Good. Finally. The new Magnetic Fields album came out and life is as it should be. I'm really looking forward to hearing this:



Even though I saw this commercial on Japanese TV last week:



Ugh. As much as I love Stephen Merritt for the work he's done...a car commercial?!
Then again, those Volvos truly are the nicest wagons out there...

OK.
So, as of July the somethingth, I've been cleared for landing in this place:




Specifically, this place:




Somewhere around here:




Hanging out in some of these buildings:




Studying this:



Cuz I got aksepted to gradimate skool.

So let's pretend that I haven't lived in Japan for 200 years, and instead spend the summer bbq-ing and drinking beers.
Word.

For some reason...I cannot stop watching this.



I totally stole this from another website, and just wanted to share the love.

...should always be spent looking at Photoshop Phriday on http://www.somethingawful.com/




This is just a reminder.

I totally sewed that Pabst patch on myself. My fictional trailer park mamma would be so proud...

Hey now.
So, I've done it. It's done...I've gone and applied to graduate school. I didn't want to spread the rumor too quickly, though you probably already knew I was planning this. I was at work one day, playing Mega-Man Minesweeper on my cell phone when it struck me - I am nowhere close to where I want to be in life, and I need to evolve. What I then worked out in my head was my 10 year plan. I had never had one before, but now I'm old and have to start thinking in terms of the now plus few years. So anyway I kind of figured out what I want to do with my life and the first step is to get into this grad program in Seattle back at the UW, that is just perfect for me. It marries the advanced, specialized Japanese with a trade and the end result will be an Inter-Engineering MS in Technical Communication. Basically, there is the need for technically trained linguists to decipher the technically oriented communication between nations, in any number of fields. I'm thinking the computer enhanced education, and multi-media fields would be best for me, but it's all about the demand of the market. I think there will be a butt-load of work for me and that I'll find a decent niche somewhere in between Seattle and Japan (Part of my 10 year plan is to own a residence in Seattle...)
Anyway, there it is. So it has taken me a few months, but I have managed to get together my grad school application (which has involved writing essays, designing a course of study, laying out my educational and career objectives, gathering letters of reference, and sending for transcripts). The last step that I just finished up on was my GRE. I hadn't done math since high school, and wow did my brain not like studying that at first...but I stumble-fucked my way through it and now am the proud owner of highly mediocre scores on the GRE. I don't know my scores on the Analytic section (essay writing) but got a 550 on my Verbal and 660 on Quantitative (math), neither of which is below average, but not very high either. The total score possible for each section is 800...so there you go. That verbal section was a killer, and though I did much better on my practice tests, I got stuck with some crazy hard questions on the real test. Whatever, though...I think those scores are decent enough to get me into school. I hope. I won't know until March...do any of you have any pull at UW? (Ahem...Justin...?)
And that has taken up my last few months. But its over now and so I can relax a bit. The task of packing my life up is going to be insane, and brings up so many questions...when will I leave, where will I stay in Seattle, how will I get all of my shit over there, can I work at my job on a partial contract until I leave...there are nothing but more questions. However, that will come in time. All there is to do now is wait for them to accept me. I hope.
Oh yeah, Merry Jesus's Birthday and Happy New Year, and all of that. I spent the season watching South Park with Justin's broken ankle and studying geometry.
So it really is your last chance to come and visit Japan...it looks like I'm finally out of here, so if you've got the time and cash, bring it on. Seriously. Me and Tsuru miss you.



Ailin is 10 months old here.



Me, too.