So, it seems that a lot has changed with the server-side software; that’s probably a good thing. I’d apologize for not adding anything to the blog for a few months, but it’s not like people read my ramblings.
So, in a nutshell, Japan happened. The care-free life I had in Australia has been completely flipped, and I’m now grinding out an existence here in the Land of the Rising Sun. I did promise to write about the things that have happened to me, so in the time I have before work tomorrow, I’ll elaborate here.
So, there was general chaos before I left late September 2018. It was a mad scramble to pack my stuff in boxes; with some help, we managed to get 34 boxes ready to be sent to Japan; I just needed to get over there first (no address = no delivery). And so, the final few weeks of Australia went by all too quickly.
I had my everything sorted out, and it was time to go. After a quick stop at Kuala Lumpur International Airport, I arrived in Narita. One thing that had changed was the Alien Registration Card system; it had been scrapped & replaced with the Residency Card system. The big difference was that you were processed at the airport itself, which is reasonable.
For about 3 weeks, I spent my time farting around in places near Yokohama, staying at 3 different hotels, trying to organize apartment viewings. Rather than obtain a person as my guarantor (a requirement for most leases), I went with a guarantor company. All said, I’ve had mixed feelings regarding their expertise & ability to help me, but overall I would probably recommend any freshies deal with guarantor companies (in many cases, you’ll be forced to, anyway).
I also met my manager prior to pre-employment training. I agreed to the schedule, knowing that it was kind of shit, but with full knowledge that this was a 1000% better than my prior situation & that I should adapt. It’s not the worst work schedule ever, and as the saying goes, successful people find the time to do things. But initially, it was quite hard getting used to English teaching again. I sometimes wondered if I was even cut out for it, anymore.
Meanwhile, there were a few other things going on in the background. In early January, I visited my friends (well, the two I was able to catch up with) and got the flu. That put me on my back, forcibly, for about a week. I realized during that time that I had to have contingencies, in case life decided to fug me again. I met a semi-infamous jvlogger in person, who kind of kick-started my inner desire to return to Japan. That was cool. I think I went a little cringe after having too much beer, but eh…worth it.
Got my stuff mid January, 2019. Filled the entire space of one of my 2 rooms, two boxes high. I got through it as fast as I could, but it was stressful. Speaking of stressful, the whole “To Do” checklist when I first arrived sucked. I can say that I did it all myself. Of course, sales staff tried to assist where they could, but largely, it was all me. First was getting a bank account. I decided on MUFJ, and that’s what I got. Found out that my old Japan Post bank account was closed after returning from my exchange in 2011…
Anywho, did that, then I signed up myself to a 2-year NTT DoCoMo mobile phone contract. I’m still hazy on certain details regarding the contract, but so long as it doesn’t steeply rise in cost, it’s the phone I wanted on the network I wanted. In Japan, you really get what you pay for, so I didn’t want to ever be left short. Internet in Japan can be great, and my data package for my phone is slick, but my home internet could be a lot faster…another thing on the bucket list.
K, other than that was the matter of furniture. My first few nights in my apartment sucked dick. I slept on the cold wooden floor. Really, the time from then until now is a literal metaphor for how far I’ve come, and it helps (in a way) to keep my from losing perspective. I saw a video of 2 Japanese people conversing, and the young one asked the older one what their big complaints about young people were. Without hesitating, the older guy said that young people lack perseverance/patience. It really spoke to me, and since then (about a week ago), I’ve tried not to be too down on myself, for not getting *everything* done yet.
My work colleagues are a nice bunch; we all have our personality quirks, so I just try to put my head down and grind. No need to upset anyone unnecessarily, because it’s not worth it. That said, I’ve had one work relationship deteriorate absolutely, but thankfully the spiteful bitch was “promoted” and sent to a different location. I’ve also lost weight; it’s something I was half hoping for, but at the same time, the reality of it happening hasn’t quite sunk in. I’ve been carrying too much weight for far too long. So, when the kilos started dropping off, I was pleased & unimpressed at the same time. Eh. That might be the topic of a different post…
Anyway, other than getting some furniture from a 2nd hand store (an ordeal, but the start of making the apartment look/feel better), getting a credit card (not difficult, but not easy), and stressing about receiving random notices in full-on Japanese (in other words, struggling to figure out if I’m in trouble or they’re just updating me on stupid shert like policy changes), I’m…living. Yes, I think that’s the best description of things. I’m living a life. I’m doing better with each day, pushing forward and challenging myself to be a better version as time passes.
And who knows? Maybe I can start to think about getting involved in romantic encounters with strangers when my life settles down a bit. I’ll end it here for now, I think. I really do want to get back into the habit of writing a blog post on here at least once a week, so we’ll see how it goes. Whooooooooo~le lotta shert I gotta deal with. You know – the whole “moving overseas” thing. I’m not going to sweat the small stuff.
The streak starts again from here, hopefully…peace!
