2 Weeks

Two weeks until I finished graduate school.

So much has happened since my last post, which has crippled me from being able to writing. I won't discuss one of those events on this blog because it's just too tragic.

The other, as you might expect, is the tsunami and earthquake that affected the coast of Miyagi, a place I called home for 3 years (hence the url for this blog).

My life is going through some really rapid changes right now, but all I can say is that I feel really fortunate to have what I have, including my life, friends and family.

ただいま！

あけましておめでとうございます！Happy New Year Everyone!

I'm back in Japan now after a one and a half year absence. It was a relief to get on the plane and leave school.

I had probably one of the most challenging semesters yet. My Japanese class kicked my butt and really challenged me to use complex sentences and difficult vocabulary. You'd think that after 3 years in Japan, I'd be more secure about my language abilities. I also took an incredibly challenging but rewarding real estate class and a wonderful history course called "Theorizing Race and Gender in Asian Historiography and Literature". I thoroughly enjoyed writing my final paper, which was about military bases in Guam, South Korea and Okinawa. I've never been able to envision myself pursuing a PhD in anything until I wrote this paper. While it probably won't happen (I can't believe I'm already 27), it's nice to know that there is something I could see myself spending my life, or at least a huge chunk of time studying.

As soon as I arrived in Japan, I fell ill with a bad case of sinusitus. It took me about 10 days to finally go to the doctor and get antibiotics, so I've spent most of my time here laying low and resting.

I did get to see Norwegian Wood in the movie theatres with my family.

I haven't read the book, but the movie was pretty good, albeit sad and disturbing. I also bought the book 『トイレの神様」or "Gods of the Bathroom". I hope to improve my J-skills by actually reading a real life book. We'll see how it goes.
Anyway, I'm in Fukuoka for a few more days and then I'm headed north to Shiroishi and then Iwate to visit some friends from my JET days. Then, I'm heading to Tokyo to see Maya and Taro who recently got married.

Now that I'm back in good health, I'm looking forward to the rest of this vacation. After this, I have to focus on getting a job and graduating.

Ithaca *is* Gorgeous

TO DO (11月30日～12月17日）

1) NAOKI PRESENTATION (MONDAY)
2) メディアワークプック／クゥイズ（月）
2) CASE 5 (TUESDAY)
spread sheet
Format
4) PMF test
5) Send out SAAGA yellow face doodle
- meet with AAS
- meet with Advisor
- meet with GPSS
7)書き直しや最後の論文（水曜日）
6) Exit prjct final due WEDNESDAY 12/8
8) Real Estate Final 12/13
9) DEFENSE 12/15
10) NAOKI PAPER!!!! 12/17

email 竜太、直子先生 、マヤ等
タクシー予約

Militarized Currents

This is quite possibly my favorite academic book right now. I did a presentation a few days ago on Keith Camacho's chapter "Uncomfortable Fatigues", about Chamorros soldiers and the influence of militarization in Guam and implications on gendered identities. Camacho did his Masters and Phd at none other than UH Manoa, and now teaches at UCLA Department of Asian American Studies. It's really too bad that my masters program is ending in a semester, because I'd love to do further focused research in this area.

下妻物語

I have to do a presentation for my Japanese class on ヤンキー(yankee) youth fashion in Japan. It's a bit out dated in the Tokyo area, but I certainly remember some of my 鴬沢 students dressing in the baggy sweatpants, hello kitty sandals, and riding their mopeds around. In doing some research for the presentation, I found 下妻物語, about the blossoming friendship of a Lolita-style and a Yankee-style girl, played by none other than my favorite Tsuchiya Anna.

It's cold and rainy in Ithaca

My horizons widening
But nights are cold here, sometimes lonely
Eyes are open, so much to see
But sometimes they long for familiarity
And away on distant lands I always keep one foot on sand
-Justin Kawika Young

Relief

I've finally started to get settled into the semester. My goodness has been a crazy first month (wow- I can't believe it's been almost a month since I've returned!). The apartment fiasco is finally almost settled. After going through a ton of paperwork and photos and prorating electricity bills, the subtenant situation is nearly over. I think I'm finally qualified to be a landlord now. No thank you!

I'm taking a pretty crazy schedule this semester. I have Nihongo 3 days a week, but I swear I spend half of my waking hours on it. As a result, I'm learning how to write, read and speak again which feels pretty good. I'm also taking a fantastic class called Theorizing Race and Gender in Asian Lit and History, which has forced me to finally think again and exposed me to some interesting aspects of US and Japanese military engagement with other Asian countries.
Last but not least, I'm taking a fabulous course called Principles of Real Estate. It has a reputation of being quite challenging, but also the best possible class one could take if they want to do anything related to real estate. Just to give an example, our first case study basically covers all of the concepts I covered in my semester long quantitative methods class last year.

So all in all, year 2 in Ithaca is so far so good. I'm already a bit chilly and have brought out much of my winter/fall wear, but I know the real cold has yet to even touch us.

Back to Ithaca

After a 14 hour flight and a 25 dollar taxi, I arrive to my sweet sweet Aurora abode only to find that my subtenants have completely trashed the place. I'm so angry I can't even write about it, but if I had to sum it up in 5 words, they would be "rotting compost in the kitchen."

My wonderful roommate has put me up at her parents house until I can get the house cleaned and aired out. The cleaners came today and the place is more or less back to normal (minus a precious handmade knife, a few glasses and a broken toilet seat), so I will be able to start unpacking tomorrow when my two other roommates move in.

Yikes, lesson learned. Not the best way to start off the year. I hope the rest of the year runs a bit smoother. Definitely missing Hawaii today.