Don't Laugh!

What do you do when you are working at an English school during the TOEFL exam and after 2 hours of setting up and checking people in you have to sit for 4-5 hours while they test.....Blog of course!

This is old news for me, but a new show on MTV recently reminded me of this original gem. I'll get back to the MTV version later.

For those of you who have not heard of this, let me introduce you to your new favorite show. "Gaki no Tsukai". It's a Japanese show in which some well known Japanese comedians participate in various scenarios where they aren't suppose to laugh. If they do laugh the are punished in Japanese fashion which means smacked on the butt with a stick by someone in disguise...intrigued yet?

(This is the one with the punishments. I have seen this literally about 10 times and I can still not stop from laughing. The counting part is pure win.)

(Next up is "Silent Library" The guys gather in a library and pull cards to see who will be subjected to some sort of outrageous punishment while the others look on and try not to laugh. Let me just say right now, whoever created the slapping machine deserves a Noble Peace Prize.)

Now on to MTV. They recently released their on version of "Silent Library" and as you expect from an American remake, especially one stemming from MTV, the magic of the original has been completely sucked out of it. Although they did make it a bit more game showish with contestants winning money. Picture the original with a an extreme scripted feel and the rejects from Room Raiders. Aaah heck, I didn't wanna promote it, but I'll link you a little sample.

If you saw the original first, you'll hate me after that last one.

I've also included some wiki action on the Japanese version

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaki_no_tsukai

P.s. There are many more episodes of the original on youtube so look em up. They are hilarious despite the fact you may not know Japanese.

Sometimes you gotta go back to move forward

I graduated from College on May 16th...on June 4th I was sent an email saying that I needed one more class in order to receive my degree. Cue sigh. "SIGH"
Apparently going to my counselor over and over to make sure I had all the classes I needed doesn't really work. It's also possible for a counselor to tell you that a class you are taking/paying for will be suffice and then turns out that isn't true. "SIGH" So anyways with 4 days until a class that I could use started I had to go and sign up back at the local community college for one more last hurrah.

I chose the community college because the tuition was much cheaper and sadly I didn't have enough warning to reapply for financial aid and so I needed to pay out of pocket. I am now back at a school I attended over 5 years ago. I also didn't have a lot of options for classes and thus was forced to take a Biology Human Sexuality class...which I hate. Feels more like an American Pie sex class..not my type of thing. The worst two things about this situation include:

1. Less money that I need for upcoming journey. (Had to pay the tuition myself)
2. Receiving my diploma later. (I need this diploma to get a job abroad.)

The bright side, as most of my bright sides are is that I am just gonna trust that God is gonna somehow make this work. He's done some crazy awesome things for me in the past so I am a bit excited to see whats next. The class ends mid-July which is before I planned on leaving so hopefully my plans don't get too derailed. Recently I applied for a few jobs from abroad. Would be great if I could nail the job down before getting there but I'll go regardless. Korea also comes to mind.

Now I just gotta get through a mind numbing 3 1/2 hour lame class for the next 5 weeks. "SIGH"

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths" (Proverbs 3:5,6)

Cracker Jacks + Crappy Prize= Crapper Jacks

I'd like to take moment from our regularly scheduled program to rant! How many of you know Cracker Jacks? Now how many of you grew up eating it? Okay good, that's at least half of you. For anyone who doesn't know, Cracker Jacks are a mixture of peanuts and caramel covered popcorn. Yes, it is as tasty as it sounds. What was also special about this snack is that each box was packaged with a little surprise prize. These prizes ranged from small plastic toys, to stickers
and my personal favorite the fake tattoo that you applied with water in a ecstatic attempt to seem cool. Well, what I am about to reveal I realized before, but recently during a lovely picnic, I was suddenly interrupted when I was reminded of the travesty that has become of this wonderful childhood snack. Prepare for the worst..

Warning: What you are about to see may cause symptoms such as anger, sadness, bitterness, fury, depression, and confusion. Do not continue reading if you are pregnant or show signs of pregnancy.

(Here it is folks) (A picture of Zack Effron?)

(Apparently you fold certain parts to see who he grows up to be. My guess...loser)

(Hey when you finish he grows up to be Benjamin Franklin....wow)

(Two of our boxes had this lame prize)

(And look it comes with a bio. This is just what I've always wanted as a child. A lesson of Alexander Hamilton and how he was assassinated)

So this is what we've come to as a nation huh? They take our toys away and replace them with history lessons. Why not just put a Algebra equation in every box? First we lose Jim Henson, then our Saturday morning cartoons begin to suck, and now this!

Rant Over

Money, Money, Money

Its no surprise I am gonna need money to survive in Japan while I look for a job. I have decided to sell some of my best possessions to accomplish this. First on the list is my car. She was my second and last car I ever owned and she made quite some enjoyable summers for me. Sadly when I was away in San Francisco skateboarding the Golden Gate Bridge and eating clam chowder, she sat back home losing her will to drive. She needs a little work like some new tires but otherwise if it wasn't for the fact that I wont need her anymore soon I'd think about fixing her up. She's currently sitting on craigslist awaiting a new home, so if you happen to live in St.Louis and are interested let me know.

The next thing to go is my huge collection of video games. More than 150 games and 10 consoles. From the original Nintendo, to the TurboGrphx 16, to the Dreamcast. I'm gonna stick it on ebay as one huge lot. I am currently taking pictures of it all and once I get it up on ebay I'll bless you all with a link so that you prey upon my memories. Only thing I am keeping is the DS. Its portable, fun and everyone else in Japan has one.