Greetings to our few faithful readers out there! Firstly, thanks for toiling through these wopping slabs of the minutia of our lives for yet another year: each week I'm astonished at my renewed capacity for narcissism...an introvert in name only? I hope you'll indulge me a little in my last blog entry for a couple of months. As the school year finishes and we wing back home, I'll take a break and return in August to these pages. In the meantime, I am tasked with giving my great mate Gurecki a send off tomorrow at our faculty meeting. I have to flesh out some ideas anyway, so thought I'd kill two birds with one stone and write a few ideas right here.
"Mark Ulfers preordained our friendship 12 years ago, and he was correct. Mark is a great friend.
I've found that, apart from Mark's wife Himiko, affectionately known as the "Japanese Banker", there are two other great loves in Mark's life: books and money, or perhaps even books about money.
I've never known a more voracious reader. In my house, at any given time, there at least 5 books with Gurecki emblazoned down the spine in capital letters. He reads everything from high end literature to pulpy fun,books about education and books about money. Most importantly, he learns from these books, and can be often seen unfolding his reading glasses to teach you something of great import.
He is a constructivist teacher, yet has styled himself to mold into slightly more restrictive styles, all the while, reading, researching and improving. If you've never heard the shy bearded fellow preach his mantra of how kids learn well, do yourselves a favor and grab a chance this week: he knows his stuff...and he'll be the first person to tell you that he didn't learn it during his Master's degree at Harvard graduate school.
His moniker as the "shy bearded fellow" is dripping with irony. He is not a shy man: many a time he'll bullock his way into a room with a ferocious look on his face, describe something as "beyond belief" and then proceed to talk about "..storms" and "clusters..." and other stuff I never really understand(!)
He's a proud member of two important associations. The Polish Nation Intellectual Forum and the eponymous Book Club have been credited by Mark as both saving his sanity and increasing his longevity. His antics at both places are legendary and most of them might make him blush if repeated here. Just a snippet: In not his wisest move, he once decided to "pop" the then principal of curriculum at TAS. He once rode a scooter with four grown men on board around Tienmu, and infamously attacked a huge inflatable Santa one night.
His new venture is taking just a tiny leap of faith, because it's been planned and costed "beyond belief". Mark and Himeko are bringing two careers worth of stellar teaching into a state of the art, brand new teaching facility. They have designed and built it from scratch, incorporating their new home into the complex as well. Located in downtown Nagasaki, it will be known as The Class and I know it will be all class. What an achievement, to be on the brink of running your very own self-designed school...wow!
An intelligent, articulate and erudite colleague and a loyal, trusted and hilarious friend....good luck Mark!"
Thanks for that indulgence...time is running out to prepare this speech, so that helps to get some ideas together! Photos: we had a very funny time at the Polish Nation this last Friday and Cass went out with her friend Kristin. a very strange large bird, who we hear calling at night, boldly came across the road and arrived on our doorstep. We call it "The Moop" after the strange "mooping" sound it makes! Roy Jones Jr. signed this boxing glove which I have had framed (along with two others). Cass and I visited the Neihu mall and wandered around the shops before eating at Cocoichibanya...delicious! Stop Press! Finally, the tongue lashing festival literally went off like a cracker tonight...3 photos plus a video up top or
here.
