ten days

...since my last entry.

i figured i'd have to make some time to update. it's nearly midnight, and it's been an exhausting week, so i'll do my best to be somewhat coherent.

first big news: my sister alice has been accepted to middlebury (early decision) for the class of 2013! the couple days leading up to december 13 were too full of anxiety and excitement--sooo glad it's done and over with. congratulations, alice! you've worked so hard ~ you deserve it!

second big news: leslie came to kyoto and stayed with me this week. it was great to finally see her again after four months :)  leslie, have fun in hokkaido and tokyo with your family! i'll miss you, but september will be here before we know it... can't wait!

not big news: three more "meetings" with starbucks guy since the last entry. the next time i have an opportunity to talk to him, i will. for real, this time.

now on to smaller updates...

#1 end of fall term class party with imao-sensei

￥10000 (about the equivalent of $100 USD)

this was really yummy, but it was also really difficult to eat.  

we called for reinforcements after a little while... 

not even half-way in, and most of us were about to give up.

#2 starbucks.

i'm still going. everyday. overkill? perhaps. 

why am i going so often? many reasons. 

for one, obviously, the coffee. 

two, i love the atmosphere (awesome for reading). 

three, it's a great place to meet up with friends. 

four, it's one of few places in kyoto where 

one can actually sit down and 

have conversation for hours on end. 

five, i come across (interesting) people 

that i normally wouldn't otherwise.

#3 finals week.

i have never been so relaxed around exam time.

there was no need to cram or study excessively.

i reviewed the material with some friends at starbucks

in between good conversation and just plain silliness :)

[elective grades aren't in yet, but i received an A for japanese]

#4 leslie!

mia and i were able to spend a lot of time with leslie

over the past few days. we did a ton of shopping and

ate delicious ramen. we also had yummy chinese food with

nestor and greg before they went to nagano for part of break.

grant also met us at starbucks for more catching up/reminiscing

over some good coffee before he had to head home to pack.

#5 awesome finds.

(the perfect) off-white wool coat on sale.

cute deep purple dress from zara.

new bag! similar style. different color.

beautiful handmade pouch with eiffel tower.

lots of inexpensive, but pretty jewelry.

<3

magical.

is what today has been.

....well, not in the cheesy sense. but it has been an amazing, amazing day.

it started off with cinnamon toast ^_^

then my last class of fall term let out 30 minutes early.

yummy lunch with good friends.

wandered around doshisha library.

starbucks. enough said :)

hung out there with friends until food time.

[oh, and starbucks guy happened to be there too. the third meeting, and i STILL couldn't say "hi"]

make-your-own okonomiyaki <-- DELICIOUS. explain more later.

"let's become beautiful" purikura XD

returned to starbucks and hung out some more.

walking home, i noticed the BEAUTIFUL full moon.

....and then i saw a shooting star.

soaked in the [hot] tub for a while.

came back to my room to find skype msgs from matt.

whs had a snow day, so alice was home to chat with me.

i really couldn't have asked for a better day ^_^

chicken x2

i saw the starbucks guy again.  i was on my way to get parfaits with my friends when we passed each other on the street.

next time [if there's a next time] i'll say hi.

i hope.

>_<

books :)

i love them.

i'm about to finish my fourth book in two weeks.  because of my extremely high productivity levels lately, i've had a lot more free time to read (for pleasure!)  i go to starbucks, satisfy my coffee addiction, finish homework, curl up on one of the couches and just turn pages for hours and hours. and then wander around a nearby five-story bookstore when i have even more free time.

sound wonderful? 

trust me, it is.

^_^

chicken.

not the food.

me.

=]

went to starbucks again after classes. finished a separate peace and got a lot of work done. silently played what felt like a waiting game for several hours... 

i should've just said hi.

>.<

a temporary band-aid

i've never been one for starbucks. 

coffee in general, definitely <3

but not starbucks.

yet, today marks three full months since i've been in japan, and i've been to starbucks over a dozen times already. it's not that i think starbucks coffee is the best thing that has ever graced the planet. it's just that home-y feeling of america that i get when i'm there. or maybe more specifically, the grille at middlebury. i'm sure being homesick has something to do with my recently frequent trips to this overpriced (especially in japan!) café, but more than that, i can unwind and productively do my homework and studying there.

i would've gladly extended the time i was there this afternoon (from four hours upward) if i didn't have to catch the hankyu home for dinner. after a series of events yesterday, i broke down crying in front of a couple of my akp friends. luckily, they lent me a shoulder and an ear until my stop at katsura. i took it easy for the rest of the night yesterday and looked forward to some coffee after class (today). i got a friend to go with me, but he headed home a little thereafter. (not a big fan of coffee. or starbucks, for that matter.) 

so i curled up on a big, comfy chair and read john knowles' a separate peace for the first time since freshman year of high school. (thanks for the lend, mia [...or rather, mia's younger brother] ^_^)  great book, but unfortunately, its content didn't really take my mind off of what i was trying to forget. in any case, being in a café atmosphere and enjoying a cup of caramel-flavored coffee over a good read did wonders for my spirit... at least for a little over four hours.

i hope i'm not conditioning myself to turn to starbucks every time i need a pick-me-up, but i've learned that i want little coffee shops and/or diners around whatever town i'll end up settling down in.