I had a great Kindie class today. It's the first one in a long time where at least one student didn't try to grab or poke my boobs. I felt relaxed, I had 2 observers (potential new students, which means parents in the room, which I hate), one of whom had a complete melt down in class because one of my regular students had inadvertently sat down in the chair that the observer student had thought was "hers". Her mum was there so I just let it pass and focused on the other kids. She got herself into such a tizzy (I get that word from my Granny) that she couldn't calm down and was fully hyperventilating. I thought it rather humourous actually. I'm a bad teacher.
I'm enjoying my walks home. I'm still a little bummed about getting my dearly loved Drlfan, but there has been a bonus. I don't so much like the walk to work as I'm usually anxious to get the work fast. I really like the option of walking home afterward though. I kind of wish there was a way to ride a bike to work and then walk home. I need a teleportation device to that I can send my bike home easily, but then if I had a teleportation device I wouldn't ride my bike to work at all, I would teleport to work and then walk home. It's been a nice time of being able to have an extra half hour where nothing is pressing on my mind and I have time to think about what ever I happen to think of, as opposed to stewing over something or being fixated on my schedule for the day and what I'm going to do with the kiddies for the day. Tonight on the way home, I turned down my street and ahead of me the sky was purple. I looked to the left, it was purple. I couldn't see to the right or behind me due to trees and a big multi-story school. It was really wild. I like the moments in life when Life feels so tangible that you are fully aware of everything around you and aware that you are living a moment that will be a vivid memory when your life circumstances are altered from your present reality. It feels like you could reach out and physically touch Life around you and commune directly with God.
Friday, September 30, 2005
Wednesday, September 28, 2005
September 28, 2005
An exciting Kindie class today. We're learning "pick up your book", "put down your book", "open your bookbag", "close your bookbag". I like to use real items in the class with plenty of TPR (Total Physical Response, where you physically interact with the language target. For example, teaching colours, "Touch the red crayon, touch the blue crayon", they learn the different between 'red' and 'blue' by physical interaction with real items). We pick up our dictionaries ('book', I like to make my little girls stronger, not just smarter. Btw it's an all girl class. Sometimes we twirl around so our skirts go up around our waist, or rather they do, sometimes we do weight lifting by picking up full sized, soft cover English-Japanese dictionaries. It's all about balance). We throw our dictionaries on the table, 'put down your book'. "Pick up your book, put down your book. Open your book, close your book. Pick up your book, open your book", much giggling ensues as they try to open the soft covered books while the books are up over their heads, "put down your book", throw, thud, "close your book". It was great fun. Then we moved to the floor with our book bags, "open you bookbag, close your bookbag". By now the girls are copying my speech. Minatsu (she has fabulous blue sparkly clittity clacitty shoes that I can always tell when she has arrived at the school, thank goodness for the Japanese tradition of removing shoes outside of the classroom) decided to go with it, "open, open, open". I was happy. They had figured out "open", fabulous. Then Mei (pronounced like 'May') joined in, "open, open, oppai, tee hee, oppai, oppai, tee hee, oppai". The other girls then joined her chant, "oppai, oppai, oppai, tee hee, oppai". Fabulous. I've lost control again. I was laughing so hard, they were laughing so hard. I was concerned that a parent would walk by the class and hear it and wonder what the hell was going on in my class. We switched activities really quick, "soooo, let's sing a song!!".
Key to understanding this story...oppai.
Def'n: Breasts
Key to understanding this story...oppai.
Def'n: Breasts
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
September 27, 2005
This is my last Tuesday off until Christmas break when we get two weeks off. I bummed around the house for a bit then went and met Yoko in Nishi-Funabashi to lend her my pack and sleeping bag. She's off to Australia for two weeks on Friday and she didn't have a pack big enough for a two week trip. We bummed around a bit, I showed her how to adjust and pack the pack, then we decided that we didn't want to go home yet, so we headed for Funabashi. I hadn't been there for several months and I had forgotten about how good the shopping is there. It's what you would expect from an Asian city. It's crowded, busy, close and dirty. Tokyo is far too metropolitan and I often forget that I'm in Asia when I'm bootin around Tokyo. Funabashi feels more like what I expected before coming here. Although, by Asian standards it's still incredibly clean and safe. There's gates over the train tracks, no live stock on the streets, and people generally obey traffic standards.
We went to a fab little store called Loft that's full of great housewares and the basement is all cards, paper, and office supplies. I think I'm gonna have to make a trip there to buy some new linens and stuff to send home. It's like a cool, small, IKEA with less selection within items but a greater variety of actual items, and very little furniture. I don't think that makes sense. Instead of having 20 different styles of sheets like IKEA there's 8, but IKEA doesn't have a beauty section or fitness supplies. It's just a little different. So by the time we were done shopping in there I was completely dizzy from lack of food (yes I had been home all day before that, but no, I hadn't eaten anything, no food left in my house, no bike to ride to make a quick trip to the store and I needed to stay near the phone to hear from Yoko) and we decided to forego the hyaku yen shop (the dollar store). We hit a fabulous little place for some kaiten sushi.
Kaiten sushi is usually a small sushi restaurant (although there are bigger places, like the one I just discovered like two weeks ago near the Kita station) where you sit at a counter (sometimes the bigger places have booths) and there's a conveyor that goes round and round the counter bringing the patrons all sorts of yummy sushi-ey goodness. There's usually like 2 pieces per plate and you take what you want and pay by the plate. So by the end you should have a stack of plates, you get up from your seat and some little old lady has counted up the plates and yelled out an amount by the time you reach the cash register. Most middle of the road places are around 100 to 150 yen per plate for the usual type sushi pieces. Some have really fancy things that cost more. The great thing is that the sushi chefs are in the middle of the counter making the sushi in front of you so you get entertainment with your meal. And of course, if you "Sumimasen" them when you don't see what slab of raw poison you were craving, they'll gladly make a plate up for you.
We went to a fab little store called Loft that's full of great housewares and the basement is all cards, paper, and office supplies. I think I'm gonna have to make a trip there to buy some new linens and stuff to send home. It's like a cool, small, IKEA with less selection within items but a greater variety of actual items, and very little furniture. I don't think that makes sense. Instead of having 20 different styles of sheets like IKEA there's 8, but IKEA doesn't have a beauty section or fitness supplies. It's just a little different. So by the time we were done shopping in there I was completely dizzy from lack of food (yes I had been home all day before that, but no, I hadn't eaten anything, no food left in my house, no bike to ride to make a quick trip to the store and I needed to stay near the phone to hear from Yoko) and we decided to forego the hyaku yen shop (the dollar store). We hit a fabulous little place for some kaiten sushi.
Kaiten sushi is usually a small sushi restaurant (although there are bigger places, like the one I just discovered like two weeks ago near the Kita station) where you sit at a counter (sometimes the bigger places have booths) and there's a conveyor that goes round and round the counter bringing the patrons all sorts of yummy sushi-ey goodness. There's usually like 2 pieces per plate and you take what you want and pay by the plate. So by the end you should have a stack of plates, you get up from your seat and some little old lady has counted up the plates and yelled out an amount by the time you reach the cash register. Most middle of the road places are around 100 to 150 yen per plate for the usual type sushi pieces. Some have really fancy things that cost more. The great thing is that the sushi chefs are in the middle of the counter making the sushi in front of you so you get entertainment with your meal. And of course, if you "Sumimasen" them when you don't see what slab of raw poison you were craving, they'll gladly make a plate up for you.
Monday, September 26, 2005
September 26, 2005
So, really quick, cause it's late and I'm tired. I had a fabulous day today, mostly because I didn't care what happened in class because it was my last day teaching those classes. It's a semester change and it looks like I'm going to get my request of having Mondays off. HALLELUJAH. It was a miracle and I've been praising Jesus all day.
I caught the train home, I was excited to ride my bike home and grab a snack and watch some OC on my comp. I get off the train. I'm grooving to some tunes, walking along, feeling good. I go down the stairs, I turn the corner. I look for my bike. This is the spot. Maybe it got moved down one or two, nope. Where's my bike? It's not over here, it's not over there. Walking up and down the street. I go to the school and ditch my very uber heavy bags and talk to Mika a most fabulous receptionist. "So Mika, what do I do if I think my bike's been stolen?" She came and looked with me, then she wrote me up a note in Japanese to take to the police station to report it. FABULOUS! I went home to grab some food and my serial numbers and headed back out...on foot...to the police station to report my bike stolen. The old guy there was really nice about it and even spoke fabulous English. I'm not counting on getting it back, and I told him that I knew that, but I figured it was worth a try cause you never know. Stupid cleptos.
It was going to be the greatest day ever, but alas, it is not. I still won't let this get me down as I'm far too happy to not be working Mondays and to also have two days off in a row which is just an absolute joy in my world right now. So, it will mean at least an hour of walking every day just to check in at my first school. So, it will mean that it will cost me another hundred bucks to buy a new bike. So what, I don't teach Mondays, or even at the Tsudanuma school at all, ever again (sigh of relief). Thank you Jesus.
I caught the train home, I was excited to ride my bike home and grab a snack and watch some OC on my comp. I get off the train. I'm grooving to some tunes, walking along, feeling good. I go down the stairs, I turn the corner. I look for my bike. This is the spot. Maybe it got moved down one or two, nope. Where's my bike? It's not over here, it's not over there. Walking up and down the street. I go to the school and ditch my very uber heavy bags and talk to Mika a most fabulous receptionist. "So Mika, what do I do if I think my bike's been stolen?" She came and looked with me, then she wrote me up a note in Japanese to take to the police station to report it. FABULOUS! I went home to grab some food and my serial numbers and headed back out...on foot...to the police station to report my bike stolen. The old guy there was really nice about it and even spoke fabulous English. I'm not counting on getting it back, and I told him that I knew that, but I figured it was worth a try cause you never know. Stupid cleptos.
It was going to be the greatest day ever, but alas, it is not. I still won't let this get me down as I'm far too happy to not be working Mondays and to also have two days off in a row which is just an absolute joy in my world right now. So, it will mean at least an hour of walking every day just to check in at my first school. So, it will mean that it will cost me another hundred bucks to buy a new bike. So what, I don't teach Mondays, or even at the Tsudanuma school at all, ever again (sigh of relief). Thank you Jesus.
Saturday, September 24, 2005
September 24, 2005
My kindie class was crazy again today. Rina decided to get on my back while I was sitting reading the story, I folded in half trying to get her off and then the others all joined on top. I actually was dog piled twice by the 4 year old guerilla task force today. And then in the middle of the dog pile I felt Rina's hands sneaking around my waist and she fully grabbed my boobs, like several times, and there was very little I could actually do about it as I was pinned, in half, by all four little monsters. They thought it was hilarious. I didn't like it so much.
There's another storm brewing. It's been raining all day. I find it humourous that as soon as it rains for more than 2 hours everybody starts calling for a Typhoon. Evidently there's a typhoon coming, it should hit maybe sometime tomorrow night. Maybe they'll be off on their timing and it will hit on Monday afternoon/evening and my last day of Monday classes (the Lord willing, it will be my last day of Monday classes) will be cancelled. I would give up my first born to have them cancelled and Mondays off from now on. Who am I kidding? I won't have a first born. We'll see if it's actually a typhoon though. Last time someone was all "ooo, it's a typhoon, it's a typhoon" it rained for about 5 hours and we all went home and that was it. Rain is not a typhoon. It's rain. And where I'm from, it can sometimes do it 24-7 for months on end.
On being illiterate
I have talked briefly before about the mind shift that happens when you realize that you are actually illiterate. It is a very odd way of thinking, but true. Once you realize that you are illiterate, it frees you from a lot of the frustration that comes from not knowing what is going on. To go to a grocery store with the pre-notion that you won't be able to buy anything with cooking instructions because you can't read them, makes for a much more enjoyable shopping experience of looking at the foods that you need to cook from scratch from your own cooking knowledge or ones with pictures and numbers. But every now and then, the illiteracy monster comes back to bite you on the butt. This afternoon I went to make this rice bowl in the microwave. I was proud of myself to figure out the instructions all right, they were really basic, and I thought that I was in the clear. I sat down at my desk to what I thought was a rice bowl with chicken and some "veggies", I use the term that refers to flakes of red peppers loosely, and thought, 'Hmmm, that smells a little odd. Almost fishy?' Here comes the illiteracy monster. Ow, my butt hurts. It wasn't chicken. Turns out they're clams. Microwaved clams on not good saffron rice. Oh, yum. Stupid writing system.
There's another storm brewing. It's been raining all day. I find it humourous that as soon as it rains for more than 2 hours everybody starts calling for a Typhoon. Evidently there's a typhoon coming, it should hit maybe sometime tomorrow night. Maybe they'll be off on their timing and it will hit on Monday afternoon/evening and my last day of Monday classes (the Lord willing, it will be my last day of Monday classes) will be cancelled. I would give up my first born to have them cancelled and Mondays off from now on. Who am I kidding? I won't have a first born. We'll see if it's actually a typhoon though. Last time someone was all "ooo, it's a typhoon, it's a typhoon" it rained for about 5 hours and we all went home and that was it. Rain is not a typhoon. It's rain. And where I'm from, it can sometimes do it 24-7 for months on end.
On being illiterate
I have talked briefly before about the mind shift that happens when you realize that you are actually illiterate. It is a very odd way of thinking, but true. Once you realize that you are illiterate, it frees you from a lot of the frustration that comes from not knowing what is going on. To go to a grocery store with the pre-notion that you won't be able to buy anything with cooking instructions because you can't read them, makes for a much more enjoyable shopping experience of looking at the foods that you need to cook from scratch from your own cooking knowledge or ones with pictures and numbers. But every now and then, the illiteracy monster comes back to bite you on the butt. This afternoon I went to make this rice bowl in the microwave. I was proud of myself to figure out the instructions all right, they were really basic, and I thought that I was in the clear. I sat down at my desk to what I thought was a rice bowl with chicken and some "veggies", I use the term that refers to flakes of red peppers loosely, and thought, 'Hmmm, that smells a little odd. Almost fishy?' Here comes the illiteracy monster. Ow, my butt hurts. It wasn't chicken. Turns out they're clams. Microwaved clams on not good saffron rice. Oh, yum. Stupid writing system.
Wednesday, September 21, 2005
September 21, 2005
This morning I went to a "Mothers' Group". One of a fellow teacher's students, Kiyoko, on Saturday invited me to her house as her guest to her Mothers' Group. I was a little apprehensive at first, but she was really nice and it seemed like the nice thing to do so I agreed to go. There were two other women who joined us for the morning. We did painting with Indian ink and some water colours. They paint still life, like flowers or fruit or whatever is sitting about the house, and then write little notes beside. Like one of the ladies did some grapes and then wrote "Fresh from the garden" beside it. It's quite simple and very elegant. Mine kinda suck as it's hard to do. You have to hold the paint brush from the very end of it with just your index and thumb and then move your whole hand. Not much room for control. It's doubly difficult for me to write anything as it's hard enough with a pen to write Japanese, let alone with a paint brush that your aren't allowed to really hold on to. They were really sweet and assured me that my cards looked "very Japanese style". We then had tea with all sorts of yummy wheat products that I couldn't resist. It was a really enjoyable morning and they would like me to join them again in the future. I will look forward to it.
Monday, September 19, 2005
September 19, 2005
Last night I hooked up with a friend from Victoria (OBBH folk) who had come from Korea where he's teaching for some down time. We quickly dumped his stuff, put some food into his and his friend's body and headed out to meet up with some fellow teachers at some club in Shin Kiba. Well, they forgot to tell me that it was a gay club. Surprising for us, but it was fabulous. They had go-go dancers and a pool side dance area that you had to take you shirt off to gain access too, or at least the guys did, nobody cared what the women did. It took us a long time to finally find everyone, like not until 2 am did I finally hook up with my friends but it was a good time and we had some good dancing pool side. Then the pool side show started. Awesome. I really don't think that I can accurately describe any of it. It was astounding and an amazing experience. We watched the sun come up over the water, pool side while two guys got it on with some inflatable dolphins. We got home at 7:30 this morning, I had a quick shower and then jumped into bed by 8 for 3 hours of sleep before heading off to work. It sucked. Met my friend back at home, had some food, sat and talked for a bit, watched some John Stewart, was miraculously still awake until 1 am when I finally went to sleep.
Saturday, September 17, 2005
September 17, 2005
I wish I could sleep. Stupid no sleep sleeping pattern. I had maybe 4 and a half hours last night. About 5 the night before. Still wide awake now at midnight. I'm tired but I feel like I could run a marathon. I really just want to go run as fast as I can, get out of breath, fall down in a gutter somewhere, fall asleep and not wake up. Did I mention that I'm actually feeling better about being here. These are thoughts that are so much better than before. I'm not enjoying myself, but I have definitely hit the resignation stage of culture shock where things are just as they are in my reality and they're not so incredibly horrible. I like the train for the most part. I like the kids, when they aren't running around in circles. I like most people I work with when they aren't fake or trying to get in on my life. I don't mind sleeping on the floor at the moment, I'm sure my opinion will change when it gets colder. I feel ready to go out and interact with the world around me again. We'll see how long this lasts. It may just be a temporary delusion. It may just be due to the weather change, which, sounds like it may get warm again.
Friday, September 16, 2005
September 16, 2005
I actually slept last night with the sliding door open all night. It was cold and I had to put a shirt on!!! It's the first time I've slept in a t-shirt in many months. An amazing feeling.
My last class was cancelled tonight so it meant that one of the teachers I'm with on this day and I were off at the same time. She joined me at my place for some food. I cooked up some spaghetti and we chatted and watched John Stewart. I'm just so glad that she lives in Seattle cause we'll be able to sort of stay in contact without too much effort on either one of our parts. She's easy to talk to. It was a nice evening.
My Friday kindie kids have taken to touching my boobs. Not okay in my world. What is people's obsession with them? I don't get it. It was really just two of them. Kids that is. Rather annoying. I think they've been talking to my Saturday class
It's definitely September now. It is getting cooler in the day and the nights are down right chilly. And by chilly I mean about 21 degrees. I don't really want to it be actually cold. If it stayed the way it is I would be quite delighted.
My last class was cancelled tonight so it meant that one of the teachers I'm with on this day and I were off at the same time. She joined me at my place for some food. I cooked up some spaghetti and we chatted and watched John Stewart. I'm just so glad that she lives in Seattle cause we'll be able to sort of stay in contact without too much effort on either one of our parts. She's easy to talk to. It was a nice evening.
My Friday kindie kids have taken to touching my boobs. Not okay in my world. What is people's obsession with them? I don't get it. It was really just two of them. Kids that is. Rather annoying. I think they've been talking to my Saturday class
It's definitely September now. It is getting cooler in the day and the nights are down right chilly. And by chilly I mean about 21 degrees. I don't really want to it be actually cold. If it stayed the way it is I would be quite delighted.
Thursday, September 15, 2005
September 15, 2005
Today is a glorious day. It's really only been glorious since after 9 pm. I walked out of the school today and found that the air had a chill to it! My adult student tonight told me that the weather forecaster said that today was the beginning of fall. Hallelujah. So for the first time in well over 2 months I am sitting in my house with the air con off and the doors wide open! It's nice to get some refreshing air in here. I know that we still have some hot days in store for us over the next month (maybe less), but it's nice to have some variety in the environment. Another wonderful thing about the air tonight is that it isn't really humid either.
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
September 13, 2005
I hooked up with LeeAnne and Paul today for a good long walk, some God talk, a Ferris wheel ride and some fabulous Indian food. We walked several kms would be my guess. Most of it was along the opening of a sea waterway. It was good to get out and to sweat. I don't mind sweating, once I've resigned myself to it and it's not a constant and daily event.
It was great to be able to talk and get to know each other so quickly. Paul stayed quiet for a lot of the day, mostly I think to give LeeAnne and I time to talk. It's really cool to have that base with them being true believers that right off the bat our friendships can start from a different level than other people. Some of the best stuff that I will take away from today will be to allow God the control of my life, to be free in the realization that He is the One who draws people to Himself, to wait and be patient in His timing, and lastly that He knows what we need and will pray for before we even open our mouths to say the words. Paul talked about Daniels prayer and that after praying and confessing it was then that the angel appeared and said that from the first word God had heard his prayer and already knew what he was going to say. I definitely need to learn to be patient. I want things to happen NOW.
It was great to be able to talk and get to know each other so quickly. Paul stayed quiet for a lot of the day, mostly I think to give LeeAnne and I time to talk. It's really cool to have that base with them being true believers that right off the bat our friendships can start from a different level than other people. Some of the best stuff that I will take away from today will be to allow God the control of my life, to be free in the realization that He is the One who draws people to Himself, to wait and be patient in His timing, and lastly that He knows what we need and will pray for before we even open our mouths to say the words. Paul talked about Daniels prayer and that after praying and confessing it was then that the angel appeared and said that from the first word God had heard his prayer and already knew what he was going to say. I definitely need to learn to be patient. I want things to happen NOW.
Monday, September 12, 2005
September 12, 2005
It's Monday night. I sat down at quarter to eleven to a dinner of Chilean wine (white! surprisingly enough, it was a gift) and nachos and Pace piquante sauce. Not too bad for a mind numbingly, life sucking day. I was ready to be done around 5. I taught until 9. I really thought I was going to jump out the window around 6:30 when I had this private student, 11 years old, sweet kid, used to live in Georgia but kinda life-less and can't make a simple decision to save his life. He took like 3 minutes to pick which paper he wanted to read from, they're pretty much identical but I like to give my students some control over their lives as they have so little normally. Obviously it was too much for him, so I'm going to stop that now. He can seriously stare at me and say "Um, um, um, and, um, um," for like a minute straight. And it's not stuttering, he's totally cool sometimes. I haven't figured out what makes him go off but today he was particularly squirreley. He just seemed really edgy. If I didn't know better I'd say the kid was on something, but that's about as likely as Ryan being on something at 11 years old. I used to have his sister as a student with him, but she got too busy with Jr High School. She's already prepping for High School Entrance exams (she's 13, she has 2 years) and her mum thought that she was strong enough in English to do fine and other subjects needed more attention, like Math and Science and Japanese Language (don't forget all those thousands of Kanji they have to memorize, it's a little daunting. I get excited when I recognize one of the 20 that I know). It was a good decision for her, but it meant that then the class was only Munetoshi and he used to rely on his sister to fill in the gaps, now he fills them in with "Um, um, um, um" repeated over and over again, then he laughs and continues with the Ums. I like the kid, but it was just a bit much for me today.
I found LeeAnne, fellow teacher and a new Christian friend, at Kita school tonight as I was going in to get a jump on some planning for Wed. Long story, fill in later (Mothers' Group). Anywhooo, we had been talking on Thursday about getting together on our day off and at first it was going to be Sunday, but then we decided against it, so then we decided Tuesday and then I completely forgot about it. Good thing I went into the school tonight. So we made plans to go for a walk (Paul, her husband, included cause he's fun) along a sea-board walkway and then to go for curry at an Indian restaurant near my house. Paul's from India. He misses curry. So it should be good. I'm impressed that I'm leaving my house. I did actually venture out on Sunday and spent a whole whack of moola. Good groceries...found microwave popcorn, and taco shells, and good salsa (hence the Pace tonight), and maple cookies that are going to make me sick but I don't care cause they're Dare Maple Cookies and they're good, and yeah some other stuff I can't remember. Oh, and a swim cap so that I can go to the pool, which I was intending to do tomorrow, but then that's because I'd forgotten about getting together with LeeAnne and Paul. I'll have to do it some other day. I realized yesterday that I should be eating less and working out more (much like a....DIET!!!) because I don't want to look like a porker in Yasuko's kimono and I only have 2 and a half months to loose, oh, say, 40 pounds!!!! But then I'm so busy with work that it just never happens, and let's be honest, Michelle has never been one to turn down food.
I wish I could actually work less. It looks really pathetic when I'm at Makuhari from quarter to 12 until 7:30 (like just under 8 hours) and then you look at my teaching hours and it's like 4 hours. What the heck am I doing the rest of the time???? I think I just need to care less. That would definitely cut down on the prep time. "Ah, let's just play some Uno, shall we?" It's rather ironic really as I find Kids classes are Uber easy to plan for with lots of fun stuff and it's all educational, I find Adult classes take as long to prep for as the class is long (so like an hour for an hour class, especially the higher the level it is) and are incredibly difficult, and yet it's the Kids classes that you can totally fudge on (what kid is going to tell on you and say you're wasting their money if you feel like playing Transportation Bingo...car....truck...helicopter....jet ski...BINGO!!) and the Adult classes you have to make count for every minute because it totally makes it's way back to the boss if you're dickin around in class (for the record, that's another word I won't use at Chris and Yasuko's wedding!!!! What word? Class? Ah, so funny). Rather ironic.
I found LeeAnne, fellow teacher and a new Christian friend, at Kita school tonight as I was going in to get a jump on some planning for Wed. Long story, fill in later (Mothers' Group). Anywhooo, we had been talking on Thursday about getting together on our day off and at first it was going to be Sunday, but then we decided against it, so then we decided Tuesday and then I completely forgot about it. Good thing I went into the school tonight. So we made plans to go for a walk (Paul, her husband, included cause he's fun) along a sea-board walkway and then to go for curry at an Indian restaurant near my house. Paul's from India. He misses curry. So it should be good. I'm impressed that I'm leaving my house. I did actually venture out on Sunday and spent a whole whack of moola. Good groceries...found microwave popcorn, and taco shells, and good salsa (hence the Pace tonight), and maple cookies that are going to make me sick but I don't care cause they're Dare Maple Cookies and they're good, and yeah some other stuff I can't remember. Oh, and a swim cap so that I can go to the pool, which I was intending to do tomorrow, but then that's because I'd forgotten about getting together with LeeAnne and Paul. I'll have to do it some other day. I realized yesterday that I should be eating less and working out more (much like a....DIET!!!) because I don't want to look like a porker in Yasuko's kimono and I only have 2 and a half months to loose, oh, say, 40 pounds!!!! But then I'm so busy with work that it just never happens, and let's be honest, Michelle has never been one to turn down food.
I wish I could actually work less. It looks really pathetic when I'm at Makuhari from quarter to 12 until 7:30 (like just under 8 hours) and then you look at my teaching hours and it's like 4 hours. What the heck am I doing the rest of the time???? I think I just need to care less. That would definitely cut down on the prep time. "Ah, let's just play some Uno, shall we?" It's rather ironic really as I find Kids classes are Uber easy to plan for with lots of fun stuff and it's all educational, I find Adult classes take as long to prep for as the class is long (so like an hour for an hour class, especially the higher the level it is) and are incredibly difficult, and yet it's the Kids classes that you can totally fudge on (what kid is going to tell on you and say you're wasting their money if you feel like playing Transportation Bingo...car....truck...helicopter....jet ski...BINGO!!) and the Adult classes you have to make count for every minute because it totally makes it's way back to the boss if you're dickin around in class (for the record, that's another word I won't use at Chris and Yasuko's wedding!!!! What word? Class? Ah, so funny). Rather ironic.
Sunday, September 11, 2005
September 11, 2005
HAPPY BIRTHDAY RA-RA
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY NENNY AND RYAN
I haven't complained about the weather in writing for a while now. It's time to do so again. I was excited for September to come around. In our Western minds, September embodies the beginning of fall, the start of cooler weather, the time to get out the light sweater to put over your shoulders after the sunsets at 9. August seemed like it lasted about 2 and a half months for me. It was quite possibly the longest month of my life. It felt much longer than any of the months that I spent at my parents house barely able to move after spraining my back. So now that September has finally arrived I have been anticipating the cooling of the air and reveling in the thoughts of crisper nights. Not that I'm really looking forward to winter in a non-insulated living space, a friend recently told me that some mornings you'll wake to frost on the inside of the windows and air so bone-chillingly cold that you don't ever want to leave the "comfort" of your "bed" (note that I use those two terms very loosely here). So in this mind set of expectation, today seems rather hopeless. It is 31 degrees at about 70% humidity, which according to several internet sources feels about 36 degrees (that's 104 F for those non-calculator wielding in America). I was really looking forward to going outside today and doing some shopping. I need to go pick up a bathing cap so that I can go swimming at the local community sports complex, which, by the way, I believe I have finally found thanks to a fellow teacher's superb directions. I have also heard that there are some post summer sales on, particularly at Uni-Qlo that carries "large" sizes (some of which still don’t fit me, or rather, don't fit certain body parts that I am rather self-concious of), and I haven't gone shopping for fun for about 3 months. But now I'm not sure if it's worth going out. It is terribly frustrating to look outside and see a perfectly lovely overcast day and then to slide the door open and feel this blast of indescribably wet heat coming wafting over you as you throw your laundry outside as fast as possible, slam the door shut, wipe the sweat that is already starting to form around the corners of your forehead and then go and sit directly under the air con to cool down as quickly as possible.
On Friday I was talking with an out-going (that means leaving soon, not cheerleader-esque) teacher about getting our adult students to carry on conversations. I mean, after-all, they have signed up for "conversational" English classes so why is it that they come in, sit down, and then expect you to entertain them for an hour, without actively contributing to the conversation. So he was telling me about an exercise in small talk that he had found. The first line, "appropriate topics of conversation", the second topic...the weather. He has found that it's one of the Japanese favourite topics of discussion. I don't know if it's so much the culture (them being Japanese) that is the contributing factor, as it is the age group that we most often deal with, older middle aged to elderly. I have found that I myself, often feel like my grandmother in commenting, constantly in my case, on the weather. My parents ask me how I'm doing, I tell them about the weather. We both had a chuckle and he said that it was true, he did it too since arriving here. It is something to overcome, it takes so much of your energy that really, often, there is not much else that is consequential in your life at the moment but the environmental factors you are currently experiencing. So if ever you think, "No really Michelle, how are you doing? What are you able to experience there of cultural Japan?" I would have to say "Really, no really, I wake up hot, I throw some clothes on that I can sweat in, I get to school, I try and cool down, I put on different clothes that I have brought with me that I haven't sweat in yet, I teach some cool people (sometimes not so cool people) who often talk about how hot it is and as long as the air con is working, class goes relatively well. I ride my bike home only to get hot and sweaty by the time I walk in the door at 10 at night, I take off all my clothes and throw them immediately into the washer, I turn on the air con if I forgot to set the timer when I left, I hop in the shower and rinse off. I then have all of an hour or two of relative "comfort" of sitting on the floor in front of my comp with the air con and a tank top on before going to bed and doing it all over the next day. As for going places and seeing things of "cultural Japan", I hear that November will be cooler and very pretty as the leaves start to change colour. Until then, I like my house.
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY NENNY AND RYAN
I haven't complained about the weather in writing for a while now. It's time to do so again. I was excited for September to come around. In our Western minds, September embodies the beginning of fall, the start of cooler weather, the time to get out the light sweater to put over your shoulders after the sunsets at 9. August seemed like it lasted about 2 and a half months for me. It was quite possibly the longest month of my life. It felt much longer than any of the months that I spent at my parents house barely able to move after spraining my back. So now that September has finally arrived I have been anticipating the cooling of the air and reveling in the thoughts of crisper nights. Not that I'm really looking forward to winter in a non-insulated living space, a friend recently told me that some mornings you'll wake to frost on the inside of the windows and air so bone-chillingly cold that you don't ever want to leave the "comfort" of your "bed" (note that I use those two terms very loosely here). So in this mind set of expectation, today seems rather hopeless. It is 31 degrees at about 70% humidity, which according to several internet sources feels about 36 degrees (that's 104 F for those non-calculator wielding in America). I was really looking forward to going outside today and doing some shopping. I need to go pick up a bathing cap so that I can go swimming at the local community sports complex, which, by the way, I believe I have finally found thanks to a fellow teacher's superb directions. I have also heard that there are some post summer sales on, particularly at Uni-Qlo that carries "large" sizes (some of which still don’t fit me, or rather, don't fit certain body parts that I am rather self-concious of), and I haven't gone shopping for fun for about 3 months. But now I'm not sure if it's worth going out. It is terribly frustrating to look outside and see a perfectly lovely overcast day and then to slide the door open and feel this blast of indescribably wet heat coming wafting over you as you throw your laundry outside as fast as possible, slam the door shut, wipe the sweat that is already starting to form around the corners of your forehead and then go and sit directly under the air con to cool down as quickly as possible.
On Friday I was talking with an out-going (that means leaving soon, not cheerleader-esque) teacher about getting our adult students to carry on conversations. I mean, after-all, they have signed up for "conversational" English classes so why is it that they come in, sit down, and then expect you to entertain them for an hour, without actively contributing to the conversation. So he was telling me about an exercise in small talk that he had found. The first line, "appropriate topics of conversation", the second topic...the weather. He has found that it's one of the Japanese favourite topics of discussion. I don't know if it's so much the culture (them being Japanese) that is the contributing factor, as it is the age group that we most often deal with, older middle aged to elderly. I have found that I myself, often feel like my grandmother in commenting, constantly in my case, on the weather. My parents ask me how I'm doing, I tell them about the weather. We both had a chuckle and he said that it was true, he did it too since arriving here. It is something to overcome, it takes so much of your energy that really, often, there is not much else that is consequential in your life at the moment but the environmental factors you are currently experiencing. So if ever you think, "No really Michelle, how are you doing? What are you able to experience there of cultural Japan?" I would have to say "Really, no really, I wake up hot, I throw some clothes on that I can sweat in, I get to school, I try and cool down, I put on different clothes that I have brought with me that I haven't sweat in yet, I teach some cool people (sometimes not so cool people) who often talk about how hot it is and as long as the air con is working, class goes relatively well. I ride my bike home only to get hot and sweaty by the time I walk in the door at 10 at night, I take off all my clothes and throw them immediately into the washer, I turn on the air con if I forgot to set the timer when I left, I hop in the shower and rinse off. I then have all of an hour or two of relative "comfort" of sitting on the floor in front of my comp with the air con and a tank top on before going to bed and doing it all over the next day. As for going places and seeing things of "cultural Japan", I hear that November will be cooler and very pretty as the leaves start to change colour. Until then, I like my house.
Saturday, September 10, 2005
September 10, 2005
My kids were CRAZY today. I actually got my ass felt up, in the middle of class. My first kindie class got a little out of hand with a new student and the two usual ones. They've decided to form a little 4 year old guerrilla task force against Michelle Sensei. They physically attacked me, all three of them at once, dog piled me and the little girl fully grabbed my ass. It was a little shocking and the most action I've seen in a few weeks. Next week, I'm going to have to work on greater class management.
Monday, September 5, 2005
September 5, 2005
I totally bailed on Nomura San this morning, my cute old little Japanese teacher. I woke up at 8:30 and realized that I just couldn't get up yet so I called in and told him I couldn't come to the lesson. I feel bad, but it's just too long of a day for me. It meant that I was actually really late for school and had like an hour and 45 minutes to plan all five classes. I totally did it and it all went really well. I have to admit that I will miss my class of little girls. I adore them. But they will have to be sacrificed for the rest of the day.
I grabbed some dinner at the Matsuya or whatever the heck it's called. You gotta love being able to find a full (yet crappy) curry and rice dinner with water and a bowl of miso soup for 290 yen. Aw yeah! Then as I got out of the station, I found some teachers (they're married to each other) so we all stopped and I talked to them for like just under an hour. It's really cool knowing that I have fellow Christian brother and sisters here in Japan. We're talking about getting together every now and again to do a church type thing, pray for the school, pray for the kids, talk about God. It was cool for even just the few moments that we talked about "seeker friendly services" and just the theology behind the whole concept and how it's a bit of a cop out and the difference between "seeker services" and Evangelism. It was good.
My Teenagers
Most of the teenagers I have contact with here are different from any other species of teenager than I have ever encountered. I have two returnee boys who used to live in America so they're pretty much fluent. They are the busiest kids I've ever met. Takuya is up at 5:30 for an hour commute to school, 7 hours of school, 3 hours of track, commute home, English class, do 2-3 hours of home work, in bed by 12-1 to be up again at 5:30 am. Shunsuke has about 3-5 hours of sleep a night, he's got the same sort of schedule with less of a commute but more extra-curric, tennis club for 2-3 hours a day plus drama practice and with more homework and extra studying for University entrance exams. Takuya is 15, Shunsuke is 16. I can't even imagine keeping that kind of schedule when I was that age. It's hard to watch and know that I can say nothing of the insanity of it because it's what's expected of them from parents and teachers. I actually gave them homework over summer break (4 weeks, where they each were training 8-10 hours a day in their sports plus studying for exams that were on the first day of school), that was to take a girl out on a date. They didn't, but Takuya said that he at least talked to a girl on the phone. I said that was an acceptable compromise.
I grabbed some dinner at the Matsuya or whatever the heck it's called. You gotta love being able to find a full (yet crappy) curry and rice dinner with water and a bowl of miso soup for 290 yen. Aw yeah! Then as I got out of the station, I found some teachers (they're married to each other) so we all stopped and I talked to them for like just under an hour. It's really cool knowing that I have fellow Christian brother and sisters here in Japan. We're talking about getting together every now and again to do a church type thing, pray for the school, pray for the kids, talk about God. It was cool for even just the few moments that we talked about "seeker friendly services" and just the theology behind the whole concept and how it's a bit of a cop out and the difference between "seeker services" and Evangelism. It was good.
My Teenagers
Most of the teenagers I have contact with here are different from any other species of teenager than I have ever encountered. I have two returnee boys who used to live in America so they're pretty much fluent. They are the busiest kids I've ever met. Takuya is up at 5:30 for an hour commute to school, 7 hours of school, 3 hours of track, commute home, English class, do 2-3 hours of home work, in bed by 12-1 to be up again at 5:30 am. Shunsuke has about 3-5 hours of sleep a night, he's got the same sort of schedule with less of a commute but more extra-curric, tennis club for 2-3 hours a day plus drama practice and with more homework and extra studying for University entrance exams. Takuya is 15, Shunsuke is 16. I can't even imagine keeping that kind of schedule when I was that age. It's hard to watch and know that I can say nothing of the insanity of it because it's what's expected of them from parents and teachers. I actually gave them homework over summer break (4 weeks, where they each were training 8-10 hours a day in their sports plus studying for exams that were on the first day of school), that was to take a girl out on a date. They didn't, but Takuya said that he at least talked to a girl on the phone. I said that was an acceptable compromise.
Thursday, September 1, 2005
September 1, 2005
My last day at Katsu today. YEAH!!! I really didn't like working there and I really won't miss any part of it except being able to go out for lunch for Yakiniku with a big group of people after the staff meetings. I will now have to boot it up to Nishi-Shiroi but the teacher I'm taking over for up there assures me that her classes are fabulous and it's her favourite day. I really hope so because I really need another good day on my schedule. Maybe I'll get rid of all the bad things and only inherit really good classes. I am still saddened by the loss of my wonderful Saturday class and that day won't be nearly as good now with out them, but I shall live and have fun with the other kids. I was touched by the playgroup kids today. One of the mums actually had tears in her eyes when they were leaving. She said that Hiroto was crying, and although he looked sad I noticed he wasn't crying, when I looked up at her her eyes were red and welling. It was very touching as they're my favourite mum and kid pair of that class. They were my first students in that class, all the others have since joined so I feel rather attached to them. My ET3 class was far too excited for my taste after being given the news that I wasn't going to be there next week and that they would have a new teacher, a new Michelle teacher. They all looked far too happy. They really don't like me.
I thought I would go to bed early last night. Yeah right. So around 2 I finally decided to lie in bed. Around 3 I got back up again to dick around on the comp for another hour. About 4 I thought I really should go back to bed and then around 5 I think I finally fell asleep. My sleep is really messed up. I find that my body is just radiating heat constantly lately and my mind won't shut off. Before it wasn't shutting off my thinking about a kazillion things. Now it won't shut off but is perfectly content to just sit and stare at the wall. Tonight again it is the same thing. I thought I would go to bed at a decent hour because I was home nice and early and yet here it is, 1:30 in the morning and I'm just bout ready to go for all out sprints. I will hit a wall. I know I will, it's just a matter of when. The really sucky part is looking ahead to the rest of this week and I work Sunday, my day off, so I will only get 1 day off in a span of 11. But it is my last Sunday/working holiday and I will then be clear for the rest of my 7 months remaining. I guess I'm closer to 6 and ¾ months, but whatever, who's counting. Oh yeah, I am. My point is that I'm not sleeping and when I'm getting to sleep I'm not sleeping well.
I thought I would go to bed early last night. Yeah right. So around 2 I finally decided to lie in bed. Around 3 I got back up again to dick around on the comp for another hour. About 4 I thought I really should go back to bed and then around 5 I think I finally fell asleep. My sleep is really messed up. I find that my body is just radiating heat constantly lately and my mind won't shut off. Before it wasn't shutting off my thinking about a kazillion things. Now it won't shut off but is perfectly content to just sit and stare at the wall. Tonight again it is the same thing. I thought I would go to bed at a decent hour because I was home nice and early and yet here it is, 1:30 in the morning and I'm just bout ready to go for all out sprints. I will hit a wall. I know I will, it's just a matter of when. The really sucky part is looking ahead to the rest of this week and I work Sunday, my day off, so I will only get 1 day off in a span of 11. But it is my last Sunday/working holiday and I will then be clear for the rest of my 7 months remaining. I guess I'm closer to 6 and ¾ months, but whatever, who's counting. Oh yeah, I am. My point is that I'm not sleeping and when I'm getting to sleep I'm not sleeping well.
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