Despite my best efforts...

...to take some vacation days and withdraw from the world, I keep getting pulled into the fray. Can't complain though, as "the fray" consists of nothing more than dinner and drinks at a farewell get-together and an afternoon of playing with kids.

Harrowing, I know.

Anyways, I went to help out with an English class as a favor for a friend, and got to play around with a buncha the kids I help teach at elementary school, and one young lady who's at Jr High.


Pre-class goofing around.

The cacophany of children. Cute, but noisy.


Look carefully for the expression of abject terror and pain on the face of the girl behind me. [She's a big faker.] :)

So we played some games - "Who/What am I?" and Simon Says - and the kids won fake money to use for our last activity, Shopping roleplay/model conversation/scenario work. Fun and, as always, the kids were a blast.


One of my favorite/most proficient English students at Jr High - her little sister was in the kids class - so she came and helped out along with the moms and Akemi and me. Really smart, great kid. A little shy, but always cheerful and really cool. She was in charge of selling drinks at our faux shopping English roleplay game.



Is there anything cuter than chubby Japanese children?
[The answer is "no," btw.]



Good times.