Monday just kicked my @$$

I think (like many people) that Monday is the worst day ever.  I often fight with Monday, and it fights right back.  Today was no exception.  The final score: Monday: 3 points; Elissa: 0

Let me tell you how Monday won the fight and had me completely defeated before noon:


Today it was FREEZING when I got up.  Like freezing.  In the mornings, I usually get up and the first thing I do is look outside to see if I need to plan shoveling time into my morning.  But...the windows were all frozen shut!  So I went to the door as a back up and it, too, was frozen shut!  I had to give it a good hip-check to get it open.  Craziness.  At least my water didn't freeze.  Remember that?  I had to shower at a friend's house for a week last year.  

So I went outside gave my car a few extra minutes than usual to warm up and headed to school.  As I drove, I was thinking to myself, "oh, wow, I need to be careful, the roads are frozen, too!"  I made it to school fine, parked and headed inside.  I was walking so so SO carefully because I knew it was slippery, but even so, I managed to slip and fall.  Think banana peel kind of slip where your feet end up higher than your head.  Well...caught my fall on my right wrist and right hip area.  sat there for a few minutes regaining my composure (read: crying) and went inside.  I washed the dirt off my right palm to make sure I was not bleeding and AH the bottom outside of my palm was swollen and rather painful!  What do I do?!  After some pushing from friends, I decided to ask the nurse for ice.  This is the first time I have ever asked the nurse for any sort of health-related help.  I just wanted ice, but she asked what was wrong so I showed her my hand at which point she decided I needed to see a doctor to make sure it wasn't broken (I knew it wasn't) or fractured (hmm, fractured....).  She was kind enough to go with me to the doctor (I was so embarrassed!) and they took X-rays and confirmed that the bones were fine and that I just had a swollen bump of sorts on my palm.  He put some anti-inflammatory medicine on it, wrapped it, and sent me on my merry way.  I was really embarrassed, but I guess it is better to be sure there is nothing wrong with the bone that could heal wrong.  I may live to snowboard another day!

Dancing batteries and the flu

So as I sit here with the flu  (someone shoot me) I was going through my pictures and videos and trying to organize and delete and thought you might all appreciate the dancing batteries from Korea.  Apparently I found it really funny at the time (no, I had not been drinking) and I do still get a good laugh out of it every time I watch, though not quite what is recorded on the video.  Anyway...enjoy. 

Oh, the flu!  You are curious what happens when you get the flu in Japan?!  You have to take a week off work!  That's what happens!  It might just be schools, I suppose, but I have a whole week off.  A week off, did you catch that?  And guess what?  IT STINKS!  I am bored and sitting here feeling sorry for myself, especially because besides a cough, I feel fine!  What's the big deal?!  I had to miss a ski trip with my friends.  My week off school will cause me to miss the ski school with my students.  I had to miss Mexican night (I was SO bummed!!).  Not to mention the fact that when I go back it's just gonna be embarrassing cause I am the one teacher who managed to get the flu.  And I will probably have to wear a mask even though the flu will be gone from me.  The doctor also called me pitiful because I live alone and have no one to take care of me.  Yeah.  So enjoy the video while I sit here and continue to feel sorry for myself.

In other news, I went to the doctor in a foreign country all by myself.

I go to a lot of concerts.

In case you were unaware, I have been to quite a few concerts since I came to Japan.  I posted about a few of them a while back, but the concert going adventures have continued since, and will continue until at least March.

Since that post oh so long ago, there have been a few more Tegomasu concerts, a KinKi Kids concert...and ARASHI!

ARASHI!  ARASHI!  You know, that J-Pop group I absolutely adore.  If you recall, I was lucky enough to get tickets (it's a lottery system...you put your name in and it is all luck after that).  Not only did I get tickets, but they were relatively decent tickets!  I mean, we could have been waaaaay up in the stands, but we were not.  We went to Nagoya for this concert.  It was me, Crystal, and Kim.

Pretty much, they sang some old and some new, not that any of you know their songs (but my mom insisted that I post about concerts for some reason), but they sang a lot of my favorites, even though they are older.  And they danced.  And they talked.  And they smiled.

I also got incredibly lucky and at the end of the concert, as people from the arena were leaving, this super super super nice lady gave me a streamer and two of the little foam ties that they shoot out at the audience (only arena seats really ever get them).  Anyway, it was amazing. 

And just to confirm for you that I am crazy, here is what I wore to the concert:

Ok, now let me explain.  There are 5 members in Arashi.  Each has his own color.  The guy I like (Matsumoto Jun) is purple, so...  And Kim likes Nino who does commercials for Mario 3DS, hence the mario outfit.  If you look at her hat, though, you will see a fabulous "N" made by yours truly.  I should note that our outfits are tame, boring, even, compared to what some girls wear!