Party International

So Typhoon 11 decided to make the morning interesting by almost pulling a Mary Poppins on me while on my way to work. Thankfully it didn't rain horizontally... yet.

Day was nothing to talk about, but we had a "nomikai" at the office to welcome the main manager from London and the main worker from the Korean office. So between the Korean gal, the French Gent, the Japanese woman from London, and me, it felt a very international party... complete with Beer, sushi, champagne, wine and... pizza? An odd mix to be sure. Got to see first hand the difference between the Japanese business face and the one they show out of the office... the nomikai face so to speak. It make a huge difference, and I was relieved to be able to simply just chat with many of my coworkers informally. The French gentleman, Sylvain, gave me a good mix of advice too.

Work, Books, and Mexican Feast

Ended up working 10-3 today helping my Korean coworker friend translate and pronounce a presentation she has to do in English. The woman has more guts than me, I have to admit. I doubt I could do a speech like that in front of hundreds of people... in a second or even third language. We had a nice lunch though, and then had to run to the drug store for umbrellas in defense against the sky which decided to start spitting at us. Apparently we were about to get hammered by a Typhoon, huzzah!

Headed out to Meguro to meet my roommate and we got our Apartment Key!! At least for the moment, until they change it later. Apparently ours is going to be some kind of card key rather than an actual key once we change it... right. Hotel anyone?

Made it to Kinokuniya and managed to get all of Sherlock Holmes and 3 other books in English for under $40 thanks to the 20% off sale they were having. Needless to say, I'm a very happy bookworm. Unfortunately, I looked at my watch while leaving and realized... I had 15 minutes to get to the meeting place for dinner.

Made it to Nakameguro somewhat late after some confusion calling Nabe and Kuri. We went to this excellent Mexican place out there (junksomething) with a mob of gaijin and Japanese, and a good time was had by all. It also helped that the place screwed up and charged us just for the food and not the drinks. I didn't even know they had affordable mexican food in Japan.

Thus ends this weekend. I need another weekend day!

PHONAGE!

Got to the Post office this morning, and the card delivered was NOT, in fact, my bank card. So I basically went WFT and decided to use my american CC for the first month's payment. Of course, had no idea what the rest of the day would turn into.

Kuri tipped me off to a BBQ happening by the American consulate. So I hightailed it out to Tameike-Sangendo for the festivities... which after a journey over the mountains and through the woods, we found was sold out. So we spent a pleasant time in a little italian place in Suntory Center eating pasta/pizza and chatting (me, Kuri, Kuri-bo, and two Japanese friends of Kuri's).

Headed out for a bike shop with Kuri and her man on what I'm mentally now calling, "Surviving the Arashi Tsunami" as apparently a popular band was playing near the same station we had to go through to get to said shop. Needless to say, the absolute horde of fan girls and the 50 people trying to scalp tickets to the concert throughout the station were extremely amusing. I'll post some of the gems later. We did end up finding the bike shop, eventually, and meeting up with their friend (HN).

After a while at the bike shop, we went on a veritable QUEST, yes, QUEST to get me a cell phone, because dammit, I wanted my own phone! So we walked from Sendagaya to Harajuku (a couple miles maybe?) only to be met by a 30 minute wait at the phone store......... so we migrated to the Softbank in Ebisu and I got my Brand Spanking New phone, for more than I would normally care to pay. (Note: generally they split the phone cost into 24 payments over monthly periods. But because I wasn't carrying my passport and just my gaijin card, I had to make a contract under credit card and Insurance card (thank god that worked) so I payed the price up front... and no, don't ask me what it cost, because I'd prefer to not think about it). So now I'm playing with the phone til the cows come home, so shiny! And sadly, it's built in camera has higher megapix than my regular camera. I'm going to be relatively useless for the next few days playing with this *squeeeee~*

Finally! A Bank Card!

Anyone else notice that the Japanese find the LEAST LITTLE EXCUSE to isolate foreigners? The recent Swine Flu scare for example. I've had to run around and have been in Tokyo for something like 3 weeks. And in that time I've had about 10 percent of the people I sit down next to (or next to me) suddenly put on a sick-mask. Normally I'd say, ok maybe they are being polite... but when I see them walking around without it in the station, I have to wonder >_<. Considering most of the foreigners here do NOT have S-Flu, "Dear Japan. Please stop treating me like the heathen plague carrier that I am...not. A plague carrier that is."

Got to do a massive rush translation for the London office, and no matter how you try, literal Japanese - English translations... aren't. It's Japanglish! Spent a couple of fun hours trying to fix the proposal and got a break when the Producer (YG) needed someone to run to this tiiiiny little partner of ours out in Sendagaya that offices in... an apartment building. Which means I spent 30 minutes really, really confused until I broke down and called them. Also had to run to Aki-ba to pick up an external HD for the office, and was reminded why Japan is NOT the place to come if you hate giant tsunami-sized waves of people. Still wasn't so bad, though Aki-ba isn't really the place to go to sanity. For that I need to hit up a cat cafe which sounds like the best thing since sliced bread! Anyone want to go on an adventure finding one? Must. Pet. Kittenz!

FINALLY got a bank card, or will have one. A happy little "you had a delivery notice" was in my mailbox from my second account. Which means I can go get a phone tomorrow. Yay finally!

Was reminded why J-drama both amuses and scares me. It has a gang fight between Thai and chinese mafia in a restaurant alley one minute, with a Japanese woman dressing them down in three different languages... only to go into the restaurant and eat ramen calmly sitting next to tired business men. Di, it's on chan4 Fri at 9, though I have no idea which channel that is. You should really watch it. Has something about "Tomodachi land" with that weird hand eye symbol we saw in Shibuya.

Have to work Sunday to help my Korean coworker translate something due Monday (suck), but also get the key to the apartment that day (huzzah!).

A Great Reunion

Petting random cat in neighborhood while out buying lunch at 7/11 = Heaven (ironically)

Why does is every emotional state in Japanese described by a set of three complex kanji?! I don't get it. Maybe this is why the Japanese generally don't show emotion publically. Because it's too damn hard to read and write in general life. I mean, who the hell wants to be 慇懃無礼...who the hell wants to write it for that matter.

Work was, well, work. The woman who picked up my Japanese resume and passed it on to her boss in March is visiting from Korea, and seeing her again was a positive end to the day. I was happy to see her, and she was absolutely thrilled to see me. And it is nice to have someone tell me to not use -san with them outside the office. When I asked a different co-worker to drop the -san she looked extremely uncomfortable and I don't think she'll actually do it. Huzzah culture clash! ;)

Picked up a manga Di recommended... where Buddha and Jesus are roommates. So. Freaking. Japanese. Kuri, you should really read this if you haven't yet.

The streets are alive... with the sound of insects

Japan doesn't appear to have any rats... why? Because the cockroaches damn well give them a run for their money. It's someone eerie to spend the day in the office only to go home being serenaded by the sound of... not crickets... giant cockroaches... and what the roaches haven't taken over, the horsefly sized mosquitoes sure as well have.........

So I have to read Yuri Manga and Anime scripts for work. Those who don't know what it is, don't ask. Needless to say, I'm getting a broader education in a subject I would have preferred to forgo, but hey it's a living.

Hand carried altogether much too much money to my friend after work as we met in the Realtor's office. I'd really prefer to never carry QUITE that much money in hand ever again. Needless to say, I think we'll actually get the apartment, which is a huge relief for me.

On Not Sweating The Small Stuff

A little side-path down the deep, murky, and probably twisted paths of my thoughts. I guess midnight philosophizing is as good as anything. If you don't have the stomach to read this kind of stuff, stop here.

Life is both fleeting and an eternity all in one. It isn't worth sweating the small stuff, because ultimately it all works out in the end. Mind you, I don't generally take my own advice. I doubt this will be the first little gem I've come up with, and I don't think that will matter when I am squirming about how I messed up one way or another, or how life has thrown me one of it's inevitable curve balls (or curve grenades as it sometimes feels like). Still, when it comes down to it. Life is inevitably fatal, so I might as well enjoy what little or lot I have left and make the most of it. Hey Mom, have I finally grown up yet in the start of the summer of my life? Yeah, I don't think so either. But life is more fun if you can just not take it quite so seriously all the time. Once again, one of those little gems I'm going to have to work on accepting for myself.

Pursue your dreams. Your goals. Whether it's childhood dream or wild fancy that hits you at some random time on a slow Thursday. It's easy to forget that by coming to Japan, by living and working and making friendships and relationships... I'm living a dream. I've been given this wonderful opportunity that I've been working for for years. I'm grateful for the opportunity in a way that words can't really describe. Admittedly, I've been living dreams (and nightmares in the case of Pioneer and getting laid off etc... but even those held opportunities, friendships, and chances to grow once I got past the negative parts...I suspect Japan will be much the same in that respect) and I plan to continue to chase my dreams, make new ones, and take every opportunity that I can to grow. To change. To make my life better... and by doing so, maybe helping others in small and large ways as well. I just don't necessarily recommend running multiple marathons to prove to yourself that, "Yes. I can do it." Admittedly, I'm probably more dense than most in that particular respect. >_<

Ironically, all you can do in the end, is live. The question is, as it stands right now, are you living well? I guess ultimately, that is a matter of private opinion when it comes to one's own life. Still, I think it is something worth asking.

Birthday Madness - Escape To Alcatraz

It's interesting to come in to work, and find that the man that I've been working under for a week isn't in fact my boss... and that the president of the company is the one I report to......... yeah. So my boss (Honda) assigns me to read a ton of scripts from an Anime series they are doing (actually about 3) and to report back to him with each set I complete. I got through 3/10 of the first series. At least my Japanese reading hasn't gotten as rusty as my pathetic speech abilities. OH and had some adventures with answering the phone at work. I had two different people in the last 2 days tell me that I should start answering the phone along with the rest of the office (usually it's a who can get to the phone first kind of thing). Answering as a rep for the company has had me scared witless, but with two people telling me, it means that it's been noticed, remarked on, and probably gossiped about until it's in my permanent record, so I bit the bullet and answered the phone today... a couple times. One went well.... one not so well. But I'll keep trying.

Left work a little early (and by early I mean like 6) to go celebrate Diana's 21st Bday out in Shibuya in style. My boss invited me off the cuff to go drinking with "a guest" at like 5:45 and I winced to turn him down saying it was my friend's birthday (ruining potential chances for advancement as the rumor goes) but this was worth turning it down for. Met Diana, Alex, and Ayumi at Hachiko (yes the dog statue) in Shibuya and we walked to this macabre jail themed All You Can Eat restaurant called "Alcatraz". We were given a special show by the "Doctor" checking out "What was wrong" with Diana and were escorted to our own little dining cell, complete with Japanese style table, Bars, and a cudgel with which to beat the bars with when ready to order (the waiters and waitresses were dressed like nurses). We promptly stuffed ourselves with such "prison fare" as steak, chicken, pizza, weird lettuce-chicken-egg salad thingies, and GIANT croquette (or korokke as they call it here). The establishment then did their hourly show where they kill the lights and do a special skit. In this one, they had the DJ come out and get the entire establishment... guests and staff ... sing Happy Birthday to Diana. We even got this giant cake with honest-to-god sparklers on it. Rather spectacular. At the 3,000yen price, it was well worth it.

In terms of housing, I think I managed to get to a point where I can get enough money by tomorrow. I have to find a Sumitomo-Mitsui in the vicinity of either my work or the ward office, but with the final 70,000 from the bank (I can actually take it out of my TokyMits account if I get desperate) and 40,ooo from the ATM (after 4) I'll actually have enough to pay for the initial down payment. Who would have thought!

Tomorrow promises to be a heck of a schedule. I have to get to the Shinagawa Ward Office in Oimachi to go finally pick up my Alien Reg card. Get my butt to work to fax it to the Realtor. Get to a bank either prior to or sometime during my working hours to get money out of the bank. Have lunch with a coworker who was nice enough to invite me to do so. Get to 7/11 or a post office after 4P to get money out of the ATM. And then get my butt to Kichijoji to go in to the Realtor to pay and do contract related stuff around 8P or so. An oh yes... work a full day in there somewhere. Can we have 36 hour days please?

Beware of Fine Print

So I got a call about the apartment saying, "We got accepted for the contract. And oh yeah, we each need 300,000yen for the downpayment." Cue me blinking and calculating how much time I need to pull monies from my account. I've only been able to get about 100,000 out of my US account and I've been fighting a pitched battle with BOFA to transfer my money over HERE. Their Safepass site sends me in circles with no f***ing end in site! So I thought I'd get a week to get this together... doable but only just. Until... I'm told today that we need it by "sometime this week" and now it's something like 350,000Yen. *Silent Panic!* Keep in mind that 1 yen is roughly the equivalent of 1cent.... So... considering it takes three days to transfer... I'm screwed. For this to work, I'd have to use all of my salary (about 10,000 is going into my account tomorrow) plus all of the money I have in my second account (ie close it), plus any money I've managed to get from the ATM so far....... Anyone getting the impression that I'm annoyed yet?

I talked with my housemate and we both agreed to try and nail down a deadline that the realtor needs a payment by. I'm praying that it's Friday or Saturday, as that will give me enough time to pull a substantial amount out of my stateside account. This from a country where a landlord can refuse to rent to you just because you a) you look funny, b) you have the wrong color skin/ethnicity/Nationality/or otherwise are some kind of alien, or c) you have really, really bad halitosis. Optimism tells me the ones that refused us were a or c, but I suppose with red hair and green eyes, they may be tipped off with the whole "alien" thing. I guess I shouldn't complain, since my Korean co-worker who has been here since May only just found a place, and I'm told that if I was Korean, Chinese, or Fillipino(a) many of these places wouldn't rent to me at all (one of the only good things about being American in this country).

WHEW! In the meantime, getting in touch with people out here in attempts to not go insane when my friend goes back to school in Hyogo later this week. I'm really digging my coworkers, and there is one in particular that is incredibly friendly. Got to chat with one of the guys that I have a mild attraction to as we left work at the same time. I wish I'd realized I had almonds in my teeth prior to leaving work. Ah well.

Just Another Lazy Sunday

Putzed around Shibuya and managed to procure the "Gaysball" game for Di as a bday present. Somehow managed to find the Hamburg Teishoku place I'd gone to with Miki and Kara in March and was reminded on how good (and cheap!) the place is. Went to Karaoke to escape the impeding rain and then made it to the post office to get money out of my American account (it's a $400 min per day over here) to prep for paying for rent and such.
Managed to replace my shoes which were old marathon shoes and I somehow had managed to walk the rubber off the soles.
Got a message from my housemate that she went and applied for the Ogikubo Apartment yesterday and we got accepted to contact today! Whether that means we got the place or not, I need to check, but it sounds like it!

Grilled Cheese

A pretty low key day. Made Diana and Alex "Honest to God, Down Home American, Grilled Cheese" Sandwiches while showing them Ponyo... both of which they seemed to enjoy.

Had some fun adventures trying to access my American Bank Account and found out we can only withdrawl 40K JPY ($400)/24 hours here... and only from certain convenience stores or post offices..... So I'm going to spend the next couple of days pulling money out of there so that I'll have enough for rent whenever it kicks in. I only hope my bank doesn't throw a hissy fit. I'll call them Monday to make sure they know I'll be in Japan for a while. Anyone know how to transfer cash directly from an American bank to a Japanese one? That kind of info would be really, really helpful at the moment.

Puttered around Harajuku and found many special Engrish shirts. I plan on bringing my camera next time to take pictures. Karaoke, Jonathans for dinner after (they changed their menu, so most of what I like isn't on there at the moment ><), and then hitting up "Kiddieland" which is the local mascot store... that apparently sells sour cream and onion chips *dies of happiness*.

Back to Gotanda to snack on Australian chocolate and chips... yeah I get to go running tomorrow, while watching yet another movie.

Oh wait... it's Friday?

Lost track of what day it was, and had to count in my mind to remember that it's Friday. So I've survived my first week of work in Japan! Day wasn't much to talk about, though I got to know a couple of my co-workers (KY and OM) at lunch. The Frenchman (SB) also was nice enough to grab me a copy of "Metropolis" for me (an english magazine published for foreign residents of Tokyo). I think I might bring him some chocolate from America on Monday in Thanks, as it's coming in handy.

On a side note, finally got a chance to talk with my parents and sister the other day on Skype... and it's somewhat dumbfounding that it made me homesick. Ah well. Things will get better if Yoshie and I can get into the damn apartment in Ogikubo.

House Hunting

Wow. It's been almost a full work week... and so far I've survived. The later workdays (and subsequent late night trip home) is taking a little getting used to, but we'll see how things go when I don't live like 15 minutes from my work place.

My boss (YG) didn't get in until nearly 1:00 today, but luckily I had about 20 pages of script and 15 pages of contract (in legalese...yes it's a foreign language) to edit. Unfortunately he was running around like a chicken with his head cut off, so I got to play the "let's find something to keep me occupied since he's not assigning me anything" game. Apparently it may be more popular in Japan than I reckoned.

Luckily, since I went in at like 8:50, I didn't feel guilty about leaving much earlier than is my wont (5:45ish). Met up with my roomshare buddy, Yoshie, out at Kichijoji. She had the day off and was looking into alternative apartments all day. Apparently her work is dead set against her living in Tsunashima because it's "too far"....... yeah. ANYWHO, we found two really good alternatives and I can't seem to decided. I really like the one out in Mitaka-dai for 116,000en (~1,160 USD) that would allow me to bike to Kichijoji through Inokashira Park... but the rooms are only separated by closets and Yo and I are entirely different schedules. I suspect fuller closets will help buffer the sound. The alternative is in Ogikubo, at 124,000 (~1,240 USD) it's a little bit nicer and closer to the station. But it would be further to the super market and wouldn't go through Inokashira park (I know I know. I LIKE parks!). So I get to think really hard and try to make a decision tonight. On the plus side, if one doesn't work, we can shoot for the other. Unfortunately, we keep running into the "gaijin wall" as I call it, where some landlords aren't willing to lease to foreigners.

Girls Night Out

Finally opened the damn bank account. It took an hour RT to get to Nihonbashi from Ebisu, and another hour to open the account, but I finally got it done. It took a lot of time out of my workday (and I paid for it dearly when I got back), but huzzah! Now I can get paid!

So work went from like NOTHING on Monday, to filming on Tuesday, to a pile of crap on my desk today. Believe it or not, I'm reveling in it. I wish I had time to finish editing the contract I started this morning, but the producer plops a 61 page script on my desk at 1:30 and asks me to give it the once over so it can be done by 4:30 or 5. Whatever they paid the translator, it was too much. I was honest with my opinion that much of it was poorly translated and would take time to edit to be suitable for the English speaking market. I managed to get it done rushing things a bit, and then was given more time to go back through it with a fine tooth comb. If my coworkers haven't noticed my quirk of tunneled vision when I really concentrate on something, I think they may start to from here on out. Unfortunately I can only think in one language at a time, so it is just as well that I'm concentrating too hard to attempt to talk to anyone.

Oh and apparently as the only native English speaker, I've been asked to fix the English on the site.

Needless to say I'm happy as a clam. I may not be if this keeps up for months at a time, but 6 months of unemployment left me frothing at the mouth for work.

Oh! So I got invited by one of my coworkers, Maki, to go drinking with the girls of the office. The Japanese call it nomikai. Needless to say I went, and had a great time despite the fact I couldn't concentrate and was only catching about 50% of the conversation. Also, there is something disconcerting about sitting next to your boss' wife and only being told that at the end of everything. Overall, it was very fun and I got to know some of my coworkers a bit more. I did try Oolong-hai (oolong tea with vodka) after food and a couple of cokes, but alcohol and me just don't work well, so a coworker of mine finished it off for me. No one forced me to drink, so it was a much better experience than I was expecting.

I can't believe the week is half over!

A Looooong Workday

So I got to work this morning to prep for the filming at 6:30...and left at 11:15P. Considering that the station was packed, even at this time of night, it is somewhat terrifying to assume that this kind of work period isn't uncommon. Though I think a couple of them went drinking.

1rst Day of Work - Getting in the Harness

I have thusly survived my first day of work in Japan! Huzzah. I have to admit, while it's hard to work in Japanese all day long (I got there at 9A and left at 7P with no break for lunch...and only left because an hour before the Boss told me that we keep no timecards, so don't burn out). Admittedly the office is really chill. I still have no idea what I'm supposed to be doing, but I'm getting to like my co-workers. I was a little worried at first since the morning contingent is anything but warm, but at 9am, I think I was expecting too much. There are definitely more foreigners in this office than I thought, and that is for the good (though they can talk circles around me. One more thing to work on!). One of my co-workers even used to live in Torrance, so I've had "It's a Small World" going on in my head all day... I really need to charge the iPod. They have me helping the Producer that I sit next to...let's call him YG, who is extremely personable and was in America for a while. He's scattered and really smart at the same time. They have me going in at 6:30/6:45A tomorrow to help with some filming being done at the office... considering that we are supposed to end at like 10:00P... I'm thinking it is going to be a really, really long day. Still, it's better than being unemployed!

So, the pain in the ass factor of it all is that the account I managed to make is NG. So apparently I have to go way the hell out to Nihonbashi (about 30 min train ride from Ebisu) and open an account sometime this week...*grumble*. Means it could delay my cellphone procurement too. I'm half tempted to just keep the first account, open the second with a small deposit, and then get the phone and change the payment card later (when I close the MSB account). But goddammit I wish they had told me that in the first place!

So my Dad was a saint and sent over the 30 lbs of books my work had sent me, plus a bottle of mustard *love*, and about 14 weeks worth checks from Unemployment *FINALLY*... which unfortunately are absolutely worthless here. Japan doesn't use or honor checks. Ah, adventures.

Japan Observation: I know you read about it in books or see it on TV, but it is absolutely mind boggling to experience rush hour (or rasshuji) in Japan. I mean, Men In Black got filmed in the wrong country entirely! It's like a veritable tidal wave of black, meets yet another wall of black... and it's heading straight for you! If nothing else, it makes drinking coffee in the morning rather superfluous. At least 8:30 on the yamanote line going towards Ebisu wasn't crowded at all, so I didn't have to get intimate with someone's sweaty back.

Be It Ever So Humble

So despite our success with two options for housing yesterday, my housemate and I decided to give it one more day. There is a specific train line she wanted to be on, and so we gave it one last shot... and came up with two excellent options for apartments...one of which being a 2 story half of a duplex. Both of which didn't exceed our 120,000Yen budget. So we settled on the apartment we looked at (the duplex was a bit too dark being placed in a bad spot for sunlight) that is something stupid like an 18 minute walk from the station. I don't like the neighborhood as much as I did the two places we looked yesterday, but the 20-30,000 Yen (that's 200-300 USD ) less per month on rent is hard to argue with. Plus, the apartment is more or less exactly what we are looking for, with all flooring (not tatami), kitchen, relatively new, etc etc. If nothing else, I'll be in really great shape biking to and from the station.

Went to Softbank to drop off my rental cell, and decided to wait to get my cell when I get my bank card. Though apparently a lot revolves around me getting the Alien Registration card (apartment, phone, bank account, etc) which is insane when you take into account that the card itself takes two weeks to make. I'll be really relieved when I can stop carrying my passport and this damn piece of paper they gave me in place of the ARcard.

Dinner with a friend and her BF in Shibuya was fun. The hamburg place (Hamburg = bastard version of hamburger with meatloaf. Pretty tasty) was great. Was also able to finally find a local 96 yen (as opposed to 100 yen) shop to pick up household items and $3.50 laundry detergent. Yay laundry!

First day of work tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed.

Lessons Re-learned

So I almost passed out on the train today. I've been eating, but failed to reckon the amount of running around I'd been doing, plus stress on my body from jetlag and being in a foreign country... so when I ran for the train, I made it feeling fine, and then didn't feel too hot at all. Oddly it took a little while, and thankfully I'd realized I'd forgotten my phone and already turned around. But I had a brownout just about when I got to my station. I vaguely remember falling down for a second and getting up, stumbling disoriented to the doors off the train and making it to the wall for the stairs... and then stood there for a few minutes until my vision and senses came back. I don't really remember if anyone came up to try to help me, the benefits of being totally foreign to the local population I guess. Needless to say I headed straight for the convenience store, bought noodles, and proceeded to put more food in my system. I did make it home without incident and managed to contact my friend to let her know what happened, and then put my feet up, passing out asleep for about 45 mins. A lesson previously learned, but brought home with a vengeance. If it happens again, I'll go see a doctor... but my hope is that my lesson has been learned.

Made it to apartment hunting round two, and today was rather more profitable. The areas we looked at were gorgeous, and the apartments somewhat affordable. Some were a little too far away for our taste (uphill...through the snow), but two looked really promising. So they are being held for a few days while we look at other options.

Did some cellphone shopping, and apparently I need a credit card to get a phone here. Luckily I've let my CC company know I'm going to be in Japan for a year, but I might wait to see if my bank card will work too. That'd would be much easier. Looking at the different companies, it looks like my main options are Docomo and Softbank. Of the two, my new housemate is pushing me to get softbank, as you can do free Softbank-softbank calling (any takers as to what she's got?). So we'll see how that turns out. I have to return my rental tomorrow, so hopefully I can get my phone tomorrow or in the next week.

If anyone makes it out to Tama Plaza, there is a really, really good Hawaiian cafe there. I highly recommend the Locomoko, though the Salmon-bagel is really good too.

Oh, and it took 5 days but I FINALLY found the goddamn supermarket. It's organized somewhat oddly and located at the rear of the station... but it's a supermarket. Now I just need to find someplace that sells cheap kitchen supplies and I'm set.

The Bank Boogie

It took running from two different bank branches to two different ward offices in three different locations over a two day period, but I finally opened my damn bank account. Now I get to pray that I can actually get my cash card when they send it. Pity they pigeonholed me into using my temp address rather than the office ><.

Househunting with Yoshie was the typical headache most apartment hunts turn out to be. They guy was nice, but the four places we looked at yesterday were "Not Bad". Not good, but not bad. One would have been perfect if not for the reality of the price *dies*. On the plus side, all of the rooms seem relatively spacious (knock on wood) so it doesn't look like we'll be living in the stereotypical closets with dracula coffins.

Work preview and Hachiko

Finally got to go in and see what T. O. Entertainment looks like. Of course I got horribly lost for half an hour first (damn google maps), but I did manage to find it on my own without help in the end. Needless to say, I think the place is a pretty typical Japanese office (sans the fact that you can wear casual clothing) with various bouts of zany-ness thrown in for good measure. I think they are going to be working me hard (I was only supposed to go in for "30 minutes" and that turned into "3 hours"), but it may actually have some fun to it. Within said first three hours, they had me start watching a movie they are bringing out called "RoboGeisha".......... of which I lasted about halfway through before deciding that my mind couldn't take much more. So I get to watch the rest Monday. Oh and apparently we have a "Shiro Robot" model in the smallest of our meeting rooms. All the people seem pretty quirky, and the boss most of all. They seem to have a similar sense of humor.

Also saw this incredible band called "Johnson's Motorcar" perform out in Ikebukuro. With the violinist from FL, the main singer/guitar from Ireland, and the box drummer a Japanese chick, they were absolutely intriguing. I bought a CD for 10 bucks to hear more of their music, but it's this interesting Irish rock fusion type thing. I'll post the video I took of them once I get i up on Youtube.

Oh, on a side note. It's really freaking humid here. Like ridiculously so. To the point where if I step outside of anything airconditioned for a second, all of my pores open up and it's the great flood all over again, with no olive branch in site. It's a handy way to detox, but makes it somewhat inconvenient if you want to, you know, stand up without taking the chair with you. And it doesn't lessen when it rains. Dah! On the plus side, Firework festivals should be going on over the next couple of weeks. So I'm really, really looking forward to that.

Something amusing today. I went and paid about 20 bucks to see "Hachi" with some friends down in Ikebukuro. The movie itself is an odd mix of deep Japanese story set in the quintessential American family movie. And there is something interesting about having Richard Gere cater to a dog. If you don't want to cry, don't watch it. Come to think of it, don't watch it in a country that doesn't let you blow your nose in public either. That became rather inconvenient. But this movie single handedly moved an entire theater of Japanese people (and a handful of gaijin) to tears... for like 40 minutes. From the sounds of sniffles, I really doubt there was a dry eye in the house.

Ahhh! It's an Alien!

So I was a good lil' gaijin (foreigner or literally outsider for those who don't speak Japanese) and went to register for my "Alien Registration Card" at the local ward office. The trip itself was uneventful, but the woman working at the office had probably worked with stupid gaijin much too much... as she talked slow and methodically, as if I were in kindergarden. Still, it gave me plenty of time to fill out the stack o' paperwork. And we got through a good half a conversation before she dropped the "Nihongo ga jouzu" bomb on me. Much better than having it drop within three seconds of conversing.

Nihongo ga jouzu is literally, "Your Japanese is so good." But the compliment can be somewhat tongue in cheek, as many strangers I've met roll it out within the first three words of speech. Reactions vary, and can ensue in a multitude of amusing stories.

So met up with a friend and explored around before heading back to my place. It was hot and muggy enough that it was getting hard to breathe, so the free AC at my place came in handy.

Had an adventure trying to open a bank account today... as I'd forgotten than all Japanese banks close by goddamn 3:00. So I get to do that, cell phone, and check in work tomorrow. Joy.

Met up with two more friends at Hachiko in Shibuya and grabbed dinner.

The Japanese Wake up call

So if the jet lag hadn't woken me up at 4am (thankfully I'd passed out around 9:30 and so managed to get some sleep), the Earthquake shaking the room for a solid minute and droning whine of the cicada's outside my window would have done the job admirably. I didn't know how much I missed the sound of the cicadas until I heard them, though I suspect I will be thoroughly sick of them by the end of the month.

Spent much of the day in a jet lagged haze. It's incredible what being off of your time zone does to your brain (pretty stars! Pretty, pretty stars!). Probably a good thing I'm not driving.

So if the earthquake weren't welcome enough, we had a typhoon today. It wasn't too bad, just rather... wet. Did you know rain can fall horizontally? And sting? I was reminded as such. Feels like being in a southern thunderstorm without all the fireworks.

So managed to meet up with my cousin and her friends after their abortive climb of Mt. Fuji (I wouldn't want to climb to the top in the middle of a Typhoon either). Her friends are just as insane as she is, and provided much amusement to both me and the ladies serving the mob of us in a random cafe in Ueno. Hearing about some of the "I don't speak English but let me try to communicate anyway" stories should probably get published some day. Somewhat mortifying and hilarious at the same time. Unfortunately it was their last day in Japan on the trip.

Killed some time wandering around Ikebukuro Stn. and then headed to Asakusa to meet up with Diana and her friend, Alex. The three of us reacquainted me with such mundane considerations as "food" (the only thing I'd eaten since the "lunch" meal on the plane was a bun of steam bread and some juice. Jet lag does mean things to my stomach) at a local McDonalds and we headed off for adventures in the city. Aside from getting lost in Ginza for a bit, we did karaoke in Akihabara for a while and that was freaking heaven. It's a little daunting to sing with two people who want to sing/voice act professionally, especially when my voice is shot from lack of sleep and time acclimation, but it was really fun. And they had painted the walls with UV paint so that it looked white until you shine a black light on it, which revealed some incredible artwork all around the room. Needless to say, they still kicked my butt.

Was asleep on my feet so headed back after dinner (Miami Pasta. A really nice pasta place with cakes to die for) and stopped by the mini supermarket next to the station for cheese and sausages. Unfortunately I think it is more of the import store variety as they didn't have such staples as fruit, veggies, and cereal, so I suspect I'll go wandering on an epic quest tomorrow in search of my apples and frosted flakes. Apparently I have a meal date with Johnny and the rest of the guys out at Pioneer Japan.

Plan for tomorrow: Gaijin Card apps, re-entry permit, and insurance.

The Saga Begins

So somehow this search for a job in Tokyo has turned into something that feels akin to fate... but a job's a job, and 6 months down the line after interviewing with a small media company in Ebisu, I finally have achieved my dream of working in Japan.

So despite my inner "be careful what you wish for warning", I find myself now in the middle of a city of some of the strangest people I may ever meet. I think if I wasn't completely sleep deprived, I would be over the moon right now. Unfortunately, travel to Japan necessitates staying up for 24 hours to acclimate to the time difference quicker.