Before... no after yet?
Now that's a side of him we don't normally see...
Mitsuko really likes the before-after show, which shows various house renewals or conversions. Tonight, we got a look at the start of a kind of unusual one.
See, there's a young man who has become a television talent in the last couple of years, largely on the basis of being willing to perform in a very skimpy set of underwear -- like the bottom of a bikini? His main act is a singing sort of comedy act, during which he always turns to the side and pumps his arm as if pounding towards the ground. Since he apparently was a bodybuilder at some point, he has tight abs and lean muscles, and the women here in Japan seem to really like this act.
Anyway, it turns out that he is from a small island near Okinawa... well, about a 100 kilometers or so away. And his mother is still living out there, but he'd like to give her a reform.
So first the visiting architect got shown around her house. Concrete block staircase, weathered wood walls, but a pretty good island house. And he said there really isn't much for me to do here. In the process, Mom took them around back, and showed them the goat pen. She said they used to have about 40 goats, but there are only 5 now. And when the boy asked what happened to the others, she answered, "We ate them." At which point he started asking, "Wait, did we eat... what? Mom, why are you eating goat?" They skipped ahead at this point...
Next they went to visit Mom's coffee shop/bar. Which turned out to be a converted apartment in the bottom of a hotel. With a kitchen that's too small. And bar fixtures -- when the boy opened a door, it fell off in his hand. At which point Mom said, "You need to be careful with that one. Just push it back."
And the boutique corner -- she sells clothes, too. Including T-shirts with a cartoon version of her son. But unfortunately, there's no changing room, and some of the female customers get a little flustered about changing in front of the other customers. So Mom has a sheet on a line that she holds if they need it.
They all agreed that maybe the architect could do something with the bar/coffeeshop/boutique. Although he warned that it would cost a bit. At which point Mom said, "Well, he's got some money now." And pointed to the boy.
Amusing glimpse into life on a small island, and the background of this young man. I certainly understand his willingness to push some limits to become a television talent a little better -- I suspect getting away from the goats (even though he apparently didn't realize that they ate them) is somewhere in his motivations.
Nice to see that he hasn't just forgotten about Mom, though.
Mitsuko really likes the before-after show, which shows various house renewals or conversions. Tonight, we got a look at the start of a kind of unusual one.
See, there's a young man who has become a television talent in the last couple of years, largely on the basis of being willing to perform in a very skimpy set of underwear -- like the bottom of a bikini? His main act is a singing sort of comedy act, during which he always turns to the side and pumps his arm as if pounding towards the ground. Since he apparently was a bodybuilder at some point, he has tight abs and lean muscles, and the women here in Japan seem to really like this act.
Anyway, it turns out that he is from a small island near Okinawa... well, about a 100 kilometers or so away. And his mother is still living out there, but he'd like to give her a reform.
So first the visiting architect got shown around her house. Concrete block staircase, weathered wood walls, but a pretty good island house. And he said there really isn't much for me to do here. In the process, Mom took them around back, and showed them the goat pen. She said they used to have about 40 goats, but there are only 5 now. And when the boy asked what happened to the others, she answered, "We ate them." At which point he started asking, "Wait, did we eat... what? Mom, why are you eating goat?" They skipped ahead at this point...
Next they went to visit Mom's coffee shop/bar. Which turned out to be a converted apartment in the bottom of a hotel. With a kitchen that's too small. And bar fixtures -- when the boy opened a door, it fell off in his hand. At which point Mom said, "You need to be careful with that one. Just push it back."
And the boutique corner -- she sells clothes, too. Including T-shirts with a cartoon version of her son. But unfortunately, there's no changing room, and some of the female customers get a little flustered about changing in front of the other customers. So Mom has a sheet on a line that she holds if they need it.
They all agreed that maybe the architect could do something with the bar/coffeeshop/boutique. Although he warned that it would cost a bit. At which point Mom said, "Well, he's got some money now." And pointed to the boy.
Amusing glimpse into life on a small island, and the background of this young man. I certainly understand his willingness to push some limits to become a television talent a little better -- I suspect getting away from the goats (even though he apparently didn't realize that they ate them) is somewhere in his motivations.
Nice to see that he hasn't just forgotten about Mom, though.