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February 26, 2007

tc_vlog_015


Click To Play
I made a bit of blunder in podcast #77 when I said that I had stopped at a gyudon restaurant on the way to Ginza the day before. I actually had been on my way to Yodobashi Camera in Akhihabara. After getting there I noticed a captivating pair of eyes staring down over the passers by on the street below. There was no choice but to take out the video camera. On Sundays, the main avenue is often closed to automobile traffic to make way for the throngs of electronics enthusiasts looking for a bargain.

The song that accompanies this short clip is called Spaghetti and is performed by Caelum from his album entitled This Guitar. It appears courtesy of Camomille Music through a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 license.

Posted by scott at 11:13 PM | Comments (5)

Tokyo Calling Episode 077

tc077
An encounter with a noisy beverage vending machine threw me for a bit of a lopp at the outset of this 37 minute food-flowers-and-fun-cast. After finding my way to a secluded bench in a wind-free and sunny part of the park I was able to regain my composure and get down to business. Here's a brief run-down on the main topics:

Running time: 37'51" ..:.. Filesize: 13.1 mb
Bit Rate: 48 Kbps (mono) ..:.. Sample Rate 22.050

Once again, thanks for listening! !

Posted by scott at 12:47 PM | Comments (4)

February 25, 2007

tc_vlog_014


Click To Play
My eldest daughter and I went to the Japan Grand Prix International Orchid Festival 2007 which was held inside the Tokyo Dome this weekend. It was an interesting and many ways an overwhelming experience - I plan to talk about it the next audio podcast. The festival continues through Sunday March 4, 2007. If you have a chance, it is very much worth seeing.

The musical selection is by Yongen and is entitled Shackles of Gold from the Yello Haus album. It is offered through a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 1.0 by Magnatune.

Posted by scott at 02:58 AM | Comments (3)

February 22, 2007

tc_vlog_013


Click To Play
It feels good to be back with a vlog entry. Standing once again in the shadow of the Mori Atago Tower, after my Thursday morning English class, I found this eye-catching bit of public sculpture. The podcasfe musical selection is by Paolo Sacramento and comes under a Creative Commons 2.5 Share Alike license courtesy of the OPSOUND website.

Posted by scott at 02:33 PM | Comments (2)

Tokyo Calling Episode 076

tc076

Hard to believe that this 30 minute commute-cast is the fourth episode this month. Once again, procrastination and disorganization are the dominant themes. But maybe this will all come to an end soon. Mentioning a Getting Things Done based time management software application called Ghost Action entitles Japan's First Podcaster to a special blogger's license for the program. Using it can't make me any less productive than I already am. Who knows?

In return for the software from the Ghost Park Company, a review of the product is requested - but not required.

If it helps me to pull my act together, I'll volunteer to be Ghost Park's posterboy.

Links Mentioned

Music courtesy of Opsound - featuring two tracks by Markovitch AMP: Insane and Vanilla under a Creative Commons 2.5 Share Alike license.

Running time: 30'30" ..:.. Filesize: 10.53 mb
Bit Rate: 48 Kbps (mono) ..:.. Sample Rate 22.050

Once again, thanks for listening! !

Posted by scott at 12:13 AM | Comments (1)

February 20, 2007

Now Hear This

musicovery

I've been listening to a random selection of tracks provided by Musicovery. The service touts itself as "Interactive Web Radio." You select your genres and mood and it provides a playlist on a colorful tag-cloud-like display. Overall rating: kinda fun.

Thanks to Dr. Venier for the tip.

Posted by scott at 03:25 PM | Comments (1)

February 18, 2007

Tokyo Calling Episode 075

tc075

The man with the beard is C.P. Scott. For some inexplicable reason, this former editor of the Manchester Guardian plays a key role in this 31 minute just-the-facts-maam-cast. Starting with a walk to the station on a rainy Sunday morning and concluding with the long overdue listener-letterbag segment, the one thing I hope this episode compels you to do is check out Paul's Comic Relief 30 day Joke-a-thon vlog project.

There is also a podsafe music selection from Dave Zeal offered under a Creative Commons 2.5 Attribution - Share-alike license courtesy of the fine folks at Opsound.


Running time: 31'05" ..:.. Filesize: 10.7 mb
Bit Rate: 48 Kbps (mono) ..:.. Sample Rate 22.050

Once again, thanks for listening! !

Posted by scott at 11:45 PM | Comments (2)

February 16, 2007

tc_vlog_012


Click To Play
pigeons bathing in the park

A moment of calm on a sunny morning in a park - after an evening of heavy rain - provided an irresistible opportunity to vlog. This despite the fact that I've been trying to take a week or two off from vlogging so that I can catch-up on other matters of life. At least it is a simple single shot requiring minimal effort to edit.

Not much happens in this clip other than a few minor pigeon skirmishes over the sunny spot in the puddle. At the very end, all the birds in the park took flight as a barking dog ran free off camera.

Technical note: I tried out the HD setting on the Xacti for the first time. The original footage looks pretty good on the computer monitor. Compressed for the vlog, I'm curious to see if anyone can tell a discernible difference. Please let me know, if you have a moment.

Posted by scott at 08:16 AM | Comments (5)

February 12, 2007

Tokyo Calling Episode 074

tc074

Exactly two-years to the date after Episode 11 in which I recorded from a park with my two eldest daughters on a holiday weekend, this 44 minute kenkoku-kinenbi-cast begins from another park with all three daughters playing and crying in the background. The episode concludes later the same evening as I attempted a last bit of multi-tasking at the close of this three day weekend.

Relevant Links:


Running time: 44'05" ..:.. Filesize: 15.2 mb
Bit Rate: 48 Kbps (mono) ..:.. Sample Rate 22.050

Once again, thanks for listening! !

Posted by scott at 11:21 PM | Comments (3)

February 09, 2007

The Bar is Raised

A pleasant surprise upon opening iTunes this morning was finding the latest installment of Herro Flom Japan. Back after an extended hiatus because of technical issues, the sound quality from Rich's recently replaced binaural microphones is breathtaking.

If you're not already familiar with this fine Tokyo-based podcast, please check it out.

The only complaint I have with Herro Flom Japan is that it is so good. To me, my efforts pale in comparison. Now the pressure is on.

Posted by scott at 06:48 AM | Comments (6)

February 07, 2007

tc_vlog_011

tc_vlog_011
This entry begins with an introduction recorded at a coffee shop near Toranomon after teaching an early morning English lesson. I briefly mentioned a podcast I've recently begun listening to. NewMediacracy is an informative weekly discussion program hosted by three experienced vloggers who cover a wide range of topics related to New Media. I highly recommend it.

From there we head over to the underground passageways of Ginza's Metro Station. Podsafe music from Mari Fukuhara accompanies a series of stills and short clips of assorted advertising posters and signs which can be found below one of the world's premier shopping districts.

The final shots were taken at street level in Ginza. The first building shown has a stationary store on the ground level. That location is regularly listed as the most expensive piece of real estate in Japan. I hope to have more to say about this in an upcoming podcast.

Mari Fukuhara's La Lune is available courtesy of Podshower featuring podsafe music from Japan.

Posted by scott at 01:13 AM | Comments (4)

February 04, 2007

tc_vlog_010

tc_vlog_010
This entry features a trip I took with two of the daughters to Akihabara - Tokyo's electronics wonderland. After a short bit of outdoor footage, we head inside to Yodobashi Camera. Looking over the shoulder of my eldest daughter, we watch as she plays Oshare Majo: Love & Berry. It is an amazing video game for young girls in which bar-coded cards are used to dress the players with different hairstyles and fashion accessories before an epic dance battle.

I'll have more to say about this video game in a future podcast later this week.

Posted by scott at 06:57 AM | Comments (3)

February 03, 2007

Tokyo Calling Episode 073

tc073

What is it? Well it's a 43 minute sorta-kind-of-a-commute-cast. A podsafe song by Seiji Toda comes between the two monolog sets. In the first segment, which is actually a second-take, I discuss recent developments in the podcasting class at TUJ while walking to and sitting on a park bench. The second segment was recorded in the early morning hours the following day in the Tokyo Calling command post. In it I elaborate on a response to Tayor's comment to the tc_vlog_007 regarding Tokyo Dome and why it might be a worthwhile tourist destination.

Relevant Links:

Running time: 43'43" ..:.. Filesize: 15.0 mb
Bit Rate: 48 Kbps (mono) ..:.. Sample Rate 22.050

Once again, thanks for listening! !

Posted by scott at 07:30 AM | Comments (6)

February 02, 2007

tc_vlog_009

tc_vlog_009
This is the second segment from my Tuesday morning walk through the Atago Green Hills area. The Atago Shrine was built in 1602 on orders of Tokugawa Ieyasu (first Shogun of the Edo period). Four Shinto gods are enshrined on it premises. At 23 meters above sea-level, an additional part of its original purpose was to use its commanding view to help protect the community from fire accidents.

Climbing the long-steep staircase that leads to the shrine is said to bring success in life. Unfortunately, I came up the much more accessible back staircase (from the Seishouji Buddhist Temple) so have no cause to expect such good fortune.

Fortunately, there is reason for me to return (and climb the old staircase). Spring is coming soon and I'm sure the shrine grounds will be many times more beautiful when things are in bloom. I will be in the area 3 mornings a week so will certainly return when the cherry blossoms appear.

The music which accompanies this video is from Tilopa. The song "Morning Walk" is from his album "By the Way" and appears on the Magnatune record label. If you enjoy his stylings on the Japanese Zen-Flute, please check out Tilopa's other offerings at Magnatune.

Posted by scott at 09:15 AM | Comments (1)

February 01, 2007

tc_vlog_008

tc_vlog_008
This entry will be the first of a two-part series from my visit to the Atago Shrine last Tuesday. This segment features the Seishouji Buddhist Temple, the grounds of which stand in the shadow of the giant Atago Mori Tower (the white architectural monstrosity which served as a backdrop in tc_vlog_003). The temple area was renovated in 2001 to coincide with the erection of the high-rise buildings, built by Mori, which surround it.

In the following installment, I will make my way up the hill to walk around the grounds of one of Tokyo's oldest shrines: the Atago Shrine.

Relevant Links:


  1. Mori Atago Green Hills Project

  2. A visit to Seishouji Temple

  3. Musical selection by Beatpervert (a former student from TUJ)

Posted by scott at 05:31 AM | Comments (3)