today i put on some previously used pants and checked the pockets and was surprised when i pulled out 8000 yen. this is the equivalent of about $80. who keeps $80 in their pockets and just forgets about it!?!? the answer is me... Moneybags Rupert.

had this been me about 3 years ago, i would have fallen on the floor and thanked God that for at least one night, i wouldn't be eating Totinos pizza. now, i'm just relieved because i won't have to go to the ATM for a while.

maybe i'll go buy myself something ... like 16 McValue Meals ... or 1.5 video games ...

i settled on a cup of coffee, tempura, and a tank of gas. i do well for myself.

If someone shot me with a bullet, it would not be my fault that I was shot. However, once I have a bullet inside of me, it is my responsibility to get the bullet out and to do any physical therapy necessary to help my body heal. Although I definitely did not create the wound, it is my job to heal from it.

well, without getting into too much whining about the weather, the temperature has plummeted here (see previous post). and it's genuinely cold. tomorrow the forcast is 0ºC at night. night is the worst.

if you're smart when approaching the japanese winters you'll install one of the kerosene heaters in your apartment. these things can cook your underwear and work great but leave the place smelling like exhaust fumes. too much of the glorious carbon monoxide and you die. small price to pay for being warm.

so rather than risking a silent death in the middle of the night, it's best to turn off the heater and suffer under masses of comforters until morning.

i sleep on the floor.

and you can't help but spill the kerosene at least once or twice while trying to fill up the appilance in the middle of the freezing night. kerosene everywhere - hands, eyes, clothes, shoes. it's terrible. so from now until the end of the winter (around April) i expect to wear the constant smell of gas in all my clothes. excitement.

i kind of gave myself a buzz today and passed out while watching Buffy. i just finished the first season and i have some questions. but don't worry i'll be more responsible. unfortunately the only way to counter the heater exhaust is to ... well ... open a window... does that seem counterproductive to anyone else?

i'm sure living in japan has sapped off at least 6 years of my life. but i guess you don't know until the end eh?

but then again, the Japanese live a long time... so perhaps kerosene fumes are the key to everlasting life... hrmmmmm....

i also rented the first disc of the first season of Friends. for lack of other options, i might go ahead and watch all six seasons that are in the video store. you'll have to forgive me, i know all about Friends, but my youth group in high school met on Thursday nights, so i kind of missed out on that whole scene. not that i really mind. i mean, no one ever told us life was going to be this way. clap clap clap clap clap.

other than Buffy my life is mostly beer and nintendo and friends. a great combination. maybe you'll get a music post some time. peace.

the other day i woke up in my house, it was - of course - the same temperature outside as it was inside. about 6ºC. effing cold. as the day drudged on, i expected it to get wamer and warmer, because the sun is of course out and theoretically warming the planet.

but that didn't happen. instead it got colder and colder.

this can only mean one thing: the sun is made of ice.

this may take some time for science to catch up and accept my absolute truthiness. so i leave you with the immortal words of Stephen Colbert.

in continuance of my spirit of geekiness, i've started watching Buffy The Vampire Slayer. partly because Baby mentioned it on her blog, partly because it's one of the few things i want to see at my video store, and partly because i feel it connects me with my generation in some joss whedon spiritual binding. let's go Buffy and slay some crinkly faced vampires!

i'm addicted to mike's mixtapes. you mix things right mr. rice.

i'm studying japanese hardcore of late. i'm retaking the Japanese Language Proficiency Test on December 4th. i failed last year with a 48% and i'm pretty sure i'll do better this year, but it's not looking too good. despite all my studying, i'm still making 50%s on my practice tests. d'oh. remember in Summer School, when Dave (or maybe it was Chainsaw) was at the end of the test going "C, C, C, C, C, C, C, C, C" - that was me last year.

parts of my life and decisions about my future will be determined by the result of this test. stay tuned for crucible-like excitement!

etc: i've leveled up in my .php skills. i'm pretty stoked. but there are many challenges ahead.
etc: at the gym tonight, there was the guy who brings in his own bench press, because there isn't one at my gym. anyways, this guy would basically rummage the gym for every single weight he could find in the joint. it ended up being a mighty mass of 2.5kg weights. so he piles all the weights on the barbell (with no securing devices at the ends) and he proceeds to tackle this mass of iron. he pushes the bar off the bench frame and i watch the bar slowly decend down to his lightweight frame. then his legs kick up as if saying "oh my god we are dying!" and the spotter then assists him in lifting the bar up. not moving on a stationary bike, i watched him get on and off the bench like 10x and do the same thing. far beit from me to offer suggestions.

ok that's all. i'm going to put on the ol' Vampire Slayer and go to bed. see you in the morning, you 5pm~6pm AIMers. peace.