February 3

It was a kind of interesting day today. It started with an exploding egg. Okaasan made another poached egg for me, but she doesn’t poke the yolk before she cooks it, so the concequence is either runny eggs (which kind of freaks me out) or an explosion. She is convinced that eggs are no good if overcooked, but I like mine dead.

Japanese class was very long today, and I had my first Fennell Sensei moment. During the first period of Japanese, I decided to answer the instructor’s questions (for a bit of a change) and eventually, she had to say “daredemoii,” which is Japanese for “you’ve answered enough questions, give the other students a chance.”

Japanese class was made further unbearable by Keily’s lunch of grilled chicken which smelled delicous until 12:30 when we were let free to get lunch. I went to the Valor’s with David and Anna and bought yakisoba bread (yes, bread with yakisoba cooked in the middle), another mochi roll, and a donut (with sweet bean paste in it). All of it was delicous, but the donut was nowhere as good as the thing I ate at Osu. Tomorrow, I’m hoping for the chocolate melon pan.

After lunch was hanga. I made a fool of myself by not being able to get the hang of printing and even having the instructor help me, still not being able to get it. I was fairly happy to get out of that class. My next task (before going home) was to pick up a particular present for my friend in the States. I had to go to toysRus to get it (enough of an embarrisment in itself). I was feeling pretty stupid as a college student walking through the store with this rather large box among all things pink. When I got to the register though, I didn’t feel so bad because the guy in front of me was probably in his thirties and had a box just as big (if not bigger) of a fairly girly action figure. It wasn’t exactly a “that’s a chikan” moment, but I felt it would be much easier for me to explain my purchase than for him to. Nonetheless, I did feel pretty silly carrying a big toysRus bag to the subway, on the subway, and all the way to my house. So, for you who know who you are, I hope this present is all you thought it would be.

Today is Setstubun, the day marking the division of winter and spring. As such, there is a type of tradition (not quite a celebration). Otousan explained a bit of it to me. First of all, we eat giant sushi-like food (whose name I forgot) with egg, sweet ginger, and cucumber in it. I was told there was some kind of meaning to it, but I didn’t ask otousan (stupid!). Otousan and okaasan ate whole sardines because oni do not like the smell. They assumed I wouldn’t like them, so they told me why they were eating them and didn’t ask me to eat them. Okaasan made home-made pudding (which I have grown a taste for in Japan) that had a nutty flavor. After dinner, otousan threw beans out of all the windows and doors saying, “Fuku wa uchi, oni wa soto.” He had a bit of trouble with my window since my desk was in front of it and we didn’t know where the key was. Afterward, we ate one roasted soy bean for every year of our ages (or every ten years of age for ryoushin).

I learned a new word today; jouhin. According to okaasan, that’s what I am; a person who eats slowly (you can look it up in a Japanese dictionary to see what else it entails). I think nihin is the opposite, but I can’t remember exactly.

P.S. I’m missing people.