Entries this day: AM Women

AM

10:49am JST Thursday 12 February 2004

Slept late, cause I went to bed late. iPhoto is definitely faster now with the 4.0 version. I played hackey sack a bit this morning to give an idea of exercise to my body. Couldn't quite get myself to go outside to ride my bike. I imagine it's far too cold for that kind of nonsense.

Women

6:51am JST Friday 13 February 2004

Yesterday I saw level 4 Miho who I have not really talked to all that many times, but who always smiles when we see each other in the halls. I was sitting by her in the seats outside the classrooms and wanted to give her my email address, but didn't know if I'd have a chance, so as the bell was ringing for class, I told her that Mieko (with whom Miho would soon have a class) had my email address.

I think that was just as I was stepping into the voice room and lo, it was a man to man voice with Tomoko who I had just been hanging out with all day the previous day. We discussed our plans for Monday (At the time I didn't know if Yumi would be able to change our lesson to Tuesday, (She (Yumi) subsequently emailed me that she could not.) which would allow me to hang with Tomoko, Mr Sumida, and Yuuko to eat おでん on Monday night.) and shared hospital stories because I found my X-ray in the voice room. Tomoko recounted her menengitis story and how being stuck between the vertebra to sample her spinal fluid was the worst pain ever. (3 vocab words from voice)

I invited Tomoko to go to lunch with me after voice and when she asked where we should meet, I was like, "we can just meet in front of the elevators" and again recounted the time we first met and how I had just told Dan the previous night about how I was giving repeated fives to that kid with the glasses (name has escaped me) while Tomoko was writing down her email address.. and expressed how I knew I had to try and give Tomoko my email address so we could go ride rollercoasters together. "I love it."

We ended up not meeting there, but I saw Miho in the hallway toward the restrooms (as Carla was speaking in code (I think) to Asuka (the level 3 student who I've only had in voice once, and haven't really talked to her (but who smokes so is off the list anyway) though she is really cute) about something) and I gave her my email address there. She said she would email me.

I went downstairs and didn't find Tomoko outside either, so I called her and was like, "where you at jack?" but in Japanese so in case she was still in the branch, it would sound hopefully like a non-teacher she was talking to, and she said she was in the elevator so I turned back around and who should come out, but Mieko, Kathy, and Tomoko.

I didn't want to go to lunch with everyone, but I didn't want to offend anyone (and this goes against my policy of just do whatever I want) so I didn't directly say "Tomoko and I" but just "I" when Kathy asked where I was going to eat. (I subsequently told Mieko (via email last night) that I didn't know if Tomoko wanted another party, which is why I wasn't direct with Mieko, and I apologized for that. I didn't tell her that I didn't want another party; I was too embarassed to tell her that over email; so I blamed it on Tomoko, and Mieko said she understood my quandry.)

Kathy and I went down the steps (not escalator to Azalea), and turned around to wait for Tomoko (and not Mieko, apparently; she went off elsewhere) and then she arrived and we headed toward Vie de France and then bang there was Akina who I *really* want to talk to and clear things up for not having met her on that night so long ago (even before janette and Fred arrived), but I was able to stay on track and not try to juggle another relationship on the way to lunch, and she got my attention (by patting my arm (which I told her to do next time she wants my attention in public and I don't notice her, "grab me, 'hey Rob'") and saying "Rob") and I was like, "HI!" and it was so fast that I couldn't even think of her name before she was gone up the escalators. I hoped she was on her way to Nova (though I had already looked for her name on the schedule and it wasn't there) and I even considered writing a note to her during lunch to give her if I saw her, but she was not at Nova when I arrived after lunch.

Kathy didn't stay for lunch at the shop; Tomoko and I drank coffee and ate, respectively, and chatted about whatever we chatted about.

- - - -

After work, after talking to Neil, Ryan, Kathy, Clayton, and Shaune (who just finished OJT yesterday) on the Nambu line, after cramming onto the Tokyu line with Kathy, (leaving Neil, Ryan, and Shaune who weren't willing to cram on (and Clayton who stayed on Nambu at Musashi Kosugi)), I got a page from Carla (and it was all I could do to hold my bag with my knees as pulled my phone out of my pocket to see who it was; no way I could reply at that time (I couldn't pull my other arm up to type)) asking if I had gotten another job and if I had been leaving her out of the [gossip] loop.

- - - -

Called Carla after I got home (walked with Shaune, though I had been on my bike, cause he lives in the same building) (and held the phone kinda in front of me instead of at my ear to talk to her) and told her that I hadn't talked to her because I had wanted to have that heart to heart discussion when I was like, "I'll call you afta work" one day after she had texted me like, "don't make any rash decisions [about a new job]" and I never called her (for I had been too busy hanging out with Yuuko) and stuff just started to happen so quickly and I just never took a chance to tell her a short version because I wanted that heart to heart with Carla.

She understood and I was really surprised at how sad she seemed to be at the idea of me leaving, "everyone will miss you, bud" and I'm like, aru? (*) cause I have never really felt that close to what I judge to be her core group of Clayton, Cory, Benny (but maybe cause Cory is gone...) (cause damn; she and Clayton are planning to quit and go travel overseas together) but she was like, "this is sad news" etc etc and I'm like, "I hear you" and "but part of the decision was seeded by your comment, that I don't even know if you remember specifically saying to me, but you said you say it all the time, 'if someone doesn't like their situation, they should change it.'" and she was like, "yeah, and I still stick by that" and her manner changed to more supportive and more accepting.

I will definitely miss Carla and Morag from work.

(*) Scooby Doo "wtf?"