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Phrase of the Day

I have one of those 365-day calendars that sits at my desk.  It’s theme?  英会話, or “English Conversation”.  I am, of course, using it backwards to learn some very important phrases.

Today’s phrase is:

お父様が亡くなりになったそうで、とても残念に思います。

o-tou-sama ga o-nakunari ni natta sou de, totemo zannen ni omoimasu.

“I’m sorry to hear your father passed away.”

And the small phrase of the day is:

お悔やみ申し上げます。

o-kuyami moushi agemasu.

“I’m sorry for your loss.”

To add to the somber tone of today’s phrase is yesterday’s phrase of the day:

飼っていた猫が死んじゃったの。

katte-ita neko ga shinjyatta no.

“My cat died.”

And the small phrase for the day was:

もう生きていけない。

mou ikiteikenai.

“How can I go on?”

I wonder where the phrase is for, “Snap out of it, man!”

I Don’t Yell at Kids…Like They’d Listen Anyways

So anyways, I don’t yell at kids.  My eyes and tone of voice are こわい (scary) enough to keep me from ever having to raise my voice.

Another thing you may not know (ok, people who know me in person don’t count) is that I’m easily distracted by things.  Like a raccoon.  Everything else is forgotten.  Ooh, shiny things!  Ooh, commercials on TV!  Ooh, two people talking in an otherwise very quiet classroom!

So, anyways, this happens.  The “two people talking” scenario, not the “shiny piece of tin” one.  These two kids aren’t whispering, but talking.  If I knew more Japanese, I’d be able to comment on what they said, which would make it a more interesting classroom, but alas, no such luck!  I ask the class to pay attention and please listen, like I do any time I am about to read something out.  Quiet class.  Good.  I start reading, and they start talking.  I’m losing concentration fast.  So I stop reading and look at them.  It gets their attention, and they stop talking.  I finish my reading.  OK, no problem yet…until I’m asked to read a passage again.  Once more, they start talking.  I stop reading until they stop.  I continue.  They start up again, I pause AGAIN, but this time to tell them to “please stop talking”.  Nothing too crazy here.  Just a verbal cue for them to shut their traps.  During the next passage, they’re at it again!  Son of a Gun!  I walk past them while I’m reading, and they shut up.  I stay about 3 seats from them.  It takes about one minute, and…yeah, you know what happens.  Once again, blahblahblah!  I am reading, but I walk past their desks, look at the one guy whom I decided a long time ago is not truly belligerent, fix him with my most death threat-ish of glares and say, “stop. talking.”  Think “Snape” (I can’t remember the exact scene from the movie that I’m thinking about in particular, but still…Snape).

*Go Snape!*

This was not a comment for everyone, just a warning to him.  Apparently that worked, because after the one kid was afraid of the consequences of continuing, the other kid couldn’t carry on a conversation anymore.  I never raised my voice the entire time.  Shouting is what the other teachers do to get attention in a rowdy class or get their point across.  I do the opposite.  After all the yelling they’re used to, I think it has far greater impact.  Not to mention, I’m not sure if the teachers would have appreciated anyone else yelling at their students.  And yeah, there was a teacher there.  Not doing anything about the situation.  Not surprisingly. 

Thank goodness, because that’s about as far as you can go in the Japanese school system.  There is no detention or sending kids to the principal’s office.  Heck, though this is middle school, you can’t even tell a kid to move to a different seat without fear of serious emotional distress waterworks.  I had never thought that would happen in middle school, but I was wrong (and luckily other people can back this up).  The only punishment I have ever seen here is the kid, or group of kids, being totally chewed out by a pack of teachers in the teacher’s room.  That makes me feel icky and weird to be there while they’re yelling at kids who’ve been in tears for about 10 minutes.  What did they do?  Good question.  The teachers will never tell me.  They always say, “I don’t know”, like it isn’t obvious from the voices that could be heard (I’m sure) outside the building.  Perhaps this is another reason to up my Japanese studies.

So, yeah, when the homeroom teacher mentioned to the english teacher that the students said that I got angry with those two in the class, my first thought was “how dare they rat me out!”, then “funny how the teacher doesn’t seem upset by it”.

It wasn’t later until I really thought about how many of the teachers I knew used shouting as a normal means of dealing with students, and yet what I did seemed note-worthy.  Trust me.  I’ve seen some angry teachers.

Should I have posted this?  The next day, and it’s still on my mind?  I say, why not!

I need some Swiss Miss.

I’m on a Rant, but the Pain is Short

Alright, so I’m settling into a routine of teachers fighting to have me go to their classes. Apparently, the vice principal told the teachers that there was some (may I say, quite impossible *I did the math*) quota of hours I was supposed to teach each school year, and since I may have gone to only a handful of classes in the past half year, it wasn’t quite meeting up.

Last week, I got the joy of having two teachers discussing *arguing* over my head as to who had dibs on me. As far as I’m concerned, the teacher who should get me is the teacher who uses me, not the one who tells his class that I’m only there because the vice principal said it was required (I know what you’re saying, so stop using Japanese like it’s that code that Charity doesn’t understand).

Now I’m going to classes where I say a few sentences here and there, and otherwise sit down to quietly contemplate the idea of kids who know grammer, but who, at the same time, can’t respond to “Do you like carrots?” without partial translations, multiple repetition, and ridiculous miming.

And by the way, Japanese English teachers, I’m going to let you in on a little secret. Saying “of course!” is considered a bit rude, or at least harsh, as a response to a question…so stop saying it to everything I ask! Like I’m supposed to know that I, “of course”, get the day off for Coming of Age Day (it’s not like anyone in grade school is turning 20), or to “of course” speak the next vocabulary during a listening test, like I was told how long to wait. It’s a simple question. A “yes” or “no” will suffice, thank you. Perhaps a “maybe” if you’re feeling crazy.

While I’m ranting, I am constantly amazed as to the extent some people go to to totally ignore that there are other cultures outside of their own. An example would be how a supervisor of mine responded to my “I don’t know how to use this, what is this ‘bank book’ for?” with a rather incredulous “don’t you use those in America too?” (no, by the way). Another would be the old man who first said in Japanese,”ooh, a foreigner!”, then kept staring at me at the train station, saying “ok” over and over like I was some dog that if you prompted enough would whine out “Iloveyou” (do you know what I’m talking about?). I don’t know. Maybe what annoys me even more is the lack of responsiveness from other people who know what’s going on, especially when the people who are ignoring it are the people running an establishment I happen to be in. It’s as if people are so reluctant to do something that could be perceived as creating a commotion that they let the current commotion continue. It seems to be the whole “blind-eye” approach. I wonder if it’s a general situation (I hear it’s also a problem with girls being harrassed in the trains by “chikan”->molesters), or mainly a “not Japanese” issue. I won’t go into the racism issue right now. That’s a topic I can’t properly express right now without getting bummed out. Or angry.

Well, that was fun.

And now I’ll idle away my hours reading my collection of Hans Christian Andersen fairy tales that I picked up at the new (for me) Maruzen in Fukuoka City. Such a nice collection of English books they have! I already can’t wait to go back!

And yes, by the way, I have re-contracted for another year (so long as they want me to return…haven’t gotten anything official yet). Though I rant, it doesn’t rule my life. I’m still perhaps the happiest I’ve been in a long time.

Which may come as a shock to those who know me here, but if you took away the pessimistic, brooding, sarcastic, sardonic, snarky, bitter part of me, you’d take away…me! It’s really not as bad as it seems. Well, not for me, anyways. :)

Hana Yori Dango, Season 2~!

I just finished watching the first episode of the second season of the Japanese drama, 花より男子 (Boys Over Flowers). I am a super fan of the first, and am pleased to see that both Matsumoto Jun (playing Doumyouji Tsukasa), and Oguri Shun (playing Hanazawa Rui) are looking better than ever (‘specially with Matsumoto’s updated version of the hairstyle…far more flattering!).

Here’s a HYD fan vid I found made from the first season of the series. Probably won’t mean much to those who haven’t seen the series, but if you have…very emotional.  It was made entirely with episode 3 footage, and though that’s amazing, it’s also believable.  It had about the most plot movement and development of all the eps.  The Chinese (Taiwanese?) subs are obnoxious, but easy enough to ignore.

Sadly, I can’t find any half-decent pics of the series. Only the actors. That’s not too bad though. Here’s Matsujun and Oguri Shun (blonde hair) together in Gokusen (playing outcast students), aired before the HYD series (playing spoiled rich students). These are the same boys from the vid clip above.

I feel justified in my love for them because, though they may play high school students, they’re actually just a little bit younger than myself.

Best. Picture. Ever.

Even I couldn’t resist trying my hand at the “best picture ever” thing.

This pic just cracks me up. Even right now. I am cracking.

Those are puppies under the dog, and that would be a…well, I’ll let you guess what else is showing in this picture.
This was taken in Kyoto during the same trip as Steve’s pic below was taken.

*postnote* apparently the post I was talking about was accidentally marked as “private”, but this issue has been dealt with, as you can now see it.

Good times. If I ever get unlazy enough to upload all those images, I may even post about it. Don’t hold your breath though.

A Farewell to Friend

Goodbye long-term visiting friend named Steve! With you now in Tokyo, I’ll once again have the house to myself. I’ll wander as if lost as the dishes pile up and the laundry stays unwashed (seriously though, hanging clothes to dry? I’ll never get into that). Oh, woa is the day that you left, for I no longer remember how I, in blissful ignorance, idled away the time by myself in my concrete block of a house! It had something to do with video games and Japanese drama, but it’s hard to start that all back up. Ok, not hard. I’m hitting the DS hardcore, but it’s not the same. Not the same at all.

I feel it’s only appropriate to honor his memory with a terribly goofy picture of him.

He is making this gleeful face as he uses the electronic touch screen pad to find a song for the karaoke (say it with me, “kah-rah-oh-keh”) booth we were in when visiting Tokyo, a bit over two months ago. The karaoke booth was great, with props to play around with. He’s wearing one of them, a neon orange happi coat. The kanji on his says “o-matsuri”, or “festival”. I had on a red one.

Woo, hit the m&m/raisin mix too hard. Felt like I was back on codone again from back before I had my surgery (too much information?). I’ll have to remember that it’s just too strong to be munching on at work. Heaven forbid if I had a class right now!

New Year’s Resolutions

Some resolutions I’ve made for the year.

Cut the swearing.

• In a country that doesn’t know what you’re saying anyways, curbing your language loses its necessity.  Yeah, it was getting out of control.

Study Japanese

• I am a lazy slug. 
• I’ll start slow.  Only touching the books the first week.  Next week I’ll work up to opening and closing them.  Perhaps after I’ve mastered these steps, I’ll begin reading, and then the inevitable (I wish) writing down of the notes and memorizing of the script.  Oh, joyous day!
• Perhaps a mix-in of weekly lessons will help, too.

Do my laundry on a regular basis

• It wouldn’t seem like such a big deal as to make it a New Year’s resolution, but it is.  This resolution involves putting the clothes up afterwards, too.  And by “putting up”, I don’t mean “placed on top of the clothes pile heap”.

Add style to my home in a cost-effective, economical way

• Ah yes, style.  Easily bought here for the right price.  Usually the high price.  Every ALT pad I have seen (including my own) has been lacking in the style department.  I don’t blame them.  Why up the cool factor in a place that you’ll only be in for a few years?  As for me, I’ve only ever lived places for a few years at a time, so if I use that excuse, I’ll never have that elusive “style”.

Take up a hobby

• My two choices right now? 弓道 kyuudou (Japanese archery), and 三味線 shamisen.  I simply need to act on these desires.

Spend less/ pay off loans

• All towards the ultimate goal of life, love, and liberty (and no debt).

I made some resolutions that can’t realistically be kept for an entire year, so I made some for the month.

Lose 8 pounds.

• Harder than it sounds when you’re having to deal with the very unsatisfying feeling of stepping on a scale here.  Back home, I could see a difference with half a pound, but here, half a pound wouldn’t even register.  I hate scales that weigh in kilograms!  What’s 8 pounds here?  About 3 kg.

No alcohol

• Your blood/alcohol level must be zero when driving, and that’s a real pain in the ass at times.  When faced with the possibility of a crazy night out, I call a taxi.  If I remove alcohol from the picture, no taxi!  This will save me a few (lot of) bucks.  …and I don’t need all of those empty calories.
• That I also got embarrasingly drunk at the New Year’s Eve party has nothing to do with this!

Get more sleep/ wake up earlier

• The getting more sleep thing is important, but it’s really the getting up early part that has it in the ”one month resolution” section.  I never give myself enough time to eat while at home, so I end up eating random crap that I can scrounge and take to school with me (such as Ritz crackers, mixed nuts, and m&m’s).  This is such a pain in the ass to do (waking up) that I need a more immediate deadline to work with. 

Make more of my school bentos

• With my friend leaving on Monday, I’ll no longer be going home for lunches, and, if not stopped, resume ordering my bentos along with the other bachelors at school from a company that delivers them.  At 400円 *a bit more than three bucks* a pop, there’s a bit more money I save.

Now that I’ve highlighted about every single generic resolution people tend to make, what, may I ask, are yours? 

Back To Work…

I’m so tired.

I had to be back at work, starting yesterday.  Problem is, there isn’t much *ahem, nothing* to do.  Classes haven’t started, and the soonest elementary visit isn’t for another two weeks (but what a week, a different school for each day).

I finished up reading Eragon yesterday (hmm, should I bother picking up the second book?), and I’m hoping that I’ll suddenly get interested in starting up another book I had stopped reading earlier.  Anything to stay awake at work.  I hate it when I’m to the point of nodding off at my desk.  Not that it’s embarrasing or anything, but…yeah, it’s embarrasing.  I feel like I’m a student again, ’cause I don’t know how many times I’ve looked at the clock, only to find that time has, in fact, begun to stand still.

I’d write more, but I might fall asleep from the monotonous tone of keyboard clicking.