So, as hinted at in the Announcement of the Next Post, I have joined a gym. The Konami Sports Club at that, which makes me smile with delicious Irony since Konami was first and foremost a video game company, and American politicians looking for a scapegoat in the “obesity epidemic” like to blame young people’s circumference on those blasted PlayStations and Nintendos. I asked a trainer there if the company had started out in fitness and branched out into computer entertainment, but she told me that it was, indeed, the other way around. This came up as she was showing me how to use one of the machines, and she told me, “It’s like playing a game, you do the moves that come up on the screen. Konami’s a video game company, did you know?” I replied that I did, and that I liked Castlevania, and her confused look made me remember that that franchise’s name is completely different in Japanese and quickly corrected myself, saying, Akumajou Dorakyura.
Actually, as I would virtually run around in Transylvania, I would often think, “isn’t it funny that I’m sitting here in my living room making this little CG dude run around all over the place and wishing he would run faster?” ^o^;
ANYWAY, I had always thought it was stupid to pay to exercise when you can run around in the street for free and do exercises at home with minimal equipment. But living in an apartment just isn’t conducive to working out. At least, not for me. I’d go for runs in the street, but I couldn’t really do much at home. So when a JET asked me to translate for her so she could join the aforementioned gym, I ended up learning all about it, and since she got a 「無料体験きっぷ」(free trial ticket) I went ahead to see how it’d feel. Honestly, my main concern was being made to feel uncomfortable by people staring at me. It’s annoying when out and about in general, but when running round on a treadmill or pumping some iron? Sheesh.
Fortunately, I’ve not gotten too many stares. It’s mostly middle-aged men who glare at me; I don’t know exactly what it is about me that’s upsetting them, but I’ve decided that they can go down the drain for all I care. (To use a translated Spanish phrase to not say something more colorful.)
On the subject of running, yesterday was my school’s marathon. Unlike last year, this time I looked at a map of the course in advance so I knew where to go. Also, since I’d been training (albeit sporadically), I was able to stick to the girls who were at the back not for lack of physical ability, but because they just didn’t feel like running much. So I didn’t end up alone and lost on the course. Those girls would only start running when a teacher was in view of them. ^_^; I also had this unexpected conversation with them:
Girl: *Holds out hand* エリー！ Eli!
Me: Hm?
Girl: *Sticks out hand as if for me to take it*
Me: *Takes her hand*
Girl: *Starts swinging our arms between us*
Me: LOL 何これ？ What’s up with this?
Girl: これはガールズラブだね。This is girls’ love isn’t it.
Me: あ、そうか。ハハハ、すみません。友達でいいよ。Oh, is that so? Hahaha, sorry. We can be friends.
Girl: ベストフレンド。Best friends.
Girl 2: いや、先生が好きのはガクトよ。No, the one the teacher likes is GACKT.
Me: そうだよ！ハハハ！That’s right! Hahaha!
Honestly, what I wondered was if the girl had recently been watching the new drama 「大切なことはすべて君が教えてくれた」(which we can translate to something like “You Taught Me All the Important Things”). I didn’t see this drama from the beginning, but I started watching last week’s episode because it seemed like a female student was in love with a female teacher, something I hadn’t seen in a a live-action drama before. It turned out that the student actually had a thing for (and maybe had had a thing with) that teacher’s fiancé and was just trying to weird the female teacher out with her professions of love.
So, since I thought of this, even though I hardly ever watch TV, I feel like saying that I watch too much of it. ^_^;
Speaking of GACKT, I bought the Official 2011 Wall Calendar, and much to my delight, he’s wearing a leopard print jacket for January-February, which means, he matches my kotatsu! This made me squee for a good 15 minutes.
- GACKT and Kotatsu Geek Moment
Well, that’s all, for now.
☆
次回！アホ巻きじゃないっすか？！
Lucky Hill 