IN A NUTSHELL: Melissa Lyrics
Karaoke Practice Everyone! I bought the single for Melissa at CC Plaza (since it was sold out at Fresta). I had never been to CC Plaza before, but I found somewhat disappointingly that it is identical to Sungreen except it has a McDonalds, which I have not patronized yet. When I returned home, I read and attempted to translate the lyrics, mostly to make sure I will not be singing something inappropriate when I learn to karaoke it. Conclusion: nope. Melissa is just a sappy, angsty, lost-love song with nothing that resembles either part of the strange band name (thank God). Curious? Check out the lyrics in Japanese and my awful translation.
Why Isn't My Computer Smarter Than My CD Player? I wanted to put Melissa on my computer for easy replay and karaoke practice. But it turns out that the 'CD Copy Protected' warning on the front of the single had some weight behind it! It's not like I wanted to do anything illegal, I just wanted to listen to the song on my computer not my cheapy CD player. In order to do that, I had to download some weird media player program they had (in Japanese of course), then they wanted me to go to their site and give them my email address for it to work? I don't think so. No matter what I tried, none of my media players recognized the format even though my regular CD player plays it fine. Huh? Do Japanese CD players know some secret music format?
IN A NUTSHELL: Sandankyo (This is a LONG Journal Entry)
My Plan I read about a nifty gorge in my Hiroshima JET guidebook and decided to go over this three-day weekend because I wanted to get out and do some touring. Besides, it will only get colder from here on in and I will have less opportunity to do outdoor things until spring comes along.
Instant Traffic For the first time ever, I took the Chugoku expressway (a fast tollway that is like an interstate.) I was cruising along great, the road being empty since no one wants to pay the ridiculously expensive tolls. It was quite a neat drive, especially as I came closer to the mountains. In fact, it became a series of tunnels at one point with just brief views of mountains in between. I was one kilometer away from my exit (I know because I had just passed a sign that said Togouchi - 1 km) when the average speed went from 50 mph to 5 mph, but only in the left lane (the exit lane.) So I'm thinking either everyone and their brother is hiking this gorge today (about a 15 minute drive away from the exit) or it is just a coincidence. When I reached the front, I realized the stop-and-go traffic was the result of a bottleneck at the toll gate. Three toll gates were open, but that was not enough to keep traffic flowing smoothly.
Sandankyo Parking Where I was directed to park by the many uniformed men standing in the street with flags was less a parking lot and more a ledge between rice fields where if one backed up too far in one direction, they would plummet over the ledge. (Luckily, I was directed to back in the OTHER direction while watching a mini-van back up toward the edge across from me.) A random woman asked me for 400 yen as I was walking out. If I had not recently read on a sign that the price for parking was 400 yen, I would have thought the request very strange. (As it was, it was still strange given that the dirt ledge did not really resemble a parking lot - then again, someone had to pay all these workers guiding everyone.)
The Gorge I followed the crowd up to the train station, where a packed-full train had just arrived. I think the combination of the fantastic hiking weather (sunny and cool), the three-day weekend, and the fact that it is near the height of autumn color viewing, caused the huge crowds. I arrived at the base of the trail which was complete with a restaurant, gift shop, and a takoyaki stand (fried octopus on a stick; I passed) along with quite a lot of families, including elderly, babies, and children. I looked at the map and noticed that the trail followed a river upstream until it ended at a lake. According to the map, several waterfalls were en route, but I could not find any pamphlets to take with me so I walked across the first bridge trusting to signs and memory. The trail was like a road in Japan: meant to be a two-way passage, but only really comfortable for someone going in one direction. As a result, I was stuck behind slow-moving people (including strollers!) a lot as I waited for a chance to overtake. I prepared for this like a serious hike, taking raingear, snacks, an umbrella, lots of water, and even extra socks. But, obviously, I had overprepared. My worries about hiking alone, i.e. that if I hurt myself, I would have trouble getting someone's attention, were completely unfounded. For the first hour, I was never out of sight of another hiker.
Like Disneyland, but Not in a Good Way About an hour and a half in (after walking across two pretty nifty hanging bridges over the crystal clear river), I came upon another parking lot next to the trail, filled with tour buses. Two things crossed my mind. 1. Wow, it would have been a lot faster to those waterfalls and lake if I parked up here and 2. Wow, it's going to be even MORE crowded after this. Right on both counts, but about five minutes walk up was a big restaurant, gift shop outpost where everyone was stopping to have picnics. I kept walking and the crowds quickly thinned. I came upon a sign at a fork that said that a two-tiered waterfall was one way and a three-tiered waterfall was the other way. It seemed to recommend going to the two-tired one first, then taking a connecting trail to the third one afterward, so that's what I did. So, about a half hour later, I suddenly come upon a LINE of people. As far down the trail as I could see, people were standing and waiting. I realized that this was a line for a BOAT so one could see the waterfall. A friendly guy had come upon the line right after I did and said to his partner, "Yep, I guess we're off to the three-tired one." I asked if there was no other way to see the waterfall on foot. He said that if I put on some fishing waders and walked, I could do it, but that it would be cold. His gestures were hilarious and his joking made me feel better. I could not believe all these people were waiting in a line that looked like it would take AT LEAST forty minutes just to see a waterfall. Sillier for me since I live within walking distance of one of the tallest waterfalls in Hiroshima. Anyway, so I turned back and walked over the ridge to find the three-tiered waterfall. It was a pretty walk but the trail became suddenly very, very crowded. I did eventually make it through the crowds to the waterfall (pretty enough I guess) and decided to grab a spot on some rocks and eat lunch. That was quite nice, but I decided my feet were getting tired and I did not feel like going any further, so I turned and went back, half tempted to try to grab a bus or taxi at the upper parking lot, but wondered if waiting in that line would be longer than just walking back myself. It was hard to tell since I had no clue about the bus schedule. Since the trail was much emptier, I decided to pick up some speed and hike down, which was more fun than the hike up. Also, I decided to take the middle boat (on the way up there had been a line, so I walked it instead) which just went across a neat spot along the river. Indeed, it was pretty and there was even a restaurant that could only be reached by the boat and hanging bridge, but the boatman (who looked really rugged for such a touristy thing) charged us 300 yen each for the 3-minute ride. Sheesh. Anyway, I was pretty wiped when I finally got back to the car, but it was really good exercise, great weather for it and I saw some nice autumn colors.
* * STUPID THING OF THE DAY * * After I passed the toll gate and was presented with the fork, telling me which direction to go on the freeway, I TOOK THE WRONG WAY! I realized about 10 seconds afterward that I had gone the wrong way but could do NOTHING since it was impossible to turn around until I reached the next exit, wherever that was. It was very, very frustrating searching for a break in the barriers (none) and stopping at the fancy rest stops to see if they gave me an opportunity to change direction (no.)
The Day's Not Over Yet Anyway, after wasting almost half an hour on the wrong road, I turned around and, finally going the correct direction, realized my phone was ringing. Very glad there were no cars on the road, I answered it. It was Maruyama-san, calling to invite me to see Kagura tonight at the autumn festival and to come to her house for dinner beforehand. A little overwhelmed by the information (Autumn fesitval? Tonight? There's Kagura in Sakugi? You're making me dinner?) I told her where I was and my estimated time of arrival, which was luckily just enough time to catch a shower and have time to eat before the Kagura show.
Dinner Confusion I magically remembered where Maruyama-san's house was, even though the last time I had been there was my very first night in Sakugi. Tired and sore, but clean, I rang the bell and was greeted by her grandchildren (who I now at least sort of recognized) and invited in. I was starving and there was lots of food-making going on and lots of food on the table but no one was eating. They kept telling me to eat despite that they weren't and I finally ate a bit when Shino (the cute first grader) ate a rice-ball. They continued urging me to eat, but I thought they were being polite while either waiting for Maruyama-san to finish scurrying around or maybe her husband to arrive. Eventually I ate a bit at a time since I was pretty hungry and they kept telling me to. During that time, I met Maruyama-san's brother in law and finally figured out who was who in the family. I also learned the origin of Shino's name -- it is a kind of bamboo flute that her grandfather makes from the bamboo trees that grow on the hills of Sakugi. I thought that was quite beautiful. Shino, who is amazingly good-natured, wrote her name in kanji. I was impressed considering she's SIX YEARS OLD. As the time got later and closer to kagura time and no one else was eating much besides the occasional bite, the obvious finally occurred to me. They had already eaten!
Professional Kagura! I confirmed with Maruyama-san that everyone had already eaten and she realized immediately why I had been kind of holding back all that time. So I ate some more quicker (especially of the yummy sukiyaki they had made), but all the slow eating had made me full. Anyway, we eventually left although the kagura had started a half hour ago (and I really hope they had not been waiting for ME to finish). We drove up to a shrine I had never been to. The stage was lit and the Kagura show (which looked different with adults doing it) was in full swing. We skirted the edge of the tarp-covered central area (and I recognized my 7th and 8th graders standing in groups - they looked really different in street clothes) and found other Maruyama family members gathered around a centrally located kotatsu and joined them. (Kotatsu: a table with a heater under it and a blanket over it so one can warm their feet and eat simultaneously; I have one at home.) At first, I thought the kagura was about equal in skill to the impressive 8th graders, but that was before the demons came on. WHOA! The masks were amazing - they somehow looked evil and sympathetic at the same time and the exaggerated way the actors walked and did stiff hand motions and head twitches completely mesmerized me (though I was pretty tired at this point, so it could have been that.) I met some new people and Maruyama-san was kind enough to get me water when I didn't want beer, except that when I went with her to get another cup later, I noticed the ice and water seemed to come out of the cooler. I really, REALLY hope I was wrong because - EW - how many hands have been in that water? Anyway, I found that despite my fatigue and the fact that I could not understand a single word the people on stage said, I really enjoyed it! I think this might have been partially because of the story explanation I was receiving in triplicate: once in Japanese from this woman I had just met, once from Maruyama-san in Japanglish and once from Maruyama-san's husband in extremely broken English. Oddly, none of the three seemed to realize the others were doing it. The music was so loud that all three had to lean in to tell me, so maybe they did not know that all three were saying the same thing. It was rather funny.
Just Like Kabuki, Except for the Audience Participation I learned that this Kagura consisted solely of stories about the Gods and Goddesses. Unlike the stories portrayed by the 8th graders, no humans were involved, and unlike the 8th graders, all parts here, even female parts, were played by men. So just like Kabuki, I got to see men in Kimono. Anyway, at one point, a Kitsune (fox) demon came out and attacked another character, though this battle had more elements of comedy than the others. At one point, the Kitsune went out into the audience, TOOK A ONE-YEAR-OLD BABY from its mother and brought him up on stage! At this point, it was nearly midnight and any kids there had to have been exhausted. Anyway, the good guy managed to take the big, crying baby back from the demon and (eventually) return him to his family, but I thought that was a bit shocking. The parents did not seem all that traumatized, though. I left after that story, but not because of any child terror objections, just because I was too tired to hold my head up. Some guy told me I would really enjoy the finale snake story, but I know I would have fallen asleep. Later, as I'm attempting to back my car out with Maruyama's help, she throws another invitation on me, telling me to come over at around 1pm (after I've rested) and watch the continuing festivities of the autumn festival including Mikoshi-carrying. I was too taken-aback to say much back but I told her I'd try, despite that all I could think about at that point was sleep, sleep, and sleep, in that order.
IN A NUTSHELL: Shrine Ceremony
Sore Legs I slept in nice and late but was roused out of bed around 11am by the sound of drums and chanting outside. I stood up, ouch, and walked, ouch, ouch, to my sliding wood-and-paper door and slid it open so I could look out the glass door. Indeed, along the main street about a block away was a procession of people carrying a Mikoshi (the kids carrying a mini-Mikoshi). I haven't seen this since Tokyo! One of the kids waved to me as I stood in my pajamas.
Nothing Like Sake After One Wakes Up About an hour later when I was awake and breakfasted, I debated about what to do. I was wondering if I missed the Mikoshi going by Maruyama-san's house or if I went fast enough, I could still catch up. More than that, though, I wondered if that frustrating night in Tokyo would repeat itself: You see, when I lived in Tokyo, my neighborhood had a Mikoshi-carrying festival, too, which is all nice and well. The problem was that I had a hard, exhausting day at work that day and really just wanted to go home and sleep. Since I promised my landlady I'd come, I dragged myself down the street anyway, thinking it wouldn't be bad to sit and watch since there wasn't too much brain activity involved. I stood kind of sleepily, trying to be invisible as I waited and waited for the group to start. But, in my neighborhood, being a gaijin and being invisible are mutually exclusive. To make a long story short, I got pulled off the side of the street, put into a Happi robe and literally forced to join the procession and CARRY the Mikoshi along with a bunch of random people. If I tried to sneak out of the procession, some stranger would sort of gently push me back in, thinking I was not getting the full fun out of it and then we got so far away from my neighborhood there was no point. So, since that night, I have a kind of fear of getting too close to a Mikoshi since I'm afraid they're going to force me to carry it again. It's not heavy or anything, it's just odd hearing a chant being said around you over and over when you have no idea what it is (and having people note, 'oh, look a gaijin doing it' or worse, having them say 'wow aren't you tired since you've been carrying the whole time without a break?' not understanding that if you try to take a break, you get pushed right back in), especially if you're not in the mood for it. ANYWAY, I finally rode over to Maruyama-san's house. Across the road was a small group of local men, junior high school students, and elementary school students all in Happi robes preparing to carry the two Mikoshi. Along the sides were the plainly dressed wives and mothers. Like the mothers were doing, I took out a camera and hoped to God that I would be associated with the photo-taking women and not with the group doing the carrying (which, except for the elementary school kids, seemed to be all men.) I lucked out. Whew. I walked along and talked with some random woman (and were glad they were walking slowly, since my legs were not super happy). At the first rest station, some fellow was pouring sake for everyone. Somehow I got a cup and found myself sipping sake as we walked along, which was quite an odd thing.
Princesses The walk was much shorter than I thought. (We only had one rest stop, but in Tokyo, we had stopped at least four times before I managed to sneak home.) We arrived at the same shrine I went to last night to watch the Kagura. Although I've recently learned there are six shrines scattered around Sakugi Village, I think this weekend is the first time I've ever seen one. Anyway, some fellow with a mask did some kind of ritual where he slayed or scared off a dragon (i.e. two people with a long silky cloth between them) but the next ritual was much less obvious. I would not have known there was a ceremony taking place if Maruyama had not pulled me over. She told me to stand at the base of the shrine, before the entrance. Inside some older men were dressed up and playing drums. Only a few people were watching ("parents," Maruyama had said.) Looking deep inside the shrine, I didn't see anything for awhile, but then suddenly two girls came out (two of my fourth graders, incidentally) in full red princess costumes and with extremely elaborate golden crowns atop their heads. They did a very slow, rhythmic walk to the beat of a drum. They walked around in a square formation and sometimes they would bow to the front and sometimes they would ring these bells in their hands. It was quite mesmerizing watching them walk in perfect unison and not making, as far as I could see, a single error in their path. Afterward, I learned that they choose two 10-year olds every year to do this. It was obvious they had practiced a lot. After they finished the ceremony, the two came out, looking quite beautiful, and everyone was taking pictures of them. Someone decided to they wanted a picture of me with the two princesses - not sure why since I probably looked pretty terrible, all sleepy eyed in a T-shirt and my hair wet from the drizzle. Anyway, it was really neat and I'm glad I went, though I was happy to go home and try to get some of my R & R back in before school tomorrow.
The IQ of Japan I saw an amusing show on TV tonight. It was a quiz show designed to test your IQ. They showed a series of numbers, for example, and had the test audience (and home audience, if they could) complete the sequence in a designated time. Or they would show you a set of shapes and you had to figure out the what came next. The designated audience had a section of Doctors, Teachers, students at Tokyo University, and some people I think were general blue collar workers. The students won at the end. I had fun testing myself, at least for the ones where Japanese was not a prerequisite. AT the end, they had some ridiculous tallying up of the results of the IQ test from around Japan. They were all so close, it was silly to even rank them (104.2 vs 103.9 etc) but it was a lot of fun to watch.
IN A NUTSHELL: The Post Office Should Be a Logical Place to Find Envelopes
So I Was Sending a Check and I wanted to put a note inside it. The nice post office man (who has been showing up at my eikaiwas) told me I couldn't use their envelope if I wanted to do that, so I had to use my own. Unfortunately, the envelope I brought was too narrow. For some reason, most Japanese envelopes are really narrow - you would have to fold a regular sheet of paper several times to fit it in. So I asked him if I could buy an envelope. He said they did not sell any. Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but shouldn't the one place you are guaranteed to find envelopes be the post office?! I even said to him, "But you're the POST OFFICE." He chuckled in understanding and said the government or something had made a decision that post offices could not sell envelopes. Huh? Luckily, I had earlier searched the Sungreen stationary store envelope selection until I found a reasonable size (me not likes narrow envelopes!) and so had a stash at home. Still, it's the principle of the thing. It's like McDonalds not giving you a straw or Starbucks making you bring your own cup.
At Least It Wasn't Hell In my 8th grade class today, one student asked me what Tenkoku ("Heaven") was in English so he could put that as the place he wanted to get the train from - funny! This is yet another example of how my teaching experience is different from what I read. Before I came, I heard the Japanese classes are very lecture-like and don't encourage question and answer sessions as much as American schools and don't stimulate creativity. Wrong on all counts as far as Tomomi-sensei is concerned. He always moves about the room, answering questions, helping the slower students, and always does several different kinds of activities, lecture not being one of them unless you count lecture being him using a 'rhythm machine' to drill new vocab. Also, he always asks for questions and asks them questions and tries to help them make creative sentences on their own from sentence patterns. I see very little to improve. I certainly don't remember my language classes in Junior High being this interesting.
Fun Language Topics With my Japanese tutor tonight, we had a mutual exchange of useful movie language. I found out there is an exact equivalent to the ominous "or ELSE" in Japanese and learned how to say it: "samo nakereba." Also, the subject of my song came up, which led to talking about Pornograffiti (or Pornograffitti with an extra 't', as the Japanese like to spell it) which led to a discussion about porno and I found myself trying to seriously explain the difference between porn and porno to my Japanese tutor. I think one is an adjective and one is a noun but it is ambiguous. Then I explained she would more likely hear the full 'pornographic' and 'pornography' (less ambiguous) on the news for example. Incidentally, the Japanese word for porno is just that: po-ru-no, though they have another for it which literally means "spring picture." And I have now just disappointed millions of people trying a google search for 'porn,' not wanting to see a language discussion on the topic.
IN A NUTSHELL: Inspection Day
More About Pornograffiti If it isn't enough of a coincidence that they have a popular song with my name as the title at the same time I'm living here, the band is also from Hiroshima prefecture!
The Big Class It finally approached: the big class that Tomomi-sensei has been stressing like mad over and making up a million activities for because (insert musical crescendo) we are Being Watched. Before the day arrived, Tomomi-sensei had told me that other teachers from the Bihoku area (northeastern Hiroshima) would be observing our class, maybe two or three, four at most. When I arrived to the school after my nursery school lunch, the parking lot was fairly full and as I walked inside, I noticed a fair amount of people milling around, but since they did not look Big, Scary, or dressed in Black Suits, I was not intimidated. When the time for the lesson came, Tomomi-sensei said "Are you ready?" I was and I was not particularly worried since I had never seen a Tomomi class bomb unless it was my activity that did the bombing. So we started class and before we even finished greetings, at least TEN people had walked in to stand in the back of the classroom! Anyway, I tried to ignore them and just get on with the class. And it went well! Although we had so many activities planned that it was impossible to do them all, I did get to do my city bit (with my color pictures) and my weather demonstrations seemed to work very well. The last activity had the class filling in a sheet with time and weather information gleaned by asking everyone else, who each got a card with a time or a weather type on it. A few weather and time cards were left over so I went to the back of the class to get some of the spectators involved (persistent they were, staying through the whole 50 minutes) and it was at this point that I realized the random person I was handing the card to was ANOTHER ALT!! My gaijin-dar must have been off. I recognized him, but forgot his name, and felt suddenly kind of silly. I think I would have been more embarrassed doing the class if I had known he was back there the whole time. I'm not sure why. I'd love to see another ALT's class, though. Anyway, so I strode over to talk to him as the first years were wandering around the classroom loudly asking their classmates for the time and weather. Apparently, his English teacher had dragged him all the way from Shobara (about an hour away) to come here. Whoa. Me and Tomomi-sensei did not do our fake cell phone chat (and I hoped no one noticed the phone bulge in my pocket because I would normally never bring my cell phone to class) but the class went well and came to a great end.
Winding Down Afterwards, spectators said they enjoyed it a lot. I talked to the ALT and his English teacher (a young Japanese woman with phenomenal English) for awhile after class. Apparently he teaches at the main Shobara high school and teaches up to 40 students at once. In contrast, he witnessed my smallest Junior High class, the 7th graders, whom I only have 14 of (and since two were absent today, the 12 were probably the smallest class I've ever had.) Anyway, I agreed to give him a ride to our Monthly Bihoku Meeting since it was a lot closer to me than Shobara, but first he had something to go to. I realized a bit later that he was going to a big presentation going on in our gym. I wandered in and found that most all of the other teachers were there, but no one had told me about it. Hmm. I kind of hung in the back for a bit, wondering if I should sit down with the other teachers if I wasn't invited, then I finally walked all the way back to the staff room. Okumiya-sensei was there (the appointed staff room guard?) and I asked her about it. She said the presentation was really long and that I did not have to go if I did not want. I wonder why they did not invite me? Are concerned about me complaining about being compelled to stay any longer than my contracted time. Hmm. Anyway, the Bihoku meeting went well, as always! Other ALTs have the best ideas sometimes!
Another Melissa I am a lemon herb! At my eikaiwa class, a woman took out this little pocket-sized plant and herb book and showed me my name under the section for Lemon Balm. Although the book is in Japanese, it has other familiar plants like Rosemary, so I know these aren't obscure Japanese plants. Besides, the scientific name is Latin-like: Melissa officinalis It's a pretty little plant with round, jagged leaves and white flowers. Now that I'm reading through the photocopy, I see that it is found in Southern Europe. Thinking on it, this could explain why the Pornograffiti song talks about Melissa's leaf. Maybe it's a song about lemon balm!
IN A NUTSHELL: Gospel Music, in a Japanese Junior High
Pretty Fog Again Every morning lately, the hills have been GORGEOUS when I wake up. White clouds cling to the valleys and the green tops peek out from above them. Even the ride to the school is pretty since you can see the hills fading off into the distance. It's like Misty Mountains, Sakugi style.
Pawaa to za Peepalu A little while ago, the woman who sits next to me (the part-time music teacher and the only Japanese woman I know who wears her hair longer than mine) was asking me to help translate some of the English words in her songs. They were mostly religious and gospel songs and I found myself trying to explain "Thee" and "Lord" and "sin" and "brighten my path" to her, quite amusingly at times. However, all of that did not prepare me for the visitor we had today. Once again, all the students and teachers gathered in the wide second floor hallway (just like the time the police officer came, but without the chairs) and we listened to a woman, maybe a music teacher, speak (I missed the beginning, so I did not quite understand). She then put on a video of Japanese women on stage at a concert singing "Power to the People!" I tried and tried to get into the feeling of it, but it just seemed so silly. Japanese women are a lot more reserved than average White American women who I think are even more reserved than average Black American women, who are whom I think of when I think of Gospel music singers. As a result, the group of Japanese women on the tape looked kind of funny stepping, clapping, and singing 'Power to the People!' A few looked like they were getting into the feeling, but more than that, I think it was the accent that threw me off. "Pawaa to za Peeporu!" How can you really get into the feeling if it is a feeling that I'm not sure exists in Japanese culture and, even if it is, it is in a different language? Despite this, DESPITE THIS, she managed, very cleverly, to get the entire school standing and singing. First she had everyone do scales, then she practiced the verse (all six words, though I never figured out what came after "Power to the People" during the eighth verse) then she practiced the stepping and clapping. I actually started to get a bit bored and jittery after the umpteenth time I heard the phrase and managed to sneak back downstairs, which did not stop me from hearing the stepping and singing going on above.
A Bit of Organizing I have too much Stuff that is Important and so I have too many Piles on my Table. Hence I decided to Prioritize and Organize in order to Clear My Table. As I was going through some of the things on my bookshelf, I could not help but notice how different the various books and lesson plan binders my predecessor left looked since I first organized them upon arrival. I am going to be careful not to throw anything out until I've been here several more months since I've noticed that papers that originally looked pointless now look more useful to me.
People Want My Money So besides NHK, my predecessor, and the insurance company, other people want my money, too. This time, it came in the form of a very (very, very) old woman at my door. She had to be seventy or eighty, did not attempt even a word of English, and tried to tell me that I should give her 200 yen a month for services rendered in getting television reception back on if it fails due to weather. On one hand, I kind of felt bad being rude since, jeez, she's really old and did not seem to want to scam me since 200 yen really is not a lot. What kind of put me in skeptical mode was that she wanted me to pay for months that had already gone by! (Even NHK did not try that one on me.) She knew my name and when I had moved in, so that lent her some credibility, but what's the deal? And why do I care if the television goes off due to bad weather? I'm not that addicted and I have video tapes. Anyway, I told her I did not understand and then she was nice and said that I should go talk to someone and find out what this meant first and that she would stop back later. That was fair.
Japanese Palindrome So when Tomoko came over for her English lesson, I asked her about it. She was even more skeptical than me and told me she had not paid when the same thing happened to her in Hiroshima city. (She also told me that she did not pay NHK and thought that was illegal - I assured her that paying NHK was not a legal issue, only a 'social responsibility') She also brought me a gift from her recent trip. They looked like eggs on the outside, but were actually yummy, cake-like, and sweet on the inside with a sweet creamy center. YUM. They were called go-ma-ta-ma-go which, when read in hiragana, is a palindrome!
IN A NUTSHELL: Yosakoi Souran!
I Found Out About That Dance! Remember at the Bunkasai how I was lusting over that really awesome dance the 9th graders did? Well, I found out today what it is called! Yosakoi Souran! (The first word is in hiragana, the second in katakana, but just putting the first word in Google will get you results.) Yay!
I Drove To Miyoshi, but Did Not See Chicago On the way to Miyoshi, at the stoplight, I had a Bird Moment. As I sat at the light, it seemed the spread-out flock of birds above me were flapping their wings in slow motion across the twilight gray sky. Watching them above was almost meditative and I kept thinking the impression would go away, but it lasted until the light turned green. Anyway, I headed toward the video store, intent on renting a certain musical that I knew for sure had come out on October 31st because of the posters in Sungreen. However, when I arrived, there was no sign of the musical. After a bit of searching, I found it on video (all rented out) but I wanted the DVD anyway (I like watching Japanese subtitles. I'm weird.) Anyway, it turned out, they did have it for sale at Sungreen, but everywhere else would not be renting the DVD for two weeks. I found myself wishing, for the very first time, that they just had a cheapy movie-only version of the DVD so I could buy it without wincing. I of course want the DVD, but I want the special features in English, so I don't want to buy it here. I guess I'll, sigh, wait. I'll watch TV to chill instead.
About the Movie I'm Watching on TV Gee, wow, can I also go to the library and randomly look up the email addresses of FBI agents then receive an email from a random one if I give the librarian a password? I didn't know that! Thank you for sharing, Mercury Rising. (And wow, just like The One, the bad guy just happens to show up exactly where the good guy is no matter how improbable it is.) Maybe I should have rented something anyway.