Gobbledegook

Word of the Match: CORDUROYS

Winter is a lifestyle changer...same with Japan. When you are stuck inside and you start to get cravings for using gargantuan words that you can't use in front of the English class (because it contains more than two syllables), it is time you start playing Scrabble. Yep, Scrabble: the game where you have 1 board, a tray, and 7 letters usually accompanied by stale pretzels and a prune juice chaser; the game that has saved millions of old people from talking about their grandchildren too much; the game that automatically induces the smell of moth balls and medicine; the game where dead vocabularies are reincarnated.

Word of the Match: ANDROID

I realize that the only thing nerdier than playing Scrabble is blogging about Scrabble. However, Scrabble is like the step-father I never had. Thus, I now embrace it by playing at least thrice a week. Let me explain that. At first introduction, Scrabble is boring, rigid, and filled with strange new rules, much like a step-father. Later, after giving Scrabble a chance, I realized that I could definitely enjoy such a game every now and then when not preoccupied with a computer game, much like the rotating visits you have with your real, genetically cooler dad.

Word of the Match: OZONE

Every Monday night, 2 buddies and I get together for "Brains and Brawn Night." We meet at the gym and do a vigorous work-out of lifting huge amounts of weight while discussing manly things like mountain unicycling and ping pong matches against Asian people. Then, we give our pulsating bodies a break while our brains work over a rousing game of Scrabble. It is precisely what you think three 20-somethings would be doing in the middle of the countryside in Japan.

Word of the Match: WORSTED

Word of the Match: HERNIAS

Word of the Match: MOSQUE

Word of the Match: ONYX

Word of the Match: AREOLA

Word of the Match: PENTANES

Word of the Match: WIGGLERS

Word of the Match: MECCA

Word of the Match: ZOOT

Human, Nature

Road Trip: Noto Peninsula

Distance traveled: 1135 km / 709 mi

Tanks of gas: 2

Total cost of gas: ¥10,000 / $90
Prefectures visited: 5; Gunma, Nagano, Niigata, Toyama, Ishikawa
Things packed into my tiny Mitsubishi Mirage hatchback: 2 non-Japanese-sized people (Enid and I), 2 bicycles, 2 sleeping bags, a tent, sleeping pads, camp stove, cookware, warm clothes, tons of snacks, and Jules (Enid's stuffed flamingo that has more personality and opinions than most presidential candidates)
Bags of chocolate covered raisins eaten: 5
Number of official female-only suicide cliffs: 1
Longest bench in the world seen: Yes
Amount of garbage on Japanese beaches: More than grains of sand
Staff members who thought I was crazy after I told them I went camping in freezing temperatures: All of them

The Noto Peninsula bears the brunt of the crashing surf and fierce winds stemming from the Sea of Japan. The resiliency of the weathered rocks is only outdone by the enduring wind and waves. It is a haven for natural beauty, quaint villages, and seaside panoramas. To celebrate the 3-day weekend, Enid and I packed up my reliable Japanese car and made the 8-10 hour car ride to the coast. The weather was anything but delightful, but we made the most out of our time anyway.

A majority of the first day was spent navigating the monstrosity known only as the Japanese road network--a system where there are more traffic signals than street signs, and the label "developed country" seems ludicrous. It was surreal zooming through old Japanese villages along the coast, gawking at houses hundreds of years old, and zig-zagging around right-angled old women suffering from years of weeding the garden and not enough dairy. After hours of butt-numbing driving, we made it to the cape and our (closed) campsite. We quickly set up camp behind some rocks, high-tailed it to the local rotemburo (outdoor public bath), and ached our sore bones as we watched the shoreline fight the slow death of erosion. Before bed, we attempted to play a frigid game of Scrabble as spaghetti steamed its way to our mouths.

It rained all night, and even snowed a little. The next day was filled with a trip to suicide cliff, where women would often go to shoot themselves in the head....wait...i mean, jump off the cliff (that joke is courtesy of Enid Havelaar). We found our campsite early and then decided to go on a 30 km bike trip along the coastline. It was, in 4 words, a very good time. We even got the chance to sit on the longest bench in the world! (I can now check that one off the list. Next up: sit on the shortest bench in the world, sit on the bench at highest altitude in the world, and to bench 200 pounds.)

Pure as Snow

Beautiful. Symmetric. Powerful. Pure. Haiku-worthy.