New Years

I'm slowly learning more and more about my blog interface and this can explain the constantly changing setup, so apologies to anyone who is confused. However as I am learning to customize my blog my enjoyment from writing in it grows and I now will hopefully update daily or at the most every other day. So to my massive blog audience of all of ten people or so brace yourself for an onslaught of information from the land of the rising sun.

First of all an update on the old job situation. I have put out about 20 or so applications for various English teaching positions with most of them being centered in the greater Tokyo area. As this is the hiring season for ALTs (Assistant Language Teachers) for the upcoming school year which begins in April I have a chance of securing one of said positions. However due to the lateness of my applications and the flood of out of work Nova teachers I am keeping my expectations realistic. More news as it happens.

This is a picture of Kintetsu department store in Tennoji on New Years Eve. I went shopping there with Ayuko's mom at 9AM that day and was basically assaulted by diminutive Japanese housewives for two hours as I carried the ever growing bags of groceries she bought. Those ladies know how to throw elbows.



Three pictures of the massive crowd at the shrine I went to with Ayuko and her family on New Years Day. Chaos. A riot almost ensued when they realized a gaijin was in their midst, but the monks were able to quell it with minimal bloodshed.