Back from hiatus...

Wasn’t an intentional one, just I never feel like sitting at the computer after I’ve just spent eight hours at one at work. I haven’t been up to too much anyway. A brief recap – Jo and Paul stayed on the way home from their honeymoon. Had fun wandering around town, saw some a fun busker’s performance. Resolved my mate Shanna and her brother’s argument (really nothing, just Shan being drunk and her bro not being bothered with her, and then she worked herself up and got upset). How did I get them talking again you ask… I told Shan, that in Japan they’d just have a game of Janken and it would solve all probs. So she marched into the other room where he was, said “Selene said we have to play rock, paper, scissors.” They played, Shan won, they laughed, hugged and were friends again! Cracked me up cos I didn’t really think she’d do it or it’d work!

Went home for the weekend last weekend. Ended up having pretty big nights on both Friday and Saturday. Went out with Jem and Tans on Friday night, after a couple of hours of SingStar! Love that. Saturday was brilliant weather, and went to barbie at Shan’s for her sister’s homecoming. Ended up drinking crazy cocktails that I made up with random drinks around, then went to town.

In between all that been working. Work’s not going too badly. It’s definitely not a job I’ll be staying in forever, and I think parts of me wish I wasn’t sticking it out for a year, but it’s not totally unbearable so I can handle it. I do the other half of training next week so that will be good. Then I’ll finally be able to work on remembering and learning everything I need to, rather than passing calls on to fully trained staff. I get on well with other staff but it’s generally just at work stuff. Paula who I started training with and I get on well, and I think we will go out outside of work, but otherwise I don’t know… I think it’ll be better once we have a social club event, and mix outside of work. We’ll see…! I had a thought the other day… I miss having my weekends planned weeks in advanced. Whether it was just hanging out at someone’s apartment, going to the city clubbing, going some cultural event, or deciding to have a weekend in veging, I always had something to look forward to, and knew I’d be seeing my friends soon. These days with most friends in other cities, my social arrangements are much fewer and further between. I might have to join a club at this stage to make friends!
I do miss the old lifestyle of Japan…

Ramble (I apologise)

I’ve been feeling very reflective and nostalgic for Japan recently. I don’t know why exactly, but I think there are plenty of reasons. I think it started at Christmas when I got Xmas cards from two of my elementary schools where I taught with a brilliant and absolutely lovely English teacher, Inoue Sensei. I also got cards from a friend, Kyoko’s students and a wee gift from her. It was so sweet, and made me think of all the other scrappy, wee handmade presents and cards I got when I was in Japan. All those things you thank the kids profusely for, but you know when you get home they will be thrown out (and if not straight away, they were definitely thrown out when I left!). Thru the month New Year’s cards have a arrived from friends in Asa, and around, making me think of the fun I had with them.

When I talked to Louise before Xmas, I didn’t really realise I don’t think of Asa or Yamaguchi much. I guess when I do think of Japan, I think of Jet and friends. But catching up with Louise, it made me think about it again, as the home it was, and the people you’d see often, but of course never know. I wonder if they suddenly realise that I must have gone home! I’ve also been in touch a lot recently with my old supervisor sorting out my pension tax refund. It’s been nice writing Japanese again, and communicating with her, because I didn’t really do much of that when I was in Japan! Ah the days spent silently at the office…!

I realised at the start of the week that this time 6 months ago I was leaving Asa and Japan. I can’t believe it’s already 6 months since I was all packed up, final goodbyes and tears and off to Thailand. It feels like so long ago. Even Thailand feels so long ago… When I left Japan I thought I’d get home, find a job teaching English to get some experience. After a NZ summer, I’d pack up and go to Ireland with Jem and live and work… Hmm, so hasn’t happened! Instead, I fear I have wasted what I learn in the CELTA course, and Jem and her bf Phil are leaving for Dublin in two weeks, and I am working in a call centre until at least Feb 2007!

I do see positives in what I’ve ended up doing. I’ll definitely save money not going now, and coming back for Shaun’s wedding then going back and working in the call centre is giving different experience which will be useful later. I’m going to try and somehow keep my Japanese up. I might study for JLPT again. I am also going to contact some language schools and try to at the very least sit in or assist in an hour or two of classes a week, just to keep my mind thinking about what I learnt in Thailand. I also think I’ll go out flatting at some stage, in a few months. I miss living by myself, or at least independently in a flat, rather than boarding.

Right, that's about enough of my babbling... nigh night xo

Happy New Year 2006!

Had a fabulous New Year. My mate Tanya came up from Timaru and we went around to a chick from work's house for drinks with her, her flatmate and another chick from work. Sat in the sun for an hour or so, drinking, chatting. Another "small world" occasion upon finding out that the flatmate went to a certain school, then not being totally sure, but there being a possibility, I asked "Do you know...?" She says, "Yes, she's one of my best friends!" This best friend lived in my apartment in Asa for two years, two years before I lived there! I met her about a month after I got there, as she was passing thru on her way home from the UK! Crazy eh!

After we went to a concert at a pub out in New Brighton. I was so so looking forward to it, and was so not disappointed!! From about 6pm to 12.30am, I had such a freakin' good time rocking out, singing, cheering and yelling along to 4 super-cool NZ bands! A wide range of people there, plenty either well drunk, trippin' on P, and the smell of pot sometimes was so strong I'm surprised I didn't come away stoned! Everyone was out for a good time!

Deja Voodoo put on a great show, especially exciting as one of there hit songs is "Today, Tomorrow, Timaru"! So got into that song! Then there was Steriogram, such awesome performers going nuts to every song! The lead singer walked/crowd surfed across the audience to get a drink at the bar, while still singing and was back just as the song finished! By far my favourite performance! Then there was Elemeno P, they got popular when I just left to Japan, so know there main hits but not others. Very cool performers, and know how to work a crowd too. Then after some technical difficulties, the head-liners Shihad performed. They've been around for ages now, and are very cool. They changed their name to Pacifier (one of there lead singles) a few years ago when they were trying to make it in the US cos Shihad was too similar to Jihad (Islamic for Holy War). But now they're back to being Shihad. They performed thru the New Year, and it was about 12.05 after a song when we realised it was 2006! So a little belated Happy New Year!

So glad I spent New Year's Eve that way. Had really been looking forward to hearing some NZ bands esp Steriogram. Was nice to spend it with new friends too. After the concert Tans was ready for bed, but I had planned to meet two friends, Dave and Andrew, I've know from when I was a kid. So Tans got dropped home, and I went into town to meet them. Had a few yarns, laughs and a boogie with them. About 3am I was well tired and ready for home, so we left and walked to where they were staying. I called a taxi, tho the taxi guy didn't know how long it'd be, so Dave and I fell asleep waiting for it! When I woke up, I thought, shit, wonder when the taxi will come..! So, I called them again, and turns out I'd missed it! I said that I didn't hear the toot, and the guy says "well we didn't toot, seeing as it was 4 in the morning!" Oops! So I eventually got the taxi and got home just before 5am!

Fabulous New Year's, nicely finished off tonight with going out to dinner for my cousin's birthday, to a fabulous Japanese Restaurant. Had Teppanyaki seafood, chicken and beef with sashimi starter and other tasty morsels! Hope you all had a great New Year too!