Sorry for slacking off lately with this blog, but I have not been doing anything too exciting. I've just been teaching and exploring my new neighborhood. I moved into a new apartment because our school moved to a new location. I don't really like the new neighborhood, but it is closer to the Ocean, so I can just hop on my bike and be at the beach in like 10 minutes. I have really been enjoying that lately. Even though I can't go swimming, I still enjoy reading on the beach and listening to the waves crash into the rocks. It is definitely relaxing, growing up in the MPLS you don't get that experience. Therefore, every weekend for the past month or so I have been hopping on my bicycle and then I just ride until I find a new ocean spot where I can just relax and read. I know this sounds extremely boring, but for me it is like a new hobby. I don't really have access to any sports right now, so this is the next best thing. I believe that I have been doing this recently because of the book I am currently reading. This book is called, "The Wind Up Bird Chronicle" by Haruki Murakami. It is quite difficult to read, but it really makes you think about life and all the things that make it great. In the book he describes how people don't take the time to appreciate nature. I think that is the reason I have been biking to the ocean to read this book. It is really a wonderful feeling to be laying on the beach with the sun, wind, and ocean consuming your every move. Anyways.....enough with the weird thoughts that I have been exploring recently..I have also been having a lot of fun going out on weekends with my friends. I primarily hang out with these 3 guys and a girl. One guy is from Wisconsin, so naturally we get along well. The other is from Boston, so again we get along well. It is funny how much I love Americans and America now...haha. The other guy is from New Zealand and he plays a mean guitar. The girl is from Ireland, so again naturally we get along well. We also hang out with these people from Yonago. They are really fun too. The problem with going out in Japan though is that we go out until 4am. 3am is an early night and 5 am is not crazy at all. I think that is another reason why I head to the beach to relax, some nights are so long I need to realllly relax.
School has been okay recently. I have kind of fallen into Robot mode at work though. Ever since Jeremy left, I don't have that person around who I can be really stupid with and make American jokes with. So I have been doing the robot a lot lately, but my students are all still cool except for one class.
One student has really been warming up to me recently. Her name is Nagisa and I have been her teacher for 6 months now. When she first started she would whisper and never look at me or try and express herself. Now she comes into class with a big smile and speaks loudly and clearly for me. She also knows that I can speak Japanese so if she doesn't understand something, she asks me in Japanese and I just nod or give her the correct Japanese word she is looking for. I was the first foreigner that she had ever been in close contact with, so that is why she was scared at first, but now her mother says she is always excited to come to English class with me. It feels good to get to a student like that.
Other than that, I have been trying to plan my next vacation, which starts on Christmas. I really want to go to Guam or Bali, but my friend is sounding like he might back out, so we shall see. I'll keep you all posted.
Until next time....Love you all.
John Kelly Kennedy Budge (Japanese people say my full name is awesome).
