Long time, no post

Why? Because no one reads this (except my mom). Or if you do you do, you don't comment, which makes me much less inclined to take the time to write. Also, I haven't been up to much of anything lately. Just same old, same old at work.

So, since I am posting, here's my obligatory amusing anecdote:
Lest you mistakenly believe all Japanese are polite... I was on the train with my friend Lynn, and it was just about full. We saw one seat, and I told her to take it and kept searching. A little further back, I saw an empty seat next to a middle-aged woman. Her bag was on the seat, so I asked her if the seat was occupied. She said something to the effect of, "Can't you see my bag?" (lit. 見えます？). I mumbled something and kept looking. I hashed this over with Japanese friends looking for some cultural nuance I was missing, but their conclusion was that she was just rude. So, there's my story. Of course the Japanese still have the courtesy thing down a lot better than Americans.

On to recent news... the not-so-exciting: right now I'm job-hunting and trying to figure out what to do next year. Any suggestions? I wrote my resume. I just haven't gotten around to sending it anywhere.

...and the exciting: I'm going to France this week. Spur of the moment decision. I was in the travel agency going over details for my Bali trip in May and saw a brochure for "Bargain Paris" with really great prices. So I decided to go for it. I have time off for our spring break. And booking international travel less than 10 days in advance is a rush. Then, even more surprising, my mother pulled a similar stunt and is going to meet me in Paris. So expect photos soon, my imaginary friends.