BAD

I slept super well after I got home. I worked only till 5pm from 9am. I got home around 6pm and started reading a book on a desk as well as sleeping. I did not know I was really tired.

Just now I got unfortunate phone call from my manager. He said right into the point. One worker got sick and could not work tomorrow. I have to go work at somewhere from the morning. I originally work from 12pm tomorrow, because I will have to work till next morning. I am really mad, mad at something I am not sure!!!!!!

Encounter

You can not imagine that I had encountered my old friend from my college by super accident. I was on my way to my apartment. When I transferred myself to another line, I felt something, like something pulled me into a coach which originally I would not get in. Anyway, I got on the coach, and did not find any place to sit. I grabbed a strap as the train moved. I looked around without thinking and found the guy who I used to go to school together. He is from Nepal and got job in Japan. I have not seen him for 4 years; and last time when I called him up on a phone he told me he lives in where the school is where is far away from where the train was bound for. He was sleeping on a seat. I kicked his leg to wake him up. And he woke up, he could not figure out what happened. He gazed at me for a while; he could not tell who I was. It took him a while to remember me. The he said
“KISHIMOTO!!”
in his really fluent Japanese. He spoke 4 languages perfectly. We struck up a conversation. After some minutes he started asking me to find a job for him. He has a permanent job in Japan; but to bring his daughter up he needs money. He does not get much money from his job. So, he had to get a temporary job too. Then when I found him on the train he was going to that temporary job. Somehow it is same station as I live.

It was kind of a miracle that we had met in the subway. Because, usually I do not use train. Today was exception I had to help another café in another prefecture. Besides I missed one train in Shinjuku. Maybe, God did this for me. I do not know why at all, though.

Tired

November is going to be over. I can not believe it. Because I practically could not remember what I did do anything particular except working. It does not mean I did not get any off. I did, but I just wasted away all of my days off. What I did on my off was like, slept, biked, and ate. I did not go out to do something. I was kind of afraid that I would be too tired to work next day. Like my last day off. My friend came to see me. He did not tell me about it, and it fell on my day off. My friend and I went to Shinjuku to hang out. In a word, I got pretty much tired. In the first place, he got lost on the way to my apartment. It took us one hour to meet up. He simply wanted to surprise me but, it simply just made us pretty much tired. He got blisters on his feet and they annoyed him all day long. So, when we went to Shinjuku, he started complaining about the pain on his toes. We should have made lots of stops. What we did in Shinjuku was just sitting on somewhere where we did not have to spend any money; edged of side walks we call it. After we sat there for enough to make our whole day stink, went back to my apartment.

Then today, I had to work 14 hours straight. It made me sooooo exhausted. Sometimes, before I go to bed, I think about what I am living for.

Somebody cares

In the midnight I went out in order to buy a can of coke. Not too many people drink coke in such a cold night but me. I just felt like drinking coke like smoke addict can not help smoking for no good reason. It can be because of nicotine. About coke…cocaine? I might have written about it before.

Anyway I wanted to get coke in my body. As I felt like going, I realized I did not have much winter clothing. I have some jackets, but I don’t have one to wear under a jacket. I have only T-shirts. I have to buy some clothes for winter next payday.

Today, I went to where I used to work where almost center of Japan is. But today was Japanese holiday, there was few people coming.

We got one complaint from a customer. The customer asked to our one of where the bathroom was. She directed him, but he hardly found the bathroom. When he came back, he started yelling at her, and complaining. He made all we three lined up and gave us a lecture how we should have behaved. But the funny thing was, he started losing his point. He, somehow, started saying our Miso-soup is not hot enough. We gaped at him a while, and tried to figure out what we should have behave now to the guy who started saying something we hardly followed. We kept saying sorry

After the guy left, the manager, my previous manager snarled “who cares”. If there is a good thing of her, that she has a too much strong heart.

The strong manager said. “You were too talkative, but there is the other guy and he does not talk with co-workers at all. Hey where is normal guy?” then we just laughed. I am familiar with her now. Who cares somebody says who cares.

went to dinner

I finished working around 11:30 pm today. I went to have late dinner with my colleague, who started working same time as I did. I did not see him for long time like one month. You might not think this is long. But as for me it was quite long. He is one two guys who I can identify who as friend in the company. He is now a vice manager in his store. But as most people have, he has some worries. The biggest thing is about his junior partners. They started before my friend joined the company. So, they knew how to slack off. And previous manager did allow them to do too. Because the previous manager thinks the old workers were worth slacking off considering what they had done. But for my friend part it does not make sense at all.

Then he started talking about how our company was going down. It is true. If the company did not have T—ry’s coffee Japan, could be bankrupt every month. Our company does not make money much.

Anyway, now my friend lives with his girl friend. But he is too busy to do anything. He has to be at work around 8:30am and leave there around 9:30pm. Besides he takes one hour to commute for one way. He told me he could not do anything but sleep. He wants to be a manager till next spring; he says if he cannot he wills quite the company. I just wondered if –rry’s coffee Japan would be able to feed our company.

wondered

I did not write for a while again. The reasons are, for one thing I got a bike accident a week ago, another thing, I just did not feel like.

If I wrote about the accident I need 3 computer papers to finish. It must bore you as well as me.

Yesterday, I got home…this morning technically. I was out Tokyo to help the other store. As I was working my senior came, and asked me why I did not memorize the company’s philosophy. They gave me a test again if I remembered it. I did almost, but not completely. So, they will give me another one today, and if I flunk it again they won’t let me make any products today. Then what I just can do is say goodbye to customers and say goodbye to them.

In these days I found that I am not the type doing café. Where I used to work had really bad circumstance, but here it is not too bad. And yet, I can not take interest in this job; like I thought I would do before. Associating customers is so fun but being in charge of whole store is not too fun. I guess I have to quit the job other it will harm the company and myself; it waste company’s time and my time.

Only thing is how I should tell them. I don’t have a good idea. I can straight to tell. But telling straight is not too good way in Japan.

who stole?

I am ready to go working. I originally had to be there by 2pm, but one worker got sick and my manger called me up and asked if I could make it by 12pm. I knew it would happen because I knew the worker got sick. But yesterday I asked a guy who is like substitute manger whether I had better come early. He said no need. But this morning abruptly the phone rang. I guess when I get there; there will be too many workers find their jobs. Everybody says the manager is lack of ability of time management.

2 days ago I went to another store to help. That store is absolutely leisure. It is in a shopping mall but there is a big competition. I mean many restaurants are there. our main products are drinks, but at the mall nobody needs drink. They need food to have lunch or dinner. We are really week in food. Our foods are in a showcase. It sounds not too bad. But the showcase is as well as a fridge. Who wants to eat cold food in cold winter? Besides other restaurants around there have nice warm food.

Anyway, the day I went was not busy at all. I was there till close. And I had to count money. If you read my former posts, you can imagine what I am going to say next. Of course the money was short for what it was supposed to. Again!! Wherever I went, there lost money. No wonder my previous manger suspect me of stealer. Hahahaha, anyway I did not steal them. We made 70,000 yen. And we lost 27,000 yen. That stores manager told that should be somebody from the worker stole. He said shall find the one. He would pay for it… 27,000. If I had been in his place I would quit.

Tests

In these days I was slacking off writing journals. It was sure I was busy, but not as busy as before, though.

I have some things to write. For one thing, I will be fired unless I don’t remember the company’s philosophy. They gave me tests three times, but I every time flunked writing that philosophy. It is so funny that I can not memorize that. I don’t think I have problem on my brain to learn something by heart. I guess I am good at sort of. But when I tried to memorize the philosophy, I just did not feel like it. Because I am sure they do not follow the philosophy. The philosophy is like this

“We benefit customers, fellows, society, and stockholder through a cup of green tea”

They have some more, but this is the major one. It is so obscure. I can understand the idea they want to say, but I can not sink my teeth into it. I doubt the guys they give guys a test are into the philosophy. I just guess they are just following Japanese idea that workers have to remember those philosophies without reason. Anyway I will have test on 15th. I hope I can pass it.

I am home...

I got home now, and got to be Harajuku to work by 8:30...I only have a few hours to sleep and have to work 14 hours straight.
Today, actually yesterday, when I finished working I already could not get a train. It was too late. So I walked one hour from the train station, another line's. Becaus the line I usually use was already finished. I did not have any choice. I am exhausted but I am too tired to go to bed. Well time to force myself to go to bed...

Harajuku again

I am going to work in one hour. I will start from 12pm, but I will get there beforehand, maybe 20 minutes. Did I write that I moved back to Harajuku’s café where I can get by my bike? I have worked already the day before yesterday, and yesterday was my day off. Recently my offs were so close, because I worked almost 2 weeks straight before the first one I got last Wednesday, and second one was on Saturday, and then yesterday. It mean I won’t have a off for 2 weeks again? I checked my schedule and knew I would go some other café to help when I was supposed to have off, I suppose.

Anyhow, I am working at Harajuku now again. There are various kinds of people coming to the café. They can speak Japanese at least they can order our products and are apt to ask if we have skim milk or low fat milk. It reminded me of a person, in the US, who ate hamburgers and French-fries with diet coke. I don’t think diet coke could not take care of the authority of the other food’s fat… Anyway, choosing low or skim milk is not too bad idea except the taste will be not as good as using ordinary milk.