YAWNING IS DANGEROUS!!!

Ever want to know what it’s like to be in a small town Emergency Room in Japan?  I sure as hell didn’t. But apparently, the universe thought differently.

My Monday had started off well.  It wasn’t a busy day at work; I was totally prepared for my next day of classes.  For once, I was on top of things.  Well, as “on top of” that I can be.  Anyone who knows me knows that I am huge procrastinator.  Most of my Tuesday lessons were simply made up of things I hadn’t yet gotten to in previous lessons… Anywho…

I went to friend’s place to watch some American Football.  Giants versus Seahawks, which I realize was already played in the USA, but hell, I can’t watch football here unless I have cable (which I don’t) or I want to stay up until 3 a.m. on a work night (which I don’t… at least not to watch football).  All was well, we ate pizza, watched the game, made some dumb jokes.  Laughed out loud at a song called, “F^ You" and then I went and did something seemingly harmless yet turned out to be an incredibly dangerous act.

I yawned.

You might be thinking to yourself, “You are stupid. I yawn all the time and there’s nothing dangerous about it.”  Oh, but there is my friend.  There is.  I ended up in the Emergency Room because I yawned. 

When yawning, I’m used to my jaw popping in and out a bit, but it always pops back into place.  Not last night. No sir, no ma’am.  It rebelled against its natural position and decided that it wanted to hang out for a big.  Literally.  My friend thought I was playing a joke.  Honestly, I don’t know who would want to play a joke with their mouth hanging wide open, but that’s just me.  (Just think of all the pervy things that would automatically be said.)  At first, it was kind of funny.  I could laugh (because it’s natural to laugh with your mouth open) a bit as we Googled “how to pop your jaw back into place” and everything said GO TO THE ER!  FIND AN EMERGENCY DENTIST! DO NOT ATTEMPT THIS YOURSELF.  I had only attempted a couple of times at this point, but the pain of it kept me from being too stupid about.

So, I jumped in my friend’s car to go to the Emergency Room.  The aching pain started to set in at this point and my head also started hurting.  I held a napkin up to my mouth because I couldn’t swallow.  That’s a horrible feeling, by the way, not being able to swallow and all your spit HAS to come out.  Drooly McDroolerson over here was not happy.

The first thing my friend and I realized was that Japanese hospitals and emergency rooms are not easily found.  This seems like bad planning to me.  You would think that there would be ridiculously well marked signs in picture form that scream out to citizens and foreigners “Hey douche bag!!  It’s THIS way!”  But, apparently, that’s asking too much.  Instead, we first passed the hospital completely and then drove to what looked like the entrance.  Have you ever seen a hospital with its lights off?  It’s a disheartening feeling when you can’t shut your mouth.  Thank goodness I wasn’t bleeding to death or about to give birth.  That would have sent me straight into phase two “I hate Japan!” mode right quick, turns out I only teetered there that night.  I am glad to say that I am still safely in phase one of happiness and wonder and awe.  Whoopie!

Feeling lost and frightened while staring at the darkness of the hospital, we accosted this poor high school kid… only in Japan would a high school kid finally be getting home around 10 o’clock at night… and made him find the ER for us.  Not well marked or in the easiest place to get to, but it was there. Yippee!  My friend dropped me off to go park the car and I went inside, luckily the receptionist was right inside the door.

I took out my shitty phone translator and typed in “jaw popped.”  I learned that the Japanese word for jaw is “ago.”  Just in case anyone needs to go to the ER in Japan for a popped jaw. Plus, this just goes to show that you can learn something new in any circumstance if you really want to.  Go me. They looked at me with sympathetic faces as I fished out my gaijin (foreigner) card and insurance card with one hand, while trying to catch drool with the paper towel in the other.

As soon as my friend came in, they started directing all comments towards him.  Which was fine because he could actually understand their Japanese and I didn’t know what they were saying.  But I couldn’t help but think how pissed off I would have been had they done that to me in America.  Uh… I’M the patient… that can’t talk or understand… oh yeah, please do talk to him now that I think about it.

They sent us to the waiting room.  I was trying to mentally prepare myself for the long 4-5 hour wait that usually seems to happen in the ER… at least, not being a frequent visitor of the ER, I went off of what I see on TV.  TV never lies and always portrays things in such an accurate light; so of course, I thought I would be waiting.  Because they do on TV.  Surprisingly, I was directed into a treatment room almost immediately.  Well, immediately after the doctor and his student came out into the waiting room, looked at me, and laughed uncomfortably at my distorted face.

This is when my mind started to take a perverted turn. I know what you’re thinking, “Shanyn, that’s a long time for you.  Usually, you’re thinking sick and or perverted things right off the bat.”  Well, yes, this is true… I don’t know what was wrong with me.  Oh yeah, my freaking mouth couldn’t close and I was drooling on myself. But what were these men thinking?  A woman is brought in by a man and her jaw is locked.  I made a point of making sure my friend told them that I yawned and my jaw popped.  And that we were watching American football.  And that I really like American football.  I’m sure they were like, “Yeeeeaaaaahhhh… OF COURSE you were watching football.”  But it would have been in Japanese, not English… ‘cause they think in Japanese. Glad I felt the need to explain that to you.  Anyway, I would have been thinking that a popped/locked jaw didn’t happen from a yawn.  At least before, I am more apt to believe this type of story from someone else from now on.

Anywho…

The first doctor brings me inside and laughs at me in that uncomfortable way that the Japanese do.  Then, the grabbed onto my jaw and told me to “relax”.  This is virtually impossible in this situation.  And he pulled and I resisted and finally my friend was like, “Raise your hand if you want them to stop.”  Perhaps only he could interpret my groans and moans of pain.  Luckily, the doctor did actually stop when I lifted my hand.  He then directed me to the table and asked me to lie down.  Then he instructed another doctor to hold my head, another to hold my shoulders, and someone (I’m not sure who) held my legs down.  Yay.  Once again, he tried to pop my jaw back in place, and my body automatically fought back.  My mind was saying “be still”, my body was saying “Fuck you mind! This hurts like a bitch!”  Finally, he stopped after tears streamed from my eyes.

The nurse was very sweet and patted me and gave me tissues, and my friend was nice enough to take my spit rag and give me fresh ones.  He’s a good friend.  Any friend who is willing to take something with your nasty drool all over it is a friend to keep around.  They had to call in the top doctor.  Apparently, when this happens to Japanese folk, their jaws pop in back easily.  But my big American jaw was causing quite a problem.  The top doctor, accompanied by his student, made his way down after only a few minutes.  He gave me that sympathetic look and laughed uncomfortably as well.  I would hate to think how much they would have laughed if I had a knife in my chest.  Perhaps they would have fallen to the floor in tears? But I digress… he took his thumbs, shoved them to back of my mouth and did something that I remember caused me a lot of pain.  I didn’t mean to, but I grabbed his wrists, but thankfully, my jaw was back in place by that time and I was done.  I started crying again for three reasons.  One, I was happy that I could close my mouth and swallow my spit.  Two, it hurt like a son of a bitch.  Three, I really wanted my mom and dad.  (Mom and dad, if you’re reading this (and you better be) you may now feel delighted at how much I love you and want you around in times of need. Thanks for being awesome parents.)

I was able to say an “Arigatou, sensei” (doctors are called sensei in Japan) through my tears and made my way back out to the waiting room to wait as the 5 doctors in the room discussed why whatever particular technique was necessary for my particular situation.  At least, that’s what I am going to think they were discussing instead of something like “I bet she’ll think twice before giving that guy…..”  I swear on the life of all that is sacred, it was a YAWN!!

So, for the visit and the 3 pain killers they gave me, I was out about $100. In my opinion, it’s the best $100 I’ve spent in Japan so far.  I also couldn’t help but think that in America, that trip would have cost me a lot more.  It would have too because I had shit insurance in America. Yay for national healthcare!  Wheeeeeeee!

So anyway, I am trying to get into the habit of either not yawning (which is impossible) or holding my jaw when I do yawn.  Easier said than done.  I was also given strict orders by my father to not chew gum.  So all day, I’ve been eating M&Ms whenever I feel like my breath stinks.  I think it’s a good trade off for now.

So anyway, with all that excitement, I have sore jawline but a funny story to tell at the old folks’ home.  Even though, I’ll probably forget what I was talking about halfway through the story and suddenly become preoccupied with the fact that the young man in the corner needs to drink some milk….

What I’m trying to say is, don’t do anything to dangerous, like get too tired, and be mindful when you yawn because it might send you to the hospital!

Me vs. Japanese Men

10/4/10

Oi!!  Osashiburi desu ne?  It’s been awhile.  Well, I decided that I should definitely update my blog.  Seeing as I’ve been in Japan for a little over two months now and the only updates have been within the first week or two that I was here.  What can I say?  I’m lazy.  You knew this about me when you met me.  So don’t act otherwise.

Alrighty… let us talk about my interaction with Japanese men.  This is somewhat laughable because I have very little interaction with Japanese men.  This it usually how it goes down.

Me: Konnichiwa

Japanese man does not respond back, instead looks the opposite direction and keeps walking or freezes completely.

My interpretation of the thoughts of Japanese men: Oh shit! It spoke!  What do I do?! What do I do?!  Don’t look it in the eye, don’t look it in the eye!  It can’t see you if you don’t look it in the eye.

Uh… I can see you, thank you very much. I won’t suck out your soul (this time) or eat you for dinner (at this point) but I would appreciate at least some sort of reaction other than scared shitless.

The exception to this rule are the male teachers at my school.  They don’t have much of a choice because they can’t get away easily.  So, when I say “ohayo gozaimus” or “konnichiwa”, they look down at their feet and mumble some sort of a greeting back.  Usually not a full phrase, but at least some sort of audible response that has the intonation of a greeting.  There is one teacher in particular who tries to avoid my gaze at all cost; I make a special point to greet him in the morning.  You won’t get away from me! HAHA! You sit right behind me!  Say hello!!  Say it!!!

Now, my dear students are another exception.  Well, maybe not.  They are boys, not men so they are in their own category.  They want to give me high fives and try to feed me at school festivals.  “Sensei, open your mouth!” they say as they try to shove a cookie in my face.  They like to tell me “hello” as much as possible and since I’ve taught them “what’s up?” they will ask me any chance they get.  “You are very beautiful.”  “You are very cute.”  “I love you!” “Let’s go out!”  Oh, boys.  How illegal you are for me.  Please stop coercing me with your teenage boy stink and awkwardness.  I can hardly control myself… Well, actually it’s nice to be complimented by somebody!  Even if they are 15.  Oh, by the way, there is body odor in Japan.  For a while, I thought it might be me because the rumor is they don’t stink, right?  So, of course the sweaty American is the stinky one. That’s a lie.  I have plenty of smelly boys in my classes… maybe some girls too.

One of the male teachers who isn’t afraid to speak to me asked me if I really wanted to learn Japanese.  I told him yes.  “You should get a Japanese boyfriend. This is the best way to learn Japanese.”  Then he told me which teachers I was allowed and not allowed to date at school. “Date him because he doesn’t speak any English. You cannot date him because he speaks English and you will just always speak English.”

“I’ll keep it in mind.”  I said, thinking all the while that he must not know how most men react to me… even the English speaking ones.

Now it’s become more of a game.  I like to say hello to all the men I can and judge their reaction.  So far, 1,289 have acted scared out of their mind.  576 pretended I was invisible. 4 have responded with a greeting back.  I gave them mental gold stars.  I’m sure they felt it and were proud of their achievement.  “I was not scared of the American Amazon!”  It is something to be proud of.

I'm Not 20 Anymore!!!

I think that I forgot that I’m not in college anymore.  I forget that the JET program’s main population consists of 22-23 year old, fresh out of college kids who are still used to drinking almost every night of the week.  On top of that, they have the ability to recover quickly and can be ready to go by the next even, or even in some cases, the next afternoon.  It’s not like I’m an old maid at 27, but hell, I’ve been working for three years and drinking heavily every night does fit into one’s “real world” schedule.

Back home, I rarely had a drink.  Even once a month was a lot for me.  And when I did drink, it was a glass or two of wine and friend’s house.  I have lost the ability to recover from a night of drinking quickly.  Usually, the entire next day I’m dragging ass.  Also, if someone is like “HEY!!!! Let’s get drunk.” I find myself wanting to punch them in the face.  Also, very rarely did I EVER drink on a day when I had to get up before 9 am actually have to be productive.  Like I said before, I hardly drank anymore at home and if I did, it was a glass of wine.

Since I’ve come to Japan, I think I’ve drank more in this month than I have in the past two years at home.  I’m sure my liver and kidneys hate me right now. I’m pretty sure they only just got back to full function from my university days anyway.  Anyway, I think my insides are begging to be hydrated.  “Just water please!” I can hear them scream.  I need to look up the Japanese word they have for “liver holiday” or “liver vacation” or whatever the hell it is.  My liver has definitely been working overtime and could use a break.

Don’t get me wrong, I had an absolute blast… just recovery and repetition is a bit harder for me, I think…

I get very huggy when I drink.  I like to get hugs, I like to give hugs.  Hugs make me happy in general and even happier when I’m drunk.  Plus, I’m in a country where hugging doesn’t occur very often… or at all… so I’m feeling hug deprived at the moment.  So the other night, after my third screwdriver, or maybe my fifth, I got very huggy with several people.  I’m pretty sure everyone involved in my group hugs enjoyed it too though.  Who doesn’t like a hug?  

Communists, that’s who.

Moving on within the same topic, Japan has a zero tolerance law. That means if you consume ANY alcohol, you cannot drive anywhere.  Actually, I don’t think you’re even allowed to bike after a drink.  I have definitely broken the no biking after drinking law in Japan several times now.  But I think this rule actually encourages overdrinking.

Here’s why… I will explain in my usual round-about-way.

Okay, back at home IF I drank I would have a glass, maybe two on the rare occasion. I could still drive home afterwards and be just fine.  No children were (at least accidentally) run over or anything (purposefully is for another time).  In Japan, if I got caught with the smell of alcohol on my breath, I would basically have to start packing cause my ass would be deported after a lovely stay in prison.  Well Hell’s Bells, if I can’t drink ONE drink then I might as well drink five so that it’s worth the cab fare or, as in the case of this weekend, the 6 kilometer stumble in flip flops to a friend’s apartment on the other side of town.  I have about 3 blisters by the way.  But really, who wants to have to leave there car somewhere because they wanted one drink with dinner?  Not I.  So I generally take the attitude if I’m going to drink… then I’m going to DRINK.

This is not the safest, healthiest, or cheapest attitude to take.  I wouldn’t suggest it.

But anyway, I am back in my little town with juice and water filling my fridge.  Don’t get me wrong.  I had an absolute blast hanging out with my new friends and partying it up.  I would not change a single night that I had with them… I just think that my liver is thanking me for putting some water into my body and that my mind and body appreciate more than 4 hours of sleep.  J

DRIVING?!?!

August 3, 2010

I honestly have no idea why anyone would let me drive in this country. Don’t get me wrong; I think that I’m a good driver… in the states.  But I am a nervous wreck here in Japan.  I wonder if I was this nervous when I was 15 with a learner’s permit?  I can’t remember, but I’m sure I was cocky as hell about it.  “I’ve been driving my grandparents’ golf cart for years, I totally got this.”  I do not have this attitude in Japan.

First thing I did was turn on my windshield wipers for my blinker.  Honestly, who puts the blinker on the right side of the steering wheel anyway?  I’ve walked to the passenger side door on more than a handful of occasions.  But honestly, who puts the steering wheel on the right side of the car?!  And I drove on the wrong side of the road.  Luckily this has only been in parking lots, but I’ve done it twice now.  Haven’t done it on the real road yet, but I think it’s because I have visual cues from other cars.

I have this green and orange magnet that signals other drivers that I’m a “first year driver.”  (I will leave those on the entire time I’m here in Japan)  I call them my “stay the fuck away from that car!” stickers.  People should too.  My supervisor told me no waving, bowing.  But I just kind of bob my head like an idiot.  And I have to bob my head a lot.  “SORRY!  Don’t you see the green and orange magnet?  I’m clueless!”

Well, maybe I’m not soooooo sooooo bad…  I haven’t run over a student (knock on wood) at least not on accident.  Not on purpose either, but who knows come December how I’ll be feeling.  I might accidentally on purpose…. AHHHHH!!! I keed!  I keed!!  Giggle giggle laugh laugh.

Oh, I can’t tell if there’s only one radio station in Japan or if I’m just in the inaka enough that only one radio station reaches me.  And it doesn’t play the same type of music all day long.  Sometimes it seems to be talk radio, another time it will be American music, sometimes J-pop and sometimes classical.  I don’t quite get it.  But I know I curbed my car trying to figure out the buttons on the radio.  Luckily, no one was around to see that.

In JAPAN!! wheeee!

This was written after my first night in Shimane... so about a week ago now, but I wanted to post it anyway.

July 29, 2010

Well, I officially spent my first night in Shimane last night.  I know that I must have fallen asleep at one point because I did open my eyes this morning around 6 o’clock when my room was filled with the morning light.  Please don’t think I mean that in a happy way.  You’re talking to someone who has just flown to the other side of the world (literally, it’s a half day ahead of my family in America), drank a little too much at karaoke, and is pretty sure she’s been dehydrated since she left Chicago.  (No really, I’ve hardly peed since I’ve been here).

Anyway, last night I thought might be my first really good night of sleep because I wasn’t sharing a small hotel room with a complete stranger, which always makes me uncomfortable when I need to sleep. But… I didn’t (still don’t) have a bed.  My lovely supervisor, did let me borrow a futon to sleep on.  Now, if you’re from America (chances are pretty good that you are) and you’re reading this, you might think to yourself, “Oh, a futon.  That’s not too bad.”  Uh…. No.  In Japan, futons are not like those in America.  Some are nice and probably comfortable, some are not so nice and suck ass. Which can be like American futons as well.  The one that I slept on last night reminded me of something someone might take with them if they were planning on camping in a tent and wanted a pad of some sort to separate them from the earth.  I say “someone” because I don’t camp unless there is an air-conditioned camper a hook up to running water.

So I’ve decided to invest in a twin bed as soon as I get the chance.

I threw up.  That was fun.  I gagged a few times, dry heaved once or twice before the actual vomiting occurred, but yes, I threw up.  It tasted like the lunch I had, which was really delicious on the way down but not so lovely on the way up.  I think it was a mixture of nerves and fatigue but I really wanted my mommy right then.  Luckily, it was only the one time and I was able to unpack all of my bags afterwards.  I even tried to look awake and lively when my supervisor and three other teachers knocked on my door to tell me they were going to have a drink.  I was in a t-short and gym shorts, not how I wanted to first present myself, but hey… I had just vomited about an hour earlier. Oh, I’ve realized how incredibly SCARED I am to use any of the Japanese I know, which consists of “Hajimemashite, Watashi wa Shanyn desu, and Yoroshiku Onegaishimasu.”  That is the standard first time greeting and I didn’t use it well.  So, I must be making great first impressions all around.

Another one of the English teachers took me grocery shopping yesterday.  I’ve been told by multiple people how incredibly busy my supervisor is, so it was one of the Sensei that picked me up at the airport yesterday.  I must have looked like death, now that I think about it.  I’m sure anyone who saw me was like, “Holy shit, that’s NOT the new teacher is it?!?”  And I’m sure everyone already thinks that I don’t eat well.  Sensei had to convince me to get something other than instant noodles.  LOL.  But I didn’t end up eating any of it.  Just snacked on the dry cornflakes I bought because, like I mentioned earlier, I puked.  Who wants to eat “hambaaga” after they’ve puked?  Or salmon and mayonnaise onigiri?  Not this girl.

By the way, there is a weird smell in my room that I can’t quite place.  I hope it’s not mildew.

Re-reading this one might think I’ve already entered Stage 2 of culture shock, which means I’m irritable, upset, grumble grumble grumble Japan.  I haven’t.  I’m actually pretty amused by everything that’s going on.  Can’t wait to tell my successor, “Yeah, I totally puked the first night I was there and my dinner was a handful of dry cereal.  So take my advice and get some sleep in Tokyo, ok?”  And even though it took me 15 minutes to figure out how to get hot water to my shower last night and another 15 minutes to iron one shirt this morning, I don’t care.  I’m where I wanted to be and I’m happy about it.

SHIMANE and stuff...

first off, i'm really excited to announce that i know where i'll be teaching once i get to japan!  i'll be heading toward shimane prefecture.  a couple of random facts.  it has a beautiful coastline and is the second least populated area in japan.  either way, i'm super excited about it.


shimane actually wasn't in my choices of places to go, to be honest.  i've only heard of shimane before b/c i've been a long-time viewer of "myargonauts" on youtube.  he has an awesome series of JET vlogs and he was a JET in shimane for 5 years.  over the past year, i've written him several times, commented on his videos, written on his website, etc.  so i've come to know him personally just a little bit and now it's nice to hear that i'll be on his old stomping grounds ^_^.  i'm also excited b/c i hear the winters are somewhat mild and that i'm not going to be buried under 5 feet of snow when i wake up every morning.  of course, i still do want a new pair of uggs.  maybe i should be looking into some ugg slippers for indoor use?  i know they're ugly.  i still want them!  the only reason you would ever stick your nose up at them is b/c you've never worn them and have absolutely no idea how ridiculously warm and cozy they are.


anyway....


it's not far off that i will be moving to japan.  just a little more than 2 months.  it's a little bit frightening, but more than that, it's incredibly exciting.  part of me wonders how i'll do it, the other part knows i'll be just fine.  this will be an interesting first though.  i've never lived outside of the US and now i'm going to a country where i don't speak the language, can't read anything, and the culture is quite different.  but i think those are the reasons why i want to go to.  i also want to do something different with my life.  i'm not ready to stay in one spot and only be a speech-therapist for the rest of my life when i want to see and be much more than that.  maybe that sounds ridiculous.  maybe i'm ridiculous.  but that's the way i feel about it.

I'm Bad About It! GAH!

For someone who works with children everyday to help them acquire basic language skills you think that I would be able to apply some of that knowledge to myself.


Uh.... no.  False.  Fictional.  Untrue.


I swear I mean to take the time to sit down with my Japanese Kana flash cards, or my workbooks... or I mean to check out JapanesePod101 but I manage to find myself distracted by other things... other things that are not as important to me as learning Japanese!  lol.


Sure, I have some rote vocabulary and phrases memorized.  However, whether or not I can understand them when said to me by a native Japanese speaker is questionable (as I noted in my JET interview when I couldn't understand the speaker ask me some basic questions).   I'm starting to understand why the toddlers I work with throw fits when they don't understand something or can't be understood... it's frustrating!


But, dagnabit, I decided today that I refuse to let my insecurities about language learning interfere with something I really want.  I know that it will be difficult, but the payoff will be worth it.  And I can only feel proud of myself in the end.


I will learn Japanese if it kills me!  I realize that I'm not a super-motivated person by myself, but I also don't think I can financially swing private tutoring, so I'm going to buckle down and do it!


Wish me luck!  ^_^

A good week

Hello all!


well, this week was pretty busy, but a very good one.  it started last sunday when my mom and i flew to charlotte, north carolina.  we have a lot of moving coming up.  i'll be moving to japan in july and mom will be moving to charlotte, nc just a week or two later.  she's being relocated for work.  we spent most days driving around with the realtor looking at places all over town.  it wasn't until thursday that mom found one she was absolutely in love with.  we both were really excited.  i guess i didn't realize how worried i've been about mom finding a place she liked and being happy with it until she was genuinely excited about her new home.  it was like a sigh of relief went through my entire body... and i'm sure mom feels like a big weight has been lifted off of her shoulders (though she still has others on there).


but overall, it was a good week.  mom found a place to live.  i got to see the biltmore mansion and gardens.  it was my first time and it was as breathtaking as everyone says it is.  we did a little bit of shopping, i found a great calvin klein suit-like jacket on sale at macy's!!  (woo hoo for professional wear, i'll be needing it in japan).  we found mom a couple of pairs of shoes on sale.  we had dinner with her co-worker a couple of nights.  drove around the city trying to get oriented.  apparently charlotte doesn't believe in one street keeping one name.  they like to change it about five times while you're driving on it.  i had some experience with this out in tucson, arizona.  it always baffled me.


currently we are sitting in the airport, way ahead of our departure time, but that's fine.  i get to fiddle around on the computer, she gets to read a true blood book... everyone is happy.

and here's a cool picture to end my post  :-)

Biltmore Estate

Statement of Purpose

I said that I would post my JET S.O.P. on my blog and now I'm finally getting around to it.  It may not be the best/coolest SOP in the world, but it seemed to work for me.  I went through several drafts and this is the one I felt most comfortable with and sent off along with all the other millions of papers they asked for.  Hope this is helpful to anyone who needs some ideas for their SOP. I tried to not only explain why I wanted to go, but why they should want me to go too... I think that's important.  Everyone applying for JET obviously wants to go... you have to sell them on why they should send you.

I clearly remember when my intrigue with Japan and Japanese culture first started.  I was in the third grade and our librarian read to us the story of Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes.  I sat there and became more fascinated as she read on about the young girl who folded one origami crane after another in hopes of folding one thousand so that she could wish for good health as lore dictated.  It was this book that sparked a desire in me to see and learn more about others in general.  One of JET’s primary goals is to promote understanding between different cultures.  For me personally, I have always enjoyed learning about how my culture is different from another, along with finding the similarities that could draw us together.  I find that learning about other cultures tends to promote a greater acceptance and willingness to cooperate among people.  I hope to share my enthusiasm and inspire my young students to want to see and to know more about the world, especially as societies are becoming more globalized.

            However, it is not just my desire to share my culture and learn more about the Japanese culture that makes me a good candidate; I feel there are many aspects to my character that make me a qualified candidate.  I have a natural curiosity and interest about language acquisition in general.  I am a Pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist and have worked with children from ages one to eighteen since earning my Master’s degree.  I use various methods to help children with sound acquisition, articulation, vocabulary building, language building, and pre-literacy skills.  I am responsible for goal planning, lesson activities, and parent education.  During my clinical fellowship year, I worked in a special-needs school with a caseload of 215 children.  I collaborated with classroom teachers to create functional goals and to produce appropriate and practical speech and language lessons.  It is because of my knowledge of language acquisition and my passion for working with young children that I feel that I would be best suited to work at an elementary school lever during my time with the JET program.

            Currently, I provide therapy services in a home-based early intervention program.  For the most part, my caseload is made up of child who, for various reasons, are having trouble acquiring the sound system and structure of their native language, English.  However, as more families are relocating from other parts of the world, requests to provide services to non-native English speakers have been on the rise.  Being an ALT would allow me to observe and be an active participant in how English is taught and acquired as a second language.  When I return to the United States, I plan on incorporating my current skills with the new skills I will gain as an ALT to provide more appropriate assistance for the growing population of children that require English as a second language services.  I also plan on taking on a role as an active educator within the speech and hearing community and advocate for non-native English speakers.

            I am well educated, reliable, and responsible.  My work background provides me with a multitude of personal experiences to draw from and share with others.  But I feel that my enthusiasm for working with children and my dedication for the promotion of functional communication are what make me an exceptional candidate for the JET Program.

Quotes

So I posted a new youtube video expressing my excitement over being accepted into the program.  And I know that when I post something like that, I'll be inviting every Tom, Dick, and Harry to see it and comment on it.  But it's not like a million people are searching for "jet 2010" anyway, so I don't really expect the random trolls that happen a lot with the internet.


But I was surprised by one commenter who said, "'In hopes of reaching the moon, men often fail to see the flowers at their feet.' Perhaps your roots weren't very strong to begin with."


So basically, I interpreted this as this person is saying that I don't have a strong family roots, ties... I'm ungrateful for what I do have, etc.  (He meant it that way, I'll explain later).  First off, I don't think that Albert Swietzer (I probably spelled that wrong, but he's the one who originally said that quote) meant it to tell people not to go after their dreams, or not to have aspirations.  I think it means to not forget about and to be grateful for all of the good things that surround you now.  Anyone who would tell you not to have dreams and aspirations, don't listen to them.  They're scared of life and don't want you to have great experiences b/c they are too chicken sh*t to go out and have them for themselves.  Maybe this sounds cheesy or naive, but dreams are what makes men strive for more than what they are.  Where would we be if people didn't strive to know more, do more, and want more than what is around them?  Probably sitting a tree somewhere picking bugs off of each other and eating them.


But instead of rising to his provocation, I replied, "I'm ashamed to admit, but I don't know who said that quote. Could you please enlighten me?  And in the meantime, I'll leave you with a favorite of mine, perhaps you'll like it?  'Go confidently in the direction of your dreams and live the life you imagined.'"


To which the troll responded "... touche... Albert Sweitzer."  And it was from that response (which he later deleted... of course he would, I laid the philosophical smack down!) that definitely (I wasn't 100% sure before b/c I like to give people the benefit of the doubt) I realized he did mean to put me down with his original comment.


Now, let me more closely refer to the latter part of his first statement "perhaps your roots weren't very strong to begin with."  I believe that it's people with strong roots that are able to be confident in trying to new things.   They are able to take the steps out of their comfort zone and reach for more.  This is not always the case, of course, but I find it more likely to be true than not. My strong support system of family and friends aren't just the flowers at my feet, but they are also the soil, the water, the nutrients that feed my roots.  And no matter how weak I may feel at times (everyone has those moments), I know my roots are strong and supported.  I have the an amazing family and amazing friends.


Well, just wanted to get that off my chest!

JET interview questions and answers

The following post is my JET interview questions and answers.  I'm pretty sure I covered them all, but I might have forgotten one or two.  Don't let the seamless writing fool you.  I definitely stuttered and stumbled here and there, but I had been practicing answers to possible questions (you can find them online) out loud for a month.  So here are my questions and answers... hope you find them helpful, or... something...


Q:  Why JET and why Japan?
A:  I've always been fascinated by Japanese culture since I was in grade school.  I've always found the differences in our cultures to be very interesting.  I also have a strong desire to experience life outside of our borders and Japan was naturally the first place I hoped to do this.  After doing a lot of research about ways to go live and teach in Japan, I decided to apply for JET because I felt it was a strong program that provided a lot of support for its participants.  Also, it seems like ex-JETs have a lot of good things to say about the program and their experience in Japan because of the program.


Q:  You specified a particular region, why did you choose that area?
A: (okay, i didn't really choose a specific city or anything... but they were referring to my first choice, which was basically the sea of japan side of the island... like i said, i didn't go specific)  I chose that area because the woman who wrote my letter of recommendation and my Japanese teacher said that it was an incredibly beautiful part of the island and they enjoyed their experience there.  Of course I would be happy to be placed anywhere, though.


Q: That place is more cut off from bigger cities like Tokyo.  How would you feel about living in a remote area or small town?
A:  I would be okay with that, I think I would prefer it, actually.  I want to be able to experience the culture and insert myself into the community as much as I can.  I feel like I'd be better able to do this in a smaller town than in a big city where I might be tempted to seek out more familiar things.


Q: You're a professional and it seems that you're used to planning your own activities and carrying them out.  But how would you feel if the lead teacher just wanted to use you as a human tape recorder and asked you to read vocabulary lists then stand in the back of the class?
A:  Of course I would hope that he or she would take advantage of my knowledge and skills, and I might even suggest trying new activities.  But it's also very important to me that I have a good working relationship with all of my lead teachers.  So if a teacher only wanted me to read lists, then I would go and be the best list reader I could be.


Q:  The Japanese society is much more male dominated.  How would you feel if you were asked to serve tea to the men, or if you were out drinking with your co-workers and the males get a little more rowdy and started touching your hair or something like that?
A:  (I skipped the serving tea part of the question on accident)  Well, American men can get rowdy too! (haha) Honestly, I would try to laugh it off or say something like, "Oh!  I'm sorry I got in your space, let me give you some room."  Or if it was really uncomfortable, I would excuse myself for a few minutes and go to the restroom until I feel like I calmed down and could return.


Q:  You've never lived out of the country before, what do you think will be the hardest thing for you?
A:  Well, being away from my family will be tough. I'm used to having my support system nearby or being able to call my mom whenever I feel like.  I won't be able to do that in Japan.  But if I feel myself becoming upset about it, I know that I can take time to do the things that bring me joy.  I enjoy journaling.  I would try to find more community activities to become involved in, things like that.


Q:  How would you explain an American holiday, let's say, Valentine's Day.
A:  Doing a craft would be a fun way to do it.  (I started gesturing at this point and talking about the vocabulary "heart" "stickers" "love" "cupid" etc. I also mentioned that I could talk about how boys give girls chocolate in America, versus the other way around in Japan).


Q;  What is an American ideal you would like to share with your students?
A:  I hope that I could give them a sense of wanting to explore more than what's around you.  I would hope that by sharing my experience and culture with them, they might want to learn more about the world outside of their borders just as I desire to learn more about the world outside of mine.  I hope that I could show them that differences between people can become ways to connect to others as well.


Q:  If you could present one great American, who would you talk about and why?
A:  (Okay, I prepared for George Washington... but ELIVS popped into my head!  lol... so I went with my favorite president FDR... i know right?!)  FDR because he created a lot of great government programs and helped our country get out of the Great Depression.  He was a great leader that inspired a lot of people.


Q:  He's also responsible for declaring war on Japan.  How would you respond if you were asked about the American atomic attacks on Japan?
A: (thank goodness I prepared!)  I would say that it's an incredibly unfortunate event that occurred between our two countries.  And I feel it's horrible that so many civilians died and suffered for so many years because of those attacks.  But in times of war, leaders make decisions based on what they feel is best for their country and best for the protection of their citizens.  During that time, my leaders felt that was a necessary step to protect our country.


At this point in time, the interviewer from Japan asked me a couple of questions in Japanese.  I only understood one, (what is your name?) and was able to answer in Japanese.  I also realized at this point I needed to listen to more native Japanese speakers b/c I couldn't understand a damn word he said b/c I wasn't used to hearing a native accent.


Q:  Do you have any questions for us?
A:  How with JET ALTS be affected by the new rule stating that all 5th and 6th graders are required to take English?
     Why does JET place ALTS in the middle of the academic school year and how does it change the established classroom dynamic?  (i didn't get to ask this one btw, i was too nervous and forgot... but it's a good one)

YAY!

So I'm still really excited from my big news last night.  I've been receiving congratulations from friends and family all day, which makes me really happy.  I plan on posting my JET interview questions and answers on here.  I will probably post my JET statement of purpose (SOP) as well.  So if anyone hopes to apply to JET in the future, maybe they will run across this blog and it can help them out... that's for later... right now I'm getting ready to go to dinner to celebrate with my mom!  haha!

JET! (japanese exchange and teaching program)

I'm so excited!  I've been waiting for what seems like FOREVER and a DAY to hear the news I heard tonight!


I've been accepted into the JET program!  This July, I'll be leaving to teach and live in Japan!  I'm so excited I can hardly contain myself!  It's almost midnight, but I'm so pumped up right now that I don't know if I'll be able to sleep at all tonight!


I've been working towards this since July 2009.  So it's been a really long process, but I believed that I could make it happen and I'm so excited about it!


I'll definitely be posting updates about what's going on with me and the JET program!


So excited!

Now Let me Introduce Myself!

Hello all!


Since this is an introduction, I thought maybe I should introduce myself!  I think the easiest way to do that is by one of those "get to know me" lists.  A little lame and uncreative, yes I know.  But easy.  Here we go!


Name:  Shanyn (that's all you'll get for now!) aka Hoosierhana
Why the weird screen name:  Hoosier for my home state, and "hana" is the Japanese word for "flower."  The peony is one of my favorite flowers and also the Indiana state flower.  So "Hoosier Flower" made sense to me!
Age:     26
Hometown:  Indianapolis
University:   Indiana University (B.A.) and University of Arizona (M.S.)
Height:  5'10''
Hair:  Blonde
Eyes:  Blue
Nicknames:  Nanny, Binky, Bean
Hobbies:  Writing, reading, making youtube videos... and apparently blogging too now :-P
Work:  Speech Language Pathologist... but I'm hoping to be teaching English with the Japanese Exchange and Teaching Programme (JET) within the next few months!


I guess that's good for now?  haha


Thanks so much for visiting my blog!