herro flom japan!

i made it. i'm actually living in japan. well, i haven't even been here a full week yet so i guess it still feels vacation-ish. we'll see how i feel after a month. so besides not updating this blog like i said i would, what else have i been doing out here?

1. i officially registered as a resident of taito-ku (the ward in tokyo that i'm living in). this means that i am covered under japan's national health insurance, and it also means i can vote! i really need to start paying attention to the politics here.
2. i got the cell phone i've been drooling over for the past three months. it does everything short of wiping my behind. i have no idea what kind of plan i signed up for, so we'll find out how much it all costs when the bill comes.
3. i am officially a graduate student at sophia university (just got my spiffy student ID card). school has gotten off to a terrible start. due to my status as a kamokuto rishuusei (non-matriculated student), i basically have no idea what is going on, so not only did my class get moved, but the meeting date got changed as well. so i missed my first day of class. and then i couldn't buy my books because they only take cash. and the lunch room (although it is cheap and has good food) is ridiculously crowded, since the entire school has the same lunch break. couple that with the bell schedule, and it's just like we're back in high school. at least there are a lot of girls. OH! speaking of sophia girls, i saw crystal kay on campus yesterday!
4. been hanging out with randy, which has made my life so much less stressful. it's great to have someone around, not just in my city, but at my school, to make everything a bit more familiar. we've already had a couple crazy nights, and we're just getting started. speaking of friends, it seems that there will be a reunion of sorts this saturday. randy, mike morita, lauren nakasato, et al shall be good fun.
5. i saw a playstation3 in action. as absurd as i think it is for sony to charge $700 for a videogame system, i couldn't believe my eyes when i saw the graphics that thing was shooting out onto a 42" 1080p hdtv. better than real life, i'm not even kidding.
6. aside from transitioning to a new city, i'm transitioning to this new type of family life. since i grew up as an only child and even only grandchild, relatives for me have been few and far between. now that i'm here, i'm with my grandma, aunt, uncle, cousin, and her baby. lots of new responsibilities, but i'm embracing them.
7. i got a job doing some translation work for my cousin's husband's company. check out his webpage, he's beyond dope.
   
8. i'm still looking for other job opportunities, esp since i will only be doing a couple hours for central-west. i know i should use my college degrees for something grand, but what i really wouldn't mind doing is something brainless, at least for a few months. i talked to this dude last night that said i could easily get a job as a bartender at gas panic in roppongi. maybe i could use that as a starting point for some kind of dj gig.

i guess that's about it for now. i have a lot of stuff lined up to blog about; hopefully it'll be worth an occasional read. i apologize for all the grammar mistakes in the previous entry...i was writing that without any sleep. i also apologize for making this post so blah. i'll have pictures and videos up soon. and in case my personal life bores you, i'm trying to make some kind of regular schedule to write about too. for example, one of my goals is to visit a museum as well as a new restaurant every week. i'll also include some news from out here, event reviews, and whatever else comes to mind. stay tuned :-P