Over the weekend I was racking my brain over what I could teach this week. I decided that I should teach my high school kids about the New Horizons probe to Pluto. I thought this would be a great lesson and get them excited about science at the same time. I downloaded the launch video and prepared an activity sheet with all the information I wanted them to pay attention to. I also planned to show where the probe would go. I wanted to start with the Earth, then expand my talk out to Jupiter and then finish with Pluto and beyond.
Obviously, since this was an ELT situation, I didn’t want to hit the kids with any complicated science jargon. So I took some time and edited my talk to make it as simple as I could. I looked it over and decided it was a killer lesson plan. I went into class ready for a knockout. How did it turn out?
Well, the first year students thought it was good enough. They seemed to enjoy learning the English names for the planets and most had no clue this mission even existed. The teacher for this class also enjoyed the talk, and everyone got a kick out of the launch video. This was not the case, however, for my second year students. During the talk(somewhere around Jupiter) , the class starts giggling. I can’t really figure out why, and continue with my diagram. Then at about the half way point, my teacher comes up to me and indicates that I have a dried up piece of rice stuck to my crotch. It seems that crotch rice is far more fun than a science based lesson.
What have I learned from this experience? It seems it is better to act like a buffoon than it is to actually teach about something that is important to you. It would be so easy to just show up with a grape juice stain down my shirt or my fly wide open. I know I am over reacting, but I am having a less than amicable week with my second grade students. It seems there is nothing that interests them. Either that or I am not trying hard enough.
Most of the games have been cancelled this year. But that hasn’t stopped us from coming out and enjoying a few practices. Here is Ben coming around for the puck. We wear helmets but its looks much better this way for a photograph.
The season lasts until the middle of February and then it’s over for another year. This is my last chance to get in shape before spring.
I have a number of Japanese friends who are very keen on patching up relations with China. They insist that Asians must stand together. They tell me that Japan and China share a deep cultural bond and that they must work at all costs to preserve it. Well today a friend asks me if I had seen “Saiyuri” yet. “Saiyuri” is the name they use for “Memoires of a Geisha” here in Japan.
“No”, I respond
“Well, you shouldn’t”, my friend replies.
“Oh? And why is that?”, I enquire.
“The woman who plays Saiyuri is a Chinese woman”, she says.
I thought perhaps it might have something to do with the poor adaptation to the big screen, or plot problems. On the contrary, the movie is being rejected simply because the main character is Chinese and not a native Japanese person. I am flabbergasted at this development. I don’t even care why a Chinese woman was chosen over a Japanese woman. Since it is an American film I doubt that there are any political reasons for this choice. However, it still bothers many Japanese people, and it bothers me that they have such a problem with it. If they chose an American actor to play a famous Canadian hero, I don’t think I would have any issue with it. It seems to me like racism is rearing it’s ugly head once again. No wonder China and Japan are locked in this petty squabble. They can’t seem to understand what it really takes to make things work between cultures.
He also does covers of rap and R&B songs with his own flavor of adult contemporary style. I dare you not to find at least one of his songs that is not funny. I really enjoyed his video tribute to Flickr.
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I suggest you do. They were all created by Flickr member Fd and they take on-line photo sharing to strange and awesome new levels. Create mosaics, make stamps, an ID badge or a movie poster. If you haven’t used Flickr before this, now is the time.
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When I set out my usual walk around Senmaya today, I wasn’t prepared to actually open my eyes and look around me. But look what happens when I did. I discovered an intricately placed network of religious signage. I’m guessing it was the local Jehovah’s Witnesses that placed these ones. I find it creepy and mysterious all at the same time. they just stick out at you. Check out my Senmaya set over at Flickr to see more of them.
Ever since I bought my car, I’ve let my weight spiral out of control. At the peak of my weight loss I was 99kg. It was wonderful. Clothes fit me and I was full of Energy. But then I bought my car and things started to slip. Well after a year and six months I’m ashamed to report that I’m now 109kgs. I’m sick of myself for this lack of control. But I vow to change it. I will lose 10kg in the next three months. I have to. I will run more and most importantly, eat less. This will be the greatest challenge I have ever given myself. Please wish me luck. I think I’m going to need it. I’ve come so far in my plans to lose weight. I cannot give it all up again. I need to be healthy.
I want to talk a little more about my trip to Kansai during New Year holiday. On January 3rd, I visited Universal Studios Japan with Shiho. The nice thing about that particular day was the lack of crowds. The bitter cold made things not so nice as we both got wind burn on our faces. Here are some of the wacky things I took note of when I was there:
The large number of American flags. Sure, the theme park is American, but I often felt like I was in the US.
As usual there were long three hour waits for 5-10 minute rides. You find this everywhere, but some of these rides seemed awfully short for the wait.
“Grease” as re-enacted by Hello Kitty.
The Snoopy area of the park was amazing. I felt like I was in a drug induced Charles Schultz wonderland. It was aimed at children but it was hard not to be drawn in.
There was this robot girl who made all sorts of crazy sounds that were customized for each person that approached her. I like her the best. Not once did I hear her re-use on of her effects on someone else. I’m not sure how she did it.
The overall feel of the park is amazing. It is pretty much a “Disneyland” for those who like Universal pictures. I give you fair warning that everything is very expensive, from the 5500yen entrance fee to the 1200yen lunch sets. Be prepared to spend money!
Daicast is a new type of podcast for all those Japanophiles out there. It combines two people living in Japan with two people in Canada, and they talk about all the crazy stuff that is happening in regards to gaming technology. Given a listen and you’re sure to love it. Not to mention that I am a co-host on the show as well.
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Now we’ll move on to matters that don’t involve Vulgar English. This week’s picture is of a massive bon fire at the Jingu shrine in Ise. Ise is a city in Mie prefecture and it’s considered the spiritual heart of Japan. I stayed there for three days leading up to the New Year. There are usually many Shinto activities happening at Shinto shrines. During New Year’s you make a visit to a Shinto shrine and make a wish for the New Year’s. It’s called Hatsumode and it is one of the largest holidays in Japan. It was a pretty good evening overall.
