My Japanese school classmate and I were at lunch break, munching on some stand-up pizza. He recently graduated from college with a degree in chemistry. He was the captain of his handball team and as of now he's taking a break from hardcore collegiate academics and taking Japanese classes.

"One thing I would advise you is to really consider studying abroad."

He studied in China for about a month and told me how only .2% of the students now study abroad. It's a declining rate. That was the only time he experienced the dorm life.

"So in your dorm did you have to share bathrooms?" he asked.
"Yup. It's a community bathroom. It sucked because nobody knew how to clean up for themselves."
He laughed. "I never want to dorm."

I then told him how I was a black belt and he began to become enthusiastic and envious.

"Can you show me some kicks?" he asked. "Do you know a 540?"

He spent a few years in high school practicing taekwondo, but it was the kind of dojang that just wanted money rather than considering the efforts of each student.

"It's like buying a black belt rather than earning it," he said. And in fact he was right. A lot of martial arts schools handle their business that way. In a selfish, greedy manner, trying to win over clientele. I am fortunate to train at a school that emphasizes on effort and, as one of my masters said it, "demand excellence".

There were only four students in the entire class, and we were partners for exercises. Most of the lessons I already knew beforehand, but it was a good way for me to review and reinforce my knowledge of the language.

Anyways tomorrow I gotta wake up first thing in the morning for jury duty.