a history of me

I'm sooooo fucking tired right now. It's been a very up and down day. Some things were incredible, others were so frustrating I wanted to scream. Don't worry, I'm not losing it...yet.

First and foremost, I cannot turn on my laptop computer and I am pissed. That thing was working on Sunday when I removed it from Ben's house. Now it doesn't do anything besides light up the power indicator! I'm trying to do some long distance tech support with my friends but I fear I will have to have some local guy take a look at it. Whether he fixes it or not, I can only imagine what he's going to charge me. Fuck!!!

Today we had a luncheon to officially kick off the academic year. We were asked to dress "semi-formally" which for me meant long pants and a nice shirt. Some people went ahead and put on a jacket and tie too but I don't know how they lasted ten seconds outside in this heat and humidity. Everyone gathered in the Multimedia Hall again only this time there were some lovely decorations (see below). The President of the University gave a speech in Japanese as someone else read a translation. The guy reading sounded like an Australian version of Hugh Hefner. Let that sink into your head for a second...yeah, it was surreal.


Apparently the guy in the pink trucker's hat has a very different idea of "semi-formal" than the rest of us.

The next speech from the Consul General, a Mr. Daniel Russel. I did not not enjoy his speech very much because he seem unprepared. Worse, he told us that our visit was helping to "prevent war" which I thought was in poor taste given that our government is currently waging a war abroad. He also took a second to address us American students specifically (we made up more than half of the audience) and he told us to "stay out of trouble." Hey buddy, mind your own business! Thanks for re-enforcing the popular stereotype that all Americans who study abroad are just looking for cheap thrills instead of actually doing something meaningful.

Tired and sweaty, the next speaker actually impressed me. He happens to be teaching one of my courses this fall, the "Struggle for Justice" one. His remarks were well-delivered and meaningful. I identified with what he said because he maintained that coming to Japan changed his life and it could change all of ours as well. That hit home for me because I believe my first visit to Japan was absolutely a life-changing experience. Of course, I drifted away from his speech once I started reminiscing but it was still a good one. He also gave everyone a marble as a symbol of...crap, I forgot what the marble represents. The point is, I took one and I'm going to keep it.

The remaining speeches were not worth remembering. One of the Japanese teachers got up and spoke entirely in Japanese which, as I am being painfully reminded of everyday, I don't speak or understand at all. Some members of the crowd laughed though, so there are obviously some students who appreciated what she said.



After the speeches we had a nice buffet luncheon in the cafeteria. I could have eaten better but I don't think I overate, given that I hadn't eaten breakfast. Anyway, free food doesn't count when you're dieting. I did a little mingling but my moistness and social anxieties convinced me to give up about ten minutes after I finished eating. We had a big trip planned for the afternoon and I simply couldn't do it in my semi-formal get-up. So I walked all the way back to the dorm, changed my clothes and re-applied all deodorants. I ran into my roommate and we had a brief chat. He woke me up again last night so we need to find a compromise. I promised to try to fall asleep on my side and he agreed to get earplugs. Whatever happens, I don't see why he has any right to wake me up because I'm snoring. It's an involuntary action for fuck's sake!


This sign warns women about purse snatching, apparently a frequent crime in this area.

The big trip was an outing to 京都 (Kyôto). The school made a very smart decision: they lined up Japanese students and foreign students separately, then paired us together and had the Japanese students escort the foreign ones. I somehow got paired with a second American so that the two of us could be matched with a pair of Japanese girls. It was a little weird because this guy actually made me look good: not only was he heavier than me (a rare find) but I spoke way more Japanese than he did.

We walked from the University to the nearest train station, fumbling through basic conversation along the way. The girls asked us where we wanted to go. I only knew of one thing to see in Kyôto but it turned out to be too far away. I'll make it a point to get there later, I guess. Anyway, they suggested a famous temple called 清水寺 (Kiyomizudera) which was fine by me.

The temple was beautiful and I took lots of pictures. Rather than clutter up this post, just check out this page for images and the basic story.

We came back to the main station here in Hirakata. I had never been to the station before so rather than hurry back to the dorm, I walked about the neighborhood a little. I had a bite to eat at MOS Burger, a strange Caesar Salad that had little bits of pepperoni or something. I also found my way into an arcade and killed a good ten minutes playing NeoGeo Battle Coliseum. It was only 50 Yen too!

This weekend should be pretty quiet. I might manage to hook up with Kazu or Scott since they are both in town and should be available. Otherwise, classes don't start until Monday so let's see what I can do with myself in the meantime!