Mostly about food

The internet was giving me trouble, hopefully I've fixed it!

Theres a show on right now, where these 2 guys are eating the top 100 desserts in Japan. Thats all they eat, all day. They are now on dessert #15, day 7. The faces they make when they are already full and they are brought out a huge dessert, are so pitiful. You can see how tired they are getting. They sleep in the cake shop as well as eat there. The desserts are sooooo delicious looking, and actually priced really well.

The 3rd graders went well today. Tomorrow I wrangle 4th grade! I need to get to bed early! did I mention a 3rd grader today also came up and started rubbing my shoulders for a few seconds? It was kind of awkward, but it actually felt really good. his parents must have trained him.

I actually had a decent conversation with one of the 6th grade teachers, with minimal English. Things we studied in college, languages we studied, my future plans, my diet (of course- Japan is a nation in love with food). After a month, I am starting to talk again with a little bit more fluency.. well, less stuttering. And since Chris is not around, I am forced to pay attention and rely on myself. That, maybe people are using simpler terms with me, and I may understand the context better. I will say "it's alright/no problem" in Japanese, and people are dumbfounded. Even the simiplest sentences I am praised for, that I am so "skilled" at Japanese. They may just be saying that to be nice, sometimes its annoying, sometimes it really is a confidence booster.
I am also complimented on my chopstick use. They are once again floored that, yes, I do use them in America. But the number ONE thing I hear is "DID YOU MAKE THAT?" and its variations (Did you make that this morning? By yourself? Who made that? Really? Wow!) Yes, I cook. Yes, i made that by myself this morning. I cook every morning. They know I have diet restrictions, so maybe they are more interested in what I actually eat.
Or as Chris brought up, we're "so young" that they may just be impressed. It is very normal for people our age to be living with their parents until they are married (so it would be normal for Mom to make their lunch). This means disposable income.. which fuels Japan's incredible consumerism machine. I have no doubt in my mind that these are connected.

So the #1 dessert is some yummy-looking parfait from Tokyo. #2 was a pudding from Nagoya. This is very interesting, as most of the top ones were from Tokyo. Nagoya is maybe less than an hour from me. Japan placed 2nd this year behind France in the world Pastry championships, but has won top awards in the Chocolate and Sugar categories. I swore they won an actual Championship. but I can't seem to find any decent records anywhere. Anways, my point is, Japan is force at the top of progressive pastry/chocolate/sugar art to be reckoned with. With my love of these things, it makes living here really great. (Boy, if you ever want to drool all over your keyboard, type in "World Pastry Championships" in Google.. and all those links contain amazing pictures. Wow!)

Well Im still connected to the internet after all this! So I must be good! knock on wood!