Megane~kun

Another Lacuna

2008-12-11T16:28:00.002+09:00

Okay, here I am again on a break from blogging. It's a bit of a personal problem and well, I'm kind of out-of-sorts recently.

Let's just say that... Okay, let's just not say anything. Things are going a bit meh and might get worse, so I am a bit anxious and worried about what the future will bring. My friends and family are very supportive though, so I'm not THAT worried. But still, when things don't go your way, you can't help but feel a little bit lost.

I'm not sure how long this break is going to be, and I don't want to imagine any reasons why it should be so. I uhh... I'm just sad that there might be things I may not be able to have a chance to do anymore. And no it's nothing about my health or anything, I'm perfectly healthy and very genki! Not missing any body parts nor will I go to jail... I mean, how unlikely is that? It's just that, something that has been nagging at my mind for months now have been realized. And the repurcussions aren't reassuring.

But I will not give up. Nay, this will be nothing but just a stepping stone to much greater heights. I will overcome this and still be in time for the cherry blossoms to bloom!

Till then, I hope you guys would still stay tuned once I come back.

A Flying What?

2008-12-05T17:43:00.003+09:00

Okay, this is not actually related to anything anywhere, but I was just shocked when I found out that there's something out there, in the world, that's completely mind-boggling and that can shatter your perception of everything in but just an instant.

I mean, WTHROFLOLMAOBBQ?! Flying nun?

Okay, to fans of this show, I am entirely sorry. I just can't comprehend it right now. But give me a bit of time to swallow the idea that the scriptwriters actually made realistic dialogues for this show.

I found out that the show finally ended when the writers began to have problems coming up with situations where Sister Bertrille would be suddenly caught up by an unprecedented wind that would allow her to fly off because she weighs only 90 pounds and her headgear provides some fantastic aerodynamics.

And the actress who played the nun had her own problems too. What with the way everyone had typecasted her to the role. There was a time when she was offered another show where she would have to play her previous Bertrille role. Only this time, she'd be older and she's supposed to be the Mother Superior who is jealous of a new nun because the new nun can fly while she can't anymore, because she's put on some weight over the years. They said she vehemently rejected the offer.

Oh, and during the filming of the last few episodes (it went for three seasons), they had a problem covering up her belly because she got pregnant, and nuns really can never be pregnant. That would be against the order of the universe! But so does the flying thing... Anyway, so they just used backdrops and flying body doubles and stuff.

All in all, I think the show is quite intriguing. The stories of both on and off the set has gotten me raving for more of this show, and I'm particularly sad that it didn't happen during my lifetime. The episodes were in technicolor too!

100 Q&As

2008-12-04T08:02:00.002+09:00

1. ONE OF YOUR SCARS, HOW DID YOU GET IT?
My brother and I tried to do an acrobatic trick. Almost got my skull fractured

2. WHAT IS ON THE WALLS IN YOUR ROOM?
A lot of things: picture frames, calendars, clocks.. usual house stuff~

3. DO YOU SNORE, GRIND YOUR TEETH, OR TALK IN YOUR SLEEP?
Only on a tiresome day...

4. WHAT TYPE OF MUSIC DO YOU LISTEN TO?
Mostly anime and Jpop

5. DO YOU KNOW WHAT TIME YOU WERE BORN?
Oh wow no... I'll ask later.

6. WHAT DO YOU WANT MORE THAN ANYTHING RIGHT NOW?
To pass the Japanese Language Proficiency Test Level 2

7. WHAT DO YOU MISS?
My family and my room back home...

8. WHAT ARE YOUR MOST PRIZED POSSESSIONS?
PSP, iPod, computer and cellphone. Gadgetry stuff, they're expensive!

9. HOW TALL ARE YOU?
5 feet 11 inches

10. DO YOU GET CLAUSTROPHOBIC?
Haven't yet, I might though

11. DO YOU GET SCARED IN THE DARK?
Only if I was imagining scary things~

12. THE LAST PERSON TO MAKE YOU ANGRY?
It's hard to make me angry, almost impossible. But I guess nothing's impossible for my brother.

13. WHATS YOUR WORST FEAR?
Not realizing my dream to come true...

14. WHAT KIND OF HAIR/EYE COLOR DO YOU LIKE ON THE OPPOSITE SEX?
Dark colors

15. WHERE CAN YOU SEE YOURSELF BEING PROPOSED TO AT?
I see myself doing other things, not this though.

16. COFFEE OR ENERGY DRINK?
I like creamy, milky stuff. Coffee it is.

17. FAVORITE PIZZA TOPPING?
MUSHROOM! Oh that soft chewy texture~

18.IF YOU COULD EAT ANYTHING RIGHT NOW, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
Well that last question's about pizza...

19. FAVORITE COLOR OF ALL TIME?
Supposedly it's green. I'm slowly turning blue though.

20. HAVE YOU EVER EATEN A GOLDFISH?
Not that I'm aware of

21. WHAT WAS THE FIRST MEANINGFUL GIFT YOU'VE EVER RECEIVED?
A Go-kart my parents got me for Christmas. *teary-eyed*

22. DO YOU HAVE A CRUSH?
Now? None.Except the occasional someone on the train~

23. ARE YOU DOUBLE JOINTED?
What?

24. FAVORITE CLOTHING BRAND?
I don't look at brands. As long as I like it.

25. WHO IS THE HOTTEST MALE CELEBRITY?
Me.

26. DO YOU HAVE A PET RIGHT NOW?
Pets. Lots of it.

27. WHAT KIND IS IT?
A dog, a three-legged cat, a stray cat, her litter, 6 lovebirds, and a dozen fishes.

28. WOULD YOU FALL IN LOVE KNOWING THAT THE PERSON IS
LEAVING?
It depends, it really does.

30. SAY A NUMBER FROM ONE TO A HUNDRED:
73

31. BLONDES OR BRUNETTES?
Dark haired

34. HAVE YOU BEEN OUT OF THE COUNTRY?
Currently

35. YOUR WEAKNESSES?
Japan, food, and computers

36. MET ANYONE FAMOUS?
A president, a CEO, and a lot of actors/actresses

37. FIRST JOB?
Associate Software Engineer. Sounds important no?

38. EVER DONE A PRANK CALL?
Nope

39. DO YOU THINK EVERYONE OUT THERE HAS A SOULMATE?
I'd hate to think that there's a chance people might not get the chance to meet theirs.

40. WHAT WERE YOU DOING BEFORE YOU FILLED THIS OUT?
Breakfast.

41. HAVE YOU EVER HAD SURGERY?
The usual guy surgery. *wink*

42. WHAT DO YOU GET COMPLIMENTED ABOUT MOST?
My smooth, shiny, straight hair~But recently my eyes.

43. HAVE YOU EVER HAD BRACES?
Nope

44. WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR YOUR BIRTHDAY?
A new iPod Nano!

45. HOW MANY KIDS DO YOU WANT?
Hmmm, two?

46. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
My dad. I was supposed to be a junior, but they omitted a letter...

47. WHAT IS THE BIGGEST TURN OFF OF THE OPPOSITE SEX?
Attitude.

48. WHAT IS ONE THING YOU MISS ABOUT HIGH SCHOOL?
Not much, other than the school food~ Mmmm~~~

49. WHAT KIND OF SHAMPOO DO YOU USE?
I only use conditioner... always forgot to buy shampoo LOL.

50. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
Yeah~

51. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAL?
Bunch of Lunch from Shakey's (chicken, spaghetti w/ garlic toast, pizza, and mojo potatoes)

52. ANY BAD HABITS?
I bite my nails

53. ARE YOU A JEALOUS PERSON?
Nope

54. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON, WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
Yep! I love me. Yey me!

55. DO YOU AGREE WITH FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS?
What does that mean?

56. DO LOOKS MATTER?
Depends on what kind of relationship I'm going to have with them~

57. HOW DO YOU RELEASE ANGER?
I will it to be gone, and *poof~*

59. WHATS YOUR MAIN GOAL IN LIFE?
To establish myself in Japan!

60. WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE TOY AS A CHILD?
Lego.

61. HOW MANY NUMBERS ARE IN YOUR CELL PHONE?
*hands over phone* Count it yourself.

62.WERE YOU A FAN OF BARNEY AS A LITTLE KID?
I live in a 3rd world country

63. DO YOU USE SARCASM?
Only in writing.

64. MASHED POTATOES OR MACARONI AND CHEESE?
If it has gravy, mashed potatoes.

65. WHAT DO YOU LOOK FOR IN A GUY/GIRL?
Personality, and she can be pretty too~

66. WHAT ARE YOUR NICKNAMES?
Megane, Meganekodomo, Neko, Meg, Jon, Chenes

68. WHATS YOUR FAVORITE TV SHOW?
I buy them on DVD.

69.WHATS THE BEST WAY TO DEAL WITH YOUR ENEMIES?
Turn them into a friend

70. WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR?
Anything vanilla-ish

71. DO YOU HAVE ALL YOUR FINGERS AND TOES?
Ohhh yeah...

72. DO YOU HAVE A COMPUTER IN YOUR ROOM?
YES YES!

73. PLANS FOR TONIGHT?
Watch 'Friends'... then sleep.

74. WHAT'S THE FASTEST YOU'VE EVER GONE IN A CAR?
Haven't looked, but I drive slow.

75. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS?
I wouldn't read all of their answers though.

76. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO?
My head.

77. LAST THING YOU DRANK?
Autumn-freezed water

78. LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?
My friend who lived next door.

79. THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE IN THE OPPOSITE SEX?
Their candid face.

80. WHAT DO U LIKE TO DO IN YOUR SPARE TIME?
Watch anime/TV series on my computer, surf the net, blog stuff.

81. FAVORITE THING TO HATE?
Responsibilities

82. FAVORITE MONTH OF THE YEAR?
December

83. WHATS YOUR FAVORITE TYPE OF CANDY?
Lollipops

84. HAVE YOU EVER REALLY AND TRULY HAD A BEST FRIEND?
Yeah

85. WHAT IS YOUR HAIR COLOR?
Dark brown.

86. EYE COLOR?
Dark brown.

88. FAVORITE FAST FOOD PLACE?
KFC. Overflowing gravy... mmmmm~

89. FAVORITE RESTAURANT?
SBARRO. Uber-thick pizza... mmmmm~

90. DO YOU LIKE SUSHI?
Most of it.

91. LAST THING YOU WATCHED?
An episode of 'Friends'.

92. FAVORITE DAY OF THE YEAR?
New Year's Eve!

93. PLAY ANY MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS?
Piano, flute, and the violin.

94. REPUBLICAN OR DEMOCRAT?
...............?

95. KISSES OR HUGS?
Hugs are comfy, kisses are too personal.

96. RELATIONSHIPS OR ONE NIGHT STANDS?
Umm, I find kissing personal.

97. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU BOUGHT?
DVDs~

98. DO YOU HAVE A LOW SELF ESTEEM OR A HIGH SELF ESTEEM?
Depends on my hair.

99. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING?
Kanzen Master. A Japanese learning book.

100. DESCRIBE YOUR LOVE LIFE:
Very fattening.

Out of the Blue

2008-12-03T11:27:00.002+09:00

I was born in Manila, Philippines on September 13th of 1986.

Now you know, but you'll have to compute for my age hehe. I like the year I was born, in the Chinese Zodiac I am a Metal Tiger~ *rawr* (my brother is a chicken LOL)

My mom says I was born during a troubled age when tanks roam free in the streets and the whole country suffered under a dictator in the capital of Manila. They said that the hospital lost electrical power while she was giving labor to me. Not that I caused it or anything, it was a really troublesome era in my country. =__=;;

I'm a premature, menopausal, blue baby.

I was born a few weeks earlier than my expected delivery date, and my mom gave birth at such an old age. Probably that's why I was so small when I came out... you could fit me in your two hands! And being a blue baby (actually it was yellow, then blue, then violet), I was immediately sent to an incubator. My mom was sent home earlier than I did, and she came to visit everyday making sure I'm still alive.

Well I grew up okay anyway, I'm pretty lucky I guess. I've heard that menopausal babies either becomes really stupid or very smart...

Not to brag or anything~ Gahahaha!

December

2008-12-02T23:25:00.003+09:00

The weekend went by then poof! It's December~

Recently, I realized how being in Japan has affected me. December is slowly becoming just a normal month.

DECEMBER... December... December...

Man, the more I stare at the word, the meaningless it becomes. It used to be one of the most exciting anticipated part of the year; with my family setting up the Christmas tree as early as October, the lights wound around the bushes by November, and finally decorations in every room by December. The air would begin to cool down (just a teeny bit) and the breeze would come in through the windows. Winter in my country means that the temps would go down by a couple of degrees. *shrug*

It was the time when people would have an extra smile, a bouncier step, and wallets flapping in anticipation of year-end bonuses. I remember when we would always plan to go on a trip to Hong Kong for the Christmas vacation, my mom going as far as renewing our passports. But as the -ber months roll by, so does the possibility of ever buying those plane tickets. And then it would finally come down to not mentioning it at all. I guess we're just not yet ready on spending too much cash just for a trip to another city. When we have our own an hour's drive away.

It was quite a surprise when I found out that the Japanese Winter Christmas extravaganza I always see in animes and J-doramas actually is just a commercially consumer-directed fad, celebrated just for the heck of it. That we have to go to work on a Thursday Christmas morning, go to a late-night Nihongo class, and probably buy a slice of strawberry cake to munch on the way home before crashing on the bed then go to work again tomorrow is a bit depressing to actually process right now

Me and my friends have even resorted to postponing thinking about Christmas. But seeing as how it's just 3 weeks till those carolers back home would start ringing doorbells and singing mangled hymns, we should probably get started on planning our plans for the holidays so that we would have something to report back home. Otherwise we would just end up depressed.

This will be our first Christmas here in Japan, we should also make it the best. But not "too best" so that we could still outdo it next year. I wish it would snow... minus the sludge.

Mala Doufu

2008-11-30T21:35:00.003+09:00

"Delishas!" as my friend blurted out. Yep I make a mean, mouth-numbing Mabo Tofu. Actually I've read that Mabo Tofu without meat is called Mala Doufu, but nobody cares about that.

I've been lazy these few days and have been eating microwaved pre-made stuff from the grocer. So I finally kicked myself out of this unhealthiness and decided to cook something wondrous, natural, and spicy. And tadaa! Mabo Tofu! Actually I have to confess that I did cheat and that I just bought the sauce, but at least I compromised by doing a no-meat thing and served it only with mushrooms, onions, and various veggies. And of course, tons of hot peppers.

Mabo Tofu is traditionally made with a special spice, Sichuan pepper. It's not really hot like a regular pepper should be, rather it gives a numbing effect. So since I don't have any, I settled to recreating the said effect with peppers, crushed chilis, and a large dollop of jalapeno hot sauce.

It was so hot and spicy it melted my bowl and turned it into a plate. Okay that was a joke, but it was OH-GOSH-ARRGGHH. I loved it. And I also loved how the tofu squares managed to retain their perfect symmetrical shape even after all those boiling around with the other non-symmetrical veggies. They were so soft, bouncy, and totally tasteless, balancing out the powerful sauce.

"Delishas!" and very cheap to make too. I made gallons of the stuff, enough to feed me through the week. Thankfully, spiciness acts as a preservative and a great substitute for numbing peppers.

I now have something to make for Christmas. Something to make my friends appreciate my choco custard more.

Hitsumabushi~! Cheaper and more Fowl!

2008-11-27T23:06:00.005+09:00

That is not an actual pic of what I ate today at lunch, I wasn't able to take a pic at all of what I ate actually. Anyway, it looks somewhat like that minus the miso soup. It was delicious and very fulfilling! And replace that eel in the pic with chicken.

I would like to explain how to properly eat hitsumabushi first. So I'm going to introduce another kind of Japanese food: okazuke. This may seem confusing at first, and may keep on becoming so, but I assure you, it's fun and delicious, and did I mention fulfilling?

Okay, where were we...? Right, "How to Eat Okazuke". Basically, okazuke is rice in a bowl, then you add some savory toppings (seaweed, pickles, meat, sesame seeds, seafood, etc) and then you pour either green tea or soup stock over it. I prefer the soup stock though, I mean, green tea plus seaweeds and sesame seeds???

Anyway, it's kinda like eating breakfast cereals with milk, only with rice and soup. I wasn't aware of this Jap dish until recently, it sounds so outrageously Japanese though. My coworkers surprised me when we went to a restaurant and they said that the dish is green tea over rice. I was like WHAT??? and they were HAHAHA but the waitress was like BEEF OR FISH STOCK? and I was OOOH!! BEEF!

So now that you know how to eat an okazuke, be rest assured that hitsumabushi is eaten just like that too. Actually, it IS exactly like that. I'm not sure why they made a whole new name for it, and I'm not sure of the difference, now that I think about it. I even asked what the name means and they said it was just a name, so didn't fuss over it too much. The name is actually 日妻武士 which reads hitsumabushi. 日= Sun, 妻 = Wife, 武士 = Warrior.

Soo... yeah. Sun Wife Warrior. Delicious.

Hmm, hitsumabushi is supposed to be okazuke with eel, but what I had was grilled chicken... maybe it wasn't hitsumabushi that I ate. But it said so in the menu...

If you haven't have one yet, you could try the fish stock. My coworker was spouting Jap slangs all over it. Oh and he was smiling, so I assume it was that good.

Not Quite Handy

2008-11-26T21:48:00.004+09:00

Didn't think I'd do it but I did it again. I bought something to warm me up... only it doesn't.

Oh sure, the scarf actually does warms me (it even makes my neck sweat) but I'm still "cold". So I consulted my friends and they said that actually the body is the last one to freeze. The first to tingle with the cold are the extremeties.

AHA! So that's why my fingers go numb first, my knees, then all of the sudden, my chest muscles vibrate. And then that's when I'll get really colddd...... I need gloves! Quick! So I dropped off the train at some station somewhere along my route, walked a couple pounds off, then found these pair of black leather gloves for only ¥1000! May sound expensive, but it's not. These are leather gloves we're talking about here.

Anyway, I wore them right away and lo! My fingers froze. I thought that maybe hey, I should give them some time to warm up to me first. But things, or should I say temps, went downhill from then on. There were times I had to look down to make sure my hands are still clutching my bag. Although since they're locked into a closed position, I didn't have to worry anyway... but you can never be too sure...

My friends then suggested that maybe it "traps heat" inside and that I should wear them when my hands are warm before going out to the frigid chillness. So I rubbed up my hands, blew hot breath on them, wore my gloves, got my hand stuck AND cold. So I guess that idea's off.

Then I tried to buy another pair, just for comparison. Maybe mine's defective and has missed a quality assurance inspection somewhere. So I got myself some new cotton gloves (or should I say mittens... with fingers, yes they were that thick, and these are my second pair of cotton cause the first ones didn't work either). Woo! They WERE warm! It got so warm that I rushed to the cashier with glee. But my glee was short lived when I stepped outside and wore them back on. Apparently, when you try something on inside a warm store, it would usually feel warm itself.

The cotton disappointed me too. Bad cotton. Again.

Oh well, sorry for being so cynic in my post here but I am really sad that none met my needs. Though I still wear my leather pair because they look too cool not to. My 2 pairs of cotton ones are somewhere... in the house...somewhere. I'm just wondering though, if they managed to make thermal undergarments as thin as stockings, yet can still leave your valuables in heat, why can't they do the same with gloves?

Or maybe I'm wearing them wrong. You DO put your fingers inside right?

Fail!

2008-11-25T23:35:00.003+09:00

Kinda depressing today, results from the mock JLPT Level 2 exams came by and I absolutely, horribly failed. But of course, they haven't included the points from the listening tests yet, and that's where I usually salvage my scores (I got 89% from the listening exams last time).

Not to be depressed, I immediately sought out the unimaginable and limitless powers of the Internet. And I was not disappointed. To say the least, I bounced back to my normal genki-ness in no time. I probably gained a few more years to my life after laughing this much.

And thus I present to you, Objets d'Laughing Matter:

I don't think they need captions. Do they?

I laughed years off of me and almost threw up! Amazingly, I still am intact, alive and well. I do hope I have managed to bring at least a smile, or a blink if you can manage.

Whew! Okay, I am fine now. And I think that hot bowl of honey hazelnut oatmeal helped a lot too. Yum!

Meadow Lodging

2008-11-23T23:27:00.005+09:00

The alarm rang at 7, got up at 9.

Me and two other friends decided to spend the Sunday by going to Harajuku, and thankfully, the 20% chance of precipitation weather for today cooperated and settled for sunny skies and frozen fingers. Hehe, at last I had the chance to wear my newly-bought leather gloves! A bit of a tight-fit and not warmth-inducing, but very cool-looking as heck.

We set off with runny noses and fashionable clothes and arrived in a station packed full of Japs in their best clothes, as well as foreigners who, like us, are expecting to find a candid view of Japan in its rawness. Going with the flow, we found ourselves standing in front one of the massive torii gates of Meiji Shrine. Not to be outdone by other tourists, as well as locals who came with their kimono-clad kiddies, we strutted our newly bought stuff down the tree-lined road towards the main temple.

The shrine didn't disappoint, and I even managed to get myself one of those lucky charms; I had a hard time picking between a lucky keychain and a Blessed Arrow of Sacred Light. I settled with the keychain even though it costs more just because I don't think I could attach an arrow in my bag/cellphone and not attract stares... @__@;;

After taking tons of photos, praying for fortune and well-being, and witnessing an authentic Shinto Wedding, we got ourselves back to urban Japan to grab some burgers for lunch. Then fought back the mob and went into Yoyogi Park.

If you take a closer look at the photo, you can see me mingling with the crowd! Go ahead, take that magnifying glass out of the drawer.

We didn't have to crane out our necks that much to see the "fashionable" Harajuku-ers. They were wearing their maid uniforms, gothic outfits, and once we entered the park grounds, there were some hillbillies dancing to some Elvis song.

Autumn hit us full in the face the moment we entered Yoyogi park. The falling leaves were going at it in full power, the trees burning with hues of reds and yellows, and the cold breeze nipping at our exposed extremeties. With lots of sunshine still left, our photoshoot went into full swing. By the time the sun finally went down, our cheeks were tired and poses were getting lame.

Strolling through the nature-filled avenues and ponds gushing with fountains, we got to thinking of how here in Japan, the old really does collide with the new, to some surprising and rather astonishing effects, not to mention downright outrageous. Like trying to eat a whole takoyaki ball in one bite... oh wait, that was me. My tongue felt like it licked a lit cigarette. Ouchies.

We went home tired, sore, and satisfyingly content of our excursion. If chance presents itself again, we wouldn't take a second to consider going back again.

From the Meiji shrine, to the Omotesando shopping district, and through the Yoyogi park, we discovered another slice of Japan that I can safely report as a must-go-to-places for a huge doze of culture-shock. We had so much fun in Harajuku... And did you know that its name meant "Meadow Lodging"?

Notice Anything~?

2008-11-22T23:15:00.002+09:00

If you've somehow asked yourself, "What the--?" after visiting my site, then I applaud you for being one of those who've been here before. Please continue to do so. Oh, and I love you.

And if you're my first-time visitor, thank you for being here. Please enjoy yourself, read on, and bask in my new layout. Too bad you haven't seen the previous one... But no matter, it's not much better than this one anyway. Otherwise, I would've kept on using it.

This change is long way past its due, and it's all thanks to my overpowering procrastinative powers. But after a few clicks, hours in Photoshop (darn the new version, I felt like a beginner all over again), and cups of veggie soup, it is finally done.

I may tweak it a bit here and there, every now and then, for some reason or another though. I am a bit of a perfectionist and there are times I am never satisfied ever. Usually I just make a compromise with myself. *shrug*

Leave comments, suggestions, reactions, may it be good or bad. Speak now, or wait till my procrastination ebbs down again... which might be never, considering that it'll be Winter soon...

I Saw My Breath!

2008-11-21T14:54:00.003+09:00

It was during a freezing morning while I was trying to feel my breakfast. Because I can't really fully enjoy a meal with one of my senses missing, I had to thaw my hands with hot water by the sink. So there I was, enjoying my warm and wrinkly fingers when my cellphone rang. My neighbor/friend was urging me to come out for a bit of a talk, so I did. I opened the door, looked around for the caller, and yelled "What?"

Then *woosh~~* a cloud appeared in front of me.

While I was stunned frozen, I managed to let some of the precious air-conditioned heat to escape. Then I yelled back again to the phone, "hhhWhere hhhhhare hhhhyouhhh? " spewing out some frozen breath. Finding out that no one's there, I closed the door. Then opened it again and blew more clouds.

I did this for a while until I realized I wasn't talking to anyone anymore, so I shut my phone, went back inside, and re-heated my meal. When I went out again on my way to the office, the sun has brought the temps back up a little bit. Although not enough that my gloved hands still went numb, my breath wasn't as misty as before. So by the time I reached the station, it's already gone.

Today was the very first time I saw my breath. It was utterly breathtaking, and yes the pun was deliberate.

Bununu

2008-11-17T19:38:00.003+09:00

Yesterday afternoon, my neighbor-friend suddenly decided to go to a mall to buy something. Actually I'm not the type to go off on unplanned excursions, but since she gave me a slice of pizza last night, I guess I owed her something in return. Well I can't give her a pizza slice back, so I went to the mall with her.

We walked into a store and came out with two gigantic bananas.

Another friend called and asked what we were doing, so I told him our findings and he said that he knew about these bananas. That they're really bitter unless they've fully ripened. I told him mine's brown and he happily told me that I should be rest assured that my banana will be sweet. Then he hung up saying that a convenient store clerk's trying to sell him some plastic bags.

I forgot to tell to him that what we bought were pillows.

Truth is, this was supposed to be our Christmas gift for each other. But we couldn't really wait till next month, so we bought it right away. My friend bought a pink one and both our bananas were the pineapple series. It does resemble a banana with pineapple skin, only it's furrier and it's 4-foot long. It's a real comfort when sleeping, and it warms up after a while of tight embrace.

Lonely nights no more!

Hot Buns and Roasted Legs

2008-11-14T10:05:00.005+09:00

Today was the first time I managed to get a seat on the morning trains.

Okay that was a lie, maybe a half-truth, so let me rephrase that: Today was the first time I managed to get a seat on the morning trains after a looong loong time... while having my "buns" toasted.

Usually I just stand at the very end of the last train carriage, with my hair getting blow-dried by the heated air-conditioning, and my back feeling the warmth of the train master's cabin. But today, due to my unrelenting lateness, I've managed to grab a seat!

It was a moment of a bliss, after being subjected to a freezing morning walk to the station. I then began to thaw and was soon taking my scarf off (apparently the scarf really does warm you, I was just too cold to notice).

I realized that my bum was hot. Hello, what's this? Am I on a hot seat? And I dug a hand to check... wow, it really IS hot! And very soft and firm too!

A glance at the row in front of me, and I saw a long grill hidden underneath the seats. I've long wondered what they were for (back when the aircon still blew cold) and thought that they must be exhaust fans of some sort to suck out the dust.

How nice is that! A heater that stretches along the opposite sides of the train, warming Japanese bums and toasting our legs. It was wonderful... at first. Then I began to feel just how hot a heater can be at a VERY close range. There were moments I've even thought about giving up my treasured seat just to cool off my burn-marks (just kidding).

I've known about the Japs and their obsession with scalding things; I've burnt my tongue an innumerable number of times slurping ramen, biting into takoyaki balls, and sipping miso soup. So it wasn't a surprise to find the onsen-loving people firing-up the temps inside the train. But after a few stations, I was welcoming the cool air rushing in at every stop.

I guess it's a delicate balance: not too hot for the passengers inside, while not being too cold for the new arrivals. I sincerely appreciate the energy-consuming conveniences the trains provide, but I do hope the Temperature Coordinating Manager Train Master would take a look at their computations once again.

Either that or I'll just have to resort to standing up again.

Life's Like That

2008-11-12T09:58:00.003+09:00

Just this morning, I heard that my friend's brother died in a motorcycle accident. I'm not sure of the details, but because of this piece of shattering news, he's going back to his country in the next earliest flight available.

To think he just got accepted for a job finally after going on a job-hunt for more than 4 months. And only last night, we were talking about taking a trip down to Kyoto for the holidays... *sigh*

Life's surprises are too surprising; dreadful, cruel, and unjust. Yet sometimes it can be so beautiful, joyful, and wholly unexpected that it can't be nothing short than a true miracle.

When you thought things have finally settled down and that the road seems to straighten out its curves, a sharp bend suddenly careens you out of control, leaving you grasping frantically on the wheel wondering, "Where the heck did that come from?!"

I am well aware that death is to be expected and that life is but an instant, but to have it taken out of you so abruptly, it's just SO unfair. I seriously can't imagine what I'd do if my own brother would suddenly go away like that. Granted, me and him have fought for so long and reconciled many times more, then went entirely into war and into a truce. But I love my family, and they have always been there for me. I've taken it as a fact that they're always there, just an email or a call away.

And that even with 6 months of notice, my family considered my leaving for a Japan still "a shock" is proof that no matter how many days, months, years, or even a lifetime it would take, nothing could ever mentally and psychologically prepare anyone for the sudden departure of someone they loved...

My thoughts and prayers go to those who have been treated unfair by life and its awful truth. And to my friend's brother:

May you find peace and comfort with such sincere friends and a loving family, and may all those you have asked be answered. Eternal rest I hope have been granted and light lead you into God's arms.

Today has gotten much colder. Painfully so.

Mafura~

2008-11-11T10:05:00.003+09:00

I've been waiting for the day to actually use a scarf, or muffler, as they call it here in Japan. I've included one in my luggage, which puzzled my coworkers as to why a tropical country where I came from would sell such things. I'm not sure either, considering that I haven't really seen anyone back home wearing one before, but since we also have sweaters, blankets, and thick fake-fur coats, I' m guessing entrepreneurs have asked themselves at one point, "why not"?

So I donned my suit, twisted that thick knitwork around my neck, and stepped outside. To tell you the truth, I didn't feel any warmer. True, I looked awesome and the wool was comfy, but the fact that my hands are immobile told me that I'd probably need gloves too if ever I expected to be warm on my way to the office. Actually I do have gloves, in the same knitted design as my scarf (or muffler), yet when I tried to wear them inside my own warm house even, my hands went colder than before.

It's probably a lack of research for aero-dynamics on the part of the manufacturer, but I don't really see the point of making something supposed to be warm yet instead, rewards its wearers with the unexpected. Maybe I'm just wearing it the wrong way? Or maybe the color is wrong...

Nevertheless, I still looked cool (or hot, whichever warms your fancy) so I'd probably wear it up till the weather turns deadly and I'm forced to buy authentic warmers. I've been advised to buy thermal undies and a trenchcoat too, so that's absolutely gonna go to my Christmas shopping list... once I start on writing one.

Japautumn at its Coldest

2008-11-10T15:41:00.005+09:00

And after going on a month-long silence for reasons unknown even to me, I am here to post an entry! Woo! To think I even promised a new layout... *sigh*

Well the layout's gonna have to wait till the weekends, and that's if I can find time to do it. I have a bunch of Japanese dramas and animes queued up for me to watch, supposing we don't go off again on our "almost weekly" excursions around Japan. Well, mostly around the Tokyo area anyway.

Just have to report that Summer's absolutely over by now. Temperatures are dipping wayyyy below the 15's now (Celsius), and it's not unusual to wake up and see that the window's dripping wet with moisture. They said that the snow's going to be earlier this year... ohhh I just can't wait!

I used to see the sun up and shining even up till 7 PM, while nowadays it would make its dramatic exit as early as 4:30. It's really difficult to get up in the morning with everything looking so dark. I'm used to opening my eyes to the sunshine, but nowadays, it's like getting up at mid-twilight; all dark, gloomy, silent, and cold. Makes you want to ignore the alarm and snooze off till noon. I usually turn the alarm off when it rings and get up 45 minutes later, giving me a boost of adrenaline once I open my eyes and realize that if I don't get up now and put my freezing butt into the shower soon, I'll be late for work.

And it's quite nice to see that the trees here are so festive and burning with passion. Most of the leaves have yet to turn into the Autumny-red though, but some of the smaller trees have gone on and embraced the season whole-heartedly. In my country, they just turn brown, die, then fall into the ground and transform into trash. Not really dramatic, but I guess I can't blame them if they want to escape the sweltering heat of our Winter... if you could even call that a Winter. I guess we only have two seasons back home: Summer and Hotter Summer.

I just wish I could enjoy Autumn long enough before the temps go any lower. With my hands and ears freezing as it is, I can't even imagine just how much colder it would be when Japan's Winter finally comes. I sincerely hope it wouldn't be so cold that it would freeze our eyeballs the moment we step outside. That would be scary and downright horrifying. Can that ever happen...?

Lacuna

2008-10-03T17:38:00.002+09:00

--I found that word when I was trying to look up a synonym for hiatus. It's an English word.

Anyway, I guess I need not post something like this for something so obvious; Yep, I'm on a break from blogging for a while. Although writing this bit kind of fired up the passion once again...

Oh, it's not about time constraints, nor is it any personal/work/family/friend/any problem at all. A day just happened to happen in my life and I suddenly had found that I need not write entries... At least, for a while.

So while I'm on a blogging interim indefinitely, let me just leave with an assurance that I'm not quitting nor am I going to abandon this blog. In fact, right as of this moment, I'm scrounging up what's left of my Photoshopping-skills to whip up a spiffy new layout!

I guess once that's done, I'll be back again. But that's still indefinite. Don't let your hopes up, or down neither.

"Waiting is, and will be, the only." something I read on a novel, pretty fancy eh?

Namjatown

2008-09-17T11:37:00.002+09:00

Continuing on from my previous post, we still had a lot of remaining daytime that Sunday afternoon, so we set off for an indoor amusement park a handful of train stations away.

I was a kid in front of the TV watching some Japan tourism show when I found out about Ikebukuro's Sunshine 60 building and its Namjatown. It was something that went to my To-Do list and I'm glad to finally have the chance to do so.

Of course, since we were already tired after going around the high school festival, it was a harrowing success getting everyone to even consider the idea of going on another trip on the same day. By the time we were at the train station, we had already made up our minds and compromised to do some napping while on the train... an act which proved to be very risky indeed. We almost missed our stop if not for my friend who woke up just in the nick of time (we got off the train all red-eyed and drowsy).

Clambering out of the labyrinth subway station, we realized we had no map and that no one bothered to memorize the GoogleMap entry I sent off to everyone's e-mails. A couple of seconds later, we found that there was no need; Sunshine 60 was Japan's tallest building up till the 1980's and you could easily see it towering high above the other buildings in the area.

Pretty soon we found Namjatown's entrance inside the mammot structure, but with time and money as our constraints, we had no choice but to buy the Entrance Passes only. But no problem, Namjatown has more than a lot to offer even to those not willing to spend much. At 300円 we were able to tour the whole place and visit each of the simulated towns inside.

First stop: Horror Town. It was designed as a haunted post-war Japan at night with creepy houses, singing tombstones, and cashier ladies screaming upside-down inside their booths. Because we weren't able to buy the Play-All-You-Can ticket, we haven't the chance to try most of the attractions, but we did give the Black Meowing Neko (or whatever it's called) a go.

You're given a black cat doll and instructed to explore the eerie town looking for the monsters that hold the spirit of a poor cat in captivity. Solving riddles and trivia questions along the way, you'll eventually earn the respect of a glowing Buddha sculpture, thus directing you to a final showdown with the big boss. But with none of us able to read Kanji, let alone answer Japanese trivia questions (the heck?), the poor kitty died and our seat fell... literally. Me and my friend were startled and we both shrieked.

We spent hours in that horror town, so we made up for it by running along till the exit and looking for which town to attack next.

I forgot which was which, but I can remember seeing my friends in the opera town (it has a balcony, velvet curtains and spotlights perfect for a Romeo and Juliet play) taking photos of each other, so we posed along with them then ran upstairs to the next floor. There was a military town, an ice cream town, an adventure town, and a China town. But we did most of our exploring in the angel/romance/christmas town. It was such a complete opposite of horror town, which made it comparably awesome as well. You could dub it as the 'How Lovely! Town'.

There were white caverns that has a chapel inside where you and your partner can put your hands on the altar (there are indentions of two right hands so you couldn't cheat with using your own) and then the whole cave would light up. Not sure if there was an accompanying music, it was too noisy to notice. But the dancing angels, as well as the singing Christmas trees and Italian ambiance, was the perfect place for romance that not matter how noisy the place gets, it seems to exclude a private and cozy atmosphere. The dozens of couples sharing cups of ice cream and cuddling under the fake trees were too much for us, and we hurried out of there (actually we panicked a little because we got lost, it seemed to us that the makers of this place made the How Lovely! town the biggest of them all for some kind of profitable reason).

By the time we have gathered in the 'opera place' once again, we were terribly tired and ready to go home. We took a couple more of shots and headed for the exit.

All in all, I think the 300円 was not enough to pay for the fun we had in there. I highly recommend going here if you have a tight-budget and want to have the most fun out of your Yen coins. We're thinking of going back next time, but with thicker wallets and lots of time.

浦高祭 - Urawa Koukou Matsuri

2008-09-16T13:58:00.001+09:00

The plan was to leave by 9:30 AM. But with everyone still groggy from the party the night before, we all left at noon right after 12. Outside it was egg-frying hot, but it was perfect for a Summer's Sunday. With the sun way up to melt all the eye bags accumulated with late-night partying.

I have received a pamphlet with an invitation for a high school festival several days ago, and it was with this that I dragged my friends to attend with me. Some were reluctant, but after showing them photos of previous festivals and explaining what it was really about, no one wanted to get left behind. It was just something you shouldn't miss while in Japan.

We did our best to immortalize the map on our heads, but I guess we didn't have to. The moment we got off into the train station, crowds of students wearing different uniforms were massing together and marching out towards a single destination: the Urawa High School Festival. With a laugh of relief, we decided to go with the flow. Actually, even without the students, you wouldn't get lost. From the station to the school, banners were put up leading you to the festival. But walking alongside excited chatterings and giddy-ness only heightened the experience.

The school's gate was exploding with celebration by itself, and beyond it was another gate. Only, this is made by the students and was likened to a Japanese castle with gabled roofs with dark tiles and white walls. It was huge, and passing beneath it gave me the feeling of awe and admiration at how much work these students put on making it.

We were given a booklet with lots of Japanese paragraphs in it. But thankfully, there were pictures splattered all over, so it wasn't that hard to figure out what was being described. Each classroom holds a different activity ranging from coffee shops, pizza parlors, to mini-casinos, daycare centers, and the infamous horror houses. There was a map of the school grounds' floor plan and a legend describing on how to use it, but we didn't understood it that much.

From what we could read though, only 3 buildings and the campus grounds itself were used for the festival: the central wing (where the classrooms are), the east wing (where the school facilities are) and the gymnasium. Other buildings where off limits, probably because the faculty rooms and other administrative offices are located there. We didn't even tried to peek inside, we assumed it'd be boring anyways.

The whole place was packed, with a girl/boy ratio of 5:2. The visitors were mostly girls from other schools, probably because of the fact that this is an all-boys institution. Everyone looked happy, so I guess the guys really did a good job. A lot of people were lining up outside the classrooms so much, that we only managed to go inside a couple of them: an aquarium attraction and a solitary tea house on the top floor.

The aquarium was hot and stuffy, but the tea house was an oasis. We've been walking for a couple of hours now, so having a break at a cozy classroom occupied only by a handful of students was so relaxing, we even considered the thought of spending the whole day inside it. An occassional visit from a customer, the tinkling of a wind chime on a Summer's breeze, and a sip of milk tea gives off such a believable atmosphere you'd think you're inside a cafe on a secluded beach. That is, until their supplies ran out and students began to come in just to 'hang out'.

By that time, we decided we needed our overly-late lunch and set off towards the least crowded place where we can get it: the school cafeteria. Because everyone was eating their lunch inside the food-themed classrooms, the cafeteria was empty save for the cashier and a few ladies cooking noodles and curry at the kitchens. The food available was just that: noodles and curry. And because it was a school, it was fairly cheap; compared to the doubled price of a regular bowl of udon or a plate of curry sold outside.

We watched some dancing guys cosplaying, a robot war, and a cart race afterwards. We were quite tired by that point, so we decided that it's time to leave. It was so much fun and it's too bad we hadn't been able to try the horror houses, next year perhaps?

Besides, the sun hadn't gone down yet and we have another place to go to before it does: Namjatown.

I'll save that for another story.

Necktie Birthday Party

2008-09-16T10:15:00.004+09:00

As it is the first day of my 3-Day Vacation and also my birthday, let's start with Saturday.

Nothing really happened much during the day. In fact, everyone was out and I was left alone at home doing chores. The friend who promised to come didn't, so the plan to go to Omiya was out. I just went out to buy the foodstuff for the dinner later that night and made the preparations for the chocolate pudding.

After a few hours later when the sun went down...

My friends began to come trickling back from whence they came, and the place started to get lively as people wailed that they're hungry and have no energy to help. Well I can't cook a feast by myself, so I told them they could either help me or go to sleep.

I guess they weren't sleepy.

In fact, rolls of chicken sushi began to mound up on plates. There were also roasted and fried chicken, candied fruits, and other bountiful dishes that filled the tables. Someone even went into the trouble of buying a cake. All while I was in the kitchen cooking the carbonara. Actually, they were rushing me with the pasta so much, that I forgot to add cornstarch and made some kind of "carbonara soup" instead. Still quite a fun dish overall.

With the cooking done, we turned up the music, turned down the lights, grabbed some plates, and went into some photo-shooting frenzy. Donning on neckties I wear for work, we dubbed it the Necktie Birthday Party while posing in front of the cam and doing some wacky shots. Good thing someone owned an SLR, I don't think regular cameras would work with such dark lighting and fast movements.

We ate, laughed, danced, and posed some more. Much so that we went past midnight and drained all our calories. It was like our own private disco club, minus the awkward strangers. We were on our own fun little world and it was the best.

The gifts came later and I got some chocolate rice balls, a Tokyo Dome mechanical eraser thingy, a mousepad, and of course the cake. By that time, everyone was already half-asleep, and I was left to clean out the room and put away the dishes.

Tired, content, and overflowing with happiness, I ushered the people back to their homes, closed the door, rolled out my futon, and went into a dreamless sleep. I didn't have to blow a candle to have my wish come true.

Thank you guys, that night was awesome. Happy birthday to meee~!

Happy Birthday to Me~!!

2008-09-13T00:10:00.003+09:00

Tonight, while waiting for midnight, my friend and I watched a dramatic Japanese romance movie. Not having popcorn or any snacks available at home, I decided to prepare some corn soup. I added some flair with a bit of garlic powder, butter, an egg, and melted in a slice of mozzarella cheese.

But right before the movie started, we found the soup a bit too... soupy. It was a delicious yet perfectly ordinary soup. So I grabbed some slices of loaf and broke it to bite size pieces, I let it soak in the soup, and voila, a filling supper you could eat quietly that's not too grand to steal away your attention from the show.

By the time the movie ended, it was nearly 12. But not wanting to waste time, I figured that maybe I should go and try to make some custard following BadAunt's recipe. If all goes well, I'll go and proceed to make a bigger batch by tomorrow.

This is my first time to cook custard, and I'm a bit uncomfortable with the lack of some ingredients. I decided to improvise and use bitter chocolate instead of vanilla extract to give it flavor.

I got worried when I was constantly stirring yet it was still quite watery. Was on the verge of adding a spoonful of cornstarch when I find that stirring began to be difficult. The custard's now a custard.

It worked!

The chocolate melted very nicely and the texture was velvety smooth. The smell was heavenly. I ran out of the kitchen holding my finished product when my friend shouted, "HAPPY BIRTHDAAAAYYY!!!".

12:00 AM

We danced around a bit while I kept on stirring the still hot custard (don't want the eggs to suddenly get lumpy). And then we got tired. Then sleepy. Then they went back to their houses and I was left stirring the warm pan of deliciousness. Actually, I felt warm all over.

Later when the sun's up, another friend will be arriving from another town (with a promise of bringing a cake). We'll start buying food and cooking stuff for the party. And now that I'm feeling confident about my recipe-guided cooking ability, I think I'm going to try making some egg carbonara. Wish me luck!

A Weekend and a Half

2008-09-12T11:31:00.004+09:00

I've waited for this for so long, ever since my friends started taking their Obon vacations while I was stuck at the office. I've asked my company why on earth ours was the only one not doing so and they replied, "Because we are abnormal company. Very hardworking".

I definitely had to agree. It was so true.

But hey, even abnormal companies have to obey the law, lest they become abnormal law-infringers. And thus resulted in September's 3-Day Weekend! Though I'd have to thank the grandpeople for that, it's their holiday~

Yes, every second Monday of September is 敬老の日 (Keirō no hi) or Respect for the Aged Day as dictated by the Happy Monday System; Japan proposed to move some holidays to Mondays in order to have long weekends. Pretty thoughtful.

I've read that this is the time where they take the opportunity to feature old people and their lives on TV. And with Japan having an overflowing population of people over 70, and a series of Guinness World-Record 'Oldest Person' title holders, I'd guess the media will be "having a picnic" so to speak.

And to top the holiday off with a Japanese Toffee Apple, there's an on-going matsuri just outside my building! I went down to buy some lunch (a measly Sea Chicken onigiri) and while standing in line a foreigner exclaimed, "Oh look! There's a festival! How lovely~" which sent me running out the store and into the plaza.

I wish to thank the heavens for the blessing of a cool early-Autumn temp and bright blue skies, to which I was able to enjoy the matsuri and the stalls it had put out. I'm not sure what the festival was all about, but I'm guessing it's either for Autumn or for the Respect for the Aged Day. Either way, I had fun. While roaming around, I found a friend roaming around also, then we went and gawked at everything; from the water balloon game, to the shooting gallery, the sweet ampan bread pastries, yakisoba, and much more.

When we realized that lunch break was over and it was time to return back to the office, my friend decided to buy a couple of yakitori sticks for me. And off I went munching on grilled chicken. Yum!

I like how today has begun to be so much fun, preempting the 3-day weekend. Tomorrow's my birthday, then the day after that we're planning to go to a local highschool's festival, then by Monday we'll bum around and maybe go off to watch a movie. And to think that next week, there's going to be another holiday coming up.

Japan and its holidays at its best.

Vendo Update

2008-09-11T12:29:00.006+09:00

This'll be an addendum to my previous entry.

Just this morning, the vending machine got two new drinks again. I'm not sure why they suddenly decided to replace the drinks one by one, but this recent development got us running for our mugs.

Jasmine Tea and Calpis!

I'm not a fan of the tea, unlike all of the people here, but I am of Calpis. And now the whole office smells like Spring. Not sure if you know Calpis, but it's a popular drink here in Japan. Sometimes it's carbonated, sometimes diluted in water; it's a milky, citrus-like drink. Actually you could say it's a yogurt drink. Much as I like Calpis, I still regret the fact that it replaced the Ginger Ale... a drink I never fail to have everyday. =(

Anyway, when the jasmine began to permeate the room, I felt a sense of nostalgia. I looked it up and lo! I found out that my country's national flower (Sampaguita) is none other than a specie of jasmine! I can't believe I haven't associated them before... I've always commented on the fact that whenever my mom would have a cup of jasmine tea, it smelled like sampaguita.

Hmm... I think the vendo will run out of jasmine tea quite soon. Oh well, Calpis FTW~

Nihon Ryokaku Tetsudō Kabushiki-gaisha

2008-09-10T17:12:00.008+09:00

I think it's high time I formally thanked Japan and its uber-convenient railway system.

I've come from a country where there are currently only 4 major passenger railway lines available, compared to Japan having one of the largest passenger railway company in the world! And that's just JR East, one of Japan Railway's seven companies (I've read Wikipedia's article about JR East, and I can't even begin counting the railway lines it has!).

Of course when I first came here, I was overwhelmed to say the least.

"There are TVs inside the trains! Oh it's a cooking show!"

"Wow, they're really on time... up to the minute! Maybe even to the seconds!"

"Look at those tracks, there must be a dozen beside ours!"

"This is a railway map?! And it doesn't even include subways yet!?!"

"I thought I stepped out to a mall... awesome station!!!"

"Hey, I'm being crushed by a mob! Oof~ Cool!!" and so on...

Then it became routine, and after that well, let's just say I don't shout anymore whenever the train switches tracks. I even fall asleep while riding nowadays. And to think I used to take my camera whenever I ride the train~

Though, I feel so 'cool' whenever I encounter a ticket gate and I pull out my Gucci wallet (gift from Aunt, dunno if it's original), wave it a bit, and swipe it with a flair on the scanner. All with a fluid motion and a stoic face. Though there was a time when I mistook the screen with the blue arrow as the scanner and I kept rubbing my wallet till a staff member came and told me that I'm rubbing it at the wrong place... or when my wallet slipped from my grip and ended up on the 'other side' of the gate... or that time I swiped my card too fast, realizing that it's already expired when red lights came out, and ended up trapping the woman in front of me to get stuck at the gate... among other things.

What I love about commuting here is the fact that you get to live in another prefecture and still be able to come early for work, with half an hour to spare. And for me, who oversleeps everyday, it's a lifesaver! And although the train fare isn't certainly something to joke about, the convenience, the punctuality, and the passionate service they offer is definitely worth every Yen.

Oh, I've just found out an alternative route that will save me fifteen minutes of walking everyday. AND it took me less than a minute to have my train pass updated for me by a train station staff. AND then discover that it's even cheaper than my previous fare!

And would you believe me if I tell you that this cat runs a train station all by herself? Seriously.

She even earned the title Super-Station Master - the 5th highest rank in the company! Making her the only female with a managerial position and thus earning an office of her own too! Probably because when they gave her the job, sales went up 17%. Now if that's not a reason for promotion, go deceive yourself.

Super-Station Master Tama. The 'super' makes all the difference doesn't it?

Click here for details.

Onions and Lemons

2008-09-09T13:28:00.006+09:00

For those who didn't know, I have one of the most coveted tables at the office. I sit beside a vending machine that serves drinks for free! (along with the ￥100 snack bar and ice cream fridge). Though it doesn't bode well for my shattered tooth now that potential cavity-makers have direct contact with my molar insides.

Anyway, I am proud to announce that we now have new drinks up for grabs:

Onion Tea and Vitamin C!

Usually I'd go for a mug or two of Royal Milk Tea or some Extra Creamy Cocoa, but I think I just have to try these new ones out. They're weird enough to solicit a double take, but I'm guessing they don't taste as good as Qoo (what I'm drinking right now).

Bad news is, to make way for the radical delights, they removed one of my regular treats: Mango Au Lait. I guess it wasn't as popular as the Iced Expresso or the Ginger Ale... but hey, someone likes it, so don't remove it!

Well it's obvious that I'll take my daily dosage of Vitamin C from a vending machine from now on, but I can't just imagine sipping Onion Tea... I've read reviews and they said it stinks and tastes horrible! But at least it cures congestion and coughs.

Waitaminute. Vitamin C... Onion Tea...

*gasp!*

I think they're trying to make us healthy!

Update: Vitamin C tastes like lemonade and I still don't have the guts (nor any of my officemates) to try the onion drink. Bring back my Mango au Lait~!

Carrots of Might

2008-09-08T18:26:00.004+09:00

Who knew boiled carrots were so dangerous?

One fine evening, I was at my neighbor's to help them with some cooking. Apparently, my white sauce recipe (the only thing I could cook decently here) is quite a hit! And now they're planning to combine my sauce, with their stir-fried veggies (the only thing they could cook properly).

So off I go with my creaminess, threw in the veggies, and came up with a nameless vegetarian delight. Of course, when they weren't looking, I threw in a dash of garlic powder, chili powder, a pinch of salt, and a small puff of pepper.

Somehow they managed to notice the pepper... a budding connoisseur perhaps?

And then to show their gratitude, they've let me have a bowl of the stuff on top of steamed rice. Oh, and they also have leftover noodles, so they gave that to me too. I was terribly hungry, starving even, that night so I mixed them all up and gobbled a dollop.

I was careless. As soon as I sank my teeth, I knew something has gone wrong. Horribly wrong.

Well there was the crisp broccoli, mushy carrots, hard tooth, crunchy onion... wait... tooth...?

A check with my tongue, and I found out that a molar at the lower-right side has shattered. It was now like a C-shaped hollow mess. And then I panicked. I immediately spit out the mush on the kitchen sink and found my tooth (most of it) embedded on the abominable carrot. Staring at it didn't really help my tooth much, but it abated my panic. Never before have I stared down a tooth-embedded carrot mush with such contempt.

*groan* I don't know what to do with my tooth, and I find the thought of going to a Japanese dentist quite daunting (based on the accounts I've read about them). Not like I have any other choice now do I?

Somebody help me find a good, if not normal, dentist!

It's Payback Time!

2008-09-08T17:51:00.003+09:00

And here I was looking forward for my payday... Most of it's already considered spent... *sigh*

I somehow made a mistake of underestimating expenses last month. I was confident that even if I buy a new laptop, things could still be afforded and food will always fill the fridge.

Boy, was I wrong. And being wrong in Japan is unacceptable. And armed with the motivational fear of being an unacceptable foreigner in Japan, I decided to ask for help. Where else? From friends of course! And it'd be better if they were next-door neighbors too, that would save you some train fare and much needed energy.

Anyway, I somehow managed to survive August and its laundry-stinker rainy days... But with a cost. A cost that would hunt me till my paycheck arrives.

And to think that my paycheck arrived today. *dun dun dun dunnnn!*

Thanks to these 'accounts payable', I'm having a hard time trying to whip up a plan on what to do (rather, what I could do) for my birthday coming this weekend...

Well I pretty much learned my lesson; it'd be foolish not to. But of course, old habits die hard. Recent ones harder. Which led to me going on another splurgefest last Saturday and ending up with bags of sausages, a pack of Napolitan spaghetti sauce, biscuits, eggs, mozzarella slices, and a carton of milk from Hokkaido. Anyone have any suggestion on a recipe?

D'oh!

2008-09-05T16:15:00.004+09:00

Have you ever tripped on nothing, banged your head, said 'sorry' to a lamp post and 'thank you' to sympathizing spectators?

I did. And it was such a humid afternoon too...

My team mates and I were just returning from one of our lunch-outs when it happened. So here I am walking peacefully with a content smile on my face and covered in hard-earned sweat (the restaurant was quite the walking distance away), when suddenly I tripped. I don't know what caused my feet to stumble like that, and it was my curiosity to find out that furthered my embarrassment:

I tripped, so of course I looked back to find out what-the-frap caused me to trip but found nothing. Instead, I found myself suddenly in front of a jumbo lamp post. With no time to react, I squeezed my eyes shut and braced for impact.

Oof~

Inertia caused my arms to swing forward while I became a helpless witness as my arms hugged the post without my consent. Without control, my forehead banged on the said lamp post, and because it was covered in rubber (don't ask) my head re-bounced. I was slowly regaining consciousness and common sense by that point and managed to control my neck to prevent a second banging. It all happened within 2-3 seconds.

After which, I immediately untangled myself from the post and said "Sumimasen" (sorry) to it. I figured it'd be best to say 'sorry' in Japanese since it was a Japan-based lamp post, but that's just my banged head talking.

If that wasn't enough, I found (to my horror) that my boss, and the boss of my boss, and my team mates, and everyone else that happened to witness the show, was staring and you could really feel the strain on their faces as they tried not to laugh. The energy produced was so palpable in the atmosphere, I wouldn't be surprised if steam was produced somewhere...

Someone managed to ask, "Daijobu na no ka?" (are you all right?) to which I replied, "Ah! Arigatou..." (thank you). There was a huge crowd of blank stares involved and everyone began to sweat. Mine was already dry, in fact I was shivering.

Then someone laughed.

And the world was fine once again.

金曜日

2008-09-05T10:46:00.003+09:00

I feel good~ Nana nana nana naa~ *dances* After a long time of being bummed, this has got to be one of the best Fridays yet!

Results of the JLPT 2 (Japanese Language Proficiency Test) mock exam came back; I didn't pass, yet my sensei said I improved a whopping 130%!
Last night a representative from my company came by and told me that my pay will be a day late, and to compensate for such inconvenience, gave me a salary advance! Woot.
After scourging bookstores everywhere in search of a JLPT 2 application form (which were all sold out, they said), I found out that there's a bookstore right inside my office building; one that still has a form available! I bought one a while ago, at last!
I found a wonderful book (same store) about Japan's monsters and ghastly myths, and it's in English! Wow, it had a bargain price too! Of course, I snatched it right away... can't wait to read it on the train ride home!
And to top it all off, I'm now munching on some Pocky sticks and gulping down a cup of my fave iced milk tea.
Oh, and tomorrow's a Saturday. The best of them lot yet!

Ahh.... Absolute and total bliss~

Torotoro Omurice

2008-09-04T14:59:00.008+09:00

A Thursday cannot be a Thursday without its special luncheons. And so, I present you, Torotoro Omurice!

I've had omurice before and it was so-so (rice mixed with ketchup, wrapped in an omelette, and topped with ketchup), which was why I was surprised when I found out that my order wasn't ketchup-ish! Well, there was ketchup on top of the omelette, but not as much as what I had before~

Anyway, the salad with vinegrette came first; nothing much, just shredded lettuce, carrots, raddish, cucumber, and a huge tomato. Everyone were already eating their steaks and my order was last to arrive. The wait was definitely worth it though...

It was amazing!

My plate probably dominated the table, it was huge and square, and at the middle sat the biggest omurice you've ever seen, surrounded with beef slices in demiglace sauce, and a sprinkle of aesthetic parsley bits. I stared at it till my glasses fogged up. It was a glorious moment. Although it might've been attributed to the fact that I was hungry .

I picked up a spoon, the biggest I could find (there were different kinds of spoons there, pretty fancy place, that), and tore into the perfect omelette shell, thus releasing steam and more heavenly aroma.

First bite in and I can already realize that it was the best ever. Ever been. Ever will be.

The hint of a 'spaghetti sauce' taste in the beef Demiglace with the neutral creamness of the buttered rice and egg omelette was so surprising, I had a heartburn. At last, something to absolutely die for. I haven't felt like this since I've had my first fettucini carbonara as a kid, afterwhich, I became addicted to white sauces and italian food, especially pasta.

Ahhh~~~ Torotoro. Omu. Rice. Dai. Suki.

And the best part is, as usual, it was all FREE.

¿ɥnɥ ǝɯosǝʍɐ

2008-09-02T14:00:00.003+09:00

˙ɯoʇʇoq ʎɹǝʌ ǝɥʇ ʇɐ ʍou sı ɥdɐɹƃɐɹɐd ʇs1 ǝɥʇ ʇɐɥʇ pǝpuıɯǝɹ ǝq ǝsɐǝld

---------------------------------

˙ǝɹǝɥ ʇno ʇı ʎɹʇ

¡uʍop ǝpısdn sı ǝloɥʍ ɐ sɐ ɥdɐɹƃɐɹɐd ǝɥʇ ˙˙˙ɥƃnoɥʇ pɹıǝʍ sı sıɥʇ

¡ɔılɹɐƃ ǝɹoɯ pǝʌloʌuı ʇı ǝɯıʇ sıɥʇ ˙ǝdıɔǝɹ sʇǝƃƃnu uǝʞɔıɥɔ ɹǝɥʇouɐ ǝʞɐɯ oʇ pǝƃɐuɐɯ ı ʍoɥ ɹɐǝɥ ɐuuɐʍ noʎ ssǝlun ˙(ʎɐpɹǝʇsǝʎ ǝʞıl ʇsnɾ) ʎɐpoʇ ƃolq ƃuıɥʇʎuɐ ɟo ʞuıɥʇ ʇ,uɐɔ ı 'sǝpısǝq ¿unɟ ʇı ʇ,usı ʇnq 'sıɥʇ ǝʞıl pɐǝɹ oʇ noʎ ƃuıɔɹoɟ ɯ,ı ɟı ʎɹɹos ɯ,ı

˙lǝʌou ʇǝʞɔıus ʎuoɯǝl ʎuɐ uı puıɟ p,noʎ ʇɐɥʍ ǝʞıl ɥɔnɯ ؛ooʇ ʎuunɟ ʎʇʇǝɹd s,ʇuoɟ ǝɥʇ puɐ ¡sıɥʇ ǝʞıl sıɥʇ op ʎllɐnʇɔɐ plnoɔ ɹǝʇndɯoɔ ʎɯ ʇɐɥʇ ǝǝs oʇ ƃuızɐɯɐ ǝʇınb
˙ʇno ʇı ʎɹʇ oʇ pǝpıɔǝp puɐ ƃolq s,ʇunɐpɐq uı sıɥʇ ʍɐs ı

I'm depressed.

2008-08-29T13:16:00.004+09:00

Lunch Meetings

2008-08-28T16:12:00.007+09:00

Me and my office mates go out for lunch every week. It's a ritual thing for them, conducted every Thursday. And when I joined the team, they asked me if I want to join. Of course, not wanting to turn down an offer from a Japanese (it's really rude to do that), I said yes.

"Yoshi! Don't bring any packed lunch this Thursday okay?" And thus started my weekly culinary adventures.

Ever since starting work last month, I've been to a whole lot of restaurants here and around Tokyo. Mostly Roppongi and Akasaka. And every time we finished eating, they'll offer to pay my bill. Why not? I said. But lunch after lunch, I've began to worry about their extreme hospitality. I tried to force my way to the cashier to pay, but they strongly insisted on letting them. Now I can't imagine myself paying for my meals on these lunches anymore.

Lunches I had (no particular order... maybe):

Shabushabu - a smorgasbord of meat slices, mushrooms, vegetables, noodles and other stuff that can be thrown into a boiling pot. Each person is given a huge box filled with raw food, and you throw bits and pieces into the hot water. Wait for it to cook, choose from the variety of sauces, and gulp them down while hot. Absolutely delicious.
Soba - cold noodles on a bamboo plate with a cup of hot beef soup stock. You pick up the noodles and dip them in the beef soup and slurp it. There were lots of beef slices and veggies. Very yummy and refreshing on a hot, summer noon.
Okonomiyaki - LOTS and LOTS of veggies that were stir-fried with bacon, octupus, and bean sprouts then mixed with batter. Looks like pancake. Placed on top of stir-fried noodles and garnished with a fried egg. It had tons of sliced leeks, but surprisingly, the leeks were sweet.
Curry - although it was summer, we went to an Indian curry house for an all-you-can-eat-curry buffet. Good thing the curries had descriptions and levels of spiciness. Lots of foodstuff to dip into the curry; mini-donut thingies, flat and chewy bread, rice, bread sticks, etc.
Mabo Tofu - extremely spicy and hot. We went to an authentic (and very classy) Chinese restaurant where we were given a huge platter filled with red, super-spicy, tofu dish that was served with soup, rice, and an assortment of side-dishes. Everyone began perspiring immediately and runny noses were rampant.
Sushi - I've probably had each and every type of sushi available on the menu. Sushi after sushi, the chef kept on dropping on my wooden plate different types of cold and raw delicacies. I loved them all! Even the salmon roe (fish eggs) that was extremely slimy and quite... *shudder*

And there you have it. The current list of the Jap foods I've been fortunate to gobble down for FREE. Not sure if I've listed them all or forgot some. Nevertheless, I am very grateful for the opportunity and the fortune of being able to sample these wonderful cuisines. Quite sure that I would never (nor could I) buy these dishes on my own without much reluctance, and that each lunchout is an experience I definitely can never forget.

Thanks guys!

Ichiji? Gozen?

2008-08-27T17:51:00.003+09:00

A couple of days ago, I came home to find a note stuck in my front door: "We have attempted to deliver/pick up a shipment today. Please call and let us have your preferred delivery schedule". Everyday they've attempted to deliver the package, but I was always away at work. So I figured that I should probably just tell them when I'm available. I've done this before, rescheduling a delivery date, so I figured it's "no biggie". But the previous attempt had been online through the courier company's site, this time, I'd have to call them myself.

Huwaat?! Call the courier company? Tell them to reschedule? I don't even know what 'reschedule' or 'delivery' is in Japanese! Let alone explaining to them that they should stop going to my house when I'm at work, and just deliver it during the weekends.

Nothing I can do but to do it, I told myself. And so, before I could pause and even consider to hesitate, I picked up the hand set and dialed their number. A couple of rings did the job, and I was greeted by a string of fluent Nihongo.

"Uhh... I would like to schedule a devilery... uhh, redeliver. Delivery."

"Wait. Wait a moment."

DARN IT! First sentence in and I've already messed it up! In English no less! Ugh, this will be very taxing indeed. A little while later he came back and said a couple of English words, then gave up and asked if it's okay to speak in Japanese.

"Oh! Okay, hai hai. Sukoshi dake hanasemasu ga... Hai."

And off he went stating what may be about protocols, procedures, and stuff I might not have any idea about even if I did understand a word he said. Soon, he finished talking and I had an inkling that he ended it in a question. So I took a gamble and told them my preferred schedule: 11 AM, Saturday.

"Anou~ Doyoubi wa?"

"Aa! Doyoubi wa ii desu."

"Ja, doyoubi no ichiji, gozen."

"............ Ichiji? Gozen? AM? PM?" Judging from his voice, he seemed quite bewildered, if not shocked to what I said.

"Hai, ichiji. AM" I assured him.

He seemed to pause here and then resumed talking in Japanese. Of course I didn't understand, so I just repeated what I said:

"Gozen ichiji. 11 o'clock AM"

"Oh! 11 AM! Juuichiji!"

What. The. Frap. No wonder he sounded skeptical. Here I am telling him that I wanted my package to be delivered at "Ichiji, gozen" . He must've had a panic attack; 「Ichi」 means 1 and 「juuichi」 means 11. I've just told the poor, disbelieving guy to deliver a package at 1 o'clock in the morning.

Wah, I'm so embarrassed I could just fart myself out of existence. Huhu.

Be that as it may (and may it never be again for all eternity), the conversation was concluded and I got the sched that I want. But thanks to him and my questionable Japanese, I've just had my first Japan Experience Anecdote!

Wootwoo!

Of August Coetaneouses

2008-08-27T09:56:00.004+09:00

With the month drawing to a close in just a handful of days, I can proudly say that I have survived Japan for two months now. Yey me!

August had been restful in comparison with the previous months. Only twice did we went out on our supposedly 'weekly' excursions, and its because friends from back home, now working in Ibaraki, came to visit us Tokyoites (more of that excursion on a later post). We've planned to go and take a chance of climbing Mt. Fuji this month, but lack of funds suggested otherwise.

August was also incredibly wet. I took a look at some articles as to when Japan's rainy season usually happens, and it said it was July. Well I'm not sure if this a late shower or an early Autumn for it's starting to get really cold recently. And although I haven't had problems with the weather before, the rainy season's quite becoming a hassle. Twice I've sent my pants and shirts for another round in the washing machine, after turning stinky while hanging them dry. And more than twice did I come home to find clothes that were 'nearly dry' in the morning and then got drenched in a sudden afternoon rain.

August is also the month of supreme thriftiness. I bought my laptop immediately after getting our first paycheck, and thus unknowingly spent my supposedly 'budget for the whole month'. I had to borrow some from my friends just to buy a supply of chicken nuggets and veggie sausages (I somehow developed some of scrumptious recipes due to necessity).

All in all, this month's quite an anti-climax after July's exhuberant display of giddy-ness. But of course, the wheel goes round and round; what comes up must go down. And I'm guessing September's gonna be a lot brighter, sunnier, and more optimistic; with the sun finally showing itself this morning.

And of course, it better be. Next month's my birthday~!

The Newfangled and July

2008-08-26T09:55:00.005+09:00

Even though I arrived in Japan on the last week of June, the fun never really started till July hit us with its festive Summer.

With my only free time falling only on weekends, me and my friends started going on weekly excursions to the latest happenings near and far. Some were the obvious tourist spots like Akasaka, Yokohama, or Akihabara (not much to see, lots to buy though).

I've yet to go to Shinjuku and Shibuya, but my officemates suggested Ikebukuro. Haven't heard it before I'm sure, me neither. But since budget dictates that we're only to visit areas around the Central Tokyo region, we haven't had the inkling to try and imitate those lucky few who had been to the snowy slopes of Hokkaido, the shores of Okinawa, or the historically-rich Kyoto. On the plus side, we've seen much of the urbs, and confusing railways don't scare me anymore.

You could just imagine all the things that we fed on our craving brain; it's as if we stuffed in a lifetime's worth of experience against the protests of our wallets. Living on our own, spending our own money, we found out how expensive things are here in Japan. And with July being our first month here, it was crucial to experience first hand the prices of each commodity we'd need to survive up till the next paycheck comes.

July 2008: excited, exhausted, suprised, disappointed, unprecedented, unexpected, and one of the most memorable and absolutely unforgettable month of my life.

And then I realized that Japan's newfangled is me.

Summer + BBQ + Party + Japan

2008-08-25T12:10:00.002+09:00

That's me at the front, 2nd guy from the right, wearing khaki shorts, beaming quite happily. You could never find a happier person in Inage-kaigan that day.

This was yesterday. And what a day it was!

Actually this has been my 2nd time at a BBQ party in Japan, but now with more people, more sizzling beef, more clouds, and more roasted bananas!

Yes! Even though it was drizzling throughout the day, the beach deserted and stinks of rotting fish, and that my lower-right molar tooth shattered the night before, I can still manage to beam that wonderful smile and have an awesome party with my friends and office mates.

The highlight of the day was the overflowing beef; sizzling, soft, tasty and oh-so-juicy! They also grilled lots of veggies, sweet potatoes, buttered potatoes, and of course, bananas. There were also tons of yakisoba; stir-fried noodles with veggies and meat, topped with different sauces and served on paper plates.

After eating non-stop for 2-3 hours, we decided that now's a good time to have an appendicitis and headed down to a nearby open field to play soccer, badminton, volleyball, dodgeball, and we even threw in some frisbee. Well no one had an appendicitis, but everyone had so much fun! Not being sportsy, I settled with playing badminton and frisbee, while taking pics during breaks. It was constantly drizzling, but thankfully it didn't fully rain. That would've dampened everyone's spirits.

The best part was that it was FREE! Yep, the only thing I spent my Yen on was the transpo from my house to the beach. Not much considering I had a train pass. And because of such, I managed to buy a couple of ice cream cones from a vending machine nearby. Talk about convenience; where else can you get choco mint and chocochip cookies ice cream cones from a vending machine but in Japan? Heaven I tell you, heaven!

Although there was a beach, no one was swimming in it. Maybe because the lifeguard stops you from stepping close to the water, or maybe because it smelled like a dead whale. The smell goes away every minute or so, but everytime you're about to enjoy the fresh salty air, it dives back to make your face distort itself to oblivion. It sounds like a cynical exaggeration, but you haven't smelled what we smelled, so there.

All in all, it was an event memorable and everlasting. Roasted bananas FTW!

June's Primum Cause

2008-08-25T10:19:00.004+09:00

June has been my last month in my home country. And it was during this time that every loose ends were tied up, goodbyes were made, and hellos were prepared.

I had stocked my suitcase full of supplies to last me a month or two, and got a new set of wardrobe from my parents, my brother and my aunt; 1/2 of which were winter clothes: scarves, jackets, coats, boots, gloves, and knee-high socks (not much help when I got here just about time when Summer began). But all in all, I was really grateful for all the help and support that I got from everyone. My aunt even gave me a new external hard drive, a digital camera, a business suit, and a free lunch at a Japanese restaurant.

Everything was culminating up to this point of my life that during my graduation speech at my Nihongo school, I was so shaken up and nervous that even though I memorized it all, the moment I stepped in front, I blanked up and read it all from my printed copy. My voice was rattling and I couldn't look straight. But once done, I got a round of applause, a 'superb' from my sensei, and a huge relief when I returned to my seat.

A huge luncheon was served afterwards and I gobbled up to my stomach's fill till I can no more. A Chinese buffet table of noodles, dumplings, fried rice, stir-fried veggies, roasts and lots more. It was absolutely delicious.

The day of my flight was unusually normal. I slept normally, woke up normally, had breakfast normally, and packed my suitcases and bags into the car, had my family drive me up to the airport, and said my goodbyes at the most normal fashion that it was bordering abnormality. I just gave a single hug to my mom and dad, and my brother an advice (or was it a handshake? Or both? I forgot, but it was really corny).

I regret not hugging my parents tighter, nor even shedding a tear or two... I must be the most N.R. person in the world (N.R. being 'No Reaction').

But maybe not having a hysterical sob-a-thon at the airport is a good thing... wouldn't want to arrive in Japan with a red eye, stuffy nose, and depression now would we? That would be very morose indeed.

Summer's End

2008-08-22T11:26:00.008+09:00

Is it?

Ever since last week it's been raining here in Japan. Not that I can vouch for the whole country, but Tokyo and Saitama are drenched, the air has cooled considerably, and the sun has yet to make its appearance (which I hope is soon, my clothes are getting funky).

But that is not to say that I dislike it. Oh yes I do! Very much so!

One of the things that has attracted me to this country is the climate, or rather, the seasons. For back home we only had one: Summer... all year round. So when I stepped out of the plane last June and was engulfed in the cool breeze of Spring, my heart flew and left extreme bliss at its place.

So you see, I very much adore the word 涼しい (suzushii) for it connotes the promise of the end of sweaty arms/pits/scalp/neck (pretty much anything with skin) and the beginning of laughter and smiles. Of course, I haven't the foggiest concerning Winter, so don't bother. I reason that it's better to let it sink in that sometimes hot is good, rather than burden me with life experiences of freezing winter which I totally can't relate to... yet.

Although it was kinda weird to hear cicadas and crickets singing on a cool, overcast day, because I always associate them with cloudless blue skies and school kids doing sports at the boiling point of noon.

So I guess it really is still summer; with just a couple of thunder clouds for intermission.

Abidance of May

2008-08-22T10:10:00.006+09:00

I really regret not blogging the months which I've spent on my Nihongo classes. Together with 8 other people, we formed the 5th batch to be sent to Japan. And it is with this batch that I was accompanied by two of my college classmates/friends. Namely, Kai and Rose.

All throughout May, we were in a Monday to Friday class; 8:30 AM to 4:45 PM with an hour's lunch break and a couple of snack times (recess) in between. That meant we ate 3 times during class, much to the dismay of my wallet, belt, and the cashier at the 7-Eleven whom I kept on giving whole bills to pay for small snacks/candies.

At first, they all referred to me as the-guy-who-have-been-studying-Nihongo-since-last-year and even my teachers expected so much of me. Well a few days into the lessons and they pretty much understood that even I forget old lessons sometimes, so they just called me Megane instead (Kai and Rose insists on calling me Meggy every now and then). But of course, since I've already plowed through the books before, I was able to recall and catch up pretty quickly. And so, I was again dubbed as the-guy-who-will-give-the-graduation-speech, of which I'm sure was a useless nickname because soon enough, news was told that everyone is to give a speech. Imagine my relief and the groan of my classmates.

I guess the crowning glory of my everyday classes were the lunch breaks. 60 minutes of food, relaxation, unaldulterated conversations, and an occasional trip the grocer and the nearby malls. Oh, the malls! The building where my Japanese classes were held is located right beside a cluster of malls... and when I say cluster, I meant 5 malls; all connected with walkways, bridges, underpasses, gardens, and some are built right next to each other that you won't even notice that you've stepped into another building entirely! Now that's convenient. Although we don't go there much as you'd expect us to do; it was hot outside, and we're too lazy to walk in the sun. We'd rather sleep on the sofas, or eat vanilla ice cream cones.

*sigh* Yes, the great Golden Age of Bumness was the most mediocre period of the 5 Months Of Anticipation. The abidance of May, the continuation of my studies, the nearness of the upcoming flight, the school pressure, the familial "We'll miss you!" moments, the juxtaposition of bonding sessions with my batchmates, and the vanilla ice cream cones.

It was, as I recall it, creamy.

Tokyo Afternoon Stroll

2008-08-21T17:10:00.007+09:00

This has got to be my first entry dedicated to something that I've actually done on a Jap soil. Woot. Unfortunately, it's not grand nor is it exciting. For as the title had hinted, it is just a stroll~

Today, I spent my lunch hour on a stroll through Tokyo. Specifically, Roppongi.

My building's at the heart of a sprawling metropolis; and being in Tokyo, a metropolis is really just a codename for concrete jungles. And what a jungle it was! Skyscrapers, urban gardens, classy restaurants, ads on a TV screen at the side of a building on a busy crossing, even an occasional temple or two. My own office building is part of a complex that boasts of 7 gardens (two of which are closed except during Spring and Autumn). So even just an hour's worth of wanderings will certainly quench my thirst.

Even though I knew that some of the gardens are closed as it is summer, I still went and took a look through the gate. Yep, still closed. So I went down the winding staircases, through some confusing corridors, and out unto the street. I don't know which street I landed myself into, but it goes left and right. I went right.

Immediately I saw a temple, 3 foreign embassies, and a cemetery of some sort. I thank the recent rains for cooling the air, letting me fully enjoy my walk without the hassle of being sticky (not to mention stinky). Round and round I go, crossing streets, down through avenues, sometimes I find myself someplace I've been to before. I saw an opening between two buildings and saw that it looks like a park, so I went for it and sure enough, it's a series of gardens sweeping across several lots.

The cicadas were particularly loud by this time of the year, but that did not deter me from enjoying myself. This strip of green land were full of staircases too, confusing pathways, large old trees, and an artificial river that flows from a pond near the entrance, follows the pathways, and into another pond down below. Even though everything was so nature-y, modern art and designs were implemented on the place, and there's even a mall hidden beneath a wide waterfall behind an abstract piece of sculpture.

Anyway, after spending a considerable amount of time walking around the city, a drop from the sky alerted me back to my consciousness. "Was that a rain drop?" I looked up at the sky and sure enough, the sun's now hiding behind some rather dark clouds. I was stunned for a moment for I suddenly realized how far I am from my office, and that I haven't an umbrella.

So I ran.

Setting my sight on the twin towers of my office building, I ran like the umbralla-less traveller that I am. Once I reached the entrance, I gave myself a dust-over, combed my hair a bit, and stepped through the automatic doors to the welcoming hug of the airconditioned lobby.

Break's over. Back to work.

The April Incipients

2008-08-21T10:06:00.005+09:00

April started like any other months in my life, except the fact that I am now going to Japan.

I've just stepped out of the working community a few days back and it was a liberating feeling, being a bum once again. Of course it won't be for long, I have a Nihongo class coming up and it will be up till the end of June. After being an office worker for almost a year, to be back being a student was really refreshing and can make you easily excitable.

For example, you're flicking through your channels looking for a Jap show (probably as a source of excitement, laughter, followed by extreme flatulation) and then you hear someone say "Hai" or something like that. You immediately stay on that channel, even though it wasn't Japanese after all and watch it anyway, since you were already in an excited state after hearing the word "Hai" which obviously was not.

Each day was spent like that, going to Jap class, listening to Jap music (sometimes Korean, I love their ballads), watching Jap shows, buying Jap anime DVDs, talking about Jap things, watching aforementioned Jap DVDs, and once in a while, eating Jap food... with 'while' being 'once a week' or so, it depends on the budget and motivation.

Yes, April's the month of incipients. At least for me it is. I've been dreaming of going to Japan, and buttering me up like this is not much different from adding firecrackers on a nuclear bomb. Might not have any effect, but once it goes off it'd be a devastating, glittery, huge, pretty sight. I've expected to explode upon reaching Japan.

Although you'll have to ask the witnesses to attest to that, but I'm pretty sure I went off quite nicely with loud noises, pops and crackles, a boom and a smile. Japan here I come!

Once upon a thyme...

2008-08-20T10:02:00.004+09:00

... there was a boy who wore glasses. Let's call him Megane~kun. Now, Megane~kun is a Japan-o-philiac and because of such, he strives to go to Japan. Maybe for work, experience, education, or just plain craziness, I dunno.

And just so happens, his fairly-grand mother has a niece who gave him an opportunity to have his wish come true. Sounds like a fairytale? It is. For his wish DID come true、and that's where we'll start to tell slices of his story. The story begins 5 months past, back when overtime has no pay and buses have no schedules.

Our story will be cut into 5 parts, each part will have a dedicated post of its own, and the whole will be called:

"The Chronicles of a Japan-o-philiac"

The April Incipients
Abidance of May
June's Primum Cause
The Newfangled and July
Of August Coetaneouses

Yes I've used a thesaurus, and yes it took me 30 minutes just think up these 5 post titles, and no I haven't written any of them yet, and no I'm not planning to post any of them today. I'm going to start on "The April Incipients" today though... maybe. Each post will be the generalization of the monthly gists I've posted a while back, so it'll be the same story but specific plots.

LOL. I aspired to be a writer once.

Currently concurrent currents with blackcurrant curry

2008-08-20T09:04:00.004+09:00

Tongue twister of the day. Hehe I made it up.

Anywho-way, here I am after more-than-a-half-year's absence. And yes I have a reason, although I'm not sure if it's valid. This here's a gist of what I did...

March - Where I last left off, I was on my way out of my previous job. March 28 was my last day at the office and that day I had 2 parties: from my project team and with my friends. I had to make a speech in Nihongo and all I managed to say was "Osewa ni narimashita~" which means, "Thanks for everything~". And then I left. Now you might ask why I stopped posting after this... well all of these posts were done during officehours, which is why since I'm not in any office no more, obviously the posting stopped. Silly you.
April - The adventure begins; the first week was hectic for there were lots to do: passports, clearances, permits, miscellaneous paperworks, and shopping. Lots of shopping. Not that I spent anything, my family bought it all for me... aww. And by week 2, my Jap classes began and thus I was away all day and back home with lots more to do, which were assignments, but mostly I was procrastinating...
May - Still with the Jap classes and other paperworks. Tiring as it may be, they were all necessary. Opening bank accounts, getting stuff from college, submitting documents to the new job, and printing study guides. Not for me though, I need no guide to nothin'
June - I think by this time me and my batchmates were getting the jibbers (is that a word? No? Well it is now). This was the month we got interviewed by Jap folks in Japanese! The month which held the deadline for the submission of documents, packing our suitcases, studying for the final exams (take note of the plural), and saying goodbyes. Did I mention June 26 was our flight sched?
July - For now we'll skip the part about the flight, landing in Japan, first impressions, the gasps and the 'oohhhs' and 'aahhhs', the food, the apartments, and the quirky things which makes up 99.999% of Japan. That's for other posts (as it is, there are a lot of things for other posts... shucks I can feel the memories flooding in). July is the month of extreme excitement; the kind where you'll burst and still be able to laugh. It is also the month when Japan's summer began to sink in. Boy, those cicadas are quite the silence-killers.
August - August is now. And now I'm busy. So I'll just continue next time.

That is all... is what I wanted to say, yet it is not. For I have to perform the acts of perilious blogging to record my adventures and to recap what had had happened during my more-than-a-half-year's absence. Do keep up with me for I am sure to grab hold of your interest, which I'm sure is very valuable and time consuming, but nevertheless quite interesting.

And thus I am rambling. So I'll cut this short: Ja ne~!

At Last!

2008-03-28T14:11:00.001+09:00

I woke up disoriented and feeling queasy... "It's my last day of work today!"

Last Song Syndrome

2008-03-27T22:14:00.000+09:00

I'm not sure if this is a real mental disorder, but here in my country, almost everyone has suffered from it everyday. I confess that I did, and still am suffering from it, much so that I keep repeating the chorus of one song over and over, and I'm liking it!

You guys've ever heard of Follow You Down by Gin Blossoms? It's not an uber great song, but it's really catchy in the rock/pop sort of way. It's one of the official soundtracks of the movie, "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" which I've rented a while ago.

I wish I could infect someone with my LSS... The chorus needs two vocal singers~! (TTATT)

My Will Be Done~

2008-03-27T18:38:00.003+09:00

I will post only ONCE a day after the week ends.

The reason I was able to make these entries profusely is because I have access to the computer almost the whole day. But since I'll be going to 8AM-4PM Nihongo classes this April, I think I won't be able to do the same again.

It is not really a big deal for me to post this much, I'm actually enjoying it a whole lot! It gives me the chance to write down memorable things that happens everyday, and appreciate even the littlest things that comes my way. And not being restricted to only one entry per day, I was able to write a whole lot!

Plus, I got to practice writing in English so much, that now I cringe whenever I see a typo or sentences that lacks parallelism. Haha, just kidding~

I love my blog and I love writing my life. I wish a lot of people could share my joy with me. *tries to attract more comments*

The Apprentice

2008-03-26T14:58:00.003+09:00

Have you had an apprentice? I did. Just a while ago, and she was very attentive.

It's easy to get drunk on power and easier to abuse it. So I restrained myself and made a very great example for my soon-to-be-replacement. In fact, I taught her everything there is to know about my job and how to do it very well.

It's quite impossible to show her all of the things that I've done and what she might be working on next, so I just zipped my whole folder and sent it to her. I figured that if she can sort my files out, then she'd do a great job tying all the loose ends I might leave behind.

That is, if I'm allowed to anyway.

My tasks these days usually is to finish everything left undone, close open activities, and bum around while I wait for more tasks to come. And since I'll be leaving soon, I advised her that she should write down every question she could think of before I leave, or it'll be unanswered forevermore.

So far she doesn't have any questions, and I'm not sure if that's a good thing.

Gave Away My Identity

2008-03-26T11:24:00.001+09:00

I gathered all my IDs, cash cards, health insurance cards, and other stuff and sent them away...

I'm finally leaving my corporate identity behind, and it's just now that I realize that the rope has finally been severed and I am now free to leave the company.

My last day of work will be on Friday and everyone's feeling sad about my leaving, but a Japan-o-philiac's gotta do what a Japan-o-philiac's gotta do right?

Daruma

2008-03-25T10:59:00.002+09:00

The first eye drawn
and I wait for dawn
to count the coming days
till I leave my place

A wish is born
while some people mourn
they don't want to be
left behind by me

Then it came true
and the skies turned blue
I gave a warm smile
it was all worthwhile

A dream took flight
it was a beautiful sight
with it my heart flew
so now there's two.

A poem I made, dedicated to my inspiration: my friends and my family, whom I'll soon leave behind in pursuit of my dreams~

Thank you, sorry, and goodbye everyone.

Oh wait, my flight is not till 3 months. Hahaha~

Bus Things~

2008-03-24T22:36:00.003+09:00

Being on the bus, packed tight with commuters going home, I did another 'deep thinking'. It was the perfect place to ponder about random things, especially with it being a long way home and you have nothing to do but just sit there and bounce with the road.

Most of the buses here were actually from Japan; second-hand and worn down, sold cheaply to bus companies who are more than willing to transform it into a speeding steel mammoth and make tons of profit.

You can still read some of the kanji writings on the doors and windows, and most of the time I try and read the small instructions written on a light bulb (which was actually a button to signal a driver). I don't understand most of it, but I managed to pick up a word or two. I even tried pushing it but nothing happened... or maybe something did and only the driver knew about it (and ignored it).

I've seen on music videos and TV shows just how different the buses on Japan are from my country. They're so clean, so new, so safe, and makes me feel envious that they manage to have those kinds of transportation means to use everyday. I figured all of them have air-conditioners, while I bask in the full glory of smoke, smog, and an occasional rain with my open window.

Makes me feel depressed and super excited... to think that I'd be able to live the comfort of a deluxe state of life in Japan quite soon enough. I can already imagine myself enjoying a convenient bus ride to work or back home everyday, with a soft headrest, a window you can see stuff through, enough room to stretch your legs, and most of all, clean air.

Riding a bus in Japan will definitely make me live longer~

Week of My Last~

2008-03-24T10:46:00.001+09:00

Oh wow Monday, my last week starts today.

I've been counting the days ever since we got accepted for the job and now the first milestone looms near... The end of my current job to start with another.

By next week I'll be busy with the remaining documents left to procure before submitting them all to the Japanese company for translation. Then they'll use that to make the Certificate of Eligibility and send that for our visa.

My coworkers haven't been exactly silent about the whole thing; asking questions everytime they meet me: At the pantry, my cubicle, the hallway, at the lobby, in the elevator, and even inside the restrooms. Sometimes they'll ask the same question twice on a different occassion (are my answers that forgettable?).

I plan to hold a small feast to celebrate my farewell this Friday, order it in advance, and worry about the expenses later~

It'd be fun and sad at the same time... I'm not sure I can handle that. *sniff*

Hair Cut!

2008-03-23T21:34:00.000+09:00

My family suggested I get myself a haircut; well it really has already gotten very long and became really troublesome lately. I often accidentally eat the tips when I open my mouth, and it's gross to have saliva slobbered on your hair.

So I did what I was told to do and now it's short, light, and a whole lot better to manage.

Nevermind the shades, it's my dad's. I really can't see anything with it, looks good though ne?

Ni Hyaku Yen Shop

2008-03-23T19:49:00.002+09:00

I'm sure you've heard of the famous 100 Yen (Hyaku Yen) shops in Japan right? Well we went to the mall and saw another version: a 200 Yen shop~

Japan Home Centre might be expensive (doubled price) in comparison to the Hyaku Yen shops in Japan, but it's actually cheaper than the other shops here.

I dropped off my mom inside and she bought things like crazy, and crazier when she found the 150 Yen aisle. She picked up a new leash for our dog Brownie(awesome name huh), packs of tissue rolls, dozens of nail filers, non-stick pan, batteries, and a whole lot more of common household stuff. I'm proud to say that she didn't bought things randomly, and that the purchases were really thought out and the quantity adequate.

Not sure if I'd be able to do the same once placed inside a real 100 Yen shop. I'm quite a fan of trinkets and nonsense stuff, so I would really need a lot of restraint and a couple of external forces (Rose and Kai) to be able to pull myself away from going on a spending-splurge.

I'll leave myself in the care of these two~

Omiyage~

2008-03-22T20:37:00.004+09:00

Of course, no trip will not include a bag or two of locally-made treats for people back home to enjoy. And thus, we bought lots of goodies that's sure to make those cavities strong and proud!

I was not able to take a pic of most of the stuff because we already ate them. Except this: Turones de Casoy. Cashew nougat wrapped in thick edible paper.

Very addicting and so yumful! My absolute favorite of them all! I sort of remember the taste, maybe a memory from my childhood days... It felt familiar on my tongue, but I can't seem to recall eating this before.

Aside from those sticks of deliciousness, we also bought popped rice crispies stuck together by caramelized sugar to form an appetizing bar that'll keep you munching for hours~ I forgot what it's called, but it says, "EDNA'S" on the label (I assume that's the manufacturer's name).

There were a lot more, but the last thing I remember are those small squares of peanut bars that's sticky and dry at the same time. It's difficult to eat it without making everything crumble, but it was so addicting as well.

*sigh* I do not know when I'll be able to eat these again, I really do hope it'd be soon... *hint hint* Can someone send them to me in Japan?

A Couple of Glimpses

2008-03-22T11:14:00.001+09:00

I took a couple of shots while I was in Matabungkay on the night before we left.

I was walking back to the resthouse when I glanced up and saw the trees rustling in the wind, with our old watertank in the backdrop. I felt that I should take a photo, so I did. I took a whole lot more but this one's my favorite.

Last night, I took my camphone out with me as I walked through the mango trees and bathed in the moonlight.

Being away from the city, there wasn't a single drop of smog nor was there any bright lights to scare the stars away. If only I had a pricey digicam I could've captured the moment, instead I got this supernova-ish photo of the moon.

With leaving all of these behind in mind, I felt the urgency to take a pic of everything I've ignored before. I know that I'll be back someday, but still... the thought of leaving something for such a long time, brings out the dramatic side of me.

Matabungkay

2008-03-21T20:25:00.000+09:00

First of all, I would like to apologize for not having any photos of the beach taken during our nightly swims. It's all due to the fact that whenever we would go and decide to have a dip, we'd leave all our things at the house and march across the sand with only the cotton on our butts and sandals on our feet.

I figured this might be the last time I'll have a swim here before I leave for Japan, so the family agreed to take 2 beach trips in a row. We went yesterday and on another one today. We only went everytime the sun would set because we are concerned about: our skin, the crowd, the sea level, and the water temperature.

By the time the sky would blend red a with purple haze, we'd march out of the resthouse, through the grass, and out to the sand. We would walk along the shore and find a suitable spot where the people are few and the view a-plenty. Then our sandals will be dropped off somewhere, and then the family will roam free.

The water was definitely the best it's ever been. It's very warm when you enter, then the underwater currents would drive freezing cold temps around your legs. It was weird and funny, and we all had a whole lot of laughs while trying to float and run away from the coldness. We tumbled, rolled, sank, and swallowed a whole lot of liquid salt in the process~

By the time we can no longer see each other's faces, we would wade back to land and find our way back to the house through the silent darkness. It was really nice to be away from the busling civilization and spending a nice, relaxing time with your family and with nature.

I really enjoyed this trip, I hope to come back soon and experience everything all over again!

The Girl Who Sang~

2008-03-21T15:51:00.003+09:00

Meet Donna, my cousin.

She's a singer and a very good one at that. Mostly influenced by her sisters for they're professional singers of some sort, so maybe it runs in the family.

My brother and I sing a lot whenever we come visit, so I guess we've contributed a bit too.

Yes I guess we could consider ourselves quite an influence because she's a bit inclined to arts like I am, and music like my brother. She would watch hours of animes, read mangas, and draw. Then she would fawn over music CDs, videos, and sing. And then she'll lock herself in her room and sleep.

Her being gullible also makes her a perfect target for my brother, and I get to watch as she sings and dances while I do the same beside her. Haha~ All for fun and the day's complete. We would lounge around the house, sleep through a DVD, or we would go and lie down under the mango trees.

Once she found out about me leaving for Japan, she immediately wanted me to buy a laptop for her. Well I figured since electronics are cheap in Japan, why not? She deserves one, and she'd benefit a lot from it. I'll miss her infectious giddy-ness and her amazing voice, so I plan to help her find a job in Japan someday... Her having fantastic grades would definitely help a lot.

I think she's a budding Japan-o-philiac just waiting for an internet connection and cable TV. Hee hee~ Let's wait and see.

Mushroom Burgers

2008-03-20T16:48:00.000+09:00

Who would've thought that you could grow and harvest burgers?

There's this old burger joint (on a mountain ridge along the way to our resthouse) that we've frequented over the years. It has grown quite a bit from its humble beginnings, and you could see where the new parts have been built over the old building; a new dining room, a toy train chugging around the walls, a new patio/veranda, etc.

As kids, my brother and I would play on the small playground/park behind the building, and I would stay away from the parts where the grass has grown too thick because I'm scared some snake would bite my exposed ankle. Even when I was already in highschool, and my bro a college student, we would still play at the swings, climb the stone slide, and scare the chickens.

Memories played a big part for our regular visits there, but of course we came for the food.

Burgers made entirely of mushrooms stacked on top of Hongkong rice, a side dish of assorted mushrooms with a whole hard-boiled egg, lots of gravy, and a mushroom egg-drop soup.

A delicacy to die for; meals fit for a king! (or president). We had an experience of meeting a former president dining here before. Haha~

And since it's Holy Week, there's a custom of abstinence; of staying away from eating meat until Easter Sunday. Fortunately, there are burgers that aren't made from meat. Tastes a whole lot better too~

Guess what the place is called? Yep, Mushroom Burger. That's what they're famous for~!

Happy 1st Birthday Dad!

2008-03-20T12:36:00.001+09:00

Today is the first time that we celebrated my dad's official birthday! And all along we thought he was born on the December 30th. >__>;

It all came to be on the day my mom decided to get my dad's official birth certificate at the National Statistics Office. Since our government is quite new (politically speaking), problems with official documents and stuff are the norm.

As my cousin had once remarked, the town halls here have been burned down at least once for some reason or another; the municipal hall where my dad's official records were kept was obviously not an exception. Add that to the fact that it was waaaay out in the province between the rice paddies and mountain ranges, then his birth certificate would be very hard to get indeed~

Although my grandpa insists that he got the birthday correct and that the records were wrong (my grandma's gone... so his word is the only thing we could hold unto). And being registered late, the town hall burned down, documents lost and only pulled out just now does seem to explain a lot why there's a mysterious discrepancy.

I know that it's hard to imagine to grow up knowing that you've been blowing candles on the wrong day every birthday, but I guess it has to happen to someone someday right?

So... HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!! You'll really have a lot more birthdays to come (twice a year in fact), don't get too old too fast now okay?

Week of Holiness~

2008-03-19T22:26:00.001+09:00

This week is Holy Week, but the vacation won't start till tomorrow; because Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday were apparently not holy enough. Nevertheless, I am off to the beach with my family and my cousins! Woo!

We plan to wake up at dawn, eat breakfast at a mountain range restaurant, drive on till noon, and arrive at the resthouse for lunch. My grandpa, my aunt, and my cousin live there, and I'm very excited to meet them again tomorrow. We're going to stay till Saturday and be back home on time for Easter.

Expect a delay on the entries, because I plan to write them all up when I get back.

Ja mata raishu minna~! See you guys next week!

Cookie Cravings

2008-03-19T15:07:00.001+09:00

I gave in to my cravings and bought a box of Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies during lunch. At least there's oatmeal, that's healthy right?

It was hard not to, especially if you're standing in front of the food stall, the box in your hand, and your wallet in the other. I don't remember what had brought me to that circumstance, but I certainly am feeling regret.

Here I am a week away from my last day of work, and instead of saving up every cent I could grab hold unto, I spend it on snacks. Sweet snacks. The ones that made my blood sugar level rise up to unemployable heights (I had a problem with my company medical check-up before).

To tell you the truth, it wasn't all that sweet. But the thought of eating a whole box of cookies makes me think otherwise. Or maybe I'm just thinking about it too much...... again.

myPod

2008-03-18T22:03:00.000+09:00

This has got to be my worst day ever, and I blame that chain letter I've received a while ago. Ugh.

I was on my way home and was then about to plug my ears with Jpop when my hand came out out of my bag empty, "Darnation, it's gone again."

But I knew that I've brought my iPod to the office today, so I assumed that it was either snatched, lost, stolen, or was warped into a parallel dimension where a version of me was wallowing in the pits of music-less space.

I had a hard time convincing myself that such things may happen (or it may, but not to me) so I backtracked and tried to remember where was the last time I had it and why it got away.

And then POOF! It seems I left it under my monitor when I went out to go to the restrooms one last time before going home. Can't remember why I'd put it there, and I have no time to find out. I've got to call someone in the office fast!

I thank the heavens for my friends' quick response, and I'm glad one of them decided to pull a late-night work marathon so I was able to have someone pick it up from my desk and safely keep it for me till tomorrow. Thank you guys, may your life be fruitful and your work end soon.

I'm DOOMED~!

2008-03-18T14:48:00.003+09:00

At first I thought it was insignificant, that it's something I shouldn't worry about. I've placed my mind at ease and told myself that everything is going better than what I've planned. I was happy, content, and satisfied.

But it seems I've counted the eggs before they've hatched (cliche yet true), and now my worst fear has been somewhat confirmed.

BUT!! due to the Non-Disclosure Agreement I've made with my company, I cannot disclose any more information without getting myself sued. So let's end it with an OMGWTHBBQ I'M IN TROUBLE!#%@.

PS: I've inquired the company about "it" and they haven't responded yet... so I'm assuming it's not true. But I'll just prepare myself for the worst and hope for the best.

Meow Mamu Meow~

2008-03-17T22:38:00.006+09:00

The Benevolent Three-Colored, Three-Legged, Feline Queen of Meganekko's Abode~

All hail Mamu!!

She was picked up from the corner of my block, the first turn to the right, on the street's gutter beside the sewer. A kitten with a nub for a tail, all covered in grime, dirt, and other who-knows-what.

I'm quite aware just how much cats dislike water, but seeing this wee little thing wailing silently with her eyes shut tight with sticky eye-goo, my heart ached and pounded with mercy. It was decided that she'll take a bath whether she likes it or not. Otherwise, I wouldn't have known how many colors this kitty had (I thought she was white, and the other colors were just stains).

She grew up fast and grew very spoiled; being the only cat in a household full of dogs, Mamu was given somewhat of a special treatment. And try as we might, we just can't touch her. She'll either bite, claw, or glare at you with murderous intent just because you "look" as if you'll ruin her glorious fur. "Hmpf! Fine. Be that way~", we say as we walk away. Yet sometimes she'll rub herself on our legs at her own initiative... felt guilty perhaps? ^__^

Her legacy began one fateful morning when she was doing her 23-hour power nap, and I was getting ready for school. *whine* *rattle* *VROOM!* went my dad's car as he started the engine. Then a heart-stopping screech and a puff of fur sent us running to see what has happened.

Mamu was apparently sleeping inside the car's hood, and she was on top of the engine when my dad started the car. It mangled her hind leg and was thus sent to the vet. I had to pay extra because they wanted to neuter her too. I very much obliged, "Anything for Mamu~".

That was almost more than a year ago, and she's now accustomed to living a three-legged life. Ever since that day, she'd become reclusive and silent; her transformation from being a spoiled, aloof kitty to a traumatized adult was almost tangible.

But through it all, she has become closer to us: always waiting at the front door, guzzling our feet in the kitchen, and we can even touch her now. Mamu may have lost her leg, but she gained a whole lot more than that~

Long live the queen!

i <3 Pod

2008-03-17T10:50:00.001+09:00

It was not until today that I've realized just how much my iPod meant so much to me.

Ever since I've bought it from the Apple Store, which was about 2 years ago, I've always carried it with me wherever my two music-tapping shoes took me. It was a bit expensive during that time, and new models may have come out now, but it was ever loyal to me and I am to it.

I took care to safely remove it from my PC instead of just unplugging it carelessly. I never installed malicious software even if my peers insisted on upgrading it. I bought a silicone cover for it, and still hadn't peeled off the screen protector. And every once a month or so, I meticulously cleaned its surface to remove dirt and grime that life has given it.

It only has 1 GB of storage but when I plugged it into my PC and saw the huge amount of space just pleading to be filled with my humongous music collection, I almost cried with joy. It immediately began to fill up with my Jpop and Jrock, the Korean ballads and RnB, a lot of anime songs, and because of my brother's insistent and reasonable demands, some songs with English lyrics~

Day and night it sang, and I listened and rejoiced.

Then this morning, I opened my bag and it was gone. My eyelids peeled back, my fingers crackled with the search, and my mind swirled with unthinkable thoughts... "WHERE IS IT? IT'S GONE!!"

I fearfully texted back home about the news... and got a reply that I left it at my table.

The Big Decision

2008-03-16T18:17:00.001+09:00

My brother forced me to choose between an ultimate delicacy and the epitome of deliciousness. An unbearable torture which almost derailed my blood sugar...

Bro: *holds up two Krispy Kreme doughnuts* "Choose: New York Cheesecake or Cookies n' Cream?"

Me: *stares* "I-I'll... umm... maybe t-the... Can I just get both? No? B-But..." *cries*

I shall retaliate! And retaliate I shall!

Happiness Jinxes

2008-03-16T10:54:00.004+09:00

It is like a gut feeling that tells me, "For something this good to happen, you're bound to receive an equal amount of bad things in return (and vice-versa)".

What a morbid and scary thought huh?

It is what I've heard long ago from friends or some place I can't remember; because of such, I try to restrain myself from enjoying stuff too much, or suffer the consequences. I don't know... Just something psychological?

I probably shouldn't worry about it, it is too freaky and has no basis whatsoever. But that's not to say I haven't experienced such things before. I've had my share of yin/yang universal balance of luck:

Depression from failing to find a company to accept me/apply to ~> Got a call that I was accepted for a company (which I don't remember I've applied to) that everyone wanted to get.
Celebrated the fact that we passed the screening for the Monbukagakusho (Japanese Government-sponsored scholarships) ~> We failed the exams.
Lost hope when I got sick with Measles and missed my interview date for the Japan job ~> It was postponed and I got accepted.
Told myself that everything's going smoothly and according to plan ~> found out just how hard it is to leave my company (and don't even get me started about the clearance).

There are others from a long time ago, but I cannot remember. I know I'm just being paranoid and overly superstitious, but you can never be too careful~

Is it karma? A Jinx? Or just plain luck?

A Saturday Anecdote

2008-03-15T19:02:00.004+09:00

~~ The convenience Store beside my Nihongo school ~~

Me: *opens freezer* "Oh they're out of milk tea... again." *takes a chocolate drink and chips then heads for the cashier*

Cashier: "Good afternoon sir, this counter please"

Me: *drops some stuff to the counter*

Cashier: *zaps barcode* *presses cashier buttons* "That would be 38.00 please"

Me: *hands over a hundred*

Cashier: *opens cash register* *presses more cashier buttons* "Sir, how much should I give you?"

Me: *puzzled look* "Huh?"

Cashier: "You gave me a hundred right? How much should I give you?"

Me: "I dunno. Wait... 62.00?"

Cashier: "Okay," *hands over change* "thank you. Please come again~"

Me: *goes away confused*

Osewa ni Narimashita~

2008-03-15T18:39:00.003+09:00

I had my last Nihongo lesson today.

I won't be able to stay with my classmates after midterms because of the Intensive Nihongo class the Jap company will provide us. So I guess this is it~ *sniff*

I don't know if it's a coincidence, but that day we watched a video that was about saying goodbyes. It was a conversation between a foreigner and his Japanese friends, where they congratulated him for his transfer, and told him to never forget and that he's always welcome to come back.

Even though my class started only January, it feels as though everyone has been my long time friends. It's really hard to imagine that we won't be able to laugh together again, ask each other questions, and squeeze inside the cramped elevator just to buy snacks during break time.

Osewa ni narimashita minna... Thank you for everything you've done for me. Sayonara~

Unexpected + Unbelievable + Greatness

2008-03-14T18:31:00.003+09:00

I am most probably at the giddy-est giddy-ness of my giddy-full life!

But I've signed a Non-Disclosure Agreement just moments ago, so I guess I cannot disclose to you one of the most wonderful thing that happened in my life!!

Let's just say it's work related, and that it involves money... lots of it.

..............

Yes I know! Awesome isn't it?! WOOHOO!!

Two Down, Two to Go~

2008-03-14T11:29:00.002+09:00

Today marks the 2nd Friday of March! I only have two Fridays left before I leave my current company. Even my coworkers sense my anxiousness each day the end draws near... *dun dun dun* (~__~);;

Actually, I've received the instructions on how to go about completing my clearance with the company only yesterday. So now I'm swamped with tons of paperworks and requirements to process and most of the day is spent sending e-mails to every department... I'm not even achieving 1/4 of what's to be done (I even had to tell some guy from the Stock Exchange just to say that I'm not a shareholder of my company... whew).

But I still have a couple of weeks or so to finish these all up, so I'm not that much pressured. With each task cleared, I can feel the grip the company has on me loosening up. This is just another obstacle to pass before I can rejoice in my inevitable victory. Bwahahaha~

Oh, and my officemates have decided to just have some food delivered rather than going out to eat at some fastfood place. Remember my previous post about February's Feast? That's what we're going to order. My esophagus is vibrating just thinking of all that yumminess...

Food, Togas, and Free Stuff!

2008-03-13T22:12:00.005+09:00

There were three dishes laid out, and we only have to choose two:

Clubhouse Sandwich - Stacks of ham, lettuce, egg, tomatoes, cheese and other yummy stuff.
Lasagna - A big heap of ground beef between layers of baked pasta topped with thick melted cheese
Carbonara - A full serving of spaghetti with creamy white sauce, mushrooms, bacon bits, grated cheese and parsley.

Oh the horrors of indecision! But it ended up with me taking the huge sandwich and the plate of carbonara... I heard the lasagna tasted a bit too meaty~

I also got a Free Movie Pass from work today along with the delectable foodies. It was from some sort of company meeting held inside a theatre; they've decided to use a Graduation Theme while every speaker reported project updates wearing togas (it's hard work to keep employees interested in such meetings, so a bribe and/or something outragous is necessary for an absolute attendance). It was fun in a weird and nonsense kind of way~

Now, I wonder which movie I should watch and when....?

Level Up~!

2008-03-13T11:44:00.007+09:00

My hard work paid off!

Yesterday, the results have finally arrived. I've passed the Japanese Language Proficiency Test - Level 4! (1 is the highest and 4 is the lowest level)

I took the JLPT examinations last December 2, 2007 and have waited up till now for the results. Wow, it really took them a lot of time to actually send them out, must've been a lot of answer sheets to check.

The certificate itself was verrry ornate; Lots of wavy lines, designs, stamps and authorization seals, and there were even a couple of hidden kanjis as well. It's so beautiful and very official that I'm thinking if I should frame it.

Hmmm... maybe I should collect them all and line them up in a wall (woot for rhymes).

I plan to have it photocopied and submitted along with my other documents because I've heard that Japanese companies give a salary raise to people who have accomplishments in JLPT certifications. Which is why a Level 1 certificate is such a tangible victory, the rewards are so juicy~

I'll put up a copy of my certificate when I get the time to scan it at home. Yum yum, Level 3 here I come!

Ohhhh Tokyo!

2008-03-12T11:56:00.002+09:00

There's this show during the 1990's that most probably must have been the spark that ignited my interest in Japan for the first time. It was aired on a local channel, and everyone were just captivated by it. It was the host's fault; She was so funny, so awesome, the ultimate epitome of host-ness that she became a common household name.

Her name's Ellen (her full name is Eleanor Nishiumi), and her show was the legendary, WINS Oh Tokyo! And that's her on the pic. The one holding a mic, wearing a fedora hat, white shirt, and a black jumper (sorry for the poor quality~). A woman of smiles, optimism, wide-eyed curiousity, and never-ending hunger (she eats a lot).

I'm not sure if the show's faithful to its title and featured only scenes from Tokyo, but it sure is one heck of a great way to hypnotize kids to come to Japan! From restaurants, to amusement parks, famous landmarks and tourist spots; Ellen saw, came, and conquered every place she's visited.

Hanayashiki, Asakusa, Roppongi, Odaiba, anywhere that there's something to see, she'll be there. Interviewing people, sampling delicacies in nearby restaurants, computing and converting the Yen prices in her head, and enjoying everything.

Here's another pic where she's touching her chest. I don't know which episode this is, but it reminds me when she went out to Tokyo Bay and went fishing. Or maybe that was another show...

She's infectious and very charismatic. If she says that this place/food/thing is great, it will be. Whenever she's having fun and a very great time, it will be included in the top places to visit once in Japan. And she does it with so much gusto.

I miss her. Her show had a second season where the show was entirely hosted by her (there were other hosts back in season 1), and a talk of a season 3 sent us to a crazy frenzy. But years has passed and Ellen never returned. A decade went by and still people talk about her show, that goes to show just how strong her following is.

By writing this entry dedicated to the wonderful hostess and her spectacular show, I hope to leave a trail in the World Wide Web for other fans to follow. Thank you Ellen, for showing me a colorful side of Japan, we hope to see you again sometime soon~

Japan-o-philiac's Food

2008-03-11T12:11:00.008+09:00

Around May or June of last year, while we were in the middle of our application to the Monbukagakusho (Japanese Government-sponsored Scholarships), Rose and I came up with these simple recipes to energize that Japan-o-philiac within you~! Giddyness guaranteed!

Fingers of Japan

Soft tortillas
Tomatoes, sliced
Lettuce
Cheese, sliced to sticks
Strips of meat (chicken chunks recommended)
Ceasar dressing
Healthy Fruttanesca (1 bowl)

5 spoons of oats (Quaker Oats)
Hot water
Fresh milk, or powdered
Sliced fruits
Sugar to taste (optional)
Japanese Power Sandwich

Slices of bread
Anything edible, left over food
Cheese/spread
Margarine/butter
Spices to taste

Supreme Flower Bonanza

Iced milk w/o sugar
Bread slices
Strawberry jam

It's not much, nor is it anything fancy. They're just simple Japanese-inspired snacks made by a couple of ultra-hyper people who were optimistically hungry. And even though there's not a hint of Japanese-ness in them except their name, they're quite delicious! Healthy too~

Try it, you'll love eat!

** Drawn in ink, colored in Photoshop

The Hundred Butts

2008-03-11T10:15:00.003+09:00

This morning I rubbed a hundred butts, twenty groins, ten dozen shoulders, and a tailbone or two. I got stuck in a mob.

Imagine going up a flight of stairs and then people stopped moving in front of you and then people began to build up from behind, and you can't go forward nor backward. There's no escape (unless you've decided to crawl over their heads). At first there were looks of confusion, thoughts of escape, and eventually, chaos.

People began pushing from all sides; Some trying to go up, some going down, some wants to cross the stairs, and some... Well, they just want to rub with everyone. They began to shout, apprehension and panic was everywhere, and a girl lost her slippers. Even I was getting panicky, "Oh noes, I'm going to be late!".

All you can do is stand there and let the waves of people push you somewhere, hoping that you'll be moved towards your destination. It was getting hot, stinky, and very noisy as panic turned into anger and people were now shouting, "What the heck's going on here?!". @__@;;

I'm thankful for the woman with a mole on her upper lip and was whining in full English. She was so strong ang aggressive, that she somehow threw me inside the gate towards the train station. I'm free!! And I ran away from the craziness, away from the man-made sauna bath, and the glorious event of which we call, Rush Hour.

Sketchings~

2008-03-10T22:07:00.004+09:00

Got bored one night, so I took my giant 15-inch red pen, opened a sketchbook and drew a girl. I added the colors afterwards using Photoshop; She's a girl so of course she looks girly.

The Night of Sevens

2008-03-10T17:26:00.007+09:00

Sasa no ha sara-sara, nokiba ni yureru.
Ohoshi-sama kira-kira; Kin Gin sunago.

On a lighter note, I've decided to make a jolly entry to balance out my previous dramatic post. Let me introduce to you the 七夕 or the Star Festival. Sounds happy-full already right? It most certainly is!

The Tanabata, which means the "Evening of the Seventh", is exactly that. It is a festival in Japan celebrated on the 7th night of the 7th month, in other words: July 7th. To think that we'd be in Japan by July! Ooohhh.... I'm so looking forward to it!

It is originally Chinese, celebrating the meeting of Orihime (Vega) and Hikoboshi (Altair) who are seperated by the river of stars, the Milky Way. These two lovers are only allowed to meet during the seventh day of the seventh month of the lunisolar calendar. During the festival, people write wishes on small pieces of paper, sometimes in a form of poetry, then tie them to a bamboo, and it is set afloat on a river around midnight. Of course, a festival of stars is done during the night... *sighs* It'd be so wonderful... Star-gazing in Japan, wishes floating on the river, celebrating the reunion of lovers, immersed in the festive atmosphere.

The Tanabata has seven types of decorations (no it's not a coincidence):

Paper Strips - a piece made with wishes. Tied to a bamboo.
Paper Kimono - for better sewing skills *shrugs*. Also wards off accidents and bad health.
Paper Crane - grants safety for your family, good health and longer life.
Purse - you could try and guess what this is for.
Net - bountiful fishing and for a greater harvest.
Trash Bag - cleanliness. We all wish for that right?
Streamers - symbolizes the strings that Orihime (Vega) uses to weave.

And much like other festivals, it also includes the much-awaited yatai; Stalls of food, toys, games and whatnots, the symbolic entity that drives throves of people outside of their homes, spending their cash for trinkets that's probably triple their original prices. There are also parades, Miss Tanabata contests (search for a star, hehe), decoration competitions and much more!

No telescopes needed~ ^__^

To Leave, Lose, and Gain

2008-03-09T23:07:00.002+09:00

The house has been a bit dramatic lately, it's as if I'm leaving already. Everytime they'd start becoming all sentimental on me, I'd remind them it's not for 4 months yet. But they'd still manage to make me feel somewhat guilty for leaving them. And for such a looong time too~

My mom would go tell me the things I'd have to buy, what I should pack, where to go, when to do stuff, how to do this and that, etcetera. She's even started packing bags of thingies for me; packs of tissue, detergents, laundry stuff, toothpaste/brush, shampoo saches, and other who-knows-what. And I'm not sure if it was intentional, but she placed the suitcases and stroller on top of the staircase so that everytime we go up, we're reminded that there won't be a family of 4 in the house anymore.

Even my dad is doing his share of emotional nudges. He would bring me food and ask me if there will be someone who'll ever do that to me in Japan. Whenever I ride in the car he'd say that there will come a time when he would go to the office alone, without me in the passenger seat anymore. That everytime he'd hear one of the Jap songs I've scattered all over the house (and each of the car), he would be reminded of me. And my mom even told me that my dad would not take me to the airport... he won't be able to see me go. To see me get on that plane and leave everyone; it would be just too much for him. *sob*

Yes, I will miss the hugs, the cold milk, the rare massages, and the constant bickering my parents give me. And I know that I have and will still sacrifice a lot just to achieve my dream. It is still some 100+ odd days from now, but already I can feel the tension of stretching that rope that bounded me to my family. I promised to email everyday, to install a webcam and a mic, to be with them (as much as I can), even if not physically.

But nothing can compare to the real touch, their presence, and the care I've felt during all these 21 years I've spent with my family. When I'd sit in front of the PC and hear the floorboards creak when they enter the room and remind me that I've been on for too long, when I would sleep an extra minute more and my mom would touch my forehead saying that I should probably wake up already, when I'd doze while watching TV and my dad would startle me with a glass of ice cold milk, or when my mom would suddenly request a kiss from me.

Oh all right, my brother deserves to be mentioned here too: I'll miss his jokes (were they?), the nonsense questions he'd ask out of nowhere, the songs he'd forcefully make me listen to, the bodybuilding routines he made me do (and somewhat regret), the absurdly short patience he has, the shirts he'd buy and make me wear (which I kinda liked by the way), the remarks whenever we eat something that's not so healthy, the criticisms he'd make for just about everything everytime, or just the way he ignores me. He's a Master Ignorer, and both my parents agree.

Once I leave for Japan (darnation, I feel like tearing up), I'm sure I'd always look for something to distract me from missing my family. I know it's really impossible to do so, but I don't think I could sleep, eat or walk if I'm in a constant grief of separation. I love them so much, I'll miss them greatly, and will always be a part of the family.

I would still be the younger brother who throws hot chocolate on your head, listen to your nonsense, debate with you and not laugh at your jokes. The son who stays on the PC for hours, refuses to sleep early, and gives you a hug and a kiss. The child who had a monkey stuffed-toy, wore a red jumper, and kept on breaking precious glass things.

I would still be me. Only, I'll be somewhere else where I should've been. I'd be in Japan.

Aa! Megami~sama!

2008-03-09T18:18:00.003+09:00

On my way home from school yesterday, I passed by the nearby shopping center to buy another DVD. Lo and behold! I found the entire season 1 and 2 of ああっ女神さまっ! or Aa Megami-sama! or Oh My Goddess! or One of the Greatest Anime Series Evar! \(^o^)/ ~ *woo*

Considering that my brother is still kinda Measles-y and will not exactly go out looking like it, we postponed our family "mall-ing" day and just stayed at home today. I hogged the big TV upstairs, set myself some snacks and drinks, inserted the DVD into the player, and our home entertainment system did the rest (watching anime through surround sound is so delicious).

If there are still people out there not familiar with this series, it's about a goody-good nice guy getting so unlucky and hopeless in his life that he is threatening to unbalance the universe. Karma wasn't supposed to work that way, so a goddess was sent down to him and grant him a wish. Probably to make him happy and restore everything back in order. But he thought it was a prank joke played on him by his dorm-mates and belted out a cataclysmic "I wish you'd stay with me forever..." then POOF! The perfect recipe for a hit anime TV series.

It started off as a typical loser guy with an ultimate babe (she's a goddess for goddesses' sake!) kind of romance/comedy story, then it segued to a magical action/drama series. It was really fun and very gripping, the characters are likable and the story is nowhere near bleh. It even brought me a tear or two (or more), and that's just season 1.

Too bad it's already licensed, so you can't watch it on Crunchyroll... bwahahaha~

Ride All You Can~

2008-03-08T21:54:00.000+09:00

While attending my Nihongo class, a classmate of mine, who's planning to go to Japan this April, told me about this pass where you could ride Japan Rail's trains all you can! Woo~

Considering that a single train ticket from one city to another is quite expensive, and with a coverage from Hokkaido (Japan's northern-most island) to Kyushu (southern-most island), a $200 JR pass for 7 days is such an awesome deal! There were some other deals too, from a week to a month!

Actually I've heard about this sometime ago, but decided not to worry about it till I get there. But apparently, they do not sell these passes in Japan (or they do, but they're hella expensive). They only sell these passes outside of Japan to promote their country, and to entice foreigners to take this wonderful chance to go and visit as much prefectures as they possibly could. Also, if this was available to the Japanese themselves, they'd abuse it to heck.

I wish to buy this pass, but alas, even if we do get unlimited train rides for a week, we do not have money to do the touring itself. My classmate and aunt suggested that during our first few weeks there, we should just walk around our own city and take in the local sights; to familiarize ourselves with the area and also to conserve money. Yokohama's known for being an entertainment city, so I guess we won't get bored that easily.

Maybe someday...

Drop Those Pants!

2008-03-08T18:59:00.003+09:00

It was fun than what I'd expected. At first I thought the medical check-up would be such a hassle; waking so early in the morning, rushing to the clinic, and waiting in line with other patients and stuff. But when we got there together with other people from my batch, it somehow turned into another bonding moment.

The clinic itself was fun, it was like an obstacle course. Literally. They've tried to conserve space by dividing a single floor into two, and succeeded. We were bending, crouching, ducking, climbing, bumping just to navigate from one room to the next. Or maybe it was just me, because I'm somewhat tall. *ahem*

Anyways, I'll try and list the check-ups we've done since they've numbered each step and all we did was follow them:

Cashier/Registration - we weren't told that we had to bring photocopies of IDs and stuff, good thing I have them all with me.
X-Ray - the girls were a bit concerned about how they'd have to remove their tops, while I wounded myself when trying to remove my shirt because my hand struck the low ceiling.
BP/Weight/Height - I'm glad that I've lost weight when I got sick, and somehow it lowered my blood-pressure a lot too.
Urine/Stool/Blood Sample - the girls had a big problem with their urine. We didn't actually give out our stool, we just had to wipe. And the blood sampling (which we dreaded a lot) was actually one of the easiest steps of all.
Eye Check - the chart was on a wall behind me and I read it through the mirror in front of me, at the opposite wall. I wasn't able to read some of the lines anymore, because my head was blocking half the chart (See? Told you I was tall).
General Check-up - girls' side. They seperated the doctors according to gender, because there were some procedures which were a bit intimate...
General Check-up - guys' side. "Drop your jeans and your underwear. Lift up your shirt... hmmm, okay. Turn around. Bend over and spread those cheeks... hmmm, okay. Turn around again. Okay, put them back on."
Psychological Test - fortunately, we weren't required to take one. Whew... we were kinda relieved actually.
Dental - my pearly whites weren't satisfactory... so I had to get 3 of them fixed.

Out of the 7 of us who took the medical, only two got cleared. And it was all because of that dental check-up's fault. Grr~

Healthy Options

2008-03-07T19:00:00.004+09:00

I've been going on a bingefest (as mentioned by Kai) so much this week, and so I gave myself a challange of avoiding unhealthy food today, which I somehow pulled through. Almost.

Well I drank that coconut juice my coworker suggested to me, for those extra electrolytes and to ensure that my urinalysis comes out clean. I stayed away from my office's pantry and its unlimited fountains of lemon iced tea, mango juice, hot cocoa, cappuccino, and the sugar that comes along with it. I had the sterilized milk my mom/dad stored in the fridge. Ate bananas, drank tea, did a lot of exercise dance routines, and slept a healthy 8 hours.

Although I sort of gave in and used some liquid seasoning (barbecue-flavored soy sauce) during lunch today. *sigh*

I don't think I can live this way everyday. If it's so good for my body, why do I feel bad? I get hungry so often, I crave all through-out the day, I pee twice as much, and my wallet's already filing for a vacation leave.

Maybe once I get to Japan and I have no choice but to eat their veggie-filled boiled food pots, steamed thingies, fresh seafood, with lots of rice and green tea, my body would gradually get used to being healthy for a change and forget that it ever had other delicious yet oh so vicious stuff. I actually look forward to that~ (I heard that there's no gravy in Japan, is it true?! NooooooooOOOOOOHHHH!!!!)

My medical exam's scheduled for 8:00 AM tomorrow. We're told not to eat nor drink anything starting midnight so as to not taint the blood tests, so we will not. I really wish to get this over with soon, we need delicious fatty food to survive! Rawr.

One Down, Three to Go~

2008-03-07T11:02:00.004+09:00

Today marks the 1st of the four Fridays before my resignation becomes effective. The other Fridays are in the 14th, 21st, and the 28th. I'm thinking of putting a countdown counter in my sidebar... I'll work on that later.

I sort of promised my coworkers that I'll treat them to a despedida/farewell dinner that day. I told them I could probably scrounge up a $30 budget and treat them at a nearby Wendy's joint, but that they'll have to pay to upsize their drinks and fries to 'Biggie'. It doesn't sound much, but it's a place where we can bring our own version of noise and laugh ourselves hoarse.

I still can't decide if I should order a Bacon Mushroom Melt (hot and juicy beef, bacon and mushrooms in a warm cheddar cheese sauce on a bun) or a Spicy Chicken Sandwich (spicy chicken fillet, mayonnaise, tomato and lettuce on a kaiser roll). Add a Biggie size french fries and a gallon of rootbeer and you'll get an unhealthy, penny-less Megane~kun.

They did promise that they'll buy me a gift for remembrance. I guess it'd all be worth it~

~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~

EDIT: I added 3 countdown timers in my side bar/column!

March 28 - my resignation gets official
April 7 - my Intensive Nihongo Course classes starts
September 13 - my birthday!

Now I'll just to wait for our scheduled flight to Japan to be announced and I'll add it in too! Woo~

Feb's Belated Feast

2008-03-06T23:11:00.005+09:00

Just when my medical is now just a couple of days away, all the February birthday celebrants in the office decided to buy tons of food for the whole project to feast on. *cries* We were told of what had happened with the previous batch's medical as they were checked right after the holidays; high blood pressure, elevated blood sugar levels, with chunks of cholesterol and other nasty stuff that's sure to prevent us from entering Japan.

Well I still have a day or so to normalize my body, so I dove in with the crowd and started grabbing anything edible within reach. I wasn't able to try all of the available dish laid out, but I managed to take quite a lot!

Clockwise from top left: Spaghetti, Pancit Malabon, Barbecue, Pichi-pichi, Sansrival Cake, and a Choco Roll in the center.

For those who aren't familiar with Pancit Malabon, here's a definition from Wikipedia: Pancit Malabon is a type of pancit, or stir-fried noodle dish, which originated in Malabon City, Philippines. It has a yellow-orange color due to a sauce that includes fish sauce and shrimp paste. Its toppings draw heavily from the fresh seafood that is available in the area and may include fresh shrimp, squid, oysters, and hard-boiled duck or hen eggs, as well as pork. Trust me, it's delicious~

And pichi-pichi is a sticky ball of sweet gooey stuff covered in coconut shreds. I only took two, hurrah for self-restraint!

It is obviously decided that I have to do a rigorous exercise just to lay off whatever fatty substances that crept into my body. I did a 30-minute crazy dance routine to the sound of the Hairspray movie's OST, but it probably just burned off only the spaghetti...

I wonder if a round-trip up and down the staircase would take care of those pichi-pichies~

Gold Teddy Bear

2008-03-06T10:29:00.002+09:00

I was on the train to the office this morning when I saw this small girl get in carrying a golden teddy bear.

It looked as if it was made from those silk gowns of the actresses on a red carpet of an Oscar Awards night. All smooth, shiny, and glittery. It took everyone's attention. Although the fact that a girl got on the train alone without an adult supervision was shocking enough, was that even allowed? (maybe the parents were somewhere nearby, I didn't notice)

The concept was intriguing enough, maybe it would influence that girl to grow up materialistic. Or maybe she'll be fed up with expensive (looking) things and settle for generic items instead. Or maybe I'm thinking too much of a toy... is a teddy bear a toy?

~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~

Anyway, I would like to thank the recent visitors for their comments! You made my day complete and thus, I am now filled with satisfaction. Remember, acknowledgements for an entry well written is very much accepted~! Comment away!

(>^3^)> ~ *smooch squeeze*

In a Single Heartsink

2008-03-05T20:33:00.001+09:00

You know that feeling when something super drastic happened and you slowly wait for the feeling to "sink-in" and then WHAM! Your breath leaves your lungs, you forget everything around you, and you get absorbed into the moment, because your brain suddenly started processing what has happened and you realize just how much your life has now changed forever? (a solid "OH MY GOD" + hands clasped over mouth = pretty much sums it up)

Imagine it happening for a single heartbeat, much like a heartburn. And before you can grab hold of it, it's gone. You're left with an aftertaste of excitement, anxiousness, and anticipation of things to come.

I decided to coin that millisecond emotion into a word: heartsink.

Whenever I go home, my bus zooms through the expressway and along the route, we pass by the airport. The wall's pretty high so you can't see anything actually. But there was this one time when I decided to look, and a flash from one of the "airplane-signalling lightpost" made me blink.

The moment I closed my eyes, my heart let out this gargantuan THUMP! and then everything seemed to stand still. The feeling I knew was hiding from me back when I got accepted for the Japan job suddenly got out. The emotion of doubt mixed with relief, the happiness caused by the thought of finally achieving a dream, and the grief of leaving your family, loved ones, and friends behind, all swooped down and probably scared my soul out of my body.

"It's finally happening..."

I opened my eyes, my blink was over. And then it was gone. I was back in the bus with the throng of tired people going home for the day. In a single heartsink, I had a taste of what I was going to feel the day I'm leaving for Japan.

*exhales*

Darnation~

2008-03-05T11:24:00.001+09:00

My web counter isn't working. Or rather, it's not showing up!

Well I only have a total of 40+ visitors last time I checked, but still... I just love to scroll down and see how many people dropped by, even if most of the hits were made by me. And now it's gone.

Oh, and I decided to go to their site and into my account and look!

United States = 19 (44.19%)
Philippines = 12 (27.91%)
Australia = 8 (18.60%)
Japan = 1 (2.33%)
New Zealand = 1 (2.33%)
Singapore = 1 (2.33%)
United Kingdom = 1 (2.33%)

Even though this blog is just 5 days old, I already had 31 visitors from other countries~! Woo! And to think someone from Japan even came by... wow. Unlike our previous blog, where we made 50+ entries a month and the only visitor was me, Kai, Rose and maybe my mom.

*sigh*

Goodbyes at a Meeting

2008-03-04T15:21:00.000+09:00

I announced my resignation at the team meeting today.

My team leader, whom I gave my resignation letter to, already knew about it since last week. And today's the day I finally announced my decision to everyone (not really everyone, just my team mates).

I guess they were shocked, considering I've been rolled into the project only last November. But they gave me their best wishes and have set me into a teary mood. I was even jokingly restricted from recruiting others into joining my journey to Japan. Because it's quite tempting actually, what with the huge salary and all (current salary x 15 + Japan = pure win).

I got a surprise though; who knew there are a lot of Japan-o-philiacs in the office as well?! Even my team leader studied Nihongo some time ago. People from other teams and from my team as well, all watch anime, read mangas, and try to use Nihongo with each other. I've heard them use some Japanese phrases every now and then. I wish I knew this little fact way before...

Thank you guys, I'll miss you all. For the one month that I have left to spend with everyone, I guess all I can do is to give my best, contribute a lot, and hope that I'll leave a memory that they'll remember long after I've gone away.

The days roll so slow, yet April looks so near...

Nihon no Shigoto

2008-03-04T10:25:00.002+09:00

It's time you guys know about that Japan job I've been raving on about, just so you can relate to my entries. But I'm not sure if I'm allowed to post the company's name here nor the recruiter agency, so I won't, just to be sure. I dunno, I just felt that it's better that I'm discreet about things like that... something about a news article where a guy got fired because he blogged about his company makes me nervous.

Okay, I'll start where it all began: when my aunt (from Japan) asked me for my resume because she's going to refer me to a friend of hers for an I.T. job in Japan. At first I felt reluctant, considering the depression I had to go through after failing in my attempts of reaching that country of unimaginable wonders. But with a shrug and a sigh, I sent my resume together with my friends.

That was last January.

February came and I almost forgot about the job offer when my mom messaged me that my aunt was coming to our house with the recruiter! I kinda hyperventilated after that and went into an excessive giddy-ness phase. So I rushed back home, sat down, dropped a hint at how much I loved Japan, and that I am very much qualified for the job. My aunt backed me up and pretty much told the recruiter that the company really needs people like me.

They were impressed, convinced, and decided that we should now consider ourselves hired. Although, I was told that I have 2-3 weeks left to prepare for my 'official' interview with the company president and a representative. It was a "..." moment.

The three of us were scheduled to be interviewed on the same date, but a week before that I got sick. Really sick. I had measles. The moment red spots started invading my face I knew that I'll miss the interview. It was such an absurd idea, something so depressing, that my mind didn't really process it that much. The interview date came and went, and I had an attack of depression so deep that I was seriously considering the idea of giving up on Japan. Sheesh~

Apparently Kai got sick that day too, with fever. And since the recruiter was so benevolent and kind (and they really want to recruit us, hehe), they moved the interview date. There was a problem with me still ridden with marks all over my body left by the measles, but that was remedied with a concealer, long-sleeves, and a winning smile. ^__^

The interview went by so fast, I only managed to utter a sentence or two in Japanese to the company president (I planned to impress them with my minimal Japanese skills). No matter, because my resume spoke for itself. A stare and a double nod, then I got hired. Kai and Rose too!

That same day, we had our orientation where the job description was thoroughly discussed along with the salary breakdown, the contract, Japanese lifestyles, training schedules, and a possibility of going to a Tokyo Disneyland field-trip. You possibly cannot imagine my sheer bliss.

*shiver* I am finally going to Japan. We are going to JAPAN!

By the way, I've read in a horoscope sometime ago that my life will take a dramatic change this year for the good. I very much agree... Don't you?

The Night the Sky Turned Pink

2008-03-03T21:40:00.002+09:00

Kinda tired doing errands for my brother; he requested a lot of stuff to be bought (cupcakes, unsweetened pineapple juice, mangoes, herbal tea, and a couple of pills for his fever). Well I did feel a bit responsible for infecting him with measles, so I guess doing a bit of shopping for him is no biggie.

I had a dinner of garden salad with a plate of spaghetti bolognese with Rose after buying the groceries, all for less than just $2.00~ *sigh* I'll miss the cheap thingies here once we're immersed with the expensive stuff in Japan. So we have to depend on Kai to restrain us from reaching inside our pockets so much, I won't be surprised if she suddenly sews our wallets shut.

After getting home, no one was answering the door. So I just sat on our patio's old steel chair, dropped my things on a nearby table, and stared at the sky.

It was already deep into the night yet I can still see the clouds... and they were pink, blanketing everything with the unusual hue. I was sucked into the moment. I didn't even bother to question why it was colored that way.

I don't know when I'll see a pink night sky again. But I'm certain it'll bring me back to this day when I just sat and stared, appreciating the weird beauty of nature after a tiring day at work.

Note: I guess any emotion I might've felt during that time can be expressed through this song. The melody and lyrics somewhat exude the same feelings the pink sky gave me: Melancholic, nostalgic, and weird.

My Tomodachies

2008-03-03T11:10:00.001+09:00

Let me introduce you to two of my batchmates for the Japan job, who also happened to be my classmates back in college, co-authors in my previous blog, people who I share my Japan-o-philiac passion, and the ones I've mentioned in my previous entries as the mysterious 'my friends'.

The one on the left is Rose/Jenny/Crazy Woman, and the one on the right with the striped shirt is Julianne/Kai/Youngjinsu. I'm quite sure they'll object that I'm using their picture here without consent, although I've no other ones to use. So there.

The three of us met back in our 1st day of college, fresh from highschool with nothing but dreams and uncertainties on our backs. The 4 years breezed by and we graduated with flying colors. Yes, we were honor students, scholars, and dean's listers. Thus, we have bragging rights~ Hah!

After graduation, we tried applying for the Monbukagakusho or the Japanese Government-sponsored Scholarship. We passed the first screening, but failed on the exams. We speculate it's because of the Integral Calculus, Discrete Mathematics and Nuclear Physics that somehow found its way onto the examiners. Okay I'm kidding about the Nuclear Physics, but it could've been there for all I know. Even my college professor required some crunching time to solve the sample questions from last year's application examinations.

Afterwards we settled into some pretty comfy jobs and left our going-to-Japan dreams to cryogenic giddy chambers to hibernate while we wait for an opportunity come by again.

It did. And what an opportunity it was! My aunt (from Japan) managed to befriend someone from her bank teller years who became a recruiter for an I.T. company in Japan~ So of course when they required some programmers who's willing to relocate to a land filled with cherry blossoms and vending machines, guess who my aunt referred?

More about the job in some later days when I'm in the mood, actually I am now but I plan to post some other entries today. Oh and we got accepted, obviously. Else, I wouldn't be blogging here. I'd still use my previous blog posting nonsense entries about food and stuff. Hehe~

Kai and Rose each have their own blogs now. I'm considering helping them with their layouts... hmm, yes I think I will. It's the very least I can do for them putting up with me all these years.

Rose's blog: My Strawberry Days
Kai's blog: Sweet Anxiousness

Be sure to visit them and leave some messages~! (^_^)-b

Gyoza and Pasta

2008-03-02T17:09:00.002+09:00

Remember the Japanese groceries we've bought? There was a cup of chocolate pudding (the katakana label read, "Enjeru Purin" or "Angel Pudding") and the pack of uncooked gyoza. Well the pudding was well taken care of, the perfect snack while watching a movie about an underdog dancer and his ballerina leading lady. So what happened to the gyoza?

We cooked it! Or rather, we attempted to. From what I can remember, you'd line the gyoza on a pan with a 1/3 cup of water and make sure they don't touch each other, because they're quite sticky. Then once the water either evaporates or get sucked by the dumplings, you put in a bit of oil to fry it a bit then "Voila~!". But as you can see we failed quite miserably, that platter of twisted carnage was supposedly 8 pieces of authentic meat dumplings.

My friend said and I quote, "These aren't dumplings, they're just dump". I guess the -lings got stuck to the pan, these looked more gyoza-ish than what we've managed to scoop unto our plate... I can attribute our failure to the fact that none of us could read the cooking instructions. Kanji anyone?

But not to fret! Because we found a pack of instant carbonara at home~ Add a bit of water, a cup of milk, maybe some salt, let it boil, then keep on stirring until the sauce thickens and the pasta gets cooked. It was actually easy now that the package was in English, it looked very good! Very creamy, hot, and the cheesy color just melts my heart (there were times when I thought I was cooking mac n' cheese).

Then came the main event, time to taste the fruit of our sweat and labor! You know, the dumplings weren't bad, they tasted quite delicious actually~ Or was it because of the soy sauce...? The pasta on the other hand, well it did taste like the fruit of our sweat and labor. More of the 'sweat' than the labor; It was sweet n' sour. I'm not sure if carbonara was supposed to look nor taste that way, but we managed to pull through.

If that's not enough, we got our hands on some over-cooked, hollow french fries. Quite crunchy and light, very oily. Yet we ate it all anyway. Don't think that it's over~ We had a cup of cheesy corn kernels to go along with it! Mmmm, Japanese sweet corn kernels with cheese powder and margarine...

And for dessert? Some chocolate pillows! Yes that's right: crunchy, addictive, chocolate crackers with a chocolate filling inside! I wouldn't have my pillows any other way anyday.

Now it's time to exercise again. *sigh* Gluttony really is a sin.

Me, my brother and Measles~

2008-03-02T14:23:00.000+09:00

If anyone bothered to read my previous blog (One Eyed Daruma), I had a not-so-mild case of Measles just a couple of weeks ago. Oh you know, the one where you'll have a week-long fever, rashes even at the soles of your foot, dozens of mouth ulcers, severe tonsilitis, raspy dry cough, and never-ending colds.

It was a horrifying experience, especially if you've never been THAT sick before in your life. At some point, I even considered *gasp!* not going to Japan! I guess that's how delusional you'll be if you have a constant 40+ degrees celsius body temp. I was hallucinating most of the time; I had some rather unusual visits from a shadow ghost, a superhero who went inside my body, monster-mom, and a girl who kept on pricking my arm with scary needles! Oh wait, that wasn't a hallucination.

Anyway, I'm better now. All those other things were tolerable in comparison to the scars that the rashes left behind. Oh the horror I felt when I looked in the mirror and realized that the red spots became black spots! Why don't they turn flesh-colored instead? Huhuhu~

Without further ado, may I announce that my brother now has Measles. And he's angry at me because of it. As if I could control where the virus would go anyway! Hmpf. Super bad news though: the doctor warned my parents that I could still get infected with Measles, because a person usually gets hit twice before they can become totally immune!

OH NOOOOESSSS!!!!

And to think I have a medical check-up this Saturday. Wah. Nothing must jeopardize my chance to reach Japan! I shall not tolerate such unfair uncertainties. And thus, I shall isolate myself from my dear "old" brother and prevent the risk of appearing pockmarked AGAIN.

Oh just when I'm regaining my 21 year old skin back, something like this comes along. *hides*

Long Saturday ~Part 2~

2008-03-02T10:32:00.002+09:00

Okay, we left off when we finished our glorious lunch with my batchmates. Afterwhich, it was time for my Nihongo class. Well actually I still had an hour to burn, and since I wasn't able to attend a couple of my previous classes I decided to use that time to catch up on my Nihongo. Good thing Kubo~sensei was there to give me the handouts and the kanji lessons I've missed.

The class was really fun (and kinda difficult), so I feel kinda sad that I'll be leaving everyone soon. I announced to the class that I might not be able to be their classmate anymore by midterms. It was a bit surprising that they were all smiles and they were even excited for me when I told them about the Japan job. They gave a lot of tips and other things to watch out for in Japan, and sensei even shared on how to take a bath, Japanese style~ Who knew entering a bathtub required so much rituals?

All the Japan talk and the excitement that tagged along with it kinda gave me a craving for something Japanese. So I suggested to my friend (more about my friends in some other post) that we go and try to eat at a Japanese restaurant I visited with sensei and my classmates before. So after my class, we got out and decided to walk all the way there, which in turn brought us to a Japanese grocery store. It was a bit out of the way but everything were just for $1.50 each, so we went inside and gawked at the weirdo items stocked on the shelves. It was kinda hard to pick between the black chunky stuff and a brown wobbly thing, so we settled on a cup of chocolate pudding and a pack of meat dumplings (uncooked).

Satisfied with our pickings, we went on our way to the Jap restaurant, it was just behind the grocery so we didn't have to walk far. It was a bit hard to locate it, considering that I only visited it once almost a year ago. Good thing the windows were big enough for me to peer inside and recognize the place.

It was so Japanese! Each booth were screened by lacquer-like grills, there were Jap newspapers, magazines and mangas (comics) available for reading if you can read it anyway. Even the girls who served the food were wearing short shorts and aprons~ And the TV was showing Japanese shows! And of course, the menu and anything that was written there were full of kanjis. We had a blast trying to read them for about a couple of minutes or so, then we turned our attention to the food.

We ordered something called the Hanchan Set. It was a meal of vegetable fried rice, gyoza (meat dumplings, cooked), a platter of mixed vegetables with mushrooms, a huge bowl of ramen, and a bottomless glass of tea that tastes like coffee and looks like beer. The tea was revolutionary! Actually I had it before when we ate here last year, but it tasted like smoke back then... hmm.

Unfortunately, we weren't able to digest it all and we got depressed; thinking of all the starving children our leftovers would've fed (it was a really morbid thought, probably caused by a slight indigestion). We were supposed to eat our pudding for dessert, but considering that we can't even sip our coffee tea, we put the pudding off till later. And then we went home.

Hmm, I feel like this entry has gone on for too long. To make it short, I'll just summarize the rest of the day in a paragraph: After the belly-busting feast, we dropped by the local mall to rent a VCD and a DVD ('Step Up' and 'Hairspray' respectively). After getting back home, we watched 'Step Up' and danced along with it, mostly because we want to burn off the fat that the glutton-fest gave us. Although we ate the choco pudding while watching the movie... meh.

Then I went to sleep.

So much for just one day ne? I thought so too~ ^__^

Long Saturday ~Part 1~

2008-03-01T19:26:00.004+09:00

Today was a loooong day. It was as if 2 days were cramped in just 24 hours that what happened this morning felt like yesterday. Time really does fly when you're having fun, but this time it flew all over the world and back again.

It started with me opening up this blog and trying to decorate the place. But alas, we have a scheduled pictorial of some sort at 10 AM with my batchmates for the Japan job, so I wasn't able to finish my layout and left it in mid-design to shower up and rush to the meeting place.

Inevitably, I arrived late. Maybe 25 minutes late. No matter, they looked as if they've accomplished a lot without me there so I hope they didn't notice just how late I was... Anyway, we were handed the medical referral forms, a list of certifications we have to take in Japan (they say it's all about the certificates there), and some reading materials for the job. Who knew filling out forms were so much fun? No really, it was!

But the highlight of the meeting was the pictorial. Whatever comes out of this pictorial will be posted on their website and on the recruitment posters distributed nationwide! So we tried to looked our best and I wore my best clothes (kinda). They had a hard time fitting the 10 of us inside a single shot. It was probably because the venue was a bit small and there was no room to back up the camera to fit us all in. Well we got the shot anyway, but I didn't look as good as I had hoped... *sigh* well at least there's still the Tokyo photo shoot to look forward too~ Wootwoo!

We were treated to a glorious feast of pizza, chicken with gravy, and a hefty serving of carbonara at a nearby restaurant. It was meant to be a bonding moment, for us to get acquainted with the other members of the batch. Well it was really fun, we had so much to talk about while waiting for the food (which got mixed up, we ordered spaghetti by the way).

There were talks about the place where we'll live, where we'll be trained and the location of our office (Yokohama, Kanagawa, Kawasaki. I forgot which was which). We were also able to share our experiences on how we became Japan-o-philiacs, about blogs, and other stuff~ All-in-all it was a truly "bonding" moment, but in the end we had to go our separate ways. Besides it looked as if it's gonna rain~

Hmmm... I think I'll cut my story here for now. I'll post what happened for the rest of the day in another entry. Till then, ja ne~!

Two Eyed Daruma

2008-03-01T08:09:00.002+09:00

Hajimemashite! Megane~kun tomoushimasu! Douzo yoroshiku onegai itashimasu!

Hello, I blog a LOT. I have lot more other blogsites, but they're kinda... meh.

Actually I migrated from a blog I started with three of my friends (more about those peeps in my later posts), which we made just last January. It was a crazy blog full of some... things. In just a month, we made about 50+ entries! Woo~ Boy, were we so hyper. We've decided to disband ourselves from the craziness and make our individual sites instead, so here I am~

If you want to visit our giddy-infested blog, go enjoy yourself: One Eyed Daruma

This blog is old... I created this maybe 4 years ago, but decided to use some other blogsite instead (blogspot wasn't that efficient back then). Then I came back here I think last year, spiced up the place and typed away. That's until the reason for my sudden journal-ing didn't pull through, and this place was left to cyber-rot.

Then I came back again. And I promise not to leave this place ever again. Not after I've read all those fantastic blogs of people who've been to Japan and back... and then to Japan again. No one can really resist the charm of that place, and that's why I'm going to blog.

I'm going to blog starting now about my journey to the land of the rising sun. The flight's scheduled to be on June/July, my Nihongo classes to start by April, and my resignation date to be effective by March. A lot of things to busy myself with, documents to prepare, friends and family to say goodbye to, and entries to write.

But first, I have to redesign this place... it's just begging to be touched by my artistic mouse clicks!

*opens Photoshop*