I'm Lost

So I'm trying hard to clean up and catch up. hehe. What I mean is that you get to a point where you have so many pictures and blog ideas and stuff, that organization is just painful! So here are a couple of random pics that I will just toss in your general vicinity. I know. Very unprofessional of me! :)

So I watched The Lovely Bones (or in Japanese.... just "Rabuli Boon" pronounced like r(l)ovely bone. only one bone I guess). It would have been good, I think, if it were an hour shorter. It was tooooooooooooooooo long. And indulgent as Simon would say.

Here's Hofu at night! One night I just decided to go on a hike at 3a.m.

As an ALT (Assistant Language Teacher) sometimes you get free dinner out of the gig! And sometimes that free dinner is Korean food! YeeeeeeeS! This was after the "Winter English Seminar" that was held for one of my campus groups. 5 of us ALTs all did workshops, and the students performed for us. It was pretty fun stuff. I wish every working day could be a rad, off-campus seminar. :) My supervisor is in the middle there, and I love her!!!

He is a scraggler that got behind from my laughing festival post. This was during the interview the Tuesday before the Laughing Contest.
And the most exciting picture to ever grace the steffyyoung.blogspot wall---- This is where I rent videos. Da da DUM!!! Actually haven't rented in a while. Need to make a new trip there.

Re-contracting

So I re-contracted for another year. I will now be in Japan until July 2011.

For some reason, I imagine that my supervisor could tell that it wasn't the happiest decision that I've ever made...


I would like to thank everyone who came to my "Going Away Party Number 2!" on New Years Day (When I was visiting home), and contributed to my giant list of Pros and Cons about re-contracting.


(I had two big big sheets of paper, and a few sharpies-- to have the important people in my life make the decision for me.)


Well, quite honestly I don't know if you guys swung to the pros or cons side at all (I was a little hungover...) BUT Thanks anyways.


Its only been 24 days since I was forced to make the decision, and if I could retract that decision right now, I would. But I can't. And I must have decided that way for a reason. So I'm going to make the best of it.


Best of it:

-I still have a lot to see, and a lot of places I can travel.
-I have a steady, decent job, with no (very little) chance of being laid off.
-I have a massive amount of books that are here and I can read.
-My supervisor is freaking awesome.
-I probably wouldn't have the resources to live alone at home...but here I can walk around naked to my hearts content.
-After one more round of weather here, I will never complain about California weather again.
-I (very generally) enjoy teaching (generally, sometimes).
-Skype and facebook are still free.
-I've discovered tea, and I still have my PS3!

drumroll
#1- only 517 days until I'm really happy.

Uplifting 1

At times, Japan can be a very..... uplifting place. So many items that scream happiness and cuteness at us. Everything is "Kawaii!!!" (cute!)

The "Kawaii!!!" things include ME by the way. I think I will go through "Kawaii withdrawal", when I go back to the states, and every teenager that walks by me will NOT scream "Cute!" at me.

Today 3 students grabbed me to stare into my eyes. And said "Blue!~ I want blue eye!" They would not believe me when I responded: "I want black hair!" They are so cute,... jealous of my blue eyes, even though I'm jealous of their everything!

Especially their pencil cases and folders that scream in beautiful letters "Lets friends be! I love you!" Sometimes the 'kawaii"ness of everything can be overwhelming. But lately, I definitely need support, even from inanimate objects!

Ohayoo Gozaimasu!

So this post is definitely on something I don't understand...but all I can do is record my humble observations. Above, you can see 10 High School students standing outside. They are looking on, waiting for another group of students to trek up the hill to the high school. As soon as said group of students is about 10 meters away, the line will start saying (almost shouting) Ohayoo Gozaimasu! Ohayoo Gozaimasu~! This means Good morning.

It is more awkward for me, because I don't usually walk with a group, and they don't know whether to scream "Ohayoo Gozaimasu" or "Gud-mourneng!" at me. :) If I'm feeling very English teacher'ish I scream "Good Morning" to them first, so they can practice this ever-so-important salutation! Yet, I think they get too much practice with this one, because students still stop me in school at 4:30 p.m. to tell me "Good Morning."

I think that the morning greeting is a great great part of the Japanese school system. I just don't know how each week's "Greeters" are chosen. Most of the time, actually, stationed at the front of the school are two teachers. Usually one male, and one female. They just stand there from about 7:55a.m. to 8:23a.m. (the teachers meeting is at 8:25 so they must rush inside), and say good morning to every student that comes into the school gates! This is pretty spectacular, when you think about how freaking cold it has been. I am always greeted on my way into school, if I am on a normal morning schedule.

(sidenote because I mentioned teachers meeting--there is a teachers meeting every single morning, without fail...I really want to audio-record what the teachers room sounds like from 8:10-8:24 in the morning...there is NO WAY to explain it on here...but to the foreign ear, it is freaking ridiculous!!! I can't even try to explain. ... A lot of grunting GOZAIMASU'es)

So I look forward to my greeting tomorrow. Its a new week at that school, so I am wondering if it will be a group of students, or the normal male/female, seemingly random teachers. I am also resolved to ask tomorrow how they chose the fate of those lucky greeters.

Valentine daY

Happy Valentine's Day! I mean.... Valentine daY! 2.14. :)

In Japan, the tradition for Valentine's Day is that the girl gives the guy a present. Candy, chocolate, cake...something along the lines of a regular Valentine's Day token of love. Let me repeat. The girl gives the guy. Period.

Guys aren't suppose to do anything on Valentine's Day. Its one sided!

Its not until March 14th that the guys need to give back. March 14th... reciprocation day... actually called: "White Day" in Japan. Whoever gave them something on Valentine's Day....They must give something back that is at least 3 times the value of the original Valentine's Day gift.

On Valentine's Day, there are two type of chocolates that can be bought (if the girl isn't doing some homemade goodness). There are chocolates specifically for real love interests, and chocolates specifically for male coworkers, friends, and colleagues. At one of my schools, one of the female teacher gave every single male teacher a box of chocolates that was at least 300 Yen each!

Follow the logic there. She will on March 14th be getting dozens and dozens of boxes of chocolates worth 900 Yen each!

The 3x rule is not official, its just what my coworkers and such suggested. Regardless, that teacher is going to be sitting pretty next month. Apparently all the chocolate and jewelry and stuff given to the girls on March 14th must be delivered in white boxes. I don't know. I've never lived in Japan in March. ;) We'll see.

I brought chips and salsa for my colleagues for Valentine's Day. They get enough chocolate, and besides, most of them have never actually tasted chips and salsa! (I got these delectable items from Costco on Saturday. Thank you so much Monica and Chris for driving!)

Last interesting tidbit--in South Korea, they have one additional day on top of Valentine's Day and White Day. They have Black Day~! Black Day is celebrated on April 14th. Its for all the single people out there. If you don't give or receive anything on Feb. 14th or Mar. 14th, you are suppose to eat black noodles on that day. And be grouchy? I'm not sure about the grouchy part. :)

Hope everyone had a great Valentine's Day!

On the 14th I ate some ramen with Hofu friends, went farming and pickling, and shared an amazing Mexican meal with other Hofu friends. It was a good day. Pictures of some of those events, probably (hopefully) coming up soon!

Hofu Area Scenes

I want to go play in these.... weeds? I don't know what they are. Hay? It doesn't seem like any type of food to me. I just thought this was a beautiful scene in front of one of the High Schools that I teach at.

Here is Hofu Tenmangu at 3:00a.m. I decided to climb the mountain behind it at 3am a couple of weeks ago. It was actually pretty cool, climbing up a mountain equipped with a flashlight and a cell-phone (for pics like this....not for emergency calls...knock on wood). I climbed it once more during dark hours since, and now these stairs have turned into my own personal stairmaster,... as part of my exercise routine.

"Some Holiday"

Not until yesterday did I think about asking a co-worker: "What is National Foundation Day?" I knew that I had this Thursday off, for a while now. I just didn't care why! Day off!

Turns out that I'm not the only one. "hmmmmmmmmm, I don't know" said the first co-worker I asked. Then my supervisor walked by. "hmmmmmmmmmmm" she said. The first co-worker I asked got out his little electronic dictionary/encyclopedia.

Apparently there may or may not have been some bloke called Jimmu Teno, somewhere in Japanese history. Teno, by the way, means Emperor. So this Emperor Jim(mu) was the first emperor of Japan, and he was either crowned or born on this day. And he may or may not have existed.

Thats what I got from my co-workers.

:) I just think its interesting, and I'm not making fun of it! Its just nice to know that Americans are not the only ones that appreciate days off because they are days off. What the heck is Presidents Day? I don't know! Is it like..., celebrating all the Presidents? Or just certain ones? It is this Monday, back in the New World right?

So after getting back from enjoying my day with good friends in a new city...I decided to look up National Foundation Day. My co-workers were actually quite right. "They" say that this Emperor Jimmu was throned in 660B.C. on this day, so very long ago. But no one seems to deem these historical records accurate. I'm okay with that! Keep the National Foundation Days rolling on in!

Here are some pictures from my day in IwAkUnI! I'll do a separate post on my Iwakuni adventure later...but just to add some color to this post:

Iwakuni--bridge area. More on this later.

Just like home! Taco, enchilada, sour cream, jalapenos. Thank you cities with military bases. Thank you white guys who demand good food in the city in which you are stationed.

Mike double fists it with Mexican beer and a margarita.

I hate margaritas, but its not something I can get anywhere in my area! Gotta go all out, if you're gonna go out. Hi Matt and Sophie!

Setsubun- Feb 3rd

It's a Tuesday morning. I’m just finishing up teaching 4^th period at the Prefectural Deaf school, here in Yamaguchi Prefecture. I was excited to get back to my g-chat. Suddenly, my supervisor is tugging me over to a building of the school that I had never been in. Not being able to understand what she was telling me in the hustle, all I can think about was not being able to talk to my friends. Just before being pulled into, what I would soon find out was the Kindergarten class, I recognize a few words: beans, devils, and more beans.

Forever more: screw friends, when there are Kindergarteners around!

Now, in retrospect, the only thing I have to be annoyed about is that I didn’t have my camera or cell phone on me! There were 5 tiny kindergarteners screaming/laughing, and throwing beans at 3 devil’s (3 of my high school students dressed up as devils).

I am adoring the cutest kids ever, trying to find clues to what is going on. On the blackboard are some artfully constructed letters, which translate in the American alphabet to: “Mamemasa”. Having realized that my supervisor was talking about beans, beans, and more beans, I connect the “Mame” part of the word, to what I already am familiar with: “Mameshiba!”

Check out this commercial (there are many many commercials featuring these adorable Mameshiba’s (bean dogs): HERE

About a minute after I get there, the devils are driven out of the classroom, no longer being able to withstand the bean-throwing. Five minutes later, during bean clean-up, the kindergarten teacher works to get their attention (which is not the simplest thing to do with 5 excited deaf children). She points through the window, to the foot of the mountain. Yes, this school sits at the base of a beautiful mountain! The 3 devils are seen retreating into the mountains! (I’m sure those 3 volunteer high school students would rather be running into the mountains than sitting in Japanese class).

This was so beautifully arranged. And I received all the explanation that I could hope for after I was escorted back to the teacher’s room. The next day, would be Setsubun.

February 3^rd is Setsubun. Setsubun is the festival of bean throwing. “Mamemasa”, what was written at the front of the Kindergartener’s class, means that exactly: Bean throwing. Setsubun, the name of the holiday itself means the “division of seasons”.

February 3^rd is considered the last day of winter here. Americans have “Groundhog Day,” but the celebration of Setsubun seems far more widespread to me.

In fact, up on the International space station, beans were thrown today. Well, M&M’s. Soichi Noguchi, the Japanese flight engineer was filmed throwing M&M’s, repeating the famous Setsubun phrase: “Oni wa soto, huku wa uchi”.

Ideally what happens in each Japanese household is: The father plays the role of a devil. The family throws beans at him chanting “Oni wa sota, huku wa uchi”, meaning “Devils out, Fortune in” until he runs away. While throwing beans at him, once he is just out of the house, one also throws beans back inside, over their shoulders. This if for the “fortune in” part of the chant.

After you expel the demon, you traditionally eat the dried soybeans—one soybean per year you have lived.

Here was my lunch today:

My bean packet only had 24 beans in it, and I’m 25! I was so sad, because I wanted my deserved luck. Seeing me count my beans, my supervisor skipped over with an extra pack, to make sure I had enough. So I borrowed a bean!

At the same moment, while I was stuck in stuck in this super rural school, over in the heart of the city, “Hadakabou” was going on in commemoration of Setsubun. This means that there were a bunch of men sauntering around Hofu with a lucky calf. Yes. A cow god, in fact. They made their way up to Tenmangu shrine …a shrine that I have talked about numerous times. There, occurring 3 times throughout the day were massive bean throwing events. Everyone there was in the running to win the calf-god. I was not there, but I didn’t want the cow anyways. Hehe.

photo source: http://www.kanko-hofu.gr.jp/topics/200902/tenmangu/setsubun/index.html

I’m sad that I missed the event, but I had English club. Next year, I will make sure to use my PTO and make my way to the festival.

I did hit the end of the festival after work, but it had almost completely died down (see below).

I know I know, this post just goes on and on! But one other famous thing to do during Setsubun is to Eat “makizushi” or uncut sushi rolls, while facing a certain direction. This year we needed to face southeast. You need to stand up and finish your sushi, staring southeast, without saying a word. If you speak one word during this time, you will have bad luck all year, and vice versa.

I bought the wrong sushi! But the convenience store on my way home from Tenmangu didn’t carry the right kind! As you can see, I bought more nuts too, so I could rain soybeans down on the roofs of my neighbors while calling “Oni was soto” and mess up my bedroom while calling “Huku wa uchi”.

Lets see how my luck goes this year. If the wind blows the way I want it, when the new school term starts again, I will be able to pick up more elementary and Kindergarten classes! And I will always have enough to do, without g-chat filling my time! Okay… now that I’m done with this post, back to g-chat. *Whew! J

P.S. I want to leave you with one alternative view of Setsubun, brought to you by a friend (Shimonoseki Alex) in the Prefecture.

“Setsubun: The Japanese festival wherein one of the teachers dress up as a scary demon and scare the shit out of the little kids who are supposed to throw soy beans at them while chanting "out with the Demon! In with Happiness!" though they instead just stand there and cry... and cry... and then hide behind the other teachers who are laughing their asses off. Priceless.”