The Japanese meaning of the name Kenji is: Intelligent second son; strong and vigorous.
So this song is on here for one reason and one reason only, it was the inspiration for our Kenji's name. I mean I do truly love this song but it would not have made it to this project otherwise.
The song is off the only Fort Minor LP, The Rising Tied, which was released in November of 2005. A few of the songs off this album got some airplay but this was not one that I remember. So it was many years later when I rediscovered the songs I knew and then discovered the rest of the LP, that I remember hearing this song for the first time. By the time I discovered this song I knew if we ever had a male Akita I would want this for his name.
When we did finally get our first male he already had a name, and bonus, it was already Japanese so we did not rename him. Plus Kenji means second son and Akiro was technically our first. So now we (I) had a name we just needed the puppy.
After losing Nina we honestly did not think we wanted another dog but as the days went on (both without Nina and with my illness) it became more and more apparent that I needed to have a companion. One that required responsibility, one that required interaction and one that needed all the love we had to offer. So we decided to rescue again. We kept an eye out on all the Akita rescue websites we follow looking for the "one". And then one day we found her....wait what isn't Kenji a boy? Yes, but when we drove from St. Francis, Kansas to St. Louis, Mo in January of 2022 we were going to look at a female they had named Minnie that we fell in love with on the website. Since we were making such a long drive we decided to meet all three of the Akitas they had available.
We met Minnie who had to be an Akita mix of some kind because she was itty bitty compared to the other Akitas we have had and been around for the last twenty years. She was a cutie and a fireball for sure. We also met Mickey, he was a HUGE loveable bear of an Akita but he reminded Larry of Nina and me of both Nina and Kayko. We decided it was best for all to not to put ourselves in that situation. So Tobi it was. Who the hell is Tobi?
Tobi was this beautiful all white male with a perfect pink nose. He was actually the first one we met and as soon as they brought him into the waiting room I said we don't need to see the others we'll take him. Larry, always the logical one, said we drove all this way to meet one you haven't even seen yet so lets meet all of them. So meet them we did. The place that was housing these Akitas as they looked for a spot either with a foster or furever home had an indoor space we could spend as much time with each one individually as we wanted. Again being the logical one Larry insisted after meeting them we take some time to think. We had already planned on staying in a hotel for the night and driving home the next day with the puppy so we had time.
We discussed all the things I listed above and decided it was Tobi for us and a new name for him. He had been abandoned on the roadside so when he was rescued he was just given a name, any name. I felt like he hadn't been going by that name for long so it was ok to rename him. The name we had picked out for the girl already (Kimi), because we seriously thought we were just gonna go meet her and bring her home with us. It would have also worked for a boy but I did not like that name for him so I brought up the two usual names I had brought up over the years for dogs (Nanook and Tatanka). Both were immediately shot down, as I knew they would be. So then I pulled the name Kenji out and well Larry deemed it acceptable. That is the story of how Kenji found a new more appropriate name and us.
For purposes of this post, I'm pretending to be Kenji. So what I need to present to the world is my best impression - so that's why I chose that picture as my featured image. You love it. I love it. The whole world loves it.
Even on my walks I present myself as the best Akita since Hachi. I have helped some people in emotional distress, I get tons of free pets and treats, people wave at me as I drive by with my furry head sticking out the window and I even have a best friend who (don't tell him I said this) I like more than my dad. She's always loved on me, tells me stories, gone for rides when I pull her along, recently shared a grilled cheese sandwich with me, has asked me to come live in her backyard and one time when she was playing hide & seek with me my dad had the nerve to joke "watch out - he might go into attack mode" she said in all seriousness "He doesn't have attack mode - he only has cute mode!"
So yeah, I'm pretty awesome. But...
I am one judgmental, rotten Akita at home. I actually might be the rottenist one ever.
They don't call me the pizza bandit like the other three (Kayko, Akiro and Nina). They call me the porkchop bandit. Which may or may not have been stolen out of a moving vehicle. They didn't but it makes the story that much cooler. They did come out of an unattended vehicle. I didn't want them to be all alone! Who walks away and forgets porkchops in the car?!?!?!? Dad claims he was unloading groceries yelling something about Benny Hill and Porkchop Sandwiches. They can't prove that's me around 1 minute 18 seconds in the video "evidence" below. Sound on.
These guys, especially dad, love it when I zoom through the house with my 115lb body. It's not my fault they chose to live a 900 square foot home. Zoomers gotta zoom.
It's also not my fault when dad gets down to play with me I head in for the ankle biting kill. He's on my level now - anything goes. But he's onto me nowadays so I can't use that move very successfully anymore.
Since mom is home with me more, she definitely gets the sweet side. I'm always by her - for better or worse in this 900 sq ft house. For some reason she always says "stop walking in circles" when I hook her finger to let her know I want carrots. Apparently all my previous siblings would actually guide her to the refrigerator. Here's the thing:
Don't count on me To let you know when Don't count on me I'll do it again Don't count on me It's the point you're missin' Don't count on me 'Cause I'm not listenin'
I have to give mom and dad credit - I think this song "Sums 41" me up pretty well.
I guess I can say "thank you" for rescuing me three years ago today - 01/14/2022 - but I'm not gonna change. I am who I am...
2022-10-20 Me? Judgmental?2023-02-14 Showing Mom My Sweet Side
Kenji Fort Minor
My father came from Japan in 1905 He was 15 when he emigrated from Japan He, he, he worked until he was able to buy- To actually build a store
Let me tell you a story in the form of a dream I don't know why I have to tell it, but I know what it means Close your eyes, just picture the scene As I paint it for you
It was World War II when this man named Kenji woke up Ken was not a soldier He was just a man with a family who owned a store in LA That day, he crawled out of bed like he always did Bacon and eggs with wife and kids He lived on the second floor of a little store he ran He moved to LA from Japan, they called him immigrant In Japanese, he'd say he was called "iisei" That meant first generation in the United States
When everybody was afraid of the Germans, afraid of the Japs But most of all, afraid of a homeland attack And that morning, when Ken went out on the doormat His world went black 'cause Right there, front page news, three weeks before 1942 Pearl Harbor's been bombed and "The Japs Are Coming'" Pictures of soldiers dying and running Ken knew what it would lead to Just like he guessed, the president said "The evil Japanese in our home country would be locked away"
They gave Ken a couple of days To get his whole life packed in two bags Just two bags, he couldn't even pack his clothes Some folks didn't even have a suitcase to pack anything in So two trash bags is all they gave them And when the kids asked, "Mom, where are we going?" Nobody even knew what to say to them Ken didn't wanna lie, he said, "The US is looking for spies So we have to live in a place called Manzanar Where a lot of Japanese people are"
Stop it, don't look at the gunmen You don't wanna get the soldiers wondering If you're gonna run or not 'Cause if you run, then you might get shot Other than that, try not to think about it Try not to worry 'bout it being so crowded 'Cause someday, we'll get out, someday, someday
Yeah, soon as war broke out, the FBI came, and They just come to the house And you have to come, all the Japanese have to go They took Mr. Ni, the people couldn't understand Why'd they have to take him because he's just an innocent laborer
So now they're in a town with soldiers surrounding them Every day, every night, looked down at them From watchtowers up on the wall Ken couldn't really hate them at all They were just doing their job and He wasn't gonna make any problems He had a little garden Vegetables and fruits that he gave to the troops in a basket his wife made But in the back of his mind, he wanted his family's life saved Prisoners of war in their own damn country, what for?
And time passed in the prison town He wondered if he'd live it down If and when they were free The only way out was joining the army And supposedly, some men went out for the army, signed on And ended up flying to Japan with a bomb That 15-kiloton blast put an end to the war pretty fast Two cities were blown to bits, the end of the war came quick
And Ken got out, big hopes of a normal life With his kids and his wife But then they got back to their home And what they saw made him feel so alone These people had trashed every room Smashed in the windows and bashed in the doors Written on the walls and the floor "Japs not welcome anymore"
And Kenji dropped both his bags at his sides and just stood outside He looked at his wife without words to say She looked back at him, wiping tears away And said, "Someday, we'll be okay, someday" Now, the names have been changed, but the story's true My family was locked up back in '42 My family was there, where it was dark and damp And they called it an internment camp
When we first got back from camp, uh, it was pretty, pretty bad I, I remember, my husband said, "Oh, we're gonna stay 'til last" Then my husband died before they closed the camp
Fat Lip Sum 41
Storming through the party like my name was El Niño When I'm hanging out drinking in the back of an El Camino As a kid, was a skid, and no one knew me by name Trashed my own house party 'cause nobody came
I know I'm not the one you thought you knew back in high school Never going, never showing up when we had to Attention that we crave Don't tell us to behave I'm sick of always hearing "act your age"
I don't wanna waste my time Become another casualty of society I'll never fall in line Become another victim of your conformity and back down
Because you don't Know us at all, we laugh when old people fall But what would you expect with a conscience so small? Heavy metal and mullets, it's how we were raised Maiden and Priest were the gods that we praised
'Cause we like having fun at other people's expense, and Cutting people is just a minor offence then It's none of your concern I guess I'll never learn I'm sick of being told to wait my turn
I don't wanna waste my time Become another casualty of society I'll never fall in line Become another victim of your conformity and back down
Don't count on me To let you know when Don't count on me I'll do it again Don't count on me It's the point you're missin' Don't count on me 'Cause I'm not listenin'
Well I'm a no goodnick lower middle class brat Back packed, and I don't give a shit about nothin' You be standing on the corner talking all that kufuffin But you don't make sense from all the gas you be huffin' 'Cause if the egg don't stain, you'll be ringing off the hook You're on the hit list, wanted in the telephone book I like songs with distortion To drink in proportion The doctor said my mom should've had an abortion
I don't wanna waste my time Become another casualty of society I'll never fall in line Become another victim of your conformity and back down
(Waste my time with them) Casualty of society (Waste my time with them) Victim of your conformity and back down
Ghost of a Chance 