11:16pm セミナーハウス
天気：雨天
Just been working on my field report, and I’m about halfway through; gosh I wish I didn’t procrastinate so much. On the plus side, I did yet my homework for Reading and Writing finished this afternoon, so that leaves tomorrow afternoon free to finish the report… Today, it was raining, but the usual cold that comes with the rain was absent, so it wasn’t so bad. Getting to Speaking, five presentations took place, thanks to the fact that all of them were a reasonable length. We also got the schedule for oral exams and I’m up on Thursday; not really looking forward to it. I have no idea what I’m going to talk about. After class, I went over my sakubun a couple more times, sitting with Katie in the lounge. Soon, Reading and Writing came, and I actually did really well. I remembered the entire thing, and it ended up being just over 2 pages (800 characters), which is perfect; I’m hoping the content is okay. I got out feeling relieved (another thing to tick off), and went to have some Makkas for lunch. After that I rode home in the rain, and after putting the washing away, had a big long nap; I felt pretty guilty afterwards. But, I did get my homework done, and also made a list of everything I have to do so far as tying up any loose ends with the university; there’s quite a lot. At 6:30 I went and had dinner, and then sat in the kitchen till about 8:30, talking and watching TV; and laughing of course. Getting back to my room, I was soon visited by Rachael, who came to exchange FFVII: ACC disks with me. The one she got recently with the PS3 doesn’t have subtitles, so she swapped it with the disk that she originally gave me. It doesn’t bother me at all, since I’m sure I’ll buy the regular DVD version when I get home anyway. I sat with her in the computer room for a little while, helping her a bit with her presentation for tomorrow; she’s in Saigo sensei’s other level 4 class. Finally, I came back in here, and got stuck into my report. It’s only worth 20% of my grade, so I need to stop fussing and just get it done. As I write this, Carly’s is on her way here from Tokyo by night bus, so we’ll be seeing her at uni tomorrow I’m sure. It’ll be nice to catch up, and we’ll be able to finally plan Tokyo properly…
Showing posts with label nap. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nap. Show all posts
Monday, 10 May 2010
Wednesday, 10 March 2010
Day 191 - 9th of March
天気：雨天
Today was another miserable, wet day; and it was freezing. I rode to school this morning, in the rain, and actually got there quite a bit earlier than anticipated. So, I decided to go pick up a snack from the convenience store; blueberry Danish. In Speaking today Saigou sensei gave us another listening exercise, filling in song lyrics; 別の人 (betsu no hito – Someone Else) by Aoi Teshima. It was a really pretty, and sad song, and the lyrics were actually written by Goro Miyasaki (son of Hayou Miyazaki), who directed Tales from Earthsea; Aoi Teshima’s song, Teru’s theme was used in the movie. Then we started chapter 6; keigo! Having studied keigo (honorific speech) in Genki, this was more of a review, and I can remember most of it. After class, with an hour break, I went downstairs to the lounge, and sat with Rachel, getting my homework done. We were soon joined by Sarah and Katie, who were busy showing each other knitting patterns across the table; instead of just looking at the same laptop screen, they would send the files across to each other. Rachel was trying, and failing, to read a book for her literature class, that was supposed to be read by last Thursday; they really do have a heap to read though, it’s crazy.
Soon enough, it was time for Religion, where we talked about 創価学会 (Soka Gakkai – lit. “Value-Creation Society), a new religion derived from Nichiren Buddhism. The professor passed out a heap of magazines for us to look at, and comment on, and everyone seemed very suspicious. I think that’s partially the fault of the professor’s, for positioning us to view Soka Gakkai negatively (whether intentional or not), and partially because of the feedback we got from the first lot of interviews; some of the interviewees feared Soka Gakkai. And indeed, there are a few things a bit off putting about it. First of all, it has a political party, which is always a little troublesome. Secondly, a lot of what it does, what it stands for, and what was emphasised in the magazines (and the short introductory film we saw) didn’t seem very religious at all. There wasn’t really enough explanation of what exactly is expected of a member of Soka Gakkai member. The focus seems to be world peace, education, and ecology. So yeah, so far seems a little iffy, but we’re going to learn more about it on Thursday. After class, I stayed behind for a little bit, and told the Professor about my experience at Kansai Soka. Of course I hadn’t realised at the time, but in 2005 when I went to Japan for the first time, we actually visited a school one of their schools. Looking back on it now, it was probably the nicest (and wealthiest) of the schools we visited; that says something.
I checked my mailbox, and found my grades for yesterday’s lesson test in Speaking. I was really happy with my results; much better than my first test. Now I just have to keep it up! I rode home, and it wasn’t raining, it was just really cold and windy; not exactly an improvement. I ate some lunch, napped, and then blogged until dinner; I’m having a lot of trouble keeping up this week. I think it was about 7:45 when I went up, and I had put on rice almost an hour earlier; whoops. Tonight’s meal was easy; lasts night’s chicken and sauce over rice. I put it in the microwave to heat up, and then went to sit down with the girls; and Simon. I while after, thinking it had been long enough, I went to check my meal, and found the microwave still running. I quickly stopped it and opened the door to find a little bit of a mess; just a little. The sauce and even some of the chicken had spattered the sides. Rachel then told me she thought that that microwave was on the fritz; I guess she was right. Anyway, no harm done, I wiped up the mess, and enjoyed my meal. We didn’t talk for too long tonight, which was okay because I meant that I got my Reading and Writing homework done. After my shower, I found Hugo in bed, so decided to follow suit; a nice early night.
Tuesday, 9 February 2010
Day 162 - 8th of February
11:26pm セミナーハウス
天気：曇り
Today was bad and good. First of all, my cold is now a fully-fledged, life-draining monster; no, it’s not that bad really, just annoying. So this left me feeling tired, and a little out of it for the whole day… I got up at 8:30, giving me and hour to get ready for uni. This was ample time, and I actually got to uni 15 minutes early; got to chat with Katie and Jacinthe for a while. Then I had Speaking, which turned out to be pretty good. We learnt two new grammar forms, and the pace was reasonable. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for my Reading and writing class, in which, after a vocab quiz, we went over 5 grammar points; I can’t even remember what half of them were. I realise that level 4 means a lot of independent study, but this was ridiculous. Hopefully, that was just an overview, and we will look into them more thoroughly again; I’m not sure.
Well, at least that was the end of my uni day. I got straight home, and had some lunch. Then I got some laundry done. I didn’t have the correct change (the washing machine only takes 100円 coins), so I had to buy a drink out of the vending machine; apple juice. While my clothes were getting washed, I had a nap, just for 30 minutes. I got up feeling a little light headed (because of the cold), but I shook that of soon enough. I certainly felt a lot better than I have after my past napping experiences. So, from now on, I’m going to make sure that when I have a nap, it’s only for 30 minutes. After hanging up my clothes on my trusty little hanger (thanks Diego), I got stuck into my homework, which took me through to 6 o’clock. I had talked with Simon this morning between classes about going to see the film being showed by professor Hester; he does it every week. Since I don’t have koto club on Mondays now, I thought it would be interesting to go see.
So I went and found Simon in the computer room and he explained to me that he was developing a cold, and didn’t think it was a good idea to go out again. I had been planning to tell him I wasn’t up to going, so when he said this, I whole-heatedly agreed. Still, it is a shame we couldn’t see it. Simon did say though, that we could probably hire it out from the library at uni. So, that settled I went back to my room and got back to Japanese study. I have a quiz tomorrow for Speaking, so I got a vocab list created on my iPod. And oh my gosh, one of the words I have to learn, is the perfect describing word for me – 呑気 (Nonki) meaning carefree, optimistic, careless, reckless, heedless, happy-go-lucky, easygoing. And it’s such a cute word too; I love it. After that, I did some reading for Religion; about the god Inari. That was short-lived, as I decided I wanted to go and make dinner.
I’d defrosted some chicken this afternoon, so decided to make chicken parmigiana. A few of the Americans were really impressed by my cooking (go figure), and I think I’ve actually inspired them to try it themselves. Then I set the paper towels that my cooked chicken were sitting on (to drain the oil), on fire; whoops. So that was a bit of excitement; quickly amended with the aid of water. I think it was around 7:30 when I sat down to eat; it was very good. I had just got all my dishes washed and put away when Ash arrived back. I decided to stay in the kitchen, and sit with her. This proved deadly; three hours later and I was still in the kitchen. In this time, Rachel had joined us in conversation, we sung Happy Birthday to a girl I don’t know (I got some cake though), and Hugo smashed his glass; another whoops. We kept on saying, “well I really should be studying”, but kept on distracting each other; it really was great. Finally, at 11, we came to our senses, and got back to our rooms. I don’t have class till 11 tomorrow, so I’m going to get a good long sleep, and do a bit more study in the morning.
天気：曇り
Today was bad and good. First of all, my cold is now a fully-fledged, life-draining monster; no, it’s not that bad really, just annoying. So this left me feeling tired, and a little out of it for the whole day… I got up at 8:30, giving me and hour to get ready for uni. This was ample time, and I actually got to uni 15 minutes early; got to chat with Katie and Jacinthe for a while. Then I had Speaking, which turned out to be pretty good. We learnt two new grammar forms, and the pace was reasonable. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for my Reading and writing class, in which, after a vocab quiz, we went over 5 grammar points; I can’t even remember what half of them were. I realise that level 4 means a lot of independent study, but this was ridiculous. Hopefully, that was just an overview, and we will look into them more thoroughly again; I’m not sure.
Well, at least that was the end of my uni day. I got straight home, and had some lunch. Then I got some laundry done. I didn’t have the correct change (the washing machine only takes 100円 coins), so I had to buy a drink out of the vending machine; apple juice. While my clothes were getting washed, I had a nap, just for 30 minutes. I got up feeling a little light headed (because of the cold), but I shook that of soon enough. I certainly felt a lot better than I have after my past napping experiences. So, from now on, I’m going to make sure that when I have a nap, it’s only for 30 minutes. After hanging up my clothes on my trusty little hanger (thanks Diego), I got stuck into my homework, which took me through to 6 o’clock. I had talked with Simon this morning between classes about going to see the film being showed by professor Hester; he does it every week. Since I don’t have koto club on Mondays now, I thought it would be interesting to go see.
So I went and found Simon in the computer room and he explained to me that he was developing a cold, and didn’t think it was a good idea to go out again. I had been planning to tell him I wasn’t up to going, so when he said this, I whole-heatedly agreed. Still, it is a shame we couldn’t see it. Simon did say though, that we could probably hire it out from the library at uni. So, that settled I went back to my room and got back to Japanese study. I have a quiz tomorrow for Speaking, so I got a vocab list created on my iPod. And oh my gosh, one of the words I have to learn, is the perfect describing word for me – 呑気 (Nonki) meaning carefree, optimistic, careless, reckless, heedless, happy-go-lucky, easygoing. And it’s such a cute word too; I love it. After that, I did some reading for Religion; about the god Inari. That was short-lived, as I decided I wanted to go and make dinner.
I’d defrosted some chicken this afternoon, so decided to make chicken parmigiana. A few of the Americans were really impressed by my cooking (go figure), and I think I’ve actually inspired them to try it themselves. Then I set the paper towels that my cooked chicken were sitting on (to drain the oil), on fire; whoops. So that was a bit of excitement; quickly amended with the aid of water. I think it was around 7:30 when I sat down to eat; it was very good. I had just got all my dishes washed and put away when Ash arrived back. I decided to stay in the kitchen, and sit with her. This proved deadly; three hours later and I was still in the kitchen. In this time, Rachel had joined us in conversation, we sung Happy Birthday to a girl I don’t know (I got some cake though), and Hugo smashed his glass; another whoops. We kept on saying, “well I really should be studying”, but kept on distracting each other; it really was great. Finally, at 11, we came to our senses, and got back to our rooms. I don’t have class till 11 tomorrow, so I’m going to get a good long sleep, and do a bit more study in the morning.
Thursday, 4 February 2010
Day 158 - 4th of February
9:10pm セミナーハウス
天気：曇り
This week has been so tiring; I don’t understand why. I guess just getting back into learning mode has drained me. I didn’t have class until 12 today, so I had a nice sleep in. I’ve decided Saigo sensei is the best Japanese teacher ever. He’s so funny, and makes learning enjoyable; I hope our classes continue like this. After Speaking, I had an hour break, so I sat in the lounge and did some more reading for Religion. Today we talked about ancestor worship, and what religion means to the Japanese; it’s a very complicated, but interesting issue. I also learnt that Japanese people have to pay rent for the gravestones of their departed family members; otherwise they get taken out to make room for others! Professor Kenney is all over the place with her teaching; scatter-brained. It’s cool though, and like I said, very engaging. After religion I was done for the day, so I went to Kirindo to stock up, and then made my way home; it was so cold and windy.
Getting back, I made lunch, and then basically crashed; it was about 4 at this point. I couldn’t believe it, but I ended up sleeping for almost 2 hours! Feeling like crap, I went up to the kitchen, and spent time chatting with Simon, Ash and Katie. I didn’t end up making dinner until almost 8 (gyudon), after which I felt absolutely stuffed; I still do. I then went up to Ash and Katie’s room to lend Katie my straightening iron. She’s going to straighten her hair, and wear her kimono to Beauty and the Beast, which is only 2 days away; so excited. Hopefully I can look equally dignified. I’ll have to steal it back off her on Saturday, before we leave. Don’t know what I’ll be doing on Sunday; hopefully go somewhere exciting. I haven’t got too much uni work as yet, so still got some chances to explore. Okay, I have to do a bit of study for tomorrow’s test, and then I’m going to hit the hay; got class at 9 tomorrow!
天気：曇り
This week has been so tiring; I don’t understand why. I guess just getting back into learning mode has drained me. I didn’t have class until 12 today, so I had a nice sleep in. I’ve decided Saigo sensei is the best Japanese teacher ever. He’s so funny, and makes learning enjoyable; I hope our classes continue like this. After Speaking, I had an hour break, so I sat in the lounge and did some more reading for Religion. Today we talked about ancestor worship, and what religion means to the Japanese; it’s a very complicated, but interesting issue. I also learnt that Japanese people have to pay rent for the gravestones of their departed family members; otherwise they get taken out to make room for others! Professor Kenney is all over the place with her teaching; scatter-brained. It’s cool though, and like I said, very engaging. After religion I was done for the day, so I went to Kirindo to stock up, and then made my way home; it was so cold and windy.
Getting back, I made lunch, and then basically crashed; it was about 4 at this point. I couldn’t believe it, but I ended up sleeping for almost 2 hours! Feeling like crap, I went up to the kitchen, and spent time chatting with Simon, Ash and Katie. I didn’t end up making dinner until almost 8 (gyudon), after which I felt absolutely stuffed; I still do. I then went up to Ash and Katie’s room to lend Katie my straightening iron. She’s going to straighten her hair, and wear her kimono to Beauty and the Beast, which is only 2 days away; so excited. Hopefully I can look equally dignified. I’ll have to steal it back off her on Saturday, before we leave. Don’t know what I’ll be doing on Sunday; hopefully go somewhere exciting. I haven’t got too much uni work as yet, so still got some chances to explore. Okay, I have to do a bit of study for tomorrow’s test, and then I’m going to hit the hay; got class at 9 tomorrow!
Friday, 8 January 2010
Day 131 - 8th of January
10:26pm セミナーハウス
天気：曇り
Yay, finally finished reading the first chapter of Deltora Quest; 330 translations later… anyway, today was another short day. I woke up at 9, then fell back to sleep, and then didn’t get up again till 1; and I didn’t even go to bed that late! This is getting rather bothersome but still, might as well keep it up; at least for this week. Next week I will be much more productive; I hope. After lunch, I walked to uni, and checked my mailbox, finding a letter from Nanny and Poppy; a nice surprise. I then did some more grocery shopping at Kirindo and Fresco; oh how I love grocery shopping. Oh well, it got me out for a few hours. Getting back, I chatted with Alex, and then had a nap; did I really need it? At about 6:30 I went up and made dinner (spag bol), and watched Doraemon on TV. At about 8, I went up again and ate some bananas, and talked with Ash for a while, which was quite refreshing; like me, she hadn’t been doing very much. She gave me an ice cream, and I gave her a mask in return. I’ve just spent the last hour reading, and now feel very satisfied. Just going to do some exercise, shower, and then hop into bed…
天気：曇り
Yay, finally finished reading the first chapter of Deltora Quest; 330 translations later… anyway, today was another short day. I woke up at 9, then fell back to sleep, and then didn’t get up again till 1; and I didn’t even go to bed that late! This is getting rather bothersome but still, might as well keep it up; at least for this week. Next week I will be much more productive; I hope. After lunch, I walked to uni, and checked my mailbox, finding a letter from Nanny and Poppy; a nice surprise. I then did some more grocery shopping at Kirindo and Fresco; oh how I love grocery shopping. Oh well, it got me out for a few hours. Getting back, I chatted with Alex, and then had a nap; did I really need it? At about 6:30 I went up and made dinner (spag bol), and watched Doraemon on TV. At about 8, I went up again and ate some bananas, and talked with Ash for a while, which was quite refreshing; like me, she hadn’t been doing very much. She gave me an ice cream, and I gave her a mask in return. I’ve just spent the last hour reading, and now feel very satisfied. Just going to do some exercise, shower, and then hop into bed…
Thursday, 7 January 2010
Day 130 - 7th of January
10:24pm セミナーハウス
天気：曇り
Just been watching movie trailers for the past hour; so many epic new movies coming out this year. Well, today was certainly a much longer day; I woke up at 9. Still, I didn’t really do that much… In the morning, I made eggs on toast for breakfast, and then vacuumed the floor. I had a nap at noon, and then talked with Alex and Carly for most of the afternoon, before going grocery shopping at Sanko. I had a late lunch at 4, and then enjoyed downloading a whole heap of new music from iTunes, including the Sweeny Todd OST. I did a bit of exercise, since my muscles were killing me (from exercising yesterday no doubt), and then read a bit more of Deltora Quest. It’s such a good feeling when I can actually understand most of it; even if I have to translate it before-hand. But believe me, translating is one thing, making sense of the sentence is a completely different matter; so I think I’m doing a pretty good job considering. I didn’t end up having dinner till about 8. Upon arriving in the kitchen, I noticed everyone was wearing masks, and recalled the email we got today informing us of a confirmed case of influenza in the seminar house.
So of course, as the Japanese have a need for cleanliness at their very core, it was expected that everyone wear a mask, at all times; except when eating of course. I didn’t have a mask in the kitchen at the time, but assured Yuji and Otousan that I would be wearing one afterwards. I’m just going to stay as far away from everyone as possible. I’m in a pretty good position here, as far as room location goes; secluded. Hiroshi is the only other person living in this section, and I know he’ll be very hygienic. Also, I don’t have to worry about Ryan contracting anything since he’s not here; I should be fine. So yeah, made gyudon for dinner, although I used pork meat not beef, so technically it’s not gyudon. Still come out the same way, and tasted great; I don’t know how I stuffed it up last time. So although I didn’t do much, I still very satisfied about the day. Hopefully I can get out and do something tomorrow; I really don’t know what though… anyway, time for shower, shave, and then bed!
天気：曇り
Just been watching movie trailers for the past hour; so many epic new movies coming out this year. Well, today was certainly a much longer day; I woke up at 9. Still, I didn’t really do that much… In the morning, I made eggs on toast for breakfast, and then vacuumed the floor. I had a nap at noon, and then talked with Alex and Carly for most of the afternoon, before going grocery shopping at Sanko. I had a late lunch at 4, and then enjoyed downloading a whole heap of new music from iTunes, including the Sweeny Todd OST. I did a bit of exercise, since my muscles were killing me (from exercising yesterday no doubt), and then read a bit more of Deltora Quest. It’s such a good feeling when I can actually understand most of it; even if I have to translate it before-hand. But believe me, translating is one thing, making sense of the sentence is a completely different matter; so I think I’m doing a pretty good job considering. I didn’t end up having dinner till about 8. Upon arriving in the kitchen, I noticed everyone was wearing masks, and recalled the email we got today informing us of a confirmed case of influenza in the seminar house.
So of course, as the Japanese have a need for cleanliness at their very core, it was expected that everyone wear a mask, at all times; except when eating of course. I didn’t have a mask in the kitchen at the time, but assured Yuji and Otousan that I would be wearing one afterwards. I’m just going to stay as far away from everyone as possible. I’m in a pretty good position here, as far as room location goes; secluded. Hiroshi is the only other person living in this section, and I know he’ll be very hygienic. Also, I don’t have to worry about Ryan contracting anything since he’s not here; I should be fine. So yeah, made gyudon for dinner, although I used pork meat not beef, so technically it’s not gyudon. Still come out the same way, and tasted great; I don’t know how I stuffed it up last time. So although I didn’t do much, I still very satisfied about the day. Hopefully I can get out and do something tomorrow; I really don’t know what though… anyway, time for shower, shave, and then bed!
Monday, 7 December 2009
Day 94 - 2nd of December
11:17pm セミナーハウス
天気：晴れ
Just had a shower, washed my hair (it was starting to get really grotty; I hadn't washed since Saturday), and shaved, and cut my toenails. All clean and refreshed now; to much info? I felt so tired today. Hokkaido really did wipe me out. But I guess it's not just that; the stresses of exams and the end of semester are coming down hard. We had our first round of skits today; they were all so funny. After my Reading and Writing class, and lunch, Rachael and I practiced out skit for a couple of hours. We recorded it a few times, and had a good laugh at all the stuff ups. We're getting there though, and I feel ready for tomorrow. It'll be good to get it done. So afterwards, got home and had a nap. And of course, felt like crap when I woke up, just in time for the seminar house meeting at 6.
I was a little worried that Diego wasn't going to make it, but he got here just in time. The major focus of the meeting was people checking out and getting to the airport on time. I'm really glad I don't have to worry about any of that this time around. After the meeting, I went up to the kitchen and everyone was cooking. I waited to cook, and talked with Katie about my trip and other stuff. I had food coming at me from all directions; Carly's pancakes, Katie's chocolate milk, Diego's omelette (covered with the mozzarella cheese I bought him), and Jo's white chocolate mint biscuits. I almost didn't feel like any dinner afterwards. But, I made some anyway, and enjoyed it; yakisoba with pork. It was about 8:30 at that point. Spent the rest of the night practicing skit and doing homework. Now... sleep.
天気：晴れ
Just had a shower, washed my hair (it was starting to get really grotty; I hadn't washed since Saturday), and shaved, and cut my toenails. All clean and refreshed now; to much info? I felt so tired today. Hokkaido really did wipe me out. But I guess it's not just that; the stresses of exams and the end of semester are coming down hard. We had our first round of skits today; they were all so funny. After my Reading and Writing class, and lunch, Rachael and I practiced out skit for a couple of hours. We recorded it a few times, and had a good laugh at all the stuff ups. We're getting there though, and I feel ready for tomorrow. It'll be good to get it done. So afterwards, got home and had a nap. And of course, felt like crap when I woke up, just in time for the seminar house meeting at 6.
I was a little worried that Diego wasn't going to make it, but he got here just in time. The major focus of the meeting was people checking out and getting to the airport on time. I'm really glad I don't have to worry about any of that this time around. After the meeting, I went up to the kitchen and everyone was cooking. I waited to cook, and talked with Katie about my trip and other stuff. I had food coming at me from all directions; Carly's pancakes, Katie's chocolate milk, Diego's omelette (covered with the mozzarella cheese I bought him), and Jo's white chocolate mint biscuits. I almost didn't feel like any dinner afterwards. But, I made some anyway, and enjoyed it; yakisoba with pork. It was about 8:30 at that point. Spent the rest of the night practicing skit and doing homework. Now... sleep.
Friday, 20 November 2009
Day 82 - 20th of November
9:08pm セミナーハウス
天気：晴れ
Today was actually sunny, albeit cold. I spent the morning doing homework, and then rushed off to uni. Today was the first day of the international festival; there were so many stalls set up, and most of the buildings had been taken over. As I had class, I couldn't really appreciate it though, as I zigzagged my way through the crowds. In class today we had a bit of unexpected fun. We made 兜 (kabuto - samurai hats) out of newspaper so we could wear them. They're really easy to make; I felt like a kid sitting on the floor folding it; it was great. After class, I did my first interview for my CEL mini-project. Naomi graciously accepted to be interviewed last night at the meeting, so we met today in the CIE lounge. It only took about 15 minutes. I made my way home afterwards. I figured I'd be coming the the festival tomorrow and Sunday, so I'd look around then.
After lunch I felt really tired; it's been a long week and it's not over yet. Unfortunately that means I had a nap, and didn't wake up until almost 5:30. Of course, I felt like crap afterwards. I made a quick trip to Sanko to pick up some stuff for dinner, and then didn't end up using it anyway. I was going to make stew, but I made chicken parmigiana (again) instead; at least I finished off the spaghetti and the sauce. Finished off the cake afterwards; shared it round of course. It tasted even better today; the fridge had firmed it up. We've still got a whole heap of batter in the fridge, and even more icing, so we're going to have to make another soon. In truth, it's more like a brownie than a cake; it's not light or fluffy at all. But still, it's amazing. Anyway, going to try to have an early night tonight, make banana pancakes in the morning, and get to uni by 9 30. I'm so nervous about singing; I'm worried I'm going to forget the lyrics. But, I need to stay positive, and, if I mess up, it's not the end of the world; I'll get over it. I'm not nearly as worried about koto. We're performing Sakura sakura in groups of three, so at least we can cover for each other; it's going to be fun. Can't wait to hear the performances by the other girls...
天気：晴れ
Today was actually sunny, albeit cold. I spent the morning doing homework, and then rushed off to uni. Today was the first day of the international festival; there were so many stalls set up, and most of the buildings had been taken over. As I had class, I couldn't really appreciate it though, as I zigzagged my way through the crowds. In class today we had a bit of unexpected fun. We made 兜 (kabuto - samurai hats) out of newspaper so we could wear them. They're really easy to make; I felt like a kid sitting on the floor folding it; it was great. After class, I did my first interview for my CEL mini-project. Naomi graciously accepted to be interviewed last night at the meeting, so we met today in the CIE lounge. It only took about 15 minutes. I made my way home afterwards. I figured I'd be coming the the festival tomorrow and Sunday, so I'd look around then.
After lunch I felt really tired; it's been a long week and it's not over yet. Unfortunately that means I had a nap, and didn't wake up until almost 5:30. Of course, I felt like crap afterwards. I made a quick trip to Sanko to pick up some stuff for dinner, and then didn't end up using it anyway. I was going to make stew, but I made chicken parmigiana (again) instead; at least I finished off the spaghetti and the sauce. Finished off the cake afterwards; shared it round of course. It tasted even better today; the fridge had firmed it up. We've still got a whole heap of batter in the fridge, and even more icing, so we're going to have to make another soon. In truth, it's more like a brownie than a cake; it's not light or fluffy at all. But still, it's amazing. Anyway, going to try to have an early night tonight, make banana pancakes in the morning, and get to uni by 9 30. I'm so nervous about singing; I'm worried I'm going to forget the lyrics. But, I need to stay positive, and, if I mess up, it's not the end of the world; I'll get over it. I'm not nearly as worried about koto. We're performing Sakura sakura in groups of three, so at least we can cover for each other; it's going to be fun. Can't wait to hear the performances by the other girls...
Wednesday, 28 October 2009
Day 59 - 28th of October
8:36pm セミナーハウス
天気：晴れ
Today was sunny but cool; so I got to do laundry. For both my Japanese classes we got let out early, which was a true rarity indeed. In Speaking, I've got a power point presentation coming up in two weeks, and I volunteed to go first. We have to talk about an experience we've had in Japan. It's only worth 5% of our grade, but I still want to make it good. I'm going to talk about my day at Osaka aquarium; should be good. After class Jo and I went over to Floresta and got donuts. I was doing a bit of homework, and then I realised that I could connect to the internet with my Ipod for free. It's just so annoying that I can't do it at uni or in the dorms. So yeah, that's my new favourite place. After that we went to Reading and Writing, but not before we got our History results back. We noticed the prof with them in his hand, and rushed down to the mailboxes to retrieve them. I got 56/60; YAY!!! I guess I am pretty good at essay writing after all.
In reading and writing we watched a 落語 (rakugo - lit. "fallen speech") performance ~ rakugo is a type of comic monologue that has been performed since the Edo period (over 300 years ago). It was in English, and pretty funny. That was about all we did. Oh, and we got our results back from our mid-terms; 80/100, not bad. I got home soon after, and talked with parents. Then I made lunch and had a nap. I woke up feeling like crap, got my laundry in and then went back to sleep again. An hour later I woke up had a headache; I really hate how naps do that. I had dinner soon after (leftovers), and then came back down to the room. Having a quiet one tonight. Just doing a bit of homework and talking with people over Skype. I think I'm going to have an early night.
天気：晴れ
Today was sunny but cool; so I got to do laundry. For both my Japanese classes we got let out early, which was a true rarity indeed. In Speaking, I've got a power point presentation coming up in two weeks, and I volunteed to go first. We have to talk about an experience we've had in Japan. It's only worth 5% of our grade, but I still want to make it good. I'm going to talk about my day at Osaka aquarium; should be good. After class Jo and I went over to Floresta and got donuts. I was doing a bit of homework, and then I realised that I could connect to the internet with my Ipod for free. It's just so annoying that I can't do it at uni or in the dorms. So yeah, that's my new favourite place. After that we went to Reading and Writing, but not before we got our History results back. We noticed the prof with them in his hand, and rushed down to the mailboxes to retrieve them. I got 56/60; YAY!!! I guess I am pretty good at essay writing after all.
In reading and writing we watched a 落語 (rakugo - lit. "fallen speech") performance ~ rakugo is a type of comic monologue that has been performed since the Edo period (over 300 years ago). It was in English, and pretty funny. That was about all we did. Oh, and we got our results back from our mid-terms; 80/100, not bad. I got home soon after, and talked with parents. Then I made lunch and had a nap. I woke up feeling like crap, got my laundry in and then went back to sleep again. An hour later I woke up had a headache; I really hate how naps do that. I had dinner soon after (leftovers), and then came back down to the room. Having a quiet one tonight. Just doing a bit of homework and talking with people over Skype. I think I'm going to have an early night.
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