Well, I just got back into Stony Plain a little while ago and had dinner. Yummmmm. Steak. I have been eating so much beef lately. I don't know what it means but I don't mind. I'll be eating practically no beef in Japan.

It's very nice outside so maybe I will go and lie on the hammock for a couple of minutes.

The conditions of this post are similar to the last one I made-- in that thunderstorms are again rolling in. Lamentably, this is the last post I will do before taking apart my computer and moving it to my next stop, though short, in Stony Plain. My room is pretty well empty at this point. Just my lamp, radio and computer on my desk and my bed- which has always been a little sad. And boxes and boxes of stuff on my floor, some of these boxes have also escaped and migrated downstairs.

However, being from the west and young, I have no shortage of access to high-speed internet, meaning; I will still be able to make updates everywhere in between here and the time it takes to re-setup my computer in Stony Plain. My question is this: why am I so thirsty at the moment?

This will have to be a quick post because I hear thunder in the distance. I'm just in the process of packing up my room to leave for Stony Plain on Sunday. I've always enjoyed organizing stuff-- in a strange way-- and it actually feels pretty good to be sorting through all my stuff. Lots of things are being thrown out or recycled. Just put on some tunes and go at it. I'm being rather ruthless in what I'm throwing away. Some boxs I haven't looked at in years and if I haven't been in a box for over a year, I probably don't need the contents. It looks like a grenade went off in my room. Still lots to do but I'm going to the tea house at 7:30pm.

The above picture is a scene from Sapporo. This is the biggest city on the island of Hokkaido and about a 2 hour train ride from Shikoai. The picture is not very clear but I didn't take it.

I want to be reminded again of the very exlierating experiences found in Japan. This image is actually taken from Osaka, but is representive of the vibrant street life in Japan. I cant wait to walk these lively streets again.

This is a picture of Obihiro station, a local train station in the next nearest large-city from Shikaoi. I will most likely be getting to know this station quite well.

This post can now be found here.

This is a test of Gmail image capabilities.

Stony Plain and Shikoai

Shikoai is a small town located in central Hakkiado. I have been there twice twice before, once in 1997 and again in 2000, so I don't feel as if I'm decending into a completely foreign experience. Basically, Alberta and Hakkiado, in an effort to make the world just a bit smaller, started a fruitful twining relationship between eachother's towns. Stony Plain has been fortunate enough to be twined with the freindly town of Shikoai (pop. around 6000). I will soon been leaving (Sept. 4 actually) to become one of Shikoai's two english teachers. I will be directly contracted to the Shikoai Board of Education which means several things. I will not be tied to anyone school, the contract states I could be teaching High School , Junior High, elementary, kindergarden, other teachers or town employees. As rare as it is for a blog to post rumor, word from Shikoai is that I will propbably be facing off with elementery or junior high school students. For many years I have wanted to return to Japan so if work I must to that end I will (I still think I received the better half for such an opportunity). I would like to express my thanks for all the help and support from my parents, extended family and family-friends.

Some things I wish to accomplish with my stay in Japan is making sure I represent Stony Plain well and ensure my students learn thier studies. I will also try very hard to resurrect my old Japanese skills and improve on them with constant practice. An added goal for myself is to try to produce some form of creativity and write. Write about what? Well, that is getting ahead of myself and so is this post. I still have months left until I leave for Japan so read on...