Friday, November 9, 2007
Judo Dilemma
The free ride was bound to end someday. I have been scolded. Admonished. Upbraided. Reproached. Suwa Sensei, the amiable drunk judo coach that befriended me, showed me his secret room, tried to get me to go to a house of ill repute and invited me to judo club, freaked out on me in the teacher's room on Wednsesday. I really have no clue why. The argument stems from issues surrounding my judo-gi. The dojo at the school has two dressing rooms and a teacher's office. He told me to leave my dogi in an empty locker in the teacher's office. I asked many times if he was sure that was okay. I was assured that it was. As I am not always able to go to judo club, and then not for the whole time, I would leave my dogi there during the week and then take it home and wash it on Friday. A month or so ago, Suwa Sensei told me, "No, use it twice wash it once. Ok?" I told him it would be no problem as I would be just as happy to take it home everyday, but he had asked me to use the locker. As I was busy with bunkasai preparations I wasn't always able to go to judo. I went on Monday, and couldn't go on Wednesday. I was very busy with English club when Suwa Sensei found me and said, "Take home your gi!" I told him that I was sorry, but that I hadn't brought my gym bag that day. "No! You have to take it home every two practices." "Ok. Got it." Ever since, Suwa has been really cold to me. We both had colds though so, I wrote it up to that. This week I had made sure to ask him very politely if I could come to judo. Monday was fine. I hung my gi in the locker. Wednesday, I asked him very politely if I could come to judo. He freaked out and said "You left it again! Your...that thing...you left it!" I apologized and told him that I was taking it home after every two practices like he had said. "That's just an excuse! I don't want to hear it. You just don't listen. You are not a real teacher here anyway so you should just do everything like you are a student and not a teacher, because you're not. DO you understand! Do you understand!?!?" I went along because a lot of these old gruff guys just want to see that you are willing to take it and then they will be nice. He wasn't even close to nice after. I have become progressively more pissed-off as these two days have passed. I didn't decide that the Japanese government is racist and won't allow non-ethnic Japanese to be public employees. Today I asked Yoshida Sensei, the lady who sits next to me, about it. She said that the judo club kids really like me and they are scared of Suwa, so maybe that pisses him off. I don't know. He was so nice to me when I first got there. It should be pointed out that old Japanese guys are hard to understand under the best of circumstances. Why would they not expect some misunderstanding? Why would I need an excuse? I'm not a teenager. I really don't mind taking my gi home. Odd.
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3 comments:
Hey,alcoholics are weird and temperamental. They are also usually egomaniacs at some level, balanced with insecure jerks. This behavior isn't especially surprising in that context, not to get all 12 step on you or anything.
Part two of my explanation is that teachers are very often insecure failures, especially public school teachers, people without the nerve or initiative to get out of high-school. Easy to hit the weird zone with such folks. The reason kids love some of their teachers so very much is because of the contrast as often as not. The bar for basic decency and respect is set pretty low for high-school teachers, and pardon me if i suggest that maybe Japan sets it even lower.
Hope you know not to take this shit personally or allow him to shove you back into the adolescence from which you emerged like a very fine moth from its dingy cocoon.
Actually, in Japan, being a teacher is considered "a good-ass job." It is success. Especially if you are the judo coach. It also means that you are used to being in charge, absolutely. It means that no one ever says 'why?' to them. It means that they are used to everyone cowering and bowing their heads. I considered the alcohol factor. He old me he was an alcoholic and that would imply mood swings, forgetfulness and irrationality. Also, sometimes I rub that particular kind of guy the wrong way. I like doing sports. I'm not great at them, but I have fun doing them which sometimes pisses people off. The notion that you are having fun. It isn't my first run in with that type. Especially in Japan where trying equals being miserable. Whatever. I think I will just keep going to judo, because he is seldom there and I enjoy my time with the kids.
actually, even US teachers often consider themselves successes. I'm talking about being failures as human beings, not professionally.
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