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1 . 3 0 . 0 2 Busy busy, back in the muck of things. Thinking on making my Wed a UH/study day, I have a course right in the middle of the day, which makes it hard to travel to the court and/or public safety without wasting time. will probably work out well since I have Econ in the evening and I need an hour slot to do the lab work. Might be a good midweek break as well. The Weekly comes out today as well. Seem to be in a cycle of pulling all-nighters based on productivity and necessity. A little too often really. I've noticed that I don't have the drive to stay up all night. Even when there's things to do. I suppose its time to get my act in gear and on a timely fashion. I think if I'm up after 4am it seems pointless to let myself lie down least I oversleep until 10am. Misguided motivation too, I think this DSL connection is more of a distraction than anything else. May be going to my first carnival in 4 years, noticed the tents on the Punahou campus, can almost taste the malasadas. those days seem so far off, although it really hasn't been that long ago in reality. Turned in my UH app for Poli Sci, thinking about dropping one to the Public Administration program as well after realizing that the degree sounds more like what I'm looking for. Walking by the Center for Korean studies I noticed that UH has a dual JD/MA in Asian studies offered. Something else to think about. Learned in class yesterday that the U.S. used the services of Japanese Comfort women during the first year of occupation following the war. They discontinued this practice only after outbreaks of VD were reported amongst the troops. learn something new everyday. 1 . 2 7 . 0 2 Guess Hanko got sick too, so I can't write a nasty letter to NWA. Not like it would matter anyway if it had been the case afterall. Wondering where it came from. probably just being in the cold air in Fukui, best guess at the moment. Anybody who knows about infectious diseases feel free to enlighten me. Meanwhile things are back to normal more or less, cept the size of my stomach capacity, and sleeping patterns. I'm sitting here early in the morning at about 4am because I can't seem to get back onto Hawaiian standard time. also theres been a bit on my mind. can't really go into it too much in detail right now. I think I'm still digesting Japan. on a side not, I started classes, POLS 635G with Kuroda, US-Japan relations, POLS 601 Theory Building with Bwy, and a 131 Macroeconomics class with a tough-acting Isreali. all three have a certain level of energy that I have seen lacking in the students I've come across so far since I've been home, sometimes I wonder if I've just been fortunate to come in contact with these teachers? Or maybe I've been trained to be more receptive to this type of energy over the years. I'm starting to think that the professors aren't solely to be blamed. apps are in except for UH, I need to get going on it to make the deadline. I feel a little guilty knowing that if I get into another school in addition to UH, I'll probably go away. maybe thats why I'm dragging my feet. Went over to Iso and Matt's the other night, played drunken pictonary, cept only the guys were the ones drinking. never knew that mang girls could be as loud as Punahou girls. competitive too. Turns out they were all Jess's classmates, this island is too small. Think we had enough beer left over for a superbowl part next week. Only Iso's team didn't quite make it. hehe. Found myself in Rainbow bookstore the other day, looking for textbooks, and ended up buying 3 other non-related used books. I seem to have a habit of doing this, adding to my collection of half-read, intended-to-be-read books of various subjects. Just never find the time. looking forward to retirement so i can hang out and make plum wine like Aki's dad. before that I suppose I should do something of worth first. like raise a family. 1 . 2 4 . 0 2 Back in Honolulu after a wild ride in Japan, and back again. Will have to devote a good section of webspace to the trip, pictures and thoughts and what not. Probably will rank in one of the best trips ever, up until the last 6 hours on the flight back to Kansai where I became violently ill puked and shit my brains out in the lavatory. Fucking Northwest. I'm still recovering, a few days later, my stomach feels like its shrunk about 5 times, and my insides feel like liquid. I also got a cold or something, galas galore and what not. My take is that I was coming down with something before I stepped on the plane, and something I ate set it off. Then again maybe it was the hiroshima oysters, who knows if theres still traces of fallout in the bay today. I've been back for a couple days, and in a delirious fever trying to reflect on my recent adventure in Japan. I definitely need to go back someday, I think Aki mentioned going up north in the summer, maybe south to Okinawa as well. Most vivid was my fever-induced nightmares about a scorched Hiroshima delta. I was running among the burning rubble and ashes trying to mold the smoldering matter into shape, choking in the futility of my efforts. I tried to interpret it as a feeling of approching tasks, instead of taking a conventional/rational route of planning and course of action, sometimes gathering the remains of the situation into shape is an alternative. Like scooping clay into a blocked embrace, presenting it to an silent audience burning with thirst, and then scooping again. I recently found out that while my mom's family is from Yamaguchi-ken, my grandfather's side is from Hiroshima. had they not come to Hawaii they surely would've been exposed to the blast. Puts another spin onto my experience, something that I need to reflect on a bit more before putting it into writing. Good to be home though. Classes are starting at UH an KCC, back in the run of things. 1 . 2 1 . 0 2 Back in Fukui for a day before heading back to Honolulu via Kansai tonight. Spent the weekend in Hiroshima, met with Aki and Hanko Saturday at the station. My first night was noteworthy, stayed at hotel Yamato right by the station, which seemed pretty cool at first, but turned out to be a hotel for businessmen or sort. comically really. I think the magazine racks in the hall with soft porn, or the advertisements for snack bars was a giveaway. But I think it was when the guy at the front desk wouldn't let Aki come up to the room with me an hour before check-out. too many skebe businessmen with their kogals or something. The one story about the hotel was funny was the coin operated TV, I ended up plunking in 600 yen to watch TV, when I realized that you only have to pay to watch porn. bad porn too I might add. Aside from the initial adventures, Hiroshima was a weekend of such that I can't just devote to a simple journal entry. I think I'll be working on a page for this trip to Japan at a later date, after I get my pictures developed most likely. We covered a lot of ground in a weekend, went to the Peace Park, visited the A-bomb dome near the hypocenter, and visited the memorials in the area dedicated to the victims of the atomic bomb droped on August 6, 1945. The next day we took the train to nearby Miyajima, rented bikes and went around. Saw the famous torii in the ocean, and sampled fresh kaki grilled over charcoal. Later we had hiroshima okonomiyaki at the station, as well as miyajima manju. Too much to include in this journal. Back in Fukui hanko and I watched Quiet Duel, and part of The Most Beautiful, which will complete my quest in watching every Kurosawa film. 1 . 1 8 . 0 2 Back in Fukui, some rest after a busy trip in Tokyo, a nice change from the busy metropolis, although the place is a little chilly. don't get me wrong, I'm against central heating in the states, some of my days indoors in Wisco were ridicilously hot, but some places in Japan seen to have the same insulation in Hawaii - none. although they could use some. Finally figured out how to work this heater better, apparently there's an exhast fin that you can turn down to shoot the warm air down. but it seems to shut off ever 5 minutes or so. wish i could read Japanese. Hanko's doing good on JET, dedicated and passionate about what she does, something that I have always admired about her. Went to the budokan the other day, sat in on her Kendo class. Have to say it was an experience. Am very impressed with some of the motions retained by Kiyota in Madison. During the class there were these two little kids who were running around the dojo, little punks really, getting into mischief. especially the little one, who got tired of swinging pens at his friend, and instead ran into the locker and came out swinging a short bokuto! I tried to get them to sit down with my remedial Japanese, I had to run and grab some of them to prevent them from getting whacked with a shinai. it eventually backfired when one of them asked me something that I couldn't understand. he got a little pissed - I guess when we're that age we think everyone speaks our language, especially a gaijin that looks Japanese. I got to watch Zoku Sugata Sanshiro, with Hanako translating, something that i could never do in the states. apparently the film is banned in the US, being that it was right after the war, and hold some anti-western and anti-american themes. nothing to major, really, but I suppose it might hit a sour note with some people still today. It was just like all of Kurosawa's movies, pure genius, in depth and execution of story, as well as in the human struggle we call life. Hanko especially liked one of the scenes at the temple. I wonder if it has inspired some other scenes later in film. classic. Enjoying these beers in Japan, theres so many I need to sample, and so little time. I'm wondering if I can get Suntory in Hawaii. 1 . 1 6 . 0 2 Went to Tokyo via shinkansen this weekend. probably the biggest city I've been in yet. Met with Aki and Rei at the station, stopped by a ryokan which was more like someone's house turned dorm. Then it was off to the Roppongi district to a place where you fry your own food and all you can drink beer for an hour. and then later we went to this club called Gaspanic. It was cool cept for the annoying people who worked there asking us to buy drinks every 5 minutes or so. I guess we didn't pay a cover, but still. I came back my ryokan and tried to work the coin operated TV player and got nothing but static. after an amusing morning I spent fumbling in my room, I met up with Aki still recovering from the night before. she showed me the shinjuku area with all the love hotels and pachinko parlors. Interesting hobby really, but I still don't understand it entirely. Pachinko that is. Funny being in Japan, still getting adjusted to it, my nihongo seems to come and go, makes me wish i studied a little harder back in HS. Met Hanako at the station and came back home for dinner with Aki's family - sukiyaki reminded me of the kaiwa I had to memorize, didn't realize what a warm gathering it can be. Last time I had I think was with my grandparents on kauai, cept we didn't need the heated table. Next day we all went to Asakusa to visit the shrine, seems that we decided to visit on coming of age day, lots of girls in kimonos and people running around. I got a so-so fortune, which needed to be tied to the posts in order to negate its effects. Sampled some monja and okonomiyaki, went to that district with all the fake food shops. Aki's dad took around Ueno station to the Art college gallery, teh graveyard of the Tokugawas, and a sharing dedicated to the 1st, 8th, and 15th Tokugawa shoguns. Got to see Ieyasu's armor and sword. After that we walked though Ueno park, saw the homeless of Tokyo singing a Japanese version of Amazing Grace to a group of christian preachers. Also went to Tokyo University, Mr. Hoshimoto's alma mater, and then downtown to see the Imperial Palace. I'd like to think between my bad japanese and his broken conversational english we were able to communicate sufficiently enough. He was so good to me, meeting people like him makes me want to study Japanese again. Met up with Rei and Aki after work to go to an izakaya, Japanese bar and grill what not where I sampled some high quality sake and grinds. Afterward we went to an okinawan soba place and had some rafte dish, concluding probably one of the best days of my life. 1 . 1 1 . 0 2 HIyo. or ohayo. or konichiwa. or boku wa baka amerika jin desu. I`m in Fukui city, using this internet connection with the media lounge or somethhing, pretty neat really. adventures abound, I flew into Kansai in one piece, enjoyed the free sapporo on the plane, along with some keen observations on how the airports and flying has changed since the september 11th. 1st off was all these National guardsmen carrying M16s around the airport, and the fact that they have a pretty extensive random search at the gate. I should know because I was one of lucky saps who got pulled out of line. Felt sorry for the Japanese couple in front of me, who didn`t really know what was going on. Next was *gasp* plastic utensils on the dinner trays. I thought that was a little odd. anyway, I made it into Kansai Ok, a little late though, had to catch a JR train to Osaka, and then a 3 hour train ride to Fukui. not bad for my broken nihongo. Met up with Hanako at the station at about 2am, got to see the night of Fukui first. its a little cold here, but nothing like Wisco. first observations were the vending machines at every corner serving soda, food, hot tea, cigarettes, and beer. want to go buy one just for the novelty. lots of people smoke here, even on the trains. kinda gross. I must`ve inhaled a pack on my way up to fukui. smoking while sleeping. no central heating too, something that I actually kinda like. Americans are pretty wasteful with the central heating i think. also are the funny commercials on TV, Hanko thinks that the terebi is kinda dumb in Japan, but I think its pretty amusing so far. planning on going to tokyo tomorrow, meet up with Aki for a couple days, then its off to Kyoto, and Osaka, back to Fukui, and then Hiroshima next weekend. So far so good, another adventure for me. 1 . 8. 0 2 Ok. its crunch time. well kind of. I'm pau with the grad apps. unless I get ambitious and start adding some more schools. so they're in the envelopes, just waiting to be mailed. gotta get my okole down to the post office. Headed off to Kansai airport tomorrow to visit Hanako, it'll be a good vacation before coming back for the grind of things again. Then Again I'll just be jumping back into the application process for Law schools. that is unless I get it finished before. I really should. ack. I hear the Yen is at 130 to the dollar and climbing. thats good for me I suppose, but bad for the ppl in Japan working. Too bad I don't got that much kala for it to really matter. So far I don't have much of an itinerary, I'm headed to Tokyo to visit Aki, and then to Hiroshima and Miyajima to sightsee. I didn't really have much time to plan for this trip actually. Just have to wing it. Japan is a crazy place I hear, so it shouldn't be too hard to get into trouble. Iso says to go visit the Ropponji area. I wanna go to an onsen. 1 . 5 . 0 2 Dawn of the new year, eventfull already. Almost finished with my apps, about half done with the grad schools, and just about there with the law schools. need to brush up my statement to sound more law-orientated, and then its off to the post office. Went to Oceans the other day to see Adam before he went back up to Seattle, came early and couldn't find him until 11:00. I got there early with Jess, Connie and her friends for the discount food which is a real bargain if you're willing to come early enough. As the place started to fill out people start appearing out of the woodwork. It is a real trip, the place really is a private school/rich public school kid hangout. Seems like the environment today has a tendency to breed drama queens, it doesn't help if you're surrounded by those with material wealth, natural talent, and confidence false or not. Ran into 2 ex girlfriends, and about 10 people who I haven't seen in years. Ran into an old friend, whom last we met showed me their passive aggressive way of dealing with things. It came to a point where I couldn't take it any more and walked off. I do have a tendency to empty my heart, and with time I can show an indifference to people. While I agree that the opposite of Love is not hate, but indifference, I've been thinking that indifference in itself is not a lack of love either. In fact, maybe indifference is a sense of detachment, or peace. Better to let things take their natural course. |