Good Enough

Sunday was an especially lazy day, even for me. It started ambitiously. My intention was to get up around 9, wash up in the kitchen, give the bedroom a much needed tidy and then settle down to some Japanese vocabulary learning. By the evening I would do some proper cooking, before maybe relaxing with a movie.

I got out of bed at about 10.30 and immediately settled down with a movie. I didn’t move all that much from my sofa for the rest of the day. The first movie was the bloody and disturbing Kill List, a sort of horror/thriller from Ben Wheatley. It’s a particularly violent film and at times quite difficult to watch. There’s one especially nasty scene in which someone is tortured with a hammer. You get very used to the camera cutting away at the crucial moment in films like this. But in Kill List’s case, that never happens.

Tyres!

After a quick pit stop for unhealthy snacks, I settled down with the aim of watching Before Sunrise and Before Sunset in an epic double bill. I’ve always preferred the latter but wanted to give the former another chance. But I kept getting distracted by Skype calls and the strong feeling of guilt that comes from wasting a day in a foreign country. Seriously, when you spend a lazy Sunday in the UK, you sometimes feel a bit guilty afterwards. But doing it in Japan multiplies that by 10. Any wasted time leads to the feeling of “Shouldn’t I be out there exploring and being generally youthful and fabulous?”

I was very jealous of K-Chan, who the previous day had headed to Osaka Spa World for an afternoon of Europe-themed hot springs. I am needing to treat myself a lot right now, just to maintain my mood. A lot of people are feeling stressed, ill, depressed, confused and generally a bit worse for wear at the moment. I’ve had to consciously push myself to stay active. The deadline for re-contracting is coming up and many of the JETs are still on the fence. At the same time, it’s dark outside and cold inside which, along with the annual flu outbreak, has got many people down.

I still feel pretty good though. I think it helps that I have the crutch of a job to return to. Also, being here with someone else makes a huge amount of difference as one thing that people struggle with is the lack of friends to communicate with. I have my best friend out here with me, so I always have someone to talk to. The only thing that has bothered me really is that I would have liked to have been better at Japanese by now. I still don’t feel I can have a real conversation in Japanese with my friends and co-workers. This is a little frustrating, given that I have been working really hard at my Japanese since I got here. I think it’s just a very hard language and all the work will eventually accumulate. My worry is that as soon as I get half-decent at it, I will be returning to the UK.

Is Data a bit of a stereotype?

The head of English Club asked me to recommend some films so they could have a new DVD selection. Amongst the films I chose was The Goonies. I was looking forward to watching this with my students as I felt the level of English was not too difficult and that it was quite a visual movie. Also, The Goonies rules. It was only when John and Suz reminded me of the casual racism that I started to worry. I mean, Data is a bit of an ethnic stereotype isn’t he? Look at these Asians and their crazy love of technology! Isn’t the Dad sweet with his silly camera! When he says “booby traps” it sounds like “booty twats”! I’m a bit worried there’s gonna be a diplomatic incident when they see it.