Quiz Scandal! And decisions to make

After sitting at the top of the pack after round one (sports), we moved gradually downward, holding onto third place at the mid-point but finally slipping into a respectable but prize-less fifth. Over all, the Pub Quiz was a decent affair, with a wide variety of questions.

Our biggest complaint was the team sitting across from us, which had seven -- yes, seven -- members instead of the regulation four. One of their bonus members was a Japanese wife. Fair enough that she came along, but surely she helped out during the Japan-questions round.

Naturally, the cheating team beat us (fourth). But whatever. We've moved on from this minor issue (we'll let the courts decide).

Otherwise, we got our first taste of cold today, but it wasn't as bad as forecasts wanted it to be. The overnight low was suppose to dip below freezing. I don't buy it. Especially because today's forecast high of 45 has already been overtaken by 7 degrees.

It is about time to think about looking for those gloves, and the winter coat might be in use within a few weeks.

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I have also been thinking more about whether I'll stay for a third year on JET. Here now is an attempt to look at some pros and cons of various courses.

OPTION: Stay very, very still ... or ... Remain on JET for a third year

The good

-Well, for one, stability. The economy is in the dumps, newsrooms continue to lay people off, and everyone seems to agree that it'll get worse before it gets better. Why not just stay with my decent job and decent, just-out-of-college paycheck?

-Also, staying here means putting off those goodbyes, be they to friends, teachers or students. I'd definitely miss students and it'd be nice to see one more class through to graduation. I've made some good friends here and once this JET thing is over, we'll surely be spread out across the globe.

-Another plus is simply the chance to spread out my time here, using the best available means. That is, stay here to study more Japanese, to have more unique experiences, to meet new people. If I'm gonna stay in Japan, why take a pay cut with another job?

The bad

-With this kind of job, there's nowhere to go but sideways, career-wise. ALT positions generally offer no chance of advancement, no pay raises, and generally no new benefits for staying, other than simply getting to stay and enjoy the other perks. By staying you're putting off your career for another year. But as mentioned, being here longer does have its upsides.

-The monotony is also an issue. In general the job is fun, at times it's great. Overall it's absolutely easy and generally painless. But sometimes, we have to sit at our desks for days at a time with zero responsibilities. This can be mind-numbing. Though the proper way to deal with this is find something productive to do, like study Japanese or read. So in a way this con is not really a big deal.

-Miss America? Sure, maybe I do sometimes miss the U.S. It's probably more about missing that road not traveled. That nagging question: "What could I be doing?" By staying here, I'm staying. Shouldn't I be going? I've always had that urge to change my surroundings. It manifests in tiny ways, like re-arranging the room; and big ways, like dropping everything and leaving the country. Alternative paths are there: Newspaper career, grad school, adventures in other countries. But in the end I realize that these alternatives will be there when I do finish up with Japan. So my advice to myself is, don't panic. A con? More of an ever-present thought-distraction.

Now, moving on:

OPTION: Leave the country(side) at once ... or ... Leave JET, head to Osaka (or Tokyo)

The good:

-Another con of JET, unstated above, is that you're stuck living where you're living. I didn't mention it above because I've come to like Ise and my friends and my school, so it's not a huge deal. But trying out life in the city in Japan does have its draw. I'd have more of a chance at finding domestic freelance writing work, there'd be more to do on weekends, more people to see, more conveniences to enjoy.

-Briefly, if I do leave JET, moving to the city in Japan would extend my time here, which has its benefits as noted above.

-If I got lucky, maybe I'd find work in journalism in Tokyo or another big city, but such work is hard to find.

The bad:

-Money! Leaving JET, I'd almost certainly take a pay cut. Whether my new job was in media or education, pay is not that impressive. It's enough to live on, but it'd be less than JET.

-My living space would certainly shrink. Life in the city means tighter quarters. Not a big deal but that's the reality.

And now ...

OPTION: Return to Sender ... or ... Return to the U.S.

The good:

-I could get started on one of those aforementioned alternate paths. Enough said.

-Access to the things I can't get here, like root beer and quality sandwiches.

-Being closer to family and friends, of course.

The bad:

-By returning home, I yet again would be faced with a "what if I'd stayed" situation. It never ends.

-I can probably get root beer somewhere here, right? Plus pop isn't even healthy.

-Forgot about this so far, but I'd love family and friends to visit me here. By returning home I close the door.

-I'd also close the door on the overall experience, the learning Japanese, the ... all of it.

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So all things considered I'm leaning toward staying in Japan for a third year. This isn't a final decision just a present-day leaning. As for the new question of Ise vs. The City, completely undecided.

An update

The days pass, the blog is neglected. Let's see what I can do:

Let's start with Halloween. The picture I tried to post in the previous entry didn't work, so let's try that again.

That's the stuff.

So one time at karaoke some time in early October, somebody brought a horse mask like the one above. Hilarity ensued. Just to be clear, it's not difficult for hilarity to ensue at karaoke, because the only activity available there is singing, and alternatively, listening to your friends sing.

So the horse mask spiced things up considerably.

Also, the idea was floated to keep the equestrian fun going. So by the time Halloween hit, we had four horse-masked foreigners roaming the night.

The problem with the costume is that you cannot speak, nor drink, while wearing the mask. So for much of the night the masks just rested on our heads as we socialized. The funnest part was probably walking into a convenience store and buying a beer, in full horse mode.

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I just took a look at last November's blog posts. In one, I noted that nearly all JETs travel during the winter break, and the fact that I had no plans was surprising for nearly everyone. Last Christmas I did just stay in Ise. Fortunately there were a few friends around, but I certainly did miss the normal routine. This year I'll be back in Oregon for two weeks over the holiday.

Another post from November 2007 complained that my apartment was devoid of furniture. I talked about a "couch crisis." Not long after, I had purchased a sofa-bed. But a year later the sofa bed has been designated as a bed only, moved into the bedroom, and the main room is once again a work in progress. The current plan involves a new area rug and a load of pillows around the low, Japanese style table. We shall see how it works.

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Now, I'm looking at a weekend pub quiz. If we somehow win, we earn a cash prize. Next weekend, Yamasho celebrates its 100-year anniversary with a ceremony downtown. Beyond that, no other big events before the Oregon trip. Then it'll be another new year's even in Japan (not sure where yet) followed by a certain deadline: to re-contract or not to re-contract. No real progress on that yet.

That's all for now.