Sorry it took me so long to get this up and I am sorry to those of you who cant get the full scoop cause this post is mainly in video. Hopefully I can make sure the next one is typed.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Twenty-Ten or Two thousand Ten?
So the year at work has kicked off with a good start. Thank goodness. Today was moderately busy, and the transition to work after being free for the last nine days was quite smooth. Classes went really well actually. My genius six-year-old was awesome as always (even taught him a bit of lyrics from Michael Jackson, whom he loves), and all my other kids were really behaved for me today. I am going home very happy tonight ^_^
Though, today was a tad bittersweet. One of my favorite kids students had decided to stop coming to class so she could free up time to go to cram school in order to prepare for Jr. high, and today was the first day she didn’t show up. The class was, of course, easier to manage, but I will miss her presence. She was one of my brightest, and she really lightened the class atmosphere at times. I wish her the best of luck! On a brighter note; my first adult class went fantastic. I had two really fun ladies that are both excellent students and made the lesson really fun to teach. A great cap to a good day.
As I sit here typing this, I actually feel really refreshed from my break. I am totally ready to give it all I can until my next long break in May, and have high spirits and hopes that I will improve both as a teacher and a Japanese speaker. I am off to a nice start, but we shall see how it goes . . . Well, I hope >_<
Though, today was a tad bittersweet. One of my favorite kids students had decided to stop coming to class so she could free up time to go to cram school in order to prepare for Jr. high, and today was the first day she didn’t show up. The class was, of course, easier to manage, but I will miss her presence. She was one of my brightest, and she really lightened the class atmosphere at times. I wish her the best of luck! On a brighter note; my first adult class went fantastic. I had two really fun ladies that are both excellent students and made the lesson really fun to teach. A great cap to a good day.
As I sit here typing this, I actually feel really refreshed from my break. I am totally ready to give it all I can until my next long break in May, and have high spirits and hopes that I will improve both as a teacher and a Japanese speaker. I am off to a nice start, but we shall see how it goes . . . Well, I hope >_<
Monday, January 4, 2010
2010 is here
Happy New Year everyone! I hope that the last few days have been wonderful and relaxing for you and that 2010 has much happiness and joy in store everyone. My New Years Eve, day and following days were quite the contrast to the beginning of my break. Originally, I had plans to go to my Head teachers hometown and bring in the New Year at his family’s place. Well, he got sick and the doc told him to stay home and he followed the directions and told both my manager and myself on the 30th. Shortly after that text, my manager texts me that she, two of the students, and myself were moving our trip up to . . . TOMORROW the 31st (and we were leaving t 5am)0_0 Usually not a problem, but I had already had two-week old plans with my hip hop instructor to spend the night drinking and dancing in Tokyo (the 30th) and I didn’t want to be a spoil sport and cancel any plans. Thus, I soldiered it out. I had a great time in Tokyo with the instructor and got off to the ski trip with no problems.
On the way to the resort in Gunma (named Ishiuchi Maruyama) the weather was perfect, but turned blizzard-like shortly after we got on the slopes. I actually enjoyed it a lot though ^_^ The cold totally dispelled any drowsiness I was feeling and the limited visibility made it more of and adventure for me. It was an amazing way to spend New Years Eve day. Later on, we all had a big dinner and then the two students and I headed to our traditional Ryokan. It was great. The accommodations were comfy, we got free yukata to wear during the stay, and were able to enjoy their onsen for a bit. It was quite relaxing. To bring in 1200 am 2010, We turned on the tube and instead of seeing time square and the decent of its ever famous luminous sphere, we saw clips of what was going on at different Shrines across the country and the release of balloons at a famous shrine in Tokyo. It was different, but I was content nonetheless. About 15 minutes afterward, I was asleep and didn’t wake up till 1040 the next morning haha. I was freakin tired.
New years day was done in Japanese fashion (Hatsumode). We were in the town of Ikaho and the town’s Shrine is found at the top of a 365-step stairway. We made the trek up, threw in our 5yen coins, rung the bell, bowed & clapped twice, made a small prayer, and bought our new year’s fortunes. Mine was the second best you could get (out of 3). We then had lunch and headed back to our homes. It was a great way to spend the New Year.
The next day I accompanied a friend to Tokyo because she was unable to do her Hatsumode the day before. Even though it was the 2nd, it was still REALLY crowded, but the line still went by pretty quickly, so That was good. Fortunately, the shrine was in the same town as my favorite Ramen restaurant and we were able to head over pig out. Yummy ^_^ Then, yesterday was her birthday, so we went to this really cool spa/onsen (Check this site for all the details. http://www.ooedoonsen.jp/higaeri/english/index.html). It was a good 3 hours of ultimate relaxation. I am definitely going back there in the near future.
Now I am just recovering from my last 4 days and mentally preparing myself for the New Year. I am gonna put together an actual personal curriculum for my Japanese study, so I can get it going a little bit faster and kill the Japanese Language Proficiency Test I plan to take in a few months from now. I plan to print out pictures from my past to adorn my walls and keep my room from looking drab all the time. I have no resolutions though really. I stopped believing in them sometime ago. I decided that it was silly for me to wait for the first of the next year to fix any problems I may have now. Thus, I have nothing new to share in terms personal goals and aspirations.
Alrights, Im going to get to it now. Have a great 2010 everyone!
On the way to the resort in Gunma (named Ishiuchi Maruyama) the weather was perfect, but turned blizzard-like shortly after we got on the slopes. I actually enjoyed it a lot though ^_^ The cold totally dispelled any drowsiness I was feeling and the limited visibility made it more of and adventure for me. It was an amazing way to spend New Years Eve day. Later on, we all had a big dinner and then the two students and I headed to our traditional Ryokan. It was great. The accommodations were comfy, we got free yukata to wear during the stay, and were able to enjoy their onsen for a bit. It was quite relaxing. To bring in 1200 am 2010, We turned on the tube and instead of seeing time square and the decent of its ever famous luminous sphere, we saw clips of what was going on at different Shrines across the country and the release of balloons at a famous shrine in Tokyo. It was different, but I was content nonetheless. About 15 minutes afterward, I was asleep and didn’t wake up till 1040 the next morning haha. I was freakin tired.
New years day was done in Japanese fashion (Hatsumode). We were in the town of Ikaho and the town’s Shrine is found at the top of a 365-step stairway. We made the trek up, threw in our 5yen coins, rung the bell, bowed & clapped twice, made a small prayer, and bought our new year’s fortunes. Mine was the second best you could get (out of 3). We then had lunch and headed back to our homes. It was a great way to spend the New Year.
The next day I accompanied a friend to Tokyo because she was unable to do her Hatsumode the day before. Even though it was the 2nd, it was still REALLY crowded, but the line still went by pretty quickly, so That was good. Fortunately, the shrine was in the same town as my favorite Ramen restaurant and we were able to head over pig out. Yummy ^_^ Then, yesterday was her birthday, so we went to this really cool spa/onsen (Check this site for all the details. http://www.ooedoonsen.jp/higaeri/english/index.html). It was a good 3 hours of ultimate relaxation. I am definitely going back there in the near future.
Now I am just recovering from my last 4 days and mentally preparing myself for the New Year. I am gonna put together an actual personal curriculum for my Japanese study, so I can get it going a little bit faster and kill the Japanese Language Proficiency Test I plan to take in a few months from now. I plan to print out pictures from my past to adorn my walls and keep my room from looking drab all the time. I have no resolutions though really. I stopped believing in them sometime ago. I decided that it was silly for me to wait for the first of the next year to fix any problems I may have now. Thus, I have nothing new to share in terms personal goals and aspirations.
Alrights, Im going to get to it now. Have a great 2010 everyone!
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
My bad!
It seems that my recovery just came in the nick of time. Just a couple of days after I posted my last blog, I got busy as hell. One of my good friends here had finished her contract with AEON and returned from a good exploration of the rest of the country and called me out on my first weekend night to join her and her friend from the states for a good time in Tokyo. Of course, I went . . . and stayed there my whole weekend lol. Her and her friend let me stay in their hotel room and we just goofed around Japan for two days. It was a great time. One particularly cool thing that we did was got to National Museum of Nature and Science in Ueno where they had the body of Hachi stuffed and put on display with other animals that are indigenous to Japan. He must have been a damn cute dog when he was alive. Other than that, we roamed Tokyo for different things to see and do. I miss my friend already and hope that America has welcomed her home well.
The following workweek (last week) was a lot busier than I had anticipated; and we even had Wednesday off 0_0 For starters, Tuesday was the day of the adult Christmas party. We had normal classes all day that went just fine that was swiftly followed by the party; which went really well. We held it at my favorite curry place that my coworker and I go to every Friday. As usual, the staff was awesome and the food was delicious (though a bit spicier than usual). There was a lot of happy drinking, chatter, and everyone but me, enjoyed his or her first white elephant gift exchange. I wasn’t sure how well the idea was going to work out, but was relieved to see that people were enjoying themselves the whole time. Who would have thought the element of theft could bring such merriment to a Christmas occasion =P The after party was taken to silver lanes where only three students joined us five staff for some late night Karaoke and we managed a good time of it. So much so, that everyone missed their last train and we took the show to my apartment and talked the night away till everyone made their first train at a little after 5 AM. A great night!
As you can imagine, I slept most of the day away the next day, and in the evening I did my laundry and some other things here and there until I joined my head teacher for dinner and Avatar in 3D at the local mall. I had a delicious steak with rice and LOVED the movie. I can’t wait to own it for myself. But since the movie is over 3 hours long (or so), my day was over by the time I got home and went to bed soon after.
Christmas eve wasn’t too bad. My present assistant manager is getting promoted to manager of another school and starts there next week, and we thus welcomed her replacement that afternoon. She is brand new to the company, but is really nice and hopefully she doesn’t have too much trouble getting into the swing of things. I’m looking forward to working with her. I had three classes during the day and did a bunch of stuff to help the staff prepare for the kids’ Christmas party the next day or preparing for this week’s holiday. When the day was up, I stayed after for a good long while and just goofed off with whoever had the time. I had dinner at my Ramen place on the way home and watched the Polar Express (4th year running). It was a low-key evening fo sho, but good.
Chistmas was great! We had the kids’ Christmas party and it went over very well. The kids were really cute as usual, and I didn’t have to make sure they were paying attention to what I was saying. An extra plus. I also got to be Santa Clause toward the end of it and gave little gifts out to all the kiddies. They didn’t believe it for a second haha. One took my hat off, while others tried to peek at the pillow under my shirt or pull my beard from my face. Everyone seemed to have fun though and the kids left happy. I wish them and their families a happy new year ^_^ I had one class after the party and then we did the staff secret santa and chatted it up until we called it a day and went home. It was a good Christmas
Saturday went really nicely. I took down the Christmas decorations right away as well as anything having to do with the self-study program. It was very relieving to be able to put away the salesman side of me for a good long while until the end of this coming spring. Surprisingly enough though, I managed to make a sale 0_0 I did a verbal assessment and counseling with a student and he decided to do a little extra study to help him along. I’ll do what I can to make sure it helps. After all the students who did speaking assessments and such were gone, we ordered pizza and savored our last Saturday of the year and last night as the Nakayama 09 staff that I came to care for. 2010 will have a lot of big changes for me within the first four months. I look forward to what they may hold, but I will still look back on Nakayama 09 with a smile.
Sunday was nice. I went out to get some snowboarding pants with my manager and a friend and then, joined my (former) assistant manager and her boyfriend for a house club night in Tokyo. . . though it was from 5-11 (gotta get that last train yo!). Her boyfriend was actually one of the DJs of the evening and really impressed me. I had no problems dancing the whole time while he did his thing behind the stand. The whole event was a lot of fun really. I was the only person there that wasn’t Japanese, so I got a TON of practice. As did some of the Japanese there that wanted to practice their English. Man, that event was definitely worth repeating. I even got a CD of one of my assistant manager’s boyfriend’s mixes . . . SWEET! Check him out at: http://www.myspace.com/yasuexesounds.
For the last two days, I have been a useless piece of crap. I have “spring cleaned” my apartment, but otherwise I have been veging out and loving it. I have been needing this time alone to just let my mind go and worry bout different things of a personal nature. For example, I have been selecting photos of times and friends that I have taken since I got deployed to Cuba. It took a REALLY long time, but the trip through memory lane was surprisingly moving and almost unsettling. Through these pictures I relived countless happy moments and the heat of old crushes. No lie, I got pretty homesick for a bit there. It made me think really hard and re-toggle my perspective about my current circumstances.
I had some really fun times over the last 4 years and seeing them again today and yesterday through these photos still managed to make my heart flutter with differing flavors of delight. I started playing with those two most terrible words as I viewed some of my most cherished memories and people . . . “what if.” I quickly remembered, as I was also reminded by some pics, of decisions made that I can’t take back and how I could never get back to those times if I even wanted to anyway. Those decisions lead to courses that lead me to this very moment, place, and emotional contentment. It would be a waste and immature of me to doubt them for even a moment. Nonetheless these memories are who I am and I plan to have them printed and spread around the walls of my apartment in order to remind myself and show off to any guests that I am truly lucky.
Sorry for the novel, I’ll leave it at that. Have a wonderful new year!
The following workweek (last week) was a lot busier than I had anticipated; and we even had Wednesday off 0_0 For starters, Tuesday was the day of the adult Christmas party. We had normal classes all day that went just fine that was swiftly followed by the party; which went really well. We held it at my favorite curry place that my coworker and I go to every Friday. As usual, the staff was awesome and the food was delicious (though a bit spicier than usual). There was a lot of happy drinking, chatter, and everyone but me, enjoyed his or her first white elephant gift exchange. I wasn’t sure how well the idea was going to work out, but was relieved to see that people were enjoying themselves the whole time. Who would have thought the element of theft could bring such merriment to a Christmas occasion =P The after party was taken to silver lanes where only three students joined us five staff for some late night Karaoke and we managed a good time of it. So much so, that everyone missed their last train and we took the show to my apartment and talked the night away till everyone made their first train at a little after 5 AM. A great night!
As you can imagine, I slept most of the day away the next day, and in the evening I did my laundry and some other things here and there until I joined my head teacher for dinner and Avatar in 3D at the local mall. I had a delicious steak with rice and LOVED the movie. I can’t wait to own it for myself. But since the movie is over 3 hours long (or so), my day was over by the time I got home and went to bed soon after.
Christmas eve wasn’t too bad. My present assistant manager is getting promoted to manager of another school and starts there next week, and we thus welcomed her replacement that afternoon. She is brand new to the company, but is really nice and hopefully she doesn’t have too much trouble getting into the swing of things. I’m looking forward to working with her. I had three classes during the day and did a bunch of stuff to help the staff prepare for the kids’ Christmas party the next day or preparing for this week’s holiday. When the day was up, I stayed after for a good long while and just goofed off with whoever had the time. I had dinner at my Ramen place on the way home and watched the Polar Express (4th year running). It was a low-key evening fo sho, but good.
Chistmas was great! We had the kids’ Christmas party and it went over very well. The kids were really cute as usual, and I didn’t have to make sure they were paying attention to what I was saying. An extra plus. I also got to be Santa Clause toward the end of it and gave little gifts out to all the kiddies. They didn’t believe it for a second haha. One took my hat off, while others tried to peek at the pillow under my shirt or pull my beard from my face. Everyone seemed to have fun though and the kids left happy. I wish them and their families a happy new year ^_^ I had one class after the party and then we did the staff secret santa and chatted it up until we called it a day and went home. It was a good Christmas
Saturday went really nicely. I took down the Christmas decorations right away as well as anything having to do with the self-study program. It was very relieving to be able to put away the salesman side of me for a good long while until the end of this coming spring. Surprisingly enough though, I managed to make a sale 0_0 I did a verbal assessment and counseling with a student and he decided to do a little extra study to help him along. I’ll do what I can to make sure it helps. After all the students who did speaking assessments and such were gone, we ordered pizza and savored our last Saturday of the year and last night as the Nakayama 09 staff that I came to care for. 2010 will have a lot of big changes for me within the first four months. I look forward to what they may hold, but I will still look back on Nakayama 09 with a smile.
Sunday was nice. I went out to get some snowboarding pants with my manager and a friend and then, joined my (former) assistant manager and her boyfriend for a house club night in Tokyo. . . though it was from 5-11 (gotta get that last train yo!). Her boyfriend was actually one of the DJs of the evening and really impressed me. I had no problems dancing the whole time while he did his thing behind the stand. The whole event was a lot of fun really. I was the only person there that wasn’t Japanese, so I got a TON of practice. As did some of the Japanese there that wanted to practice their English. Man, that event was definitely worth repeating. I even got a CD of one of my assistant manager’s boyfriend’s mixes . . . SWEET! Check him out at: http://www.myspace.com/yasuexesounds.
For the last two days, I have been a useless piece of crap. I have “spring cleaned” my apartment, but otherwise I have been veging out and loving it. I have been needing this time alone to just let my mind go and worry bout different things of a personal nature. For example, I have been selecting photos of times and friends that I have taken since I got deployed to Cuba. It took a REALLY long time, but the trip through memory lane was surprisingly moving and almost unsettling. Through these pictures I relived countless happy moments and the heat of old crushes. No lie, I got pretty homesick for a bit there. It made me think really hard and re-toggle my perspective about my current circumstances.
I had some really fun times over the last 4 years and seeing them again today and yesterday through these photos still managed to make my heart flutter with differing flavors of delight. I started playing with those two most terrible words as I viewed some of my most cherished memories and people . . . “what if.” I quickly remembered, as I was also reminded by some pics, of decisions made that I can’t take back and how I could never get back to those times if I even wanted to anyway. Those decisions lead to courses that lead me to this very moment, place, and emotional contentment. It would be a waste and immature of me to doubt them for even a moment. Nonetheless these memories are who I am and I plan to have them printed and spread around the walls of my apartment in order to remind myself and show off to any guests that I am truly lucky.
Sorry for the novel, I’ll leave it at that. Have a wonderful new year!
Thursday, December 17, 2009
"I'll get chewed out . . . I've been chewed out before"
Back to normal! So the doc prescribed me some quite effective medicine and I am typing this in normal good health. Feels good. I have gotten back on the workout regimen, am feeling great, and am enjoying the weather that the Japanese winter has to offer so far. As usual, most departments of my life have been going really well.
Last Wednesday during my kids’ class; my once shy introvert proved her comfort in the class in a funny way once again. I was doing something with my arms and I accidently hit her in the face with my fingers as I was moving around. I quickly apologized in English with a clear expression of shock and concern on my face; and her response was . . . (in Japanese and jockingly) I’m gonna kill you. I was quite surprised to say the least, but really entertained as I thought about it later. A funny story I soon won’t forget.
The rest of the week at school went well enough and I honestly can remember anything else that stood out until I was off for the weekend . . . OH! My head teacher helped me purchase an electric Japanese/English dictionary for cheap and I am quite excited now that I have it. Now I won’t be up the creek without a paddle when I go to the doctor or something . . . or when I talk to girls =P
Saturday, right after work, two of my co-workers and I headed off to another school in the area to support a mutual friend at her going away party. Her contract had come to an end and her school was seeing her off with a lively event. I estimate that maybe forty students were there at least. Our friend was definitely one loved teacher. She had been there for a year and a half, and being the charming gal that she is, I was not surprised to see so many people wanting to be around to say goodbye to her. The event got pretty emotional actually. There, were some really good heartfelt speeches, as well as a few tears here and there. It was quite the event. I am sure plenty of the people at the school will miss her and I will be missing her as well (until she returns). We had some good times together ^_^
On Sunday, I headed to one of the popular mountains near here named Mt. Takao (Takao-san). On a sunny day, around the time of the winter solstice, one is able to watch the sun set directly atop of Mt. Fuji. The Japanese call this occasion Diamond Head. But alas . . . it was cloudy -.- BUT, all was ok, as I had a really good time with my companion and the mountain had a beautiful view and a lot to see on the trails. It was not at all a wasted venture. After Takao, we enjoyed some delicious Chinese food and I headed off to hip-hop. Their performance is in less than two weeks and the group is pretty much ready to go. I’m bummed I can’t be part of it, but hope that they do well.
Monday was a lazy day for me. I did some laundry and chores, and then headed to the local mall to get my secret santa gift for work. While there I decided to catch the movie: Inglorious Bastards. It was actually very thought invoking (don’t read on if you haven’t yet seen it, cause I am gonna spill the beans about this movie). So basically it is another WWII story with a plot revolving around an attempt to kill Hitler and end the war right away. Well, I have to admit that I was really surprised to see that the story goes against history and realizes this fantasy. In a theater owned by a Jew in hiding, Jewish American soldiers (the commander isn’t Jewish though) and the Jewish theater owner manage to kill Hitler, Goering, and two more Nazi top dogs amidst roaring flames and machine gun fire in a crowd of German officers and elites in her theater. At times it is a gory and vulgar spectacle, but I have to admit I was amazed with some of the acting and some lines were said that just make ya think. I could go on for a while bout the movie, but I wont bore you with it. I’ll just leave with saying that it was . . . woah.
The week has been coming along well so far and I am facing everyday with a smile. I hope the same goes for you ^_^
Last Wednesday during my kids’ class; my once shy introvert proved her comfort in the class in a funny way once again. I was doing something with my arms and I accidently hit her in the face with my fingers as I was moving around. I quickly apologized in English with a clear expression of shock and concern on my face; and her response was . . . (in Japanese and jockingly) I’m gonna kill you. I was quite surprised to say the least, but really entertained as I thought about it later. A funny story I soon won’t forget.
The rest of the week at school went well enough and I honestly can remember anything else that stood out until I was off for the weekend . . . OH! My head teacher helped me purchase an electric Japanese/English dictionary for cheap and I am quite excited now that I have it. Now I won’t be up the creek without a paddle when I go to the doctor or something . . . or when I talk to girls =P
Saturday, right after work, two of my co-workers and I headed off to another school in the area to support a mutual friend at her going away party. Her contract had come to an end and her school was seeing her off with a lively event. I estimate that maybe forty students were there at least. Our friend was definitely one loved teacher. She had been there for a year and a half, and being the charming gal that she is, I was not surprised to see so many people wanting to be around to say goodbye to her. The event got pretty emotional actually. There, were some really good heartfelt speeches, as well as a few tears here and there. It was quite the event. I am sure plenty of the people at the school will miss her and I will be missing her as well (until she returns). We had some good times together ^_^
On Sunday, I headed to one of the popular mountains near here named Mt. Takao (Takao-san). On a sunny day, around the time of the winter solstice, one is able to watch the sun set directly atop of Mt. Fuji. The Japanese call this occasion Diamond Head. But alas . . . it was cloudy -.- BUT, all was ok, as I had a really good time with my companion and the mountain had a beautiful view and a lot to see on the trails. It was not at all a wasted venture. After Takao, we enjoyed some delicious Chinese food and I headed off to hip-hop. Their performance is in less than two weeks and the group is pretty much ready to go. I’m bummed I can’t be part of it, but hope that they do well.
Monday was a lazy day for me. I did some laundry and chores, and then headed to the local mall to get my secret santa gift for work. While there I decided to catch the movie: Inglorious Bastards. It was actually very thought invoking (don’t read on if you haven’t yet seen it, cause I am gonna spill the beans about this movie). So basically it is another WWII story with a plot revolving around an attempt to kill Hitler and end the war right away. Well, I have to admit that I was really surprised to see that the story goes against history and realizes this fantasy. In a theater owned by a Jew in hiding, Jewish American soldiers (the commander isn’t Jewish though) and the Jewish theater owner manage to kill Hitler, Goering, and two more Nazi top dogs amidst roaring flames and machine gun fire in a crowd of German officers and elites in her theater. At times it is a gory and vulgar spectacle, but I have to admit I was amazed with some of the acting and some lines were said that just make ya think. I could go on for a while bout the movie, but I wont bore you with it. I’ll just leave with saying that it was . . . woah.
The week has been coming along well so far and I am facing everyday with a smile. I hope the same goes for you ^_^
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Freakin body -.-
BAH!! So I got to the doc last week and he looks in my mouth and tells my head teacher (translator of the day) that he saw that my glands were swollen and gave me all sorts of meds to beat the symptoms as well whatever it was that was ailing my system. It worked to the extent that my symptoms were reduced significantly . . . till I stopped taking the meds. Yesterday was really rough at work because of this. I was having some nasty sinus pressure to the point where I could feel a constant dull pain at the spot where my nose connects to my head. It was even throbbing at times, and my eyes were bloodshot and tearing up frequently. Fortunately Wednesday is a light day and my staff took extra concern and my manager took me to a different doctor. The doc thought it was something more along the lines of what I was actually feeling and gave me knew meds. Thank gosh. My manager sent me home and I promptly went to bed after taking some. Like before, they are working, but I am feeling a lot better already. I feel nothing like I did last night. Hopefully these pills persist and knock whatever it is that has been afflicting my immune system into non-existence. I am a lot more optimistic this time around.
Now that I got that out of my system . . . I have had my eyes opened to a new consideration in terms of kid students. I have noticed that shy and nervous kids tend to not perform well in class. They are often too quiet for me to hear and do not open their minds to class activities. On the other hand, I have noticed that if a kid is too comfortable with you, they wont respect your authority or the class in general. I am working on finding that happy medium where I am in good with the students to the point where they are comfortable, but not sacrificing their classroom attentiveness in the process. It is a conundrum that I know I won’t solve until I have a bit more experience, but I am at least aware of the issue and am happy to be striving toward that.
The past weekend was particularly good. I had dinner with an old friend from the states (worked at In N Out with me), his family and a friend of theirs. He has been here for the last six years and is married with a son (an adorable little boy). It was a wonderful few hours over some nabe, beer, and Kyushu made souchu. We sat around and talked talked about each other (as I didn’t know two of the people), tried to make the boy smile, and did a lot of laughing. I could feel the closeness of everyone at the table and I found the atmosphere to be spiritually therapeutic. There is something so peaceful about being in vicinity of a happy family or family like atmosphere.
There is more to discuss but I find myself out of time. Sorry . . . more to come next time!
Now that I got that out of my system . . . I have had my eyes opened to a new consideration in terms of kid students. I have noticed that shy and nervous kids tend to not perform well in class. They are often too quiet for me to hear and do not open their minds to class activities. On the other hand, I have noticed that if a kid is too comfortable with you, they wont respect your authority or the class in general. I am working on finding that happy medium where I am in good with the students to the point where they are comfortable, but not sacrificing their classroom attentiveness in the process. It is a conundrum that I know I won’t solve until I have a bit more experience, but I am at least aware of the issue and am happy to be striving toward that.
The past weekend was particularly good. I had dinner with an old friend from the states (worked at In N Out with me), his family and a friend of theirs. He has been here for the last six years and is married with a son (an adorable little boy). It was a wonderful few hours over some nabe, beer, and Kyushu made souchu. We sat around and talked talked about each other (as I didn’t know two of the people), tried to make the boy smile, and did a lot of laughing. I could feel the closeness of everyone at the table and I found the atmosphere to be spiritually therapeutic. There is something so peaceful about being in vicinity of a happy family or family like atmosphere.
There is more to discuss but I find myself out of time. Sorry . . . more to come next time!
Freakin body -.-
BAH!! So I got to the doc last week and he looks in my mouth and tells my head teacher (translator of the day) that he saw that my glands were swollen and gave me all sorts of meds to beat the symptoms as well whatever it was that was ailing my system. It worked to the extent that my symptoms were reduced significantly . . . till I stopped taking the meds. Yesterday was really rough at work because of this. I was having some nasty sinus pressure to the point where I could feel a constant dull pain at the spot where my nose connects to my head. It was even throbbing at times, and my eyes were bloodshot and tearing up frequently. Fortunately Wednesday is a light day and my staff took extra concern and my manager took me to a different doctor. The doc thought it was something more along the lines of what I was actually feeling and gave me knew meds. Thank gosh. My manager sent me home and I promptly went to bed after taking some. Like before, they are working, but I am feeling a lot better already. I feel nothing like I did last night. Hopefully these pills persist and knock whatever it is that has been afflicting my immune system into non-existence. I am a lot more optimistic this time around.
Now that I got that out of my system . . . I have had my eyes opened to a new consideration in terms of kid students. I have noticed that shy and nervous kids tend to not perform well in class. They are often too quiet for me to hear and do not open their minds to class activities. On the other hand, I have noticed that if a kid is too comfortable with you, they wont respect your authority or the class in general. I am working on finding that happy medium where I am in good with the students to the point where they are comfortable, but not sacrificing their classroom attentiveness in the process. It is a conundrum that I know I won’t solve until I have a bit more experience, but I am at least aware of the issue and am happy to be striving toward that.
The past weekend was particularly good. I had dinner with an old friend from the states (worked at In N Out with me), his family and a friend of theirs. He has been here for the last six years and is married with a son (an adorable little boy). It was a wonderful few hours over some nabe, beer, and Kyushu made souchu. We sat around and talked talked about each other (as I didn’t know two of the people), tried to make the boy smile, and did a lot of laughing. I could feel the closeness of everyone at the table and I found the atmosphere to be spiritually therapeutic. There is something so peaceful about being in vicinity of a happy family or family like atmosphere.
There is more to discuss but I find myself out of time. Sorry . . . more to come next time!
Now that I got that out of my system . . . I have had my eyes opened to a new consideration in terms of kid students. I have noticed that shy and nervous kids tend to not perform well in class. They are often too quiet for me to hear and do not open their minds to class activities. On the other hand, I have noticed that if a kid is too comfortable with you, they wont respect your authority or the class in general. I am working on finding that happy medium where I am in good with the students to the point where they are comfortable, but not sacrificing their classroom attentiveness in the process. It is a conundrum that I know I won’t solve until I have a bit more experience, but I am at least aware of the issue and am happy to be striving toward that.
The past weekend was particularly good. I had dinner with an old friend from the states (worked at In N Out with me), his family and a friend of theirs. He has been here for the last six years and is married with a son (an adorable little boy). It was a wonderful few hours over some nabe, beer, and Kyushu made souchu. We sat around and talked talked about each other (as I didn’t know two of the people), tried to make the boy smile, and did a lot of laughing. I could feel the closeness of everyone at the table and I found the atmosphere to be spiritually therapeutic. There is something so peaceful about being in vicinity of a happy family or family like atmosphere.
There is more to discuss but I find myself out of time. Sorry . . . more to come next time!
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