This morning I stepped out of my door and it was...cool. And breezy. And...and not humid! And apparently the temperature, at least, is going to keep up its good behavior. This is not a drill! Misery season is officially over :D
That being said, of course the ONE day I actually wouldn't mind some hot summer weather, it's going to drop below 20 C and rain heavily. On Saturday a bunch of JETs are heading up to our prefecture's tanfastic water park / amusement park / outlet shopping center, and I was looking forward to gettin' my swim on in those pools. But I guess if I stay in I can take care of some much needed fall cleaning, and maybe...bake? Cookies sound awesome right now.
Just had the second lesson-planning meeting of fall term, and it definitely went better than the first. Experience, both during the past year and the past week, have taught me what pitfalls to look for in the first-year students' textbook lessons (confusing vocabulary, grammar or verb forms that are just tossed in at random and never explained, etc.), and I think I am getting a lot better at generally jazzing them up with engaging activities and visual aids.
Also! Soma FM has a new station, and I love it. "Suburbs of Goa" keeps me sane during the days when Creeper-sensei doesn't have nearly enough classes to keep him out of the office and out of earshot. I have a feeling it will also be very useful when proper flu season starts and everyone steadfastly refuses to blow their damn noses, opting instead to become perpetual snorting machines because somehow that's more polite and less disgusting. Right.
Yahoo had up a list of "Office Do's and Don'ts" that they snagged from CNN the other day, and it really made me pine, if not for America per se, then at least for a professional culture where everyone understands that it's NOT okay to kick off your shoes and prop your rank-nasty feet on the desk edge right next to your neighbor's face, or constantly belch and grunt and hum tunelessly (actually the more accurate term would be "tonedeafly," but I'm pretty sure that's not a word. Well it is now), or leave your phone at your desk all day without setting it to vibrate so that everyone gets to hear the nauseating pop song you set as your text message notification over and over and over again.
Yeah, it's the little things that get to you. But all in all this term actually doesn't look too bad - second-year culture kids are well taken care of with Grammar-sensei so no worries there; I have a fairly solid plan for third-year culture & they're good students to boot; and first-year classes are at least working out better than last year, if nothing else. They're really benefitting from Grammar-sensei's English class, so we don't have to hold their hands quite as much. I don't teach the class from which some students will move up to 2A Culture next year, but I would hazard to guess they'll be pretty alright. The total number of students enrolled for each year has been going down, as well. While that doesn't bode well in terms of Japan's aging population, at least it means smaller invididual class size, and that's better for everybody.
September 10, 2009
August 26, 2009
nenkyuu
"Nenkyuu" is the regular paid time off that we can take throughout the year. I took it today three hours into the morning because apparently all the other teachers decided that this was the day to take off, so the office is empty and dull and my work computer's maddeningly slow.
Also, the windows are all closed and the air conditioners are set at 27 on low speed. It is a dry & breezy 26 C outside. Sorry, office, you fail at life.
There's a nice breeze coming in through my balcony door, and outside a couple of the rice fields are already being harvested. I don't quite trust this mild spell - I KNOW I remember being sweaty and gross well into Septemer last year - but it's pretty nice to not have to run the lung-fungus-inducing aircon all day. Gotta get back to working on essays, but first some observations:
Every old man driving a kei-truck looks like the guy from Waking Ned Divine (sigh...okay Grandpa Joe from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, but seriously, you should see David Kelly in other things)
Parasols are useful for defense not only against the sun, but also against oosuzumebachi ("big sparrow bee," the most giantest of Asian giant hornets, which happen to live in the mountains around my town). I know this because on Monday one flew INTO my parasol, got angry with me for being in its way, and was summarily smacked down with said instrument. Then I RAN LIKE HELL.
Dirty dishes are like goombas to my Mario - I just walk away from the sink for a second and when I go back again they've respawned. Unfortunately they don't make little bloopy noises; I would probably clear them more often if they did.
Thyme looks kinda sad when it's in a bit pot all by itself.
Also, the windows are all closed and the air conditioners are set at 27 on low speed. It is a dry & breezy 26 C outside. Sorry, office, you fail at life.
There's a nice breeze coming in through my balcony door, and outside a couple of the rice fields are already being harvested. I don't quite trust this mild spell - I KNOW I remember being sweaty and gross well into Septemer last year - but it's pretty nice to not have to run the lung-fungus-inducing aircon all day. Gotta get back to working on essays, but first some observations:
Every old man driving a kei-truck looks like the guy from Waking Ned Divine (sigh...okay Grandpa Joe from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, but seriously, you should see David Kelly in other things)
Parasols are useful for defense not only against the sun, but also against oosuzumebachi ("big sparrow bee," the most giantest of Asian giant hornets, which happen to live in the mountains around my town). I know this because on Monday one flew INTO my parasol, got angry with me for being in its way, and was summarily smacked down with said instrument. Then I RAN LIKE HELL.
Dirty dishes are like goombas to my Mario - I just walk away from the sink for a second and when I go back again they've respawned. Unfortunately they don't make little bloopy noises; I would probably clear them more often if they did.
Thyme looks kinda sad when it's in a bit pot all by itself.
August 13, 2009
the fall frenzy begins
Wow. Meant to type this up last night, but I zonked at 8:30 and only woke up around midnight to turn off the kitchen light. Such is JET-lag (hurrhurr see whut I did there).
After getting back from a tanfastic vacation in America-land (getting TO 'Merika was a different story entirely, but it worked out in the end, obvs.) I found myself waking up at 5 in the morning to typhoon warnings, earthquake dispersions (although apparently I'm the only doof who didn't feel a thing even though it was a 3.0 in my area), and Orientation for my prefecture's newbies. Suddenly I am a sempai lolwhut?
It's kind of amusing how the process of giving advice makes you feel like you actually know things. And at the same time it seems like this year's group is so much more on top of stuff than I remember being. Still and all, going into Orientation as a second-year was actually a good experience. Listening to the general talks a second time provided a way better setting for reflecting on my performance over the past year than that done-in-10-minutes evaluation sheet the supervisors hand out in February at the office. And when I got bored I could outline this term's classes on the back sides of handouts :b And then I took the bunch from my area out to lunch and it was good tiems, they're all very relaxed & groovy.
So, first day back at work today. We're still on "break," but from now 'til December it's the busiest part of the year, and I'ma have to stay on top of lessons, fun things like sumo tournaments, paperwork, etc. I will probably be a little crazy manic/short-fused for a while, especially during the next abominable two months of heat & humidity. I don't have the glamour of Japan-novelty to protect my spirits this time, so my plan is basically to stay indoors as much as possible until October and then get a ginormous infusion of genki from the cooling-down of everything.
At least now sunburn isn't such a big concern - the weather pattern from here on out looks something like Typhoon --> rain, Post-Rainy Season Rain --> rain, Humid As Hell --> clouds & mist, Another Typhoon --> torrential rain, repeat repeat repeat, Autumn (read: last week of October / first week of November) --> rain
After getting back from a tanfastic vacation in America-land (getting TO 'Merika was a different story entirely, but it worked out in the end, obvs.) I found myself waking up at 5 in the morning to typhoon warnings, earthquake dispersions (although apparently I'm the only doof who didn't feel a thing even though it was a 3.0 in my area), and Orientation for my prefecture's newbies. Suddenly I am a sempai lolwhut?
It's kind of amusing how the process of giving advice makes you feel like you actually know things. And at the same time it seems like this year's group is so much more on top of stuff than I remember being. Still and all, going into Orientation as a second-year was actually a good experience. Listening to the general talks a second time provided a way better setting for reflecting on my performance over the past year than that done-in-10-minutes evaluation sheet the supervisors hand out in February at the office. And when I got bored I could outline this term's classes on the back sides of handouts :b And then I took the bunch from my area out to lunch and it was good tiems, they're all very relaxed & groovy.
So, first day back at work today. We're still on "break," but from now 'til December it's the busiest part of the year, and I'ma have to stay on top of lessons, fun things like sumo tournaments, paperwork, etc. I will probably be a little crazy manic/short-fused for a while, especially during the next abominable two months of heat & humidity. I don't have the glamour of Japan-novelty to protect my spirits this time, so my plan is basically to stay indoors as much as possible until October and then get a ginormous infusion of genki from the cooling-down of everything.
At least now sunburn isn't such a big concern - the weather pattern from here on out looks something like Typhoon --> rain, Post-Rainy Season Rain --> rain, Humid As Hell --> clouds & mist, Another Typhoon --> torrential rain, repeat repeat repeat, Autumn (read: last week of October / first week of November) --> rain
July 21, 2009
alive
Just came into my mind that I hadn't posted in a while. So here I be, overall not much the worse for wear considering it's coming up on a year since I moved across the Pacific with zero training and very little idea of where I would be heading afterwards. I've learnt well enough on my feet to be an actual teacher for a few of the brighter crayons in the box, and I've better ideas about this time next year, as well as ideas about the having of those ideas. One thing you get a lot of in an inaka town connected to other inaka towns by slow-winding train tracks is time to think. And to do things. As much as this position can grate on me, I appreciate being able to work and live at pretty much my own pace.
My pace at the moment dictates milk & cookies time and a book.
8 days 'til I get to drop in for a visit stateside ~/o/
My pace at the moment dictates milk & cookies time and a book.
8 days 'til I get to drop in for a visit stateside ~/o/
June 30, 2009
weekend in the woods
On Friday I caught a train down south to where the JETs in my prefecture gather for an annual "camping" trip. That's in quotes because we rent out fully-furnished, air-conditioned cabins complete with upstairs tatami rooms bigger than mine. Seriously, if I could trade my apartment for one of those babies, I'd do it in a second.
According to some of the second-year peeps, the rainy season was in full swing last year so it was damp and miserable for the whole time. Not so this year! Friday evening was rain-free and the sun was out aaaaall day Saturday, which made it perfect weather for jumping into a freezing mountain river and drying off on the ginormous rocks:
As my cabin was the nerd cabin, we proceeded to watch "The Fifth Element," get pleasantly drunk, and play a couple inebriated rounds of Munchkin, the tabletop-roleplaying card game where the object is to bribe, swindle, and back-stab your way to level 10. I kind of really want to get the Cthonic version of Munchkin. Maybe a Halloween present to myself? We'll see.
Anyway, most of the good pictures are on other peoples' cameras, so I am still waiting to receive them via the webbernets. The best pictures, of course, are all in my brainspace. It was a lovely super-fantastic weekend with awesome people and scenery that could take your breath away. I feel ready to take on the rest of summer in western Japan - it's going to be sticky, and insect-y, and moldy & gross and generally will do all it can to suck the will to live from me, but I will have the wisdom of Dori to keep me afloat.
According to some of the second-year peeps, the rainy season was in full swing last year so it was damp and miserable for the whole time. Not so this year! Friday evening was rain-free and the sun was out aaaaall day Saturday, which made it perfect weather for jumping into a freezing mountain river and drying off on the ginormous rocks:
As my cabin was the nerd cabin, we proceeded to watch "The Fifth Element," get pleasantly drunk, and play a couple inebriated rounds of Munchkin, the tabletop-roleplaying card game where the object is to bribe, swindle, and back-stab your way to level 10. I kind of really want to get the Cthonic version of Munchkin. Maybe a Halloween present to myself? We'll see.
Anyway, most of the good pictures are on other peoples' cameras, so I am still waiting to receive them via the webbernets. The best pictures, of course, are all in my brainspace. It was a lovely super-fantastic weekend with awesome people and scenery that could take your breath away. I feel ready to take on the rest of summer in western Japan - it's going to be sticky, and insect-y, and moldy & gross and generally will do all it can to suck the will to live from me, but I will have the wisdom of Dori to keep me afloat.
June 18, 2009
dear Japan
I want to know how to make these.Please get me lost in one of your wee-tiny fishing villages and land me at the home of an obaachan who knows how to weave rice stalks and cloth in this fashion.
Love, Nikki
...AJ and I got to visit the town day-care center today. 4- and 5-year-olds were quite literally screaming for our attention, as they would most likely explode if they couldn't get to tell us their favorite colors & ice cream flavors. After we did a silly dance with them and gave them all high-fives on their way out of the assembly room, the head caregivers brought us to their office for tea and sweets while handfuls of children intermittently escaped from their group rooms to peek at us through the doorway c: We both got a pair of these sandals, which are what reg'lar Japanese folk used to wear way back in the day.
June 5, 2009
foto trifecta
Not quite a photo-dump, but some odds & ends.
I had some heavy cream in the fridge that was gonna expire in a few days,
so I decided to make some veggie korma couple nights ago. Got everything chopped up, sorted out, had the onions & garlic frying in the skillet, and then I reached for the tomato sauce. Which was totally NOT there. Too late to go to the store, and too late to stop cooking even had it still been open. Sooooo I tossed in a splash of water to disperse the curry powder and the last of my garam masala, and this is what I ended up with. Actually, I think I might prefer this to the version with cream. The snap peas and bell peppers and cashews made for a really pleasing mix of flavors c: It's nice when unexpected set-backs turn into delicious discoveries.
This town takes the usual counter-measures against pigeons and their ungodly mess (and as usual, they fail spectacularly). And yet people here seem to be
remarkably accommodating towards the swallows, who make just as much of a mess, at least on whatever is directly below their nests. There's a nest above the vent on the front outer wall of the konbini near school, and the store clerks went to the trouble of putting a box beneath it to catch all the droppings. Today I was heading to the school lunch office when I heard a lot of loud chirping very near the student entrance downstairs, and I caught sight of these little guys. Judging by their size, they're nearly ready to strike out on their own, but for now they still snuggle down together while momma's away.
Finally, my latest order from Kawachi came tonight. I...couldn't help myself. But I make no apologies. This sketchbook's paper is just as good as any more "traditional" book's, and I won't brook any intolerant slurs against it.
I had some heavy cream in the fridge that was gonna expire in a few days,
so I decided to make some veggie korma couple nights ago. Got everything chopped up, sorted out, had the onions & garlic frying in the skillet, and then I reached for the tomato sauce. Which was totally NOT there. Too late to go to the store, and too late to stop cooking even had it still been open. Sooooo I tossed in a splash of water to disperse the curry powder and the last of my garam masala, and this is what I ended up with. Actually, I think I might prefer this to the version with cream. The snap peas and bell peppers and cashews made for a really pleasing mix of flavors c: It's nice when unexpected set-backs turn into delicious discoveries.This town takes the usual counter-measures against pigeons and their ungodly mess (and as usual, they fail spectacularly). And yet people here seem to be
remarkably accommodating towards the swallows, who make just as much of a mess, at least on whatever is directly below their nests. There's a nest above the vent on the front outer wall of the konbini near school, and the store clerks went to the trouble of putting a box beneath it to catch all the droppings. Today I was heading to the school lunch office when I heard a lot of loud chirping very near the student entrance downstairs, and I caught sight of these little guys. Judging by their size, they're nearly ready to strike out on their own, but for now they still snuggle down together while momma's away.Finally, my latest order from Kawachi came tonight. I...couldn't help myself. But I make no apologies. This sketchbook's paper is just as good as any more "traditional" book's, and I won't brook any intolerant slurs against it.
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