God, I love this country.

I posted this on my stupid links section (to the right), but I wanted to cast even more attention to it. This story has GOT to be read. And honestly, I don't find it even that unusual after living here... but man I woulda given my left kidney to see this.

A man, his turtle, and the police officer.

An elderly man seen pulling a turtle by a string along a street here bit a policeman responding to an alert Friday evening, leaving the officer with slight injuries, police said.

Tomiyasu Matsuhashi, 70, a carpenter living in Saiwai-ku, Kawasaki, is accused of obstructing the officer from performing his official duties. Police are questioning him also on suspicion of violating the law banning cruelty to animals.

He denied the allegations during questioning. "I never bit the officer," he was quoted as telling investigators.

At about 5:50 p.m. a passer-by spotted Matsuhashi pulling a turtle by a string along a street in the Nisshincho district of Kawasaki-ku, and reported the incident to a nearby police box saying it might constitute animal abuse.

A 26-year-old officer rushed to the scene and questioned Matsuhashi. The old man then kicked the turtle saying, "Turtles never die, even if they are run over by a 1-ton car," investigators said. He then bit the officer, who suffered injuries to his left wrist that are expected to take a week to heal.

Matsuhashi had punched a hole in the turtle's shell and connected it by a piece of string to the collar of his pet dog. (Mainichi)

Having a bad day on top of a rough week

You know, you just can't win them all really. I first want to apologize for not writing in a while, I've had a rough week with little sleep, and today topped it off (hopefully) with a hell of a day.
But first, a little bit of leading up to that.

The last two days I've tried to recuperate from my lack of sleep from the last week (more on that later when I get into all-night-karaoke experiences) by sleeping a ton. So I get home from classes at 3 PM Monday and just crash. I wake up only for dinner and after that, hit the sack again. Just one problem with this... I woke up at about 10:30 feeling as if I should be doing something. Well I couldn't very well go running around Japan this late because of last trains striking soon and all, so I just sat around doing nothing much until I passed out again at 4 AM.

I had some weird lingering hope that even though I was awake till the wee hours of the morning, that I would be refreshed by time I woke up due to the numerous hours of napping I did before. Ya, lot of good hopeful wishing is. So here I am dragging my half dead body to Tuesday classes... my longest day which last from 8 AM till 7:00. During this time I am one of the lucky people to have my name posted on the study abroad students message board in front of the office. Seems I'm lucky enough to have some problem that the office needs to discuss with me. It had to wait for the next day though (today) as the advisor that wanted to talk to me was in a meeting.

I couldn't even get my train ride home in peace as my sensei from my last class followed me into the train and wanted to chat. Normally this wouldn't be such a bad thing, but this guy is seriously, seriously weird. Whenever he talks (in English) he holds any "U" sound for like 4 seconds. But you know, this doesn't bother me, as I butcher Japanese in every way possible I can understand this. The point that really throws me off is how on the first day of class he told us all about his special study of eunuchs (click here if you need definition) and torture devices in Chinese history. Lets just put it this way... you don't want to see this guy's basement, OK?

I crashed early again that night, at a more reasonable time of 10:30. I figured this was still enough time to get plenty of sleep, feel rejuvenated, and wake up and do my homework and get on with my day. I have really got to quit being so optimistic in my personal plans.

It was about that time that my bad day started. I woke up just late enough to screw myself over. Nothing feels worse to me then to have to run around just after waking up which is exactly what I had to do, grabbing a world record quick shower before diving into my Japanese homework. I don't even get peace of mind while walking/riding (train) to school as I have a text book in front of me the whole time trying to memorize kanji for an upcoming quiz in the next few minutes. Not paying attention while you walk because your face is in a book isn't the best of ideas in Japan either, let me tell you... because cars seem to like to try to pass within a few inches of you on all the super narrow streets. Reading at the same time really kills your reflexes.

So I make it to class, manage to not get killed nor fail my kanji quiz, but then receive my quiz results back from a previous assignment. This is when my day really turned sour. I knew everything on that quiz. The teacher knew that I knew everything on that quiz. Everything was answered in a way that anyone could see that I knew the answers to everything on that quiz. But due to a few spelling errors only, and errors that were only due to having to hurry on a timed assignment, I practically failed the thing. I brought this to attention of the teacher only to have a big argument with her over her grading policy. Its a total punk way to grade something, but trying to argue a point like that with some lady that barely speaks English and me who barely speaks Japanese... you ain't getting nowhere fast. So instead I just remained the typical brat student the rest of the class, using higher level grammar to answer all her example questions then the grammar I was supposed to use. Not really justice but I felt slightly better.

After that ordeal I was up for another. The meeting with the office advisor I told you about? Ya, apparently my host mother had a conversation with some school official and totally blew some stuff out of proportion. Her complaint? I'm not eating vegetables... which is an utterly wrong in every way possible. In Texas, I almost never ate any vegetables. Now, I'm eating various ones everyday ranging from pumpkin to raw cabbage, but obviously its not enough for my host-mother for one reason... I hate onions. My host-mothers problem? She wants to put onions in everything. So for the last month I've been here she's been skimping out on the onions for the family meals, even though I've told her repeatedly that I don't want her to make anything special. Here's how the situation turns out:

If she doesn't put onions in her food, she gripes how she's getting all malnutritioned or something and how her cooking menu is so narrow without them.

If she puts onions in the food she fears that I won't be able to eat it. Now, by Japanese standards, if I don't practically stuff myself at dinner, then I'm not eating enough (these people eat alot) and I'm not healthy... and it is her fault I'm not healthy and she thinks I'm gonna starve to death if I skimp a little on one meal, and that I'm gonna hate her for letting me go hungry even though I've promised her up and down ten times I'm not hungry... and, well, get the idea yet?

Either way, its a lose - lose situation for me which landed me in the school office having a discussion about how compatible I am with my host family. I think I passed it off as my host-mom just worries endlessly about it and things are really fine. I've never really been hungry since I got to this country, cause as I said, these people eat alot, and they eat often.

I did get a good chuckle though when they (the school advisors) asked me if there was any other problems with her worrying, as in she's nagging me too much about certain details and telling me what to do all the time. The thing I found funny was when I explained that when I stay in my family house in Texas, I can't usually get away from my parents telling me nonstop to do every little thing like brush my teeth, take a shower, go to bed, and on and on. Not that I need too, just they never broke the habit from when I was little... or went to highschool... or went to college and moved out. So, with explaining why my days seem "nag-less" now, they also had a good chuckle (from disbelief mainly, and my parents don't believe they do it either).

The rest of the school day passed pretty uneventful until I got home. There I had one more surprise for me. My host-father decided to spend his day breaking the computer for the third time now. This time he really messed it up too, as in Windows XP was gone. So I spent the next hour or so sitting in front of his computer trying to install a Japanese version of Windows which I really can't read at all. Not how I wanted to spend my afternoon at all.

As soon as I figured I was done though he had one more small request. He wanted to put in a hard-drive into his computer he had bought. I thought this would be no problem honestly, but everything in Japan is small and efficient. The people, the cars, the streets, the clothes... everything is small, and according to them efficient. This, unfortunately, also implies to computers, as I had to gut the entire machine before I could slide the hard-drive in. Of course, with my luck today, I broke the fan in the process. So now the computer thinks there is no internal fan and shuts down after 2 seconds of being turned on. Another several hours of working on that and I finally got it recognizing the fan again, only to have a nice dinner layered with onions. Eat onions or endlessly be complained too, tough situation.

So now I'm finally on a small break, typing up this here editorial...wondering when the host-family's computer is going to catch fire. And trust me, with the way things have been going, it will.

One good thing that came out of this though is that, presuming the computer continues working and doesn't' catch fire, I'll be getting to go out and eat Yakiniku this weekend. Since I probably saved them a couple hundred dollars worth of computer service and repair work, I think me eating a couple hundred dollars of prime Japanese beef is acceptable right?

Me? Worry?

So it was only a few minutes ago that the news started being spammed by talk of North Korea again. It seems that they went ahead detonated a nuke besides protest of just about every major country on this side of the world.

"The nuclear test is a historic event that brought happiness to the our military and people," KCNA said. I find this statement very intriguing cause basically proves the government there tells you what makes you happy. I'm pretty sure that food, clean water, and a place to live woulda made alot more people happy then blowing something up.

But enough jabberin' about that. The thing that interest me the most is I have already been asked if I wanted to go back to America because of this new threat. Japanese people have striven over the years to make themselves so peace orientated that they, in my opinion, get shaken up easily.

This is the way I see it... I'm from the U.S. of A. We get threatened every day with bombs and threats by numerous countries. Its almost just a part of life now. Anyone can turn on the TV at any part of the day and go to some news channel and watch people burning the U.S. flag along with effigies of Bush or America's Allies. Its what people do when they get upset at their present situation in life... they blame. They don't know why their economy is in the pits, they don't know why they don't have great international influence... so they start blaming and accusing those that do. Its been the way of life since society's beginning. Of course though, this means that the U.S. gets a whole lot of fingers pointed at it. Not trying to sound pompous, but people around the world recognize the states for its power, and that's why we get crap handed to us by dozens of countries every day. It's for that reason that I'm not even considering leaving Japan... you can't just give in people's crazy threats and demands.

This nuclear test by North Korea is no more then their way of starting up trouble with their neighbors. Basically, gorillas seeing who can beat their chest harder. I also don't have a doubt in my mind that North Korea will, with their now even more inflated ego, be making demands upon Japan/U.S.A. with the backing of their new toy. When North Korea finds themselves without imports and exports to and from Japan and the U.S.A., they are going to hurt. That will probably be a major hit in their international pocketbook. But why should we (and "we" for me is both Japan and America) sit their and calmly do business with those that defy every treaty and anti-nuclear association that we put in front of them?

The detonating of the nuke is something, but the interesting part is going to be how North Korea reacts to new economic sanctions against them, as well as their neighboring countries increasing their defenses. If its anything like last time, they'll declare it all an aggressive act of war against them that is punishable by nuclear death. Doubt me? That's exactly what they said when a few measly economic sanctions were put against them after they shot a bunch of missiles at Japan and Hawaii a few months back (check early post). Unless they can build up their military and weapon stocks with their neighbors giving them full support and ignoring their defenses... North Korea will never be happy, regardless if their government says they are happy or not.

Picture by Mainichinews. South Koreans Protest the nuclear test.

Pink Ninja Strikes!

So I got the chance to hand out my "Omiyage" or souvenirs to my host family. I'm way past due on giving them out, I realize I should have taken care of it the night I moved in... but had a small complication.

I had brought with me about 2 dozen bandanas with the classic Texas embroidery design on them. I figured since Japanese people use hankerchiefs all the time, along with them loving cowboys and this being an historical cowboy item... that it would be a great present. But what I didn't know is that the same exact print of bandana was sold it just about every clothing shop in this country that hankerchiefs can be found in. Go figure, I really should have guessed when they have more people here that wear cowboy boots then in Texas. So in efforts of not seeming overly cheap and uncreative by giving them heavily mass produced items as a gift the first day here... I waited 2 weeks when they already know I'm overly cheap and uncreative and presented the gifts tonight.

In that 2 week time though I learned something about the Japanese culture. They love free crap. Whatever it is, if you give it to them, they'll love you for it. This was no exception. They jumped on them faster then I could react. And I have to give a shout out for Obaachan in demanding the best colors for herself. If you know what you want, go for it right? Unfortunately this also had a kick-back effect with Nami, the host family sister who I presented two nicely colored bandanas that matched her clothing... as her's were quickly nabbed by other family members.

After I let everyone pick/demand a few colored bandanas that they wanted, I was left with a pretty slim selection of bright pink ones that no one wanted.

Whats a guy gonna do with a bundle of pink bandanas? If you guessed dress up in stupid disguises and start demeaning the history of the country your in... then you guessed right cause that's exactly what I did.

With that, I give you the birth of the Pink Ninja.

Daijoubu!

Instead of getting offended, which probably was well within their rights at the time, they instead joined in with "kowai" (scary). I even had the chance to jump out and scare Obaachan who had stepped out of the house in the time that I crafted my clever disguise.

Bearing my now legendary Chicken Ramen (world famous instant ramen~) emblem on the for head, no one knows quite what to think of the Pink Ninja. Could he be serving up a nice cup of noodles, or a can of whoop ass? Should you be afraid of him because of his way of the forbidden martial arts, or scared of him for his way of the San Francisco parade marcher. No one knows, and that's what adds to the mystery of the Pink Ninja.

Unfortunately for me though, I didn't know the repercussions of my actions as the Pink Ninja. It seems that now that I have equipped myself with an available costume, I'm now obligated to dress up like this for some costume march coming up next month. I have to actually go outside, in the day, and walk through the street.... dressed up as a pink ninja. My life just seriously took a turn for worse.