ネイティブが教える英会話のジェムスクール☆Teachers☆

Awhile ago I wrote about my actual dad, but I also have an adopted "academic" dad. He's not technically old enough to be my father, but I met him when I was just starting college, and he became like a father to me all throughout my years at undergrad and graduate school. He really encouraged writing over the years, and continues to now. His name is Christopher Barzak, and this is a picture of him signing books for his latest released novel. He has several books out now, one of which he wrote while he was in Japan, about his time in Japan. He was the one who advised I come to Japan when I told him I wanted to travel. He's one of the people I miss most from back home, and I look forward to swapping stories about living here with him when I go back.   

Every now and then ost people get a craving for something. Some people crave rare, exotic, or expensive foods, others crave really cheap , strange, or mundane foods. For the past couple of months I have been craving a childhood snack. A nice good peanut nugget. Its very similar to a "turron" but of lesser quality. When I found out that my parents were sending me another care package I specifically asked for a handful of peanut nuggets. These nuggets are not sold in any store in Miami but they are sold at most gas stations. My father went to the local gas station across from the local grocery store and bought some for me and for himself. Once he got home my sister saw them and decided she wanted some. As far as I can remember she has never had one of these. My father had to return to the gas station and buy some more. This is very strange, someone going to a gas station twice in the same day to buy over a dozen peanut nuggets, that type of thing just doesn't happen in Miami. The cashier was shocked and according to my dad a little nervous. He probably thought he was about to be robbed or someone was scoping out the joint. It's a very common thin in Miami.

What foods do you crave? Do you have any strange or funny stories?  

It's my birthday today! I am now at the ripe old age of 29 years old!

...sigh. One more year. Just one more year and I hit the big 3-0. Well, i guess it doesn't matter, since many people already think I'm 40 now, haha.

What are my plans for my birthday? Absolutely nothing. Not to say I would mind doing something if it came up, just that I didn't plan anything for myself. Actually, that's not entirely true. I was planning on having a party again at a river in Saijo, like I did last year, but I decided to cancel that. I don't know why, but I have been feeling very tired lately, and the thought of planning a party seemed too troublesome. I know I disappointed a few friends, who I had told the plans to and now know that they are canceled.

I don't know, maybe I will try for a small get together at an izakaya or something. Just to say I did something for my birthday. But then, I never really was concerned with celebrating it to begin with.  

Recently my favorite teacher recommended a book to me by A.S. King called Please Ignore Vera Dietz. He told me the main character reminded him of me. It was a really engaging read, and I really liked the main character--although I don't know if he were as much a like as the teacher thinks. The best part of reading this book, however, was the fact that it inspired me to start a new YA (young adult) novel of my own. Right now, I've already made it to 28,000 words in one week.   

Last week was a rather exciting and enlightening week as I went on a trip to Thailand to see my sister and brother in law. Thailand is so vastly different than Japan. Again I am amazed at how much a culture can vary from one location to the next. The Thai people are much more emotion bearing than the Japanese, who generally prefer to control their emotions, reminding me mildly of America. Thailand itself was a wake up call though. While some parts of Thailand don't seem it Thailand is a developing country and thus shows all of the tell tale signs. Impoverished ghettos, abundant pollution, malnourished children and adults. While I did enjoy the tourist traps they had set up such as Zoos, Markets, Malls, and various other attractions I found it hard to be happy while I had so much and others had so little. Next time you think you have a difficult life just remember, no matter how bad it is, you are still more fortunate than someone out there.  

Hello!

Today, I want to talk a little about a really fun thing that I went to this past weekend! There was an arts and crafts convention that happened at the Sun Messe right next to Kagawa University this past Sunday, and I went along to check it out! I was really surprised and impressed at the number of really talented people that live here in this prefecture! There were dozens of booths and stands selling anything from leather goods, jewellery, art and more! It was a lot of fun to wander around the convention area for a few hours seeing all the things available, and then stopping for a small meal at one of the concession stands there!

I'm looking forward to see more of the crafts and arts that Kagawa has available in it, and I'll be on the lookout for further conventions and festivals like this in the future!

  

I'm not bothered by most insects, arachnids, etc. but I really do not like centipedes/millipedes! Where I live in America, I do not see them often and when I do they are usually small. Last weekend, I saw my first large, living centipede while out walking. After taking a large leap over it and scaring my friend, I took a picture from a distance so I could document this nightmare. They are too creepy! They have too many legs, possible pincers, and are just nightmare fuel.


I am adjusting to the different bugs in Japan, but this is one bug I would rather not meet again...  

  

Hello, all!

My year at Gem School is almost finished—it's been a truly gratifying experience, and I'll write a bit more about it next week. Right now, I'm getting everything ready for the trip to the US, and I've started saying goodbye to my students.

Even though I have two weeks of classes left at my other schools, because of our schedule I had my final class at Niihama on Thursday! I was the first teacher for the Niihama Thursday line, so I was very sad to see the last of my kids. Some of them gave me very wonderful farewell cards.

The one on the bottom-right is a mouse. Don't mistake it for a fox like I did! Another student was very, very concerned that I unseal, not tear, his envelope!
I can tell that the students put a lot of work into these! They all have messages in English I know they wrote themselves. I'm so proud of them. I'll be sure to send them thank-you postcards from America!

Thank you, Niihama students—and all the other fantastic Gem School kids I've taught. I'll really miss you!

—Matthew  

Yesterday was absolutely gorgeous.



On Saturday night I returned home from Shikokuchuo to find the sky clearing and temperatures dropping. After a few minutes of unwinding in my apartment, I looked up to see a rainbow outside my window. I ran outside to snap the picture above, then just sat in the parking lot for a while enjoying the sunset. The weather was absolutely perfect.

As the sun went down I took another picture.




I spent the night out with friends, drinking a bit and eating a lot.

Sunday was perfect too, the temperature had stayed down and the humidity was very low.

Every time a day like this comes along, I wonder if this will be the last nice day before summer comes knocking. Is today the last sweatless day in store for me in the next 3 months? Who knows. But today was lovely, and that's what really matters.  

Last Sunday my dance team had an outdoor practice at Kotohiki campground. Our choreographer came to run the practice, and I have to say she is quite the character! She's very nice, but can be a little scary when she runs practice! After practice both of the Okirakuya groups got together for a giant barbecue! It was the biggest barbecue I have been to in a long time. It was really nice, All of our teammates kept dropping of food at mine and Katies tarp! We would just be finishing our food and someone would plop a heaping plate of meat and vegetables in front of us! I was so full after the barbecue that I had a super long nap!!!



  

When it gets windy it Japan, which happens often, I still get shocked on how windy it gets. In Miami it never really got windy unless there was a storm.

Whenever I'm home and it starts to get really windy I hear it and I get really freaked out - I look outside to see if anything is wrong, but it's normal, everything and everyone doesn't seem to be affected. I don't think I'll ever get used to it.

One time I was outside and it got so windy that I had to push myself against the wind! How crazy is that?

Does the weather ever worry you?

  

Recently I had a taco party with my friends.

I made everything from scratch! I made tomato rice, refried beans, chicken and beef taco meat, and handmade tortillas. It was a lot of work, but it was worth it. My friends really enjoyed everything I made.

Here is a picture of my taco!



I think by now everyone knows how much I like tacos! Let me know what you think!

Thank you for reading,

Kristen  

Ah, Iceland. A place I wish to visit some day. This small island, which is home to just barely 320,000 people is an island filled with beautiful landscape, fjords, hot-springs, and even volcanoes. One just erupted recently too, the volcano's name is Eyjafjallajökull, which is as difficult to pronounce as it looks!

Whats nice about Iceland is that it's another destination you can pick in order to see the Aurora Borealis. That sounds relaxing huh? Sitting in a hot-spring looking at the northern lights. Heaven.

- James Barbosa  

Father's day just passed, so I figured I would tell you all about my dad. This is him, Amos "Jay" Walter Johnson. He's 70 (ish) which is pretty old for a dad of a kid my age, but he had me a bit later in life. I'm actually his seventh kid. My dad is a pretty strange dude for a number of reasons. When he was younger he played trumpet in a band that was pretty popular. They toured from Texas to California. The name of the band was Sunny and the Sunliners, and you can still find their music online today. He even wrote some of their songs. He also used to play music at amusement parks, and once he and the band got on a rollercoaster and played their instruments while they rode the ride. He doesn't play anymore because whenever he does his dogs go crazy.   

The first day of summer has come and gone. I feel the temperatures are starting to go up a bit and the humidity is following right behind. My students often times ask about the weather back home and how it compares to Japan. I have to say I am starting to feel the humidity become bothersome but in no way does it compare to Miami. The biggest problem in Japan is air-conditioning. I am used to having a cool house every day of the year. In Japan winter was very nice I didn't have to turn on the air a single day. Now that summer is here I feel as though no one in Japan really lowers the air. The stores feel humid and hot as well as the restaurants. In Miami the restaurants have a pleasant temperature specially if they sell alcohol. So when I am asked if I think Japan is very hot and humid my answer is, well yes but not when its compared to Miami. But Miami dealt with the humidity and heat better than Japan seems to. It's possible that Japanese aren't as affected by it, just like some people in Miami come out wearing sweaters and still never sweat.

Do you think Japan is hot and humid? Today Tokyo and Miami are both at 27 Celcius Tokyo is at 80% humidity and Miami at 84%.  

When I look at the mountains, I am immediately reminded that I am so lucky. I live in a gorgeous prefecture in a really fun country.

On Sunday, yosakoi practice was early in the morning, near a beach in Kanonji. We practiced for 3 hours but it was raining and blissfully cool. It was actually easier than when we danced in the gym. I was a lot less sweaty! Our choreographer was there again, she's a sweet, crazy lady. She spent a lot of time telling us to change the look in our eyes to a certain kind of focus. I told myself that I'll concentrate on such a thing AFTER I get the moves of our dance down, from start to finish.

I can do some of it really well, but then other parts, I'm lost in confusion. I noticed that some of the kids on our team seem to have the whole thing memorized and don't appear to be worried about giving the 100% that my instructors and choreographers have been teaching us. I realized that it will look better if I know my timing and when to use which body part, instead of looking as good as my instructors.

So, for the next few weeks, I am going to be watching and memorizing as much as I can, everyday. I have DVDs that our instructors made, and a few videos I took on my camera that I carry around. My goal is to remember first, dance well second.   

I recently borrowed a game from my girlfriend, called (in English) "Professor Layton versus Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney". It is actually a combination of two game series, "Professor Layton" and "Ace Attorney". If you have not heard of either of these games, the first is a game which involves solving puzzles to unravel a mystery, while the second takes place in a courtroom setting (lawyers and such) while also looking for clues to solve a murder for each case. Both are highly recommended.

Of course, the game I am playing now is in Japanese, so it is a bit difficult, since it involves a lot of reading, especially since wording is important to solving the puzzles and pointing out contradictions in the courtroom. But I have been doing okay so far, and also learning new Japanese words (maybe). It gives me confidence to try the newest Ace Attorney game, since it came out in Japan first, and my gf already bought it, haha. But first I need to complete this game!  

Recently I have been re-watching the Harry Potter Movies in preparation of reading the actual books and a thought struck me. Why do adults stop believing in magic? When we are children our imaginations can conjure up monsters and friends, magical forests or cities from the distant past. Around what age were you when you last let your imagination run away with you? Can you remember? Why did you stop believing? I think society has conditioned us to 'grow up' when we hit puberty and to stop believing in fanciful things. It is curious though that we see children as the most pure and wondrous thing in our world and yet we demand that they turn into us instead of the other way around. I think this world may be a more amazing place if we would stop limiting our minds and making new rules every day about what we should do and simply let our minds explore and create!   

Hello!

So, as anyone in Kagawa can tell you, we are in the rainy season here in Japan! During the last few weeks, there have been only one or two days that are actually sunny, and the rest have been overcast at best, and thunderstorms at worst! In addition, it's been very humid here as well, so not only do you get wet when you go outside, but because of the humidity, there's no chance to dry off when you go inside either! It's been a struggle keeping my cheery disposition when faced with this kind of weather, as I'm very much affected by the environment I'm in, but I'm excited and lookin forward to the warmer summer months coming up, and hopefully they'll be a little dryer as well!