どこへ行くのかな？

To the JLPTers...

Sat, 05 Dec 2009 15:29:48 GMT

IKUZO!!!

I post this video in honor of all those taking the JLPT tomorrow ~~and not just because I think Ai-chan is adorable~~. GANBARE!!! Use your man voices to shout, "IKUZO!!" before the test begins - I think it might help. :D

Good luck!!

Regarding Ai-chan, who is awesome.

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 04:11:43 GMT

I'm choosing to call my hour or so of YouTube viewing this morning "Japanese study time."

>_>

Anyway, I'd like to take this opportunity to talk to you about Jeeesus, if I could.

...or, well, I'd like to talk to you about a transsexual beauty queen, actually, which is possibly not quite the same thing. :P

Anyway.

Haruna Ai. <3

I lurrrvvvve her. <33

I've seen her on Japanese TV shows hundreds of times before, and always thought she was gorgeous and hilarious. I didn't realize the whole transsexual thing until my old housemate, Karl, pointed it out a few months ago, this when I was exploding over some of the guys on a show with her making fun of her for being a bit plump.

Me: HOW DARE THEY! SHE LOOKS GREAT! SHE DOESN'T NEED TO LOSE ANY WEIGHT AT ALL! SHE'S GORGEOUS!

Karl: ...............you do know that's a man, right?

Me: *breaks off mid-rant* Err. Well. No. *resumes* BUT STILL. HE'S GORGEOUS AND DOESN'T NEED TO LOSE ANY WEIGHT AT ALL!

And I stand by that. :P

Anyway. This morning's "Japanese study" involved me watching YouTube videos of Ai-chan, wherein I found myself thinking yet again how much she reminds me of a slightly-more-feminine Kime. :P Her voice, in particular, is very similar to his in that husky, not-quite-male-not-quite-female kind of way, and they both have the same spastic, hand-clapping way of laughing. :P

Anyway, I like her lots. She also recently spoke out about how Japan needs to be more tolerant towards transsexuals and those of other sexual orientations. I would also like to add, "AND FOREIGNERS, TOO"...but that might be too much to ask for at this time. :P

Anyway, my favorite of the videos I watched this morning featured Ai-chan meeting Pan-kun...! :O And him investigating her nostrils and feeding her fondue. Not at the same time. :P

Another entertaining video involved Ai-chan competing in various games and things against the members of Arashi (here and here), and all of them constantly taking the piss out of each other as they went along, which was amusing. :P I think my favorite thing about Ai-chan is that she's beautiful and dainty and feminine, but also has this rock-hard edge to her sometimes, too--you know she could knock your block off if she wanted to, but she doesn't because she is a Lady. <3

Finally, I'm infinitely amused that her blog is called "AI am a girl." XD It's here, if you wish to check it out. ^_~

Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd now I will do something constructive. Or, at least, think about doing something constructive and possibly, at some point, actually do it. At the very least, I'll work on summoning the strength to get up out of my chair, and may one day wander downstairs and make some lunch.

Ahhh. ♥

Random entry is random.

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 14:56:10 GMT

Hm. I'm cold and sleepy and feeling melancholy. ...wow, forgot how to spell that word for a sec there. XD;;

Anyway. I got some writing done on the train today, which was good, especially since I felt like things were really coming together the way I wanted them to. I also happened upon a Zukkii look-alike--he had the same hairstyle and a face so similar to Zukkii's that I had to stare at him for several seconds (and listen to his voice) to determine whether or not it was, in fact, Mr. Suzuki Hiroki himself. It wasn't. :P

I think I'm losing my natural way of speaking. XD;; What with hanging around with non-Americans and spending the majority of my days altering my speech so as to be understood by low-level students, I'm worried that my speech is becoming some weird hybrid of American English, UK English, and katakana English, GAH. >_< Nothing wrong with any of those ways of speaking, of course, but...I'd like it if I could have just one. XD;;

Kime's gotten himself yet another blog. That's...approximately 17,000 blogs that he has now. I don't see how he can possibly find the time to write in all of them and still be his usual uber-busy self, but...I guess the copy/paste function is a useful thing.

I continue to marvel at the existence of skinny Japanese girls with no asses. You'd think I'd be used to it by now, but somehow every time I see one of these stick-thin girls wearing a pair of tiny shorts that displays a flat, non-existent backside, I find myself staring and shaking my head and wondering, How did this asslessness evolve? Is it because of the years and years of Japanese people sitting seiza instead of on hard chairs or floors, and thus not needing the extra cushioning? Or is there some other evolutionary reason for this utter lack of ass? I am perplexed and intrigued, and hope that one day science may solve this mystery.

I want to go to bed, but doing so requires me to go downstairs, take out my contacts, brush my teeth, wash my face, then come back upstairs and put on my pajamas.

And this, frankly, seems like much too much work.

...........I should probably do it, though, eh.

...

Verrrrryyy soon. Tensssinnggg my muscles...getting ready to stand uppp...

Meh.

On death and various sappy feelings.

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 04:33:20 GMT

So, this is really silly, but... Lately, I've been having a kind of foreboding feeling, especially just after I wake up in the morning, but other times, randomly, too, and thoughts of my own mortality have been coming up here and there as well, especially just after waking.

I guess I feel like confronting things like this makes them easier to deal with, because of course even if I have a long, long life ahead of me, I'm going to die someday, and I think it's good to remember that. Or, at least, to keep it in mind just enough to make life precious, but not enough to make it impossible to live for dealing with the dread of it all.

So, yeah. I guess I just want to say that...life is uncertain. We all know that, deep down, but we have to forget it in order to live our lives. We worry about little things because it's easier, and we wouldn't be human if we didn't, and maybe that's okay. Worrying about dying isn't a worthwhile way to spend your life--it's like spending your whole weekend dreading the fact that Monday will soon be here. Because Monday will come regardless, because Mondays, like death, aren't something we can prevent. :P

...what is she babbling about? you may ask. :P Annnnnnnnnnd I don't know, actually. :D;;

I guess I just want to say...I moan and groan sometimes, I bitch sometimes, I curse this or that, but overall, I really do love the fact that I'm alive. There's a great RADWIMPS song called "Saigo no Uta" (my first introduction to it was Hannah singing it beautifully at karaoke), and it expresses how I feel pretty much exactly.

Here's a translation of the song, which I'm sure I've mucked up here and there, but the basic idea of it is right:

To the yesterdays that won't return...
Truly, thank you.
It's sad, naa.
To the tomorrows still to come...
I'm on my way now, yoroshiku ne.
I'm happy, naa.

To the wishes that didn't come true,
I'm so sorry. Someday, definitely...
To the feelings that were returned,
thank you. From now on, let's always be together.

Every time I feel these tiny, trembling palpitations...
I think to those feelings: "I'm going to protect you."

The fact that I'm alive right now...
Makes me so happy.
Even if I'm not smiling
Just the fact that I'm alive is enough to make me happy.

To the lives I never got to encounter
I'll be sure to do my best for your sake, too.
To all the promises that were turned aside...
Don't lose faith, I won't forget. I promise you.

I wonder if someday someone in this world will be able to say,
"There's nothing more I could wish for."
Because if we paint lots of little dreams, one after the other,
then toss them aside and go on,
we don't need anything more than that.

The fact that I'm alive right now...
Makes me so happy.
Even if there are tears in my eyes
Just the fact that I'm alive right now is enough to make me happy.

To the people who are crying right now
You're alive,
and I'm here, too.
That's wonderful, isn't it?
To the lives that were extinguished...
Someday, ne,
I'll be coming, too.
Until that day.

The fact that I'm alive right now...
Makes me so happy.

The fact that I'm alive right now...
Makes me so happy.
Even if I'm not smiling
Just being alive is enough to make me happy.

Just being alive is enough to make me happy.

And yeah, that's it. That's it exactly. That's how I feel.

Soooooooooooo...to end this very strange, strangestrange entry...

It makes me very, very happy to be alive at the same time as all of you wonderful people. I couldn't ask for anything more, and whatever might happen in the future, nothing will change that feeling. So...thank you for being here at the same time as me, and making life so good. ♥

Fresh fish for sale.

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 15:16:39 GMT

So, I've rummaged up some fandom things I'm planning to sell, but I figured I'd let you guys get first shot at them before I posted them on communities.

I have for sale:

1. A spiffy Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince folder
2. The issue of the magazine "Actors Wave" that features Seto, Araki, Endou, Aiba, Kazuki, D-Boys Stage 3, Rookies, etc.
3. Three Tenipuri doujinshi: One MomoxRyoma, one FujixTaka, and one Golden Pair.

If any of those sounds like something you'd like to take off my hands, venture below for pictures and pricing. And don't let my grievous state of poverty influence your decision in any way. :P

FOR SALE:

1. Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince folder

Front:

Back:

Inside:

Good Points: Gorgeous pictures, Ginny being kick-ass, Luna on the front.
Bad Points: No Snape, and the plastic of the folder is a bit slippery, so you have to be careful not to whip it around too fast or the papers will slide out. :P

Price: I think I spent around 700 yen on this folder, though I can't remember. In any case, I'll let it go for $10, including shipping.

2. Actors Wave magazine

Front:

Shots from inside:

From Araki's spread.

From Aiba's spread.

From Endou's.

And from Endou's again, this time with a hideous jacket. :P

From the pages on D-Stage 3.

Still D-Stage.

Two pages on Rookies.

Kazuki.

There's also a really big spread for Seto, but I forgot to take any pictures of it; sorry. XD;;

This magazine cost me 1400 yen and is really high quality, I think--very good pictures, and lots of guys we (or, at least, I :P) know. I'd be willing to sell it for around $20, including shipping.

3. Finally, the three doujinshi.

First, the Golden Pair one.

This doujinshi is Eiji-centric, and features Eiji angsting a lot over Oishi, though in general the art is really nice and the doujinshi is quite thick. It shows a lot of scenes from their younger days, too, and most of the other regulars have at least a small part in it. A really good doujin, I think, though not particularly romantic.

Next, the Fuji x Taka doujinshi, which is actually called, "Kawamura Collection."

As the title says, it's a collection of short doujinshi stories featuring Fuji and Taka.

Good Points: There are many lovely fluffy moments of Fuji and Taka squishy-lovely love.
Bad Points: Some of the artists featured in the doujinshi have less talent than others. And, naturally, Fuji looks like a girl through most of it, but this is pretty much par for the course with FujixTaka doujin. :P

As an added bonus, however, this doujin also has some really wonderfully cracked out drawings of various manly characters from Tenipuri in drag. For example...Kabaji and Tezuka.

TERRIFYING.

Hehehe.

There's also one of Ryoma in a very frilly dress, and one of Akutsu in a slinky dress that is too horrifying to show here. :P

Finally, the Momo x Ryoma doujinshi.

This one, like the Golden Pair doujin, doesn't seem to be particularly romantic. And actually, the story itself is a little odd, as it seems to feature Ryoma taking care of little-boy-Momo. Despite this bizarre turn, the art is great and little-kid-Momo is freaking adorable. As are Ryoma's attempts to deal with him. :P

Anyway, as far as pricing goes for the doujin, I'm going to ask $10 for the FujixTaka or MomoxRyo, as they're thinner, and $15 for the Golden Pair one. ..........unless no one will pay that, in which case I'll come down a bit. :P

Anyway, pleaseplease let me know if you're interested in any of these--it'd really help me out. *_* As for payment, PayPal works for me; hopefully it does for you, too. :P

Yosh! And now bed. Early day tomorrow. *_*;

Oitoitoitoitoitoitoitoite.

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 07:41:21 GMT

If there is one person or more on your friends list who makes your world a better place just because they exist and who you would not have met without the internet, then post this same sentence in your journal.

Yeah, I know everyone's doing it, but it's very, very true. I've told this story probably too many times, but the fact of the matter is that I wouldn't be in Japan right now if it weren't for friends I met over the internet--I wouldn't have left my hometown to move to Chicago, I wouldn't have gotten into Tenimyu and thus met a ton of amazing people that way, and I might never have found the strength to get through some really, really tough times. I can't say it enough: Every one of you is amazing, and so, so important to me. I love you guys. ♥

In other news, some things:

1. I am moving! I actually made this decision about...a day after I said I was thinking about it. :P And then, of course, I completely forgot to mention it here. XD;; But yes, as of July 10th, I will no longer be a resident of a guesthouse! \(^O^)/ I've really come to feel like this place is home, but at the same time, there are manymany things here that make me insane, so I'm really looking forward to the move. I'm really going to miss Andrew and Karl, who are like brothers to me (and who I'm a bit worried about - who will chide Andrew for drinking too much? Who will make sure Karl eats something more than curry out of a pack from the 99 yen store??), and I'm also going to miss the river view and the fairly convenient location. But overall, I am really, really looking forward to moving. *_*

2. I mentioned to my Japanese teacher last week that I wanted to practice using casual Japanese (since I tend to use formal Japanese in all situations, regardless of appropriateness - -;), and today we did almost nothing but casual Japanese stuff, working from a very informative worksheet from Book 3 in the Japanese For Busy People series. And now, FINALLY, I understand something that I've seen a billion times but could never figure out before. *_*

So, if you have a -te form verb + "oku," it means to do the verb in preparation for something. For example, to say that you're going to study in preparation for something (an upcoming test, I'd assume :P), you can say "benkyou shite okimasu," or "benkyou shite oku" in plain form.

BUT. If you use the "te oku" form in casual conversation, you can shorten it to:

とく
TOKU.

So, 勉強しておく (benkyou shite oku) shortens to 勉強しとく (benkyou shitoku).

Fuuuuuurthermore, when you then have to conjugate this new word, "toku," it conjugates like this:

Te form: といて　(toite)
Ta form: といた (toita)

Furtherfurthermore, there's another word "oku" with a different meaning, namely the meaning of "put" or "place." For example, putting/placing an object on a table. （テーブルの上に置きました　teeburu no ue ni okimashita - I put [it] on the table.)

SO. If you use these two together, saying that you put something somewhere in preparation for something, it becomes:

置いておく　(oite oku)

Which THEN becomes:

置いとく (oitoku)

Or, in te form and written in hiragana: おいといて (oitoite)

Which is, of course, hella fun to say as well as being useful. :P

I've seen this before in blogs and things and had absolutely no clue as to what it meant. XDD;;; And now, several years later, at last I know. :P

Anyway, long explanation over. :P I have more to say, I think, but I'll end here to spare your f-lists. :P

Abe's birthday event...

Sun, 17 May 2009 13:01:24 GMT

Will write more about other stuff later, but:

Today was Abe's fan club only birthday event. His mom and grandma both attended, there was an impossibly large cake, and as the main event of the evening, they showed a clip show of baby and little kid pictures of Abe that his mom had contributed. XDDD

Abe, we soon learned, had never seen most of these pictures before. :P When the first one, the baby picture, came up, he kept saying, "EHHHHHHHH?? That's me?!!" and looking back at his mom for confirmation. :P She confirmed that it was indeed him, saying, "There's no mistake; it's you. You look like a girl, ne."

:P I like his mom a lot. XD

Abe as a baby was...very chubby, and with a LOT of very wild dark hair sticking up all over the place. XD As a two-year-old, he was still chubby, and had one of those horrible bowl cuts that are so popular on Japanese boys. We also saw pictures of him playing baseball in middle school, which he admitted that he quit after realizing that it wasn't very fun, and after which he started playing the oboe due to a general interest in music. XD (There was also a picture of him playing the oboe, incidentally. :P) The only picture where I could really recognize him was one where he was wearing this big T-shirt and doing a crazy pose with two friends--his hair looked a little lighter and was hanging around his face, and the expression on his face was totally Abe. Other than that, though, I'd never have guessed that it was him in the pictures if it hadn't...you know, been his birthday event and thus obvious that it was him. :P

At one point, when they showed a picture of chubby-child-Abe sprinting his little heart out at some school race, Abe made a comment like, "What a fine boy!" and stared proudly at the picture. :P He also had to ask his mom if he'd been a fast runner, and when she said he had, he echoed proudly, "I was fast! :D"

Anyway, after the slide show, we all played Jan Ken Pon against Abe. (I lost in the first round, by choosing paper--Abe also chose paper, so only the folks who picked scissors got to stay in the game. ...it took me a few seconds to realize this, and I probably looked like an idiot standing there endlessly with my hand stretched into "paper." :P) The woman who won got to go up on the little stage and sit next to Abe and share in his "sweet love," as the fan club president put it. :P The two of them shared a cocktail of some kind mixed by Abe himself, and before they drank it, Abe said something gushy and romantic to her, like, "All the work I did on Cyrano and in my music....I did it for youuuu. *intense gushy stare*"

Everyone laughed, and then the two of them drank. :P

Towards the end of the event, Abe gave bouquets of flowers to his mom and grandma and said some special words of thanks to them. His mom started crying XD, but his grandma just stood there like the sweet, tough old lady she is and listened to him saying these beautiful thankful things to her, then thanked everyone and stood there beaming at him with her bouquet in hand. It was a touching moment, and I have to say, I adore his grandma. <333 She's one of those very short, plump, sweet old ladies who you just want to hug. And since I was seated right next to her, I had to fight a very real urge to do just that. :P

Anyway, the event was really fun, though as usual, I was left feeling like I'd flubbed big time on manners throughout it. I just never know what I'm supposed to say in certain situations, like when we're on our way out--do I thank people? Do I tell them "otsukare?" And if they say "otsukare" to me, do I say it back? SOMETIMES I JUST DON'T KNOW. XDD;;; Also, I think I made a total of three sentences of conversation during the whole event, all of them extremely simple, like--"Demo oishii, ne," or "Himitsu da yo~!" or "Udon wa muzukashii desu." <--This last was regarding the difficulty of using chopsticks to eat udon. :P

Oh, and when I asked to buy two of Abe's CDs, I said "ni-satsu" instead of "ni-mai"--DAMNED COUNTERS. Basically, I said, "Two books/magazines, please! :D" instead of "Two CDs, please!" D'oh. >_< Abe was very nice about it, though, and kindly asked me if I wanted "futatsu," which is the general counter for two objects. XD;;

Anyway, though, despite not saying much (and screwing up some of what I did say), I think I understood a lot--more than last time, which was more than the time before, which was more than the time before. So maybe, just maybe, I'm actually improving. *__* Hurrah!

Anyway, though. I need to get to bed, as I have a Japanese lesson and kids classes tomorrow (blech), but I wanted to share some tidbits about the event before I lost them. The food, by the way, was delicious--sandwiches, sushi, yakiniku, salad, and of course gigantic slices of cake for everyone. And someone made special coasters for everyone's drinks that have Abe's name stitched onto them, so...I have that now as a nice keepsake. :P

Anyway, that's all for now. ^_~

In case anyone's interested...

Fri, 10 Apr 2009 10:14:33 GMT

In case anyone's interested, I've been playing around with a flashcard-making site to help me in my Japanese studies; I've made one for cooking terms vocab (with kanji as the flashcard, then hiragana and an English definition as the flip side of the card), as that's what chapter I'm on right now in my lessons. :P In the unlikely event that anyone else is interested in checking out the flashcards, doooooooouzo:

Flashcards - Japanese Cooking Terms

Just click "view," then choose to shuffle or not and have at 'em. You can click to repeat a card if you don't get it and want to review it (though the repeat sequencing is always the same, alas), and you can also click "Flip" to have the answer card show up first (e.g., the English translation and hiragana) with the kanji then as the hidden card. <--I suspect this explanation doesn't make sense. :P

It's a good site, in any case - it's free to sign up, and you can make custom flashcards for whatever you're studying, plus make them available to anyone else who might want to use them. /commercial

I wanted to add more to this batch, actually, but sadly my language bar decided to quit on me, so rather than wait and restart my computer, I just kind of...stopped. XD;; This is mostly a test run, anyway. :P

Yosh, back to studying~~~

PS: Here's the vocab in a handy list:

炊飯器 ------ すいはんき　rice cooker
おたま ------ おたま　ladle
なべ ------ なべ pot / pan
なべを火にかける ------ なべにひをかける　to put a pan on the stove
油を熱する ------ あぶらをねっする　to heat oil (in a pan)
煮る ------ にる　to cook in sauce / to simmer
ご飯をたく ------ ごはんをたく　to cook rice
ひっくり返す ------ ひっくりかえす　to turn over
混ぜる ------ まぜる　to mix
こげる ------ こげる　to burn
油で揚げる ------ あぶらであげる　to deep fry / to fry in oil
味をつける ------ あじをつける　to season
塩を加える ------ しおをくわえる　to add salt
味見をする　/ 味を見る ------ あじみをする　/ 　あじをみる　　to taste (to check flavor)
こしょうを振る ------ こしょうをふる　to sprinkle pepper
味が濃い ------ あじがこい　　"(It) has a strong flavor."
味が薄い ------ あじがうすい　"(It) has a weak flavor."
出来上がる ------ できあがる　to complete
出来上がり！ ------ できあがり　"It's finished!"
大さじ ------ おおさじ　tablespoon
小さじ ------ こさじ　teaspoon
包丁 ------ ほうちょう　kitchen knife
はかり ------ はかり　scale
調味料 ------ ちょうみりょう　seasoning
酢 ------ す　vinegar
酒 ------ さけ　rice wine
サラダ油 ------ さらだゆ　salad oil
皮をむく ------ かわをむく　　peel
材料を刻む ------ ざいりょうをきざむ　chop the ingredients
３センチ幅に切る ------ さんせんちはばにきる　cut into 3 cm. pieces
塩を少々入れる ------ しおをしょうしょういれる　to salt slightly
はかりで量る ------ はかりではかる　weigh on a scale
ラップをかぶせる / かける ------ らっぷをかぶせる / かける　cover with plastic wrap
ラップでくるむ ------ らっぷでくるむ　wrap with plastic wrap
フライ返し ------ ふらいかえし　spatula
フライパン ------ ふらいぱん　frying pan
しゃもじ ------ しゃもじ　rice paddle (rice spoon)
ふた ------ ふた　lid
いためる ------ いためる　to stir fry
蒸す ------ むす　to boil

Nothing terribly important.

Sat, 14 Mar 2009 23:39:41 GMT

So, apparently they're renaming the Sears Tower. It will now be called the "Willis Tower."

....

I can't even comment on this. :P Article on it here.

Important info from Mom...

Mon, 09 Feb 2009 23:46:26 GMT

Yikes. O_O Have you guys seen this video about how to put out kitchen grease fires? My mom, being ever diligent in making sure I know the dangers of the world :P, sent it to me, and MAN. I always knew that putting water on a grease fire wouldn't work to put it out, but I had no idea that doing so could make the fire so much worse. Like...fireball level worse. o_o

For those who don't feel like watching the video (though definitely watch it if you can, I say), the steps they suggest to put out a kitchen grease fire: First, turn off the burner. Then, soak a dish towel in water, wring it out, and then flop it over the pot or pan to cover it completely. (I assume what this does is prevent the towel from catching fire while it takes the oxygen away from the flames. ....but I have no idea, really. :P) Then: Wait until the pot or pan is cool before touching it or moving it.

..............this has been a public service announcement. :P

A quick post to say...

Mon, 09 Feb 2009 13:54:14 GMT

If you can afford to, please donate a bit to the Australian Red Cross to help survivors of the bushfires. Any little bit helps. Thanks to Lil for the link. ♥

Titanic: The Musical - review

Mon, 09 Feb 2009 03:06:45 GMT

Yesterday afternoon, I went to the 12:30 showing of Titanic: The Musical. I wasn't sure I'd be able to get a ticket, actually, because I waited until Wednesday to try for one (XD;;;;), but with a lot of luck and a long time spent with a Lawson machine, I finally managed to snag one for Sunday. \^O^/ I paid full price, hoping to get a good seat, and ended up on the second floor--but as it turned out, that WAS a good seat, as I was in one of the front second row seats, along the left side of the theater and right in front of the stage. *_*

Anyway, venture below for my rambling review about the musical, Kime's romantic escapades with women, and a surprise encounter after the show with A Dark and Mysterious Gentleman In A Face Mask...! /drama :P

So. The show was held at the Tokyo International Forum (Hall-C), a classy (and gigantic) building very close to JR Yurakucho Station. I arrived a little early, since I wasn't sure if I'd be able to find the place, but it turned out that there were big signs everywhere, so...yeah. Not so difficult, as it turned out. :P

Thus, since I was so early, I ventured into the B1 level underneath the building to have some lunch, and ended up at a classy cafeteria-style place, but...well, no one's interested in that, so let's move on. :P

When I went back up to the theater, they had just started letting people inside, so in I went~~~! We had to go up a bunch of escalators, and then there was an upper lobby where they were selling programs and various bits of actor merchandise. There was a Kime table, of course, and after contemplating my diminishing wallet size for a moment, I finally caved and picked up the special, limited edition copy of "Shi Ru Be," since it has one song that isn't on the iTunes version. :P AND IT WAS WORTH IT, so I have no regrets. :P

Anyway. After that, I grabbed a program for 2000 yen and settled in to wait until they let us start filtering in to our seats--but almost immediately after I selected a portion of the wall to be my Hanging Out and Waiting spot, the staff started announcing that we could proceed upstairs and go to our seats. :P

SO. Off I went. I had to ask one of the staff ladies for help finding my seat--or my floor, actually :P--since when I got up to the first floor, there was a sign pointing upward saying, "To the 3rd floor," but no mention of the 2nd, so I wasn't sure which floor I was on, and..........................this is not an interesting story, so let's move on. XDD;;

The set was pretty nifty--they had two sets of stairs on both sides and an elevated walkway in the back, with a sort of ship's crow's nest behind it with a place where the lookout man could stand. The walls of the set were decorated to look like the hull of a ship, though all rusted and old. There was also a big banner hanging down that said, "WHITE STAR LINE," which I believe was the name of the ship company, and in the beginning, was supposed to be the exterior of the sunken Titanic.

(Kime posted a picture of the set [minus the banner] on his blog here, if anyone's interested / hasn't seen it yet. ^_~)

Anyway. After a short wait, at last the show began~~~!!!

Here's a basic outline of the show:

ACT I:

1. Andrews (who I think was one of the designers of the ship, but I'm not positive on that :P) sings a Very Dramatic Song about the tragedy of the Titanic, with much dramatic gesturing and flourishing of the Titanic blueprints, while the Lighting Crew does a spiffy underwater effect.

My Thoughts: Man, that guy can sing. *__*
His name is Matsuoka Mitsuru, and I know nothing about him except that (a) he's very pretty, (b) he's got an amazing voice, and (c) he was billed as the main character of the show despite not really being in it much. :P

2. Everyone in the cast comes on stage bit by bit to admire the Titanic and sing about how wonderful it is, with lots of staring up at the invisible ship and grinning and exclaiming and waving their arms around.

My Thoughts: TEEHEE. Kime looks adorable in that little outfit. XD

3. Everyone boards the Titanic, separated by class, and one guy misses the boat and is upset.

My Thoughts: TEEHEE. Kime looks adorable in that little outfit. XDDDD
My OTHER Thoughts: The costumes for the cast were really gorgeous and colorful; when all the passengers lined up on the steps and the walkway to sing the final notes of the big Woo, We're Off On the Titanic song, it looked amazing. *_* And everyone in the cast had such an amazing voice--listening to them all singing together was really spectacular, and if this tells you anything, I couldn't even hear Kime during most of the group numbers, because everyone else's voice was at least as strong as his. Amaaaazzzzinggg.

And he looked way cute in his little outfit. :P

4. The captain and crew steer the Titanic off on its way to New York. Ismay, the director of White Star Line ~~with a weasly mustache~~, keeps needling the captain to make the ship go faster so he can get to New York faster. The captain agrees, and Barrett, an awesome guy down in the engine room, sings a song about what a stupid idea this is. :P

My Thoughts: Oooh, Barrett is cool. *__* Where's Kime??

At this point in the musical, I was a bit bored, to be honest. :P No Kime, a weasly mustache guy, and nothing but boring nautical Japanese. :P But Barrett, as previously mentioned, was quite cool, a tough former coal-miner with a great singing voice and a spiffy, rolled-up-sleeves outfit that made him look even tougher and cooler. YAY. :P (Edit: There's a shot of him and Kime together here on Kime's blog.)

5. The first class passengers dine. A lot. And Ismay continues to be weasly and to have a mustache. And to ask the captain to go faster.

My Thoughts: WHERE THE HELL IS KIME.

Man, the first class passengers bored the crap out of me. :P I spent a lot of time during this scene wondering where Kime was, hating the mustache guy, and wondering if the rest of the show was going to be as dull as this. :P

6. The third class passengers sing about their hopes and dreams and are generally a billion times cooler than everyone else on the ship (except Barrett).

My Thoughts:
YAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY Kime. :D

This scene pretty much made up for everything before it. The third class passengers were truly awesome, from Kime in his little tweed jacket and newsboy cap and breeches, to his love interest, Kate, who was a fiery red-head with big dreams and a powerful singing voice. Kime didn't sing much during this song (I think he only had one singing line, actually), but he had a few spoken lines and got to interact with Kate and the others, and I really enjoyed watching him. XD

In Pippin and Tenimyu, Kime's movements were very graceful and feminine, but in this, his movements and mannerisms were much more boyish and borderline manly. O_O Too bad he's so short and pretty, or he would've totally pulled it off. :P

6. Character development from all the different classes and passengers--Barrett sends a telegram to his sweetheart back in England, various passengers interact, and the lookout sings about the fact that it's a dark, moonless night.

In this section, too, we see Kate and Jim (Kime) having a conversation about getting married, during which time Kate reveals that she's pregnant with Jim's child! :O :O :O They have a little bit of friction here, but in the end, Kate drops onto bended knee and proposes to Jim, who freaks out at first at the prospect of a woman proposing to a man, but finally says, "OKAY! Let's get married :D" She asks him for a kiss to seal the deal, he plays around a bit with refusing her, and then they make out passionately and roll all over the stage.

My Thoughts: HOLY CRAP, KIME JUST MADE OUT WITH A GIRL.
My Other Thoughts: ...................O______________O A GIRL!!!!!!!!! :O :O

But, no seriously. :P Kime's acting in this scene was really good--I totally believed him and Kate as a couple, and while the rolling around kissing thing was a bit of a shock for me at first, there was chemistry between the two of them, and both of them did a great job with making me believe that they were two people in love. Well done, both.

7. ICEBERG!!!!!!!!! The lookout spots the iceberg and there's a dramatic finale, wherein the passengers don't know what's going on, Jim and Kate are snuggling, the men are playing poker (and smoking actual cigarettes, which irritated me since they stank :P), and the lighting folks are doing some awesome stuff with the lights while the orchestra strikes a chilling, dramatic note--and the lights go out.

My Thoughts: OOOH. *_*

This last part seriously gave me shivers--it was beautifully done, what with the music and the juxtaposition of the lookout sounding the alarm and the happy people wrapped up in their own problems and lives, not knowing that something terrible had just happened.

After this was intermission, during which time I got lost on the way to the bathroom, then finally found it and eventually got back to my seat. :P

ACT II:

1. The staff goes around waking the first and second class passengers up and telling them to go to the Grand Salon, all the while assuring them that nothing is wrong, everything's cool, but...you know, please grab a life jacket on your way, hehe... :D;;;

2. While the first class passengers sing a to-ho-ho sort of song about being in the grand salon in their pajamas, the third class passengers are kept below decks and not allowed to come up. The men and the women are separated, during which time Jim and Kate spend a lot of time shouting each other's names and trying to find each other. (E.g., "Jimu!" "Keito!" "JIMUUU!!" "KEITOOOO!!") Jim tries to force his way past the staff guy on guard over the third class passengers, demanding to know what's going on, but they won't let him through. Eventually, someone notices that water is seeping into the ship, and Jim and Barrett band together to find a way for the third class passengers to escape.

3. By this point, everyone realizes that something seriously bad is going down. The first and second class passengers are led to the lifeboats, though since there are so few, families and couples are split up--women and children and a few important (or old) men are put into the lifeboat line, while others are kept back. One of the women decides to stay behind to be with her husband, and a mother and father say goodbye to their little boy, promising to meet up with him afterwards (even though it's clear that this won't happen).

4. The third class passengers, led by Jim and Barret, burst on deck through an alternate entrance, and Jim begs that Kate be allowed to go on the lifeboats. Barrett, who apparently had a spot in the lifeboats himself, gives up his seat so Jim can go with her. Kate's two friends, also named Kate (they called themselves The Three Kates after they met), try to fight their way onto the lifeboats, too, but are held back. Jim, Kate, a dazed Ismay, and some of the women, children, and elderly go into the lifeboat and are lowered into the water, while the others watch.

My Thoughts: Okay, I will be honest. I bawled like a BABY during this scene. XD;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; It was beautifully, agonizingly acted, and the music was perfect for the mood of the scene--desperate and sad and really, really fitting. I cried during the whole thing. XD;;;;

5. The remaining passengers of the Titanic wander around, enjoy cigars or alcohol, and generally make peace with themselves and their lives.

6. The Titanic goes down. The set actually moved during this scene, so the front end of the ship tipped up and people had to hang on or go sliding down. In the end, when the ship sank completely, there was a flash of lighting effects like water and a high, desperate note of a woman singing that turned into a scream and then...faded out.

My Thoughts: WOW.

This was amazingly done. I'd been wondering how they could possibly bring across the horror of a ship going down in a stage production, but they did a great job. I barely breathed during this segment.

7. The survivors walk onstage wearing blankets that say "CARPATHIA," the name of the ship that rescued them. They talk about many things I couldn't understand, presumably those who survived and those who didn't, and in the end, there's a big song that involves Andrews coming back and walking around in a ghostly way while holding a model of the Titanic. :P For the very, very end, the dead passengers--clad in their best clothes from the start of the musical--come out behind the survivors, and everyone sings a reprisal of the first act song, "Godspeed Titanic."

My Thoughts: WOWWWWWWWWW. *___*

This was a brilliant ending--very powerful, with the survivors in front and the dead in the back. No surprise whatsoever that the audience gave it a standing ovation and clapped so much that the cast had to come out three times to bow before the theater lights finally came back up.

Really, I loved this musical. Kime was fantastic, and EVERYONE was fantastic. Some scenes bored me a bit towards the start, but overall it was a brilliant show done by amazingly talented people. I really, really enjoyed it. <333

And now, finally, for one last tale from the musical:

After the lights finally came up, I gathered up my stuff and made my ambling way out of the theater. Because there was a staff lady blocking my way out through the way I'd come in, I went out through a different entrance, down instead of up. As I was shuffling my way through the crowd on my way towards the escalators, I suddenly heard a familiar-sounding voice from just beside me.

There was a guy standing there, tall, with dark hair, a face mask, and a black skull cap. He was talking to a young woman, who was giggling and spazzing out as she said goodbye to him. I was in the middle of thinking this was really cute.......when I realized that HOLY CRAP, I KNEW HIM.

It was Naoya. *___________________*

I couldn't help staring at him for a few seconds to make SURE it was him, and while I was doing so, he caught me looking and met my eyes. I tilted my head and gave him a questioning, "Are you...??" smile, and he looked a little embarrassed, but finally gave me a quick, "Yes, yes I am XD;;;" nod. I couldn't help grinning at him at that, but I left without saying anything so as not to bother him.

Afterwards, I kind of wondered if it was REALLY REALLY him, if I hadn't just made some weird mistake, but nope--he posted a picture of himself and Kime on his blog just after that, and he was wearing the same clothing and, of course, looked the same (minus the face mask). It was really him. XD

So yeah, that pretty much made my year, as you might imagine. *___*

ANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNND this has taken a long time to type out and I have to eat and get ready for work, so I'll leave off here. I'll post some pictures from the program later, but for now...that's all! *dashes*

Fri, 28 Nov 2008 11:02:15 GMT

This has absolutely nothing to do with Thanksgiving, except that I often used to watch Star Trek: TNG and/or Star Wars on Thanksgiving. :P

Happy Thanksgiving. <3 Late, but...still. :P

Anxiety and Depression Guide, Take II.

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 09:32:00 GMT

So, I don't claim to be an expert on anxiety, depression, or panic attacks. I've suffered from all three, sometimes pretty severely, over the course of the last few years, and since I know that at least a few of you are battling through one or all of these things now, I wanted to make a list (similar to one I made a few years ago, actually) of things that might help. Things you can do to feel better sooner rather than later. If it helps even one person, it's totally worth posting, I think.

Those who this doesn't apply to, of course, you can just ignore all of this. <--I know, you never would've thought of that if I hadn't mentioned it. :P

What To Do

Okay, so you're depressed, and/or you're having anxiety attacks. It can feel really overwhelming and scary, and the worst thing of all is the deep fear that it will never change, it will never get better, and you'll be stuck feeling this way forever.

But, you know what?

That's not true.

You WILL get past it, you WILL feel happy again, and here are some tips to help get you on your way.

Stuff To Try:

1. Try doing little bursts of exercise every half hour or so. Maybe 100 jumping jacks or running in place for two or three minutes. Don't overdo it--it's just meant to get your heart rate up and your endorphins pumping, and to settle your breathing if it's gone a little off with anxiety.

2. Do something constructive, like cleaning or completing a task or making something--food, a story, a drawing, a craft, whatever works or whatever you can do and enjoy.

3. Write out how you feel. Purging your emotions like this can really help.

4. If you're having a panic attack or recovering from one, try doing something that requires a lot of focus and steadies your mind and breathing, like an online game. Make sure it's something that requires you to focus, and not something totally mindless. This is a good site for playing old Nintendo games, or there's always Bored.com or something for a ton of games and things you can try.

5. Eat something healthy or rich in protein. It can help. That said, be careful not to OVEReat, as that can make you feel even worse.

6. Don't stay in the same place or the same room. Sometimes a change of scenery can be really helpful in helping to change your mood.

7. Make yourself feel comfortable and safe however you can. Wrap yourself up in a blanket, have a cup of (non-caffeinated) tea or some soup, turn on a show or movie that usually makes you smile, take a hot bath, curl up with a stuffed animal or a pet, put on fuzzy socks, WHATEVER. Pamper yourself however you can.

8. Smile at yourself in the mirror. It sounds silly, but the mere act of pulling your face into a smile can actually help you feel a bit better. Laughing at yourself is even better, but not always possible in this kind of mindstate. XD;

9. Talk to yourself. Think about this: If you were talking to a close friend who was feeling how you are now, what would you say to him/her? How would you comfort him or make her feel better? You can use that for yourself--say it out loud like you were talking to a friend, and mean it when you say it.

10. See a doctor. Anti-depressants are nothing to be scared of, and they can really, really help.

11. Give a mild mood lifter like St. John's Wort a try. It's available in tea form if you don't like taking pills.

12. Do research. Google "depression" or "anxiety" or "panic attacks" and see what others have to say, what advice or suggestions they can offer. You might find something helpful, and even if you don't, feeling like you're facing down what's wrong is a good feeling and can help you feel more positive and pro-active.

13. Talk about it to someone you trust or someone who's been there, like...ohhh, I don't know, ME. :P

14. Sing. It can be surprisingly handy in lifting your spirits. Avoid sad or depressing songs, though, obviously. :P

15. Listen to music that really reaches you emotionally and makes you feel stronger.

16. Avoid the urge to hermit yourself. Don't be alone if you can help it.

17. Try some yoga poses, if you're limber enough. They take concentration and balance and can be good for steadying your mind and body. My favorite is the tree pose.

Finally, two more things:

1. Never forget that this is NOT forever, you will NOT always feel this way, and it IS in your power to break free of this. It just takes time, and trying out different things to see what works best for you.

2. Every time you live through a bout of depression or anxiety, you come out of it stronger than you were before. Never forget that. The mere act of living with feelings like these takes an immense amount of strength, and you can take pride in that strength and use it to find a way out of this. You're stronger than you think.

Anyone got any other things that work? Please, by all means, comment with your own ideas to add to the list--it might help someone out. ♥

Prop 8.

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 01:06:23 GMT

If I can put on my Serious Hat for a moment, here...

After the terrible news about Proposition 8 from California, I've been thinking about this song a lot.

Vienna Teng, City Hall. (lyrics)

"If they take it away again someday, this beautiful thing won't change."

I have to believe that someday we'll be past this. I mean, really, in times like these when men and women get married at the drop of a hat and get divorced again just as quickly, when marriage doesn't seem to mean a damned thing at all...there's this group of people that wants nothing more than to just have the opportunity to marry if they want, and to be recognized as people who love each other in the eyes of the law and the community.

Prejudice is so deeply rooted, and so murky in its causes to begin with, especially in this issue. Values like this are passed down from person to person, parent to child, friend to friend, until finally people don't know anymore why they think that same-sex relationships are wrong, they just do.

But. I know that gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered people all over, but especially in California, will keep fighting for these basic rights, because it's the right thing to do, and really the only thing to do. And I really, really truly believe that there's no way we can fail in the end. It's just going to take some time, and faith, and the unwillingness to give up that's brought about all the really good changes to the world so far.

<3

Stuff and stuff.

Mon, 03 Nov 2008 13:22:37 GMT

Today's room cleaning was a success! \^o^/

Am currently downstairs, enjoying my new laptop and the wireless net connection while the guys drink beer and watch Wall-E. This makes for a slight change from the usual testosterone-charged movies they usually watch together, I have to say. :P

In other news, I made Chinese food tonight, and it was not so good. :P I randomly chose one of the sauce packets available in the grocery store, and alas, it turned out to be less than great. The gyouza was good, at least. :P

Also, Andrew and J went to CostCo today and Andrew brought me back a gigantic cheese pizza, which I'm going to be eating perhaps for the rest of my life. XD It's delicious, though, so I can't say I mind. *_*

I'm a little bored and should probably do something constructive, but instead I'll organize my folders and listen to Wall-E. :P

In other news, I was copying files onto my laptop today and happened across this picture of Yoshi being a fuzzy-sleepy gentleman. Man, I miss the kitties. ;_;

I'd rather have my laptop, plz.

Tue, 28 Oct 2008 00:58:15 GMT

So.

The doorbell just rang, and thinking it was my laptop arriving, I dashed off to answer it........

And was confronted with two older Japanese ladies who wanted to talk to me about becoming a Jehovah's Witness.

....what. XDD;

Actually, as was evident by their panic and shock when they saw me and my glowing gaijin-ness, they wanted to talk to a Japanese person about becoming a Jehovah's Witness, but...even so, they spoke in some broken English to me, while I pretended to understand no Japanese so they would perhaps give up and go away. :P

At one point, the lady speaking took a hopeful glance beyond my shoulder into the rest of the house and said, "Any Japanese people living here?"

Me: Nope! :D

Her: ...ah. ^_^;

After a minute or so, they did finally give up, but then as they were leaving, the one woman said that her friend who speaks very good English could come back and talk to me if I wanted. :P

Me: Nonononono, thaaat's okay. XD;;;

And she nodded in understanding and left, because Jehovah's Witness or not, she was still a Japanese lady not wishing to intrude. Huzzah. :P

That was a first for me in Japan, I have to say. :P

Book + Kime style.

Fri, 24 Oct 2008 21:43:09 GMT

Just fixed the link to Talking About Fungus on my profile page. It seems T. Press changed their web site around again, making my link to the purchase-my-novel-you-know-you-want-to page lead to nowhere yet again :P, but it is fixed now, so anyone wishing to celebrate my upcoming birthday by throwing money in my direction in exchange for a fluffy gay love story, please feel free to do so. :D ←subtle

Speaking of that... ;_;

People are still buying my book. <3 It's been gradually decreasing as the months go by, but even though it was published in May, I'm still getting checks from the publisher every quarter, and that's pretty great, I think. <3 Maybe I should take a hint and get back to work on the book I'm working on now, but I just haven't had time / inclination lately. Plus, there's that whole computer-exploded thing. :P

ANYWAY.

This went off on a tangent I didn't intend to go on. :P

What I really wanted to say was...thanks for putting up with my week of blogging like Kime. <3 Even though it sounds a little silly, it was actually a really great experience for me, and it's kind of amazing what something so small nevertheless was able to do for my mental state. I felt really good last week while I was writing, and so I really want to continue...but I don't think it's fair to do so here, where there are in fact those who did not sign up for this whole Talking Like A Blog Translation + Using A Billion Exclamation Points thing. :P

Thus, I've made a place for where I can write in Kime style.

And because I'm incredibly creative, it is called... kimestyle. :P

If you'd like to friend it, please be my guest. m(__)m If not...I won't blame you. :P

Nothing there as of yet, just a layout and explanatory profile page, but sometime in the near future I should be starting with posting entries. So, if you like that sort of thing, look forward to it~! And if you don't, well, don't. :P

And now, to dash to work. *dash*

[kse 11]

Tue, 21 Oct 2008 01:36:19 GMT

2008/10/21 | 10:36 AM

Frustrating!!!!（＞＜） Part II

Even though this entry is kind of boring, please try to pay attention to it, ne (grin)

＜PayPal＞
This morning, I was able to safely complete verifying my credit card account to Paypal!!!! ｷﾗｷﾗ

I was really happy v

Now that there's a credit card on my account, I can freely send money!!

Paypal's not so bad, naa～♪ I thought.

And then...

!?

I tried to send some money, and realized that for some reason, PayPal won't let me send money from my Japanese bank account. Only from my credit card.

Since that credit card is from the US, I have to pay for the credit card balance from my US bank account.

That's a problem because......

The reason I wanted to use PayPal was so I could put money into my US bank account!!!!! (roar of laughter)

Iya, it seems I'm trapped in a terrible circle, ne.
The only solution seems to be to get a Japanese credit card, but I've heard that it's really difficult to get one if you're a foreigner（＞＜）

I'll do my best!!
Maybe my sleeping brain will think of a solution tonight (grin)

But ne, PayPal really isn't very friendly to people trying to use it from Japan (sweat)

Every time I try to use it from here, something terrible happens and I get really frustrated and feel angry. It should be simple, but it never is (sweat) It's like they're doing it on purpose, ne!!!

Could it be....

!!!

Maybe PayPal is run by that Sushiya-san who hates foreigners?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!(゜-゜) (shock!!) (terror!!)

Probably not, ne (grin) ←idiot

Paypal staff-san-tachi, please think more about the foreigners in Japan. m(__)m You're making us all really angry and frustrated for no reason (grin)

＜100% complete recovery!!!＞
Today, I'm feeling completely better!!!! ultra-ｷﾗｷﾗ

So, today I'm going to go outside and do things instead of staying inside all day and watching TV. Even though there are cute animals on TV (grin), there are cute animals outside, too, ne!! So, I'll go out and find them (grin)

Also, I'll try to study some Japanese (sweat)

Lately I've really been feeling like my Japanese is really bad (tear)
Even though I know lots of grammar and can translate things, speaking and listening is really difficult for me.
It's terrible, ne.

So, I'll go drink milk tea in a cafe and study hard!!!!＼(´Д｀)／

Milk tea is really delicious, naa～♪ (grin)

＜Countdown, START!!＞
Somehow, it's only 7 days until my birthday.
I seem to have reached the age where I'm not so happy to be gaining another year (grin), but I'll still try to celebrate, ne (grin)

Actually, what I really want to do for my birthday is go to an onsen with my friends (*_*)
But since everyone's schedules are really busy and different, it might be awhile before we can all decide on a good day, ne.

Maa, even if I celebrate my birthday with a December visit to an onsen, I'll still be happy (grin)

[kse 10]

Mon, 20 Oct 2008 14:54:20 GMT

2008/10/20 | 11:54 PM

Sick（＞＜）

Today's lunch was homemade beef stew!!!

It was delicious～♪

But since I got sick shortly after I ate it, maybe it wasn't so good, ne (grin) ←Eh!?

Haai, it seems my stomach didn't like something I ate today, and so I felt really sick for awhile （＞＜）
Actually, I still feel sick, but I think it's a little better than it was earlier v

Because I felt so sick, I couldn't do much today. I couldn't even go to work!!(ノ´Д｀)ノ

So I laid on the couch and watched lots of TV (grin)

There are lots of interesting shows on Japanese TV, ne.

I watched a show about Cambodia, and a show about baby tigers - they were really cute!!＼(´Д｀)／
Even though I know they're really dangerous, I still wanted to go meet them and play with them (grin) They looked so fluffy and soft! (tear) ←hopeless

I also watched a show about a tomato-eating contest in Hokkaido!! ←what kind of show was that?!

But since all they were doing was eating tomatoes, it was kind of boring, so I changed the channel quickly♪ (grin)

And then I watched Columbo and was able to solve a really mysterious murder!!

It was a busy afternoon (grin)

Because the guesthouse TV gets satellite channels, there's a big selection if you want to watch TV. Because of that, I was also able to watch Lilo & Stitch: The Series and SpongeBob today, which are two of my favorite shows!!!! ultra-ｷﾗｷﾗ

Since I'm usually not home when they're on TV, I was super happy to be able to watch them v

Even if it was fun watching TV, I hope I feel better by tomorrow, ne (sweat)
I know it's best to recover quietly, but I don't like staying inside all day（＞＜）I'm happier when I can go out and do something.

Like go to a restaurant and eat delicious food!♪ｷﾗｷﾗ ←punch

Even when I'm sick, I still think too much about food, ne (grin)

＜Kime＞
Today, while I was recovering, I spent some time reading Kime's blog v

Kime's really amazing, naa～

Even when bad things happen, somehow he's able to change them into funny stories and laugh at them. And at himself, ne. I think that's a really amazing talent v

My week of blogging like Kime is almost up.
And actually, thanks to the power of Kime's unique style of writing, I've felt really good this week☆

For one week, I was able to borrow Kime's special talent, and suddenly bad things became funny stories, and I could smile at them instead of feeling bad, ne.

I'm really grateful for that♪

Iya, and because it's helped me so much, I'm thinking that maybe I want to keep doing it, ne. If it's not too strange (grin), I might make a special blog just for writing in Kime-style v

Everyone, what do you think? Is it too strange?? (grin)

Even if it is, I might do it anyway♪
Because even if someone thinks I'm silly and makes fun of me, if I'm able to laugh at it and make it into a story, then it doesn't matter at all, ne v

That's a really good way to live, I think v ｷﾗｷﾗ

キメさん、本当にありがとう m(__)m

[kse 9]

Sun, 19 Oct 2008 13:49:38 GMT

2008/10/19 | 10:49 PM

Halloween

It's nearly Halloween, ne♪

Everyone, will you eat lots of candy???
If you do, make sure to brush your teeth afterwards, ne! It's really important if you want your teeth to stay kira-kira!! (grin)

When I was a kid, I really loved Halloween v
Maybe because it was so close to my birthday ｷﾗｷﾗ

Of course, I also really loved receiving candy!
I loved eating it more, though, ne (grin)

This year, even though I didn't go trick-or-treating, I was able to receive lots of candy♪ｷﾗｷﾗ ←Early!!

Actually, Hannah-chan (akahannah) came over to visit today, and she kindly brought a big bag of candy with her v

『 I don't like any of this candy, so please have it v 』

was what she very kindly said (grin)

Some of the candy was really interesting.

The outside said 『Pumpkins & Witches Warts』 so I really wondered what kind of candy might be inside.

Pumpkin-flavored?

Or.... (sweat)

Wart-flavored??! ←I wonder what kind of taste that would be @_@

Wanting very badly to know, I opened the wrapper, and.............

!!!

It was a shortbread cookie shaped like a pretzel!!!! (shock!!)

Somehow, I felt really let down (grin)

But even if it was strange, it was still delicious♪
Because I really like shortbread, ne v (grin)

＜Shrine＞
Today, Hannah-chan, Becca-B (umbrellaofdoom), and I went on a long journey to visit a very holy shrine v

Iya, maybe it's the holiest shrine in Japan!!!!!!

I wonder if you've ever been there?

We stayed there for a long time, and offered our prayers to the kami v

I prayed to be sparklier (grin) ←punch

When we were finished, we bowed very deeply and left the shrine. It felt very holy and peaceful there, and we all were really impressed by the power of the kami.
He's really beautiful, naa～＼(´Д｀)／

Everyone, definitely visit this shrine if you can!!!!
The kami will surely answer your prayers v ｷﾗｷﾗ

[kse 8]

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 14:18:02 GMT

2008/10/17 | 11:17 PM

Secret

Today, I took a break from eating healthy and ate some katsudon v

Uwaa, it was delicious～♪

Since I go to that particular shop a lot, the ladies who work there all know me. They're always very kind, and tell me that I use chopsticks really well (grin)

It's nice to be around people who are kind, ne.

Recently I've been feeling like lots of people around me are being unkind, so meeting such kind and wonderful ladies was really refreshing.

To the always-kind shop ladies, thank you very much♪ m(__)m

After I ate katsudon, I went to Ueno to buy some things v
Actually, the number one thing I needed to buy was..................

Underwear!!!!!!!!! ｷﾗｷﾗ ←Why kira-kira??

Since I'm a really cheap person, I used to always buy my underwear in five-packs at Wal-Mart (grin)
But in Japan, it's really difficult to find normal underwear like that. It seems that Japanese girls like really decorative underwear for some reason.

For me, though, it's kind of a strange feeling to have big flowers stuck to my underwear, so I don't like most of the underwear I see in shops (grin)

So, in search of normal underwear, I went to a shopping center in Ueno called AbAb☆

Unfortunately, I couldn't find any, but it turned out that they were having a sale on business pants and things. Since I need new work clothes, I decided to try some on v

But..........（＞＜）

None of the pants fit me because of ________. ←Secret

The legs of the pants fit fine v

But.............

The truth is....................

My butt is too big!!! (tear)←The secret's revealed, ne.

It's true.
Because I have a butt, I can't wear any pants from Japanese stores.

Iya, but I like having a butt, so I can't complain too much (grin)

Still, it'd be nice if I could buy pants, ne.
Maybe someday, I'll find pants here that fit me!!

I'll look forward to that day v

＜Karaoke＞
Tonight, for the first time in a long time, I went and did karaoke v

Even though I was by myself, it was really fun♪
I sang really loudly and with all my might v
Probably the people in the rooms nearby got angry, but I had fun, so I didn't care (grin) ←selfish

Because I had my camera with me, I was able to take some videos v

I made lots of mistakes, ne (grin)
Of course, they're both Kime songs v
I should probably try singing other songs, but I like his songs too much v

By the way, after karaoke, I bought some underwear at the 100 yen shop (grin)

Victory!!! \(^O^)/

[kse 7] - Cut for pictures and length v

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 04:54:27 GMT

2008/10/17 | 1:54 PM

Frustrating!!（＞＜）

＜Kime＞

Kime's really beautiful, naa～♪

The truth is, I really wish I could be as beautiful as him (tear)
Even though I'll always be less beautiful than Kime, I'll keep doing my best every day v (grin)

＜Frustrating!!（＞＜）＞

It seems that my sleeping brain was working hard again v
When I woke up this morning, I suddenly realized a solution to a problem I've had for awhile!

Because some friends in the US send me my medication every month, I need to repay them for the cost of the medicine and the shipping. But transferring money from my Japanese bank account is really expensive and difficult, so it's been a big problem（＞＜）

But!! If I make a PayPal account for my Japanese bank account, I can transfer money to my US account quickly and easily using the internet!! ultra-ｷﾗｷﾗ

So, I set to work on that this morning v

But..................

It was unexpectedly really difficult and frustrating (sweat)

It seems that even though I want to use my bank account, I have to register a credit card, too. I have a few credit cards that I could use, but........

The billing addresses are all in the US（＞＜）

It seems that PayPal won't allow a billing address from a different country, so I need a Japanese credit card to set up my account.

I went to the Japan Mastercard web site right away, but since it was all in Japanese, it was a little difficult to find my way (sweat)

Finally, I discovered the right page!!

But.........................

Eh?! The "continue" button was missing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!（＞＜）

Because there was no continue button to click, even though I'd filled in all my information, I couldn't submit my application (roar of laughter)

It was really frustrating, but also pretty funny (grin)
Iya, maybe I'm just not meant to do things simply, ne v

But, since I read on a forum that maybe I could put in my US billing address even though the country was "Japan," I tried doing that on PayPal.

We'll see if it works...... (sweat)

Until then, my sleeping brain will do its best at thinking of more solutions to my problems♪

＜Presents＞
Yesterday, I received a package in the mail from Jamie-chan (analineblue) ｷﾗｷﾗ

Because I wrote to her asking for Emergen-C, she was kind enough to send me some v
Actually, I brought lots of Emergen-C with me to Japan, but because of the humidity, it all turned to paste (sweat)

I'll keep it in the refrigerator from now on, ne (grin)

Iya, but instead of just sending me Emergen-C, Jamie also sent me........

Lots of incredibly cute office supplies!!!!!!!!!!!!!

They're super cute, naa (*_*)
There are stars, hearts, and even some music notes v
I really love them!!!

Jamie-chan, thank you for sending them!!!!♪ｷﾗｷﾗ

＜Today＞
Today, because it's my day off, I ended up sleeping in until 11♪
Ahhh, it felt really good v
But now the day's half gone, and tomorrow's another long day at work (tear)

Since I used up so much of the day sleeping, I'll do my best not to waste the rest of the day, even though it's difficult. On my days off, I just want to be lazy sometimes, ne (grin)

But instead of being lazy, I'll go out and study!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ←ultra-determination!!

Probably lots of strange things will happen to me, so look forward to hearing about them in my next post v
I really can't do anything simply (grin)

[kse 6]

Thu, 16 Oct 2008 14:53:28 GMT

2008/10/16 | 11:53 PM

Finished☆

My long day of teaching finished safely!☆
To everyone who came to my classes and didn't mind that I was a little tired, thank you (grin)

Iyaaa, it's really difficult to teach when you're tired, ne. But by the end of the day, somehow, I had become really energetic and high-spirited, and was able to teach without problems v

But now that I'm home, of course, I'm really tired again (grin)

＜Phone problems＞
Recently, I've had a lot of problems with my phone mailbox getting full (sweat)
Because I don't like to delete messages from friends, my mailbox gets fuller...and fuller.......and fuller (sweat), until finally I can't receive any messages at all（＞＜）
It's really bad, ne.

Even though it would be easy to delete my messages, somehow I can't.
It's because I start remembering things and feeling sentimental, and I think that I definitely can't delete any of these precious memories of good conversations with my friends!!!! (tear)

Even if they're just short and silly messages, they make me smile and remember good times, so I keep them on my phone☆

It's really a problem, ne.
But if my phone mailbox has to be full, I'm glad it's full of happy memories♪

But I really should delete some mails soon (grin)

＜In the dark......!＞
Today, I taught at our out-service☆
Actually, it was really fun♪ Everyone in my class was really energetic and seemed happy to be there v
Plus, they laughed at my bad jokes, which is really important (grin)

Before our classes began, OO-san and I entered the building.
Since the building isn't really in use except for English classes, the hallway was dark when we walked in.
I turned on the lights, but for some reason.....

I couldn't find the light switch for the bathroom（＞＜）

Since there were no windows in the bathroom, it was seriously pitch black, but I really had to go, so......

I went into the darkness......!! (shiver)

I couldn't see anything at all, so I had to feel along the wall for things. It was pretty difficult (sweat)

It ended up taking a long time, and my heart was beating really fast while I was in there. I guess it was a little scary....

But even though it was all dark and I was alone, nothing attacked me, so I was glad v
It's nice, ne, when nothing attacks you in the dark (grin)

＜Tomorrow＞
Tomorrow is my day off!!!!! ultra-ｷﾗｷﾗ

Even though I want to relax all day, I have to go to the bank and do a few other things.
It's hard to be an adult, ne (sweat)

But, thinking about the onsen trip I'll go on sometime soon with friends, I'll do my best and get my errands done!!! v

Everyone, have a good night♪

[kse 5]

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 21:52:58 GMT

2008/10/16 | 6:52 AM

You shouldn't eat it, ne (sweat)

Today is a long day at work!!!♪ｷﾗｷﾗ
Even though I'm really tired and would rather go back to sleep, I'll do my best♪

＜Children＞
Yesterday, I saw a mother walking with her two children.

There was a little boy and a little girl, and the little girl was really clinging to the mother's hand. She was having trouble walking, and I felt sorry for her (tear)

It's all right, ne, I thought. Soon, you'll learn to walk well!!

...

?!

But suddenly, I noticed something.

Her boots....

They were high heels!!!!!!!!!! (shock!!)

Even though she was only about three years old, she was wearing boots with high heels on them (sweat) Since it's difficult to walk when you're three years old, wearing regular shoes is hard enough, ne.
But wearing high heels............. (sweat)

So, she was having a lot of trouble walking.

O-kaasan, what were you thinking???

Iya, probably she was thinking that the boots looked really cute.
And they did, ne v
But still, she was way too young!!!!! (sweat)

She should've waited until she was at least five, ne♪ v ←joke

＜Nail polish＞
Recently I've been wearing nail polish to make my nails look nicer☆
Even though I don't bite my nails, somehow they always end up different lengths and in very strange shapes (sweat)

So, the other day, I put on some clear, sparkly nail polish so they'd look better v

But.............

Since I don't usually wear nail polish, I'm not really used to wearing it. The day when I put it on, I was busy getting ready for work, and I went downstairs to have a snack.
There were delicious sembei downstairs, so I ate some☆

Actually, I ate a lot (sweat)

Sembei are really delicious, naa.
But sticky!! They stuck to my teeth, so I had to pick at them rudely to get the sembei out (grin)

When I was finished........

!?

『　What happened to my nail polish?!!!!!!!　』 (sweat)

It seems I ate some of it by mistake (roar of laughter)

Everyone, if you put on nail polish, don't pick your teeth afterwards v
Even if it's kira-kira, nail polish probably isn't good to eat (grin)