Well, nothing much is going on over here but I am at the Kencho and have finished anything I needed to do and just feel like rambling a little.

I finished my taxes this morning (see how much fun I'm having). Did the federal stuff yesterday and the state stuff today. You might be saying, "But Marcus, you fool, don't you know that April 15th passed over three months ago?" And yes, I do. But when you live overseas you automatically get a two month extension. "But Marcus, you fool x 2, June 15th was over a month ago!" Yup, right again, but there is this thing called the Foreign Income Exclusion and to claim it you must have been out of the USA for 330 days. So what you do, since June 15th would only make it 325 days that I was out of the country, is to file for an extension in order to push that total up (and to make it possible to procrastinate just a little longer). So I sent in my change of address form and my request for an extension by June 15th and was given until August 15th.
The Foreign Income Exclusion allows you to earn up to $80,000 overseas and not to have to pay taxes on it. As I don't make anywhere near that amount, all the money I make in Japan is tax free. To federal. So I filled out the neccessary forms yesterday (2555-Ez and 1040 for those of you taking notes) and was finished.
Then I started doing my Californina state taxes and had some trouble finding out the neccessary information online. So I sent an email to the powers that be there in Sacramento and, lo and behold, this morning I had gotten a reply that answered all my questions (guess they quickly answer those who they think might owe them money). Unfortunately, California does not have anything resembling the F. I. Exclusion. So basically I had two choices: A) pay them what I owed them based on the money I've made overseas or B) fill out the partial year resident form (because I did live there up until July last year) and only report what I made at my part-time job there in Bakersfield. The disadvantage to B is that I am severing my ties to the state and thus, giving up my residence status in California. This would be no big deal in my book but if I do return and decide to go to grad-school in Cali I would either have to wait one year to reestablish residence or pay out-of-state tuition. But I figure I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. Hell, I might not even live in California when I get back. So I filled out the partial form (540NR) and, as soon as I send it off, will no longer be a California resident.
You might be wondering about any Japanese taxes I might be paying. Now, I don't claim to understand it completely, but yes, they do take money out of my paycheck for tax purposes. But if I heard right, and I think I did, I will get it all back when I leave the country. Should be a nice big check all at once. Perhaps a downpayment on a new car.
Wow, you know I'm bored if I'm telling you about taxes. Sorry about that.

To fill time here at the Kencho I have been looking online at various jobs for after this Japan experience. I'm pretty sure that teaching is not my thing. I'd prefer to write for a living but that's just not something you apply for and start the next day. So I've been visiting sites with names like adventurejobs.com, actionjobs.com, backdoorjobs.com and have come away with an interest in gaining employment as one of those guys you meet while on vacation and then go back to your office and enviously wonder, "How in the hell did he get that job?" even though you are probably making much more money than him. I don't know. Maybe nothing will come of it but this is how you get into things. First you get an idea, then you do a little research, then you make a real effort, and if you are lucky, you get accepted. In a year or two I might be sailing in the Caribbean or hiking in the Rockies or doing anything that doesn't require me to sit in a office all day.

In other news, there is no other news. Amy left today for Oklahoma so I am actively pursuing a stand-in girlfriend for the next two weeks. But if I can't find one, I look forward to sitting around in my underwear, drinking beer, burping out loud, watching too much baseball, and leaving the toilet seat up. Should be fun.

So get this.....
One year ago today I woke up in a hotel near LAX a little cloudy from the night before and within a few hours was on a big o' jet airliner bound for Japan. It will be tomorrow before I can say I actually arrived, though; this due to the international date line. But anyway, you get the idea, right about now I have been here for a year........and I still can't speak Japanese!
Should I attempt to write "My year in review"? Nah! You don't want to read that. Besides, you can just read this entire journal for that. Instead I will tell you it is damn hot here, and humid, but that my building at the Kencho finally has some air conditioning. It's still hot as the thing obviously isn't turned down enough, but it's better than nothing. I think Japanese people like to appeal to the one who is willing to suffer the most. And what I mean by this is that they tend to work extremely long hours. It seems a point of bravado if one can say that he or she worked 10 hours on some particular day. "Yeah, well, I worked for 13 hours on Tuesday." "Oh yeah, well I showered, shaved and ate breakfast at my desk." "Hell, I haven't seen my wife, kids, or the dog since Spring."
And this really isn't too far from the truth from what I've read and observed on my own. These people take pride in overworking. But here's the catch. I don't think they are overworking. I think they are just staying at work and doing other things. I could be wrong here, but it sure seems like a few of them will wonder off to talk, or read the paper, or possibly smoke in the bathroom (that's not true, they go out to smoke in the hallway and they do not hide it).
Anyway, back to the air conditioning. It is my estimation that we are all sitting in air the temperature at which one guy said, "Ok, it's too hot." And the others said "Ha! You wuss! I'm not even sweating and I've been working here, at my desk, since three this morning." "Yes, but you've been sleeping." "BUT I'M AT MY DESK!"
So instead of being human and admitting that we are all hot and would like the air conditioner turned down so that the sweat might freeze to our butt cheeks, we sit very still in the hopes that we might be able to feel any slight breeze that might come along. Let me tell you that a body walking past your chair can stir up enough air so that for a spilt second you feel as if you've stepped outside in the cool Autumn air. Wait! Here comes Tanaka-san. Ahh! Relief.
The point to all this: if one guy can take the heat, we all can (or are expected to).

In other news, I have been asked to give a short talk to the newbies at our local orientation in a couple weeks. What will my talk be on? Okaayyy, I'll tell you, but you're going to laugh. Let me clear my throat here.......attitude.
I heard that!
Yes, my friends, I was asked to give a little talk about attitude. This puzzled me so I looked it up on an online dictionary. "Attitude--the orientation of an aircraft's axes relative to a reference line or plane, such as the horizon." "Hmmm," I thought, "this puzzles me even more." So I looked up the next definition.  "A position similar to an arabesque in which a ballet dancer stands on one leg with the other raised either in front or in back and bent at the knee." WHAT!?
But, you'll be relieved to know, that I solved the mystery with the next definition, "A state of mind or a feeling; disposition: had a positive attitude about work. An arrogant or hostile state of mind or disposition." Of course, the mystery is solved but that doesn't make it any easier on me. What do I know about attitude? And I assume they want me to talk about the right attitude as opposed to that attitude (by the way, all this is related to work) that says "Damn it all. I hate this country. I hate my job. Those kids are just stupid. My teacher is a jerk. And why can't they speak English?!"
Here's my problem. I know the wrong attitude when I see it; that part's easy. But how do I instill the right attitude in these new teachers? If I have the right attitude it is not by any sort of effort on my part. It just is. I've had enough crap jobs in the past to know that this one is nice and cushy, that any bad day here will likely be followed by a good one, and that if all else fails there's always the beer vending machine on the way home. Actually it doesn't take the all else fails scenario to utilize the services of the BVM, all it takes is the realization that "hey, I'm thirsty," some change in my pocket and a quick stop.
So I have yet to figure out what I am going to say to these young and fresh teachers. I, myself, am still a young and fresh teacher. I'm supposed to talk for 20 minutes which might not seem like all that long a time, but trust me when I tell you that the sentence "Buck up and bear it cause you got yourself into this" doesn't take even close to 20 minutes to utter. I've tried slowing it down but so far the longest I could get it to go was 8 seconds.

Ok, and thus ends my one year anniversary essay.

I've only been back in Japan for about 20 hours and here I am back at the Kencho. And what a depressing place it is to be. After such a damn good vacation that included nothing but fun times coming back here is like walking into the bathroom after it's just been occupied for 20 minutes, if you know what I mean. And I don't mean to say that this is because I am in Japan, I could be anywhere (except for St. Kitts).
But I guess that this crap feeling I am experiencing right now just proves how much fun St Kitts really was. There is no way I can go into detail about the entire trip (and most of you were there anyway) but trust me when I say that it was probably the best series of days I've ever had in my life. And I do consider my life to be a good one. But I can't remember a time when the fun just went on and on and on. Everyday I'd wake up, look around, and think to myself, "Yes! I am still here."
The people (family and friends) were in top form and were fun to be around, the island itself was awesome (beautiful and the natives were great) and all the activities from the catamaran to the hike to the wedding were just damn good fun. And......I wasn't the one gettin' married!

Here are a few highlights...
--The first few days with only Ray, Judy and Matt. We went snorkling everyday and even took a 3 hour tour on a boat with a guy named Glenn (I think). Saw fish, a sunken boat, and some 16th century cannons down there. Also saw three sea turtles on later dates.
--The swim-up bar at the Marriott. Matt and I got a little too busy to get through the entire menu of drinks but I think we got most of them. Hanging here with those three mentioned above after snorkling was a nice way to go from day to evening.
--Matt and I playing with a tennis ball in the pool. Our game of catch morphed to one with hockey-like traits. Matt would skip the ball off the water at high velocity and in my direction and I would attempt to stop it while trying to avoid a pre-wedding pictures black eye.
--The Sunset Cafe. This place was a twenty minute walk from the hotel and was an outdoor cafe practically on the beach on the Caribbean side of the island. Was a nice laid-back place where we could leave our stuff while we went out snorkling and come back for a couple beers and lunch and then go out again.
--Speaking of drinks...the island beer, Carib, Stag and Skol.
--The place where everybody knows your (or mine and Matt's) name. The Oasis Sports Bar and Grill. Made some friends there in the staff and I hope to keep in touch with a man named Leon. He was a great guy. Also the scene of our small bachelor party.
--All of our family and friends and Wendy's family and friends. Can't think of one that I dreaded being around. Was a great group to vacation with. Was good to meet the new people and was good to see those I already knew but hadn't seen in many years...Elsa, John, Brain, Jim, and Roz. And although I just met her I feel like I've known her a while...Brian's wife, Edie (am I spelling that right?).
--A volleyball game in the pool. Was Shannon, dad, Ray and I vs. Matt, Rigel, Steve and Mike.
--Saturday at Ottly's, where the weddding was held and my brother and Wendy stayed. We had a short relaxing rehersal and then a day of fun which included rum and pineapple juice, a game of croquet, hanging out by Mike and Sonya's room and their small pool, and a short hike throught the forest. Was a good day with the guys and Sonya.
--Hiking the volcano with Greg and his guides. Was a nice hike that included a few small challenging parts but nothing too rough and Greg, who was a great guy and a book of info on the place. I should note here that Rigel fell on the rocks once in an attempt to get out of getting married but didn't do enough damage to succeed. And then he almost fell again off a small cliff but as the bestman of the big event I grabbed him as he teetered on the brink of death and pulled him back. Wendy, the poor girl, was almost a widow before she was even married, but we couldn't let Rigel get out of it that easy, now, could we?
--The day on the catamaran. This day was probably the best single day out there for me. We sailed to a snorkling spot, then sailed on again to a beach on the island of Nevis and had lunch, played catch, and socialized. After that we sailed back to our starting point during which time the drinks flowed freely (they actually flowed freely before this), the music played loudly and many people started dancing on the bow of the ship (this included all the moms present, a member of the crew, and a few others). I don't think any of us wanted this day to end.
--The rehersal dinner at Sprat Net (I might be spelling that wrong as I don't have the t-shirt Ray and Judy bought me here with me). This was a fun time with the enitre party present for dinner and drinks. Mom and dad treated so the drinks flowed freely and most of us had lobster. And all for a very reasonable price. But just in case it wasn't reasonably priced dad got liquored up and for the first time in my life I can say that he was drunker than me. Rigel and I will have fun with this one for years to come.
--The wedding and rehersal were fun too. Was a nice ceremony in which we all knew our places and didn't screw anything up. Wendy wrote the ceremony and I must say that I was impressed. Rigel only had to pause once when repeating the vows and eventually man and wife were formed. Later the dinner was good and fun and the dancing and band went on and on. Overall I think that guy I used to beat up as a child and his bride did a damn fine and very tasteful job.
--The photographer, Brock. He fit right in with our family and friends and did his job well (or I think he did, I haven't seen any pictures yet). I don't usually like pictures but between him and the rest of the troops it was quite painless. When the pictures go up on his business site I will post a link in case Rigel misses telling any of you.
--And last but not least...the monkey. I love the monkey.

Ok, so you might now understand why I didn't want it to end. But I love Japan and will soon settle back down, just might take a few days. Or it might just take tonight. Amy and I are going out with Tomoko to an izakaiya for a few drinks and food. That always helps.

Congrats Rigel and Wendy and thanks for the good times.