Dartboard

This morning I was getting ready for work when I got an IM from Daniel and of course, had to drop everything and chat with him. I started a one-way video chat and spent the rest of my morning running back and forth to the computer. I didn’t even shower, barely got dressed, took my toothbrush and toothpaste to school to brush when I arrived, and ran out the door to meet Hatake just in the nick of time. It was wonderful to video chat, but I felt like I got the short end of the stick—not being able to see DT while I knew he got to see me.

Another day of chatting and internet surfing from my desk at work. Hatake and kyoto-sensei had a business meeting in Fukue so I was pretty uninterrupted in my very productive “work-day.” Satomi Norimura, the third part-time JTE (Japanese Teacher of English) who I’ll be working with this year came back from Seattle today. I met her briefly when I first arrived, but she was just leaving for Seattle with her friend and two children. Today she brought back pictures and Seattle chocolates and we got to know each other a little better. She invited me to a birthday party for one of her students up north so I’ll be going with her tomorrow morning.

A student brought me this green tea and "mochi" (rice-cake dessert) from her tea ceremony club. When classes start next week I'm going to go visit the tea ceremony club and watch them practice! The tea was so delicious!

So, I swear I’m numerically dyslexic, although it’s never been diagnosed, this is a self-diagnosis based on plenty of instances where I get phone numbers and street numbers reversed, I read numbers off credit cards and brochures incorrectly, and I can’t read clocks worth a damn.

I’m supposed take the bus home at 3:49 p.m. because I get off work at 4 p.m. and the only buses that go to my place run at 3:49 p.m. and 5:10 p.m. or something. So they let me go those 10 minutes early. Anxious about not missing the bus because there is no alternative to getting home today, I misread my clock and went down to the bus at 2:45 instead of 3:45. So I was waiting—and sweating profusely in my basketball warm-ups which I had put on in such a rush while talking to DT this a.m.—but eventually I realized on the wrong side of the road, so I went to the right side of the road...or maybe it was the left, I’m not sure... and I tried reading the bus schedule because the bus hadn’t come well after it “should have” been there. That’s when I realized I was an hour early so I went back to the teachers room and spent the last hour debating the bus schedules with some teachers that don’t ever ride the bus and don’t really know when or where they go. I was so frustrated, but I was sure not to show it because it’s not their fault I’m dyslexic or even that they have cars and don’t need to know the bus schedules.

The second time I went down to the bus stop there were several students waiting also so I knew I was right. It’s only a 7-8 minute ride home and I was so happy it took me directly home without hour-long side trips to Kimura, Asewara and wherever I went last time I tried to ride the bus. I’m determined to figure out the buses here even after I get my car because there may be times my car breaks down and I still need to get to school. I don’t want to completely rely on one system of transportation. Yeah, so that’s my goal for the month.

David and I were able to video-chat for the first time today. Now that I have a high-speed internet connection in my apartment I hope to do this lots with friends and family. Do you have an webcam??

Tonight Catherine came over because we were having our first karate lesson. We decided to do a slumber party at my apartment this time. Hatake picked us up for karate at 7 p.m. and we drove to Kobe on Wakamatsu Island. Karate takes place every Friday night in an old school gym and only costs ¥1500 per month. This was our first time participating, but after warming-up (which includes 100 push-ups) we just watched from the sidelines to get a feel for how class is run. There are about 20 students ranging from age four to forty, white belts and black belts and everything in between. Hatake taught us some basic bowing and greeting and then the simplest punching technique.

I also met two teachers from Wakamatsu Junior High School, one of which is a JTE that I’ll be teaching with every Tuesday. She is young, recently graduated from college and moved out to the islands a few months ago. She just started karate too and so if I stick with it we’ll probably be learning together. I’m going out to Wakamatsu next Monday or Tuesday, depending on the severity of the typhoon, to meet them all officially. I think the junior high kids are going to be very enthusiastic and I’ll enjoy working with them.

I’ve got a video-chat appointment with Joelle early tomorrow morning so I’d better get to bed early. I’ve been so enthralled in Barefoot Gen it’s hard to stop reading it at night.

Love and dyslexia (it’s a disease!),
Sierra