Entries this day: Dream Wallet!!!!!!! Work back overtime towed_again

Dream

8:11am JST Wednesday 7 May 2003

Japanese words are more often showing up in my dreams. A few Japanese patterns of speech are beginning to feel natural.

A kid was on the street corner with a yoyo ball thing that he was throwing toward the street and then yanking it back well before it hit any traffic. Then he'd throw it again and yank it back. He missed catching the ball a few times and was unaware that when he missed it, he almost hit a woman walking behind him. This happened a few times and she was patiently not saying anything but he kept doing it unaware and I went over to say something to him. I did so in a very loving way and he had pretty blue attentive eyes. I told him this and he smiled. I blessed him and the yoyoball toy and went on my way.

Found it strange, but not unsettling that I didn't flirt with the woman, didn't look carefully into her eyes and tell her how pretty they were. Didn't even know what color they were.

Went about my way and noticed that *I* had the yoyoball; somehow I had forgotten to give it to the kid when I left. I toyed with tossing it a few times in this large empty gymnasium thing but found I wasn't very good at it.

Then I saw a large clear plastic sink full of water - about 2.5 feet on a side and the drain had just been opened and I was delighted to see a tight whirlpool all the way from the top to the bottom of the sink. I stared down the whirlpool like it was a reverse telescope or looking down a long tunnel in a fun house. I love whirlpools. The physics is just so magical.

- - - -

previous dream

I had just missed the train back home after my year of being here. It was bound for Kentucky then Georgia or something wacky like that. I had ignored preparation for my trip back home, and neglected to note that I was supposed to be at the train station by 7 am instead of noon. Talked to a conductor as I noticed my error and he noted that the traiin I had intended to take was having a problem and everyone on the train was getting sick. I was delighted to have had my angels' guidance to keep me off a tainted train.

He asked me where I wanted to ultimately go and by rerouting the train, everyone on the train recovered and I got to go where I wanted.

Wallet!!!!!!!

10:22am JST Wednesday 7 May 2003

Oh my gosh.

I got a card in the mail and I assumed it was a "hey, jack, you got a package; come pick it up at the post office."

I went to the post office and then I noted that there was postage on the card; such a notice (come get your shiznit) wouldn't have postage on it.

So before I got to the front of the line at the post office, I aborted my mission and went to see Koko.

I showed her the card, ‚±‚ê‚í‚È‚ñ‚Å‚©? I asked her.

She looked and then gasped a bit. "‚³‚¢‚Ó! they found your wallet. It's at the police station in ‚µ‚È‚ª‚í."

Wow wowowowowowoww. I've been carrying this notice around in my new wallet for some days now (since 2 May, I think), waiting for a moment that I (A) had time, (B) had a working bicycle.

Whoooohoooooooo!!!!!!!!!! AND fortunately, I have until 15 May to pick it up before they ... archive it or something making it a more challenging process to recover.

Past that I think she said I have 6 months to pick it up.

Oh, Japan, my faith in you is restored.

- - - -

- - - -

- - - -

nevermind

1:48pm

I have been sitting outside the police station for five minutes, meditatively reconciling my old stuff from my old wallet to my new wallet with my old wallet chain.

I walked into the police station... wait.

Special thanks to those who helped me get to the police station. ‚±‚± for calling the cops to see where they are, then telling them I don't have a "stamp" (Japanese version of a signature) so that I'd only be able to sign for it, not stamp for it.

Thanks to the women about two blocks from the police station for drawing me a map to it.

I walked into the police station and showed the woman my card. She took me to a window and showed the guy my card. "‚³‚¢‚Ó" wallet, she said and I thanked her. The guy looked at the card, went away, came back with a bag containing some old beat up wallet with no ID in it.

"‚·‚Ý‚Ü‚¹‚ñ, that's not my wallet. ‚È‚¢. ‚È‚¢."

But I looked inside. To my horror, I saw my driver license, my gaijin card, my bank card.

No cash.

Oh Japan. What happened to my wallet?

My bank card is broken. The TDL and gaijin card were creased. The wallet looks worn. Oh and no fucking train card in it either; I just noticed that. Sigh.

It must be the case that it got tumbled about in the street or something; that's the only way I can keep faith in Japanese culture - if the cash blew away with the wind then I'm okay with that. As okay as I can be.

Work

2:01pm JST Wednesday 7 May 2003

In other news, I got a call from a woman at ‚Ý‚â‚´‚«‚¾‚¢, asking if I could do overtime there for four lessons today starting at 5pm. A cointoss (before I knew my wallet no longer held cash) said yes.

back

2:30pm JST Wednesday 7 May 2003

Good thing is that I made it back to my train line without getting lost. That's four blocks, two new lines and three new stations that I've navigated and remembered for an hour.

Hurry up, fucking train. I've written all of the above and this and the train hasn't moved yet. And I got out my computer after I got on the train.

About to go .... now.

I also need to eat; I've not yet eaten today.

3:29pm

Now I'm home. Now I've eaten. Now I've ironed a shirt. If by ironed I mean I've ironed most of the parts of a shirt that can be easily ironed and easily seen when I'm wearing it.

overtime

9:25pm JST Wednesday 7 May 2003

Overtime was nice. Easy. Full of thanks from the staff for my help. The school is soooo cute cause they've got only 3 digit numbers for the students, and some students have only got 2 digits!!! I had three classes and 1 voice lesson. All pretty easy. For one lesson I actually had a plan of sorts, but they kept just asking me questions so I was content to answer them. I tried twice to stay on a track. I wonder if they were intentionally flirting; one of them asked, "where is your regular school?" and I heard "can I see you again somewhere?"

Not likely, but maybe.

Andrea, Callum, and Janet were the other instructors.

towed again

1:49am JST Thursday 8 May 2003

My bicyle

is gone

again.

- - - -

It's not like I fucking parked it in the middle of the goddam street! I parked it IN A BICYCLE PARKING LOT!!! The motherfucker gestured toward the lot when I rode the bike up and he didn't say pay first he just pointed down one aisle of the lot and I'm like "er?" and he's like just fucking gesturing down the lot so I'm like fine and I go down the row looking looking looking looking looking and finally found a spot available and I come back and there's my bike all hunky dory fine and dandy so then later in the evening when there were MORE SPACES AVAILABLE IN THE LOT, I parked my bike again, although I'll admit yes I did not "ask" him if I could and I did not park it on the same aisle and I did park it for longer but now I get back and poof the fucking bike is gone.

FUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I just want to fucking DESTROY something like all these empty bike racks just rip them apart but their all made of steel and shit so I can't and it's polite to destroy private property in Japan and it's not polite to piss all over someone else's bike because it didn't get towed and it's not polite to kick the door open to the police box and start yelling and knocking over furniture and punching cops in the jaw

FUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I've tried to fucking ask people WHERE I can park the bike but no one knows. No one has translated to English the rules of this goddamn fucking fucked up city where HUNDREDS of bikes are parked IN CLEARLY LABELED NO BICYCLE PARKING ZONES and I can't park in a designated parking lot? I can't get instructions from someone.. I mean not even implicit instructions like hold out your hand if you want money or anything?????

FUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So I went into the police station all humble and like whahwahwah I lost my bike (AGAIN GOD DAMMIT) and they got some English cat on the phone and he's all "was it stolen or towed?" and I'm like how the fuck am I supposed to know they didn't leave a note on my bike; the shit is gone. And he's like did you pay money? No maybe I should have shoved 1500 yen in the fucker's face and be all take the money now bitch just don't tow my fucking bike away take the money take it all I obviously don't FUCKING NEED money in this fucked up country!

FUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But you know what? You know what????

I have pinned with a safety pin my old wallet to my wall with a note

                                 I
                             PERSEVERE

Fuck you, Japan. Fuck you.