It's Getting Hot in Here...

There are some days where everything reminds me of the first week I spent in Japan. The other night I had to go home early to meet with the A/C repair guys since boyfriend is sweating his britches off without a working A/C upstairs. Went home, make muffins, made edamame, and baked some tilapia for dinner. Cleaned the house, did the laundry, tidied up since people were coming over and did the dishes... all very typical Meg-esque things (have you not noticed my OCDness?). I thought it was going to be a very normal evening for me, which would have been okay considering Ajax was flying and wouldn't be home to entertain me. I couldn't have been more wrong...

A/C dude and landlord showed up at 6:30pm to work on things. 

Step 1- Offered the landlord and A/C guy a Gatorade since it was so hot where they were in the house (thus the reason for the visit). They flipped out... apparently Gatorade is not common over here (the closest thing is Pocari Sweat) and they were ecstatic.

Step 2- Listen to landlord describing the problem to repairman... heard repairman ask if I spoke Japanese. So I responded with "Nihongo ga skoshi dekimasu" (I speak a little Japanese) and they flip out again and go off on a tangent of Japanese phrases, none of which I understand. But I got a high-five out of it... that was fun. My landlord is a fan of high-fives.

Step 3- A/C guy can't fix A/C. :( He says whole unit needs to be replaced. Landlord wants to replace it with a combo heating and air unit which would be fabulous because our bedroom is freezing cold from Dec-March. He has to go shopping for a good one.

Step 4- A/C guy leaves. Landlord and I go on tour of the house (it's his place after all and he just wanted to see what we had done with the place since the last time he'd been in there). His favorite part was the new TV. He couldn't believe how thin it was. He kept checking it like it was suddenly going to get fatter.

Step 5- I offer landlord a seat at the table and ask if he wants beer. We only have Coors Light. I think I made his life complete. We sat and drank our beers out of Japanese style cups and ate edamame and talked about everything that we could find the common words to communicate about.  3 beers later I sent him hope with another Coors, a bag of blueberry muffins, and some edamame for a snack. He was all grins.

Things I learned from drinking Coors with my Japanese landlord last night:

• He's 68 years old
• He designed and build three of the ceiling lights in our house
• He took 28 years to plan and build the house I live in
• He's an architect and a painter
• His son is a wine sommelier at a fancy shmancy hotel in Ebina
• His daughter lives in Hawaii
• He incorporated multiple secret areas into our house
• His favorite fruit is blueberries (I made him muffins)
• His shoe size is 4 inches smaller than Alex's
• We're the first Americans to live in his neighborhood
• He owns most of the neighborhood
• He enjoys BBQ and American beer
• He thinks I make OK edamame

He didn't want to take the picture because he said he wanted to get a hair cut first. :)

I believe that's about it. We had a great time chatting (him in Japanese and me in my English and random Japanese words that I throw in when I remember my lessons). Here's to more amazing times! Just wanted to let everyone know how eventful my "boring" evening turn out to be!

Partying hard!

Have a fabulous week,

Megs

I Want My Baby-Back Ribs (Barbeque Sauce)...

Heads-up, yo. 

This post is going to include deliriously delicious descriptions of foods that I have missed terribly since I  moved to Japan in January 2011. If you are hungry, you may end up gnawing off your arm in your manic hunger cravings after you read this. I will not be held responsible for you going out and buying way too much of any of the foods mentioned or for eating way too much and going into a "food coma."  You have been warned.

Recently I sat down in bed after a glass or 3 of wine (my new favorite- guess that means I'm growing up) and realized I was starving. (Just so you know, I use the term "starving" very loosely. I can just eat a huge lunch and then 20 minutes later tell someone I'm "starving.") Instead of being a reasonable adult-type person and walking down to the kitchen to go make myself a delicious meal of milk and cereal (Ajax wasn't there to make real food for me) I decided that the best idea would be to make myself even MORE hungry and make a list of foods I missed from back home. Obviously I make really smart decisions.

List of Foods & Restaurants that I Miss from Back Home:

• Crispers' Signature Summer Salad- This salad has everything, greens, cheese, tortilla chips, smoked turkey, mandarin oranges, Gorgonzola, candied pecans, and herb citrus dressing that I would lick off the ground. I hate salads and I love this thing. When I worked nearby, I would get that at least twice a week. It's amazing.
• Mom's cottage cheese toast- For those of you deprived folks who have not had the pleasure of knowing my fabulous mom, she makes wonderful foods on bread. I know this sounds odd but she makes the best grilled cheese, sandwiches of all kinds, boiled eggs on toast, and my personal fave... cottage cheese on toast. I know this is the dorkiest thing ever. Yes, all it is is toast, butter, cottage cheese and maybe a bit of salt and pepper if I'm feeling like a rebel. But it is delish and when mom makes it the heavens open and angels sing.
• Momo's- If you haven't had Momo's pizza, you need to get your tuchus to Tally and go find the little hole-in-the-wall, sketch place and stop by. The slices are touted as being "As big as your head," and they're right. They're also made fresh and are amazing. They also have a portabello, balsamic, mozzarella salad that is kick ass. Get to the Momo's! Do it now!
• Papa John's Garlic Butter Dipping Sauce- I really don't feel like this needs any additional explanation.
• Chick-fil-A- If you don’t know about Chick-Fil-A then you live in a bubble. Though semi-pricey as far as fast food goes, the quality is amazing. Their chicken nuggets are drool-worthy and their chicken salad sandwiches are unparalleled. I seriously have dreams about the chicken salad sandwiches. I want one. Right now please!
• Good Draft Beer-Japan has an amazing selection of whiskey, they have pretty decent canned beer, I can get bottles of Cuban rum that I can't get in the states... but I'll be damned if I can't find many bars or restaurants with a good selection of beer on tap. I think the first phrase my guy learned in Japanese was "nama biru" which means "fresh beer" or in our case "draft beer." Draft beer here is typically Asahi or Kirin, basically the equivalent of Bud Light and Miller Light. I've seen one place with Guinness on tap. It's an odd thing to miss, but I loved being able to walk into pretty much any restaurant and know that they'd have at least 5 beers on tap to choose from. Japan likes their bottles and cans. Le sigh.
• Cake Shop Cupcakes – Cake Shop was the shiznit in Tallahassee. I was introduced to it by my friend Becky who routinely bought them for most work events. “It’s your birthday, here have a cupcake.” “You got a promotion, you deserve a cupcake.” “You knocked out two of your teeth? You really need a cupcake.” They had cupcakes of all kinds, but one of the ones that I remember best was the Heath Toffee Bar Icing with peanut butter cake one that they had for a limited time. They even put little crumbles of toffee on top. Definitely worth missing especially since Japan doesn’t really do cupcakes.
• Mexican- Chile rellenos, margaritas, melted cheesy things, warm nachos dripping with salsa and sour cream, more margaritas, and Mexican rice. MMMMMMmmmmmm... oishii des ne. Oh crap, I mean 'delicioso.' I used to revert to Spanish in Florida but now I answer random things in Japanese. Ay yi yi!
• Wisconsin Cheese Bricks- Most families give gifts or clothes, toys, shoes or other interesting items during the Christmas holidays. My family does that too... but we also give the wonderful gift of cheese. Cheddar cheese (mild or sharp), muenster, Colby, pepper jack, etc. We're from Wisconsin. I was born in Florida but I definitely have the cheese genes (sadly, I did not get the racing or car mechanic genes). so when it gets cold enough during winter, the Wisconsin fam sends us cheese (and sometimes Horse Collar/Kringle!) or the family members down in Florida or Colorado will order cheese to be delivered from our "cheese guys." When I cam back from Florida in January, my dearest Cakkie sent me home to Japan with a 6+ pound brick of cheese. I was so nervous the whole way because I firmly believed that I was going to have my cheddar confiscated going through Immigrations and Customs. I made it! Whew! Fast
• Boiled Peanuts- This southern 'delicacy' is one of those things I don't think I will ever find out here. OH MY GOD! I need them now. Carolyn, lets go watch FSU baseball and eat "Balled Peanuts" like the college years. I miss that so much.
• Publix Sushi- Publix sushi was the shit. No one can tell me any different. Yes, I know that I currently live in the land of fresh fish, delectable dishes made from the finest sea critters... it's a lovely way to dine. However, I definitely do miss me some California Rolls and Americanized sushi. In the states I never had to wonder what it was that I was eating when I went out for sushi. Japan is more than a little different, still good most of the time, but different.
• Super Perros-This Colombian style restaurant was a favorite of mine in Tally-ho. It started out as a little street vendor at someone's house that was open on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights after people were leaving the bars. They finally got a little place of their own close to my house and got a lot of business. They served these amazing "Super Perros" which were delish hotdogs, with crushed up potato chips, mayo, secret sauce, ketchup, and pineapple chunks on top. The dogs were so big you had to eat them with a knife and fork. Add on a Colombian beer and you had yourself a great meal at Super Perros.
• Mike's Killer Coffee- I discovered Mike's a few years back when I started going to the YMCA on that side of town. They do make killer coffee... end of story!
• Bagel Heads- Nearish to Mike's is Bagel Heads, a hipster-esque place that serves sammis and bagels and coffee, Oh My! They have the most kick-butt breakfast bagel sandwiches in the galaxy. I've tried to replicate them, I can't.
• Italian- Japan cannot do Italian right. They just can't. I'm not sure what it is but if I get spaghetti, it will be watery and meatless with fish roe on top. If I ask for any other type of pasta, it's going to be so odd compared to the Italian that I'm used to stateside (not that 'Merica has real Italian, but it's closer). Shoot! I'd take an Olive Garden right now. Give me pasta!
• Sony's BBQ- I need pulled pork slathered in Sweet Sauce. Give me ribs. Put some smoked turkey with coleslaw on my plate. Corn bread would be nice too. Anyone got any extra napkins? I'm seriously drooling.

I know that I am missing more than a few of my faves. If anyone can think of amazing food from back home, or in your own area, put it in the comments. On that note, I'm going to go have cereal for dinner and mope about it. ;)

Hugs,

Megs

Where Have You Been...

Yeah yeah yeah... I'm sucky at the Blog-o-sphere. I get busy, or I get bored and find something more entertaining to do. I get crotchety and don't want to talk to people, or I get happy and go out. In any case, I really don't do a good job at keeping this thing up. People always say that they are going to try and do better, heck, I've definitely said it before... but I really want to do this. Stupid reasons and life just keep getting in the way.

Here's the fabulous update of my life recently:

• Still kicking tush at what I do and lovin' what I do at work
• Still with el love o' my life
• Keep having random Japanese men propose/sing to me. I got a flower from one gentleman at the Yamato train station about a month ago, he told me I was beautiful and that I deserved 'hana' (flowers). Ajax didn't even get jealous, he just laughed at how sweet I thought it was.
• I learned the basics of playing poker (don't laugh too hard, I've never done it before).
• Became obsessed with a site called Little Black Bag (www.littleblackbag.com). 
• Landlord gave me a high-five last week. Awesome!
• Many more Tokyo trips and debauchery.
• Got to travel to Iwakuni for work. Thus far I've been to Misawa, Sasebo, Iwakuni, Yokosuka, Yokota, Atsugi and Zama... 7 of the bases in Japan. I've gotten to see a lot of the country.
• Also went to Hakuba/Hakone several times during the winter so boyfriend and friends could ski/snowboard and so that I could make snowmen and get thai massages and drink wine.

I PROMISE to update more later. Next on my list of things to write on here is my list of foods that I miss from the states. It's a doozy, be prepared to go out and eat something after the next post.

Love y'all,

Megs

 

 

 

Playing around in the car in the middle of bumper to bumper traffic. 

Ended up stuck in the same spot for 45 minutes. Excuse the sketch hair, I had just taken my french braid out.

 

It's a Beautiful Day...

Morning All! 

Yes, I'm still being a slacker and not blogging away like I intended on doing. It's difficult finding down time, let alone finding down time that I  would like to use up by typing online. There's so much I want to share but just never seem to get around to putting it all down on the internets. So again, I apologize. ("Lord, I apologize. And bless the Pygmies down in New Guinea.") To keep you entertained for a bit, he's a fabulous Christmas letter that boyfriend and I received in the mail in Japan over the holidays. (Please note: I took out the cell phone #, email address, and Facebook page so that people wouldn't call and harass this funny gentleman. But if he would like credit for his letter, I would be happy to oblige.) 

Happy February everyone! 

xoxo Megs

Ain't No Sunshine When She's Gone...

Seriously!?

How on God's Green Earth has it been almost 6 months since my last post. UGH. I feel like scum on the bottom of a frog that lives in my brother's toilet. Here's a synopsis of what's happened since then:

• Ajax left for a few months and came back (crazy job)
• I got a promotion at work (not sure if I already told y'all that)
• Made more friends (who didn't see that coming)
• Discovered more fabulous bars and restaurants (yeah, I'm predictable)
• Had my birthday
• Had A's bday
• Partied amazingly hard in Tokyo
• Partied amazingly hard in Tokyo on HALLOWEEN (words cannot express!)
• Ajax's parents visited for two weeks (so much fun)
• Thanksgiving shananigans at mi casa
• Christmas events on-base and off-base
• Bachelorette party in Tokyo
• Got my hurr did
• Going back to US for 2 weeks to see fam and friends

OKay, enough for one day. Don't want to stress my poor lil blonde brain! It's thai food night. Got to get mentally prepared!

xoxo

Megs

I Wouldn't Want to Have it Any Other Way...

I'm addicted and I just can't get enough... of Japan.

So... you may or may not have noticed my penchant for lists. I love them. They keep me organized, help me put things in order, and generally keep me happy because I know what is left to do/buy/ignore. I thought about starting this particular collection of words a while back but I didn't think I could make a good sized list out of it. Well, now that I'm a seasoned veteran of Japan (a whole 6 months! What! What!) I feel competent enough to put together a reasonably decent list. Hrm, "decent" may not be a good word for this list... maybe I should just stick with calling it a "list" with not other descriptive terms. Anyhoodle, thar she blows.

Things Japan has taught me/ What I've learned since I moved here:

1. You can fit much, much more than you think you can into a 5foot tall fridge. (No I'm not talking about me climbing in it... this time) All I'm trying to say is that when you have to compact your life a bit, it's easier to go ahead and either work around it (i.e stock the pantry better) or just deal without (do I really need two jars of mayo?) than to wine and moan and get nothing settled. 

2. If you are dumb enough to reply with "Mr. Roboto" to a  Japanese person who just says "Domo Arigatou" they will not laugh. They will probably shun you and then talk smack about you later because you are a dumb dumb gaijin. I watched in terror as some dumb dumb kid said this to a sweet old lady and she seriously just huffed and turned and walked away.

3. Toilet seats can and should be heated. I don't feel like this one needs any additional explaining.

4. There are piss-poor drivers in EVERY country, in every area, and in every city. Bad drivers are not specific to one race, culture, or religion. The jury is still out on gender differences. Japan has just as many buttheads on the interstate-type-thing as North Florida. Which leads me to my next point:

5. Roombas will pick up an entire bag of spilled rice if you give it long enough.

6. If you want to dry something in the Japanese dryer, you better only put 2 things in it. Those two things better not be denim. It will take forever. And it will take longer if you're in a hurry to rush out the door in an outfit that's currently in the dryer. (It's like watching water boil.) You're better off hanging things out to dry. Which involves not only hanging all your stuff up outside but also involves watching the weather to make sure you don't come home to even soggier clothes than when you left in the morning.

7.  I really hate the cold. Yes, I do understand that I've always said this... but now that I've lived somewhere that gets legitimately cold in the winter, I can OFFICIALLY say that the cold and I do not get along one single bit. 

8. Hurricanes and typhoons are the same thing. (Wait, I may have forgotten that I learned that in middle school... meh.) The only difference between the two weather thingys is the hemisphere they are located in (I think). Also, hurricanes go from Category 1 to Cat 5+. Typhoons go from 5 on down to 1. It's backwards... much like many other Japan things.

9.  The best pick-up line to make new Japanese friends is "Do you all want me to take your picture?" The girls travel in packs just like US girls... and they always want pics taken.

10.  Driving on the left side of the road is way easy. Now, I don't recommend you go out and try this in the US. For one, you will probably get a major ticket if not carted away by the po-po because they think you're whacked out of your mind. But driving was one of the easiest things to adjust to over here. I drive on the right side of the car on the left side of the road. I dig it. When I went back to the US for 2 weeks after the earthquake... I was afraid to drive on the side of the road I learned how to drive on. Weird.

11. If you go to unlock the house with your key... you turn the key the opposite direction that you would in the US (for most homes). I turn the key clockwise to unlock the door and counter-clockwise to lock it. Try it on your own door, you'll see how difficult it is to try and master.

12. No matter how amazing you were at recycling back home in the states (not saying I was... I was horrible at it), you will not be good enough for Japan standards. When I say they attempt to recycle everything, rest assured that I mean EVERYTHING, not just the bottles, cans, and paper. You have to take each of those categories and divide it up multiple times. Glass or plastic bottles? Are the plastic bottles PET? Paper? Is it cardboard, printed on office paper, or a paper milk carton? Cans? Well you have to take the paper off of them which will obviously go in one of the 82 paper categories. Don't even get me started on non-PET bottle plastics. Holy hell. I'm making a great effort though. My favorite days are Monday and Thursday... burnables days. Stuff that I cant fit into any other category goes away on this day. You'd be surprised at how much doesn't fit into any of the other 9,000 categories. 

13.  I said I would never get Twitter. Now I'm a full-blown twit. I said I didn't need Skype. It's always up on my MacBook. Never thought I would write a blog, but I'm doing that now too. Thing is... when you're away from the people you love so much, you do random things to keep in contact with them. Some of my friends aren't on Facebook or Gchat... so I got Skype to instant message them. I got the Twitter because I could follow things from back home AND get all the Japan earthquake, nuclear plant, typhoon, tsunami, and volcano warnings ASAP.  I blog so people know what I'm doing. I really want my friends and family back home to know I'm doing better than okay and that I miss them on a regular basis. And despite how much fun I do have pretty regularly, I still do hold down a full-time job, work out 5 days a week, teach conversational English to two students, try and study my Japanese,  and explore Japan. Moral of the story: I miss my peeps. You all should visit. It's worth it.

14. I never want to live anywhere with crows again. You laugh? You try living with these devils. Try taking out the garbage while they give you the stink eye from a fence post 8 feet away. They can and do attack. Ask the kid who stuck tree branches in his bike helmet because his friend got attacked while riding his bicycle one day... *shudder*

15. There is no rhyme or reason to Japan fashion. EVERYTHING goes. I can walk out of the house in thigh high socks, combat boots, a men's tee shirt, volleyball shorts, a beret, and 55 watches on my wrist/arm... totally kosher. I could also walk out in a full ladies suit and no one would give me a second glance. The Harajuku girls are just like in the videos. No holds barred fashion. I use the term "fashion" very loosely because 1) I am a horrible  judge of it and 2) I don't even know what it really is. But whatever "it" is... "it" is accepted fully in Japan. I love this place. 

Well, that's my list for now. I'm sure it will need to be updated soon. I'm continuously learning things here... not only about Japan and it's people but about myself too (that's pretty deep for a Tuesday night blog lol). 

Hasta Luego!

xxoo

Megs

Please Don't Stop the Music...

CAUTION: For the next 2 to 30 minutes (depending on how fast you read) I will be bragging about my luck and expertise in the music arena. Not playing music, I’ll leave that to the talented people, but my knack for getting into, getting backstage, getting free stuff at, and other participatory concert stuff. My shenanigans are known all around Monticello the world. This post is full of name-dropping and awesome music memories. If you don’t want to hear about how awesome I am… this particular blog post is not for you.

Me being awesome. In case you needed a visual.

I’m not exactly sure how many of you all actually know me… but if you’ve barely met me for 5 minutes, you know how the first thing I ask people is “Know of any good concerts to go to coming up?” (Okay, the actual first thing I typically ask is “Do you have any beer in the fridge?” or “How old do you think I am?” or “What’s your favorite dirty word in Japanese?”) Whatever, I usually get around to asking about music at some point during my meeting with a new person.

Seriously, I may have a concert addiction. (An addiction I apparently share with Emo kids. UGH) I have been to nearly 120 separate concerts, starting from the time I was about 11 or 12 years old. I have seen legends like Santana (YOINKS!) and BB King (hilarious guy) and Bob Dylan (meh…). Also in my repertoire of performances seen are Bon Jovi (“Bon Jovi ball sweat is like angel tears”- not me), Dave Matthews Band (J) and the Twisted Sister Tribute Band (better than the original and way more makeup).  Lest you think that I have a rock-oriented brain… my music preference extend way past those of any one particular genre. Keith Urban (*swoon*) and Kenny Chesney (turbo energetic) are two of my favorite country live-music peeps, as is Gary Allen (more swoon). I’ve gotten drumsticks, tee-shirts, backstage passes, set lists, tickets, guitar picks (over 50 collected- WOOT!), handshakes, been on tour buses, and was even given a phone number by Chris Cagle’s guitarist. I'm a boss.

Another boss

This kind of thing doesn’t happen because I am some crazed celebrity musician stalker. I genuinely enjoy concerts, music, and talent. Celebrities don’t make me all weak at the knees and nervous and scared. I think that might be why I get backstage a lot (that and because I win things CONSTANTLY). Personally, I think it’s easy to hang out with me. Musicians don’t want people freaking out and screaming about how amazing they are… well, they might, but that kind of reaction doesn’t float my boat. Also, I’m nice. I talk to people and try and help out. The guitarist for Cagle (I won’t name names) gave me his number because I offered to help him pass out flyers for the concert, I thought he was some college kid trying not to die in the heat while giving out the brochures about the show. Turns out that he wasn’t. And my girlfriend, Carolyn, and I ended up on the tour bus hanging out and eating pizza with the band, Chris, and the crew. Fun, right?

Been to concerts at fairgrounds, opera houses, bars, clubs, stadiums, Churchill Downs, civic centers, patios, and basements. These venues have been located in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Miami (not Florida), Mexico, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Tennessee… and now Japan. I recently attended my first Japan concert (OMG right?!) I know what you all are thinking… “Oh that crazy Megan, she gets herself into so many predicaments, I can’t wait to hear about this.” Alas, my friends, there are no crazy stories about this concert. Unless you call going to Tokyo, to see a TALLAHASSEE band, crazy! Or unless you think that meeting the 5 bands in a restaurant and eating with them is crazy. Or unless you think getting a free backstage pass and ticket, that would have normally cost $100, is crazy. Also, if you think spending the night in a “hotel” room the size of an office cubicle (a small one) is crazy. And especially if you think that partying for the rest of the night along with your 10 new Japanese friends and missing your train home is crazy… in that case, yes, this is a crazy concert story. Well dang, I guess I blew all the surprises in the story. But as is usually the case with my blogging, I’ll give to the quick run-down of what had happened.

How I view myself lately

I found out there was a concert in Tokyo. This concert happened to be with American bands (and one Swedish band, I think). Went to Tokyo to spend the day and later attend concert. Went to lunch. Listened in on American tourist convos at Freshness Burger. At one point one of the tourists said something hilarious and I laughed, spraying my drink all over my burger. I was busted. They knew I was eavesdropping and asked me if I spoke English. My response: “Si!” Lol. Yes, yes I did say that. They laughed, I laughed, Japanese people scowled. They asked if I lived in the area or if I was visiting. Living. I asked the same. Visiting. They asked where I was from. Tallahassee, FL. I asked them. Tallahassee, FL.

WTF? Yes, they were the bands playing that night. I ended up joining them the rest of the afternoon. The amazing bands included, Mayday Parade, the Summer Set, Anarbor and With the Punches.  They were so awesome. I helped them practice Japanese. Took pics of the guys with their adoring fans. Played rock paper scissors and participated in all sorts of non-raunchy band fun. It was a blast. Got a pass into the show. Which I never expected them to do… okay, I did expect it because I am awesome and I’m from the same freaking town as the headlining act. And I could kind-of-sort-of-pretend-to-maybe-partially translate. Hell, they didn’t know how much Japanese (I don’t) speak. But everyone was turbo nice (with the exception of one of the foreign guys who was creepy).

So the performances were amazing. I didn’t see the first 2 groups because I was outside the area conversatin’ with the locals and the Mayday guys. Heck, I was so happy I would have talked to a brick wall with a face drawn on it in chalk. (Actually, I may have.) But this isn’t a “judge Megan” story… so I shall continue on. After concerts were over, stuck around  canoodling and hanging with the awesome new Japanese lady friends (whom I met because I asked if they wanted me to take a picture-see, niceness- and they wanted one with me too. They really only spoke Japanese, but finally communicated in the universal language by asking me “Facebook?” So now we’re all facebook BFFs).  

No, this picture has nothing to do with this story. 

But I bought a flamingo for my office at work and wanted to show people. 

His name is Fred. His name is Fred because I like alliteration. 

We were there forever. I realized that it was 11:30pm. Oops. The shows started at 6pm. I was there almost 7 hours at that point. Can I make the train home? Nope. Can I make the train to a populated area with hotels? Yup. So off I went with my new buddies. We got into Shibuya and decided to hit up one more club. It was fabulous. Do I remember the name? No. Could I find it again? Not without assistance. We stayed there for another 2 hours and then we called it a night. They all lived in the area so they could go home but I needed a hotel type place. I was taken to this awesome little place called Moopi (?).  

My new posse. We rock.

Moopi is a manga comics place for dorks and for people who miss the train and for people who want to take a nap during lunch break. It was 1200Y ($15ish) for 8 hours at Moopi, which included your own personal computer, TV, and cubicle with a locking door. The floor was made out of pleather couch material so you could pass out in comfort. If you felt like they hadn’t cleaned it well enough, they provided antibacterial wipes to make you more comfortable. You could take a shower. Buy the soap and rent a towel (shower cost: 100Y- $1.25USD). You could buy Ramen to eat. You could chillax in your cubby and eat and watch TV and surf the net and sleep and completely not care about missing the train. That’s what I did. 

My cubicle in Moopi- no I didn't make up the name.

When the girls had gotten me checked into Moopi, they headed off to their houses. I took my shower and thought about how amazing life was. I Facebooked with a couple of my US people because they just had to know about my night. 8 hours later… after being too excited to sleep a full night, I explored Tokyo a bit more and then headed home with a big shit-eating grin on my face. Life was good.

That’s my 1^st-concert-in-Japan-awesomeness story. I’d say more, but just can’t risk making you any more jealous than you already should be.

I love you guys!

Megs