Sunday September 26, 12:00 a.m.
Right on the stroke of midnight...
Another day to make me forget any good I did to my body at the gym this week. I went over to the welcome party where a couple of the higher students took over the hosting duties. Very good. I had a pretty fine time with the food and I met a new teacher who comes from the ol' hometown. The new kids seem fine and as is usually the case with the newbies, they were fairly subdued. However, everyone enjoyed themselves during the party games and the singalong. The coordinator seems to feel that renditions of "Do, Re, Mi" and "Edelweiss" are mandatory customs at the school parties. However, I was able to grit my way through it.
Everyone pretty much broke up afterwards which was a bit atypical when compared to welcome parties of the past. However, I just went up to the Tea Room and enjoyed what had to have been the very first time to just have tea there and not hold a lesson. Not that the staff particularly paid too much mind about that.
About an hour later, I headed out to Nakano where I was met by Movie Buddy's girl. We went shopping for the food for the grill. As usual, I ended up buying too much meat. However, MB and I were dutiful enough to devour everything though it took about 3 hours. During that time, we had a very pleasant evening chatting and eating while MB's brazier burned away. Curry Master did another quick cancellation...she really has a problem with going out; a bit of an extreme homebody, she is.
Earlier this morning, I watched the first bit of the Star Wars documentary, "EMPIRE OF DREAMS" on the DVD. It was quite enlightening despite the fact that I'd had read most of the stuff that came on screen on the unauthorized biography of George Lucas called SKYWALKING. Got to see some of the alternate choices for the characters trying out for Han Solo and Luke Skywalker such as a post-Disney Kurt Russell and William Katt. I'll probably slog through some more of it tomorrow before I head out to the third and final chapter in the saga of my weekend culinary binge.
Just a place to deposit my thoughts on life here in the Kanto and about anything else that sticks to my walls.
Saturday, September 25, 2004
Friday, September 24, 2004
Friday September 24, 11:22 p.m.
Smellin' of smoke and sweat once more after what seems to be becoming a monthly ritual with the Beauty Pair and Mr. Eccentric at the local SHIDAX karaoke box. It was fun again but I tried to make sure that everyone got their equal share in the spotlight. However, I kinda worried that Mr. Eccentric was getting a little downbeat over my facility with both English and Japanese songs. However, one of the BP assured me that everything was OK. I did my tribute to 80s singles by singing 66% of the hits of STARSHIP. To be honest, I was rather shocked by one of the music mags which labeled "We Built This City" as the 20th-century's shlockiest song but then again reporters of music magazines have become so jaded and snobbish.
Earlier in the day, I had The Teacher for her first lesson in 2 weeks. She was much better after her bout with asthma last Friday. And I got a surprise in the form of her lending me the Classic Star Wars trilogy DVDs. So I get a sneak peek at them after all before I get my own copy from my brother this Xmas. Then, I saw SR at the Tea Room. Apparently, she got a bit of a shock herself when there was a message from the Coordinator for some reason. There has been no contact between SR and her old school since she graduated over 18 months ago and suddenly she gets a message out of the blue. We gradually theorized that the Coordinator wanted her to come into the school on Saturdays to be the prodigal mouthpiece for potential students. SR was also somewhat put off that the Coordinator left another message inviting her to come to her chorus group's recital since the Coordinator shouldn't really be using alumni phone numbers on non-professional business.
Well, I contacted a travel agent acquaintance of Party Hearty's in Osaka to see if I can get that air ticket for home. When I got back from karaoke, there was a fax with all of the details. Air Canada is traditionally not one of those airline companies which gets on the discount ticket lists but for a direct flight from Narita back home, I guess the extra money is worth it. Anyways, I gotta get the info faxed back to him.
Also, Paddy's been taking some of his precious time to help me out of that snag with NTT concerning my attempts to get ADSL. Hopefully, he'll be able to do since I've got less than a week before my contract with my current provider runs out.
I've got a welcome party at the school tomorrow despite the fact that I'm no longer teaching the kids there. I'm gonna come in late so the Coordinator no longer takes it for granted that I will be always be the host for these parties especially when I'm no longer a presence in the regular classes. Stiil, it'll be nice to see the kids again.
Then, I'm headed over to see Movie Buddy, his girlfriend and Curry Master for dinner at his place. The wedding party for his buddy may be off but MB still wants to have a bit of dinner together.
Smellin' of smoke and sweat once more after what seems to be becoming a monthly ritual with the Beauty Pair and Mr. Eccentric at the local SHIDAX karaoke box. It was fun again but I tried to make sure that everyone got their equal share in the spotlight. However, I kinda worried that Mr. Eccentric was getting a little downbeat over my facility with both English and Japanese songs. However, one of the BP assured me that everything was OK. I did my tribute to 80s singles by singing 66% of the hits of STARSHIP. To be honest, I was rather shocked by one of the music mags which labeled "We Built This City" as the 20th-century's shlockiest song but then again reporters of music magazines have become so jaded and snobbish.
Earlier in the day, I had The Teacher for her first lesson in 2 weeks. She was much better after her bout with asthma last Friday. And I got a surprise in the form of her lending me the Classic Star Wars trilogy DVDs. So I get a sneak peek at them after all before I get my own copy from my brother this Xmas. Then, I saw SR at the Tea Room. Apparently, she got a bit of a shock herself when there was a message from the Coordinator for some reason. There has been no contact between SR and her old school since she graduated over 18 months ago and suddenly she gets a message out of the blue. We gradually theorized that the Coordinator wanted her to come into the school on Saturdays to be the prodigal mouthpiece for potential students. SR was also somewhat put off that the Coordinator left another message inviting her to come to her chorus group's recital since the Coordinator shouldn't really be using alumni phone numbers on non-professional business.
Well, I contacted a travel agent acquaintance of Party Hearty's in Osaka to see if I can get that air ticket for home. When I got back from karaoke, there was a fax with all of the details. Air Canada is traditionally not one of those airline companies which gets on the discount ticket lists but for a direct flight from Narita back home, I guess the extra money is worth it. Anyways, I gotta get the info faxed back to him.
Also, Paddy's been taking some of his precious time to help me out of that snag with NTT concerning my attempts to get ADSL. Hopefully, he'll be able to do since I've got less than a week before my contract with my current provider runs out.
I've got a welcome party at the school tomorrow despite the fact that I'm no longer teaching the kids there. I'm gonna come in late so the Coordinator no longer takes it for granted that I will be always be the host for these parties especially when I'm no longer a presence in the regular classes. Stiil, it'll be nice to see the kids again.
Then, I'm headed over to see Movie Buddy, his girlfriend and Curry Master for dinner at his place. The wedding party for his buddy may be off but MB still wants to have a bit of dinner together.
Thursday, September 23, 2004
Thursday September 23, 8:16 p.m.
Well, I guess the weather gods have cooperated with the official coming of Fall. The temps were actually decent today with the high being a warm but not stifling 27 degrees. The good news is that the weathermen are saying that this is indeed the beginning of the end of the Hell that was Summer '04.
More good news in Japanese baseball. Looks like the strike for this weekend has been averted. The chairman of the Japanese Baseball Players' Association, Atsuya Furuta, has definitely been coming out as the hero in this struggle against the so-called greedy owners. It helps that he had always been pretty popular as the catcher of the Yakult Swallows since he comes across as the regular guy. It also helps that his wife is a popular freelance announcer on TV. His regular guy status was further enhanced by his wearing a suit during the negotiations. Some good touches included his most public refusal to shake hands with the other side since he felt that there was nothing to shake hands about, and the fact that he got rather teary-eyed when the first weekend strike had been announced. Over here, a manly man crying just adds to his appeal....something that I've never really cottoned to.
The other good news here in baseball is Ichiro's rampaging run to become the highest-scoring hitter in a season. If he's getting a lot of press over Stateside, you can only imagine the ink and bytes of data that are being spewed out in his honour over here. A week back, I didn't think even he could make it but after hearing that he got 9 hits in 2 games, maybe it's time to change that opinion.
Had my class with Jazz Buddy. She was pretty good today. I won't be seeing her for the next couple of weeks since she's off with a friend to Taiwan for a vacation. I met The Carolinan later on in the day for her second lesson. She's a definite straight-shooter alright...it was only her second time in the Tea Room and she made her order to the waitress without opening the menu. She's not like the OL in that she's absolutely ravenous about using and learning English. She's somewhat more subdued so it ended up that I did more of the talking. Her basics in grammar seem to be OK but she had some rather surprising difficulties with preps so it's still going to be a bit before I finally nail her down on a teaching rhythm.
Movie Buddy left a message on the ol' machine. Looks like he'll come out to the welcome party now that the other party has been cancelled but he asked me if I'm still game for a BBQ at his place anyways.
It'll be another 2-lesson day tomorrow with The Teacher and SR. Then I've got my second round of karaoke with the Beauty Pair and Mr. Eccentric.
Well, I guess the weather gods have cooperated with the official coming of Fall. The temps were actually decent today with the high being a warm but not stifling 27 degrees. The good news is that the weathermen are saying that this is indeed the beginning of the end of the Hell that was Summer '04.
More good news in Japanese baseball. Looks like the strike for this weekend has been averted. The chairman of the Japanese Baseball Players' Association, Atsuya Furuta, has definitely been coming out as the hero in this struggle against the so-called greedy owners. It helps that he had always been pretty popular as the catcher of the Yakult Swallows since he comes across as the regular guy. It also helps that his wife is a popular freelance announcer on TV. His regular guy status was further enhanced by his wearing a suit during the negotiations. Some good touches included his most public refusal to shake hands with the other side since he felt that there was nothing to shake hands about, and the fact that he got rather teary-eyed when the first weekend strike had been announced. Over here, a manly man crying just adds to his appeal....something that I've never really cottoned to.
The other good news here in baseball is Ichiro's rampaging run to become the highest-scoring hitter in a season. If he's getting a lot of press over Stateside, you can only imagine the ink and bytes of data that are being spewed out in his honour over here. A week back, I didn't think even he could make it but after hearing that he got 9 hits in 2 games, maybe it's time to change that opinion.
Had my class with Jazz Buddy. She was pretty good today. I won't be seeing her for the next couple of weeks since she's off with a friend to Taiwan for a vacation. I met The Carolinan later on in the day for her second lesson. She's a definite straight-shooter alright...it was only her second time in the Tea Room and she made her order to the waitress without opening the menu. She's not like the OL in that she's absolutely ravenous about using and learning English. She's somewhat more subdued so it ended up that I did more of the talking. Her basics in grammar seem to be OK but she had some rather surprising difficulties with preps so it's still going to be a bit before I finally nail her down on a teaching rhythm.
Movie Buddy left a message on the ol' machine. Looks like he'll come out to the welcome party now that the other party has been cancelled but he asked me if I'm still game for a BBQ at his place anyways.
It'll be another 2-lesson day tomorrow with The Teacher and SR. Then I've got my second round of karaoke with the Beauty Pair and Mr. Eccentric.
Wednesday, September 22, 2004
Wednesday September 22, 11:15 p.m.
Summer is determined to be dragged away kicking and screaming before Fall gets here tomorrow. It was another hot one in the Big Sushi. I had another go at the gym this morning. Just went through the routine as shown by my trainer the day before. Did two rounds of each exercise which were bracketed by 10 minutes on the bike and 15 minutes on the treadmill. I got everything done within an hour which kinda felt a bit hollow, a bit too fast. So, the next time I go there I'll go farther and faster on the treadmill and maybe I'll even sneak in one of Paddy's more advanced exercises to bulk things up a bit. I did lose another several grams, though.
However, all that effort probably went down the drain since I met the oil company guys tonight at Shimbashi. They took me to a new Italian buffet place which reminded me, if not fully equaled, the late lamented Farm Grill. Filled myself up with pasta and other goodies from the shelves. It's been six months since our last encounter so there was a bit to catch up on as well as the usual juicy gossip of who wined and dined who.
In between that get-together and the earlier workout, it seems that my life is now solidly spent in cafes. Except for another trip to the new Maruzen to pick up a couple of texts, I went to see The Hawaiian at our usual cafe in her neighbourhood and then I spent over an hour in another cafe in Shiodome before meeting up with the oil guys and after the dinner, we stopped at yet one more cafe before calling it a night.
I told The Hawaiian about the cancellation of the party on Saturday. She kinda went into shock for a couple of minutes because I also told her the reason behind it...the bride's mother passed away suddenly. I gather that I should have been a bit more gentle about it since The Hawaiian's father had also passed away not too long ago but I found out that her family and the bride's family were fairly close. I'm just surprised that Movie Buddy didn't bother calling her about the news. I sent him an e-mail telling him what happened today so that perhaps I could get some sort of response from him.
On the way home tonight on the subway, I was standing over one rather smelly guy who obviously was trying to raise his own dandruff farm. He ambled off the train looking like a slovenly version of Charles Bronson.
Well, I gotta get ready for the lessons for Jazz Buddy and then the Carolinan tomorrow despite the fact that it's a national holiday. But I'll be glad for the income since I've managed to fritter away a good bit of money since last week.
Summer is determined to be dragged away kicking and screaming before Fall gets here tomorrow. It was another hot one in the Big Sushi. I had another go at the gym this morning. Just went through the routine as shown by my trainer the day before. Did two rounds of each exercise which were bracketed by 10 minutes on the bike and 15 minutes on the treadmill. I got everything done within an hour which kinda felt a bit hollow, a bit too fast. So, the next time I go there I'll go farther and faster on the treadmill and maybe I'll even sneak in one of Paddy's more advanced exercises to bulk things up a bit. I did lose another several grams, though.
However, all that effort probably went down the drain since I met the oil company guys tonight at Shimbashi. They took me to a new Italian buffet place which reminded me, if not fully equaled, the late lamented Farm Grill. Filled myself up with pasta and other goodies from the shelves. It's been six months since our last encounter so there was a bit to catch up on as well as the usual juicy gossip of who wined and dined who.
In between that get-together and the earlier workout, it seems that my life is now solidly spent in cafes. Except for another trip to the new Maruzen to pick up a couple of texts, I went to see The Hawaiian at our usual cafe in her neighbourhood and then I spent over an hour in another cafe in Shiodome before meeting up with the oil guys and after the dinner, we stopped at yet one more cafe before calling it a night.
I told The Hawaiian about the cancellation of the party on Saturday. She kinda went into shock for a couple of minutes because I also told her the reason behind it...the bride's mother passed away suddenly. I gather that I should have been a bit more gentle about it since The Hawaiian's father had also passed away not too long ago but I found out that her family and the bride's family were fairly close. I'm just surprised that Movie Buddy didn't bother calling her about the news. I sent him an e-mail telling him what happened today so that perhaps I could get some sort of response from him.
On the way home tonight on the subway, I was standing over one rather smelly guy who obviously was trying to raise his own dandruff farm. He ambled off the train looking like a slovenly version of Charles Bronson.
Well, I gotta get ready for the lessons for Jazz Buddy and then the Carolinan tomorrow despite the fact that it's a national holiday. But I'll be glad for the income since I've managed to fritter away a good bit of money since last week.
Tuesday, September 21, 2004
Tuesday September 21, 11:28 p.m.
It was another hot one today so we did break that record. The Weather Office says that by the end of the 21st-century, Japan should easily have double the plus 30-degree days that we have now. Oh, joy! Mind you, I don't think I'll be around quite that long unless there are some truly mindblowing advances in medicine and cybernetics.
My first session with the Tsudanuma gang in 2 months was unsurprisingly a big long chat about everyone's summer events. However, we did get into politics which kinda tuned out a couple of the ladies. Well, live and learn. They got quite a kick when I told them about my new life as a fitness nut.
And so later on in the afternoon, I made my way to the sports club to begin my long odyssey to a better me. Well, I quickly found out that I have to use a lot of lockers: the first one to store my valuables, another to store my sneakers which I can't use on the gym floor and yet one more in the men's changeroom to store the rest of my stuff and the keys for the first two lockers. I then rented a couple of shoes as if I were at a bowling alley and then my first steps onto the gym floor.
The staff there are very happy happy, joy joy. My trainer showed me the ropes by first having me checked out for blood pressure and weight. My weight was a bit of a shocker...I underestimated it by a good 10 kg or 20 lb. Yikes! Well, there's nowhere to go but down.
Then, my guy got me started on the process. First he had me do 10 minutes on the bike to check my heart rate. I skewed right in the middle; I wasn't breathing too hard but I did work up a good sweat which is a good start. Next, he had me do stretches to a video with a very well endowed young lady. And then he gave me the tour and test run of some of the machines. As a teacher, I'd give him full marks on his presentation: he was very patient and explained things very clearly in Japanese in a way that I could understand without having to guess too much at the details. Finally, we gave the treadmill a test run.
Finally, he wrote me up the programme which is a whole lot lighter than the one Paddy wrote up for me on Saturday. But then again, seeing that I am a beginner it's probably better for me to start out slowly. I did one more round by myself before calling it a day. The entire process took about an hour and 15 minutes. Not too bad and I even lost a good portion of a kilogram. I'll be giving things another go tomorrow morning before I see The Hawaiian. I'll probably hit the treadmill for a longer session. Kinda too bad that I faltered and did hit the burger shop after the first session though.
I got to the juku a full 90 minutes earlier than usual which surprised the boss. She also kinda gave me a surprise when she requested me to call up a cancer institute in Boston for her hubby's friend. I said that I would try my best although I wasn't too confident since all of the information about the friend was pretty much third-hand. However, I missed a bullet when the boss agreed that it would be a bit of a challenge so she had the friend call overseas instead.
They said that one has a lot more energy after a good workout. All I felt was some dull aches and pains. However, I did have a good couple of classes. The Beauty Pair just confirmed our second karaoke night for Friday. My juku boss once again took things way off the tangent once she heard my time at the gym. And in fact, the last 5 minutes had her jabbering in Japanese about advice concerning my dietary needs. I've been getting all sorts of diverging info on that topic that I just wonder if any of it really means anything.
Meanwhile at home, I'm facing perhaps a couple of weeks of scaffolding all around my balcony due to some work that's needed on the veranda side wall. I'm not too put out since the last time any outfit was doing that, Clinton had barely started his second term as President.
I got word from Movie Buddy that the big party this Saturday has been called off due to a tragedy in the family of one of the happy pair. Really too bad about that. Also, I got a message from the folks at my potentially new Internet provider...in pretty voluminous Japanese. I could glean barely that there will be a snag due to something concerning my NTT line. I forwarded the calligraphy over to Paddy who should get back within the next couple of days. I hope he can work things out. Otherwise, I may have to have hat in hand for my old provider.
According to the local news last night, there was an incident at a junior high school which ought to belong to one of those newspaper columns devoted to the bizarre and truly boneheaded. Apparently, a principal who just wanted to improve relationships between him and his students went up to a girl and felt that she looked better with shorter hair. Therefore as a "favour" to the young lass, he promptly produced a pair of scissors and snipped some locks off much to the shock of the girl. The girl immediately ran to her homeroom teacher who promptly went over his boss' head (which was pretty amazing in itself) and reported him to the Board of Education. I wonder if the principal (if he still has the title) had snipped a couple of nerves before he went on his tonsorial rampage.
Well, just gotta make the student reports and then head off to bed.
It was another hot one today so we did break that record. The Weather Office says that by the end of the 21st-century, Japan should easily have double the plus 30-degree days that we have now. Oh, joy! Mind you, I don't think I'll be around quite that long unless there are some truly mindblowing advances in medicine and cybernetics.
My first session with the Tsudanuma gang in 2 months was unsurprisingly a big long chat about everyone's summer events. However, we did get into politics which kinda tuned out a couple of the ladies. Well, live and learn. They got quite a kick when I told them about my new life as a fitness nut.
And so later on in the afternoon, I made my way to the sports club to begin my long odyssey to a better me. Well, I quickly found out that I have to use a lot of lockers: the first one to store my valuables, another to store my sneakers which I can't use on the gym floor and yet one more in the men's changeroom to store the rest of my stuff and the keys for the first two lockers. I then rented a couple of shoes as if I were at a bowling alley and then my first steps onto the gym floor.
The staff there are very happy happy, joy joy. My trainer showed me the ropes by first having me checked out for blood pressure and weight. My weight was a bit of a shocker...I underestimated it by a good 10 kg or 20 lb. Yikes! Well, there's nowhere to go but down.
Then, my guy got me started on the process. First he had me do 10 minutes on the bike to check my heart rate. I skewed right in the middle; I wasn't breathing too hard but I did work up a good sweat which is a good start. Next, he had me do stretches to a video with a very well endowed young lady. And then he gave me the tour and test run of some of the machines. As a teacher, I'd give him full marks on his presentation: he was very patient and explained things very clearly in Japanese in a way that I could understand without having to guess too much at the details. Finally, we gave the treadmill a test run.
Finally, he wrote me up the programme which is a whole lot lighter than the one Paddy wrote up for me on Saturday. But then again, seeing that I am a beginner it's probably better for me to start out slowly. I did one more round by myself before calling it a day. The entire process took about an hour and 15 minutes. Not too bad and I even lost a good portion of a kilogram. I'll be giving things another go tomorrow morning before I see The Hawaiian. I'll probably hit the treadmill for a longer session. Kinda too bad that I faltered and did hit the burger shop after the first session though.
I got to the juku a full 90 minutes earlier than usual which surprised the boss. She also kinda gave me a surprise when she requested me to call up a cancer institute in Boston for her hubby's friend. I said that I would try my best although I wasn't too confident since all of the information about the friend was pretty much third-hand. However, I missed a bullet when the boss agreed that it would be a bit of a challenge so she had the friend call overseas instead.
They said that one has a lot more energy after a good workout. All I felt was some dull aches and pains. However, I did have a good couple of classes. The Beauty Pair just confirmed our second karaoke night for Friday. My juku boss once again took things way off the tangent once she heard my time at the gym. And in fact, the last 5 minutes had her jabbering in Japanese about advice concerning my dietary needs. I've been getting all sorts of diverging info on that topic that I just wonder if any of it really means anything.
Meanwhile at home, I'm facing perhaps a couple of weeks of scaffolding all around my balcony due to some work that's needed on the veranda side wall. I'm not too put out since the last time any outfit was doing that, Clinton had barely started his second term as President.
I got word from Movie Buddy that the big party this Saturday has been called off due to a tragedy in the family of one of the happy pair. Really too bad about that. Also, I got a message from the folks at my potentially new Internet provider...in pretty voluminous Japanese. I could glean barely that there will be a snag due to something concerning my NTT line. I forwarded the calligraphy over to Paddy who should get back within the next couple of days. I hope he can work things out. Otherwise, I may have to have hat in hand for my old provider.
According to the local news last night, there was an incident at a junior high school which ought to belong to one of those newspaper columns devoted to the bizarre and truly boneheaded. Apparently, a principal who just wanted to improve relationships between him and his students went up to a girl and felt that she looked better with shorter hair. Therefore as a "favour" to the young lass, he promptly produced a pair of scissors and snipped some locks off much to the shock of the girl. The girl immediately ran to her homeroom teacher who promptly went over his boss' head (which was pretty amazing in itself) and reported him to the Board of Education. I wonder if the principal (if he still has the title) had snipped a couple of nerves before he went on his tonsorial rampage.
Well, just gotta make the student reports and then head off to bed.
Monday, September 20, 2004
Monday September 20, 9:27 p.m.
Another hot day today. We'll be breaking the record for most number of days over 30 C in a single summer tomorrow. Not a record that I'd like to see broken next year.
Took advantage of a deal at the neighbourhood kaiten sushi place and had my usual plates of sushi with 20% off and a free drink. As expected, the place was hopping.
Then I went down to Daiei and picked up a really cheap pair of gym shorts for the ridiculous price of 695 yen. After paying all that money for joining the club, it's about time that I got a deal there as well.
I ended up planning most of this week's lessons. I'm all set for the juku, the Tsudanuma group for their first session in 2 months, and even for the Carolinan. I also got that pronunciation tape done for the Hawaiian. As I was doing this planning, I listened to one of my CDs during that spending binge last week. It was Jane Monheit's latest. She's appparently tied with Diana Krall as jazz chanteuse of the moment, and it shows. Very nice set of pipes and a heartwarming cover of "Over The Rainbow". Then I listened to the big band swing of Count Basie.
I was wondering whether to make Spaghetti Bolognese or Pork Kimchi for dinner tonight. I ended doing neither. I just bought some cuts of roast chicken with some supermarket spaghetti.
E-mail and phone were keeping me busy tonight. I got a call from Movie Buddy. It'd been about 2 weeks since I last spoke with him. Looks like he has to make his own pilgrimage down to Immigration tomorrow so I told him the ropes. Hopefully, he'll get through with his bureaucracy like I did. He also told me about the machinations at the ol' school. Apparently, there was something close to revolt last week when the new 3-class system started. The top class evidently had 11 students crammed into the room. Several angry complaints later, the coordinator will be going back to a 4-class system. Smart belated move, sister.
And then a couple of hours later, Arwen called me up. She sounded like she never left. However, she is still wondering about whether to accept that offer from my chiseling manager and take a job at the school. I told her what I thought of that in no uncertain terms. Anyways, she'll be joining us for that rib outing next Sunday.
On the e-mail front, my brother told me that as a birthday/Xmas present, he's gotten me the DVD set of the Classic Star Wars trilogy. Good on him. I'll be looking forward to seeing that...in January 2005 since my parents don't have a DVD player. Also, one of the oil boys contacted me to confirm the Wednesday night dinner. The Wild Thing has followed my lead to give weekly reports of his time in his new land. The MBA programme there is already grinding sweat and blood from him.
Well, I figure it's time to clean up a bit, have a cup of coffee and then start the ironing before I retire. Big long day coming up.
Another hot day today. We'll be breaking the record for most number of days over 30 C in a single summer tomorrow. Not a record that I'd like to see broken next year.
Took advantage of a deal at the neighbourhood kaiten sushi place and had my usual plates of sushi with 20% off and a free drink. As expected, the place was hopping.
Then I went down to Daiei and picked up a really cheap pair of gym shorts for the ridiculous price of 695 yen. After paying all that money for joining the club, it's about time that I got a deal there as well.
I ended up planning most of this week's lessons. I'm all set for the juku, the Tsudanuma group for their first session in 2 months, and even for the Carolinan. I also got that pronunciation tape done for the Hawaiian. As I was doing this planning, I listened to one of my CDs during that spending binge last week. It was Jane Monheit's latest. She's appparently tied with Diana Krall as jazz chanteuse of the moment, and it shows. Very nice set of pipes and a heartwarming cover of "Over The Rainbow". Then I listened to the big band swing of Count Basie.
I was wondering whether to make Spaghetti Bolognese or Pork Kimchi for dinner tonight. I ended doing neither. I just bought some cuts of roast chicken with some supermarket spaghetti.
E-mail and phone were keeping me busy tonight. I got a call from Movie Buddy. It'd been about 2 weeks since I last spoke with him. Looks like he has to make his own pilgrimage down to Immigration tomorrow so I told him the ropes. Hopefully, he'll get through with his bureaucracy like I did. He also told me about the machinations at the ol' school. Apparently, there was something close to revolt last week when the new 3-class system started. The top class evidently had 11 students crammed into the room. Several angry complaints later, the coordinator will be going back to a 4-class system. Smart belated move, sister.
And then a couple of hours later, Arwen called me up. She sounded like she never left. However, she is still wondering about whether to accept that offer from my chiseling manager and take a job at the school. I told her what I thought of that in no uncertain terms. Anyways, she'll be joining us for that rib outing next Sunday.
On the e-mail front, my brother told me that as a birthday/Xmas present, he's gotten me the DVD set of the Classic Star Wars trilogy. Good on him. I'll be looking forward to seeing that...in January 2005 since my parents don't have a DVD player. Also, one of the oil boys contacted me to confirm the Wednesday night dinner. The Wild Thing has followed my lead to give weekly reports of his time in his new land. The MBA programme there is already grinding sweat and blood from him.
Well, I figure it's time to clean up a bit, have a cup of coffee and then start the ironing before I retire. Big long day coming up.
Sunday, September 19, 2004
Sunday September 19, 6:08 p.m.
Just came back after my trip out to the great backwoods of Nagano Prefecture with a bried detour through Tokyo Dome.
After my morning lesson, I headed out down to Tokyo Station and got my tickets for Karuizawa. There were some sizable lineups for each of the doors of the cars but I managed to get a seat with no problem in the non-reserveds. However, I made a slight mistake by going into the smoking car. My nose behaved itself but my clothes picked up the distinct smell of tobacco.
The trip up to Sakudaira Station took about an hour and 15 minutes. As we gradually left the Kanto, things started to cloud up so by the time we reached Karuizawa it was overcast. Mt. Asama loomed in the background but it didn't do too much during the weekend. However, what it did do was basically obscure the sky at night with the tons of ash in the atmosphere. We couldn't see any stars, and since my friends' area was pretty devoid of nightlamps and noise, it made for an eerie effect.
Paddy and his buddy picked me up from the station and we made a pit stop at the baby goods' store since they're still in the phase of acquiring stuff for their new arrival. This time, it was a baby buggy. If there were anything in this country that proves how pricey it is to live here, the baby buggy was it. There were the really cheapo ones for 3000 yen. However, most of them were going for between 20000 and 50000 yen. Ugh!
We made it over to the apartment. My good friend was cooking up some really delectable BBQ chicken while the newest addition to the family was quietly laying on a cushion just gurgling away. For the next several hours, we just gabbed, Paddy advised me on his sports program for my visit to the sports club, and we tried to get through the DVD of the pilot episode of FRIENDS (we failed)...all while we just continued to munch down the chicken wings and some other wonderful sushi rice with toppings wrapped in a leaf. It turned out to be a several-hour wait since we were waiting for another ol' buddy of Paddy's who was supposed to head out here with his new family the night before. Apparently, he's had the reputation as a procrastinator according to the talk bandied about. In the interim, we also decided to go the nearest supermarket to pick up some ice cream. During the ride there, we noticed a shopping street all boarded up like a ghost town. The recent appearances of megamalls and outlets have dried up customers for the old little retail places. It's a pity.
Finally at around 9:30, earlier than anticipated, the other family came with their little kid in tow. She was about a year older than my friends' daughter but she was a bundle of energy. She was in that new phase of touchy-feely-walky. She just couldn't stay still for a single minute. However, it was nice to be the uncle of the family and play around with the kids.
A couple of hours later, we said our goodbyes to our hosts and then headed out to the cottage where we would be staying for the night. It was Paddy, me and the procrastinator's family (don't get me wrong, he is a nice guy...the name is just a handle). A half-hour later, the car rambled through some thoroughly darkened woods (I was reminded of Blair Witch) before coming to a stop in front of a pretty large wooden cottage. Entering the rustic lodgings, I realized through the musty air that this was the first time I'd ever stayed in a cottage. The closest I ever got to that was perhaps during my childhood days at camp.
The cottage was a mix of old and new. The structure itself was over 40 years old with that mustiness but it also had a modern flush toilet with the heated seat and bidet functions plus a TV with surprisingly good reception. We hit the hay within the next couple of hours. On the TV, we found out that there was a hostage-taking in progress in Ichihara City, not too far from where I live. Another wonderful crime for the talking heads to gab about on Monday morning.
I woke up around 8 this morning and had instant ramen and coffee for breakfast; I think that would be my version of roughing it in the woods. The air was comfortably cool but the mosquitoes were out in force. I managed to swat most of them away but a few still got through the defences. A couple of hours later, the Procrastinator drove all of us to the station. I was the only one to drop out though. The others decided to stay another day to partake in the hot springs.
It was already getting quite warm even in Karuizawa before the duck-billed Nagano Shinkansen arrived to pick up the passengers for the trip back to Tokyo. During the ride down, I continued to dig through the 9/11 Commission's Report. Parts of it just read like a Tom Clancy novel and therefore it was very difficult to put down.
I hit Tokyo a little after noon and quickly made my way up to Tokyo Dome. Considering that baseball is on strike, the surrounding area was still remarkably crowded. But now that there is a huge mall and amusement park, the area doesn't really need baseball to perk up its population. There I met my old Tea Room Ladies for what I realize has been the first time in over a year.
We found the News Deli as our place to eat. It was once again another baby session as the most talkative of the group brought her 7-month-old daughter along. The most talkative one has been living in Buenos Aires with her hubby for the past year and a half due to work, and although she wouldn't admit it, I think she's settled down there pretty well. Her English was getting mixed up with her Spanish at times and her delivery did have a tinge of Spanish. We gabbed about the usual things: certain students, teachers and the old days.
After about 2 hours, we split up. I don't think I'll see them again for a while.
Back home, I received some further surprises. On my message machine, I received no less than 3 calls from The Bohemian. He's back in town and probably wanted to see if I were available for dinner tonight but frankly I just wanted to get home. However, I'll call him and see if he's up for something tomorrow afternoon. DTE contacted me telling me that she ran into a current student in Tokyo. Apparently, the school now only has 3 classes under the coordinator. No wonder I won't get any classes. Geez, how bad is it gonna get?
But the biggest bombshell of the day was a message from, lo and behold, Arwen. Apparently, that new job was indeed the job from Hell. She almost became a victim of "death by overwork" and had to quit prematurely. She basically spent most of August and September trying to recuperate. And now that she has, she took a small trip to London and saw the Ballerina by coincidence.
My response to her was frankly quite muted. Despite her ordeal at the company, I'm still not particularly all that thrilled that she disappeared on me like that without so much as a word. And I still have no idea about what has happened to 77. But I invited her to the rib pigout next Sunday being planned by Skippy.
Well, time for me to pick some supplies for the fridge and then I'll have a bit of leftovers for dinner.
Just came back after my trip out to the great backwoods of Nagano Prefecture with a bried detour through Tokyo Dome.
After my morning lesson, I headed out down to Tokyo Station and got my tickets for Karuizawa. There were some sizable lineups for each of the doors of the cars but I managed to get a seat with no problem in the non-reserveds. However, I made a slight mistake by going into the smoking car. My nose behaved itself but my clothes picked up the distinct smell of tobacco.
The trip up to Sakudaira Station took about an hour and 15 minutes. As we gradually left the Kanto, things started to cloud up so by the time we reached Karuizawa it was overcast. Mt. Asama loomed in the background but it didn't do too much during the weekend. However, what it did do was basically obscure the sky at night with the tons of ash in the atmosphere. We couldn't see any stars, and since my friends' area was pretty devoid of nightlamps and noise, it made for an eerie effect.
Paddy and his buddy picked me up from the station and we made a pit stop at the baby goods' store since they're still in the phase of acquiring stuff for their new arrival. This time, it was a baby buggy. If there were anything in this country that proves how pricey it is to live here, the baby buggy was it. There were the really cheapo ones for 3000 yen. However, most of them were going for between 20000 and 50000 yen. Ugh!
We made it over to the apartment. My good friend was cooking up some really delectable BBQ chicken while the newest addition to the family was quietly laying on a cushion just gurgling away. For the next several hours, we just gabbed, Paddy advised me on his sports program for my visit to the sports club, and we tried to get through the DVD of the pilot episode of FRIENDS (we failed)...all while we just continued to munch down the chicken wings and some other wonderful sushi rice with toppings wrapped in a leaf. It turned out to be a several-hour wait since we were waiting for another ol' buddy of Paddy's who was supposed to head out here with his new family the night before. Apparently, he's had the reputation as a procrastinator according to the talk bandied about. In the interim, we also decided to go the nearest supermarket to pick up some ice cream. During the ride there, we noticed a shopping street all boarded up like a ghost town. The recent appearances of megamalls and outlets have dried up customers for the old little retail places. It's a pity.
Finally at around 9:30, earlier than anticipated, the other family came with their little kid in tow. She was about a year older than my friends' daughter but she was a bundle of energy. She was in that new phase of touchy-feely-walky. She just couldn't stay still for a single minute. However, it was nice to be the uncle of the family and play around with the kids.
A couple of hours later, we said our goodbyes to our hosts and then headed out to the cottage where we would be staying for the night. It was Paddy, me and the procrastinator's family (don't get me wrong, he is a nice guy...the name is just a handle). A half-hour later, the car rambled through some thoroughly darkened woods (I was reminded of Blair Witch) before coming to a stop in front of a pretty large wooden cottage. Entering the rustic lodgings, I realized through the musty air that this was the first time I'd ever stayed in a cottage. The closest I ever got to that was perhaps during my childhood days at camp.
The cottage was a mix of old and new. The structure itself was over 40 years old with that mustiness but it also had a modern flush toilet with the heated seat and bidet functions plus a TV with surprisingly good reception. We hit the hay within the next couple of hours. On the TV, we found out that there was a hostage-taking in progress in Ichihara City, not too far from where I live. Another wonderful crime for the talking heads to gab about on Monday morning.
I woke up around 8 this morning and had instant ramen and coffee for breakfast; I think that would be my version of roughing it in the woods. The air was comfortably cool but the mosquitoes were out in force. I managed to swat most of them away but a few still got through the defences. A couple of hours later, the Procrastinator drove all of us to the station. I was the only one to drop out though. The others decided to stay another day to partake in the hot springs.
It was already getting quite warm even in Karuizawa before the duck-billed Nagano Shinkansen arrived to pick up the passengers for the trip back to Tokyo. During the ride down, I continued to dig through the 9/11 Commission's Report. Parts of it just read like a Tom Clancy novel and therefore it was very difficult to put down.
I hit Tokyo a little after noon and quickly made my way up to Tokyo Dome. Considering that baseball is on strike, the surrounding area was still remarkably crowded. But now that there is a huge mall and amusement park, the area doesn't really need baseball to perk up its population. There I met my old Tea Room Ladies for what I realize has been the first time in over a year.
We found the News Deli as our place to eat. It was once again another baby session as the most talkative of the group brought her 7-month-old daughter along. The most talkative one has been living in Buenos Aires with her hubby for the past year and a half due to work, and although she wouldn't admit it, I think she's settled down there pretty well. Her English was getting mixed up with her Spanish at times and her delivery did have a tinge of Spanish. We gabbed about the usual things: certain students, teachers and the old days.
After about 2 hours, we split up. I don't think I'll see them again for a while.
Back home, I received some further surprises. On my message machine, I received no less than 3 calls from The Bohemian. He's back in town and probably wanted to see if I were available for dinner tonight but frankly I just wanted to get home. However, I'll call him and see if he's up for something tomorrow afternoon. DTE contacted me telling me that she ran into a current student in Tokyo. Apparently, the school now only has 3 classes under the coordinator. No wonder I won't get any classes. Geez, how bad is it gonna get?
But the biggest bombshell of the day was a message from, lo and behold, Arwen. Apparently, that new job was indeed the job from Hell. She almost became a victim of "death by overwork" and had to quit prematurely. She basically spent most of August and September trying to recuperate. And now that she has, she took a small trip to London and saw the Ballerina by coincidence.
My response to her was frankly quite muted. Despite her ordeal at the company, I'm still not particularly all that thrilled that she disappeared on me like that without so much as a word. And I still have no idea about what has happened to 77. But I invited her to the rib pigout next Sunday being planned by Skippy.
Well, time for me to pick some supplies for the fridge and then I'll have a bit of leftovers for dinner.
Friday, September 17, 2004
Friday September 17, 8:42 p.m.
Well, finally paid the hunk of money and I'm now a member of NAS Sports Club. Seeing that I haven't received any schedule from the school for any classes, it looks like my first outing to the club will be on Tuesday afternoon. The coordinator told me the details about the welcome party for the 25th so I responded with a shot across the bow about what my status at the school will be. But back to NAS, my nervousness was showing when I signed up, I forgot to take my change and forgot to take my package of materials with me. I'm sure the staff must think me a bit of an idiot.
With The Teacher off with her cold and SR too busy today, I had a totally free day so just did some shopping and cleaning up. Cooked up that curry udon that the juku boss had given me back on Tuesday. She said that she didn't put any meat into the curry since she's not a big fan of the stuff. Well I am an unrepentant omnivore so I added some chicken and some remaining veggies to give it a bit of a lift. Worked out well.
We're still waiting here for the final word from the Japanese baseball negotiations whether there will be indeed be a weekend strike. The guys have delayed their decision twice already.
Actually, I received e-mail from DTE for the first time in a while. Apparently, she'll also be joining Movie Buddy's party next week. I also asked her about the fate of Arwen and 99 since she was also close to them. Carolina also contacted me to see if she could move up her next class to the holiday Thursday next week. Since I'm teaching Jazz Buddy on that day, I said that I could do that. Only problem is that the Tea Room closes early on national holidays so we'll need an alternate venue. I'm waiting myself for what the kids' mother wants me to do tomorrow. I still don't know whether I'll be teaching the older daughter or "teaching" the parents.
Well, gotta pack for my trip to Karuizawa tomorrow afternoon. I assume that Paddy is already up there. I'll give the bath another try to see if I can endure my stay there better with my bath radio.
Oh, news flash...the strike is on. Baseball is taking an unscheduled holiday for the first time in history in Japan.
Well, finally paid the hunk of money and I'm now a member of NAS Sports Club. Seeing that I haven't received any schedule from the school for any classes, it looks like my first outing to the club will be on Tuesday afternoon. The coordinator told me the details about the welcome party for the 25th so I responded with a shot across the bow about what my status at the school will be. But back to NAS, my nervousness was showing when I signed up, I forgot to take my change and forgot to take my package of materials with me. I'm sure the staff must think me a bit of an idiot.
With The Teacher off with her cold and SR too busy today, I had a totally free day so just did some shopping and cleaning up. Cooked up that curry udon that the juku boss had given me back on Tuesday. She said that she didn't put any meat into the curry since she's not a big fan of the stuff. Well I am an unrepentant omnivore so I added some chicken and some remaining veggies to give it a bit of a lift. Worked out well.
We're still waiting here for the final word from the Japanese baseball negotiations whether there will be indeed be a weekend strike. The guys have delayed their decision twice already.
Actually, I received e-mail from DTE for the first time in a while. Apparently, she'll also be joining Movie Buddy's party next week. I also asked her about the fate of Arwen and 99 since she was also close to them. Carolina also contacted me to see if she could move up her next class to the holiday Thursday next week. Since I'm teaching Jazz Buddy on that day, I said that I could do that. Only problem is that the Tea Room closes early on national holidays so we'll need an alternate venue. I'm waiting myself for what the kids' mother wants me to do tomorrow. I still don't know whether I'll be teaching the older daughter or "teaching" the parents.
Well, gotta pack for my trip to Karuizawa tomorrow afternoon. I assume that Paddy is already up there. I'll give the bath another try to see if I can endure my stay there better with my bath radio.
Oh, news flash...the strike is on. Baseball is taking an unscheduled holiday for the first time in history in Japan.
Thursday, September 16, 2004
Thursday September 16, 11:02 p.m.
I guess the theme of this entry can be considered to be of the explosive kind, both figuratively and physically. Let's get the latter kind out of the way first since it is, fortunately, the shortest. It looks like my destination for Saturday, Karuizawa, had its first ashfall of the season thanks to some grumblings from nearby Mt. Asama, that formerly vacant volcano along the Nagano/Gunma border tonight. Apparently, some towns as far south as Saitama Prefecture which borders the northern edge of Tokyo got a bit of the white stuff. My friend up in Karuizawa did tell me to bring a jacket for the trip since it drops to about 4 C at night. Now, I wonder if I should make sure that it has an asbestos lining. Well, it should make for interesting traveling.
The second bombshell could be rather beneficial for Japanese baseball, especially with the grave news of the Sword of Damocles threatening to fall upon the weekend games again. Two corporations, Livedoor and Rakuten, will be applying to set up new baseball teams. This is very welcome news and probably the only thing that management and the players' union have agreed upon. Apparently, Livedoor is interested in setting up shop in Miyagi Prefecture, which is located between Hokkaido and Tokyo. Good move considering that the closest team to the Hokkaido franchise is in my neck of the woods....the Chiba Lotte Marines. However, Rakuten may face a bit of a battle since the president wants to establish the team in his hometown of Kobe. The snag involves the president of the to-be-merged Orix Blue Wave, also based in Kobe, who believes that two is a crowd.
Explosion No. 3 is of the criminal variety although it has been foreordained. The second body of those two kids who were killed by their father's brutal roomie was found today in a river. The heinousnous of the crime was further amplified when the suspect admitted that he had thrown the kids into the river alive. And then there is the case of that woman and her three kids who had been stabbed and bludgeoned several times in their sleep before being torched to death. Since no valuables were taken, the police are now looking at a revenge motive. I truly, truly hope that the psycho who perpetrated this abomination is found soon.
The last bombshell came in the form of an article forwarded to me by the Doctor. The article talks about some lady Stateside by the name of Malkin who is loudly proclaiming that the internment of Japanese-Americans was fully justified and feels that the ethnic group is a bunch of whiners who secretly abetted spies against the US government during WWII. I rarely give long oratory responses to anyone over e-mail but I did for this one. However, it wasn't of the fire and brimstone variety since I believe that people like her and Pauline Hansen of Australia may make a big splash initially but relatively quickly fade away into bitter obscurity against time, facts and vigilance.
Now that I got the theme for this entry out of the way, I can talk about my day. My lesson with the Jazz Buddy turned out to be mostly a chat session. I don't think the girl minded too much, though. She certainly didn't seem to retain much information on the Conditionals that we had worked on a couple of weeks back...which makes me wonder if I should even emphasize the grammar component all that much anymore. At one point in our dialogue, she said that she wanted to talk about stuff that would be relevant to her. Perhaps, grammar (although I think she still needs work there) doesn't qualify. Well, I've known that she's cheerfully mercurial so I wasn't too put out.
I made my way down to that new mall I talked about in my last entry. Oazo. It just skirts the northern edge of Tokyo Station and is basically a number of cute trendy shops and eateries surrounding the new and improved flagship branch of the Maruzen Bookstore. And as with all new openings in their first week, there was a ton of people walking through...mostly of the older variety. Man, that new Maruzen sure puts the dying Nihonbashi branch out of its misery and that's considering the makeover that it went through a few years ago. Basically the new store got the Barnes and Nobles treatment. Ivy League College decor, silver signs done up in large New York Times font and glass walls overlooking the station characterize this baby. It rather reminds me of the Chapters bookstores back in ol' Toronto. When I bought my usual book of crosswords, I noticed that each cashier now had a flatscreen display on the customer side of the counter to show every little detail that the cashier punches up.
Basically, the Oazo resembles the other megacomplexes of Roppongi Hills, Shiodome and that new one in Nihombashi in that there are restaurants sandwiching the rest of the mall on top and bottom. I was starting to get a bit famished (certainly my stomach has been growling a lot more since I made my latest start to a diet) but didn't really find anything there which appealed to me so I traipsed through the underground of JR Tokyo and went to that possibly-soon-to-be forgotten faded glory known as the Maru Biru just a quarter of a kilometre away. Not to be outdone by the grand opening of a potential rival, the Maru Biru folks had signs proclaiming its 2nd anniversary. Or should they be best seen as signs of desperation? It's a bit odd that the Maruzen flagship has been set up where it is since Maru Biru also has a Maruzen branch which is far smaller and less grand. I wonder if it will close up shop in the near future. I went up to the 6th floor where one of my fave eateries, Akai no Noren, is located. I noticed that there was hardly anyone there on the restaurant floor but then again, not to alarm anyone in Maru Biru management, most of the eateries there go on afternoon hiatus. Not Akai no Noren...I still got my Hakata style ramen course with kimchi rice, gyoza and an amaretto creme dessert (yup, you read that dessert right...what a contrast).
After my little exploration of the new Tokyo Station area, I went crazy. Crazy for CD and book shopping, that is. Then again when I have point cards screaming to be redeemed and special coupons demanding to be used, I am no match. Tower Records and HMV should be kowtowing to me for a week after my purchases. It was quite an eclectic set of purchases as well. I got a couple of jazz discs in the form of Basie and Darin, a YMO techno tribute, two albums by rockabilly/jazz unit Ego-Wrappin and even a compilation of ol' 80s ballads. Look out, Foreigner, Chaka Khan and The Jets. I even picked up that report from the 9/11 Commission. Just from browsing through a few pages of it, it just reads like a Tom Clancy novel. All too true, though.
Finally, my long shopping spree came to an end and I went up to the Tea Room and had that preliminary with my newest student, Carolina. She's a friend of SR's and another old student who's now living in LA. Her English ability is pretty good but has patches and rust which I'll need to work on. I heard from SR that she was pretty disappointed with the inconsistency of the teachers at her last school so I hope I can come through with the goods.
The e-mail has been interesting. Not only did I get that article from The Doctor, but I also heard from The SE and the coordinator from the school, two people that have largely been missing in my life for a little while. I'm not sure if it had been the somewhat dismissive response I sent to the Curry Master concerning my erstwhile lessons with her and the SE, but I actually got my first e-mail from the SE himself asking if I were available in November. I replied politely that I could be available for him. As for the coordinator, she just sent me the invitation for the welcome party for the new folks on the 25th. Does this mean I'm still wanted to teach classes? I didn't whine to her on that matter and just said that I could make it. The 25th is also the day for Movie Buddy's party to herald his good friend's wedding, but that should be taking place in the evening. I even got word from Skippy about the latest outing on the 26th for ribs at Tony Romas. Looks like it'll be a joint project...no indirect pun intended. My life will be complete if Arwen ever decides to contact me again.
Ah, The Teacher also informed me that she has to cancel her class tomorrow due to sickness. This means that I'm free and clear all day. I'll probably head up to that sports club again and see if I can join up now that the bank situation is resolved. And I have to think about securing that ticket for the trip home during Xmas.
Man, that was the longest entry I've ever made in my short life as a blogger. I hope the publishing doesn't get too overwhelmed.
I guess the theme of this entry can be considered to be of the explosive kind, both figuratively and physically. Let's get the latter kind out of the way first since it is, fortunately, the shortest. It looks like my destination for Saturday, Karuizawa, had its first ashfall of the season thanks to some grumblings from nearby Mt. Asama, that formerly vacant volcano along the Nagano/Gunma border tonight. Apparently, some towns as far south as Saitama Prefecture which borders the northern edge of Tokyo got a bit of the white stuff. My friend up in Karuizawa did tell me to bring a jacket for the trip since it drops to about 4 C at night. Now, I wonder if I should make sure that it has an asbestos lining. Well, it should make for interesting traveling.
The second bombshell could be rather beneficial for Japanese baseball, especially with the grave news of the Sword of Damocles threatening to fall upon the weekend games again. Two corporations, Livedoor and Rakuten, will be applying to set up new baseball teams. This is very welcome news and probably the only thing that management and the players' union have agreed upon. Apparently, Livedoor is interested in setting up shop in Miyagi Prefecture, which is located between Hokkaido and Tokyo. Good move considering that the closest team to the Hokkaido franchise is in my neck of the woods....the Chiba Lotte Marines. However, Rakuten may face a bit of a battle since the president wants to establish the team in his hometown of Kobe. The snag involves the president of the to-be-merged Orix Blue Wave, also based in Kobe, who believes that two is a crowd.
Explosion No. 3 is of the criminal variety although it has been foreordained. The second body of those two kids who were killed by their father's brutal roomie was found today in a river. The heinousnous of the crime was further amplified when the suspect admitted that he had thrown the kids into the river alive. And then there is the case of that woman and her three kids who had been stabbed and bludgeoned several times in their sleep before being torched to death. Since no valuables were taken, the police are now looking at a revenge motive. I truly, truly hope that the psycho who perpetrated this abomination is found soon.
The last bombshell came in the form of an article forwarded to me by the Doctor. The article talks about some lady Stateside by the name of Malkin who is loudly proclaiming that the internment of Japanese-Americans was fully justified and feels that the ethnic group is a bunch of whiners who secretly abetted spies against the US government during WWII. I rarely give long oratory responses to anyone over e-mail but I did for this one. However, it wasn't of the fire and brimstone variety since I believe that people like her and Pauline Hansen of Australia may make a big splash initially but relatively quickly fade away into bitter obscurity against time, facts and vigilance.
Now that I got the theme for this entry out of the way, I can talk about my day. My lesson with the Jazz Buddy turned out to be mostly a chat session. I don't think the girl minded too much, though. She certainly didn't seem to retain much information on the Conditionals that we had worked on a couple of weeks back...which makes me wonder if I should even emphasize the grammar component all that much anymore. At one point in our dialogue, she said that she wanted to talk about stuff that would be relevant to her. Perhaps, grammar (although I think she still needs work there) doesn't qualify. Well, I've known that she's cheerfully mercurial so I wasn't too put out.
I made my way down to that new mall I talked about in my last entry. Oazo. It just skirts the northern edge of Tokyo Station and is basically a number of cute trendy shops and eateries surrounding the new and improved flagship branch of the Maruzen Bookstore. And as with all new openings in their first week, there was a ton of people walking through...mostly of the older variety. Man, that new Maruzen sure puts the dying Nihonbashi branch out of its misery and that's considering the makeover that it went through a few years ago. Basically the new store got the Barnes and Nobles treatment. Ivy League College decor, silver signs done up in large New York Times font and glass walls overlooking the station characterize this baby. It rather reminds me of the Chapters bookstores back in ol' Toronto. When I bought my usual book of crosswords, I noticed that each cashier now had a flatscreen display on the customer side of the counter to show every little detail that the cashier punches up.
Basically, the Oazo resembles the other megacomplexes of Roppongi Hills, Shiodome and that new one in Nihombashi in that there are restaurants sandwiching the rest of the mall on top and bottom. I was starting to get a bit famished (certainly my stomach has been growling a lot more since I made my latest start to a diet) but didn't really find anything there which appealed to me so I traipsed through the underground of JR Tokyo and went to that possibly-soon-to-be forgotten faded glory known as the Maru Biru just a quarter of a kilometre away. Not to be outdone by the grand opening of a potential rival, the Maru Biru folks had signs proclaiming its 2nd anniversary. Or should they be best seen as signs of desperation? It's a bit odd that the Maruzen flagship has been set up where it is since Maru Biru also has a Maruzen branch which is far smaller and less grand. I wonder if it will close up shop in the near future. I went up to the 6th floor where one of my fave eateries, Akai no Noren, is located. I noticed that there was hardly anyone there on the restaurant floor but then again, not to alarm anyone in Maru Biru management, most of the eateries there go on afternoon hiatus. Not Akai no Noren...I still got my Hakata style ramen course with kimchi rice, gyoza and an amaretto creme dessert (yup, you read that dessert right...what a contrast).
After my little exploration of the new Tokyo Station area, I went crazy. Crazy for CD and book shopping, that is. Then again when I have point cards screaming to be redeemed and special coupons demanding to be used, I am no match. Tower Records and HMV should be kowtowing to me for a week after my purchases. It was quite an eclectic set of purchases as well. I got a couple of jazz discs in the form of Basie and Darin, a YMO techno tribute, two albums by rockabilly/jazz unit Ego-Wrappin and even a compilation of ol' 80s ballads. Look out, Foreigner, Chaka Khan and The Jets. I even picked up that report from the 9/11 Commission. Just from browsing through a few pages of it, it just reads like a Tom Clancy novel. All too true, though.
Finally, my long shopping spree came to an end and I went up to the Tea Room and had that preliminary with my newest student, Carolina. She's a friend of SR's and another old student who's now living in LA. Her English ability is pretty good but has patches and rust which I'll need to work on. I heard from SR that she was pretty disappointed with the inconsistency of the teachers at her last school so I hope I can come through with the goods.
The e-mail has been interesting. Not only did I get that article from The Doctor, but I also heard from The SE and the coordinator from the school, two people that have largely been missing in my life for a little while. I'm not sure if it had been the somewhat dismissive response I sent to the Curry Master concerning my erstwhile lessons with her and the SE, but I actually got my first e-mail from the SE himself asking if I were available in November. I replied politely that I could be available for him. As for the coordinator, she just sent me the invitation for the welcome party for the new folks on the 25th. Does this mean I'm still wanted to teach classes? I didn't whine to her on that matter and just said that I could make it. The 25th is also the day for Movie Buddy's party to herald his good friend's wedding, but that should be taking place in the evening. I even got word from Skippy about the latest outing on the 26th for ribs at Tony Romas. Looks like it'll be a joint project...no indirect pun intended. My life will be complete if Arwen ever decides to contact me again.
Ah, The Teacher also informed me that she has to cancel her class tomorrow due to sickness. This means that I'm free and clear all day. I'll probably head up to that sports club again and see if I can join up now that the bank situation is resolved. And I have to think about securing that ticket for the trip home during Xmas.
Man, that was the longest entry I've ever made in my short life as a blogger. I hope the publishing doesn't get too overwhelmed.
Wednesday, September 15, 2004
Thursday September 16, 8:19 a.m.
Well, we're still wondering if there will be baseball here this weekend. However, back in ol' Canada, the NHL decided to lock out its players. I'm sure there will be a lot of fans crying in their Molsons this week.
Nice to wake up in cool surroundings once again after the hellish summer. In fact, I even had to wrap a blanket around me. I got word from my friend in Karuizawa...it gets down to 4 degrees C at night there. Definitely jacket weather.
I've got the Jazz Buddy for her usual lesson then I have my newest student for her inaugural. In between, I'll be checking out Tokyo's newest mall. Called Oaso, it's named after the Esperanto word for "oasis". Well, this must be the linguistic equivalent of winning the lottery. One Esperanto word will now become a household one. In any case, I now know where the ol' Maruzen Bookstore has headed. It will be closing in Nihombashi but it's new HQ will be in that mall where it's said that it will be one of the largest bookstores in Japan. Gotta check that out. I'm quite relieved, actually. It's one of the few bookstores here that sells my favourite brand of crossword puzzles.
Well, we're still wondering if there will be baseball here this weekend. However, back in ol' Canada, the NHL decided to lock out its players. I'm sure there will be a lot of fans crying in their Molsons this week.
Nice to wake up in cool surroundings once again after the hellish summer. In fact, I even had to wrap a blanket around me. I got word from my friend in Karuizawa...it gets down to 4 degrees C at night there. Definitely jacket weather.
I've got the Jazz Buddy for her usual lesson then I have my newest student for her inaugural. In between, I'll be checking out Tokyo's newest mall. Called Oaso, it's named after the Esperanto word for "oasis". Well, this must be the linguistic equivalent of winning the lottery. One Esperanto word will now become a household one. In any case, I now know where the ol' Maruzen Bookstore has headed. It will be closing in Nihombashi but it's new HQ will be in that mall where it's said that it will be one of the largest bookstores in Japan. Gotta check that out. I'm quite relieved, actually. It's one of the few bookstores here that sells my favourite brand of crossword puzzles.
Wednesday September 15, 10:03 p.m.
Well, I went to my UFJ branch and found out that I actually did open my account by signing it and not by using the stamp. So I'm free and clear to sign up for the sports club. Mind you, I missed out on the deal. Not quite sure when I'll sign up. Perhaps I'll do so after my lesson with The Teacher on Friday.
My lessons with The Hawaiian and the OL went OK. The OL seemed somewhat distracted though since she was rather off tonight. She's entering a rather busy time at work so I won't see her for the next few weeks. At least for next week, I can't see her in any event since I'm seeing the old oil company students.
I lucked out on the budget for the past month. Surprisingly, I actually made a very small profit. However, I'm not sure what this coming month will hold since I didn't get any classes at the school.
The news has focused once again on the psychos who kill. A few days ago, a middle-aged man murdered the two toddler sons of his roomie after abusing them. The shocker was that the father of the dead boys had left the murderer's home once previously because he had been thought a danger to the kids only to return to the fold. What could the fool have been thinking?!
This story perked up the ears of the media to go digging back into some of the other sociopaths of the recent past. A nutcase who went on a killing spree a few years ago in an elementary school in Osaka finally got his richly deserved fate via the gallows a few days ago. He didn't show any remorse...he just asked to be killed ASAP since he felt that he was just gonna spin his wheels anyways in jail. It's interesting to note that he was executed within a year of his sentencing. Over here, that's a major miracle. Usually years pass after the final verdict and before that final march to the noose.
Then there was that girl who slashed her classmate to death back in June. The murder made the papers while I was up in Hokkaido. It was decided that she would be put into solitary for the next couple of years since she couldn't function safely in society.
Well, on the way back home, I noticed how cool it felt tonight. It felt like mid-October. Man, I hope that this is now the trend for the rest of the Fall.
Well, I went to my UFJ branch and found out that I actually did open my account by signing it and not by using the stamp. So I'm free and clear to sign up for the sports club. Mind you, I missed out on the deal. Not quite sure when I'll sign up. Perhaps I'll do so after my lesson with The Teacher on Friday.
My lessons with The Hawaiian and the OL went OK. The OL seemed somewhat distracted though since she was rather off tonight. She's entering a rather busy time at work so I won't see her for the next few weeks. At least for next week, I can't see her in any event since I'm seeing the old oil company students.
I lucked out on the budget for the past month. Surprisingly, I actually made a very small profit. However, I'm not sure what this coming month will hold since I didn't get any classes at the school.
The news has focused once again on the psychos who kill. A few days ago, a middle-aged man murdered the two toddler sons of his roomie after abusing them. The shocker was that the father of the dead boys had left the murderer's home once previously because he had been thought a danger to the kids only to return to the fold. What could the fool have been thinking?!
This story perked up the ears of the media to go digging back into some of the other sociopaths of the recent past. A nutcase who went on a killing spree a few years ago in an elementary school in Osaka finally got his richly deserved fate via the gallows a few days ago. He didn't show any remorse...he just asked to be killed ASAP since he felt that he was just gonna spin his wheels anyways in jail. It's interesting to note that he was executed within a year of his sentencing. Over here, that's a major miracle. Usually years pass after the final verdict and before that final march to the noose.
Then there was that girl who slashed her classmate to death back in June. The murder made the papers while I was up in Hokkaido. It was decided that she would be put into solitary for the next couple of years since she couldn't function safely in society.
Well, on the way back home, I noticed how cool it felt tonight. It felt like mid-October. Man, I hope that this is now the trend for the rest of the Fall.
Tuesday, September 14, 2004
Wednesday September 15, 8:17 a.m.
It's of course the middle of the month. I'm happy to say that while the days are still fairly steamy, the nights are much more pleasant. Hopefully by the end of September, the other half of the equation will catch up.
My rubdown yesterday garnered the usual comment from the masseuse of likening my shoulders to geological formations. Well, that's why I do my biweekly sessions.
On the way to work, I dropped by that gym near the station. True to my luck, looks like I'm not gonna get in on the first try. The lady there needed a "hanko" along with my bankbook to start the automatic withdrawals of payment from my account. However, I lost that little stamp years ago and have managed to do well without it. Since I think I started my account by using that hanko, I'll need it again. Well, I'll be heading down to my branch to see if that is indeed the case. Plus, I won't be able to take advantage of that 75% offer since I had to start working out there by today to get the deal. I think the way the conversation with the lady went, she must have assumed that I was trying to pull a fishing expedition with her. However, she was cordial enough and gave me some information. Hmmm...well, if do need that hanko, I can get one made but if it costs a ton of money (as the official ones do), I just have to wonder if it's worth it to pay that to get a piece of wood so that I can enter a place that I have to pay even more money.
But I am fully aware that I've gained a good bit of weight even with the increased amount of salad. At the juku last night, when I was leaning over the table, I just felt that spare tire as if there really were a spare tire around my girth. I'm just wondering if I should just skip food altogether....especially after seeing Phil Mahre's rant about the slow poisoning of the American public on Larry King yesterday.
Speaking of the juku, I had my first official class with the boss. As I figured, she talked a mile a minute. She didn't sidetrack too badly though but the non-stop stream managed to take us several minutes past the end time of 10 p.m. much to her surprise. She was so shocked that she decided to pay me for the extra 30 minutes...heck, if she's gonna do that, I'll be very willing to listen to her.
I listened to my latest two purchases yesterday. Yup, the reviewer was right about that Anita Baker CD. No real blockbusters there but I don't think she's really come up with any super hits since her second album, and yet I've remained a loyal fan. Despite the decade's absence, she sounds as if she never left.
Skippy contacted me. Looks like I, ROBOT is out...at least with her, but she did mention that there was going to be a special anniversary at Tony Roma's that day with the according discounts. Looks like I've become her herald since I sent out the messages to everyone at her request (or behest).
I even got a message from my ex concerning the impending change in my e-mail address. She gave me a polite standing invitation for our occasional tonkatsu lunch near her company. It's interesting how announcing one's change in Internet protocols brings out people from the woodwork. I even got e-mail from the Curry Master. As was assumed, she told me that she couldn't really say when she and the SE would be available for future lessons so I just let her off the hook by telling her that the two of them really don't need my help.
It's of course the middle of the month. I'm happy to say that while the days are still fairly steamy, the nights are much more pleasant. Hopefully by the end of September, the other half of the equation will catch up.
My rubdown yesterday garnered the usual comment from the masseuse of likening my shoulders to geological formations. Well, that's why I do my biweekly sessions.
On the way to work, I dropped by that gym near the station. True to my luck, looks like I'm not gonna get in on the first try. The lady there needed a "hanko" along with my bankbook to start the automatic withdrawals of payment from my account. However, I lost that little stamp years ago and have managed to do well without it. Since I think I started my account by using that hanko, I'll need it again. Well, I'll be heading down to my branch to see if that is indeed the case. Plus, I won't be able to take advantage of that 75% offer since I had to start working out there by today to get the deal. I think the way the conversation with the lady went, she must have assumed that I was trying to pull a fishing expedition with her. However, she was cordial enough and gave me some information. Hmmm...well, if do need that hanko, I can get one made but if it costs a ton of money (as the official ones do), I just have to wonder if it's worth it to pay that to get a piece of wood so that I can enter a place that I have to pay even more money.
But I am fully aware that I've gained a good bit of weight even with the increased amount of salad. At the juku last night, when I was leaning over the table, I just felt that spare tire as if there really were a spare tire around my girth. I'm just wondering if I should just skip food altogether....especially after seeing Phil Mahre's rant about the slow poisoning of the American public on Larry King yesterday.
Speaking of the juku, I had my first official class with the boss. As I figured, she talked a mile a minute. She didn't sidetrack too badly though but the non-stop stream managed to take us several minutes past the end time of 10 p.m. much to her surprise. She was so shocked that she decided to pay me for the extra 30 minutes...heck, if she's gonna do that, I'll be very willing to listen to her.
I listened to my latest two purchases yesterday. Yup, the reviewer was right about that Anita Baker CD. No real blockbusters there but I don't think she's really come up with any super hits since her second album, and yet I've remained a loyal fan. Despite the decade's absence, she sounds as if she never left.
Skippy contacted me. Looks like I, ROBOT is out...at least with her, but she did mention that there was going to be a special anniversary at Tony Roma's that day with the according discounts. Looks like I've become her herald since I sent out the messages to everyone at her request (or behest).
I even got a message from my ex concerning the impending change in my e-mail address. She gave me a polite standing invitation for our occasional tonkatsu lunch near her company. It's interesting how announcing one's change in Internet protocols brings out people from the woodwork. I even got e-mail from the Curry Master. As was assumed, she told me that she couldn't really say when she and the SE would be available for future lessons so I just let her off the hook by telling her that the two of them really don't need my help.
Monday, September 13, 2004
Monday September 13, 9:46 p.m.
Classes went amiably enough today. My morning class was another chat fest and my class at the Company actually showed some good diligence from the two students. Felt quite energized, actually. Enough to whip up some rare Monday night cooking in the form of pork kimchi.
In between classes, I bought that bath radio at the Shibuya Tokyu Hands. Actually I was fortunate enough to get a radio which was only half as much as the one I'd seen at the Shinjuku branch. Then, I had lunch at TGIFridays since I had a 500 yen coupon. Last year, I vowed that I wouldn't go there for lunch since I had a rather bad experience with their chicken dish. However, a coupon is a coupon so I decided to take the risk. Luckily, I had a much better dish. It was chicken again but only a few cooked sticks in a large salad. It was the first time that I'd ever had veggies as a main dish. However, to ensure that I wasn't going entirely healthy, I had French Fries on the side.
I also hit pay dirt at Towers as well. A couple of beloved singers who had largely disappeared from the public scene have come back with new releases. One is Anita Baker who hasn't put out an album in 10 years. I took a listen to it there and found it worthy. The reviewer in Entertainment Weekly said that the new release doesn't have a bombshell hit like "Sweet Love" but hey, even a merely good Baker album is well worth the yen. The other is by Ruiko Kurahashi, a local singer here whom most Japanese wouldn't remember or recognize aside from those who were REALLY into the 80s pop scene.
Well, I did my usual stop off at the Andersens cafe in that Shinjuku Plaza for an hour of tea, crosswords and nodding off. Geez, that really starts to age me. Maybe my new impending lifestyle as a fitness nut will relieve my narcolepsy.
In other news, after all the Olympics and Iraq and the US election, we've come back to the plight of Sgt. Jenkins after his 40-year defection to North Korea. He has apparently reported for duty for the first time since the 60s at Camp Zama...perhaps for his court martial. Also, speaking of North Korea, Japan has been rather worried about that big explosion near the N. Korean-Chinese border last night. Anything that involves Kimland and explosions tend to bring that feeling of dread. What's distressing everyone is that the explosion came about in the form of a mushroom cloud. Uh-oh.
Well, I'm waiting for a call from Paddy concerning part of that personal improvement project. I did send him an e-mail giving him a report on my progress. If he calls soon enough, I can actually take a bath and test out that radio.
As expected, the summer heat wave refuses to go quietly. We've got another 32-degree day tomorrow. I thought I would have to use the yogurt machine this time, but I guess just leaving the milk and starter outside in the usual bucket will suffice just nicely.
Classes went amiably enough today. My morning class was another chat fest and my class at the Company actually showed some good diligence from the two students. Felt quite energized, actually. Enough to whip up some rare Monday night cooking in the form of pork kimchi.
In between classes, I bought that bath radio at the Shibuya Tokyu Hands. Actually I was fortunate enough to get a radio which was only half as much as the one I'd seen at the Shinjuku branch. Then, I had lunch at TGIFridays since I had a 500 yen coupon. Last year, I vowed that I wouldn't go there for lunch since I had a rather bad experience with their chicken dish. However, a coupon is a coupon so I decided to take the risk. Luckily, I had a much better dish. It was chicken again but only a few cooked sticks in a large salad. It was the first time that I'd ever had veggies as a main dish. However, to ensure that I wasn't going entirely healthy, I had French Fries on the side.
I also hit pay dirt at Towers as well. A couple of beloved singers who had largely disappeared from the public scene have come back with new releases. One is Anita Baker who hasn't put out an album in 10 years. I took a listen to it there and found it worthy. The reviewer in Entertainment Weekly said that the new release doesn't have a bombshell hit like "Sweet Love" but hey, even a merely good Baker album is well worth the yen. The other is by Ruiko Kurahashi, a local singer here whom most Japanese wouldn't remember or recognize aside from those who were REALLY into the 80s pop scene.
Well, I did my usual stop off at the Andersens cafe in that Shinjuku Plaza for an hour of tea, crosswords and nodding off. Geez, that really starts to age me. Maybe my new impending lifestyle as a fitness nut will relieve my narcolepsy.
In other news, after all the Olympics and Iraq and the US election, we've come back to the plight of Sgt. Jenkins after his 40-year defection to North Korea. He has apparently reported for duty for the first time since the 60s at Camp Zama...perhaps for his court martial. Also, speaking of North Korea, Japan has been rather worried about that big explosion near the N. Korean-Chinese border last night. Anything that involves Kimland and explosions tend to bring that feeling of dread. What's distressing everyone is that the explosion came about in the form of a mushroom cloud. Uh-oh.
Well, I'm waiting for a call from Paddy concerning part of that personal improvement project. I did send him an e-mail giving him a report on my progress. If he calls soon enough, I can actually take a bath and test out that radio.
As expected, the summer heat wave refuses to go quietly. We've got another 32-degree day tomorrow. I thought I would have to use the yogurt machine this time, but I guess just leaving the milk and starter outside in the usual bucket will suffice just nicely.
Saturday, September 11, 2004
Sunday September 12, 1:29 p.m.
My lesson with the kids yesterday was the usual. The younger sister was playful if not all that interested in picking up English. The older sister was another exercise in slackerdom. Mind you, she did have a good excuse this time in that she'd just come back from a volleyball practice and then had to take off for her juku. I was merely a 30-minute filler.
The strange thing was that just a few minutes before I was to leave for the kids' place, the mother of The Little Owl called me up out of the blue. She was asking me if I could teach her daughter that afternoon. Hell of a time to call just a few hours beforehand. However, at least I have some inkling that I'm still wanted. As for the kids' family, it's possible that I may end up "teaching" the two parents instead since the younger one is off to camp next week and the other one...has stuff to do. I'd frankly would prefer just to have the class canceled since I could then head up to Karuizawa with Paddy much earlier than expected but professionalism has to rear its ugly head.
Took off for Ryogoku after the class. It was just a straight line on the Oedo Line there where I met Paddy and we headed off to Shrek's apartment just 5 minutes away. Shrek and his wife are pretty lucky in that they live on the 8th floor of a building which only has one other residential occupant and a couple of offices. The party was a reunion of sorts for the old university club. From my era, it was Shrek, Paddy and the Chipmunk with a whole bunch of others from later years. Paddy fit into the party mode quite well with his talent as a raconteur. A couple of the ladies there were just as talkative while we engorged ourselves on BBQ chicken and other fixins.
It would 8 hours before we finally left the place. Paddy crashed at my place again. Here, he got started on another personal improvement project, namely me. Before we hit bed, we got started on making the gradual transition of changing Internet providers since one can ADSL here for as low as 700 yen a month. So I sent in the cancellation notice to my provider for the past few years and then contacted everyone else about the impending changes.
Once we awoke this morning, Paddy then got started on checking out what happened with my dead Fuji-Xerox printer. I guess he had an investment into it since it was his fiancee's mother who got it for me. Basically once we re-activated the driver, we found out that the feeder was broken. Well, am I gonna blow away 5000 yen on something that I've gotten used to not using anymore? Probably not. During the printer mini-project, Paddy found a way to get back all of my fonts. He just took the computer into Safe Mode, threw away the default cache of fonts and then rebooted. Now I am getting overwhelmed with the wonders of COPPERPLATE and GOTHIC once more.
We went off to the Japanese-style family restaurant, Yume-An, for an early lunch. There, the personal improvement project took on a more esoteric nature. It was threefold: 1) to check on my visa situation since I basically have little more than a year left on my current visa, 2) to see about getting me back on the dating circuit and 3) to get me back into shape since I've been out of it for years.
As for 1), it's pretty much a longshot. Mom contacted me this morning to inform me that my name is indeed not listed on the ancestral family register. I kinda figured that would've been the case. However, Paddy is still encouraging me to getting that form to change my citizenship. I'm pretty loath to change it since I feel that I'm here because I'm NOT Japanese. But practically speaking, I have been here for a decade.
As for 2), this is also a bit of a longshot. Paddy is trying to get me to contact one of the women at the party last night. To be honest, the young lady was pretty nice and she has had a similar career past. However, after she downed virtually all of the expensive wine I'd brought to Shrek's last night and started getting a bit overexcited, I kinda wonder if she'd be my type in any case. That didn't deter Paddy. He just then told me to see if any of my former students would be interested.
The last thing seems to be the most promising. Paddy said he was worried about my health and suggested I go to a gym. I countered by saying that if he could find one near my place, then I would join up. Sure enough, after I'd gotten back from my shopping he left a message saying that he found one on the top of the Seiyu Department Store next to Urayasu Station. Well, I guess I'm committed then (or at least I should be committed). Not too bad pricewise, either. If I join up in the next couple of days, my first month will be 75% off and the weekdays are more inexpensive than the weekends. Paddy will even throw in a training program.
As I mentioned, after I saw Paddy off at the station, I went over to Daiei and pick up a couple of presents for those mutual friends that we're gonna see next Saturday up in Karuizawa. Then, I bought a small tape recorder for taping some assignments for the Hawaiian.
It's been a hot but manageable day. The fan has sufficed for now, but I may be tempted to try out the AC again.
My lesson with the kids yesterday was the usual. The younger sister was playful if not all that interested in picking up English. The older sister was another exercise in slackerdom. Mind you, she did have a good excuse this time in that she'd just come back from a volleyball practice and then had to take off for her juku. I was merely a 30-minute filler.
The strange thing was that just a few minutes before I was to leave for the kids' place, the mother of The Little Owl called me up out of the blue. She was asking me if I could teach her daughter that afternoon. Hell of a time to call just a few hours beforehand. However, at least I have some inkling that I'm still wanted. As for the kids' family, it's possible that I may end up "teaching" the two parents instead since the younger one is off to camp next week and the other one...has stuff to do. I'd frankly would prefer just to have the class canceled since I could then head up to Karuizawa with Paddy much earlier than expected but professionalism has to rear its ugly head.
Took off for Ryogoku after the class. It was just a straight line on the Oedo Line there where I met Paddy and we headed off to Shrek's apartment just 5 minutes away. Shrek and his wife are pretty lucky in that they live on the 8th floor of a building which only has one other residential occupant and a couple of offices. The party was a reunion of sorts for the old university club. From my era, it was Shrek, Paddy and the Chipmunk with a whole bunch of others from later years. Paddy fit into the party mode quite well with his talent as a raconteur. A couple of the ladies there were just as talkative while we engorged ourselves on BBQ chicken and other fixins.
It would 8 hours before we finally left the place. Paddy crashed at my place again. Here, he got started on another personal improvement project, namely me. Before we hit bed, we got started on making the gradual transition of changing Internet providers since one can ADSL here for as low as 700 yen a month. So I sent in the cancellation notice to my provider for the past few years and then contacted everyone else about the impending changes.
Once we awoke this morning, Paddy then got started on checking out what happened with my dead Fuji-Xerox printer. I guess he had an investment into it since it was his fiancee's mother who got it for me. Basically once we re-activated the driver, we found out that the feeder was broken. Well, am I gonna blow away 5000 yen on something that I've gotten used to not using anymore? Probably not. During the printer mini-project, Paddy found a way to get back all of my fonts. He just took the computer into Safe Mode, threw away the default cache of fonts and then rebooted. Now I am getting overwhelmed with the wonders of COPPERPLATE and GOTHIC once more.
We went off to the Japanese-style family restaurant, Yume-An, for an early lunch. There, the personal improvement project took on a more esoteric nature. It was threefold: 1) to check on my visa situation since I basically have little more than a year left on my current visa, 2) to see about getting me back on the dating circuit and 3) to get me back into shape since I've been out of it for years.
As for 1), it's pretty much a longshot. Mom contacted me this morning to inform me that my name is indeed not listed on the ancestral family register. I kinda figured that would've been the case. However, Paddy is still encouraging me to getting that form to change my citizenship. I'm pretty loath to change it since I feel that I'm here because I'm NOT Japanese. But practically speaking, I have been here for a decade.
As for 2), this is also a bit of a longshot. Paddy is trying to get me to contact one of the women at the party last night. To be honest, the young lady was pretty nice and she has had a similar career past. However, after she downed virtually all of the expensive wine I'd brought to Shrek's last night and started getting a bit overexcited, I kinda wonder if she'd be my type in any case. That didn't deter Paddy. He just then told me to see if any of my former students would be interested.
The last thing seems to be the most promising. Paddy said he was worried about my health and suggested I go to a gym. I countered by saying that if he could find one near my place, then I would join up. Sure enough, after I'd gotten back from my shopping he left a message saying that he found one on the top of the Seiyu Department Store next to Urayasu Station. Well, I guess I'm committed then (or at least I should be committed). Not too bad pricewise, either. If I join up in the next couple of days, my first month will be 75% off and the weekdays are more inexpensive than the weekends. Paddy will even throw in a training program.
As I mentioned, after I saw Paddy off at the station, I went over to Daiei and pick up a couple of presents for those mutual friends that we're gonna see next Saturday up in Karuizawa. Then, I bought a small tape recorder for taping some assignments for the Hawaiian.
It's been a hot but manageable day. The fan has sufficed for now, but I may be tempted to try out the AC again.
Friday, September 10, 2004
Saturday September 11, 7:25 a.m.
Cloudy and cool...just the way I like it, especially after this summer. And no threat of typhoons anywhere. Quite a shift for a weekend.
Paddy contacted me. Looks like he will be joining me for the party. He's also asked for another stay at Hotel H. I've never been great at taking these sudden reservations.
Cloudy and cool...just the way I like it, especially after this summer. And no threat of typhoons anywhere. Quite a shift for a weekend.
Paddy contacted me. Looks like he will be joining me for the party. He's also asked for another stay at Hotel H. I've never been great at taking these sudden reservations.
Friday September 10, 8:15 p.m.
My lesson with The Teacher this morning initially was a bit of a heart-pouring exercise. It looks like the family underwent one of those parent-teenager blowups last night...hey, happens to everybody. Noone has ever said that teens were the most secure of people. I think she even teared up a bit.
Went out to Maruzen to see if I could pick up a new text for the older sister. I was rather surprised to see that the 4th floor which has all the English-language books was missing half of itself. One half of it has been replaced by an art exhibition. I found out that the closing of the store has been slated for Sept. 25th so they're pushing out their merchandise. Too bad they threw out the stuff I wanted.
So, grumblingly, I headed out to Tokyo Station to check out the schedule for the Nagano Shinkansen when I head out to Karuizawa next weekend...that is, as long as Mt. Asama doesn't blow its top again. Then, I went up to street level and went to the Yaesu Book Centre. Really strange setup there. Escalators take care of the bottom four floors then I have to hoof it up by staircase to reach the 7th floor with its English-language book selection. The elevator, which also starts from 4, decided to take a day off.
I got a quick bite at Wendys,noticing that the skies looked very gray. However, nothing really came of it except for a bit of a spritzer. That's much better than the Typhoon 19 that the weather folks had been threatening us with last week before T19 shrank into a lowly depression.
I made it up to the Tea Room for the first time in 2 weeks where I saw SR for the first time in a few weeks. She had a good time in Korea and even got me a bottle of Korean sesame oil which packs quite a punch compared to its Japanese equivalent. I'll be looking forward to using it on Sunday night.
Well, I gotta load of ironing to do before making some final touches on the kids' lessons tomorrow. Tomorrow's the party at Shrek's new digs. I'll probably bring that wine that one of the Class Act gave me.
Looks like that feared baseball strike here has been averted for at least a week. However,the sword is still hanging over the Japanese majors, getting ready to drop if things don't get resolved by next Friday at 5 p.m.
I see that the much talked about sequel to FRIENDS got off the ground last night. I never got into the show although I have used a few of the episodes in my lessons back at the school for the basic reason that I've spent most of their heyday here in Japan. FRIENDS has been showing here through video and TV but the TV telecast is on late at night and I'm not a video renter.
And tomorrow is the anniversary for 9/11. There will be the special ceremonies but it seems as if the big events at Ground Zero have become a thing of the past.
My lesson with The Teacher this morning initially was a bit of a heart-pouring exercise. It looks like the family underwent one of those parent-teenager blowups last night...hey, happens to everybody. Noone has ever said that teens were the most secure of people. I think she even teared up a bit.
Went out to Maruzen to see if I could pick up a new text for the older sister. I was rather surprised to see that the 4th floor which has all the English-language books was missing half of itself. One half of it has been replaced by an art exhibition. I found out that the closing of the store has been slated for Sept. 25th so they're pushing out their merchandise. Too bad they threw out the stuff I wanted.
So, grumblingly, I headed out to Tokyo Station to check out the schedule for the Nagano Shinkansen when I head out to Karuizawa next weekend...that is, as long as Mt. Asama doesn't blow its top again. Then, I went up to street level and went to the Yaesu Book Centre. Really strange setup there. Escalators take care of the bottom four floors then I have to hoof it up by staircase to reach the 7th floor with its English-language book selection. The elevator, which also starts from 4, decided to take a day off.
I got a quick bite at Wendys,noticing that the skies looked very gray. However, nothing really came of it except for a bit of a spritzer. That's much better than the Typhoon 19 that the weather folks had been threatening us with last week before T19 shrank into a lowly depression.
I made it up to the Tea Room for the first time in 2 weeks where I saw SR for the first time in a few weeks. She had a good time in Korea and even got me a bottle of Korean sesame oil which packs quite a punch compared to its Japanese equivalent. I'll be looking forward to using it on Sunday night.
Well, I gotta load of ironing to do before making some final touches on the kids' lessons tomorrow. Tomorrow's the party at Shrek's new digs. I'll probably bring that wine that one of the Class Act gave me.
Looks like that feared baseball strike here has been averted for at least a week. However,the sword is still hanging over the Japanese majors, getting ready to drop if things don't get resolved by next Friday at 5 p.m.
I see that the much talked about sequel to FRIENDS got off the ground last night. I never got into the show although I have used a few of the episodes in my lessons back at the school for the basic reason that I've spent most of their heyday here in Japan. FRIENDS has been showing here through video and TV but the TV telecast is on late at night and I'm not a video renter.
And tomorrow is the anniversary for 9/11. There will be the special ceremonies but it seems as if the big events at Ground Zero have become a thing of the past.
Thursday, September 09, 2004
Thursday September 9, 8:53 p.m.
Just met Jazz Buddy for her usual lesson up in Shinjuku. Then I had my occasional lunch at Foo Foo. It was the second time in as many visits that the young staff screwed up my order. And it was for the same lunch set...this time, I did remind the waitress through my preprinted receipt what I had ordered and they set it right.
Afterwards, I did my usual rounds of the CD stores and took a look into Tokyu Hands for a bath radio after one of my students suggested I get one so that I can endure the bath a lot longer. I did find one for the reasonable price of 3100 yen. But I held off to give it some more thought. I think I'll get it next week, though. I could use the radio just in case The Big One does hit the Kanto and the power goes out.
Just came straight home after that. I only had a measly salad and peach for dinner since the Foo Foo lunch filled up all my culinary needs. Goes to show how much I've mellowed over the years.
Just met Jazz Buddy for her usual lesson up in Shinjuku. Then I had my occasional lunch at Foo Foo. It was the second time in as many visits that the young staff screwed up my order. And it was for the same lunch set...this time, I did remind the waitress through my preprinted receipt what I had ordered and they set it right.
Afterwards, I did my usual rounds of the CD stores and took a look into Tokyu Hands for a bath radio after one of my students suggested I get one so that I can endure the bath a lot longer. I did find one for the reasonable price of 3100 yen. But I held off to give it some more thought. I think I'll get it next week, though. I could use the radio just in case The Big One does hit the Kanto and the power goes out.
Just came straight home after that. I only had a measly salad and peach for dinner since the Foo Foo lunch filled up all my culinary needs. Goes to show how much I've mellowed over the years.
Wednesday, September 08, 2004
Wednesday September 8, 10:13 p.m.
Sent another package off to the Anime King. It's good that I have an acquaintance working at the post office since she was able to save me a good bit of money by letting me know that I could sent the rather light box through the much more inexpensive "small packet" than the usual Surface Air Lift.
The weather today was hot but not too humid...at least not initially. Still, we are counting our lucky stars here in Tokyo especially after how Typhoon 18 skipped us and struck Hokkaido with record-making force. The same serene Sapporo that I had visited 3 months ago was a wind tunnel. Panels were blown off the TV Tower and a number of those poplar trees that I had passed during my visit to Hokkaido University were blown down. But the really sad thing is that a lot of the apple and pear crops are now kaput due to the storm. Ironic, really, since the rice harvest will probably be one of the best in history.
I met The Hawaiian for the first time in several months at our old meeting place. She didn't look too worse for wear...in fact, I think she was wearing a bit more makeup than usual. Looks like she just wants to keep her English ability up in various ways so I'll be happy to oblige her.
Then it was off to Toranomon for The Office Lady. On the way down there, I took a pit stop at the WAVE CD shop in Shiodome. Some more CDs on my wish list now. I also noticed that American debut CD of Hikaru Utada which has been released a few weeks earlier here. I really don't know how she'll do in her native States. A number of Japanese artists have tried to break into the American market via genres like R&B and heavy metal with little success. Puffy Amiyumi and Shonen Knife could be said to be two of the luckier acts but I can't really say that they have reached mainstream success. Basically, Utada would have to hit the equivalent of a grand slam to pick up any notice. She may be really big in Japan but in the States she'd probably be seen more as a gimmick.
Got back home tonight and just had a dinner of Spam, rice and salad. I'll probably have to stay up until 1 at least just so that I can digest my meal properly.
Looks like that baseball strike may be headed our way as of Friday night. The owners gave the go-ahead to the merger between the Orix and the Buffaloes. Now the owners are striking back by saying that if the players go on the picket lines, they'll sue their employess for breach of contract. So far, the voices have been quite tempered but the results may be ugly. It'll be the very first time that Japanese baseball has ever gone on strike.
Sent another package off to the Anime King. It's good that I have an acquaintance working at the post office since she was able to save me a good bit of money by letting me know that I could sent the rather light box through the much more inexpensive "small packet" than the usual Surface Air Lift.
The weather today was hot but not too humid...at least not initially. Still, we are counting our lucky stars here in Tokyo especially after how Typhoon 18 skipped us and struck Hokkaido with record-making force. The same serene Sapporo that I had visited 3 months ago was a wind tunnel. Panels were blown off the TV Tower and a number of those poplar trees that I had passed during my visit to Hokkaido University were blown down. But the really sad thing is that a lot of the apple and pear crops are now kaput due to the storm. Ironic, really, since the rice harvest will probably be one of the best in history.
I met The Hawaiian for the first time in several months at our old meeting place. She didn't look too worse for wear...in fact, I think she was wearing a bit more makeup than usual. Looks like she just wants to keep her English ability up in various ways so I'll be happy to oblige her.
Then it was off to Toranomon for The Office Lady. On the way down there, I took a pit stop at the WAVE CD shop in Shiodome. Some more CDs on my wish list now. I also noticed that American debut CD of Hikaru Utada which has been released a few weeks earlier here. I really don't know how she'll do in her native States. A number of Japanese artists have tried to break into the American market via genres like R&B and heavy metal with little success. Puffy Amiyumi and Shonen Knife could be said to be two of the luckier acts but I can't really say that they have reached mainstream success. Basically, Utada would have to hit the equivalent of a grand slam to pick up any notice. She may be really big in Japan but in the States she'd probably be seen more as a gimmick.
Got back home tonight and just had a dinner of Spam, rice and salad. I'll probably have to stay up until 1 at least just so that I can digest my meal properly.
Looks like that baseball strike may be headed our way as of Friday night. The owners gave the go-ahead to the merger between the Orix and the Buffaloes. Now the owners are striking back by saying that if the players go on the picket lines, they'll sue their employess for breach of contract. So far, the voices have been quite tempered but the results may be ugly. It'll be the very first time that Japanese baseball has ever gone on strike.
Wednesday September 8, 10:13 p.m.
Sent another package off to the Anime King. It's good that I have an acquaintance working at the post office since she was able to save me a good bit of money by letting me know that I could sent the rather light box through the much more inexpensive "small packet" than the usual Surface Air Lift.
The weather today was hot but not too humid...at least not initially. Still, we are counting our lucky stars here in Tokyo especially after how Typhoon 18 skipped us and struck Hokkaido with record-making force. The same serene Sapporo that I had visited 3 months ago was a wind tunnel. Panels were blown off the TV Tower and a number of those poplar trees that I had passed during my visit to Hokkaido University were blown down. But the really sad thing is that a lot of the apple and pear crops are now kaput due to the storm. Ironic, really, since the rice harvest will probably be one of the best in history.
I met The Hawaiian for the first time in several months at our old meeting place. She didn't look too worse for wear...in fact, I think she was wearing a bit more makeup than usual. Looks like she just wants to keep her English ability up in various ways so I'll be happy to oblige her.
Then it was off to Toranomon for The Office Lady. On the way down there, I took a pit stop at the WAVE CD shop in Shiodome. Some more CDs on my wish list now. I also noticed that American debut CD of Hikaru Utada which has been released a few weeks earlier here. I really don't know how she'll do in her native States. A number of Japanese artists have tried to break into the American market via genres like R&B and heavy metal with little success. Puffy Amiyumi and Shonen Knife could be said to be two of the luckier acts but I can't really say that they have reached mainstream success. Basically, Utada would have to hit the equivalent of a grand slam to pick up any notice. She may be really big in Japan but in the States she'd probably be seen more as a gimmick.
Got back home tonight and just had a dinner of Spam, rice and salad. I'll probably have to stay up until 1 at least just so that I can digest my meal properly.
Looks like that baseball strike may be headed our way as of Friday night. The owners gave the go-ahead to the merger between the Orix and the Buffaloes. Now the owners are striking back by saying that if the players go on the picket lines, they'll sue their employess for breach of contract. So far, the voices have been quite tempered but the results may be ugly. It'll be the very first time that Japanese baseball has ever gone on strike.
Sent another package off to the Anime King. It's good that I have an acquaintance working at the post office since she was able to save me a good bit of money by letting me know that I could sent the rather light box through the much more inexpensive "small packet" than the usual Surface Air Lift.
The weather today was hot but not too humid...at least not initially. Still, we are counting our lucky stars here in Tokyo especially after how Typhoon 18 skipped us and struck Hokkaido with record-making force. The same serene Sapporo that I had visited 3 months ago was a wind tunnel. Panels were blown off the TV Tower and a number of those poplar trees that I had passed during my visit to Hokkaido University were blown down. But the really sad thing is that a lot of the apple and pear crops are now kaput due to the storm. Ironic, really, since the rice harvest will probably be one of the best in history.
I met The Hawaiian for the first time in several months at our old meeting place. She didn't look too worse for wear...in fact, I think she was wearing a bit more makeup than usual. Looks like she just wants to keep her English ability up in various ways so I'll be happy to oblige her.
Then it was off to Toranomon for The Office Lady. On the way down there, I took a pit stop at the WAVE CD shop in Shiodome. Some more CDs on my wish list now. I also noticed that American debut CD of Hikaru Utada which has been released a few weeks earlier here. I really don't know how she'll do in her native States. A number of Japanese artists have tried to break into the American market via genres like R&B and heavy metal with little success. Puffy Amiyumi and Shonen Knife could be said to be two of the luckier acts but I can't really say that they have reached mainstream success. Basically, Utada would have to hit the equivalent of a grand slam to pick up any notice. She may be really big in Japan but in the States she'd probably be seen more as a gimmick.
Got back home tonight and just had a dinner of Spam, rice and salad. I'll probably have to stay up until 1 at least just so that I can digest my meal properly.
Looks like that baseball strike may be headed our way as of Friday night. The owners gave the go-ahead to the merger between the Orix and the Buffaloes. Now the owners are striking back by saying that if the players go on the picket lines, they'll sue their employess for breach of contract. So far, the voices have been quite tempered but the results may be ugly. It'll be the very first time that Japanese baseball has ever gone on strike.
Tuesday, September 07, 2004
Wednesday September 8, 10:08 a.m.
Another good spate of useful e-mail from the buddies. From The Doctor, I found out that Paramount is ready to unleash a massive online Trek game. The way it sounds, it's gonna be a Trekkie's wet dream. For me, I don't really get into games so even a Trek online enterprise wouldn't attract me. Plus with my dialup connection, I'd probably end up just being able to roll the dice within the hour. In addition, I heard that the players cannot take on any of the major characters from at least the Classic series. I'm sure that Shatner and Nimoy wouldn't deign to have their egos violated.
Paddy sent me and one other old fellow from the club our instructions for Karuizawa next week. We'll be staying in a cottage which suits my image of the place. I'm still wondering about whether I should get a reserved ticket on the Bullet. Paddy says that getting a non-reserved ticket should suffice but the next weekend is a long one and I could see most of Tokyo heading out to the hills then. And standing in the Bullet Train is a whole lot less comfy than even standing in the subway. I'll see if I can get a reserved ticket in between lessons on Friday.
Caught Andersen Cooper this morning. Apparently for his Nth Degree segment, he reported on a letter that he'd received from some girl in the "Kochi University Association" in which she and her classmates are willing to be spanked for charity. He snarkingly wondered if this were a hoax. Knowing some of the underbelly of Japanese pop culture, I'd say it was true. However, I'll scour around the Net for proof. Speaking of Andersen and Japan, I wonder what happened with his weekly obsession with the "SEAMANSHIP" SDF commercial.
Riffing a bit on my life here...I've been living in my little apartment for nearly a decade. For the gaijin, that's a bit of a record-setter. A lot of my fellow ex-pats do their share of moving over the years but I've just stayed here. For one thing, my neighbourhood is a good one: a nice mix of young/more established families, single folks and senior citizens plus foreigners within a very residentially-minded area with its schools and restaurants and convenience stores. The other thing is that I see moving in this country as an even more onerous chore than in North America...mostly in procuring that new place. What with all of the bias against foreigners at the real estate agencies, the guarantor hassles and finally the hefty payments of key money, I am far more motivated in keeping this little place.
I live in a 2K which stands for 2 rooms plus kitchen. And I've got a unit bath which is just a plastic modular bathroom with the usual toilet, sink and deep bathtub just like in the West. However, a lot of the locals here rather balk at the thought of having a toilet share space with a bathtub...kinda like a conservative's view on mixed marriages. Toilets should have their own space and the rest of the bathroom is elsewhere.
I'm sure that there are people who wonder how I could spend most of my time in a 6 square metre living room. Those Tom Cruise types could step into my place and smarmingly remark how quaint it was that there could be a building devoted to walk-in closets. Well, my answer is that it's not that bad. I actually have two sofas, a coffee table, a large bookshelf, a stereo and TV, this computer and all sorts of other paraphernalia stuffed into here. And certainly, I've collected my share of stuff over the past 10 years. However, I can survive quite well and believe it or not, there are several things that I actually have to stand up and walk a few steps to get. One educational thing is that thanks to Paddy, I've learned how to rearrange things in a confined space. Having said that, it is a revelation whenever I get back home and realize how spacious my family's home is.
Another good spate of useful e-mail from the buddies. From The Doctor, I found out that Paramount is ready to unleash a massive online Trek game. The way it sounds, it's gonna be a Trekkie's wet dream. For me, I don't really get into games so even a Trek online enterprise wouldn't attract me. Plus with my dialup connection, I'd probably end up just being able to roll the dice within the hour. In addition, I heard that the players cannot take on any of the major characters from at least the Classic series. I'm sure that Shatner and Nimoy wouldn't deign to have their egos violated.
Paddy sent me and one other old fellow from the club our instructions for Karuizawa next week. We'll be staying in a cottage which suits my image of the place. I'm still wondering about whether I should get a reserved ticket on the Bullet. Paddy says that getting a non-reserved ticket should suffice but the next weekend is a long one and I could see most of Tokyo heading out to the hills then. And standing in the Bullet Train is a whole lot less comfy than even standing in the subway. I'll see if I can get a reserved ticket in between lessons on Friday.
Caught Andersen Cooper this morning. Apparently for his Nth Degree segment, he reported on a letter that he'd received from some girl in the "Kochi University Association" in which she and her classmates are willing to be spanked for charity. He snarkingly wondered if this were a hoax. Knowing some of the underbelly of Japanese pop culture, I'd say it was true. However, I'll scour around the Net for proof. Speaking of Andersen and Japan, I wonder what happened with his weekly obsession with the "SEAMANSHIP" SDF commercial.
Riffing a bit on my life here...I've been living in my little apartment for nearly a decade. For the gaijin, that's a bit of a record-setter. A lot of my fellow ex-pats do their share of moving over the years but I've just stayed here. For one thing, my neighbourhood is a good one: a nice mix of young/more established families, single folks and senior citizens plus foreigners within a very residentially-minded area with its schools and restaurants and convenience stores. The other thing is that I see moving in this country as an even more onerous chore than in North America...mostly in procuring that new place. What with all of the bias against foreigners at the real estate agencies, the guarantor hassles and finally the hefty payments of key money, I am far more motivated in keeping this little place.
I live in a 2K which stands for 2 rooms plus kitchen. And I've got a unit bath which is just a plastic modular bathroom with the usual toilet, sink and deep bathtub just like in the West. However, a lot of the locals here rather balk at the thought of having a toilet share space with a bathtub...kinda like a conservative's view on mixed marriages. Toilets should have their own space and the rest of the bathroom is elsewhere.
I'm sure that there are people who wonder how I could spend most of my time in a 6 square metre living room. Those Tom Cruise types could step into my place and smarmingly remark how quaint it was that there could be a building devoted to walk-in closets. Well, my answer is that it's not that bad. I actually have two sofas, a coffee table, a large bookshelf, a stereo and TV, this computer and all sorts of other paraphernalia stuffed into here. And certainly, I've collected my share of stuff over the past 10 years. However, I can survive quite well and believe it or not, there are several things that I actually have to stand up and walk a few steps to get. One educational thing is that thanks to Paddy, I've learned how to rearrange things in a confined space. Having said that, it is a revelation whenever I get back home and realize how spacious my family's home is.