Noa also likes his (scruffy) Dad.
(ps. he is laughing… not crying. i think. … umm… I hope.)
Tag: david
Some nice pictures…
These are a few of my favourite Noa pictures that haven’t made it in to our earlier posts.
The first is of my sister Tray, Noa and myself.
The other is of Noa in front of a nice looking (plum? cherry blossom?) tree. Kiko is convinced she took the picture, but I believe it might actually be me…
That is all.
Just so we’re clear…
…I am a photographic genius.
It’s that time of year again in Japan… Cherry Blossom (sakura) time… Yeah!!! 
In the coming days expect a whole bunch of new photo albums with lots of pictures of David, Kiko, and Noa (.com). (and some cherry blossoms as well)
Also expect some interesting stories like the time Noa was kidnapped by a waitress at a Tonkatsu restaurant!!!
Here are some samples to re-assert just how brilliant of a photographer I am. (thanks matt, greg, and lee!)
Noa’s friends (part 3)
These are some pictures of Noa and his friends. Some are from Canada, and some are with our good friend Marc who came to visit from canada. Enjoy!
(Good friends in Canada)
Marc has arrived!
My good friend Marc has arrived and we will be touring Kyoto! Marc says koneecheewa!
Goodbye Chunan-cho!
Today Chunan-cho (仲南町) had their closing ceremonies. I had a wonderful time here and I am going to miss it terribly.
I love Daddy -KaPPa Version-
I thought this was a nice picture. (it’s his Kappa hat, from Tracy and Thomas, remember?)
We also decided to take some pictures of Noa’s first snowfall. Suffice it to say, he was not pleased with being made to sit through the second picture.
Setsubun and stuff that I forgot!
This may just be one of the magical/mystical posts that I make while I am still in Japan (getting ready to leave for Canada) but which appears on the site a few days later… maybe. You decide. 
Don’t get too excited. Oh oh oh! Before I forget… Ricky Gervais is my hero. Forget the US version of the Office, take a look at the original Office, Extras, and listen to the podcast. It is really quite funny and provides me with lots of entertainment. Take a look and let me know what you think!!
At any rate, here are a few pictures that I had knocking about. Of some importance is our pictures from Setsubun. What is setsubun? And I quote…
In Japan, Setsubun (節分) is the day before the beginning of each season. The name literally means "division of season". Usually the term refers to the Spring Setsubun, properly called Risshun (立春), celebrated yearly on February 3rd (associated with the Lunar New Year).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Setsubun
All I know is that Kiko made Noa and I put on scary masks and throw beans. 
I think there is something about it here…
Spring Setsubun is traditionally celebrated by the head of the household throwing pan-heated soybeans out the door, while chanting "Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!" (鬼は外! 福は内!). The literal meaning of the words is "Demons out! Luck in!" — the beans are thought to symbolically purify the home. In the Heian era, a famous Buddhist monk was said to have driven away Oni (demons or evil spirits) by throwing beans.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Setsubun
Enough with the chit-chat, here is the picture.
That was a big build up for just one picture, eh?
Here are a few other pictures I had laying around including a visit by the Kato family (one of my homestay families back when I was in highschool in Japan), Noa and me hanging out, Noa hanging out with his chair, and Noa’s first stroller ride. Enjoy! 
Who’s the movie star?
If you may recall, awhile back I mentioned the video shoot I was involved in. Basically, I was lucky (fortunate? unfortunate?) enough to be selected as one of the people in the new JET video which is used to advertise the program to contracting organizations here in Japan and potential participants around the world.
Basically a film crew followed me around town for a few days. It was actually a lot of fun and kind of entertaining being followed by boom mics and cameras. I think it startled the people of my town as there were more camera people than townspeople in the most of the locations we shot at.
Anyways, as promised, here are a few photos of me in action. Some of the pictures include me at work, me at school, and me on camera. Enjoy! When the video comes out I will try and edit out my parts and upload them.
A good week?
Hello!
Last week was a roller coaster. Lots of ups, and many more downs. Between my computer breaking, our Ipod Nano breaking, messing up a lot of translations, getting called on the messing up… the list goes on. Suffice it to say I was not pleased and I was kind of down.
On the other hand, I also had some very good things happen. Our MythTV box is back up and running (after a lot of work), I am still loving my job here in Chunan, and <drumroll>
I got the scholarship I applied for last year!!! Although I will be very sad to be leaving Chunan, from October of this year I will be attending Gakushuin University (known for the emperor’s family and politicians kids going there) through a very big government scholarship!! I am still in shock, but there are so many people I have to thank…. Kiko, Komuro-sensei, Arntzen-sensei, Ito-sensei, Jotaro, Ishikawa-sensei, Tracy, Shane, everyone else that helped me out with the application… THANK YOU!!
Like I said, it is going to be tough to leave Chunan, we really do love it here. But I am confident that this experience will help me move close to one day getting a job as a professor back in North America, so wish us luck!
Now since there were no pictures in our last post, Kiko has asked me to upload these family pictures we took in Tanegashima. I believe we promised to have them up earlier.. sorry! These are pictures from Noa’s omiyamairi, the blessing that Japanese children get after 30 days. We took family pictures after the ceremony.
We have also had quite a few visitors for Noa. Below are pictures with Liz (Jim’s girlfriend. In case you forgot, Jim is my good friend who bashed Noa’s head into the ceiling light.) Following that are many of my good friends here in Kagawa prefecture on the JET program, and finally Yoshiko Hirao. One of my most loyal and favourite students attending my town English classes. Enjoy!
