sometimes-

-i miss the most random things....

mom's pizza... tim hortons ice capps... diversity.... kids who can comprehend every work i speak to them... library books i can read... hugs... breakfast at the counter... tv commercials... driving... our pellet stove. <3 home.life.

[lauren arrives in less than 48 hours!!!!!!]

life's little joys

highlights of my week:
skype surprise!! talking to 2 favo cuties on monday while they were visiting my house. gordon said he was very tired, so he wanted to get down from the computer. after chatting my ear off for about 10 minutes :) eleanor told me all about school. and some of her new friends... "her father is shrinking" [!!!]

going fishing. even though i didn't catch anything, it was still like old times.

somewhat real conversations with my students. they don't freak out as much when i ask them questions. and we can talk about more than the current temperature.

my amazing friends who wrote notes back to my cutie kids. most of them were blown away by the "difficult" english, but i could tell that the letters from america= treasures for their little hearts.

planning my trip to tokyo in 8 days. with LAUREN!! this will be my first time in tokyo since orientation, which doesn't count bc i only left the hotel 2 times.

great things to come:
LRM. in japan. in tokyo. in my apartment. at school with me. sharing my life for 10 sweet days <3.

get together with ann&mandy for okinawa [spring break] planning and okonomiyaki eating!

skype dates with favorite people*

[memories of the christmas past]

incredible

i continue to be blown away by my adventures in japan!!! i had perhaps the most bizarre last 48 hours. the fact that it was bizarre is in no way negative [if anything, it was wonderfully cool!]. i'm not in a good mindset to summarize at all, but here are a few highlights. click on my photo blog for a few pictures of my new life. i mean, my new hair. or maybe both.

*outdoor onsen amidst the falling snow. uh-may-zing

*more snow than i've ever seen in my life. the place we stayed [see snow photo] gets the most snow of a lived-in area in the world, or so i heard. that's pretty nuts.

*people who are very able and very excited to speak english. now, how come there aren't any of those in himi?!

*parents. sure, they're lynz's, but still :)

*belated christmas presents from two amazing friends: including 2 new salvo t's!!!

*mcdonald's "happy seto" and a train ride home with ann. i'm always happy for that.

*helping to make a real snow fort/igloo. i could stand up inside it!

*cool new friends <3 [one who spoke a tiny bit of spanish with me. another who spoke english with me for hours. in a scottish accent.]

lifetime education

lately i've been getting to know a new friend. i'm realizing that any connections i make with japanese people are bound to teach me about life. i feel like every conversation, mix-up, or adventure is my special chance to be a little bit more prepared for the years to come.

in noting some things that come up in a bilingual friendship, i am recognizing some things that i'm guessing would be true in a long term relationship. bc in many ways, guys and girls speak different languages, right? here's what i mean....

1. when discussing plans we want to make with our buddies, my new friend uses the phrase i'm ok. basically, that means "sure, i can" or "yeah, that works with my schedule"... i, on the other hand, often use the phrase it's ok to mean "no problem" or "don't worry"... clearly, confusion is inevitable.

2. i recently gave my friend a souvenir from thailand. he said thank you so much, and i could tell it was a big hit. i thought the subject was closed. last night, about 5 days after giving the gift, i got a message saying that he didn't know how to say thank you for the bracelet but he was very glad. don't we do that in our other relationships, too? we have so much more to say but either can't express it in words or are too afraid to try bc of fear. so we wait and say it later once we get our nerve. or we never speak up.

3. i'm a talker. sometimes i say way too much. it's happened many times that i try to explain something in english and end up rambling on and on, only to glance up and see a really bad combination look: pure confusion with a type of kindness/empathy. haha. i've totally seen that in guy/girl relationships... one or the other rambles on unnecessarily in an attempt to be understood, only to cause more difficulty. and we feel bad for that person bc they've wasted a lot of breath. and everyone has to start over.

so, those are the things i've observed. here are a few expert ideas on how to make it work. and by it, i mean bilingual friendships or long term love relationships. actually, in my own humble opinion, they're good ideas for ANY kind of relationship.

a. it takes commitment. i'm committed to this friendship. sure, i didn't sign anything, but in my mind i think, "this is a good connection. i want to learn some japanese, work at the friendship, & have fun". we naturally hope every friendship will be mutual, but i need to do my best, regardless of whether the other person holds up their end of the bargain. [learning japanese is SORT of like learning about guys in general- full of confusing symbols, crazy vocabulary, and strange pronunciation. both are impossible to master; we could spend years&years and never be considered fluent]

b. it takes a lot of patience. when i don't understand, i can't pretend i get it. if my friend is trying to show me how to use a new phrase, he has to give examples of how to use it in daily life. if i'm using a new word, i have to explain the definition and use other, easier words. if my friend tries to ask a question and i keep interrupting because i think i know what he's asking, he has to wait for me to stop blabbing and try again. this time hopefully i'll have learned my lesson.

c. it takes some outside resources. where would language learners be without a good dictionary? how about a friend who's almost bilingual? how about some books with basic building blocks?

d. it takes a lot of laughter. my friend recently asked me if everyone in america owns a gun. i seriously cracked up! we talked about it a little, and soon we were both laughing. things like that come up in relationships. it's possible to get offended. but why not just laugh, especially if it was an innocent mistake?

e. it takes creativity. if i had to pick a motto for life, i'd probably say that questions are the building blocks of conversation. it takes creativity to think of questions, but they totally add life to what can be an awkward silence when you aren't fluent in each other's language...

out of control ridiculous

so i got my hair cut on saturday. i'm super happy with it & it's the best cut i've ever had. plenty of my students noticed today, making comments like "cute, cute" and "hair.cut.?" and "you made a change". all was pleasant.

until, after lunch, my crazy teacher started the following conversation:
"kelly-san, eto, eto... you changed your hairstyle" [me: "yes, i got it cut."] "in japan. we japanese. in junior high school if students have hair below their shoulders, we make them tie it back. or if their hair covers their eyes...." (as she looks at my hair....) ["oh, really?"] "yes. and we teachers must scold them if they do not follow the rules. so if we scold them, we must have our hair too." (as she touches her own, 50-something-styled hair which probably isn't much shorter than mine) ["oh, my hair wont really be pulled back"] "hmm. yes. hm. eto, eto... but it is different for students and teachers...." ["oh, ok...."]. "yes. ok"

i remained calm but inside i was FUMING. what in the world was she saying?! first of all, i'm not a student so clearly those rules are not even relevant to me. second of all, probably 1/3 of the girls have hair longer than mine [NOT pulled back] and at least 4 out of the 15-ish female teachers have hair longer than mine!!! third of all, why did you even mention it when it's not relevant AND nobody follows the rule anyway?!

winter walk

it was a gorgeous day in himi. i spent a good chunk of the day catching up on skype and reading a new book. then around 4pm i decided i better take advantage of the lovely weather [it doesn't come too often lately] and get myself outside. i took what i like to call a photography walk... i strolled along the streets to the beach and took photos of whatever caught my eye.

blue.sea.
it was all yellow

bundled

it's that time again, folks. i checked a million winter vacation homeworks in the last 3 days. this afternoon i found some real gems on the 3nensei diaries:

"i had a cold. it hurts so badly that i wanted to die" [zoiks!]

"i'm going to the tooth hospital today because i have one decayed"

"today i eat a lot of cakes. make it fat again. i was terrible"

"today it is christmas which i gave noting to. it is a heartless parent!!"


i'm sitting bundled under my heated table [kotatsu], with a random blanket put underneath the flat part so i can keep the warmth on my legs and not into the rest of the apartment. it's pretty sweet but my fingers get a bit frosty.

tonight i had my first successful conversation completely in japanese, in my life. it felt phenomenal hanging up, knowing that i could understand and be understood. yippee!!

i've uploaded some of my all-time favorite photos. mostly bc i think it makes my posts more interesting, and also bc i just love photographs.

i think they missed me

& i think they think i'm too skinny.

today turned out to be a great day in the staff room at hokubu. ALL the teachers in my section said ohaiyo gozaimasu when i walked in [normally they don't even look up from their desks]. the principal came and sat down next to me to ask questions, in english, about my vacation. the goofy guy i saw at the train station when i arrived home on friday night asked where i had been for christmas. my crazy teacher called the package delivery company to sort out my missing/ non delivered present from meliss. two of my teachers were incredibly appreciate of my time checking spelling homework.

and everyone and their mom gave me new foods to try. i guess part of the new year tradition is to eat certain foods a week after new years [which was today, the 8th]. i was already wicked full from lunch and two random cakes i'd been given. but it's new years tradition and i wanted to show my willingness to experience new things. the food turned out to be really delicious... mochi in this warm, sweet liquid with red beans at the bottom. the lady who made it watched my face expectantly when i brought up my empty bowl to be washed. i don't think she was at all disappointed by my reaction*

the kids were genki today as well. i had a few really good conversations about what they did over break. tomorrow classes start again, which i'm really looking forward to. even though the staff room was cheerful today, i like the classrooms far better.

... yet...

[apparently everyone takes a photo with this guy]
[new years crowds]

tomorrow it's back to the grindstone. today was spent at the board of education office, wasting time and catching up with my fellow ALTs. it was really nice to relax and spend time with them, enjoying japanese sweets. now i'm bored and chilly in my apartment, with darkness settling in. i guess the high energy excitement of the last 2 weeks has made me a bit dissatisfied with the day-to-day routine. [so much for being glad to be back in japan... i guess i'm bipolar. "who's mr. hi-hi?"]

since arriving home on friday night i have completely rearranged my apartment, attempted a new recipe, and changed practically every setting on my cell phone. i've been trying to analyze this tendency of mine... what's the psychological background for the crazy mixed-up-ness i embody? i yearn for variety, adventure, and change. yet at the same time i find comfort in some sense of order, organization, and schedule. i long to travel the world and see every possible new place. yet nearly every day i wish i could be "home" somewhere, settled down. i treasure the solace of my own apartment. yet i'm almost constantly wishing i had someone with whom to carry on endless conversations. and i adore meeting new people, asking questions, and discovering cool trivia. yet my heart of hearts is only truly held by a few precious people.

it's probably all part of growing up. it's probably all part of living alone, in a foreign country, surrounded by unknown words. but it's weird and i don't necessarily like the feeling.

dear meg

some of my 3nensei students wrote letters to my friends a few weeks before christmas. one boy wrote the following:

dear meg,
hello, my name is kazuhiro nangi. how are you? i'm fine. i'm fourteen years old. my birthday is march 8th. i live in himi. my hobby is listening to music. i like american music. what kind of music do you like? please tell me about american music. by the way, what sports do you like? i like playing handball. i'm in the handball team. i retired myself by july. our school has participated in a national convention consecutively for ten years [ya think he used a dictionary here?!!]. our senior did championship once and runner up once.

i like miss. kelly. because a class of miss. kelly is very pleasant, and is a beautiful woman very much. surely you who are the friend of miss kelly will be a beautiful woman. if you are good, will you send your photograph?
please write to me.
sincerely,
kazuhiro nangi


haha i LOVED this letter so much that i made a photocopy and hung it on my wall. i cannot imagine where he came up with some of these lines... tv, an american movie, his dictionary...?? anyway, wow*

my youtube

all thaid up2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJAS_4Yao7U [merry christmas 2007]

all thaid up3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vOMDyhpPLvI [hill top sunset]

all thaid up4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Js9AJX_7BXI [seacanoe tour!!]

all thaid up5: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5D4-nbNe5M [riding an elephant]

all thaid up6: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eh0epwnOEac [me & baby elephant]

a few more videos for your viewing pleasure. or pain. or something.

tongue thaid

i signed up for flickr because i thought i could put videos on there. apparently not. so i deleted my flickr site and joined YouTube instead.

i'm still at a point where i can't summarize my trip to thailand. it was perhaps one of the best weeks of my entire life. while there were a few errors and frustrations, the entire thing was phenomenal. i learned a lot about myself and got to know cassie better. both are high up on the list of highlights. in conclusion, the trip made me ready to come home, to japan. which is life changing in itself. i have a new, fresh perspective which i hope will have an impact on how i live out my next 7 months here*

i'll share some of my photos and videos and perhaps you'll get an idea of how amazing [and incredibly unique] my first christmas away from home really was...




all thaid up1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3DO02IAR9-I

home again, home again, jiggity jig

cassie and i are back safe & sound in japan. we arrived this morning around 9, slept till 4pm and then got ourselves together to celebrate the new year in style. we visited a massive shrine that's near cassie's apartment. everyone and their mother was there... it's tradition to pray at the shrine at midnight, apparently. we went to watch and be caught up in the waves of people. before midnight it was sort of like a carnival, with booth after booth of fried food, games for kids, and little toys to clutter up people's houses. we went in a haunted house and screamed like children :)


here are a few more thailand photos.
[our sea canoe]
[with our own personal guide, Gif. what a champ :)]
[sunset from our seacanoe tour]

HAPPY NEW YEAR*