Back in Japan!

Home was great; but again I accomplished very little. I saw too few people, went too few places, and had nowhere near as many cups of Zoka coffee as I intended. Oh well, what can you do? So, since getting back I went to the new mall in Gifu; where oddly enough, while studying in Starbucks I met two of my students from Kusai Elementary. More odd yet, I know their mother from studying at the Starbucks in Apita in Konan; where we always chat about her kids. It was funny, and the kids were super excited to see me; that is always great, if a bit loud. The new mall is great! There is an Eddie Bauer, which I hoped for, and of all things a Sports Authority, which is where I had to go in the US to buy my underarmour shirts and skivvies-I highly recommend this clothing for people who live in hot wet climes, or who go camping. VERY comfortable, and the anti-microbial treatment means you can wear the same clothes for a week and not smell too bad. (Yes, I did try this, although I limited my experiment to 3.5 days.) Just about everything I wanted to buy in the states I found at this new mall. Oh well, at least I know where to get it next time; at a premium price, of course.

I am working on getting a Japanese Conversation Group together in Nagoya now. I am starting through the Nagoya International Club, but I am thinking of separating it, and using it as an additional recruitment tool for the club itself. If I advertise it separately, and then just make advertising available at the meetings it might work out well. We shall see. I am becoming quite the little community organizer! This complete lack of any real life during the week has its benefits.

I have just finished my first class! I am actually surprised how much Japanese I can still recall on demand, but I am definitely in a category I lovingly refer to as SUCK. The kids were great, a little tired and listless at first, but I took it easy on them, and tried to make it easy, exciting, and fun and they came around in the end. It remains to be seen how the rest of the little buggers are, but I am in top form today-despite the oppressive heat. I think I just saw a monk in a little orange robe burst into flames!!! Now THAT is hot!