Christmas Tuesday

Today was my last day at the elementary schools until winter break is over. Overall, not too bad since it was a day full of games and fun. It's not as tiring when I'm having as much fun as the students!

One thing that really made my day was receiving a nice card from the students in my 6th grade class at the end of the day. One student wrote a really nice message and made a cute Christmas Card and presented it to me in front of the class. Then, we took pictures together with the entire class. It was really nice and thoughtful! The message included notes saying that they really enjoy English class and are looking forward to more English fun next year!

*Sniff sniff...I know, it's get me down to the heart...but seriously, it's really nice and I really do appreciate the kindness of everyone here in Japan and around me.

Nabe!

Today was Sunday...a nice and relaxing Sunday! I was on my way back from Tokyo and there was a nabe party happening in Togane...so of course I stopped by to eat dinner!

In Togane, there's an organic place up in some mountains where there was a venue to prepare food and be able to accommodate many people to all gather and eat. And so we did just that! A group of ALTs from around Chiba and some other friends all got together to create and eat nabe!

For those of you who don't know what nabe is....basically it's an Asian dish where you mix anything together...and eat out of it with different sauces and ingredients. But the most typical things to put in are cabbage, other vegetables, meat (pork, chicken, seafood), and noodles. We had 4 different pots of nabe all with different flavored soup brewing. Yeah, 4!

It was a delicious mix of everything and we definitely had a lot of food leftover! There was a lot of food to begin with and even though we all came hungry, we still couldn't handle the amount in front of us! Well, we all ate to our heart's content and then hung out for a little bit. It was a fun time and it felt nice to catch up with some of the other JETs. As well, it was cool to meet some new people. At these events, there are always new people and it's a great way to meet either native Japanese people or other JETs that you just haven't met yet.

All in all, a good time and hope to eat more nabe again sometime!

Christmas Friday!

So today was another day at the elementary school. A tiring, but day full of Christmas spirit! I did 6 straight classes of Christmas classes (as it's my last day with this elementary school until after break next year) so I did a marathon of Christmas themed lessons.


Mainly, it consisted of games and listening to music, so my day today was actually fun! I am usually exhausted after a day at this school, however, today it wasn't too bad! I think because I got a little more sleep than usual and I had more games and music, it wasn't as tiring...which is a good thing!


Usually by this time on Friday, I'm on my way to Tokyo, Chiba or another place other than my town. But tonight is different...it's a chill night tonight! I'm happy to be actually resting and relaxing at home tonight. I know it sounds like a lame Friday night, but I'm completely fine with it! It gives me a chance to rest up and just hang out. I'll be busy tomorrow anyway and Sunday, so might as well get some rest tonight!


Nothing else too much happened today. Today was a special lunch at school in honor of the
Christmas holiday, so the lunch consisted of a "Christmas Cake" which was a cute little log cabin.

Thursday

So today I had 3 classes. Not a bad day. I was glad that I could relax and not have to be all rushed to go from place to place. And the best part is, all my classes were finished by lunch. So I had the afternoon open!

During the time I had open I took the time to study kanji. I've been trying to get through a few kanji a day, but that's been pretty hard. It sounds easy, but the next day after having studied, I just cannot remember a lot of the kanji that I should have known from the previous day! I guess it's just going to take time to sink in. But I do feel that I'm making progress little by little....which is good!

Today during lunch recess, I had the students give me a mini quiz on the kanji I had been studying. I would have them say the reading or the kanji, and I would write it on the blackboard. I guess I didn't do too badly! Considering that I'm still in the beginning stages. They had fun with it and it's a great way for me to learn the kanji! Especially since I'm working with the native speakers and users of the writing! This way, they can also teach me the correct writing of it in case I mess up...that's right. The kanji has a certain stroke order that you're supposed to write with. So even if you write one line at the wrong time or the wrong direction, it's counted as WRONG! But slowly, I think I'm getting it...

Well, I guess we'll see how it goes! Wish me luck!

Last Christmas...I gave you my heart...."Do you have the time?"

So I have been playing that song in my head over and over again..."Last Christmas, I gave you my heart but the very next day, you gave it away....this year....."

Haha...the teachers at my middle school have been playing this song in the classroom and when you hear it for 5 class periods in one day, it's definitely going to get stuck in your head! Today, I had 5 classes and it seems busy, but it wasn't too bad. The morning went by pretty quickly and then I only had the afternoon left! It was sunny today as well so that was refreshing! The past couple days there were clouds and some rain.

Although it was sunny, the air was kind of chilly. But not too bad of a day! It's just frustrating when it's rainy (which it has been for most of the fall and a lot of the winter) because then I cannot hang my laundry out to dry. I don't have a dryer like most people in Japan, so I have no choice but to hang my laundry. It's not too bad, but it's hard to do laundry when I can't leave it out to dry. I don't have a porch or roof over the area where I hang my laundry, so if it does start to rain, I have to rush home in order to get my clothes inside.

Although I have set up a place inside to hang my laundry, it just does not dry as well. It stays wet for a few days and takes forever! I think it's because the air doesn't circulate as well while I'm not home and I do not want to leave windows open at my house in case it starts to rain or for obvious security reasons.

But anyway, I still have the song stuck in my head and I'm sure I will for days to come...at least until Christmas is over!

Tonight, we also had a Christmas party with my Eikaiwa class. It consisted of a dinner with all the members and they brought in delicious dishes for all to eat. It was very nice! The food was great and there was a large variety. I ate until I was very full, and then some more!

But the most surprising and great part was the people. They are all really sooo nice and generous. I was NOT expecting a gift at all and I received one. It was a really nice one actually! They got me a watch! (Hence the title...) Haha. But it's of the SEIKO brand, which is a very well known and good brand in Japan! And so jokingly I had them ask me "Do you have the time?" and I would flip out my wrist and prominently display my new watch and say, "Why yes I do!" haha....oh the humor.

But seriously they're great people. And we also played lots of different games to stay entertained. All in all, it was a fun evening with good times and good gifts. We had a secret santa exchange party as well where each member bought someone else a gift. We picked names out of a hat a few weeks ago and that was who we would purchase a gift for. I received a shirt from the store called "Right On" which is a nice clothing store. I like their clothes so that was a nice gift as well!

Tuesday

Today was an ordinary day. Nothing too much happened. It was an elementary school day. I had only 2 classes in the morning which was nice because at that school I only teach the 5th and 6th graders. Then I went to another school in the afternoon and taught the 5th and 6th grade classes over there.

I did a Christmas themed lesson today at the school in the afternoon since it's my last time seeing them for this year. I guess I'll see them next year! Haha. I don't have class with them until January, so it seemed fitting to do Christmas now and since everyone is getting ready for the season, it makes for a Merry time! I had a word search for them to do and then did a BINGO game out of the words that they found in the puzzle. I also had a mini lesson (very short 5 minute talk) on Christmas and the tradition. At the end, we listened to Mariah Carey's "All I want for Christmas is You" and so I've had that song stuck in my head all day. It's a very popular song here in Japan just like in America. Although people here don't know the lyrics, they have all heard the song and know the tune. I guess that includes me because I'm not one to be good at lyrics for songs. I know basic lyrics, but I'm not really that good at singing. Anyone who knows me can attest to that!

I will do a Christmas themed lesson with the school I taught at this morning next week. I will see them again next Tuesday and that will be their last time before the 2nd semester ends. I think I will do most of the same stuff, but if I find something different I may throw that in there as well.

Tonight after work, I was invited to my local dentist's house for dinner. She has me over for dinner quite often and so I went there to eat. It was delicious and it was good to catch up with her and chat. I just got back from that so I am quite full and am now tired. I guess that makes for a good combination to falling asleep rather comfortably and easily...and it doesn't help that I'm sitting under my kotatsu table right now. This is a deadly recipe for instantly falling asleep. Anyone that knows me can also tell you that I have a knack for being able to fall asleep not only quickly and easily, but anywhere!

Well, with that I think I am going to get ready for bed pretty soon....take a nice hot shower, get my bed ready, and sleep! Good night!

Friday antics

So this past Friday, I was at 2 schools. One elementary school in the morning where I taught 3,4,5, and 6th grade, and the other elementary school where I taught 5th grade in the afternoon. By the end of the day, I was exhausted!! But I had a good weekend to look forward to so it wasn't so bad at the end of the day!

I went through my usual routine for classes and nothing too special happened. I guess I'm to the point now where I'm used to the classroom atmosphere and I know how to handle the time, the material, and the students. It's a nice feeling because I remember at the beginning of my time here when I had NOOO idea what was going on. I still am not an expert or anything, but it's amazing how much a couple months in front of the classroom will improve your teaching and public speaking skills.

Well, tonight I'm going to Tokyo with my buddy and we're meeting up with our friend who lives there. Haven't decided where we're going to go eat dinner, but probably somewhere around Ueno or the like. They have a good variety of restaurants and it's usually pretty decently priced. Well, I'm off and I'll see ya when I get back from the weekend!

Thursday Haircuts

Today was a pretty busy day...I had 5 classes. 3 in the morning and finished it off with the 2 in the afternoon, to make for a pretty full day. But all in all it wasn't too bad. I guess there wasn't anything too terribly exciting that happened today. I had the 2A class twice today...why?

Well, because yesterday one of the classes was canceled because of the calligraphy class, so they made up for that missed class today in the afternoon. And normally they have a class in the morning on Thursdays, so lucky for them, they got English twice! Haha...exciting, right?

This weekend, I'm planning on going in to Tokyo to meet up with some friends tomorrow night and then my girlfriend on Saturday, so I'm excited for tomorrow to be over with! Originally I wanted to get a haircut up in Tokyo this weekend. But I'll be pretty busy this weekend and I wanted to get my hair cut soon, so I went and got it cut today after work.

Before going to a place, I looked online to try and find places to get my hair cut. It's not so easy to find a good place in the inaka...and even harder doing research on the internet in Japanese! Haha, so I did it the old fashioned way. At first, I tried to keep a few places in mind that I saw on Google Maps and checked them out. I drove up to a few places that I saw...but not to be discriminatory, I only saw really old people working in the shops.

So I decided not to go in! Haha, I know, it's horrible, but I'd rather have someone a little younger cut my hair who won't give me an old man haircut or something. Besides, most of the places closed at around 5:30pm...way too early! Considering it was already 5:15ish while I was driving around. So I continued to drive around and headed toward some places where I had seen barbershops before while driving around the city. I found this place along Route 128 which looked relatively new and pulled up.

They had a "menu" of their prices posted outside so I checked it out and it was a decent price. I also saw inside and there were younger guys working, so I decided to step in and give it a shot. I got in and told the guys how I wanted to get my hair cut and they got started right away. I had been to a more expensive place in Tokyo to get my hair cut, but this place seemed almost similar, but not quite as fancy. The place was really new (only about 1 1/2 years old) and the aura of it seemed pretty nice.

Well, about 45-50 minutes passed by and during that time my hair was cut, washed a couple times, and styled. In the end, I really liked the hair cut and the style. It was only about 2,900 Yen, which is pretty decent considering that the other places I saw were more expensive and had the "old" people!

Haha, well I guess when I'm stuck around the inaka and need a haircut, I know where to go!

Random Thoughts

So today was hump day! Another Wednesday in the books. I can feel that Christmas is getting closer. In class, we're listening to Christmas songs and the students fill in random blanks that correspond with the words they hear. Today, we listened to Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas is You" song. Yeah, a classic and one song that I really do like! I had both 3rd grade classes today and one 1st grade class, so not too bad of a day. I had quite a bit of down time so I actually studied some Kanji and worked on some other lesson planning.

As well, I didn't have as many classes today because there was a calligraphy instructor that came in to teach the kids calligraphy. And by calligraphy, I mean for Kanji. It's quite difficult! I visited the class while the kids were working on writing and some of the kids wanted me to try it. And so I did....but it was difficult!! Haha, I wrote my own name and even that was hard. It's not hard because I don't know how to write my name...but the brush and the strokes you need to use are different. It's a large brush. Think about trying to use a pointed paint brush or something and then trying to write legible characters. So my name looked "pretty" decent and legible, but definitely not official "Japanese Calligraphy" good.

But there were random thoughts that came to my mind as I was going about during the day. I was just thinking about how quickly my time is going by here in Japan and how much I've really enjoyed it here. And it's sad, because I came in at mid-year, so I only get to spend half the year with the 3rd graders who will be graduating this coming March. It seems far away, but really it's only a few short months away. And I was actually starting to feel sad inside...(tear tear) because I really do like the kids. They are all great and really funny, and they are all so kind and warm to me. Although not every single one always tries during English class or they may not be on their best behavior at every moment, I've really become attached to them and they're growing on me. It's going to be very sad when I see them graduate and it's time to really say "goodbye" and not just in the classroom context to end the class period.

Since the first day that I met them, the students were all curious about me and have treated me very well. I always feel very well respected by all the students and they definitely appreciate having me around. And I have a lot of fun talking with them and getting to know all of them. So it's going to be sad when the students that I'm used to talking with won't be there next year...I know today's post is sappy and sad, but it's true!

I guess what I'm trying to say is, that I really appreciate all the kids and people at my school. Before coming to Japan, I really had no idea what to expect. Sometimes, I thought that I was crazy for quitting my job at Target where I was getting good work experience and getting paid very well. It was a stable job and I could have worked there for the next 30-40 years of my life and been very comfortable. But after having thought about it over these past few months, I know that I made the right decision to come to Japan and get the work experience and life experience over here. I've made many new friends and formed new relationships that I would never find anywhere else. I've also seen and understand more about Japan and the rest of the world which I would not have seen if I were still in America. As well, the people at my school are incredible people who have taken me in with open arms and taught me lots. In exchange, I have obviously taught them a lot about English language and American culture. So I know it is a mutual benefit. But I feel that they have done so much to accommodate me and to host me in this country.

Well, I'm sure there is more exchange and other experiences to be shared while I spend the next X amount of time in Japan. All I can do right now is take advantage of the time I have with everyone and enjoy it!

Tiring Tuesday

It was an elementary school Tuesday for me. I spent the morning teaching 2nd, 3rd, 5th and 6th grade at one school and taught 5th and 6th grade at the other school in the afternooon....talk about a full day!

As I said before, most of my elementary school days are always full days. Very tiring. But it's rewarding because I can tell that the kids enjoy it...for the most part!! Haha. I taught colors to the younger kids and played many games incorporating the use and understanding of the colors. They always like the different games and I have fun running them as well since it's fun for me.

But I ended the day by going over to Ohara to pay for my school lunch bills at the Board of Education. I was planning to pick up my buddy and we were going to go grab some dinner. So we went to eat at a family owned Japanese restaurant close-by called "Kaneyo." That's our go to place and they have a huge assortment of Japanese style dishes. Since it's family owned, it's relatively cheap and they serve a TON of food in the dish! It's great!

So we went there and the owner knows my friend and me because we go there quite often. But what I didn't know is that her son goes to one of the elementary schools I teach at in Ohara. I noticed that while we were sitting waiting for food, one of the boys ran across an opening, stared at us, and went hiding. I guess he was just shy, because when we were served our food, the owner asked if I taught at the elementary school that her son attends. Of course he was one of my students and I guess all kids are shy when they see their teachers in a place other than the classroom.

Well, I thought that was pretty funny and I guess I will be seeing her son in school now!

Wow...soooo fulll!

So tonight I was out driving returning some DVDs and running a few errands. Then I received a phone call from my Kyoto Sensei (Vice Principal) saying that him and a few other teachers were going out to eat some Yakiniku. So of course, since I hadn't eaten yet, I took up the offer and met them at a restaurant.

When I got there, I realized that it was a restaurant that my buddy and I stopped at and considered going into, but didn't because we saw the menu and it was....well....$$$$$ (pricey)! Haha. Well, I figured why not, it will be a good time and obviously good food! Well, when I got there, I met up with the other teachers and we instantly started ordering meat....lots of meat. It was mainly Kalbi, which is a cut of meat. Very delicious and tender. So we got lots of plates of this...I mean, at least 5 LARGE plates of the meat to grill!

I also had a dish of raw meat with an egg on top...sounds like salmonella frenzy, right? I know...but had to give it a try. It's called "Yuke" and is a dish that is definitely more common in Japan than in America. I think people in America would die of shock before they would even try even it if they had to. It was tasty and I'd had it before, but this tasted better than before.

After plates and plates of meat and goodness, I'd had enough food and was done...out for the count. I had the meat, rice, kimchi, some type of cheese stuffed flour thing...I don't really know what it was, squid, and vegetables. I could say that I'd eaten enough to last me a few days. Well, thank you, Kyoto Sensei! It was a delicious meal!

Today's day of classes went pretty well. The students have exams tomorrow, so I didn't have a whole lot to do today. It was mainly review for the exam, so I walked around the classroom helping the students with anything they had questions on and the work they were doing. 4 classes in all...I'm glad I have these chill days once in awhile. Especially since some other days are hectic and super busy, so it's nice to have it balance out like this.

Well, I'm full and tired, so it's time to get some sleeeeeeep.....zzzzzz

Typhoon?!

So this morning I woke up at around 3am in a cold sweat...I hate that! I was literally dripping with sweat. I didn't know why I was so warm, but it was very unusual. For the past few nights, it had been cold and so I was used to waking up and it being 9-10 degrees Celsius in my house.

Well, after I got out of bed and checked the temperature, I figured out why I was so warm. I checked the temperature in my house and it was 19 degrees! I was under the blankets that keep me extremely warm in the cold temperature, and so I was under those same covers...which explains why I was so hot! Well, I went to the bathroom and also noticed that it was quite windy. And by quite windy, I mean really really REALLY windy!

The window to my bathroom was open and I felt some water splashing on to me...what?! When I looked outside, all I could see was heavy rain flying everywhere and the trees flying back and forth, being tossed around by the water and heavy winds. It literally looked like a crazy storm out there! I checked the weather forecast on the internet and there were supposedly 40-50 mph winds for today with some rain...interesting.

Well, this made for a not so fun commute. I could feel the wind pushing around my car the whole drive to school. I'm glad I have a car, though. If I didn't, it would be an even more miserable commute to work! When I stepped outside, it was really warm! I know the temperature got up to around 70 degrees F and it was really humid. So it felt like a stormy summer day! Crazy weather around here lately.

Anyway, the storm cleared out by around lunchtime. But it was still extremely windy the entire day. It was sunny all afternoon, but I could hear the wind howling all day long.

Well, I had a full day today...all 6 class periods. Very tiring! I was exhausted even by lunch! I had 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grade all in the morning. Then I had 6th grade in the afternoon. I like playing games and such with the kids, but it gets really tiring. And as I mentioned in earlier posts, I know that I'm more worn out by the end of the week, so it's always hard to stay awake on Friday, but I do what I can.

So I was planning on meeting up with my buddy up in Chiba after work today and hang out there for the evening. I went to the station to catch the train. However, the winds were still extremely strong and crazy. So the trains were delayed, something that is unusual in Japan. The trains are ALWAYS on time and are exact down to the minute...or second! Instead of being able to get on the train that was scheduled for 5:52pm, I had to wait for the next train to come which was at 6:21pm. And that got delayed by another few minutes. So instead of getting in to Chiba at my original scheduled time of 6:45pm, I got in at around 7:36pm...Almost an hour later than I had wanted. Well, what can you do? I can't control the weather and I guess it couldn't be helped!

Anyway, I finally got there and met up with my buddy. We went to a kaiten sushi place which had good sushi. I looove sushi! Sooo gooooood! I also had some Otoro, which is the fattiest type of tuna...and also the best. It tasted really good! I'm glad that I got it and tasted it...I don't think that I had eaten it before. I had eaten other types of tuna, but not the Otoro type.

Finally, we headed back home. We caught the last train to get back to Isumi. Well, everyone else was also catching the last train. I mean, we were packed on the train like sardines...literally! I was squished in the train, then more people kept on pushing in and trying to squeeze in. It was so packed, it was literally hard to breathe! I was pushed up against everyone else and pushing them into the other side...so they were getting squished, I was getting squished...I guess it was uncomfortable for everyone!

Well, when there's interesting typhoon like weather, I guess things get crazy and it's not so fun!But overall, I had a good time and more importantly, I'm glad the weekend is here!!!! Wooo hooo!!

What does that say?

Today is Thursday. Not Friday, not Wednesday, but Thursday...

Just wanted to make that clear with myself. When I woke up this morning, I kind of knew that and was thinking it. But for some reason as I was heading out the door, I rushed back in to grab the garbage and take it out. Garbage days around here are on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

So guess how surprised I was when I took out my garbage and found that no one else had taken theirs out to the site....yeah. I had to re-think it and was like, "Oh yeah, it's not Friday!" Bummer.....I guess I just can't wait for the weekend! But that's natural, right? I mean, most people look forward to the days off when they don't have to work and don't have to worry about anything else except for what they want to do. So, another Thursday has gone by and tomorrow will be Friday!

Today, school was alright. It was pretty slow because I only had 2 classes today! They were both in the morning as well, so by the time lunch was over I had no more classes for the day! It was nice. Since I didn't have much to do and had lots of free time, I decided to study the dreaded kanji! Yeah, I know. Not fun, right? Since I've been in Japan, I have picked up on the basic kanji and am able to read basic things (I mean REALLY basic!) but I guess it's better than no progress at all. So I opened up my kanji book and continued studying. But I find that no matter how much I've been studying or looking at the kanji in my book, it's still SOOOOO hard for me to read any real documents. I can't pick up a piece of paper or a set of instructions and tell you what it says. No way!!! I always have to ask other people, "what does that say?" or "what is this kanji?"

Without other people's help, I'd be lost! I guess it will come with time, but I just want to be able to read anything and everything without having to ask everyone around me what it says. I'm hoping that within the next year, I'll become pretty literate and be able to read documents or other pieces of Japanese without much struggle. I'm 25 years old and it's frustrating feeling illiterate! Haha, I guess everything will come with time. I just have to be patient with myself and do my due diligence in studying. I guess that's where the issue is, though...I don't always have the self discipline to sit down and study kanji. It comes in waves for me. There are days where I will not take a peek at the kanji book and others where I will go through a ton. So I just have to find my pace and stay consistent with it and make sure that I am constantly reviewing what I have learned while moving forward at the same time.

I think another thing that would really help me to accelerate my reading skill in Japanese is to read books or manga. I know, read real books? I was thinking the same thing....seems kind of like a big leap to go from not being able to read to reading a whole story! Although I don't have to know everything, as long as I can get through some of the books and train my eye to read the Japanese characters, then I think it will help. Well, wish me luck! I have a hard enough time getting myself to read books in English! So we'll see how it goes with the Japanese!

懐かしい...

So today I had a full day of class...well pretty much full! I had 5 out of 6 class periods to teach today. I had 3 out of 4 classes in the morning and the 2 classes in the afternoon. Today, I had taught with the regular English teachers. It has been awhile...I mentioned in previous posts that there were student teachers at my school doing a live rotation in a middle school as they prepare to become teachers after they graduate from school. So I haven't taught with the regular English teachers for nearly 3 and a half weeks. It's been awhile!!

So the title of my blog today is 懐かしい (natsukashii) which in Japanese means, "It's been a long time" or "this takes me back." That's kind of how I felt today. I hadn't taught with the teachers in awhile that I kind of forgot the feeling of teaching with a real English teacher for middle school! But it was a good feeling, I guess. Although it was fun teaching with student teachers who are more my age, it's good to be teaching with the teachers who have the experience and who actually run the class. They have more control over the class and all the students know that they can't get away with as much as they might have been able to with a student teacher in the front.

Another 懐かしい moment came for me tonight at my Eikaiwa class. Tonight I taught a "Holiday Lesson" based on some pre-Christmas things and Thanksgiving. I mainly taught about the Thanksgiving Holiday and how we celebrate it in America. I even gave a mini history lesson giving the details on the origins of Thanksgiving and why we celebrate it. More than an English teacher, right?! Haha....

Well, besides Thanksgiving being 懐かしい for me, I showed an episode of FRIENDS because they have many Thanksgiving episodes. I don't personally own any seasons of FRIENDS, but there's a DVD rental place that I went to and they had most of the episodes there. I like the tv show a lot and watching it again reminded me of America. I forgot how funny the show is and how much I enjoy all the characters in it. So I had a really good time watching it again in my class tonight and being reminded of American sitcoms.

Prior to the class, I was playing with the rental DVD on my computer so that I could be all set when I wanted to show the episode to the class. However, I ran into one problem while trying to play it on my computer...I forgot about the different region codes!! Yeah, this could set me back a little bit! Well, I tried a lot of different things, like trying to open it up differently or playing it in Windows Media Player Classic, but still no luck. Well, you can only change the region code on DVD players 4 or 5 times for the lifetime of the machine, and I definitely did NOT want to do that!

Luckily, a friend of mine had put a different media player on my computer back in Minnesota that can play all sorts of different media, including those from a foreign country! I found this out tonight and was in luck! That way, I didn't have to worry about the different region code or about not being able to show the episode. Thank goodness! I guess I'm thankful for that! Haha! Well, long story short, I found out that I am able to play different DVDs from different regions on my computer and that makes me a happy camper!! All in all, there were many 懐かしい moments in my day and I'm sure there will be many more to come as I spend more time here in Japan. Everyday is a new adventure!