The Fire

I got a rent bill yesterday evening, so I thought I'd pay it today. However, it seems I should pay in a specific bank. I thought I'd do it in the morning, but I was hurrying to the lab. I thought I'd do it after the lab, but the book circle ran a bit longer... before it was cut short. First there were some sirens that were quite disconcerting (fortunately, we weren't really in concert); then there was a lot of megaphonic shouting (which is, really, an oxymoron, if you think about it), and then, five or ten minutes later, we were evacuated from the building. Apparently, someone lit up something they shouldn't on the seventh floor of the next entrance in our building. So we all went out (some people even in their slippers), and we watched as more and more fire trucks pulled up. If they were blue, I'd've thought we got taken hostage and SWAT was throwing everything they had against the terrorists. So we stood about aimlessly for a while (actually, even if I did stand around pointedly now and then, that was still a funny phrase), then I thought, might as well grab a dinner. I turned to a guy from my lab (one of the guys from the book circle, the one who has to be good in computing because he is not really a prodigy in English, and asked if he thought the cafeteria was open. He said (something to the effect of) he wasn't going, because he is going drinking with his friends. I explained that I asked for myself (then explained again) - then he understood and was very kind and led me to the cafeteria himself, through the throng of fire-truck observers. Then he apologised again, saying he really must go now to drink alcohol. I went in and ate a rather good menu, but I can't really say what it was, except for the rice. I mean, there was a soup with some vegetably stuff with couple of livery blobs, there was a plate where a bit of chickeny threads accompanied some more vegetably stuff, which looked rather like very description I ever heard of kimchi. The tea was not up to par though, it seems that today's tea machine waited for the baka no gaijin to drip its last. After that, I tried to see if there was any post office around, since I believed I was already late for the bank (but I had no clue by how much; it seems that the bank in question is open 9-3). It's a mission I've already failed a couple of times. (Back to talking about the post office now.) How come there is such a dearth of post offices? And whoever I ask, noone knows about a post office. Actually, it's a ritual - whenever you ask someone where something is, if they don't know, they'll think and look around for at least thirty seconds, mumbling "maa, yuubinkyoku, yuubinkyoku tte..." or whatever you're looking for, then, after a period that they perceive should be sufficient to convince you that they really tried, will finally shrug apologetically and say they're really sorry. They're that polite. And the really well-meaning ones... well, wait a bit more. Anyway, after several false starts, I asked some guy before I saw him properly. He looked quite a bit weird and a little bit drunk (or vice versa?) had a nervous tic, smelled of beer, and spoke in full-auto bursts of rather incomprehensible Japanese, and after a while, even some even more incomprehensible English. However, he said he knew a post office. He's going that way, and he can take me there. Is it far? No, no, he's going there anyway. I know, mom, you said not to go anywhere with strangers, but he looked harmless enough. By which I mean, I could take him. Unless he's in reality a drunken master. Anyway, "not far" is so not the description I'd use. I never did find it though; after he left me, I gave up at about the time when 1) I got an independent confirmation, and 2) the rain started again. Looking around, I noticed I have inadvertently found myself in Akihabara. Now, from a map, I knew there was a Ginza line station somewhere there, but I just couldn't pinpoint it exactly. So again the same ritual - Ginza line? Oh, maybe there is... There's a JR station there, but... Ginza line... Ginza line... Hmm... I'm really sorry, sir. Sorry. I don't know. I started talking about the really helpful, and this is where I'll pick it up - the really helpful don't go away after their 30 seconds, but grab another passer-by and rope them into playing the game along with them. That's also what the old lady of the independent confirmation above did - startled that a gaijin was talking to her, then quickly recovered seeing he talked Japanese and needed help, then cringed to see she didn't know, then pounced on a young couple strolling by. Anyway, so far, the pounce instinct proved itself, for both of the pouncees managed to answer the question - the granny's young couple, as well as the OL's salaryman group. Anyway, I walked on in the direction of the riiman's advice (5 minutes, he said), but it seemed longer, and I stopped to ask again. And (30 seconds later) yet again. I was about to give up and ask a policeman on the street corner (that's what they're here for, anyway), and I was waiting for him to finish talking to someone else when I turned idly around and noticed I was standing 2m from the entrance. That would have been embarrassing! I got back home uneventfully, but then noticed this huge bug on the hallway and had to squeeze one more photo from my dying dijikame (I haven't fed it any juice since I bought it). So that's that - I'm in my room now, and I'm going to the lounge to upload this. Enter Return wanted me to tell you he's sorry, but he was too tired today, so he was not going to make an appearance. See you soon!