Movie Madness

I've been on a major movie kick of late. I think it's cause I'm so sick of tired of reading and writing from all the work I've been doing on my report - the only thing I want to do of an evening is veg out in front of the screen. I've watched plenty of dross, but I've also come across a few good ones.
I'd totally recommend "Broken English", if you're looking for an angst-ridden, thirty-something New York indie rom-com. I especially liked it because it had a lot of lines that seemed to come out of conversations that I've had with friends of late:
- It's not wrong to want someone to love you. Most people are together just so they are not alone, but some people want magic. I think you are one of those people.
- Something wrong with that?
- Nothing, but it doesn't happen all the time.
There was one line that had me rolling in fits of laughter. Unfortunately, only about two people in the world (one of whom reads this blog) will get the joke:
So the main character has met a dude, and he is telling her a little about himself on their first date. He explains what he does for a living, and then he says, "But there's not only work. I also play music." And she rolls her eyes and replies in disgust, "Ugh! I'm so glad I don't have an acoustic guitar."
Hearing this line transported me back to my first year in Japan in the local pub of a Sunday evening. It cracked me up.

Am I turning Japanese?

I have a load of administrative stuff to get out of the way before I head back to Japan - tax, social security, visa, health insurance, the lot. On Monday, I had to head in to the local social welfare office to get a form stamped. I arrive right at the opening time, knowing that the queues can get out of control as the day goes by. There was a security guard waiting outside, telling people which office to go to and which line they needed to join. Now, bear in mind that my form had JAPAN, JAPAN, RETURNING TO JAPAN stamped and written all over it. This guys looks at the form, looks at me, and then says, "So, you're going back to your home country then, are you?" Admittedly, I was wearing a baseball cap which would have masked my face a bit, but I was like, "Come on!" Needless to say, I will be using this story as ammunition next time I let a 'We Japanese' comment slip.
Now, this office is in deepest ghetto, so I knew I'd be in for a bit of a morning. It's all boarded up windows and serious pram-face. It must be the most depressing place to work, but the staff I encountered couldn't have been more polite and respectful. There were only two people in front of me in the queue, so I was sure I'd be out of there in no time. But these two were not leaving that office without a fight and ended up holding up the whole operation (just where you pick up your ticket) for more than 30 minutes. By the time they were done, the line behind me had grown to forty grumbling people. And then, just as I was about to move ahead, this guy jumps in front of me and starts shouting at the man behind the counter. He was all, "I'm just out of detox, and you've cut off my benefit, and I can't go back to me Ma's cause me brothers are there doing junk..." It was just like something out of Shameless. I was trying to be all random act of kindness about the whole thing, but then the people behind started bitching about me letting him in line. I guess I was trying to make up some karma for the homeless guy that I sent packing the other week. Anyway, once I finally got to the counter I was done in under 30 seconds - I will not be going back.

WWJD?

So I'm sure you all know the above initialism, right? Well there's a new one - it's WWPD (What Would Patrick Do? - and then do the complete opposite)!
I really showed my true colours there yesterday and I'm not feeling very happy about it. In Dublin, it is not uncommon to see people begging on the streets. With the expansion of continental-style terrace dining, it's also not uncommon to have people come up and ask you for money when you're sitting outside a pub or restaurant.
Now I never take out my wallet on the streets. It's something I'm not at all comfortable with. Most of my friends are different and give as often as they can. So I was sitting outside a pub in the centre of Dublin with some friends yesterday, soaking up some very rare rays of sun, and this guy comes along and slurs, "Now you can tell me if I'm disturbing you and I'll move on but do you have any spare change?" Before any of my friends had a chance to answer, and without even thinking about it too much, I answered, "If you wouldn't mind..." To give him his due, he did move on to the next table and just shouted back, "It's just that I'm f___ing hungry!"
My friends didn't call me on this at all, but I know that if I had said nothing they would have given him some money.
I'm still trying to process what I did from a philosophical point of view. If I had given him money, it wouldn't have been because I wanted to help him out - it would just have been because I wanted him to go away. And then, I could have lied and said I had no change - which is what all the other people on the terrace did, but I actually wanted to let him know that I didn't agree with what he was doing.
I do believe in charity, and I give in other ways - but I'm fiercely protective of my private space. However, the incident, because it was all done without much thinking, has really shown me that I'm not a very good person. I think karma-wise I'm looking at some serious universal retribution. I don't know - not a good experience.

Bobbles: The Demon Dog

Here is a photo of Bobbles - the dog that has been the bain of my existence at home in Dublin. Sure, he looks pretty cute here, but he is seriously emotionally unstable. He has major separation anxiety and goes nuts barking whenever people come or go anywhere. I mean, I come in to the living room to say goodnight to my folks and he goes nuts, viciously barking at me. Same deal if I say goodbye on the way out to college. He's even managed to learn Italian and goes crazy if I say 'Ciao' instead.
Things have gotten better recently. My sister is a part-time dog whisperer, and my parents have finally started to listen to some of her advice. When he goes out into the back garden now, they put him on a long chain from time to time and it seems to be teaching him some boundaries. I was all in favour of the electric collar and spraying citronella in his face, but these were deemed to cruel.
I will dearly miss all my family when I get back to Japan, but I'm counting the days until I no longer have to share living space with this little monster. The paradox is that the little blighter seems to love me -he snuggles up to me when I sit on the couch, tries to sneek into my room to lie on the bed, and even waits outside the bathroom for me to finish in the shower. Can you imagine what he'd be like if I was actually nice to him?

Still here!

Okay, I'm up to like my third e-mail asking me if I've passed away. I guess that's as good as sign as any to update this thing. The problem is, since I last wrote a blog entry embarrassingly little has happened to me.
Well, that's not entirely true: being back in Ireland has confirmed for me that Japan is where my heart is. I'll be heading back there to start a new job in November. I'm well excited: I'll be a proper grey salary man, all suited up and living in the centre of Tokyo. I've really missed my life there.
Apart from that though, it's slim pickings. Let me think...
I had a nice quiet family Christmas; I had one of the most fun New-Year parties that I can remember; I flew over to Boston to visit with friends and shocked them all by actually bonding with an infant and not coming out in a rash (maybe there is some paternal instinct in me after all); I've had an ongoing battle with my parent's dog - the more I hate him, the more he seems to love me - we're all about dysfunctional relationships in my family; I've really enjoyed doing my Masters - as I said to a friend, it's been really nice to feel good at something. I'm not used to feeling that way; I've given up the booze - two months and counting. I've never felt better. And that's about it. A bit of a sad tally for nearly 10 months.
So, the outlook for the next couple of months is a lot of the same - mostly writing up my dissertation and preparing to head back to the rising sun. Perhaps knowing the clock is ticking for my time in Dublin will cause me to see the place with different eyes and think of something worth saying about the place. We'll see.