Kubo and the two strings!

This is the best second run cinema place! Only a couple of bucks for a flick! 😆👍 I wanna come here everyday! I just watched the animation movie about shamisen, Kubo and the two strings!

The main reason why I moved to LA was that I wanted to find recording jobs in Hollywood playing shamisen or sanshin, so the sound track of this movie with shamisen on it is exactly the gig I am zeroing in. I couldn't stop thinking of how I could take over the shamisen player's place while I was watching it. Then what the professional musician like me naturally think next is how much compensations I can get doing this kind of gigs.

Oh no! 🙈 I wasn't really watching this movie with such a touching story and was just counting the chickens before they are hatched! I polluted my mind with money and became a materialistic weasel. I feel so dirty myself!

New Apartment!

Moved into the new apartment! I have no furniture, no food, nothing, so I'll go get them one by one. First, I need to get toilet papers!

Book Off in LA!

I went to Gardena which is South of LA and there is pretty big Japanese community in there. I went there for the Japanese used book store and to look for used cars.

In Japan, there is the largest used book store chain called Book Off and they have a shop in New York City. Since there is only one shop in the biggest city in the States, I naturally thought there were no other Book Off’s in anywhere inside of the States and I thought I wouldn’t be able to buy cheap used books like I could in NYC. This is why I was getting 50+ books every time I went to NYC to bring a bulk of Japanese books to LA. After I moved to LA, I found out that there are a lot more Japanese or Japanese-American people living in LA than NYC, so there are actually not one but three Book Off’s in here! Aaaaargh!! I had been sweating so much to bring those heavy 50+ books as well as my big bass from NYC to Boston so many times! Oh well, putting aside the fact that all my efforts were totally meaningless and went right down the toilet, I am glad that I can get cheap Japanese used books in LA any time. I got 26 books today for the start. I’m sure I’m going back there in a few weeks.

Japanese things in LA!

Los Angeles is Japan.

OMG, I can pretty much find anything which I can only get in Japan in here. Sushi and ramen are very good quality and also I can get my favorite Japanese curry and pastries as well. I even found Daiso which is a big one-dollar shop chain in Japan.

The best thing I found was the LA Public Library Little Tokyo Brunch! Oh God. I thought I was going to die in joy. The place just have so many Japanese books including lots of manga! I can easily spend rest of my life in here!

My new apartment!

Found an apartment!!

A swimming pool, athletic gym and a nice yard with BBQ grills come with it! The place is also close to a huge mall and my favorite library! Wow, I'll be totally landlocked in here!

Since I came to LA two weeks ago, I have been helped by lots of friends, both in finding the apartment and finding gigs. I am so blessed with so many great friends. Thank you!!! 😄😄😄

New glasses!

My new glasses! 👓

I have to admit, my sense of fashion is worse than cockroaches. I always have hard time choosing this kind of stuff, but I picked one anyway. What do you guys think?

Thank-you letter from the United Nations Headquarters!

I received a nice thank-you letter for the performance at the United Nations Headquarters! Signed by Permanent Representative of Palau and International Association of Applied Psychology (IAAP)!

Griffith Park!

Went for a walk to Griffith Park with friends for the first time. Pretty neat.