Be careful what you dream of, it may come up and surprise you
Digging out from my backlog of things to do. My photo exhibition is up and looks good. Today I expected a typhoon but it looks like it is going to head to the east so it won’t be so bad here. While I was walking to the gallery last night I stumbled across this “hair & make” salon. I’m not sure though that this is a place I would really want to visit. Ooops!
Sorry for a complete lack of posts. I am super busy right now so I haven’t had the time to write much. All my free time (which is severely lacking at the moment) has been consumed by a photo exhibition that I committed to in Osu. It’s just a small space in a women’s used clothing and accessory shop, but it is very hip! More info on that soon. Anyway, stick with me, I will be back with more entries in the future.
OK, the plural of census is censuses, but I like censi better. It sounds more appropriate. This year, I am participating in two censuses. I wonder if that is legal? I got the US census and I filled it out as if I was actually living in the US. I don’t know, I guess I wanted to be counted even though I wasn’t there full time. Did I commit a punishable offense?
Now I have received the Japanese census. October 1 was census day, but a few days prior I received a form in English at my front door, delivered by the apartment administrator. Hmmmm, I guess the government really knows where I am, so why do I need to fill out the census if they know so much already? Interesting question.
The Japanese census isn’t so difficult to fill out. It has 14 questions only.
The Census is to be taken simultaneously on a nationwide scale as of Oct.1st, 2010. All persons living in Japan, regardless of their nationalities, will be subjected to this survey which is the most important statistically survey conducted by the Japanese government in conformity with the Statistics Law.
This law stipulates that each survey subject shall submit the completed survey form.
Personnel involved in census taking, including enumerators, are legally bound to maintain confidentiality.
The returned survey forms will be placed under strict control to prevent any leakage of information and will be destroyed completely once the tabulation is complete.
The result of the Census provides basic data for policy making, including those related to the improvement of living conditions for foreign residents
Why is the C capitalized only part of the time? So maybe as a result of the census I’ll get a bigger apartment!
Here’s hoping Interpol doesn’t come after me for complete two census forms in two countries.
I had a house party this weekend, or as we would simply describe it in the States, “A party at my house.†A house party is actually pretty rare in Japan amongst Japanese. Space is a premium and living spaces are often small. When I first lived in Japan in 2004 for a few months, I had a much more representative “mansion†– about 12 tatami in size, or about 216 sq ft. That was fine for a few months, and I felt very Japanese. I’ve posted some old pictures below to get the idea.
You can imagine though, if you were really living is a place this size, it would quickly become cramped. I had a very limited number of personal items so it wasn’t so crowded.
When I came here in 2008, my apartment allowance was very generous. I knew I wanted a guest room and a home office space, so I started looking at 3 bedrooms. I was lucky to find my place which is on the smaller three bedroom range, but fine for one person. As a matter of fact, I’m a little bit embarrassed that to my Japanese colleagues it is decadent at about 750 sq ft.
However, the space allows me to have a few people over for a party, and that’s what I did this weekend. The idea was to have the Fuji Rock crew come over, but in the end only about half of the Fuji Rockers made it over. However, friends and friends of friends came by and I had about 12 people including me. That was perfectly sized for my place.
Here’s the picture before everyone knew the picture was coming.
And of course, what is a picture in Japan without a peace sign?
I did the usual thing, bought too much food and alcohol but nobody left hungry or sober so I did my job well. I was actually the only non-Japanese at the party as well and I find that pretty cool. Somehow I guess I was able to communicate mostly in Japanese and some occasional English words thrown in. After two beers my Japanese really improves (or so I think), and having the party is a great way to practice. Maybe I was actually too busy being the host to communicate very frequently. I was afraid I would end up feeling left out of my own party with people bringing friends who spoke only Japanese but I didn’t. Nothing worse than being lonely at your own party!
Returning to the usual lack of house parties – as I’ve said before restaurants serve the purpose of a social meeting place. Many restaurants have large rooms for groups of people to get together for a night of eating and drinking. Houses are just too crowded to host people and they are very private spaces for family only.
I had big help preparing for the party with Kanamori-san taking me to the grocery store in his car and helping me transport things much easier.
Thanks to all for the help and a good time.
安全 (anzen) means safety in Japanese. I’ve always felt Japan was a very safe place. Rarely have I felt scared walking alone late at night. Even walking around Kabukicho in Tokyo doesn’t feel dangerous to me. Expats who have perhaps been in Japan too long lament that the country is a far more dangerous place than it used to be and a lot of crime goes unreported. While I would imagine it is more dangerous than it used to be and while I know there can definitely be coverups, my home is in Los Angeles and in comparison, Japan is a very, very safe place.
On Tuesday, I was preparing to go to Japanese class. It was a nice night and I thought it would be nice to get on the ママãƒãƒ£ãƒª and pedal to class. Except I couldn’t find my usual key. I had my backup key, but my single key was missing. At that point I started wondering, “Did I leave my key in my bicycle lock?†And if I did, would my bike still be there? I had last ridden my bike on Saturday.
I grabbed my extra keys and headed to the bicycle parking area with a little bit of butterflies in my stomach, wondering if my bike would be there and wondering if the mystery of the key would be solved. My bike parking area is not protected by any locked doors. It is simply separated from the sidewalk by a wall, but there is a very open walkway to the bikes. My bike is pretty close to the entrance as well so I think it is visible from the street.
I arrived downstairs, my bike was still there, and sure enough, the key was in the lock, ready to be unlocked and rolled away.
Honestly, I was lucky. Bikes are frequently stolen here. When I related my story to my Japanese teacher, she told me she has had two bikes stolen. Yikes. I’m glad my bike was fine, and I need to be more careful.