Inakamono

JKF Ehime Karate Championships

Today I competed in the Japan Karate Federation Ehime Championships for the first time in 6 years. Back in 1999 I entered the individual kumite and won my first few fights, eventually being stopped by a tall Wado-ryu stylist whose powerful jab punch rocked my helmet-protected head numerous times. The following year the Federation rules apparently changed - only Japanese nationals were allowed to enter - something about the possibility of a gaijin winning through to the nationals and possibly the All-Japan titles. This year my sensei rang me and asked me to go in the team event - teams can't go on to the nationals so there is no nationality restriction.

I had to wait around all day, which meant I had the chance to familiarise myself with the new scoring system. My dojo's tournament style is ippon-shobu - a one point contest, so a match is decided by two half points or one awesome full-point techique, like a kick to the head. Under JKF rules a match is 8 points - 1 point for a normal punch, 2 points for a kick and 3 points for a really decent technique like a head kick or a takedown followed by a punch. Matches take longer, but there is more variety of technique. I saw the lanky Wado-ryu guy. At age 50 he was still competing, and still hitting people's helmets with enough forced to blood noses. He took 3rd in the kumite.

The team events started late in the afternoon. Four teams - Shotokai (me), Wado-ryu, Goju-ryu and Shito-ryu. We beat the Shito-ryu team and faced the Goju guys for the final. My team was older in the tooth, with ages of 32, 33, 35, 36 and 39. The Goju teams was made up of uni students - 21 or thereabouts. We had experience but they were young and fit. And very fast. Too fast for us. In my match my lack of recent training was obvious and I was beaten to the punch nearly every time (I got one reverse punch in). I kicked the guy fair and square in the face earlier on the match, and should have received 3 points for it but perhaps the refs weren't used to face level front kicks - the technique was ignored. At one point we scuffled and I placed a knee kick to the abdomen, only to hear mass disapproval from the crowd and a warning from the ref. The Goju guy took the honours, 8-1, and deservedly so - I fought like crap. We came second.

I talked to one of the sensei later on about the front kick. "I can't really comment on another ref's decision.....but I would have scored it..." And the knee? "That's prohibited under JKF rules"

Hmm. Back home I checked the web. Unlike 5 years ago, under World Karate Federation rules knee techniques are now prohibited. Perhaps I should have done my homework....

My bizarre date story

I just got back from a date and I have to write about it.

I drove to Matsuyama to go to karate, and afterwards I met up with K for dinner. K and I are friends but a month ago we had a party snog, and then a week ago following an evening out on the town we said goodnight with further passionate tonsil boxing. Tonight we were both exhausted - me through lack of sleep and the exertions of long overdue appearance at the dojo, and K because of a long day at work - but despite this we enjoyed a fantastic meal snug in our private room on the second floor of a favourite Japanese restaurant of mine. Afterwards I suggested a walk to keep us awake and we drove to a nearby beach where we strolled along the sand and then along a seawall, the gentle sound sound of waves providing the perfect background music. We walked back to my car hand in hand and just before we reached my car I did the "lean in". There was brief lip-to-lip contact, then K broke apart and said "Let's go!". Puzzled I got in the car and said "Sorry - did I miss something?"
"Well, we're not drinking"
"Oh...we can only kiss when we drink?"
"Well when I drink I get a bit lonely, you know...."
"And when we don't drink ....."
"It's different...."
I drove, absorbing this.
"So when we kissed at my place.."
"Well you wanted to kiss me"
"Yeah, but you were the one who leaned in and gave the 'It's OK to kiss me' look"
"I didn't mean to...that wasn't my intention"
"Come on! I know that look! You certainly didn't pull away and say "Oh - that's not what what I meant!"
"Well we were already kissing by that stage..."
"Ahh...so you didn't actually want to kiss me, it was more like just letting me kiss you"
"Hmmmm..kinda"
"And last week"
"Same thing"
"So you never actually thought 'Gee I'd like to snog Will'"
"Not really"
Small crushing blow to the ego, but again, I was rabbit-in-the-headlights transfixed, and wanted to work out what exactly the deal was.
"Well generally I'd prefer to kiss someone whose actively wants to kiss me, otherwise I might as well kiss the back of my hand"
"Mmmmm"
"So I guess next time we meet up we should go for drinks
"I guess"
"Ok, I guess I'll see you later"
"Goodnight"

Probably the most bizarre date I have ever been on.

Densha Otoko

Tonight was the bonus episode of Densha Otoko, the TV drama spawned from a tale originating on Japanese mega-BBS 2ch ("ni-chaneru") about a geek who rescues an OL (office lady) from a drunk on a train and then tries to win her heart with the advice of his fellow BBS users. I loved the first 11 episodes, not least because the OL, Hermes, is played by stunner Ito Misaki. My lusting hit a small speedhump when the IT guy in my division emailed me a couple of links today. One amusing item about talento Hard Gay's lumbago, brought about by excessive hip thrusting, and then the devasting news that Ito Misaki is dating a singer called Issa, of Da Pump fame, who according to the article has bedded most of the best looking Japanese actresses in the 25-35 age bracket (he is 26). And who can blame him - we all would if we could.

The "second finale" provided a backstory to some of the events left unexplained in the first 11 episodes, set up two new couples and right at the end left us with the tantalising scene of Yamada, the Densha Otoko himself, off on an onsen dirty weekend with Hermes who seemed keen not to bathe alone.

Not as good as the rest of the series but packing a number of chuckles and a few heart-warming confessions of love, which always leave me feeling like I should give my cynicism a rest, cut out the crap and beating-around-the-bush and tell the next person that I fancy that I in fact fancy them.

But I live in the non-TV world, so to balance the odds before I make any such confessions I will make sure we have both had a few drinks.

Mobile phone dictionary fun

I had coffee with a friend of mine this afternoon and I was explaining the business arrangement of a mutual acquaintance but I forgot the word for "partner" in the business sense, so I whipped out my mobile and accessed Jim Breen's E-J dictionary-server. I typed in "partner" and nearly fell off my chair when I saw the first term to appear on the screen: 顏射　(gansha) (You might want to read this entry to get the joke).

The Cambodian Visa

Following the advice of Lonely Planet Cambodia I brought with me four happy snaps I had taken at a booth in Kansai and approached the Visa Application desk. A simple process. Hand over four photos. Bored airport staff wield scissors and take one photo and my passport. Wait with twenty others until staff further along the counter, in lieu of calling out names, hold up passports until the owner recognises his or her own face and claims it. See my passport being held up, hand over $US20 and I'm done. Holiday in Cambodia here I come.