anata wa mange ga desu ka

That means, are you an asshair? Although surely pieces of it are incorrect. I’m not really getting very far in my japanese. It’s difficult and it’s always so hard for me to learn things until I am plopped right down in the middle and fiddling around with shit. I realized today that it’s a pretty good thing you can’t die of not knowing the local language of the place you’re living, so that is pretty reassuring. The worst that can really happen is me making an ass out of myself in front of a bunch of elementary schoolers and teachers and bosses and stuff. But they’ll love me for it. Silly gaijin! Doesn’t know how to ask about the moon.

Today’s been a wacky day. This eclipse really rounded it out well, though. I sat in the hot tub with my friend and watched it from when the moon was about 1/3 covered until well into the full coverage. And we ate cookies and smoked pot and drank milk and all in all it was a really fantastic way to see a splendid occurrence. It’s been a cathartic month. I can’t believe I am going to live in Japan and have a legitimate job there, where they pay me pretty good money and in return I show up EVERY DAY of the week. For like, months at a time, not just two weeks on, two weeks off. Or ten days of cooking for Buddhists here, two weeks of leading angry children through the backcountry of Idaho there, vacation all other times. This year has been full of a lot of growth. Despite only working for five weeks of it, the other things I did produced a lot of growth and skills on my part. Living with my sister taught me a lot about communicating with the government when you need something from them and they are deciding whether or not to give it to you. Living with my cousin taught me to make fruit bouquets and also how to throw a shower which I will probably never, ever, hopefully ever, have to do. Living on six thousand dollars for a year taught me a lot about what I need and don’t need, would prefer to have if possible but can certainly live without. I don’t feel like I sacrificed any opportunities, though, because I didn’t have enough money. What an incredible year I had. It was just fairly inexpensive. A lot of hiking into my entertainment swimholes and exploring redwoods and paddling canoes on the puget sound and riding bikes through miles of tulips in washington and going cross country skiing in montana and going climbing in oregon at smith rock and and and.

And all of that’s about to change, a lot. I’m going to have to go to a place and settle down and explore it until i’m sure there’s nothing else to explore and that’s when you find the next layer of exploration to do on the same place. ugh, my grammar is wretched but I don’t feel like fixing it. Japanese grammar is pretty backwards and it’s hurting my head a little. I will be happy to get there and just start swimming in it. I am excited about the kids. I have missed working with kids and for short periods of time I really enjoy ten and eleven year-olds. And after an hour with 30 of them, right when those particular kids’ annoying personality traits start to show up, it will be on to the next bunch! That sounds pretty ideal. Better than living with the kids 24 hours a day, two weeks straight. I miss working with the kids at SUWS but I’m happy I’m not going back there. It’s been hard to say goodbye to but I’m moving up and on and recognizing all the wonder and growth and challenge and character-building it’s given me and now it’s time to take it somewhere else and learn it all over again from a different angle.

One more peek at the eclipse and it’s time for sleep.

oyasumi nasai!
Clea