Love is...

Back...what seems like forever ago, but was really only a few years ago, I was sitting in Japanese class - a mere Freshman in college.

My teacher asked us if anyone was interested in finding a language partner. I put my name on her list and a week later got an e-mail address from her. Some Japanese girl named Yuki was studying at my school's ESL program and was looking for an English/Japanese exchange.

We eventually started meeting once a week to practice our respective foreign languages. Two years later, I transferred schools and she, soon after, headed back to Japan. But when we said our goodbyes, we promised that someday we would meet again...only in her hometown, instead of mine.

I promised her most sincerely but doubted even more sincerely that I would actually find myself ever meeting her in Kyoto.

And yet...three days ago, I returned from Kyoto after attending her wedding.

Life is strange, isn't it?

Attending a Japanese wedding was a phenomenal, unforgettable experience. It was an incredible gift to be invited and I was the only foreigner in the entire place. However, it was also very...very...kitchy.
I don't know how else to describe it.

The entire event was accompanied by corny English music (like "Lovin' you is easy cause you're beautiful..."), there were suited women wearing ear pieces who followed the bride and groom around giving them direct instructions on how to do everything and there was even an MC who narrated, interviewed and cracked jokes. All of this amidst deep Japanese tradition. Aside from that, it was just amazing to see how brief and unceremonious the wedding was and...how the bride and groom didn't kiss...ONCE. Not once.

I just didn't know what to make of it all. So I tried not to make anything of it. Instead, I took lots of pictures, applauded heartily at every opportunity and reveled in the strangeness of it all....

The pictures are here So...revel with me, if you care....

At last...

Like someone waking you from a deep sleep, their voice just beginning to pull you from an icy nightmare, so Spring is whispering in my ear...

It isn't here yet, but I can hear it in the occasional warm breeze, the gathering strength of the sun, the ever increasing daylight, the birth of blossoms on trees. How long have I been asleep...?

As I am pulled from my wintery slumber, my calendar is beginning to fill up again. This weekend, my friend Yumi from Tokyo came to visit. She is my kindred spirit and I found it difficult to come home after work to an empty apartment...
Next weekend, Dawn and I will be partaking in a Mochi making party (mochi being a thin, sticky rice cake) at the International Center. Then the next weekend, I'm off to Kyoto to attend the traditional Japanese wedding of my dear friend Yuki! And a few weeks later...it's off to...Korea! Another good friend of mine, Mika, and I have planned a 4 day excursion in Seoul. And of course, the following month...my Mother is coming!!

But...like Spring, the adventures have yet to come, and so I only have one new thing to report. After much consideration, I have extended my contract in Japan for one month if for no other reason than to finish up at the same time as Dawn. However, it is my sincere hope that with some avid saving, I will be able to attend a 3 month intensive Japanese language program in Tokyo. I have come all the way to Japan to spend my days speaking...English. I'd like to walk away feeling like I've improved my Japanese just a little. The programs are varied and not overly expensive. However, housing in Japan is another problem. So if anyone knows of a cheap place to stay in Tokyo just...um...let me know.

Happy Valentine's Day... <3

Inching forward at the speed of light

With a sink full of dishes and an apartment which I recently described as "an explosion" - I have spent the night listening to my new crush, Josh Kelley, and sending introspective e-mails. (And when I say "listening" what I actually mean is listening to the same song on repeat...I'll get to the rest of his music later.)

About two weeks ago, my manager stopped by my classroom to briefly go over my six month review. During our conversation all I could think was "SIX MONTHS?!" After she left, I went to the calendar and counted the months just to make sure there wasn't some sort of mix-up.

I seem to waver between feeling like I've been here my whole life and I've only just arrived. The experiences I've had, the friendships I've developed...it's a lifetime's worth. But...somehow, it just doesn't seem like six months have passed. I could swear I was just carting my suitcase through customs and stepping into Japan.

Yet...even despite the exotic setting and the fervent passage of time, a feeling of homogony is beginning to set in...and it's time to get away and break things up a little. This weekend, in attempt to 'creatively' travel (creative=cheap), Dawn and I are going to spend the weekend in the big city of...Nagoya. It's not quite a trip but it's certainly not a weekend of, well, same-old same-old.

Tragic reply

My pile of "e-mails owed" was already growing ridiculously long before my birthday arrived AND I got lost in the haze of yet another deadly cold. Now I am just resigned to the fact that I am a terrible friend, daughter, granddaughter and cousin and am temporarily assuaging my guilt with this all-encompassing blog entry until I can start writing people back....

To describe this week as a 'haze' is putting it lightly. A slightly stuffy nose quickly escalated into a raging head cold that made it difficult for me to do anything besides push through work and then come home and pass out. Until yesterday, my apartment was buried under a mountain of dishes and tissues...

Somehow, I managed to perk up long enough to enjoy my birthday, though. Yes - yes, 24 is here, despite my best attempts to suppress it. Do you know the most repeated comment I've gotten is that my age is the same number as the TV show '24'? You're all freaks, you know? ^_~

Anyway, Dawn brought me flowers in the morning and my co-workers surprised me with a birthday cake in the afternoon. My phone beeped periodically throughout the day with birthday wishes from friends from around the world and several gifts/cards trickled in as well. All in all, it was a a very nice day...though I will never cease to be amazed at how one absent birthday wish can put a slight damper on all the rest...

Alex Monroe pointed out that living in Japan allowed me to celebrate my birthday for an extra half a day...however, Dawn and I are stretching it all the way to Sunday. Tomorrow we are off to 'celebrate' at a spa in Nagoya. Since I've arrived in Japan I've had many weekends off and several vacations. But tomorrow I intend to do what I haven't done during any of those: bid farewell to my perpetual cold, relax my aching muscles and rest my weary...weary self. That way, I can get started on writing some long overdue e-mails!

In Hiding...

The onset of another cold, an icy bedroom, a nightmare that left me shaking and not enough sleep was how I began my day and my work week. Had it not been for Dawn banging on my door to check on me, after I sent her a message entitled "panic," I probably would not have gone in to work today....

It's January, and even with the daily splendor of being in Japan, I am still affected by the cold and the lack of sunlight. Winter just makes me tired. It's too cold to travel or even explore my own town. It's too dark to be industrious. I scurry to work and then hurry home, finishing my chores as quickly as possible so I can hide under my blankets.

I wake up each morning and ache for spring to come. I never seem to tire of walking out the door and being instantly greeted by warmth, bright sun, cool breezes, endless sky, bustling animals and all the colors of nature. It doesn't matter how tired I am...a sparkling, warm day enfuses me with energy and hope, making it impossible to just sit home. I even love the rain when it's warm....more often than not, on a warm day I'll opt to walk home without an umbrella...

I'm holding my breath until that first warm day greets me again and I'll know that my adventuring spirit will come out of hibernation soon.

Once more, please...

At around noon on New Years Day, after hours of meandering through Tokyo had already passed, it occured to me that my friends and family back in the states still hadn't even reached 2007 yet! What a strange feeling...

But now that everyone has entered the next year, I can officially say HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Tokyo, as usual, did not let me down. The New Year was rung in as unforgettably as the last...only this time it was with three amazing ladies, one boy and drama right to the last second (literally). We were forced to make impromptu plans at the last second and ended up running to Tokyo Tower just in time to see it light up with the delightful news that we had in fact made it to 2007.

On New Years Day, I was invited to join my friend Lisa at her family's house for New Year's Dinner. Honestly, I was too amazed to take pictures...which I am regretting now. The food was beautiful displayed (and delicious) and the family was...unforgettable. They welcomed me in, made a toast to me (in English!), gave me New Year gifts and made me feel like part of the family.


The next day was shopping with Lisa, Dawn and Yuka down in Shibuya. And then yesterday, after spending the entire afternoon with Yumi, I went out with Lisa and her Mom to the first Kabuki performance of the year at the Kabuki-za theatre! I've used "unforgettable" twice already to describe my trip, but really...that's the only word I can use now. To be sitting in Japan, in Tokyo, watching an ancient art form be performed was just...mind blowing. Many of the women were dressed in kimono, including my dear Lisa, who looked like a Japanese princess.

My vacation isn't over just yet, I have a few more days and I intend to see it out to the last. But I wanted to quickly update and say that I hope everyone had a wonderful New Years and is excited to see what 2007 holds. I know I am. I have a feeling I'm in for quite a ride...

<3

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.