Nostalgic much?

Artist: Albie

Got this off a third party today...was quite serendipitous indeed! (Thanks Alberto for not sending me a copy too!!) Have the actual card pasted on the wall in front of me. Virtual hugs and kisses to all of you.

(n.b. guitars are missing and Ronna is wearing a kind of...pink. /gasp...glad you changed it to black in the final one.)

楽しみ!!!

Looking forward to:

- Solar eclipse on Wednesday (that is also supposed to spark major disasters, one in the form of a tsunami created by some tectonic shifts south of Japan...we shall see.)

- WHIP IT...Ellen Page is back in the house people.

- a possible trip to the beach on Saturday...helloooo Summer!!!

- end of this semester...guilt-free leisure time ("guilt-free" being the operative word as I bum around during the semester too ><)

- er...beginning of Summer class (yes, so the end of this semester is actually two days before the beginning of the "summer class" semester..masochistic much?!)

Background: Enrolled for a three week summer class in Science Journalism being taken by an environmental journo Debra Schwartz whose being brought in from the States. I reckon its a good deal...interesting looking class, interesting sounding lecturer, same credits in shorter time span... plus still have 1 and a half months of the summer holidays once the class is over so will not miss out on TOO much! (Yes, I am trying to convince myself...i believe i am convinced.)

- possible WWOOFing stint in Hokkaido if all goes according to plan...and if planning goes according to plan!

- ummmm...oh yeah...and most of all....looking forward to LIFE in general....although, there is nothing general about life...tres excited!

R.i.P

...Frank McCourt.

Can still remember when I read Angela's Ashes as a teen...and then scored 'Tis really cheap at a garage sale. By far, probably, the most depressing literature I had read as a kid...Angela's Ashes is after all referred to as the "epic of woe". But I remember that reading 'Tis kinda put things into perspective, thankfully.

Would be nice to have my copies with me here to have a look at...to pay respect in a way, to refresh my memory. I miss my books. As much as I try to keep my material possessions at a minimum, books are one thing that I a) cannot stop myself from purchasing, and b) cannot bring myself to part from...no matter how many times I have read my favourite ones.

I reckon, because a book is a book, is a book...they should allow you to carry books through immigration without having to pay for the extra weight...afterall, how can one put monetary value to the worth of a book?

hmmm...wonder if this argument will work with the officers at the gate....

And speaking of books, can't wait for the semester to end (in two days) so I can start on the small stack of books waiting to be devoured that I bought from the only used English bookstore near the university...Blue Parrot...yes, Casablanca reference perhaps, either way, its a life saver...and I have enough points collected to get ¥1000 off the next purchase...yay!

And yes, that IS Alice in Wonderland...I have an inexplicable liking for childrens books and am forever trying to build my collection of favorites...I scored this copy of A.I.W from a tiny Japanese bookstore (!!) for ¥150!!!

There were are few others that I bought and would have liked to have kept but were weighing down my luggage so they had to be left behind at random backpacker hostels in Thailand...well at least I can rest assured that they will be enjoyed just as much!



And just to reiterate my point:

The worth of a book is to be measured by what you can carry away from it. ~James Bryce

Flattered...more than ever.

Had the most delightful evening.

Slaved over BBQ prep with Ilaria from Itaria (Italy in Japanese) for this 'Chikyuu Circle' thingo we have going at the dorm where the foreign students have a sort of conversation class with a bunch of Japanese people from the neighbourhood every Sunday where we discuss topics ranging from ODA to mixed marriages.

Anyway, finally got down to the mingling, drinking, eating etc and met the most charming young man. EVER.

Over the course of the night he talked to me about what he currently does, how he is intending to visit Guam over the Summer, has been to Hawaii through a very lucky lottery draw and thoroughly enjoys swimming. He sought me out from a crowd of people that were actually mid conversation with me and led me to the 'Bar' table and poured me a drink of the local soda.

Later on in the evening he commented on my very recently painted toenails...'They're black, very cool...why/when did you get them done'?

He drew me a picture of a train (with explanations galore)that I will upload later when I am not too lethargically tired to operate the camera.

The time came for us to bid adieu...he leaned in close to my ear and commented on my earrings...there are two on one ear? They are very cool.

I waved goodbye...sigh, the sweetest a man has been to me in a very very long time.

His mom bowed and said thank you for entertaining her son, he seems to like you a lot.

I bowed and said, no, it was my pleasure.

He was SEVEN.

yes, and by far the sweetest young man I have ever met.

ahh...here is the drawing.

tis official!

As of next semester, I will be a 1st year Master's student at the Waseda University Journalism School.

And so it begins...

!!!!!!!!!!

Home Run

Lying down on the damp grass... in the middle of an empty baseball field...in Tokyo...at night

...and looking up at sky, is one of the most liberating experiences I have had in this country.

And I wasn't even drunk or stoned.

That sense of euphoria no drug can induce

I also never realized exactly HOW claustrophobic this concrete jungle makes one feel...until I walked into (read: sneaked into) the empty open field. Its like being able to breathe again, properly...without any inhibitions.

Thank you wide-open spaces...and the people who lead you there.

I have a secret...

"There are two kinds of secrets:
those we keep from others,
and the ones we hide from ourselves."
Frank Warren, PostSecret

I will eternally be grateful to Kaos for introducing this site to me.

Initially when I started reading it I thought it was masochistic to follow because every Sunday (or Monday when I would go back to work after the weekend) I would wait for the site to be updated, read the secrets and then feel very down for a while. Some of the secrets are funny, some are sad, some inspiring and most are just downright depressing.

But since then I have come to enjoy reading it, learned to revel in the pleasure these people get from sharing their secrets and quite fascinated by how the guilt of each secret is somehow reduced when shared with complete strangers. It must be quite liberating.

And to have the opportunity to do that must definitely save lives and rejuvenate souls, for secrets are such that, you can either take them to your grave...or they take you to your grave.

Geographically Challenged. Part 2 (Episode 1054)

SO apparently there is never any assurance of what may or may not be asked at a Master's Entrance interview.

These questions will definitely be asked:

Why do you want to study at blahblahblah university/faculty?

What is your Master's research plan?

What do you plan to do after completing said Master's course?

And, as I found out, there is also a possibility of THESE questions being asked:

I don't know where Fiji is...Where is Fiji? Can you explain in Japanese?

What is the difference between Tahiti and Fiji?

In retrospect, it was quite amusing indeed.

Duration of Interview: less than 10minutes.

FINAL FINAL Results announcement: 9th July.

I will then know for sure if I get two more years of cheap, authentic....sushi. :)

Ribbit...omg I'm going to die...ribbit

Had a near-death experience involving me and a toad yesterday.

Ko-chan, his knee and I were taking a walk through Tokyo's "Govt Offices" district (I'm sure there is a more official term for it, I just can't remember it right now) and walking through a park that borders the Imperial palace grounds (but is separated by a huge fort like thing and a great volume of water lest someone try to cross over...BUT I'll save that story for another day!)

SO yeah, walking through park, commenting on how the area (and so many other places in Tokyo) grow a different personality at night and then Ko-chan very nonchalantly mentions "oh look! a toad (or frog or something)" I look down and inches (YES INCHES!!!!!) away from my foot sat the BIGGEST toad I have every seen in my entire effing life. EEEEEEEEK!!!

Luckily I (apparently) work very well under pressure and my brain stopped screaming for a second and reminded itself that toads (or frogs or whatever that giant monster was).....JUMP!....double EEEEEEEEEEEEEEKKKKK........

And that brilliant reminder initiated my own jump....I am sure I broke some kinda long-jump record because within seconds I was 5meters away....yelling all the while. Yes, very smooth. I know.

/shudder. ewgh! ugh! yewgh!

And if I weren't so shit scared of said creature, I would actually feel sorry for it because Ko-chan and his knee then proceeded to use their new iphone to take photos of its monstrosity.

hmpf.

oh, and I have my interview for the Master's entrance in a few hours and am almost as scared!

/deep breath.
/exhale.