Japanese, Jungle Jane and Jim, Jermaiah the bull frog and jelly belly 
Janis Joplin, Japanese person, and a jolly Jamacian!
Friday, February 27, 2009
J goodbye party!
Japanese, Jungle Jane and Jim, Jermaiah the bull frog and jelly belly Janis Joplin, Japanese person, and a jolly Jamacian!
Dress time!
The top three choices for Suzy's wedding; cocktail, western style wedding dress, kimono (all three are worn at the wedding throughout the night).
The judges and more dresses
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Annnnd we're back!
It's true! I'm actually blogging.
We will once again time travel, this time to the beginning of February. School has been rather slow, but I knew it would be. I have not been teaching much at all this month because students are testing and going on school trips. Their school takes them to different places in Japan, usually for a skiing adventure. So yesterday, instead of teaching, I got to do some writing and then go out to lunch with the teachers followed by some intense badminton. It was a good day to get paid. Sadly, my arm is sore today. Today I am free of classes again, so I am happy to write and look at some Japanese. Maybe.
Although the weeks have been relatively uneventful, the weekends never are and even though there are no huge trips or events, I always find myself wondering where the time went. Last weekend there was a Valentine charity auction in the city where a select few ALTs were actually auctioned off. All the proceeds went to charity to building a houses in a certain under poverished nation (I did not actually hear the speech because I was upstairs). I was included in this select few group of people, and when I was asked I knew it would be awkward, but all in good fun. So they had us wait upstairs and called us down the stairs one on one to begin the bidding. Because of my lovely friends I was the first person to go up to ichi mon (or $100) and I sold for the most as a girl. So that was really cool! I felt a bit awkward standing there while people raised their hands for the price, but it was a good time and I was very thankful my friends didn't let me be bought as a cheap date (they all bought me together anyway). After that I spent the rest of the weekend hanging out with friends, walking around town since it was so nice and watching movies, making dinner and visiting some cool little places in the towns around me.
Backing up to a few weekends ago, a few friends had a birthday party at this great place called "Round One". It was a huge 5 story sports/event center for adults and I was completely amazed at everything they had. You name it, they had it. A roller rink, ball pit, batting cages, put put, tennis, badminton, indoor and outdoor basketball, arcades, bowling, shooting gallery, darts, pitching and catch stations, soccer games, football games, air hockey, pool, slushies, comic books with massage chairs, movies and even miniature motor bikes. Which we of course raced. It was a great time and I tried my hand a lot of it and I was able to get pictures of all of my friends enjoying their time there. Before that we went to a delicious place for dinner where the atmosphere was a "night time beach scene" and there was actually sand in between the stones you stepped on to get to your table. The food was amazing, and of course so was the company. That weekend I also got to see "The Curious Case of Benjamen Button", which did not disappoint--I knew it would be great.
This week I have been completely immersed in the movie website I found that allows you to watch almost any movie you can think of for free. I feel like I never have time, so now that I have the time, I should take it and watch some good flicks. There has also been a birthday dinner and I visited a sick friend to keep her company earlier in the week. This weekend is jam packed with a mardi gras dinner tonight, going help one of my friends decide on a wedding kimono tomorrow for her wedding in April, bringing a friend who had surgery some get well gifts and attending a going away party for another friend. Whew, busy. I also hope to get to the pool tomorrow night and perhaps get out on a run on Sunday. Lately the weather has been somewhat up and down, so I am hoping it is nice this weekend.
Recently I have been having more one on one time with students as I score their reading ability and help them practice for the upcoming "STEP test" this weekend. It seems like a nerve racking English exam that tests conversational, oral and listening skills. I think it includes asking questions about certain things they read on specific topics as well as describing pictures and what is going on in each one. Although I feel like some of the students aren't ready, I am still very impressed with their ability to use the English they know to get through it. It does take a long time and when I begin to feel a little impatient, I remember how difficult it must be. And then I think about trying to say what they are saying in Spanish, and I realize that I would have no clue how to even start. Empathy is always the best way to handle a situation such as that. I hope that practicing with me will help them with the test this weekend. Ganbatte kudasai! (Good luck!)
I was able to witness yet another aspect of this culture that greatly surprised me at first this past week, but now that I think about it, I should have known. It seems to me that although these people are extremely nice and always helpful, they are also very proper and never stray from the rules. Some might even go as far to say strict (although I have yet to really see it in the teaching realm). Even when ordering off menus there is no straying from what is written. There is no "can I just have soup instead of this salad" or "I just want a half order of this". Nope, none of that. I have come to realize that it is indeed possible to be really nice when saying no. It is simple because it is never truly "up to them" or the one you are asking. It is just the bigger management's rules. It seems like everyone reports to the their boss and them to their boss and eventually I guess it just goes to The Man. Whoever that might be in Japan. There are a lot of hoops to jump through in terms of paper work as well. It is never as simple as asking the principal for a favor. You have to ask your supervisor who then asks the head of the department who then talks to the vice principal and then they might go to the principal. Everyone has their place and they are expected to know it and like it. Even if they don`t there is no arguments or formal complaints. It still continues to amaze me. It has sure taught me a lot. Anyway getting to my point about strictness. So as I said, students are on a school trip. The Mastubase students are off to Tokyo this week and before they went they were required to bring their bags to the gym. One of the teachers suggested I come watch what they do. This amazed me even more than their ridiculous uniform check ups. Here the teachers unpacked all of their bags to make sure they were not hiding anything. Which, as an American I (sadly) think, well that is a good idea, make sure they aren't hiding inappropriate things or drugs or probably alcohol. They even went as far as to unroll each clothing item and dump out every small bag. My teacher then informed me that they were looking for things like make-up, cell phones and, to my great surprise, i-pods. I immediately felt bad for the students because they were not allowed to bring music on their long journey to Tokyo. I guess they will just have to deal with listening to the kid next to them the whole way. In a sense, I guess this furthers the ideals of Japanese "togetherness" and perhaps if they don't have music they will not isolate themselves as much. I am not sure. The make up thing is also surprising, but since they are not allowed to wear make up to school, and this is a school trip, I guess that is understandable. I asked "what if they want to call their parents?" and a teacher just told me there is no calling parents. No cell phones. So I guess their parents are ok with it. A lot of the teachers here take on a parent role anyway. Much more so than at home. The home room teachers probably know each students' history as well as where they live and what they do everyday. As scary as that sounds. So even when I think I've seen it all here, I get to see something like that, and I am reminded of what a different culture it truly is.
Speaking of different cultures, I am arranging a trip to South Korea at the end of March. I have been talking to a few friends who are interested, so as soon as we get the ok dates from our schools, we are booking our tickets and heading that way. We are ready to travel and we have heard nothing but good praises about S. Korea. I hope to get that booked and set up within the next week. Besides that I think the schedule around here is going to be strange because there is graduation for the third graders, then a week or so, then spring break, then a few weeks then their infamous "Golden Week", then the start of a new term. And by that time it is May. And I guess there are festivals and some days off in there too. A normal schedule should officially begin in June, and by the time I am finally getting back into the swing of things I will be getting ready to leave. It sure makes it hard to develop any sort of relationship with the students. Put that together with a different language and it is virtually impossible. Which kills me because that is more than half of the reason I want to teach (the other half being winter and summer vacations! Ha, joke...kinda). I suppose all I can do is the best I can. And then get excited to have my own classroom someday over the rainbow. I have been applying back home though, so we will see what comes of that!
As much as the humidity just really sucks (and so do the giant bugs that come with it), I am looking forward to a change of weather here and I am excited to get out and about more. It is easy to just stay home on chilly nights and watch movies. I can't wait to get back to the beach and the great outdoors, to explore one of my favorite parts of this country--the beautiful nature that surrounds us. I hope to get some trips planned around here in the next few months to see what else Japan has to offer. I'm ready and excited!
I am finding it hard to believe I have passed the six month mark, and although there are times where I feel like the weeks are dragging by at a snail's pace, I know that it will seem like I just got here by the time I'm leaving. Time does that to you. It's a funny thing.
Now to end with quote from one of my favorite movies that has really put things into perspective lately:
"Life passes most people by while they are making grand plans for it" --BLOW
We will once again time travel, this time to the beginning of February. School has been rather slow, but I knew it would be. I have not been teaching much at all this month because students are testing and going on school trips. Their school takes them to different places in Japan, usually for a skiing adventure. So yesterday, instead of teaching, I got to do some writing and then go out to lunch with the teachers followed by some intense badminton. It was a good day to get paid. Sadly, my arm is sore today. Today I am free of classes again, so I am happy to write and look at some Japanese. Maybe.
Although the weeks have been relatively uneventful, the weekends never are and even though there are no huge trips or events, I always find myself wondering where the time went. Last weekend there was a Valentine charity auction in the city where a select few ALTs were actually auctioned off. All the proceeds went to charity to building a houses in a certain under poverished nation (I did not actually hear the speech because I was upstairs). I was included in this select few group of people, and when I was asked I knew it would be awkward, but all in good fun. So they had us wait upstairs and called us down the stairs one on one to begin the bidding. Because of my lovely friends I was the first person to go up to ichi mon (or $100) and I sold for the most as a girl. So that was really cool! I felt a bit awkward standing there while people raised their hands for the price, but it was a good time and I was very thankful my friends didn't let me be bought as a cheap date (they all bought me together anyway). After that I spent the rest of the weekend hanging out with friends, walking around town since it was so nice and watching movies, making dinner and visiting some cool little places in the towns around me.
Backing up to a few weekends ago, a few friends had a birthday party at this great place called "Round One". It was a huge 5 story sports/event center for adults and I was completely amazed at everything they had. You name it, they had it. A roller rink, ball pit, batting cages, put put, tennis, badminton, indoor and outdoor basketball, arcades, bowling, shooting gallery, darts, pitching and catch stations, soccer games, football games, air hockey, pool, slushies, comic books with massage chairs, movies and even miniature motor bikes. Which we of course raced. It was a great time and I tried my hand a lot of it and I was able to get pictures of all of my friends enjoying their time there. Before that we went to a delicious place for dinner where the atmosphere was a "night time beach scene" and there was actually sand in between the stones you stepped on to get to your table. The food was amazing, and of course so was the company. That weekend I also got to see "The Curious Case of Benjamen Button", which did not disappoint--I knew it would be great.
This week I have been completely immersed in the movie website I found that allows you to watch almost any movie you can think of for free. I feel like I never have time, so now that I have the time, I should take it and watch some good flicks. There has also been a birthday dinner and I visited a sick friend to keep her company earlier in the week. This weekend is jam packed with a mardi gras dinner tonight, going help one of my friends decide on a wedding kimono tomorrow for her wedding in April, bringing a friend who had surgery some get well gifts and attending a going away party for another friend. Whew, busy. I also hope to get to the pool tomorrow night and perhaps get out on a run on Sunday. Lately the weather has been somewhat up and down, so I am hoping it is nice this weekend.
Recently I have been having more one on one time with students as I score their reading ability and help them practice for the upcoming "STEP test" this weekend. It seems like a nerve racking English exam that tests conversational, oral and listening skills. I think it includes asking questions about certain things they read on specific topics as well as describing pictures and what is going on in each one. Although I feel like some of the students aren't ready, I am still very impressed with their ability to use the English they know to get through it. It does take a long time and when I begin to feel a little impatient, I remember how difficult it must be. And then I think about trying to say what they are saying in Spanish, and I realize that I would have no clue how to even start. Empathy is always the best way to handle a situation such as that. I hope that practicing with me will help them with the test this weekend. Ganbatte kudasai! (Good luck!)
I was able to witness yet another aspect of this culture that greatly surprised me at first this past week, but now that I think about it, I should have known. It seems to me that although these people are extremely nice and always helpful, they are also very proper and never stray from the rules. Some might even go as far to say strict (although I have yet to really see it in the teaching realm). Even when ordering off menus there is no straying from what is written. There is no "can I just have soup instead of this salad" or "I just want a half order of this". Nope, none of that. I have come to realize that it is indeed possible to be really nice when saying no. It is simple because it is never truly "up to them" or the one you are asking. It is just the bigger management's rules. It seems like everyone reports to the their boss and them to their boss and eventually I guess it just goes to The Man. Whoever that might be in Japan. There are a lot of hoops to jump through in terms of paper work as well. It is never as simple as asking the principal for a favor. You have to ask your supervisor who then asks the head of the department who then talks to the vice principal and then they might go to the principal. Everyone has their place and they are expected to know it and like it. Even if they don`t there is no arguments or formal complaints. It still continues to amaze me. It has sure taught me a lot. Anyway getting to my point about strictness. So as I said, students are on a school trip. The Mastubase students are off to Tokyo this week and before they went they were required to bring their bags to the gym. One of the teachers suggested I come watch what they do. This amazed me even more than their ridiculous uniform check ups. Here the teachers unpacked all of their bags to make sure they were not hiding anything. Which, as an American I (sadly) think, well that is a good idea, make sure they aren't hiding inappropriate things or drugs or probably alcohol. They even went as far as to unroll each clothing item and dump out every small bag. My teacher then informed me that they were looking for things like make-up, cell phones and, to my great surprise, i-pods. I immediately felt bad for the students because they were not allowed to bring music on their long journey to Tokyo. I guess they will just have to deal with listening to the kid next to them the whole way. In a sense, I guess this furthers the ideals of Japanese "togetherness" and perhaps if they don't have music they will not isolate themselves as much. I am not sure. The make up thing is also surprising, but since they are not allowed to wear make up to school, and this is a school trip, I guess that is understandable. I asked "what if they want to call their parents?" and a teacher just told me there is no calling parents. No cell phones. So I guess their parents are ok with it. A lot of the teachers here take on a parent role anyway. Much more so than at home. The home room teachers probably know each students' history as well as where they live and what they do everyday. As scary as that sounds. So even when I think I've seen it all here, I get to see something like that, and I am reminded of what a different culture it truly is.
Speaking of different cultures, I am arranging a trip to South Korea at the end of March. I have been talking to a few friends who are interested, so as soon as we get the ok dates from our schools, we are booking our tickets and heading that way. We are ready to travel and we have heard nothing but good praises about S. Korea. I hope to get that booked and set up within the next week. Besides that I think the schedule around here is going to be strange because there is graduation for the third graders, then a week or so, then spring break, then a few weeks then their infamous "Golden Week", then the start of a new term. And by that time it is May. And I guess there are festivals and some days off in there too. A normal schedule should officially begin in June, and by the time I am finally getting back into the swing of things I will be getting ready to leave. It sure makes it hard to develop any sort of relationship with the students. Put that together with a different language and it is virtually impossible. Which kills me because that is more than half of the reason I want to teach (the other half being winter and summer vacations! Ha, joke...kinda). I suppose all I can do is the best I can. And then get excited to have my own classroom someday over the rainbow. I have been applying back home though, so we will see what comes of that!
As much as the humidity just really sucks (and so do the giant bugs that come with it), I am looking forward to a change of weather here and I am excited to get out and about more. It is easy to just stay home on chilly nights and watch movies. I can't wait to get back to the beach and the great outdoors, to explore one of my favorite parts of this country--the beautiful nature that surrounds us. I hope to get some trips planned around here in the next few months to see what else Japan has to offer. I'm ready and excited!
I am finding it hard to believe I have passed the six month mark, and although there are times where I feel like the weeks are dragging by at a snail's pace, I know that it will seem like I just got here by the time I'm leaving. Time does that to you. It's a funny thing.
Now to end with quote from one of my favorite movies that has really put things into perspective lately:
"Life passes most people by while they are making grand plans for it" --BLOW
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
A few more from the old birthday
The two birthday schemers and I after I was surprised. It's hard to see but my hands are over my mouth in disbelief as everyone is singing to me up above! :)
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