phone...
just got my land line put in. pricey, but done.
had a greatttttt time this weekend picking rice with everyone. there was so much junk food in my house. and wayyy more people than i think the architect envisioned. it was so much fun.
i did, however, manage to get sick, yet again. i hesitate to say that i hate little kids, but at times like this my patience is really tried. if only they weren't so germ-ridden. whatever, at least i'm getting paid to get sick on a bi-weekly basis.
i thought i was going to die this morning. felt like the hangover from hell--and just for clarification purposes, i wasn't drinking...well, last night. i am not a lush...well, that's not exactly true, but i certainly wasn't drinking last night. when i woke up my body was excreting things that have yet to be classified (just remember, when you gag after reading this, you only have yourself to blame. you could've stopped reading this at any moment). however, i'm almost perfect now. i don't know why and i don't know how, but i went from "praying for a quick death" to "let's go dancing." but i'm still spending the night in...cuddled up in my blankie...reading a book (romance, of course) and wishing i were with my boyfriend. so glad to be feeling better.
so, while the phone people were working on my telephone line, my fellow office lady (about my mama's age) proceeds to look around the living room. i'd anticipated that, so no problem. apparently everything i do and how i do it is of unmatchable interest to all Japanese people. i hadn't had time to clean after the party...being deathly ill and all...so all of the dishes weren't done, but i had time to stack them neatly in the sink. had cleaned up the trash and run a quick sweep of the floor. since i had deep cleaned prior to the party (i mean windows, i mean under the rug...you could have *eaten* off my toilet seat), i wasn't concerned about her looking around. in general, i'm pretty neat. but, she noticed the dishes. and smiling she said, why don't you let me see you wash these. and i froze. huh? you want to see me wash my dishes? oh yeah, she wasnted to know if i was doing it right.
so with her washing me, i proceeded to wipe down the counter with a soapy sponge and then wipe it dry. she approved. then i started washing cups. though she approved of my method, she directed me to soap everything up with the water off and then rinse everything afterwards. i can see the merits of this, but it turns my stomach to think that my sponge may touch dirty dishwater...i much prefer the rinse-soap-rinse method. whatever. i complied. not like she lives in my kitchen, anyway. then i laid the clean dishes on my newly cleaned counter. to which she said "nun-uh" and directed me to put my dishes in my spaghetti strainer so they'd drain better. then put a towel down on the counter for the rest of the dishes when the drainer was full. i complied. of course. then i dried them with a new towel. approved.
it wsa unbelievable. it was also really funny. the weird thing is: i'm not bothered, even a little bit by her directions even though i've been washing dishes since i was 5 (though i had to stand on a chair to reach the sink). go figure. guess i'm a litle more laid back here. then when we got back to the office, she took me along with her to wash the tea dishes and kettle. and showed me the correct method of that, too. in case you don't know, doing the office dishes and making tea is women's work in japan. i'd been excluded prior to today, but now that the two people who usuall do it are on vacation today, i guess i'm up at bat. though part of me screams "women's lib! women's lib!" another part says to suck it up and wash the damn dishes. since i could care less, the giving-in side wins. at least it makes me part of the group instead of a visitor. and that's good enough for me.
had a greatttttt time this weekend picking rice with everyone. there was so much junk food in my house. and wayyy more people than i think the architect envisioned. it was so much fun.
i did, however, manage to get sick, yet again. i hesitate to say that i hate little kids, but at times like this my patience is really tried. if only they weren't so germ-ridden. whatever, at least i'm getting paid to get sick on a bi-weekly basis.
i thought i was going to die this morning. felt like the hangover from hell--and just for clarification purposes, i wasn't drinking...well, last night. i am not a lush...well, that's not exactly true, but i certainly wasn't drinking last night. when i woke up my body was excreting things that have yet to be classified (just remember, when you gag after reading this, you only have yourself to blame. you could've stopped reading this at any moment). however, i'm almost perfect now. i don't know why and i don't know how, but i went from "praying for a quick death" to "let's go dancing." but i'm still spending the night in...cuddled up in my blankie...reading a book (romance, of course) and wishing i were with my boyfriend. so glad to be feeling better.
so, while the phone people were working on my telephone line, my fellow office lady (about my mama's age) proceeds to look around the living room. i'd anticipated that, so no problem. apparently everything i do and how i do it is of unmatchable interest to all Japanese people. i hadn't had time to clean after the party...being deathly ill and all...so all of the dishes weren't done, but i had time to stack them neatly in the sink. had cleaned up the trash and run a quick sweep of the floor. since i had deep cleaned prior to the party (i mean windows, i mean under the rug...you could have *eaten* off my toilet seat), i wasn't concerned about her looking around. in general, i'm pretty neat. but, she noticed the dishes. and smiling she said, why don't you let me see you wash these. and i froze. huh? you want to see me wash my dishes? oh yeah, she wasnted to know if i was doing it right.
so with her washing me, i proceeded to wipe down the counter with a soapy sponge and then wipe it dry. she approved. then i started washing cups. though she approved of my method, she directed me to soap everything up with the water off and then rinse everything afterwards. i can see the merits of this, but it turns my stomach to think that my sponge may touch dirty dishwater...i much prefer the rinse-soap-rinse method. whatever. i complied. not like she lives in my kitchen, anyway. then i laid the clean dishes on my newly cleaned counter. to which she said "nun-uh" and directed me to put my dishes in my spaghetti strainer so they'd drain better. then put a towel down on the counter for the rest of the dishes when the drainer was full. i complied. of course. then i dried them with a new towel. approved.
it wsa unbelievable. it was also really funny. the weird thing is: i'm not bothered, even a little bit by her directions even though i've been washing dishes since i was 5 (though i had to stand on a chair to reach the sink). go figure. guess i'm a litle more laid back here. then when we got back to the office, she took me along with her to wash the tea dishes and kettle. and showed me the correct method of that, too. in case you don't know, doing the office dishes and making tea is women's work in japan. i'd been excluded prior to today, but now that the two people who usuall do it are on vacation today, i guess i'm up at bat. though part of me screams "women's lib! women's lib!" another part says to suck it up and wash the damn dishes. since i could care less, the giving-in side wins. at least it makes me part of the group instead of a visitor. and that's good enough for me.