bookish dreamer

Ok, so, I have to say at the outset that this is all me meandering because Mom has all the pictures from the first half of our trip. My camera battery died and I didn't nab a new one until we got back to Yokohama.

( so, the word for 'lake' in Japanese is 'ko' when appended to a name like Kawaguchi )

Next up: Karoke and Kyoto!

yes, procrastination has set in and it's cold enough i don't want to go out. besides, i'm saving money for when my mom arrives next week and we spend 14 days galavanting around Japan.

So I hit up apple's sci-fi movie trailers, just to see what random stuff they're serving up, and ...

Upstream Color looks *really* interesting.

I'm afraid to read reviews of it, because i don't want to be spoiled (and since it showed at sundance i'm assuming the reviews will be pretty review-y), but it looks like good mind-bending-screw-with-your-head sci fi.

( Then there's Branded )

( Then there's Man of Steel )

( Then there's Dredd )

( Finally, there's the one that got me into this in the first place, Oblivion )

Ok, so, I caught another cough this week and ended up being at home wed & thurs just to try and rest it out (and drink buckets of water and tea - BUCKETS!). I was really worried wednesday night because it was the second night i'd had night sweats, until i realized that the weather had warmed up significantly and it wasn't my body it was actually, you know, the super-heavy-winter blanket i had on my bed making me so hot. LOLZ.

after dragging myself to class today (which was good - i actually did mostly ok, and did the reading, which was good, and class helped explain the reading, which was *even better*), i gave myself a friday off.

this afternoon and evening I've been doing marvel-movie marathon! Captain America, Thor, and finally my 50th viewing of the Avengers. (ok, not 50th, but seriously, like possibly 7th? 8th?). ( And so here are some thoughts that at this point can't be spoilery, right? )

Oh, and on the heels of that fannish stuff, I was mentally musing about Black Widow and how she came off to other people, and ran across this awesome review/discussion talking about black widow spinning a web around the avengers that gave me an entirely different lens to look at her actions with. Not that I think Joss is the be-all-end-all in feminist directors (because he's not) like the reviewer does, but because it brings up *really* good points about the actions Black Widow takes in the film and HOW she goes about doing it all as a human amongst super-beings.

Finally, looking for a giggly little bit of Sterek? (you know you get your Teen Wolf on), check this out:

The Scientific Method by uraneia
Stiles/Derek | Teen Wolf | Teen | 5,947 words

YES. IT IS AS AWESOME AS YOU THINK. IN A 'NOTHINGHURTSANDEVERYTHINGISFINE' kind of way.

have you guys heard of the other non-facebook/tumblr/twitter sites in this article? cuz I haven't. made me feel old.

i miss my oven because of things like this chicken bastilla recipe (cinnamon + chicken = GOOD)

my favorite death in the last episode of sparticus was this guy's death (SPOILERS!) but I was mostly pleased with the last episode - or as pleased as I was going to be by this third season ( because really, this season had problems )

and now that i've prattled away, i'll let you get on with your day/night/what have you.

OH, but if you're into Giles, don't forget about summer_of_giles sign ups! Or just join the comm to see what happens.

today i have:
x done laundry
x cleaned bathroom
x set up stuff for summer_of_giles
x talked to both parents
x watched spartacus finale
x talked to gray_ghost about spartacus finale and possibility that japan will get bombed by korea
x mock interviewed another friend who is applying for a mechanical engineering position
x organized my food stores
x done dishes

do you notice the lack of homework on there? i do! apparently i really really really needed the weekend off. this is good for the brain. not so good for the homework monday, that's for sure. ugh.

( anyway, before i head into the trenches, i thought i'd say that i am alive! and this is what has been going on... )

and now, to homework!

it's one in the morning and I miss my dog. i've missed very little else, partially because we really do live in a more connected world than ever before, and i've been able to at least *touch base* with people, if not get them on messenger or skype or something. but you can't do that with a dog. and every time my dad has tilted the camera to show her to me i've been struck with a gut punch of missing her, because it's not the same thing.

i miss my dog.

not too much longer now though, really.

Dear Diary,

I went to a penis festival. Yep, you read that right. In a little town North of Nagoya called Komaki they have a harvest festival every year that hopefully will bring fertility. Setting aside the patriarchal underpinnings of only celebrating the penis as the active maker of fertility *cough* hello vagina anyone *cough* it was a really amusing day. Lots and lots of foreigners were there, but there were plenty of Japanese too, celebrating, taking pictures, buying penis-shaped food, and drinking shrine sake. And after that? Sam and I went to the Ise Grand Shrine, dedicated to goddess Amaterasu.

I ended up with incredibly painful blisters (by the end o f the night on the second day I literally had tears in my eyes) and sunburn that makes me look like a raccoon (which is why there are no pictures of me on the second day, omg) but had a great time. Our friend Fede brought two of his friends to hang out with us at the festival, and we laughed and were goofy all day. And Sam not only put up with my limping the whole second day, but is still talking to me afterwards – which is a tribute more to his patience than anything else.




( Be warned, here there be wooden and stone penii! (and ok, they're really not so bad) )

1. man, I never get to say that! 今晩は (konbanwa), i mean. It's partially that I end up studying at home at night, and partially because you don't *really* say 今晩は much anyway when you walk by people at night (my neighborhood is very much a 'nod' 'nod back' neighborhood, not a spoken greeting neighborhood). All i know is i hate the way the announcer guy says it on the American Iron Chef. Hate like burning.

2. Anyway!! HI everybody! I have been wrapped up in the end of school stuff for the last two weeks... Not that our program is over, but we are four days away from finishing our third semester. And then we get a two week break! SO needed - I was getting exhausted just from the schedule and the continual push pull of homework.

3. My presentation today went well - 15 min in Japanese on revising the definition of SF, with ten minutes or so of question and answer. The lovely part is that people got enough of my presentation to really actually ask probing questions. Good and simultaneously tiring since it's heavy lifting answering these questions in either language.

4. So all my shoes died. Not that I had a ton, but I had three pairs of boots all get holes or start losing their soles one after the other. So I found our neighborhood shoe repair place. Of course the two guys who work there are very nice and chat with me about what the hell i'm doing in Japan. They are literally astonished that I am studying Japanese literature and told me over and over that they had NEVER heard of anyone doing that. I am a serious curiosity. When I picked up my shoes yesterday they invited me to hang out with them and other shop owners in the neighborhood - apparently they get together on the weekends and grab food and drink. I gave them my number, so we'll see if they call, but it will be interesting. I'm afraid I'll feel a bit like a zoo animal, "Come one! Come all! See the Japanese Literature Grad Student in her Japanese-habitat!!" but we'll see.

5. I am currently involved in making plans to go to a festival in Japan where they parade a giant penis around the town. Yes, for reals. It's a harvest festival called 豊年祭り (Honen Matsuri) I will not be praying for my own fertility though.

6. As a treat I made myself this chicken piccata and OMG. If you like chicken and capers and lemon, you must eat this IMMEDIATELY (or as soon as you can). I took pictures of my own dinner and will post them when i get the energy. But OMG SRSLY.

7. hanging out with Sam's housemate last week and I found out she is in fandom too, and was sort of horrified that one of the other students in the program had found her fandom tumblr. Of course, the reason why that person had found the tumblr was because *she* was *also* a fan (so hey, equal levels of geekyness). We did have a talk about anonymity/revelations/etc. One of the things I comfort myself with is that if someone's going to find my stuff they will also have to be fans themselves to find it. Though these days I'm more ghost-like than fan-like, but hopefully there will be two solid months this summer when I get back to the states wherin I will PLAY ALL THE TIME and make some fannish contributions above and beyond 'kudos' at A03.

8. got linked by another one of the students at our program (who is nice enough to rec sherlock fics to me) to a post at fandom_wank and got lost down the rabbit hole this afternoon. It's been a while since I've paid attention to their posts and I love them so. Also, please, take a look at this ridiculous Misha Collins Youtube Video of him and his son having the most goofy time. I don't know if it'll strike you guys as totally awesome or not, but I literally laughed out loud over and over again.

And if you're curious about the Sherlock fic, I haven't read it yet, and the reccer tends to like angst with a happy ending, but here:

The Fabric of Life by holyfant (Sherlock/John / 150,000 words / read the warnings)

9. did my taxes! am getting money back! (of course, that's because according to my earnings statement i'm not exactly living above the poverty line). glad they're done though. i just wish all the other paperwork i have pending (forms for my program in the states, etc.) would be as easy to take care of.

10. it is *almost* cherry blossom season. There is a plum tree that is covered in white blossoms (very like cherry, but white) I see every day on my walk to school. The starbucks has started offering 'sakura' (cherry blossom) flavored drinks (which taste like pink). Over break I will be trying my damdest to get to one of the viewing spots that isn't super croweded to take some pictures (well, if things actually blossom during break...) it's hard to pinpoint the time exactly, but the air is getting warmer these days, and the sun does feel stronger, so I have hope! ... well damn, just checked, and the best viewing day according to the "sakura weather map" is April 4th. oh well, at least spring is coming!

from eurydice72

Age I was given: 25
I lived in: a little one bedroom apartment in Los Angeles, CA
I drove: my red Geo metro - i loved that little hatchback!
I was in a relationship with: 'the ex' (though of course he wasn't an ex at the time)
I feared: my friends group imploding, not being 'enough' (cool enough, interesting enough, things like that)
I worked at: being the most awesome receptionist/operations person ever at a web company called Feed the Monster Media that made web sites for radio stations. It was both a high and a low career point.
I wanted to be: smart and cool. and to someday go back to school. even back then.

Now I am: 37
I live in: Yokohama Japan
I am in a relationship with: me :D and lots of friends and family.
I drive: nothing right now - trains are awesome.
I work at: learning Japanese. it is a full time job. even on the weekends.
I fear: not finding a job after i graduate and my student loans
I want to be: a teacher

If anyone wants to play, I'll give a number. :)

it's the birthday of miss elizabuffy!!!

went out with Sam and Kat and Colin and played pool last night. Kat is like some kind of a pool shark (though she did not try to take our money, because we're friends!) with crazy accuracy. Colin is pretty damn good too (thus they make a good pair - since they're married it kind of works out well) and Sam wasn't a slouch. And then there was me. Who cheered when I got my first ball in because I literally played an entire game where I DID NOT SINK ONE BALL. finally they took pity on me and started lining up angles so that I could take proper shots.

But it was also just hilarious because we were, you know, in Japan, playing pool. Sometimes life is just bizzare.

The other strange (well not so strange, but weird to us) thing was that this pool place had no one else on the tables, and the entire group of other people there were either watching or participating in the very serious dart games going on. This seems to be a major Japanese pastime - darts. Throwing things at very high speeds that requires lots of accuracy.

It was a really good night! And low and behold, because I am now in charge of locking the chain lock, I was able to get back into my apartment when I came home at 11:30 last night. HOORAAY!


Let's see, other than that, I ended up taking thursday off after the great roommate debacle of wed. night (although by the end of the night, for those following along at home, roommate and i had reached new detente that didn't actually involve armed hostilities, but instead some redrawing of lines and different negotations, and now hopefully things are going to be ok). but even after she and i were done talking i was too keyed up to sleep, so ended up awake until 2:30 am. So, I took the day off. Little did I know that, out of the 5 students in my afternoon class, 4 of us were going to take the day off all on the same day! So we got a strongly worded email from our teacher asking us to please get our asses to class. And it really was sort of accidental - one guy had a friend in town and had emailed the teacher letting her know, one girl had a doctor's appointment, and then me and the other girl decided to take personal days. And yeah, it had to be horrible for the teacher, but in retrospect it's also kind of crazy.

this is also the third actual school day i've taken off since i've been here. the other two were for sickness, and frankly, being emotionally sick counts just as much to me. so, while i feel a little bad for how it must've looked, i'm only *slightly* guilty for the horrible cooincidence.

anyway, had a really good day so far today - woke up and was able to talk to both parents, picked up my stuff at Sams (left my backpack there yesterday), went grocery shopping and got stuff to make cumin-crusted pork loin tonight, stopped to grab a kebab-pita from the kebab guy next to the train station and had a nice chat with him, and am hoping the postal guys are going to bring me a care package from the mom.

OH, and I got Sam to divulge his recipe for fresh sauerkraut (which, i know, isn't sauerkraut because the cabbage hasn't fermented, but which tasted REALLY GOOD anyway).

( this is more a list of ingredients than a recipe, because that's kind of what sam does - throw things at pans and make them go )