part time

One of the odds living in a big city is managing expenses. Let alone, if one has to live alone in one of the most exorbitant city in the world, like Tokyo. Rent, food, phone bill, electricity, water, gas and any other bills that one should be able to handle on their own. Not to mention, the needs of some casual entertainment and little shop here and there. 
While it piled up at some point, those 'ish' leads to one big question: 
HOW SHOULD I PAY ALL OF THEM AND STILL HAVE THE ACTUAL LIFE? 

After a few thoughts and endless broke times, I finally came up with decision to take a part-time job during the winter break. I started small by being a chat host in one English cafe in Shibuya. Though my paycheck wasn't that much, it paid off since the work is really easy and fun.  There was no specific knack required to work there, so I didn't mind at all. 

Later on, thinking that I still have sooo much free time, I took another job as an English teacher for toddlers. I officially started the teaching job during the new year's week. From there, I was able to fulfill most of my free time, while in the other hand I had no time to fulfill the shift for the chat-hosting job. However, though it was rather unofficial (neither I was fired nor resigned), I stopped working as a chat host two weeks after the teaching job started. 

I went steady with my teaching job as I got accustomed with the class' culture and having toddlers as my students. Outside teaching them, I sometimes doing subs for adult's class. I never really knew why I still have fun doing this job 'till now. Regardless the tiresome and distance I took just to travel home-workplace (half an hour train ride, one way). If there are ones to blame for that, that would be my father and gramp, for inheriting me the teaching genes.

I think you might find me like that one of those busy 'working bees'. A month and half after I started my teaching job, I took another job as a part time translator (Jap/En-Indonesian) at a game company. Nope guys, I didn't quit the teaching job. I am doing both of them at the same time [not exactly the same hour kind of thing (d'oh)]. But you figured it out, right?! 

UMM, AREN'T YOU TIRED DUDE DOING BOTH JOBS AND SCHOOL? At the same time?
Oh boy, I am. But no pain no gain, right? Just the picture: my school finished at 5pm (or sometimes 6pm), then I am heading to work till 11/12pm, Sunday-Friday.  Leaving me Saturday to just sleeping in the whole day. Apart from that, times to hangout with friends is also getting scarce and of course, the infamous sleep deprivation is just around the corner. Every time. 

That I know now how painful it is to live in adulthood, I am not thinking of backing down. Because I know there is one time of the month that I will deserve a grin looking at my bank account. Seeing my saving amount swollen up, collided with pride. Because I earned them.

anyways

.

I was almost tardy this morning. I blamed my horrendous procrastination the night before, so I had to finish my report until 3am, then I slept (or overslept). And too bad, subjects on monday are less likely to get me engaged in class, so catching the sleep on the whole hour was pretty much my scene today.

And oh, I managed to popped this post in between the sleeping time, so I am still awesome.

on getting super jaded

I have been using this bulldog's image for about three weeks now at school. We (?) have been nice friends by know that I decided to get him a little something. 

*needles, this is my first post sent right from school*

tic tac

Spring sprung is on its toll now. Blooming sakuras a month ago marked the change for this exciting time of the year. In addition to few breezes and gentle sunlight that undauntedly success to make the complete scene of what may be a perfect season. And it's just about the time to celebrate those days of no more thick jackets, double trousers, scarf nor ear muffs. So I guess it is not too much to call days like these, as a 'less-layer' season.

On the other notes, I have a jot of countdowns that I have been meaning to tell you for awhile; so I trust you to keep it as a secret. Yet here it is:

Two months and five days before home.

A month and twelve days before hitting twenty one.

A week before my teacher's choir group concert.

And two days before a band of my favorites' concert (long awaited one).

Hence, all the countdowns start from now.

morning aftermath

"When the sobriety starts creeping in, what's left to us is to surrender, 

and to dive beneath the unrelenting stream."

lyf

School has been really fun so far and I got to learn tons of things that I've been longing to do forever. I guess one year of Japanese school was really worth the wait. 

In addition, I have also been working for awhile now as a part timer translator for an online game company and an English teacher. Though sometimes things go overlapping each other and there are times that I have to cut short my studying time (which I never have), I think it's the best that I can ask for now. 

Anywayss, this picture down here is one that I took for my photography class using a manual camera. It took me by surprise though, because I thought all the pictures might be all blurred and crap, but some turned out to be okay. 

Ni hao!

One hot friend of mine who is currently studying Chinese in Beijing, Sascha, sent me this Great Wall's post card.. This post card's been sent three months ago fr The Mainland but it came to mail in like the beginning of February. Can't blame anyone because it is what it is, snail mail.

Thank you for the post card, Mulan. Hope Beijing always treats you well.

Miss you heaps!

so long... (one thank you note)

For the senseis :

Thank you for every sincere smiles whenever you walked in the class. 

I keep every advise you gave, deep inside. 

I feel like I owe you big time. 

For what is worth, I promise I will back every year to see what you are doing. 

大変お世話になっておりまして、本当にありがとうございました。

先生のおかげで、一年中は結構楽しかった。

For the people down below :

Things we had were more than just awesome. 

We had no clue about what we are gonna do to begin with, and I am grateful to grow with each and every one of you. 

One may say it would take years to actually treasure ones as a family, but I know I don't need that much time to spend. 

You know, I will go pray each night hoping that we will across each other's path in one fine, exciting future. 

また会いましょうね!　皆の明るい未来を毎晩にお祈りしてます。お元気でね!

For okaasan and otousan :

Thank you for being at the door when I am home from school, work and all.  

Thank you for sending me to the hospital in the first place, worrying what I might feel after. Thank you for the food that keep me feed during those hard days after scurry hospital experience. 

Thank you for always handing me the spare keys whenever I locked my moron self out. Thank you for the time I thought no one will be there, but you guys were. 

Thank you for keeping me in cage before 11pm, or wondering where I would be, if I wasn't home. 

And most of all, thank you for letting me call you, mom and dad, and protect us like ones.

I also owe you guys a comeback. I will. I promise.

お母さん、お父さん。この一年にお世話になって頂いてありがとうございました。恐らく、病気のときに迷惑をかけてしまって済みませんでした。お母さんとお父さんの健康をお祈りします。私はきまってまた会館へ遊びに行きます。それじゃ、また会いにしましょう!

Thank you. I know my Japan would be quiet without each and every one of you.

new

My wi-fi is working! Wee.

As I am blogging from my new home, I am pretty excited. I moved out from dormitory last weekend and currently residing in hustle district of Toshima, in Ikebukuro.

Another place, another packs of strange places, another full train in the morning,
 I kind of like it here, though. A few hundred meters from downtown, heaps of stores and they even have cat cafe in here (search for nekobukuro).
I guess I cannot think of anything better than this. 

Needless, I get bigger room than the one I had at the dorm. It is roughly two and half as big. No more living in the rat hole. lolz

I will update few tiny bits about moving story, the story about moving company guy and whatnot in another post. I gotta run for my part-time shift in half an hour.

Ciao!

Breeze

Don't we all miss it?

Despite its biting-through-skin's heat.

Despite its generous shower of sweat.

Don't we all at one point in chilly winter night, came to a sudden whim:

"I wish it was summer already"

?

short essay

On a regular basis, I was asked to make a short composition based on the chapter we are doing in class. Regarding to that, I kind of plan to upload some or perhaps all of my short Japanese passage here. First reason, I had piles and piles of paper and try so hard to get rid of them. Second, I just think if I'm unable to keep the real thing, this blog would keep them for me. Is all. 

Don't worry, for you non-Japanese reader, I will help you to put a little sub on what I wrote. It might not be perfect though, but it sure gives you a big picture.

So here it is my first post in Japs!

私は外食派

食事を決める時、外食と自炊のどちらがいいかと言われたら私は外食を選ぶ。それにはいくつか理由がある。

まず、外食は自炊と違って準備をしなくてもいい。買い物をしなくていいし食後も食器を洗わなくていいし、レストランでただ注文すればいいので、時間がかからない。それに、メニューの数も多いので、毎日メニューが変えられる。
 

また、自炊は料理が上手じゃなくてはいけない。料理がダメな人が自炊するとまずい。ご飯が美味しくなくて、食欲がなくなるし、栄養のバランスが悪くなりかねない。
 

このようなことから、私は外食の方がずっとさんせいだ。日本には様々な国のレストランが沢山ある。日本にいるうちに、色んなレストランに行ったり新鮮な雰囲気を味わったり、一杯食べたりしようと思う。

I am a Dine-out Party Whenever I have the fork stuck in the road, between dine-out or cook on my own, I choose to grab my dine outside. Here are the few reasons why: First, the apparent difference between those two, there is no need to prepare anything (grocery and whatnots) beforehand and no obligations to wash dishes right after. What you all need to do, sit back, relax and oreder the menu.Not to mention you can always try one menu to another. Then, one fine line between dine-out or cook at home, you have to be at least equipped with a decent talent to do the latter. Frankly speaking, bad cook mostly makes harmful garbage (uhh sorry...). For those reasons above, I believe that dine-out is a awesome choice. And during my staying in Tokyo I would go grab as much as nice restaurant experience, because the chances are I might not get it elsewhere.

Translation

soundcloud

It's getting late here in Tokyo and I'm pretty much covered in bright peach blanket thinking about going over my long overdue kanji lesson. Graduation exam is apparently coming in my way, like in a four days, 48 hours from now. 

Anyhoo though, if you find out yourself stranded here in my web and have nowhere to go in the interwebz, I got you cover: my 5 months-old little soundcloud account is avail. It's not a big deal, nothing new. Just me bored, roaming here and there with tunes. But if you willing to stroll, I'd totally appreciate it. See you, folks!

Amatou

Here in Japan, they have one name to describe someone in a giant fond of confectionery. They called those people 甘党 (amatou) and I have a strong confidence to call myself one of them.

As for today, I had this impulsive nerve while shopping at the store (100yen,erryone!), despite suffering on super tight budget for this month. But heck with everything, nothing should ever break my sweet relationship with the lollies.

It's almost a third (or any lesser fraction)

It has been heck of centuries since I was touching this platform, let it me feeling awfully sinned because of that. In my weakest defense, I wasn't abandoning anything in writing-wise, I just kept forgetting that every time I want to say something without anyone notice, I always have the home here. And besides, life is getting a lot more exciting these days. So....

Alright, I take the guilt.

But anyways, on last night's farewell party in my dormitory, one epiphany strikes. Really hard, my mind was quite tingled. Let's start this way. I have been staying in Japan for almost a year now. Not just you, I was surprised of that fact and got me thinking how I used to wonder how I am gonna survive in a really strange place, away from everyone I know.

Maybe some of you don't know, JAPAN-one country that was once the least country I have the interest into. I didn't understand the language they speak, let alone the way the people live here. The only thing I knew for sure a few years ago, people here eat a lot of fish that way they are one of the smart-ass Asian countries. I watched doraemon for more than half of my life, starstruck by pretty soldiers of sailormoon and laugh my ass of over potential-douche-in-the-future, Crayon Shinchan, but not Japan as a whole that got me interested. I could say that I only had slightest clue of what this country has to offer, until the offer really came on my face.

Life is too funny, they make you look back and left you cracked in laugh. But seriously, for once I thought that would be cool to grab a chance and take that leap of faith. So, I did and here I am writing this for you. I may regret what I am about to say later in life, but for now: this life, this kind of life that I have right now, is the one I have always wanted. I know there were bunch of woes and rants in the long run, but in a nutshell, I love what I am doing now. And the fact that what I have right now is what I earned myself, is a bonus I cannot avoid. 

I am too grateful for everyone who made/makes/will make this journey happens. This is still keep on going and I always make sure to keep you have a lil' peek in a future.
God bless.

Japan, 2/23/2013

Piece of School Festival

One cheeky performance from me and my friend during school festival at the beginning of this month. Got a few missing bits at the end, a little disappointment because we practice quite a lot for this. But the heck with that we still made it to the champ anyways. That's what really matters, right? Haha. Take a enjoyable (kinda) second if you might! 

what goes around, always comes around

Seeing my friends throwing whines and their self-pitying statements of how their parents force them to follow the path the way their parents wanted, had me thinking for a while. Frankly speaking, I’m grateful enough to have both parents that don’t give a crap of what I am doing, in terms of deciding what I what want to do in life. And I know that is not because they don’t care, it’s because they do and they let me try. And if something does not work out for me , I learned the lesson myself, not by anyone telling me so. I guess it’s basically how I got the most of  out it in life until now.

I recall that very day when I decided to change the subject I really long study in college. And the decision fell to architecture subject. Soon after, I told my granny and my mother about it. It took me by surprise that was there to support what I had chosen, rather than growling on how on earth I would’ve changed my mind from being an internist to be an architect. And it’s the same thing when I got the chance to alter my major once again into graphic design that actually brought me to where I am right now.

And if you said my life has been way too easy for me, you’re almost right. But it’s not the case. There is always price to pay. I could not just go and say  what I want. I am fully-equipped with a one prefect mouth, so I use it to tell. I discuss. I explain. I compromise. And with the rest of what I have, I prove things I said and, goddamnit it always worked for me.

I know it’s just plain blunt to blame the parents out there that still forcing the kids of what they want to be. Of course, they do have all the reasons for that, so do we. And for you pals, remember: what you are dreaming of is what keeps you going. As long as you don’t mess around with your dream, you are just good to go.

I believe parents are both awesome adviser and discussing mate. But yet, they are not a driver that drive your life around the way they want it. Keep in faith that you can always compromise. And never give up, because the mere things they want to see is the conviction and proofs. Your life is at your own hands. What goes around, always comes around.

~stealing from another private source

Concatenate

Fuji-san

It is such a big relieve that I actually come back here from abundance of what I have been through. And not to mention the countless times of 'come and go' moments traced here (it comes really apparent, if you see the gap between dates of the posts I made). But you know, passion and watching television is so alike. You switched the channel back and forth, seeing what's good yet in the end you'll be where you need to be.

For almost one and a half year doing the hiatus, a lot's been going, hence changes: I'm no longer 13th grader; I'm much older, year and a half older from when I left, obviously; And now I end up to where I have never intended to be. But it's all good, I sucked up all the ups and downs because then again in the long run, we end up where we need to be (I hope I don't bore you with that).

As for now, I'm studying Japanese in one Japs school in Tokyo. And be heading to College next year, taking graphic design, one major I have thee most passion to do in a while! Though, days now have not been so hectic because I'm still on my summer break, I still manage to keep sane. No big plans nor big travels (or even going home). Just plan to sit and stay nicely here at my dorm waiting till friends to pick me up and go to places. I'm not much of a planner these days, more of a breeze follower so to speak.

So much looking forward to update stories, thoughts, pictures and else here again. Hopefully by the time I figure things out (?), I can manage to have fun and share it here. Hope y'all have a good time.

Masih Mencari

Kembali, pada tatanan hidup yang berbeda
Berdesakan di arus yang asing
Pada yang ganjil kaki terus menapak, dan laju melangkah

Selamat datang di ruang baru yang mencatat
Walau banyak hela-hela dan kisah yang kadung menguap
Tapi kalau boleh yakin
Bara itu masih menyala

a year with you...

I was nobody till i treasured this place I called a 'class'. Who would've been anticipated that would be a stranger that wasn't originated from your class, sat on the very first row of seats on the his first day of an extent school year and get his ass kicked out from the chair two days after (that actually made out a history throughout a year)? no one even would take a guess.

placed as the only returnee in the class brings the whole memory back of being the only exchange student in Annapolis High. actually knowing people and putting them into friends list slowly one by one, a lot of awkward moments of upper-lowerclassmen kinda relationship at first, some unexpected recognition from teachers that highlighted 'you returned, you gotta be better than everybody else' type of message, were some of the grueling phases. Thank God, however, I climbed out of the serious crap really quick, quicker than I've ever pictured in mind when I was in my tenure in the USA. 'Tis an exuberance blessing all about. Alhamdulillah.

Here's where the light is...

Best of luck, pals!

¿Qué tal?

I'm good, waiting for my three days to end and enjoying my three-years-summed-up-in-four-days exam. As Glee casts say, my good wasn't that good enough once the lovely NYU Abu Dhabi sent me a 'I'm sorry' letter back at the beginning of March. Suddenly March has gone darkish grey ever since. I had only few opions left at the moment, let the unlucky one go and start new season of college hunting or hold myself to the restrains of seeing any possibilities there are in front me. Well, then I chose, apparently, what is beneficial which was keeping my feet moving forward.

At this exact moment, I'm aiming for two Japanese colleges and one of the best local colleges where I headed to for study. I'm really into mentioning yet any of those colleges because I do believe that there is something superstitious-related would actually come if I leak it just now. Yet, I hope one of them (or the three of them, perhaps) will work out for their very best.

Final exam is just in upcoming three days. Nothing special obviously, because what I'm really looking forward right now is just being a high school graduate and getting into college. so, I better be off really quick from here before this procrastination's gotten really worse. All in all, what I need right now is little wish for me to some luck for at least a month ahead. I'll guarantee, when I get back here, I'll show you some pleasant news.

Ciao!