Today is Juichi Kamikawa's birthday. He was a friend of my parents' and a real character. Even when I was a tiny little girl he always treated me like a person. He was never, ever dull - he had a wild mind. He was kind of like a male Auntie Mame. He passed on a couple of years ago (he was in his eighties but you'd never know it) and the world's a little less fun for it.
Juichi means "eleven" in Japanese. He was the eleventh child in his family, born on the eleventh day of the eleventh month. My Dad wanted to name me after him, only I'd be called "One." I'm my parents' first child and a New Year's baby (But then my Dad also wanted to name me "Onion" because he liked the sound of the word)
Juichi loved martinis so November eleventh is International Martini Day for me. I always toast Juichi whenever I have a martini but today is the day I make a special effort to have one. So if you happen to have a martini today, think about sending up a toast to Juichi.
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