Photos

I now consider the matter of photos closed for the time. I'll keep a steady trickle going, one or two a post. Mostly seem to be selecting them based on whether I like the photo, vs. whether they are the most iconic of my life. But still, it's a taste, and I get to show off. I also now know a nearly infinite amount more HTML than I did before spending that hour of my life.

left to right, top to bottom:
a) view from the plane. I live somewhere to the left of the harbor.
b) boat parade, in which I got to wave to the whole town as we sailed by them on the dock at the summer festival. I stood radiant and godlike on the prow of the first boat. Cheering and gasps ensued at appropriate intervals.
c) photo of the kids sitting next to me at the summer festival because nothing could ever be cuter than little Japanese kids in kimono.
d) sunset at Sugira beach during the summer festival. I have long held that taking photos of sunsets is almost cheating, because no matter what you put in front of it, it looks like magic.
e) island school kids Island drum troupe. I don't know the name. It isn't Taiko though. I see this girl around the island sometimes, she must live nearby. She's really shy, and I always remember how intense she looked when she was playing. I have a photo of her literally 5 seconds before this smiling and laughing with her friends.
f) This kid was awesome. The previous act was a father and his two kids, and this little kid runs up from the crowd and starts batting at their costumes. Then he's just standing inches from the stage staring up at whatever is happening in awe until, he sort of whirls around with the most devilish grin on his face and BREAKS for the crowd as his dad comes flying out of the crowd to go stop him from messing with the performers.
g) My geckos. My guardian spirits. This one lives in my air-conditioner and is a noisy little asshole. But he killed a praying mantis in single combat, so I think we're cool.
f) Francis, my pet spider. He lives outside my living room window. He is about the size of my open hand, with his body being maybe the size of my thumb. He's pretty cool. He just hangs out, attacks 1-yen coins when I throw them at him, and occasionally disappears from his web for hours at a time, making me just a little bit on edge every time I lift the toilet seat, or open a cabinet.

That was my first week or so. Interim photos less interesting, but I might throw one or two of the island exploration day photos up...once I find them. I think they're on the card, but I'm getting ready to go to Kagoshima city for orientation, whatever that means, so I'll check when I get back.

Other news in a nutshell: Met all the teachers on the island, one after another, and did my amazing talking gaijin bit, which was met with varying degrees of applause. Was informed by one school principle that I apparently have a noticeable Kansai accent. Kansai is the region where Osaka, Kyoto and Nara are. My host family in Tokyo was from there. I knew I had a tendency to conjugate things in Kansai-accent sometimes, but apparently my pronunciation is tinged with Kansai. I suspect that that this only adds to the confusion when I open my mouth to speak, and not only Japanese, but regionally inflected Japanese, comes pouring out. I'm actually rather proud of it however. Always did like Kansai. Instead of the customary greetings, there is a Kansai regionally version of "hello" or "what's up" which translates to something like "made any money lately?"

Also went golfing for the first time with one of the teachers at one of the elementary schools who was just the most outgoing, friendly guy I've met since coming to Japan. I was laughably bad, but every now and then would have a moment of golfing zen, my body becoming an elaborate clockwork automation, my eyes suddenly capable of seeing the wind and my brain perfectly aware of where every muscle in my body was and was going, and hit an amazing drive, right into a lake. I think I might be going back next weekend.