log web page visits Blaaarrgh!: 04/01/2005 - 05/01/2005

火曜日, 4月 26, 2005

Me and Suit Thing--The Adventures Continue...

You could say I blame Suit Thing for all this. You could say that, and you'd be wrong. Suit Thing and I are partners in crime, though in all honesty, Suit Thing couldn't do a thing without me.
So. Suit Thing sees this ad for a Position. Up North. Not as far as Long Beach, but a castle town. 'Fantastic,' I said, 'that's just the ticket.'
'You've got friends up there,' said Suit Thing, in that casual way Suit Thing has of twisting a phrase.
'Yeah,' I replied, wondering how on earth it was that Suit Thing could read my mind like that sometimes. So. A few electronic communications, and we were off. We caught the Most Expensive Train in the Country, the great trundling metal shoeboxes, and left early on Saturday. On the way, Suit Thing was on about button, unbutton, button, unbutton, but I ignored Suit Thing, and started a book on Japanese psychology, the kind where every third word is a transliteration or a romanized word from the Japanese, and has examples like 'How does the teacher who is eagerly teaching his female student justify his actions? Is he aware of his real intentions?' Suit Thing doesn't care too much about stuff like that. Suit Thing is there to look good.
We got to the castle town right about lunchtime, and soon our contact met us. Suit Thing was very quiet through the whole process, but I had to say, these people were impressive. The operation they had running completely floored me. Suit Thing was unruffled, but I could tell--Suit Thing approved.
'You should just tell them,' said Suit Thing quietly to me on the train home, 'Tell the people at The Top to go to hell, get out of the system, work for these guys.' I gave Suit Thing a cold look.
'Do you know how hard I have worked for this?' I hissed. 'Weeks of preparation! Loss of sleep! Everyone is counting on me now to go to this thing--and YOU are coming with me whether you want to or not!'
'You're too nervous.' Suit Thing lolled back against the seat cushion. But of course, Suit Thing was right. I was terrified. I couldn't comprehend Suit Thing's blase attitude toward it. The Meeting. The guys from The Top were going to give me the hardest questioning of my life--in a language I could barely speak. I was developing a stutter, and my mind had been going panic-blank just thinking about it. Yeah. Too nervous. But what could I do about it?
Monday came sooner than I had expected, the threat from the Meeting hanging over my head even as I gave the house the once-over, the twice-over, washed all the dishes, the blankets, bought all new laundry lines and clips. Hell, I even called up the Girls, got a few of them over for vids--a suspense thriller. Not the best choice. They left, I reviewed what I thought I might say to The Top guys, and I tried to sleep. All night, caffeine and suspense thriller tangled with the sheets.
Suit Thing was waiting for me when I got up. 'You look tired.'
'Ugh,' I said, reaching for a tissue, 'Guess allergies have finally caught up to me.'
'You better do something about that,' Suit Thing grimaced. ‘I can't do a thing for you if you're gonna snot the guys from The Top.’
'I'll be fine,' I growled. 'It'll go away.'
But it didn't. By lunch my nose had developed a distinct leak, and I was sneezing uncontrollably. Suit Thing was waiting for me, gestured curtly. 'Look in your bag.'
Lo and behold. Meds. Blearily I gulped them down. Interview in two hours! I couldn't stop sneezing, dripping, and sniffling long enough to speak a coherent sentence!
Suit Thing pitied me, maybe. But I wasn’t giving up on account of feeling like my head had decided to rebel against the rest of my body! No way. I’m stubborn. It’s a gift and a flaw together.
Suit Thing and I made it down to the station (only one stop on the Most Expensive Train Line) to the Just Regular Train. I was going early. Suit Thing was quiet, fiddling with whether or not to relax open, or buttoned up tight. Suit Thing settled on two of four buttons. I opened my notebook to scribble, to review possible answers to questions The Top guys might ask at The Meeting, in order to soothe what should have been hyper panic. Suit Thing smirked.
The panic never came. That cold medication was seeping into my brain cells, lifting my head away from my body, settling some bizarre mental cotton between what should have been overreacting, and my effort to keep blinking at a regular rate. It was making me calmly, curiously alert.
I sailed into the meeting place ten minutes early, to find that I was the last, and they were well ahead of schedule. I was due to go in immediately. The gut reaction should have been unprepared fear, but it was a tension I never actually felt. I murmured something reflecting surprise, then walked in. I didn’t understand everything; I didn’t even answer one of the questions with the correct answer. My palms started to sweat, even as I held them politely, feminely in my lap. But somehow, strangely, I felt relaxed. Suit Thing! Where the hell did you find that allergy medication!!? I did better than I think I could have ever done. I had poise. I had vocabulary. Well, not always enough. But enough for me. I did it, and without defenestrating myself or anyone else. Me and Suit Thing.
We walked out, surveyed the other people who had been called in for The Meeting, and I exchanged a few words, blew off a little nervous steam. I sympathized, but I couldn’t feel the nerves. I could only relate how I had been for weeks prior. We bid our adieus and headed back to the train.
‘Thanks,’ I told Suit Thing, a hazy grin on my face.
‘Hey,’ shrugged Suit Thing, ‘We’re in this together. I wasn’t gonna sabotage our chances or anything, just because I think the castle town is the perfect place.’
‘Geez,’ I replied, ‘What if The Top guys assign me to Long Beach?’
‘Then you got some decisions to make,’ said Suit Thing.
‘Huh. I got decisions NOW,’ I grinned, sifting through the chocolate at the conbini, settling on a white chocolate Kit-Kat. For luck, you know. Japanese. Kitto Katsu
Then we went home.

月曜日, 4月 11, 2005


At the top of the mountain, people... all there to see sakura plus castle. There was an long line trailing out of the entryway to get into the castle, and we could see people packed inside, peering out for the great view. We opted out, and instead found a giant bathtub that belonged to a Fujiwara, and took quiet pleasure in watching a lady in kimono walk under the cherry trees.


A shot of Hikone-jou minus people.


Packed. People. Sakura. Festival food. Can life get any better?


This is o-hanami, done in style. Go out, look at cherry blossoms, picnic under them, usually with sake. The entire grounds was packed with people.


At the Genkyu-en, garden near the castle. We sat and watched ducks and hawks and the water was like glass. Delightful.


Hikone-jou and sakura.


Hikone Castle is one of only four original castles remaining in Japan. The rest are rebuilt, mostly with concrete.


Sakura... FROM ABOVE!!!! Look out, lady! It's coming for YOUUU!!!


We never did get ama-zake, but we did take a picture.


They come in different flavors.


So. We take pictures of people taking pictures of sakura. And then we take more pictures of sakura.


Shidare-zakura, or weeping sakura.


Sakura. It's the season for hanami. Let's hanami together with us, and revel in the madness that waves upon waves of cherry blossoms bring us.


At the top of the mountain, there is a park. Trellis, beyond that, gates, beyond that, our tiny island kingdom.


Yearrrrgh, mateys. Th' mountain's belongin' ta ME!!!


Abandoned playground on ??, the place we call simply, "The Mountain." This was last week.


The map there shows the original layout of Azuchi-jou.


The way down Azuchi-jou mountain.


Mi bicicleta triste. (Waifu)


On our way out of Azuchi, we stumbled across a remarkable discovery--tile farming!! The young tiles are immature and tender, and are not yet ready to be harvested.


Another fox from Fushimi Inari. He looks happy. Or hungry.


At the top of the mountain. We are standing where Azuchi-jou once stood. That is a three-storey pagoda, the only building up top that remains from the original. This castle was the first of its kind. For a little more information, check out http://www.jcastle.info/castle/azuchi.html


Gazing up from the bottom of stairs.


It was so quiet on the mountain of Azuchi-jou, apart from us panting up the enormous steps. Eerie.


On the way up Azuchi-jo mountain, a small shrine, the lights already lit. And entirely deserted.


At the ruins of Azuchi Castle. See? It says so on the stone! We went there last weekend, and it didn't rain until after we had seen it. A matsuri was just getting out as we arrived in town, and the bell announcing the procession of the omikoshi through the streets was still ringing through the air when we left.


At ????, just around the corner from home.


A jump back to our own local park, to a little ?? in the ?. Security Husband took this on a stroll through.


From Fushimi Inari Taisha. That's Kyoto down there, spread out through the valley.


One of many foxes, with a very unique face. In its mouth...? perhaps a scroll? Some foxes had rice in their mouths. They all are wearing red bibs. We don't know why.


Also at Fushimi Inari. Inari is a traditional Shinto god of rice, whose messengers are foxes. Instead of the "Korean dogs" at most Shinto shrines, there are foxes here. They are EVERYWHERE at the shrine, and at dusk it can be quite unsettling.


At Fushimi Inari Taisha, late afternoon, about a month ago. I went there with B, a friend from Nara. We scared ourselves silly with dire folk stories about what happens to people on the mountain past sunset.

Thoughts

"Come with me to the principal's office" is an entirely uninspiring set of instructions. The kind that instantly make me shiver and think, "Oh, crap. I have done something wrong. I'm going to get in HUGE trouble." And then immediately start thinking of what I could possibly have done to get an personalized call-in to the principal.

It turns out I made it past Phase One. I got congratulations, several handshakes, and that was even stranger than just having it set down on my desk with no fanfare.

I have the unnerving sensation that my getting into this elementary-school teaching program up north is a matter of pride for the school. I am not only doing this for me, now. I am doing this for the Gipper. Er. The Suiko.

I am really scared, now. Phase One, with the essay that nearly broke me, was the easy part. Phase Two has me going down to kencho for an interview. In Japanese. Yeah, I am utterly confident about my ability to boss elementary kids around. Formal interview-language? I can feel my brain blank just thinking about it.

Luckily, everyone from my former supervisor, to my boss, to the principal himself have offered me their free time to help me do interview practice. 頑張ります!!!

金曜日, 4月 08, 2005

Thoughts of Breaks Now Ended

Farewell sweet melancholy couchlounging! Goodbye endless DVD and computer-slacking! O! Microwave pizza of Seiyu and Corona with lime packet! To thee, wiki, I pledge my fascination! Vacant screenstaring and eyeball aching! Packages sent to the land of SUVs and hippies! Motivation brought again by warming weather! Ume fading, spring sprung open again! Much has been done, places visited! Ruins of ancient castles, the ghost of Nobunaga! The eerie glow of twilit temple lanterns! From the mountain, my tiny island kingdom surveying! Last bells of agricultural matsuri! Applications written, institutions researched! Supervisors changed! Beer and onion rings found in abundance!!! AGAIN THE CEREMONIES MARK US! WE HAVE RETURNED TO SCHOOL IN A DOWNPOUR OF SAKURA!!!

Just to note. That wasn't supposed to be good. And it isn't. I have spoken.

We have visited a bunch of places over the last month or so. We'll get some pictures up here to show off.