Back to the Future
Well, that was a nice vacation, but at the same time I'm glad to be back to the world of tomorrow, even though it's fucking cold ALL THE TIME! Japan, please to be discovering the benefits of centralized heating the air conditioning. *pleading puppy eyes*
So! Like I mentioned in my last post, I had a 2 week return to America.
First on the agenda was Christmas. I got back to my parent's house the night before Christmas Eve. Unfortunately, my baggage was not so lucky and got held up in Atlanta for the night, not arriving until 11 the following day. -_-; Not too terrible, but it meant I had to save all of my wrapping for the absolute very last minute. Oh well.
Because my birthday was in December, but I obviously wasn't around to celebrate it with my family, Christmas Eve was re-dubbed Rachelmas, and I opened all of my birthday presents then. Highlights from my birthday/Christmas haul include more than 20 DVDs and digital copies of recent movies, a 3DS, Professor Layton, Super Mario 3D Land, Pokemon Rumble Blast, Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, $100 worth of Hancock Fabrics gift cards, comics, Threadless t-shirts, cheese, delicious almond cookies, a neck pillow for future flights, the most kick-ass jacket ever, and enough cash to last me my whole vacation. 8D
It was a good year to be loved and showered with gifts. ♥
My time was split pretty evenly between time with family and time with friends. My Grandparents spent Christmas with us, and showed up at other randome intervals, because they live just around the bend. In the days leading up to New Years my Aunt Deb (dad's sister) came to visit us as well. It was good for her to take a break and nice for the both of us that we got to see each other, since it'd been about a year and a half since the last time. She's one of the most open-minded and well-off people on my dad's side of the family, and though she doesn't really understand my style or way of thinking, she tries very hard to and is accepting of all the little differences that make me who I am. It's sweet of her, and it was a real treat going shopping together and showing her and the rest of my family the wonders of BBC's Sherlock~.
Time with friends was much more comfortable and very low-key. We did a lot of gaming and chatting for the most part, and I got to show off some of the better contents of my external hard drive. Showed the Amuse play Black&White to a couple people, introduced a few more to Tiger & Bunny, and I got a couple people hooked on Mawaru Penguindrum, including my sister. I marathoned the last season and a half of Utena with her in one night, showed her the movie the next day, and helped her fall in love with Mawaru Penguins soon after that. XD I love it when people agree with my taste in shows and anime; gives me more people to talk about them all with! (Which reminds me, as a random sidenote: What the hell's with all these people I know JUST NOW getting into Air Gear?! I've been reading that shit for almost 5 years!! /endsidenote)
Through all of this trip my internal clock remained fully on the fritz. My sleep schedule was way off, but in such a way that I was only a couple hours removed from Japan-time, so I guess it wasn't so bad. I'm hoping that that'll help me readjust to daily life here with minimal jet lag. ^o^b It'd be nice, especially seeing as work has already started back for me. I'm at the office right now and back at school starting tomorrow. Wish me luck, I guess! This is my second to last term teaching in Gunma!
So yeah, sometime today I'll be turning in my little form that says I do not wish to recontract with JET. 2 years is enough for me, and I'm ready to seek an occupation that fulfills me, rather than one that just allows me to get by. My dream is to remain in Japan but go into costuming. No telling how they'll take to a foreign fine arts major and cosplayer with very little professional experience, but I'm hoping that those are the things which will help me stand out and snag a position! 8D I actually met a guy back in America who has ties to a Japanese costume/prop making company in Tokyo, and he offered to put in a good word for me if I apply there! Apparently, they specialize in making props for live-action tentacle porn.......Uh, well, I'll take what I can get and use the experience to take me even further. XD;
This weekend I'm sticking around Gunma for karaoke with Paula, and next weekend I'm off to Tokyo for a Cocoa Otoko concert!!! It's little trips like that that help me get through the long, cold weeks~.
So! Like I mentioned in my last post, I had a 2 week return to America.
First on the agenda was Christmas. I got back to my parent's house the night before Christmas Eve. Unfortunately, my baggage was not so lucky and got held up in Atlanta for the night, not arriving until 11 the following day. -_-; Not too terrible, but it meant I had to save all of my wrapping for the absolute very last minute. Oh well.
Because my birthday was in December, but I obviously wasn't around to celebrate it with my family, Christmas Eve was re-dubbed Rachelmas, and I opened all of my birthday presents then. Highlights from my birthday/Christmas haul include more than 20 DVDs and digital copies of recent movies, a 3DS, Professor Layton, Super Mario 3D Land, Pokemon Rumble Blast, Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, $100 worth of Hancock Fabrics gift cards, comics, Threadless t-shirts, cheese, delicious almond cookies, a neck pillow for future flights, the most kick-ass jacket ever, and enough cash to last me my whole vacation. 8D
It was a good year to be loved and showered with gifts. ♥
My time was split pretty evenly between time with family and time with friends. My Grandparents spent Christmas with us, and showed up at other randome intervals, because they live just around the bend. In the days leading up to New Years my Aunt Deb (dad's sister) came to visit us as well. It was good for her to take a break and nice for the both of us that we got to see each other, since it'd been about a year and a half since the last time. She's one of the most open-minded and well-off people on my dad's side of the family, and though she doesn't really understand my style or way of thinking, she tries very hard to and is accepting of all the little differences that make me who I am. It's sweet of her, and it was a real treat going shopping together and showing her and the rest of my family the wonders of BBC's Sherlock~.
Time with friends was much more comfortable and very low-key. We did a lot of gaming and chatting for the most part, and I got to show off some of the better contents of my external hard drive. Showed the Amuse play Black&White to a couple people, introduced a few more to Tiger & Bunny, and I got a couple people hooked on Mawaru Penguindrum, including my sister. I marathoned the last season and a half of Utena with her in one night, showed her the movie the next day, and helped her fall in love with Mawaru Penguins soon after that. XD I love it when people agree with my taste in shows and anime; gives me more people to talk about them all with! (Which reminds me, as a random sidenote: What the hell's with all these people I know JUST NOW getting into Air Gear?! I've been reading that shit for almost 5 years!! /endsidenote)
Through all of this trip my internal clock remained fully on the fritz. My sleep schedule was way off, but in such a way that I was only a couple hours removed from Japan-time, so I guess it wasn't so bad. I'm hoping that that'll help me readjust to daily life here with minimal jet lag. ^o^b It'd be nice, especially seeing as work has already started back for me. I'm at the office right now and back at school starting tomorrow. Wish me luck, I guess! This is my second to last term teaching in Gunma!
So yeah, sometime today I'll be turning in my little form that says I do not wish to recontract with JET. 2 years is enough for me, and I'm ready to seek an occupation that fulfills me, rather than one that just allows me to get by. My dream is to remain in Japan but go into costuming. No telling how they'll take to a foreign fine arts major and cosplayer with very little professional experience, but I'm hoping that those are the things which will help me stand out and snag a position! 8D I actually met a guy back in America who has ties to a Japanese costume/prop making company in Tokyo, and he offered to put in a good word for me if I apply there! Apparently, they specialize in making props for live-action tentacle porn.......Uh, well, I'll take what I can get and use the experience to take me even further. XD;
This weekend I'm sticking around Gunma for karaoke with Paula, and next weekend I'm off to Tokyo for a Cocoa Otoko concert!!! It's little trips like that that help me get through the long, cold weeks~.