My last class just now, aka "the robots". The material this week was a little better, but with the crap weather (cold and rainy) I feared the worst. They somehow pleasantly surprised me by being quite upbeat and talkative (in English no less, lol) today.

But still, I feel myself getting into a rut again. I need to snap out of it. I know what I can do, I'm just so f-ing lazy.

For example, my typical day at work has loads of free time. I spend most of that time just playing on the internet. I do make some decent lesson plans, but if I would just put in just a little more time and effort I could come up with some great ones. Also, I could be studying Japanese. While it's something that I don't really want to do, it is something that I need to do (at least if I want to improve my odds of getting a better job here in Japan).

Then once I get home I have two other things that I could should be doing: practicing the sax and exercising. I've been ok about the sax, putting together a decent practice here and there. I just need to be more consistent and also play some new stuff. I've been trying to get my chops back playing stuff that I had played in university. I should get some new pieces just to mix things up a bit. They don't need to be harder, just different. Heck, maybe they need to be easier because I'm not as good as I used to be, and it has been frustrating making mistakes with that stuff when I knew it inside/out back in the day.

Exercising I've been REALLY slack on. Last year when I was really into the gym, I noticed a big difference both physically and mentally. I need to get back into that bigtime. I don't feel a need to relieve stress at all - for real, this job is the most laid-back thing ever AND compare that to the elementary school where ms. you-know-who was on my case all the time. However, I AM out of shape. My clothes don't fit as well as they used to. I think I will stop by the gym after work tomorrow (it's raining today, and the gym is a bit far) and see what the membership plans are like. Actually, there's a big gym close to Shizuoka station. I was planning on heading downtown for a bit anyway. I think I'll stop by that one before I head on home.

So I went ahead and did the easy part of getting my American license converted today - I got an official translation. I also picked up the little "rules of the road" book to study. Next I have to go to the police station and make an appointment for the various tests. Apparently there's an interview (and eye & hearing check?), written test and driving test. I have to go to the police department to make an appointment for those. I can't go tomorrow morning as I have a meeting in the afternoon and I don't know how long it'll take to do all that. If the meeting ends early enough I'll go straight from there. If not, I also have another meeting on Wed (a long one for sure ;_;), so I'd have to go on Thursday.

Still, it did feel good to take the first step towards getting this done. I'm just worried about that damn driving test. The horror stories are out there. People I know personally have told me of their own experience and verify that it's not just some sort of urban legend. This site has a few whoppers on there as well:
http://www.supermelf.com/japan/ajetdrivingbook/index.htm

So yeah, I'm not really looking forward to having to deal with that. Seriously, "plan on failing"? There's something wrong with a system where people have to make those sorts of contingency plans - taking into account that this may all be part of an elaborate plot to limit the number of cars on the road in Japan and/or generate some revenue. Oh, Japan. *sigh*

I haven't even taken the damn thing yet and I'm starting to ask myself why am I even bothering, lol.

Similarly, there's also the JLPT in December, lol. I know it's being held on Sunday December 6th. I don't know when the apps are due, sometime real soon I think though. Just browsing the Level 2 kanji.... damn. I mean hell, I'm not exactly 100% on the Level 3 kanji anymore. At least they give it twice a year now. Should I just wait until next summer? fu*k.



On a lighter note, I've been playing a lot of みんなのGolf 5 (wikipedia site). This is a fun and somewhat addictive game! The way they hook you is that you have to play to unlock the stronger/more interesting characters. There's even an on-line mode where you can play a round of golf with people from all around the world Japan. Of course, to beat them you need the better characters, so you play offline and try to unlock them to go back online and play some more. Very tricksy indeed. Heck, I might as well go play a couple rounds now before I go to bed, lol.

We have been having some fantastic weather here lately. Took some long bike rides. I've also been doing good with my schedule:

• Study Japanese - going over stuff I already know is boring, but every now and then there's a word or phrase that I've forgotten about
  
• Research - I've been going over some notes from one of my colleagues. He wants to do a joint publication/presentation. He's already done some of the background. If I design a project and gather the data, I'll be the main author and he'll co-author.
  
• Work Out - The facilities are limited, but I can do a chest/back and arms/legs rotation. I really just need to sweat actually, and riding my bike all over creation has been pretty good for that.
  
• Play Saxophone - I have good days and bad days actually. It's still terribly inconsistent. I just gotta keep at it.

I've been trying not to think about CC too much, but yeah. Her room is right next door. Every time I walk by, I want to pop in and have a chat. I've been keeping it down to one a day. Also, I've been trying not to overstay my welcome when I do stop by. I was able to help her with a computer problem the other day, so I felt pretty good about that. Our conversations are still quite good, I've just got to be careful not to let my feelings get the better of me. *sigh* I feel like an addled schoolboy.

I was in the middle of a nap when NTT called about internet/digital cable tv delivery. My head was in somewhat of a fog due to the nap, and my confusion was further exacerbated by the dude's use of keigo. I had him... I had him... And then he lost me. I thought he was asking me what day would be good for delivery and I was like "As soon as possible" then he was like "Really? blahblahblah has been decided?" It was the blahblahblah that I couldn't sign off on. I had decided on everything at the store and he made it sound like there was something I hadn't decided on yet or that I was about to change something. I didn't want to change my plan so I told him I'd call back.

I ran over to my friend's house, another instructor at the university with way better Japanese than mine. Unfortunately, once I sorted through my paperwork to fill her in on the situation and we rang them up, the place was closed for the day. GRRRR!!!

They open up at 10 am tomorrow, so I can try again then.

Dangit I really want high speed internet and digital cable TV. (;_;)


BTW, I am IN AWE of my friend's kanji reading ability. She was reading the contract out loud in Japanese as if it were in English. If it was in romaji I could not have read it as smoothly. Here I thought I knew people who were at good at Japanese too. This lady is on another level.

And again I am reminded that I am a small fish in a big pond.

-----

ETA:On a barely-related note, I won't be using the internet at work for anything shady after all. File-sharing is a TERMINABLE offense.

On a totally unrelated note, I forgot about this one. I was in the computer lab yesterday and a couple of my students invited me to go to a club during GW. These girls are in a hip-hop dance team and they're performing at a club, sort of a dance-off against other teams. I'd really like to see them dance and cheer them on, but it just feels kinda weird.... If it were at a different venue (e.g. an auditorium or gymnasium) I'd feel a lot better about it.

Life has been kinda boring.

*I missed working out this week because the weather was crap on Mon/Tue, the gym was closed yesterday and I felt like crap today. I hope I can go tomorrow after work. I imagine that maybe Saturday I'll get a call from The Big K to go out for a few rounds.

*I got back into complacent mode (again) regarding studying Japanese. That sucks. I need to get serious. C'mon man, JLPT 2 in December. How long have I lived in Japan?!? *sigh*

*In catching up with people on facebook from high school and junior high, everyone asks if I still play the sax. I guess that's one of the things I was known for back in the day. I miss playing. After I move I want to save up for a tenor. I don't know where I'd play, but I hope the university has something I could use. I'd even take a broom closet down in the boiler room. Heck, I'm so out of practice that actually sounds pretty good - lol.

*Tennis, Miyuki wants me to teach her how to play. That would be pretty good. I miss playing that as well. Public tennis courts here are somewhat hard to find though. We did stop into a Sports Authority at that mall in Koshigaya. They had a decent racket selection, if somewhat expensive.

*She also wants me to teach her how to fish. I need to check out a fishing shop and get a few things - where's a Wal-Mart when you need one?! Anyway, her apartment is about a kilometer from the ocean. There's gotta be *something* out there.

"Awwww... isn't that cute, the (pet) foreigner is trying to study Japanese!"

Fu*k you motherfu*kers. Try saying "Light" and "Right" for me why don't you? Yeah, that's what I thought.

It's annoying, but I've got to keep at it. Grrr.... (>m<)

I have one class to teach today, and I have to be here for 8 hours. I brought my kanji dictionary to work and will do some studying by deciphering some of the reams of paperwork that fly across my desk everyday. We get so many memos and bulletins here, it would behoove me to learn the language of these things as I expect to see more of these kinds of things at my next job.

Yeah, I really should have started this sooner. Like from day 1. My thing was that hardly any of these things were ever relevant to me anyway that I'd be better off ignoring them than expend the time/effort trying to figure out what they meant.

Still, I have always had free time so I should have just gotten in there and actually done some work vs. just playing around on the internet.

It's a bit late, but I really should make that a New Year's Resolution. Did I even make any resolutions this year? If not, I guess I'll have two.
1.) Study Japanese
2.) Exercise
I've been doing pretty good with the exercise. The studying Japanese, not so much. This latest paperwork challenge is a prime example of why I need to get back into that.

Speaking of exercise, I went to the gym last night and the floor was practically deserted. There were no classes and hardly anyone on the weights/machines. Then I got into the bath/sauna and the place was PACKED. WTF?!? Where the hell did all these idiots come from? ugh. Still, I didn't want to go home all sweaty, so I toughed it out. I hit up the sauna, had a shower and soaked in the bath. The place cleared out eventually so I was able to relax after all.

When I got home, I started watching 21. I got about halfway through then I had to turn it off. For being such a "genius" the main character is quite an idiot. I was like "gimmeafrickinbreak". It started off pretty cool, then it just got dumb. Oh well.

Alright, I'm gonna crack open my dictionary and try to unravel some of the mystery of the moonspeak.

It's been a while since I've been to the gym, last Sunday actually. I had to clean my apartment for Miyuki's visit on Monday. She stayed with me Tues-Wed. Thursday I was just beat, Friday & Saturday I went drinking with friends to celebrate. Sunday I had a ton of laundry to do/clean my apartment again. Then yesterday I went shopping.

So today I hit it again for the first time in a while. I picked up pretty much where I left off though and feel pretty good atm. Cardio was great (I now have "Taken" on my iPod Touch ^o^). Weights were good too (chest/back). The sauna/bath afterward was wonderful. The place was practically deserted. I forgot that tomorrow is a national holiday so I guess people were either getting ready or conserving energy for that. So yeah, it was nice having it all to myself.

Speaking of the holiday, yeah I totally forgot about it. I have no plans. I was thinking about visiting Miyuki, but she's got stuff to do. Besides I'm visiting this weekend anyway so I'll just wait.

My friend suggested something interesting to me about studying though. He said he stays away from coffee shops for the exact reason why I couldn't study last night - crowded, noisy and uncomfortable. He suggested hitting up a restaurant, preferably one with a drink bar. That way you can order some food for lunch and then drink coffee from the drink bar while you study - all day long if need be. I might just do that tomorrow.

Speaking of coffee, the coffeemaker at work is broken. I had one cup in the morning just before it went down. I tried to make up the difference with green tea but it just wasn't the same. Maybe I should try to get used to it. Isn't it supposed to be healthier than coffee? I do like the taste of coffee though. I'm not the only addict in the office so I'm pretty sure a replacement will arrive soon.

I just finished my dinner, an amino acid sports drink, a footlong sub from Subway and a small size thing of potatoes. I'm feeling a craving for a beer and a snack. Grrr.... (>_<)

This university paperwork situation has made me feel really helpless. I'm getting help from my girlfriend and my friend's Japanese teacher, but still. It's not just the Japanese, but it's the Japanese legalese that's kicking my ass. Miyuki thinks we can knock it all out this weekend so I don't need to worry. I just wish I had more control over the situation. Being illiterate really sucks. *sigh*

I'm going to the bookstore tonight. OK, I know what I'm doing tonight after work: have dinner, go to the bookstore & buy some Japanese study books, stop by Starbucks and start studying.

It was generating too much negative energy, and I want to enjoy my vacation, not dread coming back to work. I'll change it back over to Friends Only after the break.

In other news - A New Hope.
I was at the food court having a turkey sub for lunch when I overheard a mother doing baby talk to her child. The lady spoke with a thick Japanese accent, but it was all in English. Her baby looked to be fully Japanese. Very interesting.

Then I hit up the gym. I met another English teacher there. He's on break too. Cool guy. We'll have to hang out sometime during the break. Cardio was 17 minutes with a 3 minute cooldown. I did arms/legs today. They're progressing along nicely. I did the abs a bit too. They're hanging in there. Then the sauna and bath, now I'm home.

"I'm starrrrrving! I want some f-ing frrrrrrrench toast!"
Well not really, but I am looking forward to having dinner tonight. I might go rent a video and then hit up this ramen shop on the way home. They have a homepage, but I don't remember what it is. After I come home from dinner I'll edit the link back into this entry. It's good stuff. Should I have a beer with my ramen? I dunno. I suppose one beer can't hurt, right? Especially since I was good today and had a nice workout.

I've managed to keep up with one of my objectives for the summer - exercise. I need to get on my other two: studying Japanese and job hunting. I think I'll go to Omiya tomorrow and pick up some study materials. Job hunting, not many places are advertising yet for next April, so the pickings are a bit slim. The interview that initially landed me this job took place in November. So hopefully more openings will crop up around then.

not quite - I was sleeping soundly until about 3 am when suddenly I rolled over wide awake and I haven't been able to get back to sleep. So.....

I applied for a job in Shizuoka. It's a bit of a long shot, but let's see what happens.

Yesterday, I basically just recovered from the excursion. I woke up late, did some laundry, had a late lunch at Yoshinoya, and then hit the gym. Cardio is getting dull. I need something to liven it up a little. Then I did arms and legs. I'm ready to take them up a notch. I was thinking about getting a little notebook to chart my progress when I remembered that the gym has this "Fitness Navi" system which does it for you. I might have to look into that. Then I hit the sauna and bath. That left me feeling quite refreshed. I came home, did one last load of laundry, made dinner and watched "The Wedding Singer". As usual on days that I workout, I had no appetite for alcohol. So instead of my usual beer with dinner, I had a green tea. I'm going to try having tea, preferably green or oolong, with meals instead of beer.

No plans for today. It's Tuesday, right? The days are already starting to blur together. It started when Esther arrived for her whirlwind tour of Tokyo. It was great to see her again, but dang I'm tired. I think today might be more recovering from her vacation. I'll hit the gym, do chest & back. Oh I may look into doing an aerobics class for my cardio fix instead of the machines. Other than that, I don't really have anything else going on.

Studying Japanese - I just looked over the 3-kyu kanji and realized I have forgotten quite a few of these suckers. I passed 3-kyu a few years ago, and sadly I'm not 100% sure I'd pass it if I took it again. (;_;) I really need to get back on this.

I got home from work, took a nap and then was thinking about going to see a movie. I'd heard mixed reviews about 10,000 BC so I decided to get an "evaluation copy". At the DL rate I was getting, it was going to take a few minutes so I went to the mall. There, I bought a pillow & pillowcase. For dinner I had a "tonkatsu" (fried pork cutlet) set - rice, pork cutlet, miso soup and a side of cabbage. For less than 7 bucks, it was pretty good. After dinner, I was walking home and was like "Man, I'd really like a beer and some snacks right now." Then I thought about saving money and trying not to be a lard-ass and was able to fight off the urge. Anyway, I got back home and my evaluation copy was ready. I started watching and it didn't really do anything for me. It's a good thing I had the opportunity to evaluate it beforehand. The tickets at the closest theater are $18! If I had paid that much for a crap movie, I'd be pissed.

I did get some Japanese study materials. One good thing about working at a Japanese elementary school, there are all sorts of Japanese vocabulary and kanji books and workbooks lying around. It is a bit of a challenge because everything is in Japanese, but hey - it's the "immersion" approach! (^_^) A lot of the materials that are lying around really are "evaluation copies" so by using those I'm not bilking the school out of anything. I ought to bring some of them home with me so I can study here as well.

My foreigner card is apparently ready. I didn't get the postcard, but a call to the ward office confirmed that it is ready and that I can pick it up on Monday. So that's good. I can run those errands on Monday after all.... I hope.

I really need to get back into studying Japanese. There are way too many things that go over my head during the morning teacher's meetings and such. It's getting to be quite frustrating.

What else.... One of my students says there's an onsen near my apartment. If I could find it that would be so cool. I love me the onsen.

I went to a math class today and learned a few tricks, just shortcuts to finding the lowest common denominator for a set of fractions. They really worked! I imagine they'd really come in handy for those entrance exams.

Ah well, I'm done with work. I figure I'll go home do another load of laundry and watch some videos. If the weather is nice this weekend, I may go exploring around my neighborhood again. I'll probably buy a few things for the apartment and clean up a bit as well. Then on Monday I have that to-do list.

Alright, I'm just killing time now. I'm going home.

It's like 4 am here (3 pm EST). I'm wide awake.

I should probably just pull another all-nighter. The last few times I've been to Japan I've done so and was on Japan time immediately thereafter. Then again I need to save my damn money to get ready for this apartment debacle, so maybe not.

I saw that Ramiele is done on American Idol. I'm surprised she lasted this long. She had a great first performance, but it was all downhill from there. It would have been nice to have a Filipina up there representing. She had the talent imo, just didn't showcase it well.

Oh and I caught a youtube of Kristi's week 3 performance (the tango) on DWTS. Very precise, a bit lacking in emotion. It was somewhat one-dimensional. She played the anger part well, but the passion wasn't there. That song was really odd too. They should have got Yo-Yo Ma out there to do one of the Ástor Piazzolla "Soul of the Tango" numbers. I just listened to some and they totally blew everything that was played on DWTS that night out of the water.

I need to get some Japanese study materials. I didn't bring any of my books with me. When I was packing, I felt I needed the space/weight allowance for clothing. Also, I felt that I have plateaued with the materials I currently have. Perhaps a new approach would be helpful. To quote a training master: "You must unlearn what you have learned." [cue: Luke's theme] For right now, I think I would do well just to get a notebook and a pen. I can grab the 2-kyu kanji off the internet. There are J-E/E-J dictionaries all over the school. So I can get one and work on that all day long. Even today, I saw kanji everywhere that I really ought to know by now.

I think I'll bring my shoes to work tomorrow. I have 3 pair just for use at school!
1. Indoor classroom shoes
2. Indoor gym shoes
3. Outdoor athletic shoes
I suppose I could just have a pair of outdoor athletic shoes that I could use both in/out of school. However, last time I was there, there were some occasions that just popped up where I wore dress shoes to work but we needed to do something outside. (e.g. Go to the farm)
Similarly, I could have my classroom shoes = my gym shoes, but I just wanted something different.

So tomorrow (later today) I'm going to stop by work to do some stuff and also get them to call the real estate agent and try to finalize my apartment ASAP. The school's opening ceremony is on Tuesday. I would really like to be in my place by then.