It is a warm, clear day with birds chirping, grapes growing, children playing, and Nascar on tv; with Japanese narration, of course. It's a strange experience to watch this all-American sport with Japanese commentary. They do use certain English terms, though. They'll say something like, "Cah numbah ju ni (12)" or "saido by saido arimas" (essentially "they are side by side"). It's really quite strange. Normally they are speaking straight Japanese with the names of the drivers thrown in, but they do tend to use as least one English phrase per minute. So far I have heard "trah-ficu," "cutto taiah," "pitto," and a few others. All in all, a rather interesting experience that I doubt most Nascar fans will ever have.
And by the way, yes, I do watch Nascar from time to time. Sometimes you crave a little piece of home. And not too much says "America!" like Nascar. Just ask Mr. Bush.

Last night Amy and I met Tomoko (our Japanese tutor and friend) for a few hours of drinking and talking. We went to an izakaiya (a Japanese style pub where you can get drinks and appetizers). It was our second time there and it's a great little place. They serve beer, sake, and shochu. Shochu, you might remember, is a distilled alcohol that can be made from many things: rice, potato, wheat, sugar, chestnut, and probably more. So I tried about four different kinds and ate good grub and we all talked about various things.
Tonight we might go see a movie with Tomoko. Not sure yet. It would be my first theatre experience since Oklahoma last summer when I saw Pirates of the Caribbean. We will probably go see Troy. I have read The Iliad about 4 or 5 times and would like to see it put into pictures. Although, I should say, I do expect to be a bit disappointed. I am sure the show will be good but expect the story to be sub-par. That's just what happens when Hollywood gets a hold of a good story. But what the hell? I haven't been to a movie in a long time. Amy, of course, wants to go so she can watch Brad Pitt prance around in his skimpy armor.

I called Gateway this morning and spent an hour on the phone going through the motions of trying different things in order to fix my computer. But, alas, the thing would not even come on. So after talking to two people I am sending it in. They seemed surprised to learn that I am living in Japan but we're very friendly. It's going to run me $66 to send in back after they fix it and I have to go to the post office here to see how much it will cost in the other direction. I assume that if I was in the States they'd pay the shipping considering that my warranty is still good but that since I am overseas my warranty might not cover those charges. I should have asked this morning when I had the lady on the phone but was more interested in just solving this problem.
She also asked my permission to, if need be, completely erase and reinstall all my software telling me that I would loose everything I had. And there, my friends, is the true bummer in all this. I have a strong feeling that that is what will need to be done and that means pictures, music and writings are all gone for eternity. Oh well. A fresh start it is.

This week was a good one in terms of work. Nearly all my classes went well and the week just gently flowed by. I was thinking, during a conversation with other foreigners last weekend, about how many teachers I've taught with since coming here. My friends were saying numbers like 3 or 5 or 7. So I dug into my inventory banks and came up with 25. That's right. I've taught at least one class with 25 different Japanese teachers. By the time I leave here I imagine that that number will be around 30 to 35. Lots of teachers. Lots of different styles. And lots of confusion for your humble narrator. Thus, my Japanese experience.

I can't remember if I mentioned that Amy and I applied to be volunteers for the newbies coming in to Shinjuku in late July/early August. We thought it would be fun to greet people at the airport, help them get to the hotel, teach a short seminar on teaching over here, and just generally help out for the three or four days. Not something you might think I'd like to do, but I was really pretty willing to help out as I remember what it was like for me last year and how great it was to have people there who actually knew what was going on. That and the fact that Amy and I honestly thought that as "older" JETs we would bring a different (and better) attitude towards the whole living in Japan experience. Some of the negativity I hear over here amazes me and I wonder why those people decide to stay more than one year (but I don't wish to preach).
Well, my readers, that girl we refer to as Amy was accepted but your narrator was passed up. Why? I have no idea, but they are making a big mistake--not in the taking Amy part but in the rejecting me part, in case you were confused. So now, instead of helping people and making their first few days in Japan easier, I will have to go to the Kencho where I will sit on my ass. Not that I'm bitter, mind you.
Ah well. As Mr. Jagger sung, "You can't always get...."

Ok, I think that's enough for today. I hope you people are still with me. It's hard to tell as none of you email me to say things like, "I enjoy reading your journal," or "That story about (enter subject here) was funny," or "You are my hero," or such things.
Anyway, matte ne (I think that means "see ya later").