^#&*($#^%&*#*#(@)%*#(^%&$*!!! [curses and swears]
I super super detest people who instruct me as to what the hell to do, especially when it comes to work. I am disciplined (most of the time) and extremely responsible when it comes to homework and project work. I almost always get my work done before the project meeting, even if it means I don't sleep the night before. If I weren't responsible, I wouldn't have said, "I cannot hand it to you at that time. Can I send out at a later time instead please?" I'd just have said, "Okay" and proceed to forget all about it the next day. Granted, he's only been given less than a week to understand my working style. But I understand his. He is a dictator, a totalitarian. He'd ask, "I don't know, what do you guys think?" and then completely blows our comments off by saying, "Well, this is what I think." ARG. IIt's authoritarian style leadership. I feel so stifled and feel like striking out. ARG... What the hell. I came to Japan to avoid such cases (which are so rampant in my SMU life, and sometimes I am the authoritarian leader, I must admit) and here it is, playing out in a group project in Japan. ARG. If it weren't compulsory, I'd never take this *$#*&(%#&$ course. &*$#(^%#&^!*()@^&*$# [more curses and swear words]
-
My sore throat is sort of gone. In its place, like I predicted, is cough. Scratchy throat, scratchy throat.
Welcome to my world of sickness. Where I know I'm sick because I don't feel as hungry as usual.. And my body has the aches that usually tell you you have an impending fever. Looked for my panadol (I distinctly remember having packed it) but could not find it anywhere. Bloody hell. Luckily I have some medicine stowed away somewhere else.
Hmm, and so, I can no longer share food/water with other people. This reminds me of what Alex said some time ago (last week I think) when I offered him water from my bottle. He said, "In the words of Galen, 'How do I know if your bottle hasnt been promiscuous?'" haha. Galen is his ex-Singaporean roommate who once ate an entire stick of butter. Because of Galen, Alex can sort of understand me when I accidentally add a "lah" after my sentences.
-
Today, I was in the fish tank, ready to read my readings for Issues class today [cos I spent the entire night last night from 830 all the way to 130 working on my Issues project proposal, which eventually was only one page long]. was halfway through the first page of readings (and there were 26 pages) when this Japanese girl with her friend came along and asked me, "日本人ですか？” [are you Japanese?] In my mind was this immediate, "oh, no! My readings!!!" But I cannot lie, can I? So I said, "No, I'm not Japanese. I'm from Singapore." The girl and her friend very excitedly took her seat beside me. I swear, if Alex hadn't just gone off then, she would never have approached me. I blame Alex for this. Okay, or maybe I should blame myself. He spent 10 minutes convincing me why I should have lunch at Cafeteria 3 with him instead of reading my text but did I listen? NO! I wanted to be いい学生 (good student) so... My "punishment" for trying to be a good student was...
To spend 45 minutes talking to the girls about food [yes, food is a very safe issue to talk about you know], travelling [iwate and tohoku] and Mandarin [the girl who approached me was taking double major in English and Mandarin, and needed someone to practise]. I admire them, actually. It takes a lot of courage actually to come up to a person, and say, "Are you Japanese?" Because if the person they're asking is Japanese, then it would be a little bit embarrassing, wouldn't it? So, yeah. I put aside my readings because I felt like I should applaud their bravery or something. Haha. Some misguided notion of award for courage/bravery. Later on, Ashley, Amy and Robbie came to join us, so I introduced them to her. Robbie, like I mentioned, is studying Chinese, so I thought it'd be nice for them to chat. And Amy said she needed practice with her Japanese, so this girl was the perfect practice partner. Haha. Unfortunately, when I met Amy after class just now, she told me that the girl was a little shy and that she didn't want to join them for lunch. Ah, oh well. Bravery has its limits, ne?
Spent some time in the afternoon telling Kana (my classmate, Mik's Japanese friend) about Singapore because she wants to do an exchange in Singapore. Apparently, according to Mik, people who study Mandarin in KGU want to go to Singapore for exchange because they feel that they can practise their Mandarin in Singapore. If you ask me, Taiwan is a much better choice for this, or China. Singapore... erm, ちょっと。。。 *shrugs* Anyway, apparently, the SMU reputation has spread. Kana said, "I heard SMU is a hard place for studying." And I'm like, "Erm... Actually, that is very true..."
Isabelle (at OIR) tried to tell us to be SMU Ambassadors. While I'd love for more SMU students to come to KGU, I don't really want... erm, KGU people to go to SMU and suffer. SMU is such a stressful place, you know. Even international students feel the stress (some guy from Poland told my friend that he has never studied so hard in his life, even back in his home country, where the credits count), and they're not there for stress. They're there to relax, learn the culture [what they probably will learn is the stay over at SMU to mug your head off culture] and enjoy themselves! haha, but anyways, I directed Kana to the other 2 Singaporean girls from NTU.
I just found out today in class that there is this American who stayed in Singapore for a year. Asked her about Singlish and she said, "When I went back last summer, I totally couldn't understand a word anymore, even though I picked it up in the year I was there." haha. An Australian in my class knew I was Singaporean the moment I spoke. In Australia, there are many Singaporeans. So, he said, right from the start, he knew the accent. The Singaporean accent is so distinctive! I was walking away from Todaiji in Nara when I heard this father talking to his son. Immediately, it was recognizable! Singlish! haha. So I turned excitedly to Daryn and said, "Ah! Singaporeans speaking Singlish!" and she said, "No wonder I couldn't understand. It sounded totally foreign to me."
For the first time, I sort of miss Singapore today. 本当にはじめて。What sparked it off was the smell of the house when I came back today. Otoosan had the afternoon off, so he was cooking. And the smell that filled the house was the exact smell whenever Mummy boiled the ABC soup. Ah... 懐かしい...
Yep, so I'm going to either knit more, read my readings or to go and sleep. I'm behind my knitting terribly... =(
***
今天，朋友好像很闲。一向来，他是十分好动的。每次都会找借口欺负我。但是，今天，坐在我身边，好像有气无力的样子。。。我写文章到一半时，他的头突然靠在我的肩膀上，对我说：“我想回家。” 问他为什么，他的答案是：“因为不喜欢这里的人。这里的女生，千篇一律。 都是bimbo。没有思想，没有主见。在我的学校里，虽然女生长得丑，但是，都很聪明。跟那些女生比，差远了！好无聊啊！！"哈哈。原来如此。难怪，今天我介绍两位日本女生给他时，他面无笑容。。。还摆了一个，“不要跟我说话”的制式！我听了，不知道该怎么回答。。。奇怪的是，他没说：“这里的男生，千篇一律。 都是airheads。” 只针对女生！
可能，因为他说了那句话，“我想回家”， 让我在路上想起了家。好像离开了很久。其实，只是过了一个月罢了。朋友ｅｍａｉｌ我，问我想家吗。。。我直接回答：没有，不会。但是，今天，到家时，闻到那股香味，一瞬间，有了“想家” 的感觉了。。。希望，我不会太想家，不然的话，这一趟‘日本之旅’就会很难受了！
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Monday, October 6, 2008
One of the Strange Fads in Japan
Bananas have become extremely expensive in Japan due to the Morning Banana Diet.
I read an explanation of the Banana Diet here: Morning Banana. And I watched a woman on TV taking the Banana Diet and then she continuously lost weight.
Hmm, if you actually read it carefully, it's so commonsensical...
Examples:
a) Don't eat after 8p.m. I know this. It's the main reason why my tummy is flatter than it used to be. Oprah Winfrey doesn't eat after 7pm. She only has a cup of herbal tea after 7 p.m.
b) Eat your food mindfully. Isn't that why I eat so slowly? Cos I'm mindfully chewing 32 times [hahaha, but who's counting.. the main point is: I eat slowly to savour the food]
c) "At all meals you should eat only until you're satisfied but not full or stuffed" The usual rule is eat until you're 70% full, and not 100% full. LIKE DUH.
Those three are just examples of commonsensical stuff they write as "rules" to eating the banana diet.
Most importantly, you can substitute bananas with other fruit! -___-|| So, in essence, you DON'T HAVE TO HAVE BANANAS. Though, bananas are energy giving, that's for sure.
Note though, like all fad diets, it has this that I dislike very much: You don't have to exercise.
Once I see that phrase, I know, for sure, it's not gonna work after a certain period. Simple addition and subtraction. You add calories, you must subtract them somehow right? And how do you do that? Through exercise. Stop taking the bus and walk! Or stop a few stops away and then walk... The weather's so good these few days! It's not like you're supposed to run around the field 6 times every single day. Its walking just a little bit more, or climbing stairs when you usually take the elevator or escalator. Things like that =X Amy actually wakes up early (recently) to take a walk around the park, to keep fit. So, its not necessary to run, swim, play tennis, dance etc. Of course, if you enjoy those, go ahead...
Reminds me of Mr Bean's company slogan, "Life's simple pleasures". Isn't it one of the simple pleasures in life? Hmm, life's simple pleasures is when you are able to walk up a slope, breathe in the crisp air every single day, be able to taste the food you put in your mouth (I just HAVE to include food in every thing), being able to sleep well at night, be able to read a book, be able to hear things, be able to see things, be able to feel... It helps to take a little bit of time off to reflect about the very things that you take for granted. Haha, not that I do that often. It's just that today I'm a bit ill, so I'm not hungry, and then I think about those days when I'd be stuffing my face. Ah, i take those days for granted too. =)
I read an explanation of the Banana Diet here: Morning Banana. And I watched a woman on TV taking the Banana Diet and then she continuously lost weight.
Hmm, if you actually read it carefully, it's so commonsensical...
Examples:
a) Don't eat after 8p.m. I know this. It's the main reason why my tummy is flatter than it used to be. Oprah Winfrey doesn't eat after 7pm. She only has a cup of herbal tea after 7 p.m.
b) Eat your food mindfully. Isn't that why I eat so slowly? Cos I'm mindfully chewing 32 times [hahaha, but who's counting.. the main point is: I eat slowly to savour the food]
c) "At all meals you should eat only until you're satisfied but not full or stuffed" The usual rule is eat until you're 70% full, and not 100% full. LIKE DUH.
Those three are just examples of commonsensical stuff they write as "rules" to eating the banana diet.
Most importantly, you can substitute bananas with other fruit! -___-|| So, in essence, you DON'T HAVE TO HAVE BANANAS. Though, bananas are energy giving, that's for sure.
Note though, like all fad diets, it has this that I dislike very much: You don't have to exercise.
Once I see that phrase, I know, for sure, it's not gonna work after a certain period. Simple addition and subtraction. You add calories, you must subtract them somehow right? And how do you do that? Through exercise. Stop taking the bus and walk! Or stop a few stops away and then walk... The weather's so good these few days! It's not like you're supposed to run around the field 6 times every single day. Its walking just a little bit more, or climbing stairs when you usually take the elevator or escalator. Things like that =X Amy actually wakes up early (recently) to take a walk around the park, to keep fit. So, its not necessary to run, swim, play tennis, dance etc. Of course, if you enjoy those, go ahead...
Reminds me of Mr Bean's company slogan, "Life's simple pleasures". Isn't it one of the simple pleasures in life? Hmm, life's simple pleasures is when you are able to walk up a slope, breathe in the crisp air every single day, be able to taste the food you put in your mouth (I just HAVE to include food in every thing), being able to sleep well at night, be able to read a book, be able to hear things, be able to see things, be able to feel... It helps to take a little bit of time off to reflect about the very things that you take for granted. Haha, not that I do that often. It's just that today I'm a bit ill, so I'm not hungry, and then I think about those days when I'd be stuffing my face. Ah, i take those days for granted too. =)
Sunday, October 5, 2008
"I was bored!" says Huey in self-defence
Hence, I went on Youtube and watched the following few Youtube videos. Haha. And didn't study/research... *sighs* Its time for dinner anyways! =P My throat hurts really badly though :'(
１）同じ月を見てた
It means looking at the same moon (i think). It's so sweet, the MV. haha. I'm a sucker for sweet MVs :)
2) 花火 - Mr Children (I keep hearing this on TV)
3) くるみ - Mr Children [It's quite funny but a little bit sad MV.. And the song is beautiful! =) The guy who picks up the paper right at the end is so shuai! hahahahaha... can truly see how bored I am...]
4) ひとみを閉じて - Ken Hirai [Close your eyes] Haha, I've loved this song since the last time FY let me watch Pop Star and I was hooked onto Ken Hirai. Instead of watching Mr Children the entire time, need some variety...
１）同じ月を見てた
It means looking at the same moon (i think). It's so sweet, the MV. haha. I'm a sucker for sweet MVs :)
2) 花火 - Mr Children (I keep hearing this on TV)
3) くるみ - Mr Children [It's quite funny but a little bit sad MV.. And the song is beautiful! =) The guy who picks up the paper right at the end is so shuai! hahahahaha... can truly see how bored I am...]
4) ひとみを閉じて - Ken Hirai [Close your eyes] Haha, I've loved this song since the last time FY let me watch Pop Star and I was hooked onto Ken Hirai. Instead of watching Mr Children the entire time, need some variety...
Note to self: important word I learnt:
dictionary form: 止める （やめる）
止めなさい (impolite way, more used when talking to children)
Meaning (you can already tell from the Kanji): to stop. It's probably a る-verb, so, if u want to ask politely for someone to stop, it will be: やめてください.
Why important? Because Otoosan and Okaasan always use it with Hikari-chan to Wataru-kun. So, I must learn it to. Just brandish it as and when I need to.
Another important word I learnt:
dictionary form: 座る （すわる）
すわなさい (impolite way, more used when talking to children)
Meaning (again, you can tell from the Kanji): To sit. It's (i'm quite sure) another る-verb. Thus, if u want to ask politely for someone to sit, it will be: すわてください.
And I need to learn this, because Wataru-kun and Hikari-chan are ALWAYS standing on their chairs. So I go, 危ないよ (dangerous), and I stop short because I don't know how to say sit. Now I know. すわなさいよ!
A day slacking at home turned out to be more fun than expected
I actually wanted to go to a flea market at Kyoto City Hall today. But then, last night, I decided that I was too tired. Have a lot of things to catch up. Although I'm done with the research for Entrepreneurship, I need to arrange the information more coherently. Also, there's a 30x2 page reading (again) on the Japanese education system and ronins. There's also the paper proposal for my Issues class due on Wed. Luckily I completed most of my Japanese homework. And I don't have to study for Kanji test tomorrow cos I know the Kanji (it's just... erm, 一、二、三、四、五、六、七、八、九、十、百、千、万、円、時 and I write it all the time in my homework). PLUS, this is the most important thing. I AM SICK. Bloody hell, I have sucuumbed to the virus that's been going around in school. Can't believe it at all! -___-||| Blowing my nose and drinking 3 litres of water. My kidney is suffering from an overload of water today =(
So, was looking forward to a day of slacking, and being bored out of my mind reading my readings. But things turned out differently.
In the morning, Okaasan had to go visit her mother in the hospital and didnt want to bring Hikari because it was gonna rain (and it DID rain. It's freaking cold outside. And I've not even stepped outside once today. Just standing beside the window makes me feel SO COLD). So, I was left in charge of Hikari-chan for about 2.5 painful hours.
Why did I say painful? Because: a) she kept talking and asking me questions that I didn't understand and didn't have answers to. Except for one question, "Where is Okaasan?" b) I was trying to read my 60 page reading. If u ever had someone talking beside u incessantly while u were trying to read ur readings, u'd know what I mean. I tried to distract her with my highlighter. It didn't work. c) she kept wanting to eat snacks which are so bloody unhealthy loaded with MSG lah. Up to a point when I raised my voice at her, "DAME DAME!" but she didn't understand. -___-|||
I gave up reading my readings by 10.30. So I spent the morning doing the dishes and wiping the table etc. I also combed Hikari-chan's hair (because I was bored) and left her to tear up origami paper (quiet for about 15minutes, but better than nothing!) while I tried to continue with my readings. Good thing I did the dishes, because when Okaasan came back, those dishes/pots were needed.
I'd gotten そうめん(soumen) to cook for lunch. But, Okaasan saw it and dissauaded me from the cooking of soumen for lunch-__-||| She said it wouldn't taste good by the time I actually eat it in school. So, the soumen was left on the table for maybe a week or so. I told Okaasan she could use it (and the tsu yu - sauce for noodles) if she wanted because I wasn't gonna cook it anymore. So, we ate that for lunch.
Then, she started cooking takoyaki! Haha. Took out the octopus, takoyaki pan, takoyaki flour and we cooked takoyaki together :) haha. it was so fun lah! I think they scrutinized my application form. In it, I said, I wanted to learn to cook a lot of different Japanese food. Haha.
Anyways, my first few takoyakis were not all that great, but then, later on, I got better at cooking them :) hehe. FUN FUN FUN. I can't explain how fun it was. Haha, cos the flipping of takoyaki balls here and there was incredibly fascinating. The heat was in the centre so most of the takoyaki balls in the centre got cooked faster than the periphery takoyaki. :) hehe. so when I took the takoyaki from the centre out, I flipped those at the sides in. haha. it's so fun rolling takoyaki... hahahahahaahah. Though, of course, professional takoyaki cooks wouldn't do that. :P
Takoyaki in different stages of preparation. :P First, you pour the batter onto the pan, and put the ingredients. After which u wait a while before u turn the first (usually in the middle) takoyaki. And so on... The first 3 pictures are of Okaasan's work. The last picture though, is my work! :) These were octopus and cheese takoyaki balls :) hehe. おいしそう！(looks delicious) and believe me, it WAS おいしい (though I didn't make the batter! =P). At least Okaasan and Masayuki said they were good, and I don't think they were lying, cos the entire plate was finished. :P
Today is Yuko's birthday. So, Okaasan baked a cake for her.
I helped whisk the eggs and the caster sugar, as well as the cream. But watched her do the rest. Haha.
Okaasan adding the mixture of chocolate powder and flour into the whisked egg+caster sugar combination.
and mixing it all in.
I didn't get pictures of her cutting the cake horizontally into half cos I was washing the plates. Must have been a mean feat... haha.
She melted the two bars of milk chocolate and added it to the cream that I'd been whisking. Then, she spread a first layer of chocolate cream on the bottom half of the chocolate cake. And then, she added cut canned peaches and canned mikan (mandarin oranges) on top of the first chocolate cream layer. followed by a 2nd (VERY THICK) layer of chocolate cream. Then, she placed the top half of the cake on top and added a third layer of chocolate cream.
Like this:
Little almond chocolate balls were added to make it look pretty. For decor. =)
The complete product!
And the proud baker with her complete product!
Yesterday, I bought milk cocoa at the Sports Meet and hated it the moment I drank it. Cos it was chocolate milk. Yes, I was probably dreaming. The word "milk" didn't register in my brain. I gave it to Masayuki who couldn't believe that I didn't like the milk cocoa. I explained, "I like chocolate. But I hate chocolate with anything else. Chocolate milk, chocolate cake, chocolate icecream, chocolate biscuits" [though, less so chocolate biscuits and chocolate cake]. So, today, when he saw the chocolate cake, he stared at me for a while, and then told Okaasan, "いちごちゃんはチョコーロケーキが嫌いよ！” (means, Ichigo-chan hates chocolate cake.)
When Okaasan heard that, she was so surprised. "You hate chocolate cake?" I just smiled sheepishly. Haha. I don't really hate chocolate cake as much as I hate chocolate icecream and chocolate milk, but I can't say I love them. If it's white chocolate cake I'd love it. But I won't go look out for milk chocolate cake... Even so, I hastened to assure her, "Maybe your cake is nicer than most of the chocolate cakes I've eaten!"
So, here's the result of the comment:
A huge slice of cake for me. Hahahahahahaha.
We were all watching Galileo SP (Special). Even then, I felt like Masayuki and Okaasan were both watching me quite closely when I was eating. haha. It was so funny. It's like, they half expected me to take one bite and throw the rest away or something. It wasn't all that bad. So I finished my entire cake. But it's quite obvious if I don't like something. I don't ask for seconds, or I don't help myself to seconds.
Masayuki's birthday is in November. Okaasan said, "In November, we will bake ichigo-cake!" haha. Strawberry cake, for the baker's assistant named Strawberry! =)
Ah, what a wonderful day today. I'm so glad I stayed at home. <3 hehe, there's something to be said for staying at home after all! =) Even if I don't get out and see autumn leaves falling.
haha, I'm going to take my dad's suggestion and only update maybe 3-4 times a week. He's actually right, I spend so much time updating my blog (sometimes, it can take up to 2 hours, because I have to upload the pictures and arrange them in the order of my story) that I miss beauty sleep (also a reason why I'm falling ill, lack of sleep). Hence, hehe, look forward to 2 updates during the weekend (when I actually do stuff interesting) and 1-2 updates in the weekdays (when I'm most likely to tell u how stressed I am over the three tests next week).
I complained to Daryn about the HUGE number of tests. "What is WRONG with them!" I texted her. She replied, "It's called learning a new language."
haha...
So, yeah, I'm off to do my research on school bullying and suicide rates in Japan. bye! =)
P.S. Whenever I meet new Japanese people, I tell them, "My name is HueyWoon (pronounced HuiWen) but you can call me Ichigo-chan." And they're like, "Ichigo-chan?! Kawaii namae!" [ichigo-chan, cute name!] Those were the exact words from 3 or 4 Japanese people I've met recently... So, even my Japanese classmates call me Ichigo-chan. Haha, and this is all thanks to... Ms Daryn Lee who thought of this special nickname! =P hahahaha...
So, was looking forward to a day of slacking, and being bored out of my mind reading my readings. But things turned out differently.
In the morning, Okaasan had to go visit her mother in the hospital and didnt want to bring Hikari because it was gonna rain (and it DID rain. It's freaking cold outside. And I've not even stepped outside once today. Just standing beside the window makes me feel SO COLD). So, I was left in charge of Hikari-chan for about 2.5 painful hours.
Why did I say painful? Because: a) she kept talking and asking me questions that I didn't understand and didn't have answers to. Except for one question, "Where is Okaasan?" b) I was trying to read my 60 page reading. If u ever had someone talking beside u incessantly while u were trying to read ur readings, u'd know what I mean. I tried to distract her with my highlighter. It didn't work. c) she kept wanting to eat snacks which are so bloody unhealthy loaded with MSG lah. Up to a point when I raised my voice at her, "DAME DAME!" but she didn't understand. -___-|||
I gave up reading my readings by 10.30. So I spent the morning doing the dishes and wiping the table etc. I also combed Hikari-chan's hair (because I was bored) and left her to tear up origami paper (quiet for about 15minutes, but better than nothing!) while I tried to continue with my readings. Good thing I did the dishes, because when Okaasan came back, those dishes/pots were needed.
I'd gotten そうめん(soumen) to cook for lunch. But, Okaasan saw it and dissauaded me from the cooking of soumen for lunch-__-||| She said it wouldn't taste good by the time I actually eat it in school. So, the soumen was left on the table for maybe a week or so. I told Okaasan she could use it (and the tsu yu - sauce for noodles) if she wanted because I wasn't gonna cook it anymore. So, we ate that for lunch.
Then, she started cooking takoyaki! Haha. Took out the octopus, takoyaki pan, takoyaki flour and we cooked takoyaki together :) haha. it was so fun lah! I think they scrutinized my application form. In it, I said, I wanted to learn to cook a lot of different Japanese food. Haha.
Anyways, my first few takoyakis were not all that great, but then, later on, I got better at cooking them :) hehe. FUN FUN FUN. I can't explain how fun it was. Haha, cos the flipping of takoyaki balls here and there was incredibly fascinating. The heat was in the centre so most of the takoyaki balls in the centre got cooked faster than the periphery takoyaki. :) hehe. so when I took the takoyaki from the centre out, I flipped those at the sides in. haha. it's so fun rolling takoyaki... hahahahahaahah. Though, of course, professional takoyaki cooks wouldn't do that. :P
Takoyaki in different stages of preparation. :P First, you pour the batter onto the pan, and put the ingredients. After which u wait a while before u turn the first (usually in the middle) takoyaki. And so on... The first 3 pictures are of Okaasan's work. The last picture though, is my work! :) These were octopus and cheese takoyaki balls :) hehe. おいしそう！(looks delicious) and believe me, it WAS おいしい (though I didn't make the batter! =P). At least Okaasan and Masayuki said they were good, and I don't think they were lying, cos the entire plate was finished. :P
Today is Yuko's birthday. So, Okaasan baked a cake for her.
I helped whisk the eggs and the caster sugar, as well as the cream. But watched her do the rest. Haha.
Okaasan adding the mixture of chocolate powder and flour into the whisked egg+caster sugar combination.
and mixing it all in.
I didn't get pictures of her cutting the cake horizontally into half cos I was washing the plates. Must have been a mean feat... haha.
She melted the two bars of milk chocolate and added it to the cream that I'd been whisking. Then, she spread a first layer of chocolate cream on the bottom half of the chocolate cake. And then, she added cut canned peaches and canned mikan (mandarin oranges) on top of the first chocolate cream layer. followed by a 2nd (VERY THICK) layer of chocolate cream. Then, she placed the top half of the cake on top and added a third layer of chocolate cream.
Like this:
Little almond chocolate balls were added to make it look pretty. For decor. =)
The complete product!
And the proud baker with her complete product!
Yesterday, I bought milk cocoa at the Sports Meet and hated it the moment I drank it. Cos it was chocolate milk. Yes, I was probably dreaming. The word "milk" didn't register in my brain. I gave it to Masayuki who couldn't believe that I didn't like the milk cocoa. I explained, "I like chocolate. But I hate chocolate with anything else. Chocolate milk, chocolate cake, chocolate icecream, chocolate biscuits" [though, less so chocolate biscuits and chocolate cake]. So, today, when he saw the chocolate cake, he stared at me for a while, and then told Okaasan, "いちごちゃんはチョコーロケーキが嫌いよ！” (means, Ichigo-chan hates chocolate cake.)
When Okaasan heard that, she was so surprised. "You hate chocolate cake?" I just smiled sheepishly. Haha. I don't really hate chocolate cake as much as I hate chocolate icecream and chocolate milk, but I can't say I love them. If it's white chocolate cake I'd love it. But I won't go look out for milk chocolate cake... Even so, I hastened to assure her, "Maybe your cake is nicer than most of the chocolate cakes I've eaten!"
So, here's the result of the comment:
A huge slice of cake for me. Hahahahahahaha.
We were all watching Galileo SP (Special). Even then, I felt like Masayuki and Okaasan were both watching me quite closely when I was eating. haha. It was so funny. It's like, they half expected me to take one bite and throw the rest away or something. It wasn't all that bad. So I finished my entire cake. But it's quite obvious if I don't like something. I don't ask for seconds, or I don't help myself to seconds.
Masayuki's birthday is in November. Okaasan said, "In November, we will bake ichigo-cake!" haha. Strawberry cake, for the baker's assistant named Strawberry! =)
Ah, what a wonderful day today. I'm so glad I stayed at home. <3 hehe, there's something to be said for staying at home after all! =) Even if I don't get out and see autumn leaves falling.
haha, I'm going to take my dad's suggestion and only update maybe 3-4 times a week. He's actually right, I spend so much time updating my blog (sometimes, it can take up to 2 hours, because I have to upload the pictures and arrange them in the order of my story) that I miss beauty sleep (also a reason why I'm falling ill, lack of sleep). Hence, hehe, look forward to 2 updates during the weekend (when I actually do stuff interesting) and 1-2 updates in the weekdays (when I'm most likely to tell u how stressed I am over the three tests next week).
I complained to Daryn about the HUGE number of tests. "What is WRONG with them!" I texted her. She replied, "It's called learning a new language."
haha...
So, yeah, I'm off to do my research on school bullying and suicide rates in Japan. bye! =)
P.S. Whenever I meet new Japanese people, I tell them, "My name is HueyWoon (pronounced HuiWen) but you can call me Ichigo-chan." And they're like, "Ichigo-chan?! Kawaii namae!" [ichigo-chan, cute name!] Those were the exact words from 3 or 4 Japanese people I've met recently... So, even my Japanese classmates call me Ichigo-chan. Haha, and this is all thanks to... Ms Daryn Lee who thought of this special nickname! =P hahahaha...
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Soka Gakuen Sports Day
Today was Yuko's 運動会 (undoukai = Sports Day). Yuko is currently studying in Soka Gakuen (in Soka High School). She was given two tickets, and Okaasan very kindly allowed me to take one ticket so that I can experience for myself (or see for myself) the exciting Sports Day. Masayuki got the other ticket.
So, no prizes for guessing who brought me to the school. It was 30 minutes by train, and then another 20 minutes on foot. We reached just in time for the start of the Sports Day. On our way there, he told me that the Sports Day is an extremely special day in school. All (or most) of the students look forward to Sports Day. It's an all day event (today it started at about 930, and ended at around 330). It's a special day not only for the students, but also for the parents because it's a time to build community bonds and spirit.
When I arrived, the parents all had mats and had already laid them on the ground. The whole place was teeming with people! Haha... And the excitement in the air was palpable... Haha, reminiscent of my own Sports Day in SNGS, where I did NOT enjoy myself. It was always a, "Sian, Sports Day again. Must cheer till I get sore throat" kinda thing.
Anyways, the first picture shows the words (translated): Ikeda Sensei, please return (to visit?). Apparently, when the school first started, Ikeda Sensei visited the school often. In the last 7-8 years, he has not returned to the school. The students, teachers and of course, principal of the school, would like him to come back and visit the school. Hence, the words. Plus, the photos of the Sports Day are published (at least some) in Seikyo Shimbun (which I actually did try to read! and which Otoosan gave me a stack to try to decipher the Kanji of). So, maybe it'd strike a chord in Ikeda Sensei's heart, and he'd visit Soka Gakuen.
The second picture shows the three "house" flags. Obviously, I was too far to capture it properly. The red flag has a picture of the pink panther. The blue flag a picture of stitch (very cute!) and the yellow flag has a picture of pooh bear. Haha, I only remember the yellow group's name: Pooh-san, B-san. I don't know why they are called that, but it's the easiest to remember. And Yuko is in Pooh-san, B-san! =)
Today was a very hot day. I saw the news this morning: 26 degrees. Plus, the sun was shining so brightly. I got a headache sometime during the period in the sun, and I suspected a little bit of heatstroke. So, drank plenty of water!! haha. Masayuki was saying, "atsui" (hot) all the time. So, halfway through the Sports Meet, we went off to explore the school.
Masayuki was a student of Soka Gakuen also (from Soka Elementary, to Soka Junior High, and to Soka High School). He didn't go to Soka University and I will explain why later on in this blog entry.
The school is beautifully big. HUGE. I swear it's so huge it has a baseball field, 6 tennis courts, a huge field, one soccer field, etcetcetc. It reminded me a bit of Soka University in California. Haha. Cos it's so big! But then, it's also in the sort-of country side (like the Soka University as well). Maybe the land was cheap, so build a huge school for the benefit of the students!
The second picture, in case u're wondering, is of the ducks at a pond in the school. The third is of a swan in the same pond. Isn't it cool, to have a swan in the pond?! I was told that there were initially more swans, but now there's only one :( Maybe the other two died... The fourth picture is of the soccer field (haha, yeah, no grass.. but it's a huge huge huge place!) The last picture is of Masayuki posing as Walt Whitman (-_-||) haha. This was taken at the Ikeda Auditorium. I didn't take pictures of the audi because it was dark in there. Plus, every auditorium looks the same lah...
We also went in the school buildings. In the school buildings, you have to wear slippers. You cannot wear your shoes in it. Something like your house. You shouldn't wear your shoes in your house kinda thing. Kinda strange for me, especially when I was at the 食堂 (shokudo = cafeteria?) because, to me, if someone spills something on the floor and didn't clean up, you're gonna get your feet/socks dirty! Which was exactly what happened to Masayuki during lunch.
Anyways, I was given a private tour of the entire school, from the junior high section, to the high school section, to the gym, kendo room, basketball court, swimming pool (which was all the way hidden in some obscure corner), the art room, and Masayuki's ex-classroom (now Yuko's current classroom).
This is the aerial view of the school when it was just built. You can see that it's sort of in the country side.
This is the first Soka Gakuen winter uniform. When the school was first opened, it was only meant for girls. So, there was only uniform for the girls. Apparently, Okaasan attended Soka Gakuen and was the pioneer batch of the school. So Masayuki said, "Maybe Okaasan has this uniform." [or maybe she threw it away, who knows?]
We were wandering around when we walked here and saw a HUGE spider. Well, the spider's right in the middle of the picture (just around where the white starts to show). You can enlarge the picture too. It's horrendously scary lah! HUGEEEEEEE spider.
The swimming pool. See the mountains in the back? It's so pretty, ne? It was locked, so we couldn't enter. But, Masayuki told me when he was in swimming club, he'd climb up to the top of the building, where the view was spectacular. Haha. I wish I could have climbed in somehow to see the spectacular view that he was talking about. He was telling me that even if the door hadn't been locked, I might not be able to climb up. Cos apparently, it's very high, and I think it involves a ladder. Given that I'm a little bit acrophobic, especially when it comes to ladders (no safety at all!) maybe good thing there wasn't a way to get into the swimming pool area.
I did, however, take a picture from the 3rd storey. It's not within the school. An area for growing plants. :) Shows a little bit how... countryside it is near the Gakuen!
Haha, I like the words in the background. :) It says on the right: Kansai Soka. On the left (maybe obscured by Mr Masayuki, pretending to be some strongman, haha) are the words (translated very very loosely here): Spirit of always wanting victory (something like that. Or, something like, never being defeated). Very inspiring, I feel, especially in a school context.
Orlando Bloom visited Soka Gakuen and gave a present to the school: A stuffed lion. DAMNED. I forgot to take a picture of it! How careless of me :'( I asked why he gave a lion, and not other animals (what a stupid question to ask). The answer was: because in the lion, there's the word teacher. So he's reminding (sort of) the students of their mentor, the founder of Soka Gakuen.
Here are the art paintings found in the art room, as well as along the corridor of the 3rd storey (the art storey).
Art room which Masayuki sneaked me into.
For some reason, I really really love this painting. It attracted me right from the start. I can't explain my attraction, though. :x Maybe just a feeling that she's free-falling?
Masayuki liked this painting. I thought it was good too.
This was in the art room. SO PRETTY, SO CUTE. SO KAWAII. <3
Don't know what these are, but they seem pretty cool to me :)
I asked Masayuki to stand beside the painting to show how big the canvas was. Haha. He's pretty tall. This is a painting of Osaka-jo (during Sunset, I think).. nicely drawn, dont u think? I won't be able to do ANYTHING like that.
This, however, is my favourite picture. Why? Because, " The most important things in my life? World peace, my family, your smile." It's like something you'd find in a Japanese notebook (with horrid English). But, the message is so simple, pure and innocent. :) Accompanied by such a cute painting of a little androgynous boy... I love it!
Yeah, well, okay. I know, I was at a Sports Day and few pictures I've shown so far are actually of the Sports Day. Haha, so yes, I will include some this instant. =)
Jump rope in a team. I caught the last team (on the right) in mid-air. But can only see that if u zoom in up close. Haha. The winning team this year skipped (in tandem with each other) for a straight 57 times. Masayuki was like, "ah, it's okay. The year I won, we skipped 58." =P
I liked taking pictures of this one cos it's kinda cool. One guy carries a very light (hopefully) individual (can be guy or girl), with two people supporting to make sure the one who's on top doesnt fall. I found it really interesting! Another one for you! =)
Here is tug-of-war. :) This team that I took a picture of, I think eventually neither side won by the time the whistle blew off.
Blue blue skies, mountain. What else can one ask for? =) It was dying to have its picture taken. :)
We'd been walking / standing the entire day. So, while waiting for Yuko, we found a corner to sit. It was right opposite this bookshelf filled with books that you can bring home. I selected a book and tried reading it (like duh, couldn't understand much of it). Masayuki spent quite a bit of time (from Yuko's debrief till she came to meet us) translating the first chapter of the book. Haha. He made a HUGE effort to explain the entire story to me! お疲れ様でした！(otsukaresamadeshita = 辛苦了!) I was super amazed at his patience lah. Haha, if it were me, I'd be so tired. Imagine having to explain a story written in English in Chinese!!! *shudders*
Anyways, I asked Masayuki, what's the difference between a Soka Education and normal Japanese Education. Apparently, the focus in Soka Education is building character. Academic studies is not the main concern. Students have a lot of activities, and are encouraged to join clubs. Masayuki himself joined: swimming club and broadcasting club. Yuko is constantly training at Tennis Club. Even on Sundays.
The road to Soka University from Soka High School is well-paved. Many individuals who go to Soka High School get an easy entry to Soka University. Hence, there is not much need to focus so much on academic results.
So, why didn't Masayuki go to Soka University? Cos it's in Tokyo, and Tokyo's cost of living is very high... So, he wanted to go to a public university that is in Kansai and that he can commute from home (hence, Kobe University).
In the last picture, if you enlarge, you will see 3 flags. The left most flag is the Soka Gakkai flag. The middle flag is the old Gakuen flag. Not very sure what the right most flag is. Anyways, the point is: notice that there is NO Japan flag.
I asked Masayuki why. I've never been in an international, private school, so I don't know what it's like in private schools (which is what Soka Gakuen is. A private school). He answered, "Because, above all, we are Soka Gakkai." Hmm, in those exact words. I wonder if he knew the significance of what he said, in the way he said it... Anyways, he can't sing the national anthem! All students of this school (past and present) cannot sing the national anthem. They do however, sing a lot of Gakkai songs.
Ah, well. All in all, it was very 面白かった. I must say that Masayuki was a very good host. Haha. Although he did stop by to talk to his teachers and his friends, most of the time he stuck by my side to make sure I wasn't bored or wasn't lost or something. He was tired lah (hangover from last night!) so I was all the more impressed by his hospitality. haha. Probably was cursing me for taking away his beauty sleep this morning. hahahahaha.
Hmm, an update about food: Steak for dinner today, with homemade french fries! Okaasan cooked the steak medium rare. HMM, very nice... Yes, I know.. Mad cow disease. But I don't refuse anything that is put in front of me (even natto and beer! but Okaasan hasnt offered me Natto since I last ate it, and she never offers me beer anymore after Daryn told her I was allergic to beer.) Okaasan is also very observant when it comes to seeing what I eat. Although I don't tell her all the time, she knows I love onions, like icecream, like chocolate, like ankor (basically like anything sweet), love okonomiyaki, cheese, etc. So, even though I don't say, she'd try to make something that she knows I'd like. Again, like mother, like son right? Good hostess/host.
A girl told me that her host mother screamed/shouted/berated (i dont know which but all are bad) her one day for putting her shoes wrongly. Hmm, to me, if someone berates me, I'd think that it's the person being comfortable enough with me to shout at me, right? I mean, there must be a level of familarity before someone can shout at me right? At least, if I dislike someone, I will only voice my true opinions if s/he is a close enough friend...
I think Okaasan will never do berate me if I do something wrongly, but she will definitely silently seeth inside. I'm trying to learn by observing how the family behaves. I also know that I'm still regarded as an outsider... I don't try to be accepted as part of the family because I will never be! I'm leaving in 3 months. It's not like I'm marrying into the family or something. So, instead, I attempt to gain trust as a friend. Tricky issue, I tell you. Very very tricky... To gain a person's trust is difficult anyways. :x But, gambarimasu!
=) Okay, nowadays, I have a bad habit of showering at 12midnight. And sleeping with my hair wet. Okay, I sleep with my hair wet, whether or not I shower at 12midnight. but, still! It's a bad bad bad habit. :x
And, I feel the oncoming sore throat. Alex has fallen to the dreaded virus that's hitting people here. So has Okaasan. And Daryn. people who I hang out/around with often =X
SIGHS. Please let me not get sick. Please let my Watson's vit c + zinc efferverscence tablets work. Please please please please please. Cos once I fall ill, I take AGES to recover. :'(
So, no prizes for guessing who brought me to the school. It was 30 minutes by train, and then another 20 minutes on foot. We reached just in time for the start of the Sports Day. On our way there, he told me that the Sports Day is an extremely special day in school. All (or most) of the students look forward to Sports Day. It's an all day event (today it started at about 930, and ended at around 330). It's a special day not only for the students, but also for the parents because it's a time to build community bonds and spirit.
When I arrived, the parents all had mats and had already laid them on the ground. The whole place was teeming with people! Haha... And the excitement in the air was palpable... Haha, reminiscent of my own Sports Day in SNGS, where I did NOT enjoy myself. It was always a, "Sian, Sports Day again. Must cheer till I get sore throat" kinda thing.
Anyways, the first picture shows the words (translated): Ikeda Sensei, please return (to visit?). Apparently, when the school first started, Ikeda Sensei visited the school often. In the last 7-8 years, he has not returned to the school. The students, teachers and of course, principal of the school, would like him to come back and visit the school. Hence, the words. Plus, the photos of the Sports Day are published (at least some) in Seikyo Shimbun (which I actually did try to read! and which Otoosan gave me a stack to try to decipher the Kanji of). So, maybe it'd strike a chord in Ikeda Sensei's heart, and he'd visit Soka Gakuen.
The second picture shows the three "house" flags. Obviously, I was too far to capture it properly. The red flag has a picture of the pink panther. The blue flag a picture of stitch (very cute!) and the yellow flag has a picture of pooh bear. Haha, I only remember the yellow group's name: Pooh-san, B-san. I don't know why they are called that, but it's the easiest to remember. And Yuko is in Pooh-san, B-san! =)
Today was a very hot day. I saw the news this morning: 26 degrees. Plus, the sun was shining so brightly. I got a headache sometime during the period in the sun, and I suspected a little bit of heatstroke. So, drank plenty of water!! haha. Masayuki was saying, "atsui" (hot) all the time. So, halfway through the Sports Meet, we went off to explore the school.
Masayuki was a student of Soka Gakuen also (from Soka Elementary, to Soka Junior High, and to Soka High School). He didn't go to Soka University and I will explain why later on in this blog entry.
The school is beautifully big. HUGE. I swear it's so huge it has a baseball field, 6 tennis courts, a huge field, one soccer field, etcetcetc. It reminded me a bit of Soka University in California. Haha. Cos it's so big! But then, it's also in the sort-of country side (like the Soka University as well). Maybe the land was cheap, so build a huge school for the benefit of the students!
The second picture, in case u're wondering, is of the ducks at a pond in the school. The third is of a swan in the same pond. Isn't it cool, to have a swan in the pond?! I was told that there were initially more swans, but now there's only one :( Maybe the other two died... The fourth picture is of the soccer field (haha, yeah, no grass.. but it's a huge huge huge place!) The last picture is of Masayuki posing as Walt Whitman (-_-||) haha. This was taken at the Ikeda Auditorium. I didn't take pictures of the audi because it was dark in there. Plus, every auditorium looks the same lah...
We also went in the school buildings. In the school buildings, you have to wear slippers. You cannot wear your shoes in it. Something like your house. You shouldn't wear your shoes in your house kinda thing. Kinda strange for me, especially when I was at the 食堂 (shokudo = cafeteria?) because, to me, if someone spills something on the floor and didn't clean up, you're gonna get your feet/socks dirty! Which was exactly what happened to Masayuki during lunch.
Anyways, I was given a private tour of the entire school, from the junior high section, to the high school section, to the gym, kendo room, basketball court, swimming pool (which was all the way hidden in some obscure corner), the art room, and Masayuki's ex-classroom (now Yuko's current classroom).
This is the aerial view of the school when it was just built. You can see that it's sort of in the country side.
This is the first Soka Gakuen winter uniform. When the school was first opened, it was only meant for girls. So, there was only uniform for the girls. Apparently, Okaasan attended Soka Gakuen and was the pioneer batch of the school. So Masayuki said, "Maybe Okaasan has this uniform." [or maybe she threw it away, who knows?]
We were wandering around when we walked here and saw a HUGE spider. Well, the spider's right in the middle of the picture (just around where the white starts to show). You can enlarge the picture too. It's horrendously scary lah! HUGEEEEEEE spider.
The swimming pool. See the mountains in the back? It's so pretty, ne? It was locked, so we couldn't enter. But, Masayuki told me when he was in swimming club, he'd climb up to the top of the building, where the view was spectacular. Haha. I wish I could have climbed in somehow to see the spectacular view that he was talking about. He was telling me that even if the door hadn't been locked, I might not be able to climb up. Cos apparently, it's very high, and I think it involves a ladder. Given that I'm a little bit acrophobic, especially when it comes to ladders (no safety at all!) maybe good thing there wasn't a way to get into the swimming pool area.
I did, however, take a picture from the 3rd storey. It's not within the school. An area for growing plants. :) Shows a little bit how... countryside it is near the Gakuen!
Haha, I like the words in the background. :) It says on the right: Kansai Soka. On the left (maybe obscured by Mr Masayuki, pretending to be some strongman, haha) are the words (translated very very loosely here): Spirit of always wanting victory (something like that. Or, something like, never being defeated). Very inspiring, I feel, especially in a school context.
Orlando Bloom visited Soka Gakuen and gave a present to the school: A stuffed lion. DAMNED. I forgot to take a picture of it! How careless of me :'( I asked why he gave a lion, and not other animals (what a stupid question to ask). The answer was: because in the lion, there's the word teacher. So he's reminding (sort of) the students of their mentor, the founder of Soka Gakuen.
Here are the art paintings found in the art room, as well as along the corridor of the 3rd storey (the art storey).
Art room which Masayuki sneaked me into.
For some reason, I really really love this painting. It attracted me right from the start. I can't explain my attraction, though. :x Maybe just a feeling that she's free-falling?
Masayuki liked this painting. I thought it was good too.
This was in the art room. SO PRETTY, SO CUTE. SO KAWAII. <3
Don't know what these are, but they seem pretty cool to me :)
I asked Masayuki to stand beside the painting to show how big the canvas was. Haha. He's pretty tall. This is a painting of Osaka-jo (during Sunset, I think).. nicely drawn, dont u think? I won't be able to do ANYTHING like that.
This, however, is my favourite picture. Why? Because, " The most important things in my life? World peace, my family, your smile." It's like something you'd find in a Japanese notebook (with horrid English). But, the message is so simple, pure and innocent. :) Accompanied by such a cute painting of a little androgynous boy... I love it!
Yeah, well, okay. I know, I was at a Sports Day and few pictures I've shown so far are actually of the Sports Day. Haha, so yes, I will include some this instant. =)
Jump rope in a team. I caught the last team (on the right) in mid-air. But can only see that if u zoom in up close. Haha. The winning team this year skipped (in tandem with each other) for a straight 57 times. Masayuki was like, "ah, it's okay. The year I won, we skipped 58." =P
I liked taking pictures of this one cos it's kinda cool. One guy carries a very light (hopefully) individual (can be guy or girl), with two people supporting to make sure the one who's on top doesnt fall. I found it really interesting! Another one for you! =)
Here is tug-of-war. :) This team that I took a picture of, I think eventually neither side won by the time the whistle blew off.
Blue blue skies, mountain. What else can one ask for? =) It was dying to have its picture taken. :)
We'd been walking / standing the entire day. So, while waiting for Yuko, we found a corner to sit. It was right opposite this bookshelf filled with books that you can bring home. I selected a book and tried reading it (like duh, couldn't understand much of it). Masayuki spent quite a bit of time (from Yuko's debrief till she came to meet us) translating the first chapter of the book. Haha. He made a HUGE effort to explain the entire story to me! お疲れ様でした！(otsukaresamadeshita = 辛苦了!) I was super amazed at his patience lah. Haha, if it were me, I'd be so tired. Imagine having to explain a story written in English in Chinese!!! *shudders*
Anyways, I asked Masayuki, what's the difference between a Soka Education and normal Japanese Education. Apparently, the focus in Soka Education is building character. Academic studies is not the main concern. Students have a lot of activities, and are encouraged to join clubs. Masayuki himself joined: swimming club and broadcasting club. Yuko is constantly training at Tennis Club. Even on Sundays.
The road to Soka University from Soka High School is well-paved. Many individuals who go to Soka High School get an easy entry to Soka University. Hence, there is not much need to focus so much on academic results.
So, why didn't Masayuki go to Soka University? Cos it's in Tokyo, and Tokyo's cost of living is very high... So, he wanted to go to a public university that is in Kansai and that he can commute from home (hence, Kobe University).
In the last picture, if you enlarge, you will see 3 flags. The left most flag is the Soka Gakkai flag. The middle flag is the old Gakuen flag. Not very sure what the right most flag is. Anyways, the point is: notice that there is NO Japan flag.
I asked Masayuki why. I've never been in an international, private school, so I don't know what it's like in private schools (which is what Soka Gakuen is. A private school). He answered, "Because, above all, we are Soka Gakkai." Hmm, in those exact words. I wonder if he knew the significance of what he said, in the way he said it... Anyways, he can't sing the national anthem! All students of this school (past and present) cannot sing the national anthem. They do however, sing a lot of Gakkai songs.
Ah, well. All in all, it was very 面白かった. I must say that Masayuki was a very good host. Haha. Although he did stop by to talk to his teachers and his friends, most of the time he stuck by my side to make sure I wasn't bored or wasn't lost or something. He was tired lah (hangover from last night!) so I was all the more impressed by his hospitality. haha. Probably was cursing me for taking away his beauty sleep this morning. hahahahaha.
Hmm, an update about food: Steak for dinner today, with homemade french fries! Okaasan cooked the steak medium rare. HMM, very nice... Yes, I know.. Mad cow disease. But I don't refuse anything that is put in front of me (even natto and beer! but Okaasan hasnt offered me Natto since I last ate it, and she never offers me beer anymore after Daryn told her I was allergic to beer.) Okaasan is also very observant when it comes to seeing what I eat. Although I don't tell her all the time, she knows I love onions, like icecream, like chocolate, like ankor (basically like anything sweet), love okonomiyaki, cheese, etc. So, even though I don't say, she'd try to make something that she knows I'd like. Again, like mother, like son right? Good hostess/host.
A girl told me that her host mother screamed/shouted/berated (i dont know which but all are bad) her one day for putting her shoes wrongly. Hmm, to me, if someone berates me, I'd think that it's the person being comfortable enough with me to shout at me, right? I mean, there must be a level of familarity before someone can shout at me right? At least, if I dislike someone, I will only voice my true opinions if s/he is a close enough friend...
I think Okaasan will never do berate me if I do something wrongly, but she will definitely silently seeth inside. I'm trying to learn by observing how the family behaves. I also know that I'm still regarded as an outsider... I don't try to be accepted as part of the family because I will never be! I'm leaving in 3 months. It's not like I'm marrying into the family or something. So, instead, I attempt to gain trust as a friend. Tricky issue, I tell you. Very very tricky... To gain a person's trust is difficult anyways. :x But, gambarimasu!
=) Okay, nowadays, I have a bad habit of showering at 12midnight. And sleeping with my hair wet. Okay, I sleep with my hair wet, whether or not I shower at 12midnight. but, still! It's a bad bad bad habit. :x
And, I feel the oncoming sore throat. Alex has fallen to the dreaded virus that's hitting people here. So has Okaasan. And Daryn. people who I hang out/around with often =X
SIGHS. Please let me not get sick. Please let my Watson's vit c + zinc efferverscence tablets work. Please please please please please. Cos once I fall ill, I take AGES to recover. :'(
Friday, October 3, 2008
What led to the Housing Crisis and the global credit crisis
Yesterday, we attended Entrepreneurship class. And what happened was a lecture on the current global credit crisis, how it came about and what he thinks should be done about it. He made it really simple. Let me see if I can summarise it down here.
The basic problem was the belief that land prices will always be going up. In 1980s, the banks came up with the Home Equity Loan. What it is is giving people extra credit for the increase in the value of their property. As a result, people started to spend on credit, and lived a life of luxury with things that they actually could not afford. This was the start of the consumption culture. As a result of the consumption culture, several countries (companies and individuals, may I add), became rich. One such country was China.
Fast forward to (maybe) 2007. At this time, there was 70trillion (huge amount, of which China had about 1 trillion) of (real) money waiting to be invested in low risk investments. There was huge supply of money.
At this point, let us talk about small local banks. Before, small local banks owned the risk when they lent money. However, small local banks were able to sell the loans to bigger banks or investment institutions. So, the risk they took was between the time they gave the loan and the time they sold the loan to the bigger banks. As a result of the huge supply of money from those who had become rich, investment banks started calling the small local banks and asking for more loans to be sold to them. At this time, small local banks had run out of credit-worthy individuals to lend money to. So, they became more lax. Investment banks also did not bother to check if these individuals were credit-worthy or not. They just wanted to fulfil the needs of the owners of the 70trillion.
The supply of money still continued to be huge. So, the small local banks introduced many schemes, laxer and laxer with each scheme to entice people to get the loans. And obviously, some people (or MANY people) took the money and just could not pay. Later, investment institutions noticed a problem (finally) and told the middlemen that they weren't going to buy anymore loans. The entire system started collapsing.
The credit crunch = banks are now afraid to lend money out. They don't know how big the damage is from the mortgages, so they are afraid to lend money for fear that they will lose even more money. Worse still, it is the companies that they are refusing to lend money to. Companies sometimes rely on loans to tide by cash-tight times. This situation may lead to a difficulty in operations, and meeting operation expenses.
The whole world depends on companies for economic growth. If companies have difficulties in meeting their expenses, that's not a good sign for economic growth...
What Prof Tracy feels should be done is... let the market correct itself instead of having (stupid) [no, he didnt say stupid, but Alex feels strongly about it, enough so that I'm influenced by it] bailout plans... He says, it's just too bad those owners of the 70trillion are going to lose all that money. But it's important that the market corrects itself!!! We need to learn that we cannot buy on credit. We cannot own things that we can't afford...
Hmm, basically, that's in a nutshell, the 80minute explanation... I found it to be fascinating. Always have found such information to be fascinating. haha, maybe one of the few times I didn't daydream in class. Haha.
The basic problem was the belief that land prices will always be going up. In 1980s, the banks came up with the Home Equity Loan. What it is is giving people extra credit for the increase in the value of their property. As a result, people started to spend on credit, and lived a life of luxury with things that they actually could not afford. This was the start of the consumption culture. As a result of the consumption culture, several countries (companies and individuals, may I add), became rich. One such country was China.
Fast forward to (maybe) 2007. At this time, there was 70trillion (huge amount, of which China had about 1 trillion) of (real) money waiting to be invested in low risk investments. There was huge supply of money.
At this point, let us talk about small local banks. Before, small local banks owned the risk when they lent money. However, small local banks were able to sell the loans to bigger banks or investment institutions. So, the risk they took was between the time they gave the loan and the time they sold the loan to the bigger banks. As a result of the huge supply of money from those who had become rich, investment banks started calling the small local banks and asking for more loans to be sold to them. At this time, small local banks had run out of credit-worthy individuals to lend money to. So, they became more lax. Investment banks also did not bother to check if these individuals were credit-worthy or not. They just wanted to fulfil the needs of the owners of the 70trillion.
The supply of money still continued to be huge. So, the small local banks introduced many schemes, laxer and laxer with each scheme to entice people to get the loans. And obviously, some people (or MANY people) took the money and just could not pay. Later, investment institutions noticed a problem (finally) and told the middlemen that they weren't going to buy anymore loans. The entire system started collapsing.
The credit crunch = banks are now afraid to lend money out. They don't know how big the damage is from the mortgages, so they are afraid to lend money for fear that they will lose even more money. Worse still, it is the companies that they are refusing to lend money to. Companies sometimes rely on loans to tide by cash-tight times. This situation may lead to a difficulty in operations, and meeting operation expenses.
The whole world depends on companies for economic growth. If companies have difficulties in meeting their expenses, that's not a good sign for economic growth...
What Prof Tracy feels should be done is... let the market correct itself instead of having (stupid) [no, he didnt say stupid, but Alex feels strongly about it, enough so that I'm influenced by it] bailout plans... He says, it's just too bad those owners of the 70trillion are going to lose all that money. But it's important that the market corrects itself!!! We need to learn that we cannot buy on credit. We cannot own things that we can't afford...
Hmm, basically, that's in a nutshell, the 80minute explanation... I found it to be fascinating. Always have found such information to be fascinating. haha, maybe one of the few times I didn't daydream in class. Haha.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Weather update
Everyday I must give a weather report.
It will not be a long blog entry.
Weather forecast station forecast the temperature today to be at an average of 24 degrees (much better from the 16 degrees yesterday and the 18 degrees from the day before). I like the weather today. It was bright and sunny, though a little windy. For some strange reason, I actually felt comfy in my long sleeved, cotton shirt. Not too cold. That's the first this week.
Found a way to walk to KGU from Gotenyama without the fear of getting knocked down by traffic for half of the walk. The new path I feel maybe be a little bit longer (though Daryn says it is a short cut) but it is quiet, I don't have to look out for cars, just bicycles.
I got the shock of my life this morning when my teacher said, "Vocab Quiz tomorrow". I thought she was joking in class. -__________-||| I usually don't study for vocab quizzes (since I've already done all that in Singapore before I left for Japan). But this week's VQ has words that I've never seen in my life.
The student teacher is extremely impressed with my kanji. She was like, "Your kanji is very good." I tried to explain to her in my broken japanese, "chuugoku-go wakata. dakara, kanji wakata." What a stupid sentence. It's supposed to mean, I understand Chinese, so I know kanji. Of course, I could also say dekiru (can do it)... But I don't have the grammatical structure to put my random japanese vocabulary in place.
I was walking along back to Gotenyama when I stopped by this shop to buy pear. 50yen for a pear. Don't think it's all that expensive, given that it's a rather big pear. I bought two pears for my lunch tomorrow. The owner recognised me from before. Lucia and I stopped by once, and Lucia bought pears that time (too). Plus, I'd bet my glasses play a big role in the ability to recognise me. haha. So, she said, "kyo wa, hitori?" (today, u're alone?) I said, "hai, tomodachi wa class..." [literally, it means: friend is class. what the hell was I saying?!!!] haha, then she said something to the effect of, after this, u're heading straight home? I replied, "eto, hirakata-shi... kaimono.. eto, eto... eto..." I cldnt continue. But, when I walked off, I knew I should have said, "hirakata shi de kaimono wa kaimasu." (in Hirakatashi, I will buy things). SIGHS. Only after I walked 100m down the slope did I realise that that was what I should have said. Dang. I need to have better vocab (but no more VQ.. they're so... terrible :()
Yep, that's my very short update. tata =)
It will not be a long blog entry.
Weather forecast station forecast the temperature today to be at an average of 24 degrees (much better from the 16 degrees yesterday and the 18 degrees from the day before). I like the weather today. It was bright and sunny, though a little windy. For some strange reason, I actually felt comfy in my long sleeved, cotton shirt. Not too cold. That's the first this week.
Found a way to walk to KGU from Gotenyama without the fear of getting knocked down by traffic for half of the walk. The new path I feel maybe be a little bit longer (though Daryn says it is a short cut) but it is quiet, I don't have to look out for cars, just bicycles.
I got the shock of my life this morning when my teacher said, "Vocab Quiz tomorrow". I thought she was joking in class. -__________-||| I usually don't study for vocab quizzes (since I've already done all that in Singapore before I left for Japan). But this week's VQ has words that I've never seen in my life.
The student teacher is extremely impressed with my kanji. She was like, "Your kanji is very good." I tried to explain to her in my broken japanese, "chuugoku-go wakata. dakara, kanji wakata." What a stupid sentence. It's supposed to mean, I understand Chinese, so I know kanji. Of course, I could also say dekiru (can do it)... But I don't have the grammatical structure to put my random japanese vocabulary in place.
I was walking along back to Gotenyama when I stopped by this shop to buy pear. 50yen for a pear. Don't think it's all that expensive, given that it's a rather big pear. I bought two pears for my lunch tomorrow. The owner recognised me from before. Lucia and I stopped by once, and Lucia bought pears that time (too). Plus, I'd bet my glasses play a big role in the ability to recognise me. haha. So, she said, "kyo wa, hitori?" (today, u're alone?) I said, "hai, tomodachi wa class..." [literally, it means: friend is class. what the hell was I saying?!!!] haha, then she said something to the effect of, after this, u're heading straight home? I replied, "eto, hirakata-shi... kaimono.. eto, eto... eto..." I cldnt continue. But, when I walked off, I knew I should have said, "hirakata shi de kaimono wa kaimasu." (in Hirakatashi, I will buy things). SIGHS. Only after I walked 100m down the slope did I realise that that was what I should have said. Dang. I need to have better vocab (but no more VQ.. they're so... terrible :()
Yep, that's my very short update. tata =)
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