News

Intruder

I had an intruder on Monday night, while I was brushing my teeth I feel this thing walk across my feet, I look down to discover a large cockroach the size of a bar of soap...well okay not quite that large but large enough. I jump up out of my bathroom and run for the bug spray. I proceed to use half the can of spray on him, cause he kept moving, then sucked him up in the vacuum and sprayed more spray into the vacuum. He better be dead!! I had been searching for him for a week now. I first caught site of him last week but was not quick enough to kill him. He better be the only intruder and better not have been a spy sent ahead or else I am going to move out of my apartment before I leave Japan. As you can tell, I hate bugs.

How do you talk about yourself?

I asked my supervisor for a letter of recommendation...man...was that difficult, after humming and searching, then asking the principal, I was told to write it myself....lovely...how do you write a glowing letter of recommendation without feeling guilty about being a braggart?


Changed my blog
As you can tell I changed my blog. I was having problems so I decided to change the template. Plus I have some time on my hands.

The first of My Last Classes

Well, two years have almost come and gone now. This week I had the first of my last classes. Exams start next Thurs. and thus I will not be teaching my Thurs. and Friday classes anymore after tomorrow. It was sad...the kids have been well...interesting..sometimes they make me laugh and sometimes they make me so mad that I could cry. It has been a learning experience with them. I guess, no matter how mad they made me, I will always remember them and think of them as my kids.

Well, my I-nensei's whom I know the least and probably are not most favourite kids even made me a littled choked up. At the beginning and end of class students stand, bow and greet. Well, for my final act with the kids I was asked to lead it. It is a privledge to do so and a confirmation that I am one of them. It does not seem like much but it is something. I also was told that I would be missed and had my hand shaken.

My III-nensei's, my favourites, I asked them to write a letter to me. Many of the letters were very sweet and I was touched by their sentiment and at the end I took a class picture with them. They were very kind and I was told that I will be missed.

As a side note, I got a double on a bike by one of my students. I was going to the convenience store for somethign to eat and she said she would double me. Well, what a sight that was in my skirt. Imgaine , me on the back of a bike with my skirt hiked up. Yeah, great image for a teacher.

Perhaps, they will not remember me when I leave but these little things make my stay in Japan worthwhile. My reason was that I was going to make a difference but perhaps it was not making a difference in them but in myself that was more important. I hope that I have left some kind of impression on them, cause they sure as hell have left one on me.

Man, this leaving bit is going to be tougher than I thought. I only had to deal with last classes today.

Fathers

Thank God for fathers. I do not know what I would do without mine. My dad is always the person I turn to when I need advice or need encouragement. I cannot remember how many times in university at 4 O'clock in the morning I would call my dad and fret about a final exam I was sure I was going to flunk. Well, after sending out many a cover letters and resumes, and still not hearing from anyone, I was really disappointed and ready to work at starbucks. Well, my dad being who he is, told me not to worry. He believes that something will come up and that it will work out. It is nice when someone believes in you, when you don't believe in yourself. Cheers, to Dads and the secret powers they have.

Donations

Finally, paid for my trip home this summer. I have decided to take a detour home. I will stop in Nepal and India on my way back to Vancouver. I will be participating in the NEST program in Nepal running education programs in a school 6 hours outside of Kathmandu. I will be doing English lessons along with talking about health and sanitation. My plan is to leave Japan on the 1st of Aug. and be back in Vancouver around the 24th.

I am also hoping that you can help me out with donations. The school that I am going to is really poor and they need funds for books and programs. I have been asked to help raise some funds for them. So, if you are interested in donating to a good cause and providing education to individuals in Nepal, please contact me via email. Even a few dollars in nepal can go a long way. So many times we take education and books for granted.

Update


Last Sunday I played sound table tennis. It is for the visually impaired. Inside a ping pong ball there is ball bearings that make noise. The object of the game is instead of getting it over the net, it goes under the net with essentially the same rules as ping pong. The people playing were really good, surprising at first seeing how their reaction time is based on hearing where the ball is. I got my butt kicked around.

Hmmm...what else is new....had my farewell party with my Japanese teacher. My Japanese lessons are officially over. Sad, seeing how I still feel like I have not learnt enough Japanese.

Matrix Reloaded

I finally got to see it this weekend. The verdict is 3 out of 5 stars....It was okay..the story was harder to follow this time...and less thinking involved for the viewers, and too much action.....the 30 min. car chase scene....all in all a bit disappointing...

On a much happier note, I did rent "life as a house"...great movie, I really liked it....go and rent it if you have not seen it yet....