I guess I have to keep writing in this thing, because I've been CHALLENGED by one John Clyde. Bring it.

Okay, so the reason I haven't written much in a while (yes, I'm always full of excuses) is because I am SO. DAMN. TIRED.
Not that I've been working hard. In fact, I feel like I spend the majority of my time sitting in front of Facebook while scratching myself.
No, I'm just tired because the other night, I decided that I was so above sleeping, and consequently stayed up till 5:30 on a work night. Sitting on facebook and scratching myself.

As a 23-year-old with her head up her ass, I regularly do things like this. I also tend to fall into prolonged states in which I'm so above cleaning up my shit, so above conserving electricity, and/or so above eating anything but fast food.
[note: it is scientifically proven that nine out of ten 23-year-olds have their heads up their asses. probably.]

However, there is one thing that I have done properly in the last month...
Liza and I signed the lease for our new apartment in Tokyo! We'll be moving in during the second week of September. And here it is:

yes, I can read this. Worship me.

Pros and Cons:

Pro: awesome location. A five minute walk from Nishi-Sugamo Station (subway), and a ten-minute walk from Itabashi Station (train). From there, it'll be 15 minutes to Shibuya, 9 minutes to Shinjuku, and 4 minutes to Ikebukuro and the Yamanote Line. We'll also have a bus stop one block from our place, and a fabulous ghetto-ass supermarket a short walk down the street.
Pro: decent rent. I'll be paying 60,500 yen before utilities. I'm currently paying 69,000 yen a month to live in Saitama and get made fun of by all my friends who live in Tokyo. I should have realized this sooner.
Pro: roof deck. We're on the 5th floor of a 6th floor building, and since the 6th is set back from the rest, there's a big open space on our floor. Did that make sense? Well, what this means to us is SUNLIGHT and SKY, which are two things that I haven't lived with in over a year. Here's the view from our front door:

"Look, Simba. Everything the light touches is our kingdom."

Pro: elevator. One of the apartments we checked out was a 4th-floor walkup, and all I could think of was the inevitable tumble to my death on some drunken evening. Not to mention I simply don't like exercise.

Pro: balcony access. My current bedroom window looks out onto a first-floor walkway. The only way to get to our "veranda" is to go through Liza's room. At our new place, both bedrooms will have their very own sliding-glass doors leading out to the balcony. Not much of a view (mostly sides of taller buildings), but at least I'll be able to get some fresh air and hang up my clothes more easily.
Pro: more bathroom privacy. Let's be real - nobody wants to do their biznass right off of the main hallway and behind a thin wooden door that has slats in it.

Con: space. A lot less of it. I'm especially concerned about closet space, since my current closet is twice as big and filled to capacity. But there isn't much we can do - 46 square meters is pretty reasonable as far as Tokyo apartments go.
Con: lack of furnishings. I'm talking a complete lack of furnishings. We are moving into three empty rooms, equipped with only a toilet, a bathtub, two sinks, and an electric range. We will have to provide for ourselves the following: washing machine, heater/airconditioner unit, refrigerator, microwave, toaster oven, a TV, stuff to sit on, stuff to sleep on, stuff to eat on, stuff to put other stuff on, stuff to clean other stuff with...you get the idea. Before you panic (MOM), keep in mind that 1. since Tokyo charges people to dispose of large items, people are giving stuff away all over the place, and 2. I feel like "the first apartment" is a rite-of-passage, and part of me is looking forward to roughing it for a while while we gradually pick up odds and ends. Besides, I've long ago adapted to living in a nest of my own filth, so my standard of living probably won't be an issue.
Con: noise leakage. Those slidey-doors separating the rooms are really thin. This I justify by telling myself that Liza sleeps like it's her job, I've got a massive stash of earplugs, we like the same music and TV shows, and our schedules are so different that we won't be in the apartment together all that often anyway.
Con: mystery. Because someone still lives there until the end of the month, we haven't actually seen the inside of the place, save for a few pictures. Hahahaha...errrrrrrcrossyourfingers.

So there you have it. The adventure starts September 9.
Lord help us.

the last morning of the second summer vacation in japan

you fall asleep on the yamanote line.
sitting by the window, head against the glass. watching the city fall away into the distance.
with headphones on. something instrumental.
while thinking about new friend alison, and that boy with brown eyes.
they're both going home today. back across the ocean.
but your home is here.
and your friends have names like marguerite and hidemitsu.
you live in japan.
and now you're walking that same walk home you've done for a year.
fighting against the morning and squinting against the sun.
dragging your feet and checking the new freckles on your nose.
(how many people here can see their own noses?)
exhausted, falling into bed. hopefully no earthquakes today.
this is your life as a 23-year-old. who would have thought.

I am hung over and trying to go back to sleep, but I can't because there is a goddamn parade going by my house. My god please go away.

Last night, me and Jen were at McDonalds and a big ol' cockroach scurried by us.
Someone told the staff, and hilarity soon ensued when not one, not two, but three men (two of whom where "Managers") were dispatched to the scene. Their primary tactic seemed to be chasing the cockroach around with a dustpan and a broom. When that didn't work, they stood around scratching their heads for a while and then took apart a seat in one of the booths.
Lots of flustered bowing to the customers.