I won’t do two years.
Though I’ve had a blast these last two weekends, the monotony of school life is just hitting me hard. I won’t be able to make it that far, I won’t be able to tough out another winter (that hasn’t even started yet). Classes are a bore, mom’s right, it’s important to do what you want in life, the sucky thing is, I don’t know what I want to do in life, though this morning, I had a flash of pure clarity as I watched my kids mull over their English textbooks that I missed being a student. I miss learning things, I miss HAVING to do something (or having something to do?). I miss those intense discussions, those classes out of which I’d drag classmates out for coffee so that we could continue the class debate, I miss feeling intellectually challenged. This job is a bore, a joke, where they pay me almost 3000$ a month to sit on my ass and be a tape-recorder. I wish I could set out on my own to some intellectual pursuit, unfortunately, I’ve never been known as proactive… Probably why I want to go back to school because, hey! Throwing buckets of hard-earned cash into the pockets of the education moguls makes it so much easier for me to feel obligated to accomplish something (if only that could work for gym subscriptions too…)
I like Japan. I truly do. I’ve met some fantastic people here from all sides of the world. But I’ve just spent a weekend with my old life, and it made me realize how much I miss it, how good it will feel to go back to it. I think I’ve made up my mind, at least that’s what it feels like at the moment.
Live it up to the fullest. Then it’ll be time to go back to my beloved Montreal, my city, my people, my life… And as I think about this, I hear the Respectables playing in my head…
J’pourrai toujours ben revenir,
Faut pas partir dans cet esprit la,
Si ya des choses qui m’plaisent ici,
Elles s’ront plus belles vues de la bas…
They were right. Every little piece of my old life looks so shiny and bright, seen from so far away… It’s like looking at the stars.
mardi 25 novembre 2008
mardi 11 novembre 2008
4:00 PM
For the first time today, my facebook chat counter indicates "0 Friends online". Funny how that always coincides with the end of the JETs workday ^^
lundi 10 novembre 2008
Merry Monday
I had a good day today. That’s a good start to the week.
Mondays often feel like crap, at least when I wake up as I realize that the weekend is over and that I have to go back to my mind numbing job as a professional speaker of Engrish. Meaning that I have to go freeze my ass at the JHS while busily surfing facebook and being bored outta my mind until someone comes to chat me up. There really isn’t much else to do, unless I’m on tape recorder duty. Granted, I could study Japanese, which would be a much better use of my time, but I am a lazy ass and re-reading someone’s blog entries in my 2nd language remains more appealing than trying to cram hiragana and katakana into my brain. Yet, today I would be spared the usual mind-numbingness of the job (at least in part) as I was due to direct my very own lesson with the ni-nen sei. Being Canadian – and French – emotions in English had been cool to learn back in my high school days. And no matter that my JTE kept saying that Japanese people could not be “overwhelmed” as they never displayed such emotions, I think the kids got the picture and enjoyed seeing me make an ass out of myself as I laughed hysterically (hysterical), jumped two feet in the air screaming “KUMO!!!!” (frightened) and made moon eyes at the little badass in class (lovestruck).
That was the first lesson of the day. It did a world of good to wake me up (and keep me warm) and I think it did get the kids genki for the day, despite it being 15 wet degrees inside the school.
Yu-chan’s lesson went well as he was in a good mood today, and he completed my body parts worksheet (with one of his favorite cartoon characters as the “body”) in record time.
And then, the surprise of the day. I had been asked (Friday evening, 10 minutes before leaving school, as per habit) to design a worksheet for today, which would be used in the san-nen sei’s lesson. Usually, this allows me 3 minutes in front of the class, actually talking as I explain the worksheet. But not today. Nope. Today, I was to stand at the front of the class for about 15 minutes, explaining what an INVITATION was, demonstrated it with the JTE, and then writing out the key sentences on the board for asking someone to do something, accepting or declining the invitation. And for once, there were more than 2 examples for EACH sentence!!! I was giddy!!! I mean, for once, I got to teach, and it was a pattern sentence that can actually be useful , and it was to students who were listening, enraptured by my every word!! Ok, maybe that’s pushing it, but they were listening and taking notes at least, which is a huge improvement over my apathetic high school kids that I wanted to strangle every damn class back in Quebec. The lesson ended with a textbook reading, but I didn’t even mind, and I was pretty happy again as the JTE joked with the students about the fact that no self-respecting JHS student would ever suggest Ghandi as a flick to watch with friends on the weekend. Seriously. What 13 year old wants to watch a 3 hour + movie about the British’s reign in India and how Ghandi ended it?
And lastly, school lunch had actual MEAT today (yakitori, I think, chicken brochettes), was all around delicious and still WARM, despite the all-around cold! Good day! ^^
Mondays often feel like crap, at least when I wake up as I realize that the weekend is over and that I have to go back to my mind numbing job as a professional speaker of Engrish. Meaning that I have to go freeze my ass at the JHS while busily surfing facebook and being bored outta my mind until someone comes to chat me up. There really isn’t much else to do, unless I’m on tape recorder duty. Granted, I could study Japanese, which would be a much better use of my time, but I am a lazy ass and re-reading someone’s blog entries in my 2nd language remains more appealing than trying to cram hiragana and katakana into my brain. Yet, today I would be spared the usual mind-numbingness of the job (at least in part) as I was due to direct my very own lesson with the ni-nen sei. Being Canadian – and French – emotions in English had been cool to learn back in my high school days. And no matter that my JTE kept saying that Japanese people could not be “overwhelmed” as they never displayed such emotions, I think the kids got the picture and enjoyed seeing me make an ass out of myself as I laughed hysterically (hysterical), jumped two feet in the air screaming “KUMO!!!!” (frightened) and made moon eyes at the little badass in class (lovestruck).
That was the first lesson of the day. It did a world of good to wake me up (and keep me warm) and I think it did get the kids genki for the day, despite it being 15 wet degrees inside the school.
Yu-chan’s lesson went well as he was in a good mood today, and he completed my body parts worksheet (with one of his favorite cartoon characters as the “body”) in record time.
And then, the surprise of the day. I had been asked (Friday evening, 10 minutes before leaving school, as per habit) to design a worksheet for today, which would be used in the san-nen sei’s lesson. Usually, this allows me 3 minutes in front of the class, actually talking as I explain the worksheet. But not today. Nope. Today, I was to stand at the front of the class for about 15 minutes, explaining what an INVITATION was, demonstrated it with the JTE, and then writing out the key sentences on the board for asking someone to do something, accepting or declining the invitation. And for once, there were more than 2 examples for EACH sentence!!! I was giddy!!! I mean, for once, I got to teach, and it was a pattern sentence that can actually be useful , and it was to students who were listening, enraptured by my every word!! Ok, maybe that’s pushing it, but they were listening and taking notes at least, which is a huge improvement over my apathetic high school kids that I wanted to strangle every damn class back in Quebec. The lesson ended with a textbook reading, but I didn’t even mind, and I was pretty happy again as the JTE joked with the students about the fact that no self-respecting JHS student would ever suggest Ghandi as a flick to watch with friends on the weekend. Seriously. What 13 year old wants to watch a 3 hour + movie about the British’s reign in India and how Ghandi ended it?
And lastly, school lunch had actual MEAT today (yakitori, I think, chicken brochettes), was all around delicious and still WARM, despite the all-around cold! Good day! ^^
vendredi 7 novembre 2008
For Ed
So now you can’t complain that I never post in English.
Thanks for a kickass show last night. I really enjoyed myself.
Music… what else is there in life? Well ok, there’s a lot of other stuff in life, but nothing quite like music. And there is definitely nothing like live music.
I’m sad that you are leaving so soon, when I feel like I just got here. I wish I could’ve seen you play more often. You might’ve even been able to expand my musical horizons further than my beloved emo-pop-punk-alternative scene.
Led Zep is missing from my iTunes I notice (I think I can hear you saying something along the lines of “Sacrilege!” or “Blasphemy!” as you read this) but I am on the way to rectifying that situation. Any suggestions on what a Led Zep newbie should get?
Thanks again.
Darth Val
PS: and in order to continue your French education, should you ever come to Montréal.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9U72QVCgh_Q
Thanks for a kickass show last night. I really enjoyed myself.
Music… what else is there in life? Well ok, there’s a lot of other stuff in life, but nothing quite like music. And there is definitely nothing like live music.
I’m sad that you are leaving so soon, when I feel like I just got here. I wish I could’ve seen you play more often. You might’ve even been able to expand my musical horizons further than my beloved emo-pop-punk-alternative scene.
Led Zep is missing from my iTunes I notice (I think I can hear you saying something along the lines of “Sacrilege!” or “Blasphemy!” as you read this) but I am on the way to rectifying that situation. Any suggestions on what a Led Zep newbie should get?
Thanks again.
Darth Val
PS: and in order to continue your French education, should you ever come to Montréal.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9U72QVCgh_Q
jeudi 6 novembre 2008
Little funny story
I was leaving my elementary school yesterday, feeling dead and disgruntled because – let’s face it – playing Fruits Basket 4 times in a row for over 20 minutes EACH TIME will do that to anyone. So as I was taking off, I saw some of my Junior High students playing in the field with the elementary kids. They ran over to me to say hi and we started a bit of chit chat just as the principal from the Junior High school pulled into the parking lot.
He came over to us, talked with the students in Japanese as I tried to catch a couple of words. From what I understood there was something going on at the cultural center near my house and the two girls participated in something and they were good. He then turned to me, spoke his two words of English, “Good afternoon”, to me and then tried to engage me in conversation. Meaning he looked as though he was about to say something, stopped, looked for his words, stopped again.
Finally he looked at the students and asked them for help in case I didn’t understand what he’d say to me. They nodded and waited for him to speak. So he looks back at me, is about to say something, stops, looking lost, tries again, gestures to the students, obviously trying to tell me that they did something at the Kominkan this weekend…
So one of the girls just waits, and looks at him, and as he turns to look at her, still at loss, she says, very clearly and slowly: “They.”
I laughed the entire way home.
He came over to us, talked with the students in Japanese as I tried to catch a couple of words. From what I understood there was something going on at the cultural center near my house and the two girls participated in something and they were good. He then turned to me, spoke his two words of English, “Good afternoon”, to me and then tried to engage me in conversation. Meaning he looked as though he was about to say something, stopped, looked for his words, stopped again.
Finally he looked at the students and asked them for help in case I didn’t understand what he’d say to me. They nodded and waited for him to speak. So he looks back at me, is about to say something, stops, looking lost, tries again, gestures to the students, obviously trying to tell me that they did something at the Kominkan this weekend…
So one of the girls just waits, and looks at him, and as he turns to look at her, still at loss, she says, very clearly and slowly: “They.”
I laughed the entire way home.
mardi 4 novembre 2008
Une page de l'Histoire
Je ne pensais pas que ca m’affecterais comme ca, d’autant plus que je suis a l’autre bout du monde en ce moment, mais peut-etre mon petit pelerinage a Obama-shi m’a-t-il rapproche de l’election Americaine plus que je ne le pensais… Jamais je n’aurais pense passer la journee a reloader le site de Cyberpresse.ca a suivre les presidentielles, alors que je n’ai meme pas vote a mes propres federales…
Sauf que dans le vent de folie qui traverse le monde en ce moment, il y a quelque chose qui nous pousse a ne pas etre indifferent du resultat de cette election.
Les gens sont de plus en plus blases face a la politique. De plus en plus d’entre nous realisons a quel point il est difficile de faire bouger les choses, a quel point, au fond, on ne sait rien de ce qui se passe deriere ce que les medias veulent bien nous dire.
Sauf qu’il fut un temps ou les choses bougeaient. Il fut un temps ou il etait possible de creer des changements. Ghandi a paralyse l’Inde pour en faire sortir les envahisseurs. Castro a crisse les USA en dehors de Cuba a grand coups de pied dans le cul. Le Quebec a mis l’Eglise Catholique a la porte de ses ecoles pour y previlegier le savoir et a ainsi declenche une revolution culturelle sans violence. Martin Luther King a apporte de l’espoir a ceux qui etaient injustement opprimes, simplement a cause de la couleur de leur peau.
Le changement fut possible.
Obama me redonne l’envie d’y croire.
Sauf que dans le vent de folie qui traverse le monde en ce moment, il y a quelque chose qui nous pousse a ne pas etre indifferent du resultat de cette election.
Les gens sont de plus en plus blases face a la politique. De plus en plus d’entre nous realisons a quel point il est difficile de faire bouger les choses, a quel point, au fond, on ne sait rien de ce qui se passe deriere ce que les medias veulent bien nous dire.
Sauf qu’il fut un temps ou les choses bougeaient. Il fut un temps ou il etait possible de creer des changements. Ghandi a paralyse l’Inde pour en faire sortir les envahisseurs. Castro a crisse les USA en dehors de Cuba a grand coups de pied dans le cul. Le Quebec a mis l’Eglise Catholique a la porte de ses ecoles pour y previlegier le savoir et a ainsi declenche une revolution culturelle sans violence. Martin Luther King a apporte de l’espoir a ceux qui etaient injustement opprimes, simplement a cause de la couleur de leur peau.
Le changement fut possible.
Obama me redonne l’envie d’y croire.
Inscription à :
Articles (Atom)
