is this thing on?

psst... over here

2005-12-15T01:23:00.000-05:00

pot un-luck`

2005-12-09T17:28:00.000-05:00

tonight i'm going to a potluck Shabbat dinner.
i offered to bring dessert.
i was told to bring a side dish. a vegetable.
now, i'm not domesticated. far from it. buttt i make a mean cheesecake. unfortunately a cheesecake isn't a vegetable. *sigh*
so i made broccoli using this 10 minute recipe that people seem to like.
it took an hour.
hrmph.
well, hopefully they were also off with the "serve immediately" cause it's still 2 hours til dinner.

edit: the broccoli was a hit. there was none left! hurray!

no more hockey

2005-12-09T11:31:00.000-05:00

last night was our final hockey lesson. we invited some people to come and watch, since i think most of them had decided we were probably using the "Hockey Lessons" as a cover up for some sort of covert activity.*

anyway, we definitely impressed them. someone pointed out that whenever i get the puck i have a tendency to stop skating, and start cheering for myself. that normally leads to someone from the other team stealing the puck, and me yelling about how mean they are. hopefully that will change once the novelty wears off. i suppose it will once i am catching the puck regularly. which might actually happen with a little more practice...

unfortunately that won't be any time soon - i haven't been able to find any lessons in Japan, and by the time i get back hockey will be done for the winter.

there's always next year!

*do you really think i'd schedule said activity during the oc?!

New Computer!

2005-12-02T01:07:00.000-05:00

First Post!

Story (well, rant) to follow. In the meantime, play with Pandora or something.

Easily amused

2005-11-29T08:57:00.000-05:00

Who is your Harry Potter love match? (for girls)
brought to you by Quizilla

Fred or George Weasley
The practical joke was invented for people like
you. You love to be surprised, and revel with
a guy who has a wicked sense of humour, is
always optimistic, and has the same merry
disregard for rules as you.

maybe i should scrap this blog...

2005-11-27T21:46:00.001-05:00

...and start posting well thought out essays with interesting titles like "How Visual Studio Kills the Adoption of .NET".

i was kidding.
please, stop laughing.

Happy Thanksgiving

2005-11-24T20:30:00.000-05:00

I take a lot of slack from my American friends about how Canada is "so behind" (one insists we're three years behind). Well, I'd like to point out to y'all that Thanksgiving was so a month and a half ago.

Enjoy your Turkey. I'm off to hockey.

Normally I don't like to read reviews before I see the movie...

2005-11-23T18:02:00.000-05:00

... but in this case I figured it was okay because clearly this guy hasn't seen the movie yet either. He mixes up names of characters (Jennifer? I think not.), songs (Maureen Tango my ass) and has virtually no idea what he's talking about. Oh, you can get login information over here.

No Day But Today!

Don't be fooled by the cock that I got

2005-11-22T09:50:00.000-05:00

Don't be fooled by the cock that I got
Originally uploaded by jodilala.

There's more where that came from (via jodi)

The Other Harry

2005-11-18T09:55:00.000-05:00

This morning at 12:01AM I saw HP. No, I didn't wear a costume, unless "smelly girl coming straight from hockey" is a costume. Fortunately the theatre was so packed I could blame the stench on the girl to my right. I should probably add the girl was my cousin, but hey, isn't that what family is for?

Did I like the movie? Yup. I probably would have liked it better if I hadn't just finished listening to it on audio book, cause then I wouldn't have been able to be so anal about the details. Overall, I thought the adaptation was good; though, there were two major things I disagree with. I'd be happy to discuss in more detail but I don't want to spoil anything here.

I'm going for round 2 next week - work rented us a theatre to see it on Thursday AM. Nice!

Dear Hanukkah Harry,

2005-11-17T18:06:00.000-05:00

I would like a bottle of coloured bubbles for each night. Preferably each in a different shade of AWESOME.

Thanks,
Jenn

good ideas

2005-10-13T23:10:00.000-04:00

one of my latest fabulous ideas is learning how to play hockey. i suppose that actually means learning how to skate as well, since i don't really know how to do that.

anyway, tonight was my first hockey lesson.
it took a half an hour to get into all of my padding (i'll have to take some pictures next time...).
i cried before i went on the ice because everyone was bigger than me and skating fast.
but i went, and i scored a goal! i'm so excited!

i can't wait to get back on the ice next time! maybe i'll even learn how to stop without crashing into the boards...

random things i appreciate

2005-10-08T18:44:00.000-04:00

movies about penguins (i like two - one, two)
typing on a keyboard that has all the keys

To: The World

2005-09-27T13:55:00.000-04:00

To the world
Originally uploaded by jennschac.

Hurray For Mira!

2005-09-21T16:12:00.000-04:00

Mira climbed a Mountain!

Breaking the Cultural Barriers

2005-09-15T02:00:00.000-04:00

Today at work I discovered that someone 3/4 of americans surveyed* call this a toboggan.
At first I was convinced that it was some conspiracy - that we Canadians had taught Americans to talk about the sleds that they wear on their heads to give us a good laugh, instead of letting them know the real word for said hat.

Then I checked wikipedia. Figures -- Canadians would never be that sneaky. I really ought to move.

*I asked 4.

Sunday was pretty fun too.

2005-09-12T23:31:00.000-04:00

group hug!
Originally uploaded by jennschac.

First tea at the Windsor Arms. I even got a picture with a movie star! Yay!
Hurray for fun. It's weekends like these that make me love my city.

please perforate your tickets

2005-09-12T23:13:00.000-04:00

please perforate your tickets
Originally uploaded by jennschac.

Saturday I had a wonderful film festival experience. Started by seeing Souvenir of Canada with Adam, Emily Rose, and Becca. Boy did they do a terrific job. The movie was hilarious and made me love canada even more than i already did.

I also got a kick out of hearing Douglas Coupland's voice, both as a narrator of the movie and also during the Q&A. He's wonderfully quirky and random.

We then stood around to see the celbs arrive for the next movie, which was the premiere of Winter Passing. Once boredom set in we headed over to the Duke of Cambridge to join in the post Souvenir of Canada festivities. I saw Coupland from a distance but didn't go and talk to him because I was just too scared.

We followed this with dinner at an unpretentious Thai place on Bloor, followed by a leisurely stroll through Yorkville to the soundtrack of shrieking star seekers who were crowded outside of the Four Seasons.

Ended up the evening on the Rock with our souvenirs of canada. You know, you can't stop the rock.

Things that annoy me

2005-09-12T22:36:00.000-04:00

Barfing until 5 AM, but waking up fine so that I don't have an excuse to take a sick day
Finding out a good friend is engaged in the "shout outs" section of a group email sent by a different friend.
Having a doctor cut open my foot to find what is stuck in it, only to tell me he can't see anything.
Having a hole in my foot, and not being able to take a bath.

2005-09-12T17:05:00.000-04:00

Haha. They cut Leanne out of the picture.

BBBM!

2005-09-08T23:14:00.000-04:00

Bye Bye Brushed Metal!

(via Elfred)

Note: If you're not a nerd don't bother following the link. You won't get it and will end up mocking me for finding it funny in the first place. Actually, scratch that - if you're not a nerd you probably already mock me for blogging so go ahead and waste your time!

Canadian Idol

2005-09-07T16:53:00.000-04:00

Be our Idol Melissa!

Confusing Instructions

2005-09-07T08:59:00.000-04:00

You may also pick up your order at the screening venue on the day of the selected screening(s) starting one hour prior to screening start time. Tickets must be picked up at least one hour prior to screening time.

Here's hoping my watch is accurate.

josh malina is my friend

2005-09-05T13:58:00.000-04:00

josh malina is my friend
Originally uploaded by jennschac.

oh, those t-dash days

2005-08-29T19:50:00.000-04:00

for the few of you that don't read mattycake's blog:
Microsoft Internz

Good [and some not so good] Matches

2005-08-27T19:28:00.000-04:00

Last weekend I was in NYC with the fabulous reshmaben. There I learned all about matches made in heaven. And those that are not. Here are some pleasant pairings I came across:

Light Rum and Dark Rum (planter's punch)
Papaya Juice and Hot Dogs
Crabs and Buckets (though someone already thought of that)
Americans and horseshoes
3 AM and Kati Rolls (though 3AM and pictures don't go quite so well)
Actuaries and alcohol (though not *always* pleasant)
Jenn and Reshmaben (aww, how sappy)

I also learned/was reminded about a few things that don't go well together. A few examples that come to mind are:

Reshma and alarm clocks
Regis and Kelly and Fridays
Jenn and Bikes (yes, even kitty ones)
Residents of the Pines and Horseshoes

I'll let you know if I come up with anything else.

i've been meaning to post about NY...

2005-08-25T15:28:00.000-04:00

... but in the meantime you can read this to keep yourself entertained (and learn about fashion!).

things i find funny

2005-08-14T01:57:00.000-04:00

tonight we were j-walking across the street and paused at the half-way point because of an on-coming vehicle.

it was a red van, with a personalized plate that said: STOP

mystery continues

2005-08-12T20:23:00.000-04:00

there was another sentencce added to the door today:

things that are open and free are charity

and it was in a different handwriting. they might have taken something from my purse, i don't know. but there's more mystery!

now i just need some adventure.

mystery

2005-08-11T15:44:00.000-04:00

i just got back to my cube after a meeting
on the door it says:

i took something from your purse :)
keep it hidden next time

i have no idea who wrote it or what was taken. but my money/credit cards seem to be there. so do my keys and cell phone. booooring.

as some of you know I'm not normally as kind to my victims. anyway, this person should have thought twice before messing with me.

Fake Prom 2005

2005-08-07T22:45:00.000-04:00

Once upon a time there was a city named Toronto. This city had many things to keep its residents busy. There were clubs and bars and concerts galore. Even festivals to celebrate the diverse people of the land. But on August 6, 2005 the city hosted a Prom for all to enjoy. What better reason to dress in pretty clothes and dance the night away!
After a drinks by the rooftop terrace...

... off we went to join our fellow prom people...
... perhaps a little bit skeptical of the night ahead...
But as we approached the red carpet, our hesitation was replaced with sheer excitement.
And we danced...
... and danced ...
... and then we danced some more.

Some of us even won the couple dance off!
But we all danced. And we all had fun. And we all rejoiced together!

Thank you Prom Committee. Here's to prom 2006!

Yay!

2005-07-30T10:12:00.000-04:00

Leonard is coming to visit!

Over

2005-07-26T09:52:00.000-04:00

I take the same route to work every day. In order to avoid some of the busy stretches, I drive a road through an industrial area. A few months ago I noticed a group of guys picketing outside of one of the offices. Unfortunately, since they are on the other side of the road, I couldn't read their signs and never really knew what they were all about. I did notice a parking lot full of Bell Canada mini vans though.

Anyway, back then, they'd sit outside, bundled up in winter coats and jackets. Sometimes there was even a fire roaring in a garbage can. It looked pretty fun, actually.

As the weather got warmer, the fire was traded in for a cooler. They would lounge around on lawn chairs as if they were in someone's back yard. Looked even more fun.

Every day, without fail, they were there.

But yesterday I didn't see anyone outside. Today they weren't there either, AND I noticed Bell minivans *leaving* the parking lot. After a bit of research I found out that the strike is over.

I'm going to miss those guys.

The Era Banner

2005-07-20T00:02:00.000-04:00

Look! It's me!

Here's what's going on: the rollercoaster is zooming down the tracks, and I want the girls to raise their arms and scream as if we're actually *on* the rollercoaster. They, of course, think I'm nuts and want no part of it. That's why my arms are up, while they stand looking on in horror.

The best part of that picture is how Wednesday (Monika) is *in* the picture, *taking* a picture - when the reason she's taking pictures is so she doesn't have to be in any.

That makes me happy.

And no, I don't know where Era is.

Who reads Harry Potter?

2005-07-18T20:27:00.000-04:00

I'm looking for a support group.

Hermione and Harry catch the golden snitch

2005-07-18T13:13:00.000-04:00

harry.jpg
Originally uploaded by jennschac.

Notice Harry has Hedwig with him, and Hermione has Crookshanks...

Today's EXITE-ment

2005-07-14T18:24:00.000-04:00

Today we built Lego Robots and had a competition in front of an audience of about 50 lab employees.
Our robot lost.

That's okay -- we also made up a team cheer, which my *entire* team (Wednesday included) performed in front of the audience.
So I feel like a winner!

I'm still EXITEd...

2005-07-14T01:05:00.000-04:00

Now, for a riddle: What's sweatier than a day at Canada's Wonderland in 35 degree (95 for all you Americans) heat?

The Go! Team Concert.

Yeah, so Carl and I made it to the venue at 7:15 (doors at 8, they come on at 10:30). We found scalpers, but they wanted mucho $$ so we decided to try our hand at finding tickets. Had a great time trying to pick out which of the people walking by would know what we were talking about if we asked if they had any tickets. If I had thought ahead, I might have printed us a bingo card to help pass the time. Instead we made friends with the scalper who told us all about the different metal shows he's seen.

2 hours later, when not a single passer so far had any extra tickets, I made a deal with my new friend and bought one of his tickets. Carl, who is on a different budget, opted out. So at this point I'm totally psyched to be going to the show. I go to the door, hand the bouncer my ticket and he asks to see ID. No problem.

Yeah, right.

Turns out my wallet was sans licence. BAH. Figures, eh?

Lucky for me the bouncers were male and I looked good. After a little bit of coaxing they let me right in.*

I've never done the concert thing on my own before. Stood around the bar trying to pass myself off as "hip". Then I recognized a kid who was also looking to buy a ticket outside, so I made friends with him. Adam, who has just finished First Year at Guelph, and I enjoyed the show very much. I can't speak for him, but I know I've never danced so hard or been so sweaty in my entire life. Lucky for me, no one I know was there to validate that last statement.

And that's the end to my EXITEing day.

*Okay, that's not what really happened. It just makes me sound cooler than admitting that I called home and had my parents bring me my passport (I love you Dad! Thanks so much!). Though for the record I did look good.

EXITEing progress

2005-07-12T22:48:00.000-04:00

This week I am EXploring Interests in Technology and Engineering along with 36 grade 7/8 girls at the Toronto lab. I'm a team counsellor, which means that 6 of these girls are mine -- hurray for team orange.

Somehow, I ended up with the quiet kids. Now, I know I'm louder than some (ok, most), but these kids are **quiet**. For example, this morning we were sitting in teams around our tables. The other colours were chit chatting away, and mine sat staring at me. So I started asking each what they had done last night. The answers were brief: "Watched TV", "Went to sleep", "Went Grocery shopping". But that's okay.

Then my favourite response: "I did nothing"
So I say "Really? You did nothing?"
Her: "Yes"
Me: "You just sat and stared at the wall?"
Her: "Yes"

Alright then. Let's talk a little bit more about this girl. We'll call her Wednesday, because I shouldn't use a real name, and that's the character that I think of when I think of her.

An illustration of how fun Wednesday is - she named her roller coaster simulation"Suicide Canyon", and in an acrostic of her name she used the word "Assasin".

She also refuses to pose for pictures. Like, hands over face, no negotiation. So in an attempt to make her feel special, I now let her cary around the camera and be the "team photographer". She still doesn't smile, or raise her hand for anything, but at least she's making herself useful (and now I'm in the pictures too). I could go on, but I won't.

Lots of fun.

Anyway, this afternoon our teams built roller coasters out of knex (wow, it's *way* harder than it looks) and the girls were actually FORCED to talk to each other because there's no way to put together something this big without "using your words". And amazingly, our teams' was the FIRST put together, and (for the first time in the four years they've done it at the camp) it worked on the FIRST try. Loop-de-Loop and all.

It was so exciting, even Wednesday agreed to pose with the coaster for a pic.

And during the wrap up activity, she raised her hand to answer a question!

We're making progress.
By Friday, I will have them cheering.

behind

2005-07-11T23:14:00.000-04:00

i really like finding new music. unfortunately, my sources have kept me one step behind the times.

for example, demone introduced me to the go! team (a band with a ! in it's name!!) when i was in israel. i returned to find out that, to my delight, they are coming to toronto. and to my dismay they were already sold out by the time i returned from my trip.

last weekend on my seattle trip, benny (update your blog!!) introduced me to annie. tonight he let me know that she is touring this summer. at which point i discovered that i missed her toronto date by a week. figures.

oh well, at least i have tickets to the backstreet boys.

iPod Flea

2005-07-07T08:48:00.000-04:00

Via Elliot: iPod Flea Ad Spoof

there's a really good story that goes with this picture

2005-06-11T19:28:00.000-04:00

IMG_3527.jpg
Originally uploaded by jennschac.

you should ask me about it.. i know, i should just blog the story, but i'm too lazy and it's way different if you hear me actually tell it. and i think it's better that way. so i'm making an executive decision and just posting the pic. for now at least.

i will tell you this much - I am now an Israeli television star.

me (and an F-16)

2005-06-11T19:21:00.000-04:00

IMG_3448.jpg
Originally uploaded by jennschac.

that's me in the desert

2005-06-11T19:18:00.000-04:00

IMG_3427.jpg
Originally uploaded by jennschac.

my disc is still there

jerusalem

2005-06-11T19:17:00.000-04:00

IMG_3484.jpg
Originally uploaded by jennschac.

my feet hurt

2005-05-26T20:30:00.000-04:00

if i knew the cleats that fit me were going to cause blisters, i would have at least gone with the pink ones that were a size too small and looked cool.
that makes no sense.
i smell bad.

mactastica!

2005-05-21T11:18:00.000-04:00

This is coming to you from a 12" PowerBook at the NEW CANADIAN APPLE STORE.

In my shopping cart (well, hands because there are no carts) are an arm band for the shuffle and a Maple Leaf iPod case.

And someone outside the store is using rendezvous to message this computer that he needs an fm transmitter. Funny thing is I met the guy in line. We're all friends in Mactopia.

Time to go and wait in line and get my free tShirt.

PS I got in line at 8:40 and was #388

in america the streets are paved with cheese...

2005-05-11T08:54:00.000-04:00

... but in Canada the highways are paved with beer.

oh canada!

they look so much alike it's almost...

2005-05-10T23:07:00.000-04:00

creepy.jpg
Originally uploaded by jennschac.

gareth.jpg

2005-05-10T21:14:00.001-04:00

gareth.jpg
Originally uploaded by jennschac.

not-gareth.jpg

2005-05-10T21:14:00.000-04:00

not-gareth.jpg
Originally uploaded by jennschac.

compliments!

2005-05-08T23:10:00.000-04:00

today my sister looked at me and asked
"Who dressed you?"
woohoo! go me!

(I had dressed myself. Just in case you weren't sure.)

Happy 1 Year (1 day late)

2005-05-05T12:14:00.000-04:00

Dear Chest,
I'm so sorry I forgot the significance of yesterday.
While I might not have acknowledged it, I did think of you yesterday morning as I buttoned up my shirt without difficulty.

Here's to many more wonderful, perky, years together!

love,
jenn

the "simple" life

2005-05-03T17:02:00.000-04:00

AP: What did you want to be when you were a little girl?
Hilton: A veterinarian, but then I realized I could just buy a bunch of animals

(read it all here)

packrat

2005-04-28T23:56:00.000-04:00

Having too much stuff (and never wanting to get rid of any of it) means that when you need to find something it takes longer than it should. Sometimes hours, sometimes days.

But when along the way you find that pOing, all the crap becomes totally worth it.

new music is good

2005-04-25T17:50:00.000-04:00

but the friends who give it to me (and their mothers) are better!

afikoman

2005-04-25T09:08:00.000-04:00

my cousins got gameboy games.
leanne negotiated for free legal advice for life.
i got a tank of gas.

conclusion: being old is lame.

i thought it was funny

2005-04-18T17:06:00.000-04:00

jschacht (4:55 PM) - i have faith in tom
jschacht (4:55 PM) - !
jschacht (4:55 PM) - toFAITHm

i'm no old dog

2005-04-18T14:02:00.000-04:00

see, it's a new trick!

Where I'd like to be (starting around noon)

2005-04-18T10:40:00.000-04:00

here

T Squared

2005-04-17T23:07:00.000-04:00

trapeze and talmud - a terrific combination

note to self

2005-04-17T02:23:00.000-04:00

i really should go dancing more often
yay for the dance cave
double yay (yay yay) for fun friends to dance with

A Lesson in Pick Up Lines

2005-04-16T12:12:00.000-04:00

He Said: I work for apple...
I said: I love you!

what i do at work

2005-04-15T17:08:00.000-04:00

play with brownies!!

boston envy

2005-04-15T07:35:00.000-04:00

there ain't no party like a 38cherryst party.

(well, a citgoset party, but 38cherryst is the place to be tonight.)

i need friends like this in toronto!
anyways, happy marathon weekend bostonians!

Happy Birthday Flori

2005-04-14T21:09:00.000-04:00

IMG_3034.jpg
Originally uploaded by jennschac.

hypothetical creepyness

2005-04-14T11:26:00.000-04:00

I sent an email to a friend, and in it mentioned that i hadn't seen her in "so So SOOO LONG!"

She replied: "i haven't seen you in ages either!"

Good thing. The alternative would be creepy, don't cha think?

false alarm

2005-04-13T11:49:00.000-04:00

my mom sent me an email this morning with the headline Urgent News. Inside was, in fact, some very urgent news -- that the first Apple Store would be opening at noon.

I panicked and did what I do when I panic about Mac related things -- called Henry. Henry also hadn't heard this news, but said he could hop on the subway.

First we decided to call the mall and verify our source's information.

Anyway, she was wrong - midday does sound like mid may - and now I can breathe once more.

jenny goes boom

2005-04-12T21:03:00.000-04:00

whoops!

edit: i fainted at the gym. it would have been lame other than the fact that day (friend) and graham (trainer) thought that i was joking when i fell onto the elevator floor that dayna pointed out happens to be disgusting and dirty. AND i didn't have to do V-sits. AND i got apple juice. I should faint every week!

Good Day

2005-04-12T11:36:00.000-04:00

Forgot my laptop at home - so had to turn around when I got to work, losing my excellent parking space and about 45 minutes
Dressed in *actual* business casual and sat in on a customer briefing, but did not get to speak.

Wunderful Weekend

2005-04-10T19:49:00.000-04:00

IMG_3294.jpg
Originally uploaded by jennschac.

Happy Birthday Lynda!

2005-04-10T19:48:00.000-04:00

IMG_3261.jpg
Originally uploaded by jennschac.

I sure ain't in T. anymore

2005-04-09T13:16:00.000-04:00

Last night was fun. My endurance is substandard - I passed up a 5:30 breakfast in favour of sleep. Which I'm cool with. Montreal bagels aren't all that anyway.

thought of the day

2005-04-07T17:01:00.000-04:00

if there were anti biotics in the early 1900s, there wouldn't have been me

when i'm up i cant get down

2005-04-07T15:25:00.000-04:00

i just had lots of sugar. now i will have to keep eating sugar all day so that i don't crash. my fingers are moving very quickly.

"Pat" says he.

2005-04-05T20:45:00.000-04:00

"What?" says she.

2005-04-05T20:42:00.000-04:00

Total package.

2005-04-01T23:55:00.000-05:00

She's as deep as her songs

i win.

2005-04-01T17:12:00.000-05:00

not me (10:24 AM) - i'm looking out for ye
me (10:24 AM) - you rock
not me (10:24 AM) - but only b/c you are sara's friend
me (10:24 AM) - oooh sprenks
not me (10:25 AM) - she's a nut
me (10:25 AM) - yes, the best kind of nut
not me (10:25 AM) - cashew?
me (10:26 AM) - no
not me (10:26 AM) - pistachio
me (10:26 AM) - now that's a good one

pistachio

2005-04-01T10:25:00.000-05:00

what a funny looking word!

take it eaaaaaasy

2005-03-30T01:15:00.000-05:00

take it eaaaaaasy
Originally uploaded by jennschac.

my own experiment

2005-03-28T23:37:00.000-05:00

i replaced the batteries in my alarm clock. i got this clock when i moved to california a long long time ago. as in, before this blog started - august 2000 when i looked like this. this is the first time the batteries needed changing. the ones i took out today were duracell. i put in energizer today. let's see how long they last.

defenestrate is a cool word.

Mondays.

2005-03-28T19:50:00.000-05:00

Today was such a monday.
I went to the gym after work.
Unfortunately, my left shoe decided to take it easy and stay home.
Which means it's 8:00 and I still have to work out. *sigh*

Catch me if you can.

2005-03-20T20:37:00.000-05:00

I'm such a circus chick.

Weekend Plans

2005-03-19T13:18:00.000-05:00

Yesterday
Today
Tomorrow

pretty girls

2005-03-16T23:44:00.000-05:00

i might not have any readers

2005-03-16T23:42:00.000-05:00

but i got cake, and a sequined purse. i'm good to go
.

anybody out there?

2005-03-16T23:28:00.000-05:00

i believe that i've fallen off the radar.
cool.

Saying Goodbye Always Sucks

2004-08-17T19:26:00.000-04:00

Leaving homestay in a few back to go to camp.

At camp til the 24th.

In Japan til the 26th.

So this might be my last post for awhile.

Bye

2004-08-17T19:24:00.000-04:00

If my waterloo address bounces try my rogers account thats on the sidebar of the site.

There`s sushi in Japan? No way!

2004-08-16T11:54:00.000-04:00

Turns out that sushi, at a proper sushi restaurant is really expensive. Normally they wont even have prices on the menu.

That`s probably why it took Lori and I more than a week before we had it - we mainly ate at restaurants/in areas that the book recommended, and then chose those on the less expensive side of things. Finally we gave into the temptation when we were right near one of the recommended places in Tokyo and it was amazing. And expensive.

Anyways, back to my story. Where was I? Yeah, sushi places are expensive.

So normal people go to Kaiten sushi restaurants - conveyor belt sushi places. Its still good, and way cheaper. One we went to awhile ago for dinner was totally kid friendly - some of the plates had cute sushi characters on them, and those were the kids stuff -- no wasabi. And they had a light up wheel that would spin every five plates you ate and you could win a toy.

Its not a new thing for me - I've had conveyor belt sushi in London and San Francisco (though I don't think it was cheap). But I must admit that I never really thought taking plates of a conveyor belt to be an authentic Japanese way of eating my sushi meal. So now I know it is.

As a side note: I still get a kick out of the way kids eat here. I mean, yesterday at the aquarium you could hear little kids pointing at things and saying `Oishi` (=yummy). You have gotta love that.

Tama-not-got-chi

2004-08-16T11:45:00.000-04:00

So I`ve gotten a few questions about the whole new Tamagotchi thing so I thought I would let you know now that I am not going to be buying one here nor at home. I want you all to know that not buying one is a deliberate decision i am making.

And if you know me you know that I`m always ready to jump on the bandwagon of a new trend like this - I have two tamagotchis from the first time around and really enjoyed them.

But the fact of the matter is, I have been in Japan, interacting with children, for just under two months. And the first time I saw one was last weekend at Toys R Us (they`ve been around here since March). There`s no way they`re cool! If they were, you would see them everywhere - on trains, at camp etc.

So if its not cool enough for the kids here, it`s not cool enough for me. I`ll stick to Kitty-Chan thank you very much.

Other Randomness

2004-08-13T21:29:00.000-04:00

A few more things of note:

On my last homestay. It is going to be so sad to say goodbye. I love this family. They are amazing.

Went shopping near the train station where i got picked up. We were in a fancy department store, looking at their food stuff (the basement floor is all food in dept stores here) and saw my first SQUARE WATERMELLON (dont worry ben, I have pics). A woman stopped to tell me about how they make them - you put a small watremellon into a box, and then it is forced to grow into that shape. She told me it is fruit abuse. I love when people speak english to me.

And not to forget what is most important:

I can sing a camp song in Japanese! Yay!

2004-08-13T21:00:00.000-04:00

Was back at Nose for camps 5 and 6 this week. For camp 5 we had four different groups - one Jr High and the rest were high schools. Two of the schools also had male students, which was a treat since we normally deal with all girls groups.

But alas, I was deemed a floater and asked to plan for camp 6 instead of playing with the kids. I did get to sleep in a room with them, which was fun - one was showing me pictures of this band that she called the "Boy Chicks" and let me listen to one of their song. Very Back-Street-Boys esque. And when I asked her, she hadnt heard of BSB, or NSync. Unfortunately I didnt have any on MyPod so she will continue leading her sheltered life. Poor soul.

Oh, and one night I was chilling with some of the high school girls anyways, and they were teaching us swearwords and the hand motion to do that shows a guy you are interested (acutally, i think it might be an invitation to come home [go to a love hotel or whatever] with you, but they were like 16 so I hope they are not really into that kind of thing).

So while everyone else had their fun, I planned camp session 6 for Mikihouse - a group of preschool kids (aged 2-6). Our program just had to be simplified a lot for them, so my friend Chad and I made a bunch of handouts for the kids and props for the activity.

The kids and their parents arrived on Wednesday. Yes, parents. Which was awesome because when the kids got cranky or whatever the moms would take em away. So we had 8 kids - 2 sets of siblings, and 4 others. One mother/son duo came all the way from Tokyo.

What a cute group! The kids were so excited. We did a safari activity with them where they talked about animals they would see in the jungle (lion, parrot... they came up with most of them). We had them make binoculars out of construction paper, and then we had a safari guide who led them on a walk through this forrested area of camp by the lake. All the other ACs were hiding in costumes (= construction paper masks, a sock nose for the elephant etc) dressed as animals. We had a flamingo in the water, a monkey in the tree, I was a girraffe and a frog... They were so cute -?tried to feed us and were looking through their binoculars. A few got really scared of the lion. But yeah, you totally could only do something like that with this age group. Oh, and we had a Picachu in the Jungle too. Hey, it is Japan after all.

Other awesome things about camp were that we got to go swimming the morning of day 2. At nose, there is a lake which is used for Kayaking, but we are not allowed to swim in it because they say it is our drinking water. I dont get it but whatever. There is also a swimming pool, but it must be booked and we have used it once so far. This was my second time and it was soo nice because it is just so hot out.

The best perk of having Mikihouse was NAPTIME! After lunch (which is at 12) we normally start back in at 1. But with these kids, we only had activities starting at 2:30 (we actually had planned to start at 2, but moms asked for more nap time). No problem! I think that everyone slept. So good.

At night we finished activities around 8 for baths. At 9, we had conversation time with the parents. That was really fun and interesting. A little frustrating because we had to have a translator so you know that so much of what each of you said got lost. One of the questions that I liked was "When you get off the phone with your mother do you say `I love you`?". Apparently they dont do that in japan.

Obviously the kids were just so cute. One of the kids, Ichitaro, was Jonathan Lipnicki from Jerry Maguire. Seriously. If you died his hair blonde he would have been that kid. I kept trying to get him to say that the human head weighs eight pounds, but he was having too much fun finding bugs on the ground to pay attention. Oh well.

Oh yeah! He lost his tooth at camp. I said something to his mom about putting it under his pillow. She looked at me strange. I explained how we have the Tooth Fairy. Turns out she doesn`t make it all the way to Japan - here you throw your lost teeth. Bottom ones go over the house, and top ones go under it. Haha!

Yatta!

2004-08-08T11:56:00.000-04:00

Before I depart back to my beloved Nose I will leave you all with one parting gift. That is Yatta! (Japanese for All right! or Hurray!)

It's the Japanese YMCA. And I do the dance every camp session for laughing Japanese children. Minus the costume.

Watch it. Love it. And think of me.

No More Bentos

2004-08-07T23:15:00.000-04:00

The prob with the training facility was the food. Since the facility didn`t have cooking staff, we had Bento Boxes. Not just for lunch either. For every meal. And funny thing is that they all look the same. You can`t really tell the breakfasts from the lunches from the dinners. Always with a piece or two of fish, maybe a piece of tempura something, random pickled things and rice.

So five days of cold bentos was not so fun. I asked one of the Japanese Counsellors about the food quality, and she told me that at camp we do eat Japanese food, but it`s kids food. Like curry rice and stuff. The bentos were much more adult. Well, I guess I must be a Japanese kid then. Fine with me. Just gives me an excuse to buy more toys.

Real Update

2004-08-07T22:53:00.000-04:00

Upon returning from my first homestay, we started camp session number 2. This time there were 8 girls from a Jr. High School. Uh, 8 girls and 20 ACs. Needless to say camp was a little on the relaxing side. I didn`t even have campers in my cabin there were so few of them (at camp USA the campers have americans in their cabin. which is funny because most of the schools are all girls schools, so it ends up that the guys always get staff cabins but never us). I spent most of my time doing planning for other camp sessions and reading Fingersmith (which was great btw, thanks Nat! I really like how the order form in the back of the book was for books like Lesbianism for Beginners. Tres Lesbian chic).

When those girls left, we had the afternoon off and were allowed to use the pool for the first time. It was really fun. We played lots of games with flutterboards and I think the Japanese staff at the camp think we`re very strange. I mean, watching 18 people throw flutterboards at each other`s head, you have to wonder if everything is right up there.

The next day camp session 3 began. We actually had three different groups at the same time, and since schools are anal about mixing their kids, they were kept totally seperate. I was working with an Elementary School - 25 girls from grades 4 and 5. They were super cute and I had the best time with them and their teachers (who spoke amazing english). One of the little girls wrote me a thank you letter which is so adorable, and another has already emailed me. The staff also gave me a huge bag of Japanese snacks to share among the ACs - so much fun!

Making a special appearence for the session was Guy Healy, the director of the camps, with his Evaluation Team. They were super fun and he had really nice things to say to me. He told me that Lori and I are helping Canada by being there because we`re teaqching the ACs about it and the Japanese kids too. Hehe.

There was also a high school group there of about 40 girls. Funny thing is they put the high school aged Counsellors with the girls, so all these boy crazy girls were with the American guys of the same age. And totally smitten. I laughed watching the boys show off for them by break dancing and doing tricks...

Unfortunately a typhoon decided to show up for the last day of camp, so we ended up having to end our session a few hours early. We still did get to perform our skits, and my groups won best skit. I was Uncle Jam in our version of Anpanman. And the typhoon was overrated. Just some heavy rain (at least at Nose).

Since the other camps ended after ours, we were pretty bored so Chad and I played dress up - I wore around my yukata and getta, and chad wore a chinese outfit.

That night our group was the only group at the facility because everyone else had cancelled because of the weather. So we shared a fun BBQ with the Nose staff (who are great) and then watched Lost in Translation and Finding Nemo.

On Sunday we took off to Takamatsu - a city on the island of Shikoku where camp session 4 was. We were located at a training facility of a Bank that was actually 20 minutes by car. The kids were their customers` children. But session 4 only started Tuesday so we had like nothing to do for two days. We explored the nearby grocery store (I so love grocery stores), convienience store, comic book cafe and Do It Yourself store.

That took like 2 hours. So we were bored. Lori and I got frustrated that we were so near to a city, so on Monday night we went in search of a train station. After a lot of "Eki wa doku des ka?" and people pointing, we found it. We figured out which direction to head in and made it to Takamatsu. Spent a few hours there wandering, and then headed back to the middle of nowhere.

It was nice for the 4th session to start finally. I was working with kids from grades 1-3. So in my room were 6 year olds. They didn`t know how to bathe, so I had to get into the showers with them and wash their hair. Fun stuff man. Those kids were crazy and took so much out of all of us. We were just so tired at the end of the day from chasing them around. Day three I was ready to collapse. With the promise of a homestay, and a little pick me up from a friend, made it til graduation. All the kids parents were there. And my host family came to pick me up at the facility, so I was so excited to have my mom and sisters there!

Summary: I have now completed 4 session of Camp U.S.A. Four more before I come home on the 26th.

Randomness

2004-08-05T11:14:00.000-04:00

A parent came to observe his kid at camp yesterday. He saw his kid was OK and we said "Don't worry, your son is having lots of fun here with us!".

He replied, "Good! I am having lots of fun with my wife - maybe we will have another baby!"

In Japan...

2004-08-05T09:16:00.000-04:00

Everyone eats the tails of their shrimp
but
No one eats the skins of grapes!

Hi and Bye!

2004-07-25T09:45:00.000-04:00

So tomorrow I head back to camp in the AM. As much fun as camp was, this is way more fun. I have 2 little sisters, Himawari (Hi-chan - 6 years old) and Akari (19 months). They are the cutest.

Hichan can say `Jenn, come here!` perfectly, so we get along great so long as I listen when she calls. And watching a one year old say no to chocolate and then reach for another piece of raw fish makes me laugh.

My mom, Mika, and Dad, Masao are wonderful. Mika speaks english very well and is able to help the flow of conversation between me and the other fam members.

Yes, my Japanese has improved most definately. Akari is the best teacher because she repeats things. I can now say `Dako` (= hold me!), `Ita` (= ow) and `Una deh!` (= I made poo). I also am quickly becoming an expert on Anpanman who, new to me, is the bomb-diggity to all pre-school children. And totoro too. I can even sing the first few lines of the Totoro song.

Sightseeing highlights the past few days include the Kirin brewery, a candy museum, a Japanese pottery museum where I got to make a plate, a lunch boat cruise in Kobe and Himeji castle today! What an awesome few days...