Happy Fourth of July. Perhaps it just never adequately sank in for me before, but they apparently have really lax explosive laws here in Japan. I realized this when I walked into the conbini down the street to buy lunch and for the first time really noticed the fireworks display near the door. It was obviously directed towards kids, the packaging covered with the cutest little hamster family playing with fireworks, but I swear, it had what looked like sticks of dynamite in their right along with the sparklers. Well, as they said on the 'Simpsons" at one point or another, "Celebrate the birth of our country by blowing up part of another."

I spent part of this afternoon buying Elena a birthday present (I'm perfectly safe talking about it here because even if she had an internet capable computer on hand, I seriously doubt she'd take the time to keep tabs on how I'm doing). I always thought that I was troublesome to get gifts for, but at least for a fallback people know that a book store certificate will always be appreciated. After spending much to long wandering around one of the few big malls in Japan (actually, I'm writing this as I'm waiting for my train; I was two minutes too slow leaving the mall to catch the train I wanted, so now I have a half hour to burn). I came to the realization that I had _no_ idea whatsoever as to what to get her. I saw lots of nice things, but nothing distinct enough to make it worth the trouble to send all the way from Japan. So finally, I settled on some CDs, because I have a vague idea of what her musical tastes are like, and know enough about the Japanese contemporary music scene to buy something akin to watch she might listen to back stateside. Of course it also means I'm going to have to listen to the CDs first to make sure I was right, and getting them out without ruining the shrink-wrap is hard work. That and translating is going to be something of a chore (I'm sure that Elena will be much more appreciative if she knows what it is she's supposedly listening to). At least I can get a quite a bit of support on that project here.

Also, the next time I hear somehow at home complain about the prices of CDs, I'm going to stick them in a box, mail them here, and then make them buy them the latest titles. Media prices in general tend to be about twice that in the U.S. So what I'm trying to say in my own rather unsubtle way is, 'Hey Mom and Dad? This cost me a bit more than I thought it would, so I might need to borrow just a little bit more to ensure that I don't run out of food money."

That was actually a problem I was pondering before this little binge (what is it about buying presents that completely disables my discretionary controls?) I think I'm actually spending a bit more on food than I was before, because in the morning I buy a drink at the train station, I buy another after I arrive at JCMU, and when I get back to Yasu Eki on the way home, I purchase one more. That's about five dollars a day in just vending machine spending (which is something I really can't cut down on, because all the biking I've been doing really costs me in sweat and calories [and as far as I've been able to figure, the only drinking fountain in all Japan is at the airport). The first couple of days of commuting I was actually riding the edge of dehydration. Then I spend another five dollars on lunch (sandwich, beverage, and dessert) which also would be very hard to trim without leaving me critically deficient in some way or another.

Update: Disaster averted.

With everything I did this afternoon, I was running a bit late (especially after missing my train). So I called Okaasan to tell her where I was. It was a good thing that I did, because as it was long past the time that I usually got home, Otousan had gotten a bit worried, and was about to go out looking for me. So it was a good thing indeed that I decided to call home, otherwise I do believe that there would be a rather pissed reception waiting for me. And that would have been a really bad thing, because everyone seemed to be in a particularly good mood today. For example, dinner tonight was a rice omelet, and when I sat down to mine I saw that Okaasan had spelled my name in ketchup on the top (Ketchup is a common condiment on eggs here; I can just picture Elena's 'ick!' expression right now for some reason).

To people who say that the Japanese have no sense of humor, on television, we were just watching a game show (I think) that had four contestants betting that they couldn't be made to laugh so hard that they'd shoot milk out there nose. Several small groups suddenly appeared from behind a door, doing various slapstick-y things, all the while the contestants drank big glasses of milk. The last group was the funniest, as shown by the fact that all four spontaneously spewed milk halfway across the stage, and then good natured- (and milk mustached)-ly, paid out to the winning act.

Oh yes, a topic that I've been asked about several times: no, I don't not have to take my shoes off _every_ time I go inside, _everywhere_ I go. The whole no shoes issue is only present where practical. Going into a house, you take off your shoes and put on slippers. At JCMU, we don't wear shoes inside. When you go into a temple, you take off your shoes. When you go grocery shopping, or to the bank, or to most restaurants (really fancy traditional ones would be an exception) you don't bother with your shoes. It's a cultural practice, not an inanity.