Adventure on the (Over) Seas

To my loyal readers, Katy and Mom.
I arrived safely in Vancouver after having the scare of a lifetime at customs on the way in! Van City was a good choice to visit because of the huge Japanese population over here. Its like easing my way back into Canadian/North American culture one city at a time. Already I have started stressing about getting robbed, I am well on my way to readjustment!
My last little while in Japan was amazing but I was definitely really sad to leave. I enjoyed that place and it was kind to me. I said my good-byes to everyone at work and Kae drove me to the airport.
In the morning before departure I learned that it costs $250 CDN to ship live animals on the plane. The turtles were a gift for Kae. However when she returned to her car, we brought them with us on the car ride, there were only two turtles left in the traveling tank we bought. I was so proud to hear this from Kae. The Ninja lessons I had given over the past year have paid off and Connery was able to make an escape from the car. My Ninja Turtles are well trained in the art of evasiveness. He was found and surrounded to the authorities without incident.
Since being back in Canada I have just been relaxing a little. I watched a hockey game on TV for the first time in a long while which was nice. Its playoff time so all the games are serious and watching with some fellas who love the Canuks was entertaining. They held on for the win against Colorado.
I am going to take a nap and then likely catch a ferry over to the island and visit with a friend of mine from high school. It would be a good experience for me to go. I will take some photos and maybe even post them with captions rather than just titling a post, "Random Photos"
Home, Sweet, Home... maybe

So much has happened in the past little while it will be hard to remember everything. I will do my best.

About three weeks ago I went off on my last snowboard trek of the season. It was a little bit too warm and the snow was disappearing faster than a box of chocolates at a weight watchers convention but I managed to have a great time. I went with my former student Noriko and her friend. I am really impressed with how far I have come this season. While I am not doing crazy jumps and such I am able to ride goofy quite well. I think for my first real season spent snowboarding I improved drastically. There is still a long way to go before the sponsorships start rolling in but for a hobby I am happy with my skill level. I really like Noriko a lot. She is divorced and her daughter Rin is one of my cutest students. I really respect her for going against the grain of Japanese culture and divorcing her husband. I am also really impressed with her drive. She works really hard to improve her situation so that she can help others and have many potential options. She reminds me of another great woman in my life.

I got an e-mail awhile back from my boy tranny. Not to be confused with transvestite but sometimes I wonder with the purple sweaters he cracks out. It seems it was his birthday and I figured that as good a reason as any to head into Tokyo and get a little loose. I should mention it was also James’, of Rick James Ish fame, birthday also. Two buddies, one party how could I refuse? So Friday night I rocked outta Iwaki with a couple cans and some left over Jack. What Dave neglected to inform me of was the party was No-me-ho-dai. All you can drink!!! We went to a great restaurant that served up Yakiniku, sort of Korean BBQ. More importantly though, they served up cold brew-ha! It didn’t take long for to feel the effects. I was having a great time just hanging out but the real fun was yet to come. After leaving we finished eating and drinking we went over to Karaoke. It’s much more fun in Japan because it usually involves a set price for both the singing and again, all-you-can-drink booze. So we paid about $30 for 5 hours of messiness! So cheap and yet so entertaining. Afterwards we were all sufficiently loose and we headed back home about 5 in the morning. I awoke to a killer hanger and dry heaves in the bathroom. An entertaining day Saturday was to say the least. Once I finally got moving I was too late to go to Karate but I had to go just to meet with the fellas to work out how I was going to get to Koriyama city the following day for my belt test. After getting that all sorted I headed home for some dinner with Kae and bed to rest up for my last karate test of the Japan tour.

On Sunday I woke up bright and early feeling almost fully refreshed. We made out way to meet up with the rest of the entourage and then headed off into Koriyama. I was sort of nervous because I had not practiced my kata very much in the past little while. Upon arriving we stretched out and prepared for the start of our test. First up as always was the big group where we did different routines. Essentially we just had to do some punching and kicking. Afterwards we had to do 50 pushups on our knuckles. This was followed up with the required “squats”. You must bend your knees to 45 degree angles before jumping as high as you can. This is repeated 50 times which sounds so much easier than it is. 50 is not so hard but the higher belts have to do 1 or 200 hundred. It gets much harder the more you do. After this portion of the test comes what I feel is the hardest part. I mean I can handle it personally but my fella isn’t too happy with me afterwards. You are required to split your legs as far apart as you can and touch your forehead on the floor. It is easily more difficult than it sounds. I still struggle with this which is why I am not particularly fond of this task.

The next part of the test is a repeat of the previous punching and kicking exercises but you are required to move forwards and backwards. Its difficult to explain and I forgot my video camera so perhaps everyone reading this will have no idea what I am talking about, unless of course they have studied Karate. We are testing away and suddenly THE boss stops everyone and says…

“Richar-do”

I freeze and clench my ass checks together cause I am scared enough let loose a deuce!

“Osu!”

“Mumbling”

“Sumi-masen, mo-ichdo, onigaishimasu” (please say it again)

“More mumbling” I can not understand.

I am even more scared because its possible he is asking me to do something and I can not hear or understand him!

“Sumi-masen, wakari-masu-sen, sumi-masen” (Excuse me, I do not understand, I am sorry)

“More mumbling” This time the mumbling is followed by laughter, a big smile and two thumbs up. The universal sign for good job!

I was really impressed with myself for being singled out for a job well done. This by no means I am a great karate fighter but it’s always nice to be complimented. I still have a long way to go, but now I know I am on the right track!

We follow this up with our Kata routines that I am most nervous about. This is mostly because the names of the different types of Kata can confuse me sometimes and also because I can never really hear the name of the Kata we are being asked to do. I perform admirably under the pressure though because during the break before the final phase of our testing, the sparring, THE boss tells my team mates that I did a great job on the Kata. I was in high spirits heading into the sparring match.

We warmed up and practiced a few moves while the others were fighting. I keep an eye on the other testers because I know that one of them is going to be my opponent. It’s just a matter of which one is closest to my weight category and in Japan that is usually some golly giant who can easily rip my head off. I was disappointed to see that everyone was getting padded up before their fights. Last time I was tested I had to fight one of the previously mentioned beasts without padding at all. He was going for his brown or green belt while I was going for my blue. Today however most of the beasts had been paired up so I was starting to beathe a little easier. Before a fight its hard to stay loose because you know there is always a chance that you might be seriously injured. I believe that in my case that isn’t going to happen but there is a slim chance. While I am waiting a Japanese dude slides up beside me and starts asking me about how much I weigh. He was thinking I was pushing 80 KG and he wasn’t far off at all. He was also convinced that I was on a strenuous weight training program. Sadly its not true simply because the gyms here don’t open until 10 am. By that time I have to be at work already. I tried to convince him that I was not strong but he was having none of it.

Now onto my spar, it took so long for me to get called I was starting to think that they had forgotten about me. They hadn’t! I was called up to spar with a younger guy going for his brown belt with a white bar. That belt is one step away from a black belt. In order to pass you must fight 7 rounds and win most of them. My opponent was about younger than me but older than 20. When the fight started I stepped in with butterflies in my stomach that quickly faded only to be replaced with frustration. The guy wouldn’t fight me… He kept running away! I could not understand that because after me he had to fight 6 guys with black belts that could do much more damage than I can. I mean given the choice I would fight me and run from one of the other guys. It was a frustrating match for me and I was disappointed because I was pretty geared up for my last spar.

Needless to say I am quite confident that I passed my final test and will be leaving Japan with a Yellow belt related only to Karate!

In other news Kae’s uncle just bought a brand new boat. Its more like a yacht. This past weekend we made our way down to the water to attend the launching party. What a party it was! We got down there late Friday night and just went to bed. Kae’s aunt had arranged for a room for us at the marina. We didn’t arrive until after 12 so we went right to bed so we would be fresh in the morning. The next morning we went down and saw the boat which is massive. We toured around inside and then watched while some Buddhist monks blessed the boat while chanting and clapping. Champagne was poured over the bow and the ribbons were cut and then the real party got started. There were plenty of speeches that were made but they were really not the highlights for me. What I enjoyed most was drinking Dom while dining on beef that easily compares to Kobe! It was a high-roller party and I was feeling just a little outta place. I forgot about my shoes when I left Friday so I was busting my skate shoes while others were strolling around in shoes that cost more than my monthly salary easily! In fact Kae’s uncle was wearing a coat that I am sure cost him more than I made this year.

Yesterday I had the unfortunate opportunity to experience a traditional Japanese funeral. My kindergarten co-worker's father died. So I went to a traditional Buddhist funeral and understood not a thing. It did involve a lot of bowing and incense. I felt really badly for Hitomi because she looked, understandably, really sad.
In other news Lent is off to a good start. Although I have not yet done my daily devotion. I am giving up the time it takes each day to complete my "Purpose Driven Life" devotion. On Tuesday night I went over to a friends place for some pancakes and a bunch of us just hung out and chatted for a bit. Good times had by all...
The new plan is to finish work on the 23rd and then head for home the following week. Hit up the big V with the fellas and then perhaps make a west coast swing to meet up with some pals before rocking back to Japan and causing massive panic throughout Tokyo...
Plans change and I never write them in stone...
Stay well!

So I was planning on writing a nice long update about what has been going on in my world the past little while but some new bigger news takes precedent. On Friday I was headed out to Nagano with Ultan when I decided enough was enough, I had to mail my boss and speak to her about next year. She still had not spoken to me about next year. I wrote and asked what her thoughts were on my employment for next year. We set up a meeting for the following Tuesday as Monday was a holiday.
We met and she told me without saying it that she wanted me to come back the following year. I then surprised her by telling her I only wanted to stay around for another six months. She told me she would think about it and let me know. On Thursday she came and told me that she wants to hire someone to start in April. So I am unemployed at the end of March. I am really disappointed because Karate is going extremely well and I am really enjoying my time in Iwaki even if it is a little quiet. The summer is the best time to be here cause the waves are pumping all summer and work is pretty awesome.
I am not sure what I am going to do but I am sure something will come to mind before too long...

Two weekends ago I went out to Nagano for a wild weekend of snowboarding and getting lost! Ultan and I left Iwaki almost right after work on Friday and we arrived at my friends place about 2:30 AM. After a couple of hours sleep we rocked off for Hakuba for a fun filled day of snowboarding. The snow was not fantastic but we still managed to enjoy ourselves. We rode this untouched rock face that we had to ourselves pretty much all day. It took some hiking to get into but it was well worth it. On the way back we stopped in at the onsen and relaxed for a bit.
That night we met up with a bunch of people including my Korean boy Alex. He came up from Tokyo to meet up with us. After excess amounts of drinking including an entertaining encounter with some chick at the bar. It is ridiculous how easy it is to meet women in this country! I was being a good boy but it was quite hilarious chatting it up in broken English. We got home real late and slept in a little bit Sunday. When we finally left to hit up Nozawa Onsen we were well behind the others. I took a couple of wrong turns and when we finally got sorted out the snow was falling and we were on a tiny back country road lost. The Chick is not outfitted with snow tires so a couple of times Alex had to jump out and push us up the hill. Finally after about 30 minutes on this back road I was forced to turn back because quite frankly I was too scared to go any further. I back up and the only thing that saved us from going over the edge of the road and the 50 meter drop was the snowbank. Alex seemed to be enjoying himself but I was sweating buckets. I have never been that scared in my life when driving and I have taken to the roads in horrific weather back home. After getting ourselves sorted out we got to the ski hill about half noon. I was lucky enough to score a $10 ticket. Someone was leaving so they sold me their ticket. The way it works is there is a small token that you must put somewhere on your body that allows you to ride the lift. There is a $10 deposit for the token and I paid $20 for it so it worked out really well... We got in some pretty impressive runs and the snow was starting to fall which was awesome. The conditions were quite awesome. So many sick sick runs complete with some back country riding. Off the hook...
Since the powder was falling so nicely we decided to come back here on Monday and one of Ultan's friends even called in sick to ride an extra day. The second day was epic again! I got separated from the fellas at about 12 but I ended up riding with a couple of pro riders and a few Canadians all afternoon. I was stoked! The cool thing about this ski resort town is that all the onsens (public baths) are owned by the town so they are free. After a day of riding nothing beats a hot bath. Ultan's mate caught the bus outta Nozawa Onsen and the two of us hit the road again. We made some pretty decent time before we made a wrong turn... After that we just decided to jump on the highway even though its expensive sometimes it well worth it cause there is so little traffic and its direct.

The week went by quickly cause it was craft day for half the week. We made Valentine's Day crafts which were pretty easy but managed to cut my teaching time in half each class. I also cleaned up on Valentine's this year. I can always count on one Valentine each year from my mom. Most years that all I get but this year I cleaned up. I had a big shopping bag full of chocolates that I took home. I have been quietly redistributing to girls in the city.

"Here sweetie I bought you some chocolate..."

Kae and I just hung out at my place that night and cooked some dinner. Okanomiaki, a sort of pancake dish. It was pretty awesome. We decided not to exchange gifts but rather just spend a little bit of time together. I was relieved! The bankbook is taking a beating with these weekend trips out snowboarding. Overall though it was a stellar Valentine's day this year.

This past weekend was a craft day at Kindergarten and I brought Kae along to hang out and meet some of my students. Sadly my co-worker told me that I could not hang out with her. She could simply walk around and look at the crafts and then wait in the teachers room. I was furious! Kae waited in the car and I left as soon as I could which still took a while. Turns out even though it was craft day the Japanese teachers still considered it a serious work day... A load of BS if you ask me! I am most unhappy with her about that and she is well aware of it.

Karate is going really well but I am very sad to be leaving the crew. At my last practice I am going to be introduced to the Iwaki Dojo Original Challenge... Ten, two minute rounds. Each round is a different opponent so I will fight everyone in the dojo at least once. The last two rounds are Hiroshi and then Sakumoto Sensei. I am scared to say the least. My body will be sore for at least a week after that I am sure. So Vegas is gonna hurt! The fellas were all laughing but I was shaking when they were talking about it...

So a little uncertainty over here but from I am thinking this is an opportunity to make a good change for my life. Perhaps I will try for a business job in Tokyo. Otherwise the world is my oyster!!!
Stay well...

That weekend in Niigata few weeks back really spoiled me. I read what my buddy wrote a few days ago about how he went out and had a stellar night but it didn't even compare to Niigata so it felt sub-par. I am feeling the same effects.
Last weekend though was not the stuff dreams are made from. On Friday night I just hung around my place and relaxed a little. You might read about my date with Harry... Saturday was a little more interesting as I met with Kae to go to one of my student's concerts. A whole stack of middle and high schools in Iwaki were playing a concert. I was invited and happy to go. I ended up meeting up with her whole family. In a family of 5 I teach three... Masao (father - conversation class), Kyosuke (brother - regular middle school class) and Misaki (I used to teach her conversation class. Misaki saw me before her performance and got quite nervous. I felt pretty bad about that. I sat on the second floor for the first performance but when Misaki hit the stage I hit the floor running for the front row seats. They were snagged by a bunch of youngsters, I think Kae's shorter legs slowed me down. I ended up third row and really enjoyed the performance. It was about 20 minutes long and surprisingly good. We left afterwards but the best part of my day was yet to come, it was the thank you e-mail from Misaki.
Sunday Kae and I were going to go snowboarding with some friends but she slept in. So I went with my buddies and really didn't have the greatest day because the hill was really small. I did manage to enjoy myself a little bit and we shut down the hill at 4:30 when the lifts closed. I can feel myself continuously improving but I am still a little weary of hitting big kickers cause I haven't bought a bucket for the melon yet. Still I hit some jumps and land them which is much better than I fare on a wake board...
While Kae stayed home that day she baked a cake to trade for highlights for me. She has a friend that does hair but just had a baby so she is off work. So Kae baked a cake and I got highlights. Its a beautiful world sometimes... It did take two doses though because the girls didn't believe me when I said the dye would have to stay in longer. So after two applications I am blond highlighted once again. Sadly not a single person noticed at work. I was really disappointed about that. Maybe I will shave and see if they notice that. I will just bring back the worm, well import it from Korea since I think I left it back there when I was there last...
Tuesday arrived and I had a great day at work. It passed by real quick and the new teacher who is replacing Nao (boo hoo) followed me around. She pretty much sat at the back of the class and took notes. I am not really a big fan of this because there are things that I do with my students that are fun but I don't like other teachers to copy. Like playing a clapping game at the end of class to see who gets to leave first. I clap my hands and so does everyone else but if I fake it and someone claps then they sit down. It goes until there is only one person left standing and they get to leave first. Its really fun and the kids get right into it. Its a fun game that only I do so that makes me enjoy it much more. Tuesday night I went to Karate and at the end of class we did squats with no weights. Sounds really easy until you get to about 50, then your legs start to burn real, real good. Then you get to the 6th set and your legs want to fall off!!! And on the 7th, you feel faint but don't want to look like a sissy so you press on. At home you collapse in your bed and cry... The worst part is waking up with a burning sensation in your legs that wasn't caused by a cheap woman...
So today my legs were feeling a little less than A1. Today was also the day that all of my students felt the need to sit on my legs... They must sense or smell when they are causing pain cause they bounced like tennis balls!!! My day went by quickly enough and it was time for Karate again. The office is starting to become a little enjoyable. I think its because Nao is sooo happy to be leaving. Her smile is brightening the whole office. In any event work is much more fun than usual these days. The office is filled with laughter which is a welcome change!
At Karate tonight I had a great time but the bruises on my body are telling a different story. Combined with the leg pain from yesterday, I am contemplating a ice bath. It was an awesome session though. I fought a couple of rounds with Hiroshi and Kenichiro and then I went from the challenger to the challenged. Essentially one person stays in the ring for most of the time while their opponents keep changing. Its a hard work out for the man constantly in the ring, tonight that man was me. If I ever had complaints about not enough sparring at practice they were laid to rest tonight. I was beat up! I loved almost every minute of it though. I like the feeling of pushing your body to extreme levels of exhaustion. It makes the beer taste so much better when you get home. I was really pleased with the quality of fighting I put out there. Like snowboarding I can feel myself improving. I have noticed though the past few practices that my upper body rarely sustains any injuries but my legs are usually quite sore, so the leg squats are going to become common practice around my house.
On the way home I finally caved after asking so many of my friends around here if they own the 5th Potter book in the series I bought it. I was having no luck and I want to continue reading them. I have the sixth but was waiting to find a free copy of the 5th installment. If any of you reading this have a copy shame on you for not getting it to me before I wasted $15!!!
Alright thats enough writing... I have a book to read and some legs to ice!!!

Its Friday night and I am living large!!! I feel like a loser I have a date with a boy named Harry Potter. I have finally finished downloading a bunch of his movies so I am having a Pot-a-thon. What a poor excuse for existence...
This week passed by very quickly. I was really impressed with just how much I enjoyed going to work after last weekend. It was probably one of the most draining weekends ever with all the driving and being lost and all, not to mention the snowboarding. However I arrived at work on Monday morning feeling completely refreshed and pumped about working. If only I could get away for an adventure every week...
I am trying to convince Tranner and Pick to make a trip out here for a day or weekend of snowboarding. I will let you know how that one turns out. In any event I am headed off to Nagano next week with Ultan. I think Kae might come along also but I am not sure. I like having weekends with the boys sometimes to just let loose and relax. Snowboarding is a lot of fun when you do it with people in the same or better skill level.
I am still not certain about what is going on with work for the next year. My boss has not asked me about staying on next year. She approached all of my co-workers and asked them all if they were going to be staying and sadly she has not done the same for me. My first choice would be to stay here for another six months and then head back home before heading somewhere for a season on a mountain. The other choice is to find something in Tokyo not teaching English. That option is most exciting for me. I am not really feeling the motivation to go to work these days. The end of the year is near and I am simply bored but I also realize that teaching English is no longer very difficult so I am looking for a new challenge. Hopefully something will come up in the not so distant future. I have some headhunters searching around for me and I am trolling the want ads like an avid fisherman waiting for the big score...
Theres not much going on but I have decided I will start taking my camera around with me a little more often. Although it is really annoying and eats batteries at a re-DONK-u-lous rate, there are still a few good shots left in her...
Stay well!