Winter Break Day 1

I may be cheating death by writing this. My computer charger has a little rip in the cord and needs to be adjusted for about five minutes before it decides to work. Well, upon examination of the charger, it's getting really hot and I fear it will spark, set my sheets and, by extension, me on fire. If you notice a strange trail of letters, just picture me trying, with my last effort on Earth, to communicate with you - and know if they are something like "911" or "SOS", please contact someone with international connections. Maybe "SOS" is inappropriate because that may be only maritime but you get the idea.

Yesterday I went on a hike but I only kinda expected it. My friend said we should go for a hike or walk around the harbor. Assuming she was referring to the harbor-area, I ignored the "hike" part and made my way happily to Kobe. When I got to Sannomiya station, I was informed that we would be hiking up a mountain. Although she said the mountain was not that big - how much does that matter? Yes, I am aware that I am not climbing Mt. Fuji but this is still going to be a steep, breathtaking (literally) excursion! People do these things recreationally. This may have been the first plan of Shuko's (my friend) to kill me. I was not dressed properly, I wore the antithesis of hiking shoes and I am not in, what you would call, mountain hiking shape. So while doing my best impression of someone unaffected by walking straight up, she wanted to play a word game. We started with a Japanese word...the next person had to begin their word with the last letter from the previous word. Note: this game can be ended by using a word ending in "ん”(n). Words in Japanese end in this letter but no words begin with it. My strategy, although effective, was no accepted and we continued on. After half of the mountain was below us, we switched to English. I figured at this point, my brain would recover...nope. Shuko knows a lot of English words but wanted to learn new ones, so I had to think of (and then explain) about fifty new words - mostly ending in "ous". Our game continued until we got to whatever the summit was. I think she just decided to turn around and go back at some point - which was strange because if I was going to bust my ass going up - why not go all of the way?? The only reason I can fathom now is that after she killed me physically and mentally, she was attacking my spirit. Don't let any of my desperate rehashing fool you, Shuko is cute and I was happy the whole time - even if I was externally a sweating, struggling dude in a sweater vest. Oh, so once we hit the sweet, sweet ground..."why don't we go up here to look at the view?". I am convinced this suggestion was an improvisation to her plan - I didn't die, the first time...let's go back up the mountain. Great!

Since I've established my martyr act, I am also worried about my manliness. The other night, I waited outside at a train station for my friend, Chieko, to pick me up. As it turned out, she was stuck at work so I stood there for about thirty minutes before walking to her school. But, I was freezing! Granted, I was wearing a sweatshirt with no hat or gloves but it was only about 30..and then whatever effect the wind had. But still, I gave Gino such a hard time because he'd lost his ability to handle cold - is this happening to me? Is my blood thinning?

Stay tuned, tomorrow I am headed to Universal Studios Japan. I'll write back soon!Ha!! Shuko did not kill me the second time either! And my reward for not dying was the beautiful view of Kobe.

Straight up. Straight up.
This is a shrine for babies who've died before they were born...terribly sad but I still don't understand the backwards swastika thing
Pretty
Shuko is probably looking at the spot on the mountain she figures I would die.
A little higher up....new waterfall, still breathing at a normal rate
A beautiful waterfall at the base of the mountain - back when I was genki enough to take pictures and marvel at nature.

メリ クリマス

I've taken to writing entries sitting alone in the Brazilian restaurant I've come to love as one of my family. Writing and eating alone on Christmas should be reserved for psychopaths or...I don't know, Jews? I've worked on Christmas before but never having to miss a family get together. The feeling of working on Christmas was the same to me as it was in America. Something is always happening and there is a certain level of busyness but everything feels slow and mildly depressing. It's comforting to think that people at home are likely asleep for most of my Christmas. I suppose I shouldn't come off like I am the biggest Christmas freak. Like everyone else, I enjoy being with family and friends - but the actual holiday doesn't really mean all that much to me. I suppose I could say it's too commercialized...I mean, it is but that doesn't really affect me much. Let's see, it's usually more of a stress than it is a relief. Again, my family is small and not too focused on gifts, so I can't use that either. Ok, so I don't have a reason for lacking Christmas sentimentality - but I do.

All told, I miss the Christmas season and being able to see the family together, but I signed up for this so it's not a complaint. My one and only complaint of the day was that I had a four year old student say "Merry Christmas" before any co-worker (aside from Jacqui) did. I got to talk with Jeff this morning and he thought it unfair that we don't have Christmas off. Now I don't believe our school should be closed - Japan doesn't celebrate Christmas traditionally so I saw no purpose for that...but our co-workers know we celebrate Christmas, they know when it is, they know enough to make us plan Christmas themed lessons but not enough to give us the happy wishes.

It's a little unorthodox here...Christmas is everywhere. Lights are up all over town, Christmas music blasts in every store, red and green adorn all types of decoration and there are signs wishing everyone a "Happy Fun Time Xmas" (and the like) but I have not figured out why. I've asked my Japanese friends and I've asked my students and I still really don't know why they're "celebrating" a Western holiday. The reason I put quotes around 'celebrating' is that all the people do is eat cake and give their kids a present. Being a little more sociological, I don't think it varies too much from America. Most Americans don't really celebrate Christmas for its intended purposes - they do so to see their families or pretend to be Christian again for one of two days a year. I feel like this entry is bordering on cynical - and I don't mean it to be so I'll move on.

This weekend, a bunch of friends and I gathered at Mike's house for a Christmas party called "Otsukaresecretsanta". "Otsukaresamadeshita" is the Japanese way to thank someone for their hard work, so we made a play on that. Our party was the second in a line of gaikokujin parties - the first was ArigatoGiving. A lot of the same faces appeared this weekend but we also cycled in a new batch. Mike mainly organized our gift-giving activities. We did a white-elephant 100 Yen gift exchange - which turned out to be much more entertaining than the regular gift exchange. Everyone vied for and eventually lost out on (to me!!) a mysterious gift within many balls of newspaper. Once my friend, Chieko (my official card-holder/present opener) finally got to the middle, we found a little dog nose/tongue mask. It served itself well in pictures and again in school this week.

I was given my friend, Shuko, in the gift exchange. Having known her all of a week and, therefore, knowing nothing...I just went to Kobe and spent about twice the limit because I didn't want to waste time finding something she might not like but fit the spending guidelines. The Body Shop translates cross-culturally I've learned! Easily the most enjoyable part of the night were Chieko's drunken antics. She came to the party having already began her alcohol adventure and wine just about did her in. One second she was sipping on coffee, the next she was passed out kneeling and hunched over a chair. After taking obligatory photos putting a Santa costume on her, we decided to get her to a bed. The process included...propping her up with her arms on peoples' shoulders - nope, she was still passed out, couldn't walk. So I threw her over my shoulder (thank you tiny Japanese girls) and carried her to bed, put her down and effectively wrapped her in a blanket as if she was a Japanese burrito. Something must've gone wrong because as we all exited the room, she fell off the bed and onto the ground. Let me tell you, she may be a little Japanese girl but dead-lifting anyone is difficult. Finally we got her to remain stable in bed - and, miraculously, she slept through all of this and remembered none of it. She woke about an hour later and rallied. Well done Chieko! If you know anything about my Japanese life, you know how this night ended.

What's coming up - ohh...BREAK! Even though I will be doing absolutely nothing for the first half of it, it's just about the right time. A week off from the kids is going to make me much less likely to throw one out a window when I return. And, on the 2nd, Gino is coming!! Even though he's only staying for a few days, I cannot wait. It's a little stressful to try planning for Gino - he gives me absolutely no ideas about what he might want to do - basically, it'd be like me coming to visit someone. I am happy doing pretty much whatever that doesn't involve discomfort, so I'll approach it that way! It's somewhere around 75 days until Becky comes! Becky, on the other hand, has spreadsheets and things broken out by time and activity. This is much easier for me because I show up, give her a place to stay, pretend to be a tour guide and fumble through remedial Japanese to impress her. We're going to Okinawa - you may remember my plan to re-enact The Karate Kid 3 - but another fabulous reason to go to Okinawa is that there are four Taco Bells there. My only hope is that they're not closed to the public because they're on American military bases. I'll present whatever form of ID I need to to run for the border again. The only remaining issue with Becky and my parents' visits is that, even though I trust them both, they have not booked yet so I refuse to totally believe either trip. In late April, my parents say they're coming - and then Dave/Scott/Andy/Aubrey come! I am going to have to go through another strenuous ordeal to get days off for their trip but it's all worth it. Alright, my Christmas dinner is about over and I don't want to be the loser that just sits in an empty restaurant hacking away on a laptop so I'll sign out, go home and put some pictures on here for you.

Merry Christmas to everyone and I can't wait to see and talk to you!

Mom, I am wearing the bitchin tie you sent me! It amused more adults than it did children but that's ok!

Some overdue pictures

Once the teaching thing ends, professional karaoker.
Apparently there are snowman peeps!
Group shot! Left to right - Top: Shuko, Bottom: TJ, Sara, Matt, Lauren, Mike, Andrew, Atsuko, Carl - missing: Chieko - taking the picture!
Mike's face is really roughly as large as half of Andrew. Andrew and Atsuko give the Japanese peace sign picture pose.
From left to right: Chieko, Shuko and Sara - かわいい
This is my friend/initial training roommate TJ and Yumi, the lady with the unenviable task of teaching me Japanese.
Looks as if I am either petting Mike's head or hypnotizing him.
My second favorite Christmas present
My favorite Christmas present - canned cranberry sauce!
This is the notorious drunk man who travels from English school to English school in Himeji looking to speak with foreign teachers. He's really not as intimidating as the picture looks - but he did scare the crap out of me once. I don't remember if I wrote about it. If I didn't, someone remind me with a comment - this serves as a reminder and it tells me if someone is reading!
Karaoke in Hiroshima. We'll pretend they're wanting me to join them. In actuality, it was just a pose. But I'll dream.
Ai and Sakki. Ai may be the cutest person ever made.
Oh, Ai is making me eat natto - I am not sure who in readerland has tried this but it's...an acquired taste. I feel like this should be involved in an event for the Brophy: Year 2.
The spread at the ありがとうgiving!

Updates and GOBEL

First, let me announce the formation of my latest group. It's not only a group, it's a cause. This is a cause promoting international socialization...well, face to face socialization between Americans in another country. Everyone knows that the key to a successful organization is a wonderful acronym - (see USA, NASA, NAABP). I have charged myself with the responsibility of finding a dynamic and catchy acronym to gain supporters. Before I unveil my group name (note, at this point I really have nothing in mind), I must explain our mission statement and background.

Aside from being one of my best friends, Eric Gobel serves the world in many different capacities - including but not limited to: friend, son, surrogate son, caveman, neuroscientist, unrelenting sports fan and player, guy who has his shirt off too much, straight man that drinks with his pinky waving proudly, Backer's native son and brother to Monterrey Ralph. For all of his accomplishments and enviable traits, Northwestern University has decided that his work researching whatever he researches isn't worth enough to able to afford trips to see friends in far off lands. I am not sure I know anyone that would be here faster if he could than Gobel and it's because of that, I want to utilize all my possible avenues to have him accompany Andy, Aubrey, Dave and Scott on their journey to the Land of the Rising Sun in May.

Please stay tuned for updates of the recently created group - GOBEL (Give One Blogger Eric's Love)

In visitation news- Gino will be here in 22 days!! First and foremost, I have to think of creature comforts I miss from America that he can randomly bring to Japan. I was gonna say "smuggle" but I don't know who's reading - but now I just said it so I'll likely be writing my next entry from white collar Japanese prison. Did R-Blag just get arrested? Cool, scandal. We don't have that in Japan. You crazy fraudulent Americans. Anyways, if it's possible to bring Qdoba to Japan, I'll look forward to that almost as much as seeing Gino. Becky visits in 89 days! We are planning a trip to Okinawa - I am not sure how aware she is that I will look to entirely reenact Karate Kid 3 and spend no time doing anything else. One of the reasons I bring this up is because I took two days off and attached them to a weekend to make the trip possible. We are encouraged to take our days off during 'working days'. 'Working days' are days where no group lessons are scheduled and, thus, make shuffling lessons around much easier. Well, Becky is not coming during 'working days', so I must do additional work. After writing two letters requesting my two days to my manager and her boss, I was finally sent along to my training staff and they gave me the ok. From there, I've had to both tell and write a formal letter (of apology actually) to students - asking if it's possible to change our lesson dates. First, this has occurred four months before the days I want off. While I understand from the students' points of view, the whole rescheduling process seems needlessly complicated. But I am not here to rock the boat so I did what was asked - just quite the process.

Let's see- how about a teaching update. For the most part, things just carry right along and I can't even explain how quickly weeks go for me. But two weeks ago was Sankanbi or parent observations. People freaked out about these things. I suppose I can sympathize but the way I looked at it - the parents didn't really know what I was teaching anyways so they were learning alongside their children. My kids learn in class and that's what parents want to see - in some cases, the students learn better than their parents and that makes moms happy. More than anything, I learned that is much more critical to show you care about the kids than plan the perfect lesson. I'll be the first person to tell you that I don't always get through what I want in every class but I feel like my purpose here to give the kids exposure to American pronunciation. So I spend more time focusing on that than I've seen other teachers do - right or wrong. Parents were happy with this - at least according to my feedback, so those weeks weren't too bad. Crazy kids calmed down with parents in the room. Calm kids got really nervous and weird kids either became normal or a bit - or their weirdness was explained after seeing where they've come from.

I guess I missed Thanksgiving. Well I was aware it was existing halfway around the world but I trudged through another workday and barely thought about it. If it wasn't for Becky's gobbling turkey card, I would've not even acknowledged the day. Over the weekend after Thanksgiving, Mike planned a potluck of sorts dinner at his place. Most everyone made something for the dinner. Those who didn't, bought some food. In the same way I opted for the only non-dancing part of my 8th grade class's production of "West Side Story" - I decided to be the only person to contribute equally but by doing what I wanted. In this case, I supplied dishes and plasticware. Although Mike made a mockery of cranberry sauce (by using the wonderful canned sauce and mixing it with other crap - thereby creating something that did not resemble an aluminum can at all), everything was great. There was meat (not turkey), mashed potatoes, pasta, vegetables and a few Japanese dishes. Knowing my extreme distaste for natto (fermented soy beans, I think...they smell terrible and taste like slime and mini edamame) - Ai brought some to make me eat. I am apparently powerless against 4'9" constantly happy Japanese girls. Much in the same way I reacted after first trying natto (thanks to David for making me suffer before I came to Japan), I gagged three times and had to swallow hard to avoid vomiting with tears welling up.

What else? Oh, I went to Hiroshima this weekend. I didn't go to any of the historical sites - although I suppose it would've been the best time to not feel guilty - right during the Pearl Harbor anniversary. What I saw of the city was pretty standard - big, lots of lights, lots of Japanese people. They do have a really nice river running through the city center. But it was Susan's birthday. I met a few friends there and we gathered for a night of "Mexican" food and karaoke. I remarked during this weekend that I found it really strange that I've met so many people in Japan but my best friends remain the ones I met within my first 12 hours. I'm sure part of it was that we have a big life changing situation in common but they are all awesome and fun people so I am glad for that. Well, I need to get some sleep because a two hour Japanese lesson is not easy in the morning on little sleep. Pictures next time because the site isn't uploading today I guess.