Friday I spent the day cleaning up, doing laundry (which is very stiff now because we had no breeze), and other such things. There's something theraputic about washing dishes in your own sink and hanging clothes up to dry. My living room is now clean and comfortable with storage space to spare. My kitchen is decent, and my bedroom, well, I can shut the doors so nobody can see it . . .
I alos hung my futon out to air and so I could beat it. I'm not sure what this does, only that you're supposed to do it every week. Mark and I went off to the grocery store but it started to rain so I ran all the way back because my futon was still out! Naturally, it stopped raining, but I'd rather be safe than sorry.
I bought the fixings for a cucumber salad for the BBQ that night Haistu Saito was throwing for Chuck, who is finishing up his two years as a JET. The landlord had brought me many, many cucumbers, so this was a great excuse to get rid of them. I'm not sure if I've ever made a cucumber salad on my own before, but I put in some vinegar (or something that I'd hopped very much was vinegar), onions, sald and pepper and some sugar. It tasted great to me, whether that's how it's done or not, I was happy.
I picked up my bike, which now has a small seat, but I'll get used to it. It was only 3,000 yen (~$30) and I think he oiled up the gears since I had a smooth ride home. I stopped by the library to invite Niko to the BBQ. She was so touched and said how nice I was, though that was hardly anything compared to what she's done for me and Mark!
We had about 15 people show up for the BBQ and it was quite fun for a while. Then people started letting the drink get to their heads and I retreated to Chuck's apartment for some peaceful conversation. Due to my perfect timing, I went back downstairs to join people just in time for the cops to show up. They did warn us not to get invovled with the cops, and I dismissed this as an impossibility . . . Happily, Dennis (Haitsu Saito resident, been in Japan 7 years, former JET, speaks Japanese and English) talked to them and our only crime was making noise past 10pm. They turned off the music and actually did a fairly good job of keeping it down.
I managed to get everyone's stuff out of my apartment and my tables and chairs back into my apartment by 11pm. Mark graciously took in everyone who wanted to stay the night so I didn't have to deal with any drunks in my place. It had been fun having two tired, sober girls over, but this was too much for me. So, the college years surved me well (I can say that now?!) and I was able to get a decent amount of sleep even with the noise of homemade karioke and goodness knows what else. I'm begining to hope for when school starts and people don't have as much time to party. Sheesh! You can do that at home!
This morning (Saturday, 6th), I got a call from an English teacher at my school. I'm meeting her and my supervisor for dinner and a movie tonight and she asked if tomorrow I could help coach a student practicing for an English speech competition. I said I would, though I'm trying not to work on Sundays. I figured that I haven't been spending as much time in school during the week so it's the least I can do. Three hours seems like a long time, however . . . Maybe I'll pick up a good work ethic while I'm here!
Oh! I forgot to mention my first McDonald's experience Thursday. I heard great things about McDonald's here (pronounced something like Makudonarudosu), so I went with Chuck and Mark to find out. The fries were hot and the burger was fine, but the service was the key. After taking our order with a big smile and enthusiasm, we sat down and they brought the food to us. Then when we got up to leave they ran from behind the counter and took our trays to throw them away for us. Now that is totally different from the states.
Well, signing out for now. Tonight I'm going out again, but it's with my supervisor and another English teacher, so I'm hoping for some real Japanese experiences even if we are going to see War of the Worlds . . . Gotta love Japan!
Thanks for your emails and prayers. I am doing my best to respond to them. No, parties are not more important than you, but when it's at your own place it's quite rude to be antisocial. . .
I alos hung my futon out to air and so I could beat it. I'm not sure what this does, only that you're supposed to do it every week. Mark and I went off to the grocery store but it started to rain so I ran all the way back because my futon was still out! Naturally, it stopped raining, but I'd rather be safe than sorry.
I bought the fixings for a cucumber salad for the BBQ that night Haistu Saito was throwing for Chuck, who is finishing up his two years as a JET. The landlord had brought me many, many cucumbers, so this was a great excuse to get rid of them. I'm not sure if I've ever made a cucumber salad on my own before, but I put in some vinegar (or something that I'd hopped very much was vinegar), onions, sald and pepper and some sugar. It tasted great to me, whether that's how it's done or not, I was happy.
I picked up my bike, which now has a small seat, but I'll get used to it. It was only 3,000 yen (~$30) and I think he oiled up the gears since I had a smooth ride home. I stopped by the library to invite Niko to the BBQ. She was so touched and said how nice I was, though that was hardly anything compared to what she's done for me and Mark!
We had about 15 people show up for the BBQ and it was quite fun for a while. Then people started letting the drink get to their heads and I retreated to Chuck's apartment for some peaceful conversation. Due to my perfect timing, I went back downstairs to join people just in time for the cops to show up. They did warn us not to get invovled with the cops, and I dismissed this as an impossibility . . . Happily, Dennis (Haitsu Saito resident, been in Japan 7 years, former JET, speaks Japanese and English) talked to them and our only crime was making noise past 10pm. They turned off the music and actually did a fairly good job of keeping it down.
I managed to get everyone's stuff out of my apartment and my tables and chairs back into my apartment by 11pm. Mark graciously took in everyone who wanted to stay the night so I didn't have to deal with any drunks in my place. It had been fun having two tired, sober girls over, but this was too much for me. So, the college years surved me well (I can say that now?!) and I was able to get a decent amount of sleep even with the noise of homemade karioke and goodness knows what else. I'm begining to hope for when school starts and people don't have as much time to party. Sheesh! You can do that at home!
This morning (Saturday, 6th), I got a call from an English teacher at my school. I'm meeting her and my supervisor for dinner and a movie tonight and she asked if tomorrow I could help coach a student practicing for an English speech competition. I said I would, though I'm trying not to work on Sundays. I figured that I haven't been spending as much time in school during the week so it's the least I can do. Three hours seems like a long time, however . . . Maybe I'll pick up a good work ethic while I'm here!
Oh! I forgot to mention my first McDonald's experience Thursday. I heard great things about McDonald's here (pronounced something like Makudonarudosu), so I went with Chuck and Mark to find out. The fries were hot and the burger was fine, but the service was the key. After taking our order with a big smile and enthusiasm, we sat down and they brought the food to us. Then when we got up to leave they ran from behind the counter and took our trays to throw them away for us. Now that is totally different from the states.
Well, signing out for now. Tonight I'm going out again, but it's with my supervisor and another English teacher, so I'm hoping for some real Japanese experiences even if we are going to see War of the Worlds . . . Gotta love Japan!
Thanks for your emails and prayers. I am doing my best to respond to them. No, parties are not more important than you, but when it's at your own place it's quite rude to be antisocial. . .
Comments
For the record, I'd just like to note that the cops that came by were equal parts bored (not a lot of crime in Kai city...) and annoyed at having to drive over and tell a bunch of foreigners to be quiet.
Of course, being in Japan, the neighbors would never even think about coming over and asking the foreigners to turn their music down, they'd rather call the cops and let them do it.
Posted by
Dennis
on Thursday, September 01, 2005 at 4:13 am
Add comment
