p.s. freaking noisy in here.

at an internet cafe and all the geeks are playing some sort of rpg game and yelling back and forth at each other. there're random yells of "FATALITY!" and other game-related gibberish. i'm outta here!

i LOVE the PHILIPPINES!!!!!!!

It's so amazing. I'm getting to see a side of it I've never seen before. The clean country side. The breathtaking views. The lovely people. When I lived here, it was mostly the dirty streets, the non-running water, the people who steal and rip you off. And every time I've visited, I've stayed in the house I grew up in with my aunt and cousins. I couldn't ever really go sight seeing because I would feel bad that I couldn't take them all with me (and they can't come because they don't have money). So I would just stay at the house and help with my aunt's little mom and pop store and play with my cousins.

Also, being here with non-Filipinos--specifically, two canadians, two americans, one australian, and four brits--helps me kind of pull back and look at the Philippines through their eyes. I am an American who can speak Tagalog visiting the Philippines. It's pretty great.

Today we went on a long, scenic bus ride to Taal Lake and Volcano Island. We got to the lake and took a really cool boat (I think they called it an outrigger) to the Volcano Island. We rode horses up to the top of the volcano and looked down at the crater lake inside.

Came back to Manila after partaking in some Halo Halo (a dessert made of shaved ice and various tropical fruits and desserts). Everyone else made the smart choice of napping and/or showering before dinner tonight (after which they will probably want to go to bars and clubs and such), but I want to do some exploring on my own. So off I go!

hmm. i like this layout but it doesn't allow me to write a title for journal entries (which isn't that important) nor does it allow anyone to write comments (and by anyone i mean cassie). so if you want to comment, please email me!

All the Sapporo beer and lamb you can eat at the Sapporo Beer Garden.

SPAM should be the eighth wonder of the world. it's delicious and it might even be food!

another day, another dollar. . . yen

pulled off two super high energy performances today first and second period. no classes for the rest of the day but now have to plan for two private lessons tonight. never quite know what to do with these kids who, at best, have the attention span of mice on crack.

i have that one private lesson tonight that i have once a month. students include:
- 1 8th grader, very smart
- 1 7th grader, unnaturally slow
- 1 adult
- sometimes that adult's kid who is a 10th grader. a little slow for 10th grade
- 1 9 year-old who is as smart as the 8th grader but can't read as fast.
and then the woman who runs the class that i basically team teach with. she's okay.

all ingredients for one very painful hour of English teaching.

the lesson before that is with the 7 year old kid i've been tutoring for a year with results yet to be evident. he's getting more hardheaded as he gets older i think. all his mom wanted is for him to be conversational. last week he answered my, "How are you?" with a "I'm six years old." which is 0-2 in the correct answer department.

amidst all this is the nagging worry about taking the GRE, applying for Peace Corps, applying for grad school, buying that plane ticket to 'merica for Cassie's wedding, doing my taxes, booking ticket/hotel for Hawaii, mailing certain packages home and having enough money for all this. i get tired so easily lately (or perhaps not lately. it's just me being lazy) that i all i want to do when i get home is go to sleep or read some fluff romance novel.

from hibernation and into the sunlight

I have been so out of it for so long that I don't even know myself anymore. Don't know how to fix it. Don't know how to fix me. But I'm trying so bear with me!

Habitat for Humanity

Is costing me a fortune . . . volunteering is expensive work. I have spent over $1,000 on hotel, flight, and (ironically enough) fundraising.

at the Charity Benefit Concert in Kobe

we raised over ￥150,000

only in japan . . .

. . . can you have a conversation at school with someone who has foam and toothbrush in their mouth.

. . . I hope no one was reading that

If you are, comment. I'm curious to see who actually checks my blog after months of inactivity. I was posting today and discovered that it's possible to click twice and make your entire blog disappear. What can I say? I have talent. This is what I get for randomly clicking on Japanese links and thinking that everything will be fine.

Oddly enough, I feel no particular emotion after deleting nearly two years worth of half-hearted public journal keeping. Perhaps resigned amusement. I've gotten used to my screw ups.