"Collections"

I have collected sea shells... 

Pokemon cards... 

Beanie Babies...

and foreign coins. 

My new fetish is the dream catcher. 

I am a mutt of many cultures, 

and though I only have traces of two tribes in my blood, 

I love Native American legends and ideologies. 

Time for a new collection. 

{images © respective owners}

"Marriage of the Fox {狐の嫁入り}"

An old Japanese superstition 

keeps people from the forest 

when the rain is falling 

the same moment the sun is shining. 

For that is the time 

when foxes wed in the woods.

{"Marriage of the Fox (狐の嫁入り)" © Ashley Serena}

{image © respective owner}

"Haunted Japanese Summers (Thinking Aloud)"

Professor Masakazu Watabe and I 
sat down with Thinking Aloud on Classical 89
to discuss Japanese hauntings and folklore.
Here's what we had to say:

Haunted Japanese Summers (Thinking Aloud)

It was brilliant getting a native's perspective,
and comparing it with my foreign one.
Give it a listen... And Happy Halloween! ヾ（*⌒ヮ⌒*）ゞ

{image via WeHeartIt} 

"The Shapeshifting Monster Cat"

There is a legend, in Japan... 

If a cat is allowed to grow a long tail, 

it will turn into a bakeneko,

a "monster cat". 

If the tail splits, 

it becomes a nekomata

a "forked cat".

It will ignite ghostly fireballs in the house, 

eat its mistress and steal her form, 

devour any obstacle in its path, 

and resurrect corpses by jumping over them.

{This may have led to the
popular breeding of Japanese Bobtails.}

They're part of the bakemono "shapeshifter" family, 

which also houses foxes, badgers, and raccoon dogs.

Maaaybe I shouldn't be researching all this 

while I'm petsitting a cat.

{images © their respective owners}

"Spider Luck"

Some Japanese believe

if you see a spider in the morning {asa kumo},

it will spin good luck for you.

Likewise, if you see a spider at night {yoru kumo},

it will spin luck against you.

...But what if you slaughter the spider you see in the morning?

...

...

...

I suppose I hairsprayed my good luck to death today, then.

That would explain the second spider in my room.

{Morning Spider via Marcin}

"Sunshower: A Fox Wedding"

The Japanese have a phrase for sunshowers:

"kitsune no yomeiri" <--{狐の嫁入り}

which means,

"a fox wedding".

It is believed that,

whenever this peculiar weather occurs,

two foxes are being wedded in the forest.

- - -

But beware,

the uninvited human

who stumbles upon such a scene

will be marked with the fox's vengeance,

and may experience the sensation

of a bitty fox spirit

slipping under their fingernails

and possessing them.

Inviting little foxes to my own wedding

is something I plan on doing,

especially in the form of cake toppers,

or something equally adorable.

{Photos via James R.D. Scott}

"Hiking Himeji Castle"

"Everywhere is walking distance, if you have the time."

-Steven Wright

...I say "hiking", because that's exactly what we did!

{This place is gi-normous.}

So, the background story to the "Twelve-Layer Kimono" post...

I went to Himeji with one of the English teachers at my school.

{She's Japanese.}

After hiking the castle,

we went to a historical museum

and that's where I tried on the kimono.

{It took about 15 minutes with two ladies to dress me up.}

So! Back to the castle:

This is the Okiku Well...

haunted by a ghost every nightfall.

{I could barely see the bottom... it's deep!}

Himeji Castle is enormous,

surrounded by a mote

and tons of secret gates and corridors.

{The lady in the picture is the one who encouraged me to enter the kimono drawing.}

Ye Olde War Guns.

A shrine for the gods on the top floor of the castle.

{You can see all of Himeji from there!}

Grab a hold and give it a yank

to "wake up the gods"

and make them pay attention to your prayers.

Kinda awesome. :)

Japan has such a rich history.

There's so much to learn,

and so little time!

Only 10 months & 24-ish days left!