Everyday affairs

Greetings all!  I thought I’d get June off to a good start and post something on the first day of the month.  Go me!    This week has been rather dismal in the fact that nothing is new to report, so I thought I’d catch you up on some everyday affairs.

I hung up my new English board yesterday during the break time, and a couple of girls came over to talk with me while I did that.  I don’t want to toot my own horn, but I’m pretty happy with my work.    (see below)  It is my favorite board so far.  You may ask why, and I’ll tell you it’s because it’s about travel!  Anyone who knows me knows that I.  LOVE.  TO.  TRAVEL.  I hung up a map and posted a couple of pictures from each country I’ve been to.  I asked the girls if they knew the things I was showing to them, and they could recognize famous landmarks like the Eiffel Tower, but couldn’t pinpoint where St. Peter’s Basilica was.  One girl went to the USA last spring, and we talked about that.  Both girls are at the top of their class when it comes to English, and I made sure to tell them that.  Both of them denied it, doing the Japanese thing where they deny their abilities because they aren’t PERFECT.  Oh, Japan!  I am just happy that they actually notice my English board and express interest in it.  I feel like half the time NO ONE even notices it, but in the past day, those girls AND two different teachers commented on it.  Woo-hoo!

 

I haven’t said anything about my gardening lately, so here’s an update on that.  There are tons of sprouts in my flower bed!  Exciting!  The only downside is that since I’ve never done this before, I’m not exactly what is the flower and what is the weed, so I’d had to let it grow up a bit before pulling weeds.  My mom (a jedi master at gardening) told me that it’s better to err on the side of caution and MAKE SURE to know what is the actual flower.  Now that the plants have been there for a while I recognize what they look like when they come up and how that differs from the weeds.  I have a couple of stalks that are thick and bushy, but I don’t have any blooms yet.  I have no idea how much they have to grow before they bloom.  We shall see!

I cannot tell you how proud I am of Ian.  His job duties have been expanding and expanding and expanding.  Originally he was just teaching the class once or twice a week in Nishiki.  Then one of his co-workers asked him to pick up a couple of her classes, so he did.  Now his job has expanded so much that he can even work from home!  His boss asked him to phone interview a couple of students to check their English comprehension, and Ian told me yesterday that now his boss wants him to work on some English test.    Who knows…maybe by the time we leave Japan, Ian will be working for this company full time.  Everything that his boss asks “Hey, would you want to ______?” Ian says yes to.  I’m so proud of him! 

I have exactly two more hours of work left, and then I’m free!  I cannot wait for Sunday because we’re heading back to the beach.  Hurray!  I heart the beach!  Everyone have a great weekend!