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.