V: My inner bartender

Log start: 12:53pm (China) January 1st 2009
New Years Day

Well last night i was sleeping and i had the weirdest dream ever! I imagined myself having a bartender job lol and then during the course of this job, i made drinks that i've never remembered the recipes to before!

i was like whoaaa when i woke up because i remembered about 6 recipes that i've never had to remember before. I'm pretty sure i've read them somewhere before but i never actually remembered them... it's like my subconcious making me remember it in my sleep...


It's pretty freaky :o

From the desk of,

HakoneDayDreamer, mix mix mix, need a bartending job when i get back for the spring term lol

V: Living in the future

Log start: 12:31pm (China) January 1st 2009
New Years Day

I didn't notice that it was so close to new years when i took a shower... so i took a shower during the 08-09 transition LOL

CLARE (screename changed for privacy) (11:33:57 PM): so when you stepped into the shower it was 08, and when you stepped out, it was 09
CLARE (11:33:58 PM): lmao
CLARE (11:34:05 PM): wowww, that's gotta be the longest shower in history

it's past noon here in the city of Nanning and yet in New York, my friends are going to celebrate new years in about 20 minutes.
I finally found internet on my laptop (my lovely...all...english...laptop...) and i'm talking to my friends and it's so weird... because i'm in 2009, and they're in 2008!!
weeeee time travel, i feel like Hiro Nakamura LOL

I hear new york is snowing a lot and it's very cold. wouldn't want to be there now xD because all i'll be doing is curling up in my blankets watching dramas for all of eternity... but here i'm eating LOL

Just wishing everyone (and my future self) a happy 2009! May better things come this year than last year... *sigh*

From MY OWN ENGLISH LAPTOP!,

HakoneDayDreamer, food food food foooooooooood

V: #s

Log start: 17:43 (China) December 31st 2008
New Years Eve

I know that you know that i know that you know that you know that i know that you already know that there are TONS of people in China. Nanning is a big city and EVERYWHERE is crowded like the city.
Although the city has a lot of people who walk everywhere, Nanning is a city where everyone walks, bikes, scooters, and takes the bus everywhere. The bus gets filled up like it's nothing.
About every 3 minutes, a bus comes to a major transfer point such as a large mall area, the same one i mentioned a few posts back. And EVERYTIME it gets filled to the point where people need to stand on top of each other to ride the bus. If you're not aggressive, you won't EVER make the bus.

Then at the mall area today, my mom and aunt that lives with us in New York baught tons of dried loongan (fruit) to give as gifts when they go back. i mean... TONS. about lets say... 32 pounds worth lol.
and the lady that sold it couldn't give us an ounce more and my aunts wouldn't take an ounce less. Chinese people are crazy when it comes to bargaining and prices... so...very...crazy...

And then, now i'm at my eldest aunt's house and it's near an open market. Here i start to notice that anyone who gets a 20 dollar bill or higher checks to see if it's fake! i mean.. whoa :o they inspect it for like 5 seconds and if they think it's fake or looks like it is, they'll tell the dudes to exchange it xD
It's not like that in New York, because it's pretty easy to tell bills apart, and probably because no one cares. But in a country were BILLIOOOONSSSSS and BILLIONNNNSSS of people live, i don't find it that odd for them to do that.

China's massive numbers bring on a lot of wierd cultures. These cultures, as many of them mentioned before by me (of course), are things that have to experience first hand. It might sound interesting second hand and sometimes you might not believe some of the things that happen here. But rest assured, A LOT of the stereotypes and such (although technically now i am considered second hand info, thank you Mr. Klein my middle school social studies teacher) do happen. And words will not be enough to describe it.

These are things that you must see to believe, although i'm not too sure why you would want to see it... maybe some of you will find it interesting and come visit China one day. I dunno lol, but a lot of the stuff that happens here, surely won't happen back in your country. Or maybe just mine... or canada... because canada practically models itself by us (of course you know an american typed that)

From the desk of my eldest cousin on my mom's sides computer,

HakoneDayDreamer, did i ever tell you how cheap things are here when converted to US currency? xD

V： Hotels。。。

Log start： 9：20 （China） December 30th 2008

Everything about a normal hotel is better than the ones back in America。 Anywhere。
i should of taken a few pictures but everything is so much sparklier and they can make a normal room feel so comfy ：D

And one more thing， they have condoms laying around on top of the drawers！ LOL
It‘s like they know people go to hotels because they pick up girls in the middle of the street and need a place to stay ：O

Amazing。 Now， sounds like i did that didn’t I？ But rest assured！ i didn‘t。。。。 haha

Don’t need my future girlfriend/wife reading this and be like WTH！？

I DIDN‘T！！ ：x

From the still amazed desk of，

HakoneDayDreamer， the shower is the only thing that’s a bit off

V： 2 things 1 entry

Log start： 18：34 （China） December 29th 2008

First， i‘d like to touch upon the subject of massages again。 Today， we went to get our feet massaged again xD
but this time。。。 it was a guy who did mine ：（

One thing about different genders doing the massage is that the girls use MORE force and the guys use LESS force。
The only thing that comes to mind when i think about this is that the girls know they’re underpowered compared to the guys so they give it 110%。 Vice versa， the guys know they have power and then output 80%
It‘s kind of a odd thing to think about but think about it for awhile。 It makes sense to me because i’m sure as peanut butter jelly time that the cute asian girl who did my foot yesterday （lol she did my foot） used so much force that i was in pain for the rest of the night。
Maybe girls are more tolerant to pain because they give birth to babies。
Either way， that girl was cute， but she used a lot of force xD

No， i’m not going to talk about the guy。 TOO BAD。

Next thing is the massive family gathering that has taken fourth today。 Tommorow， due to popular mainland china tradition， it‘s time to dig my grandpa up from his resting place on a mountain and transfer him to a permanent place in another mountain！ ：o
So tonight， ALL of my 823056320685320650163 million family members gathered in their house， which 2 of my aunts and 1 uncle still live at， to have dinner and whatnot。 The sheer amount of numbers is already too overwhelming for me。 Imagine fitting about 30 people in a single living room。 Imagine the atmosphere， the conversations， the FOOD and *cough* ALCOHOL！ ：D

The last time （which i don‘t remember） this probably happened was when i last visit when i was like 5 or something and i have a little memory of that。 This will be in my mind forever！ It’s the first time that my developed brain processed all of this traditional things。
I took an AAS220 class this fall semester which deals about China and its culture。 When i came over here to China， it‘s like taking the course all over again but in a few days。 Everything that we talk about in class， they do on a daily basis。 Chinese tea making， chinese music， FOOD， theatre， and much much more。 If i were to take the final again WITHOUT taking the class， i would probably get an A+。 First hand experience totally pwnz0rz secondary info anytime。 I’m sure most of you learned about first and secondary info already。 If you haven’t go back to middle school and relearn it and then come read my blog in a few years， because you‘re probably not in the right place LOL。

Back onto subject， it’s nothing like i‘ve ever seen。 I don’t understand a lot of them because quite a few of them are from vietnam and then some of them speak a different variation of Cantonese， which is almost the same but with local dialects mixed in。

If you like big groups， it‘s like a celebration and a party everyday。 Looks fun。

Well， back to more alcohol！ my uncles were feeding me non-stop alcohol before。。。 good thing i had practice XD！！！
*insert chinese accent hereafter*
“your cup is empty？ HEY！ pour BRIAN（in replacement of my chinese name） some more beer！”

i was like WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT··

From a probably about to roll around crazy desk of，

HakoneDayDreamer， china = lots of people = lots of relatives = a lot of food = a lot of alcohol！

V： Traditional Roles

Log start： 13：39 （China） December 29th 2008



I don‘t believe in them， but it seems like people in China still do。

When i offered to help in the kitchen， they denied my help ~。~

and when i looked outside in the living room， all the male peoples were sitting outside， smoking， watching tv， and talking。。。 so i was like。。。 hmmm interesting。



Even as a...well... i don't really consider myself as one, but here... a "child" i don't or i'm not allowed to do anything... which is kind of... odd xD



Even as a child, a male child does nothingggg and then my female cousin which is the same age as i am, is in the kitchen :O

Interesting， so traditional roles still play an effect in modern day Chinese society

From the sleepy desk of，

HakoneDayDreamer， BORED！

V： Lifetyles

Log start： 10：04 （China） December 29th 2008



i wrote about 2 pages here and it didn’t save。

*sad face* i‘ll try to write it again。。。 to the best of my ability， but i assure you， the other one was much better and what you’re about to read is utter crap compared to what i would of posted。



————————————————

What you see in second hand pictures of China doesn‘t compare to what they really have here。 There you see the bigger picture but here you really see what’s going on in the Chinese world。

The chinese men/women （for those feminists out there） are actually very good at modernizing。

Although they take a cow to the market everyday and then slice and dice it there to sell， it‘s not bad after that because that’s as extreme as it gets。

What you don‘t see is that in every family house， rich or poor， they have Disenfecting Cabinets and these disenfecting cabinets shine UV rays on everything you put in there to kill germs。 This is all around the Asian community though， when my plane landed in Seoul， Korea， we had to change plans but there was a 4 hour gap， so we went to eat of course！ When we went to get water， and we had to get our cups out of this disenfecting cabinet。



The thing is， in the US， we wash and then dry our bowls/plates whatever you use， and then you let it sit in a cabinet which then collects germs until you eat in them。 That’s a lot of germs。 And don‘t give me this “OH　Ｉ　ＵＳＥ　Ａ　ＤＩＳＨＷＡＳＨＥＲ”　ｂｓ，　ｌｏｌ。　ｉｔ　ｓｔｉｌｌ　ｈａｐｐｅｎｓ。　Ｔｈｅ　ｔｈｉｎｇ　ｉｓ，　ｔｈｅ　ｃｈｉｎｅｓｅ　ｐｅｏｐｌｅ　ａｒｅ　ｒａｐｉｄｌｙ　ｍｏｄｅｒｎｉｚｉｎｇ　ａｎｄ　ｔｈｅ　ｅｘｃｅｌｌｅｒａｔｉｏｎ　ｒａｔｅ　ｉｓ　ｖｅｒｙ　ｆａｓｔ。　

Ｉ　ｒｅｍｅｍｂｅｒ　１４　ｙｅａｒｓ　ａｇｏ　ｗｈｅｎ　ｉ　ｌａｓｔ　ｓｅｔ　ｆｏｏｔ　ｉｎ　Ｃｈｉｎａ，　ｔｈｅ　ｗｈｏｌｅ　３　ｓｔｏｒｙ　ｂｕｉｌｄｉｎｇ　ｕｓｅｄ　ｔｈｅ　ｓａｍｅ　ｂａｔｈｒｏｏｍ　ａｎｄ　ｓｈｏｗｅｒ。　ｗａｉｔ，　ｌｅｔ　ｍｅ　ｒｅｐｈｒａｓｅ　ｔｈａｔ，　ｔｈｅ　ｗｈｏｌｅ　ｂｕｉｌｄｉｎｇ　ｕｓｅｄ　ｏｎｌｙ　ｔｈｅ　ｓｈｏｗｅｒ。　Ｔｈｅ　３　ｗａｌｌ　ｓｈｏｗｅｒ　ｗｈｉｃｈ　ｅｘｐｏｓｅｄ　ａｌｌ　ｆａｍｉｌｙ　ｊｅｗｅｌｓ。　Ｗｈｉｃｈ　ｗａｓ　ｐｒｏｂａｂｌｙ　ｗｏｒｓｅ　ｆｏｒ　ｔｈｅ　ｇｉｒｌｓ，　ｌｏｌｌｌｌ

Ｔｈｅｎ　ｔｈｅ　ｗｈｏｌｅ　ＢＬＯＣＫ　ｗｏｕｌｄ　ｕｓｅ　ｔｈｅ　ｓａｍｅ　６　ｓｔａｌｌ　ｂａｔｈｒｏｏｍｓ　ｉｎ　ｔｈｅ　ｍｉｄｄｌｅ　ｏｆ　ｔｈｅ　ｓｔｒｅｅｔｓ。　

The point is， the chinese people are modernizing very fast and the white americans don’t want to accept that fact， they don’t want to realize that they‘re going to be overpowered in about 10 years。

In any Chinese city that you enter， you can see that they’re rapidly expanding， they‘re erecting（《-- an lol word） new housing everyday and factories that bring better lifestyles which the chinese people will soon have to accept。

It’s truly a remarkable sight that you don‘t get to know because all you see is pictures。 But now that i can see it firsthand， i get to appreciate the structure of their modernization and how they go about accomplishing this。
I think that they made a right choice in starting at the house first， these disenfecting cabinets are very cool LOL

Still pissed about losing my super uber very awesome post that i had to write a makeshift summary above for，

HakoneDayDreamer， chinese bbq -》 flushing mongolian bbq。 Hands down。

V：The family

Log start： 14：20 （China） December 28th 2008



I haven‘t really talked about my large family that’s in the mainland。 For one， i don‘t really remember them。 The last time that i saw them， i was about 5 years old。 Now a whopping 14 years later。 I have returned。 First， I have found out that they have settled pretty nicely。 One aunt/uncle （shortened as AU hereafter） owns a shipping company。 They’re off pretty well in nanning。 Their company is HUGE and has branches all over China。 Let‘s stay on this family for a bit longer。 This AU combo also has family members that are in the Chinese Military， Chinese police， and one is even a big shot judge in a Chinese Court in Nanning。。。

I am amazed ：o seriously。。。 lol

Then we traveled south to a place called （Pungchurng 《- failed pinyin， spellcheck later） and first we went to two other AU houses， my first impression was that they’re living a not so okay lifestyle because they live in a fairly old village （turns out to be my grandparents place）
So they took me to go eat and then go get my hair washed with a few massages thrown in there and there。 After that relaxing treatment， i waited outside for my aunt， because she has longer hair， it takes longer xD

She goes to the counter as usual and instead of giving money。。。 SHE　ＲＥＣＩＥＶＥＳ money ：o
I was like。。。 wow。。。 what？ turns out she owns that place
i wouldn‘t mind going there everyday for a free hair wash and massage xD
Then we went down a few blocks and into a pharmacy， oh， the medicine cabinet must be running low
ANDＳＨEＧＥＴＳMONEYＡＧＡＩＮLOL
i was like wwwhhhhhaaaatttttttt is going on。。。。

Their houses are in what i think to be bad neighborhoods， although im starting to think different now， and they own businesses。。。
Chinese people are very traditional， they cling onto traditional styles

brbbb

cont。 17：42 （China）
from 14：20 to 17：42， i went to my aunt and mom to get a massage again ：D

this time it was a back massage and a face massage。
I dont want to get into the details but they told me to loosen my belt because my pants were blocking the end of my spine。。。 which was part of the massage。。
if you want to know the details。。。 they touched my butt ：（

well， for three hours， i was laying down getting massaged and it was aweeeesomeee XD
it feels so nice。
and then after dinner， we‘re going to get a foot massage！ YEAH！
that makes today a full body massage day

In an american sense， this is VERY cheap。 A full body massage + lotioning and facial would cost about 250？《- price check on isle 1

And here it cost pretty much the same， which is。。。 250！ but in YUAN so it’s 250/6。8 xD

ooohhh man

the family， the lifestyle， the crime-less cities。 truly remarkable。

be back later！，

HakoneDayDreamer， even in small villages， theres internet， which is what i‘m using right now

V: The market

Log start: 17:11 (China) December 27th 2008

No, i'm not talking about the supermarket... i don't even want to know what happens there yet...

So i went to the most popular.. i think 6-7 block radius of the Nanning malls and stores today. In a place where even cars are afraid to drive through, what i believe to be a few hundred thousand people orgy (figure of speech, not to be taken by its literal term) roam the blocks of the most competitively priced places in the city. In a city where millions of people live, there are surely a lot of bargain hunters (and kids). Within this catergory, a lot of them like to shop for stuff, like how teenagers in the city like to go "hey, lets go to the mall!" Well... mall here means you're always in physical contact with someone and since manners don't (or should i say, have no room to exist in) exist, it looks like black friday EVERYDAY.

Imagine that you are fighting with another store that's probably right next to you for business. Your prices cannot be higher than theirs, then you'll lose business. So everyones prices are about as rock bottom as it gets. And people literally FLOOD the stores in order to buy what they want.
I mean, as an American teen, i like to browse because that's all theres to do, unless i sit in front of the computer, which usually what happens when im too lazy.
And with the exchange rate, it's so awesome for me. 1 USD = 6.8 CHY
A pair of jeans cost about 5 dollars USD, super computers that are in the states that cost 2000 USD cost 4000 CHY.
I baught a pair of glasses today and that's only 100 USD, where in the US the frame would cost me about 300 alone.

With a population this massive, there also has to be a high food demand. And if you don't see it first hand, you eally won't believe it. The legendary street side food vendors of China are really something. People who carry their carts out to the streets and sell food for money. And this food really tastes good. Since they make it right then and there with fresh ingredients, you know it's good stuff. And it's better than the fast food chains. (Although the fast food chains here are really good and taste SO MUCH BETTER than the american counter part. they don't use chemicals here to raise their livestock so it's much better anyway)

A bubble tea here cost 2 Yuan, that's 25 cents USD!

Gosh... if only these prices exist in New York, i'd be more fat that i already are!

Things like these, you need to see first hand. This post cannot even touch on the complexity and the sheer structure of the chinese market.
I wish i could live here, but i know that my life in NY is a lot better LOL
For vacation sense, this is one of the best places.
Today, i just wish that the weather is a lot better.

Although heavy rain (as quoted from my aunt) is the same as light rain back in the city... they wanted me to open the umbrella but i said it's not hard rain unless you can take a shower in it :D

From the desk of a not yet satisfied,

HakoneDayDreamer, ASIAN GIRLS HERE ARE WOOOOOOOOOOOT XD

V: I'm afraid of driving

Log start: 22:12 (China) December 26th 2008

Unlike America, where strict automotive laws are passed. Here, any car can be used. A lot of funny named cars exist here... such as... while i was riding in my uncle's car, i saw a burnt orange "Chevy LOL" Yep, that's right. It's the Chevy "LOL"

A car is named..... "LOL"

I have no words to describe that. That's so epic that it's.... it's EPIC! And then cars that are featured on shows like Top Gear, CITROENS (sp) and VAUXHALLs (sp) it's really.... wow...

One sad thing is that... i....am afraid of driving in Nanning. or china for that matter. People here are CRAZY. if they want to switch lanes, they come so close to you that you can touch them if you stick your hand out and then people avoid them cutting in by going SO close to the car in front... and horns are used widely, as a sign of caution. they aren't used for saying "WATCH IT ASSHOLE!" or anything. if you want to say that, you roll down your window AND GIVE THEM THE FINGER!
LOL

but seriously, it's nuts here. Truly... nuts...

Sorry Mr. Obama, i can't do it xD,

HakoneDayDreamer, CHEVY LOL!

V: Bathrooms...

Log start: 21:37 (China) December 26th 2008

V: is not for vendetta <--- failed joke

Although a lot of things are good here... there is always one thing that will ALWAYS and forever, until they change it, will be sooooo bad...

The bathrooms...

The bathroom in a house, is almost ALWAYS. A porcelain hole in the floor (for your 1+2 needs) and then RIGHT NEXT TO IT, is the shower. You shower, and then the water runs off into the hole!
Like.... WHAT!? i know, it's nasty and all... but if a few billion people can call it a bathroom... i guess i have no rights if it doesn't exist in my country... lol

But seriously... a hole in the floor....
now i know why most mainland people in the US always SQUAT! Because you need to squat to take a #2!!! omg...
Thank God that my aunt's house has a secondary bathroom with a toilet bowl... i can't imagine myself squatting unless my butt will explode or something...

imagine yourself... taking a shower... THEN SLIPPING, YOUR FOOT INTO THE HOLE. LOL.
wouldn't that suck? XD!!!

I still didn't abuse my ability to buy alcohol... yet.... someone out there should be proud of me,

HakoneDayDreamer, hole in the floor.... *sigh*

V: Asian Girls ^^v

Log start: 19:46 (China) December 26th 2008

V for VACATION! yeah yeahhh
my vacation style blogging lol

So, no big deal, im attracted to Asian girls xD
So my uncle and aunt own this fairly large shipping company here in Nanning and in this company, the job is split between male and female. Obviously, the male do all the manual labour while the female sit behind desks on the computer :o
The first thing when i walked into the office. Cute asian girls that are around my age XD
so im like whoaaaaa my uncle only hires cute and young (because im sooo young) asian females! and i'm like OH NICE!

No point in that story really, just to show that my uncle is mostly... uhh... hiring young asian females LOL

But it's really different here. the fobbiness is sort of a turn on maybe and there are a lot of asian girls here.... fobby.. cute...asian girls... x_x

WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING!? I'm writing a vacation blog and all that came to my mind the past few hours are how cute and attractive these girls are.... interesting...

No A34 (my roomates) i am not a pervert... whatever you guys might think.... again...
these are perfectly natural feelings!
i know *cough*ALEXMOK*cough* might not get these feelings because he's never touched himself LOL (oops, did i type that out? :x )

WELL, nothing more to say besides my vacation to china became good... all of a sudden.
Although i'm a little sad to admit that i do find my first/second cousins here a bit attractive... >.<
not something that anyone would admit... especially in an internet blog...
if you're my first/second cousins and you're reading this, and you understand english. Please contact me so i can delete this off the face of the earth...


FROM THE DESK OF A not-perverted,

HakoneDayDreamer, LOL I CANT BELEIVE I WROTE THAT

Vacation - Chinese Tea Making

Log start: 14:51 China Time December 26th 2008

Chinese tea making. During my AAS 220 course group presentations, there was a group that explained chinese tea making. What they didnt explain was the massive volume that this is practiced under.

Every where you go, there is a specialist that would make tea for you, right then and there. And it tastes A LOT better than tea bags in a cup. It's so much more flavorful and the quality is just too overwhelming compared to even chinese tea in america.
My uncle makes tea the traditional way twice a day, and it's so good. The technique that is put into it and the amount of skill that is used shows with the tea. My aunt is a newbie tea maker and the tea she makes is stronger than the ones that my uncle makes.
The difference really shows.



some pics later
From the desk of,

HakoneDayDreamer, YUM CHA!

Vacation - Chinese Country Life

Log start: 11:24pm (Chinese Time) December 25th 2008
Christmas Day

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

So after a long...long...time sitting in between my brother and a random korean stranger on an airplane, I'M FINALLY HERE! my butt hurts and im sore, but it's ok. No jet lag! since my sleeping times in college are so messed up anyway. So our plane's final destination (no pun intended) landed in Guangzhou, which is near Hong Kong. Then we drove up to Naning, which i believe is a majority in mandarin speakers. On the way there all you can see on the newly built highway is the effects of Chinese Modernization, and it's the part where people don't see.

Old villages that have an old modern-ish style housing with the traditional village gates (such as the ones in TVb dramas!) try hard to modernize and somehow they aren't quite there yet but you can see the progress shift and when you look into the eyes of these people, they look like they're living a happy life, and they are.
Someone once said to me that the more simple your life is, the more happy you are. In China, in this very day, in the old villages that are just starting to run into modernization, this is almost too true.
On the way to Nanning, we went drove by a particular village that sent me thinking a lot. I saw a young couple riding on a bike. The guy was riding and smiling while the girl was sitting behind him, hugging him and also smiling. I asked myself, why are they so happy? Don't they see the news? don't they care about what happens worldwide?
The answer is, they probably don't. These people, they are so oblivious to the outside world, yet their lives are so.... peaceful and happy.
I'm a modern child living in New York City, i can't see myself living that lifestyle. But even to a city kid, i can understand their feelings through their facial expressions. And that's what really sends the message out. Children walking beside the road to school riding bikes for fun and making play with a pile of rocks. Until you see them, you wouldn't think it's possible to live life like that. To a modernized person, you would be like "WOW! they're so poor, how to they manage?" Money is not the case in this matter at all, people in the villages help each other out anyway they can and is always there for support. There is no crime, the police station for the whole village is about the size of a medium sized house in New York, they only have 2 scooters to patrol the whole town. Yet, they live peaceful. Country people are not as barbaric as people may seem (unless you're in AMERICA and you go through a hick town, they're really messed up in the head).
So much to tell and yet... so lazy to write, yeah, im on vacation so im more lazy than usual, but i want to get the point across that a simple life looks like it's better than a modern life. You ask how they can go on without technology and things that make life more simple. The answer is that Chinese people have been living like this for thousands of years, and they're not about to change.
My brother said to me that a lot of them have chances to go to America to start a new life, but he said afterwards that they don't because a lot of them just want to live a happy and simple life.

Truly amazing.

From the...well... desk of a jet lagged,

HakoneDayDreamer, a simple life is a happy life.

[Anime Review] - Lucky Star

Log start: 6:35pm December 23rd 2008
Last day of finals for Stony Brook Students





This is by far, probably the top 3 animes that i've watched, ever. It's not that the story is good, because there is no story at all! It's in chronological order and you know days have gone by but the whole anime features stories and short animations that are about Japanese life and style :D

It's a really good anime to start if you haven't seen it already, i couldn't wait to watch the next episode after i was finished with one, so enjoy :D
(WOW WHAT KIND OF REVIEW WAS THAT, that sucked) :o

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

HakoneDayDreamer, plane to china tonighttt weeeeeeee

FALL TERM OVER!

Log start: 9:56pm December 22nd 2008

I HERBY DECLARE

FALL TERM 2008 AT STONY BROOK UNIVERSITY

OVER!!

yeah yeah yeah yeah yeahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

happy happy joy joy,

HakoneDayDreamer, *dumps all info out of brain and concentrates on vacation and food*

College level games + life

Log start: 3:50pm December 20th 2008
First actual day of rest on finals week

I remember the middle school and high school days where we played something like truth or dare and when it got a little bit homo, people would just walk away. we would call them a few names and that would be the end of it...
that wasn't very fun was it?

Last night after a few games of Kings (when everyone was kinda... everywhere) i remember playing truth or dare! this is about the 2nd or 3rd time that we've played it and things get more serious every time :o

And this isn't middle/high school level where it's like "EWW IM NOT DOING THAT!"
well... har har har.... people were licking each other and dancing outside(*cough* me *cough*) and singing i'm a little teapot outside at like 3am(*cough* also...me... *cough*) and rubbing each other (not me this time! :D)
i guess if you're friends with me on Facebook, there should be some evidence somewhere... but let's not get that far :x

Once you're in college, it's not that bad because it's less... awkward you see. i can't explain it and i don't feel like trying right now but the thing is, i think that once you get to a certain age (in college) you think less about these things because you're more mature. people deny that they're more mature but we all know inside that you've aged a little and now you're part of the big leagues in society!

So for once, i feel good about myself being old! I'm starting to phase past the "OH HIGH SCHOOL WAS THE BEST" stage. because, to be honest, i thought middle school was the best when i went to high school, and that stage went past me pretty quick... just that it took me all of fall term freshman year and about half of spring term to realize that college is the best place to be and that it'll go by very fast if you don't make the best of it. Half of my sophomore year passed by like a flash... everytime i was finish with my monday schedule, my friday came just like that. and in some sense, yes, it's a good thing but i don't think i want to pass by college that fast anymore. it's fun. i'll be thinking back to this stage when i graduate and work outside and that's just half the fun :)


From the desk of,

HakoneDayDreamer, i hope time slows down a bit.

Machine vs Nature

Log start: 5:24pm December 19th 2008
Day 4 of finals

Current snow accumulation: 5 inches.
So today, without the blessings of my dad :p, drove my car to get some party things for tonight. As i stop for every stop sign and red light, my car would drift off to the side and back a few times and i would, of course, panic. After seeing about 5 accidents on my way to the supermarket, it was clear that i need to slow down. I'm crazy, not stupid... and going 50mph on this blasted terrain would be stupid.

I do genuinely feel bad for the people who went 50mph and then crashed into a pole or went into a pile of snow they couldn't get out of, but at the same time i hate them because they cause traffic...

Today is not a good day for driving... snow is not your friend. I've tackled the last hurricane that past through here during the summer and the rain was bad, but i could still handle it. heavy snow is a different story and i hope people will only drive today if they really need to get somewhere and not for fun...

Unlike my friends Kelvin... which will be drifting in the snow later with his Mitsubishi Eclipse...
-__-"

Anyways, it's been an awesome day i guess... my japanese test was bearable and i finished my asian studies test in 35 mins which was about 4th out of 125 people. ^^v

Then tonight, party at my place bwuahaha

From the desk of a "safe" driver,

HakoneDayDreamer, MY LIFE > SNOW. rawr.

Seasons greetings from Stony Brook University!

Log start: 1:13pm December 19th 2008

Day 4 of finals

So yeah! it's a white day 4 of finals and as i was comming back early from my JPN11 final, i took a few pics. They're not upright because i was walking and taking pics because i had food and wanted to eat it xD

yep, so i didn't bother stopping, i just walked and snapped away

Stony Brook University says MERRY CHRISTMAS! :D

From the almost relaxed desk of,

HakoneDayDreamer, ONE MORE FINAL TODAY! GAH!

In case of emergency

Log start: 12:46am December 19th 2008
Day 3 of finals

In case of emergency, break marble and sip on Ramune! ^^v
If only i had some ramune... i'm running out of campus points anyway... i only have enough left for tommorow! then i'll have to eat out on the weekends and last my last day (monday) on some steamed dumplings baught from Oriental Groceries! (not like it's a bad thing! it's WAYYYY better than campus food) :D

So... sitting here...day dreaming... because studying for Japanese is really... annoying.
for the most part, it's probably the fourth language that i'm learning. (cantonese -> english -> spanish (i don't remember a lot but it still counts!) -> japanese)
i know that i should study, but i don't know how to go about studying.. it's a lose-lose situation!
i sit here and study, but nothing goes into my mind. so then i end up talking to people on aim and taking an hour shower just to procrastinate.

I'm actually thinking about watching Wall-E right now, but that wouldn't be such a smart idea because my test is in..... a bit more than 10 hours! i need to finish studying and then go take a Japanese final and then head to an Asian Studies final right after! As if studying for asian studies wasn't enough, Professor He needs to grade better. she treats a 200 level course like a 300 level! then Nagase Sensei seems like a lenient grader but she won't be able to give me partial credit on something that's left blank so...
WHY AM I PROCRASTINATING!?

This doesn't make sense... maybe i should keep on watching more HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR videos? or should i keep on talking on aim?

I feel the burn-out effects after studying for my hardest final, HIS220. i feel like i can't absorb anymore information if i don't dump out HIS220, but how do i go about doing that?
my head is really messed up right now... i don't even know what's going on :(
COLLEGE STRESS! AIYA, definately getting old...

From the clueless and ramune-less desk of,

HakoneDayDreamer, "BE A MAN! DO THE RIGHT THING!"

THE BEST RECOVERY MEDICINE!

Log start: 8:14pm December 18th 2008
Day 2 of finals

After burning out studying for HIS220, the best recovery medicine is just...

WATCHING A FEW HIGH AND MIGHTY COLOR VIDEOS!! yeah yeah yeah!!
woot Maakii :D





HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR is totally awesome xD

not because Maakii is so cute, it's that their music and videos are just WHOA! awesome :D
just breathtaking

*sits and eats some jamaican chicken and guacamole from the SAC*

From the cute Maakii loving desk of,

HakoneDayDreamer, YAY MAAKII!! ^^v

Only 1/5 done :(

Log start: 1:45pm December 18th 2008

So HIS220 is over... *phew* that was probably the final that i think was the hardest. Out of everything else HIS 220 is the most troublesome class to study for because of all the reading and memorization, unlike my next hardest final which should be JPN111, we do examples of everyday and i have vague ideas on how to do it even if i don't know :O
next comes the mind BLASTING PHI108... people think critically and reasonably everyday.. but how do you explain how they do it :o
Then it's a split between MAP103 and AAS220... i know i know, you're saying WTF!? ALGEBRA VERSUS ASIAN STUDIES??
let me answer that question for you! as a chinese person... 98% of asian studies is what goes on at home! LOL! oh dim sum this, yeah i eat that! and oh red envelope that, yeah i get that too. so... it's not really that hard unless you're a white person... sorry to say.. lol
then algebra... it's like being in math A and math B over again... why did i even take that class? for an easy A? because that's what i think i'm going to get :3

Oh man... my sleeping schedule is so messed up... sleeping at like 5 and then waking up at 1... i'm giving myself the "oh you're flying to china next week anyway! so you'll be prepared for the jet lag, Brian, you're so cool being one step ahead!" *pats self on back*

yep yep :D *sigh*.... study study study... a college students worst enemy... i have a prediction on why Stony Brook is rated #3 least happy students by Princeton Review...
see, Stony Brook has about...lets say a 65% asian/asian-american population you see. and asians are conditioned since they were young to do well in school... even for some people now, if you took home a B- your parents would be like "WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!?" so, all the asians study study study and cram cram cram and then they become unhappy people! like me, im BURNED out right now from studying for HIS220... good thing i had my hardest final first, now i can tune it down a little. so with 64% (let's say only 1% of asians are slackers, LOL) of the asian population being sad... this would dramatically bring the whole school's happiness level down!

AIYA! isn't that something? haha

From the hungry desk of,

HakoneDayDreamer, a balance between drama + study = FAIL! YOU MUST STUDYYYYY 100%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% *cries*

Stony Brook Tradition - The Midnight Scream

Log start: 5:59pm December 16th 2008
Stony Brook University's "Reading Day"

All throughout finals week, when the clock ticks 12am, a lot of people stand outside of their buildings and let out a long scream.
We scream because it takes relieves stress, all that pressure that is built inside of youself is released in this 5 min a night tradition on finals week.

Whatever the occasion may be, you failed, you burned out studying, or you've just had a bad day. scream scream scream and scream some more until you're satisfied :D

or if you're my roomates, you can take their suggestion and masterbate your stress away. but i think screaming your head off for 5 mins is more.... civilized XD

From the procrastinating to study desk of,

HakoneDayDreamer, AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Distortion of time

Log start: 3:32pm December 16th 2008
Stony Brook University's "Reading Day," where no one has class and tries to study.

Finals week is about to start here at Stony Brook University and every one is studying. One major thing is when college students study, they lose all sense of time. Not like they don't lose it on any normal day anyway..... i'm in my sophomore year now and i still hear people partying at 4am on a tuesday. but during finals week, everyone is quiet and everyone studies.
In my room, all of the curtains are closed for most of the day and here are some reasons why it's both a good and bad thing. The only good thing that has come thus far from closed curtains is that sun doesn't get into our eyes at 7am in the morning when we're still playing videogames/studying. The bad part is of course... that we're up at 7am playing games and studying... mostly games but i'll start studying soon because this year, FINALS ARE SERIOUS. Aiya.
This leads to the topic of time distortion for college students. I'm sure there are (i KNOW there are) people that are just like my roomates and I.
On the more sane end, there are people studying non-stop because they think they'll fail the final but in reality they would've passed it if they didn't stress that much.
On the other extreme of the scale where people (mostly freshmans) don't study at all because they think "wow, this is going to be like high school where i'll ace everything without studying." i once had that mindset but boy was i in for a surprise later on when i saw my grades.
Then in the middle there are average people like my roomates and i who have a nice balance of studying and video games.

But how does the distortion of time play into this scale you ask... well, the thing is, all three of those types of people have one thing in common. they play and study because nothing else is on their mind. I often find myself starting to study at about 8pm after dinner and then looking up to the clock and finding out that it's 3am, most of the time reminded by my stomache first :D

So one thing about people dorming at a college: you will never live on a normal schedule during the last 2 weeks of the semester!

WOW, ALL OF THAT TO A USELESS CONCLUSION. I'm good.

From the desk of a slacker who slept at 4:30am yesterday,

HakoneDayDreamer, FIRST final is tommorow :( HIS220 from 5pm to 7:30pm fail fail fail fail fail!

Why i'm more likely to fail my Japanese Final and more

Log start: 3:03pm December 12th 2008

Today being the last friday classes of fall term '08 in Stony Brook University, i was anxious for classes to end so i can go on vacation faster!

To start off the day and to explain why i think i'll fail my Japanese final, the story starts off in my Old Chemistry classroom where my Japanese class is held.
usually, Nagase Sensei (my japanese professor) has her hair down past her shoulders, looking like... uhh... whatever a japanese middle aged lady looks like. and it's normal, it's always been normal until today.

Today she came in with her hair cut just until a bit past her ear, i almost fell off my chair laughing! I think you would of too if you've seen her for a few months looking normal and then comming in on the last day of class looking like a barbie doll xD
It's just funny the way she has her hair and i've been thinking of japanese manga/anime characters that looked like her, and behold, the classes ended as soon as it started!

all the information about the final on the board was erased and i left Japanese (once again) with a blank sheet of paper!

Aiya....

Then on my way to the last PHI 108 class ever (YAY!) i saw a little 2 feet baby girl dressed up in all pink run around trees.... i don't know what she was doing there :o but if she was doing that and then going to some quantum physics class, i have props for her. and then i saw a little (i'm not stressing little, it was like 3 months old probably) black poodle sitting in the middle of the grass. everyone looked at it because there was no leash on it and the owner didn't look like he was anywhere near.


I forgot to mention in my topic... i might fail AAS 220 too! AIYA
During our review today, i was sitting behind a girl who had a third nipple on her arm x_x

DO YOU KNOW HOW HARD IT IS NOT TO STARE AT IT LOL... omg... im failing so badly this term xD



From the distracted desk of,
HakoneDayDreamer, AIYA!

Man vs Nature

Log start: 1:19pm December 10th 2008

Lots and lots....and LOTS of wind today.... mixed with some rain but the wind is the main problem... as i was getting out of my PHI 108 class that ended at 12:45, the rain started to get harder so i, as most people did... opened their umbrella xD

When the next gush of wind came, i saw 2 peoples umbrellas fly out of their hands (i laughed inside very hard and started to tear, or maybe it could of been the rain) and everyone else's (including my awesome indestructable ikea umbrella) flipped inside out... usually my umbrella has a little lock that prevents it from doing that but this time it was a hardcore super flip that forced me to dual-hand wield my umbrella :(

do you know how much it takes to flip an ikea umbrella!? the wind has to be like 40mph!!!

aiya... and if that wasn't the worse part i had to hold my umbrella at a 0º angle so it wouldn't flip while walking past the academic mall when everyone ends class... *sigh*

good job global warming. it's 15º one day then 55º the next....

on top of that... i almost flew into some girl because of the wind... not saying that's a bad thing but that's not how you start conversations with a girl lol


From the instant-noodling desk because i can't carry food and dual-hand an umbrella desk of,

HakoneDayDreamer, LAST WEEK OF CLASSES! YEH YEH

Food on the island - Buffalo Wild Wings

Log start: 3:50pm December 3rd 2008


Time to review a food place that i've been to a few times on the island :D
There's a Buffalo Wild Wings in brooklyn if anyone in the city wants to try it's awesome greatness.

In this eating establishment, the best buffalo wings that were ever created rests within the kitchen of this place. I mean.... i know cooking buffalo wings aren't a big deal but they make it so perfect :o

I don't even know what they do but it's so crispy and it's not fried, maybe it's baked but it's sooo good :O

That's only half the stuff, the other half is the different variety of sauces that they have on the wings, they go from regular bbq which tastes like soy sauce and then they get hotter and hotter until they get to Blazin'

Blazin' wings are like the best things ever! soooo hot but sooo good *yumyumyum*


I can't even explain it :(
you have to try it for yourself... this wasn't like the last place i reviewed... this is on a whole different scale of awesomeness.

And if you want some drinks to wash down those wings (if you're over 21 of course) you get such a large variety of beer and other drafts.... i need to take a picture of the menu and bring it back.

It's so simple yet so delicious :D

From the still hungry because of that stupid 11 dollar salad desk of,

HakoneDayDreamer, I NEED BEER AND WINGS NOW! AMAGAWD!

Ineffective distribution of capital

Log start: 2:34pm December 3rd 2008


So starting this fall term, Stony Brook has limited the amount of food given to each meal by controlling the amount given. Consequently, we are now paying about 8 dollars for 2 cups of rice and 8 pieces of chicken, yes my friends and i counted and all the meals we got all had 8 peices. This is an outrage, already charging overprice for food and then all we get is a chibi lunch that is fit for a 12 yr old kid.

With this set aside, i was wondering where all that money is going, since the campus food services keep on saying "oh, we're still losing money." FUCK OFF, you're still losing money from overcharging food that's not even "organic" and then giving us mini portions.
So where is that money transfered to...?

As i was walking back from the SAC (student activities center, for future reference) today with my 11 dollar fucking salad that i could get for 5 dollars back in the city, i saw "landscapers" raking the leaves and trimming the bushes... ok, you say that this is for making the campus look nice and pretty to give high school visitors a good impression, right?

Now, tell me why 8 people need to work on a single fucking bush. Tell me why and i'll give you my 11 dollar salad. it's because the stupid financial department of this college hires too many landscapers that's ran out of jobs to do and they just trim an already small bush. I'll be impressed if they can carve President Kenny (our college's big cheese) out of that bush. but still they're working on fucking nothing and as a consequence, we're getting less food!

Let's be honest, that didn't make sense but that is 1/100 idiotic capital distribution that is happening right now.

And to add on to the problem, those damn landscapers come onto campus at 6am and have nothing better to do than to turn on the fucking leafblower and motorized leaf catcher at 6:30am. While the whole campus is sleeping. DAMN IT. HOW CAN SOMEONE BE MORE STUPID?

Sure, ruin the college student's life when it's close to finals week so they don't succeed in life.

WHY DO THINGS LIKE THIS HAPPEN?......

I will get to the bottom of this, write a report and then mass send it to the administration bulding, this is.... ugh... this is so retarded...


From the rest-less desk of,

HakoneDayDreamer, DAMN 11 DOLLAR SALAD DIDN'T FILL ME UP, AT FLUSHING 11 DOLLARS WOULD OF BAUGHT ME 3 MEALS AND A FEW DRINKS! AIYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA *college student rage*