All sorts of goodies

Hello everyone!

Not too much going on today. Today we Asst. English Teachers had a monthly meeting at the Board of Education. Which is usually very boring (and was this week as well). Apparently, the owners of my apartment complex changed. I had to go to a second meeting afterwards with the people in my apartment complex.

They gave us free towels and told us that our locks would be replaced with electronic number locks. They also said the location of our trash bin would change and they would add a parking space. Why telling us these 3 things would take over an hour is absolutely beyond my comprehension.

This evening I went to Baskin Robbins with my English Conversation Class students today and just got back. They really are a nice bunch of people.

Also, if anyone is interested, I've discovered the virtues of RyanAir, which is a discount air carrier in Europe, if anybody is heading to the continent. I managed to book a flight from Rome to Brussels for only about 114 Euros. Not bad in my book.

Anyways, since this was a slow day, filled with lots of obnoxious chores and nothing really special, I'll leave you all with another funny picture!!

Also, I'm looking for other ideas and suggestions for improving this blog, so if you have any ideas, you can write to me at Valaquenta8@yahoo.com or one of my other email adresses if you know them. You can also post a message on here. Also, if you are reading this regularly, let me know, so I can write stuff that you might find interesting.

A Day in the Office

Here's something people might find amusing.

Wedding Bells

No, I'm not getting married, but I DID go to a Bridal Fashion Show where I met this model here. I actually went there with some friends to see my friend Jen Mitten as the sole foreigner in the show. Astonishingly, Jen was too big to wear any of the western style bridal gowns and bridesmaid dresses. So, she could only wear a kimono, which she described as "uncomfortable and hot."

I was a little surpised. It was a very good show, with good production values. Most of the models were professionals (with the exeption of Jen). Unfortunately, there was a very low turnout.

Only about 25 people came. I came with a group of about 6, leaving only 19 or so other people who came. It most certainly was not Paris or Milan, but it was a good time. I had fun playing with my camera.

Sushi Taisho

Yesterday Evening, I went out to dinner at a sushi place or sushiya. My friend Kame's parents owned the place. I figure just because I knew her, I got about 70-130 USD worth of sushi for free. (I did pay about 30 dollars US). It was a good evening, because her father, years ago, made sushi in New York City and lived there for a year. Had a lot of interesting things to say.

For anyone interested in learning about eating sushi in Japan, here is an informative video that a friend (Skilz) sent to me.

sushi video

You would laugh even harder if you knew what was true and what was nonsense.

Getting Warmer in Japan

Well, I've decided to add another student's blog to my little monkey house on the internet. If you are interested in learning Japanese, or reading about the lives of my students, this is a cool place to go. I think I'm going to get any student's web pages and see if they want to see.

Thursday, I started a new Japanese class in the nearby town of Motomiya Machi. I think it might be a little bit better. For one, they recently got a new teacher at my class in Koriyama, and she simply isn't as good a teacher. Also, the ratio of teachers to students in Motomiya is about 2 to 1, so I get a lot of extra attention and help. The only downside I see is that they focus more on grammar and reading than my other class. I'm hoping to focus almost exclusively on conversation. My new teacher wants me to learn a lot of new chinese characters, which I don't think is beneficial to me due to my plans of leaving Japan in a little more than a year.

As for Friday, I ate yakiniku ("grilled meat" that you cook yourself at the table) with my friend Jake and his girlfriend Junko. Yaki Niku is the best thing since sliced bread.

8th Grader with a Business Card

Sorry I haven't updated in awhile, but at the moment, I'm extrordinarily busy.

I was at my larger school yesterday and was talking with a kid. Anyways, he mentioned in the conversation that he had a business card. Being a long-time business card collector (don't ask), my immediate thought was "I want one!" I have business cards from bosses, my Dad's bosses and clients, family, friends, pastors, and many other aquaintances. But I've never gotten a card from a STUDENT!

My second thought was, "Hey, what kind of 8th grader has his own business card?!" I knew that business cards (meishi) are far more common here in Japan, but sheesh. The Japanese even have their own etiquitte for handling and presenting meishi. But this was just funny.

Seriously though, the kid's name is Hikaru Endou, and he is extremely cool. He is one of a handful of students who earnestly desire and try to speak English. He's pretty good at it too.

Anyways, the card had a blog on it as well, which I will link to when I have a spare moment.

My English Conversation Class

Tonight I had the pleasure of teaching my weekly Eikaiwa, or English conversation class. I have about 15 students and once a week I teach them different ways of speaking or asking questions in English, and provide an atmosphere where they can use the English that they know.

My oldest student is 70 years old, while my youngest is 9. I'm enjoying it more than my classes in school, largely because they are more interested in learning English. I'm also finding most of the people in the class are very eager to learn, which makes teaching them that much easier and more fun

After the class, I went out for ice cream with a couple of them, and one of them is a volunteer in some kind of halfway house. Another man is retired and teaches about the history of Koriyama and the area around where I live.

I'm discovering that people often lead very simple lives here in Japan. People also don't say a whole lot, and its refreshing to speak to people who have lots to say.

Letter from Hazuki

Well, I heard from Hazuki, who was one of my best students during my first year in Koriyama.
She's a first year High School Student now, at one of the best High School's in my city. I met her from Mihota Chugakko last year, when she was in 8th and 9th grade.

A while ago I had met her mother at the sushi store, and gave her my email. I am a little suprised to hear back from her. I'll have to give her the address to this blog, and she can post comments and talk to people here.

So I invited her to Asaka Reimei's International Day Festival, which is a big event in July. My friend Jake and I have agreed to teach an American Cooking Class. Out of the kindness of our hearts, Jake and I plan on sharing the rich culinary heritage of the United States (Rice Krispy Treats).

Hiking in Sukagawa

Yesterday afternoon, my friend Mie drove me South of our city of Koriyama, into the mountains. We revisited a place we had been before, but had quickly left due to a rainstorm. Fortunately, the sky and temperature shined on us yesterday, and we were able to do some hiking. We went up this mountain trail, where we found a spring, and an endless number of ferns.
I tried to photograph some, and this is my first effort. I have a few with the ferns mixed in with the forest, but this will have to do for starters.

Anyways, my friend and I returned back to my place, where she taught me how to make Yaki-Soba (fried noodles). Most of the time we spent just joking around though. She's trying to learn English from me, and I'm trying to learn Japanese from her. So we occasionally hang out.

I also heard from my friend Brenden today, and we will be planning a trip to Korea together this fall. I've also been busy reading up on Italy, and trying to decide what to do with my time there. I heard from my cousin Allen Dyer, who suggested Sicily, which I'm going to see if I can fit into my plans. If any of you have been to Italy, and have some suggestions (besides the Colluseum and the Vatican) don't be afraid to let me know.

Further bulletins as events warrant.

Yesterday evening with Paipin

Yesterday Evening, I went out with Paipin, who is the sole Chinese guy in my weekly Thursday night Japanese as a Second Language Class. He's only been here in Japan for about 1 year, but his Japanese is already better than mine. I suppose it doesn't help that I'm stuck at school all day listening to people speak and practice english with (or at) me.
Anyways we went out to Kaiten Sushi, which for all you American types is sushi on tiny plates circling around a conveyor belt. Its like the luggage pick up circle at the airport, where the bags go round and round (except with sushi). Its actually kind of amusing at first, but one quickly grows accustomed to such things. I'll include a picture sometime.

We talked about many things, but mostly about the class we share and the challenges learning Japanese and what we think about this country.

I also met the mother there of two former students of mine. They wanted my email, but I have yet to hear back from them. The mother told me there was a problem sending the mail, and asked for the address again. If I hear from them again, I'll give them the address of this site. She'll be writing from a cell phone, as people here don't typically have home computers with internet connections. At least, they don't seem to be quite as common as they are State-side.

Tyler

Today

Today was rather boring at first, but slowly turned interesting.

School started off very slow (not one class) because most students are still competing in the sports tournament around the city. Right after lunch, the students went home, and we could leave, so the P.E. Teacher at one of my schools drove me down to a community center's sports complex so we could cheer for a student of mine who went very far in the badminton competition.

Unfortunately, she lost her match, but she was quite good. I felt bad for her because it was such a small school, she was the only person competing in badminton. There were four teachers in all watching her, and no other students with us. B
ecause the PE teacher, Sanpei Sensei, was apparently a professional soccer goal keeper back in the day, he was quite eager to see the matches in progress. So we went over there and watched a game until it was clear one team would win.

This evening, I went to my Eikaiwa, where I teach English to a group of people at the local community center. They are a nice bunch. I was a little concerned about teaching adults with such a mix of ages and ability, but its turning out to be easier than I thought. I'm having fun with them so far though. I teach them every Wednesday for 5 more weeks.

Chutairen

Today was the Semi Annual Chutairen, or the City Sports Festival, depending on how you would like to translate it. During this time, all the sports teams in my district compete in a daylong tournament. The winners go onto the kentaikai (I think that's what its called) or the prefectural tournament. Overall, its usually a pretty crazy day. As there are no classes, I'm allowed to go around to the various schools hosting various tournaments.

My first stop was the table tennis tournament, but I quickly left to go see the Katahirachu Basketball team lose their game, and be eliminated after the first round.

After this, I went back to the table tennis tournament. I watched it for awhile, and soon left to go see the Kendo teams play. Unfortunately, it was a rather disappointing time at the kendo tournament. The new music teacher (who coaches the kendo team) wasn't in the friendliest of moods, and was in fact rather cold. I'm not certain why. I don't think I've done anything to deserve it, certainly not that day. Not sure what was going on there. Regardless, I think most of my students were happy to see me.

I quickly left the stifling atmosphere there and went to go watch the Tomita tennis team play. By the time I arrived late that afternoon, I was only able to watch the Girl's team finish a couple of games. The Tomita Girls ALMOST won the city championship, but just lost. They put up a good fight though.

Unfortunately, I forgot my camera, so I cannot post any pictures of the day.

Me

Me again. Handsome Guy, wouldn't you say?

Me in Flagstaff

Here's Me in Flagstaff. I'm still trying to get a picture of myself into the side bar. After I do that, I'll be finished for the day. I may try and edit some at school tomorrow.

Picture test and Gasherbrum IV

I'm trying to put pictures and stuff on this blog, but I can't figure it out. This is a test of my ability to do different things. I repeat, this is only a test.

here's a link to yahoo.com

By the way, the mountain is Gasherbrum IV. Located in the Karakoram Range of Pakistan, it is among the world's most difficult mountains to climb.

The Beginning of the Blog

Here I am. It's a lazy sunday afternoon, and I'm watching the rain drizzle down from the sky onto my balcony door. I'm starting this blog as a means of keeping in touch with friends and relatives better, and also as a way of gauging my success at achieving certain life goals.

For the moment, I'm going to spend the next few days describing my life here in Koriyama, Japan as an English teacher, but utlimately I'll chronicle my travels and other life events for everyone to see, as well as give my unsolicited opinion on books, society, politics and anything else that I feel like talking about.

For today, I'm planning on going over some information about an investment scheme (mutual funds) I recieved in the mail, and then perhaps do some shopping, and go for a run.

I'll talk more later.

Recollections: Kevin Nissen

My Recollections are instances in my life that I fondly recall for any number of reasons and I've written all of them down on or after June 2009, although the events take place over a very wide time span in my lifetime. Everything you see below is an account of my memory, which can be fickle and unreliable, yet often yields the most important life lessons and records those crucial formative instances in one's life story.

I've had several bosses during my time in the working world, but I must say that none have inspired me to work so hard as Kevin Nissen. Kevin possesses a truly remarkable gift for bringing out the very best in those around him and inspiring those under him to go farther than they ever imagined.

He was funny and self depreciating in a hilarious way, but always managed to be taken seriously and earn a high degree of respect from everyone around him. He could be stern and demanding, but always managed to make you feel good about yourself, like you were doing a good job and that you could do a good job.

He managed to do what most managers would find nearly impossible: get a team of 60 random young people, get them to work 16-18 hours a day, 6 days a week, get 120% out of each and every one of them without threats, resentment, or any ill will. In the environment, he managed to create an atmosphere where everyone felt comfortable with everyone else. We should make him president.

Award of Special Magnificence

Today, at the Changwon Korean Class (창원 한글학당) I won an award for perfect attendance. Some teachers presented me with this special textbook. I was so proud.

But while my attendance may be impeccable, my Korean is not up to par yet. The more time I spend and the more I learn, I realize that Korean will be much harder to learn than Japanese ever was. Some reasons:

1. Korean is far harder to pronounce than I originally anticipated and filled with difficult tongue twisters.

2. While not always true, I'm finding that oftentimes the people I speak with on an everyday basis purposely make it more difficult to learn. One Korean friend of mine has observed the same, even going so far as to say that, "I'm embarrassed to say, but some Koreans like watching foreigners struggle with the language sometimes. They pretend not to understand, even if they speak it correctly."

3. My students and teachers often laugh at my mistakes, making me less willing to try and practice at school. I try to be confident and brush it off, but with 30 kids laughing at a slight mistake, its difficult sometimes. So I'm not practicing speaking nearly as much with my students as I should be.

Besides the great award, what made me especially happy was this picture of myself that I actually like (Thanks, Ja-Yeon):

Recollections: Perceptions about Prescott

My Recollections are instances in my life that I fondly recall for any number of reasons and I've written all of them down on or after June 2009, although the events take place over a very wide time span in my lifetime. Everything you see below is an account of my memory, which can be fickle and unreliable, yet often yields the most important life lessons and records those crucial formative instances in one's life story.

I don't remember exactly when this conversation took place (or even if it was 1 single conversation). Instead I remember being hurt and feeling insulted about the choices I'd made and I wasn't sure how to deal with it at the time.

On some Friday evening at the home of someone at the First Baptist Church college ministry at that time, somebody started a conversation about how boring Prescott, Arizona was and how much they couldn't stand Prescott, Yavapai College, or even Arizona.

I never took issue with what was said, but somebody else mentioned that I moved to Prescott willingly, to live with my grandparents so that I could gain residency and eventually move to Northern Arizona University. Upon hearing my situation, one of the main antagonists in the room expressed disbelief, harping me to explain, "How could you even KNOW about Yavapai College?"

The conversation took a nose dive from there. They knew from knowing me that I was very intelligent, and naturally they suddenly assumed Yavapai College was beneath me. Most of the people in the room attended either Yavapai Community College or Embry Riddle Aeronautical University.

While all friends, most were either stereotypical "pilot types," sporting cheesy crew cuts and tearing around in red Camaros from California, or "redneck" types" who had a gunrack in their AZ plated Ford pickups. We socialized together at First Baptist Church, but often pilots would congregate to chat about 'touch-and-go's' while the others would gripe about how much they didn't like their hometown: Prescott. With my dopey naivete, obsession with rock climbing, and Tennessee plates on my plastic-sided Saturn and a sage-like grandfather everyone knew, I didn't fit either mold very well. I understandably often felt out of place with the group.

And while I was confident in my choices, and explained how I had a good plan and a good reason to be there, many of them (Prescott natives mostly) couldn't understand why I would come all the way to Prescott. I'm wishing I'd given a more impassioned defense of my choices and my chosen home. It got me down that they didn't like it there and made me wonder about things I'd previously thought were good. I was happy there. Why couldn't they be happy for me? I enjoyed the beautiful surroundings and the screaming good deal on a good education I recieved there. Why couldn't they appreciate how good they had it too?

Thinking back now, I realize there are a lot of class undertones going on in Prescott. I'm reluctant to say it, but Prescott is basically a former cow-town turned glorified retirement community for rich folks. Like a lot of small towns with abnormally high real-estate prices, the retired rich folks are more or less served by a working poor underclass, and there's a lot of resentment among locals and natives (who often take for granted the good things about the area).

I didn't really fit the schema of their little model of the world in many ways. The pilots didn't get me because they were often so wealthy and couldn't figure why I'd come out there, but I wasn't one of the working class local yokels either, who'd come from far and wide and specifically chosen what they saw as their only option in life.

From Northern Arizona, 2000-2001

Recollections: First Day at Yavapai College

My Recollections are instances in my life that I fondly recall for any number of reasons and I've written all of them down on or after June 2009, although the events take place over a very wide time span in my lifetime. Everything below is an account of my memory, which can be fickle and unreliable, yet often yields the most important life lessons and records those crucial formative instances in one's life story.

My first day at Yavapai College. I showed up early for my English Composition class. Wouldn't want to be late! Who else is there? A very attractive Hispanic girl about my age from the nearby town of Chino Valley, an agrarian community that lay to the North of Prescott.

If most of my coeds would be this pretty, I was liking it here already! I introduced myself, asked her questions and generally made awkward attempts at flirting, although thinking back, they would have been quite benign and more friendly, even just idle chit-chat. What other classes are you taking? Where are you from? What do you do for fun? Studying to be a legal secretary? Boyfriend? Yes on the last question. Shoot. Oh well, I guess it always happens that way.

I would see her from time to time, as she and I were often the earliest to arrive. I enjoyed talking with her, but had hoped for more. I suppose it made things easier that she was taken: I knew inside I wouldn't have had the guts to ask her out at that point in my life anyways.