Beyond the Puddle

Q1 JP

2011-01-03T00:51:00.003+01:00

Arrived for the first time at Haneda last night. Damn getting in so late, seriously. I don't really WANT to have to crash out immediately upon entering my apartment; I LIKE having that period of forced wakefulness to anchor you to your new ground. I mean, I can't say I feel very jet-lagged this morning, but it is never so bad traveling West across the dateline. But who knows, maybe it'll hit me like a pile of sleep-deprived bricks tomorrow. Or maybe this ripening cold will come crashing down likewise.

So far plans are slim, which is nice. I will meet two friends. I will meet a friend. I will meet a friend of a friend. I will bestow X-mas cookies on everyone until they are gone. I will make a joyful return to Cafe Orchestra and apologize for not e-mailing them even though they were both kind enough to give me their cell phone addresses. (Note how "Cafe Orchestra" is a one-to-two mapping of the young guys who run it.) I will see Yuichi Ushioda perform. I will see Norwegian Wood even though I heard it was awful, but I will finish rereading the book first. I will see Cheburashka even though I was hoping to see the Japanese dub and they are apparently showing it in Russian. I will read more Japanese. I will study more kanji. I will go to a bookstore and look for a intermediate-advanced French textbook (in Japanese). I'll drum. I'll swim. As if the New Year holiday was not enough, I'll take Coming of Age Day off.

I think work will go well. Things continue to evolve quickly. Sometimes I feel like I need to just sit down with a blank piece of paper and think really hard with a pen, but other times I feel like I should think as little as possible, just observe and react. Log. Send e-mails. Keep the users safe.

Happy 2011.

NHK gear + (Shopping Day)

2010-08-23T15:44:00.005+02:00

Today I went shopping because there were computer issues preventing me from accomplishing anything. It's OK! I will make up the time this weekend once it's fixed.

Things I bought while I was wandering around Shibuya:

- one (1) water bottle at Mono Comme Ca (because I forgot mind in San Francisco). I actually like this one even better, since it's orange, which is the color I wanted in the first place. It comes with a freezable insert, so you can keep your drink cold.

- one (1) repurposed-into-a-skirt Lucky Band jeans. It's the waist and butt of the jeans (fly etc.) but no legs, instead a fringe of (also repurposed) neckties. There are even giraffes! (FB pix soon...)

Things I bought once I found the NHK shop:

- はなかっぱ plushie. He's soooooo cute. Pix on FB.

- はなかっぱだいずかん It's like a picture encyclopedia about the show, Hannakappa.

- はなかっぱはなしシリーズ１ It's a picture book with stories from the show. I REALLY LIKE HANAKAPPA YOU GUYS.

- three 花根付 (Hannakappa strap figurines...like keitai straps, basically) I got one "secret" one, which is the main character, Hanakappa, with a weird big smelly flower on his head. Then also the dad, and one of the "villains." These come in a capsule toy machine, and I'm looking for people to trade with to collect them all.

- three はなかっぱカプセルシール They are packs of tiny little stickers you buy in a capsule toy machine.

- どーもくんコレクション１９９８−２００８ DVD It's the 37 Domo-kun spots from NHK through 2008. He is their mascot, and also really cute :)

-教えて！ニュースのことば Actually I'm super excited about this book. It is from the NHK Weekly Kids News people, just published this year, and basically...it's a book to help Japanese kids understand the news. I.e., the perfect glossary to current issues in an easy to understand format and no need to recognize all the kanji immediately, since there is ample furigana (hiragana written next to the kanji to show the pronunciation). I'm gonna learn a TON.

Anyhow, mostly, you can tell I am a big はなかっぱ fan. I wake up in the morning, watch his show, and then go to the pool and pretend I can swim as well as a kappa :P

The best thing about Roppongi is...

2010-08-10T13:15:00.002+02:00

Azabujuuban. Ok, it's not Roppongi, but it is next door. When the Hills feel a little too much like a mall, a little too chic, Azabujuuban brings the cute and cozy. I really truly love it, hopefully not only because I'm a girl D: Maybe it's not as "Japanese" as some areas, but I'm fond of Euro-J fusion (esp France and Italy), so I don't really mind.

I was thinking about how to compare it to San Francisco, since it does feel a lot like home to me, and I think that I arrived at three neighborhoods:

Noe Valley - Family friendly, bakeries, toy shops, a videogame/card shop with kids sitting outside playing or trading. Lots people walking or riding bikes, and some strollers, too.

North Beach - Definitely has a Euro-vibe, and the way at least one of the streets kind of a widens to make an island in the middle (they were having some sort of unofficial-looking market there over the weekend) for some reason makes me think Washington Square Park even though it's nowhere near as big or even that similar..... Plus there the cafes everywhere give that vibe.

The Mission (well, Valencia) - It's just so hip :P Cute clothing shops, etc. It's a little more utilitarian, too, with groceries, convenience stores, 100 yen shop, pharmacy, etc, but there are enough restaurants and DUH, the amazing vegan place (more on that later) to make it feel very much like my hood in San Francisco. Actually, there is a Mexican restaurant, too, called Frijoles. I have yet to try it, but I'll be sure to report back or at least tweet when I do. Maybe...Friday? I gotta say, it looks legit (!)

The other funny thing about Azabujuuban is that I see WAY many more white people there than I do in Roppongi. I mean, it's not like there are not foreigners in Roppongi (otherwise it wouldn't be stereotyped as crawling with them) but I think people (like me?!?!) are attracted to Azabujuuban for obvious reasons. I feel like I actually saw MORE white people than Japanese people, I think, tonight, at least. That probably isn't really true, but it's the first time I have felt that way.

So let's see. I ended up exploring Azabujuuban more both on the suggestion of a friend (whose adorable craft blog is here) and because it happens to be on the way to Motoazabu Hills.

This week the spa (ugh I hate that it's called that, let's just call it a "gym") THE GYM is closed for maintenance, I guess. This means no free breakfast and no swimming 5 minutes away from where I live. The breakfast thing is no big deal: I bought some chocolate protein mix, soy milk, and oatmeal and have been really enjoying eating that in the morning. Turns out the swimming 5 minutes from where I live thing is not a big deal either, since I have access to three other gyms through my membership, one of which is at Motoazabu (also the second closest).

It took me two tries to get there over the weekend (because it's hard to find my way around without an iPhone :P), but I ended up finding a really fun route that does, as I mentioned, go through Azabujuuban a little bit. The sp-GYM there is really nice. I like that you can tell it's part of the Hills Spa group, but it has it's own feel to it. For instance, in this one, the locker rooms are set up so that guys and girls take their shoes off together before going into separate changing rooms, whereas at Roppongi, even the shoe lockers are separate. The pool is a little bit bigger than the one at Roppongi Hills, although somehow the locker room is a ton smaller. I'm going to make sure I try out all the gyms I have access to. Maybe I'll eventually work up to being able to participate in the Master Swim class at Ark!

Incidentally, I set up a meeting with a swim coach on Thursday. That's in two days! I have no idea what kind of lesson it will be or whether I will be able to understand his Japanese. Hopefully it will work out. If it does, I will be happy to keep taking lessons there.

Food so far:

Koots - Yep, I realize this is a chain, but I really don't care when their tuna yamakake donburi is so good. Raw fish, runny egg, yamakake (I don't even know how to say this in English, potato slime? haha It is white with the a smooth snotty sort of sticky consistency, similar to...), okra (this is a very common veggie in Japan, as opposed to say, Wisconsin), and bell peppers over white rice. OH and nori. I did taste some wasabi in there, too. Some slightly sweet soy sauce. So so tasty. I was really happy and felt so healthy afterwards that I had to go ruin it with dessert ;)

Naniwaya Cafe - This place I found out about from this 8Tokyo post. I ate the same thing they did, and it was excellent. Like I commented on that blog post, whatever flavor the cake was made the whole thing seem extra special. I don't really eat a ton of roll cake, even though it's very popular here, but I will have to try hard not to stop by here every weekend now :P I do need to make sure try their taiyaki, though, since it's what they are famous for. If I go with a friend we can order those and a shaved ice and share hot vs. cold :)

Eat More Greens - This is where I went tonight for dinner. Had the tomato and raw yuba caprese salad with spicy miso. It was probably my favorite thing I've eaten since I've got here. Just last night I was daydreaming how great it would be if someone did a caprese with tofu instead of mozzarella—and then they stepped it up with yuba! I was very sincerely impressed. So impressed that I gave the vegan apple pie a shot even though I mayyyyy have had a cream bread (uhm, sorry, what else do you call that? It's not really a donut. Ok it was custard not really cream. I don't know) this morning... I'm hooked. I'm hooked I'm hooked. Can't wait to go back and try their pumpkin pie (it appears to be made with kabocha, i.e. Japanese pumpkin, so I'm guessing it will be a fair ways removed from Thanksgiving!!) and the delicious looking salads and pastas. Eek eek eek. And they do brunch on the weekends ;) AND they have the cutest rainy day promotion... I'm in heart

Anyways, there will be lots more hanging out in Azabujuuban, for sure. Aside from that let's see what is coming up soon:

CURRY BATTLE - My Japanese friends are coming over to have a cook-off. It's going to be GREAT! And we're going to go see a fountain show in Roppongi's "Midtown" (sorry, I kind of lol at the name, since it was just some area that they developed recently and decided to call that) district.

FIREWORKS - I'm not sure how this will work. Maybe we can see both? I wonder if I will be able to see them from my house. My Japanese tutor said I should really try to see them because "Japanese fireworks are maybe different from American fireworks" ;)

OBON - It's a Japanese holiday! I missed the dance practice, but I'm probably ok just watching ;)

MOUNTAIN CLIMBING - Ok, just hiking, but I'm excited. I'm gonna walk up a mountain 8/28!

TOKYO DISNEYLAND - I gotta see Captain Eo! It's probably dubbed right; Michael Jackson, Japanese? I must experience this. We're gonna do a whole weekend in early Sept. Can't wait to see what kind of fusion we'll find :)

MYSTERY GUEST - A friend is actually coming to visit (!) at the end of September. Hopefully I will be blog again before then, haha, but this is just looking ahead.

And that is just the BIG stuff. I'm sure there will be all kinds of small wonderful things in between. I know some peeps from work are on their way over here soon, as well, so many many fun times coming up. And always lots of studying :)

#happy #lucky #EXCITED

The skills I lack

2010-07-18T16:10:00.002+02:00

I'm still trying to decide if it's really that important that I learn to cook. I found a couple good books at the store today, either of which would be fine. It's just that if I do it I'm not gonna half-ass it; I'm gonna try really hard and buy all the correct equipment and not, you know, crush garlic with a fork (not that I will probably be crushing much garlic for Japanese food?) Anyhow, I spent like almost an hour looking at cookbooks at Tsutaya after running around with friends today in Shimokitazawa, which is an area I will definitely return to.

Roppongi Hills is really fancy, but it lacks personality as far as a neighborhood. There is a ton in it, but it's sort of a maze, and it feels incredibly superficial. Shimokitazawa, on the other hand, has a ton ton ton of stuff crammed all over, some cute, some grungy, some chains, some adorable indie spots. It's also a maze, but at least it's more of a "city" feeling than "mall." We had houjicha shaved ice, which is not a flavor you can find everywhere. The store we went to was tucked away upstairs around a corner (like most things, it seems) but there was a line outside.

After that we popped into a bookstore overgrown with stuffed animals, shower curtains, backpacks, snackfood, etc. I forget the name of this chain, but uhm...yeah it's like being a book store just wasn't good enough. I realize that Borders and other places stock things that are not books, but you can still TELL it's a book store readily. This, though, was just a cacophony of goods sprouting from every shelf like a new strain of consumer-ready weed.

I bought a couple used jazz CDs at Disk Union. I kind of want to go back there, too. Somehow I'm not used to shopping for used CDs, but I buy used games often enough. I should check out Amoeba more often (or you know, when I'm in San Francisco).

Later on we got drinks at an adorable cafe which is most definitely a secret, but the kind that people know about so there, again, was a line. Ended up ordering "orange spice" Sangria. I'm not really a Sangria expert, but this was more like a very small cup of juice (the wine was super diluted) with ice. The flavor that was there was good, but it missed the depth of the red wine base, somehow.

Dinner was "soup curry" at a place called cocoro. All three of us ordered the 14 vegetable combo with brown rice, but at various spicinesses. I got 6, which did end up being rather spicy. Soup spiciness is harder to do that other types of food because since it's liquid it hits your throat faster. Somehow if you "taste" food "more" before you swallow, it's easier? Maybe your spit dampens the heat. Anyways, the veggies were great, but we all ate too much.......

Incidentally, since I'm just sitting here in my room listening to Chet Baker wondering whether I need to cook, I might as well discuss (briefly, emo-ly) my TWENTY-FIFTH BIRTHDAY ANGST.

It doesn't really have anything to do with my birthday. It's just a convenient excuse to have it out.

Things flitting across my mind:

25 = one quarter of a century.

[excised because it's the perfect emo birthday tweet]

Not cute anymore. Not sure when that happened exactly, but I don't feel cute. I feel...like a disheveled adult.

I haven't cooked a meal in...ages. Absolutely ages. Does that matter?

I'm really bad at laundry.

I'm single.

Haven't really gained expertise.

I was far more disciplined during college than I am now. What happened? It's not like I'm genuinely more relaxed.

Etc.

This has been Birthday Angst With Tiger, only remember that the Birthday part is a clever ruse to make you think I am not always this emo when really I am.

#sigh

Random Things I Have Enjoyed of Late

the "short" Starbucks size

Yamanote line platform jingles

salad for breakfast (although I think I mentioned this already)

bossa nova in almost every cafe

Anyhow, as usual, there is so much I want to do that I end up aimless. Gonna just lie here and listen to more music. It's late, anyhow.

Pix or it didn't...

2010-07-17T06:08:00.002+02:00

Well, I can't figure out how to get pix off my iPhone, and I figured blogging without them was a mite pointless, but now that I've been here for about a month, I figure I should relate what I have been up to.

Kamakura:

Went to Kamakura and Yokohama with one of the owner's of my favorite [Mission, San Francisco] local izakaya, Nombe. Ate shirasu both fresh and boiled, which was a new thing for me. Also tried a chocolate croquette. Who knew those even existed? Got to sample some really tasty pickles as we meandered around a shopping district. Saw the daibutsu and walked over to the bridge to Enoshima. Dinner in Yokohama included, I recall, some really tasty wontons.

Takoyaki Party:

Got together with some peeps from work and made takoyaki. Yup, grilled'em right at our table; you have to pour the batter into little cups, add ingredients, and then kind of spin them around as they cook to make them into ball shape. Here is a pic I took of the finished product, complete with mayo and tonkatsu sauce smiley face.

HBJB Concert:

A friend I met on Twitter took me out on a Friday night so see her friend's band. They play some pretty funky music, just cosplaying as Native Americans for some reason. The opening group was this a capella trio, DSC. By the end, they invited a lot of guests (including DSC again) up on stage, so the last couple songs were pretty epic. Overall, it was really a lot of fun, despite the bizarreness, and I'm glad I have the chance to hang out with Japanese people while I'm here! When I lived in France, I had next to no French friends. Still looking for more ways to meet people, but Twitter and other websites have been an ok start.

Asakusa:

One of my co-workers and his wife took me to Asakusa, where there is lots of shopping and a famous shrine. Actually, I went to the shop mentioned in this blog post. We also had excellent sushi for lunch. I've discovered that I do actually like ikura. Maybe my taste buds have changed yet again..

Mt. Fuji (you know what Fuji-san looks like):

I hopped in the car with a (different) co-worker and his family (wife and two young girls). We had a ton of fun, but really spent most of the time in the car aside from lunch and a brief outing at the 5th step up Fuji. The youngest was only five, so we didn't hike. Ate a variety of strawberry desserts with lunch. Escaped a traffic jam to hit the dreaded McDonald's for dinner (I had some kind of lemon and salt chicken sandwich with wayyyyyy too much vinaigrette on it, but it was not something I had ever tried before. Also, you can get a salad instead of fries, and the dressing--used sparingly--was delicious). We played probably HOURS of the Japanese word game, shiritori. I'm surprised there was not more janken. Anyhow, the kids were adorable. The oldest sewed me a super cute tiger doll! I wish I could post a picture :P

WOWOW Music Unlimited:

I got tickets to go see the Okamoto's, a rock band I found out about when they came to San Francisco as part of the Japan Nite Tour, with Chatmonchy. There were four other bands, and I enjoyed Lego Big Morl and Avengers in Sci-Fi enough to buy CDs. Shibuya AX is a pretty great venue. I hope to return sometime, maybe get tix earlier so I can be on the floor where it's crazy. The balcony was rather chill.

Japanese lessons:

Started private lessons at Berlitz. I'm learning all stuff for work. It is pretty challenging, but I'm trying to put in study time each evening!

Random food:

Been eating lots of curry, of course, of many varieties, though, not just Japanese. I also LOVE omuraisu; there is a place right by the Roppongi metro stop that does take out. Have taken a shine to Lauderdale, after having a leisurely and relaxing basil omelet experience last weekend. Tried Toraya Café today for lunch. Did Junkadelic's chicken burrito, which was tasty, if a bit soupy and nowhere near spicy enough even with the salsa. The best so far, though, was probably eating hiroshima-style (layered, not mixed) okonomiyaki straight off the griddle with fresh tomato, spicy pickled cucumbers, and sesame tofu and cabbage salad on the side.

Apartment:

It's still ridiculously fancy. All my friends think I am rich and/or a CEO. (I'm not the CEO, guys!) I love going to the pool in the morning during the week, and almost love it even more on the weekends. There is almost never anyone there. The most crowded I have seen it was four people, which, four people is fine since there are two big lanes. More than that and we'd be circle-swimming, which is less than ideal (but when you start complaining about that, you really know you've gone off the deep end...not that the water is very deep; in fact it's rather a bit shallow, BUT once again...one really cannot complain about such things).

Anyways, I think that's all I got for now. I want to try to see the new Ghibli movie, maybe, and possibly hit up a jazz bar tonight. First San Francisco is already this Tuesday! Time flew, naturally.

A little less lag, please! A little less lag!

2010-06-26T00:32:00.003+02:00

Ugh I accidentally fell asleep even earlier than the last time. So it's still sort of rough. Yesterday was good. In the morning I checked out the pool. It's two big lanes, but there were barely any people so I don't feel like I will ever have much trouble. The locker room is ultra clean and they make you take off your shoes before you even go in (there are two sets of lockers, one for your shoes, and then inside, one for your clothes). I really want to find a swim cap and new goggles, but I'm not sure where I will be able to find them...

Before work I went to Arc Acadmey to up a pre-test so I can get some lessons at an appropriate level. It was sort of an unplanned visit, but they were really friendly even though the teacher didn't have time to talk to me. Complementary iced tea!

Then...hmm, got together with a Twitter friend and planned an epic shopping trip followed by dinner with her boss and a study abroad student from Singapore, so I'm really looking forward to that this afternoon. Other than that, just work. I did have lunch with Yukari and Reina—ultra Japanese style with grilled fish, salad, miso, and rice. On my way home I grabbed a slice of very bacony quiche at the Keiyakizaka Bakery, where they have "Moose" on the dessert menu, heh.

So yeah I mean to stay up, but I put on the TV and conked out almost immediately. So bad. I've been waking up pretty reliably at 4:20 am, but I managed to lie around until about 5:30. I figured I maybe the Starbucks on the corner would be open, but they aren't until 7!!!!! That's crazy. Shout-outs to Mission and 4th, man. They wake up early and we love them for it. Anyhow, luckily (?) there was this 24hr/365day Chinese cafe nearby. I had kimchi veggies and xiao long bao. They were not as tasty as the ones I ate in San Francisco, but I can't say I was expecting a ton from this place. No matter. It was ok.

Interesting people watching, too. It was pretty hopping for 6 am. Lots of (also jet-lagged? or maybe just party-people) foreigners, some of them discussing how their friends wrecked their attempts at picking up girls. One British guy was talking about how nonchalant the "Chinese style" of ordering food is, and how he tried to emulate it for this meal. It seems like he ordered a ton of stuff. The food started coming and hadn't stopped even when I left (and it took a while to order because I didn't realize I had to go back up to the counter).

Going to try to pop into the Twitter company meeting shortly, and then probably study for a while. I haven't been so I feel all rusty and horrible. And you can tell! My Japanese is awful :X

Disjointed first JP-side post

2010-06-24T22:54:00.002+02:00

Oh noooo, I failed in my mission to be jet lag free. I'm not sure if that's even entirely possible, but I definitely went to bed way too early last night. It was either that or caffeinated. Energy had plummeted straight to zero.

Let's see, though. As for the flight, pretty standard, low-drama. I sat next to a family of four, but the kids were more or less behaved. Didn't watch any movies, but played a lot of video games. Slept extremely minimally. It was annoying that they had the lights off for most of the flight even though it was light out outside. It was daytime in Japan! They were setting us up for jet lag fail from the beginning ;p

The bus ride from Narita is really the most dangerous, though. It is soooo easy to conk out on that ride. I stayed mostly awake and got off at the Grand Hyatt (where I'm not staying) to meet my supervisor, a couple co-workers, and the guy who helped set up my apartment. From there we walked a short way to Roppongi HIlls Residence D where I AM staying.

It's really too fancy. Although the kitchen is small, I'll be able to cook most things that I would want to, and it comes with dishes and stuff. The TV has cable. The balcony has a view of Tokyo Tower (and a Blue Man Group billboard, heh). Breakfast is include and served at the spa (which has a pool and gym, so I won't have to worry about finding a club to join).

The area is basically like an outdoor mall with lots of shops and restaurants and things. There are four residence buildings. Maybe I'll meet some people at the cocktail party they're having in a couple weeks?

The first night we went to one of the restaurants owned by Akira Kurosawa's family for oden and udon. I was pretty tired, but managed to stay up after that till after 11. Contrast this with yesterday when I conked out before 9:30. Ugh! So this morning I am up so early…

Yesterday was my first full day. In the morning I had salad, juice, bread, yogurt (apple kiwi!) and coffee for breakfast, explored the neighborhood a bit (there's so much stuff everywhere!) then met Yukari to head to the Digital Garage offices. It's a really quick trip on the Hibiya line, just two stops to Ebisu.

I met too many people to remember all their names, but hopefully I'll get the nearby ones down soon. There are a handful of people I know from the phone whose faces I just need to get to stick. Everyone was really friendly. I got to meet the CEO, too! His office has some fish in it :)

Steven took us to this awesome korean restaurant for lunch. Had kimchee, tofu, raw egg, and rice. I love when rice is served in a hot dish so the grains on the bottom crisp up.

Work was mostly uneventful, but I'm a little behind and there are some issues lingering from before I left that I need to take care of. Looking forward to being caught up! Hopefully I'll be less tired today, even though I didn't sleep perfectly and woke up really early…

Last night I went for some food in my neighborhood at a place called Arata. I have no idea if it's supposed to be good or not, but I liked it well enough. Had cabbage salad, tsukune (which is like a meatball), and mushrooms wrapped in pork. The staff there had some of the most energetic "irasshai" I've ever heard. There are plenty of places where you'll get greeted by the whole place as you enter (or leave), but they really nail it here, to the point where it can be startling when a customer walks in, haha.

Ha, I'm distracted from writing this because I found a channel on TV with nothing but Japanese movies. Really I'm just waiting for the pool to open. I have about another half hour.

The rest of today will be checking out Japanese schools and hopefully getting some work done. It's gonna be kind of hard to figure out where I'm going. But I guess if I get lost I will have to learn fast ;) I think there are enough places in Shibuya that once I get there I should be ok. And supposedly I can walk back to Daikanyama (where the office is) from there. Anyways, I'm not sure. It'll be an adventure I guess.

Mostly I'm just really happy to be in Tokyo. And I hope I can learn a lot of Japanese while I'm here in addition to getting a lot done for Twitter. I'm hanging out with a Japanese friend on Saturday, so hopefully that will be good practice? I know she speaks English, though, so I'll have to be diligent.

This blog is gonna be really tedious without pictures. I might try taking some with my iPhone and seeing if I can get them on this computer without accidentally deleting all my iTunes ;)

Last Night in the Mission

2010-06-22T13:13:00.002+02:00

Bid an extremely fond farewell to Heirloom Cafe over espresso and cookies with Nila. Caused no small amount of chaos (my pet exaggeration of the evening—they handled us like heroes, really) at Nombe with the biggest Twitter posse to date. Rocked Beretta with the Foursquare mayor and special guests. These are exactly the places I wanted to be on my last night in San Francisco before this trip, and exactly the places I will miss the most in the Mission.

It also just felt really good to have the support of so many friends as I'm taking off. Nombe was full to bursting in the front window with peeps (mostly tweeps) there to say hey. Lots of them had plenty of reasons to be too busy—including one co-worker who had two of them sitting in her lap :)—but they came anyways, which I appreciated so much.

Sappy sappy sappy, but when I have love I gotta show it <3

Before I leave:
-packing
-breakfast
-coffee
-Walgreens
-bank

There are some things I meant to do and then somehow did not do them. That sort of figures. Thankfully, none of them seem terribly major. The one that seems more major, may in fact be minor, where the one I thought was maybe more minor could be major if other things are also true. You know. Life.

It's not yet five am.

TOKYO: so soon

2010-06-14T00:12:00.003+02:00

It is once again that time of time when I cross a large body of water which this blog affectionately if diminuitively refers to as a "puddle." The body in question is Pacific in nature, which could indicate a trip to Japan (if you know me) and if you DO know me, you may already know that it's true, and I'll be living in Tokyo for the next six months (minus a San Francisco check-in and a birthday stint in Vegas, of all places; Justin Bieber, the things we do for you).

No further news at this time :O Although I must say I am violently tempted to move this shebang to Tumblr, if for no other reason that to extricate it from The Past.

Finally!

2008-08-24T19:37:00.001+02:00

Pix are up on Facebook :D

Crazy Parfait (and the rest of the trip)

2008-06-21T07:50:00.003+02:00

We did meet Dan! In the morning! I'm back already, but here is the rest of what happened.

Dan! He came to have lunch/parfait with Kayo and me. Kayo and I split an herb chicken pita sandwich while we waited for him to arrive, but it barely had any chicken. Also, too much mayo...

Some people think that mayo in sushi is an abomination, but you know, they do it there, too. They really like their mayo.

Anyways, the best part was the amazing parfait. Exactly like an anime parfait or something. Insane. Huge. Monstrous, even. We ordered one that had either sweet potato or pumpkin ice cream, I forget. Whichever one of those flavors wasn't the ice cream, though, was this really thick cream almost like frosting, decorating. There was also more traditional whipped cream, banana, cookies, other fruit, chocolate corn flakes. Insanity! There will be a picture.........

heh

Kayo saw me off to the airport, which was nice. The flight was pretty uneventful. We had some turbulence, which I enjoyed. I like turbulence. Makes things more interesting. I watched The Spiderwick Chronicles, which was sort of cute as a distraction. Food was good. They had these insanely fine scrambled eggs. More like a paste than...an egg. Fluffy.

I dunno! The BART ride back was a cinch and I managed to stay up all day. Lonnnnnng day. So that's that. I'll post again when the pix are up :D

Ack, too much happened!

2008-06-17T17:51:00.003+02:00

I've been so busy that there hasn't been time to update!

Well, first of all, the trip with Watanabe-san went very well. We all piled in his car and went to a tiny seaside place. (Later you'll see sunset pix on a beach where the opposite coast is North Korea.) At Matsukura, a famous sushi restaurant, we all had chirashizushi, which is a mix of raw fish and sometimes egg or fish eggs or whatever is around, over rice. Ours had raw tuna, shrimp, lots of fish eggs, what else....other stuff, squid, scallop? Some other fish. Lots of food. And it came with miso soup on the side---with shrimp heads in it!!! hahaha! Yikes. Made for good flavor, though.

What did we do that night when we got home? I don't remember. Maybe played video games or just went to bed. The next day we went to Asahikawa, which is a city near Utashinai WHICH to clarify IS the smallest CITY in Japan. There are smaller classifications of city-type areas, though, like villages, or something. SOOOOOooooOOOoooo it's not quite as small as you might imagine, but still quite small. ANyhow, Asahikawa was nice. We picked up a couple other JETs on the way. The plan was arcade, karaoke, and a movie, but one of the other girls had to leave early so we sort of condensed everything by splitting up.

Round 1 is a huge entertainment center that had nearly everything. Bowling, karaoke, darts, arcade, etc. I sang karaoke with the two girls I had never met, which was fun, but sort of annoying because they made us buy food. It was like...part of the cover charge or something. I was sort of sick of sweets by then, since we had some dango (sweet sticky mochi with sweet sticky sauce) in the car so I ordered something cheap that didn't look like ice cream or soda. Turned out to be nachos, only crazy Japanese nachos made out of regular potato chips instead of tortilla chips, and with aonori seaweed powder on top. DELICIOUS and totally deadly hahaha

Sang some songs, mosty in Japanese. The girl Ari and Caroline turned out to be really really good at singing. Esp the J-stuff. They really had it all down, so that made it extra fun. After that we hooked up with Three and Melissa for some videogames. Tried out a Gundam simulation (even got my very own pilot ID ;D) and then hit up the purikura for tiny insane pix of the five of us. I dunno if we have such crazy photo booths in the states, except when imported heh. One of the pix looks like a horribly 80s boyband poster, while another has us all popping out of a giant mouth. In one, we are being hugged by a huge koala. Really crazy stuff.

From Round 1 we went to an Asian restaurant where I had some fusion pasta with anchovies, ham, asparagus, and cabbage. Really really good, except they dust it with some kind of salt and I didn't realize I had to toss it, so the first bite or two was pretty awful, heh. Caroline had to go home, but Ari stuck around and ordered chili cheese fondue (chili the spice, but not spicy...it was pretty weak, actually, as far as anything with the name chili cheese tends to go), Melissa had cream sauce pasta, and Three got garlic steak that was actually pork. All very good! (And once again, the constant refrain, pictures on facebook when I get back!!! Cuz I suck!!!)

After dinner we made it JUST in time to the new "Indy Jones" movie. Well, actually we were a couple seconds late. But only a couple. So it was ok. I liked it well enough, I suppose. Campy as hell XD So whatever, that's fine. There are a few too many moments where you're thinking, "Oh hrm, this is cute cuz everyone is old hee hee hee" which is a bit uncomfortable, but other than that, the corniness is pretty managable.

It was a late night, then, because there was an arcade in the movie theater, too, with some actually good games. Like Mushi Hime Futari. I got the high score on Twin Bee, which rocked. I have a pic of my scoreboard initials DUK and they are way higher than anyone else. Not like anyone comes to this arcade to put scores up on the Twin Bee, but still cool.

The next day, which was yesterday, we couldn't sleep in at all. In fact, we had to get up early! I went with Three to the local elementary school to teach English. I've wanted to visit a Japanese school pretty much since I started learning Japanese, so it was really ridiculously exciting to be able to interact with kids in the classroom. We taught them numbers and how to tell us their names, letters of the alphabet, just simple things, but it was pretty sweet. They were all very surprised and excited to see me, and they clamored that we run around with them during recess. We totally did, too, except I was wearing the slippers that visitors have to wear inside the school (since visitors don't know/remember to bring extra shoes)

OH SPEAKING OF SHOES

The shoes I have not even had for a year that my mom bought me in August have holes in them. BOTH shoes have holes by the balls of my feet and this is me in the rainy season in Japan lol lol lol Oh well. I have other pairs in the states. Just a silly coincidence that I should happen to have holes now of all times.

Anyways, the kids were adorable. My favorite part of the day was either being beaten up by a crazy babbling chorus of RASENGANs and KAGE NO BUNSHINs (good thing I got into Naruto, or I wouldn't have any idea what they were talking about--turns out a big part of socializing with Japanese school kids is knowing all the cool characters in popular anime etc) or kyuushoku. If you remember last time I went and had fakey kyuushoku at the delicious kyuushoku toban restaurant in Akihabara. THIS time, though, I had the real thing with real 1st graders. There was rice, cabbage soup, veggies with tofu, and salmon. I didn't take any milk which caused a minor scandal among the kids, heh.

It was a tiring day, after not sleeping much, so I was pretty wiped out by the time we went to the board of education offices. The people working there were nice, though. Three was right when he said that it was one of my only chances to practice "real" Japanese. Elementary school chaos might as well almost be another language. (Also, Three's friend Yuuko's daughter uses so much slang that Yuuko told me she can't understand her--i.e. sutaba for sutaabakkusu = Starbucks)

The tiring day wasn't even close to over yet, though, because we went to Yuuko's house for tea. She showed us the temple where she works. It's pretty nice and the entire area around it is being rebuilt, including a new house for Yuuko and her family. I very nervously rang a HUGE bell that you could probably hear all around town.

Tea was great and she bought tons of fancy Japanese desserts like mango pudding, anmitsu, the best dango I've ever eaten in my life (with black sesame sauce....zomg...just too good). I'd like to say if I gained weight on this trip that it was alllllll rice and fish, but that would be a lie. That said, I did eat LOTS of rice and fish.

We went out to sushi yet again (the third time) but this time it was at Three and Melissa's favorite restaurant, which had just that day re-opened after being remodeled. Couldn't have had better timing! It was some of the best sushi I've ever had. The salmon alone was heavenly--and about A DOLLAR. Yes, 130 yen for two delicious strips of pinky perfection with dabs of wasabi to hold it to the rice. Dipped in soy sauce, the finest thing you will ever eat. Ever. Also tried some types of sushi I had never had before, like engawa (still not sure what exactly that was, in English) and kanimiso (crab and miso paste) We requested copies of the grand opening fliers to commemorate the occasion. SO GEEKY.

To top off the final Hokkaido evening, we watched Party 7. Actually, they both fell asleep, and I nearly did, but it is tricky without subs. I would love to see this movie again to see how much I actually managed to catch for realz and how much I just pretended I understood. Definitely worth seeing again in any case, it's crazy time. The opening credits are anime, too! Whoo! There are some people in a hotel and some people spying on the people in a hotel, and a very unprofessional travel agent. You kinda just have to see it...with subtitles o_o I wonder if there is a domestic release.

This morning Yuuko picked me up at 7 am, so that was it, my time in Utashinai come to an end. She and her husband had to go to Sapporo anyhow so they were able to take me to the station. Actually, her husband took the car and left us at a bus stop not far from Sapporo so he could go on ahead. It was nice to hang out with Yuuko a bit before leaving. We talked over scones and Hokkaido butter (which, incidentally, IS different from regular butter, but I'm not sure how-- sweet and delicious, though, that is fact) and then ran down to the depachika (department store basement) so I could pick out a lunch box. Shellfish rice! Veggies! Egg! Yum!

The train ride was hellllllla boring because I finished my magazines and my headphones are even more broken. On the way over I could wiggle the cord and hold it a certain way to get both ears to come in, but now that trick won't work anymore. Plus it started getting staticky. That might be fixable with new batteries, but with just one ear, I mean, some CDs don't record for mono. For instance, the new Mates of State has some of the harmony split so you can't hear it all through one 'phone. I mostly just daydreamed and dozed in and out. Tomorrow I will re-up on magazines before getting on the plane.

It was nice to meet up with Kayo again when I got to Tokyo. She made tasty beef curry, which I had been looking forward to this whole trip. We put spinach on top! Yummmm. She also whipped up this psuedo-fancy strawberry jello/pudding/yogurt type thing for dessert. Pretty nifty. That and I had a kiwi shochuu cooler from the grocery store. Finally got the pix from Halloween, and then we've just been relaxing. Or rather, she sacked out and I've been blogging. Which is cool. Been a lot to talk about. And there are so many little details that I don't really get to mention, but I guess that's good so there is something to discuss in person.

Tomorrow in the morning I am meeting Kayo's friend, Dan, who wants to grill me (I'm marinating to prepare...) on the game writing biz. We're hooking up along with Kayo at a parfait shop that one of Three's friends recommended. AS IF I NEED PARFAIT! Should be a good send off, though. For now, I should probably go to bed, since I need to get up and shower/pack in less than six hours...

Surprise Tennis

2008-06-14T09:24:00.002+02:00

Yesterday for lunch we had kaitenzushi (conveyer belt sushi place, although we ordered most of it a la carte.) Can you IMAGINE getting a pair of nigiri for a dollar? They didn't all cost a dollar, most were 3ish, but that is still way cheaper than it tends to go for in San Francisco. The salmon was particularly delicious, but I also sampled hamachi, scallop, tuna, shrimp, and a maki with what seemed like maybe little bits of beef or pork or something in it. Hot water on tap at our table made for easy refills of green tea.

Then we spent a while at Tsutaya, a book, cd, dvd, game (and apparently rental) chain. We spent a while deciding what movies to rent, poked around the magazine aisles, and I got a kanji chart to put up when I get home. I'm really bummed cuz lots of my posters got trashed in the move to my new apt. The chart I got has all the sixth grade kanji on it, so it's good motivation--someday I'll finish elementary school ;D

The best part of yesterday was definitely playing tennis. There is a sports arena place in town with two indoor courts, so we met up with some Japanese people Three and Melissa know. One of them lent me a racket and we played for like an hour and a half. The balls were a little flat and the courts were sort of springy--better for jogging on than tennis, I think, BUT I felt really worked out by the end of it and had a lot of fun playing. Felt much less rusty than I had last time. Can't wait to play more when I get home!!

For dinner we got pizza and stuff to stick on top. Fresh veggies and some ham. Really tasty! Then we blended together bananas, frozen blueberries and raspberries, vanilla and pineapple ice cream, and a little bit of orange juice to make super delicious fruit shakes. Stayed up late watching one of the movies we rented, The Number 23, with Jim Carrey. I had never even heard of it before. Where have I been? ;D Anyhow, a decent thriller, I guess. I like Jim Carrey's (good) serious stuff better than his wacky days.

After that reason prescribed bedtime, but I still hadn't written up my last article from the press conference, so I punked around doing that till about 4 am. Took a bit longer not only because I was pulling quotes from my recording of the interview, but also because I kept nodding off and writing gibberish, as tends to happen when I work when I'm overtired. Requires careful self-editing before sending it off.

As expected the whole lot of us slept in pretty well. Easy time in the morning. Had a cup of "the 2nd best miso in Japan" (I guess it won a contest or something?) with tofu and some leftover fried rice for brunch. The miso was pretty excellent, but I"m not enough of a connoisseur to know exactly why or what made it that way. The only part I didn't like was that it was sort of dreggy on the bottom--not something I am used to. The taste was really too severe to finish it off. Not sure if that was a quality of the way it was cooked or the tofu we added or what.

Other than that just have been playing video games and reading. Later on we are taking a short trip (about an hour?) to some other town to be treated to sushi by one of Three and Melissa's Japanese acquaintances. Apparently he likes to go hiking and fell off a cliff not too long ago? I think that's the guy I'm meeting, Watanabe-san.

Up North...

2008-06-13T03:30:00.003+02:00

the sun comes up around 3:30 am! :D Which is a little before we went to bed last night XD The train rides were LONNNNNNG but at least it wasn't like an airplane where your nose gets all dried out and you can't breath. I had bento on the way, and some kaki no tane (spicy little crackers with peanuts--my favorite snacky thing bccause it has protein!! Whoo! Corn potage snacks, you don't own my soul yet!)

The Shinkansen was pretty interesting. Part way through the trip they split the train in half and one half went where I was going (thankfully, the half I was on ;D) and the other went somewhere else! Fast, but not distractingly fast, really. Just smooth and easy.

On the second train, a group of kids on a school trip got on. I was sort of hoping they would sit nearby, but they weren't really. I was soooooo bored.

(Oh, apparently we did take the undersea tunnel, Oleya. It was not very exciting, though. We couldn't like, look out and see fish or anything. My thought it why would you even bother making it undersea if you can't see at least some seaweed or something, but I guss the answer is purely technical or something.)

My PSP wasn't charged, heh, so no Crisis Core ;_;

In fact, neither was my phone, so when I got to Sapporo all I could was wander around looking for a payphone, hoping I would stumble across Three and his gf randomly...

which I did! Sweet!

So we put my junk in a coin locker and went to a curry restaurant where I tried Hayashi rice for the first time. It's really hard to explain that sauce. It's darker than curry sauce, but doesn't taste like curry. It tastes like...well, like this, heh. Red wine and tomato sauce? Sure. Mushrooms, definitely. Super super tastey, but this place's was a little too oily for my liking, almost like they drizzled oil over the top instead of cream.

After that we went walked downtown a bit, went to a big arcade. Managed to thread past the UFO catchers without trying to grab even a single adorable stuffed animal, and then played some Drum Mania.

Then it was getting late. Time to hop on the train. It was a fun ride, trading stories about silly things. Got off the train and into Melissa's car to drive to the smallest town in Japan, Utashinai. Just under 5,000 people. No high school! Whoo. It's pretty chilly. I guess sort of like San Francisco weather, although when I left San Francisco it was beaaaauuuuutiful. I hope we didn't use up all the nice warm days, cuz I will want some more when I come back.

This morning Melissa is using expert egg wrangling skills to provide breakfast. I had one over hard with fluffy Japanese toast, and some banana and yogurt. She's a good cook, and the kind that likes the kitchen to herself, so Three is playing Monster Hunter and I am blogging...

Today, no plans, really. Just gonna check out the area, probably grocery shop and rent a movie for the evening. Chillin' sounds very nice, though. His apt is pretty cool, so I'll definitely grab some pictures of that before I leave :D

Something new

2008-06-11T23:27:00.002+02:00

Turns out really anyone I know has been to Hokkaido except Three, at least that I know of. Everyone I mention it to, even the people who live here, say they have never been. Of course, I have never been to Hawaii, Alaska, Washington OR Washington D.C. etc etc so it's not that surprising, but I'm just noting that it seems I'll get to break some new ground ;D

STILL nervous about the trains, but all my seats are reserved, so hopefully things will work out. Had a VERY late night last night, which was somewhat irresponsible. Even more irresponsibly, it involved chips and cookies. Assorted junk food and a dearth of sleep is so bad!! Gotta shape it up a bit ;p

Today I'll be playing Crisis Core in the train. And maybe reading a bit more of my magazines. I dunno. Could be a musical selection. Honestly? We'll see how long I can stay awake. Anyhow, gonna nibble some more sandwich before I head out and then...and then...

(!!!)

I'll head out! ;p

sleepy worky girly

2008-06-11T15:25:00.002+02:00

We ended up at the Shoto "museum" instead of the Shoto "Gallery" sooooooo that obviously didn't work out very well. Luckily a friendly cab driver took us to the correct location for free, since he could tell we were business people in need OR RATHER flustered idiotic gaijin.

Ah well.

We got there, to the press thing that is. I met some foreign correspondents and drank champagne or something and ate fancy little hors d'oeurve for dinner. Oh, and looked at games. I still have one article left to write. Basically, we can just say that games on the 360 are capable of having some beautiful graphics and thank god for that!! Infinite Undiscovery this Sept--w00t.

After that I went with some fellow journalists to this foody drinky place themed like a weird gothic church. The devil was leering over us and there were funky chaneliers and things. I took a few pix, but they are lowlight with no flash so as to not attract attn and/or glares from the waitstaff.

I went to the net cafe but ended up applying for a job instead of writing. The writing I did in the morning after I woke up at freaking quarter to six for no reason. Ate a salmon rice ball and drank some peach juice. Three hours of workish time and then hotel check out. Met up with Kayo and we arranged my JR pass and train tickets.

TOMORROW I go to Hokkaido o_o I'm pretty nervous. Bought some little sandwiches and grapefruit juice to have for breakfast before I leave, so I at least only have to worry about what to eat for lunch and snack instead of breakfast, too. The first train I take is a shinkansen, so that should be sweet. I'll probably take video out the window and maybe try to upload it somewhere later. Add to the probable hundreds of entirely too similar footage already available here. It's different when it's your own, though, RIGHT RIGHT? (Maybe.)

Kayo and I ate lunch out in a restaurant in the mall type place that sits on top of Shinjuku station. She had a bowl full of essentially raw tuna and avocado, among delicious rice etc. It was tasty. I got this thing that was sort of like unmade chicken soup. It was like component elements, only arranged differently. You scoop rice, chicken, egg, and mushroom into a little dish, add some seasonings like nori seaweed, sesame seeds, wasabi and then pour broth over the top. Prettttty tasty. The tea at that place was also really good. I forget the name of it.... It was brown, not green.

Kayo's apt rocks. That reminds me, I need to take pix. It's sooooo nice and adorable and brand new feeling. Extremely close to her station Shintokorozawa. All her stuff is shiny and adorable, as is her new laptop, on which I am typing now. I am not paying for this Internet! Keen!

So I actually had a pretty rad afternoon, considering I didn't get to Little Spoon. I got to meet Jean Snow and it turns out he totally rocks. Stumbled my way over to Cafe Pause in Ikebukuro, where he coordinates the gallery exhibits. Had a lot of fun talking with him about videogames, writing, chilling, living in Japan, etc. Drank a delicious Royal Milk Tea. How can you resisit Royal Milk Tea? Iced? With a dollop of ridiculously fresh tasting whipped cream on top? YOU CAN'T. Therefore, SUBMIT. But yeah, it was totally worth almost getting lost to go there. I will go again next time I am in town :D which more and more, I hope is in October for TGS. That's not to say I haven't been hoping to go since last year, because I have, but just that, there seem to be a lot of people to see in Tokyo now--a fact I enjoy.

Let me see, he eventually had to get back to work, which made me feel like an awful slacker. But then, I don't really have a job! I should make my own jobs, I guess. Jean is co-authoring a book at the moment. I dunno if I have the stamina for something like that. Maybe if I were a co-author...but I still dunno what I would write about. I seem to have lots of acquaintances who are writing or have written books.

I decided to go back to Shibuya to see if I could find Little Spoon. Yeah, so the story with that is that I heard Little Spoon had closed down, so when I saw one on the way to that weird churchy place the other night, I wouldn't shut up about it, despite the fact that our ringleader was entirely anti-Little Spoon. He said it made him sick. WELL I can't say anything to that really, but I can say that Little Spoon is one of my favorite curry places. So!

The funny thing is that I even looked up the address sort of before I left. But I didn't actually read the address, much less attempt to remember it or write it down. Maybe I just googled it to make sure I hadn't been dreaming. Anyhow, you can barely get anywhere even if you do have a map, so trying to look for this place when I had no idea what relation its location had to the station's was pure madness. I failed miserably, but then I went shopping.

Yes, I confess to shopping in Shibuya, but let me tell you why. I know I'm not supposed to shop, but I got four quality clothing items for less than 25 dollars. And they are new things and rad things and would probably cost like 30 a pop or more depending on what store they were being sold in in the states. I suppose it's the same anywhere, though. Sometimes fashion is just too into itself and decides prices have to go up for random reasons.

Man, I'm tired. It's because I wandered all over hell looking for Little Spoon hahaha but yeah. This store was called Three Minutes Happiness. The bag says, "Miscellaneous goods that make our life happy and easy. THREE MINUTES HAPPINESS, it creates your happiness." And then, with little icons for each bit, "Just three minutes--Enjoy shopping--A happy feeling" I bought this whole concept immediately. AND THEY HAVE GREAT T-SHIRTS. At least a few. Ostensibly two of these items are gifts. I'm so tempted to keep them, but I did buy two shirts for myself, so I think I will let that be as spoiled as I will get.

First shirt: black with a skull and crossbones. Says, "HAVE A NARROW ESCAPE.

Second shirt: blue with navy bikini girl sketch and white outlined letters. Says, "DON'T GET SO SERIOUS. TAKE THINGS IN A MORE FREE-AND-EASY WAY."

In other words, the shirts I bought for myself are also handy lifestyle reminders.

AS FOR BELATED BIRTHDAY PRESENTS FOR TWO OF MY DEAR FAMILY MEMBERS you'll just have to wait and see later.

Uhhh so I wandered all over hell, as I said. Eventually I decided I had to head back. Since Kayo had given me her key (she was out with friends) I had to be back before her and I didn't want to cause trouble. So I just grabbed some quick food. Turned out to be what I think was vegetarian katsu sandwich. Some kind of bean patty, basically, done up to look like tonkatsu. Tasty! It was only half of a smallish sandwich, though, so I had a smallish spaghetti sauce pizza pocket at a cafe while waiting for one of my trains. I totally approve of this dinner, so don't make fun of me. It was delicious and sort of had food groups.

Man, sleepy.

Uhm, I think I meant to be like...working right now, so I should probably get cracking on that last article. I have to wake up early tomorrow as I seem to be doing lately, and if I don't get any sleep I will be a sadface. I sorta want to actually look out the window on the train and play some video games, not just mess with my sleeping schedule.

Doing my homework

2008-06-10T04:30:00.002+02:00

and regretting that ice cream crepe. But ok, let me explain this, first. We'll start with the good bit--I managed to find Tokyo Tower!!

Took the Yamanote line to Hamamatsucho and didn't recognize on the map where I was going at all. So I basically decided to walk in what I felt could possibly be the right direction and be satisfied with just the walk, if nothing else. It is wicked hot today. I nearly bought some sun screen (hiyaketome--sun grill stop) at a convenience store, but it was 8 bucks for 30 ml...screw that. I just put my hood up and my sleeves down. Ugh. Hot.

So I walked and sure enough, I was smart and ran straight into a nice intersection with a cool view of the tower. That said, the tower is not really that cool looking...at all! Nothing like this, for example:

I have some pix, which you will see later. Didn't have time to actually go up to the observation deck (much less the super special even higher deck), and it's rather expensive, as you can imagine--almost nine dollars. It was a good day for it, so I'm almost sad, but not really. There are a surprising amount of attractions up there somewhere, too, like an aquarium, wax museum, arcade, curry restaurant, but I didn't really feel inclined to visit them, so it wasn't upsetting that I had to leave.

So here's the story of how I ended up eating dessert for lunch...again...sort of. Japan always entails complete mayhem when it comes to food, for whatever reason. I guess tomorrow we'll try to get on track. I was thinking an ice cream cone would be a good cap for the experience of being near-but-not-on-top-of Tokyo Tower. The sign said one of the options was blueberry, which sounded pretty rad, so I ordered one. And then I just sorta rolled with it when he said it came in a crepe and not a cone. And then I saw that it wasn't actually blueberry ice cream, but vanilla with a huge dollop of blueberry...jam? It tasted pretty great, but it was quite a bit more food than I had anticipated. Sorta which I would have just said nevermind when he mentioned the crepe, heh. Ohhhhhh well.

(Someone is sleeping in a cube nearby ;D)

On the way back I got a little off track, so I took the metro back instead of the JR line. Was pretty simple, though, and it took me to the same station, just entailed a lot more stairs (which frankly is totally fine with me. I wish I had a swimming suit and a pool haha) Didn't get lost on the way back to the hotel, which is another major victory.

That said, I haven't gone back to the hotel yet because I wanted to come and do a bit of research about the games I'm seeing tonight (at least the games they mentioned already). Yeah, that's right! I'm totally here for work, as you'll recall. That part of things will get kicked off in a little less than three hours, and I need a shower first ;p

The Speedy Edition

2008-06-10T01:43:00.002+02:00

There had to be at least one. Look at all the time I've already wasted! I still don't understand the business model here, but I told him I wanted an hour, sooooo I guess I only have like half of that left and I have to figure out what I'm doing.

Perhaps Tokyo Tower today. Yesterday I ended up at an arcade playing The Typing of the Dead (where you characters where Dreamcasts, a huge battery, and a...keyboard, and you type words to kill zombies) and some shooters. Nothing too exciting. I think my favorite was Muchi Muchi Pork, but I'm not so great at it.

Hrminum. Saw Yukiko and Toru last night. Man, Yukiko asked all about things and it was so weird explaining everything that has happened since I last saw her. My life is completely different! Different friends, different house, expanded job. Crubazuby.

I gave Toru a San Francisco crab keychain with springy legs. I knew that would go over well. Turns out everyone liked it! To Yukiko, I gave a mini-piggy bank, but unfortunately it is so mini you shouldn't actually put coins in it because they won't come out even though there is a plug to pull out in the bottom. Failure! I reimbursed her 100 yen, which Toru eagerly confiscated.

They seem to be doing well. Her husband was busy with work, but her dad actually came out for dinner (we had mixed okonomiyaki and pork wrapped shiitake whooooo, lots of food). He is always fun. He didn't remember meeting me last time, but it's probably best that we forget that affair (if you recall from last year, Toru was trying to fleece him for every yen he was worth.) Has the Obama slogan down, (in English!) Asked if I had a boyfriend and told me to meet a good Japanese guy (hurr *wink*)

This isn't as speedy as I had originally intended, but I still have ten minutes left of my hour, so I guess it doesn't matter.

After dinner, I took the train back to Shinjuku and got SO LOST. I wandered around in circles (literally, how soul-consumingly frustrating) for something like almost two hours, and the worst part was that I had to pee so incredibly bad. I had a stomach ache and I just wanted to get back to the hotel so I hopped in a cab, but I was so close he wouldn't take me!! Too close for a cab, but not actually on top of it, so I had to wander some more. I asked directions and finally some guy was able to point me in a semi-right direction, but I still had to look at my maps a lot (which were generally useless cuz they didn't have the street names).

Got home, talked to Kayo a bit (I will meet her at the Seibu-Shinjuku station tomorrow at 11), and watched a bit of a program teaching Chinese to Japanese people before sacking out. Actually that show got really trippy, but I guess just because I was tired. There was a Chinese chef teaching us the Chinese names of certain ways of cutting carrots (dicing, julienne, etc) Really bizarre. I gave up paying attn after a while. I vaguely remember the correct pronunciation for mabo doufu now, though, which is cool. Chinese is pretty.

For breakfast this morning I did eat that tasty bagel. And it was tasty. As I expected! Also grabbed a yogurt with BIG chunks of fruit in it. They didn't skimp at all. It had entirely too much sugar in it and the fruit was cocktail style, but it was pretty tasty and I assume there was still at least a hint protein in it, which was the point. I'm hoping to finally get curry for lunch today............

I think they're just messing with me now! (Plus the Ghibli Museum)

2008-06-09T06:28:00.003+02:00

The guys at the counter here. The first night, I paid ahead of time. Maybe because it was after a certain time? Then this morning I didn't have to pay ahead of time, but they did ask how long I was planning on staying. NOW, they even had to bust out their English because they were totally confusing me by requiring neither of those things. At least I'm blogging to you.

So I went to a lesser "beef bawl" [sic] branch for breakfast, because it was open. Turns out I make a damned tasty gyuudon at home, but of course, it's still sort of novel to eat it in Japan at a counter at 8 am after buying a ticket from the vending machine.

After that it was off to Shinjuku station to find my way to Mitaka where the Ghibli Museum is located. I actually did ok, although I made that all too frequent error (do I never learn?) of not knowing the kanji for the place I'm going before I go there. So on the way I paid double fare >_< At least I was sorted for the way back, and even managed to find the express route. And this was during rush hour on a Monday, so...I count this as satisfactory for a first train outing.

The Museum itself was pretty terrific. I realized as soon as I got there that almost more fun than the exhibits themselves would be watching all the tiny children's reactions to them. You're not allowed to take any pictures inside, but I snapped a couple of the outside, so you can at least see the building. They'll appear on facebook later, I suppose...

I think my favorite part of the museum despite purposely quaint and charming rooms wallpapered with original sketches, explanations of the animation process hand-scrawled with cartoon illustrations, painted cells, story boards, etc. AND a big plush Cat Bus for kids to go nuts in and climb all over AND the animated short (which appears to rotate seasonally--we saw "Mei and the Kitten Bus," which was pretty adorable and entailed Mei feeding caramels to a whole family of Cat Bus characters and having a happy reunion with Totoro)--so yeah, despite all that my favorite part was actually one of the first things we saw.

The very first room has a bunch of different examples of how animation works. There are zoetropes and reels of film with explanations how everything evolved, but the coolest coolest thing is this huge, I guess sort of like a 3-D zoetrope almost, with various figurines mid-way through their actions. Mei and Totoro jump up and down, for example. When a motor cranks it up to full speed and a strobe light flashes, it looks like claymation, only right in front of you. I could've watched that thing all day.

But I didn't! I had some tea on the terrace and watched a zillion kids eat hot dogs and ice cream before heading back to the train. I'm glad I hit the gift shop first thing, or I would've been in line for hours, I bet. The place was a complete zoo, and on a Monday! No wonder you have to buy tickets in advance.

Before stopping off at the hotel, I went back to the donut shop in Shinjuku station. Do you remember the pic I took of their advertisement last year? I decided I should take the plunge this time. I picked up a green tea and red bean bagel for tomorrow's breakfast, but as a dessertful snack (if only I still had that tea!) I chose one of their "early summer donuts--" Blood Orange and Lemon. It was GINORMOUS (pic forthcoming). Didn't even try to eat it all, but it was delicious. I'm not always into light citrusy sweets, but this glaze really worked.

Touched base with Yukiko Shirai, my host mom from last year. She's going to pick me up at the hotel tonight at 7 and I'll go have dinner with Toru and her at their house. Sounds like a plan, but what I'm going to get up to until then, I have no idea. It's only 2, so I definitely have time to go somewhere. Just not sure where, since I'm not too hungry and I can't really shop ;D

It's too bad it's so rainy. It's not motivating me much, and I'm sleepy ;p Shouldnn't have let myself get out of bed before 8!! Oh well, I'll come up with something.

Oh yes, that familiar place...

2008-06-09T00:15:00.003+02:00

Manga Netto! I like it here.

So the first thing on the news last night was the killing spree in Akihabara. 7 people dead, 10 wounded. "Survival knife" and he like crashed his truck, too? Dude just felt like killing random people. That's dandy. Aiie. Anyways, I don't really think there's a point to not going there. It's not like Akihabara has suddenly become the violent ghetto of the Earth or anything...

That said, I'm not really sure what my goal in going to Akihabara would be anyhow. Maybe to go back to Kyuushokutoban or something. It's not like I can go shop for games. OH WAIT

I remember why I'm going to Akihabara. Drrr. The MGS4 launch.

Anyhow, that's not till later. Uhhhh so last night after I got back I pretty much just got in my huge toasty starchy sheeted bed and watched some TV (including that horrific news story). There was a travel show annnnnnd some kind of boring drama. Lots of Indiana Jones commercials. It comes out here the 14th or something. Then I ended up on some sort of variety show where people were doing an awful lot of dancing around in their underwear. One of those where the hosts are dressed up in crazy costumes and everyone is constantly laughing and hitting each other over the head. I dunno, man, Japanese TV is weird. I wasn't kidding when I said I watch mostly for the commercials ;D

I slept pretty decently all things considered. Woke up too early, fell back asleep. Woke up at like 6 and tried to sleep some more, then decided to just get up. As long as I don't take any naps, I'll be fine. I certainly don't feel bad :D And there's nothing quite like starting your day with a free cup of CC Lemon (soda) at the net cafe. Even though you wanted curry. But the place wasn't open yet lol

The Ghibli Museum sounds really easy to get to from here. Hopefully I can remember how to use the trains ;D

BRR

2008-06-08T15:20:00.001+02:00

So clearly I type too fast to have enough to do for two more hours. I could sit around and read except I'm REALLY freaking cold. I wore just a t-shirt since the weather is so hot and muggy, but there is a vent blowing on me. I'm worried I will catch a cold, what with not having slept in however many hours and all. Might just chalk up another lesson learned the hard way and head back...

Gah.

OH LOOK it's me, not having Internet in my hotel room

2008-06-08T14:38:00.002+02:00

Ah, that was cruel. I don't actually have any pix right now. I took one of a convenience store mini-bento that I ate for the random up too long extraneous meal that happens when you go on international flights, but I can't upload it cuz I'm sitting in a net cafe where they have apparently forbidden (and possibly...removed?) the USB ports.

Oh well. I didn't bring that cord anyhow. It's back in the room with my computer and my other stuff and the shower where I made myself smell like about a thousand differet flowers and/or fruits. Wheeeeeee.

I would say the worst thing that happened today happened in the BART station on the way to the airport. I was getting ticket and this creepy crazy in a wheelchair whistling Silent Night started rolling right into me. And he didn't stop! I said, "Uhm, excuse me!!!" to assert my presence and he totally didn't care.

The flight was comparatively uneventful. I watched Clear and Present Danger, because a little Harrison Ford never hurt anybody. I daydreamed a lot. I waited for them to serve food. I passed up an ice cream bar. I watied and WAITED and WAITED for them to serve food. It was pretty tasty once it got there. I drank water and listened to cds and read some New Yorker and Wired and Cat and Girl comics.

Actually before that I ran into Mielke and Jason from 1Up. Mielke I saw again at the end of the flight. He had more exciting plans this evening than me. I was pretty much content with shower, Internet, and maybe some wicked groovy Japanese TV (which you really only watch for the commercials half of the time...at least if you are me...)

Of course even Internet proved to be a trial. I have wandered around now. I knew there should be a net cafe somewhere near the hotel, but I sort of forgot which way is back. I'm sure as it's one of the bigger landmarks around the friendly staff (who asked how old I was) will be able to point the way.

I am both underage AND a boy today! On a roll! Considering I'm not wearing any boy clothes, it certainly is a feat. I dunno why the stewardess on the plain was so convinced I was a "sir."

Hum. Of course, there is no one to chat to. Not sure why I bought three hours of time. Well, yes I am. I should've asked if I had to use it all at once first. Or maybe I just don't know what I am doing and I CAN save it for later. The thing is, I should really stay up till midnight or so anyhow, so it's not a big deal.

Tomorrow my plan is Studio Ghibli museum sometime morning/daytime and then meet up with my host family from last time in the evening. I think. This is all assuming the grand cell phone plan works out right. It had better since it's costing me dollars.

The exchange rate is much better here. I was worried when I saw it was only 93 to a dollar at SFO. Here it was 103--more like it.

From the airport, I had to take this really foggy gloomy bus ride. The weather is muggy, but cloudy. Glad I packed my umbrella.

Ahhhh what am I going to do here for two more hours?

So hey...

2008-06-07T10:06:00.002+02:00

SOMEHOW I'm going to Japan tomorrow. Don't even ask me! The chain of events is too crazy. But, basically GamePro asked me to go cover an event in Shibuya, so I'm going to do the business part of the trip first this time (or at least in the first half) and then tag on a vacation for the ages wherein I visit Three, whom I haven't seen in...a year? Something like that.

Anyhow, yeah, my flight is at 1 something. I need to find my camera and pack the rest of my stuff. Been sort of a nutty week...

I may or may not blog in an orderly fashion. But I'll definitely blog.

All your pix are belong to facebook

2007-12-18T10:29:00.000+01:00

Yeah, you'll notice that I got lazy and stopped posting. Anyways, read about my adventures at TGS in Issue 4 of Otaku USA. If you know me on facebook, allll the pix minus those in publication are there now...in five albums. Enjoy.

Yamanakako 3 OR How TGS kept me too busy to do anything at all

2007-09-27T18:25:00.000+02:00

outside of work, or even work.

But where did we leave off?

Oh yeah, the next morning. We went to the lake!

We actually did have an adventure in one of those little swan paddle boats, but first we hopped on the BIG MAMA:

It's Princess Oddete [sic]! That was a pretty nice time. Nice breeze on the lake, chillin'. I saw this great t-shirt:

I would totally wear that. I later found a bunch of cool ones on sale near Mandarake Nakano, but unfortunately they were all too big. Would've been sort of pointless.

Here are some pix I took of Toru feeding the fish AFTER our crazy paddle boat fiasco where we I was the source of locomotion for probably over a half hour during which we managed to beach ourselves and break the steering wheel. Well, to be fair, the steering may have already been busted and actually had a hand in our beaching. It was fun to hop out and push, anyways.

After that we finally had lunch. I was a little disappointed that we went to Denny's:

AT FIRST, but then I realized how completely not-Denny's it actually is. I got tendon with soba on the side.

Once that was finished it was pretty much time to get back on the bus to Tokyo. Little did we know we'd be on it for FOUR HOURS. There was some traffic:

Granted, this is the one of the more scenic traffic jams you'll see, but it was still a pain. They actually had to pull over once so Toru could go pee on a bush (although some other kid ran with him) but there was also a more general break at a real bathroom. Anyways, a bit of a haul.

We hit up a dept store on the way home for dinner where I had mabo tofu, since it's one of the most awesome things you can eat. I took a couple pictures when we got home:

of the kitchen

of my commandeering of the low table in the living room

of Toru and what eventually hatched out of that mysterious egg

I'm going to keep updating as I have (or steal) a moment here and there, so keep checking back...maybe...if you want.

Yamanakako 2

2007-09-19T01:19:00.001+02:00

Yay, exciting conclusion to the trip. There are lots of pictures!!!

Our first stop the next morning was the Flower Park. It's in a very scenic location:

That's Shirai-san going after Toru, who is running away into the flowers. He proved to be very interested in poking any little streams or brooks or ponds that we found and it was really hard to keep him engaged in anything we were doing the entire day.

Upon entering the park, a lady made Toru a balloon sword, but he popped it pretty soon after on some foliage.

What's this?

Why an awesome Disney Cinderella rip-off bouncing palace, of course!

It was about two dollars (I think...I can't remember) to bounce for five minutes, but it didn't seem like the two fellows managing the cahs box were keeping track. Toru, for instance, took absolutely forever and refused to come out. It's not like you can go in after him...

Here is the view of the park from where we stood and waited for him to come back ;p

After that Shirai-san was pretty keen on getting some soft serve (sofuto kuriimu) so we were headed in that direction when...

Toru had to have a go at these little bumper cars. Pretty cute. Luckily when you put the money in they only run for a set time, so we didn't have to worry about him driving off into the sunset or anything.

Then we found a souvenir shop, so Toru got some bubbles:

If that looks funny, it's because he's blowing on a whistle. You attach the bubble making part to the end, dip it in a bottle of (Pokemon branded!!) the bubble fluid, and away you go. He was quite the trend setter, since at least one other kid was inspired to get the same set and start filling the park with bubbles.

During this time we sat on a bench and just hung out. It's weird, but in Japan everywhere you go has a soundtrack. I was thinking maybe it was sort of like in Disney World, since this place was essentially a flower shop theme park. There was soft sax music playing in the background here. But then at the hotel I noticed they often played classical music, and then at night when I got home on the train the other day they were playing music out of speakers on the main street. IS EVERYWHERE DISNEY WORLD IN TOKYO? I think this is something worth investigating.

That said, there is also a Disney World here, but I haven't gone. Shirai-san suggested it for Sunday, but I think we are going to Ikebukuro instead, which is probably better ;D

DIGRESSION ENDED!

We ate our ice cream! I had kyouhou (Japanese grape) and vanilla mix, which was really REALLY good.

--

This just reminded me, though-- since I was thinking of grapes and grape jelly-- about the breakfast rolls. They came with tiny little tubs of jelly and margarine connected. So instead of peeling off the top, you bend the twin tubs in half and a hole opens so you can squeeze it out! Super convenient :D

--

SECOND DIGRESSION ENDED!

Hey look, plants! No kidding! This is inside that hot house looking thing, but it wasn't really a hot house. They had a machine that would tell your fortune with flowers if you entered your birthday, but Toru was too obsessed with the touch screen to let us get a good reading.

Wow, two of me in a row! How boring! The second is in the Happy Tree. I should be happy now! Or something! :D Everyone was taking pictures inside it; that seemed to be the thing to do. Then we found a playground where we spent another thousand years!! I guess it's good for kids to play, but I wish I were a kid so I could play, too : /

Doesn't that look fun! All the kids were very good about taking turns.

After that we were pretty much done with the Flower park. There was this very short rocky cave, but it was pretty uninteresting. Toru liked it, though, because he loves to climb in dangerous places. Of course he wasn't allowed to, but on the playground he would always climb over the railings between platforms rather than just cross the bridge or something.

Unfortunately we went to Denny's for lunch. That said, about the only thing the same is the name. I had soba and tendon. WHICH, for the record, I totally though it was just soba and a little tempura, but then when they brought it it turned out to be a huge bowl of tempura with rice in the bottom plus soba. Go figure. Tasty, though.

In the afternoon we drove a bit to a touristy town called... ... Oshinohakkai, I think. Honestly, all we did there was feed some fish, get a drink, and have a really tasty hot (a new experience for me!) omanjuu filled with red bean paste. I do have this picture, though:

And the obligatory koi shot:

The best part of the day was definitely the ice cave!! It was very crowded. First, here is a map you see on your way in:

That big lake on the left is the one we could see from our hotel window. The mountain is obviously Fuji. Here's what we were in for:

Everyone is inching their way down...

Apparently, Shirai-san paraphrases, they used to drag blocks of ice to the shogun from this very spot. This prompted lots of speculation between the three of us on how it would be possible to get ice all the way from here to there without it melting, but I guess if they took a realllllly big block, maybe by the time they got it there it would be normal sized...

Ice caves are very cold and very damp!!

Low ceiling:

Lower ceiling:

Makes me wonder if there was a warning for claustrophobic people outside... Eventually it opened back up and there was ice!

That was pretty much the climax. There was a big climb out and by the time you got up to the top you were already hot again. We went souvenir shopping a bit at the gift store. This is where I got that held-out-for keychain :D

Tour got an egg, but you have to hatch it in water...

The ride home was a little while to begin with and then we got in a traffic jam because the whole world was on vacation over the three day weekend. I was pretty bored in the car, so I started taking pictures of everything (although some of these are from on the way...) First, though, here is our pit stop to take Fuji pix. Some of these might be from the car, too, actually, or elsewhere. You can see it from most of the areas, but I will just pick some interesting ones...

Toru's Fuji Photo Shoot

You can see the top!

Ok. So now some totally random stuff from the car in no particular order. There were some other signs I wanted to take pictures of like, "Jolly Pasta" and "Carrot Hotel" (with a little carrot logo XD) but since were moving it was tricky...

Foreshadowing:

Not sure what they're going for with this name. In Japanese it is "bii emu" so they really do just mean BM...

"momo" = peaches = yum!

One of my favorite pictures of Toru so far:

This picture was so hard to get, but "HARD OFF," seriously? I laughed a lot.

Rearview:

Fujikyu Highland (the website is kinda nifty) amusement park:

Cute stoplight:

Toru putzes with his phone:

Hee hee, for Dad:

Well, ok, I lied this isn't the end of the trip, but I'm sick of blogging and want to get out and have some fun while I still can! Well, not that work won't be fun, but it will be just making the long commute between the convention center and home and writing and looking at games, so I won't have time for, say Harajuku, which is where I want to go today. Maybe Tokyo Station if I have time. My blogs are getting all back ed up, but oh well. Too much to do to sit at home and upload pictures all day!!!

The Yamanakako Vacation

2007-09-18T11:51:00.000+02:00

Our vacation began a little later than planned on Saturday. I guess we missed the train or something, so we took the bus after having lunch up on the 8th floor of the Keio dept store (if I'm not mistaken...) In fact, lunch was rather interesting. I ordered something like yakisoba. They asked if I wanted harder or softer noodles, and figuring they meant something like al dente, I went with harder. But they were crunchy! It was super tasty, though, not like eating uncooked ramen or something. Anyways, here's the bus ;p

I played some videogames and looked out the window. Nice scenery, very hilly. Some good views overlooking some towns and places, but it was hard to get any good pictures since we were moving.

Before heading over to the hotel we had some ice cream at this that we actually ended up returning to on the last day. It was really good and they had 40 flavors to choose form. I decided I should try something new, so I had sweet potato ice cream and let me tell you, I really hope I can find it in the states. Soooo good. The cone was less sweet than American cones, but still quite tasty.

The place we stayed at was a REAL LIVE RYOUKAN! So it's a more traditional style. Check out the lobby:

This is what you see as you walk in. Actually, in the entry way on your left there is a board that lists all the families staying there in really nice script. THEN you see these buddha bellies, so you rub them for good luck!

A UFO catcher and a couple games are on the back wall. Nothing terribly exciting. Lots of the lobby was also set up as a gift shop. Toru got a cute little Ninja keychain with body parts attached with stretchy string so he could flip him all around. I looked at some of the Mt. Fuji keychains they had, but I'm glad I waited because I found a really cool one later.

The other side of the room was set up with lots of souvenier food like little cakes and pastries with blueberries and things in them. Behind those mirrored doors is the dining room where we had breakfast and dinner.

I wish I wouldn't have forgotten to take a picture of the food. It was pretty amazing. Japanese portion sizes are small (sometimes) sure, but if they give you TEN (not exaggerating) plates-- plus rice-- then you're not really coming out ahead of the rest of us. They fed us beef, chicken karaage, fried fish, baked fish, okra salad (with maybe some fish...I think), uhm...fruits like apple, mango, melon, pudding, omanjuu (which is, I guess...sweeet rice (mochi) filled with whatever sort of thing...in this case mango custard), uhm what else...little biscuits or things with fish, so many things!!!

Breakfast was always a buffet with things like curry, omlette, salad, bread, dumplings, meatballs, mini hot dogs, miso soup, etc. All the food was good.

Of course, when you enter the room you have to take your shoes off:

I think to be totally correct they're supposed to be facing toward the door so you an step into them easily, but none of us managed to do this. I don't really feel like squishing the heels of my shoes, anyhow...
This is Toru playing my DS, but also the best picture of the room I have.

You can see the furniture anyhow-- a low table on the tatami mat floor with cushions and arm rests, but then by the window there's a higher table. There's also a fridge over there with cold drinks. I think Toru had like 4 Pocari Sweats (which is sort of like Gatorade...)

The view from our window was fantastic. Shirai-san asked specifically for one facing the lake:

Anyhow, so we went to dinner and had all this amazing food and what I knew but had sort of forgotten until that moment was that when you go down to eat at a ryoukan, they come up and get the room ready for sleeping in. So when we got back the table was on the side of the room and three futons were out with really fluffy comforters.

So fluffy, that we decided Toru decided we should play a bit:

Ok, more than a bit. We did some serious rough housing:

which, I rather enjoyed. I haven't really knocked around so much like that since I was a little kid. Basically Toru would hide in the blankets and then I would pick him up with all that padding and chuck him around the futon mats. Shirai-san kept saying how strong I am ;p We made a Toru fajita, too:

which also got thrown around. Lots of jumping and rushing and falling down. Very fun. One time he managed to bonk me really good with his head, though, so I have this barely visible (only when you're really looking for it) bruise on me cheek bone. Ouch @_@

Anyways, that tuckered us both out pretty well, so I guess that was the point.

The next morning looked like this!!!

But I think I'll save the next day for another post because I think (/hope) it's time for dinner soon...

Happy Photo

2007-09-18T02:15:00.000+02:00

Well, I would just give you a link for the flickr page for the stuff I've already talked about, but the pix are always out of order when you upload them, so I'll post here. The trip was good. I'll blog about it at some point, if not this morning...

Man, I really hate the way blogger does the whole adding pictures thing... I wish I could just use a regular html tag... Anyways, these were the two big releases that Tuesday when Chris and I were in Akihabara: FFVII Crisis Core, and Pokemon Mysterious Dungeon something or other. I was waiting outside a Sofmap store:

Waylaid!!

This guy announced that the store wouldn't be opening for another hour-- until 11 o'clock:

So that's when I went elsewhere to buy my copy of Crisis Core.

Here are Chris and I in our net cafe cubicles:

Pix of Kyuushokutoban!!! :D

The menu is adorable. I had the "second grader" lunch set (#2) omuraisu.

While we waited for the food I took in some scenery, like this hand-drawn flier for nostalgic Swan Cider:

Here are the cooks dressed as kid serving lunch:

And finally, food!!

I think I talked about this already, but there is the really awesomely tasty salad, the first miso I had since I had arrived, and the omlette with ketchup rice inside. On top of that there is meat sauce (unexpected, but tasty!) and potato croquette stuck on the side. TONS of food. I couldn't eat all of it. Especially since we also ordered agepan = sweet fried bread:

YUM! I snapped a couple other shots on the way out. The handle to the bathroom was cute:

Rock art:

The front of the restaurant. "Brasserie," you'll note, is French:

We went back to Akihabara. OMIGOD SAVE US FROM THE MANIKINS!!!

That face on the right I actually am known to make on occasion, but those other two are just horrifying... They did such a good job grabbing our attention that we went upstairs to find:

An instant ramen restaurant. Now here is the question: Is it lazier to stay at home and make your own ramen toppings or to leave the house and have someone else do it for you? At this place you select your choice of instant noodles, and they will boil them and put a variety of things on top for a small fee.

I would've stuck some change in the tip jar for the pictures, but they don't tip in Japan, sooooooo...

Oh, and ok...here is the one picture I have from our zillion video game store shopping tour. The bag for Super Potato, a famous used game shop where I bought Napple Tale:

The mascot is a little creepy, but cute at the same time.

Japan has some really awesome pastries. This donut shopp looked so amazing that I decided to take a pic of their ad. It's in one of the subway stations...forget which...maybe Shibuya?

We didn't have any, but if allll you need is love and donuts, I might have to get on it.

Anyways, those are all the pix I have before our vacation to Yamanakako. I should have a different entry for that. Might do it later since it's already ten and I haven't showered yet. I want to try to see a park or a temple or something today before meeting up with the 1Up catz. Rest assured, there are a zillion pix from that, including lots of Toru, who is cute when he's not being a little monster ^_^

Toilets and trains

2007-09-15T05:22:00.001+02:00

Hmm so before we leave I was going to talk about some random things like:

TOILETS

Yeah, they have the kinds you always hear about with the adorable little butt wash button, or the "hole in the floor" variety etc, but I had never heard of one with a faucet coming out of the top. Both of the ones in the house I'm staying at have this. When you flush, the faucet runs, too, so you can hit two birds with one stone. The flush trigger seems to have two different "strengths" according to the kanji, if I understood it right. You pull to do a small one, and push to get a bigger one. Maybe it's a way to save water???

TRAINS

SO CONFUSING. Just like you always heard. There are a bunch of different companies that run trains and they all have their own tickets, so you have to buy the right kind. Then the price isn't a flat rate, but depends on where you are going more like a normal train than what you would expect from a city metro.

I had a funny experience last night where I tried to buy a ticket with a 1000 yen note, but it was a little bent. The machine took it, but it must not have liked it because suddenly a fellow opened tiny door in the wall (which I hadn't even noticed, so it sort of surprised me) and handed me a new note, saying I should try again on a different machine.

Well, I guess we're watching cartoons before we go, so that's cool. The fridge is hopefully almost fixed. Honestly, I don't really want to bring the computer on the trip, so I may just blog 'n stuff when I get back. I mean, there may not be a wireless connection, anyhow.

EDIT: OH yeah, I forgot to talk about "yay."

United States - "YAY!"

Japan - "Yay."

But it means the same thing as far as I can tell. You say it when something cool happens or you're really happy, ne. Like "Whoo hoo!" In Japan, though, it's said in the most flat, uninterested way. Totally blah. It's actually a really hard nuance to master. Chris and I were attempting it yesterday, and he got pretty close. I still can't do it very well...

The quick and dirty list edition

2007-09-14T18:02:00.000+02:00

SO what did we do today?

FIXING COMPUTER TIME - took about 2 and a half hours, as well as nearly 150 dollars. A guy came to get the connection working. It was very nice of Shirai-san to pay for him to do that. Rather frustrating, this laptop. I'm not sure what the ultimate root of all problems was, esp since it still doesn't shut down properly, but at least it's working. I hope I will be able to get connected at the show next week.

KOROKKE BURGER TIME - This is what Shirai-san kindly provided me with for lunch. It is a poteto croquette sandwiched with some sauce and greens. Very tasty, but rather starchy. It's one of those things like yakisobapan that I wonder why someone would come up with it. Of course, like I said, very tasty, so I guess that's why.

SHOWER TIME - That was boring, but I think I'm getting closer to having all the lyrics to Digimon's Butterfly theme song down. Karaoke will ensue, I'm sure, so I have to be prepared. Shingo Mama no Oha Rock is my back-up plan...

BUS TIME - I couldn't find the station, so I went to ask a girl in a bakery, but by the time I did that there were people lining up beside the sign (which I hadn't noticed earlier) she was giving me that LOOK, you know, like, "HELLO? It's kind of...over there? Uhm...yeah *points*" That look. Anyways, I got on the bus and went to...

NAKANO STATION TIME - The bulk of the afternoon was spent in Mandarake, which...at some point I will get fancy and add links to this (probably) but for right now, it being after 1am and all, I'm just going to get it down and sack out. Anyways, it's basically an Otaku's dream come true. Also sort of like seeing the Internet IRL. Great toys, games, figurines, antiques, and other things like coins and electronics. Lots of creepy porn, those poor anime girls and their paralyzingly huge boobs. Yeah, anything more than you have either already seen or have gone out of your way to avoid,k so it's probably best to not mention any of it here. I bought RUUSUSOKKUSU and some Stitch (of Lilo &) branded "Sock Touch" to keep them up. Maybe now I can wear that skirt and feel chou kawaii.

MAID CAFE TIME - Since Mandarake is so otaku-like, a maid cafe appeared nearby. We were not allowed to take pictures, but basically its' just an adorable girl serving drinks and chatting with customers. Super polite, super expensive, super cute. Chris paid about five dollars for a glass of tea, while I had something pleasantly reminiscent of chocolate milk.

TAI YAKI TIME - I passed up takoyaki for the time being because my appetite was not such that I felt like that much of a meal, however we did grab dessert. I had chestnut cream filling in mine, and it was really really good.

FUNNY CAT TIME - I played with Chris's friend's cat while we waited to go out for dinner with Kenichi Nishi of Chibi Robo and his new company Route 24. Met his friend and we all chatted a bit.

NIHONRYOURI TIME - We were going to go to this awesome Mexican restuarant called Junkadelic, but there was a party reservation. Instead we had some super awesome Japanese food. Chicken, sashimi, cooked fish as well...things called "Strawberry tomatos" that tasted sweet like fruit. Little and yellow. I enjoyed every bite and also the company. Nishi brought a friend, too, so there were four of us talking in mostly Japanese, but some English. I feel bad because everyone (i.e. all of Chris's friends) tell me (us) that my pronunciation is better than his : / Anyways, tons of food. Nishi also presented both Chris and I with a copy of his company's new game, Arukime DS, for multiplayers only. If nothing else I'll blog about it at some point, but I hope I can find somewhere to talk about it. OH and we also tried various types of shouchuu: potato, wheat, brown sugar. Alcohol is not entirely my style, though, sO I couldn't drink much. The food was so great, though.

GETTING LOST TIME - Nishi's friend drew me a great map of the way back to Numabukurou, but it was hard to find the Seibu-Shinjuku line after getting out of the Shinjuku Line. I may rant about the train system later, but right now I'm falling asleep not because I'm still jetlagged or something silly like that (since I seem to have escaped most of that wrath) but because it's nearly 2 and I wake up at 7 for breakfast ;D

Anways, once on the train I was also nearly falling asleep not this bad, though. Made it back ok and talked with Shirai-san about a variety of things like games, actors and actresses, etc.

I'm too tired, so if blog makes no sense that is totally fine. Trip tomorrow! I will be back on monday, unless there is mysteriously wireless there.

Also, I might get to observe elementary school on WEdnesday ;D

SLEEPING TIME ------

CORRUPTION and fun things

2007-09-13T15:55:00.000+02:00

So I left off yesterday morning, huh? I did end up walking. I went out in one direction for about a half hour or a little more and found a store sort of like Barnes and Noble called Tsutaya. They sell books, movies, and music (like B&N). Looked around but didn`t buy anything. Then went back home for a break.

It`s easy to get lost because of the narrow streets. You`re also never sure if they will connect through to where you want to go. Shirai-san (host mom) drew me a map, though, which is very helpful. Shows how to get to the train station, which was useful today...

but I`m getting ahead of myself. I haven`t taken pix of the neighborhood yet, but then I can`t upload them yet anyhow, since I`m using Shirai-san`s computer. Mine doesn`t work yet, but I will try to explain the problem tomorrow to someone who will come to fix it...maybe haha Explaining computer problems is hard enough in English @_@

I took another walk in a different direction, too (and ate bentou that Shirai-san bought for me :D) There are lots of interesting things around even though it`s a residentail neighborhood. Little shops like for used bicycles, furniture, bakery items. There are also vending machines every block or so...probably more than that, actually. There are seriously a lot of vending machines. I already knew you could buy beer and cigarettes etc from them, but I didn`t realize that you are never more than a few yards from a cold (or sometimes hot!) drink at any time.

Toru got home and mostly just watched cartoons. The babysitter is an older lady named Komaki-san. She is nice, but sort of intimidating because my Japanese is not so great. She explained to me the four different trash cans, though. (If you didn`t know Japan has a very strict system of separating and bagging trash...) Later Toru and I played more Gamma Bros. but then he had to do his homework. He reads stories just like any kid you`ve seen a movie do it, very theatrical...well modulated.

Last night ended with the three of us watching Cellular in Japanese. I was surprised it was something she would want to watch with Toru, but I guess he survived ok. They had Tivo`d it with their PSX, I guess. That`s a big white box that combines the power of a PS2 with a digital video recorder. I liked the movie. Of course, I couldn`t understand everything, but you can cheat by watching the pictures, ne ;D

This morning another huge breakfast. The same soup with tonkatsu sandwiche again, but we had lemon yogurt and fruit on the side. Oh, and corn on the cob. And tea, of course. Toru was a handful going to school today, so Shirai-san ended up taking him on her bike. I guess he didn`t want to go because the food has been making him sick, which Shirai-san attributes to his stress. Today he was ok, though, he said.

When they left I decided I would leave too. I was supposed to meet Chris bright and early (well, around 8:30 or 9) in Akihabara, but I was late. Mostly because I had no idea how the trains worked, as I had never ridden them before. I had heard how complicated it was, though, so at least I was somewhat prepared. What i really should`ve been studying before I came, though, was place names, because I can`t read most of that kanji at all. After wasting time through indecision and plenty of dropped phone calls, I finally got on the right track (hurr)

Akihabara was pretty freaking sweet. We really made the rounds off some of the awesomest game stores around. First I bought my copy of Crisis Core. That was easy. I took some pictures outside a Sofmap, so I`ll be talking more about that later on my game blog. Anyways, while waiting for Chris to come back from his CC experience (he stood in line at Yodobashi Camera for a limited edition new-type PSP and the game in a boxed set) I went to this cute spot called Moco Cafe. Right on the main drag, but really no one in it while I was there. They were advertising this drink called a koori cafe outside, so I decided that was good enough to lure me in to use their bathroom. Koori cafe is essentially sweetened milk plus flavored ice. I got green tea ice in mine, and when Chris showed up he ordered a chocolate one. Pretty tasty, but it`s sort of just like a troublesome shake. It`s a perfect sit and wait drink because the flavor is locked in the ice until it melts. If you try to eat just the ice itself (impatiently) it doesn`t taste as good. Maybe this is a good lesson...

After that we went to the net cafe up on...I think the 8th floor of some building. That was when I e-mailed some people with TOTAL SPOILERS for this blog ;D Chris and I got boothes next to each other with a window between so we could hang out while we internetted. It was fun, but sort of expensive. Had to be done! Then we realized after that buying the computer time also gave us access to a drink bar, but we were already leaving : /

For our awesome kyuushoku adventure! I had looked up the address at the cafe so we thought we were all set but it was really hard to find. It`s actually a lot further from the train station than it looks on the map on the website, so we nearly gave up and ate elsewhere. Luckily at the last minute, we found it. I have plenty of pix to come for this one. I had omuraisu for the first time, which is basically ketchup rice inside an omlette. They put meat sauce on top and added a (potato) croquette on the side. Plus miso and a really great salad. Altogether too much food but then we HAD to get agepan (fried [sweet] bread) so there was no way in hell I could eat it all. Chris had curry, but since I had that homemade (brilliantly) the night before I went with the omuraisu. Uhmmmmmmmm DISORGANIZED! Anyways, that place is really great and there is no excuse to not go there if you are near Akihabara. The staff is all dressed up as kids at school serving lunch (which the kids do in elementary school, if you didn`t know) and you eat out of metal bows and trays the same sort of thing the kids might eat. Delicious and awesome. I got kinako (sweet...soy powder?) on my agepan like Kayo suggested before I left. It was my first time having kinako, but I liked it pretty well.

After we both ate too much we walked all the way back to Akihabara where we went shopping like crazy. I actually broke down and bought Napple Tale (since I`ve wanted to play it since high school) so I`m pretty excited to try that out when I get back. Yoko Kanno did the soundtrack and it`s supposedly a pretty sweet play. Chris ended up buying the weird turn-your-ds-into-a-mouse-and-pretend-to-be-a-magnet game as well as some other things he was hoping for, so it was considered an all-around success. After that (and it was a lot of that) we actually ended up going back to Moco Cafe to relax a bit before heading out. I had some iced apple tea, which was interesting for tasting like candy apple but not...sweet. CONFUSING.

I got the train home and found my way back with no trouble. Much smoother than the morning. Toru was watching TV while Komaki-san cooked. I lamneted the lack of internet and then studied a bit of kanji. Introduced Toru to my DS. He`s become kind of a handful at times for reasons which are entirely my fault.............. I mean, other times he can be cranky, but the games bring out his worst when it`s time to quit.

Dinner was tons of food again. I managed to eat everything, but I was sooooo full. I like having so many vegetables, though.

Well, I think I mentioned everything except some picture stuff, which will have to come later. Now my neck is very sore from sitting here. And my arms. And everything haha cuz my feet still hurt from trekking all over electric town. Word!

one...more...second....

2007-09-12T02:34:00.001+02:00

It's been tough to get online here. Currently piggybacking on the spectacularly awesome 0% signal from the neighbor's house cuz my family's device won't let me in even with the password.

Anyways, wow, Tokyo rocks. It's not like we didn't expect that, but I love it. Trying to figure out why I don't live here. I really should, probably.

The airplane ride was really long...basically. I don't have a very good attn span so I read Otaku USA issue 2, Sherlock Holmes, tried to watch a couple different movies, failed to sleep much, ate a bunch of plane food (not bad, though!) and forgot to play Pokemon. Unfortunately, I was seated next to one of the very few American people on the flight, but I guess they were nice at least. I was hoping it would've been one of the cute little Japanese girls, though.

Chris met me at the airport and helped me get my crud together which is great. I have a cell phone and we rode the bus down to Shinjuku where I met my host mom. Before that, though, we had tons of time to kill so we went shopping a bit, played a couple rounds of Taiko no Tatsujin, had tea this awesome Starbucks rip-off joint, and people-watched. Heard some good street music, too. Way better than the sax guy on the way home from Live-Action club.

My host family is awesome. I thought the dad would be home but in fact he was here last night and went back to Shanghai this morning. Yukiko, my host mom, is really nice. She bought Chris and I dinner before getting a taxi to take me back to the house. Toru is adorable and ever since I showed him Gamma Bros. on my computer he has warmed up a lot. We speak Japanese. I might ask if I can go to school with him one day next week, just to see what it's like. I've always been interested in Japanese schools.

Had a super Japanese breakfast. Veggie soup with hot dog like sausages in them (the correct term is totally "wiener" but seriously, how can I say that in English?), tonkatsu sandwich, left over chinese food, pickles, and tea. Tons of food, just like last night at dinner. I can never eat it all @_@ but it's so tasty.

The plan for today is to get some work done this morning for as my connection will hold out and then explore the neighborhood this afternoon. Toru gets home from school at 5 and I definitely want to be here to play with him. Then we will have home-made curry for dinner. So excited! I think there is a trip planned for this weekend, too. Anyways, I'm gonna go have a shower now, I think. Hum hum. I'm also going to try not to blog tooooo much. Probably just a bit in the morning after everyone leaves the house before I go out. I want to makesure I'm out doing stuff more often than at home writing about it ;D

For realz this time

2007-09-09T20:19:00.000+02:00

This blog will never end! Not till I'm dead! I'm going to the Tokyo Game Show a week and a half early for a total two glorious weeks in Japan. Homestaying it with a mom and her six year old son. This is going to ROCK, so of course I have to resurrect my most awesome overseas blog. I mean, I can't just blog on my other NORMAL blog, cuz that would be stupid ;p

Of course, all videogame-related things that I somehow find time to write in between assignments will appear in their rightful place.

LOOK FORWARD TO IT!

Or is it?

2006-05-24T20:53:00.000+02:00

CHERS AMIS,

I'm off to Tokyo Sept 12, so look for this blog to be revived 'round about that time. Same girl, different puddle!

XD

EDIT: Nevermind : /

fin

2005-07-11T18:28:00.000+02:00

well i think it's safe to say that the blog is over. i'm back in WISCONSIN even now and altho my life is as fascinating as always (if it ever was ;p) the framing has changed. there is always the possibility of another blog i suppose, but for the moment i'm just gonna close this happy little window onto my life. If you're still interested you'll just have to knock on the front door ^_~

checks which side of the ocean she's on

2005-07-01T05:21:00.000+02:00

yeah...i'm back lol

so my last night i ended up on the seine with the picnic-ers and also a swing dance club. in fact there were some really good dancers down there. one of them looked like jim carrey's little brother. i swear!!

but no so the sun was setting and THERE was Notre Dame and THERE was the fontaine st michel and the river and THERE was i in the midst of the dinner spreads and tourists and couples and dansers....dancing couples even.

it was all just very parisian i guess ;p

and i can't type on american keyboards very well...

lol

so wow tho thursday was just killer...it kills me i mean...so this is a negative

the morning i got up to finish the last bit of cleaning (after spending the rest of the day before's evening with the micefa crew) and then i ran to the bakery for dann and i. our rooms were checked and i love how we had to sweep up the duplex again. dann helped tho! thanks dann!

see cuz the duplex wasn't mine. dann's room (mine) was fine lol

ah yeah...

but no those rooms really do collect dust like NOBODY's business

they charged me five euros for the mail key

that emily lost

emily my supposed roommate

she'll be hearing from me lol

ALSO i KNEW it would happen but they owed me money in the end and i TOLD them i wanted to add ALL of my deposit TO the rent because i would be specifically UNable to pick it up at the CROUS (cuz "they don't mail things" as i was later told) but nooooo so there are nineteen euros sitting in paris with my name on them...and i want them!!! but i'm not so sure how to get them...must talk to micefa or something...i doubt anything can be done tho

so then what...this whole fiasco with the rent made me a bit late so i scrambled to make my van time...and then the van was late. then they dropped me off at F instead of C but to be fair none of us knew where i was supposed to go so their guess was as good as mine...

but i had to walk to c with that HUGE duffel bag...and stuff...luckily wheely carts are free and efficient in paris (unlike newark as i later found...paying THREE DOLLARS for the priviledge of a cart that stops on a dime if you don't put your whole weight on the handle bar...sheeeeeesh)

so then boarding was just ridiculous. we had to get on this silly bus sort of thing...which took forever cuz they had to make trips and ferry us out to the plane. then so we were already quite late but since we had missed our time we had to wait for a new time...another HOUR away from the already late time we were at. so we sat on the plane...

and then of course...sat on the plane lol

food was good tho i can say that...never disappointed by airfrance's food

and the entertainment was very cool. altho i was disappointed that the station claiming to be playing japanese music was in fact doing nothing of the sort.

we each got our own screen. which is really hardcore cuz we all got choices of movies to watch. i for my part didn't watch anything in it's entirety...is that spelled right? but i would like to see the other half of constantine i think...

i was just not really in the mood for a plane ride.

i guess lol

and oh there was an all girl german soccer club on the plane.

german is nice.

i sat next to a french swiss boy

who tried to order beer and was shot down lol

but yes lots of waiting in lines

too much

but it was nice to come through customs on the other end

for the record my first thoughts in the airport were, "hey america smells kinda funny"

and then, "wow look american commericals, american billboards"

"everything is in english"

and i have to get used to the fact that english conversation does not automatically mean "stupid american tourist"

my dad's apt is really hardcore. all the more so for being in the bronx's little italy.

gonna be a hardcore week.

he has poison dart frogs and that is sweet cuz i remember looking at pictures in books of them when i was little and him explaining about them and now i can watch them eat flys :D but not really cuz their tongues are too fast.

i'm still awake are you proud?

it's almost midnight

pretty tired tho

been a day and a half hahaha

no literally...lol

we had dinner at an italian restaurant called emilia's. i had chicken stuffed with shrimp, spinach, and sundried tomatos...that is some crubazuby ne? what is better is that the left overs are IN THE FRIDGE WHERE THEY BELONG!!! YES!!! THANK YOU TAKE OUT CULTURE!!! THANK YOU FOR THE MAGICAL BOX-UP!!!

"because i take my culture to go..."

lol

uhm...

i decided i am really looking forward to the fact that i will be able to bike to my g-ma's house in o-town and swim pretty much any day of the week. until i go to mke that is...i will have to work something out.

i will be back to wi on the 9th soooo bizarre....

oh oh oh and the issue with this blog is this. i could keep writing it but that may demand some sort of metaphysical puddle or metaphorical maybe...a metaphysical metaphor of a puddle to be beyond...a metaphorical puddle to be metaphysically beyond...maybe it's that...we need something like that. i mean...cuz THE puddle sadly...is back where it started...to the east!!

eek!!!

anyhow reader comments appreciated...i could just keep writing forever you know..

that was a threat ne? ;p

silly american keyboard

look at meeeeee

2005-06-29T18:20:00.000+02:00

"here we are at the barrrbe qqqqqq this is what happens when you have a feeewww look at you look at youuuu (look at you)"

lol

that is a good song...

uhm...

so i went to the eiffel tower and forgot my camera which is entirely in character but still somewhat inefficient lol

but it was nice...kinda lonely...but only cuz i didn't have a cd player. lol i definitely wanted to go buy myself but i kinda forgot you have to wait in line for hours...lol

well this is pretty much my last entry on this side of the ocean...

well...not pretty much...it kinda IS actually...soo

i feel like i should have something to TIE IN or make profound sense but i dunno

did i forget to tell you my grades? i think i did...

i got an A+ in history and an A- in francophone film and lit...

yay

uhm

so that was nice

i wish i had someone to eat dinner with! lol

i'm not sure what to eat...i might go to a grec place cuz it's just so emblamatic of my neighborhood lol

does that seem stupid? i dunno i guess i'll go see what the plats du jour are at the tabacs around here...

lol

x_x

how silly...my last night...

i was gonna go out to my bar but i don't really think i want to...lol it's more than an hour metro ride to go drink a cup of coffee by myself...lol

it's cool

hmmm

well i hope i get a good in-flight movie. that never seems to happen. i always just skip them lol. hope i don't get jet-lagged. i've never had it...don't need to start now.

hope my bags aren't overweight...

!!!

bye ;_;

bad luck

2005-06-29T13:17:00.000+02:00

yeah so i lost my metro pass this morning. how stupid. i have so much running around to do. this is not cool.

i guess i must've dropped it while i was carrying that box of stuff to micefa.

;_;

so now i'm reduced to toursity looking purple tickets...

i dunno what i'm doing this afternoon either

i don't even feel very motivated

i think i will probably hit the mcjp, grab coffee at my bar, go to the eiffel tower, and...i dunno i wanted to hit up this bakery i like for some cookies to bring home but i dunno if they'll make it in the heat...

esp cuz i'd have to go NOW

and have them in my bag through all the rest of the stuff

i guess i scrap that...i could just get not as good ones from the bakery around here i guess...

hummm

yeah i need a snack so blah

grr

this day isn't going very well. haven't gotten the e-mails i was supposed to get...

well anyhow i should get out of here since it is my last day...i should be doing something...

dunno what tho o_o

oh laaaa

2005-06-28T22:29:00.000+02:00

eek! we are all packing and the like.

prettttty weird.

finally had speed rabbit. didn't get anything exotic though which is fine. it WAS good tho that is for sure. chorizo rocks!

today i saw douches froides (cold showers) for TWO euros of course. it was better than i thought it would be! i really liked it. in fact i'd rather see that again than madagascar (this came up cuz that is what everyone else saw...i already had seen it ne)

but then we walked and walked for pizza

i shopped today

and not much else lol

creepy that tomorrow is my last day.

gotta go home and clean i guess.

...

: /

the day before the day before

2005-06-28T11:56:00.000+02:00

i'm leaving in two days o_o this is alarming

in other news i saw two movies yesterday. In Good Company, just because I couldn't resist, for TWO euros i think i'm allowed...and then Mon petit doigt m'a dit...which is a French adaptation of an Agatha Christie novel...it was ok but I'm not sure I understood everything.

Today I think I'm just gonna try for one because I really have a lot of crud (that i don't want to do, i might add) to get done around my house...like...give kim everything. i really hope she will just take it. lol

in fact if she would take EVERYTHING that would make my life easier tomorrow!

i would also just like my dad to kno that we are going to do laundry when i get to nyc lol

anyhow i guess i have not that much to really say...maybe i'll come back later...i kinda want to eat this sandwich now...

a quick note

2005-06-27T15:21:00.000+02:00

so there were two film festivals and i mixed and matched TO MY ADVANTAGE

it's not four euros but only two per movie

sooooo

that means i can see four instead of two!! :D

lol

i'm such a geek

i WILL eat speed rabbit pizza before i leave!! i really will! wednesday! i KNOW THIS deep in my soul! just not tonite cuz the nearest one is too far.

...

oh i do so love

2005-06-26T17:12:00.000+02:00

ok so last night AFTER i got stood up and had really good penne with seafood and listened to some jazz and called Steve and watched Charade with some friends i had this crummy idea to stay up and see the sunrise and go on a walk.

i mean

it was with all good intentions that i deprived myself of sleep and took the metro out to les halles and walked all the way to the freakin' gare de lyon because i couldn't find anywhere to eat.

i had: bread with butter and apricot jam, a croissant, a mocha that didn't taste like mocha, and orange juice. this is a very french breakfast.

it is also good.

it is also a lot of bread.

after this i was just ridiculously tired.

but no i did not go home i went to the bois de boulogne because i thought maybe i would wake up and feel like wandering around.

needless to say i gave up.

i got home at 9:30 this morning and collapsed until 3:30 lol

hmm tho charade was cool. that is such a great movie. it was funny to watch it being in paris tho. they go from st jacques to palais royal in one stop and it's not even on the same line ;D

tonite i'm going to go see a movie.

i'm worried about getting my apt cleaned up. just cuz i dunno what to do with extra food and stuff.

uhm

whoo i'm so hungry lol i still haven't eaten!

so this is a quick entry lol

that is all!!! o_o

encore les soldes

2005-06-25T12:14:00.000+02:00

so the huge big sales started up again yesterday. second semester is interesting cuz you arrive during the first big sale and leave during the second. anyhow...this time i decided i would take advantage. a little shopping, maybe some more today.

DUDE tho there was supposed to be music at my bar last night so i got all psyched and ready to go and then there wasn't any despite it being advertised all over the walls...so i had a milkshake and walked (oddly enough) to port royal (so weird how paris is ONE place that is connECTed lol) it was roller blade night. i didn't realized they stopped traffic for that o_o pretty groovy tho. torrent of knee-padded skaters.

uhm oh before that i saw a too-wholesome anime about a cello player...

i dunno

just killin' time i guess

so tonite there is supposedly really going to be music so i will trek out there again.

well let's see and tomorrow there is no lunch club because i am the only one of us still in paris.

i mean i could have it by myself...but you don't really call that a club x_x

yeah renée left yesterday for london. there are still some people left...but not really ones i see ever. i keep trying to get in touch with emily and dann cuz we have ot figure out business with packing cleaning rent...they don't seem very concerned. whatever...

i wonder if the luggage stores around here are having sales too...

i kno all the leather jacket stores are lol

i need a banana or something ;p

uhmmmmmmmmmm

yeah i guess that's it for the moment...

ugh

2005-06-24T11:48:00.000+02:00

I'm sick. And it's hot. And I don't feel good.

x_x

Not cool!!! I decided not to swim cuz I was cold for a bit this morning. It's really hot out. I'm hot now tho. Yuck yuck.

Not cool at all. Plus I don't feel like I slept at all. I know I did for a while, but maybe only like half the time I was actually in bed. Or two thirds. I was awake a lot is the point.

Anyhow this does not help me feel motivated to shop or move or think. My days require planning and I really would just rather not lol.

OH well.

Today there is a breeze but the weather is still slimy. We had a crazy storm last night with hail and stuff. Well...more like yesterday afternoon. I was hoping it would have more of an effect. Anyhow I sat out on my suicide ledge (of a window ne) and got rained on for a bit. That probably wasn't smart but I thought I just had allergies I didn't know I was sick. That's the problem I feel like it's all my fault. Like that cold bath I took for like an hour cuz it was so hot out...that probably could've ended before I got shivery lol. I'm stupid.

Anyhow I had to get out of my house yesterday. Things were just dumb. It started when the laundry facilities were busted so I had to go to a laundromat down the street. That screwed things up. The plans just sort of died from then on. In the end I went to go see Madagascar with Renée which I wasn't going to do here but oh well. It was pretty good and in any case was more cheerful than staying home. The cinéma festival is coming up so I feel like I should wait to see anymore movies until then so I can get a deal for it. You pay one normal ticket and then get as many as you want for four euros. This is not as fantastic as it could be but it is still a good deal. Even if you are a morning movie person like I try to be you still save almost a euro per ticket. I'm trying to think what I would even want to see tho. I should get a magazine to figure out what is playing. Dear Wendy is out...that looks cool.

OHHH I saw a real trailer for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Not just a goofy teaser. What a sweet looking movie (pun definitely unintended...i pity us all ;_;) that little boy is so adorable! :D

anyhow my net time is up...gonna have to get some more cuz there is no way this is my last blog ;p but i can do that later...

ciao

perilous emptiness (and the prenostalgia round up)

2005-06-22T20:23:00.000+02:00

yes it's as predicted. i had my coffee at my joint which was very nice. i kept it short today tho. coffee, pay, leave. hmm so tasty tho. they do it right.

so going backwards...seems to be the way it goes....so before coffee i walked from the MCJP to the place and haha. i didn't want to use the bathroom at the bar and the bathrooms at the MCJP were busy or the doors weren't closing or whatever u kno. so i had to come up with an elaborate plan which involved macdo and THEN it also involved going to a monoprix across the street and BACK because they didn't have toilet paper and i wasn't about to ask them to steal some napkins since i was already stealing the use of their facilities. funny hahahaha. it took forever. what a joke. it is really quite a nice hike down the six tho. i quite enjoy it. even tho it's hot out.

on crève de chaud!

lol i learned that today from the movie i saw (continuing backwards) before i studied japanese at the MJCP. i watched "grains of sand" about some high school kids in japan. drama, romance. stuff 'n stuff. but i guess the weather was a bit sweltering in the film as well.

they had another issue of Japan Close-up today! free things make emily smile :D (i'm sure they make all of them smile...so it doesn't even matter who you think i'm talking about)

i should think about dinner. i guess i did already THINK about it. but the problem is that i am cleaning tomorrow NOT tonite. that is what i decided. i will pick up everything and do dishes TOMORROW and not before. yeah isn't that sad? i don't even want to wash a bowl or a spoon. altho then again my spoon may not be dirty. if my spoon isn't dirty i could have cereal ;D either that or i will fry up some eggs ham and cheese into an omlette type formation. how silly.

swimming was nice today. i did four minutes of treading instead of three. not much of a difference, but it was still nice. just to be in the water was nice cuz it was so hot. a bit crowded but not as bad as sometimes. it's just annoying cuz there are kids usually now who like to jump and fool around and whatnot.

hmm i just a phone call from no one...

how...intriguing...

i hope they call back and mean it this time ;p lol

you know for a while i was feeling ok about my hair but now it is just becoming a bit much lol. i just feel scruffy. i saw a lady with hair just a bit curlier than mine but the same kind of lay. and hers was even kinda cut. and it just looked kinda scrubby x_x

hmm and a week from tomorrow i will be in nyc.

this is really starting to worry me.

: /

i kno i wanted to leave but i really don't anymore lol

i kinda feel like the way i did before i left mke. like i'm dying. i think you should only feel like you are dying so many times in your life. actually this is the thought process i had this morning on my way to the pool: i was thinking that maybe you are allotted only so many times feeling like you are dying before you actually do. and that is how stress kills you lol you run out of feeling like dying times and then you just do. i realize it's cheerful lol but so it goes!!! ;D no really tho cuz everything is ending...AGAIN. i guess that's how life goes tho. i guess i'll just feel like i'm on the other side of the world from my life is all....just for a while.

it's so funny tho cuz the way it was wasn't really "real" life anyhow. no one lives on student loans in real life. i can't wait to get out of practice mode. heh

you know i'm going to get home and not be allowed in jazz clubs lol that will be a killer.

*sigh sigh sigh*

i could totally live here (in the future). i've been trying to think of job options. it's just that to be in paris with my japanese i would probably have to be doing french things as well. unless i had a job i could do from anywhere. i wonder how it all works. i could always try for a spot at the MCJP lol XD

i was thinking today about how eventually i will be at home and i will be bored and will say, "ah but it's ok i will get up because i can go to the pool and hit up the MCJP for a movie and grab some coffee on the way home..." and then i will look up and remember i am in mke and for all intensive purposes none of that stuff exists.

...

ahh!

and i will be over there showing people the subway map and i don't know every stop but there are so many important ones. it's weird to notice when a city you visited becomes a city you live in. even when you have a map it is all a mystery until you really get in there and run around. beat your paths and whatnot. when i got here paris was so huge and the metro was confusing and the rer was even more confusing. now i got it down but i have to leave it all here!

ack! o_o

you see what i mean now tho about perilous emptiness! you get to thinking and it's noooo good lol i'm nostalgic and i'm not even gone yet! i plan ahead for everything i guess ;p

fête

2005-06-22T10:54:00.000+02:00

yeah the big huge music festival was yesterday and i even managed to drag myself out for it. i had been planning on just staying home and reading the newspaper, but then the newspaper reminded me that there were about a bajizillion concerts going on, so it would've been stupid to stay home. I took the metro to Abbesses which is up in Montmartre, and wandered around. Everybody was out in the streets there were djs all over. Walked past lots of stuff and then found this band called (in french) "The Black Fingernails" They were pretty interesting. Sorta nuts. Bass, guitar, accordion, and sax. All of them sang too, which at some points really got on my nerves because one of them actually had really good voice and the rest were just kinda there. It got kinda theatrical too tho. They had monologues and stuff. I dunno. Pretty crazy it was. Good music tho. I was soooo tired. I caught the metro home and went to bed...

So today is wednesday. I'm gonna pick up some crud at the grocery store and take it home, then head over to the pool. Man my schedule has really just disappeared. My everything. The order in my life is gone lol. Look at my room to check that. Holy cow. Among other things there is now an antique bike in there. Emily was trying to sell it. I'm not sure exactly what I'm supposed to do with it now. Maybe give it to Kim when I leave... Emily also left me a bunch of random food like pancake mix. I was going to try to eat MORE at home but I think I've been eating less. Less in general too. I'm kinda crazy I dunno really what's going on lol

The important thing is to remember to study some more. I need to do that. So I will. I will put books in my backpack and take them to the MCJP and after watching a non-takeshi kitano film, i will take them out and learn things like ~no you ni and -saseru.

Then I'm gonna go have coffee.

After that things get a bit...flexible. In other words, a normal evening, one without plan. Perilous emptiness!!!

Anyhow I gotsa jam out of here if I want to swim. I should probably eat something else first. I had a peach...

*falls over*

it's hot again.

movie and another hot afternoon

2005-06-21T19:27:00.000+02:00

today i had a panino (yes o...i don't think there is a different tho) and saw les invisibles. this was an interesting film that i picked somewhat at random...i mean not really random. it was french. that was the object. the sound was really good. cool experiental music or whatever. noise to the uninitiated ne. hot french actor. that sort of thing.

i went at like 4:30.

then i came here.

i slept in today but at least i slept!

that thing last night was ok. i left early. the atmosphere just wasn't my thing. felt bad but whatever. i saw emily today before she left and i'll see her in nyc.

i'm less psychotic today. renée and i met up for a drink at the columbus café. smoothies are the greatest thing. that will be nice about mke. cheap smoothies lol

yez

or at least cheapER

oi it is hot out tho

i think this class i signed up for about caves will be good for learning how to better interact with my living environment. at least that's the way it seems lately. you have to have some spelunking know-how to get around my room. dark and hazardous in there.

easy to trip

oh that guy josh...his parents are from o-town. bizarre no?

we all had the song in our heads then...i can tell you that

normality

2005-06-20T17:04:00.000+02:00

vs. reality

there was a picnic in this park. cool grass feels good as opposd to this puddle i'm in...oh wait...those are my clothes sticking to my back...

this morning at lunch an orange attacked me. i have neon specks on my shirt now. it's ok tho. kinda fits in with the shirt. it's busy enough.

there were fried calamari rings. i wasn't thrilled by that.

we ate popsicles in emily's room and listened to funky music. (triflavored popsicles: strawberry, orange, lemon)

and tried not to die of heat stroke.

i gave up on the french novel i was reading. i didn't care what was going to happen next. Now i'm reading The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime...that's it right? and that is much better.

mmm

this weather kills ambition. i would say "in one swift stroke" but "swift" is not really an option today. it's either motionlessness or the slog.

slogging through the sunshine.

it's the kind where you can feel your skin baking even when you have sunscreen on...and there is no breeze. you just kinda have to wade through the day.

i bought peaches and pears and tasty hummus today.

back when we i found the popsicles.

today is emily's last day. that's a bummer.

she said she has some friends she will introduce me to.

also a certain josh figure.

there is a party at a place tonite.

attendance is in the books.

hopefully we will walk home with the sun all down and things cooled off.

i love walking at night.

some people don't like walking tho...

I guess it really depends on your options.

how to have a good time

2005-06-19T12:35:00.000+02:00

so i found a jazz bar. i found a bar and it is mind now and i'm LEAVING. how sad. i could definitely survive longer now. this place KICKS.

they have really good coffee and live music a few nights a week.

friday i saw clarinet, trumpet, and piano. plus they sang in french and english.

the piano guy was back again yesterday. he is pretty hardcore.

jazz is great.

lol

it's too bad i quit piano before i discovered jazz.

lots of people i meet ask if i play cuz my fingers look avid or something.

avid...i dunno if that's really the word i'm looking for but i'll pretend it will work.

uhm

atypical to say the least i suppose?

uhm

but yeah kickin' music and to repeat next week.

uhhhhm other than that not a whole lot going on.

410 instead of 464 (linguistics ne)

oh and the "big news" is that i actually don't NEED anymore credits. i will just be on advisory status which is fine. it will go back to normal after three consecutive semesters of solid full time. life is kickin'

or something.

today i think emily and i are duffel bag shopping. i was gonna go biking but i have to see how things turn out. in any case i have a lot of time.

no classes.

just big time oasis.

that's what paris is i guess

oasis of time.

stop the thinking

2005-06-17T13:28:00.000+02:00

i dreamed last night that i fell out of an airplane. fell and fell and fell. it was pretty kickin' tho. i may have jumped, i don't remember, but i'm pretty sure we fell, or maybe we had to jump...dunno. me and someone else but then they disappeared. anyhow i fell for a while and it was pretty fun, cuz i was pretty sure i would survive, and then i landed in a lake. while i was underwater tho it turned into a swimming pool where there was this dude paddling around. turned out it was in his house so he was a little surprised to see me. i tried to explain that i fell out of the sky but you can imagine how that went.

so i've been trying to reassess my budget. i only have two weeks left. it shouldn't really be that hard. i'm just having trouble because i wanted to save enough for some rent but now i need 800 dollars for this summer school class so i won't have rent. i may not even have enough for the class! i dunno. i'll try i guess.

all the "last" things are coming up. like i want to hit the eiffel tower before i go. i think that will be pretty much the extent of that. i still haven't gone biking in the park. i want my last quick burger, my last bento (altho this might be negociable). i still haven't been to speed rabbit pizza! that might be tomorrow. and then i'd like to go out for one more "French" meal. of course i will have my last day at the MCJP but that will actually BE the day before i leave and it's free so...my last day at the pool will probably be that same day.

i'm also running out of toothpaste.

grr!

i should go call my mom and see how many dollars i have lol

dollllarrrrrz

they look so funny!! i saw some a while back and they were just so ridiculous. all the same size and all GREEN! yuck! and the coin sizes and colors don't make any sense...

i will have to get used to it again.

anyhow it's just starting to freak me out. not to mention this evil with school and credits.

speaking of which my hopeful list of classes (which should work i think):

summer: linguistics 430 language and society

fall: linguistics 341 5th Semester Japanese (i have to test in)
420 Introduction to Second Language Acquisition
464 Word and Sentence Structure
english 403 survey of modern english grammer
404 language, power, and identity
geography 128 Introduction to Caves and Caving

18 credits for my fall semester!! rar! i'm just gonna study like a banshee. i can't wait

plus these are all terribly pertinent things.

crud the place is closing v_v

moan 'n groan

2005-06-16T19:42:00.000+02:00

ah yes well our exam was today. it is over! and we were fed! that was cool. falafel and such. great stuff. the exam...i didn't enjoy it. i hope i did decently at least. that's all i ask.

i can't wait to get back to the states and study!

i'm trying to get into a summer class...one i need starts the 25 (right after the big hatachi day!!! :D) so i was thinking that wouldn't be too bad. i will be able to movie in with xav by then supposedly. i gotta try to get a job, polish the japanese till it shines like the sun...that sort of thing.

i'm going to run out of takeshi kitano movies soon! i think i only have two more (as far as the MCJP goes anyhow...) dude tho i watched aniki today. sweet movie!!! jeez tho they only had the french dub which was DISappOINTing!!! V_V i'll take what i can get tho. wow it was good. i guess i'm getting used to gangster violence. that might not be so good. >_<;; heh what a premise tho!! yakuza in LA. i need to see the original version. the dub wasn't bad even tho it was a dub and i understood probably 90% of it which was sort of impressive, but it was annoying not being sure what language was really being spoken. cuz i kno there was english, japanese, and spanish and the only language they spoke in the dub was french except for two lines in one scene right before they shot some guys...

oh hey

up note

last night i finally got ahold of emily and dann and they said i had mail!!!

Thanks for your letter g-pa!!! Sound's like you had a kickin' birthday! :D

i guess that is all for the moment. emily went to bordeaux so i don't get to hang with her today. i might try to see what megan is up to. i haven't seen her in a while.

cardigan-ed

2005-06-15T18:54:00.000+02:00

yeah i borrowed a sweater with a kitty on it

today i woke up at 8 and had a nice happy bowl of banana creme pie cereal (I believe I've elaborated on that wonderful recipe already...)

then i went to renée's house and we sorta went over our notes for the exam tomorrow.

after that i went to the pooool and got hungry.

emily and i had lunch again at the crous and then we went to a japanese grocery store. she didn't have time to come with to the MCJP tho cuz she had papers to write.

i went tho! i watched another takeshi kitano movie, about a deaf-mute surfer...it sounds sort of deranged doesn't it? it was good tho heh

they had transformed the lobby into an arcade@_@ they had like four or five machines of that donkey kong drumming game. i didn't play tho.

laaa laaa

things are ok i suppose

morale is medium nostalgic and it's also raining so that doesn't really help.

but i think today is going well. emily walsh is hardcore. i'm really glad i met her. we're gonna try to get together while i'm in nyc. she said we should go to china town :D it bites that she is leaving on tuesday! we've been hanging out a LOT and soon i will be back to the lonely! x_x nah i should survive.

uhmmm

i'm hungry!

lol

the plague

2005-06-14T16:39:00.000+02:00

that's all that is left to happen to me today i think. or maybe get hit by a bus...but i digress.

this morning it took multiple hours to accomplish one load of laundry. the machine decided it would be fine to count up numbers instead of down minutes and it also thought it would be nice to just wash my clothes interminably without rinsing. eventually we had to stop it and flood the floor cuz it wouldn't drain. that was a pain. then we had to mop. they better return my three euros. anyhow we had to start all over in another machine. just kinda switched and put no soap in on a cold cycle since they were already soapy quite hot. something was shredding too...made a big mess. i think it was the inside of my sweatshirt.

uhmmm

and school is messed up.

i'm so sick of thinking about it.

grr

and

well emily and i watched "crybaby" last night which was ok. depp as deviant juvenile lead singer jail breaker...who cries "one salty tear"

uhm

her friend was there too. and we had various visits from people interested in buying her bike or cd player.

we had lunch at the student resto today. broccoli, "rustic" fries, sausage, and a peach. oh and some tomato. and a bit of bread. very well balanced meals they serve over there, but probably not all that healthy despite the fact heh.

cheap tho ne i haven't been in a while. it's a good way to get meat tho, since you don't have to bother buying it or cooking it for yourself by yourself in your lonely studio. lol

well by the time i got done with micefa etc it would've been two hour travel time for one hour reading time at the MCJP so i decided to skip it. i suppose i will have to get myself to study at home. and i think renee and i are studying for our exam too. and actually i think emily and i might check out some other movie. since i mean she has them on tape so it's free and all. in the funny little tv room at the res. hum

premature periods. because completely sentences just aren't worth it sometimes.

do yourself a favor

2005-06-13T13:01:00.000+02:00

and not in that snotty bitchy jerk way you know like, "do yourself a favor and get a haircut!! freak!!" lol more like REALLY do yourself a NICE kindly friendly wonderful favor that will make your life easier and increase happiness all around. One of those. In fact, give yourself lots of them, as many as possible! I mean it!

Today I gave myself a few favors so far. I let myself sleep in a bit more to catch up, I went swimming finally, I bought a tuna sandwich for lunch, AND I got this handy internet account which if used prudently should last until I leave, saving countless handfulls of change, which tend to add up to a hefty sum of euros. I suppose that was a run on sentence to end all run on sentences, but I do believe it was warranted.

as for the afternoon, to my surprise, it is passing rather swiftly. and who needs capital letters anyways?

i also paid the majority of the rest of my rent. something got screwed up there. i need to talk to people and figure out what is going on with my deposit etc. one lady said i could put it towards my last month's rent and the lady today told me i had to talk to that other lady and didn't seem to care that i already had. my if i had orders signed in triplicate...*wishes she knew the paperwork schpiel from hitchhiker's...*

is that how one spells schpiel?

i guess i'm not going to be bothered to look it up...

the religious fanatics were out today, with the beggars and the fake gold sellers. yesterday when i got home i was super tired ne but i opted for sensory overload instead of a nap and went to the market. they sell some crazy stuff in there. i walked ALL the way down. out into the burbs. can't say it was really that worthwhile, which is why i don't do it often, but it wasn't detrimental to my healthy or anything lol

loo loo loo

well now that i have this internet deal (a nice brisk walk from my house) the updates should be more regular...which note, does not necessarily mean more interesting. i will, however, try not to let them become LESS interesting.

that is all!!

i wasn't expecting a naked guy

2005-06-12T21:11:00.000+02:00

in the play today

it was threeeee hourrrrs long and i really didn't understand much. luckily they had summaries of each act in the program. in french still, but i sorta could follow with that. boy tho i was really tired.

man life has been good tho. i hung out with the third emily friday night. we had indian food and saw the movie Papa which I KNEW was going to be wonderful. emily is cool. we seem to get along pretty well.

greg and i did sushi and a french movie. i couldn't really follow. kinda like the play today. trouble following things. the problem tho is that both were very literary. no one talks like that!! arrgh! lol

so it goes

dinner club went well too. i didn't realize chris was leaving!!! he's off to eastern europe and i had no idea that was so soon! good thing i saw him.

hmmm

tomorrow it is back to the pool. i have been busy and my excuse is avoidance tactics lol but still. i need to go swim! and so i shall.

uhm

well maybe that is all

i guess

*yawn*

i have a life this weekend!!!!

2005-06-09T21:45:00.000+02:00

how exciting

greg and i are hanging out on saturday and sunday is the molière play as well as lunch club which as been postponed to dinner club.

thrilling!

boy tho i was tired this morning. when you don't excerise you stay up all night talking and not sleeping muscle it gets flabby i guess.

as long as that is the only one!!! ^_~

i should swim tomorrow. i think this cold is wimpy enough that it would not be a detriment to myself to shiver a couple times if the pre-shower isn't hot. the other day it was cold. grr!!! *minor rage*

also...i realized that i know the kanji for kitano (as in takeshi, the theme of viewing at the MCJP. today was hana-bi) i just learned it. they are the kanji for north and field or realm...that is sort of interesting! i have to say i felt really cool when i noticed...

i have to say tho, that i felt really uncool practically falling alseep over the amalgamation of buddhism and shinto today. i'm gonna have to start that chapter over. too sleepy!!!

and i think i've been sitting on this non-chair for too long. my neck is dying lol x_x

a month till i'm back in mke!!!

this one is free :D

2005-06-09T01:04:00.000+02:00

i'm at my friend's dorm. she was definitely the right person to call. we are discussing things and staying up late. she also made popcorn.

it's really cool.

this is the best time i've had WITH someone ELSE in quite a while. most of the really great things i've experienced here have been by myself.

i'm sleeping over since the metro is closed. gonna have to get up in the morning to get my homework.

i'm starting to feel guilty heh

there are people who actually live here waiting for the computer

plus i posted already today x_x

so it will be brief but happy

HAPPY is good :D

so then

2005-06-08T18:12:00.000+02:00

tomorrow i have class! o_o how odd

today was kinda blah.

i watched a crazy japanese comedy and read some more about Shinto...

walked down the six line to the four

i'm tired

x_x

my cold isn't worse tho so that is nice!!!

i have this problem tho when i sleep i wonder if it is just the pillow they give us...but somehow when i sleep i lay weird on my ears or they fold weird or something and i have this lousy lingering headache when i wake up. it's been happening more and i more. i really don't like that. it doesn't make the mornings very nice.

i need to study more...

i also found out today that i think i owe more rent than i thought or something. i dunno. i'm just gonna pay it tomorrow and be done. then we just have to make sure the room is clean when we leave. which...it's dumb cuz apparently emily has to have it clean the night before i do. it's kinda dumb they say that when we are roommates...well.."roommates" anyhow. we'll have to figure something out.

shouldn't be too difficult tho

hum

but the 8th! i will be back in the states in less than a month. and a month from tomorrow i will descend on mke bwah hahaha i can't wait. it's so nice there. :D

grilled fish and green beans

2005-06-07T21:38:00.000+02:00

eating out is a good way to supplement what i have a home. that is my defense! i'm gonna be really spoiled when i get back tho ;_;

i have a slight cold; i hope it goes away soon.

i did mangage to finally drag myself out of my apt to the MCJP. i watched the movie Dolls and read a bit about Shinto.

I was gonna go for Korean barbecue but they didn't want to let me chill in their empty dining room until they started serving so...I wasn't just gonna stand around. I went to this chain I'd been wanting to check out instead.

was good

hmm

other than that...last night i bought batteries which is nice.

boring things...

maybe i will see greg soon. he finally e-mailed.

i had weird dreams last night!!! that tends to happen when i am prone to be in a lousy mood, which i have been lately...esp now that i'm sorta sick.

maybe it won't get worse tho. i think the increase in fruits and veggies must be doing me good. i broke the evil pattern of having a cold every other month didn't i?

star wars (and a soundtrack spoiler...does anyone mind?)

2005-06-06T17:05:00.000+02:00

ok so that wasn't a very good title but i'm sick of trying to think of something clever to say lol

i FINALLY saw it today

how kickin' a movie was that?

best part was when they brought back the theme from Ep I during the end battles

that's all i'll say

but it was super good

uhm...i went to starbucks today and had a moka cococnut frappecino

it was really good even tho it cost more than my lunch

definitely worth it that is for sure

i went to quick for lunch

i still don't like pickles or ketchup

but i'm not so juvenile as to pick them off anymore i guess

kinda rainy out

but still nice

sticky tho

no plans for tonite...so far...

i suppose there is always ep vi on tv but i really don't want to do that...

...

-_-

A Sunday Worth Fast-Forwarding Through

2005-06-05T16:09:00.000+02:00

I got up and made a Japanese omlette. You weren't supposed to fold it, but I did cuz I couldn't get the top to cook. Once you make the top the middle, it cooks. That sounds like it should maybe be profound wisdom or something, but I can't think of any application or really...any sense that it could possibly make.

The facebook continues to work wonders. People find me and I find people. Where is Matthias tho? I pine for the day he finds me. I bet he doesn't know how to spell my last name. Have I already elaborated on this before?

Let's see...

Yesterday I spent too much money. I got the CD of Stomu Yamash'ta which is REALLY: Tsutomu Yamashita. I wonder of the logic behind the romanization his name.

So I commented on my last entry about this but there is a big concert today that I don't realy want to go to. Everyone is going tho...it's free...it's part of the olympic promotion I think...2012 go paris. 2012 is a hot number...

I'd kinda like to go see Star Wars finally instead. I feel like if I go to the concert I will catch a cold or something. It's gloomy out.

I read for three and a half hours this morning. Finished White Teeth and read the part of The Know-It-All that I read in the train in England. Steve sent it to me along with the new Athlete CD and stuff. Oh and the Caesars. I'm addicted as hell. So I read a lot...

Then I decided to "do something." I went to the pool and there was a weird guy there so I didn't get to stay very long. He wanted to swim with me and then took it upon himself to catch up when I started without him. I don't really understand this...swimming is clearly one person. Not two. So I was swimming not really paying too much attn to where I was going because he was RIGHT there and I was keeping my eye on him to make sure he wasn't being stupid and then he suddenly grabbed me and I think he was trying to pull me out of the way of the lady who I swam into but all I could think of was that he wouldn't let go of my arm. So basically there was a big collision and I was mad. So I tread my three minutes of water explaining in fractured French that if my boat sank I would be able to survive and left even tho he said I should wait.

Anyhow it makes me mad cuz I only did about half what I usually do cuz I didn't want him following me around the whole time and talking to me when I wanted to be swimming.

I had a peanut butter sandwich in the park.

Now I'm at Emily's thankfully not spending money on the internet.

That's nice.

But it's not like I got any e-mail...lol I think I will just try not to think about it.

I wish I could try not to think about whether I will attend the concert tonite, but it's sort of required that I make a decision at some point. Maybe I will go but go by myself. That might be better. I will show up for a bit and check out "the scene" rather than being in the mob. That sounds better. I would rather be the tv camera man in the helicopter than one of the ants down there moshing.

Hum.

Or I could just read :D and eat pasta :D and ice cream :D

OH MAN I bought peaches the other day from the amazing fresh produce place near the MCJP and I was so busy running around that the one i didn't eat got nasty in my bag CRY

CRY CRY CRY

i have to be more careful with delicate fruits

i dunno man. probably i will get so annoyed with having to decide that i will just give up and go see Star Wars. i hope i will not regret whatever i do. i just feel like i SHOULD go to the concert and i SHOULD go see the mob on the champs-elysees (forgive the accent) and maybe even join it because hey who doesn't want the olympics to be in paris in 2012?

i don't get why it matters where the olympics are.

they should have them in someone's backyard.

that would be cool.

death march to an empty inbox

2005-06-04T18:18:00.000+02:00

i was supposed to find a net cafe near where i actually was as opposed to back home. oh well.

i'm not really in the mood to write.

last night i was in such a good mood i couldn't sleep at all but today just sorta bites. what is the point of being happy and motivated when all your friends are asleep and you should be too and you don't have a phone card or anything to do.

i saw the percussion concert it was really cool. yesterday i would've written a lot about it but today i don't really feel like it.

this afternoon pissed me off.

big long walk for nothing.

and i ate the peach i was supposed to have with my dinner.

i want to go back down to the MCJP tonite to buy a cd but it seems like a lot...i will try to get someone to go with me

i'm mad. and i've been spending too much money. on food basically...cuz unless i plan way ahead i never have anything when i am hungry.

i had a salad today but it wasn't very good...

and then i had a dessert at the place i should've had lunch...they had good-looking quiches...

that was a whole other death march of it's own

stupid wandering around

i guess it's just boring by yourself and frusterating when you look for a net cafe and find ONE during the whole hour or whatever you are roaming and then finally give up and go home because the one you found was THREE euros an hour (which at that point you might as well shoot yourself but i have seen much worse...) where you find three within the first five minutes because you live...where you live

of course it lags

and they only have MSN messenger which means i can't talk to anyone

and as the title indicates i got a grand total of zero e-mails

except one that is depressing

and i don't want to go home and have noodles and pesto!!!
something in here smells really ridiculously good

and i want some

of that

falafel maybe it must be i dunno

*cry*

not like i don't have the money to go out...but i already went out today

oh i bought a ticket for le tartuffe (molière) i think xav might appreciate that...or maybe i am not remembering correctly. i dunno. it's a classic. i got a ten euro ticket for the 12 of june.

i went to the pizza place by the mcjp and had lasagna. it was uber good.

i shouldn't have written notes last night about what i wanted to say about the concert cuz now it just seems tedious and boring to write about it again...i will write about it later or something

why was i so happy last night at freaking two in the morning by myself? what is the point of that? i type too fast for the stupid computer...gosh that is annoying but not really...use up all the happy when there is no one around?

today i solidified my belief that my throat is a hypochondriac. amy is sick and i can't put up with that and apparently neither can my throat because for like ten minutes after i finally decided to leave i was coughing

dude so that salad i had today. it had that one veggie that i will NEVER like in it. i dunno. just something about the whole thing wasn't what i wanted. it had salmon tho. i'm kinda sick of finding the same food everywhere. maybe i SHOULD go get some falafel. that you can find all over too tho. still it does sound good. maybe i will do that. i'm frustrated so maybe i deserve to not have to cook.

man i need a phone card...and some credit for my cell phone.

grr
*complain complain*

yeah it's boring today

getting ripped off for net - time is not my favorite past -time

2005-06-02T21:08:00.000+02:00

ching ching-ching ching chinnnnng chinnnng

anyhow

uhm

yeah i'm being a bit robbed

not as much some

but robbed

ACK

so it goes

not the most thrilling e-mail tho

mostly junk

i tried to sign up for classes on PAWS today

relinquished my dreams of japanese major...ship

majorship

and

it didn't work

so i guess i will have to wait until there is REALLY nothing left

*sadness*

i need a rich duke

if anyone knows a rich duke who feels the need to enrich someones mind lemme know

today i feel ignorant

it is not a good way to feel

also i watched a really cheesy documentary aimed at middle and high schoolers about japan, really i should've known that is was crud but they suckered me in with their claims of REAL JAPANESE TV CLIPS. it wasn't all that exciting; just bad

this comp is mad lagging

what a life

glad i have a comp to complain about tho

even if it is rented to me for the horrible crime of 2 euros an hour

there are worse places tho

oh and i forgot to say that i started reading about shinto

that is all

it is a "short history"

holy lack of internet, batman

2005-06-01T12:04:00.000+02:00

HO-KAY

so here i am once more. that took long enough. i've seen some movies, eaten some french food, and some peanut butter too thanks to my chèr papa.

i'm writing today from a little basement under a panini and sandwich and crêpe place. it's fairly cheap or at least as cheap as it goes.

*sigh*

dad and i had tons of fun. i showed him places i usually go and we checked out Buttes-Chaumont which is fake...did i spell it right? it's a pretty nice park even if it is fake.

god the screen keeps jumping.

maybe i DON'T like it here. i dunno. it's cheaper to get a card somewhere than to just go in for an hour when you need it.

i may see greg again sometime soon. if we get our act together. that has the potential for fun.

so what movies....i saw tokyo eyes and perfect blue (finally!!!) and then...i can't remember. it was about a couple of guys who work at this gay bar and one of them has a crush on the other one blah blah. the dvd SUCKED tho and the sound quit going with the image about halfway through.

dîsappointing.

oh i saw the hiroshige stamp exhibit with dad when he was here. that was pretty sweet.

this friday is the percussion concert.

uhm

i dunno

i'm stressed out and sick of thinking about school and independent study and the reality of me probably not transfering or majoring in japanese or anything.

but then...you know...it's lunchtime (an illusion yes but an illusion i will hold fast to today because what else is there at the moment besides my little white ticket from cyber sandwichs...(sic))

well i may or may not get a card here.

i just lent a girl a pen...

welllll

what else to say? i dunno! i had my history exam today. four questions. i hope i did well.

probably it was ok. and my paper should be decent enough.

that class is over. even if i do remember the address of the place we are supposed to go for the optional class meet next week and even if i could find it i may not feel like going. i dunno what we are doing.

*sigh*

oh i finished that japanese novel. it was good but unfortunately i was really bored with it cuz i knew the end from the movie. it was slightly different tho...at the VERY end. i think the book was actually MORE depressing than the movie if that is possible.

my dad brought me The Quick and the Dead, White Teeth, and Life of Pi (which i will read again if i get that far which i may). I finished The Quick and the Dead. It was reallllly strange but very good. Depressing tho...White Teeth is good so far. also sort of depressing. the short stories i read at the MCJP are for the most part depressing as well. i hope haruki murakami's newer book (which i will have to pick up at the fnac, it's on sale!!) is not so depressing as everything else. dad also picked up a book about japanese for me but unfortunately it is one that i have already. i felt bad x_x but what can you do?

it was nice having someone around. :D we cooked too and that was super. i was really stressed out the whole time tho.

i'm always stressed out.

i stillll haven't seen star wars.

soon enough tho. soon soon soon.

maybe i will go with greg if we get our acts together

well

i just e-mailed him

i think my act is set

lunch is still in order

i should go do that...

i bought my last metro ticket today. the very last. it will be the one in my pocket all the way to newark on the airplane. did i spell that wrong? is there an h in that?

dad took a lot of my stuff home but i imagine i will stil have to send a box.

man i'm feeling lazy today. good thing i went swimming yestedray. it was so nice because there were barely any people. the problem is that i can't go tomorrow so we'll have to hold off till friday. i will make myself go on sunday i think.

altho i was going to rent a bike at the park. well that is fine.

same difference.

ugh

lunch.

hmm.

ok that is all

signing off to bound up these stairs and into the paris sun cuz it's june first

the last parisien month

do you spell that with an a in english?

maybe i will grab a sandwich and go read in the park before going to the MCJP.

then again maybe not; i really am lazy. i don't want to do anything today. i think i sat in bed for like 15 minutes just because i had extra time before i needed to be in the shower. i just sat there and stared at the wall and didn't feel like moving or doing the dishes from last night. apparently tho the chicken was cooked enough which is good because i was worried about it. i don't really trust my cooking usually. oh wait it was turkey. that's right because the chicken was looking a trifle nasty that day.

probably i'm just stressed out and that's why i don't want to move.

easier to sit in one place and not do anything.

if i get myself over to the MCJP tho, i can see a movie and probably the sound will go with the picture this time...

stuff 'n stuff

2005-05-25T21:10:00.000+02:00

wellllll starting to get a little bored which is probably inexcusable...

steve has been writing some interesting things in his blog...

also let's see...

oh i saw an AMAZING movie on monday called Nobody Knows. It's about four kids who are abandoned by their mom in Tokyo. The oldest (12 years) is put in charge of everyone. It's sOooooosooooOSooOoooo so sad but very well done. I love the camera and the music too. I love it! If it's around definitely see it.

I saw Tampopo again on Tuesday which was just as good as the first time around.

I miss mke.

The raspberry tarts at Sendik's are better than here. I told this to Xav already, but it's true lol so i thought i would tell everyone else.

hmmm i didn't get to swim today because i moved into my new apt. i don't like it as much as my other one but i guess i will get used to it. my bathroom used to be next to the desk so to get a near full-body mirror i could stand on a chair and look over the sink but in the new room the desk is across the room lol

not that it matters

uhmmm

i finished emma did i say that already? it was very good. i love mr. knightly.

annnnnnd well tomorrow is thursday.

that means film class and no swimming but i will go to the MCJP

and i'm super psyched about saturday

okashi na

2005-05-22T15:43:00.000+02:00

so i think i've seen that adjective both ways but i'm not sure...okashi na okashii ne...

heh

uhmmmm

so yesterday i did go to the MCJP and finally got up the guts to go into the Audio-visual space which was such an incredibly good thing. I just never seen anyone go up there and it always seems so quiet that I don't want to disturb anything. I dunno. But I went up and it is soooo cool. They have like six tv stations so you can watch movies that they have. Even some anime (sadly french dubbed ;_; most of the movies are original language tho)

I saw Kikujiro which is so cool cuz it's the first movie that Peter Carey talks about in Wrong About Japan which I've read twice now lol. I would definitely recommend it. It's pretty cute, but sort of odd at times. It's about this boy's vacation. He lives with his g-ma and wants to go visit his mom so this tough guy wannabe neighbor of his is sent by his wife to accompany him. It starts out pretty bad. They end up at this bike track gamboling and the boy is constantly abused by everyone but then they meet some crazy characters and blah blah you know. It's really cool.

I'm thrilled tho! I can go almost everyday and watch a movie before reading. I finished Keigo in Modern Japan. Definitely recommended to all Japanese students. Patricia Wetzel!! Go find!!

EUROVISION was last night!! This rocked. I was at Emanuel and Emily's house (after waiting outside their door for a half hour and it turned out they WERE home but just asleep...WHATEVER) and we all ate fajitas and guac. Super tasty! Eurovision was great, but the French commentators were really annoying. They had to be talking at every possible second. I have no idea what they were saying tho cuz really I could barely hear the music. I thought it was going to be just the three of us but a bunch of people showed up and they were all loud and it was a party. x_x can't say i was thrilled about that but it was ok and i did get to see the show

Romania didn't win ;_; Greece did. I dunno why they won. I mean they weren't BAD but there were better things. I voted tho!! How cool! lol I sent in a text on Romania's behalf and I tried to get one through for Latvia too but they didn't receive it in time.

Now all I have to do is get through this week so I can hang with my dad this weekend. Should be easy tho now that I can go see movies at the MCJP. Plus swimming, plus class on Wed and Thurs. I'm going to go see a movie in the theater tomorrow afternoon after swimming I think. A Japanese one...lol.

OH so the Nô theater tickets are all sold out. They were probably gone before general reservation opened up. Kinda makes me think I have no shot of getting into the sake tasting... Either way tho this means that myl last time to see the big room is the percussion concert coming up. I'm going to miss the MCJP so much ;_;

For lunch club today we had a picnic! It was really tasty and at the park. There were cute little kids all over! One girl in particular ran around giving everyone kisses. That was funny XD

For the rest of the day I am probably just packing up my room. Not terribly exciting, but I have to move probably tonite. I hope it's tonite anyhow. It will be so great to have a window that closes!! I was FREEZING last night!!!

SUGOI XD (more emma spoilers...i hope no one minds)

2005-05-20T22:11:00.000+02:00

Grinder-man was totally awesome. Possibly one of the coolest things I've ever seen. It was definitely unique. I'm not entirely sure how to explain it and just giving a play-by-play wouldn't really give it justice...but there were paper airplanes, ping-pong balls, and of course the guys in suits (or skirts) with cubes instead of heads...the cow's head from human growth and developement class, awesome music, sparks flying terrifyingly EVERYWHERE, annnnd more paper airplanes? It was so awesome. AND the MCJP never ceases to amaze me. Their big room (which i think it actually is la grande salle...so...lol) is one of the most adaptable places and so awesome. Really I think the MCJP is probably my favorite place in the entire world right now. I mean I like being at home and I like being in bed when I'm tired, but when I want to see something interesting or learn something about Japan I would love to have a warp to this place because it is so cool. But I was definitely discussing the big room...so I think I've seen it in probably...three or four completely different configurations. For movies they have your standard seats going up in rows. For Kyôgen they had a few rows off to the side of the stage and the rest were normal. Then for Grinder-man they had seats surrounding the stage but the stage wasn't wear it usually is. In fact the stage was kind of gone they were just on the floor. I'm not sure how many different views I've seen but it is crazy. The projection screens can go wherever and Grinder-man even had something projecting onto the floor.

So let's see...Grinder-man. It was also very stylized. The phrase "highly visual" comes to mind but that sounds kinda stuffy. For a while it felt like every next part was another game played by very creative...Grinder-men lol. They wore masks and shot ping pong balls at each other and then at us. They threw paper airplanes everywhere and ending up abducting a couple audience members and making THEM throw them too. ALSO really cool was that they had video footage that had obviously been taken that day including pre-show footage of the audience. So we got to see them running around Paris as well. They have this one helmet/mask that made me think of power rangers because a whole gang of the creepy dudes jumped a couple of the cube guys and the camera tilted...lol. I dunno...I'm sure none of this really makes sense at all...there's not really a good way to describe it. Really really cool and very Japanese. I'm not sure if it was just that fact that it was Japanese guys or if there really was something about the stylization. So aside from power rangers I also thought of traditional theater (because of the styalized movement), The Taste of Tea (some of the moves were very reminiscent of that and other things I've seen but can't think of where)...so I dunno there's got to be something. Oh oh and definitely sumo during the ping-pong face off or maybe boxing too. A cross between sumo, boxing, and ping-pong? And there was a storyline sort of...in imperfect English about a giant trying to make children for itself and failing most of the time. OH and I forgot about the LIGHTS there was a really cool segment where they wore these lightbulbes on their heads with triggers for graduated electricty or something...I dunno what I'm talking about lol and it really does start to sound insane "yeah light bulbs on their heads!!! whoo!! suh-WEET!" XD lol The last thing I have to say is that we were all really concerned when they came out with the spinny spark things. They were wearing some sort of metal on specific parts of their bodies and would basically...I don't even know the word...make sparks LOL big showers of crazy sparks and we were all really determined to stand (sit?) it down and not run for the door. I was especially convinced after I saw a shower go into one of the guy's hair...lol. Smelly, but apparently harmless...

Well I think I have successfully conveyed my exCITEment over the matter if not the matter itself.

The other thing I've been thinking about today was how it might be worth it to have to wear a dress everyday to be able to express oneself with such exactitude as Emma and all the characters in that book. Then again maybe not, but they really can talk.

Floating Cloud (Ukigumo) is still going on as well....slowly but surely. I'm trying to get at least two or three chapters in a day because otherwise I will NEVER finish it. It's sort of a bummer to have seen the movie before reading the book. That is generally the case with lengthy books and movies. I mean it's always better to read first but if the book is particularly long the consequences are intensified by the time disparity. It takes you two hours to watch the WHOLE story but then a month to read it and the whole time you are saying WHY hasn't this THING happened yet? Everything is so stretched out when really it is the opposite and the movie is just condensed as flaming death.

I was lazy today, oh but I already told you that. I didn't go to the MCJP to read about Keigo, tho I will go tomorrow. I studied a bit and I read a bit and basically just waited until it was time for dinner. The other problem is that I always over budget my time so that I get places on time and what not but I am so punctual that really I just end up OBSCENELY early. Today I managed to delay myself on the way to the MCJP by reading a chapter of Emma in the subway station during my cross from the 4 to the 6. Now TELL me that's not PATHETIC?

Well after this I will go home and eat some cereal and probably at that point be listening to Nova and thinking about bed. You know you listen to a radio station a lot when you grow attached to pretty much every song they play. Even the ones that were annoying and the ones that made you go, "huh?" become like old friends over for a round of Idiot and freshly baked apples. Does anyone know how to bake apples or what exactly is involved besides sticking them in the oven? Because after that extended conversation in Emma about them I found myself fairly DROOling.

Here are the spoilers tho...the apples I think don't hurt the plot but this may::

x_x

what is emma's deal? mr. elton was so cool i thought altho i have to admit that frank is better. but even him, what was that thing she said about decidedly when to throw in some coldness when things were getting a bit too friendly? really and truly what is her deal? why can't she just rejoice in the fact that she is having this crazy awesome funny conversations?

also emma's dad is a riot altho it's funny cuz he's like an extreme version of me lately. i've turned into a kind of "you'll catch your death out there" person too. *sigh* AND PORK ROAST!!! I'LL JUST HAVE NONE OF IT!!! (kidding...lol i thought that was funny tho...fry it but make hella sure you don't roast it)

Did you read about the IT workers skipping out for Star Wars? It was in the yahoo news. I was amused. I still haven't seen it. I'll get around to it though; I'm sure there's no hurry.

The question tho is WHATEVER am I going to do toMOrrow????? aside from make my near-daily appearance at the MCJP, i really have no clue. maybe i will go out for some food. there is one sandwich place in particular that i'm sure i will never be able to decide what to have at and would really just like to try it out ten times to make sure i experience the best thing they have...maybe i will go there.

did i tell you about the survey i did? I don't think so. I think i was distracted while writing the other day. Wellllll this guy on the street who I thought was just going to ask me some questions ended up taking me up these swirly stairs to this apt-office where there were all sorts of other bored pedestrians sitting at computers watching commercials. he put me to the task. I saw one for some sort of coffee? and another for a cheeto-like cracker thing. altogether it was pretty much like other surveys i have done only it was french so it felt like a cultural experience. (a rarity may i remind you)

i write more entertainingly when i'm excited i think...

speaking of french tho. emanuel and i were discussing once again the distressing student miguel who has become pratically fluent in his oral expression in i think actually under a year. he's bonkers and it drives the rest of us absolutely nuts. i tend to think of it from a pedagogical perspective and would really like to know exACTly what it was he did to attain such jealously provoking ease with his pronunciation and everything. he just floooowwwwssss and it makes everyone cry. as long as i focus on pedagogy i don't cry tho...so i try to be scientific :D

well i should leave as i am pretty hungry and tired. you know, next time i discover the best place in the world i hope i have some really good friends with me because it's kinda lonely going to all these performances and such by oneself. technically i should leave off there but i feel i should clarify that i do like going by myself and would not skip out just because it's only me, and of course there are certain advantages in attending on one's own such as retaining the afterglow longer...such as...even an hour longer if you are writing your blog after riding the subway in anticipation of enlightening your friends. but then i think it's good to have a nice balance between enlightening your friends and having your friends with you.

incidentally my friends were all having a party for emaneul which i didn't find out about until this afternoon and of course i had had my grinder-man tickets for a month already.

i don't think any of them really wanted to go with me. in fact i probably invited them a month ago.

lol

or i may have given up. I had been trying to drag them out there since march lol during the anime festival thing...haha

oh you know...i'm gonna make this even longer and less organized by tagging on some acute observations about encores:

i don't know if it's just here or if it's everywhere but people really seem to EXPECT them nowadays. here we are clapping and it's not eNOUGH that they just bow, and bow again, and probably bow again, annnnd then walk off. i always wonder how encores work. in band we used to have one ready if needed, but in these big performances the lights don't come up as if it's over; you just clap until they come back even if it takes a couple minutes (rufus). tonite was an interesting situation as there was no encore, which was fine with me, but i think it had some people confused. in fact maybe the house was confused. what happened: so they bow and bow and bow and go off yes...and the lights are still down and the music is still playing and we're stilling clapping but it's starting to taper...and then they came back...and left...and then we were still clapping and the lights were stilllll down and the music was stilll on so when left to our own devices we decided to clap to the music which was of course probably or at least to a me a mutually fulfilling act. They came back and we applauded more and they left again and this may have even happened AGAIN. i can't remember how many times. we loved them obviously and they loved us but i really wondered what was going on. were people expecting an encore? was the house expecting an encore? I would blame it entirely on the audience if not for the lack of houselights coming up. that was odd and i think the performers were sort of wondering how many times in the end they would be required to bow.

okashii ne

the word "okashii" always makes me think of that scene from A Taste of Tea which also makes me think of Grinder-man.

wow tho i really have to leave haha it is TIME

nite! ;D

puffy

2005-05-20T13:21:00.000+02:00

what the heck lol datif every time he sees me now he says my eyes are all puffy and asks if i was crying and he never runs into me when i WAS so i dunno. maybe the pool makes my eyes puffy.

soooo yesterday i went and read some more of that keigo book and it did get better :D one chapter about the history of standardization and one chapter about books and classes to help japanese people improve their usage...i guess that doesn't really SOUND super interesting but it was...

today i was going to go read but i didn't. i'm going over there tonite to see Grinder-man so one trip is enough. plus i'm kinda tired after swimming. it wasn't very cool at the pool today, too many people. you couldn't even really get a good stroke going and if you could only for a couple feet till you had to dodge more people. also my number one most avoidance wanted person showed up but luckily just as i was leaving. i didn't actually look at him because eye contact might have been fatal.

i ate lunch in the park! it was nice. there is a cute little park right by my house. i never actually went in before.

i guess i will be switching apts this weekend because emanuel is leaving on THURSDAY. ;_; he will be on an airplane and i will be in my film class. that's strange o_O

i figured out that june 16 is my last day. i have my film exam that day. i should talk to people about studying together. i hope the teachers go over what sorts of things will be on it. DUDE and i haven't heard anything about my independent study. it's getting a bit crunched on time...maybe i should ask her about it...again

bleh (emma spoilers?)

2005-05-18T22:04:00.000+02:00

i don't really feel like writing but let's see...

i watched an aspiring chef make gumbo and it turned out really good

i went swimming again but it just makes me hungry so i end up eating more so i dunno if it's really good for me or not

it's official my french is actually worse than it was in the states. even datif says he can tell it's gotten worse.

hopefully i'm just having a crummy day

highly unmotivated

i should go study japanese

i didn't yesterday

see that's just stupid

it's star wars day but i didn't go

probably won't till next week

or whatever

i dunno

dad will be here a week from saturday

tomorrow i have class

today i had class too

it was obnoxious cuz she dragged us all out to this church that turned out to be closed. it's annoying when we go on these tours but don't end up back at school. she just leaves us standing outside notre dame de travail. i went alllll the way back to my pool before having a snack and going to the mcjp

i read about honorifics in linguistics but it was pretty crazy because mostly it was just laying out how different people split it up...and all their respective vocabularies. i dunno. it was tedious and i was tired. it looks like it picks up later. we can only hope.

i'm reading emma by jane austen. i seem to remember my sister and her friend forming a club around the reading of this book. it's pretty good so far. you have to get used to the style. it's not austin is it? i never even look do i...v_v i'm to the part where who is it...someone suggests to her that maybe it is HER that mr. elton (elton right?) likes. you know i should really leave off talking about things if i can't remember what i'm supposed to be saying...but my point was that i had this feeling the whole time that that was how it would end up. things sure were different in the 17th century in england. haha but i guess they still are aren't they...

things are always different

except the songs they play on nova. i've had trouble with radio stations here because they really do play the same songs over and over. i think it's worse here than in the states. it seems that way anyhow. or maybe i'm just used to stations that play electronic or jazz to not have play lists like that...

but it's annoying.

makes me think i should start listening to the news cuz at least it's something new everyday

i should listen to the news in any case

so it goes

fat chance tho if i can't even get myself to study japanese

i dragged myself through a couple chapters of ukigumo tho so maybe that is good

not looking forward to class tomorrow v_v

*siiiiiiigh*

the timing for a semester long program is so lame because you start getting homesick right as you're leaving

not that this program is really typical

at least i hope not

usually i think you're supposed to IMPROVE the language you are "immersed in"

yeah i don't really need to start on this

just sucks

short

2005-05-16T17:34:00.000+02:00

i don't have much to say! today i went grocery shopping and to the pool. maybe i will see a movie tonite but apparently one of the star wars movies is on tv, so i might chill at emanuel's. it depends what everyone is up to. i also picked up my room this afternoon while listening to Nova, which is such a groovy radio station :D really truly groovy. that is really all...a chill and uneventful day...

lemme tell ya

2005-05-15T20:37:00.000+02:00

so giverny...it was a mess lol because it RAINED BUCKETS all over us. ALL over cuz hey i have no umbrella what can i say and i was not about to buy a printed one from the gift shop for twenty euros. oh the crying lol we were super soaked and it was pretty cold on top of that. i mean for france in may anyhow.

so the flowers were nice (and droopy with rain like us) and the japanese bridge was nice and i did take the time in spite of my shivering and dripping to appreciate the ripples in the pond around the lilypads which were, as can be imagined, not entirely in form.

worst part is that my backpack got soaked to including my notebook, my novel, and so when i took out my camera water POURED out of it...so i think maybe it is quite screwed as for my pics...my full camera was in there too so i dunno if that one escaped or not. it was not quite as wet but you never know.

funny how when i finally bother to take pics that they get wrecked but so it goes

basically the trip was this incredible bust. i was very cold and my feet were wet all day, pants drenched halfway up my calfs you know...the works. so then we went to this little town and i had already eaten and had a crêpe at a vacant café with chris and used the bathroom at a funny little hotel and such and such so i went grocery shopping for some soup to heat up when i got home. after that i really just wanted to get back on the bus but it ended up that the bus had to go somewhere else until meeting time so chris and i wandered a bit. we went into the cathedral and stuff. then we found the tourism office and it turns out that there was this cherry festival going on.

this turned out to be the best thing ever.

we went and there were a couple rides but more importantly they were grilling SAUSAGES which made me miss mke a LOT. we got one and the mustard hurt my nose cuz in france their dijon is SERIOUS and you'd better add some mayo to lessen the kick but i forgot about that...lol

chris also got cotton candy which is called barbapapa in france...like the cartoon character...

then of course there were little stands. it really reminded me of a fest in mke. i was pretty homesick lol there were also very expensive cherries that we didn't get to try.

on the whole we decided that that saved the trip and that next year they should plan the trip to go to the festival and have monet's gardens as the sidetrip heh.

funny how today on sunday it is brilliant out and yesterday was so awful.

the only other thing really to mention is that last night all the museums were open till like 1 something in the morning for free so i went and saw some modern art. i was pretty tired though lol they had this one room totally dedicated to this guy who saves tons of money by buying stuff and taking it back before the 30 days is up or that reimburses your first trial of their product or that gives you money back if you are not satisfied. they had tv clips and magasin articcles...kinda funny stuff haha

there was this one exhibit that was all pictures and drawings and stuff done by this lady who seemed to like blood or something. razor blades to her feet, rose thorns sticking in her arms...a bit nauseating when tired

oh you know today was lunch club and we had fajitas. they were terrific! :D we were supposed to watch the first two eps of star wars but of course they were all rented out. planning was not the best...

now i'm hanging out with datif but he is studying cuz i think everytime i come he has an exam the next day. funny how that works lol

tomorrow will be round two at the pool and shopping. my cupboards aren't bare but they don't really have much meal material at the moment so i gotta find somethings. like eggs and bread.

oh chris let us have some of his peanut butter. it was divine. i miss peanut butter.

there are so many things that you miss and you don't even think about at home. some things you don't even realize you liked until you can't have them. like brats. i started liking them more in high school but NOW i appreciate them forever.

things are going ok. i got my e-mail about my independent study project which was terrifying. i hope she will let me change to something about japan. that would really make me happy! :D

i'm reading l'étranger (the stranger) by camus without a dictionary. every time i run into a copy i read some. it's fairly easy to run into a copy tho cuz emanuel has one haha. i read for like an hour while he had a nap.

oh oh oh

emanueru wa hirune shite iru aida ni, watashi wa kamyu ga kaita shosetsu o yomimashita.

shosetsu...if i remember correctly that means novel. if i don't then it may or may not mean anything...grr lol but hirune is interesting because i believe that the kanji for it are afternoon and sleep...heh

i guess i kinda wrote about more stuff than i thought i had to write about

so it goes!

maybe you were slightly amused.

i dunno.

i decided tho that i will study spanish before my (possible) return to russian. it is so important in the states! i refuse to remain ignorant in THAT respect even if i can't keep track of the lebanese civil war...it was lebanon right? see i dunno...1975 ne i am so bad at stuff like that. gotta read books to find out. READ A BOOK! ;p lol (does anyone remember that? eric? lol)

yay for a happy day

2005-05-13T14:05:00.000+02:00

i feel better today :D yesterday didn't go very well.

i DID go shopping but i didn't get anything cuz it all seemed overpriced. plus they didn't have the one thing i would've actually bought even if it was a bit expensive.

dinner was excessively rushed (i ate in the metro on the way to the lecture at the MCJP) but really good (cuz i got korokke bento which is like fried potato things and rice and bento type things...yummoo...i love that place...i saved some of the rice to go with my broccoli for lunch)

the lecture was pretty cool but i was really in a lousy mood so i didn't even really want to go. before they let us in i was watching on the satellite japanese tv this show where this little girl who looked sorta like xav's cousin was cooking with the help of some crazy fantasy creature and a very cheerful chef. they made potatoes and onions and beef with nutmeg and stuff. it actually looked pretty good. i can't tell if that was the end of the recipe or not...cuz they let us into the conference room before the segment was over. there were two ladies. one of them gave the talk and the other read the extracts. she was an actress i think so she read very dramatically.

i went to bed really early cuz i was soooo sleeeeeepy lol

today is much cooler. i made fruit salad in the morning à l'instar de brian only minus the honey. i will have to check if à l'instar de is the phrase i wanted to use. i think it is tho...anyhow the secret is to add some cereal like special k to it. makes it crunch!! yum! :D

then i FINALLY got my act together on the pool thing, which i am happy about! I went to Go Sport and bought a swimming cap (required) and goggles (because the swimming cap only cost half what i had expected it to). I was really scared to go. I dunno why I thought it would be so bad. It was actually really cool tho. The lockers are easy. You make up a code and close the door and then just use that code to open again. :D I was worried about that. They have really nice little changing rooms or at least nice in that they have doors lol and the showers are no big deal cuz it's just pool showers ne. I was worried about being a crummy swimmer but no one there really seemed like they were training for the olymics so it was cool. The one thing that is a bit alarming is that my swimming suit is a little looser in the water than one would have thought it would end up. I guess it's not so much alarming as annoying. Or maybe it is alarming. I can't tell how much you can see because i'm not the one coming down the other side of the lane lol. SO it goes. I did like three more laps than I thought I could/wanted to lol. My arms hurt! That rocks! XD This one guy was there and we were both catching our breath and he said in French, "what a stupid sport this is" lol XD i guess maybe his arms hurt too ;D

Well after this I am going to see if there are still spots left on the trip tomorrow. I will remember my camera this time! Promise!! :D If there aren't tho I get to go have free dinner! I guess that isn't really exciting as the gardens tho so i'm crossing my fingers there's room still.

Well I guess the only other news I have is that the colander I bought works and I can steam things! I was really excited about that :D

I'm still terrified about school but luckily i'm in a better general mood. If i'm not thinking about school i tend to be ne? so i say, "hmm maybe i can try to do 12 to 15 pages...that will be ok...probably" and then i go study japanese or something lol

ha ha haaaaaa

well i'm off

golden days for everybody!!

Rufus and some other nonrelated elements

2005-05-12T14:53:00.000+02:00

ah yes the concert was yesterday and let me tell you that you will just not believe it xav because omigosh...

so it was great and he spoke french and apparently was mildly food poisoned the night before from a bad sandwich. everything was great. seeing him with his band is really amazing cuz there are some songs that just wouldn't really work if it was just him. everyone sings! it's so cool!

and his guiatarist is really extremely good-looking

as IF Rufus isn't cute enough

so it ended and we were sad but of course there were encores.

they came back out and he sang An Old Whore's Diet and during the musical interlude something very bizarre happened. he took off his scarf...and we were like haha what a tease. then he started unbuttoning his shirt and we were like o wow what a tease and THEN his shirt was on the floor and we were like what is going on and he's working on his pants and then i notice that the guitarist is stripping and the drummer suddenly has no pants either and the girls aren't wearing very much. Then I'm really almost not sure what was going on. Rufus donned some fairy wings, sash that read "Miss Paris," and a princess crown and started waving a little wand. There were all some red high heels involved, all of which was brought out on a platter by a lady in a wig. The guiatarist put on a fake beard and started waving a plastic pirate daggar around. I dunno...it was really weird. Then the strobe light. We all wished for our cameras because how often do you see Rufus Wainwright in little more than a sparkly blue speedo?

For the next song they were witches who all melted at the end and then they put on some bath robes for the very end.

It was

crazy. ;D

But true. I don't have pictures but you have to believe me because there is just no other choice.

Other than that tho I am increasingly stressed out by the overall situation and acutely today because I just found out that I have to write FIFTEEN pages for my independent study. I might as well just quit school. I feel like I have forgotten how to do it. Just everything. I've proven myself time and time again to be incapable of writing five pages in ENGLISH so I dunno what the point is anymore.

There is a trip to Monet's gardens on Saturday that I suppose I should go on. It's twenty euros but it sounds pretty cool right? Monet's gardens...

Right now tho I'm going shopping I decided.

So that's that.

cliffhanger

2005-05-10T21:20:00.000+02:00

Sorry to leave you all with such a dismal last post. Or at least it is dismal in my memory. Before I tell you about the rest of my vacation I have to regale you all with the tale of my dinner adventure. I realize this is specifically contradicting the theme of my last entry, but this is just a funny story and I promise not to complain about how full I am ;p

I couldn't find anyone to eat with (one friend gone, one in bed, one eating already) so I went to this place not far from my house. I had JUST arrived, thrown my crud in my room, and gone back out because I didn't feel like cooking even if there was something to cook in my apt; therefore, I was starving lol. Anyhow so the place had couscous and I was psyched about that because if you can't enjoy couscous then what CAN you enjoy? There were two guys working the counter who seemed very nice and asked if I wanted couscous to which I answered yes and pointed to what I THOUGHT looked good and what I thought was something to put on the couscous. Apparently it wasn't for on couscous, in fact apparently it wasn't good either. I'm still not sure what it was. They were wary about letting me have it but I foolishly said, "yes yes fine good great" or whatever you know, overconfident or perhaps just absentmindedly hungry. I think it was tripe or something. They said they would switch it for me if I didn't like it which was nice of them. I was really prepared for a bowl of animal guts and chick peas... It wasn't hot enough so I took it back up and decided to have them just change it. They laughed at me and said it wasn't for kids lol. It was really nice of them to switch it for me free of charge like that. Most places would have just watched you choke it down. I was leaving and the one who wasn't ringing me up said, "so TWO plates right?" and the other said, "No no she was the entertainment" haha :D Anyhow it was pretty good couscous when I finally got down to it lol and quite reasonably priced.

flash back!!!

so I didn't go to Marseille right? Well two seconds after I wrote that blog and was in the middle talking to one of my collection of Brians the owner of that net joint came in and it was a good thing my computer had sort of stopped working cuz I had just logged off. Gloria had been letting me sneak around if you remember...

They all think he is creepy and with Mafia ties.

Apparently there is a Mafia in Aix and they bombed some bar last year and took it over.

I dunno lol.

Let us recall what happened for the rest of my stay:

I'm gonna stop pointing out where I talk about food because to be honest we cooked a lot and it involved lots of onion cutting, chicken/salmon marinating, potato mashing, broccoli steaming, grocery shopping, cheese smelling, bread slicing, and teabag steeping. (Steeping right?) ETC lol Stephanie and I had a LOT of fun cooking together. Everyone morning we would go out shopping at the open market for vegetables and maybe some fruit. The day we did the salmon the fish market was closed and we bought our other meat at the grocery store too. It always depends on what time and day it is for where you go shopping. They have this great bakery called Banette. There were other bakeries too tho, equally good. Also a really sweet veggie store called Jardaniers.

So the plan had been to go to the beach that next day but that isn't what happened. It ended up that everyone slept in pretty late after the party and the bus ride was two hours each way, not to mention 8 euros (each way!!!) so we decided to skip it.

Did I write about that all ready? If I did I will laugh. I honestly don't remember when I wrote last. lol

donc euhhhhh voila

no just kidding

uhmmm...I guess the time sort of melted together. I do remember not calling my mommy on mommy day cuz I didn't have a phone card ;_; but I called her twice before that and I'm calling her when I get home :D

Oh and last night (my last night) after the salmon we went to go see The Taste of Tea. You know I think I enjoyed it even more the second time? I was so excited to see it again. Stephanie and Brian both liked it too. We laughed so loud. I bet the whole theater thought we were totally obnoxious (or just American...I dunno which is worse...perhaps they are synonymous...is that how you spell that?)

This morning I took some pictures somewhat halfheartedly before leaving so I could show everyone a bit of Aix. I'm really not much of a picture person. I mean I like having them, but the taking them is a bit of a pain.

Hmm...oh I did enjoy first class TGV. :D My seat was much better this time. I had a nice big window, spacious chair with a button to recline a bit, a boring magazine. Then there was a bar down the hall where I ordered a truly overpriced bottle of orange juice. It was sort of funny because all the people in first class seemed very businessy or very rich. I suppose tho that that is usually the case. Because even if you HAVE the money for first class, wouldn't you rather save it? I only got it because the ticket cost the same as my second class on the way down. Oh oh and the other cool thing was that it was a double decker train and I was on top :D I guess the other thing that I noticed was that it was much quieter in first class, probably due to the complete lack of children as far as I could tell...

Tomorrow is Rufus (wow xav and dion I am jealous of your Killers concert lol) and apparently I have to change something on my Grinder-Man ticket. They gave it to me without a seating arrangement and then called my cell to tell me to come in and fix it the day before I was leaving for Aix RIGHT after I left the MCJP. 6_6 The website is just http://grinder-man.com For this of you taking Japanese you can see that they will be in Paris, which is where I am seeing them ne? I felt so happy that I could read the Japanese and use it to see where else they are going. Small pleasures! Baby steps! I love Japanese!

I have a hard time figuring out when to move on...in my studies I mean ne? Japanese...subject change! lol Because since there are no tests or anything it's hard to figure out if you really know the stuff. Then of course even if you know it one day you probably won't in three weeks or maybe even the next day. I do remember how to say alien tho :D uchuujin! kowakute, roketto de tsuita uchuujin! seikatsu ga suki dattara, hashirou! (alien! a scary alien that came in a rocket! run for your life! <---my very loose translation lol how did i do?) i love japanese but i still have a lot to learn...anyhow my point was that i wasn't sure if i should move on...but i realized that if i never move on i will be on chapter twenty forever so i had to continue. there is always room for review!!! i did the exercises! i am genki! rar!! lol And let's all remember how to conjugate the passive because I'm really excited about it! I read an article about learning Japanese that said it is like playing with legos. While the article oversimplified a bit I do sometimes think of this simile fondly because it can be sort of like that. You take your verb stems and the conjugations are so easy!

In theory anyhow...

lol

That reminds me of how it took me like seven tries to get my verb right the other day at dinner. That was the other thing! We spoke so much French in Aix! It was so cool! I also decided that I need to get out and do more things. How much that will actually be followed through in is questionable at least till my dad shows up, but I'd really like to see some more parks and one day I would like to rent a bike...

OH

lol

My poor poor swimming suit has gone unused thus far. You may recall I didn't end up at the beach. To swim in the pool tho I need a cap...grr grr grr. It just gets so complicated. Amy said she would go with me but I would like to go early in the morning. I think that swimming at seven am would be a good way to wake up. I dunno if Amy would think that though...x_x lol Also I dunno how long I would keep thinking that for. And you know they charge you to swim as well. The whole thing give you a rather good excuse to just scrap the swimming. But it would be so healthy!!!!!! grr!!! I think I should go and at least try it. Even if it means buying a swim cap. Maybe it will clear my mind and enrich my soul...

Or I could just get chlorine in my eye...

lol

Hope everyone is doing well. The last thing I will say is that I have purchased a metal colander collander? DRAINING THINGY!!! :D not to drain things with, but to steam veggies and it better work because I could so not afford one of those big things they had for steaming stuff. I figure when I get back to the states I can get a real steamer but for now I just hope this will work. I got all spoiled on steamed carrots, mushrooms, snow peas, broccoli...yum yum yum...

OH and dude Stephanie has some really hardcore Japanese music and she gave me all the artist names. I may compensate for not going to the anime convention by hitting the local chapter of Book-Off...but only lightly I promise lol It's educational! Listening practice!! Yes! Culture enrichment studies!!! or something!

Oh wow I just remembered I am supposed to be doing my history paper! lol (I call it a paper...it's not really a paper...won't take very long...just a page...on a metro station...well i'm writing about a metro station anyhow...)

ok

tiz all

see you all soon! can you believe it's almost half way through may? some of my friends are going home in less than three weeks!!! o_o

To Beach or not to Beach (or to beetch about the beach)

2005-05-07T21:30:00.000+02:00

Well I decided not to go to Marseille which was perfectly fine lol. I had a nice calm afternoon at the house and then Stephanie came home and we watched the Rurouni Kenshin OAVs which was super cool.

There was also a b-day party, white trash themed. They threatened to kick me into the street unless I dressed up so I ended up wearing these black capris with these weird pink shorts over it, plus these nasty look t-shirts (one with ties on the shoulder) and a hard rock café jacket. oh and also some boots...

We all looked like freaks. Also one thing I noticed was that once people are dressed like that...it makes them really look...trashy lol like we all looked horrible. I think maybe it's just the fact that partying isn't my thing... I ended up talking to a Chinese guy in French and then everyone went clubbing at 2 am. Stephanie was adament that I make sure to have fun at home and offered her supply of Japanese pop/rock piping through the headphones attached to her laptop. I had to pinky swear that I would be ok. Heh she was a bit drunk.

Man tho tonite at dinner tho people were trading drunk stories. I'm so glad I don't do crap like that!! :D Which is not to say that the stories aren't funny, cuz they are...but then you think wait this is REAL, not MADE UP and then you say hmmm glad I don't DRINK drink...

Speaking of tonite at dinner it was super. We tried out this potato pancake recipe I found in a Japanese cookbook and it was amazing and we steamed all sorts of vegetables and stuff. Only problem? I was SO NOT HUNGRY. V_V We snacked all afternoon and suddenly then we were eating dinner and I was like CRUD.

As for regional fare is concerned, today was a good day. I bought some navette cookies...which I really don't know anything about them. They are simple and wonderful. I also bought some spice bread which was all artisinal and made the real way and stuff like that...really truly wonderful and a bit pricy v_v so i have goodies

OH ha so we were supposed to go to the beach today (title of entry haha) and I wasn't going to pay the money and spend the day doing that if the weather was going to be cold like yesterday. (relative cold tho not really cold you see...) jenny was chewing me out tho and said i shouldn't have come if i didn't want to go to the beach and hang out with the people i was there to see. stephanie wasn't going to go either tho... anyhow it was super beau!!! lol so we both decided we WERE going to go and then it turned out to be 8 euros each way and take two hours (each way) and it was late cuz everyone slept in after the party...so we scrapped it and went shopping and stuff and cooked.

I'm so mad about the cooking and stuff. I cut up tons of things, mashed the potatoes, peeled them, slaved, and barely ate at all. Didn't really enjoy it. I'm going on a walk after this V_V

Grrr...so for eating we are not doing so hot tho...I'm only putting this in here cuz this is what I think about!!! I know I talk about food a lot. But if you think about it it is really hard to manage things! I'm not good at it yet. I buy stuff and then it goes bad cuz I don't know enough about food. One day you eat too much fatty stuff and the next day you eat too much sugary stuff!!! It's so hard to keep track of everything!!! I'm really psyched about vegetables tho. I wish I had a hardcore steamer like they do at their house. I will have to try to figure out a makeshift.

I was also thinking about this if I go to school in cali. I won't want to be a on mealplan! I'm so excited about learning to cook and grocery shop! Plus school food can be really not that great sometimes. I dunno...

*rambles about pointless things*

uhmmm so aix...let's see...jenny brought home ewe cheese and it was really good-- oh wait that's food...

i mean see? that is what life is like!!! grrrrrr and ok in the MIDDLE of the afternoon for no reason they made this delicious rice pudding-esque dessert and were like you HAVE to have some and i did but i can't have that AND ewe cheese within two hours of dinner! plus a banana milkshake an hour or so before that!!! today went poorly and i feel lousy about it...that is the last word on the subject i promise...i mean today's subject...

well i'm at another lab breaking rules. stealing net time...not quite the way to be but oh well. i make it sound more serious than it is...but it's true. I'm a net thief.

*sigh* wow that really WAS the day. i will go home after my walk and read or study or maybe watch a movie or Kenshin OK wait I don't know what I'm doing when I get home...lol there...

haha well if you made it this far you put up with all my borderline neurosis so congrats for that lol maybe i will go see if anyone is online... ...

Aix

2005-05-06T11:21:00.000+02:00

Well I really didn't have to get to the train station early at all...lol. I sat there for a pretty long time heh...but the ride was pretty nice. About three hours...then I took a short bus ride from the TGV station to town and Bryan picked me up.

I totally love their house! It has way more character than the residence lol...cuz the residence's character is not exciting or cute or anything like that. Here you go up the stairs and there is a landing with some couches, one of which I sleep on and then there are all the bedrooms. Everyone has really nice windows that open up onto courtyards and stuff. I guess their building used to be a treasure of the city or something. It's pretty spiffy.

The first night I was the only guest and their Columbian roommates cooked dinner. Was super groovy but we ate too late lol Then on Thursday Jenny and Rachel arrived. Jenny is sick, which in keeping with my paranoia about sick people is driving me absolutely nuts but there's not anything I can do about it so I just try not to think about it. It's like the kid who kept coughing in the train like he was gonna die...just gotta put your headphones on and try to sleep lol.

Stephanie is super cool. She has like ALL of rurouni kenshin on her computer so we're gonna eventually get around to watch some OAVs. She also has this SWEET kanji dictionary. It's really alarming that I don't have one and have never used one. Definitely something to invest in when I get back to the states.

The weather is pretty nice. They have this Alpen breeze or somethingtho lol so it's really not as hot as Paris. But definitely sunnier :D It's scary tho cuz the air is full of dust or pollen. We all sneeze...

I also saw American Pie for the first time. I dunno if that was a good thing or not lol. I'm just taking a closer look at our culture...that's all...our poor poor culture x_x lol Nah some of it was kinda funny...even tho...some of it was far too stupid...x_x

Today I guess we are going to Marseille. I'm not sure why... I guess because we "might as well" I don't like doing stuff cuz of that tho. It seems like a lousy reason to do something you wouldn't do otherwise. Probably it's just my continuing aversion to site-seeing.

huckabees

2005-05-03T15:44:00.000+02:00

yay i FINALLY saw it. you know i've been trying for three days straight...guess it's a good idea to look up the movie times before you go x_x i'm a dork

anyhow it was really really REALLY good and also better than Garden State...

which is not to say that Garden State was bad lol but out of the quirky existential comedies from last year i'd have to say that I *heart* Huckabees was better. I guess to qualify that...what can I say...why exactly did I enjoy it more...?? Uhm...well to be somewhat superficial maybe i enjoyed the cast a whole lot more...and maybe the sharper comedy was more to my taste...but that's not even really it. I guess what it really is is that I came out of Huckabees feeling good and I came out of Garden State feeling lonely and depressed lol.

I will definitely see it again sometime and the soundtrack WAS good lol

also i still think morning movies are super!! a nice way to start the day and get you out of the house right away (even if you come back later)

soooo let's see...i read for a bit at the MCJP which was nice...no pressure and i also reserved my ticket for the sutomu yamashita concert :D he's a really famous percussionist i guess...i'm psyched...

for the rest of the day the plan is basically laundry and packing...and probably some reading and studying...and a bit of cooking...altho i really don't want to have the same thing i had for breakfast for dinner...lol

i should also gather the info for my monument paper. i wonder if it really has to be a MONUMENT monument cuz i'd really like to write about the deepest metro station. apparently it takes 285 stairs to get down there but there is an elevator. i read that it's because of the mines or something to do with plaster of paris ne

gosh this makes me think what a bad reader i must be...i can't even remember what the deal was with the mines...

i think reading the book i am is sort of like taking a psychology class when you're going to an iatrist which i have also done...lol it just messes you up to learn about the theory when you're in the thick of it. i wonder why that is...

i feel fairly inadequate today now tho that is for sure

i think i MIGHT rate about a novice-high...

novice is a cooler word than beginner tho :D

i'm going to go try to keep occupied...i really don't want to be bored...last night i was...and i don't think it really helped my studies to force myself to go over stuff out of absolute boredom

technically i really SHOULD have enough stuff to do...i wonder what everyone is doing tonite...iiiii dunnoooo

this just in...

2005-05-03T00:53:00.000+02:00

I got accepted to UOP!!!! My school in cali will HAVE ME lol I'm thrilled!!!

It's going to be weird though, basically kinda like being in France only in English. I've never been west before o_o and i won't know anyone and i'll miss everyone. on the upside i won't need phone cards to talk to people LOL so that will be nice!!!

Really the best part about it is that I am a REAL LIVE JAPANESE MAJOR now :D

whew!!

so today i watched indiana jones and the last crusade dubbed in french on tv with emanuel an dann. was pretty kickin' lol and we had curry which was pretty good too

and i slept a lot too which i guess is why i'm still up

it is important to sleep lol and i couldn't really get own to it last night

sometimes i think my dreams confuse me lol

oh and reblochon is some hecka good cheese

yes...i think i just did say hecka

for people who prefer not to use the hockey sticks LOL

wow

*yawn*

so i'm using emanuel's comp

he went to watch a movie at Cindy's house

I don't really know cindy very well

but she's nice and has a french boyfriend

*jealous*

i only meet the ones with gfs

oh hey the eiffel tower is sparkling over there

i didn't even realize you could see it from here...

man i am really going to miss paris

boy tho i don't want to think about that yet lol i have so much time left!!

what else...well i think the anime convention is right exactly the days when my dad will be here so i probably won't go...which is ok cuz i'll have tons of other stuff to do...

leaving on wednesday for my trip

uhm...

i feel like i say the same stuff everyday

but if i say it here it is only a fraction of the times it goes through my head ne

well i have to check my e-mail cuz apparently one of my friends just sent me shots of his new tattoo...

....

frustration

2005-05-01T14:25:00.000+02:00

ok i know i shouldn't be complaining about summer weather or French pastry or street markets but I'm GOING to! so bear with me while i rant for like two seconds

so it has been very hot lately as i mentioned yesterday...it is really hot...like...my t-shirt is disgusting and the day isn't even half over...it's gross out...but last night i was trying to sleep and couldn't and then there was some party that went all night and they woke me up and i was so mad!!! and then i have some sort of tooth ache which makes no sense because i've been taking better care of my teeth than i have my whole life

speaking of which...dental floss is ridiculously expensive here...i spent 3.60 on a stupid little roll and it's not even DECENT!!! it BROKE last night! GRR V_V

ok so this morning i was like hmmm wake up read...go back to bed...i was too tired from freaking out about my teeth and not being able to sleep at four am...

so then i got up again...had lunch and was like oh i could go walking and grab a pastry and chill in a park or something...problem is it's new metro pass day which unfortunately also coincides with a summer weekend day which means Porte de Clignancourt (where i live ne) is a MOB SCENE cuz of the flea market. So first I stood for like a year in line for the ATM while this dude selling ice water yelled either kaloo kalii kaloo kalii or kalii kaloo kalii kaloo (i can't remember which) REPEATED like literally every two seconds!!!!! x_x and trying to walk down the sidewalk to a bakery was RIDICULOUS i'm so glad i don't LIVE on that streets because everyone and his brother is selling some kind of vegetable or egg or chicken or battery powered baby doll out on the sidewalk!!! and then there's the people with the strollers blocking everything and if they don't have a stroller they have a grocery bag cart thing so it's just impossible to go by. and they're all just out for a stroll you know...inspecting the potatos and whatnot

so i found a bakery and you know the pastry...it really wasn't a good idea...because when it's like 80 degrees out and you feel gross already...to stuff a big ball of sugar down your throat just makes you feel even more intensely disgusting. so i drowned it with a bottle of water...which in turn...makes your t-shirt nastier cuz you sweat it all out in about five seconds lol

and then finally the metro where i had to stand in another huge line to get the new month pass and then of course it's all gross on the quai and in the cars cuz there are people everywhere and it is just uber sticky lol

gosh tho it's not like i really need to be seeking out sugar. i run into enough by pure chance LOL

so there is the park next door but i'm wondering if after sitting in this plastic chair (sticky nasty sweaty) if i am really going to want to throw myself on the ground to study. my desk sounds EXCEEDINGLY more friendly. if i didn't have vegetable to eat up i would scrap the soup for tonite and go find a nice sandwich to eat or something but if i'm gonna leave on wednesday i really have to finish off the stuff in my fridge...or at least try my hardest...

grocery shopping is annoying for just one person V_V as is cooking...

and why is my tooth mad at me???

GOSH

everytime i get happy it lasts for like five seconds and then the whole world decides that it's been too long and i get a whole bunch of crud again.

i hate going to the park by myself anyhow v_v

grr

grr grr grr

i was SO supposed to be motivated and happy today!!! intead i am mad and worried and frustrated!!! not fair!!! and then i try to cheer myself up and it totally backfires!!! HATE!!!! x_x

ok that was more than two seconds...

SUPER JAPANESE

2005-04-30T22:18:00.000+02:00

oyakodon turned out MUCH better tonite :D i made the sauce from scratch this time, bonito flakes and all :D i felt like a grandma...cuz who makes soup stock from scratch ne? (i asked amy this and she said grandmas LOL "or really...cool...college students who...like Japanese stuff...") ;D

and wow Acts of Reading was much more interesting today. The last chapter I read was a bit over my head, being about neuroscience and all...the important part we learned was that it is better to work on kanji in the words they come in rather than just know the individual ones...which i guess i sort of knew already but now have attempted to understand the underlying neurological reason why...lol today tho it was more about how to set up a program. the author advocates about a hundred hours of class time just speaking and listening before introducing FIRST katakana and then hiragana and then starting kanji. he also made the good point that it really depends on what type of goals students have in mind. i guess back in the day before the business interest in japan grew it was mainly very "self-select" students who were self-motivated because they were actually interested in Japan and reading literature and stuff. I wonder if the anime/manga trend is helping steer more people into self-motivated areas like these rather than just adding Japanese as a help for your business career...

so last night was Kyôgen at the MCJP!!! how AWESOME!!! traditional Japanese comedy. Three short plays. It was sooooo good! The supertitles were more summaries of the story than translations, which for some reason once I saw them I went "oh yeah that's how it goes" but I dunno where I learned that that's how they do that. I was sort of hoping for translation so I could maybe pick out more of the Japanese. Also it was almost like studying cuz (another thing that triggered an "oh yeah" for no reason in memory) they spoke all in extra modest form which, for those who haven't been following, is what I am working on right now. Still tho I really didn't understand a whole lot. : / Reading the book that I am though realizes that it would be uncommon for me to understand any more than I did. I don't think I even have three hundred class hours! Japanese is a class IV language which means it takes WAY longer to learn than French or Spanish which is level I. it takes over a thousand hours to get what a French learner can get in 480 hours. This would be really easy to use as an excuse for laziness but I refuse lol I'm bringing my textbooks to the beach!!! oh...i'm digressing...the play...so the first story

the FIRST story: it was about a man with a melon patch and a thief who tried to steal them. eventually the man took the place of a scarecrow that he built in the field and ended up chasing the thief away.

the SECOND story: was an adaption of an act of another play. a man has guests coming for dinner and his wife makes him clean while she cooks. then he is starving and eats all the food while waiting for the guests, who are late, and the wife gets mad and chases him

the THIRD story: a wife and g-ma treat the husband like a slave because he is naïve. they write a list of things to do for him and he is doing laundry and stuff and loses a robe in the water. When his wife falls in trying to get it the grandma says he has to save her but he says hey it's not on the list!!! lol he saves her on the condition that they treat him with the respect the master of the house deserves. then the wife chases him and is mad...

these are pretty basic synopsi...ses??? si? i dunno lol

anyhow so one thing you will notice even from the summaries (hahaha...summaries :D) is that they all ended with people getting chased off the stage. it's funny and everyone yells lol

other things...there were three actors, all male. japanese theater is really expressive. they use specific voice techniques and their faces very well. also all the movements of their bodies are extremely specific and are really an art form in themselves. they stand a certain way and walk a certain way. it was so cool to see in real life! it's the type of thing you see on exotic culture tv shows lol but it was real Japanese theater RIGHT in front of me!!! how sweet :D

one thing i was wondering about was when people laughed. i know i caught myself laughing a couple times after reading the titles (hence not necessarily when the joke came). i know other people did this as well. then there was always a lot of laughter when the phsyical comedy was going on...but i wonder if maybe some of it was due to the sound effects. Japanese sound effects are pretty cool! For instance if I remember correctly, zuru zuru is the sound the saw made when the theif cut the bamboo fence. They have sound effects for EVERYTHING. You see them in manga all the time. Sound effects for mah jong tiles, rain, slicing vegetables lol but so my point was I wonder if the sound effects are their specifically for comedy or if they are their as just part of the play that seems funny to foreigners (of which many were present that evening) it wasn't a big deal tho cuz it was VERY funny. such good facial expressions too...in fact this smily ^_^ is usually associated with anime but i think it may go back even further to this traditional theater o_o because their eyes really do look like that o_o i was surprised!

on a final note about the play: the old man did a really awesome job playing the grandma! it was hilarious!!! he had this special walk that cracked everyone up! i wonder if his back hurt when he was done...in fact i wonder if all of their backs hurt when they were done...because the posture they take is kind of bent...it was weird to see them standing up all the way when they took their bows...

ok not final note...this is the final note...not only facial expressions were familiar. I recognized other things like the way the characters yelled or certain laughs they did too. It's cool. You feel like you know a little something about a culture when you can make connections like that! :D It's a good confidence boost and gives you endurance to continue your studies even tho kanji is scary!!! ^_^ *justice glimmer*

whoo in other news it is REALLY hot here lol also there was a scary drunk guy on the metro bugging amy. i told her to kick him lol but of course i was kidding. we just ignored him and i taught amy how to say something mean in japanese lol he thought he was very suave cuz he heard us speaking english and thought that if he could just mumble some english back at us he could pick us up!!! so handy that the train stops! you can switch cars XD

gosh tho it really is nice out. unfortunately there is a large population of gnats by the residence cuz of our nice hedge i think...a very nice hedge...but it attracts the bugs. also we have a tree that flowered but now is just sort of green...

hmmm well i should get going...dunno what i'm going to get up to tomorrow besides making miso soup. now that my dashi base is tasty it shouldn't be too hard tho :D of course i will study. unfortuntely the MCJP is closed ;_; i will only be able to go on Tuesday this week cuz i will be gone the rest of the time...and i only have four chapters left in my book! if i had ONE more day i could've finished it x_x i dunno if i'll get through the rest in one afternoon...

oh and the pool I FOUND IT! it's really close to my house...right across from the big huge flea market. it has been closed for a bit to empty it but i guess it opens up again on monday. maybe tho i will save the swimming for the mediterranean and wait till i get back and can go with amy to the pool. it's funny that the pool intimidates me but the japanese center doesn't lol

whoo! that was a pretty informational blog there...i promise that if we can find bonito flakes and the kelp and stuff that i will make tasty oyakodon for everyone when i get back! :D

oh which reminds me....does my grandma read this? i really want to learn to cook stuff this summer! lol i should ask her! i want to learn how to cut and use the right knife and stuff. lol my grandma is groovy and should be very helpful with things like this!! :D my food sometimes ends up tasty but it always looks a bit ragged. maybe i should ask my aunt too! man my family is cool XD

hey and shiitake mushrooms have NO calories!! (according to my easy japanese recipes cookbook) so it is a taste we should all acquire! (they really aren't that bad!!) XD mmm i bought a fresh bag...the texture is interesting but that is one of the fun parts about food ne...

the enlightening moment that accompanies this is that it is much better to obsess about cooking food and finding new types of food than how much of it you are eating! lol

ok it's too hot in here! gotta head out! i should've brought some water @_@ THIRSTY!!! lol

busy day etc

2005-04-29T12:13:00.000+02:00

ok well for some reason i couldn't post the other day...but now I can...therefore

wow that movie was so good!!! i want to watch it with xav...Crustacés et Coquillages...ZANY TO THE MAX lol it's about a family on vacation and this kid's parents think he is gay but really only his friend is and then his mom's lover shows up and sneaks around and then there is a plumber who comes and wow it gets so insane and at the end everyone sings and dances. It's like a romantic comedy x 5 cuz at the end there are ten happy people living in the same summer house all as couples lol o_o

needless to say you feel a bit lonely leaving the theater BY YOURSELF ;_; lol

so let's see...yesterday was sukiyaki day but we actually made oyakodon. the groceries were rather expensive but it will be food for a while and it's not everyday you go japanese grocery shopping...

so Amy came along and we did that. it was fun. unfortunately the cooking part was a bit messed up because we realized when we tasted it that we were definitely supposed to dilute the sauce. very unfortunate. BUT we learn from our mistakes. Instant dashi was a bad idea anyhow...I'm going to go back today and buy bonito flakes and kelp or whatever you need and ACTUALLY make it. Round two is tomorrow, I'll tell you how it goes.

We also rescued some kittens that were outside the residence. They are living in Amy's shower at the moment and we're trying to find a shelter for them.

OK and the absolute worst thing is that I got sick last night from the quiche i had for lunch. I don't think I've ever gotten that sick from something I ate. It wasn't unmanagable but gosh I was mad. Esp cuz at the time it was so tasty!!! Luckily the dinner didn't make us sick...just dehydrated. So we drank lots of water at Amy's house while she ripped a bunch of my cds and I recovered from lunch.

it seems like there was something else to mention but i'm not sure. the japanese grocery store was really cool. I have to put myself on a budget now tho to make up for the spree. x_x

OH

apparently i will hear from california soon; they want to send a letter to my house in o-town

ALSO my problems are solved because even if i don't get the japanese independent study i will be able to keep my financial aid because i am going to get an independent study partially based on my original lit class through micefa. yay!

anyhow i am off to the mcjp to learn to make real dashi and read, then to the grocery store to get ingredients, then to my house to have dinner and wash dishes, then to amy's to give her back her pot and THEN

OH

speaking of pots...

I LEARNED THE SECRET TO GOOD STICKY RICE :D

you have to let it soak for a half hour before you cook it!!! i made it last night to go with the oyakodon (which also turned out well besides the sauce problem so i'm excited to try again...) and it turned out sooooo good! i rock!!

i think i'm going to ask for a rice cooker for my b-day tho. that would be hardcore!!!

o cry!

play tonite too that's the only other thing ONLY lol

hahaha

XD <---morale

o you know i should probably explain oyakodon...

since we had the imperfect version yesterday and will have round 2 tomorrow

it is chicken cooked in a sauce with onion and then you pour egg over it and cook that and then it is SUPPOSED to get tasty but our sauce was crummy lol and it goes over a bowl of rice and is supposed to be delicious...lol

simiarly to katsudon ne? i think tho that it is cheaper to eat out!! import groceries really hurt my bank account! lol

x_x

it's ok i can budget i really can!!!

really!!!

lol

"reading words is automatic and difficult to inhibit"

2005-04-26T18:38:00.000+02:00

you know i'm not sure if that is the exact quote anymore cuz i read it a few hours ago, but it makes me want to call them up and see how exactly one WOULD inhibit someone from reading a word. cuz think about it...you never just SEE a word or just look at it. the meaning strikes you from the very first even if after that you admire the font or whatever. so i was reading Acts of Reading today...

lol

Gosh it feels so good to be studying!!! I haven't been in the zone for a really long time...like...HAHA SINCE SCHOOL STARTED. I study better when it's vacation :D Today the lady on NHK said "goran kudasai" so I did even tho it was baseball and I didn't really want to. She was just being SO polite that I HAD to watch it heh. They also had a story about the train accident. I guess 76 people are dead now. That is awful! I was proud of myself for understanding the kanji tho!! I'll have to look up the word later....Boy tho that book I'm reading is so interesting tho. It talks about all sorts of theories and experiments and things and then applies it to what the pedagogy should be. That is what I like!! It's so good when people try to figure out better ways to teach! If you teach me more efficiently I will be smarter!! XD

These two days I am making up for my missing of so many movies I want to see by seeing THREE. O_o I realize I can't make a habit of it but I really want to see them before they leave and none of these are American!!! :D I decided that I won't see anymore American or English movies (the obvious exception being STAR WARS cuz I will HAVE to see that ;D and maybe I "heart" huckabees cuz I missed it in the states...) you know if you go in the morning it's sometimes less than 5 euros :D which is ridiculous considering the student discount is usually 6.50 or higher :D

Last night I saw Léo...etc...I can't remember exactly the rest of the title and I dunno what they called it in English. The one with the white lion. ANIME :D and the VO which is so nice. Always the subs people!!! They roxxor!!! XD It was pretty good, but sort of alarming. Two little lions are born in the beginning the entire rest of the movie is spent killing EVERYONE off. I mean, seriously, just about. Lots of the death scenes were really bad too...at least the first few. Like you can't believe they're shooting the animal in the first place and you expect it to be sad but then it gets this crazy look on it's face and pops of the ground and falls really stupidly and you're like...but i thought that he was evil why is the shooting so fake? Luckily when certain other more important people die it is not sooooo lame. Altho...it was still odd lol

THIS MORNING I woke up early (which sadly yes 8 has become early but we're going to work on that...because now I study so the morning can be occupied like that) and went out to Bercy Village to see The Taste of Tea which is a REALLY GOOD Japanese movie. Really probably the best movie I've seen since Neverland. Very quirky tho. A very good way to spend the morning. It's just sort of a chunk of this family's existence I guess. Not really sure how to describe it. There is a awkward boy who likes Go and a little girl with a giant double of her who watches her when she is bored, a tendancy she seems to have inherited somehow from her uncle who is a sound mixer. The mom is a animator. There's a crazy rich mangaka and the dad is a hypnotist. The grandpa is really really strange lol but an animator as well. I would love to see it again. I'm sure I missed things. It was so awesome!! If it's playing where you are go forth and watch!!!! Or rent as I suppose the case may be...it's from last year...

Oh I was going to mention that I do think that Amy was indeed mistaken to the dismay of us all about the Hitchhiker's movie. It is just not coming out here. I checked yahoo cinéma and they don't recognize the french or the english title. I haven't seen any trailers for it here either or posters. There should be posters by now!! lol

Speaking of trailers...I saw the Ep III trailer at Léo yesterday!! How exciting! It looks awesome! I hope it will be *crosses fingers* For those of you who didn't know I was slightly disappointed with Ep II...I think that we're going to rent I and II before we go see III...according to Amy this is the plan. It opens a week after the Rufus concert which means a week after vacation is over!!

Yeah time is gonna fly. May will be half over by then!!! Star Wars is only a little over a week before the anime convention and I'm sure there will be stuff at the MCJP before then. And then if it's anime convention time it means my dad will be visiting and I will be switching apartments and wow it's all going to be OVER soon o_O lol

Just glad I'm studying again!!! :D

In an hour and a half I'm going to see (shockingly) the first French movie I'll have seen in theaters since I've been here. It's going to be really hard...reading French subs is one thing but trying to catch the words that just FLY out of these people's mouths is quite another!!! x_x I'll try hard. I heard this movie is great tho. I will let you know later...probably tomorrow!! XD

In other news it is RAINING. Temp is perfect. In fact earlier it wasn't raining and that was super glorious but now it is cloudy and wet...

So it goes I guess...

OH complaint!!! I bought some pocket pitas (they go really well with eggs or tuna) but holy cow they are NOT meant to be stuffing things in cuz they just fall apart!!! Unhappy! That was the whole point! Easy tasty sandwichs!! Point obliterated!!! *cry* lol

At the MCJP today I decided that my next reading assignment will be Keigo in Modern Japan. Hopefully this will be helpful or enlightening because that is what I've been studying!!! Honorifics! Tomorrow I have to copy some recipes that I think I can try because Thursday I have decided...is the day of SUKIYAKI :D ooh but i also have to go out to that evil library in the middle of nowhere and return those obnoxious books that are probably now overdue as well V_V grrrr

but wait!!! *flail* i need to end on a happy note!!!! X_O uhm uhm uhm *flail* I DUNNO!!! UHM...well i'm going to see the movie and then hopefully i will buy a phonecard cuz i forgot on the way here...maybe i will try to find one on the way to the movie and i will DEFINITELY get gummies! lol so there is your happy note! yummy gummy o_o

at last the guac

2005-04-25T14:51:00.000+02:00

it was SO good. We all ate too many nachos and of course Napoleon was good too cuz how could it not be? TELL ME THAT lol how could it not be?

This morning I read and studied. It looks like I'm going to be doing a quite a bit of that. lol It makes me feel lazy though even though I am accomplishing things. I don't feel active unless I've been out. So I dragged myself here. I think I'm going to see a movie this afternoon.

I also need to buy a phonecard.

You see this isn't terribly interesting is it?

What did I study? Well, pathetically, I am only on Chapter 20 (starting from 19 you see...) so that means "extra-modest expressions" and "humble expressions." In theory this is easy enough, you just remember some verbs that mean the same as some verbs you already know and learn how to modify other things and stuff but I think in PRACTICE it will be horrendous. And honorific speech and things like this are the worst kind of mistakes to make. It's ok to like mess up a WORD but when you may be being really impolite or something just by using the wrong verb form NOT CUZ YOU MEAN IT but because you just aren't used to having ten ways to say the same thing...oh cry.

I'm also working on more kanji. Contrary to most Japanese programs ours decided to give us LESS kanji to work on the further we got...so I feel like this will be a weakness if I get accepted to california and take the placement test. I have a plan though so hopefully I will be able to learn a lot.

It's still depressing to study alone. x_x Not only is there no one to ask questions to but there is no one to talk to or comiserate with when we forget everything. Maybe I spelled that wrong...

I decided that Thursday is going to be the day I go Japaneses grocery shopping and get sukiyaki supplies. :D I hope it turns out ok and isn't too horribly expensive!!! I need to check out some of the other grocery stores. ^_^

hmmm

since it is Monday i can't go to the MCJP. I can't believe it is three o'clock! I have to quit waking up at ten. It makes the day go by alarmingly fast. Although on the other hand it's not like I have a terrible amount of things to get up to. I have put off the swimming pool though. I thought about checking out the one near the lab but it seems silly to do that when there is one somewhere very near the residence. I need to ask Brett about it...her mom is visiting tho v_v

It's weird to think I have only about two months left. My guess is that will seem like a very long time...until like the last week. I'm so used to everything. It will seem weird to go back to the states, but I'm looking forward to American school lol and everybody will be fun, and my PUPPY!!!!!! lol

free lime and garden state

2005-04-24T13:40:00.000+02:00

emanuel gave it to me :D now i don't have to go buy one!

last night i did end up going to Garden State and they DID charge us an arm and a leg cuz it was saturday!!! V_V I wish i had the unlimited pass like some of my friends but you have to have a bank account and that seems like a lot of hoops to jump through. I don't want to putz with it. Plus I think if i had it i would probably just spend ALL my time at the movie theater lol

the movie was good. zack braff annoys me for some reason and the movie wasn't really sitting right in my head the whole time...if that makes sense...which it doesn't really. i mean it was good and the message was good...i think it was kind of constructed...which of course all movies are but it was constructed in such a way to make you think it wasn't? i think it was the idea that the comedy wasn't from jokes as such but from things you would find funny any day at any time and that theoretically you could come across. which in that it was good...that was amusing...i dunno...i guess i can't put my finger on it but something was bugging me the whole time. i did like it though, quirks and all i guess lol. wonderful but not amazing...that's what i decided

i wouldn't mind seeing it again either.

and you know i always forget to check who that guy is. he must be going for a best supporting lol cuz that's always where i find him...the guy who got back the necklace...let's find him...Peter Sarsgaard. Yeah he's groovy :D He's always an interesting character...

What else is going on...oh after the movie we had ice cream. DID I NEED ICECREAM? Decidedly not lol but then Emanuel and I walked all the way home from les halles so i think it'll be ok lol and it was good!! and i also blame it on the movie for inspiring me to live life as it comes to me even if it is ice cream that is coming lol

thus far sunday has been one of those lazy putter about sort of days. i read a couple chapters of my book with surprisingly little use of the dictionary altho it may be that i just wasn't tenacious enough to look EVERYTHING up. Sometimes I look up words I more than half sure on and sometimes not...depends on my mood. Of course if I am less than half sure I look it up...unless I am feeling REALLY lazy and it looks unimportant. i got my thief killed in fire emblem this morning. i'm trying to beat levels without killing people but what i realized is that it wouldn't really have been the end of the world because i really have a lot of people. lol now i only use the strong people tho so it would be a shame to let them die...the afternoon plan is to study some japanese after i get sick of the computer and then whip up the guac to take to amy's for napoleon.

hummmmmmmm

i guess you're supposed to just hang around when you're on break lol ;D

oops

2005-04-23T16:45:00.000+02:00

well i just had a blueberry muffin which a) defeats the purpose of packing dinner so i wouldn't have to buy food and b) defeats the purpose of brining movie cash and leaving my card at home...

FEELING SMART XD

not really...

it was a terribly worthwhile muffin tho does that help?

i dunno what the deal is with the babysitting interview...maybe she changed her mind...but she could've told me...i kinda planned my whole day around this...like i SKIPPED THE MCJP because by the time i was going to go i would've not had any time before i had to leave for the thing...

blah blah blah

i'd like to see Garden State...but there are more important movies to be seen...well that is my excuse...really tho i just don't want to go alllllll the way home to get more money...

maybe i could catch up with them later...

or maybe i should just study japanese

i was thinking it's going to be weird not to have classes next week...i will just be here jammin' around doing whatever...i mean i only have two now anyhow...but still...

i don't get this babysitting interview deal...i'm somewhat DISAPPOINTED in the lack of communcations here. i dunno why she didn't answer her phone...i left a message tho...but she still hasn't e-mailed me!!!

you can expect this from strange boys but not from potential employers!!! what the heck!!!

*chiyo flail*

yarg

2005-04-23T15:47:00.000+02:00

So the first cool news is that I have an interview for a babysitting job in about an hour. The problem though, is that she was supposed to e-mail me the address and hasn't yet. That may be due to the fact that she called me while I was sandwiched in the metro with about a hundred other people and may not have heard my e-mail address correctly. I detest giving important information like that out over the phone in ANY case, even moreso when it's noisy as all get out...

The other news is that I did indeed find a swimming suit. The first two-piece in my memory so that is interesting...it's adidas and sort of a cheerful red, navy, sky blue thing. Unfortunately now that I have a suit I don't have a pool. It is around somewhere but not where I thought it was and I dunno where else to look...so...lol. I'll have to ask Datif.

Maybe I should call that lady and see...perhaps she misheard me and hasn't actually got my e-mail...

Hum. Anyhow the job is to watch a four year old boy three hours most days a week which sounds nice :D

AND TOMORROW IS GUAC AND NAPOLEON

Well let's see last night I got home and had dinner with Dann which was good. He put about fifteen different spices in some scrambled eggs and I brought salad and hummus. Tonite I have been invited to see Garden State as a sort of good-bye for vacation to Emily and Tara who I haven't seen in eons anyhow...

OH something that made me really irate yesterday was that I travelled all the way out to this library in the middle of a grand nowhere...which I mean...it's Paris so I'm sure that's not really true but still...AND they were CLOSED for like three days for some reason. All I wanted to do was return the books I had borrowed and they DIDN'T HAVE A BOOKDROP apparently we really ARE ten years ahead of France in the states as Datif has suggested to me, but really I think bookdrops have been around much longer than that...

I also hate my hair LOL When it dries inside without the breeze it gets really just...obnoxious...like it dries in one set wave. Grr my hair is so lame.

Tiz all...news on things later if they even occur...

chiiiii spoilers for I, Robot

2005-04-22T13:27:00.000+02:00

So a fellow handed me coupons for Quick today. That may be an excuse to eat a couple of burgers in the upcoming weeks because they expire the 15th of May... You know though Quick isn't like Macdo. Their burgers are pretty thick lol

So here we go I'm gonna RANT are you READY? Do you have the patience to sit through this one? I'm sure some of you will agree with me!!! In fact I'm sure some of you are less lenient than me on the issue...but here goes: I saw I, Robot last night. Before you start criticizing my lack of resolution or whatever let me say first of all that it wasn't my fault. I was going to see why Brett wasn't in class yesterday and she wasn't at home so I knew she was probably at Clara's house and she was and they were watching the movie. Hence I missed the beginning so I hope that doesn't cloud my judgement. They explained everything. I watched from the part where SPOONER (ism? Like what kind of name is that? I'll save the complaining for later though...) is driving his car (MANUALLY FOR PETE'S SAKE O GOSH WHATEVER WILL THEY DO NEXT) and all the evil red robots jump on him and stuff. lol OK...the rule is always start with the good things before you sink in your poisonous fangs and shred it to pieces... Some of the action was good. I did rather enjoy watching armies of robots run amuck and trash the police station...etc. I also enjoyed the action movie dialogue such as *climax* "You SO have to die!!!" and "You shot at me with your eyes closed?" "Well it worked didn't it?!" (Yeah...she did hit the robot and not him...but still...heh) so yes redeeming qualities were present and I did not regret the experience on the whole. I can't still can't help feeling that if they were going to do Asimov they should've just DONE Asimov. I mean the robots are well and good and the three laws are cool but I miss the characters. I think The Caves of Steel would make a really great movie. I want to see Elijah Bailey!! You know Tom Hanks could've played him but maybe he's getting a bit old now. I don't remember how old Elijah was... Grrr it would've been so good!!! lol I don't like the silly "suggested by" business. You don't need a suggestion when you've got a movie right there!!! And Naked Sun would be really cool too. RAR RAR RAR RABBLE RABBLE

Today got off to a slow start because I woke up kinda late, well I woke up at 10:30 so I got 8 hours of sleep. Blah blah...I'm gonna go make a call on a babysitting job that is probably already taken and then buy a swim suit. Hopefully tonite I will go swimming but I dunno. Depends if it's open I guess...the pool I mean. It's smack next to my house so I might as well check it out. Supposedly it is cheap and o so healthy ne?

swimmingly

2005-04-21T15:22:00.000+02:00

Things are ok but I have a bunch of stuff I want to accomplish and I dunno when or where or how. I really need a swimming suit because A) going to the beach B) going to the pool. I need to get in better shape!!! V_V Seems like this endeavor will have to wait for tomorrow tho...cuz I need to CLEAN MY HOUSE tonite and take a shower and do some reading and buy some vegetables.

The play last night was really cool, but very different. Props were thrown everywhere, the stage was a mess. Shoes, rocks, sand, rolls, forks, all sorts of things. They either talked SUPER fast or PAINstakingly slow. It was a bit hard to follow in fact because even the titles went by pretty quickly at times. It was in Japanese and French and actually the male actor was French which I hadn't known before. I guess I have to admit I didn't really understand it...I mean even beyond the language thing.

This last remark makes me think of my remaining lit class. The film/lit class. Cuz our teacher always throws in references to Heidigger is that how you spell his name? And Eisenstein and expects us to know what she's saying. It is really a pain. Always talking about critics and stuff that is way over our heads. And about history and asking us questions and when we have an answer she just keeps talking anyhow and when we don't she acts frustrated. I dunno...it's really annoying. I wish I knew more about lit theory and how to read stuff. You can only see things you are taught to read for...did I already talk about that in here? I think all the time people just expect us to know how to "read" but really we don't, at least I don't.

So I went and checked out the Japanese grocery today because I decided bento sounded good. I ate and enjoyed green beans...I should find out what they do to them...o_o In fact I was going to go to the MCJP to read and look up some recipes but really I don't think I will have time...and then even if I eat up the rest of my food I think it will be so close to vacation that it would be silly to go grocery shopping anyhow. That's kinda frustrating. I'm going to have to specifically concentrate on my vacation and not spend the whole time looking forward to coming back to grocery shop.

SPEAKING of which I found a really kickin' little bio store right by the Chatêlet exit...which I HAVE to go to. I didn't look at the prices for their bread but they have bread and alllll sorts of things. Gotta check it out when I go grocery shopping.

I finally got my passport today too that was the other news. Not like it was difficult or anything. Took like five seconds. Took longer to get into the building than for them to give me my stuff. I don't like the picture though and it's on ALL my ID...the same geeky pic. x_x

I wasn't in a lousy mood but I kinda am now...thinking about how ignorant one is tends to do that. I hate when our teacher doesn't explain anything and then when you ask questions still doesn't explain anything. I guess I'm also not really looking forward to cleaning. I guess technically though I could do that all night so maybe I should go to the MCJP this afternoon...

gay pigeons

2005-04-20T15:10:00.000+02:00

did i spell that right? what a funny word. i dunno why but the pigeon it really did just look totally gay...like stereotypically of course. large pastel colored strolling through the flower bed...it was the first thing that came to mind...i dunno i just envisioned a portly fellow in a cream suit with an easter colored tie...and a pocket watch...but definitely also gay...i dunno...it wasn't just me tho...cuz once i brought it up my friends all agreed.

we had lunch today in the jardins de luxembourg. i had a Quick burger because i had to come straight from class. i found out i'm not going to england tho so i can afford it :D

SUNDAY we are having a Napoleon Dynamite party at Amy's with guacamole that I am in charge of and nachos and chicken :D SO EXCITED BECAUSE I LOVE THAT MOVIE AND GUACALMOLE AND THE IDEA OF THAT COMBINATION IS JUST THRILLING XD

haven't heard from california...it is making me nervous lol but i guess they are probably busy...

Tonite is the first Japanese play at the MCJP. I'm gonna dress up I guess altho it's too bad I don't have a better jacket to wear...>_< just my winter coat.

It turns out that while I am in Aix all the lunch club members will be in Nice so we are going to get together for at least a day. Maybe the day they do Monaco.

I just found out that my cousin in the military is going to EYGPY for three weeks in Sept and it sounds like a sweet deal. Lots of free time!!! Practically like a vacation! Sounds like a sweet deal but I wonder what her job is...

What else...so the church bells rang last night which I assume was for the new pope.

MMm and let's see...anything else...

Oh it's very green in the garden and you can smell the flowers even when your nose isn't stuck in them...that's nice. It is a little chilly today tho...I hope it warms up soon!!!

wow i am just random lol i should work on my FLOW lol my rhetoric score is ZERO lol

we're also going to see Hitchhiker's when it comes out next week annnnnd apparently we're having a Star Wars themed lunch club the week of Ep III

my friends are cool ;D

la grève

2005-04-19T20:42:00.000+02:00

well lots of my friends don't have classes because their school is closed. I guess the anthropology dept was closed and all the anthropology majors have been making a bit too big of a fuss so they shut down the whole school. kinda nice i guess but also a pain o_o

so dann made quesadillas and they were indeed great...we are DEFINITELY going to do that again sometime. i bought pears yesterday and they taste like candy :D we had those too and some leftover salad...

i read a couple more chapters of Acts of Reading today at the MCJP...that was all i could get myself to accomplish unfortunately...the happy kind of evaporated overnight i guess...i still have time to study tonite tho. right now i'm at datif's. it's cool cuz he is in a good mood :D

is it really legal to hunt stray cats in wisconsin now? everyone i talk to keeps relating this news to me because i am one of maybe two people from wisconsin they know and they need to find out if i know anyone who would actually go shoot a cat...

brett says if it were dogs no one would've said yes so she's mad about it

the coolest thing is that i used up ALL my red change today to buy a baguette for 70 cents :D no more puny little 2s and 1s!!! yes!!! i have a couple fives but those you can use in the vending machines downstairs so i save them up. AND to top it off the lady wasn't even mad at me for unloading my change! she was just like, "that's seventy?" and i was like, "yeah" and then she didn't even count it :D how nice!

and FRENCH BREAD IS THE BEST BREAD IN THE WORLD!!!

*cry*

I'll miss it when I get back.

You know I read a really good quote today...must've been in that book...but I can't remember it. Oh it was something about how people are taught to read in certain ways and if you aren't taught to see certain things you just won't see them. Maybe that is my trouble with literature.

Today I was toying with the idea of doubling in English, because to be a good translator or interpreter you have to have a handle on BOTH cultures. Wow tho reading this book is really making it seem virtually impossible. I barely feel literate in English when I started reading about what it actually takes. I should pay more attn. Altho i did hear the church bells ring at like 12 after six. i guess that must've been the new pope? cuz i did just notice that...

hmm i am not one of those bloggers talented enough to give you news commentary lol

wow datif made me some really tasty tea...

loo loo well i guess that's all...still haven't heard from cali or my advisor...RUBBISH lol

MOAT et. al.

2005-04-18T22:46:00.000+02:00

indeed. We have seen the moat. It was empty but nonetheless...it was a moat. I mean...unless there is a word that specifically means "empty moat."

So it was the Château de Vincennes by the Bois de Vincennes. Good stuff. :D They have a zoo there but I'm going to wait until later to go...if I do.

Gotta watch the cash...

CUZ I'm going to AIX!!!

Yes I finally decided. I may still be going to England too. But I'm for sure going to Aix...in fact I'm buying my ticket right after I finish writing this.

Until then I will miss Bryan...cuz he spells it with a y I learned...and Stephanie cuz they roxxor...

I went with them to the château today and also the mosque.

EVERYTHING is under construction. The garden at the mosque was totally ripped up and the towers of the château were coated in scaffolding.

Hmm but else. Oh well the other night we tried to rent Human Nature but instead got this weird French movie where in the year 2070 is Paris is a desert and this guy is there and meets his son who is a grandfather by then and they say they want to exist cuz the deal is his gf wants to have a baby but he doesn't really want kids. I didn't watch the whole thing...this premise was a little too...blah. lol I just wasn't into it lol. Belmondo was in it tho...of course he's kinda old now :D lol but it's funny cuz they had a pic in the movie of like the 60s model when he was slick and cool heh.

So anyhow yesterday Jenny went back and said YO You gave us the wrong flick and then we got the right one for free :D that was nice of them. Human Nature was a pretty cool movie. I would recommend it. The lives of a table manners obsessed scientist, a feral man, and a hairy lady coincide with entertaining results...

Uhmm oh dinner was 2.25 euros!!! I had a quichy thing with meat in it and half an order of fries!! ROCKIN' cuz at this café everything is 1.50 as far as the food goes...harcore!!

What else...oh we went to Quiz Night at "the frog and roastbeef" and i tasted Brian's aquarium which was realllly good. They supposedly have great nachos there so I might go back sometime. The quiz wasn't so great...kinda boring. Wow it was hard and we didn't win. Then the team name was supposed to be something that would embarrass the MC and ours was bad but an english team came up with a clever pun that was also bad so they won. My team is STILL bitter but I think the english team deserved it. (Don't tell them.) For the talent show Bryan sang a song and Jenny and Stephanie made out but a mechanical pig named Moo won...this was amusing, but yet again my team is bitter. We didn't win anything...lol.

That was actually before we watched Human Nature. Then I walked home at three in the morning in the rain cuz I didn't want to share a bed with three other people XD one of whom is coming down with a cold...

Tomorrow my plan is to get some errands done and then have lunch with Dann at noon. He has become skillful at preparing quesadillas which is something I can admire and so we will have salad and pears from my place and quesdillas from his... Then I'm gonna go to the MCJP and read/study/partake of more exciting japanese tv.

OH and so the play is on Wednesday...one of them...and then...OH...ha I just realized I have to be back here on the 29th...heh..for the other play!!! Yay!! And then my trip to aix is going to be the 3th or 4th through the 10th. Of May ne? Oyoy...i dunno i will have to book my ticket...

then i will just have to save a LOT of money :D

because all this vacationing will be expensive!!! (but certainly not as expensive as if it involved hostels o_o)

also bryan doesn't like bars EITHER :D it's nice to know that :D

hmmmm

wow i bet you can tell i'm in a good mood huh????!!!!!

for one thing...i had kinder country today (is that the reason? i don't think so!!! but it was still good!!!!) it's this candy with 5 grain crunchies in it and milk...kinder makes everyone happy!!! anyhow it was an example of a commercial educating the customer cuz i had always wondered what kinder "country" could be and just never picked up the box but then i saw the commercial and the kids were cute BUT THEY also announced to me the 5 grain crunchies which seemed to me to be a tasty thing...and so...i have them and it is!!!

also today a funny thing happened! i found greg in the métro!! well...actually he was holding the door for me as people sometimes do and when i looked up to thank him...it was him!!! i couldn't believe it...very surprising. we're gonna study japanese on friday i guess which sounds like a good plan :D i haven't seen him or heard from him for quite a while o_o

wellll i have to go do some other things and then catch the métro home!!! cuz i am SO not walking from here

!!!

castles and veggies

2005-04-16T22:28:00.000+02:00

so i am feeling a little better

nothing has been resolved but i've been having some fun

and eating some veggies

i made a salad (with lettuce and tomato and carrot and i got this crazy mustard dressing that wasn't really that great...or maybe the lettuce wasn't that great...i dunno...it wasn't that great tho i guess HA)

and tonite there was exquisite guacomole ;D

i'm currently appealing for independent studies in Japanese Education and Japanese Folklore to replace the lit class...cuz that i know i could do for sure.

i guess i just won some award back at home for having high gpa...i really don't want to mess that up : /

no news from cali yet

ALSO today there were chateaux...we went to the loire valley and it was super fun and i met some groovy friends of Jenny's from Aix-en-Provence (and california) who we're gonna visit in may at the end of vacation

so tonite i think we're supposedly watching a movie

and wow tho that guac was the best

we always eat well i think

salmon pizza for lunch in this place called amboise where many of the houses are built into rocky hills...really cool looking...wish i had a house like that

i wish i would have gotten a reply from my advisor...that would have been helpful...

wow and i guess i was really really depressed the other day

tomorrow is lunch club and it's at renee's...i guess i am bringing bread...so that's easy :D

and i think i am going to a bar with jenny et. al. for quiz night...it's funny that i will be going to that for the first time with them and not emily and emanuel but i think it will be an interesting time

other than that...looking forward to break...

oh i spoke FRENCH today

imagine that...

(yeah that's kinda how i feel...sad isn't it?)

or not

2005-04-14T21:49:00.000+02:00

ha so we're just gonna cook i guess...

so i can just sit here cuz i'm not really needed...

ugh

and so the anime festival IS actually in May

and i am going on the trip on saturday...altho i dunno why...i will probably hate it...just because it will be so touristy...

i dunno

jenny is going...so hopefully it will be cool

i guess i won't be keeping up with go class tho...between this saturday and vacation and other things...it just won't happen

so it goes

anyhow i guess i don't really have anything else to actually say

it's pretty boring to read depressing stuff anyhow...

i dunno what i'm gonna do at school tomorrow cuz i really don't have my OTHER thing done cuz i just don't know what to write about or what he wants or anything really...

this was such a bad idea...

i can't stop thinking how incredibly stupid this is

school wrecks everything

including your capacity to learn and your work ethic

a screw up

2005-04-14T21:33:00.000+02:00

well maybe i am going to England after all...

i dunno

i probably shouldn't do anything. i should probably just try not to fail my lit class because otherwise i will for sure

i think i really messed everything up

i don't even remember how

wish i wasn't so depressed

i dunno even where it came from cuz i had new friends even tho it's hard to hang out with new people and i had good food even tho i probably ate too much of it and i had been having a pretty good week...

oh well

so much for that

guess the bottom line is i really don't deserve to go on vacation

cuz unfortunately intending to get work done doesn't get it done

i think intended entirely too much and forgot to actually do it

i was better off as a freaking perfectionist with no life

at least in middle school i got my work done and got straight As with over 100%

now i'm just lazy and stupid

somehow i managed to not even start my paper yet

i've been writing it in lists of things to do ever since i started school

and i tried to research once in a while

everything i do here is so pointless tho

why do i even need a french minor? why am i here?

i think living abroad is an awesome thing but school is horrible

i dunno if it's just this program or what but according to me studying abroad is just stupid...it's too hard to try to integrate yourself into another country's education program that has been training their students since day one how to fit in.

the other thing is that i barely ever speak french. i read in french but i don't speak it except with my french friends which are few if i even see them

ack

more later we're going to go eat i guess...i dunno why...cuz i already did...but we're going...

un oiseau dans la bibliothEque

2005-04-13T23:42:00.000+02:00

yes there is supposed to be an accent there but we'll work with what we have for the moment...

so there WAS a bird in the library today, hopping down one of the lit aisles...very odd...

but cute

and so i made some more new friends last night...

how do you spell Macklin? Maclin? Maklen?

he was cool and they wrote an interesting homework assignment

we ate some tasty food and had some wine and chilled

was very nice...

saw some bollywood clips lol

very cool indeed.

i need to talk to anny about the trip cuz i think i will go

which reminds me that i will just get no sleep tonite because i have to go get my passport tomorrow finally AND uhm...crud what was the other thing...

oh! i have to go to MICEFA to sign up to go to the Loire Vally on saturday...it's only thirty five euros...

and i should take advantage...

*cry*

my poor budget needs to be redone...

i think i spend too much on groceries...i have to learn what are the good things to eat...

or something...

i dunno

i feel like everyone i know is cooler than me...and better at living in paris...

news of the day is

my classes are driving me insane

and are hard

AND are giving me a break at the end of NEXT WEEK

RED ALERT

WHO has not even STARTED that stupid evil paper yet? oh yes that would be me...i tried...these books are just too hard to find...tomorrow afternoon tho i will just live at the freaking library and take notes and read

that is the problem right there....they aren't books you can look at part of...they are normal books with chapters so i have no idea what is important and it's not like i have time (nor would i ever have time) to read the whole thing(s)

CRUD BUCKETS

not knowing what's important tho

that is a theme because i feel like that in all my classes

"all"

my whole three classes

this semester is so horribly messed up

i'm just glad that europe is so great and the people are cool and the food is ridiculous

i ate ethiopian today...did i spell that right? it's so sad....

but no the food! it was very intersting...sort of...different little piles of mush that you scoop with what seemed to me like a sour-dough tortilla...spongy...and kinda sour tasting...maybe that was just part of it i dunno...but it wasn't like regular bread...but there were split peas and chicken and hard boiled eggs and then other mushy things like other kinds of meat or something...and some salad....very interesting food

jenny is addicted...

oh oh oh

that is why today was expensive...cuz of ethiopian AND the fact that we went out for bento for lunch...we FOUND the place!!! and had bento...and it was DELICIOUS and i didn't explore the grocery store yet because i decided to leave with my friends and also because i cannot go buying things until i eat up all the food that has been sent to me....that is the rule...i am only allowed to buy perishable items which is soon to be a shame because i will run out of cereal...also i already broke the rule by buying rice cake things...but those are like really cool and remind me of being little

jenny has one of those uber awesome comforters that is super puffy

i like those...

her bed is nice

her APT is nice

and macklin (?) has an even BETTER apt...tiny has two floors really interesting and in a cute neighborhood

the best thing about meeting new people is finding new places and eating new food

annnnnnnd free couscous or mussels....

depends on what night you go i guess but there is some cafe that gives you free food if you buy beer which seems rather backwards to me but fine...i think i would make someone else drink my beer tho cuz i really don't like beer....

that's the problem with going out tho...you have to get something because you can't just loiter but if you buy juice or soda for like five euros you feel really really gipped and with good reason lol but cocktails are expensive and beer is gross and drinking is overrated so i dunno i'm gonna have to come up with a strategy lol cuz i don't mind GOING out but i don't really like spending money on things that i don't really want lol even if it's only juice or something...they should sell candy bars in bars or something...haha candy...bars...ha...but they should...then i could just go to a bar for dessert...even if they overcharged you and made you pay like three euros it would still be better than five euro juice...

we saw some very expensive designer stores today in our history class...

supposedly there WILL be a test at the end contrary to what i have previously been told by other people

this is unfortunate because it's REALLY impossible to tell what is important...

i hope there isn't a test for my lit class because that would be even more impossible...probably most impossible...he just goes on and on i dunno what they could even ask us...i would have trouble writing questions for a test like that because none of it really seems very important...at all...

ha...

kind of like allll my classes right now

tomorrow is film...i will pack a sandwich...because after class and everything i MUST MUST MUST (!!!) return to that infernal library where you can't check anything out and SIT THERE and RESEARCH until i fall over

which is basically what happened today i was REALLY tired...

which bites cuz technically i got enough sleep

oh and i get to talk to datif tomorrow about the OTHER paper that is actually due on FRIDAY and which i will cry about but not until six thirty at night so i will have to do it all after that...which is awful...and i will cry

cuz i want to see if he knows what the assignment is that i apparently didn't do well enough last time...

well this has gotten exceedingly long...i don't think i left anything thrilling out tho so that's it...

again with the jackets

2005-04-12T15:06:00.000+02:00

school is boring and i should've brought a sweatshirt.

LAST night tho I went to Jenny's house. I officially met her at MICEFA when I went to turn in my paperwork. We watched Hedwig and the Angry Inch which was uber cool. There were some other people including a kid's mom who made homemade burritos with tortillas from scratch. Was amazing. Unfortunately it was also after midnight but hey...

oh well

so I stayed up till like 4 and talked to Dann for a while. He likes it better with two Ns cuz it balances out his last name which also has four letters.

Then I went to bed and like I said school is boring and i should've brought a sweatshirt.

Xav has taken an interest in Eurovision...this is interesting. I haven't gotten the chance to hear everything yet...

Oh, I also got invited to go to Amsterdam, Berlin, and Prague over vacation. We'd be really slummin' cuz we're both broke. But not really cuz hostels are usually pretty nice...altho I wonder if you need the card. I dunno. I don't have a backpack either. Chris might let me use his...

I dunno if I will go. I would like to, but it's during one of the plays and the anime convention...but then I am in Europe so it seems like maybe I should take advantage of the fact and save the Japanese things for Japan...

Ho hum...

I'm in a lousy mood.

too sexy for my jacket

2005-04-11T13:24:00.000+02:00

man the weather is annoying me. last week and this morning i was stupid and went out without a coat and lived to regret it...had to go home and grab it and waste all that time. Today it wasn't too bad cuz i had to go home for lunch anyhow...the problem is that the hour I spent at my house was the hour that it warmed up so now it is almost too warm for even my sweatshirt and I'm carrying this big winter coat around...grr!!!

i guess i can go pick up my passport tomorrow so that is good...

i should wash some socks tonite...

this afternoon i am planning on accomplishing some things but i still hate thinking about the all work i have to do...wish I could just take my coat home and go study kanji in the park. Tomorrow I am allotting time for satellite NHK at the MCJP!!! :D

sooooooo the eurovision song contest video and audio clips are finally up so everyone should go watch them

http://eurovision.tv

how exciting! romania's song is the best of the one's i've heard so far...altho which is the one with the girl with the bow and arrow? brett actually liked that one BETTER than romania which i think is a bit much lol but it was good :D

there is a smartcar parked across the street http://www.thesmart.co.uk/index.html it's black and silver...what funny things they are. I wonder if you automatically die if you crash in one of those. Small cars are cute but they don't seem very safe o_o

and the one true victory of the day is that i found chocolate soja at MY grocery store for ONLY a euro fifty. this is much cheaper than amy has been buying it for and much closer than a bio store. altho i would still like to go to a bio store to see if they have better yogurt...

hmm...

my vocab is improving! cuz i've been reading so much...which is nice...i don't have to look up words like "soulagement" or "angoisse" anymore.

...

yeah so really there's not that much going on!! the week can be over now!! XD

lonely 2s

2005-04-10T17:38:00.000+02:00

yeah that's the grade i got on my first summary...which to be fair is cuz i wasn't sure what he was looking for...but that doesn't mean that my next one will be any better

the in class one is THIS friday

i was wrong

and the anime con is the end of THIS month

not may

i don't think...

uhm

blah

soooooo friday was long and crummy

but i saw sergey...that was nice. he is leaving on his internship soon

saturday was good. we had japanese but not bento because oddly enough the place was nonexistant? or something? the address they gave seemed to go to an apartment building...but we went to a different place. I had katsu don which is pork, onions, and egg fried in something tasty on a bowl of rice. brett had miso ramen but hated it so much she didn't eat it...O_O i thought it was fine but i was sooo full. i felt bad that we left it there...

then go class was so hard!! that game is crubazuby...simple rules but soooo complicated to actually play. there are so many spots i never know where to go...i guess you get better with experience!!! hopefully i will improve o_o the teacher guy was pretty nice...but they scold you if you make same mistake twice...but it's helpful. you feel so dumb you could NEVER possibly want to do it again. there was one sorta kno-it-all so i dunno why he went with the total beginners and then his dad was there and these two other people. first they went through the rules and then the teacher played all five of us at once. i lost horribly the first time and won the second time but i dunno how i managed to do that and probably it was because he helped me a few times...heh. and of course we are all playing on a four stone handicap cuz we are beginners...

the movie was soooo depressing...SO depressing....Ukigumo or Floating Cloud. It was good but so sad. This girl meets this dude during the war while they are stationed in indochina and he is supposed to get divorced for her and doesn't and they have this sort of tragic pathetic episodic thing for a while and she is miserable and leading a dead-end life and ends up going back to the guy who raped her and treated her like a prostitute for three years while she lived at his house and etc etc then she finally begs tomioka (the guy) to take her with him to his new job on an island cuz she can't live without him so he does and then she ends up getting sick and DYING and he realizes what he could've had but wasted and by this time his wife and other side girl are both dead too and i dunno...everyone died and/or was miserble...and i'm reading the book now!!! gosh so sad...

uhm lunch club was at my place today where we had soup that was too big for the pot so i have a HUGE mess to clean up...and the crepes were messy too...GOSH lots of cleaning

and then homework...

nothing too much going on this week

all my french friends are off doing other things seems like so i'm just kinda doing my work and reading and trying to find time to chill...i guess

saturday is go class and probably more japanese food...so i'm looking forward to next weekend

then next week i get to go see a play at the MCJP

altho i think i picked a seat too far forward...the supertitles might give me a neckache...x_x i should've known better

so it goes!! i'm sure it will be really cool!!

basically i just can't wait until next weekend...and i hope i can get my research going more...getting these books is such a stupid thing...i'm just frusterated with everything and my grades for my lit class are coming out lousy so far so i dunno what to do. i just want school to end...couple months and then things will be better. i hope my exams are early so i have lots of time to just chill and enjoy the beginning of summer.

stressed out and other things too

2005-04-07T16:49:00.000+02:00

This morning was chilly. I still didn't wear a coat though. Between being here and then if I move to California I will become a total wimp. You will see me at Christmas and laugh while I cry over the snow and the freezing.

Today I finished reading Learning to Bow FINALLY I had to take a bit of a break...because there was no time to go to the MCJP. Now I MAKE time. I also started Acts of Reading which is a book about reading in Japanese for natives and then about the experience for students of the language and strategies for teaching. It is very interesting...even tho I only got through the introduction. When I walked downstairs there was a calisthenics segment on the NHK tv...

Tonite I will study kanji and read in French. I also really need to collect some sources...quite a few actually. Meaning...well...all of them. For some reason I'm having a really hard time getting this project going...I think the libraries do not help. Tricky libraries... v_v Hmm so I will do that while I am here...look up the books I will try to reserve tomorrow and then gather some websites. I dunno. This paper is really scary.

I also need to eat. Class today was so boring but afterwords I got a banana. Dinner will be couscous and tuna and possibly carrot salad.

I can't wait for Saturday. If I can get through tomorrow everything will be great. BENTO!! I can't believe it.

ALSO to my EXTREME ECSTASY there is going to be a huge anime convention here in Paris at the end of May. Right before my daddy (HAPPY BIRTHDAY :D) is coming to visit!! For this reasn I will try to spare ALL unnecessary expensive EVEN MORE than I already am so I can go and have a good time. I have to go check out the website. It will be my FIRST CON EVER!!! :D

I have moved on in my métro reading to a book about the educational and therapeutic uses of Go which is interesting. It's written by a 9th dan (which i THINK its the highest level...altho I'm not sure...) professional player who went to various institutions with a simplified version of the game. He is Japanese but the book is translated into French. He talked about how even the little five year olds would stay calm and just play Go; they really got into it. I hope there will be little kids in the class I go to on Saturday. That would be so cool! I wonder if there will be mostly French or Japanese people... Probably I will be the only American...lol.

Hmmm...I'm trying to think of anything else interesting going on. I saw Dr Kinsey last night with Emily, Clara, Dann (he has informed me it includes two ns), and Miguel. I was just getting home but it didn't take much to get me out to a movie lol. It was SUPER cheap too!!! Only 4€90 because they are having this deal where if you buy a ticket you get a coupon. I have two more coupons because my friends both have this unlimited pass so they don't have to pay but they still get the discount things so they gave them to me. It's so easy to save money sometimes.

I realized I need to find a shirt to go with my pants from Express. I have a really cool sweater but here I think it is too warm to wear. Luckily I still have a couple weeks to consider this...

Well I have to go website hunting so that will be it...

hungry blue rain glasses

2005-04-06T17:28:00.000+02:00

but not necessarily in that order?

why is my font italic? i think this computer must be strannnnnnge

it looks like i'm talking to you out of a fuzzy dream edge (like on tv)

but actually your mind has fuzzy dream edges too...i forget how far your "mind's eye" can see...

hummmmm

so the réserve centrale is ACTUALLY a reserve...unfortunately i became enlightened a bit late in the game lol so i will have to go tell my prof here is a list of books i have ORDERED from the library so i can write my rought draft of the first two pages in my paper the night before it is due...*cry*

i bought tickets for japanese plays!! i'm excited

also i'm going to go class on saturday :D

AND there was this free mag with all the Japanese grocery stores listed and one of them serves BENTO o_o (Japanese box lunch) OHMYGOSH

ooh i like that better that OMIGOD lol it conveys the same WOW without the 13YEAROLDGIRL

hahaha

no no so i'm gonna go eat bento on saturday and then go study go and then go see a FREE movie because we love the MCJP

i want to eat pizza tonite...

and then i want to eat everything i have at home as fast as possible so i can go buy IMPORTED JAPANESE RICE!!! YES!!!

§§§§

looks like tadpoles :D

lol

§§§§

§ it's the paragraph sign...

my prof drew it on the board the other day

i have a summary to write for him...

i finished looking up all the words this afternoon but i was too tired so i took a small nap and then a shower but then i was too hungry lol

hmmm

lol i sense a little NOT WANTING TO DO FRENCH HOMEWORK: tooooo bad.

lol

i will have to finish when i get home!!!

and then look up some words in my novel

tomorrow i have to order library books annnnnnd read more

i'm reading a book about go in the subway...it's in French....

Go is the oldest boardgame IN THE WORLD. It's from probably China but got really popular in Japan and that's how it spread around. It would be cool to get good at that.

So I was reading my book but my stop was coming up and this guy was like, "You play Go?" only in French and so we talked about it for a while. Apparently he was a student where I had class today. He said I should learn Chinese as well as Japanese and Vietnamese or Korean too. I said ok LOL LOL LOL but of course I'm gonna SPECIALIZE...none of this sector crud. Then he said he studied like 3 or 4 or 5 or some amount of languages...sounded like near east i think...i don't remember...he said them really fast...but something like that. AND THEN he was like "well good luck" and KISSED MY HAND...that was scary...who goes around kissing girls' hands they meet in the subway??? x_x

ODD

so i have to leave but i hope everyone is having a good day ^_^