Starting over with everything..

I lived and worked in Japan for a long time and have come back in a time of economic and ever present family drama to try and gain a foothold in my so-called home country. Armed with nothing but dog fur, a crappy car, a laptop that hates me, I try to see how far I can get.

Sunday, December 17, 2006

A Christmas story


I love you all. Here is a Christmas story to get you in the spirit

T'was the night before Christmas

and all through la casa
Not a creature was stirring,

only the masa.

Mama making tamales con mucho cuidado
In hopes old Santa would feel obligado
To bring all the hijos, both buenos y malos
A nice batch of dulces and other regalos
Mis hermanos and I went to sleep in our camas Some in calsones, some in piyamas
Cuando out in the yard I heard un gran grito That I jumped to my feet like a frightened cabrito
And who in the world do you think que era?
El mero mero with his venados estaban afuera
Santa Claus in a sleigh with a big sombrero
Came dashing along like a little bombero
I watched as they came, and this little fat hombre
Was shouting and whistling, and calling by nombre
"Ay PEPE, AY JESSE, AY CUCA, AY BETO
AY PANCHO, AY CHATO, CHUY Y NETO!"
Then standing straight up, with his hands on his pecho,
He flew to the top of our very own techo
With his round little belly like a bowl of jalea
He struggled to squeeze down our old chimenea
Then huffing and puffing, and a little cansado
He picked up a bag that looked so pesado
He filled all the stockings with lovely regalos
For none of the hijos had been very malos
Then chuckling aloud, seeming very contento
He turned like a flash and was gone like the viento
As I heard him exclaim and this is verdad,
"MERRY CHRISTMAS A TODOS! FELIZ NAVIDAD!"

Tuesday, December 12, 2006

Chick flicks

I'm obviously spending too much time at home. I was sick yesterday and spent the greater portion of the day sleeping. I slept so much I was a walking zombie around my house last night until I saw a show that reviewed the 50 best chick flicks of all time. Most I agreed with but I think a true chick flick list reflects the chick flick watcher's experience (ratio, how many times watched : how much you cry, even when you know what will happen) or something like that. 50 is too big so, I'm gonna only do 20 or so. Feel free to agree or disagree.



20. Waiting to Exhale
*Fine men and we learned how to burn a car and look fab while doing it.
19. Amelie (France)
*Awkward, strange and very cute, everything love should be.
18. Like Water for Chocolate (Mexico)
*Mexico, evil family members, love and food with magical powers, it's hot!
17. Must Love Dogs
*Sooo, gonna be my life in the future, hopefully I'll get to meet John Cusack.
16. Whale Rider (New Zealand)
*Such a powerful film for all girls to watch, I cry everytime she gives the speech.
15. Love Actually (UK)
*This movie is good on so many levels I don't know what to say. I love HG's crab dance.
14. Wedding Planner
* I hate J-Lo. Everyone knows this, but my love knows no bounds for Matthew McConaughey.
13. My Best Friend's Wedding.
*Ever gal's nightmare come true. What to do when your back-up marries and you will be left alone to roam the earth with cats?
12. Dirty Dancing
*"Nobody puts baby in the corner." Nuf said.
11.My Big Fat Greek Wedding
*Change the names to Garcia or Lopez and add some Catholicism and Spanishyou have a Big Fat Mexican Wedding.
10.The Notebook
*Such a sexy and endearing story. I cried so much I almost used a whole tissue box.
9.Romeo and Juliette
*I bought the soundtrack and Complete works of William Shakespear after I saw it. Nerdy, yes, but I don't mind. Sadly lost the CD and used the book to decorate.
8. The Lake House
*Keanu and Sandra? Sexy times 1,000! I cried harder the second time, proving it's chick flick power.
7.Sleepless in Seattle
*Gotta give the props to my town. Okay, technically not my town, but I've been to almost all the places in the movie, more than a few times. And I can quote nearly the entire movie.
6.Top Gun
*Tom Cruise in dress whites? This is not a guy's movie. I have a 8X10 Bk/Wh glossy.
5.Say Anything
*Lloyd Dobler is so creepy and romantic. Reminds me of so many guys I know. *sigh*
4.Sixteen Candles
*If only we could all the a guy to get our undies back.
3.Practical Magic
*I love this movie because it's so damn cute and I love Sandra Bullock and even Ms Kidman.
2.Bridget Jones' Diary(UK)
*She is every woman.
1.Pretty Woman
*This movie made it okay to have 10 second fantasies of running away and becoming a prostitute in Hollywood.


Monday, December 11, 2006

Wonders never cease

Had a sick day today and as my punishment there is nothing but poo on TV. As I've commented before, you can find some amusing things on Japanese TV at times. And if there is nothing on TV like today, you'll actually watch it. The show I watched had Japanese celebrities run away from Carl Lewis for a half an hour. You know, Carl Lewis, one of the fastest men of the world at one time, winner of 10 Olympic medals (9 Gold) 10 World Championships (8 Gold). And as entertainment he chases normal Japanese people at a very slow pace, while the Japanese people run away at full speed, screaming from the fast black man. Jesus. I was mildly entertained after he had caught everyone and they played God Bless America in the background. I can't wait to come home. 9 days, 9 long days...

Wednesday, December 06, 2006

A little place I like to call Jamexica

I am my own island. I can be content in my home about 90% all at times. My house in Japan (Ja) where a mexicana (mex) american (ica) lives. Jamexica. I love mostly everything when I'm in my little house, except the fact that it isn't insulated and I don't have an electric plug in my toilet and therefore cannot get an electric toilet seat. Heaven has heated toilet seats, lemme tell you. That's living. Ahem, anyway...

Outside of my home is when I'm highly irritable and curse the country and the people that live here (incompetent teachers who show up 30 mins late for class and leave after 10 mins to help prepare lunch and say you're gonna come back, but then don't come back and in turn leave you with a huge project and ungrateful little messy kids; people who can't drive because obviously if I'm on a main street and am turning right onto a side street which you are on, that gives you who is waiting oh-so-ever impatiently to cut me off and turn right onto the main street; teachers who say they are busy, when they give you all their work to do and they aren't doing one fucking thing; etc...). I need a vacation and I need it now. Why oh why didn't I call in sick today?

Tuesday, December 05, 2006

Never again


I came home for lunch today and did some menial chores around the house. Hang laundry before it molds in the washer, check. Fold dry clothes, check. Turn on heater, check. Start lunch, check. Eat half healthy, check. Watch tv, check. Throw trash out, check. Sit down and watch with full attention, check, check. Normally there is a crap-o-rama fest at lunchtime on TV, but today they had one of those survivor shows, you know, I shouldn't be alive or something. They had this guy who got stuck to the step he was stepping off of when he was doing a solo free style dive with some buddies. He stayed upside down for more than 40 mins. That's not why I'm telling this story. I am telling this story to say how sick I felt watching people dive. They showed normal dives over and over. Climbing out on a tiny step, hanging on to nothing but a wing strut, it's facking crazy. And I did it twice!!! What the hell was I thinking? No wonder my mom got so mad after I told her what I did. I didn't go on a free style dive, but I did do a static dive (alone with your parachute attached to a hook inside the plane, when the parachute goes taut the static line pulls your parachute out for you and releases you. Did I mention you are free falling and have let go the the strut to make the line go taut?) Yea, it's crazy. I distinctly remember being scared out of my mind jumping 6 feet down during training. How the hell did I climb out of a moving plane and drop 3,500 feet? BY MYSELF, TWICE. Man, seeing jumping from the jumpers view makes me think, wow, that's freakin' awesome and man, what I won't do after I've paid to do it. I'm glad I go senseless and do crazy things once in a while. I hope I do that for the rest of my life.

Have you ever...

bought something for someone because that was the special thing they liked and when they didn't show up, eat it in defiance? I eat you ice cream, as a rebel act. Ha!