It’s gotten hot. Oh yes, very much so. And quickly too. Yesterday I had forgotten the power lead to the laptop and as compiling the lovely picture blog below had taken so much out of it, I needed to return home and collect said piece of wire. Unfortunately, my car was running rather low on petrol at that point. So, I decided to walk. It didn’t look too rainy outside, indeed some of the clouds were shifting to reveal actual sunlight. Of course, by the time I’d stepped out all of the clouds were gone and the temperature and humidity had shot through the roof. The 10 minute walk left me covered in sweat and extremely uncomfortable. Urgh.
Another slow day today so far. It’s not been so bad actually as learning Japanese has turned out to be, gasp, interesting. Difficult sure, but interesting. I’m also trying to keep my hand in with the whole writing thing. I’m doing a sort of autobiographical doohicky at the mo, one that I’ve been dabbling in and out of for a while now. It’s OK I suppose, a nice way to cross nostalgia with creativity, or at least what small amount of creativity I now possess, my mind having been dulled by sushi and green tea. It’s a sort of seat of the pants thing (in method rather than subject) as I’m just writing stuff down and sorting out little things like continuity and temporal order later. I’ve got sort of a flashback thing going at the moment and it actually seems to work. Tense has been something of a problem but I solved that by writing everything in the first-person present perfect. I am rather anxious to see what an independent observer would think of it, yet am too embarrassed to share. Damn my vanity.
It's also nice to know that people are still reading this blog, all two of you. Yay!
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
A Day In The Life
I’ve been wanting to do a photo blog for a while now but have always forgotten to take my camera to work. Well, as everyone is far less busy now, thanks to the summer “holiday” I thought it might be an opportune time to walk everyone through my average day. Strap yourselves in, it’s a wild, wild ride (click on the images for larger versions):
I usually wake up at about 7.30 to be confronted with this. I made sure the camera didn’t catch most of the floor as I don’t want my mother to have a heart attack. Anyway, I usually check my emails in a bleary eyed way before forgetting to get ready and rushing about at the last minute. Interesting fact: there is a huge tapir just out of shot. His name is Marilyn.
This is my personal Life Support System. If I could have it fixed up intravenously I would. It’s also my clock; by the time the jug is full I know I’m probably 5 minutes late for work. Interesting fact; I stole that fridge from a tramp.
And this is how I get to work. A tragic waste of money spent on petrol, as my school is only a 15 minute walk away but I paid good money for Sally here and I may as well get my yen’s worth. Not sure why this picture is so foggy, it’s actually rather sunny today. Interesting fact: the yellow square on the floor is a designated spot for gay flogging.
My school. The first view I get of it as I arrive. It looks pretty rubbish here and again I don’t know why it looks so miserable. My amazing camera skills perhaps. Interesting fact: the bike shed pictured is made out of moles.
My desk. About as tidy as my apartment. That Tropicana bottle has been there for several months and I can’t even remember when I brought that thermo-flask thing in. Notice the stack of books on the left and realise that this is what I do for 85% of my time. Interesting fact: my desk has a border signifying it as British territory.
The staff room, or my view of it anyway. See? I’m not the only one with a messy desk. Interesting fact, there were 6 teachers in shot, but none of them came out in the photo. Spooky.
And this is what I plan to do with my summer. My Japanese is still pretty bad. I can understand a lot of what’s said, but actually constructing my own sentences is another thing. I thought the title was rather ironic so there’s the comedy aspect too. Interesting fact; most Japanese people learn Japanese from this book.
The inside. This is the main section of the staffroom block. I don’t actually do any teaching here as all the classrooms are either science, music or computer based. Interesting fact, a Shinto curse means the ghosts of naughty tapir regularly wander between the seating areas.
That’s better. The view of the second building from one of the connecting bridges. Interesting fact, pixies live in that tree, emerging only to hurl books and expletives at me.
The front of school. The 1st floor is the staff room and the ground floor is the school office. Doesn’t get much more exciting that that! Oh, and there’re palm trees too. Two of them. Interesting fact; there are no monkeys in this picture.
Ah, my labour of love. This is my rather pathetic World Cup English display looking forlorn and welting in the heat. Notice my amazing art skills that make the display difficult to read even for a native speaker. Also notice the large amounts of Japanese written by an English teacher so that the students knew what the hell I was on about. To be fair to myself, most of it has either fallen off or been taken down by this point but part of me just can’t bear to throw the rest of it away. Interesting fact; one student scrawled “Piss off home” across my first attempt.
Ah, teachers. I fooled them into posing for this by telling them I was dying, that’s why they look so happy. The one on the right is Kudo-sensei, my tantousha (supervisor) and the one on the left is, well I’m not entirely sure. I will call him Phillip. Hello Phillip! Interesting fact; Phillip is performing the ancient Japanese hand signal known as Ryoshomon. It indicates that this particular person hates Winston Churcill.
Half an hour into the day the laptop’s out and I’m playing Sonic 2 with the sound off. Interesting fact: Sonic 2 is regarded by many as the best English teaching tool ever created.
Two hours in and I’m watching hardcore porn with the sound on. I’ve pixellated the movie for those with sensitive dispositions. Interesting fact: I was once told to turn the sound up as the geography teacher couldn’t hear it.
Today, I read this book quite a lot. Lord knows how many times I’ve actually finished it, but it’s probably a few too many. It really is one of my favourite books of recent years, and I have no idea why. It reminds me of 6th Form College but by all accounts that should not be a good thing. Interesting fact; during 6th Form College I aged 4 times faster than normal. I am now 28.
This is how bored I am by 3.20pm; I made a calendar collage. As you can see, I have much more penned in for August than July. Most of those are holidays though. Interesting fact; the JET calendar is not given, but must be won in a gladiatorial arena type event.
This is the ceiling above my desk. I get paid quite a lot of money to stare at this spot for hours every day. Interesting fact; strip lighting was invented by the band Men Without Hats.
My desk has got progressively messier over the course of the day. I’m too bored to do anything about it at this point. Interesting fact: mumblemumble zzzzzzzzzzz…
This is the blurred picture of my foot my camera took as it fell from my unconscious fingers. Interesting fact; I was asleep for three hours.
All in all, one of my more eventfull days.
I usually wake up at about 7.30 to be confronted with this. I made sure the camera didn’t catch most of the floor as I don’t want my mother to have a heart attack. Anyway, I usually check my emails in a bleary eyed way before forgetting to get ready and rushing about at the last minute. Interesting fact: there is a huge tapir just out of shot. His name is Marilyn.
This is my personal Life Support System. If I could have it fixed up intravenously I would. It’s also my clock; by the time the jug is full I know I’m probably 5 minutes late for work. Interesting fact; I stole that fridge from a tramp.
And this is how I get to work. A tragic waste of money spent on petrol, as my school is only a 15 minute walk away but I paid good money for Sally here and I may as well get my yen’s worth. Not sure why this picture is so foggy, it’s actually rather sunny today. Interesting fact: the yellow square on the floor is a designated spot for gay flogging.
My school. The first view I get of it as I arrive. It looks pretty rubbish here and again I don’t know why it looks so miserable. My amazing camera skills perhaps. Interesting fact: the bike shed pictured is made out of moles.
My desk. About as tidy as my apartment. That Tropicana bottle has been there for several months and I can’t even remember when I brought that thermo-flask thing in. Notice the stack of books on the left and realise that this is what I do for 85% of my time. Interesting fact: my desk has a border signifying it as British territory.
The staff room, or my view of it anyway. See? I’m not the only one with a messy desk. Interesting fact, there were 6 teachers in shot, but none of them came out in the photo. Spooky.
And this is what I plan to do with my summer. My Japanese is still pretty bad. I can understand a lot of what’s said, but actually constructing my own sentences is another thing. I thought the title was rather ironic so there’s the comedy aspect too. Interesting fact; most Japanese people learn Japanese from this book.
The inside. This is the main section of the staffroom block. I don’t actually do any teaching here as all the classrooms are either science, music or computer based. Interesting fact, a Shinto curse means the ghosts of naughty tapir regularly wander between the seating areas.
That’s better. The view of the second building from one of the connecting bridges. Interesting fact, pixies live in that tree, emerging only to hurl books and expletives at me.
The front of school. The 1st floor is the staff room and the ground floor is the school office. Doesn’t get much more exciting that that! Oh, and there’re palm trees too. Two of them. Interesting fact; there are no monkeys in this picture.
Ah, my labour of love. This is my rather pathetic World Cup English display looking forlorn and welting in the heat. Notice my amazing art skills that make the display difficult to read even for a native speaker. Also notice the large amounts of Japanese written by an English teacher so that the students knew what the hell I was on about. To be fair to myself, most of it has either fallen off or been taken down by this point but part of me just can’t bear to throw the rest of it away. Interesting fact; one student scrawled “Piss off home” across my first attempt.
Ah, teachers. I fooled them into posing for this by telling them I was dying, that’s why they look so happy. The one on the right is Kudo-sensei, my tantousha (supervisor) and the one on the left is, well I’m not entirely sure. I will call him Phillip. Hello Phillip! Interesting fact; Phillip is performing the ancient Japanese hand signal known as Ryoshomon. It indicates that this particular person hates Winston Churcill.
Half an hour into the day the laptop’s out and I’m playing Sonic 2 with the sound off. Interesting fact: Sonic 2 is regarded by many as the best English teaching tool ever created.
Two hours in and I’m watching hardcore porn with the sound on. I’ve pixellated the movie for those with sensitive dispositions. Interesting fact: I was once told to turn the sound up as the geography teacher couldn’t hear it.
Today, I read this book quite a lot. Lord knows how many times I’ve actually finished it, but it’s probably a few too many. It really is one of my favourite books of recent years, and I have no idea why. It reminds me of 6th Form College but by all accounts that should not be a good thing. Interesting fact; during 6th Form College I aged 4 times faster than normal. I am now 28.
This is how bored I am by 3.20pm; I made a calendar collage. As you can see, I have much more penned in for August than July. Most of those are holidays though. Interesting fact; the JET calendar is not given, but must be won in a gladiatorial arena type event.
This is the ceiling above my desk. I get paid quite a lot of money to stare at this spot for hours every day. Interesting fact; strip lighting was invented by the band Men Without Hats.
My desk has got progressively messier over the course of the day. I’m too bored to do anything about it at this point. Interesting fact: mumblemumble zzzzzzzzzzz…
This is the blurred picture of my foot my camera took as it fell from my unconscious fingers. Interesting fact; I was asleep for three hours.
All in all, one of my more eventfull days.
Thursday, July 20, 2006
Endings
Bloody rain. I thought the worse of the rainy season was over but it seems I was sorely mistaken. I don’t mind it all that much but our rescheduled paragliding session is coming up this Sunday and, once again, the rain threatens to derail it. Unfortunately the session we cancelled took place on a miraculously sunny day, one day after a torrential downpour. Hopefully some similar miracle will help us out this weekend.
One of the many things I’ve learnt over here; the Japanese love ceremonies. I deduced this fact almost a year ago when I attended three of the things on the same day but the almost fanatical devotion to these seemingly pointless sessions of monologuing continues. This morning was the closing ceremony of this term. It was indeed as dull as the countless others I’ve been made to sit through, but this one was sticky. Very sticky. The rain had combined with the heat radiating from, well certainly not the sun but from somewhere, and had created a sort of invisible treacle that swished around my head in place of oxygen. Urgh. It was horrible and towards the end I was anxiously tapping my foot and rolling my fingers over each other in anticipation for the final “Uwarimasu” and the slow trolling of the students back to their homerooms. This came after almost an hour of speeches and awards, all done in the characteristic monotone of formal ceremonies the world over.
In stark contrast to this was the swimming competition held yesterday. This was one of the few times I actually saw the students break out of their academic shells and enjoys themselves, and amazingly the teachers let them do it. It was great fun, even if I was just watching from the sidelines. It did seem a little pointless, but therein lies, thought I, the real reason behind it. It was pointless; nobody really won anything, the races were short and uneventful, but the students spent the better part of a whole day enjoying themselves. There were no speeches, no screeching teachers telling them to cut it out, no bowing in unison. No ceremony. This is the way the term should have ended, rather than in the overpowering smog of the gym to the drone of the kocho.
One of the many things I’ve learnt over here; the Japanese love ceremonies. I deduced this fact almost a year ago when I attended three of the things on the same day but the almost fanatical devotion to these seemingly pointless sessions of monologuing continues. This morning was the closing ceremony of this term. It was indeed as dull as the countless others I’ve been made to sit through, but this one was sticky. Very sticky. The rain had combined with the heat radiating from, well certainly not the sun but from somewhere, and had created a sort of invisible treacle that swished around my head in place of oxygen. Urgh. It was horrible and towards the end I was anxiously tapping my foot and rolling my fingers over each other in anticipation for the final “Uwarimasu” and the slow trolling of the students back to their homerooms. This came after almost an hour of speeches and awards, all done in the characteristic monotone of formal ceremonies the world over.
In stark contrast to this was the swimming competition held yesterday. This was one of the few times I actually saw the students break out of their academic shells and enjoys themselves, and amazingly the teachers let them do it. It was great fun, even if I was just watching from the sidelines. It did seem a little pointless, but therein lies, thought I, the real reason behind it. It was pointless; nobody really won anything, the races were short and uneventful, but the students spent the better part of a whole day enjoying themselves. There were no speeches, no screeching teachers telling them to cut it out, no bowing in unison. No ceremony. This is the way the term should have ended, rather than in the overpowering smog of the gym to the drone of the kocho.
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
Sunny
Went to the beach on Sunday. I haven’t been to the beach in years, I actually have trouble remembering the last time I did so. It was great though, the perfect way to spend such a lovely, albeit incredibly hot, day. There was much throwing of frisbess and losing of beach balls. In fact I think my overriding image of Faith now is her slowly chasing a beach ball as it gently drifts into the distance. The whole day was fun, but extremely tiring fun.
Yesterday morning I tried my hand at baseball in a sort of baseball driving range. Needless to say I was amazing. Well, not really but at least I managed to hit the balls hurtling towards me reasonably often. Buggered up my hands though.
As for yesterday afternoon, I sort of vegged out and watched a few downloaded movies. First up was Hellboy, a film I’d sort of seen before but wasn’t really watching. This time though, it was actually something of a disappointment. The premise was good, the cast seemed perfect, but there was something missing. Maybe it was the lacklustre acting or the terribly obvious wirework action scenes but it was nowhere near as good as it could or indeed should have been.
5 beer bottles out of 9 And 1 That’s Gone A Bit Warm.
Next was Superman. I’ve never really liked the Superman franchise; what’s the point in having the hero of the piece be completely invincible, vulnerable only to one rather contrived plot point (this is of course excluding the mid-90s televisual treat, The New Adventures of Superman which was great)? Needless to say I didn’t like this effort at all. The actors were miscast (especially the wishy-washy 23 year old Kate Bosworth as the supposedly hardened reporter Lois Lane) and, for the most part, were completely unremarkable. Brandon Routh, playing Kent/Superman, was completely charmless and utterly unsympathetic. Towards the end of the film, director Bryan Singer tries to make us feel sorry for this Man of Steel, something that even a helmsman as talented as he fails to pull off. He’s Superman! Who cares if he got beaten up, he can fly for Christssake!
The story too was rather pants and the one hope I held out for the film, Kevin Spacey as Lex Luthor, was nowhere near as good as the trailers hinted he would be. In fact, his only passable scene is the “Lemme hear you say it.” dialogue revealed in even the earlier teasers. Perhaps the best word to describe him in this is “flat.” Granted it’s not him insomuch as it’s the scripts he’s given to work with but still, he does little with the few decent lines he has. The supporting cast are barely worth a mention, terrible as they are. They made little impression and served less purpose.
Good points? Well the one serious action scene of this (2 and a half hour) movie was the plane rescue and it was indeed impressive. Some critics have hailed it as the best bit of action since Lord of The Rings however, and I think this is a little off. Perhaps the main reason the scene stands out so much is that the rest of the film is desperately lacking in similar set pieces. There are a few more bits of action, a bank robbery, a scene where Superman gets his required comeuppance, but nothing else is even slightly remarkable.
The biggest flaw though had to be that the film took itself far, far too seriously. As far as I’ve heard and can remember, the original Superman films benefited from Christopher Reeve’s gift for comic timing; they were funny films in places. After all, the comics the films are based off are hardly crusty tomes of moral comment. But this movie was exactly that; it was almost religious in its message of self sacrifice and righteousness. This was offset by a man in his underwear flying around the planet and the two opposing images jarred me completely out of any cinematic experience that might have been there otherwise.
3 noses out of 10
Anyway, enough about that. Until next time.
The beach where we went. Yay.
Yesterday morning I tried my hand at baseball in a sort of baseball driving range. Needless to say I was amazing. Well, not really but at least I managed to hit the balls hurtling towards me reasonably often. Buggered up my hands though.
As for yesterday afternoon, I sort of vegged out and watched a few downloaded movies. First up was Hellboy, a film I’d sort of seen before but wasn’t really watching. This time though, it was actually something of a disappointment. The premise was good, the cast seemed perfect, but there was something missing. Maybe it was the lacklustre acting or the terribly obvious wirework action scenes but it was nowhere near as good as it could or indeed should have been.
5 beer bottles out of 9 And 1 That’s Gone A Bit Warm.
Next was Superman. I’ve never really liked the Superman franchise; what’s the point in having the hero of the piece be completely invincible, vulnerable only to one rather contrived plot point (this is of course excluding the mid-90s televisual treat, The New Adventures of Superman which was great)? Needless to say I didn’t like this effort at all. The actors were miscast (especially the wishy-washy 23 year old Kate Bosworth as the supposedly hardened reporter Lois Lane) and, for the most part, were completely unremarkable. Brandon Routh, playing Kent/Superman, was completely charmless and utterly unsympathetic. Towards the end of the film, director Bryan Singer tries to make us feel sorry for this Man of Steel, something that even a helmsman as talented as he fails to pull off. He’s Superman! Who cares if he got beaten up, he can fly for Christssake!
The story too was rather pants and the one hope I held out for the film, Kevin Spacey as Lex Luthor, was nowhere near as good as the trailers hinted he would be. In fact, his only passable scene is the “Lemme hear you say it.” dialogue revealed in even the earlier teasers. Perhaps the best word to describe him in this is “flat.” Granted it’s not him insomuch as it’s the scripts he’s given to work with but still, he does little with the few decent lines he has. The supporting cast are barely worth a mention, terrible as they are. They made little impression and served less purpose.
Good points? Well the one serious action scene of this (2 and a half hour) movie was the plane rescue and it was indeed impressive. Some critics have hailed it as the best bit of action since Lord of The Rings however, and I think this is a little off. Perhaps the main reason the scene stands out so much is that the rest of the film is desperately lacking in similar set pieces. There are a few more bits of action, a bank robbery, a scene where Superman gets his required comeuppance, but nothing else is even slightly remarkable.
The biggest flaw though had to be that the film took itself far, far too seriously. As far as I’ve heard and can remember, the original Superman films benefited from Christopher Reeve’s gift for comic timing; they were funny films in places. After all, the comics the films are based off are hardly crusty tomes of moral comment. But this movie was exactly that; it was almost religious in its message of self sacrifice and righteousness. This was offset by a man in his underwear flying around the planet and the two opposing images jarred me completely out of any cinematic experience that might have been there otherwise.
3 noses out of 10
Anyway, enough about that. Until next time.
The beach where we went. Yay.
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Plans
Another day another several thousand yen.
I’m in a surprisingly good mood at the moment, mainly because I’ve got quite a lot done in the past 24 hours. Yesterday we (me and Ellison) went to get my International Driver’s license (which expires at the end of June) changed into a Japanese license. I won’t bore you with the details suffice to say it took ages and involved hundreds of pointless questions about the British licensing system.
Today my only lesson has been cancelled which is good. I’ve also finally sorted out my GoLloyds application (so I can finally send money home), faxed the previous owner of my car all the updated documentation and completed several sets of exam questions for various people. And it’s not even 10 o’clock yet.
Having a three day week also helps. Had yesterday off and got Friday off due to the wonder that is choseibi. Bliss.
This weekend I’m supposed to be going paragliding off a volcano. Yay? It’s been a while since I’ve done anything unique to Japan and I think the volcano aspect means this probably belongs in that category. It’s only going to be about £45 as well for three actual descents; two from 45ft and a final one from 150ft down in to a valley. Hopefully I’ll be able to conquer my crippling fear of heights to do this. I’m actually really looking forward to it.
Then again, I may be jumping the gun (no pun). The rain recently has been amazing in its intensity. Yesterday, as we were driving to the city to sort the license out, I could hardly see three feet in front of the bonnet so strong was the downpour. And last night we had an incredible lightning storm. I’d gone to bed as soon as we’d got home (about 6pm) as I had a headache so I was wide awake at about 12 when the sky literally lit up like it was the middle of the day. And the thunder…I’ve never heard it that loud before. It was like being in one of those Hammer horror Dracula films; the thunder really did make a cracking sound like a movie sound effect. It was great. I tried to get the lightning on camera but it didn’t pick it up. Needless to say however, if this continues paragliding is off.
No idea what I’m going to do on Friday…I have the whole day to do as I please. I really should get out and about, take a drive somewhere in Kyushu, take a day trip to Fukuoka and do some shopping, but I’ll probably end up saving the money and staying home. Meh, I’ve got at least another 14 months to do the exciting stuff!
I’m in a surprisingly good mood at the moment, mainly because I’ve got quite a lot done in the past 24 hours. Yesterday we (me and Ellison) went to get my International Driver’s license (which expires at the end of June) changed into a Japanese license. I won’t bore you with the details suffice to say it took ages and involved hundreds of pointless questions about the British licensing system.
Today my only lesson has been cancelled which is good. I’ve also finally sorted out my GoLloyds application (so I can finally send money home), faxed the previous owner of my car all the updated documentation and completed several sets of exam questions for various people. And it’s not even 10 o’clock yet.
Having a three day week also helps. Had yesterday off and got Friday off due to the wonder that is choseibi. Bliss.
This weekend I’m supposed to be going paragliding off a volcano. Yay? It’s been a while since I’ve done anything unique to Japan and I think the volcano aspect means this probably belongs in that category. It’s only going to be about £45 as well for three actual descents; two from 45ft and a final one from 150ft down in to a valley. Hopefully I’ll be able to conquer my crippling fear of heights to do this. I’m actually really looking forward to it.
Then again, I may be jumping the gun (no pun). The rain recently has been amazing in its intensity. Yesterday, as we were driving to the city to sort the license out, I could hardly see three feet in front of the bonnet so strong was the downpour. And last night we had an incredible lightning storm. I’d gone to bed as soon as we’d got home (about 6pm) as I had a headache so I was wide awake at about 12 when the sky literally lit up like it was the middle of the day. And the thunder…I’ve never heard it that loud before. It was like being in one of those Hammer horror Dracula films; the thunder really did make a cracking sound like a movie sound effect. It was great. I tried to get the lightning on camera but it didn’t pick it up. Needless to say however, if this continues paragliding is off.
No idea what I’m going to do on Friday…I have the whole day to do as I please. I really should get out and about, take a drive somewhere in Kyushu, take a day trip to Fukuoka and do some shopping, but I’ll probably end up saving the money and staying home. Meh, I’ve got at least another 14 months to do the exciting stuff!
Saturday, June 24, 2006
Arresting
Oh, and if any of you (I'm assuming some people do still read this here) get the chance, go and watch/buy/rent Arrested Development. It's the funniest TV show I've seen in years...completely laugh out loud funny in fact.
"Lemme give that oatmeal some brown sugar!"
"Lemme give that oatmeal some brown sugar!"
Rock
I reached a bottom recently, one made from the title of this entry. This last week has possibly been the worst in terms of work since I got here almost a year ago. I haven't been overly busy or boringly underworked, it's just that my schools seemed to have forgotten that I don't speask Japanese.
I was told when I got out here that one of the main problems JETs report is that their schools don't tell them things. I already gave some examples below of what this has meant for me. But after I wrote that entry, it continued. One school (Hikawa again) rang me up at 6pm on Thursday and asked me for a piece of work we'd agreed on Wednesday that I'd present to them the next Tuesday. Seems they had forgotten that, and wanted the next day. Again, when I told them I hadn't done it there was this ominous silence on the other end of the line, like I just told them I'd killed a student. I really had to bite my tongue to stop myself going on a rant.
I also bit the bullet and said I'd try and get it to them tomorrow but I had exams to give all morning in my second school so I'd try and get it to them by lunch. No deal, they needed it by third period. Fine, so I say I'll try and get it in before third. However, it seems over the course of the 2 minute conversation they have changed their minds and need it NOW, not tomorrow but within the next ten minutes. I make several hand gestures that probably would have got me fired had I done it in the staffroom.
Eventualy the teacher on the other end gies me an email and I say I'll get it to them ASAP. Which I do. Or would have done had, you know, the email address they had given me worked. I gave up.
Anyway, other than my schools being arses the weather has been pretty rough recently. It's been raining for the past few days and the humidity has gone through the roof. It's not even that hot, but the air is so thick it's like taking a gulp of milk everytime I breath in. Urgh.
I bought a Nintendo DS Lite while under extreme Peer Pressure. Not that I'm not happy that I did, it's a great little console and very cheap for what it is. There's three of us with them now and I must say Wireless Mario Kart Multiplayer is absolutely fantastic. Reminds me of the Uni when me the rest of 10b Cumberland road would gather for regular bouts on Mario Kart Double Dash.
Fun times.
EDIT: Seems I can't get that video to align properly. Bugger...
I was told when I got out here that one of the main problems JETs report is that their schools don't tell them things. I already gave some examples below of what this has meant for me. But after I wrote that entry, it continued. One school (Hikawa again) rang me up at 6pm on Thursday and asked me for a piece of work we'd agreed on Wednesday that I'd present to them the next Tuesday. Seems they had forgotten that, and wanted the next day. Again, when I told them I hadn't done it there was this ominous silence on the other end of the line, like I just told them I'd killed a student. I really had to bite my tongue to stop myself going on a rant.
I also bit the bullet and said I'd try and get it to them tomorrow but I had exams to give all morning in my second school so I'd try and get it to them by lunch. No deal, they needed it by third period. Fine, so I say I'll try and get it in before third. However, it seems over the course of the 2 minute conversation they have changed their minds and need it NOW, not tomorrow but within the next ten minutes. I make several hand gestures that probably would have got me fired had I done it in the staffroom.
Eventualy the teacher on the other end gies me an email and I say I'll get it to them ASAP. Which I do. Or would have done had, you know, the email address they had given me worked. I gave up.
Anyway, other than my schools being arses the weather has been pretty rough recently. It's been raining for the past few days and the humidity has gone through the roof. It's not even that hot, but the air is so thick it's like taking a gulp of milk everytime I breath in. Urgh.
I bought a Nintendo DS Lite while under extreme Peer Pressure. Not that I'm not happy that I did, it's a great little console and very cheap for what it is. There's three of us with them now and I must say Wireless Mario Kart Multiplayer is absolutely fantastic. Reminds me of the Uni when me the rest of 10b Cumberland road would gather for regular bouts on Mario Kart Double Dash.
Fun times.
EDIT: Seems I can't get that video to align properly. Bugger...
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Confusing
My base school have been messing me around somewhat of late. Nothing serious as yet but still, they’re not being very helpful.
First there’s the extra lessons. I am, according to my schedule supposed to do 6 lessons a week. This week I’ve done at least 8. What’s most annoying is that they ask if I can go to these lessons about 10 minutes before they start. Normally this would just be an imposition but recently I’ve been genuinely busy and these unplanned lesson excursions are really digging into my work time.
Thing is, they do ask. It’s not like I have to go to them. Saying no though sends a clear message, and it’s not a good one. Then again, if they keep calling on me I’m going to have to tell the truth and tell them I’m busy.
Then there’s the exams. At my second school they informed me exactly when the exams will be and what they want me to do about them. At Hikawa though, I haven’t a clue. One of my teachers keeps hinting that she wants me to write the Interview test but doesn’t seem to want to come out and say it. So far I’ve played the innocent and only done exactly what she’s asked of me. Now however the exam times are drawing closer (I think) so I suppose I’d better ask her outright.
Finally there are what I’ve come to called the Amazing Changing Classes. Some days lessons are switched round. Say I have a class in the 3rd period. That class may get switched to 6th period. It gets worse when I have more than one class a day (ie, everyday); the class I was supposed to have in 4th period is now in the 2nd and the class I was to take in the 6th period (“plenty of time to prepare!”) is now in the 1st (“oh bollocks”). This shuffling appears to be completely random and the only predictable aspect is the fact that it will happen regularly.
What’s even worse is that no-one tells me about them. Today for example, I was supposed to have two lessons, one in the 3rd period and one in the 6th. Now the 6th period lesson was done yesterday thanks to that day’s Amazing Changing Lessons so I naturally assume that I will have only the one class today. That was my first mistake. My second mistake came when I popped to the shops at the end of first period/beginning of second. I needed a prize for the 3rd period class so I went to the local supermarket (5 mins away) and got a bag of sweets. I return to find a cryptic note on my desk “Please come to classroom 103”. So I do, ten minutes into second period. I innocently ask the English teacher within what she wants with me and am greeted by a look of absolute confusion.
“You don’t have a class now?”
“No, I only have one class today, in 3rd period.”
“Oh.” Confused look. “I was told you had this period with me…”
Turns out that because I had a lesson yesterday that I was supposed to have today, they added an extra lesson on to today’s schedule without telling me. Fine, fine, that should mean that I would indeed have the two lessons I was originally supposed to (before I completed one of them yesterday) and this would mean I would have my original schedule of one 3rd period class and one 6th (leaving out the fact that this would mean I would have an extra lesson this week…). But no, it seems that all 6th period classes are being done in 2nd period today for whatever reason, and no-one thought to tell me that a) I actually had two classes today and b) one of my classes had been moved from 6th to 2nd period.
Confused?
First there’s the extra lessons. I am, according to my schedule supposed to do 6 lessons a week. This week I’ve done at least 8. What’s most annoying is that they ask if I can go to these lessons about 10 minutes before they start. Normally this would just be an imposition but recently I’ve been genuinely busy and these unplanned lesson excursions are really digging into my work time.
Thing is, they do ask. It’s not like I have to go to them. Saying no though sends a clear message, and it’s not a good one. Then again, if they keep calling on me I’m going to have to tell the truth and tell them I’m busy.
Then there’s the exams. At my second school they informed me exactly when the exams will be and what they want me to do about them. At Hikawa though, I haven’t a clue. One of my teachers keeps hinting that she wants me to write the Interview test but doesn’t seem to want to come out and say it. So far I’ve played the innocent and only done exactly what she’s asked of me. Now however the exam times are drawing closer (I think) so I suppose I’d better ask her outright.
Finally there are what I’ve come to called the Amazing Changing Classes. Some days lessons are switched round. Say I have a class in the 3rd period. That class may get switched to 6th period. It gets worse when I have more than one class a day (ie, everyday); the class I was supposed to have in 4th period is now in the 2nd and the class I was to take in the 6th period (“plenty of time to prepare!”) is now in the 1st (“oh bollocks”). This shuffling appears to be completely random and the only predictable aspect is the fact that it will happen regularly.
What’s even worse is that no-one tells me about them. Today for example, I was supposed to have two lessons, one in the 3rd period and one in the 6th. Now the 6th period lesson was done yesterday thanks to that day’s Amazing Changing Lessons so I naturally assume that I will have only the one class today. That was my first mistake. My second mistake came when I popped to the shops at the end of first period/beginning of second. I needed a prize for the 3rd period class so I went to the local supermarket (5 mins away) and got a bag of sweets. I return to find a cryptic note on my desk “Please come to classroom 103”. So I do, ten minutes into second period. I innocently ask the English teacher within what she wants with me and am greeted by a look of absolute confusion.
“You don’t have a class now?”
“No, I only have one class today, in 3rd period.”
“Oh.” Confused look. “I was told you had this period with me…”
Turns out that because I had a lesson yesterday that I was supposed to have today, they added an extra lesson on to today’s schedule without telling me. Fine, fine, that should mean that I would indeed have the two lessons I was originally supposed to (before I completed one of them yesterday) and this would mean I would have my original schedule of one 3rd period class and one 6th (leaving out the fact that this would mean I would have an extra lesson this week…). But no, it seems that all 6th period classes are being done in 2nd period today for whatever reason, and no-one thought to tell me that a) I actually had two classes today and b) one of my classes had been moved from 6th to 2nd period.
Confused?
Photos
Quite a lot's happened since last time I wrote, too much to describe in words. As the saying goes, a picture speaksa thousand...
Hannah in Kagoshima during our whirlwind tour of Kyushu.
Mum and Dad in Aso. They look a little too happy.
Some rocks. Somewhere is Aso.
Kyoto. Some sort of temple there.
Me in Kyoto. Another temple there.
Genuine 18th century samurai armour. Price? £15k
Me, in Gion. Where the geisha live.
Dad calls this the "duck train." Bless 'im.
Engrish bollocks.
Bye bye!
Hannah in Kagoshima during our whirlwind tour of Kyushu.
Mum and Dad in Aso. They look a little too happy.
Some rocks. Somewhere is Aso.
Kyoto. Some sort of temple there.
Me in Kyoto. Another temple there.
Genuine 18th century samurai armour. Price? £15k
Me, in Gion. Where the geisha live.
Dad calls this the "duck train." Bless 'im.
Engrish bollocks.
Bye bye!
Commitment
Well, going off Greenham's (http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?go=jonnygreenham) example, though I might try and start this thing up again.
His is much better.
His is much better.
Saturday, March 25, 2006
Tuesday, February 21, 2006
Phases
I tend to go through phases of updating my blog like mad and then phases of not updating it at all. Oh well, enjoy it while it lasts me hearties.
So, what’s going down? Not a whole lot, as per usual. Got some boring document stuff to sort out at the mo and that’s taking up the majority of my time. Managed to find out about car insurance for the Sally replacement I have my eye on; it may actually be cheaper, even though the car is a 2.1 litres sports car. This is because the plan I’m on now is one of the more expensive ones, covering every eventuality with a whole load of money. I fully intend to downgrade the plan, which will more than make up for the increase in price due to engine size. Anyway this means that, assuming neither Sally nor the new version break down before the switch is to be made, I should be buying this new one in July.
(Quick edit: just after I wrote this I got a reply to my email stating the above from the person who owns the car. Looks like it might not be as sorted as I'd thought. Will let everyone know as I'm sure you're all fascinated.)
Other than that the number of lessons I’m taking a week has completely dried up. For the past 2 days I’ve had none and spent the day reading various books. Rather dull.
However, I’m going snowboarding on Friday so am really looking forward to that. Never done anything like this before so it should be an…ahem…experience. I’ll take my camera and try and gets some shots of snowy Hiroshima. That’ll mean I’ll have been to both of the atomic bomb cities. Weird.
After that: March is one of the few months where I get choseibi. I went into these in my Nagasaki entry but basically I’m not allowed to work more than 20 days a month, so if there are more working days than that I get them off. In this case, by taking the 2 choseibi and placing them strategically around a national holiday and a weekend, I get a 5 day holiday in the middle of the month. Nice. Then it’s my birthday, for which plans are amazingly miniscule. 22. Weird.
Then Hannah is coming over in April for a few weeks, then the parents after that. Exciting.
So, what’s going down? Not a whole lot, as per usual. Got some boring document stuff to sort out at the mo and that’s taking up the majority of my time. Managed to find out about car insurance for the Sally replacement I have my eye on; it may actually be cheaper, even though the car is a 2.1 litres sports car. This is because the plan I’m on now is one of the more expensive ones, covering every eventuality with a whole load of money. I fully intend to downgrade the plan, which will more than make up for the increase in price due to engine size. Anyway this means that, assuming neither Sally nor the new version break down before the switch is to be made, I should be buying this new one in July.
(Quick edit: just after I wrote this I got a reply to my email stating the above from the person who owns the car. Looks like it might not be as sorted as I'd thought. Will let everyone know as I'm sure you're all fascinated.)
Other than that the number of lessons I’m taking a week has completely dried up. For the past 2 days I’ve had none and spent the day reading various books. Rather dull.
However, I’m going snowboarding on Friday so am really looking forward to that. Never done anything like this before so it should be an…ahem…experience. I’ll take my camera and try and gets some shots of snowy Hiroshima. That’ll mean I’ll have been to both of the atomic bomb cities. Weird.
After that: March is one of the few months where I get choseibi. I went into these in my Nagasaki entry but basically I’m not allowed to work more than 20 days a month, so if there are more working days than that I get them off. In this case, by taking the 2 choseibi and placing them strategically around a national holiday and a weekend, I get a 5 day holiday in the middle of the month. Nice. Then it’s my birthday, for which plans are amazingly miniscule. 22. Weird.
Then Hannah is coming over in April for a few weeks, then the parents after that. Exciting.
Sunday, February 19, 2006
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
Whoops...
Oh Christ, sorry!
I have fallen somewhat behind with this blog. Oh yes, you heard me correctly. Don’t try to defend me please, it’s my own fault. No…no I won’t hear you talk about yourself in that manner. I don’t mind if you didn’t notice, I should have updated more regardless. Anyway, you are forgiven.
So, Cambodia then. Seems like a good place to start. I actually wrote a journal while I was over there, but so far it has failed to have taken the leap from page to screen. This is the small amount I did manage to type up:
Cambodia travel journal:
December the 23rd.
Siem Reap. I am reliably informed that this translates as “Siam Defeated” or somesuch. Of course, the first wildlife I see is a Siamese cat sniffling for food. Today was a quiet day, mainly due to us landing here at gone 10pm. After what could euphemistically be called an uneventful flight we arrived at an airport roughly the size of the average Next menswear department and greeted with all the hospitality of a small button mushroom. After being herded through the Visa queue ($20!) and customs line we emerged into the night to be greeted by several grinning taxi drivers. Taxi drivers aren’t supposed to grin. They’re supposed to complain about Margaret Thatcher or how they’ve had Gaby Roslin’s gynaecologist in their cab. These ones appear neither to bear any Poll Tax grudges nor know what a gynaecologist is. They were happy. Inviting even. Our guesthouse was supposed to pick us up from the airport but are a no-show. The smiling cabbies have their day. We picked the least bedraggled and made our way to his car. A Toyota Camry. Remember this, it will become important later on. “$5!” he chimed. What a nice man.
7 minutes later and we arrive at the guesthouse. The staff wear “OMG WTF!?!” faces and bluster around the padlocked gates. The cabbie is still smiling as he claims he told us $5 each. The guesthouse has no record of our booking. Our bags are heavy. We pay the taxi driver with $7 and a scowl, we press ourselves onto the guesthouse staff and we barge our way into any rooms they have going. One double and a single. That was the plan. One double and a double will have to suffice.
Inside. Not the Ritz. Not the Hilton. Not even the Trave linn. More like the cabin. Any cabin. On an allotment. I check the bathroom; windows with no glass and bug nets riddled with deceased beasties. The taps work. The showers works and, thank god, the flush works. I decided to unpack the essentials; pajamas, iPod, notebook and pen mosquito repellent. Early night so I tuck the bug net in around the surprisingly cushy mattress and settle down to an evening of Queen.
December the 24th: Christmas Eve.
Wake up far too early. Listen to iPod again and go for a shower. Take the iPod off first though. Obviously. Turn the handle, the water still runs. Lovely. Step under. Step out again rather quicker. Cold. No visible way to heat the stream of water so grunt and bear it, it’s hot out anyway. It’s uncomfortably cold, like lying naked on an upturned filing cabinet, but still, it feels better to be clean. Water off, soap out, wash hair. Rather an impressive lather going so I play the stylist. Mohican. Dickensian. Dracula. My imagination wasted I decide to finish. Turn the handle. More cold water. Or rather, not. No water of any temperature. Turn the knob again. Nothing. Turn the tap. A rattling, a grumbling, but no water. Bugger it.
I consider my options;
1: Get dressed, hair still resembling a Mohawk, and request the use of the others’ bathroom
2: Spit in a glass and use that.
Not much choice really until I notice the bottles of drinking water lovingly sprawled across a desk. It’s a shame to waste them but it’s better than looking like a creamy Mr T for the rest of the day.
Finish up shower and go for breakfast.
It was pretty much downhill from there*. I’ve stuck a few photos on anyway.
So, has anything happened since? Not really. I now have 3 fewer lessons a week than I did last semester, 4 if you count the fact that my mountain school haven’t needed me for about a month now. This obviously has left me with quite a bit of spare time. What have you done with it? I hear you ask. Well not update my blog obviously.
Oh, and my car broke down, something to do with the spark plugs. Anyway, the mechanic type bloke told me that there was no point fixing it properly as something else would probably breakdown in tandem and render it all a bit silly. Hmm. Apparently my little car (christened “Sally” in an arcane ritual that I will not delve into here) has about 6 months left to live.
L
Oh well. I’ve already begun the hunt for Sally v2.0 and have a few promising leads. Will elaborate when I know more.
Other than that…well Hannah is coming over in April and the folks (you know who you are) are heading over in May. My plans remain the same; to come home at Christmas. That is, if I can afford it; turns out cars aren’t as cheap over here as I was told.
Anyway, I shall leave for the moment but believe me when I say I shall think of little else but this blog for at least the next 2 minutes.
*Just kidding, it was great.
I have fallen somewhat behind with this blog. Oh yes, you heard me correctly. Don’t try to defend me please, it’s my own fault. No…no I won’t hear you talk about yourself in that manner. I don’t mind if you didn’t notice, I should have updated more regardless. Anyway, you are forgiven.
So, Cambodia then. Seems like a good place to start. I actually wrote a journal while I was over there, but so far it has failed to have taken the leap from page to screen. This is the small amount I did manage to type up:
Cambodia travel journal:
December the 23rd.
Siem Reap. I am reliably informed that this translates as “Siam Defeated” or somesuch. Of course, the first wildlife I see is a Siamese cat sniffling for food. Today was a quiet day, mainly due to us landing here at gone 10pm. After what could euphemistically be called an uneventful flight we arrived at an airport roughly the size of the average Next menswear department and greeted with all the hospitality of a small button mushroom. After being herded through the Visa queue ($20!) and customs line we emerged into the night to be greeted by several grinning taxi drivers. Taxi drivers aren’t supposed to grin. They’re supposed to complain about Margaret Thatcher or how they’ve had Gaby Roslin’s gynaecologist in their cab. These ones appear neither to bear any Poll Tax grudges nor know what a gynaecologist is. They were happy. Inviting even. Our guesthouse was supposed to pick us up from the airport but are a no-show. The smiling cabbies have their day. We picked the least bedraggled and made our way to his car. A Toyota Camry. Remember this, it will become important later on. “$5!” he chimed. What a nice man.
7 minutes later and we arrive at the guesthouse. The staff wear “OMG WTF!?!” faces and bluster around the padlocked gates. The cabbie is still smiling as he claims he told us $5 each. The guesthouse has no record of our booking. Our bags are heavy. We pay the taxi driver with $7 and a scowl, we press ourselves onto the guesthouse staff and we barge our way into any rooms they have going. One double and a single. That was the plan. One double and a double will have to suffice.
Inside. Not the Ritz. Not the Hilton. Not even the Trave linn. More like the cabin. Any cabin. On an allotment. I check the bathroom; windows with no glass and bug nets riddled with deceased beasties. The taps work. The showers works and, thank god, the flush works. I decided to unpack the essentials; pajamas, iPod, notebook and pen mosquito repellent. Early night so I tuck the bug net in around the surprisingly cushy mattress and settle down to an evening of Queen.
December the 24th: Christmas Eve.
Wake up far too early. Listen to iPod again and go for a shower. Take the iPod off first though. Obviously. Turn the handle, the water still runs. Lovely. Step under. Step out again rather quicker. Cold. No visible way to heat the stream of water so grunt and bear it, it’s hot out anyway. It’s uncomfortably cold, like lying naked on an upturned filing cabinet, but still, it feels better to be clean. Water off, soap out, wash hair. Rather an impressive lather going so I play the stylist. Mohican. Dickensian. Dracula. My imagination wasted I decide to finish. Turn the handle. More cold water. Or rather, not. No water of any temperature. Turn the knob again. Nothing. Turn the tap. A rattling, a grumbling, but no water. Bugger it.
I consider my options;
1: Get dressed, hair still resembling a Mohawk, and request the use of the others’ bathroom
2: Spit in a glass and use that.
Not much choice really until I notice the bottles of drinking water lovingly sprawled across a desk. It’s a shame to waste them but it’s better than looking like a creamy Mr T for the rest of the day.
Finish up shower and go for breakfast.
It was pretty much downhill from there*. I’ve stuck a few photos on anyway.
So, has anything happened since? Not really. I now have 3 fewer lessons a week than I did last semester, 4 if you count the fact that my mountain school haven’t needed me for about a month now. This obviously has left me with quite a bit of spare time. What have you done with it? I hear you ask. Well not update my blog obviously.
Oh, and my car broke down, something to do with the spark plugs. Anyway, the mechanic type bloke told me that there was no point fixing it properly as something else would probably breakdown in tandem and render it all a bit silly. Hmm. Apparently my little car (christened “Sally” in an arcane ritual that I will not delve into here) has about 6 months left to live.
L
Oh well. I’ve already begun the hunt for Sally v2.0 and have a few promising leads. Will elaborate when I know more.
Other than that…well Hannah is coming over in April and the folks (you know who you are) are heading over in May. My plans remain the same; to come home at Christmas. That is, if I can afford it; turns out cars aren’t as cheap over here as I was told.
Anyway, I shall leave for the moment but believe me when I say I shall think of little else but this blog for at least the next 2 minutes.
*Just kidding, it was great.
Thursday, December 22, 2005
Normal service will be resumed;
In two weeks when I get back, including the ending part of my Christmas Tale. Whoops, sorry about that.
Anyway, Merry Christmas everyone and have a great new year!
Anyway, Merry Christmas everyone and have a great new year!
Sunday, December 18, 2005
Non-fiction
Before I go to Cambodia, I have decided to weave (and indeed spin) you a tale of Yuletide merriness. It may involve Roger. It may not. Read on dear viewer, read on…
A log fire burns brightly in the half, the occasional spark rocketing through the thick air to land on the perilously flammable horse-hair rug nearby. The gentle tinkle of sleigh bells drifts through the windows, themselves adorned with snow ready to drop. The air, tinged with the scent of elderberries and chestnuts, plays through the room in wafts almost visible to the naked eye. The sound of excited children occasionally filters through the atmosphere, bringing a slight smile to the elderly relative sitting comatose in an armchair so soft it almost swallows him.
All of a sudden the sealed door bursts open and a father like figure appears. He complains loudly about the Christmas tree lights being wonky and proceeds to the uprooted shrub of a centre piece and jiggles the said lights until they either fall off, short circuit, or fall off and then short circuit. The elderly relative sleeps through all this, having saturated himself with brandy several hours before. A motherly type appears, takes one look at the shouting father figure, screams that she has a headache and takes to the stairs. A silhouette not dissimilar to that which a younger brother might cast appears and grunts that he is going out and taking the car. The father figure screams a rebuttal but is ignored.
Meanwhile, a figure strides purposefully down the stair, a gleam in his eye and a fiver in his pocket. Ignoring the arguing brother, he uplifts the carkeys and heads for the door. He must be quick, twill be but a moment until his deception is uncovered. Heaving open the ivory portal to the outside world, he hauls himself into the freezing maelstrom that lies beyond and heads for his stately chariot. With the work of a moment he is inside; the engine rumbles and begins its night’s work. A quick press of a pedal and he is at the gate, awaiting his turn on the road.
Suddenly from behind, a cacophony of anguish. The younger brother, arms aflail and voice raised, is charging forthwith towards the escaping vehicle. A panic chills the heart of our hero even further as he desperately searches for his opportunity to fly. Alas, dear reader, none has come and in the distance lies an unending column of headlights and speed. Is this the end already? Will the unruly brother triumph in this battle of wills?
...
Oooh, I’m a tease.
A log fire burns brightly in the half, the occasional spark rocketing through the thick air to land on the perilously flammable horse-hair rug nearby. The gentle tinkle of sleigh bells drifts through the windows, themselves adorned with snow ready to drop. The air, tinged with the scent of elderberries and chestnuts, plays through the room in wafts almost visible to the naked eye. The sound of excited children occasionally filters through the atmosphere, bringing a slight smile to the elderly relative sitting comatose in an armchair so soft it almost swallows him.
All of a sudden the sealed door bursts open and a father like figure appears. He complains loudly about the Christmas tree lights being wonky and proceeds to the uprooted shrub of a centre piece and jiggles the said lights until they either fall off, short circuit, or fall off and then short circuit. The elderly relative sleeps through all this, having saturated himself with brandy several hours before. A motherly type appears, takes one look at the shouting father figure, screams that she has a headache and takes to the stairs. A silhouette not dissimilar to that which a younger brother might cast appears and grunts that he is going out and taking the car. The father figure screams a rebuttal but is ignored.
Meanwhile, a figure strides purposefully down the stair, a gleam in his eye and a fiver in his pocket. Ignoring the arguing brother, he uplifts the carkeys and heads for the door. He must be quick, twill be but a moment until his deception is uncovered. Heaving open the ivory portal to the outside world, he hauls himself into the freezing maelstrom that lies beyond and heads for his stately chariot. With the work of a moment he is inside; the engine rumbles and begins its night’s work. A quick press of a pedal and he is at the gate, awaiting his turn on the road.
Suddenly from behind, a cacophony of anguish. The younger brother, arms aflail and voice raised, is charging forthwith towards the escaping vehicle. A panic chills the heart of our hero even further as he desperately searches for his opportunity to fly. Alas, dear reader, none has come and in the distance lies an unending column of headlights and speed. Is this the end already? Will the unruly brother triumph in this battle of wills?
...
Oooh, I’m a tease.
Friday, December 16, 2005
Home
Again, starting to miss home a bit. A lot actually, both home and Leeds. Like I said before, Christmas doesn’t feel the same out here. So yeah, I’ll probably be going home next Christmas. A bit like Chris Rea, the cheeky bugger.
Tuesday, December 13, 2005
Cambodia
Planning this trip has been a nightmare. And it’s not like I’ve done any of the actual organising. Just getting the associated vaccines, equipment etc has taken me ages and cost me a small fortune.
I’ve now finally got them done, sort of. Anyway, it cost me 20000yen (about £100) for one injection and some malaria medication, although hopefully I’ll be able to recoup some of that from my medical insurance. I’ve now found out of course that I need a hiking backpack. I should really have thought of this as for most of the trip we’re going to be mobile. Hopefully one of the JETs in Yatsushiro has one, I don’t fancy spending another £100 on a backpack I’ll rarely, if ever, use. Looks like January might have to be quite cheap…
It just keeps getting colder. It’s absolutely freezing for the majority of the day now. Luckily all my class and staffrooms are heated but even moving between them is a chore it’s so cold. Of course, the worst is still at my house. I now have my little electric heater on almost constantly so am dreading getting the electric bill. However, that’s a rather short range solution (I usually shove it under my desk so at least my legs are warm) so I’ll be busting out the big kerosene heater tonight. I don’t trust theses things as everyone says you should leave the window open while they’re on to disperse the fumes. But, won’t that sort of defeat the point in the first place? I’ll stick mine on anyway and if you don’t see anymore blogs for a while you can assume the worst.
The hot water bottle I got sent from home works too, but I seem to have burnt my hand on it last night. Well, I woke up with what I assume to be a burn on my hand. It hurts too, but it’s better than being so cold you can’t feel anything.
Anyway, here's something we can all enjoy.
First person to guess which body Tim has chosen to inhabit wins the internet.
I’ve now finally got them done, sort of. Anyway, it cost me 20000yen (about £100) for one injection and some malaria medication, although hopefully I’ll be able to recoup some of that from my medical insurance. I’ve now found out of course that I need a hiking backpack. I should really have thought of this as for most of the trip we’re going to be mobile. Hopefully one of the JETs in Yatsushiro has one, I don’t fancy spending another £100 on a backpack I’ll rarely, if ever, use. Looks like January might have to be quite cheap…
It just keeps getting colder. It’s absolutely freezing for the majority of the day now. Luckily all my class and staffrooms are heated but even moving between them is a chore it’s so cold. Of course, the worst is still at my house. I now have my little electric heater on almost constantly so am dreading getting the electric bill. However, that’s a rather short range solution (I usually shove it under my desk so at least my legs are warm) so I’ll be busting out the big kerosene heater tonight. I don’t trust theses things as everyone says you should leave the window open while they’re on to disperse the fumes. But, won’t that sort of defeat the point in the first place? I’ll stick mine on anyway and if you don’t see anymore blogs for a while you can assume the worst.
The hot water bottle I got sent from home works too, but I seem to have burnt my hand on it last night. Well, I woke up with what I assume to be a burn on my hand. It hurts too, but it’s better than being so cold you can’t feel anything.
Anyway, here's something we can all enjoy.
First person to guess which body Tim has chosen to inhabit wins the internet.
Saturday, December 03, 2005
Annoyed.
For the first time this job has really started to piss me off.
It’s exam season at the moment and I have been in the process of making various tests for about 2 weeks now. I was told I may have to do this so I wasn’t really all that bothered by it. A bit of extra work sure, but I wasn’t planning lessons anyway due to the study periods everyone has.
I got pissed off yesterday when I faxed over my draft of the listening test script I’d done to my second school. A few hours later I get an ominous telephone call asking me to come over (I was at my first school all day) and “discuss” it.
When I got there me and the three JTEs sat around a table and I was handed a copy of my computer printed script. Well, what was left of it, which was basically the title and the space for the student to put his name. There was so much red marker on the damn thing it looked like a referee had misplaced all of his red cards in one place, and that place was on top of my work.
Honestly, they had changed everything. From sweeping changes of the format to tiny little nitpicks changing individual words (“Take a right” to “Turn right”). For the next ten minutes, although they tried to hide it, we went through what I had done wrong and why it was wrong. The students don’t know this word; this is too complicated; this isn’t complicated enough.
Why, I was asking myself through all this, did they ask me to do the test at all if they had such a specific result in mind? Everything on that paper was somehow erroneous. And what was all this about the students “not knowing” certain words…it’s a test! A listening test no less where the students have to sift the correct answers from a stream of information, most of which is irrelevant to the questions. I didn’t know half the words in my French listening tests but I still got good marks. What’s the point in a test where the students know everything?
It wasn’t just that though, it was the little things. In one telephone conversation I’d put in a throwaway comment, another red herring that the students would have to dismiss. “How embarrassing!” it went. They spend a good few minutes deciding whether the students could understand “embarrassing”. It doesn’t matter if they can! There were no questions that addressed the emotion of being “embarrassed”, it was simply a line to give the script a bit of realism as well as being, as I’ve said, a red herring. But no, they couldn’t understand that and we spend a good long time umming and erring over it.
And the True or False questions. We had done True or False in my introductory lesson. I know this because I was there. You know, asking True or False questions. However, even though it was eventually decided the students could understand “embarrassing” as they did it 6 months ago, the True or False answers, which we did 2 months ago were scrapped, replaced by other multiple choice questions. What? Surely these were the easiest questions? You have a 50/50 chance of getting the damn things right. No, they had to go. Why? It was never explained to me. Maybe the word “True” sounds like a Japanese swear word or something, because it certainly wasn’t because of the difficulty.
I came away fuming with silent rage that the test I had worked a whole night on had been replaced with one that the other teachers obviously had in their minds from the start. Why ask me to do a test, with no further instructions than “It must have a maximum of 40 points to award”, if you already have one you want to give?
I’m hoping this sort of thing doesn’t happen too often. I’m new to this teaching game and they seem to expect me to know the ropes like a seasoned professor. Most of the time this job is OK, not enjoyable per se and certainly lacking in job satisfaction, but OK nevertheless. I sincerely hope this sort of thing isn’t going to appear until next test time, when I have no doubt it will happen all over again…
It’s exam season at the moment and I have been in the process of making various tests for about 2 weeks now. I was told I may have to do this so I wasn’t really all that bothered by it. A bit of extra work sure, but I wasn’t planning lessons anyway due to the study periods everyone has.
I got pissed off yesterday when I faxed over my draft of the listening test script I’d done to my second school. A few hours later I get an ominous telephone call asking me to come over (I was at my first school all day) and “discuss” it.
When I got there me and the three JTEs sat around a table and I was handed a copy of my computer printed script. Well, what was left of it, which was basically the title and the space for the student to put his name. There was so much red marker on the damn thing it looked like a referee had misplaced all of his red cards in one place, and that place was on top of my work.
Honestly, they had changed everything. From sweeping changes of the format to tiny little nitpicks changing individual words (“Take a right” to “Turn right”). For the next ten minutes, although they tried to hide it, we went through what I had done wrong and why it was wrong. The students don’t know this word; this is too complicated; this isn’t complicated enough.
Why, I was asking myself through all this, did they ask me to do the test at all if they had such a specific result in mind? Everything on that paper was somehow erroneous. And what was all this about the students “not knowing” certain words…it’s a test! A listening test no less where the students have to sift the correct answers from a stream of information, most of which is irrelevant to the questions. I didn’t know half the words in my French listening tests but I still got good marks. What’s the point in a test where the students know everything?
It wasn’t just that though, it was the little things. In one telephone conversation I’d put in a throwaway comment, another red herring that the students would have to dismiss. “How embarrassing!” it went. They spend a good few minutes deciding whether the students could understand “embarrassing”. It doesn’t matter if they can! There were no questions that addressed the emotion of being “embarrassed”, it was simply a line to give the script a bit of realism as well as being, as I’ve said, a red herring. But no, they couldn’t understand that and we spend a good long time umming and erring over it.
And the True or False questions. We had done True or False in my introductory lesson. I know this because I was there. You know, asking True or False questions. However, even though it was eventually decided the students could understand “embarrassing” as they did it 6 months ago, the True or False answers, which we did 2 months ago were scrapped, replaced by other multiple choice questions. What? Surely these were the easiest questions? You have a 50/50 chance of getting the damn things right. No, they had to go. Why? It was never explained to me. Maybe the word “True” sounds like a Japanese swear word or something, because it certainly wasn’t because of the difficulty.
I came away fuming with silent rage that the test I had worked a whole night on had been replaced with one that the other teachers obviously had in their minds from the start. Why ask me to do a test, with no further instructions than “It must have a maximum of 40 points to award”, if you already have one you want to give?
I’m hoping this sort of thing doesn’t happen too often. I’m new to this teaching game and they seem to expect me to know the ropes like a seasoned professor. Most of the time this job is OK, not enjoyable per se and certainly lacking in job satisfaction, but OK nevertheless. I sincerely hope this sort of thing isn’t going to appear until next test time, when I have no doubt it will happen all over again…
Thursday, November 24, 2005
Eyebrows
I love the internet. If it were a person I would gladly throw myself at their service simply because they were so generous.
Through this technical marvel I was able to download and watch Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire last night. True, the quality of picture wasn’t exactly stellar but it was definitely watchable. And watch it I did.
Now, I didn’t really care for the first three films. One and two were so childish as to be rather embarrassing. Three, which held a lot more promise, was let down by the refusal of the child actors to act properly, resorting to ridiculous overacting (Emma Watson’s eyebrows I’m looking at you here) or simply not acting at all (Daniel Radcliffe’s “They were my parents!” strop came off as just that, a girly tiff rather than an explosion of hatred).
This time, however, they hit the nail on the head. Goblet of Fire is by far the best of the Potter books just as this is by far the best of the films. The kids can actually act in this one, you actually sympathise with them and there are some genuinely tense moments between Harry and Ron. Hermione still overacts though.
Moody is fantastic. Brendon Gleeson is quickly becoming one of my favourite British actors and he really brings something to a character than is perhaps my favourite from the books. Alan Rickman is also mind melting good again, even though he only gets about 3 lines of dialogue this time around. The only cast disappointment is Dumbledore. I thought Michael Gambon was shaping up to be a good Dumbledore, better than the “on deaths door” version playing by Richard Harris (however ironic that sentence may be). However, in this he’s not good. He isn’t Dumbledore from the books at all; I won’t spoil it but the scene after Harry’s name comes out of the Goblet is especially bad.
Voldemort is in this one. He looks great, he really does but he lacks any real menace. In fact, he lacks any menace at all, were it not for his makeup he would’ve been less imposing than Lucius Malfoy (who makes a welcome return). His “birth” scene is great though and would’ve scared the crap out of me if I’d seen it when I was 10.
The Special Effects in general are amazing. The start of the World Cup has to be seen to be believed (as clichéd as that may be), the dragon fight is excellent stuff and the merpeople are great too. It’s the little things that set it apart from the other films though; Sirius’ firey communiqué, the Unforgivable curses realised, the various shapechanges that some characters go through are brilliant (if rather disturbing) and even the design of the Water challenge seating is fantastic. (trust me).
Most importantly however, I think Hogwarts was done justice to in this film. In the others it just felt like somewhere the story could take place in; a location. Here it feels like a community. Many of the bit parts excluded from Prisoner of Azkhaban (Neville, Seamus etc) return in this and the film finally gets across that Harry, Ron and Hermione are not the only students at their school.
Although the film is noticeably darker, both literally and in story, it was still to me the closest to its literary counterpart. True, huge chunks have been missed out (gone are most of the Quiddich World Cup, Dobby, Winky, Ludo Bagman, Percy Weasley and the House Elf liberation attempt by Hermione) but I actually didn’t miss any of them all that much (maybe apart from the world cup which we are teased with but never really shown). Despite all of these losses, it felt the same as the book; foreboding but, for the time being, optimistic.
So, very good then. I’d highly recommend it to anyone who enjoyed the book. Really, I think the highest compliment I can pay to this is that it’s the first of the films to really remind me of how good the books are, and the first time I truly thought the characters from the books had hit the big screen in full.
Through this technical marvel I was able to download and watch Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire last night. True, the quality of picture wasn’t exactly stellar but it was definitely watchable. And watch it I did.
Now, I didn’t really care for the first three films. One and two were so childish as to be rather embarrassing. Three, which held a lot more promise, was let down by the refusal of the child actors to act properly, resorting to ridiculous overacting (Emma Watson’s eyebrows I’m looking at you here) or simply not acting at all (Daniel Radcliffe’s “They were my parents!” strop came off as just that, a girly tiff rather than an explosion of hatred).
This time, however, they hit the nail on the head. Goblet of Fire is by far the best of the Potter books just as this is by far the best of the films. The kids can actually act in this one, you actually sympathise with them and there are some genuinely tense moments between Harry and Ron. Hermione still overacts though.
Moody is fantastic. Brendon Gleeson is quickly becoming one of my favourite British actors and he really brings something to a character than is perhaps my favourite from the books. Alan Rickman is also mind melting good again, even though he only gets about 3 lines of dialogue this time around. The only cast disappointment is Dumbledore. I thought Michael Gambon was shaping up to be a good Dumbledore, better than the “on deaths door” version playing by Richard Harris (however ironic that sentence may be). However, in this he’s not good. He isn’t Dumbledore from the books at all; I won’t spoil it but the scene after Harry’s name comes out of the Goblet is especially bad.
Voldemort is in this one. He looks great, he really does but he lacks any real menace. In fact, he lacks any menace at all, were it not for his makeup he would’ve been less imposing than Lucius Malfoy (who makes a welcome return). His “birth” scene is great though and would’ve scared the crap out of me if I’d seen it when I was 10.
The Special Effects in general are amazing. The start of the World Cup has to be seen to be believed (as clichéd as that may be), the dragon fight is excellent stuff and the merpeople are great too. It’s the little things that set it apart from the other films though; Sirius’ firey communiqué, the Unforgivable curses realised, the various shapechanges that some characters go through are brilliant (if rather disturbing) and even the design of the Water challenge seating is fantastic. (trust me).
Most importantly however, I think Hogwarts was done justice to in this film. In the others it just felt like somewhere the story could take place in; a location. Here it feels like a community. Many of the bit parts excluded from Prisoner of Azkhaban (Neville, Seamus etc) return in this and the film finally gets across that Harry, Ron and Hermione are not the only students at their school.
Although the film is noticeably darker, both literally and in story, it was still to me the closest to its literary counterpart. True, huge chunks have been missed out (gone are most of the Quiddich World Cup, Dobby, Winky, Ludo Bagman, Percy Weasley and the House Elf liberation attempt by Hermione) but I actually didn’t miss any of them all that much (maybe apart from the world cup which we are teased with but never really shown). Despite all of these losses, it felt the same as the book; foreboding but, for the time being, optimistic.
So, very good then. I’d highly recommend it to anyone who enjoyed the book. Really, I think the highest compliment I can pay to this is that it’s the first of the films to really remind me of how good the books are, and the first time I truly thought the characters from the books had hit the big screen in full.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)