Two Photo Albums Up

First full day at JCMU is going well. Only 2pm, also. I woke up at 7:30am. What? It's like getting up at 6:30pm for you. I unpacked, bummed around, and uploaded two photo albums for your viewing pleasure: Last Day in the USA Nagoya After that, I went for a nice hour-long walk snapping pictures along the lake and the immediate area around JCMU. Now I am back inside, talking online, since it's only 1am in MI, many people are up. I'm going to get going soon though. Enjoy the pics!

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....

More on Last Saturday

Yes, when I awoke on Saturday morning, I had to shower and head off to the International Center for the JCMU Orientation. I emerged from the bathroom, with my black Amerikilt, a black Jethro Tull shirt (with the logo from Broadsword and the Beast on it), and went to put on my new Birkenstocks to get going. Nick was amused at my outfit. He said that the Tull shirt was the icing on the cake. The Orientation itself was fairly pedantic. I was invited to open my yap and contribute any information I had to share, since I was the only one in the audience who was a returning student. I enjoyed everything that they had to say. When we broke for lunch, Erin came up to meet me for lunch, and for the second time in as many days, I had Toxic Hell. Mainly because Erin doesn't like subs and tehe line was twice as long there. Orientation continued after lunch, and it figures that the person I sat with and talked to was only going to be there for the May Short Term. Not the Summer Semester. Oh well. Upon returning to Van Hoosen, Erin and Stef's apartments, Stef's mom showed up with food (I didn't partake of it much, since I had recently consumed doom on a tortilla). We sat and watched the Wings game, and I heard Stef burst out yelling a few times. But since I am not a hockey guy, and had gotten only a bit of sleep the night before, I was kinda dozing a bit. At one point, I opened my eyes to see Stef, Stef's mom, and Nick all standing and inching towards the tv as if trying to corner and pounce on a mouse during a breakaway that some Wings player made. It was quite odd, and I was fairly disturbed by it until I figured out what the hell was going on. After the game, I decided to brave the drive home, since Myst needed to eat eventually. On the freeway, I came up to the sign that pointed me to the Michigan Brewing Company, which I passed every time I went home, and never stopped at because I had to get to work or I had no money, or some other excuse. However, I had $10 left in my sporran, and I did not have to get to work, for once. I stopped there, and instantly liked it. There were peanut shells on the floor, an 8 seat bar, two tables inside, and seating area outside. They also had all of their beers on tap. I would say there were 10 or 12 beers there set up. I asked one of the regulars what his favorite was, and he said it was the Sunset Amber Lager. I went with his suggestion, and was not disappointed. It was a gorgeous amber hue, like a dark honey, with a rich, malty flavor. It still kept the lightness and crispness that lagers are known for, but just had more body. Yeah, I'm a beer nerd, so what? What are you going to do about it, eh? The pint was $3.50, but I paid $5 for it to tip the bartender. She seemed busy but was around when you needed her. I bought another pint eventually, having struck up conversation with another regular, coincidentally also named Dave. He seemed to be a real cool guy, and suggested a few places to try beers at. I told him I would buy him a beer, but he declined, since he got a discount and instead bought me a beer. We kept talking, and when my third was empty, I made to get up, but I had a fourth beer in front of me, and how could I tell the bartender or Dave no, I do not want a beer? You can't. When I did get home, I was able to drive well. I was careful to not get pulled over, though. You know, just in case. I'll detail my lovely Airfare Woes next. Tune in, Same Kilt Time, Same Kilt Channel!!

A Week at a Time

You know, I am really bad at updating right now. I've been quite busy. But here I shall attempt to relay my past week for all to enjoy. Last Thursday, Jason and Justin came over and we drank some beers, ate some food, and watched Kill Bill, Volume One. It was good fun. I had Friday and Saturday off to go to MSU for my JCMU Orientation. Let's start with Friday. I spent most of the early afternoon Diablowing with Erin, Stef, and Nick. We killed many, many beasites of the Underworld. Good times were had by all, as well as treasure amassed in quantities unknown. Wow, what an awkward sentence! We stopped playing when Erin mentioned that it was getting late and I had about an hour to get up there, and I had yet to shower. Ugh. But scrub I did, and flew my way up to EL to meet everyone up at Toxic Hell. I mean, Taco Bell. Friday night there was a party for Marcie's boyfriend, Jason, who was to turn into a pumpkin, er, no, an adult at midnight. I proceeded to amaze the few there by inhaling 3 tacos and two meximelts in record time, whereupon we crossed the street to acquire alcohol for consumption at the party. I felt like consummate college students, leaving Meijer's with a case of Labatt's Blue, a fifth of Malibu and a fifth of Absolut Vanilla. After some further fennagling, we got to the house party at Leyna Kasparek's house. I think that's how you spell the name. It was a beautiful night, so most of it waws spent outside talking, going inside for more drinks where it was really, really hot, and then coming back out where it was quiet sometimes. Then in, then out. I had a few drinks, about 6 I would say, but no buzz at all. I believe it's because I packed myself full of Toxic Hell. Erin and I people watched a while, and got to talk.I find it most amusing that people would come up to her and act as if they were her best friend, and say "HI! So great so see you!" and walk away. Eventually, as the night wore on and the music droned on, Erin and I were sitting on the couch and saw Nick tell Marcie and Stef to kiss. So they did. And even when the guys looked away, they were still kissing. They didn't know when to stop! In any case, a little bit later they got all three lovely ladies to smooch. Erin, Marcie, and Stef. I am disappointed to say that the pictures did not come out. :( Oh well. Once again outside, a buzzed Stef asked Erin for a drink of her Sam Adam's Cherry Wheat and tipped it back up so fast that it overfoamed. She said something like "Who wants to lick this off of me?" and about 10 people licked her hand. Myself included. Hey, when a lady's beer covered hand is presented, one does not snub it! The evening had wore on, and Erin and I decided to get away from the party, so Nick, who was in no driving state, gave me the keys to his convertible. No, I did not abuse it, I took it gently to the parking structure. Erin and I, upon reaching the apartment, watched Kill Bill. For those keeping score, that's twice in as many days. It was good again. I slept the sleep of the dead for about 4 hours before getting up and going to my Orientation, which will be the next installment, tomorrow. Suffice to say, it involves me in a kilt, and beer.

Last Night was Fun

{{Dual Posted at My Other Website}} I went and picked up Kevin, the coolest 14 year old little brother I have yesterday to have him crash over at my place. We ate at Famous Dave's, saw the Rurouni Kenshin Reflections DVD, Lost in Translation, played video games (Super Smash Bros Melee, Mario Kart: Double Dash, and I showed him Diablo II) Kev was trouncing me in Smash Bros so I called Jason over, and he came and schooled Kevin. It was good. I liked watching (because I would have just been cannon fodder if I were playing). This morning, I woke up the kid, we played more Mario Kart, then we headed to take him home. Donna got me a pair of Birkenstocks, so I am exceedingly happy that I will have some comfy sandals to take to Japan. Unfortunately now, I have to go to work. But, on the plus side, my Papa and Aunt Deets are going to come up and eat! So I get to see them even though I have to work Saturday night and Sunday morning, thus missing the Easter Festivities. Oh well, time to scrub up and get ready for work.

Nap Time

{{{Transcribed from my website, which I will continue to do until I get JapanDave up and running}}} All righty. I have had some good times lately, and some not so good times. Let's start with the good times. I got to go to BDub's with Erin, Stef, Marcie and Nick again, and that was a good time. Got up in the morning on Friday, felt really, really warm, but shrugged it off. I got home, was going to get ready to take a shower and go to work, but decided to curl up in a huddled mass on my bathroom floor instead. It wasn't pretty. So I missed work Friday and Saturday nights, which really hurt. Now this week has been much better, health wise. No illnesses, nothing of the sort. Just lots of hanging out. Lounging. Drew and I went out for some belated birthday pie. I love birthday pie. Went to the EMU Orientation for the Study Abroad programs. It was fairly pointless. I knew everything they were saying already and just droned for a while and then told the JCMU people to go to MSU's Orientation Meeting on the 17th. My reaction: DUH. I closed at work Friday night, got home around 1am, had the orientation at EMU from 10-1, then worked 4-1 (closed again, yay me!), then I LOST AN HOUR thanks to stupid Daylight Savings Time, and had to work 10-5:30. It felt like 9-4:30. Now I am back to realxing. Jason is supposed to be heading over, but he seems to actually be driving slow for once. He said he was on his way 45 minutes ago when it only takes 20 minutes to get here. Curious...

Updates where?

Hey all. I am updating mainly on my new wesbite so I can get a feel for it, since that's what I am mainly going to use while in Japan. The current URL is www.geocities.com/david_gibb for the website, but I will be purchasing www.japandave.com soon. So check there from time to time. Comment here though. I don't have the forums up over there yet....

A Really Good Week

Well, let me start with last Wednesday, the 10th. I turned 23! Buit that wasn't the highlight. I got to see Erin when she took me to lunch at Akaska, my favorite Japanese restaurant, and also the first place we went out to eat together. Later that night, it was dinner time. Did I cook for myself? NO! Jason and Susie took me to J. Alexander's where I had lotsa prime rib! Afterwards, we watched the World Poker Tour and South Park at his place. I went home, and slept after starting playing Diablo 2. Thursday, Bob, Christina's new guy, came over and hung out. He was awesome and helped me out with dishes. While we were hanging out, my kilt arrived! I won an auction on eBay for a black Amerikilt. After he left, I tossed the kilt on and headed out to Meijer's for groceries. I was making dinner for Erin and Stef! I got lots of looks at Meijer's, and one woman asked me what type of kilt it is, since it wasn't a tartan. I made a Paradise Pumpkin Pie (bottom is cheesecake, top is pumpkin pie), Hot and Cheesy Balsamic Spinach Salad and Mediterranean Chicken. It was really very good, and, more importantly, the girls liked it. Jason showed up and hung out also. Friday, Saturday, Sunday I worked. Oh, one thing. Saturday night I went to a little party. Chris, the bartender I hang out with was quitting, and his last day was Sunday. So we were going to get a beer after work Saturday, but his friends got a keg, so we went there, and people were drinking and playing Euchre. It was a good time. Then some very drunk obnoxious assholes showed up and were eventually asked to leave. Things got heated up, and they almost got their asses kicked. But they eventually left. After yelling. Lots of yelling. I got to sleep at 4am, and had to be at work by 10am. Yeesh. Sunday after work, I went to visit my mom and everyone to show off my kilt and give David Carter some anime. They also gave me my birthday present! It was a delicious 6 pack of Leinenkugel Honey Weiss, some Germack Dried Cherries, and a Kwok. What's a Kwok? It's a little glass that when you drink it, goes 'kwok kwok kwok.' We had tacos, and they were yummy. Dave was the first one to ask me what I wear under my kilt. I answered honestly. Socks and shoes. I headed home around 845 or 9. Jason came over Sunday after dinner, but I fell asleep on the couch while he played Diablo 2. Point. Click. Kill. Amass Treasure. Repeat. FUN GAME!!! Today, Monday, I worked the morning. I had to get out early, which I did, in order to get to Ypsi to check on my JCMU application and get the letter of reccommendation from Tabuse-sensei. Before I went, I decided to call MSU to see if they even had my application. They asked for my name and put me on hold. They came back and quite calmly said, "Yes, we have you application, and you have been accepted." I am officially going to JCMU again!!!! I can't frigging believe it! I immediately called everyone and told them, and now the real planning begins. I have to transfer the leases of my car and apartment, have Christina watch Myst, get another kilt, pack my stuff into storage, set my phone to the lowest plan and prepay to save the number, get a digital camera, get a domain name (I hope for www.JapanDave.com which leads nowhere now), and try to say my goodbyes in the next two months. Tonight, I am hanging out with Justin after Jason went home (has to work at 7am). By the way. It has been really windy lately. Windier than it has been in the past few weeks. I think this is weather getting back at me for going kilty. Curse them. I am surviving, nay, thriving! What a fun-packed week! Now comes the hard part: not going insane before I leave for the other side of the planet!!

We're gonna play a little game of run an' gun...

Damn Bud! He's gotten me hooked on The Shield, which is quite entrancing. In the first episode, so much happened, that it seemed like it could have been a full length feature film. The characters are endearing, and though there are crooked cops, and do-gooders, there is no clear cut good and evil in the main characters. The camera work is amazing also. So yeah. Bud brought over the first season on DVD, and I have only so far watched the first 9 out of 13 episodes. The second season is out also, but I don't have enough cash to pick either up. Then the third season starts one day before my birthday, on the 9th. In other news, I hung out with Joe and his girlfriend Jocelyn last night, whom I just met. It was a good night indeed!

Everything's Comin' Up Milhouse!

I had quite a wonderful week this week. First off, it was Spring Break, no school! On Tuesday, I was a busy monkey. I went to my dad's in the afternoon to hang out a bit, pick up my new Jethro Tull DVD (complete with The Story of the Hare Who Lost His Spectacles!!!), and play some pool. It was rough, shooting pool, drinking beer, and watching Tull. I even had to endure a tasty dinner. Oh no, whatever shall I do? As you may have figured, I survived. After dinner, I scuttled off back to my apartment to consume Paczki with Drew and Jason, and that we did. We had moo juice and custard Paczki while watching some Naruto. Wonderful end to the day. To make things better, Thursday I went up to Lansing earlier in the day to hang out with Erin and Stef before going to BDub's. Erin was a little tired, but we still had a good time. It was the full complement of BDubs crowd (for me at least). It was Erin, Stef, Marcie, Nick, and me. One of their friends Ryan was also there, trashed beyond belief, but at least he was taken care of. He got a ride home safely with a friend. After BDub's, Marcie headed home eventually after a bit and Nick, Stef, Erin, and I watched Bruce Almighty, which I thoroughly enjoy. "Back to you, fuckers!!!" Great line. When the movie ended, we kept talking, and talking until about 6am. Yeah, we were up late. After a 4 hour nap, Nick woke up the girls by climbing into Stef's bed. Alas, I couldn't stay long, for I had the vile instituion of work to attend to. Stupid work. But then again, I had a good night Friday night, Saturday night, and although today (Sunday) dragged, it was still a good day. So I can't complain... too much. So I have to go to EMU and jump through a few more hoops to insure some JCMU goodness for David. I don't think I will find out from JCMU if I am going in the next few days, but I will have EMU's endorsement, which is pretty much as good as going myself. At least that's what they told me so far. On the pants front, I am going to take a step to rid myself of the tyranny of pants soon. I measured myself for my first kilt. I am going to get a USAKilts Victory Kilt complete with a beer holder pocket on the side. It will be Navy Blue. Hell yeah. Christina is completely off the lease and moving her stuff into her new apartment with Robert as I type. Well, she is passed out on my bed because she decided to move stuff now, though she has a hangover, so he's doing the moving, and she's doing the sleeping. Poor guy. All in all a good week.

A Couple of Days Pass

And I am still killing myself over my JCMU application. All of the assurances from everyone that I will be going will not assuage my fears that I will not be allowed to return to Japan. Yeesh. I am planning what I would bring already! (I would need hot sauces, minimum two frisbees, need to get a digital camera, 2 pairs of pants, 2 pairs of shorts, and, hopefully, 2 kilts, for starters) Enough of my pity party. Last night, Jason, Justin and I went to a bar. We went to The Box Bar in Plymouth. Its biggest selling point was their beer selection. They had 650 beers available, 40 on draft. They weren't messing around. Their beer menu was in a binder and took ten pages. It was organized by country, then alphabetically! I enjoyed a Double Diamond Amber Ale, a Yebisu (favorite Japanese beer ever), Celebrator Doppelbock, and an Anchor Steam beer. I enjoyed them all. They were all varied types, and it made for a pleasant night of sampling. The burger and fries we got there were standard bar fare, not too great, but still okay. The thing that was absolutely abysmal though, was the service. Our waiter actually disappeared for a while, and in that time my beer disappeared. I wanted more. So I got sick of waiting and went to the bar for it. As I was walking back to the table, he came out of the back room and said, " Is there anything I can get you?" My only answer was, "You're too slow." He responded, "I was smoking." Now, if you have guests that you are trying to take care of, you make damn sure they are set before you go suck on a cancer stick or three for fifteen minutes. When I reached the end of that beer, I was still getting restless. All three of us were done, and no waiter to be found. Justin was just letting me up to go to the bar when he emerged from the back room. Just in time to keep me from going to the bar, but still too late. Half way through the third round, he comes up, drops the bill off and says, "Hey, can you guys cash out? I want to go home soon. You can still drink." Okay, rudest check drop ever in the history of my experiences. He got a three dollar tip on a $73 bill. I also left him a little note saying why he didn't get a real tip. I got the fourth round from the bartender, who paid attention to people. I also watched Lost in Translation, which I thought was a very well-filmed movie. I could identify with it on many levels. I have been the lonely, homesick person staring out the window over the town. I have been living in Japan where I am the only person I can talk to well. I know the strong bonds that form between people like that. I felt that movie, and I truly enjoyed it. Now, some people would say it was slow and boring, but I really enjoyed it. I've lived it before, but not with a female lead next to me. Tonight I went to work and was expecting a couple people to come in and visit. Drew and Nissa came up and made my evening. I got to see them for the first time in months! Thankfully we weren't busy when they came in so I could sit and chat with them a bit. Hopefully I will get to see them again soon. Honestly, I shouldn't be writing this now. I should be asleep because it is 2:00am and I have to be back at work at 9:00am for a silly meeting, then back to work for the night at 4:00. Oh well. I should go rest my weary head.

It's been a while

Well, I have gone and neglected my LiveJournal for a while again. I woke up this morning and checked my computer and I had an IM from Stef telling me to update my journal. So here I am. I just let it get out of hand and things build up, and I just don't update. I'm lazy, is what I am saying. I've been fairly busy with work and school, but I've been having much more fun going to Lansing and visiting Erin and Stef. We've gone out to B-Dub's a few times, and Jason and Bud have joined us a few times also. I have some pretty good pictures from the last time we went there. This Valentine's Day was a fairly different one for me. I woke up and went to go play laser tag at Laser Quest which is right by Malarkey's, the Irish Pub I like. It was for my family's quarterly birthday party. We played two games and I came in 5th for both games. I also had to leave a bit early so I could scrub up for a little lunch date I made with Erin. We went to Carrabba's which is an Italian place that had pretty darn good food. Unfortunately, I had to cut everything fairly short, because I had to go to work, but getting to take Erin to lunch made my day. Work was busy, but filled with cheap people. Sunday I worked until 5 and was busy all day. After work, I went to my mom's for Diana's 9th birthday, which went well. We ended up getting Famous Dave's for dinner (though I had just left there) and having bundt cake. My brother and I discussed the bundting process. For instance a bundt cake is bundted when it is removed, or debunted, from the bundt pan. Also called the Debundtification Process. It was very informative. Today I went to lunch with Jason to the new Max and Erma's and it was obvious that the waitress was bored, had a small section, and was new to waiting tables. She checked up on us way too much, but was at least good natured about it. Then we went to EMU to turn in the hard copy of my JCMU application. Now comes two and a half weeks of waiting to find out if I get to go to Japan again. Oh well. So, happy? I'm updating my journal again! To review, my highlights lately: visiting Erin, hanging out with Stef, Jason, Bud, and stuff. Lowlights: constant work for not so good money and silly school getting in the way. David, signing off.