Jason’s Random Thoughts

I just came across this deal on the Dell website. They’re offering a basic netbook for 100円 as a package deal with EMobile. Considering how I’ve been chomping at the bit to get my hands on both a netbook and some mobile data, this could be the very thing that I need!

Here are the specifications of the netbook:

• Windows XP Home SP3 (Japanese Edition)
• Intel Atom N270 (1.6 GHz, 512KB L2, 533 MHz FSB)
• 1 Gig DDR2 RAM
• 8 GB SSD HDD
• 8.9″ Screen (1024×600)
• 802.11b/g Wireless
• 4-Cell Battery
• 1 Year of 24/7 Support

The EMobile data package includes a USB device that offers 3.6 Mbps data transfer, and it works on both Windows and Mac. I’m not sure if it’ll work on Ubuntu but, if it does, I’d be happier than a pig in poo.

If you’re not too impressed with the specifications of the basic netbook, there is another being offered which comes a 32 GB SSD HDD for 9,980円. This is the one that I’ll aim for, personally, but that’s mainly because a 8 Gigabyte hard drive is hardly large enough to accomplish half of the work that I want to do. 32 would still be stretching it but, since the mini computer does come with a SDHC slot, I can get around it with some basic expansion slots.

I learned the hard way that when something sounds too good to be true, it usually is. But I just haven’t found any devastating conditions that would make me shy away from a deal like this. That said, my Japanese reading ability isn’t quite perfect, so perhaps I need to make some crazy contract with EMobile. Either way, I’ll be discussing this with the Mrs. tonight and seeing about getting my hands on a nice machine before Christmas!

You can see the 100円 deal here, and the 9,980円 deal for a better netbook here.

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I paid 320,000 Yen for this? Sitting in a small room, a foreign person across from him, Kenji Yamamoto sighed as he weighed his options yet again.

Kenji had come to the language school in order to earn the skills necessary to take his career to the next level. With the coming economic problems, his company had sliced the budget on all but the most important of training lessons. This meant that Kenji had to pay for the classes himself. After weeks of online research and attending trial lessons at various places, he had settled on this company. Not only did they appear to be the most professional when it came to education, but they had a solid reputation for results. Unfortunately, after three months of lessons, he felt as though his English was no better now than it was before.

Why is he talking so much? I can’t get a word in edgewise. Kenji’s frustration at wasting not only money but his free time kept mounting. He wasn’t inclined to walk out of the small room, but the idea was tempting.

Not having any opportunity to speak, Kenji decided to look at all the reasons he should request a refund. This guy’s breath smells awful. His shirt is wrinkled. The tie is too loose. The room has eraser fibers on the desk. The TV is old. The CD player is cheap and doesn’t play very well. The textbook doesn’t look to be worth the 22,000 I paid …

In the ten minutes Kenji had to think before being asked to read a sentence he had listed off a hundred things to complain about. Having done this, his decision was made: this would be the last lesson with this company. There were plenty of resources online for people to practice their English, and Kenji needed only to read and write more often than speak. It made no sense to come to a conversational school. This was proven especially by the fact that he rarely ever spoke during the 90 minute lessons.

As the final bell went, Kenji thanked the foreigner for their time as always, knowing that he just wasted another 15,000 Yen.

Never again, he thought. No wonder so many other companies are going out of business.

It’s a common scene in Japan. Customers come to study a language and, over time, begin to lose interest in speaking another tongue. While there are certainly several things that can happen in a person’s life to make learning another language take a back seat, one common reason is a lack of professionalism coming from the language center and, more importantly, from the language instructor.

I’ve had the opportunity to work at a language school for just over a year and, in that time, I’ve heard dozens of complaints students have had about language schools (including the one that I work at). Very rarely does a person decide to quit because one thing bothers them. Instead, it’s a culmination of several large and small issues that make people like Kenji Motoyama miss lessons or end a contract. I will be the first to admit that I’m still a rookie when it comes to language instruction, but there are nine key points that I’d like to share with anyone that is thinking about teaching English in Japan, or any other nation for that matter.

Dress for Success

This should be self-obvious, but I’m still surprised by some people who come to work dressed like they just got back from an all night date. Wrinkled shirts, poorly tied ties, unkempt facial hair … the list goes on and on. A teacher who looks like they just got out of bed sends a very clear message that they not only don’t take their job seriously, but they’re probably not very well educated, either.

In Japan, people who attended university often get jobs that require a suit and tie. People who don’t wear these often only have a high-school or trade-school education.

Dressing the part can be incredibly easy for both men and women who wish to teach. For men, it’s best to wear a suit with a pressed shirt and tie with nothing loose. Wearing the jacket in the classroom is optional, but it’s best to look prepared. Women who teach adults are often taken more seriously when they dress in business-appropriate wear. This means no long V-necks that reveal too much skin, and no mini-skirts. These things are fine to wear outside of the classroom, of course, but seeing too much skin is often distracting for students who (usually) just come to learn a language.

Speak in Full Sentences

Okay, you know how when, you’re trying to do something, and then, without any reason, someone just makes something up on the spot? And you’re all like: Uh … okay? And then they point and tell you to just, like, read it and understand? Chuh-uh huh? So, like … whatever!

You would be surprised how many people who apply for English-speaking jobs cannot speak in full or complete sentences. Is this because of pop culture’s inability to use the language as it was intended, or due to the pervasive internet and SMS culture that has sprung up since the mid-1990s? Who’s to say? But regardless of how we might speak online or on the phone, people who want to learn a language should not be forced to differentiate between Slang-Only English (SOE?) and written English. While the spoken and written forms of the language are clearly different, the two should be relatively close for the first few years of English study. Anything else will just confuse people to no end.

One last point I should make regards the use of inappropriate language. There are very few language schools that present explicit language to paying customers, so try to stay away from subjects like sex, drugs and everyday loose slang. While “Hell, yeah” or “Fuck, yes” is a common thing to hear in North America, it’s never used here in Japan or in the business world in general.

Don’t Pretend

Staying on the topic of language use, try not to pretend like you know everything. If you don’t know the difference between a gerund and a homonym, tell the student that you’ll get a proper answer after the lesson or during the break. We don’t need to be English majors, and most students will understand this. Heck, just ask them about the “te” form in Japanese grammar. They’ll understand that it’s not always easy to remember what everything is called, but we generally know how to use it. Besides, customers pay good money for the lessons that we offer, so lying is just going to piss them off and make you look bad.

One of the greatest benefits of teaching a native language to others is that we get to re-examine how we use the language ourselves, which can make us a better speaker overall. Lord knows that, while my lexicon may have shrunk, my spoken fluency and clarity have increased dramatically in the last fourteen months.

Learn

In addition to learning how to better use our native language, we can also use the opportunity to learn new things about the country that we’re in. Although it’s typically not possible with beginner-level students, asking someone about the culture or less-crowded tourist destinations is a great way to discover more about the area. Everyone knows about all the well-advertised places in Japan, but only a native Japanese person can tell you about all the hidden secrets that have yet to hit the English-speaking blogosphere. Not every tourist spot needs to have 2,500 visitors on a slow day to be worth the visit.

In addition, this is a great opportunity to learn about the minute cultural differences between our home countries and that of the Far East. What’s the proper way to handle a business card exchange? What rules do we follow when entering an elevator? Why do newer bathrooms still have at least one squat-toilet system? Google might have answers for many of these things, but nothing beats getting an answer out of another person.

Don’t Hit On Your Customers

“Why is this even a topic of discussion?” you ask? It’s simple, really. This happens far more often than one might think. There have been several people in the last few years that had been employed at my place of work that had confused their job with that of a professional escort. These people would often hit on the students and try to turn the language of the lesson into some pseudo-sexual lesson that often left the customers feeling incredibly uncomfortable. Looking at the language in some of the online forums for foreign language teachers in Japan, it’s absolutely astounding how many people come here thinking that their employers are little more than fronts for dating centers.

If a person decides to work in another nation for the sole reason of engaging in lots of sex with the locals, that’s their business. There are certainly lots of people who are willing to indulge in this sort of lifestyle. However, please try to remember that language schools exist to facilitate language, not to satisfy urges.

Money

Let’s be honest here. One of the big reasons people want to teach English in a foreign land is the prospect of earning a big fat paycheck. That said, these days are long over in Japan. Language schools abound and English instructors are a dime a dozen. Working at a decent company will earn you about 250,000 Yen ($2,600 CAD) a month before tax, which is nothing to sneeze at, but the days of earning 450,000+ Yen in thirty days are long gone. That said, there are still lots of chances to earn a respectable income through overtime and other gigs on the side. I have consistently earned over 290,000 Yen a month (after tax), so it is possible.

Be Patient

Patience is a virtue, and it couldn’t be truer than when you’re helping another person learn to communicate in your native tongue. There will be many days when the urge to pull your hair out is especially strong, but there will be just as many days where everything goes so smoothly that you’d swear God intended you to be a language teacher. Regardless of what kind of students you have or how tired you might be one day, just remember that it’s not easy for many people to learn another language while simultaneously working 50+ hours a week at a low-paying office job.

Have Fun

The last thing I’d like to mention is quite obvious. Have fun. There is no point doing something you hate, especially when you’re locked into a contract or dependent on your employer for the flight home. As I had already mentioned, there will be many difficult days, but there will also be many great days. This is true of every job, regardless of what country you decide to do it in. Most students are a lot of fun to work with, and 90% of them really do try their hardest to pick up the language. So long as you can present the language in a fun and interactive way, they will remember your name and maybe even invite you out for drinks afterwards.

One of the best ways to do this, I’ve found, is to try and teach the language the same way as one of your favorite teachers. In my case, I chose to teach English the same way Bill Nye would do it if he wasn’t already ‘The Science Guy’. This way, even if the student doesn’t immediately understand a complex grammar point, or they just don’t see the purpose of using an adjective + preposition + gerund combination, they will at least be entertained … and you will, too.

And, at the end of the day, isn’t that what really matters when it comes to teaching English?

The End?

I know this post sounds really negative, but I wanted to say these things with the best of intentions. There are far too many people that come here and think this is a “bird job”, which isn’t fair to the people who truly want to learn the language. On top of this, there have been a large number of language schools that have been going bankrupt due to the slowing economies all over the world. People who want to teach for a little while don’t need to take the job super seriously but, at the same time, they should also remember to try and give the customers what they are paying for.

Truth be told, had I known two years ago what I know now about working in Japan, I would have done quite a few things differently in the past. I’ll leave that topic for another day, though.

Have you taught a language in another country? Are there things that others in your field had done that made the whole industry look foolish? I’d love to know your thoughts on the subject.

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A crisp breeze and a clear sky signaled the start of another beautiful Monday morning in this part of Japan. Making my way to the garbage bin, I spotted several small insects making their long trek across the parking lot in search of food and several dozen birds in the distance. Being the start of another workweek, the JSDF was in full effect, their powerful jets flying quickly overhead and occasionally making their noisy return to the airbase just a few kilometers away. From the corner of my eye I noticed that my newest neighbour was leaving their home, and I waved good morning to her.

“Ohayo gozaimasu,” a voice said to me from out of nowhere.

Startled, I looked across the road and found that a man wearing an orange T-shirt was crouched beside a small bush while smoking his favourite Lucky Seven cigarettes. “Ohayo gozaimasu,” I replied. “Ii tenki desu ne?”

This wasn’t the first time that the man had escaped my notice, and it probably would not be the last.

I swear, my neighbour really is a ninja. From a young age I had learned to pay attention to the smallest of details and notice the most insignificant of patterns. While the skill has certainly served me well over the past two decades, it seems that there is one person that has successfully found a way to make themselves so inconspicuous that I never notice them until it’s already too late. If we were playing some sort of spy vs. spy game, he would consistently be the victor.

This does raise a good question, though: are there Ninja training schools still operating in Japan? If so, I’d love to attend a weekend course.

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People everywhere will tell you that moving to another country for any length of time is one of the most difficult things that someone can do in their life. While this may be true for some people, many others can find the experience to be incredibly enjoyable. That said, regardless of whether someone pulls up roots to live and work in another country temporarily, or for the rest of their lives, small changes begin to appear in their behavior. Some of these changes are positive and some less so. But the end result is the same: living and working in a foreign environment will change us.

Of course, this isn’t something we should be worried about. Instead, it gives us an opportunity to reflect on who we were and compare that with who we are now. From here, we may be in a better position to make decisions that could have a lasting effect on our lives, such as moving back home, buying a house, or having children.

This is the subject that Danielle over at Narrative Disorder is asking with this month’s Japan Blog Matsuri. I think it’s a great topic for discussion because it seems that very few of the people I’ve spoken to have taken the time to reflect on how their newly adopted homes have changed them, and weighed the pros and cons of the move. In my case, there are some key areas where I’ve noticed big changes in my life, but there may be quite a bit of overlap between the move to Japan and my still recent marriage.

Food, Health and Dimensions

Before moving to Japan, I weighed a hefty 97 Kg and had to suck my gut in just to put on a pair of 34” loose-cut jeans. While I was not big by Canadian standards, the story was quite different in Japan. To add to the embarrassment of being so large in a generally thin nation, moving through the tight spaces afforded in washrooms, office buildings, stores and restaurants required an awkward combination of balance, waist-sucking, elbow-watching, knee-bending and the occasional square-dance. No longer was it possible for me to just run in to a place and sit down. Instead, something as simple as using a public washroom required quick measuring, choreography, and planning.

Heaven forbid if I needed to use a squat toilet!

However, as the months wore on and I started to lose weight, moving around the confining quarters in this nation’s buildings became much easier. No longer would I jam my elbow into a wall while getting dressed. Gone were the days of hitting my head on the arch of a door frame. Instead, I had learned that my movements were poorly coordinated and very rough to begin with. While living in Canada, worrying about tight spaces was something I rarely ever gave a second thought to. For this reason, I never learned how to move through cramped quarters in an elegant or fluid fashion. Now, when I watch TV shows or movies from back home, I can see that North Americans are often wasteful with their movements, flailing their arms and legs to accomplish something which requires only a gentle bending of an elbow or twist of the wrist. While I have not yet become a person whose moves are so full of grace and eloquence that passersby stop to soak in the artistic beauty of the dance, I can certainly see why some Asians find it comical to watch foreign tourists navigate crowded shopping malls and train stations.

In addition to learning how to properly control my body, I’ve learned that it’s not quite as young as it once was. Since moving to the country, I have seen at least one medical practitioner a month. Dentists, cardiologists, urologists, general practitioners … I’ve seen them all, and they all tell me the same story: You’re almost 30, so stop treating your body like a machine. What I like about the doctors here is that, unlike the ones in Canada, they will not force every conceivable drug onto you with lengthy prescriptions that can quickly clean out even the best stocked pharmacies. Sure, it’s still possible to get stuck with a doctor that as sold out to a pharmaceutical company due to financial pressures or incentives but, for the most part, this does not seem to be a common trait with the practitioners in this area of the prefecture.

So, with the help of my ever-faithful wife, I’ve learned that I should eat better, look after minor aches and pains before they become full-blown problems, and pay more attention to the dimensions of objects in Japan. So far so good, right?

Isolation, Humble Pie and Lessons in Patience

As with anything, making a life-altering move is not always sugar cookies and rainbows. Since moving to Japan I have felt incredibly isolated from the world at large. Sure, Japan has some great internet technologies and a remarkable number of unrestricted wireless access points at various locations around most major cities but, when everyone around you speaks in a language that you are not 100% fluent in, it can seem as though you’re excluded from the reality that surrounds you in addition to the standard distance that is often afforded to foreigners in any area with a major concentration of the native population. One saving grace, though, is that this isolation is not that different from what I had enjoyed while living in Canada.

I would often exclude myself from group events while growing up, preferring to bury myself in a book or some other hobby. This wasn’t because I hated people, per se, but because I felt more comfortable on my own than surrounded by others with their own agendas. Although I had (mostly) grown out of this by the time I reached my 20s, I continued to find comfort in isolation. This became incredibly clear when two people at my last place of work told me so. In one particular case, my boss had said “You’ll feel really alone in Japan if there aren’t any other white people … but I guess you prefer to be alone.”

The comment really struck me because it was at that time that I learned that 26+ years of occasional personal relationships seemed like preparation for the possible isolation I would feel in this country. However, rather than being resigned to the notion of sticking out like a flare in a desert of similar people, the idea helped me accept the fact that perhaps fate had designed my path to be just what it was.

Within days of landing in Japan, the quest for steady employment had started. I had visited several companies and spoken to several people in an attempt to find something within the computer field. Unfortunately, this was not something that seemed possible in the Nagoya area, and I was not willing to move to the sprawling international metropolis that is Tokyo. Instead, I decided to do the one thing that I had tried hardest to avoid, and work at a language company. While it was not the dream job I was hoping to land, it has certainly opened up doors to other venues that may not have been possible without first meeting the people that I would soon work with.

So, within a month of working full time, the routine became a standard and I started to find areas that I could exploit. I’ve never enjoyed being low-man on the totem pole and advancing in my career, regardless the field, has always been a top priority everywhere I’ve worked. That said, Japanese companies are nothing like the places I had worked in Canada, and a very strict protocol must be followed. While there is some leeway at my place of work due to the number of foreigners, it is still a Japanese company. This means rules must be followed.

What has this taught me about me? It’s taught me that I can appear patient while also chomping madly at the bit. Patience is certainly a virtue, and I can wait with the best of them. The things I want today will still be there tomorrow, and needs must be given priority over wants. While it’s not always easy to be a patient person, the potential rewards are too great to ignore.

The Icing on the Cake

So just how much have I learned about myself since moving here? I’ve learned that I can eat just about anything, so long as it’s not covered in grease. I’ve learned that swearing is really pointless when nobody understands the context or the content of the words. Getting angry at people is equally pointless when nobody will care to understand why you’re angry. I’ve learned that I’m better at asking forgiveness than asking permission when it comes to accomplishing tasks without the Japanese language skills of my wife. I’ve learned that the things I want are really just over-priced things that I could have had in Canada for half the cost. I’ve learned that I prefer cold coffee over copious amounts of the (usually) boiling drink. I’ve learned that I am very forgetful when thinking about more than three big things at a time. I’ve learned that I have a new-found fear of tight spaces, yet there were never any signs of claustrophobia in Canada. And, perhaps most importantly, I’ve learned that it doesn’t matter how isolated I may feel while living in this country, because I am good at being alone … even in a crowded train.

That’s what Japan has taught me about me.

Have you ever moved to another country or place far from home? What did you learn about yourself while acclimating to the foreign environment? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

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“Japan 1877.

The Meiji era is in full swing as Japan transforms from a feudalistic land of warlords into an industrialized global powerhouse. However, many are angry about what is happening to their proud country – among them, former daimyo Lord Capulet. His battles with General Montague, a decorated American soldier training Japan’s army, have escalated into daily violence, causing great concern for the new government. And so in order to end the chaos, it is decided that Paris, cousin to the Prince, will woo Lord Capulet’s only daughter Juliet, and through marriage end his resistance. But on the night of her formal introduction to Paris, Juliet meets another, a boy who would change their lives forever.”

Looking for something new to do, Reiko and I took in a theatrical performance this weekend by a group that has been operating in the Nagoya area for a number of years. Going by the name of Maidenagoya, the collections of performers have done such plays as “Bent” and “Death and a Maiden”. Their most recent, of course, is a rendition of William Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet. Reiko and I caught the last Nagoya showing of the play on Sunday night. All in all, I’d give this production 3.5 out of 5. While it was not quite what I was expecting, it was certainly an enjoyable 3 hour show.

Located at the Chikusa Playhouse in the heart of Nagoya, the production took place in a rounded theatre. While this was quite different from my expectations, having most of the production take place in the centre of the theatre allowed for better acoustics. This was certainly an advantage whenever the performers spoke in Japanese, as I have trouble hearing the slight nuances of some words when there is too much background noise. On top of this, by allowing an audience to encircle the stage, everyone has a much clearer view of the set and the actors as they perform. One of the biggest complaints that I have had for performances in Canada is that you can never see the facial expressions of the performers unless you’re willing to pay upwards of $200 for a seat.

Luckily, the entrance fee was just 3,000 Yen per person, and we could sit wherever we wanted.

The Good

All in all, I believe the performance was very well done. Using a minimal amount of stage props, we were drawn in to the world where a group of linguistically verbose characters came together and interacted with one another. The friendship between Romeo, Benvolio and Mercutio looked realistic. The plight of Juliet in her confines spoke volumes. The simplicity of Friar Laurence’s chambers was easily envisioned. This lack of visual distraction allowed the viewer to pay much more attention to the characters, which only drew people in more. Besides … who needs expensive stage props when imagination is a far more powerful tool?

Another positive note involves the slight modification of Shakespeare’s original text. Rather than taking place in Europe, this version of the story takes place in Japan at a time when the country was just being re-opened to the outside world. A new parliament was in place, and society itself was changing as trade with the western world introduced different cultures and goods … all of which was quickly assimilated into the culture of the time. Of course, there were still those who tried to stay traditional, if only to seek comfort in familiarity, but the country was changing by leaps and bounds. With everything that was going on during those busy decades, it’s not hard to imagine two young people from different nations would ignore all the cultural differences they may have in the name of “love at first sight.”

The Not-As-Good

That said, after three hours of listening to the main characters go from angst, to lust, to love, to anguish, to sorrow, Reiko was ready to grab a katana and put an end to some of the characters … especially Lady Juliet. Although I couldn’t catch all of the Japanese, Reiko tells me that Juliet’s intonation was unnatural and seemed to be forced at times. On top of this, the way she acted did not reflect the attitudes and actions of teenaged women in during the Meiji Era, but instead seemed like something she’d expect to see at North American high school. I’ll admit that some of Juliet’s soliloquies did seem to stretch on without end but, when you look at how melodramatic both Romeo and Juliet tend to be, I think she put on a relatively decent performance.

It wasn’t only the young Capulet’s language that upset my wife, but the rest of the family’s speech as well. Whenever Lord Capulet had something to say, his sentences had odd pauses in the middle, almost as though he were trying to speak the language in the same loose fashion as you’d expect to hear with Shakespearian English. There were places where one couldn’t tell when once sentence ended and another began, and there were times when it seemed as though he had more to say, but suddenly stopped talking. I’m not sure if this was intentional or not, but it can certainly play havoc with the mind of an amateur Japanese listener.

However, regardless of the odd Japanese spoken by the Capulet family, the actors really put on a stellar performance that could be understood, regardless of language. The story of Romeo & Juliet has become a timeless classic that is told over and over in cultures around the world, so whether the lines are spoken in an unfamiliar language or through interpretive dance, understanding is completely dependant on how well the performers can share the story. And these performers nailed it.

That’s A Wrap

Maidenagoya had scheduled only four shows at the Chikusa Playhouse so, if you missed it, you will not be able to see it in the area again. That said, there is an opportunity to enjoy the performance if you plan on being in Tokyo during the weekend of December 6th and 7th. Taking their show on the road for the first time, Maidenagoya will be showing their rendition of Romeo & Juliet at Atelier Fontaine in Roppongi. You can get there from Azabu-Juban Station on the Toei-Oedo line, or from Roppongi Station on the Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line. Shows start at 1 and 6 in the afternoon and, just like in Nagoya, tickets are 3,000 in advance or 3,500 at the door. One interesting thing to note is that pre-school aged children are not permitted to attend, so if you’re concerned about watching a performance where the actors’ lines are drowned out by the sound of bored or crying children, this will not be a problem.

If you do have the opportunity to see a performance, be sure to leave a comment afterwards. I’d love to know what you thought of the show.

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