*pops and locks her way onto center stage*
Hello ladies and gentles,
Today, I GOT A BANK ACCOUNT WITH MIZUHO!!! YESSS~
The first time I went, I was missing a hanko, the second time, I was missing my Gaijin Card, and now that I had both and half of a day free, I decided to hike it through the nasty, windy, misty rain to see how I would fare. I also needed to exchange some moola to enjoy myself with as my cousins and I bizounce around Tokyo for a week between classes, tests, readings, homework, and dance practice. *huffs*
Uhm, yeah, the exchange rate? Saddening. Definitely. 99.59/dollar. gross, no? *shiver mee'z timbers*
I was feeling quite perky after succeeding at my little venture and blew 1050yen on 3 very cute towels for my personal use at home. I figure the more towels I have, the less I will have to reuse the ones I have, leaving them to develop less of a pungent odor by the time the weekend rolls on by.
Oh, let's continue with the Matsumoto drama, now shall we?
- I told my Okaa-san last night that I would be eating out with my family that's visiting from America from Sunday until the following Saturday. They're here for a week and while I may not be able to break fast with them in the morning, I sure can in the evenings at my own leisure. Well, her response to me was at first and very entranced/confused blank look. And then she asked me if I had read through the Homestay/Study Abroad Student Rule Packet thoroughly. I said, sure, just tell the family 3 days in advance or so right, to which she responded that I should give my packet a closer gander before approaching her again. Well, then she broke right into the problem she had with me eating out for a week, which was the money she would have to return to me as I would not be eating with the family for more than 3 consecutive days (or meals, I forget) and informed her beforehand of the fact. I've already skipped 2 meals previously, choosing instead to grab my own grub (McDonald's and the take out from Wakana) and she had nothing to say then. Technically, she would have to refund me 7,000 yen, 1,000yen/dinner.
She looked very put out by that fact. But, when I told her that I didn't really give a care (別にかまわないよ）, she just looked at me again, froze as if confused, and then announced, "Oh! It must be because you're rich." She then proceeded to throw in some spicy supports like, "But, Teresa, it isn't your money, so you shouldn't be so free with it!" I told her that my parents had paid that money in order for me to experience life abroad with a family completely unlike my own. She was like, "But, it's such a waste of your parents' money!" I was like, "Uh, I'm not rich. My parents both work really hard, and they have done so their entire lives in order for me to be happy and grow into a decent person (which I have)."
Okaa-san just wouldn't let go of the opinion that I must be very wasteful with my parents' money because I didn't care if she didn't give it back to me. I even added that because I use the hair dryer every night and do a bunch of other things, that it all adds up in the end. She just gave my a brows down look of deep disappointment and was like, "But, your parents already paid for that. It's a part of the fee they paid." Yeah, I know! The meals are also a part of the fee they paid, but if I'm not eating and am instead in want of doing 2 loads of laundry a week, wouldn't it make more sense to just keep the money and then let me do my laundry in exchange?
Well, after that, the conversation dissolved into a segue that had absolutely nothing to do with me not eating dinner at home for a week and her having to (being expected to by those at the Study Abroad Office here at Sophia) return the money to me for not eating. She started saying how bright I was and how much she was studying/learning from just living me me, essentially using me to see how life on the flipside might be. Like, when she warm water washed instead of cold water and was so shocked by how much more clean her clothes turned out. She just kept complimenting me over and over again. It was, by the end of 15 minutes of conversation, a waste of time.
I brought the topic up again this morning, after having re-read the packet thoroughly the night before and told her that "I would not be needing dinner from THIS SUNDAY to NEXT SATURDAY." She just looked at me and said, " I wish you would say it more clearly." *sighs* *laughs* I don't get it, either she really doesn't understand what I'm saying half the time, or she's just pretending not to in order to get me to back off.
I've realized that every time I broach a topic that makes her the least bit uncomfortable, she jumps into a monologue about how busy she is everyday, how hard she has it with Meimi who won't do everything she says, and how I'm such a "bright" (明るい) person. My mother has worked 13 hour/days for most of her life. She struggled in a country where she knew nothing of the language, the culture, or the rules of the world she moved into. Whenever I look at how hard my mother had it and compare it to what Okaa-san does everyday, there is no comparison. I honestly don't see how her life could be so hard. Yes, housework takes up a lot of time, and a housewife in Japan is expected to buy groceries everyday. But, if my mom could do it with 3 kids at home, most of whom that went through "rebellious" periods so extreme that even Meimi could never fathom it, what the hell does she do all day? Her busiest hours are in the morning and evening. She has all afternoon and then some to catch up on sleep if necessary and do housework, most of which is automated in terms of the dishwasher and laundry machine. The bath, I think, takes up the most time to clean. Other than that, I know that she doesn't clean house everyday, so seriously woman, where does your time go?
- Okaa-san does laundry EVERY SINGLE DAY. There is no way on Earth that her daily loads are bigger than my weekly ones, and yet she wants me to save up my dirty, smelly, sweat-soaked clothes for days at a time until the load is satisfactorily large. Honey, you have a 3-person family who all wear single layers, as in one shirt, one pants, one pair of socks, etc. I do LAYERS, so each outfit I wear and sweat in is actual MULTIPLES of what your family wears. Kettle? Meet the POT.
That's it with my incredibly amusing/frustrating account of life with the Matsumoto's. I've been ranting and raving to anybody who would listen to me this past week, SORRY DK AND MIA!!! But, the good thing is that I'm not alone in my crazy opinion. This family does have some issues and who knows... maybe I'll become so numb to it that I won't let it bother me anymore. If not, apparently DK is always open.
I don't know why, but it's a trait of the Japanese that they never tell you anything directly. This leads to major problems with people who are like me, those who are accustomed to being direct and forthright with what they want, what they will do, and what they really think. Whenever the slightest blip of discomfort arises, a random digression is inserted in the conversation to divert the speaker from their original intent and try to cause a long case of LET'S FORGET IT, SHALL WE?
Bah! Maybe it's an American thing, I don't know.
This weekend was looking to be majorly packed with fun and distraction, but due to Jeanette's failing well-being and my extreme case of exhaustion, I am skipping Amity's Nomikai tonight in order to make all of G-Splash dance practice. Tomorrow is Arukoukai's Welcome Party from 2.30-5.30. Sunday is Danny and Rosanna time! But, most of my morning is free, allowing me to do most of my homework in advance and get my laundry all washed up for the following week.
OOOOOOOKAY~ I'll leave it here.
*floppity flops*
- T
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