Japan For a Bit

Videos from HK

2007-12-05T16:22:00.000+09:00

No no I'm not selling you cheap DVDs, but these are three of my dumb videos from HK. My humor, as always, needs help, but at least you get a little feel for my time there. Still working on an update worthy of posting.

I have arrived. It's Hot.

Archetecture Porn.

A riviting expose`. Or something.

Hey, I'm not dead!

2007-11-14T12:19:00.001+09:00

Hey Everyone! I et your wondering where I have been. Sorry I have been derilict with this blog, but trust me things have been busy. Let's get the ball running with a little update, and soon I hope to post some pictures. BTW thanks Rosa and Alan for hanging on and checking back.

So yeah, what has gone on since May? Well, I'm still in Japan for one thing, and will stay until August 2008. I'm also returning home for Christmas, which will be nice. I did some canyoning and rafting over the summer. In August 07 I traveled to Thailand. I need to post pictures of that. There I road an Elephant, hung out on a really nice beach, and saw some incredible temples. I also ate a lot of curry.

This year as school has been going very well. I've spent a lot of time running in and out of Tokyo for fun and Mito for both fun and work. Recently I went to a couple College Fairs which were interesting.

This Friday I head out to Hong Kong and Taiwan to see a friend and to do some sight seeing. I'm excited but at the same time it hasn't hit me that I am going yet since I still have to travel to Mito to work on getting my driver's liceance again. Don't ask how many times I have taken this test now, it's embaressing.

Hey, check out www.freerice.com, it's an interesting sight that donates rice while expanding your vocabulary. If you know me, you know that I enjoy myself some vocab. So check it out and pass it along.

So yeah, Mito tonight and tomorrow morning, Indoor rock climbing tomorrow night, then Friday I am off. So things are quite well. I recently cleaned my apartment a little, so it no longer looks like a clothing bomb hit it.

Okay, I've touched on quite a bit of randomness, so let me end by saying thanks for still checking this, and I will get some pictures up on here come late November/early December.

Time blows by, huh?

2007-05-09T13:08:00.000+09:00

Okay so I have not posted in like 3 months. Big deal, I don't even think humans read this anymore, only tracker robots. So anyways, GOlden week in review.

Tom, Bob, Mike, Brad and Corbo (Nick) came to Japan. We spent their first night in Koga, dining on the local faire. Satureday and Sunday were spent touring Tokyo's shrines, wards and clubs. Good times. We headed for Kansai on Monday, opting for a day in Nara and the night in Osaka. We had a hotel in Shin Osaka, which worked out quite nicely. Tuesday was Hiroshima and Miajima (sp?) Shrine. Good times. The Peace park and the O tori were really great. Very interesting food for thought.

Wendsday and Thursday were spent in Kyoto. The buses and trains of Kyoto are crowded to say the least. Still, a lot of fun.

Friday we headed back towards Tokyo for another weekend of discovery in the premeire city of Japan. We stayed at the Prince Hotel in Shinjuku. It was okay, not nearly as nice as the Cerulian in Shibuya. But hey, I am not going to complain.

On Sunday we all came back to Koga for a night, and on Monday morning the guys came with me to School at Sanwa. It was a lot of fun. The kids loved it, as did my friends.

Tuesday was a meeting in Mito. Nothing too crazy.

Here we are now on Wendsday, and I had one class today. I'll hit up Tokyo for a little while tonight.

All is well. Hope you are good.

Mini Update

2007-02-14T08:59:00.000+09:00

Feb. 2nd: Started running with the track club of my new Friday school. Ran to the river/hill area. Ran probobly 12 or 13k, longest I have gone in a while. Watched the sunset in back of Mt. Fuji, from freaking KOGA. First time I have caught this, and it was while I was having an amazing run. Kick ass.

Decided to walk a different way home today from the train station. Found an indie coffee shop run by dudes my age that opened up 3 months ago. Totally kick ass place, great atmosphere, probobly going to spend a lot of time here. They gave me a free dessert after I jammed with them for a while about NY. Kick ass.

Bought a pair of Red Converse's. Kick ass.

Bought amazing sake for super cheap. Kick ass.

Bought Peanut Butter with the help of my friend's cute Japanese wife, who now wants me to meet her (supposedly) even cuter friends at their Wedding party. Kick ass.

Good Day? I think so.

I love Japan.

2006 Recap aka Enough Already

2007-01-05T12:44:00.000+09:00

Warning: The following blog contains inappropriate language, sappy memories, emotional pandering, stupid abscure in-jokes and has been writen before I drank my morning green tea. Read at your own risk.

So let me preface this with the thought that 2006-2007 wishes and promises and ect. Are sort of lame. People reaffirm their dreams, hopes and ambitions in a drunken haze on New Years and then promptly send them to the background come the next week. Whatever. So here is my compromise; I will expound a diatribe of the year just hence through the contoured lens that is yours truly, and I shall fill it to bursting with emotion, memories and hope. I will however stave off the vice of “promises and goals for the new year” which similar editorials tend to embrace. Let us now embark from the harbor and sound the fog horn; this one is about to get going.

So 2007. Sucks to be you 2007, simply because you have a shit ton to live up to. I will not lie, 2006 has been a banner year for Rick Inc. This is mainly because it is the year we “went international with it.” Aside from a haphazard cannon ball run into Canada a few years ago, I have never been outside the country. I mean Canada for one day doesn’t really seem to count if you ask me. I’m not even sure if I was sober for most of it. I didn’t even have a passport. I mean c’mon.

This year was different though. If I remember correctly (which I probably don’t, I am thinking back 2 years, not 1 probably, I will correct this once back home…) I rang it in with the O Side squad last year in Ocean Side complete with Corbo nuttiness and everyone wasted. I think. I have to look back into my picture archive, which is absent at the moment. But in either event 2006 ended in Jersey with Corbo, Brad, Way, Brick, Sarah and a whole host of others. It was good. Granted I was sick and pounding OJ and water, instead of beer and Jack Daniels, but who cares? Good people make the night, not drinks. Though the pimp ass Corbo Sempai whipping out the Dom is always makes for a nice treat.

But anyway, this year was sort of marked by my travels. I did a lot of moving around, seeing different people, and growing. I flew into DC to see Merri, where I found out I got into the Jet Program. I was in NYC a crap load of times with various members of the Core 4. I went to Europe with Craig for 2 weeks and saw London, Paris, Interlaken, Munich, and Prague. At the end of July I flew to Japan, and in December I flew to San Fran, then to New York again to ring in the New Year, only to find myself typing again at my cluttered desk in Sanwa, Japan. I know many of us are from different walks of life; to some of us international travel is something that has become second nature and barely noticable. For some of us just getting out of America seems like a fantasy in and of itself. For me it was the later, and I am really happy about finally doing it.

Other things happened this year. I put some solid nails in coffins with old relationships. I discovered new relationships and new people I never thought I would. 1 year ago if you told me I’d be sitting in the back of a small go-cart sized car blazing down the streets of a small farm town in Japan while listening as two African dudes chant along with tribal music from their home land I would probably just look at you weird or ask you to stop smoking shit before you talk to me. Still, this has become my reality. It is not uncommon for me to be in a room with people from France, Scotland, England, Canada, Germany, Japan and various places in the states arguing over “should Dan pour cereal in is mouth, then milk, then do some cartwheels and see how it tastes?”

This year is the first time where I have truly lived on my own as well. I have my own apartment here in Japan, and aside from it being a mess sometimes, I get by. I pay rent, conserve water, separate trash and do my own laundry. Again, for some of you this has been the norm since you left for college, but for me it was a first doing these all on my own, which is pretty cool. I really truly feel in control of every aspect of my life now. It’s an odd power over one’s self that leads to the actualization of the idea that I can in fact do anything…….

Wear a Santa Clause/Easter Bunny/Hippie costume to work? Check. Assist Japanese cheerleaders in a cheer in front of hundreds of people? Check. Bike up the Swiss Alps? Check. Eat ramen and Gyudon back to back nights? Check. Spend a whole day cleaning? Check. Spend an entire day playing Final Fantasy? Check. Jump off the fourth floor of a building into a chute? Check. Eat French food in an open air café facing the Arc De Triumph? Check. Have multi-millionaires hang on my every word? Check. Get wasted with a grand master of an ancient martial art after training under him? Check. Doing a pub crawl with two Canadian twins, one of which plays professional hockey, only to see them bloodied up the next morning in a German laundry-o-mat? Check. Chase a girl from a boat side hostel in Prague to an Airport in San Francisco? Check. Watch as friends become mothers, fathers, husbands, wives and fiancés? Check. Watch as my friends succeed, fail, strive, cry, laugh, fight, help, hurt, find love and get heart broken all while being there with them and experiencing all of the above? Check.

These are only a small sample of things I can conjure at the moment. It’s a bunch of pieces to the story that has made up this last year, and it was a sweet one. I’m glad I wrote a good portion of it down too, because it’s going to make a hell of a read when I am somewhere older wondering where all the time went. It’s hard to imagine that in the space of 365 days the world as you know it can change dramatically without the assistance of a war, a famine or any of the like. Its mind boggling to think that it all happened with steps I made in the sand of this world.

It would also be total bull shit if I said I did any of it alone. Along the way family, friends, co-workers, rivals, and random individuals helped me on this path. I’d have never made it through Europe, nor do I think I would have gone without Craig. I might have given up my dream of it if wasn’t for the inspiration from Karen and the kind words of Nick and Brad. All of my music would suck instead of just half and my weekends would have been pointless without Tom, Bob and Mike. How could I be brave enough to go on my own and have the confidence, pride and smarts to make it happen without my parents? I couldn’t laugh through the tough days without mom and I couldn’t walk nearly as tall without watching my dad do it every day. How could I feel wise without a younger sister to advise and torture? How could I distill it all and reminisce without Coach and Kirk and Chaz-bot? Who would read all of my stupid short stories if it weren’t for those poor people at Maharam? Who would read this if it weren’t for you?

There are too many names and too many people to even try to list, but thank you. I’m sure if your reading this then you and I probably had a moment somewhere in the last 365 days too. Thanks for that, because it’s made the journey all the more interesting.
Thanks to any of you reading this, because you made these little crazy moments in my life worth writing about. Also thank you pre-emptively, because I know we are going to have some fun times in the future too.
So thank you 2006 for being totally kick ass. Maybe you had a good year too. Maybe yours sucked the big one, and it got baloomped all over. Anyway it went I want you to join me in kicking 2007’s ass. Who knows where we are going to go. Who knows who we are going to meet? Who knows the new things we are going to do. Jeez I am writing this crap and I am getting excited. I feel like it’s the upbeat ending monologue to a season finale of the Rick Show, where all sorts of plot threads get finished up and some are just starting. It doesn’t matter though because there is definitely going to be a season two. So lets end this sappy mess right here, because I think you get the gist. (Gist reminds me of the word zeitgeist, because that word is fun and sexy to use in a sentence. Impress your friends with this new word!) So yeah, tune in next time for the next exciting episode of Rick. I promise there will be plenty of fan service.

2006-11-07T22:12:00.000+09:00

Oh wow, I am still alive. Yes, this last month has gone by at sonic speeds. The weekdays are full of school, and the weekends have been jam packed. So why not throw a whole bunch of pictures at you? Sure, sounds good to me. Enjoy....

I hate cute rabbits. Taken at the Tokyo Museam of Modern Art. So postmodern it hurts. Okay okay, I just wanted to use the word postmodern. Because I am pretencious. Moving right along...

The end of an era. I was lucky enough to catch this guy losing his bachlor card. Poor guy, I mean seriously, this girl has horrible taste in hats and he is still going for it. More power to you bro.

Note the sheer composite that this situation represents. You have an ancient temple/shrine whatever, and semi-religous relics are availible for purchase through this shrine maiden, obviously a serious, time honored tradition that has not changed for hundreds of years. Until she whiped out the Dell flat screen and fired up Windows or Linux to process my order. So much for tradition. At least she looks the part.

School Time! The festival at Koga 1st High School resulted in me going into each classroom and well.. acting like an idiot. So this of course resulted in a lot of fun. School girls love pictures on their camera phones. They took some. I took some. Everyone was happy.

More school girls. I actually took this picture a while ago, but I taught their class today. I sang the Fugees "Killing Me Softly" while they filled in the words. This is my job. They give me money to do this.

Taken at the Festival again. I was taking pictures of the randomness, and of course the girls spotted me. Obligitory school girls shot. Promise its the last one.

This dude was the acting pimp in the bar the kids set up. He basically acted like a ganster the whole time. He of course is a cool kid, so I posed with him at the crazy festival. That or he would beat me up. I ask no questions.

Okay, it's no secret that I love anime and manga. Behold Eva Volume 10 and Bersek volume 31. Bask in it's all powerful and ephermieral glow. I made up a word yes, but how can one not when faced with such powerful dorkdom. All those who covet these things, kneel before me, I am your new dork master. MUHAHAHAHA

I asked kids to write me questions. This is from one of the girls. I have no words. Enjoy.

At least the kid is up to date on his world news.

Stole this kid's school uniform top after Judo practice, or should I call it "Young kids throwing Rick around like a bitch" practice. I think I could blend in...

This is an Udon shop right where you wait for the train. I mean, literally right where you wait for it. Not outside the station, but like, 4 feet from the train. I love it. I ate there. Good stuff.

Tsuchiura Fireworks show. Easily the greatest fireworks of my life, and I missed half the show too. It was amazing. My camera takes crappy shots, but please enjoy this.

More boom

Tokyo, Toyosu, the "Urban Dock" Super Mall. It's huge. I mean, huge. It had a cocert area, a place to a ferry, three floors and hundreds of stores. I am not sure, but I think it is one of the if not the biggest mall in the world. All hail consumerizim in it's puritanic form. All hail my inability to spell.

All hail Urban Dock. It is not even finished, and people come and buy things. I was one. Nice place though.

Inside the core of Urban Dock is a giant store of Gundam toy robots. I of course love Gundam. There was a 3 meter tall Gundam in there. I almost did not leave. I mean, I was escorted out, granted, after hugging the giant Gundam in my underware, but I mean, things happen. Moving right along...

So yes, Dinosaur Jr. is a kick ass band that recently got back together. They are pretty much rock gods, and I saw them in concert. I saw this kid with this shirt from their tour and almost acosted him. He then told me that he had no idea it was a band. Turns out fake, copied Dinosaur Jr. shirts are all the rage, I saw about 5 more the next day. I then did acoste him. Note his looking towards the floor. He is wwatching as I kick him in the nuts for disrespecting the band. Oh well. Sorry folks, put the kids to bed, I said nuts.

I have figured out why the birthrate in Japan is declining. It's easy to figure out when looking at these guys. Please analyse these young gentlemen, who are most likely High School seniors. No car, they have white matching mopeds, with helmets that compliment eachother. They have flowered licease plates. They have flowers adorn on the front of their kick ass rides. Imagine now you are a cute young Japanese girl and these guys roll up hitting on you. If you don't die from laughter I am assuming you just tell them to get lost. It all makes sense now.

So here we are at Nikko, a beautiful World Heritage site with some other JETs. We are all pretty badass if you could not tell. As you can also see, my abs have become so awesome they actually produce their own light source.

Dan and I posing in front of the most ornate gate in everdom. The other guy has a name, but I forget it. He is background boy. You know, that guy who is in your group but no one really cares about. He is there, looking confused, and of course no one cares. Which is fine. I think we may have left him there. Oh well, I'm in the picture, and that is the important thing.

A blurry picture of the largest club in Asia from the inside. The name of the place was "Ageha." It was freaking huge and we went for a Halloween party. I wasa cowboy. I danced with many a fine woman that night. Of course it was all thanks to my friends face abscuring darkness and alcohal, who have been helping me aproach women since college. Right, at least that wasn't awkward... moving right along...

Ah yes, Kyoto, a crazy trip if there ever was one. This was last weekend. This is at a temple er... Gin something or other. Very beautiul. See that kind of stripey, diagonal gray on the ground? Thats a rock garden; all that is sand that is raked everyday. Beautiful. I would hate to be the dude who has to do that though. What a crappy job. Well, I am glad he does it, he makes my pictures look great.

Why not end this with a stoic picture of yours truly? Me under a Kitsune (Fox) statue looking into the distance, obviously thinking things very important. You know like, "When the hell am I going to cut my hair? I look like a dirty hippy..."

Anyways, I hope you enjoy. If there is a place you think looked in particularly cool, let me know and I'll post more from it. This is more like a popori. Or Popouri. Or err... whatever, you can read it phonically. Thats what this is.

But seriously, things are great. Sorry I've been inconsitent, it's tough lately. I'd love to say I will post more consistantly, but this is a lie, I am still super busy. But when get time, I will through up more stuff for you. Hope you are all well.

=)

Where the heck is Rick?

2006-10-18T10:12:00.000+09:00

So I am sure you are wondering where I have been. Well, I've been here, doing all sorts of fun stuff, but I of course have neglected to tell you about it. Sorry team. I will toss a large picture post soon. To give you a mini update, I've been to Tokyo a bunch of times now. I've been to Tsuchiura a couple times too. Classes are good, and I helped out at a festival not too long ago, which was an amazing display of what Japanese kids can do when they are motivated to do something.

This weekend I will find myself in Nikko, a very historic place here in Japan. The week after is a Halloween Party in the outskirts of Tokyo. The weekend after that I take a trip to Kyoto. So yeah, I am booked until mid-November. Crazy. I promise that I will get pictures to you filled with witty, sarcastic comments.

As for now I am pumping out some lesson plans for some students going to Australia. Situational conversation. Stuff like, "I am (tired, sleepy, scared)." etc. One of my questions is "I feel this way when I am on fire...." I suppose I am a bad person for this. But then again, if they do catch fire at some point in Australia, the student will now know how to verbalize his feelings on the subject. That is education folks, I am an educator. Granted the topic is immolation, but I feel there has been little innovation on this situation.

What else? I watched The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift 3 here in Japan. That was a rather awkward experience. It's a story of how some American dude comes to Japan and beats all the people here at their own game, whilst having little regard for the culture. I have to say it was kind of interesting, and I of course love fast things on four wheels, so I had no real complains other than that.

I'm also in like 37 different clubs now. I either run, workout, train with the basketball team or try Kyudo at my main school. In my other ones I am working with the Karate, Track and Judo teams. It's a whole lot of fun, but it is very intimidating when a 16 year old boy tosses you around like a rag doll and a 17 year old girl kicks you in the face. I suppose there is a bit of humility in it. These kids are super talented though, so it's fun.

Okay, back to the lab again. Pictures to come. I hope you are all well.

Oh also, I changed the parameters on the comments, so you no longer need to be a member of blogger to leave a comment.

We Love (and Hate) Mt. Fuji

2006-09-06T12:02:00.000+09:00

So yes, I climbed Mt. Fuji. Did you expect anything less? It truly is a right of passage for many JETs, but seriously, it was no walk in the park, no flowery path was enjoyed whilst sipping delectable honey tea. There were no crumpets involved. It was a battle involving volcanic rock, lactic acid in my quads, people curling up into balls half way up and thanks to my predecessor, chocolate power bars to fuel my hunger. I never thought Power bar could taste that good. Just wait till you are starving at 3000 meters in the air with high wind and in the dark. Chocolate Power bar suddenly becomes prime rib with a glass of red wine.

Where do I begin? I suppose station 5 would be appropriate, the launching point. About 40 of us started up the mountain a little before 7:30pm. There were so many because a couple prefectures started together. Shortly from the start we had to choose a path; the longer, easier way, or the shorter, harder way. You know me folks, you know how I roll. Hard and fast it was kids.

Here is what they don't tell you about the hard path. Or more appropriately, they should have a sign that says, "Don't try to race to the top." About an hour into the climb, it was apparent that a group of about 6 of us were at a fast pace. The one spearheading the charge was a girl by the name of Natalie. She was an animal. She was like the energizer bunny sans drums. With us also was "Tex" the alpha male Alex, Justin, Ivan and Sheris.

Every so often on the mountain there was another "station" where you could acquire food, water and a seat on a bench. Food and water were bought, but Natalie would permit little bench time. We were ahead of all of the other JETs, ad it was going to stay that way. A little bit of my competitive side was stoked by this, so I agreed. We tended to stay at each station for a handful of minutes to pound some fluids and eat something. Then it was right back up the mountain.

Most of our group made it up the mountain in about 9 or 10 hours. The average falls around there at 7 to 8 hours. Our team made the top of the mountain at 12:30am. You do the math kids, that’s about 5 hours for us. "Great," you may think, "you did it fast!" That speed was not without sacrifice though. Ivan ended up curling up into a ball at some point, unable to move. Natalie literally picked him up and dragged him to where we were at one point. We huddled together under the Tengu shrine to keep warm at the higher levels. My legs were working off will alone. My shins and calves enjoyed being scratched up by volcanic rock.

We finally made the top at 12:30, but once again we were faced with another backlash of our speed; the sun did not rise until 5:30 in the morning. That was a solid 5 hours in arctic temperatures. It was summer and there were icicles people. Our elite team of over competitive climbers ended up sleeping on the floor of a lavatory to avoid the cold and pass the time. Let me give you a tip about sleeping on the floor of a bathroom; don’t do it, it sucks. It also smells. I will not regal you with the finer details, let us leave it that I now have great sympathy for hobos.

So finally the sun begins its accent. My body is freezing and my legs are near unmovable. I was also suffering from a little bit of Altitude sickness. Basically I was in no shape to be excited about seeing the sun. On its arrival I snapped a quick shot of the fiery star with my camera phone while behind another group of eager tourists. I did not care. All I wanted to do was get down the damn mountain.

I have to admit though, for as crappy as I felt, it was one of the more beautiful things I have seen. You were literally above the clouds, so your view was that of the sun above the clouds, with cities dotting throughout. Pretty cool. I still wanted to get down though.

I ran into many fellow JETs once the sun came up. Many had just arrived; others had been there for an hour or two. Rumor of my team's incredible pace was abound, but I seriously did not care. I deviated from the speedy pack when they decided they would hike to an even higher part of the mountain. I was content with assuming the fetal position and barreling down the mountain.

Before I did my best Sonic the Hedgehog imitation, a girl named Nicole offered to walk down with me. I took her up on this suggestion. We actually ran down a good 1/3 of the mountain just so we could get some air that wasn't thinned out by lack of atmosphere. The downward decent was no cakewalk either.

After a few hours, I found myself back at station 5. I consumed a large bowl of udon and some ice-cream. I then proceeded to fall asleep in the center of the square. Once again I felt a deep connection with hobos. A few hours later brought the rest of the JETs and a bus ride home.

In the end Fuji was one crazy workout, and I am glad I did it. In hind-sight, I can barely remember the pain; the only things that remain are the good conversations and the amazing view. If you are ever in Japan and looking for some pain with a cool reward, check out Fuji. I suggest bringing warmer clothes than I did and a happier demeanor at the summit.

Enjoy the videos of the process.

Top of the Mountain

Coming Down

-R

2006-08-28T09:15:00.000+09:00

Yup, my first of a few pictures of Japan. This was the first one I took though, the Government Building that was like, right outside my window. Cool times in Tokyo, I need to go back soon, I have been bad about this so far.

I have been known to enjoy a Japanese robe or two.

The back streets of Shinjuku. This is me follwing some people. Good times.

Keiichi's god damn dashboard monstrosity. As you can see, it can play any media known to man.

Matsuri and ladies in Yukata. Good times in Mito. I should really cut my hand out of this though. Oh well.

Ah yes the Hanko... Whos momentary loss sent me into quite a tizzy, if you still use that word.

My English Club? Sure. Guess who is the whitest! Guy in blue is Justin, who hooked me up my first week or so. Good dude.

We will of course save upoading this series of pics when I am not at work.

Name that video game.

Sweet lord I hated this ugly thing. Is it just me or does it have "kick me like a football" written all over it?

White guy jumping into family photos number 2

Outside the house of Ai's mother's father's brother. I thought it was a cool shot.

70 year old rice paper tracing Ai's mom's ancestory. Again, thought it was a cool pic.

On top of some huge ass castle. While I was up here a whole bunch of snakes got released and Samuel L Jackson shot them all up. SNAKES ON A MOTHA F#$% JAPANESE TRADITIONAL CASTLE!

The Funaki's enjoyed baseball from there... God damn it when can I get this shit in the states?

I sure hope so.

Nams says "bury me bitch!"

You know are just trying to enjoy the beach when all of a sudden God Damn dirtbikers start jumping all over the place. Damn it.

Sid and... er... the other girl? Basically just a nice shot of some of the beach bomb.

I know what you are thinking. "Rick, this is a blurry picture of shit" Well, I contest you on this. Think of it as whatever you want it to be. I see it as the god damn last picture my camera took before it utterly shit itself.

So there you have it. Thank you Hsien for hosting those sexy things. I will upload more if I feel they are worth it, and if I get a new camera that works. I am assuming I should since you know, I might want to photographically document my trip across the world. So yes, if anyone has suggestions for cameras as well, I am open.

Thats it. PEACE for now.

Iwaki Beach

2006-08-20T19:59:00.000+09:00

Hello from Fukushima

2006-08-14T12:05:00.000+09:00

Sunday fun in Fukushima. More on this later. Sorry it wasn't better.

A week in Sanwa

2006-08-08T14:46:00.000+09:00

Well, I've been in Japan for a little over a week, and in Ibaraki now for a full week. I am sorry for the lack of updates and pictures, but it seems that I currently have no internet in my apartment. Once that is up, there will be pleanty of pictures and stories. For now you just have my words typed hastely at work.

So far things have been facinating. I find it hard to expound in words really. There have of course been ups and downs. I've been living off about $130 in Japanese money for a week since things with my bank accounts have been a little haywire. I'm down to $60. So yeah, lets hope all gets sorted soon, or I may be panhandling on the streets of Koga. Still, thats about the worst of it, and I'm fine with it.

What I really would like to post is some of the technology I've seen here. Cellphones that make American cellphones look like the large boxy beepers that were out 15 years ago. I can get a 3.1 megapixel phone with video, internet, train schedules and a whole myriad of other things for the low low price of free. This is because these phones are last years models, and it's no longer a cool phone unless it has TV on it. So yeah, that is pretty sweet. I'll have to send some old ones to Maharam's IT department to go with all the European ones that are lying around there. If you are reading this John or Sal, let me tell you, the coolest thing I have seen is my co-workers stereo. This thing takes up half the dash and plays DVDs, CDs, TV, radio, it has a memory card reader, a hard drive and a touch display screen. I think the thing came to 2000 dollars apparently. It is sick. I will post pictures of this monstrosity later.

What else? So much else. I was in a festival in Mito this weekend, dressed in a Yukata and all. A Yukata, btw, is like a summer kimono of sorts. Once again, if I get some pics of it from friends, you are all in on them. The festival, called Matsuri, was incredible. People yelling and singing on movable shrines on wheels being carted around by hundreds of people playing drums. Men and women running around in kimono. Paper lanterns and little kids abound. It was like the entire city's guard was dropped, and everyone was having a great time. Though marching for 4 hours straight did tucker me out I have to admit.

Small fun fact; the Japanese do not have any "God bless you" equilivlant for when someone sneezes. Someone sneezed, I said God bless you, and everyone stared at me like I had 5 heads. Kind of funny. I've definitly had my share of messups thus far, but it has been a very fun learning experiance.

Well, I just got done playing basketball with the guys team, and I am about to fall down. I'll give you guys more info later.

If anyone has random questions or wants me to try something while I'm here and let them know how it is, shoot me an email or leave me a comment.

Later!

Pre-emptive JET strike

2006-06-20T11:38:00.000+09:00

Well, Saturday was the NY JET pre-departure Orientation. Lots of fun. Lots of information. I met a lot of people from my area already, which is cool. By area I mean the prefectures near me, about 5 or so of them. I was the only one from Ibaraki though. I did however meet Kawarai, who works for the Tokyo Police dept. He was a cool dude, and told me to look him up when he's back in Japan. I may take him up on it.

The little workshops they had were cool. Just good ideas on what to do and what to be careful of. It's gotten me pretty hyped for this whole thing.

Drinking was also in order post-orientation, and man can JET alums and JETs drink! Once again though, good times. I talked to the President of our JETAA, and I will see if I can do some writing for the newsletter. I think it could be fun. We'll see what happens anyway.

I received some pics of the aparto from April, my predecessor today. I'm not sure if I should post them or take my own when I get there. For that to work I need to fix my camera, which I will need to figure out how to do.

Just bought a laptop. DAMN they cost money. Who'd have thought?

Nothing else fun to report. I need to start linking and getting pictures up on this.

Soon we are off

2006-06-13T11:54:00.000+09:00

Well, I wanted to do this, so now I am;

Ta da, Rick's Japan blog.

For those unaware of what the deal is, I was lucky enough to be accepted into the JET program and will soon be teaching/ALTing in Japan. From July 30th, 2006 to July 30th, 2007 I'll be working via the Japanese government in Ibaraki-ken. It's about 1 hour North of Tokyo by train. All sorts of exciting. I'm using this to do a couple things;

Update everyone in "Meat-space-America" as to what I am doing.

Log things in here for myself to track my progression in learning about the Japanese culture.

Post Cool Pictures of me being totally awesome, or being an idiot.

Keep in contact with you.

So yeah, there you have it. For now I'm still in prep mode, reviewing my contract, reading JET materials, etc. Sat. is the pre-departure orientation, so I'll let you know how that goes. Other than that, enjoy!

-Me