Catching up

I'm going to try to bring this blog up to date so I can post more specific ideas as they come to me. I have already forgotten about a lot of the things that I wanted to post, so unfortunately this update will be vague.

Its already the 7th month into my stay in Japan. It marks a new record for time spent away from home. That record will continue to grow until I come home in October for Josh and Heathers wedding, making it 1 year and 2 months away from home. I hope no one has forgotten about me. Its easy to do when you don't see someone for so long. But I think about everyone back at home everyday, even if for a fleeting moment.

So its my 7th month and its cold. Not Chicago cold, especially from what I have seen on the news. I feel sorry for all you back home. It doesn't get nearly as cold here in Kyushu. School is great. My students are great. And I am coming up with new and interesting learning activities everyday. My second year is going to be a breeze. Just reuse what worked from this year, and tweak what can use some tweaking. Seriously, its such an enjoyable job and I get paid well for it. And on the really good days, the kids smiles and laughs can lift you so high.

Outside of school is also very fulfilling. I travel inside and outside of Japan, and enjoy many things that my area has to offer. I am also really getting along with my friends that I met here. They are really fun and interesting individuals. I look forward to future adventures with them.

This weekend there is a Lantern Festival in my town that is supposed to be awesome, so I will definitely attend that. Also, I will be going on a snowboarding trip to Hiroshima next weekend with a bunch of friends. A couple full days of snowboarding down long powder runs and warming up in our cabin's hot spring baths at the end of the day... yup its gonna be great. After that in early March I am going down to a beautiful area called Miyazaki to partake in a treasure hunt. We have a 10 person team (max amount) and the grand prize is $30,000!

In late March I am taking 18 middle school students to California for a two week home stay. I have been preparing them for their trip for the past few months. They are really a great bunch of kids. I am really looking forward to accompanying them on their first trip to the US.

There is still a lot I want to do. Once spring arrives I will be joining some clubs to get more involved with the community. And I want to travel more within Kyushu. Some parts of Kyushu are pretty wild. A big volcano just erupted south of me.

Jeff will be visiting me from April 29th to May 8th. We will start off in Tokyo to try to relive some of our unforgettable study abroad moments, and then I will take him down to Kyushu and show him what my area has to offer. One highlight that I am looking really forward to is visiting Yakushima, the island that Miyazaki modeled Princess Mononoke after.

If anyone else wants to join Jeff and I let me know. You can also talk to Jeff to help plan travel arrangements.

Well that's all for now. I hope I adequately updated everyone. From here on out I will try to post more often, with shorter but more specific content. It would also help if everyone inquired about things they wanted to hear more about to help guide my updates.

soigi ne,
JonnyB