Driving School in Japan

So since last Wednesday, I started ATTENDING my driver's license SCHOOL. Yes, in Japan, driving schools usually offer such intensive training where students get lessons daily. This means there is absolutely no day off, so I went to school yesterday as well as today, and back to school again tomorrow on Monday. But I do not feel too bad compared to many others that came all the way from other cities to receive the training here at the base of Mt. Fuji. These students stay in the school dorm sharing a single room, eating the same cafeteria meals and using the same bathing room with others during their program UNTIL they get the driver's license. Some are enrolled in a speedy program that can be challenging, but allows them to get a license as early as in 2 weeks. As for me, my dad enrolled me in the regular program (since he did not know about other options), so I have a feeling it will take more than necessary. :( For example, some students who started the school on the same day are already about 5 driving lessons or so ahead of me. School puts students in different classes and prioritize students who live in the dorm, so local kid like me do not get much physical lessons even one desires.

Basically, the program consists of 2 stages: (1) learn about general driving rules and skills by attending 10 lectures and ?? physical lessons, with an objective to get the temporary driving permit (must pass the stage 1 written and physical exams). (2) practice driving on the official road by attending 15 lectures and ?? physical lessons, with an objective to get the official license (must pass the stage 2 written and physical exams).

At this moment, I have already taken the 10 lectures and passed pre-written test quiz twice (required in the order to take the official first stage test), so all I need is the required driving lessons to take the official first stage exams, but since the school does not allow me to take much lessons (not priority), it will take forever to get my license :(

But my dad knows one of the teachers at the school, so hopefully I will be able to change my program to the speedy one....

Speaking of how I am enjoying the school though, well, it is quite amusing to take lectures with kids who are almost 10 years younger than myself (highschool graduates). It's quite interesting to observe these young gang-stars who try to be different, but follow the same fashion trend that can be studied by reading a magazine. If you take a glance on a girl, she may appear to be distinctly different, but if you expand your eye sight, you notice other girls who appear to be exactly the same loitering around her.

You may be curious to know what sort of style these girls are into, right? Well, the girls tan their skin quite dark (due to a poor tanning salon technology, their skin look orange though), wear fake eye rushes and color contact lenses, put white eye liner on the lower part of the eyes, wear a loose sweat suit (either black or grey) and hang their stuffed animal key-chain that is attached to their mobile from their pocket. I thought some look like tanuki (raccoon dog?) or Gremlins, but I also wonder if this is a sign of my aging self, not understanding their popular style... LOL

Anyyyway, I gotta prepare myself for the lecture that I need to give in less than 2 weeks (ewww), so I must get going. Ciao. :)

Believing in the faith of Good Karma

Today was my first day at a driver's license school. That's right. After attempted to get a license in N. America and never finding the time and opportunity to do so, I am here on this side of the planet spending 3G just to get a driver's license. Well, the thing is it is now much time consuming and inconvenient to get it in Canada (may take up to 2 years?!!!) that my dad concluded that it was time for poor Kumi to get a license, no matter how much expensive it may cost. Afterall, time was my enermy, and this decision was indeed necessary for me to make!! ;)

Anyhow, my dad drove me to school this morning to say hi to his sensei, whom
he had received lessons over 3 decades ago. My dad had told me how he knew this sensei even before he married to my mom.

My Dad: "Sensei, long time no see. This is my daughter that I was talking about. It will be indeed greatful if she can also receiveyour great teaching."

Sensei:"Ohh, nice to see you, how's it going? Oh, so this is your daughter, huh? Erm, didn't you have a son?"

MyDad: "... We had a misfortune over 2 decades ago. Looking at me, He was born just after this girl, so erm. Her age...he must be 25 or so, if he was still alive."

Sensei: "Oh, sorry to have asked you such private question. It must have
been so very difficult for you."

My Dad: "...yes, we went through a lot. We did not feel alive after his death. But, .... because of that, we have what we have now."

His eyes were brimming with tears. In that tears, I saw all the sufferings and struggles that he went through as well as his strong commitmentto live fulfillingly for his beloved son and remaining family.

In that moment, I gained thoughsands of important messages that we must not forget as we live our lives.

There are so much unfortunate events happening in our world. There are so much sufferings and people with broken hearts. There are so much sadness that I do not even know if there is an universal solution to our human sufferings.

I have been on and off thinking about ways to help those in needs. I think of how I maybe able to change the way Japanese society is currupting with a lack of emotional leeway to consider and care for others (thanks, tatsu ;). I think of youth who are victims of domestic violence and related crimes. I think of people in South East Asia who are the survivors of Tsunami and recent earth quake. I also think about people in Niigata and Fukuoka, who have no home to return to, having thie insurance refusing to cover all the damage that the earth quake has done totheir home.

More and more I think of these people who are in needs, I often feel a lack of power within me, only because I get lost not knowing how Icould possibly help all these people right away.

Everything that happens in our life seems to be an effect of its cause. So unless
we know the origin of these people's sufferings, we may never be able to cure their problems. But I believe in the power of small actions that we can take that can accumulate into something that may change the flow of the biorhythm that we have in our lives (a cycle of happiness and sadness all intertwined like a strand of DNA molecules).

So just like how my dad thought about his beloved son and tried his best to live much fulfilling and strong life during his most challenging stage of his life, I felt that if I thought about all these people who are the victims of misfortunes in this world, and lived my life to its fullest, my will (to live fulfilling life as much as I can in the given circumstance, not only for myself, but for all the people in this world who maybe having the most difficult time right now) and my action may not only fulfill my soul, but turn into a causethat can change our lives a better place to live.

I am a girl with 1 tooth less than yesterday

This morning, my dentist took my right brain side of an upper wisdom tooth. She gave me 3 shots of anesthesia at the root of my wisdom tooth, and 5 or so minutes later, this male dentist came and proceeded to take my tooth. I did not think it would take such LITTLE TIME to pull out my tooth though. While giving me an informed consent, my dentist told me how it could be difficult to pull it out (as it grew out towards the side), so I expected the whole procedure to take at least 30 minutes, but instead it took only 15 minutes in total. Then my dentist gave me 3 pain killer pills and I came home. During the day, I felt tired most likely from a lack of sleep, so I thought about taking a nap, but I worked on uploading the photos from Kamakura instead. The pain from my upper side of my mouth was torerable, so I did not take any medicine, but at around 8pm, it started feeling funny. I hope the scar will heal quickly so that I can start attending my driver's license class okay on Wednesday.

My Half-Day Zen Experience in Kamakura

On the next day, Monique and I went to Kamakura to visit a few temples.

I have put together photos that I took, so if you were interested, please click here
We were blessed with such gorgeous weather.

While visiting the first temple, Engakuji in northern part of Kamakura, I heard a bush warbler singing, so I recorded the sound with my dad's digicam. The Engakuji property was quite large, and there were many sub-temples and a lot of statues to see. Towards the end of our visit, we reached to the top of the hill, where the famous bell, the largest in Kamakura measuring 2.6 meters high with 1.42-meter diameter and a National Treasure is hanging. We decided to take a break and enjoy this sweetsake (rich tasting drink) and the great view from the hill.

We then walked to Kenchoji, where we saw the second national treasure bells in Kamakura. It indeed was very peaceful visiting these temples in mid-afternoon, so I video recorded how it was like to walk around all these traditional buildings. Hope the clips help you understand how wonderful it was to be there(you need Window Media Player to view).

	Engakuji: the main temple of the Engakuji school within the Rikai sect of Zen Buddhism. It is the number two of Kamakura's five great Zen temples.
	Kenchoji: the main temple of the Kenchoji school within the Rikai sect of Zen Buddhism. It is the number one of Kamakura's five great Zen temples.

We walked through the Kamakura Dori (shopping street) towards the Kamakura station ad enjoyed looking at some shops. We tried sweet soysauce and green-tea with sweet bean paste flavour odango (sticky dumplings in bumboo stick) and Konbu tea. We then took a local train to Hase to see the Great Buddha at Kotoku-in, which is the second largest Buddha statue in Japan. While walking between temples, we talked about Buddhism, super human power, reiki (feng shui), family and friends etc. It was

very nice having had the day to spend time with her in Kamakura. On the way back from Kotoku-in, we found this shop where they were selling this very yummy sweet potato chips (kinda like Karinto), so we bought some and tried two different flavours. By the time we got back in Shinjuku, it was 7pm, the time for me to catch the bus home, so we went to this udon noodle shop for a quick hunger fix and said good bye to each other. I want to thank both Monique and Doug for theirtime hanging around with me. It was a fun time away from home :)

Night Clubbing @ Yellow: Idjut Boys DJ Mix

Thankfully, the restaurant business here at home has been busy that I have been working lots. However, as my friend Ange's friends were here visiting Tokyo since mid March, I made the plan to meet up with them to show places. So on Saturday evening after working morning & afternoon, I got on the highway bus to Shinjuku, Tokyo, and met up with them at nite. I have seen them before during Toronto Electronic Music Festival, so it was cool seeing familiar faces. We talked about each other's lives (what's going on and such) and chilled at their hotel room for
a bit. I was glad to had this chance to talk to them, as they gave me such warm and great vibes. :) We then took the subway to Roppongi. At this moment, I did not realize that the line and exit that I used to take to go to the club, yellow was different from the one we were taking. So once we got to the Roppongi station, I was like: "Oh shite, I forgot to bring the note that told me which exit to take to go to yellow." So we ended up walking towards different direction, only to be told from the convenient store employee (whom I asked for direction) that I was heading to the wrong side of the city. LOL (sorry Monique and Doug). So we went back towards the station, and were able to head towards the club okay.Whenwe got there, there were not many people, perhaps 40 % of the dance floor was filled and still plenty of space to dance. But the DJ whowas spinning did not please me with his selections of records (energetic house with cheesy latin/afro feel to it-kind of overdone), so at one point I decided to go and get my drink with Monique. I got Rum and Orange Juice, which was not bad at all, but for sure it was a little strong for me. LOL Monique and I sat down near the bar and chatted for a bit. We had a great talk, and I was happy (once again) to had this opportunity to spend time with cool people like her. Then we went back to the dance floor, I practiced using my dad's digi cam taking photos in a club setting until a staff told me not to do so.

So here are three photos that I took:

Then the music was getting better, so we danced a little in the back, and moved towards the DJ deck a little later whenIdjut Boys came. The guy with the long hair started play some recordsthat sounded rather rock'n roll and a little abstract sounding material, and it was cool to listen to, but not to dance for, so I decided tosit at the front of speaker where I could see the DJ deck better.

Then the guy with this shorter hair started play, and it got all better. He played A LOT OF rare old skool music, and it was cool listening to the set. But since I was physically quite tired from working hard, at around 2am, I started yawning occassionally. Then all of a sudden, the DJ did this mixing that totally blew my mind and got my full attention and woke me up as a result. He was playing an old skool record that had a neutral feel to it (not too energetic and not too quiet) and switched to a different record drastically in a way it enhanced the main part of this old skool house track. Then he put one really NICE deep track that made me feel very appreciative of the fact that I was there to attend the party. While watching the DJ, it sort of assured me that it is okay to keep my passion and love for the music industry. "The beauty and art of turntabolism and this urban music culture is something that I can continue appreciating and enjoy live", I felt. It was a good feeling, indeed that I needed. Then we stayed until 15 minutes past 5am and left the club towards the Roppongi station. We stopped at this Ramen noodle shop to eat and then took the subwayback to the hotel.

The Worst Friendster Message Ever

I get tons of clueless messages on Friendster. The way some of the people message me can be quite amusing/shocking/funny, so I decided to share a few with you.

hai Kumi

i,m araeef from malaysia

can we fren,,i like to have fren from Japan

miss ya so much.

I guess what he is saying is just like what Bjork sings in her song: "Haven't met you yet, I miss you"....

The worst message goes to a Nigerian boy, Magnum!!

HI,

HOW'ER YOU DOING TODAY?WELL I SAW YOUR

WONDERFUL PICTURE AND I SAID TO MYSELF THAT

YOU'ER NICE TO GET AS A FRIEND.

I'M MAGNUM BY NAME AND I'M FROM NIGERIA...IF

YOU WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT ME PLEASE CHECK OUT

MY PROFILE.

FRIENDSHIP IS ONE THING NOBODY CAN IGNORE IN

THIS THIRD PLANET, IF YOU WANT TO BE MY FRIEND

YOU CAN ADD jiokno@respectingmanum'sprivacy.com
or if you want to chat with me on yahoo..simply

add...jiokno... IN YOUR FRIENDLIST.

REMEMBER THAT, AN IDEA WELL EXPRESSED IS LIKE

A DESIGN OF GOLD,SET IN SILVER....

SOME FRIENDSHIP DON'T HELP BUT A TRUE FRIEND

IS MORE CLOSER THAN YOUR OWN FAMILY.....

IF YOU NEED ME FOR S** LOL,YEAH YOU CAN

INVITE ME OVER THERE,IT'S NOT GONNA COST YOU BUT

ONLY VISA AND TICKET, IF YOU NEVER MIND,THIS IS

MY PHONE NUMBER..+234-01-8057117XXX.I'M LOOKING

FORWARD TO YOUR CALL. I LOVE YOU SO MUCH.

MAGNUM

Respecting their privacy, some of their info (such as name) have been modified.

Thank you. But really, are these people joking or what?!! LOL

Happy Birthday to my bestest, Ange!!

Yes, today is such a wonderful day. 20-somewhat (for her privacy) years ago, she was born into this world! yay. It is her b-day today, so I want to talk about her. It's been such a great gift getting to

know her, especially after my move back to Japan in 2002. She kindly purchased my boom box when I was returning, so I think that was when we started communicate with each other more (via emails). After I returned to T-dot (Ontario), she has become my important partner in crime, hitting up some clubs occasionally, sipping on our favorite, *SOHO with cranberry juice* and dancing our ass off till down, and hitting up a hot dog stand (for Ange) or getting some bubble tea (forme) afterwords...tee he~

Meeting up with her in Detroit for the movement festival has also been one of the remarkable memories within me, although we did not get to spend too too much time with each other. It still was wonderful having had an opportunity to see what she enjoys alot (working for her school
radio station by interview artists)!! Although she is relatively still young, this girl is a bomb. She definitely is an action taker type, and she has always been my inspiration to me. I also enjoy visiting the St. Laurence market with this girl too. It's such a great FUN getting some yummy bread (or other fresh produce) and checking out some cool/funky jewelry made by the local artists. God, I miss our ritual on Saturday morning. I also miss checking out some gears at
urban outfitters and trying some skirts on in the changing room with her (fun times)..I miss haing around with her big times right now. Why am I not there in T-dot when Ange is finishing her school work and having her Easter weekend right now? LOL But I have a faith that she is enjoying her life out there even I am away from me, cause once again, she is a go-getter :)

Herfamily is VERY thoughtful too. While feeling lonely living in Ontario (far away from T-dot as well as the city she lived for her college), meeting up with her in T-dot on the weekend, crashing at her parent's place, talking about boys on the patio floor of her apt at nite, mistaken a rabbit for a dead cat (that was me, haha), having her mom cooking us meals, and her dad always taking me to the greyhound bus station afterwards, I can not imagine how many times I shed tears on my way back home on the bus. Her parent's generosity as well as their loving and caring hospitality always touched the deepest spot of my heart.

And given all these opportunities to hang around with Ange has brighten up my life sooooo many dark moments in my life that I do not knowwhat I will do without this girl...

Well, Thank you very much, Ange for being who you are. Once again, you have been a great inspiration. You are very HOT inside and out, and I have nothing but my bestest wishes for you! May your new year be fulfilled with great adventure, loads of exciting experiences (I hope you get the internship!!! *crossed fingers*), fine new faces and sweet memories, good health, happiness and peace. Miss you lots! Much Love and Respect...
KUMI

Yesterday before having my parents back home from Nagano, I made a cheese cake, as I was craving citrus and creamy flavour for the past few days (pleased to be woman..lol). So here is how it turned out:

Taste: Perfect. Just right amount of lemon and not too rich, but just right.

Its flavour matched very well with the tint of salty-ness of the biscuit bottom (crashed digestive cookies) and the fresh berries.

Texture: I did not have enough gelatine, so the cheese filling turned out a little soft, so I put it in a cup instead of slicing it on a plate.

Decoration:

I should have sliced the strawberry for better appearance. Oh well. I learn from mistakes :)

In

the evening, my mom asked me if she could give a piece to a little girl who was over as a customer with her family. I had left the cake in the fridge so that the cheese filling would get harder. So I puta slice on a plate and asked my mom to bring it to the guest room.

While cleaning up the guest room after the customers left, I noticed how there was no trace of cake whatsoever on this red plate. Not even the biscuit crumbs. When I saw that, I felt such an immense pleasure. I felt that there is no other happiness than people eating the food that you cook/make by putting your soul into it. Thinking back, this was my first experience having a customer eat my dish here in Japan. I felt this great sensation can get quite addictive, and further realized this trait of craftsmanship that runs in my family tree within me. ;) LOL

Oh, I was going to forget. My friend sent me a video clip (link) of his friend and him practice house dancing. Well, I thought it was kinda fun/interesting to see them practice housing, so here is the link for those who are interested: Click here (needs Internet Explorer or Media Player). My friend is the one on left. I have seen him taken off on the dance floor, so this clip does not really show you how much of a great dancer he can be, when he dances with his passion to the music. But a clip like this makes me appreciate and cherish our youth and urban culture we have in oursociety, so yeah :)

Weekend plans! YES! Finally it's a few more sleeps for me to meet up with friends to enjoy our love for the music. That's right. I am planningon hitting my fav club in Japan to hear deep house music this weekend :) I am also thinking about taking them to Kamakura on the following day, so it will definitely brighten up my spirit (not that it is not quite yet right now, but I always appreciate some exciting opportunities as this for sure!!)

Then I am scheduled to take my upper wisdom tooth (on my right brain side) on 28th (Mon), and start my driver's license school on 30th (Wed), which will take up most of my time for 3-4 weeks. I also need to prepare for the 3 hr lecture (new employee training for an engineering company) that I am asked to give in mid April, so things will be quite busy and I am afraid that time will pass by like a jet coaster in the next few weeks. Well, I hope I adjust well to the upcoming changes, keep my calm attitude and sense of peace at all times, and do my best to
any challenges that may encounter on my way.. :) Well, thanks for reading this long entry today. Peace...