2001-12-06 - 11:13 p.m.
Maybe it’s because the vice principal let us (teachers) go home early today, but I’m in a decidedly better mood about my new school and Japan in general. I really do go up and down on a daily basis. On Tuesday afternoon I was in a really foul mood about being here. Then I had a good adult class that night and felt better. Last night at karate I was frustrated again because I couldn’t understand any of the directions and thus was taking twice as long as everyone else to learn the new combinations. But since my first couple of days, I have taught the 9th graders, who are a really smart and genki (cheerful) class. I finished up my self-introduction lessons today and actually wasn’t sick of doing them until the last one (my 10th this week).
With my early dismissal today, I took the opportunity to patronize some local businesses (i.e. go shopping). My bike route home takes me down one of the main shopping streets. Though I’ve been going up and down this street for four months now, it’s amazing how many new shops I discover all the time. Because I can barely read the signs, I tend to tune out and pass by any place that isn’t really obviously of interest to me. Today I stopped in a small omiyage (food souvenir) shop for the first time. They sell a lot of variations on peanuts because this prefecture is known for them. The woman in the shop offered me a cup of green tea and a small plate of peanuts which as far as I could tell had been deep-fried and coated in sugar. I felt bad leaving without buying anything, and as if I didn’t feel bad enough, as I was unlocking my bike to go home the shopkeeper ran outside to give me a free package of tea. After bowing and saying thank you, I had this thought: I wonder if I will be able to stop myself from bowing when I go home in two weeks. I must bow hundreds of times a day -- to say hello to a teacher in the hallway, and even when riding my bike to thank a car for letting me pass at a stop sign. I have not, however, started bowing while talking on the phone, which I have been told will happen.
Today at school I showed the tea lady a picture of my niece, and she said in Japanese that she “looked cute enough to eat.” This struck me as funny because that seems like one of those expressions that might not translate in other languages -- and in fact might come off as really grotesque. Lucky for her, it translated just fine.
