Sakamoto Ryoma

Sakamoto Ryoma is one of the heroes of early modern Japan.  He was one of the key figures during the struggles to overthrow the Tokugawa Shogunate.  In his early political days, he was part of a movement to overthrow the Shogunate and supported Imperial rule.  He went to Edo to assassinate a high ranking Tokugawa official by the name of Katsu Kaishu (an advocate of modernizing Japan in order to eventually repel the Western powers which had gained much influence in Japan), but instead became Katsu's protoge.  Under Katsu's direction, and help from Western powers, he help build a modern navy that defeated the Shogunate navy.  He was assassinated on his birthday, in 1867.  The actual group that assassinated Ryoma is not (and probably will never be known), but most accounts assign the assassination to the shinsengumi.  However, the Mimawarigumi (another group of samurai assigned to protect the Shogun's interest in Kyoto) took credit for the assassination. The following year, the Tokugawa Shogunate fell, directly related to Sakamoto's negotiations with the Shogunate to cede control to the Imperialists.

This period of Japanese history is very confusing.  Although both the Imperialists and the Shogunates wanted the Western Powers to leave Japan, both sides seeked Western technologies, especially in weaponry.  Sakamoto himself wanted the foreigners expelled, but also wanted to model a "new" Japan after the ideals set forth in The United States' Declaration of Independence - a Japan free of fuedal structure.   As far as the struggles between the Imperial forces and the Shogunate,  as enjoyable as Tom Cruise's movie, The Last Samurai was, it is an inaccurate portrayal of the two sides, as far as weaponry goes.

Samurai Photos- repost

I posted this before, but recently came across it again on YouTube.  Photos of samurai from the 1860's to the (ex-samurai) around 1880 or so.

Shinsengumi

The Shinsengumi was a group of samurais who were loyal to the Tokugawa Shogunate.  With more an more clans supporting the restoration of Imperial rule, the Shinsengumi "patrolled' Kyoto to protect the interest of the Tokugawas.  This group is portrayed a lot in film, and depending on the perspective, are portrayed as either villians, or heroes.  After the Meiji restoration, members of the Shinsengumi contined to fight Imperial rule.

Time to start posting again

I will try and start posting again.  I  just completing a book on personal finance, titled, $10 a Day to $1,000,000.  I hope to have this book out by the end of March, and no later than the end of April (cross my fingers).  I'm not a financial planner by profession, but along the lines of I wanted to write a book that emphasized the importance of time and savings, and preparing for retirement at a young age.

Promotional video for the book

Here is a video promotion for the book by Danbowentv.

Food as a Link to the Past

I attended the Japanes food festival in Los Angeles, CA on November 7, 2010.  I realized how food is a link to the past.  Take away the processed foods of modern times, and many of the foods we eat were eaten by our ancestors.  The nigiri sushi in Japan is a rather young food - it might be the original fast food.  During the Edo Period, Edo was a fast paced city and people wanted their food fast. Viola! the food vendors placed toppings (usually a slice of raw fish) on top of rice, wrapped it with a band of seaweed, and it was the pre twentieth century version of fast food.  

Secret Passages Bookstore in Long Beach, California

Secret Passages is a new independent bookstore in the East Village Arts district of Long Beach, CA that specializes in horror/sci-fi/fantasy/anime.


If you are looking for a huge mega-store with everything under the sun, you won't get it here.  What you do get is a small, inde shop, the type that makes for great browsing.  I came across some interesting titles in the used section that are probably out of print. The owners are friendly and knowledgeable about the genre they represent.

Not only are they a retailer, but they are community minded and support literacy, and the owners love for this genre, and using that as a base to promote literacy is a great. I grew up reading comic books, and many times, I found words from the weekly vocabulary list from English class used in comics, and I'm sure reading comics helped develop in me, my love for reading and writing.

If you are in the area, visit them at 406 East 3rd Street, Unit A, Long beach, CA.

And now for the shameless self-promotion: I am a featured local author on their website.

Here is the link to the featured author page on their website:

http://www.secretpassagesbooks.com/?page_id=249