'I Wish It Was Christmas Today'

We had this project – The X-Mas Card 2009 …

I went to work one morning and tried to switch on my PC … but it just made a odd sound and smelled a bit burned. No digital design & one week to get the thing done. So I decided not to fiddle around with a Japanese Illustrator on another machine. Let’s get it on ‘Alles mit den Pfoten!’ finally back to reality. You would not believe how many different designs I created for this x-mas card.

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I had a couple of meetings about the print etc. which was fun cause I understood about 0.01% of the discussion. The manager of the printing company SASATOKU invited me to see his enormous printing plant an hour away from the office.

So I went with my college Ishikawa … Sorry but I was not allowed to take any pix in the production area but I guess you don’t care anyways cause that’s what I had to wear during the visit …

I’ve bee to a couple of printers in Germany and England, but this place was ultra sterilized with an airlock, disinfection hand-shower etc.

let’s keep it clean …

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Where is the patient ...!?

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Here are the results.

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Frohe Weihnachten und einen suveraenen Start ins Neue Jahr 2010!!

Ich vermisse euch sehr ...

Merry Christmas to you and a good start into the new challenge 2010!!

I miss you a lot …

XXX

KAi

2 wheels are enough??!

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I’m not sure …

Because I was waiting with two wheels all prepared for the Nagoya Jungle for about one month until my custom made Panasonic NJS Keirin Track Frame finally arrived.

The mission how I managed to tell the delivery dude where to he had to come and when is another story just that much; I had to call my Japanese friend Yamamoto four times to get it sorted and the delivery man came twice …

Now it’s time to sharpen the DIY instincts & assemble all that metal!

So that’s the cocky before the surgery …

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Give me a minute to get it all sorted.

Bit by bit step by step …

finally after two month and 6 days put all the little bits together and assembled them to one amazing vehicle …

no comment.

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what's your name ...?

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finaly back on track ...

You Can't See The Wood For The Trees?

We just had our end of the year party or how it’s called here the ‘Bonenkai Ceremony’.

That means pretty much the same as; the party to leave the passing year behind ‘otsukaresamadesu’ (we did a good job, it’s time to go home) …

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The restaurant had an elegant atmosphere. I came a little late, the boss boss started already with his speech (in English), ups, but no problem.

I got my glass of Champagne ... Cheers!

After finishing my glass, I asked the waiter, if I could have one more Champagne.

Sure no problem he sad and disappeared for a while …

I continued with the conversation between my boss and me.

Some minutes later he stood friendly smiling in front of me holding a pen in his hand …

Saying 'please here you are!'

I was confused??? What a pen!?

Then I understood …

No way ChamPEN!!!!!??? Such things happening here everyday ...

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°°°

A Japanese tradition is that the newcomers (Florence, Fujisawa, Orikasa & me) have to prepare something for this event …

And we did. I had this stupid idea to come up with a performance:

… some one could be the Christmas tree, the others (dressed in crazy Christmas outfits) could bring it in, all wrapped up in newspaper and a lovely red ribbon …

decorating it, singing the good old German ‘O Tannenbaum, O Tannenbaum …’ song … and just going a bit of the wall!

So far so good, but I didn’t expect that I would have to be the lovely tree imitation.

But just have a look at the pictures …

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We had to play some other games and got well juiced on Whisky in a fancy fancy lounge after the dinner.

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How I found shelter ...

There was this little note on the black board in front of the elevator … saying futon for sale.

I called and the guy on the other side just say yup come around and have a look at it …

8.30 pm 11. floor ringing the doorbell.

I just wanted to see the futon and pick it and leave but then we started to talk talk talk talk talk talk talk ... talk.

It got later and later my dinner was waiting in my new flat, I wanted to say hello to my flat mate cause I had seen him the firs tim just for 5 min.

Anyways we talked.

Then Rathod asked why I don't stay for dinner they just made some traditional vegetarian Indian food. Sure I want!

It wa lovely, the first thin his wife asked me was if its ok for me to ear with my hands ...

So we had an amazing dinner.

Then he asked me if iI started to learn Japanese ...

Yo a little bit ...

Then he went to the other room get a Japanese language book

... so now I learn!

That was a good start in my new home.

My shoes …

… seem to be my only home I have.

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I moved into a new cosmos!

from Kariya to Nagoya to see the city from high above.

Freedom:

14th floor.

Space:

Maybe 8m² tops.

Companion:

Kaz my flatmate half German half Japanese, grew up in California – spend some time in Hawaii.

Getting anywhere:

5 min to Nagoya Station >> 新幹線 Shinkansen, JR-Train Connections > squeeze me morning sessions to work.

Access to life:

No more last night trains at 23.30 >>> just bike, board and shoes …

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Pix are coming up soooooon ...

A nerd chapter!

Two wheelers, one of my favourite means of transportation.

As I told some of you already the Japanese are crazy about BICYCLES!

It’s a little bit bike*paradise here … even thow cars still have the biggest impact on the modern culture.

I never saw so many different styles of bicycles in the world before.

I stopped talking about bikes and went on the weekend with some of my work mates on a 80k’s bike ride in the country side.

It was awesome … everybody turned up with carbon-fibre-hi-tech bikes and I turned up with a old steel frame, decrepit gearshift and some red downhill pedals …

The country side here is very nice and soooo colour full in autumn!

The route led us through beautiful valleys and incredible mountain scenery. We rode along a dammed lake. Fisherman where fishing, the sun reflected like millions of diamonds on the surface and the lakeshore was edged by the colour full trees.

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We had a little brake at a crazy FRANKFURTER WURST BBQ ***I’ve never seen such big FRANKFURTER in my life, not even in Frankfurt.

The BBQ lady was unbelievable, wearing some swimming goggles and a flu mask not to die immediately!!

But just have a look your self …

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Unreal!!!!!

Then we continued our tour and I’ve to say the Mega-Frankfurter boosted up my ride!