 storeys into the pitch black tower to your assumed doom. Terrrah!

The DisneySea Halloween advertising campaign was just too colourful to resist.

So we rounded up the troops (M&K-san, with Satomi and Taichi in tow)

It was kinda Halloweeny…

We’re not exactly sure why “renaissance masquerade” is Halloweeny, though.

The wait times for the rides were proof that we’d come on a busy day (really, you don’t get much else in Tokyo)

To wait, we all posed in front of the massive harbour

…and posed

This is Fawnda’s Stitch impersonation—the Japanese love Stitch, he’s very “kimu kawaii” (so heinous he’s cute)

More posing in Jules Verne Land—you can see the 20 000 Leagues attraction behind Ken and M-san.

…and in front of the very girly Mermaid’s Lagoon

Our first ride, and one with no line, was the carousel in the Arabian Nights area.

…slow enough for more and more posing!

Though the lines are long, they do have ways to keep you entertained.

Especially with cute story boards along the walls.

Fortunately, you can smoke in DisneySea (not in Disney Land, ha!)

After much toiling and waiting, we felt it was a good time for an old fashioned human sacrifice.

But instead, we went on a gondola ride around the park. So lovely!

“This magpie/crow/vulture thing is about the size of my torso”

The people in Japan might be small, but the bugs and other beasts certainly aren’t. Here’s a few photos of typical Japanese wildlife. Please refrain from feeding the animals as they may pluck out your eyes.

A swan at the Imperial Palacein Tokyo.

We found this praying mantis in Nara.

And of course, the map-eating deer as well.

Turtles in Nara.

A crane fishing for baby turtles and other tasty bits in Nara.

This crane was perched atop the A-Bomb Dome in Hiroshima.

Giant koi in Kichijoji.

Tsukiji fishmarket fare.

This raven beast’s hooked beak is about four inches long. Perfect for snatching eye balls.

Tragically we think that’s exactly what happened to this racoon-looking creature in Kamakura. It was missing an eye.

Feral cats are everywhere.

Which is no suprise considering the locals like to feed them scraps—particularly in Gotanda.

A (thankfully) dead cicada. The live ones make terrible noise. Ken-san almost brought this one home.

These spiders in Inari are fist-size.

They eat babies.

Freaks and Geeks … But Mostly Freaks

Every Sunday Tokyo’s “cosplay” fanatics (essentially, it’s Japanese goth culture) offer up a mixture of gothic and doll-like fashions—these are the “Harajuku Girls” that Gwen Stefani likes to keep as pets. All frillied up, the freaks gather at the entrance to Yoyogi Park to strut their stuff and pose for photos with tourists. We even managed to catch a live filming of a Japanese music video. Please enjoy.

I left my heart in a Love Hotel

A must-see on every tourist’s list for Tokyo is a love hotel. These motel-like establishments offer a short “rest” (up to 4 hours) or an overnight “stay”—and are incredibly cheap (compared to “real” hotels in Tokyo, anyway). We hear these places are mostly used by salarymen having lunch-hour affairs and college students who need to get away from crowded dorms. To sate our curiosity, we visited the Love Hotel Hill near Shibuya station. As you go further up the hill, things just get stranger….

From the exotic

To the downright confusing

The Shibuya love hotel district will cater to your every desire. Party room anyone?

Costume rental services are available in many of the hotels.

We’ve even been told that hostesess dressed as Japanese schoolgirls will deliver your fantasy garb straight to your door

You’ll also find a wide selection of lubes and contraceptives from in-room vending machines

And of course all come with standard pixelated Japanese porn. We wonder what exactly is the point of pixelated porn…

Just make sure to be polite to the local vice squad for the duration of your stay.

The day after Tokyo stood still

Just hours after Typhoon Melor hit, the sky was blue and the sun was strong. Winds were still high, but that didn’t stop us from exploring Tokyo’s swanky business district (Shinjuku), and topping the day off with a quick voyage to Kichijoji—the olde hippie town in Tokyo’s far west end.

The following day it was back to work for everyone, including us documentarians.

Though some of the trains were still delayed by high winds from Melor’s downdraft.

While we waited for the Chuo line to get up and running, we perused the skyrises of Shinjuku

…in all their horizontal glory.

Funny thing is, we couldn’t get an entire building in any single shot.

This one only shows floors 180 through 216.

We stumbled upon a rather nice park to ease the kinks in our necks.

Complete with soothing water features.

Public art oddities

And of course, homeless. Andrew just couldn’t help himself.

Time to head back for the train!

But first, some cheesy posing.

Kichijoji’s Inakoshira park is heavenly

and rife with wildlife of all types.

Like hillbillies!

And regal swan sailboats.

Of course, as fun junkies we both couldn’t possibly pass those up.