Entries this day: Dream Immigration_office_bureaucracy Make_it_to_work? Work

Dream

8:28am JST Tuesday 28 November 2006 (day 13397)

Amy Baby was giving me some suggestions which I tried to follow

I ended up going to a movie with two guys at a cheap movie theater. I was walking down the hall, not quite sure for whom I was looking, but he saw me around the same time that I thought I recognized him. Turned out to be the right guy.

Immigration office bureaucracy

10:47am JST Tuesday 28 November 2006 (day 13397)

now serving number 75

I'm out on the Rinkai line, in east Tokyo at the immigration office of some rather large semi-modern building that features a Dentention Center.

Hmmm.

In the spirit of saving time, I grabbed a number at the number-printer next to the information desk, which had a line of a few people in front of it. That saved me one place in line by the time I got through the information line, but, it was the wrong line. Ah well.

Upstairs to counter B, which is the Immigration Application Counter's bouncer, which has its own bouncer at the end of its line.

I got bounced, having not filled out the forms whatsover. Ironically, I don't have my pens today; I usually carry two, but I left them last night because I was late leaving and for some reason consciously decided to leave them on the table for tomorrow. Basically I had been thinking it would save me that much energy to not carry two pens home and back.

now serving number 80

The bouncer for counter B didn't have any pens available, so I went in search of a pen and found some amid ample counter space. Began to fill out the form, but soon got bounced from the counter, and was asked to leave the pen.

I borrowed a pen from some non-Japanese looking guy resigned to chillin' in the chairs with little hope of his name ever being called. I filled out my forms, during which time his name was called, and he sat back down to wait for his pen. Ah well; I thanked him and he said "cheers"

Back to the bouncer for counter B and made it into the counter B line, though I hadn't quite filled everything out. I borrowed a pen in line (with my newfound term いただけますか) and filled out some details I had missed.

To counter B where that bouncer (for the main cattle-herding area) pointed out a couple of mistakes and other lines I needed to fill out. He gave me a numbered ticket for my waiting pleasure (number 138)

Back to the ample space counter, I borrowed the same pen to stick it to da man and filled out the remaining points and made the corrections.

11:03am JST

(( just got a call from my Japanese teacher; I forgot our lesson this morning (usually it's at 2pm on Wednesdays, but today at 11 (on Tuesday)). Fuck. And today was the day she brought the CDs so I could listen to Japanese while on the train or falling asleep (or both) ))

now serving number 87

11:08am JST

now serving number 91

Okay, so in 21 minutes, they went from serving number 75 to number 91. That's .7 per minute, which means I'll be called in 35 minutes. I have time to get the forms again and fill them out again. Which I might just do.

11:17am JST

now serving number 97

Aha. Now I know why I had a feeling the building was weird, where I wrote "semi-modern" above: There is 1 escalator between the first and second floor. I was able to easily go up, but had to walk to the other side of the building to go back down. The escalator will go down later this afternoon.

And, there's a convenience store in the building. They know where the market is: people with nothing to do but wait and eat and buy pens to fill out forms. I bought a pen and a ピザマン (heated moist bread roll thing with pizza-topping like filling).

now serving number 102

and now I will fill out the form that has several scratchouts.

11:31am JST

Except that it turns out I bought I pencil instead of a pen.

I rocked back downstairs with my profound knowledge this building's layout and escalator times of operation to the convenience store where I snagged a pen (same price as the pencil) and presented both at the counter with my receipt.

Simple exchange?

False.

(( usually, packing in Japan has a specific "neat" (as in tidy) way of being opened. The package in which the pencil came did not have such (a resealable flap would be more likely than not). So, I had had to actually rip open the package. ))

The hole I ripped into the package was tiny. Just big enough to squirt the pencil through. I didn't even use the notch at the top of the package to rip the whole thing apart.

The guy was like, "blah blah blah blah blah blah" which I would translate to "it happens to have been ripped", not overtly blaming me for the rip, but overtly not allowing the exchange.

What?

What kind of fucking customer service is this? I was pissed. Pissed at having 'wasted' a pencil; I don't need a pencil. I don't actually need a pen either, but (I ended up buying the pen (and I tried to fluster him by giving him 10,000 yen note, wait for him to count the change, and then give him 110 yen; it didn't work), but I think I will take it back (unopened), and perhaps try to sweet talk them into taking the pencil back, but that might be impossible because) I was pissed and accidentally dropped the ピザマン remains (had already taken a bite) and when I picked it up, I squeezed the shit out of it and put it on the counter on my way out.

God I'm an idiot, what did that fucking prove? What good did it do for the world? Why did I even try to buy a pen in the first place?

I feel really embarassed about my stupid antics. But goddamn why wouldn't they take back the pencil? Shitty customer service. Fuck you, Da Man, with your huge factories billowing pollution and plastic products in plastic packaging. Fuck you.

- - - -

But, a real whiz-bang ringer is when I left the first time, there was a new bouncer for counter B. I walked back past him no problem the first time (with my pencil). Then I left *again*, right in front of him, and then when I came back (with the pencil *and* the pen), he was all like, [just a moment, do you have your paper?] and I was like, "what do you want?" claiming ignorance, but pissed at him for half-way doing his job (not stopping me the first time, but this time not letting me go through).

Showed him the unfilled out sheet, along with the 2 filled out sheets, and he let me go through (with unfinished sheets??), giving me a nice *new* lovely blue plastic folder (one of which I already have) and telling me I should go to the Counter B Bouncer to get my number.

Thank you. Very much. I've been here before. This is my third time in front of you.

11:51am JST

now serving number 127

I just realized that I can present the pencil to Reiko (receptionist) as a gift; she uses pencil every day, every hour, every student.

11:59am JST

And, for the record, I don't actually expect this will work today, given that the name on the form my boss gave me is not mine, but Mr Nguyen's

now serving number 133

And it's now 12:00pm. Will they stop taking numbers and go to lunch? I pretty much expect them to.

12:08pm JST

now serving me

Make it to work?

12:27pm JST Tuesday 28 November 2006 (day 13397)

I'm in the train station Tennozu Isle, and the next train that leaves for Shibuya will leave at 12:42, requiring 14 minutes to Shibuya. Then 5+ minute walk to my line, minimum 10 minutes to my station, 8 minutes to my house, = 1:20pm at my house.

Shit. That is cutting it incredibly close, and it's a basic minimum. I might be able to shave off time by changing to Yamanote line in Ebisu, but that's a theoretical possibility. It would make it faster only if I perfectly got on the Yamanote line to Shibuya. The time would be saved in the much shorter walk within Shibuya station from Yamanote line platform to my platform, instead of from..... ooooh I know what to do:

The next train from here goes to Osaki...

12:32pm JST

Okay. I'm on the train for Osaki, which is on the Yamanote line. I can switch at that station (instead of waiting for 10 minutes for the next train to go all the way to Shibuya) to the Yamanote line (which leaves like every 5 minutes). I am 99% sure Osaki is on Yamanote line.

12:43pm JST

This is working nicely. The Yamanote train in Osaki was basically perfectly timed. I will be in Shibuya in 7 minutes from now, or 12:51, so I can get to my line by 12:55, especially if I can remember which end of the train is closer to my line.

- - - -

I know which end is the correct end, but there's not enough time to get to that end to make much of a difference. I moved forward one car worth in Ebisu station.

1:30pm JST

Made it with time to spare. I've already been home, showered, came back, got a piece of chicken for a dollah, and made it onto the 1:29 train. I could catch the 1:38 train and still get there on time.

Work

2:03pm JST Tuesday 28 November 2006 (day 13397)

By my boss I was informed of the complaint email he received a couple days ago. He let me off way easier than Reiko (receptionist).

First student is late. (*)

For the record, Koji Suzuno chooses my lessons exclusively.

10:18pm JST

Pretty good day in the end; I had (*) two cancellations right near the beginning so I went outside and meditatively scoped part of Shibuya and occassionally repeated the mantra "My heart and my income are connected. Blessed be." and occassionally followed my breath in a vipassana type way.

Worked on my marble track some; now I have incorporated two of the three long sticks a student brought from Starbucks. I had asked her to write her name on them, but she wrote "sakura" "red-leaves" and "water" ... I think I used "sakura" and "water" today.

Chatted with Juno a bit, which also helped my mood to just be able to blather with another teacher. He's taking 4 hours of Japanese per day... so that's how he speaks so well!

Told him I may wanna go to school to be a psychologist cause I wanna help the world by helping people.

He was like, "kinda like the YMCA."

Haha. yeah.