About
Live blogging my 1st day of work on the new job
Here’s a running account of my first day of work at Toyama University. It’s not often I have days like today, I’ll take time to capture and reflect on what’s happening when I get some spare moments.
9:15am
I leave home with the car packed full of boxes containing books, notebooks, and other various office supplies. Today I have the following tasks to complete:
- Meet the president and get my official notice of employment
- Move in to my office and get set up
- Check out the classrooms where I’ll be teaching
- Figure out the computer system here
- This and that paperwork/admin stuff as it comes up
I’m really feeling excited and ready to go back to work after a long spring break. The sun is shining bright, and it’s a cool crisp early spring morning.
9:35am
The drive to work was smooth and clear. Officially the work day runs from 8:30 to 5:15, but those hours are not enforced. Teachers can come and go as they need. Since I won’t have any 1st period classes (thank God), that means I won’t have to deal with the morning rush hour. Great!
I found a great parking spot, right near my building’s side entrance, with good access to my 2nd floor office. This is the Faculty of Humanities building, where I’m situated. I wonder if I’ll ever get to play tennis?
9:45am
I meet the teacher next door, Daikuhara-sensei. She is very kind and guides me to the admin office in this building (Faculty of Humanities) so I can get my office key. When I open my door for the first time, here’s what it looked like:
It’s a very old room that has seen better days, I’m sure. Bill, my predecessor, did a nice job of cleaning up. He even left me some presents, such as an old eMac and while MacBook laptop. Won’t be using those, so I’ll need to find a place to move them. I’m going to need Shinobu’s help to arrange this place; it’s going to be my home away from home, so I want it very nice and comfortable.
10:05am
I head over to an administration office building to meet with the president and receive my official notice of employment. That’s not until 10:30… Nakamura-san, an office guy, stops by the little waiting room where I’m at to begin the orientation process. He gives me an envelope full of paperwork. I expected this, but not a full centimeter thick pile!! Holy Toledo. I have until Thrusday to fill all this out, in Japanese. It’s important stuff, like my bank info for where they will deposit my paycheck. Shinobu will be busy helping me! :-)
10:30am
Nakamura-san takes me over to this very fancy room to meet the president. It’s the kind of place with wood paneling and big, soft chairs, the place where important people sit and chat about important things.
It’s kind of intimidating, and I feel my heart speeding up. I breathe deeply and relax… Then this underling guy comes in and announces formally that the ceremony will begin. In walks the president. I heard from Nakamura-san that he was a brain surgeon… Wow. I stand up, bow, and we shake hands. I say ohayo gozaimasu [good morning] brightly, then we get to it. He reads off a prepared script from a paper, then hands me the official document. I receive it with both hands, then bow and say, Domo arigato gozaimasu. Ganbarimasu! [Thanks very much! I’ll do my best]. We then shake hands again, and he says that he would like to stay and chat, but that he has another meeting to get to. He would like to meet again, however. I tell him likewise, and hope he really means it.
Judging from the big Tomidai promotional poster featuring him spandex on a bike, he looks like a real cool guy. I know just where this photo was taken… I would like to get to know him. We shall see! And that was that. Took about two minutes!
10:45am
Nakamura-san takes me across campus to meet with the Dean of Humanities, Yoshida-sensei. It’s a bright sunny day, and we chit chat along the way. I’m feeling loose and relaxed, and the Japanese flows out more easily than usual. I notice this and feel happy. Something about being here makes it easier to speak in this language. Always before at work I’ve been in a very English focused environment, but here, as the lone English instructor, I’m just another regular teacher. The English taught here is basically literature and English-American studies. As a result, Japanese is the main lingua-franca. In a way that helps, believe it or not. I don’t feel so tight about making mistakes and just let what I know fly. I happy to confirm that I can cover basic communication. I can tell my new Japanese colleagues appreciate that. I’m looking forward to improving as the years go by, especially with reading and writing…
Here’s the approach up to the Humanities building, on the left. The library is on the right.
10:53am
I meet with Yoshida-sensei and another guy from the Humanities admin office. Since we had gone out drinking a few days ago, this was a re-meet! After that, Nakamura-san said good-bye and I went back to my office. Here’s my view. The tennis club was practicing all morning, making a big racket! Ho ho ho! :-)
11:01am
After a few minutes of looking around, my next-door neighbor Daikuhara-sensei comes by. She takes me on a grand tour around campus. We visit all the classrooms where I’ll be teaching, tour the library (and get my library card), learn how to use A/V equipment, meet office staff in various buildings, and end up at the IT center, where I find out about the university’s computer network system.
It’s a long story, but bottom line I was able to see where I’ll be working and began the process of getting connected computer-wise. I was told to return at 3pm to get my password. So far so smooth. Daikuhara-sensei was very patient and kind. I’m feeling grateful for her help. Here’s a view of the campus from the 6th floor computer room where I’ll be teaching a class:
1:16pm
I’m famished! Time for some lunch. I head on over to the bakery/convenience store at the Student Union, but the pickin’s are slim, so I change my mind and go over to a cafeteria next door. It’s in an old building, but who cares? I’m SO HUNGRY. I chow down on the lunch below:
Rice, butajiru [pork vegetable soup], tofu, kabocha [pumpkin], and some fried fish. It’s a very simple and satisfying meal. Half-way through, Sakai-sensei joins me. I had met him several years ago when I did a presentation here. I also helped edit an English paper for him. He was glad to see me and was happy that I got the job. His English was totally fluent, and it was nice to be able to use it! We had a good talk. I look forward to working with him.
2:07pm
After lunch I went back to my office, chilled out a bit, then began loading all the boxes from my car. This was a heavy job- I had to lug six boxes and my printer up a flight of stairs. But the weather was cool and brisk, so it was a rather invigoration bout of exercise.
Last box! Yataa!
3:01pm
I head back over to the IT center to meet with Kobayashi-san. He gives me my email account addresses (one for work and one to use with students), shows me how to connect them to my regular email accounts, then configures my Macbook to receive the school’s wifi signal. Great! I’m all set now.
3:48pm
I get back to my office, look at that stack of boxes, then sigh. I don’t have the energy to open these up today! I’ll save this fun for tomorrow.
I look around my spare and slightly dingy office, wondering how I’m going to set it up. Where should I put the desk? How can I arrange the shelves and chairs? How can I get rid of stuff I don’t need?
Suddenly, Daikuhara-sensei knocks on the door. She comes in and tries to show me about the online university course management system, but I’m not able to log in. She calls IT and finds out that it’s going to take a little while before I can access that. No biggie. Then we head downstairs, where she shows me how to use the security card I had received earlier to enter the building during off-hours. Likewise, I learn how to use my copy card for making photocopies. I poke around the menu of this copy machine and discover I can change the language to English! Cool beans.
We also head over to the admin office, where we negotiate with the manager about acquiring some headsets with microphones for my conversation classes. I’ll have all my lessons in a computer lab (CL), where I want to use various online resources such as Quizlet and EnglishCentral during class. I really need those headsets, and I was bummed when I found out they didn’t have any. I told Daikuhara-sensei that I was willing to use my kenkyuhi [research budget] to acquire them, but she said I shouldn’t and convinced the office manager to buy 25 of them! Sweet!! I probably won’t get them until May, but that’s okay.
4:07pm
Back in my office. I’m pooped! I’m spending my last hour writing this blog entry up and taking notes on all the various things I learned, people I met, and stuff I have to do. I’m really happy that I was able to accomplish everything I wanted to get done today. Tomorrow I’m going to work on setting up the office of real and then get down to preparing my lessons. I begin teaching classes next Monday, but I have to start at Chukyo this Friday. So there is much setting up and planning still to do. Overall, I’m really psyched and looking forward to rocking this job!
5:00pm
I leave for home right at five. Gotta get home in time to pick up Max at kindergarten (she started her new year today, her last one) and take Luke to swim practice.
Talandis Family News Update (February 2012)
February was a busy month for our family. Lots of stuff has been going on lately with all of us, so instead of multiple posts, I’ll just put everything here together.
Bionic Mama Gets an Upgrade
My wife Shinobu had a heart attack about six years ago. She was given an ICD (Implantable Cardio Defibrillator) to jump-start her heart in case it when hay-wire. This month it came time to replace the device, so Shinobu spent 10 days in Toyama University Hospital (where Max was born) getting her upgrade. Check out this photo collage:
1: Shinobu and I just before her surgery. It was a simple 1 hour procedure. She received a local anesthetic and was awake during the change. The new device was put into the same spot as before, just below her left solar bone. It is a bit smaller than the old one, but a bit fatter, so her techno-bulge is a bit more pronounced. Oh well! 2: A nurse takes care of Shinobu just after her surgery. 3: It was all thumbs up- everything went very smoothly. She had to stay in bed for only about an hour, then she was able to move about. 4: The next day I took the kids to visit. Of course Shinobu really enjoyed this time; most of the time she was lying around watching TV or the movies I put on her iPad. 5: The kids enjoyed hanging out and relaxing on her bed. Luke usually played with her iPad, and Max liked to watch TV. 6: Papa, on the other hand, did some video editing on his Macbook. I was working on creating a highlight reel of Shinobu’s swim team’s recent meet. I also put movies on her iPad for her to watch.
Now my wife is safe and sound at home. This is something she’ll have to do every 5 to 7 years. Our hope is that the technology will continue to evolve, and this will get easier as the years go by. She’ll have to go in for checkups regularly to make sure everything is okay, then eventually will be back to her regular schedule of one check-up every two months.
Max Sings, Dances, and Acts on a Big Stage
Yesterday Max participated in her first ever school recital. It was a big production- her nursery school/kindergarten rented out a big hall in the neighboring town for a big three hour extravaganza. Each class had to perform four numbers: a choir-style song, a musical performance (with harmoniums, drums, and xylophones), a short play, and a gymnastics demonstration. Check out the collage:
1: All the students from Max’s kindergarten gathered on a big stage at the Osawano Bunka Hall. The sign says, “Sugihara Kindergarten School Recital”. 2: During the musical performance, Max’s role was to wave some pom poms. Cute! 3: Max did some bridge-walking during the gymnastics demo. She has been practicing a lot for this at home. It’s amazing what she can do! 4: Max acts on stage as a wolf in her class’s short play. They acted out a traditional Japanese folktale.
What a great time! Max’s school really pulled out all the stops. The auditorium was packed with family- parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and lots of crying brothers and sisters. The kids were nervous, but they did a great job, especially with the music and gymnastics.
Luke trains with an Olympic swimmer
Recently Shinobu took Luke and two other of her YBG team members to a nearby town for a swimming workshop held by a member of Japan’s Olympic team in the recent Beijing games.
Shibata Ryuichi, who swam in the 200m butterfly in a lane next to Michael Phelps, was the main attraction. He talked about how to swim the butterfly more efficiently and then practiced with over 100 local swimmers in the pool. Luke got to meet him and got a high-five when he showed off his stuff. That must have been cool! Go Luke! Here’s a photo of Luke with Shibata-san and fellow YBG team mate, Chiaki.
Papa’s new job
My big news is that I got a new job! I’ll be teaching English speaking and writing at Toyama University starting in April. This job came up very suddenly; I heard about it at the JALT conference this past November, applied in December, then waited and waited and waited… It became way past time when most schools decide on their staff for the following year, so I convinced myself they had passed me by. I was all set to keep on with my current routine (which I was happy to do, actually), when suddenly, on my birthday (January 18th), I received an invitation to interview for the Tomidai (Toyama University’s nickname) position. I did, it went swimmingly well, and I was offered the job an hour later. Amazing. I was floored. It all went so smooth, like destiny clicking into place.
Last week I had a meeting with my predecessor, Bill Holden. I checked out his (my) office. It’s a good space, with a view of the tennis courts behind the Humanities building and near a side entrance which I can use to escape easily if need be. Bill was in the midst of packing up his stuff, so the place was covered with stacked boxes and books. It was great to envision working there. There is a sink, so I’ll be able to ride my bike to work and take a sponge bath, like I did when I worked at TCFL. We also walked around campus, with Bill showing me where I’ll be teaching. He answered all my prepared questions and was very kind and helpful. Here are some shots from that day:
1: A shot of the Humanities Faculty building, where my office will be and where I’ll teach the bulk of my courses. It was a cold, snowy day. You can see the tennis courts in front of the building. Bill says they are quite noisy once the weather picks up. 2: My office. Besides a desk and shelves, there are two soft chairs and a sofa. I’ll use this as a meeting area in case colleagues or students come by for a chat. 3, 5: A couple of the classrooms where I may be teaching. Rooms haven’t been set yet, but this is where Bill taught. I have requested computer labs, so we’ll see if that pans out. 4: The entrance to the Human Development Faculty building, where I’ll be teaching two classes.
Again, it was great to be able to check out my new digs. I’m currently working on filling out syllabus forms, planning on what I’ll be teaching. Next week (on March 7th) I’m heading back to Togaku for my final day of work. I have a short 45 minute class during the annual Open Campus event. There will also be a ceremony to say good-bye to outgoing teachers (Clair and I) and welcome our successors. It’s going to be a bitter-sweet day!
Today I finished teaching classes for the 2011-12 school year! My Intro to
Research & Presentation students have just finished their final
presentations. This school year is toast. It’s all done. Water under the
bridge. History. Been there done that. That’s all she wrote, Th-th-that’s
all folks!
Yataa!
I made it.
Now on to work-at-home mode until April. I have several big projects and
some other duties to complete, but it will be nice to be on my own
schedule. Interesting job…
A shaky day at work
I’m on the “shink” to Nagoya, where I’ll be teaching tomorrow at Chukyo University. Although I have two more Fridays there, my classes at Togaku end on Monday, January 16th. It has been a very busy week, mainly because I’ve had to wrap up classes, mark papers, and get my grades in. Basic end-of-term teacher stuff. Things are going well over all.
The only shake-up came today during the afternoon when I suddenly heard my cell-phone shrieking. It was that unmistakable earthquake warning sound. My co-worker Clair and I were in the TK office, but nothing was happening. Then slowly the building started to rumble and then sway a bit. We were on pins and needles for a few seconds, wondering if the shaking would build up or wind down. Fortunately it soon subsided, and life went back to normal. That’s life in the big city! Turns out the quake was a 5.7 and didn’t do any damage. I’m grateful for that! This kind of occurrence has become a part of life these days.
Our pool gets new flooring:
Went into swim practice yesterday at my wife’s pool for the first time in 2012 and was greeting with a new scene: bright yellow flooring had been installed over the New Years’ break. As you can see when compared to the previous blue/orange combo, it’s a much livelier atmosphere now. The color was my wife Shinobu’s choice; she persuaded her boss to go with yellow over his choice of gray. Judging by the new look, I’d say that choice was a good one.
My hard-working wife
Shinobu was promoted to the #2 position at the Yatsuo B&G pool, where she has worked for the past several years. This means she has to do a lot more work for the same salary as before. Not complaining; it’s just a fact and a natural result of having more responsibility.
For example, she worked yesterday on a national holiday to get the pool water heated in time for today’s opening. It still hadn’t reached the optimal temperature by closing time, so she had to go in at 6am this morning to get the job done. This sort of extra duty is par for the course for my hard-working wife!
I’m very proud of the work she is doing at her pool. The place is a bustling community center these days, open to people of all ages. She has organized all sorts of swimming classes and events. She’s coaching a small team of competitive swimmers and during her breaks works with Luke. Needless to say, the pool’s finances are doing quite well, a reflection of the hard work Shinobu and her staff have put in.
TFiJ26: Papa gets a new job
Great news! I have a new job. From April 1st I’ll be working full-time at Toyo Gakuen University, near Tokyo. My schedule runs from Mondays thru Thursdays, so that will enable me to come back to Toyama each weekend and during the spring, summer and winter breaks. I’ll be a long-distance papa for the next few years, it looks. This is a huge change for us, and I’ll be writing about it in more detail in the weeks to come. For now, check out this diary-style video which chronciles the day I went for my interview. You’ll see what it’s like to travel across Japan by train, take a tour of the Togaku campus, and hear my thoughts on what happened after the interview. Please ask me questions or leave a comment below!
Obama mania hits Japan
Wow, what a day yesterday! It seems like the entire world was watching and celebrating Obama’s inauguration, the new American Renaissance. Here in Japan is no different. From the hula-dancing “Obama Girls” in the fishing villiage called Obama ( it means “small beach” in Japanese), to the latest bestselling book, a collection of Obama speeches meant to help you study English, the new American president is top of the news. News outlets are doing lots of “person in the street” interviews, and here in Toyama City, a reporter came to my school yesterday afternoon to get the reaction of the American teachers (me and my colleague Susan, who is from Hawaii). After being asked all sorts of Obama questions, the reporter asked if the other foreign staff could join us in a group photo, which you can see below in this article from today’s Toyama Shimbun:
From left to right are: Stephen (from the UK), Kevin (above him, from Canada), me, Susan, Lee (from Canada), and David (from New Zealand). The caption reads, “Here are some local foreign teachers reading about Obama’s inauguration ceremony.” When we saw this photo this morning, we had to laugh because of the way the reporter staged the shot. Of course we don’t read this newspaper! Still, it was a goof. We were having a good time cracking jokes about how contrived the situation was. Here is a rough translation of the article. The headline says, “Chance to change history- Happiness spreads as President Obama begins his term in office”. That centered vertical title says, “Teachers from America and other countries based in Toyama ponder the impact on the economy and foreign affairs.” The first part of the story mentions comments from teachers working in Toyama. Then the good part:
An instructor at TCFL, Gerald Talandis Jr., watched the ceremony live on TV at 2 am. “Obama’s message is one of empowerment- that people can do anything they want if they work together”, he said. “His inaugural speech was very positive. People accept Obama because he comes across as a sincere, passionate person. I expect him to rebuild America like before.”
So that’s a rough translation. I actually said a lot more than that, and more eloquently (I thought), but most of it got lost in translation, I guess. I’m not totally sure if this translation is spot on or not, but it’s close enough. Anyway, just thought you’d find this interesting. Oh, and one more thing: My sister Vi, who lives in DC, attended the historic event. Here is a link to the photos she took. I had a great time showing these to my students today in class! They really enjoyed seeing a real participant’s point-of-view on the entire thing. Great job, Vi!
Papa gets published
Here is some good news: My first ever research article has been formally published! I’m very psyched. The article is entitled “Web 2.0 in the ELT classroom: An introduction”, and it was published in the JALT2007 Conference Proceedings. It’s all about how teachers can make use of some very cool online resources and technologies for improving the way they teach and developing their professional skills. This article is based on a presentation I gave a year ago at the annual JALT conference of language teachers in Tokyo. While the article only appears online, still- a publication is a publication, and it’s a good start for me. I am interested in this area of teaching and learning, so this piece was part of my overall effort to develop this interest into a marketable skill. I really want to be a university professor, so publishing is part of what I need to do more of in order to get that kind of job. To download the full article, just click here. In case you are not interested in reading the entire thing, here is the abstract:
With the rapid development of the Internet, emerging technologies are reshaping the context of web-based information and creating numerous opportunities for enhanced classroom practice and professional development. Blogging, wikis, podcasting, and social networking are a few examples of so-called Web 2.0 technologies that language teachers are currently exploring. While early adopters have made impressive use of these new tools, many ELT instructors remain on the outside looking in—wanting to know more, but overwhelmed by the rapid pace of change. This article challenges the assumption that only those already in-the-know can keep up with educational technology. For educators new to the Web 2.0 evolution, clarity and direction is provided through defining Web 2.0 in layman’s terms and introducing key technological concepts such as folksonomy, RSS feeds, and syndication. In addition, a theoretical foundation for a technology enhanced pedagogy is outlined, one that places Web 2.0 within a social constructivist and connectivist context. Finally, an overview of relevant technologies applicable to ELT is provided, along with successful classroom usage models and links to online resources.
Does this make sense to you? If not, ask me some questions by leaving a comment below.
My busy mornings
Hey, instead of a video clip, I have something new this time: a “Voicethread” featuring photos and commentary from a typical morning at our home. Voicethreads (from Voicethread.com) are a new and cool way of sharing photos. Not only can you hear (or see, if I had used a video camera) me, but you can also leave text, audio, or even video comments (if you have a camera attached to your computer). So, have at it, folks! Click the big triangle play button below and check out how I spend my busy mornings. Click the Comment button to leave your own words or voice. Lets see if we can get a bit of a dialog going!
