Over the Puddle

Information about the Summer Camp is starting to come in now. It’s hard to believe that there is only about 3 weeks left until I leave! Recently I got the host family form that I have to send back, along with a picture. It was also promised that we would be receiving information about travel arrangements soon.

One thing I would like more information on is the actual camp itself. The only information I’ve received so far about the operation of the camp is that the departure date is the 20th of June, and return is August 15th. Now, speaking from experience, once people get there, they are going to be tired and out of synch for at least a couple of days, so starting right away would be a bad idea. So I’m guessing orientation would begin on the 23rd. Also, I have a hunch that the camp ends the 8th. That’s a guess though.

I’d also like to know what kind of work schedule to expect. When I first heard about the program, the schedule was erratic, and sometimes people would have a 4-day weekend. Then I heard that they might switch to a 2 days on, one day relax, 2 days on, 2 day weekend. I assume that the camp won’t operate on the weekends.

Another bit of unexpected, welcome news was that the board of education wanted volunteers to help run a special camp from Aug 16th until the 29th. In return, they would fund a 6-day tour of Japan, with a rail-pass, hotels, and food included. Quite a sweet deal. I wonder what this ’special camp’ is however. Just another extra session, or a camp for ’special’ people. This also leads me to believe that the camp ends on the 8th, which would give time for travel, and then return.

I decided to volunteer, as I wanted to travel Japan anyway, and another 2 weeks wouldn’t kill me. I’m not looking forward to coming back on the 30th only to start school on Sept 2nd. It’s not a done deal, so it’s very likely that the whole thing could be just speculation.

In preparation, I’ve been trying to get my bills organized so I can make auto and electronic payments. I’ve been burning MD’s, traded in my old Game Boy Advanced to get a GBA SP when the store gets them back in stock. I’ve loaded up my PDA with books, though I may have to replace my PDA if I can find one cheap. Somehow, it got burn-in, so there’s a dark spot in the middle of the screen. I’ll have to stop at a clothing store and pick up some more shorts, sandals, and a watch to replace my one that broke about 6 months ago. I’ve also got travel arrangements made to get to the airport. I figure I’ll do any major purchasing I have to do the last week before I leave, as I’ll have access to a car then.

Now, all I need is some more information from the camp, my plane ticket, and I’m pretty set to go.

I leave for Japan on the 20th of June, or at least that’s what I’ve been told so far. It’s still quite a ways off, yet I am already getting ready. I started cleaning up around the room, throwing away some old stuff that was just taking up space. I guess in a way it is helping me prepare mentally. I have also started making some more MDs to take with me, and dug out my old PDA to put some books on it.

I also feel that strange mix of anxiety and excitement again. The knowledge that my life is going to be turned upside-down both frightens and excites me. I am excited to go back to Nagasaki again, and meet old conversation partners and other people I know there. I want to see the city again. I want to try something completely new, but also worry that I will make mistakes. Mistakes are natural, and only to be expected. The best I can do is try the best I can.

I am also looking forward to seeing Kirsch again, and having some fun. I am a little self-conscious about my Japanese, because I haven’t used it in quite some time, and have started looking at old textbooks again. I won’t use it at the camp much if at all, but in any social thing, such as karaoke, I most likely will. I can’t say with any certainty that I will be doing alot come the weekends, but I certainly hope to.

It’s difficult to explain all the emotions running through me right now. I’ve been through the Japan thing once before, so I’m not worried about that. This time I have a whole new set of worries. I’ll most likely deal with them as I have with everything else: roll with it.

I just got back from the graduation ceremony for the Japanese students. This time around, I knew more of the students, so definately had to go. It’s these graduation ceremonies that let you know how much you have affected the study abroad students. I’ve been there, I can relate.

Each student had prepared a speech to give, and most of them were surprisingly long. Each student’s English has come a long way since they got here. As is usual with these graduation ceremonies, they are very emotional. I was a little surprised to see Chihiro (my conversation partner) even falter. She always seems to come off as the tough one.

I posted some of the pictures from the graduation ceremony. Unfortunately, the digital camera I am borrowing from my dad, well, sucks. I need to buy a new one. Most of the pictures turned out fuzzy, and those that didn’t, weren’t that great of quality. If you have just the right lighting conditions, the pictures are nice, if you don’t….

The results are in, and I am going to Nagasaki. I am excited to be going back, and it really makes meeting up with Kirsch and other people I know easy. I wish I knew where exactly the camp was located. Not that it really matters I guess.

The only other question to be answered is the host family question. The forms should be coming sometime in the next week, and we won’t find out final placement until a week before departure. With public transportation the way it is in Japan, no matter where I am, I should be able to get around.

So, now that I know when I am leaving I can plan accordingly. I have an MD player, so music should be taken care of, a digital camera, so pictures are set, and I am still debating on bringing my laptop or not. While at the camp, I probably won’t have a chance to use it, which means I would only use it on the weekends. I also don’t know how much if any travel time I’ll have at the end. It would be wise to have something to empty the digital camera onto, and possibly for writing stuff on. We’ll see. If I do bring it along, I want to get a laptop backpack to make it easier to carry around.

Now the countdown begins. The departure date given in the email is June 20th, but I don’t think the tickets have actually been bought yet. At least that is the impression I get from the email. Just a little over a month and a week.

We’ll see how the anxiety hits me. This is something completely different from anything I have ever done before. I don’t know how to prepare for this. The age ranges are so wide, and the campers will only be there for at most a few days, so it’s not like you can build up a long-term relationship and get a feel how they will act.

I wish previous counselors had a blog or something up. That would help get a feel of how things operate. I guess about the best thing I’ll have to go on is the 4 day counselor orientation before the camp actually starts. I’ll have to see if the library here has anything relavent as well.

When I received my offical acceptance email earlier this week, I sent my reply right away, (within 5 minutes to be exact) to ensure that I got my first choice, or something towards the top. I was also supposed to receive my reply within two business days.

However, since people seemingly are incapable of sending their stuff in quickly, people like me are left sitting, waitng for the others to get their replies in, so that the selection can finally happen. I would like to know where I’m going so I can plan accordingly.

Also, people seem to be requesting my first two choices, which isn’t surprising. Guy Healy mentioned that preferential placement would be given to those two places based on need. I can only imagine the multitude of ‘reasons’ that people must be sending to ensure they get one of those two.

Oh well, it’s out of my hands now. All I can do is sit and wait for my email. Kirsch is still left wondering when I’ll be over there, because we were definately going to meet up at some point. Of course, if I’m somewhere in Hokkaido, that could be a bit difficult.