Busy week

It's been a week since my last post, and I've been up to quite a bit. Here are some of the highlights:

• The university's club fair was last weekend. I went to inquire about the wind ensemble, and also got to hear them play everyone at the fair. They were pretty darn good, even though the ensemble there was pretty small. I'll be going to an interest meeting next week. I hope I don't make a fool of myself on account of my limited Japanese.
• It was during this fair that not one, not two, but three different groups of people came up to me to ask for a picture. One of the girls in the last group even went as far as to say that she thought I was cool. Again, I don't know where these people are getting their ideas.
• Finally got my SIM card for my phone. Now I have an actual phone number and mobile data, so I can finally go out without having to worry about whether or not I'll have emergency resources at hand.
• The car search is still underway. The local dealer still has yet to find anything, and I've asked an American JDM importer with a dealership in Osaka to also be on the lookout. There's a Roadster in Kanagawa prefecture that I might be able to get within or close to my budget. It was well taken care of (one of the owners was a senior citizen) and clean everywhere. I'll get an exact quote on Monday.
• The TAing has been...interesting. The classes are higher-level classes (third and fourth-year students). Some of the students are not trying, and I have to reflect that in their grades. For one of the classes, the final exam counts for 90% (yes, you read that correctly) for the entire grade. A few students then have the habit of not showing up until exam day. Problem is, if they're not doing their homework, they're not going to do well on the exam. You'd think that they'd figure this out by now. Oh well, at least I'm getting paid to do it.
• The intermediate Japanese class that I wanted to take conflicts with another class in my schedule. Therefore, I'll have to take the higher-level beginners Japanese class. I've seen the book and it's pretty easy, but at least I'll actually be getting the fundamentals down in an actual classroom, instead of trying to learn by myself.
• Apparently someone back in the States asked about whether or not I was in the part of the area that recently had the earthquake. The epicenter of said quake was 800 miles southwest from me. It'd be like someone from Japan asking someone in New York if they were affected by the tornado in Indiana. Unless you see something in the news about something happening in or near Fukushima prefecture, then you don't have to be concerned. On second thought, don't be concerned at all. I don't want to put up with a million questions about radiation exposure.

That's all that's been of interest. Onwards and upwards.

-wp

School is in session

I have now officially been a master's student for two days. I'm all registered for my classes, and I'm TAing two of them. My lab station now has a simple computer for web browsing, handling documents, and e-mails. Once I start getting busy, though, I'll have to make a proposal for equipment. But that probably won't happen until around June or July.

Another update on my phone: the reason for all of the delays was because I did not supply my full address. In Japan, addresses are done a bit differently. Everything is in reverse order compared to the US, so in my case, it's postal code --> prefecture --> city --> municipality --> sub-municipality --> sub-sub-municipality --> campus name --> building number. As it turned out, I was missing the sub-sub-municipality in my address. I'm sure that if they had told me this in advance, they would have saved both of us a load of time. Regardless, everything has now been straightened out. The SIM card should be here by the start of next week.

I met with a local car dealer today who goes to car auctions for clients. My main desires in a car are Mazda brand and manual transmission. Both of those things are a rarity in Fukushima. (As it turns out, automatic cars are super common here, too.) The dealer said that he had not seen a Eunos NA Roadster with a manual transmission (my top pick) in over ten months. I asked him to keep an eye out for one, and ask around for anyone who may be looking to sell. I gave some alternatives to look for in the meantime. I told him that the longest I'd be willing to wait is up to two or three months. He goes to the USS auctions in Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya, which are all towards the later end of the week. He will keep me updated on what he finds. The foreign personnel advisor does not return until Monday, so I probably will not hear back until then. I'm pulling for him; even with the limited English, the dude was pretty chill. Into American imports, too; he even showed up wearing a GM Goodwrench work suit.

To be honest, I wouldn't mind a car with an automatic transmission if it weren't for the licensing laws. In America, as soon as you get your license, you can drive whatever vehicle you want, so long as it has four wheels and isn't a semi. Here, however, it's slightly different. Driving a manual transmission vehicle requires an endorsement on your license. If I tested in a car with an automatic transmission, I would be allowed to drive a car that came equipped with an automatic transmission only. If I wanted to drive a car with a manual transmission, I would have to test in a car with a manual transmission. Just as America had the Ford Crown Victoria for general government fleet vehicles, Japan has the Toyota Crown. And from what I've heard, the clutches in these babies are heavy. So in the meantime, I should be getting ready with a car that has a manual transmission, so that I can hone my driving skills. Otherwise, I can kiss getting to experience most JDM classic cars goodbye. And that's where I put my foot down.

Also, I know that most of you reading this have by now probably thought the word "train" at least once. Here's the campus (i.e. where I am). The nearest convenience store is a 20 minute walk one-way. The nearest grocery store is 40 minutes one-way. And the buses in Aizu run sporadically. Plus, it's colder during the winter in this part of Japan compared to Connecticut, and the wind can be very strong. I'm not necessarily tearing public transit a new asshole; I respect it for what it does in this country. But for me, and my needs, it is not working. I can live another month or two without the car. After that, I'll need to do something.

On a more positive note, my Introduction to Sound and Audio class today was interesting. My professor actually did a barrel roll, and then a cartwheel, during my lecture. Top that, UNH. He also provided iPads for the class to do our assignments or, well, whatever the hell we damn well pleased. Some of them were purchased this morning (I got one of those models). I just have to return it when the class is over. In three months. This school does not skimp on equipment.

So there are a few setbacks, but nothing major to complain about. Hope that the rest of the semester, or at least the quarter, is as smooth.

-wp

Orientation

Today was orientation day for new students at the university. I am now officially in graduate school.

The ceremony was pretty straightforward. They would call your name one by one, and you'd say 「はい」 and stand up, and then you would sit back down afterwards. There were the addresses from the mayor and the reps for the prefectural executives, and the undergraduates and graduates stood up for their vows, then sat back down. Then it was over.

While the undergraduates remained in the auditorium, the graduate students were allowed to go outside. I hung around the student building for a bit, and then returned to my room for a while until the next orientation meeting. It wasn't until halfway through that meeting that I remembered that they were having a group photo of all the new students on the steps by the student building. I'm not worried, though. There will be enough pictures of me in Japan. Like this one:

One of the students in my wing thought I looked cool. I don't see it.

Tomorrow I need to figure out the classes I'll be taking. Those start on Thursday. The SIM card is still not here, and I'm still looking for a Roadster. On Monday, I'll have an interview for a TA position. Let's hope that it goes well.

Spring, and the sakura, have come to Aizu.

-wp