Memoirs of a Micky

Okay, Tuesday...time is slipping through my fingers and I am having trouble keeping up! But, I'll get it done somehow!

I am writing this Wednesday around 1:00, so the verbs may be off. I apologize!

Tuesday we were back to a semi-regular routine with our meetings in Tokyo. I attended a seminar on art education, and it was so much fun! The leader of the seminar is the owner and operator of the Tokyo Toy Museum, and if I had more time I definitely would have liked to have gone there, but I can only do so much in the time that I have left. We made a couple of toys out of paper, which was fun. It was about time that we got some hands-on activities to do during a meeting! Had we done the same with the meeting with Sanyo-Onoda's mayor, I would have been at the top of my game! I think the most striking thing that was said during the presentation was that we can only have art education during a time of peace. There's something for you to think about! It was a very interesting presentation, and I am glad that I chose that one out of the four options that were presented to me (the others were on special education, kindergarten, and environmental education).

For lunch I did something I shouldn't have done, but it was all in the name of research! I went to McDonald's for the sole purpose of getting a McShrimp burger. In Japan, they call it the Filet O' Ebi (ebi means shrimp in Japanese). It was truly bizarre. I wouldn't say that it was bad, but I don't see myself rushing back to get another one. It was like a crabcake only it was made with shrimp. It, of course, had mayonnaise on it.

The afternoon session was spent at a question and answer session on Japanesse education. It dragged on a little longer than it should have. I honestly feel that most of the questions asked had been asked before we left Tokyo, and the answers didn't change that much. Of course, a couple of people from my group had to stand up and ask the same questions they asked everywhere we went. I am telling you, humans can be quite predictible creatures! We would be great in zoos because we do things the same way all of the time. It's pure and utter craziness, let me tell you. I had a hard time keeping my mind focused because of what I had planned for the evening.

That's right, kids...Tuesday night was Geisha Night. The Fat Geisha came to life!

Four of us went...Holly from the Sanyo-Onoda group, Cyndi, and Kathy. Cyndi, Kathy and I go way back to the early Ning days (I like to call it the Early Ning Dynasty). It was fun to hang out with them! I plan on documenting the entire process on the website in the days to come, but yes, it did get done, and when it did, I looked like this:



It took a lot of baby oil and time to get all of that make-up off, let me tell you! When I woke up this morning, I found traces of it behind my ears. As I don't recall having that make-up put on behind my ears, I am pretty confused as to how it got there!

After the geisha experience, we headed over to Oriental Bazaar to do some last minute shopping, but they had just closed (it was around 7:15...becoming a geisha takes a lot of time). So, we consoled ourselves over hot bowls of noodles and some nice fresh gyoza. Dad loved gyoza when he was over here and he kept telling me to try it. I'm glad I finally got the chance...he was 100% right, it was fantastic! I got home pretty early (home meaning the New Otani...I've been here long enough that it feels like home), around 9:00 or so. I decided to start going through paperwork and trashing some stuff. Let's face it...most of the literature about my host city was in Japanese and I will never be able to read it, so it went away. I don't think I am going to have problems packing, which is a HUGE relief!

Tonight I am going to try to fully catch up on the blog as well as go back and add pictures in where I couldn't. Check back and see what I've been doing!


Parting shot...I kind of feel that I look like Darth Vader right after they took the mask off. Pretty scary stuff...