STUDY ABROAD:WEEK 35

APRIL 27

After training last night I rejoined with the BBQ group for karaoke at Chikara. We stayed until morning, which isn’t as easy to do as I remember it being. Maybe that’s because I’ve been cutting back on the coffee? In any case, today I have done nothing but work on my manga and snack on candy that my mom sent me. Having this candy around might be a bad idea…

APRIL 28

Mrs. Yamamoto scheduled another meeting with her seminar for us. It’s a new class of 3rd year students, but there are a couple seniors from last semester in the class, too. Unlike last time, where we had to actually do work in groups, this meeting was primarily for international communication exchange. It also took place during lunch. At first there was no movement between the groups, so Mrs. Yamamoto guided us all through self-introductions. That got the conversations started. I also took the chance to pass out a lot of my Starbursts and Jolly Ranchers; less candy for me!

Overall, they seem like an interesting bunch. Upperclassmen are usually more settled in themselves, so you can sense their real personalities. During one of the introductions, a girl asked if anyone was afraid of dogs, and then she did an impression of a dog barking. Like I said, interesting.

APRIL 29

I came home after class so that I could buy groceries and eat lunch, but it started raining. Somehow, it turned into the perfect excuse not to go back outside, so I didn’t go to dance practice today. Instead, I worked on some manga pages and watches a movie. I should be working harder on my manga if I want to finish it soon, but I just needed to watch another movie. My list has significantly decreased, however, so I think this weekend will be a good work weekend.

APRIL 30

Ah, Wednesdays, the busiest days of the week for me.

Between first and third period classes I walked down to the station to withdraw money. For some reason, even though I was able to withdraw money from my bank in the States, I couldn’t figure out how to transfer it. So, it was back out and down Hirokoji Street to the actual bank. One of the employees there was the same woman that guided me when I forgot my secret number. I didn’t want to bother her again, so I approached the ATM on my own at first.

When it comes to money, I can’t make a mistake. I put the ATM into English mode, just to get the process over, but I still could not pull up the correct transfer option. When I looked at the screen in Japanese, I kept thinking it was the last button on the page, but I couldn’t commit. And, of course, every time you cancel a transaction on the ATM it has to announce that. Thanks for that. Consequently, I gave in and approached the employee. She showed me the correct button on the ATM (it was the last one), but I could sense either some annoyance or worry that I had pulled her from her station in front of the windows.

At last I was able to transfer my money to pay for this semester’s rent. The JASSO scholarship was just deposited into our accounts, and we received a little extension on the payment because of that. Now I have no money, just about three-hundred dollars’ worth of yen to my name. I might have to withdraw some more from abroad later.

MAY 1

It’s May! Time is flying by so quickly these past few weeks. Since I’ve been trying to finish my manga, a lot of my once free time has gone into busy work. I also have training once or twice a week, so my schedule is quite full.

On that note, today I didn’t go to dance practice either. After class I walked out to Donki with Joy and Rachael. The walk only took about thirty minutes, which isn’t as long as we thought it would take. We bought a few groceries, special ones, including foreign brands that only Donki carries. Rachael was having another dinner party in her room tonight. She was going to make all of our favorites: chicken wings, mashed potatoes, blueberry wontons…

I was really looking forward to it, but of course I had to choose between dance and dinner. This time, dinner won. I’ve missed the last few parties because of training and dance, so this was my chance. The party obviously wasn’t until dinner time, so as I waited I worked on manga. Most of the inking is done, but there are still over four chapters that I have to finish editing on the computer, before I scan in the remaining two. Thankfully, we have a four day weekend for Golden Week, a collection of National holidays within a week’s time. Time for a work marathon!

MAY 2 - MAY 4

Three days… I have done nothing for three days except sleep, eat and work on manga. The good news is, I feel like I made a dent in the pages. I can’t count how many hours I worked, but if I estimate the work rate at one page for every three hours, then maybe it will be another 130 hours… That still seems like a lot, but you have to understand that there are 200 pages in a single volume of my series. 130 or so hours, only covers the last 45 pages, and that’s the best case scenario estimate.

It’s getting harder to sit down at a desk or computer for more than a couple hours to do busy work. I started this series about eight years ago, when I was a sophomore in high school. Back then, I could spend hours every day drawing and working on my series. Recently, that same fire has been hard to come by. I still enjoy the work, don’t get me wrong, but I just can’t stand the lifestyle. When I had the chance to start my own series, it was a great outlet for me because I didn’t have the chance to do many things out in the world. My hobby soon became my job, which later meant that I had the responsibility to stay home and work, rather than waste time out and about. Back then, maybe it was a good thing for me, but now things are different. I don’t need to live my life passively through creating stories because I can live it now.

The scariest part about these past few weeks of trying to finish up this series, and also taking movie breaks, is that I could physically feel the separation from reality. I had never felt that before. Back at home in the States, if I wanted to binge on a TV series or delve into a book for a few hours, I could easily transition that between going to classes or simply getting up to go to the bathroom. There was no disconnection. On the other hand, a few days ago when I was watching a movie I heard a siren outside. I quite literally snapped back to reality; I’m in Japan now with all the freedom in the world, so why am I sitting in front of a screen absorbing myself into someone else’s life? Well, at that time, it was already well into the night, so there was nothing else to do, but not once before had I seen the line between reality and fantasy.

I still enjoy movies. I still enjoy drawing. I still plan to enjoy them. But, less is more. This book is the last of the series, and it may be my last for a while. My current path is leading me towards dance, and what looks like a teaching job. It’s not what I would have expected years ago, but it feels like it’s the answer that’s been sitting there all along. I just needed to break out of my comfort zone, shed a few layers and open myself to new possibilities. Now I’m looking forward to finishing this manga for a new reason. I’m ready for the next level, the next stage in my life.

(A sample of the Jello I made these past few days; this one was made in a baking cup with a dinosaur mold.)

I also would like to get out and grab some groceries. I didn’t have much food when I started this marathon, so for the last three days I’ve been surviving on kosher Jello that my mom sent me in the package. I need solid food.