Entries this day: Do_today Done_today Yomiuriland earthquake! frank zzz

Do today

9:24am JST Wednesday 15 October 2003

To do today:

• Buy toothpaste

• Call Kobayashisan about bike status (she'll call the owner to say it will be returned on Tuesday)

Done today

9:33am JST Wednesday 15 October 2003

Done today:

1. Write this list

2. Check to see when J-phone charges my CC each month
   (end of month, less than 6000 yen per month)

3. Go to the bank

4. See when/how much Yahoo!BB charges my account each month (4500 yen per month)

5. Withdraw cash (hopefully 100,000 yen) (actual = 70,000 yen)

6. Send cash home (hopefully 100,000 yen) (actual = 100,000 yen), leaving enough for Yahoo!BB and J-phone (maybe 10,000 yen) (actual 30,000 yen)

7. Tell J-phone to get money from my Japanese bank and not CC (won't go through until fucking January. How ridiculous.)

8. eat

9. Hang out with Frank who's back for a day after Thailand, Cambodia and Viet Nam

10. Pick up bike from bike shop

11. Email Kim when I can call him next week

Yomiuriland

10:10am JST Wednesday 15 October 2003

I've got this perfect to do list, and on the list is hang out with Frank, and the weather is nice so I want to go to Yomiuriland, which would probably mean not hang out with Frank.. The problem seems to be I want to go to Yomiuriland because "wow, rollercoasters, fun fun fun" and for Frank I don't want to "miss anything," as he'll be here only one day. Oh pooh.

I don't know if YUL is open today or how much it costs. Website is all in, get this: Japanese.

earthquake!

4:37pm JST Wednesday 15 October 2003

WOW!

We just had a premium earthquake.

I felt it before Frank or Peter.

"Earthquake dude."

There was vertical bububububu up and down for a few seconds and then wubbawubbawubba back and forth, with the hanging lampshades swinging gently and the door moving back and forth and even the US and English flags shaking on the TV.

"We're on the ground floor and this shit is shaking. This ain't no building swaying; this is ground floor kinda shit."

Really happy to have been on the ground floor for this one.

I wonder specifics on its origin.

www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,100100,00.html:

TOKYO: A moderately strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude 5
shook buildings in downtown Tokyo on Wednesday afternoon. There was no
immediate word of damage or injuries.

There was no worry of tsunamis, potentially dangerous waves triggered
by seismic activity, the Meteorological Agency said.

The quake was centered just northeast of Japan's capital in Chiba
state about 50 miles below the earth's surface, the agency said.
  
Chiba prefectural police spokesman Yoshio Nakadai said there was
vertical shaking for several seconds, but no immediate reports of
damage or injuries.
  
Public broadcaster NHK reported that bullet trains departing Tokyo
were suspended due to a power outage to the rail system. There was no
word about power outages elsewhere in the city of 12 million people.

frank

2:30pm JST Wednesday 15 October 2003

Frank is packing all his shit into two rather large black suitcases. "Nightmare" about 20 times describes their mass.

"Oh yeah, I got plenty of room." "I'm gonna go buy some stuff."

Says Cambodia is ridiculously poor. Thailand seemed rather safe. Viet Nam was scariest. I could get a job on the same day I rock up there.

zzz

12:48am JST Thursday 16 October 2003

Tonight was a crazy filled night with Frank, Peter, Matty, Chris, Gbenga (pronounced "benga"), Atsuko (pronounced "liz"), Megumi, Daiske, Sorie and her husband at Korean Barbecue.

My head is a bit tired from all the inanity. (not insanity)

Daiske sculled 2 beers, each in like 5 seconds flat. Chris (a Kiwi) encouraged it.

Peter has turned a new corner and hasn't had alcohol in almost a month.

I tried to practice Japanese with the nihonjin. They mostly answered in English.

Daiske was really drunk and leaning over me for 15 minutes to give a painfully slow and repetitive, otherwise 2 minute speech to Frank about how Frank touched Daiske and such. Quite endearing, but wow. Quite long.

Liz finally got Daiske to say "until next time" and we parted ways.

The westerners are at the river drinking and yammering. I gave Frank the tape recorder and 1/3 left of a 150 minute tape. It is too cold for me to hang with them. Fucking freezing in my mind, but not really freezing. Like 55 degrees I bet. Frank loves it; I don't.