MY LIFE IN JAPAN a blog from kyoto for friends and family

Well, the last few weeks have been spent in convoluted discussions with various potential employers about work. The main problem was trying to get hours that matched each other (I failed) and matched Yukie's hours (partly succeeded). On the first issue I was hoping that I would be able to work mostly days at one place and evenings at another, so that I could work fewer days and have more time with Yukie. I finally recahed a compromise with one employer, called IMEX, that I thought was going to work with the other, called shogakukan. I was a little reluctant to work for IMEX for two reasons; one, I was already working for them one day a week, and they were paying me very little, and two, the owner is a it of a know it all, and a little intrusive and pushy, so i was leery of entering into a long term relationship with him. So I drove a pretty hard bargain, and I leveraged the fact that I had to work at the other place in the evenings and weekends, to get a schedule that met more my needs than his. When he finally got down to making me an offer, though, he came in much higher that I expected, which ended up being very good, because when I presented the final arrangement to shogakukan, they decided they couldn't take it after all. But with his offer it is not as necessary that I work a second job. I still feel a little like a heel for driving such a hard bargain on what turned out to be false pretenses (or could be taken as such), but I was acting in good faith. I know that when he finds out he will press me to work evenings, but in the meanwhile Yukies schedule at work has turned out such that we really want those evenings to be together, so there may be some friction when it comes to that. In addition, because of Yukies schedule, I had to turn down other people that I had led to believe I would be available for, so I ended up with a few burnt bridges, I am afraid. Maybe singed..

In any event, the important thing is I am really working at long last. I have landed, with both feet, in Japan. I have been extremely fortunate in the past year or two of my life; may all sentient beings benefit...I feel as if a certain malaise that I have been carrying around has subtly vanished, like a chest cold (which I am currently suffering from; into every life a little rain must fall) when it finally recedes in the night (tonight I am sleepless due to constipation, which I am taking as a sign that I need to blog).

This week I got to meet my new students, and it is nice to meet new people. I feel ready to socialize and get to know people properly. Not having a livelihood was making me feel very inhibited. I feel like I can relax more finally, and be myself.

I feel a little sleepiness coming on at last. more later...

Labels: life in japan