I have had trouble sleeping lately, might be because it's warmer and the sun is coming up earlier. Whatever the reason I've been getting really tired, so Tuesday night I took one of the sleeping tablets I bought almost a year ago for when I'm taking overseas plane trips.
I slept ok Tuesday night, but didn't wake up in time wednesday morning. So I was late for work. Wednesday is the day I go to Amanuma, it's a half hour ride away. I got there at 8:40, ten minutes late. Normally that would be fine as classes start at 8:55. But of course on this one day there was a special timetable with an 8:40 start. So I was 5 minutes late getting to class.
For each class a couple of students come to the teachers room and ask me to come to their room. There were 3 kids and a teacher waiting for me and looking unhappy. Not a good example to set and does nothing for the reputation of foreigners.
Anyway, it seems that on wednesday there was a big teachers meeting for all of the regular teachers from around the city. So the last 2 classes for the day were cancelled. I thought I'd get a couple of hours off since I had no work to do and I was already well away from my base school.
But then I got a call from the head english teacher (who was out of town on the year 6 school trip) she was also calling my supervisor at the board of education to arrange where I'd be that afternoon. I reluctantly said I'd o back to Kurohone, at least I'd get internet access there.
I stopped at a supermarket on the way and picked up some things, so I wasn't in a hurry and took my time getting back.
When I did get into school there was one teacher on duty. He let me know that Amanuma had called him when I left to tell him I was on my way, don't know if he was making a point about the time or not.
Then the vice principal came back early and had a laugh about me leaving late that morning, he's a nice guy but I still felt irritated that I have no privacy. If any other teacher had been sligtly late no-one would know. And I know from experience that Japanese teachers can also be late, but in their case it's seen as an exception, while if a foreigner turns up late it's seen as confirmation of our general lack of punctuality.
Oh well. I was still tired all day yesterday and went to bed at about 5pm. I got up around 8 and after eating and watching some ABC shows I had downloaded (legally from the ABC website) I went back to bed around 11pm.
I'm doing better today, although I'm pretty worn out from the elementary kids. I was grabbing them by the arms and spinning them around at lunch time. At least I taught them to say 'Spin please'. But it really wore me out, some of them were pretty big kids and once was never enough.
I got a quote from Kinko's in Tokyo on printing postcards today, but it's well over a dollar a card so I'm looking at alternatives (i.e. Holmesglen), it's important to go to Palm Springs prepared, so I need to get something organised. I'll need business cards as well, and a couple of posters. I can do the colour posters at Kinko's since there'll only be a couple of sheets, and probably the business cards as they'll be B&W and therefore relatively cheap.
It's all a cost though, and it adds up eventually, but it looks bad if you turn up and try to talk to Producers' unprepared. So it'll have to be done.
