The end of the world?

So when was "2012" supposed to "happen?" Some say 12/21/2012. But maybe it'll happen when 2012 ends? Let's hope not, 'cause I still have a lot of things to take care of!

So, despite it being December, I haven't had very many (physical) gifts lately, despite both my birthday and Christmas having just passed. But it's okay, as I happen to own 90+% of the things I want to own, and I've received plenty of blessings, love, friendship, and a lot of other non-physical gifts.

One of the gifts I got though, was (were) this (these):

Can the biggest head eat the rest?

They're called 達磨　「だるま」 "Daruma" dolls. They're made of hollow wood, and these particular ones fit inside a bigger one not unlike Russian Matryoshka dolls. As you can see, the faces on the dolls have eyes which don't have pupils. It's my job as the owner to fill in one eye with a pupil to signify a goal. Once the goal is accomplished, I'm allowed to "open the other eye" by drawing a pupil in the other eye. There are four dolls (the fifth one is a small egg with 福　「ふく」 "huku," or "luck" on it), so that means I can assign four of my many goals. Surely, at least one will be medical-school-related.


I've been reviewing for the MCAT, and finally I made a structured daily study plan to motivate me. This is probably the most excited I've ever been for studying. Maybe I can assign "levels" to each section and turn it into a real life RPG. Gotta level up!

Reading the material brings back nostalgic memories of studying the same topics in college and high school. Studying with my friends, teaching my classmates the material, and the feeling of satisfaction after acing a difficult exam. Natsukashii ne.

It has been snowing quite heavily! Snow was DUMPED on Miyagi Prefecture. After two days of snow, everything is white outside. Yesterday in particular was pretty scary due to strong winds managing to cover tracks left only minutes earlier. Here's my car:

Like a prehistoric beast buried in the snow

Yeah, so, pretty snowy. It doesn't look all that bad in the picture, but there was about 5 inches of snow on the car.

Japan doesn't recognize Christmas as a federal/national holiday, so I had to go to work. It's the first time I've ever worked on Christmas, and I gotta say, it's not a good feeling. But I was probably more sad about having to work on Christmas the weekend before while anticipating it. On the day of, I spent it studying for the MCAT at work, then going home and watching Avatar: The Last Airbender, playing some video games, and reading Initial D manga. Good times!

As the year is winding to an end, an opportunity to visit the crossroads again appears. Regardless of my choice to stay in Japan for a fourth year, I am doing everything I can to prepare for my application to medical school, which will occur in the summer of 2013. That's why I've been studying so much! Speaking of which, time to hit the books.

Everyone, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year!

Word of the day: 懐かしい　「なつかしい」　"natsukashii," or "nostalgic."