Sorry for the belabored titled. But it's true! There's probably tons more that I left out but those seem to be the most salient points. So, I'll do my best to recap the events in as orderly (and chronologically) a fashion as I can muster.
A few weeks back we spent some time walking around Jusco, which is the big AEON (department store), located in Yonago. I've probably mentioned that before, but I'll throw it out there again just as a refresher and to make sure everyone's caught up. We met up with another ALT named Alex and spent the day shopping around, but mostly picking up things that we needed for our respective places. We stopped at an arcade midway through our day and it was intense. I wish I was a kid here. Back at home we had crappy places like Nickel Nickel, or Nickel City. The idea was on par with 99 cent stores, except for arcades. Everything costs a nickel, or so it seems at first. Much as The Dollar Tree, or 99 cents stores would lead you to believe, most things are a dollar, or 99 cents, but many others simply end in the 99 cents or are close to some kind of dollar amount. As such, DDR (which I played the hell of out when I was young) cost FIVE nickels. ONLY FIVE!?! Little we we realize that was still a quarter, and thus there was no discount. But getting back on topic, the places were mostly run down, poorly maintained, and the selection of games was usually dismal at best. The types of games we saw kids playing with at this department store completely blew me away. I even managed to sneak a quick video of a horse betting game, which I so desperately wanted to play. Check it out right here. On that same day I managed to buy about four button up shirts very cheap. They're very thin as well, which helps when the heat picks up. I also couldn't pass up on a T-shirt with some fantastic Engrish on it. "Brainery The Blinding Fruitage". How can you not buy that for 4 dollars?
Gachaphon (Capsule Toys) are also something that is way more intense over here. You can easily lose a couple of bucks maybe even 10-20 dollars if you're not careful while browsing them. What makes them so dangerous is that the prizes inside them are way cooler than anything you'd find inside the capsule machines we have in the states. Make no mistake, none of the prizes are any bit more useful than a sun-roof on an motorcycle, but they're so cool, unlike the aforementioned sun-roof, which is just silly, really. The other danger factor is that they cost more than you think. The most basic ones start at 100 yen, moving to 200 yen, and the more extravagant costing as much as 300 yen. After a while, 100 yen starts to feel like a quarter because of the seemingly harmless nature implied by a multitude of cultural factors, mixed with my own American prejudices about money. As of this writing 1 dollar is roughly 78 yen, so 100 yen is well more than a dollar, naturally (~$1.28 right now). There is a fairly small sized coin for 100 yen over here, smaller than a quarter, thinner than a nickel, and since we don't generally carry 1 dollar coins in American, the next best value 100 yen starts to feel like is a quarter. Despite there being a 50 yen coin, and even a 10 yen coin, only the 100 feels remotely as a quarter would in your hand. The 10 yen is bronze and large, and the 50 yen has a hole punched in it. As such, they immediately come off as being foreign. This is why those machines are dangerous. When one feels as though they're only spending maybe a dollar or two, they might actually have spent as much as 10 on these fascinating little toys. All of which is to say be careful...but I needed that Miniature Light-Up Han Solo Blaster Replica!
On September 16th, my family facetimed me from my grandma's house, and it was the first time many of my extended relatives had a chance to see or talk to me, since I had left. I really enjoyed speaking with all of them, and catching up, showing them around this place, and talking about what Japan is like. My brother was able to show off his tattoo to me, which I liked. It runs down the length of his bicep to forearm, and depicts an octopus entangled with a man in a standard diving suit, pulling him under the water. Very cool. My grandma however, had not seen it before when he was showing it off to me, and her expression was priceless when she saw it. She wasn't upset, just more of a, "oh god, what is THAT!" face. Halfway through there was a huge mosquito-like bug that flew into the house while I was feeding the fish. It was huge. I swear. It's a good thing we bought a fly swatter at the Hyakin -> Hyakuen -> Hundren Yen -> Dollar Store that one time. It was funny because we had no idea what it was called and we had to describe it in a way that probably made us sound like kids. But we got one!
While walking home one day from the convenience store, we managed to catch a frog! His name is Mr. Frog, and he lives in a the brand spanking new tank we bought at the Hyakin, for 550 yen. We've been putting sticks we find in it to make it more hospitable for him. At night I go out to catch flies that hover around the nearby vending machine with tape that has been fixed to a paper towel roll. Works pretty well, I pluck them off and drop them in, he eats happily and all is well.
My nephew's first birthday came to pass on the 19th of September! Congratulations Rocco! He made his first few steps with me, while I was watching him before I left for Japan, and I was proud of him. It was very cool to be able to see something like that. He managed to fully walk on his own like a pro before his birthday too, which also made me proud and happy. Way to go buddy! I was able to facetime and be there for the whole happy birthday song, the presents and of course, the birthday tears!
One of the days that we visited Keiko-san for a bit, we got onto the topic of Fugu and it's poisonous nature, which was famously depicted in a classic Simpsons episode. We asked about whether it was really THAT poisonous and if people even died from it, because when you don't know, you just don't know. She concurred that it's very poisonous and that you'd probably die in a few minutes if you ate the bad part. Fortunately not that many people do, since to order it, you'd have to go to a very fancy restaurant where the staff is highly trained at preparing the fish. Furthermore, the poison sacs are located away from where most of the meat that people would eat is, so that greatly decreases the risk as well. So we probed more as to how many people a year died from the fish. She turned to Jiro-san and they talked back and forth for a bit, before turning back to us and saying that maybe 2 or 3 people a year die from it. I reiterated, "Oh so about 2-3 die from badly prepared Fugu..." and she quickly corrected me. The people who die are most often, if not always, fishermen who catch them on their own wherever they be. I interjected (in Japanese)
Me: ”あぁぁ。。。それから、できるとおもう”
Keiko-san: ”そう、そう、できなかった！！！ ”
"Oooh, so it's like... 'I think I can do it...' ". She nodded, made a death animation with her body, and replied, "I couldn't do it!!!"
Amidst all of this we had been working a lot with a small group of students practicing their speech contest performances. I also managed to participate in a lesson at the kindergarten. On September 20th, I sat in on the meeting where the plans for the next day would be discussed. The meeting itself was rather terse, because most of what was going to be done had been laid out well in advance. We spent the next 40 minutes or even hour just talking about ourselves and chatting with the faculty of the kindergarten and the Board of Education Member/ Occasional Kindergarten Helper Kageyama-Sensei. He's a fantastic guy, and I was glad to be able to meet him, as well as the rest of the at the school. The seemed to enjoy that Mitsuko and I spoke as much Japanese as we did, and that we behaved in the manners that we did (very Japanese). After a while you just adopt it, or at least we do. It helps to fit in better. Everyone thinks at first that I'm just from Japan, and the always say that I have a Japanese face. I explain that my grandma is Japanese, my dad is part Japanese, and since I look like him it just skipped over to me. The kindergarten lesson was really fun. We introduced ourselves in Japanese and translated ourselves into English. After giving out little self introductions, they asked us questions and answered back in Japanese. We later learned about some basic body parts and the sang that song, "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" which I never sang in school, to my recollection at least... Good day though, tons of fun, and most of all, I think the kids liked it.
The ability to look like you're from Japan makes a huge difference as to the way you're treated in shops. Not in a bad way, mind you. It's just noticeable in small ways. When we visit shops, sometimes they'll have specials going on, promotions, or maybe something like a point card for frequent buyers. There have been many occasions in which Mitsuko was not offered a point card, while in the same shopping experience I was, to which I declined because I do not live here, yet. On the night of my birthday, I bought a donut for Mitsuko and one for myself to celebrate between ourselves. The lady working there asked me if I had a point card, I said no. She then asked me if I wanted one, and I declined that as well. When Mitsuko bought them last time, she wasn't offered it.
*pat pat* Sorry Mitsuko!
We did a lot of shopping that day. bought ourselves a new floor fan, so as to save money on the air conditioner, which costs a LOT to use. We also bought a really fantastic Canon printer, which I later learned is not even sold in America, meaning that there were no English language manuals or menus on the display. Oh well, we figured it out with a bit of dictionary checking. Later than night (birthday night) we went to Keiko-san and Jiro-san's house. She had prepared a birthday dinner for me, and even bought me a birthday cake! How nice is that? It was a great dinner, fried chicken, shiyobasa (salted mackerel, delicious), various vegetables, fried rice. Good dinner. She even bought me shirts a while back at a store called UNI-QLO, which I know about! They're both graphic Tees, one depicts a famous sake in Japan, and the other has the one and only SUPERMAN on it. Hahaha. That was a surprise. I definitely wasn't expecting it. I've already worn them. I love it. Afterwards we played Mahjong together. I've been slowly learning, and I bought myself a set a while back while at the department store. It's a complicated game, and there's lots to learn, but the core is not so bad to understand I think. Good day, good food, good company, and good night.
The English Speaking Contest.
What more can I say? Our boys did their very best. I'm so proud of them. I saw them getting a bit shaky before they had to perform, and I remembered what it was like to do things like that when I was that young. They deserved to place. Out of the three individual events they competed in, we walked home with no prizes. I think I was more distraught than the boys were. And that's perhaps what made me sad. They were expecting to lose. They don't have any idea how well they did, and because I feel they deserved it, I made my own awards for all their hard work, which I'll give to them tomorrow in person.
Shouta-kun, Sohei-kun, Shunpei-kun, you all did very well. We tried our best, and that's what counts.
Mitsuko and I are very proud of you. To us, you three are all winners.
-Joshua
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Sunday, September 9, 2012
Neck Deep (In Everything You Can Imagine)
Hello there. It's been a while since I've last posted and though there's not been much for me to here in the town, there's still lots of things for me to talk about. I spend a lot of my time at Keiko-san's shop across the street. Over there I converse with her for a a few hours and I've recently taken to translating a book that I bought at a store called Tsutaya. Right now I'm sitting by myself in our house, while Mitsuko is out. She was invited another Enkai (drinking party) to celebrate (perhaps?) the end of the Kofu Junior High sports festival and apparently discuss work related things, which is why I was not invited this time around. I think I'm getting way ahead of myself right now though. I'll try to back up and explain things in more detail.
Let's see. . .
I believe it was the day after I last posted that Keiko invited us to go for a walk around Kofu to see a few sights. This town, though small, is actually a bit famous for it's water that comes from Mt. Daisen. It's sold in the malls, grocery, and department stores. If you read the back of the label carefully the name of our town is there on the bottle. How about that? Back to Mt. Daisen, apparently there's a hiking trail that one can take and sounds like something that I want to try later on when it's not so hot, because even though it's gone down tremendously since I first arrived, it's very much still hot and humid. On the walk Keiko told us a story about the castle up in the foothills of the mountain. As it turns out, the castle has since been renovated and therefore not the way it used to be. I'd like to go check that out in any case. The story she told us involved the Obon Festival, which is a time that maybe ever so slightly resembles something like our Halloween, but is far more close to something like a Dia De Los Muertos, honoring spirits and ancestors. It felt somewhat surreal as we walked through the increasingly natural landscape while she recited the story of the local lord who was killed and subsequently visited his townspeople who admired him so. The experience seemed more in line with what one might experience in a movie, it was a simple but moving experience, that left me filled with a certain sense of warmth at learning a piece of folklore.
Mitsuko would later have a busy week as her ALT life was pretty much solidified by this point. As I mentioned earlier, to help pass the time I visit with Keiko-san nearly every day. We often discuss food amongst the many things we talked about. Mitsuko never really learned to cook and as such, Keiko-san would help make her dinner before I showed up. Since I have a little bit more experience in that area I usually prepare dinners for her. Keiko-san asks me about the kinds of food we like, which are many for me, and we plan out a dinner accordingly. A few times in the last week, she's come over to our house, which is a whole 40 feet maybe less from her shop's front door, in order to help prepare a dinner. Killing two birds with one stone, we make enough dinner for both houses, ours and hers.
One of the days in which Mitsuko was working and I was spending time chatting with Keiko-san, she asked if I wanted to accompany Jiro-san to Yonago, the much bigger town (the city) next to ours. Not having much else to do, I agreed and thought perhaps I could pick up a thing or two, maybe a gift for Mitsuko or other things. They had heard that I liked records in one of our previous chats, and we found a record store in the Yonago area. While he was going to run some errands, I was to get dropped off at the record store and browse for a bit then he'd come back and get me, but we arrived too early. It didn't open until 11am and it was about 9:45 for us. So I ran a few errands with him, and eventually stopped at a CD/DVD/Book/Video Game store called Tsutaya. He went off to do a few more things and I shopped for a while in that store. I didn't want to spend too much unnecessary money, but I did find something I could pass up, two novels. There was a fantastic video game back in 2001 and later republished in 2011 called "Ico". I could waste a lot of time talking about how much I like it and why I recommend it, but just do yourself a favor and look it up here on Wikipedia if you're even slightly interested. There was a novelized form of the storm in two volumes, and it cost about 10 dollars for the both of them. I couldn't pass it up. These are the books that I'm currently translating right now with Keiko-san. It's going very slow because it's written in very flowery figurative language with lots of uncommon words, but I figure it'll help me out to get reading books rather than manga so that's the plan in that respect.
More cooking, more cleaning, I've become the housewife while Mitsuko goes out and works all day long. I understand more and more how this program can break relationships between people, it's quite taxing and strenuous on both parties it seems. I feel particularly bummed out most of the time that she gets to go out and do something while I sit around and entertain myself or quite literally (and more accurately) do nothing with my time.
Today was another example of that. The Jr. High School had a sports festival starting at about 9am this morning. Mitsuko had to work, and by work I mean film the whole thing via a tripod and a couple of hours and just standing there. I wasn't invited of course, but neither was I uninvited. Lots of families come to see the kids performing their various events, races, relays, human pyramid-making, and intermittent dances. I didn't get much chance to talk with her, and neither did I eat anything for most of the day. She disappeared during lunch time because she had go to inside and eat with everyone else. I sat outside by the track for about an hour until the activities started up again. After the whole event was over I tried to help out with the cleaning, but it wasn't all that much. I walked home and left Mitsuko there because she didn't know what else she had to do, or when exactly she would be able to go home. Later that night there was another enkai, which she had to attend. I was definitely uninvited to this one, and that's a sort of thing that gets under my skin a bit. I totally get it, let's get that out of the way. I'm not a teacher, and I don't work in this town. But it seems as though everyone equally wants me to be around, and not at the same time. I haven't necessarily been able to make sense of it, but as I said earlier. When there's nothing for me to do all day, nor can I talk with Mitsuko, and neither can I attend things with her, there comes a point in which I start to question the reasons why I'm here at all.
But to end on a more positive note, it seems that one of the teachers wants me to come in with Mitsuko on the 15-17th and help out with the students' English essays. Maybe, just maybe, it'll be exactly the right chance to prove that I am actually worth my salt. I also finally met Kageyama-sensei. The one who had to check to make sure I was normal. It seemed to go well but there's no way to be sure of what he was thinking. Perhaps later he'll let Mitsuko know that I can finally go to the Kindergarten and various schools to help out. Then, and only then, will all this madness start to add up to something.
There's always Keiko-san and Jiro-san though. I love them to death. I'd stay here just for them.
-J
Let's see. . .
I believe it was the day after I last posted that Keiko invited us to go for a walk around Kofu to see a few sights. This town, though small, is actually a bit famous for it's water that comes from Mt. Daisen. It's sold in the malls, grocery, and department stores. If you read the back of the label carefully the name of our town is there on the bottle. How about that? Back to Mt. Daisen, apparently there's a hiking trail that one can take and sounds like something that I want to try later on when it's not so hot, because even though it's gone down tremendously since I first arrived, it's very much still hot and humid. On the walk Keiko told us a story about the castle up in the foothills of the mountain. As it turns out, the castle has since been renovated and therefore not the way it used to be. I'd like to go check that out in any case. The story she told us involved the Obon Festival, which is a time that maybe ever so slightly resembles something like our Halloween, but is far more close to something like a Dia De Los Muertos, honoring spirits and ancestors. It felt somewhat surreal as we walked through the increasingly natural landscape while she recited the story of the local lord who was killed and subsequently visited his townspeople who admired him so. The experience seemed more in line with what one might experience in a movie, it was a simple but moving experience, that left me filled with a certain sense of warmth at learning a piece of folklore.
Mitsuko would later have a busy week as her ALT life was pretty much solidified by this point. As I mentioned earlier, to help pass the time I visit with Keiko-san nearly every day. We often discuss food amongst the many things we talked about. Mitsuko never really learned to cook and as such, Keiko-san would help make her dinner before I showed up. Since I have a little bit more experience in that area I usually prepare dinners for her. Keiko-san asks me about the kinds of food we like, which are many for me, and we plan out a dinner accordingly. A few times in the last week, she's come over to our house, which is a whole 40 feet maybe less from her shop's front door, in order to help prepare a dinner. Killing two birds with one stone, we make enough dinner for both houses, ours and hers.
One of the days in which Mitsuko was working and I was spending time chatting with Keiko-san, she asked if I wanted to accompany Jiro-san to Yonago, the much bigger town (the city) next to ours. Not having much else to do, I agreed and thought perhaps I could pick up a thing or two, maybe a gift for Mitsuko or other things. They had heard that I liked records in one of our previous chats, and we found a record store in the Yonago area. While he was going to run some errands, I was to get dropped off at the record store and browse for a bit then he'd come back and get me, but we arrived too early. It didn't open until 11am and it was about 9:45 for us. So I ran a few errands with him, and eventually stopped at a CD/DVD/Book/Video Game store called Tsutaya. He went off to do a few more things and I shopped for a while in that store. I didn't want to spend too much unnecessary money, but I did find something I could pass up, two novels. There was a fantastic video game back in 2001 and later republished in 2011 called "Ico". I could waste a lot of time talking about how much I like it and why I recommend it, but just do yourself a favor and look it up here on Wikipedia if you're even slightly interested. There was a novelized form of the storm in two volumes, and it cost about 10 dollars for the both of them. I couldn't pass it up. These are the books that I'm currently translating right now with Keiko-san. It's going very slow because it's written in very flowery figurative language with lots of uncommon words, but I figure it'll help me out to get reading books rather than manga so that's the plan in that respect.
More cooking, more cleaning, I've become the housewife while Mitsuko goes out and works all day long. I understand more and more how this program can break relationships between people, it's quite taxing and strenuous on both parties it seems. I feel particularly bummed out most of the time that she gets to go out and do something while I sit around and entertain myself or quite literally (and more accurately) do nothing with my time.
Today was another example of that. The Jr. High School had a sports festival starting at about 9am this morning. Mitsuko had to work, and by work I mean film the whole thing via a tripod and a couple of hours and just standing there. I wasn't invited of course, but neither was I uninvited. Lots of families come to see the kids performing their various events, races, relays, human pyramid-making, and intermittent dances. I didn't get much chance to talk with her, and neither did I eat anything for most of the day. She disappeared during lunch time because she had go to inside and eat with everyone else. I sat outside by the track for about an hour until the activities started up again. After the whole event was over I tried to help out with the cleaning, but it wasn't all that much. I walked home and left Mitsuko there because she didn't know what else she had to do, or when exactly she would be able to go home. Later that night there was another enkai, which she had to attend. I was definitely uninvited to this one, and that's a sort of thing that gets under my skin a bit. I totally get it, let's get that out of the way. I'm not a teacher, and I don't work in this town. But it seems as though everyone equally wants me to be around, and not at the same time. I haven't necessarily been able to make sense of it, but as I said earlier. When there's nothing for me to do all day, nor can I talk with Mitsuko, and neither can I attend things with her, there comes a point in which I start to question the reasons why I'm here at all.
But to end on a more positive note, it seems that one of the teachers wants me to come in with Mitsuko on the 15-17th and help out with the students' English essays. Maybe, just maybe, it'll be exactly the right chance to prove that I am actually worth my salt. I also finally met Kageyama-sensei. The one who had to check to make sure I was normal. It seemed to go well but there's no way to be sure of what he was thinking. Perhaps later he'll let Mitsuko know that I can finally go to the Kindergarten and various schools to help out. Then, and only then, will all this madness start to add up to something.
There's always Keiko-san and Jiro-san though. I love them to death. I'd stay here just for them.
-J
Sunday, September 2, 2012
Dawn Of The First Day
So, I figure it's time to play a little bit of catchup. I arrived in Kofu on a Thursday morning and there wasn't much for me to do since Mitsuko had to go to work that very day because as it turns out, that was also the first day of school. I knew that later on I'd be going to a drinking party, otherwise known here as an "enkai" which was meant to welcome Mitsuko as a new teacher for their school. That wasn't going to be until much later however. I didn't get much sleep on the overnight bus, even though it was about 9 hours until I disembarked. I just couldn't get comfortable enough.
Mitsuko's neighbor, a incredibly friendly man named Jiro-san, came with Mitsuko to pick me up so I wouldn't have to walk all the way back to their house. It's not terribly far away, but I'm sure glad they came.
As I said earlier, there wasn't much for me to do, and I wasn't feeling like sleeping after Mitsuko left so I hopped across the street to visit Keiko-san's shop. Keiko is the wife of Jiro, and is an incredibly helpful, and friendly person as well. She's so sweet! She speaks very good English as well (as does Jiro, I should say) so if ever there's something that we don't understand she helps clear it up for the both of us.
Jiro-san was there in the morning when I showed up. Keiko-san was out running errands and had not yet returned. I sat with him and talked about a number of things, trying to practice my Japanese and get back into the swing of things. I did. . . all right, I would say. My biggest problem is a lack of vocabulary. That's what it mainly boils down to. I just don't know enough words, so when people say things I get hung up on words I don't know rather than listening to the rest of their sentence(s). This of course throws me off and then I have absolutely no idea what people are saying. Cue the smile and nod.
Jiro-san was very nice and welcoming though, and we had a good chat. Keiko-san came back later on, and I was able to introduce myself to her finally. They had both heard much about me, and as I understand it, were very excited to finally meet me. I talked with Keiko-san a bit as well, before receiving a text from my family asking if it was okay to chat with me. I hadn't talked with them since I had let them know I arrived safely in Kofu so I figured it would be best to have a chat with them as well. I thanked Jiro-san for picking me up, and Keiko-san for being so helpful to Mitsuko. I explained how she mentioned that she was very grateful for all the help. I bid my goodbye and walked back across the tiny street to my house.
I chatted with my family for a bit, and showed them around the place via facetime on our iPhones. Around 3pm, Mitsuko sent me an email saying that she was coming back home and to be ready. I didn't know exactly what I needed to be ready for but as she doesn't work too far away from the house I assumed that I needed to ready quite quickly. She arrived before I was able to hang up the phone and as such said hello to my family as well. She told me that we were going to an onsen on invitation of the principal of the Junior High School, and he'd be picking us up quite soon.
After the onsen we were going to head straight to the enkai, which made me want to change but Mitsuko ensured me that I'd be more than dressed enough for the party. In no time at all, the principal arrived and we set out for the onsen.
We had a bit of conversation on the way, and I was ever so slightly intimidated (incredibly nervous) about having just met him, but needing to not only be entertaining, and pleasant, but also naked in just a few minutes time.
For those who don't know: Japanese Onsen are like spas in a way. They're referred to as hot springs in English, and are used as a means of relaxing. All of this sounds fairly straightforward but when you arrive at one you are met by an intermediate room. In this room there are lockers and rows of shelving which have one basket each of the holes. It is required that one removes all of his or her clothing before heading into the actual onsen area. From there, you basically have a shower. Seriously. There are little stools to sit on, just under a shower head, with soap, shampoo, and conditioner. The point is that you are supposed to be entirely clean before you hop into the onsen itself. After washing up, you can take your little hand towels and step into the water, which is incredibly hot, by the way. From here you can sit down and relax, enjoy a bit of conversation, and nudity with your fellow compatriots or foreigners in the case of myself. Afterwards you can hop out and in as many times as you feel necessary. In the end however, it is recommended that you shower up once more, because the water is a bit salty and it might feel a bit unnatural to just dry off like that after hopping out.
So that's exactly what we did. When we first got there there was a nice lady, who speak good English as well, that explained to us the process for getting into the onsen. Afterwards we split up (boys and girls have separate baths) and had a go of it. はずかしい (hazukashii) is the Japanese word for embarrassed, and that about sums up my thoughts on the matter. I knew about onsen beforehand and I even had the opportunity to go in one, but this was truly my first time getting into one, and probably the first time I was naked with another man whom I had just met about 25 minutes earlier. Though equal parts strange, fascinating, and nerve-wrecking, it was still relaxing being in that bath.
Our next destination was a shrine in the area, which I feel is best explained with pictures rather that what few words I could use to describe it. All in all a very amazing place. These types of things are what I especially love about Japan.
I also took a small video to capture the sound of the Cicada in the area. They're constantly making it throughout the day and it's a wonderful bit of ambiance that I enjoy.
Later that night there was the enkai. There I met with all the Junior High School teachers and become friendly with a number of them. There was so much good food. I unfortunately did not take any pictures because I didn't want to appear rude or strange in the eyes of so many people. I was also hoping to make a good first impression in front of them as well since I was hoping to be able to volunteer at any of the schools that would have me. Fukada-sensei asked about where I was from because I looked Japanese. I told her that my father is part Japanese, and the men in the family have a strong resemblance to one another so it carried over to me as well. They thought that was neat. When they saw I liked octopus and squid they were all impressed. "Just like a Japanese person!" they said.
One of the teachers called Kawakami-sensei I particularly enjoyed talking with. We chatted about where in Japan I had been to, why I had a fondness for Japan, and foods I liked. During a part where he asked if I liked ramen (which is yes) I asked him if he had ever eaten Hakata Ramen, which Fukuoka is famous for. He said that he had indeed eaten it, and the best place was a small restaurant called Ichiraku Ramen. I got all excited at that, because I had eaten there when I was in Fukuoka, and it was my favorite place as well. How cool is that?! We stood up and shook hands, as though we were in on a secret that none other were. It was a very cool moment and it totally broke the ice for me, which made the rest of the nigh easier, even though I stumbled over my self introduction, haha.
What a first day, don't you think?
-J
Mitsuko's neighbor, a incredibly friendly man named Jiro-san, came with Mitsuko to pick me up so I wouldn't have to walk all the way back to their house. It's not terribly far away, but I'm sure glad they came.
As I said earlier, there wasn't much for me to do, and I wasn't feeling like sleeping after Mitsuko left so I hopped across the street to visit Keiko-san's shop. Keiko is the wife of Jiro, and is an incredibly helpful, and friendly person as well. She's so sweet! She speaks very good English as well (as does Jiro, I should say) so if ever there's something that we don't understand she helps clear it up for the both of us.
Jiro-san was there in the morning when I showed up. Keiko-san was out running errands and had not yet returned. I sat with him and talked about a number of things, trying to practice my Japanese and get back into the swing of things. I did. . . all right, I would say. My biggest problem is a lack of vocabulary. That's what it mainly boils down to. I just don't know enough words, so when people say things I get hung up on words I don't know rather than listening to the rest of their sentence(s). This of course throws me off and then I have absolutely no idea what people are saying. Cue the smile and nod.
Jiro-san was very nice and welcoming though, and we had a good chat. Keiko-san came back later on, and I was able to introduce myself to her finally. They had both heard much about me, and as I understand it, were very excited to finally meet me. I talked with Keiko-san a bit as well, before receiving a text from my family asking if it was okay to chat with me. I hadn't talked with them since I had let them know I arrived safely in Kofu so I figured it would be best to have a chat with them as well. I thanked Jiro-san for picking me up, and Keiko-san for being so helpful to Mitsuko. I explained how she mentioned that she was very grateful for all the help. I bid my goodbye and walked back across the tiny street to my house.
I chatted with my family for a bit, and showed them around the place via facetime on our iPhones. Around 3pm, Mitsuko sent me an email saying that she was coming back home and to be ready. I didn't know exactly what I needed to be ready for but as she doesn't work too far away from the house I assumed that I needed to ready quite quickly. She arrived before I was able to hang up the phone and as such said hello to my family as well. She told me that we were going to an onsen on invitation of the principal of the Junior High School, and he'd be picking us up quite soon.
After the onsen we were going to head straight to the enkai, which made me want to change but Mitsuko ensured me that I'd be more than dressed enough for the party. In no time at all, the principal arrived and we set out for the onsen.
We had a bit of conversation on the way, and I was ever so slightly intimidated (incredibly nervous) about having just met him, but needing to not only be entertaining, and pleasant, but also naked in just a few minutes time.
For those who don't know: Japanese Onsen are like spas in a way. They're referred to as hot springs in English, and are used as a means of relaxing. All of this sounds fairly straightforward but when you arrive at one you are met by an intermediate room. In this room there are lockers and rows of shelving which have one basket each of the holes. It is required that one removes all of his or her clothing before heading into the actual onsen area. From there, you basically have a shower. Seriously. There are little stools to sit on, just under a shower head, with soap, shampoo, and conditioner. The point is that you are supposed to be entirely clean before you hop into the onsen itself. After washing up, you can take your little hand towels and step into the water, which is incredibly hot, by the way. From here you can sit down and relax, enjoy a bit of conversation, and nudity with your fellow compatriots or foreigners in the case of myself. Afterwards you can hop out and in as many times as you feel necessary. In the end however, it is recommended that you shower up once more, because the water is a bit salty and it might feel a bit unnatural to just dry off like that after hopping out.
So that's exactly what we did. When we first got there there was a nice lady, who speak good English as well, that explained to us the process for getting into the onsen. Afterwards we split up (boys and girls have separate baths) and had a go of it. はずかしい (hazukashii) is the Japanese word for embarrassed, and that about sums up my thoughts on the matter. I knew about onsen beforehand and I even had the opportunity to go in one, but this was truly my first time getting into one, and probably the first time I was naked with another man whom I had just met about 25 minutes earlier. Though equal parts strange, fascinating, and nerve-wrecking, it was still relaxing being in that bath.
Our next destination was a shrine in the area, which I feel is best explained with pictures rather that what few words I could use to describe it. All in all a very amazing place. These types of things are what I especially love about Japan.
 |
| The large entrance gate, note the awesome size of that rope |
 |
| A small torii |
 |
| A smaller building off to the side |
 |
| Wishes and prayers that have been tied up |
 |
| Another small gate in another direction |
 |
| The size of this stone lantern was impressive |
 |
| The main part of the shrine itself |
I also took a small video to capture the sound of the Cicada in the area. They're constantly making it throughout the day and it's a wonderful bit of ambiance that I enjoy.
Later that night there was the enkai. There I met with all the Junior High School teachers and become friendly with a number of them. There was so much good food. I unfortunately did not take any pictures because I didn't want to appear rude or strange in the eyes of so many people. I was also hoping to make a good first impression in front of them as well since I was hoping to be able to volunteer at any of the schools that would have me. Fukada-sensei asked about where I was from because I looked Japanese. I told her that my father is part Japanese, and the men in the family have a strong resemblance to one another so it carried over to me as well. They thought that was neat. When they saw I liked octopus and squid they were all impressed. "Just like a Japanese person!" they said.
One of the teachers called Kawakami-sensei I particularly enjoyed talking with. We chatted about where in Japan I had been to, why I had a fondness for Japan, and foods I liked. During a part where he asked if I liked ramen (which is yes) I asked him if he had ever eaten Hakata Ramen, which Fukuoka is famous for. He said that he had indeed eaten it, and the best place was a small restaurant called Ichiraku Ramen. I got all excited at that, because I had eaten there when I was in Fukuoka, and it was my favorite place as well. How cool is that?! We stood up and shook hands, as though we were in on a secret that none other were. It was a very cool moment and it totally broke the ice for me, which made the rest of the nigh easier, even though I stumbled over my self introduction, haha.
What a first day, don't you think?
-J
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Arrival: The Recap (short version)
So I finally made it to Kofu yesterday morning at about 5:50am. There's a whole let to tell you about how it all transpired so let's get down to brass tacks. Because I'm a bit behind on the posting. I'm going to let the pictures do most of the talking here, with a few comments to let you know what's going on or where I'm at.
We road a jam packed bus to the tarmac where we eventually on the plane.
Right here's the little station where we boarded on a the Boeing 777.
The corridor leading into the plane.
Greeted by the Malaysia Airlines staff.
A couple of pictures from inside the cabin
Dinner time!
Still a while from Tokyo...
My seat was right in line with the wing of the plane.
A shuttle taking us to the customs station.
Number 25, the shuttle to my hotel.
A panoramic shot of the view from my window
Saying goodbye to the Narita Tobu Hotel Airport.
Back in Narita airport where I had to find a JR rail to Shinagawa
The train I road into the Shinagawa Station here
Pictures from the Takanawa exit.
I had to take a picture of this place.
The bus terminal is only 200 more meters! Hooray!
At last, the Shinagawa bus terminal
A view from inside.
I forgot to take an actual picture of the ticket inside this envelope.
The arranged seating on the overnight bus.
A view of where the bus dropped me off in Kofu.
I'm trying to write more about what happened in between all of that, but things are just coming at me rather quickly at the moment. In the next post I'm going to spend a bit of time talking about how the first day actually went, which includes a visit to a relaxing onsen, a wonderful shrine, and an Enkai (drinking party) where I had to give a self introduction somewhat on the spot!
-J
I'm trying to write more about what happened in between all of that, but things are just coming at me rather quickly at the moment. In the next post I'm going to spend a bit of time talking about how the first day actually went, which includes a visit to a relaxing onsen, a wonderful shrine, and an Enkai (drinking party) where I had to give a self introduction somewhat on the spot!
-J
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Sitting At The Dock Of The... Terminal (Still Wasting Time Though)
(EDIT: This post was originally written on Monday August 27th PST but due to poor internet connections I hadn't been able to post it until now)
I write from the row of seats situated just behind my boarding gate. My flight was delayed about an hour and 15 minutes, so rather than boarding... right about now, I'm writing this post! I arrived just after 2pm and had a bit of food with my brother, mom, and dad while we sat around and chatted for a bit. Eventually we said our goodbyes and and I stood in line for the security check. I felt nervous putting my phone in those plastics bins, because the iPhone bumper I bought when I first purchased the phone has now eroded away. The phone looks so pretty without it, but I'm so hesitant to place it anywhere or on anything. Anyway, rambling aside. I should be able to board in about another half an hour. In the meantime here's some pictures from my final moments in America.
-J
I write from the row of seats situated just behind my boarding gate. My flight was delayed about an hour and 15 minutes, so rather than boarding... right about now, I'm writing this post! I arrived just after 2pm and had a bit of food with my brother, mom, and dad while we sat around and chatted for a bit. Eventually we said our goodbyes and and I stood in line for the security check. I felt nervous putting my phone in those plastics bins, because the iPhone bumper I bought when I first purchased the phone has now eroded away. The phone looks so pretty without it, but I'm so hesitant to place it anywhere or on anything. Anyway, rambling aside. I should be able to board in about another half an hour. In the meantime here's some pictures from my final moments in America.
 |
| I like the swirly lines around the gate time and seat |
 |
| A portal to the world |
 |
| If you just look at the bold it sounds like they're talking about something else |
 | ||
| Gate 142! Blargh |
Monday, August 27, 2012
Predeparture Interlude
Amongst all the Vegas recapping, another topic has been slowly boiling to the surface. It's been simmering for weeks and... okay food analogies over, tomorrow I'll be leaving for Japan! My flight is set to depart at 4:45 pm, and I'll land in Narita, 28 hours from then at 8:45 Tuesday night. I'll complete the telling of what transpired in Vegas very soon after I get my bearings. Things have just been a little bit hectic in preparation for leaving. I'll be posting loads and loads as events unfold with new things happening in new places. So stay tuned, don't adjust your monitor, and don't contact your local internet provider, I'll be back in a few days with the initial report on touching down in Narita and the journey to a pleasant little town called Kofu.
-J
-J
Thursday, August 23, 2012
The Morning After (Vegas Part 2)
We spent a great deal of the first night in Planet Hollywood itself. There was a bit of gambling alongside the occasional drinks. Truth be told, we tucked in rather early, calling it a night at about 3am. The four of us that had driven were fairly done in by this time and though we felt slightly bad that we were ending Jonathan's birthday night early(ish) we knew there were still two whole days of shenanigans in store. We played a bit of twenty questions before dropping one by one, like flies, into a well deserved rest.
DAY 2
Things started for us sometime between 11am and noon. We all felt like getting a food for the morning and had hoped that there would be some kind of affordable buffet in the area. Upon inquiring the concierge as to where we might find brunch, and what kind of discounts he might be able to toss our way, we were saddened to learn that he was of little use to us, merely pointing out the establishments that were neither inexpensive, nor buffet. Here's some pictures of the strip as we walked around looking for a place to grab a bite.
And of course when all seems lost, there's a McDonald's just around the corner. Normally I'm not a McDonald's person. In fact, the last time I ate at one was in 2007, while I was in Japan, because you have to do that at least once. Try the Ebi (shrimp) Burger, it's fantastic! Anyway, I wound up getting some kind of burger with bacon in it, which I cannot recall the name of. As we sat down and ate our collective post-lunch-breakfast, Vinny remembered that he wanted Jonathan to get what's known as a B-52 from a place on Fremont Street where they'll light it on fire. I think we were all still in the waking up process because when Vinny told Jonathan this I completely misheard him and said, "What the hell is a Beef In The Tube?". We all had a good laugh as Vinny explained that he was talking about the drink. I joked about how it was definitely not something to write home about. It became the first of many great inside jokes.
After we ate, we decided to go check out the pool located on the 6th floor of the hotel. Let me tell all who are reading right now. Never book a room on the same floor as the pool. I'm sure it sounds enticing to be that close, but the carpet leading out of the elevator and towards the pool smelled like a pile of rotting feet. It was horrible. When we got to the entrance Lauren, Jake, and Jonathan still had a bit of food and drink leftover from earlier so the employee on watch told them they had to wait inside until they were done. Vinny and I, with nothing in hand, ventured out to have a look. I didn't take any pictures at the pool, because then I would become that guy. So you'll have to just bask in the glory of the knowledge that it was an average looking pool. Most of what we saw encompassed decks chairs, and general sitting-around-to-get-a-tan places. The ground was blinding as well because of the sun being directly overhead and the nature of concrete. We made our way back inside to an empty room -minus the guard- and headed back upstairs to where we presumed the others were.
We got back and tried the room key a few times but it wasn't working. Keys, as it turns out, are useless when your friends are on the other side of the door holding the handle so you can't turn it. Jonathan and Lauren were getting ready for the pool while Jake was resting because he was a bit exhausted still. The three of us decided against going to the pool, Jake for resting, but Vinny and I because I was going to meet with my parents and grandparents for a little bit and he thought to come along.
Along the walk across the bridge to the Crystals Mall outside the Aria we encountered many vagabond types, singing their tunes, with cases open for tips and gestures of gratitude. Equal to this were a number of people that demonstrated no talent apart from the ability to hold a sign asking for money. Some of them you feel bad for, and some you don't. The "do nots" are the times when people are clearly mooching, which in the case of one person -who was clearly not 21- held a sign illustrating as much, hoping for donations with which he could fund his party. Mmmhm. Good try. Clever points maybe?
So we made it to the Crystals mall only to discover that they had moved from where they were to another place. I received a phone call while we were walking to leave the mall asking where we where, which was right in front of Louis Vuitton and Tiffany's. I was then told to stay there and that they would find me, because they had moved once again. Vinny and I chit chatted for a bit and talked about whatever else we wanted to do. Pictures!
We met up with my parents and grandparents and discovered that my grandpa had lost his phone, oh no! He never was able to find it but hopefully this means he'll finally get an iPhone like he's been talking about getting for a while. We walked inside a few places and talked before splitting up once again. It was probably about 5pm or so by now. Jonathan and I had to be ready by 7:30 for one of his presents, VIP seats to Penn and Teller's show at the Rio. Excellent.
Vinny and I made it back a short while later meeting Lauren and Jonathan there who had since returned from the pool. We went down to the casino level for a bit before returning upstairs. I opted for a shower in order to be fresh and ready for the show. Jonathan was ready by this point having washed up early after swimming. Vinny and Lauren were going off on their to see Vinny's cousins that lived in the area. Jake, decided to walk to strip by himself to gather in the sights.
We left for the Rio at around 7:40 and got there fairly quickly. The show wasn't starting until 9pm so we had plenty of time. After getting our tickets in order and getting a few drinks from the bar (alcohol for Jonathan, coke for my dad, water for me) we sat in the theatre space and waited for the show to start.
The first thing I noticed was a jazz act playing on stage to the right. The pianist was quite amazing and the bass player was excellent as well. After a bit of inspection, I came to realization that the person playing the bass was none other than Penn himself. How cool is that? I can not for the life of me think of a more non-diva thing to do than what he did. He was not only there, ready for the show, but entertaining us and providing music well up until 10-15 minutes before the show started. As much as I already love Penn and Teller and everything they do from their magic performances, to their TV shows (Bullshit, Fool Us, etc) that put a lot more into their stock.
Up on stage was a solid wooden box, fastened securely on all sides, with one hinged front end open for incoming people to examine. Next to this was a easel-like device that held a pasteboard with the day's date on it, and a manilla envelope that people were singing. Jonathan and I got up on stage and signed it while also managing to get a picture of Jonathan in the box itself.
I think I'll talk about the act itself in another post because I'll want to avoid spoiling it for people who haven't seen it, but it was fantastic. Such a joy to watch. Entertaining, mystifying, and delightful all at once. Look forward to that post later on.
After the show ends Penn and Teller perform another feat that is truly worthy of praise. Provided you want to, they will meet and shake your hand, sign your things, and take a picture with every person that stays afterwards. Every single person. It was incredible. They separate themselves a bit so that people do one at a time. We waited for Teller first, took a few pictures, got a few things signed and then did the same for Penn. All in all it was a very cool night, propelled by a very genuine and talented pair of performers.
Once we got back to the hotel, we found Lauren, Vinny and Jake were all back. Toilet paper had lined the walls and jumped all around the room in criss crossing patterns. I unfortunately did not manage to get a picture of it. There was a moment though in which we somehow managed to do the following:
Later on, we headed back out into the night and strolled up the strip checking out whatever we could along the way. There was a horse statue that we tried to take a funny picture with, but couldn't quite get it right. I was however, entertained by Lauren, Vinny and Jake dancing behind Jonathan in the distance. I managed a sad attempt as well, and though it didn't work out that time, I did keep this trend up throughout Vegas and pulled off a few good ones later on.
Other interesting things of note were the halted treadmill-like entrance to Bally's which was being cleaned, presumably because someone could not contain all the happiness inside them, which as a result, had to force its way out into the real world. Kids of insanely young ages walking around has us perplexed. It was about 2am, so even if it wasn't Vegas they still shouldn't have been up that late walking around with all the working ladies about and general drunkenness that accompanies the strip at this time.
When we finally reached the point at which walking felt stupid, we also felt like eating. Everyone, except Jonathan that is, who was beginning to feel the pangs of a hangover even though it wasn't the next morning. We encouraged him to eat something because he hadn't really eaten that day apart from McDonald's earlier. On the way back we stopped at a Denny's and had a great 3am meal courtesy of our waiter, Jun. He was entertaining and oft funny, if only in the silly way. It was enough to make us smile, and after the long day it was exactly what we needed. Part of Vinny's order included sausages that were not fully cooked. Very pink on the inside. Vinny cracked a joke about eating the sausages if Jonathan wanted to throw up but it came out way more hilarious than he intended.
"If you have to vomit dude, just eat the weenie, it's easier that way." We had another good round of laughs.
As I was putting a bit of cream cheese on my bagel I missed and got myself instead. Maybe it was the late night experience. Maybe we had the giggles. I don't know, but we all had a good laugh about it.
"Wups, that wasn't a bagel…" (Me)
"What was it?" (Lauren)
"My finger." (Me)
We made it back a little later and crashed hard. It was a long day and we were still hoping to make it to a craps class at the Monte Carlo in only a few more hours.
PS Today marks 11 months in a row without drinking anything except water!
-J
DAY 2
Things started for us sometime between 11am and noon. We all felt like getting a food for the morning and had hoped that there would be some kind of affordable buffet in the area. Upon inquiring the concierge as to where we might find brunch, and what kind of discounts he might be able to toss our way, we were saddened to learn that he was of little use to us, merely pointing out the establishments that were neither inexpensive, nor buffet. Here's some pictures of the strip as we walked around looking for a place to grab a bite.
 | |
| Glorious sunshine and humidity |
 |
| Paris, now in hot air balloon form |
 |
| Bellagio off in the distance looking mighty fine |
 |
| A good shot of Bubba Gump on the video screen up above |
 |
| A shot of the strip from the bridge |
 |
| More cool buildings |
And of course when all seems lost, there's a McDonald's just around the corner. Normally I'm not a McDonald's person. In fact, the last time I ate at one was in 2007, while I was in Japan, because you have to do that at least once. Try the Ebi (shrimp) Burger, it's fantastic! Anyway, I wound up getting some kind of burger with bacon in it, which I cannot recall the name of. As we sat down and ate our collective post-lunch-breakfast, Vinny remembered that he wanted Jonathan to get what's known as a B-52 from a place on Fremont Street where they'll light it on fire. I think we were all still in the waking up process because when Vinny told Jonathan this I completely misheard him and said, "What the hell is a Beef In The Tube?". We all had a good laugh as Vinny explained that he was talking about the drink. I joked about how it was definitely not something to write home about. It became the first of many great inside jokes.
 |
| The breakfast of Olympians everywhere! |
We got back and tried the room key a few times but it wasn't working. Keys, as it turns out, are useless when your friends are on the other side of the door holding the handle so you can't turn it. Jonathan and Lauren were getting ready for the pool while Jake was resting because he was a bit exhausted still. The three of us decided against going to the pool, Jake for resting, but Vinny and I because I was going to meet with my parents and grandparents for a little bit and he thought to come along.
 |
| Looking out our hotel room on the 22nd floor |
 |
| Looking back inside at the rest of the room |
So we made it to the Crystals mall only to discover that they had moved from where they were to another place. I received a phone call while we were walking to leave the mall asking where we where, which was right in front of Louis Vuitton and Tiffany's. I was then told to stay there and that they would find me, because they had moved once again. Vinny and I chit chatted for a bit and talked about whatever else we wanted to do. Pictures!
 |
| To the right |
 |
| In the middle |
 |
| To the left |
We met up with my parents and grandparents and discovered that my grandpa had lost his phone, oh no! He never was able to find it but hopefully this means he'll finally get an iPhone like he's been talking about getting for a while. We walked inside a few places and talked before splitting up once again. It was probably about 5pm or so by now. Jonathan and I had to be ready by 7:30 for one of his presents, VIP seats to Penn and Teller's show at the Rio. Excellent.
Vinny and I made it back a short while later meeting Lauren and Jonathan there who had since returned from the pool. We went down to the casino level for a bit before returning upstairs. I opted for a shower in order to be fresh and ready for the show. Jonathan was ready by this point having washed up early after swimming. Vinny and Lauren were going off on their to see Vinny's cousins that lived in the area. Jake, decided to walk to strip by himself to gather in the sights.
We left for the Rio at around 7:40 and got there fairly quickly. The show wasn't starting until 9pm so we had plenty of time. After getting our tickets in order and getting a few drinks from the bar (alcohol for Jonathan, coke for my dad, water for me) we sat in the theatre space and waited for the show to start.
 |
| I'll post more about the show itself later |
The first thing I noticed was a jazz act playing on stage to the right. The pianist was quite amazing and the bass player was excellent as well. After a bit of inspection, I came to realization that the person playing the bass was none other than Penn himself. How cool is that? I can not for the life of me think of a more non-diva thing to do than what he did. He was not only there, ready for the show, but entertaining us and providing music well up until 10-15 minutes before the show started. As much as I already love Penn and Teller and everything they do from their magic performances, to their TV shows (Bullshit, Fool Us, etc) that put a lot more into their stock.
Up on stage was a solid wooden box, fastened securely on all sides, with one hinged front end open for incoming people to examine. Next to this was a easel-like device that held a pasteboard with the day's date on it, and a manilla envelope that people were singing. Jonathan and I got up on stage and signed it while also managing to get a picture of Jonathan in the box itself.
I think I'll talk about the act itself in another post because I'll want to avoid spoiling it for people who haven't seen it, but it was fantastic. Such a joy to watch. Entertaining, mystifying, and delightful all at once. Look forward to that post later on.
After the show ends Penn and Teller perform another feat that is truly worthy of praise. Provided you want to, they will meet and shake your hand, sign your things, and take a picture with every person that stays afterwards. Every single person. It was incredible. They separate themselves a bit so that people do one at a time. We waited for Teller first, took a few pictures, got a few things signed and then did the same for Penn. All in all it was a very cool night, propelled by a very genuine and talented pair of performers.
 |
| Meeting the guys |
Once we got back to the hotel, we found Lauren, Vinny and Jake were all back. Toilet paper had lined the walls and jumped all around the room in criss crossing patterns. I unfortunately did not manage to get a picture of it. There was a moment though in which we somehow managed to do the following:
 |
| It feels like the last scene in Ghostbusters |
Later on, we headed back out into the night and strolled up the strip checking out whatever we could along the way. There was a horse statue that we tried to take a funny picture with, but couldn't quite get it right. I was however, entertained by Lauren, Vinny and Jake dancing behind Jonathan in the distance. I managed a sad attempt as well, and though it didn't work out that time, I did keep this trend up throughout Vegas and pulled off a few good ones later on.
 |
| Just wasn't working |
 |
| As soon as I contain that horse I'll eat it |
 |
| No puking on the treadmill |
When we finally reached the point at which walking felt stupid, we also felt like eating. Everyone, except Jonathan that is, who was beginning to feel the pangs of a hangover even though it wasn't the next morning. We encouraged him to eat something because he hadn't really eaten that day apart from McDonald's earlier. On the way back we stopped at a Denny's and had a great 3am meal courtesy of our waiter, Jun. He was entertaining and oft funny, if only in the silly way. It was enough to make us smile, and after the long day it was exactly what we needed. Part of Vinny's order included sausages that were not fully cooked. Very pink on the inside. Vinny cracked a joke about eating the sausages if Jonathan wanted to throw up but it came out way more hilarious than he intended.
"If you have to vomit dude, just eat the weenie, it's easier that way." We had another good round of laughs.
As I was putting a bit of cream cheese on my bagel I missed and got myself instead. Maybe it was the late night experience. Maybe we had the giggles. I don't know, but we all had a good laugh about it.
"Wups, that wasn't a bagel…" (Me)
"What was it?" (Lauren)
"My finger." (Me)
 |
| The only picture we took at Denny's was this, our matching wristbands |
We made it back a little later and crashed hard. It was a long day and we were still hoping to make it to a craps class at the Monte Carlo in only a few more hours.
PS Today marks 11 months in a row without drinking anything except water!
-J
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)