There's really not much to say but...
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| My Bike |
So there I was living in Kyoto finishing up Doshisha's Bekka Japanese program, innocently buying my からあげ (Kara-a-gay) when BAM! I'm thrown over my handlebars. Yea, right over my handlebars onto the pavement. I'm practiced at the Flying-Over-Handlebars form, but no expert. One time, when I was a 10year-old kid, I rode into a grass-filled ditch only to find that the grass hid my cruel fate in rotting-2foot-retaining-wall-form (in a ditch right? why??)
sorry, let me restart
Ok ok, I'm not being clear. It all started one relaxing evening in our Kyoto apartment. The electricity had been shut off, and Kailey and Masae were working by candlelight doing some japanese-to-english translating work of a cd for our super cool rock, Irish, classical-able violinist friend, Atsuhiro-san.
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| Atsuhiro-san |
works by an esteemed author by the name of Hiromu Arakawa who established the age-old classic that is 鋼の錬金術師(Hagane-no-renkin-jutsushi) which has been translated to English as "Fullmetal Alchemist". I can assuredly say that those familiar with this work will attest to its genious.
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| Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 2 |
After going down to the street to beg passing samurai for some coinage I was able to gather enough change to make my routine trip to the local convenience store where I would buy some of my favourite popcorn-chicken-like からあげ (Kara-a-gay), return home, and top my rice with it. (Yes yes mothers, I also had a vegetable salad and a fruit salad before I left)
I was riding my bike home in the dark having just saved some victims of thievery from some malicious muscle-ridden criminals when POW! Suddenly I'm revisiting every moment of my all-too-short life while gracefully sailing through the cold night air.
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| The street intersection below our apartment. |
Another bicyclist, trying to cross the now empty 4 lane street, had himself shoulder-checked at the very moment he crossed from the sidewalk to the road, of which I was casually riding on all but caught up in my own Lord of the Rings-like battle between the elements and, well, me in a visceral fight to the death involving my 5 layers of shirts, sweaters, jackets, coats, and scarves I had thrown together and the biting cold that inevitably stabs through your very being not at all different from melting ice-cubes forced upon your warm skin.
Right,
So I see the guy-ah, hand ready at the break for what's about to happen-ah! It starts to happen-ahh!!! My brake lever snaps-
(-_-)
Instead of swerving out onto the road in front of the traffic that would treat me like room-temperature butter and spread me nice and thinly over the asphalt, I choose to ride into him.
Because I didn't want to ruin my dainty fingers by having our handlebars collide first, at the last moment I turned my front wheel completely perpendicular to his front wheel. Turns out my front wheel bore all the momentum from both bikes, and absorbed it too!
My milk sprawled out onto the road. But it was ok (thank goodness!). Yeah,so I bought milk too. He picked it up for me, we both apologized profusely, joined in the fight to defeat Godzilla, defeated Godzilla, and we all went on our way. Well, I tried to go on my way but my front wheel was totally busted.
Dragged the twisted piece of bicycle 30 meters home - got some funny looks
...in a nutshell that's about it
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Have you read about our first days in Japan yet?Day 1 (Travel from the Airport)
Have you read about our first days in Japan yet?Day 1 (Travel from the Airport)
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Ben and Kailey lived in Japan not too long ago and also visit Kyoto every year.Ben is developing a Japanese Practice site. It's current main functions are:
1. a Flash Card system that features a leveling system where you must answer correctly and "level up"to gain new cards, receive money and buy new decks - anime decks included!
2. Fill in the Blank system where you can choose to focus on particle practice or verb practice etc.
Japanese Practice Blog is here. Check out the Japanese Practice site here
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