Kankokujin (韓国人) III

Yes, a sequel. This was probably by far the most touching night of my life in Japan. It involved a serious eye-opening moment that really changed a lot of things for me as of late, though I can’t really say why or how. It’s one of those mysterious events that you just kind of make note of and hope that something happens that will help you understand it later.

Like I said in my last post on my Korean classmates, it was Uni-san’s (28th) birthday this week, so again, we would go to our usual weekly hangout, the Don-chan (どんちゃん: little piggy) restaurant in Shin-Okubo (新大久保). However, I had to take out money from the ATM before we went, so Jin-fun-san and I went to do that, while Uni-san, Lisa, and Kensei-san went to the restaurant.

After I withdrew my money near school in Shinjuku-Gyoen-Mae (新宿御苑前), we went down the main street to Shinjuku (新宿) and from there to Shin-Okubo (新大久保). However, we happened to stop by a UFO-Catcher store (we call them “crane machines” in America), and, of course, Jin-fun-san is somewhat obsessed with playing these games. He wanted to win some things for everyone for tonight. So he stopped and played for a bit.

Once we got to the restaurant (with many stuffed animals in tow), they had already been through two rounds of pork, though there were many left to go. (I’ll explain the pork-eating process more when I upload pictures.) Also, Namyung-san (another of my Korean classmates, whom everyone thinks is the cutest girl in the class) was there, which was a nice surprise. I think she took a break from her part-time-job that day to hang out for Uni-san’s birthday. Jin-fun-san’s girfriend, Hana-san, also came to celebrate.

So, like usual, we had pork and I had a couple ringo sawas (りんごサワー, apple-flavored alcoholic malt beverages). This time, however, since it was a special occasion, they also ordered Kankoku shochu (韓国焼酎) which is basically distilled Korean liquor, so I had to take part in the toasting and drinking my portion of the shochu.

I didn’t get Uni-san anything yet, mostly because I’m not sure what to get her, but during our little celebration, Lisa, the manga-ka (漫画家, comic-book-writer)-in-training, drew Uni-san a very nice picture of the five of us. I had seen Lisa do a few pencil sketches in class, but this was the first time I had seen something that she had finished. I was extremely compelled by the picture, and took many pictures of it (so you’ll see it soon enough).

This was the eye-opening moment. Though the picture itself (no offense to Lisa) is still kind of amateur, it is extremely well-done and thought-provoking. The first thing I thought of was when the five of us finally have to part directions. It was actually kind of sad. Though, now that I have a picture of the drawing (it’s my desktop wallpaper now), I can look at it whenever I want to. It’s interesting because sometimes I look at it and want to cry, and other times, I look at it and feel really happy. Either way, it’s of people I’ve barely known for a couple months, but we obviously have such a strong bond that it provokes a high emotional response in me. It’s very strange.

(For the severely limited amount of people reading this blog who understand the reference, it makes me think of the end of each episode of Weiß Kreuz Glühen. As the guys are singing Stone Roses, the last thing you see is an empty room, with an open window and the curtains blowing lightly. On the nightstand by the window is a picture of the four Weiß boys, and then the scene fades to black. Once I move to the dorms, if someone sends me an episode, I can take stills and up them to my picture area later so everyone understands what I mean.)

So that was the eye-opening moment. As for the continuation of the evening, everyone had a lot of fun, and we ended up moving to another restaurant for more drinks. Uni-san and Namyung-san taught me to call them Uni-nuna and Namyung-nuna, since nuni is the Korean equivalent of senpai (先輩, means senior). And yes, I realize “Uni-nuna” sounds really strange for a name. I didn’t invent the Korean language.

At the new restaurant, I finally had a chance to try a Kyoho (grape) sawa, which was amazing, even though I was having a little more Kankoku shochu at the same time. By ten thirty or so, I had a fairly good alcohol buzz, which actually felt kind of nice. The last time that happened was back at school with the whole 2004 Beaujolais Noveau incident of about one year ago this month. (By the way, just to clear things up, I wasn’t “drunk;” I was just on the drunk side of tipsy.)

Anyway, it was about time to head back, and though I tried to explain that I was ok, the girls were worried about me, so instead of walking to Seibu-Shinjuku station (西部新宿駅), where I needed to go, they asked me to go instead to the Shin-Okubo station (新大久保駅), which was much closer. The thing was that Shin-Okubo station would only take me further out of my way really, since I couldn’t take a train from there to Seibu-Shinjuku station, and that was where my train bound for Kodaira (小平) was. I recalled seeing Seibu-Shinjuku station (which I had only used for two days already) when Jin-fun-san and I were walking to Shin-Okubo, so I decided to try to walk to Seibu-Shinjuku station, regardless of my intoxicatedness.

This is where everyone waits to read what trouble I got into. Sorry to disappoint you, but I know my limits a bit better than that. Not only did I walk from Shin-Okubo to Seibu-Shinjuku station, but I got on the train and back home with no problems whatsoever. By the time I got to Takanodai station (鷹の台駅), the alcohol’s small effect on my perception had already worn off, and I walked home just fine. I woke up the next morning, refreshed, ready for school, and hangover-less. It had been a good night.

I’ve been looking at Lisa’s picture at least once every day since then. I guess the best way to describe it is that it will always be a sort of memory for me of the times that the five of us will share together over the next few months, though once we say goodbye, it will be really sad. I am not looking forward to that moment.

New family

So, now that the chaos of midterm season is over, I thought I’d talk about something I didn’t really mention before to anyone. Since Wednesday, I’ve been living with a new host family in a new location entirely. My original host father, Shunji, works for a company, and he got the opportunity to take a week-long vacation in I think Australia. Since the company was paying for it, my host mother and brother could also go. However, I obviously could not, nor could I stay at their home for a week without them.

Once my midterm exam was over, my school set me up with another host family, who lives in Kodaira (小平). I must say that I was not eager to get used to a new family since I had finally gotten used to living with the Matsumoto (松本) family. However, I didn’t exactly have much choice in the matter. This was the only option.

When I was riding the train to Takanodai station (鷹の台駅) to meet them, I really dreaded everything. I got there about fifteen minutes early, so I went to a Seven Eleven (which are abundant here), bought some Pocky, and sat in a small park eating it. I had an eye-opening moment there, too. Not about my new family, but just in general. It was interesting to be six-and-a-half-feet-tall, but sitting in a small children’s park with children’s rides, and eating Pocky. No one was in the park but me. There was also a tree in the center of the park, but it had no leaves on it, since the first breath of “winter” has already arrived here. It was just interesting to sit there for a while and let everything digest.

Once the time came, I took a few deep breaths and went back to the station to meet my new host mother, who walked me home. She was much older than Yukiko, since she has a son in college now, but she was really nice and very genki (元気, which means happy, but I’m using it to mean more giddy and excited than just happy). Once I spent five minutes with her, I was far more relieved, and wondering why I had even been anxious in the first place. Her English was also very good, so I had no cause for concern there.

The walk home took about twenty-five minutes (though I can do it within four repeats of Dark Half), but it was really beautiful. The section of Kodaira in which they live reminded me a lot of back home. For example, once we got off the main street, we had to walk through a pseudo-park which was basically a single path with trees around it and a small river. Once I upload the pictures, you’ll see the similarity between wandering down this path and wandering through Proctor Park. It was a really nice touch for me, and I realized then how much I actually missed being home.

If that weren’t enough, once we left the path and went inside the house, I was reminded even more of home. Unlike the Matsumoto home, which is a Japanese mansion (In Japanese, a “mansion” is basically just a really really nice apartment complex, not a Western-style mansion), the Satou home is a lot more rustic and old-fashioned. Inside the house, I basically get half of the second floor to myself. It’s set up kind of like a pseudo-apartment within a house. I have my own bed, bookshelf, chair, desk, tv, couch, sink, refrigerator, closet, washing machine, toilet, shower, and other things too. (Pictures forthcoming.)

After I had spent about an hour in my room, I realized exactly what it reminded me of. It was just like spending the night at Babci’s when Beth and I were kids. The Satou (佐藤) home has that same kind of rustic, old-fashioned feel that Babci’s house had before the floors were all redone and stuff. It was really cool when I thought about it. Kodaira is like a nice little taste of the Utica that I haven’t seen for two months. This was very nice because I do really miss Utica in some ways, but I can’t really say that I’m homesick. Maybe being here was also some kind of fate? To be honest, I can’t say.

As much as I like it here, I go back to the Matsumoto mansion today, so my time here was quite limited. However, my host mother, Kyoko, told me that I can visit whenever I damn well please, so that’s kind of reassuring. If I ever do get homesick, coming back here will probably help a lot. And I do intend to come back at some point. It is really nice here, and it’s also very close to the dormitory that I hope to move into next semester in Nishi-Kokubunji (西国分寺).

Fate

Well, here’s a post I’ve been trying to write for a month or so now. Sorry it’s so late.

Anyway, one of the biggest things to hit me during my first week in Japan was the concept of destiny or fate. I’ve never really been too much of a fatalist, the only exception being when I’m doing my fantasy writing (and when I'm watching X). However, now, I’m starting more and more to believe in fate and predestination. In the month that I’ve spent in Japan since I intended on writing this, that belief has only grown stronger.

(Background info: For those who don’t know, my main interest in Japan as of now is a mystic who died exactly 1,000 years ago. His mysticism was mostly Taoist in nature [yin & yang], but also sort of an amalgamation of Buddhism and Shinto [神道]. He was one of what were called “onmyoji [陰陽師]” or “Masters of Yin and Yang.” They were basically diviners for the emperor of Japan back in the early days, but many believed them to have supernatural powers, so there is a lot of mystery around their group. The most famous onmyoji, the one I am studying was Abe no Seimei [安倍晴明] and there are a great many legends about him spread throughout Japan. Whenever you see the words “onmyoji,” “onmyodo,” or “Seimei,” this is what I’m referring to. I know it’s hard to digest all this info, so maybe it’s best for you to just think of him as a Merlin-type figure.)

So, I’ve wanted to study Seimei ever since I heard about him freshman year in college. My college years culminated with an all-too-well-written application to the Fulbright committee to go to Japan for a year to study both Japanese and Abe no Seimei. However, that fell through, most likely due to my ineptitude in Japanese in comparison to what I would need to know to study him. Needless to say, I was crushed, though not so much because I didn’t get accepted. I was hurt moreso because my academics suffered due to the terribly large amounts of work I put into my application which amounted to nothing.

During my first week here, I realized that I might’ve been fated to not get accepted by the Fulbright committee. I ended up in a nice homestay with wonderful host parents, who—of all things—were also interested in Abe no Seimei. We went to a few used bookstores and I gathered up all I could on the guy (though finding academic books on him is much much harder than to find comic books or fantasy novels), which amounted to quite a bit that I still cannot read.

However, my host mother, Yukiko, happened to find a book that is basically a “tour guide” for seeing Seimei-related stuff in Japan. She quickly discovered that he had visited a very small temple called Yagumo Jinja (八雲神社) near the famous Engakuji (円覚寺) Temple in Kamakura (鎌倉). Naturally, the following weekend, we went to Kamakura and visited the temple. Right next to Yagumo Jinja, there was a small stone erected with Seimei’s name engraved on it, though they used slightly different kanji (安部晴明 instead of 安倍晴明). That one I have yet to figure out, but it’s still definitely him as far as I (and the book) can tell. As usual, pictures of the Kamakura visit will come as soon as I get a chance to upload them.

The point of this entry is that I’m closer now to Seimei than I ever have been before, and a big part of that was not being accepted to study him for the Fulbright. It’s really interesting how fate seems to worrk out. And speaking of fate and destiny, I highly doubt that it’s a coincidence that I found out about Seimei in just enough time to actually visit his shrine in Kyoto (京都) on the thousandth-year-anniversary of his death. That’s too much of a coincidence to just be shrugged off, I think. For anyone who cares, I’m going to visit the temple during my winter break, just before Christmastime and the culmination of his thousandth-year-anniversary. I’m sure I’ll have a great many pictures to share after that.

Books

Here’s a short one that I’ve been meaning to write for awhile. Now, everyone in America enjoys Barnes and Nobles and Borders and even Amazon for all their book-related (and sometimes CD-related) needs. However, in Japan, there is another king as far as I’m concerned. And no, it’s not Kinokuniya.

(Background info: Kinokuniya is basically the Japanese version of Borders and Barnes and Noble put together. There is a NINE-STORY Kinokuniya store in Shinjuku [新宿] within walking distance of my school. Kinokuniya sells only new books and usually for the rather expensive cover-price. Dad – when we went to New York for my JET interview, the Japanese book store that we went to was one of the two American branches of Kinokuniya.)

Anyway, the God of Bookstores that I’m talking about is Book-Off. It’s a half-priced bookstore (with a 105 yen section) that has nearly everything I could ever want. When I shopped for Seimei books, I found a great many of them at Book-Off (almost fifty). When I looked for CDs of any kind, I could usually find them at Book-Off. I found all of my Carol merchandise and the amazingly rare Ai no Kusabi (間の楔) novel at Book-Off. Yes, the Carol and Ai no Kusabi novels were BOTH in the 105 yen section. (Note: 105 yen is less than a dollar. Usually there is a rate of about 110 yen per dollar, though it’s slightly more than that at the moment.) I even have my own non-expiring Book-Off Membership Card (which I got within the first week of coming to Japan) which doesn’t get me discounts, but gives me 5% in-store-credit on my purchase when I spend at least $10. That isn’t much, but at a place where nearly everything there is less than a dollar, that is quite a useful bonus.

So yeah, if it’s at least a few years old, I can generally find it at Book-Off. I’ve found CDs at Book-Off in the five-dollar range that I had previously paid a good deal of money for back in America. Seriously, this is the best way to buy anything Japan-related. Because of my relationship to Book-Off, I have only paid full price for a few of the books I’ve bought, the highest-priced one being a mere $17 or so.

And because Book-Off is so cheap, I’ve been able to create my own little mini-library in my room for a very small amount of money. I can easily boast over one hundred CDs and over one hundred books, all purchased on Japanese soil. Granted, that is quite a bit of money, but for what I got, it’s very much worth it. As anyone who imports CDs from Japan (Erik) knows, CDs usually cost the better part of $20 a piece, and DVDs can actually go as high as $80. Shipping is also brutal because that’s another $20-30 if you want it in the next week or two. Taking that into account, I’ve been shopping pretty well, I’d say.

So yeah, Book-Off is the King over here, though I think that unfortunately Book-Off is only a Tokyo (東京)-based chain. Holly says they have “Book-Half” out in Kushiro (釧路), but based on her description, it’s not nearly as cool or helpful as Book-Off. This is another reason why if you are plan to come to Japan and buying stuff is a big part of your trip, you should definitely come to Tokyo.

Small update...

Hey everyone...

Just a few updates. I have four or five looooong entries I have planned to write, but I don't have time to do them now, since it's midterm season over here. I plan to write some of them out this weekend, so hopefully I can update them when I get to school on Monday (aside from having a chapter test to study for...). Also, the comments ARE WORKING. Thanks to everyone who posted. As for my pictures, they are unfortunately on hold for awhile. As I've told some, I have at least 200 pictures that need to be uploaded, but I really just can't do it anymore. Once I move to the dorms next semester, I'll have pseudo-internet, so I'll be able to do it then easily. However, I'll have probably a bazillion more pictures by then since that will include my Kyoto/Kushiro vacation. Once I upload more pictures, I'll let you all know here. That way, you don't have to keep checking the pictures link. Also, if you are blogging, and you want me to link to you (in the column that says "quiet reflection" and "nullspace"), give me your blog address and I'd be happy to add it!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Kankokujin (韓国人) II

So, last night we (Jin-fun-san, Uni-san, Kensei-san, Lisa, and myself) went back to the pork place called Don-chan (どんちゃん) in Shin-Okubo (新大久保). It was a lot of fun and basically the same meal as last week, but I got a lot more pictures this time. Lots of fun conversation ensued, especially when Uni-san asked me if I knew any other languages and when I replied that I used to be somewhat fluent at Spanish, she asked how to say, "I love you." (This part is for Dad.)

So I replied, "Te quiero." So she went on to say, "Kensei-san, te quiero. Lisa-san, te quiero. Joe-san, te quiero. Koibito (恋人, Japanese for "my lover" or "person I am dating"), te quiero. Jin-fun-san, te quiero... ...nai!" (-nai is the usual way to negate things in Japanese). Hilarity ensued. It was probably one of the funniest things I've heard in a long time.

So while we were there, I had two ringo-sawas (りんごさーわ) which are basically like malt beverages with apple taste and alcohol. They were actually quite good with the pork that we had, so all was well. Everything was lots of fun, and we got to see Jin-fun-san do his famous cooking again. Pictures will follow in time, I promise. I took quite a few this time.

Oh, by the way, I know it's not Chianti, but I highly recommend the new 2005 Beaujolais Noveau. We bought a bottle when I came home the other night, and, though I'm not sure if it's superior to the 2003 Beaujolais Noveau, but it is clearly superior to the 2004 in every way. Since it just came out, well, barely two days ago, I'm sure you all will have ample opportunities to check it out.

Kankokujin (韓国人)

So here's another update (since I find myself with some time). This one has to do with my class make-up and some friends I've made while being here.

So, they take all the incoming American students (which are no more than say 30) and split them up amongst several classes here. They don't tell you that there are some 700 students at the school, and the minority is Americans (though many Americans tend to stay here for more than one semester, so there are maybe 50 of us here now). Then, when they make up the classes, there are no more than three Americans per class. There are several Chinese people in the class, and over half of each class is South Korean (Kankokujin / 韓国人). This adds an element of fun because if you're not in a Language Level 1 class (I'm in Level 2), the teachers don't speak English, and neither do a majority of students in the class. I don't speak Chinese or Korean either, so if I ever have to speak with any of my classmates (aside from Lisa, the only other American in my class), then I have to use Japanese. That is actually kind of cool. The other thing is that the teachers rotate, so I have the same teacher only twice a week.

So, anyway, I've made several friends in my classes so far. We actually went out to eat for Korean food after Undokai (運動会) with most of my class, and our teacher that day, Miyashita-sensei. However, the week after, one of the Koreans whom I've gotten to know pretty well asked me to go to dinner with his friends the following week. (For those who are counting, this was Thursday of last week.) So, before I knew it, it was me, Lisa, Jin-fun-san (M, Korean, pronounced jin-foon), Uni-san (F, Korean), and Kensei-san (F, Chinese) all out to dinner again. (Note: I don't know how to spell their names in American letters; this is my guess from katakana.)

When we went out after Undokai, we apparently went to the place where Uni-san has her part-time job, so last week we went to Jin-fun-san's part time job, which was basically a pork place. You get lots of pork cuts (that are shaped like bacon, only thicker) and each table has a mini grill, where those cuts are cooked. Then, as they are cooked, you cut them with scissors so they are bite-sized (and in Asia, bite-size is much larger than bite-size in America). Anyway, the idea is that you take a lettuce leaf, then you take your piece of pork, dip it in a peanut sauce, put it on the lettuce leaf, add rice, add crazy Korean spicy things, wrap it all up in the lettuce leaf and stick it in your mouth whole. No, you are not allowed to take bites. You have to take it whole. Yeah. It was fun though. Everyone knows I like pork. I just have to get used to spices.

So, the reason I decided to comment on this is because the five of us are going out again tonight, though not to the same place, though probably still in Shin-Okubo (Tokyo's Korea-town). The other thing is that next Thursday is Uni-san's birthday, so I'm not sure what sort of craziness will ensue after that.

(For anyone who got confused with the names, I have pictures of all of us that are going to be uploaded once I get around to it. Maybe this weekend sometime. It will be a lot easier to upload pictures after January, since I'll be moving to a dorm with some kind of internet. However, if I wait til then, I may have some thousand to upload. I'm already behind some two hundred pictures... I figure that it's better to try to stay up-to-date here though.)

Anime

(So, I know most of the people who read this aren't going to really know what I'm referring to, but most of my friends should get a kick out of this.)

So, out of all of you reading this, I have a question to ask. Have any of you ever been in an anime (アニメ)? I somehow doubt it. However, recently, I was much closer to being in an anime than anyone I know of. For those of you who watch Azumanga Daioh (アズマンガ大王), you will probably recall the Undokai/School Sports Day (運動会) episode. In that episode, the gang has to do all kinds of things, from a tug-of-war to all sorts of relay races, including one with a scavenger hunt (where Osaka finds the glasses and puts them on) and one where you have to throw a ball into a very high hoop (Chiyo-chan) before proceeding.

So, we actually had Undokai at my school earlier this month. It was exactly the same. Like exactly. We did all the same events (I did the tug-of-war) and everything. We even did the crazy Japanese dances afterward, like they do in the anime. It was insane. Luckily, there was no Kimura-sensei to dance with.

The scariest thing about the entire Undokai experience though was the music. First, they played the song from the Undokai episode of the anime on loop for a short while. That was scary. Then, it was even scarier when they switched to one of the Dragonball themes: a techno remix of Cha-La-Head-Cha-La. Yeah. Scary. Then, once they decided that it had been on loop enough, the third (and final) song to be played on loop was, of all things, Numa Numa. Yes. The Numa Numa dance. I was singing along and all of the Chinese and Koreans around me were all thinking, "How does he know this song? It's not in English or Japanese..." (Yes, I believe it's in Romanian...).

So yeah. Undokai is scary. We apparently may have another one in Spring, or so I am told. I did take Undokai pictures, but uploading pictures takes an extremely long time, hence the lack of updates. Also, while I'm talking about updates, for those who haven't read my past posts, I fixed it so that you can comment. Please feel free to do so.

As a final note for scariness, one of my teachers (Konno-sensei), resembles Yukari-sensei not in looks or driving techniques, but in her attitude and her supposed (ie: not yet confirmed by me) love for osake / alcohol (お酒). As much as I hate to admit this, there was one time I forgot to do an assignment and she gave me a Yukari-sensei 「ヘエエエエエエエエー」 (which is basically the equivalent of "WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!?!" ), and in Yukari-sensei's voice too. Yeah. Scary.

Music

I know I'm a bit ahead of myself, posting something current like this in the middle of having to update for the last three weeks' worth of events. However, for those who might be interested in my musical tastes, here's my recent top songs in the category of "Songs That I Just Can't Manage to Take Off of Repeat" (obviously number one being the strongest). If anyone else who is blogging wants to do the same thing with their musical tastes, go for it! Also, just to be fair, I chose only one song per artist.

15 - Unite! (Euro-Power Mix) / Hamasaki Ayumi
14 - Non-Stop Megamix / TWO-MIX
13 - Body Feels Exit (X-Tend Mix) / Amuro Namie
12 - I Want to Be Your Sperstar / Dance Infinity
11 - Tear's Liberation (Time Shuffle Re-Sync Style) / access
10 - Jounetsu Ballad (Y & Co. Remix) / Kotani Kinya
09 - Midnight Crow / Lucifer
08 - Bara wa Utsukushiku Chiru (Riyoko Ikeda Version) / Lareine
07 - All Night Long (Extended Mix) / Suzuki Ami
06 - Dogfight / Move
05 - Carol's Theme / TM Network
04 - Crystal Game / Lazy Knack
03 - Fate Weather (KH-R Jr Speed King VrS) / Iceman
02 - Traveler / Abe Fuyumi
01 - Taiyo no Gravity (Y & Co. Remix) / Fayray

Yes, Erik (if you're reading this), I never thought that my number one song would be Fayray, nor did I ever think that she'd be able to top Dogfight (which became my number 01 on this list shortly before getting to Japan). I never knew Fayray's music very well, and I still don't, but this mix really is amazing. Also, I realize that a fair amount of this list is DA Produce. To that I say, so what? I have a newfound respect for the guy. Maybe more on that later.

For those who were expecting to see songs and artists that you recognize, you should know me better than that.

Also, some of these songs have "eye-opening moment" stories to go along with them. I'll get those posted in time... don't worry.

Japanophilia

So, some of the people who read this blog are card-carrying Japanophiles like myself. Before I let any more time pass by, I must let you all know one thing. If you have any reasons at all (no matter how small) to go to Japan aside from learning the language (ie: to buy stuff, go to concerts, etc.) you should definitely go to Tokyo or another big city (unless you really cannot deal with crowds). Tokyo is big, and I'm really not one for big cities at all, but I like it just fine because it is truly the land of opportunity. It is also a paradise for even the slightest Japanophile. I'm sure people like Erik are thinking, "Yeah. I already knew that," but still, I just thought I'd elaborate. I have come to this conclusion because I'm not the only person that I know in Japan now. Let's just say that based on what I've heard from them, teaching English in Japan--though it's a decent way to get there, and the pay is fairly good--doesn't do a lot for placing you in useful locations where you have the opportuinties to do things. If I had gone with JET or NOVA or GEOS, I certainly wouldn't be in Tokyo, and I wouldn't have anywhere near the opportunity that I do now. And even though I'm (read: my parents are) paying for me to be in Tokyo ('cause it's normal study abroad), it's well worth it for what I've experienced in just this month alone. And I haven't done one thing on my big list of stuff to do* yet! So yeah.

*: The "big list of stuff to do" means experiencing major things like going to Tokyo Tower or Ueno Park or Seimei Jinja. I don't count things to buy as being on that list, even though Carol was really that important.

Carol

The first real eye-opening moment I had was at a bookstore actually, my first week in Japan. I happened to be looking for some fictions by a good author, Yumemakura Baku, but was really in the wrong section of the bookstore without realizing it (because my reading skills aren't food enough yet to read most section signs in bookstores). However, a certain book suddenly jumped out at me. The title on the spine was written in Roman letters. CAROL.

For those who don't know, this book means a lot to me. I've never read it and it's probably not that amazing. From what I can tell, it's basically a slightly different retelling of Alice and Wonderland. However, like I said, this book means a lot to me. Why? Well, in 1988, there was a band in Japan called TM Network, and they were very popular. That year, their guitarist, Kine Naoto, decided to write a novel called Carol (yes, this same book I am talking about). To help Kine's sales, the band released an album called Carol. They also did a Carol tour and a few other things to promote Carol. The last thing they did that I can tell was a drama CD (basically a short audiobook) for Carol. However, on that drama CD, they had Carol's Theme sung by a singer near and dear to my heart named Takayama Minami. I found her version of the song about four ago and it compelled me to find out everything I could about Carol, including the novel. I asked several friends in Japan to try to track down the novel for me, but to no avail. Last year, I was finally able to download TM Network's Carol album, but that was about as far as I had come. Before I left for this trip to Japan, I had vowed to myself in private that I would not return to America without that book. So yeah, the book means a lot to me. I already decided that if I ever become a translator like I still want to, this is the first book that I am going to translate.

However, at that point, the book was staring me in the face. I remember thinking, "Is this a mirage? Is it real? If it is real, is it fate? Is it coincidence?" I took it off the shelf and held it carefully in both hands like it was some valuable glass vase or something. Then I chanced to examine the price tag. Keep in mind, this is an item that I have been looking for voraciously for the past four years and would have probably killed someone just to be able to touch it, let alone own it. So I look at the price tag. 105 yen. My brain exploded inside my head, and I fell to my knees in the bookstore with tears welling up in my eyes.

For those who don't know, 105 yen is less than a dollar. Like 98 cents. I was so happy I couldn't even contain myself. On the long commute home, I was holding the book like a newborn child, all the while humming Carol's Theme from the TM Network CD, tears still welling up in my eyes. I didn't care that I wouldn't be able to read the book for another year or so. I was just happy that I finally tracked the damn thing down.

And as far as Carol is concerned, I'm almost done. I have the Carol Tour Book, the Carol anime artbook (yes, they made an anime), the TM Network CD, the drama CD I alluded to before (which was another eye-opening moment in itself), and Asakura Daisuke's first CD which contains an instrumental remix of Carol's Theme. All I'm missing now is the actual anime (11/18 edit: nevermind; I just bought it...), the Carol single CD, the Carol tour video (if it even exists), and the necklace, which I would love to have someday.

It's kind of wierd wanting to possess things that you know little about. I do it very often, but don't really realize it. Like I said before, aside from the bare basics, I have no idea what Carol is about. I just want to collect it because I heard a song. Truly strange I'd think, though Rudi would disagree, I imagine. Then again, I want to make a video game just because I played through Final Fantasy, and I want to spend the better part of my life studing a mystic who has been dead for a millenium just because I saw a movie about him. Maybe these sorts of connections are the bonds that hold my future together? I don't really want to think too hard about that.

Philosophy

So, there's a certain philosophy I've come to live by recently. Some of you already know (Yes, you, Mr. Snow.), and some of you don't yet. It's part Gurdjieff and part Buddhism and part Joe as well. Anyway, the amalgamation of all three of those parts tends to go something like this (I didn't want to use a Matrix analogy, but that's really the best way to get the point across):

Life is like living in the Matrix. There is a real world and a fake world. Everyone lives in the fake world without realizing it until their eyes are opened and they can finally see the falseness of the world they live in. However, that is very difficult to do for many people. And once your eyes are opened, it becomes very tempting to close them, so you have to find something special every day that reminds you to keep your eyes open and live in the real world. Usually the distinction becomes "people who are sleeping" versus "people who are awake."

Since adopting this philosophy, I have always thought--not to brag, of course--that I've been awake. It is mostly due to the fact that I see so many sleeping people around me everyday. College really opened my eyes in several ways, and I like to think that I've stayed awake since then, but Japan has done more for my awakeness than I can possibly say. I'm awake enough for the entire country I think. I'm almost so awake that it hurts.

The reason that I bring this up is that I've come across countless "eye-opening moments" while I've been here and I have the feeling that this blog is going to begin to focus on those as well as my observations while I am in Japan. The following blog entry (even though it's listed above this one) was the first of my "eye-opening moments."

By the way, if a lot of people are interested in hearing more about the awake/asleep thing, let me know and I'll elaborate. I'll even try to diagnose you if you like. Let me know!

Update

So, I'm sorry about not updating recently. My school's internet was down this week, so I had severely limited access. Hopefully that won't happen again. Also, some people have been asking about commenting on the blog, and I'm trying something new, so try commenting if you like. Thanks for your patience!

Anyway, for those counting, I've spent exactly a month here as of today, so about eight more to go. Got a lot of updates I want to do this week, so keep checking faithfully! Oh, also, if any of you have ideas for things you would like me to talk about on the blog, please don't hesitate to let me know. I tend to overlook the mundanities that everyone wants to hear about (what I've been eating, how my host family is, etc.).