Update

Sorry I haven't written here for a while, but I've been major busy recently. Here's an abbreviated version of what's been happening lately:

• Last weekend, I got my first driving ticket ever, for illegal parking. The GF and I go by car every now and then to visit her family, and we've always parked in that same spot for about 2 years now. I guess the police weren't busy watching crime dramas at that time. Anyway, since I was driving, I had to pay a fine of 15,000 yen (about $140 US) and got 2 demerits on my license that come off in 3 months.
• On Tuesday, I taught at a kindergarten for the first time. I had four lessons, and man, did it wear me out! I could barely stay focused the rest of the day. But it was a lot of fun. Those 4- and 5-year-old kids were awesome, and smart, too. Once the buzz got around the kindergarten that there was a big foreign guy named Herman there, kids started visiting the office during my breaks, saying, "Herman-sensei!" How amazing is that? At my high school, there are students I've known for over a year and a half that still can't get my name right. (Well... either that or they choose not to.)
• For the first time ever, a foreign manager (Bobby Valentine?!?) won the Japan Series, the equivalent of the World Series here, when Chiba Lotte beat the (Osaka) Hanshin Tigers in a 4-game sweep. To realize how amazing that is, check out Robert Whiting's cool books You Gotta Have Wa and The Meaning of Ichiro.