Dartboard

This is me about to eat basashi (raw horse meat) in Miyazaki-ken over Golden Week. One of the challenges Peter and I accepted. I ate two, count them TWO pieces of raw horse.

Warning: This is possibly the least interesting blog ever. Consider yourself warned.

I can’t believe it’s July already. June sure did fly by. Joelle and Steve will be here in just 18 days, I think. Yeah. I THINK. I don’t know because my sister won’t send me her flight information!! CALLING MY SEESTER!!! Please send me your itinerary so I know when to pick you up! I can’t believe I’ll be climbing Mt. Fuji this month. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for so long!

This week was really exhausting. I’m not sure why—I had basically no classes at the high school because we had mid-term exams Monday through Thursday, but I went back to Wakamatsu Junior High School just for a visit and taught three very genki classes there. Those kids are THE BEST. I hope Catherine loves them as much as I do. I really think that is the perfect school to teach at. I’m glad I can go visit occasionally.

Kondo-sensei, the JTE I worked with there, had her last day on Thursday and soon she’s heading back to Fukuoka. I really want to get together with her again before she leaves. I always think about calling her but I so rarely do… She is so sweet. I wish I could work with her everyday of the week instead of the big, mean Sasaki-sensei. Kondo-sensei is so funny, but always makes me feel like I’M being the funny one. I say anything and she laughs like it’s the best joke she’s ever heard. And the size of an average 7th grader—so adorable!

Anyway, I worked out a lot this week too. Went to three swim lessons. lifted weights twice and karate tonight was REALLY tough. We had some prospective students watching us today so they worked us really hard. I think they also just slack off a lot in the winter because no one wants to practice when it’s freezing in the gym. Today’s practice may have been the hardest ever though. We counted our sandbag kicks and did them in unison—which means we do a lot more of them and don’t get to rest between them like usual. Then we did all the punches and blocks as a group and the teachers came around and made sure we didn’t slack off or get lazy. AND, if that’s not enough, we did moving kicks across the gym over and over again. I think I burned 1000 calories in that class alone. And before that I had already lifted weights for 45 minutes and swam 2,000 meters. No wonder I’m exhausted.

A picture I took on Beppu’s monkey mountain.

Tomorrow I’m headed to Fukue to visit the ALTs there. I’m just needing a weekend away. Monday I’m reading books at Narao elementary school and Wednesday I leave for my business trip in Sasebo and I’ll be gone until Sunday. We’ve got an orientation for the English Summer Camp and then I’m going to visit Scott in Nagasaki and take care of city business that’s been adding up. Maybe I’ll even cut my hair. I’m sick of this long hair on 90 degree days with 90% humidity. I’m not joking. That’s how hot it is. “Sweat Everyday” is my motto, and even though the AC is supposed to be turned on July 1st, we’re saving money by leaving it off on “cool” days like today. Today was cool—maybe only 89 degrees.

Got to watch the hot tennis players on TV now,
Sierra

Noodle Long and Soft

// posted by Sierra @ 7:23 AM