To a Lesser Extent

Last night was revelatory; and while that could be an under or overstatement depending on how events recoil, I will think about it for a while.

I made a journey to Pure, a night club while charges ￥3000 for entry (₤15, $30), all drinks are free for the rest of the night. It seems like a good deal, but for someone who is teetotal, like myself, it was eight expensive glasses of lemonade. It also played seemingly endless hip hop, with the exception of Galvanise by the Chemical Brothers, which was sped up too fast and cut short.

I met many nice people, and had a fun night, but there was a serious aspect missing. Whenever I dance, it's generally with Emma, because she's the only person I know who doesn't seem to care how people think of her dancing, and in respect, my dancing inhibitions were shed that fateful night in Trap(p?) and we discovered how much fun it was to dance geekily. So while dancing geekily was great last night, I missed my pint-sized partner and the joy her dancing brings.

But I did dance, and three separate people commented on what a great dancer I was. One of them was even a girl. But throughout the night I kept a shallow distance from the people I met. The really pretty girl asked me to dance a few times, but I feel it was because I was the only guy who didn't try to feel her up whenever she was nearby. Part of what I enjoy about going dancing is talking and laughing about it with friends afterwards, and the group journey home. Last night (or this morning) was just a slow trudge back home by bike alone.

So it made me think, I'm absorbing Japanese pop culture head on, with bright lights and lots of noises, but the things that really make me happy are being with my friends and just talking and laughing. When the music's too loud, I can't talk to anyone, I can't make friends and I feel disjointed from people. That's how I felt last night after the volume went up. It wasn't the language barrier, everyone spoke English (sadly). Bah, most of the people there were English. Or American.

But to me, just dancing with someone and then making out with them, it offers nothing, and it is unfulfilling. It happened with most of the people I went with, but I felt little of the enjoyment they appeared to have. For most of the evening I either danced blankly, or just sat, missing my friends. Thus, I shan't be returning to Pure, unless it's with Emma.

Before I went to Pure, I waited around with two of Stuart's other students in Starbucks, and we just chatted for hours about all sorts of things. They could speak less English than the people I was at the club with, but I felt much greater communication, and enjoyed it a lot more.

For now, I will see more of Osaka and have a more mild party tonight with other students. I think I may have been asked to go clubbing again by someone else, I'm not sure. Anyway I must shower and cycle back into Namba.

I do miss my friends a lot, and as fun as this place is, I need a greater level of friend presence to truly enjoy it. Last night was lonely, and I dwelled on issues and problems, while I thought I'd forget about them. Tonight, hopefully, will be different.