Les Miserables

So I went to see Les Miserables the movie on Sunday...This was my first time seeing an adaptation on the musical.

I thought the movie was a lot of fun, and there story was strong. For a really long film, the plot felt very fast-paced and focused. But there were still some quiet moments, so it didn't feel too fast. The characters all seemed very distinct to me, even the ones that only appeared for a few scenes. You could tell right away what kind of person someone was, and even if I didn't remember a character's name I could recognize them again right away.

I liked how grimy the poor characters looked, particularly in the Lovely Ladies song. That's a bit morbid...but the makeup was really good!

Some things I didn't like:

I wish there could have been more scenes where people were in different places singing at the same time. There were a few scenes where one person was singing, and the camera just showed a close up of their face for the whole song. Especially in I Dreamed a Dream, this seemed a little boring. During that song, it would have been nice to see flashbacks of Fantine with her child--because you don't get to see much of her backstory before. With so many characters to establish and little time to spend on them individually, it seemed like there was an opportunity missed here to fill in the gaps in Fantine's story.

Also, Marius got a bit annoying. It's unbelievable that he could pay so little attention so anyone so gorgeous and lively as Eponine! Eponine is a great character, and the actress was so pretty too. At least he showed her consideration as she was dying. Also, he has a really mopey song later on (when the film is already starting to feel long). I guess it makes sense that he grieves for his friends, but I kept thinking "Can't you be a little more grateful for being alive? Cosette, the girl of your dreams, is right there!"

I know it's this was in the book and the musical, but it seemed contrived for Jean Valjean to leave Cosette at the end. At this point, no one is coming after him. And Cosette obviously suspects that he's an ex-con (looking at the scars on his wrists), and she still loves him. I feel like he could have told her the truth sooner.

However, I still really enjoyed the movie!

And I think this is the most overtly Christian film that I have seen in the theaters for a loooooong time! I loved how straightforward Jean Valjean's religious journey was. There was no irony about his faith. There aren't always easy answers in the movie, just like life. But you really feel like Jean's Christianity was what gave him strength. I felt encouraged to show mercy in real life.

Chistmas!

A picture from the End of Year party. All of us had a great time. We're holding the presents from our gift exchange here. (Mine is a piggy bank--super cute!) Taeko ended up with the present I brought. After the restaurant we went to a bar, and I just had ginger ale because by that time I didn't want more alcohol. I won't name any names, but I think some of the people who did have their inhibitions lowered by alcohol may have regretted it later...

On Christmas Eve I visited Souichirou in his hometown of Kure and got to meet his Mom, sister, Aunt, and Grandma. It was a little scary trying to speak all in Japanese, even with translation help, but they were all nice!

Here is another picture of us by the sea.

Later we went to the candlelight service at Mitaki Chapel. I missed church on Sunday because of work, so I ended up going to my first service all in Japanese. And singing Christmas carols in Japanese. (More furigana would have helped...) But even though I could only understand a little, it was a special time to think about the birth of Chirst with the people at Mitaki.

The Package

Today the long-awaited package finally came from home, and a house mate deposited it outside my mini-size door. I am definitely looking forward to the surprise of finding out on Christmas what my family sent. (I can even tell them when it's still Christmas Eve in California! Hahaha.) Unfortunately, the mail system doesn't like surprises as much as I do. So I really TRIED not to read the clearly marked contents label on the outside of the package...

Looks like I'll be getting some DVDs. At least it will be a surprise what kind of DVD. Haha, who am I kidding, I've got exactly one guess what movie it is. (But if it's DVDs plural, what's the second one?)

It's funny how when you're a kid, the idea of having to wait is so painful, but when you're an adult the idea of having your presents spoiled early is even more painful.

Soooo....While I was walking home tonight this guy on a bike tried to talk to me. I have no idea what it was about. I mean, he could have been asking directions for all I know--except that no sane Japanese person would ask directions from a foreign woman. So I was highly suspicious and gave a very brusque, "Excuse me...don't speak Japanese."

There's also a guy with a food van selling some kind of sweet potato snacks, who keeps trying to get me to buy something. To make it worse, Taeko bought something from him while I was with her, so now it's like he knows me...I'm pretty sure he's calling me "Sister." Today I laughed at him, just because I understood some of his Japanese, and I shouldn't have because now he'll just keep trying to sell me food even more...

Customer Service

Today I had an interesting lesson with a higher level student who mostly just wanted to talk through class. It was a review lesson, so the topic he ended up choosing was how to handle customer complaints--and to tie in English we chose complaints from Americans. Instead of doing grammar, we mostly focused on content and expressions.

And boy, this was a lot more complicated than a lesson on grammar! The first time he practiced taking my complaint (and he was trying to do American body language, mind you) it was hard to believe that his person looking down and saying "I'm sorry," wasn't just blowing me off. And when we switched roles, the first thing he noticed was how much expression I put into my face. My student noted, "American faces use more exaggerated expressions, and their mouths move around a lot more when they talk."

We discussed the important aspects of dealing with a complaint, such as a sincere apology versus offering an action, and whether customers want to let of steam or fix their problem. Now I'll have a different perspective when I go to a store and there's a problem. Even if the people look like they just want me to leave, they might really be trying their best to help me.

Thanksgiving

Pics from today, our ex-pat Thanksgiving in Japan.

We were at the apartment of Jenn and Brendan, who are friends of Lizbet, who's my friend from church. So I guess I can call them friends of friends? Anyway, their apartment is amazing. It's huge. The kitchen is huge, and the dining and living room are not only adequate for a party of up to nine people but downright spacious. Supposedly this apartment building was built with ex-pats in mind. Whatever that means.

We didn't have turkey, but we did have chicken with homemade gavy, and mashed potatoes and vegetables and other sides. People laughed at my "Japanese portions," but it was quite good. I had a small glass of white wine with dinner, and it took a while to wear off. Luckily I didn't end up going drinking tonight too, or going to work tomorrow would be a real pain!

From left to right, Olivia, Lizbet's husband, me, Brendan, Lizbet, and Anne Laurel.

After dinner we pretty much just hung around, discussed music preferences, and played trivia games. A major plus is that the place had wifi, and I was finally able to register my new nook with glowlight! This is definitely something to be thankful for. Thanks, mom!

As if I hadn't had enough food that day, I ended up doing a late dinner with one of my Sharehouse friends. We ate Tenpura Soba, so I guess this counts as trying both at once. This dinner turned out a little awkward, since I don't speak much Japanese and he spoke minimal English, so there was a lot of pointing, guessing, and Google translate. Looking at photos also helped. Well, asking a foreigner to dinner when you can't speak their language takes more guts than I honestly have.

Japanese notes of the day--

Jen: Does anyone want some ice cream?
Me: (Nodding emphatically) Nnnn!
Jen: (laughs) You sound Japanese

Also, I've learned that the correct intonation for "Sumimasen" can be very similar to the American "Hey, you!"

Settling in...Maybe

Last night I had my first detailed nightmare about work. Not just being late or not having the books, but I was actually in the middle of a lesson and I had only taught two sentences, and neither related to the lesson goal. So I guess this means the mindset of the Berlitz lesson has sunk deep into my subconscious.

Now that I actually have a place, my feelings are half "Argh I never want to move again!" and half "Next October is a long, long time away..."

I still have dreams where I wake up at home without the trouble of airplane travel. I miss everybody back in Fremont! It would also be nice to see all the old places again, and go shopping in a store where people speak English.

Some Halloween Pics

Looks like both I and my family back home got up to some fun on Halloween...

There's Dad, William, and Hobbes waiting for trick or treaters.

Luckily, my hostel had a Halloween party on the Saturday before Halloween! Even though I work on Saturday, I got off work in time to go to the party after. I even met a friend from church (Mitaki Green Chapel) who was staying at the hostel for one night. What a coincidence!

Everyone thought the police outfit was very cool. And about five people wanted pictures with themselves being handcuffed by me. It was a little awkward when someone's brother-in-law turned out to be a real member of the Japanese police force...but I don't think he was offended by the slightly irreverent outfit.

In Japan people like the Halloween stuff, but there aren't really any traditions for celebrating it. I said there wasn't enough candy at the party, and was told "But candy is for kids! We're adults so we have alcohol!" Maybe candy flavored alcohol would be a big Halloween seller in Japan...