Nisei Week at JACCC

There was a lot going on in Little Tokyo recently. From Natsumatsuri to the karate exhibition and tournament held by Shotokan Karate of America (SKA), there just had to be even more going on. At first glance, in front of the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center (JACCC), there seemed to not be much going on but Nisei Week was already happening here.

There were sales of various Japanese goods (kimonos included) in front of the JACCC. There was also a “fishing” activity by a church booth which I honestly found strange. Strange in that they didn’t bother to call out to me to partake in the activity but did so to other people. I eventually went up to the booth to partake in the activity anyway because I was like wtf. You get to keep whatever you managed to fish for (a paper origami fish) and you’ll get a handout which instructs you on how to fold your very own paper origami fish along with origami paper to try it on. There was of course the expected advertisement of the church on the handout which I believe is next door to the JACCC. I was offered a fan and was about to say no to it until I realized it could come in handy. (The weather never got bad enough for me to use the fan, though.)

At a corner away from everyone else was a book “sale”. In quotes because the “sale” was on a donation system. You donate however much you want for the book(s) you want.

The book I wanted actually had a price sticker on it so I was confused with the whole thing at first. LOL But after inquiring, I received confirmation that I could donate whatever I wanted to. I really liked this system as it was stress free for both the seller(s) and buyer. Even better was the fact that a book was lying out there, as if waiting for my attention. It was “Marie Kondo’s Kurashi at Home” and I think it was meant to be.

I used to roll my eyes at anyone that was obsessed with Marie Kondo (and her methods) or any other cleaning guru but a manga about her methods really changed my mind on it all. I think the book, “The life changing magic of tidying up” was rather dry and I couldn’t get past the first few pages of it. But the manga (“The life changing manga of tidying up”), on the other hand was so entertaining and easy to digest. It may sound very weeb-ish (it isn’t, btw) but give the manga a try and tell me you don’t agree with me. LOL

“Marie Kondo’s Kurashi at Home” was a book I had been wanting to read online but was never able to since there was always a hold system in place. Well, guess what? I own the book now and it’s all thanks to Nisei Week. LOL The bulk of the other books on sale were all in Japanese so I didn’t bother. Plus, as mentioned earlier, this book was meant for me. It was laid out there, on top of other books silently screaming for me to look at it and I did. FYI, I’ve been decluttering and have been getting good at getting rid of things I no longer need.There’s a lot more work to do, though. I’m getting there and I think this book will not only be inspiring but help me to achieve even more in regards to my cleaning goals and so on.

I definitely gave less than what the book is actually worth but hey, we’re all winners in this book “sale” system.

Inside the JACCC were exhibitions for ikebana, ceramics and dolls. While waiting to go upstairs to view the ceramics and dolls, I just had to encounter that one person. I’ve gotten used to encountering such persons at events but it never fails to irk me. Like, what are you doing at an event if you’re going to be so off putting? It’s maddening if she’s affiliated with the JACCC in any way because she just didn’t come off nice at all. I don’t know if she was like this just to me or if she was like this to everyone, but it was not a good look.

As if encountering her once wasn’t enough, I believe I encountered her again during the tea ceremony. Her vibe was so off. I don’t expect strangers to smile but strangers don’t have to look so mean and unwelcoming either. Ugh. I cannot with such persons.

Anyway, talking about the tea ceremony, I almost didn’t attend it because I thought you needed to pay $10. Apparently, it was $10 if you wanted matcha and sweets. The observation of the tea ceremony itself was free. This wasn’t so obvious because the word “free” on their advertisement was in relatively small letters. I didn’t need matcha nor did I need sweets so I saved $10 to use on something else later!

The seats to observe the tea ceremony were basically all filled up and even if you could get a seat, you’d have trouble viewing the tea ceremony clearly.

If you’re interested, you can see what I observed via my youtube video.

I think the bulk of people find Japanese tea ceremonies to be mesmerizing. I definitely think there is a certain charm, art and aesthetic to it but there are a lot of rules around tea ceremonies that I would probably rather skip out on. I’m not an uncultured swine but I certainly don’t like the idea of having to wait for my tea and sweets should I be thirsty or hungry. In such a situation, I’d want my tea and sweets asap.

It’s great that there are people who continue to keep the art and tradition of Japanese tea ceremonies. Totally off topic but if it were possible, I would love to go back in time to observe a tea ceremony or two in Kyoto.

While at the JACCC, I totally forgot that they actually have a Japanese garden on site. This wasn’t my first time to the JACCC and I can’t believe that I still haven’t visited their Japanese garden. I’m going to assume that their garden isn’t that big of a deal? LOL Anyway, that’s the gist of what was held at JACCC during the first weekend of Nisei Week.