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

Mongolian Invasions of Japan

(1274 and 1281) Japan, having refused to become a tribute state under the Mongolian Empire, was ordered to be invaded by Khubilai Khan. In 1274, the Mongolians quickly overran two lightly defended small islands, and landed on Kyushu. They held the upperhand for most of the day, but at night, retreated back to their ships, thinking that the Japanese would be reinforced and thus, have the advantage in night fighting. A typhoon hit and many of the invading ships sunk. In addition, the Japanese counter attacked with smaller ships, setting the larger Mongolian ships on fire and also invading other ships for close hand to hand combat, in which the Japanese had the advantage.
In 1281, the Mongolians invaded with a larger force with two waves. The first wave came from Korea, and found that the Japanese had worked on the fortifications. The first wave was boxed in at a small island. When the second wave arrived, they chose another landing point, and the Japanese fought them to a standstill for five weeks. At that point, a typhoon hit and sunk most of the Mongolian ships. Those Mongolians who didn’t drown reached land were eventually worn down by the Japanese in subsequent land battles.

Kane Kosugi

Kane Kosugi is the son of Sho Kosugi who was a cross over martial arts action movie star in the United States.  Moving to Japan as a teen-ager, he continued in his father's footsteps and is a martial artist and action movie star in Japan.  He has had supporting roles in United States productions, such as Rush Hour III, and DOA. 

Here is a clip from DOA: