Somewhere over the Ramen Bowl

Ahh and here I was doing so well...

2011-08-05T02:42:00.000-07:00

Well I did pretty good for a few months updating every week or so... And then I once again fall off the bandwagon. OH WELL.

Time to get back up on that horse.

Oh and just so you all know, I also have a webcomic that I pay attention to more than this.

http://novacation.smackjeeves.com/

So please, check it out

April 5th-11th 2010

2011-07-04T21:55:00.000-07:00

I started keeping better track of my days after this so I'll start telling you more details. April 6th was my first day of work, there was no actual work to be done, I just had to come in for a few hours dressed formal, sit around, get a tour, listen to people talk in Japanese and then go home. It was exceptionally boring.

7th was much of the same only I had to give a little speech to the students since I was new. Granted I can't speak Japanese and I later learned, they can't speak English, so it was kind of a failing on all fronts.

8th was also much of the same, only more of me dozing at my desk and going over the textbooks a little.

In hindsight I wish we, (D, K, T and S, the teachers I worked with) would have really taken these first few days to really touch base, make arrangements for a monthly meeting (at minimum) and talked about what we were planning on teaching and when. D and K did this with me in the first week, and we made good arrangement for the Jr1 classes. However S and T made no such arrangements and were two of the most scatterbrained, unorganized and uncommunicative people I have ever met. So for the Jr 2, Jr 3 and Sr 2 classes which I unfortunately taught with them (the REST of my classes basically) You'll notice a slow but sure decent of me going nuts.

The 9th classes started. I had made a cute little "Classroom English" worksheet for my classes since I didn't realize how LOW these girls English was.

Each grade was split into 2 to 4 groups, and every class the 2 to 4 teachers would rotate between them. You'd think with such a style of teaching communicating what chapters you covered, what questions you answered or what problems you had in class would be priority. We had books that we'd pass back and fourth to tell each other what we did.
Assuming the teacher before bothered to fill it out.
Or had legible writing.
Or wrote in English.

10th Soda and I packed up his apartment. My packing was easy. Everything I owned still fit in two suitcases. Soda had more problems and needed to borrow two mini vans for all his stuff.

By the 11th we were all moved into the new place. It was lovely. My bedroom was larger than the old apartment, had two gorgeous sun facing windows, we were next to the train tracks but I sleep with earplugs anyway so I can live with it.

We would be paying about Y60,000 to 65,000 depending on utilities.

From the move I owed Soda about 3g in money and back-rent. But with my pay I'd be able to get that back to him in about 2 months.

April 2nd 2010

2011-06-30T21:54:00.000-07:00

Still having issues with Soda now that we've been looking at places. I told him I needed him to talk to me more and I think he's being more honest towards me with his feelings and I've been more honest towards him with my feelings since we almost broke up in October.

However an "Honesty of feelings" is that he says "Fuck you bitch." to me a lot more often, and I now call him a cunt all the time, oh and we no longer have sex.
You'd think something like 2 months with no sex (Not that I've been really denying him, but he's not trying and the two times he did was at like 1am when I was just falling asleep after I'd worked all day, and needed to be up by 6am to work again) would kind of mean something is really wrong. But I just figure he's finally disgusted enough by me or that he really does think I'm fat since he keeps on hinting at that.

I don't really care. I've lost weight since I started dating him and I've lost weight since I came back to Japan and if he wants a stick then he can date a Japanese girl.

Anyway just kind of getting this off my chest so that I can be calm with him.
Once I move (even though he's insisting on moving with me) our apartment will be a 2 bedroom deal so once I pay him back for the move I'll fully break up with him. I've been hinting at a break up for a while now (getting a job so far away, telling him I don't want him to move in with me, asking him if he's sure he wants to move because what if we break up, asking him if he's sure since he's so far away from where he's been living for so long.) And we've had some fights where I basically tell him I don't like him anymore. But then he always cozies up to me and begs and whines and pleads and like the weak willed girl I am I always take him back (but mostly because I'm living in his apartment now and I can't afford to leave)

Hopefully getting some space from him and some finances will help me grow a pair.

March 2010

2011-06-27T21:52:00.000-07:00

Still doing a lot of interviews and playing a LOT of World of Warcraft. Finally being level 80 and a damn good healer I'm getting in on some nice raiding groups and starting to get myself some top tier gear. I'm hoping to be like somewhat impressive when Cata comes out so that I can roll with the big boys and start doing some of the new content stuff asap.

Been kind of derby with cooking. Being cheap and also just not very inspired to try new things. Forgot my good cookbook for chicken recipes (which you can switch over for anything) back in Canada.

I got hired for a job that finally met my requirements.
Y280,000/month fixed salary.
Paid summer and winter vacations as well as national holidays and any school vacations.
And we had a month to arrange moving to Kanagawa where the school was.

It was a Jr/Sr privet school for rather wealthy girls. SAI (not it's real name) was an international school.

It was a nice place and the other teachers seemed really nice too, I'd be a full fledged teacher and NOT and ALT. I wasn't sure how I felt about that since it was actually ILLEGAL for me to do that (I don't have a teaching degree in Japan so legally I'm not supposed to solo teach)

That should have been the first warning.

It started in April.

Soda and I were kind of on edge still. He was constantly "busy" with his new project, trying to become a self sufficient web programmer. I told him that he'd have to learn to speed up his programming abilities or charge more money if he wanted to be able to hack it as a programmer. Most of those guys made like 10g on a two or three month project. Soda had been working on this for 5 months now and only making like 2g give or take a month.

I started looking for an apartment closer to my work, occasionally insisting that he NOT come with me for this move since I was becoming more and more uncertain as to where our relationship was going. I was tired with him, tired of him never cleaning, never wanting to touch me, only ever mocking me and my interests and my goals. We hadn't had sex since the first night I'd returned from Canada in January, because he was constantly "Too Busy" and I was "annoying him" when I tried to get frisky, and by frisky I mean sit beside him on the sofa.

Still we located a 2DK at the end of the month and made arrangements to move in, in the first week of April, two days after I started working. It was a nice place and between the two of us cheaper than the last place. Each of us had our own room, our own space and I was REALLY hoping that would make things better between us.

February 2010

2011-06-23T21:50:00.000-07:00

More interviews, drawing something everyday and trying to get as many comics done for http://novacation.smackjeeves.com/ as I can so I have a buffer. Also started http://lastpage.smackjeeves.com/ but it's more of a spam of comic like things with the same characters from Novacation.

I got a job offer at a school out in the middle of no where. I said yes hesitantly at first because at the initial interview they seemed like they were a pretty good deal. Everything I was asking for.

And then the sneaky other shoe dropped.

-I had to come in for one week of administrative days and be on call during my vacations, but it was at an 80% pay cut, so I couldn't actually LEAVE Japan or go anywhere JUST IN CASE they needed me. If I skipped these days I'd get no pay.
-I had a Y50,000 "bonus" that if I NEVER called in sick or was late in a month, I'd get. Granted it was WITH this bonus that I would be earning Y250,000.
-it was out in the MIDDLE of NOWHERE. Two hours away from Tokyo, the school was a 20 minute bike ride from the closest station I'd actually be working at 3 schools each about 5 minutes by bike from one another and the closest place they could arrange for me to live was still an hour away by train and like Y80,000 in rent and was the size and appearance of a cardboard box.
-Oh and they wouldn't even pay my travel cost.

Needless to say at the end of hearing all that I declined the position. Funny how these things don't come up until you're actually READING the contract. I got burnt once with tricky contracts with Green Tea highschool I wasn't about to be smacked again.

January 2010

2011-06-20T06:48:00.000-07:00

So 2009 was back in Canada
Now for 2010.

I came back to Japan around the 15th. Watched District 9 (8/10) 9 (The animation, made no sense. 5/10) and Funny People (Am I a bad person if I think this is the funniest Adam Sandler movie and yet when he didn't die I was disappointed? 7/10)

Of course, long plane ride was long. Soda let his hair grow out long and I kind of like that scruffy look. He was pretty nice and considerate to me this month, I guess I'd just gotten back and I cleaned everything and he knew he was stepping on eggshells with me at the moment since our big fight in October 2009.

I kickstarted my webcomic http://novacation.smackjeeves.com/ back up finally posting everything and seriously working on it.

I started going to interviews, I had enough money saved so I didn't HAVE to get a job until March but I wanted to get one asap but I also was being picky. Nothing under Y250,000/month, no children under 10, National holidays, summer and winter vacations off. Really that's not even that unreasonable, it's just having standards. My new years resolution was to be happy with my life, I was not going to put up with any shit this year.

Another reason why I like teaching at Eikaiwa's

2011-06-16T05:04:00.000-07:00

I teach at an Eikaiwa again now. Sometimes I hate it but sometimes you meet the coolest people. I just met a lady that volunteers with abused and orphaned kids, setting them up with apartments since kids without parents can't get apartments in Japan without guaranteers. It's a really awesome service that she does and I'm glad to have met her.

Oopse

2011-06-15T21:57:00.000-07:00

Sorry about that little Hiatus, going to start the twice a week blogging again next week. On one hand I'd like to stay a year behind where I am in life just so I'm not blogging about anyone I know. Especially with this last 2010 and how THAT ended (you'll catch the hints. NOT GOOD) but then I want to mention some things in my life that are happening now (2011 earthquake for one)

Oh well in good time.

February 2nd, 2009

2011-06-06T06:00:00.000-07:00

I LIIIVVEE

I still have the cough when I go outside but I'm pretty much healthy now, taking my last dose of meds today in a last ditch effort to truly be rid of my illness.

I calculated that including travel time I "Work" or am in a work related situation 54 hours a week.

I didn't count any of my lunch breaks (Which can be between 1 hr and 3 hrs) but if I did I'd be topping over 60. No wonder I was tired.

But this month my Friday Classes at Green Tea have been cancelled so I only have 3 classes at Kita, Saturday's are going to be taken over by the new teacher so then I'll have two days off a week. IN A ROW!!
In March I'm only working the first two Mondays and then I'll be going home.

*sigh*

I'm so excited.

I'm also going to Disney Land on the 9th.

January 29th, 2009

2011-06-02T06:00:00.001-07:00

Sick and tired of being sick and tired…

It's been over a month now since I started coughing and I'm tired of it.

I'm tired of being sleepy all the time, I'm tired of working double shifts, I'm tired of new students I'm tired of old students I'm tired of working I'm tired of teaching.

I'm tired of having to travel anywhere between 2 to 4 hours to get to and from work, I'm tired of having to stay at work for 8 hours but only getting paid for 5 of them because "The three hour unpaid break is my time" but when "My Time" doesn't leave me available to actually do anything I really want to do thus leaving me with the option of looking like a useless dick at my desk that's physically in the way of other people it's not REALLY *MY* time is it?

I'm tired of working in a dusty and probably asphestus filled school and I'm tired of having to plan 16 different classes at entirely different levels dealing with different materials every week.

I'm tired of having to solider through when I'm sick and I'm really fucking tired of telling the manager in OCTOBER I was done in FEBRUARY so find my replacement PLZ K THX and being informed that he needs me until the 14th OF MARCH.

Coincidently the day before I GET ON A FUCKING PLANE AND LEAVE.

No.

No that is not happening. February 29th is my last day of work I don't care what you have to do for the next three weeks I'm done. I'm tired and I've got shit to do and I didn't want to work anyway. You've got my smily fun loving devotion until midnight on the 29th and then you've got my sullen non-existance at your place of work and I DON'T CARE if you don't even pay me for that last month.

Because I'm willing to lose 1,000$ in wages just to be able to have TWO FUCKING DAYS OFF

because I've been sick for a month and I'm FUCKING TIRED.

January 27th, 2009

2011-05-30T06:00:00.000-07:00

Still Sick…
But getting better. On the medication front, I went through each of the pills and looked up what they were online, picked the medication I thought I needed and stopped taking the other ones. I think my "Suddenly getting worse and vomiting" symptoms were due to overmedication. Something you kind of have to be careful about in Japan since the doctors like to give a lot of medicine and as a westerner, I'm not used to that.

I found a user on youtube that has all the gargoyles episodes, you guys remember that show? Watching it again, it's just as fucking awesome. At points even more so.

You can see how the show appeals to kids, the plot at points is very simple and there are usually little messages in each episode that even kids can get (Especially "The Pack" episode where the message was blatantly "Don't believe everything you see on TV, sometimes the cool actors are assholes in real life" and the "Gunz R Bad" episode) The characters are built simply enough so that kids can understand them.

But then you can also see the things that appeal to adults in it too, mentioning Dochoveski (a name few adults will know and no kids that's for sure) classical mythology and literature references, as well as movie references. Episode 10 of season one there's a scene where Hudson (The old man) is being pursued by Demona (The "Bad chick") and she chases him through a sewer to the end of the sewer which falls off into a large reservoir. She's got a gun and is all "Give it up, this is the end!" and he just looks at her and STEPS BACK OFF THE LEDGE.

Anyone remember the name of that movie where that happens? I'll have to ask the boyfriend when he comes home tonight.

Some things (mainly the stuff that makes the show good for kids) bother me, like how dumb Demona is. And McBeth, I mean I can't remember the episode (maybe 8 or 9) (I think 8) when he tries to capture the other gargoyles in an attempt to get Demona, once Goliath says "She wouldn't lift a talon to save us" why doesn't McBeth just stop right there and go "Wait... She hates you guys? You're enemies? WELL ME TOO!" I mean even if he believed Goliath to be lying he could have just explained everything better.

It also bothers me that Goliath at face value always talks of kindness and patience and yet that's only when dealing with other peoples problems, once things affect him directly he's blowing his top left right and centre. And he doesn't think things through for all the "Wisdom" he says he values.

Zanatos is pretty cool, I mean he's an overly rich exceptionally bored guy, I'm not sure if he's a "Self made millionaire" (Probably not considering the bored aspect of him ((Oopse, no as it turns out he is, only in a magical kind of odd way)) but when someone always has money they've basically got three choices:
1) Follow in their parents footsteps and keep making more money generally becoming a fat greedy jerkface.
2) Piss it all away by doing stupid things a'la Paris Hilton
3) Become the motherfucking BEST at everything in such a way that you're so great you want to have sex with yourself and then pursue any crazy whim that strikes your fancy because you're so fucking rich YOU CAN.

I really appreciate #3, Bill Gates did it, if we want to talk real life, his parents were well off but he used them to do even better by pursuing what he wanted to do.
Tony Stark did it making Iron Man, in fact Zanatos and Tony really are alike only Tony went the "Righteous" route and Zanatos went the "Whatever amuses me the most" route.

Oddly enough Self Made money tends to do those things too. Angelina Jolie did #2 and now she's kinda doing #3.
Tom Cruise is somewhere between #2 and #3 depending on your opinion of "Crazy" and what you think Scientology is worth.

Anyway, I'm gonna keep watching ^_^

January 20th, 2009

2011-05-26T06:00:00.000-07:00

I'm Dying…

Scary part is I'm scared I really might be.

Back in December it started, just a little cough and a tiny fever. Fever went away but the cough stayed nagging and insistent for three weeks. I go back to work after a winter vacation that mostly involved me sleeping and playing video games because of the cough. Two weeks into work the cough is going away, Hallelujah, I may be healthy yet.

On Friday night I'm heading home on the train and I get into a coughing fit that has me dry heaving.

"Okay okay"
I think
"I haven't been sleeping well, I'm back at school, going outside and was rained on yesterday. I'll be fine"

I call in sick to work for the next day thinking a 2 day weekend should set me right.
Soda says enough is enough and drags me to a Doctor. I've been keeping him awake with my sick for like… A month and a half.

I go to the Doctor, no fever, no rasping in the chest but he says these 4 week minor colds are becoming this cold season normal, prescribes me 5 different medications and sends me on my way (Whut? 5???)

I'm thinking I probably just caught something in the waiting room at the doctors office.

Yesterday I go from having a little annoying cough to full blown fever, runny nose and vomiting. I dunno if it was the pills or what but my stomach hurt and everything tasted like paper.

I fight with the boyfriend to tell me the side effects of the pills. He doesn't, just telling me to trust the doctor, the doctor knows all. I argue with him more and finally he reads the goddamn warning instructions that come with the medication.

Then he actually looks at my medicine and says "Oh, if you get a rash you have to stop taking them immediately and see a doctor. And don't worry if you start pissing blood."

0_0 PISSING BLOOD IS A COMMON SIDE EFFECT?!?
(Apparently not blood, but just red pee, I guess there's a dye in one of them)

I took a dose last night before bed, threw it right back up and figured it better to skip the dose than re-take it.

I didn't sleep at all last night. I kinda did, a little, but the coughing and sneezing and drooling (I drool when I need to throw up) generally kept me awake. I'm awake now, my eyes just hurt from being up and my body feels tired.

I took one of my pills that was supposedly the anti-biotic this morning, if I can keep it down I'm just going to slowly take medicine all day.

I just feel like I'm getting worse and I don't know what to do since I've called in sick to one of my jobs two days now (I called in for tomorrow too so that will be three)

I'm worried about Wednesday because that's the last class for the third year students in Green Tea so I really don't want to call in sick but if I feel like this I will.

Now I need to go brush my teeth to get the taste of infection out of my mouth.

January 18th, 2009

2011-05-23T06:00:00.000-07:00

In an attempt to get funding to create female viagra psychologists have done a little faulty research to create a new problem for us to drug ourselves over.

Female Sexual Disfunction.

Great, it's nice to know now that it's not that our significant other can't find our clitoris or centuries of bad body image pressing down on us. It's just WE'RE the dysfunctional ones.

yay?

Female arousal is attached to many strange emotional, physical and mental connections. There is really no one drug or pheromone that is fired off in the brain that forces an orgasm or an arousal. A woman can get turned on by smells, the right touch, the right time, the right book, the right food.

Because a woman wants to have sex but can't might not be an issue of chemicals but simply something else.

Or maybe it's chemicals but I hope this isn't come cure all that they'll throw at women who are having problems in the sack when the real issue is that they've got a 5 minute man who doesn't want to or know how to go down on them

2009

2011-05-21T23:44:00.000-07:00

Pretty sure I've got 2009 up in archive somewhere because I remember blogging about it so I'm going to skip over that and go right into 2010.

Earthquake 2011

2011-03-11T19:29:00.001-08:00

Just to let everyone know that me and mine are all safe here in Japan.

The area's most affected were Miyagi, Fukoshima, Iwate, Ibaraki, Hokkaido (east side) and Aomori. Areas such as Chiba, Tokyo and Kanagawa received minimal damage. Luck of lucks the area where I live in Kanagawa (Kawasaki-shi) received zero damage. Looking outside at a perfectly sunny day seeing all that damage on the news is just surreal.

My thoughts and prayers to those who are in the danger zone.

It was an 8.8 quake, numbers that I last checked had 1300 people dead or missing.

Even one life is horrendous, but the Japanese government, rescue teams and preventions forces have been working valiantly to protect and help as many people as they can and have been doing an amazing job. No other country on earth could have been more prepared, together and dedicated to keeping their people safe in this time of turmoil. My praise to their dedication and skills. Without each and every one of them, this disaster could have been a million times worse.

2011-03-05T17:24:00.000-08:00

January 7th, 2009
-Real ending to the Sk8ter Boi song…

ten more years roll down the road
She's doing okay on her own.
Raising a wonderful baby
She doesn't even watch TV

But the skater boy she knows
Hit the girls, groupies and blow.
She heard from her friend Stacy
He just filed for bankruptcy....

DUN DUN DUN DUN

He was a skater boy, she said see you later boy.
Things all worked out in the end.
Money and being on TV don't equate to being happy
We make due with what we're given.

He was a skater boy she said see you later boy
she's heading back to college
He's back on skid row, missed out on high school you know
STD's are what fame gave him...

No, No I'm not saying all skater boys turn out to be STD ridden losers or that mommy bloggers will one day be able to get off their asses and do something with their life, I just feel like the song was really quite narrow minded to say that someone who in high school "has it all" is going to lose it all and someone who "Had nothing" will get their dreams fulfilled.
Chances are BOTH of their lives are going to suck balls.

December 31st, 2008

2011-03-02T17:24:00.001-08:00

Well it's a few moments to Midnight in Japan so by the time I post this maybe I can hit it exactly.

A year in Review:
2008: Year of the Rat

Resolutions for this year:
Get 200 pages of comic done
Save more money for PBS or House.
Stay happy and don't put up with peoples shit
More Veg, Less McGrease

Heyyy three out of 4 is pretty good.
I got 58 pages of comic done this year and had them all posted up on my website. In August the website sadly had to come down due to money issues so I gave up on drawing at that point.
I've got about $3,000 in the PBS account (new record!) and about 300,000¥ saved up to be sent home. Yay!
I was pretty content this year actually. Other than some boyfriend bitching which was more me being a relationship perfectionist things this year have been great.
I lost 4lbs. this year, did two months of eating really healthy and I only eat out (at all) about once a month.

January:
COLD in CANADA
God taxes, I hate taxes so much.
Brother did something ENORMOUSLY dumb and now his official name is "Shithead" in our family. But hopefully this gets him on the right track.
Watched a godawful lot of anime and read a horrendus amount of manga.

February:
Made a lot of pork chops. And 4 cakes for Soda since the first three didn't turn out for Valentines. Went to a lot of Maid Cafe's and Soda got ChuuChuu'ed at one which traumatized him for LIFE. I find out I like some pretty obscure movies. Scientology scares the crap out of me and Cyborg girls become a distinct possibility of being the norm in the next 10 years.

March:
Scientology is still scary. I still make lots of pork chops.
I finally get a job offer but it doesn't start until April.

April:
Went to Tokyo International Anime Fair. It was pretty awesome but would have been so much more Awesome with Wing and Ziggy and if I could speak Japanese.
Got my monies from the governments. Started working at Flower Tea Highschool which is a blast.
Watched Dragon Wars which has to be one of THE shittiest movies ever.

May:
Happy Birfday to me!!
Maid costumes oh my! Lots of work and savings. RD_The came and visited, good times were had by all!

June:
Blood Noir is all about STD's and has no plot.
Cloverfield is about STD's that attack a city, and has no plot.
Crazy Japanese people are Crazy and should not be given sharp objects.

According to some feminists, when women masturbate they're thinking about God and Rainbows, when a man does it he's raping someone.
Laurel Hamilton had 5 good books and then realized porn sells and gave up on the whole "Writing" thing.
At least the Anita Blake comic can go for 5 books worth of issues before it has to drop the title because it's an action comic and not a porn and starting with book 6 onward there is no longer a plot.

July:
Children are not adults unless all adults are retards.
I meet Soda's family.
I procrastinate a LOT
Went camping, it was cold and there may or may not have been zombies.
Went on a boat trip and got burnt to a crisp

August:
Go back to Canada
Iz Are Homesickz
I HAZ NO MONIES!

September:
Work work work. I has no monies!
School festival is pretty awesome sauce.

October:
Hot fuzz is BEST MOVIE EVER!
IORN MAN MADE MY GEEK SO HAPPY!!
1 guy at work quits, nother guy gets fired, third guy who's supposed to replace these guys quits. I work too much now.
but...
money money money mooonnneeey... MOOOooneeeYYYY

November:
OBAMA!
He's black you know.
I can live off 100¥ a day if I have to. And in Canada I could live off less.
Food wise at least, count in rent or something and that shit an't happening.
Found blog widelawns.blogspot.com and I really like it.

December:
Work work work.
Gotta get marking done.
I Get sick, BF get's sick, I get sick again. I'm still sick. I don't think we've had sex all month.
I get nothing for x-mas, but I don't care.
I give Ziggy a handmade scarf and some socks and candy. I give ex-nova students some toys and j-staff a journal. I give Soda a hand made scarf. I might buy him a rice cooker since he wants one.
Still sick.

HAPPY NEW YEARS!!

Resolution for this year:
Be Happy.
-Get a Job I like and not one that I just have to deal with, be the leaf in the stream, go with the flow.
Eat Healthy
-No more "Fast Food" (Anything that takes under 5 minutes to receive) This includes convenience store snacks and meals.
Educate yourself
-Go to School, Learn Japanese, Learn something else, Have fun, study what you want, not what you have to.
Plan your Future, achieve your dreams
-Decide what I'm gong to do for the next 3-5 years. Make a schedule.
Pandora
-Work on it with RD_the
World Of Warcraft
-Get someone to Lv 80 already. Or at least 60.

Lets see how I do, I mean some of these are pretty hard but I'm gonna do em.

December 25th 2008

2011-02-17T17:27:00.001-08:00

Ziggy and I got a little tree and gave each other little gifts, and while Christmas is supposed to be a time for your significant other I spent it with Zig. It's not like Soda had anything planned for me anyway.

There was a Christmas Party in Kita Senju with some ex-BunnyCo people and I went and brought everyone presents, but I wasn't feeling well and had to work. I've been kind of under the weather lately but not really able to rest too much since I'm still working more often then I'm not.

Got like 3 days off for new years so yay?

Long time no see, Happy new year, Have a rant.

2011-01-17T04:00:00.001-08:00

I'm not Japanese, but I hate other foreigners sometimes.

Sometimes you hear about Japanese people being racist, and certainly this can be true at points, certain laws and rules that they make can indeed be racist sometimes and occasionally certain things like blackpaint or books about black kids depicting them as savages with big lips will get printed and be acceptable here. It's not really racism in some of these cases but simply not even know why there is a problem. It's more of a breed of naivety since non-Japanese people only make up 1% of the population and of that 1% maybe only 10% actually give a shit.

But sometimes you here about Japanese people being racist, and actually it is the person pulling the race card being racist.

Especially when it comes to language.

Somehow English speakers especially have this sense of entitlement as though all of Japan needs to speak their language, and if communication breaks down due to a lack of English being spoken clearly it is the Japanese speakers fault. Which pisses me off to no end.

If you went to America and spoke any other language but English, a country that HAS NO OFFICIAL LANGUAGE and of which THE MAJORITY DON'T SPEAK ENGLISH in certain cases you would get laughed out of the joint. Certainly for the sake of business you should try to cater to other languages but in a country where only 1% may or may not speak the language WHY THE HELL would it be the Japanese persons fault if they can't assist you, when you can't speak the language of the land?

Just... ugh. I'm going to go study my Japanese now.

December 6th 2008

2010-10-24T00:40:00.000-07:00

I've been in a foul mood recently and I'm not sure why though.
I think it's because back in October I was so excited about having a huge vacation in December. I was totally looking forward to only working twice a week and then getting a few weeks off.
But now I work every day but Sunday, and have been doing double shifts all November (also, working 6 days a week) And frankly, I'm not getting paid enough for this shit, and it's stressing me out.
(The reason for this being at my part time job at EC one of the other teachers up and quit suddenly and angrily so I took over what classes of his I could, but this means I work 6 days a week 4 of those days being double shifts.)

It's bothering me that at Tea High the boss is passive aggressively blaming me for quitting after a year (What do you expect you only give me 12 hours a week!!) and because I can't find someone to replace myself. (I could if you don't mind a pervert)
I love my school, and I'd love to go back to that school, but I don't think I'll be able to when I come back from Japan just because it's too much to have two bosses and two sets of students always needing your time, and that school WON'T give me full time (They CAN but they WONT because if I work over 24 hours then they have to pay for heath insurance for me so they'd rather hire 4 teachers working 12 hours a week than 1 teacher working 40 hours a week, or 2 teachers working 24, I have no idea who's in their math department but they're an idiot)

It's bothering me that at EC the boss tells me every time one of my students quits or whatnot, giving me a big ol' story for it. It's just his way of saying it's not my fault, but by telling me it's not my fault MAKE ME THINK IT'S MY FAULT. But quite possibly this is just his way.

It's bothering my that I feel so fat right now, but all I want to do is eat fatty greasy foods and eat like a fucking asshole. I was on a diet for October and I did really good. I stayed on the horse for all of November and then I decided to give myself a little treat for saving money and BAM I'm CRAVING eating crap like you wouldn't believe.
My ID is screaming for it in a manner that it didn't cry for it when I started this damn diet. And I'm swimming now and exercising a bit but I keep looking in the mirror and all I see is my ass and looking at it makes me think "Oh god you've got to get rid of that" and "I just want a hug and some chicken nuggets"
I finally snapped and yelled at my boy for calling me a manatee all the time and saying I'm heavy and soft.
He hasn't said those things to me since but it could also be because I haven't let him touch me in 2 weeks and am always complaining about being fat, I think he's finally adding 2 and 2 together because I bemoaned a picture of me at the beach where it looked like I had a ball strapped to my ass but no, it was just my ass, he then said he thought the picture was lovely and I looked very nice.

Nice try jackass, I started going to the gym in the first place because you keep telling me I need to get in better shape.

Anyway, all of this is just building and building that last night started my actual "Bad Mood" when the boy requested Lasagna for dinner, and then didn't come home for it, and then when he DID come home, he brought chicken nuggets with him, which woke me up and put me in a worse mood because I wanted to eat them but I just had Lasagna which is already Fat McFatty cheese pants and just made me feel like a cow.

When I woke up this morning I just woke up pissed off and while my day has been "Same ol same ol" I've just been a grouch all day.

I can't wait until summer, I hate winter, I hate christmas, I hate the cold. At least when I'm hot and bitchy I'm just whiny but secretly happy cus I can have icecream and I like the idea of getting naked and standing under the air con.

November 5th, 2008

2010-10-19T06:33:00.000-07:00

So Ziggy's work had a Halloween party and since I didn't have anything else to do I decided to pop down there and help. And man did they put me to work, drawing things and colouring things and then running down to the shop to buy like 3 lb.s of apples. (Like 20) since only 4 were eaten in the apple bob. (Well not eaten so much as gnawed on and then thrown out) and no one else wanted them I took the rest home. (Hey free apples) but they were kind of dry and tart so I've made like 10 small pies and a bunch of tarts and Ziggy took some to work and I took some to work and everyone has been thoroughly pied.

I LIKE BAKING.

Also did a zombie movie marathon. And am obsessing over survival from the zombie apocalypse…

hmm

2010-10-16T21:18:00.001-07:00

for some reason my links aren't working when I have them ingrained in my posts...

No worries, not like I link anything important but still that a kick in the nuts >:[

October 14th 2008

2010-10-16T21:11:00.001-07:00

Who's got two thumbs and went to the Tokyo Game Show yesterday?
*Points to self with thumbs*
THIS GUY!

Well we left the house at about 8:50 to get there by 9:30, about a 1/2 hour before the doors opened in hopes the line wouldn't be too long, now the line wasn't as long as it could have been, but it was still freeking long. (Although not as bad as say, Komiket.)

at 10 the doors opened and it took maybe 10 min before we could get in.

The first two booths upon entry were the SNK booth and Koei.
They were impressive I must say, towering over with huge screens projecting their latest games.
SNK's displayed released were a little well... boring.

Their major title was King of Fighters 14 (FOURTEEN for crying out loud, and people say Nintendo is beating the Mario dead horse) I would expect, in this day and age, for most fighting games to either be playing to nostalgia with flat fighter style, or at least have some king of interesting presentation if they're not going 3D
King of fighters 14 had the same characters, same background, same design and basically same everything as King of fighters 1 thru 13. I'd definitely toss that into the "do not buy" pile as if you have any of the other titles, you already own about 90% of the new game anyway.

They were also releasing a bunch of dating sim's for your cellphone.

Koei was selling a racehorsing game for the Wii (GI Jokey something)

For the PS3 they were releasing the new Dynasty Warriors, which while lovely to look an and fun to play is essentially the same as all the other Dynasty warriors (Oh you'll be hearing this complaint a lot, don't worry)expanded maps, maybe a few new characters and slightly different missions but basically, singlehandedly defeat this huge army for your leaders. YAY!!

Taito was off to the side marketing Cooking Mama for the Wii They also had Gardening Mama and a few other games hidden under the weight of our hard working Mama.
If you've played the DS version don't bother to get the Wii one, I for one prefer the Japanese version of Cooking Mama over the English one, not because it has something extra to it, but because it's actually challenging to do when you're not sure what the instructions are. Cooking Mama on Wii is nearly impossible to control because there is a certain level of delicacy that comes into the game which the Wiimote has a hard time reading. The two hosts for the game giving the demo had a hell of a time passing level one because the Wiimote wouldn't read their instructions half of the time.

Continuing our walk around I was a little bombarded by everything, the amount of people had significantly increased by this time and we were kind of forced to go with the flow, we passed some Ninja Blade booth with a guy handing out ninja snacks, We found an empty game area where we played "Spectrobes" for the DS. It's a strange game and since it's all in Japanese I'm not sure I quite got the point of it. You run around an area defeating monsters that are stuck in a vortex with your battling... pokemon things. (Well more Digimon since they de-evolve outside of battle) once you defeat them your digimon can locate these gems under ground which you dig out and I guess do something with them. (My booth babe was pressuring me to get to the boss as fast as possible. "Go Go Fight, OKAY Go fight!" I felt like the Digimon... It was interesting and kind of fun, I'd buy it but I doubt we're ever going to see it in English.

We moved on from there to the Biohazard (or Resident Evil in English) Degradation movie booth. The clip for it looks neat, I mean just what I want to see. It's all done in English (Because the characters are all English) in a way it's one HUGE cut scene but I often just like to watch other people play video games so in that case this is a perfect movie for me. It seems like it's been well planned out so I'm hoping for the best when it does come out.
and LEEEOOONNN *fangirl squeel*
Resident Evil 5 looks okay. I never caught on what the plot was (too much Japanese) but we can all guess. Blah Blah Spanish Zombies or something.
The upside: Your AI isn't a little girl who ducks at the sight of anything and is completely useless.
The Downside: Your AI has a habit of stabbing you if you get to close to a zombie and it just LOVES to jump in front of you just as you're about to shoot something.

Castlevania Judgment looks good, Devil May Cry play style but the terrine is a tribute to the old style Castlevania games. (You can recognize the rooms) I don't know if you battle armies or if it's just a one on one match fighting the demo's they gave were very small.

The biggest line I saw for any of the games was a line 2 1/2 hours long, for Idol Master for the PSP.
...
only in Japan.

Demon Souls looks rather slow and frumpy

Resistance 2 looks pretty good. I mean for a Halo kind of game.
At least your AI isn't a retard.

Way of the Samurai 3 looks kind of nifty but too much talking, it's nice that you can kill nearly everyone.

At the international pavilions the Australia group Fuzzyeyes was selling Edge of Twilight (set to come out Mid 2009) It looks kind of like a steampunk mixed with God of war kind of game. The story sounds rather interesting (so long as they're careful with scripting and voice acting and the right balance of cutscenes) the game play is pretty good, the terrine looks nifty (But I imagine it gets quite repetitive after a while. But I was excited over it, not because it was that impressive, but more because it was the only thing there that was not a sequel of some sort.

I guess overall TGS was pretty awesome, we got some interesting swag, the student exhibits I say were the coolest and most original along with the smaller international companies, I was disappointed with all the major companies (Capcom, Bandai, Koei, Taito, SNK, SEGA, ect, ect) because they were just releasing the same things that had already sold before. Innovative the first time around does not make it innovative the second or fifth time around.
PLZ STOP BEATING DA HORSE! IZ DEAD!!

But the Student showings were interesting and fun, so I have hope for the future. The small company international games looked good, so here's hoping they do well

All and all a fun time to be had.

September 30th, 2008

2010-10-11T04:50:00.001-07:00

So effing SAD because my camera's batteries just died on me yesterday when I was at Tall-Mali's going away party. (I just realized the nick I have for her is tamali, like the candy)

So the school festival was petty cool, I was expecting at least my boyfriend to come with me, and if not him then one of my pervert friends.
YET while they all asked (and begged and pleaded) to come, none of them actually showed. Which is a kick in the nuts since I told the students at least my boyfriend would come and they kept asking "Where's your boyfriend" which get's really annoying to explain and is just a jab every time.
*headdesk*

Other than that it was awesome, each year had a quiz show thing, I didn't do too bad although some of the questions they tossed out the window (for lack of English) and just had be do a quick game of rock paper scissors.
There was a live concert inside and out with the schools bands (rock) Some were pretty good and got a crowed, some were pretty harsh and drove that crowed away.

There were cafe's and small food stands and cookies.

The brass band performed (pretty good) and so did the Marital Arts club (which was scary to watch because damn those girls are vicious.)

I was going to go home at 3 but A-sensei saw me leaving and asked about my "performance" which the kids wanted me to do, however it got canceled (actually, I think I just got replaced because I can't speak Japanese and it just made everything way too complicated)
But he insisted I hang out until the "After school" performance which the kids do.
So I went and sat with some students and watched a more animated play by the Tai Chi club and the Brass Band club and each class did a Mr and Mrs play which people voted on. They gave prizes and cried about this being their last year and thanking everyone for a nice festival. It was all very nice, if not mildly confusing for me.
Afterward there were fireworks.

(ooo)

Unlike the university festival I went to this one was SO MUCH LESS EXPENSIVE!!
I guess at the university they want to make a little bit of a profit, whereas here they just need to make cost (or not even since this is a rich kids school so I'm sure expenses like the festival are included in school fees) So something like a cup of tea was 50yen ($0.50) or the food was 1 or 2$ Games and stuff were free.

There were some strange men there, two of them were trying to hit on me (and some students), but my English scared them away. (I guess they saw me talking to students and figured I was speaking Japanese not English)

Overall a lot of fun, I kind of want to stay in Japan another year to do something in the festival next year but... I just don't know, I really want to go to school now and properly study Japanese and take more art classes and stuff. I think I need the next year in Canada.

I'm going to have to talk to A-sensei about this soon so he can find a replacement.

Like I said earlier I went to Tamali's going away party. I heard about this kind of last moment but she is going to Oz for a year to work!
At the party I got to see a bunch of old BunnyCo people I haven't seen in a while.
If you've been following my adventures in Japan, you'll understand my current issues because I saw Ta-Kun there.

Now Ta-kun broke my little nerd heart a little bit because he asked me out, and then never spoke to me again.

Which then lead me to date Soda and we've been going out for a year now.

But it has taken me that year to kind of get over Ta-kun, (well not the WHOLE year but for the first few months and once I came back to Japan when BunnyCo. bellied up I was over it.)
While I had gotten over him, seeing him again kinda drug that up, especially since he complimented my hair and kind of gave my head a pat before he looked at Soda kind of guiltily and slunk away to talk to someone else.
I think while I've been dating a year he's still been single and after botching up a possible relationship with Len, not realizing Wing had the hots for him and basically being oblivious to every female on the planet he might be regretting not keeping in touch, or he's just envious that I found someone, or I'm just projecting some wishful thinking, probably that last one however he was talking to me a lot that night, IN ENGLISH too.

Anyway, it just stirred up some stuff in me. Well that, and people asking me if Soda and I are going to get married.

Which is something that I just kind of cringe at.
First, I don't really want to get married, and while Soda and I are relatively compatible he sometimes makes me really sad and angry, and about such STUPID things like calling me a Manatee or soft and round, man that REALLY HURTS, I already think I'm a great big old cow you don't have to turn it into a joke. Or refusing to help me with Japanese at times or trying to throw me in the deep end of the Japanese pool (He tried to make me make a reservation for him at a restaurant. Thought we could role play it but gave me none of the language, just asked me "what do you say" and wouldn't take "I DON'T KNOW" as an answer until I started yelling at him that I'm just learning how to ask someone how many people are in their family or what their job is I DON'T KNOW how to ask if I can make a reservation and certainly not on the phone. (I don't even know hot to ask for non-smoking other then to go "Tobacco *cross arms in an X*"))
And when I have some government papers he won't help me with them but tells me to get Erina to do it but yanno, I DON'T WANT to always ask her to help me, I always have to ask her to help me already and you know why? Because I've got a lazy dick of a boyfriend who can't even be assed to assist me do something in his native fucking language.
Christ just writing about it pisses me off.

This is something that will stand in the way of us ever being married (or I think even us being together after another year if this keeps up) because he's a dick. I still like him, and sometimes I don't mind him being a dick. But it's really hard to think of times when he's NOT a dick. And really I don't want to have to deal with that shit for much longer let alone The Rest of My Life.

So yea, this is another reason why I'm going to be glad to go back to Canada, it will put enough distance between us that maybe I can let go and I won't hurt.

September 5th, 2008

2010-10-05T22:38:00.000-07:00

For the first time in a long time I'm actually a little homesick for Canada. I just got back from a small vacation there but it went pretty well so I guess I have a bit of an inflated view right now.

I've been debating if I want to go back or not and it's kind of tough since there's no one to really talk to about it except Ziggy and Soda.
Ziggy is going home in March anyway and Soda just sulks and tells me to go. Which just kind of makes the decision harder because he can't just speak seriously and instead has to be a bit of a twat about it. (Is it so hard to say "Hey I'd really miss you please don't leave me?" wat-ev…)

I made a list tho of pro's and con's regarding Canada and Japan and so far Japan is winning especially when I factor in that I don't much like living with my family anymore and really, I get paid way too much money to do very little work at my job.

But I do miss the everyone speaking English thing…

I might go back to Canada next year and take some Classes and then come back before my visa is up and get a job.

AUGUST 2008

2010-08-04T17:58:00.000-07:00

Went back to Canada for a Obon in August, it was a short trip but just the right amount of time that I got to see everyone and my family didn't drive me into a murderous rage.
Went to Animethon in Edmonton. I actually like North American conventions better then Japanese ones. Less people, more cosplayers, more things to do. Although when it comes to sheer volume of books Japan wins, but they're all doujinshi so it's kind of hit and miss.

Other then that I didn't do much then eat all the food I missed and get fat :D

Good times, good times.

July 30 2008

2010-08-02T15:56:00.000-07:00

I went to the beach on Sunday with the ex-BunnyCo gang. It wasn't so much the beach as Tosh's boat near a beach, but there was still BBQ and swimming involved so I was happy.
(Hell anytime theres meat involved I'm pretty happy)

The water was so nice, cool but not "Canadian glacier fed lakewater" cold, but it was so very salty (blegh) I had to wash my eyes out with bottled water once I got out because as they dried the salt crusted and burned like a sonofabitch.

Just to give you an idea of how white I am...
I put on sunscreen before I left the house.
When I got on the boat.
Before I went in the water.
After I came out of the water.
and again when my skin started to feel hot.
I was mostly in the boat cabin and when I wasn't I tried to stay under the canopy that was covering the part of the boat where the bbq was.

BUT I AM STILL BURNT SO HARD!!!

Soda of course doesn't ever answer his phone, so when I tried to contact him to help me by some medicinal spray or aloe vera lotion from the drug store he was unavailable for comment.
Eri kindly sent me an e-mail in Japanese to give to a store clerk to help me. I now have spray, It helps but not enough.

I'm spending today topless.

I think I would be better if not for the fact that I tried to wear a bra yesterday after spraying and lotioning myself up in order to go shopping.
We made it to the mini stop before I cried uncle and had to come crawling home. Now my shoulder blades are so chafed up.

Fortunately I got today off work because my manager is SO NICE!!! I told him I got sunburnt and wasn't sure if I could wear clothes and he was all "Don' worry, so an so will cover"

Nothing like BunnyCo which would tell me to just suck it up and come in anyway.

July 22, 2008

2010-07-26T15:11:00.000-07:00

So we went camping. Now I'm not a camping girl, I'm all for the city and I'm scared shitless of getting bit by a tick or even a mosquito while in Japan. But Camping I went anyway because sometimes you get a little city stir crazy and just want to see a tree.
We left on Sunday at 10:00, rented a van and 8 people including myself went. Lau, Lion, Drew, Soda, Mi, U, Ziggy and I. I'm not sure where we went but it was still in Tokyo prefecture but MAN!

The mountains were so steep and there were trees everywhere and we camped by a river and people were fishing (and catching things and eating what they caught) We stopped at this tiiiinnyy mountain town and had lunch, well some of us did...
They only had 2 Soba's and 4 Curry Rices left. So me and Lion ate every ones leftovers. T_T
But that's ok, I can't eat curry or I get sick and I don't much like Soba.
Then we hit the towns "Convenience store" which was not very convenient but we got some snacks at least.

We built a fire and got the grill going and BBQ'ed the meat that we brought. And set up tents. I slept in the car with Ziggy because there wasn't really enough room in the tents and because we spotted some spiders out there as big as my fist. On the way to the car Ziggy and I hear something behind up. So we ran and concluded there were zombies, bears and/or zombie bears in the woods and our friends were doomed.
Needless to say we didn't sleep well that night.

Mostly because it was freezing, maybe a little bit due to the zombie bears and giant spiders.
It dropped to 20C that night which in comparison to the 34C it was in Tokyo it was nice, but I wish I brought a jacket or something.

We left the next morning and were back in town by breakfast. We didn't think to bring any kind of breakfast food with us out to the mountain so once we'd packed up, grumbly tumblys demanded food so it was back to the city.

All and all the best camping trip I've ever been on (which is not saying much but still, pretty good)

Needed s'mores tho.

July 5, 2008

2010-07-20T05:20:00.000-07:00

So Soda and I have been dating a year now. I think that's kind of scary. (EDIT 2010: We're broken up but roommates and kind of friends, but I still wanna choke a bitch sometimes y'know?)

In a way he's my second boyfriend and the only one that I've gone out with for over a year. I've got no reason to break up with him (not that I really had a reason to break up with the other one but I wanted him to go to university and I felt our relationship was preventing him from succeeding in life)
I'm generally content with everything and in a way I kind of want him to ask me to marry him.

Kind of, in the "I kind of wonder what it's like to bungee jump" way.

In any case his mother came down for a visit and he said he told her that he's dating me. He's told me he's had 6 girlfriends before but he's never introduced any of them to his parents, let alone informed his family he was dating.

So after that piece of information to help me relax I of course freaked out.

But it wasn't so bad. She couldn't speak any english beyond "My name is..." didn't even know how to say "your welcome" but she told Soda that she found it relatively easy to understand me (I spoke SLLOOOOWWWW)

His sister could speak a surprising amount of english (he didn't know she knew any at all) so we talked.

His mother accidentally got the impression that he beat me. I said he abused my stuffed animals and she thought I ment me. X_X he told me to just stop trying to talk to her after that.

I think she was asking him the awkward questions and wanting him to translate because she would sometimes look at me and say something to which he would answer and then she'd look at him strangely and say my name and he'd be all "Daijoubu! Daijoubu" and when I asked what she said he'd smile jokingly and be all "It's not for you to know" and be really elusive.

I bet she was asking the Marriage question and he was all "She doesn't want to get married" or something.

Anyway, she saw the apartment and his sister translated that his Mom was surprised that it was so clean (I know Soda's a bit of a pig, guess he is at home too) so she was happy about that (and I was thinking the house was still messy) Then we went to a yakiniku restaurant and I tried bbq'ed squid for the first time which wasn't so bad. Weird for sure but not bad.

The next day Soda and I and a few other people had a BBQ on the riverside and I got thoroughly meated out (blegh)

It's veggies and ice cream for me for the next few weeks. The idea of eating any kind of meat is still grossing me out and it's been over a week already.

Since there's a BBQ next week I hope I'm in a mood for it because I don't really like BBQ'ed veggies.

June 26, 2008

2010-07-14T14:11:00.000-07:00

Fer fuck sakes banks in Japan.

So I go to a bank called Shinsei, it's a bank that claims to be foreigner friendly.
I mean their big appeal is that their offices and website and everything they do in Japanese, they can and will do in English, Chinese, French and a few more languages as well. (Well, they will do in bank services, and phone services and certain paperwork in these languages, your bank statements and any important documents they send you will never fail to be in Japanese, no matter how many times you tell them you are Japanese illiterate. Oh and they use obnoxiously complex Japanese on these important documents so that even Japanese people have a hard time reading it. NICE!)

However that is their only appeal and I don't know if it's just them or if all Japanese banks are idiots like this…

I went there yesterday to send some money home. I usually send my money by domestic transfer to a company called Loyds which then sends it to Canada for 20$ (as opposed to a direct transfer with my bank which is a 40$ charge depending on how much I send as they take a % not a set amount)

But they made a mistake and instead of just putting the money back in my account and telling me it didn't work they have to get me to go back to their bank (What's worse they need me to go to the same fucking branch which is one that was convenient from my school but a pain in the ass from my home) so I can sign a piece of paper saying I realize the transfer failed and yes I would like my money to be put back into my account and not be floating around in money space.

Wouldn't it be logical that if a transfer doesn't work, that the money just stay in the original account? (Granted in Canada, they do it all right there on the computer instantly so they can tell you right away if it went through or not, and not three days latter via a letter in a language you don't understand and even native speakers of that language barely understand. Really took three people to tell me what it wanted.)

I dunno.. Do ALL banks work like that? Or does Japan just like paperwork? (Or do I just have a super crap bank? People keep telling me it's the last one.)

In any case I'll be taking my money by cash and going down to Loyds to see what's up.

Considering the last time I was having trouble with my bank the bank lady herself recommended I just find a new bank I'm beginning to wonder how they stay in business.

Lucky for them I'm really lazy and don't want to go through the song and dance of finding another bank.

June 10, 2008

2010-07-09T19:48:00.001-07:00

As you all know, Ziggy and I frequent Akihabara a lot. Usually going once a week or at least once a month. So we were beyond fortunate to have missed this event. Especially considering we had planned on going there that day, but got lazy and slept in.

For those who don't watch the news (or have forgotten since this was two years ago and I'm backlogging) an asshole decided that his life wasn't worth living, but instead of doing what many Japanese people do and jumping in front of a train, he decides to try for the biggest douchcunt of the year award by taking his company truck and driving it into the crowds of people in the pedestrian paradise (they shut down the streets in Akiba on the weekends so people can walk there) and then when he crashed the vehicle, jumping out and stabbing at people.

The Japanese police… Well were pretty stereotypically Japanese police and he was able to stab a few more people as they chased him with sticks before one of them remembered they had guns.

The biggest issue I have is the news now. They're making a huge deal about how, even though the people he attacked and killed were also Otaku, it is the assholes otakuness that caused him to act in such a manner.

Condolences to the families of those who lost the lives of their loved once, fast healing to those who were hurt, a thousand years of pain to the fuckwad who did it and the best hopes that Nerds everywhere will unite to heal the wound this has caused.

The Last Airbender

2010-07-04T04:52:00.000-07:00

No, I haven't gone to see it yet. One, being in Japan it's not here yet, and I hope it never does.
Two, being that it is an autrocity upon the eyes (or so I hear and imagine based on the commercials) I have no desire to see it.

You know what really burns my buttons is I LIKE Shamalama. I LIKED the sixth sense, and that one about the people that lived in the woods... The Village, that's what it was. I liked Unbreakable.

Signs was shit but still... Ehh and so was "The Happening"

But he had enough of a "Hit and miss" career that one has to wonder HOW COULD HE FUCK UP SUCH A HIT?

If he'd just summerized the TV show. Hell he could have just watched Avatar the Abridged Series and copied directly from there to make an hour and a half film and people would have been more impressed.

But apparently the acting was shit (which I'll blame on Shamalama because acting is 80% direction) the plot was shit, the direction was shit and the writing was shit. They cut out important characters, put massive themes on it that didn't need to be there and dumbed it all down a lot (which considering it was already a KIDS SHOW aimed at the 7-15 range was PRETTY DIM TO BEGIN WITH)

It makes me sad since I don't mind him as a director. It makes me sad because this could have been awesome.

Makes me sad because I don't even WANT to download it to watch it, it sounds so bad.

May 25nd 2008

2010-05-31T21:00:00.000-07:00

On the 23rd I got my paycheque and a bit of a shock as it was 50% less then what I was expecting. A-sensei re-explained to me the parameters of my contract, and then had to explain it again using a diagram and ENGLISH THAT WAS NOT BROKEN.

As it turns out, unlike what was told to me when I was hired I do NOT get 1 paid period of marking for every class I'm physically in. (Which is what I was told, and confirmed, and was informed that my contract which I signed said. Sadly the contract that I signed was in Japanese and YOU'D THINK after watching broke down palace I'd know NOT to sign shit I can't read but I guess I just didn't learn that right)

What the REAL contract says is that I can ASK a teacher to SKIP class for a day once in a while and use THAT period for marking. And for my two writing classes which are a double period I don't have to show up for one of them and THAT'S my marking time.

Now normally this wouldn't bother me too much, as the writing class is the only class with homework. But NOW K-Sensei has me marking the essays from a class of hers THAT I DON'T EVEN HELP TEACH!
*head desk*
oh yea, I'm going to take my sweet mother-effing time doing them. She can expect them back sometime next month.

However now I'm getting about 1/2 the hours I was expecting to get and half the pay I was expecting to have, so I need to get a second job, because I need about 5 more hours of work to be able to get an apartment. (Or even pay for half the rent at Ziggy or Soda's place)

GUHHH...

Soda did make an official offer to let me live with him. However I think I might murder him in his sleep if I did just because it's one thing for me to do the cleaning once a week because I feel obligated to do so since some of that cleaning is my stuff.
It's another thing for me to do the cleaning once a week because I am so BLOODY DISGUSTED by the condition of the area in which I am forced to clean.

That and I like my space. Soda's apartment does not have space.

I like living with Ziggy but it's just too far away from Tokyo where all the jobs are. So I'm going to partially move in with Soda and I guess just "Work work work" until I have the money to get my own place somewhere.

May 4th to 11th 2008

2010-05-29T04:47:00.001-07:00

RD_The arrived on May 4th in the early afternoon.
Ziggy and I went to the airport to meet her and then generally we just went back to Ziggy's place. RD and I stopped at the store so she could pick what she wanted to eat for dinner, and so we could grab some fruit for the Pick-nick the next day
(Expensive fruit which as it were, was not eaten at the pick-nick. Unappreciative bastards)

We had curry for lunch and just chatted as I snooped through her bag and we set up her sleeping spot and delicious chilli chicken and pasta for dinner.
She was just happy to get something home cooked because she has no time or inclination to cook in Korea. (Plus it's just as cheap to go out to eat as it is to cook at home)

She regaled us with horror stories from Korea. I won't re-tell them here since they're not my stories to tell and I don't want to give you a bad opinion of Korea or Koreans but just to let you know before you go...

Korean's who have LEFT Korea are no indicator as to the type of personalities people have IN Korea.
Seoul and maybe Busan are the only worthwhile destinations in Korea for people who are not Korean.
The Government doesn't even pretend hide its contempt for foreigners in the country.

RD_The does not have a blog, but just be aware that you might have a great time in Korea, or you may go back home from Korea borderline racist against all of Asia because of it.

Needless to say she's not signing in for another year, and she was a little sketchy of all that was Japanese simply due to it's proximity to Korea.

May 5th we went to a park in Odaiba and met up with Yu-chan, the ex-Bunny Co. crew
(two of which had survived the inner turmoil of the whole Bankruptcy, re-purchace and re-hire and still work at the now "G-Bunny" which I think is dumb but it's working out for them *Shrug*)

RD was introduced and chatted with the people, Dance talked with her about Korea because he was there too, but he was in Seoul and has no experience outside of the big city, so he had strong disbelief over how she was treated in Ulsan where she was located.

Oh that and he has a Cock so chances are no one's going to be trying to sexually assault him.
(At least not as much since he was sexually assaulted once in Korea that he will admit to.)

After that we went to Akiba and to a Maido Kissa, (CosCha, very nice, little pricy but they always are *sigh*)
RD said it scored a 10 on her weird meter. (She's not Otaku like Ziggy and I are so she was floored by the whole area.)
RD is more "Geek by association" and a Science Nerd in practice. She understands most of the plots and happenings of major anime, but she's never actually sat down and WATCHED any cartoon or read any comic book other then the occasional Disney film when she babysat. So while she could understand the appeal, it really wasn't her cup of tea (but she did want to go because it was on her "list of weird shit to see in Japan")

May 6th we went boating with my ex-Bunny Co. students and Bunny J-staff. It was so much fun, very hot though.

We didn't take the boat out anywhere, just met up at the station and Tatsu-kun drove us to the Marina. On the boat we chatted and had a barbecue and took turns riding the jet-ski's down the channels and river-ways that lead more into Tokyo.
I'm really scared of fast things (I'm a small slow person with poor eyesight. Moving quickly and uncontrollably means I'm just being blindly flung around and that bothers me) but I got dragged on anyway, it was alright. Still not my cup of tea but good to do once in a blue moon.

May 7th I worked so RD was on her own. She went for a walk around Tokyo and saw some stuff. She commented later at how odd but nice it felt to have people NOT stare at her or try to touch her or talk to her.

May 8th I worked but after work I met up with RD and we went and saw the Imperial Gardens in Tokyo. (Quite nice I must say) She had already been up and about but I can't remember where she said she went.
Afterward we went to Kita-senju and picked her up some "Noms" because Korea doesn't have quite as much by way of North American foods. (I mean they have some things like Ice Cream and Pizza and the really common fast food stuff you find everywhere, but things like Taco's or Cheese Sauce or some of that specialty stuff for cooking they don't have anywhere)
So we got Marshmallows and Chocolate and gram crackers and made some S'mores that night. I got some butterfingers and we polished off that bag before we even got home ^_^
She got some cheese sauce and taco shells and powder to bring home with her and have a tacos night with her foreign friends in Korea

May 9th we went to Ueno zoo, We got to ALMOST see everything.
Last time I was there we only saw 50% of the zoo because it was too busy so we were moving too slow and it closed, this time it wasn't as busy and we moved a bit faster (Less coo'ing over the animals) so we saw maybe 90% of it. The reptile exhibit closed down before we got to it.
We went to TGIFridays after the zoo because that's a restaurant they totally don't have in her area of Korea and she was hankering for some "SUPER AMERICAN" like food. She had a huge hamburger and was loving every beefy moment of it.
Then we went to Takadanobaba and the Blue Parrot Cafe which isn't a cafe but a used english book store. RD got herself booked up and I grabbed a few as well (even though I already have way to many books.)

May 10th we went to Harajuku, but it was raining so that was a bit of a flop.
I wanted to show her the cosplayers on the bridge. But we checked out the cosplay and goth-loli shops (Which broke her weird meter) got some crepes (mmmm) and bought some kick-nacks from the hyaku-en ya. ((Dollar store)) We moseyed to the temple in Yoyogi-park I giggled at the Miko's and bought my mom a good fortune charm. (RD is religious enough not to want charms from other religions but doesn't mind going to see other temples and stuff.)
We went to a Wendies in Shinjuku while waiting for Dance, Soda and Dan.
We just got a pepsi and a frosty, although RD was hankering for a burger (That wasn't McD's), but we went to TGI Fridays already and she had her hot beef injection so she could contain it.
Then we went to all you can eat tempura.
I always get excited for this place before hand, and about two days later I think it was delicious, however about an hour into the meal I always get sick because I overeat and it's just too much grease.
But in any case mmmm... greasy fried deliciousness.
Dance wanted to record a thing for this project he was doing, and I was practicing the lines while waiting for everyone to show but everyone (But RD and I) were about an hour late (Dan I believe was 2 hours late) so by the time we got to the restaurant and our time there was up it was time for RD and I to go because at 11 (which is getting close to last train) we were meeting Ziggy, so we didn't have time to help.

We met up with Ziggy who had been working the whole time, and pulled an all night Karaoke... umm... I don't remember where we were but it was a bar that was owned by a guy that Ziggies co-worker knew so it was cheap ^_^
And I can't say no to cheep.

"May 11th" we crawled home at about 6 am. then at 11am we woke up again and saw RD off to the airport. I don't remember this trip at all but I assume it took place and I was there. (I remember waking up but nothing after that until I woke up the second time at home)

RD was sad she had to go because she had a very nice impression of Japan, but she only has less then a month now left in Korea so let's hope she decides to come here again ^_^

April 26th 2008

2010-05-27T20:16:00.000-07:00

I decided to use Japanese medicine yesterday since I was at the boyfriends house when I got a headache.

I should know better as I did this once last year, but I acctually had the flu, not a headache so of course those pills wouldn't have made me feel better.

So I woke up with a headache and took some mysterious blue pills Soda gave me. I feel just better enough to go back to sleep for another 3 hours. (It was 5 am I woke up at because of my head) I wake up with a dull ache, take another pill and go to work.

DAY STAR IT BURNS MY RETINAS.

At the school the teachers room is of a light quality I can handle, I only have one class today anyway which is good because being outside has nearly blinded me with pain.

Once class is done it's back to the world of too bright lights I get to the drugstore and tell them

watashi no atama itaii desu, kusuri arimasu ka?

I get a vapid look for a moment because I do sound like an idiot saying this, but then my helpful assistant jumps into action.
Assistant one is kind enough to speak slow and use little words.

Assistant two is kind enough to tell me to eat food with the pills and a bunch of other stuff I totally didn't understand because they are BIG WORDS and said fast.

But I am the Win Rar and I get my pills.

Back at Soda's I eat a salad and something else I got from the store but can't remember now... and take the pills.

an hour later I feel nauseous and pass out.

Soda wakes me up 4 hours later when he gets home and I feel like someone had curb stomped my face.

I ask him what the hell I just took, he says it's not the brand he usually buys but it's for migraines, menstrual pain and any other aches and pains.

He says it might make me sleepy. I take some more because my whole face hurts now and this is all I have and I pass out again. I feel better probably because I passed out with my head in his lap.

I wake up again this morning in PAIN

only now it's in my back and neck because he left me on the couch where I died the night before.

The light still burns, I stare vapidly at the back of the package and am able to read that along with a bunch of other ingredients, it only has 100mg of acctual pain killer.
I have some buckleys on me for colds and those have 500mg of pain killer in them.
and they are not for actually dealing with pain.

I take the Buckleys instead. My headache clears, my backache is gone.

My nose drys out like you wouldn't believe and I'm back at square one on the pain scale since it hurts to breath out of it.

I'm back at Ziggys now where MY medicine is and I've just popped some good old fashion Tylenol, 1,000mg of Ibuprofen (or acitacedamorphine, I'm not sure which but it sure is delicious)

fuck you Japanese medicine.

April 24th 2008

2010-05-19T03:39:00.001-07:00

It's been a productive couple of weeks since the entrance ceremony. I had three classes on the first day, normally I have 4 but one of them was cancelled for some reason. All three classes were the same class (that we taught, different students but all the same grade) so it was just basic "Hi my name is Typing" all day.

The students then got to ask me questions which usually tended to be "Do you have a boyfriend?" but since they didn't have very many questions past that we still had time to give them a dictation test.

The next day I had S-sensei's debate class which was fun. I gave a lecture out cults in Japan and in the world and they took notes and answered questions about the lecture. We're not quite at the "Debate" part just yet so right now it's just lectures on big topics.

K-sensei's class is basically a mirror of A-sensei's class only for the next grade of students (which is the second half of the same textbook) I don't do much in their class other then occasional marking and act as a human tape recorder. K-sensei has me define the new words at the beginning of the class so I draw more pictures in her class.

Right now I'm in the second week so I'm in the swing of things but I really hate waking up at 6am.

Oh, but I'm glad I only have to get up at 6. For the days I work at Green Tea I stay at Soda's house and the other days I go back to Ziggy's house. If I went from Ziggy's place I'd have to get up at 5 and be on my way by 6. So I can't really complain.

Before settling in I had to clean Soda's place from top to bottom. He's really kind of gross, the dust and the garbage and the smell. He keeps talking about us moving in together and I wonder if he would be able to stay clean in a bigger place because I am a total neat freak.

((*Hindsight from the future of this post: No, no he can't stay clean in a bigger place and the mess he leaves in the kitchen has me yelling at him pretty much every day.*))

RD_The is coming on May 4th so I'm excited for that visit. ^_^

Living Cheap in Japan

2010-05-13T20:05:00.000-07:00

I think I posted about this before, but I was eating a bowl of rice and looking at the leftovers in the pot and this got me thinking once again about the guy that did "A dollar a day living" blog.

When I read his blog I could immediately tell two things about him
1) he was indeed not just a man, but a bit of a larger man (not fat, but just big and could eat)
2) he never cooked in his life.

If you're planning on living in Japan the cheapest you could live is probably 150Y (or $1.50) per day (Or about 4500Y/$45 a month)

I survived on 4500Y per month for two months in 2008 from September to November because I was saving for going home to Canada. Lately I've been doing about 8000Y/month because I don't have much money until my new job kicks in.

Many "Coming to Japan/Living in Japan" books recommend a food budget of around 30,000Y ($300) to 80,000Y ($800) FOR ONE PERSON!!!

No wonder people think Japan is so expensive!

Certainly if you live in a very very rich part of town, and ONLY shop in the foreigner food stores buying the same foods you eat back home and ignoring local foods you will be looking at a budget that high, but like I said, you can survive on 4000Y and you can live quite comfortably but with a bit of a pinched wallet on 8000Y

Here's generally how:

Hyaku (100) Yen stores, Lawsons Grocery Shops and Kyu-Kyu (99) Yen Grocery shops.
-Hyaku yen stores are the best for snacks, drinks, sauces, instant foods like noodles, canned foods (sometimes) and spices. You can also get all your dishes from here. Everything unless marked otherwise is 105Y (Taxes included) So you can get a full dish set (5 plates, 5 bowls, 5 cups all matching) for 15,75Y
I usually only go here for snacks as chips, chocolates and other treats are also only 105Y Grab some salt, pepper, galic and whatever other spice you like here, some of the larger Kyu-Kyu yens also sell 1kg bags of flour, so if you know how to make biscuits or want to fry your own tempura grab some here.
*Hyaku's of note: There is a really large Hyaku yen store in Karajuku down the street where you can get all the goth loli outfits, a little past the McDonalds.

-Lawsons Grocery and Kyu-Kyu en are both a little harder to find in "Big city areas" (Roppongi, Harajuku, Shibuya, Shinjuku, Tokyo) but if you like in an area a little further away from those major business stations (Takenotsuka, Soga, Kita-Senju, Matsudo, Nippori) or are willing to go for a bit of a walk away from the main drag you can usually find them tucked into a corner somewhere. They sell everything a major grocery store sells but usually at half price or for only 105Y. I get a 1L milk for 130Y at KyuKyu where at the Grocery store I'm looking at 280Y for the same type of milk. Check the Grocery Store and these stores when buying vegetables. When certain stores put their veg on sale it's sometimes cheaper then here, but not often and only by a few yen.

Things to Buy for 90 meals (30 days of food) for 4500Y

For a 2k bag of rice you should only be paying about 1000Y or less, if it's more then check around or check back every day to see if there's a day when it's on sale (Tuesdays usually things go on sale, and in the evening after 8:00 some items go for half price in regular Grocery Stores)
2kg of dry rice is about 10 cups of dry rice. 1 cup of dry rice makes about 4 cups of cooked rice. If you only eat 1 cup per meal that bag will last you 10 to 13 days so one bag lasts almost two weeks (if you eat rice every day for every meal, which you won't I would hope.) Saying you don't eat rice EVERY meal then it should last the whole month.

2 packages of frozen veg should be only 210-400Y (depending on type and how much you want to eat)

2 cans of meat/fish of some kind is 210Y
-----40 meals here = 1420/1600Y-----------------

1 container package of no-name ramen with 5 packages in it shouldn't cost more then 250Y, get three

---------15 meals here = 700Y----------------

4 1L milk (420)
Three bags of no name brand cereal (200Y.Ea so 800Y)

-----------16 meals here = 1220---------------

Now here you can have a choice:

1 large pkg. margarin 200Y or 1 bottle vegetable oil 105Y + 4 large packages (I think 800g?) pasta (600Y) + Garlic (105Y)
=800-900Y/20 meals

OR

1 small jar peanut butter/ or the butter with peanut flavour :P (200-400Y) 5 bags of 8 slice bread (88Y on tuesdays at my store) 440Y
=640-840Y/20 meals

OR one more carton of milk (200Y) a 1k bag of flour (100Y) and some baking soda (100-200Y) and make biscuits which is about 8 meals if you eat half portions of the other stuff and sub a few biscuits in.
=500Y/8 means

OR You could use the last 1000Y to buying some kind of meat and veg and eating a half portion of rice or just buy more Ramen or another bag of Rice or more cereal.

These are a mix of high and low ball money guessing, Depending on when you go shopping and what time of the year it's at and where you live in Japan you'll get more discounts, but I did this for 3 months (of pure BLAH food for sure but still) it is do-able. Granted this is your bare bones kind of stuff, depending on how much you personally eat and how inventive you can get in the kitchen and if you are willing to take time to make your food you can have a very tight budget, or a medium budget of 10000Y and still go out for meals once in a while and occasionally get snacks and stuff.

Posting just to post

2010-05-08T17:43:00.000-07:00

God I hate posts from other bloggers I read where all they post is a quick "oh but I'm not dead yet" and then give nothing of substance.

But that's what I'm doing cus OH SHIT I'M LATE AND I GOTTA GO OKAY BAI!

(post later about japanezy stuffs I promise)

And I'm also sick.

2010-04-25T14:43:00.001-07:00

I've not been posting much lately because I found a great job, but it's a 8-4 job with an hour train ride so I'm pretty busted every day and to tired to post.

Haven't even been playing WoW.

Just as Golden week is coming along and it looks like I'll have some time to relax I've gotten MASSIVELY ILL.

On one hand I'm glad that this came when it did so I'm not sick during my vacation.
On the other hand I've only been working here two weeks so it looks mighty shifty that I'm taking sick days already.

(but when you're sick, you're sick!)

The first 3 days of illness I kept going to work (and probably contaminated everything with germs) which were pure hell for me and probably not very helpful for students because this infection has settled quite happily in my throat making me unable to speak. (And when your job is teaching spoken English, having to mime a class is pretty freeking useless)
I took Friday off and went to the Doctors, who told me that I was going to get a lot worse before I got better (WTH KIND OF ADVICE IS THAT?!? DRUG ME WOMAN!)

It's Monday now and I'm going back to the doctors because I've not improved at all, and I don't want to take any more time off work. (Although the doctor said I should stay home till at least Wednesday or Thursday since I'm contagious.)
I'm gonna just get some more drugs and then go to work tomorrow to give them my Doctors note and make them realize that yes indeed, I'm still dying.

I hate getting ill and I think this golden week is going to be spent just bedresting and drinking more fluids. AAAGGGG AG AG AG

April 12, 2008

2010-04-25T14:42:00.000-07:00

Green Tea Girls School.
Small and Cute I am,
By Crying, I get away.
I am Pure Evil

Tuseday I went to the welcoming ceremony at the school I'll be working at, it was... awkward to say the least.

I get there by 9:00 I was told to go to the principals office at 9:15, I was NOT told where that was.

Nor can I ask since, I can't speak Japanese. The people that have hired me should be aware of this as I have stated on three separate occasions that I can't speak nor understand any Japanese. So far the person whom I have designated as my lifeline or "Boss" because he's head of the english department can't quite understand this concept that I have never worked at a real school nor can I speak the language of the land.

*headdesk*

So I get to the school, have a strange conversation with the secretary trying to explain to her that no, I'm not a student and that I AM Typing-sensei not LOOKING for Typing-Sensei.
She just keeps "Japanese yelling" at me and pointing outside. (Japanese yelling is basically just speaking very quickly and not in Keigo)
A Japan history teacher who is able to speak English walks past just as I'm about to break out my defensive shield (cry like a baby till something get's done) She talks to the secretary and explains the secretary thought I was a Jr High student and was missing the ceremony.
This is how small I am people, I get mistaken for a 13 year old.

I tell her I'm not sure what I'm doing but A-Sensei should know. She takes me to him, I get to see the part of the Jr High introduction ceremony where they sing. It's cute and I can understand some of the lyrics, the school song totally sound like something you'd hear in the closing credits of a video game where you are (lo and behold) playing some love sim at an all girls school.

I felt dirty hearing it but in a good way.

I get to the principals office where A-sensei abandons me. The principal can't speak English and it gets pretty sad when she realizes I don't understand her either. So we just smile and drink tea. We are joined by some other women after a few minutes and the Principal probably couldn't look happier to see them.

The lady teacher who sits beside me is proficient in French but only knows a little English, She gives me the bare bones instructions of what's going on. We are going to a ceremony in the gym, I need to say something on stage in English or Japanese.

0_0 WHAT??

So we go there and after lots of Japanese someone says something and everyone turns and looks at me. The French with a little English teacher gives me a nudge saying it's my turn.

"Uhh Good morning, I'm Typing, I'm from Canada I will be your new ALT for your Anglish classes, I hope we can all speak to each other a whole bunch.... thanks..." *RUN*

Ahh all those years of stage acting finally paying off...

It got a few giggles especially at how I pretty much bolted off the stage like a deer after they hear a gunshot.

After that S-sensei whom I met a few days ago comes and finds me and we go through what we'd be doing in her class and she showed me around the school, where each classroom was, how to read the classroom numbers, which ones were my classes and what days and times I had those classes (Basically she gave me a visual class schedule in English, much more helpful then the Japanese one I was given) She introduced me to some of the students which will be in her class. Some of them are Otaku (woot) Some of them quite clearly proclaimed I was small and cute in Japanese, I at least know that much Japanese.

Anyway, real work begins on Wednesday, I'm scare crapless but what can yeh do.

Speaking of being cute and getting away with stuff. Currently I live in a LeoPalace apartment (very nice in my opinion)

However I've been hearing many Gaijin complains about these apartments. My roommates friend has to move because his neighbour keeps lodging noise complains against him because he snores and the neighbour as SUPER HEARING! or something. (And is a lunatic who mistakes snoring for Crazy House Parties and Kinky sex, but who are you going to believe the foreigner who says he's never had anyone at the house or the Japanese guy?)
And another two friends of a friend who are having to move because when they get home they like to watch TV until midnight and damn-it, it's too loud.

Meanwhile I play DDR at 2 am and yet no one has complained about me...

Maybe it's because I've introduced myself to the neighbours and I'm a wee little wummin gaijin that looks like a child so they can't complain against me. After all with my soft super polite Japanese and tiny figure who would believe I could do anything bad?

...

MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!

April 2nd 2008

2010-03-31T18:38:00.000-07:00

I HATE SHINSEI BANK

This is kind of a theme for me, and I think it is for most people which is why change is so hard. You see I've had my bank at Shinsei for a while now. It's not anything special, it holds my money, what more can I ask really?
Well I had to go to the bank the other day because for the last 3 months it's been a douche. My bank card won't work, I'll call them to change my address, get a letter from them in Japanese (when they HAVE BILINGUAL SERVICES supposedly) my card will work again for about a week, and then get cut off once more.

Now in part this is Soda's fault for not translating my bank letters fully and trying to just give me a "Jist" of them to avoid thinking, he kept telling me to just ignore them.

But basically I needed to change my address to get my bank card to start working again, but a phone call wouldn't work so I sent in the proper form for an address change but forgot to send in a copy of ID, Soda said "Send your passport" I did.

Got the letter back (third time)

He said "Oh not passport, Gaijin card"

Sent it, got back the fourth letter, the problem?

There was an application form I was supposed to fill out that Soda never told me about. It wasn't in the letter, the letter said to print it off the website, Soda didn't read the entire letter so wasn't telling me all of the instructions.

You'd think I'd stop trusting him with any Japanese things I need to know about since this is the second time his laziness regarding my business has screwed me over (Third time was a while back, now I don't trust him with shit.)
But back to that "I'm scared of change so I'll keep letting myself get boned by familiarity"

Anyway, went to the bank, took all of 10 min to get this sorted out. Checked my account and nearly shat myself.

Instead of the 800$ I knew I had I had 500$

Before I went to yell for a bank statement I counted my zeros again (because this is all yen)

I noticed I missed one
I has 5000$

after a moment of moral questioning
"Should I say something...?"
I remembered the Government owed me 4500$ or so.

Who got their BUNNY-CO monies? ME!! Hellz yea.

Took out 100$ for the weekend and went to Ueno park. Saw a really good juggling act and the cherry trees.

Got to Soda's house before it rained, then left him at home and went out for dinner with Net, that night Soda muttered something about how I should consider moving in with him.

So I'm thinking about it.

Saturday I went to the Tokyo International Anime Fair with Eri, it was much better then comiket, less people, not so hot.

We went in after passing the Dog Show and Motorcycle show which was interesting to gaze in on. went through a museum of Manga, and watched an anime which should be premiering about Androids and what it is to be Human, kind of Lain like but I liked it.
Looked at the University of Art and animation booth and got Swag.

Looked around at the other booths, got crappier swag.

Saw the Loneley Lonely Canadian animation booth selling educational kids shows from the 1980's.

poor lil guy.

On Sunday Eri and Dan and a bunch of ex-students and I took an ex-bunnyco students boat to Yokohama and went to a restaurant there. I was kind of a stick in the mud because I was really sleepy and I'm not a big fan of Chinese food. Plus I was sitting completely surrounded by people who only spoke Japanese. I did my introduction song and dance, was praised for trying to speak at all, mumbled through a conversation about Anime and Manga and then bolted to the other end of the table where all the English speakers were. Food was okay, but not really worth the 4,500Y.

I should really get a different bank...

Bread is Hard

2010-03-26T03:30:00.000-07:00

So lately I've been on this bread baking kick. Mostly because I eat bread every day but going out to buy buns, unless I get them from costco, costs like 200Y ($2) for a package of 4, or worse, 100Y per bun if I get them individually from a bakery.

So since the BF's friends gave me a big bag of flour (because we (I and his friends) made cookies for their girlfriends (except me, who made my own cookies)) I decided to put it to bready goodness and save myself the money from buns.

The first batch I did without yeast since I didn't have any yeast. It wasn't bread, it was biscuits. Which wasn't bad but not very good since usually you make Biscuits with milk but the recipe I was following called for no milk.

The second batch I went out and got yeast, but the water wasn't warm enough so it didn't proof I don't think I let it rise enough either so the bread was more "Bready" tasting but a little tough.

The latest batch I gave up on using internet recipes and used my Mom's "Simple White Bread" recipe.

Little did I know that her "Simple White Bread" and "Pizza Dough" recipe were the Same Thing.

So I made little balls of Pizza Dough.

"But Ty" You may ask "Isn't pizza dough bread?"

Well yes it is, but it's kind of an oily, flat, flavourless bread. It absorbs the taste of savoury things like tomato sauce and cheese. It would be great with garlic or basil infused into the dough, but toasted up and eaten with just butter or jam? Not as tasty.

I found my Mom's "Sweet Bread" recipe and I think after Soda is finished making a muck in the kitchen (Soda's Homemade Hamburger night) I'm going to make a batch of sweet bread to take to my student tomorrow since it will be our last class together.

If it doesn't turn out, I'm making biscuits. Even I can't fuck those up.

The Cove

2010-03-24T08:20:00.000-07:00

If you can't do something for the right reasons, do it for the selfish ones.

If you haven't heard of The Cove the gist of the movie is just bringing awareness of a small fishing village in Japan named Taiji which kills about 23,000 dolphins every year. Some are fortunate enough to escape the slaughter by being chosen to become aquarium dolphins as Taiji is the largest seller of aquarium dauphins in the world, a venue that nets them a few million dollars every year.
According to the movie however it is the sale of live dolphins that makes up for the killing of the other ones as a dead dolphin can barely be given away and is usually disguised as other meat in order to be cheaply sold throughout mostly Taiji itself but also other parts of Japan.

The ethical side of this is that there are a lot of dolphins who are on a proposed list of endangered dolphins (6 are actually endangered with 22 on the watch list due to insufficient data to put them on or officially leave them off the list) The type of dolphin that is caught in Tiji is on the watch list, which since is not "officially" endangered is still okay to catch.
Further ethical debate is that dauphins are a sentient animal, and unless you're okay with eating or killing humans or monkeys then you shouldn't be okay with eating dolphins either.

But ethics is always hazy and Tiji uses the ethics of standing tradition to demand respect for the slaughter (I say Tiji since the majority of Japanese have nothing to do with fishing and are completely unaware of the slaughter)

So what about the selfish reasons?
Dolphin meat is toxic.

The world standard of acceptable mercury in meat is .4 ppm (parts per milligram) fortunately I have a mercury sensitivity so I have a built in geiger for its toxicity. (Sadly it means I can't eat some types of fish which I find rather tasty, dauphin meat would out and out kill me on the spot)
Salmon has one of the lowest contents (0.014) Tuna has pretty high (0.353 in canned Tuna) which causes me to have an allergic reaction to it. You could safely eat 8 oz of salmon every day and never worry about mercury poisoning.
If you ate 8oz of tuna every day it would put you in an early and brain degenerated grave.
Dolphin meat has an average between 9.6 and 5.9 ppm, vastly over the safety standard in Japan for acceptable mercury content. And yet even though it has been shown that those who eat Dolphin meat even once a month are at serious risk (out of a random sample of men and women from Tiji who ate whale meat of some kind between once a month and once a year their personal mercury ppm was 25.6 to 15.5, compared to the 2.55 to 1.43 that the rest of Japan averages at) the government does not enforce the mercury ppm standard on Tiji and continuously allows them to mislabel meat products coming from that area for sale in other areas of Japan. While the capture of live dolphins is a lucrative enough business to continue the killing of the dolphins and sale of the meat is a black mark upon all of Japan.

So if they can't stop it for the ethical reasons, they should try to stop it for the self serving ones. Poisoning their own people and embarrassing their country isn't going to help anyone in the long scheme of things.

Watch the movie, spread the word, be aware.

Feb 26th, 2008

2010-03-23T23:38:00.001-07:00

ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONGING TO US

I was watching TV the other day and I guess Tokyo University is perfecting the art of prosthetic robotic limbs.

There was a special on a little girl who was getting one of the first of these experimental limbs to replace her arm.

It only works for arms that have been removed from the elbow down from the looks of things, But basically it gives you a hand back. It reads subtle muscle movements in your forearm that would be relayed to fingers and the robotic fingers then do the job. It was rather amazing, I mean not really dextrous, you cant move all the fingers but you can give people a peace sign, thumbs up, catch a ball and write. So as long as she didn't have plans to become a pianist it should function well enough for all her needs in life.

I think it's just so amazing that the era of cyborgs is at hand.

I also dropped a very large very heavy textbook on my head, and I think it just knocked the Japanese out of me.

2010-03-20T18:45:00.000-07:00

How ARE the Japanese towards Gaijin?

Malene posted a comment a while back with some concerns regarding the treatment of Foreigners in Japan due to this post and I feel I should point out that there is a vast difference between how Japanese people and how the Japanese Government treats Gaijin.

Most Japanese people are polite, courteous and kind. They like to meet new people from far off places and especially the women love to travel. As a Gaijin it's not hard to make friends and a lot of people will take extra steps to make you feel comfortable. (One time there was a mix up at the post office and the lady at the post office sent me a letter of apology in English when you can tell by the letter, she didn't speak a lick of it.) So really in your day to day life a little kindness from you is repaid tenfold.

However, you have racists everywhere so you can't judge an entire country based on its Bigots. I think a lot of the flack a lot of Gaijin give Japan is due to the fact that a lot of the Gaijin that come here and freak out about racial issues are the White Gaijin.
I think the freak out may be due to the simple fact that "White People" are well… White, and because of this we have this odd perception that we are the Majority and everyone else is a Minority. So when we become the Minority, and people treat us like one, it boggles our perceptions of the universe.

So yes, there will be the occasional old man who hrumphs at you and glares. There may be the odd young kid that grabs their mom and points at you yelling "LOOK LOOK A FOREIGNER!!" But all and all (especially in bigger cities) you're just part of the backdrop.

The more Japanese you know the more ingrained into society you can get, the more Japanese you act, the more ingrained into society you'll get. It's the same for visiting any culture. When in Rome do as the Romans do and you'll essentially have no problem in your day to day life, in fact you may be even more appreciated for it since there is this residual late 90's feeling still floating around where simply being Gaijin makes you "Hip and Cool" which results in a lot of Jackassery amongst the Gaijin community.

As long as you're respectful and remember that *You Are The Immigrant* things are pretty good here.

The Major Issues with being a foreigner comes if you want to become Japanese. Which is a long and arduous process which never ever really 100% sticks because you physically never really will be "Japanese" since unlike America and Canada it's not just a country it's an ethnicity. You'll be like the White African, no one is really going to believe it so they will never be able to treat you as One Of Them. People often look at the Japanese as if they are completely Xenophobic because of this, but if you look at how Americans were flipping out about Illegal Immigrants, Mexicans, Blacks and people having to speak English because it's the "National Language" it's really no different, it just FEELS different because this time, you're on the receiving end.

EDIT:

Also I should note that some Japanese people are a little edgy for a good reason. Especially during the boom era in Japan a lot of gaijin would come to Japan for a few months and act like royal jackasses. Sleeping with the students and then leaving and breaking their hearts. Renting apartments and then just leaving without making the last rent payment or cleaning up at all or just generally causing trouble. A lot of people still come to Japan with that attitude of "I'm exotic, I'm important, I'm cool" and act like total assholes toward everyone here and then complain like it's not them. While the generalization has spread too far and for too long that Gaijin are loud obnoxious jackasses it doesn't help that a lot of Gaijin still act that way.

Fucking Racists...

2010-03-19T20:23:00.000-07:00

Well I had my first brush with proper bureaucratic racism.

I'm trying to move right now to get closer to my new job. (I have an older post saved up talking about looking for a job I'll just tack it onto the end of this one, I got a job now)
I found the perfect apartment, and I thought the only catch was going to be that I was moving in a week after School started.

But there's a secondary catch. It's not enough that I can prove I have a job and am working for a company, nor that the company gives it's oral word that they'll guarantee my apartment. They need some kind of personal proof that I have a guarantor.
Does my unemployed boyfriend need any of that? No, he's Japanese, they don't need to check that he can pay for the apartment.

It would be one thing if they just had a form that someone within my company had to sign as agreement, but they don't even have a forum for a company to fill out, they want the company president to contact them and create a form for himself to fill out to promise to guarantee me. THE PRESIDENT.

By my Japanese boy? Oh no, he can just fill out his Mom and Dad's name and that's good enough. They don't need to sign anything, they don't need to call in or come down or draw up their own contract.

Bah!!
*OLD POST*
Busy with finding Work.

Well I've been doing interviews lately and I found my dream job, hopefully I'll be able to make it. *crosses fingers*

A net friend of mine is in Japan with the navy, so I'm going to meet up with her tomorrow, hopefully we'll have a super nerdy time together, maybe I'll be able to take her out to meet the rest of Akiba Beat too. She's gonna bring me nutella. I'm unbelievably excited for that.

More on Cooking (god this is becoming such an odd cooking blog…) I tried to make Perogies the other day, they turned out kinda "meh"

I think the strength of Japanese eggs might be a bit much, plus I probably added a bit too much sugar and the dough on the inside needs more cheese and maybe little bits of bacon pre-mixed in, or some kind of garlic/salt/ something flavour… (onion powder? hmm)

And maybe boiled a little longer.

I boiled the first batch which were just so-so and the second time I ate the batch I fried them up with lots of butter and garlic and bacon, and they were much better (but bacon makes everything good) the BF ate his with ketchup (EWWW weirdo.) I've got one more frozen pack of them left so I'll have to try again later, maybe… hmm I dunno when, next next week or something.

February 22, 2008

2010-03-17T01:12:00.000-07:00

The Cake IS a lie... Because it's a brownie

Well I've had a busy week. On Friday I made cakes. OH THE CAKES!

I made 4 altogether trying to make a good one for Soda for valentines day. The first blew up in the oven, the second peaked like a volcano and the third burned on the outside and was raw on the inside. The last one was not a cake but a brownie made to look like a cake. Because while I've never made cakes before I can make brownies.

The last one turned out pretty tasty if I do say so myself, Soda thought it was too sweet, but he was appreciative of my efforts.

Slept in and then went to Akihabara the next day so Soda could find film and batteries for one of his cameras. Then we went to U's Valentines day party.

It was just a random chocolate exchange so I got some handmade chocolate anyway and shared with Nad, Stu, and Cor.

Then we went to "The 300" bar which is a standing bar, but all drinks are 305¥ Ziggy joined us late because she worked until 9

Needless to say you get what you pay for but the alcohol content depended on the bartender as I had one watery pina colada and one that was really strong.

Then we went to U's house and watched Grandma's Boy. U, Mi and Soda being old people all fell asleep. Ziggy and I watched it all and then snoozed.

We woke up, I made everyone cheese and tomato omelettes. We watched the Tokyo Marathon on TV for a while which was supposed to be going past U's place but I never saw it. After that we went to a game place down the street that Mi and U frequented, I won two sesame street cups and a gum-ball machine and a piggy.

Ziggy went home and Soda, Mi, U and I went to "Manju" street for some Manju. (like every other shop on the street is a manju shop) It was pretty good.

Then it was back to Soda's.

Monday I went to The Wizards for another art lesson, and foods. I love foods.

His wife wants me to start teaching art classes to her friends kids because she was looking into art classes for herself and the one's in Tokyo are 7000¥ per 1/2hr. I could totally do that.

On Tuseday I had an interview at Tea Girls school and I think it went well, they've asked me to come back next Thursday to meet the other teachers and the teacher I'd be replacing so I think that's a "Yes you win"

Or they're just really big assholes and after I'm all set up and ready to go they'll call me and tell me they've found someone else.

I'd start work in April, which gives me still a month of buggering about.

On Wednesday I went to Ziggy's work and did some paperwork because I'm doing contract work for her company. Then I went to my first day of work in like 4 months.

It was only 1 1/2 hrs but it was a good start to working. One of my students was 1/2 hr late so he was pretty boned for the lesson but I had the other two teach him the basics and then had them work together while I gave him the quick and dirty main points of the lesson.

One did really well, aced the whole thing, the other did decent, he understood, Mr. Late was well. Confused but I think he got the jist of it.

Yesterday I went to Kaihiem because I needed to get my photo taken for my Japanese resume so today, I stayed home and played lots and lots of WOW.

Tomorrow I think I'm going to Kita-senju to see Net and give her the cereal I brought back fro her from Canada

Tokyotathon OF DEATH

2010-03-15T01:17:00.000-07:00

Actually I come to the defense of the Japanese car makers. One of the biggest things that I hate about the news is that they only ever technically report it. It's never their job to fact check what anyone says anymore or give proper stats when they notice that someone has just lied off their ass. Because of this things that may be a bit of a big deal, are becoming an even bigger deal.

Such as the Toyota recall. The major issue I have with this is a lot of car companies recall their vehicles, even en masse like this when there is an issue, and yet we rarely hear of it. A few thousand electric cars were recalled a few years back and these people NEVER GOT THEIR CARS BACK. (See who killed the Electric Car, but I guess "recall due to unpopularity" and "recall due to a bad pedal" are two different things.) With this one I've yet to hear a solid fact, there are claims of accidents happening, but no numbers, no deaths, how severe of an accident?

Last time I checked even if the accelerator "Stuck" the break was still working fine, and what kind of driver do you have to be that you coast to a stop? Possibly this is what the one Toyota spokesman meant when he said that Toyota had not properly calculated how US people drove.
"We assumed when people wanted to stop, they'd apply the break and not JUST take their foot off the gas pedal. We're sorry you're too dumb to know how to properly drive."

Now the only reason I come to their defense in that case is just because of a lack of data. If someone can tell me there were enough accidents or warranty complaints before the recall to issue such a statement of doom and gloom I'll be more understanding of this MASSIVE FREAKOUT. But I imagine that so long as people's cars are going to be replaced the majority of them won't care because the better mileage with today's gas prices make the cars practically pay for themselves.

No Hugh Noooooo!!

2010-03-12T14:50:00.000-08:00

So I just saw this on TV

And I mentally reached for the screen and went "Nooooooooo!!!" (mentally since Soda was there and he already thinks I'm crazy like a coconut)

I have this rather firm belief that Japan is where famous people go to let their career die gracefully. When they've pretty much tapped themselves out in Hollywood and are resigned to the occasional artsy film that will give them a crack at an Oscar before they totally retire (i.e die) to supplement their cash flow they'll pop over to Japan to do things for money that they would never do in America, like really stupid TV commercials.

Tommy Lee Jones in the Boss commercials. His last few films were "No country for Old Men" which was his retirement Oscar shot, and the film before that? Something to do with "Old man and cheerleaders Ohs Nos!!" which made me feel physically ill after watching about 20 minutes of. Instead of damaging himself more he just respectfully came to Japan.

What was the last good thing you saw Brad Pitt in? Yea he's in Japan too.
George Cloony got his Oscar shot off with that airplane movie, but now he's here making commercials for softbank.
That really skinny chick who was the main girl in "Something About Mary"
Leonardo Dicaprio sells Tires of all things here.

But Hugh Grant? Hugh!! Come on, it's hard to go anywhere after the awesome of being Wolverine for sure but you were great in that Magician show and...
uhh.....

what was the last good thing he was in....

*shock*

NOOOOOO HUGH GRANT'S CAREER IS DEAD!!! *sob sob sob*

A message from my uterus

2010-03-05T07:20:00.000-08:00

AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG

That is all.

Sorry for the stupid post, I had something totally written up earlier and I was totally going to post it but then my Uterus came up and stabbed my kidneys and OH GOD IT HURTS SO BAD

so I'm crawling into bed to cry instead.

Just realized I skipped a year...

2010-03-02T06:46:00.000-08:00

I just realized in my story of Japan, I ended in February of 2008 with my weekend at Soda's then skipped forward to February of 2009 right before I was leaving Japan.
No wonder you're missing some stories! So I'll have to go back and tell some of them. Sadly because I was back-blogging during that time I didn't really blog anything about that time so the dates may be totally off. That's okay, it will make them a little more "Wide Lawns-esq" because it will just be a stream of stories and memories from no specific timeline mixed in with stuff happening now.

But man I'm kind of taking on a lot of projects, Trying to do my NO~VA*Cation comic along with last page along with Pandora on DevArt which I'm also trying to keep up with Kaxx in page count of stuff to release and man she is a voracious artist.
Trying to cook everyday, looking for a job, keep up with my guild in WoW (and Jaybus-Krispy Kreme do they not have lives outside of that game, if you think I'm obsessed YOU AIN'T SEEN NOTHING)
Plus my other blog Opinionholes, and I started a meet up group

I have so many things going it seems I never get anything done. D:<

But I'm gonna try to post more. Or at least keep up the "Once a month or more" posting.

The Anti-Borg

2010-03-02T06:42:00.001-08:00

You will never be one of the collective

I was in Kamakura a few days ago with H-sensei from the high school I worked at in 2008. We got around to the topic of Japanese citizenship and why, while I love Japan, I will never become a Japanese citizen. My main reason is even if I become a Japanese citizen, I will never actually BE a Japanese Citizen.

I will always and forever be a foreigner even if I were to give up my Canadian citizenship and speak native fluent Japanese and have more knowledge and poise in the culture then a native. I will never be considered a citizen fully.

This is something that is exemplified in the fact that they still refer to one of their own politicians as "Chinese" even though he was born in Japan, his parents were born in Japan, and his grandparents for the most part were born in Japan. But because his ONE Grandfather is Chinese, that taints his blood line enough that the general Japanese public thinks of him as their "Obama" of politics. Because he is 1/4th Chinese he's still "Too Foreign for Japan"

In general it's not like this type of racism is Japan specific, America has these kinds of views too with their demands that people "Speak English" even though the majority of Americans do not and there is no national language and to close their borders to "Them Immigrants" most other mono-ethnic cultures are much the same way with outsiders sticking out like a sore thumb.

This all came to a head recently when the JSA (Japan Sumo Association) made a new rule placing a 1 foreigner limit per stable. Now this 1 foreigner rule is already in place, but the change to the rule is that now when a foreigner takes the time and effort and becomes a Japanese citizen, according to the JSA they are still "Foreign" and so the slot stays "filled" by them. This is a blatant slap in the face to all "foreign born" nationals, and is fuzzy territory as what do they consider then "Too Foreign" If someone is born of two American parents in Japan are they still "too foreign" to do Sumo? What about a third generation Citizen? What about the Ainu (Japan's aborigines.)

‘You get the impression it is a severe measure but if the brakes are not applied somewhere, there will be more and more stables overrun with foreign wrestlers, so it can’t be helped,’’ said one stablemaster.

I don't think I even need to comment on how terribly racist this comes across. I may love Japan in many ways, but I will never SULLY myself by ever becoming Japanese if this is the "Japanese mentality" towards their own citizens.

This is kinda cool

2010-02-24T06:49:00.000-08:00

a little NSFW due to cartoon drawn boobehs.

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xcawn1_kirsten-dunst-mcg-s-akihabara-majok_webcam

Yay Akihabara! Sadly as of late Akihabara has had a lot less cosplayers due to the police really cracking down on them. Not that it's illegal or anything however since that one guy got stabby in 2008 apparently the police response to protecting the public is not to have better response time to stop the stabbers, but to make it so no one is around for them to stab by harassing everyone so they'll leave Akihabara.

Oh J-Popo's.... UR SO SILLYZ!

Getting better at the cake thing.

2010-02-14T06:47:00.001-08:00

Just look at that cake.
Well as you guys may know in Japan for valentines day the girls do something for the boys to show their affection. So today I made a nice dinner with pasta and chicken and salad, and while neither of us wants it right now I made the best looking cake I'VE EVER MADE! It looks SO NICE.
It's a chocolate coffee cake with a cream cheese chocolate icing, chocolate whipping cream and strawberries on top. Only one layer, if I was feeling venturous enough to cut it in half I would have filled the middle with more cream and strawberries but I didn't want to mess it up so I left it one layer.

Secretly though, my toaster oven still sucks for baking and I had to cut the top of the cake off and flip the thing over to make it flat.

In other news on the job front I called W and S back to check in that they had nothing and had not just filed me away and forgotten about me. Like I've said before because it's February I've still got about 2 months before school starts so I still got lots of time. On the housing front I went and looked at an apartment magazine with Net and found a few things right in our range of price and size. In fact, quite a lot cheaper then I was expecting which is really nice. Downside is that assuming I get my job by April, and my first paycheque by May that means the earliest I can move is June. This is kind of a kick in the nuts in comparison to when I wanted to move (now) but it's okay. Just means I might wait until July to move and renew my Visa first, that way I'll have a fresh visa and a fresh apartment.
Plus I told myself that if I get a new visa I'd buy myself a real oven as a "yay staying in Japan" present. So that will just give me time to save money for it.

Cooking in Japan

2010-02-11T03:05:00.000-08:00

So, I like to bake, I generally like to cook too but I'm kind of odd with my cooking in that I just make a lot of the same stuff.

Living with Ziggy I had a pretty okay arrangement in that I did the cooking but she washed the dishes, because I really, really hate washing the dishes.
Living in Canada with a 4 element stovetop and a big fat oven it was a lot easier to get into the cooking mood to boot. That and when it came to ingredients I had places to keep them, and could at least ask the clerk for what I was looking for.

Here in Japan I have a one element stove top (really it's like a Bunsen burner implanted into the countertop) no cutting space or space to put anything down really, and a toaster oven that's not much bigger then an entire loaf of bread. (North American loaf, not the Japanese 4 slice loaf) So it's a little hard to cook here.

In any case a few days back I got into the cooking mood so I decided to make a cake.
Now I haven't told you all my "First Cake ever + First cake in Japan" story.

The first cake I ever made was here in Japan for Valentines day 2008, the very first one exploded like a volcano in my tiny oven at Ziggys apartment (she had a proper oven even though it was the size of a large toaster oven) The second one I made peaked up like a volcano and burned on the top while staying liquid in the centre.
The third one burned black all on the outside and still stayed liquid in the centre.
The final one cooked normally but it was a little heavy. And rather sweet.
Now I've made things in Japan that turned out well, some delicious pies that lots of people enjoyed, and I've made cakes since in Canada, and they've turned out fluffy and delicious, to the point that a lot of people quite enjoy my baked goods now.
But for some reason whenever I make a cake in Japan… It just… Fails.

This time I just a normal white cake, so I went out and got the missing ingredients (baking powder and something to make an icing.) Well the first cake fell flat, an air bubble developed in the bottom making a huge… cup in the middle of the cake while the rest of the cake was flat as a pancake and tasted like egg pudding. A drunk Soda ate it and liked it well enough, but I've seen him eat spaghetti off the floor while really drunk so I can't trust his opinion on that one.
The second cake came out fluffier and less eggy but still not really fluffy enough nor sweet enough. And the icing was more of a glaze so I'm not sure what when wrong there (since the package had a picture of whipped icing and I followed the directions, so either I fucked up, or it LIES!)

But at least they didn't explode or make anyone sick. I'll have to try again later.

Finding Work

2010-02-05T07:23:00.000-08:00

Someone told me, I think it was Soda, that right now (January/February) is the best time to hunt for a job. Which in a sense he is right, January/February/March job listings go through the roof, every day there are 5 or 6 new listings on GaijinPot many of them being exactly what I'm looking for too.
The PROBLEM with looking right now is NONE of the jobs listed are hiring until APRIL, So on one hand it's great to be in Japan right now because I get to go to a lot of interviews (3 big ones so far) I'm also sitting here twiddling my thumbs for another TWO MONTHS to see if I get the Job or not.
So far I've had interviews at three companies. W, L and S.
W was first, they're offering full time work for a good wage at either one or two high schools/Jr. High schools but I'll get transportation, they'll be a guarantor for an apartment for me if I need them to be and I'll get summer and winter vacation off at 65% pay (WOO!)
I really would like to work for them, like, A LOT.
L was next and they were offering only 10$ an hour and if I don't work I don't get paid so... yea I declined their offer.
S never really talked about what I could get from the school, they seemed the most interested in me and wanted to know a lot about what I could bring to their company. They also place teachers in real schools like W does but other then that the interviewer didn't really touch too much on the technicalities of the job. He said he'd contact me within a week or so (so hopefully before next Tuesday...) to either get me in for a second interview or to tell me they're not interested.
*miserable sigh*

I guess the biggest problem... Well two biggest problems I have right now is that without a job or the promise of one I don't know what to do right now, should I apply for everything? Should I still keep my cards close to my chest and apply here and there so I can take my interviews in stride and only apply at jobs I actually would LIKE to get? Plus Soda is kind of on my case now about applications and getting work.
The second problem is without knowing when I'll be hired and thus when I'll start making money it's hard to budget the money I have right now. Can I afford to spend 100$ a month because I'll be working in April? Or do I need to cut back to only 50$ a month because I might not be? Should I put some of the little money I have aside to possibly get a ticket back home?

I guess a good idea for anyone not in Japan would be to try and get a job before you come, nothing is more stressful then having no job, and no return ticket.

This will be the first, last and only time I do this... Hopefully.

2010-01-26T06:49:00.000-08:00

I'm not really one to advertise places. I'm not trying to sell anything.

But as a favor to a friend I give you

Bamboo House!

Soda the BF lived at one of these places for a year, normally you stay at a guesthouse for a month or two (it's like a hostel only overall cheaper and for longer term stays.) But the rent was cheap enough and he enjoyed it enough to stay for longer (although I never saw his place until he moved to a proper apartment)

In either case, it's pretty cheap and it's a way to have a place to stay when you're looking for an apartment of your own in Japan. The owner is really nice too.

2009 in review

2010-01-17T14:30:00.000-08:00

March 2009-December 2009

April I signed up for summer classes got all my Canadian affairs in order and filed my 2008 taxes with the government of Canada.

May I moved to the City where my classes were being held. Stayed with my friend Heavenly for two weeks before Ziggy moved to the city and got an apartment, then I moved in with her. I took two linguistics classes which were interesting in learning how people learn languages, the developmental stages of language learning and how languages are formed. Very interesting stuff. Oh and it snowed.

June I was still taking those classes, it was still kinda cold sometimes, took a voice acting Class with Debbie Munro.

July I was taking some Japanese classes and an East Asian studies class. Now I can say with historical conviction that America's a hypocritical douche, England is always a historical douche, China's a pussy and Japan is a jerkwad asshat but only for about 30 years, which the rest of Asia still hasn't forgiven them for. But Japan forgot about it like a week later, which makes them still a historical dick.
THIS IS WHY I DON'T WATCH THE NEWS.

August I was working in a little slice of HELL that tried to pretend to be a big happy family. Maybe the parks are better but the outlet stores can die in a fire. Japanese is Hard.
Soda came to Canada for the middle of August and some of September. I tried to do things with him but I had to work and he wanted to get onto the stock market in Japan by 6pm every evening which kind of tied our hands for doing anything extensive during the day. Took him to meet my parents, tried to take him swimming and ice skating but he didn't want to go. He went to the Other City with a friend for a week and went hiking in Jasper for a few days while I was at work.

End of September I went on an AWESOME Cruise from Vancouver to LA Voicelympics 2009 which was so much unbelievable fun. SO MUCH! Sadly, my camera died like 10 minutes into the cruise and I totally forgot my charger so I had to draw pictures instead.

In October I went back to Japan, had a big fat fight with Soda, hung out with other friends and students and spent three days in Kyoto which you all heard about already. Still haven't loaded the pictures from that but I got them somewhere.

November I came back to Canada because my family was planning a family vacation to Florida, which three days after I arrived I was informed that Florida trip was now a road trip.
To Victoria.
To see my sister.

…
I was not impressed.
I sold her my old mac for $500. Shortly after we returned I started my TESL classes in The City, The books were helpful and considering most textbooks cost 50$ upward the books alone in the class were of at least a 500$ value and we just got them. The class itself was nothing new if you know anything about teaching and classroom management. I wish they'd dealt more with actual classroom management or at least made better arrangements for students to do work inside the class. They offered plenty of time outside of class for you to volunteer however I am under the impression our teacher when he teaches those "volunteer classes" gets paid, but we were expected to do them for the "joy of educating ourselves"
Yea, sure bub.

December midway through I completed the class and got my certificate (yay!) then came home for Christmas. Helped my Mom bake a lot of cookies and started watching Criminal Minds, which kind of freaks me out because unlike CSI they reference actual killers and real cases which makes you realize that these psychopaths are quite real and out there.

Had a nice and nerdy new-years at Happy's house where we watched stargate atlantis season 5 (sadly I've never watched any stargate atlantis so I was rather unfamiliar with it so I played WoW instead.
And we watched the fifth element. Always a classic.

While watching Criminal minds I had to prove to my mother that Japan didn't have that many serial killers, which they don't (only 10 compared to the hundreds in the UK and the USA) however Japan proved it's police incompetence once more because they have, out in the open, having never served jail time even though he openly admits guilt and was caught red-handed.
A man who ate a woman.

Not for any noble "Starving in the Andies" reason. No no, he invited her over to his flat, shot her in the neck and proceeded to EAT HER. However due to some PAPERWORK ERR he got off scott free and has been on TV as like a fucking FOOD CRITIQUE.

Really Japan? REALLY?
D:<

Heading back next week so I guess my tale of job hunting starts again from there!

(don't forget to check out my new comic http://novacation.smackjeeves.com/)

Finally!

2010-01-17T14:17:00.000-08:00

Well, when I first came to Japan I started to make a little comic to chronicle some of my experiences, but because I didn't have a scanner or anything I couldn't post them. So now I've finally started to work on getting those up. So check out my new comic NO VA-cation following the life of Ty Ping and Wing Phantom as they go to Japan.

Also check out Last Page which are just random pages that show what university life was like from my friends and I.

Oh and

2010-01-14T20:30:00.001-08:00

Happy new year Y'all!

Fly away Fly away Fly away Home

2010-01-14T20:28:00.000-08:00

March 2009

Well this was my last time for working at all, Good-bye all girls high school! Good-bye Ekaiwa! Good-bye maid cafe's!

I didn't have a going away party this time because I knew I was coming back in 6-10 months. Now these are the things that I needed to have in order before I left.

Taxes: If you want to be on good standing with the Japanese Government so you can self sponsor your visa and all that, you need to make sure you've got your taxes all together. Make sure to file your taxes on time and before you go.

Mail: Make sure you have a friend (preferably one who can speak fluent Japanese) to go to the ward office with you and change your mailing address there. (This is something I failed to do, and has bit me in the ass like 3 times.) You NEED this in case you get money back from your taxes, or there is some paperwork you need to file after you're gone. You'll have to trust this person to the point that you may want to either leave them your bank card, or open up a joint account as that will make everything easier.

Visa: Make sure you have a multiple re-entry permit on your Passport and that it won't expire while you're gone. Make sure your work visa won't expire while you're gone.

Health Insurance: I'm still kinda not sure how the this works so… Good Luck!

Heading back to Canada, see you all in 2010!

This is why I think I need a different Boyfriend...

2010-01-08T00:02:00.000-08:00

Feb 14th-Feb 20th 2009:

Met up with Soda and one of his friend today at the Metropolis building in Shinjuku. He gave me a call on my cellphone as I was heading there and the conversation went as follows:

BF "We're going to the two towers today, Ty will you meet us there?"

Me "Look for me in the east on the dawn of the third day."

BF "Whut?"

Me "T_T yea I'll meet you at 2."

Turns out Soda has never watched LotR and has never read the books. This knowledge hurts me in my nerdy place.

Working is getting a little more hectic but it's okay because I know I'll be heading back to Canada soon. I'm looking forward to taking Japanese classes and hopefully I'll learn something that I can take back with me.

On the 20th I smacked one of my students right in the face.

She is 6.

Bitch was asking for it.

(Kidding! Kidding!)

At BunnyCo. they were very strict about playing "fu fu" games that no one could even remotely possibly get hurt doing, or have fun doing for that matter, so I usually taught kids games from my youth. Duck Duck Goose, Red Rover and everyone's favourite, "Blind mans bluff" which I just called "Zombie"

If you don't know the game, it's tag, only one kid is blindfolded. FUN EH? Anyway, after a year of playing this game we finally had an accident where one of the kids (A six year old girl) ran into my hand with her mouth.

Now I had a bruise on my hand afterward because essentially she bit me, but she was fine. Shocked but didn't cry, just checked her teeth, wasn't bleeding and we just kept playing after. I have high hopes for her in the evolutionary scale of things.

Second best thing I saw today was a 60 year old man in a business suit slowly dottering down the road.

On a skateboard.

I wanted to take a picture so bad but he got to his apartment as I pulled out my camera, kicked his board up and went inside as cool as you please.

I wish he was my grandpa.

So you wanna come to Japan and teach?

2009-11-23T18:05:00.000-08:00

So you wanna teach in Japan? Well here's your (almost) step by step guide to doing it.

Step 1)
Have or Get a university degree:

To get a proper working visa in Japan you need to have a university degree in something. You can have your Bachelors in English, Art, Drama, Science, really it doesn't matter, all they really care about is that you speak English and are not a high school dropout.

Step 2)
Have or Get a Passport:

Because a-duhhhhh you're leaving the country.

Step 3)
Get a Visa:

This is the hard part, now depending on where you're from there are three paths you can take with this,
3.1: Go on Vacation
Some countries allow you to enter Japan on a vacation without a visa for anywhere between 2 weeks to 2 months. You can take this time to enter Japan, look for a job locally and then get your job to assist you in changing your visa from a vacation one to a working one.
This is not really recommended since you"ll need to pay the extra to have a return ticket (they won't let you in on vacation without one) You'll be staying at a hotel and if after the 2 weeks/months if you don't have a job, you just blew around 2g taking the shittiest vacation of your life.
Even if you do get a job right away, you can't START right away, you still need to get a certificate of eligibility, then leave the country to receive your work visa, and then come back. (So that return ticket is also pretty handy*) but this will take anywhere between 2 weeks to a month and a half, and if your vacation visa runs out you DO have to leave (but you can turn around and just come right back to finish the process, and you can just go to like Korea or something, not all the way home.) So thats anywhere 2 weeks to over 3 months of being unemployed and living in a hotel room. Yikes that's about a $4000 investment just for a job.
*Note: According to some sources in 2002 Japan no longer required you to exit the country to receive a change in visa status, now you just get the certificate from a city office, then return when/if they have a visa for you*
3.2 Work Vacation visa
Some countries allow for a work vacation visa that lasts from 6 months to 1 year. (See your country for details) During this time you can enter Japan, find a job, then apply for a full work visa. You can only ever get ONE Work/vacation visa, it is not extend-able nor renewable. If you only WANT to work for 6 months/1 year, then you can just work while on your vacation and you don't need to change visas.
3.3 Work Visa
If you find a job in your home country in Japan some companies can sponsor your visa, while the company will help you through this process essentially it goes like this.
You fill out a form with your companies name on it, this gives you a certificate of eligibility. You send that to your nearest Japanese embassy with your passport, after 2 or 3 weeks they send you a card telling you to come get your passport (or you can have it specially mailed to you) you pick it up and tah dah, Visa.

--What you need for the Visa, and no I don't understand this either---

1. Copies of the company registration and a statement of profit and loss of the recipient organization. *You get this from the company you're working for, basically it shows the company is a legal company, pays its taxes and how much money they have and people they employ*
2. Materials describing the business undertaken by the recipient organization.*What the company does*
3. A diploma or a certificate of graduation with a major in a subject relating to the activity of the person concerned, and documents certifying his or her professional career. *That uni degree I was talking about, you'll need to send a copy of the original, make sure the name matches your name or you'll have to send a letter of a name change. Any other degrees or certifications can be sent here too*
4. Documents certifying the activity, its duration, the position, and the remuneration of the person concerned.*Proof that they hired you, how long, for how much, basically your work contract.*

--About your Work Visa--

Some countries like Kora and Australia have special rules attached to their work visas. The most important one being that if you lose your job for any reason, you lose the visa and have to leave the country. This means that you can't switch jobs either which rather sucks.
Japan is not like that.
Once you have a work visa, you can quit your job and do nothing the whole year if you want. You can switch jobs or busk or whatever you like. The only thing that can get your visa taken away is if you break the law and they kick you out of the country.
-But-
A rule Japan does have is that if you LEAVE Japan for any period of time you lose your visa.
-However-
You can buy a re-entry permit (or a multiple re-entry permit) for 3000yen ($30 - 1 use) or 6000 yen ($60 - multiple uses, lasts as long as your visa) which lets you go in and out of Japan and keep your visa.

Step 4)
Getting a Job:

There are a lot of jobs available IN Japan, but the kicker is, they're often only available for those IN Japan already who already have their work visas. There are some companies who will sponsor a visa renewal, but not a brand new visa. There are a lot of companies whom expect you to do that all by yourself and don't offer any help at all. There are very few companies that outright sponsor work visa's and advertise in other countries.

Some companies to look at because they sponsor visas:

GEOS: http://www.geoskids.com/index.html
*Can only find their kids page*
You have to work with children, but you'll also be working with Adults. Geos has various textbooks that you teach with, you'll use these books to plan your own lessons working through them with your class until completion.
Your classes meet once a week unless they are a specialized class which may meet 2 or 3 times a week.
An apartment is provided (although rent is docked from your pay and you are often responsible for your own electricity and internet bills)
a 3-5 day hiring seminar is held in various cities around North America. Once hired and in Japan you'll have a week or two training before you take over classes from whichever teacher you are replacing.
GEOS gives bonuses based on performance and contract completion, and Paid national holidays off as well as a 10 day paid vacation.

NOVA http://www.nova.ne.jp/english/corporation/index.html
NOVA is one of the best known English schools but not always for good reasons.
In November 2008 the company went bankrupt. NOVA was then downsized and sold to "G-corp" with some of the students and teachers returning. Little is known about NOVA and their hiring practices now.
In the Past: NOVA had very low hiring standards. There was a one day interview where they would run through a simple lesson, talk about the company in an almost over the top positive manner, then conduct a one on one interview. Two weeks later you would hear a yea or ney and hopefully be on your way to getting a work visa.
NOVA was a economic Giant so they could sponsor many visas, often teachers would get a job with NOVA, get their visa, then quit on arrival to find another job/start a job that couldn't sponsor a visa. NOVA still paid and paid well, and if you were lucky you would get into a smaller relaxed school with a district manager who had the proper NOVA attitude of not giving a damn and life would be pretty good. But if you had a pencil pushing District manager, then your branch manager would definitely be a dick as well, which office politics would make the job severely not worth the stress.
NOVA does not give Holidays off other than a 7 day holiday around new years (usually the 28th to the 3rd or so.) It is not a paid holiday, you get 10 days paid vacation no contract completion bonus and no national holidays off.

AEON http://www.aeonet.com/aeon_index.php
-AEON and GEOS used to be the same school until AEON split off from GEOS (or the other way around). Other than that, they're basically the same company, only AEON is smaller.

BERLITZ http://careers.berlitz.com/Asia/jp/berlitz.asp?aInfo=1&cInfo=JP&cCode=44
BERLITZ is an international company with schools all across Asia and Europe.
That's all I know about them, they give paid national holidays, 10 days vacation and contract completion bonuses.

ECC http://www.japanbound.com/
Is the new kid on the block, so I totally know nothing about them, only that they're getting big and sponsor internationally.

Step 5)
Getting ready to go?

Hey, go through the backposts and learn from my mistakes.

Kyoto Day 3

2009-10-28T03:36:00.000-07:00

Ahh.

So I woke up at 8, but then just opened the curtains and jumped back in bed until 9. I got dressed, drank the rest of my Choco Banana milk and just kind of lazed about on the internet until 11 when I checked out. I putzed around Kyoto station for 3 hours, I had a glamourous lunch of a hot Avocado and Cheese sandwich with orange juice and a very pretty berry cake. Then I just went to the Shinkansen waiting room and read for the rest of the hour.

There were 3 Geisha's on the platform leaving for Tokyo as well, so I was able to ask them if it was okay to take a picture, and they were cool with it. They also took a picture with me in it too ^_^

I slept on the train home for the most part, I felt kind of sick the whole way back, it's weird. Now instead of feeling hungry, I just feel like vomiting when I need to eat something. Which really doesn't help my desire to actually eat. :P

Just got back to the Boy's house and we went shopping, he's gonna make sukiyaki and I'm gonna go take a nap. ^_^

I'll probably do pictures tomorrow or go back through and insert pictures. So check back.

Kyoto Day 2

2009-10-27T02:10:00.000-07:00

I'm so tired and it's only 5:30!

I went to bed at an early 7:00 pm last night because I was so tired. I woke up at 8 am, leisurely checked my e-mail and got ready for the day. Had Chicken Onigiri for breakfast, it was kind of gross so I just ate the rice around it and had more apple tea. Then I was off. Took the train to Higashiyama station and then walked to Shoren-in Dera. Then to Chion-in Dera, then past Yasaka Shrine and down Hanami-Koji-Dori.

I SAW A GEISHA!!! But she was clearly late for something because she was just booking it down the street as fast as she could go in those silly wooden shoes. Which was shockingly fast. I didn't have time to whip out my Camera and catch her.

I turned up what I think was Yasui Kitamon-Dori after and then got promptly lost. I walked past a place where for 12,000¥ you could dress up like a Geisha and get 4 professional photo's taken. I was tempted but I flipped a coin and it said no.
Three times.
So fate firmly said no to that one.

I walked up a staircase and then got caught in the middle of a film crew. I jumped back but it was too late, I ruined their shot (=_=;) The (I assume) director waved me through and they re-adjusted and started filming again. It was a Chinese (or Korean) film (Dunno, just know it wasn't Japanese they were speaking)

I wandered away, saw a Giant Buddha statue and asked a police man where I was.
It was Kodaiji Dera! He directed me to the path towards Kiyomizu Dera and I was off once again!

I walked up and up past lots of little souvenir shops and I popped into a cafe because I was famished.

I had Katsu Curry after talking to the coin Gods once again, which made the lady at the counter laugh. I ordered in Japanese, asked for more water, told her I was full and that it was delicious. Asked for the bill and then thanked her for the meal. She was all "Your Japanese is so good" and I was all "Oh no no, My Japanese is terrible" and she was all "Oh no, it's very good" so I thanked her again. As I was leaving I head her comment "What a polite foreigner." To which I had to go (~^_^~)

Getting to the top of the hill was Kiyomizu Dera. I wandered around for a bit and saw that I had maybe an hour before the sun went down. Plus my hips were killing me from all the walking. So I started my trek down a different path down. I think I walked past the Nishi Otani Mausoleum and I walked past some temple that was dedicated to the God of Pottery and had the kanji 高八 in it, but they were the second and third kanji so I don't know how they were meant to be read and the temple doesn't show up on my map. I hit a K store (???) and tried to buy this Lucky Star item, but it wasn't to be bought, it was a prize when you buy an 800¥ ticket (damn it) but I understood that when they told me so I got a ticket instead. Didn't win what I wanted, but what I got was okay. Went to a 100¥ Lawsons and got some bread and chocobanana milk for dinner and took the train back to my Hotel.

AAHHHHHHhhh my back hurts.

KYOTO

2009-10-26T01:48:00.001-07:00

Well, Just got back from my first day in Kyoto.
I woke up at 5am so I could get on the train at 6am to make my shinkansen at 7am GAAAAHHHHHHHH =_=
I arrived at about 10:30 at my hotel, check in wasn't until 12, but they said on their website they would hold your bags for you before you checked in. Fortunately my room hasn't been used recently so it was already ready to go. So they let me check in early. I unpacked, unwound and took a nap.

I debated staying asleep at 1 because I figured this was my vacation so I can do whatever I want. But I did want to go see the Kyoto Manga Museum. Kinda worth the 500¥ to get in, but kinda not. Basically all the manga in the place was this one guys personal collection that he rented out. (So basically one of the first Manga Kissa's in Kyoto, when it shut down, transfered its collection to the Museum) There's only one real "Museum" room which has some Edo period manga from the 1800's they have two show rooms but one's the "Special Exhibit" which costs an extra 500¥ to get in. Not sure if it's worth it so I didn't bother to pay to look. The other exhibit was a korean Man-Wah artist who gained popularity in Japan in 1998. There was a small international manga collection but by small I mean *I* own more manga than that small. But it was probably all stuff that was donated considering they have 2 collections of fruits baskets and like issue 3 of MegaTokyo. (Betcha that would tickle Fred Gahllager (sp?) to know he's in a museum.)

After that I walked to the Honno-ji Temple and through the Teramachi Shopping arcade turning off into the Nishiki Food Market which is a BIG PHAT TOURIST TRAP. And people say Tokyo food is expensive, everything down that tiny street was stupidly priced. Then I hit a Convini and now I'm back here sipping apple tea and nomming on chicken.

And now to bed. tomorrow I will be off seeing other places... whew.

Yokohama no hi

2009-10-23T08:42:00.000-07:00

So I went to Yokohama today with an old student. It was I think my second time there, but the first time I was only at the shore and we only went to a restaurant on the dock and that was it. Didn't see anything else.

Met up with B-san in Shibuya at 9:30 and then headed over to the last stop past Yokohama. It was still part of the district, just closer to the "China Town" part. We got the all day pass for that line for 860¥. Since it cost 470¥ to get there normal the 860¥ was worth it there and back alone. But we also rode the train once more.

We went to the Doll Museum cost 800¥ to get in but spent a good chunk of time there. Lots of dolls from around the world and throughout Japanese history. creepy but interesting. At then end there was a cool exhibit of the "Landing of John Perrie to the shore of Yokohama" because I guess this year is some anniversary of that. It was a huge model of the ship, all the little boats leading to the shore, and a procession of the people from the boats up the shore to talk to the shogun. All the people in the display were maybe only the size of a piece of rice but the detail was amazing, little kimono's and different positions, different little things they were doing. It's like each little person there had their own little story to tell if you looked for it. It was amazing.

After that we head down to China town and hit up an all you can eat chinese food buffet. I tried a little of everything but didn't really fancy any of it. It was enough to fill me but I'm sad it had like zero desserts. Was 860¥ which would be about the same for any of the restaurants there.

Then we went to the trick art museum which was about 800¥ as well. It was kinda cool, but in the last room where it was a "Find the differences in these copies of famous pictures" I just got absolutely nackered. It was about 4ish and B-san noticed I was yawning a bunch so we left and road the train 2 stops away to this shopping warehouse. I thought it looked haunted, but it was all super posh stores inside. We read the map and both had no idea what the hell "Sundries" were, so we searched a few shops which claimed to have them, and came to the conclusion "Sundries" is the polite term for "Junk". I had an ice cream but B-san wasn't feeling well so she didn't.

Then we walked over the Cosmos World Yokohama and road the big ferris wheel for 700¥ I wonder if they have a night rider pass for that place, because I'd like to go back, but not if it's like stupid expensive for everything. We walked over to... I think it was like the "Royal Queen shopping center" something like that and had subway because I wasn't very hungry and B-san wanted soup. Then it was back home, I caught a good train because apparently just as I was getting on, something had happened. Because Ann got an e-mail from her boy after I got in saying there was a 4 train backup and he was just sitting on the tracks waiting for things to clear to get back home. I guess all the lines got backed up somehow something serious. I assume there was an "accident" in a very very inconvenient location because it's not like there was a typhoon or earthquake today.

I also started watching Hetalia which has to be one of the weirdest shows ever.

First days always suck

2009-10-07T15:54:00.000-07:00

October 3rd 2009

The flight over was a little blleeegghh and I almost missed my Japan flight.

In Edmonton as we were pulling out we hit a sparrow on the nose of the plane going up, so the pilot turned us around to get that checked out. We were fine, but that whole process to an hour and a half which put everyone way behind for their connections in Vancouver. I ran to my connection and they were doing the final boarding. I was the second last one on.

The flight over was uneventful but I'm starting to worry about the amount of flying I was doing as I kept having to get up and walk around the plane and massage my arm because I was getting pins and needles in my arm and leg. I noticed after the LA flight back to Canada that I've got a lot more varicose veins in my shoulder and one leg that I think I had before.

I watched Terminator the new one, in Japanese, Slumdog millionaire (pretty good) Okuribito or "Departures" which made me bawl like a baby, Year One which was okay but not THAT funny, and half of the new transformers which I have to say THAT'S what Transformers 1 should have been. Robots in disguise and shit blowing up. YEAH!

Got in and Soda was waiting for me we took the trains to his place where I promptly passed out I woke up around 3 am, then again at 5 am and 5:30 and 6 and then 7 which is the time now and I think I'm going to try to get more sleep. I hope I remembered to bring some tylonol because I can feel a headache starting and although I left a huge bottle of it here someone else, not used to the strength of North American drugs likes to take my Tylonol sometimes because it makes him feel fun D:< So he probably took them all...

Anyway, write more later, I'm going to try to get more sleep.

Vacation, all I ever wanted

2009-09-28T19:41:00.000-07:00

Haven't updated much because I was on vacation, Cross posted on opinionholes.

Day One-September 21st:

Woke up at 7:30, made sure I had everything, however I still forgot to bring my sandals. Ziggy dropped me off at the airport since she was picking up her brother in law from the airport. Got to the airport and met up with Pam, we had a bit of a mix up since she was coming in through the international gate since she was flying in from LA already and I was coming in domestic which is on the opposite side. We figured that out after a while and were able to get together and spot a cab to the port.

HOLY LONG LINE BATMAN!

Waited in a huuuugggggeee like HUUUUUGGGGEEE line for about an hour and a half before someone ran down the line calling for anyone left in our voice acting group.

Pam and I were pulled out but I turned away for a second and they disappeared, I looked around and someone grabbed me and said "hurry hurry get on the boat" and lead me there. I got on the boat and then they asked for a card I was supposed to get earlier but didn't because someone grabbed me. So they sent me back. Which then at the other gate they didn't know what to do with me because I had already gone through customs so they had me standing there for like 15 min arguing over what they had to do with me. Finally someone just let me out of the "contained" area and sent me back to the line that was still about 2 hours long. I jumped line to the front and one of the gates people yelled at me and so I did what I do when I get yelled at and I don't know what I'm doing.

I cried like a bitch.

Which made him feel bad and he lead me to the lady who was supposed to give me a card and then right up to the ship.

Met my roommate Leah Cevoli Debs Friend and a voice on Robot Chicken at the mandatory ship drill (we put on life vests and line up for getting on the emergency boats) and followed her to register with the group and get my bag of swag. Then I wandered around and tried to complete the scavenger hunt. I got a lot, but I still didn't win.

We went to Debbie Munro's birthday party which Deb herself missed most of, (lol poor Deb) then went to dinner where I chatted with Julie Williams and her assistant Pam whom is a "The big bang theory" fan and a star trek nerd.
XD

Went dancing after that with Deb and her two daughters and a few other people like George Whittam Who is a tech God.

Did not sleep at all that night because of the motion of the ocean as it were.

Day 2:

uuuggghhh rocky boat.

We arrived in Astoria, I was up quite early and wandered around the boat a bit. had a bacon filled breakfast with some pancakes that were kinda gross and some french toast that was kinda FABULOUS!!

I went back to the room after hitting the ship library and getting myself a fantasy smut novel. Deb came rushing in and got Leah and I to come with her and her daughters off the boat on what she thought was the last boat to port, but it wasn't X_X
We got some water and Deb and her girls (Brandy, her eldest who was replacing one of Debs assistance's who cut out at the last moment, and Melissa her youngest who is the most mature 14 year old I've ever met even though she peppers her words with more "likes" than a valley girl) decided to take the 3 mile hike up to this tower on a mountain. Leah and I met up with Pickles (I can't remember his first name) His friend (I can't remember his name at all) and a girl with glasses and brown hair whom I also can't remember the name of. (XoX) I suck at remembering names.

We took a cab to the "Goonies" house

And passed the school from Kindergarten Cop

And then Leah and I walked down the beachfront to the port again. I'll have to get pictures up later since my Camera battery had died by then. *facepalm*

I sunbathed in the shade for a while and kept reading my smutty fantasy book (By Anne Bishop I believe, good book too) until about 5:30 then I got dressed and went to Bob Bergen's comedy show. It wasn't that bad, funniest part was when it was interrupted by the ship captain and some local historian who felt like telling us about when Lewis and Clark had visited the town of Astoria too or something like that. Very WTF moment.
Then it was dinner, I think Bob joined us for dessert... Or was that Day 3... No no it was this day. And we all talked about what we wanted to get out of Voice acting, he spoke of goals and how he felt that people needed very very specific goals for their career or else they'd just float and feel like they didn't accomplish anything. Bob's goal was to be the next Porkey Pig. I know my goal is to voice act in Japan which means I need to work a lot harder on my Japanese to be able to get to that level. Jean Freeman was also at my table, she wants to get into Audiobooks which Bob said there's really no money in that and he doesn't know anything about it.

After dinner hmmm what did we do after dinner that night? OH I went bowling and bowled a perfect game!

Of Zero!

It was kind of epic but because of the waves the ball would randomly curve crooked at points. So it would be going right down the center and then the boat would tip and it would veer directly into the gutter. I just had the worst luck with it since even Pam who had a back problem so was essentially dropping the ball onto the floor still got down one or two pins every round. I was epically bad.

Day 3:

This day was the first day of the workshops. I had Bob all day for the animation voices class. We all got scripts and then each went up to mike and Bob hammered at us until he was satisfied.

Ah vaz Helgah, ah had a very naughty child to scold.

I did okay, Bob said I made good choices with my read but that I need to stop internalizing my read and just convict to what I'm doing and do it.

I drew pictures of what I imagined the characters of some of the other peoples voices would look like, I'll put those up later as well... And by later I mean sometime in November when I get back from my Japan trip. X_X busy busy.

We went to dinner which I can't remember at all... Then went to Karaoke. I sang... Dirty and Bohemian Rhapsody with the group. Bob came in and sang "New york" as Porkey Pig which actually pissed off some older people who didn't like that we were all doing character voices up there and they left but one lady realized he was THE Pig and made her husband take pictures.
After that I spoke with Bill Holmes and he taught me craps, but the table was closed down so we played 20$ worth of blackjack. I walked away with 45$ and he left with his original 20.
I met up with Deb and Leah later and we went to this dance contest. Deb and Leah joined up for a laugh, Leah was partnered with a professional dancer but I think the judges were out to get him so she was out the first round. (T_T)

Deb however was a hoot and she won in the end. (^_^)b

She got a bottle of champagne and a little trophy, I wish I could have taped it but like I said, dead camera.

Crazy night.

Day 4:

We arrived in San Fransico but it was also the first day of my period! YAY!!!!

So it felt like tiny demons were trying to crawl their way out of my uterus. So I decided today was the day to take advantage of being on vacation. I stayed in bed until noon, ordered room service of chicken fingers and chocolate cake (OMG YESSSSS) and then wobbled out around 2:30 to get to the "cocktail party" in the "Bliss" club room. I actually drank alcohol that night because that's the best thing to take with pain meds. :D

We went to dinner and I sat with Bob for a bit, then Bill for a bit, then in the end was seated with Deb which she's always a blast and a half. We all scattered but met up again in Bliss for Karaoke. I sang "Fly me to the Moon" and was told I did a good job after so yay. Bob sang "Blue Christmas" as Porkey again which was funny. "I'll have a be-bl-bl-bu-be-turquoise c-Christmas.." Bill sang "Under my Skin" which then another producer that he didn't realize who she was came up and danced with him for that which was cute.

After Bill and I played one quick hand of blackjack and I won 10$ and he lost everything.

Day 5:

Workshops again today. I had my audition with Bill for a little ship contest he was having. But my partner who signed up with me didn't show so I read with Bills son, Bill pointed out this was a good lesson for me in that if you do partnered auditions make sure you know the other person because they can screw you like that.

Went to Julies "Medical Mumbo Jumbo" class and talked about words I can't even spell and barely read. Then went to Bills class where we learned to bark like a dog and talked about agents and how to get one.

Went to Debs improve class where I was a box and she talked about filling me and it was totally inappropriate but fun.

Last I went to Joyce Castellanos Promos class which was kind of neat. It's all about being the voice you hear in the background of movies or being the voice over for when the actors can't be picked up by the mike and you need to fill in their voices.

That night we had dinner and I got a free bottle of wine which I gave to Bill for playing blackjack with me all the time. I lost 20$ on the table this time so I cut out pretty fast. Leah and I went to the all you can eat Chocolate buffet and got a plate for Deb and her girls who then got their own plates so we had way to many. We took some up to Julie and Pam and I chatted with Bill who gave me a copy of his movie "Stump the Band"

Then it was off to bed.

Day 6:

Landed in LA, got off the boat, got on the boat again, went up to try and get breakfast but as soon as I sat down to get some got called to get back off the boat. X_X
Got in line behind Bob so I chatted a bit getting off the boat. Went to Leah's house and passed out on her couch with her cats then helped her set up for the BBQ wrap up party.

Went to the party, had an awesome time, won a bottle of vodka almost as big as I am. Cracked it open and tried to pawn it off on anyone who would drink but no one really wanted it. Leah took it home in the end. Went home with Leah, Pickles, Deb and her girls. Saw a little car crash in front of Leah's place that she was not the cause of, but basically, she stopped on the side of the road, the car behind her stopped to get into a different lane of traffic to let her get out of her car, the car behind that car stopped too. The car behind THAT car did not stop. Yikes!

PPL IN LA
PLZ TO BE GETTING OFF UR CELLPHONES K THX BAI!

Leah dropped me off at the airport after that since my flight was at like 6:30 am which means I had to be at the airport at 4:30am because it was an international flight and it was already 1:00am so I figured I'd best just stay the night there. Froze my non-existant nutsacks off at the airport, Goddamn it was cold, and then I was on my way home.

I have the worst case of Dock Rock ever. I'm on dry stable land and I feel dizzy and rocky and seasick. It's ridiculous but that's what happens sometimes.

Going to Japan again in like 2 days, so I'll post more here.

Japan Plans

2009-08-12T16:26:00.000-07:00

And now for something more recent.

Just figured I'd post my "What's happening now" plans regarding Japan.

Well in March of 2009 (this year) I returned to Canada. Remember how in some of my first posts I said "Learn some Japanese BEFORE you go"? This would be why...

While in Japan this last year I looked into taking Japanese lessons. Well I had quite a few choices. I could take the government Japanese classes which were 10$ (about, in yen) but they only started in May, and the teachers were not actual teachers, just Japanese people who were familiar with the books. So the classes were kind of like how I taught, only if you didn't understand something there is no one there you can ask, and you can't repeat the class.
I tried those, but they were at 6am about a 1/2 hr away from where I lived on the day I worked.

The other choice was going to one of the Japanese conversation schools. Some of them looked quite sketchy, some of them were around $1000 per month depending on how many lessons you wanted.

The final choice was going to a Japanese University that catered to English Students and take actual Japanese lessons which would include learning Kanji and writing essays and learning conjugation and all that grammar jazz. However as a foreign student I would be paying around 3500$/semester and since classes were 5 days a week for 2 hours in the middle of the afternoon and about an hour away from where I lived and worked. That was 4 hours every day that I couldn't work.

So doing a little math I figured spending the 2000$ to come back to Canada and the 2000$ to get Japanese lessons here would be cheaper since my rent would be less, my Mom would send me food, I wouldn't have to pay so goddamn much for heath insurance that didn't do jack all.

Well lessons are over now for me, Friday is my midterm and then in October I'm going back to Japan for a vacation and then in January I'm going back to look for work.

Wish me luck and remember. If you wanna go to Japan, learn the language now or you'll be kicking yourself later.

Weekend at the house of Soda

2009-08-10T09:46:00.001-07:00

February 5th

So in order to give Ziggy her space (because I don't want her getting sick of me) I decided to spend the weekend away. After sending out some resume's all week and generally being a laze, I went to Kita-Senju on Firday.

Now originally my plan was to go to Matsudo and change my address and figure out my medical bill stuff.

However.

I am still paying into medicare in Canada, so the Canadian Government doesn't know I'm gone really. Since I still pay taxes an all.

So I do, technically, have some insurance.

somewhere.

Basically I just better not get sick here.

Anyway. So I didn't go to change my address or pay my outstanding bill, however apparently somehow I'm still covered so long as I pay eventually. So I'll get around to it when I actually have a real address.

Friday went to Kita-Senju, went to "Pastel" with Mai, (Old student) had some pretty damn good cake ^_^ met up with Net, had one really BAD dounut (Damn you Mr. Dounut) then went over to Soda's around 11.

Kicked him out of his bed and went to sleep.
HAHAHA

The next day he wakes me up and tells me he made a mistake with his newsletter that his company sent out yesterday, so we go to his office and he fixes it while I sit at his co-workers desk and read this book of short stories about cameras.

Boring as all hell but it was the only english book there. After we walk around the area where he works, looked at a temple there and went to a convini for yaki-soba because when he asked me what I wanted to eat (and I wasn't allowed to say cake) that's what I picked.

It took us hours to find somewhere with any Yaki-soba (dunno why, where he works seems to be infused with expensive sushi and korean bbq places) then as we were going back to the train station, there's a stand only restaraunt with some awsome smelling yaku-soba "d'oh"

damn you convini!

We go back to his place even though we were invited out by Net because we were both sleepy from walking for 5-6 hours.

Watched "Battle Royale" Which, while I felt the book and manga were better, was still pretty decent.
I like that Japanese movies don't try to follow the book with the exception of making the ending generally the same, but adding and removing characters and changing the entire plot if need be to make for a good movie. When Hollywood does this it makes the movie weak, when Japan does this it makes the movie original as a stand alone creation.

Sunday it snowed, Soda woke me up with a snowball and loving cold hands on my neck X_X.

I made a little snowman on his deck and we went for a walk.
Well I walked he slid around like a kid, but he hasn't seen snow since he was a kid so I don't blame him.

There were a lot of cute little snowmen out that the shop owners down the streets made because well, this is the first snow in Tokyo in like 10 years. And it was a good 5cm at least. (That stayed, not including the melted stuff)

I found a travel sized "Settlers of Catan" ((MUST PLAY)) at the OIOI and went to this weird pasta salad place for lunch. It was okay but not something I would really hunt down to eat unless I was having a healthy streak day. And really it's not THAT healthy, just cold pasta with lettuce. Cold pasta sucks.

Soda showed me how to play Shogi, then we watched "Grave of Fireflies".

Now, not to be insensative, but it wasn't that sad. I cried for "Barefoot Gen" and I even got sniffly when the dad died in "Ergo Proxy" and I know that this situation is sad but...

When from the begining you know she's dead, so there is no hope. And she takes so long to die. And I'm sitting there screaming inside going "Suck up your fucking pride you son of a bitch and go back to your aunt" the sadness of the film which is set up clearly to just be sad, not tell any other story then that, kinda leaks out. I get sad when there is hope, and it is dashed. But if there is no hope, and nothing to dash, well then. Why am I sad?

I kinda wished I could have been sad, I think Soda might have thought I was insensative but he didn't like the movie that much either.

Monday I went to The Wizards house to show him how to paint in oil. I helped him a bit on how people look, the "Sweet spots" on a canvas, image weight, but not much into techniques since he likes a heavy paint look, and the thick brush is his styling, whereas I'm more of a "Hidden Brush" photorealizm kind of person.
But we agreed next time we'd get some cheap painting boards and just experiment in tecnique. I got to meet his wife and three rugrats and got free food.

mmmm the food was so good. Even if most of it was pre-packaged, it was still delicious knowing I didn't have to do dishes.

Read a bit of "Wicked" on the way back to Soga, it's an interesting book. I like those "Reinvented views into classic tales"

Tonight, I make pork chops.

WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE!

2009-08-07T09:59:00.000-07:00

Janurary 28th, 2008

I HATH RETURNED!

So the weekend started on Saturday night. I thought Ziggy and I were just going to Chiba for a little while, that we'd catch the last train home, this was not the plan at all.

So at 11 we leave for Chiba and go to a little club (and by little I mean my old apartment was bigger then the entire club, and no I'm not joking.) Called "Upper Float" I wasn't able to get drunk enough to start dancing but fortunetly we left before that came to be.
I think I got hit on by a girl 0_o... But her friend does animation for Naruto so I'd tap that.

After that we went to some posh bar and I was totally sitting beside a hooker. The bartender was from Canada, and he swore he knew me from somewhere so we introduced ourselves and stared at each other for a while. I never really got out of him all the places he's lived because he was busy, but his Mom's from Calgary and he lived in Toronto for a while and he is Otaku so maybe I saw him at Anime North or Otafest or something crazy like that.

Then we went to Karaoke where I was molested by drunk men, but then they molested eachother so all was well in the world.

After we crawled home at 6 we were up and out by 12. I went to my old apartment and left a very poorly written letter for my old landlady because she wasn't around. Then we went to Akibahara to get my cellphone fixed and I got the ONE DAMN WORKER that doesn't speek English. X_X So it was me, him and fun with a dictionary time. But we got everything worked out. So my mailing address has been changed and I paid my phone bill and my cell works again.

Then we went to a Imoto Kisa a.k.a "Little sister Cafe"

I swear to God it was an accident. I'm honestly not into that, I hate my siblings so incest really does not rub any of my jollies.

Then we met up with Lau, Lion, and like 20 other people that I don't remember entirely to welcome me back ^_^

Aparently I'm the first person that has left after the BunnyCo. fiasco and bothered to come back.

Good for me!

I got to see Soda finally, and I mean that literally, we SAW each other from across the room, waved and that was all.
I'm planning on bothering him all next weekend but still, that's terrible of me.

We took the second to last train back to Soga (Where Zig lived) but we missed our stop and wound up in Roppongi, and there were no trains going back to where we needed to go, so we went to the gera gera manga kisa (ribbit ribbit comic cafe) and got their 6 hour last train special, 1450¥ for 6 hours. ugh, I wish there was a MANBO kisa around instead, (Sunfish Cafe) that place has booths with couches in them, so we were up until 6am when the first trains started to leave Roppongi, we got back around 7 am and crashed.

I'm not built to party. So toasted.

The Lag in between Canada to Japan

2009-08-06T08:49:00.000-07:00

November 21st to January 20th 2008

So I went back to Canada after BunnyCo went down. Because I went for so long without pay, because I had to buy my tickets home at a time when many people were fleeing back, because I wanted to make sure I had an excuse to go back to Japan (and this made my ticket a round trip with the return part being January 20th what little savings I scrimped togeather in Japan were pretty much decimated upon my return.

I didn't want to get a crappy job for two months while I was on what would be my vacation. So I didn't.
I read Monster by Urasawa Naoki which was really good and 20th century boy which was good up to a point and then just got long.

Got to hang out with the Anime club which I really missed.

On December 4th I read Japan Probe and and article on how South Korea's making it so people getting or renewing a work visa there have to have a criminal check, a disease check and be fingerprinted before being permitted their visa.

Suddenly Japan's airport xenophobia doesn't seem so bad.
I feel bad for RD who's in Korea right now, I wonder if this is affecting her.

I think I'm mostly pissed off because my parents are giving me a hard time about dating Soda and quite frankly it gives me mixed feelings about him.

No it doesn't make me think I don't like him, in fact since he's delightfully disbelieving of my family's negativity toward him so that makes me wish I could be with him now.
But it's more, is my yearning towards wanting to hasten my trip back to Japan a desire to protect him, to affirm my parents fears in the situation.

I dunno a sudden desire to marry the guy has sprung up where before there was none just so I can go to my parents and say "HA so there, what do you know!" but that's the only reason I ever seem to want children either, frankly I don't think either is going to happen.

I don't know why they're so against supporting any of my decisions, any time I've done something for myself it turns out okay. Soda's a hell of a lot better than anyone my sister has brought home that's for sure.

I watched 28 weeks later, the sequel to 28 days later.

Got to say, it was about on par with the first one, only personified the pure stupidity and violence that the American military is so well known for.

Had a good haul this Christmas, I mean ridiculously so. I got my Teeth Cleaned (150$), New Glasses (100$) and still got a cardigan, two work pants, a "Rug" sweater, a small sweater, two t-shirts, some underwear, some socks, a work shirt, PJ's, candy and a CD.

You know you've grown up when you get socks and underwear for Christmas and don't groan but go "YEA SOCKS!"
Truly my childhood died this year.

It has kind of been a dissapointing visit home, pretty much all of the people that were saying they'd come see me didn't, but I guess I made okay use of my time, started up 6 new WOW characters, got one up to 20 one a few around 15 and one up to 37 which it might overtake my highest character at 41. (Ziggy said she's going to be taking up WOW if I bring back my disks for her so WOOT)

I guess, it just kind of scares me to have to go back, I mean I could get some kind of job here I guess... But yanno it's too late for all of that, I've got to go back at least for a while, Even if it's just like a month or two or something, Alls depending on how much I can stay out of Ziggy's way I might just stay with her for like a real long time. But she lives way out in the ass end of no where. Bit of a pain in the ass to get places from where she lives. Cept maybe a beach or something. Definetly have to hit a beach before I leave man. I think this time around, I'm just gonna take it easy, fuck this whole "Hard Work" thing, I'll pay some taxes and just do round about work for a while. Maybe get something kind of a job. I dunno.

figure it out as I roll along.

The Lag in between Japan to Canada

2009-08-05T10:12:00.000-07:00

November 18th

So we went to Odaiba on the 18h for my Going to Canada party.

First we rode the Himiko there and that was pretty cool, it was like a spaceship, the only thing that would ahve made it even MORE cool is if it could go under water.

Then we waled around Odaiba for a while because what I wanted to do wasn't what other people wanted to do but people didn't want to split up just yet so we went to a bit of a car show thing and then people went home so Ziggy, Slick, Suke, MK (Both students of mine) Soda and I all went to the Joyopolis. It wasn't as cool as tokyo dome but it was allright.
2500¥ for a night rider pass. But the lineups were huge which was a pain in the ass.

Went on a 3D rollar coster thing, then in this Erdragon theme house where a Dragon Rider took you through in order to find 3 dragon eggs. If you get three you get a bonus ending, if you don't well, beans.
He was funny even though I couldn't understand everything. (we only got 2 eggs)

Then we went into a haunted house called "The Dark Castle" but it was just a lame 3D movie. then into another Haunted house which was a little better and then into the "House of the Living Dolls" which was FUCKING SCARY.

You walk through a hallway into a room with a table and a big doll at one end. The story is that theres a preistess there who's trying to replace the dolls parts in order to make a real daughter, and that the room houses the spirits of killed children and the dolls are there to placate the children so they don't become evil.

So when you get in you put on this headset and sit at the table. The lights then go out and you can't see anything but you hear a voice. I can't understand everything but basically it goes something like
"I need hair for my Daughter, do you have beautiful hair? Can I use some of yours?" and you hear her sharpening scissors and then hear her cutting hair but it acctually feels like she's there cutting your hair.
Then you hear a *Grakk thud* sound where apparently she accidently cut off someone's head.
"Oh I'm sorry you should have held still. Ahh hair perfect, now I just need a heart, a good heart do you have a good heart" she's whispering in your ear, you can hear her voice move to a corner of the room where you hear a muffled scream and squelching noises of a knife and a heart beat sound as she takes the still beating heart from the chest. Then the doll in the room screams and it's eyes glow red and there's light flashing and it goes dark again and you hear the doll talking.
"Mother... Mother it.. It HURTS"
the heart I guess is no good so you hear the doll creack along to the mother who says the daughter can have her heart. The daugther screams and you hear the mother scream in the corner and more squelching.
Then the daughter laughs crazy like
"Mothers dead... but... I can't see! I need some eyes."
She moves around the room and whispers in your ear sweetly "Can I have your eyes?"
Louder into you ear poised to strike "LET ME HAVE YOUR EYES!!"
There is a flash of lightning as the protective doll in the center of the table comes to life. The Daugter screams "Ahh it hurts it hurts!"

The prtective dolls says softly "everyone? Are you okay"
The Daugter screams obcenities at the protecting doll and tries to attack only to get struck back again. the chairs in one final screaming crack fall down an inch and everything calms.
The end.

I was clenching Soda's sleave the whole time. The second time I went in with Slick, Suke and Ziggy I touched Ziggies hair just as the scissors started and she didn't scream but she went *mmmph* in fear which was funny and made it less scary for me.

The next day I packed up and put it all at Ziggys place and then we went to Ueno for a taco eating contest. Stu got 15 Lion got 20 but was pretty sick Slick got 20 but said he could do one more and looked fine so I declair him the winner.

Twas fun and pretty cheep. Which considering we all hadn't been paid in two months and were getting pretty broke, was good.

This is the End my Friend

2009-08-03T20:43:00.001-07:00

October 27, 2007

The Trains pulled out of the station to go to the final concert for The fat lady but she already has sung and she's just putting the final shovel of dirt on this cooked goose and I'm seeing how many more nails I can put in this coffen of Idioms for things being over.

BunnyCo. has filed for a type of bankrupcy under the Chapter 11 business reconstruction act.
Basically it means they have no money, but have no assets with which to pay back all their debitors so they apply to the government to help them get back on their feet.

Right now there are court preceedings to asses their assets, their previous profits and seeing where the compnay is at, at this point and if the government thinks if the compnay keeps running will they get MORE in debt, or can they pull their asses out of it.
If they think it would be better for them to survive they would create a 5 to 10 year payment plan for the company to downsize and pay back their debitors by continuing to run, Possible for them to do really since they do still have students, but their name has been sullied something feirce and they'd REALLY have to change everything.

In either case as of Yesterday morning all BunnyCo's in Japan were shutdown with no warning, which a bit of a pissant because people had personal effects at the office. FORTUNATELY my staff being the angels that they are told BunnyCo to fuck themselves when they told them to hand in the building keys (The J-staff were busy getting their asses to HelloWork) and can now let me in to get my work shoes and the candy I had sitting in the back.

I won't STEAL anything (Albit I'm REALLLLLLLYYYYY tempted) ((and since Eri's there I can't... damnit))
But I need to make some Photocopies of the proofs of work and I'm going to write a message for the students. Because even if BunnyCo does start operations again, I still may never see the inside of Takenotsuka again, but if it doesn't I'll definetly never see the inside of ANY BunnyCo again, unless I bust open some doors....

In either case I'm off to work for what seems to be the last time.

BEST TOPPATSU EVER!!

2009-08-01T23:29:00.000-07:00

October 23rd

Toppatsu is what it's called when a Teacher calls in sick to work and misses a day. Since I had not been paid for quite some time I figured I deserved a day off, since I'm nice and I didn't Toppatsu on Saturday (Like I wanted to) I did it today.

I woke up at 8am and went to the bank, transphered 1700$CND through the bank (Bank to bank transpher) and then I transphered 200,000¥ to a Loyds accont which will transpher the money to my Canadian account as well. I'm going to see which one is faster basically, and better since both were quite a pain in the ass to do. However apparently I can do the Loyds one online once I set myself up with Online banking which I'm thinking I'll do that tomorow.

Anyway, after that I came home, got ready with Bri and then went off to Tokyo Dome.

It was great, at 4pm you can get a "Night Rider" ticket for 3000¥ which is 4 hours worth of all the rides you want. Which considering average each ride is about 600¥ (600 is the cheapest most expensive is 1000¥) if you ride everything just once you've more then gotten your monies worth. So yea we rode everything there, even the merry go round.

We got there at about 3.00 so at first we wandered and then hit the arcade for a bit then got the tickets. Hit the Roller Coster (my second time on one ever) I went on that once, nearly died with hyperventilating and hysterical laughing at the end. The ride staff girl was all "Daijoubu desu ka?" and I could only giggle and wave at her.
I was shaking for at least 10 min after.

So after that the rest of the gang (Lion, Bri, Cris and TC)
((TC is a bit of a story. On the Train I was staring at her because she looked familiar, I was like "Do I know you from somewhere" she's asian so she thought I was being racist in a "you all look alike" kind of way but I kept grilling her.
"What branch do you work at?" No where near me "Where are you from" Canada, which makes me go hmm "Where in Canada?" Alberta.. Jee my province "Where in Alberta" A city where I live close to "What university??" At this point she's giving me a creepy stalker look because I'm getting weirded out as her answers match my answers to the same questions. Turns out we have met before, She's a friend of someone I worked with at a Anime Convention a few years back. We met when she showed up to get her friend. 2 years later, we meet on a train in a different country. WEIRD))

They all went again while I sat at the bottom of the stairs and shook (I told them to go I wanted a min alone anyway) then we went and rode the Merry go round and then a water ride (Bri and TC got pretty wet, I used TC as a sheild) and then a different roller coster which I cracked my head on pretty hard because it was less up and down and more jolt and spin.

We then went on Geopolis which was kind of cool, then into a haunted house which was pretty lame, then another haunted house which was a little better, then something called Hyper Illusion which was a big screan and a seat that moved which was SUPER lame.

Last we went to "13 Doors"

BEST THING EVER!!

Basically you get a key and it opens different doors in this haunted room place. it's SO SCARY, it's not even scary everything jumping out at you it's creepy there's a little girl standing behind you and then she's in front of you giggling just as you turn to see her mother fall down some stairs. IT'S SUPER SCARY. The best part is at the end, we all nearly died with fright at the last one I could hardly make it to the door with the key I was scared shitless.

I wanna go again!!

I wish I could have gone there with Soda, I would have loved to see him in that haunted house, that and then we would have had an even number of people for the rides because often someone had to ride alone.

Best day ever!

Bad Dead Bunny (THE FINALLIE!)

2009-07-30T09:31:00.000-07:00

October 15-19th

So October 15th we didn't get paid, but we all got a letter at our branch swearing to god it was coming on the 19th. The 19th rolled around and it was quiet until the shops closed and we got an e-mail in Japanese which our J-staff then had to explain (I guess all the translators jumped ship on the 15th) that we'll get paid on the 27th same as them.

Which then I learned from the J-staff that they haven't been paid since August when Eri-chan called bullshit on that one in a very "not Eri-chan" manner.

On one hand I'm glad we havn't gotten paid, I'm going to take Sunday off which normally I can NEVER get off and spend it with Soda. Maybe drag him to a maid cafe with me ^_^

On the other hand i'm fucking pissed because I've not gotten paid.

Transformers SAD

2009-07-28T10:46:00.001-07:00

October 8th

So I watched the transformers movie. I made me pain in my geek.

I mean first off, the entire movie could have quickly been ended if the supre intellegent computer aliens would have just clued in that it's fucking E-BAY AND THEY CAN BUY THE GLASSES.

who would have thunk it.

Optimus Prime was a army touting douch, but the voice acting for it made my Otaku squee.

Other things were just how much of a "JOIN THE ARMY!!!" kind of show it was. How annoying the tiny robot thing was and how the fact that when the coordinates where printed into the mans Glasses (*eye roll* what a usless part of the plot) he was in the ARTIC and how on earth would they then point to Arazona or LA... wherever they were.

The sheer amount of fleeing pedestrians and lack of bodies amuses me in not a happy way.

DISAPOINT T_T

Bad Bad Bunny Part 2

2009-07-28T10:45:00.001-07:00

So on the job front I've put in my resignation, I signed another 1 year contract with them to get my Visa renewed but now I'm quitting because this whole "Not getting paid" scare and just the stress all around is really getting to me.

Plus they're refusing to give me my 10 days paid vacation until August 2008 (Which by then will be 20 days) so I figured I'll quit, get the 10 days in cash, and then if I'm so inclined re-hire.

There's a big rumor going around that BunnyCo. wont be able to pay us on the 15th. So discussion is that teachers won't be showing up on the 16th. The Wizard (At this time the only other person who worked at my Branch since D teh BT quit, the other guy quit, KT left)((Oh but we did have a New Guy who joined us just in time for the shit to hit the fan. Let's call him Slick. Cus he is.) and I have decided we'll show up, he's been in Japan for 10 years so he know the work policies. If we keep working then we'll get paid 80% of our wages by the Government after the bankruptcy is filed so long as we keep track of our own hours. And it will be easier for us to apply for EI even if we're gaijin. But if we fail to show up, then it can be shown that we quit, which then we might only get back 25% of our wages if that.
I just know that if we don't get money on the 15th, I'm cosplaying to work on the 16th. The Wizard really wants me to do that.

In any case, I'm in the "What are they gonna do? Fire me?" mode so that makes work alot more fun since now I'm giving students my e-mail address which is TOTALLY AGANST BUNNYCO RULES!!

In other news I also picked up my work Visa, funny thing is I applied only for a 1 year visa but they gave me a three year one, guess they liked my handwriting on the application or something this entire country just couldn't stand the thought of me leaving.

We got the new Roommate Bri, who is going to get such a kick in the nuts over the next few weeks but hopefully she at least has some fun.

Bad Bad Bunny

2009-07-27T23:15:00.000-07:00

September 15, 2007

The things that piss me off the most about the impending bankruptcy was that when I tried to take my Vacations off, my PAID Vacations off to go places or do things they made such a stink about me going, especially the closer we got to the bankruptcy. Considering I got hozed anyway it just makes me mad at myself I just didn't not show up.

Anyway apparently the teachers that don't work in the Tokyo or Osaka area did not get paid today due to a "Bank Error" (the error being BunnyCo has no money in the bank)

There is a lot of news and mud slinging and rumors going around as to "is the company fucked yet."

Honestly I don't know what to think, all of this is smacking of Enron's downfall and TOZA's failings in 1998 so I imaging it's only a matter of time. I know alot of teachers didn't show up for work today and alot of BT (Block Trainers) Quit on the spot or are refusing to come in until they get paid. Which is going to result in a lot of problems even moreso for the compnay (duh)

I mean just speaking with other people there are alot of things the company could do, that for some reason these experianced business men, can't seem to think of themselves.

So here's my pointers for keeping this business afloat, but it may be too late for anyway.

First things first.

Sent an honest (Gasp!) letter to all and I mean ALL your employees, NOT Just the Japanese speaking half of them.
Tell them that you're going through a tough patch and to stick with it. Having half or none of the staff know what the fucks going on it going to cause rumors, disdain, and mutainy at best. If the employees at least THINK you give a shit they'll be less likely to
a) Bail on your sorry ass
or
b) Announce to the world you suck and then bail.

Step two!

After that, lets look at cutting corners. Notice a branch or two where they're not making money?
Notice some big branches where they're getting alot of complaints because they're not enough classes and a lot of empty classrooms? Here's an idea! Move everyone to the other branch!

Now I'm not saying do this in areas where cusomers now have to travel larger distances to get your product. Nooo, Do this in areas where you are saturated with your own branches.

Take my branch for example. There's my school, we have a kids only branch that is only open one day a week. That would be the first thing to go. Theres another branch one stop away in both directions on the train line Well I'd say shut down my school. The one other school. Siphon off enough teachers to one of the other schools so each teacher room is full and there are two kids teachers to constantly do kids classes to make up for the kids schools shutting down. The siphon off the rest of the teachers to the other schools.
There is no excuse with big branches with 8 or 9 teachers rooms should have empty rooms in the day considering the situation you're in.

Step three

DISCOUNTS!

Whe you shut down a school give the students that are having to change schools a HUGE ASS DISCOUNT. Sure they'll be pissed but giving them something like 10% off isn't going to keep them from quitting but something like 50-70% off, or giving them back half their money but letting them keep all their points? or doubling their points or something since it's not like the points are real money or anything just some pretend NOVA money.

I imagine a lot of these things have been thought of but because BunnyCo's so big they're having problems enacting them or getting their board of directers to agree to it all. I think then their biggest problem is the lack of step one which hampers step 2 and three. Changes are happening but because the staff and students don't know what's happening until it's been done we assume the worst when a school get's shut down or the pay is a few hours late or something.

*SRUG*

I got paid so I don't really care much, I'm calling in a lot of sick days this month. (partially because I am sick and if I don't get paid next month then I want to not have to have come into work ill)

Anyway Wing had the right idea of things, She's already on her 10 days of Vacation and will be heading back to Canada on like the 27th I feel bad for the new person that replaces her

THE KOREA ADVENTURE PART 2

2009-07-26T14:08:00.001-07:00

(Because I'm a dillhole and forgot to add this part)

Monday 3, 2007

Woke up at 4am and actually got out by 5, once again much ahead of schedule. I wasn't planning on going out till 6 but we caught the 5:20 bus so beh.

The End!

My overall impression of Korea:

If there is no such thing as a 1 won WHY HAVE THE EXTRA 0??
I DON'T UNDERSTAND ECONOMICS

The roads are very bumpy and I can see why they are never fixed since the genius at the city planning office decided that brick sidewalks are cool!
The sidewalks reminded me of Egypt because they are not well taken care of which make it rather not safe to walk at night.
It seemed a very jarred city since there would be these fancy expensive shops right beside a very smelly cart of hand grown vegetables. A lot of areas in the city smelled like raw sewage and the garbage system there is terrible so there was trash all over the place.
Some things like transportation is really cheep. It was 4000W (like 4$) from the bus to the school (maybe a 15min drive) and only 7000W (7$) from Ulsan to Busan by bus (1hr ride) and then like 1000W (1$) for a McMeal but then go to a regular shopping place and it's regular price again. 12000W for a meal at a restaurant. Things like that made it hard for me to get a good grasp of the price systems.

And honestly I just don't trust any country where I can't use the water to brush my teeth.

Beautiful Nature though. Loved climbing the mountain but everything else. Meh. I wouldn't recommend it.

THE KOREA ADVENTURE

2009-07-26T13:27:00.000-07:00

-Remember those Korean tickets I bought in the last post, well here's how that went-

August 31, 2007

Woke up at 7am got breakfast and got ready to go. I woke Wing up at 7, and then again at 7:30, and then again at 8 where it finally took. However we were supposed to have caught the 8:00 train to the airport.
Fortunately I had kind of expected this sort of thing to happen so I scheduled us two trains early, so really we HAD to catch the 9:45 train.

We get there by about 8:30 and then we bugger up which train we're supposed to get on. This causes the ticket guys to just stare at us while we enter and try to exit the wrong gates.

The flight took less time than it took to get to the airport, but they gave us Sushi as a snack on the plane, I don't like sushi and airplane sushi just kind of makes me go "yick" x2

Got to Busan (Or Pusan whatever you want to call it) and rode the bus to Ulsan. Flagged a taxi to take us to RD's work. Since I know absolutely ZERO Korean I had just written it down and handed it to the guy. (I wrote it in English and Korean), We had to wait for RD to finish work so we sat in a coffee shop that was way overpriced, and got a doughnut that was discounted since they were closing soon and a cup of tea to share.
The Doughnut was better than Japanese "Mister Doughnuts" but still couldn't hold a candle to Tim Hortons.

RD finally came down.
GLOMP RD.
Nom nom nom

We went back to RD's place. Even though there is no time difference we were all tired because flights are exausting. So we hit up a convini for dinner I has some noodles which were seriously TOO SPICY, I wound up just picking at them, I think RD ate them in the end, I can't remember anymore.
But I followed it with Marshmallow Caramel Chocolate, Chocolate Covered Peanut ice cream with cookies in it.
which makes everything all good in the world.

(That is seriously the best ice cream EVER)

Saturday, September 1, 2007

We woke up at 8 because that's when my internal clock goes off. Rode the bus back to Busan because Ulsan is boring and went to a temple.
When we woke up it was pretty warm and looked a little grey but grey on the side of "going to clear up" so I didn't bother to bring a jacket.
So we get to the temple and decide to climb up to the top gate on the top of the mountain.
We climb up the mountain, it rains. we get very very wet.

In the end we missed the top temple on the mountain (went down some wrong path or something) and wound up at the north gate. Which was very cool, and windy, and wet. Which made me very sniffly.
Some nice guy came up and offered me his parka but I said I'd be okay, RD gave me her parka half way down

At the bottom of the mountain we had some Tonkatsu for lunch, RD thought it was Korean, but since it's name in Korean is "Tonkatsu" I'm pretty sure they got it from the Japanese, whom I'm pretty sure got the idea of battered deep fried pork from either the French or the Americans.
Either way the amount of picked kimchie that came with the meal was DEFINITELY Korean.

I got to choose what we had for dinner so I picked Pizza Hut

What? I don't like Asian food.

It was interesting because the crust was cheese and sweet potato stuffed. I liked it.

Sunday 2, 2007

*I* woke up at 9 and that was sleeping in.

RD and Wing didn't get up till 11.

I had about 200$ in Korean Won to blow and blow it I would. I'm kind of regretting my purchases now but oh well.

We went to the shopping district in Ulsan. It's kind of a big covered open market thing. Anyway, walked past a dress store and I tried something on, it was 75$ which considering it was a designer dress and nice looking is pretty good but.... Hmmm I'm regretting the impulse buy because I know myself and I don't wear dresses. X_X
Oh well. I can give the skirt to my Mum it might fit her.

((2 years later and other then as an "At home cleaning" dress I don't wear it, the shirt that came with it I already gave to charity))

We wandered around for a while, hit a dunkin doughnuts. Which was passable but still not as good as Tim's but they're much better then the bagels they call doughnuts in Japan.

Bought some bracelets for the J-Staff and a set of Korean metal chopsticks with a crane on them for my Family (Should have given the bracelets to my family and the chopsticks to the J-staf considering at home the chopsticks and spoon sets are still in their packages.) Then we went back to RD's.

That night we went to the Lotte Department store which is the expensive place. Wing chose the restaurant which I didn't really like. She wanted to try some Korea food but we had HotPot which I'm pretty sure is Chinese. She chose the set with lots of mushrooms and RD and I both don't like mushrooms so we ate all the meat and Wing got lots of mushrooms.

Anyway. Picked up more icecream on the way back to RD's so ALL WAS GOOD!

Had the Ice Cream, got buzzed, ran up 15 flights of stairs. Wandered around the roof for a while, it has a great view but I didn't bring my camera and there was no way I was climbing back down 8 flights of stairs and the back up 8 to take a picture.

Imagine if you will the cities in Katamari Damacy at night.

Thats what Korea Looks like, Katamari Damacy!

First Date Date.

2009-07-25T13:38:00.000-07:00

Aug. 24th, 2007

Well on the 20th I went to Shinigawa with Soda, it was our first official DATE, I mean, I guess we kind of had one before, where he asked me on a Date but because he didn't give me a time or itinerary I wound up mucking up his secret plan so this time he set a time and a place and we went there.

But in reality it was just like every other time we hang out, which is one of those reasons I don't put much stock in relationships.
We went to the aquarium by "The Prince Hotel" that's in Shinigawa. It was REALLY EXPENSIVE and super small.
I mean it did have a lot of interesting fish and stuff.
A HUGE manta ray and little sharks and PENGUINS and a big big dolphin pool. We got to see the Dolphin show which was cool, they had music and did a bunch of tricks and there were a few different types of Dolphin and the sea lion show which I'm sure was good... I don't really know since they were telling jokes and so everyone was laughing while I was sitting there with a confused look because well...

My Japanese is shit.

After the Aquarium we went on the roller coster "Galaxy Express 999"
It started out kind of interesting, a Robot told you the history of what was happening (you're tourists in some new world and then you get attacked so you have to flee on the roller coster) I wish I knew more Japanese so I would have gotten the exact story, or that Soda would have translated, but he's not good at that.
It was my first time on a coster, well... as a kid I went on a tiny one that just went around in a little circle and that made me scream so much they had to let me off before it was over. So this was my first time in a REAL coster. I clenched everything shut and held on for life. At the end I was just shaking and laughing hysterically and couldn't move. Soda was a little concerned and I was the last one off so the attendants were a little concerned too. But I was okay and calmed down and finally let go of the bar.
Afterward once I stopped hyperventilating I wanted to do it again, but it was 1000¥ per ride, which is really pricey.

Yesterday morning we got a phone call, We got a complaint in our apartment because we had another BBQ, I forgot that it's actually written down, but it's against the rules to have BBQ's so the neighbors complained. (I thought it was a noise thing, so we were quiet, it's a smoke thing, so it doesn't matter about the noise.)

The Accommodation people had to call us and explained they weren't sure how severe our punishment would be but considering that was yesterday and I havn't heard back from them I guess we're gettng off with a warning.

Lau was saying that considering some of the horror stories she's heard from other BunnyCo. Teachers, us being quiet but a little smokey is nothing.
Some people have done fireworks, had big all night parties, made huge messes. So I hope I hope.

((In retrospect, by this time they had stopped paying our rent to the landlord so in all reality the landlord was most likely already pissed off.))

Yesterday (Same day as the complaint day after the BBQ) Soda and I went to Takadanobaba and I showed him the Blue Parrot which is a kick ass second hand english book shop. If you're ever looking for an English book in Japan, I highly recommend you go there

I got a book by Banana Yoshimoto. Soda said she's a good writer so I'll see. I also got a book on grammar since I have one student that just want's to work on that. McWorld va Jihad because I'm feeling science political and a Terry Pratchet book.
((2 years later and I still haven't read the McWorld Vs. Jihad and I don't know where it went))

After that we went to Shinjuku because there was a small book market there for cheap. I got some comic books (there were so many Naruto but not much else T_T) and "Don't eat this book" by the guy that made the Supersize Me movie.

After that I spent what felt like two hours in the JMB travel agency trying to get tickets to Korea so Wing and I could go visit our friend RD

Normally I'd just buy them online, but AirCanada only does online "To Canada/from Canada" destinations so I had to go through a Japanese company and I got to say, only Air Canada and Westjet have good online ticket buying systems.

So Soda worked with me and showed me how to ask for the tickets

なりた　はつ　ウルサン　ゆき　か　プサン　ゆきのおおくた（？）チケトをいまいください
ウルサンかプサンのどちらでもいちばんやすいチケトをください。
８月３１日しゅぱつで９月３日にきこくよていです
where the ? is I'm not sure if I'm saying that right. I'm trying to say a round ticket. ookute? ookutei?

Fortunately my agent spoke English because there were many more questions she needed to ask than just "Where are you going?" and had to get my passport information and Wings passport information which I found kind of strange that travel agencies have to do that and yet when I'm buying tickets for myself online, they don't need to know any of that, they just need to see them at the counter as you're checking in.

Soushite (After that) we went to Harajuku and saw a guy dancing and playing the flute to U2 while wearing a hot pink thong.

That was super special.

After tearing our eyes away from the train wreck that was pink thong man, an image forever burned into my retinas, we wandered around the park for a bit in the dark and then sat on a bench and talked. Finally Soda turned to me and told me to close my eyes and he kissed me. Which had to be the most romantic moment in my life so far.

After I just kinda sat there grinning as my brain went *pweeeeeeeeeeeeeee* and he was just.
"Damnit you need to learn more Japanese"

I think I said something there but I'm pretty sure it didn't make much sense.

But then again neither did the whole "You need to learn more Japanese" unless there is some sort of Japanese thing I'm supposed to say after a kiss.

We went for cake and pasta afterwards in Hibiya which is also a very nice park. Close to the emporors palace. We went to... I can't remember the name of the place but it was like "Duck duck" or "Prince Duck" or something.
But it's a restaurant that specializes in serving cake and pasta.

Dunno what we're going to do today but I'd better get my laundry done now.

Of Gomi, Gaijin and Garbage.

2009-07-10T15:20:00.000-07:00

I'm taking a class in East Asian Studies and one of our first readings is called "Of Gomi and Gaijin"

Basically it is describing how Gaijin (or Foreigners in Japan) will pick through Japanese peoples Gomi (or trash) for useable items like old TV's or VCR's.

Now since we are studying Orientalism which is basically a study of the stereotypes of everything "not western" and the study of those who study those stereotypes, I can understand why this essay was chosen. It is strangely stereotypical on both sides of the fence in that the writer (Alex Kerr) is portraying Gaijin in Japan as people too poor or actually better portrayed as too cheap to afford new stuff so that they will trash pick in order to obtain things.

He portrays the regular Japanese person as seeing this practice of not only trash picking as unsavory, but the whole concept of "second hand items" as just as unsavory, as apparently a Japanese person explained to him that the concept of shifting his unwanted but usable TV on someone else as a faux pas in etiquette.

Now I may be just speaking as a Canadian, or possibly I am in the minority on this but...

IT IS IMPROPER TO OFFER SOMEONE OF EQUAL STANDING AS YOU A CAST OFF!

The only people you give your used stuff to when you get a new one is people you know who can't afford to get one themselves, and even then it's only for certain items and in delicate situations. Starving collage students, Family members, really close friends whom have just moved or are down on their cash.

You wouldn't show up to your office as a C.E.O or even the secretary and offer your used items to a co-worker that you were not very VERY close friends with. It's RUDE.

I wonder where this writer is from that GARBAGE PICKING is acceptable. Sure sometimes I want to do a little Gomi Picking myself when I see a pile of something cool that someone has thrown away, and I am guilty of nicking a Japanese children's video tape from the Gomi Pile one day (but it was very educational and I threw it out right after watching it because it is, still, garbage.)
But that is something that is just not DONE, at least not where I live. (Amongst the upper middle class if you want to be specific, but even when my family was directly middle class or even lower middle class as we were living with my Grandparents for a year while my Dad got back on his feet it would have still been rude, gross and improper to go dumpster diving)

I hope this guy hasn't written somewhere that Japanese people don't have Garage Sales because on one hand, they don't because they don't have Garages and he is correct in that they don't have the space to be hoarding their stuff which doesn't allow them to usually accumulate enough stuff to warrant a Garage Sale.
However there are Japanese flea markets. There is the one that happens on the first Saturday of every month (or last Saturday? Can't remember) around Harajuku. There are the ones that happen every week in the Summer in Ueno Park in the evening. And there is a big three day flea market extravaganza at the BIG site in Kaiheim Makuhari in Chiba-ken every year (I think that one might happen twice a year)

The last part of the essay went on to put Japanese people in this weird disorganized negative light that showed them as all being messy and cluttered and unorganized when it came to their households.

Who does this man visit and that's quite a broad generalization.

I know a lot of people that are disorganized to a state that makes my skin crawl. Sometimes I get that way as well (at least in my personal space, it is a very complicated pile of chaos.) My mother was a cleaner, everything has a place and it would always be put back in that place. (sometimes you didn't know where that place was, but you sure bet it wasn't just laying out) My grandparents (her parents) are the same, by Grandparents on my fathers side are not like that, they have stacks of things laying out, food on the counter just sitting there, piles of stuff and extra things all over the place, Neither are any of my Aunts and Uncles on either side of my family clean to the point of obsession like my family or Mothers Parents.

I get 50/50 with my friends. Some of my friends are so disorganized I have to clean their houses for them when I visit simply because I can't stand it, some are about on par with me. Even I get disorganized sometimes. I won't throw a house party if my house isn't fit and tidy, but if you drop in on me you're not going to see that much of a change other than piles of papers in stacks on the floor which are various stages of various projects.

I've been to a Japanese house that made me want to clean it because it was so cluttered with stuff. But I've been to other houses that were free of junk and clutter and as clean as my mothers house.

Even at work when I was working at the high school. A-sensei and K-sensei's desks were overflowing with work and projects, but S-sensei and T-sensei's desk was clear and empty. The sensei with the desk next to me kept hers clear as well as the two ladies with desks across from us. Yet the two desks behind me were so overflowing with stuff that occasionally one teacher would use my desk as an extra holder for his items.

I think it's an almost racist point to say that culturally Japanese people can't understand the concept of organization. At the least any more than anyone else.

Crossposted on Opinionholes

COMIKET MUTHAFUKKAS!!

2009-06-17T09:57:00.001-07:00

August 17

Airless Areas make me Asphyxiate.

I woke up exhausted today. It was so hot last night so I didn't get much sleep, and since I was excited to go to Comiket I woke up at 4am, 5am, 6am and 7am before my alarm went off at 8am and I dragged myself out of bed.

I got into my cosplay outfit I was thinking of wearing, looked outside, and got right back out of it. The tempature today was a balmy 35C with a 40% humidity.

You'll have to excuse me while I die of heat stroke here.

I had some Chocolate bread for breakfast and got an e-mail from Eri-chan whom I was going to Comiket with. She had to drive her mom to the hospital since her brother couldn't do it, so instead of her picking me up at home, I would meet her and her friend Mistu-kun in Akihabara at 11:30

It's only 9 and I'm totally ready to go but I have no problem ever going to Akiba. I get there by 10:30-ish and play in the Yodabashi building for a bit. I was drawing with one of their touch screen computers. I really want to get one of those screens but they're like $1,000 (¥100,000)

Mitsu-kun and Eri-chan get there and then we're off to "The Big Site" where Comiket is being held.

My first impression of Comiket was:
HOLY CRAP there are like A MILLION PEOPLE HERE (and I was undercounting.)

My second impression was:
Oh my god....
there is no Air Conditioning....

We get in line to enter the first building (there are 4 stadium sized buildings for this 3 day event) and walking the line is a very entrepreneurial guy selling popsicles. Smart man.

Mitsu-kun asks if I'm looking for anything special, and I'm not. I can't read Japanese yet and I'm not so uncouth as to buy porn in front of a stranger and poor Eri-chan.
Wing asked me to get some FF7, LOTR or Pirates of the Caribbean stuff so I tell him to just keep his eyes open for that. He asks one of the booth people if anyone has that stuff since at the time we were just surrounded by Gundam Wing comics.
Sadly, LOTR and Caribbean is all to be sold tomorrow, so there is none. And the FF7 stuff is in a different castle... I mean Building.

So we have to go back outside.

Into the BLAZING SUN!!!

We stopped past the cosplay corner. Seriously those people have some dedication to the craft. They were all sweating BUCKETS but still smiling and posing and having a good old time. I got a few shots in with my camera before I was yelled at because you have to pay for a picture pass. Then we ran off.

I got a FF7 and FMA doujinshi, neither of them smut (SAD!) but the art was good and they were cheap.

We then had to get out of there because we were all dying.

Overall I was a little disappointed.
Maybe if I had been there with a group of excitable otaku and surrounded by people I felt comfortable buy smut around and if I had planed ahead enough to bring some frozen water bottles and cool patches and a suitcase I would have had a bit more fun. Or maybe I would have been just as hot, lost and irritable. In either case Canadian cons, while lacking in the sheer mass of doujinshi and are more expensive when it comes to those things, are still by far more fun simply because there is more to do, and less people to impede your path to do them.
My highlight of the day was seeing someone with a Pedobear fan.

We went back to Akiba afterward and Mitsu-kun took us to a Maid Cafe. (My first one!!)

This cafe was apparently the same one shown in the movie "Densha Otoko" or "Train Man"
(It's a true story about a guy who meets this girl on a train after saving her from some old creepy asshole and then gets advice from 2chan ((an online image/message board for Otaku)) on how to ask her out after they exchanged numbers because she sent him a thank you note, it's cute)

I got this weird chocolate Coffee fruit drink thing and it was kinda gross.
But I hate Coffee so I think that's what threw me off it the most. If I liked coffee that be another story altogeather.

The cutest maid was the Glasses Character that was behind the counter, the other maids just looked a little scruffy with their old looking purses, bloomers hanging out the bottom of their dirty looking dresses and buttons which were totally clashing with their costumes.

As the head maid was taking our order and I asked Mitsu-kun what he said and she repeated everything flawlessly in English, she said she lived in Chicago for about 7 years and just came back to Japan recently.
That was about the sweetest point of the whole thing. I'll have to go back there and hopefully catch her again so we can order with her since my Japanese=Shit.

I got a map to all the Maid Cafes in Akihabara so I'll have to scan that and then do a running commentary on them as I go because HELL YEA I'M GONNA HIT EVERY CAFE THERE!!! MUHAHAHAHAHA
(I'll have to start up a different blog for that)

That reminds me

2009-06-15T09:29:00.000-07:00

The Creepy guys post reminded me of my other Creepy Guy experiences I've had in Japan. Not too many and not too bad thank GOD but still, I don't understand how this is acceptable.

Shortly after I first came to Japan this one fellow caught me on the train. He just shouted out "Hello" from a distance and then zoomed in on me like a shark to blood when my head jerked up to look around thinking "Oh? English?? Yes?"

He introduced himself, asked what my job was, where I was from, where I lived and if he could have my number all in the span of let 2 min it takes me to walk from the Takenotsuka train platform to the Matsudo one.

I mumbled out answers to most of his questions and then told him that I felt uncomfortable with him talking to me so brazenly before I made a run for the ticket gate and got lost in the crowd.

The second time had to have been no more than a week after that. I can clearly remember this guy was Indian (The other guy I'm not sure, maybe Indian maybe Arab, I rally suck at placing people)
Same thing. "Hello Hello, Hi pretty lady? Can I come home with you?"
I actually snapped at this guy.
"I'm sorry, is this appropriate in your country? Do you talk to strange girls where you're from and do they invite you home? You make me uncomfortable so please go away."
He kind of mumbled something that I assume from his shamed look was an "I'm sorry" before slinking off but still.

Ew.

Motherfucking Atsui

2009-06-12T15:26:00.000-07:00

August 16

Not Atatakai, Not Chou Atsui but MOTHER FUCKING HOT. I need a word for this

Today was hunka hunka burning hot, But August is full summer in Japan.

I went down to the Immigration office in Tokyo to get a re-entry permit since I'm planning on going to Korea. Dance told me to get there early since usually it gets really busy and then I'd be there for hours. So I left the house at 8:30 am and got there when the doors opened at 10. I'm glad I went early, because it was already quite warm by the time I got there.

And as I was leaving at 11, there was a line up out the door and down the hall. Yikes!

The real story however was as I was leaving this guy comes up and starts talking to me.

Now, like we've already established I'm awkward with men, but when you're a guy who is two feet taller than me, and I don't know you, I'm not going to chat with you on the street.
Stranger Danger and all that but still.

He's all "Hey hows it going"

"Um.. Fine, just going home now."

He says that he needs to go to the convini, as though he was expecting me to walk him there or as if I should wait for him. But I just smile and nod and keep walking to the bus stop. So he then keeps following me and asking me questions. I politely answer but then he asks for my number.

I'm not a liar so I wouldn't be able to give him a fake number. So I just say that I find it a little strange to be giving men I don't know and just met my number, apologies and get on the bus.

I have no idea if he was mad or not but I don't much care, in some situations it's okay to start talking to a girl, in others it's not.

(Standing in a line chatting with the person next to you? That's cool.
On a plane chatting with the person next to you? Fine and dandy.
At a club? Practically a requirement.
Following a person down the street talking with them when you're originally going in the opposite direction? Kinda creepy and a little not cool.)

Frankly considering that other BunnyCo teacher who got killed I just won't take my chances with strangers on the street.

After the Immigration office I went to Harajuku and picked up some goth loli outfits for BabyLove (A store back in Canada that I send Japanese knick nacks to) I was thinking about keeping one for Comiket which is tomorrow, but it's way too hot today so I don't know.

On the train home some other guy fell asleep on my shoulder. I think it was because I had a fan and he was leaning into it kind of heavy, but he was really cute so I can't complain.

On the walk home I got some Grape Ice at the Itoyokado.
MAN that hit the spot.

I really like the grape ice creamy stuff here. Shame it's only seasonal.

I Am and Oceanic Goddess

2009-06-08T07:05:00.000-07:00

Aug 13th

Fish Fly and Fireworks Bloom as my Fingers touch the Ocean for the first time.

WELL!

Yesterday Soda e-mailed me.

Now Soda was The guy I met on my birthday and we went to the park and got a Fail of a romantic interview
He asked me on a "DATE" date, not just a "Lets go hang out as friends" but an actual full fledged e-mail confession "I like you lets go on a real date"

I wish I had my cellphone on me because I've kept the original e-mail for proof that it happened.

He made a plan and just told me to e-mail him once I was done work and he would take me out.

However, he never really gave me a specific time. At work today it was really hot and the Air Conditioner was broken so I was sweating like a pig all day. I wasn't about to go out on my first OFFICIAL date in like... 5/6 years... Smelling like a sweaty ass. I got home, took a shower, gussied up a little and met him in Nippori.

However by the time I was ready to go the plan he had planned was already over (A movie) which left him pretty much plan-less.

Now, since I went through most of highschool having a "not very fun time" because I tried to hide what a geek I was and STILL couldn't get boys to like me, I wasn't about to try and pretend to be anything less than the great big nerd I was. Even if I don't get guys, at least I'm having fun being myself.

So when Soda asked me if there was anyplace I wanted to go, I chose Akihabara.

But once we got there I noticed Soda was kind of lagging behind. He confessed to really not even liking geeky stuff at all and when he asked me where I wanted to go, he thought I'd choose Odaiba because that is the "Dating Area" of Tokyo (ppfft like I would know that)

So we hopped on a train to Odaiba instead.

We wandered around for a bit because it was raining a touch, but once it stopped we wandered around the shoreline and sat on some rocks by the water.

Now this was my first time seeing the Ocean, so I went down to the water and touched it and a Huge Fish Leapt from the water and then Fireworks went off down the beach.

It must be a sign.

The only kind of downside of the night was Soda kept asking me if I was going to move from my BunnyCo apartment. I had been complaining about the leaks and the mushrooms and the rent and my worries over the stability of Bunnyco since some people had been getting moved around from their apartments with very little notice.
When I asked him why he was so interested in where I was moving to he said it was because where ever I move to, he wanted to move to the same kind of area.

I found that to be really kinda creepy, but understandable since he was looking for a new place anyway, and didn't want to wind up on the other side of the city from his new girlfriend.

But it was still weird.

I wonder if that was a sign too.

I FAILED AT LOVE

2009-06-01T21:51:00.000-07:00

August 9th

Finding out I fail at flirting in all forms

Now I may or may not have mentioned that I don't have very much contact with men. This may be why I'm usually such a pervert, lack of knowledge makes for a rich and fertile imagination.
And an overabundance of porn and romance movies gives me a skewed view of what relationships are like.

In any case, I find boys to be extraordinarily confusing. Which is why I find it so funny when they complain that women are confusing. I think women are very easy to figure out, just it's hard for guys to step up and act proper in order to get a girl. If they would just sit down, watch some romantic comedies, take notes and then pay attention to whom they are going to give their attention to, they'd be able to get whatever their aiming out of any relationship.

Girls don't have it that easy since we've got societal pressures on us, and there are no such thing as "Male relationship movies geared at men" to give us insight into what men really want.

I lead into this because the aftermath of my "date" with Ta-kun came to a head today.

Ta-kun and I went out, I had an alright time and he spoke to me in English so I think he had an okay time too.
I e-mailed him in Japanese about my fish when he died on the 2nd and today e-mailed him again asking him if he wanted to do something on friday. He e-mails back (in Japanese)
"Sorry about your fish, Friday I have an English lesson."

I send back a "What time?" since my plan for the evening was to just take a walk in Odaiba to just get out of the house.

he sends:
"I don't know what time, I'm going to call and book in."

I might have missed something in the traslations here, but in English having an "unmade plan" at an "Unspecified time" sounds a lot like "I just don't want to see you right now"

I waited a week after our date to e-mail him at all and it's been two weeks now since then. Based on my very low relationship reasoning skills I think this means he's just not that into me.

Nobody likes me, everybody hates me, I'm just the little annoying otaku girl.

A goodbye to George

2009-05-31T11:42:00.000-07:00

August 2nd

Goodbye and Goodluck George the Goldfish.

The Tale of George:

Sometime in May I went to a festival with Dance and one of his friends whom I can't remember the name of. It was around the time we went cherry blossom Viewing.

I can't remember the day too well which is why I think I never wrote about it. But Wing, Dance and two BunnyCo J-Staff I didn't know very well went out to Ueno park to see the cherry blossoms. This was the beginning of me getting kind of mad at Dance and intolerant of him and how he acts.
The two J-staff were not very good at English, so if you spoke slowly and clearly to them they would understand, however Dance wouldn't do that, he spoke in funny voices, accented his words strangely and would speak far too fast for native speakers to understand him let alone non native speakers who were not that good at their second language. I found it to be rude, and so did they. I found it to be MORE rude since he CAN speak Japanese with some fluency but usually refuses to speak it unless he has to.
In any case, afterward those two girls would not come out with me anymore because, and they said this in an e-mail quite directly, they didn't like Dance and didn't want to be around him. I saw them a few times afterward at work and privet functions but they were just so disgusted by him, and needless to say that day I was too.

In any case, after they and Wing left Dance and I waited around for his friend to come. After his friend arrived we went to the festival that was happening. They had a fish scooping contest thing so you could win a goldfish.

I got about 5 but I only wanted one so I kept the big black googly eye'd one.

I got him a bowl and food and everything. He was my first pet that wasn't a family pet.

My students had warned me that Hanami fish usually died within a week, but George, he lasted 3 months.

Then I cleaned his bowl one day, clearly didn't get all the soap rinsed out and killed him.

I blamed Wing because that night before he died I had a dream where she reached in the bowl and crushed him and then I woke up and he was dead. But once I distinguished the dream from reality I realized it was probably my fault.

Gooddnight sweet fishy prince.

The word of the day is "Baka"

2009-05-30T10:47:00.001-07:00

July 28

Baka baka baka watashi wa atsui desu yo

God it was deathly out today, It's been getting hotter and hotter and I'm not looking forward to my first summer in Japan. Winter was well... The equivalent of an extended Canadian Fall so it really doesn't feel like I had a "Winter" yet.

Today at work was pretty easy. I had one low student so it was a lot of rinse and repeat in that class but I like those classes the most especially if it seems like the student is really trying. They advance so quickly when they're first learning.

I bought cherries for everyone but since they were sitting on a stand outside they were all half cooked and too squishy (I like my cherries cold and firm) but the staff liked them since I'm always about sharing my lunch.
Japanese Cherries are really small, and I'd say "flavorful" but I used to live in Okanagan Falls B.C where they have big Red RIPE Cherries that you can eat buckets and buckets of (and then be shitting up a storm later) so while Japanese cherries are tasty and cute, they don't hold a candle to something fresh picked in good ol' OK falls.

My Real adventure today was at the station.
I found a wallet on the stairs as I was going down, now the person who lost it isn't going to get very far since their train pass was in it but man that's going to suck for them if they were transferring in Kita-Senju and are at another station.

Fortunetly it was a high tech train pass (Suica is the brand) so their phone number and name is on it.
Not that I'm calling it, no sirre that's a headache I don't need.
So I gave it to a station guy.

However...

I had to explain it wasent mine. the conversation went like so:

*Hand him wallet*
"Watashi... no.... *I cross my hands in front of me in the Japanese sign for "no"* iie."

He tells me the ticket is good and tries to hand back the wallet.

I back up and point at the wallet
"Kore..."
I point at me
"Watashi..."
I point at the ground and make a "oh no" kind of action, then a picking up motion. I put my hand over my eyes and look around with that still kind of a "oh no" expression and then point back at the wallet.
"Kore..."

The station manager stares at me like I'm nuts then the guy behind me says something like "kanojo no suica chigao"
because clearly he's played cherades before and knows what I'm trying to do.
The station manager understands. I give a little head bob bow and a sumimasen to everyone and Ruuuuunnnnnn like a Mo-Fo.

Usually if you find someone's wallet you fill out some paperwork and can get a reward or keep it if no one claims it. I just ran because it's not like I could fill out that paperwork anyway. But hopefully, someplace, somewhere, that karma will come back to me.

Maybe it's just in the luck that I've never lost my train pass.

Happy birthday to me

2009-05-26T19:28:00.000-07:00

Not the worst birthday ever.

...

Not the worst at least.

I FAIL AT DATING

2009-05-24T20:25:00.000-07:00

July 27

Dorks dating disastrously

So I had Ta-kuns number now. I waited a week and a bit before I messaged him because you know, I don't want to seem desperate. Besides he had my e-mail too.

He would only message me in Japanese at first, so when he asked me out to dinner, I couldn't figure out what he was even writing for the first little while.
But once I did...

Oh sweet gezuz did I not know what to do with myself.

I met up with him in Kita-Senju and he took me to a bar that I'd been to once before on a different occasion that I can't really remember. I am usually too uptight to eat around boys specifically the first time I meet them, so I just had a little salad and a drink.
We spoke in Japanese at first, well he spoke more and I listened and confirmed if what I was hearing was correct. He was quite nice about speaking slowly and clearly for me.

Once he had a few drinks in him he was able to switch over to English. We talked about comics and movies and music and compared I-pod selections. I listened to one of his BunnyCo lessons that he had on there and he told me that he was actually a high level student but only took the online lessons because he couldn't relax and speak English unless he was drunk.

There were quite a few awkward pauses while we both couldn't think of anything to say in either language.

We went our separate ways at the end of the night. No hug, no kiss (oh my that would have been too much for me) but I was giddy and on cloud nine.

I was also worried I was underdressed and had a fat ass the whole night.

I'm starting an exercise routine now. Damn it.

Maybe I'm just too lazy to date seriously.

Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars.

2009-05-24T20:23:00.000-07:00

July 16th
Ty Terrified when Ta-kun touches her tootsies

Ziggy arrived in Japan so we went to our regular bat place (Amataro) at the regular bat time (after work) This was also kind of a very late "welcome to Japan Lau" as well.

Mari2, KC, Dani, Dance, ~TA-KUN~ , Lau and Ann all came to meet our Canadian friend who followed us to Japan but was smart enough to Avoid BunnyCo.
(I gave Ziggy some heads up about the Bunny and she came with a company I'll call Genos. Which sounds terribly Italian)
Wing of course was there since Her, Ziggy and I were the executive council of the ANIME CLUB in university.

All my true nerdy colours shine through.

It wasn't as zainy as our big 15 man parties so with only 9 people this was a lot quieter.

So we decided to teach Mari2 all kinds of Slang like:
"She loves meat" *WINK*
"He's got a big Salami"
and the one's me and her use even today..
"S'up Papi" > "Nutin much, How you doin?" > "I be doin good since I'm talking to you."

Mari2 started to draw animals off in the corner in embarrassment after I explained to her what something particularly crude Dance was trying to get her to say was.
So I sat beside her and named what she drew in Japanese.
Ta-kun came and sat next to me and kinda put his hand on my leg and leaned in and so I taught him Animal Sounds.
(And died a little with joy)
He sat down real close and then played with my foot with his foot.

I couldn't look at him while he did that. My face would have gone too red, so any time I had to talk to him I'd kinda pull my foot away, and then put it back when I looked at someone else. Oh God I swear my heart must have stopped.
But Wing was also there so it's not like I was going to be obviously hitting on him. She still liked him too and while I might daringly flash my ankles at him (I'm such a 18th century whore) I wouldn't jump him without her being okay with it.

Although I did exchange e-mails with him, but that was Japanese practice because I asked him in Japanese.
Right? Yea!

All and all it was a good night and I hope Ziggy enjoyed herself.

You know, considering how virginal I am sometimes, you totally wouldn't guess that I'm a huge hentai fiend and secretly a dirty old man in my head.

FAIL AT FLIRTING

2009-05-19T20:58:00.000-07:00

July 13

Fucked flirting failures

The Tale of my Awkward love life continues...

Lately I've been working at the Bunny Branch in Hanahata. It's just a kids school and it's only open one day a week. Frankly (considering the rumors flying around about BunnyCo shutting down) If I was president I'd shut this school down so fast. The property is in the middle of no where. It's only open one day a week but you're still paying for it the other 6 days. And there are only about 12 kids in attendance.

In addition my regular branch in Takenotsuka is only less than 15 minutes away, so while you could offer the parents that are terribly inconvenienced their money back, I imagine most of the kids would be totally cool with jumping on the bus and going down a few blocks to the man school.

Such a waste.

But I was on the kid duty because unlike everyone else at BunnyCo, I actually liked the kids classes. (Okay I hated the Kids CLASSES but I liked the kids. What I was teaching them was malarky)

This month Ta-kun was there.

Normally Eri-chan's brother works there, (just the one day, never any other day) But because BunnyCo is cutting back, he got the boot and now Ta-kun comes in between his shifts at Kita-Senju.
Well I have about an hour between my first class and the second ones so I was studying Japanese like I usually do. He helped me by asking me what time it was in Japanese which was my lesson of the day. He also tried to make me read from his Magazine which was hard because it was like:
"Kawa kanji kanji kanji rimo kanji kanji kanji"
(Kanji is the Chinese characters in Japanese writing, you need to know like 14,000 to read a magazine or newspaper. I know like... 15, so when I hit a kanji I don't know I either say "kanji" or "Nandoka" for "what is it.." and keep going.)

He laughed at me for being illiterate but then I told him to translate it into English if he was so damn smart.

Dorkmeister couldn't do it.

But while he was asking me questions in Japanese he'd put his hand on my shoulder.
*gasp!*

And when we rode to the main branch on the bus.

are you ready for this?

OUR LEGS WERE TOUCHING!!
*Screams like a high school girl in heat*

I really need to get more experience with guys, my life is a bad shoujo manga.

On the ride to the main branch he asked me if I had a boyfriend.
I of course said no.
"Why?" he said with what I thought was actual surprise.

Yea.. sometimes I'm surprised too. The I remember what a loser I am.

"Well because everyone hates me I suppose."
"Really?"
"Oh yes, I'm quite annoying most of the time so everyone hates me. Ask Eri-chan, she hates me the most."

He gave me his 'smile and cock his head to the side of confusion' which makes me giggle because he looks like a confused puppy when he does that.

"What about you? Do you have a boyfriend?"
"No... Wait... What? Boyfriend?"

Apparently Ta-kun did not have a girlfriend, but he had an army of boys at his beck and call because he's just so pretty.

This is probably why I can't get a boyfriend. I'm just never serious for a moment.

Ahhh hindsight.

TGIF Or was this a Thursday?

2009-05-19T20:57:00.000-07:00

July 10
Fabulous french fries at fridays

Today was a bit of an odd day.
I had read in an anime magazine that Nippori was well know among the otaku community in Japan as a place to go for cosplay supplies. Now I thought this meant there was a lot of costumes there. So I dragged Ann out because right now is that time of the year that summer sales are on, so since Nippori is know as a "fashion district" I figured I could get something cheap.
It sadly was not a cheap clothing district but a cheap CLOTH district.

Because we didn't want to waste our train fare and I didn't want to believe I dragged us out there for nothing we wound up walking three stations away from the original station and all I had to show for it was some pretty cloths that you use to wrap your lunchbox in.

Damn.

Since Soda lived in that area we met him in Ueno. Now anyone who knows me knows that I will take the reigns in a situation and lead, but that I hate doing it because I'm lazy. Soda is even more lazy then me.
So after 5 minutes of:
"What do you wanna do?"
"I dunno, what do you wanna do?"
"Well I dunno, what do YOU wanna do?"
Ann finally snapped and dragged us both to TGIFridays.

We don't have Fridays in Canada. But for Canadians it's basically Boston Pizza, with hamburgers instead of pizza.

I'm beginning to suspect that Soda likes Ann, I had him come out with me a few days ago to help me with buying a cable cord for the TV because we broke the last one. I kept leaning in when we were talking later and he just kept moving back. (I was leaning in because he's a mumbler and I couldn't hear him.)
Either he doesn't like me that much. Or I had bad breath that day.

I'm excited because Ziggy will be coming to Japan next week. Wing and I are already planning her party to welcome her here. Sadly her company is placing her about an hour or so away from where we live (by train) so even though she's here now, I don't know how much we'll be seeing her. I guess it depends on when her days off are*

*(It turns out they were on Sunday Mondays and Wing had Monday Tusedays and early off on Sundays while I had Thursday Fridays off. Which means Wng at least visited her, I never really got the chance to.)

I'm a dirty slut.

2009-05-19T07:33:00.000-07:00

June 30
Mannizer, Mannizer I wish I could be a Mannizer...

I'm such a man whore, but considering how lonely and sparse my love life is can you really blame me?
I actually magically managed to get a Saturday off and decided to go to Yoyogi park in Harajuku. Sadly Sunday is the cosplay day so I was stiffed on seeing what "High fashion" is in Japan.
(fie..)
I didn't want to go alone but Lau and Wing both worked and so did all the J-staff.
So I got Soda's e-mail from Ann and asked if he wanted to go.
I kinda had a crush on him too, nothing in comparison to Ta-kun but come on.
TAKUYA KIMURA!!
Soda's not that hot. He kinda looks like This dude only much shorter and his hair isn't as awesome.
But anyway, he wasn't getting my very VERY subtle "I'm kind of into you" signals because I said it once, I'll say it again, I'm an awkward schmuck and my signals suck.

For example, I kept bumping into him as we walked kind of brushing his hand hoping he'd maybe MAYBE take mine. He just kept moving away to give me space.

DANGIT.

Someone needs to write a love novel about my akward akward life.

Well we're in the park and the first thing that happens is a lady ask's to interview us for the Tokyo Times. I'm okay with it but Soda's shy and doesn't want his picture in the paper.

I'm thinking it will be something about working in Japan or Politics or something to do with BunnyCo since that's been all the rage.

"How do you feel about Dating in Japan"
. . .
uhhhhhh

Soda and I just look at eachother and I mumble "We're not acctually dating" she's all "Oh"

Question 2
How do you feel about previous dating experiances in Japan.

Both of us answer that we've never dated in Japan.

Question 3
What have you HEARD about dating in Japan

I think I just ruined your interview because I havn't heard much. I only know one guy with a Japanese wife and Eri-Chan is dating a BunnyCo teacher.
(Although as a BunnyCo student she's not allowed to be, but he's not HER teacher.)

The poor newsgirl looks kind of flabbergast at us (well maybe next time she'll tell us the topic before taking our picture for the paper.)
I tell her that all I've noticed is that it seems western guys have an easier time of getting girls than western women do, and that it always is the Japanese partner that has to lean English, which is strange considering we're in Japan.

In the end I never made it into the paper, but the reporter did say she noticed that trend herself but it wasn't what she was looking for.

Well don't I just fail at everything involving dating, including questions on it.

Len Says Farewell.

2009-05-17T11:47:00.001-07:00

June 24
Gone when the going was good.
Man, this month has just been party after party with me.

Today Len had her going away party in Ueno because she was going back home soon. She had done her time and saved her money and just didn't want to be in Japan anymore. She was going back to school to become an accountant.
What a nerd.

But it was a good night as there was more Ta-kun adventures.

AND DRAMAS!

I worked that day so I showed up late and was intending to leave early as I worked the next day as well. (Yay...)
But I decide to get myself a drink and have a good time anyway. I was up at the bar chatting it up with someone whom I will probably never see again when Ta-Kun slides up beside me and gives me a poke in the side which sends me a foot in the air because I was surprised, and because I'm ticklish as all hell and he's figured that out.
Len slides up to us and gives us her goodbye book and her and Ta-kun start chatting in drunken Eng-Jap-dunk talk while I write her a goodbye message.
I totally cant remember what i wrote but I probably drew pictures.
Len gets dragged off by other people and Ta-kun takes over the book and in very quiet but perfect English asks me to write his message for him because he wants it to be clear. He's leaning on me the whole time I write which, like I said in an earlier post, If I let you touch me at all it's like we're having sex so I'm on cloud nine with that.
I know he's drunk though because the only time he speaks English is when he's hammered. Once I'm finished writing he wanders off and Wing comes by leaving me with a little slice of "uh-oh" but she didn't notice him leaning on me and I pass the book off onto her.
Whew dodged that bullet.

Sadly only that one.

I head to the bar to get a drink and since I drink fancy sissy girly drinks and everyone else is on the beer when Ta-kun comes back up to me the first thing he does is steal my drink.

To which I'm all "OMG INDIRECT KISS!!" like a 14 year old Japanese girl in my head.

What can I say I'm a total schmuck.

I ask him to tell me a story so he launches into a tale of his childhood.

In Japanese.

All I understood from him talking for about 5 minutes was that he was born in Hokkaido. I pout because I can't understand and he translates that his parents still live there. Then he says I'm cute and pats me on the head.

Now this is the sad part.

Ta-kun is the only guy in my entire life to date (and by to date I mean now, May 2009) to call me cute.

(Or give me any compliment at all. Can you see why I still hold a candle for the guy?)

I call him a big meanie and we both wander off to other circles.

I had to pop out early because I had to work in the morning. As I'm saying goodbye to Wing he came up and gave me a hug and a kiss on the neck (o_O)
I kinda freeze up because Wing is there and I'm worried about brutal muderings in my sleep, and because usually my reaction to surprise huggings is a shot to the kidneys. Fortunately I was drunk enough that my reflexes were a moment behind my brain so I could keep them in check, and I'm getting better about not doing that anymore.

I head out but to this day I wish I'd stayed to see how a drunk Ta-kun and a drunk me would have fared.

Damn work.

More Birthdays for me?

2009-05-16T11:34:00.001-07:00

June 17
Late and leftover love from little laughing girls.

I and my J-staff Mari2 arranged a second party for all those who missed out on my first party. Ann invited some friends from her branch which then made a Mari3 but that one was a he.
So it was Mari 1,2 and 3 Eri,, Michi, Ann, Lau, Wing and a bunch of other people that I can't remember.
Lion I think was there too. And Mass whom I don't know very well.

In any case, we ate and drank and then busted out the Karaoke machine. We wound up bellowing "Hey Jude" all the way back to the station and freaking out all the sober Japanese folk. Eri and Mari 1 & 2 and Michi were to slammed to even really notice. It was a good night. Not so good of a morning the next day, but a good night had by all.
Mari2 had a sore tummy all the next day, not from drinking but because she was laughing at Mari3 so hard all night she probably pulled something.

Shame that was the first and last time I saw Mari3, he really was a riot.

BunnyCo. Should have seen this coming.

2009-05-16T00:11:00.001-07:00

June 16, 2007
Bitchy Boss begs for Bailouts before Bankruptcy
All throughout June BunnyCo was in the news. Apparently a lot of students and ex-students had been working on a lawsuit against BunnyCo for a few years. Because of this the government finally looked into the problem.
(Japanese people don't sue or charge companies very often, so when they do the law usually doesn't know what to do so they take a long time to do anything. This suit has been going on since 1997 or so.)
The government while investigating has demanded that Bunny suspend long term contracts with students and only do limited sales.

Because of this our paycheque was 14 hours late. Rumor was they were not planning on paying us, but last moment changed their mind and payed because of how many people would have quit then and there if they didn't pay. I should have seen the writing on the wall here, but I'm too optimistic for my own good.

I also got to work in Kita-Senju this month, which meant I got to work with Ta-Kun.

Now Ta-kun is a tale unto himself.
Ta-kun worked at Soka where Wing worked, He had a crush on Len and Wing had a crush on him and Len liked Ta-kun but wouldn't date co-workers even if they were the J-Staff because she was a boss (not of them but higher management anyway) And she didn't want to get involved with a Japanese guy because she wanted to go home soon.

Wing didn't want to get involved with Ta-kun because she liked Len and if Len got pissed off she could make Wing's life a living hell, I don't think Len would be like that, but at the same time things would be MIGHTY AKWARD.

I have a crush on Ta-kun because well... he's hot, like Takuya Kimura hot and IF you can get him to talk he's pretty bright.
Shy as all bits but bright.
However out of the three of us I have the least amount of contact with him (as I didn't work in Soka when he did nor do I go drinking as much) And honestly I'm good at hiding my feelings because I am SUPER AKWARD I mean I'm not a touchy person so If I let you make any physical contact with me, or try to initiate some with you, then I'm practically in love with you.

And that's the only way you can tell that I don't want to secretly kill you. If I'm willing to either go our of my way to feed you or I'm willing to pat you on the shoulder.

I worked in Kita senju where he now works and I've become less shy around the staff since I'm begining to understand what they say to me when they're yammering in Japanese which means I act like a compeat goof. Ta-kun seemed to find it... Endearing to say the least since he's gotten into the habit of patting me on the head and telling me I'm "interesting" (omoshiaroi) I think he also does that because I'm the only one at the office shorter then him.

Eh, I'll take what I can get.