books and kanji

we went shopping yesterday. i need a backpack and some shoes for school. i've been looking for a while and can't seem to commit to anything. especially the backpack. we wandered around shinjuku, then made our way to shibuya. we looked through a pretty huge used clothing store. i picked up a bag and carried it around while i looked for a black blazer (something i've been wanting but don't want to spend $60.00 on...). i ended up putting the bag back when i saw it better in the light, i couldn't find a blazer i liked (can you wear a black skirt with a different colored blazer? google offered mixed answers), and wearing used shoes is gross to me.

so, abandoning our quest for things we actually need, in true sweatt fashion, we went to a used book store. WITH AN ENGLISH SECTION!!

this is what we ended up going home with...

the start of our lemony snicket collection-for our future children, of course! :)

in other news, i've been studying kanji with renewed passion. we found a new book/method called "remembering the kanji" by james heisig. this man is brilliant. he rearranged the kanji in a way that is easier for the brain to remember by putting together kanji that have the same kinds of parts. in addition, heisig tells a small story using what he calls "primitives" (a different breakdown of the kanji parts than the traditional radicals) and asks you to draw a picture in your mind. he doesn't offer any pictures or drawings, stating that such visuals only cause the imagination to become locked into someone else's idea. by asking you to visualize it yourself, you then form pathways in your brain that cause you to remember. some stories work better than others. but overall i have been really surprised at how much easier the remembering has been.

there is something else kind of weird about the method. it doesn't teach you how to read. the book offers one basic word or phrase to associate with the kanji and that's it. heisig states clearly that his book isn't to teach you to read, only to help you "remember the kanji" (a brilliant title, if i do say so myself). 

if you've struggled with remembering the kanji (oops, sorry) by starting with the traditional ones given to 1st graders or you've tried studying them in the "most used" order, i highly recommend this book. it's actually fun and i look forward to seeing how cleverly heisig can put together primitives to create a story. 

I was writing to my dear cousin this morning and reminded of God's goodness these last few weeks. I have been through lots of ups and downs, but I've come out "seeing His goodness in the land of the living!" (Ps. 27:13).

Where to begin? I didn't mean for it to be so long in between updates! The first few days were such a whirlwind. I'm currently filling out a survey for my new company about how training was for me and I'm really struggling to remember what all happened.

There are two curriculums that we teach daily at the kindergartens. Training was broken down this way: introduction of curriculum number 1, teach curriculum number one to 4 and 5 year olds. Intro to curriculum number 2, teach curriculum number 2 to 4 and 5 year olds.

I was on information overload for a while! I have met 20-plus teachers from all over the world (all with names, beautiful and hilarious personalities, and varying stories!), I have been introduced to and am getting to know a whole new church family, I have dealt with huge numbers of children in a very short time span (forget trying to learn names here!), I have learned to implement two curriculums, each with dozens of songs, games and goals, and I've tried to learn a whole new city! I am pretty much ready to explode. Gratefully, I am much more settled now and am getting more familiar with the curriculums and people every day. The city, well....I'm still working on that!

Hanami (flower gazing) with our church family.

 God has surrounded us with a very wonderful group of people!! The other teachers have been welcoming and understanding and helpful in so many way. And our new church family is incredible! I feel like I'm back at home even though it's my first time. I cannot say enough good things about the individuals who have made both of feel so very welcome and loved.

Sonny is happy to be back with his buddies!

The city has taken a bit of time to get used to. It is infinitely huge, with unending shops, restaurants, bars, and so many people!!! The first week my feet and calves were ridiculously sore. It's better now but I still have to be careful what shoes I choose to walk for hours in. Blisters happen often and heels are NOT my friend. We live about 20 minutes from what I consider "the city". Though we're still in Tokyo. 60 minute commutes are the norm (you're kind of lucky if it only takes an hour!). During training I commuted all over the place and one school in particular took 2.5 hours one way. It's a whole new way of life!

Shibuya on Sunday morning. 

Sorry for the blurriness. The people wouldn't hold still so I could capture the moment. 

Something else that is very different is the necessity to eat out often. If you're only cooking for a couple of people it is just as cheap to eat out as it is to collect all the things you need to cook. We rarely ate out in Gotemba so this has taken some getting used to. I have begun cooking more recently (to give our stomachs a break!), but we still eat out quite a bit. I think once we settle more deeply into regular routines, it will be easier to cook more and make habits of eating in and carrying our own lunches around. 

Celebrating 6 months of happiness in Futakotamagawa.

Lunch one afternoon during training!

That's it for this post. More on share-house living and other city related topics next time!