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Sunday, September 5th, 2010
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The kimono has come home. It is a wonderful thing of beauty. I'm almost afraid to touch it XD I had to hang it up last night because it got a little sweaty while I was trying it on in the shop, (it's awfully hot here still), so they told me to let it air before I put it away. This morning, as I was getting ready to fold it up, I had to scrub the floor for a really long time just to be sure it wouldn't get dirty, and even then I was worried about it. Then, I was worried that I wouldn't be able to fold it properly, hahahaha! I am just a little nervous I guess! I'll get used to it!
In other news, the Hi-Chews have all been assembled! I just need to get paid again after shelling out so much for the kimono, and then they will be on their way! Woo hoo!
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Sunday, August 15th, 2010
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Aha! I am back in Japan, triumphant after my vacation in America. It was good to be home, but I am glad to be in my own apartment again! My search for all manner of Hi-Chew continues, though I think it's nearing the end... YuukiDuki said that he knows where there is a store that sells all sorts of flavors, so I'll see if I can get him to take me some day soon, and then I will ship them off! Whee!
The same YuukiDuki took me to sushi tonight... followed by lovely chats... and a teeny smootch... which of course made me smiley all the way back home. We'll see where this heads, but it's looking good for now XD
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Tuesday, August 3rd, 2010
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Phew... hard week....
My computer died a hard death last Monday night. So I went a week without a computer leading up to a long trip back home, hoping that I would be able to get it fixed. My first few nights I stayed in Portland, where a friend of mine is a computer genius, so he agreed to look at it over a late night showing of Zombiland (which was completely awesome, by the way!). And pronounced it Dead On Arrival... the hard drive is broken. Probably all of my photos are unsave-able. He will try to do that voodoo that will let him suck the info out, but he said it's a 50/50 chance that it'll work. Kersigh. Oh well.
On the brighter side, he helped me get a new one this morning. And I LOVE it! So, I'll look at the loss of all my old photos as a sort of cutting out the old growth and making way for new and better photos! I'll be totally on line for the next week and a half, and then it might take some time to get the new machine hooked up to the internet in Japan, so everyone bear with me a little longer, pleasepleaseplease!!!
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Saturday, July 17th, 2010
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I did it! I passed my shodan kendo test! Oh my god, I was so nervous! For shodan there are four different sections for the test. You pass one section and then move on to the next, and people fall off along the way. Every time I passed one section, I got more and more nervous that I would totally screw up the next one, but I made it through the entire thing! Everyone who took the final section both for shodan and 2 dan passed. The guy in charge was really really proud of all of us, that's 9 people for shodan and 10 for 2 dan... but here's the best news... while people often cannot continue after the second and third sections, everyone who took the shodan test made it the whole way!
I'm so proud of all of us!
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As feared, I put up the wishes of only my Thursday students, and my little bamboo branch has disappeared in a mass of paper! You can't even see the leaves haha! Looks like I'll have to take the pictures a day at a time!
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Wednesday, July 7th, 2010
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Woot! It's Star Festival time! A time when the streets, stations, department store, etc are filled with little bamboo trees all covered in fluttering wishes written on slips of paper and shiny decorations! And for the first time in four years, it's not cloudy, which means that the star lovers Orihime and Hikoboshi will be able to meet tonight! *sigh*
I love this story, even more since my obsession with Byakuya X Renji... they fit the story so well... the noble princess Orihime (Byakuya) falls in love with the lowly cowherd Hikoboshi (Renji). Seriously, I get little anime stars in my eyes when I think about it! whee! Sadly, the story continues that they got so enamored with each other, they neglected their work, and as punishment the milky way was created to separate them. Tanabata is the only day of the year that they are allowed to meet, and then only if it is a clear night. If it's cloudy, they have to wait till the next year... and July is right in the middle of rainy season, so it's a 50/50 chance that there will be clouds DX But today was a clear night, so the lovers can be together! YAY!
This year I had all my students write out wish slips for me in English, and then I bought a small bamboo branch for my house... I was planning on tying all their wishes to the tree and then taking some photos, but I didn't really think it through, I'm afraid... My bamboo branch is about three feet long, and I have almost 250 students!! hahaha, it'll just look like a mass of paper! So I think I'll tie up one class at a time... that should make it easier to see!
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Wednesday, June 30th, 2010
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The fabric has been dyed and is waiting for my approval! Yay!
Unfortunately, it's in Fukuyama, and I'm in Okayama, so I'll have to wait about three weeks before I can make it over and give the okay! Once I've okayed the fabric, they'll start to sew it into the final kimono, which should take a few weeks... then I have to choose an obi, zori, and some accessories. Bottom line, the whole thing should be done by the beginning of September, at which point I'll probably take it to a photo studio and get some pictures taken... I can't wait a WHOLE YEAR before I wear it! Heck, I can hardly wait the three weeks to go and take a look at the fabric! Haha!
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Saturday, June 26th, 2010
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Hot hot hot was all I could think at kendo practice today...
humid was probably in there, too, at some point. But my test is in three weeks, and there is only one more practice left after tonight, so I gave it my all. Everything considered, I think I did okay. I sort of feel like I'm not getting any better, but I have to keep reminding myself that I'm not practicing against anyone who is actually my level. I'm about three ranks behind the next person at my kendo club, so when I finally get to face someone of the same rank I think is when I will finally see the results.
The fun came after the lesson ended... they kept me an hour late to work on bokkutou forms. When they finally let me go, I was gathering my equipment, and the Very Strict teacher came over to where I was sitting.
"Koala-sensei, do you drink alcohol?" he asked. Oh, lordy lordy, I thought, as I realized that all of the other teachers had gone quiet and were listening in. So I told him I did. Then he asked if I like to drink, and I said, well sure! And there was a chorus of "oooohhhhhssss" from the assembled teachers. "Then we should all go out drinking!" was the consensus... haha! So I guess sometime after the test is over, I'll be going out drinking with the teachers. Actually I'm kind of excited. I feel like I've overcome some hurdles as the only woman and the only foreigner in our club, and am starting to be accepted as part of the group! Whee!
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Thursday, June 24th, 2010
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Driving home tonight was such a nice experience. My school on Thursdays is in the next town over, and to get there I have to drive through the outskirts of Okayama (Okayama isn't that big to start with, so the outskirts means country, big time). But they've flooded the rice fields, and all the little rice plants have been planted, and its just the right temperature. The air is full of the smells of flowers, and the little froggies are peeping in the rice fields. Not many street lights out there, so mostly the drive is in the dark, with every now and then a lone little farmhouse rising out of the night, and the lights from the house are reflected in the surrounding flooded fields.... Perfect!
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I went with a friend of mine to the Kinoshita Circus on Sunday! Kinoshita is Japan's longest running circus, and was actually founded in the town where I live, so they have come back to celebrate their 108th anniversary. I had a really good time. I wasn't sure how I would like it since I haven't been to the circus since I was very small, but I had a great time! I am a big believer in that maintaining your childhood sense of wonder is a major key to a happy life!
I had brought my Renji plushie so that I could take some photos for the Photo Diary that I've been working on. After the show was over, I waited until our section was empty, and then pulled the plushie out and took a couple of photos. I always try to be careful to not be too noticeable while I'm doing it, haha! But as I was putting the doll away, one of the trapeze artists ran over really excitedly and asked me in Japanese if it was Abarai Renji, and then insisted we have a little conversation! It was a totally unexpected yet absolutely wonderful moment. Once again, Renji brings people together and adds a little joy to their lives! Go Renji!
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Thursday, June 17th, 2010
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Sometimes people can really surprise you by how much they've grown and learned about themselves.
And some people can really surprise you by how little they consider other people, or their effect on those around them, how they can be hurtful without even meaning to, and how they can change the facts of what happened in their own minds to ensure that their opinion of themselves remains intact even to the detriment of others.
I had both happen today. Yay for the first person! Boo for the others.
I do think that this is a good opportunity for me to take a quick look at my own behavior, though! Just to make sure! XD
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Rainy season started this week... alas, that also means ROACH SEASON!!!
Aargh! Moving my purse and having a light brown torpedo scurrying away from it is not my most favorite thing in the world.
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I had to see the doctor yesterday so that she could check up on my allergic reaction from last week. And she told me she thought she knew what it was. Streptococcus, and did I know what that was? Sure, I replied, that's what gives you strep throat, right? Yep, that was the one. So, not an allergic reaction at all, but a strep infection in my skin. Yikes! I'm on antibiotics for another week, just to make sure, but at least I know what it was now! That's a huge relief!
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Thursday, June 10th, 2010
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My shamisen teacher's teacher has been very sick. She was diagnosed with stomach cancer at the beginning of the year, and had her surgery last month. She's about 78 or so, so she needs a long time to recover. The good news is that she's doing fine. My lesson was this morning, and my teacher told me that she's doing great! But to make sure that she doesn't have any extra stress, they're canceling her concert in September... and since Mikami-sensei will not have her concert, my teacher will also not hold a concert this December out of respect.
I totally agree with the decision, since Mikami-sensei's health is the most important issue... however, that being said, I'm am a little disappointed. Not only do I enjoy the yearly concert, my teacher's concert is always "wafuku," which means Japanese clothing. Up till now I have always rented a kimono, but it's so expensive ($500 for one day's rental), that this year I decided to go ahead, suck it up, and buy a kimono. Last month I paid half the money up front, and my kimono is even now, at this moment, being constructed in Kyoto... sigh...
Oh well! I can wear it to the concert next year (or any other time, really), and I will have a kimono that was order made just for me.
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Wednesday, June 9th, 2010
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My apologies for saying that I was coming back and then disappearing for a week! Yikes!
I had a terrible allergy last week which forced me to take some time off work (and off kendo, and off shamisen practice), and thus I spent most of last week lying on my futon and reading.
The good news, I'm almost 100% again! Just in time, too. My kendo club is having a joint practice this Saturday, so it's very important that I attend! The funny thing is, one of the teachers of the visiting dojo turns out to be one of my English students! XD
He told me at his lesson last week that he would be there! Haha, I'm not sure how I feel about that! But I think I'm looking forward to it!
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Phew! It's been a while since I've been on here!
Tadaima! There's been a lot going on in the three years since I took off, but suffice to say that I left the bad job and got a new, very good one, teaching English to little kids. Left the boyfriend, cause he was bad for me in all sorts of ways. Started working on my art again, I forgot how much I love drawing. And grew up a whole lot... at least I hope so!
That's all for now, but it's good to be back!
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I did it! I am now a holder of a Japanese driving license. Automatic cars only, but who cares? Third times a charm I guess! Whee! My guy at the center was really kind, same guy I had my first time. I was so nervous when I got through the S-curve I thought that I was going to start shaking since it was the first time that I actually got through the curve without touching the side. I was thinking since I made the S-curve, there was no way I would get through the krank, but I did! No touching! Then back to the waiting area. In the car, Wata-san told me, oh, you need to move more right to make right turns, and your clicker isn't on long enough before you turn, and you turn it off too quickly after you've turned. So I thought, damn it, I'll have to come next time, I guess. So we all trooped off upstairs and waited for our results. Even though I was the first person in our group to go, he took everyone else first. They all had to come again. Then, he called me over. "Koala-san....today, OK." OMG!!!!! Really? Thanks! "Not, perfect, Koala-san, but okay. Pass, ne?" Hoorrah! But for something that's so hard to get, the card is pretty boring! I mean, my alien registration card is really nice! For all the trouble this license was to get, there should be some transformer hologram or something on it!
I did think it was interesting to meet people at the center, though. Yesterday there were three Brazilian girls, one girl from the Philippines, and me. The Filipino could speak English, but the Brazilians couldn't, but everyone spoke a little Japanese, so there we were, chatting away in Japanese, and not one single Japanese person around! It was fun, but I'm really glad that it's over.
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Blargh!!!!!! Getting a Japanese license sucks! I went for the first time today with the full knowledge that I would fail the first time. And just to let everyone know, NO, the people that administered the testing were not assholes. Actually the guy that did my paperwork tried to speak a little English and was really really helpful and even the guy in the car wasn't mean, which is supposed to be the real problem. No, I wish that I could blame it on something....or being so nervous.... or any of the other million things that could go wrong. BUT!!! alas..... I hopped a curb. And that's an immediate fail. No finishing the course. Straight back to start. Try again next time. Part of me feels like its a good thing that if I had to fail anyway, I am glad that it's something I actually did, and part of me can't stop beating myself over the head wishing that I had done perfectly and known that the next time I go in I'll ace it no problem because I did once before. We'll see on the 9th, I guess. Second try.
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We drove the car
To the top of the parking ramp
4th of July
Sat out on the hood
With a couple of warm beers
And watched the fireworks
Explode in the sky
There was an exodus of birds from the trees
Cuz they didn't know
We were only pretending
And the people all looked up and looked pleased
And the birds flew around
Like the whole world was ending
I don't think war is noble
And I don't like to think love is like war
But I got a big hot cherry bomb
And I wanna slip it through the mail slot
Of your front door
You can't leave me here
I got your back now
You'd better have mine
Cuz you say the coast is clear
But you say that all the time
So many sheep I quit counting
Sleepless and embarassed
About the way that I feel
Trying to make mole hills out of mountains
Building base camp at the bottom
Of a really big deal
Did I ever tell you how I stopped eating
When you stopped calling me
I was cramped up
And shitting rivers for weeks
And pretending that I was finally free
You can't leave me here
I got your back now
You'd better have mine
Cuz you say the coast is clear
But you say that all the time
We drove the car
To the top of the parking ramp
4th of July
I planted my dusty boots on the bumper
Sat out on the hood
And looked up at the sky
-Ani DiFranco "Independence Day"
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Monday, October 9th, 2006
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Hmmmmm....strange feeling to be this close to a hostile country that possibly has nuclear capability. I understand that North Korea may not have actually tested a bomb, but they may have. And it's also known that if they do have bombs, they don't have one small or light enough to reach America....but there are many American Bases here. The marine was up yesterday and I asked him what prep they were taking just in case, and he said, "Uh none, we're calling his bluff." Bluff called, my man! One of my fears is that if they were to truly launch an attack, they would not attack America itself, but they may attack here.
Please understand, I'm not actually worried that I'm going to wake up one morning an have a bomb wipe out Iwakuni....but it's a strange feeling to know that it could....wuggy!
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koala2all's journal
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