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A Very Scrubby Pre-Christmas Post-Birthday Visit
As a very extravagant 28th birthday present to himself, my dear friend Chris Blackmon (aka Scrub) bought himself a ticket to come visit me. He stayed just under a week and we had a blast ( Read more... ) -
Work Events
At my school we are expected to teach 44 lessons to each class over the course of the school year: 40 regular lessons, 3 event lessons, and one yearly test lesson. The regular lessons are somewhat standardized. We all teach from the same textbooks and so have the same vocab and grammar targets to teach, though we are allowed to teach the targets in ( Read more... ) -
Giving Thanks
Today on my way to work I was in a pretty good mood. I had been reflecting on the positive aspects of my life what I am thankful for. That all came crashing down when a very mean man walked past me and said, very loudly, "糞外人." For those of you who don't read Japanese, he basically called me a shitty foreigner. I was pretty stunned because I hardly ( Read more... ) -
(Untitled)
In general, life has been treating me pretty well lately. I can't say that anything particularly good has happened, or that anything particularly bad happened before, but the way I've been reacting to things certainly has changed since I returned from Chicago. I'm in a much, much better mood and have the strength to appropriately handle stress and ( Read more... ) -
Oh My God Jon Graef Got Married
Sorry for my absence the last few weeks, internet. I've been traveling and dealing with some illnesses but I'm all un-jetlagged and feel quite healthy and happy, despite a persistent and annoying cough. 'Tis the fate of a teacher, I fear ( Read more... ) -
Shibuya Show
Last weekend I had the honor of playing shamisen at a Japanese Lounge Night at the Pink Cow in Shibuya. It was really fun but I was incredibly nervous since I don't perform solo on shamisen very often. But with my adorable friends Tan (montydrei) and Laura (tsunderella) there to cheer me on, (and my friends vodka and tonic to steel my nerves,) I got on stage and did ( Read more... ) -
Just Warming Up
Today I got myself up bright and early and met my shamisen studio for an all-day folk jamboree. It featured several shamisen, shakuhachi (bamboo flute), and minyo (folk singing) studios, and even had some special performances by kabuki actors and a traditional comedian. (Apparently traditional comedy includes a lot of pointing to one's crotch and ( Read more... ) -
Body Image and Self-Confidence
Being a Westerner in Japan is often a pretty singular experience. Many people, especially those who live in the countryside, feel like minor rock stars or local celebrities of some sort (which they legitimately are). Through the years I have heard many a returnee say that part of their reverse culture shock is getting used to not being "special" ( Read more... ) -
All Time Top Three Questions
A coworker once told me that the most important thing we can teach our kids are basic questions that come up in normal conversations. I consider "what's your name," "how old are you," "how are you," to be the most essential, and I expect all of my students over the age of 6 to be able to ask and answer them properly. I use them at the beginning of ( Read more... )
