Well in less than 10 days, this year is going to come to an end... and you know what? It's that time of year again to make new years resolutions. Yay, actually, I'm kind of looking forward to making some new years resolutions (NB: don't let New Years to be the only time to make resolutions btw).
So what do I have in store for the resolutions? Not so sure yet, but I have a general idea... but I'll post it when I have them down. Also the other interesting thing is that I have my old resolutions on file from the psat 2 years on my computer after hosting my old blog. I'll make the post first and make a comparison of my resolutions compared to the past 2 years. Interesting food for thought.
Anyways, here's looking towards 2006. 2005 was a great year, just hoping that 2006 is just as good.
Time to get ready for the Lab's pre-new year's party (they really don't have x-mas parties here... they have pre-new years parties instead.
Thursday, December 22, 2005
Wednesday, December 21, 2005
Season's Greetings.... and Farewell Firefly
I have no sense of time at the moment. Life, as usual is operating on a week by week basis. It snowed a few weeks ago and now that I'm looking at the date, it's almost Chrismas. Where the hell did time go? I know this for sure-- I don't have time to send out x-mas cards or do any real sort of holiday season preparation. I have learned something thus far-- if you're going to work hard on something, there had better be some value that you're going to get out of it at the end, or by the end, you're going to feel robbed... and you are going to feel robbed of alot of things. Fortunately for me, it hasn't come down to that. You just gotta deal with the mechanics of study, work, experiments and knowing what you want at the end. Simple... sort'a.
So Chrismas is comming up, it's a week away. Officially the lab doesn't close until the New years, but I'm taking the days starting from the 26th off. I'm tired and all I want to do at the moment is crawl into bed, hibernate and read. But that isn't going to happen, because the holiday seasons are here and the other students here at the dorms are going to be setting up parties and such... as a likely result, I'll be hopping along for the ride and will still be tired at the end :P I want a (real) vacation.
In other news, I've read on /. that one of my most favorite TV series is being laid to rest for the time being. Information here. Dispite huge support from fans, since the TV series was cancelled years ago and even after the release of the movie (which I still have yet to see but had great reviews but not a blockbuster turnout... [official link] here) it seems that there wasn't enough mainstream support to get the thing off the ground. What can I say, (I feel like I'm writing a eulegy...) just watch it. Fire up e-mule or a bit torrent, whatever download or buy the DVDs.. just watch it. It's good... I just wish there was more.
So Chrismas is comming up, it's a week away. Officially the lab doesn't close until the New years, but I'm taking the days starting from the 26th off. I'm tired and all I want to do at the moment is crawl into bed, hibernate and read. But that isn't going to happen, because the holiday seasons are here and the other students here at the dorms are going to be setting up parties and such... as a likely result, I'll be hopping along for the ride and will still be tired at the end :P I want a (real) vacation.
In other news, I've read on /. that one of my most favorite TV series is being laid to rest for the time being. Information here. Dispite huge support from fans, since the TV series was cancelled years ago and even after the release of the movie (which I still have yet to see but had great reviews but not a blockbuster turnout... [official link] here) it seems that there wasn't enough mainstream support to get the thing off the ground. What can I say, (I feel like I'm writing a eulegy...) just watch it. Fire up e-mule or a bit torrent, whatever download or buy the DVDs.. just watch it. It's good... I just wish there was more.
Monday, December 12, 2005
Back from Tokyo
Back from a semi-conductor conference in Tokyo. 2 days, most expense paid trip to help the lab run booth at the exhibition hall. Totally under dressed, dispite one of the guys telling me to go "semi-formal" (which I even brought down to semi-casual). Whatever, suit or no suit, I did my job.
Snow this weekend, midnight snow ball fight, a little bit of shopping this weekend, lab meeting on Saturday as usual and it's back to the grind this monday.
Speaking of the grind there's something cute a friend sent to me-- coffee too pretty to drink, here
Enjoy!
Back to preparing another presntation for tomorrow. I wish my professors would lay off the presntations and let me do my work for crying out loud...
Snow this weekend, midnight snow ball fight, a little bit of shopping this weekend, lab meeting on Saturday as usual and it's back to the grind this monday.
Speaking of the grind there's something cute a friend sent to me-- coffee too pretty to drink, here
Enjoy!
Back to preparing another presntation for tomorrow. I wish my professors would lay off the presntations and let me do my work for crying out loud...
Thursday, December 01, 2005
Screwed! Well not completly.... but mainly
I have a presentation this weekend, this Saturday in particular. You see, in this lab we have weekly meetings.... on Saturdays. This isn't the norm, it's just the lab that I decided to pick. That and it turns out I picked well... the lab is also quite good.
Well every Saturday, everyone attend these meetings where members (3 of them a week) are to present to the rest of the 50 members to the lab their work for the past ~3 months. Well great, I've been officially been a part of this lab since the beginning of October and I've gone though 2 research themes and was going to present my most current one (yeah we know where this is going...).
So I've been prepping for this presentation for the past 2 weeks (I was supposed to be done last week because I got the date wrong and started preparing a week early). So, well here I am, 2 days before the presentation... and decided to talk to my professor to hear what points in particular so I'd have my bases covered. Well what happened, is that my proff wants me to go and present my previous research theme as well to everyone because he thoght my research was indepth and so that I would not forget it. I have 2 days before my presentation dude! My presentation is already going to be long; I can already feel it. NB. I've already slaughtered a group of students in a robotics class with my monstrosity of a presentation... weighing in about 63 slides and 2 hours long and I am going to do this again?
Well I don't mind the talking part, it's just the preparation. Driving me batty. Thursday night and I was looking forward to getting this presentation of mine down just barely but up to snuff for this Saturday. I'm also scheduled for a tour of a micro-fabrication plant for tomorrow that is going to eat up a chunk of my day. Sigh...
I wonder I'm going to watch the sunrise from my lab... haw...
Well every Saturday, everyone attend these meetings where members (3 of them a week) are to present to the rest of the 50 members to the lab their work for the past ~3 months. Well great, I've been officially been a part of this lab since the beginning of October and I've gone though 2 research themes and was going to present my most current one (yeah we know where this is going...).
So I've been prepping for this presentation for the past 2 weeks (I was supposed to be done last week because I got the date wrong and started preparing a week early). So, well here I am, 2 days before the presentation... and decided to talk to my professor to hear what points in particular so I'd have my bases covered. Well what happened, is that my proff wants me to go and present my previous research theme as well to everyone because he thoght my research was indepth and so that I would not forget it. I have 2 days before my presentation dude! My presentation is already going to be long; I can already feel it. NB. I've already slaughtered a group of students in a robotics class with my monstrosity of a presentation... weighing in about 63 slides and 2 hours long and I am going to do this again?
Well I don't mind the talking part, it's just the preparation. Driving me batty. Thursday night and I was looking forward to getting this presentation of mine down just barely but up to snuff for this Saturday. I'm also scheduled for a tour of a micro-fabrication plant for tomorrow that is going to eat up a chunk of my day. Sigh...
I wonder I'm going to watch the sunrise from my lab... haw...
Sunday, November 27, 2005
Alive and well
More than 2 weeks since my last post. I'm losing it, really. I'm at the computer all day reading and then running around running little experiments. Sometimes I wonder where my time goes. I'm at the lab late sometimes... sometimes I wonder how much I am getting done now a these days.
As usual, a lot has been going on. I've been in a fasion show, hit the onsen and saw the beautiful autunm leaves in Sendai. That was nearly 3 weeks ago. Today was a party in my room with Mike, EE Wen, Eun Young, Diego, Misha, Nannan, Li and more. Last week was the fashion show and badminton. The week before was volunteering for an English Speech contest.
Just to let you see what has recently gone on here's a picture from Nov 3, after making a trek to Yamadera with friends. Props to Kelvin and his wonderful camera... (I really want a nice camera now :)
EE Wen, Momo and me in the mountains.
Cheers all!
As usual, a lot has been going on. I've been in a fasion show, hit the onsen and saw the beautiful autunm leaves in Sendai. That was nearly 3 weeks ago. Today was a party in my room with Mike, EE Wen, Eun Young, Diego, Misha, Nannan, Li and more. Last week was the fashion show and badminton. The week before was volunteering for an English Speech contest.
Just to let you see what has recently gone on here's a picture from Nov 3, after making a trek to Yamadera with friends. Props to Kelvin and his wonderful camera... (I really want a nice camera now :)
EE Wen, Momo and me in the mountains.
Cheers all!
Tuesday, November 08, 2005
Infamy and Questions
It seems that some parts of my life in Canada also carries over to Japan. I don't know how or why, but news of me seems to travel around everywhere without me knowing. Why is that? I'll admit that I'm an odd ball, but somehow in random conversations, my name pops up. I think it's kind of funny. Oh well.
There is a difference between taking classes in Japan as compared to Canada or in the states. The difference is that students here don't ask questions. That and they don't seem to enjoy answering questions posed by teachers either. I personally believe that it has to do with some kind of inbread fear of being embarassed.
As for me, well when it comes to certain things, you could say that "I have no shame." This is especially true for asking stupid questions or doing stupid things. It's a fact, I do stupid things all the time. Just ask the audience. It's not a problem though-- it makes for some pretty good stories however.
But that's the thing, the thing I feel about Japan is that in formal situations with other people in a class. They are afraid of being stupid in the sense of not knowing the answer or asking questions. I am taking 6 classes now and in most classes I am the one that is asking the most questions. The interesting thing is that most of these Japanese people are kind of puzzed about this asian looking foreigner that can speak fluent English, that can sounds like a native Japanese speaker but can't speak proper Japanese half of the time. It has come down to the point where I do stand up and walk up to the chalk board and write out mathematically what I want to express. The students in the class were rather surprised at how bold I am. Well... even in Canada I don't usually walk up to the chalk board to write out what I am talking about in class... in Japan, it's sort of a necessity. As a result I have become some kind of spectacle.
What I would learn later is that news of me is spreading. Interesitngly enough, I started talking to random people in class from time to time and do hear that they know a few friends of mine in my lab... hence the news spreads. I find it interesting, so long as it's the good kind of news that spreads :) I'm all for that part.
Aside from that, it has been about 5 weeks since the beginning of my masters degree. I've finally settled on a project... the only problem is getting the ball rolling. There is a lot of equipment over here and the thing is that I need to schedule time with people to learn how to use the equipment. Ugh, time management was never one of my strong points. It still isn't either. How does one balance work and play? It's tricky. I play lots on the weekend and stay late at the lab during the weekdays. I haven't loafed around in a while.. which is a good thing I guess... (hence the lack of idle thoughts posts like I had done before the start of my masters).
On an interesting note. After getting into the lab, I have gotten fatter. I've gained back the 5 pounds which I lost at first when I first came in to Japan. The culprit being the fatty foods (ie deep fried foods) at the cafeteria that I've been eating everyday. Going to have to get myself off those foods because it isn't good for my health. Keep this up and I'll be comming home like a pumpkin. Not a pretty sight.
There is a difference between taking classes in Japan as compared to Canada or in the states. The difference is that students here don't ask questions. That and they don't seem to enjoy answering questions posed by teachers either. I personally believe that it has to do with some kind of inbread fear of being embarassed.
As for me, well when it comes to certain things, you could say that "I have no shame." This is especially true for asking stupid questions or doing stupid things. It's a fact, I do stupid things all the time. Just ask the audience. It's not a problem though-- it makes for some pretty good stories however.
But that's the thing, the thing I feel about Japan is that in formal situations with other people in a class. They are afraid of being stupid in the sense of not knowing the answer or asking questions. I am taking 6 classes now and in most classes I am the one that is asking the most questions. The interesting thing is that most of these Japanese people are kind of puzzed about this asian looking foreigner that can speak fluent English, that can sounds like a native Japanese speaker but can't speak proper Japanese half of the time. It has come down to the point where I do stand up and walk up to the chalk board and write out mathematically what I want to express. The students in the class were rather surprised at how bold I am. Well... even in Canada I don't usually walk up to the chalk board to write out what I am talking about in class... in Japan, it's sort of a necessity. As a result I have become some kind of spectacle.
What I would learn later is that news of me is spreading. Interesitngly enough, I started talking to random people in class from time to time and do hear that they know a few friends of mine in my lab... hence the news spreads. I find it interesting, so long as it's the good kind of news that spreads :) I'm all for that part.
Aside from that, it has been about 5 weeks since the beginning of my masters degree. I've finally settled on a project... the only problem is getting the ball rolling. There is a lot of equipment over here and the thing is that I need to schedule time with people to learn how to use the equipment. Ugh, time management was never one of my strong points. It still isn't either. How does one balance work and play? It's tricky. I play lots on the weekend and stay late at the lab during the weekdays. I haven't loafed around in a while.. which is a good thing I guess... (hence the lack of idle thoughts posts like I had done before the start of my masters).
On an interesting note. After getting into the lab, I have gotten fatter. I've gained back the 5 pounds which I lost at first when I first came in to Japan. The culprit being the fatty foods (ie deep fried foods) at the cafeteria that I've been eating everyday. Going to have to get myself off those foods because it isn't good for my health. Keep this up and I'll be comming home like a pumpkin. Not a pretty sight.
Monday, October 31, 2005
What has been going on here?
Well I have been holding off on making any posts because I was hoping to make some rather long posts (with pictures) catching up on what has been going on over here. I do have a long back log of pictures to post and thought it would be fun to throw them up. That just hasn't been wanting to happen the last few weeks and I don't know why. Perhaps a lack of motivation? Energy... I dunno. But anyways I thought I might as well post on how things have been going on here in text instead.
As busy as I sound, I am having quite a lot of fun in addition to doing my masters work (nothing concrete at the moment). The masters work itself (or at least the getting a thesis process it self, will explain later on). For the past 2 weeks, my life has consisted of getting to the labs in the morning, taking classes, reading papers and then heading out at about 6:00 pm to teach Engish to a few students on Tuesdays and Wedensdays. If I don't have to teach, them I'm here usually till about 9:00 pm reading papers or learning more about whatever ideas I have at the time or the Micro Electric Machines (MEMs) field in general. I have already filled 1.25 binders with reading material which I have downloaded the net.
On other days when I don't have to teach, I periodically head home and eat with friends, usually inviting them over for dinner or getting invited out for dinner, baking cookies and etc. Great fun. We have a guy named Mike over here from MIT that can make some pretty mean cookies and Thai curry. Damn good stuff, heck I ate too much of it that I ended up having a stomach aches the next day (since I haven't been eating really spicy food for a long time).
Weekends have been really busy as I have been doing something every weekend. 3 Weeks ago was something called an Imoni-kai in Japan. Which is where groups of friends head out to the rivers to cook a type of stew with Japanese potatoes, an assortment of veggies, meat and a sort of soup base (soy-sauce or miso depending on the region). The interesting thing is that only Miyagi and Yamagata (the neighbouring prefecture) are the only 2 prefectures in Japan that carries out this tradition. And the food was most excellent. I will be having an Imoni-kai party when I do come back to Canada to introduce everyone to this little Japanese event.
I have so far gone to 2 of these events, once with the international club and another time with a friend as guest for a tennis club. I have not played tennis in about 3~4 years but we had Imoni, beer and played tennis (beer has never tasted so good after a hard game of tennis!) During the same weekend it was some person's birthday whom I did not know, but got invited anyways out to the party. Ended up hitting a kareoke bar and then a club for the evening (the second time I've been to a club in Japan). Didn't get home till 4 am. Just as a note, Kareoke is awsome in Japan. Just because you can go with groups of 20+ people and there is a very wide selection of English music (much more than the selections than what I have seen back home when I did have the chance to go). That and when you pay $20 for2 hours of singing, that also include an all you can drink... all in you can drink as in booze! Crazy no?
The week after, on the Friday evening, the dorms here had a roof top party. Though instead of partying on the roof, I held a little party in my room and was up till about 5 am. The next day was a Korean friend's b-day party at the dorm were a bunch of friends and I would surprise her by all cooking a big lunch and crashing at her room. Yay, more food.
Finally, this week, I ended up going out with friends looking for a halloween costume. A friend of mine came up to me and asked me "Um this might sound weird but, where's the porn store around here?" since they were looking for some school girl outfits to wear. Can you imagine the horror of guys with really hairy legs in a short skirt school girl outfit? Scary indeed. I went as a kung fu master with blood and scars on my face.
Ps, if anyone knows how to remove tea stains, a bit of ash and a bit of melted red wax from a white silk shirt, please do tell me. I had a little incident where I got a white silk shirt (bought in Taiwan!) a little dirty and I've been trying like mad to remove a few marks. Gah, I've hand washed the shirt so many times....
There were a few parties here and there and a little trip I took to a farm I took last month (pictures which I still need to post) and more misc things I have been doing that has been keeping me busy. Yes, lots of work and play. It's the way I like it... just wish the work part was getting a litte more progress however.
What's the itenary for this week? Nov 2nd, going out to a party with the masters students. The 3rd going out on a trip to check out the Autmn leaves in Sendai. This Friday going to be helping out with a Chinese dumpling party hosted by the lab and then on Sunday I'll be going to a hot Spring. Busy busy... in a good way.
As busy as I sound, I am having quite a lot of fun in addition to doing my masters work (nothing concrete at the moment). The masters work itself (or at least the getting a thesis process it self, will explain later on). For the past 2 weeks, my life has consisted of getting to the labs in the morning, taking classes, reading papers and then heading out at about 6:00 pm to teach Engish to a few students on Tuesdays and Wedensdays. If I don't have to teach, them I'm here usually till about 9:00 pm reading papers or learning more about whatever ideas I have at the time or the Micro Electric Machines (MEMs) field in general. I have already filled 1.25 binders with reading material which I have downloaded the net.
On other days when I don't have to teach, I periodically head home and eat with friends, usually inviting them over for dinner or getting invited out for dinner, baking cookies and etc. Great fun. We have a guy named Mike over here from MIT that can make some pretty mean cookies and Thai curry. Damn good stuff, heck I ate too much of it that I ended up having a stomach aches the next day (since I haven't been eating really spicy food for a long time).
Weekends have been really busy as I have been doing something every weekend. 3 Weeks ago was something called an Imoni-kai in Japan. Which is where groups of friends head out to the rivers to cook a type of stew with Japanese potatoes, an assortment of veggies, meat and a sort of soup base (soy-sauce or miso depending on the region). The interesting thing is that only Miyagi and Yamagata (the neighbouring prefecture) are the only 2 prefectures in Japan that carries out this tradition. And the food was most excellent. I will be having an Imoni-kai party when I do come back to Canada to introduce everyone to this little Japanese event.
I have so far gone to 2 of these events, once with the international club and another time with a friend as guest for a tennis club. I have not played tennis in about 3~4 years but we had Imoni, beer and played tennis (beer has never tasted so good after a hard game of tennis!) During the same weekend it was some person's birthday whom I did not know, but got invited anyways out to the party. Ended up hitting a kareoke bar and then a club for the evening (the second time I've been to a club in Japan). Didn't get home till 4 am. Just as a note, Kareoke is awsome in Japan. Just because you can go with groups of 20+ people and there is a very wide selection of English music (much more than the selections than what I have seen back home when I did have the chance to go). That and when you pay $20 for2 hours of singing, that also include an all you can drink... all in you can drink as in booze! Crazy no?
The week after, on the Friday evening, the dorms here had a roof top party. Though instead of partying on the roof, I held a little party in my room and was up till about 5 am. The next day was a Korean friend's b-day party at the dorm were a bunch of friends and I would surprise her by all cooking a big lunch and crashing at her room. Yay, more food.
Finally, this week, I ended up going out with friends looking for a halloween costume. A friend of mine came up to me and asked me "Um this might sound weird but, where's the porn store around here?" since they were looking for some school girl outfits to wear. Can you imagine the horror of guys with really hairy legs in a short skirt school girl outfit? Scary indeed. I went as a kung fu master with blood and scars on my face.
Ps, if anyone knows how to remove tea stains, a bit of ash and a bit of melted red wax from a white silk shirt, please do tell me. I had a little incident where I got a white silk shirt (bought in Taiwan!) a little dirty and I've been trying like mad to remove a few marks. Gah, I've hand washed the shirt so many times...
There were a few parties here and there and a little trip I took to a farm I took last month (pictures which I still need to post) and more misc things I have been doing that has been keeping me busy. Yes, lots of work and play. It's the way I like it... just wish the work part was getting a litte more progress however.
What's the itenary for this week? Nov 2nd, going out to a party with the masters students. The 3rd going out on a trip to check out the Autmn leaves in Sendai. This Friday going to be helping out with a Chinese dumpling party hosted by the lab and then on Sunday I'll be going to a hot Spring. Busy busy... in a good way.
Wednesday, October 26, 2005
No desire for the computer
I stare at my comptuer screen almost all day reading research papers. Right now, I still am in the process of getting a reserach theme down. I'm going to turn down a project for an implantable glucose sensor due to probably complications due to the human immune system most likely rejecting the device.
With that gone, that leaves me with one project one of my professors have proposed -- an electron beam lithography system using carbon nanotubes. Seems interesting but I am rather worried about the feasibility about the system using the proposed technique one of my professors gave me. How I hate to deal with uncertainty in research because I am going to be dedicating myself to a project for the next 2 years for my masters thesis.
So for the past 3 weeks, I've been doing nothing but reading reserach papers on a varety of topics in my field. Many of them on the computer but I've been taking the time to print things out and read them on paper (reading reserach papers on the computer is tiring... I can read entire novels on my computer but not research papers it seems). With all the reading I've been doing, I am getting pretty tired of looking at my computer monitor all day, meaning that by the time I get home, I don't really feel like updating the blog (as it requires me to stare at the screen some more while I write).
What about today? Well today is different because I went to bed at about 10:00 pm and woke up at about 4:30 am. After milling in bed till 5:00 am I was out. Took a miserable shower; the hot water was not on in the building and all I got was some luke warm water that was on the cold side. I was hoping for a nice HOT shower in the morning. Since it's getting cold in Sendai, much how it is like in Canada stepping out of the shower into the hall way on the way back to my room was horrible. I grabbed some food and in the lab by 6:00 am. So before I get tired of looking at the monitor all the day, I figured that I should do a bit of an update. And yes, I am in sort of a cranky mood at the moment.
Life has been busy here. I have been going to parties over the weekend. Hosting dinner get togethers during the week with friends and staying at the lab late from time to time. I can stay out late at the lab a few times a week but do it too often I get tired of hanging out at the lab during the day. (Heh, I even look for a secluded couch somewhere in the building to crash once in a while).
Well it's 7:30 am now... half awake. Going to take a quick break and then do something... which I don't know yet.
With that gone, that leaves me with one project one of my professors have proposed -- an electron beam lithography system using carbon nanotubes. Seems interesting but I am rather worried about the feasibility about the system using the proposed technique one of my professors gave me. How I hate to deal with uncertainty in research because I am going to be dedicating myself to a project for the next 2 years for my masters thesis.
So for the past 3 weeks, I've been doing nothing but reading reserach papers on a varety of topics in my field. Many of them on the computer but I've been taking the time to print things out and read them on paper (reading reserach papers on the computer is tiring... I can read entire novels on my computer but not research papers it seems). With all the reading I've been doing, I am getting pretty tired of looking at my computer monitor all day, meaning that by the time I get home, I don't really feel like updating the blog (as it requires me to stare at the screen some more while I write).
What about today? Well today is different because I went to bed at about 10:00 pm and woke up at about 4:30 am. After milling in bed till 5:00 am I was out. Took a miserable shower; the hot water was not on in the building and all I got was some luke warm water that was on the cold side. I was hoping for a nice HOT shower in the morning. Since it's getting cold in Sendai, much how it is like in Canada stepping out of the shower into the hall way on the way back to my room was horrible. I grabbed some food and in the lab by 6:00 am. So before I get tired of looking at the monitor all the day, I figured that I should do a bit of an update. And yes, I am in sort of a cranky mood at the moment.
Life has been busy here. I have been going to parties over the weekend. Hosting dinner get togethers during the week with friends and staying at the lab late from time to time. I can stay out late at the lab a few times a week but do it too often I get tired of hanging out at the lab during the day. (Heh, I even look for a secluded couch somewhere in the building to crash once in a while).
Well it's 7:30 am now... half awake. Going to take a quick break and then do something... which I don't know yet.
Tuesday, October 18, 2005
Oh how do I miss corny jokes!
Q: What do you call a guy that steals software?
A: You call them a pirate!
Q: What do you call a Swede (or a Danish) that steals software?
A: You call them vikings!
Oh how I miss these. What's going on here? Too many things, just way too many things. This evening I was over at Mike's room (from Boston) grabbing some dinner in the form of Thai green Curry, with Marek (German) and Ee Wen (Malaysian) and then we had a Swede that popped by from time to time named (I'm serious here) "Viking." As you can see, I had a great time playing with his name.
Muah ha ha ha ha.
It is now midnight and I am going to turn into a pumpkin. Good night, good night, to all a good night.
A: You call them a pirate!
Q: What do you call a Swede (or a Danish) that steals software?
A: You call them vikings!
Oh how I miss these. What's going on here? Too many things, just way too many things. This evening I was over at Mike's room (from Boston) grabbing some dinner in the form of Thai green Curry, with Marek (German) and Ee Wen (Malaysian) and then we had a Swede that popped by from time to time named (I'm serious here) "Viking." As you can see, I had a great time playing with his name.
Muah ha ha ha ha.
It is now midnight and I am going to turn into a pumpkin. Good night, good night, to all a good night.
Friday, October 14, 2005
If I only had a brain!
There is an experiment going on over here at the university. What they call for are a bunch of native english speakers and do a fRMI brain scan of them while they take a look at *grammatically* correct sentences (hahaha, I can't spell... and some of you already know that my grammar can really suck sometimes... I hope I don't ruin their experiment :). What occurs after is that subjects will buzz in a yes or no depending on the passage.
The best part? I'll be getting a scan of my brain! Boo yah!
This is the response I got from the Secretary:
***************
I've heard a volunteer of fMRI scans can get copies of their brains.
The best part? I'll be getting a scan of my brain! Boo yah!
This is the response I got from the Secretary:
***************
I've heard a volunteer of fMRI scans can get copies of their brains.
(It was funny you said you want it for a souvenior!)
Let me ask Prof. Yusa about the copy of your brain.
I will tell you as soon as I get the answer from him.
***************
And there you have it. :)
Saturday, October 08, 2005
Still Alive...I think
I knew exactly what would happen to me after the new term starts-- that was that the lab would be sucking me into a black hole of a world in time. I just didn't know it could get even darker then that too.
I'm just kind of tired actually. It's a 9 to 10 kind of job sometimes later with lab meetings and we have meetings on the weekend from 9 to 5, and those are *short* days too! I started classes in Japanese, ran a seminar (it was my turn) today, did some shopping to replenish cleaning equipment, soap and get some utensils.. hosted a party in my room the day before. Stuff like that. 10:30 pm now and It's the first time I had some time to myself.
Heck, my parents are even worried about me because I haven't been able to make the time to talk to them all week. It's a Saturday night... I think I'm going to spend it sleeping.
Taiwan pictures are going to have to wait a little... until I have a little more strength in me. 2.5 hours of cleaning today. I had to catch up on some cleaning since classes started up... now, time for some sleep!
I'm just kind of tired actually. It's a 9 to 10 kind of job sometimes later with lab meetings and we have meetings on the weekend from 9 to 5, and those are *short* days too! I started classes in Japanese, ran a seminar (it was my turn) today, did some shopping to replenish cleaning equipment, soap and get some utensils.. hosted a party in my room the day before. Stuff like that. 10:30 pm now and It's the first time I had some time to myself.
Heck, my parents are even worried about me because I haven't been able to make the time to talk to them all week. It's a Saturday night... I think I'm going to spend it sleeping.
Taiwan pictures are going to have to wait a little... until I have a little more strength in me. 2.5 hours of cleaning today. I had to catch up on some cleaning since classes started up... now, time for some sleep!
Tuesday, October 04, 2005
Alive and busy!
Sorry for the lack of posts recently. I have been exceptionally busy; working and playing.
With Alex and the new international students in town, events and me now officially as a masters student at Tohoku University, it has become pretty busy on this end that I haven't had the time to make many posts. I have a (growing) backlog of pictures to post... got a dessert event I am hosting this Friday (yes, I do like to prepare in advance for events) a seminar to give this Saturday to some labmates (for which I have to review for) and I need to read papers to see if I can get a thesis project going.... in Japan you start your masters thesis research in your first year as opposed to your second year.
Well that sort of sums up what has been going on here (not really... but more posts perhaps after Sunday?)
Alive and really busy.... (and sleepy... we had a lab meeting that went till almost midnight yesterday. These people are nuts).
Oh yeah, one more thing. Vancouver Rules!
With Alex and the new international students in town, events and me now officially as a masters student at Tohoku University, it has become pretty busy on this end that I haven't had the time to make many posts. I have a (growing) backlog of pictures to post... got a dessert event I am hosting this Friday (yes, I do like to prepare in advance for events) a seminar to give this Saturday to some labmates (for which I have to review for) and I need to read papers to see if I can get a thesis project going.... in Japan you start your masters thesis research in your first year as opposed to your second year.
Well that sort of sums up what has been going on here (not really... but more posts perhaps after Sunday?)
Alive and really busy.... (and sleepy... we had a lab meeting that went till almost midnight yesterday. These people are nuts).
Oh yeah, one more thing. Vancouver Rules!
Monday, September 26, 2005
New Stories Begin
The new the new JYPE students are arriving. They're so easy to get along with. Already I've met a bunch of students comprising of a German, 2 Koreans, a Malaysian and a Chinese that just got back from dinner. I saw them in the lobby and said hi to them already. A few Americans dropped by my room already. I passed stuff along from one of the former students to the new one and gave away a map and directions to another.
The dorms here have been dead for the past 2 months. As I walked by formerly empty rooms, all I could do was think "that was so-and-so's room" as I walk past closed doors. But it will become lively again and I look forward to it... I just hope that I can keep my school work, play and rest balanced.
What is going on this end? I've been downloading so much stuff. Just finished watching Final Fantasy VII: Advant Children (I like CG), started watching Firefly (how the hell was this series cancelled!? I really like the story and characters) and got hooked into music from "Secret Garden."
There are lots of things, loose ends and bits that I need to get done. I know that I am horrible at loose ends-- loose ends are too stringy; I like going after big meaty things instead. Never been a good details person. The devils are in the details... the devils are always in the details. Am I making any sense, nope not really... but that's because I'm tired.
The dorms here have been dead for the past 2 months. As I walked by formerly empty rooms, all I could do was think "that was so-and-so's room" as I walk past closed doors. But it will become lively again and I look forward to it... I just hope that I can keep my school work, play and rest balanced.
What is going on this end? I've been downloading so much stuff. Just finished watching Final Fantasy VII: Advant Children (I like CG), started watching Firefly (how the hell was this series cancelled!? I really like the story and characters) and got hooked into music from "Secret Garden."
There are lots of things, loose ends and bits that I need to get done. I know that I am horrible at loose ends-- loose ends are too stringy; I like going after big meaty things instead. Never been a good details person. The devils are in the details... the devils are always in the details. Am I making any sense, nope not really... but that's because I'm tired.
Taiwan Sept 14th and 15th
So here are the first 2 days of my Taiwan trip. I spent the first 3 days in Taipei meeing up with friends from the dorm that went home. Kai Ling and Rifan were really awesome by comming out the airport to meet up with me and show me around. Due to some silly thing with the naming of the picture files, it was better to post the 3rd day of the Taiwan trip in a separate album... which I'll do later. Just horribly tired at the moment :P
What can I say about Taiwan... it was really hot, even for September. They were pushing 33 degrees C and going up to 36 degrees with humidity. Air conditioner in Taiwan is like a necessity. It is hard to imagine what life must have been before air conditioning came around.
I visited the night markets, the CKS memorial hall and the national palace museum during the first 2 days. You can check out all about my first 2 days here.
As for now.. I am pooped, so off to bed I go. I'll make more comments later on.
G'night!
What can I say about Taiwan... it was really hot, even for September. They were pushing 33 degrees C and going up to 36 degrees with humidity. Air conditioner in Taiwan is like a necessity. It is hard to imagine what life must have been before air conditioning came around.
I visited the night markets, the CKS memorial hall and the national palace museum during the first 2 days. You can check out all about my first 2 days here.
As for now.. I am pooped, so off to bed I go. I'll make more comments later on.
G'night!
Thursday, September 22, 2005
Return home... unexpected surprises
No and they weren't good surprises unfortunately, well except for one :). I managed to leave my rice cooker with a full load of rice which had a good 2 weeks to ferment. I walked into my room wondering "what's that strange smell?" I opened my rice cooker to find really moldy rice with worms running around in the bottom. Yummy, really.
I've so far cleaned out the rice cooker and boiled hot water in it twice to see if I can get rid of the smell. The metal pot doesn't seem affected by the smell. But the rubber rings around the edge seem to have absorbed the smell. I can't seem to lessen the smell at all. It would suck to make a fresh batch of rice just to have it stink. My lungs burn from smelling my rice cooker so many times as I try to see if it stinks less after I boil water in it... I may end up chucking the rice cooker. Ugh that's $50 in damage right there.
I left some Kim chee and some left over sweet beans. Needless to say both needed to be chucked after I got home. Aside from forgetting those 2 in my fridge, the fridge is OK.
Finally, a good chunk of tupperware had to be chucked! Lesson learned, DO NOT seal tupperware after you wash and wipe them, even if you wiped out all the water. Pot the lid back on too soon and the water condenses. Fungus grows and well, need less to say I was assulted by wafts of rancid smelling tupperware after I got back. Most of which had to be chuked (tupper ware can be bought very cheaply in Japan however for $1).
There was a plus side however :) On the flight back to Japan I did manage to meet some nice Japanese tourists on their way back from Taiwan. I was sitting with one of them in front of a blank wall (the separator between Economy class and First class). The annoying part was that we couldn't really see the screen so I decided to have a conversation instead. I think my Japanese is getting better... though I still need work since it is still kind of broken. The converstaion did last for all of the flight back to Japan. I ended up meeting 2 other friends of hers who were exceptionally kind and showed me the way to a cheap train out of Narita to Ueno where I could catch the bullet train back to Sendai. We took a group picture at the train station out of Narita :)
The nice people I met on the airplane :)
Pictures of my journey around Japan and Taiwan to follow later in the week. For now, I need to get myself a new rice cooker, replenish my food, finish some paper work for the University and more. No rest for the wicked eh?
I've so far cleaned out the rice cooker and boiled hot water in it twice to see if I can get rid of the smell. The metal pot doesn't seem affected by the smell. But the rubber rings around the edge seem to have absorbed the smell. I can't seem to lessen the smell at all. It would suck to make a fresh batch of rice just to have it stink. My lungs burn from smelling my rice cooker so many times as I try to see if it stinks less after I boil water in it... I may end up chucking the rice cooker. Ugh that's $50 in damage right there.
I left some Kim chee and some left over sweet beans. Needless to say both needed to be chucked after I got home. Aside from forgetting those 2 in my fridge, the fridge is OK.
Finally, a good chunk of tupperware had to be chucked! Lesson learned, DO NOT seal tupperware after you wash and wipe them, even if you wiped out all the water. Pot the lid back on too soon and the water condenses. Fungus grows and well, need less to say I was assulted by wafts of rancid smelling tupperware after I got back. Most of which had to be chuked (tupper ware can be bought very cheaply in Japan however for $1).
There was a plus side however :) On the flight back to Japan I did manage to meet some nice Japanese tourists on their way back from Taiwan. I was sitting with one of them in front of a blank wall (the separator between Economy class and First class). The annoying part was that we couldn't really see the screen so I decided to have a conversation instead. I think my Japanese is getting better... though I still need work since it is still kind of broken. The converstaion did last for all of the flight back to Japan. I ended up meeting 2 other friends of hers who were exceptionally kind and showed me the way to a cheap train out of Narita to Ueno where I could catch the bullet train back to Sendai. We took a group picture at the train station out of Narita :)
The nice people I met on the airplane :)Pictures of my journey around Japan and Taiwan to follow later in the week. For now, I need to get myself a new rice cooker, replenish my food, finish some paper work for the University and more. No rest for the wicked eh?
Monday, September 19, 2005
Ne How!
Greetings from Taiwan. I've been here since last Wedensday and will be here until this comming Wedensday where I will catch my flgiht back to Japan. It's been a jam packed trip so far, travelling to Taipei for the first 3 days with friends I met up with from the dorms to check out various museums and night markets; then moving down to Taichung to stay with family friends sa I toured around the big mountains in central Taiwan (breath taking views) then finally to the last leg of my trip to Shenzhen to meet up with the Wen family where I'll be staying until Wedensday.
Ps. Kevin if you're reading this your mom tells me that you haven't called within the last 10 days (tsk tsk :).
Arrived at 7:30 am this morning, spent today going around the Shenzhen technology and science park, out for a walking tour of the city, lots of food, a quick return back home, more food, more walking and more food. At this rate, I am going to be bringing back a few extra kilos of extra "baggage" to Japan.
I have a really big library of pictures that I will be posting when I get back to Japan. Hope all's well back home (I hear it's getting pretty hot over there).
Lates for now!
Ps. Kevin if you're reading this your mom tells me that you haven't called within the last 10 days (tsk tsk :).
Arrived at 7:30 am this morning, spent today going around the Shenzhen technology and science park, out for a walking tour of the city, lots of food, a quick return back home, more food, more walking and more food. At this rate, I am going to be bringing back a few extra kilos of extra "baggage" to Japan.
I have a really big library of pictures that I will be posting when I get back to Japan. Hope all's well back home (I hear it's getting pretty hot over there).
Lates for now!
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Aichi and Nagoya: Beyond Belief
I arrived into Nagoya right about noon on the 9th and I was to meet Alex at about 10:00 pm in the evening... what does that mean? It means big walking tour of the City. I dropped by the tourist office, picked up a few maps and brief notes of the city and jumped onto the subway to Sakae station, the downtown bit of Nagoya with lots and lots of shopping malls.
The malls in Nagoya are really nice and they sell all sorts of stylish stuff. I had the chance to walk through a few of them.
Here is the atrium of one of the malls I walked into. They had some type of paper decoration hanging from the ciling which looked really nice.
They had all sorts of trendy stores. The picture above is a pic of some a trendy hobby/decoration shop selling some really funky clocks. The clock is made out of gears upon gears spinning to make the hands turn. Really interesting to watch.
The outside of a store called "Nano Universe!" Perfect, I thought I'd pop in to see what these people knew about Nano Technology...
Much to my "sha-grin" it turns out that it was a clothing shop. Maybe they make really really small clothing :P
Well I have about 80 other pictures siting on my tour of Nagoya to post so those will have to wait for the photo album... but I ended up visiting a school of design and a science of museum (which was quite rudimentary but very interesting... I saw how they made a tornado :P).
After 10 hours of entertaining myself I finally could meet up with Alex afterwork and hit a chinese restaurant to grab some food. We also we ran into some of his co workers. Whom are very sociable people.
Alex and I chowing down on some food.
The both of us go way back, actually more way back than I realized until my mom showed me pictures of us in the same Japanese class when I was 5 and he was 4. We would later meet up again in High school and in the Richmond Orchestra-- the world is a definately small place.
After finishing off dinner, we hit dropped by an "Izakaya" which is the Japanese version of a spanish "Tapas" restraunt (and with alcohol). Ran into more of his co-workers and friends. I am envious that he has such an awesome crew of people to work with.
I borrowed a futon from one of his friend's room and crashed in his room for the night.
The Next Day:
Woke uo at about 6:45 and got ready to head out to the Expo. We ran into a guy that was staying with one of Alex's coworkers whom told us that there were even people sleeping at the front gates of the Expo. From what I heard from Alex, line ups to the corporate pavillions (Hitachi, Toyota and etc... all of them Japanese corporation) are over 4 hours long! Alex took the staff entrance to the Expo, unfortunately I wasn't so lucky and had to go through the ordinary gates.
My camera batteries lost charge that day so I couldn't take pictures.. thought I did take pictures on my cell phone (need to find a way to download the pictures directly to my computer).
Though originally Alex had planned to give me a personal tour of Expo in Nagoya but it turned out that he had a seminar in the morning and had VIP duty in the afternoon at the Canadian Pavillion. Waht happened instead was that I ended up borrowing his staff pass and got easy access to all sorts of pavillions (except for the corporate pavillions which were way too busy... what is means is that I didn't have to wait in line for other global pavillions if they had line ups :).
The pavillions I visited were Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Mongolia, Korea, Canada, America, China, South America, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Germany and a few more here and there. All I cans say is that after seeing all those pavillions is that I want to travel around the world more. There are so many different interesting things in different parts of the world.
At the Candadian Pavillion, Alex gave me a personal introduction and got me in through the VIP door. I also met some of his co workers that day (and the day before) and they were really friendly people. Got along really well. At the end of the tour, I even got a pin only given out to Canadians that visit the pavillion, yay!
A few things to note Sri Lankan and traditional Mongolian clothing are quite nice looking. I also liked Moroccan interior design. I have to look back at my pictures in my cell phone but I really enjoyed looking at the global pavillions.
One thing I wanted to note about the Expo was that the corporate pavillions were the most popular. The thing about this is that an Expo is really supposed be an international exposition... I just thought that it was a sad waste to see all the Japanese tourists at the Expo only spending time waiting in line for the Japanese corporate pavillions. What happened was that in the morning, there was a mad dash for the corporate pavillions... when the wait times got as long as 4 to 5 hours long, then people started falling back to the other pavillions, I thought that was kind of sad.
I talked to various staff from all over the world and it was very refreshing to listen to different perceptions of the world. One interesting thing I heard from an Pakistan staff member working at the Pakistan pavillion was about the Japanese and their herd mentality. When there isn't anyone looking at a display, then all the Japanese visitors walk by... if there is someone looking at the display then people start dashing up to the display to see what is so interesting. The process continues till you have a big fat mob looking at something possibly mundane. It's the craziest thing.
One thing I thought was the most wasted on the vistors at the expo was the lack of attention to information presented at the pavillion. At the expo is looking some something flashy to see, whether it be the corporate pavillion (all about futuristic technology... though the Expo's theme was all about "Nature's Wisdom"), or flashy movies put on by some of the other country pavillions. It's was all about the chutzpa and the big lights for some of these people. Ordinary screens with clips about the country and presentations about different countries were lost upon many visitors. I thought that was particularly sad.
Party!
Here is the best part of the Expo. I got to attend an after hours party hosted by the New Zealand staff members. This party was by far the best party I've attened *ever* in my life. They kicked off the night with the New Zealanders in traditional warrior clothing performing war chants and dances followed by singing. They even ended up sining a Japanese song at the end of the performance. One of the ladies of the NZ crew pulled out sort of a Morning star kind of object, doused the end in gas and lit it on fire and did some sort of dance while spinning around the lit morning star. Very cool.
There were cheap drinks, excellent snacks (like roasted muscled and more) and they had a band playing in the backround with a huge dance floor. There was a pond near by which people started jumping into and dancing inside. It blew my mind.
The people at the party were great. The one of the friendliest bunch I've ever see. All you have to do is walk up to them and say "hey where are you from" and you've got a conversation going and who knows, you might get a friend out of it. It's that easy! The people there are exceptionally chill. Compared to going to a usual club, people at a club are so anti social. I was exceptionally happy to be hanging out with really great people.
We were out till really late, probably until about 3~4 am before heading back to his appartment. Good times, good times indeed.
Well that's all for now. Need to pack and get ready for my trip to Taiwan tomorrow. I'll try posting from there if possible!
The malls in Nagoya are really nice and they sell all sorts of stylish stuff. I had the chance to walk through a few of them.
Here is the atrium of one of the malls I walked into. They had some type of paper decoration hanging from the ciling which looked really nice.
They had all sorts of trendy stores. The picture above is a pic of some a trendy hobby/decoration shop selling some really funky clocks. The clock is made out of gears upon gears spinning to make the hands turn. Really interesting to watch.
The outside of a store called "Nano Universe!" Perfect, I thought I'd pop in to see what these people knew about Nano Technology...
Much to my "sha-grin" it turns out that it was a clothing shop. Maybe they make really really small clothing :P
Well I have about 80 other pictures siting on my tour of Nagoya to post so those will have to wait for the photo album... but I ended up visiting a school of design and a science of museum (which was quite rudimentary but very interesting... I saw how they made a tornado :P).
After 10 hours of entertaining myself I finally could meet up with Alex afterwork and hit a chinese restaurant to grab some food. We also we ran into some of his co workers. Whom are very sociable people.
Alex and I chowing down on some food.
The both of us go way back, actually more way back than I realized until my mom showed me pictures of us in the same Japanese class when I was 5 and he was 4. We would later meet up again in High school and in the Richmond Orchestra-- the world is a definately small place.
After finishing off dinner, we hit dropped by an "Izakaya" which is the Japanese version of a spanish "Tapas" restraunt (and with alcohol). Ran into more of his co-workers and friends. I am envious that he has such an awesome crew of people to work with.
I borrowed a futon from one of his friend's room and crashed in his room for the night.
The Next Day:
Woke uo at about 6:45 and got ready to head out to the Expo. We ran into a guy that was staying with one of Alex's coworkers whom told us that there were even people sleeping at the front gates of the Expo. From what I heard from Alex, line ups to the corporate pavillions (Hitachi, Toyota and etc... all of them Japanese corporation) are over 4 hours long! Alex took the staff entrance to the Expo, unfortunately I wasn't so lucky and had to go through the ordinary gates.
My camera batteries lost charge that day so I couldn't take pictures.. thought I did take pictures on my cell phone (need to find a way to download the pictures directly to my computer).
Though originally Alex had planned to give me a personal tour of Expo in Nagoya but it turned out that he had a seminar in the morning and had VIP duty in the afternoon at the Canadian Pavillion. Waht happened instead was that I ended up borrowing his staff pass and got easy access to all sorts of pavillions (except for the corporate pavillions which were way too busy... what is means is that I didn't have to wait in line for other global pavillions if they had line ups :).
The pavillions I visited were Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Mongolia, Korea, Canada, America, China, South America, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Germany and a few more here and there. All I cans say is that after seeing all those pavillions is that I want to travel around the world more. There are so many different interesting things in different parts of the world.
At the Candadian Pavillion, Alex gave me a personal introduction and got me in through the VIP door. I also met some of his co workers that day (and the day before) and they were really friendly people. Got along really well. At the end of the tour, I even got a pin only given out to Canadians that visit the pavillion, yay!
A few things to note Sri Lankan and traditional Mongolian clothing are quite nice looking. I also liked Moroccan interior design. I have to look back at my pictures in my cell phone but I really enjoyed looking at the global pavillions.
One thing I wanted to note about the Expo was that the corporate pavillions were the most popular. The thing about this is that an Expo is really supposed be an international exposition... I just thought that it was a sad waste to see all the Japanese tourists at the Expo only spending time waiting in line for the Japanese corporate pavillions. What happened was that in the morning, there was a mad dash for the corporate pavillions... when the wait times got as long as 4 to 5 hours long, then people started falling back to the other pavillions, I thought that was kind of sad.
I talked to various staff from all over the world and it was very refreshing to listen to different perceptions of the world. One interesting thing I heard from an Pakistan staff member working at the Pakistan pavillion was about the Japanese and their herd mentality. When there isn't anyone looking at a display, then all the Japanese visitors walk by... if there is someone looking at the display then people start dashing up to the display to see what is so interesting. The process continues till you have a big fat mob looking at something possibly mundane. It's the craziest thing.
One thing I thought was the most wasted on the vistors at the expo was the lack of attention to information presented at the pavillion. At the expo is looking some something flashy to see, whether it be the corporate pavillion (all about futuristic technology... though the Expo's theme was all about "Nature's Wisdom"), or flashy movies put on by some of the other country pavillions. It's was all about the chutzpa and the big lights for some of these people. Ordinary screens with clips about the country and presentations about different countries were lost upon many visitors. I thought that was particularly sad.
Party!
Here is the best part of the Expo. I got to attend an after hours party hosted by the New Zealand staff members. This party was by far the best party I've attened *ever* in my life. They kicked off the night with the New Zealanders in traditional warrior clothing performing war chants and dances followed by singing. They even ended up sining a Japanese song at the end of the performance. One of the ladies of the NZ crew pulled out sort of a Morning star kind of object, doused the end in gas and lit it on fire and did some sort of dance while spinning around the lit morning star. Very cool.
There were cheap drinks, excellent snacks (like roasted muscled and more) and they had a band playing in the backround with a huge dance floor. There was a pond near by which people started jumping into and dancing inside. It blew my mind.
The people at the party were great. The one of the friendliest bunch I've ever see. All you have to do is walk up to them and say "hey where are you from" and you've got a conversation going and who knows, you might get a friend out of it. It's that easy! The people there are exceptionally chill. Compared to going to a usual club, people at a club are so anti social. I was exceptionally happy to be hanging out with really great people.
We were out till really late, probably until about 3~4 am before heading back to his appartment. Good times, good times indeed.
Well that's all for now. Need to pack and get ready for my trip to Taiwan tomorrow. I'll try posting from there if possible!
Alive and well (In Tokyo)
Went to Nagoya on the 9th and 10th to see long time friend Alex since I knew from when we were in Japanese classes when I was 5 (he was 4).. and then to meet up again in High School and orchestra many years later.
Had a time beyone belief in Nagoya and at the Expo.. stories are going to have to wait unfortunately until I have a better chance to post. I'm supposed to leave for the famous fish market in Tsukiji tomorrow morming at some really early hour and it's already almost 2:00 am here.
Just wanted to let everyone know that I am alive and well. Going to get a more detailed post down perhaps tomorrow or after I get back from Taiwan... utill then I will be sporadically on the internet.
See ya!
Had a time beyone belief in Nagoya and at the Expo.. stories are going to have to wait unfortunately until I have a better chance to post. I'm supposed to leave for the famous fish market in Tsukiji tomorrow morming at some really early hour and it's already almost 2:00 am here.
Just wanted to let everyone know that I am alive and well. Going to get a more detailed post down perhaps tomorrow or after I get back from Taiwan... utill then I will be sporadically on the internet.
See ya!
Tuesday, September 06, 2005
Saving the Planet!
Oh nooo! Everyone is leaving and I'm acquiring all their left over stuff. There are so many nice things being thrown out, like dishes, utensils, left over spices, hardly used pots and pans (for people that didn't end up cooking all that much)... and much more. The thing is that everyone moving out feels really bad about throwing things that are perfectly usable away... so what's happening instead is that friends are dropping by to give me left over stuff.
What kind of stuff?
I now have 4 TVs (here are 3)
I've got 4 fans (one not in the picture, and there's the other TV)
I've got a second oven and a bunch of pots and pans 
And a crap load of sugar and spice!
I've got more too, like a cordless phone, a chair, nice speakers (which I bought from a friend for $30), candy, olive oil, 3 bottles of honey (all from different people), baking equipment, plates and more.
It's going to be a give away fest when the new students start comming in from different countries. It'll be a nice way to meet the new students... "hey, need some stuff?"
I remember the first time when I got here... the volunteer group attending to the new international students gave us a face cloth, a coffee cup and a few maps and that's all I started off with. It took me a few weeks to find my way around this place before getting used to where everything was (that and walking everywhere on foot didn't help either). Atleast when I give stuff away they'll start off running!
What kind of stuff?
I now have 4 TVs (here are 3)
I've got 4 fans (one not in the picture, and there's the other TV)
I've got a second oven and a bunch of pots and pans 
And a crap load of sugar and spice!I've got more too, like a cordless phone, a chair, nice speakers (which I bought from a friend for $30), candy, olive oil, 3 bottles of honey (all from different people), baking equipment, plates and more.
It's going to be a give away fest when the new students start comming in from different countries. It'll be a nice way to meet the new students... "hey, need some stuff?"
I remember the first time when I got here... the volunteer group attending to the new international students gave us a face cloth, a coffee cup and a few maps and that's all I started off with. It took me a few weeks to find my way around this place before getting used to where everything was (that and walking everywhere on foot didn't help either). Atleast when I give stuff away they'll start off running!
Going to be a rough trip to Nagoya
Not sure when my papers for registration are going to come in yet for university. Official results are to be presented at the university on the 7th. I will be attending the presentation... which is going to be some list posted at the main engineering office at the University.
I am hoping that the paper work makes to me in time before I leave, if not, the office just told me to do it when I can get around to it.
Depature to Nagoya on the 8th on an afternoon bus, arrival to Shinjuku at 10:00 pm, catch 11:30 night bus from Shinjuku to Nagoya. Arrival in Nagoya at 6:10 am. This is going to be a 13 hour bus ride to Nagoya! Painful indeed for local travel. The last time I had to deal with a long bus ride was to Calgary for a band trip in grade 8. That trip was 14 hours... but I had lots of good friends on that bus to keep ourselves entertained. I'll be brining some research papers along to read on the bus.
Going to meet up with Alex and say over for the 9th and 10th. Check out the expo and hang out. Hitch the bullet train back to Tokyo on the 11th. Debating if I should make a pitstop at Fuji mountain on the way. If timing works out right, I will hit the mountain for the day and visit my uncle in the Evening (Fuji mountain has been on my todo list for Japan!).
Stay in Tokyo for the 11th, 12th and 13th. 14th, catch plane to Taiwan and meet up with Rifan and Abby (I am very much looking forward to seeing them again!). Stay in Taipei for the 14th,15th and 16th then depart to Taichung to meet up with family friends on the evening of the 16th and stay over to the 19th. Depart 19th and head off to visit Kevin's family for a day. 21th, return to Tokyo. Hitch either a bus or a bullet train back into Sendai.
Gotta get packed and clear out the fridge on the 7th :)
I am hoping that the paper work makes to me in time before I leave, if not, the office just told me to do it when I can get around to it.
Depature to Nagoya on the 8th on an afternoon bus, arrival to Shinjuku at 10:00 pm, catch 11:30 night bus from Shinjuku to Nagoya. Arrival in Nagoya at 6:10 am. This is going to be a 13 hour bus ride to Nagoya! Painful indeed for local travel. The last time I had to deal with a long bus ride was to Calgary for a band trip in grade 8. That trip was 14 hours... but I had lots of good friends on that bus to keep ourselves entertained. I'll be brining some research papers along to read on the bus.
Going to meet up with Alex and say over for the 9th and 10th. Check out the expo and hang out. Hitch the bullet train back to Tokyo on the 11th. Debating if I should make a pitstop at Fuji mountain on the way. If timing works out right, I will hit the mountain for the day and visit my uncle in the Evening (Fuji mountain has been on my todo list for Japan!).
Stay in Tokyo for the 11th, 12th and 13th. 14th, catch plane to Taiwan and meet up with Rifan and Abby (I am very much looking forward to seeing them again!). Stay in Taipei for the 14th,15th and 16th then depart to Taichung to meet up with family friends on the evening of the 16th and stay over to the 19th. Depart 19th and head off to visit Kevin's family for a day. 21th, return to Tokyo. Hitch either a bus or a bullet train back into Sendai.
Gotta get packed and clear out the fridge on the 7th :)
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