Otto's blog

One Man`s Trash #6

Aug

17

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This is a toy I made from recycled beach wood. Owen enjoys playing with it, but he doesn`t pay attention to the colours. He just likes putting the round pieces in it. When I`m not looking he also tries to eat them. Maybe they taste like sun-baked sea-salt.

Mmmm.

That sounds kind of yummy actually.

August Student of the Month

Aug

5

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Every month, a teacher at Ichinomiya Teragoya chooses a `Student of the Month`. This month it`s my turn, so I chose Kohshi Shibata, who I teach on Saturday mornings. He was so shy when he started about 1 year ago, and his mum or dad had to stay with him for the whole class. He cried if they left.

But! Now he can study without them for the whole lesson - he is confident & independent! Cool!

He is only 3 years old, but he knows so many English words now. He listens carefully when I talk to him because he knows he can understand English. His favourite activity is cooking time (with plastic food etc.).

He has good manners too - he often says please. Also, one time when we finished cooking time, he asked me to please play the "Let`s Clean Up!" song on the CD, while he washed up. So cute!

Well done Kohshi - We`re proud of you!

One Man`s Trash #4

Aug

2

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Our bench at Ichinomiya Teragoya wasn`t actually trash yet, but it was showing some definite signs of age, as you can see.

Time for a make-over!

Our staff Yumi got wood from her kind husband, and I repaired the bench at home. It was pretty easy, but painting the wood (clear color) was a bit of a hassle.

Next time you visit our school, please try it - it`s free!

Gifu Kiss Party

Aug

1

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Do you remember your first kiss?

How about your first KISS LIVE CONCERT???

I do, & in both cases I was excited, embarrassed, and confused...

But I knew I wanted more!

So! Last Saturday I joined a crowd of rock romantics at Gifu Teragoya for another performance by our favorite Kiss tribute band, `God of Thunder`. Of course they didn`t disappoint, putting on a performance I don`t think anyone will ever forget. Even if they try hard to.

New additions since last time included a smoke machine, a cool laser display, & a new drummer. I had a nice chat to him & his lovely girlfriend afterwards. It was a strange experience talking to a guy wearing more make-up & sexier clothes than the girl beside him. He apologised for not singing `Bess` & I apologised for staring at his sequins.

Did you go to the concert? If not, you missed an awesome time!

Oh - & thanks Kiyotaka (Ichinomiya Teragoya student - Yay!) for your opening performance, including 2 songs in English - good job!

One Man`s Trash #3

Jul

29

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Bamboo is fantastic. I think it`s proof there is a God (or Devil, if you`ve ever tried to get rid of it from your garden).

It can be as strong as steel, sharp as a knife, or so soft you can eat it! It`s useful for making all sorts of things, from boats to vases.

As you can see, my skill level is not high enough for the boat option yet, but this vase I made from bamboo looks pretty nice, don`t you think? I made it from bamboo I found on the beach at Mihama.

I stole the flowers from my mother-in-law`s garden.

Tanabata Party

Jul

28

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On Friday, Ichinomiya Teragoya held a Tanabata Party at an izakaya called Wataminchi (why do staff always laugh when I say it?), which is in front of Ichinomiya Station. The interesting thing for me about this izakaya is that it used to be a Nova school before, and I used to work there! So the place we drank beer & ate food on Friday used to be a classroom where I taught English to students - pretty funny!
Anyway, everyone had a good time, and I realised I`m not a heavy drinker at all after sitting next to Mr. Kesao...
Thanks everybody for coming, & thanks to those who wore yukatas - you all looked so cool!

Yukata Week

Jul

22

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If you`ve been to Ichinomiya Teragoya this week, you`ll know it`s our Yukata Week (Gifu & Ginan are later). It`s good to see so many kids in yukatas - everyone looks great!
Girls often complain that yukatas (& kimonos) are uncomfortable & difficult to put on, but for men it`s not so bad. I have a few yukatas, and I quite like wearing them. It feels like I`m wearing a dress in public, which I don`t get many chances to do in Brisbane (Sydney is a bit different).
When I first came to Japan about 10 years ago, not many men wore yukatas to festivals. Recently though, I see that they are coming back into fashion for guys. That`s good, because I think they look pretty cool. Do you agree?

Mihama Camping

Jul

20

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Monday was `Sea Day` in Japan, so of course I went to the sea. (So does that mean I have to work hard on Labour Day? I hope not).

I went to Mihama, in Fukui, which you already know about if you read my blog regularly. Which you should.

The water was clean - great! Unfortunately for me, the beach was also clean, so it was difficult to find enough wood for a campfire. When I come to the beach at other times, there is usually lots of wood on the beach, so I can make a huge fire. A huge fire is necessary when you go camping. The bigger the better. It`s common sense.

What did you do for Sea Day? Did you go to the beach?

World Cup Update #5

Jul

13

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I had intended to support Holland in the final, but after about 10 minutes of watching, I decided to support Spain instead. I don`t mind cheering on the `underdog` (= the team everybody expects to lose) but I don`t like dirty tactics & bad sportsmanship, and Holland played one of the dirtiest games of football I`ve seen in a while. They received so many yellow cards I lost count, & although they only received 1 red card, it should have been 2 or 3. Look at that tackle in the picture - can you believe he only got a yellow for that!?
I`m glad Spain won. Congratulations!
By the way, did you notice that the Japanese referee from the Holland v Brazil game was the `4th official` (the guy who holds up the Lost Time sign) for the final? I guess this was a kind of reward for his good performance, which I mentioned on this blog.

Congratulations Mariko & Yasuto

Jul

13

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Mariko is a long-time student of Ichinomiya Teragoya. She has excellent English skills, she has an excellent English teacher (that`s me), she has excellent taste in English-speaking holiday destinations (she sometimes goes to Noosa, near my hometown of Brisbane), & now she has an excellent husband (but he`s not English, he`s Japanese). Congratulations! I hope you have a wonderful life together. And thanks for the bottle of wine which I won at bingo at your second wedding party - woohoo!