yes, you may

Fact is, the future of feitclub.com is in doubt. Blogger has decided to end publishing via FTP, and since I use my own domain that's precisely how I put this blog together.

I want to continue writing and there are options on the table to migrate this project of mine to a new host or another publishing platform (Wordpress?), but nothing's going to be easy. It's fair to say I won't post much of anything here until I sort this out.

I'm trying to remain positive about this. I've wanted to overhaul the site for years as it's grown increasingly ugly by web standards. It was never pretty but it was, for a while, NOT hideous. Now it looks like less polished MySpace page. Ugh.

In the meantime, I'll continue to use Twitter and Facebook as usual. Notice that I've stopped the automated messages regarding feitclub.com. From now on, I'll just tweet about updates myself.

TTFN, I guess. Feit...out.

Labels: moblogging, site news

This is a really straightforward flash card. The image is unambiguous and the words are highly visible. Why did someone feel it needed more "explanation" and thus scrawl in Japanese on the right side? How does that improve its educational value?

What's worse is that the Japanese word for "pool" is just "puuru." They're already using a loan word! But instead of students listening to my pronunciation or trying to read the English, now they will simply read and repeat in Japanese.

If you really want to teach these kids words they already know, you don't need me to come to this class at all. Your own staff can practice saying "puuru" without me getting in the way. Maybe then I could spend more than one hour a month with the younger students.

Labels: Japan, JET, moblogging, teaching

The best part, of course, is the kid coming out of the toilet with a humongous grin on his face, declaring "[I feel] refreshed!" or possibly "No problem!" Either way, this word will be a part of my Japanese vocabulary from now on.

Labels: Japan, moblogging

I suppose I should give Japan credit for letting children know about a very dangerous disease without any politics or "other"-ing involved. Thanks to posters like this, the average Japanese elementary student is better informed than Bill Frist!

But why on Earth is she SMILING? Talking about AIDS isn't the time to be cutesy and happy, Japan.

Labels: Japan, moblogging

Tonight is Alex's birthday party and I am on my way to Osaka to join the festivities. I take a small measure of pride in this for a number of selfish reasons. For starters, I don't get invited to many parties because I don't have many friends around these parts. Most of the people I think of that way live hundreds and even thousands of miles away. The fact that this is a friend I met by being more outgoing and social online makes the invite that much more special. I decided last year to be more proactive in that department and tonight is a direct result of that initiative.

Since I'm already on the subway I'll wrap this story on that anticipatory note. I'm sure the party itself will make a much better story than the invitation anyway.

FEIT...out (on the streets)!

Labels: Alex, friends, moblogging