They Got the Computer Store, Too!

 Japan, Japanese Language, Technology  Comments Off on They Got the Computer Store, Too!
Nov 092011
 

We have to submit our resumes for our JBPP class tomorrow, so I need a USB drive. I headed to the computer store to pick one up.

First I stopped at Family Mart, because I was out of food. (Except for rice. I have plenty of rice.) Anyway, then I went to the computer store. As I approached the door, one of the guys who worked there regretted to inform me that the store was closed, because it’s moving.

Ugh. Again? First the bicycle store, now the computer store, too? It’ll probably be a pile of rubble in 4 days.

So I stood in the parking lot and had a think. Where is the best place to find a cheap USB drive? I decided to go to the mall and try Aeon, and lucked out. I found a cheap USB drive for 898 yen. All it has to do is last for a couple of days, to be honest. Then I saw the big sale on the Frixion stuff. Score!

I’ve already burned through one of the ink cartridges in my blue Frixion pen. Aeon had them for 10% off, so I stocked up.

I browsed the book store again, and saw some really cool kanji books, but they’re kind of expensive. Maybe later. They look like kanji kentei prep books. (But really awesome prep books.) Downside: they’re 1000 yen a piece. A little pricey. Yeah, I said the USB drive was cheap at 898, but I was only buying one of those.

I also looked at the Minna no Nihongo books with lustful eyes, because we keep running into stuff from that in class. It’s tempting, but expensive. Maybe I’ll check Book-Off this weekend and see if I can find a used copy of MNN.

I stopped by Subway on the way out, then headed home.

It’s The End of the World. Or It’s Just Wednesday and We Feel Like It.

When I got back, something annoying happened. One thing that kind of irks me about living here is that I’ll randomly hear warning sirens– the same kind that you can hear on the tsunami videos– and I can’t tell if it’s police, fire, ambulance, or just Impending Doom. I heard them again this evening in my apartment, and quickly flipped on NHK, just to make sure I didn’t have to duck, cover, and kiss my butt goodbye. (You never know.)

Of course, as I flipped it on, they were showing a news show about how the tsunami warnings weren’t adequate enough, and in some places, told people that a 3m tsunami wave was coming, when in reality a 10m wave was coming, so people who should have fled, didn’t, and died as a result.

It was interesting, but I never could figure out what those sirens were about.

But I’m glad that they’re examining the whole tsunami warning system.

The discussion on the program about how to convey urgency to people was interesteig. Telling people 非難せよ (ひなんせよ hinanseyo “evacuate!”) instead of 非難してください (ひんしてください hinanshite kudasai “please evacuate”) conveys the proper urgency when a massive wall of water is about to obliterate everything. People may hesitate when they hear a more polite request to “please evactuate” (非難してください) versus the more urgent and less formal “evacuate!” or “get out now!” (非難せよ！)

An Unfortunate Episode in my Life? How About an Exam That Keeps Me From Going to Kyoto?

In other news, it looks like no Kyoto trip this week. Next Thursday we have a conversation test and a composition test. We already have our themes to write about– “An unfortunate episode in my life.” Fun.

There’s no way I’ll be able to swan off to Kyoto for a weekend with that hanging over my head. Nagoya, maybe. But Kyoto? No way.

JBPP is really starting to pay off. All of the little lessons we’re learning are starting to accumulate, albeit slowly, in my brain. I realize I’ll probably have to go over all of this again by myself when I go home, but the info is amazingly useful.

We went over e-mails again today, and while it was difficult, I think I’m slowly starting to get the hang of it. Tonight, I have to finish writing my resume in Japanese. Strangely enough, I’m not too stressed about it. It’s easier than doing it in English, because everyone uses the same general form.

Puttering Around in the Rain

 Japan, Travel  Comments Off on Puttering Around in the Rain
Nov 062011
 

Today was another crappy weather Sunday in Okazaki. No plans to do much of anything, to be honest, except maybe shop for some groceries.

There were supposed to be fireworks tonight, but in this weather, I can’t imagine shooting anything off. Kind of a bummer, because I wanted to see some Japanese fireworks to see how they compare to the fireworks we get in the US.

Well, I needed to go by the bank, get some air in my bike tires, and take care of a little this-n-that.

If I’m honest with myself, a large part of my motivation is getting out of the house.

I stopped by the gas station (ガソリンスタンド gasorin sutando) on the way to Aeon Mall, and the guys there were kind enough to put some air in my bicycle for me. It’s like having a brand new bike. It went up those nasty hills like a dream.

My tires must have been flat or something.

Paying Cash is Painful, and Other Obvious Things

Then off to the post office by the mall for more money. Japan is expensive, especially with the high yen.

Cash economies are painful, but it makes me monitor my spending. If Japan wants to get out of its economic problems, just require every store to take credit cards, and require every citizen to have at least one, or five or six. That would fix that spending problem in a hurry.

Paying cash always hurts a little more than just handing over the card. (Maybe it’s because you get card back.)

Lost in the Mall Again

With plump tires, I headed over to Aeon mall. I stopped by the book store there for a couple of things: first, Kyoto/Nara travel guides. I want to find some prime leaf viewing areas. Next, I was looking for some good Japanese language study books. Not so much textbooks as reference books. I’m always looking for those. No luck. Finally, I’m always on the hunt for a decent book cover. No dice.

After that, I headed to Aeon, to pick up a couple of extra erasable pens and a couple of extra notebooks, because I tend to go through both quickly. I’m going to send any extras home, because I like the Japanese notebooks a lot.

Then I got lost in Aeon on the 1st floor again. There’s stuff and random shops everywhere inside the store, and I can never seem to get my bearings. Ugh. And it’s Sunday, so it’s jam-packed. I spent 15 minutes trying to find an exit. Scary.

When I finally found the exit to the mall, I headed to Subway. Yes, Subway. They have one right in Aeon Mall. And I was proud of myself, because I ordered a sub without any problems at all. A sub has a lot of parts to it, and I didn’t have any trouble rattling it all off in Japanese.

So if nothing else, spending all of this money on this trip will have taught me how to order food.

As I left, it started raining, so I punched out on the rest of my trip. Anything else I need, I’ll pick up after school tomorrow at Domy. I don’t like getting wet, and Japan is full of wet these days.

Plates, Pens, and Tonkatsu. Must Be Aeon Mall!

 Japan, Travel  Comments Off on Plates, Pens, and Tonkatsu. Must Be Aeon Mall!
Oct 232011
 

It’s Sunday, and it’s time for more shopping. (Is this a shopping blog or something?)

Well, I went back to Aeon Mall to get some supplies and dinner as well.

First I went to Aeon, which, by the way, is a confusing store at first. When I enter the first level, it always take me a few minutes to figure out my bearings, because the first floor is part grocery store, part drug store, part department store, and Mr. Donut (which the kids call “MisuDo.”)

See what I mean? It’s confusing!

I grabbed the escalator, and made it to the second floor, then the third, where the kitchen stuff is. I needed a few bowls and plates, because I decided it would be slightly nicer than eating off of plastic wrappers and plastic trays.

Plates are civilized.

I bought some cheap ones, then headed over to get some ink for my Frixion pens, and some extra paper.

I like the Frixion pens, because they erase really easily. Everyone in class uses them, and swears by them. When you heat up the ink with the silicone eraser, the ink turns invisible. I guess the heat switches the dye off? Better not leave my notes on the dashboard of a car!

I’ll take my chances for now.

After that, I wandered around the mall a bit, and headed to the book store, Miraiyashoten. This time, I bought some Kyoto travel guides. I want to go when the leaves are nice and red! These magazines will hopefully show me the good sites.

I did a lot of browsing there. I could drop a large amount of money in a Japanese bookstore.

But I restrained myself this time.

I went down to the food court and started looking for a restaurant, since it was close to dinnertime. I found Saboten, which specializes in Tonkatsu, one of my favorite dishes. So I had a Tonkatsu set and a Coke, and chowed down. That was good stuff.

After dinner, I wobbled on home on my bike. I stopped off at the big main post office to get some money. Nice that’s it’s still open at 6:30 p.m. on a Saturday. In the US, this is not a big deal. Here, it’s really nice. It’s so hard to tell if I’m going to be able to get money when I go to the post office. I suppose I should write the hours down somewhere, but that sounds too much like work. I’ve got plenty of that to do for class!

Mall-ed on a Saturday

 Japan, Photography, Photos, Travel  Comments Off on Mall-ed on a Saturday
Oct 152011
 

I was going to go to Nagoya today for the big festival, but it was cancelled due to rain. They’ll just do everything tomorrow, when the weather is better.

I eventually started going stir crazy, so I went to the mall today for the first time since I came back to Okazaki.

I decided to walk, since it was raining off and on, and I didn’t want to mess with the bicycle.

On the way out, I was greeted by a somewhat unsettlingly large mass of birds near the apartments.

The Birds! (Wide shot)

The Birds!

Then I headed to Aeon Mall. It takes a while to get there on foot.

When I got to the mall, I went by Aeon to buy some ink, paper, erasers, notebooks, and stuff like that. Then I wandered around a bit and checked out the bookstore. It’s big, but I couldn’t find what I wanted. (I’m always on the lookout for grammar or JLPT books.)

The mall has a huge selection of restaurants on the bottom floor. I’ll have to check some of those out when I have time… hey! A Subway! Okay, that’s pretty American of me to notice the Subway, but it’s been 2 weeks now since I’ve had anthing from my home country. Maybe next time I pass through here, I’ll pick up a sub.

I headed over to the bookstore on the way to the mall. It’s along the main highway. It’s small, but it has a pretty good manga section, and I was running out, so I reloaded on some new tankoubons to read.

Then back home to dry off.

On the way back, I saw this church:

Church at Night

Okay, it’s blurry, but it was kind of cool how the cross lit up the night.

Tomorrow it’s the Nagoya parades, weather permitting.

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