The Debate...

I was able to listen at work by logging on to C-Span and plugging in my IPOD headphones. Thank God for cyber technology!

My thoughts throughout the debate, biased as they may be:
1. Shit, the picture won't work. Oh well, saves me from looking at Bush's eternally furrowed brow of befuddlement.
2. God, George Dubya, of course you talk to "those people" [our world leaders] every day from Washington. That's your JOB!
3. "The only consistent thing about my opponent is that he's inconsistent."-- oof, that was catchy. Good one, Georgy.
4. How many times can the President of the United States say, "I uh" and get away with it? Apparently this is where the concept of infinity comes from.
5. "I know Osama Bin Laden attacked us and not Saddam." AND...? Any more on that? OK, guess not.
6. Did the President just say "And to Senator Bush I would like to say..."? Evidence that George W. Bush probably does go home and pretend to be John Kerry in his spare time. Beats facing Laura and the twins...
7. Despite the way Kerry pronounces the name of our Secretary of State, he really is not Irish.
8. Bush knows how a dying soldier feels in Iraq because he reads the casualty reports every day?
9. Kerry is so much more eloquent of a speaker. Did both he and Bush really go to the same university?!
10. At least they are capable of saying decent things about each other-- in public anyway.

Overall, Kerry was the stronger debater. He is a more eloquent speaker and he seemed more confident and poised. He articulated his points well, and that is what appealed to me. Bush has the fact that he is steadfast and has a very defined plan in his court, but it's always easier to argue for the black and white, aggressive approach to policy. It is more difficult to articulate a finer strategy, one that contains more subtleties in its approach. So again, maybe I am just biased, but give Kerry a break on that. I'm looking forward to the VP Debate between Edwards and Cheney. Anyone have a date/time on that? I hope I'm again at work with nothing to do!

Dancing Queen?

Usually I am...



The state above is really not unnatural for me. If I'm on a dancefloor, guaranteed I'm having a good time.

But I've learned a lesson. Still reveling in last week's pay day, I decided to join a gym. I have lost a good amount of weight since I arrived, so I figured I should take advantage of it and tone up as well. The registration process was less intimidating than I thought, and though I hated to part with the one month + registration fee of 15,000yen ($150), Px would say:

"MATE! That's just about a night out in Roppongi!"

[Px has this way of describing the opportunity cost of any purchase in "# of drinks in Roppongi."]

So, I got out of work a bit early last night, just in time to make it to the gym for the advanced dance aerobics class, which caught my eye on the schedule. The "advanced" part didn't scare me very much. After all, I was a former dance troupe member and head cheerleader , so I am used to catching on to moves quickly and never had a problem in any aerobics class. And for the first half hour, I was right. The steps weren't so tough, the speed was ok, and I found myself in the midst of not only young girls, but also middle aged men, for god sakes! But, little did I know that was just the warm-up! Out of nowhere, the pace quickened, the music got faster and faster, and I felt myself thinking, "hmm, maybe these people do know how to dance..." And then, suddenly the beat picked up even more. Everyone was moving in fast forward. The worst parts were the turns, when I found everyone looking back at me, the only person in the room still facing forward. I tried to keep up but it was no use! I was smack in the middle of an entire choreographed dance that everyone in the room seemed to know except for me! "Ganbare, ganbare," I told myself. I am no quitter after all. But in the end there was really only one solution. . . I excused myself from the whirling twirling Japanese and RAN as fast as I could out of that room.

Note to self: Never take an advanced dance class in Japan before learning the steps ahead of time...
TGIF!

Tribute to the masters of Asian hair...

How many times did I explain it to the hairdressers in PA and DC-- I want to keep it long and very straight, slightly layered in the front to frame my face, and thinned out (a lot!) in the back. $50+tip, $65+tip, $90+tip-- I've tried the funky anorexic with the no-good texturizer, the Chinese lady with the razor, and even the British chick at the chic salon in Georgetown. I was satisfied, for maybe the first week, but a credit card bill later would find myself wondering, WHY?!

The Japanese experience, thanks to my favorite Tokyo red-head, was as good as hair salon nirvana. The place... TONI&GUY in Harajuku.

My man... Erari, funny hair-glasses-too-tight-pants so must be perfect. I explained to him how I wanted it in my I'm-trying-to-explain-something-important-mixture of Japanglish, and by golly it finally worked!

Like most Japanseque services, the hair cut is a process. Forget the 45 min. in and out deal like at home-- put aside 2 hours for the Japanese "experience."

Step 1, Shampoo and deep condition for at least 20 minutes
Step 2, Ooh! nice head massage
Step 3, A long, anticipating wait with my oolong-cha and Bazaar magazine to keep my thumbs from twiddling
Step 4, The Cut-- a very slow, precise process complemented (or not) with conversation about the current "Amerika no erection," I mean, ELECTION
Step 5, Back to the sink-- another wash followed by neck massage
Step 6, Two men standing on either side of me, blow dryers full throttle, drying and straightening my hair
Step 7, More cutting-- can't risk it laying different once dry I suppose
Step 8, More drying, but oh we lost one. I guess the 2nd dry only requires one man
Step 9, Let's thin out the back some more, god I have a lot of hair
Step 10, Sigh of relief, looks great!
Step 11, Pay my bill-- a mere 5500 yen ($50) and no tip!

And now, friends, I am ready for the weekend. Agenda: Friday night drink with my new friend Freedom (don't usually say real names on here but had to make an exception), and a dinner date with Frenchy #3 whose name is the same as my father's which means I most definitely won't be marrying this man because my mother will never approve. He is a banker wanker and so I think I can expect better than First Kitchen, but let's not make assumptions and then be disappointed. And Saturday night, B's sayonara paa-tee before he takes off for gay Paris (tear for us all, esp you Px). You can all trust that these events will be well attended by moi with fresh and shiny Asian hair.

The nerd in me...

reviews a book... The Bell Jar...

I just finished it yesterday. It is a classic that I probably should have read in high school or university, but being that I was always busy reading about the sad state of affairs around the world or a moving river that flows ceaselessly (thanks, onigiriman-- by the way, had the opportunity to recite this today to a Japanese colleague as an example of bungo and got quite a reaction!), I didn't have much time to read for enjoyment. Anyway, thanks to K-Fo,

I finally got my hands on this book and read it. You should too-- it was a quicky-- 270 pages and finishable in a mere few hours.

I suppose Esther, the main character, is the ultimate female version of Holden Caulfield, and therefore every young woman can empathize with her in some way; but besides the fact that I am not depressed and don't see myself needing to be "shocked" into reality anytime soon, I found that I am not unlike Esther, or Sylvia Plath for that matter, as Esther is surely based on her own life.

I suppose that no matter how many successes one has, there comes a point when one faces adulthood, and the future stretches forward in a blur. Suddenly, (gasp!) there is no assumed, given direction to turn. I guess for me this came during my last semester at GW. Law school? Grad school? Real work? Japan? New York? DC? Each hangs lazily in front of you, and you are charged with putting forth some initiative and picking something. So, for someone (like me) who has trouble making decisions and has to weigh each matter dozens of times, wouldn't it be so much easier to just avoid making any choice? But, then I guess I would be vegging at home in Cowpie PA letting a stagnant scent of manure wash over me. Much better to pinch the nose, plunge into the cold water and get woken up, if not shaken up, by a change of wind. We'll worry about the next direction when the time comes.

Aussie in the outhouse...

I wasn't going to bash my date on here, but now that I think about it, it is just too funny to hold back. Reasons why, over the past couple of days, I have decided that this guy gets a big fat BATSU (X).

1. He showed up 25 minutes late.

2. He showed up 25 minutes late because he forgot his books at home, that's right, his books. He is taking MBA classes and forgot to do an assignment due the day before. So, I spent an hour and a half at an internet cafe helping him with his econ assignment. Being that I'm a nerd, I actually didn't mind this! But when I got home and told P, she pointed out to me, "MATE! It's your first date. He should have called you and said, "sorry, I forgot to do this assignment. Can we meet a little later instead?" I can't help but agree.

3. He took me to dinner at First Kitchen. For those of you who don't know, First Kitchen is a fast food/burger place, but let's be honest, Mickey D's is a hell of a lot classier. I didn't mind-- I'm laid back, we didn't need to go to a nice place. But again the voice of reason, "MATE! There are sooo many cheap places to go in Tokyo. Why fast food?! Even ramen is better." Good point, P.

4. He is a fake priest. Maybe this is not so sketchy in Japan, but I find this totally and utterly DODGY! Maybe it's because I was raised a good Catholic girl? Because my great uncle is a priest and is the kindest, holiest, sweetest old man that has ever walked this earth? Maybe not any of these reasons! Maybe it's just that he's taking advantage of a Western convention adopted and adapted by Japan, and assuming that Japanese are stupid by performing this very "gainjin-esque" ritual for them, when for them, this is their WEDDING!! A day that is special and memorable, and that he is basically making a joke out of to make a few bucks on the side.

5. He bragged about money. Considering he took me to First Kitchen, this should not be permitted! Not only was I not impressed by how much money he does or doesn't have, but I find that nice people who do have money don't usually brag about it anyway. So why act like you have it when you don't? Or worse, if you do have it, why take me to First Kitchen?!!
And those are the top 5 reasons he gets a X. I have considered the fact that he is extremely tall, well-built and good looking, with a very cute accent as well. I also considered that we did have good conversations, and I felt very comfortable with him-- in fact by the way we were acting, you'd think we'd been dating a long time-- but then again, maybe this is more my personality coming out than his? I usually feel comfortable with people easily and went through enough sorority recruitments to know how to carry a decent conversation.

Rankings anyone? What do you think of this guy on a scale from 1-10?
Stay tuned for next week's Date with Another Frenchy... dun dun dun.......

The Reason I Love Tokyo...

Not that I didn't know before, but I was reminded of it this weekend. Friday night I was supposed to meet my Japanese friend Y. at 19:30. I wasn't going to go all the way home and then come back into town, so I left work and went straight there. Little did I know she would be stuck at work until 22:30! So what was I going to do all by myself in Roppongi?! I called other friends to meet up for dinner or drinks, but they all had plans already, so I went to this little bar that I had been to a few times before. I bought my first beer, and didn't buy anything more the rest of the night, including delivered Thai food that the bartenders paid for! I'm became friends with the bartenders quickly, and soon became friends with everyone else in the bar too! This is why I love Tokyo. I go to a place totally by myself, which I would probably feel totally awkward doing in the States; I don't pay for anything and still get sufficiently intoxicated for the night; I make new friends instantly; I get asked out to a party and on a date by some French guy; and I get free dinner!

It's so much easier making new friends here, I think, because everyone is always looking to meet new people and there are so many different types of people here from so many different countries. And of course half of these people I met ended up knowing someone I know, or we have some kind of strange connection. It's exactly the type of atmosphere that didn't really exist in D.C. Not to mention that when you go to karaoke bars here (we went to 2 really awesome places in Shinjuku Saturday night), people actually listen to you, or applaud, or dance along with you even if they don't know you! In a way, for such a huge metropolis of a city, Tokyo is quite small-- small enough that on Sunday I couldn't remember the location of the restaurant I wanted to go to, and as I was trying to find it, I ran into my friend on the street, the one friend I have who goes to this place regularly.

FYI, Monday I did have a date with the Australian, which went ... well, I don't really feel like going into detail now, but if you really want to know, send me a mail! Another reason I love Japan this week-- 2 holidays! Tonight it's out to the clubs for me!! And yes T-pan, if it weren't for you, I would never have been introduced to the wonderful world of HOUSE...!

More coincidences...

The Aussie boy hadn't called since last Monday. He had said he was going on a business trip and would call when he got back. Well, the weekend passed and I hadn't heard anything, so Px (my flat mate/life partner) and MC (my lovely Scottish colleague) and I decided that he should maybe be given one more chance, but essentially, he was written off. But yesterday, I had to get a contact for issuing a press release to the ACCJ, and when I contacted them, they said, "Contact our publishing company." I looked up the number online, and it all sounded vaguely familiar-- publishing company, work for ACCJ, located in Shibuya-- of course it was his company. Unbelievable, I thought. I called his cell phone and left a message saying I was looking for a contact, and then I called the office and spoke with his boss. Well, as I was walking to Roppongi last night for another engagement to be spoken of later, he called saying, "I just got your message, but I knew you had called because my boss said someone from GA called, and I showed him your card and he said it was you. So sorry I haven't been in contact, I'm just in between meetings now and so busy. I'll call you tomorrow at work and we can discuss the release and, of course, when we'll go out together again."

So, I don't really buy the fact that he was so busy he couldn't call. Who is ever too busy to call someone they are interested in? Maybe you purposely hold off so that you don't seem too anxious calling the next day... (though he did invite me over the next night-- and then disinvited me, in fact)... but maybe he is just using the personal relationship for work benefits? Ugggh, I just don't understand boys.

As for the other engagement, I met Frenchy's best friend, who is still here in Japan, for dinner and had such a good time! We really had some great conversations... It's a shame that I went out with his best friend, making him off limits now, I suppose. Plus THE French man himself is probably coming back to Tokyo in November for a week. Abunai kana.......

(just a silhouette of the happy couple they could be.... haha)

"Die"-ei Disaster

This weekend I decided it was about time to get rid of the ugly native-americanesque curtains left in my room by D, my flat mate Px's old roommate who moved out. So I went to Daiei and bought all new bedding and curtains! This, for young women, as you may know, is an exciting event! I couldn't wait to get home and redecorate my room. Being able to have a room that is really "you" can totally change your mood, apart from just the fact that picking out new things is fun. Anyway, the new sheets, futon cover, and curtains that I bought were not wide enough, not long enough, and again, not long enough, respectively. Talk about bursting my bubble. Well, still on my shopping high, I got home from work on Monday and walked the 20 minutes with all my packages back to Daiei, BUT apparently in Japan, you can't open the whole package and return it. You can only "peek" inside at the contents and then decide they don't fit!? I, of course, had kept the packaging, but had totally unraveled the very precise Japanese wrappings to actually, god forbid, try them on my bed to see if they fit. Well, the good news is, I bought all new stuff and this time it fit! The bad news is, I spent 2 hours Monday night studying the new packages, and, using those as a guide, attempting to refold the too-small things exactly as they had been to squeeze them back in the packages. Not only was this a pathetic way to spend even a Monday night, but when I went to return them at the Daiei near my work (to avoid meeting the same cashier at the Daiei near home), they wouldn't take them back either! I have to go back to the SAME Daiei that I bought them at. Talk about TAIHEN! As much as I love Japan, there are some times when I just want to yell,

"THIS DOES NOT MAKE SENSE!!!!!!"

Alas, one of those times....

There is a such thing as too old...

Middle-aged Men. OK, now this is probably my fault, but I agreed to go out for dinner with a friend who I met last summer while I was here. He was (is) a regular at the Hobgoblin, we used to get along really well. Yes, he is 40, but we have been in touch off and on, and I thought what the heck, might as well go for dinner with him. First, I did tell him I had a boyfriend, hoping that would deter him from thinking of it as a "date." Again, I may have just been naive, because I ended up beating him away with a stick all night. The guy is married (separated, but still married), has 2 kids, and is old enough to be my FATHER! And there he is asking me to "share just one night of passion with him!?" Basically I got drunk and told him to shove it in the nicest way possible. What is it with older men and why do they think they can get young women? Why aren't they happy with their lives and WIVES the way they are? I just think it's rather bold of them to think that a young girl would actually be interested in "sharing a night of passion" with who could be her father. It's especially bad in Japan...
Luckily Saturday and Sunday were better. I went out with one of my Japanese friends Saturday night and we had such a fun time, plus I was speaking Japanese the whole night, which was good for me. We went to my favorite club WOMB, and I wore what apparently is my lucky shirt, because I always seem to pick up cute guys in this shirt... and at WOMB for that matter... but anyway, WOMB was almost empty because of the heavy rain, but I like it that way-- more room to DANCE! Met a very hot Australian who I hope calls me this weekend (?) but I guess we'll see. I wonder what it is about Womb and that shirt.....

Sunday my flat mate Px and I went to a festival at Musashi-Koyama and to a party afterwards where I met, sigh, a Phi Psi-- not unlike these loverly boys... in 4 whole years, I couldn't live with them and couldn't kill them ;-)

I just can't seem to get away from them! Anyway, another weird coincidence of Japan.
Well, these postings probably aren't all that interesting, so I'm going to peace out for now. I'll try to write more often, and then hopefully they will get more interesting .. and random. More on this weekend later!

Starting out...

I've been here officially 10 days now and have been at my new job exactly 1 week. . . what do I think so far? Well, I got extremely lucky with my living arrangements. I'm living in Meguro-ku, Gakugeidaigaku to be exact, in this really nice 2LDK that is quite big for Tokyo standards. My company arranged an apartment for me and is paying for it for one month. A friend of a co-worker here had a flat mate move out, so I took his spot. Turns out I'm living with this great Australian girl, who is awesome so far, and even better, I don't have to pay a security deposit, key money, or buy any new furniture, because all of that is already taken care of. Sooo glad to have a flat mate because I think I'd otherwise be ungodly lonely.
The commute is 45 minutes door to door, which in D.C., I wouldn't have even considered... but for Tokyo, I can't complain. I already had one big night out in Roppongi last Friday night... I met up with some old friends from where I worked last summer and met some new people too. Apparently I am quite the legend there. . . . no comment on that one.
But as usual, Tokyo is filled with uncanny coincidences. My flat mate actually knows my ex's best friend. They were even supposed to go out on a date, but then he ditched her or something... figures. And then, a guy I met at a gokan this week lives directly across the street from where I lived last summer in Shibuya, and saw my ex-boyfriend quite frequently walking around. Just these little things that are just too weird sometimes.
I won't comment too much about my job on here, because who knows who reads it. I do like it, but I'm not used to a full time job, let alone working 10 or 11 hour days. I see myself going to grad school after a while and finding a job that has NOTHING to do with corporate life. I will not be a salary-woman dammit! Maybe a professor? That's the latest thought...
And so overall, who could complain? I have a great apartment, great flat mate, good job, am very comfortable, and I'm living in TOKYO, not teaching English (not that there's anything wrong with that), right out of college!! But whatever it is, and no matter how much fun I'm having, it's still not last summer, and maybe that one thing I'm looking for just isn't here anymore... But who knows? I guess we shall see.........