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| Ashley & Mayuko - two women who did not sleep with me in Kobe. |
Think about it.... I'm in a new country meeting new people having totally wild and exciting times, and I still don't fully enjoy myself because I'm hung up on a girl from the U.S. while I live in Japan.
A 20-year retrospective makes realize just how much of a knob I was. But... as much of a knob I was, you readers know that after some 350 adventures here in this blog - I still managed to have a good time.
So... I am in a good mood today... I'm going to Kobe-shi (City of Kobe) for the JET renewer's conference - meaning I've decided to stay another year - and more importantly, the OBOE (Ohtawara Board of Education) wants to have me around for another year. Remember... it takes two to Tango. Three to form a Conga line, but only one to do the Twist. Dance analogy or one for life?
I ride my bicycle over to Ashley's smallish apartment in Nishisnasuno-machi (Town of Nishinasuno), and together we ride and park our bikes at an apartment building close to the Nishinasuno-eki (Nishinasuno train station) - which saves us a few coins from having to pay at a locked bike parking lot.
We ride the local JR (Japan Rail) train up north a couple of stops to Nasushiobara-eki (Nasushiobara train station) where we can then catch a Shinkansen (bullet train) south to Tokyo and then grab another bullet train west to Kobe-shi.
I'm goofy. I'm having a good time filming the Shinkansen's and the people in them. To be perfectly honest, I no longer recall where I borrowed the camera from nor what I did with the damn film. Sorry.
I try to amuse Ashley on the train, but as is usual with her, she quickly becomes bored and says I'm annoying her.
Fine... I decide not to talk to her in case I annoy her - childish I know, but what would you have me do?
Half-way through the ride - as we head west to Kobe-shi, we begin to talk to each other. We play jan-ken-pon (Rock = Guu; scissors = Choki; paper = Paa) to see who gets to 10 first - but with each win, the other gets a kiss. By the time we get to 10 - I think she won (though I'm sure I did too), we make it to Shin Kobe-eki in good spirits.
Her friend Mayuko is there to meet us. She's cute, maybe 22 and speaks English flawlessly. She takes us (via her car) to the JET hotel.
I'm rooming with two others: Matthew (lucky me) and Doug Maitland (also from our prefecture)! Lucky us - we all get along together!
But, only Matthew joins Ashley and Mayuko and I as we go to a local Mexican restaurant for dinner.
Matthew and I, of course, had already grabbed a few beers apiece before dinner and grab a few more after it.
After a pleasant meal, we head out to a little jazz bar. Although all we all want is a beer, we are served appetizers as we sit down and are expected to pay for them... that's weird, but I guess that's instead of a cover charge. The music is good, though.
Afterward, the four of us head back to our hotel (walking). I do not receive a kiss from Ashley, and she wouldn't even tell me her room number - which pisses me off again. How am I supposed to do anything with my girlfriend if she won't even tell me her room number?
Back at the hotel room, Matthew and Doug each get a real bed with a mattress. I'm the lucky bugger who gets the fold-out bed.
Somewhere looking for revenge,
Andrew Joseph
Today's blog title is sung by:The Chords: LIFECOULDBEADREAM
PS: Revenge on whom? The jazz bar that made us pay for appetizers? Ashley for no good night kiss et al? Mayuko for not falling for me right away? Matthew and Doug for giving me the fold-out bed? And where is Kristine South? Tune in tomorrow and find out.
PPS: Did you know: Just below the cockpit of the Enola Gay (the US plane that dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima) the words Sh-Boom were written? I did - back when I was maybe 10 and built a plastic model of the aircraft. I wasn't implying anything negative by the title - except that life COULD be a dream. Or maybe subconsciously I'm anticipating an atomic bomb to drop on my head.
