Wireless@home

When I left my house for a short walk today, all was quiet. However, upon returning there was a line-up at the door to see me. It's all a rather random, but good, coincidence - maybe someone in cyberland can put it all together for me - but when I got back there were two nice ladies from Jehovah witnesses waiting to talk to me (needless to say they were surprised to find I was Canadian). But I couldn't wait to talk to them because the delivery man was also there, bringing my BB Yahoo high-speed ASDL modem. Yeah! I just plugged it in and voila! Internet!

Also of interest to many or few was how my Friday went; so while it was stressful, surprising, and tiring, it also brought a smile to my face because it was so very typical of my life in Japan. Last Friday while at Kamihoronai, Sato-sensei had noted that next week when I came to teach that some teachers were going to observer. No problem. I had just assumed that, like Alberta, sometimes two or three teachers may observer a class. However, something was missed in the translation or perhaps he didn't want me to panic, but when I arrived yesterday, it was a bloody English curriculum conference. Hundreds of well-dressed people showed up; teachers from all over Hokkaido, teachers from the Shikaoi School district whom I knew, principals, Mrs. Usui, the local town council [!?!?] and local press. Ah... and me with nothing but a dashing smile and a pair jeans. Well, I didn't panic because I really hadn't known this was going on and it was so beyond my control all I could do was laugh (and apologize to the principal of Kamihoronai again and again that if I had known this was going on I would not have worn jeans). My kids completely closed up and wouldn't talk; it was depressing because I had them yelling - at the top of their lungs - the very same words last week. Their English is pretty good, I think. A shame. One consolation to me was that I didn't have to stay for the conference/ceremony [!?!?] that followed, instead I was allowed to go back to the office. One English teacher when later questioned about how the conference/ceremony was remarked, "I'm drowsy."


I have also added some images of an event that has being going on in Stony Plain Hall (the building where the Shikaoi Board of Education is located) for the past week, and consequently ends on Sunday Night, that I was really impressed by and have enjoyed immensely. It consists of mainly watercolours (and various other media) from school children all over Japan (Grades 1-12) portraying the main theme of the late artist Kanda Nissho who was a local artist: horses. Actually, he was from Tokyo by settled in the area. He is very well known in Japan; often you can catch one of his painting on the cover a book. I was impressed mostly by how modern, mature and accomplished many of the students' paintings were. And the theme of horse worked to unify - in a way I found quite powerful - the whole exposition. The stuff that goes on in this building is so exciting. Also, last week, I helped move a 6 foot Bosendorfer (kind of like moving a one tonne Mona Lisa for those that don't know their pianos).