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History
Peter talks about growing up in Japan
It was an old wooden house with sliding doors made of light wood and paper squares. Sometimes I'd lick my finger and push it through the paper, but I got in big trouble for that and I found out after a while it just wasn't worth it. Obaachan, my grandmother had patches to repair the holes with. They were little pieces of paper and some of them were the shape of maple leaves. Everything about living in this house seemed to have to do with gentleness and peace. I remember waking as a little boy to the sounds of morning that start as faint suggestions and grow into more definite pictures. I would wake with one arm outstretched from the warmth of the quilt and the futon and the back of my hand rested on the cool tatami matting. The first sounds I heard were the soft foot falls of Obaachan. It was still dark when she arose. As soon as she switched on the kitchen light, the paper squares on the door near me would light up, but only slightly because there was another room between mine and the kitchen. I heard the sounds of a quiet old lady doing what she had done every morning for years. There was running water, the strike of a match and the small popping sound of a gas stove being ignited. Sometimes I slid the door open just a little. I looked across the dark tatami to another paper door that was ajar and saw Obaachan in the kitchen getting breakfast ready. She stooped forward when she walked as if someone had permanently bent her in that position. I can't remember if her back was sore; I never heard her complain about it but then again I was only young.....somewhere between two and three years old and I didn't take much notice of such things. I know this though: she wouldn't have been in the habit of complaining because she wasn't that sort of woman. Whether or not her back was sore, it didn't stop her from carrying me on it. I would lean forward and rub my cheek on hers and hear her soft voice as she spoke to a little monkey on her back. Then came the sounds of the birds. Ojiichan, my grandfather had budgies in cages on one side of the house and when the sun came up, they let the whole house know that they were alive and well. It was time to get up. Time to go to the low table and sit on the floor near the kerosene heater and look forward to a day with Obaachan as she scuttled and fussed and got the day's jobs done in the slow methodical way she always had, the same way she worked (even though she may have been slightly quicker) in the days when she was young, in the days before the Bomb hit Hiroshima and put a lean on this old house that thankfully was on the other side of a hill that terrible day. At some point after breakfast Dad went to work, Ojiichan went to work and Mum and Obaachan cleaned the dishes and talked about their husbands. I went out the back door and walked to where the ground rose steeply leading to where the landlord grew strawberries. "Be careful!" shouted Obaachan from the kitchen window. "You shouldn't really be going up there!" But my big cousin Noriko brought me up here and there was no danger - except if the landlord caught anyone eating his strawberries! That was a danger, but it was one we were ready to face. The truth was, the landlord never got cross; we just thought he did and he wasn't there much in any case. The bank went up about twenty feet, so there was a good view from the strawberry patch. I saw Mum at the window looking up at me and gave her a big wave and then Obaachan wandered out the back and over to where she kept the kindling. I came scrambling down the bank to watch her light the fire under the big copper. The kindling was thin slivers of pine she had cut with a little tomohawk. I found the sounds and smells of such a simple task enthralling; the scrunch of the paper, the kindling cracking and snapping as the flames painted it black and the sweet smell of the soft pine smoke as it billowed and died on a small breeze. When I think back to those days at that house, Obaachan's face is the one I see most. She used to sing nursery rhymes to me. Her quiet voice would sing, "Haruga kita, haruga kita...." and I would look at the words in the book and see the pictures of Spring. When the night got nearer the water in the boiler got warmer. The boiler was the bath. It was a deep bath that only fit one person inside and the water came all the way up to your neck. Ojiichan was always the first to use the bath of a night, then the rest of us could use it. It was a relaxing experience. It wasn't a bath to get clean in. That was done before getting in. There was a wash cloth, soap and a basin of water to clean with outside the tub. The air in the little bathroom was warm from the rising steam . There was a round piece of wood floating on top of the water in the tub that you stood on as you got in. This stayed beneath you to stop your feet from burning on the bottom because of the fire underneath! On the frosty Winter nights, Ojiichan would have his bath, wrap a towel around his waist and walk out onto the wooden platform outside the bathroom and let the cold night air steal the water from him. He would stand in the freezing cold with steam coming off him. By the time he came back inside, he hardly needed the towel at all; he was nearly dry. After drying off, he would come back inside, get dressed and come to the table and talk with Dad and drink a bottle of cold beer.There was a heater under the table to keep our knees warm and as we ate our food and talked with parents, cousins and grandparents, there was a feeling of closeness and security and a happiness that could only be felt by being there and belonging to that group of people that night. Of course there are countless numbers of happy moments in most peoples' lives but the happiness I felt on a night like that was the sort I could only feel in that place, with those people and with me being that size.
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August 2008
August 2008
Why am I writing this? Why do you think I feel this is important? Do you think I have the time for this? Don't you think I should be doing more important things like fixing the loose seat on the toilet or seeing to the squeaking fan belt in my car? I am writing this because I know full well that three or four of you out there want to know what the hell I've been up to since I last wrote.
Let me see..............
(How are all of you, by the way?)
We sadly lost one more goldfish not that long ago. We only have one of the original four now. We have discussed the possiblity of getting a few more but we haven't done it yet - it's just too hard when they go.
A very enjoyable show recently was the Compass Brothers House Concert at a funky little venue in Redfern, Sydney. I've posted a few photos of it in the picture section if you want a look. It was on the third floor and the lift was broken, so it was all stairs for the lot of us. Thankfully it was only an overnight stay, so I packed my spare shirt and toothbrush in my guitar case to save on luggage.
Roxanne Brown had me and Rob Black working our butts off going down and then back up the stairs. The trip down was fine, but on the way up we had to carry things like water, guitars and materials for assembling various salads that were served during the concert. Just when I'd sit down with a cool drink, Rox would come back and say, "Another trip down the stairs, lads- there's a drum kit and a bass amp that needs to come up!" And we'd both say,"No worries!" but we were really saying, "Aw shiiiit, Rox!"
Now in theory, if the record company is paying for food, drinks and the cost of the show, it is really the artists of that company who are paying for the whole turnout and the nice things there are to eat (and drink). I spent a while looking about and trying to work out what bits I'd paid for. I think I could safely say that I paid for the dry biscuits and the tomatoes.
The whole night was very enjoyable and we all felt proud to be part of a great team at Compass. There is a real family feel to it and I must say how much I have enjoyed the company of James Blundell lately. We have been doing some work togather along with Kirsty Lee Akers and Tamara Stewart (hell, those girls can sing!) James and I have shared several Lambrusco/tawny port crosses on cold nights and subsequently shared many tales and incredible theories that went well into the night(s).
Well done to Graham Thompson, Roxanne Brown and Kris Katsanis (and the rest!) who coordinated a very good evening in Redfern.
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Allie has opened her vintage clothing shop in the beautiful town of Yackandandah in N/E Victoria and it is called Vintage Alley. She opened the doors for the first time on the 9th of August 2008 and it was a real success. It was a relief for both of us because although we were confident it would work, there is still that little voice inside your head saying that it may not.
So Allie is busy with the shop and things are busying up on the gig front. I did some shows recently with Sara Storer and her brother Greg in the Newcastle/Hunter Valley region. Greg has written some great songs and did a couple on the show which went over a treat. Hadn't worked with Sara for a couple of years so it was good to be on the road even if it was only for a few shows.
Back home now and will be doing the Camooweal Drovers' Camp with the Sunny Cowgirls this weekend (23rd) and the following weekend will be the Gympie Muster.
Talk soon.
Sayonara,
Pete
Published by Webmaster
Tuesday, 19 August 2008 - 11:17pm
World Youth Day
I did a show at a school during World Youth Day in Sydney. I didn't really know what to expect, except for a lot of people from different countries walking around. What happened was I experienced two of the most inspiring days of my life. There was a buzz and high happening that was not caused by any man made substance and it was passed on to me as I walked through Hyde Park. I didn't get to see any of the big events as I was only there for a little while. The amazing thing was, I didn't know I was a pilgrim until I got there!
Congratulations to all involved and travel safely home!
Published by
Saturday, 19 July 2008 - 12:24pm
New Site Launched!
Peter's new website Peter Denahy.com has been launched! Feel free to browse around, and let us know what you think!
Published by Webmaster
Tuesday, 8 July 2008 - 2:55pm
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