Gaijin

The joy of teaching...

2008-06-19T12:18:00.002+09:00

Hmm... what would be a fun career? I know, how about primary teaching?? You get to play with kids and read kids books all day!! Right?

Well, yeah, right at times I guess. But most of the time I feel like I've been hit by a truck. I have 21 angels in my Prep class, but fortunately there are usually at least 1 or 2 away. I can't believe how much time I spend on classroom management, tying shoelaces, saying "sit down! I said sit down! ... For the 17th time, HyperGirl, sit down!!!" I have to teach things like sharing, taking turns, not lying, respecting other people's property and person and other life skills far more than I teach numbers and letters. It is so exhausting! Every now and then I have 5 mins where the whole class is working well or paying attention, and I just relish those moments... they are so few and far between. We make it to 60 secs a little more often.

This past week, I've had to deal with kids using their glue sticks to smear glue on other people's chairs (I had to laugh later, but boy was I furious at the time!), boys revealing themselves during line up time (obviously in Prep... I was thinking, Dude, you're supposed to dack other people, not yourself!!!), kids stealing each others lunch and lying about it, kids crying... because they haven't finished their work, 'cuz they smacked themself in the nose with their own lunchbox, 'cuz someone else smacked them with a lunchbox or something, 'cuz they couldn't sit next to their best friend, 'cuz they didn't win or get to go first, 'cuz "I dunno, I forgotted why I'm sad! Wah!!!" and so much more.

Sometimes I feel like I'm drowning. I have been told it is a tough class to manage, but I also know that classroom management is my biggest weakness... bad combination. At times I'll have a good hour or two, and then I feel like I'll survive. And, there are only 5 more kid days and 1 curriculum day until holidays!!!!! Wohoo!!!! Then I have 2 whole weeks to sleep, organise the classroom and catch up on a little work - yay!! :-D

Suspense just kills me!

2007-09-27T16:08:00.000+09:00

What is it that makes bad things so bad? Isn't it mostly the anticipation? Like when you give blood - you feel the anxiety rising, so tight inside, thinking "What if the nurse is not properly trained and she pokes the needle where it's not meant to go? What if my veins burst or some other terrible thing, and blood goes everywhere? What if...?" You've been there before, and you know the pain of the prick will be so momentary, and there is a 99.999% chance that everything will be fine, and yet you toture yourself for so long about something you know will be okay!
Why???

I know that I only have to get through five minutes at a time, and that even if it's a bad 5min, I'll survive, it will be over and I'll forget about it. No matter what happens to me, I know I'll be okay, so why do I continue to worry? Why do I drag out the unpleasant and make it so much worse than it has to be?

Emotions are so irrational, and I get so frustrated with myself when I don't control them! I feel so feeble and weak! But maybe I'm just human...

Just chilling

2007-07-04T21:52:00.001+09:00

So long since I've blogged! Sorry, peops, just been quite busy and tired. Can you believe it - I am now half way to becoming a teacher!!!! I survived my first semester, and am thoroughly enjoying my mid-year break.

Everybody asks, "So, do you still want to be a teacher now that your 4 week placement is over?" I'm happy to answer yes! It was a pretty gruelling semester. I don't like working full time. Haven't done it for years. So to go to an overload course really took it out of me. I didn't do anywhere near as much as I would have liked, but I passed and learnt STACKS, so that's good. My placement was great - I had a fantastic mentor teacher who has been in the job for years, so I learnt heaps from her. The little preps were gorgeous too, and I was quite sad to say goodbye - will visit again next term just 'cuz I miss them already. Not quite sure how I will cope with my first year of teaching - I may just die, but I reckon I'll probably die happy and enjoying my job, so it's all good! ;-)

I have now had 5 blissful days off, in which I have been surprisingly productive. Been shopping, socialising, and cleaning the mountains of crap out of my room. Read half a book and watched little telly too. Oh yeah, I started a 7 week German class, which I am really enjoying. I liked Japanese, but I just love the fact that I can actually read German, which makes it so much easier and more fun.

I don't think my brain has quite recovered from my tough semester... while having lunch with my old uni friends today, I made the intelligent statement that "No matter what, 1 + 1 always equals 1!" Doh! Wendy suggested kinder may be more appropriate for me than primary teaching! (Happy Amy? Whole world gets to laugh at my stupidity now! Giggle!)

A day in the life of a student teacher

2007-07-04T21:34:00.000+09:00

6:30 - rise and ready
7:15 - leave for the 45 min drive to school, through some stunning countryside, glorious sunrises, with indescribably beautiful skies
8:00 - last minute preparations (photocopying, laminating, etc, etc)
8:45 - pre-school yard duty (on Tuesdays. Thursdays do 2nd half of lunch and after school)
9:00 - teaching begins (roll, take home book changes, fine motor activities, guided writing, writing rotations, literacy session and rotations)
11:00 - recess (first half - yard duty, 2nd half - loo, eat, set up for next session)
11:30 - teaching again (maths whole class and rotations)
12:30 - kids eat lunch in classroom, while I listen to selected students reading to assess improvement and needs
12:40 - yard duty
12:55 - eat lunch, set up for afternoon teaching
1:15 - teaching again - integrated studies or rotations (science/PE/art/LOTE) depending on day
2:15 - time release - students are taught by another teacher so that I can do assessments on individual students and prepare for other lessons
3:10 - end of day routines with students
3:20 - dismiss students and wait with them until all are collected by students. Back to the classroom to clean up, put away today's resources and organise tomorrow's resources.
Some time between 4:15 and 5:15 - sign out and leave for the day. Drive home with beautiful sunsets or cosy rain and stormy skies.
Some time between 5:00 and 6:00 - arrive home and eat dinner that was prepared by my wonderful mother. Sit in front of the heater or telly and do daily review and more lesson preparations. Finding it hard to think by this stage, so not very productive.
Some time between 9:30 and 10:30 - crawl into bed.

Why me?

2007-05-13T17:34:00.000+09:00

"This kind of thinking poses hidden dangers. If we think of suffering as something unnatural, something that we should not be experiencing, then it's not much of a leap to begin to look for someone to blame for our suffering. If I am unhappy, then I must be the victim of someone or something - an idea that's all too common in the West. The victimiser may be the government, the educational system, abusive parents, a dysfunctional family, the other gender, or our uncaring mate. Or we may turn blame inward: there is something wrong with me, I am the victim of disease, of defective genes perhaps. But the risk of continuing to focus on assigning blame and maintaining a victim stance, is the perpetuation of our suffering - with persistent feelings of anger, frustration and resentment."

~ The Dalai Lama

Politics and budgets

2007-05-11T19:24:00.000+09:00

I have never really been that interested in politics, but I have viewed the Mr Costello's budget through new eyes this year... teacher eyes.

There are some interesting things in the proposed budget. At first glance they seemed kinda cool, but reading a little further had me wondering how cool they really were? I mean, I know nothing about politics, so can't really pass judgement, but I have to wonder...

Why are they supplying funding for the top teachers to be paid to do extra training in the summer holidays? Isn't it the worst teachers who need training the most?? And why do schools have to comply with new performance measures (such as performance pay) that have been voted against by the majority in order to receive funding? If these performance measures couldn't get support at the education ministers' meeting, then perhaps they need to be reviewed and refined before being forced on schools? And is performance pay really fair - can teachers in lower socio-economic areas really achieve top results when they are lacking all the supports that teachers in better areas receive? And will it really improve the education industry, or will it put a damper on the supportive, sharing environment that currently exists, and instead create competition among teachers?

Anyway, just wondering...

Happy Birthday to me!

2007-05-04T16:34:00.000+09:00

Hooray! It's my birthday!! I wasn't really that excited, cuz it's not a special birthday, and I'm starting to get too old to care. But then I had the coolest thing happen.... I found my birthday twin!!!

Let me tell you how it happened... I was working on an assignment with Sharon, from my tribe. When I say working with, I mean working with over the internet and phone. At one point just before lunch, she asked if I would be on the internet for a while longer, and I said I was about to go out for lunch with my mum, cuz it's my birthday, but I would be back after that. She said, "Really?? It's my birthday too!!" And I was like, "How cool!! How old are you?" "26 today," she replied. "No way!!" I cried, "me too!!"

And that, my friends, is how I found my birthday twin. I've been sitting with her in class all this time, and yet never knew until the very important day itself. What a happy thing!

Sharing

2007-04-17T16:00:00.000+09:00

One of the things I love about the teaching profession is all the sharing! You know how in some companies or industries, people like to hold stuff close to their chest, because information is power. Well, not in the teaching industry! (Or, not much, anyway.) Everybody I meet is just so eager to help me out, give me resources and information, give me their email address so I can email any questions I may have relating to their particular specialty! Even many resources do not have the same copyright restrictions - many things are handed to us, with advice not to write on it so we can copy and distribute or use!

Aren't teachers a nice, generous bunch!?!

Spending my hols this week in professional development classes, which are proving to be excellent! I've learnt some really great, practical stuff, and been given links to a couple of good resources which I will actually use! How exciting!

My gorgeous nephew

2007-04-14T18:25:00.000+09:00

Friends Leaving

2007-04-14T17:48:00.000+09:00

Had a farewell for Al today. A bunch of us went 10 pin bowling, then out for coffee and cake. Was a great afternoon! We had 2 lanes - one for the un-co girls and one for the competitive boys.

4 'girls' were bowling, and we had so much fun! We bowled a different way each time - two handed, opposite handed, backwards through the legs, standing on one leg, both legs and one hand on the floor, eyes closed, etc, etc. Auntie Pat (who is a grandma) was a great sport, and got into it as well, not only performing every weird stunt we prescribed, but winning both games too! She even did the last one - lying on your stomach and shoving the ball down the alley, managing to get 9 pins down! Giggle! So wish I had a camera with me!

The boys seemed to have fun too, and Al won one of the games, so that was good, seeing as it was his party.

After the party, I ran home to chat to Kelly over in the States. She was going to call me, but the line was so bad I couldn't really hear her each time, so I said I'd call her and hung up, but then I couldn't find her number!!! (It was 25min away in Mitchell Park!) Was a bit stressful, calling around trying to find someone who had it, but in the end got to chat to her. Was so good to hear her voice again. Wish I could go see her though, and see what her life is like.

Wellbeing

2007-04-14T11:54:00.000+09:00

I moved back to Mitchell Park last Tuesday, for another 5 weeks. Having been at home for a while now, it has been ages since I've done a proper grocery shop, so on Wed after work, I headed out to the supermarket... it was SO much fun! I did a huge big shop, and 'cuz I'm working this week, I bought some extra special things that I wouldn't normally buy.

I went home and unloaded all my groceries onto the kitchen bench, and as I looked at it all, I was suddenly struck with such an overwhelming sense of wellbeing and good fortune! Food makes me so happy! May I never take it for granted!

Happy Birthday Anna!!!

2007-04-01T14:37:00.000+09:00

Well, Friday night was Anna's birthday - we're the same age again, at least for the next month. Daniel was taking her out for tea, and had organised a bunch of people to surprise her at the restaurant - good fun!! Since it was a surprise, we all just pretended we forgot about her birthday... hope you weren't too cut about not getting any birthday text messages or phone calls, Anna! There was an interesting mix of people there, but we all got along fine - it was good to catch up with her mum, Pam, again - haven't seen her in AGES!

Anna looked gorgeous, and of course Manny was as adorable as ever! (I remembered not only to take my camera, but to put batteries in it as well, but left it in the car...)

Hope you had a great birthday, Anna, and that it is a fabulous year for you! xxoo

Rainy days and Mondays

2007-03-27T13:54:00.000+09:00

Well, I love rainy days, but Mondays do always get me down.

It is my 'big' day - 8:30 to 5:30, full of intense, confusing theoretical classes. I try not to stress out, 'cuz I know that 1- there is more to learn than I could EVER learn, and I just have to get the basics, and 2- everyone else is just as confused and ragged as me by the end of the day! So funny to see us all drag ourselves out of the last class!

So much stuff seems so intense and complex on Mondays. I always end up thinking, "Do I really want to be a teacher??" But once we start actually using it on Thursdays in school, you see how much simpler it really is. And while it is important to learn the different theories of education, once you've studied them, they just become a way of thinking, and you don't have to worry about it anymore. (Except in interviews, where apparently we are supposed to name drop names such as Piaget, Vygotski and Clay with ease!)

If anyone has any doubts about how someone can be a teacher after just one year of teacher training, they should come along on a Monday and check it out - they really pack stuff in!!

But today is Tuesday. I have survived another Monday, so I know I can make it through the rest of the week. I like Tuesdays - fun PE classes, and only 2 hrs in a classroom. Finished writing up a unit plan for Health in class today, and it was SO very satisfying to see how I and my partner had taken one little sentence in the standards, and turned it into a 3-week unit plan, complete with activities and assessments, all flowing together and building on each other. It was for preps on emotions, and I used some of the stuff we talked about from your emotion books Kel!

I also have a new toy which will make things easier... a laptop!! Yay!! Was a bit of a hassle swapping between uni computers, Dad's and Adam's, depending on availability, and troublesome trying to keep track of where everything was saved etc. I was hesitant to buy one before, 'cuz I would have such substantial debt with just my fees, but since they are so much more manageable, I decided to go ahead! :-) I had to use it to blog first, but I am about to shut myself in my room, and start tapping away at one of my 2,000 word assignments due next week. How fun! :-)

I'm a teacher now!!

2007-03-24T20:34:00.000+09:00

Honest, I am!! The preps said so!

I had my second day at school on Thurs, and taught my first lesson. (Maths, of course!) I really enjoyed it - wasn't nearly as scary as I thought! I obviously passed, 'cuz later I heard one of the littlies saying to another... "Miss Brice is a teacher now!" Giggle! That was easy! Just have to convince the uni to give me the certificate now...

The biggest thing I need to practice is my teacher voice. I keep on asking in this nice, quiet voice, "Could you please sit down now?" etc, and wonder why nothing happens. Then my mentor teacher calls out across the room - "Amy, sit down!", and the response is immediate! LOL! I'll get there!

And if you're wondering about my new heading, I've decided to share some of the cute stuff kids say or do with you all. This week at recess, I had a kid ask me if I was Mrs Brice (they have trouble with my name). I replied that no, my mum was Mrs Brice, and I was Miss Brice. She looked up at me, rather surprised, and asked, "Do you have a mum, Miss Brice??" Giggle... no, dear, don't you know teachers are grown in test tubes in the staff room?!?

WOOHOO!!!

2007-03-20T11:54:00.000+09:00

Received the most excellentest news yesterday!!! My course is supposed to cost $16,000 this year... bit of an ouchie. But yesterday they announced that because of low enrolments, they have surplus government funding available, so all 40 in our course (minus the international students) can get a Commonwealth Sponsored place, making our debt just... $5,000!!!! We all cheered as they announced it, but they continued... because it is a HECS-HELP position, we get a 20% discount if we pay up front, making it just $4,000!!!!! WOOHOO!!

Adele threw up her hand asking if we got a free set of steak knives with this! Giggle! They responded, No, but now you can all afford to buy your own steak knives!

It is such a huge blessing, for myself and so many others. I can now afford my fees still have a little left for living expenses, so I don't have to stress about trying to combine work with study this year. I've heard others saying the same, one even saying he was thinking about dropping out b/c he couldn't manage the workload (pretty intense course) as well as work. A couple others are buying houses this year, and now have a lot more available for a deposit. We are all so happy and smiley today at uni!!

I love the Australian government!!!!

My first day of school!

2007-03-20T11:41:00.000+09:00

I went back to my first day of prep last Thursday! Was quite different this time however! I got to use the staff toilets, boss people around (and they actually listen), and my name was different... I was doing one activity with some kids where we had to write our names at the top of the page... I started writing H..e..a.. when one of the kids looked over curiously and I suddenly remembered... bugger... scribble, scribble, M..i..s..s...B...

I have suddenly become aware of my height all over again... at lunch time (I was on yard duty!), a Grade 3 girl stared up at me, "Wow, you're tall... you must seem so high up to the preps!"

It was a fun day, and the kids were so cute! Some of them are so tiny, you wonder if they are really old enough for school. It was good to see the stuff I've been learning in classes actually working together in a classroom - the theory all starts to make more sense when you're seeing the practical. Was slightly overwhelming, too, though... it will be kinda scary to have to try to manage a whole class, and keep all the groups straight and moving around to their appropriate stations, and answering their questions and monitoring behaviour, and remembering what each is doing next, all without referring back to any notes, 'cuz there simply isn't time. But I'm sure it gets easier once you've done it a few times.

This week I'm planning the numeracy activities for next Thursday... kinda tricky, 'cuz Preps really don't know much!! But it will be good experience. I'm in a little school about 50min drive from home (parent's home, that is) every Thursday for 10 weeks, then I'll have 4 weeks full time at the end of the semester. Should be fun!

And the career counsellor says...

2007-02-24T16:36:00.000+09:00

"Why aren't you doing Primary Teaching??"

So, that's what I'm doing!! I had a week temping last week, and while doing that, ran around organising my enrolment in a Graduate Diploma of Education (Primary)! (Busy week!) I missed the first week, which was kinda O-week, and a unit on 'Tribe TLC', but I'll catch up on that in my own time - 'tis interesting stuff, and you will read about it!

I'm back at my old uni - the amazing, wonderful University of Ballarat (no sarcasm there, honest!) for this year, and next year I'll hopefully be employed somewhere as a teacher! Scary stuff! Although it is just one year, it isn't govt funded, so it costs as much as a normal 3 yr degree - ouch! But I'll be back out in the working world again soon, earning it all back!

I know it seems rash and crazy, especially for those of you who heard a week ago that I was enrolled in a childcare course, planning to go to Germany as a nanny next year, but it really feels right. Everything else has been something to do while I figure out what to do next, but this actually seems like a career choice to me. The psychologist was a great one (his fees tell you that!), and after all the test analysis and talking to me, he felt quite clearly it was the thing to do. It was also what I wanted to do as a kid, and, funnily enough, if I was less intelligent, I would have gotten here years ago, b/c it was actually one of my uni choices, just after commerce and accounting, and unfortunately I was smart enough to get into that so I didn't do the teaching thing. But maybe its for the best - I don't know that I had the confidence to survive rounds back when I was 17.

Anyway, it is a 1.25 load, with a day a week in schools all year, plus a four-wk block at the end of each semester, so I'll keep nice and busy. And altho I'm nervous and apprehensive, I'm really excited - I think it'll be a great, challenging, inspiring course!

The stickability of detergent

2007-02-05T09:31:00.000+09:00

Well, I’ve moved on again! I quit my job last week, just shy of 3 months in. I didn’t trust the management, and didn’t like the way they treated my co-worker, who was fired recently. So I quit. My supervisor also walked out a few days after I handed in my resignation, so I reckon they’ll be having fun in the office today!!

It was a difficult decision, and created a lot of mixed feelings. I was SO happy to be out, and am excited about once again being free to do anything! But at the same time, I felt a little depressed as I left on Friday arvo. I was determined to become a normal, stable person for a while… get a normal, full-time job, and stay in one place for more than a year or two. Because I was working for a mortgage broker, I was even house-hunting! But then it didn’t work out, so I’m a little disillusioned with the whole ‘being normal’ thing.

To celebrate my new freedom and counteract the blah-feeling, I had the most fantastical weekend! Friday night I tried my hand at lawn bowls with 17 other young enthusiastic, slightly uncoordinated people. Didn’t totally embarrass myself, and found it to be surprisingly fun! Saturday was filled with a jog around the empty lake (ran 3.5 of the 6kms – my best effort to date!), mini-golfing (did totally embarrass myself there, but still had fun!) and cards night at Gellerts (where I managed to hold my spot as Warlord for several rounds!). On Sunday, I went to church and looked after 8 adorable kids in crèche, then headed out to Lake St George in the arvo – it actually still has water in it! My swimmers were far away at my parents, so I was going to sit lady-likely on the shore, but it was so hot, and some friends brought kyaks!, so I just had to swim and kyak in my dress. (Managed to make a fool of myself there too – I just kept paddling around in circles, but gee it was fun!) To top it all off, The Biggest Loser returned to channel 10 on Sunday night!

How’s that for a fantasmagorical weekend?!

As for what next… well, you’ll have to stay tuned…

Happy New Year!!

2007-01-03T18:14:00.000+09:00

Guess where I spent New Year's? (The pic might give you a clue!)

That's right... Sydney!!

On Friday, Anna and I were discussing what to do to usher in the new year. Kinda stuffing around, Anna suggested Sydney! I've always enjoyed watching the fireworks off the Sydney Harbor Bridge, so we thought, hey, why not?! Neither of us had been to Sydney before. We jumped on the internet, found affordable tickets, and started getting excited!

On Sunday night around 7:15, our plane took off! I hadn't been on a big plane for about 4 months, and it was only Anna's second time, so we were hugely excited! In Sydney, we met up with Maxi at the airport and travelled in to the crowded city.

We jostled our way through the crowds, and found a great spot really close to the bridge. It was spectacular to watch the fireworks almost overhead! (I have to admit, though, you certainly do have a better view on the TV, but the atmosphere and crowds were heaps of fun.)

We had to be back at the airport before 6am, so we used our few hours to go sightseeing around a couple major tourist attractions. We walked across the Sydney Harbor Bridge (ok, not the whole way across - we were wearing heels!), which was SO beautiful! It provided such a great view of the city lights. We rested with early morning coffee and smoothies, took a boat ride across the harbor, and of course, got our pic taken on the steps of the Sydney Opera House! (Unfortuately that pic didn't come out, but we did get there, honest!)

We had a great breakfast on the 80min flight back to Melbourne. I was sleepy, but it was so unreal - I felt like I had a whole little holiday in just one night!

The Recovery
Well, I drove back to Ballarat, slurping my V, and obviously feeling a little weary. I had to move to a house-sitting job that day, so decided just to try staying awake all day, and having a good night's sleep that night.

About 4pm, I just couldn't hack it any longer. I lay down and fell fast asleep in a flash. After a solid sleep I woke up with a jolt at 5:50 - I couldn't believe it - it has been forever since I've slept for so long!! I felt SO good! I got up and leisurely got ready for work. Because I ate breakfast so early, I even packed morning tea as well as lunch.

As I drove to work, I noticed that there was not a lot of traffic around... hey, 2nd of Jan, I figured most people would be a little late. When I got to work, no one was there yet. Fair enough, I was about 5 min early. I pulled out my phone to confirm the time - yep, 8:40pm..... WHAT??? PM???

I was so darn confused and out of it! I called mum, but she wasn't answering, so I called Ruth. I was stuttering and stumbling over my words, asking about the day and time. As Ruth assured me that it was 8:40pm, Monday 1st Jan, the clues started to add up... I had only had 1 1/2 hrs sleep, not 14 1/2!!

You have to laugh! Ruth and I were in hysterics - I just couldn't believe that I was showered, breakfasted and at work at that time of night! Ah well, made for an interesting start to the year!

Craziness

2006-11-15T18:05:00.000+09:00

Get this - it SNOWED today!! In mid November!!! And this, after we had record high temperatures in October! I was so excited - I couldn't find my camera, so I got Andrew to take a pic to email to me. The flakes were so huge, and falling really thickly out on the farm - it was beautiful!! The rest of the day, hail and rain fell and sounded so beautiful. I kept jumping up from my desk to go look out the window!

Oh yeah, I have a job at long last. I am in my second week in the credit department at Mortgage National, and so far it has been good fun. But it has a craziness of its own - with faxes and emails arriving requesting (or demanding!) such 'n' such be done by 2pm or something. Keeps me on my toes, trying to balance all the incoming demands, while still trying to understand everything, and pretending to know what I'm talking about! My workmates are absolutely fantastic people though - good fun and SO helpful!

I really enjoyed my 2 months off, but it is good to be back at work again, too. And I'm really looking forward to pay day on Friday!! ;)

The farming life for me

2006-11-12T20:00:00.000+09:00

Or not? I am not really a farm girl, and yet I find myself living on a small farm just outside Ballarat. (For 3 months, with some friends, while the owner is visiting her homeland, Scotland.)

Last night, my quiet night in front of the telly did not quite eventuate... I got home and went out to take the dogs for a jog (yep, a jog! albeit a very slow one) and to check on the cows. It was an absolutely gorgeous spring evening, and little Bella (who comes up to about my ankle!) was so cute jumping over tufts of grass! I felt all happy and peaceful until...

I saw the little brown cow, with something weird coming out her rear end... no, it wasn't poo! This was her first time being pregnant, and the owner had warned us that she would be the one that might have troubles. Freaking out a little, I RAN back to the house (even tho I was stuffed from my jog) to alert the neighbour.

Graham and Trevor rounded up the cows into a small paddock near the house, then proceeded to try cornering the little brown one in a tiny fenced in area. It just about broke my heart watching. They were chasing her around, waving bits of plastic piping, trying to scare her into the little area. The poor thing, full-term, with little hooves hanging out her rear, was so scared and determined not to be cornered that she jumped over one fence and through another!

They finally cornered her, but even with their ropes, they couldn't get the little calf out. They said the calf wasn't going to make it, but with the vet's help, the cow itself would be fine. We were expecting the vet to have to do surgery to get the calf out, but instead she used, get this, a JACK!! Not a normal car jack of course, but a special cow birthing one. Very funky!

So I watched my first cow birth. A little dead calf being hauled out the back of a poor scared little cow. But the cow seems alright today, and the experience was worth having. Don't think I'm really suited to be a farmer though... I get too sad around animals!

And, sorry, I didn't take pics - seemed rude and inconsiderate to the poor cow.

Only 2 more calves to be born - hopefully they'll both come easily, and in hours when I'm actually up and at home so I can see a normal birth! Maybe I could take pics of that!

Scott Benjamin

2006-10-17T16:42:00.000+09:00

Little Scottie (before getting his hair washed!)

He's here!! Yesterday I finally got to meet little Scottie! He is oh so cute! Of course, you expect me to say that, so I've attached evidence, so you can decide for yourselves.

Tired but happy family

Happy Auntie Vi

He was born on the 16th Oct, 2006 at 4:08pm, weighing 3.8kg (8lbs 5oz) and measuring 51cm. Although it was just about his due date, he was not keen on coming, and all the staff got a little stressed when he got stressed near the end, but they got him out, and both he and Ruth are all good now.

Super sleuth on the prowl

2006-08-30T15:45:00.000+09:00

On the 23rd August, Ace Detective Heza Buraisu-san began her assignment monitoring a flight from Nagoya to Kuala Lumpur:

08:40 - A.D. Heza arrived at the Nagoya International airport, and lined up to check into her assigned flight. 20 min early, so she could monitor passengers as they arrived.
But just ahead of her, she noticed two shady looking characters had already arrived!! Terror Suspect 1 (TS1) was about 175cm, and of thin build, with dark hair and a small mo. Terror Suspect 2 (TS2) was shorter, a little chubby, and blonde. They were speaking a funny language, and so A.D. Heza knew that something was a bit strange.... these two would be worth keeping an eye on...

08:55 - with a small line already forming, and the checkout counter due to open in just 5 minutes, an announcement was made that due to complications (the system was down) check in would be delayed!! *Gasp* Could this be the work of terrorists??

09:20 - check-in begins manually. Ground staff appear stressed, and relax a little with certain checks as they try to process waiting passengers as fast as possible. Hmm, not good for security, but great for A.D. Heza's overweight suitcase, which slides through without the blink of an eyelid.

10:00 - passengers are weaving through the lengthy security check line. A.D. Heza keeps an eye on TS1 and TS2, a tricky thing, as they keep separating and re-meeting... strange behaviour indeed! TS1 is particularly intent on prolonging goodbyes with a teary family... could it be he knows it is his last goodbye?

11:00 - boarding the plane, A.D. Heza finds her seat the opposite side of the plane and a few seats forward from the terror suspects. However, the seat beside her is empty, which should make discreet monitoring a little easier. Ripped off! If it was my last ever flight, I'd demand my boss fork out for first class!! Maybe there are no plans of disaster for this flight after all...

11:05 - A.D. Heza holds her breath for take-off (a long-standing family tradition)

11:15 - TS2 has the window seat, and seems to be loving the view... his nose is glued to the window. Unfortunately, the view of TS1 is blocked by a tall, unusually large-headed man in the centre aisle.

11:45 - a yummy lunch is served. TS1 & 2 are unobtrusively eating their meal.

13:45 - A.D. Heza flicks her head around, breathing a sigh of relief when she notices terror suspects still quietly in their seats - she got engrossed in a movie and forgot to monitor the suspects!! If anything had happened in this time frame, her supervisor would have had her head for sure! (Assuming he could find it amid the wreckage.)

14:53 - doing a random check, A.D. Heza catches the eye of TS2!! He eyes her suspiciously:15 then gives a knowing nod! Oh no! Is her cover blown??

16:15 - TS1 rises to go to the bathroom... or is it for a more sinister reason??

16:23 - TS1 returns to his seat... either there was a line, or...

16:33 - nothing blown up yet, so obviously it was just a call of nature.

16:47 - A.D. Heza decides to check out the Master Instruction Manual for any possible guidelines for future actions. Guidelines:

Leave your country, your relatives, and your father's house, and go to the land that I will show you. (Odd! I'm only just on my way back there!! Should I be leaving already??) I will cause you to become the father (??) of a great nation. I will bless you (yay!) and make you famous (no thanks!), and I will make you a blessing to others (cool!).*

Hmm... strange instructions... oh, wait, they're addressed to A.L. Abraham!

17:00 - just when A.D. Heza thought she was about to perish, yummy chicken rolls were handed out - thank goodness!!

17:11 - all is quiet as TS2 takes a nap, and TS1 is still out of vision due to Big Head.

18:25 - as the plane touches down, A.D. Heza holds her breath (family tradition, remember?), then lets out a big sigh of relief... another mission over without any casualties!

18:31 - TS1 & 2 (who are no longer actually terror suspects) disembark. As they pass by, they give A.D. Heza a knowing smile... as if to say, you escaped without harm this time, but you may not be so lucky next time! Maybe they were terror suspects after all!! (Or, maybe they were innocent passengers, who were saying with their smile... yeah, we know you were checking us out!)

18:50 - A.D. Heza thankfully finds a bookstore in the Kuala Lumpur International Airport, so that she can have something to do on the next flight besides freaking out all the other passengers with her weird behaviour!

Yeah, so I'm weird... but seriously, travelling for hours by yourself, unable to sleep on planes, you have to have something to amuse yourself! And the whole searching for terror suspects kept me so entertained!! (I spared you the details of all the other TSs...)

So, I'm back. Doing nothing. Took me a few days to celebrate birthdays with my sister (25th) and mum (26th), unpack and all that good stuff. Next week, I'm going up to Broken Hill to visit dearest Tab, who I haven't seen in like, a year and a half, so I'm looking forward to that!! And the week after, I guess I'll get my bum into gear and get serious about getting a job.

Anyway, I'll keep ya'll posted if anything exciting happens!! :)

*Genesis 12:1,2

The End

2006-08-20T12:38:00.000+09:00

And who would have thought it would be so hard?

I thought I was coming to Japan for an extended holiday. You know how you feel at the end of a holiday - kinda blue about leaving, but it's no big deal. That's what I thought it would be like, maybe just to a little bigger degree. But it turns out I'm leaving a home, not a vacation spot.

People asked if it was hard when leaving Australia, but it wasn't so bad, 'cuz I was about to go on a big, cool vacation, and I knew I was coming back. Now, everyone asks if I'm excited about going back to Australia, but I'm too busy being sad about leaving Japan, 'cuz I'm leaving a home, and I don't know that I'll ever be back.

I have approximately 5 hours left in Sasebo. With, of course, packing, cleaning, errands, etc enough to last at least 15. So, signing out for now - catch you in 4 days when I'm back in the land down under.

Wah! I hate goodbyes!

The pics

2006-08-15T21:59:00.000+09:00

Yumiko and Hiroko next to a Kakiemon platter

Me in the gorgeous garden outside Genemon Pottery

A bit of the beautiful Mount Kurokami (sorry, my pic doesn't do it justice!)

The women in the kitchen doing their stuff
And the delicious barbeque
fireworks after dinner
from left: Masafumi-san, Fumika-chan, Kayoko-san, Okaasan (mum)

Me with the family! :)