Omedeto Gozaimasu!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all my loved ones!

I'm leaving for Tokyo in 3 days...as Dawn said, the countdown has begun! Aside from seeing two of my dearest friends who live in Tokyo, spending New Years Eve with some of my favorite people in the world and just enjoying the general splendor that is Tokyo, I'm excited about the fact that...after five months...I'm actually going to get my hair cut.
Dawn found a English speaking salon - and we'll be heading there immediately after we get off the train in Tokyo. Nothing like starting the New Year with a fabulous new do.

Speaking of Dawn - she recently had the audacity to be thoughtful enough to write me a beautiful card for Christmas, so I've decided that the only way I can hope to reciprocate is to make a public announcement of how dear this girl is to me. So here goes...

Before I left for Japan, the one thing I prayed more fervently about than anything (besides not dying on the plane ride over) was that God would pick the perfect person to be my co-worker. It's scary to think that you'll be spending a year with one person who will probably be the ONLY person in your town who speaks English. And what God brought me was more than I had even thought to ask for. In four months, Dawn has become one of my best friends. She is witty, charming, funny, intelligent, hard-working, gorgeous and adventerous.
She's become my partner in crime for everything...from an afternoon romp through Okazaki park, to a mysterious grape picking outing with people we don't even know, to endless inappropriate conversations at work to just laying on my bedroom floor laughing 'til our sides hurt. In these last few months...I've been through a lot. I am certain God knew I would be and that I would need a companion like Dawn to be there with me to listen to my fears and concerns, to literally pick up the pen when I didn't know what to write, to offer advice (whether in the more ethereal or just...grabbing my arm and showing me) and to help me see that I'm not alone or crazy (though perhaps a bit of a moron).
In case she doesn't realize it - I adore her, pray for her everyday and (as she said) will be there for her, no matter what happens.

So there. Now she knows. And so does everyone else.

Goodnight. :)

Jishin!

I have been informed that since I am no longer sick or particularly tired that my blog is in need of an update.

So...here it is.

A few nights ago, as I was settling into bed (aka, the floor) I felt the entire building rock violently. It was so brief, but so intense, I was certain something had hit the building or that a gas pipe had exploded. After calling Dawn (and waking her up, poor thing) to make sure it wasn't her apartment that had just exploded, I saw an announcement pop up on the TV saying that a 3.2 earthquake had just hit the area.

Hmm, my first earthquake in Japan.

This evening, in my second to last class of the day, as I was drilling my students yet again on the difference between "how much" and "how many" ....I felt the floor begin to shudder. As a resident of Chicago, I'm used to the floor shuddering. If you live near an el or where trucks pass by or where the Blue Angels fly over you, then your floor will occasionally shudder. It wasn't until both my students leapt up, started shouting "JISHIN!" (EARTHQUAKE!) and dove under the table that I realized that it wasn't just a big truck rolling by.

So, there's my update. It's not particularly interesting, but it's what I've got for now.

Christmas is rapidly approaching but in the scope of all that is happening, I can hardly even comprehend its existance. Yet somehow, I've managed to become involved in throwing (hardly "throwing" - we're just going to a local pub) a Christmas party for friends in the area. I'm hoping that taking the time to sit and relax with friends will finally put me in the Christmas spirit.

Then one week later, it's off to Tokyo. I realized a while ago, this will be my second New Years in a row that will be celebrated in some fabulous, foreign city. Last year Athens, this year Tokyo...
Hmmmm, I wonder if I can keep up the tradition.

nap time is for grown ups...

I have officially been sane for over 48 hours. Sadly, that's a record for me as of late.
So now I'm registered as exhausted. I'm fighting yet another cold...and the recent 2 day downpour isn't helping any.
The weekend was fantastic...Sunday's all day, girls only shopping trip to Nagoya was much needed therapy. Then Monday was a tour of the local Miso factory, some much needed cleaning and then dinner at my favorite Korean restaurant. If I wasn't so mind numbingly tired and sick, I'd probably think this week was going really well.
Basically, I just need a nap. A 24 hour nap...

Arden: Take Two

My current "mood" has been set at "sane" for the last few days. Of course, I have spent those last few days proving that to be utterly incorrect. I'm not changing it, though, until it's true. Thankfully, the weekend has at last arrived so I'm hoping that with some shopping therapy and a lot of sleep, I will be able to piece my sanity back together.

Dawn and I have adopted, and often use, the term "Igmflie Moment" (That's pronounced ig-mah-flee) to describe those times when you just want to shout "I'm Glad My First Language Is English!" (Thus, IGMFLIE)

Because of my job, I am CONSTANTLY amazed at how language works and how humans learn it.

For instance...if you're looking into a neighborhood and you want to find out about the crime level and the number of schools in the area, what would you say?

"Is there much crime in the area?" and the answer might be "Yeah, there's a little."

but for schools, you would ask

"Are there many schools in the area?" to which the reply could be "Yes, there are a few."

Now...how come it's the same type of question and the same type of response, but for one you use "Is there much" and reply "a little" but the other gets "Are there many" and the answer is "a few."

I'll leave you to ponder, if you don't already know.

The point is, you just...KNOW, right? Did anyone ever sit you down and explain the correct time to use Many vs. Much and the correct quantifiers for each? I doubt it. We just kind of picked it up along the way. Which is pretty freaking crazy.

And as I spent my second week in a row attempting to teach this to my high level students, I couldn't help but think...IGMFLIE.

Frostbitten

Before coming to Japan, I vaguely remembered that, thanks to complete lack of insulation in Japanese buildings, it tends to be very...very cold inside when it gets cold outside.
This is no longer a vague memory but a daily reality. I've started setting my alarm fifteen minutes earlier in the morning, so that I can turn on my heater and hide under my blankets until the room warms up. Despite being on the second floor, my apartment floor is icy to the touch. Which is great....because I sleep on the floor.

The strange thing is, it's not THAT cold outside. It's only 48 degrees right now, but inside it feels about 20. Dawn and I got our heating bills this afternoon and nearly passed out with shock. It's going to be a lonnggg, expensive winter...

Speaking of Dawn, she brilliantly suggested that after surviving weeks of work and personal stress, we shed our weekend plans of chores and errands and instead, go out for a day in the big city. So we're off to Nagoya on Sunday for a day of shopping, sightseeing and eating...and free from any talk about work, boys or life after Japan. Basically, it sounds like heaven and I've started my countdown...

Kyoto

When I told myself I was going to start taking it easy, apparently what I meant was that I was going to spend the week not sleeping and then do some traveling.
Brilliant.

Yes, I shouldn't have travelled. But really, it's...fall in Kyoto. How could I say no?



Pictures are in my photo album. Of course.

I am slightly determined to blog more regularly. If nothing else, to make up for my complete lack of e-mailing. Also, there are somethings I just shouldn't trust to my sieve of a memory...

Like this:

On Thursday, a national holiday, I found myself with Dawn and two of our local Japanese friends at...the Kewpie Mayonnaise Factory.
In Japan, Kewpie is to mayo as Kraft is to Mac and Cheese in America. The tour we were on was so highly competitive that we only got in because our friend won a drawing.
What can one say? It was a mayonnaise factory...filled with hundreds of Kewpie dolls.

After the brief tour, they left us in a room to sample various Kewpie products. And in the background, they projected their famous Tarako commerical on the wall. Repeatedly. For half an hour. The sheer torture of this can only be understood after you see the commerical. Please do so by clicking here.
It's an experience I wouldn't give up for anything. Or repeat for anything.

Or this:
The following day, while still humming the Tarako song, one of our little students started choking on a piece of candy. Right in front of me and Dawn. I picked him up and pressed under his ribs, which...thankfully, sent the candy flying. It's no exagguration, when they say that time slows down in situations like that. I'm sure the whole thing last 5 seconds but...it felt like...well...a lot longer.

Or this:
There are those brief moments in life when, as Mom and I say, your tanks are filled. From every angle, you're just...affirmed. Whether it's laughing for hours over past adventures with a friend, planning for new ones across Asia, finding surprising companionship with your co-worker, enjoying heartfelt conversation over tea and toast, receiving unexpected letters from loved ones, waking up to a message that even your freckles are missed or just hearing your Mom laugh at your crazy stories...
It's a rare moment, when all those things come together at once. And certainly just as memorable as the Kewpie factory.

Safe

Last night, Dawn called me to ask "Ummm, have you heard anything about an Earthquake or a Tsunami? Cause my Mom called me all worried. Apparently it's front page news in America that Japan was hit with both and people are evacuating..."

I looked around my cozy apartment, glanced up at the clear night sky and shrugged "No..."

After a little research, I learned that....apparently, there was an Earthquake in Hokkaido, which is a separate island of Japan much much further north. We didn't feel so much as a tremor here.

I'm safe and sound. But thanks to everyone who wrote or called to check on me. :)

To die for

Today, Dawn jumped in front of some oncoming cars in order to save my hat from blowing away.
If that's not true friendship, well, I just don't know what is.

Never forget...

I've returned from Hiroshima and, as promised, I have a stack of pictures.

 

Go here to see the rest of them. :)

It was an unforgettable trip. Not just the sights and sounds of bustling Hiroshima and majestic Miyajima island, but the sights and sounds of the A-bomb dome, the museum and the Peace Park. No, I'll never, ever forget...

Yesterday, I went for an company scheduled (and paid for!) check up at the doctor. Let me just say, you've never had a check up, until you've had one in a foreign language. ;)

Ladies and Gentlemen, we will soon be making a brief stop at...

It's Halloween week at Amity. I've used this as an excuse to dress up my little ones and throw parties with my older ones.





Tomorrow, after another Halloween party, I'm leaving right from work for Hiroshima with my friend Mika. I know what you're thinking and, don't worry, I'll take lots and lots of pictures. ;)

Ow.

Taiko drumming in the mountains may have been surreal...but the pain in my arms today is all too real. Ow.

*Yawn* Just another day

It was another average Sunday afternoon, here in Japan.
After two hours of language lessons at the international center, Dawn and I got onto a bus with 20 other people and headed...somewhere into the mountains, to spend the afternoon learning how to play the Taiko Drums.

Ok. When I say average, I mean...surreal.
My arms and legs are exhausted but I'm never, ever going to forget this day.

I've uploaded a bunch of pictures from the day so please go check them out (that would be the link "photo album" on the right hand side)

...and also, I have some videos from the day.

Click here to watch real Taiko Drumming

Click here to watch...foreigners try to do it.

The sound quality is awful and the video quality is a bit low, but...hey thanks to Google, it's free hosting. Also, I don't mind that you can't see me because I have a stupid look on my face. (I was concentrating!)

Moments like these...

I've been teaching for...three months now. A long time? Hardly any time at all? I keep flipping back and forth.

I teach one adult student...and since I started working, I got the sense that he wasn't particularly invested in his lessons. My predecessor would spend 15 minutes playing games that involved speaking English and then go right into working through the Textbook. When I came in, I simply continued to the tradition.

But a few weeks ago, I decided to ask him what it was he was looking for in his English lessons. His answer should have been obvious...as a business man, he was looking to learn English that could be used in "situations" as he said. At the bank, at the post office, at the airport. Our current textbook dealt with none of those things...

So, I started to do a little research and I found a book that was all about situations you will encounter when you're travelling in English speaking countries. The first chapter starts on an Airplane, then the next is at immigration, next is exchanging money, making hotel reservations etc...

So today, I pulled the book out and announced we were going to try something different. I was nervous - what if he thought it was too easy? What if he already knew these things? Would he think the role-playing exercises were stupid? I'm 23, he's...late...40-something, does he really want me standing up at the white board, telling him what to do?

We made it through the lesson, but I was a bit relieved when class was over.
As he walked out the door, he stopped and turned to me and said (in Japanese)
"Thank you. I really enjoyed the lesson today."

Honestly, you would have thought I discovered world peace, the way I felt after hearing that.

My last class of the day is a group of four teenagers. After we finished the lesson, I apologized for keeping them over a few minutes and hurried to open the door. But instead of rushing out, they just sat...and talked to me for several minutes.
Sometimes my little kids will stay and play in my room after class, but the teens and pre-teens always watch the clock and then bolt for the door. Having them stay behind of their own volition...was...well...it was another one of those world peace moments.

It's not that I'm a great teacher, by any stretch of the imagination. Yesterday, I was so tired I ended up playing games with one my classes because I was too exhausted to teach a lesson. But...every once in a while, when I get it right....it's...it's indescribable.

Sometimes, it's good to be girly

Today, I was exploring the Japanese countryside with a new friend. As I was walking down a small dirt road, rice paddies on my left and green tea fields on my right, I looked down and saw a small snake.
It looked like the little garden snakes that sometimes make an appearance in Chicago gardens. Trying to impress my new friend, I thought I would not act like a girl and start screaming. Instead, I braced myself and said non-chalantly "Hmm, a snake..." while bravely stepping over it.

As I walked on, commending myself on handling that situation well, my friend looked back and said "Oh! That snake is very dangerous. Deadly poison. It can kill you!"

At which point...I started screaming.

Wake up!

I find it strange to come home and realize that while I was working all day, my friends and family back home were...sleeping. Today was a really...really...really long day. A busy weekend, followed by all day training in Gifu yesterday (Gifu is about 1.5 hours from my city), and all the while fighting a nasty cold...well, it makes for one tired teacher.

A few of my favorite junior high students came early to class today, so we were all doodling on the board. They collectively drew this for me...

Success!

I have made it to the weekend!! Today I attended Japanese lessons, enjoyed the beautiful weather by frolicking at Okazaki castle with Dawn, went shopping, cleaned my apartment, updated my blog, uploaded my pictures and sent off a stack of e-mails.

I think I can take the rest off of the evening off, guilt free. But tomorrow, Dawn and I are heading out with some new Japanese friends to go GRAPE PICKING.

I love it here....

Can it be?

More than two months after my arrival in Japan, I finally...finally...FINALLY have internet in my apartment.
For a country that is so technologically advanced, they have made the whole 'getting internet in your apartment' thing, an incredibly difficult process.

Massive, massive updates on the way. I've already begun uploading pictures (sorting through nearly 500 pictures is time consuming) so please, check them out.

I'm also working through my inbox...I've made it through about 10 of the 150 unopened messages. Oy oy. But if you've written me an e-mail, I'll be writing back soon. And if you haven't written me....helloooo, why not? ;)

Countdown!

Yesterday, I arrived in Tokyo and spent the day in Ginza with Lisa. Today I visited Asakusa and Tokyo Tower with Yumi and Margaret. And tomorrow I'm off to Disney Sea but now...I'm exhausted.

The countdown has begun - internet is being installed on my apartment on Monday!! I can finally respond to all your e-mails!

How about you?

What do you do when someone asks about the difference between discrete and discreet? (Do YOU know?)

How do you explain what an `expression` is to someone who can barely speak English?

How can you convey the subtle sound difference, yet totally different meaning of tear and tear?

What do you do when the celebration lunch for the new teacher involves a salad of squid tenticles?

How do you help someone who`s been hit by a car, when you can`t speak Japanese?

How do you cook when you can`t read the packages in the grocery store?

How do you travel when you can`t read the signs (or even sound them out to ask for directions)

Amazingly, you learn to make do in all these situations. I did ;)

Ikkagetsu

The one month mark, since my arrival in Japan, has come and gone.
I still can`t say I`m settled in, but I`m finally starting to figure out my way around this crazy town.
I`ve started stopping by the Okazaki international center on Sundays, for their free language lessons. It`s a good opportunity for me to practice speaking (in a forgiving environment), ask lots of questions and meet people! Today, I met a guy from Isreal who`s here for a month studying Japanese.

Tomorrow, I`m off to visit a friend in Nagoya - then two weeks later a friend is coming to visit me in Okazaki - and the week after, I`m heading back to Tokyo where I`ll be linking up with, amazingly enough, my cousin who just happens to be in town that same weekend on business!

So...really, I`m busy and happy and TIRED. I never knew how hard it could be to teach children. It makes me want to go back to all my teachers and apologize...

:)

Still no regular internet access, but a promise of a post about an adventure to Tokyo and a four day excursion to Japan`s vacation hot spot.
It involves intrigue, danger and...monkeys.
(Ok, it only involves monkeys. But, seriously, monkeys)

Hopefully I`ll have internet in my apartment by next week.

HELLO!

I`m alive, but only able to check my e-mail very briefly about once a week. I should get internet in my apt by next month.

If you want to reach me, you can e-mail my phone at ardenjoy@c.vodafone.ne.jp

or you can write me at

Arden Schuman
Barakan Takaba 1F
1-3 Honmachi-dori
Okazaki, Aichi
444-0051
(packages can be sent to this address too.............*hinthint*)

Sleep is good

Day 3
Still tired, still happy.
Despite my best attempts to avoid jet-lag, I am still waking up at 5am and then spending the rest of the day exhausted.
Even still, I've tried to fill my last two free days with as much activity as possible. I've uploaded most of the pictures to my photo album, but here are just a few...


The entrance to my room

I dared Nat to scale the castle walls. That's about as far as she got.
That's the castle.

 

Heavenly delights

I awoke this morning to a slightly different view out my window.

I am very happy. :)

 

Arrrrrr!

I leave tomorrow morning and I still haven't finished packing. The reason is probably because I'm too busy finding better things to do. Like this...

(that was actually the fortune I received on Tuesday at my goodbye dinner with Rachel and Lydia. )

Packing is hard work