February 8th and 9th in 2016

Yesterday was my last day at Tomarino. I spent time with the two girls in 6th grade, and we went over their daily greetings for middle school. I can see why Matsumoto is so critical of the small schools: these girls are miles behind where they’re supposed to start at Miyachu. Of course, I don’t think the Eshin kinds are a whole lot better, by and large. Maybe that’s why the first year kids are all so terrible? I mean, obviously the youngest kids will be the worst at things, but, it seems that our first years fumble with things like, “Hello,” which I have preschoolers yell at me in the street. Well, then we talked about Japanese fairy tales (out of the text book) and then I told them about Paul Bunyan and John Henry because they wanted SOME American fairy tales, so I turned to fakelore, but tried to explain that these guys were real people whose stories became bigger over time. I neglected to mention the insidious and idiotic process by which that happened, but, still. They were as uninterested as expected.
Then came lunch, which was pretty bad. Then came recess, which was pretty good. We played Japanese style dodge ball, which is pretty dull, to be honest. Two teams and one ball. Only one. You can’t get someone out by catching (catching is expected because you have so bad a relation of force to space). If you are out, you go back behind enemy lines and throw the ball at the enemy from the rear, which is a nice little aspect. All things considered, it’s a pretty dull game, though. Still, in the final round, I got two kids out on the same ball (bounced off of one and hit the other) and became a dodge ball hero. It was a good feeling.
Then it was over, and I took about a million pictures of Tomarino. It’s such a beautiful campus, I’m sad to see it go. But, there’s nothing to be done. Unless I start breeding around the clock to raise the attendance. But, even if I wanted to, there are too few women post puberty and pre menopause to make that realistic anyway.
Then, after that, it was off to Eikaiwa. It was a bit dull, but still enjoyable. That’s eikaiwa for you. One of the ladies brought a kind of Japanese citrus, which was impossible to eat and not very good. She also brought its candied rind, which was better than the fruit. By a lot. Megumi was there, which was nice. She’s not really dating material, but having a pretty girl around is always nice. I tried to organize a beer tasting, but I think that everybody is convinced I’m a drunk now. Maybe it’s a Michigan thing.
Then I went home and I was amazed that I had my internet bill sticking out of the door. I rushed to 7-11 to pay it, then picked up first dinner. Went home, USED INTERNET, and ate dinner, then practiced some guitar and uke to try to figure out what to play on Thursday. Thankfully, it looks like Thursday is a day off, so I’ll get a chance to practice. Yay! Anyway, I killed some time doing . . . something or other, then went on my walk. I decided against any additional exercise. There wasn’t any point in risking anything. Not when I’ve got a performance and my last bout of upper body left it hard to play music. Well, my walk was dull. Listening to Harry Potter at Courtney’s request. I don’t mind it. It certainly has its moments. It’s not bad. I don’t really see the mass appeal of it. However, I’m also an old man. Yet, even as a kid, I don’t know if I’d have been into it. Still, it means a lot to Courtney, so I’ll at least make it through the first book.
I talked to Simona a lot last night, which was lovely. I love hearing about her day and telling her about mine. It’s fun to swap stories. We also flirt shamelessly.
I got to sleep at a decent hour last night, but woke up so many times it really diminished the effectiveness of the sleep. I think I need to get a better futon.
Today, I’m with Inori Sensei, but I don’t have any word on what I’ll be doing. I should probably remind her that I’m here for her today. I keep checking the calendar to make sure that I’m in the right place at the right time. Messing up last week has me paranoid.
Beyond that, not a lot to report. I hope to get my studying done today and then move on to answering Lauren’s letters. I need to get a LOT of walking done today during class time, though, because I won’t have a lot of time tonight.
As of 3:37, no work on the letter, but studying is already done and I’m over 10K steps.
Goodnight.