Quote of the Day

“There are no menial jobs, only menial attitudes.” William Bennett

I like this quote because I have always believed this too. My family always pushed me at school and encouraged me to do well so that life would be a little easier and so I could get a job that pays well and maybe I wouldn’t have to worry about money so much.

Unfortunately with the current economic situation I think everyone will have to worry. I truly believe that in monetary terms, my ALT life is the best it is ever going to get. I have no major responsibilities now; no mortgage, no children, no debt. I earn my money and I live a great life seeing the world and not worrying about paying the rent or my bills.

I am glad I went to university and I believe that learning is important but if I had to do a menial job I think I could be just as happy. Lawyers, doctors and businessmen still need people to make food for them, they still need people to take their rubbish away every week and they still need people to look after their houses.

When I worked full time in a pub kitchen it was dirty, smelly work but a small part of me went home feeling like I’d done a hard day’s work. I still had my health, my family, my friends and everything else just didn’t matter. Is a rich businessman who lives alone with all his money any happier than an office cleaner who goes home every night to a loving family?

What is it that makes you truly happy?

The End of the World?!?

A group of us went to watch 2012 tonight. It was much better than Day After Tomorrow and the effects were great!

I know everyone will watch it and say the story is totally unbelievable but I don’t care. Erich and I were totally into it and to listen to us you’d think we were on a roller coaster. We kept ooh-ing, aah-ing and screaming out loud throughout the entire movie. A great night!

Comedy Duo

Dawn and I got to teach together at Takahiradai ES and by the end of the day we were famous in the teachers room. Apparently we make a great comedy duo in the classroom and the kids loved it!

Glad to have had a good day, I allowed myself the treat of playing the UFO machines. I enjoy playing these way too much and unlike the ones at home the people who work there actually help you win. My Gatchapin obsession is sure to continue now I’ve won this….

Unexpected Fortune!

Sometimes despite the fact that average news report might beg to differ, good things do happen to good people.

When I was younger my family and I would always go shopping on Friday nights. Part of this routine was to stop by a local farm for fruit and vegetables. It was run by the Johnson family; Mr and Mrs Johnson and their son Fred.

Mrs Johnson looked just like my grandma and I remember Fred always being jolly and nice. If you imagine Father Christmas as a farmer, that is how I remember him.

Well it turns out that they have discovered a huge hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold in one of Fred’s fields and he is about to become a millionaire! Apparently people are queuing for hours to get a look at it and even Prince Charles and Camilla have seen it. I hope they display it again soon. I spent so many years learning about Anglo-Saxons at schools so it would be good see it.

Things to be thankful for.....

From 9am to 4pm it was non-stop chop, peel, slice, bake, mix, boil, mash, season and stir. Dawn and I prepared the chicken, potatoes, gravy, sauce and pumpkin pies for the dinner tonight.

We had the party downtown at Phil’s school and a great time was had by all. Everyone outdid themselves and we all enjoyed a lot of delicious food. The pumpkin pies turned out great and were better than Costco so it all turned out for the best!

Despite all this great food the best part of the night was when Sakamoto sensei and Kei told us that they were (at last) expecting a baby. The have been waiting so long for this news and I can’t think of two people who deserve it more. Maybe someone was listening in Shikoku when I said a little prayer for them!!

Oh My God!!

Dawn and I went to Costco in preparation for the Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow. Unfortunately they did not have any pumpkin pies. These pies are the glue that holds the dinner together. What are we going to do?? Thanksgiving without pumpkin pie would be like Christmas with no mince pies!!

Update: Dawn bought some pumpkin filling back with her from home so she is going to try and make them – phew!

Do you believe??

I had fun at school today teaching the kids about British superstitions. I actually had to do some research as my teacher wanted me to prepare about 15 superstitions to talk about. First I told them the action and the students had to decide if it was good or bad luck. Some of them they knew;

* Putting new shoes on the table – bad luck
* Opening an umbrella indoors – bad luck
* Picking up a penny – good luck
* Walking under ladders – bad luck

Others were a surprise to me too!

* Seeing a pig on your wedding day – bad luck
* Picking up playing card with your left hand – bad luck
* Being born at 12, 3, 6 or 9 o clock – good luck
* Washing your hair before a test – bad luck

Thanks to the last one, the kids are now going to try it out but not washing their hair before their next English test. I hope it works!

Brass Monkey

It is so cold again! I have a scarf, hat, gloves and earmuffs on today but I was still cold. The kids are obviously feeling it too and more classes have been cancelled due to the flu. One of my 6th grade classes at Tasuda have been out twice this month because they keep catching it.

I don’t seem to be able to get the flu but keep having symptoms separately. A few weeks ago it was an ear infection, then I had a stuffed nose and this week my throat is sore and I have a cough. I guess it’s better to get it a bit at a time then get full blown flu…right?

I cheered up when one of my students drew this portrait of me. I think it’s pretty accurate, right down to the clog shoes!

Local History

I went to Ikenoue school today to watch the kids perform the play they have been practicing for weeks. I am proud that they are doing it in English and even if the pronunciation isn’t perfect I’m sure the audience wouldn’t know the difference.

It has been interesting to learn the local history. It turns out that the present location of the town of Ikenoue used to be under water. It used to be a huge pond and legend has it that the area was terrorized by a huge snake until the gods helped them get rid of it. The cool thing is that the pond was used as a rubbish dump at the time and so farmers keep finding all kinds of weird and wonderful discoveries on their land.

After the show it was lunch time and I was craving sushi. It turns out I have eaten sushi every 3 days for the last two weeks. Just called me Micchan!

Autumn Leaves

Dawn, Holly and I headed to Kikuchi today to check out the autumn leaves. It was the peak time last weekend but they were still beautiful.

First we took a drive around Kikuchi and Holly showed us where she used to live and work. After lunch we headed to the gorge and spent the afternoon taking pictures of the leaves.

As we left Holly and I were feeling a little peckish and discovered the most delicious chicken in Japan. It was so good!

Don't doubt me!

Teacher: Rebecca are you ready for class?

Me: Yes let’s go!

Teacher: Don’t you need anything else?

Me: No Just these.

Teacher: You’re really just taking flashcards and a pack of cards?

Me: Yes

Teacher: The class is 45 minutes.

Me: Yes I know.

Teacher: (looking very skeptical) OK

The kids loved it and even the teacher admitted afterwards that it was a great class. You don’t need a lot to make sure the kids have a great time learning!

FINALLY!

They got him! The police arrested Tatsuya Ichihashi this evening in Osaka trying to board a ferry to Okinawa.

It is sick what this guy did to that poor woman and I hope it isn’t too long before they lock him away for a very long time. In fact, seeing as they still have the death penalty in Japan, maybe that would be a better option.

I hope Lindsay and her family can find some peace now. R.I.P

A busy weekend!

* Skyped with Micchan and Cherese. I miss them both so much!

* Weird weather. It has been cold all week and now we have a heat wave going on.

* Despite saying she would not do it this year Dawn has been inundated with requests for a Thanksgiving dinner. It is on again!

On a really serious note, it was reported in the news today that Tatsuya Ichihashi, the guy wanted for the murder of British girl Lindsay Hawker, has had cosmetic surgery and was even spotted in Fukuoka just a few hours from here. As far as I know this has been the biggest break in the case for over two years. They really need to catch this guy and give her family some peace!

This is not cool...

The flu crisis continues and was especially clear as I visited a random school today. One of my classes was cancelled as the whole class is on flu leave and I couldn’t eat lunch with the students at all. I ended up having to eat in the teachers room by myself!

The kids at the school were nice but I noticed the teachers were quite cold. Near the end of the day one of them asked where I was from. When I said the UK they suddenly changed and started being nice. One of them said they thought I was from America and it was then that it clicked. They had been ignoring me thinking I was American but then when they found out I wasn’t they started being nice!!

I gritted my teeth and stayed pleasant but to be honest, I could not wait to get out of there and have no desire to go back!

She's back

After teaching 4 classes at Tatsuda on Monday, I caught the bus home, tidied the house, caught another bus to Fukuoka and arrived just in time to meet Noe at the airport.

I can’t believe she has been away for two whole weeks, I was so busy and the time flew by. It is nice to have her back!

Alex came to school with me today and he is so funny. Teaching with another ALT is always fun as you get to see how people work. The kids loved him especially when he told them his dog’s name is Booger – yuck!

Since Alex is fluent in Spanish, we also ended up having a bizarre conversation in Spanish and Japanese. This was much more fun considering I speak no Spanish and Alex speaks little Japanese!

Oh and before I forget, Happy Bonfire Night!

The Day After Tamana

Despite partying until the early hours and then having to get up early to check-out, none of us were hungover this morning as we drove back to town.

After a big ramen lunch we cheered on Sinnocular as they performed at the Kotsu Centre. Here they are singing one of my favourites Issenchi. I love the old grandmas right at the front rocking along. Walter (guitarist on the left) is so much fun to watch. You can tell he loves playing!



After all the excitement of the weekend, I was ready to go home, take a long hot bath and get into bed!