mentaiko

Recently, things have been a little mentaiko around here. Firstly, blogger wouldn't let me post. Then there was a major shitstorm at the office, which took about 3 days to settle. And finally, I had to get a medical check-up sponsored by work.

I woke up early today and waited for Kazuyo to pick me up in her bright red car. About 5 of us went to the hospital for a company medical. When we arrived at the hospital, I realised that I had peed our all the liquid in my body a few minutes before, so I bought a bottle of green tea and chugged it all down. The first test was the urine test and I literally stood in the bathroom for about 10 minutes trying to pee. In the end, imagining waterfalls and fountains, I squeeze just enough out to fill it to the line. Finally!

The next test is height and weight. Very basic. Then an eye-test. I had no idea what was going on. My eyes aren't that bad, but I couldn't tell if it was arrows, hiragana, alphabet, or anything. I hoped to god it wasn't katakana, because even after 10 months here, I still have problems reading it! Eventually, I figured out it was a circle. So I say "maru". And then she enlarges it slightly. "Maru". Bigger again. "Maru". And now she puts it on the largest setting, displaying a circle broken a the bottom. So I realise, I'm supposed to say the direction of the break. "Shita", I say, meaning 'down'. But when she shrinks it down again, I can't make anything out. Like the light bleeding around the circle floods my vision. So I just keep saying shita, because somehow the image of the incomplete circle is burned into my retinae. "shita. shita. shita. shita" So I basically failed the eye exam.

Next there's a hearing exam, which Remi buggered up by mixing up his left and right. Then, after a lame, 30 second check by an actual doctor, we're sent to the X-ray room. The girls go first. And Kazuyo tells me I have to take off my shirt because it has buttons. So I do. But when the radiologist sees me, she points at my belt buckle and says something I interpret at "take that thing off". So I do. Then I stand, in a very familiar way, with my chest against the lead shield. With my back away from her, she tugs at my pants. Tug. Tug. Tug. Until it comes to just under my butt. Of course, she's a doctor so I don't question it. But after I finish I ask the girls: "Did they make you take off your belts too?"
"No"
"Remi, did she make you take off your pants too?"
"No"

..............We laughed and drove outta there throwing our weight into the G-force turns of Kazuyo's bright red car. It was only 5 minutes later that I really needed to pee. Damn that green tea!

Anyways, Jordan is here visiting me. It's nice to have someone familiar around. Yesterday we went to the beach. There were hundreds of jellyfish all washed up on shore. Some pink, some blue.