I Just Broke my Baby Laptop!

So I just dropped my baby laptop.  I was placing it on the kitchen side so I could watch TV while I made dinner.  Obviously, I didn't place it upon firm enough footings, and it came to a calamitous conclusion.

The screen is cracked, with no hope of repair or recovery on that front.  Luckily, I had the cable to attach it to my flatscreen (which also survived the aeroplane hold, amazingly) handy, and simply plugged it in.  When it landed, all power was cut immediately, so I feared some vital part of the computer had been broken.  I've not had any linux BSOD equivalents yet, and it's been running for an hour, so I think it's safe to assume that the hardware has remained mostly intact.

Asus make sturdy EeeeeePc's.  I accidentally tested this one to destruction.  If you're interested in finding out what will crack your laptop screen; a six foot drop onto the corner of the machine, hitting linoleum flooring will do it.

Also, as a general tip to everyone who watches TV on their laptops while making dinner - don't put it on your fridge.


I met the government type who's in charge of ensuring the language teachers in school don't step out of line (I think he has an acronym based title, but that's essentially his job description.)  He seemed nice enough; but at no stage did he stop smiling, which has me worried.  People who seem too nice usually are.

Also, one of the other foreign teachers living in the area (there are only two of us within half an hour of here, which is fine by me) walked into my room uninvited a couple of days ago.  I had never met him before, and there he was, standing in my house.  The funny thing is, he didn't apologise for walking in without knocking, he just explained that it was a mistake.  He then proceeded to apologise half an hour later, as he was leaving, not for walking in uninvited, but for leaving earlier than I might otherwise have liked.  Curtesy dictated that I not shout out, 'piss off,' after thirty seconds (he's a terrible bore, with an obnoxious manner) but it definitely crossed my mind to.

In terms of location, I'm very near to Ashikaga, and somewhere else that I've now proceeded to forget about.  I'll be teaching in two elementary schools and one junior high school (they follow the american system here) which will be an interesting mix.

I don't have any extra fingers or toes yet.

Blackouts are scheduled every few days, but never seem to  happen.  Apparently the citizens are well-behaved, and turn off unnecessary lighting and electronics when they're not in use.  This is fine by me of course, as it means there's more electricity for me to use.  Muahahahaha.

Everyone smiles in the shops, and people randomly say hello on the streets.  It's nice; if a little cold.