Oh yeah

http://www.kurobe-machikyo.jp/ws/koku-saron/recipe.html

You can show this around to your friends and feel important. I certainly do.

Entertainment

Today I went to a sort of variety music show for my junior high. They did a good job, but there was a musical skit they did which I couldn't follow to save my life. Inititally I thought it was about time travel and it's effect on the human condition, but then there was a gangster and a bear and a bunch of girls with sparkly headbands. It was fun to say the least-the kids are really talented. Next time they wanna put me in it. I am so down with that.

Traditional Japanese music. The guitar like thing is called a shamisen and the harp looking dealies are kotos. (I think I got that right.)

They did their own version of Stomp-it was way good.

Yeah, I dunno either.



More of Nagoya, as promised:

Nagoya Castle.

Already told you "bout this guy. Sweet crap.

Will in the skreet.

Ginormous shrine.

Fountain and tower.

Nagoya, baby!

Trying to explain how much fun I had this weekend would be like trying to fit my rear into Japanese girl's pants.... difficult. But I'll try to hit the high points. I was in Nagoya visiting my new friend Will, who I know through Kyle. Let me sum up Will by saying that he's the genkiest man on this here island, and hanging out with him is like jumping on four-thousand trampolines at once-fun as hell. And he's the only foreigner I know who likes natto, so he must be some sort of super human. Friday morning I got up way early and took the bus to Nagoya. After dismounting said bus, I had no idea where I was going and this sweet little Japanese woman literally took me to my subway stop. (Did I mention how much I love Japanese people?) I walked around Osu Kannon for a few hours, had lunch at a motorcylce shop/cafe, and bought some new shoes because I am a hypocrite and I support Cambodian sweatshop labor. At any rate, Will got off work and we went to a pub where I was assaulted by a mosquito. On the way to dinner we stopped at a Beer Garden to watch an old man on synthesizer backed by two girls in polka dot dresses sing the oldies. It was offensive to the senses in every way possible, particularly aurally. We went to eat at a local joint owned by a hilarious woman simply known as Mama. She was closed for the evening, but took a bunch of us out for Chinese.
Saturday was spent shopping and castling. Nagoya Castle was sweet. The kinshachi are there, these famous golden dolphins Went back to Mama's for dinner and ate with a bunch of businessmen and some disgruntled Germans. After we went to this crazy small rock bar and watched Stop Making Sense which I had never see (feel free to gasp.) We met up with some of Will's friends who happen to be JETs from Fukui. On Sunday, we ate at Denny's for breakfast. (Yeah they have them here and they don't serve any Grand Slams-total B.S. right?) Went to a Pop exhibit at the art museum which was pretty cool. I thought the Hockney's were the best. Took the bus home with barfy high schoolers in front of me. Got a lot of music, had a lot of fun, by far one of the best weekends I've had here. I feel great-totally. I'm having trouble loading pictures here, so I'll try to post more later.

Art museum.

Oasis 21.

Outside the huge shrine near Will's.

Yeah, you read it right.

This is what yochiens see right before they are eaten.

Teachin' and Cookin'

It's official, I have a class full of punks. I thought they didn't exist here and that my job as a teacher was going to be so easy I would forget it was a job. And then came my afternoon third years. These kids are your typical spitball shooting, talk over the teacher, punch the kid in front of you punks. The thing is that the most misbehaved kids in the class are the best at English. So it's a bit frustrating to say the least. I'm gonna all Stand and Deliver style those kids and inspire them to get out of the ghetto and go to college, no matter what it takes!
I was recently asked to plan the International Dinner that's held once a month at Colare. I wasn't sure what to cook, so I went with spaghetti. There is a sweet group of older Japanese women who cooked the whole thing, I just had to tell them what to do. All night people kept asking me if it was a traditional Georgia recipe. Sure it is, if I served it up with a two piece from Big Chic and a sweet tea. Anyways, I think it turned out okay, nobody gagged in front of me anyways. Met some cool folks anyways, it really is a good event. I've gotta go to bed soon to catch the five hour bus to Nagoya. God bless you three day weekend.

Look at them, lining up for Kate food.

The Love Affair

Cigarettes and I have had a thing going on for close to ten years now. We've had so many ups and downs, stops and starts and no matter how hard I try to end it, it keeps happening again. I've quit and gone back so many times now it's almost amusing. Here are the ones I remember clearest.

Age 13: First cigarette. I coughed so much I almost hurled. T'was to be a sordid affair of hiding under the porch and extra long walks around the neighborhood. A pretty casual smoker, long hiatus due to lack of availability.
Age 15: Begin dating boyfriend over 18 who smokes, enough said.
Age 16-17: Start working at bagel store where smoking is the only thing that gets you a break, and the customers are enough to give anyone an addiction. Try to quit for a summer, little luck.
Age 18: Start college after a three week break and progressively make it up to a pack a day. Do the Nicorette thing for a few weeks, start smoking again at an art exhibit.
Age 19: Quit after summer of arduous labor at Publix. Do extremely well except for occasional parties, concerts and a few weeks of "break up" smoking.
Age 22: Now that I'm in Japan I've started again. I'd like to chalk it up to stress, but that's sort of a cop out.

I think I can give them up again. Maybe we just need a little more time together. What can I say, I love smoking and it loves me. I'm weak. And way to go me for making a blog all about me and my suffering. I am a true blogger now. Oh yeah, and on a side note some kid asked Lee if I was his Mom yesterday. Lee is over five years older than me. Perhaps it's the smoking is catching up to me with a quickness. At any rate, that kid better hope I never have him in class.

Matsumoto

Ah, the weekend. What wonders it beholds, what magical twists, turns and cleverly placed bits of wonder......okay that's enough. Anywho, went to Matsumoto on Sunday to check out the castle. It was pretty sweet, but hot outside and the trip was long (bless you Adrianna for driving.) We took a tour of the castle, which had a six story donjon and a lot of weapons. Built in the 16th century, most of the structure is original. We also visited the Minzoku-kan (folklore museum) which was neat, but all in Japanese so I was a wee bit confused. Today is Respect for the Elderly day, so no work!! I guess I'll go help a little old Japanese lady with her scooter or something.


On the way to Nagano. I will be falling down this mountain on a snowboard in no time.

The castle. Most Japanese castles are white, so this one is unusual. Why's it gotta be a color thing?

Moat-tastic.

My dog wouldn't have appreciated the culture. She's a little slow.

This was inside the museum. As I cannot read Japanese, I have no clue what it's about, what it pertains to or when it was created. I'm such a bad JET.

It was the best of days, it was the worst of days.

So Thursday started out horrible. I woke up feeling decent, but within fifteen minutes of arriving at work realized I lost the cord that connects my computer to the Power Point projector at home and the whole days lesson was screwed. Yeah, if slapping people was more acceptable here, I think Omae Sensei would have performed a little "Oops upside your head" on yours truly. But it all worked out in the end and the lesson went way better than usual. The older kids are way more into English, so they're pretty fun. I'm starting pen pals with some of them which should prove interesting. I had an enkai with the folks from work that evening and we had a blast.
Today I went to Yochien and was asked if I wanted to go to a "musical" in Uozu with the older kids. Who could pass up that one? So we packed into a bus and rode off. Led by four actors, one who had on a costume that looked like Gandolf if he were in Pippin and a light up broom, we took a magical journey about safely crossing the street. The best was when I went to the bathroom and one of the ushers grilled me about who I was when I tried to get back in. Yeah dude, I cleverly snuck in through the fire exit to catch a musical performance for five year olds. Besides, I learned how to cross the street weeks ago.
So somebody (Steve) said to post some pictures, so I figured it was about time for some poor English translations and funny signage. There are so many better ones, I plan on making many installments. Enjoy.

This guy gave me this promoting his band.

Thank God someone does!

No fishing for hats.

Office

I never knew what to expect in the teacher's room at school, but I'm starting to slowly figure it out. There's always tons of fresh tea (if you don't pass out getting to it through the cigarette smoke), lots of delicious omiyage from all over Japan, and a neverending supply of pink chalk. Not understanding a word anyone says certainly keys you into roles around the office, too. Here is a run down of some of the typical personalities I deal with on a daily basis.

Women:
* In Charge Woman: Short and feisty, this lady has just as much clout as the men in charge, or it would seem. Too bad she has to serve them tea. Always gives you the leftover cookie.
* Sweet Teacher: Laid back, kind, and always helping out the moron who squirts half-empty milk cartons all over the table (that'd be me.)
* The woman who talks way too loud and repeats herself....constantly. One of my offices has two and they sit together.
* Stressed Out Lady: Too busy to do anything but be hurried and frantic all the time. Man, can she walk fast. She will get you whatever you need if you can flag her down.

Men:
* Kocho/Kyoto Sensei: These guys are in charge, typically really nice and straightforward. They usually like to try their English on you.
* Cocky Smoker Guy: Knows how to say, "You are so cute and young" in English and nothing else.
* Sweet and Helpful Dude: Usually a Social Studies teacher, always helping to explain things. Prolly feels sorry for you because the leader of your country is an idiot.
* Extra Shy Man: Never going to talk/look/glance/or even walk by the ALT. Typically young. Sweet when he has to approach you for something, though. (One of mine looks like the Japanese version of Napoleon Dynamite without the curly hair. He sounds like him too. I'm not kidding, just writing about him makes me giggle.)

Elections

Japan had their big election yesterday and while I tried to follow it some on television I had no idea what was going on. I believe Koizumi won. Nobody's been talking about it too much. The posters are the best part if you ask me.


Fistful of steel.

Sports Day, fool

Today was Sports Day at my school. Normally I'd be pretty pissed off about showing up to work on a Saturday, but it was a really fun day and the kids were so into it......and subsequently I get Monday off. For those of you who don't know, Sports Day is like the American field days of yore but with lots of J Pop and no ice cream sandwiches. Basically they divide the school into two teams, red and white. The teams compete and whoever has the most points at the end of the day wins. There's a lot of certificate/trophy giving too. Because I work at two junior highs, I got to attend both!
As far as events there was lots of running, tug of war, a shirtless version of chicken fighting, some tire thing, and lots more. The bands also played: cue Star Wars theme again as well as a rockin' cover of Oh Mickey You're So Fine. The whole day ended in tons of rain, but the kids loved it and all the excitement made them way less shy to me than usual.


This is a tradtional Japanese folk dance. I was wondering if we have anything like this in the US, and I'm not counting square dancing.


I still don't know what the deal was with this, but it was some sort of skit and this guy defeated a dragon.


You put a bunch of tires in the middle of the field and then try to pull them from your opponents. Probably my favorite event.


This is the kocho sensei awarding some certificates.


This was another relay, sort of like three legged race.


Soaking up Sports Day before the downpour.

Cute!

I went to yochien today and was, yet again, smothered by cuteness. I spent most of the morning painting a gigantic cartoon cat/bunny/mouse creature from Pokemon on a large poster. I never figured out what it was for, but they all said I did a good job. And who says an art degree won't get you anywhere? I got sent home early from my elementray school, more on that when I actually teach there.

One of my favorite little guys is the second from the right. It looks like he might be making an irreverent gesture though.


Awwwww.

Typhoon

Monday and Tuesday I taught at Koshino, my other junior high school. It went well, except for when I accidentally ate natto at lunch. For those of you who don't know, natto is fermented soy beans and it's the only food I've tried here that I find to be painfully bad. The kids are all in serious training for Sports Day this week. Practice for their cheers is crazy rigorous.
A typhoon is hitting us today, and everyone at work was freaking out. The kids went home early, and I graded more summer vacation papers. I can't tell you how hard these kids are on themselves. One kid was talking about his "humiliating and shameful failure" on a test. So crazy.

Why God why? They say natto is made from beans, but it's actually made out of nail polish remover and unhappiness.

Typhoon weather. The wind gusts almost blew a piece of pizza out of my hand.

Do I look like a teacher or what?? Feel free to make fun of me, someone at work said my dress was "exciting"

Welcome Weekend

Saturday morning we attended the second annual pumpkin festival in Nyuzen. It was great. There were lots of pumpkin related songs, foods and even pumpkin dancers! We helped kids carve pumpkins, and according to Lee, were on the evening news. Gill and I bought some homeade sake from this lady who insisted that we only drink sukoshi, a little, at a time. Whatever you say lady. I got a t-shirt and a hat!
Afterwards we headed up to the Gassho Houses for the JET Welcome Weekend. Driving through the mountains was really nice, and my go kart, I mean car, handled it pretty well. The place was nice, quite reminiscent of Girl Scouts. There were s'mores, a campfire and the obligatory Wish You Were Here on acoustic guitar. I think everyone had a good time, expecially those who got some sleep.

More teaching, this time with 3-5 year olds

Today I taught at the nursery school near my house. If yesterday was madness, today was circus pandemonium madness. Within 2 minutes of being there there were kids circling me on unicycles, I'm not kidding. They were great and so excited I was there. We rocked some ABC's, did some dancing, played with plastic food, discussed the graying of the nation and it's effect on the economy. Okay, not really. The best was the girl in the blanket cape with the spatula wand. (Jayne, that one's for you.) I also went and got my oil changed today. Japanese people are too nice, the girl there actually apologized for not speaking English.

Highlight of the week:

Kate: "I hope my oil change works out. I hate when I go to get my car looked at and they treat me like an idiot."
Will: "Didn't you pump 10 liters of diesel into your tank a few weeks ago?"
Kate: "That'll do Will, that'll do."

In thy mighty groves of learning

Today was the first day of school. I got up bright and early, ate some toast, donned my gayest apparel and headed out to Takase. When I got there, it was madness. Everyone was running around faxing, copying and just looking gernerally frantic while I sat there and tried to look engaged in my Team Teaching Handbook. I got that whole exciting "it's the first day of school and I have a new outfit and a box full of pencils" vibe like from way back. Later on I gave a speech about myself to the student body as they sat lined up in the gym. I taught a class about myself, too. I think it went well, no one fell asleep. (With no air conditioning I don't see how they could have.) Lunch was fun because people will never cease to be amazed that I can use chopsticks. The rest of the day I pretty much just graded papers and ate tootsie rolls. The third year kids had to keep summer diaries-they were so cute. Mostly they talked about sports and their clubs, but with the occaisional colorful vocabulary. If you could only award style points when grading papers. All in all a really good first day. The kids are starting to warm up a bit, which is great.
Note: if you want your Japanese co-workers to like you, give them Jolly Ranchers. But be prepared to explain the concept of Blue Raspberry for the rest of the day.

Check me out!
http://www.kurobe-machikyo.jp/ws/koku-saron/recipe.html

Success Lives Here

Let me just say that you haven't "made it" until you acquire one of these bad mamma jammas.