iPod morning commute music: Pat Metheny, Bright Size Life (1975)
I was surprised to find this on my iPod, but surprises are what you get when you let your 18 year old son program it for you. This is Pat Metheny's debut album, and it is excellent jazz, with Metheny on guitar and Jaco Pastorius on bass. I believe that I saw Metheny live at my first college back in the mid-seventies, but I really hadn't paid much attention to him. Obviously, that was a mistake!
The adjustment to the new language labs is getting better, but just when 1 thing begins to mellow around here, something else comes along to get you back on edge. Next Tuesday I have to go to Hokkaido, the northern island of Japan, with our senior high two (juniors) students for 3 nights and 4 days. These short trips are really busy, and it isn't that fun to be with students (or responsible for students) all the time. That said, I usually have an okay time once I'm actually there, but it's still not something I look forward to.
My son got his Washington State Driver's License yesterday, so the primary goals of his gap year (job and license) have been reached. Next up is to finish the university application process and find out if they really will grant him state residency.
Thursday, September 28, 2006
Friday, September 15, 2006
Yesterday's Blog Today
iPod morning commute music: Bob Dylan, Modern Times (2006)
Again. I actually have listened to other stuff since the last time I posted, but the Dylan keeps pulling me in. The more I listen to it, the more I like it.
This IS getting stupid. I'm so busy at work I don't have time to post, and I'm so tired at night I don't feel like doing anything other than watching TV. Things are getting better at work, though: I'm about two weeks ahead of myself in planning.
Our TV went belly up last Saturday, so Kaoru and I had to buy a new one. With the move to complete high definition TV coming in 2011 here in Japan, it only made sense to but an HD TV. We ended up getting a nice one, a Hitachi Woo 37" Plasma with a built in 250 GB HDD. What the hell? We figure this TV will be with us for the next 10 to 15 years, so we went with a good one. It is cool.
Tatsu finally started working at the local Thriftway. I suspect it is strange for him to go from the life of a student to the life of a worker, Monday through Friday, 40 hours a week. I think it is a good job for him, though. The pay is above minimum wage, it's a union job, so he can eventually get health coverage (his Japanese insurance only covers the minimum overseas), and he can get to meet a lot of the local people. Also, when he goes to college, he can always look for part-time work in a grocery store.
For some reason, I couldn't publish this yesterday, so I copied and pasted it into a Word document and am trying again today. Hope it works.
Again. I actually have listened to other stuff since the last time I posted, but the Dylan keeps pulling me in. The more I listen to it, the more I like it.
This IS getting stupid. I'm so busy at work I don't have time to post, and I'm so tired at night I don't feel like doing anything other than watching TV. Things are getting better at work, though: I'm about two weeks ahead of myself in planning.
Our TV went belly up last Saturday, so Kaoru and I had to buy a new one. With the move to complete high definition TV coming in 2011 here in Japan, it only made sense to but an HD TV. We ended up getting a nice one, a Hitachi Woo 37" Plasma with a built in 250 GB HDD. What the hell? We figure this TV will be with us for the next 10 to 15 years, so we went with a good one. It is cool.
Tatsu finally started working at the local Thriftway. I suspect it is strange for him to go from the life of a student to the life of a worker, Monday through Friday, 40 hours a week. I think it is a good job for him, though. The pay is above minimum wage, it's a union job, so he can eventually get health coverage (his Japanese insurance only covers the minimum overseas), and he can get to meet a lot of the local people. Also, when he goes to college, he can always look for part-time work in a grocery store.
For some reason, I couldn't publish this yesterday, so I copied and pasted it into a Word document and am trying again today. Hope it works.
Friday, September 08, 2006
There is an LL in the Word HELL
iPod morning commute music: Bob Dylan, Modern Times (2006)
A great album, unless you don't like Dylan, and then you will hate it. It's actually been my morning commute music for the last week or so. I'm listening to it at least once a day. This fits right in with his last two CD's, Time Out of Mind (1997) and Love and Theft (2001). Every song is cool. Way cool. Buy it. Unless you don't like Dylan.
Posting has become difficult since the advent of our new Computer Aided Language Labs (CALL's) in action. On top of the learning curve and trying to get the part-time teachers trained and able to use the machines, the software seems to be full of bugs. Programs close all on their own! Others open in their place! Virtual tape recorders suddenly start playing for no reason! It is awful...teachers keep having to stop their lessons to bring back the student software programs (the entire class loses programs all at once).
When things work, the LL's are great, but they aren't working very well very often.
Tatsu is doing better in the States. He just landed a job at a Thriftway grocery store, which was the job he wanted (and I wanted him to get...there are grocery stores in every college town, and it would make a good part-time job when he is in university). Hopefully, things will continue to look up for him.
Sorry this is so short, but it's lunch time and I'm starving.
A great album, unless you don't like Dylan, and then you will hate it. It's actually been my morning commute music for the last week or so. I'm listening to it at least once a day. This fits right in with his last two CD's, Time Out of Mind (1997) and Love and Theft (2001). Every song is cool. Way cool. Buy it. Unless you don't like Dylan.
Posting has become difficult since the advent of our new Computer Aided Language Labs (CALL's) in action. On top of the learning curve and trying to get the part-time teachers trained and able to use the machines, the software seems to be full of bugs. Programs close all on their own! Others open in their place! Virtual tape recorders suddenly start playing for no reason! It is awful...teachers keep having to stop their lessons to bring back the student software programs (the entire class loses programs all at once).
When things work, the LL's are great, but they aren't working very well very often.
Tatsu is doing better in the States. He just landed a job at a Thriftway grocery store, which was the job he wanted (and I wanted him to get...there are grocery stores in every college town, and it would make a good part-time job when he is in university). Hopefully, things will continue to look up for him.
Sorry this is so short, but it's lunch time and I'm starving.
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