December 2003
So yesterday, after lunch at a small cafe, we drove a little outside of the city (where there
was snow!) to her husband's parents' house. There, we helped make (well, more like watched
them make, LOL) a couple different kinds of mochi, the sweet, sticky rice paste-like-stuff
that is so popular around New Year here. They had a special machine that applied heat to the
rice as it was mixing; the ball of rice paste was probably at least 8-9 inches in width and
looked as if it were alive! It would've jumped out of the bowl if it hadn't been covered, LOL.
Me and the mochi-makin' machine
After that, we went bowling. Apparently, I forgot how to bowl. In two games, I only got 2
spares and a combined score of 180. Usually I get about 135 per game and last time I got
206! Oh well, at least I didn't break my nail. :-)
Today, we tried to go to the toy museum in Tottori, but it was closed for the week. Hmph.
Ended up getting back home around 3:30. It's 8:20 now and I'm contemplating whether or not
to go to the gym...
Friday, December 26
Another Christmas has come and gone!
And the cleaning crews work fast - except for some random half-price Xmas goods, not
a trace of Christmas decorations remain at the mall and other stores.
On Christmas Eve, Rose came over and we made peanut butter blossom cookies, which turned
out beautifully! Yum. We also played Cranium and she yelled at me for not humming the
song "Billie Jean" properly, LOL. Later that night, some Japanese friends and I went to
Sara's place for Christmas cake (pretty much the only Japanese tradition at Xmas) and a
movie. Yesterday (Xmas Day), everyone at my school but me had to work, but Rose and I
went out for a nice lunch and then got massages! Only 15 minutes, but it was nice. At night,
my co-workers and I had a Christmas dinner at school. The pizza delivery guy was dressed as
Santa, LOL.
Here was our Christmas feast, excluding the cake. I ended up taking almost a whole tray
of sushi and sashimi home, but I'll probably end up throwing most of it away, 'cause I
can't eat that much before it goes bad!
Tomorrow is a work day, then I have almost 2 weeks vacation! This will be my longest
vacation from any job since 2000, I think. Ii naa....I'm going to Tottori on Sunday and
Monday to see a friend, then I leave for Australia on Thursday!
Tuesday, December 16
Only 9 days 'til Christmas, wow! Today was a good day, although I found out that my
favorite student is moving to Chicago in March, so I won't get to see her anymore! :-(
But she'll be there for 2 years, and since she's only about to turn 3 years old, I'm
excited that she'll probably be bilingual!
I'm trying to make decisions about my future at this point...how long to stay with this
company, whether or not to find another job in Japan or leave the country, when and where
and how to get a Master's Degree...so many options! I know I'll have to go back to school
at some point, 'cause in the future I think I'd like to either work at an international
school or teach Japanese at a university. The latter would also mean improving my Japanese
quite a bit, of course!
Thanks to my parents, I've enjoyed Kraft Macaroni n' Cheese and Quaker flavored oatmeal this
past week. :) I am really craving egg nog, though! It's just not available here, as far as
I can tell.
Wednesday, December 10
My JLPT test on Sunday went very well, better than I'd expected. The kanji section was
a tad harder than the practice tests but the grammar section was much easier! I'm quite
sure I passed, but unfortunately, I won't get any results 'til February at least....
Added some items to the below lists.
Wednesday, December 3
Happy Birthday to my friend Jenny!
So I've been in Japan 1 year now and have thoroughly enjoyed my time here. So much so that
I don't plan to leave anytime soon - I'm assuming I'll be here anywhere from 1-3 more
years. Due to both a trip to Tokyo and Nagano in spring 2002 and extensive research on
the Internet, I felt well-prepared in moving to this country last year - there was some
homesickness, but culture shock was little to none, I felt. The only thing that surprised
me, I think, was having to learn to ride my bike in the rain while holding an umbrella. LOL
Japan is very different from the US in some ways but very similar in other ways - people
are people, wherever you go, and that's especially true for kids!
Here are some random likes and dislikes about Japan:
Thumbs-up:
Thumbs-down:
I am so curious to return to the US for a visit, of course to see my family but also
to see how much has changed since I left. And to see if cell phones have improved. :-)
In other news, I had a one-year evaluation at work yesterday. To my relief, it went really
well! (My 3-month eval had not gone so well.) I was very happy.