Friday, January 30, 2009

Back home

I've been back home about 4 weeks and am slowly getting used to being home. It's strange; I never expected to suffer from reverse culture shock. I didn't have culture shock in Japan because, well, I expected things to be very different. Here are some things I've noticed about being home:

1: Everyone here is so tall! And wide! There are actually fat people here. Lots of them.

2: I can talk here. I mean, talk and be understood. This is not always a relief. There's a certain lack of stress that comes with only being able to grunt and point at things. This might explain something about boys. The laid-back ones, anyway.

3. The sun is warm here. Toasty warm.

4. I like wearing dresses.

My ideal workday

I'm working in Hawkes Bay at the moment, stocking up on experience, doleros and a tan. They've given me a motel room across the road from Hastings Hospital and I've been slowly working out the lay of the land. Everything is pretty sweet and handy. Here's my ideal working day:

8.30am: go to handover.

9 am - 5 pm: save lives.

5.30 pm: 5 mins up the rd: Aquajogging session at Swimgym (my motel key gets me in free)

6.30pm: Towel off. 10 mins up the rd: get icecream from Rush Munroes Icecream gardens(I've earned it).

6.45 pm: Still eating icecream, wander into Hawkes Bay seafood to grab some fresh fish and mussels.

7 pm: sighing happily, cook dinner.

7.30 pm: write.


This is a theoretical timetable, of course. I don't think it will ever turn out this way (for a start, I tend to work past 5 at the moment ... and I'm pretty good at constructing excuses not to go to the gym). But dreaming is halfway to doing.

Ok, it's not, but at least it's a fun exercise.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

We-ness

In the latest TBI issue I've posted a recent interview with Square, friend and producer of the Asian Tales concept. I'm quite excited by some of the ideas we talk about, especially around shifting identity and the concept of "we-ness" (sharing and being rather than standing apart and looking). I'm going to have a think and expand on those issues for my TBI blog which is due in tonight....