HOT! the humanity

dorm room circa lunch time - Yesterday - hot. I stayed in. Today - HOT. I went to pay the ATM a visit and have been working on stuff since then. I will read until this evening and then wash my hair. Not much happening except that it's hot! It is supposed to be 35 degrees celcius within the week. DX

hot... new suite mate... visiting

dorm room late night - HOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!! DX

I forgot to mention that there is a new person in my dorm suite. She and I have only exchanged a few words so far but she seem nice.

Today I went to a flee market with my friend. We then went to her house and tried to escape the heat. She arranged with her husband to have two bikes waiting at the train station for us and I got to ride a bike to her house! It was so fun! I haven't been on a bike for a year! We made and had a stupendous dinner. And I played on her Wii!! We also had fun playing with her kitten. Now I am back at the dorm and wondering if I will ever not feel hot again. So tired because of the high temperatures. Oh well, all I can do is wish for rain.

rain! and work

dorm room post dinner - It was rainy again today!!! =D I went to work and that was about it. But tomorrow I will meet my friend Judi again and we will do fun things!

rain, work, praise

dorm room late night - RAIN!!!! I am so happy it rained today. I went to work and we were busy all day. The oatmeal cookies are still a hit. My boss praised me for them and for working so hard. Shucks. =P

day out with my host mom

dorm room late night - Hot and slightly overcast today. I met my host mom in Sakae underneath the TV tower. We had lunch and went to a sale. She brought me a bag of presents and a photo album of pictures from Italy. She also bought me a shirt at the sale and a pack of senbei (Japanese crackers) at a local stand. We went and got a drink and sat down in Oasis 21 and talked for a while. She had to get going after that. We said bye and I was really happy I got to see her. I couldn't believe all she gave me! She paid for everything too! She is truly the most generous person on the face of the Earth. =D

I went to work at 5pm and had another slow day. Then I went with Judi (coworker) and her husband to a curry restaurant. Now I am back at the dorm and quite exhausted. Hot, but a really good day none the less!

SAFE!! and human vs machine

dorm room post dinner - slightly overcast today. I forgot to mention a funny episode that happened yesterday! When I was coming back to the dorm after work I was hurrying to catch the subway train. It was just about to leave when I was rushing down the stairs to the platform. I leapt down the last few steps and made a mad dash for the nearest door. I jumped onto the train and the doors closed behind me a second later. Before I could even feel relieved, a group of four middle aged women all started clapping around me!! They had watched my crazy run and jump and were impressed and amused by it! One woman made the baseball umpire signal and said "SAFE!" in English!! It was so funny! Then they complimented my hair!! I didn't know how to react at all! I started to respond in Japanese but the English speaking woman confused me and it came out an unintelligible garble of English and Japanese. Finally with my wits collected I managed a passable response and rode on to my stop with no further excitement. But it certainly was a rush getting into that train car!!

Today I read my library book (The Hobbit). I went to Japanese lessons at my part time job and found out my cookies had been selling well the whole day with glowing reviews. I felt relieved at that b/c I had been worried about the second batch. Yesterday while making them the electric mixer completely died on me! I had to mix the second batch of batter by hand. At first I didn't know if I would be able to do it. But though it took much longer and though my right arm was quite tired I managed to blend everything together using nothing but elbow grease! I was kind of proud of myself but was unsure of how they would turn out. But the reviews say they are tasty. Goes to show that you don't need fancy equipment to make something edible! (It is just way easier if you have the fancy equipment.)

I will now continue to read my book! :3

oatmeal cookies

dorm room post dinner - It was rainy then overcast today so I was happy! :D Yesterday I told Judi that I would take her work shift today so I got up early and helped open at 10:30. I made oatmeal cookies most of the day and we had 5 or 6 customers. It was a slow day. Now I am back in my dorm room. Not much of a day but everyone said my oatmeal cookies were good.

a day out with Judi (and a lot of parenthesis)

dorm room post dinner - today was overcast but hot...

Today I met with my coworker (Judi) and we went to an international grocery store(I bought oats!) and then to an international library and I checked out three books!! =3 Then we went back to her house watched the 6th Harry Potter movie (Half-Blood Prince). We played with her new kitten (a Russian blue) and the three of us (her husband, her, and myself) ate dinner together. Then I headed back here to the dorm. Tomorrow I am taking Judi's shift at work so I will be up early and will make oatmeal cookies! Hope it's raining tomorrow...

World Cup, noodles, and too hot for comfort

dorm room post lunch - sunny.... X( I went to work Saturday and since Japan was having a match with Holland in the World Cup my boss let everyone go down to the sports bar one floor below us and watch the game. Japan lost but it was a really good effort. Sunday I ate at a soba and kishimen restaurant with a co worker after work. It was quite delicious. Today not doing much but it is hot and I don't like it... :(

chocolate chip cookies

dorm room post breakfast - Yesterday when I left it was raining!!! XD And it rained the rest of the day! I found chocolate chips but not oats. So I made cc cookies at work and my coworkers said they were good. Walked back to the subway station with Judi (my coworker) and her husband (came to pick her up).

Today appears sunny. :(

mission!!!

dorm room post breakfast - The last couple days have been sunny. :( I haven't done all that much. I did go to Japanese lesson at My English Room yesterday.

Today I work and I will be making cookies. I am making chocolate chip and oatmeal. I have to find chocolate chips and oats. I hope I find them at the first store I go to. If not, then I'm on a mission!! If I can't find them at the store near my dorm then I'll go to a larger store I know of near my bank. Then I will try an international store I've been to in Sakae near where I work. I WILL find the ingredients. Wish me luck.

a day out with a friend in Nagoya

dorm room late night - Cloudy and rainy!!! XD

I had a fun time today with my friend from work. We went to a restaurant and a store called Book Off. Then we went to Sakae and went to the Oasis 21. We got ice cream at Baskin Robbins and went to a department store called Loft and I found some hair scissors I have been searching for. We went to a foreign foods grocery store and I looked for lasagna ingredients (b/c I want to see if I can make it here). Then we parted ways. It was a full fun day, that wasn't hot and sunny!!!

RAIN!!!! halelujah

dorm room late night - RAIN!!!! XD XD XD I am so happy it is raining!

Today was nice, went to work, it was cool and overcast. By the time I came back to the dorm it was raining lightly and not hot at all! ^_^ It was just what I needed!

heat headache and a nice talk with Sayumi

dorm room late night - HOT !!! DX

I went to work today and had a good day at work. My muffins are almost gone. It was a good day but unfortunately with the heat I was fighting a headache most of the day. :( But when it was time to go home my co-worker Sayumi and I walked to the subway station together and got to have a nice chat. :) We talked about part time jobs, commutes, school, and life in general. She is really nice and it was a significant conversation for me because it was one of the first conversations I've had where I didn't stumble or not know how to say something! :D It happened after hours of speaking English to customers too!! Sayumi said my Japanese was good! XD Although I know I still have a long way to go it was so nice to get that little confidence boost.

Tomorrow it is supposed to rain. I hope, I hope, I hope!

blueberry muffins!

dorm room late night - It was hot and sunny today. :( I went with one of my roommates to a nearby grocery store and I bought blueberries, muffin liners, and vanilla extract (which is called vanilla essence here). When I got to work, I got to work making the blueberry muffins. My boss told me she would reimburse me the cost of the ingredients I bought at the store. I think the muffins turned out well. All the customers and my co-workers said that they were good. I tasted them and thought I could have done better but I always think I can do better. :P At the end of the day Akiko my boss tried one and said they were delicious and thanked me profusely for making them. I was embarrassed but I was so relieved everyone liked them. She is selling them for 200 yen a piece (about 2 dollars).

After the shift ended I went to a restaurant with my co-workers Tasha and Judi. Judi's husband came with us and he paid for everyone!!! He did it so sneakily I didn't even realize he had done it until later! He is a really generous guy. I finally got back to the dorm and now I am looking forward to sleep. :)

dorm group event, bank, blueberries, and my aversion to the sun grows deeper

dorm room late night - The restaurant was pretty tasty but there wasn't enough food to go around with so many of us. Did get to talk to a lot of people in the dorm though. Apparently there is a large group of American students from Dickinson University here for a month program. One didn't get placed in our room so that is why I didn't know about them before last night.

Today I opened a bank account with UFJ bank. It only took 20 minutes. Then later I went to MER (My English Room) for the Thursday night Japanese lesson. I helped close up and Judi (another staff member) walked with me to the subway station. She was going a little farther but I went into the station and came back here to the dorm. Tomorrow when I go into work Judi and I are making blueberry muffins to sell to the customers!! I really miss cooking and baking; I haven't done it in so long. So I am looking forward to that. ^_^

It is still so hot and miserable during the day. I hate it. I try so hard to not let it get to me but it makes me exhausted all day long and I am always on the verge of a headache. Only when the sun goes down does it cool off. When the sun goes down I feel like I am waking up to a new day for the first time. It is so cool and breezy and it is dark so my eyes don't hurt and my almost headache goes away. I want the rainy season to arrive so badly. It may get even hotter but at the very least it won't be bright. I wish I could work and study at night and sleep all day... but alas I cannot.

new job and summer

dorm room post lunch - It has been bright and sticky.

It has been a while since my last entry. Basically I have been adjusting to dorm life. I have a job now! I work in a cafe called My English Room and it is a place where people can go to practice English conversation with the staff. I serve beverages and light food and must simply talk with the customers. The job is really fun and pays well for part time. The cafe also offers Japanese lessons on Thursday and Saturdays. I will be doing those as well. My boss is really nice and is fluent in English.

Other than that little excitement, it is summer around here which puts me in a crabby mood most of the time. I only get mad when I have to be out in the bright sun for long periods of time. But I am trying to not let it get to me. The rainy season will be here soon (I can't wait ^_^). It is actually really cool once the sun sets so I tend to take walks along the streets with the shops in the evenings. The breeze feels so good at those times.

There is a dorm trip to a restaurant tonight. I will go b/c I am trying to be social. :P Hope there is good food!

cake

dorm room pre lunch - It has been hot and sunny. I have been studying and goofing off but I did apply for a job and one of my suite mates had a birthday and the three of us split the chocolate cake. :d mmmm, cake.

aftermath of move

dorm room post breakfast - Sunny. Last Friday my host mom drove me to the Nanzan dorms. A bunch of people helped me carry my stuff up the 3 flights of steps to my room. And all these people were standing around us when my host mom said goodbye to me. I didn't like that I had to say goodbye to her with a crowd of people standing around us watching. It was just a short 'thank you for everything' and then she left. I later found out she sent me an email that day once she got home but I didn't get internet until yesterday (Tuesday). I tried to use the campus computers in the library but they wouldn't let me log in. I asked about this and the CJS office said I should be able to use the computers. I tried the ones in the CJS office and the ones in the computer building and I was able to log onto those. So it is just the library computers that hate me.

My suite mates seem nice. The apartment is a nice set up. I was bored out of my mind most of the weekend without internet. I studied and did whatever I could to keep busy. My room is cool, has a balcony with a clothes line for drying laundry.

Monday I paid for some stuff at the CJS office on campus. Tuesday I finally got my internet modem delivered. It works really well. Well, hopefully my life will become more interesting soon. =P