Gift Box from Japan

Yeah, tons of decent Japanese stuff arrived! Thank YO as always. I will be able to have nice Japanese Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow by myself. DS usually invites me for Thanksgiving dinner, but she is traveling over Thanksgiving with her family this year, and no one else has invited me. Oh well, that's OK because now I have lots of Japanese stuff, which makes me happy. Yay!

Second Accident Witnessed

That intersection must be famous for car accidents. I mean by that intersection the intersection is near my favorite supermarket. I turn left at the intersection toward the parking lot of the supermarket, and I usually sit on the left-turn lane for a while, waiting for the traffic arrow going green. As usual, I was siting there in very front because the arrow was red. But, the two lines next to me were running because their lights were green. Suddenly, I heard the noise of car crash. A minivan next to me was crashed on the left side by a truck changing lanes from the far right. The truck driver mustn't have checked traffic before he changed lanes.

I also witnessed a car accident at the same interaction in the beginning of this month or later last month. I was again sitting on the left-turn lane. A car came from left to right when the lights just turned from yellow to red. And a car on the far right lane started driving forward because its traffic light turned green. Then, this car hit the side of another car from left. I assume the car on the far right couldn't see the other car approaching because there were two cars left next to the car.

Anyway, I have to drive carefully. Well, even I drive carefully, if others don't, I will be in trouble. Please drive safe, everyone!

Nice Surprise

Social media are interesting. I don't frequently update my status or check "friends"' status or even log in, but social media sometimes bring nice surprises.

Today, I got a "friend" request from GT through LinkedIn (well, I don't think LinkedIn calls this friend request, which sounds really Facebook). Anyway, after more than 15 years of no communication, I got a message from GT. It is totally out of blue, but social media make this possible. It's amazing he remembers me after all those years. And, it feels good to think that someone thinks about me :) This kind of little, tiny, trivial thing keeps me going.

Feel Better

Today was an interesting day.

Last night, I was desperate, looking for someone to talk and somewhere to go, but no one was available. Today, at the regular lunch meeting, I saw SB. I called him last night, but I was transferred to his voice mail. He explained that he couldn't pick up the phone because he was in the board meeting, and it was too late to call me back. OK, I accept whatever excuse.

Then, when I came home from the meeting, I got a call from D. I also called him last night, but again I was transferred to his voice mail. He told me he didn't realize my call because his phone was on vibration mode while in the library. When he found my voice mail, it was too late to call back. So, he called me back today. How nice of him! Furthermore, he patiently listened to my complaints. He is a sweet person, I know that.

Interestingly enough, I ran into SA who I also called yesterday on campus. I haven't seen him for long, maybe more than a year, but this happened right after the miserable night. It's an interesting quirk of fate. Anyway, I feel good to talk with him. I feel really good to talk with all of them.

Give Me A Break!

Tuesdays are exercise days. I went to YMCA to attend my favorite class and came home around 6:45. It was around 7:00 when I got out of a shower. When I opened the bathroom door, I found my roommate and her friend in the living room. Again?! Two nights in a row?! Give me a break.

My roommate was about to cook something like cookies or whatever. I went like, "Are you going to use the kitchen? This is my dinner time, you know." Then, she said, "Are you OK?" What do you mean by "Are you OK?"? With "Whatever," I went to my room and changed my clothes to leave the apartment.

At the front door, my roommate said like, "Are you going back to school?" That snapped my patience. "Where else can I go (dumb ass!←this is the voice in my mind)?" Trying to pulling myself together, I told her that I'd appreciate if she tells me beforehand when she invites her friends, and I left.

I didn't want to go back to the library, two nights in a row. I called everyone who seemed available, but no one was available when I needed! I reluctantly went back to the library. Geez, I felt miserable.

When I finally got out of the library around 11:00, I found my phone got a voice mail. That was from DS. I called her and told her what happened today and yesterday, which made me feel better.

Introduction Chapter

Another chapter is down! Well, I just submitted it to my chair, and I don't know what he will say about it. If he doesn't like it, of course, I have to rewrite, ughhhhh!

Let Me Stay at Home

After a long, stressful day, I came back home around 8:00. I found my roommate was cooking with her friend, with music on. Shit. I just wanted to have a glass of wine quietly in my room, but it seemed not doable. You know what I did? I went back to the library again. Yeah, the library is my primary home now.

It was frustrating not to be able to relax at home, but it turned out OK because I could force myself to start working on another chapter of my dissertation. I will finish my dissertation by June!