Golden Week is over, and they let me know when I came into work by poking and prodding me, taking two of my most vital fluids, and sticking cold metal objects against my bare chest.  Enjoy it while you can, employee medical exam day only comes once a year, kiddies.  How did I do?  I lost a tenth of a centimeter heightwise, which means in 1,722 more ( Read more... )

It's Golden Week now - 5 days off in a row ( Read more... )

( Read more... )

http://finance.yahoo.com/career-work/article/106964/Japan-Pays-Foreign-Workers-to-Go-Home

“We should stop letting unskilled laborers into Japan. We should make sure that even the three-K jobs are paid well, and that they are ( Read more... )

It seems like every time I post here, it's my first time in a long time, so I never have a good place to start. Let's start with the basics.

Where are you now? The Teacher's Office at Hachiman Tech.
What do you see? A lot of desks, many cleaner and emptier than they usually are.
Why are they cleanier and emptier than usual? It's the end of the ( Read more... )

It seems like every time I post here, it's my first time in a long time, so I never have a good place to start. Let's start with the basics.

Where am I now? The Teacher's Office at Hachiman Tech.
What do I see? A lot of desks, many cleaner and emptier than they usually are.
Why are they cleanier and emptier than usual? It's the end of the ( Read more... )

A few days ago I went to Costco in Amagasaki. The Costco has only been open a few years and it was my second time going. I went with my neighbors Dan and Christina, because they've got the hookup (a membership card). It's a strange experience going to Costco in Japan (I've never been to one in the States, but it's practically the same as Sam's ( Read more... )

There are only three television shows that are in my Hall of Fame. 3 shows that have shaped who I am today. When I was around 3-5, it was The Muppet Show. Once I hit Elementary School, it became Pee Wee's Playhouse. In Junior High, came the last great television show: The State. Looking back, this is the show that most shaped my sense of humor ( ( Read more... )

I'm at home sick on a Saturday watching 24 (amidst Season 5), and it's got me thinking: Just how similar is my immune system to CTU? They both primarily serve the same function - to defend the body/country against unwanted assaults. Do I have a little Jack Bauer white blood cell, yelling DAMN IT CHLOE! jumping through all these hoops to catch my ( Read more... )

In Japan, representatives fro travel agencies often come into the teacher's room and distribute their business card (and sometimes flyers) to all the teachers. Well, all the teachers except the ALT. Why don't I get the business card? It's not as if I'd use it. Sometimes I get them when I'm not at my desk and they don't know it's me that's ( Read more... )