Friday, November 25, 2005
I Cabbage Gunmania!
The new issue of Gunmania is out on gunmajet.net and I highly recommend it! There is tons of Ota love in it. Not only is it wonderfully edited by our very own Jenny, but it also features an article by Angie, pics of other Ota peeps, and a restaurant review by moi (big surprise, I wrote about food!). Of course, the other articles are good, as well. Spread some cabbage lovin' and read it, peeps!
Thursday, November 24, 2005
Thanksgiving!
On Tuesday night I biked my ass off to Iwajuku station to catch a train for Maebashi for the JET Thanksgiving dinner! You know I want some turkey when I choose to bike uphill in the cold for 30 minutes. I met up with Cindy on the train, and we went to the restaurant and became bitchy anti-social hos! We made someone leave our table by totally ignoring them and not introducing ourselves. We are evil people. Oh, well, it’s good because our table turned out to be a cool table. We went in worried that we’d have to sit with people we don’t like or know. Did I mention we’re evil? But really, isn’t being anti-social and clique-y what Thanksgiving is all about?
All worries that there wouldn’t be enough food were put aside after I ate 3 full plates of REAL Thanksgiving food. Turkey, mashed potaters, gravy, salad, veggies, bread, stuffing…..good stuff! Mmmmmmmmm! It wasn’t as good as my Grandma’s AMAZING Thanksgiving dinner, but few Americans could beat her, let alone Japanese people! But it was MUY delicioso, and definitely satisfied my Thanksgiving food craving. For dessert there was yummy-as bread pudding, and pumpkin pie. However, Japanese pumpkin stuff is weird ‘cause it’s not as pumpkin-y or sweet as American stuff. It was good, but it wasn’t real pumpkin pie. Oh, well!
After the dinner, Kristine, Cindy and I decided to walk the 25 minutes to the station rather than cab, in an attempt to burn at least a few calories of the enormous meal. It was a very good choice.
Wednesday was the Thanksgiving holiday, so no school, woot! Got to sleep in, make tres hotcakes (yeeeea, Holly!), and talk to my boy before going to Ashikaga with Shindy and Ann. Unfortunately we didn’t have much luck there, as shops were closed and stuff for the holiday, so we ended up going to good ol’ AEON. After making the dire mistake of eating McDonald’s (note to self: never again), Shinders and I went to see Elizabethtown, despite our mutual hatred of Kirsten Dunst. Her and Katie Holmes should both go to hell for their horrible facial expressions and “acting!” Kirsten can joyfully sniff coke the entire way there.
Anyway! So, the movie wasn’t very good. It tried to be like three movies in one, and didn’t succeed in being any of them. Focus, Cameron Crowe, focus! Also, Orlando Bloom was just playing Orlando Bloom with an American accent, and the two didn’t have any chemistry. And if Cameron Crowe wanted Kirsten Dunst to do an impression of Kate Hudson in Almost Famous, why didn’t he just hire Kate Hudson or something? Who knows. Anyway, it wasn’t that bad, but it wasn’t that good, either. Not worth the 16 dollars (with a coupon, might I add!). While at the theater, I got a ticket for Saturday’s showing of Harry Potter, yay! At least that will be worth the 16 dollars.
Speaking of movies, Rent is out in the States. Mehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! It needs to be online NOW. In a completely legal format, that is. Mmhmm. Anyway, is it sad that I would totally be willing to fly home for a day to see the movie, eat Thanksgiving dinner, and see the movie again? Yes, I know it’s sad, but I don’t care! Meh!!!!
Today is the usual painful-work-day-after-having-a-holiday-in-the-middle-of-the-week day. Let’s skipping school!
All worries that there wouldn’t be enough food were put aside after I ate 3 full plates of REAL Thanksgiving food. Turkey, mashed potaters, gravy, salad, veggies, bread, stuffing…..good stuff! Mmmmmmmmm! It wasn’t as good as my Grandma’s AMAZING Thanksgiving dinner, but few Americans could beat her, let alone Japanese people! But it was MUY delicioso, and definitely satisfied my Thanksgiving food craving. For dessert there was yummy-as bread pudding, and pumpkin pie. However, Japanese pumpkin stuff is weird ‘cause it’s not as pumpkin-y or sweet as American stuff. It was good, but it wasn’t real pumpkin pie. Oh, well!
After the dinner, Kristine, Cindy and I decided to walk the 25 minutes to the station rather than cab, in an attempt to burn at least a few calories of the enormous meal. It was a very good choice.
Wednesday was the Thanksgiving holiday, so no school, woot! Got to sleep in, make tres hotcakes (yeeeea, Holly!), and talk to my boy before going to Ashikaga with Shindy and Ann. Unfortunately we didn’t have much luck there, as shops were closed and stuff for the holiday, so we ended up going to good ol’ AEON. After making the dire mistake of eating McDonald’s (note to self: never again), Shinders and I went to see Elizabethtown, despite our mutual hatred of Kirsten Dunst. Her and Katie Holmes should both go to hell for their horrible facial expressions and “acting!” Kirsten can joyfully sniff coke the entire way there.
Anyway! So, the movie wasn’t very good. It tried to be like three movies in one, and didn’t succeed in being any of them. Focus, Cameron Crowe, focus! Also, Orlando Bloom was just playing Orlando Bloom with an American accent, and the two didn’t have any chemistry. And if Cameron Crowe wanted Kirsten Dunst to do an impression of Kate Hudson in Almost Famous, why didn’t he just hire Kate Hudson or something? Who knows. Anyway, it wasn’t that bad, but it wasn’t that good, either. Not worth the 16 dollars (with a coupon, might I add!). While at the theater, I got a ticket for Saturday’s showing of Harry Potter, yay! At least that will be worth the 16 dollars.
Speaking of movies, Rent is out in the States. Mehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! It needs to be online NOW. In a completely legal format, that is. Mmhmm. Anyway, is it sad that I would totally be willing to fly home for a day to see the movie, eat Thanksgiving dinner, and see the movie again? Yes, I know it’s sad, but I don’t care! Meh!!!!
Today is the usual painful-work-day-after-having-a-holiday-in-the-middle-of-the-week day. Let’s skipping school!
A conversation with my JTE during lunch
JTE: How was your holiday?
Me: It was good. I went shopping with my friends.
JTE: Oh, shopping. Do you sometimes clean your room?
Me: Yes, I cleaned the house on Sunday. It wasn’t fun.
JTE: Hmmm. I’m sorry, I think you are fatter than before, around here *gestures towards neck* I think you like to eat delicious food!
Me: Well, I’ve noticed that your fashion sense is as heinous as your English skills!
K, that last line of mine was made up, but it is what I should have said. Instead, I merely muttered:
Me: ....yes, I like to eat....
Um, OKAY! First of all, what is the train of thought in this conversation? Second of all, fuck you, too!
Me: It was good. I went shopping with my friends.
JTE: Oh, shopping. Do you sometimes clean your room?
Me: Yes, I cleaned the house on Sunday. It wasn’t fun.
JTE: Hmmm. I’m sorry, I think you are fatter than before, around here *gestures towards neck* I think you like to eat delicious food!
Me: Well, I’ve noticed that your fashion sense is as heinous as your English skills!
K, that last line of mine was made up, but it is what I should have said. Instead, I merely muttered:
Me: ....yes, I like to eat....
Um, OKAY! First of all, what is the train of thought in this conversation? Second of all, fuck you, too!
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
Crazy 2nensei
Today I was practicing grammar points with the 2nensei using handouts. One of the problems was:
A: Why do you look so sad?
B: Because __________________
And the students fill in the blank with whatever they want. Most of them had no idea what to write for reasons to look sad (hell, it took me like two minutes to think of anything), but I did see a few amusing answers:
A: Why do you look so sad?
B: Because Masaka became Jeff. (I don’t know what this is supposed to mean, exactly, but I don’t think it’s a compliment!)
A: Why do you look so sad?
B: Because Jeff is very tall.
And, my favorite:
A: Why do you look so sad?
B: Because my grandmother is a wolf.
A: Why do you look so sad?
B: Because __________________
And the students fill in the blank with whatever they want. Most of them had no idea what to write for reasons to look sad (hell, it took me like two minutes to think of anything), but I did see a few amusing answers:
A: Why do you look so sad?
B: Because Masaka became Jeff. (I don’t know what this is supposed to mean, exactly, but I don’t think it’s a compliment!)
A: Why do you look so sad?
B: Because Jeff is very tall.
And, my favorite:
A: Why do you look so sad?
B: Because my grandmother is a wolf.
Monday, November 21, 2005
Sunday Bloody Sunday
On Sunday I had one of the worst hangovers EVER. Ugh. It was fucking awful. I woke up at 5:30 AM to turn on the heater and fell down twice in the process! After waking up, I made an emergency trip to Mini Stop for greasy-as shit. It was the most depressing place ever, tho, as all of the unmarried men were just staring at the pre-made food, deciding what to get for lunch. I was like, “I am not one of you!!!!!!” Sad! Anyway, karaage and katsudon are good for hangovers, but nothing beats cheap Mexican food from the Eugene Mexican store. Sniff.
My parents called on Sunday afternoon and probably thought I was not very talkative, but my brain wasn’t functioning enough to be chatty with them! I refused to let my one free day go to waste, however, so I somehow made myself clean the hell out of my apartment. Yay for productive hungover days.
That night I was even more productive by making the BEST Mexican food EVER! Apparently I made “tinga” which I think is a very humorous word, indeed. After cramming all kinds of stuff in the food processor, I discovered that it doesn’t work, so I had to improvise. Anyway, I made a sauce out of tomatoes, garlic, onions, bay leaves, oregano, salt, pepper and jalapenos, then cooked chicken in that. Then I put on some of my Costco refried beans and took out some of my tortillas. HOLIE, it was SO bloody good. I made a huge amount so I can have leftovers today. Mexican fiesta at Jeff’s house! It made me sad, tho, ‘cause it made the whole apartment smell like me and Eduardo’s apartment in Eugene! Sniff!
Math equations of the day:
Two bottles of wine + seven drinks at karaoke=horrible idea
Mexican food + Return of the King Special Edition=good Sunday evening
Oh, if anyone has pics from Saturday, could you please E-Mail them to me? I failed to take any at the festival. Arigats!
My parents called on Sunday afternoon and probably thought I was not very talkative, but my brain wasn’t functioning enough to be chatty with them! I refused to let my one free day go to waste, however, so I somehow made myself clean the hell out of my apartment. Yay for productive hungover days.
That night I was even more productive by making the BEST Mexican food EVER! Apparently I made “tinga” which I think is a very humorous word, indeed. After cramming all kinds of stuff in the food processor, I discovered that it doesn’t work, so I had to improvise. Anyway, I made a sauce out of tomatoes, garlic, onions, bay leaves, oregano, salt, pepper and jalapenos, then cooked chicken in that. Then I put on some of my Costco refried beans and took out some of my tortillas. HOLIE, it was SO bloody good. I made a huge amount so I can have leftovers today. Mexican fiesta at Jeff’s house! It made me sad, tho, ‘cause it made the whole apartment smell like me and Eduardo’s apartment in Eugene! Sniff!
Math equations of the day:
Two bottles of wine + seven drinks at karaoke=horrible idea
Mexican food + Return of the King Special Edition=good Sunday evening
Oh, if anyone has pics from Saturday, could you please E-Mail them to me? I failed to take any at the festival. Arigats!
Should’ve gone with the grape juice…
Time for the weekly this-is-what-I-did-this-weekend entry! Saturday morning I had to wake up early to go to Minami Shougakkou for an “open school” thing. Parents come to observe classes, and it’s a big deal and blah blah blah. I taught directions to both 3nensei classes. Although I was bitter about being there on a Saturday morning, it was really fun. The kids are so cute! I could seriously play Simon Says with them for five hours and they wouldn’t get tired of it.
I went in there and KNEW I was going to be attacked by an English leech at some point during the day, and sure enough, it happened! Some lady comes up to me all of a sudden and is like “Hi, I’m a teacher at blahblahblah, are you free December 18th?” Um, I don’t fucking know! When I asked why, she explained “Please come to Cultopia (culture center) in the afternoon on Sunday 18th” For what? “Cultopia on Sunday 18th!” Yes, that’s nice, but for what purpose? “Cultopia on the 18th!” Um, yeah. I was supposed to give her my cell phone info later, but SOMEHOW forgot to do so, hehehe.
The main reason I was bitter about teaching in the morning was because the annual Ashikaga Wine Festival took place on Saturday and Sunday, and I had literally had it on my calendar since August! Hehe. Don’t get in the way of Jeff and wine!
My last class was done at 11:40 and I figured there was no way I could get out of school, bike home, change clothes, pack up food, and get to the train station for the 12:22 train, but somehow I had fucking time to spare?! The ride downhill to Minami Shougakkou takes 10-15 minutes, but I somehow made it uphill in 7 minutes! Moral of the story: never underestimate an alcoholic on a bike!
Anyway, I finally got to the wine festival and many people were very happy off of their wine. It was only $15 for admission, a bottle of wine (or grape juice, pshaw!), a wine glass and a corkscrew! HELLO! Anyway, I busted out my bottle as quickly as possible, which maybe was a bad sign of things to come. It was fun hanging out with people (like every ALT was there), and the weather was very nice, tho a crazy Gunma windy day. After going through my ‘free” bottle, I decided that naturally I must have another. So, I went down with Minako to buy a bottle. It was my lucky day, as I found the one Japanese person bad at math! A bottle was 1300 yen, and I gave her a 5000 note and got 4700 yen back! HELL YEAH!! $3 bottle of wine, mothahfuckah!
After finishing the second bottle, we all had to catch the last bus back to the train station. It was Cindy’s birthday (HAPPY BIRTHDAY CINDY!!!!), so we went out for Italian in Ota. Mmm, it was yummy!
After dinner, drunk Jeff was craving a bit of karaoke, so some of us went out to sing some tunes, and get drunk a second time in one day. Yet another bad sign of things to come. It was crazy, tho, ‘cause we literally hadn’t done karaoke in at least 2 months. That’s like 10 years in Japanese karaoke time! Like four banana islands, 2 gin and tonics and a beer later, Jeff was druuuuuuuunk. My conversation to myself while swerving around on my bike on the way home consisted of “Holy shit, I’m drunk. DRUNK. Drunkety drunk drunk drunk!” over and over. Hmm, yes, bad signs galore.
At home I had my drunk yakisoba and Pizza Man, semi-chatted with Cindy (with lots of typos, sorry, Shinders!) and ASSED the fuck out.
I went in there and KNEW I was going to be attacked by an English leech at some point during the day, and sure enough, it happened! Some lady comes up to me all of a sudden and is like “Hi, I’m a teacher at blahblahblah, are you free December 18th?” Um, I don’t fucking know! When I asked why, she explained “Please come to Cultopia (culture center) in the afternoon on Sunday 18th” For what? “Cultopia on Sunday 18th!” Yes, that’s nice, but for what purpose? “Cultopia on the 18th!” Um, yeah. I was supposed to give her my cell phone info later, but SOMEHOW forgot to do so, hehehe.
The main reason I was bitter about teaching in the morning was because the annual Ashikaga Wine Festival took place on Saturday and Sunday, and I had literally had it on my calendar since August! Hehe. Don’t get in the way of Jeff and wine!
My last class was done at 11:40 and I figured there was no way I could get out of school, bike home, change clothes, pack up food, and get to the train station for the 12:22 train, but somehow I had fucking time to spare?! The ride downhill to Minami Shougakkou takes 10-15 minutes, but I somehow made it uphill in 7 minutes! Moral of the story: never underestimate an alcoholic on a bike!
Anyway, I finally got to the wine festival and many people were very happy off of their wine. It was only $15 for admission, a bottle of wine (or grape juice, pshaw!), a wine glass and a corkscrew! HELLO! Anyway, I busted out my bottle as quickly as possible, which maybe was a bad sign of things to come. It was fun hanging out with people (like every ALT was there), and the weather was very nice, tho a crazy Gunma windy day. After going through my ‘free” bottle, I decided that naturally I must have another. So, I went down with Minako to buy a bottle. It was my lucky day, as I found the one Japanese person bad at math! A bottle was 1300 yen, and I gave her a 5000 note and got 4700 yen back! HELL YEAH!! $3 bottle of wine, mothahfuckah!
After finishing the second bottle, we all had to catch the last bus back to the train station. It was Cindy’s birthday (HAPPY BIRTHDAY CINDY!!!!), so we went out for Italian in Ota. Mmm, it was yummy!
After dinner, drunk Jeff was craving a bit of karaoke, so some of us went out to sing some tunes, and get drunk a second time in one day. Yet another bad sign of things to come. It was crazy, tho, ‘cause we literally hadn’t done karaoke in at least 2 months. That’s like 10 years in Japanese karaoke time! Like four banana islands, 2 gin and tonics and a beer later, Jeff was druuuuuuuunk. My conversation to myself while swerving around on my bike on the way home consisted of “Holy shit, I’m drunk. DRUNK. Drunkety drunk drunk drunk!” over and over. Hmm, yes, bad signs galore.
At home I had my drunk yakisoba and Pizza Man, semi-chatted with Cindy (with lots of typos, sorry, Shinders!) and ASSED the fuck out.
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