Woe to the American Eggs D:
Studying abroad had always been a dream of mine. I had always been interested in linguistic studies, and had always liked the English language as well. It was not just about learning linguistics overseas though. I wanted to experience more of a world I'd never understood.. Its people, its environment, its lifestyle. In fact that might have been the biggest reason why I'd decided to study overseas.
The day I set off, I was all by myself. I was already feeling lonely at Narita (airport). Because it was my first time travelling alone, I found even buying a ticket very difficult, and moreover there were so many immigration customs procedures to get through. Isn't it sad how I'm only learning these things now? These were things deemed basic in the eyes of others, but somehow I just couldn't get them done. Suddenly, I felt very discouraged at the airport.
My life as an overseas student started out a mess, but despite the many things that got me down, life was still very enriching for me. I did mention "living with 10 dollars per day" at the press conference, but in fact, there were even days when I only had 5 dollars to spend. That was when I didn't get to buy the 7-dollar burger sets. (laughs) Back then, I would only have a hamburger throughout the entire day. I rarely cooked for myself back in Tokyo, but I did it over there. Pasta, omelettes and rice with raw eggs made up my staple diet. The eggs there have undependable expiry dates, and although it was questionable how fresh the eggs were, I just wanted badly to eat rice with raw eggs. During times like these, I would put all my attention on the eggs. After fretting over the hassle of beating the eggs, checking the smell and then the yolks for their freshness, I ended up just wolfing everything down anyway. This happened quite a number of times, and although it didn't give my stomach any major problems, it did happen that I fell very sick due to mild malnutrition. I couldn't get well despite having seen a doctor, and was bedridden for a week or so. Back then, I was feeling so uncomfortable and weak that I almost cried out "Okaasan~". Even at such an age.
Basically, I'm not too good at living alone, so I'd long expected myself to get homesick, but it really got so lonely that I was almost defeated by my own homesickness. Back then, the only things that were able to cheer me on were my family, friends and movie videos. The movie videos were helpful in my studies too, like when there were english subtitles, I'd be able to learn as I watch. Sometimes Nakamaru would write mail to me, but for some reason it couldn't be displayed correctly. As happy as I was (to receive the mail), I really wanted know what they were about. (laughs) I replied his mail telling him that it could not display correctly, and apparently that reached him in messed-up encoding as well. (laughs) Those times when I was unable to convey my feelings effectively were times when I felt especially lonely with the realisation that this is not Japan. Regarding members, friends and family.... To be honest, in the beginning, I'd felt that this was only a matter of my own, and gave little thought to the other parts. This might have seemed irresponsible, but when it came to the members, it was only because I had total trust in them. Many problems arose because of me, and they ended up facing difficulties that they didn't have to, but still, I believed in them. Because those fellas are amazing. Maybe I was riding on the kindness of those five people.
There was a strange sense of nervousness after I came back. Upon hearing everyone's shouts of "welcome back" at the Sendai concert, I totally had no idea where to look. I couldn't even see the faces in the audience. For the first time, I felt the blankness of half a year. Honestly, what actions I ought to make, what I ought to do.. I had no idea at all. That was the most real Akanishi. (laughs) Heart thumping, I was really nervous. So I was very thankful for everyone's voices. I was really happy. I cannot imagine how it would have turned out if no one had cheered for me. During the encore of "Real Face" at the Sendai concert, when it was time for my solo in the second part, I became very nervous all of a sudden. "Ah! What should I do?!" I was totally at a loss. But the rest of the fellas looked completely at ease. While I was away, every one of the members had improved, and I could really feel the heaviness of my 6-month absence while watching the concert. It was like the feeling of having missed school for a week. (laughs) There are a lot of things that I would have to catch up with.
Right now, what I'd like to tell the members is "sorry" and "thank you" again. To the fans of KAT-TUN, and everyone else who have waited for me, I'd like to say "sorry" and "thank you" too, in the same way I'd tell the members. I'm bad with words, and can't express myself well. I'm sure this whole issue has caused everyone many worries and inconveniences, therefore from now on, I'll work even harder to convey my feelings to everyone.
Zutto yoroshiku.
Akanishi Jin
Myojo, July 2007
I teared up abit when reading the part about him at the airport.. possibly cos i could identify with those feelings of momentary helplessness and desperation. :(
Popolo article was a more light-hearted read.. He was like "They told me to say something in English at the press con but i mean WTF, SO RANDOM WHAT DO YOU EXPECT ME TO SAY."
..paraphrased. :P
I think.. Most of us would expect a member of the bestselling group in Japan to have more money in his bank account LOLLL but seriously, just how much of the profits go to the boys? D:
On a related note, can i just take a moment to LOL at how K8 reacted to the pricing of their concert goods during an MC?
Yoko: Those Ranger cards.. How much do they cost?
Audience: 1000yen~~
K8: 1000YEN?!?! DDDDDDDDDD:
Tacchon: EHHHHHHHHHHHH?!
Hina: 1000YEN!!
Ryo: A thing like that can cost 1000yen?!?!
Yoko: GOMEN!
Baru: So expensive~ D: What's this, man?!
Yasu: ZOMG thank you everyone. We're sorry...... D:
XDDDDDD
Btw KT's "Yorokobi no Uta" PV doesn't look THAAAAT low-budget to me, lah~ But it just strangely reminds me of Coldplay's "Speed of Sound" PV.
Can't wait for the full thing.
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Dunno when my copy of DVD is arriving (hopefully by Sat?) but i just downloaded and watched the Taipei con. SO GOOD ZOMG~~~ /FLAILFLAILFLAILLLLLS
I realise that i really miss watching Arashi's concert DVDs. This is the FIRST one i see them releasing since i became a JE fan. I still remember signing petitions for ONE to be DVDised, when i first entered the fandom, LOLL~ XD
Arashi is amazing on concert DVDs. Not saying that they're not amazing otherwise of course LOL but it's just so.. uplifting(?) to watch this. I know i must have looked really silly but i couldn't help grinning at the screen. :D
The boys are just SO happy, SO energetic, SO sweaty ROFL and they try SO hard to perform their best~♥
Doesn't feel much different from a Japanese concert cept that the boys would spew random, bad Mandarin, and zomg, Chinese subtitles on the giant screen! Even the concert hall looks somewhat like the Yokohama Arena.
The selection of songs is A+++~ All the Arashi classics, all my fav songs.. "Blue" was so beautiful~ And then i also love the new performances from last year's album.. Wanna see more of those from the Japanese part.
I thought i heard Jun say “狼来了”("The wolf's coming!").. After scratching my head for a while, i realised he was saying “岚来了”("Arashi's here!") /DIESSSS~ I swear i went through the same thing when i saw this part on the news clips last year.
I didn't like how they changed my fav "Right Back to You" into a light sabre dance when i saw the fancams, but now i think it's not so bad after all LOL. Ohno was uber kakkoii~ And have i mentioned how impressive his "TOP SECRET" was? *thumbs up*
And and and, can i applaud the boys for their Mandarin speech at the end? Not only that.. I was very moved by their Mandarin version of "Kansha Kangeki Ame Arashi" too.
Sigh, just SO GOODDDD to see Arashi on a new DVD~♥♥♥ Shall go finish the last bit of this con, and then i'd battle with self on whether to download the Japanese and Korean concerts as well, or to wait for my copy to come. DDDDD: DECISIONS~
Arashi, saikou. ♥
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:( - No "Sexy Voice and Robo" this week, due to its resemblance to a real accident last week.
:( - No more Heroes.
:( - This week's ProDai was sad. Omg Kenzo should just steal the bride already. /spaz