I want a car.
Here's the van I rented...
... and here's what we filled it with!
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Driving in Tokyo ROCKS!!!
So, today I rented a van and drove it around Tokyo, moving house! The moving was pretty hard work but driving the van around Tokyo was TOTALLY AWESOME. Such an amazing feeling of freedom, with the a/c cranked to max, cruising arond... jesus... it was awesome.
I want a car.
Here's the van I rented...
... and here's what we filled it with!
I want a car.
Here's the van I rented...
... and here's what we filled it with!
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Moving out
Well, I'm finally moving out of this guesthouse and into more permanent accommodation, namely, the aforementioned 2LDK in Nakano-ko, 5 stops from Shinjuku. Should be good! I've just finished packing and, luckily, I haven't accumulated much more stuff than I arrived with, save for some speakers, a laptop, a keyboard... but they're all boxable so no wuzzas mate.
The room certainly looks empty, with, well, practically nothing in it. Still, I couldn't be happier!
Next stage, next dream!
The room certainly looks empty, with, well, practically nothing in it. Still, I couldn't be happier!
Next stage, next dream!
Friday, June 22, 2007
Photos from last night's Karaoke and drunken partying
A selection has been made for your enjoyment :)
Karaoke pictures! Me, Takako, Vince, Catherine, and Lance.
Quite shitfaced by the end of it, I got carried through Ikebukuro... Vince was far worse though.
Vince then got so drunk at home that he went crazy. Destroying the house etc. When he wrestled me...
... I took him down...
...and we carried him into his room.
Get in there you drunken lunatic!
Karaoke pictures! Me, Takako, Vince, Catherine, and Lance.
Quite shitfaced by the end of it, I got carried through Ikebukuro... Vince was far worse though.
Vince then got so drunk at home that he went crazy. Destroying the house etc. When he wrestled me...
... I took him down...
...and we carried him into his room.
Get in there you drunken lunatic!
omfg wtf vince!!!
Thanks Vince, for last night getting so destructively drunk that you set fire to the flyscreens and then released two powder fire extinguishers in the doorway of our place. Even my laptop keys are covered with the shit. Further thanks for not cleaning it up despite being in our now-blanketed-in-pink place all day.
Sunday, June 17, 2007
What's new these days
Well, I realised I haven't updated my blog with any of my recent happenings lately, so I thought I'd give a bit of a rundown of the latest.
First and foremost, I am moving out! My contract at this guesthouse expires on the 30th of June, giving me 13 more days here. Yesterday was spent looking at apartments with my friend Takako, and after a lot of anxiety and decision-making inability on her part, she finally agreed that moving out with me would be a good idea. Yesterday we found a great 2DK in a place called Hounancho, only 5 stops from Shinjuku, for ¥135,000 (AU$1350) a month. Obviously divide that by two, and then add the cost of utilities (which, hopefully, won't be all THAT much) and I am paying only about $30 a week extra than I am here. The size of the place is amazing though - compare this: Current room in guesthouse = 9 sq. metres (plus shared kitchen, bathroom etc.). New place = 60 sq. metres! And only sharing with one other person. Suh-weet. The only unfortunate thing is the difficulty asosciated with renting an apartment in Japan. While we got one without the usual "key money" (literally a "gift" of 1 month's rent to the owner just for good faith), the fee for the real estate agency is also 1 month's rent. In other words, to move in we have to pay, in total, $1350 (fee), $1350 (first month's rent), plus compulsory insurance and lock-changing fee (about $300), plus Takako, having more savings than me, has to pay $2700 as a deposit, and even if at the end of the contract the place is in perfect condition, all of that is guaranteed NOT to come back. Then comes the cost of furniture (fridge, washing machine (which can be gotten cheaply second hand), curtains, etc. (the place is unfurnished)). So, yes, it's a bit of an exercise, but overall I think it's pretty good. It certainly beats "guesthouse" living, not only in that one's own apartment is much larger, but also the feeling of it is a lot more permanent, unlike the notorious "temporary housing" feeling one gets from living in "temporary housing" such as a guesthouse. Furthermore, Jose (my now former housemate) moved into another guesthouse not far from here, is paying $50 a month more for ANOTHER basement room that STINKS, is DIRTY, and quite a bit smaller. I think a 60 sq. metre two-bedroom apartment near Shinjuku is way, way, way better.
Otherwise, things are going on as usual. Work is still the same except these days I have Thursdays completely off, due to the only students I have on Thursdays having gone back to Korea (they are Korean) for the duration of the Summer. Occasionally I might have some work to do (for instance, this week I had to make audio-books of a selection of children's picture books for the kids to use while they read so they can hear correct pronunciation), but at least I get to stay at home to do it. Certainly beats the fifty minute train ride (including two transfers) it takes to get to work. Not that I have to pay for it (Japanese companies most often pay for the transport of their employees), but the hassle of it is something that isn't missed on a day off.
Today I went to Harajuku, home of Yoyogi Park and the Meiji Shrine and met my friend Saori from Nagoya. Jose came as well and we wandered around, past all the transvestites, girls dressed up lolita style, goths, people holding "free hugs" signs (one was a cute girl, but she was dressed in some kind of bright green and hooded superhero tracksuit), headbangers, rockabillies, Jamaicans with drums, unicyclists, rockers... you name it, Harajuku has got them. Feel free to add to that list if you can think of any other genres commonly seen at that park.
Actually, I thought of a perfect way to meet girls in Yoyogi park. All you have to do is get a little and extremely cute dog. A poodle, a chihuahua, or (like we saw today), a litter of SEVEN baby Dachsunds, anything will do. And then walk them through the park. You will need some kind of hyperchronic counting mechanism to count the number of times girls will approach you and say how "kawaii!!!" (cute) your dog is, thus opening the door for whatever brand of "nanpa" (err.. 'pick up lines'?) you want to employ. Being foreign is usually a good nanpa in itself (although admittedly, it only attracts a certain type of girl), however, a foreigner who can speak Japanese well enough to at least SOUND fluent increases its potency tenfold.
Anyhow, that's about all for "happenings". The house is slowly becoming empty with more and more of us leaving, which is actually a bit sad. Oh well, better things await. However, I fear I will be a bit put out with all the moving business, and having to spend a fair bit of money on the move and acquisition of furniture. Happily, I remembered recently that it is tax time in Australia and so I must get on to my former employees and get them to forward my group certificates. Should get a fair bit out of that, which would help enormously.
Otherwise, life continues. The weather has become hot (20 degrees at night, over 26 during the day) and shorts are now my uniform. Lovin' it. Apparently tsuyu (rainy season) is about to start and so I'd better get ready for a month of constant, heatstroke-inducing humidity and twenty-four hour rain. Thank god for air conditioners.
With that, I sign out. Oh wait, actually, with THIS I sign out:
My housemate, Vince, has a giant haemorrhoid that he describes (among other things) as "an anal dumpling". Enjoy that image, the lot of you.
First and foremost, I am moving out! My contract at this guesthouse expires on the 30th of June, giving me 13 more days here. Yesterday was spent looking at apartments with my friend Takako, and after a lot of anxiety and decision-making inability on her part, she finally agreed that moving out with me would be a good idea. Yesterday we found a great 2DK in a place called Hounancho, only 5 stops from Shinjuku, for ¥135,000 (AU$1350) a month. Obviously divide that by two, and then add the cost of utilities (which, hopefully, won't be all THAT much) and I am paying only about $30 a week extra than I am here. The size of the place is amazing though - compare this: Current room in guesthouse = 9 sq. metres (plus shared kitchen, bathroom etc.). New place = 60 sq. metres! And only sharing with one other person. Suh-weet. The only unfortunate thing is the difficulty asosciated with renting an apartment in Japan. While we got one without the usual "key money" (literally a "gift" of 1 month's rent to the owner just for good faith), the fee for the real estate agency is also 1 month's rent. In other words, to move in we have to pay, in total, $1350 (fee), $1350 (first month's rent), plus compulsory insurance and lock-changing fee (about $300), plus Takako, having more savings than me, has to pay $2700 as a deposit, and even if at the end of the contract the place is in perfect condition, all of that is guaranteed NOT to come back. Then comes the cost of furniture (fridge, washing machine (which can be gotten cheaply second hand), curtains, etc. (the place is unfurnished)). So, yes, it's a bit of an exercise, but overall I think it's pretty good. It certainly beats "guesthouse" living, not only in that one's own apartment is much larger, but also the feeling of it is a lot more permanent, unlike the notorious "temporary housing" feeling one gets from living in "temporary housing" such as a guesthouse. Furthermore, Jose (my now former housemate) moved into another guesthouse not far from here, is paying $50 a month more for ANOTHER basement room that STINKS, is DIRTY, and quite a bit smaller. I think a 60 sq. metre two-bedroom apartment near Shinjuku is way, way, way better.
Otherwise, things are going on as usual. Work is still the same except these days I have Thursdays completely off, due to the only students I have on Thursdays having gone back to Korea (they are Korean) for the duration of the Summer. Occasionally I might have some work to do (for instance, this week I had to make audio-books of a selection of children's picture books for the kids to use while they read so they can hear correct pronunciation), but at least I get to stay at home to do it. Certainly beats the fifty minute train ride (including two transfers) it takes to get to work. Not that I have to pay for it (Japanese companies most often pay for the transport of their employees), but the hassle of it is something that isn't missed on a day off.
Today I went to Harajuku, home of Yoyogi Park and the Meiji Shrine and met my friend Saori from Nagoya. Jose came as well and we wandered around, past all the transvestites, girls dressed up lolita style, goths, people holding "free hugs" signs (one was a cute girl, but she was dressed in some kind of bright green and hooded superhero tracksuit), headbangers, rockabillies, Jamaicans with drums, unicyclists, rockers... you name it, Harajuku has got them. Feel free to add to that list if you can think of any other genres commonly seen at that park.
Actually, I thought of a perfect way to meet girls in Yoyogi park. All you have to do is get a little and extremely cute dog. A poodle, a chihuahua, or (like we saw today), a litter of SEVEN baby Dachsunds, anything will do. And then walk them through the park. You will need some kind of hyperchronic counting mechanism to count the number of times girls will approach you and say how "kawaii!!!" (cute) your dog is, thus opening the door for whatever brand of "nanpa" (err.. 'pick up lines'?) you want to employ. Being foreign is usually a good nanpa in itself (although admittedly, it only attracts a certain type of girl), however, a foreigner who can speak Japanese well enough to at least SOUND fluent increases its potency tenfold.
Anyhow, that's about all for "happenings". The house is slowly becoming empty with more and more of us leaving, which is actually a bit sad. Oh well, better things await. However, I fear I will be a bit put out with all the moving business, and having to spend a fair bit of money on the move and acquisition of furniture. Happily, I remembered recently that it is tax time in Australia and so I must get on to my former employees and get them to forward my group certificates. Should get a fair bit out of that, which would help enormously.
Otherwise, life continues. The weather has become hot (20 degrees at night, over 26 during the day) and shorts are now my uniform. Lovin' it. Apparently tsuyu (rainy season) is about to start and so I'd better get ready for a month of constant, heatstroke-inducing humidity and twenty-four hour rain. Thank god for air conditioners.
With that, I sign out. Oh wait, actually, with THIS I sign out:
My housemate, Vince, has a giant haemorrhoid that he describes (among other things) as "an anal dumpling". Enjoy that image, the lot of you.
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
What home schooling does to you
Seems that homeschooling really does make kids into complete social retards, as perfectly demonstrated by the winner of the American National Spelling Bee in his interview on some American morning show...
Scombridae? I thought you said Scom-BU-dae...
Scombridae? I thought you said Scom-BU-dae...
Sunday, June 03, 2007
Fun with GarageBand
So, I spent the afternoon making a song with my new piece-o'-crap keyboard. It's not really polished or anything, but when I put in the lyrics (first time for me, since I never used a program that could record audio) I decided that it HAD to go up here.
Enjoy!
Enjoy!
I'm back, baby!!
Went to Ochanomizu today and spent 9800 yens (AU$98) on a little 49-key midi controller today. Finally the drought is over and I can get back to making music! It is a happy day today :)
Saturday, June 02, 2007
Fun times in the shaky country...
Today, this happened while i was in bed :-
It's funny, earthquakes. I mean, I was just lying there (I know it was 2:43pm but come on! I didn't get home till 6am!) and all of a sudden it feels like the bed has just dropped about 5cm and then started shaking.
My housemates didn't even notice though... Weird.
June 2 (Bloomberg) -- A magnitude 4.6 earthquake shook buildings in Tokyo at 2:43 p.m. local time today. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
It's funny, earthquakes. I mean, I was just lying there (I know it was 2:43pm but come on! I didn't get home till 6am!) and all of a sudden it feels like the bed has just dropped about 5cm and then started shaking.
My housemates didn't even notice though... Weird.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Vince's 19th Birthday
Hi everyone!
So, last Saturday was Vince's 19th Birthday. To celebrate, we all went out to 2 hours of all-you-can-drink karaoke and then spent the rest of the night in an 80's nightclub called Castillo's, in Roppongi. It was a great night - I was more drunk than ever! Unfortunately Vince's camera broke half way through the night so all we get to see are some pictures of karaoke. Nevertheless, here they are, commemorated on this blog forever. Enjoy!
Before karaoke. Takako, Me, Jose's friend Takashi and Jose.
The group at karaoke.
Me, Takako, Jose and Takashi again. I think I am singing Eternal Flame.
The group again. We had a huge karaoke room!
Takako, Me and Vince's Canadian friend Keith, getting a bit friendly!
After karaoke!
After karaoke, again! That's Vince with the big pink turd on his head.
So, last Saturday was Vince's 19th Birthday. To celebrate, we all went out to 2 hours of all-you-can-drink karaoke and then spent the rest of the night in an 80's nightclub called Castillo's, in Roppongi. It was a great night - I was more drunk than ever! Unfortunately Vince's camera broke half way through the night so all we get to see are some pictures of karaoke. Nevertheless, here they are, commemorated on this blog forever. Enjoy!
Before karaoke. Takako, Me, Jose's friend Takashi and Jose.
The group at karaoke.
Me, Takako, Jose and Takashi again. I think I am singing Eternal Flame.
The group again. We had a huge karaoke room!
Takako, Me and Vince's Canadian friend Keith, getting a bit friendly!
After karaoke!
After karaoke, again! That's Vince with the big pink turd on his head.
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Vince's prank on Jose
1. Lay plastic door-frame pieces against Jose's door.
2. Open some umbrellas, place accordingly.
3. Move air filter, fire extinguisher and chair into somewhat annoying positions.
4. Wait until Jose wakes up.
5. Wet pants.
2. Open some umbrellas, place accordingly.
3. Move air filter, fire extinguisher and chair into somewhat annoying positions.
4. Wait until Jose wakes up.
5. Wet pants.
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Eating the forbidden fish...
I managed to find an izakaya today that served whale sashimi! Honestly though, it didn't taste any different to other kinds of sashimi, except maybe it was a little oilier. And I guess it's a bit darker. What a rip off though - 5 slices for 900 yen! I mean come on whales are HUGE!
Friday, May 18, 2007
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Word of the day
pimpnicity, as in:
The key to being a pimp, is knowing that you are a pimp. When you question your pimpnicity, others will too.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Some Purikura and stuff
Went out last night with Jose and two girls, Satomi and Kahori. We went bowling and Satomi DESTROYED us all with a score of 160. Christ!
Anyway we took Purikura and the machine had an option to send them to mobile phones. So, here they are!
Also we went to an Izakaya for a delicious dinner, and then to karaoke!
Also, Happy Mother's day, everyone.
Anyway we took Purikura and the machine had an option to send them to mobile phones. So, here they are!
Also we went to an Izakaya for a delicious dinner, and then to karaoke!
Also, Happy Mother's day, everyone.
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Thoughts on women
In my job I encounter a lot of women: mothers, in particular. While their husbands are off slaving away (and yes, this is Japan so I literally mean slaving) at the office, these mothers have the arguably unenviable task of looking after their little sprogs. And it is through repeated meetings with these women that I come to this conclusion: Women (particularly Japanese women) over 30 quite literally turn into baby-making factories.
I know it sounds obvious but oh my god! It seems every week one of them has a new one. They come in carrying their expressionless offspring bundled up in some kind of baby-carrying sling around their shoulders, mopping up their dribble and telling them to stop screaming. It`s kind of funny I guess, maybe it`s from coming from Australia, but the penchant for literally giving up work for a good 6-8 years to raise children seems to be rife here. Women just turn into housewives and stay that way for what seems like bloody ages. Then they get a part time job, or something.
No wonder Japan`s population is so god damn large. It`s because seemingly every woman can just drop everything and queef out a couple of babies. Not only can they, but when they get to 30, they feel socially compelled to! Amazing.
Anyway I`ve ranted enough.. This wasn`t nearly as interesting as I thought it was going to be. Sorry, sports fans.
I know it sounds obvious but oh my god! It seems every week one of them has a new one. They come in carrying their expressionless offspring bundled up in some kind of baby-carrying sling around their shoulders, mopping up their dribble and telling them to stop screaming. It`s kind of funny I guess, maybe it`s from coming from Australia, but the penchant for literally giving up work for a good 6-8 years to raise children seems to be rife here. Women just turn into housewives and stay that way for what seems like bloody ages. Then they get a part time job, or something.
No wonder Japan`s population is so god damn large. It`s because seemingly every woman can just drop everything and queef out a couple of babies. Not only can they, but when they get to 30, they feel socially compelled to! Amazing.
Anyway I`ve ranted enough.. This wasn`t nearly as interesting as I thought it was going to be. Sorry, sports fans.
Monday, May 07, 2007
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