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Nar3: Japan

Only 3 more days....
Posted on Monday, March 1st, 2004 at 8:55am by Brett.
(Monday, March 1st, 2004 at 10:55pm Japanese Standard Time)

One exam and *surprise!* two essays down, I am now one step closer to a month of no classes.

Today was our grammar exam. I'm pretty sure I did quite dreadfully on it, but there were many factors working against me. The "Puns" essay that I thought was due Tuesday was, apparently, due today at noon. I have class from 10:10-11:35, then lunch until 12:15, and another class after that. Unfortunately, the first period was the period in which we were to have the final exam. When I got to the class room for the first final and found out that the paper was due at noon, a quick...slightly insane...count of the hours revealed that I didn't have enough time.

I plowed through the grammar test as fast as I could. I finished it in just under 35 minutes. They gave us about an hour to do it...The results will not be pretty. After the test, I jumped on my bike and cycled the half a kilometer ride back to my dorm to finish typing the essay. It would be another 1k to go back to the library to print out the thing. I had exactly an hour.

I typed like I have never typed before. I started making ridiculous claims..."The Japanese are a society infatuated with cuteness"..."Kami-sama and kami are puns to remind you that when you have paper, you need to remember that your hair is a gift from God, and that GOD IS WATCHING YOU!!!!!!!!"..."Puns are like little reminders to always do good, be noble, and be just"...it was pretty bad. But I managed to finish it in just over 15 minutes.

Did I mention it was snowing? Properly I suppose it would be called "slushing"...if you're from Ohio or anywhere in the north eastern US, you know what I mean...

So anyway, 1k frantic bike ride to the central library...despite the suddenly cold temperatures, I was drenched in sweat. 15 minutes to find this professor's office and turn in my paper. I run upstairs to the public terminals. Because...oh because many reasons...I have to save my essays as evil PDF files uploaded to a webpage. I can't save them as HTML because it screws up the formatting because the printers here all use A4 paper...actually apparently everywhere but the States uses A4 sized paper....

ANYway. I go to print out my PDF files. The machines I was using were pure crap. Takes, and I'm serious, 3 minutes to start up Adobe PDF Viewer. I printed. I got a paper error. I ran to the printer, with many scared and confused Japanese getting out of the way of the sweaty, frantic gaijin, and grabbed some new paper and shoved it into the printer and pressed the reset button. It started going. I ran back to the computer and told it to print two copies of both essays (killing two birds, here...). It gave me a toner error. I shouted a suggestion at the printer that got many looks, brushed the sweaty hair out of my eyes, grabbed the wasted paper, and ran full out up the next flight of stairs to the next computer cluster. 7 minutes to go.

Here (luckily for them) the computers and printers were much more cooperative. I printed out my essays, then sprinted out of the library and ran to the building where my professor's office was. I met someone in my class on the way...a Japanese girl. We had a nice conversation in the elevator. I managed, somehow, to get my paper in on time.

Whew. I got worn out again just writing that...



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Now that is a ... by dalecam [2004/02/03 08:28 ET]
Now that is a dedicated student, or would it be more appropriate to say one who better learn your days and times! hehehehe Have you thought about the stories people are going to be telling or writing about YOU when you leave. "Oh, those crazy Americans!"