Lookit me, I've refrained from posting for a whole five days.

... Feels a lot longer. orz

Somehow I made it through Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of last week.

Kisechuu didn't actually plan on having me go to class on Wed., even though it was my first day back. I was so jet lagged I didn't realize it was first period until it was half done, so I wound up going to only two of three classes.

Komagata shou was great, because it was two classes of third graders and one of fifth and sixth each. The third graders are freaking adorable, and Rikachan in my fifth grade class was so happy to see me she nearly sent us both flying down the stairs when she tackled me. Eimei was Eimei. It wasn't bad, it wasn't great. At least both the fifth grade classes are on the same page now.

Friday I went immediately from school to the apartment, grabbed my bag and ran for the 18:00 bus to make the next train (19:00) to go to capncosmos's place. Three hours of train ride, and most of it full of high schoolers. I got myself a nap for lack of anything better to do. I also got a cold and I DON'T KNOW WHERE IT CAME FROM. I didn't have it Thursday and I didn't have it Friday morning. WTH body?!

On Saturday I tagged along to capncosmos's ikebana class. It is awesome, taught by an appropriately awesome little old lady. Though I'm not sure how many times I'll get to go, I found myself walking out with a nearly complete set of ikebana equipment. This means I feel like I should be going every week, but three hours on a train, not to mention I'd be crashing capncosmos's party every time.

I've started RPing again via livejournal. It's quite fun so far, and it's a nicely structured set up which, but sadly the sempai of Johnny's are sorely under represented. And by that I mean we have Nakai and that's it.

Now. Kanjani8 media. WHERE ARE YOUR DOWNLOADING COMMS? WHY DO THEY HIDE FROM ME!?!

OH!

And I totally almost forgot the real purpose of this post: At Kisechuu, Nakamura-sensei totally used Johnny's to explain the vocabulary today. The word was new, and she related it to NewS - I don't remember the exact words but it went something like:

"Because the news is all the new things happening in the world and being explained to the viewer. It's a lot of 'new', so it's news, like Johnny's NewS."

She then proceeded to use Hey!Say! in a similar fashion, telling the kids to remember the word 'say'.

Oh, Nakamura-sensei. For awesome.

I went to a tea cafe called Rose House in Flushing today. It's very cute and very rose-loosely-Victorian- themed. There is no real savory food, only pastries and ice creams, and the majority of the tea is some kind of rose flavor. It's got a very nice atmosphere, though, and there are adorable little rooms set aside with velvet curtains and fireplaces. It's funnily enough in the entry equivalent of a strip mall.

My mother wants to drag me along to see my grandmother tomorrow, and I know I really should, but I also don't know how long I can stand to have her repeating the same stories - and in the most recent developments she seems to have gained a grudge against Japan for Pearl Harbor. She has never before cared about Pearl Harbor. I really don't want to spend hours listening to her new favorite mantra (depending on who she's talking to): "How can you/she go to Japan? I always say they're the ones who gave you Pearl Harbor". I guess I'll have to try :/

Hm, what else?

I've started pulling things off my walls so my parents stop coming in three times a day to remind me to do it. There really isn't that much, so I don't know what they're worried about but eh. Might as well get it done.

I have not really stopped playing SimCity Creator on my DS since I got it last weekend. It's that addictive. Damn you EA games! *shakes fist*

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I think I just saw the most amazing concert I will ever see in my life. Plastic People of the Universe, a band that started in 1960s Czech Republic and were a part of the Prague Spring, came to New York. This group is composed of: Grandpa Sax/Clarinet, Grandpa Violin, Grandpa Upright Bass, Uncle Three-Scale-Keyboard, Grandpa Guitar, and Auntie Bass. This is who they are to me, because we weren't given play bills, and I went in totally cold to their music. The main reason I went was because Theo invited me and I figured: well, why not?

I am so glad I agreed.

The music is absolutely haunting. Grandpa Violin shreds his violin like a guitar, and Grandpa Sax gets some of the most chilling sounds out of his sax and clarinet. And in between songs, both would adjust their glasses XD Grandpa Sax would stand with a hand on one hip while he waited, and peer at you from over the rims of his. It was precious!

Auntie Bass is probably only in her mid-30s, and is clearly new to the band. (Their original bassist died 7 or 8 years ago they said.) She is awesome.

Oh, and the Czech Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Czech representative to the UN (which is in session right now) were both in the audience. They came on stage in the middle to say a few words, and the Minister told us how he had seen them in the 60s, and "they've become old in the meantime ..." but are still perfect musicians.

Really, he's right.

Say what you like about China: they can put on a show.
Daaaaaaaaaaaamn.

The job at Billy's is mine for the taking, which is sweet. It's not amazing money, but it's good - $9 an hour and all the cupcakes I can eat. The people there seem pretty nice as well, but they're going through a turnover, so I have no idea how much I'd get to know anybody.

I'm still interviewing at Le Pain on Monday, though, because the chances are the starting salary there is better. Unless the people there are total asses, in the long run it would come down to which store had more flexible hours - I still need to be around for dad, and my TESOL certificate program starts in September, which is a fairly full time committment.

Ahhhh, hectic schedules.
Gotta love 'em.

Recently in the Land of Elle:

Dad had his last day of radiation treatment on Sunday, and he seems to be doing okay. He and mom are going to Edinburg in May to treat themselves to some time off. And, you know, Scotland.

Baseball is off to a fair start - except for the anual Injury Bug that seems to have taken a linking to the Yankees.

And I should be going home in a few weekends for my grandmother's birthday, assuming I ever get the ticket from Expedia.

That is all.

And now for a tl;dr post of random stuff, because I fail at finding anything else to update about.

I had my yearly bout of sickness this week - always a fun thing. It was coming on for a while - I could feel it in my throat - but really decided to come for my head on Monday. Luckily my teacher was unable to make it back to campus in time for my classes, so I didn't have to go, and then I took Tuesday off to drink enough tea that I think I've replaced my blood with it, wrap up in a sweater, and not do anything. That didn't work as well as I would have liked, but it did allow me to drag my ass to classes for the rest of the week.

Yesterday was the first day where I didn't have to blow my nose every twenty seconds, and this morning I didn't wake because of coughing or a pressing need to blow my nose before I suffocated, so I think it's pretty much done with. This is pleasing.

I still haven't seen Blood Wedding. I have to do that today so I can write a paper about it for Tuesday. I've seen a little of the script - the dialog is absolutely mystifying. It doesn't sound remotely natural. As long as it's better than Las Meninas was, I'll be happy.

Lastly. Spanish playwrights of the 1600s? Specifically Calderon? Really liked their characters to hear themselves talk. Good lord.

Yesterday was fantastically long.

Started at 11:40, when I woke up, and didn't end 'till 22:00 when I finally made it home. And I walked the whole time.

Met Mari and Shin at 13:00, took them straight to Lord & Taylor's for the window display because it was right up the block. Then took them into the 42nd street library, and into Bryant Park behind it for apple cider. Then took them to Grand Central Station for lunch in the food court, then to Rockerfeller Center to see the tree and the skating rink and walk around the little concourse below. Met the other Mari at 16:30, after she closed shop where she works, and then trecked on over to karaoke. Karaoked for two hours. Had dinner at a Thai place on the corner; very good food. Walked back to Rockerfeller Center, through Times Square, to see the tree at night. Saw the snowflake display on the Saks Fifth Avenue building go through its little light show. Walked home from 49th and Madison (to 25th and 2nd).

I hurt quite a lot after that.

Well worth it, though. Mari was so cute, bouncing around with every major sight and taking pictures of everything. And Shin's expression at the 1/2lb hot dog he ordered for lunch was classic.

Today was a good day.

I met Sissi at 15:00 for a round of ice skating in Bryant Park. The weather was nice; not too cold and the sun not shining directly on us. The temporary rink is much bigger than in Rockerfeller Center, and better still - it's mostly free. The whole endeavour cost me $7.00, including a cup of hot apple cider that wasn't of terrible quality. There was much catching up and nearly-knocking down children as we circled. There is nothing quite like circling a rink of snowy ice to the sounds of badly produced Christmas songs to get one in the holiday spirit - and I mean that sincerely.

We left the ice at 17:00 to have what was my dinner. At 18:30 I headed on to Lincoln Center, to meet my mother for the Messiah Sing-in. It's a 40 years running tradition there, now, and one my mother and I have been going to for eight years. It's funny how you can sit 2000 people in an audience, most of whom have never been formally vocally trained, and get a really nice sound out of them. This year there was a particularly bad timing problem, though - most people weren't looking at the conductors, so people were losing their place and jumping in randomly.

The Hallelujah Chorus was perfect, though. That's the important part.

Now, for tea.

This comes as a sudden whim, but I want to hold a Christmas or New Year's Soiree this year. Unfortunately my apartment is no where near the size it would need to be for such an event, and most people are unavailable. If nothing else, I want to continue the tradition of a winter tea.

I want to go ice skating. I haven't been since last year.

I want to be home now.

Today was quite delightful. I slept in, for one, but not so late that it will throw off my schedule.

I worked on my JET application - I've finished the online part of it. Now I need a printer so I can print everything in triplicate and sign it in blood.

I met my older sister for snacks and then lunch - and yes, in that order. Le Pain is a lovely shop and I wish I could go there more often. It's not often a store carries a French cream donut bigger than my fist. Lunch which was curry ramen at Menkuitei and was excellent. I do love a good spicy curry.

Apple sent a box to me so that I may send my iPod in for repair. DHL picked it up at 19:00. Who knows when it will be returned to me? Ah well. I just hope it works. I've been quite at a loss without it.

I met Dana for dinner and then we went to go see Across The Universe. It's amazingly well done, though Evan Rachel Wood I found slightly ... blah. She didn't leave much of an impression on me. The rest of the movie blew my mind. It's done in a sort of Rent-ish fashion, where every few minutes or so the cast bursts into song. The difference is here, every song they burst into is a Beatles song, and thus automatically good lyrically, and the arrangements are fantastic - apparently 90% of the songs were recorded live. Also, every character is named after a Beatles' song, there are many homages and nods to different Beatles things which are fun to look for, and it apparently has McCartney's approval.

Oh, yeah, and Eddie Izzard is in it.