Tuesday was a good day to start off the week. It is summer vacation for kids here, so things were quieter during the kids’ class times of the day as most of them are taking vacations or something. Other than that, nothing new or particularly exciting has gone down in terms of the school. Every day is better than the last, but the changes aren’t so significant that I have anything new to say about them. After work was chill though.
Because I was headed to the main office again yesterday, my head teacher asked me to bring some documents with me that they didn't want to have to send. I was already home, but didn’t mind coming to pick em up since the office is so close. I met my head teacher and manager at the train station on the way and before we parted, my head teacher suggested Ramen for dinner. My manager backed out and thus, the head teacher said he would treat me, so I of course said yes. It turned out to be a good decision. We went to the ramen place I like, which is the closest to my house, and actually got to know each other a bit better. I was glad for it. As most of you can tell, I have authority issues, but hanging out with him that night was definitely a plus for his and my professional relationship. He may not be perfect, but I believe he ultimately means well (in terms of me at least) and I think he is quite fair in many departments. I will keep this in mind when I do my thang at work. I hope things stay this good or get better. Oh, he also gave good advice about tackling the climb up Fuji. Very helpful!
Yesterday I had training again in Shinjuku at the head office (Tokyo). This time, it was for a workshop on how to conduct interviews for all levels of prospective adult students. I definitely needed this training, as there have been changes made to the interview doctrine at AEON and I still wasn’t comfortable about doing them with my lack of experience. It was a very informative and helpful four hours . . . and even a little fun (I know . . . I’m lame). It was also good to see the trainers again as well as one of my training mates. Always a plus.
After that I returned to my school and only had one class to teach, which went ok. The teaching point was tricky to explain and get the students to understand, but they mastered the teaching point effectively enough by the end of class fortunately. After class I lingered at work for a bit and took care of some logistical stuff and got out of the place by about 940ish. Then it has been a night of working out, catching up, and preparing for the weekend.
I have one concern though that has been on the back of my mind. In my TEFL class last summer, I learned in depth about the trajectory of the phenomenon of culture shock. Basically after 2-3 months, foreign teachers experience a down in their over experience in the country they are in and kind of resent life and their hosts as a product. I am coming up to that time, and am really hoping that I will defy the numbers on this one. How sad would it be for all this happiness I have been gushing since I have been here to be overturned in less than half of the time I am supposed to be here? I think I will be fine though. I’m not a baby and also know how to appropriate and channel any frustrations I have effectively enough. If I start to complain a lot though, lease let me know 0_0 I refuse to be the whiney American!
Anywho . . .
Tomorrow is a new day . . . looking forward to it.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Befor the week starts
What a wonderful weekend! Good times, good freinds and new discoveries. Cannot be beat!
So Saturday at work was plenty well. I pretty much took care of all the logistical work that I needed to (except for two small things) and all the classes went well considering how sleep deprived I was. It went by pretty quickly. One sad thing is my co-workers totally moded me on something though. There are no written symbols in Japanese for the sound "We (as in the first part of my name)" and I have been asking and looking for symbols that sound close to it and have a pretty cool meaning. I wasn't having any luck until a student said she found a cool symbol combo that would mean "on the beach." But alas, she was mistaken as my coworkers pointed that out. Now I am back on the search once again. Bummer.
The Mom of one of my little molesters came in for class and I hung out with her daughter while she was being taught. It was cute as she had me look at her homework and help her. Then if I were to go away at all to go talk to another student or handle something real quick, she would get all jealous and territorial. She would stomp her foot or grunt frustratedly in order to get my attention. So after five minutes of that, I started referring to her in Japanese as if she were royalty (using the "Sama" title with her name). She was also doing everything she could to get the attention of my head teacher, who was doing and interview in the interview room. It was an entertaining 50 minutes haha.
That night was the event of Bon Odori in my town. It took place right next to the train station, so it was two minutes from my house. The week prior I had arranged (with the help of a coworker) to tag along with one of the kid students and her mother, who had also planned on going. So that night I rushed home from work, changed into some traditional style Japanese clothes (jimbe) and rushed back to the school and waited to be picked up. When they arrived, I was so impressed with how beautiful they looked in their Yukata. The student was an absolute doll and her Mom looked very elegant. Both of their yukata designs were gorgeous also. We took a picture and then walked over to the festival.
It was hella crowded! Considering the location of the festival, it makes sense, but it was still impressive to see how many people were actually there. Tons of people were wearing Yukata or jimbe, lined up to buy food, or dancing round/on Yakura (festival platform). The music was quite traditional, and was accented by Taiko drums played by middle school musicians. It really enhanced the feel of the event. For about an hour and a half we got some food and ate a bit and then I just watched my companions do some dancing until the festival was done for the night. There was so much to see and so many people to watch. My eyes were feasting. A couple of friends had joined us and after the festival concluded, we got some dinner at my favorite curry place and called it a night. What a good Saturday.
On Sunday I just did all my laundry and got my house into some better order. It has been in need of some attention -_- Cleaning went well enough and it wasn't too long till I was out of the house. From there I made one of the best discoveries thus far in my trip I think. On my running rout, I run by this dance studio called junk-b. I picked up one of the flyers at their door one night to see what they were about. The only things written in alphabet were some of the names of instructors and the names of classes of course, but I thought I would give them a shot anyway. It could not have worked out too much better. The first lesson is free and you pay for 5 classes up forward that are good for any class of the proper length (70 or 90 minutes) anytime during the week. Oh and they have classes everyday! I am soooo excited!!! I get to do choreo out here for a fair price and their schedule is flexible to the demands of mine. I really lucked out with my location also, as this dance studio is only one stop away from me >_< I dare you to tell me to not be excited! Check their site:
http://www.junk-b.net/
So after the class, which was an awesome class in terms of difficulty and quality (warm up and choreographer attentiveness). I went to one of the towns to do some shopping and scope another train station I will need to use to get to Tokyo tomorrow for work. It was a good trek. I know how to get to where I need to go on Wednesday and I finally got some stuff I have been needing pretty badly at my place.
Yesterday, I got to see and catch up with an old friend from Irvine. It had been ages since we last saw each other (since she has been here a year already). We met up in Yokohama and went to the top of Landmark tower for our first stop. It was a breathtaking view and wonderfully set up tourist arrangement. The building had elevators that had only two stops for the roof and bottom floors and they had an attendant give you some info on the elevator and building as you went up. It was pretty fast to. We went up some fifty-something floors in a matter of seconds . . .my ears were popping hehe. We spent about 20 minutes up there chatting, taking pictures and enjoying the view. There was also a water tank with fish in it that would eat the dead skill cells of your hand if you stuck it in there for long enough. It was a funny feeling, but a cool experience. I had never heard of that before.
From there we got some cold stone and walked around the city a bit and checked things out here and there. We didn't spend too much time in one place as it turned out my friend was looking for Kamakura and did not have as much free time as I thought. So we took the show to Kamakura, where it had started to pour. No biggie. We got some umbrellas and visited the Daibutsu like she had wanted and got some good pics out of it. Overall, It was a really nice time and I was glad to see her again and get the opportunity to explore together. Hopefully I can get down to see her in Miyazake later on. We shall see.
On the way home I did the last bit of shopping I wanted to take care of and went home where I caught up with peops from home and put the dried clothes away. Twas a good weekend ya’ll. I hope yours was similar or better! I am off to work to start another week ^_^
So Saturday at work was plenty well. I pretty much took care of all the logistical work that I needed to (except for two small things) and all the classes went well considering how sleep deprived I was. It went by pretty quickly. One sad thing is my co-workers totally moded me on something though. There are no written symbols in Japanese for the sound "We (as in the first part of my name)" and I have been asking and looking for symbols that sound close to it and have a pretty cool meaning. I wasn't having any luck until a student said she found a cool symbol combo that would mean "on the beach." But alas, she was mistaken as my coworkers pointed that out. Now I am back on the search once again. Bummer.
The Mom of one of my little molesters came in for class and I hung out with her daughter while she was being taught. It was cute as she had me look at her homework and help her. Then if I were to go away at all to go talk to another student or handle something real quick, she would get all jealous and territorial. She would stomp her foot or grunt frustratedly in order to get my attention. So after five minutes of that, I started referring to her in Japanese as if she were royalty (using the "Sama" title with her name). She was also doing everything she could to get the attention of my head teacher, who was doing and interview in the interview room. It was an entertaining 50 minutes haha.
That night was the event of Bon Odori in my town. It took place right next to the train station, so it was two minutes from my house. The week prior I had arranged (with the help of a coworker) to tag along with one of the kid students and her mother, who had also planned on going. So that night I rushed home from work, changed into some traditional style Japanese clothes (jimbe) and rushed back to the school and waited to be picked up. When they arrived, I was so impressed with how beautiful they looked in their Yukata. The student was an absolute doll and her Mom looked very elegant. Both of their yukata designs were gorgeous also. We took a picture and then walked over to the festival.
It was hella crowded! Considering the location of the festival, it makes sense, but it was still impressive to see how many people were actually there. Tons of people were wearing Yukata or jimbe, lined up to buy food, or dancing round/on Yakura (festival platform). The music was quite traditional, and was accented by Taiko drums played by middle school musicians. It really enhanced the feel of the event. For about an hour and a half we got some food and ate a bit and then I just watched my companions do some dancing until the festival was done for the night. There was so much to see and so many people to watch. My eyes were feasting. A couple of friends had joined us and after the festival concluded, we got some dinner at my favorite curry place and called it a night. What a good Saturday.
On Sunday I just did all my laundry and got my house into some better order. It has been in need of some attention -_- Cleaning went well enough and it wasn't too long till I was out of the house. From there I made one of the best discoveries thus far in my trip I think. On my running rout, I run by this dance studio called junk-b. I picked up one of the flyers at their door one night to see what they were about. The only things written in alphabet were some of the names of instructors and the names of classes of course, but I thought I would give them a shot anyway. It could not have worked out too much better. The first lesson is free and you pay for 5 classes up forward that are good for any class of the proper length (70 or 90 minutes) anytime during the week. Oh and they have classes everyday! I am soooo excited!!! I get to do choreo out here for a fair price and their schedule is flexible to the demands of mine. I really lucked out with my location also, as this dance studio is only one stop away from me >_< I dare you to tell me to not be excited! Check their site:
http://www.junk-b.net/
So after the class, which was an awesome class in terms of difficulty and quality (warm up and choreographer attentiveness). I went to one of the towns to do some shopping and scope another train station I will need to use to get to Tokyo tomorrow for work. It was a good trek. I know how to get to where I need to go on Wednesday and I finally got some stuff I have been needing pretty badly at my place.
Yesterday, I got to see and catch up with an old friend from Irvine. It had been ages since we last saw each other (since she has been here a year already). We met up in Yokohama and went to the top of Landmark tower for our first stop. It was a breathtaking view and wonderfully set up tourist arrangement. The building had elevators that had only two stops for the roof and bottom floors and they had an attendant give you some info on the elevator and building as you went up. It was pretty fast to. We went up some fifty-something floors in a matter of seconds . . .my ears were popping hehe. We spent about 20 minutes up there chatting, taking pictures and enjoying the view. There was also a water tank with fish in it that would eat the dead skill cells of your hand if you stuck it in there for long enough. It was a funny feeling, but a cool experience. I had never heard of that before.
From there we got some cold stone and walked around the city a bit and checked things out here and there. We didn't spend too much time in one place as it turned out my friend was looking for Kamakura and did not have as much free time as I thought. So we took the show to Kamakura, where it had started to pour. No biggie. We got some umbrellas and visited the Daibutsu like she had wanted and got some good pics out of it. Overall, It was a really nice time and I was glad to see her again and get the opportunity to explore together. Hopefully I can get down to see her in Miyazake later on. We shall see.
On the way home I did the last bit of shopping I wanted to take care of and went home where I caught up with peops from home and put the dried clothes away. Twas a good weekend ya’ll. I hope yours was similar or better! I am off to work to start another week ^_^
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Saturday morning
The latter half of the week has been a good one. I have just been doing work and keeping in touch with the states for the most part; but so many little things have come to pass that have made life so very fulfilling.
In terms of work, I still feel I get closer to students on a daily bases and classes have gone well. The lobby and classroom have been filled with lots of laughs and happy chatter. A particularly cute story I want to relay happened yesterday afternoon with two of my little molesters. They werent exactly angels in class, but after class was out, I was off to lunch with my coworker and we ran into them as we were walking to the destination. it was raining outside and I was without an umbrella and one of the girls tried to hold her umbrella up to shelter. what a sweetie. Then when I said "it was ok" she lowered her umbrella and proceeded to grab my hand. I joined hands with the other one and we walked for a bit like that. It was super cute >_< They are growing on me.
Another fun moment was thursday night. Usually, the manager, head teacher and assistant manager are having a meeting or discussing business when I leave work. Yesterday the manager was actually rushing the rest of the staff and me out to go home. I jumped on the oppertunity and preceded to quize both the manager and Assistant manager as to where their dates where. Hehe, they weren't ready for the questions and we shared some laughs at my goofy behavior and line of questioning. I was really glad for that moment. I felt today that our group cohesion at work was a bit better as aproduct of our shared enjoyment. Good stuff.
Last night I hung out with a teacher from another school that I have only met once. We got to know eachother at nice little bar over some beer (thats right . . . I was drinking beer)and snacks. Turned out to be a really nice time and we ended up having A LOT more in common that I thought. I am delighted to find someone who shares my music and recreational tastes. Her favorite artist is the same as mine too! usually not a big deal, but when most people I meet dont know who Kaskade is, this is something impressive. I see lots of good times had by us in the future. Yay to having a new buddy here!
Tomorrow my town is having a festival and I am looking forward to it. I even brought some traditional Japanese clothing for the ocassion at the suggestion of one of my students. I will be sure to expand on this in the next post 0_0
alrights, time is pressing and I must jet. more to come soon!
In terms of work, I still feel I get closer to students on a daily bases and classes have gone well. The lobby and classroom have been filled with lots of laughs and happy chatter. A particularly cute story I want to relay happened yesterday afternoon with two of my little molesters. They werent exactly angels in class, but after class was out, I was off to lunch with my coworker and we ran into them as we were walking to the destination. it was raining outside and I was without an umbrella and one of the girls tried to hold her umbrella up to shelter. what a sweetie. Then when I said "it was ok" she lowered her umbrella and proceeded to grab my hand. I joined hands with the other one and we walked for a bit like that. It was super cute >_< They are growing on me.
Another fun moment was thursday night. Usually, the manager, head teacher and assistant manager are having a meeting or discussing business when I leave work. Yesterday the manager was actually rushing the rest of the staff and me out to go home. I jumped on the oppertunity and preceded to quize both the manager and Assistant manager as to where their dates where. Hehe, they weren't ready for the questions and we shared some laughs at my goofy behavior and line of questioning. I was really glad for that moment. I felt today that our group cohesion at work was a bit better as aproduct of our shared enjoyment. Good stuff.
Last night I hung out with a teacher from another school that I have only met once. We got to know eachother at nice little bar over some beer (thats right . . . I was drinking beer)and snacks. Turned out to be a really nice time and we ended up having A LOT more in common that I thought. I am delighted to find someone who shares my music and recreational tastes. Her favorite artist is the same as mine too! usually not a big deal, but when most people I meet dont know who Kaskade is, this is something impressive. I see lots of good times had by us in the future. Yay to having a new buddy here!
Tomorrow my town is having a festival and I am looking forward to it. I even brought some traditional Japanese clothing for the ocassion at the suggestion of one of my students. I will be sure to expand on this in the next post 0_0
alrights, time is pressing and I must jet. more to come soon!
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Been too long -_-
Ok, so I was supposed have posted most of this up by Monday or Tuesday, but that didn’t happen due to unfortunate circumstances and being too busy up to this very moment. My bad, but my story will explain everything . . . Promise.
Saturday:
Saturday at work is actually one of my favorite days of the week so far; I have realized. Not because of the freedom I will have for the next two and a half days, but rather I have all adult classes and experience little if any anxiety with regard to my responsibilities as a teacher. I like and am easily able to talk to most of my students during down times and everyone is in high spirits because its Saturday. It’s infectious and makes me feel good to be at work. Thus, Saturday was a good day.
Saturday night was a good interesting time also. When I got on the train to get to Shibuya, I apparently synced my departure with that of thousands of soccer fans from a game nearby trying to get on the same train line as me. Getting through and traveling with that mob of people was quite the adventure. After I got to my destination, I headed straight for where the club was. On my way there I was checking out other locations to scope prices and DJ lineups for possible future stops and was approached by a guy talking to me in labored English. I tried to talk to him in Japanese and quickly found out that he was Korean and didn't understand a thing I was saying LOL. Interestingly enough, he and his friend (almost silent but nice nonetheless) were looking for the same club as me but couldn't find it. Thus, I suggested we search together and we did so. We finally found the place and were informed by the staff there that we were a bit early. We had nowhere to wait and decided to hit a local convenience store to buy drinks and pre party some. I talked with my new friends about everything from music, to girls, to their military obligations coming up. I was a wonderful chance meeting and experience.
We went back to the club after it opened and the two guys couldn't get in (Korean age counting system is actually a year ahead of Japan's). I was truly bummed as we went our separate ways -_- I hope they managed to have a good time that night. As for the club, it was pretty chill. The crowd had a lot more foreigners (anyone not Japanese) than I expected and they really packed the place with people 0_0 The music was ok, but the vibe was wonderful. There were no tough guys, no bitchy people, and most everyone I saw was just smiling and moving in kind to the beat. I even made dancing buddies here and there as the night drew on. I ended up leaving at around 4 am and watched the sunrise in front of the Shibuya station, got home at around 630 and promptly went to sleep. A very good Saturday ^_^
Sunday:
I stayed in for most of the day and just cleaned, answered messages, and contacted people in the states. It was a good lazy day. It could have been a tad more productive though . . . oh well.
Monday:
So Monday I decided that I refused to stay indoors . . . and I didn't . . . but I took it too far -_-
First, I went to the gym and had a great workout as well as a bomb Ramen lunch right next to my place. It was a good start. Then I went home and did some communicating stuff for a bit and headed out again. My first destination was a western style mall called Lalaport nearby. Save for the fact that I was the only person that wasn't Japanese, the mall reminded of a few I have been to in the united states. Thus, it wasn't that big of a deal for me as I thought it might be from what students had been telling me about it. Yeah some of the stores were novel and unique, but you can find them all over the place here. So, not that big a deal I guess. One thing that was particularly cool though was one store had these guys there and they were blingin out cell phones with stickers and decals. I wanna get mine done up to >_<>
From there I got a call from an old friend that I actually went through the TEFL certification with and we met up in Kamakura. At least 10 students have mentioned Kamakura to me and I had been wanting to go for a while. It was nice to have some company along to. He and I walked around and saw 3 of the many shrines there, checked out the different shops, and caught up on what had been goin on with each other since last summer. It was a good time . . . but it didn’t end there.
My friend knew where to get margaritas and I just had to follow him there. He took me to some Mexican food/style bar that was run by a prior US Marine. It was walking distance from the US Naval base there and slam in the middle of the area where all the US servicepeople go when they get shore-leave. There were even normal SP patrols walking around . . . haha and they didnt have ish to say to me =P
Anywho, we chilled there for about 2 hours or so over four margaritas (each), wwf on the TV, and eye-ing a couple cuties that must have been hunting for foreigners. We then decided to Karaoke and did so for an hour and a half. It was fun, but not the best decision in the world. Basically, I missed the last train at a station 4 four stops (over 5 miles) away from home cause I was out too late. Damn it . . .
It didn't get me down though and I decided to try to trek it back on foot. I was confident that I would definitely beat the sunrise since it was only 1230 afterall. Well . . . I got halfway there without a problem, but when the tracks of my line converged with another, I must have gotten mixed up and walked waaaaay off coarse. I asked for directions at a convenient store and the clerk reacted like I was an idiot; and rightfully so. I had managed to walk at least 3 miles east of my target with this other rail track and would not be able to beat sunrise back to my place at that point, as it was already 330. Therefore, I got directions to the nearest train station and waited out. It gets even more stupid though . . .
Early on in my trek, I spent the last of the money I had on me on food and drink to give me energy for the hike. So along with being faced with the prospect of having to catch a train home in an hour and a half I also had to find an open ATM that accepted international credit cards (long and unimportant story, but I still dont have my card for my Japanese bank yet). I ended up going to four with no luck, but finally found one in a 7-11 just in time to catch the first train of the day . . . Whew! So yeah, I got home ok and was asleep by 730 and up by 12 for work. It was a loooong day at work. haha.
Note: if you run out of money in Japan and only have a bank card from the states, the only convenient store ATM that accepts international cards are the ones at 7-11s. I haven’t tried every chain here yet but out of the 6 or the 7 I have been to, 7-11 is the only one. Keep that in mind.
Tuesday:
As mentioned, it was a long day but not too bad actually. I was tired of course, but all the classes (even kids!) went very well. My left leg was rather sore from the night before though and I had no problems passing out right away when I got off. Man . . . definitely not missing the last train on a night before work again. I'm too old for that irresponsible BS.
Today:
Was awesome! I got rested up enough, the soreness had left my body, and I made it to work in high spirits where they stayed high all day. One of my classes had been canceled due to rescheduling and another had no students, but wasn't taken off the schedule. I was able to finish all my prep for the week and then practice/rehearse for a kids trial lesson that I had just before lunch. My head teacher also went through it with me and I went into the thing feeling prepared and confident.
It actually went fairly well. I spent about 15-17 minutes giving a preview lesson to a 5-year-old boy right in front of his mom. Kind of nerve racking to think about, but it actually didn’t bother or distract me at the time. It must have gone well though; since the mom signed her boy for the lessons right after the preview (taught by my co-worker). Yay!
After lunch, I had my kids class with the group of kids with the one girl that talks back and it went surprisingly better today. I made changes in my approach, but I didn’t expect things to go as well as they did. Heh, even the back talker was telling one of the rowdy boys to shut up on numerous occasions rather than talking herself. On top of that, all the kids in the class seemed to get the material to a satisfactory level. Thank gosh!
After that was 2 adult courses and they went as well as usual. Lots of laughing and some interesting conversation. I also got to talk to students more than usual today, which was a nice treat. I actually am feeling more comfortable with talking to people and I could even tell today. I wonder how far I have to go to get out of the shell.
Oh yeah, I also had a meeting with my head teacher and manager about my performance at the school thus far and it went rather well. I am not perfect and have plenty to improve, but they seem to like me so far. One of the comments I think about most is how the head teacher pointed out that the kids often cry when a new teacher takes over and how he was surprised when all of my kids adjusted with zero tears and little ill affect. There were other nice things, but I don't feel like tooting my horn and getting into em. I am happy just to relay that they like me so far. Awesome!
After work I got to have a good chat with my Mom and was super happy for it. Its always a treat to talk to Mom. No matter what about ^_^
Ok . . . now its bedtime again. I promise to update sooner next time 0_0
Saturday:
Saturday at work is actually one of my favorite days of the week so far; I have realized. Not because of the freedom I will have for the next two and a half days, but rather I have all adult classes and experience little if any anxiety with regard to my responsibilities as a teacher. I like and am easily able to talk to most of my students during down times and everyone is in high spirits because its Saturday. It’s infectious and makes me feel good to be at work. Thus, Saturday was a good day.
Saturday night was a good interesting time also. When I got on the train to get to Shibuya, I apparently synced my departure with that of thousands of soccer fans from a game nearby trying to get on the same train line as me. Getting through and traveling with that mob of people was quite the adventure. After I got to my destination, I headed straight for where the club was. On my way there I was checking out other locations to scope prices and DJ lineups for possible future stops and was approached by a guy talking to me in labored English. I tried to talk to him in Japanese and quickly found out that he was Korean and didn't understand a thing I was saying LOL. Interestingly enough, he and his friend (almost silent but nice nonetheless) were looking for the same club as me but couldn't find it. Thus, I suggested we search together and we did so. We finally found the place and were informed by the staff there that we were a bit early. We had nowhere to wait and decided to hit a local convenience store to buy drinks and pre party some. I talked with my new friends about everything from music, to girls, to their military obligations coming up. I was a wonderful chance meeting and experience.
We went back to the club after it opened and the two guys couldn't get in (Korean age counting system is actually a year ahead of Japan's). I was truly bummed as we went our separate ways -_- I hope they managed to have a good time that night. As for the club, it was pretty chill. The crowd had a lot more foreigners (anyone not Japanese) than I expected and they really packed the place with people 0_0 The music was ok, but the vibe was wonderful. There were no tough guys, no bitchy people, and most everyone I saw was just smiling and moving in kind to the beat. I even made dancing buddies here and there as the night drew on. I ended up leaving at around 4 am and watched the sunrise in front of the Shibuya station, got home at around 630 and promptly went to sleep. A very good Saturday ^_^
Sunday:
I stayed in for most of the day and just cleaned, answered messages, and contacted people in the states. It was a good lazy day. It could have been a tad more productive though . . . oh well.
Monday:
So Monday I decided that I refused to stay indoors . . . and I didn't . . . but I took it too far -_-
First, I went to the gym and had a great workout as well as a bomb Ramen lunch right next to my place. It was a good start. Then I went home and did some communicating stuff for a bit and headed out again. My first destination was a western style mall called Lalaport nearby. Save for the fact that I was the only person that wasn't Japanese, the mall reminded of a few I have been to in the united states. Thus, it wasn't that big of a deal for me as I thought it might be from what students had been telling me about it. Yeah some of the stores were novel and unique, but you can find them all over the place here. So, not that big a deal I guess. One thing that was particularly cool though was one store had these guys there and they were blingin out cell phones with stickers and decals. I wanna get mine done up to >_<>
From there I got a call from an old friend that I actually went through the TEFL certification with and we met up in Kamakura. At least 10 students have mentioned Kamakura to me and I had been wanting to go for a while. It was nice to have some company along to. He and I walked around and saw 3 of the many shrines there, checked out the different shops, and caught up on what had been goin on with each other since last summer. It was a good time . . . but it didn’t end there.
My friend knew where to get margaritas and I just had to follow him there. He took me to some Mexican food/style bar that was run by a prior US Marine. It was walking distance from the US Naval base there and slam in the middle of the area where all the US servicepeople go when they get shore-leave. There were even normal SP patrols walking around . . . haha and they didnt have ish to say to me =P
Anywho, we chilled there for about 2 hours or so over four margaritas (each), wwf on the TV, and eye-ing a couple cuties that must have been hunting for foreigners. We then decided to Karaoke and did so for an hour and a half. It was fun, but not the best decision in the world. Basically, I missed the last train at a station 4 four stops (over 5 miles) away from home cause I was out too late. Damn it . . .
It didn't get me down though and I decided to try to trek it back on foot. I was confident that I would definitely beat the sunrise since it was only 1230 afterall. Well . . . I got halfway there without a problem, but when the tracks of my line converged with another, I must have gotten mixed up and walked waaaaay off coarse. I asked for directions at a convenient store and the clerk reacted like I was an idiot; and rightfully so. I had managed to walk at least 3 miles east of my target with this other rail track and would not be able to beat sunrise back to my place at that point, as it was already 330. Therefore, I got directions to the nearest train station and waited out. It gets even more stupid though . . .
Early on in my trek, I spent the last of the money I had on me on food and drink to give me energy for the hike. So along with being faced with the prospect of having to catch a train home in an hour and a half I also had to find an open ATM that accepted international credit cards (long and unimportant story, but I still dont have my card for my Japanese bank yet). I ended up going to four with no luck, but finally found one in a 7-11 just in time to catch the first train of the day . . . Whew! So yeah, I got home ok and was asleep by 730 and up by 12 for work. It was a loooong day at work. haha.
Note: if you run out of money in Japan and only have a bank card from the states, the only convenient store ATM that accepts international cards are the ones at 7-11s. I haven’t tried every chain here yet but out of the 6 or the 7 I have been to, 7-11 is the only one. Keep that in mind.
Tuesday:
As mentioned, it was a long day but not too bad actually. I was tired of course, but all the classes (even kids!) went very well. My left leg was rather sore from the night before though and I had no problems passing out right away when I got off. Man . . . definitely not missing the last train on a night before work again. I'm too old for that irresponsible BS.
Today:
Was awesome! I got rested up enough, the soreness had left my body, and I made it to work in high spirits where they stayed high all day. One of my classes had been canceled due to rescheduling and another had no students, but wasn't taken off the schedule. I was able to finish all my prep for the week and then practice/rehearse for a kids trial lesson that I had just before lunch. My head teacher also went through it with me and I went into the thing feeling prepared and confident.
It actually went fairly well. I spent about 15-17 minutes giving a preview lesson to a 5-year-old boy right in front of his mom. Kind of nerve racking to think about, but it actually didn’t bother or distract me at the time. It must have gone well though; since the mom signed her boy for the lessons right after the preview (taught by my co-worker). Yay!
After lunch, I had my kids class with the group of kids with the one girl that talks back and it went surprisingly better today. I made changes in my approach, but I didn’t expect things to go as well as they did. Heh, even the back talker was telling one of the rowdy boys to shut up on numerous occasions rather than talking herself. On top of that, all the kids in the class seemed to get the material to a satisfactory level. Thank gosh!
After that was 2 adult courses and they went as well as usual. Lots of laughing and some interesting conversation. I also got to talk to students more than usual today, which was a nice treat. I actually am feeling more comfortable with talking to people and I could even tell today. I wonder how far I have to go to get out of the shell.
Oh yeah, I also had a meeting with my head teacher and manager about my performance at the school thus far and it went rather well. I am not perfect and have plenty to improve, but they seem to like me so far. One of the comments I think about most is how the head teacher pointed out that the kids often cry when a new teacher takes over and how he was surprised when all of my kids adjusted with zero tears and little ill affect. There were other nice things, but I don't feel like tooting my horn and getting into em. I am happy just to relay that they like me so far. Awesome!
After work I got to have a good chat with my Mom and was super happy for it. Its always a treat to talk to Mom. No matter what about ^_^
Ok . . . now its bedtime again. I promise to update sooner next time 0_0
Friday, July 17, 2009
Friday night
A good day overall. Things at work kept me quite busy today, but it felt like a productive and effective days worth of effort. No big challenges or failings report, so that is an even greater plus. I also got to have lunch at that Nepal restaurant with the bomb curry, and that had me in a REALLY good mood for my last two adult classes of the day. One of them was a private lessen where I just talked Japanese and American politics with the student, which was very interesting and enjoyable. My last class had some cool personalities in it and totally had me leaving work in smiles. Having cool and fun students is such a gift >_<
With regard to my kids, I have come to realize (with the help of a co-worker) that my little molesters merely just like me and are comfortable with treating me like their Dad or big brother. Another reason I let myself believe this is because one of my molesters seems to like the head teacher even more than me haha. Right in front of her mom, she got on top of his lap facing him and was touching his face and stuff like she was about to go in for a kiss. Poor guy has it worse then I do; she even said that she was gonna marry him once! I guess I have nothing to complain about HAHAHA. So I now view my treatment from these girls (except for the scrotum tap) to be cute and endearing. I am a "cool uncle" or something I guess. . .Until halfway through class and they get bored with me teaching them that is -_-. I'll figure them out though. I will have every kids class going well more often then not!
Another interesting event we had today was a workshop where we learned about the Kaizen philosophy and how to apply it to our school. Basically, Kaizen is a philosophy that focuses on continuous improvement throughout all aspects of life. As time goes on, things change, and Kaizen endeavors to ensure that a person or company can efficiently adapt to the changes it faces or better itself in any way. Our approach in implementing the philosophy was to write down problems in the work place and then share our ideas and then decide on the most feasable beneficial routes of action. It was interesting and I like the idea. Hopefully it bears fruit for us.
Tomorrow is Saturday and I am happy for it. I have to have a follow up meeting with my manager and head teacher about my performance as a teacher as well as my impression of the company thus far. It is to prep me for the coming follow up training I have on the third. I have some ideas of what to expect but am totally unsure of how good or bad it will go. We shall see. As for classes, it is all adults tomorrow, so that should be fine and enjoyable. Then for the night I am planning on dancing again and can't wait. This dancing once a month trend is for the birds!
Hopefully good news, pics, and a story or two to come of the weekend.
Catch ya!
With regard to my kids, I have come to realize (with the help of a co-worker) that my little molesters merely just like me and are comfortable with treating me like their Dad or big brother. Another reason I let myself believe this is because one of my molesters seems to like the head teacher even more than me haha. Right in front of her mom, she got on top of his lap facing him and was touching his face and stuff like she was about to go in for a kiss. Poor guy has it worse then I do; she even said that she was gonna marry him once! I guess I have nothing to complain about HAHAHA. So I now view my treatment from these girls (except for the scrotum tap) to be cute and endearing. I am a "cool uncle" or something I guess. . .Until halfway through class and they get bored with me teaching them that is -_-. I'll figure them out though. I will have every kids class going well more often then not!
Another interesting event we had today was a workshop where we learned about the Kaizen philosophy and how to apply it to our school. Basically, Kaizen is a philosophy that focuses on continuous improvement throughout all aspects of life. As time goes on, things change, and Kaizen endeavors to ensure that a person or company can efficiently adapt to the changes it faces or better itself in any way. Our approach in implementing the philosophy was to write down problems in the work place and then share our ideas and then decide on the most feasable beneficial routes of action. It was interesting and I like the idea. Hopefully it bears fruit for us.
Tomorrow is Saturday and I am happy for it. I have to have a follow up meeting with my manager and head teacher about my performance as a teacher as well as my impression of the company thus far. It is to prep me for the coming follow up training I have on the third. I have some ideas of what to expect but am totally unsure of how good or bad it will go. We shall see. As for classes, it is all adults tomorrow, so that should be fine and enjoyable. Then for the night I am planning on dancing again and can't wait. This dancing once a month trend is for the birds!
Hopefully good news, pics, and a story or two to come of the weekend.
Catch ya!
Hump day
I had my first emotional challenge at work yesterday since I have gotten here. It was more of me being disappointed with myself, but there was a student that catalyzed my frustration with the situation. In fact, she is probably one of my most challenging, if not the most, challenging students I have. She is a smart kid and always is one of the first to get the material in class, but she always tries to speak to me in Japanese (REALLY FAST) in class and often talks back. So on one hand I can’t understand her and on the other; she is fairly disrespectful (even by American standards). Anywho, I was doing an activity in class that required the use of two different students’ vocabulary cards. This one student and another were paired together and neither had put their names on the cards in order separate them after the activity was over. Wouldn’t be a big deal normally, but this girl decided to take a freakin long ass time to separate them and that time was taken away from the rest of the class. Ok, even that is fine, but when I tried to help or make her go faster, she would freak the fuck out and not let me touch the cards. Because of this, the class got out 10 minutes late and I had to rush through one section of a lesson and completely skip the other. GRRR!!
I was frustrated because I totally overlooked that the cards couldn’t be separated and the student’s behavior just put me over the edge. I was in a bad mood for about an hour after the class. It’s actually really saddening when I think about it. One thing I do not want to have happen here is to ever get frustrated with work, but I couldn’t seem to avoid it yesterday. All is good though. I am over it and will now be sure to make certain that an incident like this would not repeat itself.
The rest of the day went redeemingly well though. My last class has five adults in it, and they are all good fun people. Thus, the class went smoothly as any of the others and put me back in a good mood. Furthermore, one of my students told me that the class seemed like a party to her. This totally made my day and I finished it with a totally positive outlook. Kids may be a challenge right now, but the adults will keep me grounded and happy I think. I just really need to hurry up and figure the secrets of dealing with certain problem children.
Today was a particularly good day at work. My one kids class was relatively wonderful and my middle school aged class exceeded my expectations. Their shy as hell; which makes them seem less strong, but even the weaker student was catching on by the end of class today. Good ish!
Those that know me well enough are aware of how prone I am to making silly careless errors in life. Well I managed to pull two off today and ended up doing a lot of thinking on my toes 0_0 for the adult class I managed to grab the wrong lesson materials (book 2 materials for a book 1 lesson -_-) and got the wrong class cd for the middle aged class. What a mess, but I was able to adjust well enough to where the lessons weren’t overly (if at all) hindered. I just wrote down key parts for the adult class and got by fine while I spoke all of the CD script with different voices. The students weren’t confused or off set and did the tasks perfectly. So, I think it is safe to say that it was ok. Still, I will make sure it doesn't happen again.
So, the mom of one of my little molester students I will have tomorrow was in the class where I messed up today and I realized why the daughter is so strong in the class. Her Mom is awesome. She apparently went to a good English school before. It was easy to tell with her exceptional command of intonation, and incredible English memorization ability during the lesson. I was really impressed with her. Naturally, she asked how her daughter was doing . . . I didn't snitch that she touches my ass and stuff, but did tell her how strong her daughter is. She sounded relieved. I hope that I continue to teach both Mom and daughter ^_^
Tonight ended with a wonderful dinner with friends as we cooked our own okonomiyake (the server said mine looked the best =P ) had a couple of drinks and reminisced over songs that made us think of college and high school. It was one of those events that make life that much richer. I am going to bed with all smiles tonight!
Tomorrow is Friday. Not worried bout my little harassers and looking forward to getting to know my students and coworkers a little bit better.
I was frustrated because I totally overlooked that the cards couldn’t be separated and the student’s behavior just put me over the edge. I was in a bad mood for about an hour after the class. It’s actually really saddening when I think about it. One thing I do not want to have happen here is to ever get frustrated with work, but I couldn’t seem to avoid it yesterday. All is good though. I am over it and will now be sure to make certain that an incident like this would not repeat itself.
The rest of the day went redeemingly well though. My last class has five adults in it, and they are all good fun people. Thus, the class went smoothly as any of the others and put me back in a good mood. Furthermore, one of my students told me that the class seemed like a party to her. This totally made my day and I finished it with a totally positive outlook. Kids may be a challenge right now, but the adults will keep me grounded and happy I think. I just really need to hurry up and figure the secrets of dealing with certain problem children.
Today was a particularly good day at work. My one kids class was relatively wonderful and my middle school aged class exceeded my expectations. Their shy as hell; which makes them seem less strong, but even the weaker student was catching on by the end of class today. Good ish!
Those that know me well enough are aware of how prone I am to making silly careless errors in life. Well I managed to pull two off today and ended up doing a lot of thinking on my toes 0_0 for the adult class I managed to grab the wrong lesson materials (book 2 materials for a book 1 lesson -_-) and got the wrong class cd for the middle aged class. What a mess, but I was able to adjust well enough to where the lessons weren’t overly (if at all) hindered. I just wrote down key parts for the adult class and got by fine while I spoke all of the CD script with different voices. The students weren’t confused or off set and did the tasks perfectly. So, I think it is safe to say that it was ok. Still, I will make sure it doesn't happen again.
So, the mom of one of my little molester students I will have tomorrow was in the class where I messed up today and I realized why the daughter is so strong in the class. Her Mom is awesome. She apparently went to a good English school before. It was easy to tell with her exceptional command of intonation, and incredible English memorization ability during the lesson. I was really impressed with her. Naturally, she asked how her daughter was doing . . . I didn't snitch that she touches my ass and stuff, but did tell her how strong her daughter is. She sounded relieved. I hope that I continue to teach both Mom and daughter ^_^
Tonight ended with a wonderful dinner with friends as we cooked our own okonomiyake (the server said mine looked the best =P ) had a couple of drinks and reminisced over songs that made us think of college and high school. It was one of those events that make life that much richer. I am going to bed with all smiles tonight!
Tomorrow is Friday. Not worried bout my little harassers and looking forward to getting to know my students and coworkers a little bit better.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Forgot to mention!
Of course my company has a Japanese website that looks different from the one I showed you. Every school actually has its own website and they already have me on mine for a bit.
Here is the homepage (no action shots of me yet):
http://www.aeonet.co.jp/school/school.php?sno=1415
Here is the staff page:
http://www.aeonet.co.jp/school/staff.php?sno=1415
check it if you are bored =P
Here is the homepage (no action shots of me yet):
http://www.aeonet.co.jp/school/school.php?sno=1415
Here is the staff page:
http://www.aeonet.co.jp/school/staff.php?sno=1415
check it if you are bored =P
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