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September 30, 2005
maybe it's just me...
...but maybe this just doesn't make sense. today is one of my more slower days and i started off with a quick peak into yamaguchi sensei's english writing class for the second years. they're learning some principles of a company - no idea why really, but here are some antics anyways:
yamaguchi sensei: well, ok class repeat after me. experience!
class: experience.
y: design!
c: design. erm... what is design...?
y: oh... well that's just, you know... the same as english?
c: ?
y: well design is just, well... a design!
c: ohhhhhhh.
me: ...
lol, then again you can't really blame her, look at what i have to teach with. this is taken straight out of my text book on using a phone:
steve: hello. this is steve speaking. may i speak to aya?
aya: aya speaking. hi, steve. how are you?
s: fine, thanks. aya, do you want to go to a baseball game with me on saturday? i'm sure it's going to be an exciting game (eff four gee!)
[cut the rest of the conversation, you get the point.]
well that, or it's straight out of a 1950's educational film on dating. one or the other, it's just weird imo.
which leads me to my lesson next week that's about describing people. this is the dialogue that came with that:
lynn: look, that's ken's girlfriend!
ichiro: where?
l: she's over there.
i: over there? what does she look like?
[long conversation deleted.]
i: wow! she's really pretty. she's too good for ken.
speechless.
Posted by Jeff at 10:41 PM | Comments (2)
September 29, 2005
de ja vu...
the sensation that you've been doing something over and over again. except this time it was rie in my 1-1 class that is in fourth period on thursdays:
rie: sensei, is this ok?
me: mmm? /walksover to see.
ok, now imagine the words `busstop,` written diagonally downwards. now imagine another `b` above the `u.` now again imagine the look on her face as i pointed out the correct `b` that was right next to the `b` she picked out...
and yeah... i love my kids.
Posted by Jeff at 05:08 PM | Comments (0)
September 28, 2005
i know i say this a lot
but i really mean it, i love wednesdays, again, besides english club ahaha.
today was really relaxing, though for some reason teaching one class feels just the same as teaching four in a day - and i can't quite explain why. but after work today i decided to check out the kendo club and the judo club again for their last 40 minutes of practice.
today there was a master kendo teacher there. i guess to put things into persepective, the students are taking a test for their first certificate in kendo. the two instructors, saito sensei and goto sensei have their third certificate. this master has his seventh.
yeah.
but it's really great to see the other side of kendo. today, instead of bopping each other on the head with wooden sticks, they were using wooden katanas and practicing style and form.
good stuff.
and for more good stuff... susie and i grabbed some 100 yen sushi for dinner and some icecream afterwards hehe. life is good :).
Posted by Jeff at 11:58 PM | Comments (0)
September 27, 2005
i'll say it!
if i didn't have susie as a friend in japan, i'd probably just hermit myself away. honest. i just, don't, like, hanging around other jet's besides her. long story.
so!
it's tuesday again, and i went to japanese class in fujinomiya with ryan and susie except this time it was different. we biked all the way. and it's uphill haha. needless to say, our legs were burning at the end of it (about a 35 minute ride up as fast as we could have gone). but today in japanese class, i got a nickname... they're all going to call me 臍曲がり (hesomagari) it's a really bad meaning nickname, but to be honest i have sort of an idea of what it means - i'll ask my supervisor tomorrow.
but the bike ride back was great. susie and i found this awesome restaurant, that gives you a full 3 course meal for two people with each entree no more than 150 yen or so, and it's only a short 10 minute bike ride from our apartments heh. so, damn, good.
Posted by Jeff at 11:44 PM | Comments (0)
September 26, 2005
omg!
sleeping at 1:30 is not a smart decision.
she's back!!! my sweet lovable obasan who runs the chinese restaurant near by house is back! needless to say i was over joyed... and she was happy as hell to see me alive as well! but i'll get to that in a momment.
today had to be seriously the funniest thing that has ever happened to me in school (so far anyways), happened today. for this weeks lesson plan i wrote a word search for them and while they're doing it, i would occasionally give them litte hints to help them figure it out. this is when shinji raised his hand:
shinji: sensei?
me: yes shinji?
s: this is really tough!
m: hehe here's a hint /giveshint.
s: oh thank you sensei! but is this ok (another word)?
one of the words was `dial,` now on the word search imagine that you see dial, and another `d` under the `i.` then imagine as you realize your student just circled the bottom `d` and the rest of `ial.` now imagine his face as i point out the other `d` that is the correct `d`... right next to the `i.`
that was... by far... the best.
so anyways back to my obasan! she's back! and of course, i went to eat at her restaurant because she's been gone for a month. and to be honest, she's what helped me keep my sanity when i first got here and truly felt a wave of culture shock the first week or so. the nice thing is that she recognizes me and, well, here's the conversation that ensued:
me: okaerinasai! (welcome home)
obasan (my nickname btw): !!! you're back!! you're alive! sorry i've been very busy lately...
m: i'm very glad you came back ;D.
o: ...what have you been eating? i was so worried that you weren't eating because i was gone!
m: ...
don't get me wrong, i love her to bits. she's somewhat of a really cool temp mom that, for the first month at least, took care of me. not only that, she's one of the reasons why i'd stay in japan. yeah, her food's that good!
it's good to have her back ;D
Posted by Jeff at 11:31 PM | Comments (0)
September 25, 2005
lazy lazy lazy lazy
susie came back from white water rafting and invited me to dinner with the group she went with... but i didn't want to go honestly.
so i ran ST instead hahahahaha.
Posted by Jeff at 10:29 PM | Comments (0)
September 24, 2005
just... bad luck i'd say
i spent a good two hours or so just on my hands and needs cleaning my bathroom... yeah it was that disgusting - and don't worry i'll spare you all the details, honest.
i'll just say my bathroom floor is no larger than a 4 x 4 foot square.
but as sato sensei told me, tomorrow there was going to be another typhoon, so i, remembering the last time where i had no food or drink and had to walk through the pouring rain, so i thought i'd plan ahead. i headed off to uny where i purchased tons of food, and two things that i've never tried before.
one is saba sushi, 200 yen for this roll longer than my forearm.
and to be honest, it's not that bad...
after you take out the saba and eat the rice ;P.
the second is this small obento that didn't look half bad. it had something fried, and the usual entree of a seaweed salad and rice, which was really good until i ate the fried thing. i couldn't quite put my finger on it, but something wasn't right. after checking the packaging, i found that it was かき...
this meant oysters.
; ;
soooooooooo i thought i'd cheer myself up, let alone i wanted to dump my uneaten food in the burnables bin (since i'd have to hold it till um... tuesday, and the fish already started to stink), so i made quick pitstop at an icecream vending machine :D. which i happily ate as i was riding my bike.
and then i hit a bump.
and dropped my cone ; ;.
twas a sad day for me...
Posted by Jeff at 04:17 PM | Comments (0)
September 23, 2005
another three day weekend...
and as fun as it sounds to go out, there's really not many people i want to go hang out with. that, and i'm incredibly exhausted for some reason after only a three day week and a three day weekend preceeding before that. so we all know what that means...
you guessed it. wow for mees!
Posted by Jeff at 04:06 PM | Comments (0)
September 22, 2005
kendo steppin!
well, we did it! we won over pms girl and she's back to her old participating self! /cheer! what did it you ask?
hangman did it.
at lunch today sato sensei came up to me:
me: good afternoon sato sensei!
sato sensei: good afternoon!
m: /eatinghistokudairice XD.
s: oh, did you know another typhoon is coming!?
m: ...
s: please look forward to it!
m: ...
s: ^^.
i guess i will... anyways, a nice day of four classes today and as usual i went to check out kendo and judo again after class. i know most people kind of say this, but it's a lot harder than it looks.
you always have to step right foot first. needless to say, when you step you don't really step, but slide your feet across right foot first, and then left foot following. i practiced this for at least 30 minutes straight.
needless to say the judo club got the biggest kick out of it.
Posted by Jeff at 07:48 PM | Comments (0)
September 21, 2005
soo....
did i ever mention i love wednesdays? well minus english club hahahaha... (just don't tell them that).
anyways, this week i've just prepared a lot of games for my students and what not. i checked out the kendo club and judo club again and hope to soon be able to participate with my students; i'm starting to think it's easier to practice judo since kendo requires the clothes, armor, and weapon that are really expensive (about 300dollars+).
really tired today, will post again tomorrow heh.
Posted by Jeff at 10:51 PM | Comments (0)
it's everywhere...
c/o bekk.
c/o horace.
c/o me!
ok ok last one.
Posted by Jeff at 09:35 AM | Comments (0)
September 20, 2005
AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRrrrgggghhhhh......
well that's what kendo sounds like haha. pretty entertaining to see the least, but i don't quite understand. also eight of my students are in kendo, so they were really glad to see that i went to check them out heh.
also the judo team practices right next to the kendo club, and three of my students are in the judo club:
yuuta (student 1): hello jeff teacher.
me: um... hello yuuta, please don't call me `jeff teacher.`
y: ok... /thinks... ok mr. jeff :)
m: better... i guess.
morito (student 2): jeff sensei! we ran into each other at the bookstore, remember?
m: yes, /salute! (i asked my students to create team names, his group's name is captain morito, so i call him, well, captain morito lol).
y: btw mr. jeff, don't learn kendo, learn judo!
mo: yes, judo is much better! what would kendo do without their sticks?
y: /mimickingkendo look at how ridiculous this is!
mo: /nod nod
m: ...
yes, rivalrys lol.
anyways just got back from japanese class in fujinomiya - which for the most part wasn't so bad, not quite like 伊藤 and 西村 sensei's but still good practice for the most part. it'd be nice if my kanji ability was up to speed though - 練習練習 right sensei?
Posted by Jeff at 10:29 PM | Comments (0)
finding my niche
trying a new method of teaching; being prepared (ok ok, well moreso!)lol.
it's a special week today, three days of teaching, and another three day weekend at the end heh - though for some reason i'm feeling incredibly tired and i can't seem to get enough sleep these nights (avg. 7 hrs or so).
so anyways, a few revolations i've had these days:
i want to get more involved in this school. no more sitting at my desk and chatting to you guys (not that that's bad or anything), but i want to try and get to know my students heh.
kendo club, HO!
Posted by Jeff at 03:30 PM | Comments (0)
September 19, 2005
laziest monday, ever.
you know how people binge on food?
i kind of binge on video games.
i played wow. all day. and loved it.
and that's about it haha.
Posted by Jeff at 09:35 PM | Comments (1)
September 18, 2005
final day in osuka
john's host family came over today for a bbq that my host family was holding. it was a real chill time, i mean we all had good food and drinks and everyone was just having a good time.
afterwards we all headed towards a semi-real tea ceremony. for the most part it's just getting to eat a nice pastry and a cup of super concentrated green tea heh.
now maybe it's just me, but there was this one girl who was wearing a tube top (blonde of course :P). now i'm not one to say what the dress attire for tea ceremonies is, but i'm pretty sure you shouldn't wear something like that. just, you know, somewhat postitive.
all in all it was a lot of fun. after some heartfelt goodbyes and exchanges of contact information, we all had to return back from which we came. and after nearly three hours of sitting in public transportation with no music, i'm finally home :).
damn i'm tired.
Posted by Jeff at 07:30 PM | Comments (0)
September 17, 2005
children's festival!
ok, can't describe how much fun this was, pictures up by the end of this week!
Posted by Jeff at 11:26 PM | Comments (0)
a much deserved 3 day weekend
so though i know i'm not writing this entry on the day of (saturday) i'm still going to post it as if it were saturday heh.
but yeah, after a fairly long week of my first lessons, a much deserved (well at least it felt that way) three day weekend was upon us. why? well i really don't care why. i was more excited about the fact that this three day weekend was the weekend where i would go to kakegawa and attend the children's festival. but the best part was that i would be able to live with a host family, fukami, for two days XD. /innocentthoughts.
i think pictures speak a lot better than any words that i can ever come up with, so i promise i'll have ALL of my pictures uploaded by the end of this week, but for now i'll just indulge on random antics that i can remember heh.
after a lunch party greeting, we traveled to an お寺(temple) where we were to experience 座禅 (zen training). and just to let you all know. my host mom listens to rap music. american rap music. where they use the `n` word.
yeah.
and then she asked me to translate/explain what it means.
no thanks.
so a few things you need to learn about zen training.
1. you are to sit on a futon facing another person.
2. your eyes must be half closed, and though your face is facing the other person, you will be staring at the floor ~1m ahead of you (this is the toughest part, especially if you're tired).
3. your posture must be perfectly straight.
4. you must sit indian style with your left leg under your right thigh, and your right leg resting on your left thigh.
5. you must hold your hands in a bowl shape with your thumbs touching, but without any excess force.
6. breathe only through your nose, and focus on only the inner being of yourself.
and you must hold this for 60 minutes.
oh, and no noises. none. zip. zilch. nada. zero. you get the point.
zen master: so if you fall asleep, you will be hit. hard. with this. /whipsoutawoodenstick.
this is no ordinary stick either. it is about 1m long, and a little smaller than a 2x4, and it has a flat surface on the end. and then he proceeds to abuse a pillow. and this would be if the pillow happened to scratch your brand new car, in addition leaving corrosive substances on it and then laughing and giving you the finger kind of abusive hit that you would give it. yeah. that hard.
zen master: oh wait... this is the CHILDEN'S stick. this is your stick.
everyone: ...
now this stick, is about 1.5m bigger than a 2x4 and, also, flat ended on the end. this, this is the adult stick... so if you get hit, he whaps you rather hard on the shoulder blades, two for each.
so... how to avoid the stick:
1. don't fall asleep (he hits you where your neck and shoulder meet)
2. keep your back straight
3. don't make a noise
4. optional; he will walk around the area, if you bow to him, he will whap you. this is to keep the mind focused and disciplined - you can see big athlete types cringe as they are about to get hit.
yeah... fear the monk.
Posted by Jeff at 06:38 PM | Comments (0)
September 16, 2005
i think horace and i need to stop talking.
horace: haha
h: yeah
me: er
m: yeah?
h: yeah.
m: yeah...?
h: yeap.
m: ...yeah
yeah... :P
Posted by Jeff at 09:22 AM | Comments (0)
September 15, 2005
me:1 pms girl: 0
what... no really, i'm not going to let this girl think she can control the class with her moodswings.
what?
you can win them over with humility and exaggerations! but yeah, today was supposed to be one of my longer days, four classes, but the 一年生(first year students) have sports testing today heh; so my last two classes are cancelled for today.
/cheer.
nothing much happening in the land of the rising sun, though i have new names from some of the teachers:
sato sensei (art teacher) suggested: jutaro.
takakubo sensei suggested: chuu.
i figured my name means 及麟 - which means 'kirin' literally... like the beer... so i suggested the name: 生ビール lol. (little joke for you japanese speakers out there).
also i was seriously amazed. as all of you know i've been cleaning my apartment gradually over the last month or so (mainly because garbage pick up is really different than the us... and i'm lazy). but yesterday was the `objects that are too big for burning or what not` day and i threw out about half of my damn apartment that night heh.
the thing that kills me is i threw it out at 7pm or so last night. and in less than an hour (i wanted to show susie how much crap i threw out) someone took half the shit i threw out... >.> hahahaha.
Posted by Jeff at 04:15 PM | Comments (0)
September 14, 2005
huzzah!
/hailsthereturnofinternet!
Posted by Jeff at 08:26 PM | Comments (0)
not quite sure, but...
... i know i've mentioned this before, but it really doesn't make any sense to me.
why are the english department's meetings all in japanese?
right?
.
.
.
right?
.
.
.
right?
anyways wednesdays are always my favorite; i have one class, they are amazing and they're not the smart class either, but i think they should be, and i get to get my 特大 because i only have one class heh. but life in yoshiwara commercial high school is going well; the, students have atheletics testing so we're on a special schedule, students have even started to recognize me outside of school and have come over just to say `hi,` which is really nice heh.
oh and something else that makes me wonder heh. the english club doesn't like to speak english (doesn't like/can't lol) even though 4 of the members are in my classes... bastards.
on other celebratory news; fukunana sensei is taking the next month and a half off because she's expected to give birth in november!! /cheer! everyone at the office, as well as myself wish her the best of luck, and look forward to her return in late november/december-ish!
oh and grats to mike on the promotion heh. it even has a number in it; game developer 2 (vs. 1)!
Posted by Jeff at 05:02 PM | Comments (0)
September 13, 2005
call it... boredom
random shameless plug! advent children came out today, and within a few mere hours of dropping, it's been subbed, and released online.
is nothing sacred anymore?
so call it boredom, or whatever really, but i thought it would be funny/interesting to get a japanese name; i'm a little tired of seeing my name the only name in katakana on the roll sheet. not that any of this matters of course, except for the fact that, well i'm bored and i was curious to see what the teachers here could come up with heh.
so first, i need a family name. mine is currently `chu` with the kanji of 朱. however this is pronounced `shu.`
iwanashi sensei suggested `hiroshi` (which i kinda like actually).
my supervisor suggested `taro.`
kurebayashi sensei suggested `jun.`
chouno sensei suggested `naka` (because it is written with the kanji of 中 which is pronounced; chu).
so, so far i think the winner is shu hiroshi, or maybe shu hiro for short. /random. haha.
/shrug.
Posted by Jeff at 02:43 PM | Comments (2)
September 12, 2005
mmmmm so yeah.
for some reason, whenever i see clutch sensei, i have the urge to flex, or do some tough guy pose... `maybe i left my things...over...theeeeere!`/flex.
i wonder if he's getting annoyed by it heh.
so i feel somewhat of a recap is in order, well more of a means of catching you all up on the last six weeks or so.
i'm having a blast. the only things that are kinda nitty gritty are: the condition my apt was left in, not much food for lots of money, and no good mexican food ; ;, but other then that, work is fun, teachers are great, the jets nearby are spiffy (though no single attractive asian jet(s) nearby; ;),and my students are all, well, genki heh. currently i'm in the progress of coaching a student with hara sensei for a speech contest, teaching 12 classes and 1 business teachers english class, and the [never-ending] continuation of settling in heh.
life is good; though i do think about college days a lot lately, and it makes me want to go to grad school. ok, sorta makes me want to go to grad school.
hmmm, so i can't remember if i've mentioned it, but my supervisor has taken to [my] random english words of the day; basically whatever random english i use that she can't understand.
unfortunately these are all words that i use habitually and, unfortunately, they're all somewhat bad/informal/weird words.
so here's the list:
1. sucks
2. ghetto
3. whiny
4. hermit
i'm rather curious to see where this goes.
Posted by Jeff at 02:51 PM | Comments (0)
September 11, 2005
9/11.
Posted by Jeff at 10:29 AM | Comments (0)
September 10, 2005
lazy weekend 3!
nothing much, went shopping with susie, ate dinner with john and lauren in midaidanchi, and plan to clean all day tomorrow heh.
simple yes?
Posted by Jeff at 02:30 PM | Comments (0)
September 09, 2005
poet's day!
neat little phrase i learned from susie last night. btw, to get `pissed` in the u.k. is to get drunk off your ass. just fyi heh.
piss
off
early!
tomorrow's
saturday!
today was a rather normal day for me, only one class... minus the previous post lol. some more random antics from elly:
me: you're so confused!
elly: how am i confused?
e: eh?
e: i don't get it
e: i have no idea what u mean
m: you're so getting quoted elly XD
e: huH?
lol how are you not confused haha.
an interesting thought is that lately everyone is impressed i can use chop sticks like japanese people. um. hello? chinese! shoot. also something you all need to know about is this little friendly inside joke between itou sensei and suzuki sensei. i'm sure i've mentioned it before, but basically the joke is that they get the biggest kick out of trying to convince me which one is the more dangerous person. /shrug.
but everything seems to spawn from these random happenings in school. for instance, today i asked to bandage up my thumb because i pulled it back last week at volley ball, and i wanted to go play tonight. itou sensei comes over, and looks at my hand:
itou sensei: shit... what happened? you used chopsticks too much didn't you?
me: um...
i: maybe you should use a spoon, might be safer
m (playing along): no no, a spoon might actually kill me you know?
i: hahahaha
m: i rather enjoy living you know :P.
i: no spoons for you, please becareful when you use chopsticks!
hahaha. ok i'm sure it makes no sense to any of you, but i can sure you itou sensei is one of the funniest guys i know. and it jus so happens that suzuki sensei walks by and says hi, and as he walks away, itou sensei says the absoulte most randomest thing to me:
itou sensei: you know... (this is in english btw) suzuki sensei is...
me: /huh
i: gay.
hahahahahahahahahaha! gad that is so great. nothing beats people who don't speak english using english slang haha... except when i'm teaching it to them. good times good times!
the sad thing is that it seriously seems that i'm the only one enjoying myself at work and outside of work heh.
not that i'm complaining of course ^^.
Posted by Jeff at 05:02 PM | Comments (0)
it's official.
i'm going to hell.
one way ticket, with a layover in chicago... well at least my supervisor is going with me. she's got a first class seat^^.
so 'why?' you might ask.
where to begin. friday's are relatively relaxing for me. one class, after lunch, and that's it for my week - not that i'm complaining or anything - and as much fun as it is to just sit around my desk listening to music and chatting on aim, i made the biggest mistake of my life.
i told my supervisor that i was bored, and wanted to go to one of her (or anyother teacher's) class. and that's when she made the biggest mistake of her life.
she invited me to her 3rd period class...
now this class started off as any other class really. simple introduction, some quirks about the english language (it was a writing class), and then the class hit an idling point:
supervisor: so... how about you teach us some bad words!
me: su...wait what? are you sure? /halo /angelssinging /big beam of light
s: of course!
m: but um... in english? i mean... are you serious?
i thought she was joking.
s: yeah! don't you [the seven students in that class] want to learn bad words in english?
all seven students, especially the two guys: YEAH!
m: um... ok
...
i learned everything. they learned everything.
`cultural exchange` so to speak... right? nothing quite beats my supervisor saying:
s: ok, repeat after me. `you bastards.`
all seven students: you... bastards.
s: GOOD! now try 'shit!'
a: s..hi..to..
oh that's right, she said that.
and that wasn't the cream of the crop either. oh no. it keeps going. as class ended, i thought it would be fun to follow standard japanese class routines.
me: 起立！礼！(kiritsu, rei!)
everyone: /standsandbows
sup: yeah, thank you... you bastards.
/watchestheflightattendanthandmemyticketstubwiththe`haveanicetrip...`
Posted by Jeff at 11:50 AM | Comments (2)
September 08, 2005
out the window it goes!
and holy shit, it's happening a lot more frequently.
horace: are you that chummy with the kids already though?
me: lol
m: no
m: i just me them all once heh
h: what?
h: english, not engrish
m: LOL
m: i just MET them only ONCE
m: shit
m: that was bad lol
h: hahah
m: at first i thought `the fcuk he talkin about?`
m: then i re-read it...
h: hahaha
h: srsly
just remember: you all have no comment! ever.
another four classes today, and as surprising as it is, these are really draining. i mean i seriously use up almost all of my energy per class just to keep the momentum going; i've even started eating breakfast these days!
but for the most part, class was good today except for one class. there is this one girl, who seriously could control the entire class. and there's just one shitty thing about it.
she pms'd (don't mean this to be offensive to the members of the opposite sex, but i literally mean it, her mood changed so quickly it wasn't even funny) so badly on me mid class.
at first it was really good because she was active and talking and raising her hand, and then all of a sudden she clammed up and made the rest of class the longest 30 mintues i've ever experienced.
on the plus side though, the other three classes i had worked like clockwork heh. everyone was participating, everyone was talking, and after i broke the silence with some humility on my own part, everything just clicked. to be honest i'm having a lot of fun teaching, regardless of those two students i have.
tonight susie and i decided to be adventurous; instead of taking the bus to fujimidaidanchi, we thought we'd bust out some bikage! i mean yeah it was all up hill, yeah it was far as hell, but shit, why not?
it took us an hour of biking/walking our bikes.
and nothing to make you feel out of shape, when you watch jr. high girls bike up it, while having a conversation, while admiring the scenery, while laughing at me and susie who are sweating our asses off lol.
but yeah, so we met up with john and, without meaning to, invited a jte who lives right under john heh. now the interesting thing, is that this jte, tsuzuki mayumi sensei, not only has the same first name as my supervisor, but my supervisor taught her when she was in highschool... 11 years ago! holy shit haha.
but yeah, we found this really good okonomiyake shop in fujimidaidanchi, and the best part is you get to make it yourself, and it's like tebanyaki (the setup i mean). very cool.
finally, to get an idea of what this hill was like, the way back down was the easiest thing in the world.
it took us no more than 10 minutes to get home.
Posted by Jeff at 10:02 AM | Comments (0)
September 07, 2005
supernatural death and such...
it worries me somewhat when my friends nohere near japan know more about the news in japan than i do. then again it's not as if i watch tv, nor have access to the internet anymore /wavesgoodbyetothefreemonth...
but i think mike put it best really; but i think i'll leave it out. let's just say it involves um... well let's not even say that. but the jist of today's topic is that there is a HUGE typhoon in kyushu right now, and apparently headed this way. typhoon two! go!
but yes, today my supervisor struck up a rather interesting conversation with me:
tokita sensei: so jeff, do you like tv?
me: not so much anymore, i used to watch tons as a kid.
t: oh really? how come you don't watch much tv any more?
m: because they're all reality shows that show whiny stuck up people.
t: whiny?
m: yes, /searchesforitinthedictionary.
t: ohhhh, /writes it down.
m: what are you doing?
t: it's my word of the day! so far i have: whiny, sucks, and ghetto!
m: ...
not your typical word of the day calenders from what i can remember, but yeah.
today i had only one class, and it was the most fun i've had in a class, ever. i tried something new; if the kids are going to be loud, then i'm going to be louder!
and it worked.
i had everyone paying attention, everyone participating, it was so awesome. like a well greased machine, fifty minutes passed by like no other heh. it's great when they can pick up on your little jokes in english. for example, the phrase `so so` heh.
i don't think i can quite explain it, but it was hilarious to have them answer me all the time with `so so.`
q: do you understand?
a: so so.
q: do you know the answer?
a: so so.
q: do you like this idea?
a: so so.
ok i know, it sounds annoying a bit heh. but when they're laughing, and having a good time, even if it's at my expense, it's a wonderful thing i think - and infinately better than silence. infinately.
Posted by Jeff at 10:11 AM | Comments (0)
September 06, 2005
immature humor in 3...2...1...
you should go look where the nashville predators play their hockey games...
Posted by Jeff at 08:39 AM | Comments (0)
just call me hadoken cause i`m downright fierce!
c/o evan heh.
no better way to start your day, then with more antics... each morning we receive fliers and notices on our desks from all the teachers and organizations that the school is involved in. and as i was reading this one... there was one kanji i seriously could not figure out:
me: so itou sensei... can you please teach me how to read this kanji please? /points.
itou sensei: oh yes.
m: yes?
i: that is kanji.
m: oh yes, i know it's kanji, can you please teach me how to read it?
i: kanji.
m: kan...OHHHHHHHH /slapme
yeah...
i had four classes today. it started with my business conversation class, where goto sensei, itou sensei, ishikawa sensei, shida sensei, and wakazono sensei just wanted to hear and practice english. and to be honest, it was tons of fun, really informal and what not because they treated me as they would treat their sensei... well sort of.
my second class was the first class of students was a little troubling though. there's this one student, who really has a lot of energy, and to be honest i can't quite think of how to help him use that energy in a more constructive way - open to suggestions. he's actually fairly good in english, but irked me a little bit cause he wouldn't shut the hell up.
third class of the day was right before lunch; and to be honest, really hard to focus when you're hungry heh. the fourth class was a lot of fun as well, even though it was right after lunch... but still fun.
for the most part i get the biggest swing in classes. sometimes when i ask for volunteers, i get nobody. zero. zip. nada. zilch. and sometimes i get the whole class. and those, those are just what can put the biggest smile on your face.
it's really surprising to see what students these days find really cool. lately, from what i can surmise this is what is `in` with the students these days:
1. big hair (usually a different color than their natural)
2. mullets
3. big belts
4. the `i'm a badass and i'm too cool for schoo` look
5. random english words inserted in random sentences. of course their usage of the word is completely wrong too lol.
but for the most part, i was 3/4 today, and am rather glad that the majority of my classes turned out rather well so far - and in 7 classes, i only have one really energetic student (still open to suggestions on how to deal with heh, personally i think that negative anything just isn't the right way to do it... but yeah).
なんとかなるさ！
Posted by Jeff at 08:13 AM | Comments (0)
September 05, 2005
2/3 heh...
let's get one thing straight. i've never taught a class in my life. and as much as i wish that wasn't so, it was rather evident in my first class with sato sensei; completely unorganized, scatter brained, and zero participation.
seriously one of the scariest moments ever.
but none-the-less, 頑張って！(keep trying!), just have to keep picking yourself up, and try something new, and keep going till you find something that works! /cheese.
on the plus side though, my last two classes went really well - though i think anything would have been an improvement to that first lesson heh - and turned out to actually be a lot of fun. as obvious as this sounds, it really makes a difference if you get the kids to participate heh.
but anyways, on a lighter note, at lunch today, i think i had the most pointless conversation with sato (art, not english teacher):
me: so what'd you do this weekend sato sensei?
sato sensei: oh, i went to shizuoka on a business trip.
m: oh really? what was the purpose of it?
s: it was a business trip^^/.
m: ...
o.Oa
and finally, an update on wow antics! does everyone remember peer pressure GO!?
anjira: mm, btw, i'm back ingame
Auto response from me: third class for the day.
a: good luck with classes :]
a: (that 2nd line was supposed to come before the first)
peer pressure: 1. angela: 0.
(haha jk, it's good to have you back:D)
Posted by Jeff at 05:40 PM | Comments (0)
September 04, 2005
it's just a bunch of random mixes of randomness!
so... we all ended up passing out at johns place last night... and, woke up to the most disgusting mess. ever. figure we might as well get partying all out of the way before we start teaching tomorrow right? haha!
after helping john clean up, lawrence, sofia, susie, and i headed back home to yoshiwara (lawrence and sofia are from fujinomiya). and we ate at dennys... again... for the third time. まったく. (geez). well still good times.
the rest of the day was a real lazy sunday. after lawrence and sofia left, susie and i headed off to do some proper shopping at the 100 yen shop. but yeah, there is this bench at seiyu that we loiter on. everyday. for hours haha.
it's really nice actually, it reminds me of when mark and i used to sit on library walk at times to watch life go by, and just have really good conversations. the only difference these days is that it's with susie, in japan, and, at times there's a 焼き鳥 (fried chicken) vendor, and there's an ice cream vending machine next to it lol.
seriously, one of the nicest areas in fuji lol. well convenient at least.
and though we weren't quite hungry, and we knew we needed to eat something before the town shuts down... there was only one answer heh.
kappa sushi. 100 yen per plate, how freaking great is that?
and of course afterwards we went to just hang out at the bench again. this is the bench lol. i mean we have seriously been sitting here each night for the last two weeks contemplating anything and everything - even whether or not we should play on the playground lol (we did btw).
but yeah, seriously having tons of fun here in japan, i wish you were all here heh.
Posted by Jeff at 11:53 PM | Comments (0)
September 03, 2005
busy busy
today was a relatively easy saturday morning. today was the day that we [a few jets from shiz] are going to head up to fujimidaidanchi to grab some bbq, american style. well as american as one can get in japan.
but before we headed off, i was able to take care of a few things around the apartment. like cleaning. you know, the one i've put off for the last freaking month >.>.
but yeah, i finally got a bike! brand new! i ended up getting the one that was 15,800 yen, and paid 500 more so if in the event it were lost... it would be possibly found by the police. possibly. the funny thing is that when people in japan steal bikes, it's not even to sell or strip bare or anything. it's just to use it as a bike lol.
but yeah, a trip to midaidanchi! it was pretty fun, good food, good times, lots of jets, and lots of beer... john actually bought a grill of sorts and, well i can't remember much that night lol, but fun times! the only thing i can really remember is that mark, one of the aussies who is teaching on his own, and not affiliated with jet, got the biggest kick out of general tao's chicken...
i had no comment lol.
but the coolest thing was that they, him and his wife michelle, play video games. a lot. together. and she apparently owns in battlefield.
GO happily married couples!
Posted by Jeff at 08:06 PM | Comments (0)
September 02, 2005
volley ball!
japanese style! and it makes absolutely no sense.
today was my first day of volleyball with a group of... well i don't know how they all know each other. but for the most part, it's a bunch of engineers, and teachers, and the owner of a bakery. and these people are hardcore; they've been doing this for at least 15 years.
so let's explain some of the rules heh.
1. there is only one game, it lasts for as long as we're allowed to play.
2. if the service hits the net or hits it out of bounds, it is not a side out. it is returned to the sever who gets to try again. and again. and again. and again.
3. points are apparently awarded on side outs.
4. when a player scores a point, or successfully prevents the other team from scoring, everyone in the team, must take a ten minute break to high five said teammate at least once.
5. if the ball is every thought to be clearly out of bounds, dead, or out of play, it in fact, is not. the only requirement is you need to yell 'CHANCE!'
this is forever a weekly event for me lol.
Posted by Jeff at 10:19 PM | Comments (0)
swish!
so there's something you all have to know. there is one sensei here that has the absolute coolest name you will ever hear. his name /drumroll...
is clutch sensei.
that's right.
clutch.
/swish.
i think mike wu put it best lol:
me: btw, best sensei`s name ever...
m: clutch sensei
m: that name just resonates with `i`m better than you` lol
m: shit
m: he`s CLUTCH sensei!
l0stry0ga: hahaha
l: "you are...clutch sensei?"
l: "yeaop"
l: "you're clutch?"
l: "yeaop"
l: "clutch sensei?"
l: "in every sense of the word biatch"
m: LOL
m: he needs to pull out a boom box and playsthe sound of a swish LOL
l: hahahaha
other than that, today was fairly normal heh. tokita sensei (aka supervisor) took me to the cafeteria today where i discovered one of the greatest things ever heh. so for every dish you can order at the cafeteria, there are different sizes. there's small, regular, large...
and then there's 特大 (tokudai). special LARGE! /woo!
special double sized big bowl for mees! soooooooo good! and it's quite possibly the greatest deal here in japan you will ever find. that, and our cafeteria has really good food heh - even the obentos for lunch that are delivered to the staff room heh.
and also, for future reference, the word `sucks` is a great word. especially when people who learn it for the first time learn how to use it somewhat properly...:
me: so tokita sensei, i'd like to be able to talk with every english teacher after class... you know, get some feedback and learn figure out what works and what doesn't work and maybe we can work harder.
tokita sensei: oh yeah, that's a good idea! then we [the jte's] can tell you what we thought of the lesson!
m: excatly! we can say how it was a great lesson, or the best, or if it [she interrupts me]...
t: sucks!!
haha yeah... this is going to be fun.
Posted by Jeff at 09:04 PM | Comments (2)
September 01, 2005
opening ceremony!
today was the opening ceremony for yoshiwara commercial highschool. /cheer. unfortunately this meant one thing.
i had to wear a suit again in this weather.
and of course, as i get to the bus station for my first day of work, it drives off right as i'm about to hop on lol. so i get to work about 20 seconds late - right as i'm at the top of the stairs i hear the bell ring, and slink into the staff office to find something utterly surprising.
it was filled with teachers.
anyways, the day continued on with the next item on the agenda, earthquake safety. now this is really well organized, all of the staff members have helmets in this room next to the staff room and everything. and everyone files outside, orderly, and calmly and gather together in their homerooms.
and that's when i noticed something odd.
well, besides all of the students staring at me and saying things such as `wow, tall...`
nor was it the hundreds of giggling school girls and (sadly) boys who would run up to me, plant their hand on how far they came up to my arms, and run away giggling.
me: fukunana sensei, something's not right...
fukunana sensei: oh? what's not?
m: why do only teachers get helmets and students get nothing? aren't the minds of the future more important?
f: ah... yes... but... you know... there's not enough room in the budget ^^.
m: oh... that's too bad huh...?
f: not really, because i have a helmet : ).
i guess i can't really say anything against that, though it feels wrong somehow...
the day progressed well enough. i gave my introduction in front of 800+ students, attended my first meeting - of of which i cannot recall nor remember a thing of, and finally a somewhat encouraging conversation with my supervisor and yamaguchi sensei:
me: ok, so our school has the lowest marks in the city of fuji. our students hate english, and don't care much for it, but that's ok!! why? because we're all new, we will raise the bar little by little so we will not be first, but we will not be last either!
yamaguchi sensei: wow! that's very ambitious of you!
m: /nod nod! we are the ambitious team! failure is not an option!
supervisor: can i give up now? i can start the give up team!
hmm... we'll work on that lol.
anyways, here's a good read i think.
Posted by Jeff at 07:58 PM | Comments (0)