What Happened?

Well my kind readers
Spring was something else
Especially May was very hectic
Here's the scoop on what happened
1. Moved to a new condominium
2. Had my first art show in Tokyo
3. Lost one job and started two

(photo from an early spring trip to central Chiba, beautiful countryside)

The first week of May was thankfully Golden Week, one week off of almost no work. The sensational weather we have been having since January had simply kept up (if this is Global Warming, bring it on!) I went out on my early morning ride and there was another white skinned dude out there. Not that unusual so I kept pedaling and minding my own business. Then a voice came from behind, "where are you from". I hesitated, "how do you know I speak English?" He introduced himself as William and we rode bikes around the Imperial Palace for a few laps. I discovered that he is a travelling chiropractor and that he is in Tokyo with his client, a famous pianist. Over the next few days I showed William around some of the very exclusive cycling spots near his hotel. He was greatful and so was I because he was a great work out partner. In fact William is New Jerseys top Time Trialists and one of the best road racers. He pushed me and we rode hard together. Coming back from one particularly hard ride I asked him the name of his boss; "it's Keith, um.., Keith Jarret". Wow cool; Keith Jarret, the great Jazz pianist. I was brought up with jazz thanks to a Father who is a Jazz enthusiast. Very cool... so William comped me tickets.
These rides with William was my early mornings.

(another Chiba photo, there once stood a house there in the middle of no where, about 100 years ago)

The afternoon was dedicated to packing. In my inimitable fasion I start out packing the most fragile items over wrapping them so they could be dropped off a ten story building. After wasting a day and a half doing such activity I get around to packing the easiest stuff, books. Again I spend way too much time trying to figure out how to make all the different sizes of books interconnect so that they can fit as a cozy block inside the box. This is followed by papers and files. At this point I am beginning to realize the immense nature of my chore and begin cutting corners. However by this point it is too late because next is the kitchen. Packing the kitchen takes forever and is difficult even with cutting corners. By this time I am about four days into packing. Still much to go...

(a view from the new pad)

But OH!! What of my art show? I have to set up for an art show the following week and I haven't even sized up my pieces or decided how to present them. I got to work on that at night, labeling the work and putting them into pocket protectors. Yoshiko and I figured since they are sketches it was the best presentation approach. So pocket protectors and a few binders on the floor. Things came together quickly thanks to having previous experience setting up shows and I was feeling confident.

(another view from the new place... big windows)

IN the MEANTIME I had been contacted by a new work prospect. You see I work for several different English teaching jobs. One Job is doing conversation tutoring with students one on one. Another job is an after shcool program on the east side of the city. Then I work in the mornings for the Tokyo Metropolitan School District. The job is as an English Teacher for learning disabled high school students. I like the job a great deal. I'm really respected and supported; I think I have a knack for the work; it's a unique job that few English speaking foreigners are qualified for and fewer do (I was told two others including me in Tokyo). We (myself and my excellent associate Matsuo Sensei) constructed a program that focuses on the fundimentals of communication with learning English as the tool not particularly the goal. So last March I was approached by another special education school. I was very happy and had no problems fitting it into my schedule. However I was approached by even another school after the Spring break, the beginning of the new school year in Japan. This school is a brand new special education school that looks to have a great future for me. I jumped on it right away and signed the contract well aware that it conflicted with my after school program job.

(preists prepairing the procession for the new sumo grand champion, Hakou)

But the after school program job had become hard and bothersome. Though being an important source of income my salary was in fact cut by 1/3 and I was not offered a contract. Basically my position for the after school job was made into an on call teacher job. Looking at the future growth potential for a job that I really cared about and a job that paid (some) of the bills it was a no brainer. So I'm no longer working in the afternoons.

(doing some kind of purity water thing)

However there was a time period during May when I was doing all my jobs and running ragged. My art show was so well assembled that I was able to fit all the work into a suitcase to take to the gallery. I rode the train to the station and began walking to the gallery location; it took me a full ten minutes to realize I had completely forgotten the suitcase on the train.
Upon calling Yoshiko and babbling my situation she instantly realized that the train had most likely come to it's end point and was just turning around to go back. I quickly returned to the station. Yoshiko was there as she had taken a later train. We charged up the platform and shure enough there was my train pulling up. We got in and I went right, Yoshiko left. Yoshiko found my suitcase totally untouched. I returned to the gallery and set up the show with no further interruptions.
Not so strangely I also found myself becoming sick around this time, some sort of bronchial and throat thing. I was losing my voice and my energy. Somehow during this I managed to go with Yoshiko to the Keith Jarret concert. His show as beatifully played standards which I normally appreciate but don't gush over. However by the time they were into they're second song of the first set the tears were just flowing down my face until intermission.

(hakou's the dude in the black, the guy behind him has to carry his special belt. it's so damn heavy he's almost falling backward carring it)

The weekends were dedicated mostly to going to our old condominium and cleaning it up. Rubbing the floor on my hands and knees, scrubbing unknown areas that had never been attended to. Moving old things that we never got around to throwing out/ recycling. After a cleaning session a trip to the art gallery to meet friends and celebrate. The work week was hectic but enjoyable in the mornings and a challenge to muscle through during the afternoons, until I finally was let go to my great relief. The time to take my art show down was approaching quickly, but there was one last function I needed to attend. My friend Alan, who introduced me to the gallery owner and basically got the show for me was going to perform with his accordian in the upstairs cafe. He was really supportive and encouraged all the audience to go downstairs and check out the work, even dedicated a song to my art, very cool. Unfortuantely I completely forgot to take pictures of the show.
As the month was winding down things were starting to clear up. I found myself taking very long naps in the afternoon. However things were coming together with our new condo and my stress level was subsiding. The last Friday of May I got the afternoon off and went to Meiji Jingu shrine for a special event. There was a new sumo grand master who would be crowned, Hokuo. Hokou will join current grand master Asashoryu at the pinnicale ranking of the sport. Being the sport is a couple thousand years old it's not so surprising to see a ceremony at an important shrine to commemorate the event.
Thanks for reading.