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It was exciting to see a packed house at tonight's free screening of "Jīmāmi Tofu" at the Japan Foundation Los Angeles' (which I mistook as Japan HOUSE Los Angeles, but luckily I Google Map'd the address instead of blindly driving to West Hollywood)! This is already my third time seeing it, but I still teared up a few times. 🤣 The Okinawan food samples at the end, provided by the one and only Habuya Okinawa Dining, was a very nice touch - umi-budou, rafutē, of course jīmāmi tofu, AND Orion Beer. Okinawa is rarely represented in Los Angeles outside of kenjinkai events, so tonight was a real treat. They even taught "nifee de[e]biru" at the beginning and acknowledged the Okinawan LANGUAGE vs. dialect. I hope the Japan Foundation L.A. will consider bringing more movies from or about Okinawa into their future programming. (at The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles　国際交流基金ロサンゼルス日本文化センター) https://www.instagram.com/p/B59m7_OD_cQy1hf8gXG0WIpIu7eicBUxVJ-uks0/?igshid=1fsiyss120miu

THIS SUNDAY (December 8), I will be managing my fiancée @flor_kaneshiro's booth at the @oaamensore Mini Craft Fair! 🎁 We'll have art print/postcard sets, button sets, sticker sets, and a very limited number of tote bags. Please stop by 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. I'll also be selling special Shikee nu Uchinaanchu (worldwide Okinawans) 🌏 postcard/sticker sets to collect donations for the Shuri Castle restoration effort, featuring artwork by Flor 🇦🇷, @seijigay 🇺🇸, and @miyukitamashiro 🇵🇪 If you're interested in any of the items mentioned above but cannot attend the craft fair, please send me a message. 📧 (at Okinawa Association of America - OAA) https://www.instagram.com/p/B5wroujjDRKa0KbRg_RneboOVVuv8OZEiSvxkU0/?igshid=10q4l1hqt2zaj

Many memories at Sui Gushiku / Shuri Castle, and so much left to see and learn from there. I even bought a year-round pass because there's no way you can absorb everything in just one or two visits. We were fortunate to see a number of special events throughout the year, including a limited-time exhibition of royal court instruments (Maiya and I got there around opening hours on the exhibit's closing day to browse a little bit right before our morning Japanese class) and the Autumn Moon Festival (our friend Sayuri danced!). Because Flor's apartment was in the Shuri area, we went walking outside of the castle grounds many times, taking in the scenery (and sometimes avoiding the large, territorial ducks around the pond). But most importantly, this place symbolized our ancestral history as an independent nation, our proud cultural heritage, and Okinawa's troubled past with Japanese colonization. With next year marking the 75th year since the Battle of Okinawa - during which Shuri Castle was destroyed because the Japanese army built its headquarters below it - today's images of the castle engulfed in flames... there are no words. (at 首里城公園) https://www.instagram.com/p/B4RX58TDrhzgvog_HYcw0FVd7xP_jUk5scvVOs0/?igshid=1wxurwjngubs3

Even though our hearts are heavy from the burning of our sacred, beloved Sui Gushiku / Shuri Castle, we gathered for the annual World Uchinaanchu Day #世界のウチナーンチュの日. We ate delicious food as we remembered the 6th Worldwide Uchinaanchu Festival / Taikai, where World Uchinaanchu Day was first established. October 30, 2019 at the Okinawa Association in Gardena, California (at Okinawa Association of America - OAA) https://www.instagram.com/p/B4RIdHCjgjNleafskfOmEDRCKSwnEnjHyevJ380/?igshid=15kd36hy1zh3e

#世界のウチナーンチュの日

Some prints of Flor's recent illustrations are on display at the Gardena Valley Japanese Cultural Institute (GVJCI) Art Show during the weekend - October 26 and 27, 2019. Ippee nifee deebiru to the GVJCI organizers for the opportunity to showcase Flor's work for the second year in a row! There are seven pieces from the memoir/recipe book, "Del bosque florido: una vida en recetas," and our short illustrated film, "Ninufabushi Miiati (Guided by the North Star)." On Sunday between 1 and 2 p.m., there will be a screening of the short film. I thank the D.I.Y. art deities for the local 24-hour FedEx Office. I screwed up the size of the prints, so I had to make a last-minute run to re-print them. 🤣 Also, mounting the prints onto the mat frames proved to be more difficult than I expected. I was excited to see that there are two more Uchinaanchu artists/photographers (that I know of) who are also participating in the exhibit. (at Gardena Valley Japanese Cultural Institute (GVJCI)) https://www.instagram.com/p/B4F0jdiD5zbrUdXLI3rTS1Zeajm5dGlAPnBJ0k0/?igshid=pnc327cmywjy

I'm really late on promoting this, but Flor will have some prints of her recent artwork on display at the Gardena Valley JCI this weekend (October 26 and 27, 2019). On Sunday, between 1 - 2 p.m., there will be poetry readings, a screening of our short film, "Ninufabushi Miiati (Guided by the North Star)", and a yana/hetakuso uta-sanshin performance by some random guy. (at Gardena Valley Japanese Cultural Institute (GVJCI)) https://www.instagram.com/p/B4DfA1Mj7c7wCxh058c8wrhPW8_Ux66sYspHfo0/?igshid=1rpxu5hb1cbs3

We barely made the earlybird deadline (with seven minutes to spare worrying about whether or not the application was good enough for the programmers)! Fingers crossed... #girigiri https://www.instagram.com/p/B3EP3lQDseSdV0eCDg7orTCcFLM8j-V8Sel3Pk0/?igshid=gbem8af1d4kf

#girigiri

Irei no Hi: Battle of Okinawa Remembrance, 2019 June 27 spoken word x uta-sanshin 三線 performance with Sho at the Okinawa Association of America (OAA) in Gardena, CA June 29 short films screening ("Himeyuri" and "Our Island's Treasure") + spoken word x uta-sanshin 三線 performance with Sho in Torrance, CA Speak out against the construction of a U.S. Marine Corps base in Henoko, Okinawa Petition to U.S. House Armed Services Committee: https://bit.ly/riseforhenoko Contact your Representatives: https://bit.ly/henokocongress Center for Biological Diversity’s letter writing campaign: https://bit.ly/savethedugong More actions: https://riseforhenoko.com/ (at Okinawa Association of America - OAA) https://www.instagram.com/p/B0iEZpyj6u2zKt8RKBJRej3Cf-ziojFICNdQmw0/?igshid=1aco3rs4j4tac

Sanshin workshops for adults (Monthly Nuchaashii Potluck) and youth (first-ever Camp Warabi cultural summer program for youth) at the Okinawa Association/kenjinkai: short history of sanshin, parts of the sanshin, and simple sanshin lesson ("Tinsagu nu Hana"). The kids learned much quicker. 😋 I've been wanting to incorporate a "make your own song" activity, but never enough time. March and July 2019 at the Okinawa Association of America (OAA) Center in Gardena, California (at Okinawa Association of America - OAA) https://www.instagram.com/p/B0cw4j6DDx2djBZvNzQCe97uzGx3J1RoviPWbU0/?igshid=1ptq6x1iz8lbn

Eisaa workshops at the Okinawa kenjinkai/association for youth and seniors taught by Naomi E. (Majikina Honryū Aigen no Kai) and Ken and Kristin Y. and Emily I. (Ryūkyūkoku Matsuri Daiko), respectively. The workshop were held at our first-ever Camp Warabi (summer cultural program for youth) and our bi-monthly Seniors Surii Jurii Gathering. The obvious next step would be to have the youth and seniors performing together! July 2019 at the Okinawa Association of America (OAA) Center in Gardena, CA (at Okinawa Association of America - OAA) https://www.instagram.com/p/B0ckL7EDFFoVAT-Ju592E2yi4Xd2Su1l4OPvTE0/?igshid=g4a8jbpkhtvb

Working on an animatic with my talented fiancé Flor Kaneshiro for our next illustration/video project 💙💛🧡 (Note: illustration is not the final version) https://www.instagram.com/p/BshV6kflc1xlu_aHXu7Jv__Y3gBPyWTqEfsAM40/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=hxk3ztzfxth2

Finding Okinawa: Conversations with Three Artists featuring author/playwright JON SHIROTA from Hawai‘i, local filmmaker/educator GENA HAMAMOTO, and illustrator FLOR KANESHIRO from Argentina Sunday, January 27, 2019 1 - 3 p.m. OAA Center in Gardena, CA Yamauchi Building 16500 S. Western Ave. Doors open starting from 11:30 AM for a mini art exhibit featuring the illustrations of Flor Kaneshiro (@flor_kaneshiro) $5 for the general public FREE for current OAA members FREE for children (ages 10 and under) Tickets ➡️ bit.ly/findingokinawa2019 RESERVATION REQUIRED due to limited space Donations are appreciated Limited on-site and streetside parking Click here for more information and artist biographies: discovernikkei.org/en/events/2019/01/27/5859/ (at Okinawa Association of America - OAA) https://www.instagram.com/p/BsgoOIrFZgs5eE0mJQ4n9AV-ud0tvxHatMliXk0/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=12b1r2vfhw42d

Ippee nifee deebiru (thank you very much) to everybody who supported the Okinawa Association (OAA)'s first-ever mini craft fair and to those who purchased prints/postcards, stickers, and/or buttons from our table! I had the pleasure of staffing a table for my partner Flor Kaneshiro's illustrations and my friend Sho's poetry/photography prints. It was difficult to play the role as an extroverted salesperson, but it was very easy to praise Flor and Sho's talents. We still have illustration prints/postcards, stickers, and buttons available, so please contact me if you're interested! 🙏🏽 (at Okinawa Association of America - OAA) https://www.instagram.com/p/BrOzbbFFVbl/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=l9wdm2dmhj20

I'm excited and grateful to be performing with @shonolyfe 7 PM TONIGHT at @341fsn in Little Tokyo, Downtown Los Angeles (down the street from JANM; between Family Mart and Mr. Ramen). This will be the sixth performance of our yonsei spoken word + Ryūkyūan folk music storytelling project. About "Ghost: Stories with Bitter Party": Animate the ghosts. Tune into kindred spirits. Dance to their heartbeats. Sing to soothe the anxieties from another time and place. We are the proud queer children of the postcolony… We listen to the ghosts and ask them to sing with us. I'm extra nervous this time because I've been a fan of the event organizer/headlining band since 2014 (thanks to @fresaxcore's recommendation). I love their concept of "ethnographic ghost pop" and the fact that they're one of the only non-Okinawan bands that implements sanshin into their music. (at 341 FSN) https://www.instagram.com/p/BqRm-28lD0I/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=vej8v9bljdw7

My kenjinkai efforts should really focus more on the younger and future generations (preserving and perpetuating culture/identity), but, honestly, 70% of my motivation is making the elders smile and feel proud to be Uchinaanchu. 10/2/2018 at the Okinawa Association of America (OAA) in Gardena, CA (at Okinawa Association of America - OAA) https://www.instagram.com/p/BodcCrQFl_w/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1bjxlfo9i8whc

Time correction: the art show will be open until 6 PM tonight and 9 AM - 2 PM on Sunday. Five of Flor Kaneshiro's Okinawa prints are being displayed at the Gardena Valley Japanese Cultural Institute's Nisei Veterans Hall today until 6 PM tonight and 9 AM - 2 PM on Sunday. The works are part of the organization's annual Kansha Art Show. Nifee deebiru (thank you) to Mr. Takamori, Ms. Sato, and Executive Director Alison Kochiyama for this opportunity! 9/29/2018 in Gardena, CA (at Gardena Valley Japanese Cultural Institute (GVJCI)) https://www.instagram.com/p/BoU18aZFRsF/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=17el0ee38emyp

Five of Flor Kaneshiro's Okinawa prints are being displayed at the Gardena Valley Japanese Cultural Institute's Nisei Veterans Hall today until 2 PM. The works are part of the organization's annual Kansha Art Show. Nifee deebiru (thank you) to Mr. Takamori, Ms. Sato, and Executive Director Alison Kochiyama for this opportunity! 9/29/2018 in Gardena, CA (at Gardena Valley Japanese Cultural Institute (GVJCI)) https://www.instagram.com/p/BoUgR6VFdfl/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=uwgzr77r7v68

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