Long time no see

Hey, sorry about the super delay in posts.  I got swamped with finals and health related stuff then fell out of the habit of posting on here so I guess I have quite a bit of catching up to do!

The picture below is what I did to my knee - ACL torn and MCL weakened.  I also bruised my bone incase anyone cares about that.

Basically what happened was this, I was skiing at turtle speed crossing between some route and tripped.  Like, I don't even know how I hurt my knee this bad; a fat fly could have outrun me at the rate I was going.  Anyway, I lost sight of my skis in the powder and then must have crossed them?  I don't really know, but then I was suddenly in the air, heard two pops, then was facing back the way I came.  The snow was so deep where I fell that when I tried to breath I panicked because I got a puff of snow down my throat.

After digging myself out, I braced for the pain and sure enough it came.  I can't remember actually screaming from pain before - not like this.  When I remember it though, I don't actually think it was that bad? Honestly, I don't really know why I screamed, so it must have been from the pain right?  All I remember was the person I was skiing with called up to me "You alive?" Yes, yes I was.

Well I got a ride in the sled coffin (check that off my bucket list) and talked them out of calling the ambulance and taking me to a hospital.  Instead I went to the local clinic and they instantly put this gibson cast on me.  I. Hated. it.  I wore that damn thing for a month, you know how hard it is to have to go everywhere on crutches in that damn thing?! No, I'm not talking about actually getting places.  I'm talking about the people who kept stopping me and asking if I was ok.  EVERYONE STOPS YOU.  "Do you need help?" "Can I carry something." "OH whats wrong?" "Are you ok?" These were not people I knew and it happened every 20 feet.

Also every time you go to the hospital you get a card so they don't have to do anything but swipe your card for check in.  It's like I'm collecting baseball cards I have so many now.  5 cards.  I have gone to five different hospitals for various things.  It's like I'm on the mythical quest for the MRI that can only be achieved through a series of riddles.  Answer me these riddles three if you want to see your busted knee, 「パンはパンでも食べられないパンは、なぁに？」Yeah me too everyone, me too.

Here is a fun picture edition of the progression of my leg from start to current state.

Look no gibson, but there is a brace under the jeans.

I got to be a ninja!

I have completed the quest of being a ninja.  Thanks much to the awesome people in Iga for making it happen!

Korankei Bridge

The leaves during the night when we walked down the hill

     Hello all!  Sorry about the long delay, midterms are here so I'm busy slamming Japanese into my head (particles are hard).  Firstly, Fall in Japan is gorgeous.  Me and some other students went to the mountains close by to look and walk around in the trees.  I've never experienced so many different shades in the leaves before, and coming from someone who grew up in an area where tourist flew in to see colorful leaves, it's a wondrous.  The bus ride there was challenging as we all had to stand like sardines for an hour and a half, but defiantly worth the knee pain!
     During the night the area is lit up so all the colors turn into something new as well and many vendors set up making it like a festival. I finally picked up a larger souvenir for myself too, which I will show everyone eventually once I have enough things to make a video about.

Chubby Genes

So at Okazaki Castle there was a goldfish showing and I couldn't help but feel sorry for these fish.  Are they cute? Yes.  They are, however, also barely able to swim because of the tumor looking growths on their bodies.  Even their bodies are oddly proportioned making it hard to swim.  Either way they are fun to watch, despite the genetics that were breed into them.  In some way they had an oaf-like innocence.  I'll post more on the castle later when I have time and midterms are not knocking at the door.  Wish me luck, though it's mostly just papers this go around.

Ninja Mosquitoes

Japanese mosquitoes are smart.  You may think that is a strange or stupid statement, but I am being 100% serious when I say they are the Einsteins of all mosquitoes.  There are a number of reasons I have thought about in depth on the matter, but every time I come back to thinking about every flaw the slow and unthinking ones have back home and review the fact these misquotes have no flaw.  Let me go through the basics for you.

1. These jerks are lightning fast. Seriously I moved my hand to kill one bitting me on my other hand and it somehow dodged, landed, and starting to bite the hand I went to swat it with!

2. They don't rely on numbers but stealth.  Back home the Mosquitoes would overwhelm you with numbers and distract you from killing ones that landed on you as they all frantically tried to bite you.  Here they land nearby and sometimes walk up to you.  Yes not fly but literally hustle their butts over and up your clothes which you think would protect you right?  NOPE.

Found from: https://cameronwebb.files.wordpress.com/
2014/07/aedes_albopictus_stevedoggett.jpg

3. They bite through clothing.  Back home no problem, if I wore long sleeves they couldn't bite me even if they tried.  These efficient brand of Mosquitoes bite through everything - even my blue jeans and North Face jacket.

4. Bug spray is all but like water to them.

5. Normally these bugs are loud, obnoxiously so if you are so misfortunate to get one in your room.  I wish these guys were loud or gave any warning of their presence.  They are completely silent.  In, out, done, no hesitation when it comes to biting you.

6. I hate Flying insects.

I don't actually know if this is the exact type that has been pestering me, but I have seen the one above around while it has been biting my friends.  I suppose if I had one complaint about Japan it is about these guys.

Quick Blurb

Hey all,

Just wanted to give a quick update.  I've been swamped lately with events and class work (I'm enjoying it immensely though) so I have been slacking in my social media upkeep.  Next week I'm going to go to an Onsen which I'm super excited for.  I also got a bunch of children's books to help with my reading practice from a super cheap book store for ¥108.

This is my class list:
- Elementary Japanese I
- Agriculture Science
- Science and Technology in Japan
- Biotechnology
- Special Lecture Series
- Ancient Japanese Liturature
- Modernity and Post-modernism
- Linux functions COMS 252 (from Iowa State)

On top of that, I have a language tutor so I'm super busy academically.

Anyway,
Back to Kanji!

Here is a picture of a storage room.  The spelling is beautiful.

I guess I'll go backwards?

Just another marvelous English instruction set.  What this is trying to get me to do is go to the opposite end of the subway.