This Blog

In this blog, an international student from Japan used to write about what she felt lovely in Ann Arbor (A2), Michigan. Although she graduated in 2007 and went back to Japan, she still loves A2 and continues to write her recent situation, comparing to her life in A2.

↓This is a bilingual blog
日本語版 (Japanese ver.)

↓More about this blog?
How to Read?

About Me

My photo
I graduated from The University of Michigan (umich) in 2007, and now work as a TV reporter in Japan. I went to the U.S. in Jan. 2005 to study communication - it was the first time for me to go abroad.
I got an A.A. degree in speech communication in California, and B.A. degree in psychology at umich (+ music minor).

Saturday, December 29, 2007

Graduation & Going back to Japan

More than 1 week ago, I graduated from my beloved university, the University of Michigan.

The university, Ann Arbor town and nature, my fellows and professors, ppl in Ann Arbor... Everything in my college life was more than I deserved. I cannot thank people who have supported me and spent time with me enough... (with such a comical look on my face)

It has been three years since I came to the U.S.A.

The happiest change for me is about my parents - At first, they disagreed with my studying in the U.S. and worried too much even after I came to this country, but finally, they believe me and totally support me.

Thinking of my EXTRA-Worrier parents, who cannot even ride an airplane, it might be absurd that I thought of studying abroad even though I was on the way which my parents were satisfied with when I graduated from my high school. But, since I was a child, I had suffered from a deep sense of dissatisfaction and distrust toward my parents because I had felt I was always tied down by their excessive worry; I seriously did not want to keep having such negative feelings toward them, because my parents were only them in the world, and I was eager to understand each other - that's why I chose to study communication.

Although they had been absolutely opposed to and worried over my staying in the U.S., when I started my job search after two years, the best supporters for me were my parents. The job I was looking for, mass communication, did not appear in career forums for international students, so I had to go back to Japan again and again for job interviews while taking classes in the U.S.. I, myself, wondered "Is job hunting worth sacrificing my school life?" "Mass communication is enticing, but am I qualify for it?" and became discouraged...

I think it's impossible to be both a student and a job hunter at the same time... I was always writing my paper in airport lobbies. Once, I was so tired and fell asleep, and missed my connecting flight. I was no longer a student nor a job hunter... Another time, I came back from Japan to Detroit Airport, and received a phone call saying "Come back for the next interview two days later. " Of course, I myself chose to study abroad, so I could do nothing about it.

BOT, when I inclined to job offers other than mass communication, my parents let me recognize my dream again. I just strove to graduate and work as soon as possible in order to save my tuition, but they said "It's ok to stay in the U.S. one more year. You don't have to concern about money. Do what you wanna do until you are satisfied."

Probably, both my dream and my path were totally different from my parents had originally expected. They were already Extra-Worrier, but I made them even more anxious. In spite of that, they have come to believe me and back up my dream - by itself, it's enough to say that I have achieved my main goal of studying abroad.

I also got to think of my parents' feelings from the different view, through the study of communication and psychology, and life in another culture. I notice and regret that I have just "known" what they have thought and not tried to  "understand" them enough.

I enrolled in the University of Michigan in order to major in communication (and psychology, if possible). However, one required class for communication major was held only in spring semester when many of my job interviews were scheduled in Japan... I considered for several weeks, and finally decided not to take the required class. Some of my professors and graduate students were negative about my changing major. Some of the others cared about me saying "You must be sad...you really wanted to study communication..."
Either way, I'm glad I was surrounded by people who strongly wanted their students to pursue their aim.

Now, I think psychology and music, my minor, are the best match. In the first place, I was interested in emotional relationships. Its base is psychology, and communication is the tools for it.  Music relates to both psychology and communication, and plays an important role in society. Honestly, because I quickly finished my study in 3years, I'm not confident that I could get the practical knowledge, which could be used in social life, perfectly (just an apology?). But I, at least, learned the perspectives of these areas, and became able to consider things based on them.

Since I was a child, I had not wanted to go back home. So before I started job hunting, I thought I definitely had to avoid a job near my home. However, since I noticed my parents wanted me to pursue dream of myself, I no more keep away from my home. I was made an offer from a company in my home prefecture. Although I had gotten off from my home, I really love my hometown! It is nice to do the job I want for the area I grew up surrounded by people use the same dialect and have similar characteristics. I will live alone and maybe not go back to my parents’ home so often, but I will support my parents by the best way, including my grand mother’s nursing care. (I may be still supported more than I support...) Until now, all I could do was just graduating fast and saving money and the time to worry... I have to return my school expenses from now. (I don’t know how long it will take...)

During this 3 years in the U.S., I just drove me forward desperately even without the feeling of alive, to borrow my friend’s words, “making a broken wheel rotate.” Everything I saw, listened, touched was like wrapped by an oblate. It might be the reason why I could go through the hard schedule, or if I was not so, I could allow myself to breathe and might be able to enjoy much more things even in the same period. Anyway, I will keep trying in Japan with the love many many people have given me for this three years, or the 22 years I have lived.

By the way, I will keep writing about Ann Arbor on this blog for a while. I haven’t yet described the appeal of the town enough. After that, I may blog about the wonderful thing in my hometown : )

Oh, boarding for the flight to Japan seems to be begun now...

See ya!

P.S. To my friends who got together before my graduation and return, and who came on the day of graduation ceremony when final exam was coming up, thank you very very much!

 I graduated, but I cannot stop getting in touch with outer space! →

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Sunday, December 2, 2007

Snow

I think we've got our first snow of this year in Nov.

When I noticed the light fall of snow, I felt somewhat happy and couldn't help playing outside (alone...).
Today, I didn't notice that we got much snow until Kaori Momoi, a Japanese famous actress, said "White Christmas!!!" because I had kept in Angel Hall from noon to the evening to do my research, and then to attend to a screening of Faces of a Fig Tree (Ichijiku no kao), which was the first movie directed by Kaori Momoi. She actually came to Angel Hall yesterday and today, and answered some questions of the audience.
(A small tree in front of Angel Hall ↑)


She had a lot of positive energy! She is in her 50s, but for her, now is the midpoint of her life because she will live to be around 120 years old :)

Anyway, she seemed to enjoy the snow in A2 as well as me (and other ppl in A2, right?); that's great!

↑Diag was also covered with snow! ↑(Can you see the M!?)


Oh, by the way, although snow is beautiful, it is sometimes dangerous. A little while ago (2am), I was going home by the free-ride and our cab was almost hit by another car!
Fortunately, both cars was running very slowly because the road was icy; but if they had run faster, we would have got injured... I came near to missing tomorrow's lunch with my friends!! (← very important).

(↑Weather gadget in this morning - provided by Google )

Anyway, be careful when you drive, run, play outside, or whatever.


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Thursday, November 15, 2007

Working on an Assignment...

I have an observation study assignment in which I look into a psychological difference between each gender through unobtrusive observation of more than 100 males and females enacting a certain behavior. I am looking for a possible behavior which I can unobtrusively observe, but every idea coming up to my mind doesn't seem to work well.

The first one I thought was "bathroom study," in which I observe if females are more likely to go to bathroom with their friends than males (something called "ture-shon" in Japanese: Ture = together, shon = pee). But I don't want to observe more than 100 people going for a pee in front of a bathroom for a long time (and it won't be unobtrusive but just strange).

The second idea was seeing if females tend to wear more clothes than males - but I cannot exactly know which person wears more than others because some people wear fat instead of clothes (and I have no idea what psychological difference this behavior represents).

The third one was lunch choice. On the basement of Michigan Union, Subway and Wendy's stand next to each other, so I observe which one males and females tend to choose and how long they need to make their decision. But... what's the difference between Subway and Wendy's!? Both of them are fast food and I can't see which menu each person chooses.

Finally, I found out...



I am thinking about the topic for 3 hours (OMG!)

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Friday, November 9, 2007

I hate fire alarms!!

I was just “evacuated” from UGL knowing that it was unnecessary. You know, I was evacuated at least 3 times in this week: from East Hall, Angel Hall, and then UGL. All because of fire alarms! I understand fire prevention is very important, but as long as I know, none of these buildings have suffered from a fire. I even wonder someone is playing a trick repeatedly.

When I was in Angel Hall, I was finishing up my paper. Today, I was on the 4th floor of UGL and had to use stairways to go down. What do I wanna say? That Sucks!!

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Saturday, November 3, 2007

Shapiro Library

I’m in the computer lab on the 2nd floor of Shapiro Library right now, Saturday at 4am in the morning. This library has been almost my home: I stay here any time day or night.

This lab was practically full when I came here from the Fish Bowl (The Angell Hall computing site) around 12. But people began to leave around 1, and some of the people who were left started to fall asleep
Now, 3 people, including me, are here although the other 2 are in a deep sleep... No matter how many pages I print out, the sound of printer does not wake them up!

While they are sleeping, I will write up this entry about Shapiro Library.


Shapiro Library is not really a stately building compared to Hatcher Graduate Library, which is located next to it, but Shapiro is more like a functional place for me. It's easy to access (in the center of the central campus), and open until 5am during the fall and winter semesters (cf. Library Hours page). The basement, the 1st floor, and the 2nd floor are "Shapiro Undergraduate Library," also called UGL, and the 3rd and the 4th floor are "Shapiro Science Library."

There are many study spaces in Shapiro; for me, the best place to study is the 4th floor since it is fairly quiet and tends to have some empty seats. Other floors are likely to be crowded and noisy, especially the 1st and the 2nd floor... Few days ago, I was in the back of the 1st floor and suffered from a man's snoring Conversely, when I study with my friends, we go to the 2nd floor because we feel freer to talk (in a low voice though).

For group meetings, there are some group study rooms on the 2nd floor, which are probably soundproof. These rooms are on a first-come first-serve basis and I often see people staying in one of the rooms alone. So... (I won't say anything further ).

When you don't bring your laptop and need to work on a computer, the computer lab on the 2nd floor has more than 50 PCs and Macs as well as some scanners and printers. But sometimes, this lab is full or occupied for a meeting. If this is the case, I look for a computer in this order:

3rd floor -> 1st floor -> basement. From my experience, this is the best order considering how many computers there are on each floor, how fast the computers work, and... how far they are from the stairs (this is important! I don't wanna walk!!)

Shapiro library offers a number of lovely services. One of them is what I have mentioned in the last post: free ride home service. From 2am-7am, you can use shared-ride taxi service for free. That's really easy! Just go to the circulation desk at the entrance and you will find a phone and the instructions. Once you call the number on the instructions using the phone provided, a Yellow Cab operator asks you to tell him a phone number (This is not your number! The instruction tells you which number you should tell him.) and the address you are going to.

Then, wait for a yellow car outside (broom-broom~~ )

In the last blog post, I said I used this service; actually, that was the first time for me to use it! I had lived so close by before that I didn't want the driver to bother to drive such a short distance... After using the service, however, I kind of regretted that I had not used it until then!

If you forget to bring your textbook when you need it, go to the circulation desk; they lend many textbooks for a limited period of time (4 hours or so). You can check the availability of the books on Mirlyn (library catalogue).



Finally, let me tell you about Askwith Media Library, which is located on the 2nd floor, to the left of the elevator. You can borrow media such as DVDs there for free! They have a great number of various films; before you go to Blockbuster and Hollywood Video, drop by or use Mirlyn to check if Askwith has what you want!

Link:

- Shapiro Undergraduate Library (UGL)

- Shapiro Science Library
- Shapiro Library floor maps with VISUALs -> Basement-2nd floor / 3rd-4th floor

- Hatcher-Shapiro Library Navigator page (call numbers, study space, etc...)
- Mirlyn (Library catalogue)



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Saturday, October 27, 2007

Car in A2 !?

So much to write, so little time! Well, I probably did have some time, but I have been out of condition for a week or so…

So, for that reason, I will go back to the beginning of this week to tell you how inconvenient it is to have a car in A2!!!



On Monday night, I watched a DVD with my classmates (eating pizza), and because it took until late, my professor gave me (+ another classmate) a ride. It was a great help for me since it was raining, but I was surprised when I heard that she paid about $500 (I forgot exact price... It may be $600) to the Univ. for parking per year... In spite of her payment, the prof. sometimes has trouble finding a parking spot. I should have prepared for my next day's parking when I heard this...

On Tuesday morning, I went to school by my roommate’s car because I had been asked to pick her up at the airport after school (She had been in her country for some days). I parked the car in the center of the central campus, in front of Sushi.come, 10 minutes before my class started. I got out of the car and fed the parking meter. It said "15 minutes for a quarter," so I should get 90 minutes for $1.5 (6 quarters), right? Was I wrong? ...Yes, I was wrong! The meter seemed to be satisfied with only 2 quarters and stopped adding the minutes at 00:30 (30 minutes) even though I fed 4 or 5 quarters! After a while, I noticed that there was another sentence under "15 minutes for a quarter" saying "No more than 30 minutes" (What the heck
).

I however knew it was the only spot I could find around there. The class I was about to attend was very small and there would be a guest speaker on the day; it meant I would not be able to run back and forth between the classroom and the car to feed the meter every 30 minutes. I got the car started and left there to find a new spot: After all, I couldn't find it.

The big reason why I could not find a spot might be that I didn't usually drive, so I cannot insist that having a car in A2 (around our campus, to be exact) is a very bad idea. Since big grocery stores such as Kroger and Meijer are not so close to campus (20-30 minutes by bus from central campus), your grocery shopping must become easier with a car. HOWEVER, keep in mind that parking charges are not cheap around campus, including residential areas, and looking for a parking spot is so stressful!!

Then, what should we do? One of my friends comes to school by bus even though he has a car; it may be a smart choice. Or you don't even need a car (I don't ). The prof. said the Univ. didn't pay for faculties' parking because they recommended university members, including students and faculties, to use buses saying that we could ride both the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority (AATA) buses (city bus) and the U-M buses, aka the Blue Bus (operated by the Univ.), for free. I actually know some faculties (and many students) who do not own a car. Although taking the bus is not super convenient and comfortable, I think these bus services are good enough to be used in everyday life; JFYI, the Blue Bus operates every 5-20 minutes from about 7am to 3am (completely depends on the route: See the link for more details). In addition to the buses, the Univ. and the AATA offer free or inexpensive($5) shared-ride taxi services during nighttime hours (See this link). I used the free ride home service last night! I will write about these bus & taxi services in the near future


BTW, I got a call from my roommate just after I started to the airport saying that her friend would be able to pick her up

Link: ・ University of Michigan Parking & Transportation Services
Ann Arbor Transportation Authority (AATA)

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Saturday, October 13, 2007

Squirrels

Average temperature in Ann Arbor:

Oct. 8th - 74°F
  ↓
Oct. 10th - 48°F   [Data from AccuWeather.com]

W-What's this gap!? 8O

It was 34 degrees last night... It's getting so cold these days... :mrgreen:


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Saturday, September 22, 2007

The M in Ann Arbor

I just came back from school and noticed I had dressed "nicely" today: I had been wearing half pants and odd socks all day long!! (It's too late...)

After I moved, I had been very busy with this and that: Detroit, Canada, training for the new employee (in Japan), new semester, and Chicago... Well, I think I got a lot of interesting stories to tell during the few weeks of storm (I did not have any time to write a new blog entry though... :roll: ) I will talk about these stories after I organize the information ◎



OK, I write on an easy topic today - .

We see many Ms inside and around the Umich campus. What do I mean by "M"? In Ann Arbor, the letter M is... how do I say... the symbol of the University of Michigan. The Block M, painted maize (One of our two school colors!! Another one is blue.), is the most often-used Umich logo and "one of the most widely recognized marks in the country" (quoted from U-M Trademark Guidelines by the University of Michigan Identity Guidelines ). You can see some versions of the Umich logo, including the Block M, by clicking on the first link above (or this one → U-M Trademark Guidelines) and scrolling down to the middle.

The Block M is utilized widely: For example, on the top of the Umich Web site, as a design of university items, and in the flags around the campus. It is also used by University programs, Institutes, Departments, and Units for identification. When I first came to A2, I saw these Ms and felt a sense of affinity with Umich because my last name begins with M (silly...)

I was impressed by M the other day: I was using a computer in Engineering Library and saw The College of Engineering logo (on the top of the linked page). It's seemingly the normal Block M, which is just shaded. The shadow, however, forms the letter "E," which represents Michigan Engineering!!! 8O Wow, who came up with this idea!? Wonderful... I could not get the info. about who made it, but I found the following quotation from CoE (College of Engineering) Web site.

This three dimensional form symbolizes the science of engineering, implying shape, form, light, and transformation - the transformation of scientific knowledge into practical use, of student into engineer, and the possibilities into reality.

― quoted from CoE Logo Downloads by College of Engineering, University of Michigan ―

Hmmm, this small logo implies so many meanings... lovely :oops:

By the way, the seal is different from these logos. (see The Seals of the University of Michigan in Bentley Historical Library Web page).

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Saturday, August 25, 2007

Moooooving...

I had been really really struggling to find a new place to live, and FINALLY found it 2 days before the expiration of the term of the contract with my current landlords!! I somehow ended up living on north campus taking the classes on central campus...
Every house owner hated making 4-month contracts, so there was no place for me to go... Needless to say, no property satisfied both of two conditions important for me: the price and the distance from the school. So, I decided to choose the cheapness and give up the distance :( Well, maybe this is a good chance to know the north campus area, I think...


Oh yea, I will go school by bus every morning at 8:30!!!! I will be trained as a morning person :P Good, ha?




car I get an Indian roommate, who works at the university hospital. She is my, at least, 12th roommate, and would be my last roommate in the U.S. She is kind enough to hold my stuffs by the time I can move into there: So I rented a car and moved all my stuffs today. This was the first time for me to rent a car. I was charged extra fee because
I was 21 years old (under 25) :(

(↑the car I rented)



My room is now empty... I reminded the time I first moved into here. I was too tired to unpack and slept being buried in my stuffs. Today, I leave the keys on the desk and probably never come back to this room... omg, how time flies!?





key Thank you!

&


... Good bye :)


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Monday, August 13, 2007

My APT

APT
I mentioned on the "how to read" page that I lived in one of the many historic districts in Ann Arbor. This is the picture of my apartment. Looks nice, ha? I love this apartment although there is no access to kitchen and we have to share 2 bathrooms with 9 people...

 


Why do I love this APT? Because the building is quaint, the room is not too big (I love small spaces), the landlords (they are brothers) are very nice, and the rent is cheap! (Whenever I answer my friends' question "How much is your rent?" their eyes pop out with astonishment ;) )


 


Well... when I was trying to find a place to live, I was only focusing on the price and the distance from the place to the school: I am spending my parents' money, so I need to save money as much as I can. I, in a fashion, wondered if I could live without kitchen, but decided to go for it because this APT was perfect in terms of the price and the distance. Now, I think my decision was right. Indeed it is hard to cook and do the dish with the tiny small sink in the bathroom, but I can still cook with my slow cooker and microwave. Most importantly, I have enjoyed the life in this historic district! Unlike a condo in a big city, this old building let me feel like time crawls along. I could have a quiet neighborhood, lovely nature around the building, and the hearty landlords, who are easy to approach (and do maintenance well). What else do I want?


 


Sadly, I need to move out from here soon because I am graduating in this Dec. and they only accept 1-year contract beginning from Sep... I am, however, glad that I have lived this APT :)


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Friday, August 3, 2007

Hatcher Graduate Library

I know I am an undergrad and it may be kinda weird to write about the graduate library, but I do because I love it! Graduate Library

Umich has a lot of libraries (see the link if you want to count - I gave up to do so), but Hatcher Graduate Library would be the most prominent library among them. It is located in the center of the umich central campus.

Hatcher Graduate Library →)


study carrel


One of the reasons why I love this library is that there are a lot of private closed study carrels on the 3rd-6th floors of the South Building.
(← A private study carrel)


view from the graduate library
That’s a great place to study! There are a big desk, a chair, and electric outlets in each carrel, so you can use your laptop. If you get tired, you may want to enjoy the view from the window; this picture is from the 6th floor. Although each carrel is like a compartment, it is not a completely closed chamber: Don’t mumble to yourself or sing loudly, or serious graduate students will get mad...

(The view from the carrel ↑)


Another lovely thing in the carrel is graffiti on the heater. The heater in every carrel, especially the ones on the 3rd floor, is covered with graffiti done by students: Someone left a wonderful adage, someone was morning about her stats exam, and someone made me laugh with his lambent humor (I should definitely post some of them on this blog!! :P ).

One weakness of the graduate library would be their short hours of operation. While the undergraduate library(UGL) is open until 5am, the graduate library close at 2am on weekdays (6pm on weekends!). That’s not really convenient for a night person like me :(

Also, since I am an undergraduate student, most of the books I need are held by the undergraduate library. That’s why I spend most of time at the undergraduate library, not at the graduate library.


books

Note: Generally, the reason why people love Hatcher Graduate Library would be because they have millions of items from various fields written in more than 300 languages (cf. University of Michigan Library, from Wikipedia). Yes, I love and honor their collections, too! But I felt like referring to their study carrels here ;)

↑ (Peeking through the tiny window of the carrel... The floor is overflowing with the books.)

Link: Harlan Hatcher Graduate Library (Official)
University of Michigan Library (Wikipedia)

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Monday, July 9, 2007

How to Read?

This blog deals with a pretty easy topic. I however would like to explain this blog further so that you can have a better understanding of it :D

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*Index *

  1. 1. What is A2 ?

  2. 2. RSS

  3. 3. Links and Shops/School Facilities Introduced in This Blog

  4. 4. Compatibility between English ver. and Japanese ver. + My English

  5. 5. Description of Categories

  6. 6. Contact Form

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Sunday, July 8, 2007

First Note

Every day, I find a lot of lovely things in Ann Arbor (A2) . It is sad that I am finishing up my study at umich soon because I love this school and this area! After my graduation, I will go back to my country, Japan. I really thank all the people who have shared wonderful time in this country with me, and also the people in Japan who have supported my study in the U.S.

So, I think it is great if I could express part of my gratitude toward them by sharing what I found lovely in A2 through this blog. Of course, including other people who live in A2, who used to live in A2, who are interested in A2, who are interested in me (???), EVERYONE IS WELCOME!!


Another purpose of this blog is to ease myself into publishing information. I hope I can develop habits of writing paragraphs which are easy to read, being careful and responsible about my writing, and using a camera - oh yeah, I am not a shutterbug while my father and older sister are. I have, rather, looked at people who are crazy about taking picture somewhat coldly... Moreover, I am a chicken and afraid of putting people off by taking picture of something around them (Some people say "Don't take MY picture!!!" even if I have never tried to take THEIR picture).

But pictures help fast and easy understanding of information; so I'd love to learn photography skills, including the way to take a picture without making someone mad.

Oh, it may be too long for the first note! Let's get the blog started now!!

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