Thursday, April 30, 2009 Fair

　Walked briskly with my wife for an hour in the morning as usual. It has been rather chilly today. I have a sore throat now. A Japanese woman tested positive for swine flu at Narita. Tried to make another page of the next Reading report. Almost done. Had an English study meeting. Some of the computers in the teachers' rooms are infested with some computer virus.

Wednesday, April 29, 2009 Fair

　A brisk morning walk with my wife for an hour or so. Made another page of the next OC�Treport in the morning. Then cleaned the house and the balcony. Took about 50 kilograms of bulky trash to the local recycling center. Had to pay 850 yen for that. On the way home, dropped by the usual home improvement center to buy some curtains and a curtain rod. Back home made still another page of the report. Although a holiday, worked hard at home.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009 Cloudy

　A brisk morning walk. Breafast and did some work at the desk Then a sign language club weekly meeting in the morning. It may be time I were quitting the sign language club because it has changed too much. In the afternoon off to the Korean language school. For the time being I will be busy making reports even at home. No consecutive holidays for me.

Monday, April 27, 2009 Cloudy and rather cold.

　A morning brisk walk with my wife for an hour or so. I got a rash after shaving, so I decided to use my electric shaver, but the adapter for that was missing. I tried to look for it but could not find it. ( Later located it anyway.) A Korean study meeting as usual. Then ate lunch and three classes in a row. Got my roll book ready. Also my colleague prepared the big attendance sheet for English �T. On the way home, my eyes hurt.

Sunday, April 26, 2009 Cloudy and windy.

　There was an English study meeting from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Ate lunch, prepared for tomorrow's classes, and did some reading. Then came an English teachers' meeting, which lasted rather long. Quite tired. I wished the one who did all that work had talked to me, too, beforehand. That was rather one-sided. I had to complain anyway. Well, whatever will be will be.

Saturday, April 25, 2009 Rainy and then cloudy.

　Chiefly hung out inside except when I went out shopping a couple of times. Tried to think about what to do with the next OC�Treport but no good idea came to me. In Mexico, swine flu is raging now. At last, is it the beginning of a pandemic all over the world? My wife is watching baseball games on TV as usual. She is a Tigers fan. She knows a lot about baseball and baseball players. Baseball is not my department.

Friday, April 24, 2009 Fair

　Taught two classes in a row in a loud voice. After the first class, my voice got hoarse. My mouth muscles got tired. I got thirsty, too. I should have brought a canteen or something. That was a miscalculation. This school year I conducted a survey on learning English. Most students are interesting in listening to English, traslating Japanese into English and memorizing English words. More than half of my students today have little or no idea how they should study English.. Today I had around 80 students in class out of around 120. Exhausted!

Thursday, April 23, 2009 Fair and chilly.

　Threre were two meetings in a row today. One lasted for less than one hour, and the other for almost four hours. So, I kept sitting for a total of five hours or so. I was so sick and tired of long conferences. After about five hours of remaining seated, I did not feel like doing anything else. This is just crazy. Tried to make an OC�Treport in vain.

Wdnesday, April 22, 2009 Fair

　The first schooling day of this school year began with a Reading class. Out of 21 students 17 students were present. In the forth period, too, there were 26 homeroom students came to their first homeroom hour of this academic year. There was a subject rep conference. Our rep left early, so I attended for him. I did a tentative calculation of the workload of each of the teachers.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009 Cloudy, occasionally rainy.

　A brisk morning walk with my wife for an hour or so. My wife was a little out of shape this morning, though. Then to the sign language club. On the way there bought some bread, and on the way home got some sushi for lunch. In the afternoon off to the Korean language school. Back home went out again to look for a good table clock in vain. Drove over to the pet food shop, too. Ate udon for supper at the usual place.

Monday, April 20, 2009 Cloudy and rainy.

　A morning Korean study meeting. There was a suggestion that we talk a little in Korean from next week on at the beginning. A good idea. Read a lot about English teaching. Printed the handouts for the classes for this week and next. Day eight of our morning brisk walk. As soon as I got home, I found the feces of one of our cats. She does that especially when she is mentally unstable.

Sunday, April 19, 2009 Fair

　There was an English study meeting for the first time in more than two months. We resumed reading "Sophie's World" in English. Ate bread for lunch. Then spent a few hours reading two books-almost done. Did a little printing for the first Reading class on Wednesday. Did not feel like making handouts or reports. Need to change my long-term plan.

Saturday, April 18, 2009 Fair

　Went to the English conversation school in the neightborhood in the morning. Today's talk centered around the mentality of young Japanese today-their egotistic attitude. They are the ones who have experinced what is called "classroom collapse." Therefore, the young generation's mindset is "I don't care about others," just like that of Kogarashi Monjiro dozens of years ago. Our bedside clock broke down this morning. We have had it ever since getting married-for nearly 30 years. Went shopping this evening for daily necessities. Ate supper at a drive-in ramen shop.

Friday, April 17, 2009 Overcast

　Took a morning brisk walk with my wife for the fifth straight day. No time to take a nap before going to work. Finished the Supercross. Read some downloads about the Communicative Language Teaching. Improved the first teaching plan for OC�T. Prepared for the Inclusive Learning in May. Went shopping at Korea Town. Cleaned the English Interview Room. Spent some time talking with an auditor and the part-time English teacher.

Thursday, April 16, 2009 Cloudy

　There were two meetings today. I spent about four hours at the meetings. Just being there was tiring enough. I really hate conferences. I would rather teach my students than be at a meeting or in conference. After four hours I was so exhausted I did not feel up to doing anything else. At home watched the 16th episode of "Beethoven Virus."

Wednesday, April 15, 2009 Fair

　Took a brisk morning walk with my wife. Just took a 30-minute nap before eating lunch. Left for work at the usual time. At work almost did one job after another according to my "Mini-Plan." Late at night a call from an ex-coworker, who spoke in English on the phone, so answered in English. Actually, she is a Japanese, so I said, "Why don't you speak in Japanese?" I wanted her to call during the day if she wished. A bit awkward.

Tuesday, April 14, 2009 Rainy

　Bought bread at the supermarket and went to the sign language club. Then ate lunch together with my Korean language classmates and our teacher. A little later we had our first lesson of this term. Coming back home, watched several episodes of the Korean drama "Beethoven Virus." My wife is now sick in bed. She says she has caught cold.

Monday, April 13, 2009 Fair

　Reported to work early in the morning. Took the 7:40 quasi-express train at the station, arriving quite early at my my workplace. On gate duty first, then unlocked the classroom, and helped a colleague deal with her new students. Awfully busy. There were a couple of things I was not sure how we should handle, though. Made a few handouts for classes.

Sunday, April 12, 2009 Fair

　Took the 8:04 a.m. train at the usual station, arriving at the destination at 8:38 a.m. No time to buy bread for lunch. Hurried to my workplace anyway. On parking lot duty in the morning. Walked to one of the bento shops neaar the station to buy a box lunch. At 2:00 p.m.helped a fellow teacher prepare for tomorrow's procedure after the entrance ceremony. Then made a Reading handout for my second class of the first term. A full day.

Saturday, April 11, 2009 Fiar (maybe）

　Stayed at home all day doing nothing but relaxing, watching "Beethoven Virus," a Korean drama, on DVD. I put out the garbage first thing in the morning, though. Our condo complex is covered with some thin net, so the sun does not come in very well. It is cloudy all day indoors even if it is sunny outside. My wife is feeling under the weather, which means I should not expect too much of her. I know better than to anger her.

Friday, April 10, 2009 Fair

　Worked in the gym to help prepare for the entrance ceremony the day after tomorrow. Took less than 30 minutes. Made a page of the next OC�Treprort. Took three hours off today and went to a piano concert. The pianist was rather old-maybe 62. I like Beethoven's Pathetique, and he played it O.K., but I was not very much moved. On the way home, I found a train stopping at the station with its doors all closed. I learned later that there was a groper or a molester on the train.

Thursday, April 9, 2009 Fair

　There was a kind of ceremony for those teachers who have either retired or have been transferred to another school. Then we had a staff meeting. I handed the papers of my former homeroom students to their next homeroom teachers. Took a couple of hours off today. Although I have been a teacher for over 30 years, the more I know about this world, the more I dislike it. There are no such people as "educators" in this world. The modern school system has long been half dead.

Wednesday, April 8, 2009 Cloudy

　Yesterday evening a chair was delivered. Our older son bought it at a Yahoo auction. Although it is a used one, it must have been expensive. He gave me his old chair, which is better than the one I have been using. At work there were two meetings-a studnet council teachers' meeting and an information meeting for new students' sign-up procedure. Tried to make the first page of the 2nd-term Reading report. Almost done.

Tuesday, April 7, 2009 Fair

　Went to the morning sign language. In the afternoon up to myself for the first time in many days on this substitute holiday. My neck was especially in pain, so I just took a nap. When I woke up, I went to the usual confectionery to buy some apple pie because my wife said she wanted to eat it. Then watched a Korean drama on DVD, the title of which is "Beethoven Virus." Sent some files to the new vice-president of the sign language club.

Monday, April 6, 2009 Fair

　Today's Korean study meeting was cancelled. Made a long-term work plan. Spent some time reading. Made almost two handouts. Called a homeroom student on the phone in vain. Another came to see me because he left the notice at home. I gave him a copy. Two others called me. Listened to the English CDs for the English texts in preparation for classes. I was dead tired at the end of the day.

Sunday, April 5, 2009 Cloudy

　Taking the first one hour off, went to work in the morning. On report duty on the second floor between noon and 1:00 p.m. I was shouted at by another staff member because I was not there in the report room. I was just making a sign saying,"Show us your receipt, too" because I thought it would be a hassle for us to keep saying the same line. Never expected to be yelled at, though. Called six homeroom students only to contact two. Left a message with the answering machine for one student. Could not reach the rest. Did some reading only. Have not started preparing for classes or reports yet. I need to get started as soon as possible, but I I do not seem to get into gear now.

Saturday, April 4, 2009 Rainy

　Gave my mother-in-law a ride to the clinic as usual. Then went to the noodle shop for lunch. Helped out at my mother-in-law's home for a while and went out again in our family car with my wife to go shopping for cat food, cat sand, etc. Sent back the cash handout application form. Looked for a small metal dish for cat milk and finally located a good one at the all-1000-yen shop near the station.

Friday, April 3, 2009 Overcast

　There is a saying that goes "Don't forget your original intention," but being busy with little things to do every day, we tend to lose the whole picture. That is the case wtih most people. As soon as school begins for me, probably I will do the so-called "hand-to-mouth operation"( jitensha sogyo). Today I spent much time shooting the breeze on the second floor again.

Thursday, April 2, 2009 Fair by and large.

　Took a rather short morning walk this morning for lack of time. At work today's staff meeting lasted for over two hours, which was quite tiring. Then there was an English teachers' meeting, after which I had my bento supper. Two of my homeroom students changed their addresses last year, so I added this info to the school records. Spent some time shooting the breeze on the second floor. 　

Wednesday, April 1, 2009 Cloudy, occasinally rainy.

　On the way to work it began to rain suddenly, so I ran into the all-100-yen shop and got an umbrella. The first day of the new academic year-the season for personnel changes. One of the new comers to our workplace turned out to be somebody I know. A joint staff meeting, and then an ordinary teachers' meeting, followed by a subject conference. Lastly, a Student Council teachers' meeting. This year I belong to the Student Council section again. I am one of the two treasurers again and also in charge of fire drills. I am on what is called the system committee, too. April Fools' Day was a full day. Repair work has begun on our condo complex. They put up part of the scaffolding today.