Posts

So you've ruined your life

 Working in Japan has given me a new perspective on what it is like to repeatedly do the same thing, expecting something new. Now, I know that it is likely that children will always move up a grade or leave for a better future. Their skills will show some signs of improvement. Some will start thinking very hard about their goals and their future.  "What kind of school will determine my future?" "I really like the uniform! The skirt is so short!" "My parents made me go here." However, with the enlightened ALT, their life will not change. It will be the same mundane and monotonous routine. There is no sense of improvement, no reason for accomplishment, no matter how much bullshit the ALT tells you. ALTs have no place to grow, no place to show off how much they've improved to others. No pay raise, no certificate, no award that says, "Hey, you can speak well to Japanese children." Sure, personal achievements include designing a fantastic-looking

The life of an JHS ALT (aka A Dancing Monkey)

 You graduated from college with a degree in Artistic Cockgobbler. You are ready to set the world on fire with your unique ideas, and you are prepared to right the wrongs the world has done. However, before you place your foot on that stage, you heard about Japan and the wonderful world of teaching English to a bunch of children. You saw the pictures of a white, blonde hair woman with images of food on a blackboard. Her hand, pointing at some child, and the other hand is pointing at a picture of a pizza. You see kids smiling, raising their hands, ready to answer the question about pizza.  You see this image, and ideas start rolling in that head of yours. You want to change the world, and what better way than to do this with many children. Hey! The pay seems good. This is your perfect starting point; to a new world where your talents can be put to use. This is just an exaggeration of the general view of why people come to Japan. I don't judge the reason why coming to Japan. I only c

What is Japan?

 (I started making this post a few weeks ago, but it came to my attention that everything I wrote did not save, and it was just a blank post, so I am writing this again. FUCK!) To continue with my initial plan of what this blog is about, I realize that we need a setting. A setting is essential as it will give you background information necessary for you to understand why things are the way they are. Without a set, everything I write about will just make no sense to you, to which I will always, in a fast tone, I will say, "This is Japan." I imagine that the answer to the question, "What is Japan" will have an easy answer, but depending on who is reading this, will have their own version of what Japan is all about. If we go back to the days of the young internet, to the days where information was limited, and everything on the internet was taken as truth, since we didn't have Wikipedia, Instagram, and god knows what other forms of social cancer exists now. We did

The beginning again

 It is a cloudy Sunday evening. I am at a Starbucks listening to old Spanish music, looking at the young people walking outside without a care in the world. I am inside wondering about where the damn fleas came from that are infesting my house. The only question I ask myself is, "Why do I have such bad luck?" A few years ago, I started this blog post during my young and ignorant college years. I kept one as a way of keeping notes about things that I found peculiar; exciting people I met, something stupid I overheard, or my ramblings that went nowhere. I spent most of my time rambling about nothing interesting. It would just go on and on without a point. I was a young man, upset with the world, troubled with college debt, concerned with my stupid choices, so I let them out in my blog. I kept many interesting posts, which I was quite fond of. Granted, these were not something the "future-me" would be happy to read, but I enjoyed my ramblings. I believe in ideas like t