Online Calendar & Announcements Pages Updated

I've just updated our online Calendar & Announcements pages. By visiting them, you can check our Service Lesson time, Kids' Classes Model Lesson dates, holidays (including our Golden Week holidays), and special events. To check them out, go to http://www.be-and-me.com/ , click on "生徒のみなさんへ" (the Students' Page), then click on "The School Calendar" or "Be & Me Announcements."

Or click on the links below;

The School Calendar: http://groups.msn.com/BeandMe/calendar.msnw

Be & Me Announcements: http://groups.msn.com/BeandMe/announcements.msnw

Important Notice

Because of the growing importance of China, we have decided to stop teaching English. From today, all our classes will be in Chinese. Thank you for your understanding.

Be & Me's new teachers

Oh, by the way… April Fool!

April Fools' Day

Most of us take it for granted that New Year’s Day is January 1st. However, it doesn’t have to be. For example, the Celts, an ancient people of Europe, used to celebrate New Year’s Day at the beginning of winter. Even today, the Chinese – virtually 1/5 of all the people on Earth! – celebrate New Year’s Day according to their lunar calendar, which means each year’s celebration falls on a different date.

The early Ancient Romans used to celebrate the beginning of the year in spring. In 46 BC, Julius Caesar, Emperor of Rome, introduced the Julian calendar. Even though the calendar officially started in the middle of winter with the month of January, the New Year was celebrated soon after the Spring Equinox, as this was the ancient tradition. The beginning of April became a time associated with parties & formal visits to friends & business associates.

While the Julian calendar was the basis of our current calendar, it was complicated, and basically wrong. In 1582, Pope Gregory XIII decreed that the Christian world – Europe and all its colonies – should adopt the Gregorian calendar. As part of this change, he also wanted everyone to celebrate the New Year on January 1st, the beginning of the calendar.

In the early years that followed the introduction of the new calendar, some people either forgot about the change or decided they didn’t want to give up the old tradition. On April 1st, they dressed in their finest clothes and visited their friends & business associates as they always had. As a joke, those “friends” would often tease them or send them on a fool’s errand [a task that is impossible to finish; “Could you go and buy me a dozen hen’s teeth, please?” would be a good example – hens don’t have teeth!].

Although the change of calendar is now long forgotten, the tradition of fooling friends or playing pranks on them on April 1st still continues. These days, it’s common for people to start the day by telling their family, friends, & workmates something that is vaguely possible, but probably not true. Sticking signs on peoples' backs with messages like “It’s my birthday,” “Kick me!” or “Call me ‘Al!’” are common pranks played on this day as well.

A classic "Kick Me!" sign

Also, the media makes a big thing of April Fools’ Day, trying to trick its audience into believing something clearly not true. One of the most successful modern-day pranks was a 1957 BBC news item about growing spaghetti, which even included film of farmers “picking” spaghetti from trees. The following day, some people called the BBC asking how they could grow their own spaghetti at home.

A photo from the BBC's April Fools' Day new report about spaghetti farming

The French call April 1st Poisson d'Avril, or "April Fish." It has been a long tradition for French children to stick a picture of a fish on the back of their schoolmates, crying "Poisson d'Avril" when the prank is discovered.

A cute cartoon of the "April's Fish" prank

A French advertisement for McDonalds Fillet-o-Fish

How will you celebrate April Fools’ Day? Can you think of any good pranks you can play on your family or friends? Remember, April 1st is usually a lot more fun for the prankster than the fool!

The Ugliest Rabbit I've Ever Seen!

Today is Easter, a very important Christian holiday. Children celebrate Easter by eating chocolates shaped like eggs, rabbits, and chickens – all symbols of new life. (A more detailed explanation of Easter and its origins & customs follows this Entry.)

Yesterday, we received a small parcel filled with Easter goodies from my mother. Last night while our son was sleeping, my wife & I checked the contents…

When I first saw that little gold animal, I exclaimed; “That’s the ugliest rabbit I’ve ever seen!” My wife agreed.

However, once I studied the wrapping more carefully, I discovered that it’s not a rabbit. It’s actually…

a bilby, a kind of marsupial bandicoot found only in Australia.

Mmmm?! The Easter Bilby – a new Australian tradition?!

Have a happy Easter!

Easter

Without a doubt, the most popular Christian holiday in the world is Christmas. It’s even widely celebrated in non-Christian countries – Japan, for instance. I guess everybody loves giving & getting presents, regardless of their religion! However, probably the most important Christian holiday is Easter.

Easter is closely linked to the Jewish holiday of Passover. Passover is held the first Saturday after the first full moon after the Spring Equinox [March 20th – when day and night are both exactly 12 hours]. This year, Passover fell on March 22nd – yesterday! Christians believe that Jesus Christ was executed [killed by the government] on Good Friday, the day before Passover. Two days later, he came back to life, proving to everyone that he was the Son of God.

Traditionally, children celebrated Easter by decorating hard-boiled eggs and then giving them to friends & family. Recently, children are given gifts of decorated chocolate eggs, rabbits, and chicks. They are told that the chocolates were delivered to their homes by the Easter Bunny early in the morning while they were still sleeping.

The Easter Bunny with some Easter eggs, chocolate rabbits, & chicks

The eggs, rabbits & chicks are all symbols of new life used in ancient European spring festivals celebrated thousands of years before the birth of Jesus Christ. Even the name “Easter” comes from these ancient festivals. Eastre was the ancient German goddess of spring.

Even if you’re not Christian, you can still celebrate Easter. It’s easy – just eat some chocolate!

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

Today is Saint Patrick’s Day, a popular holiday all over the world. Saint Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland. From about 1845 to 1849, there was a great famine [a time when there was no food] in Ireland. About 3,000,000 people died. Also, many people left Ireland looking for a better life in other countries like England, America, & Australia. Today, about 40 million people in America (including Bill Clinton) are descendents of Irish immigrants [people whose grand parents, great-grand parents, and so on originally came from Ireland]. That’s one of the reasons Saint Patrick’s Day is so popular all over the world.

The main way to celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day is to drink beer – that’s one of the other reasons that Saint Patrick’s Day is so popular!

Drinking green beer & Guinness at Murphy's Irish Pub, in Shinsaibashi, last Saint Patrick’s Day. Green is the colour of Ireland. If you visit an Irish pub on Saint Patrick’s Day, you should try a green beer and a Guinness. Green beer is just draft beer with food colouring in it. If you have to choose between the green beer & the Guinness, you should choose the Guinness!

There are two really good Irish bars in Osaka. In Umeda, you should go to The Blarney Stone (click on the name for information and a map). In Shinsaibashi, you should check out Murphy's Irish Pub (once again, click on the name for information and a map)

Happy Saint Patrick’s Day!

Freezing my Buns Off (Part II)

Early in February, I wrote about how cold it has been this year (Freezing my Buns Off). Well, it’s still bloody cold!

The view from my balcony just over a week ago

A video of me riding to work in the snow

At the end of January, we visited Hatena, on of our favourite restaurants. While there, we discovered a great way to fight the cold. It’s called “muu-kata,” a kind of Thai-style “steamboat” [nabe].

“Muu-kata”(the “steamboat” itself is not spicy – only the dipping sauces)

Be-chan preparing “muu-kata” at our table

“Muu-kata” on the menu board

Me with some of the friendly staff
(that’s Karat, the owner, on the right)

Map & contact information for Hatena
(that number again; 06-4704-8107)

Spring is just around the corner! However, while it’s still cold, it’s a great time to get into Hatena and enjoy the warmth of “muu-kata”!

March Schedule

Wow! It’s March already! Where does the time go?

Yesterday, I updated our online Calendar and Announcements Page.

You can check out what’s happening at Be & Me in March by clicking on those links.

February Inner Sky

Our friend Simon hosts a concert called “Inner Sky” on the 3rd Friday of every month.

Simon (right) and his band at last month’s Inner Sky

The February Inner Sky is tonight, Friday 15th, at Covent Garden (06-4391-3177), in Kia Horie.

The concert starts at 8:30 pm. Unfortunately, I have to work until late. I’ll get there around 10:00 pm. Hope to see you there!

Valentine's Day (Revisited)

It’s Saint Valentine’s Day! Today, all across Japan, ladies will be giving obligatory gifts [gifts they feel they should give] to all their male friends – family members, classmates, TEACHERS, co-workers, and so on. (Did I mention TEACHERS?!)

In Western countries, the custom is almost completely opposite. Traditionally, men give a romantic gift – flowers, jewellery, lingerie, perfume, or chocolate – to their special girlfriend. Recently, couples often exchange gifts over a romantic dinner. In many ways, Saint Valentine’s Day in the West is a lot like Christmas Eve in Japan.

Saint Valentine’s Day was first promoted in Japan by chocolate companies. After many unsuccessful attempts to motivate men to buy chocolates for their lady friends, the chocolate companies targeted the ladies instead, creating a unique [special/one of a kind], Japan-only version of the popular international holiday. “White Day “ is a Japanese creation, celebrated nowhere else in the world.

Enjoy your Saint Valentine’s Day – but be careful not to eat too many chocolates!

But who is Saint Valentine? Click here if you want to find out more!

(This is a "reprint" of last year's entry. Sorry!)

Zero-Calorie Valentine’s Gifts

One of our (many!) New Year’s resolutions this year is to lose weight. That’s why we celebrated Saint Valentine’s Day by giving each other zero-calorie Valentine’s Day gifts…

Lots of love! No calories!

Mayumi gave me “Until I Find You,” the latest novel by John Irving, one of my favourite writers. He’s a great writer! Many of his books have been made into movies…

(Click on the title to find out the movie’s Japanese name and read more about it in Japanese)

The Hotel New Hampshire

The World According to Garp

The Cider House Rules

A Prayer for Owen Meany [the movie’s title is Simon Birch]

A Widow for One Year [the movie’s title is The Door in the Floor]

They are all good movies. The best one is “The World According to Garp.” If you haven’t seen it yet, rent it this weekend!

Garp! Sound's like a fish!

Freezing my Buns Off!

Is it cold enough for you? I’ve lived in Osaka for 16 years, but I’ve never seen it snow like it did yesterday! When I got off at my subway station last night, I was greeted by this…

That's my bike!

A commonly misused word in “Japanese English” is hip. In English, your hips are the two bones at the front of your lower body, the ones that let you bend your legs in front of you when you sit down.

In English, your oshiri is called many things. The most polite words are “buttocks” and “bottom.” Less polite but commonly used words are “butt” (the short form of buttocks), “bum” (Usually only used in British English), “buns,” “ass,” and “arse.” (“Ass” is more commonly used in American English while “arse” is more commonly used in British English. For some reason, “ass” is considered more polite than “arse,” even though they are basically the same word. You could use either word with your close friends, but you definitely wouldn’t use them at work or in front of your friends’ parents!)

When it’s really cold, we sometimes say, “I’m freezing my bum/butt/buns/etc off!” I was definitely freezing my buns off on the way home last night!

What's Up?

In American English, “What’s up?” is often used as a greeting. It means “What’s new?” or “What have you been doing recently?”

In British English, it means “What’s wrong?” or “What’s the matter?”

In Australia, we usually speak British English. I used to work with “Crazy” Steve, an American teacher. He would always greet me on Monday morning by saying, “What’s up?” Every time, I would pause before answering. I always had a moment when I thought maybe I looked sick or worried. We worked together for 3 years but I never got used to it.

"Crazy" Steve Hard at Work

Don’t forget that you can always find out what’s up at Be & Me by visiting our Announcements Page and School Calendar!

Goodman Bad & Cafe Bossa at Covent Garden this Friday Night

Our friend Simon hosts a concert called Inner Sky at Covent Garden on the 3rd Friday of every month. The next Inner Sky is this Friday, January 18th. As always, his band Goodman Bad will be playing an entertaining mix of 80s pop and 90s grunge in ska and reggae styles.

This week, they also have a special guest; Café Bossa – a duo who perform Bossa Nova.

Sae, the singer from Café Bossa

The concert will start soon after 8:00 pm. There’s a door charge of 1,000 yen, that includes 1 drink.

Café Bossa are expected to play quite early in the night so don’t be too late.

Covent Garden makes some of the best hamburgers in Japan so go there hungry!

2008年1月18日(金)　「INNER SKY(アコースティックライブイベント)」

Covent Garden, Kita Horie.

20:00くらい～？

* Goodman Bad

* Cafe Bossa (guest出演)

チケット不要です。お気軽にお越しください☆1000円（１ドリンク付）

Unfortunately, I have to work until late, however, I will definitely be there from about 10:00 pm. Hope to see you there!

Coming-of-Age Day

Today, 20-year-olds across Japan will be celebrating their coming of age. To “come of age” means to become an adult.

Traditionally in England, people were considered to come of age on their 21st birthday. In modern Western countries that used to be English colonies, you are legally [by law] considered to be an adult on your 18th birthday (in some states of America it’s still 21), however, many people still hold a special party for their 21st birthday.

In Australia & New Zealand, 21st birthday parties are big events. All of your friends and family are invited to the party. So many people come to the party, it usually has to be held at a special party hall or in a marquee [a big tent] in the back yard of your parents’ house.

At the party, your father gives a speech in which he formally recognises you as an adult. As a part of this speech, he usually “gives you the keys to the house.” This is showing that you are now an adult, free to choose when you’ll leave and come back home. Key’s are an important symbol at 21st birthday parties.

A Typical 21st Birthday Card

A Key-shaped Birthday Cake

Another common tradition at Australian & New Zealand 21st birthday parties is to scull a yard glass. “To scull” means to drink without stopping. A yard glass is a special beer glass that is about 1 meter long. It holds about 1 ½ to 2 litres of beer.

A Yard Glass

This tradition usually means the 2nd day of your “adult life” is spent nursing an adult-sized hangover!

Coming-of-Age Day is a national holiday in Japan so Be & Me is closed today. Don’t forget that you can check future Be & Me holidays, Be & Me Kids' Model-Lesson Times, and service-lesson times at The Be & Me Calendar. You can also check for future events at the Be & Me Announcements Page.

Happy New Year!

Welcome to the Year of the Rat! Did you have a good New Year’s Holiday? Ours was way too short! Yes, that’s right! Be & Me starts lessons again today!

You can check out our January schedule at The Be & Me Calendar. You can also check for special events, Model-Lesson & Service-Lesson times, and so on at Be & Me Announcements.

Speaking of special events, our friend Simon fronts a band called Goodman Bad.

They play reggae and rock covers of 80s pop and 90s grunge. And they rock!

They are having a concert at The Blarney Stone, a really relaxed and friendly Irish Pub in Umeda, this Sunday, January 6th.

The Concert will start sometime after 8pm and definitely finish before the last train.

Admission is free!

Click here for a map to the Blarney Stone.

By the way, the “super-mouse” character in the top picture is Mighty Mouse. I remember watching his cartoons on TV way back when I was in Elementary school. You can learn all about him by clicking on the name.

Merry Christmas!

Wow! Where did the last month (and a bit!) go? Doesn’t Time Fly?

Anyway! Here’s wishing you all a very merry Christmas from Be & Me!

Here’s a little present for you: An online version of the song White Christmas that’s guaranteed to get you in the mood. Enjoy!

PS Now that the Christmas rush is over, I promise to get back to regularly updating this Blog.

Bubble Wrap

Often my students are surprised at some of the obscure [strange, not known by many people] things that I know. (On the other hand, I’m often surprised by the important things I don’t know!) I have a secret: Many years ago, one of my friends gave me a Page-a-Day desk calendar on trivia. Every day, I could rip off a page and learn something new and useless.

The cover of next year’s Page-a-Day Trivia desk calendar

With the calendar came a “key” (actually a code of numbers) to their online service. Since I used that key on their Homepage, I have been receiving a daily e-mail telling me more new and useless information.

Last Thursday’s trivia question was, “What were the two engineers who invented Bubble Wrap trying to develop when they came up with the poppable protective packaging material?”

The answer was, “A plastic wallpaper with a paper backing. The two, Alfred Fielding and Marc Chavannes, quickly saw the potential of the bubbly laminated material they ended up with and established the Sealed Air Corporation to sell their new Bubble Wrap.”

Bubble Wrap

I remember the first time my family got a package wrapped in Bubble Wrap way back when I was a kid. My sister & I spent hours popping the individual bubbles with our fingers. What fun!

If you want to experience the modern day equivalent of that “fun,” you should check out Virtual Bubble Wrap.

If you like that, I also recommend you check out these other goofy (strange but funny) sites…

Kikkoman – You all know Batman & Superman, but who is Kikkoman?

Shinbashi – This is guaranteed to make you laugh! (If that doesn't play straight away, click on "cracking piece")

By the way, while I was checking out the new Page-a-Day Calendars, I found this interesting title...

Find out more at The Bad President Page-a-Day Calendar

Inner Sky Concert this Friday Night

Our friend Simon holds a monthly concert called Inner Sky at Covent Garden in Kita Horie. The next Inner Sky is on this Friday November 16th, from about 8:30 pm. It costs 1,000 yen to enter, but that includes one "free" drink.

Simon has recently formed a new band called “Goodman Bad.” He’s very excited about the band and thinks this month’s concert will be a lot of fun. Here’s what he has to say about it:

"Osaka reggae-rock three-piece Goodman Bad return to Covent Garden (Kita Horie) on Friday, November 16 to do a range of 80s pop and 90s grunge covers in a laid-back acoustic style while you drink and dance.

今月の「インナー・スカイ」（アコーステック音楽のライブイベント）は11月16日(金)に行われます。Goodman　Badというバンドが80年代のポップスや90年代のGrungeをレゲエふうAcousticで再現します。Goodman　Badはベース、パーカッション、ギターの三人組。９月のライブも大好評でした。今月もお見逃しなく。"

場所は堀江のCovent Garden です。

２０：３０から \１０００(１ドリンク付)

Tｅｌ：06(4391)3177

I have to teach until 9:30 pm tomorrow night but I will definitely go to the concert after that. Hope to see you there!

By the way, You can also check out some photos from the last time we went to "Inner Sky" here: Be & Me Inner Sky Photos

Pocky Day

As many of you already know, I’m interested in unusual holidays. Recently, I wrote about International Talk-Like-a-Pirate Day. I made some class sheets based on those Blog entries which I used in the week leading up to that day. As a warm-up question to those sheets, I asked, “What’s the most unusual holiday you’ve ever heard of?” One of my students (Hi, Megumi!) suggested November 11th – Pocky Day! The reason November 11th is Pocky Day is pretty clear...

Pocky Day is this Sunday. Don’t forget!

How do you celebrate Pocky Day? Well, that’s easy! Just buy some Pockies & share them with your family & friends!

Did you know that they have Pockies in other countries? Just over 10 years ago, I travelled through Europe with my sister. We took a 3-day bus tour to Pompeii & Amalfi from Rome. (Everybody should visit Pompeii & Amalfi for 3 days!) On the way to Pompeii, the bus stopped at a service station [gas stand] for a break. I felt like a snack – something chocolatey – so I went for a wander through the convenience store. That’s when I found the European version of Pockies…

“The Mikado” is a famous Gilbert & Sullivan musical that is popular in Europe. Maybe that’s why Glico changed the name for the European market.

Internationally, November 11th is Armistice Day (in some countries it’s known as “Poppy Day”), the memorial of the end of World War One (“The War to End All Wars” – Mmmmmm?). An armistice is an agreement to stop fighting. The armistice that ended World War One was signed at 11:00 am, on November the 11th (“the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month"). People usually remember Armistice Day by stopping everything they are doing at exactly 11:00 am, and thinking quietly for 2 minutes about all the people who died in the war.

This Sunday, I guess you can do both. At 11:00 am, stop whatever you’re doing and think about the uselessness of war and the sacrifices made by all of our ancestors in the name of peace. Sometime after that, cheer yourself up again by sharing some Pockies with your family and friends!

Farewell, Good Friend!

I remember when I first came to Japan back in the early 90s. I landed at Itami airport and caught the bus into Namba, where my brother was waiting for me. After we dropped my luggage off at his house in Sakai, he said, “Let’s go eat yakitori & sing karaoke!”

We caught the Nankai line back to Namba. It was a Sunday evening, the day before the start of Golden Week. I had never seen so many people! (The movie Pretty Woman had been a big hit in Japan only months before so all the girls were wearing thigh-high leather boots and red mini skirts – I didn’t know where to look!) We walked up Ebisubashi Street towards Shinsaibashi. Everything was a swirl of colours and noise – people and bright flashing neon seemed to blur together.

Suddenly the canopy over the covered shopping street ended. We walked into the open, just before the bridge crossing the Dotonbori River and gazed across the water to …

The Kirin Plaza Building

It was beautiful! A beacon of sanity in the shambolic confusion that surrounded me!

Sadly, like my hair, the Kirin Plaza Building will soon be gone. Yes, that’s right! Next Wednesday, October 31st, they will close its doors forever. One of my first memories of Japan will become just that – a memory.

So, you have one week to get down there and have one last look. If you have time, you can have a beer brewed on the premises at the ground-floor bar, and then check out the upstairs gallery, which is having a special exhibition – the History of the Kirin Plaza Building.