Eric Whitacre's Sleep

I recently saw this video on Ted.com and was so moved by the music as well as the idea that I couldn't keep it all to myself without sharing. I sang some of Eric Whitacre's music in University Singers while at UVA, and I can tell you, it's very powerful music. I hope you will enjoy it.

Update and Help with Relief Fund

Hi, everyone,

I'm sorry I have not updated my blog since the disastrous events of March 11. I know many of you have been wondering how I and Carly have been doing, and I hope this blog has not been your only means of learning of our well being. Life has been crazy and busy over the past three weeks, with an international trip wedged in between. I have been sincerely touched by how many of my friends have shown such heartfelt concern for me and Carly. You should know that I am doing fine in Kyoto. We were not affected by the quake or the tsunami at all here. Life continues here as normal. Carly, on the other hand, had quite the past few weeks. Her city of Yokohama felt many aftershocks, forcing her to flee to Kyoto. Once she was here with me, to our utter disappointment, her program at the Inter-University Center for Japanese Studies was canceled for the remainder of the year in Yokohama. She remains in Kyoto with me and will throughout the month of June where she will be studying and working remotely on her program.

Carly and I spent a nice week in Hawaii which was a last minute trip but proved to be comforting not just to us, but to our family members as well. It was an amazing trip and I've posted pictures on Facebook here. Sorry not to be posting them on the blog. I may at a later date.

But the real purpose of this blog post is to bring your attention to a 5K run that I will be doing with my friends and fellow assistant English teachers this coming Sunday, April 10th. It's a little less than a week away, but we are working very hard to raise money for the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund, which has been chosen by an organization started by other JET Programme participants in Japan called "5ToSurvive." I have started a page on the website JustGiving.com to raise money from my friends and family. If you can donate, I would be so thankful, and so would the people of Japan affected by the disastrous events who are struggling each day to find food and water, not to mention a new home and a new life.

You can visit my page here: Garrett's Page. Please check it out if you have a moment. NOTE: Even after the event is finished (April 10th), the fund will continue to accept donations, so you can still donate through my page on JustGiving.com and your money will go to this worthy cause.

Thank you in advance for your support and well wishes. I will update here on the blog after the event has finished and the fundraising appears to be coming to a close.

Garrett

Embarrassing Westerners in Harajuku!!!!

I went to Tokyo with Carly this past Friday and we started by going to the Harajuku area of the city. Harajuku is the place in Tokyo to make a fashion statement. It is renowned for the visual fusion of clothing styles that range from "cyber punk" to "Minnie Mouse." It's apparently also full of performance "artists," the weirdest of whom may not even hail from Japan. Take a look-see at what was burned into my retinas by the train station... and captured on my camera.


Oh yeah, dance, baby, dance! It's a modern rebirth thing happening; the gargantuan rainbow child struggling to break free from the natal bonds of her pink and blue spandex progenitors.

She's free!!!

Monticello in Kyoto?!

Recently I've had some trouble conjuring up an interesting and engaging English flier-post for the AET board outside the main office here. Thankfully I got past that block when it dawned on me: there's really no reason I should have such trouble pulling something fun out of thin air, although this can seem a daunting task for the first year teacher, as I've found. Instead of thinking about what I would imagine being posted by another AET, or picturing what Cindy would do, I've realized that I need only to put on display some passion of mine or personal topic of interest. How much better can I teach English when the subject matter is the most interesting in the world to me!? A whole lot. That's the answer!

So, I just completed a brief 4-page flier-post on the destination that I've been dreaming about visiting through these unnaturally cold days leading into spring. Monticello! Strolling around the grounds, surveying the tulips and vegetable gardens as if they were my own, is a favorite memory of a few springs back when Carly and I made a day trip of it. I mean, who better to indoctrinate in the great genius of Mr. Thomas Jefferson than young Japanese pupils who are eager to learn about American culture? I even explained the roots of Jefferson's architectural inspiration, which gave birth to the Rotunda as well as Monticello, in the principals and writings of Andrea Palladio. Maybe a little advanced. I hope someone reads it...

I've also turned upon my senior high ESS group (English speaking society) to convince them of the rewards of an education at the University of Virginia. I'm thinking about having the admissions office send over about 100 admissions prospectuses to Rakuhoku high school so I can canvass the senior high student body. How awesome would that be!!!??? For now, I'm just warming them up to the idea.


In other news, it was snowing this morning in Kyoto. yay. not. Mount Hiei was covered with a light dusting of the white stuff, but it won't last long. Spring is around the corner.

'Marathon Run' Day at Rakuhoku

Last Thursday was the 'Marathon Run' at Rakuhoku High School. Every February, good weather permitting, all of the students at Rakuhoku head to the Kamo River to run up and down it. Required distances vary depending on your grade and sex. Junior girls run maybe 4 miles while senior boys run 11 miles. I'd been hearing about this running race since before Christmas so it's clearly a big tradition at the school with a lot of hype. All classes were canceled for the day to prepare and run the races. I had decided early on that I was going to run it to gauge my fitness and just have a good time with the students.

Cindy, Mike, and Hirai-sensei before the racing

I can't post any pictures of students' faces because of security and safety concerns so all the pictures I have are from a distance or from a behind.

Junior students at the river getting ready.

The boys ran on the other side of the river because there were so many students taking part. It's actually mandatory at the school to engage in it. You can walk if you want, but most of the students ran. I've noted to many friends and family members that this just would not fly in the United States. Some school official or parent would likely throw a fit about how their child can't run for whatever reason. But parents turned out in droves to watch this kids run and compete. "Fight!" I would hear a Japanese teacher yell to me, urging me to keep at it as I ran. That's the mentality most bring to this event. It's an opportunity to show endurance and dedication to a difficult task. That the distance gets longer the older you get seems to be evidence of this. They make you push yourself the stronger you get.

Principal Maehara waiting to address the students before they begin.

Off they go!

I followed.

Ready to run myself.

These little tykes were running the same day our school was. They were just too cute not to take pictures of. They were probably a little freaked out when a 6'3'' foreigner in a bright orange shirt came bounding toward them in a crouched position to thrust a black camera in their faces.


So I ran the 11 miles, or 18 km, that the senior boys ran. It was difficult through the last couple of miles but I powered through. My knees, calves, and thighs were definitely sore the next day. I was hobblin' for a few days after even. But I think I've almost recovered completely by now, five days after the event.



I couldn't do much the rest of the day from pure exhaustion. Thank goodness we had no classes. As the weather starts to become warmer and more inviting I can imagine doing some more running by the river. And soon the cherry blossoms will be out and I'll be running through them like in this old picture from 4th year.

Smug Cat on the Nippon Maru

Back again from a wonderful weekend in Yokohama. I took Friday off and left Thursday night in order to get to Yokohama and Carly a day earlier. I also went into Tokyo on Friday to see friends Billy Martyn and Franky Chung who were kind enough to show me some of the sweet programming stuff they're working on with their new start-up, ABCLoop, a social networking site for Japanese people in the Kanto (greater Tokyo) who want to learn English. Check them out at www.abcloop.com.

Twice this past weekend, Carly and I went to out favorite lunch spot and coffee vendor, Gooz. It's the closest shop to a 7-11, where you can get fresh-brewed coffee in a 12- or 16-oz cup and can fix it up with all the creams and sugars your system can handle. They also had this chilled/cold hamburger in a fresh roll for ¥270, which was the BOMB! so I was pleased.

Carly loves Gooz so much!^

Table seating outside, which will be even better in warm weather.^

Picture by the port.^

Outside a mall before going in to eat this muffin...

Banana muffin for only ¥170! (is that a lot? I forget American prices)

On Saturday we went on a walk around ¥okohama. Carly has been working through a list of local walks from a book she found in her apartment. There are 24 different routes around various neighborhoods in the city. She has decided to complete a new one every weekend until the end of the year. This week's took us near the ports where we boarded and toured the Nippon Maru, a Japanese training vessel for aspiring seamen. I guess. They train people here for something involving sailing.

Ahoy Matey!^

Toughest swashbuckling pirate on the Nippon Maru^

I spotted this sad looking magic show going on in front of the Nippon Maru museum. The act, I later observed, involved levitating pencils, rainbow colored handkerchiefs, and disappearing rubber balls. A little cold for a magic show, but the kids liked it. Meh.

Weathering the perfect storm.^

Fail. Some just aren't meant to be sailors.^

The poop deck.^

Orange poop deck #1^

Orange poop deck #2^

Carly didn't know I was getting her to imitate the crane on the placard when I asked her to pose this way. I don't even know what it says.



But Carly was happy to imitate this smug cat.

Closeup of the smug cat^

Nice stained glass window below deck^

We did a lot more this weekend but I didn't take any pictures of those events. On Friday night, Carly and I cooked some curry and had the Strands up for dinner (Carly's neighbors two floors below us). Kendra is in school with Carly, and Greg, Kendra's husband, is taking care of their not-yet-two-year-old daughter, Emma Ruth, this year. Emma is super adorable, and I was trying to get her to say cute things all night, like "hot dog" as she slapped her knee, as a reaction to something funny. It didn't quite take, but I have time to work with her. Check out Carly's blog for cute pictures (http://carlyinthehomeland.blogspot.com/). On Saturday night, Carly and I went out to her friend Chris's house for a party with Carly's classmates. I ate way too much good food, but that's what happens when you go without guacamole, chips, and pumpkin cheese cake for six months. I'm slightly disgusted to say that I was simultaneously munching on tried squid throughout pieces of cheese cake and guacamole.

Sunday we relaxed and then I headed out at 7:46 on the shinkansen back to Kyoto. Back in the grind now. Can't wait to get back! But Carly is coming to Kyoto in two weeks. Countdown!

Grass, Concrete, and Glass

The time since Christmas has flown by for me. I lose track of the time since my last posts, which is why my blog has seemed neglected, especially compared to Carly's (http://carlyinthehomeland.blogspot.com/). Shout out!

Really, I can't believe it's already the end of January. In fact, today marks the 6 month point of my sojourn in Japan, as I will only be staying one year. So, surprisingly, we are half way! I have mixed feelings about being at this point. In retrospect, six months here seems like a long time, and thinking about six months to go seems a long time to go as well, considering I miss everything about being back in the United States of Awesomeness. I think about Virginia and Chicago - and the sliced turkey I'd be eating, the centrally-heated apartment I'd be living in, and the cashiers I'd be speaking to IN ENGLISH - at least ten times a day. But six months is something to be proud of, and I have a lot more good to do, things to accomplish, and young scholars to teach in the next six.

Even after six months of seeing this river near by house almost every week, I'm still fascinated by the way it fits uniquely into the urban landscape here in Kyoto. In America, I think, this river - judging by the way it looks and feels and the flora and grasses that line the banks - would only be found in a small, rural town. The yellow grass reminds me of the country side (which is why, in the picture, I chose to highlight those colors and mute everything else). Yet Kyoto's historical significance and propensity for traditional, untouched natural beauty almost dictate that, over time, the aesthetics of the river be allowed to develop organically and away from the guiding hands of city planners. I just think it's beautiful to see the grassy riverbank juxtaposed against the concrete and telephone wires.








My school is one of those concrete buildings that are so typical in Kyoto. Traditional Japanese house of wood are really not in the majority here, at least in the northern section of the city where I live. The current layout and buildings of Rakuhoku High School are only 10 years old. So every concrete corner is as sharp as the day it was formed and every window remains intact and crystal clear. I'm reminded of the gym at Washington-Lee High School, where I attended, the gym of which had some crusty old windows made opaque by time and lack of cleaning. There are no remnants of duct tape that mark the hallway walls due to the actions of ill-advised students posting event flyers of years past. Although nowhere near as dramatic, these buildings sometimes remind me of the designs I pictured Howard Roark making, from Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead. It was written that he was partial to designing homes whose facades were fabricated entirely out of concrete and glass. Well, anyway, I was struck to take these by the blue and gray of the sky and the concrete against the glass.


The leafless tree only adds to the starkness of the buildings.

Rakuhoku High School was founded in 1870, so it is in its 141st year. There is a small exhibit in part of the school that holds three models of the school from its present state to its original buildings. This one below is a very accurate model of the school's buildings as they are now.

This is what it looked like before it was rebuilt about 10 years ago (I think that's when it was rebuilt).

And this is it (I am assuming...) from the early 20th century and perhaps back into the 1870s. Pretty cool, huh?!

And finally, a view from my school of Mt. Hiei (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Hiei), a very famous mountain in the history of Buddhism and just a nice mountain to look at as the seasons change here in Japan.