Entries this day: AM_Dream Breakfast Classes Flirting_T-time Timezones alphabet_rap zzzz

AM Dream

8:53am GST Sunday 12 June 2005

I was skating downstairs backwards; it was great. In this construction-hallway thing well, not construction, but underneath a stadium with rough concrete and dark lighting. I skated by some guys on my left then backwards down the stairs. Crazy.

Breakfast

11:20am GST Sunday 12 June 2005

We're going to be in another timezone tonight! A good thing this morning: I was like, "damn G how can it be 8:50am already???" after my phone alarm went off a few times. Turns out I hadn't set its clock back; I had an extra hour!

I was up by the time I realized it so I got to have a pretty chill breakfast with Nic (Nicole) from Brisbane, and who was on my original interview day on that Sunday back in March.

Taught Greg's class after that, working on introducing friends and then worked on a troublesome grammar ("she likes to shop" or "she likes shopping" (not "she likes to shopping")) by leaving the class and identifying what people were doing.

She is walking; she likes walking; she likes to walk.

He is carrying plates; he likes carrying plates; he likes to carry plates.

Like dat.

In Greg's class: Su, Hirobumi, Yasuko, and Keiko.

I had met Keiko on the morning I felt ill. I didn't remember until after she mentioned it.

Classes

4:54pm GST Sunday 12 June 2005

Greg's classes were cool. Only four students in the first class and five in the other, including supercute Mariko whose face I enjoy viewing.

I worked on designing an evaluation for my students and came upon a pretty good solution: two die rolls to determine one of six "questions" from one of six categories. They answer/perform the question correctly and get a point, then mark that question as complete.

I still need to print images of signs that I've taken on the ship. Actually need to take one more picture.

Flirting T time

4:58pm GST Sunday 12 June 2005

Hung out with Kim, Kris and Kris' class today at T-time. They asked me age and girlfriend questions and then taught me some kanji. Fun times.

We did little puzzles with toothpicks: move two toothpicks to put the olive outside the glass and move one toothpick to make this a correct equation, and move three toothpicks to make four equalateral triangles, etc..

I talked to them originally because I wanted one more gesture for my final review thing tomorrow.

Timezones

12:03pm GST Sunday 12 June 2005

Garsh dawggit: I've been transcribing journal entries with an inaccurate memory of what date of the month they occurred on. Gotta change a bunch of files labeled with 03 to 01.

4:54pm

Okay; they are changed.

alphabet rap

10:15pm GST Sunday 12 June 2005

Awesome.

Today there was a summer festival on the top deck: lots of people wearing yukatas (summer versions of kimonos (basically brightly colored cotton robes)) and performing different performances.

I saw a bit of an arm wrestling contest and the winners of the bikini contest (including David in a wig and Petra's bikini bottom (he lost the top)). Then we had to break for our GET meeting and dinner, but then busted up there again for the nightlife version of the festival.

People (including Yama, one of my students) sang karaoke, performed dances, improvised stuff and were generally genki and crazy-fun. I didn't understand most (97%) of the overgenki screeching pairs of kids going up on stage (5 x 5 foot wooden platform built over the jacuzzi) and I was about to leave, but then りえ (Rie), the woman with whom I was standing, said they were looking for random talent.

I've got some random talent.

I was like, "if you'll translate the introduction for me, I'll do something." She was like, "okay," and I set out to find someone who could lay down some phat voice percussion.

I saw only one other person who I knew knew English: Greg. He said he couldn't beat box and that I should look for Shawn. Then he saw Sakota and said I should ask him.

Sakota, though in charge of audio, was game. Money.

It was a bit weird after りえ said [yeah] to answer the MC's call for talent, and I kinda walked up but the MC said 「ちょっと待って」so I backed up, cause I thought he was still talking about the previous act, but then I realized the spotlight was on me.

The MC asked something, and I guessed he was asking my name, so I told him, and everything seemed cool. I heard a couple of girls in the audience shout 「ロブ!」, which I enjoyed. Then he asked something else, and I was like, 「わかんない」 (I don't understand) and he gestured: [do you want to go up on the stage?] and I was like, "yeah! (of course!)"

Headed toward the stage with spotlight blinding me as I walked toward and through a bit of the crowd to get to the stage. りえ came as well and I introduced her, 「私の日本語はにがて。だから、友だちリエ はtranslateしましょう。」

Then I was like, "but first, I need someone who can do voice percussion..." and I saw Sakota with his hands up in the back. Nice! "Sakota! Comeon up here!"

He came up, and then I explained the story behind the rap.

My brother and I used to play the alphabet game.  For example, I say
"apple," then he says "apple banana," then I say "apple banana chair,"
and he says, "apple banana chair dog," etcetera.  However, when we
play, we use really long sentences.

One day I was like, "Hey Fred, do you want to play the alphabet
game?"

And he said, "awright."

"awright" starts with A, so I said, "is that your first word?"

He sighed and then agreed.

I had りえ hand over the mic to Sakota (didn't thank her publically though) and he started his beatbox. The way he does it includes miming scratching a record with some appropriate beats. Nice.

He got into it and I slowed him down to about half speed, which turned out to still be a bit faster than Fred and I perform it. I let the beats roll around to a beginning 8 and I hoped it would go well.

Awright
Botanical petrified garden inspector says
Camp happy is the place to be
Dogleg curves can kill a man
Eggnog salad does a humjivin' dance
Five fingered Freddy flipped off a frog
G went and got himself a ten dollar cat
Humdigaddidumdigadidumdumdoo
I said to the girl you can't do that no mo
Just last tuesday I want to the beach
Killin' time: it ain't so bad after all
Later with a sunburn, I went to the mall
Maniac drivin' is the best way to be
Nearin' a clearin' I was hearin' a shearin'
On a pink barge I built a saloon
Prolly a hundred people got there by noon
Queuein' a cue, but I sunk it and scratched
Ripped a hole in my pants so I got me a patch
Slitherin' snakes: they use Converse to run
Ten minutes later, Jeff walked in
U is a sheep, but also a dude
Verbal puns have gotten really crude
What, what, what what what what
Xcruciating circumstances permit a misspelling
Yes, I always keep forgettin' your rhymes
Zombie with an attitude says do it one more time

(two times)

To my sheer and utter delight, it was fantastic. I'd love to see it on video sometime.

zzzz

12:11am AST Monday 13 June 2005

I'm working on my lesson for tomorrow. Been playing around a lot and not doing lessons in advance. I'm thankfully using a lesson that Natalie created on the 47th voyage. It was in the old format so I'm updating it to the new format. Definitely helpful for other teachers if they want to use the lesson as well. Specifically Natalie, I'm guessing.

But I still need to create a new lesson for my other class. They want to talk about writing in diary, letter or email.

12:55am

I updated Natalie's lesson and wrote her a note of thanks, plus a request for a copy of the song "Imagine" by John Lennon. I need to get some posterboard for my other class so they can write hopes and dreams.

1:09am AST Monday 13 June 2005

We came to a new timezone tonight. AST is for Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Cool!

I've come upon a new way to do journal entries, mixing using my computer and using tape. This technique intends to solve the problem of knowing the correct timezone/date/day for when the events occurred, and keeping everything in order.

I'll make just 1 file per day, adding to it via transcription or realtime typing, and just keep the timestamps in order in the file. Later I can split the file into logical sections. This also allows me to write about the same event both ways and not have confused filenames.

1:13am AST Monday 13 June 2005

Showertime then bedtime.