A good day

Felt like a long day, but really it hasn't been (though it is 12:40am here).

Woke up around 9am, and fumbled about for a while. Watched an episode of Lost (pilot part II), spoke with a bunch of people over MSN til 11, then meddled around and headed into work for 1:20pm. Did some prep and hit class for 2:30, which went well. We finished up the "if you only had 6 months before the world explodes, what 10 things would you do?" exercise, and then did a house-warming mingling party, a debate, and role-playing ordering. I used parts of the menu from the Royal Oak, and it was hilarious how they reacted. Electronic dictionaries flew out of pockets and they were bamboozled by 3/4s of the items. There was an almost unanimous outcry of laughter when they saw "chicken fingers" ("finger of chicken!?!") and Oak Club ("made with the tree?!"), and a few others. Funny the things we take for granted.

Then afterwards, went for a beer with Alistair around 6:45. At 7:30, Duncan joined us. We then met up with Nick at the bowling alley and played a few games. Seven, I think, and we each had another beer or two.

Then I went to (ack) McDonald's with Nick. It was the first time I'd really spoken one-on-one with Nick. It was great. Gave me really good insight into both teaching and the ideas of work vs responsibility. Nick's in a unique position because he's got experience as a teacher (6 months in China plus time spent in Italy) and he's a teacher by training. We had a great 45 minute conversation about teachers as commodities and the idea of what holds each of us into what we do, per se. I discussed my 6-month plan with him, and he spoke about his 1-year plan with me. It was great to have a chance to just talk to him. So far I've had awesome talks with Alistair (many), Duncan and now Nick. I've spoken a bit with Michelle, but she's a tad more closed in some respects.

Sonny handed me my contract today. I'll peruse it tomorrow, and fill it in myself. If they don't like the time-line I'm proposing, well... then they can suck it. I'd rather sign a 6-month contract than fanny about at the 8-month or 10-month marks and not get a reference. The Chinese can be a bit dodgy that way: they tend to take professional matters personally, and hold grudges. Or they can do. Hell, they might not be happy with a 6-month contract. The plan is to go til the end of February, then hit the road for 3 weeks or so and head south and see what I can.

New pictures up on Flickr, including the Chinese Tommy Lee Jones, shots of the gang as well as bowling lane wenches with Kill Bill uniforms, special order for Aaron. Rawr. Oh, and a good shot of me being uncertain of whether to choose Marianne or Veronica (bowling balls). Duncan, of course, always had the Lady Brunswick. The ball favouritism started last time, when it was Nick, Michelle and Duncan vs Alistair, Camilla and myself - Duncan and I had some friendly rivalry going on, and I had gotten 3 strikes in a row with Marianne. However, tonight she didn't treat me well so I switched. All in good, silly fun.

Oh, and it looks like Steve and Nika are coming to the Beijing area to visit for a week or so. I may try to work out some time off so I can hang out with them a bit. Depends on when they arrive, and what days I can swing in order to minimize others covering for me. The most I would be able to do is 4 days, if I use my 2 days off and take 2 days.

The little things

Tonight I finished up class and coerced Duncan into going for a beer with me. That was around 6pm or so. His girlfriend, Yang (said Yen, I think), joined us at the bar around twenty to 7. He had to meet up with one of his students for supper at 7, and he asked me along, so off we went. I had met her before during an interview thing with his class 3 weeks ago. Turns out her parents own the place we went to.

It was awesome. We all sat down, met her parents, and had tea. Worked out what we were going to have (a painless process for once - I attribute that to Yang's no-nonsense approach and the student's familiarity with everything), and then Duncan and myself had to switch spots with the student (whose name completely escapes me) and Yang, as we were not seated in the spot of honour: facing the doorway. We had beef (damn nice); a medley of peanuts, celery, carrots and califlower; lamb and coriander with a 'hotpot' kind of dealie; and then eggplant (fast becoming my favourite dish). Duncan and I had a beer, but the student's uncles (close friends of the family, actually, but called uncles out of affection) kept toasting us. One would come over from the table next to us and pour us more beer and click our glasses. The guy was a master of ensuring his glass rim was lower than ours, though I did my damndest to at least make the rims equal. The reason is because someone of higher station or higher honour/respect always has his glass higher than the other person. We tried to nullify that somewhat to no avail. So we toasted ("Gambe!") and downed the beer like a shot. Then again... then again...

Lots of fun, and it was awesome to have such an intimate experience. I learned how to say "I want" and "I have" to the point where I could put sentences together... kinda. Learned 1-10 (and by proxy, 11-80 or whatever) through the fierce and stern ministrations of Yang and the student (fuck I feel bad for not knowing her name). So we were the last ones left in the restaurant, we headed out and the entire staff (server, chef, preparer ?? and the mom and dad) came out to see us off. We four went to a hip-hop bar of all places. Neat little place, but the music sucked ass as one might expect. The student kept asking me if I could sing those songs, and of course Duncan said "Yea, yea... Patrick's quite a good singer". ... yeah. So I tried to explain what the guy was singing about (something re: genitals and the motion of appendages, etc., as per usual rap music shite).

I had a Corona, and then just kind of sat there. It found it hard watching Yang and Duncan across the table, so I mostly stared into space. I headed home within 30 minutes of us getting to this hip-hop place. So here I am. And now it's time for sleep. Was a great night, but I'm quite tired. Tomorrow, I have but my afternoon conversation class. My morning class finished this morning. Sleeping in... awww yeeeee-ah.

So yeah... it's all about the little things here. Being able to try to talk Chinese to those 'uncles', and laughing over them wanting us to chug our glasses of beer after the toast, cigarettes being offered back and forth, good food and decent conversation (both English and Chinese) and a nice slow wind-down to the night. It was great.

But now... G'night!

When Monkeys Attack

By 'attack' I mean flee. And by 'monkeys' I mean monkey ladies: ladies with monkeys. I almost got hit by a taxi crossing a small side-street I was so distracted. Some weathered middle-aged lady had a spider monkey on a leash and was walking towards us. She even had a little crop. I'd say it was cute, except I think I saw her using it on the poor thing. I tried to get my camera out in time, and the lady gave me the most stricken look of horror... and shuffle-ran away, monkey clutched to her hip, out of camera-shot. "At least you can say a monkey lady ran from ya," Alistair quipped at the time. So I thought I would indeed make a note of it. Guess I can cross "have a monkey lady run from me" from my 101 Things To Do Before Expiring list.

Ah, China.

Well, today was my the second-to-last day for my TB4 class. Picture inserted above. It's missing two of the girls, but last days are usually quite barren, so I thought I'd get a shot in today instead of tomorrow. Quite a funny picture, with the 3 guys cowering at the back (4 including me, I suppose). Good kids. Tomorrow is mostly a games day. We'll do some work, but mostly games, methinks.

After tomorrow, my mornings will be free for a bit during the week; weekends are another story. I'm taking on one TB2a class for either Alistair or Duncan on Saturday or Sunday, so that will be different. My conversation class is going well. They did a 20 Questions game today to kick things off. I did a big mix-up of animals and people, so one guy had Zhang Yimou and the girl on the other team standing beside him had 'a lion'. I hate that they know Celine Dion here. Grrr... I thought 12,000 kms would be far enough to escape her. Not so, apparently. Others they did were Chow Yun Fat, Norman Bethune (insanely famous over here - Google him, the Chinese love him to pieces), an elephant, a lion, a fox, S.H.E. (Chinese pop trio) and Jou Jia Lun (famous pop star)... and 'our teacher' (it got a lot of laughs). Poor girl. She even asked "Am I a foreigner?" to which there was a resounding "YES" amidst much laughter... the class even said "It's someone from our class...". Oh my.

Not much else happened. Just crazy monkey lady. That made it all worth it, though.

Oh, looking at that picture reminds me of something: women holding hands. It's huge here. It indicates close friendship or comraderie. It's cool walking down the street and seeing like 5 women walking, holding hands, or couples of girls skipping along, hands clasped. Just gives me the ol' warm-'n'-fuzzies, I guess. This ain't exactly a gay-friendly nation, so it's interesting to see things that most Westerners would take for intimacy as simply a showing of closeness between friends. Guys don't do it, suffice it to say. So yeah, that's my Chinese tidbit for the day.

Wait! I've got something else. Something Kelly had written on her blog reminded me of it. Capris. Okay, so they're popular here also (only on women), but guys walk around with shirt 'capris'. They roll the bottoms of their shirts up to their ribs when they're hot (temperature-wise...). Quite the sight seeing an old man scratching his head and carrying on a conversation with someone with his shirt rolled up to his chest.

Tee hee! I'm still chuckling over the weathered monkey lady. Okay, I'll shut up now.

A Fun Monday

Woke up around 8:30 or so on Monday, and when Alistair stumbled forth we hit a big new shopping mall about 8 kms south of our apartment. It was pretty nice. It felt like a Canadian mall. We grabbed lunch there (Chinese food court... surreal), then wandered and got some groceries for the movie afternoon/night: beer, chips/crisps, some Chinese baked goods (the white bread here is just too... much, and also sweet-tasting), juice and yogurt for work mornings. A group of 5 kids followed us around the grocery store for a bit, just trailing us wide-eyed. It's strange... Chinese react in one of two ways: they either stare as though we have three heads, or they don't care in the slightest. Odd to see such extremes.

Anyhoo... Then we hit a small DVD shop across the road. I got Strings (wooo!), V for Vendetta and the Inside Man. All copies work except Strings, but they all work on my iBook DVD player which means they'll work back home. They were 12 yuan each, so a great price, and they're all DVD-9 (high-quality). We got back to our place after a near-accident on a road perpendicular to Xinhua Dongdao (the main street in Tang Shan). The drivers here really suck, but thankfully most people don't drive very fast, so the taxi driver had time to break and swerve into oncoming traffic, which in turn shifted farther to their right. It was the result of a pedicab, a small van and a bike-cart all trying to move through/across traffic when the flow of cars hadn't let up.

Movie night was a success. Alistair, Michelle and I watched Ong-Bak while waiting on Nick and Katie to arrive around 4pm. Then we watched Tigerland (Michelle's), Click (Nick's) and The Inside Man (mine). We really should have watched the Inside Man earlier on as I don't think we were much in a mood for thinking or trying to track a plot after 4 movies and 8 hours. We finished up just after midnight. Everyone liked the movies, and I hadn't seen any of them before (except Ong-Bak which was a filler more than anything).

Oh, chips (ref. image). They have funky-ass flavours here; none of the usual NA flavours. There is Roasted Beijing Duck, Deep-Fried Dumstick, Lemon, Hokkaido Grilled Crab, Grilled Sparerib, Spicy Chicken and all kinds of other weird ones. They all still taste like most NA chips (and they're Lays), but I just found it funny. The little details make me smile.

This is how NOT to start a day

I'll take 2 litres of beer + only a little food + only 5 hours sleep for $500, Alex.

I'm sure we've all been there, but this morning was brutal for me. We went for drinks after work yesterday (got some great photos I'll upload this evenin'), then took a pedicab (well, Duncan paced it by jogging alongside) to a hotel where they have bowling lanes on the 8th floor. Odd? I thought so. On that note, should anyone visit Tang Shan and stay at the Tang Shan Hotel, don't stay on the 7th floor.

It was awesome. Nick, Michelle and Duncan vs myself, Camilla and Alistair. We lost 5 out of 6, but I bowled a 120 and a 125. We played 6 games, and drank copious quantities of Budweiser. We played from 8:30 until 11:15. Good times, but this morning was rough.

I keep trying to think of things that I'm now taking for granted but which would be novel to you folks. Today I realized there are no speed limits on roads, nor do police ever pull people over. I thought about this as the taxi we used to come back to the school from lunch was driving in the far lane into oncoming traffic and honking as if the bus and 20 other vehicles racing towards us were in the wrong. Quite fun.

Bathrooms. They suck. Period. A few places have western toilets, and all places have urinals, so men do fine. I pity women, however. They have to have superb balance to use what are essentially glorified holes in the ground. Our apartment toilet-seat is busted, it doesn't flush quite right (never caused any problems, though) and it doesn't accept toilet paper because of some rotor thinger in the flushing mechanism. So yeah... less than ideal, and I'd rather not think of how hygenic it is.

This Monday, we're all gathering for movies at mine and Alistair's place. The rules: everyone has to bring two movies they've not seen, and one of them has to be in an individually-assigned genre. I've got "period piece". Thankfully yesterday we went DVD shopping and I got The Proposition (Guy Pearce; Australian movie about 3 brothers, etc.). Michelle has war/drama, Alistair is action/adventure, Duncan is black-and-white. Nick has horror/comedy. Apparently he has a movie that fits both, and many others. Satan's Little Helper? I'd not heard of it, but he's hell-bent on us seeing it. The person whose movie is the most well received doesn't have to pay for their supper.

That's it for now. I'll work on uploading to Flickr images from last night.

What the fluggen?

Okay... I can view my blog from home. So...

COMMENT AWAY!

Nothing much to report. My new conversational class rocks. No text book... just free-range activities and ideas for them to talk up a storm. They take to it with such enthusiasm, too. The issue is keeping them in activities. I may have to pull the debate card again as that worked wonders in my late-teens advanced class. They loved it. I just don't want to seem like I'm doing whatever I can do to make them talk and ensure I stay in the background, though that is the point. I had them do an activity today (from the mind of yours truly) where they work in pairs to think of anything about a country I randomly assign (using flashcards with the country names works great as they can draw like kids picking "a card, any card"). Then they decide who will be the tourist, and who will be the tour guide. The tourists then randomly pick another country that someone else has. The tour guide then tries to "sell" their country to the tourist. It was kick-ass. They tore the activity apart. It got to the point where I almost had to tell them to quiet down a bit as they were abustle in English. 16 late teens to early twenties (20 after today - had 4 new students) all chattering in English, asking questions and receiving responses. All on the fly. It was great.

Anyway... yeah. Supper time. God bless Grace. Mmmmm... FOOD.

Two Things

Numba Juan: I am getting internet hooked up at my apartment today, so I hope to speak with a good many of you in real-time soon. Actually, it'll be set up before most of you are awake. Boo ya! Good thing I brought my wireless router - it'll be a breeze. It's high-speed also, so I can use Skype and not sound like some hokey sci-fi radio show from the '30s.

Numba Tu: Next Thursday is my last summer class, so things will slow down. YAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAY! So... no more 6 hours of class a day plus 2-3 hours of planning. I will be able to take a breath. That was some of the best news I've had here in a while. I love having something to look forward to, especially when it's something that spells a bit of relief for yours truly. Also, the summer weather will be winding down a bit in a month and I can't wait. Feels like it's been summer for aeons.

Not much else to report. Things are going well, classes are flowing nicely, teaching grooves have been found, and I realized that I'd hit my last belt-hole yesterday. So I've lost enough weight to have moved two holes down on my belt since I left Ottawa almost three weeks ago. That's a good thing, I'd say.

I miss gaming. I was reading through some PDF sourcebooks that Todd put on a DVD for me and man oh man... by the time I get back to Ottawa I will be frothing at the mouth to game.

Happy Wednesday! I must away to find some lunch type stuff.

Three Cheers for Blaggin'!

Another day, another dollar. Wrapped up my EF 7 class on Friday (picture up on Flickr, along with ones I thought I'd uploaded), and took over a regular class today. By regular I mean not a summer intensive course. It's the same age, approx, as my class of 12/13 year olds, but slightly less ability. Also, all female it seems. There's one boy listed on the attendance, but I don't think he's been around. I don't blame him... 6 girls, 1 boy... ouch.

Oh, and this new course is using a different course book (woot!) and is only 2 hours long instead of 3. Unfortunately... I thought I had a former teacher's old lesson plan for this class. Turns out, he used it last time, so I walked in sans plan. "Jus' blag it, mate" Alistair or Nick would say. Heard the word 'blag' for the first time last week. Basically means to shoot the shit and stretch 5 minutes into 30. Nick's a master of it.

I am now done for two days. It's my "weekend". A few teachers are heading to Beijing on Tuesday to provide English escort for 43 students out on a day trip. I opted not to go simply because I need Tuesday to plan, and tomorrow I'm doing nothing. Blessed nothingness. Two or three teachers are also going to Beijing tonight on their own initiative and with their own agendas, coming back tomorrow evening. Again, I opted out because this past week has been mentally wearying, and I'm not in a great frame of mind to fully appreciate it the way I want to. When I go, I want to be able to devote my emotion in a mostly-positive direction. At the moment, I'm just zonked, and I know I'd be thinking about this upcoming week too much to fully devote my attentions to the splendor of the ancient downtown core of Beijing.

That's it for now. Maybe this weekend I'll have the rare opportunity to photograph the KFC Dance. I shit thee not... a KFC manager and kids do this weird dance at the top of the stairs outside one of the restaurants and people actually watch. I swear, the Chinese would watch paint dry so long as three or four people were already doing so. Within five minutes, there'd be a crowd, everyone jostling for a good paint-watching vantage.

Fridays just aren't the same...

... without the weekends off. As it stands, I thought my Sunday was looking decent, but it turns out I have a 3-hour class in the morning and a 2h10m class in the afternoon. 9-12, then 1-3:10. Ugh.

Monday is off, and Tuesday is as well but it's not considered "off" as it's a prime day for planning for the week. Next week is, I hope, my last insane week.

Things are going really well. Teaching is great, but I DETEST planning. It's like trying to forecast tomorrow's weather by licking your finger and sticking it up in the air the day before. Some classes eat through material, and other days... they languish on five minutes of lesson plan material/exercises.

Ex: I spent 25 minutes with my 10-11 year olds yesterday morning going through "If I HAD a ball, I WOULD play catch" (conditional tense) sentences. It just wasn't okay to combine past tense with future conditional. The Chinese mind was just about blown. And today the keeners hated picking film jobs (actor, dancer, singer, cameraman/woman, director, writer) while the quiet ones had a blast. The purpose was to try to convince one of the students (the producer) to hire them. I'd have thought they'd have eaten it up! Not so. The one girl named the movie "Sue and Victor" (two of the students) and that ended the fun for Sue who wanted her "di'ni'y" (dignity) and decided to "reshine" (resign). In a huff, I might add.

My teenage class is doing really well consistently, on the other hand. I've found the fine line between wielding the rod of authority and joking with my students and being called by my first name instead of "teacher". I had them in stitches today by tossing no few anecdotes about injuries and Canadian comparisons to various Chinese traditions. I finally really and truly understand and relate to Mr. Clancy's teaching style: toss in-your-face-ludicrous comments out and watch the class cannibalize each other in debate. It's like a sucker-punch. They love debating, and it even draws the quiet ones out. That class ends tomorrow, though. Next week at the same time I pick up a conversational class, meaning there is no book or serial lesson scheme. They are there only to talk, so it's all role-playing exercises and discussion topics. I act as English moderator more than a teacher.

The last two nights, Alistair and I have watched movies after work. We hit Rambo: First Blood on Weds, and Rambo II last night. Classics. DVDs cost like 10 yuan ($1.50), so he has a stockpile, as does the school and the other teachers. Duncan and Michelle are obsessed with the series 'Lost' (they have both 1st and 2nd seasons boxed sets). These cheap DVDs give us a great excuse to go "hey, I've never seen this movie... may as well buy it". It can be hit and miss, but there's a scale of quality on the DVDs. DVD-5... you roll the dice. DVD-9 is high quality. I might see if I can find Hard Boiled, since I haven't seen that in ages, and Alistair has never seen it.

Not much else happening, really. Just working on getting through the days in good humour (which is easier now that I've found my teacher's legs) and getting enough sleep. I've lost a bit of weight, but not much, and I spotted a tai ji qian school. Now if I could only remember where it was... I saw it when I accompanied Duncan on his phone card odyssey that ate up 45 minutes and took us all over Tangshan last week.

Nick's heading for a night and day in Beijing on Sunday night, and I think a number of other teachers are going. I don't think I will. Cost isn't too big an issue, but being gone from Sunday night til Monday night, with Tuesday for 5 days of planning... too busy. I'll hop along on the next trek, since they tend to happen monthly. Things are simply too busy at the moment.

When things slow down (after next week), I'll look into more formal Chinese instruction, either kung-fu or tai ji qian and RELAX a bit. Wow, this was a long post. Talk to you folks later - time for a beer with Nick - and happy Friday morning.

A Sacred Time

Was there ever a more sacred time than 5:30pm? On work days, I would say no. Day's end, and time for a bit of planning then a beer.

Today went great, but 3 hours with 18 and 19 year-olds is... ummm... arduous at best. Getting them into a debate is like trying to undo 6,000 years of history-based cultural orientation. Yet debate they shall! Tomorrow, in pairs, they will have formal debates based on somewhat bold statements about family and the roles of various members.

My younger class this morning was great (as stated in my other entry). It turns out I'm a really good balance of clown and educator, which one must be in this kind of ESL environment. They need to be able to smile (and do so, as often as it's not disruptive!) but also learn. I feel I do that best with younger learners. I still enjoy adult teaching, but I am now feeling my mom's pain. However... she only ever had to deal with one at a time, and not 18 of them at once, locked in a room with them. Then again, she had to deal with 2 separately, for a collected term of 9 or so years. Ouch. I think I need to plan ahead for a really kick-ass Mother's Day gift.

But yeah, back to the younger class. As I said below, it went quite well and I have no concerns about them and the fact it's 3 hours. That time flies by. It's so damn hard to judge time with my teen class. They took 50 minutes on something I'd designed to take up only 15. Bonus, but then their attention began to wander, and it can be difficult to do activities with them since they're so cynical. Hell, I consider half the activities available ludicrous and irrelevant to 18 year-olds.

Anyhoo... it was a decent day, and I hope for the same tomorrer. (oh, some pictures have been updated on my Flickr account.)

Beginning of a busy week

Had my 3-hour morning class. It went really well, given that I was prepared to do a review of sections 1-3... yet the class had only done section 1. So it was all improv and speedy reference to the book. They had fun talking about the Battle of Hastings (though there was a LOT of new vocab for them: throne, promise, invasion, monarch, conquest, empire, etc.). It was going so well I forgot about their first break. I noticed at quarter after ten, and then again failed to notice their second break until twenty-five after eleven.

I'll just say this: 11-year-old boys are like 11-year-old boys everywhere. Quite funny. We did a "if you had 1 billion yuan, what would you do?" exercise. Of course to arrive at that number, I had to pull a Dr. Evil... "1 hundred-thousand yuan" and they just raised their eyebrows. So I went "1 million yuan" and they just looked at me and said "that's not wery much monies", so then it was up'd to a billion which I still don't think they were satisfied with but they spread that money around.

I came in to a piece of worrying news in an email, but things seem to be okay. I've been placated... somewhat by a follow-up email, so I'm feeling alright. Waiting on better news, however.

Everything here is status quo. Happy that I handled a 3-hour class of 11/12-year-olds (sans lesson plan) without issue. Makes me feel like looking forward to this afternoon's class of teenagers. Kinda.

Time for lunch. Alistair and Nick are staring at me. Later!

A few questions answered

I just realized that I haven't answered a few questions, the answers for which I've likely taken for granted. Thanks to my aunt Holly who asked them, so I'll answer them here:

Do they have a curriculum for you to follow or do you have to do all of your own lessons?

There are curriculum books for us to follow, but we have to plan lessons around the book guidelines. 60% of what is taught in a class is based on curriculum 'target objectives' (redundant, perhaps?). As Joe, the Director of Studies (DoS), says "They paid for the books, so use them, but use them sparingly." So we base lessons around, say, introduction to A-E letter phonics (for a young beginner class, for instance) but then have flashcards and games to reinforce it; we don't do strictly book exercises. Ex: The other day I taught 24 kids aged 7-12 a 45-minute lesson around 12 words that all started with the letters A, B, C, D or E. So you first identify the objects. Usually the students know them, and if so, then you ask them what letter it starts with. Then have them spell it out. Have that student ask another student "What is this?" "It's an apple." and continue. With my older class of advanced English students, the book is a curse for them; the focus is conversation and discussion (the room is set up seminar style). No writing, and as little reading as possible is the rule.

What is your room like?

Very freakin' boring. I have a bed (with a mattress, yay!), a really uncomfortable sofa, a kind of temp clothes hanging 'cabinet', a desk. I'm still living out of suitcases, and that's likely to continue. In terms of basic amenities, we (Alistair and I) have them all: fridge w/ freezer, washer/dryer (horrible but functional), a water cooler (very very necessary as we don't even brush our teeth using tap water), a western toilet (though you can't put toilet paper down it because it works on some sort of rotating fan thinger that blocks easily), a water-heater + shower-head in the middle of the bathroom, a TV and DVD player. Our tile floor is tan with dirt and grime, my window-sill has like 1/8th of an inch of crud on it from the construction site and dust. Our apartment is about 25-30 minutes' walk from the school, on the same main street. 10 minutes by bus, 5 by taxi. 2 yuan for air-conditioned bus, 5 or 6 for a taxi.

How is the food? Are you trying new things?

The food typically rocks, though it happens every once in a while that you either eat something 'unhygenic' or otherwise intestinally disturbing - regardless of whether you get it from someone in an alleyway cooking out of an oil drum or from a restaurant where you lounge around on sofas. I had dog the other night (sorry, Bubba!) at a Korean restaurant, and I've had squid and cow stomach. To answer Kris' question: YES! They do actually call it Chinese food and not just 'food' here. :) Though they might make the distinction simply because we're foreigners.

As far as doing different activities... the other teachers here are pretty social and enjoy going out. That said, there are 2 bars and 1 club here in Tangshan, so our options are somewhat limited. There is a bar around the corner from the school, so we're often there. The servers love us because we draw people in: "An entire table of foreigners!! Let's go stare." Otherwise... we played pool last night at a pool hall that was downstairs from the club (we all unanimously suck at pool, by the way), and we've done karaoke at a place called KTV. There's also a bowling alley somewhere here.

Traditional tea-houses here can charge up to 1,000 yuan for a single cup of tea. 1,000 yuan is about $150. Other places you can have a nice sit and a cup of tea for 3-5 yuan ($0.50-$0.75).

Is it safe hanging out in the streets?

Usually very safe. I've had no issues, regardless of time of day. I've heard some places in southern China can be extremely dangerous (guys on motorbikes snatching a purse, woman holds on, guy cuts off her arm with a sickle, etc.). Depends where you are, and how stupid you want to be with advertising your status/wealth. No one is jobless - no matter what, everyone has a job here.

Is getting hooked to the 'net hard or what do they use for that?

I'm still trying to figure that out for home. We have the net at school, so I usually check every day, sometimes twice a day given the 12-hour time difference. Once I get it at home (hopefully next week) I will be able to post more 'diary' style blogs instead of curt summaries.

That's it for now. All is well, but this week is busy. Got 2 3-hour classes a day until Friday, then Saturday I start my first full course (2-hour classes). Summer is extremely busy, but next week is the last week of the insanity, and we'll be moving down from 2 & 3 hour long classes to 45/60/90/120 minute classes.

A good day

Had my second and third classes, each 45 minutes. They were 'demo' classes, meaning they were summer camp kids in from rural areas - 19 in the first class and 24 in the second. They both went really well. I thought things might go to hell since part of my lesson plan was to give them handouts, but they had no writing station or pens/pencils. So 5 seconds before the lesson I had to scrap that. It ended up working out really well, and they responded great, both in chorus and individually. Up until this morning, I was also anticipating 2 kids per class, so the large class sizes (large for ESL environments) was a surprise.

It was really nice to have a very positive teaching experience. My first class (last Thursday) was wretched, as I'd written. So things are looking up!

It's Alistair's bday tomorrow, and we're trying to find him a guitar. Duncan and I went on a sojourn to a department store at lunch, but it was fruitless. Everyone we asked (*cough* Duncan asked) said it was somewhere else. Finally we got out of someone back on the first floor (out of 4 floors scrounged in 42 degree weather with humidex) that they didn't have them. So we went for dumplings. When in doubt, eat.

When I get home, I should have an air-conditioner in my room. So I can finally close my windows to block out the 24-hour construction and not die of suffication. Yay!

I think that's it for now. Oh, wait... Friday. Friday was a day off, thankfully. That evening, we all went for steak (and it wasn't bad!) and then bought beer, popped 'em open and wandered down the street to the memorial. It was busy, but not packed. It was awesome. Tonnes of people, lots of lights, folks sitting in front of flower plots playing cards in groups of 5-8... and I played hacky-sack for 2 hours with a group of Chinese teens. I think about 8-10 pictures were taken of the weird foreigner playing what they all must have assumed was a Chinese game. To be fair, it was: the 'sack' was actually a padded spring with colourful feathers coming out of it. It looked like a badminton fly (or whatever that widget is called). Lots of fun, but I paid for it... I was soaked after 2 hours of playing, I got a sore throat, and woke up with a nasty cold.

Meanwhile... I missed Nick mesmerizing 120+ Chinese by pretending to do stunts with glowsticks. He was even pulling people out of the audience to help him. He'd do some strange moves, and everyone would clap. Ever seen that Fat Boy Slim music video where they're all doing dance/interpretive dance in a mall and people start gathering, half-amazed, half-confused? Duncan and Alistair described it exactly like that: Nick wasn't actually doing anything. Just moving his hands around fast or putting glowsticks in his mouth and pretending to balance them, etc. Too funny.

Okay, I'm outta here. Busy week ahead of me, starting Weds: 6 hours of class a day (2 classes per day) and only 2 days to prep for them all. Next Saturday, I start my first new class (ie, not just taking someone else's over).

O Life In Flux

Okay, so... I jump into work tomorrow afternoon, 2:30-5:30 class. 15-17 year olds, advanced English. I've met them and spoken with them (been "interviewed" by them) and they're an absolutely stand-up bunch. I then have more prep to do for a class of 13-14 year olds (also advanced) on Friday morning. Then it looks like we're shut down for half the day as the Chinese Chairman is in Tangshan to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the earthquake that killed 250,000 people.

Did I already write all this in my other entry today? Christ, things are just moving really quickly, and I have to jump into a young learners class in 2 minutes to observe the language level and exchange style.

I now have a temporary address (the school's) so email me if you want it. Zaijian!

To Tangshan, go!

Alright, I'm finally out of Shijiazhuang. With a dense population of 8.6 million people, the polution was pretty bad, and there just wasn't much to that city.

I arrived yesterday in Tangshan (5.5 hour bus ride during which they played a Jet Li movie, a movie with the actor who was Broken Sword in 'Hero', some weird-ass romantic comedy about a calligrapher, and the beginnings of a Chow Yun Fat movie... in FRENCH of all things).

All is well. I wish I had the time to write down all the cool stuff and minutiae that have stood out in my mind since being here. I will do so once I have internet access at home. I'm writing from a public computer at the school I'm at. I'm in an apartment with a Brit named Alistair (awesome guy - he's been fantastic). There are 6 teachers here now with Camilla and I having signed on. They're all British except for her and I. We went for drinks last night (most beer is served in like 750 or 1 litre bottles, and you're given snifter glasses) and everyone has been just incredible.

Today I found out that I'm taking over the classes of a teacher who did a 'midnight run' a short while back. My first class is on Friday. It's 2 hours. It's busy time right now, and will be for another 2 weeks or so. The class is pre-intermediate (basic conversation level) and aged 13-14. Should be fun. I watched Duncan's 10-11 class this morning, and I did an introduction and the kids all asked questions. They thought it was hilarious that my Chinese name is Bai ke. (A woman at Shijiazhuang Foreign Language University gave it to me. It means "white", with ke simply being a phonetic extension so that Bai ke sounds like Pat ck.)

Enjoying myself a good deal, though it'd be nice if China didn't have 24/7 construction directly behind my new place, just outside my window. Nothing like listening to 3am jackhammers and loud Chinese cursing and I-beams being dropped from a hundred feet onto packed earth. Hey, it's all part of the experience, I figure.

On Friday, the Chairman of China is in town as Friday is the 30th anniversary of the Tangshan earthquake that killed 250,000 people. The memorial is a 2-minute walk from my place, so I plan on going down and checking things out, and taking pictures.

That's it for now. Oh, I can't read comments, by the way. I can post but I cannot check the actual blog (at least I couldn't in Shijiazhuang). So your comments are going unread, except those that have been sent along by Holly (THANK YOU).

Thank you all for the well-wishing. Everything is fine here, and it seems like I have great support both from the teachers and the staff (teaching assistants and the director).

Zaijian,

I'm alive and well

All is well. No flight complications or anything. I can't write too much as I'm on a company computer for now, but will write about my thus-far fun experiences soon. I've already taken a number of pictures which I will share when possible.

You may not hear from me for a week or 2, as I'm in transition at the moment. In Shijiazhuang (cool city, and wonderfully insane in ways that only pictures can describe).

So if you don't hear from me in a week or so, don't panic.

5 Days to the Minute

... and I'll be standing in the Ottawa Airport, no doubt looking dazed, excited and a little nervous; a slough of black luggage surrounding me. I fear it will be anti-climactic to some extent. After all, while I am leaving Ottawa for a year, I won't be out of the country until the following day. It would be somewhat comedic were it not for how I and others present will be feeling.

I can't say I'm not looking forward to going to China. I most definitely am. I just hate leaving such good friends as I have, even if only for a year. I've decided that, for now, I will only be there for a year. That's not to say I won't be going back, but there will be at least a 4-6 week period where I'll be back in Canada. Possibly longer. Some things need to be examined and decided, and I can't plan a year ahead nor see how a year abroad will change me.

Many thanks!

To put it simply, the party on Friday was fucking awesome. I had a blast, and it looked like everyone else did too. It accomplished what I wanted: a chance for me to see as many people in one spot as possible, and for those friends to all meet and/or catch up.

Thanks to everyone who made it out! If you have pictures taken from that night, please email them to me so I can add them to the collective. Thanks again to everyone! It was fantastic to see you all, and I look forward to seeing you all when I return.

Last Step

I only have to book my flight now. I got my Chinese visa this morning. All my things are packed; the rest is in storage at my parents'.

I guess I've been putting off booking my flight. One, I had to because I wasn't sure of visa process time, but mostly... I knew it was the final step. After booking my flight there's no looking back. I'm not one for intense change, and I've been caught up in some very major changes to my life. One of my own choosing, and another one a blessing brought about by time and one unimaginably phenomenal woman. It's all a bit scary, but I'm getting to love this feeling. It's been a long time since I've been forced out of this apathetic "comfort zone".

Change is good; both of them are fantastically good. I, being a coward, just need to get my head around them.

Guess I'll see a bunch of you folks Friday! We're up to 28 confirmed people... it will be one helluva party. Lots of laughs, litres upon litres of beer, and I'm sure a few tears. Bring it on!

Ugh

I am... so... very... tired. I just want to sleep and be back at my old apartment. I had a huge stress attack (I guess) last night around 10pm driving all this stuff to my parents' place, and I couldn't figure out why. Then I realized... until I had given up my apartment, plans for China were still relatively idealistic and didn't feel "real" to me. Now they're moving ahead and there's no looking back. That kind of scares me. Okay... not 'kinda'. It scares the shit out of me. I get my Chinese tourist visa on Tuesday.

So much has happened in the last 10 days; I'm still trying to make sense of everything and not burst into tears for a multitude of reasons. I'm back into Ottawa tomorrow and staying with Mr. Evileddy - woot! Like old times.

At the moment, I feel cast adrift, as though I'm existing in Limbo simply because there's no room for me yet in any other useful plane of existence. Now that everything is stored up at my parents' place, I feel better, but not much. I keep wondering if there are other things that I should be packing for China. I still have a few small things yet to get. Looking at airline ticket prices now... the cheapest I can find is $1700 (out of Ottawa). That doesn't seem horrible, but I'd like to get that down to near $1400.

Meh. Happy Canada Day, folks. Drink one for me.

Sum of All Years

"Tears are words the heart can't express" - (unknown source)

I don't often weep, and I don't often dream (that I can remember). In the last four days, I did a good deal of both, fueled by excesses of joy and sorrow.

The slow recovery of the clarity of my physical vision was paralleled by a far more significant existential maturity of emotional vision. I haven't in 11 years let anyone in close; not really. I'm a very private person by nature and through conditioning, and I don't tend to have the same emotional... needs as others. I find it easy to shut people out, and ignore natural impulses. I've done it all my life. Most of that changed in the last four days, and that has altered me completely as a human being.

It's said that doing the right thing is rarely ever easy. The truth of that statement became painfully clear to me; like a punch to the gut. People can make choices that are right, but that seem utterly contrary to purposes of those involved. They aren't, but in the moment, in the short-term, they are. Actually, sometimes, without conviction or faith, it can be contrary in the long-term because a person(s) doesn't follow-through or remain true to the original intent of the decision. It's hard to envision the big picture when all one is given is a fragment. But those fragments can be life-changing. Also, life is fragments; a beach of time, per se.

I just finished watching Ultra Violet in an attempt to distract myself, and there is a very interesting line that snagged my attention: "... these moments... as beautiful as they are... they're evil when they're gone." That can seem true, but if one allows that mental state to actualize (namely that things became stale or bitter)... well, what's the point of any happy moment (or any moment at all?)? Happiness, no matter how brief, should never be erased from memory nor is it ruinous. To allow that is to succumb to spiritual defeat.

No comments are being allowed for this post because there is nothing for anyone to say, and no questions that I would answer.

Vision Thing

Sisters have Mercy, I am beginning to really see again. I'm at approx 85% of my prescription strength, but my light sensitivity is going away and the stability of my vision is improving. I just had the contacts removed, and am now only on "eyeroids" as Adam calls them; steroids for my cornea.

I have more packing to do, as I move out of this place on Friday. Also, I was in at the Chinese Embassy today going through visa info. I needed passport photos (though smaller) taken for the application. I'll take the completed form in tomorrow. It's a long walk... down on Patrick St, right near a bridge to Hull. Looks like I'll soon be all set. I can't believe June is almost over.

That's it for now.

The Art of Ending

"Great is the art of beginning. Greater still is the art of ending."

Saying good-byes are weird, especially after a relatively routine activity; say one that's been consistent for 2.5 years. I had my last D&D game last night with the gang, and after Todd dropped me off, I almost just got out of the car and walked into my apartment with the usual "see you guys next week". It was also strange closing off the game itself (with regards to me as a player). Like closing the curtain after a 2.5 year stage play.

Good-byes can be so anti-climactic. It always feels like there is more to say than there actually is, or that some event that shatters the mundane is required in order to legitimize the leave-taking. This makes me glad that there will be a more social, fun and different venue for saying good-bye to all my friends. I'm really looking forward to that night on the 7th. Also, I shouldn't be as stressed by that time as I am right now. Too much is happening, and it's snuck up on me. "Hurry up and wait" has been the order of the day for the past 6 weeks, and now it's simply "hurry up".

On that note, I'm off to get some ingredients for Thai Coconut Chicken soup, and grab some boxes from the Beer Store. Of course I'll make a donation as well... and they'll give me beer as a thank-you for the donation.

All Is Going According to My Evil Plan

Went in for my consultation for wavefront PRK surgery this morning, and I'm approved and highly eligible (how often do I hear that?). Surgery date is the 21st, but I need to go in this Friday to have a 30-minute map of my eye done. I called for a dentist appointment today, and someone had just canceled so I'm going in tomorrow morning at 8:30.

Now I just need to get my travel vaccines done (yay for OHIP coverage) and try to find the number for the specialist I'm supposed to see so I can reschedule that, and I'm rockin'. Hooray for things working out regardless of not having had a plan in place!

Eye Surgery

Woohoo! I'm going in tomorrow morning (Tuesday) for a consultation, and if all is well at that time, I'll be having Wave-front PRK surgery on the 21st of June, with approx 3 days recovery time. It will be with Dr. Edmison, the director of Focus Eye Centre.

Yay! One step out of the way. Now to check on times when I can get my travel vaccines and schedule a dentist appointment.

The only issue is this may infringe on Angie's visit. I hope it won't, or that I'm not half-blind. I'll need to check with her to confirm when she's coming up. If it's on the 23rd, then all should be well.

I'm excited about this. Apparently, vision correction between -1.00 and -6.00 is considered low correction, and has the highest improvement rates. I'm at -5.25 and -5.75.

China, Here I Come

That's the news. I'm off to China asap, which for me is the 1st or 2nd of July. Booya. I'll be staying a day in Beijing, then traveling to Shijiazhuang, where I'll stay while I use their office to find a contract directly with a school. The agency is called New Times.

Lots to do between now and then: get my travel vaccines for that region, get wave-front PRK surgery, go to a dentist, pack, skip around the neighbourhood with glee, etc.

WEEEE!

I actually had to turn down a job offer in Japan because they wanted me to be able to get over there within 2 weeks. I had to politely decline. At the same time, the offer from China came through. I just need to check out references, some of which they provide up front, and I may ask for others or simply fire questions their way. Linda's been awesome, being in China right now teaching, so I've been bugging her unmercifully for information on cost of living and other things.

Suffice it to say, I'm excited. That's all for now.

EDIT: errr... not 1st or 2nd of July, but likely 15th - 20th timeframe.

Not asking for much

... just a little good news.

The application and submission process for overseas teaching opportunities has been depressing, to say the least. I would have been good to go for two positions in Japan, however... one required that I already be in Japan for a face-to-face interview, and the other required that I at least be able to have an interview in Vancouver. The opportunity in the Czech Republic? Need an EU passport. Other opportunities? Either in Tokyo or requiring a year's+ experience.

I've heard that it is possible to obtain an EU passport if one has a family member within 2 generations (or is it 3?) that was born in an EU country. My grandfather qualifies, having been born in Poland before coming to Canada in 1921 or something. Poland joined the EU in May 2004. I will find out more about that process and qualifications this afternoon, I hope.

So yeah. It's a bit disheartening, but I'm keeping at it despite the constant set-backs and lack of responses.

Strings

I found this movie by complete happenstance, at the convenience store around the corner from my place.

It was pretty damn good. Dark Crystal good. The lighting was absolutely fucking brilliant. The entire film was done with marionettes that know that they're marionettes; that's the whole basis of the movie, or rather the thing that 'ties' it all together. (har har - but no, seriously) Kind of a morbid Lion King storyline, with some really desolate and depressing scenes. It was really well done, both the puppeteering and the story itself:

King kills himself, leaves his kingdom to his son with a very Gladiator-style hope (peace), evil brother corrupts it and spawns war by saying the king was assassinated by the rival nation, then a long character-building process of discovery for the disposed heir. That sounds cliche and "meh", but it was quite well done.

I'm so glad that arts like these haven't been lost, despite the fact the movie could have been done using pixar 3-D animation, without marionettes. I often worry if we've entered an age where "art for art's sake" no longer holds true. Movies like "Strings" give me hope. Then I think of 90% of the other movies out there and I get frustrated with the world's lack of vision and authenticity.

(For some odd reason, two of the only pictures I could find of the movie had Ghrak, a henchman, in it. He was a cool character, but c'mon.)

Movies to look forward to

- 12 and Holding (looks exceptional)
- Peaceful Warrior (Nick Nolte as a non-psychopath? Giddy-up. I also secretly like inspiring stories.)
- A Scanner Darkly (Philip K. Dick ftw!)
- District B13 (sorry, story by Luc Beson and from the guy who did Ong Bak and Transporter 2... it'll be one helluvan action movie)
- Monster House (great voice cast, and looks like a great movie)
- Caché (French film; seems like a good thriller)
- Three Times (a very interesting Chinese independent)
- Ghost Rider (just for pure enjoyment factor)

And I can't believe a "How to Eat Fried Worms" movie is being made. I loved the book. Read it back when I was 9 or 10. I would also like to see 2046. I keep seeing it in movie stores, but haven't gotten it. Nor have I checked out Audition, which Jay says is a good Miike film.

A really interesting trailer I just saw: Drawing Retraint 9. It's described as follows: The core idea of Drawing Restraint 9 is the relationship between self-imposed resistance and creativity, a theme it symbolically tracks through the construction and transformation of a vast sculpture of liquid Vaseline, called “The Field”, which is molded, poured, bisected and reformed on the deck of the ship over the course of the film.

Bjork stars in it, so it looked to have a Dancer In the Dark feel, but far more artistic and over-the-edge.

It just sucks that most theatres in Ottawa don't show the really neat movies.

300...

A while back I had made mention of a movie coming out called "300" based on the Battle of Thermopylae. This movie is instead based on the graphic novel(s) by Frank Miller (Sin City). The movie looks like total ass. Fuck I hate Hollywood. Why the fuck are they basing a movie on a graphic novel when the fucking event itself can be easily referred to, there being plenty of historical background and depth?!

Simple logic:

Event --> Movie (1 step)
Event --> Graphic Novel --> Movie (2 steps)

Does no one else see how this makes zero fucking sense? It's like quoting someone who is paraphrasing the actual individual whose quote you desire. Plato is rolling in his grave right now.

Based on the video journals, even the costumes are fucked. Seems like all they got right were the crimson cloaks, though I didn't see any lambdas (the symbol of the Spartan city-state) on any of those cloaks, so I guess they didn't get that right either. Their swords look like shite, and their helmets are all pock-marked and scarred, completely unlike the disciplined state the Spartans kept their kit in. Their shields bear no devices, and THEY'RE NOT WEARING ANY FUCKING ARMOUR! In the footage, they aren't even fighting in phalanyx formation.

AND THERE WERE MORE THAN 300 on the Greeks' side! There were 300 Spartans... with about 7,000 allies. Plus their squires, blacksmiths/weaponsmiths/armoursmiths, cooks, and of course the rabble that follows any army: merchants, scavengers and the like.

FUCK. I hate people.

Mladá Boleslav, Czech Republic

Okay, so it's not exactly Japan. However, the opportunity presented seems to be a good one. I sent my letter of intro expressing my interest, along with my resume and a recent photo.

I think if they accept me, and the terms are good, I will make a go of it. It's a town of 50,000 located 50 kms NE of Prague. I got a good feeling from the narrative of the listing, but we shall see.

Beggars can't be choosers, and right now... I am a bedlam beggar.

Old Boy

So I was in Toronto this past weekend, and I have to say that one of the highlights was getting together with Jay and watching movies. His pick was Old Boy, and mine was Seven Samurai. Combine that with a Thai stirfry (freakin' awesome, Jay!), a tonne of beer, and it was one helluva night.

Old Boy is a very difficult movie to describe. It feels like a Korean Fight Club/Memento/Titus Andronicus type of film, but that doesn't do the emotional extravagance or volitility justice. It's a movie without conventional boundaries, one that encroaches on the morally horrific.

To say it's well-filmed is as underwhelming as saying the Holocaust was a bad time. I'd have to watch it again to pay special attention to the filming, but it worked perfectly for what was being accomplished. It was dark, moody, always edgy, bordering on nervous. The scene that starts with a frightened Daesu-Oh watching an ant crawl out of his arm will live in my mind as one of the most... mind-stinging scenes I've ever seen.

I think what really stood out about this movie was the portrayal of emotion, and that emotion's discharge. I wish we could have watched it sans subtitles; so many nuances and subtleties of emotion get lost in translation. Imagine Shakespeare translated into contemporary Swahili. It just wouldn't work.

I'm not sure what else I can really say without divulging the plot, which really needs to be witnessed a priori. It was a great movie, and I'm also glad I could share Seven Samurai with Jay.

Overall, it was an awesome weekend in Toronto - I had a blast catching up and talking with Michelle, and hanging out with Jason. It was a much-needed getaway. I'm not sure what I was getting away from, though. I guess a certain stagnation, or ennui. It was a great chance to refocus.

Damn geography

That position I spoke about in "Belay that last" post below has gone all the way to the interview stages... however, the director of the school wishes to meet with me in person. She said "It is difficult otherwise", meaning that it would be very unlikely for me to proceed beyond the stage I'm at.

That blows. 570-some people had applied by the time I had, and I was one of a handful contacted for an interview phase of the application. I'm starting to honestly wonder if I might not be better off getting over there and annoying the hell out of Adrian and Fiona for a bit while I look and make myself available in-person. I know for a fact I kick ass in interviews - nothing freaks me out thanks to my final Infantry Officer interview: one Lt Col., one Maj., two Capt's... glass door looking in on the other three there for the same interview. I've been a whiz since then. I don't get nervous and I present myself well.

Very difficult to do that from half a world away. I think it's time for that A/V "letter of introduction".

I guess I'll see what the response is from the director. I basically replied saying that I would not be in country for an interview, and pushed a bit to see if she would accept a Skype interview. I'm thinking no, but hey... shows my genuine interest and it's a reasonable alternative that will cost them nothing.

As I always say... We shall see. Lots of other things out there I'm going to focus on so as not to get my hopes up.

The world is a neat place

Saw this video posted on a forum, and thought it was pretty amazing. I'd heard of hydrogen fuel before, obviously, but seeing it in action is pretty astounding. Hope this guy does well! We could all use a new, clean fuel source.

Belay that last

Hmmm... okay, so I was contacted this morning for an interview. It seems like a neat opportunity: 28 working hours including 25 teaching hours. I'm not sure what the "working hours" means - it might mean 3 hours alloted for prep and grading. It's based out of Nagoya, but I will need to take a train to Gifu and Ogaki also (each apparently only 30 mins from Nagoya). I guess I'll see what the director says about the fact I'm not currently in Japan. From his email to me, I couldn't tell if that was a pre-requisite or simply a preference.

The job is teaching to both kids and adults. This is the public job posting:

Classes in both Ogaki, Gifu and Nagoya, Aichi (both places 30 minutes by train from Nagoya station)

Seeking native full time EFL teacher, to teach students ranging from children - adult. Applicant must have experience with small children, be fun loving, energetic and creative. We are seeking applicants with dedication, drive and initiative. Our children's lessons are based on PLS method which is high standard as well as effective instruction and we also use a lot of games songs and dance to enhance English language acquisition. Musical talent is not essential, but a good sense of humor is! The position is 28 working hours including 25 teaching hours per week.

Monthly Salary is 280,000 - 300,000 yen per month. There will be transportation fee provided on top of the monthly salary. The position starts Mid of June or end of August. It is a twelve month renewable contract. All native speaking applicants who have completed 4 year university degree at minimum are welcome to apply.
Please send your resume with your current photo.

So ummm... ignore my angry rant below. Patience is a virtue that likes to give me the cold shoulder. *innocent whistling*

Me out.

Frustration

I applied for a teaching position near Shikoku island this morning, and since I applied via the website the job was listed on, I received an email. Actually, I wish I hadn't, though it was smart of them to set up the system like they did. The contents of that email is as follows:

This email is to confirm that your resume has been sent to *name of school* for Job ID #*****. To date, 52 resume(s) have been submitted through *name of website* for this position. Please note that many companies only contact candidates they are interested in.

Fucking christ. How does one have a fucking chance in hell when 52 people (today alone) have applied to a position in some small village where the largest urban centre is one of 440,000 people, an island away? What chance do I have to get anything that seems a better location? What I'm saying is that this wasn't exactly the opportunity of a lifetime, and it received 52 applicants. It was a chance, a shot in the dark. I feel like I have a fucking flintlock pistol and everyone else has a .50 cal.

I'm just fucking pissed. I take a firm stance finally in my insignificant life, and I feel blocked in at every turn. Maybe I should haul ass to Japan prior to having a contract and hit the street, door to door, Willy Lowman style.

Fuck.

Some games should come with a Surgeon General warning

This game, for instance. Doom 3. The label should read: Please use the bathroom each time before playing this game, and if you have a heart condition, please don't even pick up this box.

I got it the day it came out two years ago, but didn't play it too much. However, in this recent period of career inertia, I took it up again looking to get away from MMOs (massively multiplayer online [games]).

So I jumped back into Doom 3. ... and just about soiled myself, but only after numerous close-call heart-failures. I kid thee not, this game can kill people of weak constitution. For a time, I could only play for 2-5 minute spurts. I'd simply get too freaked out. To combat this, I stopped playing at night, with all the lights out. Now I can play for a good 20-30 minutes before I feel like my chest is going to explode - which would be poetically just given that I inflict such inconvenience on pudgy, no-jaw'd, Hell-infused walking corpses in the game.

Plot Summary: 2045 (or something), humans have colonized Mars, and have an advanced research facility there. They've also uncovered the remains of a martian civilization, and likewise uncovered some of the technology. There's some faster-than-light transportation technology that is being messed around with. You play some Everyman marine just posted there as security. Not surprisingly, the instant you arrive, there's a job for you: find a missing scientist. As you move around, you hear rumours of people going AWOL, psychiatric reviews becoming more frequent, and there's a sense of general unease. Well, you find the scientist, who is trying to send a message back to Earth. Then... all Hell literally breaks loose. You've got a flashlight (weee) and a pistol. ... and those nice scientists, marines, admins, and technicians you spoke to on the way down? They're either lying in three pieces, being coughed from ventilation shafts, are grease smears on the walls/floors/ceilings, or have been possessed by demonic forces and are hunting you. In other words: it gets real freaky, real fast.

And visceral, as the image above can attest to (in-game shot, not doctored up or from a cinematic). Zombies on fire, zombies who stand up when you walk past, zombies eating other zombies, 28 Days Later style zombies in commando uniforms with weapons... and the worst part: the legions of Hell in all their mangled and grisly splendor. Zombies? No problemo. Mutated spiders that are two feet tall and look like face-huggers (ref. Aliens); two-headed, blood-drooling quadropeds that look like skinned, decaying muscle-men; skeletal juggernauts with rocket-launchers on their shoulders and smoldering eye-sockets; and huge pink fleshed rhinos with robotic hind-quarters... Those get to me.

Mostly the freak-out factor comes from the stunning graphics, and use of dynamic lighting (and frequent uses of zero lighting). As per usual, id Software broke the envelope when they developed the Doom 3 graphics engine. I still haven't seen anything that compares to it.

So why did I choose to ramble on about a silly FPS (first-person shooter) game? Partly because it's a game that deserves acknowledgement, but primarily because I can't help but remember Super Mario Bros on NES in '86, and thinking how cool that was. Or the original Doom, or Wolfenstein (first FPS). Those games were amazing back in the day, but weren't scary. They simply couldn't stimulate those sorts of intense emotions due to the state of the medium. What amazes me is that we're already to the point of evoking cathartic or intense reactions through simulated means. More and more control is relinquished to the player, allowing deeper immersion and thus also a stronger emotional response to content. Detail is also critically important. It's not enough that I, as a player, find myself in a bathroom with a flickering overhead light. Tiles are loose, a sink broken and running, the mirror actually reflects everything in the room (character included), a stall door is slightly ajar and squeaking back and forth, 5-point surround sound delivers peripheral hisses and groans from areas out of line of sight.

There's just something addictive about fear. We crave it, when it can be controlled and we can walk away unscathed. Look at all the movies, books, games and amusement park rides dedicated to fear. I think it's because fear is the most fundamental of all human emotions, the one that is most closely linked to all our actions.

Wow... this was a long entry.

So - many - opportunities...

I applied/began the process of applying to 3 ESL schools this morning. Sheesh. There's so much out there, but I'm trying to stay away from Tokyo. All 3 were central Honshu, W/SW of Tokyo, in the Aichi (sp?) prefecture: Nagoya, Mito and Nakakoma-gun. The one in Nakakoma-gun looks fantastic, though I'm trying to be more cautious. The reason? The school I was looking at in Takamatsu, Shikoku, has had a few nasty things said about it. Summary of nastiness: the director is extremely racist, the teachers instill a strong bias against gaijin (foreigners) especially those who are Christian or Jewish, they refuse to pay the end-of-term bonus and try to force a continued contractual obligation by threatening to have false criminal charges laid against teachers. Etc etc.

Sounds like a charming place. That said, it could be highly exaggerated, but the fact that anyone would want to exaggerate a teaching experience is indicative of a poor environment. I'm progressing with the application process, and will be very very adamant re: having numerous references from current and former teachers. If they don't like it, I say "Thanks, but no thanks".

I've abandoned the silly, whimsical hope of being in Kansai region. I just want to be over there, and I care more about the school environment than I do about the regional environment. That said, I do not want to be in a large city, but from everything I've seen, that will not be too big an issue.

The one issue that seems to arise every now and again is the need for a driver's license, as a number of schools are based in X area, but teach in R, S, Y, Z locations. So those are out for me. It's unfortunate, because of some those pay more.

So that's my update... I'm just truckin' along, watching the ESL boards carefully and applying to just about everything I see that seems hopeful in terms of job responsibilities, benefits, location and school. What I really need is a recent picture of myself. I might just go and get something done today at Black's Photography or something.

Me out.

Just call me Random Vegetation Sanjuro

Yeah, so I'm currently obsessed with Kurosawa samurai movies. STOP JUDGING ME!

Today I watched both Yojimbo (the bodyguard) and Sanjuro, movies linked only by Mifune's character whose name is *random vegetation name* Sanjuro. "Going on 40". Sorry, you gotta watch both to get it. I think I enjoyed Yojimbo more for the plot and intrigue and "lone wolf" feel, and Sanjuro for the combat and dynamic between Mifune's character and the 9 sword-bungling youngsters whose asses he constantly pulls out of the fire. In Yojimbo, Sanjuro enters a random town and swaps his tentative services between two rival gang leaders, turning the town against itself to punish the evils that have taken root there. Sanjuro sees the same character coming to the aid (very randomly) of 9 fumbling but well-meaning swordsmen who are trying to free a chancellor who was framed by a colleague. Think Han Solo helping NINE dopey Luke Skywalkers... :-)

I'll shut up now. But before I do, I'm going to change my name to Oaktree Twenty-Seven, Going On Thirty. (I'm still chuckling)

"I can't kill a lot with one sword!"

... a quote from Kikuchiyo (foreground, right), responding to why he's stabbing half a dozen swords into an earthen mound. (note: must be a pre-edits shot because there are only 6 samurai, the original number, and Kambei still has his top-knot and they're standing in the villagers' barley field)

I'm completely enthralled with Seven Samurai. Released in black-and-white in 1954 by acclaimed director, Akira Kurosawa, it's an absolute marvel to watch. The story is engrossing; the cinematography is precise, each shot perfectly framed; the characters memorable and enjoyable. It's 3+ hours, but feels like days; it seems as though you're watching through the eyes of a villager as the story moves. And I do not mean that as a slight.

If you've read Stephen King's "Wolves of the Calla", the 5th book in the Dark Tower series, then you know the exact premise of this movie. No doubt King was inspired to retell it, in his own fashion: villagers, plagued by and completely in terror of bandits, decide to hire samurai (ronin, actually) to protect them. Pay for the samurai service? Three meals a day. Each is there for his own reasons, some drawn out and examined, others kept quiet.

I watched The Hidden Fortress (Akira Kurosawa's 'comedy') last evening, and it was also wonderfully told, and quite funny. That movie heavily influenced Lucas' decision to portray Star Wars: A New Hope from the droids' perspective, as the Hidden Fortress is related from the view of two over-the-top greedy pissant peasants. Another novel storyline: two peasants are recruited, their greed as their bond, to help a disguised princess and her samurai general move 200 pieces of gold through enemy territory. You can see the distinct influence many of the shots in the movie had on Lucas, as well as the way in which C3-P0 and R2-D2 relate to one another in an eternal cycle of futile blame and complaint. Hell, even a lot of the setting of Tunisia was reminescent of where many of the scenes from THF were shot.

I think I'm done blabbing about things for now. I'm sitting here writing this, Seven Samurai paused as the final battle for the village is about to take place. Time to see how it ends, and how many of those swords Kikuchiyo gets to employ. ;-)

--2:44pm--
Okay, finished watching it, and had to watch it again. Doing so with commentary; a great addition to the content as the man is remarking on both historical context, character portrayal, divergences from typical Japanese films, pointing out stylistic variants and cinematic 'conceits'. Fucking brilliant. So much going on in each frame, I'm now taking the time (and paying attention to the commentator's cues) to watch the periphery of the frames. Incredible how much is happening all the time, all planned and put there by Kurosawa.

Welcome, O' Wondrous Deluge...

So it's only been... well, 16 hours since I posted my resume, and already I've gotten one personalized solicitation and two 'farmed' solicitations to teach overseas. Funny... they're all in South Korea, even though my subject line of my posting said 'Kansai, Japan'. Oh well. It's definitely nice to see offers coming in so quickly, and the page counter on the little resume site is moving, which is nice.

Time to reach out and see what the other TESOL grads in Japan have to say.

Can't think of a clever subject line

Well, I finally posted on one of the most prominent ESL boards. It was a good post, and as part of it I put in this link. I don't consider myself overly clever by any stretch of the imagination, but I thought it wise to make my 'international resume' and letter of introduction easy to reference online.

I'm waiting on the list of TESOL people over in Japan so I can start some networking and direct inquiries. I have a listing of schools in Japan, two of which seemed particularly promising, one in Nara and the other in Nagoya. Nara City is where'd I'd love to be, but I've broadened the scope of what I will accept in terms of geographical locations. I'm still adamant about being in the Kansai region, though.

Anyhoo... small update, but it feels significant given the number of recruiters and directors/principals who use the ESL forums to find prospective teachers for their schools.

Books to movies

It seems that Hollywood has recently become either brilliant or plain fucking lazy. The adaptations of books and old movies is a wise one, given our culture's predilection for consuming re-packaged items. Though a good number movies out there are brand-new (superficially, anyways), we're in an era of film nostalgia, or coupling the written with the audio-visual. Hell, they're even making video games into movies! Reference: Doom, Hitman (maybe), Tomb Raider, Final Fantasy. What next? Is there anything left for them to adapt to movies?

They re-made Texas Chainsaw Massacre, re-made Amityville Horror (blegh), Poseidon [Adventure], The Fog, etc etc. These tend to suck.

On the other side of the re-packaging coin are adaptations: Fight Club, Blade Runner (and a dozen other Philip K. Dick stories), From the Mouth of Madness, The Stand, Dune... The Da'Vinci Code.

I just recently bought the paperback of the Da'Vinci Code. I'm anti-excited (yeah, you heard me) to read it because of the hype that surrounded its original hardcover release, and now the Tom Hanks movie adaptation. I'm sure the movie will be good, but will the book be? With numerous other movies (at least sci-fi), I've read the books before being aware that a movie was in the works. A Scanner Darkly, for example. I read that back in 2nd year when I was in my ravenous Philip K. Dick frenzy. (he's the guy who wrote Paycheck, Total Recall, Imposter, Blade Runner, and Minority Report) The motion-capture animation film promises to kick ass.

So to get back to the point, I'm not sure if I should bother reading the Da'Vinci Code. I know I will read it, but should I? I can already sense myself being underwhelmed.

On a meta-existential level... I have such a tough life filled with gruelling decisions, huh? Back to reading.

Iron Kingdoms

Damn you, Steve (aka, Arreyder). I was in Fandom II today and remembered you giving kudos to Iron Kingdoms. ... so I bought the Character Guide. Only starting to read it now, but it seems like a nice campaign world for D&D 3.5.

In other news, it's been a productive week: finished off all the necessary paperwork from work, finished my TESOL specialization (Business English), got my income tax refund, got the money I was owed, and I've been quite social. Life is good.

FF VII: Advent Children

Wow. I mean holy mutha-fuckin' shit WOW. To think 20 years ago I thought a pixel that could bounce around and be controlled (Y, X axis only) was the height of technology and was "totally rad". I mean, christ, I played the first Final Fantasy for the original NES back in '87.

In case you have no freakin' clue what I'm vulgarly gushing about, Square Enix (Sony) just recently released a DVD movie based on Final Fantasy VII, the video game. It - is - insane; the very pinnacle of aesthetic delight. You know those really neat video game cinematics that segue or fill in story arcs? Okay, now picture a film where THE ENTIRE MOVIE IS THAT STYLE OF CG ANIMATION!!

I am buying this movie. Maybe two copies so I can watch one on my TV and one on my laptop.

Oh, and in other news I'm no longer working. Seriously. What do I think of this? I love it.

"Real men fondle Doomsday Devices"

If you're a Cthulhu fan (and c'mon... who's NOT?!), you have to read this. I always go back and read the survival guide every few months because it's so damn funny. That is I read it when I can freakin' find it.

If you've read most or a few of Lovecraft's short stories, you'll recognize many of the references. If you haven't read Lovecraft... well... ummm... you suck.

A passing

My Poppa (maternal grandfather) died in the hospital last night, one of his sons by his side.

Not sure exactly how I feel about it right now. It's sunk in, but my first thoughts were "are you okay, Mom?". The really really weird thing is that last night, at 10pm, I had the strangest need to watch Big Fish, regardless of the fact that doing so kept me up til midnight. This morning I woke up 50 minutes before I usually do, and that was when my mom called to tell me. I'm not saying it's prophetic, or what-have-you. It's just... I don't know.

I'm not sure what's happening now. I'm working from home (or trying to -- bloody VPN client). Pele definitely senses something. Though she's often a very affectionate cat, she's in comfort mode: quietly brushing up against my leg, hopping on my lap and rubbing her head against my chest.

I'm not grieving because Poppa is very much a part of me; I don't feel he's gone. Physically, sure. But of what true significance is that? There's no sudden emotional or memorial vaccuum as a result. He's still there, present in my life simply because he is. People don't go away, they don't disappear; they simply manifest in diverse ways at different times. I just can't think of it any differently, and I suppose Dr. Fox is to thank for that for pointing me towards Thich Nhat Hanh and his Buddhist teachings. Though I haven't been too emotional for other deaths in the family, though the last time someone died, I was only 13 or 14, which is not exactly an emotional apex.

All I know is that I have to be there for my mom and my nanna. The issue now is what does my nanna do? She really shouldn't stay in that house. I'm thinking she'll stay with my parents, as their new house (ready in 5 weeks) has a nanny sweet, as it were.

That's what gets me right now. The "now what happens" questions, the in-flux situation.

"It was the headphones..."

Normally I'm not one to [overtly] laugh at the misfortunes of others. But in this case, the unfortunate soul happens to be a friend and former co-worker, and his predicament is not your average-day whoopsie. In fact, had I not seen his email plus the journalist's editorial copy, plus the final story... I'd not believe it.

I almost died of shock and laughter, or shocked laughter, perhaps. Check this out:

While there were 10 fatalities throughout the Midwest (mostly in Missouri) no deaths were reported in Illinois. There was, however, one close call.

James Ford, an out-of-towner living in Springfield while on contract with the state agency, Central Management Systems (CMS), was in his 14th floor apartment when the storm began on Sunday evening.

When Ford noticed that the large window overlooking his balcony was bowing considerably from the pressure of the high winds, he opened the window and a tremendous vacuum created by the wind engulfed the room and pulled him outside. "It literally sucked me out of the apartment," he said.

Ford survived by grabbing the balcony railing pulling himself back into his apartment.

"The few seconds on that balcony was something else, let me tell you," Ford said.

This is the article itself.

Now, the story behind the story: James was wearing headphones and playing video games. He failed to hear/recognize the tornado sirens. Is that, or is that not, fucking insane? My vote: fucking insane for $500, Alex.

Only a few steps more

I sent my international resume and letter of introduction to the alumni coordinator at United TESOL. So that's basically finished. Just waiting on his feedback and some modifications to it, and then I'm ready to get out of Dodge. Now if only I could remember my password for the school's website so I could finish the last little bit of my specialization... bah.

Things are pretty quiet. I'm sitting in my grandparents' living room, siphoning internet from some silly n00b who decided he/she doesn't need to secure their wireless network. My Nan's asleep with a crossword puzzle in her lap, my Poppa half-watching muted CTV, slipping in and out of sleep. My mom's upstairs watching a movie with my cousin, no doubt they're both sleeping too. :)

My Poppa is doing better than I had thought he would be. He's on a slough of pills and everything else, but he doesn't seem any more the worse for wear than when last I saw him. My Nanna's cough has improved, and she seems better also. Who knows?

Tonight, supper at my aunt's with my mom's whole side of the family. Should be nice. It's been great to get away from Ottawa, even if that meant missing Michelle's trip through. (d'oh) But... heading to Toronto for the last weekend in April to see a few folks I haven't seen in years. Passing through North Bay, I met up with Marci, and met Christian and their baby Alex for the first time. It was awesome to see Marci again, and she is a great mother. Alex is quite well-behaved and a cutie of course.

That's about it on my end. Looking forward to a continued quiet weekend and a nice drive back to the ol' Ottawa. If I can remember my password, I'll finish all my TESOL work this weekend also.

Happy Easter, folks!

Digital degrees of separation

So I was just browsing a Dark Age of Camelot forum I usually troll, and saw a post responding to one of mine by someone who teaches in Japan. So... knowing him somewhat, I fired off a private message bombarding him with questions. It will be interesting to see what he has to say. From what he has alluded to previously, it seems he's very much enjoying it. However, I'm interested in what class groups he teaches, where he teaches, and if he teaches for a franchise or a private language school. That will make all the difference.

The intarweeb is a wonderful thing.

It will be mine... oh yes, it will be

That's right, a Jesus Is My Guild Leader shirt. It's geeking out in a very flash way.

I wants it!

(The joke about the shirt spawned from this Penny Arcade comic. Penny Arcade rules.)

Judas Iscariot - from Betrayer to Martyr

The Citizen today ran a story about a Coptic papyrus manuscript that has been tested and dated and authenticated as being 1,700 years old. The National Geographic Society unveiled the find on Thursday. It seems that it's the lost Gospel of Judas, or the Gospel According to Judas.

In short: Jesus told Judas to betray him, thus making Judas not Christ the greatest martyr of all time, in my mind. The reason was to liberate Christ from the flesh and exemplify his spiritual transformation. The article goes on to describe the contents of the manuscript as detailing that Judas was in fact Christ's closest disciple, and that "you will exceed all of them. For you will sacrifice the man that clothes me." (the body that encases the spirit - great line!)

Very interesting. I don't have a link to it, but I'm sure you can find it all over. No doubt it's an AP story.

Weirdest keyboards

I want the laser virtual keyboard.

The Aesthetic of Simplicity

... is white, with an Apple logo. Now, I'm not normally one to hop on bandwagons (especially not 'hipster' ones), but goddamn. Everything is so easy. I go to a blog, say, and just hit RSS icon at the end of the url and bam... a RSS feed version of the page pops overtop the main HTML page. Then bookmark it, and tada. Hit it again, and you're back to the HTML.

Searching... easy as freakin' toast with Spotlight. Everything on the machine is indexed, and iconicized for visual differentiation of search results. So if I do a search on Tom, if I have emails, images, document matches, etc... they'll all be sorted and categorized by where the results fall under (images, applications, documents, contacts) so it's really easy.

I've downloaded Adium and actually remembered my ICQ and YIM info. Guess I'll have to get MSN working so I can integrate that also. (Adium - thanks Suzi! - is like Trilium... it's one program for all IM programs)

Anyhoo... More work to do, I guess. Later,

iDone it

Pre-paid for my 14" iBook G4 today. $2,399 including: AirPort Express (wireless router) and a Logitech mouse. I'll have it on Tuesday. WOOHOOO!

Yeah, yeah... I didn't get the fancy one, the MacBook Pro. It came out to $2,762 by itself, after taxes; no wireless router or mouse. No thanks.

Have passport, will travel

Just got my passport. Yay! But... I forgot to ask and pay extra for the 48 page one instead of the standard 24 page. Bleh. Oh well.

Also swung by Ottawa's Mac store and I'm a convert. Depending on whether or not I can negotiate birthday "back-pay" out of my parents, I'll go for the MacBook Pro, a sweet little piece of machinery.

That's it for now.

Speaking for the dead

I just finished watching a documentary of sorts about Tolkien, though to be honest it was so lacking in content that it went through the entire bloody Lord of the Rings plotline with really crappy stock footage to accompany it.

The thing that got me was how able and willing random dickheads were to speak the mind of someone who is dead. "Tolkien believed..." said Stupid Bint, Library Critic. "What Tolkien was trying to accomplish was..." said Some Ass, Military Academy. "It wasn't about that at all. It was about..." said Numb Nuts, Tolkien Historian.

Who the hell are they to know and communicate the inner thoughts of a dead man, especially one who in his life was extremely private? I'm sorry, but there were interview clips with JRR Tolkien himself, and I honestly could not understand 1/10th of what that guy was saying. His accent and speech mannerisms were atrocious, especially for a philologist! I'm surprised even he could communicate his own thoughts in a way that others could understand. Two of his children were shown -- sparingly -- and they could be understood no problem. (I thought it interesting that Christopher Tolkien was not the son interviewed, considering his up-take of his father's literary aftermath.)

It just bugs the hell out of me that people possess such arrogance that they attempt to say, without doubt or concern, that someone that they never knew in the entirety of their obsessive lives believed X, Y and Z. Am I the only one who finds that simply stupid? I'd rather see 10 minutes of interviews with Tolkien himself (via a translator, thank you) than 2 hours of 'expert testimony'. One guy (who was actually quite well-spoken) even had the gall to say that Tolkien wrote women 'out of the gender box'. My ass he did. Eowyn was the only woman that was a woman of action; all the rest just looked pretty behind the scenes. Same in the Silmarillion... only Luthien was 'active'. The rest were just sort of there on a pedistal, Astrophil and Stella style.

Anyhoo... it just occurred to me how stupid it is to make such glaring suppositions about someone you've never met. Seeing 3 people in a row say 3 very definitive statements about someone they'd never spoken with just sort of blew my mind. I hope I'm never famous or inquired-about after I die so I don't have a bunch of assholes stepping forward to tell the world what they know I really thought.

Gah. Angry.

When the body breaks...

... and the mind follows suit.

As of Saturday, 2am, I became more sick than I've ever been. Fever without burning temperature, unable to eat, unable to hydrate, unable to sleep, chest congestion like bronchitis, migraines, body wracked by stiffness and pain, and plenty of hallucinations. By Monday, I thought I was dying. I lost about 2 or 3 lbs. Doctor said it was just a flu strain. I've been feeling better since Tuesday, but holy shit. I drank half a freakin' gallon of Gaterade, and it barely put a dent in my thirst or dryness in my mouth. 7 litres of water on Saturday and it's like my body just ignored the attempt to re-hydrate.

More than a bit frightening.

Anyhoo... so suffice it to say, it was a shitty weekend and has been a trying week so far. I feel bad missing work, but going in just hasn't been an option. I feel awful even sitting up as straight as I am to write this (in fact this was written in chunks, over the last day or two). Hopefully I will be into work tomorrow, but I don't know.

"To a passport office, go!"

(Hamlet, Act III, Scene 4)

So off I go. Hopefully I won't have to fake having eubola to get through the line-ups, but we'll see. Just realized how stupid I am for attempting this in March with March break 2 weeks away. Brilliant! I am a planning GOD!

Jumped into email real quick this morning out of habit, and there was an email from Adrian and Fiona. They've got Japan pictures up from Kyoto! That stiffened my resolve, let me tell you. So I'm off. Will write more when I'm back. Although I'm working from home today, there will be precious little working. I plan on working through my specialization and fine-tuning my international resume to send to Ray, the alumni coordinator at TESOL, who will review and offer some advice. Then I begin looking, and will again employ Ray to spread his ESL tendrils into Nara prefecture to dig up opportunities in Nara.

Off I go!

Oh, and I got all the mp3 Japanese lessons from a guy at work. Sweet. Tried to burn them to a music cd so I could employ good ol' hypnopaedia to become a Japanese linguist. Yes... that's the ticket.

I'll be back with a fun (okay, boring) anecdote from the passport office. If I'm not back in 3 hours, send JTF 2 in for me.

-----
Edit: Okay, an hour and a bit later... I'm back. That was boring. They didn't even cavity search. Pffft. Will have my passport back by the 27th.

"I'm like a shark. I've just got to... keep making analogies."

Not sure if any of you avid gamers read "Penny Arcade", but I would highly endorse it if you are a gamer (video gamer, that is). Hell, I endorse it if you aren't and simply like off-the-wall, well-drawn satire/sarcasm.

Reasons 1) The comics are really funny and bang-on if you follow games and the gaming industry, and 2) these two guys are a great example of how enlightened geeks can be heard by industry behemoths such as SoE, Blizzard, etc. I thought their blog today was quite funny -- apparently someone at SoE saw their comic and fired a humour-filled shot across Penny Arcade's bow by delivering 1,200 Krispy Kreme donuts to them. Nice.

In other more significant news, a good friend of mine (whom I'll call "J." but whom some may recognize by the writing anyway) engaged me in an email dialogue yesterday re: concerns of heading overseas to teach. I like to think of the conversation as one from Confucius to Confusion. (okay, witty I am not.)

...So, friend, now I am doing this for you. Though we will all miss you, I know that you aren't happy and have enormous capacities that are being wasted here and that you need to take a step. A step that will make your life much richer, with a little risk. A risk that doesn't have to be forever, but that will make your life better forever. And maybe Japan isn't the place, but why not? Its not the place as much as the experience of having lived it and the changes it brings to you.

Furthermore, re: my concern of having a new life overseas subsume this one:

An observation: I have wrestled forever with the idea of internal and external consistency and am coming to the realization that friends are a reflection of the facets of ourselves and therefore are consistent only with our own inconsistencies or contradictions and that diversity is not necessarily a contradiction. While we may try to live an internally consistent life, as humans, we don't get to achieve it. We can however, learn to enjoy our internal diversity. So we can grow and change and add new facets and therefore new relationships without worrying about cancelling out the old ones. At least that is as far as I have divined.

Brilliant, and thank you, J.! You don't know how much it meant to me to get those emails from you and S. yesterday.

With that, I'll say this: I am going to take the step as planned, risks and effects be damned. There is a lot about it that causes me to worry, but who gives a fuck? Worrying is only useful if it enables one to tackle the cause of said worry. If one experiences simply a Heideggerian "worry worry worry worry WORRY" fit, what's the point in having that emotional state?

So yeah. Onwards and upwards (and westwards, I guess).