Evaluation!!!

I asked my supervisor last week about the evaluation that’s done by the schools for each of the English teachers in my program. He told me that he would go over the comments with me in a week. So, Monday I was escorted to the meeting room down the hall from the main office at the board of education. “Please have a seat,” spoken emotionlessly. I sat down and folded my hands on my lap while he arranged the documents on the table for me to read….Here is what they said (verbatim, yes errors/awkward English and all…with the exception of the things Spell Check caught…):

The Outline of the Outcome of the Work Performance Evaluation
March 1st 2007

The Work Performance Evaluation was made on basing your principals and teachers comments mainly

You never took unpaid leave of ay kind last year. And you were always punctual for your job.

You worked eagerly as a member of ALTs of the Minami Chikugo Branch Office.

You can behave responsibly for having been asked.

You are liked by a lot of students, because you are very friendly to them.

You can speak English at a speed that students understand easily.

Because you have experiences of living in some countries and experiences of having actually studied Japanese and French, you understand the difficulties and the importance of studying the foreign language.

You try to understand student’ feelings, and you can appropriately help them or speak to them.

You participate in the class of music or penmanship, and you try to have chances to make friends with students and other staffs.

You can provide a lot of good ideas about lessons for JTE, and you voluntarily try to check student’ work-sheet etc.

You are a wonderful ALT who has leadership and the sense of responsibility for her job.

We show you great honor as a member of the Minami Chikugo ALTs. Minami Chikugo Branch Office


Not that any of this was a shock, but while he was handing me the evaluation to read I was thinking in the back of my mind, “Hmmm…I wonder if those times that I happened to be dozing at my desk were documented…” HAHAHAHA! “No one could find any negative comments about you. We are glad to have you as a part of the Minami Chikugo Board of Education.” YAY!

Last night I went to a friend’s apartment near the city for a get together. He made some really good pasta, others brought bread and assorted stinky cheeses (camembert tastes like paint…the kind you paint cars with…yes that toxic!), sautéed spinach with bean sprouts, salad, strawberries, and I made candied Japanese yams. After dinner we all sat squished together under a comforter to watch Stranger Than Fiction on his Mac (pssshaaaa, only PCs for me thanx). At about 10:45, I asked him if he had a train schedule…he didn’t so we paused the movie to check it on the internet real quick. 11:26 and 11:28…as everyone thought to themselves “We should definitely be finished watching to movie by then…” It didn’t help that the part of the movie we were on was starting to get good. The movie ended at approximately 11:20 so we jump up to put on our coats. I was moving slowly so our host said, “Your train’s leaving in 6 minutes!” I said, “Yeah, but there’s another one at 11:36.” He looked at me crazy and said, “No, it leaves 2 minutes after the one that’s leaving in 6 minutes!” DOH! So we dash out of the door and down the street. Usually when you’re traveling back home from a new place it seems like the trip is much shorter, right? Well let me tell you something, when you’re running through 40 something degree air, with your shoes half on, toting a ceramic bowl…it’s seem like FOREVER…even if it was downhill all the way. Chest burning and clock taunting me, I stopped running. Think Quick! A CAB! Well we missed two and just when we thought all hope was lost because we could see the station but were still quite a ways away, another cab light appeared. So, I jumped in the middle of the street in hopes that he wasn’t crazy. Paid about $6 to go less than 75 yards but as we were jumping out of the cab, the train was pulling into the station! A rapid (the 11:26) at that! SAFE! So I got home and stayed up until like 2:30 doing a little work and a lot of catching up on the news. PEOPLE ARE CRAZY! What’s the deal with all these people cutting folks up in America these days. I thought it was understood that that’s just nasty after Geoffrey Dommer! Sure folks in Japan have been doing it quite a bit lately but that don’t make it right!!!

The school I work at this week has lunch delivered…Bento boxes, a box with several compartments all filled with assorted foods…usually cold. Well, I don’t know if it’s some ingredient that’s used in every dish but everything now tastes the same, and I’m not really a fan of cold cooked food. So, starting yesterday, I’ve been going to the bakery at the train station to pick up something to eat. Yesterday, I bought a Tropicana grape juice and a curry bread, baked or deep fried dough stuffed with curried vegetables and maybe chicken. Every time I walk into the bakery (usually to buy breakfast), there’s the yummy smell of something with garlic in it and I decided to try different things in an effort to find out what it is that has the place smelling so good. Today, on my garlic hunt my eyes landed upon what I read as Chili potato bread. Hey I like bread….I like baked potatoes with chili, it’s pretty much the only way I like them. So I decided to give it a try. At lunch time, I whipped out my chili potato bread and took a bite and man was it gooooooood! By bite number 4 or 5 I reached the center and was surprised/dismayed by what I found. I’m sure you’re all preparing yourself for some gut wrenching account of something creepy, once alive, formerly embedded in a follicle, or still blinking in my bread. What I found was not quite that extreme, but it was equally disappointing. I had reached the potatoes…and they were slathered with MAYONNAISE! Dogonit Japan! Why must mayonnaise appear in the most unnecessary places? Sandwiches…fine. French fries…ok. Pizza…NO! Chili…MOST CERTAILY NOT!!! Whose idea was that?!?!?! Today’s Words of Wisdom: Do not, I repeat, DO NOT use old lip gloss!!! Monday, I looked like someone had hit me in my top lip a few times for fun…and I broke out in fine bumps! So I took a Benadryl and a nap. Now I can see my face again….and no, no pictures! Needless to say I threw that tube away.