$1 = ¥ 81.4120 nowadays
When you spend a dollar (or at least when I do), I think about how far that dollar may go. When yen is to be spent, there a certain feeling of caring less about how far it can go. You're thirsty, you buy a drink. When you're hungry, you buy food. They say that when dollars have been staying in your pocket for so long, it "burns a hole in your pocket". With yen, it's practically incinerating, melting and completely destroying your pocket. Ever since I got here, I've been buying stuff to survive left and right. You can survive on at least ¥ 1000 a day.
The price ordeal is strange as well.
¥ 100 could get you a drink from a vending machine.
¥ 500 could satisfy your appetite
¥ 1000 could get you a phone card
¥ 2000 could get you a shirt
¥ 5000 could get you a ticket to DREAM or a backpack
¥ 10000 could get you a bicycle
¥ 500000 could get you a plane ticket or pay the rent
¥ 1000000 for tuition
I still gotta wonder, how much is minimum wage?
One of my dorm mates is drunk and keeping me up XD.
There'll be pics on the next blog I promise.
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Japan so far
Yo peeps, this country is nutz! Ever since I landed here, I felt like I was lost all the damn time. I arrived a day early and I stayed at the hotel I was supposed to meet the representatives at. It was cool having my own hotel room, especially since it had two beds and there was only one of me. I unleashed some immaturity and built a fort hehe.
I still am having a hard time just adapting to the fact that I LIVE here. It's so weird knowing that I'm not leaving anytime soon. It's even more strange knowing that this isn't America, it's friggin' Japan.
On the first day, it's always hard to fall asleep. So I went walking around the area that the hotel is in. It's definitely different. I went to a 7-eleven and bought some pre-made food. They certainly put their blood and sweat into every bit of food they make, because it was delicious. I got spaghetti, gyoza, and canned coffee.... about 1000 yen right there. The problem with the 7-elevens here is there's no slurpee machines :'(.
I was awoke by an earthquake... don't worry, it wasn't a huge 9 pointer. It was an extremely light shake that lasted no more than a second. There will be a few more weeks of that happening. I decided to walk around the hotel and just chill. I encountered an elderly woman who told me "good morning" and I responded back with "ohaiyo gozaimasu", I guess they love it when a white boy speaks Japanese because she responded with a surprised "Ah!" with a smile on her face. That was cool! I walked around outside and a bus full of schoolboys waved at me... I could get used to this.
I have taken two years of Japanese in college, but I still have trouble understanding a lot of what's said. I think I'll take some more language classes while I'm here.
I plan on checking out TSD Kali next month, for now I'm just taking it easy because I pulled a hamstring lifting luggage.
On the 29th, I'm checking out a DREAM event, it's going to be dope! DREAM is Japan's most popular MMA circuit. It arose from the ashes of K-1's HEROES after PRIDE FC got canned by the UFC in America.
There's A LOT more on the way people, so stay tuned.
Catch ya on the flipside
I still am having a hard time just adapting to the fact that I LIVE here. It's so weird knowing that I'm not leaving anytime soon. It's even more strange knowing that this isn't America, it's friggin' Japan.
On the first day, it's always hard to fall asleep. So I went walking around the area that the hotel is in. It's definitely different. I went to a 7-eleven and bought some pre-made food. They certainly put their blood and sweat into every bit of food they make, because it was delicious. I got spaghetti, gyoza, and canned coffee.... about 1000 yen right there. The problem with the 7-elevens here is there's no slurpee machines :'(.
I was awoke by an earthquake... don't worry, it wasn't a huge 9 pointer. It was an extremely light shake that lasted no more than a second. There will be a few more weeks of that happening. I decided to walk around the hotel and just chill. I encountered an elderly woman who told me "good morning" and I responded back with "ohaiyo gozaimasu", I guess they love it when a white boy speaks Japanese because she responded with a surprised "Ah!" with a smile on her face. That was cool! I walked around outside and a bus full of schoolboys waved at me... I could get used to this.
I have taken two years of Japanese in college, but I still have trouble understanding a lot of what's said. I think I'll take some more language classes while I'm here.
I plan on checking out TSD Kali next month, for now I'm just taking it easy because I pulled a hamstring lifting luggage.
On the 29th, I'm checking out a DREAM event, it's going to be dope! DREAM is Japan's most popular MMA circuit. It arose from the ashes of K-1's HEROES after PRIDE FC got canned by the UFC in America.
There's A LOT more on the way people, so stay tuned.
Catch ya on the flipside
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Disclaimer
THIS BLOG IS INTENDED FOR PEOPLE WHO HAVE INTEREST IN JAPAN, MARTIAL ARTS, AND FINE ARTS, THIS IS NOT A BLOG THAT WILL INCLUDE GLOATING AND ME SAYING I'M BETTER THAN YOU... NO.
I FIGURED I'D GET A BIGGER REACTION IF I DID THIS BLOG IN ALL CAPS. THANK YOU
I FIGURED I'D GET A BIGGER REACTION IF I DID THIS BLOG IN ALL CAPS. THANK YOU
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Bruce Lee - My thoughts
Ever since I was 13, I had thought a lot about the teachings of Bruce Lee. I watched Enter The Dragon on a boring summer night, and was blown away by the way he did his martial arts. Before that time, I had primarily thought of martial arts as pretty much just chop socky-kung fu grip-hiyah stuff, not seeing the true passion behind martial arts. When it came time to graduate middle school, each student was required to give a presentation on a topic of their choosing. I remember hearing a lot of judgment on his death, especially since it's still a mystery especially after the release of that biopic that was about 30% correct. I'll probably rant a little on that topic too by the way.
When most people think Bruce Lee, they assume a kung-fu powerhouse movie and practically nothing else. Most people give him credit where it's totally not due. But I give him major props for him opening my eyes to the reality of life and having a go-for-it attitude. His philosophies were truly something else:
I don't think of him as a savior towards life. But a good majority of his teachings made me think better about my life, and have ultimately kept me on a steady path, even though it has been rocky. The point I'm trying to make is that I never thought I'd come as far as I have... Today I was certified in Lee Jun Fan (his real name)'s martial art of Jeet Kune Do. Like I was saying, I did a project on him in eighth grade, and had done two papers on him in high school. The last part of my exit project was to continue with the learning of the topic you chose, and ultimately I think I did some righteous justice by doing so. Originally, I thought JKD schools had been extinct, because after my project, I looked for a school in Bellingham and some in Seattle. Nothing came up.Fast forward a decade later, I had forgotten all about 8th grade, and lots of other things, and I needed a release so I decided to re-jump into the martial arts. When I signed up at where I do martial arts now, I was hoping to do some straight up MMA and Muay Thai; blood and fighting galore. I had no idea that JKD was taught there, and I am overall glad that I did sign up at where I am.
Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story was a good film, but overall hard to watch because most of it isn't true, and I think it gives off the wrong impression of him. The film is told from what I would guess is Linda Lee's memoirs of him, because the lot of the film was romance. I could go into a majority of detail what was wrong with it but, I'll save that for another time (probably). But I'm a tad disappointed that many key people weren't focused on, such as: Dan Inosanto, Judo Gene Lebell, Kareem-Abdul Jabaar, and Chuck Norris among others. A better and more accurate re-telling of his life might be a long story, but it would make for a good one. (RANT OVER)
When most people think Bruce Lee, they assume a kung-fu powerhouse movie and practically nothing else. Most people give him credit where it's totally not due. But I give him major props for him opening my eyes to the reality of life and having a go-for-it attitude. His philosophies were truly something else:
I don't think of him as a savior towards life. But a good majority of his teachings made me think better about my life, and have ultimately kept me on a steady path, even though it has been rocky. The point I'm trying to make is that I never thought I'd come as far as I have... Today I was certified in Lee Jun Fan (his real name)'s martial art of Jeet Kune Do. Like I was saying, I did a project on him in eighth grade, and had done two papers on him in high school. The last part of my exit project was to continue with the learning of the topic you chose, and ultimately I think I did some righteous justice by doing so. Originally, I thought JKD schools had been extinct, because after my project, I looked for a school in Bellingham and some in Seattle. Nothing came up.Fast forward a decade later, I had forgotten all about 8th grade, and lots of other things, and I needed a release so I decided to re-jump into the martial arts. When I signed up at where I do martial arts now, I was hoping to do some straight up MMA and Muay Thai; blood and fighting galore. I had no idea that JKD was taught there, and I am overall glad that I did sign up at where I am.
Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story was a good film, but overall hard to watch because most of it isn't true, and I think it gives off the wrong impression of him. The film is told from what I would guess is Linda Lee's memoirs of him, because the lot of the film was romance. I could go into a majority of detail what was wrong with it but, I'll save that for another time (probably). But I'm a tad disappointed that many key people weren't focused on, such as: Dan Inosanto, Judo Gene Lebell, Kareem-Abdul Jabaar, and Chuck Norris among others. A better and more accurate re-telling of his life might be a long story, but it would make for a good one. (RANT OVER)
Thursday, April 28, 2011
My Plans
This past weekend, I did security at an anime convention (Sakura Con) down here in the Emerald City. Errverybody would have been jealous if they knew I was leaving for Japan, and I hate doing that. I had fun hanging out with my fellow staff and geeking out for the weekend. While I was there, I handed out mini-flyers about this blog to the select few who were cool by the likes of me. So if you're reading this and were fortunate enough to get a mini-flyer, thanks for being cool. I find it a little strange how I'm living an idea I had when I was 17, and yet I'm not all giddy about it. Don't get me wrong this is going to be a trip and a half, but I just am feeling a tad lost. From when I turned 15, I was all super happy fun anime sunshine mega kawaii about Japan. But nowadays, I look into the awesomely interesting stuff it has to offer. These days, I'm more into the MMA scene, the culture, the climate, the technology, and the language in general. I do like anime, I'm not going to lie, but not any of this Naruto-Pokemon ish crap. I'm more into the independent stuff.
The Japanese Army kamikaze'd my grandfather's aircraft carrier (USS Bunker Hill) in WWII, and has very distinct recollections of it. He bears no grudge whatsoever and is friends with many Japanese. Admirable he is, indeed. When I told him that I got accepted into Temple, he was thrilled and supported me fully by giving me his blessing. I find that to be very humble.
I got my visa taken care of recently too, which is like the easiest process known to man in my opinion, and it's good for 27 months. I don't intend to waste my time just sitting around watching TV and making hourly trips to the Arcade... no. During that time, I plan to do many other things rather than just focus on getting my B.F.A.
I plan to continue my training in the martial arts, and I have found many schools that I wish to check out:
TSD Kali/ TU RhythmBox (MKG JAPAN)
Temple University MMA Club
AACC Fight Club (group MMA School)
TRI-FORCE AOYAMA (Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu)
Laughter 7 (Kazushi Sakuraba's Gym)
During the course of a break, I plan to travel to Thailand to increase my muay thai.
I plan to help rebuild after the damaging effects done by the tsunami, because I have L337 carpentry skills.
I plan to become better acquainted with the lifestyle they have there.
That's pretty much all for now, it's 4 in the morning and I had to type this out.
The Japanese Army kamikaze'd my grandfather's aircraft carrier (USS Bunker Hill) in WWII, and has very distinct recollections of it. He bears no grudge whatsoever and is friends with many Japanese. Admirable he is, indeed. When I told him that I got accepted into Temple, he was thrilled and supported me fully by giving me his blessing. I find that to be very humble.
I got my visa taken care of recently too, which is like the easiest process known to man in my opinion, and it's good for 27 months. I don't intend to waste my time just sitting around watching TV and making hourly trips to the Arcade... no. During that time, I plan to do many other things rather than just focus on getting my B.F.A.
I plan to continue my training in the martial arts, and I have found many schools that I wish to check out:
TSD Kali/ TU RhythmBox (MKG JAPAN)
Temple University MMA Club
AACC Fight Club (group MMA School)
TRI-FORCE AOYAMA (Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu)
Laughter 7 (Kazushi Sakuraba's Gym)
During the course of a break, I plan to travel to Thailand to increase my muay thai.
I plan to help rebuild after the damaging effects done by the tsunami, because I have L337 carpentry skills.
I plan to become better acquainted with the lifestyle they have there.
That's pretty much all for now, it's 4 in the morning and I had to type this out.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
My take on the martial arts
"The martial arts are ultimately self-knowledge. A punch or a kick is not to knock the hell out of the guy in front, but to knock the hell out of your ego, your fear, or your hang-ups." - Bruce Lee
For many years the martial arts have been a gigantic shield to me; for I knew the pressures of what the world truly has to offer. When I hit the title of young man via age, I felt angry inside, watching professional wrestling on TV and being an all around bad guy to people.
I feel that there is much more gratification to express the body using these controlled and limited movements you normally wouldn't do rather than just doing one motion like in some sports. Be it any kind of martial art.
There are many reasons why I chose to get re-booted on the styles that I chose. For one, I have A LOT of demons to battle, and they have totally brought me back down to earth to give good focus towards life, and has even restored my faith in my fellow man. Second, I have trained myself in boxing, I spent over a year training myself how to throw the perfect "1-2", I got challenged to a fight in fifth grade (word got out and the teachers stepped in) and I trained myself constantly, and after a while, it became my daily routine. My mom even wanted me to join a gym, but the nearest was like 10 miles away.
Whatever style you choose, I suggest looking into it long before trying it out. For I have seen many a-person give up on a style because they don't like it. Whatever reason yours' is (fighting, balance, better movement) be sure that you have faith in yourself, because if you don't, it's hard to press on.
I chose to do Muay Thai because of it's legit nature. It's straight-up boxing with lots and lots of modifications and cool shizz. Mainly there is a deep background it and a hardcore discipline to it. All the kicking, punching, elbows, and knees are brutal but there is almost something spiritual there. Now I'm not talking spiritual like something ludicrous you'd see on TV like a super mega boom punch with like colorful lines floating around and stuff. I mean like the beginning prayer before you commence action. When I do that, I feel the energy flow through me like I just drank a Red Bull. And when I punch or kick, no matter what I connect with (even air), I feel as if I'd let go 1/136th of a bit of stress, and we all know we have some of that within us XD.
For many years the martial arts have been a gigantic shield to me; for I knew the pressures of what the world truly has to offer. When I hit the title of young man via age, I felt angry inside, watching professional wrestling on TV and being an all around bad guy to people.
I feel that there is much more gratification to express the body using these controlled and limited movements you normally wouldn't do rather than just doing one motion like in some sports. Be it any kind of martial art.
There are many reasons why I chose to get re-booted on the styles that I chose. For one, I have A LOT of demons to battle, and they have totally brought me back down to earth to give good focus towards life, and has even restored my faith in my fellow man. Second, I have trained myself in boxing, I spent over a year training myself how to throw the perfect "1-2", I got challenged to a fight in fifth grade (word got out and the teachers stepped in) and I trained myself constantly, and after a while, it became my daily routine. My mom even wanted me to join a gym, but the nearest was like 10 miles away.
Whatever style you choose, I suggest looking into it long before trying it out. For I have seen many a-person give up on a style because they don't like it. Whatever reason yours' is (fighting, balance, better movement) be sure that you have faith in yourself, because if you don't, it's hard to press on.
I chose to do Muay Thai because of it's legit nature. It's straight-up boxing with lots and lots of modifications and cool shizz. Mainly there is a deep background it and a hardcore discipline to it. All the kicking, punching, elbows, and knees are brutal but there is almost something spiritual there. Now I'm not talking spiritual like something ludicrous you'd see on TV like a super mega boom punch with like colorful lines floating around and stuff. I mean like the beginning prayer before you commence action. When I do that, I feel the energy flow through me like I just drank a Red Bull. And when I punch or kick, no matter what I connect with (even air), I feel as if I'd let go 1/136th of a bit of stress, and we all know we have some of that within us XD.
Sunday, March 20, 2011
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