I just created a new blog to cronicle my Japan trip. It's at http://r3dinsapporo.blogspot.com check it out sometime.. I'll try to update it more frequently then this one! The neat thing here is that I can post pics now!
Ok time to start posting!
~J out
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Sunday, August 27, 2006
Update 10 days
Back from camping in the Pacific Northwestern Coast and it was "brisk" to say the least. What a trip! The details of the trip are astounding, briefly, it was a twisted adventure full of romance, fear, and excitement. Topped by a cold atmosphere that made every morsil of heat enjoyable. Apparently as we were freezing, our parents in the valley were toasting! Luck was on our side!
10 days to go and the stop has been pulled and now comes the ride of a lifetime!
~J out
10 days to go and the stop has been pulled and now comes the ride of a lifetime!
~J out
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
a view from beyond
A world of blunders today. For starters the dupl room was getting a fresh coat of paint and I've been suffering the fumes. Not to worry, I'm fine... for the most part anyway.
Lately I've been reading this great book about sailing around the world. It got me dreaming again, which is a mistake, only because my dreams are usually bigger then my reality... mmm. things might change though who knows. I get criticized about it on a regular basis from my partner and girlfriend. She tells me basically to look forward and to not always look up or down which I constantly do with my faviorite game, "what to do after a lifetime of education."
Recently, as I've posted before, i've been looking at jobs elsewhere beyond the U.S.A. and have found promising jobs that pay decent wages in Countries like Japan, Korea, and China. Here's the catch though, my "world" or those in it see this as a bad sign and warn me that maybe the good 'ole U.S. of A is better then I give credit for. Here's the deal:
Ex pat is in me no matter what. When I went to Mexico on a band trip I wanted to move there and start a small business and live in Porta Vallarta for life. Me and this other guy already had our flat staked out and out business set. That was just one or two weeks in Mexico... That was a great trip....
I'm going to go live in Japan now, my fantasy for years, 7 or 8 to be exact. I can't recall when my Japan-drive for knowledge started or how it started, only that the history and culture attracted me! At first it was pop culture that drove me, but then the deep significant culture and writtings of an intelligent race, centuries ahead of it's time, deep into the 15th c. captivated me and now I'm dead set on meeting a group and asking questions about their life and how America and the 21st centure has revolutionized it. Perhaps a deep thought provoking thesis will be born out of this grand experience. Perhaps my view of everyday life in Japan will be warped. Whatever the case is, i'm excited. What do I expect from these people? nothing. No reactions or deep thoughts on their past. So what am I excited about? I'm excited to see a nation move, from a sociologist's perspective. I took an intro to sociology and i've been hooked on how people interact. Japan to me is an unique country that is , in one way all asia and in another not asia at all. Its an island that is protected from the ties of deep asian historical culture and poverty and it is an island that has developed its own everything. Peace and Politics are different and the Right Left argument will be interesting to hear. What is Japan's view of "America's war" and will it break the peace accord. All this and more, I plan to seek out. I feel that my duty as a college student is to explore, ask questions, and learn about a country that has a longer history then America with more traditions to boot, but yet, embraces modernity whole heartedly. Whatever the result of my trip, it'll affect my view of this world.
~J
Lately I've been reading this great book about sailing around the world. It got me dreaming again, which is a mistake, only because my dreams are usually bigger then my reality... mmm. things might change though who knows. I get criticized about it on a regular basis from my partner and girlfriend. She tells me basically to look forward and to not always look up or down which I constantly do with my faviorite game, "what to do after a lifetime of education."
Recently, as I've posted before, i've been looking at jobs elsewhere beyond the U.S.A. and have found promising jobs that pay decent wages in Countries like Japan, Korea, and China. Here's the catch though, my "world" or those in it see this as a bad sign and warn me that maybe the good 'ole U.S. of A is better then I give credit for. Here's the deal:
Ex pat is in me no matter what. When I went to Mexico on a band trip I wanted to move there and start a small business and live in Porta Vallarta for life. Me and this other guy already had our flat staked out and out business set. That was just one or two weeks in Mexico... That was a great trip....
I'm going to go live in Japan now, my fantasy for years, 7 or 8 to be exact. I can't recall when my Japan-drive for knowledge started or how it started, only that the history and culture attracted me! At first it was pop culture that drove me, but then the deep significant culture and writtings of an intelligent race, centuries ahead of it's time, deep into the 15th c. captivated me and now I'm dead set on meeting a group and asking questions about their life and how America and the 21st centure has revolutionized it. Perhaps a deep thought provoking thesis will be born out of this grand experience. Perhaps my view of everyday life in Japan will be warped. Whatever the case is, i'm excited. What do I expect from these people? nothing. No reactions or deep thoughts on their past. So what am I excited about? I'm excited to see a nation move, from a sociologist's perspective. I took an intro to sociology and i've been hooked on how people interact. Japan to me is an unique country that is , in one way all asia and in another not asia at all. Its an island that is protected from the ties of deep asian historical culture and poverty and it is an island that has developed its own everything. Peace and Politics are different and the Right Left argument will be interesting to hear. What is Japan's view of "America's war" and will it break the peace accord. All this and more, I plan to seek out. I feel that my duty as a college student is to explore, ask questions, and learn about a country that has a longer history then America with more traditions to boot, but yet, embraces modernity whole heartedly. Whatever the result of my trip, it'll affect my view of this world.
~J
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
work'n part time allowed!
Apparently I can work part time for about 25 hours as a student in Japan. There are rules however...
-According to the Student Visa office: Foreign students cannot engage in part-time work at an entertainment or entertainment-related establishment. Meaning that I can't play the hotshot bar tender like Tom Cruze at some Jap bar...
-If a foreign student is discovered working in such a place, he or she will be punished for engaging in an illegal extra activity and will be liable for deportation. Mmm sounds serious.. so what might these dins of iniquity be?
Places classified as such are as follows:
1.Cabarets, nightclubs, dance halls, bars that require staff to entertain customers and eat and drink with them, pachinko parlors, mahjong parlors, game centers, private-room bathhouses, strip clubs, peep shows, love hotels, pornographic bookstores, private room massage parlors.
Whoa ok... is that it? Nope there's more!
2.Foreign students are not permitted to work in places that (a) require staff, such as hostesses, to entertain customers, (b) are dark (with an illumination of less than 10 lux), and (c) are narrow (less than 5 square meters per customer seat) or otherwise difficult to see.
What? I can't work in dim lighting or in a tight place? Wait a minute... isn't most of Japan narrow and dim at night? I guess this will be harder then I thought.. jeeez.... Tough rules, but that's not all from what I found out... check this out: Once you've found a joint to work at....>
"Foreign students...(are) not allowed to seek or accept employment unless they have official permission to do so from a regional immigration bureau... Once you receive permission, this part-time work is defined and referred to as an extra activity."
Yeesh! so I got go to some Hokkaido Offical looking guy and ask him first if I can work, BEFORE I even start looking for a job. In the words of Marty McFly, "This is heavy"
And I thought it was tough to get a J.O.B. in America!
~J out
Monday, August 21, 2006
Working in Sushi land
I've been pondering life after college and have come up with __blanks__ ,but after recent discovery have found new careers teaching english in Japan.
This isn't some big revelation for me, i've been thinking about teaching english for years now. However.... Making it come true or even looking at applications is another league away for me, yet, lately i've been filling them out and hitting "cancel" at the last minute. Why? dunno... it's wierd for me to do such a thing. I'm kinda in a time when I should be applying for everything and I don't because I wanna just finish the degree, but then the job comes after right? Recommended Result: I should just apply and have 'em tell me that it's too early.
Anyway, which company should one apply to? Everyone I've ever talked to or met has worked for J.E.T. and well JET is not on my big "pri one" list. I know JET's "ins" and "outs" and salary and contract limits and year long application proceedures and, well, is there any alternative(s)? answer: apparently YES.
In fact there are about 4 or 5 big ones like AEON, GEOS, NOVA, and others. All offering inticing incentives to young knownothings and inexperienced kids ... like ME! to come and work in their english teaching sweat shops to teach english sense for Japanense cents. Now as my date approaches fer leaving the freedom bird for the dragon head (Hokkaido), SEPT 6th, I wonder if i'll be motivated to visit these temples of linguistic apptitute and request applications and advice.
ok well listen up then self!
Self in the future:
Young one who is sitting on a futon or in a chair in a lab right now; If you stumble across this entry in your bookmarks then me, who is in the past by then, is telling you now to get off your A@$ and visit a NOVA center or an AEON center or some center NOW! Talk with them! Get informed!
I understand that my life is governed by some holy fate, but until that future is revealed to me then I will worry till i'm sick about what comes after this pleasent life as an occupational student. May God bless this opportunity, if not make it fail hard enough for me to not visit Japan again!
~j out
This isn't some big revelation for me, i've been thinking about teaching english for years now. However.... Making it come true or even looking at applications is another league away for me, yet, lately i've been filling them out and hitting "cancel" at the last minute. Why? dunno... it's wierd for me to do such a thing. I'm kinda in a time when I should be applying for everything and I don't because I wanna just finish the degree, but then the job comes after right? Recommended Result: I should just apply and have 'em tell me that it's too early.
Anyway, which company should one apply to? Everyone I've ever talked to or met has worked for J.E.T. and well JET is not on my big "pri one" list. I know JET's "ins" and "outs" and salary and contract limits and year long application proceedures and, well, is there any alternative(s)? answer: apparently YES.
In fact there are about 4 or 5 big ones like AEON, GEOS, NOVA, and others. All offering inticing incentives to young knownothings and inexperienced kids ... like ME! to come and work in their english teaching sweat shops to teach english sense for Japanense cents. Now as my date approaches fer leaving the freedom bird for the dragon head (Hokkaido), SEPT 6th, I wonder if i'll be motivated to visit these temples of linguistic apptitute and request applications and advice.
ok well listen up then self!
Self in the future:
Young one who is sitting on a futon or in a chair in a lab right now; If you stumble across this entry in your bookmarks then me, who is in the past by then, is telling you now to get off your A@$ and visit a NOVA center or an AEON center or some center NOW! Talk with them! Get informed!
I understand that my life is governed by some holy fate, but until that future is revealed to me then I will worry till i'm sick about what comes after this pleasent life as an occupational student. May God bless this opportunity, if not make it fail hard enough for me to not visit Japan again!
~j out
Monday, August 07, 2006
Passport approved
Today I got my passport in the mail stamped with a Japanese visa good for one year and multiple entries allowed!
Groovy..! one step closer to the dream... O_o*
Groovy..! one step closer to the dream... O_o*
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Money
Like the song by Pink Floyd, money is a drag... Thinking about this trip to Japan and trying to finance it is a battle of wit.. I'm not rich and to "make it happen" I feel like getting into tremendous debt is the best way to do this then to ask for money from my parents.
Thats the reality of life I suppose.. More and more I feel people on the phone, either at my school or the loan office are more like computers then the one I'm typing on. Dead lines are deadlines, no mercy, and if you don't get it paid off by then, then your tossed through the school's meat grinders that chew up your hope of a B.A. Degree or the loan offices' neckbreakers Lenny and Bruno who'll break your leg for every penny you got.
Life's getting rough and I haven't even entered "the real world" yet. o_O !
Thats the reality of life I suppose.. More and more I feel people on the phone, either at my school or the loan office are more like computers then the one I'm typing on. Dead lines are deadlines, no mercy, and if you don't get it paid off by then, then your tossed through the school's meat grinders that chew up your hope of a B.A. Degree or the loan offices' neckbreakers Lenny and Bruno who'll break your leg for every penny you got.
Life's getting rough and I haven't even entered "the real world" yet. o_O !
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
The first day of August
I've experienced 21 "first days of august" and it is a time of happiness and sometimes remorse. Reason is.. August is the last month till school. Now some think school is a drag, and sometimes it is, but I like it.. It gives you things to do and think about... I haven't researched a thing while on summer break and I can't wait for the next challenge...
That isn't the only reason that the 1st is so special, its also because this september I'll be on a new and great adventure.. "I'M GOING TO JAPAN!" yep'ers... They'll be so much to do and see, I know it.. I'm beside myself trying to figure it all out... I should relax and tell myself "it's all right, just go with the flow" but man is it stinking exciting!
I'm thinking of making a separate blog for it... I'm going to have my lappy (laptop) which I want to upgrade, but cannot afford it... It's still a good machine, but it's slower on some programs.. I don't use it to game or anything, but since I fried my other machine this is my only computer. I guess this is it.. Whoa.. can't handle the rush it brings me..!!!!
That isn't the only reason that the 1st is so special, its also because this september I'll be on a new and great adventure.. "I'M GOING TO JAPAN!" yep'ers... They'll be so much to do and see, I know it.. I'm beside myself trying to figure it all out... I should relax and tell myself "it's all right, just go with the flow" but man is it stinking exciting!
I'm thinking of making a separate blog for it... I'm going to have my lappy (laptop) which I want to upgrade, but cannot afford it... It's still a good machine, but it's slower on some programs.. I don't use it to game or anything, but since I fried my other machine this is my only computer. I guess this is it.. Whoa.. can't handle the rush it brings me..!!!!
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