The Chrysanthemum Journal, Issue #43
Greetings one and all. I am your humble scribe, Chad, returned once more to amuse and entertain you with tales of derring-do. This week's installment features such fascinating things as psychics, gypsies, and, of course, green paper. I can do you gypsies and green paper without the psychics, and I can do you green paper and psychics without the gypsies, and I can do you all three concurrent or consecutive, but I can't do you gypsies and psychics without the green paper. Green paper is compulsory; they're all green paper, you see.
(*gold star to the first to get the reference. Hint, I'm DYING to tell you, but I'm afraid I have to STOP(pard) myself.*)
As you no doubt have guessed, I have searched far and wide for tales that were worthy enough to lay before your eyes, o worthy readers. For as much as a writer expresses himself within his work, is it not true that we do not seek others to peruse and approve it? I await your comments yet again. And now, without further delay, on with the show!
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CHAD OF THE DELAYED BRUISING
A Lesson That Could Have Been Easily Avoided by the Appropriate Use of Common Sense
Written by
Life
Thanks to
Typical Male Pride, without which this story would not have been possible.
FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY
NIGHT. Out of the station, down the curving road. A group of young teens hangs out by the AM/PM. What seems to be a gathering of businessmen breaks up outside of the Yakiniku Shop. Down the street, we finally reach-
EXT. STREET, RAJU'S -- NIGHT
CHAD O'BRIEN stares at the remnants of his drink, pondering whether or not to order another. This is the second beer of the night. He catches, in the corner of his eye-
???
[Japanese]Ooooh, great jab. Now, more like this!
??? seems to have some skill at boxing, currently teaching the bar's owner a few tricks. For no apparent reason, Chad decides to have a go at it, having had a little bit of practice. As he approaches, RAJU steps to one side with a laugh.
???
[Japanese]You, too, huh? Okay, let's go!
Chad and ??? exchange blows with one another, though the advantage is clearly ???'s. What strikes Chad makes mostly land in non-critical areas. As this is simply a spar, there is no risk to either party. After a few minutes-
???
[Japanese]Hey, pretty good! You're a tough guy! None of that hurt at all?
CHAD
[Japanese]Nah, I'm just fine. You?
???
[Japanese]Great! How about this?
??? strikes a rather hard blow to Chad's gut. Chad doesn't react much. ??? continues to strike while Chad stands and allows it. The strikes become harder and harder with each volley.
???
[Japanese] Hah! I like this guy. But I guess I should stop. Karate strikes can be pretty serious, you know. I'm an INSTRUCTOR in Kyoto. You should drop by sometime. That really didn't hurt?
CHAD
[Japanese]It stings slightly, but I'm not complaining. Anyway, I'll see you next week. I have to catch my train!
They exchange farewells before Chad walks towards the station. Cut to-
INT. CHAD'S APARTMENT -- MORNING
The sun shines through the apartment window, illuminating the room, and Chad's sleeping body, curled up around a Totoro pillow. He stirs awake. Sits up-
CHAD
OW! WHY DID I DO THAT!
Chad continues to lie in bed, prodding at various bruises to see which ones hurt most.
FADE OUT.
CREDITS.
END.
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I was going to post something about voting here, but since I have a special trip in mind to go along with it, I'll hold off for now.
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Right now, my school is a week away from our Halloween party, and it seems that our bad luck is continuing. I'm not sure if the people at our school just don't like parties, or if they really are as busy as it sounds, but it seems ever time we set a party, even if it's more than a month and a half in advance, it's always too short notice and people have other things to do. I don't recall evr planning a month and a half in advance back in university. But, then again, I do make longer-term plans these days.
I am now beginning to wonder if it was a good idea to have the manager split the parties in two. While she originally wanted a party with kids/adults together, I wanted to split them. That way, we could entertain the kids with goofy songs and activities for an hour and a half, then the adults could come and not have to feel stresse about all the little ones running around, nor bored with all the lower-level games, etc. Now it seems like only 5 or so people are coming.
This is not, however, terrible. After all, last year's Christmas Party had only about 10 people, and it seems that there's going to be some of the older children as well (we counted the older children as adults for the sake of not boring them with the little ones' games as well).
Of course, Halloween is supposed to be all about the costumes. Unfortunately, I might end up havng to improvise. I had a grand scheme that relied upon my mother sending me a package from the States that I could modify to my liking. However, she sent that package on the 10th and, according to the USPS website, it has yet to leave the same post office it entered, let alone the country. I'm probably working myself up for nothing. I hear a lot about how the USPS is terrible at actually scanning packages (another package sent to me on the 14th says it hasn't even been received). But I do believe this is the longest I've waited for a package. Let's hope Murphy isn't standing in my way!
If you're waiting for me to tell you what my costume is, you'll have to wait until the pictures come out. Only a select few have heard it, as of now. And should any of you that know happen to spill the secret...well...I'm pretty sure nothing will happen, but I'll make D: faces at you. A LOT of D: faces.
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Recently, I had the good fortune to meet up with my former trainer while out in Yamashina (not the same night I got beaten up. I said good fortune). What's more, she introduced me to the Japanese teacher who had been working at my school just before the arrival of my first Japanese teacher. Considering all the good things I'd heard about her from not only the students but other teachers in the area, I'd been hoping to have the opportunity to run across her at one point. And I can see why everyone liked her! I still have yet to meet my predecessor, however.
The next day, there was to be a live performance starring one of my friends playing on the viola. Since it was actually down in Nara, this meant getting up pretty early in order to be able to get my shopping done and take a train. There seems to have been a miscommunication along the way, as I informed the person I was meeting that I'd arrive at 3:30. I got a call from my trainer asking where I was at around 2:30, and had to tell her the same thing. Fortunately, she and the others decided to wait for me (bless their hearts). I guess it's only natural that something involving Dave (my friend playing at the event) would mean someone was late.
So off we went to Nara, picking up one more person along the way, and actually running in to one of the ex-substitute teachers, as well! It's amazing that, given how many people live in Japan, I'm still able to come across people I know rather regularly. When we arrived, Dave and his companion were still playing, so we ended up staying outside listening to the last piece before popping in. There were 2 sets planned, with the same music for each, so we would simply relax and converse while waiting for the second. And that we did. There was dining involved, as well. Mmm, mole (oh right. It was a Mexican restaurant).
The music was certainly enjoyable. Dave fiddling on the viola, his friend banging on various kinds of hand drums, and people dancing in the small area in the front. They played many different kinds of ethnic music, from old Irish jigs to traditional gypsy tunes. Though I'd heard that Dave played the viola, I'd no idea he was up to that skill level. Later, when I heard him talking to his companion about different scales, I knew I'd been away from proper music study for far too long.
After the music, there was more wining, dining, and discussion, as everyone pretty much just enjoyed the evening. At one point, I excused myself to go on a walk. Something I enjoy doing whenever I find myself in a remote area is to go out in the dark to, first of all, scare my endorphines out of hiding, and second, to find the highest, best place to get an overview of the land. Sometimes the two go hand in hand. Others, I have to search for the first before going after the latter. This place was the second kind. Since there was a lot of farmland and abandoned looking buildings in the area, however, it wasn't too difficult to find places to put a bit of fright in the evening. Why do I do it? Because fear fascinates me. I'm not a thrill-seeker, but if there's a chance to get goosebumps, I'm up for it.
I did end up finding a pretty spectacle after climbing up a few roads, but as I had forgotten my camera, it was impossible for me to take a good shot. On my way back down, I wound up finding a perfect scare spot...a long tunnel of hedges leading to a shrine. Of course, in the daylight, I would have thought it quite lovely, but I could only imagine zombies and lurking shadows as I creeped along to the temple beyond. Not wanting to disturb any residents, living or dead, I simply took a quick look around and retreated to the restaurant.
After consumables had been consumed and bills had been paid, the majority of us were on to the next venue. Having planned to go to Yamashina again, I was looking forward to more kebabs, but we instead ended up in Okubo on the request of one of our group. That ended up being a nice move, though the bar we wound up in had absolutely no ventilation, I'm sure. Given that most of the people in the room were smokers, it was not the proper environment for me, so I ended up spending the last 20 minutes or so outside reading. Thank goodness for the Kindle. After that, it was pretty late, so I went back home, leaving the others to travel wherever they pleased.
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There are those that say planning ahead for an event makes people more willing to come. Well, I'd had a plan to go to USJ in the making for quite some time. About 3 weeks or more. I even had other people asking around for me. But in the end, the only people to come were those I'd entrusted to talk to others about it, and 1 other. Ah well, I'd even prepared for the possibility of there being just 2 people.
Arriving at the station about 10 minutes early, I decided to look around the shops near the entrance, and found myself a small little arcade with a wonderful-looking Xenomorph figure in a special crane game variant. You control a small cylindrical rod and try to position it (first left to right, then front to back) so that when you release the second button, it enters a hole in the playing field. When it does, it releases the lock on one of the rear shelving units, causing the prize to drop. So I shoved my 200 yen in, and missed the target.
I was frankly surrised at the machine's honesty. Usually when I get the rod positioned perfectly over the hole and release the button, the rod travels back another half second or so, causing me to miss. If I release before the hole,it drops immediately. So I'd tried to catch this one off guard, and released a hair of a second early...and it dropped immediately! Well, if it was going to be honest, this would be easy! Another 200 yen...move right...go back...and in! So I won my prize. The box itself was rather bulky, but that was alright. I went to go watch a monkey show before my friends arrived.
Once they did, we all proceeded to lunch, splitting paths so that my companions could get takoyaki and I wound up at McDonald's. I'm not a big fan of takoyaki xcept in very rare cases, and especially when they're covered in green onions, it simply isn't appetizing to me. We ate lunch in the main courtyard between the park and the park's downtown area, giving each other philosophical quizzes, discussing plans for the future, etc. And in we went. We did take some time before really getting o enjoy the park as my companions had decided to get year-long passes to the park. Having only been to the park twice in two years, I figured that a regular pass would be good enough for me.
It wasn't nearly as crowded as I was told it might be. Given that it was such a beautiful day, and a Sunday, and not too hot or cold to be outdoors for long periods, I worried that there would be huge lines everywhere. In fact, it was the opposite. All of the lines for the same rides I went on as last time were much, much shorter. Sometimes by as much as half. My guess is that everyone had already gone the previous weekend, which saw a national holiday on a Monday, so more people were probably willing to make the trip out there.
Of course, every trip starts with Spider-Man: The Ride. As we were all sitting in front, we didn't get to see Spidey sitting on anyone's head, but c'est la vie. Then we proceeded to Back to the Future, a classic favorite. After that, it was Jurassic Park. We insisted that we get to sit up front, but the park attendant wasn't sure we'd all be able to fit there, so we split up, two in the front row, and two behind. Since it was the first time for two of our ranks, we let them go in front. Being in the second row turned out to be quite a nice decision, as we missed all the water spray from the Dilophosaurus, and were in the perfect position for avoiding too much soaking from splash-down, which is more than I can say for our front-row companions. Next time, use the ponchos. We didn't really help the situation by riding on Jaws afterwards, but atleast that doesn't have huge soaking action. The attendant at Jaws was pretty bad, sometimes shooting as many as 5 seconds before the sound effect/water burst went off. We also tried to go on the Hollywood Dream roller coaster, but, once again, my size prevented entry. Maybe one day. But that was it as far as rides go.
Universal Studios isn't simply about rides, though. We also took in a few shows. While my companions were getting their yealy passes, I ended up watching a bit of some show about white lions searching for the meaning of The Cradle of Life. Sounds a little familiar to me, but I'll leave it at that. We also caught the Rock n' Roll Horror Show, which ended up being hilarious for several reasons. For one, Beetlejuice was the only person speaking in Japanese. All of the other cast members were foreigners and were speaking English, both in singing and in dialogue (though there wasn't much dialogue to go around). Second was the introduction of their monsters, in which they had a black Dracula. All of us immeiately started calling him Blacula. Third were their new characters, Hip and Hop, who weren't monsters at all and made me wonder why they were even included. The other show we took in was the Peter Pan Wonderland thing. We had eaten dinner beforehand at MOS Burger, so all fueled up and ready to go, I went to get some seats while the others went to ride the E.T. Ride. I passed since I thought there'd be no way to make it back in time to watch the show. I was wrong. I also learned that Japanese people don't typically stand to watch the shows, which I thought was kind of odd.
With all of our riding and viewing finished, it was time for some last-minute shopping before we proceeded out the gate and bid a fond farewell to USJ. Perhaps one day we shall meet again, but that day is not on the near horizon.
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And with that, it looks like it's going to be a relaxing few weeks ahead, with the exception of next Sunday due to my Halloween party. But I'm sure that'll be a lot of fun.
Speaking of work, there's a bit of exciting news on that front. I was promoted yet again, to the position of Area Leader. Like my position as GIEA Leader, this means that I will be calling schools and keeping track of results, though these are more business-related and not overseas counseling-related. However, I'm now more focused, having gone down from 30+ schools to about 7, including my own. This allows me to pay more attention to the schools and really be able to help them out a lot more.
I was happy to end my stint as the GIEA Leader with a bang. We recently had a campaign to get students interested in traveling abroad, which meant I was calling, on average, 7 schools a week (sometimes 10 or more) just to make sure they're talking to the right people, using the right approaches, etc. On our end, our school ended up with 6 students coming to overseas counseling and 1 of them signed up. In my area, 4 schools made their goal (goals were based on both how many students came to sessions and how many signed up, so unfortunately I missed the goal), and together with the other GIEA Leader, our area of the country got more referrals and sign-ups than any other, plus we came in second place (percentage-wise) in the goals. But now that's over and done with, as I've passed the torch.
Interestingly, the person to whom I passed it is in my area. I was actually asked who I wanted to take over for me, and just as I'd planned to call my supervisor to give my decision, I found that she'd been promoted to an Area Leader in a different zone. No worries, as I had a second person in mind for the spot. So I was about to call my supervisor again, and I find that she'd already been given the position. I swear that this company has mind readers on the payroll, and they must simply have been poring through my thoughts at the time.
And so, since this Tuesday, I've taken over, for now gathering reports and making a few phone calls. It seems that I've assumed the position at a rather busy time. The schools are going through a few campaigns/sales at the moment that I need to make sure everyone is up to speed on. The bigger points of import are the counseling and the book sale. These two go hand-in-hand about every six months. For counseling, we fill out some green forms to tell the students how well they've been doing. This is supposed to be more formal than our little mini-counseling sessions we do every month or so. It's really nice to see students improving, watching them achieve their goals and set new ones, etc. At the end, we recommend a few books, as most of them are on sale. It's really great to see students doing their homework, looking forward to their next book, etc. I actually managed to take the top native teacher position in our region (though since Japanese teachers took the top 11, that amounted to 12th in the end). I hear from the last area leader that our area usually does pretty well, so I'm hoping to get a lot of motivation going among the teachers. Wish me luck!
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And so we come to the end of yet another series of fantastic tales. What shall we learn in the future, dear reader? Will Chad's costume arrive in time for the party, or shall he be forced to wrap himself in toilet paper and go as a mummy? Will his campaign succeed beyond his wildest expectations? You'll have to read the next issue to find out. But make sure you check the photos!
Universal Studios Trip - http://picasaweb.google.co.jp/pigonjinn/UniversalStudios#
(*gold star to the first to get the reference. Hint, I'm DYING to tell you, but I'm afraid I have to STOP(pard) myself.*)
As you no doubt have guessed, I have searched far and wide for tales that were worthy enough to lay before your eyes, o worthy readers. For as much as a writer expresses himself within his work, is it not true that we do not seek others to peruse and approve it? I await your comments yet again. And now, without further delay, on with the show!
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-
CHAD OF THE DELAYED BRUISING
A Lesson That Could Have Been Easily Avoided by the Appropriate Use of Common Sense
Written by
Life
Thanks to
Typical Male Pride, without which this story would not have been possible.
FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY
NIGHT. Out of the station, down the curving road. A group of young teens hangs out by the AM/PM. What seems to be a gathering of businessmen breaks up outside of the Yakiniku Shop. Down the street, we finally reach-
EXT. STREET, RAJU'S -- NIGHT
CHAD O'BRIEN stares at the remnants of his drink, pondering whether or not to order another. This is the second beer of the night. He catches, in the corner of his eye-
???
[Japanese]Ooooh, great jab. Now, more like this!
??? seems to have some skill at boxing, currently teaching the bar's owner a few tricks. For no apparent reason, Chad decides to have a go at it, having had a little bit of practice. As he approaches, RAJU steps to one side with a laugh.
???
[Japanese]You, too, huh? Okay, let's go!
Chad and ??? exchange blows with one another, though the advantage is clearly ???'s. What strikes Chad makes mostly land in non-critical areas. As this is simply a spar, there is no risk to either party. After a few minutes-
???
[Japanese]Hey, pretty good! You're a tough guy! None of that hurt at all?
CHAD
[Japanese]Nah, I'm just fine. You?
???
[Japanese]Great! How about this?
??? strikes a rather hard blow to Chad's gut. Chad doesn't react much. ??? continues to strike while Chad stands and allows it. The strikes become harder and harder with each volley.
???
[Japanese] Hah! I like this guy. But I guess I should stop. Karate strikes can be pretty serious, you know. I'm an INSTRUCTOR in Kyoto. You should drop by sometime. That really didn't hurt?
CHAD
[Japanese]It stings slightly, but I'm not complaining. Anyway, I'll see you next week. I have to catch my train!
They exchange farewells before Chad walks towards the station. Cut to-
INT. CHAD'S APARTMENT -- MORNING
The sun shines through the apartment window, illuminating the room, and Chad's sleeping body, curled up around a Totoro pillow. He stirs awake. Sits up-
CHAD
OW! WHY DID I DO THAT!
Chad continues to lie in bed, prodding at various bruises to see which ones hurt most.
FADE OUT.
CREDITS.
END.
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I was going to post something about voting here, but since I have a special trip in mind to go along with it, I'll hold off for now.
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Right now, my school is a week away from our Halloween party, and it seems that our bad luck is continuing. I'm not sure if the people at our school just don't like parties, or if they really are as busy as it sounds, but it seems ever time we set a party, even if it's more than a month and a half in advance, it's always too short notice and people have other things to do. I don't recall evr planning a month and a half in advance back in university. But, then again, I do make longer-term plans these days.
I am now beginning to wonder if it was a good idea to have the manager split the parties in two. While she originally wanted a party with kids/adults together, I wanted to split them. That way, we could entertain the kids with goofy songs and activities for an hour and a half, then the adults could come and not have to feel stresse about all the little ones running around, nor bored with all the lower-level games, etc. Now it seems like only 5 or so people are coming.
This is not, however, terrible. After all, last year's Christmas Party had only about 10 people, and it seems that there's going to be some of the older children as well (we counted the older children as adults for the sake of not boring them with the little ones' games as well).
Of course, Halloween is supposed to be all about the costumes. Unfortunately, I might end up havng to improvise. I had a grand scheme that relied upon my mother sending me a package from the States that I could modify to my liking. However, she sent that package on the 10th and, according to the USPS website, it has yet to leave the same post office it entered, let alone the country. I'm probably working myself up for nothing. I hear a lot about how the USPS is terrible at actually scanning packages (another package sent to me on the 14th says it hasn't even been received). But I do believe this is the longest I've waited for a package. Let's hope Murphy isn't standing in my way!
If you're waiting for me to tell you what my costume is, you'll have to wait until the pictures come out. Only a select few have heard it, as of now. And should any of you that know happen to spill the secret...well...I'm pretty sure nothing will happen, but I'll make D: faces at you. A LOT of D: faces.
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Recently, I had the good fortune to meet up with my former trainer while out in Yamashina (not the same night I got beaten up. I said good fortune). What's more, she introduced me to the Japanese teacher who had been working at my school just before the arrival of my first Japanese teacher. Considering all the good things I'd heard about her from not only the students but other teachers in the area, I'd been hoping to have the opportunity to run across her at one point. And I can see why everyone liked her! I still have yet to meet my predecessor, however.
The next day, there was to be a live performance starring one of my friends playing on the viola. Since it was actually down in Nara, this meant getting up pretty early in order to be able to get my shopping done and take a train. There seems to have been a miscommunication along the way, as I informed the person I was meeting that I'd arrive at 3:30. I got a call from my trainer asking where I was at around 2:30, and had to tell her the same thing. Fortunately, she and the others decided to wait for me (bless their hearts). I guess it's only natural that something involving Dave (my friend playing at the event) would mean someone was late.
So off we went to Nara, picking up one more person along the way, and actually running in to one of the ex-substitute teachers, as well! It's amazing that, given how many people live in Japan, I'm still able to come across people I know rather regularly. When we arrived, Dave and his companion were still playing, so we ended up staying outside listening to the last piece before popping in. There were 2 sets planned, with the same music for each, so we would simply relax and converse while waiting for the second. And that we did. There was dining involved, as well. Mmm, mole (oh right. It was a Mexican restaurant).
The music was certainly enjoyable. Dave fiddling on the viola, his friend banging on various kinds of hand drums, and people dancing in the small area in the front. They played many different kinds of ethnic music, from old Irish jigs to traditional gypsy tunes. Though I'd heard that Dave played the viola, I'd no idea he was up to that skill level. Later, when I heard him talking to his companion about different scales, I knew I'd been away from proper music study for far too long.
After the music, there was more wining, dining, and discussion, as everyone pretty much just enjoyed the evening. At one point, I excused myself to go on a walk. Something I enjoy doing whenever I find myself in a remote area is to go out in the dark to, first of all, scare my endorphines out of hiding, and second, to find the highest, best place to get an overview of the land. Sometimes the two go hand in hand. Others, I have to search for the first before going after the latter. This place was the second kind. Since there was a lot of farmland and abandoned looking buildings in the area, however, it wasn't too difficult to find places to put a bit of fright in the evening. Why do I do it? Because fear fascinates me. I'm not a thrill-seeker, but if there's a chance to get goosebumps, I'm up for it.
I did end up finding a pretty spectacle after climbing up a few roads, but as I had forgotten my camera, it was impossible for me to take a good shot. On my way back down, I wound up finding a perfect scare spot...a long tunnel of hedges leading to a shrine. Of course, in the daylight, I would have thought it quite lovely, but I could only imagine zombies and lurking shadows as I creeped along to the temple beyond. Not wanting to disturb any residents, living or dead, I simply took a quick look around and retreated to the restaurant.
After consumables had been consumed and bills had been paid, the majority of us were on to the next venue. Having planned to go to Yamashina again, I was looking forward to more kebabs, but we instead ended up in Okubo on the request of one of our group. That ended up being a nice move, though the bar we wound up in had absolutely no ventilation, I'm sure. Given that most of the people in the room were smokers, it was not the proper environment for me, so I ended up spending the last 20 minutes or so outside reading. Thank goodness for the Kindle. After that, it was pretty late, so I went back home, leaving the others to travel wherever they pleased.
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There are those that say planning ahead for an event makes people more willing to come. Well, I'd had a plan to go to USJ in the making for quite some time. About 3 weeks or more. I even had other people asking around for me. But in the end, the only people to come were those I'd entrusted to talk to others about it, and 1 other. Ah well, I'd even prepared for the possibility of there being just 2 people.
Arriving at the station about 10 minutes early, I decided to look around the shops near the entrance, and found myself a small little arcade with a wonderful-looking Xenomorph figure in a special crane game variant. You control a small cylindrical rod and try to position it (first left to right, then front to back) so that when you release the second button, it enters a hole in the playing field. When it does, it releases the lock on one of the rear shelving units, causing the prize to drop. So I shoved my 200 yen in, and missed the target.
I was frankly surrised at the machine's honesty. Usually when I get the rod positioned perfectly over the hole and release the button, the rod travels back another half second or so, causing me to miss. If I release before the hole,it drops immediately. So I'd tried to catch this one off guard, and released a hair of a second early...and it dropped immediately! Well, if it was going to be honest, this would be easy! Another 200 yen...move right...go back...and in! So I won my prize. The box itself was rather bulky, but that was alright. I went to go watch a monkey show before my friends arrived.
Once they did, we all proceeded to lunch, splitting paths so that my companions could get takoyaki and I wound up at McDonald's. I'm not a big fan of takoyaki xcept in very rare cases, and especially when they're covered in green onions, it simply isn't appetizing to me. We ate lunch in the main courtyard between the park and the park's downtown area, giving each other philosophical quizzes, discussing plans for the future, etc. And in we went. We did take some time before really getting o enjoy the park as my companions had decided to get year-long passes to the park. Having only been to the park twice in two years, I figured that a regular pass would be good enough for me.
It wasn't nearly as crowded as I was told it might be. Given that it was such a beautiful day, and a Sunday, and not too hot or cold to be outdoors for long periods, I worried that there would be huge lines everywhere. In fact, it was the opposite. All of the lines for the same rides I went on as last time were much, much shorter. Sometimes by as much as half. My guess is that everyone had already gone the previous weekend, which saw a national holiday on a Monday, so more people were probably willing to make the trip out there.
Of course, every trip starts with Spider-Man: The Ride. As we were all sitting in front, we didn't get to see Spidey sitting on anyone's head, but c'est la vie. Then we proceeded to Back to the Future, a classic favorite. After that, it was Jurassic Park. We insisted that we get to sit up front, but the park attendant wasn't sure we'd all be able to fit there, so we split up, two in the front row, and two behind. Since it was the first time for two of our ranks, we let them go in front. Being in the second row turned out to be quite a nice decision, as we missed all the water spray from the Dilophosaurus, and were in the perfect position for avoiding too much soaking from splash-down, which is more than I can say for our front-row companions. Next time, use the ponchos. We didn't really help the situation by riding on Jaws afterwards, but atleast that doesn't have huge soaking action. The attendant at Jaws was pretty bad, sometimes shooting as many as 5 seconds before the sound effect/water burst went off. We also tried to go on the Hollywood Dream roller coaster, but, once again, my size prevented entry. Maybe one day. But that was it as far as rides go.
Universal Studios isn't simply about rides, though. We also took in a few shows. While my companions were getting their yealy passes, I ended up watching a bit of some show about white lions searching for the meaning of The Cradle of Life. Sounds a little familiar to me, but I'll leave it at that. We also caught the Rock n' Roll Horror Show, which ended up being hilarious for several reasons. For one, Beetlejuice was the only person speaking in Japanese. All of the other cast members were foreigners and were speaking English, both in singing and in dialogue (though there wasn't much dialogue to go around). Second was the introduction of their monsters, in which they had a black Dracula. All of us immeiately started calling him Blacula. Third were their new characters, Hip and Hop, who weren't monsters at all and made me wonder why they were even included. The other show we took in was the Peter Pan Wonderland thing. We had eaten dinner beforehand at MOS Burger, so all fueled up and ready to go, I went to get some seats while the others went to ride the E.T. Ride. I passed since I thought there'd be no way to make it back in time to watch the show. I was wrong. I also learned that Japanese people don't typically stand to watch the shows, which I thought was kind of odd.
With all of our riding and viewing finished, it was time for some last-minute shopping before we proceeded out the gate and bid a fond farewell to USJ. Perhaps one day we shall meet again, but that day is not on the near horizon.
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And with that, it looks like it's going to be a relaxing few weeks ahead, with the exception of next Sunday due to my Halloween party. But I'm sure that'll be a lot of fun.
Speaking of work, there's a bit of exciting news on that front. I was promoted yet again, to the position of Area Leader. Like my position as GIEA Leader, this means that I will be calling schools and keeping track of results, though these are more business-related and not overseas counseling-related. However, I'm now more focused, having gone down from 30+ schools to about 7, including my own. This allows me to pay more attention to the schools and really be able to help them out a lot more.
I was happy to end my stint as the GIEA Leader with a bang. We recently had a campaign to get students interested in traveling abroad, which meant I was calling, on average, 7 schools a week (sometimes 10 or more) just to make sure they're talking to the right people, using the right approaches, etc. On our end, our school ended up with 6 students coming to overseas counseling and 1 of them signed up. In my area, 4 schools made their goal (goals were based on both how many students came to sessions and how many signed up, so unfortunately I missed the goal), and together with the other GIEA Leader, our area of the country got more referrals and sign-ups than any other, plus we came in second place (percentage-wise) in the goals. But now that's over and done with, as I've passed the torch.
Interestingly, the person to whom I passed it is in my area. I was actually asked who I wanted to take over for me, and just as I'd planned to call my supervisor to give my decision, I found that she'd been promoted to an Area Leader in a different zone. No worries, as I had a second person in mind for the spot. So I was about to call my supervisor again, and I find that she'd already been given the position. I swear that this company has mind readers on the payroll, and they must simply have been poring through my thoughts at the time.
And so, since this Tuesday, I've taken over, for now gathering reports and making a few phone calls. It seems that I've assumed the position at a rather busy time. The schools are going through a few campaigns/sales at the moment that I need to make sure everyone is up to speed on. The bigger points of import are the counseling and the book sale. These two go hand-in-hand about every six months. For counseling, we fill out some green forms to tell the students how well they've been doing. This is supposed to be more formal than our little mini-counseling sessions we do every month or so. It's really nice to see students improving, watching them achieve their goals and set new ones, etc. At the end, we recommend a few books, as most of them are on sale. It's really great to see students doing their homework, looking forward to their next book, etc. I actually managed to take the top native teacher position in our region (though since Japanese teachers took the top 11, that amounted to 12th in the end). I hear from the last area leader that our area usually does pretty well, so I'm hoping to get a lot of motivation going among the teachers. Wish me luck!
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And so we come to the end of yet another series of fantastic tales. What shall we learn in the future, dear reader? Will Chad's costume arrive in time for the party, or shall he be forced to wrap himself in toilet paper and go as a mummy? Will his campaign succeed beyond his wildest expectations? You'll have to read the next issue to find out. But make sure you check the photos!
Universal Studios Trip - http://picasaweb.google.co.jp/pigonjinn/UniversalStudios#