Oh, the Stupidity that is David.

Just so you know, this is the third entry posted simultaneously. Perhaps you want to go read the other two? I suggest you do that, starting with With a Little Help from My Friends AND Travel Woes. So I was sitting, waiting for the other Gaijin to get off the plane from Detroit, arriving at 6:05pm, when it was nearing 8:00pm. Sure, an hour could be explained with the customs thing, but, come on. I decided to call JCMU, and I found out that the group flight arrives TOMORROW. Oops. So I had to get on another swanky bus to the Nagoya Station. I then brought the 100+lb of luggage across the street, then bought what I thought was a Shinkansen (bullet train) ticket, but apparently I was mistaken. I ended up having to get into another line and get the real Shinkansen ticket. Then, lugging the baggage, I got to the platform, thank God for escalators. Getting on the Shinkansen was no problem, getting off the Shinkansen was no problem. Getting my luggage out of the station was a problem. First, I had an escalator. No problem. Next I had 10 steps up. Difficult, but no problem. Last, I had 60 steps to descend, luggage in hand. I did it by taking one piece of luggage down 15 steps to one landing, then getting the other piece, leapfrogging it to the ground. Then, I got a taxi which brought me here, where I am now, FINALLY AT JCMU. Just so you all know, I am in room 126. I'm going to Lawson's, getting some grub, and I have already met a few people.

Nagoya Day

I will be telling you what time most of this was written, as it was written over the course of a day in a notepad, then transcribed into laptop. So right after I finished typing the last entry, it was roughly 7:00pm. I was lying on my futon mattress (about 1.5in thick on the floor) and I decided that I would bathe and go to Lawson's in the morning. I was going to combat my jetlag this way. So I slept. I woke up every three hours, but I slept all night long. It is now 8:00am. I am going to brave the public bath, hopeully it will be empty and I can get a picture, and then head to Lawson's for food. I do not know what I will do today, but I have only to be back at the airport at around 5:30pm. I went for a relaxing, and, thankfully, solitary bath. It was interesting showering while sitting on a stool in a line of showers, but the tub afterward was heavenly, if a bit too hot. After the bath, I had planned on checking out. But I decided to use my last hour of A/C wisely. I used the hot water pot to make myself some tea. I think it was a seaweed tea. Very mild. On the hot water pot that I had, there was some interesting Engrish. What is Engrish, you ask? Well, it is when the Japanese people misuse the English language, which is pretty much all the time. On the Hot Water Pot in the Ryokan Meiryu (room 204): Sweet Tulip the blue sky, warm sunshine, soft wind, the sweet small of flowers heartwarming breathing space Now isn't that nice? The sweet small of flowers breathing space. Yay! On with the day. While drinking my tea, I watched an hour of Japanese morning television. They were discussing one person's specialty foods, much like the show Food Finds on FoodTV back home. It was interesting, but check out time was 10:00am, so I had to head out. Upon checking out, I went to the Lawson's around the corner and picked up some Mitsuya Mikan (pop that tastes like Clementine oranges!) and some Zaru Soba (cold buckwheat noodles with some soy-wasabi-scallion dipping sauce). I ate it and broke my fast back in the general sitting area of the Ryokan Meiryu where a little white kitty with funny ears was sitting. Soon after, I cleared out and made my way to the Kamimaezu Subway Station. I bought an all day ticket and headed off with the intention of going to Meijo Koen (Meijo Park), but on the subway, I chanced to see an advertisement for an art gallery called Art Square showing some of Yoshitaka Amano's works. Lucky me! For those who don't know the name, Yoshitaka Amano was the one who did the art and character design for such anime as Vampire Hunter D and quite a few of the Final Fantasy games. Ever heard of those? And it was only one more stop down the line, so I had to go there! At the time this was written first, it was in a pad while sitting in "Central Park" where there is a good amount of trees, water running through carefully sculpted paths, and homeless people. I guess they claimed Central Park as their own. This was until 10:45am. The art gallery was amazing. Yoshitaka Amano's works firsthand are beyond compare. The way he uses metallics and simple lines, swatches of color... Look it up. Go. Now. Well, wait until you finish reading this entry. Upon entering, you see a painting of Celes from FFVI, then D (Vampire Hunter D), the cover from other anime, more fantasy pictures, and more. There were eight or nine from Vampire Hunter D, four or five from various Final Fantasies, and other fantasy works, including a really cool charcoal rendition of Batman. The music in there was weird. They played some Japanese music, plus a mix of American music, including: "1, 2, 3, 4, Get Your Woman on the Floor," "So, Sally Can Wait" (not the title there, but I don't know it) and "Lump." Very odd. I think it's going to rain, also. Outside of the Art Square, there was an emigmatic staircase leading into the underbelly of Nagoya. But before I went there, I went up to the fourth floor above Art Square, which held a Yellow Submarine. Yellow Submarine is a hobby shop and a haven for all theng nerdy. It was air-conditioned and chock full of models and things, card games, toys, and various other things that would just sit on a shelf and collect dust. They were cool, but not buy-me-now cool. Now, it was time to investivate that staircase in the sidewalk. Little did I know that Central Park was not only a park in the center of town, but a whole underground mall that stretched for blocks! It was cool, but all of the shops were either restaurants or clothes shops. Being not hungry and larger than pretty much all of the Japanese population, I wandered on. I decided to go topside and check out an anime store I saw while sitting in the park. It turns out that it was a Mandarake, which is a 9-story anime/manga/toy store. I walked the floors, looking at all the displays, including a Buddy Lee (Can't Bust 'Em) action figure which cost 12600Y, or $126US. I still felt the rain coming after walking all those floors, so I headed back down to the sanctuary of the subway. Now, let me say how truly convenient the subway system in Japan really is. It is easily navigable, despite language barriers since they usually have English translations of the stops. They are cool, breezy, clean, and they run smoothly and on time. With my day pass, I could ride them all day. I worked my way towards the stop where I could hop the bus to the airport, but I yet again got distracted. I saw a sign for a stop called something like Shonai Ryukai Koen (Park, remember?). As I mounted escalators, the air smelled strongly of rain. Very strongly. Sure enough, the rain had just stopped and the area was parkish with conservatories which were, unfortuantely, closed. Still, it was cool wandering around there for a bit, including when I happened upon a gaggle of schoolkids. Having had enough fun in a wet park with rolly-luggage, I went back to the subways to get to the normal train, which led to the bus, bringing me safely to the airport. Only, what, three transfers there? And that was from a close subway stop. Now I am at the airport, penning this into the notebook from the Fast Food PAL cafe which is where I are my last meal in Japan last time I was here, which was a Teriyaki burger. I will not make that mistake again, I am staying away from their food. That was 2:45pm. I am now writing this in the laptop, sitting in the corner of the arrival floor, where the JCMU students should be coming out any time now, they are probably in customs right now. It is now 6:45pm. I spent these four hours wandering from store to store, playing Metroid Fusion, and using their Internet Corner which cost me 100Y for 10 minutes of net time. It let me compose an email or two, at least. I also had my first Melon Soda of the trip. I missed that so much. Well, I am going to go pay attention to the gate and see if anyone vaguely caucasian comes out. Talk to you from JCMU!!!

With a Little Help from My Friends AND Travel Woes

Thursday was moving day. Many boxes had been hurriedly packed and set in the corner to be moved to my dad's later in the day. So many people have helped me get ready for this day that I can't believe that it actually happened. Thursday night, Jason and Justin helped me take two truck loads (as well as two car loads) to Royal Oak. That damn couch tried to kill us. Again. It is much heavier and more unweildy than I expect. In the middle of the first trip, we stopped at BDub's at Fountain Walk to see Rach, Stef, Erin, and Nick before I got away. It was really good to see them because they are yet more friends that I try to make time for in this hectic time, and I actually succeeded to see them, so I was very happy. Jason and Justin both had some food and two tall Labatt's. I had water and some huge, meaty teriyaki wings. I was waiting until I got to my dad's for the beer. When we arrived, we had some brew, unloaded the truck and car, and went for the second load. The second load went faster, mainly because it did not involve the couch at all. It was all computers, tv, tables, and pillows. And a last couple straggling boxes. After, we had some more beer and chatted while dad pulled out some bar tunes from this one guy he heard who had some very amusing songs, such as: "You Don't Have to be Drunk to be an Asshole" and "I Want a Rich, Dumb, Young Nymphomaniac" which were both hilarious. Justin had to lay concrete 5 hours later, so he went to get some sleep. Jason and I stayed to have a couple more beers and shoot some pool. Jason and I were soundly trounced. Surprise, surprise. We got back to my place at 4:15am, Jason went home, and I slept on the floor with my neck pillow and a tiny blanket since I took the rest of them to my dad's just hours before. I was woken up at around 7am, and then had a visit, and then my mom and the kids came over to help. It was then that I took care of my Day from Hell: Last Day in the USA. Mom, David Carter, and Diana, and I went to tackle the horrendous mess that was the remainder of the junk at the apartment. We started, then decided to hit the local McDonald's which took about a bazillion hours to make our food. I couldn't eat it all, and the kids had fun playing in the play area. But I was kind of in a rush, so I hurried them along. Upon returning to the apartment, the enormity of the task at hand kind of got to me. I think I was having a panic attack. My stomach clenched and I couldn't breathe. I was feeling nauseous. Eventually, I got up, and alternately gave stuff to mom, threw stuff away, gave stuff to the kids, and packed. It was slow going, and I had about thirty thousand phone calls come to me and made by me. Jason came by to take bottles back and help throw stuff away and pack. By the way, I had roughly $41.00 in bottles in the apartment. That's roughly 410 bottles and cans. I am impressed. Anyways. Drew came over after work, threw me a hand and helped in the vaccuuming of rooms, throwing of trash, and packing of crap. As well as corralling of siblings. DC and Diana were pretty good, considering they were pretty much being told to help or shut up. Bob showed up to get the remainder of Christina's crap out of the way. By three o'clock, everyone had dispersed and I was ready to head out, after three more trips to the dumpster and a vaccuuming of my own. Ah, my car was full. I whisked myself off to my brother's after turning in the keys and saying goodbye to 5945 Sandhurst, #204. Or, whisked is what I would have done if my car wasn't weighed down with a ton of stuff and didn't get slowed down by an accident on 275. I got to my brother's, and we went then to Suburban Honda to get the car appraised and see if they would buy it back from me. They told me they would give me $10,500 for it, which isn't bad, if it were a Kia or something. But I still owe $14,825 or something like that. So it came down to, "Give us over $4200 or go away." So I went away, but not until calling out Dan Hedges and saying hi to him. I wish I could have stopped in and seen Jess before I left, but I had to get to my papa's place, and I was over an hour late getting there. We were surprised at seeing an Envoy in the driveway to my Papa's house. Turns out that my dad decided to stop by for a visit and we sat and talked for a bit. My dad had gotten my passport from the Consulate, sans visa, and the subsequently arranged (and free) three day ticket to Seoul, South Korea for the end of August. Visited Papa, then headed to my dad's to get everything washed and squared away. It was pretty rough. At my dad's house, there was talking, eating pizza, and making fun of David for washing and packing his bags 6 hours before his flight left. I dealt with it. Let me tell you. The leaving was the hardest part. *** I have a private entry here. So there *** Okay, back to the public goings-on. Begin Travel Woes. Checkin in was simple, and when I eventually got to the security checkpoint, I had to practically strip. I was expectint the red lights and burlesque music. I had to take the shoes, belt, and watch I was wearing off. That left me with shorts and shirt (as well as boxers, since you want to know). I didn't have to wait but 35 minutes until we boarded our little commuter plane. There were 20 of us on this plane, and it had the propellers also. I asked one of the other passengers where they kept the big rubber bands to wind it up with. I slept through the whole flight, and don't remember a thing. Upon arriving in Toronto, I took another long walk, after going through immigration and customs for the first time, and then got to the gate. I sat and wrote out the first half of this journal entry and then closed my eyes. Bad idea. I woke up and everyone around me was different, and it was 8:55am. My flight left at 9:00am. Thankfully, I made it on the plane just in time. That would have been a disaster! So I slept through 90% of this flight, stopping to have airplane french toast and talk to the guy next to me. He was going home to Hong Kong. Cool guy. The wait in Vancouver wasn't long, either. I got some coins to call a couple people to tell them I was alive and safe in Vancouver, and buy a drink and some chips (which I still have here, yet uneaten). It wasn't long until I was corralled onto the plane and started my third and longest sit of the day. The guy sitting next to me this time is very easy going, and has gaming magazines and a GBA SP. Good taste. The movies on the flight were Big Fish (which made me tear up at the end, probably because of the stress I've been under, and the fact that I won't be seeing friends and family for six months sinking in), Along Came Polly (which I saw about 4 frames of as I slept), and Cheaper by the Dozen (which I think was pretty funny). The meal services were both chicken or seafood choices. Not being able to eat seafood prepared on a plane, I had a rubbery chicken dish with pasta and a teriyaki chicken thing with rice respectively for my meals. Did I mention that on all of these flights I was stiting window seat, on the engine/wing? It was pretty darn comfy with my neckbone, but still. ON the Wing every time! I arrived safely in Nagoya, stored my large luggage at the airport for 1200Y, then took an exceedingly expensive taxi for 4200Y, about $40, to get to my ryokan (hotel) for the night. So I am typing this from my tiny room right now. the room is about 8ft wide by 15ft long. The bathroom is across the hall, and the baths are public. It is about 6:40pm here so it is 5:40am in Michigan right now. I am struggling to decide when to bathe and when to go to Lawson's. Yes, there is a Lawson's near here, of course. Lawson's, for those who didn't have to hear me say this 10,000,000 times before, is a convenience store like none stateside. It has good food, and a huge range of stuff. I enjoy it muchly. So here is David, weary from travel and packing, saying thank you so very much to all of my friends and family. I love you all, and I will miss you even more. Just keep in touch or I might have to go around breaking fingers when I get back. Christmas or not.

I hate packing

It is damn near impossible for me to pack my life into boxes. Mainly because I am so damn lazy. I've been visiting with people, having a good time, and seeing friends that I won't see for six months, and not getting my work done. At least I am not the only one. My visa application is being held up. I talked to Carl at the Consulate General of Japan in Detroit again, and he said that the people who are processing the visa application in Tokyo have never seen an applicant who is attending JCMU. Stupid new visa process. So the people in Shiga (where JCMU is) are talking to the Tokyo people, and I may have some better news on the morrow. If not, I have the option of applying for a Certificate of Eligibility, which is the Golden Ticket of visas. I would have to leave the country, then come back and get my visa. Still requiring one trip out of the country. Not good at all. What can David do? Wait, wait, wait. And pack. Gotta pack, less typie, more packie.

230 Bottles of beer in the Trunk, 230 Bottles of Beer....

My trunk, all full of beer bottles.

Maybury May 2004

Here's the album from the Gibb family Maybury party, May 2004. I hope this works, it will make life simpler for me!! Maybury, May 2004 Enjoy!

Wheeeeee, more storms!

I took 230 bottles back to Wine Castle yesterday. It filled my trunk, and I have the cool picture to prove it. I still have more, though. Ick. Kevin and I got a late start, so we didn't get all that much done. The bottles was an ordeal, then when we got going, my car wasn't shifting properly, so I couldn't hit 70mph without my car being at 4000rpm, instead of the normal 3000rpm. After returning the bottles, it got better, though. In Royal Oak, I sat out back with Donna and Kevin for a bit, on the concrete slab where the hot tub used to be, looking at the dirt where the pool used to be, and I was sad how the backyard of my childhood had disappeared, but the garden that Donna is planning are going to look cool. Ginger didn't freak out and run away from me either! I went to visit my dad to drop off grandma and granddad's freezy bottle thing, but I missed them by 5 minutes or something. Dad and I talked Japan over a beer. Good times. I didn't get home till 530 or 6. What a day. I still have tons to pack, but no motivation to do so. My cable and internet are disappearing today, so my rhodry@comcast.net is disappearing for good. I still have david_gibb@yahoo.com so email me there if need be. And I am trying to get a Photogra account running, and trying to see if I can get it set so that I can just make it public instead of sending invitations. We'll see. I am starting to think that JapanDave isn't going to happen, since the two companies I was looking at to host the site have gotten nothing but abysmal reviews. They say things like the server decided to eat all the files and you have to reupload them, the site is frequently unavailable, they kick puppies in their spare time, and the customer service is non-existent. So I think I will continue solely on my livejournal here, and find a good photo uploading site.

Ugh, Fun day. Not Productive.

Well, I didn't get everything done that I wanted to get done. I had a great time at Maybury, playing frisbee, drinking Woodchuck Ciders, eating kielbasa, and hanging out with the Gibb family. Afterwards, Kevin, Jason, Susie, and I went and saw Shrek 2. Let me just say that you have to see it. I have never seen an opening montage reference so many other movies so well. And it was much funnier than the first. Even though there was a joke that I laughed at that nobody else did. Stupid people. Kevin spent the night also. We had a good time, watching American Wedding and drinking lots of Vanilla Coke, eating Doritos. But I didn't pack, except for my books. I still have to pack up the computer and tv, pack the kitchen, dismantle the table and take it to mom, and take back the bottles and coins. I am going to take back the bottles with the aid of Kevin. And miles to go before I sleep. Ugh. And I sleep on the floor now.

Friday's List

Well, last night Jason and Justin came over and we enjoyed ourselves with a dozen beers. Split between us, of course. We actually spent most of the time outside under the overhang of the complex because of this amazing thunderstorm we had last night. It was raining sheets, and the lightning and thunder was on top of us. It was awe inspiring. We were out there for the duration of two beers. Justin crashed here last night, and he's coming back after work today. When I got up this morning it was raining. It only got worse. It got dark, nighttime dark, at one thirty pm, and the rain was pouring down harder than it was last night, and the wind was whipping it around even harder. Also, add hail into the mix. Now, four hours later, the rain has stopped, and I am trying to stay motivated. I couldn't get the bottles returned today because by the time I got them into the car, I would have refilled them with rain. I did, however, get the trash taken out, and the chairs out also. Packing the clothes up and disassembling the bed for transport to Christina's has also begun. Now on to the irritation part. I got things taken care of with Comcast and set up for a Monday shutoff. All good there. I called the Consulate General of Japan in Detroit today, and after spending more than 10 minutes navigating a wordy and poorly designed menu system, left a message about wondering when my visa would be ready. I got a call back and the answer wasn't good. They are currently processing my application in Japan, and the guys here in the US don't know what's happening. Left hand not knowing what the right is doing. Lovely. My passport is in Detroit, so if all else fails, and I don't get it before the 28th, I go to D-town and get the passport from the Consulate, go to Japan, and spend 90 days in Japan, then swing over to Hong Kong, Guam, or Hawaii for a weekend or something. but it isn't the best thing. More money needed because the stupid governmental process. I've since fired off an email to Jeffery Johnson and Martin Stack, who are involved with JCMU (Martin being the head of JCMU in the states, and Jeffery being the Resident Director at JCMU), and am hoping for a speedy reply.

To Do List:

I have a lot to do before I am off for the half year. I am yet unmotivated to pack up my apartment, as it seems like I am not going to be across the world in a mere 8.5 days. In any case, I have put together a To Do List to which I should learn to adhere. Here goes! Friday, 21 ~Return bottles to Wine Castle and deposit spoils and coins to bank. ~Pack clothes ~Get the bed to Christina (and possibly Myst, but I think I will hold off on that, I will miss her!) ~Cancel cable/internet ~Check status on visa/passport at Japanese Consulate ~Hang out with Jason and Justin (bar or movie suggested) Saturday, 22 ~Family party at Maybury Park ~Pack up computer and tv (and possibly ship it over to Kevin) ~Work on packing kitchen ~Dismantle table and put into mom's garage ~Finish packing books Sunday, 23 ~Finish kitchen ~Clean/empty bathroom ~Gut the bedroom ~Final trash run Monday, 24 ~Probably move to dad's place ~Get rid of car ~Work on the website ~Take care of cell phone details That's the plan at least. Let's see how well it works.

Super Wacky Plus!

Just so everyone can know my flight info, keep up with this! Saturday May 29th 2004 D - 6:00am Detroit A - 7:18am Toronto Flight Time: 1:18 D - 9:45am Toronto A - 11:44am Vancouver Flight Time: 4:59 D - 1:05pm Vancouver A - 3:30pm Nagoya (30 May 04) Flight Time: 10:25 Total in-air time to Japan: 16:42 Return Flight info: Thursday, 16 December 2004 D - 12:30pm Nagoya A - 1:35pm Tokyo Flight Time: 1:15 D - 5:15pm Tokyo A - 3:30pm Toronto Flight Time: 12:15 D - 5:00pm Toronto A - 6:27pm Detroit Flight Time: 1:27 Total in-air time: 14:47 Crazy stuff, eh? I should eat today...

A Day in the Life

I currently have three cars, an apartment, a car, a cat, and a dog. I am watching my brother and Susie's dog, Shiva while they are a-cruisin' in the Caribbean. Hope they don't meet up with pirates. ...... Yarr. So I have been watching the dog, driving lots between places, and not packing as much as I should be. I have only packed a few boxes, and I have to get the heck out of there to get ready for Japan. Today is my first Shield Day alone. Jason has to work, Justin has class, and Bud is tired. That means I get The Shield on the big screen all on my own. Back to your regularly scheduled program.

Quickie

Just a quick update. Friday was both my little bro's birthday and my "Offficial" last day of work at Famous Dave's. Everyone there is so sweet. Someone arranged a cake for me, with Mt. Fuji and a Tori (entrance thingy to a Shinto shrine) on it, as well as two cards that everyone (I mean everyone) seemed to sign. Also, I got a free flamin' hat (FD on it of course) also. I know that they don't do this for many people, and it made me all warm and fuzzy inside to be counted among those who were so priviliged. I also ended up closing my last night, and Kelly and I had to share a 16-top, and it was hell. The guys and girls were segregated, the men ordered, and not from Kelly, but only talked to me. They ordered enough for about 25 people, getting 2 Feasts for 4, 2 Rib Tip Feasts, and 6 Pork Sandwiches. Technically, it would feed 18, but accounting for the fact that a feast for 4 serves 5-6, and a rib tip feast will serve 3-4, not 2-3, I am pretty spot on. But it all worked out in the end. And now I am watching my bro's condo while he and Susie are in the Caribbean on a cruise, those assholes. I am taking care of Shiva, their happy white schnauzer. Awesome dog. If ever I got one, it would have to be like her.

Airfare Woes

Okay, airfare to Japan blows. First off, since I am staying for over six months, the normal group airfare of 1100 dollars does not apply to me. The first option was to get what was essentially two one-way tickets piggybacked on one another. It would have cost me 2994 that way. It would have been cheaper to go to Japan, come back in August, then return, and come back in December by 550 dollars. How crazy is that that I could have ridden four airplanes for cheaper than it would have been for two? I ended up getting tickets that would make me go much further, but for much cheaper. By flying Air Canada, I leave on the 29th instead of the 31st, and go from Detroit to Toronto to Vancouver to Nagoya. Upon my return, I go from Nagoya to Tokyo to Toronto to Detroit. All of this for 1100 dollars. Finally, something is working out! But it's still rough. I have to get a lot done still. And miles to go before I sleep....