Current Weather Report:

I am doing better after venting and sleeping (thanks for calling Mom, and thanks for the e-mails everyone).

The essentials of my life over here. Since I spend around an hour minimum on trains each day, my MP3 player and e-mail equipped cell phone have become necessities. Also, my umbrella, commuter pass, hanko (wooden stamp used for a signature), Alien Registration Card, sunglasses, and digital camera are must-haves. So a small purse has become a thing of the past....

After another trying week of Jessica's Adventures in Japan, I decided to meet up with some other teachers for a night out in Tokyo. We met in Ebisu and quickly realized that 1. there wasn't as much as we thought there was there, and 2. our group was too big for any of the outdoor cafes there. So, we headed over to Shibuya to check out some cheap bars and the nightlife there. It turns out that you can get a reasonably-priced beer in downtown Tokyo (300 yen or about $2.60 for a tap beer), as long as you are willing to go to a bar that is standing only and who's servers don't speak English (beer here is biru and counting with fingers is completely acceptable). It was good to see everyone again and hear that I am not the only one struggling with simple tasks.

Lastly, I bought myself a frying pan today. The one thing I don't really understand, is the fact that they seem to try to put English on so many things over here. Go ahead, look at your frying pan at home, does it have a cutesy saying on the bottom? Well, I hope this holds true... ("Good Time & Happy Time... let's enjoy the tasty meal, tasty moment togerher! Brunch"). After a month of living in the world of processed food, I am itching to cook. My predecessor didn't cook, so I have had to do some reconnaissance work in finding a regular grocery store and locating some proper kitchen items.

That's all for now. Take care everyone!