The Japan thread

[OccultHawk]

Originally Posted by Zhanteimi

Oh you poor man.

I loved it. Hours everyday were spent in solitude with my Walkman and booze walking from job to job through rice fields and I knew several little spots where I could sit next to the sea and nobody ever once came walking by. I found two abandoned temples that I would could easily enter. I spent hours in there listening to Coltrane. One had part of the roof missing from a typhoon I figured and I could lay in there and watch the sky. I had an ALT / JET gig and they didn’t give a **** what I did. I’d just say I’m off to such and such elementary school. Drop by and give some kids a high five and then roll off. They were paying me to nomad around these tiny villages. At first they offered to drive me everywhere but I always refused.


One time for some reason I had to stay a week in a mid size city when I had that job. There were like 7 other ALT/JETs who had to do it too. We had private hotel rooms like a quarter mile from the office we had to meet in. All we had to do was check in, do whatever we wanted all day, and then check out. We could leave or just hang out there in a room just for us reading and bull****ting. And this one American girl actually chewed out our boss and told him she refused to check in and out. I tried to talk to her. I told her it was just a bureaucracy. He was told by his boss we had to be there. If we refused he got in trouble and it was a real job for him. She still said **** that no matter how good something is you should try to make it better. I understand the girl was bothered by the lack of rhyme and reason to the situation but it was like seriously we’re getting paid to say good morning and goodnight. I mean ****. I ****ing loved it though. I sat around and read books all day that week. The other English teachers all hated me. They would whisper lunch plans and not invite me. I didn’t know why but I didn’t give a **** either. I didn’t eat one meal or go for drinks with any of them once.

[Zhanteimi]

Is than when you slayed the yamamba gashes?

[OccultHawk]

Originally Posted by Zhanteimi

Is than when you slayed the yamamba gashes?

There weren’t any ganguro girls around there. I mostly kept to one steady **** during that time. She was just a no nonsense working class late twenties chick who liked to drink and ****. She liked American R&B like Lauryn Hill and Mary J Blige and older stuff like Marvin Gaye. I was in love with her but she just wanted to keep it in that time and space. I never met her family or even her friends. I think she may have even had another boyfriend the whole time.

[Zhanteimi]

Most likely. That's the way a lot of the women roll here. Keep the relationships compartmentalized.

[Lisnaholic]

Originally Posted by OccultHawk

I loved it. Hours everyday were spent in solitude with my Walkman and booze walking from job to job through rice fields and I knew several little spots where I could sit next to the sea and nobody ever once came walking by. I found two abandoned temples that I would could easily enter. I spent hours in there listening to Coltrane. One had part of the roof missing from a typhoon I figured and I could lay in there and watch the sky. I had an ALT / JET gig and they didn’t give a **** what I did. I’d just say I’m off to such and such elementary school. Drop by and give some kids a high five and then roll off. They were paying me to nomad around these tiny villages. At first they offered to drive me everywhere but I always refused.


One time for some reason I had to stay a week in a mid size city when I had that job. There were like 7 other ALT/JETs who had to do it too. We had private hotel rooms like a quarter mile from the office we had to meet in. All we had to do was check in, do whatever we wanted all day, and then check out. We could leave or just hang out there in a room just for us reading and bull****ting. And this one American girl actually chewed out our boss and told him she refused to check in and out. I tried to talk to her. I told her it was just a bureaucracy. He was told by his boss we had to be there. If we refused he got in trouble and it was a real job for him. She still said **** that no matter how good something is you should try to make it better. I understand the girl was bothered by the lack of rhyme and reason to the situation but it was like seriously we’re getting paid to say good morning and goodnight. I mean ****. I ****ing loved it though. I sat around and read books all day that week. The other English teachers all hated me. They would whisper lunch plans and not invite me. I didn’t know why but I didn’t give a **** either. I didn’t eat one meal or go for drinks with any of them once.

^ That's a very interesting insight into an earlier OH. I love the made-for-movie stuff about rice fields, the sea and Coltrane on the headphones in forgotten temples. Sometimes life delivers these unexpected gifts of special time, and you have conjured one up really well. I almost wish I was there myself, learning to love the sidewalks and enjoying the unstructured time in an exotic location.
That girl bleating about clocking in didn't know how lucky she was and the teachers who didn't invite you along didn't know what they were missing, imho.

[The Batlord]

Originally Posted by Lisnaholic

That girl bleating about clocking in didn't know how lucky she was and the teachers who didn't invite you along didn't know what they were missing, imho.

OH says he smells so they probably made the right choice.

[Lisnaholic]

^ Well, one girl obviously appreciated the flavour:

Originally Posted by OccultHawk

I mostly kept to one steady **** during that time. She was just a no nonsense working class late twenties chick who liked to drink and ****. She liked American R&B like Lauryn Hill and Mary J Blige and older stuff like Marvin Gaye. I was in love with her but she just wanted to keep it in that time and space. I never met her family or even her friends.

...but, yeah, now I see why OH never got an invite to meet the girl's family.

[Zhanteimi]

Originally Posted by Lisnaholic

and enjoying the unstructured time in an exotic location.

Blech. It's lame.

[OccultHawk]

Thanks for the kind words Lis

and yeah I let my body odor fly - whatevs - I like when people smell like people not perfumes and detergents

I’m a hippycore jazz punk

I’ve always tended to exclude myself from groups and then wonder why I’m never in with the crowd

Groups are hard, aren’t they?

[OccultHawk]

Originally Posted by Zhanteimi

Blech. It's lame.

There were times when I hated the **** out of the place tbh

What got you there in the first place Mord?