We have to submit our resumes for our JBPP class tomorrow, so I need a USB drive. I headed to the computer store to pick one up.
First I stopped at Family Mart, because I was out of food. (Except for rice. I have plenty of rice.) Anyway, then I went to the computer store. As I approached the door, one of the guys who worked there regretted to inform me that the store was closed, because it’s moving.
Ugh. Again? First the bicycle store, now the computer store, too? It’ll probably be a pile of rubble in 4 days.
So I stood in the parking lot and had a think. Where is the best place to find a cheap USB drive? I decided to go to the mall and try Aeon, and lucked out. I found a cheap USB drive for 898 yen. All it has to do is last for a couple of days, to be honest. Then I saw the big sale on the Frixion stuff. Score!
I’ve already burned through one of the ink cartridges in my blue Frixion pen. Aeon had them for 10% off, so I stocked up.
I browsed the book store again, and saw some really cool kanji books, but they’re kind of expensive. Maybe later. They look like kanji kentei prep books. (But really awesome prep books.) Downside: they’re 1000 yen a piece. A little pricey. Yeah, I said the USB drive was cheap at 898, but I was only buying one of those.
I also looked at the Minna no Nihongo books with lustful eyes, because we keep running into stuff from that in class. It’s tempting, but expensive. Maybe I’ll check Book-Off this weekend and see if I can find a used copy of MNN.
I stopped by Subway on the way out, then headed home.
It’s The End of the World. Or It’s Just Wednesday and We Feel Like It.
When I got back, something annoying happened. One thing that kind of irks me about living here is that I’ll randomly hear warning sirens– the same kind that you can hear on the tsunami videos– and I can’t tell if it’s police, fire, ambulance, or just Impending Doom. I heard them again this evening in my apartment, and quickly flipped on NHK, just to make sure I didn’t have to duck, cover, and kiss my butt goodbye. (You never know.)
Of course, as I flipped it on, they were showing a news show about how the tsunami warnings weren’t adequate enough, and in some places, told people that a 3m tsunami wave was coming, when in reality a 10m wave was coming, so people who should have fled, didn’t, and died as a result.
It was interesting, but I never could figure out what those sirens were about.
But I’m glad that they’re examining the whole tsunami warning system.
The discussion on the program about how to convey urgency to people was interesteig. Telling people éžé›£ã›ã‚ˆ (ã²ãªã‚“ã›ã‚ˆ hinanseyo “evacuate!”) instead of éžé›£ã—ã¦ãã ã•ã„ (ã²ã‚“ã—ã¦ãã ã•ã„ hinanshite kudasai “please evacuate”) conveys the proper urgency when a massive wall of water is about to obliterate everything. People may hesitate when they hear a more polite request to “please evactuate” (éžé›£ã—ã¦ãã ã•ã„) versus the more urgent and less formal “evacuate!” or “get out now!” (éžé›£ã›ã‚ˆï¼)
An Unfortunate Episode in my Life? How About an Exam That Keeps Me From Going to Kyoto?
In other news, it looks like no Kyoto trip this week. Next Thursday we have a conversation test and a composition test. We already have our themes to write about– “An unfortunate episode in my life.” Fun.
There’s no way I’ll be able to swan off to Kyoto for a weekend with that hanging over my head. Nagoya, maybe. But Kyoto? No way.
JBPP is really starting to pay off. All of the little lessons we’re learning are starting to accumulate, albeit slowly, in my brain. I realize I’ll probably have to go over all of this again by myself when I go home, but the info is amazingly useful.
We went over e-mails again today, and while it was difficult, I think I’m slowly starting to get the hang of it. Tonight, I have to finish writing my resume in Japanese. Strangely enough, I’m not too stressed about it. It’s easier than doing it in English, because everyone uses the same general form.