Babies on babies!

So in a previous post I mentioned Japan and its affliction with everything cute. For example, oh I don't know maybe BABY MONKEY RIDING BABY BOAR!

This video was taken (not by myself) at the Fukuchiyama Zoo in Kyoto.


If that doesn't make you smile then you my friend could quite possibly be the devil and or monkey blind, in which case let me assure you there is a BABY MONKEY RIDING A BABY BOAR.

You're the best around, and nothing's gonna ever keep you down!

(10 points to you if you got the title of this post.)





Pictured above is some promotional advertisement for the recent remake to "The Karate Kid" It was released a few months ago in other countries including America but like pretty much all movies it was released late here in Japan. As you can see from the picture August 14th was the date here, but this post isn't about the sometimes extreme late release of films in Japan. (That rant is for another day)

What I am confused about is the title they chose in Japan. For those who can't read it says "Besto Kiddo" which is the English bastardization of "Best Kid" which doesn't really make any sense to me. Why is it called the best kid? "The Karate Kid" actually uses a Japanese word in the title Karate. Now one could argue that in this remake the kid doesn't actually use Karate. As he is in China, he learns Kung-fu a fact that has been pointed out by many irritated web surfers. He doesn't learn Karate he learns Kung-fu so why call it "The Karate Kid"? Perhaps I could agree with you there but it still wouldn't explain this



The original movie was also called "Best Kid" in Japan, and yet the original actually had the character learning Karate and even going to Japan in the second film. Why is he the best kid? What exactly is he the best at? Karate?

Then again this is the country that released

under the title of "Uncle Carl's flying house" I personally feel like "UP" would have sufficed.



(By the way I recommend the remake. I thought it was done quite well and stands on its own and I don't particularly care for remade classics)

Minority x 3

I'm American, black, and Christian which makes me a minority within a minority within a minority. Chew on that for awhile

In search of fellowship

Making friends in Japan can be a difficult and frustrated process especially for a foreigner and even harder for a foreigner who isn't fluent in the language. While I can hold various conversations and speak enough to usually comfortably make it through each day, I am not on the level to really keep a conversation going and throw in the fact that the Japanese can already be extremely difficult to get to know anyway you can see my dilemma. So when I do make a friend that I actually see at least semi regularly I am quite thankful for that blessing.

Now what's even harder is finding fellowship which as a Christian is something I seek and desperately need. I once heard this definition of fellowship and I liked it. Can't remember where it came from to give it its due credit.

Fellowship: Two or more people sharing in the same struggle.

For me a huge struggle amongst many other things would be living in Japan as a Christian in a country that has 1% Christian population. I love all my friends but Christians know there are many things that you just cant relate to and share with someone unless they have the same Christian thinking/struggles as you. I imagine in the real big cities it wouldn't be so hard to find fellowship but the Christian population gets thinner in the smaller areas and those that do exist tend to be much much older. Fellowship with older people is great too because it usually means they are wiser, but everyone needs someone around their age as well to experience their walk in Christ with. I've manage to find those even my age but then the problem of living in another country rears its head. For the most part they don't speak much English and I don't speak enough Japanese/Korean/Chinese. It's hard to break the ice considering that problem a long with the overtly shyness of a lot of Asians.

For the majority of my life I had no fellowship and was quite weak as a Christian. 5 years ago that all changed when I moved to San Francisco for study and then when I moved back to my home town St.Louis. Now I am in Japan and I can feel the effect of not having what I had. For now I continue searching for fellowship and churches, and as always pray. I admit I can get frustrated by the failure I have been having but I've failed enough times to know God won't fail me, so I look to this verse for comfort and hope.

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Philipp 4.6-7

Any close friend would be great. Fellowship with a friend would be awesome.



Here is a good website thrown in for good measure
http://www.biblica.com/

Happy Birthday to me!

That is all.







Thank God for another year.