Last night, I met a few of the new Hosei students from Japan. They are here for just 5 months rather than the full year and are mostly doing cultural and language modules. I can remember Rui, Takahiro, Masato, Harumi, Miki, Natsumi (who was very friendly - stop it Rich!) and a load more whose names I have completely forgotten. "I can remember the face but..." I think there was a Satoko as well. Oh well, I'll get their numbers and demand some facebook when I see them next time at our big intro party thing.

Afterwards, I ended up meeting a few international students who I knew through my Japanese friend last year. It also looks like Masato 'scored' with an English student of Japanese who is resitting this year. Ah, well done kind sir, showing us how its done. *jealous*

In the words of my flatmate, that was just the start of things. The real buisness begins when we meet the proper exchange students. Mostly, I got on well with them last year. I think I really need to know every Japanese person here, as last year I was a bit anti-social at times. It would be nice to know every single Japanese student in Sheffield, although that is a big ask.

New classes are just less than a day away and I am now very nervous. Because my kanji has gone to pot and my grammar, speaking, listening.... ARRRGHHH HELP ME!!!! The thing is, I just feel really rusty. Its not as if I have done no Japanese in the holidays, I just can't remember stuff as easily as I could. Its going to be nice to have some schedule in my life. I'm so sad, that I'm actually looking foward to printing out my study schedule.

However I am really looking foward to doing this Japan's Minorities module as it looks really interesting. This module could be a blessing in disguise for me.

Despite my reservations, I still feel really excited about this year. Japan seems closer and the Japanese language is now seeming less challenging to me. Is this self confidence? Me? I think I may need to just sit down.

I have finally ended what was a pretty bizarre relationship with Yukari today. In short, she is making me feel upset. I feel extremely sorry for her, because she is turning into a cast iron figure of sorrow and its making me feel lonely and depressed too. I want to speak with some of my friends who don't divert the conversation to relationships every six seconds. Yukari is a nice girl and she'll find happiness sooner or later. It just won't be with me. I'm going through a lot of things right now and being stuck in something like that - will only make things worse. Friends should make you happy and tell you what good things you have in your life, not showcase what is utterly wrong with yours like a prophetic mirror of doom.

I'm just really sad, because I don't think she ever will find happiness if she continues to act in the way she does.

For a girl at least, it can be damaging thanks in part to wilful and negligent sadism of men. I really hope she can do some growing up, because her behaviour has totally ruined things. It was never my intention to forge anything more than a decent online friendship with her, but now even that is ruined. Maybe, I am to blame for leading her on. Sometimes what I say and do can be misinterupted as something else. I can be overfriendly and perhaps she got the wrong impression.

I feel really sorry for her now. Because I feel like I have abandonded her, depsite the friendship we both created. But I feel as if, it had to end - for both of us. I'm just really sad, it has ended on such a sad note.

Well to lighten the mood, there will be some new Japanese students to meet in Sheffield soon - so no doubt things will be a lot different!

Argh! Big news! Yesterday I found out, there is indeed a clash and there is nothing I can do about it. So now I have only three modules available to me in SEAS (Society and Lit in Contemporary Japan, Japan's Minorities and Modern Japanese History)

The latter I cannot take without History credits and the first one has a very demanding reading list per week. So, by Hobson's choice (no, not Hugo Dobson - the legendary Japanese Studies lecturer) I choose studying about Ainu and Zainichi.

This could prove a blessing in disguise. The guy who teaches the module is just pure awesome and really loves his subject matter. Although, I was slightly concerned when he said he may have to cap the numbers this year, so I might just end up filling in this Add/Drop form really quickly just to be on the safe side of things.

It will also be a nice complement, as I have never done any social science modules and tackled anything about Japan from a social point of view before. I thought I would hate learning about stuff like this - but I could be proved wrong.

Say hello to my timetable for 12 lovely weeks.



Its looking a lot more user friendy now isn't it?

10 hours contact time! 2 hours less than last time I think.

Feels exactly like Rich at 23. We'll I'm older, smarter, wiser and have more experience of Japanese now. Thanks for all the birthday greetings I guess.

The sad thing is, I'm typing out this message dressed like the above.

Just about sums it up. Click to enlarge...



Hahaha. Brilliant! I actually really hate the Flames more than I do the Habs and Sens. But, still, I'm really excited about the season starting again and watching the Leafs miss out on the playoffs once again.

I'm itching for the year to start and I don't know why. Perhaps I just want an excuse to go studying or maybe its just that I'm genuinely excited to be learning new things and seeing all the old and new faces in my respective departments.

I also have to read these three books in 6 days now. *eep* One is almost done, as its just two short case studies about corpus development, whereas the other has about 100 pages left and just keeps on going with its unrelenting boredom that language is not just language but something vague and delicious that can't be explained, although the author is attempting to do so. The final one I need to pick up in the IC tomorrow and is basically one of the books that is not on the reading list, but I'd thought I'd read it anyway - because I'm hard. And sad... And some other adjectives I can't think of right now that sums up my nerdyness. Is that even a word?

[Lisa Simpson]Oh my God! I'm losing my perspicacity![/Lisa Simpson]

Note to self: Stop watching the Simpsons and get back to studying.

Oh yeah, I also need to type up some suru verbs later. I guess I'm taking it slightly easier now that freshers is among us. And at least I have got over my kanji hangover. They are coming a bit better now, although I'm still stuck with a few. Focusing on the ones I can't get, just forces out the ones I used to be able to get.

I absolutely adore these things, simply because I love being able to watch human interaction from afar. I often tell people - if you view want to view how everything works, then sit at a cafe and watch the world go by for a good ten minutes.

This one is outside Nagoya station.



Keeping with the Nagoya theme (I trust you - this is not intentional) Here are a few guys trying to score free hugs. I tell you, the reason why there is so much suicide in Japan, is that people don't hug enough random strangers. The problem I think they had, was it that it was a clear attempt to get free gaijin hugs - we are the highly suggestible type us lot.



Anyway the whole thing is spearheaded by the free hugs campaign. Anyway, they'll be around Sheffield sometimes, so check em out. I just wanna hug all those people in the first video now!