Switches, Twitches, and Tampopos
Ok. I'm gonna try to do this as painlessly as possible, hopefully in such a fashion that I don't end this post feeling quite as behind as I am.
General Update on JET life:
So as far as life as a teacher goes, ya'll haven't actually missed much since my last post (way the hell back in...January?), due to the fact that the Japanese school year ends in March. This means my 3rd year JH kids have been hard at work on an endless string of practice tests, and everyone else is wrapped up in review and studying for exams. There have been extra assemblies, etc. that have cut into class time, and in the instance of our beloved Kanita, a schedule-maker who STILL can't seem to get it through his head that I am just not there until 9 am (meaning I miss first period, which is when he tends to schedule English class). I've been spending a good many days sitting at my desk busying myself with...pretty much anything I want, whether it be reading a book, writing a book, drawing a book, or just lookin' at a book after having exhausted my drive for the other 3. Books and writing have become the focus of my attention of late. Then why, you might ask, have I gone MIA blog-wise over these last months? I'd love to bs an excuse to you. Really, I would. But in my last post, I promised no more excuses, so you'll all just have to be content that I'm back...at least for the time being. ;)
I'm still consistently denied access to anything work-related outside of class, which is rather a pity, since I've found that (on the 3 occasions I've been allowed to try it) I actually like grading. :O Perhaps because I'm just that destined to be a teacher. Or, more likely, perhaps because correcting the sentence, "paul are a ball throw in the park" gives me a false sense of intelligence. But despite my lack of job-related things to do, this time of work famine isn't as painful as those first few months. I guess back then I was still unsure of where I stood in my respective schools. Now I've felt out the territory enough to understand that, when I have only 2 classes in a WEEK (yes, this is still happening--last week in Kanita, I had NO classes) it's not going to offend anybody or break any rules if I do my own thing the rest of the time. That's my inner slacker showing through. ;)
Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes!:
The JH schools actually had their graduation ceremonies yesterday, so my 3rd years are gone. ;_; Sad! I liked my 3rd years! They had the best English (obviously) and probably the most personality. With the rest of them went Kayoko from Tairadate, the girl I coached for the speech contest, and Sho, aka "Michael," the ace troublemaker in Kanita who seems to make every teacher twitch as he saunters by (I love that kid ;). But the new year is going to bring a lot of change. I can't remember if I wrote this in my last post, but I've been told that *maybe* my JTEs (Japanese Teachers of English) might be *maybe* moving to *maybe* a new school *maybe* that would mean a replacement *maybe* for *maybe* all of them in April...*maybe.* After all the *maybe*ing, I've come to suspect that their version of *maybe* may be closer to *probably.* Indeed, the Japanese word for "maybe" ("tabun") can actually mean either maybe or probably... They certainly seem to expect a post change, anyway. The point is, I think the people I teach English with will be changing in April. I already know the woman I work with in Kanita is quitting and heading down to Sendai to be with her new hubby that she married in December without bothering to announce it to anyone she didn't have to (the perks of working in the BOE shine through for gossip, anyway). That leaves Tsuruya-sensei and He-sensei. If Tsuruya-sensei leaves, I will be much of the sad. Not just because he's a fun guy to work with, but because his family would obviously be moving with him, and altogether it'd mean I'm losing a coworker, 2 students, and just a bunch of awesome neighbors. He's got 2 sons in the elementary school (two more opposite brothers there NEVER have been) and a really awesome wife who drops by every now and then to give me food or chat. I'll be sad if she goes. ;_; He-sensei, on the other hand, can drop off the face of the planet, for all I care. In fact, I'd prefer it that way. Needless to say, I'm looking forward to the coming April in Kanita. It can't possibly get worse than it is now, anyway. ;) It'll be really good to get some new exposure to JTEs. I'm still trying to make this "teaching English in Japan" thing a long-term career move, so the more experience, the better. ^_^
Ummmmmm...what else... Meh. Let's just move on.
Winter Schminter:
This has to have been the warmest Aomori winter on record. At least for the last 70 years or so. When you've got the ____est anything of the last 70ish years, that means it's damn ____. And since this was a damn warm winter, I'm gonna generate the statistic that this is the warmest Aomori winter in 70 years. Tell your friends. lol
Seriously, I think the highest the snow actually piled up on its own was about a foot, which should be impressive to a Floridian, but actually isn't, considering I'm a Floridian who was expecting approx. 20x that much. I kept waiting for February to get my snow fix. Everyone kept saying that was the month to look out for. I'd talk about my boots that could withstand up to -100 degrees, and I'd get "Oh, you'll need those in February!" I'd get instruction for how to flush out the pipes so they didn't freeze in February. I got my windows boarded up to keep the glass from breaking against the crazy February snow pileage. And then we got all through January, and there was so little snow, and what there was melted so freely, that the worst part about winter was the ice. I hate ice. I knew I hated ice before I got here. Now it's confirmed. I hate skating on it. I hate how it waters down my drinks. I hate that it sticks to your fingers. I hate that it makes you slip and fall no matter how carefully you're walking, so that you do the most ungraceful swan-in-distress dive of your life, right before the eyes of some guy across the street who looked up from his car just in time to see the gaijin fall on her ass...not that anything like that happened to me. *ahem* Ice sucks.
Most people seemed to enjoy a break from the supposed heavy snow of normal winters, but this year was not without its consequences. The slopes have been touch-and go, and the festivals have certainly suffered. A few weeks ago, two of the women teachers from Tairadate JH invited me to go to the snow festival in Hirosaki--an invitation that I readily accepted in light of the fact that I couldn't make it up to Hokkaido for the bigger version this year. Well, where there were, on any other year for the past 70 years (plus or minus), normally massive statues, even life-sized buildings carved from ice and snow for spectators to see, there were instead drippy, deformed snowmen looking particularly sad about the winter's lack of winteryness. Below our feet was slush, and in the air was cold without the charm of frozen precipitation. *sigh*
So January came to an end, and I was grossly skeptical of the reports. On January 31st, the streets were dry, and I was considering pulling my bike out of the shed. On February 1st, it snowed like none other. Right on schedule. I thought it was hilarious. The snow piled back up to its foot mark, falling straight for 3 days before stopping abruptly and bringing back the ice. Then the ice melted almost completely and for a couple weeks, everyone was saying that had to be it for winter. It was just going to be an early spring. I was at Tairadate elementary one day when Seki-sensei said so to me. Then the vice principal, who had stepped outside to smoke, suddenly cried out and disappeared behind a wall. A few seconds later, from his hiding place, he announced, "Tampopo!" The rest of the teaching staff jumped up and rushed outside with shouts of disbelief. Unsure quite what a "tampopo" was, I remained seated. A few minutes later, Seki-sensei came back inside and worked me through the series of events in broken verbal translation and heavy charades. "Lion" became the consistent clue. I don't know why people here can't just give me the basic root of the convo and then work from there. She could have said "flower" and I probably would have caught on quicker. Anyway, what the VP found was a blooming dandelion (dandelion = tampopo), which aren't supposed to appear here until May. Truly, spring had arrived.
Over the next few days, I really did start using my bike again, and it was a great thing to be able to wake up those few minutes later because I could get to work that much faster. Neither of my Tairadate schools are particularly far away, but walking to them in the cold isn't a quick business, to be sure. Then this last Monday, it warmed up enough to pour down rain all day and flush out many-a-worm onto the pavement.
This morning we had a blizzard.
So in conclusion, I don't know what the hell is up with Aomori winters. The good news is that I've been told a warm winter makes for a cool summer. I don't know why I keep believing what I've been told, after all this, but I'll take blind hope for a cool winter over the dismal memory of last summer's oppressive, buggy heat. Last summer was (if these Aomorians can truly be believed) uncharacteristically hot. All I can say is that this summer had better be uncharacteristically cool, after this disappointing winter I've sat through. I'm sure next winter will be a snow white hell, anyway. ^_^
Other News:
Ummm...I'm not sure there's really that much left to report. The biggest development of late is that I've resolved to get writing more seriously. I've set a goal to get a novel done by the end of the year so I can maybe go to a writer's conference in Canada. So far, the biggest hurdle to that is bullying my supervisor into letting me have the days off. So far so good for the writing. Maeda-san's gonna need a little more work, but hell...I'm bigger than him. ;)
I've gotten better at cooking. For myself, that is. I'm branching away from the college rut of eating anything that isn't a week past its exp. date or dripping with something I wish I hadn't poured, sprinkled, or slathered on. I still take free food, of course...gonna take a long time to kick that habit. ;) No more kitchen adventures with Wakana-san lately, since I haven't had too many days at Tairadate elementary, but I'm thinking about what to do next. Ah. Which reminds me. Does anyone have a good pretzel recipe? I can find them on the internet, but I'm wondering if anyone's got a tried and tested method. Pretzels are a rare thing in Japan, usually liked by those who try them, and almost unheard of in the big, soft variety. I think they'd be fun and *maybe* easy to make. ;) If anyone's got an idea, drop me a comment to this post, if you would (link for commenting--"post"--is at the bottom of this entry to the right, remember...I know it's been a while ;).
Well, that should about wrap it up. L8r all! ^_^
General Update on JET life:
So as far as life as a teacher goes, ya'll haven't actually missed much since my last post (way the hell back in...January?), due to the fact that the Japanese school year ends in March. This means my 3rd year JH kids have been hard at work on an endless string of practice tests, and everyone else is wrapped up in review and studying for exams. There have been extra assemblies, etc. that have cut into class time, and in the instance of our beloved Kanita, a schedule-maker who STILL can't seem to get it through his head that I am just not there until 9 am (meaning I miss first period, which is when he tends to schedule English class). I've been spending a good many days sitting at my desk busying myself with...pretty much anything I want, whether it be reading a book, writing a book, drawing a book, or just lookin' at a book after having exhausted my drive for the other 3. Books and writing have become the focus of my attention of late. Then why, you might ask, have I gone MIA blog-wise over these last months? I'd love to bs an excuse to you. Really, I would. But in my last post, I promised no more excuses, so you'll all just have to be content that I'm back...at least for the time being. ;)
I'm still consistently denied access to anything work-related outside of class, which is rather a pity, since I've found that (on the 3 occasions I've been allowed to try it) I actually like grading. :O Perhaps because I'm just that destined to be a teacher. Or, more likely, perhaps because correcting the sentence, "paul are a ball throw in the park" gives me a false sense of intelligence. But despite my lack of job-related things to do, this time of work famine isn't as painful as those first few months. I guess back then I was still unsure of where I stood in my respective schools. Now I've felt out the territory enough to understand that, when I have only 2 classes in a WEEK (yes, this is still happening--last week in Kanita, I had NO classes) it's not going to offend anybody or break any rules if I do my own thing the rest of the time. That's my inner slacker showing through. ;)
Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes!:
The JH schools actually had their graduation ceremonies yesterday, so my 3rd years are gone. ;_; Sad! I liked my 3rd years! They had the best English (obviously) and probably the most personality. With the rest of them went Kayoko from Tairadate, the girl I coached for the speech contest, and Sho, aka "Michael," the ace troublemaker in Kanita who seems to make every teacher twitch as he saunters by (I love that kid ;). But the new year is going to bring a lot of change. I can't remember if I wrote this in my last post, but I've been told that *maybe* my JTEs (Japanese Teachers of English) might be *maybe* moving to *maybe* a new school *maybe* that would mean a replacement *maybe* for *maybe* all of them in April...*maybe.* After all the *maybe*ing, I've come to suspect that their version of *maybe* may be closer to *probably.* Indeed, the Japanese word for "maybe" ("tabun") can actually mean either maybe or probably... They certainly seem to expect a post change, anyway. The point is, I think the people I teach English with will be changing in April. I already know the woman I work with in Kanita is quitting and heading down to Sendai to be with her new hubby that she married in December without bothering to announce it to anyone she didn't have to (the perks of working in the BOE shine through for gossip, anyway). That leaves Tsuruya-sensei and He-sensei. If Tsuruya-sensei leaves, I will be much of the sad. Not just because he's a fun guy to work with, but because his family would obviously be moving with him, and altogether it'd mean I'm losing a coworker, 2 students, and just a bunch of awesome neighbors. He's got 2 sons in the elementary school (two more opposite brothers there NEVER have been) and a really awesome wife who drops by every now and then to give me food or chat. I'll be sad if she goes. ;_; He-sensei, on the other hand, can drop off the face of the planet, for all I care. In fact, I'd prefer it that way. Needless to say, I'm looking forward to the coming April in Kanita. It can't possibly get worse than it is now, anyway. ;) It'll be really good to get some new exposure to JTEs. I'm still trying to make this "teaching English in Japan" thing a long-term career move, so the more experience, the better. ^_^
Ummmmmm...what else... Meh. Let's just move on.
Winter Schminter:
This has to have been the warmest Aomori winter on record. At least for the last 70 years or so. When you've got the ____est anything of the last 70ish years, that means it's damn ____. And since this was a damn warm winter, I'm gonna generate the statistic that this is the warmest Aomori winter in 70 years. Tell your friends. lol
Seriously, I think the highest the snow actually piled up on its own was about a foot, which should be impressive to a Floridian, but actually isn't, considering I'm a Floridian who was expecting approx. 20x that much. I kept waiting for February to get my snow fix. Everyone kept saying that was the month to look out for. I'd talk about my boots that could withstand up to -100 degrees, and I'd get "Oh, you'll need those in February!" I'd get instruction for how to flush out the pipes so they didn't freeze in February. I got my windows boarded up to keep the glass from breaking against the crazy February snow pileage. And then we got all through January, and there was so little snow, and what there was melted so freely, that the worst part about winter was the ice. I hate ice. I knew I hated ice before I got here. Now it's confirmed. I hate skating on it. I hate how it waters down my drinks. I hate that it sticks to your fingers. I hate that it makes you slip and fall no matter how carefully you're walking, so that you do the most ungraceful swan-in-distress dive of your life, right before the eyes of some guy across the street who looked up from his car just in time to see the gaijin fall on her ass...not that anything like that happened to me. *ahem* Ice sucks.
Most people seemed to enjoy a break from the supposed heavy snow of normal winters, but this year was not without its consequences. The slopes have been touch-and go, and the festivals have certainly suffered. A few weeks ago, two of the women teachers from Tairadate JH invited me to go to the snow festival in Hirosaki--an invitation that I readily accepted in light of the fact that I couldn't make it up to Hokkaido for the bigger version this year. Well, where there were, on any other year for the past 70 years (plus or minus), normally massive statues, even life-sized buildings carved from ice and snow for spectators to see, there were instead drippy, deformed snowmen looking particularly sad about the winter's lack of winteryness. Below our feet was slush, and in the air was cold without the charm of frozen precipitation. *sigh*
So January came to an end, and I was grossly skeptical of the reports. On January 31st, the streets were dry, and I was considering pulling my bike out of the shed. On February 1st, it snowed like none other. Right on schedule. I thought it was hilarious. The snow piled back up to its foot mark, falling straight for 3 days before stopping abruptly and bringing back the ice. Then the ice melted almost completely and for a couple weeks, everyone was saying that had to be it for winter. It was just going to be an early spring. I was at Tairadate elementary one day when Seki-sensei said so to me. Then the vice principal, who had stepped outside to smoke, suddenly cried out and disappeared behind a wall. A few seconds later, from his hiding place, he announced, "Tampopo!" The rest of the teaching staff jumped up and rushed outside with shouts of disbelief. Unsure quite what a "tampopo" was, I remained seated. A few minutes later, Seki-sensei came back inside and worked me through the series of events in broken verbal translation and heavy charades. "Lion" became the consistent clue. I don't know why people here can't just give me the basic root of the convo and then work from there. She could have said "flower" and I probably would have caught on quicker. Anyway, what the VP found was a blooming dandelion (dandelion = tampopo), which aren't supposed to appear here until May. Truly, spring had arrived.
Over the next few days, I really did start using my bike again, and it was a great thing to be able to wake up those few minutes later because I could get to work that much faster. Neither of my Tairadate schools are particularly far away, but walking to them in the cold isn't a quick business, to be sure. Then this last Monday, it warmed up enough to pour down rain all day and flush out many-a-worm onto the pavement.
This morning we had a blizzard.
So in conclusion, I don't know what the hell is up with Aomori winters. The good news is that I've been told a warm winter makes for a cool summer. I don't know why I keep believing what I've been told, after all this, but I'll take blind hope for a cool winter over the dismal memory of last summer's oppressive, buggy heat. Last summer was (if these Aomorians can truly be believed) uncharacteristically hot. All I can say is that this summer had better be uncharacteristically cool, after this disappointing winter I've sat through. I'm sure next winter will be a snow white hell, anyway. ^_^
Other News:
Ummm...I'm not sure there's really that much left to report. The biggest development of late is that I've resolved to get writing more seriously. I've set a goal to get a novel done by the end of the year so I can maybe go to a writer's conference in Canada. So far, the biggest hurdle to that is bullying my supervisor into letting me have the days off. So far so good for the writing. Maeda-san's gonna need a little more work, but hell...I'm bigger than him. ;)
I've gotten better at cooking. For myself, that is. I'm branching away from the college rut of eating anything that isn't a week past its exp. date or dripping with something I wish I hadn't poured, sprinkled, or slathered on. I still take free food, of course...gonna take a long time to kick that habit. ;) No more kitchen adventures with Wakana-san lately, since I haven't had too many days at Tairadate elementary, but I'm thinking about what to do next. Ah. Which reminds me. Does anyone have a good pretzel recipe? I can find them on the internet, but I'm wondering if anyone's got a tried and tested method. Pretzels are a rare thing in Japan, usually liked by those who try them, and almost unheard of in the big, soft variety. I think they'd be fun and *maybe* easy to make. ;) If anyone's got an idea, drop me a comment to this post, if you would (link for commenting--"post"--is at the bottom of this entry to the right, remember...I know it's been a while ;).
Well, that should about wrap it up. L8r all! ^_^