October 29, 2011: Things not Japanese! Or maybe they are!

There are times when I feel like I'm dating a Japanese version of Star Trek's Chekov.  Remember how the pesky navigator of the U.S.S. Enterprise would often claim that anything of any note originated in his homeland of Russia?  Quadroticale, scotch, the Cheshire Cat, the Garden of Eden!  In similar fashion, Akemi is constantly bringing up the Japanese origins of things that are clearly not Japanese.  This afternoon, for instant, she was singing "Saru, gorilla, chimpanjee! Saru, gorilla, chimpanjee!" to the tune of the River Kwai March.  I hummed a few bars and she threw me a shocked look and asked: "How do you know that song?!"  I informed him it was an old (movie) military tune.

"Japanese,"she said.

"No, not Japanese,"I said.

She stared blankly.  "Not Japanese?  But words are Japanese."  I had to break it to her that "saru (monkey), gorilla, chimpanjee (chimpanzee) were not, in fact, the lyrics.  In fact, to the best of my knowledge, the tune doesn't even have lyrics.  It's simply whistled.

She seemed dubious. Like last week when she was singing the Japanese version of Old McDonald: "Ichiro-san no oniwa de, Iya iya yo!" Which roughly translates to Mr. Ichiro (san)'s garden…I don't want to go!".  What, exactly, goes on in Mr. Ichiro's garden that so fills one with dread is perhaps best left unexplored.

Also, the hymn What a Friend We Have in Jesus is a Japanese graduation day staple while Auld Lang Syne is reserved for major department stores that play the tune to let customers know they're closing up and it's time for them to go.

Hunh.

Tomorrow, my Snow Monkeys take on the undefeated I Have No Imagination in fantasy football league play.  The projections have them favored by some twenty points and it's going to be tough given that my RB2, Daniel Thomas, is out.  I'm considering starting Romo over Fitzpatrick.  What do you think?

Don't mess with the monkey!

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