21 June 94 Tuesday 5:45 pm or so Oh, I'm so tired and hungry -- I just got a "letter" (more like 4 words) from Brian today -- "I love you -- Brian" He sent it a week ago, so it =does= take a week to get here. I wrote about 12 postcards last night that I really should have sent today. I've been giving everyone my address because I really, really, really want mail. The problem I'm having w/ eating is similar to one I had @ the beginning of the school yaer (I always think of September as the beginning of the year, really) -- I keep gagging on the food. The food really doesn't taste =that= bad -- it's just that there seems to be so much - I know that I don't really eat my fill, but past a certain point I start gagging and I had to force myself to eat today because I knew it wasn't enough for me. I think I gag because of texture -- if something is too squishy or slimy (infortunately, most of the stuff here is both) Breakfast is my favorite -- esp. when okaasan cooks me fried eggs -- they taste so good, to have some American food - they taste better tthan I remember. I enjoy using chopsticks, though lots seem to wiggle its way out. I always look forward to a bath - last night I had to settle for a shower, though. My main problem is toilets -- it's really difficult for women - one really has to remove pants and underwear to insure that they're not messed up! One of the toilets at school was really messed up because someone had missed while taking a crap. The toilets also smell bad (even the western style ones) because of their low water levels -- but that's excusable since they can't afford to use too much water. Perhaps that's why Japanese don't drink too much -- I noticed especially that only children drink during meals. Actually, I find that I only really need to drink to wash down stuff I don't like, or if I'm starting to gag -- there's already so many liquids in the dishes. I've really not noticed much smoking among the Japanese. Otoosan smokes, but I don't think he smokes the entire cigarettes (he smokes Kent, I think) and he only smokes when sitting in a particular chair, w/ window open or the little vent/air filter in front of him turned on. But, then again, I really haven't gone out "among the people." Class is going to be tough and terribly tiring, I think. ick. Today I found the Japan Times and got to find out what I've been watching on the news shows for the past couple days. I also found a nice bookstore, w/ a book by Martin Gardner, some by Agatha Christie -- I just need to find some by Asimov and I'll be happy (or maybe Shakespeare -- that would be cool! [note: these are Japanese versions of the books I'm talking about]) I'm considering buying a J/E dictionary. I'm having a hard time w/ some vocabulary. Anyway, I'm tired and need to rest, study, and eat. I hope Brian has written more, so I get another letter this week - or something. There are so many neat things here, but I get tired from all the studying I need to do --