Creeping Lily's Journal

2008-01-04T21:34:00.000-06:00

Wow, has it EVER been a long time. A good friend noticed and I claimed not to have access anymore. Guess I am utterly full of it, yes?

2007-03-14T21:19:00.000-05:00

Lily took the free ColorQuiz.com personality test!

"Considers the existing circumstances disagreeable ..."

Click here to read the rest of the results.

2006-11-01T21:11:00.000-06:00

November is a BAAAAAAAD month for me to try to post every single day, but damn it, I think I might just try. Lots is about to change in my life. I've got a new job, I'm moving all to the way to Manitoba. Why, you ask? Job, way to pay attention. I dropped off my lovely sleek Japanese cell phone on Monday to a sketchy phone unlocking operation in the Bayfield Mall. Tomorrow I get to see if the thing was a success. *fingers crossed* Here's to hoping, eh folks? Please lord let it work. I want my phone to function. Also, my Motorola V60i? DISCONTINUED. That somehow means to me that I must upgrade, even though my particular v60i functions. *sigh* Back to work, folks.

2006-10-19T15:20:00.000-05:00

Nadine, seriously, if you ever take out a classified ad, THIS is the photo to entice men from every walk of life.

Pre-rafting; Leana and Lily all suited up in half-wet-suits for the cold winds, and a little nervous about the day ahead!

Our supplies! (Oh, and Sarah and Leana, too.)

Sarah, Ashley, Leana and Nadine... stocking up.

I LOVE THIS PHOTO. Seriously, this is adorable. What the hell was this face for?

And here I am. A happy, mellow, drunk.

I think this is Nadine's happy face. Either that, or her "stay the f*** away or I'll bite you." Can't decide which it is.

Ashley and copious quantities of alcohol.

Sarah relaxing... I'm starting to see a theme, here...

The natural order of things: Leana confused and Sarah crazy.

Leana, crazy Brit, Nadine and Sarah... why are they clapping? One might ask, yes, but one was TOO drunk to remember. Oh well.

Hot, hobbit-Brit, Lily, and a bottle cap. Way to focus, people! Hmmm, can't recall his name, but he could summer saults (sp?) with no hands! Absolutely... "brilliant."

Nadine, an inebriated Brit, and Sarah.... what in the hell was his name? *smirks* He was running around in the morning, still drunk, with his pants barely hanging on. Priceless.

Sarah, trying to wake us up.

Ashley, Lily and Nadine... trying in vain to sleep in. (Shut up already Sarah, it's not time yet!)

Nadine's SWEET ASS. (I'm going to get smacked for that, I can just FEEL it.) (Actually, I did; that butt got groped numerous times over the course of the weekend.)

Sarah just chilling out, while the rest of us work! Kidding, kidding...

Sarah and Nadine, and...

And Ashley!

On the ride home, Sarah (or her hand, anyway) and Lily giving the peace sign. I guess that was a bit redudant. Sorry.

2006-10-09T20:00:00.000-05:00

So, I'm sure this is boring, and I'm sorry that the captions are LESS than setllar and inspiring, but I'm tired. All I managed was to upload the photos from our drive and from a couple other instances. Hopefully, will post something exciting in the near future. (Here's to hoping.) At any rate, enjoy!

Our backyard.
Lake something or other.

On the water.

Field and fence.

After securing herself a Tim Bit, and jumping all over the place with happiness over being invited on the car trip, Marlo is finally at ease.

Like so many songs say, it's a winding road...

Lovely farm.

Old school car.

More hills.

The hills on our drive...

I LOVE SHEEP!

You know you're having fun when.... you can't seem to focus, or decide what to shoot.

Maples I think.

Just some yellow leaves...

Saint Luke's Church, with some fall colours.. Don't recall which little tiny town this was in, but it was itty bitty.

Crazy Hallowe'en house.

Red Leaves.

Willow Creek behind my house

2006-09-26T21:48:00.000-05:00

Unsure if this will work.
Here's to hoping.
This is a video from my time in Japan, when Keiko and I went up this tower (damn, what is it called?!) and saw these ridiculous people playing soccer on a tennis court.
Very amusing, indeed.

2006-09-20T17:42:00.000-05:00

Pinetree in sunlight at the Kinmount Fair, September 2006.

My bangs got really long, before I managed to haul ass to the mall and get them trimmed.

Leana and Heather at my place.

Leana and Heather... goofy.

Leana and I had almost identical bite marks in our Dutch Apple doughnuts, so we took a photo. I think I insisted we take one. Stupid, really.

My friend, Heather, wearing my dad's nametag from some bizarro Liberal event that happened at Chappell Farms. "Hi, my name is Erik."

My dad holding our little bundle of joy, Jakob. She is the smarmiest little bitch cat who ever stalked the earth.

Glasses, gloss.

Red cap.

Red cap, again.

2006-09-05T21:25:00.000-05:00

"I'll blow your brains out if you touch my melons."

Who else's mother would say such a thing!

*sigh*

That is all.

2006-08-09T14:24:00.003-05:00

Short post to keep everyone semi up to date. Not many posts this summer, as my life is far from riveting! I'm just getting ready for a weekend of white water rafting at River Run. Very much looking forward to it.

Mom and I went out for Japanese (food) on my 24th birthday (July 28th) and it took awhile, but it tasted delicious. Posting this is making my mouth water.

Sakura rolls at Aji Sai Japanese Restaurant in Barrie. (Avocado and spicey tempura)

Mom's a big fan of the pickled ginger, which I think is positively gag-arrific, albeit petal pink and pretty.

Later on the same day, my whole family went out for Thai food at the Green Mango Tree. Yummy food, shitty service. HOLY HELL, could it possibly take you any longer to come and acknowledge we've sat down and want to order?!

A day late, a buck short... Actually, always seem to be the latter and sometimes the former. Here's my birthday cake. Woohoo for "hillary!"

And some recent shots of me... Some people haven't seen the new haircut yet, so here 'tis!

Marlo seemed to think she belonged at the table, paws and all...

2006-08-02T15:51:00.000-05:00

Absolute ages since any kind of post, but I thought I'd log on and say I'm not dead! I'm really not, just bored half to death. My job's a bit tiresome, but I have the white water rafting trip coming up, which is exciting. I'm very much looking forward to it. Not much else to say. Need to post some photos pronto!

2006-07-14T20:33:00.000-05:00

So, I feel a bit ashamed. I bet nobody will read this as it's been way too long since I last wrote. I finally have something to write about, though! The absence was legit: I don't want to be one of those bloggers who write about fluff and nothing and their deep feelings. *gag*

I am just home from a short trip out to Edmonton, Alberta. It was my first time in Alberta, actually, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that Albertans are very kind people. Edmonton is a lovely city.
Inside the WEst Edmonton Mall, they have a ship! (And a casino, a skating rink, a waterpark, mini putting, thousands of places to shop, China town, Bourbon Street, etc, but I digress.) I give you, the Santa Maria.

Whale head and

Whale tail...

Small T rex head as WEM. Lots of random stuff in that place.

Awesome guy with lunchbox. as some significance, but I'm tired so nobody gets to know but me.

This a monument for all those who perished in the genocidal fasmine inflicted on Ukraine by the Soveit Regime in Moscow 1932-33.

Ah, street fest food! These are the green onion cakes I've been raving about since my return. Why we don't have these in Ontario, I'll never know. They are delicious, though, with a bit of plum or hot sauce.

Deep fried mars bar. Had to try it, my arteries were crying, though, so I will never do it again.

Edmonton street festival performers. Fat dancers. Their big fat suits were filled with air and had speakers in the sides, so they had music wherever they went. very odd, but very amusing indeed.

Citadel Theatre downtown.

Random pleasant Edmonton building.

This is the window from a neat nightclub I passed called "Lux."

The lovely Alberta sky.

I do so love Vespas, and here is a small series of vespa butterflies I saw pasted to the wall in a walking tunnel.

Forget the name of this little park, but it was pleasant.

This is my last sunset in Edmonton, right after it poured rain for maybe 15 minutes or so. I was very tired when I got back to my hotel room, but didn't manage to sleep until I had packed my suitcase to head home.

This is the same sunset, but reflected on the building...

2006-05-26T11:24:00.000-05:00

Aha, so really, about 20 days since I last posted. Sorry. Just my life is actually super boring here in barrie, so I haven't felt the need to write about any of it. Holiday weekend passed without much excitment. I had Leana and Heather over on Saturday evening. I finished work early on, and Heather and I went shopping. Had a bit of fun looking for lingerie. Always fun! I ended up with a new jacket, some pjs, and of course, the things we went shopping for. I had some NASTY yakisoba at the Teriyaki place in Georgian MAll. I don't know WHY I thought that was a good idea.

Here's a picture of the saucy little bitch, our cat, Jakob. She's so snobby, this is the ONLY time I've ever seen her sleep on the couch. She's usually only willing to sleep on actual beds. She actually gets irritated if you come in to go to sleep on a bed she's chosen for the day.

This is Grover, the other and much nicer of our two felines. He always sleeps in really odd positions. I thought cats were supposed to be really protective of their bellies. Apparently not.

Nadine and Sareah with a zamboni in front of Boston Pizza. Bit random, really.

Nadine and Sarah IN Boston Pizza.

Marlo and the tulips.

My sister, Emily, demonstrating the dangers of putting a plastic bag over one's head.

Pink tree out front.

Grover, reclining on Emo.

Leana and Heather at my house, for May 24 weekend.

I WOULD post more shots, but they look really bad. Lucky for me, no photos of myself! That's the privilege of holding the camera. I'm sort of thinking I missed the lunch window. It's 12:47pm, and I haven't eaten anything yet. Trying to decide if I want to have perogies, but that means cutting onions, and I always cry.

Finally, Grover is a his new basket.

2006-05-05T13:21:00.000-05:00

I am posting today from my G4 mac tower. My little iBook had a crisis the other evening, and it's now being given some much needed TLC. I took it to a local mac servicing shop, and they told me the logic board had given up, and it's an $850 repair. Needless to say, for that price, I would have to let my little iBook join many laptops that have bravely gone before it to the grave. Alas. (It's a G3, and it's it's 3 years old already...) However, the friendly shop clerk told me to give Apple a ring and ask them to extend the service because the logic baord was already replaced. Low and behold, if you ask nicely, you might just find... you get what you WANT. Haha. I win. I simply adore Apple and I will never go to the barren wasteland-ish hell that regular PC land. HP can kiss my ass. (So can every other company really.)

In other news, I am still job hunting. I have read a thousand different advertisements for positions, but half of them should have a health warning: risk of death by boredom if you accept this job. Seriously. *shudder* On the up side, there are always other jobs. I pity the people forced to take these positions, though. This is exactly why I'm going back to school. I want to do what I want with my life.

I've been reading New Scientist faithfully since I returned home. It was my shipping included Christmas gift to dad this past year. Although, thinking on it now, it's really a gift to anyone who has a cup of tea in the morning at my house. They had a hilarious bit in the last issue that focused on love, and the titles were hilarious:

- Passionate brains
- Sniffing out the perfect partner
- Possession and obsession
- Where brokeback went wrong
- Smart ways to woo
- Desmond Tute: compassion
- Up close and virtual
- How to make it last
- PLUS Three pages of mates and dates

It's this last one that caught my eye. Some of these little NS dating blurbs were eye-watering hilarity in less than 100 words. So, in the spirit of generosity, I will share a few with you...

"MIKE, a Forensic Technician looking love! She was last seen committing crimes in the heart of Wollongong. So let's get together and replicate some DNA!! Reply number: 015"

"SCIENTIST, 39, male, own teeth, some original hair, tired after completion of PhD seeks excitement with cute, chatty woman in Worcester area. Reply number: 031"

"ACTIVE AGEING from a personal perspective? Yorkshire widow, 84, involved in the community and still riding a bike, WLTM other active octgenarians. Reply number: 037"

"GIRL 25 seeks boy of similar age. Interests include: Electronic music, recycling, contemporary art, finding beauty in unlikely places, learning and laughing. Geeks=Good. Urban 4x4s=Bad. Reply number 055"

"MALE STUDENT of Natural Scienceand Metaphysics seeks female assistance in search for Chemistry, Electricity and Magic - and experiments in the creation of life. Reply number: 067"

HELLO CHEESY!

"ARTS GRADUATE (M 51) (UK, London) tennis-playing, dog-walking, soap-watching & infrequent reader of NS hoping to understand something (anything?) of quantum theory, would appreciate contact from similarly confused female. Reply number 068"

"AILUROPHILE ASTRONOMER and alliterative author searching for terrestrial intelligence would like to meet F with similar interests. Jovian age approximately three. Current origin of egocentric co-ordinates at Chippenham, Wiltshire, England. Reply number: 094"

"SPARKS AND explosions abound in my professional life as a chemistry teacher, less so on the personal side. Mid-fifties F, much travelled, mischievious smile, looking for a warm-hearted gentleman. (Bishop's Stortford) Reply number: 103"

The list goes on, of course, but some of them I could barely even understand. (Jovian age!) That magazine is worth its weight in gold for amusement value alone.

Moving on, the weather was perfect yesterday and today I'd rathe around a 5 or 6. Nothing catastrophic has occurred (yet - screams my inner optimist), but it's a bit chilly and windy and generally inhospitable. Today is Friday! Not that means much when you're a M-F 9-5er, but still, it seems to have its own special sparkle. (Which definitely is not because of its television programming. Friday is a blackhole of rubbish TV.) (Which is good, really, I like doing things on Friday nights anyway!) I was thinking of Mexicali Rosa's, but we shall see if it pans out. I have to work from 6-9pm this evening, so there's that as well to deal with first.

Anyways, I have responsible things to attend to... Have a lovely Friday, world.

2006-04-28T22:30:00.000-05:00

Some random survey...

*TELL ME ABOUT YOURSELF - The Survey*
Name:	Lily
Birthday:	July 28, 1982
Birthplace:	Barrie (Ugh)
Current Location:	Barrie (Ugh)
Eye Color:	Hazel (green sometimes, yellow at point, I have cat eyes)
Hair Color:	sort of a mahogany shade of brown... very dark, almost black
Height:	5'6
Right Handed or Left Handed:	Righty
Your Heritage:	Northern European... 1/2 Dutch, 1/4 French, 1/8 Scottish, 1/8 English
The Shoes You Wore Today:	Hot pink Puma speedcats
Your Weakness:	repetition, cheese, shoes, LIP BALM
Your Fears:	Open water, really high heights, stilettos, getting drunk and obtaining a slutty ankle or lowwer back tattoo (butterflies, dolphins, lizards...)
Your Perfect Pizza:	Any pizza occurring right now.
Goal You Would Like To Achieve This Year:	Get into graduate school abroad
Your Most Overused Phrase On an instant messenger:	"lol" I tend to use it to let people know I'm not being THAT serious
Thoughts First Waking Up:	Mmmm, warm.
Your Best Physical Feature:	I would say my hair, I think
Your Bedtime:	Whenever I can force myself to let the day be over
Your Most Missed Memory:	My dad pushing Em and I around the wheelbarrow in summertime
Pepsi or Coke:	I don't drink pop.
MacDonalds or Burger King:	MacDonalds, I guess.
Single or Group Dates:	Group dates? What am I, 12? I can handle it on my own, thank you.
Lipton Ice Tea or Nestea:	I haven't had iced tea in AGES!
Chocolate or Vanilla:	Vanilla... Mainly because I used to wear it and it made me happy when people smelled cake when I was around
Cappuccino or Coffee:	Both
Do you Smoke:	Nope... I like my tastebuds soft and alive
Do you Swear:	Like a sailor.... I should really stop.
Do you Sing:	All the time. In the shower. In my bed. In the hallway. In the car. At work.
Do you Shower Daily:	multiple times a day if I can manage it
Have you Been in Love:	Yes
Do you want to go to College:	I've been to university already
Do you want to get Married:	Unsure. Not if the right person isn't present, and if I do bother, I'm not getting divorced, so we shall see.
Do you belive in yourself:	More or less.
Do you get Motion Sickness:	Sometimes, usually when I read in transit.
Do you think you are Attractive:	I hope so. I always wonder if uggo have low standards or lust after the unattainables like we all do.
Are you a Health Freak:	Nope.
Do you get along with your Parents:	Yes.
Do you like Thunderstorms:	ADORE THEM.
Do you play an Instrument:	Flute, piccolo, some guitar.
In the past month have you Drank Alcohol:	Nope. That's crazy to think...
In the past month have you Smoked:	Nope.
In the past month have you been on Drugs:	Nope.
In the past month have you gone on a Date:	Nope.
In the past month have you gone to a Mall:	Yes.
In the past month have you eaten a box of Oreos:	Haha, never.
In the past month have you eaten Sushi:	Actually, no, but in the past 8 months I have eaten eel, octopus, squid, salmon, cucumber, crab, etc sushi. 6 months in Japan will do that to you.
In the past month have you been on Stage:	Nope.
In the past month have you been Dumped:	Nope. (There are some perks to no dates!)
In the past month have you gone Skinny Dipping:	Nope. (I wish)
In the past month have you Stolen Anything:	Nope, I've never stolen anything.
Ever been Drunk:	Yes, definitely. Oh, shameful moments in a karaoke club, under a table...
Ever been called a Tease:	Mmm, no I don't believe I have.
Ever been Beaten up:	Nope, unless you count Ben Lee kicking me in the back in grade 6 because I called his mother a lesbian. (I was young and thought it was a clever insult at the time.)
Ever Shoplifted:	Nope.
How do you want to Die:	In my sleep, peacefully, old and wrinkly and satisfied with life.
What do you want to be when you Grow Up:	Happy.
What country would you most like to Visit:	Spain
*In a Boy/Girl..*
Favourite Eye Color:	No favourite as long as they sparkle a bit. Dead eyes are a killer.
Favourite Hair Color:	Any colour is okay with me. I'm not really fond of fuscia on men.
Short or Long Hair:	I prefer hair a little longer, maybe somewhat shaggy.
Height:	Tall. Tall. Tall. Anything over 5'9, really...
Weight:	Anything average is fine with me.
Best Clothing Style:
Number of Drugs I have taken:
Number of CDs I own:
Number of Piercings:	3
Number of Tattoos:	0
Number of things in my Past I Regret:	0
CREATE YOUR OWN! - or - GET PAID TO TAKE SURVEYS!

2006-04-27T19:38:00.000-05:00

I would like to whine and moan and complain about the dire lack of posting on the JK's blog. However, I can't, because the lousy educated mofo's posted! Alas, I will have to write some sort of acceptable post myself.

Lately, I have been working at VTC. I have learned a lot working there actually, and given my lack of coordination and frustration with all things mechanical, I thought I would be terrible at this job. Surprise! I am actually pretty decent at what I am doing. I am especially effective at "handling" people. I work under the mantra that "angry people will be angry no matter what I do or say." I know that most grouchy folks (and I am generally among their masses) will be grouchy regardless of whether I smile, do my job quickly, and look cute, or not.

I have recently discovered the wonder that it is the podcast. I know, I know. I am behind the times and sorely behind the world. It's wicked, though. Last night, I discovered a show from BBC 4 called, "The Now Show." It's a comedy show, and it's bloody hilarious. I highly recommend it to anyone and everyone. It turns out you can get everything you need to make your day sparkly and spiffy in a podcast: news, comedy, music, high brow discussion of film, politics, hobbies, unsigned musicians... You name it, biatch (had to give Chapelle some love) you can find it in podcastland.

As an aside, have you ever noticed how the effectiveness of any given comedian is directly related to the level of connection made? If a comedian talks about stuff that has no bearing on my existence (for example, anything relating to any higher form of engineering), I don't find it all that amusing. Last night's little burst of comedic relief, however, brought up the issue of generic vs. brand name drugs. It outlined the dilemma we all feel at the drugstore when faced with buying a generic or a brand name. Do we really think we're getting something better in purchasing the overpriced, patentless gbrand name? How could we, they pondered, think that anything was different between the two small bottles. After all, it's a chemical compound, it's not really open to interpretation. Aside from sugar coated or gel type pills, I think they're right. I do enjoy my sugar coated Advil, though, even if it's no different than Life brand ibuprofen. Alas.

I am typing away here, while my father watches a programme on the Dayton Codebreakers. It never ceases to amaze me how arrogance can destroy. I would sya more, but my brain's a bit foggy right now.

The weather here has been absolutely glorious the past few days. Crisp, clear and sunny days. A bit of wind, but nothing unmanageable. I hope that it persists through the weekend, as I'm not working Saturday. It's tax time here in Canada, so dad is steadily getting everything ready to start it up tomorrow morning. (He gets up at 5am; the taxes stand no chance.)

At any rate, I am a bit tired. I'm going to call it a day, but will post again when I have something worthwhile to say.

2006-04-27T07:53:00.000-05:00

*Drool*

Sima, I promise to make a real post very soon, but presently I am heading off to work to open up VTC. Last night I learned how to adjust metal bracelets. Exciting, I know. More to follow.

2006-04-20T12:35:00.000-05:00

It's a Thursday afternoon, and mom and I have errands to run, but I thought I'd put up a few photos. I went to a Childcare meeting last night, which was very interesting. Prime Minister Harper is not only a hypocrite, he fails to understand basic economics, and how to build a strong economy. The word dumbass comes to mind, but I suppose all I can do is write letters and make sure he knows people oppose his idiocy. I'll put up a proper post later on this week.

Kempenfelt Bay by night...

Maple blossoms... who knew?

Jakob, walking about and clearly thinking she owns the world.

Jakob, looking slightly sleepy and annoyed at being bothered by me.

Marlo nosing around in the backyard. Apparently, the dirt is REALLY interesting. Also, though, I think that little blue-ish flower is a crocus. Life is finally peaking up from the earth here.

Some lovely red blossoms on the maple in our backyard. I was really sad to be missing out on the sakura in Japan, but this brightened my day a little bit. They aren't sakura, but they'll do for now!

2006-04-16T20:00:00.000-05:00

Update time. It is now Easter Sunday, and we just got home from a short drive around the area. I was looking to photograph a sunset, but my camera batteries died after I'd only taken a few shots, so sadly there aren't many to choose from. It's getting warmer and warmer, and the days grow longer, so that the sun was only just setting after 8:00pm.

We had a nice turkey dinner this evening, which was quite good, but small because it was just mom, dad and I. Emily is still out east in Halifax, even though she finished her exams on the 14th. As an RA, she doesn't get to leave until the bitter end!

I went to Ottawa this past week. I took an early 9:30am bus on Sunday morning, and arrived in Ottawa mid-afternoon. Took a cab to Emma's place, and we sat around talking for a few hours. It was nice to see her and catch up.
On Monday, I hung out with met up with Becca for coffee on campus. Everything was so different! They demolished the area where Oliver's used to be, and there was construction all over the place. It was pretty ugly. It felt quite strange being there when I wasn't on my way to class or to the library to study. Ran off to get myself a much needed haircut (last time I waited 5 months, and it was a disaster, so I only waited 2 this time... much better!) at Tluip's. Also had some Thai with Anderson at Sala Thai, which was delicious but I didn't feel great afterward. Watching "King Kong" which was much better than I expected.
Tuesday morning I met up with Brad for coffee at Bridgehead, which was awesome, and we even had lunch at the Arrow and Loon, our old beer and wings hangout. Managed to get my ass ready for the AKC Awards Dinner, and arrive on time. It was awesome, because Rick Mercer was there, receiving an award for public discourse.

Anyways, need some shut eye.

2006-04-06T21:47:00.000-05:00

So, time for a small update on life in LilyLand...

I have been opening at the sotre every morning this week, which as meant being there by 9:15am. I am NOT a morning person, so it has been very difficult for me to adjust. I'm always tired! I have learned a lot, though. I can open and close the store, more or less make the cash register do its' magic, change batteries and straps... I am learning more by the day, luckily, so soon I will be able to do most small jobs.

Next week on Tuesday evening, the annual Arthur Kroeger College Awards Dinner will be occurring in Ottawa. I am headed up that way on Sunday, and I can't wait! I get to see Emma on Sunday and I've really missed her. I also get to meet up with Becca and Anderson, which is stellar. Hopefully, there will also be some familiar faces at the alumni table where I'll be stationed for Tuesday evening. I promise to post photos of the whole glam evening once I am safely back in Barrie. (Probably Thursday evening... I'll be working Thursday. It'll be good to have a mini-vacation though.)

I am very tired. So I'm going to call it a night, as it's almost 11:00pm and I'm quite tired. Opening again tomorrow; up at 7:30am. Sleep tight, world.

2006-03-29T10:43:00.000-06:00

I opened my email this morning to find a lovely email from United Families Canada President, Jill Calhoon. I don't know if it was related to my post on Sunday, but at any rate, if it was, somehow they assumed I was against gay marriage. Oh, little did they realize my feelings on the subject. And they really didn't. So, I wrote them a letter, and emailed it. Here is the lovely letter/action alert I received in my inbox:

"Action Alert
March 28, 2006
An Urgent Invitation to Help Restore Marriage in Canada

Dear Fellow Canadian:

United Families Canada is launching the Restore Marriage Canada Project with the goal of restoring traditional marriage in our nation. This will not be easy, and we will need the help of hundreds of thousands of concerned Canadians like you to accomplish it.

You are receiving this invitation to join in this effort because you have participated on the marriage issue in one or more of the projects or activities that United Families Canada has sponsored in recent years. If you do not want to receive future alerts and updates from us on the marriage crisis, you can easily “unsubscribe” from our list by clicking here, but we hope you will decide to join us in this effort to restore traditional marriage in Canada.

It is essential to understand first of all that there is nothing more important than restoring traditional marriage in determining what kind of nation and society we will pass on to future generations of Canadians. Radically redefining marriage to include same-sex individuals undermines this vital institution. Throughout history, marriage between a man and a woman has been essential to forming strong families. Strong families, in turn, have always been the foundation of all successful societies. We ignore these lessons of history at our peril.

With the recent election of a Conservative Government, we have a chance—probably our last chance--to revisit the legalization of same-sex “marriage” that the Liberal Government rammed through Parliament last year without holding fair, balanced, honest and adequate hearings to consider all of the consequences of this radical redefinition of this fundamental institution.

As you will recall, Prime Minister Harper made revisiting the issue of legalization of same-sex “marriage” a key election issue and he has committed to at least bring the issue before Parliament for a free vote. It will not be easy for the government to win this vote, even though opinion polls consistently show that a solid majority of Canadians oppose legal same-sex “marriage.” One of the reasons he will have difficulty, of course, is that he was only able to form a minority government.

We all have an opportunity to make a difference, to be heard, and to exercise our rights in a democracy. For the sake of our future we must do it on this issue. This is why it is so essential that all of us concerned about our future pitch in and do whatever we can to help. We will provide you with information and opportunity to be part of the process.

One critical thing each of us can do to help is to sign the new, on-line National Restore Marriage Petition we will be sending to Parliament. Click here to go to the Restore Marriage Canada Website to sign it. It is essential that our MPs know that the majority of us still feel strongly about restoring marriage and receiving this petition with tens of thousands of signatures on it will help!

The second important thing you can do is to help spread the word to others and encourage them to also get involved in this effort. You can easily do this by forwarding this alert on to others. Or, if you wish, you can use the special feature on our Web site to send a suggested e-mail message from you to others on your e-mail list.

Our Restore Marriage Web site also has additional background information on the marriage issue and why it is so vital that we restore traditional marriage to Canada.

We do not know when the Prime Minister will try to revisit the same–sex “marriage” issue. He has said only that he will do it “sooner rather than later but not right away.” That means we could be having this critical vote within the next couple of months, so we must act urgently!

Thank you for joining us in this vital effort!

Sincerely,

Jill Cahoon
President, United Families Canada"

And here, ladies and gentleman, is my reply:

Au contraire, Madame President,

While I do feel the institution of marriage is threatened in current
Canadian society, I do not feel that same-sex marriage is threatening
in the slightest. That two people should be able to marry and build a
home or family together is a right I believe that heterosexual couples
are no more entitled to than their homosexual neighbours.

In fact, I think the people who pose the greatest threat to the
institution of marriage today are heterosexual couples who carelessly
enter into this legal union, with little or no understanding of what it will
involve. It has never been two men or two women who have eroded
matrimony, but people who have taken vows that they never intended to
keep.

Heterosexual infidelity is, in my opinion, far higher and
well-documented than homosexual infidelity, and if anything,
homosexual couples have actually fought for this right, and value it
more highly than many heterosexual couples. In addition, spousal
abuse in heterosexual couples is extremely high; the statistics are
sickening no matter how you view them:

-One-quarter of all women have experienced violence at the hands of
their current or past marital partner (includes common-law unions)
-One-in-six currently married women reported violence by their
spouses; one-half of women with previous marriages reported violence
by a previous spouse
-More than one-in-ten women who reported violence in a current
marriage have at some point felt their lives were in danger

Source: Statistics Canada. The Daily, Thursday, November 18, 1993.
http://www.womanabuseprevention.com/html/statistics.html

Attempting to strengthen and promote the union of marriage in Canada
without addressing the issues of infidelity and spousal abuse is not
only naive; it is negligent.

I do hope that it is your last chance to address the same-sex marriage
issue in Parliament. Unfortunately, while there happened to be a
majority of Canadians who were opposed to these measures, it is
sometimes the job of elected government to do something in the
interests of ALL citizens. You'll recall that at many points in history,
including democratic nations such as the United States, people have
been discriminated against for their colour, religion, heritage or
gender, among other senseless reasons. If we once discriminated
against Chinese immigrants and built a railroad on their dead; if we
interned Japanese in Canada because it was the fashionable thing to
do; if we sold children into farm-based slavery in Quebec because they
were born out of wedlock or worse... this is all the more reason to
do the right thing for once, and recognize the rights of ALL
Canadians, whether all Canadians are human enough to do the same, or
not.

Sincerely,

(Y'all know my name.)
That's it for today.

2006-03-26T13:55:00.000-06:00

A lovely sunny Sunday... a bit muddy, but otherwise beautiful.

Sitting in the living room, with "Midnight Train to Georgia" blasting.... er, playing on my tiny itty bitty white speakers and ipod. Perfect environment to make a far overdue blog post.

I logged into my email last night, and actually bothered to open the annoying WAYN (Where are you now?) email with monthly updates. Lord knows why I signed up for this service. I think someone I know signed up and I figured why not. (Stupid stupid stupid.) At any rate, I bothered to sift through my old emails and find the one with my username and password. (On another note, I HATE when they don't tell you a password can only be a certain number of characters and then it slices yours into some haphazard word that you'd never ina million years enter! Like, for instance, if your password was "preposterous", and the site in question decides your password is ACTUALLY "prepos." Grrr.) I logged into www.wayn.com and, low and behold, safari kept booting me off the site! Seriously annoying. Also annoying were the numerous 35+ men who saw fit to send me a "hello." WTF, guys, did you really think I'd be enticed? Enough said.

My fellow bloggers, Sima and Jon, have decided to rename their blog, on account of the fact they will be relocating to Yuppieville. I guess I had not realized how permanent the move out west really was. Sad!!! Truthfully, I am happy for them; I hope the move is great and their new condo rocks. It's just weird. A whole bunch of my friends are getting, or have recently been, married, and from the perspective of a fellow 20-something (and an early one at that), it feels like being single is going out of style. Not to assume that it was ever chic to be solo, but I thought it was generally accepted.

Some people actually seem happy and well-adjusted. (The Joshi-Koops are a great example of this, including their well-balanced and mouth-watering meals.) Some people, though, I find myself rather bahhumbuggishly (damn straight, it's a word) wondering how they can be getting married! For numerous reasons, of course, and I'm not an expert on successful relationships, but COME ON! You're young, you have a lot left to learn, is now really the time to be getting hitched? It's mainly my female friends getting married, as I don't have THAT many male friends who actually like women, but it begs the question: what's so different about this guy? About this relationship? I find myself hearing the same things I once heard about their exes. ("He just gets me." "He's the first guy who truly loves me for who I am." "II can be myself around him." "There's never a dull moment.") If, at some point in the near (or far!) future, I start spweing such stuff, please stop me. Please take me aside and give me a good hard slap.

It's not that I don't believe a young marriage can work out; my parents got married at the ages of 20 and 22, and they've been happily married for many, many years. I just wonder why some people don't wait longer before jumping into such a life altering decision. (I sound like a majior commitment phobe, and that's not my intent.) I'm just curious...

I digress. At least on that topic.

I really miss Bridgehead. I have lots of pleasant memories of sitting there, sipping some fair trade and talking politics or summer or whatever happened to be on my mind. I think it's because I'm thinking of Sima and Jon that Bridgehead comes to mind. It also reminds me of Brad, and of Gwyn. It's been ages since I set foot ina Bridgehead. www.bridgehead.ca in case you're curious and not Canadian. (Shame on you!) Apparently, it's a purely Ottawa phenomenon, but it's a good one. Japan had Starbucks, but I've never been a big fan of their coffee. It made me long for Two Dollar Tuesdays at Second Cup, and all their delicious icey drinks in the long, hot days of summer.

In other news, I am escaping this hockey season relatively unscathed. I didn't even realize there WAS hockey until last night, when my friend Leana was over, and I was channel surfing and she asked me to turn back to channel 6. It was hockey. How I could have forgotten about it so completely is a mystery even to me.

Oh, also, apparently, we have MTV Canada now. (On channel 72, of all places. RANDOM!) That's all for now. More to follow at some point.

2006-03-20T22:19:00.000-06:00

Cyborg Name Generator - wicked fun!

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alt="Lifeform Intended for Logical Yelling"
border="0">

Is that not me, to a T?

Love it. Try it here: http://cyborg.namedecoder.com/

2006-03-18T20:08:00.000-06:00

So, voila, here are some photos of my evening out at the Duke of Argyle with my friend (and his) Mike.

Mike, with his newly-minted Guiness neck tattoo.

Lily, Mike and Dee. This is relatively early on, I think, so we're not as trashed as we were when we left later on.

This is the whole gang at the Duke of Argyle's. I have no actual idea, but I believe we had 12 people at the peak of the evening. It was quite fun. (I think someone was trash talking me during the photo, hence the middle finger action.)

This is Mike, making a stupid face. I don't actually recall why.... Funny story. we got these Guiness beer glass tattoos (faux, of course) and everyone thought it was a good plan to put them on their faces or necks. Thank goodness I didn't do that, but I did notice mine on my upper chest the next morning, when I realized my lower cut T-shirt didn't actually cover the beer! Damn.

This is our huge, huge, HUGE bill from the Duke of Argyle's on John Street in Toronto. We, as you can see, drank vast quantities of beer. Happy St. Patrick's Day INDEED. I only drank, no food, which is PROBABLY why I fell on my ass when we got back to Mike's car. (Turtle shelled!)

Jordan and I. (Jordan is Mike's housemate in Oakville.)

Post-Duke of Argyle, Mike, Jordan and I trekked it to the car, which was parked just off Spadina. (It felt far at the time.) I had some street meat. (Veggie dog with saurkraut, onions, and mustard, What the HELL was I thinking? The colours were pleasing to me at that time...) I tried to get into the car and fell backwards and stuff. I SUCK. Also, managed to wake up in a shirt I didn't own before we got to the bar. FUN. On the way to work the next day, Mike and I got sort of lost, and we couldn't find OSC. Genuine stupidity can be amusing.

This is me, wearing my OSC labocat, on my last day during March Break. It was so much fun. I really enjoyed being back there, in a place teeming with children and amazing hosts. On Monday, I thought we had tons in there, and we had maybe 7,400 people. By Friday, we were getting upwards of 10,000 people EVERY DAY!

2006-03-09T10:09:00.000-06:00

So, rather belatedly, here is a post with photos of myself and some of my students, among other things. It took me about a week to get home, get reasonably settled, and get my wireless connection up and running. At long last, please enjoy some pictures of my students. They were great, and while I do not miss the school, I do miss the great people I had a chance to meet and teach during my time in Japan.

Wednesday's afternoon Discovery class! Tomoko, Hiroko, and Tomoko. The two Tomoko's always made it a bit tough for me to call on the class for answers. ("a... Tomoko? I mean, uh, Tomoko in green?")

Tomoko squared.

Ah, Wednesday afternoon Voyage! This was a funny class. It started out for me as one student, Yasuko, who is the eldest woman in the photo. She barely spoke any English at all, but she was fun to teach. One day, we had 6 students and she was shocked. On this particular Wednesday, however, we only had three students: Yasuko, Maiko and Kaori.

Kaori, Lily, and Maiko

Another great student, Satoko. She was in my Tuesday evening Encounter class most weeks, but after I told her I was leaving, ashe asked me out for lunch at Pastel. I had given her a few simple romance novels to read, and she was doing SO well! After a couple months, she was about 125 pages in, and this with New Years and all that hoopla going on. Very nice woman, and I hope to see her again someday.
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One of my kickin' students, Tomoe. Wednesday evening Frontier class, Masaji and Tomoe. Tomoe was absent for a few months, but luckily I got to have two ways classes with her before my departure.

This is Candice's Checkpoint class, asking lots and lots of burning questions!

This was my Thursday afternoon 1st class, Hiroshi. It was a private lesson and always a pleasure to teach.

Kawai!!! These kids were so cute. We have (L-R) Taiyo (the best behaved child in all of Kansai), Haruka, and Kano. They all had class on Thursday afternoon, during my Viewpoint class. Always yelling and screaming and running down the hall. Grrr! Cute when caught in a still, though!

Some random students in the lobby on Thursday night were kind enough to let me take their photograph....

Thursday evening Discovery class, usually with Rieko and Satomi, but on this Thursday only Rieko. This entry makes it look like a I taught a lot of virtually private lessons, but this was an off-week. Usually, I had many more students.

Usually, Thursday nights saw a huge Odyssey class in my room, but the class had been small for a few weeks, what with Michael's upcoming departure. At any rate, on my last Thursday, only Naohiro showed uop, so it was a nice small class for the evening.

Friday afternoon... Should be a lazy day, really, but it always started out with high-energy (or low-energy, somedays) Keita. Here we are: Keita, Anna, and I, in the lobby.

This is my only child student, Keita. I taught him Let's Go 2, which was always... uh... interesting. I was quite happy to have figured out how to teach him, as he was difficult to teach at times.

This is Keita's sister, Anna. She is adorable! I miss seeing her every Friday afternoon. She had a nasty propensity for bumping her head, generally on the hard concrete floor of the school. What a little sweetheart. Oh, Annachan.

This is Keita and his mom, when they were in on Friday afternoon for Keita's lesson.

Friday evening Focuspoint with Yoko. A very sweet woman, who I taught briefly in Viewpoint before she moved up to FP. Always great discussions with her.

Yuki, Michael, and I. Not that we asked him to be in the photo, but that's just Michael's *cough cough* charm, isn't it? Among his happy demeanor and positive outlook, of course.

Friday night Voyage class! Nami, Lily-sensei, Yuki, and Sunju. (Pronounced "sun-jay".) This class was hilarious, although sometimes a bit shy. Sunju was always very funny, and very abrupt. More about Yuki and Nami companies the photos below.

I left my camera at school on Friday night, by accident, and Candichan was kind enough to take some photos for me. So care of chan, here are lots of pictures of the Saturday students.

This is hilarious. It is a gumball machine at an izaka-ya (Japanese style pub) and it costs 100yen PER gumball. That's a DOLLAR for a gumball. And they know that some poor shmuck who's drunk out of his tree will gladly pay it because the gumballs come in rainbow coloured plastic containers. *SIGH* Oh, Japan...

This was, um, hmm on the Sunday night. My last Sunday night in Japan to be exact. This is a night shot of Kobe harbourland, before we managed to find a nice Italian restaurant and sit down for food. Earlier in the day I went out for coffee with Jose (bet Mark would be so scandalized, although I'm inclined to wonder what HQ was thinking when they let him go, and promptly lost almost all of the staff who were so against his presence in the first place. Ah, blessed logic.) Also, got to say goodbye to Jon, since we ended up not staying out too late the evening before, and thus missing his presence in Osaka.

Okay, this is the single creepiest thing that existed in my city in Japan. (Aside from my crappy apartment and the creepy skeezy dogs that lived in the neighbourhood.) This is the Akashi mascot, I don't even know what sort of animal it is. (I think it has a hat?) At any rate, I thought, the rest of the world deserves to see this ugly mofo. Seriously, poor Akashi. I wonder if Barrie has an animal mascot? Probably something ugly and rodent0like as well. I wonder...

Pucker up!

My regular Monday night Voyage class consisted of one student, Tomomi. Very friendly girl.

Also, a Friday night Voyage student. Nami, who was very shy at first, and then got more confident. I believe she was on her way to New Zealand...

This is my Friday night student, Yuki, who came on Monday evening so I could get a photo of her with me. Very cool Jr. HS student. I need to write her a letter, come to think of it...

My VERY last class at Akashi school. This is my Monday Discovery class at night. My students were fantastic. This is Rieko, myself, and Kazumasa. Kazumasa and Rieko were absolutely great, talkative and always curious.

This is the original okonomiyaki with art! I decided, why just drizzle the mayonnaise onto it? Why not make it reflect your name and personality? So, voila, Lily-omiyaki.

This is my last night in Japan, and, as it were, my very last supper in Akashi. Kind of sad, really. Here we are at an Okonomiyaki restaurant, actually owned by one of my students, named Junko. (I think!) Lily, Candice and Keiko.

Here is Candice's rendition of name-on-okonomiyaki. A great new talent on the food-art scene.

This a photograph of my ARC (Alien Resident Card) from Japan. Look at the awful photo! Terrible picture. I didn't get to keep it, though; they made me give it up at Immigration in Japan at Kansai Airport. I had to keep this little thing on me at all times.

And back in Canada...

Life has been interesting! It's been nice eating Canadian food again. I think I have exhausted most of the tried and true foods I was longing for. Lasagna, perogies, turkey and stuffing, primavera pasta, chocolate cake, cottage cheese, bagels and cream cheese, popcorn... More updates to follow.

This is the famous cat, Jakob. She's a rotten bitch, very bad-natured, but generally furry enough and soft enough to make up for her character deficiencies. Here she is, sitting outside on our verandah.

Here's my dad, standig in front of a fallen tree, covered in nice, Canadian snow.

On a walk my dad wanted us to go on, here are the lovely trees and snow out near the Simcoe Board of Education building. Very nice sunny day, despite the wind.

2006-03-07T22:50:00.000-06:00

So, at long last, here I am. Wired, or wireless rather, on my iBook. All it took was one router and a bit of poking about on my parents' PC, and voila. Internet in my bed.

I have been home in Canada for one week now, and I can't say I am any more at home than I was when I landed, exhausted and hungry, in Toronto last Tuesday night. I have eaten my fill, and then some, of Canadian foods. (or food that's common here, anyway.) Lasagna, perogies, pizza, soup and crusty bread, chocolate cake, lemon merengue pie, apple pie.... It's been delicious, but it actually makes me miss nabe, udon and shabu shabu a lot. Not sushi. Sushi is okay, but I never really understood why people love it. Sashimi I definitely don't get. I digress.

I have been writing down lots of words and such so I don't forget them. So far the list looks something like this:
hai - yes
sumimasen - excuse me/please/hello/welcome/etc.
domo - thanks
domo arigato - thanks a lot
atsui - hot
samui - cold
des - is
tsugi wa - next
shika - deer
kuma - bear/undereye circles
maiko - geisha in training
sakura - cherry blossom
hidare - left
migi - right
masugu - forward/straight ahead
kitsune udon - udon with fried tofu on top
omochi - with rice goo in it
mizu - water
seto - combo (like for fast food)
potato (po-tay-toe) - french fries
anco - red bean paste
nabe - food cooked in a big-ass pot, generally delicious

The list goes on, of course, but I'm not going to type out everything that comes to mind at the moment. That might be a bit much. Lily, the last samurai, is just not in the mood for too much reminiscing. (This shot taken at Padios media studios when I visited with Keiko. It is in Kyoto, and we had a great time, just fooling around in the edo period area!)

Now that I am wireless, I will likely post a bit more often, and maybe soon I will even post some photographs. I have some great ones care of my students and Candi chan. I miss everyone in Japan a lot, but especially Keiko and Candice. It's weird to go from living alone and depending on friends, to living with family and trying to retain your independence. Very odd, indeed.

I hung out with a friend from highschool on Sunday afternoon for a little while. Was SUPPOSED to do that on Friday night, but the wires got crossed and I was still rather jet lagged, so I fell asleep at the late hour of 8:00ish and that was the end of that. We met up at Tim Horton's, which is now my new favourite place, and talked for an hour or so. It was nice to catch up, because I hadn't seen him in ages. Not much has changed. Or maybe everything has. Funny, when you can't tell which it is.

I came home to Canada at the end of February, which means I will miss the beautiful 'sakura' or cherry blossoms in Japan. This is one of the regrets I have,s o I think I will return to Japan someday to see it. I took some photos of faux sakura while I was at Padios with Keiko. Nothing like the real thing, I imagine, but as close as I'll come to them.

Speaking of things I will miss in Japan.... Acceptable attire! Wow, I cannot believe this man wore this outfit. With THIS bag. And it's a le Sac, so the damn thing was probably quite expensive. I had to get a picture of it, so of course, I pretended to be taking one of Candichan, but voila. Wow, buddy, you need to tone it down a bit. Lose the beret, or the bag, or the jacket. Why does it say hate on it? WHY?! To the good men of Japan... please stop the madness.

At any rate, it is a bit late for me *WOOHOO I am still awake!* so I'm going to retire. My last photo for the post is also from my Kyoto trip to Padios. Myself and some black sworded man. Gotta love Japanese cinema. Sayonara, WWW.

2006-03-05T10:11:00.000-06:00

March something-or-other...
I am exhausted! I am jet lagged! I am home.

Shocking, really. I knew I was leaving, but it doesn't feel real until you land in Chicago and have to deal with American customs. (Oh the joys of being a foreigner.) I am, however, alive and mostly well. I have been sleeping a lot, and trying to keep up with email and unpacking and cleaning and stuff. I didn't have a chance to unpack everything from university before heading to Japan, so I have a big job to do here!

I definitely miss Japan, although not my workplace. I am relieved to be finished there! I miss Keiko a lot, however, and I need to sit down and put a final Japan update on here and some photos of the craziness that is a Canadian winter! Way too much snow still here... Today -4, but feels like -10 (WIND CHILL!) Temperature overnight forcasted to be about -17. Brrrrr. However, by next Saturday it's supposed to be a bit rainy and, TADA, 11C. So, not quite Japanese beautiful balmy weather, but not too shabby for the great white north!

At any rate, time to shower and make myself more human!

2006-02-22T19:14:00.000-06:00

This won't be long, but I felt it was probably once again time to let everyone know I'm not dead. I've just been very busy telling my students about my departure, and packing and cleaning. You know the dirll. I also went to an okonomiyaki party at Manager's house on Sunday, so I have lots of pictures I will need to put up when I find some time! At any rate, I need to get dressed for work, but I will write as soon as I have more time.

2006-02-12T23:37:00.000-06:00

So, on Sunday, Candice, Ray and I headed to Kyoto. It was a great day, albeit a little cold. Here are some photographic highlights!

Kyoto Station... quite a nifty piece of architecture.

More Kyoto Station...

More Kyoto Station...

At the top of Kyoto Station when we arrived, Candice and Ray acting like weirdos.

Some fairly realistic geisha girls we found in Kyoto. Quite lovely, although, we couldn't actually speak to them. Lol, I kind of muttered, "samui des ka?" to them under my breath, because, DAMN, it was chilly.

And now for something completely different.
Oh. my. God. What in the...? Has anyone ever beheld such an oddity as this? I call it, "breasthead." Can you imagine the panic if you woke up one morning after a bender and saw THIS staring you back in the mirror? *shudder*

As if breasthead wasn't frightening enough, check out kidhead. This poor soul not only has an unusual growth, it has a CHILD growing out of the top of its' head. What would possess anyone to create such a thing is beyond me. Ahhhh, Japan.

I'm not entirely sure why, but this sort of captues the elegance and old school beauty present in Kyoto.

Ray, Candice and I saw these faux geishas (they had digital cameras) while wondering near Kiyomizu in Kyoto. Very exciting! Although, I'd imagien they're used to people randomyl photographing them and whatnot. Apparently, you can pay and dress up like one, but it's rather pricey. Like everything else here...

Corner of a temple at Kiyomizu...

A whole field of children's memorial stones near Kiyomizu... I don't know the history behind them, but they were fascinating. Even sporting little aprons.

A close-up of one of the child memorial stones near Kiyomizu... a very strange phenomenon indeed.

2006-02-09T11:09:00.000-06:00

I am officially addicted to Grey's Anatomy. Candice and I watched an episode last night, 216, where (spoiler?) Izzy tells some girl she has a daughter! And Carev has a heart, and Meredith and McDreamy have a serious moment in the supply closet.

I was waiting for the next one, apparently there's a code black, which I think means some sort of deadly contagion/infection. AND I GOT IT! Tonight, despite Thursday being the crappiest day of my week, is going to rock. Saizeriya with Keiko and Candice and then some Grey's action!

Gotta get prepped for work now, Ciao!

2006-02-08T00:08:00.000-06:00

[Let me preface this entry by saying I TOTALLY punked this whole thing from Candice's blog, because, truthfully, I am too lazy to write my own account of the long evening that transpired. All my additions to the original text are added in square brackets, just so you can tell the original from the garbage I will no doubt add here and there. And with that I hope you enjoy the story of the Longest Night.]

Sunday started out pretty normal. Lily, Keiko and myself headed out to walk around Motomachi and Sannomiya for the afternoon, a very, very cold afternoon at that! We went to China Town because Lily and Keiko wanted to see the festivities that I had seen last week. It was intense. Not a good idea to go on a Sunday soooo many people! It was crazy.

[More people than any one gaijin should EVER be faced with, even if you're in Umeda... Annoying. And the old people... For the love of all that is holy, move your ass!]

[Candichan looking rather amused.]

After China Town we went window shopping and came across some BEAUTIFUL purses! Absolutely stunning...

[Some animal died for THIS? You have got to be kidding me. Fur is very in right now in Japan, however, so everything from coats, to socks, to boots, to gloves, has fur on it. A bit disturbing, really.]

[Keiko seemed to like this patchwork purse. I can't remember if we were dissing or enjoying the purses. I suspect we were doing the former, though, because, good heavens, this is hideous.]

[My favourite purse, and OH was it ever tough to pick!, was this metallic, slain-mermaid-look one. Wherever did they even think a girl could wear this? Maybe when they unearth {un-sea?} Atlantis, I can wear this to opening party?]

I really enjoyed the sheep dog purse, Keiko loved her faux stitch purse and Lily looked stunning in her metallic purse. My favourite has to be the purse that looks like a dog is is almost 200 dollars! Ladies please place your orders with me soon!

Later that night we headed over to Osaka so I could meet up with the fellas from training week. We hadn't seen each other in a few weeks so I was super excited to see them. We met up and had dinner and many, many drinks. We decided that dinner and beers were not enough...therefore...why not stay out all night. See in Japan the JR train stops running at 12. That was WAY too early for us to leave. So we decided that we would drink all night....

(L-R: Damien, Lily, Candi, Killian) [All drunk out of our tree, to the tune of many a beer and tequila shot... what a NIGHT. This bar, however, was quite cute, and the staff were very friendly. I ended up speaking to Damien en francais for a good long time at the bar. Very fun, indeed.]

12am- Left the restaurant after a 100 bill and made our way to another bar
12:30am- found a little bar that would serve us. Got to catch up over beers and tequila shots. Oh yes, I don't even like tequila that much but it was A FLOWING last night! Another 100 bill....

3amish- we were told last call at the bar, we still have a few hours to kill before the first train. Why not go to Karaoke???? We rented a room for a few hours, sang, drank unlimited drinks, Lily passed out (she had to work today...ouch!!!) and stayed up until 5:30am ...when it was our time to leave
6am- went to a restaurant across the street and went to have breakfast. Breakfast is not the same in Japan so I ate RICE AND PORK for breakfast. I dont even remember what anyone else ate, but Killian had a few bowls and I remember Damien having noodles, veggies and an egg. Damien and I were were having so much fun!! We were laughing so much, drunk and delirious I am sure!! We split rice everywhere!!! Finally we all boarded our trains at 7am and went our seperate ways. We each had a 30 min train ride. I fell asleep and we got home around 8:30. I slept all day, until 3pm. Ahhh c'est la vie!! I think we are going to hook up next weekend, it is my first HOLIDAY!!!! WOOOO HOOOO No work on saturday, I have a 3 day weekend! I am sooo excited!!! Saturdays are my busiest days, 6 classes! So it will be nice to relax maybe get to go partying and sight see!

Damien loves to sing! [Yes, he does. Apparently, he always sang standing up, but by the time I came to, he was sleepy and was reclining with the mic on the sofa...]

He found a tambourine?!? [I slept through the tambourine episode... I seriously had no idea they had percussion at Karaoke. You learn something everyday.]

Poor Lily! She tried, what a trooper!!! [In my defense.... Oh, who am I kidding, there is no decent defense for falling asleep at Karaoke, least of all after one requests a song, holds the mic lying down and says "no" into it, thereby ending the chance at singing the song. Wherever did I leave my dignity?]

The drinking Champions, no quitting for us! [I was thoroughly impressed by Candice and Killian. Those two were TIRELESS! And they did it all with a smile on their faces. I can not say I managed as well. Plus, I always seem to think a spaced-out stare is cuter than a grin in drunk pics...]

Damien, I still don't remember what was so funny...but apparently it was FUNNY! [We ate the most disgusting food for breakfast. I still felt sick, so I didn't order at first. You had to get the food ticket out of a machine and hand it to the waiter-guy. I eventually stood up and ordered myself some kitsune udon, but ew, it was NASTY.]

I ate that for BREAKFAST?!? [I can't believe it either. What were we thinking?!]

Killian and Lily enjoying their breakfast [Trying to, really. I ate the tofu off the top and then gave up on the noodles. At least it was cheap...]

I think they are spent.... [I don't even have a vague recollection of Candice taking this photo, which worries me, as that is often the case with these types of evenings. We do look a little the worse for wear.]

It's 7am, time to get our trains!! [Cute group shot. We look tired, but suprisingly, NOT CRAPPY. How do we manage? I did have a small sleep, so that's where the fire in my eyes is from... haha, I jest, there is no such thing going on. But the sun was about to come up and you only live once, so do what you want to!]

Hope you had a great weekend, and Superbowl Sunday was super fantastic. I just read on my trusty CBC news that Martin just resigned from Prime Minister... I am glad that I will be coming back to America aka Canada!!! Random thought but one that I felt the need to add!!!!

[I gotta start reading the news, seriously. I have no clue what's happening at home in the Great White North, but on that note, I need some rest!]

2006-02-05T11:35:00.000-06:00

This song is potentially my new favourite song for karaoke, if only I can learn the Japanese lyrics. It's HILARIOUS.
Care of someone named Cori, and this site, http://www.corichan.com/lyrics2/albums2/exile-exileent.html#top, here is "Choo Choo Train" by EXILE.

Choo Choo TRAIN
Romaji by: cori

* Fun Fun We hit the step step
onaji kaze no naka We know We love Oh
Heat Heat (The) beat's like a skip skip
tokimeki wo hakobu yo Choo Choo TRAIN

mada shiranai Zone
mezasu yo tonight
RIARU na toki ga tomaru edge of time
dare mo cry or smile
kinou I forget
nugisutete jiyuu ni naru good trip

tsukiakari ni freak
sasoeba my bro
minna makikomi isogu edge of time
mune ni Who's that guy
todoku I don't care
merry sympathy
hitotsu ni naru just now

Fun Fun We hit the step step
So don't keep yourself to yourself We know We love Oh
Heat Heat (The) beat's like a skip skip
To the paradise Take me please Oh
Choo Choo TRAIN

kawarisou na scene
oikake one night
dekakeyou kono DOA ni Say good-bye
BIRU no up side down
mori wo round and round
nukedashite hajimeru no sa good trip

** Fun Fun We hit the step step
kata wo dakiaeba We know We love Oh
Heat Heat (The) beat's like a skip skip
kakedashite tobinoru Choo Choo TRAIN

* repeat
** repeat

Lalala...

Fun Fun We hit the step step
Heat Heat (The) beat's like a skip skip

Yesterday, Keiko and I went to WTC and saw the view from the tallest building in Kansai. Also went to a wicked cheap restaurant called Saizeriya... Soup, pizza and foccaccia. AND DRINK BAR for only 189yen, WTF. After that, we headed back to Osaka and wandered around in Yodobashi Camera for a bit,because a friend back home wants some dvd, Final Fantasy Advent Children. Looked semi-creepy, but I guess to each their own!

We spent a little while searching for Christon, the catholic restaurant/cafe we went to last weekend. Had some brulee with raspberry sauce; why it was frozen I will never comprehend. And a nice cup of cafe. Then we ended up eating at Aruna with Jon, and then going to karaoke. Which is what inspired the posting of the above lyrics. I would like to learn them in the next month. Seems like a reasonable enough goal. We shall see!

Headed to Kobe today with Candice and Keiko, for the Chinese New Year Festival. Candice said they have delicious food there, so I am quite looking forward to it.

Oh, and I got my hair cut yesterday. Voila!

2006-01-30T01:31:00.000-06:00

Tomorrow I will post some accompanying text, but for now, here are some pictures of my amazing Sunday with Candice, Jon and Ray.

The world... volcanic activity and density of marine life... Scientific, yet cool...

Jon, Ray, Candice, and Lily with the famous whale shark. (Ray can you doctor this? It's a bit blurry...)

Penguins. 'Nuff said.

This has GOT to be the best job on earth. Swim around in a tank, wearing wacky clothes (including tiger shorts and a Ronald McDonald wig) and wave and swing a bat and give peace signs to kids. Where do I sign up?

Many, many, many, many fish... (Amusingly enough, Jon thought this would only feed him for a WEEK.)

Funny story... the entire time we're looking at these fish, Jon is tlaking about... what else?!... SUSHI. That is just warped. You're communing with all these deep sea creatures, and Jon says they make him hungry! EVIL... At any rate, Jon, think of the fish. Especially your favourite fish, Billy (name chosen at random), you can't eat your friends.

Cutie-pie fish. Big, heartbreaker eyes.

This turtle CLEARLY gave me the evil eye... I don't know what I ever did to him (her?) but he definitely had some issues with my watching his leisurely swim. RELAX, dude.

This is a chunk of the plexiglass they use to keep all the water in at the aquarium; no wonder it's so hard to see through!

Fire jellyfish... they were beautiful...

Jon and I trapped in a shark cage. Jon looks like he SHOULD be committed. I am clearly just chillin, waiting for a shark to bite.

Wicked restaurant called "Christon" we went on Jon's recommendation! Like a Catholic church, lol but with a revolving door and lots of booze and decadent food. Tres chic.

Jon and Ray at the game centre, giving those zombies a run for their decomposing-money!

Shoot him, Ray... Get that lousy dead guy!

Take that, MOFOS!

Bitch, please...

Die evil, bastdard zombie scum!

2006-01-27T13:47:00.000-06:00

Random temple, in Kobe...

Sitting at my old haunt, Seattle's Best Coffee, and sipping a chai latte. Oh, the memories.

Currently listening to my new favourite song, by Natasha Bedingfield, younger sis of Daniel.

"Unwritten"

I am unwritten, can't read my mind, I'm undefined
I'm just beginning, the pen's in my hand, ending unplanned

Staring at the blank page before you, open up the dirty window
Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find
Reaching for something in the distance
So close you can almost taste it
Release your inhibitions

Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten

Oh, Oh

I break tradition, sometimes my tries, are outside the lines (yeah yeah)
We've been conditioned to not make mistakes, but I can't live that way (oh oh)

Staring at the blank page before you, open up the dirty window
Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find
Reaching for something in the distance
So close you can almost taste it
Release your inhibitions

Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins

Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten

Staring at the blank page before you, open up the dirty window
Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find
Reaching for something in the distance
So close you can almost taste it
Release your inhibitions

Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins

Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten
The rest is still unwritten
The rest is still unwritten...

A small child just let out a blood-curdling, help me now scream. The amusing thing is that I'm in Japan, so I didn't even blink. Children here are HELLIONS. They have no sense of behaviour whatsoever. (Except for Tayo; he's an angel child.)

The sun is shining and I am smiling. Today, I left the apartment THREE times because I kept forgetting things. I had some money left from my last paycheck so I decided to transfer it to my account in Canada. Holy God in heaven, was that ever hard! I should've learnt Japanese. They probably thought I was a total idiot. Not to mention, I had to write some stuff IN Japanese, and my katakana, hiragana, and kanji are ALL ASS! Poor woman, probably thought I was a 6 year old.

I was thinking of the SOTTB last night, and wodnering where the bracelet is right now. It didn't really bring my any extra courage or anything, but I suppose I did survive my first few weeks here in Japan, so it served its purpose. I hope it is bringing bravery to my friends back in Canada.

Big plans for this weekend. We have Candice's welcome party on Saturday night. ("PLEASE COME!" Argh.) And then we have the monthly dance party occurring at Murphy's. Should be a bang-up evening. The next day, Ray, Jon, Candice and I are going to the Aquarium in Osaka. I've never been before, and supposedly, it has a whale shark.

Last week, my coworkers and I went to a "special" kind of bar called a "snack." (L-R: Michael, Jon, Lily, Candice) Drank lots of beer and shochu and stuff, so it was an itneresting evening for all involved. So much so that I felt very under the weather the next day at school! Oh well, you only live once!

Still annoyed by the result of the Canadian election, but maybe the Liberals cant throw some of the Conservatives dissolution tactics back in their faces and it might actually work, given the extremely weak minority government they've managed to form. Saw the lovely and immature and poorly thought out "baby factor" comment. Come on, Isaac, if you've got cahones, prove it. It's all fine and well to criticize a woman who clearly took the position after Mr. Shithead himself had descrated the PM chair in various ways. Ovaries are just ovaries. Testes are just tests. There is no good reason not to elect a woman. Except that if she makes mistakes, she'll be degraded, berated and bombared by criticism at least TWICE as much as any balding old fart of a man. And now, I digress.

BTW, Sima, I didn't catch K.C.'s comments about the election of S. Harper and the Conservatives? Maybe you could post it in the comments section?

As another aside, SMOKING sucks. Canada's whole movement toward bylaws in cities and public places is the BOMB. I'm in a cafe, and the air is a pretty blue colour. Life is not supposed to be like that! Could be worse, I am well aware. There are harder things than smokey air to endure in this life, but right now, screaming children and smokey cafes are my top concern.

Japan has turned me into a raging capitalist. If I don't come home with something new, I feel funny. Mostly gifts and stuff for birthdays, but all the same, I wish i could stop shopping altogether. The shoes here are too cute, though... Cute's an industry in Japan. Sanrio is the new God. Very very strange.

At any rate, it's now about an hour from my start up time and I have a few errands to run. A bientot, all.

2006-01-25T00:57:00.000-06:00

One small entry, so that people don't freak out about my extended absence in cyber space.

Things are okay here in Akashi. Work is a bit weird, like usual, and there have been some weird developments in my personal life. Things will calm down soon, I'm sure, but it's still a bit up in the air. Classes are going well. I had Follow-Up Training at Honbu on Saturday with my (temporary) coworker, Jon. It was a decent day, even though it started with a very serious meeting. At any rate, I am surviving. I will post new pictures as soon as I can, but that might not be for a few more days, potentially a week or so.

I just heard about the Canadian Election. *sigh* A Conservative minority. I am a bit relieved, as their government is even weaker than the Liberal one they ousted. Still, it is difficult to imagine my home as a hotbed for the righteous right. Paul Martin has fallen, thank goodness. I really did not enjoy his brand of wet-rag politics. Hopefully, the next leader of the Liberals is more capable. Maybe a bit bustier and more estrogen-filled. Nobody cares if a male politician is fat, sweaty and incompetent. Hopefully, we can extend the same standards to women. We shall see. It seems in this respect, the developing countries are a lot more advanced than we are.

Anyways, that's not even worthy of the term 'rant', but it's all I can muster, as I'm off to Honbu AGAIN tomorrow for interview training. I can barely contain my excitement.

A bientot.

2006-01-14T01:48:00.000-06:00

It's 1:48am, and I bet some of you are asleep. I'm making soup.
Just thought you should be privy to my soup-making prowess.

*sigh* Why didn't anyone tell me that "Finding Neverland" would make me cry! Bastards!
Consumption always makes me cry.
Grrrr.

Soup, then meds, then sweet, sweet bed.
Almost rhymed.

It's almost 2am, don't mess with me.
Also, WICKED, Friday the 13th ended without much event, other than me barely survivng my easiest day of teaching. Stupid cold. I couldn't even take the actual cold meds because they make drowsy as can be!

Off to Carrefour tomorrow to go shopping. I adore shopping there. Why? Because it's a French store, so I can *woohoo* read the labels, as long as the pesky Japanese staff don't paste Japanese labels overtop. That irritates me to no end. And, yes, I realize where I live, I have zero claim to be angry over such a thing, but just TRY and stop me.

Goodnight all.

2006-01-13T00:28:00.000-06:00

And with the strike of 12 midnight, this marks the beginning of... dum dum dummmm... FRIDAY THE 13TH!

So, tonight thanks to my lovely mom, I found out that Rick Mercer has a blog, and not just anywhere, but here at blogspot, thanks to Blogger. Fantastic. More wit and whimsy prior to the Canadian election.

To all my friends in Canada, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE vote on January 23, 2006. I truly believe voting is vital to the continuation of a democratic Canada. ALSO, and most importantly, voting is the only REAL way you can complain and have a leg to stand on. Voting is the easiest way to say you give a crap about Canada, without ACTUALLY getting off your sorry excuse for a behind and doing something about this country you claim to love.

The more I read about this election, the more sad I become. Truly, this is becoming what Fallone's screen name is ALL about. "Politics is not the art of the possible. It consists in choosing bwtween the disasterous and the unpalatable."

I'm assuming that in this election, the disasterous is the righteous right, and the unpalatable is the ludicrous left. I am torn, and I think, perhaps, we may be doomed to yet another minority government. In theory, this is a fabulous idea really. No one party having enough sway to actually do any real damage, everyone bringing up suggestions is a sort of free forum for progress.

In practice, however, as most Canadians have observed for the past few years, this is not the case. Progress does not occur. Policy does not improve. It's a constant bickering match between the parties, fingers pointed, sometimes merely the middle one at any given time, and why? Because our system isn't designed to work with a minority government. Because our politician's refuse to adjust, to compromise, to be civil. In other democratic nations (ignore, for the moment, the democratic debauchery of the United States; they are a warning to all and a model to no one), like Sweden, politicans conduct themselves in admirable fashion. Their democracy functions, and of course, there are problems. But legislation in that nation actually has teeth once in awhile.

There is absolutely no excuse for the paltry excuse for policy that the Liberal party has been churning out for years now. We do not find ourselves on the world stage, where law is made of treaty, agreement and force, but ina nation where laws can be made and adhered to. A nation where policy can be made, and be made effectively, if we would only choose to do so.

I grow tired. Japanese medicine is making me drosy, and realistically, it's quite late, but I DID sleep all day. Basically, the end of my rant is my ever-ready call for PR. Proportional Representation. The Liberals clearly have no reason to support it, but even the idiotic right would gain from it. But then perhaps we woulg get some representation from a party or two who recognize an issue the other parties are ignoring: the environment. Everyone seems to think this is a non-issue.

It matters, people. Even those who are employed in resource extraction sectors should know that. Resources run out. You need a contingency plan. *sigh* Okay that's all my weary body will allow for today. Sleep well, world.

2006-01-11T13:14:00.000-06:00

This just in...
Pity party for one.

I just got back, it's 12:50pm, and I am in some kind of pain! I got
to the school at 9:55am, perfectly on time to head to the doctor. So, the new teacher went with me, until Manager arrived. She wasa bit later as she had been on the phone with the clinic.

In Japan, even if it's a cold, they take your blood pressure, no big deal. And I had to wear a mask. AND they wanted to take mytemperature. But, get this, they wanted me to put the thermometer under my armpit. Fun, eh. Temperature of 37.2C, which is lower than yesterday I think. I also had to pee in a cup. And not an orange-lidded plastic cup. An over-sized dixy cup.

It took until 11:15am to see the doctor, who asked lots of questions, and my teacher interpreted. I told him about any drug allergies and whatnot. My teacher then warned me that what the doctor needed to do was take a test to determine if I do or do not have the flu. Basically, this test consisted of a nice friendly Japanese nurse, clad all in pinki, ramming a Q-tip up my nose, which was rather uncomfortable. (I've had a massive headache ever since she did it.) Turns out I do not have the flu, which really, I could have told them. I'd be more achey if I had the flu! However, I was glad that the Doc had sufficient proof, as when people are really sick here, they get an IV drip, and my teacher told me he was considering it! Jesus. These people
aren't kidding around.

Finally, he gives me a script for not one, not two, count them FIVE medicines. One antibiotic, one for cough, one for phlegm, one for making me sleep, and one powdered medicine for keeping my stomach settled after I down all the rest.

So, to regroup, many things are different in Japan!
1. Temperature taken under the armpit.
2. Blood pressure at every visit.
3. Mask on everyone in the waiting room, except for a kid who refused.
4. Ramming Q-tip into people's noses.
5. IV drips are very common here.
6. Tons of pills.
7. Powdered medicine!

Oh, well you learn something everyday. Time to make some macaroni and cheese. Hopefully all this medicine will get me on the road to feeling better!

2006-01-07T21:17:00.000-06:00

Today, I woke up from a terrible nightmare to a really good day with Keiko.

She picked me up at 2pm and we went to Aspia to buy a few things, namely tape and a Japanese sharpie to label the huge box in her backseat. I mailed the replica samurai sword to my sister today for the reasonable fee of 3600yen. Required TONS of paperwork, I couldn't believe. Apparently, Canada requires that you fill out many customs forms, and they woman made sure I wrote "toy" although replica indicates it's a fake, but hey why not, I guess.

But it was a success! Keiko and I decided we needed some coffee (or hot cocoa in her case) after the lengthy deliberations to get the sword mailed. We drove to Carrefour is Tsuchiyama (I think) and went to Starbucks. Yummy Marshmallow Mocha. We sat and talked a bit about the day, and decided to have *SHABU SHABU* for dinner. I got very excited, because this is the one food dad saw fit to mention in Japan, so I figured it must be absolutely scrumptious!

We went shopping a bit in Carrefour, because they sell great cheese. I bought some cream cheese, and a little bit of smoked cheese, which I am very pleased with. I also got some heating pads (Godsends, seriously, far better than anything Canada ever cooked up and CHEAP; 300yen for 10 twenty-four hour pads!), a hilarious dvd of music videos from the 80s, 3 classical CDs for 315yen (who could resist?), and crackers galore...

We left at 5:30pm, to make our way through the traffic to Nishishimmachi to pick up Keiko's mom, Setsuko, and head to the Shabu Shabu restaurant.

We got there, and were seated. they have little sheets to cover your coats, because some the pot spits water onto clothing. Interesting.. The waitresses all wear matching cute blue patterned kimonos. They set up a pot on our table with water and started to heat it to boil. We decided ona set of meat and whatnot, and we were ready to go. Here is the shabu shabu pot.

Once the water was boiling, we got going! The waitress got nervous when I wanted to take a picture, which was adorable. She cooked the first pieces of meat for us, and then we could dip them in either a sesame peanuty-tasting sauce, or a soya based one. The beef, thinly sliced and just raring *haha* to be shabu'd is off the right. Smiling is Setsuko, Keiko's mom.

The beef is cookin'!

The beef is now cooked. It is now resting happily in the sesame sauce bowl right in front of the big-ass pot!

These are the raw veggies that go into the big pot to meat *smirk* their demise! Some kind of sprout, something akin to bok choi, shitake mushrooms *yummy*, and delicious tofu cubes. (I'm being serious; I sincerely adore tofu.)

So, the story goes that when you cook the beef, you move your hand back and forth, to and fro, and the beef makes a sound. (100yen to whoever can guess first what this mysterious sound is!) I had a chance to try my hand at cooking shabu shabu, and low and behold, NO SOUND! Just bubbles. This is the sad Lily face that resulted. Just kidding. Actually I think Keiko tried to take the picture, but in the momentary delay, my face fell back into concentration on not losing the swimming beef in the boiling water. *Chopsticks can be a bit iffy sometimes for me.*

Here's the picture we all wanted! Lily smiling and cooking shabu shabu just like a regular Vanna White! I actually really enjoyed the whole meal, it had a lot of tradition to it.

After we ate the beef and vegetables, they cleaned up our water with a little scoop thingy. Then they cooked some long thin udon (looked like fettucine, as Keiko pointed out) and some mochi. Mochi is rice goo, they rice cake, but it's goo. It tastes good, though. People also eat mochi traditionally with their New Years osechi. Delicious mochi! Tough to eat, though. Bugger all!

I even poured Keiko's mom some tea, and some complimented my Japanese pouring with my right hand while daintily holding the lid in place with my left. Thank you, "Sayuri" for teaching me proper tea etiquette! She even said Keiko doesn't pour as nicely as me! *HAHA!*

After that, we ate some nice 'macha' ice cream (green tea), and also drank some nice hot green tea! All in all, it was a splendid day, filled with good food and good company. Thank you Keiko and Setsuko for making my Saturday great!

2006-01-07T00:16:00.000-06:00

I have never been so ashamed to be Canadian as I am today, but I suppose it could be worse. I could live in the United States, where rights are the stuff of fairytales, similar to unicorns and gargoyles. See http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=25947

I am ashamed because my hometown is too sluggish and drugged by the capitalistic mayor to even notice the Conservative trash that is the candidate for the riding. Enter Patrick "Pretender" Brown. I poke fun, but I shouldn't. This guy is the whole nine yards. If nine yards were a straight run through a pile of BS. Give me a break! I leave for one lousy year, and it all goes downhill.

I'm exaggerating, though, because this jerk MOFO is the same same a**hole he was four year ago! When he *cough cough* pretended to be a lawyer. WHO PRETENDS TO BE A LAWYER! Get off your sorry ugly backside and go to law school if it's that important to you. Better still, the liar wasn't even articling at the time. That's right, he didn't even know what the law was yet, and he was claiming he was fit to practice it. Makes you wonder why he feels he's qualified to be a politican....

He also lied about numerous other things, including that his campaign lost "200 signs a night", but he never bothered to file these numbers in his elections forms. Curious.

This time around, he's pretending that the Barrie Chief of Police, Freshette, is supporting him. *smirks* Really, now Brownsy, you can do better than that, can't you. The Chief responded immediately, denying he ever supported Brown. Hmmm, doesn't look good for you, brown. Lucky that Aileen Carroll is going to kick your sorry behind like she always does. I only wish my only riding would follow suit. Those louts always elect the big bad C.

And, no, I'm not impressed by the Liberals. But at least they have half a brain. Brown claimed to have got the financial support for Barrie's Cancer Centre by himself. Sure, buddy. You're a dickwee, in the truest sense of the word, who would ever give you money? Aileen Carroll got that funding, because she actually finished wearing Huggies' Pull-ups years ago. Unlike you, Brownsy.

Anyways, so that's my rant for the day. I despise elections, although I always vote, and hope to actually change somethings, however small at some point. Most Canadians are content to whine. VOTE, damn you, VOTE. Don't whine, don't complain, don't utter a word against anyone in politics if you can't even be bothered to get up and put an x through a box, how do you expect the politicans to accomplish anything. Wise up, Canucks. Time's a ticking, and a vote means nothing because you don't value it. There's no reason for apathy. You have EVERYTHING to lose.

2005-12-26T17:37:00.000-06:00

Boxing Day.

Not that you'd ever know it, living in Japan.

Emily and I headed to Hiroshima today, woohoo! I love Hiroshima. I think it was one of my favourite places here in Japan. We took the Shinkansen at 9:40am to Hiroshima, riding a Kodama train. This is the slowest of the Skinkansen, as it stops at all stops. (However, this worked for us, as I live in an itty bitty city.)

The Nozomi train came screaming, literally, by us a few times while we were waiting at NishiAkashi shinkansensen platform number 11. It was quite startling to see this thing go hurtling past in a blur of white and grey. To all family and friends, the train crash on December 26th occurred in NORTHERN Japan, and as such, did not affect me, so no worries. Anyone wishing to see what I'm talking about can go here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4559308.stm

Arrived in Hiroshima just after 12 noon, and got ourselves a quick lunch, before taking the Hiroshima Sanyo line down to Miyajimaguchi. (about 30 minutes) We then took the ferry over to Miyajima, which has a beautiful shrine and red tori gate.

This is a building with the characteristic maple leaves of Miyajima all over it, located in lovely Miyajima.

An odd little laughing/screaming cat sculpture in Miyajima. (Some things in Japan just leave me wondering, "why?")

The lovely Otori in Miyajima. This the gate you see on all posters for Miyajima, usually ones bearing the word "invitation," for some odd reason. I try not to question things like that TOO much, because reallym there doesn't need to be a reason. It was a really nice day out there, and the tide was just starting to come back in, so the gate looked a fair shade different than it did when mom and I visited.

Emily and the famous Otori gate.

A shrine lantern blowing in the wind at Miyajima.

This is the five storied red pagoda, also famous in Miyajima.

After leaving Miyajima, we returned to Hiroshima proper. (Via a nice little streetcar.) We got off right in front the bridge leading to the A Bomb Dome. So we took a few pictures.

Hiroshima right before sunset.

This is the A Bomb Dome. Emily and I spent a good half an hour shooting pictures all over the place here. It was a beautiful time of day, very peaceful. Very few people were around.

This is Emily getting a picture from behind the security fence.

A Bomb Dome as the sun sets on Hiroshima.

After that, we had dinner at Subway and wandered around a little bit, before deciding to check out Hiroshima Castle by night.

The actual castle by night. It was a pain in the *** to shoot these, however, I think they all turned out more or less passable. This one I particularly liked.

This is a shot I call Octopus Tree. I think it's very Christmas-sy and pretty. I miss Canada looking at things like this.

This is the end of our trip, Emily asleep on the shinkansen.

Happy Boxing Day!!

2005-12-25T17:19:00.000-06:00

After missing out on USJ, thanks the the infallible Engrish and poor train maps on the Osaka Loop Line, Emily and I decided to go to an Izaka-ya on Christmas Day for dinner. We sampled various foods, thinking that the drink bill would be small, given the 880yen "all you can drink" plastered across the front of the menu. We got ourselves quite well done, only to realize at the cash, that this menu applied only to those ordering these huge course meals. Haha. Oh well. You only live once.

During the day, we travelled around Kyoto a bit. The Imperial Palace seemed to be on lockdown, so we walked to the Kyoto Handicraft Centre, and found some neat gifts and souvenirs. Emily got a cool fabric piece with the traditional Japanese wave on it. We took the shuttle bus to the station. It was an awful ride; it took almost an hour! Plus, the people sitting behind us were a trio of obnoxious, "more money than brains" Australians who would not shut up. I wonder if people think that about me sometimes?

Took the train to Osaka, which only took about 30 minutes, and rushed over to the Indian restaurant we wanted to eat at. (What is it called? Indura? Andura? Meh, who knows...) It was still, by the grace of god, open so Emily and I got to have some delicious food. We headed back to JR, but bought some shoes on the way. Eventually arrived at JR to try and get ourselves a locker. The locker system at JR is stupid. It says you can use it for 6 hours for 2100 yen, (all in 100 yen coins, no less, morons) but the system will not actually let you do this.

We eventually boarded a loop line train bound for USJ, we thought, but the damn thing never arrived and damned if the sign said anything to the effect of "transfer trains here to reach USJ." Anyways, that was our Christmas Day.

2005-12-24T17:26:00.000-06:00

Ah, Christmas Eve. Such a festive time at home, such a capitalist time in Japan.

Today, Emily, Keiko and I went to Kyoto. We met Keiko at Nishishimmachi Station at 9:00am, and arrived in Kyoto at approximately 11:00am. We had some *sketchy* breakfast. (Toast and salad were good, the eggs were pureed or something.) We decided to cab it to Kiyozumi, a beautiful temple where Emily and Keiko (and I!) took tons and tons of photos. The shops were also great in the area, with narrow streets winding up the hill toward the mountain. Lit some incense, took a look around. EVERYTHING in this country is about couples. There was a whole area dedicated to this love stone gimic. Two grey stone, about knee-height, with chains on them, and you were supposed to walk between them with your eyes closed. If you came to no harm, then you'd have luck in love. (This might be easy on a quiet day, but it was a Saturday, and Christmas in Japan is couples' day anyways, so the place was literally teeming with sickenly cute Japanese couples, so walking between two rocks would be damn near impossible!)

Had some odd little delicious tofu doughnuts before hopping a cab to our next destination: lunch. We ended up eating at a small French restaurant that the cabbie recommended. Cabs here are quite nifty. The drivers are uber professional, sporting caps and white gloves, and you never have to touch the doors. Wicked. Food was good at the French spot.

We then went to the Golden shrine thing. Hmmm the name escapes me at the moment; I will have to update this later. It was beautiful, but it was pretty cold up there. I was under the *misguided* impression that the temperature in this region doesn't drop below zero. The sad truth is that I've come to Japan in a year when all sorts of records are being broken for the lowest temperatures ever. (No global warming? Think again, Bush. Someone needs to give you a good swift kick upside the head, or have you pay a few visits to the remnants of New Orleans.)

We decided to go to our hotel next, to drop off my bags, as I was exhausted. Palace Side Hotel was, of course, next to the Imperial Palace. Pretty decent hotel, given I had low expectations. Sleeping in a bed felt SO good. I missed it so much. Anyways, we decided to go to the Daimaru main shopping area and found a small Nepalese restaurant, and had some excellent curry on Christmas Eve.

Keiko had to leave at that point, but Emily walked around and shopped until about 8ish, when vendors starting closing up shop for the night. Then we cabbed it back to the hotel and went to sleep. Merry Christmas.

2005-12-23T23:54:00.000-06:00

Quick entry before I *FINALLY* go to sleep! I got up at 7:30am, and Em at 8:00am, and we were in Osaka by 9:40pm. Emily and I went to Osaka, Sky Building, and Nara, Todaji Temple, and some other spots today. We had a great time at the skye building; Em took photos... I took photos of her taking photos for you and the show. We had Excelsior Cafe sandwiches before leaving for Nara. First, we quickly ran into Yodobashi and I bought her a new 1gig memory card, because hers flaked out for some reason. (FYI, her camera and memory card were from Henry's...)

Em slept on the train. Nara was wonderful. A deer bit my ass, though. That was rough. Todaji Temple was quite pretty and both Emily and I took a ton of photos. We saw the kitty near a restaurant again. Very nice kitten. We bought tons of stuff, which was quite nice.

We headed back to Osaka, and we headed to Big Man to meet Chris and Ray. We had Indian cuisine for dinner. Em and I had naan, and coconut chicken curry, and mixed vegetable curry. It was absolutely delicious.

After that, we went to Yodobashi Camera again and did some Christmas shopping. We settled on a nice set (2 pairs!) of sweet white headphones that match our iPods.

Anyways, we are headed to Kyoto tomorrow morning. We are meeting Keiko at 9am at Nishishimmachi. I invited her along, because she wanted to meet Emily and she is always very fun to spend time with.

Time for some much needed shut-eye. Goodnight world.

2005-12-20T00:22:00.000-06:00

I'm not dead.

Seriously, adfter reading the response to my comments about awful Fenchie on GG, I was saddened. I really think his accent is digusting and overdone. I suppose that shows my general dislike for French men. Give me any other accent, any other day.

So, lately, and I'm sure this will be filled with typos. So sue me. Didn't finish that sentence, and yes I'm aware of the fact. Anyways, I wonder why the Japanese have everything. They have vending machines filled with hot drinks: coffee, espresso, cafe au lait, milk tea, lemon tea, green tea, chiese tea, hot chocolate, hot vitamin C, hot corn POTAGE for God's sake! Canada's WAY colder than this country and where are OUR hot vending machines, I say?! WHERE. *sigh* Also, you know the little bit shake-em-til-they're-hot heating pads? We have 24 hour ones in Japan for SUPER cheap. Basically it's about $2.50 for 10 of the little heavenly suckers. God bless Japan.

We had our Hallowe'en party the other night. Lovely affair with food, and a nice Paddington Bear for me to take home. Complete with marmalade and bread! SWEET. Went to Karaoke afterward, which was nice. I hate karaoke unless I drink, but this place proved to be fun, and I sang a few songs with some other Eigo senseis. (English teachers)

Alas, I truly only wrote because Chris mentioned I'm horrific with keeping up on the blog. And I am. But life's busy these days. And Sima and Jon and Emily are slow, too!!!

2005-12-14T11:43:00.000-06:00

Hmmm, so it is now 11:19am, and my stupid player won't make Gilmore Girls work. I didn't even used to watch that show, but it turns out not be so boring in the later years. I could still seriously wring that stupid faux-Frenchman's neck, but hey, c'est la vie, non? I am enjoying it, even though I'm watching it rather out of sequence. I didn't think Rory was all that interesting when she was younger, but she's quirky enough now to warrant some attention.

Yesterday morning, I went to Osaka for work. I met a student on the train, but I fell asleep en route to Osaka, so we didn't speak very much. Sometimes I just don't have the enery to stay awake on the train. I went to Yodobashi Camera, and exchanged the two laptop cases for larger ones that might actually FIT the Apple 14" iBook. Woohoo. AND I got brand new beige, blue and orange Pumas, which in my opinion, are quite cute. Also, got two turtle neck wool sweaters from UniQlo. (It was $30 for two, so why not?)

Anyways, it's cold and I need to get my self sorted out for work, so I'll write more soon...

Check out the new and improved links section....

2005-12-11T12:04:00.000-06:00

I had an exciting day yesterday. On Friday night, after work, a few of us headed to Kinsale, a French restaurant located above the Irish pub. I had the Australian beef, and damn, was it ever good! I love steak. I tend to get in this mind set when I'm not consuming a great deal of meat, but I'm eating a healthy portion, mainly because I'm going out to Yoshinoya a lot. Mom and I ate at Yakiniku the other day, this Korean-style grill-your-own beef place. It was delicious. I can't wait to go back.

Anyways, yesterday, I thought I was going to have to wait ALL day for my new kotatsu to arrive. Check out the phenomena here: http://www.jlifeinternational.com/furnishings/kotatsu/kotatsu_e.html Apparently, my new kotatsu is "kawaii" (cute), but I've been too frightened about putting the sucker together to open it. I have no tools at my disposal! A nice Japanese woman called, and the call didn't go down well. I don't speak Japanese. A few minutes later, my doorbell rang, and there was the kotatsu! So, I brought in this square box, about 4 inches thick, and paid her. This was only 11:00am. I was pretty pleased that I wouldn't be chained to the apartment all day, so I read for a bit and then took a shower. Also did some reading. I left the house at 3:45pm, and went to Aspia, managed to do all my grocery shopping. Carrying 8 litres of juice and water on my back, and various other groceries in a bag, I did not want to stop anywhere else, so I made a beeline for the train station, and was super impressed when I got home by 5:00pm.

However, upon arriving at my door and digging out my key, it appeared to have been bent slightly from the weight of the water bootles. Damn. SO I trucked it over to the local locksmiths in the hopes the tiny shop would still be open. As luck would have it, it was. Armed with only "sumimasen" (sorry) and some hand gestures, I managed to get a new key cut, and all for under 500yen. I walk back to my apartment, now exhausted and hungry, and try my key in the door, almost praying, "if there's a god, this key will work, otherwise, I'm not calling the school, I'm sleeping on my front door step." It did work, albeit a little less smoothly than the original, but cutting from a bent one's got to be a bit difficult.

So, it all worked out. I'm a bit bummed to not have any real plans today. However, I should really get caught up on the blog, I wanna record what occurred during mom's visit, before I forget dates!

2005-12-10T01:35:00.000-06:00

So that's me, on this evening of Friday, December 9, 2005. Actually, it's now December 10th, but *meh* not a truly big difference. Not to me, anyway. I don't work tomorrow, but I must wait at my apartment for my new kotatsu to be delivered. Apparently, word is that it's EXTRA cute. Potentially pink. You all know how I feel about pink. *sigh*

Sitting down to watch some Clone High, care of my mom's visit. I adore Clone High. Why is it that the best TV series always get cancelled! Life's not fair. So funny. Time for some Gandhi, Cleopatra, Aberham Lincoln, Joan of Arc, and JFK... and a few other historical figures mixed in.

Perhaps sleep time now. TP Boys was funnnny.

2005-12-05T01:17:00.000-06:00

So, this is a short entry, to keep people from thinking I've fallen off the face of the earth!
Mom and I went to Hiroshima, via Shinkansen today (PRICEY!!!) and I thought I'd put up a few photos.

Miyajima...
Amazingly, utterly beautiful. This is a section of the coastline. We arrived to rain, then the sun came out, and...

Miyajima Otori...
Most shrines have these red gateways... this one happens to be floating! Actually, it isn't, but it's wooden base is submerged when the tide is in. When the tide is out, you can stand against the posts. Coller like this, in my opinion.

Finally, we took the streetcar into Hiroshima, and went to the site of the atomic bomb detonation; the A-Bomb Dome, it's reffered to as here... Very strange experience to visit it. A monument dedicated to the future; one without war and devastation... Instead of being solely dedicated to those who were claimed by the tragedy. Sickens me to see those things; evidence of a time (even though we still live in one) where humans feel the need to inflict such horror on fellow human beings. Felt the same way at Dachau concentration camp in Germany...

More to follow, avid readers. I promise!

2005-11-27T21:04:00.000-06:00

Mom and I in front of Himeji castle. Two really nice Japanese women offerred to take a shot for us because we took one for them. Kind, eh? Sometimes foreigners are treated really well... It was lovely, though, with all the fall colours. Himeji was surrounded by reds, yellows, and greens. They seem to lack fire orange.

Looking down into Himeji, toward Himeji station. There were some great views once you got up into the castle. I hope to bring Emily up there one day, since it's such a great spot to take photographs, of the castle, the city, or even of the very closely laid out Koko-en gardens.

Inside the castle, here is mom standing on one of the beautiful hardwood floors. In Japan, you can't wear shoes inside. You have to remove your outdoor shoes, carry them around in a plastic bag. You get to wear these dorky slippers, that are clearly for one purpose only. To kill you. In Himeji castle, there are about 6 or 7 floors, and the steps in these slippers that are barely managed to stay on. Grippy socks would have been preferable. Hindsight IS 20/20!

Mom in front a lovely view of Himeji. This shot is taken from the courtyard sort of area, directly in front of Himaji Castle. This area is supposed to be lovely during cherry blossom time.

This is the famous and beautiful Himeji Castle. I actually don't know much about the history of the thing, but it was breathtaking all the same. Huge, too.

Mom wanted me to take this shot, of the crooked rooves of Himeji Castle leading out in the city, and then into the hills. It's actually quite pretty. Tiled rooves are the norm here, as they get rain, and not snow like at home, and the water runs off these quite beautifully. Rain season is May or June...

Tunnel area, or sort of, underground gate, at Himeji Castle... I didn't feel like climbing to take the photo, because it wasn't the way we had chosen to go... Call me lazy if you must.

Lily's stylish maroon and pink puma and... a big-assed bug of some sort. Couldn't resist documenting it, creeping thing that it is. I hear that these are rampant in summertime, and that the cicadas start their annoying singing at 5am or something equally wicked.

This is a really odd-looking plant we saw on the walk down from Himeji Castle. I truthfully am not what it is, mom and I were debating whether it was real or not, but there appeared to be a pot of dirt behind the wooden part, so my guess is yay.

Marking this as the correct day, when mom and I visted Himeji. Sunday, November 27, 2005.

2005-11-27T11:30:00.000-06:00

Documenting mom's trip to Japan... starting right now. Himeji was where we headed on our first day. Mom arrived on September26, 2005. She was sleepy, but we took the train to Himeji... What a beautiful fall day. Not too cold; we even had ice cream cones, which was delicious... Take a look.

Lovely, sweet dog on our walk to Nishishimmachi station...

Statue outside Himeji station...

Sign outside Himeji Castle...

Himeji Castle amid the autumn leaves...

Lovely leaf on pale grey stones, in the shadows...

Mom and tree at Himeji Castle... In front a nice stone wall...

Japanese maple leaves are so lovely... I could barely stop clicking the shutter button...

Lovely coloured leaves in Koko-en... Red, orange, yellow...

Pristine little lake...

Pretty waterfall... This place was utterly breathtaking, very step of the way...

This is a shot in Koko-en Garden, Japanese Maple leaves over water...

2005-11-24T22:20:00.000-06:00

So I'm back, and what do I come home to?
My blog turning into some hockey war!
I don't even LIKE hockey, for goodness sake.

Boiling some water for ramen. It shouldn't be complicated, and yet it is, because I can't read instructions. This particular ramen requires adding boiling water and packet one, then letting some (ALL?) of it out through a sophisticated drainage hole (keep in mind this is all styrofoam and paper; the Japanese are ingenius) and then adding two other small packets of God-knows-what, and then consuming. So intense. (Furhter note: made it, but it smelled too weird to consume. Tossed it.)

Long day today. Woke up at 7:30am, which I know is not a huge deal, but it is when you work until 9pm! I'm exhausted as I went all the way to Osaka to Honbu today. Nobody likes going to Honbu, especially not Chris, Ray and I. At least we had a chance to sit and talk, which was nice. Those girls keep me sane!

Making a new ramen, one that is reliable. Cold in here right now. Although my AMERICAN alarm clock reads at 69F. I think it may be lying.

Time for Scrubs and sleep. Buenos noches, amigos.

2005-11-19T16:44:00.000-06:00

Argh.

For those out there who chose to dismiss and degrade Toronto, my words to you are... STUFF IT. I base my image of Toronto on a lot of things, but not hockey. If you dislike Toronto, or like Toronto, because of the Leafs, FINE. But don't judge a whole city based ona bunch of bad-hair, semi-toothless, huge hulking idiotic athletes, just as I will not judge any other city based on a sports team. Most of those people are paid too much anyway.

Still need to clean my apartment. I despite cleaning. Someday I will have a housekeeper. Or less stuff. Whichever seems more feisable. Likely the former. More to follow.

2005-11-18T22:42:00.000-06:00

Friday night. Most hallowed of all nights for me. It represents the dawn of a new weekend, free from work. Sitting here with a nice glass of red wine, eating some cheese and crackers. I managed to track some weird-looking square brie... VERY sketchy. Will not be consuming it again.

Get this, according to my CheckPoint class, when you're sick you should drink sake with raw egg in it! I'm not totally weak-stomached, but that seems a bit much for me. People also eat nato here, which is fermented soya beans. It has a strong odour, but I've never tried it.

My jaw is acting up like crazy. I clench it because I'm feeling stressed out, and it starts to tense and it just gets worse and worse and prevents me from sleeping well. Today, one of the teachers went to the chemist with me to get some muscle relaxants. I'm supposed to take 2 pills, 3 times a day. I can see this is going to be an expensive solution, but I wear my TMJ bar nightly, so I'm at a loss for what else to do. I REALLY don't want to see a Japanese orthodonist, no matter how well he speaks English. I want my regular, nice, kind, funny Canadian orthodontist! I know I'm being a baby, but have you seen the tools those people have access to? I don't want even a minor risk of mixing up left and right! The consequences could be rather painful.

WARNING: Rant ahead, procede at own risk...

Spent some time checking out Sima and Jon's blog. Still can't figure out how to link the damned thing to my site. Pain in the ass I say! But, I felt oddly nostalgic for Sima's virtually-pregnant food tastes and desires. Sounds like Safeway in Vancouver is not up to the job of satisyfing my newlywed amigos. A pity, really, as Vancouver IS a nice city. It's no Toronto, but hey, nowhere but TO really is. (Any city that has a teensy weensy silver golfball and has the audacity to call it "Science World" deserves everything it has coming to it! Give me Ontario Science Centre anyday!) I miss my two buddies. I miss the days of American Chopper because Rav was occupied with his bike or rollerblades or IPE or caloric value... I miss cayenne-pepper Blood Mary's care of Isaac. I miss Makela's short attention span during a long paper leading to Rav and I yelling at him repeatedly to get out of the living room. I miss cheesecake with Emma and Sima and brutally honest talks. I do not miss La (fucking) Senza. What an awful and hellish place. I do miss Pub Italia and Bankok Thai Garden. And Siam Kitchen. I do not miss OCTranspo and their idiotic drivers, who were never on time, ESPECIALLY during a snowstorm or a cold snap (snap my ASS; they lasted for two months) of -30! I do miss the O Train; what a pristine, albeit goofily named, mode of transportation. I also miss the Rideau Canal, and walking along it on a summer's night. I actually miss AK College and the damned Loeb Cafe. Who'd have ever thought it possible? I don't miss Leeds, but I do miss Kim, who I need to email. I miss Marlo, Grover and the incorrectly-gendered cat, Jakob. And Ma, Pa and Junior Spek. (8 days and counting!) I almost miss the cold. I miss the MacOdrum. It sucked and it was cold and I did a lot of sleeping there, but it holds fond memories of TAing with Jamie, crushing the souls of young law students (kidding) (well, sorta), socializing, laughing at Neha and Araz for having such elaborate food, checking out piles of books I never read... I miss so much I always took for granted.

I keep having weird dreams and nightmares about the people I knew before I came to Japan. Sometimes it's comforting, sometimes it's disturbing. It's odd, but I never dream about Japan, or being here, or my job. Never.

Soooo, that was a large rant, time to hit publish and watch some "Dead like me." Amazing series, seriously, buy the DVDs, excellent entertainment.

2005-11-16T01:11:00.000-06:00

Sad, sad, sad... My blog is worthless! Here's the proof...

My blog is worth $0.00.
How much is your blog worth?

*sigh* To bed for Lily.

2005-11-15T00:06:00.000-06:00

Too Canadian...?

Here at Canadian World Domination Headquarters, we believe in promoting a "Total Canadian" attitude amongst our many legions of followers. We enjoy moulding the personalities of loyal Canucks to suit our special aims. Headquarters staff is looking for those gifted persons whose narrow-minded patriotic zeal blinds them to anything other than their glorious country and its exalted leaders (namely us). Perhaps this simple list will help you determine if you are the type of individual who may be willing to discard his or her personal freedom in order to join the great Canadian collective of collaborative dominators. Naturally, being "Too Canadian" is not an unwanted state, rather, we cherish those fortunates who fit the requirements below and plan to breed them in the future. Hopefully this long over-due scientific action will enable us to obtain a strain of Canuck (the uberCanuck) that will be very useful indeed when it comes to the indoctrination of the un-Canadian. Or we could just use them to help our Recreation Canada staff develop a new All-Canadian Trivial Pursuit.

1. You know all the words to "If I had a million dollars" by The Barenaked Ladies, including the inter-stanza banter between Steven and Ed.

2. You dismiss all beers under 6% as "for children and the elderly."

3. You hum David Foster's '88 Calgary Olympics theme in the shower.

4. You make up patriotic lyrics to go along with David Foster's '88 Calgary Olympics theme.

5. You cried when Gus "drowned" on Road To Avonlea.

6. You remember when Alanis Morrissette was "Too Hot To Hold".

7. You think there isn't enough of Peter Gzowski to go around.

8. You think it's normal to have a grain elevator in your backyard.

9. You wonder why there isn't a 5 dollar coin, as you can only use more change.

10. You spend hours in the dark making scale models of the Avro Arrow and cursing the Diefenbaker government.

11. You watch MuchMusic constantly, in the hopes of occasional fleeting glimpses of The Tragically Hip.

12. You have an Inuit carving by your bedside with the rationale, "what's good enough protection for the Prime Minister, is good enough for me!"

13. You have memorized the Heritage Foundation's Heritage Moments, including your favourites, "Burnt Toast!", "You know I canna read a word...", "One day we have tar paper roof!" and "Kanata".

14. You can sing "O' Canada" in French and actually know what the words mean!!

15. You advocate the abolition of responsible government, in favour of monarchist rule.

16. You think there isn't enough Queen on our currency.

17. You send angry letters to the CBC demanding the return of the Hinterland Who's Who spots so you can finally find out what happens to the arctic ptarmigan in winter.

18. You participate in Participaction!

19. You think Peter Mansbridge is sexy.

20. You think Lloyd Robertson is sexy.

21. You think Peter Kent is sexy.

22. You think Matt Damon is so-so.

23. You stood in line for hours for Another Roadside Attraction tickets.

24. You killed your best friend for Another Roadside Attraction tickets.

25. You think Great Big Sea isn't Maritime-centric enough.

26. Your graduation formal dress was made of flannel.

27. Your backpack has more than one Canadian flag iron-on.

28. You know the names of all the guys in Sloan.

29. You have been on Speaker's Corner. Bonus points if they edited out your carefully prepared rant against the Harris government.

30. You use a red pen on your non-Canadian textbooks and fill in the missing 'u's from labor, honor, and color.

31. You know the French equivalents of "free", "prize" and "no sugar added", thanks to your extensive education in bilingual cereal packaging.

32. You still haven't taken down your "NON" posters from the 95 Referendum.

33. You know more than 3 guys named Gordon.

34. You think Ashley MacIssac isn't celtic enough.

35. You remember "Jodie" from Today's Special and wonder why you keep seeing her reading news on the CBC.

36. You can do the hand actions to Sharon, Lois and Bram's "Skin-a-marinki-dinki-do".

37. You know why "killerwhaletank" is funny.

38. You can eat more than one maple sugar candy without feeling nauseous.

39. You had a crush on Joey Jeremiah from Degrassi Junior High.

40. You know that a "Premier" isn't a baby born a few months early.

41. You actually watch The Gemini Awards, The Genie Awards, and The Juno Awards. You wonder why Stompin' Tom doesn't get his own category in all three. You scream passionately at the television when your favourite Canadian performers are overlooked by their respective academies.

42. You are excited whenever an American television show mentions Canada. You make a mental note to talk about it at work the next day.

43. You think -10 C is mild weather.

44. You have twins named Donovan and Bailey.

45. You have twins named Wayne and Gretzky (alternately Gordie and Howe).

46. You know the ingredients for poutine.

47. You automatically read 'Z' as 'Zed' and don't give a damn that it doesn't rhyme with "now I know my abcs".

48. You know what happens in the Evergreen Forest when Bert Raccoon wakes up.

49. You dressed as Bruno Gerussi for Halloween. You spent hours sifting through garbage on the beach to prepare for the role.

50. You substitute beer for water when cooking.

51. You carry empty beer cans from your camping trips home with you in your backpack so you can recycle them when you reach civilization.

52. You know that the 'Extra Creamy' in Kraft Extra Creamy Dinner is 'add more milk.'

53. You prefer Elvis Stojko when he has 'hockey hair' - a.k.a. 'the mullet' or 'the shorty-longback'.

54. You brag about the sweet herb in BC.

55. You know the chorus of "The Log Driver's Waltz" and are particularly fond of the 'whirling down and down' bit.

56. You steal stationery from your Government of Canada co-operative education placement because you figure you can find lots of uses for paper with 'Human Resources Development Canada/Développement des Ressources Humaines Canada' written at the top.

57. You know where this theme is from (you will need Real Audio to hear it).

58. You are moved to tears by those Bell Canada phone commercials they show around Remembrance Day where the grandson calls his grandad from Dieppe. You understand the manipulative nature of the advertisement, but continue to be moved, nontheless.

59. You stay up until midnight (the end of some television station broadcasting hours) to hear the Canadian national anthem.

60. You get up at 5:00 am (the begining of broadcasting hours) to hear the
Canadian national anthem.

61. You spit angrily when Americans say "ruff" instead of the correct "roof".

62. You have daydreams that film-maker Don McKellar and Hugh Dillon from The Headstones skinned and ate Regis and Kathie Lee.

63. You recognize: CPP, RSP, and CCM.

64. You read rather than scanned this list.

Check out the list, and also the website for Canadian World Domination at the link below:
http://cwd.ptbcanadian.com/signs.html

Sadly, I have nothing more to offer tonight, but this made me smile. Don't we say "zee"? Damned if I know.

2005-11-14T01:25:00.000-06:00

Technically Monday AM, but Sunday to me still, and I'm home, warming myself by the halogen heating lamp. Quite pleasant, actually. I wanna post something substantial, but I also want to post some pictures from yesterday. I wonder if I have the patience for both? Let's see!

Okay, so it is definitely about 1:20am, so I'm going to do a quick commentary/tag for each picture and then I'm going to sleep. This week has been ROUGH!

Went to a cafe called CENTRAL with Keiko on Saturday afternoon, had some Mauritius Vanilla tea, and bruler with bananas. (Yes, I realize that makes no sense.) Was quite a cool cafe, French and Italian.

This was a neat steel statue of a giraffe in Kobe, I wonder who made it? There were quite a few nice scupltures there; I'd like Em to take some photos when she's here in December.

Kobe Habour Front. Quite pretty, although it was getting a bit windy and chilly when Keiko and I were there. There were rides and stuff which was cool, even a big ferris wheel!

Things in Japan are weird. (If you're just tuning in now, check out cake hat photo and reindeer robber mask.) This is a doghouse that's actually a hollow strawberry. I hesitate to overuse the term, but WTF, seriously? What dog wouldn't feel threatened living a giant fruit?

We don't have these in Canada. Escalators that are wavy or look like a big staircase with moving stairs on it. I thought it was cool, mind you, clearly all the Japanese people around thought I was demented for photographing it.

This mall in Kobe was very pretty, lots of lights. I imagine at night it would be utterly stunning. there were even huge animals lit up: a bear (kuma), a whale, a fish, etc. Poinsettas everywhere, too. (If only I could have remembered that YESTERDAY! Keiko beat me to the punch.)

One last photo: the huge tree. You can see it in the previous picture, but this is a close-up. It was lovely, although the stroke lights were a bit much. Christmas is SERIOUS in Japan.

So, I think that's it for now. I did other things besides shop, like have dinner with Tomoe and stuff, but I'm too exhausted to tell the story now, more to follow.

2005-11-11T23:12:00.000-06:00

So, I figured it was just about time for a new post.

Main idea: Why Lily almost got killed on the way home.
Also, HOW.

In a glamourous manner? Oh GOD no! I'm walking home in the rain. Laiden down with various bags (I got three packages today! Woohoo, SPICES, I can make some real food and chai, too Yummy. Also, my manager bought me awarmer blanket for winter. Uggo colours, but nice and soft and fuzzy, and I sleep in the dark, so who cares about colours.) and, of course, holding an umbrella rather awkwardly. I'm walking home, minding my own business, albeit dressed all in black with a black umbrella but two HUGE white bags, and an old man almost hits me on my bike. I was crossing something that wasn't even worthy of the term "street"! WTF. Old people drive me insane. I actually screamed. I'm one of those people who usually freezes instead of screaming. Not tonight. I let out a nice milk-curdling scream. (Blood doesn't curdle, mofo.)

Anyways, so being ill didn't improve my mood much. I got a nice letter from Jon and Sima, who reminded me to update my blog a little more often, since *gasp* a few people actually read this thing. Lovely to know. I miss those two. Married life seems to be treating them kindly. Oh also, for the record, I respond to all letters, and especially to packages. I love hearing from you guys.

Hmmm so today I got cheese tortellini, mashed potatoes, potato leek soup, garlic powder, parmesan cheese, a skirt, hickory smoked almonds, cashews, etc. Very very happy day for me. I watched so many Scrubs episodes the past few days. They keep me sane. "I think owning your burdens is half the battle." So true. Lots of good J.D. quotes. Makes me smile, especially when you have a day that just feels wrong. Today was one of those days. Sick all day, out for dinner, where my coworker tells me to fill up my cel phone so I won't get homesick. Uh huh. Right. *sigh*

Okay that's enough for now.

2005-11-06T01:32:00.000-06:00

Only in Japan...

Many a time has this thought run through my pretty little head. Today I went to Sannomiya with my VP class, which was nice. We went to a nice little French cafe, called A la Compagne. Had some coffee and a raspberry custard pie thing. Yummy. Then we had some time to kill before dinner, so we went to Tokyo Hands, a store somewhat like Ikea. I bought some twinkle lights for my apartment, and now it's a bit more festive. After that we headed up a few floors to a Christmas display. I almost died. (See photo below.) Cake. Hats. Never should the two meet. Who on God's green earth would don such a frightening piece of apparel? *SHUDDER* $16 to have baked goods for brains. Sign me up!

And they didn't stop there, oh NO! Somehow this creepy mask is meant to make you festively reindeer-ish. My ASS it will. You'd like some sort of crazy Christmas robber. I am positive that were this North America, someone would have already held up a Sev'Lev in this dumb thing.

Aww, the land of faux pets! (I can't mock these two much; I own a blue one.) (Don't judge me; I was lonely!) So these are called "flip flap"; they're plastic plants whose leaves flap when it's sunny. There's a small solar panel on the front which serves to power the little beasts. I bought a large blue one, and I found it very pleasant. A little cold, perhaps. But they also have pet algae balls here, called "marimo." (Didn't get one of those because GOODLUCK getting it past customs!)

Up close and personal shot of two lovely Flip Flap plants: orange and red. Like a plastic pet fashion show!

This shot is from the Italian restaurant we headed to for dinner. Our reservation, care of Keiko, was at 6:30pm; we stayed until 9:45pm! It was great. Salad, pizza and some red wine. There was a nifty Ferrari class behind us and the warm light was quite pretty.

One last shot for tonight; the light hanging above our table. Very reminiscent of Ikea.

All in all, a very good day. Tomorrow, I was going to see Himeji, but Ray wants to chill so I'm gonna do that instead in lovely Tsukaguchi. If I can get there without completely losing my way. Wish me luck!

2005-11-02T12:12:00.000-06:00

"A little respect"

I try to discover
A little something to make me sweeter
Oh baby refrain from breaking my heart
I’m so in love with you
I’ll be forever blue
That you give me no reason
Why you’re making me work so hard

That you give me no
That you give me no
That you give me no
That you give me no

Soul, I hear you calling
Oh baby please give a little respect to me

And if I should falter
Would you open your arms out to me
We can make love not war
And live at peace in our hearts
I’m so in love with you
I’ll be forever blue
What religion or reason
Could drive a man to forsake his lover

Don’t you tell me no
Don’t you tell me no
Don’t you tell me no
Don’t you tell me no

Soul, I hear you calling
Oh baby please give a little respect to me

I’m so in love with you
I’ll be forever blue
That you give me no reason
You know you’re making me work so hard

That you give me no
That you give me no
That you give me no
That you give me no

Soul, I hear you calling
Oh baby please give a little respect to me

Soul, I hear you calling
Oh baby please give a little respect to me

Gotta love Erasure.

12:05pm. I have ten minutes before work, why not just mess around the internet? Maybe keeping up with the blog is a better pursuit. Very happy yesterdya because I Gwyn sent me Atwood's "Oryx and Crake" and books here are like gold! (If you ever walk intoa Japanese bookstore you will understand.) Anyways, that song was on an episode of Scrubs in the first season, when Dr. Wen chose it as the song to play during surgery. The song spread like a virus in the hospital. Very amusing, except now it's spread to me and I cannot get it out of my head.

Spilled my liquid blush stuff this morning. My fingers got all pink cleaning it up. *sigh* I'm such a clutz. Time to clean up the desk area in my apartment. Tomorrow's a day off, Culture Day (November 3rd) in Japan, so I'll get to that tomorrow sometime. Haven't nailed down plans with Chris and Ray yet for tomorrow. I am planning on heading to Sannomiya with my VP class on Saturday, which will hopefully be fun. Their English is pretty decent.

I want to do some letters up for family members later on if I get a chance. Send some nice temple photos, that kind of thing. I've become this whirlwind with letters. I've written so many since arriving, but getting the internet slowed my pace a little bit.

One more listen to Erasure, and then I need to get going. Today I only teach 3 classes, thank goodness. I've been feeling a little blah lately about everything. Not sad, but kind of bored. It's not as challenging as I expected. I'd much rather have my personal life be easy and my job challenging, but you can't pick and choose everything in life I suppose. Hopefully, we go somewhere pretty tomorrow so I can post some new photos. If you want to see more photos, you can head to FlickR and look for CreepingLily.

Ciao for the day.

2005-10-30T20:21:00.000-06:00

Hello all. I took the day to organize my digital photos, and sort out my blog a bit. I signed up for a photo website. I could've got yahoo photo but I picked a service that's prettier. I know it's a hassle to sign up for things, but this one has phenomenal photos posted on it. I've had it only a little while, and I've found tons of great photos. The ones from the Keeshond lady are especially nice. I really miss my dog!!

Last night, Ray and I went to Murphy's Irish Pub for their Hallowe'en Party. Drinks here are expensive! Beers are 650 yen (so like $6.70) and mixed drinks are 900 yen ($9.30). Shocking, really. Oh well, I barely ever touch alcohol here so it's not like I spend much on that sort of thing. I eat out fairly often, but I figure I spent much less than someone who goes out partying a lot. There's not usually any partying to be done in Akashi, anyway.

Anyways, Murphy's was fun. We arrived at about 9:30pm. I got to meet the new ET (emergency teacher) who's teaching at Akashi on Saturdays, for Mie, whose last day was yesterday. His name is John, he's from Florida and he's 22. He seemed nice enough. Sat and talked to him, and Michael and Chai, the guy I replaced. (Who was dressed in a wife beater, white shirt, black pants, and... *wait for it* silver glove. Oh yeah, he WAS M.J.)

I came as a devil, as is clear *I think* from the photo. It was a good evening. We danced upstairs in Kinsale, the French restaurant. Ray and I got hungry around 2am. I handed off my horns and fork to John, for safekeeping, and Ray and I headed to Yoshinoya. (24 hour!) Had some beef and rice, yummy, and cheap, and headed back but everyone had taken off for, we assume, karaoke or a dance club. Ray and I decided to head home, as well. Got there, and watched some Scrubs, world's BEST show, I can't get enough of Scrubs. http://scrubs-tv.com/ Favourite characters: Dr. Cox, J.D. and Janitor. Hands-down. I can't wait until my mom brings the Second Season!!!

In terms of Christmas, I decided I'll have an amazon wishlist and if anyone feels inclined to get me something, please make it a DVD. I don't care if it's a Blockbuster previously viewed or brand new. My lonely Japanese self will not care at all. So feel free to search under my full first and last name, or use my gmail address. www.amazon.ca

Tomorrow, it's back to work again. I can't believe my weekend is over already. I have to do my first prospective student interview. I hope I don't screw it up. *fingers crossed*
Anyways, I'm sleepy. I'm going to watch some Scrubs and called it a night.

AP0005 castle

2005-10-30T03:27:00.000-06:00

AP0005 castle
Originally uploaded by CreepingLily.

Akashi Castle. Ray and I visited this last weekend, and got to go inside one of the towers. Beautiful views! Very old and lovely, situated right in Akashi Park, where there's a museums and some sprots fields. A lively place on weekends, filled with people of all ages.

AP0003 pond

2005-10-30T03:25:00.000-06:00

AP0003 pond
Originally uploaded by CreepingLily.

Akashi Park has a pond right outside its entrance, and this is it! Filled with big fish, a few turtles and the occasional heron or swan, it's pretty lively this time of year. Quite pretty...

AP0020 city

2005-10-30T03:24:00.000-06:00

AP0020 city
Originally uploaded by CreepingLily.

Akashi City as seen from Akashi Castle. Pearl Bridge is the world's longest suspension bridge, and one of Akashi's claims to fame. Akashi also has Japan's oldest planetarium and is famous for its fish market, which sells a LOT of 'tako' - octopus.

AH0011

2005-10-30T03:21:00.000-06:00

AH0011
Originally uploaded by CreepingLily.

Lily, dressed up as a devil... Unsure of this student's name; apparently he's quite entertaining to have in class. Random sidenote: I lost my devil outfit (except shirt, of course) last night at Murphy's Irish Pub, because I took off the tail at one point, and then Ray and I decided to go to Yoshinoya at 2am (it's 24 hour!) for some grub, and when we came back everyone had already left, probably to Karaoke. Lucky for me, Hallowe'en is over!

AH0008

2005-10-30T03:18:00.000-06:00

AH0008
Originally uploaded by CreepingLily.

Adult Hallowe'en bash: our student trying to ram the devil's fork up Michael's nose.

AH0040 Group

2005-10-30T03:15:00.000-06:00

AH0040 Group
Originally uploaded by CreepingLily.

This is my school kids' Hallowe'en Party. (I'm in the very back, off a bit to the left side.) Very fun, but exhausting hour at work.

the gang of four

2005-10-30T02:54:00.000-05:00

the gang of four
Originally uploaded by dancing_with_wolves.

This is a pic from Flikr... The one second in from the left looks just like Marlo, my lovely keeshond back home in Canada!

Green Apple ;D

2005-10-30T01:39:00.000-05:00

Green Apple ;D
Originally uploaded by ênio cesar.

Flikr is the new photo service I'm using, and this picture was taken by one of the other members, Enio Cesar. Sign up for Flikr to see more!

2005-10-26T23:02:00.000-05:00

Guess where I am?
IN MY APARTMENT!
And on the internet, in case you're a little slow on the draw.

What a pain in the ass it's been. I tried to set it up myself; and mac instructions in Japanese are NOT fun, let me tell you. Calling the NTT English help line was USELESS because I tried calling for 2 hours! BUSY. And local calls in Japan are metered: 10 yen/minute. Crazy, eh? My friend, Keiko, tried to help me out with it, but neither of us could do it. Randomly, Ravi called and saved the day. He's always doing that. (Amusing that, "mmm the brackets... I mean, no what are they CALLED! the greater than and less than signs, with dots in between!" was the key to my having the internet here at home.) God bless you, Ravi.

I have a feeling I might be temporarily addicted to the internet for a bit now.

So, news. I have a lot of photos to put up, but I'm hungry for breakfast/lunch right now, so I'll just say a bit about what's been happening with me.

My manager booked me a doctor's appointment and informed me of it on Monday. (It was for today.) I was sort of internally freaking out. I HATE doctors. (Despite 'Scrubs' being my favourite show... curious.) I asked if the doctor was English speaking, and she said no. I said "why not?" This may seem a little rude, but take into account I live in a city of 290,000 people here; they've got to have doctors. My appointment is in KOBE, about 15-20 minutes by train. Why travel if it's still in Japanese? So I spoke to my head teacher, who said it's not mandatory (which is good, because they claimed when we applied that no physical was necessary and I was beginning to feel mislead.) I also spoke to my trainer and he told me what it involved and that it's my choice. My choice is no. Unfortunately, my manager wasn't in until the evening yesterday, so I left her a note saying I was uncomfortable with this appointment thing. We'll see what happens there.

At my own expense, I went through getting a physical and various travel immunizations done. What a pissoff to think I could have just had the physical here. Although *shudder* an assembly line of Japanese doctors scares the crap out of me!

Anyways, also, on last Saturday night we had the office/school Hallowe'en party. VERY exciting. Our lobby was filled to brimming with people, some in costume, most not. Fun evening. Yesterday, 3:30pm-4:30pm was our Kid's Party. Dressing up as a devil midday was a bit odd. The big Hallowe'en shindig starts at 8:30pm Saturday night at Murphy's. I've only passed through there once, so it might be nice to meet some other gaijins.

2005-10-22T12:10:00.000-05:00

Went to Nara, Japan's former capital city, last Sunday, but didn't have a chance to put up any photos. It was a fantastic day, full of revelations. Too tired today to write any down, but here are some visuals.

Todaji Temple. Oldest Temple in Japan, it houses the biggest Budha (not quite the Big Apple, but hey, you take what you can get) standing 51 feet high, or thereabouts.

Nara..

Nara...

Nara...

2005-10-22T11:55:00.001-05:00

So, another week gone by. Finally, time to put some pictures up on the blog! Enjoy!

This is a tiny Siamese kitten we saw in Nara...

So, another week gone by. I thought I might post some pictures, as Aspia is open once more.dyClass.jpg" border="0" alt="" /> I threw out Chai's junk, and organized my classroom. Spiffy, no?

I finally cleaned and personalized my classroom, to the right side is my "Canada Wall."

This is my apartment building, in Nishishinmachi. (I'm on the second floor, the one with the blanket hanging over the edge - laundry day!)

Lily and Ray, on the Osaka Loop Line to Nara.

Feeling slightly better today; I get the internet on Tuesday! (Only took more than a month...) Tonight is the Hallowe'en Party at my school. Also, farewell to Head Teacher and Manager, and welcome to new AM and Head Teacher. I'm feeling pretty ill today, my sinuses ache and I'm sneezy, so it's off to Arka Pharmacy after this to get some vitamin C supplies. Apparently, Fido at home is giving my mom a ton of hassle; the jerks. Grrr. I wrote a nasty letter to them, though, as has been my habit many times in the past.

I'm planning on getting some rest this afternoon, sleep off this impending cold. Hope all is well in the rest of the world.

2005-10-19T11:34:00.000-05:00

Hey All,
At an internet cafe, week 5 in Japan without the internet, trying not to be bitter, but those of you who are close to know how I feel right now. I,m feeling pretty sick today actually, my head hurts like crazy. Im pretty lonely and whatnot, and today Im stuck at JJs which is some idiot cafe entertainment centre in Akashi. Video game geeks everywhere I turn. Expensive, too. 105yen for 15 minutes.

Not much to report. Not on my iBook so I cant even post any pictures. Bummer. Anyways, you know where to email my cel if you get time!!

2005-10-15T12:42:00.000-05:00

Yet another Saturday. In the cafe. I grow tired of not having the internet. I've been here more than a month, now. And it's at least 8 more days (business days?) until I get myself hooked up. My backside sometimes falls asleep by the time I get to the blog on these excursions. I spent a good hour just now, searching and saving news and New Scientist articles to my HD, because I'm itching for some news and something to read in my mother tongue! Got some good stuff on BSE, HIV, Black holes, Teenage brains, etc. Should keep me busy for a few hours.

The weather here is peculiar. Today it's miserable abd raining - go figure, on my day off. (The cafe is playing "Walking in Memphis" by Mark Cohen... blast from the past, it has been AGES since I last heard this song. I've always liked it, though.) Sorry, weather: yesterday was about 28! I couldn't believe it. I never tire of weather talk with my students. "What's winter like in Kansai?" (My area.) "Oh, it's hmmmm 3-7 degrees Celcius." "And do you think winter in Kansai is cold?" They always answer yes. It gives me great delight to describe Toronto's relatively mild temperatures (always a horrified audience) and then delve into the extreme bitter and inhospitable temperatures I've become accustomed to in Ottawa the past four years. -30. Canada has such a dramatic change in temperature between winter and summer.

I swing back and forth between miediocre moods and sadness most days. Teaching is great, though, I enjoy my students and many of them are amazing at English. Some old Japanese ladies just sat down at my little area (4 leather high-backed chair around a small circular table) and started saying something to me, but I didn't catch a single word. Smiling and nodding is SO damn useful!

I don't have a lot to write this week. Headed to Honbu on Thursday for some training. I'm not overly impressed at the moment with them, but I digress. I don't want to be a total stick in the mud about everything. Everyone is flawed. (Mind you, at least individuals don't have the opportunity to make their problems company policy...) Fairly quiet week, especially since it was only four days. Tomorrow, I am headed to Osaka, but for 11:00am this time, to meet with Chris and Ray. I'm not sure what adventures we'll get up to this week, but it might be awhile before I post again, but hopefully there'll be more photos when I do manage to get here again.

Amusingly enough, everytime I'm here, I stay about three hours. i always get a notice, in Japanese, that pops up on my mac, and who knows what it says, but probably, "get your ass out, stop loitering in our stylish smokey cafe, biatch." Also, I'd imagine that they WANT to tell me to go, lol, but I'm a foreigner and nobody really seems to want to speak to me. I don't understand Japanese, so it'd be a hassle to try and convey their thoughts.

ALMOST FORGOT! Yesterday a little Japanese repairman came to my apartment to fix my leak in the washroom. (Haha, that's an amusing turn of phrase.) When I walked by the washroom, he was like "Sumimasen, BRB" (basically, there was a lot of pointing) and then I saw why: he'd ripped my wink right off the wall! Luckily, he went and got another sink to install, and now, TADA, no more annoying leak. Thank goodness. Dripping water makes me want to punch someone.

I've been becoming more and more addicted to the "Music from Scrubs" CD since I finished watching Season One again. I ADORE that show, it's so funny. I'm going to start it again soon I think.
1. Superman - Lazlo Bane
2. All In My Head - Shawn Mullins
3. Fresh Feeling - Eels*
4. Good Time - Leroy
5. Good Life - Francis Dunnery*
6. New Slang - The Shins*
7. Beautiful World - Colin Hay
8. Hold On Hope - Guided By Voices*
9. Fighting For My Love - Nil Lara
10. Dracula From Houston - Butthole Surfers
11. Hooch - Everything
12. Hallelujah - John Cale
13. Have It All - Jeremy Kay*
14. End Credit Score - Jan Stevens
15. Overkill - Colin Hay

*Phenomenal tracks I am now addicted to.

Anyways, that's all she wrote. I'm exhausted and it's probably time to vacate this chair. My butt's definitely hit the snooze (spelling? my alarm clock's says "snooz" that can't be right.) button a few too many times for my own good.

2005-10-10T11:46:00.000-05:00

So, yesterday (Sunday) I went to Osaka to meet up with Chris and Ray for the day. They're the only people here I feel completely at ease with. Everyone else is a little bit fake nice. I think they're all afraid I'll just up and leave. A wise fear to have, given how much FUN I'm having on this island.

The Midosuji Parade:
Today, or yesterday - who can tell anyways, was Sports Day in Japan. Everyone gets this Monday off. It's like pseudo-Thanksgiving for Canadians, woohoo. Ray, Chris and I walked around. Chris shared some big news with us, which is making me question things even more than I was already. It was an EVENTFUL day, let me just say. We were trying to find this accessory store called Monique, which is apparently near Hanshin Department store. We were not having any luck finding it. We stopped a group of Japanese guys heading into a restaurant (I know, we foreigners have NO shame!). "Sumimasen... Hanshin?" Lots of very confused looks, much Japanese consulation, and then the head Japanese guy, a short-ish guy in a brown jacket, decides that they're going to WALK us to Hanshin.

Picture this: three nice gaijin girls walking along with three Japanese guys, only one of whom knows almost any English. What occurs? Why, the same thing that happens everytime you meet up with someone who barely speaks your language. They call someone who... TADA... "speaks English." Don't be fooled. Their friend who speaks English is usually someone who knows maybe 5-10 words more than they do. Actually, though, this friend did speak English. Bullseye.

Chris picks THIS time to ask the Japanese guys how to say "back off." Apparently, one of the tissue people (monsters, the lot) was a little bit persistent with her the other day and she wanted to know how to get her message across more clearly. The Japanese guys must've thought that she meant for THEM to back off. Oh, joy. Once we got that cleared up, we had been walking for at least 10 minutes. They brought us to Hanshin, bless their hearts, and Chris decides to be nice and says, "Thank you, that was nice of you." Takes another 3 minutes to get THAT cleared up. AND THEN, the bomb drops. Chris says, "Enjoy your dinner." Three words. This ended up being confusedly taken as a dinner invitation. Hell, maybe they though we were TELLING them to buy us dinner. Haha. Luckily, we were like "oh forget it, thanks!" and sort of scooted off into Hanshin. Never did find Monique.

Decided to hit up the Yodoyobashi Pier for a boat tour. So, we started walking, but it was the day of the Midosuji Parade! See photos below. So much colour, this parade lasts for TWO HOURS. It went on for ages, a gazillion marching bands. A British regiment. Dancing, singing, waving things, poor horses dressed to the nines. You name it, the Japanese had it in the Parade. Very entertaining. Also, SO many guards. People handing out fans. It was quite a spectacle!

So that was the Midosuji Parade in Osaka.

We also ended up at Shinsaibashi, after ending up near Honbu, so we went wandering. Saw some interesting things, various large sculptures of seafood, the hugest Hello Kitty sculpture I've ever seen, though likely one of the smaller ones in Japan.

After we grabbed some dinner at some weird "Mos Burger" place (WTF does that even mean... a tribute to Mos Def? Who knows) we decided to hit the road. Chris took her train back to Senri-chuo, and Ray and I decided to search for the internet cafe Honbu told us about. Crappiest directions EVER, thanks a lot. But we did end up locating Popeye's Media Cafe. Shittiest online experience ever. Weird keyboard. Which didn't work. Japanese commands. A PC that kept turning off. It took me 20 minutes to get going, because I had to switch computers. Kept trying not to cry on the train ride home. I felt sick, and the train kept jerking around everytime we started moving again after stopping at a station. I thought I was going to throw up, but luckily I didn't. Managed to make it to Akashi, and then to Nishishinmachi, but of course, my ticket didn't work. I don't understand Japanese, so I don't even know what's always wrong with me ticket. If I'm buying the wrong one, or what. I don't particularly care at the moment.

Sort of down at the moment. I've been contemplating going home again. It's hard not to because everything here is SLOW as molasses. Anything minor is fast, big things takes ages. I still don't have the internet. I will have to wait at least 10 days more, likely 15. Another half month. Joy. Technilogically advanced, my ass. I'll believe it when I experience it. Phones here, even local calls, are metered. Gone are the haydays of a quarter will get you all the time you want. You pay by the minute.

I am not bitter. Lol, actually maybe I am at the moment. Oh well. Lots of things here are amazing. Just not at the moment. I need to do laundry when I get home, so that should be a barrel of laughs. Might air out my futon, too. It's been a few weeks. Should also vacuum. Ah, domesticity. That's enough of a post for now. Enjoy!

2005-10-08T12:49:00.000-05:00

My tiny, shoebox-sized Leopalace kitchen. I miss my kitchen at home so much! Four burners vs. one here. Two sinks vs. one here. Shelves and cabinets galoe vs. 4 small shelves here. Fridge and freezer and separate freezer! vs. bar fridge about 1.5 feet squared.

My nice tiny Japanese washroom! Complete with square tub.

Microwave, toaster, etc. This ensemble now includes a "cute" pink rice cooker.

My closet. Actually pretty big, for here, anyway.

My bed/futon, on top of my foamy red couch.

So, my apartment. I might want to post some pictures, I suppose, because everyone keeps asking me what it's like, how small it is, etc. It's apparently, about 23m squared. I don't know. It's quite tiny, but I don't mind it so much. It's a place to escape my life for a bit and sleep and relax. Please see the photos above!

Ah, Saturday in Akashi. Sitting in the cafe, with the rain pouring down outside the windows. You have to love fall.

I'm very glad the week is over. It was long and exhausting. The weather was the pits. It's been cooling off, luckily, but I'm not sleeping any better; last night I remember seeing the clock many times before 3:00am. (which is fine, if you stay up until then, but I went to bed at 1:30am!) Maybe I had too much coffee. I always find myself yawning, which is very offensive here, during class, so I nip out from some cafe latte from the vending machine.

This is my classroom in Akashi. It's small, but it's the biggest classroom at my school, believe it or not!

Last night, i was feeling homesick, so I splurged and went to Pastel, a restaurant near the train station which serves pasta and coffee. It's pretty nice.

From the outside, it's pretty: lots of lights. Very inviting place.

This is another cafe, the one I went to last Sunday in Sannoymia with Keiko and Mie. It's called Atelier Works; French culture and cuisine are very popular here in Japan.

Anyways, I need to haul ass out of this cafe. I've been here almost three hours now! They're probably starting to wonder about me. I won't have the internet for likely two more weeks, so these blog entries will be few and far between, but I'll do my best. Ciao.

PS - Tomorrow marks a whole month since I landed in Osaka. It feels like it's been a year already.
11 more months.

2005-10-02T12:40:00.000-05:00

New entry, but this will probably be a tad short. I know, and I'm sorry, but I STILL don't have internet in my apartment, so I'm reliant on the West Coast coffee shop here. God bless Seattle.

So, yesterday I was on the train from Nishi shimachi (my station) to Akashi, where my school is at, and where I was meeting up with Tomoe, one of my upper level students, to go shopping. I saw this bling lady, with a golden retriever. This is WEIRD in Japan. Most dogs are tiny little things. Shitsus (shisu?), chihuahuas, etc. A lot of them have sweaters on, poor bastards. I wouldn't even wear a sweater in this humid disgusting weather, and yet pets are forced. Anyways, this poor HUGE dog also had an equally huge outfit on. It was similar to a clown outfit, kind of pink in colour, with tiny dots all over it, and these weird elasticized and frilly cuffs. *shakes her head* WTF. I guess this woman had the "I'm blind" excuse, but still. Someone probably helped her purchase this get-up for her pooch. Accessory to the crime. *sigh* People can be so cruel.

It's been a whole week at my school in Akashi, and things are getting slightly easier for me. Lesson planning takes absolute ages, so I'm working hard on that, and it's still a very lonely place to live. Expensive as a ... too. I went to Sannomiya yesterday and on Friday, too. Friday was for Thai food with some other foreign teachers. That was enlightening. Apparently, lots of people have been leaving Japan lately. Makes me feel a little less terrible about being so homesick that I contemplate plane tickets daily. (Seriously, I kid you not.)

I'm in the new apartment these days, though, which helps a bit. The apartment itself is quite livable, albeit quite small. I expected it to be tiny, so that's fine. I put up some scarves to decorate. Once I get the internet in a reliable way, I'll post some photos of my apartment, tiny little spot that it is. It's mine, at the very least. Someplace to hang my hat. (I don't even have a hat, it doesn't get that cold here. Like 0. Cry me a river. You should see the look of terror that appears of my students' faces when I tell them about how cold Ottawa is in winter. Yeah, that's right. -30 plus windchill. Sometimes -35, when you're lucky and it's the middle of the night.)

the kitchen is unbearably small. One burner, a sink, a fridge (that's about 1.5 feet squared) and a tiny shelf. THAT's the kitchen. Cooking in there is hellish. So not worthwhile. Apparently, all Japanese kitchens are small. It makes me miss my spacious homeland. I will definitely have different eating habits when I return to Canada, but I ALMOST miss the kitchen in my rathole apartment on College Street in Toronto. Almost. Not quite, though. My roomie was way too psychotic for me to actually miss it. My apartment is smaller in sum total than my bedroom was there. Eesh.

I'm planning on seeing if I can find the Toys'R'Us in Akashi if I have time once I leave this cafe and buy train tickets and everything. Maybe I'll go purchase tickets first and then wander about semi-aimlessly, searching for stuffed animals. (Don't ask.

I bought speakers yesterday in Sannomiya. They're smaller than my fist, each, and white, and they cost me about $55 but they sound quite nice and I figure they're tiny enough to leave with me when I go home or travelling. It was really nice of Tomoe to invite me. We went to the street markets, she showed me a couple import stores for when I just need honey or cereal or granola or A&W root beer. Also, went to Daimaru, this huge Japanese department store. It has Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Hermes... you name it. But luckily, also some semi-reasonably priced items. I bought some imported french body wash (orange flower and orange oil) since I can actually read French. Maybe I should've gone back to France. Or to Spain? Maybe next year, maybe after my masters. Who knows; we shall see in time where life takes me.

I'm having a lot of those little bouts of "What am I doing here?" and "What the hell was I thinking?" lately. Maybe it's my quarter life crisis? Haha. I think that's a silly term, given you can probably reach a crisis point anytime in your life. This is probably not even crisis-level, really. It's just brand new. When I was 15, it was only 3 months, and I *sort of* spoke the language. Now, I'm 23 (When did that happen?) and it's a year and I can't read or speak the language. It makes life a lot more difficult, but maybe it'll do me good. Someone left a post (grrr to anonymous posts) about how stable people sometimes need a little chaos in their lives. I don't disgaree. I'm just not sure if this level of chaos is healthy. (I can't even get medications when I need them, because I can't read the labels. That seems mighty bad to me.)

Anyways, it's almost 1:00pm so I need to get my ass up and buy some train tickets to Sannomiya and see if this mysterious Toys'R'Us is somewhere around here. Wish me luck.

2005-09-29T11:59:00.000-05:00

So, here I am once again in sEattle's Best. You'd think I was a coffee lover. Not so.

But this is all I have right now, so I have about 15 minutes to get a small blog entry up for the day. Things have calmed down a bit since the last entry, in which I was pretty upset. I cried so much, lol my eyes were all puffy and I looked terrible. I think it was beginning to freak out my Manager and Head Teacher a bit. They had no idea why I was so off the wall.

I got my new cellphone the other day, though I'm not completely out of contact thank goodness. I'm calling the company about setting up my internet connection at the apartment today before I start working, so hopefully I won't have to wait too long. I miss being in contact with all my friends back home.

Teaching is going decently, I think. It isn't easy but the students are extremely nice and kind, and forgiving when I make a mistake. It's almost time for work, actually. But today I have lots of breaks, thank goodness. Sometimes teaching is utterly exhausting. My first lesson is a private lesson, so it's lower pressure. I find it tough not to yawn, though because I'm not sleeping properly right now.

Bought a sweatshirt that says: "SEVES THE EARTH." haha. WTF. SAVES, people, SAVES! Below that, in nice small lettering, it also says "Eye is turned to a small case." I don't even know where they were going with that one. Get an English editor, for the love of GOD! You have to be amused. Otherwise, you'd get angry all the time. Some days, though, i find myself flabbergasted and perturbed. I saw a guy at the grocery store in a green t-shirt. Normal enough, right?

His shirt said "GAY'S PARADE." I only wonder if he realized the rammifications of this procalamation. Maybe that's what he was going for. Let's hope.

So, on that note, this is Lily, signing off for this week in Akashi, Japan. Please stay tuned for further updates, hopefully within the next seven days. *smirks* Can you imagine if the real news operated like that? *sigh*
Until next time.

2005-09-24T15:00:00.000-05:00

Sitting in Seattle's Best Coffee, sipping an iced chai latte, and musing to myself that hours take literally hours to pass. I've been wandering around Akashi for a few already, because my manager said I didn't need to be back at the school until 4:30pm. I worked on a lesson plan, and got it mostly finished up and then headed out to find some food in the city. Killed an hour in McDonalds. I know, I know. Garbage food. It was gross, but I seriously wasn't in a fish mood and I'll be able to cook for myself very soon so it doesn't really matter. It was one of my last meals out for awhile.

Decided to go to the corner Vodaphone shop to try to scrounge up some info on phone pricing and stuff. OH LORD, was it ever difficult! The poor sales guy did so much work! He even called the main vodaphone customer service line to get me someone English on the phone. To get a cel here, I need my ARC, my bank account, and some ID. Intense. I did manage to figure out which phones will work *if unlocked* back in Canada, so that was progess. Also, there's some sale on at the moment that for a year contract, it's only another 5000 yen ($60) for the phone, so I think that;s reasonable. I settled on a nice phone, and then realized it wasn't a triband and was a bit broken hearted, but c'est la vie.

I'm a bit nervous about moving into the apartment later today. What if it's awful? What if it's as bad as my first year residence room in Lanark? What if I can't sleep at night because I'm scared? Ray warned me I'll probably have to give it a good once over (cleaning) when I arrive, because hers was pretty dingy upon arrival. Oh well, that's doable. Mid-afternoon is a weird time when you're not at work and you don't know anyone! Nobody's online right now; everyone back in Canada is asleep.

Everyone here can smoke in restaurants and public places, like malls. It's so gross. I had forgotten how much smoke truly bothers me, because the cities where I've lived have opted to inforce smoking bans. It was bliss. This place is a commercial wonderland, as I've probably said before, it always surprises me how much STUFF there is. Clothes, shoes, jewellery, electronics, food... wait,t here's NOT that much food. There are apparently two decent grocery stores in this entire city of 290,000 people. WTF, mate, I say. Barrie had 120,000 and there was: Sobey's, 2 Zehrs, A&P, No Frills, and that's just INSIDE the city; there were more right outside and in the south end.

Feeling sleepy. I haven't slept a good solid night in awhile. Stress is really starting to get to me. Disorganization at my school where the newbie *that's me* is concerned is driving me nuts. They rush for the most trivial of things *getting a sheet of paper, for instance* and then drag their heels when it's important. (Um, hello? Anyone? I'm living in a HOTEL!) Compounding this trouble, is the fact that they've had 5, yes FIVE, months to find me a home. They started looking last month. Unacceptable. Also, today is my day off. Yesterday (Friday) was a national holiday, so if I wasn't stuck waiting around in Akashi restaurants, I could've travelled to Kyoto or something.

I apologize for complaining so much, but this is a hard enough transition as it is, without staff proving their incompetence. This company is accustomed to having foreigners in their midst. In fact, that's half of what they're all about. So, why can't they get their asses in line and figure this shit out in a TIMELY manner. It's expected that I arrive to work 15 minutes before the start up hour every day, but it's acceptable to make me wait more than 6 hours on my DAY OFF because they didn't manage to work out that my hotel check-out time was 10:00am, and we can't move me in until 5:00pm? I think not. Once I'm settled in, I'm going to file a complaint with head office. I don't care if it goes unnoticed.

I think about flying home a lot these days. Even at its worst, Canada was a lot easier to deal with than Japan. I feel I was misled by the company to believe that I was coming to a stable, albeit busy and demanding, school in Japan. As far as I can tell so far, this is completely not the case. In addition, no information ever made it me at Honbu. I arrive in Akashi and my 2nd or 3rd day here, they drop the bomb on me that I'm teaching a child's class next week. "Oh, we faxed the updated schedule to Honbu, didn't you get it?" No, I bloody well didn't get it, and that's YOUR responsibility to check and see that I'm informed of such things. There are a lot of apologies here, but they're empty. They don't mean anything. They're a formality, and unlike back at home, there in no way an admission of any culpability whatsoever.

Wow. I sound so cyncial. I'm not really. I'm sure tons of my friends are having amazing times in Japan. I wish I was, too, but right now, it's a struggle just to haul ass to work each day. Monday, I have to begin teaching full-time. I'm kind of dreading it, not because of the teaching itself, but I'm wondering if I can keep my emotions under wraps. I often feel on the edge of tears. Sometimes I topple right voer the that edge. (This morning, for example. Sorry mom.) Adjusting is much harder than I thought it would be, although lack of an apartment has probably influenced that quite a bit. We will find out this week, if having an apartment sets me a bit more at ease. I sure hope it does. Hopefully, it will take my mind off of everything.

I'm tempted to just throw in the towel. Given everything, I think what occurred was basically lying. Withholding the kind of issues present at my school is lying. Nothing more, nothing less. And coming from a company, i feel that's unacceptable. I entered this agreement in good faith, and my employer did not. Sounds a bit harsh, doesn't it? I think it's pretty close to reality, though, even if it seems a bit over the top.

*sigh* Maybe I should look on the brightside. Life's okay, I have enough to eat (even though it makes me sick), I'm not living in poverty (just isolation), and my friends and family are in good health. Lots of positives to be happy about. I think I've hit one of those little down periods. Trouble is, I don't know if it was inevitable, or if it's because of being here in Japan. It's troublesome, because I don't really know what to do anymore, about any of this. *sigh* Enough thinking for one day, time to hit publish. Will check on the wireless situation in the apartment this evening, but I'm not holding out much hope, so if I disappear for a bit, you know why.

2005-09-23T21:55:00.000-05:00

Evening, folks.
Lots to put up this installment, including a bunch of photos I think some of you might enjoy immensely.

First things first.
Japan, as some of you may already be aware, has extra fun squat toilets in most areas. However, western toilets are becoming increasingly popular, and can be found in many urban areas. Witness, exhibit A: Western style toilet.

But wait! What's that, you say? AN ARMREST? I think not, folks. Actually, if you look very carefully (or click on the photo to enlarge it) you can see that this, in fact, is a very Star Trek-ish control console. Witness, exhibit B: Control panel.

Hmm, so we have a variety of functions here. Generally speaking, these do not have their English equivalents written so conveniently beside the Japanese. Oh, the fun we've had! Here's the rundown of said functions, in case the picture's a little small for you:

Stop: Please God, stop spraying my bottom with H20.
Spray (with lovely, yet simple, bum design): Water sprays at your bottom.
Bidet: We all know what this means. I hope I need not explain.
Water Pressure: If you think the pressure's a little weak, well, never fear you can adjust it to your personal needs.
Flushing Sound: My PERSONAL favourite. This actually puts a flushing sound on for about 20 seconds. The Japanese do not like having other people hear them do their business. Nevermind that in the squat toilets there are no sound makers. Let's techno-equip the Western toilets!
Volume: Exactly what it says. If you're noisy in the washroom, this is the country for you!
Powerful Deodorizer: I'm assuming this is what it claims.

Also, as a fun aside, some toilets have a drying function. Hot air blows... It's VERY uncomfortable, trust me, I hit this button by accident once. I am always tempted to push buttons while I'm at a safe distance from the toilet itself, but I fear being sprayed. That would like somewhat unprofessional.

Finally, we have the "Japanese (Western) toilets for dummies" section, which can sometimes be found adjacent to the toilet. Very handy if you're new to these techni-toilets. (Exhibit C, in case you were keeping track.)

Soooo.
Enough toilet talk.
Today, I met up with Christina and Ray in Osaka at 1:30pm, near Big Man, this humongous TV in Umeda which is a major meeting spot. We all talked and commiserated about the challenges we're now facing in Japan, almost none of which actually have to do with Japan itself. Most of our concerns stem from company issues or whatever, so we're all trying our best. My current irritation is living ina hotel when there is no acceptable reason for my school not to have secured my apartment. Generally, the new teacher moves into the old teacher's digs, so I'd be waiting for the guy to vacate. But this is not the case. He let Manager know that I needed a new place (the old one had an insent issue...) about 5 months ago. Anyways, yeah so I get annoyed by preventable troubles some days.

We decided to hit Subway for lunch, which was a nice slice of home, but too expensive for everyday. Then we headed to Yodoyobashi Camera, which is like a department store, but SO intense. Hundreds of PCs, laptops, mp3 players, digital cameras, clothes, etc. We went in particular to view cell phones. The one I want is about $100, so I will probably pick that up in the next few days back in Akashi. When we went into the store, they had some odd promo happening, and this little Puffy White costumed THING accosted us! So, I was like "hmmm, may we take a photo?" because seriously, it was just weird looking to me. Here are Ray and I with the Puff.

On a whim, we three decided to travel to Kobe, which is about 20 minutes away by train. We went shopping for a few hours. OOOH! Today I got my name stamp made. In Japan, for bank business and some other things, you require a small red circular name stamp because a signature changes too often to be a good guarantee you are who you say you are. We went to a tiny little shop in Kobe and had an old Japanese man help us. He looked unimpressed at first, because we were clearly Western and that might mean trouble. We had to sound out our names for him, so he could get something similar in hirigana. Anyways, so I now have a nifty little stamp which will hopefully make business here go more smoothly. Gotta check Monday if it's actually not too sketch an interpretation of my last name. We shall see.

Also, hit up Tokyu Hands, which is sort of the Japanese equivalent of IKEA. I only move in tomorrow, though, so I thought I'd wait to pick up any thing necessary like sheets or whatever until I'm a bit more settled. After all, who wants to move more stuff! Saw a big crab that reminded me of the lobster on the way to Halifax, back home in Canada.

Then we headed to Daimaru, a HUGE department store that some of my students had recommended. JESUS CHRIST. It was haute couture. Gucci, Chanel, Hermes, etc. You name it. It was there. I felt like a wannabe even entering the place. Eesh. Some Australian girls asked us some questions for a few minutes. It was a nice English break.

For dinner, we gave this Indian Raja restaurant a try. Bleck. Not very impressive, and pretty expensive. Good chai, though. Thank goodness, since Chai calms me immeasurably. Kobe was dark by the time we left the restaurant, and we were tired, so we all decided to head back to our respective cities and called it a day.

Hope you enjoyed this edition. The next may be a while coming, as I will have to find an internet cafe until I get it in my apartment. Never fear, though I will get around to posting whenever I can. Night.

2005-09-23T01:28:00.000-05:00

So.... I OFFICIALLY feel lost in translation!

I am consuming this weird plastic canned nut mixture, which includes what can only be described as genetically engineered cornuts. They're the size of nickels here. WEIRD.

Also, tonight I had my first KARAOKE experience in Japan. As a final sign off to the departing teacher, we went to a karaoke bar in the bulding. This is karaoke like they've never done back home, my friends, this is like a karaoke hotel! There are a maze of rooms you can rent, and then hang out, singing *generally off-key* renditions of popular hits... Fame, Man in the Mirror, Part-Time Lover, a bunch of Japanese songs, Kung Fu Fighting, YMCA... I sang "Killing Me Softly" by the Fugees (with some nice macho Wyclef immo by the departing teacher!) and "Cherish" by Madonna. It was actually more fun than I had anticipated. I was very nervous beforehand, and the drinks here are like water. Must be they think the Japanese get drunk damn-ass quickly. I am not Japanese. I had no Dutch courage before I grabbed the mic. (Haha. Shut up.)

Very tired, so going to bed now. Goodnight moon...

2005-09-22T11:15:00.000-05:00

11:02am here in Akashi. I'm just getting myself ready to go to work a little earlier than usual, because I have to teach my first private lesson today. The cleaning staff tried to break into my room again this morning. I thought they had gotten used to me, and my leaving around 11 or noon, but apparently I was mistaken. It was a nice early 9am when they tried to get in today. *sigh* Oh well!

I'm a bit nervous about starting to teach on my own, especially given I haven't really taught that much before this. My student today is apparently a relatively low level of English, but luckily, he's already used to an American accent, and I don't sound all that different from his old teacher.

Last night, after school, two of the FTs and a JT, went out to a French restaurant in Akashi, which is located right above Murphy's Irish Pub. (Who'd have thought...? Apparently, Murphy's is a pretty big hotspot for local foreigners/gaijins.) Anyways, the food was fantastic and felt almost like comfort food to me. (A throwback to my Cote d'Azur days.) I had a delicious salad, some tapenade, chicken and a beer. Not so much at all. (Not cheap either, though. Damn, eating out is expensive here!)

Food has NOT been agreeing with me here in Japan. I've been ill since Sunday, which I assume is directly related to new food and water, as well. Mom's recommended I cut out the raw fish and sushi, and local water for a few weeks, and see if my stomach calms itself a bit. I'm hoping that works! I hate feeling sick. Also, I'm not a wuss about the food! But I feel like my stomach has betrayed me. Oh well.

I'm a bit stressed about my school. It seems there are some long-standing problems among the staff, and I feel like I've been dropped in the middle. Nobody really wants to say anything; they don't want to freak me out, or God forbid, scare me off, but little things come out, here and there, and they don't really paint a great picture of the place I'm to spend the next year. I'm TRYING to be open-minded, but it's a little hard, given all the stress. Two staff members (in addition to the one I'm replacing, starting next week) are leaving by November! One is a foreign teacher, so I hope their replacement is a nice, well-adjusted and calm person. Here's to hoping!

In a way, I don't feel it's very fair to have put me in this position. Not only is the school a bit off, it's in a small city, so to do anything interesting, I need to leave! Also, my apartment is probably a bit farther than the other FTs were. This is mainly because two of the existing FTs mentioned the grossness and rinsect issues in the apartments that are near Akashi Park.

I'm not really complaining, mind you. This is life in another country. You roll with the punches. This IS, however, my place to vent about it. I do like Japan quite a bit, and I'm not ready to go home to Canada by any means. It's just going to be a bit of an adjustment! I'm headed to Osaka tomorrow to see Chris and Ray (the girls from the training week) and maybe just relax and decompress a bit.

Any votes on which phone I should purchase from vodaphone?
Also, I get my ARC card today! Life in Japan TRULY begins today....

2005-09-20T23:21:00.000-05:00

So, today was my first day at school. I haven't been sleeping properly because my hotel room is 10 feet away from the Shinkansen track, and the train keeps waking me up. (FUN!) I have to wait until Saturday afternoon to move into my apartment, which sounds like it's pretty far from the school. I'm not entirely impressed with this, given that I thought it was going to be quite close, and I'm in a small town!

But I digress. Today or tomorrow, my manager is going to take me to the local government office to get my ARC (Alien Resident Card) which I must carry with me at all times. I'm excited about this, because it means I can do other things, like set up a bank account, and more importantly, get a cell phone! Ray, Christina and I have decided to get vodaphones. Nobody here talks on the phone. It's ALL text messaging, because minutes are so expensive. It's very disconcerting. It's like the person is taking eons to dial. Curious about all the pretty phones available here, http://www.vodafone.jp/english/products/index.html I haven't decided what I want yet, but I don't want to spend too much on something that's going to be a paperweight when I get home.

This one is winning, because it's prettier: http://www.vodafone.jp/english/products/model_3G/v703sh/index.html But this one has a better camera, so I'm torn! http://www.vodafone.jp/english/products/model_3G/v903sh/index.html

The departing teacher showed me around Akashi during the afternoon. It seems to be a pretty small city from what I've seen. (It's about 300,000 people and there are basically two main grocery stores.) Everything here is concentrated around the train stations, for ease and convenience. Drug store, main department store, covered market (lots of octopus!), Seattle's Best Coffee (and a Starbucks), Pachinko and Slots. Pachinko is this oddball *literally* game where you have to get these silver balls, that look like large ball bearings, into specific slots. VERY popular here.

Sat in on his classes and there were quite good. I also got to watch/help him prepare for a lesson from STP because one of the foreign teachers (FT) was sick. I enjoyed the classes, and they seemed quite interesting. The students also seemed happy to be there.

Went out for food with the departing teacher at (Dining) Hob Nob, which had tacos! Not tako (octopus) but Mexican style tacos. That was yummy. Aside from the roach that kept doing laps on the ceiling. *shudder* That's a bit much for me at times. Found out the departing teacher was in LA and worked as an extra on Firefly! Nuts, eh. This may mean nothing to most people, but I was pretty shocked. We even worked out which episodes he was in.

Just got home, very sleepy. Need rest. More tomorrow.

2005-09-18T21:06:00.000-05:00

So, this is a nice shot Ray took the other day. Early on in our time in Osaka, but I didn't manage to get the photo from her until now. (Ray on left, me on right... for the vast world of unkonwns out there!)

It's about 6:11pm here, and I'm contemplating dinner. It's served in the hotel restaurant. I would kill a man for fish and chips... or pizza without little purple arms on it.

So... little purple arms and cheese and a sort of pita-thin crust. Where can you find such a thing? Why, in Akashi! Had my "Welcome to Japan!" party last night, although it feels like a million years ago now. I had a nap after arriving in Akashi, because I was seriously sleepy by that point in time. I trekked it back to my school for about 8:00pm, and arrived right on time. (While usually this would be "late" by Japanese standards, it was right on time, as we were leaving for the party at 8:20pm.) I had a chance to meet a few students I'll be teaching, some of whom were amazingly nice. I was very impressed by their skills in English.

We headed out to the party. I cannot for the life of me remember the Japanese teachers names! All three, save one, have names beginning with the lettter 'm'... and the one whose doesn't starts with an 'n'. Argh. I'll get it, though, it's only a matter of time. My managed was very sweet. Took me home to my hotel beforehand and everything, helped me work out the internet. (Bless her heart; it's my lifeline to home right now, especially given that I haven't met many people yet!)

Considering whether bringing a book to dinner would be rude? Hmmm. I'll have to think more on that.

So, the party was a success. I met some amazing people, and the foreign teachers seem quite nice as far as I can tell. Minor tension, but I think it's old tension, or it feels that way, anyhow.

Another photo: this time from Friday night. This followed our last day of training (WOOHOO!) after we had successfully taught a 47 minute lesson. We were all very relieved to have that first one under our belts. So, here we are, celebrating at "Fish People" restaurant, close to the school, at Yodoyobashi station.

Oh, what a night. I hadn't had a drop of alcohol in quite a long time, considering the living situation pre-Japan, most of you know why, but I digress. 3 beers definitely gave me a nice small celebratory buzz. Was nice to hear the stories of crazy other trainees and other training weeks. I think, overall, Ray, Chris and I were an okay group of girls for them to train. We worked really hard, even though somedays we were jet lagged and cranky from losing sleep. (Sidenote: sushi for breakfast can also make one cranky. Even my Japanese teacher at Akashi thought that was TOO much.)

I think I will go to dinner, might add to this post later on...

Later: 8:40pm. Back in the room, all by my lonesome.
Dinner was... interesting. I went down to the hotel restaurant, where the staff tried to help me figure things out. I picked up a tray of food, and they gestured to some beverages (tea, iced coffee and water) behind me, so I managed that just fine. Then, onto the rice! (I have a feeling I'm going to consume a lot of rice in the next 12 months!) The rice cooker was monstruous. It was, and I say this safely, the hugest rice cooker I have ever beheld in my short life. Just to give you an idea of its sheer scope... think of the top of a Western stove with four burners. It was the circle that would fit inside that square. That's a helluva a lot of rice. I opted for a small bowl thereof.

Dinner was tiny: very light. There was a dish with about four pieces of sprout and some kind of seaweed. Also, two tiny plates of pickled something. Some lettuce, a small bowl of rice, a half-piece of fried fish (tail and all), and a small spring roll. I am still kind of hungry, but I will adjust. I am honestly happy about the food portion sizes, but sometimes I do get a crazing for a Western sized breakfast or whatever. I imagine that will be how I feel all year long; usually fine, with the odd bout of needing something with all my being.

Currently, listening to "The Love Notes" a cd that my coworker, Eli, put together with her friends. I got it this summer, and I'm fnally sitting down to have a good long listen. It's pretty amazing stuff.

Anyways, it's 9:04pm. I need to relax for awhile.

2005-09-15T23:30:00.000-05:00

11:11pm. Make a wish.

Current Annoyance: People don't leave an away message
Is it my job to guess if you're around or not? (Rhetorical question, people. Clearly, it is not.) The technology, while advanced, is not so complex as to prevent people from figuring out an away message! It's msn; not rocket science. What is so weird about that? I have away messages. I even had away messages specifically for my life: thesis, studying, cat napping. You name it, I had a message letting people know why I was cleared signed in, but not at the computer.

Grrr.

Today was my second day "teaching." We taught a group of three Japanese students. Teaching them was phenomenal, they are the kindest, sweetest people. We had three women. I taught a lesson about discussing symptoms of being sick. It went pretty well, so I was content. I was over simplifying language though,. Gotta watch that!

My company is full of amazing people. All very supportive, and helpful. But it's still stressful to be here, to be training, to be waiting to go to my school in Akashi. I want to BE there already! My school sounds amazing. Apparently, it's very chill. I'm looking forward to that. This training has been high stress. *sigh*

My roomies, Chrstina and Ray, have been my saving grace. I couldn't survive this week without them, they make everything more bearable. Including my trainers. GOOD LORD. By the end of the day, I'm getting a little punchy, and I can't keep myself from saying inappropriate things. (Close friends: you know of what I speak.)

Anyways, I need some rest. I'm sorry there haven't been any exciting stories. No life stories. No boy/man stories. No drama, really, to speak of, whatsoever. I miss you guys, and I hope life's grand back in Canada. DL Skype.

"We're all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars."
Oscar Wilde

2005-09-13T21:57:00.000-05:00

3:01pm.
At work, currently on MS word, typing out a blog entry, because the wireless networks in the area are protected. Somedays I wish I was some kind of hacker. But, seriously…

Today has been far too intense for me. I’ve been feeling quite ill, so when lunch time rolled around, I decided I needed hot food. I’ve been chowing down on California rolls morning, noon and night, and I can’t handle anymore at the moment. So, Ray grabbed my arm at lunch and we decided to give the Japanese McDonald’s experience a go. Those of you who know me, know that I’m not a McDonald’s woman. I don’t even really enjoy fried food, but if a piece of seaweed or rice came my way, I was ready to throw in the towel for the day.

They have pre-ordering here. You line up, step up to a tiny little console and a woman asks what you’d like, so we managed crispy chicken with a salad and sesame dressing and coke. (Also, hate Coke! Pop, period really…) It actually didn’t really suck. The mayo was sweet, which was a bit foreign.

Training today has been giving me issues. I’ve felt light-headed all day, so it’s been troublesome to keep focused and stay on task. I feel stupid! But it’s going okay, I guess.

We also had the fun of introducing ourselves to the Japanese staff here at AEON Kansai head office. It went a little something like this:

Watashi wa Lily to moshimasu.
Canada kara kimashita.
Watashi wa Akashi ko ni ikimasu. Dozo yoroshiku onegaishimasu.

It actually went pretty well for me, I think. My deal is to imitate the sounds I hear. Sometimes irritating for other foreigners to here, but it never seems to annoy the native speakers of the language I am trying to learn! (Take that, Jamie!)

This training week is making me truly appreciate all of the hard work and stamina Yolanda was responsible for while teaching me the Spanish language. The opportunities she afforded us were phenomenal!

9:38pm
Back at the hotel, after training. EXHAUSTED. Today was entirely too long, and it was all down hill from the last time I wrote! Except for the Japanese lesson. So fun!

Irashai!
We basically learned how to order sushi and beer.
Sa-mon
Maguro
Ebi
Tako (squid!)

Our teacher was very kind and enthusiastic. After that, though, it was back to back-breaking training.

I’m not going to go into it. Suffice to say, I’m relieved the day has finally ended. We did get our school info today, though. I teacher Monday to Friday (as opposed to Tuesday to Saturday), so I get a REAL weekend! Also, I’m only a 5 minute walk and 3 minute train ride from school, so less than 10 minutes travel time to work. The two guys I’m working with, also foreign teachers, are Jose and Michael. (I’m replacing Chai.)

That paragraph was slightly disjointed. *Sigh* I’m too tired to be very coherent. I picked up a copy of The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells, so maybe I’ll delve into that right now. I hope everyone back home is enjoying starting their day.

2005-09-12T22:16:00.000-05:00

"Sun sets' cross the ocean
I'm a thousand miles from anywhere
My pocketbook and my heart both just got stolen
And the sun acts like she don't even care."

That's what's on iTunes at present. A very sleepy Lily is sitting here, in a hotel suite, in Osaka, right by Daikokucho, writing these words, missing her homeland. Actually, truthfully, while I miss Canada, I'm at ease in this new setting, aside from feeling like an alien life form, appearance-wise. I've stopped wearing my Roots Canada jacket out, but mainly because it's insanely humid. For instance, it's 10:04pm, and the temperature is 28 (Celcius) and guess what the humidex ratchets that up to? FORTY DEGREES! WTF. That's 79% humidity. (And I thought people were nuts for living in Canada. The air here is like soup!)

Training is intense this week. Today was the first actual day, and it went from 10am-7pm. For the most part, it's useful material. Sometimes our trainers are a little patronizing. Today, one of them kept trying to explain something to me. By repeating it. Over and over. Finally, I was like, "I don't understand you. What are you getting at?" I think he was a bit surprised, but jeepers, get to the point, already! You're a trainer! You're trying to instill in us a method of giving students clarity and consistency, and yet you can't even do that for me! I digress, though.

Food is okay. I've been eating a lot of sushi. Today, we bought some before heading to the Kansai head office. Both Ray and Christina needed to speak to our trainers about something, so I kind of got the shaft at lunch (for 5 minutes) so I hit the lunchroom, and asked the Japanese ladies if I could crash their lunch party. They were very sweet! (Ena, Uko, and something-or-other... I can't be expected to remember everything, dammit!) Ena asked me what I was having, sushi-wise, so I shrugged and said "I can't read Japanese, so I don't really know."
Ena: (Puzzled) "You don't know?"
Lily: Naw. (Flips over sushi lid) Maybe you can tell me what's in this?
Ena: Ohhhh it's ill.
Lily: Ill? Like, sick?
Ena: No, E-E-L.

So I had eel for lunch today, ladies and gents. Who'd have thought mild-mannered (HA!) Lily would be adventurous and basically eating whatever comes her way in Japan? (I certainly didn't think so.) Tempura here is to die for. Squid stinks, though. I haven't tasted it yet, but it just smells like Whiskas (kitty breath!) to me, and that's highly unappetizing. At least, it isn't getting me all revved up to chow down. Call me crazy.

Today, *shout out!* I heard from Ravi, just in the nick of time. My suitemate, Christina, was ready to pitch her PC out the window because her internet wasn't functioning. Ravi, who know in Christina's opinion probably deserves a cape or a big gold badge, was able to help, via Skype, me fix her up. She was ecstatic, which made both Ray and I even happier. (Nobody likes seeing a girl want to defenestrate a nice shiny brand new laptop!)

I have a feeling training week is going to get nuts very soon. I didn't even do my homework yet for tomorrow. I'm getting laid back too soon! I bought some "jam" today, which smells like strawberries, but which could conceivably, be nuclear waste for all I know. We shall see. RIGHT this instant! This is a live taste test, people. Japanese Jam. *Takes a tentative nibble*

We have, for the first time by a Canadian girl born on July 28th from Barrie, tasted Japanese strawberry jam. And... it's not ass! It tastes passable. Even like strawberry actually. Woohoo.

Now if I just had some PB... That's packed into my larger bags, though, which are already headed to Akashi, about an hour from here.

Anyways, if y'all (as my one trainer loves to drawl... gotta love 'dem Texans) don't mind, I'm going to take my sleepy self to bed. Enjoy your evenings.

2005-09-10T18:20:00.000-05:00

So, today was, as you can tell, my second day in Japan. We all went to bed just before midnight, but nobody slept very well. Given that we had slept on the plane and then done almost nothing at all, and then slept AGAIN, it does make sense. The air conditioner in here has a timer, so I woke up at 2:54am, all sweaty and gross, and gingerly leaned over my roommate to turn the AC back on. Turns out, both Christina and Ranetha were awake, too! Bitches didn't tell me they were up.

It's been fun, though. We all woke up at 5am. Those of you who know me, know I don't DO 5am. We had to be ready and stuff by 10am, so we had 5, count them 5, hours to get ourselves going. We sat around for awhile, ate some breakfast. (I made toast, with a cheese slice on it, because I couldn't handle a noodle cup for the first meal of the day. Call me a wimp if you will, but I can't do it.) We all showered, and dressed, and hit the streets to explore our area. There's a Sev'Lev (7 Eleven) down the street (sort of), so we popped in there. A LOT more dirty magazines actually, than back at home. Also, because they read right to left, the spines were all on the right side. Also, the driving is the same as the UK, so it's been a lot of looking both ways. (I have a feeling I'm more likely to be hit by a bike than a car at this point though; these people are psychotic about speed and turning.)

Came back and Molly, our assistant trainer, picked us up at the hotel. We went to the 24 grocery (which we already went to in the morning - what a fiasco!) with Molly. She pointed out some easy food solutions. It's a good thing I like sushi. I am warming up to the food. This AM I bought a bunch of tiny canned drinks to taste test. One was this lemon soda; apparently it has the vitamin C of 50 lemons in it! (No fucking way.) It tasted good. Also, had cafe au lait in a can, which was suprisingly not shitty. Yumma. Also, bought some bread. They sell bread - get this - in 6 slice bags, for between 99 and 200 yen. If they made bread this way at home, they could make HUGE long loaves, like 36 feet long if they felt like it. Nobody'd be the wiser. (Oh, the random thoughts of Lily...)

We also went to the Rat shrine. I don't know if that's the official title, but the main area is dedicated to rats. The god that's in charge of rice used to hate the rats, because they ate his rice. One day, he was robbed and got tied up and the rat chewed through his bonds! Haha, so then he liked the rats and gave them some rice. A nice, feel-good story eh? It's a Shinto shrine (there's no Buddha and no clapping).

Wow, am I ever long winded today! Anyways, so then we took the Midosuji (red) subway line from Daikokucho (my stop) 4 stops up to the AEON Kansai (my region) head office (honbu). We did some training, and then had lunch with our trainers at a Japanese (duh) restaurant. I had this tofu croquet thing, with miso soup, rice, vinegar'd cucumber, and some other stuff. I am getting used to the food, and it's pretty healthy so...

After lunch, we headed back up to the office to do some more stuff with Mark. Basic info and the like. We also dealt with insurance and contract stuff, too. OH! The stationary here is orgasmic. I bought highlighters, markers and a pen today. So pretty. Also, bought ibuprofen. They come in 150mg tablets! (Regular advils are like 250 at bare minimum!) So I popped 4 today to deal with some, err, feminine troubles. Not a good start to Japan, but it's been fun.

After training ended at 3:30pm, we headed up a stop of the subway line to hit up an electronics store - Yodoyobashi Camera! (also orgasmic) - to see if we could get some adapters for the other girls. (Their plugs have a grounding prong, and my beautiful, sweet Apple did not. Take that, Microsoft bitches! I digress.) I was in HEAVEN in the store. Phones, Cameras, Ipods (even these nano ipods... like the shuffle, a bit wider, but with a screen and credit card thick). Beautiful, beautiful things. Lovely macs, lovely mice, lovely lovely lovely. Expensive, but pretty. We may end up getting something later on, I think. No luck with the search for an internet wireless card, since we're unsure what the problem actually is. Many magpie moments. (Inside reference: those of you who know me know I cannot resist shiny objects.)

Not speaking Japanese is FUN! *I kid you not, gesturing is kickin'* I lie. Explaining, via pictures and such, what we needed was hellish. Glad my baby ibook is treating me right. I will never go back!

Currently, thinking about dinner. Thoughts about dinner are like this movie that's called "Playing by Heart." DUMB title. It was meant to be named after a line in the movie, which I think is dead-on. "Talking about love is like dancing about architecture." (Although, when it's pertinent, talking about love isn't half bad.)

I got a card from my school today. They sent it to Ottawa, but I was already out of Leeds so it never arrived. There were cute pics of my coworkers, both foreign ones are male. A black guy (God knows what his name is; his signature was a mess!) and Jose... One might be leaving as I replace somebody.

I think that's it for now. I need some food. Hope everyone at home is doing well.

2005-09-09T21:15:00.000-05:00

Just arrived in Japan! Thank goodness for wireless internet services. It has been a long journey, and I've only just arrived, but I thought it'd be wise to get a post up before anything else happens, because it's all happening SO quickly.

Flight was alright. I ALMOST didn't get to say goodbye to my parents in Toronto, because US customs are now so lengthy! A nice US official let me go back. (I managed to forget my purse at first. THAT's how flustered I was.) I called my parents AFTER I got in line and let them know I probably wouldn't get back out again. Apparently, dad and mom were having coffee close by where I entered, and dad was having a small cry because he didn't get to hug me! I cried a bunch, though, and mom almost broke my ribcage while hugging me. It felt very surreal leaving Canada behind for Japan.

The flight didn't lift off on time, so when we arrived to Detroit, the FINAL boarding call was being played on the loud speakers. So I had to run to my gate and board the flight. A little bit shitty, given that I wanted a breather, to make a couple cell phone calls while my blessed V60i still worked! Alas. It was not to be. Met a nice girl, Christina, on the flight over, who is now my roommate in Osaka, at the Weekly Green business hotel. She's sweet, 30, and engaged, so I feel less terrible about leaving home behind. Everyone makes sacrifices!

I miss everyone already. The flight was chock full of Japanese folks. A nice older lady next to me kept asking me stuff in Japanese, which was a bit disorienting. "Blah Blah Blah Taiwan?" "Uh no, Osaka... staying in Osaka"..."Blah Blah Blah Kyoto?" "No, no. Akashi. Near Kobe..." "Kyoto?" By this point, I was like "Sure, Kyoto it is!" I really must begin learning Japanese.

Things are not nearly as scary as I was expecting, although I do feel every inch the foreigner. Osaka is filled with bright lights and the airport construction relied heavily on the concept of PINK. Yes, pink; a pale salmony colour. Ick. Not MY cup of tea, but whatever.

Train services and the subway are UBER punctual here, so there's a lovely realization, after dealing with OCTranspo for 4 years!

We sleep tonight. It's about 13 hours different, and the flight was 13 hours, so we touched down on Japanese soil at approximately the same time we left Canada, but a day later. Even though half a day went by, we're back where we started. (But about 11, 027 kms away...) Slept on the plane. Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants was on, and in my heightened emotional state, it was a struggle not to cry. Greece seems like next door compared to Japan, although Lena WAS quite young. I'm glad I'm not in highschool anymore, though.

Anyways, my wireless is the only functional internet my roomies and I have, so I'm gonna be a doll, and share.
I hope everything is well at home. Drop me a line; I'm homesick and I miss you guys!

2005-09-08T02:57:00.000-05:00

One night left in Canada.

That feels endlessly strange to me. I'm packed. I forgot to pack my PB and Nutella. *sigh* I'm way too exhausted mentally to tackle that problem right now. Sewed my jeans. (Hey, it's MY blog, I know that's a boring detail, but it's my last night here. Cut me some slack.) Doing all the last minute stuff I swore I would not leave until this late. Such is life, though, so I'm not inclined to be upset about anything right now.

Except, of course, leaving. I keep feeling my eyes well up. I haven't cried in ages! It's like my tear ducts have launched a full scale attack on my emotional defenses. Everything I see, from the toilet to the stove, reminds me I won't see it tomorrow night. Or any night, for the next 365 days. Tonight (last night, really) was my last dinner, last dessert, last pj change, last sleep (yet to come)...

Spoke to my sister tonight. Mom and I are dense; we kept calling her, but got a machine. Apparently, we had the wrong number. (Who gets the wrong number for an HOUR!) We did finally realize our mistake, and I got to speak to her. She's an RA at Dalhousie University in Halifax, but she goes to NSCAD and takes photography/design. She had to get up and go to the hospital with one of her students this morning, poor girl. 4:00am!

Oh, to anyone I may have mentioned this to: that blog on JET that I mentioned can be found at http://outpostnine.com/editorials/teacher.html The teacher's name is Azrael, and he's teaching in the region I'm headed for: Kansai. There are some of the most comically perfect stories I've ever read on his site. Take a peek if you get a chance.

Tummyache. Need sustinence. Had some Crispex... Delicious. I will miss those so much. It's getting so late. I'm finally feeling like I might sleep. that is a beautiful thought to me. Bliss. Maybe I'll write more later. But until then, I will miss you, fair Canadian countryside.

Don't forget me when I'm gone.

2005-09-07T00:33:00.000-05:00

Sitting, waiting, wishing... No, really. Jack Johnson style. I've just come home from seeing, "The 40 Year Old Virgin" which I dragged my dad to, under the plan that I needed to see a movie before I leave for Japan. Bloody hilarious film, if you get a chance, see it. (It also has the "Serenity" trailer, which comes out September 30th. This is WHILE I'm away in Japan, and I am not impressed. Based on the Joss Whedon series "Firefly"; rent the DVDs. I will stop the pitch now.) Anyways, brought me back to my earlier days (highschool) when B.C.C. put on a production of "Hair". I can't recall now whether I was in southern France, or at the UN in NYC, but I know I missed out on that. So, hearing "Age of Aquarius" brought the memories back. Memories of not being here, of missing everything, of missing my friends, my loved ones, on memories being made without me. That's a little melancholy, perhaps, but I have TWO, count 'em two, nights left in this beautiful, sometimes infuriating, nation and I'm a bit scared and a bit sad.

I feel like I need more time. Maybe I will always feel like that, but tonight it is especially intense. Tomorrow is IT. The last and final full 24 hours on the continent. (I make it sound like a death sentence, but I AM excited and I AM coming home.) There are things I truly wanted to do before I left. (And not people; come on, ladies, minds OUT of the gutter… I prefer staring at the stars. Mr. Wilde was one smart motherfucker.) Oh, the clock just hit 12. TODAY is it. Jeesh. It’s this battle. I’m trying not to let myself beginning missing my home until I’m gone. It’s a losing battle so far. My eyes are misting even now, how pathetic is that? I feel some idiotic angst-y teen right now. I’m not like that, either, which makes it even worse.

Today felt like an empty spending spree, although I “needed” everything I purchased. Never have I been so maple-leaf-crazed before. I must have about 30 cheesy keychains in my possession now. (Did you ever notice, and abhor, those people who say “keyfob”? As though it’s a real word, and yes I’m aware it is, but phone sex is a real term and yet, you don’t hear me tossing that garbage around, either.) And a Canadian baseball cap, and stickers and temporary tattoos, and those weird puff-out hairbrushes with maple leaves on them… And pens. Truthfully, I spent more time in the trashy dollar store today than I ever have before. BUT I did pick up a cute she-devil accessory kit for Hallowe’en in

Japan

, which I realize may not really occur, but there are other Westerners, and Hallowe’en is truly a hallowed day for me. I adore it. I just kind of doubted I could pull of GoGo Yubari when there are actual Gogo-lookalikes running rampant through

Japan

. Likely a wise decision.

I have recently realized I adore parentheses. Maybe it’s because I’m curvy and I feel a certain empathy with those beautiful wavy lines. They just hug my words. I sound like a nutcase, don’t I? *sigh* It’s because I’m so sleepy. I’m exhausted, but I’m too wound up to rest decently. I’m not really crazy. Well, maybe during that time in highschool, but… yeah, just ask my friend Heather. She’ll tell you, once I was worthy of actually having a saying. (“I pulled a Hillary…” when someone fell apart emotionally…) Now, I am the picture *mostly* of stability and well-adjustedness. Oh, WORD did not like the ness I added on there. Fuck you, Mr. Gates. I’m not usually so vulgar actually. (Stop laughing, … I was going to add a name, and then I just couldn’t choose. Sorry.)

So, I’m thinking, this COULD be the year for so many things. I can’t picture myself in

Japan

, despite it being mere hours away now, but I think it will be amazing. Also, can’t imagine myself in a suit in front of a group of people, teaching them English. But I will be by the end of next week! Or a few days later, anyway.

*Sigh* I’m going to attempt to sleep. I’ll let you know how it goes.

2005-09-03T00:07:00.000-05:00

Most Recently... A bit stressed about leaving, but what's a girl to do, really?

2005-09-02T20:50:00.000-05:00

Simplistic shot, but I really loved these lights. Sadly, they called a restaurant home, so they can't grace my bedroom.

2005-09-02T08:48:00.000-05:00

So, a new day. My very last day at OSC, actually, and I'm feeling very strange about it.

Last night was weird, too. I was starting to actually believe I'm leaving in a week's time (less than that now) and it hit me really hard. I watched some 'Coupling' with my parents, and then dealt with some digital photos. A few friends were online, so I talked to them for a bit, and I guess everyone is feeling odd about how much life is shifting. I got back from BC and most of my friends had already left for university again, and I felt saddened, because this means it's an entire year, potentially more, until I see their faces again.

This is compounded by the fact I finally heard back from a close friend who's already in Japan. It's been sort of tough to get in contact with him, because he's very busy working and getting settled. I'm petrified right now, because I don't know anything really. What my apartment will look like, who my coworkers will be, how my city will feel, how I'm going to manage to get drinking water back to the apartment, if training week will be unbearably exhausting... You know how these things can be, I guess. Very uncertain. It's just going to be a period of adjustment. I'm hoping I'm well-rested and emotionally stable by the end of this week... by today, really, so that I'm able to deal with it reasonably. Fatigue always makes me emotional, which is probably why I was feeling so down last night.

As a marker for myself, gas prices today hit 1.33(9). My dad is ecstatic, which sets him apart. He's been waiting for some kind of crisis to make people wake up a little and realize that the supply of fuel is not without limit, and that pretty soon, it's going to be an actual luxury to drive something as unnecessary and disgusting as a hummer or SUV. I wonder what the peak price will be?

More to follow...

2005-09-01T22:26:00.000-05:00

Lily in British Columbia, smoking hooka... $30 hooka, wtf... Silly Vancouver...

2005-09-01T22:21:00.000-05:00

Cute Black Cat in Ottawa

2005-09-01T22:20:00.000-05:00

Lily in Motion

First Post

2005-09-01T13:29:00.000-05:00

Quick post to say I just started this 'blog' for my time in Japan, but it will likely stick around and be part of my existence for a good while after that. Today is my second last day at the Ontario Science Centre, so I'm feeling a bit strange.

More and more petrified about leaving for Japan. Less than one whole week left in Canada. Not packed, not ready. So much left to do. I have all my medication set, so at least if I get 100 migraines (not quite that many, but gotta love hyperbole) I'll be prepared. Almost time for my shift; early lunch is pitiful. Climate Change show in 5 or 10 minutes.

If I do decide to open a photo webpage, I'll post the link here, to keep everyone in the loop.