On Saturday, the Dancing Fools attended the Rissho Kosei Kai bon dance in Pacific Palisades. Unfortunately, the weather didn’t cooperate and I ended up having to take shelter under my big golf umbrella several times throughout the night. Perhaps it was the rain that kept the crowd fairly small this year as well. However, they still managed to sell out of the grilled mochi before I was able to buy an order. At least I was able to enjoy a bowl of oden — which is one of RKK’s specialties.

The photos posted here were taken by Derek and Taro, who came equipped with camera gear that would make any photog do a double-take. I, on the other hand, was too preoccupied during the drier moments of the evening, then deterred by the rain once I realized that I was missing some great photo ops. We still have a few more bon dances on the schedule that I’ll be able to attend, so hopefully I will be able to muster the energy and motivation to do a videolog or two before the end of this year’s bon dance season.

At 30 weeks pregnant, I’m still dancing.

This is a cross-post from dancingfools.org.

Hawaii’s Plantation Village
Waipahu, Hawaii
June 7, 2008, 6:00 - 10:00 p.m

The Dancing Fools gathered for the first bon dance of 2008 at Hawaii’s Plantation Village in Waipahu. It seems only appropriate to kick off the season at such a historic locale. After all, it was the plantations that brought the first Japanese immigrants to Hawaii, bringing with them the culture of their homeland, traditions that endure until today and bon dances being one of them.

Here are some scenes from the bon dance:

Mike enjoys the bon dances by capturing the scene in his art. This time last year, he made the line drawing of this plantation train. This year, he put the finishing touches on the piece with watercolors.

A group photo of half of the bon dance posse

Ryan, Shari, and Donna

Renee, graciously brought Happy Hearts Mochi to share with us. There was not one mochi left by the time we were done! Thank you, Renee!

A great time was had by all! See you at the next one!

It’s that time of year again! When the temperatures start rising, listen for the sound of taiko drums carried on the tradewinds. Summertime means bon dance season in Hawaii.

From June through September, you can attend a bon dance nearly every weekend on Oahu, so get your hapi coat out of the back of your closet and put your dancing shoes on!

The first bon dance of the year will be held at the Waipahu Plantation Village this Saturday, June 7 from 5:00 pm to 10:00 pm. Here’s a videolog from last year’s event. (Sorry for the poor quality of the video. This was before I discovered the optimal settings for saving video for the web.)

I will be documenting the season in photos and video and you can keep up with the “dancing fools” at a new website that I’ve created specifically for this purpose at dancingfools.org. Why “dancing fools,” you ask? I touched on this in a previous entry, but to elaborate, it comes from a saying that I started quoting at the end of every bon dance videolog last year:

“We’re fools whether we dance or not,
So we might as well dance.”

The reference I obtained that from indicated that it was a Japanese proverb, but I discovered that it’s actually the lyrics to the Awa Odori song (reference: Wikipedia.org):

踊る阿呆に
見る阿呆
同じ阿呆なら
踊らな損、損

Odoru ahou ni
Miru ahou
Onaji ahou nara
Odorana son, son

Translation:
Crazy Dancers
with other crazies watching them
Since both alike are mad
You might as well dance, might as well dance

Whatever the case, I believe it suits us nicely.

champuru bon dance posse

On Saturday, I coordinated a BBQ potluck to kick off the summer and the coming of the bon dance season. The attendees were the core group that I arbitrarily call the “champuru bon dance posse,” mainly because I’m usually the instigator that rallies the gang and determines where we’ll be on any given weekend during the bon dance season. (I’m bossy like that.) Actually, our attendance is usually determined by whether or not the temple features Okinawan dancing.

I truly love the summer. Of course, as a Christian, I do not observe the religious aspect of obon, but participate for the cultural experience. It’s also a wonderful way to spend warm summer evenings outdoors, enjoying good friends, food, music, and dancing. We bring our folding chairs and eat fried noodles and spam musubi under the moonlight, engaging in lively conversation accompanied by taiko drums and spirited music.

I created a website specifically for bon dance information at dancingfools.org. The domain name is based on the Japanese proverb that I’ve been using as the motto for all of my bon dance videologs:

“We’re fools whether we dance or not,
so we might as well dance.”

The site contains the 2008 bon dance schedule as well as links to photos and videos from last year’s escapades. I’ll be updating it throughout the summer as well, so check back often. I also intend to create some “Dancing Fools” apparel and accessories as soon as I can muster the motivation to work on the designs.

If you see my preggie belly in a hapi coat this bon dance season, be sure to stop by and say “hello.”

My friend Myron just got back from Okinawa and he took a ton of beautiful photographs that totally make me want to pack my bags and head for the homeland. I’ve been to Okinawa twice, the last time in 1999 with my Okinawan dance troupe when we had the opportunity to perform in Naha and Gushikawa. Truly memorable experiences, perhaps once in a lifetime for me, although I hope to return to the art again in the future and have the chance to dance in Okinawa again.

With Baby Champuru on the way, I hope that I will be able to instill an appreciation for both cultures (Japanese and Okinawan) in him/her. I have always felt that having a keen cultural awareness since childhood really has made my life richer as a result. At the same time, I don’t want to push my own passions and interests on my child. My parents did a great job of not forcing me to do this or that, but rather gave me the opportunities to learn different things. When I decided to quit, they didn’t force me to continue. When I wanted to go back, they gladly allowed me to do so. I think forcing a child only creates a negative impression in their mind and they may never opt to return. As for me, I stopped and started Okinawan dance lessons a number of times since age 5, but I have always returned out of my own volition. I hope early exposure will grow into a lifelong love of their culture. That would make me very happy.

Photography by Myron Akana

A short videolog sharing scenes from today’s Chinese New Year festivities at the Chinese Cultural Center in Honolulu’s Chinatown.

[tags]Chinatown, Chinese New Year, Honolulu, Hawaii[/tags]

Last week, Hubby and I visited Mr. Liu, a Chinese artisan to order our soapstone chop carved with our family name in tensho (seal script). Today, Joyce and I went to pick it up in Chinatown.

I was a little disappointed that he didn’t provide a box to keep the chop in. Instead, he wrapped it in a paper towel and told me to find a nice box for it so I could keep it “for lifetime.” Luckily, I had a nice silk-covered box at home that Joyce had given me a few years back that would work just fine.

I was quite pleased with the result. In hindsight, perhaps we should have gotten a smaller chop, which would fit better on correspondence. This one measures about 2″ square. Hubby is now considering having a chop engraved with his family crest.

[tags]soapstone, chop, stamp, tensho, seal script[/tags]