The Halloween Weekend: Saturday

Friday was busy and Saturday was the same. As it was the last weekend before the 31st, many of the clubs and bars had their big Halloween bashes. We had decided to meet some people at Balabushkas because our friend Barbara was leaving Japan for sunnier pastures in Spain. She had returned from a trip to Thailand and was quite relaxed when we saw her at Slices before we headed over to Balabushkas.

When we got to Balabushkas we saw a madhouse as the costume party had already started. After a few minutes we all go separated and I lost Barbara in the crowd. It was too crowded and they looked for me but couldn't find me to tell me they were headed to another venue.

As it was a costume party there were many fine costumes on display. People who wanted to be judged wore a number all night so that people would know for whom to vote. The costumes ranged from typical store bought sexy costumes to elaborate home-made affairs. The originality was quite good in some of the home-made sets. Children in Canada get candy on Halloween night, and there was plenty of eye candy to go around at Balabushkas that night!

Even though we lost Barbara, we managed to find a number of other friends there. Cory B. from work was dressed as the pope, Sunny and Paul were a doctor and sexy nurse, the girls from Tenma were a cowgirl and a witch, and Yusuke was a salaryman, which is not his usually style. Colin from work was dressed as a well known anime character, though I had no clue as to who he was. Naoyuki and Sakamoto were both dressed as the killer from Scream.

The were almost 100 entrants in the costume contest, but in the end there were two finalists. Cory the pope and Colin dressed as a "Nova MM Green tag", as no-one, short of those who were born and raised in Japan, seemed to recognise his costume. He beat out Cory's Pope in the final audience vote.

After the winner was announced we left Balabushkas before the big exodus and headed to Kasuga to meet with Bri and Guillermo. We also got a chance to meet up with Alex and his girl Miki. As you can see the pics the usual cast and crew were there dressed up and ready to go. They were supposed to meet us early but they got sidetracked while drinking at Chez Daniel.

It was a little full in Kasuga as it's not really a big place, so I took a breather outside and saw some interesting costumes. Jessie E was directing traffic while Mark D was cuddling up to his Cruella. Obviously he was the 102nd dalmatian that got killed off before the movie started. Inside, Miki was wearing a nice (East) Indian costume that looked very nice.

The best part about Halloween is that for adults it a chance to dressed provocatively and flaunt. I was standing outside with my camera and some Japanese girls just stopped to pose, so I took a picture. I didn't even have to ask. Japan is awesome.

After Kasuga we headed to the Slices after party where a DJ was supposed to perform. He wasn't there so after we had some food and did some chatting we went home. It was too bad as the Slices staff were dressed up for the occasion. We found out later that the DJ was very late.

Alas, another Osakan Halloween had come and gone.

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The Halloween Weekend: Friday

It was a very busy Friday this week. It started off early in the morning with a Halloween party at Jamie's school. I dressed up as a dragon/dinosaur/Godzilla while she was a shinigami from Bleach. We took public transport in our costumes and it was funny to note the wide range of reactions from the people around us. It ranged from outright staring to furtive glances now and then. It was a great party and all the teachers were decked out in their finest Halloween garb.

We had to leave the Halloween party early because we had to get changed into some nice clothing to go to our friends' wedding reception. Our friends Anna and Mike, who I met from working at the Nova MMC, had got married the day before.

They were holding their reception on the Santa Maria Tour boat. It was a dining cruise tour in the form of it's namesake. We dined while the ship made it's rounds around the Osaka Bay area. There was lots of food and drink, and great friends.

After the cruise ended we loitered around the dock for a bit and then some of us headed to the Hub for a goodbye party for some Nova MMC employees. Jamie and I got changed again and stuffed our formal wear into a locker outside the subway station. This time I was the shinigami from bleach and Jamie was a feline angel of death.

Everyone at the Hub was quite surprised when they saw us as we were the only ones in costume. Apparently the Hub was doing their Halloween thing on the Saturday night. People loved drawing my sword, but I had to be careful as the sword is decorative but still made of metal and the point was sharp enough to draw blood with sufficient force. Sharp things and drunk people usually don't mix well. It was a good evening as people joked and shared memories of better days.

It was a little later when we headed off to show Kouji and Masato our costumes. We headed to Kasuga where we met up with Sarah, who was with Yukie and some other Japanese friends, and of course, Kouji and Masato.

We managed another night of drinking and singing at Kasuga. This time we were in costume and it was all right.

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Chapter 11 The Mutiny

The 33rd artillery division is in limbo.The whole division has been pulled from the front lines. The word around camp is that the General was ousted earlier that day. The battlefield was quiet as the commanders decide what to do. Apparently skirmishes are to resume tomorrow or in a few days. Supplies have been promised since last month but have not materialized, and with the General gone they may never arrive. Many have deserted and have gone home. Some are laying by their stations unknowing how to proceed. This lieutenant has joined another company, the 6th light infantry. I'll be joining the fight in another theatre of operations. Good luck and Godspeed to those in left in the 33rd.

The Pretition

A co-worker named Greg found this at work the other day. I took a picture because the contents were very interesting.

The whole Nova situation is quite difficult to figure out. Some approach with intent on dragging the company to bankruptcy to end the lack of information and increasing amount of lost salary. Others who do want to keep the same job or have less opportunities obviously want the company to survive.

It's anyone's guess as to the outcome. For me, my opinion has been set, but I'll keep an open mind and hope that the authors who wrote this have a backup plan.

Sittin' on the dock of the bay...

...drinking your sorrows away. That's what a group of Osaka Nova MM Centre employees and their friend did last night. It all took place down by the Namba Hatch on the docks. Everyone was out to share stories and to say goodbye to each other one last time. Some people were leaving by the end of the week.

One of those leaving was Mala, so it was also her sayounara that night. I had my camera as usual so I took a few shots of everyone. My Nova door entry tag was with me so I took snaps of people wearing it for a series called Congrats, you have been promoted because there is nobody left.

Before this Karaoke Queen and I caught a movie called Death of a President. It was pretty good as far as mockumentaries go. Not the most fast paced film but cool nonetheless. After the movie but before the docks we had a chance to get come yakiniku with Adair and his mom, who just arrived yesterday.

It was a wee bit chilly so KQ and I went to Kasuga, which has become our new local as you can probably already tell. There we saw Sayaka, Kouji and Masato. Later on, Daniel and his girl came by for some songs and drinks, as did Matt, Steph, Girl Jo and Adair.

Poor Sayaka was fast asleep as she had a long week. We made sure to get some sleeping pictures on her camera that was conveniently at hand. Heh heh.

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Drinking with Gerard

Amidst this whole disaster with our company sinking and what not, a few people still manage to live life. This was how Gerard did it. He is an instructor at the Nova MM Centre, where I used to/am work/ing and I remember watching one of his first few lessons as part of my duties. It has been one year since that point in time and he decided to stay a few months extra and the whole situation spiralled out of control. I guess he plans to leave earlier than planned.

I met him last night(Friday) at Zerro (the website is annoying as you *have* to allow pop-up windows and there is no excuse for this), a local pub, where he was drinking with a visiting friend, Neil. My purpose there was to enjoy the Friday roast and I had arrived earlier than the other people in my group so I sat and chatted with Gerard and Neil. Their plan was to drink here and then they were going to enjoy what Japan is famous for: karaoke. It just happened that they too were going to Kasuga. When everyone else arrived we finished our meals and headed to Kasuga. Gerard and Neil and Delilah were not far behind. Daniel and his girl were also in tow but they had to gobble down the delicious Turkey roast first.

As always the Kasuga crew were in fine form. Masato was looking happy and Lidia was there, though not dressed in her maid outfit, but cute nonetheless. The drinking soon started and the karaoke followed. Jamie tried out her newly learned Angela Aki song Sakurairo, while Daniel and I belted out Journey's Separate Ways. Sarah and one of her Japanese friends were already there and they gladly partook in our mirth and merriment. Sayaka also made it in with a buddy of hers and they had a few drinks as well.

Gerard was plenty drunk by the time some of his songs came up and he had no problems singing them. Well, okay, maybe he had some problems with the reading bit, but who's counting? Robert, Gerard's good friend who also works at MM, had no such problems and he was able to do some duets with Delilah to the crowd's delight. In his defence, Gerard was dancing to the music and hugging everyone in the bar. It made up for his lack of literacy.

There at Kasuga we also met Hose and Petra, who are friends of Lidia. They were visiting from Spain. Petra is originally from London but moved to Spain to teach English. She too had worked for an English that went bankrupt so she had words of encouragement. In her case the workers were able to sue the guy and the government stepped in and paid them.

When we left Sayaka had a wet lap from a spilled drink, while Gerard was still dancing away. All in all the night was great.

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My Horoscope

My horoscope predictions of late have been really close to the mark lately. Maybe I am reading too much into them, but wow. Things like this really make me want to re-evaluate my belief or disbelief in these things.

Friday (October 12th, 2007):
Don't count on getting an extension on a project or suddenly coming into some money. Just do your best and take care of what you need to get done.
(This is the day I got news that Nova was going to delay the pay until the 19th. So much for the 15th.)

Today (October 16th, 2007):
It's time to let a chapter of your life come to an end. It's hard to say goodbye sometimes, but important to realize when you need to move on.
(End of one job and the start of another? Does this mean I should Toppatsu from now on?)

First day of training

I had taken Mondays off this month. I was going to sit around and be a house husband but decided to use that time to do training for the new job. I don't start until November but getting training out of the way would be nice.

I took the bus to Imazato, subway to Umeda, then Hankyu to Toyonaka. I called the school at about 8:30 and got a J-staff member on the phone. In the background I heard a lot of activity. It sounded like a riot. Anyway, I told her I was the new cover teacher and asked if someone was going to pick me up as per my instructions. She was confused. So I told her that I'd be at the South exit at 9:10 as planned. It all worked out when I meet other teachers at the station. I found out later that they didn't know that I was coming today.

In any case, I was to observe a class which consisted of 4 going on 5 year olds. They were cool but full of energy. I sat with them for a while. This time was spent observing circle time, where they practiced basic life skills and vocab. After that I sat in a different class. This time I was watching Workbook time. The day passed quickly with lunch, snacks, and activities. The only odd job today was washing dishes but that was easy.

I think the train ride was the longest part of the day. The good part of having a long train ride is having the time to write out a blog post.

More good news

I have another computer for my menagerie. This newest addition was donated to me by Kevin and Sayo. It will replace my older laptop. I also want to thank Cedric for donating the parts from his dead laptop. Now this machine has 512MB of ram now. Sweet!

Transition

As of November first I will no longer be working for Nova. Instead I will be working for a company called Kinder Kids. They offer a great vacation package as well as a excellent working environment. Testimonials from ex-teachers have all been positive. I can't wait! Working with the kiddies will be quite different, but change is always good.