It's snowboarding season!!!
I think I actually found a reason to love winter. I have learned to snowboard. It's mad fun & I've been doing it every chance I get since I've been back. I'm still quite a newbie so I am not doing anything spectacular, but i'm learning. :) I have my own board (after a week of deliberation, going to the city & back, going to various stores & checking prices). I splurged and got all new stuff... but I love my stuff and I'll be glad to show it to y'all when I get back.
I went to a place called skijam on Saturday and it was nuts. There were nearly flat surfaces and then straight drops... not exactly beginner. But I handled it for 6 hours without getting too banged up. This time around (it was my second time) I only have 2 bruises on my knees and I had a bit of a sore back. It was gorgeous during the day cause the view was spectacular (snow capped mountains & trees) and the sun was out. It got colder & more windy later and then the snow got more packed... which means more ice... which means it hurt a LOT more when I fell. However it was great. In contrast, I went night boarding yesterday and there were hardly any people & we were on POWDER practically the whole 4 hours. It was fantastic. I have decided that that is my new training ground. I think i must have ate it more times than I care to admit... and HARD (I got my noodle knocked around so much!)... but because it was all soft snow, I was fine. :D
Today it continues to snow. Moreso than even yesterday so, I have been looking longingly out the classroom windows at the mountains all day. However I have to have some self control... it ain't a cheap hobby! 2500 yen for night passes and about 4000 for day passes ... adds up. Oh well... the season is only here for a few months, right?! That's why, I'm going to Gifu prefecture on a ski trip this saturday! Woo hoo! New terrain & a new prefecture! :D The best of both worlds.
New Year's Resolutions
In the mornings, I will get up in time to:
- pack my lunch
- take out the trash on the right days
- walk leisurely to my first class
- I will learn to snowboard like a mo fo. (yes, I said MO FO)
- I will be able to perform at least ONE kind of tea ceremony by memory (AND get a tea set of my very own!)
- Learn a bit more Japanese (ganbatte!!!)
- Learn to cook some wicked good J-dishes
Again, today is a bit of a bore. Still not much to do... no grading yet... woo hoo!!! My one class today went well. But practically all the planning was already done. It's a bit of a shame I feel like I don't get to contribute much sometimes. And then I just feel like a human stereo... they just bring me out to speak a lil English, so I wish for a bit more of a challenge. I think its just the way they view the role of the ALT at this school. For the most part I team teach my fair share... and actually its just the OC classes that I don't do much. So, I don't feel too bad. AND on the lighter side, it gives me more free time to to other things... I don't come home with so much to do. At least not so far... things may change in a week or two when I have to grad again [gasp! dread!]
I think I'll be on to planning my next vacation. Yes, I just got back and I'm ready to get out the do' again. I have 6 days of Nenkyu (paid vacation) and I need to budget it for the rest of the year. I get about 2 weeks sometime in the spring so I think i'm going to shoot for my tropical vacaion! Woo hoo. This weekend, its all about the snowboarding. Oh yes... and my birthday.
Another year older... bah.
Links are now active
So check 'em out if you didn't already befo. Alls you have to do now is click.
I got some new ones fo ya too!!!
http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2114946102Nagoya
http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2114945262&slideshow=1First Snow
Back in the Saddle Again
I have returned to my post after a 3 week absence. The vacation home was a blast. Thanks to all who were able to make it out at some point! For those who couldn't, we'll have to catch up when I come back. :)
The flight back was good. Very smooth, but quite long & VERY boring. All I can say is that crosswords are a god-send. I watched the Corpse Bride, The Brothers Grimm & K-Pax. They were OK. Brothers Grimm was pretty fun... aninteresting creation from Terry Gilliam. Hmmm... but only gets a 5.9 out of 10(
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0355295/)
First day back is pretty uneventful. It's been snowing on and off and patches of sun. Luckily its not as cold as I thought it might be. High 30F 's during the day and it looks like sun is predicted for the rest of the week! YAY!!!! Maybe I'll actually get to play in the snow! Despite the pleasantness... its still DAMN cold! I'll be shopping for extra heaters and an electric blanket or bed warmer tonight. What a pain it is to live in such weather. Well, at least now I have snowboarding to look forward to. :D
No classes today. Opening ceremony was held in the morning. Students lined up with their classes, stood around and listened to the principal give a speech and other teachers making announcement for this term. It's the last term... in Japan I guess there are 3 terms (kind of like in the States) but they start the new school year in Spring. So, winter is the last term of the year. Kind of saddens me cause it means my 2nd years (my fave classes) will be moving up to 3rd year and I won't have classes with them in the spring. Awwww! Poor kids though. Especially the girls- they still have to wear skirts and no tights allowed!!!! It's SO cold in the gym (you can see your breath). They have 2 enormous kerosene heaters
blowing warm air but it's so futile. By the time it starts to warm up, the assembly is over. Well, after the announcements, the kids get inspected... uniforms & hair. It's still a bit of a weird sight for me to see. The teachers are pretty meticulous... they kind of part the students' hair & really look at it through all angles to make sure its not dyed or too long/ short. I hope all the kids have clean hair on opening ceremony day. How nasty would that be to be lookin through some kid's hair and it was all greasy or it had lice!!!!!LIIIIIIIIIIICE!!!
The rest of the day has been spent trying to work on fixing this temp computer to my liking. In case you hadn't heard, the technology gods took a dump on me this winter and I had to get a new computer & iPod. :( Big ole expenses. And a royal pain in the butt. Oh well. Yay new stuff, I guess. The teachers are running around doing stuff and getting exams. I guess today the students had to take English and Japanese exams (government ones? I'm not sure) and tomorrow morning they have to take a math exam. Lucky them. Hehe... really lucky for me though. It gives me time to get my stuff together. The OC classes are pretty much planned for the next 6 weeks (my job is so easy here! It's insane) but I think I have to do more planning for the writing classes. They'll be doing debates in a few weeks. Good times. Finally a chance for them to speak! This should be interesting. Lastly I have to write up my presentation on grading for something. I guess my teachers have to publish things every year??? Nothing really significant (it could be anything from my reflections on japan, a story or poem to lesson plans and classroom observations). Eh. It's just extra work. More good times. At least it'll get me thinking again! Yata!
Here are some pix of my school in winter.
Till tomorrow...
