Raku Raku

So, today is the easiest day of work ever and I’m loving it! I only have two classes today, as my other two are cancelled because we had a concert for two periods today. The Gunma Classical Orchestra came and played for about an hour. It was nice and relaxing, though I was sadly a little too sleepy to fully appreciate it. But it was nice to just sit there and listen to music.

There were two whiteys in the band and I was like “oh, no you di’n’t step on my turf, bitch!” Hee hee. There was also a Hispanic bass player that kept staring at me for some reason…..perhaps he can tell I like chorizo? ;) But I only like it caliente, and he was not caliente at all.

Anyway, I have the next two periods off, which is nice, as I have to do preparation for next week’s lessons and whatnot. I have a weird schedule for the next week or so! Tomorrow is the English Speech Contest in Ojima, so I am going with my JTE and the three students in the afternoon (I get to skip most of my classes). Saturday morning I have my undoukai (sports festival) at Minami Shougakkou for a couple hours, then I plan on going back to sleep, and doing something (?) at night.

Sunday is Paradise Ball, bitches! I am afraid to announce that I have broken up with Veronica, as she is not attending. She would rather be in Shizuoka, the land of Mt. Fuji and….um…nothing else. Sniff. Anyway, I think I’m going to go around Shibuya (my favorite part of Tokyo) before that, as I haven’t been there in like 9 months and I want to window shop. Meeting Grant in 2chome (gay area) before that, then taking the train to PB and dancing the night away.

Monday is dedicated to getting back to Gunma and sleeping (it’s Respect for the Elderly Day, so no school). Have school Tuesday-Thursday, then Friday is Autumnal Equinox, so no school (I love crazy Japanese holidays). I think some of us might go hiking and go in the onsen that day but I’m not sure if there are enough cars to take us all. We shall see. Saturday morning is the other shougakkou undoukai, then at night there is Ninja Nites at Draw (a club) in Maebashi, so I think I’m going to that. Then Sunday is sleep.

Overall, a pretty fun week! Tanoshimi!

Alcoholism and Getting a Haircut in a Foreign Language

I love my Ota ALTs!!! Last night we had our weekly potluck dinner. It was at Angie’s this time, and it was a blast. I had been craving wine on Tuesday night, but refrained, as it’s not exactly something you can drink by yourself (without having the whole bottle, and that’s depressing), so I was very excited to enjoy good wine and good company last night (despite the 15 minutes it took to open that damn first bottle….stupid synthetic corks!). We had good food, too. A yummy salad, bread AND CHEESE (you have no idea how exciting and rare cheese is in this country), pastries (for most people this is eaten last, but for me, Veronica and Angie, this is an appetizer), pasta with marinara and seafood, and ice cream. I may have gained 15 pounds and gotten no sleep, but it was worth it. Thanks, Angie!

So, the other day I took a large step and got my first haircut in Japan. The other two times I was here I was too scared to get a haircut in Japanese and just let my hair grow to afro proportions, but that’s not exactly advisable when living here for 1-3 years. Plus, I had to be sexy for Paradise Ball, so it was as good a time as any to take the plunge! I went to this $10 haircut place (yes, sounds sketchy, but there are lots of them in Japan) that my students recommended and it was awesome! The guys there had the most high-maintenance haircuts possible (and that’s saying a lot for Japanese guys), so I wasn’t too scared. The guy who cut my hair was really cool and we had a good conversation about 24, Gunma, and other stuff. I also somehow got my sister set up on a date with the guy behind the desk when she comes to visit in the spring. God, I’m turning into my grandma. Anyway, yay for sexy haircut! :)

Putting the "reading" back in "I like reading"

So, like many people I know, I am a person who likes to read, but am often too lazy/ADD/busy/tired to do so. I am trying to change that, though, so this week I started reading The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. Well, re-reading (ya know, 'cause I have no undread books waiting for me). It is a damn good book, and I highly recommend it! In fact, if you are in Gunma, it is likely that I will force you to read it 'cause it's good, and short, so you can read it in like ten seconds.

After I finish that, I am going to borrow The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time from Grant-san, which I have been meaning to read for a while now (yay free copy!).

So yes, if you have any book recommendations for after I read that, I would definitely appreciate them. No, this is not a ploy to make people post comments on my blog ;) I may do a marathon of you're-not-a-real-American-if-you-haven't-read-this-book books, such as Catcher in the Rye, Grapes of Wrath, Great Gatsby, etc. I really have no idea how I have lived this long without reading those, but whatever. Then again, my Che biography is calling to me, as well. Hmmm.

Anyway, if you have any book recommendations, lemme know! Arigats.

Caffeine Whore

I think I’m turning Japanese, I think I’m turning Japanese, I really think so.

So, I am doing the unthinkable and gradually giving up coffee. Yes, it is a sad day in Mudville. I am still having it in the mornings, but the quantities are getting smaller and smaller. Awww, I’m so healthy. However, that doesn’t mean I’m giving up caffeine at all. In fact, I do believe I have been having ridiculous amounts of it lately.

In Japan, drinking water is a rare activity. It can be 7000 degrees (Celsius) outside and they will still serve you hot coffee or tea. I really don’t know how they don’t just drop dead of dehydration. Anyway, there are unlimited quantities of free tea at work, and I take advantage of it like no other. I usually have a few mugs of green tea to feel like I’m a one-man cancer-curing machine, then I move to the iced tea. It’s probably not very good for me, but oh well.

On a completely different note, I pre-ordered the Rent movie soundtrack last night! YAY! It is out two weeks from today and I am tanoshimi ni shiteiru like no other, mothafuckah! People in the States are bitching about it being like $22, when it is $35 here…but well worth it, I do believe. There is no way I’m waiting to see the movie before listening to it, considering it still doesn’t even have a Japanese release date. But it’s out in late February in Taiwan, and I will see it when we go there (March, kana?).

K, just choked to death on my tea. Maybe that’s a sign I should stop drinking it. Anyway, time to get to some proficiency test studying, as I haven’t done shit, and certain losers (*cough*) seem to be far ahead of me! I am spending too much money on this shit to fail! Ja, ganbaru!

Interesting cultural differences, as pointed out by my JTE

Ito Sensei and I started off today’s class with a semi-scripted conversation about my weekend. Afterwards she gave a long talk in Japanese to the students that I thought was really interesting. She was saying how gaijin like to have fun/party/play, whatever, and that they work in order to have enough money to have fun on weekends. Japanese people’s main purpose, on the other hand, is work, and weekends are meant for rest from their overwhelming jobs, not for having fun in the gaijin-sense of the word. She then said that if they want to branch out of this cultural idea of what life should be like, they should study abroad or marry a foreigner, etc. It is kind of depressing that one would have to go so far in order to have fun and not work a million hours a week, but it’s interesting that she pointed it out, and proof that society is changing here, albeit slowly. While people still work a ton here, there is a lot more passive-aggressive anger about it than there used to be. It’s interesting to watch things change, even in the five years since I first came here.

I don’t think I organized the above thoughts very well, but wanted to share it with someone.

Culture Shock (and Head Trauma)

Grrrr to anyone who designs doorways in this country!!!!! I automatically duck when going through doorways here, but every once in a while I don’t duck enough or am too distracted or something and definitely pay the price! Last night I went in my bedroom, then quickly turned around for whatever reason and was about to go back in the kitchen when BANG. It was seriously the loudest noise one could possibly make with one’s head against a wooden board. I’m sure my neighbors thought I shot myself or something. Anyhoo, my head was all sore last night, and it still is today! I’m not meant to live in this short country! Fortunately I didn’t actually cut my head open like at Jenny’s a few weeks ago….grrrr!

Sunday, Bloody Sunday

I spent FAR too much time cleaning my damn apartment today! Not amusing whatsoever. Finally unpacked the winter clothes I shipped to myself ('cause, ya know, they're so necessary at the moment), vacuumed, cleaned the shower, cleaned the bathroom, cleaned pipes (crazy Japanese plumbing!), did laundry, put all kinds of shit away, etc. Once again, I need a Mexicano, por favor!

Just came back from Fuji Mart, which is the best suupaa (supermarket) evah! I don't know why there is a huge supermarket in Yabuzuka of all places, but I love me some Fuji Mart! I refused to dress in normal clothes today, so I went in my REI shirt that you can see my nipples and chest hair through....and of course, I saw students there. *sigh*

Currently downloading Team America, Six Feet Under season five and the season premiere of The OC (it already premiered?!), so a night of TV awaits me, woot!

On top of that, I found out that Netflix-style DVD rental services exist in Japan! Hello, I'm never leaving my apartment again! Must refrain to join for a while. But I am sad, as I was hoping to become rich by starting Netflix in Japan (maybe Netfrix?). Oh, well, I will go through with plan B, which is selling gaijin-sized condoms for less than $100 a box, but still at rip-off prices. My grandpa would be very proud of my entrepreneurial skills!

Random Stuff

I love drunk yakisoba from the conbini right before catching the last train. Good, cheap-ass stuff. Went to yakiniku for dinner, then karaoke at the usual place with Jenny, Sean, Anna, Cindy, Taka, and Jenny's JTE. It was calmer than other karaoke nights, but still fun. Won't have the chance to do karaoke for at least a few weeks, which is good, as I am a bit karaoke-d out by now. I didn't know such a thing was possible!

I finally got my speakers set up today, so I can watch DVDs with good sound, yay! Gotta hook it up to my computer tomorrow and Jeff will be a happy audio whore. Looking forward to some movie-night sleepovers!

Can't wait 'til next week....Paradise Ball, motherfuckers! 'Twill be very fun, indeed. Glad that Grant is a skinny-ass bitch, as well, as I don't have ANY muscles to show off for the "muscle beach" theme. Jenny, Cindy and Veronica (and maybe others?) are coming, as well, which will be muy muy fun indeed. Hoping to get some "dirty pashes," if you will!

Tomorrow is a cleaning-the-apartment day, which I'm not amused by at all. I need to import some Mexicans here or something so I can have them do it for me.

On that politically incorrect note, I will finish this boring entry.