Update and Holiday Plans

Sorry I have been MIA for 2 weeks. Just recently, I fell down the flight of stairs in the picture above. Thankfully, I only fell from about the 6th step from the bottom, but I fell on my hip and now have a brilliant purple and yellow bruise (not ever to be pictured). I also banged my head on the side paneling and couldn't focus my eyes for a good hour. Thankfully, after this incident, the school has requested the government for funding to install a rail. I knew that the first time I saw these stairs, but I guess an accident has to happen for there to be a perceived "need".

In other news, I have finally settled my holiday plans.
December 22-26: Work at School.
The exceptions are the 23rd (Emperor's Birthday and thus a national holiday) and I will only be working half a day on the 25th as a few staff members want to take me to lunch. Whee!

December 26-29: Hakuba, Nagano-ken with other ALTs.
Think 1998 Winter Olympics. Hakuba is rumored to be THE place to ski/snowboard in Nagano. I have skied before, but with my short legs and thus "displaced" calves that are huge thanks to some genes from the Robertson side of the family, I have trouble closing up the ski boots. So, I fully intend to try snowboarding... for the first time... in JAPAN!

December 30-January 2/3(?): New Years in Hamamatsu
My friend, Sonja, has a cousin in Hamamatsu, a city in the western part of Shizuoka. Said cousin invited Sonja and I to spend our winter vacation with her since she has a newly built house and of course, wants to see Sonja.


So why am I not spending the holidays with my family? Good question. I could be really spiteful and hold onto resentful feelings but Santa is watching... so the short version.
There was a change of plans regarding a friend coming to Japan to see me. So I kinda had to scramble. There was no possible way I could afford a ticket home to the States so I had to look at options of Christmas and New Years in Japan. The Sasahiras had already planned to spend the holidays in Hawaii, my Uncle Nobi recently got offered a teaching position in MALAYSIA so he and Aunt Keiko are spending the holidays there checking out the situation, and that left me with either staying in Shimizu the whole time or traveling around Japan/the Shiz. Staying in Shimizu would've been utterly depressing, as if only getting a week off isn't depressing enough, so I will be out and about, hopefully not breaking my neck on the slopes, and spreading merriment over Japan.

This is the last week of TEACHING for the fall term. After the closing ceremony on Friday, I will have a bonenkai (end of the year drinking party) with my teachers. Hopefully I don't make a fool of myself.

A New Standard of Dress

When I "went out" in the States, I wore nice jeans, a "cute" top, and tennis shoes for my feet's comfort sake. If I was up for the challenge, I wore dressy shoes and hoped I wouldn't get blisters from all the walking during shopping.

In Japan, this is not good enough.

This past weekend, I went to Tokyo to visit the Sasahiras again and my Okaasan took me to some really upscale department stores. Blue ribbed sweater, light tan khakis, and tennis shoes looks good, right? WRONG. I never felt so out of place. And then I was carrying around my navy fleece pullover. Who wears a pull-over in Japan? It looks like it's only me. I had assumed that since it was Saturday, the universal day-off, that people would dress more relaxed. I think their idea of more relaxed is leaving the suit jacket in the car, because I was getting looks saying "Where did you come from? Your frump drawer?" No. My frumpy clothes are sweatpants and a t-shirt. If I were actually in them I might have been barred from entering the complex at all!

So Sunday, we went out to a second department store just for window shopping and lunch. I dressed in black pants, a red ribbed turtleneck sweater (called polo-sweaters here), and my black ballet flats. I didn't get any snarling looks so I think I passed the second time around. However, getting dressed up EVERY TIME just to enjoy a lazy afternoon shopping doesn't make the outing as much fun.

Maybe for those of you who come from cities bigger than Little Rock (and there are A LOT of them), this may seem normal to you. For me, I am longing for the next day I can wear my jeans. I think they are gathering dust in my drawer...

Kamakura Adventure Pt. 4 - Sunday, Nov. 2

So at the first of this month, I went to Kamakura to visit my Aunt Keiko and family and at the end of this month, I am finally completing the posts. Ha ha ha!! I'll try to keep the commentaries short but still have lots of pictures.


A small shrine on the way to Kamakura Station.



Me in front of the Daibutsu a.k.a. The Great Buddha of Kamakura.



The Great Buddha statue used to be inside a building. However, a huge tsunami came a long long time ago in a galaxy... oh wait... anyway, it came and washed away the building, but the Great Buddha remained. Dun dun dunnnnnn.



There are so many customs in Japan, religious and traditional. Here, the man is being "cleansed" by the smoke of the incense. Ironic... smoke is cleansing...



Another custom: toss a coin into the slotted box, clap twice, pray, when you finish the prayer you put your hands down, and bow a little towards the "altar".



Outside the Great Buddha Park, everyone was walking around with these HUGE rice crackers and seaweed. So of course, for the novelty of eating such a snack, I bought one and ate it ALL. Seriously, the osembe was as big as my face!



Early Sunday evening or late afternoon, Hiro and I took a walk around to see the burial site of Crown Prince....... somebody. Japan has many "eras". Right now, we are in the "era" of Heisei. Previous to this was Showa and before that was Meiji and before that, I do not know. But WAY back when, there was the Kamakura Period and that was when this Crown Price was buried. But to see the burial site, we had to hike a ways. See pictures below.


It seems that other families can be buried here too other than just the royal family.



If you thought my apartment stairs were bad (see "Apartment" post in August), these stairs were probably worse. They were terribly uneven, slick with moss, and slippery with humidity. They were the first "Stairs that will kill you".



And we were rewarded with our efforts with a view of Kamakura. You should probably click on the picture to see a larger image.



Coming home, Aunt Keiko really "wow-ed" me with a dinner of yakiniku (grilled meat) and veggies. I've slept since my visit at the first of the month, but I remember being in awe of how many packets of meat she kept pulling from the fridge. Meat, particular beef, is EXPENSIVE in Japan so she really gave me a treat of beef and pork yakiniku. Twas so good.



Thank you Aunt Keiko, Uncle Nobi, and Hiro for having me early in November. It was a great trip and I can't wait to visit again! Maybe I will see you next in Malaysia!

Amazing Week!

...and it's not even over yet!!! XD

Monday -- Shizuoka Tokubetsu Shien Gakkou (Shizuoka School for the Disabled)
Once a month, I visit the Shizuoka School of the Disabled and help out their English classes. I LOVE going because the students are SO EXCITED to see me and every lesson consists of songs, dance, and of course, English. What is even better is that all -I said ALL- my students want to volunteer in class! How refreshing is that?!

Tuesday -- The Day from *insert expletive*
To my surprise (and ridiculous delight), the Day from #$%&! was really a day from close to heaven. My morning seniors diligently worked on their tour guide poster project and my sophomores (often the little demons of my teaching career), were almost angelically good as they designed their show-and-tell posters and wrote out their dialogue. It was a moment where I am sure my jaw hit the floor after class.

Wednesday -- Fun Sophomores, Cooking, and English Conversation Lesson.
So that you do not get the wrong impression, not ALL my sophomores are the minions of the devil. In fact, my Wednesday sophomore class is probably the rowdiest, but they work hard in class so I do not mind nearly so much now boisterous they can be sometimes. Because they are a little higher level that my Tuesday sophomores, I had them do a speech as well as a poster. I heard and advised speeches in the empty room next door while the JTE helped students with their poster designs and grammar stuff in my classroom. Only 2 groups of the 20 were not prepared to rehearse and there were some AMAZING speeches. I think I teared up after class with pride.
On Wednesdays after school and club activities, the music teacher, Kiyomi Fujiwara, comes to my place for supper and an English Conversation lesson. In turn, she assists me in my Japanese and trades recipes. A cooking lesson for me is planned in the near future. Kiyomi can already speak English well enough that I can understand, but since she vacations often in the States, she has asked me to help her conversation skills. So I made spaghetti with meat sauce, buttered bread, and salad. She stayed for 2 hours and it was a great time! If there is anyone that I would consider a "friend" at work, she is certainly at the top of the nominees.

Today, Thursday, -- Sophomore Field Trip
Normally, I have 3 classes on Thursdays. 2 of the 3 are sophomore classes back-to-back but all sophomores are gone today on a field trip to a local kindergarten. I think they are helping out with their Sports Day Festival. Since all sophomores are gone, the school is a lot quieter, the teachers are relaxed since fewer classes are meeting, and the weather outside is GOR-GE-OUS!
An hour ago, Kiyomi invited me to the main office for early tea time and to talk with the office ladies. I see the office ladies everyday, but since they are not in the teachers' room, I do not often get to speak with them unless I get a fax or it's "Pay the Rent" Day. And they are HILARIOUS! We had hot milk tea and sweets for about 20 minutes and at the end, my sides and cheeks hurt from laughing and we had set up a dinner outing for next Tuesday.

Tomorrow is pay day (hallejuah) and because of this amazing week, I am going to splurge on myself for once on Saturday at Pion, a 100 yen shop, and maybe a few rounds of tokens at the arcade in JUSCO. Sunday, I am going to a violin concert in the city with some of my students. Monday is a national holiday so I will be spending it with Kiyomi. We will drive to another prefecture for a huge early-Christmas sale. Then Tuesday I have the dinner outing with the office ladies.

Term is almost over! I cannot believe it!!!

Just Average

From a GPA that would rival Hermione Granger, it has come a bit of a shock to me that I am doing so poorly on my Japanese Language Course provided by CLAIR (another acronym for yet another JET organization).

And then I realized, I am not doing that "poorly".

I should be a little more realistic. Everyone struggles with language learning so to be making no mistakes would actually be the EXTREME exception and not the norm. Plus, I got arrogant and bit off more than I can chew by choosing the Intermediate Course instead of the Beginner Course. And by the way, CLAIR doesn't allow you to change courses.

I have 6 monthly tests over the course of the year and I must earn a grade of 70% or higher on all of them to receive of Certificate of Completion. I can ask for teacher's help, but I feel a bit guilty doing so because they are so busy. I want to be honest about my level of Japanese comprehension on the tests, but I do not want all this time and energy go to waste by failing them (less than 70%).

So this part is more of an encouragement note from my November 15, 2008, 10:40pm self to the other self in the future, whenever it is that I should read this post again.
1) I am good at reading comprehension.
2) Japanese grammar is the least of my worries. People will understand me even if I can't remember which particle to use or if I moderately botch a verb conjugation.
3) Practice makes perfect. I will understand these concepts better if I can manipulate a situation where I am forced to use the new things I am learning.
4) Ask for help. There is no shame in getting assistance or further explanation.
5) I need to learn to accept that in this area, I will be just average. 70% or above is what the goal should be and I should be satisfied with myself for at least trying to learn something new. Frustrating myself to make a 90% or an "A" is not going to make this process enjoyable. I am going to have to bury my past "Hermione Granger" accolades and focus on the now.

Kamakura Adventure Pt. 3 (Saturday Evening, Nov. 1)

After lunch, Hiro, Sonja, and I went around Akihabara, the electronic center of Tokyo. One of my "missions" of the weekend was to get a denshijisho: an electronic dictionary. There were stores in Shimizu with them, but none came with English directions! So surely, I would find a model I liked with minimal English directions in TOKYO, right? And I DID! Pictures are still to come.


In the evening, Hiro took Sonja and me to a Meiji Shrine that was to be lit up for a festival. Before the main entrance were a BAJILLION lanterns with the names of sponsering companies of the festival. Here Hiro and I are in front of the many many lanterns that couldn't all fit into the picture!



Japan has two main religions: Buddhism and Shintoism. Since this is a SHRINE, it is associated with Shintoism. If it were a TEMPLE, it would be associated with Buddhism. I only know a few facts of either religion so please do not ask me for intense details!
Here is the main entrance to the shrine.



This is the entrance to the main courtyard area.



The place was PACKED with people!!! There was to be entertainment on the stage at 6:30, but we had dinner reservations at 7pm so we couldn't stay to watch.




We were able to see a little bit of entertainment at the lantern area. Different groups participated in the dancing and this group had castanet dealies.

So dinner was probably at the most stunning place EVER. After visiting the shrine and the festival, we hopped on the train again to Ebisu. Out of the station, we took about 6 moving sidewalks across on walkway to Yebisu Garden Place.
How to describe it? Imagine Branson Landing Outlet Mall in Missouri or Easton Mall in Ohio but already decorated with Christmas lights on NOVEMBER 1!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What?! Yeah, that's what I said when I saw them.

So we walked a ways enjoying the lights, and then there was a HUGE building on the right, we went inside and stepped inside the elevator. But the elevator only had three buttons: 1st floor, 38th floor, and 39th floor. Seriously?! This is wild! And I suddenly felt under-dressed in my green khakis, t-shirt, and blue hoodie. Stepping out on the 38th floor looked like a grand hotel lobby... but unlike any hotel lobby I had ever seen. Every door off the carpeted hall led to a restaurant!!! And what spectacular views of Tokyo by night!!!

So Hiro treated Sonja and me to shabu-shabu. In the table is a hot plate. On the hot plate is a huge pot of water with kobu (a form of seaweed). Then green veggies are added into the broth followed by thinly sliced meat, usually pork. "Shabu-shabu" is the onomonapeia for the squishing sound made in the water when the pork is swashed in.

And for those of you who have eaten out with me, you know that despite my little size, I can eat A LOT. And of course, this was no exception. We had a curious appetizer of rare meat, salad with egg/cheese dresing, cucumber salad, two servings of green veggies, and 5 racks of pork. Oh, and I had plum wine!! It was delicious. Of course, I chose to have it diluted in soda water since I really didn't know what alcohol would do to me yet, but I managed fine without getting red in the cheeks or whoozy in the head. I felt so... "grown-up". Tee hee!
Here Hiro is serving out the meat. Sorry for the blurry picture.

This picture cannot capture the amazing taste of pork and veggies in sauce. When will Japan make scratch-n-sniff digital photos? I dunno. But this was heaven after weeks of sushi and salmon at my apartment in Shimizu.

Afterwards, Hiro joked "So when we get back to Kamakura, we'll go have some ramen." Bwa ha ha ha ha ha!!!! I was surprised I managed to waddle back to the station.
And one last video... if you listen closely at the very end, you can hear Hiro saying "Jill! Stop eating!"
Thank you for such a great day, Hiromasa!!!!

Kamakura Adventure Pt. 2 (Saturday Afternoon, Nov. 1)

So the first full day of my Kamakura Adventure was spent with my cousin, Hiromasa. On my father's side, I have 16 blood-related 1st cousins. On my mom's side, I have 2 cousins. I see my dad's side fairly regularly since we live in the central nexus of the family but I rarely see the Japanese side of my family. So this job has made a GREAT opportunity to spend time with them.

So Hiromasa works as an accountant in London, but he got transferred for awhile to the Japanese branch of the company (please correct me if I'm wrong, Hiro, who is probably reading this) for awhile. And the company set him up with a great apartment in Tokyo. His rent is more than my monthly salary!!! Of course, Hiro says this has more to do with the apartment being in Tokyo, but after I got to look (enviously) around his place, I think it kinda makes sense.


This is Hiro's living area. Notice the A/C above the windows. It's a bit empty because he's going back to England at the end of the month and has been packing up. Oh, and he also has an A/C unit in both his bedrooms too. That's THREE A/C units in all...talk about luxury...



His bedroom has nice inset ceilings.



And because Japan is the land of electronic amusement, I had to take a photo of the toilet controls. BWA HA HA HA! On the very top, there are two buttons: small flush and big flush. Then the buttons from left to right (stop, light mist, mist, bide, and something I can't read). Oh, and did I mention that the seat is heated?



For those of you who know my family, we tend to adopt people. Sonja McNeir has been a lifelong friend because both our mothers are Japanese women married to American men and we live only 30 minutes apart back in the States. Regularly (about twice a month), our mothers would meet up with other Japanese women in the area since we were little so we saw each other often. Then Sonja came to the JET Programme. I really have her to thank for encouraging me to apply and look where I am now! Since she has been here 2 years, my mom shared all her contacts with Sonja, including my aunt, uncle, and cousins. So Sonja came with me on this Kamakura Adventure and her presence made the trip all the more enjoyable! Here we are at the lunch at a really good (yet very impersonal) ramen shop.



Never give your camera to a guy-cousin. He will always catch you at the most unflattering moments. ;) Here I am upholding a Japanese custom of slurping my ramen noodles. It's polite to slurp the noodles because it is a compliment to the chef that I am thoroughly enjoying the meal.


Not all restaurants are this impersonal where I do not even see the server and have "Jeopardy boards' separating me from my company. I'll mark it under "quaint Japanese situations".

It's the Little Things...

...like ordering pizza.

I do not know why, but I was feeling a mixture of extreme laziness, slight feverishness, and overall gloom coming home from work today. Today was an okay day at school, nothing sparkling or glittering with accomplishments unless you count survival.

But weeks ago, I got an ad in my letterbox about a "Chicago Style" pizza place that delivered! And what was more, it came with a coupon! I had stuck it on my mini-fridge via magnet for safe-keeping, and got inspired/brave enough/desperate enough, to use my minimal Japanese to try to order pizza.

I explained to the man that I was a foreigner but I understood some Japanese. He was so nice and patient as I gave my cell number, my address, and tried to describe the kind of pizza I wanted. When we finally understood each other and got the order through, I thanked him thoroughly and realized I was bowing while on the phone!! HA HA HA!!

So I got a small "pepperoni" pizza with pari-pari crust (thin crust) and it came in about 15 minutes VERY hot via a moped with a thermal box on the backseat.


Please excuse the frumpiness. The pizza was SO GOOD though!!!!! I am tempted to do it all over again tomorrow, BUT, I have chicken marinading in fridge so I better cook it for supper.

Kamakura Adventure Pt. 1

So I got back from visiting my Aunt Keiko and her family in Kamakura about 6 hours ago, but I returned to a cluttered apartment and am 2 days behind on my Japanese studies. So I promise to post amazing pictures of the best 3-day vacation (so far) once things slow down (when will that be?)

Second Culture Shock Meltdown

OF COURSE, as Murphy's Law would have it, if something CAN go wrong (at the most inconvenient time), it WILL.

Well guess what?

My hard drive crashed.

HELLO?! This laptop is not even 4 months old yet!
Not to mention that the week I need my laptop for almost every class... of course, the HD would decide to crash now.

Well it also crashed at 11:30p.m. so I couldn't call the HP-Japan Technical Support People, I couldn't look up emails, BUT I do have internet on my cell phone (THANK GOODNESS). So I phone-emailed my parents, my Prefecture Advisor, my Head of English JTE, and a family friend in the electronics business. Thankfully, all of them got back to me within 10 minutes and began to help me out.

So I will call the HP-Japan people after my first class with the help of a Japanese Teacher of English (JTE) and hopefully they will uphold the U.S. Warranty. If they do not, esssentially I am screwed. If they do, HALLEJUAH, because they will send me a box, I put my laptop in the box, I fill out some paperwork about the problem. They find the problem and in 2-3 business days after the problem is found (AND BETTER BE FIXED!) they will send the laptop back to me.

I suppose it is not a full-out meltdown like I had last time... but if the phone call this morning does not go well, I am sure you will hear my wails from 8,000 miles away.

Oh, and by the way, it's Tuesday...

======================================
Eons Later... (10:44 am)

So my HD did NOT crash.

So what happened...?

I use my laptop too much.

According to the lady at the HP-Japan place, if I run the laptop too long on battery or just plugged in without shutting down regularly and giving my laptop a rest, my computer will not start up. What happens is that all the electric charge is stuck inside the computer and needs to be released. So I turned off the laptop, unplugged it, took out the battery, waited five seconds before replacing everything again and VOILA! It works!

But I am still going to order an extended-care package from Japan... like... tomorrow... or today... or something. Sheesh...

What's the Big Deal?

So I am learning new things everyday...

Yesterday, I learned that beer tastes worse than it smells.

Seriously, people, why do you drink the stuff?

Having faithfully and honestly kept the contract of an HU student, I was not exposed to alcohol until moving from home. This came to a shock to my new JET friends who were so surprised that even 2 years past the legal drinking age, not a drop of beer had touched these lips. And although Mom kept sake in the house for cooking, I was never tempted to drink any of it. To me, it wasn't worth risking my place at HU to experiment with alcohol. Maybe I just have more resolve than most.

Of course, I have had wine for communion in Europe, and that also wasn't a pleasant experience, but my first "drink" was at the Welcome Dress-Up Karaoke Party in Kakegawa. I had what my brother, Wilson, calls "fru-fru" drinks: fruit-based drinks. The first was a shu-hi. Yuck. The second was a Cassius Orange. More acceptable.

But beer.... UGH! It smells awful, it smells worse on a person's breath or clinging to their clothes, and it's even more awful still actually swishing around upon the palatte.

It's not that I think drinking alcohol in-of-itself is "wrong". But I just do not understand what the craze is about. Yes, it is enjoyable to go out with friends, celebrate a birthday, eat out at an awesome restaurant, fellowship, end off the evening in a karaoke booth until midnight singing and yelling classic 80s and 90s music into we're hoarse, and then dash to the train station to catch the last train home. It makes for a very memorable, pleasant experience to be with others.

I'll stick to my Calpis Waters and juices though. I wouldn't mind trying more "fru-fru" drinks though like a Mimosa (orange juice + champagne.... I think).

GREAT days DO exist!!!!!

I had a GREAT day at school today!!!

I just thought I should let you know and add as a little reminder to myself that I have a great job with really great students (most of them) and a really nice, supportive group of teachers. So here is the short version of what made today so fantabulous.

Morning meeting--
I got invited to go with all the teachers to a play tomorrow. School will end a little before lunch with some shorter periods and then all the teachers will go to the culture center and then an enkai (drinking party?) afterwards. I will probably just drink a lot of juice.

2nd period--
I have one of my favorite junior classes on Wednesday. They are not the smartest, but they always greet me enthusiastically whether I am in the hall or at class. And they work REALLY hard! Today, we (the JTE and I) returned the midterm tests and then had a celebration of awards about the Olympic project. And then the students proudly put up their posters around the room. Before dismissing the class, I told them about the next project--commercials--and the kids really ate it up. They cannot wait to watch American commercials next week (a little bit of super bowl, herbal essence, diamond ring commercial, gillette, a little bit of everything).

4th period--
I have a good sophomore class. Again, they are not the smartest, but they do all activities in class with great enthusiasm. I (and I am sure they too) got really bored with reinforcing grammar points previous to midterms. So their project will be show and tell. I introduced Japanese-exclusive items to them today in the form of a Jeopardy game. They LOVED the game and it built their confidence to see pictures of things they KNEW. Then I had them do a worksheet activity of American-exclusive items that required them to talk to other students to get the information. And then they could draw too. Of the 8 pictures they had to draw, I really enjoyed looking at their interpretations of bison and cowboy. HA HA HA! So the sophomores will be in pairs and do a show-and-tell of Japanese-exclusive items like Anpan-man (anime), shitajiki (plastic sheet used between pages when writing), sumo-wrestling (Japan's national sport), and so on.

6th period--
Because my juniors are doing commercials next week, I had to clear some things with the head of the computer department. We met during one of his free periods in my classroom to setup my laptop to the school network and check to make sure the links worked. And come to find out, the head of the computer department speaks English! What?! He totally surprised me!
I have come to decide that secretly, all the teachers can speak English, but have been commanded to make me try speaking Japanese as much as possible. And it's good practice for me anyway so I can't really complain.

Okay, so that wasn't so short of an update as I thought, but it was a REALLY good day and tomorrow will be good too because it'll be an opportunity to spend time just with the teachers and not worry about classes!

The "I Can't Do This" Morning...

It is sad that I start looking forward to the weekend on Monday.

I keep trying to pinch myself that I am in Japan, a place I have always wanted to be, and that I have a really sweet set-up paying only $150 in rent a month, getting lunch everyday, getting to see so many things, studying Japanese with the help of native speakers, etc.

And yet, when I come to school, I feel so insignificant and incapable of managing the task set before me: teaching.

Today is another one of those mornings.
I do not feel fully prepared, my room is a mess thanks to some students who eat in there, I had to confiscate another cellphone, and I have yet another Tuesday ahead of me.

I am debating with myself to either do a new seating arrangement of the whole class, of only particular students who need to be moved, or not at all.
1) If I do the whole class... that is A LOT of work. And since I do not know my students very well, this could turn out to be more of a disaster than the original plan. Maybe if I make it clear that this is a temporary setup...
2) If I only do the particular students who are disruptive... I am predicting/paranoia that the students will go home and tell their parents what happened. Hello? You are disrupting my class, openly disrespectful to me and to the JTE, what did you expect? Of course, in a passive-aggressive country, this may be considered more of a bold move than option #1. I am tired of being passive-aggressive. I want to say exactly what has been burning in my mind for the last 3 weeks. The students wouldn't understand all the words, but I am sure that the tone of voice and the deadly look on my face might communicate better. My patience is coming to an end...
3) If I do not change a thing about seating... I will be pushing insanity if I thought that this situation will resolve itself on its own. I would love to wait until the next term, but I am not sure that I would feel any more eager to do this than in December or January.

I am so homesick.

And just thinking/typing/reading that almost got me crying.

No matter how I feel now, tomorrow is coming, so I might as well brace myself for it.

Billboards

I have been in Japan a little over 2 months, and I just noticed that my town of 60,000+ does not have a single billboard. Especially contradicting ones.

Not that I have been avidly looking for billboards, but it was just something I noticed on the long bus-ride home from JUSCO that I wasn't having to combat visual pollution to see the gorgeous scenery of rolling hills around me.

Epiphany... I mean, RIGHT NOW.

What if, like everything else in Japan, billboards are smaller and shorter than their American counterparts?

I must investigate this phenomenon.

Frump Night

This is probably the greatest creation known to man.

And it is always shared with my best guy-friend, State.


It started last fall but I am not really sure why. Maybe because I was fed up with State catching me when I was frumpy.

Frumpy (adj): meaning without make-up, messy hair, and clothes resembling sweat pants, worn-out t-shirt or otherwise embarrassing attire to be seen wearing in public, but honestly, the clothes and get-up are very comfortable.

I think Frump Night began around fall mid-terms tests and the Homecoming musical. Musical rehearsals were going from 6:30pm-11pm at least 3 nights a week and mid-terms were just around the corner.
So to take a break from it all the rush and demands, State and I planned a movie night in our "frumpy" clothes and to eat only comfort foods, aka, junk food. For the first night, we watched "Pride and Prejudice", the Keira Knightley version while eating Ben and Jerry's ice cream.

Since the first successful Frump Night, State and I agreed on some rules.
1) Frumpy attire must be upheld.
This could be athletic shorts, sweat pants, tank tops, old t-shirts, or hoodies. I usually rocked a ponytail, sweatpants, and a tanktop or hoodie. Here are some screenshots from an anime that can relate to how I look when I am "frumpy".



2) No make-up, no cologne.

3) Because State and I are hopeless romantics, only chick-flicks and romantic comedies should be watched with an occasional suspenseful thriller thrown into the mix.

4) There will be no talking about classes, homework, tests, or school-related duties. However, possible school-related romances were encouraged to be discussed.

5) Only junk food shall be eaten.
I usually enjoyed something salty like popcorn or potato chips or osembe with a glass of iced Dr. Pepper. State liked his sweets so he would eat ice cream or something my mom would offer him that we had in the house like chocolate-chip poundcake, mocha ice cream pie, cheesecake, you name it.

Since coming to Japan, I have not had an official "Frump Night" since usually it takes two people to enjoy the momentous occasion.

For my faithful viewers, you are perfectly welcome to have and or create your own "Frump Night" agenda so long as you give credit to the creator: me! :D

Tagged by Jessica Grasham

Here's the rules:

Grab the nearest book.
Open the book to page 56.
Find the fifth sentence.
Post the text of the next two to five sentences in your blog along with these instructions.
Don’t dig for your favorite book, the cool book, or the intellectual one: pick the CLOSEST.
Tag five other people to do the same.

From 彼氏彼女の事情 (Kareshi Kanojo no Jijyou)
さくら：　教室’からカバン持ってきてくれ３分で (You have 3 minutes to get my bag from the classroom)
たけふみ：　えーーーーー？！(WHAT?!)
さくら：　んだろ (Do it.)
たけふみ：　わかったよ... (Yeah... fine...)

I tag Alex Ritchie.

Universal Characteristics

It is my 6th week of teaching and even though I have made this discovery in the 2nd week, I thought I'd share it with you all anyway.

No matter where I go, how far from home I am, or what new culture I am in... students will remain universally the same.

You have the jocks, the "plastics", the nerds, the smart ones, the "not-so-smart" ones, the eager-to-answer question ones, the if-you-call-on-me-I-will-sink-into-the-ground ones, and the I-just-want-to-sleep ones.
And then you have the attitudes towards a particular subject.
-- I really want to learn English and I want good grade so I will work hard for it.
-- I really want a good grade, but I do not mind if I forget all the English I have learned along the way.
-- I really want a good grade... so you're going to give it to me, right? I know I didn't do the assignment, but that doesn't mean I -really- get a zero, does it? Sure, I was talking the whole time in class and not working as I should have, but... I was HERE, wasn't I?
-- I would be ASHAMED if I did not get a good grade so I will work hard and stress about it even though I really do not like English.
-- I really do not need this class... I think I will work on other homework
-- I really do not enjoy this class... I think I will sleep.
-- I really want to annoy the teacher and "be cool" among my peers so I will be disruptive in class.

And despite being 8000 miles away from the culture in which I was raised that I originally thought these titles and attitudes were culturally unique, they aren't.

But some things about me have changed:
1) I really do not mind if the students do not like me.
I just want my students to do their best and give their best in class. When students sleep in class, I am not offended that they may be uninterested in what we're doing. I am only disappointed that they do not value education and its possibilities.
And by the way, I was a high school student once too! There was the "schoolwork", then the homework, traveling to Little Rock for youth orchestra rehearsals, piano lessons, violin lessons, hanging out with friends and family, etc. So I do not blame the students for being sleepy. But that doesn't mean I will not ask you to wake up and do your best.
Being a teacher is a kind of stressful role. I have the responsibility to teach the students are core curriculum for them to pass when they take the entrance exams into college. Let's look at that sentence again: I have the responsibility to teach. I will NOT give you a good grade, it must be earned. I will NOT do anything less than give my 100% best effort to making activities fun, interesting, and an incorporation of concepts you are learning in your grammar class.

2) I am less up-tight about neatness and clutter.
My classroom will NEVER have straight rows and columns. I have conceded to that fact after spending tremendous effort the first week to correct the lines after every class. Instead, I am satisfied if rows are in the general vacinity and everyone has enough leg room. Plus, I have a group of students who help me clean everyday but Thursdays.

3) I have learned to separate a student's dislike for English from a student's dislike of me.
I sometimes catch my students giving dirty looks during class. This usually occurs after an assignment, worksheet, etc is given. The student isn't necessarily directing the dislike towards ME but rather that the student does not enjoy one of many things--having to work, having to practice, having to study, having to take English, etc.
And during the Sports Day Festival, I discovered that many of the students who gave such looks in class were really pleasant towards me. So it is not necessarily ME that they dislike, but rather the tasks set out for them. My advice to those students is "get over it"! Life will continue to hand you tasks and you can do them or you cannot and reap the consequences either way. School is just practice for such times to come.

5 yen, please!

I've been fortunate and blessed in life to have had many opportunities to travel abroad and learn "cute" idioms of other cultures.

In Uganda, it is considered inhospitable to not fill a glass to the brim.

In Europe, ketchup and other condiments cost extra.

In Japan, as of October 1st, you must pay for eco-friendly grocery bags, 5 yen each.

体育祭 - Sports Day (Sept. 26)

So I'm FINALLY getting around to posting some pictures from the Sports Day Festival at my school!
The pictures look small, but if you click on them, they should enlarge (I hope).

2nd year student sprints.
From left to right: Noboru (purple), Naoto (green), Kaito (yellow).



And then an obstacle course relay race.
First pick up a yo-yo in a spoon and race it to the other bucket. Then spin 20 times around a bat before running to the next person...


...who must blow a balloon and with a partner, carry the balloon between them to the next person...

...who must pop it...

...and then run through a net...

...and search for the gummy candy in a pan of flour...




Instead of skis, groups of 5 have their legs tied together in a rope and must run around the track. The colored ribbons are used instead of batons. The group then hands off the sash to another group from the same home room.







And then the "typhoon" relay race. It's called typhoon because students must spin around the cone before going on to the next cone and coming back.




When they come back, they pass the pole beneath their team's feet. Everyone must jump at the same time otherwise they'll eat dirt.

Then the pole is passed back over the team's heads and into the hands of the next row to run the "typhoon".




I never knew "Tug-of-War" was officially a sport, but it's quite intense. Whole homerooms battle it out. This is HR 15.

Faces of intense pain.
From left to right: Alex, Syuhei, Kyohei, and Shintaro.


The students seem totally different during Sports Day than in my classroom. I am glad I get to see this side of them and that they can see me cheering them on from the sidelines.
This is HR 33.


And HR 24.


And HR 23.



Even the teachers and coaches get into the festival. They especially want their own homerooms to win. I am not a homeroom teacher, but since I teach practically everyone in the school, I feel as though I can cheer for everyone without favoritism.
And HR 21.

And HR 15 again.


The faces of victory!


And a video. Yes, I am the one yelling really loud.