Dinner Party

Well, another week has gone by and we continue to become more and more settled into a routine. Sometimes, we feel so settled that I have to think for a little while before feeling inspired to write on the blog. Whenever I go a whole week without writing, though, I feel badly, and it seems to work out just fine if I make myself sit down and write. It is strangely refreshing to communicate in English without having to think twice about whether or not my audience will understand my vocabulary. For the most part, blogging is the only way I can continue to communicate using written English. I have no other occasion to write, aside from the occasional, short email.

Last week I talked about the change in my schedule due to the addition of an extra class. I have now met with that group twice and I think things are going well! The first group consisted of about 11 people. Yesterday’s group numbered 9 members. The two who were absent were either sick or at a meeting. I think it’s a good sign when people come twice in a row for a class. Still, I’m very conscious of not wanting to bore them, so next week I hope to show them some photos of a typical American (Texan) Thanksgiving. If you have fun pictures, feel free to email them to me so I can share them! Everyone here is interested in what happens in American homes. Most of the pictures I have with me on my computer are shots of Ridge and Holt, and therefore they do not really meet my needs. I have asked Mom to try and take some pictures on Thursday so I can share with my class next week. It will be a nice break from grammar and “how to say hello in a more natural way.”

In school, most Japanese people seem to have learned, “Hello. How are you? I’m fine, and you?” I want to expand their repertoire to include, “What have you been up to? How’s it going?” and so on. Since everyone here says, “good bye. See you,” I told them if they would switch to, “take care!” then they would sound like great English speakers.

We had our first real dinner party on Saturday. With the help of an online store, I was able to purchase the makings for a wonderful lasagna. Believe it or not, we obtained ricotta cheese from a dairy just twenty minutes away. When Aaron went to go buy some, they had to go out into the back of the store and get it, so I think it was pretty darn fresh! It tasted wonderful! I had to make three small lasagnas so I could make enough for everyone (small oven, remember). Including Aaron and myself, there were seven of us. I started with freshly made foccacia bread (it only took me five small loaves to make enough – gotta love the itty bitty oven), mail order olives in garlic, and a balsamic vinegar/ olive oil dipping sauce. Next, we prepared sliced tomatoes with fresh mozzarella and fresh (yes, fresh!) basil, drizzled with balsamic vinegar. I splurged and bought three heads of lettuce to make a salad with red onion and bell peppers. We then feasted on spinach lasagna and a pasta dish I made with fresh parsley, Italian ham, garlic, and butter. For dessert, I baked some small batches of snicker doodles while everyone ate. I think it went quite well. Everyone seemed happy enough. I invited a couple of non-Japanese people: Colin, an Aussie who was here in Nishiokoppe for a year filling in since no teacher from Juneau came last year, and Tom, an Japanese Exchange Teacher (JET) who works about forty minutes away. We met Tom (American) about six weeks ago while shopping in Monbetsu. I also invited Ayaka, the teacher whose house we went to for dinner last month, and one of our neighbors, Mr. Usui.
Thanks to Tom, Colin, and Mr. Usui, language did not pose much of a problem. Both Colin and Tom speak fair Japanese, and Mr. Usui speaks pretty good English. As Aaron pointed out to me later, the way we were seated while eating was a funny continuum of language. On one end, only Japanese was being spoken. In the middle, a little of both could be heard. At mine and Aaron’s end, English pretty much ruled, since our Japanese is pretty stinky.

Anyway, I want to invite more people over, so our next dinner party will (hopefully) feature some Mexican food!

This picture of Holt was taken after spending a day shopping in Nayoro. Thanks to no nap, he promptly came into the house and fell asleep on the floor. In the photo, he is laying in front of the heater on one of our floor cushions. It is especially cozy there, because the rug has a heating pad under it, making lying on the floor an attractive pastime.

I hope everyone has (or had, depending on when you read this) a lovely Thanksgiving. Check back soon - I'm planning a post dedicated to laundry. Pretty exciting stuff, eh?