It Ain't the Boogeyman

I went to bed yesterday past one, and was rudely awaken four hours later. That's pretty rare for me - to wake up in the middle of the night. Not even a full bladder can do that. Well, except for the couple of times when the intestines threatened to pull the plug to flush out some foul food I downed in the evening.

I tried to clear the groggy mind and listened intently, half-expecting the boogeyman to emerge from under the bed, going "Boo!",

Outside, the wind was howling. It sounded like waves hitting the shore, in a rhythmic oscillation.


Ah, so that was it. The wind.

I'm no scaredy cat. I watch horror films at night all by myself; with the lights off and taking cover under the blanket. But I swear the wind was more than creepy. In fact, it was as scary as the typhoon that hit Kanto last summer, if not, worse. Well, minus the heavy downpour, though.

From where I was lying, I could see the full moon shining, almost sinisterly as if it was responsible for summoning the terrible wind.

I prayed hard that the apartment will hold on tight enough; I didn't want to end up being blown to the land of Oz. And if I did, I just hoped that the witch's pair of silver shoes are big enough to fit my feet...

But more than anything else, I hoped that my laundry didn't fly away...

Damn! Laundry!

I forced myself to get up from the bed to bring in the laundry. It was then that I realized that the room's temperature was a few degrees distinctively lower than the cozy environment under the futon. It was worse when I opened the balcony door. The wind took the form of a beast that immediately pounced on me. I recoiled from the sheer cold, then once again picked up the courage and brought in the laundry I'd left outside in the morning to dry. Dumping everything on the mat, I made sure to lock the door behind me before retreating to my refuge under the thick blankets once more.

The time was 4.40am. Outside, the wind howled yet stronger.

I've gotta get more rest.

夜ら遅く、恐れ入ります

夜ら遅く、つうか…
朝早く…

時間は４時20分、
風がビュービューと吹いている
それに起こされたのか

眠りに戻ろうとしたが、
なぜか頭がさっぱりして、
もはや完全に起動された状態のよう

「風怖い。眠れない。-_-"」
とりあえず、メールを送ってみた
決して起こすつもりはなかった
こんな時間、
返事してくれなくても、
まったく気にしなかった

が…
一分後、電話がかかってきた
まさか…

「へっ！寝なさい！寝なさい！」
慌てた

「ううん、いいよ。どうせもう眠れないから」
起こされるとは思わなかった
俺、ひどいなぁ

まあ、せっかくだから、
無駄話の相手をしてもらった
学校のことを、
引越しのことを
その外ははっきりした記憶がない…

「あぁ～充電したばかりなのに…
「電源もう切れそうよ」
「うん、そろそろ切ろう」
「もう少し寝ようね」
ようやく電話を切った

再び眠気が来て、
時間は６時

The Day It Snowed in Tokyo

Something really cool happened this morning - it snowed!

Oh, come on. Every poor guy has the right to feel excited at his first sight of snow. To point at him and laugh, "Hah, so it snowed, eh? Big deal!" is no less cruel than explaining to a delighted kid who's unwrapping his Christmas gift, that the present did not come from Santa. People who do that are plain spoilsports.

But I digressed.

Okay, it snowed. Yes, snowed. S-N-O-W-E-D!

There has been more than a few false alarms last week when the weather forecast predicted sleet, and snow on a few occasions. It was disappointing when it turned out to be just rain. So, when yesterday evening's weather forecast predicted sleet, I didn't want to keep my hopes high.

But then...

I received an message from a friend on the cellphone this morning at 7.36am (See? I'm writing down the exact details because this is history in making. Heck, it's my first sight of snow.)

"It's finally snowing," it read.

Still half asleep, I read the message twice.

Okay, so it's snowing in Yokohama, eh? Lucky girl. But shit, I'm in Tokyo.

Anyway, I shot up and sprang to the window. Everything outside was covered in a white sheet of dust, as if some confectioner in the heavens was sprinkling icing on everything. It took longer than a few moments before reality eventually sank in.

It's snow, dude!

No kidding but I really did a little war dance, "Ohmygodthiscantbetrueitreallyissnowing."

Then feeling little suffocated from all the excitement, I took a few deep breaths.

Ohmygoditreallyissnowingwhatshouldido?

Pacing around in the room, I tried to calm down.

Ohmygodihavetogooutnownownow!

Spread some magarine over a piece of bread, gulped (yes, gulped) it down in two munches while changing, packed my backpack, slung the camera bag over the shoulder and left for the university. I was 30 minutes early but hell, I didn't want to miss the snow.

You bet it was cool. The whole wood deck in front of the main building was covered with snow.

And although it only started snowing one or two hours ago, a considerable amount of snow had collected.

Sneaking out from the classroom after leaving my stuff there, I took a walk around the campus. Students were arriving for classes. Mostly sombre, with that damn-why-does-it-have-to-snow-at-this-hour look on their faces. Well, some people can be such wet blankets, can't they?

Putting on the hood, I didn't bother to use the umbrella. I was probably grinning like the Cheshire Cat because a few people stared at me, wondering if I had a loose bolt somewhere in between my ears.

Well, who cares? It's snowing! Whee!

In the end, I skipped almost half of the calculus lesson, wandering in winter wonderland before returning to the class. And when I came out of the class again 40 minutes later, it has turned into rain.

The sleet continued till slight past noon. A mixture of rain and snow - pretty funky! Then, the rain eventually took over completely.

Until now, the excitement isn't totally over yet. This is the end of my second year in Tokyo. It was very disappointing last year because it didn't snow. But now, all the sufferings in this cold winter has finally paid off. The snow made everything worthwhile - the astronomical bill for using the heater unsparingly and the frostbites from cycling in the cold.

Oh god, I can't wait for it to snow again!

At least just one more time, pretty, pretty puh-lease?

誕生日の君へ

「お久しぶり！」

「うん、元気？」

いかに几帳面な挨拶。
そして、あの一瞬の躊躇。

視線をそらし、「うん」と。

変わったね。
染めた髪（「ずいぶん前染めたもん」）
伸びた背中（「あたし成長してるもん」）
それよりも、
あの違う雰囲気、
あの違和感。

確かに、久しぶり。
この前、
何通のメールも送ったが、
ぜんぜん音沙汰もない。
聞いたら、帰国してるそう。

まあ、いい。
どうせ俺はもはや君に願いを持つ立場じゃない。
「後戻りしよう」という願い、
「せめて友達にしてくれ」という願い。

それにしても、
「誕生日おめでとう。」

（平成20年1月5日）

Kyoto

(Kiyomizu-dera, Kyoto)

43mm F/2.8 1/200 ISO200
Canon EOS Kiss Digitial X
Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di II

I'm glad that I got the 4GB compact flash. With a capacity of storing up to 400 RAW files, I had nothing to worry about storage space.

Spent the first five days of my winter holidays in Kansai. Of the four places I visited, Osaka - or strictly speaking, Umeda, which was basically where I hanged out - was the lousiest, and Kyoto was the best. Nara has magnificent otera's (temples) but I just hope they can supply toilet paper in their otearai's (toilets); Kobe was a okay, probably a little better than Yokohama. But at the end of the day, I'd say I still prefer Tokyo more.

Still, I need to pay Kyoto another visit. One day was definitely not enough to cover all the places that I planned to go.

Firstly, taking the wrong bus took me all the way to Fushimi-inari Shrine, which was in the opposite direction from the Golden Pavilion (Kinkaku-ji), where I intended to head to. Not that it was a lousy place, but I knew I wouldn't have time for all the places; intended to only check out three of the famous temples (Kiyomizu-dera, Kinkaku-ji and Ginkaku-ji).

But, oh well...

I got lost on the hill, trying to find my way out from the torii maze. And when I eventually came out from it, it was already past noon.

Unfurling the map I received from the not-so-friendly receptionist at the information counter earlier in the station, I examined and re-examined and re-re-examined it, before I decided that the closest place to visit next would be Kiyomizu-dera.

Last year in the multi-cultural communication class, we were required to do a presentation on our country. I remember talking about Penang's Kek Lok Si - it's fusion of Chinese, Burmese and Thai architectures, the commanding view from the top of the hill... If you've been to Kek Lok Si, think of a place 10 times better than that; that's Kiyomizudera.

Like Kek Lok Si, Kiyomizudera is built on a hill. The street that leads to the temple is lined up with omiyage shops. Feeling hungry? Don't be shy. Just step into a shop for some free sampling. Well, that was what I did on my way down from the temple; didn't have "lunch" till 4pm.

After about 15 minutes of walking, you'll find yourself at the very entrance of the temple, staring up at the gate, dumbstruck by the mere magnificence and the grand scale of the place. You'll have to pay a small fee to enter the temple. But, pst, there is another way. Instead of entering from the main entrance like everyone does, turn right before the stairs. You'll be heading in the opposite direction as everyone but that should save you a few bucks. That is, if you're fine with cheating in - of all places - a temple, and get cursed with a wart in the ass for all you know.

It takes more than a couple of hours to walk around the place. It's big, consisting of not just one but a few temples and shrines. I was there too late for the autumn leaves. A few weeks earlier and the view would have been magnificent. So is it during the cherry blossom season.

And so, I spent the rest of my afternoon there at Kiyomizu-dera. After filling up my stomach with the free samples, it was already too late for Kinkaku-ji. Ah well, I'll just need to find time to come back to Kansai for a second time. When I do, I'll allocate more time for Kyoto rather than wasting my time in crappy places like Umeda.

中国のおばさんたちを、尊敬するわ！

機械リテラシーという授業での電子回路の作業中…

「あぁ～これいっぱい作れば、PSPができるんだ！」

「中国のおばさんたちは毎日こうやって、PSPを作ってくれるんだ。」

「そうそう、偉いね！俺、尊敬するわ！」

俺、ワーカホリックじゃない

夕食は講師室でお弁当を食べてた。

教室長は部屋に入ってきた。

「あれ？ヨー君はもう授業が終わったんじゃないですか？」

「そうですよ。でも、帰る前に、回診電話をしたいです。」

「おっ、ありがとう！」

あれ？ありがとう？

仕事の義務を果たすぐらいで、
上司が「ありがとう」と言ってくれるなんて・・・
うぁ～

Tamagawa

Less than 2km away from where I live, is a river that flows into Tokyo Bay, Tamagawa (多摩川). The river is also the border between Tokyo and Kanagawa Prefecture. Crossing the river, heading towards the south will take you to Yokohama; follow the river downstream for about 10km and you'll come to Haneda airport in Tokyo Bay.

Whereas, somewhere upstream, a place called Futago Tamagawa (二子多摩川), is a famous spot for BBQ. Come weekend mornings and you can see teenagers gathering on the Kanagawa-side bank (but not on the opposite bank), enjoying BBQ. Not because Tokyo people don't like BBQ; but it's illegal to BBQ on the bank of the river on the Tokyo side.

Also, on the Kanagawa side, are the numerous practice grounds for golf. You see, golf is probably the third most popular sport, after baseball and soccer. But then, there just ain't enough flat land in Japan to cater for their "golfing needs". So you can often see small patches of lands, fenced up with green nets up to a height of about 4 storeys, being used to practise golf. In fact, it is not unusual even to find a practice ground in the middle of a housing estate; there's one nearby.

Now, back to Tamagawa. While there're golf practice grounds on the Kanagawa bank, on the opposite bank are baseball fields belonging to the schools in the area. (See what I meant about baseball being the most popular sport?) On weekend afternoons, if weather permits, the fields along the bank will teem with people from all walks of life.

Ojisan's fishing by the river, high school boys playing baseball (duh), obasan's jogging on the cycling course, kids taking turns riding the wagon down the slope, parents flying kites with their children, pets being taken out for a walk... And if you know where to look, you'll see couples hiding behind bushes (making out?)

Riverbanks as recreational spots and evening hang-outs - quite a common sight in Japan, but in Malaysia? Inconceivable. Insane.

Feigning a Smile

Still couldn't get myself to sleep.
Got out of the bed again.
This time, I did a stupid test.

Setting the cellphone to stopwatch mode,
I started timing myself.
It took less than 40 seconds
Till the first teardrop.
Almost effortless.

Then, looking at myself in the mirror,
I tried to get a convincing smile within 40 seconds.
But I couldn't even feign one.

Keep Me Warm

Tired,
But, I just can't get myself to sleep.
Crawling out from under the blanket,
I switch on the heater,
And sit next to it,
Hugging the legs close to the chest,
Resting the chin on the knees.

Thank you my loyal companion,
You keep me warm during cold nights,
Though not from within, alas.
Perhaps a sip of booze will do.

The stomach's grumbling,
Demanding for the dinner it's deprived of.
Reaching into the kitchen cabinet,
Just to grab anything for a quick munch.
But, nothing.

I tug myself under the blanket once more,
And clear the head from sullen thoughts.
This time, I'll get myself to sleep.
No, I can't...

Yes, I must.