Nihon-jin Majide desu!

So I need to get right to bed since Blair and I are leaving at 7:15 AM for Nikko, but I absolutely have to talk about my crazy day instead. So here are my thoughts in a time-saving, sleep-saving manner.

First, there is this Christina Aguilera version of "Car Wash" that I, for some strange reason, have not heard before. I have one reply. I do not like it. Girl can sing but the original is much better. Please leave it be.

Secondly, I had the privilege of chatting with the bestie this morning and it cheered me up so much, the Japanese were all like, why so genki (happy)? It made me very delighted and I miss her so much. Reminds me that I need to call Kate and Lauren too. The bestie has also ruined me. See, Yuki brought in his dance video to show us all his choreography and I haven't been quite able to place my finger on what it is about the Japanese dance style that feels weird. And after seeing a few numbers I realized that it's not the 80's jazz influence everywhere, but their inability to let go of their CENTER! They do all these crazy arms movements with lots of turning and ballet technique which suits their perfect posture, but it drives me nuts that all the movement originates from the shoulder or wrist! As bestie would say... USE YOUR BACK! And so now, as usual, her brilliance as a dancer has spoiled and ruined me. And she's probably loving that as she reads this.

Third, I never realized what was missing at MGR until like the last week of the run. Can I just say how nice it is to have a green room/common area again? They really need to fix that there...

Fourth, my band friend Yosuke has written this delightful "Kitty" ditty for ukelele and violin (played by Misuzu). I am OBSESSED. It is so charming and wonderful and it amazes me how talented everyone is. Just you know, jam sessions between shows with brilliant violin and uke players. You know... and they are characters for the mouse. WOW. I caught some video of it but I promised not to share it for copyright reasons...

Fifth, I am obsessed with Blair for booking our trip to Nikko via travel agent today while I was at work. New adventures to come!

Sixth, Jor and I are talking every day and it's like clockwork. The best thing about his cruddy situation right now is that we have reconnected and are finally back where we belong. Which also makes me genki.

Seventh, I basically spit coffee out my nose today because the Japanese are so CRAZY funny. They taught me to say three things that I absolutely do not understand that just tickle their fancies, and I truly haven't laughed that hard in ages. Genki again. They are: Kin-nikku-man wa onara de Tobundatte. Which has something do with a cartoon character flying off his farts. (think puzzlefarter.com). Also: Anatana no oraga meimas. Which has something to do with colors but I really don't understand. And finally, the sing-song: Kitakaze... gazo... o CANTALO. Which is some children's character name and they DIE. To the extent I have a new nickname. Cantalo. All because someone offered me "melon" today and I said, oh yummy! Cantaloupe. And you can fill in the rest. Those baka nihon-jin.

Finally, I had the joy of participating in a 4 person birthday celebration extravaganza complete with men in drag lip-synching "One Night Only" and Tophs in drag giving you Marilyn Monroe Happy Birthday to 4 Japanese women. I WOULDN'T EVER take pictures backstage because it's not allowed, but I'm so glad I have my tangible memories. Basically, I had a crazy day full of fun and laughter with a culture I can't even begin to understand but am completely in love with.

And on that note... time for bed to explore more tomorrow!

There's a Creep in my Coffee!!!

So today, after another, but less intense, earthquake wake-up call, I returned to the beloved Summer Party, aka Mickey and Minnie's American Music Journey at the Disney Ambassador Hotel. And since I knew full well there would be delicious coffee with Coffee White (little yummy creamers), I didn't have to stop and spend a couple hyaku yen on coffee! Woot! However, much to my chagrin, there were only 4 creamers for coffee at work today, and I didn't have the heart or wherewithal to ask for more, as I didn't want to seem demanding or rude. (This tends to be a problem for me in Japan. They are so polite and seem so sensitive, and as I am pretty darn polite and a pushover anyway, I'm not able to ask for favors when lost in translation. Ex: the other night at Muji the sales lady noticed a white spot (probs deodorant) on my cheapo sen yen shirt and instantly went to get me a new one. Except it was on clearance and the only one left was a size bigger. And the white spot was probably from when I tried it on. And I didn't really know how to stop her in Japanese. And I didn't wanna be rude. And I already had accidentally stayed 10 minutes past closing time without realizing it. --- I think you get my point).

Anyway, back to the creamer. So as I put the cream in my coffee, I started laughing out loud. See, I suddenly discovered I had a creep in my coffee! Well, not a creep, really, a "creap". Because, see, Romaji characters for the Japanese can be difficult. And well, they spelled cream (pronounced "kri-mu") "creap". Because "puh" is actually just the plosive version of "mmm". (I'm taking it back to Betty Ann and Speech for the Actor and IPA). And it makes sense when you understand Japanese pronunciation of foreign words, but to the casual eye, what is "creap"? It gets better, because then I tried to explain to my Japanese friends, sans translator of course, what a "creep" is. At which point I had to break the traditional touchy-feely barrier with Misuzu to demonstrate a creepy man feeling you up on the train. And used my hand to demonstrate a creepy, crawly spider or hand coming out of your coffee at Halloween. And basically, I just made a fool of myself (as I tend to when trapped all day in a ballroom with 25 Nihon-jin). And now for your enjoyment, is the little creap that caused all the trouble:

Now let's also rewind and talk about the earthquake. Why, in my sleepiness, for the past 2 times the shakin' has wakin' me (I know, wrong tense, but I like the rhyme), is the first thing that comes to my mind as a reason for the rockin' is that people next door are going at it so intensely my bed shakes through the wall? Because, I'd like to point out, I've seen the building layout, and I know that both rooms on either side of me are currently EMPTY. So why does my brain go there? Who knows? I guess I can just chalk it up to life as a hearing- and seeing-impaired individual whose alarm would have to be a bed-shaker. (Don't worry, these do exist, I'm not making it up!).

The day was a lot of fun, though I found myself wiped out halfway through it and wishing there was creap for the coffee. My Japanese improves greatly every day at Summer Party, though my English clearly deteriorates by the end of the day and I am always snacking on bad things for me. Ai-san and Lily, my fave translator, came to the third show and I hope I made them proud. (I didn't get any notes afterwards, so I'm gonna guess we got the thumbs up). The best part of the day was our first show when I walked out for my entrance and people literally hooped and hollered! Which is awesome because a) I can't ever remember getting entrance applause and now I feel like Angela Lansbury in Blithe Spirit, and b) our audiences are so reserved in general as Japanese, and then even more so because of the ballroom setting. Also, since EVERY SINGLE ADULT has a video camera running, I think they aren't even paying attention half the time. Seriously, since every show I've ever been in was not allowed to be videotaped, and now I'm doing a show with Mickey, it's so jarring every time to just see a see of red lights and video cameras. But I guess that means there might be some youtube clips to find down the road! Woo hoo!

In other news, the flu is becoming epidemic at E-Village and TDR. To the extent that BBB has had two days cancelled this week. (They NEVER cancel shows EVER. Not even 1. Nevertheless 2 days of 5 shows. WHOA). And currently there are both types. I rode the train home with an ill face character who said she was at the doctor and he said to another TDR employee, "Congrats. You have the swine." As in flu. Congrats?! I die. Apparently, the swine flu is now so minor in effect that they don't want it spreading here, but aren't too worried about you if you get it. Just congrats. HAHA. Let's hope I don't catch it though.

Also, Blair and I are postponing are Fuji climb till next weekend because the buses are fully booked and it's a special holiday weekend so it will be crazy and crowded. And there's no rush. So we are booking them for next weekend. Instead, we plan to travel to Nikko for 2 days and enjoy the mountain scenery, and maybe hit the Izu Peninsula and a white sand beach (AMEN) for 2 days next weekend as well. Woo hoo! I love traveling Japan!

And my final thought is about those crazy Japanese. Specifically the performers. They are MAJIDE, ne?! I must maintain a level of dignity, propriety, and professionalism (for my job's sake), but here's a little sampling. Just shenanigans backstage. Those hooligans crack me up. First off, Mickey and Donald hip hop it out for me every time before the show, and Donald crawls through my legs which is a riot. During the lottery today, the dancers outfitted me in Yuki's clothes (who was onstage) to make him smile. And we have a special treat prepared for a couple of the girls for their mutual birthdays tomorrow which involves boys in drag, "One Night Only", and me singing Happy Birthday Marilyn Monroe style whilst appearing with the cake. I wish there could be pics and video, but we are backstage and that is not allowed. And these, meanwhile, are the conversations I understand! I can't even talk about the stuff that happens that I don't understand. I'm literally just laughing along hysterically not having a clue. But I love it. And I think I will miss these crazy cats the most when I head to Gai-jin land at BBB.

But for now. Bed. Because another day at the hotel fast approaches.