Housing @ Keio

Just found out I'll be living at Hiyoshi International House while I'm studying at Keio starting in September. I'm PRETTY EXCITED :D Especially since it was my first choice and it's the cheapest. (I'm a cheapskate. lol) It's only around 45200yen a month, which is something like 452USD. :D I don't think that includes utilities though. (oh wait, it does! my second choice one didn't <.<) It's pretty much set up like a two-bedroom apartment so I'll be sharing my kitchen and bathroom with one other person. We do get single bedrooms though, so that's good enough for privacy. I think it'll be pretty good to be able to live with someone else...less lonely and you can share chores and such so it's easier to manage living quarters.

Here's some sample pics of what it'll look like! :D
http://www.ic.keio.ac.jp/en/life/housing/picture_hiyoshi.html

Last Minute Norcal Visit

So after some pressuring from my college friends, I have decided to go back to Cal for a weekend to visit everyone who is up there for summer school. I feel like I wasn't able to properly say goodbye to a lot of people so hopefully this will make up for that :D I worked a ton this week and made 140 bucks (8 hours of babysitting and probably like 20 hours for Mrs. A XD) so I could afford the flight. Just booked it tonight! :D So I'll be in the Berkeley area from July 16th-20th (a week before I leave! ><) It's kind of a relief...it'll be so good to see some people again before I go! ^^

Oh snap.

As some of you may or may not know, it's been three years since I last visited Japan. It's also been three years since I've seen anyone from the Japanese side of my family. I knew that studying abroad would allow me to get closer to them and ultimately visit them when I had a chance but guess what? Plans have changed <.<

Originally, I was planning on visiting them around the winter holiday, our two week break for Christmas and whatnot. Buuut, my dad decided that he was going to Japan to visit his parents and brother in September (when I'll be in Tokyo), and wants me to come to Osaka to visit when they're all there. Well uh...that sorta puts a twist on things. Apparently now he wants me to work out and lose a bunch of weight this summer BEFORE going to Japan, though I'll inevitably lose weight just being there (walking+better diet). It'll be about a month and a half from when I arrive until I see them, and luckily, I'll have done ILP by then and know what the hell I'm saying. But still, getting my body in shape by then will be...interesting.

(Backstory: My grandparents (grandfather especially) have always been really critical of my weight. Even though I'm built completely differently than native Japanese girls, they expect me to be this small, petite girl like my cousins and can't comprehend that because of my upbringing, I'm tall, have wide hips and shoulders and will NEVER weigh a 100lbs. Even my father can't comprehend that, and has forced me since childhood to weigh myself, go on crash diets, join gyms etc. to conform with the Japanese standard of beauty. Only within the last 3 years or so have I accepted myself for how I look and have stopped taking my father's harsh words so seriously. Though I can see his point sometimes (when yes, I do feel fat), most times it feels like he's critical because I'm 'just not good enough' to 'show off.' (pretty much :P))

But really, if I'm not in shape by the time I'm expected to see my family again, I'm not really sure what will happen. Sure, I'd love to impress them, but I don't want to compromise who I am and what I eat this summer (especially since I MUST gorge on delicious American dishes before I go) just so I can temporarily fit into their image of beauty. If I'm not skinny enough for them, they'll just have to accept it, but really, somewhere down the road, I'd love to change the perspective they have on me by proving them wrong (that I can fit an image of beauty, just maybe not their ideal one).

Concert Tickets キタ〜！！！

My suju AND a-nation tickets, thanks to Iori! (shoppingagent.webs) :)

oh and my new specs came in the mail too :P they have no lenses. lawl.

What I need to BUY before I leave :D

A List...cuz I need it. Otherwise I'm going to write it on a piece of paper or in word and totally forget about it until 2 hours before my flight where I will have to buy these things at jacked up prices at the airport stores. SO! Things I need..go!

--Makeup to last me at least 8 months (which is when I might come back to the US for break) including mostly: liquid eyeliner, foundation, maybe a new foundation brush
--Kanji DS (Game?) Cartridge thing...the name is ridiculous long. but i need it.
--Maybe some more DS games? Mario Kart and Tetris would be nice
--A nice new digital camera. Parents are getting me one for a going-away gift, I guess.
--New pair of sunglasses (would be nice but isn't completely necessary)
--New earphones for my ipod getting awesome new headphones! (again, not necessary but mine are REALLY crappy right now)
--Socks and underwear (why not?)

I'm pretty sure there's more but for some reason it's escaping me at the moment. Maybe because I just woke up from a nap <.< And yes, it is 9:30pm XD

OMG JASSO!

I GOT THE SCHOLARSHIP!! I'm so shocked and amazed and excited I can barely contain myself. I had nooo idea this was coming and was literally prepared to just not have any more scholarship money during the year. But this is AMAZING! 80,000yen a month for my entire stay! :D That's like 9,000BUCKS! Still in the process of freaking out. I called my mom to tell her and she had a feeling that was I was calling about and was like 'did you hear from the scholarship people?' and I was like...'YESSSS!' lol. And then we spazzed for a couple minutes. Totally made up for my crap morning where I found out I had to pay $100 late move-out fee for the damn dorms who charged me and not other people because I turned in my key downstairs and not upstairs and was only 25 minutes late. Still hate them, but YES! Today is good :]

PS. Forgot to write in all my spazzing--THIS TOTALLY MEANS I CAN GO TO KOREA! with 800 a month that I can spend on anything I want, I can travel, eat out, and do whatever! Seriously! That's not only my transportation and food money but that's my dorm money too, which only leaves tuition to be paid for! That's like my entire paycheck for a month if I worked a full work week part-time. AMAZING! ><