BS: Working (at last) in Guam

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Charley Noble
Date: 15 May 06 - 08:03 PM

So are you looking for a place to stay for this Friday night?

We need to know so we have time to clean the entire house, throw out all the garbage that has accumulated since you last stayed with us!

Cheerily,
Charley Noble

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 17 May 06 - 09:27 AM

So, reading the paper and watching the TV has led me to believe that you will be busy building an ark to escape the flooding. Will we need sea shanties to get over the raging waters that lie between us and New Hampshire?

By the by, I am in New Limerick at my parents' house. Last night they had a house guest who was once a carnie with her husband following a show around the USA! She is English, from southeastern England, and now lives here in northern Maine. Her husband died a year or so ago and she is finally getting out of her grief. Quite an interesting person.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Charley Noble
Date: 17 May 06 - 12:02 PM

Brett-

We are high and dry in Richmond.

I don't know if there is still a Portsmouth; they received over 14 inches of rain.

Maybe you should freshen up "A Long Time Ago."

Cheerily,
Charley Noble

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: curmudgeon
Date: 17 May 06 - 07:59 PM

Portsmouth is safe.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: JudyB
Date: 17 May 06 - 09:42 PM

Well, that might be so, Tom, but I think I'd better stick to margaritas at the Press Room on Saturday rather than risk the water....

See you there!
JudyB

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 18 May 06 - 11:47 AM

I forgot that Friday's destionation was the coffeehouse. I will be there. Charley & Judy, can I beg a bed?

And can I beg a ride down to Portsmouth on Saturday? That way we'll have all day Saturday together. I have some pictures to share as well as some DVDs of life on the islands.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: JudyB
Date: 18 May 06 - 12:32 PM

Sounds like a plan! You have a way to get to the coffee house? We'll be there around 5:30 setting up, so you can arrive any time after that. Or if you want to arrive at the house Friday afternoon, you'll need to coordinate with Charlie - he should be home this evening.

See you tomorrow!
JudyB

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 05 Jun 06 - 04:41 PM

I still live! I am in Hawaii, not quite the visit in paradise I had hoped for but it's all right here. Details later. Let's just say that insurance companies have a way of screwing up just about everything.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 05 Jun 06 - 04:48 PM

One point for anyone in the San Francisco area. There were two women at the hotel. They left yesterday. One of them is Eileen Hazel, a singer songwriter from Berkely. She was in Hawaii worki9ng on learning the language and writing songs in Hawaiian. If you get a chance to see her playing out in the coffeehouses or wherever take it. She's pretty good.

I met them as I sat on the covered patio playing my guitar. I sang Bertha's Mussels and heard their applause. Later they joined me and we passed the guitar around. Eileen sang her Hawaiian songs and her friend, Diane, has been studying slack key guitar and played a few pieces. Not bad. We spent a couple of evenings on the patio swapping music and stories. Fun time. The second evening Eileen brought out her uke and Diane her guitar. We jammed along and enjoyed the soft Hawaiian breeze and cool evening air. Several of the other hostel occupants sat around and enjoyed the time. One kid wanted to participate but the only songs he knew where They Might Be Giants tunes. Without accompaniement it didn't work very well but we encouraged him to sing out.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Charley Noble
Date: 06 Jun 06 - 03:49 PM

Nice to know you still walk the earth.

Off to Mystic on Thursday.

Cheerily,
Charley Noble

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Charley Noble
Date: 16 Jun 06 - 10:58 PM

I wonder if Brett is back to Guam or has he been shanghaied while in Hawaii? Inquiring minds want to know soon or we'll be forced to continue this thread with our own fantasies!

Cheerily,
Charley Noble

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: katlaughing
Date: 17 Jun 06 - 08:16 PM

I'll give it a lift up. Heeeellllllloooooooo, Brett?! Are ye there?!

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 20 Jun 06 - 09:14 PM

Yes! I am still here! I realized I have been remiss in several different aspects. For one, I have not been maintaining this thread as I should. I just seem to have gotten lazy. For another, my recent entries have only been news of daily happenings. I can't remember when I've described the location or the day or the people or anything else. And lately I haven't even been good at keeping people abreast of my more recent activities. I'm a bad boy. I apologize.

As you know I went to the east coast for Amy's graduation and to visit the parents. I even got to enjoy some musical events. I saw my old group, Roll & Go, in concert at the Side Door Coffeehouse. I joined in the weekly chanty sing in Portsmouth and I went to a chanty sing in Boston. It was a good trip.

The graduation was fun. I have never been accused of being an average parent. I stayed in Amy's dorm room on a mattress on the floor, not something most parents would do and not something most college kids would want. Fortunately Amy and I have a close relationship. She and I enjoy each other's company. On the night before the graduation she took me with her to a post grad party at another college, a school where she has a number of friends. I haven't seen so much alcohol since my own college days. At the party I engaged in a pun contest with one of the kids and sang them a couple of songs, Being a Pirate and Zombie Jamboree. I was not only accepted but welcomed and made a part of the group. As I say, I am not an average parent.

After I left Lynchburg I visited Appomattox Station, the site of the surrender by the Confederacy, the end of the Civil War. It is very nicely maintained as a National Park but none of the original buildings are there. The courthouse burned down before the 20th Century. The McClean house where the surrender was signed was considered from the beginning to be an important site. So, in the early 20th Century a coalition of businesses bought it and took it apart to move to a more accessible location. Unfortunately they ran out of money (or maybe interest). So the house was abandoned in mid move and quickly dissolved into a pile of rotting timbers and bricks. The house on the site now is a copy. The result is a plastic copy of an important site. It was pretty but didn't "feel" right.

The visit with my parents was nice. I love the farm in any season and early summer is one of my favorites. There are few bugs yet and the weather is very comfortable.

It was great to see Roll & Go again. They are really working hard on their music and sound great. Charley gave me a copy of their latest CD. I couldn't listen to it until I got it home but it has been in my car since I got home. Good stuff.

An old friend at the coffeehouse, Allison, who also used to sing with the group, told me of a chanty sing in Boston. Since I was headed to Massachusetts the next day I decided to leave early and drop into the sing. Lynn Noel organizes that gathering and has a dedicated group of singers sitting in a circle looking out at the Charles River. Great fun.

The main purpose of the trip was to visit an old friend who is getting married later this month. She is well and the guy she's marrying seems to be a great catch. I wished her well. I think her life is taking a turn for the very good.

And then Hawaii. Ah, Hawaii, the magnet that draws people from all over the world. A land of mountains and sea, clear skies and friendly Polynesians, traditions and modern life melding in a whirl of color and sound. I wish I could have seen some of it.

You see, I had to stop there because flying on your frequent flyer miles requires a stop somewhere and I had never been there before. Plus I needed an MRI on my wrist and the machine to do it, an "open" MRI, is not available on Guam. Back in April my doctor had requested the procedure from the insurance company and we had been talking with them ever since. You would think, having a month to prepare they would have been ready with the appointment when I got there. But no, they were "…still working on it…" when I called them. They continued to work on it until it was too late and I had to leave Hawaii without getting the work done. To say I am pissed is an understatement. Instead of sightseeing I spent my time at a pay phone running through phone cards trying to get an appointment at a Hawaiian hospital.

But I came home, my wrist still painful and my doctor working to come up with a plan that doesn't require an MRI. And a lot of anger at the fact that I STILL have not seen Hawaii.

Of course there were compensations. I met some very interesting people there as I mentioned in one entry. And the hostel has a very nice atmosphere. I highly recommend it if you want to go to Hawaii and NOT spend a bundle on a hotel.

So now I am home again. Wakana is now working at the university teaching a summer session Japanese class. She loves it. The only time I've seen her spend this much time on anything is when she plays computer games or when she is trimming the brush back from the house. She says she'll be heartbroken when the job ends in two weeks. She is also still teaching at the Liberal Academy in Tumon and loves that work too. The bridal job is gone but not forever. They want her back. The Japanese school is on summer vacation and won't start up again until August.

In the meantime I am finally hearing from the Guam Public School System about my job application I submitted in January. Let me see, it's June so that means it has been, (counting on fingers) five months! And they called to ask if I was certified! I submitted that application in January too so that has also been, let me think, oh yeah, five months! They're still "working on it". I'm beginning to see a pattern here. Their last request from me was to get from the college catalog a description of the courses I took. I had to explain to them that I took those courses 26 years ago from a college that has since become one of the premier osteopathic medical universities in the northeastern USA. That didn't faze them at all. They still wanted the descriptions of the courses.

I called my mentor, my college history professor, and we discussed the classes he was teaching in the 1970s. I wrote it up in a letter and handed it into the certification office. Sigh, this place is so screwed up.

And, in the meantime I have been offered employment working at the Liberal Academy teaching English As A Second Language to Japanese students who would be shipped in from Japan to learn our language. I would have long term employment, they say, and the wages would be comparable with GPSS. What to do, what to do…

And last but not least, next Thursday I will be performing in a one man show of chanties, ballads, and drinking songs at the Mermaid Tavern here in Hagatna.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 20 Jun 06 - 09:30 PM

Oh, and I forgot to mention that there is a man visiting his daughter and grandchild here who also works at flint knapping and building Native American flutes. He gave me a bamboo version that he made. Gordon and I went out and cut some bamboo yesterday to try to make some more of them. I love the sound even though they are not good for making my kind of music. It's time to experiment.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Ebbie
Date: 20 Jun 06 - 09:42 PM

Good to hear your 'voice' again, Naemanson. Aren't you glad that you are retired so you don't have so much to do?

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Charley Noble
Date: 21 Jun 06 - 11:24 AM

Brett-

So good to hear from you again. We've begun posting the Mystic Sea Music Festival pictures on that thread if you want a look.

This Saturday Nor, Eli and I join Tom Hall and a gang down at Portsmouth for welcoming in the Bluenose-II.

Glad you like ROLLING DOWN TO SAILORTOWN. We sold 50 of the little puppies down at Mystic so someone other than our friends and families likes them.

Do you need any mermaid songs?

This verse from Bob Roberts' "Stormy, Weather, Boys":

Then up comes a mermaid covered in muck,
So we took her below and had a good time...

Cheerily,
Charley Noble

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 22 Jun 06 - 06:21 PM

The evening was a big success. The tavern was the usual babble of voices, at times I thought I was playing with anyone paying attention, but then I could see one or two people singing along and I knew SOMEONE could hear me. One gentleman there asked me if I was going to do any Stan Rogers or Schooner Fare. That was the first time I'd heard Schooner Fare mentioned outside of Maine!

The babble of voices died down very often and I managed to sing to a fairly quiet crowd. When I sang Henery The Eighth there was a great response. Old Dun Cow managed to bring out a few shouts of 'MacIntyre' and some knocking on the table tops. They quieted for Last Shantyman and sang along with me on Stowing Sugar Down Below. There was NO singing on Derelict even thought they all knew 'yo ho ho and a bottle of rum'.

Still, everyone wanted to thank me for the performance. Someone bought me a beer even though I was getting my drinks (and meals for me and Wakana) on the house. One table included a group originally from Saint John, New Brunswick. One of them brought the words for Barret's Privateers hoping I was intending to sing that one. I borrowed his paper and sang it anyway.

I left there more than a little buzzed from the beer and the compliments. Wakana was astonished to see me drink three whole beers. She's never seen me drink that much or be drunk at all. I drink so little that it only takes three beers to do me in. But the place is the only microbrewery on the island so the beer is well worth the sup.

Great night!

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Charley Noble
Date: 22 Jun 06 - 08:58 PM

Brett-

Congatulations!

Now if you need a group of back-up singers, we can ship Roll & Go right over. What are the rates for shpping crates to Guam? How long does it take to get there so we're able to pack enough peanut butter and toilet paper? Do we get free beer too?

Cheerily,
Charley Noble

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 24 Jun 06 - 07:37 AM

It costs as much for a shipping container as it does for round trip airfare but you can fit more people in the container than in the overhead luggage rack.

Can't say about the free beer but you should pack enough peanut butter and toilet paper for a couple of months at least.

Today Wakana's friend Kyoko arrived from Japan to visit for five days. She seems very nice. We worked very hard cleaning the house for her visit. Then we waited at the airport for two hours before we found out that her plane was running four hours late. Oh well.

Yesterday Gordon and Terry came over and we sat out under the canopy swapping stories, drinking soda and making native American flutes. At one point I looked at the other two and commented on how nice it is to be retired and to be able to do such things. On Wednesday Kyoko wants to try to make a flute too. I need a Dremel tool.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 25 Jun 06 - 05:59 PM

Yesterday we took Kyoko for a ride around the island. She is enchanted by nearly everything and, as we have seen before, showing the island opens new insights for us. We see it with new eyes, so to speak. The day was perfect, not too hot and not cloudy. We saw everything that Guam has to offer from sun and surf to carabao grazing alongside the road. We stopped at all the sights. And when we returned to the house we were exhausted. That seems to happen whenever we get visitors. I decided tourists cause exhaustion.

Now Wakana and Kyoko have gone off to the university to teach Japanese. Kyoko will present herself to the students as a Japanese speaker and Wakana will give an extra point to each student who speaks with her.

This afternoon we will go out on Scubaroo to see the dolphins and go snorkeling. We should be completely exhausted when we get home.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 28 Jun 06 - 01:15 PM

It's 3:20 AM and we just got back from the airport where we delivered Kyoko into the care of JAL (Japan Air Lines).

This evening I heard from the Mermaid. They want me to come back to sing... tonight!

Also today I leave the happy realm of the retired person and begin a regular job! Ugh and double ugh!

But this morning I made a flute for and with Kyoko and she seems happy with it. I'm not but then I am my own worst critic.

Sleepy....

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 30 Jun 06 - 07:45 PM

The gig at the Mermaid is a typical bar scene. Even the friends who come to hear me tend to get involved in loud conversations. I have to remember that nobody outside the small circle of folkies understands that folk music has to be listened to. It isn't just background noise like rock & roll is. So several times I ended up singing to myself, basically. But the owners are happy with the sound and even paid me $50 over and above the beer, iced tea, and meals, Wakana and I consumed. I guess my actual take was close to $80 for two hours of singing.

I went to the Japanese School on Thursday to sit in on the classes I will take for the next two weeks. The regular teacher forgot that the Japanese school runs on a different schedule and planned her vacation to time with her children's vacation. They need me to cover her last two weeks of English classes.

At the Japanese school classes are taught in Japanese and English is taught to the kids as a second language. Of course, most of these kids have been raised in Guam and have picked up English anyway but we need to teach them proper English. In August I take over my own class and get to mold a whole new generation of Japanese kids. Muwahahaha!

The kids in these classes are in the first through eighth grade. They are in two classes, first through fourth and then fifth through eighth. That seems to be quite a range of ages but it seems to work for them. I got a kick out of watching the class and helping out when I could. On Tuesday I get to take over and I have no lifline. The regular teacher has already left for her vacation! Gulp!

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Charley Noble
Date: 01 Jul 06 - 03:46 PM

Good luck with teaching English, Brett. I'm sure you'll be getting a lot of attention from your students, especially when you sing.

And it's good to hear that you're well on your way to earning your first million dollars singing at the Mermaid Tavern. Now you have only $999,950 to go!

Here's a "merrymaid" song from C. Fox Smith that you might try to work up:

Told At "The Pilchards"

Tom Pascoe was a fisherman belonging to Portloe,
And when I can't just tell you, but 'tis middlin' long ago;
And overright the Manacles, a-hauling of his seine,
Tom Pascoe catched a merrymaid and let her go again.

Oh, I tell you, she was pretty, I tell you she was neat,
From her head down to the little tail she'd got instead o' feet;
She was pink and pearl and silver, like the sea at break o' day,
And the shiny, greeny eyes of her they stole Tom's heart away.

Now Tom he was a lazy chap and fonder of his beer
Then he was of mending up his nets and tending to his gear,
And that was how it came about the seine bust clean in two,
And Tom he stood there gaping while the merrymaid slipped through.

She popped between the meshes and she flipped her dainty tail,
And there wasn't so much left of her as just one shiny scale,
And Tom he hove a thumping sigh and nothing did he say
But hauled his gear in sorrowful and fished no more that day.

His girl run down to meet him when she saw his boat come in,
But he passed her like a stranger with a kind o' foolish grin,
And he sits down on the sea-wall and starts to mend his gear,
And, says he, "You don't give me the slip next time, my pretty dear!"

And any day and every day as boats could go to sea,
Why, there you'd see Tom Pascoe just as plain as plain could be,
Looking for his merrymaid, and peering overside
And calling to her tender-like to come and be his bride.

His mates they'd shake their heads sometimes and say, "Poor chap, he's queer!"
Then tap their foreheads meaning-like and finish up their beer,
And his girl she cried her eyes up till you'd think she'd never stop —
And then she married Mister Budd as kep'
The general shop.

And his boat got old and leaky and his beard got long and white,
And folks got kind of used to him and said he wasn't right;
And all the little boys and girls 'ud point at him and say,
"Good morning, Mister Pascoe; any merrymaids to-day?"

And the years come and the years went, till one day a feller found
A boat with no one in her, on her lonesome drifting round;
And seeing she was Pascoe's it was plain enough to see
He'd gone to find his merrymaid as wouldn't come to he.

So all you likely fisher chaps as listens to my lay,
Don't have no truck wi' merrymaids — you'll find it doesn't pay;
And don't go yarning with your pals and sitting at your beer
Instead o' mending up your nets and tending to your gear
But remember poor Tom Pascoe and the end what he come to . . .
Well, talking is a thirsty job; I don't mind if I do.

Notes:

From SAILOR'S DELIGHT, edited by Cicely Fox Smith, published by Methuen & Co., London, UK, © 1931, pp. 125-129. First published in the magazine PUNCH, August 24, 1927, p. 206.

"Pilchards" are small fish related to herring and it's also a common name for a tavern as in this poem.

"Merrymaids" are obviously what we think of as mermaids, and one should heed the storyteller's warning and steer clear of such creatures.

Gordon Morris (UK) had adapted this poem for singing, as recorded on FULL SAIL: Inside the Lid, © 2002.

Charley Noble

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: katlaughing
Date: 01 Jul 06 - 10:37 PM

Charley, what a GRAND song! Thanks for posting it!

Brett, you sound busier than when you were working full-time! But, good busy. Still sounds such a neat adventure and, as Charley said, it sure is good to hear your voice, again.

luvyakat

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 02 Jul 06 - 09:46 AM

life certainly began at (insert age of retirement)

tho you've had a very interesting time since you went to Guam, Brett & we are so fortunate to share it.

see ya & Wakana one day

sandra

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: CarolC
Date: 02 Jul 06 - 11:19 AM

Congratulations on your gig, Brett.

We have a heartwarming story unfolding here (and on the island of Rota) that you may eventually become peripherally involved in. My son's girlfriend (I mentioned her previously in a PM) has been tracked down by her father, whom she has never met.

The father is Chamorro, from Rota (born and raised there), and he retired there about a decade ago after a lengthy military career that took him all over the world. My son's girlfriend is a reporter for a magazine that serves the military community, and he saw her name while reading the magazine. After a few months of reading her articles, he finally sent her an email, a few days ago. Prior to getting the email, she didn't know anything about him except that he was from Rota.

Both of them (my son and girlfriend) have been invited to go live for however long they want on Rota, and they have been told that they would be given teaching jobs if they wanted them. They are pretty keen to do that, and they hope to be going there within the next year.

My son's girlfriend has already written a freelance story about JtS and what he does for a living. I told her about you and your dugout canoe adventures. She said she would like to meet you, and she looked pretty excited about it. I wouldn't be surprised if she decided that you were 'article worthy'.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 03 Jul 06 - 07:11 AM

No problem, Carol, send her over. I think she'll like Rota. I hear it's beautiful but I haven't been able to get there yet. Wakana has been several times (before we met) and assures me it's worth the trip. We'll get over there one of these days.

Tomorrow I begin teaching at the Japanese School on my own. No more visits, no life lines, no back up. The assistant principal was worried that I'd forget to come to work on July 4 so he called me today to remind me that school would be in session.

Today Wakana and I walked up the Namo River. The 'river' runs down past our house, about 100 yards off through the jungle, with a waterfall somewhere in there. Down in Agat the Corps of Engineers has built a big flood control project with concrete side walls and an outlet to the sea. We wandered up from the road looking at the system they put in and enjoying the afternoon. It wasn't too awful hot and we had the wind in our faces going up stream. On the way back we were walking with the wind so it felt hotter. Back at the car I slipped into the water for a quick swim then we came home.

There is a tropical storm off to the southwest of us. It poses no danger for us but the surf on the reef is fantastic. Yesterday the waves were very high and crashed quite spectacularly on the rocky islands. They would rise up from a dull green sea and go from pale green to white as they curled and then crashed on the little islands.

I sometimes have to pinch myself to make sure this isn't a dream. The island is so pretty and life is so good here. Between my life with Wakana and the fun things that make up my other time I seem to have the world by the tail. Is there another shoe coming up?

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 04 Jul 06 - 08:07 PM

Well, yesterday I taught my first classes in an elementary school. The kids are fun but I had my hands full. They sat in a semicircle in front of me and we stumbled through the first class. I am substituting for their regular teacher until the end of the semester and I do things differently than she does. It is a trial to slow down to the level where they are at but I seem to connect with them.

I teach English as a second language. My first class has the younger kids, first through fourth grade. My second class has the fifth through eighth grade kids. The younger kids were fascinated by pretty much everything. I have some sidewalk chalk I bought to use. I always write too small with the little pieces of chalk and I have never liked the small pieces you get from the school. The sidewalk chalk makes me write big enough for everyone to see what is on the board and I can really get my fingers around it. And I can pound on the board while writing for that wonderful sound that the little pieces can never imitate. AND there is NO screechy sound!!!

And the kids are fascinated by the big pieces of chalk. They are also fascinated with my belly. I don't think they've ever seen a fat teacher. I had to point out to the younger students that it is rude to comment on someone's anatomy.

We are studying consonants with the younger kids. Some of them have trouble with 'l' and 'r' so today we will concentrate on those sounds.

In the older class there was one student who was running wild before the bell rang. Once we got everyone in their seats I made sure they understood that Miss Twyla's rules still stand. And I pointed to a desk up front for ANYONE (looking at the wild kid) who caused any trouble. No problems in the class at all.

I noticed one kid hastely copying the answers from someone else's homework. I took it away from him and after the class I talked privately with him and the other student about cheating. I hope I got the message across

These guys are fun.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 06 Jul 06 - 04:02 PM

The kids are FASCINATED with my eraser pen. I marked up their spelling test with it yesterday and one of them accidently erased one of my letters. She was fearful and excited when she pointed it out to me. Soon all of my corrections were being erased by eager children who had to try the new experience.

Yesterday I took my new Native American flute to class and learned an important lesson. Never show a musical instrument to young Japanese students unless you are willing to see and hear their instruments too. The minute the flute came out of the bag so too did their recorders. We had a lovely musical interlude in the moments before the bell rang.

Did I say these kids are fun?

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 06 Jul 06 - 04:08 PM

Oh, and did I mention I am exhausted after a full 6 hour week of working? (yes, that's right, 1 digit.)

As for the other job, next Tuesday I start working with Mr. Yamaguchi at the Liberal Academy. He apparently speaks no English but wants to. Then in September I begin working with the Japanese high school drop outs. We are expecting 10 of them. The boss will set them up in her apartment and send any overflow to Pia Marine, the hotel where Wakana was living when we met.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 11 Jul 06 - 08:35 AM

I started with Mr. Yamaguchi today. He's a young man (30) with a real need to speak English and a job riding him like a hag rides a nightmare. We'll work together on Tuesdays and Thursdays for an hour and a half.

The kids at the Japanese School are winding down to summer vacation and have enough energy to power a mid-size city. It's hard to keep them on task. It doesn't help that they have no worry about grades. Their regular teacher gave them their final grade for the semester before she left. Still we are having fun with the Boggle exercises. Wakana helped me make red and blue calico ribbons for them to wear as headbands. They pick teams by pulling the ribbons out of a bag. They love it.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Charley Noble
Date: 11 Jul 06 - 08:48 AM

Brett-

When you're teaching English be sure to use such common phrases as "pretty good" and "pretty bad" to compliment and confound your students.

Charley Noble

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: bbc
Date: 11 Jul 06 - 08:57 AM

Hey, Brett,

I've been away on vacation. It's nice to catch up on what you're doing. Since I teach in an elementary school & since we frequently get new students who speak no English & also because of my experiences living in Korea, your posts are of great interest to me. I'm sure that having you as a teacher will enrich your students' lives.

love,

Barbara

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 11 Jul 06 - 06:34 PM

The younger kids are a trip. They are so fascinated by pretty much anything I bring in to the class. One day I wore my nautical singing hat. They all thought I was a sailor. (Funny, when I wore a ball cap they didn't ask if I played baseball...) I have an erasable pen. That really gets them. And I use sidewalk chalk on the board and that fascinates everyone including the other teachers.

The older kids are fun too. I can banter with them and fool them. Yesterday I announced the daily spelling test would have 100 words to each of the classes. The younger kids dutifully but fearfully took out their paper. The older kids protested. Then when the older kids asked for a bonus word I gave them 'Carribean' forgetting that it was on the little sign on the board. Those who went closer to the board to copy it then had 'antidisestablishmentarianism' for their bonus word.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: katlaughing
Date: 11 Jul 06 - 07:23 PM

Every child should be so lucky to have such an inventive, flexible, and caring teacher as you, Brett! It just sounds wonderful! Thanks so much for keeping up your postings for us. I look forward to them very much.

kat

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Desert Dancer
Date: 12 Jul 06 - 12:55 AM

Except that it's Caribbean... ;-) (And I only noticed that because I had to look it up recently.)

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 12 Jul 06 - 04:40 AM

Oops!

Today Wakana joined my classes at the Japanese School. She wanted to see how I worked, I guess. We had a good time. We had Show And Tell and a spelling quiz. The kids were very interested in what we shared about our life in Japan and Guam. I took in some copies of the pictures painted by Wakana's mother.

By the way, if you want to look at her work you can check out Mitsuko's Paintings at this website. It's in Japanese, of course, but just click on the paintings to view the galleries.

I realized recently that the kids are learning English from texts that are very middle America. All the kids in the books are white middle class with American names and American activities. The reading assignments only marginally touch on the lives these kids lead. I downloaded a copy of a Japanese fairy tale and read it to them. At first the kids were puzzled but then they realized they knew the story but they had only heard it in Japanese. This was the first time they heard it in English. We had a great discussion on how stories change over time.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: GUEST,Lana
Date: 12 Jul 06 - 08:47 AM

Lovely paintings, I really like the one of the old tree with the stone leaning on it.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Charley Noble
Date: 12 Jul 06 - 09:39 AM

Brett-

For the younger children you might see if you can buy a copy of THE CAT AT NIGHT from the used book websites. It's one of Dahlov's books that has been translated into Japanese (soon to be translated into Chinese).

It sure sounds like you're doing a good job of keeping the teaching of "English" interesting for yourself as well as your students. That's a healthy thing to do!

Cheerily,
Charley Noble

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Ebbie
Date: 12 Jul 06 - 11:30 AM

Lovely paintings indeed. You've married into a talented family.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 12 Jul 06 - 07:08 PM

By the way, Charlie, would you pass Mitsuko's web site on to your mother, please?

I am indeed fortunate to be part of this family. When I look around at the other people I might have hooked up with (considering my past relationships) I just start appreciating Wakana more and more.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 15 Jul 06 - 03:02 AM

Poor Wakana. She's had a terrible disappointment. The job she was hoping for, teaching at UOG, was given to another person. This other person is a friend of ours and excitedly announced it to Wakana at the canoe meeting today. Wakana was very good about being excited for her but shortly afterward quietly asked me if we could leave. In the car she cried and cried. She's asleep now. Poor girl.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 15 Jul 06 - 08:36 AM

what a bummer, hugs to you both.

sandra

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Ebbie
Date: 15 Jul 06 - 12:27 PM

Aw. But maybe that clears the way for something even more rewarding.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 15 Jul 06 - 08:02 PM

She's doing better today. It was an awful blow but today she can smile. She's out mowing the lawn and enjoying the little bit of sunshine we've been blessed with.

Weather report: We are into the wet season. In the past the wet season has been very predictable according to the locals. It rains in the morning and then again later in the day. Not so this year. Of course it might have something to do with the tropical storm/typhoon that just bypassed us. We've had relentless rain for a week. Today the sun is shining and we can dry out a bit but I suspect it will not last. There are more clouds than blue up there.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 18 Jul 06 - 11:09 PM

Two days ago I noticed a small red spot on my right leg just above my ankle. By the evening it had grown to a large sore red mark with a dark center. Yesterday the doctor confirmed that it is an infection and started me on pills and antibacterial cream. He cut into it and sent a sample to the lab. It's very sore and itches like a son of a bitch. It's about the size of an old fashioned silver dollar with pain radiating out in a six inch diameter. The center is black. It really hurts to walk. Wakana is worried but I think it's a little better today. I keep taking the pills and applying the cream.

Since my last entry about weather on the fifteenth we've had yet another tropical depression roll through here soaking us with rain. It's still a little cloudy.

Because of all the rain the reservoir has been stirred up and our water is a little muddy. Every time the water rises abouve a certain level of turbidity they shut it off. We've been on water rationing for about two weeks now. Ours is the neighborhood that gets its water in the mornings. In the evenings our pressure drops down to almost nothing.

My leg hurts. Time to elevate it again.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Ebbie
Date: 19 Jul 06 - 01:30 AM

Naemanson, that sounds very like what was diagnosed as a spider bite (probably the Hobo Spider, here in southeast Alaska) on my friend's leg a few yeas ago. The doctor prescribed Benadryl for the itching, which helped.

The center of the bite eventually fell out, leaving a pit there which in time filled in but she still has the scar.

Nasty stuff.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Naemanson
Date: 19 Jul 06 - 03:57 PM

This is not a spider bite. There is a wound in the center, not sure where I got that, which is now black with a white border. The red inflamed area is still growing. I have three little wounds on that leg. A second one is now in the red area and is itching. It too has developed a black center. Must be time for another doctor visit.

Things are a little complicated here by the upcoming holiday. June 21 is Liberation Day. Guam has a huge annual celebration of the liberation of the island in 1944. Events culminate in a parade down Route 1 in Hagatna. Apparently the parade is huge and takes hours to pass. Every village and organization puts in a float. Businesses close all over the island, that is, all but the ones devoted to the tourists. My doctor's office will only be seeing urgent care cases without an appointment. So, I guess I'm off to wait in the waiting room.

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 20 Jul 06 - 09:27 AM

sounds nasty - if it's not a spider, could it be a spiky plant that attacked you?

happy (restful) Liberation Day

sandra

Subject: RE: BS: Working (at last) in Guam
From: bbc
Date: 20 Jul 06 - 09:36 AM

Wow, Brett! Take care of that & keep us informed. Doesn't sound like something to fool around w/.

Barbara