Okay! I am going to learn some decent Japanese!

I have been putting it off for way too long. I really need to speak much better Japanese. It can only be good for me. I am tired of not being able to communicate with most people. I am sick of the stress that comes with living in a nation in which most people cannot communicate with me effectively. I have even experienced a bit of depression from not being able to talk with most people normally. I want to be understood when I have something to say. The only way this is going to happen is for me to learn to speak the native language of the nation I call home.

Desire and action are too very different animals. I have desired to learn decent Japanese for a while now; yet my action has not matched my desire. Actually, I can speak a little. I cannot hold a decent conversation but in a hard pressed situation I can squeeze out a few phrases. Now, I am trying to match my action to my desire. This evening I signed up at edufire.com. I have heard so many things about this website and I am going to give it a go. I got an account but I have to wait until payday to buy a webcam because I am a cheap bastard. I also plan on finding me a good book shop and pick a decent beginner Japanese textbook to help me out. When I first arrived in Japan I took a survival course in Japan from some little Japanese language school. I will review all of that stuff as well. At this point I am just trying to learn how to speak Japanese. I will learn how to write it at a later point.

I know that a lot of people pride themselves on being able to read and write Japanese. Currently, I do not need to read and write the stuff. I just need to speak the damn language. Once I feel confident about speaking I will try to read and write. It may be hard to find a teacher who will only teach me how to speak. From what I have noticed they want you to also learn to write the stuff. The thing is, trying to learn how to speak and write at the same time will confuse me. I understand how hard it is to read and speak a second language. My heart goes out to my students everyday. Some of them try so hard to get better.

So, wish me luck in my efforts to get better. I will try my best to speak better Japanese.

The Right-Wing in Japan Is Insane.

Leave it to the right-wing in Japan to ruin even the most beautiful moments in life. Case in point is the past Friday. Due to the weather, I was not able to get in some cherry blossom viewing until this past Friday. The weather was finally great and I was feeling good. I decided to go down to Yoyogi park. Yoyogi has some of the best cherry blossoms in Tokyo. It also has some of the best cherry blossom parties. I arrived around 1:00 p.m. In my usual lone ranger style I made no plans to meet up with anyone. Although I enjoy meeting up with people from time to time,it is fun for me to dive head first into downtown Tokyo all by myself.

So after I hopped off the Yamanote train at Harajuku station, I make a bee line for Yoyogi park. It was already packed with people. The ground was covered with blue tarps and drunken cherry blossom lovers. I found me a comfortable spot, out of the way, against the base of a large tree. For about two hours I just sat, drank, and enjoyed the beauty around me. It was enjoyable to just look at the cherry blossoms and all the people having a good time. It was fun of course until I was invited to join one of the groups drinking.

I caught the eye of a few gals in business suits. They invited me over to their tarp for a drink. I thought to myself, `Ok What is the worst that could happen?` After having a drink with them the group beside them dragged me over to their tarp. They were a young group of so-called `freeders` for the most part. They were fun, although way too drunk way too early. After some time this one guy starts talking to me. He tells me, `I hate Americans but I like you.` My first reaction was to slap him in the mouth for speaking to me in such a manner. You do not say such things to Americans. It is real stupid to tell an American that you hate America. I decided to let it go for the time being. I did not want to get pissed off.

Anyway, the gals were nice and everyone else was being nice to me. Although, I could feel that something was not right with the situation. Most of the men did not like me for some reason. A few of them were okay but I could feel that most of them wanted to make trouble. Lucky for me they lacked the balls to try anything; except this one guy. After sun set two of the young men kept trying to get me to go some place with them, I resisted them as best I could. Eventually, one of them got my attention enough and pushed some girl on me. He said, `She wants to talk with you. Go have sex with her.` Before I knew it he was gone and I was stuck with one of the gals from the group. Things just kept getting more strange by the minute. I asked her, `What do you really want dear?` She replied, `I want a beer.` It was an easy enough request. I got her a beer and took her to Shibuya gate. Remember that I am married and this girl is young and drunk. I talked to her a bit and let her finish her beer before taking her back to her group.

When I brought her back she wanted to exchange phone numbers. I exchanged numbers with the understanding that my intention is to make friends. At this point is when the one brave fucker wanted to start some shit(and also prove my point that the right-wing in Japan is insane). This is the same guy who told me that he hates Americans. He gets right up in my face and says, `What are you doing American? She belong to Japan . You no talk to her! Understand?` This guy was begging for a broken noise. I thought to myself, `Oh fuck! Here we go. Yet another crazy ass fucking right-winger in Japan.` I finally decided that I was not going to put up with his shit any longer. So, I smiled and said to him,`Be careful what you say. You are making a big mistake. Americans no play with little boys.` He kept smiling at me like some insane maniac as if I was nothing more than shit on his shoes. I just stared him down until he realized that he was in over his head. He slowly backed off but kept that fucked-up smile on his face the entire time.

So, this is the behavior the right-wing in Japan is teaching young men these days. They are going to get this kid killed. This kid had to be no older than 21 at best. He knows nothing about the world at all. I know that one day someone is going to fuck his shit up real bad. I am sure that he is involved with the Japanese right-wing because only the right says such things. So, there you have it. The right-wing in Japan think that all Japanese women are property of Japan. These stupid fucks can even ruin a nice day of cherry blossom viewing.

Mario Cart Wii Madness!

So, when I got off work Wednesday I headed down to Akiba for a little shopping. I do not often find myself in Akiba. The place just creeps me out too much. All the tourist and cartoon geeks really turn me off from the place. None the less, Akiba does have the best Yodobashi department store in Tokyo. The staff there are better than other`s in the chain of department stores. My reason for even going there was to buy Mario Cart Wii. The gal suggested I buy it(more like politely demanded). Like myself, she gets on these gaming kicks sometimes. It is fun for us to get a bottle of hard liqueur, hide out in our apartment, and plays video games until we pass out. I know that sounds strange but we are those kind of people.

It is real easy to shop at Yodobashi in Akiba. They usually have a few people who can speak English well enough to effectively help me out. It did not take long for one of the nice gentlemen who work there to ask me if I needed any help. I guess I the `I don`t have a fucking clue how to find what I want` look on my face. He want all out with helping me. He took me to the area in which the Wii games were sold. He made sure I bought exactly what I needed. The guy even walked me right up to the check out counter. I felt a little awkward being lead around the store like a lost puppy, but I was thankful for his help all the same. Before I left he gave me his business card. He said, `You never need help at this store again just find me and I will take care of you sir.` His final gesture made me feel even more awkward.

Anyway, when I presented Mario Cart Wii(which included one game and two diving wheels) to the gal, she jumped for joy. I must admit I was a little excited as well. After a light dinner and a quick shower, the gal and I were all ready for an evening of drunk driving at home. I was surprised we got through an entire bottle of vodka was were still able to play the game. In true Wii style you actually have to `drive` to play the game. As you become more drunk, your ability to judge how much to turn the wheel should decrease. As luck would have it, the drunker I got the better my ability to play the game. So, maybe drunk driving has it advantages(LOL).

I`m on the Patch

So, I have been trying to quit smoking for about two months now. It has been real hard but I am getting real close to kicking the habit. Well, recently I broke down and started using the tobacco patch. Everyday I wear this little light down patch on either my left or right arm.

The first day it hurt my arm a little bit. It was as if I was getting an injection in my arm all day. At the end of the day my arm felt real sore. Although, I had very little desire to smoke. I did, however, feel real tired. All I wanted to do was go to sleep when I got home. The next morning I was in a real bad mood until I wore a new patch. I have finally learned that nicotine is a very powerful drug. I am convinced that it is more powerful than heroin. The patch gives me much more nicotine than I usually got from smoking. I can feel a strange high from wearing the patch all day. At least I am relaxed and don`t have any desire to rip someone`s head off.

I think the patch is going to work. All I have to do is break my habit of wanting to have a smoke. By not having a cig in my mouth, I think over time I will forget about wanting to smoke. My fear is that I will not be able to stop using the patch. So, I am switching the manner in which I get nicotine.

Anyway, my quest to stop smoking is not over yet. I am doing my best but it has not been easy. I am not ready to give up just yet. I am just too stubborn to give up this idea that I can quit smoking.