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just because you are a foreigner and i am a foreigner doesn't mean we are friends.
now, maybe it's rude or racist or just cold, but i am not the kind of person who's going to say hi to the random foreigner walking down the street. japanese people don't say hello to strangers; i don't say hello to strangers either. tonight, on my way home from the grocery store, i saw a young black man walking toward me. every time i see another foreigner, i always fear they are going to try to talk to me. i don't know why, but i do. i usually just try to look at the ground and go about my business. as we got closer (and as i stared at the ground more intently) i saw him slow up and stop. he said, "hello." and i looked up and did the polite "nod/bow of the head" and he said, "good evening!" and i kept walking. as i walked away i began to think maybe i'm being rude by not saying anything. for all i know, he's a young guy who doesn't know anyone in the area and could be a really nice guy. but so could EVERY other person i pass on the street. if, for example, we passed each other every day, or ran into each other at the same store a couple times, maybe i would say something. but, once passing? nope, sorry. and, who's to say i speak english?! i could be russian, or french or german (granted even if i were, i would probably know the word "hello") but i think it's a little enthocentric to think that EVERY foreigner in japan speaks english.

i almost had the day off.
the head masters in the middle school decided today that we (the foreigner english teachers) didn't have to come in to school next monday because the middle school is taking proficiency tests. i was really excited. until they said, "oh, do you have any high school classes on monday?" and i looked, and go figure, i do. i have ONE. so i have to be in by 8:20am on monday for a class at 10:50am. but, i think i can leave after that. i guess i'll take that over nothing!

for once, i miss "american size."
most japanese have a stereotypical image of america and americans and they have the phrase "american size." american size basically means BIG. mcdonald's in america means BIG hamburgers, BIG drinks, BIG sundaes. i hate the phrase "american size." sure portions are generally smaller in japan, but i feel like they think EVERYTHING is big in the US. and yet, tonight, as i am trying to make meatloaf, i could REALLY go for an "american size" oven. i have a toaster oven that has an "oven" setting where you can choose the temperature, so you'd think i'd be set. alas, the longest time option? 9 and a half minutes. though it's been 28 minutes and so far so good. who knows what the inside of my meatloaf looks like...but the outside is turning a pretty "meatloaf" brown. the smell is filling my apartment. my first oven experience could be a big success!

ochitsuku no asagohan ("comforting breakfast")
(side note: most japanese kitchens, mine especially, aren't big enough to grocery shop for the WEEK. instead, they go to the store every day or every other day and just buy what they need for the next couple meals. plus, it gives me something to do in the evenings, so i enjoy my late afternoon walks to the store)
two days ago, at the grocery store, i was just about to head to the check out as i walked down the bread aisle. i pretty much buy the same (brown rice) bread, but something caught my eye. it was...a bagel! an individually packaged, genuine bagel! i snatched it up and, smiling, headed to the check out. the prospect of a bagel for breakfast on a semi-regular basis is exciting. i looked tonight at the grocery store, but no bagel. sad, until! until i saw them. a pack of english muffins! this grocery store is just pulling through for me left and right! i grabbed the last pack of english muffins and decided as a result to get sliced cheese and pizza sauce for some little mini pizzas in aformentioned toaster/oven. and yet, there is more! i didn't think i liked soy milk, but i KNOW i don't like japanese milk. it's about 3.8% milk and it's just too strong for me. a friend told me that they sell skim milk now and after a bit of looking at the labels, i found some. but, it's even MORE watery than american skim milk, which is pushing it as is. so, i thought, hmmm, maybe i should give soy milk a try. i'm in LOVE. so, tonight, again, while at the grocery store, after having already picked up a carton of soy milk, i passes an aisle with generic corn flakes and other "imported" cereals. the generic corn flakes are just as good (and a LOT cheaper) so i will be enjoying a bowl of cereal for breakfast...tomorrow? well, one of these days soon! with all these breakfast options, i could be living on breakfast food for a long time! :P i made pancakes (from the box of course) a couple nights ago and was getting creative with bananas and strawberry jelly (well, "creative" considering the "cook" that i am!). huge success. and i learned how to make my best friend Sayaka's favorite pasta salad with cucumbers and apples too. so i can cook afterall! (that meatloaf only has about 10 minutes!)

just buy the whole ensemble.
i will never understand japanese fashion. that being said, i want to fit in as best as possible. i've tried to buy some basic clothing items, in hopes of being able to coordinate outfits myself. yet, i still have no idea what to wear with what and end up feeling frumpy and "uncool." i am a Gap kid through and through, so i went to the gap the other day. sadly (for me at least) they adjust the sizes to fit japanese standards. i tried on the biggest size pants they have (4 sizes bigger than what i normall wear at the gap) and they still didn't fit. now, i suspect i've gained a little bit of weight since i got here, but i KNOW i haven't gained THAT much! haha. so, i resort to...online shopping! gap, however, does not have international shipping. they do, however, have already put together outfits that i drooled over. i might enough own clothes like those in the pictures, but i can't make such "cool" outfits on my own. so, i told my mom "this is my christmas list:" and sent her the link to the page of all the outfits. but really, thank god i've got a paycheck now!! going home for christmas this winter break will definitely involve some self-present-ing. ;)

kit-kat should stick to the basics.
in honor of halloween (which no one here really "gets" they just have pumpkins and fall decorations all over the place) kit-kat has come out with "pumpkin kit-kats." not in the shape of pumpkins or with pumpkin faces...no, the actual inside is orange and pumpkin flavored. but not the sweet pumpkin flavor (think: pumpkin pie flavor) that i imagined would be really good in a chocolate covered treat, but more literally pumpkin. kit-kat runs a range of flavors here in japan. i've seen all of the following: green tea (the outside is actually green, but i don't like real green tea enough to try green tea kit-kat), passion fruit, pineapple, white kit-kat, and i think i may have seen some kind of citrus version somewhere along the way. regular kit-kats are tasty and really don't need to be altered. but i do admit that the novelty of "seasonal kit-kats" is kind of appealing and i do occassionaly buy them out of curiousity.

84 yen love

soymilk juice boxes.

kasukabe wildlife

i saw my first example of kasukabe wildlife this evening. i was coming out of the grocery store and there was a woman loading her child into the kid's seat of her bike, which was next to mine. so, i pretended to be checking my email on my cell phone while waiting. then, out of the corner of my eye, i thought i saw something moving. i looked up and there, hopping across the bike parking lot in front of the store was...a field mouse.

and that's probably as "wild" as the wildlife will get here.


i should mention that i got the internet today and this post was made from the comfort of my own home. hopefully i will be posting more often and with more substance.