It's Tuesday, October 29, 1991 here in the land of Oz... or Ohtawara-shi, Tochigi-ken, Japan.
I'm a junior high school assistant English teacher (AET) on the JET (Japan Exchange & Teaching) Programme. I've been here some 15 months already and I'm supposedly quite popular with the popular crowd. Not sure who that is, really.
The cool AET crowd who have parties? Yes.
The AET guys who know how to play poker (with cards and women)? Yes.
The AET nerds - because I used to be one? Yes.
The AET quiet ones who go about their business and enjoy life? Yes.
The AET female AETs - half of whom I have slept with? Yes.
The Japanese kids I supposedly teach here in Japan? Yes (I hope).
The townsfolk of Ohtawara-shi? Yes (I'm pretty sure).
The Japanese teachers and OBOE (Ohtawara Board of Education) people I work with daily? Yes.
The Japanese women I meet at the shops and stores? Yes.
The same women who just want to say hello? Yes.
The same women who want to screw my brains out? Yes.
The Japanese guys at the bar who just want to hang out and talk crap? Yes.
The local Yakuza? Yes (I'm still alive).
The JET Programme Japanese who want me to be the new leader of the Tochigi Prefecture? Most definitely.
It's no wonder I'm enjoying my life in Japan. But... despite being here for a solid 15 months without leaving her borders, I'm getting... I don't know... stale? No... homesick? Maybe. Too comfortable in my job? Yes, that's right... I'm in a rut.
I want some excitement. I need to change things up. It ain't happening today. Nope... I'm expected to judge a junior high school speech contest. Gaaaaah!
My buddy Matthew Hall who lives about a five-minute bicycle ride away from me comes over to my 3rd floor wing apartment in the city's tallest building (7 stories), and we ride out to the 1st English Speech Contest in the Nasu area - where we both live.
Matthew, myself and Jeanne - last year we judged a speech contest, only none of our scores seemed to matter - or were even collected. This year, after much bitching by myself (and I assume the other two), they have assured us we matter.
However... once at the Ohtawara auditorium, Matthew and I are are filled with dismay as we find out that all of the speeches we will be hearing were, for the most part, written by a Japanese teacher of English (JTE). The kids apparently wrote a speech in Japanese, the JTE's translated it to English, and, if lucky, an AET corrected it to proper English.
Sitting near the front, we get some official judging forms (in English!)... by we, I mean Jeanne, Matthew, myself and a newbie this year named Van Granger. I always liked that name.
The speeches were all good, and judging it was kind of difficult, but satisfying - at least it was to me. I can't or shouldn't speak for the others.
At lunch, I zip out and grab some videos at a nearby rental shop and relax at home before heading back to hear a few more speeches and the awarding of the prizes.
At this event, there were three first-prizes for each year (grade 7, 8 and 9); two prizes each for grades 7, 8 and 9; and four prizes each for grades 7, 8 and 9.
Out of these 21 winners, 10 of my students got an award.
An Ohtawara Chu Gakko (Ohtawara Junior High School) grade 8 (second-year) girl grabbed a first-place, while the other nine kids got 2nd's and 3rd's.
The school I visited yesterday and helped out with for an hour or two--Kaneda Minami Chu Gakko (Kaneda South Junior High School) - the three of them, earned second place and two thirds.
Not a bad bit of work for your old idiot blogger, eh? I'm pretty damn happy - and each of the kids comes over to me at the end of the contest to bow and say thank-you for helping.
Personally, I think I did very little, but it means a tremendous amount to me that they even bothered to say thank-you, let alone say hello. Stupid kids... they're going to make an old blogger cry 20 years later.
Somewhere realizing how nice is to be appreciated,
Andrew Joseph
Today's blog title is by that little ol' band from Texas, ZZ Top.
I'm a junior high school assistant English teacher (AET) on the JET (Japan Exchange & Teaching) Programme. I've been here some 15 months already and I'm supposedly quite popular with the popular crowd. Not sure who that is, really.
The cool AET crowd who have parties? Yes.
The AET guys who know how to play poker (with cards and women)? Yes.
The AET nerds - because I used to be one? Yes.
The AET quiet ones who go about their business and enjoy life? Yes.
The AET female AETs - half of whom I have slept with? Yes.
The Japanese kids I supposedly teach here in Japan? Yes (I hope).
The townsfolk of Ohtawara-shi? Yes (I'm pretty sure).
The Japanese teachers and OBOE (Ohtawara Board of Education) people I work with daily? Yes.
The Japanese women I meet at the shops and stores? Yes.
The same women who just want to say hello? Yes.
The same women who want to screw my brains out? Yes.
The Japanese guys at the bar who just want to hang out and talk crap? Yes.
The local Yakuza? Yes (I'm still alive).
The JET Programme Japanese who want me to be the new leader of the Tochigi Prefecture? Most definitely.
It's no wonder I'm enjoying my life in Japan. But... despite being here for a solid 15 months without leaving her borders, I'm getting... I don't know... stale? No... homesick? Maybe. Too comfortable in my job? Yes, that's right... I'm in a rut.
I want some excitement. I need to change things up. It ain't happening today. Nope... I'm expected to judge a junior high school speech contest. Gaaaaah!
My buddy Matthew Hall who lives about a five-minute bicycle ride away from me comes over to my 3rd floor wing apartment in the city's tallest building (7 stories), and we ride out to the 1st English Speech Contest in the Nasu area - where we both live.
Matthew, myself and Jeanne - last year we judged a speech contest, only none of our scores seemed to matter - or were even collected. This year, after much bitching by myself (and I assume the other two), they have assured us we matter.
However... once at the Ohtawara auditorium, Matthew and I are are filled with dismay as we find out that all of the speeches we will be hearing were, for the most part, written by a Japanese teacher of English (JTE). The kids apparently wrote a speech in Japanese, the JTE's translated it to English, and, if lucky, an AET corrected it to proper English.
Sitting near the front, we get some official judging forms (in English!)... by we, I mean Jeanne, Matthew, myself and a newbie this year named Van Granger. I always liked that name.
The speeches were all good, and judging it was kind of difficult, but satisfying - at least it was to me. I can't or shouldn't speak for the others.
At lunch, I zip out and grab some videos at a nearby rental shop and relax at home before heading back to hear a few more speeches and the awarding of the prizes.
At this event, there were three first-prizes for each year (grade 7, 8 and 9); two prizes each for grades 7, 8 and 9; and four prizes each for grades 7, 8 and 9.
Out of these 21 winners, 10 of my students got an award.
An Ohtawara Chu Gakko (Ohtawara Junior High School) grade 8 (second-year) girl grabbed a first-place, while the other nine kids got 2nd's and 3rd's.
The school I visited yesterday and helped out with for an hour or two--Kaneda Minami Chu Gakko (Kaneda South Junior High School) - the three of them, earned second place and two thirds.
Not a bad bit of work for your old idiot blogger, eh? I'm pretty damn happy - and each of the kids comes over to me at the end of the contest to bow and say thank-you for helping.
Personally, I think I did very little, but it means a tremendous amount to me that they even bothered to say thank-you, let alone say hello. Stupid kids... they're going to make an old blogger cry 20 years later.
Somewhere realizing how nice is to be appreciated,
Andrew Joseph
Today's blog title is by that little ol' band from Texas, ZZ Top.
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