Fire Drill

The weekend was rather uneventful. Drinking, singing, carousing with real Russians, Japanese, and English speakers. Some studying, shopping (finally a coffee maker and a DVD player, a godsend). But Monday contained the highlight of the month, probably. Ok, relax, sit back, grab a beer, think back to high school. Remember the fire drills, when the alarm would annoyingly go off, (either the fire department would pull it, or a prank, or someone trying to get out of class) (which in reality was a relief for most of us, got out of class etc., and being a teacher now, I can still say that proudly, even though its an immense headache if you’re taking a test or something to reschedule it, anyway, that’s a tangent). So, what would happen? Well, we’d all file out of the nearest exit, congregate outside for a little while, chat and what not, until the fire marshall came, declared that it had taken us 47 minutes to all leave the building and we’d all dutifully go right back in and resume the daily routine of school life, grateful for the tiny break away. I’d say that’s a pretty fair assessment of everyone’s experience, no? Ok, so last week I was told that this Monday there would be an “evacuation drill” here at school (the principal was quite excited by that word, evacuation, which he learned just for the occasion of telling me). So, with all my assumptions in place but cautiously aware that this is, after all, Japan, I went into Monday with modest expectations but ready for anything. And so it came…

When I showed up at 8:30, there were some fire engines and other official looking vehicles in the parking lot. The Hakui firemen were setting up a small tented area for some reason. So there was already a lot of activity and we were told to park somewhere far out back, on the lawn. Meanwhile, the students and the teachers were rehearsing for the annual sports festival (which is a grand big thing in itself, basically it is a full day of various sport activities, such as tug of war, etc. where the students and teachers compete, and the parents and community watches; it’s a big deal, it’s next week, I’ll write more later.) So, they were practicising. At around 9:30, they told me the drill would begin at 10:00. So, at ten, I was kind of hanging out by the front doors, waiting for my cues. So the kids all start running out, from various exits and I follow the gym teacher. Naturally, it turned out I was the last one to leave the building. Anyway, we all gathered by the baseball diamond and relaxed for a while. Everything was going as expected, until I noticed the overturned car in the parking lot. Yeah, they put a car on its side, because without this an earthquake simulation simply would not be authentic. Ok, I thought, I can deal with that. But, then I noticed, parked not too far away on the grass, a giant red rescue helicopter? Yes, a helicopter. Ok. Moving forward. Apparently they had instructed a few students and a teacher to stay behind in the building somewhere to have them be mock rescued. So, all these vehicles pull in and it starts to resemble a general disaster area. By the way, the tent was for all these higher-ups, which I guess included the chief of the fire department and some others. The head of the Board of Education was there as well. So all this activity is going on. A bunch of firemen go into the building and retrieve some students and lead them out, all authentic like, leaning on their shoulders and everything. Then, by the small river which runs along the school, a van pulls up, and out come – divers, all in their gear, all set to do a river rescue operation. Then put on their fins and dove in and dragged some guy out (I’m not really sure when he got in there), put him on a stretcher and into an ambulance. Then went back in to get another guy, who was pulled up on a stretcher that was suspended from a fire engine’s ladder. Ok, pretty cool. Then the helicopter starts to go, takes off and maneuvers itself on top of the school and a guy on a rope jumps out, lowers himself to the roof and picks up a student, gets lifted back onto the chopper and the chopper lands again on the field, where an ambulance pulls up and the guy gets transferred and the ambulance speeds away. OK, wonderful. The whole thing finished up with two fire trucks, with ladders extended, pouring massive amounts of water onto and into the school (I hope the windows were at least closed). Wow, it tool like one hour for the entire thing and it was pretty damn interesting to watch. At the end, all the rescue workers and what not lined up and were inspected by the boss, who then made a speech for like fifteen minutes. (In Japan, all speeches are at least that long, except of course mine; it takes an extremely long time to say extremely little – reference the “Lost in Translation” scene where Bill Murray is filming the whiskey commercial and direct translation takes place between him and the director and 2 minutes of speech is translated as “Please look to your left.”) After that, everyone just kind of went back into the building, the tent was disassembled, and normal routine life resumed, and of course, I had to resume along with it…Interesting little eventful morning.

Ok. School is actually starting this week, so pretty soon, there’ll be something here that’s actually somewhat relevant to a large reason of why I’m here. In the meanwhile, I’m planning my self-introduction lessons, in which I yet again talk about myself and show pictures and stuff. (Yes, my students will see many of you in your finest glory). Ok, that’s it for now. Take care.
P.S. In Japan, the standard pregnancy is considered to be 10 months, 10 days long. I was absolutely shocked by this fact and sat awestruck for like 15 minutes, pondering the whole nine month thing that has been bred into my since my own premature appearance into this world. Of course, no one at the office was the least bit concerned and went about their business; for them its 10 months, 10 days, period, no debate or nothing. Ponder that amongst yourselves.

Pictures

Hey, I got new pictures up. Its not much, and some of them are pretty bad, but at least its something. And I labeled them for a change. www.fotki.com/photomoose - look for me... I hope to post photos of my house soon...

Buzz, Buzz, Buzz

So, a brief outline of recent events. First, my haircut.Yeah, I needed one, pretty badly. I’m not sure how most of you in the states go about this procedure, but mine was pretty simple. I would casually stroll into a BoRics, or a Great Clips, or a Hair Cuttery, or what have you, sign in my name, take a seat, flip through the pages of a seven month old Home and Garden, and then be called by either a Russian or a Filipino woman over for a hair cut. I would inform her that I wanted the number three on the sides and the number four on top, and she would briskly proceed to operate the shaver and nick my hair off. A quick brush-up and I would be on my way, having paid $14 for the experience (including a $3 tip). The procedure, from walking into to the door to leaving would take perhaps 10 to 15 minutes, on a good day. Would I be happy with the haircut? Well, it would be ok. Would I be happy with the experience? Well, it would also be just ok, nothing special to speak of.

Enter the Japanese hair cut. Naturally enough, I could not be trusted to find the place myself, so I was guided along by the sweet office lady (every office in Japan has a woman who serves a variety of functions (i.e. making sure the coffee is made, making sure everyone has supplies, etc.)) We got to Hope’s Hair and upon walking in, all the employees were slightly awed by my size. I was immediately (and I mean immediately) shown to my chair and the thingy was placed around my torso. Then this lovely Japanese girl proceeded to shampoo my hair. Then the barber came by and I was trying to diligently explain what exactly I wanted (i.e. #3, #4) but in Japan, the system (naturally) is different; so it took a little while and a number of “haircut magazines” to finally figure out what I wanted. Out came the shaver and away went the hair at the sides. The top (which usually gets the shaver treatment as well) was meticulously cut with scissors. Ok, pretty fast, nice, and easy. Not much difference, and the hair looked ok. I was ready to stand, but then the man says, “Sheburu.” I’m like, what, and he’s like, “sheburu desu ka.” So, I figured, its best to agree and did so. Back comes the girl and begins to oil up my neck, ears, forehead, and then, drumroll, with a tiny razor (a real blade) shaved every available inch of my head that did not have head hair growing on it. Then I soaked in a hot towel for a while, and then she came back to shave my face. Then she clipped my friggin’ nose hairs. Then she shaved the inside of my ears. Oh, my, oh, my. The whole time, I couldn’t restrain my giggling, so she naturally couldn’t restrain hers, except I didn’t have no razor blade in my hand being applied to somebody’s friggin’ eyelids… but there were no casualties. After the shave and another hot soak, she put this thing on her hand (a big, spider looking thing) and it began to vibrate and she game me a head, neck, and shoulder massage (using her hand, which was vibrating). It was insane. Finally she finished, and I’m about to get up. But oh no, not without washing my hair, for the second time within the span of half an hour. Jesus, I have never felt so clean and well shaven and kempt in my life, ever… After a couple of bows and $32 later, I was on my way…thus is the Japanese way of hair cutting. (Again, maybe for some this is a typical procedure, but for me, the contrast between the first and the second paragraphs here should be evident…)

Later came the first night out in the local area. A bunch of us "Amerika-jins" went to this neighborhood spot called Rope, where the mama-san and the papa-san like having foreigners around and charge a ridicuously low price (i.e. 2000Y (~$20) for all you can drink all night, which included all sorts of snacks, etc; even the Japanese get charged around 3000 I think). So, the night got rolling pretty quickly, more mingling and getting to know the local Jet community, as well as some Japanese locals who were also having quite a good time. And then, lo and behold, enter the fact that it is a karaoke bar. The mikes come out and for the rest of the night, there was to be no peace, but continuous singing, usually a Japanese song followed by a Western one (as in any civilized society, we all take turns). Yes, even I sang, although it was the most painful atrocious experience to go through (not for me, naturally, I had a great time, but for those being forced to listen). And the song was? For all you inquiring minds? Yes, the song was Paradise City, by good ole G n' R. Here I thought that I knew the lines (basically a repetition of "Take me out to the paradise city where the grass is green and the girls are pretty") but no, of course Axl had to add a bunch more, so that was cause of lots of stumbling. But, all in good fun. Anything becomes better with practice. Naturally enough, at closing time, we left and sang our way home through the rice paddies and the light of an almost full moon. Drinking on this particular night, with an early morning awakening necessity, was probably mistake number one for the weekend.

Ok, as objectively as possible, here is what happened next. 9:28 AM, train to Kanazawa station (45 minutes), followed by train to Fukui City (1 hr. 20 min). Brief meal of ramen noodles with pork. Meeting some strangers, a short walk to the bus, meeting more strangers. Getting on the bus, sitting in the back, conversing with fellow Ishikawaites. Multiple stops, some naps, one or two attempts to read, Japanese greenery swooshing by outside. Movies - yes, movies. Almost Famous, followed by School of Rock. Not enough space for feet, nursing a slight hangover. Finally, 8 hours later, arrival. 10:30 pm, exit the bus and the temperature is cool, not cold, not hot, but right there in the middle, I would say upper 50s. So, fleece is put on, hat, gloves prepared, a walking stick bought with some nice bells and a Japanese flag. Off in my Converse I go, first down a gravelly path. A short while later, the incline increases and the true climb begins. It is dark, it groes progressively colder and colder, I am out of layers, but I must keep climbing. One hour, two hours. Still going. Every few hundred meters, there are rest areas and squat toilets, and climbers relaxing. Must keep going. The air is becoming thin, smoking is out of the question, for breathing has become an endeavor unlike any other. And the path varies, steep walk along gravel, climb on jagged rocks, lean against wall for support, but we all keep moving, stopping, catching breath, glancing around, and moving on. Full moon, shining, making up for the dead batteries in the flashlight, which dies ten minutes into the whole thing. Higher and higher, the pain grows, and the questions soon start. Internal monologues that cannot be allowed to take place. To dull the pain and the questioning, I put on the IPOD, hoping that good old Kitaro will make a contribution to the whole thing making sense. Briefly, he seems to do the trick, but soon enough, I discover that it is not so. Up here, it is me, in the rawest form, and the elements of nature. The wind has become very strong, the ground is very far away, and the top is nowhere to be seen. Four hours, five hours, still climb, rest, climb, breathe. There it is, the top, those lights must be the top, there's a cottage up there, that's where I can finally sit, and take in the view, fully. Yes, yes almost there, just around this turn, and ... BOOM

Only 500 meters to go. And, on Fuji, 500 meters is two hours at least. The heart sinks, the lungs shrink, and I am knocked down by the question - WHY. Why am I putting myself through this, is it necessary. The pain and discomfort I am experiencing at this point is the worst I have ever had. Converse and rocks do not mix, there are brief flashes of impending death, as breathing requires immense and focused concentration. And I decided there, that it is a matter of principle, some indefinable principle that propels me forward, deceiving me into believing that I can reach the top. So I plow on... an hour an a half later, with the first glimpse of the dawn, the end looks near (in both senses of that word). But, unexpectdely, comes the Fuji traffic jam. The back up of people on the narrow path has increased so much that virtually no movement is possible. In three columns, the climbers slowly advance, a step here, a step there, but mostly waiting, breathing, trying not to get blown over by the wind or get the small particles of dust, sand, and rock not to end up in the wrong place. An hour goes by and we have covered barely any distance at all. And then, amid screams and shouts, the sun shows itself, above the clouds. Briefly, but fiery, it shines, but no warmth comes out. And what can wee see? Well, nothing. The clouds and mist hang over so thick, you can barely see fifty feet, much less, what is thousands of feet below. Well, there's a brief glimpse, wow. But to catch it on film is nearly impossible. So you keep moving, clinging to the hope that even if there is no view, at least you made it, you climbed Fujisan, the tallest mountain in Japan. It is freezing, and the bus leaves in four hours, while you are standing still 2 miles above ground. The principle fades, and you turn around. There has ceased to be a point, but you still have to make it back down, which in the end turns out to be more difficult, because the converse and the pain act in immense synergy. So, you wind your way around all the determined Japanese who absolutely must reach the top (the principle for them is much stronger), and finally, it clears up enough to see the ground. You look down, and its kilometers of zigzags back and forth, down the steep mountain path. It takes four hours and a walk half way around the mountain to make it back to the bus. It is 10:00 Am. The night has been spent in the cold, dark expanses of Fuji, Fuji which has beaten me and proven to itself that it is not conquerable by just anybody. Back on the bus, I can barely walk, I stretch out, and I sleep. The bus ride back lasts "fifteen minutes," with brief glimpses of Meet the Parents and Three Amigos in between. My body is crying, asking for some horizontal relief, and I cannot do it. Fukui, Kanazawa, Shio, warm bath, and sleep. As I fall asleep that night, I recall the furies of the mountain and I realize that now that its over, it probably was not that bad (a key realization for any event in life.) But at the same time, it was indeed the most trying physical and mental experience of my life to date. I never thought I would be able to get as far as I did, and even though as I write this, my body aches, and at the time I never thought I would say these words, the entire experience is, somehow, incomprehensibly, justifiable and worthwhile. Although the proverb that "A wise man climbs Fuji once, a fool twice" is definitely true. Let us all rest.

Informatica

I had my first (expensive, yet official) Japanese lesson with Fukuda-sensei. It was all the introductory stuff, but it seems like it will be a good thing, because I was actually speaking Japanese with here (and even though it was stuff like "I am Roman. I am from America. I teach English," it was nevertheless a good thing, not to mention the fact that I got to introduce David Beckam to Arnold Sczwh.....gger, and vice versa - pictures of them - which was a jolly good time). In addition, I have truly found at least one hobby for myself for the year - ping pong... I went with one of my teachers to her table tennis club and was just floored by the skill level. Here I had thought that I was ok, but it turns out, compared to these people (even the jr. high school girl I played against) I have no skills whatsoever. The lead guy, Oka-san, has been playing since his jr. high school days (he's now 47) and at one point was number 3 in the prefecture, which would put him in the top 150 players in Japan, not a bad accomplishment for a country big on the sport. Anyway, there's a tournament coming up in November, and I would like to compete, although I will have to train like mad before it comes up (practice twice a week, Wednesday and (ugh) Friday nights). I have to somehow buy shoes (yeah, ping pong shoes baby). I found a site in England that sells size 14 Adidas shoes, but I have not been able to find any elsewhere (any help here would be appreciated). Anyway, it is intense, and I am very excited.

Oh, a piece of pertinent news. Those of you wishing to visit Japan this or next year, I have a rough idea of when the best time for me would be...It should come as no surprise that the best times fall right around school breaks. Again, it is rough, and exact details will become available shortly.

Winter Vacation: December 23rd - January 9th (i.e. there are no classes, teachers still have to come to school, but I can take vacation days at this time) - At this point in time, I am considering a Southeast Asian vacation here (i.e. Thailand, China, Taiwan, Tibet, Hong Kong?????), but let me know if anyone is up for coming out during winter.

Spring Vacation: March 27th - April 4th (ideal time for people to come out)

Golden Week: May 1st - May 5th (technically, the whole week is not a vacation, but I can maybe weasel some time here)


There you have it...times other than those, I cannot guarantee my presence as a worthy tour guide (of course I will try my hardest, but after all I am a teacher, with a teacher's responsibilities and cannot just take vacation when there are classes in session - please understand that...)

Also, there is alread a confirmed visitor in mid-February as well as March 13-23rd is most likely taken as well...email me and we'll figure something out. I think there are at least three more groups (i.e. The Rosenbergs, the Millers/Birmans/Grinbergs/Airapetovas, and the Marchenko Clan, as well as Smazo/IAK also having expressed interest, and an SW tossed in there somewhere...(ooh, that's a risk isn't it, writing that one?)).


Ok, long enough. Let me know what's up...

A New Hope???

Just as we thought it was all going down, just as the world tumbled into mediocrity, just as the end seemed very near, a new hope emerged...now, perhaps we are saved...

Long live the man...

http://www.walken2008.com/


Out

Untitled

On the steep hill behind my house, slightly embedded in the tall woods, lies a tiny cemetery, perhaps no more than thirty graves, standing, living out eternity in death, surrounded by foliage and the incessant noise of insects, which in turn are striving to show their own existence any way they can, something that the graves can never truly do. The other day, I went for a bike ride, through the tiny streets that make up this rural village, through the rice paddies that consume any space that could otherwise be called empty. I am beginning to notice something about this place, and perhaps it is only my mind or perhaps it is no different from any other place, but there appears to be contentment here, everywhere I look. People are not striving for anything, but rather have accepted their station in life and have become completely pacified with the idea of living out their lives in accordance with very basic principles. Make an honest living, provide for a family, raise children according to the same principles, and generally view the world around as very simple, without complication. The greed that is so evident in other places and that I have encountered many a time may be here as well, but it is so well concealed that it almost has become irrelevant. It does not seem to be a driving force behind anything and in fact, if it were ever to show its face, it would probably be looked highly down upon.

As I rode through the paddies toward the hilly forest that borders the village, I noticed a tiny opening in the trees that lead to an archway and behind it, a tiny temple, tucked away neatly between the trees. I parked my bike to have a closer look. There did not seem to be anyone around and the shrine itself was not much to look at, in comparison to other shrines that are in Japan. It was quite old, but at the same time, kept meticulously clean. There was definitely something about it that attracted me and made me want to just sit on its steps for a while and think…about, for instance, the lives of the priests that had, inevitably, inhabited this shrine for quite a number of years. Here they were, seemingly removed from reality, living an isolated life, doing their own “business,” completely unconcerned with that which goes on around them. There is a lot to envy there, in that peace of mind which has severed almost all attachments, which usually, by definition, must bring sorrow as well as joy. And yet, with all those remarkable benefits, something pushed me away, pulled me back toward the lights, the crowds, life as most of us like to call it. Albeit the village I live in is not much in terms of that, but it nevertheless stands at a crossroads, with both paths and their destinations faintly evident. But soon it got dark, the rain picked up, and I had to make my way back to my abode.

Mood is everything. In its depth lies a continuity, but because mood changes so often, it is nearly impossible to grasp. But there are moments, as brief as the time between a hummingbird’s flaps, in which it stares at you and you feel it, literally to the bone. Sometimes, this is associated with goosebumps.

Buckets and buckets of rain, after all, that humidity has to mean something. Rain is quite amazing here because it never really rains continuously for long periods of time. Rather, you have a lot at once, then a period of relative calm, than short bursts of rapid rain, followed by a light drizzle, followed by a steady stream, followed by sunshine, followed by buckets once again, an endless repetition but never in the same way. Sometimes, rain depresses me, but at others, it is a marvelous thing to observe, because after all, it is the nourishment of the earth, our mother, which keeps us alive. Perhaps I will get into haiku, which is all about unity with nature, about relating the pure and uncorrupted all around us to the human experience. No matter what anyone says, or what you see on the news, or what your strongest beliefs are, life’s secret is a beautiful one…

Until it all comes crashing down.
Forgive me, but I had some things to get off my chest, some beautiful feelings to share. The moon is shining tonight, but faintly, through a veil of clouds. I want to know what it is telling us?

Swamp Song

Having been away for an exhausting four days, I returned home yesterday morning and got my first true taste of isolation. Last Wednesday, I left for Kanazawa for a three day orientation. It was useful for a variety of reasons, such as getting to know other new Jets from this Prefecture, getting practical information about living in these environs, and a myriad other orientation like things that usually accompany something like this. Naturally enough, whenever the human mind is bombarded with such an overload of information, its chances of retention are quite slim, and right now I feel like I remember 5% of everything that I learned, but I wrote a lot of crap down, so it may come in handy someday. In terms of what actually happened in Kanazawa, there wasn’t particularly much of interest. Wednesday night, the evening’s entertainment consisted of a pub quiz, with a pre-arranged konbini run that secured all of us that treasured beverage… After that, since the place we were staying had an 11:00 lockdown, we all piled into a tiny hotel room (read, like 25 or so people) and hung out, chatting, cavorting, some even going further (I, naturally enough, was not a part of this group). In the morning, it was quite difficult to wake up, but after a Japanese breakfast (yeah baby, rice, miso, salmon, tea, coffee, and unnameable vegetables) the day got off to a good start.

Two highlights of Thursday. The first, which anywhere else would be purely straightforward and uninteresting but in Japan was quite enjoyable, was getting a keitai (i.e. cell phone). Like eighteen of us gaijin (i.e. foreigner) piled into the Vodafone store and besieged the poor Japanese employees, who behind their smiles were absolutely terrified. Then it was picking (a rather large selection) and then the plans (which are vastly different from American plans – i.e. the whole 600 min/month, free nights and weekends is unheard of here; its more like 65 minutes a month but a crapload of text and email messages – its strange but people don’t really talk on the phone here but send constant emails). And then the signing up. We had to write our addresses in kanji, and of course no one really knew how, so the whole thing ended up taking like four hours, literally. But I do have a keitai now…it has a t.v., a radio, a 2.0 megapixel video and photo camera, a motion sensor (i.e. you play games on the phone such as golf by moving the actual phone to swing), and a bunch of other goodies I have yet to figure out…

Secondly, I got to hang out with Sergey, who is a pure bred Russian, from Irkutsk and speaks fluent Japanese. First we went to a ramen bar and had some amazing ramen with gyoza and edamame (and its not the stuff you pour hot water over either, it was good stuff). Then we went to Apre, this bar that specifically caters to foreigners (it was really interesting to walk into this place and completely forget you’re in Japan, except of course for the Japanese staff). They played really good music from like the late 90s. We met up with Katya there, another bona fide Russian, also from Irkutsk, studying at a university here. We spent some pleasant time together, and it was really good to practice my Russian… On the way home, we walked through the samurai district of Kanazawa, which is a few streets that, by ordinance, have not really changed for like one hundred years. It was awesome; felt like walking through 18th century Japan, with the old fashioned houses, cobblestone roads, etc. (Of course, my not-so-intelligent self forgot my camera and was not yet keen enough to use the one on my phone, so I don’t have pictures from the weekend, but I’m sure I’ll go back to this area). Overall, a good day.

On Friday, nothing much happened, except we finally had some training about our actual jobs, about what we’re actually supposed to do, how we’re supposed to teach English to a bunch of Japanese kids, many of whom have absolutely no interest in it. It got me quite excited about my job, about trying to teach a foreign language. At night, we went out to a kaiten sushi place (conveyor belt sushi) where, for like $25 I had some great sushi that would have cost an arm and a leg in the states. The next day was full of walking, so much walking that my legs were close to simply falling off. We went to Yamada Denki, a large electronics store, in part just to have a look and in part to make some purchases. It was absolutely insane, largely due to the loud, annoying theme song that kept playing over and over and over etc. again. Lots of cool stuff and gadgetry, but I wasn’t all that impressed at all, largely because a lot of it I couldn’t understand. I mean, I could get the general idea, but as to the differences between the 3,234 models of mp3 players, I wouldn’t know one slight bit. After we dropped by a sporting goods store, where I bought the largest pair of shorts in the place, and boy was it squishy… Oh yeah, for lunch, we were walking along kind of an industrial big street (so not a lot of places to eat) but we randomly found this one nice-looking restaurant. We walked in, lured by the potential promise of a meal for 980Y (about $9.80). We sat, were served tea, and opened the menus, only to find out that that was the lunch special from 12:00-2:00 on Saturday and the next thing on the menu cost like 2300Y, which wasn’t our idea of lunch. After some deliberation, we decided to leave (as Americans, Russians, and all are apt to do, but we weren’t sure how it was in Japan). On our way, however, the nice waitress stopped us and after awkwardly explaining our situation, she assured us that we could have the 980 price. Lo and behold, we had an amazing sampling of sashimi which in the states would have cost around $50 and included in it (it is unconfirmed however) something that highly resembled whale semen (not that I would know of course, but if I was asked to describe it, that is exactly what I would say). Great Lunch all in all.

That night was the JET welcome beach bash, on the beach in Uchinada, a small beach town just north of Kanazawa. There was a bar right on the beach, and hammocks, and food, and of course, the Sea of Japan, where the water was absolutely gorgeous (we’re in the midst of three week swimming season, before the armies of jellyfish come out). So there was much merriment and a great mix of people. (Jets, Novas (which is another company that hires foreigners to teach English, Brazilians (of whom there’s apparently very many in Japan), and of course Japanese). Biiru and sake flowing, punk rock bands on the stage, a half-pipe on the beach, and a continual barrage of fireworks (which are legal here and absolutely fascinating to the Japanese). We spent a good eight hours just partying, swimming relaxing, etc. and then a tiring walk to yet another futon to crash on. (The Jet community is great because people let others crash at their houses all the time, but I wouldn’t want that happening to me – which makes me lucky, because not many people would want to travel out to the boonies to see me)
The next half day was atrocious. I must have smelled like a really old egg that had been floating down sewage pipes for a few weeks before ending up at the slaughterhouse. When I got home, it was the best shower I’ve had in the remembarable past. Actually, on Sunday, was the first time I really got a taste of life in the inaka (i.e. countryside). I spent the whole day just organizing things, reading, relaxing, figuring stuff out, and not uttering a single word to anybody. It’s a state of mind that can either drive one absolutely mad or be conducive to a productive mental and physical activity. It’s too early to tell yet, but I will keep all posted. (I did get as far as Lt. Mamiya’s Long Story, Part I, for those in the know). Actually, this is a topic I will return to when I feel more capable of reflection than right now. Work took a lot out of me today (there was virtually in the office – it is Obon, the time of the year when the Japanese go home to their families and spend time together, paying homage to ancestors, etc.) So I had to find amusement for myself for a while. But the highlight of the day, bar none, was driving. Yes, on the left side of the road, on the right side of the car. It was a truly strange feeling. The difficult part is not so much keeping to the proper sides of the road as keeping straight in your lane. Unless I was paying careful attention to what I was doing, I would always have a tendency to continuously inch to the left (because while I am driving, I am used to being on the left side of the lane, and here you have to keep to the right, naturally). But I think I will get used to it quite quickly – and come to think of it, it was quite fun, making left turns as if they were right turns…

Anyway, I watched Day of the Jackal today and its time for bed, it being past twelve and all. Still don’t have internet at home, unfortunately, but it will hopefully soon come. (This is written in Word and then copied and pasted later). Ok, boys and girls, that’s all for now. Forgive the quotidian nature of the post, but that’s how life has been lately. What’s new with y’all? Out.

Festivities

Now that I have finished bringing my house into somewhat livable fashion (I never really realized how much of a neat freak I am until I had to live all by myself), I can sit down and briefly (or perhaps not so) recount the last couple of days of my life. Last Friday morning, I decided that it would be a good idea to go play tennis with the Shio chugakko (junior high school) girls’ tennis team. It would give me a chance to get to know the students a little more, as well as the two coaches who also happen to be the two English teachers at the school, those with whom I will be working more often. Plus, it would be good exercise. So we went and played at the sports complex on a hill near my house. We played on clay courts and it was a peculiarly Japanese version of tennis, played with normal rackets but soft, as opposed to hard, rubber balls without any of the yellow felt on them. So they did not bounce very well, which meant that there was lots of running around. We did drills and such and some free practice; it was amazing how some of the girls were better than their instructors and myself. By the way, did I mention that Japan is stupendously hot at this time of the year… Yeah, people told me before hand to prepare for it, but, ladies, this is the most intense heat and humidity I have ever experienced. Its regularly above 30, with the hottest parts of the day tottering around the upper 30s (pardon the Celsius), with the humidity at an insane level. A five minute walk outside nets me a soaked t-shirt and probably a smell that a rhino would find unfriendly. So, after three hours of playing, I had become a bathroom sink. I consumed three bottles of Gatorade, purchased at a conveniently located vending machine by the courts. It was fun overall however. Interesting side note – the junior high consists of three grades (1st, 2nd, and 3rd, which are the equivalents of 7th, 8th, and 9th grades in the US) and the first grade always gets picked on to do chores. Actually, all students have to do chores (i.e. the school has no janitorial staff; the students clean it twice or three times a week) but the first graders get the worse of it. So after those three hours of tennis, the teachers, 2nd and 3rd graders and myself sat around, relaxing, while the poor first graders had to go and rake the clay, roll up the nets, and generally get the court into playable condition again. I felt pretty bad for them as I watched in between huge gasps for air (remember, I, I, I, had been playing for three hours). That’s just the way it is; next year, the new first graders will have to do it, and so it goes…Judge for yourself. When we got back to the school, I was dying for a shower and asked the teachers where it was. As I was to find out later, the teachers don’t really shower after strenuous sports activities, but rather just change. So they had to take the big American over to the only shower, which happened to be right by the outdoor swimming pool. So, I’ll skip over the details of a big dorky white guy, showering naked outside, right next to the Jr. High swimming pool of a school in the middle of nowhere, Japan.

That night, I took the train down to Kanazawa, the nearest “big” city, with a population of 450,000. I bicycled down to the train station and left my bike there (out of the fifty or so bikes that were at the train station, maybe four or five of them were locked up, the rest were just standing there….), planning on catching the last train out of Kanazawa at 11:00 PM that night. It was a fifty-minute ride or so, and when I arrived, I met up with a group of other JETS, both new and old, and we hiked down the main street of Kanazawa to the group meeting point at a restaurant. The city was fairly nice – not as anonymous as Tokyo, but still with a big city feel. (We passed all three Starbucks in the city on our half hour walk to the restaurant). The cuisine that night was a new one for me, called okunomiyake. The basic idea is a bunch of ingredients are stirred together and made into this omelet like thing. It difficult to explain, but imagine an omelet where the eggs are not the main ingredients, but rather the cementing agents, and there’s all kinds of other stuff in it. It was quite good, and we actually got to make it ourselves (the tables had hot plates in the middle of them). I sat with the drinking group and we got all-you-can drink (nomihoudai) for one hour, so it was this all out marathon (probably like seven or eight rounds over all). So, slightly intoxicated, we ate our food, and “got to know each other,” in the pc way, smazo. Many of the people I hung out that night, while cool to hang out with, were not necessarily people I would want to know further or become good friends with. Some were simply outright loud, obnoxious, “typical” Americans, we all know the type. But for an evening, it was alright. After, we went to a rooftop bar that caters to foreigners and hung out there for a bit. It is very interesting how the foreigner culture works and interpenetrates with the Japanese culture. Naturally enough, the foreigners feel a bond in this place, and as we walked among the crowds of Japanese, I thought about this a bit, and it should be interesting to see how it develops further. After the bar, we stocked up on some “biiru” in a “konbini” and went to the riverfront and just hung out there for a while. Some guy, Pete from Australia, had some kerosene and fire sticks, so he was breathing fire for a bit (nothing like drinking, and then putting kerosene in your mouth and blowing huge flames). Naturally enough I had long ago missed my train back, so I had to hang out until the morning. At around 4:30, I began a leisurely and highly reflective stroll back to the station. As the morning dawned around me, it gradually hit me that I would be here a long time, and that I would have to make the best of it… Someone once said that life is what you make of it, that you can either make the most or the least of ANY situation. Over here, that expression has an especially true ring to it. I caught the 5:24 train back and rode my bike back in a daze to the early morning traffic.

After like a three hour nap, I had to meet some Japanese fellows and we went to see the Houdatsushimizu basketball team play against another local team. That was fun, to watch some ball. They’re already gearing up to have me join this team, as I had at least three or four inches on the tallest player. What they don’t know, of course, is I wouldn’t last five minutes running up and down the court. (Something else I’d like to work on). Afterwards, they took me out to lunch. By the way, I was with four guys, and none of them, repeat none of them, spoke any English. So it was interesting and I could truly play the role of the strong silent type. Anyway, after the dropped me off, I caught up on some sleep before the big night outing.

In the evening, I drove with Ryo (a Japanese guy from the BOE, who speaks English) up to Wakura, a little town about one hour’s ride north of me. It was their annual Issaki Hoto Matsuriya festival. Apparently, this town used to be a huge fishing village (it still is to some degree, but not the same as like one hundred years ago) and this festival is a celebration of the fishing season. It was quite a new, unique, and barely describable experience. Basically, the festival centered around six huge floats. Each float had a different team associated with it, and each team had about 60 or so members. These floats were huge. About 80 feet in length and at least as high. On them were some kids, six flute players, and a guy playing taiko drums. In the center of each was a huge drawing of some sort (each different, some sumo wrestlers, some samurai, some just old Chinese writing). Again, hard to describe (I will post pictures soon, but they’re fuzzy as it was dark and hard to get a good one). So, here’s the fun part of that festival. The big idea was to have like 65 guys carry this gigantic thing on their shoulders (it must have weighed a good ton, if not more). They were set up in rows underneath, heaving, carrying, and chanting. Mind you, they carried them through highly narrow streets filled with people who cheering along. It was insanely hot, no space, the float leaning this way and that, the whole thing strangely reminiscent of the running of the bulls. They must have carried those things around for a good four or five hours. Meanwhile, we the bystanders, stood around, drinking, eating some highly interesting festival food. (While getting this food, I had the pleasure of witnessing a bunch of yakuza escorting a boss’ family, and a caravan of six or seven expensive German vehicles speeding away). Again, the whole festival idea is difficult to describe, but its quite unlike anything that I have ever seen. Even stranger was what we did next. Apparently, the people who live in this town open up their doors to strangers on this night and invite them in to eat and drink in their homes. So, we went in to a bunch of people’s houses, sat and drank and ate with them. It was quite a good time. One guy in particular (a trainer of sumo wrestlers) had a bunch of people over, and invited us inside. We sat around, drinking JW Blue Label, eating some fine sushi and tempura, and chatting away. Well naturally, I wasn’t chatting, mostly eating and drinking, being amazed at the hospitality. Again, never before had I experienced stuff like that. At like two in the morning, we took cabs back to someone’s (a Jet’s) house to crash for the night. He lives in an old supermarket, which was remade into living quarters – quite huge ones at that. So I slept there and got a ride back in the morning. That day, I had makudonarudo for lunch, just to try it out in Japan. It remarkably similar. The rest of the day, literally, was spent ironing. Jesus, go ahead and try ironing for six hours straight, it’ll make your head go funny.

And so another week begins. Monday, I was putzing around all day, opening a bank account, trying to buy a cell phone (I didn’t yet, will wait until the latest model comes out on the 19th) and finally finished tidying up the house, which is about where I came in. For the rest of this week, I have a three day orientation in Kanazawa, so I won’t have online access. But I’ll definitely write about it later. For now, all please take care.

Peter Jennings, R.I.P.

V=Peace

Just a quick note about photography, Japan, and the peace sign. Apparently its on many people's minds as to why this happens in pictures of Japanese people. I have actually asked some of my Japanese co-workers and none of them seem to really know because its been something they have taken for granted for some time. I asked and looked around more, and there are several cogent theories floating around, although no one really knows for sure. It is definitely a peace sign, although sometimes Japanese people, instead of saying "say cheese" when taking pictures ask "what's 1 + 1?" and the reason there for the two is obvious. Another possibility - dentistry in Japan is atrociously and people's teeth are in al sorts of bad condition, and I think its something that many feel self-conscious about, and so, in many cases, the peace sign is placed somewhere in the vicinity of the mouth, so as to cover up the teeth in the picture... Anyway, no one really knows, but here's a funny website about, just in case you want to know more...http://www.maninjapan.co.uk/index.php?p=99...over and out...

Nomunication

The Japanese verb for to drink is nomu, so from that the meaning of the above title should be fairly evident. For better or for worse, this is definitely a drinking culture. Every day I have been in Japan, I have had at least a drink and on some days, quite a bit more than one. I would not go as far as to call it an alcoholic culture, but rather one in which alcohol provides the much needed bridge between the world of officialdom, of work, of routine and formality, and that of relaxation, of simply hanging back, kicking off the slippers, and slowly allowing your body to spread out on the tatami (mats in watsushi, traditional Japanese rooms). In my personal case, alcohol has also helped with the language barrier a little bit because it gets broken down. I guess alcohol plays a similar role anywhere it is consumed, but its much more ritualized here, as many other things are....Ok, enough of a cultural note, let me say a few things about the last couple of days...
On Monday, there was an event on the beach sponsored by an organization known as Japan Tent, which brings international university students who are studying in Japan to stay with families across the country for a little while. I went to eat, and it turned out to be a good opportunity to eat and drink a lot of good food and spirits in the middle of the day, and then hang out at the beach for like three hours. (Work is difficult, n'est-ce pas?)
Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday nights I spent at the family home of the kocho-sensei (the principal of the school). His family was quite nice, although they did not know any English whatsoever. As is customary for many families in Japan (as it also was in Russia and in some Russian families in America, including my own), he lives with his wife, his mother, and his grandmother (yeah, pretty amazing, he is 57; his grandmother turns 100 on August 23rd; I have never met anyone who is that healthy and that old...). Monday night, there was a big dinner. (Have I mentioned the fact that the Japanese love to eat small portions of a million different servings). We must have polished off like 5 or 6 large cans of beer and got stuffed. The next day, he had to stay at school late, so I just went home by myself and was fed. That night, I finally got some alone time (after like 10 days incountry) so I got out the Murakami and began the Chronicle for the second time (what an amazing book...) Oh, I forgot, on Tuesday, there was also an all-school assembly for a variety of things. First, the volleyball team (did I mention that every kid is involved in some sort of club or sport and even though it is summer vacation, all teachers and students still come to school everyday - for practice and whatnot. The teachers are all meant to be busy, or at least pretend to be, and its fun to watch them shoot the shit while pretending like they're actually doing work) anyway, the volleyball team accomplished some sort of acclaim and were going to the national tournament, so the students had to give them props. They ran in to a drum roll (I cannot imagine an assembly in the US with a huge taiko drum roll), and the students saluted them. Then there were various speeches, all very formal, etc., until finally it was our turn (Ryan, the person leaving, and Roman, the person coming) to give short talks. There was a formal procession in front of the students, and then he got up on stage and talked for a little while. Then I get up there, and like 200+ people are staring at me, and I had to say a few things about myself in Japanese. I was not nervous at all (as I did not really know what I was saying - I had some help in translation) but the experience was tremendous nonetheless. After the customary applause, we walked off the stage and the kids proceeded to watch a video about a very important topic here in Japan, Peace Memorial Day (as some of you history folks might know, exactly 60 years ago, on August 6th, 1945 a horrific event occurred here in Japan, followed by another three days later. Ever since then, the anniversary has been celebrated as a day of peace and rememberance, and this year especially, it will be very somber...) Anyway, getting back to the topic at hand. On Wednesday, the Board of Education for which I work held a welcome party for me and a farewell party for Ryan. It was quite an experience... it started around 6:30, when the head of the BOE gave a short toast, and we kanpai'd (kanpai=cheers). There were like thirty people in this tatami room, all sitting on little pillows on the floor (oh, another thing, my legs have recently been killing me, as I have little experience sitting down Japanese style). And so the beers were opened and started flowing. In Japan, custom dictates that at official gatherings of this type, you are not allowed to pour your own drink and that someone else has to do it for you. Also, the glass in not allowed to become empty and the only way you can indicate that you are done drinking is to not touch your refilled glass (a lot of liquor is wasted this way). At any rate, they also served a bunch of food and a little later, brought out some locally brewed sake. Let me just say that by 7:30, I was sufficiently warmed up to be rolling around on the tatami. The Japanese sure know how to relax. At this point, I had to give a brief speech, which was a lot of fun. Then, a bunch of folks (I am really bad with names over here...) came by and kept pouring and pouring and pouring (copy/paste that about a hundred times). When the shebang ended only around 10:00, I was, in no glamorous words, wasted, as were some of my co-workers at the BOE, whom I do not know very well, because I spend my time in the junior high school, mostly. (That welcome party is coming soon). After all that, I was driven back to the principal's house and he had to deal with my drunken self...
The next morning, at 8:15 PM, everybody from the town hall gathered in the gymnasium, lined up in rows, for an official assembly of some sort. First, the mayor of this little town (which has a population of 15,000) said a few words to the crowd, then some people who are new introduced themselves, and then my hungover self had to introduce myself (I could see the panic on my superviser's face as I trodded through the all newly familiar routine of saying that I am Roman Marchenko, from Chicago, IL, and that I don't speak much Japanese, and that I like basketball, and all that...) After that little ceremony, I came back to my desk at the school, which has become my sanctuary, where I can spend my time however I like. (I do not have official duties for about another month, which gives me plenty of time to learn the language and write obnoxiously long blogs, but at the same time, its awful hard to fill sometimes...) At any rate, I am excited, because tonight is the first night I get to spend at "home," so I can finally unpack, and start to really settle in, and truly figure out what I need to do. It will be interesting to actually cook something by myself, after 10 days of stupendously good food...

Ok, sorry for the atrocious length, but I had some things to get off my chest...I'm trying to gear up for a post that's more substantive rather than merely informative like this one had been. But in any case, take care....all are missed....gambatte kudasai...

A New Week Begins....

I think I have officially tried every single type of Japanese food there is. I have stayed with two different families already, and tonight, I will be staying with a third one (the principal`s). Boy, have they treated me well... Actually, I do not think I have received this kind of hospitality ever in my life...as they say, the Japanese are very eager to please. The first family (Kamatani`s - the English teacher) had three children, Tomoki (9), Mayuko (6), and Takuma (4), and they were all very, very cute and kept speaking to me in Japanese, and I would just stand there like the ogre that I am and smile. (I have really learned to smile a lot recently). So, I played with the kids, ate a bunch (the Japanese love to eat - breakfast, snack, lunch, tea time, dinner, every frigging day, at set times), discussed Koizumi with Takeshi (the father), and mostly just enjoyed my time. Over the weekend, I stayed with Nozaki-sensei, the Japanese teacher and his family (kids - Tatsumi (12) and Miho (14). We actually drove up to Nanao City, which is a sister city to Monterey California, for the Monterey Jazz Festival, which was like 8 hours of jazz, non-stop, on the sea shore. It was quite nice. There was a group that performed Girl from Ipanema, in Japanese, very nice. The main band was the band of Sadao Watanabe, who is this 72 year old saxophone player, and he was pretty amazing. (I am wondering if he was mentioned in Murakami novels, I think he may have been).

Frustrations thus far - primarily with the language; I cannot put two and two together. I know a bunch of vocab, but in terms of grammar, I can manage something like Its a question of learning, studying, and trying to use whenever I can. The problem is, the Japanese do not expect any Japanese language to come out of my mouth, so whenever I try to speak in my broke ass Japanese, they simply think its an English word they do not know... It makes for quite amusing but also frustrating situations... Anyhoots..

Quick comment. I have not yet moved in to my house, and my online access is quite erratic, so I apologize for the infrequent updates and the inability to write emails back to you guys. I am checking whenever I can and am trying to utilize my time well. Hopefully, within a week or so I will be able to have more regular access and everything...

Ok, everyone take care....more substantiation coming soon...