Igirisu gin

Its time to start wrapping up the year's memories into a bumper sized box marked 2005, sealing it up and forgetting about it until I get round to some mental spring cleaning.

Music? Movies? Small fry my friends. Still struggling to beat off the terrible infection I've contracted; weary, heavy head, dizzy and just plain feeling wrong. I'm incapable of making the difficult decisions . On a side note, listening to the new Goldfrapp album right now, I'm converted! Like a modern Kraftwerk.Get it here.

So first to go in the box will be the Lost Souls of 2005, those who our world is poorer without. I'm not giving them in any particular order, how can I say a life is worth more than another? The last few years have seen the loss of two of my greatest heroes, Johnny Cash and Ray Charles. Prior to their death the modern world had largely ignored them, now thanks to a bit of morbid media attention they're finally recognised as the icons they were. Anyways without further ado:

Lost Souls 2005


"No More Games. No More Bombs. No More Walking. No More Fun. No More Swimming. 67. That is 17 years past 50. 17 more than I needed or wanted. Boring. I am always bitchy. No Fun—for anybody. 67. You are getting Greedy. Act your old age. Relax—This won't hurt." Football Season is Over; Hunter S Thompson, 16th February 2005.

Ever the man of his words Hunter, took his own life on 20th February 2005. The last time I saw an interview of his I could barely understand a word he slurred out, a victim of the persona he'd created for himself. He sometimes remarked that he felt he had to live up to his own image, leaving him mentally and physically damaged. You can feel it in his last pieces, he knew he wasn't able to produce the same searing prose that had made him one of the most respected literary figures around.

After discovering Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas at the age of 14 he became a hero of mine, someone out there really on the edge. Around the time of his death I was undergoing one of those natural realisations you get with age and experience: "I'm not a rockstar, nor will I ever probably be, so start acting a little bit more sensibly". His death really confirmed a few things in my head, live life to the full, but extremes are not necessarily the route to happiness.

You can find some of his last writing online here: Shotgun Golf with Bill Murray and Fear and Loathing, Campaign 2004.


After the Cuban missile crisis he spent years in the wilderness only to be rediscovered by Ry Cooder and thrust back into the spotlight. Ibrahim Ferrer's cheeky smile will be missed.


"I wasn't tired physically, or no more tired than I usually was at the end of a working day ... No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in."

Rosa Parks, mild mannered seamstress, was the spark that ignited the civil rights movement in America. Without her there would have been no Martin Luther King. Still room for improvement, especially here in Japan. There is no anti-discrimination laws in this country, a potential employer can (and frequently do) discriminate against non-Japanese. A lot of people have Korean heritage in Japan but don't know about it, I've asked people about their family tree who replied: "I've never checked my family tree in case I'm Korean." Being Korean would be so troublesome for them that they'd prefer to never know their heritage. In some respects, Japan is still in the Dark Ages.

"Japan, both through the national inheritance of its society and its relations with neighboring countries, as well as the insularity of its peoples, is still marked by real racism and xenophobia." The conclusion of the UN Commissioner on Human Rights, Doudou Diene, after a visit to Japan. Click here for more.


Not sure what to say about this that hasn't already been said, on the 7th of July 2005 four British people blew themselves and took another 52 lives with them. Over here in Japan information was scarce and I was really freaked out for a couple of days, especially as the blasts were all in areas where my friends pass through. Later I found out that one of friends had in fact been on the train at Russell Square. Fortunately she was ok, she was badly cut, bruised and her hair had been burnt but she came through alright. Another fact I learned later really brought it home, the picture above is the #30 bus, the same bus I used to catch to and from University every day...

Countless innocents lost their lives, including British civil liberties. Good ol' Tony has taken it upon himself to turn Albion into a police state. He planned to give the police power to detain suspects for 90 days without charge, thankfully common sense prevailed and a 28 day limit was agreed.

A gallery and biography of the 52 victims can be found here.

Owari (The End)
Raise a glass and cheer these good souls on their way.
Any other suggestions???