October 26th

So... a lot has happened since I last posted. Where shall I begin...

I didn't teach a single class on Thursday. I didn't set foot into a classroom the entire day. A silly person would have sat at her desk and complained about not having anything to do. I took the opportunity to reorganize the 8 or so full binders of papers left behind by my predecessors. As a result, I had a lovely 1.5 hour long conversation/English lesson with some first year students.

As I was about to leave, my co-teacher came to me and asked if i wanted to take the class by myself the next day since he would be absent. Or, if I preferred, I could supervise while they did a worksheet. Guess what I chose...

Friday, October 26th: crazy super eventful day...

I taught the class by myself. It went swimmingly. The kids were great, and we ended up playing Halloween pictionary and charades. Just imagine a 7th grade Japanese kid trying to act out "zombie" or "Frankenstein." Since it went so well, my other co-teacher asked me to do the same activity with the other classes. As a result, I taught 5 classes (one alone, four with my co-teacher).

After work, I called Jen, my friend in Hawaii. Long story short, a close friend of mine from high school passed away two weeks ago.

As class correspondent, I facebook messaged everyone in the 2003 class group. A few people wrote back with thoughts and memories of their own. I later realized I should also write something in the bulletin, so here's a preview of the '03 notes for the spring bulletin.

Classmate Todd Okubo passed away this August after a long illness. Todd is an indelible part of my Punahou experience, and I’m ashamed to say that I took it for granted that he would always be around. Todd attended UH, and a trip home always meant hanging out with him. He embodies so much of what home in Hawaii is about; laid-back, caring, and reliable. Todd had a huge appreciation for having a good time, but was never irresponsible. I remember senior year Halloween when he dressed up as a Rainbow Warrior, then got scolded for breaking the (newly enforced) dress code.

At Punahou, Todd inspired others through his role as Peer Helper. I’m sure many of you who attended camp (or worked it with him) remember his dedication to the program. He performed in the style of Riverdance at Variety Show, helped with food at Carnival, sang in choir, and danced (kinda) in Pops Assembly.

During high school, I often drove Todd around (since we both lived on the windward side). It worked out well because I had a car and Todd knew where we were going. He always had more faith in me then I did (which one time resulted in us going to Pearl Harbor instead of Aiea). Todd’s guidance showed me where to go numerous times, and now I only get lost in Aiea half the time. It’s weird knowing I’ll never again hear his voice yelling at me to turn right.

He inspired so many around him during his years at Punahou and after with his friendly smile, fun-loving attitude, and reliability. Although I will never be able to hear his voice, mess up his hair, or give him another hug, I won’t forget him and everything he taught me.

I'll probably cut it down before submission, but this is where I am now.


On Saturday, I met up with an ex and a group of our friends from TIU/TIUA. Unfortunately, I was in a terrible mood, so I ended up going home early.

This week consists of elementary school, Halloween, two days of conference, and other such things. I'll keep you posted.

Kawagoe Matsuri and Tea Ceremony

Okay, it's official. I only do stuff of interest on the weekend (not that school isn't 100% fascinating, I just don't think you want to hear about my wonderful world of TF questions and pronunciation practice).

This past weekend was the Kawagoe Matsuri, a festival involving massively huge floats and smaller carried shrine-things (I learned what they were called, but I forgot). It was essentially the same as it was two years ago, except I was the only one who knew what was going on.

If you're reading this and you were with me at the matsuri two years ago (or the night before... for reference, Eric essentially dragged me to the train station then shoved me off at my stop), you probably remember what kind of mood I was in that night. Well, I was essentially just as cranky this past Saturday (and this time no one called me trash girl).

Anyway, on a related note, I saw the Willamette/TIUA fall delegation to TIU at the matsuri. Dean Long, Chaplain Charlie, VP Gunnar, Masaki, and Wayne. You would think the odds of running into them are crazy (since there are thousands of people at this festival), but they were pretty easy to spot (blue hapicoats and the fact that a group of white people walking around Kawagoe sticks out a little). I chatted a little with Wayne about the upcoming pre-departure meeting and how a lot of the current tutors are abandoning him next year.

I ended up leaving early (meaning I went to the bookstore for an hour before going home) because I didn't feel like being smushed.

On Sunday, Zac, Dan, and I went to Hanno (the city just south of Hidaka) to meet up with
Paulina(sp?) another AET. We went to her friend's house where she took the girls (Paulina and I) upstairs to dress us in kimono for a tea ceremony demonstration. Meanwhile, the boys chatted with her husband downstairs. The kimono I wore was definitely the most practical kimono I've worn (my fourth time: one, high school Japanese extra-credit; two, JSP closing ceremony; three, Saitama JET orientation; four, this Sunday). There was only one layer under the kimono, and the obi was tied into a simple square. I'll post photos when I get them from Dan/when I figure out how to post them. We endured through far too much seiza (proper Japanese sitting), but saw some pretty ikebana(flower arrangements), paintings, lamps, and other such crafty things that Japanese housewives do when their husbands are at work and their children are at school/out of the house.

Unfortunately, I had to leave early to meet up with Kinuko for her English conversation practice. We ended up wandering around the supermarket for vocabulary practice. It benefitted both of us because she learned new words and I learned which brands are better and what no additives looks like in kanji.

Weekend in

I recently noticed that I've been posting almost exclusively about my weekend *ahem* adventures, and I'm sure you're expecting another ridiculously long post re-capping yet another crazy weekend in Tokyo.

However, this post will be different. Mainly because I've been afflicted with "かぜ" which has severely restricted my social life. It's not a big deal (it's just a cold), but in an attempt to avoid having to take sick leave (and being worried over by my co-workers when I go back to school), I've essentially remained in my apartment for the entire weekend with the exception of Friday night and a quick trip to the library and grocery store.

Okay, so maybe I did go into Tokyo on Friday night. We went into Ebisu to celebrate Dan's birthday. It turned into a big headache for him because people started cancelling (4 people in 30mins) and we had reservations at a small Lebanese restaurant. Then we showed up late because people came late. Ultimately, the food was good, the company was random, and I left early (10:30) because I could feel the cold starting to hit me and I didn't think staying out all night was the best thing for my health.

So if you know me and my trends in health, I get really cranky right before I get sick. True to past experience, I've been in a terrible mood since Tuesday. Unfortunately, Dan has felt the heat of if because I complain to him when he comes over to use my computer/internet (I believe he tunes me out which is for the best).

Speaking of Dan, apparently one of my co-workers (and possibly the education center people) thinks we're dating. Amusing, yes, but not a rumor I want spreading around. It's just annoying that a guy and a girl can't be good friends without people thinking they're dating. (Ironically this happened the last time I was in Japan too.)


Anyway, on a completely unrelated note, a guy who works at city hall in the education department texted me yesterday asking if he could stop by my apartment and drop off presents for the AETs. Let me give you some background on this guy. He's a 40 year old married guy who looks like he's in his early thirties. He swims every morning with my friend from TIU (which is why we exchanged phone numbers). His favorite singer is Wada Akiko (who is also Dan's favorite). So, he rode up to my apartment building on his motorcycle, pulled out a pile of military olive green shirts with white kanji and a white and gold star and laurel design. He said something about accidentally ordering too many, so he thought he would give them to the AETs. I asked what they said, and the only words I understood were "日本(Japan)," ”アメリカ(America)," and "戦争(war)." He accompanied his explanation with the motion of holding (but not firing) a gun. He then pulled out a photo of about 10 guys standing on a ship. He pointed out one particularly intimidating man and said that he is the leader and he loves memorabilia from the war. Next he showed me a catalog with tons of WWII replicas of uniforms, mess kits, etc. I still don't know what the shirts mean, but I've decided never to wear mine out of the house.

Contact Improvisation and Kawagoe

Last last week Thursday, I taught with Chikako, an English teacher who floats around the various Elementary schools. She invited me to join a yoga class with her. Since the class was only 100yen and I was free, I said okay.

While I don't regret saying yes, I will tell you firstly, that it was the weirdest class/workshop thing I've ever been to. We pulled out yoga mats, and individually stretched while the instructor told us to think about our five senses and about how we should experience all five senses in the class. She then asked us to go around the gym, open a window, and feel the senses. By the way, this is all in Japanese. Usually I can understand meaning and about 50% of the vocab, but she was using technical language so I only got about 25%. Luckily, there was a second grader who came with her mom, and the instructor would give out dumbed down instructions for her (and probably me). After "experiencing" the gym, we walked around in a square. It reminded me of that activity we did in Chemistry as a high schooler when everyone walked around the classroom slowly, then faster to represent the temperature rising. Next, we walked around the gym, and randomly lay down on the floor. Then stood up, and randomly lay down again in a different place.

We did two poses for a total of maybe 3 minutes.

Then came contact improvisation. The instructor explained to us that the goal of our next activity was to be in our partner's "inai" space. "Iru" is "to exist," "inai" is "to not exist." Basically, she said that we should be where our partner is not. Ultimately, we ended up doing an odd improvised dance type thing in a group of 5 people, one middle-aged house wife, the instructor's assistant, two (over 50) Japanese men who joked that they had no "inai" space, and the 22-year old who had no idea what was going on (me). Like I said, it was interesting (and no, we didn't taste anything).

I then met up with Dan for lunch where we discussed the common misconception that when two people of opposite genders hang out (especially without other people), they are dating. (In case you are curious, I'm not dating anyone.)

That night, Dan, Kaz, Zac, and I went out to Kawagoe where we met up with Pepe and Sabrina. Pepe is a guy we met last week Saturday night (see previous entry for details). He designs and makes leather accessories such as bracelets, wallets, etc. He's also a model/actor. Sabrina is a fellow JET participant in Saitama that is friends with Dan's friend from college (I'll talk more about Sabrina later).

It was a really fun night! We went to a yakiniku place for dinner, then followed it up by a visit to "Beer Saurus." We stumbled into this place, and were immediately attracted by the blue lights, large windows, and Tyrannasaurus(sp?) head. The guys at the table next to us made comments about the "gaijin" (foreigners), so Kaz went over to them and whispered to them that he understood Japanese and he would appreciate it if they stopped talking about us. They got super embarrassed and left soon thereafter. However, they came back about 10 minutes later and apologized profusely in Japanese. The guy who made the comments was extremely drunk, since he's getting married soon. A few minutes after they left the second time, we were informed by the server that they had bought us a round of Zimas as an apology. Around this time, Sabrina realized she had to leave to catch her train. I walked her to the station (since she had never been to Kawagoe before), and left when she went through the ticket gate. Unfortunately, she took the wrong train, and thus ended up spending the night in my apartment. If you've seen the photos of my place, you know its large enough where two people could each have their own room. We got along swimmingly, and I thought it was really funny since I literally met her six hours before she stayed overnight. She left early the next morning since she had plans to meet up with her boyfriend in Chiba, but after picking up some groceries, I promptly hopped back into bed and lazed around for the rest of the day.

Around 4:30, I met up with Kinuko, a housewife with two young children who studied English in London for 10 years. Her English skills are great, but she wants someone to speak to (other than her husband) to keep them strong. As a result, we met up through Kaz (she wanted a girl), and we made plans to meet every other week for about an hour and a half while her kids and husband are at golf.

So, that was 2/3rds of my weekend in a nutshell. Today is "taiiku no hi" (sports day), so its a national holiday. I'm thinking of heading into Tokyo for some shopping, but that requires changing out of pajamas.

late night/early morning in Roppongi

I went out last night to Ebisu and Roppongi. These districts are known for rich neighborhoods and clubs that cater to foreigners.

While we were waiting to meet up with Kaz, Dan and I decided to wander around Ebisu. It started to just barely drizzle, and Dan said, "it's raining." I said, "no, it's not." We then continued to have a five-minute long debate about what "rain" is. Why do I mention this? Besides the sheer absurdity of the argument, there was a woman in front of us who kept looking back and smiling in that "oh, I know what they're saying because they're speaking in English and I'm smiling because I know their argument is ridiculous."

After we met up with Kaz, we went to a Lebanese restaurant in Ebisu for dinner. It was a pretty neat little restaurant that was depressingly empty. Our server spoke perfect English, the menu was in English (with Japanese translations below) and the other customers who showed up later also spoke English. It was a weird feeling to actually be able to understand 100% of what was going on. My Japanese is definitely improving, but I'm usually only able to get the general idea of what's going on.

Shane joined the group after dinner, and we headed out to Roppongi. This is where the night gets really strange. We met two of Kaz's friends near the station then headed toward's one of their friend's apartments. As I entered the apartment, I introduced myself to the host as the token female of the group. After walking in further, I noticed someone sitting on the couch, looking very much like a beatnik hipster complete with long hair and what seemed to be a black flower pinned to her head. Introductions flew around, and I learned that "her" name is Anthony. Whoops. Ultimately, we found ourselves at the apartment with a total group of 6 gay guys, 1 straight guy, and me. Badir, our host for the evening, kept apologizing profusely that he didn't call his friend because she was interested in hanging out, and he felt that I would be more comfortable if there was another girl present. I assured him many times that it was fine, and I was sure we'd meet up with her another time (by this point we were all having a lot of fun.)

So, we get to the club, and who do we see? The girl that Badir had been talking about all night. I'll leave out the long details of dancing in the club for 5ish hours, but I'll give you some highlights:

-best pole dancers i've seen in my life (although I have to admit I haven't seen very many). They wore shiny silver underwear and white, high-heel, knee-length boots

-a guy who looked like Boy George approached me to dance and then proceeded to spin me and dip me (imagine two people being silly at a wedding). I'm pretty sure he was drunk, since he dipped me right into someone else. My head still hurts from the collision.

-dancing between two guys, one of whom I know to be gay and the other who is presumably straight while the straight guy attempts to take off the gay guy's pants and touch him inappropriately. I believe straight guy's girlfriend found the situation hilarious.

-a number of featured dancers including a few cheerleaders, a chef, and a guy who just kept pouring water over himself.

-going to the bathroom and talking with a model from Jamaica, a Greenpeace worker from Ireland, and an Italian named Francesca. Then watching a guy and girl come into the bathroom, enter a stall, and stay there for about 5 minutes. Then he left, looking much happier, while she stuck around to beautify herself in the mirror.

-there were more guys then girls in the girls bathroom the second time I went. Enough said.

As a result of my debaucherous night, I now possess aching legs from dancing for a long time, a sore neck from sleeping on the train, a cigarette burn on my arm where a dumb drunk girl ran into me, cigarette first, and a head-full of odd memories. Now, 9:45am, is bedtime.

The Internets arrived!

I finally have the internet in my apartment, and I am a happy happy panda. I posted an extensively detailed photo album on my facebook page, so if you have access to it, I strongly suggest that you check it out. If you read this and you do not have access to facebook, send me an email, and I'll send you a link.

The past two weeks or so have been fairly busy. Here's a quick recap:


On Saturday, the 22nd, my junior high school had their 体育祭(sports festival). For you Japanese scholars out there, I recently learned that the difference between 体育祭 and 運動会
is that the latter is for elementary school while the former is for everyone older than elementary school. Essentially, the students compete in relays and races by classroom against the other students in their grade. Some schools form teams that combine one class from every grade (my elementary school had three teams, since there are three classes per grade). My fellow 1styear student's teachers decided to participate in the 100m relay and coerced me to join them. After the race (we lost so the students wouldn't feel bad about themselves), my JTE (Japanese Teacher of English) came up to me and said, "Wow, I was surprised! You were so fast I couldn't see you!" I responded to this by hitting him with my towel and calling him "baka!" which means idiot. He laughed and walked away, then said the exact samething to another teacher, to which she responded in the exact same way I did.

After the festival (think 7:30-4 of standing outside in the hot sun), we had an "enkai." An enkai is essentially a work party that involves speeches, food, and all you can drink beer. I thought my speech was terrible, but I was assured that I did fine. I stumbled out some phrases about how the sports day was fun and we didn't have it in America, about how much I like Japan, and how my school is the best school in Hidaka (which they loved). Conversation during the night was amusing, as most Japanese people are restricted to talking about places they've been/want to go, food/drink, and the phrase "you have boyfriend?" when they speak in English. As a result, I talked a lot about Hawaii and places in Japan I want to go/have been to, whether I like sushi, wasabi, natto, and umeboshi, and if I had a boyfriend. I was also asked numerous times, "beer OK?" and my opinion of every alcoholic beverage known to Japanese people. Although it may sound contrary to my description of the night, I had a great time.

On Sunday night, we met up with Shane and his significant other for drinks in Kawagoe. We all had a great time (again, photos are on facebook). However, it seemed to be a bittersweet night, as Shane's bf and Kaz's gf (both of whom are awesome people) returned to their respective homes far far away a few days later.

I celebrated my holiday on Monday (Autumnal Equinox Day was on Sunday, so we got a substitute holiday on Monday) by sleeping in. Can't remember what else I did.

Tuesday was my substitute holiday for working on Saturday at sports day, so I decided to wander around Kawagoe. I lost BookOff, so if you're reading this and you remember how to get there, let me know! I bought myself some fabric to decorate my bathroom (which has been described as Martha Stewart-esque and oddly prompted someone to call me "Krystle Stewart"). I also got myself an icepack (which, if you know me, is no surprise).

Wednesday was speech contest day. My students' speeches were good, but not spectacular. Overall I had a good time. It was interesting to meet the Hanno AETs and the students and teachers that my friends worked with.

Wednesday night was drama-filled. I won't go into detail, but I will say that there was a point in which I was scared for the safety of my friend and that I haven't been so thoroughly insulted in a very long time (email me if you want more details).

Also, the internets arrived on Wednesday. Woohoo!

On Thursday, I met up with Chikako, a floating JTE who rotates around the Elementary schools in Hidaka. We taught 1st graders body parts and "head, shoulders, knees, and toes." The kids were super 元気 (genki, meaning lively and excited). It was a great change from the emo-ness of the junior high kids. However, I didn't properly stretch before teaching, and 18 verses of "head, shoulders, knees, and toes" later, I find myself feeling old. Luckily, I have my brand-new icepack. Chikako is super awesome, and she invited me to join a yoga class with her for a few weeks.

Speaking of new Japanese friends, next week Sunday, I'm meeting up with a lady who teaches English to kids. She's looking for native English speakers to practice with so she doesn't lose her skills. I'll keep you posted about how that goes.

Which brings us to today. I believe the plan is shopping in Omiya during the day, and hitting a huge club party tonight. We'll see how it goes.

Substitute Holiday

I`m pretty sure I didn`t write what I wanted to write for last post`s title, but I`m too lazy to figure out the Japanese to fix it right now.

Anyway, I spent last Saturday watching elementary school kids run around and dance and such. My job was to help with いろいろのこと (various things), but realistically, I did nothing except watch the competition, put a broom away, and hold some papers down so they wouldn`t blow away. As a result of this "work," I have a substitute holiday today. I chose to spend today wandering around Tokyo. Perhaps getting my hair cut. (Not sure yet).

I had dinner at La Pausa with a friend from Willamette/JSP on Sunday. ちょ懐かしい(super nostalgic)！