Finding Japan

This week has probably been the most difficult week for me in Columbia. Not because classes are difficult. In fact, all of my classes with the exception of my Japanese language classes are already finished. Rather, I think the reality of leaving the country for a year and a half is hitting me. I’ve grown so much since beginning this program and know I will only grow more after experiencing Japan for an extended period of time. But there are still a few things that are on my mind:

My family will be difficult to see. Both of my sisters are in college still and can’t really afford to travel too far. My mom and dad will most likely come out and see me, but I’m not sure at which point they will – or even if I can get my dad on the airplane. LOL.

Dealing with administrative things in Japan may be difficult. I’m still in the process of finding an apartment, I need to open a bank account, I need to get a phone, I need to get an alien registration card, etc, etc. It all seems like a lot right now and I know these things will be even more difficult with my lack of fluency in Japanese.

In particular, I’m not looking forward to being so far away from my girlfriend for that period of time. Even apart, I felt like I have grown so much closer to her and feel awful being apart from her even now. I’m looking forward so much to being back already, and I haven’t even left yet.

So with all of these things, I still look forward to going, though a bit hesitantly at this point. Most things I have done in my life have been relatively safe or predictable at this point, so this whole thing is truthfully, a bit scary right now. I’m hanging on tight at the moment.

Sorry for the lack of video and audio lately. I’m preparing for my move to Japan and tying up a bunch of last minute things like taxes, insurance, blah blah. I did want to let everyone know that I have come up with a pretty neat video project that will make the videos a bit more entertaining. Rather than post some boring video about Columbia (which is where I am now until March 16th), I’m collecting material that will make for a more interesting “watch” or “listen” depending on the format.

On a “leaving for Japan” note, everything is now in place. The airplane tickets have been purchased, my visa has finally arrived from the consulate in Atlanta, and I am officially admitted to Waseda. Please stay tuned, more to come after the next few weeks of craziness subside.

I was reading a post from a friend about Boston being shut down by a potential terrorist attack today. Totally under my radar. But after randomly watching a Youtube video today, I soon realized that it was actually Turner Broadcasting and their marketing of the Aqua Teen Hunger Force show, one of my favorites. And even better, it was the Mooninites. I think this entire incident shows the hilarity of the way some people think. Even after Turner claimed the strange magnetic lite-brite devices were part of their guerrilla marketing campaign, the siege continued. The video link above has some good insight, but this quote from CNN throws me off the train completely.

Assistant Attorney General John Grossman called the light boards “bomb-like” devices and said that if they had been explosive they could have damaged transportation infrastructure in the city. – cnn.com

Are you kidding me?!? Bomb-like?! Look at that picture!! Sure, if the manholes in the streets were explosive, they could really damage quite a few vehicles in the streets of Boston as well. If the streetlights were explosives, they could cause some major traffic delays. If the trees were … you get the point I’m sure.

At any rate, I think we all need to take a look at the way we react to “terrorist threats”. A visiting prospective student today (who is British, British mind you) even remarked to me on how he was detained at the airport for nearly 3 hours, passport confiscated, no ability to make a phone call and consequently missed his connecting flight and was unable to get in touch with the folks waiting for him at his final destination. Without passport and communication with the outside world (no phone calls mind you), he was essentially without rights.

It’s really incredible how much of those goes on day to day and we, as Americans, simply miss it. Turner, get permits for physical marketing. Boston, get realistic or watch more Comedy Central.

Hey everyone, just a quick update. Sorry I have not posted any audio or video lately. I read a review in the iTunes Music Store of this podcast and thought to myself, “Yeah I really need to do more”. The past month since I have returned to school has been very busy. We’re already taking finals next week and we have a Japanese language mid-term the week after.

The good news is, our eligibility certificates came in from the Ministry of Justice in Japan (photo above). We’re sending these off today to hopefully get our student visas. It should only take a week or so. Once that is in, I’ll be able to stay in Japan for more than just the 90-day tourist visa. It seems like the process we are going through is much easier and straightforward from our European track classmates.

In the meantime, I’ve been working hard at my existing job to get things closed out before I leave. I’ve also been really digging in with Japanese. I can recognize about 100 Kanji now, which doesn’t sound like much but it has been a big step for me. Alex and I will be participating in some role play in class next week, I hope to catch that on tape and put it up as well. I also hope to start writing posts in both English and Japanese to help work on my writing skills, but we’ll see.

I hope everyone else is doing well. I’ll be back more later this week. ごめんあさい。またね。