chicken soup
Well, after sleeping through most of a rainstorm yesterday, then waking up, going to the GEOS xmas party and then karaoke with Jolene, a bunch of students, and the two こども teachers, it's time to clean up. Actually haven't started the cleaning-up project - and believe me, "project" doesn't even begin to describe it - but I did just finish making a giant pot of chicken soup! I'm just waiting for the rice to finish cooking and I'm gonna dig in. There's absolutely no way I'm gonna be able to finish it all myself, so I'll probably bring some in to work tomorrow to share. Woo. If you're around and you want some soup, be sure to stop in early - I make no guarantees it lasts more than a few hours around a bunch of people.
In the time between finishing this entry and the rice being ready, I'm going to attack this disaster of an apartment. Literally everything needs to be cleaned so we'll see how far I get before getting absolutely sick of it and needing a break. It's just about the right season for this kind of thing though, fortunately. In traditional Japanese custom, people do a kind of ridiculously-massive cleaning over New Years. They call it 大掃除(おおそうじ), literally meaning big(大) cleaning(掃除). It's the equivalent to our spring cleaning. As you can imagine, it's heavily tied to the traditional meaning of starting with a fresh slate in the new year, and I've personally adopted the custom as well. I figure I may as well tie it in to this cleaning task, especially since I'm leaving in what, 2.5 weeks or something? It would be nice to come back, unpack, and have a nice clean place to settle back into, then start the new year. I've never really been into the whole "turn over a new leaf" meaning of New Years, but it seems to be perfect timing, no?
Not to make an excuse, but to provide an explanation, the reason this place got to be so bad is mostly because I was sick. You know how you get sick and then the only things you really do are sleep, eat, and work? And occasionally go out if you're feeling better and can't stand being cooped up any longer, of course. Let's just say jenn1224 wouldn't be very proud of me for letting it get this bad, but I promise I'll make it better. If I don't, I'm seriously gonna cry. And that usually takes a lot.
And by the way, I'm feeling much better, thank you.
In the time between finishing this entry and the rice being ready, I'm going to attack this disaster of an apartment. Literally everything needs to be cleaned so we'll see how far I get before getting absolutely sick of it and needing a break. It's just about the right season for this kind of thing though, fortunately. In traditional Japanese custom, people do a kind of ridiculously-massive cleaning over New Years. They call it 大掃除(おおそうじ), literally meaning big(大) cleaning(掃除). It's the equivalent to our spring cleaning. As you can imagine, it's heavily tied to the traditional meaning of starting with a fresh slate in the new year, and I've personally adopted the custom as well. I figure I may as well tie it in to this cleaning task, especially since I'm leaving in what, 2.5 weeks or something? It would be nice to come back, unpack, and have a nice clean place to settle back into, then start the new year. I've never really been into the whole "turn over a new leaf" meaning of New Years, but it seems to be perfect timing, no?
Not to make an excuse, but to provide an explanation, the reason this place got to be so bad is mostly because I was sick. You know how you get sick and then the only things you really do are sleep, eat, and work? And occasionally go out if you're feeling better and can't stand being cooped up any longer, of course. Let's just say jenn1224 wouldn't be very proud of me for letting it get this bad, but I promise I'll make it better. If I don't, I'm seriously gonna cry. And that usually takes a lot.
And by the way, I'm feeling much better, thank you.