I ironed my clothes before work yesterday - and only just now discovered that I left the iron on for the last 36 hours ( Read more... )

It`s hot ( Read more... )

Last week, each of my second-year classes spent a whole lesson just on the question "Have you ever . . . ?" I started out with an explanation of the grammar, which none of the students listened to because they`ve learned this point multiple times already. Then we did a pair-work speaking activity where they had to make "Have you ever . . . " ( Read more... )

Just a long description of a walk around my town at night. ( Read more... )

I was awakened at 6:30 this morning by a phone call from the school nurse, telling me not to come in if I had a fever or other symptoms. This is information that I have already been given many times over, but the fact that I was getting an Official Phone Call at the Official Phone Call Time of Way Too Early in the Morning indicated that yeah, the ( Read more... )

AAAAAAAAAA one of the teachers at my school has a fever! Acting like you're too cool for the flu pandemic doesn't work if, you know, someone actually gets the flu.

Day 5 of the Great Hyogo Flu Pandemic. The government and media are beginning to step back from their response of "OMG STAY HOME EVERYONE OR WE`LL ALL DIE!!!" and admit that they may have over-reacted a teensy bit. Their excuse is that the flu pandemic procedures were developed with bird flu in mind, and bird flu would much more deadly than swine ( Read more... )

We`re up to 53 confirmed cases in the prefecture. All Hyogo prefecture-administered schools are closed for the week. Teachers still have to come in to work, but I can take a day of my choosing off this week in lieu of the day off I should have had today. The homeroom teachers are calling all their students to give them a heads up and make sure ( Read more... )

New flu cases are popping up all over the prefecture, including a teacher and a student at Yoka High School, in one of the towns next to mine. I just got a call saying that school is canceled all this week, and that there's a staff meeting tomorrow morning even though we were supposed to get Monday off. I wonder if the teachers will have to go to ( Read more... )

I`m at school today, even though it`s Saturday. It`s PTA meeting day, which means all the students and staff have to come to school even though it`s also midterms so the students just took a couple tests in the morning and went home. Most of the teachers were expecting to have nothing to do, but then surprise! Swine flu ( Read more... )