Caution: Bumpy Train of Thought
It is a gorgeous day here in Sakawaland. Powder blue skies complete with cotton clouds. The air is 75 degrees and smells like fireplace ash. Everyone I greet on the street shoots me back a smile and an "Ii tenki desu ne?" Nice weather, isn't it? I nod. Yes, quite.
It's also great to not feel like I'm dying. ;P
I used the coin laundry down the street today. It's so nice to wear stuff dried in an actual drier again. I don't know if I'll ever go back to line drying after slipping on a pair of jeans that I didn't feel like someone had sewn strips of sheet metal into the fabric while I wasn't looking. There's a huge difference between a towel dried on a line and a towel dried in a dryer. I also didn't spend half my day ironing my wardrobe which is a horrible chore. Ironing is one of my least favorite activities in the world--right up there with being water boarded and doing pull ups.
Besides, my clothes just feel... happier. Looking at them hanging in my closet, I could swear they look a little brighter and perkier. But that may just be me.
Granted, it'll cost me and, arguably, the environment, but, hey, I don't have an oven, I haven't turned on a heater or an air conditioner in weeks, and I walk to the grocery store more often than I drive there. I am using way less than half the energy I used in America. Just please let me have my fluffy clothes, okay?
One of my students (it's weird to say that--"my students." Is that really true?) from Sakawa Middle, Kyoko, came over today. I fried some potatoes and we watched Azumanga Daioh. Good times.
I've become addicted to Scrabulous--a version of Scrabble on Facebook. I'm playing a couple of games right now with old coworkers from the library, but I need more games--MORE! It's nice to flex my brain with English when I run around speaking broken Japanese 70% of the time and broken English for the other 30%.
Speaking of bad Japanese, I finally got my JET Japanese language course. I am so happy to finally feel like I'm studying for a purpose again. The course is way different from the Genki books I've been learning from, but it won't be impossible to adjust to. I'm still in the review section, but I need it desperately. Learning Japanese is not without its frustrations. More than once I felt like throwing my book against the wall. And I'm sure there will be many more times to follow. Good thing the book is durable. I think it can handle a few teethmarks.
But on the whole, communicating in Japanese has been an extremely satisfying experience. And no matter how many times someone tells me that my Japanese is "pretty," I will always get a good feeling. Of course, "pretty" doesn't mean "correct," but I'm working on that. lolz.
I was totally disappointed with most of my shows this week. While House was really good, My Name is Earl and Supernatural kind of sucked. My Name is Earl was an hour episode too, but it was a special Cops episode which sucked for two reasons: 1. They've already done a Cops episode which was SO much funnier and 2. This one was so implausible that I didn't laugh once. Not once. Supernatural was really crappy up until the very end. Ooooh Sam. How can you be so cold and so hott at the same time?!
Hehe. I made myself giggle.
Yes, so a good start to the weekend. Tomorrow will be even more relaxing, if that's possible.
I just wish I could find my nail clippers.
Here's a Japanese emoticon for ya. Can you make it out?
(*^-^)b
Edit: Also, November is National Novel Writing Month. If you've ever wanted to write a novel, now is the time to start. And for those of us who have been writing a novel, but never tried very hard, now is the time to get serious. Let's get on it, people! Writewritewrite!
It's also great to not feel like I'm dying. ;P
I used the coin laundry down the street today. It's so nice to wear stuff dried in an actual drier again. I don't know if I'll ever go back to line drying after slipping on a pair of jeans that I didn't feel like someone had sewn strips of sheet metal into the fabric while I wasn't looking. There's a huge difference between a towel dried on a line and a towel dried in a dryer. I also didn't spend half my day ironing my wardrobe which is a horrible chore. Ironing is one of my least favorite activities in the world--right up there with being water boarded and doing pull ups.
Besides, my clothes just feel... happier. Looking at them hanging in my closet, I could swear they look a little brighter and perkier. But that may just be me.
Granted, it'll cost me and, arguably, the environment, but, hey, I don't have an oven, I haven't turned on a heater or an air conditioner in weeks, and I walk to the grocery store more often than I drive there. I am using way less than half the energy I used in America. Just please let me have my fluffy clothes, okay?
One of my students (it's weird to say that--"my students." Is that really true?) from Sakawa Middle, Kyoko, came over today. I fried some potatoes and we watched Azumanga Daioh. Good times.
I've become addicted to Scrabulous--a version of Scrabble on Facebook. I'm playing a couple of games right now with old coworkers from the library, but I need more games--MORE! It's nice to flex my brain with English when I run around speaking broken Japanese 70% of the time and broken English for the other 30%.
Speaking of bad Japanese, I finally got my JET Japanese language course. I am so happy to finally feel like I'm studying for a purpose again. The course is way different from the Genki books I've been learning from, but it won't be impossible to adjust to. I'm still in the review section, but I need it desperately. Learning Japanese is not without its frustrations. More than once I felt like throwing my book against the wall. And I'm sure there will be many more times to follow. Good thing the book is durable. I think it can handle a few teethmarks.
But on the whole, communicating in Japanese has been an extremely satisfying experience. And no matter how many times someone tells me that my Japanese is "pretty," I will always get a good feeling. Of course, "pretty" doesn't mean "correct," but I'm working on that. lolz.
I was totally disappointed with most of my shows this week. While House was really good, My Name is Earl and Supernatural kind of sucked. My Name is Earl was an hour episode too, but it was a special Cops episode which sucked for two reasons: 1. They've already done a Cops episode which was SO much funnier and 2. This one was so implausible that I didn't laugh once. Not once. Supernatural was really crappy up until the very end. Ooooh Sam. How can you be so cold and so hott at the same time?!
Hehe. I made myself giggle.
Yes, so a good start to the weekend. Tomorrow will be even more relaxing, if that's possible.
I just wish I could find my nail clippers.
Here's a Japanese emoticon for ya. Can you make it out?
(*^-^)b
Edit: Also, November is National Novel Writing Month. If you've ever wanted to write a novel, now is the time to start. And for those of us who have been writing a novel, but never tried very hard, now is the time to get serious. Let's get on it, people! Writewritewrite!