The Time I Failed at Drawing Mario

So I mentioned last week how I started drawing white board doodles for my kids at my elementary school, and they freaked out and loved it. Right after I drew the Totoro, I went to Tokyo to meet up with some visiting family, and didn't see them (between my trip and other things) for two weeks straight. Before I left, my fourth grade students shyly asked, if it wasn't too much trouble, if I could draw a Mario when I came back. Of course, I couldn't turn down that many puppy dog eyes at once, so Mario was the first thing I drew after coming back from my vacation.

In my estimation, it was a failure. It was my first time drawing something so big (the Totoro wasn't actually that large), and I barely managed to finish it in time before the kids came streaming through the doors into the English classroom. Due to that, I wasn't able to fix his funky left eye, and it was bugging me pretty badly. That is, it was bothering me until all the fourth graders started bouncing around, jumping up and down, started hugging me, and chanted 'Shari-sensei remembered!'. Then I decided I was pretty glad I drew a Mario for them.

Sannohe Spring Festival

Super quick post about the Sannohe Spring Festival that happened this last May. It's a really tiny festival, with just a few booths selling food, but there's lots of cherry blossoms so it's all good. Spring is all about cherry blossoms anyways, and I've decided I need to find a way to plant one in my backyard whenever I head back the States. In the mean time, why am I posting pictures of cherry blossoms right now? Because it just started snowing a few days ago, and I already need to remind myself that after every winter, beautiful spring comes, complete with delicate little pink flowers.

Plastic Flowers

It's time for more Ikebana attempts, as I'm still trying to go through the massive amounts of pictures I've taken over the last seven months. These flowers are not actually plastic. They are in fact quite real; they just look like they're made of plastic. Also in the picture: one of my many Japanese textbooks and my little moving 'Welcome Home' Totoro motion sensor. He's actually made of plastic.

Whiteboard Doodles and Children's Smiles

Many months ago, I found myself with some free time while preparing for one of my classes at my elementary school. I always have class with my fourth grade students second period, so I use first period to gather any materials and set up any games I'll need for them. I misjudged the amount of time I would need, and having another five minutes or so before the kids came in, I decided as a spur of the moment thing to draw a little doodle of myself up on the whiteboard to welcome them in.

The kids freaked out. They thought it was awesome, and immediately tried their best to read what I had written up on the board. Then they asked if I was going to draw something next week. I shrugged, and said I'd think about it.

When next week came, I didn't go in my usual 15 minutes or so before second period; I went to the English classroom as soon as first period started. I had decided that I would draw them something again, and it would be one of my favorite things in the world: Totoro.

If I thought the kids had freaked out the week before, they absolutely lost their minds when they saw Totoro. They started jumping up and down they were so excited, and again, just like the week before, they tried their best to read the English words I had written along with the drawing on the board. They didn't have the heart to erase it, so the sixth graders saw it in 4th period (they hadn't seen the one I'd drawn the week before), and they freaked out almost as bad as the fourth graders. They did a lot better at reading the English though, lol. As the sixth graders laughed at their teacher trying to mimic my drawing with a red marker, I realized that this was something I had to continue; the kids enjoyed it too much not to keep doing it. It's been quite a few months now, and my kids expect to see a drawing on the whiteboard as soon as they come into the room. I also have many requests from the kids, more than I think I'll ever be able to finish. I've been posting the drawings on facebook, but again, not all my family and friends use facebook, so I decided to start putting them up here as well. Blogger also allows me more words to tell the stories behind and reactions to each of my whiteboard doodles. I hope you all enjoy them, and look forward to more to come! (Also, as always, click on the images to embiggen them.)

More Adventures in Ikebana

So, a long, long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, I wrote about going to a little old Japanese lady's house and learning the traditional art of Ikebana, or flower arranging. That was about, oh, 7 months or so ago, and my promise of posting and sharing any other attempts at this ancient Japanese art with all of you went unfulfilled. The promise was not, however, forgotten, and I have diligently photographed each of my attempts over all this time. They are not all that great, but they will all be put up here regardless; with any luck, I might even get better over time. The one above was my first ever attempt by myself, without little old Japanese ladies fluttering about me giving advice. Below is the same arrangement a week later, after the lilies had fully bloomed. I am fortunate that my little tiny town has not one, but two really awesome fresh flower shops to utilize (one has even hooked me up with a discount). Look for more soon!