(no subject)
I am so mehhhhh
My weekend was ok. I was pretty lazy on Saturday. On Sunday I was invited over to my adopted family's house for sushi making and a bbq. For that occasion and because it was their aniversary on Thursday, I made a cake. MAN BAKING IS SO EXPENSIVE IN JAPAN! Aahem. I made a lemon cake with lemon cream cheese frosting and blueberry/cranberry jam. I wanted raspberry jam, but they didn't have it at the store that I went to. I'm glad I went with the lemon icing, and had a sour jam. The cake itself was so so, but the icing/tartness really made it. I was also going to have whipped cream in there, but when I was making the whip cream, I mistook the salt on top of the oven for sugar... yeah had to dump that down the drain. I also learned how to make sushi. Or at least the rice seasoning and the easy rolling part. I'm sure getting all the pieces ready to put in the rolls takes the most time. I would have helped with that too, but Okaasan had that all ready when I got there.
More and more I am faced with the fact that my supervisor is a total space cadet. And it's not just a language thing... I have to work with her more, because one of the other English teachers is out on medical leave. She is often late for class, forgets to tell the students that class is all together (normally its split in half, but because the teacher is gone, it's together) and class planning, for material I have already taught with her last year, is super tedious and a test of patience. We finally got the sub teacher...it's not looking too good. He's old (nothing against old people I swear!) so I was a bit worried about his feelings/working ability with foreigners. Well at least he tried to speak to me in English at the English meeting (that was all in Japanese) and he seems friendly enough. However, his actual English ability leaves a lot to be desired. Very timid and doesn't get much out. Working with him will be interesting... The level of English is dropping rapidly at my school with that teacher out. I felt it was barely holding together when the best one left in April and they didn't replace him because of budget cuts.
Fun news with work is that I get to go to the pre-school next week! Yay! I might have said that before... haha. Today I did the mock class with the high school class I am going with. They were less than thrilled about it... haha but I know the little ones will have a blast and totally want to do the sounds and actions associated with the Halloween words I am teaching them ^_^ So basically next Tuesday I am going to be doing a lesson with 42 preschoolers AND 40 high schoolers o_0
We had an enkai (dinner/all you can drink dinner party) on Monday to celebrate our Archery team (actual archery not kyudo, the Japanese archery) being number one in all Japan (Wooo!) I wasn't going to go because I was feeling sort of sick, and it was a buffet, and last time that meant there wasn't very much for me to eat. However, I couldn't get out of it without paying, so I went. Yeah I think all I could eat was some salad (ie shredded cabbage), edamame and tiny finger sandwiches consisting of white bread, cucumber and paper slice of tomato. Annnd it was less than good beer by the pitcher. I guess from lack of actual food (I don't think I ate much for lunch either) the beer started to taste better the more I drank it, so that was a plus, though I know I didn't drink that much of it. The teachers I went with were going to the nijikai (second party) so I went to. It was to this tiny snack bar. And I use the term bar loosely since they had a choice of about 6 kinds of drinks; 2 whiskeys 3 bourbons and beer. Needless to say... I had beer. It was a nice kind of place I guess. Couches, snacks, karaoke, and all the glasses full of water with a finger or two of whiskey in them my teachers could drink (NOT actual short cocktail glasses but tall skinny ones to give you an idea of how much water) Really I never understand the Japanese saying they like whiskey, but in reality drink water lightly shot with it. I ended up sitting at the bar with one of the teachers and a bartender and we talked a bit and started playing this drinking game. I think that was my undoing, plus the fact that I haven't been drinking much lately since I just end up sick the next day (FORESHADOWING). It was actually a pretty fun game. Simple. It was a box with the numbers 1-9 like keys and you rolled the dice. You could flip either one of the numbers on the dice or the total. You had to take a drink if you were the last one who couldn't flip a number. At first it was just sips but then it turned into more and more and half the drink and then the last round where I had to drink all my drink, that happened to be full. I know I was drunk since I sang some karaoke... I think I danced along to thriller too... yeah...
Well good think I was fine when I was out. Went home soon after the last drink. As soon as I got home, all the drinking hit me. I remember most of what happened at the snack bar, but very little of the events at home. Like when I got in, how long I took a shower for, and how I got dressed for bed... yeah it was pretty bad. For some magical reason I set the alarm clock I don't use any more, and that woke me up at 7:55. I leave my house for work at 8:15. Whee fun! I tried to eat some toast, but it tasted awful to me. I kept trying to eat it though since I know I threw up what little I had for dinner and what I had for lunch (sorry tmi!) I gave up about 1/2 way through. ALLL day at work I felt hungover and yucky! Note to self; don't go to nijikais on school days! I also think I am going to stop after like one or two drinks. One sometimes just tastes really good, but lately anymore than that and I am frequently hungover the next day, not feeling well, and taking a really long time to feel better. Or maybe I have poor management/recognition of how the alcohol is affecting me. Not knowing my limit. Either way, drinking less is always a good thing. I have been slowly but surely doing that over the last two years here. Which also affects how much I can drink. I think I drink thinking I can handle it like I used to, but I can't =/ It makes me feel old haha! Especially when the prevailing culture/atmosphere is to drink lots. Not that I feel pressured to, just that it is there.
More and more looking like the Leeloo costume will be a no go. 1 the preliminary search for stuff is turning up nada, so even if there is more selection in Osaka, where I am going this weekend, I don't think I will be able to find everything. 2 is my comfortableness with it all. I kind of tried on some tight pant stuff... and yeah not totally comfortable with my body. So even if I DO manage to find gold leggings in Osaka, chances are I will be too self conscious =( I need a new idea stat!
Hmmmm now if I could just spend as much time writing/working on grad school stuff as I just did on this entry...
I think I am trying to write in here more since my main outlet of telling stuff is not really an option right now... complicatedness =/ But! I am doing ok.
Cheers!
My weekend was ok. I was pretty lazy on Saturday. On Sunday I was invited over to my adopted family's house for sushi making and a bbq. For that occasion and because it was their aniversary on Thursday, I made a cake. MAN BAKING IS SO EXPENSIVE IN JAPAN! Aahem. I made a lemon cake with lemon cream cheese frosting and blueberry/cranberry jam. I wanted raspberry jam, but they didn't have it at the store that I went to. I'm glad I went with the lemon icing, and had a sour jam. The cake itself was so so, but the icing/tartness really made it. I was also going to have whipped cream in there, but when I was making the whip cream, I mistook the salt on top of the oven for sugar... yeah had to dump that down the drain. I also learned how to make sushi. Or at least the rice seasoning and the easy rolling part. I'm sure getting all the pieces ready to put in the rolls takes the most time. I would have helped with that too, but Okaasan had that all ready when I got there.
More and more I am faced with the fact that my supervisor is a total space cadet. And it's not just a language thing... I have to work with her more, because one of the other English teachers is out on medical leave. She is often late for class, forgets to tell the students that class is all together (normally its split in half, but because the teacher is gone, it's together) and class planning, for material I have already taught with her last year, is super tedious and a test of patience. We finally got the sub teacher...it's not looking too good. He's old (nothing against old people I swear!) so I was a bit worried about his feelings/working ability with foreigners. Well at least he tried to speak to me in English at the English meeting (that was all in Japanese) and he seems friendly enough. However, his actual English ability leaves a lot to be desired. Very timid and doesn't get much out. Working with him will be interesting... The level of English is dropping rapidly at my school with that teacher out. I felt it was barely holding together when the best one left in April and they didn't replace him because of budget cuts.
Fun news with work is that I get to go to the pre-school next week! Yay! I might have said that before... haha. Today I did the mock class with the high school class I am going with. They were less than thrilled about it... haha but I know the little ones will have a blast and totally want to do the sounds and actions associated with the Halloween words I am teaching them ^_^ So basically next Tuesday I am going to be doing a lesson with 42 preschoolers AND 40 high schoolers o_0
We had an enkai (dinner/all you can drink dinner party) on Monday to celebrate our Archery team (actual archery not kyudo, the Japanese archery) being number one in all Japan (Wooo!) I wasn't going to go because I was feeling sort of sick, and it was a buffet, and last time that meant there wasn't very much for me to eat. However, I couldn't get out of it without paying, so I went. Yeah I think all I could eat was some salad (ie shredded cabbage), edamame and tiny finger sandwiches consisting of white bread, cucumber and paper slice of tomato. Annnd it was less than good beer by the pitcher. I guess from lack of actual food (I don't think I ate much for lunch either) the beer started to taste better the more I drank it, so that was a plus, though I know I didn't drink that much of it. The teachers I went with were going to the nijikai (second party) so I went to. It was to this tiny snack bar. And I use the term bar loosely since they had a choice of about 6 kinds of drinks; 2 whiskeys 3 bourbons and beer. Needless to say... I had beer. It was a nice kind of place I guess. Couches, snacks, karaoke, and all the glasses full of water with a finger or two of whiskey in them my teachers could drink (NOT actual short cocktail glasses but tall skinny ones to give you an idea of how much water) Really I never understand the Japanese saying they like whiskey, but in reality drink water lightly shot with it. I ended up sitting at the bar with one of the teachers and a bartender and we talked a bit and started playing this drinking game. I think that was my undoing, plus the fact that I haven't been drinking much lately since I just end up sick the next day (FORESHADOWING). It was actually a pretty fun game. Simple. It was a box with the numbers 1-9 like keys and you rolled the dice. You could flip either one of the numbers on the dice or the total. You had to take a drink if you were the last one who couldn't flip a number. At first it was just sips but then it turned into more and more and half the drink and then the last round where I had to drink all my drink, that happened to be full. I know I was drunk since I sang some karaoke... I think I danced along to thriller too... yeah...
Well good think I was fine when I was out. Went home soon after the last drink. As soon as I got home, all the drinking hit me. I remember most of what happened at the snack bar, but very little of the events at home. Like when I got in, how long I took a shower for, and how I got dressed for bed... yeah it was pretty bad. For some magical reason I set the alarm clock I don't use any more, and that woke me up at 7:55. I leave my house for work at 8:15. Whee fun! I tried to eat some toast, but it tasted awful to me. I kept trying to eat it though since I know I threw up what little I had for dinner and what I had for lunch (sorry tmi!) I gave up about 1/2 way through. ALLL day at work I felt hungover and yucky! Note to self; don't go to nijikais on school days! I also think I am going to stop after like one or two drinks. One sometimes just tastes really good, but lately anymore than that and I am frequently hungover the next day, not feeling well, and taking a really long time to feel better. Or maybe I have poor management/recognition of how the alcohol is affecting me. Not knowing my limit. Either way, drinking less is always a good thing. I have been slowly but surely doing that over the last two years here. Which also affects how much I can drink. I think I drink thinking I can handle it like I used to, but I can't =/ It makes me feel old haha! Especially when the prevailing culture/atmosphere is to drink lots. Not that I feel pressured to, just that it is there.
More and more looking like the Leeloo costume will be a no go. 1 the preliminary search for stuff is turning up nada, so even if there is more selection in Osaka, where I am going this weekend, I don't think I will be able to find everything. 2 is my comfortableness with it all. I kind of tried on some tight pant stuff... and yeah not totally comfortable with my body. So even if I DO manage to find gold leggings in Osaka, chances are I will be too self conscious =( I need a new idea stat!
Hmmmm now if I could just spend as much time writing/working on grad school stuff as I just did on this entry...
I think I am trying to write in here more since my main outlet of telling stuff is not really an option right now... complicatedness =/ But! I am doing ok.
Cheers!