So today my Palm m505 bites the big one. The digitizer simply stopped responding to any stylus taps, fingernail scratches, or downright abuse. Palm gave me a huge runaround about being in Japan and having a US-model unit, so I eventually called up the US, used a friend’s address/phone number, and had them arrange for the new unit to be sent to him. Fortunately he was already getting together a shipment of Honeycomb cereal for me! :P Thanks, :)

A friend of mine posted about this guy who just killed himself after some particularly nasty LJ discussions, amongst other things. Personally, I think this other guy made the most convincing argument in a follow-up post. There’s no finger pointing necessary here; suicide is called suicide because you do it yourself, not because someone else convinced you to do it, right?

I recently stopped an old friend from committing suicide…and about a month later told her I couldn’t handle speaking with her anymore because it was just too difficult for me to do so without feeling like I was the only one supporting her life. I simply wasn’t prepared to have those kinds of discussions anymore, and told her she needed to stabilize before I could continue being her friend. Hearing her tales of woe simply magnified my own depression about the world, and in a self-preservationist way, I needed to cut that off temporarily so I could get a grip on my own life before trying to deal with someone else’s.

She responded angrily, accusing me of being a fair-weather friend and a turncoat, and that it wasn’t my responsibility to stand up for her, but at least to just listen to what she had to say. I doubt I’ll hear from her again.

I didn’t tell her to go ahead and kill herself already as some of stars_pyre’s acquaintances did, but I did say that I simply wasn’t strong enough to be her friend.

Am I a bad person? What would you have done in my shoes?

I finally got to the toilet paper, but couldn't find the end of the roll.       
I grabbed at the paper, clawing at it, but it felt like smoke. I                
eventually managed to grab a fistful, and looking down at my hand, I            
couldn't see anything, but I knew I had the paper. Somehow. I managed to        
wipe, somehow, and while glancing down I noticed my legs had disappeared.       
Oh, no, it's ok, there they are. No, they've gone again. How the fuck am I      
supposed to wipe when my asshole keeps disappearing?

Liberally taken from matti @ AH

Our Editor, who art in RAM,
  :written be thy name.
Thy install come,
  Thy buffers be done in Windows,
  As they are on Unix.
Give us this day our daily files,
  And forgive us using pico,
  As we forgive those who use WORD against us.
And lead us not into EMACS,
  But deliver us from vile.
For thine is the improvement,
  the mapping and the usability.
For this version and next,
ZZ

Gleefully copied from the vim.org website.

What is it with family members? I’m having problems with my entire family right now, and it’s really bothering me. So I’m writing up a set of well-argued emails which hopefully will help cut through some of this shit with the ones most important to me. Let’s see if this at least starts a reasonable, clear dialogue, instead of avoiding the important issues.

I’m done with Japan. Finished. Finito. Ready to go.

I learned a lot being here, and I’m so glad I came and developed my career and worldly understanding. This was perhaps one of the most important learning experiences of my life. A good friend of mine said she thought it was a mistake for me to come here . . . and while she might have meant that she knew I would eventually leave, perhaps she didn’t realize that I would learn so much . . .

But it’s time to move on.

On the Tozai-sen subway line this morning, on a newspaper: An ad for NTT Communications that read “Power of VD.”

Huh.

One of my deepest passions is my work in the improvisational theatre, specifically improv comedy. I’ve been doing improv since 1991, first with Yale University’s Just Add Water, then independently as stand-up comedy and improv in Pittsburgh and New York City. While I was in Boston, I chiefly used improv as a unifying technique for theatre work (GREAT for auditions and group building, guys…), but didn’t perform with any regularity other than the occasional jam and/or open mic night.

In Tokyo I performed with the Tokyo Comedy Store, who has regular performances every 4th Thursday of the month at Bar, Isn’t It in Roppongi, Tokyo. They also offer a great weekly “class” every Wednesday night. Until personal issues broke us up, I enjoyedperforming with a little group, The 32 Oba-sans (literally, “The 32 annoyingly old female biddies”). Sadly, I haven’t performed publicly in about a year, though I still use improv in team-building exercises and private entertainment. I’d like to change that soon.

Previously in New York City, I worked with some great groups, like The Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, YesAnd (most recently at the YesAnd First Annual Improv Comedy Festival in New York City — a smash success!), and other assorted groups yet to be named or credited here. My most exciting work was with a fantastic known as
Yellow Man Group, a 4-person ensemble from Tokyo who is able to “yesand” and commit to characters like I’ve never seen before.

I highly recommend sponsoring your local improv and comedy shops (especially if you live in Tokyo!) Stop by for a nice cheap evening of fun (Y1000 including one free drink here in Tokyo — cheap plug), a few drinks, and even get up on stage if you feel prepared. Improv is all about connecting across a common experience . . . and Yellow Man Group has shown me that this is possible, even across vastly different cultures. Support us, and we will continue to “…give you lifelong enjoyment and service.”

Photos of my work in Tokyo are now online.