Summer is here and lots of good movies are coming out.  Let’s see how many movies I watch from now until school starts.

1. Fast and Furious
2. Dragonball Evolution
3. The Day the Earth Stood Still

2009.  The last four months have just flown by.  I think I’m down to one blog every month or two. 

Recap of 2008
January through March I was still “teaching” in Japan.  It was the same old stuff day in, day out. 
In March, I made an unexpected trip back to Toronto to write the UTPAT for pharmacy.
April to July was good and bad in Japan.  It was the beginning of their new school year so it was like a fresh start.  I felt like they were my students rather than that I was taking over the previous ALT’s students.  At the same time, a few of the teachers I enjoyed teaching with were transferred to other schools.  I guess it also had to do with the fact that I knew my time there was coming to an end so I was trying to get the most of everything, taking nothing for granted.  By early July, I’d heard back from UT and found out that I’d have something to do in September. 
Then August came.  It felt so good to be home.  You hype it up so much in your head that you think that there’s no way it will be that good.  But it was.  Friends, family, fun, food…. awesome.  Or, fantastic. 
September through December was my first semester of school in over a year.  Took a little time to get back into it but I think I’m getting there.  Met some amazing people and I’m looking forward to the next 3 years.  If all goes well. 

Onto 2009
I haven’t made any “resolutions” (per se) for this year.  I never stick to them.  I hope to keep working hard at school but I feel like I’m slipping back to my lazy ways.  I also wanted to get into crazy shape for the Funakoshi Cup in Japan in September.  I told myself I’d swear off alcohol and unhealthy food until then, but I don’t see that happening with the company I keep (gotta blame someone right?).  I don’t know how I’ll be able to balance my studies, training, and socializing.  I guess I have to be more organized.  Less facebook maybe.  Maybe….
I hope 2009 follows to trend of each year being better than the last, but this year started off a little crappier with John heading out to Vancouver.  Something big and incredible has to come out of this year to offset his departure. 

On a side note, I feel like I’m losing some of the post-Japan confidence and pre-Japan Eric is creeping back.  I’m not sure how to get it back but I’m looking into it.

I have stuff I want to blog about but once I start writing it seems stupid to write about.

I remember back in middle school our teacher made us write up some short-term and long-term goals every few months.  My strategy for coming up with “long-term” goals was to look at my report card and write that I wanted to improve in the subject in which I was getting the lowest mark. 

I remember one day these people from Junior Achievement came in and basically had us plan out a life.  We chose a career and had a salary, and I think we even put together a budget that included rent and the like.  Life is so easy on paper. 

Back then I thought that the idea of coming up with goals was a complete waste of time and energy.  Where would I be now had I taken those exercises seriously?  I probably wouldn’t have needed a four-year undergrad and a year in Japan to figure out what I wanted to do with the rest of my life.  Then again, I’m thankful for all the experiences during those years. 

Goals are important.  They give us something to strive for.  I think I need to come up with some serious long-term goals.  Where do I want to be in 5/10 years and what do I need to do to get there?  I feel like I’m missing something.  A sense of adventure maybe?  Accomplishment?  Contribution to society?  My goal is to find it.  Whatever it may be.

I’ve been back for almost three months but I still find myself comparing almost everything with its Japanese equivalent.  The openness and vastness of Toronto compared to the congestion and claustrophobia felt in Japan, the cheapness and variety in foods in Toronto and the opposite in Japan, and the TTC compared with the Japanese train system. 

I forgot how much I hate the TTC.  But I love to hate it.  The TTC subways are manually driven so the doors never open in the same place.  Therefore, there’s no reason to form a line.  There’s always the potential of someone who’s been waiting for a while not getting on a crowded train, while a sneaker could poke themselves in front of the door as the train slows, and get on.  In Japan, they have markings on the platforms for where the doors will open and people form civilized lines. 

Next thing, in Japan, you always have the departure times for at least the next two trains.  You may have to wait 10 minutes between trains, but at least you know how long you have to wait.  You never know when the TTC subway is going to come.  It could be 2 minutes or 10 minutes.  Even though the wait time between trains is less, not knowing how long I have to wait bothers me. 

Then there’s the multiculturalism.  I’m all for multiculturalism but with it comes the various cultural differences in personal space and of course, the smells.  I don’t know why, but in Japan they have no issues with personal space.  I frequently rode the trains during rush hour (which is between like 7-10pm), touching 6 different people simultaneously.  You just pack yourselves on the train like sardines.  And I never remember anyone smelling unpleasant.  On the contrary, here, people (including myself) feel uncomfortable if someone is within 6 inches of them.  And the smells.  One of my fears is that the (bad) smell (good smells are acceptable) of the person sitting next to me will rub off on me and I will smell like them for the rest of the day.  I don’t know if it’s possible, but I have a phobia about it. 

 But I guess you get what you pay for.  The TTC costs way less than the trains in Japan.