Awesome!

Ok, so this morning I woke up when I wanted to! Once I've typed this I'm going to get dressed, then I'll go and have breakfast, then to the office to sort some things. Then I begin my busy, busy day.

Yeah, I spent most of yesterday planning on spending today just relaxing... But that's all changed now!

Ok, so basically, after typing my blog last night, I went into the living room to watch some Japanese TV. I watched some hilariously awful game show in which they had to do various random things... And I could never work out the rules. Then I watched some rubbish drama set in ancient Japan, where this woman was going around just beating up the bad guys and it was all set around that. The fight scenes were so terrible I cried with laughter. The sound effect when she punched someone was ridiculous and the sound was made just after the hit connected and the people she hit WAY overreacted. Yeah... I fell asleep partway through. The sofa's downstairs are so comfortable.

When I woke up, I went to the pub...

When I got there I saw were a load of Japanese interns and Mansell, one of the English teachers. I've talked to Mansell a few times, but not properly, so I went and sat myself next to him, (seeing as I knew nobody else) and we got chatting. Mansell is a very intelligent, interesting person. He's done a LOT with his life and is very well educated. It was great fun talking to him. I haven't had an actual intellectual conversation like that in a good long time, so it was awesome.
At some point we got onto the topic of the gaijin house (working holiday staff house). I've noticed from the moment I arrived that everyone just locks themselves away in their rooms every night and nobody communicates with anyone else.
When I was about to arrive here, I imagined that everyone, living so close together would be really close and do everything together. I was dreading this. Trying to worm my way into their little clique was going to be a nightmare. But there is no clique... There is no closeness. Everyone complains that they're so bored all the time because we're stuck up a mountain. But that's not the problem at all. Everyone's so bored because everyone spends all their free time in solitude and the only reason they enjoy going down to Shirakawa is because they do it with other people!

So! Faye's going to start making some changes around here. At the pub, James came over and joined in our discussion, so I told him what I think of the lack of community here and he agrees... I think. He doesn't have a choice! So, today we're going down to Shirakawa to buy cleaning supplies and some food. Then when we get back we (meaning me) are going to clean the kitchen and living room and make it somewhere really nice to live with eachother. Then Mansell is going to bring over some middle eastern food and scones (he'll make scones with his Japanese classes. He just loves middle eastern food because he's originally from South Africa) then we're going to invite everyone downstairs to the kitchen to try these lovely foods.
And from now on I'm going to try and make events. Not every day... Because apparently they used to do daily parties and everyone got bored of them. But maybe at birthdays and when a new person arrives and Christmas and New Year etc... Maybe one night a week we just watch a film together.
I'm going to go insane if I spend the next 10 months locked away in my room in forced solitude! That's not for me!!!



Seriously... I don't think I've ever felt so outgoing in my life! To actually change the way a whole house lives single handedly... But they need it, they really do!