Weekends in Japan so far.....ridiculous, wicked, epic, awesome, sick etc

Weekends in Japan so far.....ridiculous, wicked, epic, awesome, sick etc

The weekends have by far been the social highlight of my experience here in Japan. They are ridiculous, usually filled with massive amounts of drinking, partying, and overall debauchery. This past weekend was 100th anniversary of the Omagari Fireworks. Omagari, the town I live in, is know across the country for their awesome fireworks display. Now you cant think of some fourth of july celebration in Hebron, Ct or Peoria, Az. This is on a massive scale, the town of 90,000 turns into a town of close to a million people for two days. People come from all over the country to see these fireworks. Since it was the 100th anniversary, it was even bigger and better than years past (I heard). Many of the other ALT’s (assistant language teachers) came into town for these fireworks to stay the weekend, party, and enjoy each others company. It was booze fest from the minute our friends came into town. Whiskey seems to be the drink of choice for the weekend....evil evil cheap whiskey. Think well style Kentucky bourbon something with the name of Old Hen or Ten High. This can put quite a hurtin on you if your not careful. Saturday was all day drinking day, then we trekked to the fireworks , carrying a cooler full of sake and other delicious treats. Carrying this cooler was the single hardest act of physical extertion I have ever experience. No triathlon, 1/2 marathon, appalachian hike, or mt bike ride can even compare. Walking through a sea of people, in hot and humid weather, intoxicated, with sweat dripping down your face was ridiculously hard. That did not ruin the not however....we watched fireworks for three hours, then went and sang karaoke into the wee hours of the night, and stumbled home to fall asleep on the floor.... it was awesome... until Monday, when the lack of water, food, and sleep mixed with the alcohol streaming through my blood all hit me at once, too bad there are no “sick days” or “video days” in Japanese education!

“But you're wrong if you think that the joy of life comes principally from human relationships. God's placed it all around us, it's in everything, any

“But you're wrong if you think that the joy of life comes principally from human relationships. God's placed it all around us, it's in everything, anything we can experience. People just need to change the way they look at those things."

sitting in bed listening to “Like Rock and Roll and Radio,” a very lonely feeling has crept into my mind tonight. There have been many sleepless nights here in Omagari, the uncomfortable bed, the heat, the solitude, and mostly the thoughts that wander in and out of your head like common strangers passing you on the street. I have trouble with these nights, the tiredness is conquered by the mind wading through a sea of reflection. So here it is...

I ve been here about a month and so far and this experience has taken me places I never expected. Its a been a very introspective journey to travel alone to a new country with so many barriers. I cant really explain it, but it has challenged me in ways that touch the depth of my soul. I need this experience though to continue to allow myself to grow. It started as a reason to travel, a unique teaching experience, and a chance to understand a different culture. And I have seen it slowly transform to a self reflective and personal experience which maybe only I can understand.

I believe that the human mind and soul can only change when it is put in new and uncomfortable experiences. If we are people that find comfort and security in routine , how can we force ourselves to take a look at who we are and they way we approach life.

When we have happiness and confidence within ourselves this can transform how we interact in our human relationships. It is important to find happiness in the beautiful things that surround us, to find happiness in the life we are leading, and eventually find happiness in the arms of others.. I guess this is becoming both a journey that is selfless and selfish.

“the best gift an educator can give is to get someone to become self reflective.”- Randy Pausch

Observations Month One of....many

They tell you at the start of the program , no matter where you are placed in Japan, it will soon feel like home. When I first arrived in Omagari, I thought to myself, what the fuck am I doing here! I expected to be in a city, with tall buildings, restaurants, bars, and parks. As I was driven to my new home from the airport I noticed none of the above around me. Instead it was a rural landscape filled with lush green hills, scattered dilapidated houses, and broken businesses. I got into Omagari and thought how badly I wanted to be in arizona, in the comfort of my home, my job, and my friends. But things change and although Omagari does not feel like home, I have settled into a quite routine which brings a sense of normalcy to this experience. Although I officially started work a month ago, this was the first week with the students and its been a Jekyll and hyde experience.

Observation One: Its hot as fuck! Honestly I know I keep mentioning this, but it is so humid, you az people have no idea. Its like florida in the summer, like a steam room without the eucalyptus, like a sauna full of damp, thick, humid air. I sweat from the moment I wake up until night time. By the end of the day it looks like someone sprayed PAM on my face then followed it up with a nice shower of fry grease. I mean its ridiculous, plus I m not a morning shower person at all, so there is a mixture of morning face grease, sweaty humidity face, and the days natural oils! Fucking gross

The Japanese must not have sweat glands, because they say they are hot and they act like they are hot, but no sweat pours from their bodies like mine. At the end of the day my shirt looks like I just competed in the Ironman with slacks and a button down on. Please cold weather come soon!

Observation Two: Kids will be kids, Now as previously mentioned Japanese students work harder and are more respectful than American students. Its just a part of their culture. They have to attend school during the summer, they have to study extra hard to keep up with the rest, its a “rat race” as my Japanese colleague told me. But that doesnt mean there arent what I call “chicken fucker” students. That is my term back home for those students that are just plain worthless, who have zero respect for authority, and should just turn their McDonalds application in now because they are going no where. Yea that is harsh, but teachers, you know what I mean, not everyone can be a rocket scientist or even a teacher. They are destined for a life of minimum wage and petty crimes. Well I had my first encounter with the chicken fucker student here. My biggest pet peeve is when students talk when I am... actually my biggest pet peeve is Nickelback fans and people who quote Will Ferrell movies. However my biggest teaching pet peeve is talking over me. Future students... you can sleep in my class, you can doodle, you can stare aimlessly out the window. But do not talk when I am! (Remember my classroom rules past students!) This past week, I am giving what is called a self intro to all the class to share with them some information and pictures about me and these two male students (they seem to be far worse than the females, or maybe I play favorites?) talked during the whole presentation, did I know what the fuck they were talking about? no not a clue, but they could of been talking about the Pedagogy of Education for all I know. I kept waiting for the Japanese teacher to quiet them down, but she is super timid in the classroom and didn't say a word, finally I lost it and told them the in America I tell my kids to shut their mouth when I am talking, I think the look in my eyes did more than my words. I learned quickly back home that you have to strike the fear of god in your students right away or else you lose control of the classroom very quickly (right krista?)

Observation Three: I am lucky to be in this town. Not that Omagari is this magical wonderland of fun, or this gorgeous region filled with abundant nature. But the other JET s on this program are really awesome. They are so nice... wait that is a terrible word, they are so kind hearted and fun, well except Alex (he is a little bit of a dick, but we get along great since ). There are about six others here on the program and it gives you something to look forward to , to meet socially, take classes together, or have someone to explore the area with. But most importantly , for the most part they know exactly what your going through because they are enduring the same thing (except alex, he has no feelings...jk bud I hope your reading this)

Till next week...

Goals by the time I am....

Goals: By the time I am thirty I want to... oh fuck thats almost here... By the time I am forty I want to....

1.Go back to school: I love school, well I love college. I love learning and pretending to be intellectual, and listening to lectures, and reading books. So I would like to go back to school for one or more of the following

Masters in History: I have a Masters now in education which is the equivalent of having a participation ribbon from a swim meet. Really, its a worthless degree which is more embarrassing than honorable. So if I get a Masters in History then I have a little more honor and a little more knowledge.

Masters in NGO leadership: More on that in goal four

Doctorate in History: More on that in goal two

2.Teach College or University: I really would like to teach at a community college which I feel is the best of both worlds. You have all different types of people getting their degree, mostly wanting to advance and learn. Plus as a professor there is less expectation. But I would like to be a full time professor one day and get paid to do research, read, lecture, be intellectual... then I could also obtain goal three

3.Write a book: Now my idea is to write a comparative study on the history of genocide in the 20th century. Now I think someone may have already taken my idea, so my next idea is to write on American intervention or lack thereof in modern day Africa. Basically the lack of support, empathy, and intervention the U.S. has shown to the conflicts plaguing Africa. That idea I think is still up for grabs.

4.Create and NGO or Non-profit: Think of Unicef, Red Cross, Invisible Children etc. My dream job is to work for one of these companies that is actually striving for sustainable growth in developing countries. But why not aim higher and start one myself. I dont have a good name yet, but my organization would provide either/both of the following:

Bicycles: the power of a bicycle is amazing. In developing countries, transportation by car is scarce and most people walk or ride a bike. Even a bike is a luxury item and by providing these, you allow people access to more institutions.. jobs, schools, hospitals, etc.

Clean Water: honestly i cant believe there are areas where people still dont have access to clean water and plumbing. I mean its the cheapest and simplest method to save lives. Clean water can prevent death from childbirth, disease, infant fatality, and war. Natural resources including water is one of the reasons behind so much of the conflict in Africa. If the U.S. or any country spent 1/25 of what they do on weapons and defense on water it would do wonders.

5.dont have a goal five, but i feel every list must either end in fives or tens, so let me just take a moment and say my motto is to leave the world a better place then when you entered. I dont think I ll change the world or anything, but I can try right?

Official start of the work week: A few notes and observations

Official start of the work week: A few notes and observations

I just finished a short yet sweet welcome speech to all 700 students at Omagari High School. I officially start my work at the high school this week. By that I mean I am in the classroom, team teaching with other Japanese teachers, and working with the students. I am working with four other teachers in all. The last few weeks have been “summer vacation” for teachers and students. Now there are two reasons I became a teacher: To make a difference in the lives of young students and more importantly for the summer off aspect of American teaching. Here in Japan although the students are officially out of school, they come to school anyway for a couple hours each day to take classes, study, and participate in clubs. They have regular homework that takes up a great deal of their time. The teachers have it worse, they are expected to come to school during all vacation periods from 8am-5 pm. Some teach class, some coach, but the majority I think just pass the time idly.

Since I am a teacher at Omagari High, I am expected to do the same. So for the past few weeks, I show up at 8 and leave at 425. I mostly spend these days on facebook which is like computer crack. Once I am on fb there are always people to “chat” with and I cant force my hand away from the computer. I think I am getting arthritis from typing so much.

However I have gotten a few days where I am able to work with students on their english skills. This has meant mostly editing speeches and conversing with them in English. Let me just tell you how awesome it is to work with these students. One girl, who is a sophomore (Senior 2) is reciting Obama’s inauguration speech for a contest at the end of the month. Now this fifteen year old girl, who is speaking english as a second language is reading me this speech in near perfect English. Not only is it near perfect but the vocab in this speech is quite difficult and she is nailing every word.

There are three types of high schools here, academic, agricultural, and technical. Based on test scores students will attend one of these three. Omagari is an academic school which means the students are going onto university, which means their motivation to learn is greater, which makes my job easier and more gratifying. The students who I have worked with so far are extremely motivated, well behaved, and respectful. This is a stark difference to my experience teaching in the States. Now I love the kids at mt ridge but I cant see the majority of them coming in to school on summer vacation to study or spending their whole weekend doing homework. Literally these kids spend the whole weekend doing homework, anytime I ask them about their weekend, the response is “I did homework” I say to them you need to have fun, relax, hang out with friends, and they tell me that they are unable to do so with all their studies. Maybe besides English I can teach some of these students to relax a little bit and not take things too seriously.

The Hills are alive with the sound of..... kristin and brody

Week of August 16-23

Its been three weeks without a cell phone, internet, radio, television, basically all the amenities that pass the time both home and abroad. So what do I do to entertain myself? It really depends when I get home from work , sometimes there are those days when I get home at 415 at I say to myself “fuck dude what the hell am I supposed to do,” those days suck, sometimes there is just nothing to do, nothing to explore, and as I mentioned very little in my apt to kill the time. And it is so freaking hot and humid still that being outside sometimes just is not an option. Then I have the days where I have to run to the grocery store, do laundry, go into town. I appreciate those days because it keeps me busy.... So free time afternoons I do one or both of the following:

Read- I have made it through two books (almost) Three Cups of Tea and Crazyheart. I do love both these books and would consider myself an avid reader. However I cant sit and read for hours on end, I am good for maybe an hour then I got to move on to the next activity. I have a list of about twelve books I am going to read here , some I books are favorites that I will re-read, others first time reads, and one in particular I have read over and over again. Now at home I average a book a month, I dont know if that qualifies me for the reader of the month club, but i think its not bad. I plan on the same time frame here, once work starts up I will be busier. So for all you interested readers here is my Omagari Japan Reading List

Three Cups of Tea

Crazy heart

Gods Middle Finger

Girl Who Played with Fire

Nine Stories

A Walk Across America

Into the Wild

Gandhi: An autobiography

Neither Wolf nor Dog

Grand Canyon

A History of Africa

Freakanomics

Work Out: This would seem like a great way to pass the time, well it presents quite the challenge in Omagari. At this moment I am unable to afford a gym membership here in Japan, this is mostly due to the custom here of KEY MONEY, let me explain this wonderful custom. When a landlord/realtor finds an apt for someone in Japan, or at least Omagari, the renter pays the landlord/realtor key money. This money is the equivalent of one months rent, sometimes more. Fellow Americans do not get this confused with security deposit, this money is like a gift saying “Hey thanks landlady , thanks for finding me this apartment!” Now I think a plate of cookies, flowers, or even a gift certificate to Barnes and Noble, is a great way to say thanks. Not here, so this key money is money you ll never see again. However the story does not end there, they also charge a commission for finding you an apt. Then of course there is the rent, taxes other charges. So I was quietly forced to pay a hefty sum to get my apt. But thats the custom, so I respect it..... actually I hate it, it has forced me to live on bread, water, and calorie mate for the past month, it has cut my drinking habit in half, and it has led me to have to work out in my tiny apt which is about as comfortable as jogging in a sauna with a sweatsuit on. I mentioned this in my other blog but I ll repeat, I brought the newest fad in home workout’s P90X with me to Japan. Thank you Christy Edwards for selling me this great gift well below market value, I hope it was worth the extra credit. So I do this workout video with my kick as resistance bands and pushup bars about four times a week. Sometimes if I am lucky I ll supplement this with a workout at the state of the art fitness center at Omagari High School (it was honestly state of the art in 1971, but its better than nothing).

Movies: I wont delve to much into this but I do have some movies I am able to watch, usually one a night depending on time. I also got a couple of episodes of Entrouage , a show I refused to watch because Jeremy Piven is a douchebag (except for PCU). But I actually like the show and yes my favorite character is Ari, does that make me a douchebag too?

Staring off into space: As the great Peter Gibbons alluded too, I spend a solid hour doing nothing this includes looking at the screensaver at my computer, sitting on my bed staring into space, the bedroom is the only place I can feel the air conditioner, or looking in the mirror (just kidding, sort of, its a great mirror and I get great light in the bathroom).

Now why am I telling the three people that read this all this information... to bring me to my next story. Yesterday which was monday and yes I had a case of the mondays, I went to a new bar in town called Moon light. I got a tip from my predecessor that this bar was friendly to foreigners in the sense that the bartender spoke a little english. Well it was a great tip, the bartender spoke enough english to converse, there were darts, massive amounts of alcohol including never seen in Japan before... Jager, Cuervo, Capt Mo’s, to make this long list short picture a bar with the whole counter filled with bottles of alcohol three rows deep. They gave out doritos to snack on, cold mugs for your beer and the best part.... wait for it.... wait for it... THE HILLS. Thats right the bartender turned on MTV and to my great pleasure THE HILLS was on. Now many people may think, that is so gay, THE HILLS sucks, again your gay. But I first must admit I watch THE HILLS occasionally at home. That is when I am not watching Jersey Shore or the Kardashians. Now if watching a bunch of hot chicks being drama queens, flaunting themselves is gay, then I am super freaking gay. Because when I do catch an episode I love it. Now in Japan this feeling of euphoria I get from watching THE HILLS is multiplied. WHY? because I havent had a source of entertainment like this since I have been here or seen many american ladies who look like Kristin and Audrina (someone right now is thinking your such a homo) So as I drank my cold , refreshing beer, while munching on cool ranch doritos I was glued to the television watching three, thats right three episodes of THE HILLS. And as the night grew later, the beer getting warmer, my wallet getting lighter, I had to leave the bar, but I left with one question in my mind. Why did Brody get back with Jade? Why Brody? WHY?

another week,another adventure

week of august 9-13

Another busy week, probably the busiest in Omagari so far. I started off the week with a day off on Monday which i used to recover from my weekend. My friend in Omagari Alex, made some dinner for us, spaghetti and shrimp, it was my first hearty meal in Omagari. Tuesday I went to a summer camp with 36 students from Omagari High School, the camp was an English camp where the students practiced their english skills with a variety of games, skits, and presentations. It was both the best two days and worst two days i have had here. The camp was a tremendous way for me to work with my students for the first time. Since they are technically on summer vacation, i have not met a lot of these students. What a pleasure they were too work with, their desire to learn and use english is extremely admirable. I was in charge of a group of eight students in which we worked on performing a skit from Peter Pan, singing the Avriel Lavigne song “Girlfriend” and participating in a series of games including scattagories and taboo. It was a long two days though, the building we were in for lodging had no air conditioner which is the norm for this region. The problem is it is extremely hot and humid and was impossible to cool off, i got about one hour of sleep and had to wake up about 6am, which is why this experience was also the worst two days i have had here. But the good far outweighed the bad,after the first day/night working with the kids which ended around 10pm, one of the japanese teachers rips out a cooler full of cold beers and we drink and some of the american teachers teach the other s the game of flip cup. That makes three continents i ve played flip cup on , America, Africa, Asia! Drinking is definitely the norm here, its one of the first questions you are asked “Do you drink”. The latter part of the week brought on Akita Orientation, which was another orientation for the new Alt’s in Akita prefecture. There were about fifty of us at this orientation which basically gave us information on the area, attractions, health and safety tips, support services. It was informative but very cumbersome after a long week.

“The truth is that we are not yet free; we have merely achieved the freedom to be free, the right not to be oppressed. We have not taken the final ste

the week of august 2-6

What a busy week in Omagari, if every week could be like this, I could live in this place for awhile. I have started to meet other foreigners in the area, some work for the JET program while a few others work for various English-teaching companies. I have also started to get more familiar with the town I live in , I can find the grocery store, hardware store, restaurants, bank, etc without issue. I also have been introduced to the local hang out, the Rush Bar, where I feel ill spend many a weekends. Most of the people I have met have been here for a number of years and there are two benefits of befriending these people. One they can tell you the in’s and outs of living abroad and two they truly understand your situation. They remember what is was like to move to a new country with the unfamiliarity that accompanies these types of situations. When you see the happiness that these people exude on their experience here, you can only be optimistic that you too will soon be one of them.

I spent a good part of the week going to dinner and out on the town. I had korean bbq for the first time which was delicious and went to the Rush bar as well for the first time. The beer selection is not to bad for a beer snob like me, hoegarden, bass, corona, and some great local beers.

I spent the weekend going into Akita city, I took a bus in Saturday with some students from my high school for the seventh Japanese - American Symposium, the purpose of the event was to bring the relationship between Japan and America closer. The students were invited to listen to a series of lectures and participate in a panel to encourage study abroad. My students had the opportunity to present a video they made on the various practices of a Japanese high school. Although I am partial , I have to say their video was excellent, no only because I was doing a voice over for it, but because the student who edited the video has a natural talent for such things. I then took a bus into the downtown area of the city where I was able to meet up with a friend. It was my second time in Akita City, but my first time really experiencing what it had to offer. It felt good to be in a city, to be surrounded by people, to shop, eat, and sightsee. There are also a number of foreigners in the city including other JET’s , so it was a comfort to meet others in the program. i left with a massive hangover and sleep deprivation but it was well worth it!

Random thoughts, isolation will do that to you..

“Be the Change you wish to see in the world” Gandhi

“Peace is Always Beautiful” Walt Whitman

“The Core of Mans Spirit Comes from New Experiences” Chris Mcandless

Why do we some people have this innate desire to travel, to do good, to see the world through other peoples eyes? While others are happy just living ordinary lives?...I ve always said to myself I must try to leave this world a better place than it was when i entered it and I must see all that this world has to offer. It took me a long time to actually begin living this way. I don't remember exactly what kickstarted this journey of mine, but I can point to a few people, places, and things that have inspired me to make my life a little less ordinary.

1. Summer of sophomore year: Entering my sophomore year my sister and I took this trip to Maine through a company called Longacre Expeditions. She was in middle school and i just finished up my first year of high school. We biked , hiked, kayaked, and camped along the coast of Maine for two weeks. We cooked our own food, camped under a blanket full of stars, rode 40 miles a day along the rugged coast thru quaint New England towns. It was my first time really appreciating the splendor that nature has to offer. That same summer I took a vacation out west to Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, and the Dakota’s. It was here that I first fell in love with the west. When you get to see the magnificence of the Grand Tetons, the ruggedness of Yellowstone, and clear, star filled skies of Montana it is hard not to. I think it was this feeling of freedom that the west offered that kindled my spirit to move out west following college.
2. Mr. Furlong: The reason I became a teacher was Mr. Furlong, my english teacher all four years of high school, I read two books in four years To Kill a Mockingbird and A Walk in the Woods , two of my favorites. It wasnt the subject that influenced me but the way Mr. Furlong cared about his students and treated them like people. He was a role model and a mentor, helping me through some of the toughest years of my life. I continue to see Mr. Furlong today and we have become good friends. He gave me a copy of To Kill a Mockingbird for my graduation, and he wrote “Like Jem and Scout on their longest journey, I wish you luck on yours. And what a journey its been so far...
3. John David Bowman: I first met Jodi in grad school, we were both beginning our course to obtain a Masters in Education, how proud we were to be in grad school. We soon realized that a Masters in Education holds as much clout as a degree from Devry Institute. Jodi however turned out to be one of the most intelligent people i have ever met without being socially awkward. He is like a human museum, he reads constantly, and I am not talking about some Jackie Collins novel or Harry potter bullshit. He reads books on any historical topic you can think of, social commentary, and various political science books. Think Howard Zinn, Gore Vidal, Norman Mailer... etc . Before I met him I wouldn’t exactly say I was a reader or had a thirst for knowledge, but he inspired me to seek wisdom through reading and studying beyond the classroom. Every time I talk to Jodi I am consistently re-inspired. I have read countless books since that fateful day in grad school. These books have led me to opportunities i never would have thought existed.
4. Invisible Children Rough Cut: I found this documentary by accident a few years ago, i was looking for videos to put on my “Myspace” page (Yea fucking Myspace, that tells you how long ago this was and what a douche I was, who has a myspace page that is older than 18, only losers) I stumbled on this trailer for the Rough Cut video. The song for the trailer was MIA and there was something about the mix of this song with the images of children from Africa holding guns, malnourished, and yet still smiling that hooked me. I had already had an interest in Africa but didnt have a place or purpose to focus my attention on. Well this video gave me both, The Rough Cut and Invisible Children have been a part of me both personally and professionally. They has given me the opportunity to not only see my students become inspired activists but to also travel to Uganda to see firsthand the efforts of many people working to create opportunity for the people of Gulu, Uganda
5. John Prendergraph: Darfur was actually the first issue to ignite my interest in Africa however it wasn't till a few years later that I read a book by John Prendergraph and Don Cheadle. This book was an eloquent look at the people of Darfur and the toll the genocide has taken on the region. It was also the story of John’s efforts not only in Darfur but in the Central Africa region trying to help end the conflicts that plague the area. If i could have the same life path as anyone in the world besides Gandhi and Reggie Bush( for selfish reasons) it would be Mr. John Prendergraph. He has worked under Bill Clinton, started the Enough Project, traveled to and from Africa numerous times to chronicle the plight of so many, and written countless times on issues so many of us ignore. My goal one day is to start an NGO like the enough project and help alleviate some of these historically repetitive issues like genocide, sexual violence, and starvation
6. Teacher Exchange Program: My first true experience abroad couldn't have been in a better place. In the summer of 2009 i was accepted to participate in a program which allowed me to teach in Gulu, Uganda for two months. And thanks to the generosity of Mr. Barry Segal (segalfamilyfoundation.org) I was able to go to Gulu and have the experience of a lifetime. So many things about this trip were inspirited. First, the other teachers on the trip, 15 in all, are truly amazing individuals. Sometimes it is easy to forget that there are people who are not only impassioned about these issues but work harder, longer, and better than you. I was also introduced to another part of the world that i had only read about in books and seen in movies. People who overcame adversity with more hope and passion than before. Students who continued to study despite being part of a war, teachers who continued to teach despite the low or non existent wages. One individual in particular will always be engrained in my mind. Robert Paul John, a veteran teacher who had a heart that should be shared with everyone. He was probably the greatest individual I have ever personally met. And although I may never see him again he will remain a part of me forever
7. Gandhi: A pacifist takes no action, while the non violent man will take action without a gun(yea i made that shit up on the spot) The brilliance to bring about revolution without violence, I have never believed in war as a means to an end , and I never will.
8. Into the Wild: I first read the book a few years ago and was captivated by this story. If anyone knows me well, they know that both the book and the movie are my absolute favorites. The main character , Chris had a spirit that I admire and wish was ingrained in me. Some people criticize his story for being selfish, senseless, and having no regard for the people that cared about him. I look at this story in a much different light. Chris had the courage to reject what he saw as the evils that plague society (cough cough) and seek a life of isolation and naturalness. On his journey “Into the Wild” he touched so many peoples lives in only a way I can hope to do one day.
9. Last years students: I dont know where or how this fits in, but I keep thinking of the students i had last year and how much I truly enjoyed teaching them. They were a wonderful mix of the cornucopia that makes high school social groups. But they all (most) had one thing in common they had good hearts once you chiseled through the ignorance, immaturity, and clumsiness that makes a teenager. Anytime I think of them I smile and it makes me want to keep teaching. I was beginning to think teenagers were evil little demons and teaching high school was a close to hell as I could get. But even if I have only one more year like the last, I could keep teaching another five! So if your reading this periods 1-5 and some of period six, you guys were awesome, its your turn to inspire others.
10. Mr. Greg Mortensen: This is a new one, I just finished reading the book “Three Cups of Tea.” Here is what I love about the story, Mortensen wasn't looking to change the world, he stumbled upon that path by accident. Since that beautiful mistake he has built hundreds of schools for the underprivileged and under-appreciated. Read the book for yourself and see how one man can truly change the world
11. My friends and family: Back home i have had the same friends since kindergarten, that means I have had the same best friends for almost 25 years and i am only slightly older than that. I think that is crazy, most friendships last an average of a couple years and despite not being the best friend in terms of keeping in touch, returning phone calls, etc These people have remained not just a part of my life but a part of my heart. In arizona, I ve had the same friends since I moved there and still going strong (despite what Sam will tell you) So Glastonbury people , I love you, Arizona people I love you. And my family ,my mom and dad have given me a life most people can only dream of, They have spoiled me while still learning to appreciate what i have and instilling values in me that make who I am today.
12. TBD

Kanto Festival

I was invited to attend the Kanto festival in Akita City on Tuesday night, this festival is held every summer in Akita which is the capital city. The purpose of the festival from what I have read , is to hope for a good harvest and good physical health. If your interested here is the link

http://web-japan.org/atlas/festivals/fes03.html . Akita City was beautiful and a nice respite to being in my rural town, there were many young people, some foreigners , and great food. If you can imagine from the picture bamboo sticks around 30-40 ft high with the lights you see in the picture hanging from them. The men in the festival balance these structures on their body, face, hands, head, and mouth, its pretty impressive. While the balancing act is going on there is music, chanting, and people reveling in the atmosphere. From what I gather, it is one of the most popular festivals in Akita - Ken.

This experience also allowed me to meet other JETs in the area and to ride the train for the first time, I also got to see my friend alex who I is from phoenix but I havent seen since I got here. Although I didnt get home till midnight , because we missed the train on the way home, it was well worth it

Random Observations

Omagari is very rural, so many people have said to me I heard Japan is so hi-tech, well I cant speak for the rest of Japan. But Omagari has a beautiful simplicity to it, although a city, there are no skyscrapers, large buildings, traffic. The structures are unadorned, the cars are practical, the roads narrow, and long. The people mostly ride bicycles around including myself. There is a glorious feeling I get when riding my bike around here, you see things from a different perspective, it gives you time to slow down, observe your surroundings , and enjoy the scenery.

Ping Pong: Ok saw the students at Omagari take great pride in their sports. However the Ping Pong team takes it to a new level. All you MRHS athletes listen up, so when I get to school around 9 the ping pong team is practicing, when i go to the pool around 11, the ping pong team is practicing, when I go get some water around 1 the ping pong team is practicing, when i leave the pool around 330 the ping pong team is practicing. They are one of the best teams in Japan, they practice from 8-5 each day, like forest gump on steroids. These kids look like rafi nadal playing ping pong

Greetings: Something I learned in Africa is that as a foreigner many locals wont approach you, theres a language barrier natural shyness. I am shy myself so in Uganda I took this as them not having an interest in getting to know me, and they probably thought the same as me. I just say hi to everyone here, and for every person that looks away, there is someone who smiles and says hello. It makes my day, i just need to learn more than Japanese greetings or else I am not going to make it

Body Language: Its simple body language is the most common language in the world. I point, express with my hands and face and it has gotten pretty far.

“Changes upon changes we more or less remain the same”

let me give you a typical day for me here in omagari

Step One: Try getting out of bed at 730

Step Two: Get out of bed 20 minutes before work (just like home), you don't need a lot of time to get ready when you have a mane like mine

Step Three: eat cereal and have an ice coffee for break fast, now this is what i have eaten everyday. the cereal is like chocolate cornflakes and the ice coffee comes in a carton like milk, so its no Dunkin Donuts, but much cheaper

Step Four: pack my bags for work... computer, paper, pen, 200 yen, lunch, swim gear, workout clothes

Step Five: pack lunch with consists of an orange and this bar called calorie mate. Let me tell u about calorie mate. It is a nutrition bar that looks like a shortbread stick and tastes pretty decent. Its supposed to be a bar packed full of vitamins and an easy way to get calories, when you eat on a budget like mine these things come in handy.I buy two packs for 200 yen, which is about 3 bucks. I bring one package and my orange and thats lunch. Not as bad as my lunch in Uganda but close

Step Six: ride my sweet bike to work, it takes about five minutes, i walked for the first few days but now I want the extra time to sleep

Step Seven: Get to work, put on my indoor shoes, which is necessary in places like school, restaurants, and homes

Step Eight: Greet my co workers with a smile and an Ohyaho Gozimas which means Good Morning

Step Nine: sit at my desk and browse the internet aimlessly, there is only so much facebook i can take. The students are on vacation for a few weeks and the teachers have to be at work so there is not much to do. Thank you friends, family , and former students for talking to me on fb, it means a lot.

Step Ten: Go to swim practice, my co teacher coaches the swim team which consists of ten kids so i go and help out and swim with the kids.

Step Eleven: Return to my desk, browse the internet, eat lunch, walk around, say good afternoon to my co workers

Step Twelve: Return to swim practice, watch for a while, work out at the school gym , return to swim practice, swim, change

Step Thirteen: Check my email, facebook, espn, one last time, The only internet I have for the next few weeks is at work

Step Fourteen: leave work at 415 not a minute later, say saynora, ride my bike home, get out of my clothes, turn on my ac, hang up my bathing suits, and

Step Fifteen: Make a real lunch which consists of yogurt with chocolate cornflakes, milk, a piece of bread with pb and honey

Step Sixteen: Need to get out of my apt, so i ride my bike around town for two hours discovering something new each day

Step Seventeen: Have dinner, dinner is one of two things, frozen pizza which is the only thing i can make until i figure out what everything is or i treat myself to a local dish, maybe miso ramen, beef bowl, chicken and rice. i m on a tight budget though, i mean like five bucks a day , so i really splurge if i go out

Step Eighteen: Buy a large 240z beer at the convenience store, now you may be thinking what about that budget? Well one beer = 2 bucks, one cal mate =1 buck two waters = 2bucks thats five and if i eat out i double my budget for the day

Step Nineteen: Shower , i learned this trick from Phil in Uganda, a cold shower after a hot and humid day is wicked. I take a cold shower, well actually a bath/shower combo

Step Twenty: Watch a movie, i ve been killing it with itunes renting and buying movies, i cant keep up the habit, but its my entertainment for the night. So what have i watched, classics such as Funny Farm, Hot tub time machine, Senior skip day, Harold and Kumar go to White Castle and the list will go on until september

Step Twenty One: Read , I love to read ,especially here in Japan. I am reading Three Cups of Tea, one of the best books I have ever read. Mr Greg Mortnensen is a hero and inspiration, i recommend it to anyone

Step Twenty Two: If needed i mess around on my mac and iphoto/itunes to fall asleep. I ve made some pretty memorable slide shows and playlists

Repeat Steps 1-22 each and everyday

The universe tends to unfold as it should...

Sunday

was woken up to a phone call from lisa went back to sleep woken up by another phone call from lisa, well worth the rem sleep interruption. Woke up feeling refreshed got a somewhat early start on the day, put on my work out clothes and went to explore those Mts. First thing i noticed it was very very humid out, oh well, gotta keep busy. I rode the bike to were i stopped the previous day and then started walking the same path into the woods. I must be out of shape already or the humidity is getting to me, it was a minor struggle to get up into those hills. The effort paid off as i climbed higher and higher i saw more hidden gems of beauty in those hills, I walked for two hours round trip and still didn't even come close to discovering everything those hills have to withhold. I then biked awhile longer on another path which was flat, i am looking forward to getting my bike and working out these paths. I haven't seen any road bikers, but everyone in my area must own a bike as a means for transportation. The tough part is saying excuse me when passing an old woman or man on the bike. For one I don't know how to say excuse me and they must be hard of hearing because i just yell the one japanese word i know but they don't move (maybe its because i am saying gibberish and don't even know it). Couldn't stay out all day though just to sticky and hot. However i found refuge in the public library and i was able to use the internet! I wrote this long blog post and was ready to post when the computer blocked me from doing so, so know i type on a word document and post tomorrow at work. Well ended the day by starting to teach myself japanese, i am not a great learner but my goal is 1 hour a day! I really want to get a private tutor though, there is only so much i can learn from a cd/book. The day would be complete if i could figure out my washer, my clothes just sit in a pile of water, its my good clothes too, my jeans better not get ruined! they don't have nordstroms where i am (hahaha) that was a joke, trying to make myself laugh.

-d

there is a candle in your heart, ready to be kindled, there is a void in your soul, ready to be filled you feel it, dont you -Rumi

Loneliness definitely set in over the weekend, its not so much not having any one here , it gets lonely because when i want to call my family or friends i cant. So i have to keep busy during the day to stop from thinking to much about home. I woke up with a hangover saturday and woke up way to early. However much to my excitement i figured out that i can make calls back home using my blackberry. At 2$ a minute i couldn't talk long but i was able to call my family who i hadn't spoken too in a week. That really made me feel better, I decided since i was in such a grand mood i would bike around into the mts which my predecessor told me was a very mesmerizing experience. I took my bike out and headed to the mts. Now my town is surrounded by these lush hills full of green trees which tower into the sky. I have never seen such a hypnotic green in my life. There is a paved bike path that weaves into the hills and as i got deeper and deeper in there was these zen like structures hiding in the trees. If you look at my Facebook you can see pictures of some of these scenes. Except for the occasional vehicle, the hills were earily silent and although i was in broad daylight , i couldn't help but feel temporarily spooked out. Well the hills were too much for my simple bike to handle and I decided I would return tomorrow and hike the rest of the way in.

Next on my list of things to do was to return to the bike shop and purchase a bike. I am glad i rode the bike paths first because it changed the type of bike i want to purchase. At first i wanted a road bike, if you know me well , you know that mt biking and rd biking are a favorite activity of mine. I figured since the paths although paved are a little rocky, I would bet a cross bike which had a road bike frame but mt bike tires, a hybrid bike but not one of those dorky looking old people kind. I figured i would walk into the shop and look through a catalog and order. I was previously introduced to the owner and figured despite the language barrier this would be a simple task....well three hours later i finally ordered a bike, i could write another page on why it took so long, but to make a long story short, the language barrier was harder to overcome than anticipated, plus they dont make many bikes in japan that fit a 6 ft 1 185 lb dude. I ordered a GT traffic and it looks good in the catalogue so i am hoping nothing goes wrong.

Last on my list was to go to the grocery store, first time i was going alone. I have a simple game plan while in japan when it comes to shopping, keep it easy. I just need bread, eggs, milk, butter, pbj, and frozen pizza until i can figure out something more extravagant to buy. Well its not so easy even when i need the basics... milk could be cream, yogurt could be sour cream, butter could be cottage cheese, milk could be soy or rice milk, eggs , well eggs are easy. So it took me about an hour to get 4 things and i had to skip buying beer since i am low on funds. It was dark when i left the grocery store and this presented a problem. I had only been out during the day, so i got lost, got scared, mini freak out, retraced steps, found apt by accident, relieved!

"when it is dark enough you can see the stars"

ok let me first say that i there are various stages that you are told about when entering the JET program in terms of culture shock, I am currently in between two stages. Stage one... euphoria, excitement, confidence that the experience your going to embark on is simply awesome, then you enter stage two.... loneliness, anxiety, depression, nervousness, I have been going back and forth between the stages, but today was a good day. I work 8 to four pm at my school, the students are on break so there has not been much to do. As soon as I got out of work my predecessor took me around town to show me the area. I got to see the center of town, train station, a gym, a bike shop, a park, and the mts... it put me in a natural high. Then I was picked up by my japanese team teacher and taking out to dinner and drinks. I was treated to grilled chicken, squid, octopus, sausage, and beef liver, I also drank hot sake for the first time. My co teacher is very fluent in English, so it makes it wonderful to communicate with someone in English, we talked like any two friends would. We talked about women,pop culture, personal values, politics etc.

I then was taken to my second experience in karaoke, its fucking weird, but a trip to be in one of these “karaoke rooms” Just me and him singing 80 s american hits. I belted out Journey, Billy Joel, Neil Diamond, Guns n Roses, and Bruce Springsteen. Japanese karaoke is funny because while the song is playing they have this strange scenery in the background, its like a music video but filled with cheesy scenes of people from the 80’s. So for example, Born in the USA had this video of an american guy who looked like fabio in the 80 s sitting at a bar daydreaming about seeing his long lost love and wearing stone washed jeans and a tank top, a fucking trip. Well my co teacher and I slugged down four beers each and sang for two hours. So in Japan there is zero tolerance for dui, if you have an ounce of alcohol in you while driving you lose your job, go to prison, pay a fine in the thousands so instead.... they have a service like a taxi but there are two people who pick you up one to drive you home,in your car, and one to follow to pick the driver back up. So not only to you get a ride home but your car is there in the morning, for my glastonbury friends its like an adult safe rides! Anyway I have the weekend to explore, be without internet, and finish organizing the apt. Thanks for listening.