The Melancholy of Geoffrey Card

Reference to Suzumia Haruhi. Except instead of wanting to play with aliens, time-travellers and espers, I'm just looking for Japanese friends. Also, neither of us follow the status quo.

Anyways, did I mention I changed host families at the end of Febuary? Well, I did, I'm now living in the 小舞子 (komaiko) section of 白山 (hakusan, white mountain). The house is traditional Japanese style with super steep stairs, small rooms, low door frames, tatami et cetera. I'm living with grandparents and, when she's home, the daughter (she has a job a works quite a bit). There's also lots of contact with the father, mother and the other daughter who live in a different section of 白山 (more a collection of small, mostly empty rural towns than a city). I'll be getting some shots of the house and the town but I need different weather for the different shots. Also, they're nice enough to let me use the computer every night for up to an hour, unfortunately, it's vista.

Just so you know, the Japanese sate things much more generally that Westerners. So when I said daughter, I meant of the father and mother, not the grand parents. The same type of thing works for time, they say at thirty minutes instead of after thirty minutes have passed. Much more objective, but still easily confusing. (Hence old people can be called grandmother/father, aunt/uncle, father/mother or brother/sister (depending on age) even if they're not related).

Next, still having trouble on the firends front, but I know the reason. It's because I'm used to improvising and the Japanese are used to schdules and routine. Asking "Can I go nowhere with you?" has little to no effect since they've already decided where they're going to go and don't expect to deviate from it. So, basically I need to make a plan ahead of time.

In other news, 肉 (niku) the new exchange student from Australia of two months is doing better than I am socially at seven. Callan, any inferiority you felt to me is less than half what I feel of him. Granted the... guy has been studying Japanese for about a year and a half, knew a lot about Japan before he came and is a really cool guy (also, he got a cellphone). I like him, and I know he is and will continue to do great in Japan, but looking at "the very model of a modern major-" ...exchange student isn't very healthy for my ego.

Continuing on, the school year is over. I'm now a 三年生 (third year) in high school, I've got two weeks free from school (bit I still have kendo), I'm going on a Rotary trip next week and... not much else.

Also, I bought a figurine of Suzumia Haruhi to add to my collection. Don't worry, it's of her in here school uniform.

Anyways, bye for now.