Wandering Musings

Did you know humbug is an archaic word meaning hoax or jest? When the infamous Scrooge muttered the phrase “Bah! Humbug!” he was merely stating that Christmas is a fraud. (My students always mispronounce fraud… It pops up in lessons every now and then.) This holiday lesson brought to you by Wikipedia.

My love for Christmas music has just died. And when I say just, I mean a few minutes ago. I was listening to a streaming holiday music station online to get into the seasonal spirit, only to find myself feeling more and more miserable with the passing of each song. Take the following lyrics, for example.

There’ll be parties for hosting
Marshmallows for toasting
And caroling out in the snow.
There’ll be scary ghost stories
And tales of the glories of
Christmases long, long ago.

It is NOT the most wonderful time of the year when your list of all the wonderful things is a lie. Although, these lyrics may not be the best example, as I DID host a Christmas party just last night (*sigh* as Santa. Kathy was my wife. And another teacher was our faithful reindeer.) However, there were NO toasted marshmallows. And yes, it may have been snowing at the time, and there could have possibly been some karaoke as well, but the twain did not meet! And it’s true my students do enjoy listening to me talk about my family’s Christmas traditions, especially the parts about bundling up and setting off through the Christmas tree farm in search of the perfect tree(s). Like I said, those lyrics weren’t the best example. But as I listened to that and many other songs, I started feeling a bit Scroogish. I had been perfectly content until those songs made me realize that I couldn’t possibly be! Merry Christmas is an oxymoron! While I sat here dripping with nostalgia (um, not the best visual) another song came on. Here are a few of its lyrics.

Christmas in the Northwest is a gift that we can share.
Christmas in the Northwest is a child’s answered prayer.
Even if you take away the presents you still will have a tree.
For Christmas in the Northwest is a gift God wrapped in green.

Oh come on! Never mind that these lyrics are so sickeningly sweet they make me want to puke, or at the very least book an appointment for the dentist. Talk about rubbing salt in the wounds. But I take back what I said about no longer loving Christmas music. Instrumental is fine (Mannheim Steamroller anyone? I’m listening to Veni Veni Emmanuel now), along with the old classics (that’s a tautology right there, like the expression “free gift”).

And speaking of gifts, here’s one for you! A video! This was originally intended for upload about a year ago but obviously forgotten. It’s from last year’s winter holiday, recorded at the Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium. The aquarium itself has many exhibits, including the ever-popular dolphin, whale and seal shows. But THIS tank absolutely took the cake. I stood in awe before this ‘miniature’ version of Kuroshio Sea. The ENORMOUS fish you see is a whale shark. There were three of them! The photos were up long ago. Pictures are great, but sometimes you just have to see (and hear!) the sights yourself. Enjoy, and happy holidays!

No Europe pictures posted yet, BUT there are plenty of others! Click the lovely lady below to be taken to my Roving Lens page. If you haven’t already, you can join me for a stroll up Mt. Fuji. You can also check out some sights from Seoul. Or come party with me, vicariously, of course.

As you can see, I FINALLY worked up the courage to go to a Japanese hair salon. Okay, well, I’m not really that brave. Kathy’s the one who booked the appointment. I just tagged along. The stylists were more scared of me than I was of them, though. The woman who was supposed to cut my hair (and who speaks English!) passed me on to the man who owns the salon (and speaks NO English). I drew a picture of what I wanted and hoped for the best. There was only one freak-out moment when the man wanted to give me a fringe (bangs! Never again!). I’ve gone short before, but this is a brand new style for me. I have to say I’m quite fond of it so far. It shocked my students. Many of them thought there was a new teacher at the school. I don’t like attention, so it was a wearying week while all the students cycled through, each exclaiming on my new do. Mostly good reviews, although there were a few who were convinced I’d had some traumatic event which triggered the cut. I wish! But my life is pretty dull.

The seasons have officially changed, in my head at least. We’ve had quite a bit of snow, though at the moment it has mostly melted. Snowboarding will start soon (next weekend in fact). I’ve been dying to snowboard since August. It’s about time! Aeon’s Christmas party is this weekend. I’ll be Santa again. Kathy will be Santa’s wife. And we’re forcing a couple other teachers to be our reindeer. They should be thankful it’s reindeer and not elves with pointy shoes. I love living in a non-religious country. You can enjoy Christmas for what it’s really about – rampant commercialism. There’s no political correctness and certainly no “War on Christmas” crap. Christmas isn’t even a holiday (I get paid on the 25th – and the banks are all open). Everyone works. I would’ve had to, but I’m taking Christmas and a couple days off for an extra long winter vacation this year. No big travel plans, although Kathy and I might go to Kyoto for a few days. It’s time to start saving up for my return to the States. And, well, there’s New Zealand to plan for (the south island), and Kathy has given me an open invitation to stay with her in Perth. Oh yeah, and of course there’s the whole looking for a new job thing. Or grad school. *Buries head in the sand… or rather, the snow.* Damn you, real world!