NO PERFECT RULER FOR ...

So many things I can't measure.

Look at this dude for instance. Stretching out his arms, probably tiptoeing on his ladder at the same time, holding a ruler way too short for the thing he wants to measure.
THE SKY.



So many times I try to measure the immeasurable things.
Why waste Time?
Instead of trying to find the perfect ruler to measure the immeasurable, wouldn't it be better to just lift up my head and enjoy the sight of it?



'That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil--this is the gift of God. I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere him.'

---Ecclesiastes 3:13-14

28 degrees in September?

Highlight of Past weekend - ピキと加賀市の祭りへ〜


Going back to FUKUOKA
View of the cotton candies in the sky from window seat. . . . . heavenly, almost.


Friday, at my favorite Izakaya here with my favorite Izakaya company, メギーちゃん


Deliiiiiiicious dessert. We had HOT FRIED YAM WITH VANILLA ICE CREAM and THREE TINY MONT-BLANC STEAKS - stuffed with MOCHI inside.... m m m.


It's been a LONG summer, a HOT summer, and a FUN one to say the least.

GOODBYE, SEPTEMBER 2007

HELLO, OCTOBER!

Let's hope it'll get cooler soon.

'... Skies above can't be stormy...'

I adore this song...

So, so much!
(Piki, you know to what extent...!)

T.G.I.N.F

This week, I'm at one of my Jr Highs, and again, having a blast.
In fact, I was enjoying my time at school so much that I mixed up the days...

Then, I recalled that it happened more than once when I WAS IN HIGH SCHOOL.

I woke up one morning, glanced at my alarm clock and the '8:25am' display made me jump out of bed and got ready in a crazy rush. I ran as fast as I could - and got to school out of breath, in a total mess, and worrying about detention during lunch. No one was in sight, and a few minutes later, I see the janitor walking towards me.

'Qu'est-ce que tu fais ici?!' he asked, waving the broom at me as if he was going to shoo me away with it. (now I remember he wasn't exactly the kindest janitor)

And then I realized that it was Sunday.
He then realized that I was an idiot, crackled like Gargamel (from 'Les Schtroumpf') and went on his way, delighting over the fact that a poor student had dragged herself all the way from home, mistaking the Glorious, Relaxing Sunday morning for a Dreadful Monday that was lurking somewhere in the background.

Needless to say, I couldn't fall back asleep - I was too shocked at my own stupidity, and stayed wide awake for the entire day.

Other instances include days when I would wake up, thinking that it was Sunday morning, when in fact Monday had already pranced through the time tunnel, allowed itself back in my weekly schedule. 'Yuck', I would think back then.

Today, I was walking down the hall of my school, passing by students who would greet me; the approchable ones, the shy ones, the 'gigglers' - boys and girls alike, and me, thinking for some reason that it's Friday afternoon, and greeted them all with: 'Have a nice weekend!!!'

Then I felt a bit sad, this little emotional drama always occurs at the end of a week when I'd have to leave one school to begin the next week in another. And though I enjoy being at each schools quite equally, I just wished that each Friday would last a little bit longer.

(Of course, if it actually was Friday today.)

And as I was going through my mental agenda, thinking of what lesson plans I should come up with next week -- it hit me -- today is THURSDAY!

(No wonder a few of them stared at me funnily when I was bidding them farewell. 'Crazy teacher', they must have been thinking. 'Bad enough she fell from her bike by the main gate on the first day of school...' Yes, I embarassing incidents still happen all the time in Japan. I still haven't tripped in front of them though, maybe that'll happen on the last day of school.)

So.... I have ONE MORE DAY at school!

And there I was, SMILING ALL THE WAY DOWN THE HALLWAY.

T (hank) G (oodness) I (ts) N (ot) F (riday)!

Funny how this kind of HAPPY REALIZATION would never occur in High School, where I wished everyday was Friday and anticipating T.G.I.F. on tv at night.

Well! Growing up for a change, eh?

石川旅行 ２００７

Last weekend - visited Hiukei and had a FA-BU-LOUS time.
A few pictures - highlights of the trip.

MUSEUM...
My dream come true! Living under water... Now all that we're missing are fish tails and seashell tops to transform me into the Ariel I've always wanted to be since 7.



Tribute to pictures we took last year in Lachine, Montreal.



And... this picture speaks for itself. Look closer.


Our FIRST TIME wearing Yukata out-----!


To the KOI KOI MATSURI we go!



And of course.... CAKES. I know some of you were wondering where the sweets went. We had PLENTY!


All in all, it was one of the BEST trips I've had in Japan. And, that also makes it the most tiring, spent so much energy on chatting, eating, singing, walking, and just having a heck of a time with my SISTER ENCARNACION! We both have panda eyes now.

Miss you!

GOOD NIGHT.

On Friendship

Today, I had a lovely evening with my lovely friend from New Zealand.
Of course, the content of our conversation remains exclusively confidential.
Just would like to ponder on a few things...

I realized that for each stage of my life so far, I've had different groups of friends, different people to help me grow and grow with me.
I try to keep the good times in my memory box as long as possible, and to open it once in a while when I need to be reminded that I've been blessed with so many wonderful people - when I'm feeling just a tad blue.
I've not given much thought, though, to what I've contributed to my friendships, or what I should contribute.
Or...
I've just had one drink too many tonight.
Hang on, I only had one.

I'm going to let that thought hang there tonight and escape into this picture.



Good Night!

To my Dear Students:

Sometimes I wonder if my next job would be as pleasant as teaching English as an Assistant Language Teacher in Japan.
I'd like to think that it would be.
But just in case reality fails me--yet again--(i don't blame it though, I just dream too much) I would like to record some of the most enjoyable moments I've encountered while working my fabulous job, here in Dazaifu, my favorite city in Japan.

The most recent ones, I'd like to share here and now -- in case my short term memory steps in again and snatch these precious moments away, hehe...

This afternoon, I was cleaning with my Jr High students, after we swiped the floor spotless, we began to move the desks back to their proper places, and arrange the chairs - a routine task I find fun - while my students think it unbearable - I don't blame them, they've been doing it since they were in grade 1 elementary, and the clueless, foreign teacher is only in her second year bound to this repetitive duty. Anyhow, as we were carrying the desks back, I accidently brushed my finger against the rough wooden surface, and, let's just say that it stung a bit. Two students looked my way, but then quickly turned away. After the cleaning time bell chimed, I went to the bathroom to check my poor, injured finger (oh, allow me to have pity on myself...) .... only to find that nothing was there. Relieved, I walked back to the Teacher's office - where the two students were waiting for me outside.
'....Rushia-sensei, Daijyoubu desuka?'

'........'

Then I broke down in tears.



.......




Actually, I didn't.
But I was slightly moved.
Ai, my dear students.... they are shy but they are one of a kind! (these incidents occured at the much shyer school compared to the other one I go to, much more outgoing, but equally adorable)

Second heartwarming event. (I'm quite the drama queen, aren't I?)
Earlier in the day, I dropped in one Third graders' English class, and walked around the classroom as they had a practice Listening Exam. Coincidentally, they were doing the exam from last year, and I was asked to record the questions with another ALT from the UK. It was funny to hear my own voice from the CD player, but it was funnier to see some students looking perplexed, and kept turning back, wincing with suspicion. '... To whom does this BEAUTIFUL VOICE belong to?' they all must have been thinking,



.........




No, they weren't.

But I had fun by throwing my hands in the air and pretending I didn't know whose voice it was.

Two students had the courage to ask me whether if it was my voice or not.
'Rushia Teacher... you, SHI-DEE (CD), voice desu ka?'

To my dear, dear, shy students: I will miss you all very much when you graduate.
Let's hope March 2008 will be a slow month.

* * * * *

And, despite the wonderful time I had at school today, I do have one tiny, tiny complaint I need to vent out....

IT IS HOT!
HOT! HOT! HOT! in Japan.... STILL!

I won't post anymore Christmas pictures, I'm getting the feeling that it's not helping the heat, it is only working the weather against me and all the other Autumn Lovers.

Rather, I will post this lovely picture.

雨天：吃蛋糕，聽老歌 (there's nothing like it!)

昨天下午回家途中突然下了一場大雨﹣and got a free shower.
昨天上午，逛街完後去買蛋糕，手伸進包包裡找錢包時才發現不對勁﹣好像手上少了什麼。付完錢後，提著帶子裡的ＳＴＲＡＷＢＥＲＲＹ
ＳＨＯＲＴＣＡＫＥ走到門口才想起﹣我~的~雨~傘~~~~忘記在百貨公司的廁所裡。馬上跑回去找。過了至少兩個小時 （我的白色雨傘啊，真是委屈你嘍），沒想到福岡善良，不缺雨傘的人這麼多，它還好端端的被掛在洗手台上。我真是一個既健忘又糊塗的幸運兒。

結果我還是在外面淋了一場免費ＳＨＯＷＥＲ，這是怎樣？我是不是老毛病又犯了，把傘又弄丟了？

不是啦。
是．．．．

雨
︱
太
︱
大
︱
了
。

哈哈哈哈。
不過這把傘我也丟了不止一次。



回家後，我馬上打開盒子，迫不及待的那出草莓蛋糕。我敢說，這是我目前為止，吃過最好吃的ＳＴＲＡＷＢＥＲＲＹ ＳＨＯＲＴＣＡＫＥ。而原因不一定是因為它本身好吃，而是吃的方式。如果有誰看過 ANTIQUE CAKESTORE 那部日劇的話，必定能夠體會『手裡拿著蛋糕，毫無客氣，不顧形象，大口大口啃完它』的感覺。第一次如此豪邁的一口接一口的吃我最愛的蛋糕。當然好吃到不可以嘍！
下次我要用挖的。而且要一整塊的起司蛋糕。然後隔天來個福岡市內的馬拉松。

這是躲在帶子裡的蛋糕。很可愛吧！我其實是因為這個帶子的圖片才被吸引的﹣後來是在櫥窗後的一塊塊可口精緻的蛋糕把我牢牢的扣在原地。結果又買了一塊ＢＡＫＥＤ ＣＨＥＥＳＥＣＡＫＥ（我今天早餐的甜點）。


The waiting-to-be-ruthelessly-devoured Strawberry Shortcake
TA~DA~!


奇怪，這篇ＰＯＳＴ好像把自己寫的既可怕又貪吃。加上這幾張照片，我也就認了吧。
對啦，我就是那麼愛吃｛蛋糕｝！


不過，其實蛋糕是要在特別的情況下享受才最好吃。為了慶祝什麼而被吃掉的蛋糕才是最幸福的啦！而熱愛蛋糕的我才不會白白的讓它毫無理由的被犧牲！！
さああああ、私の理由は何だしょう？　

＊ ＊ ＊ ＊

最近突然很想聽在高中時滿喜歡的一首歌。可是旋律已經記不清楚了。ＹＯUTUBE也找不到。哎，這時就必需承認．．．．．．．
豆子已經被磨成豆渣，要打成豆漿了！
換句話說：

．．．．．．．老了。

Harmonium
HARMONIUM


Imaginez qu'un homme musicien
Vienne voir si je suis vivant
Chargé par ses mille instruments
Y en avait un pour moi justement

Il est entré sans rien me dire
L'encre s'est mise à couler
Dans ma tête et sur un vieux papier
Il m'a dit de vous dire
Qu'il n y à plus rien à dire
Il m'a dit de vous dire d'écouter

D'écouter le silence
Qui voudrait bien reprendre
Sa place dans la balance
De se remettre au monde
À chaque seconde

Imaginez qu'un homme musicien
Joue des aires d'un autre temps
Délivrant son corps de ses talents
Il a pu faire de moi son enfant

Il m'a sourit ça m'a fait rire
On a joué quelques instants
S'amusant avec des harmonies
Il m'a dit de vous dire qu'il n y à plus rien à dire
Il m'a dit de vous dire d'écouter

D'écouter le silence
Qui voudrait bien reprendre sa place dans la balance
De se remettre au monde à chaque seconde

＊ ＊ ＊ ＊

さっき、オーグとMSNで話した。オーグが大好き！

Between SENSE AND SENSIBILITY.... where should we stand?

I remember as a child, I thought that crying during movies can't be anymore childish -
.... until I watched 'My Girl' one evening with my cousins, and cried like a baby.
Then, believing that incident to be an exception, I remained 'tearless' for a while -
.... until I watched 'Titanic' and cried whenever Jack Dawson cried.
And, finally, I gave in to the crybaby in myself, and to the few awesome filmmaking in recent years.

Recently, too many scenes from a few movies and drama [惡作劇之吻〕have caused my precious tears to fall, hehe, and I wonder if this is a process of growing up (Funny, since some would think that being more efficient in controlling one's emotions would be a step of maturity... or is that just me?).

Also, when I come across lyrics that just speak to the heart......

*this is when someone should just jump in and shout: 'GET A GRIP, CHOCO/DO/LU!'
... and convince me that there are other things that are more worthy of my tears... but they might just get ignored, because THIS SONG is simply beautiful.




至少還有你
我怕來不及　我要抱著你
直到感覺你的皺紋　有了歲月的痕跡
直到肯定你是真的　直到失去力氣
為了你　我願意

動也不能動　也要看著你
直到感覺你的髮線　有了白雪的痕跡
直到視線變得模糊　直到不能呼吸
讓我們　形影不離

如果　全世界我也可以放棄
至少還有你　值得我去珍惜
而你在這裡　就是生命的奇蹟
也許　全世界我也可以忘記
就是不願意　失去你的消息
你掌心的痣　我總記得在那裡

我怕來不及　我要抱著你
直到感覺你的髮線　有了白雪的痕跡
直到視線變得模糊　直到不能呼吸
讓我們　形影不離

我們好不容易　我們身不由己
我怕時間太快　不夠將你看仔細
我怕時間太慢　日夜擔心失去你
恨不得一夜之間白頭　永不分離


It's always amazing to see words come together in the most dazzling order and form moving lines such as these. I may be misinformed, but I heard that the lyricist of this song dedicated this song to his kid.. or was it the singer to her kid? Or maybe none of the above, but if it were, it can't get any sweeter than this, eh?

And, I'm going to make another leap here, tell me if I'm going too far (I won't listen anyway =p), but can anyone see a link between this beautiful song and this even more moving verse?

'He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart:
He gently leads those that have young.'

ISAIAH 40:11

One of my favourite verses.
While referencing one of my favourite songs.
I feel this is a sequel to my previous post.

* * * * *

On a random note, I'm enjoying my week at the Dazaifu Junior High School VERY, VERY, OH-SO VERY MUCH.
Maybe it's because I only teach 3 classes at most a day, but this also allows me to join my students' classes and pretend I'm 14 years-old all over again. And nothing can compare with that feeling of.......
-Laughing along with the entire class at the CLASS JOKER's comments
-Comparing test scores with the BOY WHO TALKS TOO MUCH beside you (yes, I took a KANJI test and scored 14/100 =.=;)
-Chatting in a low voice with the chatty girls around me while fearing that the teacher will ban me from her class forever
-Telling the BOY WHO TALKS TOO MUCH in front of me to focus instead of talking to me about how he doesn't know how to cook but bet that I make the most delicious curry
-And just.... being a 8th grader in Japan... is the one of the most priceless moments I've ever had.

Furthermore, today, during cleaning time, one 3rd grader boy came up to me and pointed out the fact that I am shorter than him while indicating the difference with his fingers - by 'this (2-3cm) much'. He flashed me a proud smile as if he deserved a pat in the back. Then I suddenly realized that..............

MY KIDS ARE GROWING UP!.......... sniff. sniff.

..... someone stop this crybaby from overtaking me.....!

(I LOVE MY JOB.)

Raindrops on Roses, Blue Lights on Pine Trees

Maybe it's the heat... maybe it's the teeny tiny bit of nostalgia hidden somewhere in the back closet, maybe it's that urge to buy the long-wanted red scarf, or... maybe it's really just the heat.



Oh, I wish that WINTER was just around the corner...

... Did I mention that my Christmas lights from last year is still hanging from my window?


'My Next-Door Neighbour' seems to be enjoying these tiny lights as much as me





Or maybe I just secretly adore Winter... but Autumn is still my official favourite season. At least that is what I say during my Self-Introduction time in schools. And I can't even begin to tell of how eager my kids (or probably, most kids are) when it comes to their 'favourite' things.

*allow me to interrupt with a memorable moment from SOUND OF MUSIC*

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens;
Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens;
Brown paper packages tied up with strings;
These are a few of my FAVOURITE THINGS...

*back to my post*

And I remember chatting one time with my N-Z friend, and how we both realized that it wasn't until Japan/JET that we really began to distinguish between what we generally like and what our favourite things are. I guess we're never too old to discover new things about ourselves...!

[Some of] My favourite things are....... (in the most random order)

1) Christmas Lights [outdoor, preferably on trees, not green, pink, orange, or any other unbearable Christmas Light colors, please, but yellow, silver or light blue, with even sparklier snow in the background]
2) Cakes [with the right company, even in the most horrendous weather]
3) Dark brown Steinway grand piano in a classy restaurant [in the evening, preferably with good food]
4) Road trip [in a +10~20 degrees, with the windows half-rolled down, and the chilly autumn breeze on my face, and maybe 'Better Together' in the background, 'yeah.... it's always better when we're together, oh... ')
5) Late midnight-chats with Mom
6) Unbelievable fast speed-walking with Dad in Deer Lake
7) Playing Chess with Og - making him think he's winning, but then suddenly foil his seemingly-well devised, unbeatable attack plot with my single pawn... VICTORY, I say!
8) Bugging Jodie with Boy Questions
9) Yuex2 sleeping on my lap
10) A bouquet of Baby Breath tied with plain yellow ribbon [no fancy bow]
11) Biking through rain while basking in the morning Sun [did that on Monday]
12) Laughing nonstop with Hiukei about random, hard-to-get jokes that I'm not even going to try posting here
13) Chatting with Maggie about 'many things' on the couch with my Christmas lights on
14) Receiving emails from long-distance friends - Jen, I still owe you that email... Sir Peanut... I want to see pictures, even if you ARE fat now
15) Looking out the window during take-off and landing (daytime for the former, nighttime for the latter)
16) Re-watching old favorite movies alone at night, while sipping hot milk with honey
17) Hearing my favourite songs on the radio or at the mall - while convincing myself that they're being played especially for me, right then and there
18) Seeing comments! ...
19) Bumping into my students on the street and seeing their HAPPY EXPRESSIONS, not one of those 'Oh.... no.... not her' - which I rarely get. hohoho...
20) Remembering my favourite hymn randomly during the day
21) Waking up with JOY, and THANKSGIVING
22) Talking about old times with old friends... Just had a recent one with Meika, and Flanders
23) Realizing that..... I'm blessed with so many favourite things, so so so many that the list could just go on, but I will choose to end on this significant number.



Now can you guess why I like Winter so much? I just found out myself, actually.

Plum Wine... Addict?

Plum Wine is the first and last drink I usually order in Izakayas. It's sweet, and goes well with almost any dish - unlike Kalhua Milk, another favourite drink of mine reserved for after dinner (...along with many delicious Japanese sweets such as ALMOND TOFU, RED BEAN ICE CREAM, and SESAME PARFAIT....). Unfortunately (or maybe Fortunately, depends how you look at it), it has earned me the title of PLUM WINE LOVER, and I've received 4 bottles of them from different people, all convinced that if they had to bring any alcohol gift into my home, it HAS to be Sweet, Sweet, Sweet, 1 litre (or 2) of 梅酒　(ume-shu).

One of the Jr High teachers I work with kindly gave me a... JAR of Plum Wine her mother made. Very nice of her! Now I must add it to my collection... and drink the night away!


'Aaaaaah. Now that's something I've never seen before.. a JAR of sweet alcohol.'


苦笑，為難．．．硬著頭皮收下了。


Tribute to my dear neighbour, Jen.

.... Maybe I should make RED WINE my personalized drink now?
My new goal - to receive a '84 bottle by the end of the year. Anyone deem it possible?

Movies, movies, movies

10 minutes bike trip, and I find myself in VIDEO AMERICA.
A huge video rental place, from Japanese anime to Hollywood blockbusters, and the best part is not the tons and tons of Japanese dramas... but the 3 & 8 Specials. Ont the 3rd and 8th of every month, every video is one hundred yen - approx. 1 dollar american. Great deal, indeed!

This week, I have BRIDGET JONES: EDGE OF REASON, BEFORE SUNSET, and SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE.

The first one, I watched with my movie buddy, Mitsuyo and it was light, entertaining, FUNNY, and very enjoyable. One of my favorite scene/quote from the movie is the following:

'Well, maybe it is romantic because it's not. l mean... I know there's no music playing, and it's not snowing, but that doesn't mean that it, that it can't be really be something.'

Some finger food for thoughts for the hopelessly romantics.

And BEFORE SUNSET is a movie suggested by a friend, and it's a sequel to BEFORE SUNRISE, which I watched about a month ago. A very TALKATIVE movie, but with quite a few scenes that made me nod and go 'Mmm..., 分かる、分かる...' Anticipating the sequel...

SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE. Ah.... old movies always bring nostalgia closer to heart. And I must have seen that movies at least 3, 4 times when I was in elementary, high school, and then caught glimpses of it while I was browsing tv channels a while back. So, I wonder how I would rate this movie now, as I watch it again, being 23, being in Japan, ....

Funny thing worth mentioning, I always had a great impression of Seattle BECAUSE of this movie, and thought that if I had to live anywhere in the States, it had to be Seattle.

Oh... two wonderful movies saved for a Sunday afternoon.

And that's tomorrow!
Ah, have a lovely evening everyone.

KIMONO CLASS BEGINS!

KIMONO CLASS


My Newly-wed friend, Yuko


My movie/cake/coffee buddy, Mitsuyo


Co-worker at City Hall and now, Kimono Lesson classmate, Eri


MEIKA!!! It's a blessing indeed to meet up with old friends...... all the way from Korea, then California, and now, FUKUOKA, JAPAN! ^-^


Come back soon, Meika! and bring Fat Boy with you! =D

=(

I really think I might cry...

....

I HATE COCKROACHES.

><

I never imagined myself being one day brave enough to face COCKROACH problems - until cruel, cruel reality has found me and cornered me in Japan. I now have COCKROACH problems.

I UTTERLY DESPISE ALL COCKROACHES. They can all............. go............... to..................... wherever else than my pretty, neat, cozy apartment. Je les deteste tous...........!! (wow, being angry in French does make a difference.)

Today, when I was at school, helping to clean the classrooms, the students found a dark brown, pill-sized 'THING' on the ground. Then, they found another. The teacher noticed them, and said the following thing in the most casual tone (you'll see why it's so unbelievable):

'Oh yeah, these, are KOKIBURI NO TAMAGO [cockroach eggs].'

I was very glad to find that there were other SHOCKED faces other than mine when the teacher gently brushed the eggs aside with his broom.

WHAT???

If it weren't for a boy student standing beside me, who looked just as pale as I did, I might have dropped my broom and ran out of there. I kept my cool, and asked for confirmation.

The teacher nodded as if it really was no big deal, and smiled as he said: 'Oh, you city kids... you've probably never seen cockroach eggs before...'

I HATE THESE CREEPY CRAWLERS WITH A PASSION.

And... IRONY finds me in the MOST undesirable situation.

Just as I came out of my shower about 15 minutes ago, I walked into my kitchen, turned on the lights .... and spotted a small, black 'moving thing' on the floor. Unlike the kind, nature lover teacher who ordered the students to throw the eggs out the window -thus letting them live - I flushed that vile thing down my toilet.

The most depressing fact I discovered this evening (through Google.... ah, Google... if only you can solve EVERYTHING) is that each egg will contain at least 10 to 20 of them. No questions asked, I sprayed EVERY corner of the floor creaks, and am hoping for the best. Now, I must lay out more cockroach traps... gosh, I wish someone were here with me to cry with.

WEIIIIIIIIII..... >o<

No problems can seem bigger now.
Thist must be the most angry and depressing post I have written yet.

誰か助けて！！！！！！

Random as Random gets

Okay.
This is going to sound a tad bit familiar to our Coffee Fellowship bunch readers. But unlike Stan's potential coffee romance, I got my own not-so-romantic/funny encounter at work today.

So, at my office, there's an acquaintance that I made about a year ago - we never really talk, and our conversation usually never exceeds over 30 seconds.

Today, I bumped into him three times (Let's refer to him as Mr. X as to avoid pronoun confusion).

First, nothing but the usual - brief, 'Konnichiwa', a nod, a smile and then back to work.

The second time was when I was showing pictures from my cellphone to the lady at the convenience store downstairs; I often go chat with her on my breaks, and she's one of the people that would brighten my day - especially on a rainy weather like today. And then, just as I was excitedly telling her about my brother's visit in Fukuoka not a long ago, Mr. X shows up, taking a pack of mint and lines up in back of me. And, as we both headed back up, the conversation evolved around my brother, and actually exceeded 30 seconds. Wow. Record.

But are you ready for Japanese Randomness that follows?

Okay.

(I will share another Random Conversation Starter after this one, it's priceless...)

15 minutes later.
I am back at my desk, replying Hiukei's email, while preparing for my English Club.
Mr. X suddenly shows up - he rarely comes - and then walks to my desk.
Mr. X: Hi...!
Me: Hi...?
Mr. X: So, I have a question I want to ask you...
Me: ...?
Mr. X: ... So, do you use WORD?
Me: (while having trouble to figure out what he was implying... WORLD? WORD? WARD?...) W-O-R-D?
Mr. X: Yeah, do you use it?
Me: (still confused, but trying hard to understand the purpose of his question) Yes... I... use Word. I think. Ahem...
Mr. X: So, you use WORD to type?
Me: (I'm getting more confused as the conversation carried on. Yes, i do use it! do i? wait, what?) Yes, I... uh, I do.
And then there's a bit of a pause. My supersivor, sitting across from me, let out a little laugh. I didn't know what that was suppose to mean. And he waited. As if I was suppose to eagerly say something else after this.
Me: (trying VERY hard not to let this end on an awkward note) Oh, yeah! I, uh, I can type English, Japanese, Chinese... on Microsoft Word. (hurries over to my WORD and opening a new document) ... Like, this... see?
Mr. X: Ohh... mm hmm. I see.
Another pause.
And, just when I thought that this was it, I kind of slightly turned my head, getting ready to get back to work, he decided to bring our conversation to a next level.



...........




Mr. X: So. Do you use EXCEL?
Me: ................

And - it went on for a few minutes, we then skipped over to my new computer, then back to EXCEL, and how I DON'T use Excel (but other Canadians do!)... and just... Random as Random gets.

I suppose talking about Computer Software is a great conversation starter ...?
Stan? Yao? Jung?

Alright, I'm going back to work.....
in my WORD!
(hehehe...)