pinch me

I just realized that last week I was pooh-poohing A's espousing after he read some philosopher's essay on how to be happy, and then today I found myself thinking, it's really too bad she can't just dig what she's got. (Which basically matches the guy's theory, though of course his sounded more academic, something like, "In order to attain happiness, one must desire what one already possesses."). Anyway, the she in that thought was a new friend who is finding it difficult to adjust to life here, principally because she has yet to find a job. But she says it's not about the money, it's about her self-worth. In some sense I feel for her, I've had my moments too. Hers just seem too frequent. It's like she's making herself miserable for nothing. She will get a job. So what if there's a 6-month hole in her CV? She moved to Japan, people will understand.

Then this evening we bumped into another newbie who miffed me when she claimed that Tokyo should be reclassified as having 1 or 2 degrees of "Hardship" (gov't speak for you get a bonus in line with the level of difficulty of the country you're posted in). One justification she gave for this was that when she wants to eat out she can't explain to the restaurant staff that she wants her meat well done. Can you believe that? If you can't communicate your needs that's YOUR problem. I mean grab a dictionary and look it up! Learn a little thing or two. Grrr!

Diplomats my ass anyway. Seriously, there are some real cases here. We've only been here 4 months and I'm already digusted. [Bulk of the paragraph censored by paranoid partner.] In fact, I seem to be sickened to the point of feeling some anger, possibly as a taxpayer. Sorry, I didn't mean to be a drag!