last entry, i spent most of my time bitching about my pulled calf muscle. well, i'm glad to report that it's just about completely healed. i played b-ball with the town office baseball team against the junior high team thursday, i felt much better, and we won! to be fair, the junior high team was without their center, who is also their best player, but hey, i'll take what i can get. i still haven't gone full on yet, for fear of re-injuring myself, but i play again tomorrow, so we'll see how that goes.
i went to a big conference in sendai on english teaching monday and tuesday, and lemme tell you, it was pretty cool. the seminars were, for the most part, really interesting (though the last one i attended sucked rocks), but, naturally, the great part was seeing everyone again. i hadn't had my phone line plugged in since i got back, so i hadn't been in touch with anyone in my area for a while. that got all sorted out. after the first day of the conference, a bunch of the jets headed to shaft (a sendai nightclub) for a big super bowl party. that was cool, even though the game was pretty wretched. after the ravens kicked the field goal in the second quarter to make it 10-0, i said "ballgame" (of course, i said this after everytime the ravens scored...i don't think anyone particularly cared). one of my friends here in miyagi-ken grew up in baltimore, though, so i'm happy for him. i remember how pumped i was when the braves won the world series (part of that came from the fact that i had attended the game, though :-) the crappy thing about the party, though, was that we couldn't watch the commercials...i mean, that's half the fun of watching the super bowl anyway (that and the super bowl party). it's funny to think that, a year ago, i watched super bowl xxxiv with todd and steve back in atlanta at steve's place. i remember making a run for junk food during halftime, and being asked by the clerk in kroger what the score was. it's funny the difference a year makes...
tuesday was kind of non-descript...second day of the conference, hung out with some more friends. on the way to a meeting after the conference itself was over, i got dizzy from exhaust fumes, and it sucked. my head was swimming. guh. from the conference and conversations with various teachers, i got a bunch of good ideas for adding some variety to english class. i feel really lucky in that i work with two english teachers who are receptive to ideas, and with whom i have a professional relationship, despite the fact that we have very different personalities. i was pretty much set on staying two years when i came here, and, fortunately, my work situation has made the decision pretty easy. i've heard horror stories from other alts about how their teachers don't ever speak to them, or how they dis the alt's english abilities in front of the class, and i silently count my blessings.
last night, i went over to a fellow alt's house, and a couple of other guys and i played dreamcast. both these jets have significant others who frown on video games...i'm not sure what that's all about, but i've gotta say that video games helped me through my childhood and adolescence. when i moved to jooo-jah, and i didn't have any friends, and missed new jersey, metroid was there every afternoon to help me adjust. when was in junior high and early high school, and i had friends over who, like me, weren't all that great at sports, we could always play street fighter 2 turbo on the super nintendo. hell, i have very fond memories of playing street fighter alpha 2 right after it came out in a random arcade in memphis, where my youth group had traveled for a work and witness trip. much like baseball and books, it was part of my youth, and i just can't understand people who don't get that.
i have so many memories of my life up to this point...i wish i could relate them all in a manner both meaningful to myself and interesting to a casual reader. maybe someday.
been listening to: gardenian, living sacrifice, opeth