Cracking the whip

Cell phones aren't really a problem at most of my schools. The students aren't supposed to have them, and most abide. But, as you might expect, there is a direct relationship between the urbanity of a school's location and the visible prevalence of cell phone possession among students. I'm at my 'city school' this week. This isn't meant to imply that I'm teaching the worldly, urban street youth of Japan; no, these kids are, by any objective measure, parochial at their foundation. But they do like their cell phones.

The other ALT who works at this school (we sort of irregularly alternate weeks) has repeatedly found himself in situations where students openly (flauntingly?) operate their keitais during or between classes. Each teacher has her own approach (or lack of an approach) to discipline, and the students do take advantage of gaps in the armor. My friend has sufficient command of Japanese to address their behavior, and he does, but the situation brings up some issues regarding the role of ALTs in classroom discipline. What is the role of the ALT?

The responsibilities of an ALT are dictated by his individual situation. In junior high school, I work alongside other teachers. I view myself as support for the Japanese teacher of English, and that informs my level of involvement in classroom discipline. During my first year, I'd try to match the tone of the JTE. This meant that in less disciplined classes, I wouldn't try to single-handedly bring the class in line; I just accepted that that was the way the class was.

Chalk one up for cultural sensitivity. Hah. I'm too old for that now. This contract cycle, the Age of Intolerance resumes.

Recently I've been taking a more active, assertive role because I feel more knowledgeable and confident about Japanese and the behavior of my students. When I judge that the JTE doesn't have sufficient control of her class, I move about the room and attend to the problematic students while the JTE continues to teach.

ALTs in elementary schools often have to shoulder more of the classroom discipline burden as they don't work with JTEs as junior and senior high school ALTs do. A teacher who participates in the ALT's lesson can help to a certain extent, but one doesn't always have those teachers (some totally check out when the ALT takes over the class-- cookies and coffee in the break room). ALTs at the elementary level have to use more Japanese and be more assertive with discipline in order to be effective. Not to make them sound balanced or equivalent, but I actually have a hard time comparing JHS discipline with elementary discipline-- with the former, students are more recalcitrant but the JTE can help; with the latter, it's your own show but the students go nuts for inflatable hammers. Wait-- so do my JHS students...shit.

I think I've learned a few things while teaching in both situations. My Japanese isn't very imposing, and neither is my stature, so I rarely use the intimidation route to effect behavioral change. I find that just making the students uncomfortable with a conversation works best. I do this by merely directing my attention to that student (only that student). Most students don't want to be singled out against their will. The best thing about this approach is that it doesn't have to be negative at all; it's exactly not a confrontation. You can really just talk to the student about any dumb thing that comes to your mind; instead of saying, "Quit screwing around," I say, "Where's your notebook?" or things like that. Some kind of simple, simple English sentence works; a barrage of the Queen's doesn't. I don't speak Japanese at all in junior high school classes as a rule, and this approach to discipline allows me to be consistent. Anyway, at best, the student changes his behavior so he doesn't have to speak English with the ALT; at worst, he gets some English conversation practice in.

Back to the cell phones. Discussing the problem, my friend and I agreed that the teachers should be stricter with the students to show that they are serious about following the rules, but we also acknowledged that the teachers may simply be picking their battles. Still, we wondered about the role of the ALT here. Can you overlook a blatant infraction? In new ALT training, it was pounded into our heads that ALTs are supposed to be super-genki, creative, and fun. Finding students operating their cell phones put my friend in a tough position vis-a-vis the whole 'fun, friendly ALT' thing: he wondered whether he should tell the JTE, making her aware of the situation but likely alienating the students (who would find out that the ALT told her), or take it upon himself to square away the student. He chose the latter, and I think it was the right thing to do because it was the potentially constructive route. It gave the offending student an opportunity to change his behavior. Now, I say 'potentially constructive' because the students were back at it again the next time my friend visited the school, but you know...

Anyway, each ALT must communicate with her JTE in order to establish how to handle classroom discipline, and she must find out for herself what sort of approach will work best with her students. For example, my friend who teaches primary school in Cameroon says that students there are beaten daily.

MW Local Multiplayer

Crap, I remember what I wanted to write about in the first place. Again, the proper MW2 review is on another machine and will be up soon. Right now I'm just going to say a bit about how we've (yes, 'we'; I haven't been playing by myself or online very often) been playing Modern Warfare 2. I haven't had this much fun playing a game since we were doing system-link Halo 3 grifball during the last ALT contract cycle. And to think that it is just 2v2 stuff this time...outstanding.

MW2 has somehow just worked for us. The last time we tried to play a Call of Duty game (MW1, World at War), people got discouraged because there was a big skill variance between me (who owns both games) and my friends who...gamely gave the games a go. I had sympathy for that feeling, and it wasn't particularly fun for me to play the game without knowledgeable opponents, either. On top of that, there were usually more than four of us wanting to play and we had ready access to system-linked Halo. Shit just wasn't aligned for CoD.

Things are different this time. Since the last contract cycle ended, our gaming crew has dwindled. We lost one dude (and thus his brother's participation as well) to the Okinawan mainland and two returned to the US (one of those two being arguably the best Halo player). Another fellow, while still here in Miyako, appeared to lose interest in playing over the summer. I felt similarly, in truth. While I hated the premise and game mechanics of Halo in the first place, its brilliant feature set won me over for a long time. But eventually, as all things do, it became stale. As for the new guys, only one appeared to have much interest in continuing the Halo Monday tradition.

Given this situation, I started to make provisions for more 1- and 4-player gaming, picking up titles like Carcassonne, Worms, and Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising. Due to the difficulties mentioned above, the CoD series games were never on the table.

In the middle of November I ordered a copy of the hotly-anticipated Modern Warfare 2. My hot anticipation merely involved intentions of plowing through the campaign, goofing around in online multiplayer (living on an island is like living in a black hole of latency), and getting some real mileage out of 2-player Spec Ops (a buddy and I had been playing Halo ODST to moderate enjoyment, so MW2 co-op was extremely appealing). I didn't expect to get into 4-player local at all.

Sure enough, I beat the campaign on my copy's day of arrival, the Sunday after the mid-year JET conference in Okinawa. I played some multiplayer online as well and was pleased by the panoply of new weapons, equipment, and killstreak rewards. That week, Long Beach* and I got into some Spec Ops and had fun. New York* and Eugene* showed up later, and we decided to give 4-player split-screen a go, not thinking that it would be much different than the experience we had on CoD4 or WaW. It was.

As far as I can tell, what makes MW2 local 4-player better than that of WaW and CoD4 Number is the local multiplayer experience tracking/weapon unlocks/custom loadouts feature of the former.

Bluntly, I had a big leg-up on my crew when it came to skill because I had been playing the game several days before they did. While this was discouraging in CoD4 and WaW (hereafter together referred to as CoD), in MW2 that disappointment is offset by the fact that just about everyone unlocks something during each game, be it as significant as leveling up or as cosmetic as getting a new title for your name. Similarly, being able to customize so much-- even without access to all of the weapons from the start-- gives each player a sense of individuality that, however shallow it may be, helps keep him ever in search of the ideal configuration for his strategy or style. The experience/unlocks system maintains their interest in the game even in the face of repeated losses, because no matter what, some progress is being made.

My favorite thing about the local multiplayer experience tracking is how, with time, each player develops his own style and branches away from the others. With the exception of Long Beach (who has consistently used launchers and LMGs from the start), everyone focuses on developing a fast UMP loadout at the beginning. I've seen it happen five times, once being myself. I think this had more to do with the nature of the 4-player games we were doing rather than some imbalanced quality of the UMP. In our current 'mature' statuses, we are as follows:

Eugene favors the assault rifle class and rarely resorts to a secondary weapon. He's a mover and shooter who hits more headshots than anyone else. Pretty handy with the knife as well. His long-time weapon was the M4 with a heartbeat sensor, but he's recently been using the FAL and continues to improve his long-range game.

As mentioned above, Long Beach is invariably seen with a launcher. Our early games usually involved me being grief-ed to tears by his AT-4 rocket, but he's since taken up the standalone grenade launcher to better effect (to Marksman III-- no one else is ever going to get that); it's basically his primary weapon. He's often found prone in corners, working both for and against his advantage. Long Beach definitely gets the Most Sportsmanlike award because he took a lot of beating early on but persevered. He makes a great teammate for a lighter, faster-moving player.

New York is skilled and fun to play with because, like me, he prefers CoD-style games over Halo and has an intuitive grasp of the game mechanics. Fortunately, aside from both being aggressive players, we have radically different playing styles. NY is the only player who consistently uses a shotgun (AA12) and an assault rifle grenade launcher attachment. Reflecting on his loadouts right now, I can see that they are really geared toward the gametypes we regularly play, like Sabotage and Headquarters; we don't do a lot of long-range fighting, and his kits and play style indicate that.

New Zealand* is the most specialized player. Starting with the universal UMP-fast dude setup and developing it out, he now tears around the map with akimbo SMGs and all of the relevant speed- and hip shooting- related perks. I imagine that it's like playing Doom 1 or something. Meeting him indoors usually turns out badly for the person who isn't him due to the sheer volume of fire his setup provides. Recently he's started using the TAR21 to good effect and is getting better at using the sights. I'd say he is an aggressive player.

Melbourne* is our newest player and the one who plays games the least. He's a capable medium-long range shooter (good timing + hard-hitting assault weaponry). Not having the same access to weapons that the others have, his loadout is less than exotic. Nevertheless, while usually getting massacred in FFA deathmatches as a new player, he's quite effective in team games. He's saved the day for me numerous times in games against more experienced pairs.

As for me, I watch screens.

Anyway, it's a pretty cool scheme. While higher level players have access to a larger absolute arsenal, it is only by the individual player's time and effort that he unlocks the attachments for the weapons. For example, Eugene and I both have the M4, but he (at a lower level than me) has access to attachments for it that I don't have (heartbeat sensor and stuff). The race continues for completion of a weapon's unlocks; I think New Zealand may win it with his near-c0ntinuous use of a UMP-based kit.

There are other improvements found in MW2. There are small maps, and the larger ones scale well. 'Shipment' from CoD4 was too small and an obvious throwaway of a map, but 'Rust' from MW2 has the appropriate complexity for 4 players to have a constant firefight. Of all the MW2 maps, perhaps only 'Derail', 'Wasteland', and 'Estate' are problematically large. The new death streaks are also good, but it's not because they help the losing player that I like them. The reason I like having death streaks is that they provide a dumping ground for the more annoying and crappy perks from MW1 like Martyrdom and Last Stand (here called Final Stand). MW2 still has Last Stand as a standard perk, but it's nerfed. You can't draw the handgun as fast as you can in MW1. We went back to play WaW last night for shits and grins, and my use of Martyrdom had my friends howling with indignation. Some stuff just isn't missed.

A gaming routine has emerged. Several times a week we meet up at my place to play several rounds, and playing with friends has pretty much become the only gaming I do these days. We're kind of 'on a day, off a day.' It works with everyone's schedule and we don't get too burned out (quite the contrary, in fact; I find myself not wanting to play at all the next day, but then being unable to wait for it the day after that).

All of this greatness from MW2 local multiplayer just fills me with that much more sorrow that it doesn't deliver split-screen system link. It would be a real contender for the be-all, end-all game of this console generation if it could run 8 players on two consoles. But I see that split-screen system-linkers like us are a tiny minority of the gaming market for whom development is not profitable. I understand it, but it sucks.



*Names changed to hide the guilty.

Stuff

Howdy,

I've been here in Miyako for over a year now and the sheer amount of shit my students give each other still staggers me. Today one student approached the blackboard to throw a suction-cup ball at an English vocabulary word (it's part of a game) and the rest of the students in this 17-person class started screaming about how long this kid's legs are (he's comparatively tall).
Two things: (1) That this dude is tall is not new to the class. The composition of this group hasn't significantly changed in over 8 years of schooling. (2) The comments were actually neutral-sounding, but that's the way Japanese people tend to take the piss out of anyone who momentarily stands out. Again, it never fails to fascinate me.

In other news:

I typed up a review of Infinity Ward/Activision's November release, Modern Warfare 2, but it's on my other computer and I haven't posted it yet. In that review I don't go on about how awesome or crappy the game is-- instead I talk about a few of the changes IW made to the MW formula that make the new one more 'casual gamer'-oriented than the last. I'll finalize it and put it up this afternoon when I get back to the big machine.

However, I usually bring a laptop with me to schools (this is where I'm writing from right now). It's a Gateway MTxxxx purchased straight off the shelves of Office Depot in 2007 and is currently running Ubuntu Linux. I've been pretty happy with it as far as word processing and web browsing go. Video isn't really a problem, either, but it won't push anything that involves OpenGL or lightly intensive 3D graphics. Originally the machine had Vista, and it would run Aero without a hitch, but I've since moved Vista to the homebuilt machine and replaced it here with Ubuntu. Again, I use this only for wapuro and browsing, so Ubuntu is ideal. It boots up quickly, drivers haven't been a problem, and-- contrary to the daunting image of Linux-- I haven't had to use the command line terminal once since installation. I also like how each release is aesthetically better than the last. I think it's a pretty good deal.

About Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan

I wrote this on Facebook a minute ago, but it seemed worth posting here as well.

I'm no legal scholar, but I do think it would be symbolically valuable for Hasan face treason or treason-related charges (again, strictly speaking, I'm unsure of what options are out there) in addition to the thirteen premeditated murder charges because the fact that he is an officer in our nation's military needs to be highlighted. Assuming he is guilty (...hah...), we've got this instance in which an individual who swore loyalty and allegiance to the United States willingly enabled a new interest to usurp the priority of that commitment.

Calling this terrorism is either hysterical or merely for political advantage among certain audiences. It's trendy and sound-bitey without being clear about what the accused is. The more severe charge-- the real crime itself, I think-- is this demonstration of disloyalty through murder. The US military isn't perfect, but it has often been one of the more egalitarian institutions of American society. That's admirable and something to be proud of, and Hasan's alleged actions spit in the face of that achievement. Again, there are failures, but one's race and religion are generally of little concern to the military if one can do the job that is assigned. The grand ideal is that those who serve agree (in the deepest and most formal sense) to act according to duty and loyalty (yes, despite the scintillating leadership of self-interested career politicians). It works when everyone is on the same page regarding what's most important. It can't work if a soldier has another priority, if he is ultimately more concerned about (and acts according to) the interests of Islam, making money, black people, Canada, atheism, poodle enthusiasts, Christianity, Freemasonry, Jedi knights, or anything but the aims of the military. The murders are horrible. That the targets were fellow servicemen is a separate and distinct injury, and I think it should be noted in public, legal terms.

This isn't to say that there shouldn't be dissent. Dissent is part of being American; it's part of being human. American society and the American military do allow it to varying degrees. But ultimately, you've got to know where you stand. What Hasan cares about is pretty evident, and it's not the army. He could have refused to be deployed and simply faced the legal ramifications, but he instead allegedly decided to shoot people. It was an attack on the personnel, morale, and overall fighting ability of our forces. The shooter isn't someone who wants the US to succeed, and yet he is a serviceman. It seems particularly grievous.

Now, regardless of whether this is to be called terrorism, the military should combat the spread of radical Islam (and everything subversive to the military's mission) within its ranks for the sake of doing its job effectively. Much was made of the institutional efforts to prevent extreme right-wing groups from gaining traction among soldiers a while ago, if I remember correctly, so I guess this is something that military does do. Understanding Hasan's motives does matter-- not for his sake or to sympathize, but to prevent this sort of thing from happening again.

Anyway, in short, I see a traitor here rather than a terrorist (whatever 'terrorist' eventually comes to mean). Are we terrorized, or are we appropriately pissed off about someone violently crapping on the concept of duty?

*If this 'traitor' angle has been beaten to death in the US media already, I apologize-- I'm somewhat out of the loop.

Interesting article.

Miyakojima Track and Field Competition

Last week I had the opportunity to participate in a general track event here in Miyako. This place isn't called 'sports island' for nothing.

I ran in a 4x100m relay, which suited me just fine. Another ALT competed in the 400m and 4x400m relay, while one more of us competed in the long jump and triple jump.

We didn't set any records, but we had a pretty good showing (note to self: get track spikes). I'm looking forward to next year's event-- we're going to get some training done in the meantime.

A DIY Era, Part 1: Building a PC

EDIT: Hey, I'm not sure why the pictures don't open in a separate window when you click on them-- screw it. Also, the formatting, font, and font size seem to vary throughout the document. What I see when I type in the Blogger editor and the actual output are different.

Like the vast majority of modern young men, I enjoyed David Fincher's Fight Club because I felt that it spoke to me. I liked it so much that I, like so many others, even went so far as to read the original novel by Palahniuk (no one ever, ever did that). But perhaps it will strike you as strange that my favorite scene, rather than one with vandalismor a monologue or combat, is the one in which the narrator and Tyler drive down a dark, rainy highway with two other Project Mayhem dudes in the backseat.

Narrator: [Tyler steers the car into the opposite lane and accelerates] What are you doing?
Tyler Durden: Guys, what would you wish you'd done before you died?
Ricky: Paint a self-portrait.

The Mechanic: Build a house.
Tyler Durden: [to Narrator] And you?
Narrator: I don't know. Turn the wheel now, come on!
Tyler Durden: You have to know the answer to this question! If you died right now, how would you feel about your life?
Narrator: I don't know, I wouldn't feel anything good about my life, is that what you want to hear me say? Fine. Come on!
Tyler Durden: Not good enough.

I like this scene because I deliberately bypass the main content of it. I can't enjoy the narrator's whinging ('whinging') has supplanted 'whining' in my vocabulary). No, I like the responses from Ricky and the mechanic. They name tasks that are both substantial and mundane. They make absolutely no claim as to the quality of their work. They're just going to do it. Or would do it if given the chance. Or will do it as soon as possible lest they die soon. I was totally sidetracked by this scene and subsequently missed much of the film due to deep consideration of the question. I thought about the sorts of things I'd like to accomplish myself. One of those things was traveling on the Trans-Siberian railroad. Another is building a computer.

I've finished one of those so far. Russia sure is cold, and there isn't a whole lot to see from the window other than a great expanse of-------
Nay, I built a computer.

Utterly talked into it by friends (2) and family (1), my goal was to inexpensively construct a desktop PC with fundamental components purchased from an online computer parts store. Here's what I got:

AMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition CPU

Foxconn A7DA-S 3.0 Motherboard

4 GB of DDR3 RAM

Sapphire ATI Radeon HD 4870 1GB

some DVD drive...some hard disk drive...

White case with soothing blue LED on front panel; is otherwise generic and has a 450W PSU

By far the most challenging task was doing the research on parts compatibility and power. I wanted a machine that would function harmoniously and offer good cost/performance. Much was learned about computers before I finally arrived at the above configuration...

Getting the parts was painless because most businesses in Japan offer cash-on-delivery and shipping is absurdly fast, even when moving things out here to Miyako.

Building the thing itself was mostly smooth and uneventful. I had some trouble fitting the motherboard-video card combination into the case (jiggling the boards and whatnot to get them situated was pretty nerve-racking). But anyway, pictures:

The CPU (AMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition) uses the Socket AM3-type of motherboard-CPU coupling armature interface (keep your wig on-- as a philosophy major I'm qualified and licensed to make up terms as needed).

The Foxconn A7DA-S 3.0 motherboard has the appropriate socket. I believe it also supports Sockets AM2 and AM2+ (is that the same as AM3? I think I saw that somewhere...). It can also rock the DDR3 RAM, a feature of which I took advantage. <-- Do we go so far as to risk awkward sentence formulations just to avoid the commonplace but proscribed ending of a sentence with a preposition? I do sometimes.

The GPU (Sapphire ATI RADEON HD4870 1GB): The card was probably the most difficult thing to decide upon (gah!). I chose this one because it isn't the most powerful card on the market this year, but it offers great performance on all games at far higher resolutions than I intend to run. I love high-definition as much as the next guy, but if I can run 60 fps on nearly anything at 1680x1050, I'm more than happy. I intend to keep the adequate-yet-modest LCD I have now for a while yet, and until I change the display, a better card would be overkill. Also, the HD4870 seemed to be where the performance return from getting a higher end card began to drop off sharply while the increase in price did not. In other words, I think the HD 4870 was the sweet spot of value when I made the purchase. Of course, you may notice that I did get the 1 GB version; apparently the memory helps when you're dealing with lots of textures. If it becomes a necessity next year, I'll grab another 4870 (even cheaper by then) and do some Crossfire action.

I seated the GPU into the PCI-E slot without incident. This particular card is something of a beast, requiring two connections to the PSU rather than drawing power from the motherboard via the PCI-E connection. There is a hot, masked CG babe on the card as well. My friend says she makes the processors run faster.

Installing the CPU was a lot easier than I expected. It's somewhat taxing because you are conscious of how fragile and crucial the CPU is but nevertheless have to secure it in a high-tension retaining device and then install a (possibly) massive heatsink-fan assembly on it. And the pins...so many... Fortunately, the CPU dropped into place effortlessly once the pins were lined up with the socket (motherboard-CPU coupling armature interface). I could feel slight resistance as I pulled the retaining arm down to secure the CPU, but it wasn't particularly concerning. The original AMD heatsink-fan came prepared with a patch of heat transfer paste, and I merely had to remove the plastic film on it before setting the whole thing against the CPU.

In a rustily ironic turn of events, one week after finishing the system, I went poking around the inside of the running computer to gather cables so they wouldn't get caught in the fans only to succeed in making a cable leap into the CPU fan, thereby chipping a blade and rendering my computer the sonic equivalent of an air compressor.

I deserve it. Moving on...

The silver lining here is that I ended up buying a replacement heatsink-fan setup for the CPU that works much better than the stock one (CPU temperature now sits at about 34 C instead of 45 C). It's a Cooler Master-- it has a larger fan, massive heat sink, and the four copper pipes running through actually contact the CPU itself by being flush with the base of the assembly. I put some extra heat paste on there to fill in the tiny gaps where the pipes cut through the base. It's been working great so far.

Anyway, I connected all of the SATA junk, power cables, and whatnot (but only after first trying to start it without plugging in the CPU power cable-- it didn't run very fast then). Connecting the small connectors from the hard disk activity light, the soft power and reset switches, et al. was sort of mendoukusai, but the helpful labeling of everything made sense. I turned it on, heard the test beep, got the BIOS screen, and enjoyed the mellow satisfaction of having built a computer.

First I installed Windows 7 RC, but I found out that the version of 7 that I had downloaded in the summer was the 32-bit one (limiting me to 3.3 GB of RAM or whatever) and the drivers that came with my computer parts weren't working perfectly. I had Vista on it shortly thereafter and got everything in order. I think playing Team Fortress 2 was the first thing I did. It ran well. I was pleased.

Naturally, I was curious about the limits of the machine. I installed Oblivion and it ran absurdly fast-- it had that strange (to me) look that high FPS motion creates. Awesome. It froze once or twice in the two hours I played, but it seemed to work well when it worked. I downloaded the single player demo for Crysis for the next test. The first run caused the computer to freeze during the opening skydiving sequence (just before the player hits the water). A second try yielded better results-- 45+ FPS. As I mused to myself about how mediocre the shooting was and the in-game dawn broke, the screen suddenly went black. The computer's fans were quiet, and no light came from the mouse, keyboard, or front panel. It was a complete power failure likely caused by the weak-ass Scythe PSU included with the case. I think. I have no proof. Some time afterward I decided to break the CPU fan as described above.

Acting on my feeling, I selected a new PSU (Kurotoshikou 650W) when I ordered the replacement heat sink fan. It rocks; it's got two 12V rails wielding 30A. People who say you shouldn't cut costs by getting a cheap PSU are right.

Since the installation of the new PSU and heatsink-fan, I've had absolutely no problems with stability. Oblivion crashes to desktop from time to time, but that's probably more to do with the volatile combination of mods I'm running to make it look and play better rather than the machine itself. I ran Crysis on 1680x1050 at very high settings just to see what would happen. Sure enough, I managed to slow the framerate to 4-player Goldeneye levels (not so low as 4-player Perfect Dark), but only at first. Once the game got moving, it was quite playable. I'll take it. That's one life goal accomplished...

TL;DR: I ALWAYS WANTED TO BUILD A COMPUTER. I HAVE NOW DONE IT; IT IS AWESOME.

Next time, Letters from Novosibirsk

OR

A DIY Era, Part 2: Painting a Motorcycle...

One is slightly more likely than the other.

Battlefield 1943 and Provoked Thoughts

What it do--

I'll save the details for another post, but I've found most of my recent physical disc game purchases have been pretty underwhelming (Red Faction: Guerrilla and Left 4 Dead, I'm looking at you.). And I still hate Halo 3 as much as ever despite it being our (Miyako crew's) community standard.

On the other hand, the offerings found on the Xbox Live Arcade shine time and time again. In terms of value/expense, the downloadable games are far superior to the 60 USD releases, and Battlefield 1943 (1200 Microsoft Points, 15 USD) is a prime example. Halo3: ODST is a prime example of the opposite.

Battlefield 1943 does little, if anything, that is new. However, it does a lot of small things right, and these small excellencies come together to make a consistently enjoyable experience. In no particularly significant order, I'll mention a few of my favorite aspects.

Unlimited/recharging ammo is a great feature. It's one less (trivial) thing to worry about, and it doesn't detract from the game. While it may sound like a game-killer to have unlimited rifle grenades, for example, the recharging ammo dynamic actually prevents it from ever becoming a problem (shoot, reload, shoot, wait for recharge). Recharging ammo also helps keep up the pace of the game as players need not take time to seek out supply drops.

The same goes for regenerating health. While many people complain about recharging health, I think it makes combat much more interesting (the implementation of medics notwithstanding). Having non-regenerating health typically goes hand in hand with having too much health and being able to take a ridiculous amount of damage (which is utterly reviled among my gaming crew) or being killed by a stubbed toe after a lengthy battle that wore you down slowly. Neither of these are game-breakers, but regenerating health has substantial gameplay advantages. It's not several small amounts of damage that will bring a target down-- you have to think about your attack and make sure you hit hard when you have the chance (whether it's from you maneuvering intelligently or the target making an error). Further, there's no gray area where you're at 40-70% health and are not sure whether to risk an attack or retreat for a health refill. With recharging health, you're either scrapping for cover or ready to go on the offensive. I can see how people would get some gameplay out of quantified health, but I find that recharging health improves the pace of a fight.

DICE/EA's single best move may be the Coral Sea Air Superiority game mode. Before its introduction, players who dedicated themselves to flying airplanes would sit at the home base runways and wait for planes to spawn. In short, it was a waste of manpower. With the addition of Coral Sea, the flyboys gained an outlet. I noticed that the intensity (and overall fun) of the ground game concurrently increased. Now planes in Conquest mode are more or less used as a way to rocket over to a capture point and parachute down to glory. They even sit unused in many games.

The three classes (Scout/Sniper, Infantry/Antitank, and Rifleman/Rifleman) appear to be used pretty evenly among players. More interesting, however, is how their abilities play out offensively and defensively. While I play as every class, I favor the scout because I like the demolition charges. Choosing a capture point to defend, scattering charges around it, and retiring to a hiding place some distance away to watch over it (with eyes downrange and detonator in hand) is a great role for the solitary player.

The HUD system is great for this style of combined arms wargame. The player has a radar on which enemies appear only when spotted (hit) by you/your teammates or when firing themselves. Relevant icons also appear on the field of view, tracking targets through brush. Most impressively, though, is how the marking icons fade from view or gradually fail to track the targets as they move away or pass behind obstructions. It's a great system that I think DICE should retain; the stealthy players get a fair shake while everyone else gets into the action with minimal frustration.

While I'd like to see more than 4 maps (3 that I actually play), even more players than 24, and a way to stay on the same team as your friends, BF1943 is probably the best value on Xbox Live. Except for Carcassonne.

Motorcycle stuff...

EDIT: I wrote this in Word and copy-pasted it here. The formatting is schizo and I refuse to change it.

I’ve had motorcycles on the brain for a while now, but never before has the fever burned so insistently. Bikes are literally all I think about these days. Providing that my love of motorcycling doesn’t displace my love of guitars, the panoply of my dedicated hobbies will paint me as a totally rad dude.

I’d been thinking of replacing the Hornet since I had the experience of riding a 400 in driving school. I think I finally came to my (financial) senses this week, or at least I’ve been able to convince myself that the Hornet is worth hanging on to. I’ve been doing a little reading on the 250 Hornet and the CB400 standard bike. Apparently (and this is anything but unexpected) Japan has restrictions on the amount of power middle class (chuugata) bikes can have (not just a limitation on displacement), meaning that the difference in displacement between my 250 and a 400 doesn’t actually lead to a large difference in power between the engines. Admittedly, I’m not knowledgeable on this topic yet and expect that there are severely diminishing returns when you increase an engine’s displacement to increase the power, but I anticipated a greater difference in power between the Hornet and a CB400 than a mere 8-10 hp (citation needed). Torque is much more kicky on the 400, of course. I’m still hunting for more information on this issue…

Anyway, I’m currently in the midst of a renaissance with my bike, the Hornet. I was sort of down about it a few months ago when I got around to replacing its fat-ass rear tire (180 on a 250?!). It’s just goddamn expensive. Also, I put slight scrapes on both sides of the tank that detract from its appearance significantly (update: I totally cratered the tank on a curb while racing the other day; no punctures, though). The wheels and rear sprocket are filthy with road grime, brake dust, and thrown-off chain grease, and the rust damage continues to creep. It’s a pain in the ass to work on anything without a center stand, so I’m checking the internets for one right now. I’d love to spend a weekend cleaning the thing…

Now I love the green machine. The current renaissance is a product of my constant reading about bikes. In comparing the Hornet to its potential replacements, I unwittingly learned more news about it. And the news is good.

First, I think I’ve got an early Hornet, maybe as early as 1996. It was received extremely positively (citation needed), and it’s cool to be riding an original.

Second, as I briefly mentioned before, the engine is pretty rocking for a 250. The 249 cubic centimeter motor gets over 24 Nm of torque (11,000 rpm) and 40 hp (at 14,000 rpm). Why did I just name those figures in metric and Imperial units? I don’t know—it just seemed more tangible to me than using one system or the other. Anyway, this engine is meant to scream. It redlines at 16,000 RPM and doesn’t even get busy (and this was news to me) until 10,000 rpm. OK, I knew that running higher revs would produce more power generally (thank you), but going over 10,000 had always just seemed excessive to me. I usually kept the machine turning slowly as I went about town thinking that it would save gas and prolong the life of the engine. However, my mileage driving that way was about 180km before reserve. Last week, when I tried running the machine at higher average rpm (and with more playful power), I got 220 km before reserve. I’m still trying to sort that out (and repeat the experiment), but I think that this engine is meant to be run faster than I had been running it. In short, the bike has a lot of power that I wasn’t effectively utilizing. Also, while it has a high pitched whine at low (>8000) rpm, the timbre radically changes to an absolute scream when opening the throttle. It’s easy to visualize air and exhaust racing through the system.

Third, I am now dead certain that the (a?) previous owner did some custom work on the appearance of the bike. Unlike stock Hornets, my bike doesn’t have the jagged Hornet logo painted on the sides of the tank. Instead it’s got chrome automotive letters spelling ‘HORNET’ running along the sides. Also, the green paint is chipping in places, revealing a layer of silver underneath. Why is this good news? I’ve been thinking about painting the Hornet, and I wasn’t certain whether the plastic parts could be easily painted; apparently it’s not a problem. I’m considering black and white right now, but I’m going to draw up a few designs. A new coat of paint would help cover the tank scrapes and give me reason to remove those chrome letters. They are odious.

Anyway, it’s an exciting time for motorcycling. I recently got riding shoes and gloves, so I’m pretty excited about the next track day when I can show off my latest fashions and subsequently get destroyed on the time trial.

Movies and music

Yo, I just watched this film, Hotel Venus, and while I'm not writing a review here, I do want to mention that it is pretty interesting in several ways. It's a joint Korean-Japanese production with lots of talent from both countries. In a leading role is SMAP dude and Korea-phile Tsuyoshi Kusanagi as a tap-dancing dude who can't advance his life past a traumatic experience in which-- well, no spoilers (Not because I care, but because I'm lazy.). Anyway, a bunch of troubled, crazy folks with mundanely appropriate nicknames ('Doctor' for the drunk physician, 'Boy' for the young man trying to prove he's tough, etc.) live in this hotel owned by an androgynous old person called 'Venus' (which when pronounced in Korean sounds like 'penis'; my observation was not appreciated by fellow viewers) and generally operated by Kusanagi's character.

Anyway, the monochromatic film is pretty slow at the start, but it does eventually become rather interesting in a hopeless way. Basically, shit pans out for some of the characters, but not all of them (i.e. being unable to change things that are out of their control), and isolation between people is the dominant theme. I don't speak Korean, so I had to awkwardly follow the Japanese subtitles, but my attention was sufficiently captured by the performances of the entire cast. And there was Miki Nakatani.

Also, in other news: We're planning a little live musical performance of sorts for next month, so I have been learning a few new tunes. I mention this now because we encountered a real gem of a song while watching Hotel Venus. It's called "These Days," and it is performed by Love Psychedelico.

Miyako Victory Lap

Guess who's back to terrorize the highways.

Forcing self to write

August has been rough. Due to the sheer glut of things worth writing/lamenting about that have passed, I will not be addressing the gritty details of this month anytime soon. Key words include spending 200,000 yen, not being able to legally drive, girl problems, typhoon-induced rust on my bike, sprained ankle, stripped screws, and RROD-ed 360.

However, I did get this today (which I am pretty happy about):

The yellow Honda Urban Rain Suit

I know I haven't written anything in about...forever, but I just got a hot new keyboard and it's going to make typing a lot easier. Back shortly.

Final Answer?

Remember the manzai lunch?

Here the shougakkou 4th graders perform an impromptu game-show style quiz for everyone's post-lunch entertainment.

Sega Outrun: Miyako

Video game box art?

Sure, the island is small, but it looks like this. No complaints from this guy.

The beginning of April is a big time in for civil employees in Japan. We ALTs got a new supervisor at the board of education, the other office workers got shuffled around, and many teachers at all of the schools were switched around all over the place. And our board of education itself was relocated out of its convenient, reasonable placement at the center of the city to a distant building on the other side of the island. Makes for a nice motorcycle ride, though.

Anyway, the respective office ladies of a few of my schools changed. Introducing myself to one of them one day, I thought it interesting to compare my katakana name (ザック, ZAKKU) to the semi-onomatopoeic Japanese expression for crunchy food texture, さくさく (SAKUSAKU).

You don't need to tell me how ill advised that was. The comparison fails to make sense. I know; let's continue.

So I basically explained to the office lady that my name is funny because it resembles a snack food expression and that that expression translates to 'crispy' in English. Not amused yet? Yeah. I don't think she was either; she listened too intently, and without the mirth I had hoped for. She now calls me "Crispy" every time I see her. Fun story.

The Era of Irrationality Continues

I just stormed away in a huff from this band Im watching because the lead guitarist's tone is an undifferentiated mess of delay, flange, and wah. Damn.

Yo dawg, I heard you like well lit restrooms

so we put neons in your toilet so you're backlit while you doo doo.

New Shirts

We continue down the slippery slope:

I recently bought a few T-shirts here in Miyako that feature some mean Engrish. Shirts that feature Engrish are a dime-a-dozen in Asia, but I think the ones I found stand out as being extremely poetic or extremely relevant. To me. Thus, the contents of these shirts:

(1) PAINT FAME

Can you hear - footsteps of the future.

Listen for paradise.

Sound evolves one step further.

Sound is life.

I hear nostalgic sounds.

Graphic T's in the States are simple affairs with a setup and a punchline. In Japan we wear cinquains.

(2) A NEW TYPE GOOD TASTE

Man, can't even argue with that one.

Finally, my favorite:

(3) LEARNING IS WORK

THERE ARE SOME THINGS WE MUST KNOW IS THERE ANYONE WHO DOESN'T KNOW THAT?

I WANT TO KNOW EVERYTHING

A shirt after my own heart, I suppose.

Summer may be Here.

Maehama beach. Preferred venue for v-ball.

The mystery beverage option on a vending machine. Yeah.

Doing work.

Announcing at Miyako Strongman Triathlon.

NOTICE

I just read an entire article in a Japanese newspaper for the first time. Movin' on up...

Ah...WORTHLESS

I guess this is what happens to most blogs. The writer starts out strong enough, but slowly and surely the time between each post lengthens until all activity has utterly fled the page.

I think this can be avoided. Here's my offer:

If you'll tolerate my posts not being in chronological order at all, then I'll do my best-- nay-- guarantee that this thing will go on until it is one year old.

Anyway

I usually teach junior high school, but recently I've been deployed to an elementary school. I go there once a week and, unlike junior high school where I work with JTEs, I pretty much run the show. I decide what the kids learn (things that amuse me) and how they learn it (rowdy games, no writing).

It's a fun time. It's also more work.

Anyway, I like my students, and most of them like me well enough, but the fourth grade class at this school is the "ZT IS RAD TO THE POWER OF SICK" club. They think I'm the shit-- fucking awesome-- the tightest MF-er on the planet-- the bee's knees.

I did something right with these kids when I first met them. I don't remember what that was, but I do know that it has led us to a point where they turn cartwheels when I show up.

Hey, who doesn't enjoy being liked?

I try to return the favor by being a good sport. I amuse them by making dumb faces my father taught me, doing the old broken arm illusion (I was going to embed a link to explain, but I can't find an example of it on the internet), and letting them leap on to my back from higher perches.

Ninja children.

Anyway, I got to eat lunch with my crew today. Little did I know that we were in for a manzai lunch.

Manzai, as I understand it, is a form of Japanese stand up comedy. It frequently appears on the TV variety shows. It usually consists of two comedians, one of whom is the 'straight man' while the other is the goofier one. Hilarity ensues as the straight man berates the goofy one and is ultimately embarassed or otherwise comically defeated by the latter.

The plan was to eat lunch and then send a few students to the front of the class to act like fools for everyone's dining enjoyment. But as soon as I finished my Harajuku Banana Chocolate Dog (it's like an eclair) I was yanked to the front and ordered to dance.

I was going to embark upon a lengthy socio-policial protest against being cast as a English-teaching gaijin clown, but my ears were greeted by the pleasant sounds of an Okinawan folk song (reworked for school children) pouring out of the intercom system.

I really wanted to dance.

I glanced at my backup dancers waiting behind me and, without warning, attempted everything that white men not named Justin Timberlake should never try.

Of course, the class loved it. But I could have done anything. I was glad I did something.

Anyway, it was a pretty rocking time even though the manzai turned out to be a 'Get ZT to Dance - Noontime Special.' Man, these kids are WIN. Hell, I just added yet another aspect to the ongoing 'ZT IS AWESOME TO FOURTH GRADERS BECAUSE...' list:

1. He is super-strong-- he can lift a 9 year old with each arm and retain mobility with four attached to his back.

2. He is a great musician because he can play the guitar and the benjo (toilet). What's a banjo?

3. He is the best soccer player in Miyako and fast as lightning because he raced Taiga and Taiga's the fastest boy in Miyako and he won when they raced even when they raced four times and Zakku-sensei was tired and we gave everyone a 30m head start but not Zakku-sensei.

4. His monkey and fish faces are hilarious, and the swinging arm trick is endlessly amusing.

5. We get to scream like chimpanzees during English class.

And now...

6. He can dance really well, like Justin Timberlake.

O-HISASHIBURI

I've been pretty lame at updating lately.  Here's what's news (new's):

We've been going at diving pretty hard recently, which is great.  So have the sea snakes.  two Sundays ago my buddy and I counted 12 snakes over the course of a short 30 minute dive.  As I read when I was researching them, these Colubrine sea kraits are indeed quite docile.  New Caledonian children play with them and they are unaggressive toward divers.  They are a curious sort that are fun to observe swimming around and surfacing for air.

And their venom is 15 times more potent than that of the king cobra.  Cheers.

The previous Friday I spotted a reef shark of some sort.  Couldn't tell what it was exactly.   Not too large, however-- perhaps only 1.5 m or so.  Didn't hang around.

I've taken up spearfishing as well.  Like most things new to me here on Miyako, I experience painful disappointment with this activity because of my inability to do things well.  But on this past outing I managed to jump a nice-sized parrotfish that was preoccupied with eating something on the reef.  I landed what appeared to be an ideal hit-- straight into the gill area-- and pinned the fish to the rocks.  It was a tough catch with a pole spear because of the depth of the water, and I was very pleased with myself.  As images of tempura danced through my head, the parrotfish thrashed about and managed to tear its own body apart off of the spear and dash into a hole.  I was pissed.  I think fishing is great, but, like most people, I don't particularly enjoy killing or causing animals grief unless I am going to eat them; I'm not there just to ruin some fish's day.  Damn.

On that same dive I reached a depth of 11.9 m.  That's a new high score. 

Miyako in NYTimes

The article is a year old, but it is cool to see it anyway.

Diluvian Tales: Snakes in Miyako

There aren't any. While other Ryukyu islands (Ishigaki, Iriomote, Okinawa, etc.) do have snakes, Miyako doesn't. Sources say that relative sea levels were higher in previous eras and much area of the islands was previously underwater. Miyako, being the geographical oddity that it is (it is extremely flat), was likely entirely submerged while the higher elevations of other islands remained above the water. Snakes (and presumably other animals) found refuge from the sea there, but no such purchase was to be found in Miyako.

However, we still have sea snakes. And they sure are curious about humans in the water.

EDIT: Apparently there are land snakes on the island. And a few sea snakes pursued us in the water today (13 MAR).

A Post for Posting's Sake

Hey, it's your boy on this island of the southern East China Sea.  I'm not doing much right now-- it's been a slow day at school-- but I am getting a fair bit of studying done.  My goal is to pass the second level Japanese language proficiency test this year (this summer at the earliest), so I've got plenty of preparation to do.  I found a few good study books (here’s one) and am having a go at it.  About this particular book, though: I am startled at how well it fits my current Japanese ability.  While the entire book is written in Japanese, each of the 173 individual grammar points is followed by an explanation that is concise and straightforward.  That is, I'm not having to learn new grammar to simply read the provided explanations of new grammar.  There is plenty of kanji, but it is accompanied by plenty of furigana.  As I study the grammar I record any new words I encounter, so it is a pretty decent way to study, I figure.

People I've talked to recently have probably heard me gloat about how warm it is here.  It is warm here.  However, today is a bit cloudy and cool.  Being an island, it's got some rapidly changing weather patterns.  That smells oxymoronic.  Anyway, you never know what's going to happen over the course of the meterological day, especially in the off months (i.e., not the 8 months of summer and not the 1 month of winter).  I should have taken the motorcycle to school today, but I didn't, fooled as I was by the gray skies.

Fun fact: I buy most of my study supplies at the convenience store.  Here is where I launch into an account of how convenience stores in Japan are different from those in the States.  First, the ones in Japan are usually well-kept.  They are not usually paired with gas stations.  You can pay your bills at them.  They also feature an assortment of foods that I hesistate to call fresh, but may actually be so (if you've ever been to Wal Mart or Kroger and seen those prepared and date-stamped deli items you have a good idea of what is found at these convienience stores).  You'll still get fat and die if you eat conbini (Japanese term for the stores) food all the time, but it is probably still better than Joyfull.  Anyway, the conbini also have tons of other quality convenience merchandise, including, namely, one of my favorite brands, 無印良品 (mujirushiryouhin -- 'no mark/label/brand quality goods').

Say it.  mujirushiryouhin.  moo-jee-roo-shee-rr-yoh-heen.  Again.  

mujirushiryouhin

I like how my made-up transliteration is more difficult to digest than the proper romaaji spelling (italics).  It helped not at all.

One more time: mujirushiryouhin.  It's fun.  It's also a line of clean, elegant, and reasonably priced products for your body, home, and office.  I like their writing elements and use them exclusively.  With the matching aluminum pen case.  Exquisite.  My notes explode with vibrant color.

You know, there are many words I still can't pronounce correctly.  For example, I still can't properly say 論理学 (ronrigaku - 'logic as a study').  Yeah, esoteric, I know.  But in my line of work, it's plum(b) necessary.  As a philosophy major, you never know when you'll have to justify your chosen line of study to some assailant in a foreign language-- when you do, you need every possible asset.

I break out ronrigaku whenever I have to get into it with someone.  It's a gamble, though: I typically end up saying something on a spectrum between 'lonely-gah-koo' (very sad) and 'rr-ohn-ree-gah-koo' (mentally impeded), preferably tending toward either extreme.  This leads the assailant to dismiss me as a blathering idiot and the issue, from his perspective, is settled.  Blathering idiots cannot hope to justify themselves, after all.  Afterwards I usually continue attempting to say the word (to myself).  This exacerbates others' perceptions of me.

I'm about to call it a day, but first I must say that I really like what I'm doing here.  The workdays afford me enough time to do some language study (which makes me a better teacher and co-worker), and the teaching itself is enjoyable far more often than not.  It's a great learning opportunity for both myself and the students, and I continue to have a lot of enthusiasm for it even through these grayer months.  The third year students are going to graduate in a few days, so I've got several ceremonies to attend.  I'll be back at ya shortly.  Peace.

The other day,

someone asked me when I was going to leave this place.

Heh.

A Whale-like Voice

So, they (members of the local board of education, my employer) thought it would be super kokusaiteki, or an otherwise good idea, to have me play banjo (very exotic) during the intermission at this term's junior high school English storytelling contest. 

Here's the thing: they wanted a complete show featuring me, a set of songs, and singing.  

I'm a terrible singer.  My Most Excellent Friend Eli describes my voice as 'cetaceous.'  Yes, I pulled a fast one on someone in the JET Programme selection process: I don't have "excellent intonation, rhythm, pronunciation, and volume", or whatever is called for.  I sound like a whale, and though whales sing in their way, it is a style that is fairly inaccessible.  Like enka.*

Perhaps it is best described as not being entirely unlike the sound of a shitty practice amp whose bass knob is cranked up as the remaining tonal knobs are turned extremely off.  That is, it can sound loud and deep, yet it is  somehow inherently muffled.  It's been a blessing and a curse since my youth.  No, I take that back-- it's given me an unbelievable amount of shit.  Mostly in the form of my dad yelling at me for mumbling all the time.  And I can't sing.

So,

Clearly they had no idea what they were getting into.  Sure, sure, I can play a few crappy songs on my crappy banjo with my crappy technique, but asking this guy to sing is agressively reckless.  One could really sour the mood of the event by doing this sort of thing.  And it's a day for the children, you know.

Still I reluctantly accepted the task because, well, I had already done this sort of thing for one of my schools.  They had a schoolwide musical presentation in which I was called up to play "Country Roads."

Little did you know, all Japanese people are familiar with "Country Roads"; that is, KANTORII ROUDO(ZU).  It was a safe choice.

Anyway, I did it.  It was fine because the audience simply consisted of my students (who already know how cool I fail to be) and grandparents of said students.  I could have gone on stage and hula-hooped for 3 minutes and been met with applause.  It wasn't fine because someone surreptitiously shot a video and committed it to Digital Versatile Disc (DVD).  Not that anyone has or will ever watch it-- it's probably sitting in a cabinet at the school.  I'm still uneasy.

The board of education was aware of this whole affair.  I decided it would be socially costly, if not rude, to decline their request for me to play, regardless of how much of an ass I anticipated making of myself.

With the actual contest weeks away, I had ample time to practice up and prepare a set list.  So I waited until the day before the show to do all of that.

I decided to break out the guitar for one of the songs, Old Crow Medicine Show's "Big Time in the Jungle."  No demanding singing there, and I like the song.  On the banjo front, I readied "Rocky Top" (feebly reppin' for TN) and KANTORII ROUDO (why waste time learning a new song?). 

Despite the changes and my newfound, cleaving decisiveness about what to play, I became extremely nervous as the performance approached.  Really nervous.  I made it a point to express my unease to every person I encountered regardless of whether the conversational context suited it.  I felt like hadn't prepared well enough.  Which I hadn't.

When I finished teaching that day, I decided to do what little practice I could manage.  Half-panicking, I went outside and proceeded to go through the material.

It didn't take long for students to start gathering around me to listen.  They emerged gradually, two or so at a time.  This was fantastic because it helped me get used to the idea of performing in front of lots of people.  Eventually the resident third year (our 9th grade) rockabilly guitar dude came up.  I gave him the guitar and asked him whether he knew KANTORII ROUDO.

As if there were any question about the matter. 

We jammed on that shit for 10 minutes.  Everyone joined in and sang Engrish on the chorus, and I held the verses together while turning out some decent banjo rolls.

Rocking out with the students really turned my world around.  I felt all genki and like myself again.  This isn't meant to imply that I thought I could play the songs better-- it was just that I cared less about whether I sounded good and cared more about rocking.  So, lots of positive energy was received at that moment, and it got me psyched up for the performance.  As for the performance itself, I don't know how good it sounded, but at least I didn't forget any lyrics.  One of my teachers stepped up and played guitar on KANTORII ROUDO (because everyone knows...) as I did my thing.  I even did an extra song when the intermission ended up running longer than expected.  Anyway, I'm not sure that I could have done it without kicking it with the students first.  

Thanks.

* ZING, JAPAN!  Or not.

Potentially unsatisfying

But really I can only take one prune at a time, regardless of whether it is individually wrapped.

Onion-salt rice with pork and coconut chicken curry

This plus salads and drinks for less than 2000 yen.

Laid Back Cafe

Cafe near my place

I like the style ofthis place.

A principal gets the students jazzed up for an ekiden.

I can write from my phone now.

Grand.

Non-sequiturs and 28 JAN 2009

The other day we were visited by a pair of pianists from Okinawa.  Actually, they are sisters and are originally from Miyako, and while back on the island they decided to drop in at a few schools and play some piano for the students. 

Anyway, after several songs they called up volunteers one at a time to play alongside them at the piano.  The collective mind of the auditorium's occupants (except that of myself-- the slot in my brain for the Nippon Mental Net Transponder is greedily occupied by an All-American Rugged Individuality Unit) pushed a certain sannensei to the front as the first victim.  He played a single repeating, droning note for a bit as one of the professional pianists played a complex pattern.  He soon returned to his seat and the show went on.

After the recital, I asked the student (in Japanese) what he thought about the experience.  He turned and said "Florida, yes, and California."

Sorry.  What?

I stumbled away in hopeless confusion.  

Actually, I'm really not confused about this.  Many students don't actually listen to what I am asking (whether it is Japanese or English) and simply respond with whatever English words pop into their heads at the moment.  Don't get me wrong-- they have absolutely zero regard for meaning, so whatever shit they come up with usually makes me laugh.  But it's kind of frustrating too.  So, as for me, hopeless, yes, but not confused.  It's another reason to never put any effort into connecting with the kids at this school.  

But I have to.

-=-=-=-=- For those who are interested, asking 'Was it fun?' (TANOSHIKATTA? 楽しかった？) in Japanese sounds nothing like any English phrase I am aware of, much less any phrase referencing coastal states.