With Gusto

I'll Be On Japanese TV (...and not you)

My bro and I were sitting near the infamous Shibuya Crossing, bored with coffees, looking at girls climbing into convertible BMWs with their expensive boyfriends. Two dudes with a video camera approached us.
"Do you speak Japanese?"
I point to my bro, and the three of them jabber on for no more than a half-minute while I continue with my coffee. Something was decided. One Japanese dude whips out a video camera and starts to pan back and forth in front of my bro's face, zooming in and out. The other Japanese guy yanks a picture of Salmon Roe out of his knapsack and holds it up for us to stare at.
My bro says, "Ikura. Tamago." They ask for English. "Salmon Roe." Then with Japanese pronunciation, "Sahl-mon Roh desu." Then back in English. "Salmon Roe."
Japanese man number two puts the picture back into his bag and slides a notebook and a fat jiffy marker into my bro's hand. My bro gets the idea that he should write out "Salmon Roe" onto the page . He has neat writing filled with luxurious curves.
The Cameraman focuses on both of us and asks us to say "Salmon Roe" together. On the count of three. I looked kinda spaced out. It's hard to focus with a thousand people walking past every minute. They informed us that next week, on ASAHI TV, after Doraemon we'd be aired to an audience of millions.

Doreamon is a manga story about a robotic cat who travels back in time to the 22nd century to help a schoolboy. It's intensly popular. I guess we're the PSA/English lesson after the show.

So that's the story about how I'll be on Japanese TV. The fact that it's at the Shibuya Crossing makes it kinda cool, as that crossing has been featured in some great movies and now I'll also be featured in some way on the screen at that place. And not you.

Also went to a curry buffet. Also found where the Canadian Bar is. They sell Sleeman's there. For 13 bucks a pop. Might be worth it on payday.

Later that night, at my bro's and sis's house in Meguro, a package arrived. The delivery man asked what it was and my sis replied, "a deer's head." They all laughed. When she opened it, it was indeed a deer's head. Except is was a plaster mold. Hot-Pink with glittery horns.