shibuya karaoke street by WasabiNoise

As you, my loyal readers (do I have loyal readers, other than my mom and sisters?) are aware, I have been anxiously awaiting word from the JET Program to find out if I will be spending the next year or so in Japan. I finally got word back from them last night. They selected me as an alternate. What that means is that if someone they accepted changes their mind about going, or if someone drops out after they’re there, I might get selected to take their place. So, anytime between now and December, I might get another email from them saying they want me after all. It also means that I still have to fill out the same paperwork as if I were going, without any guarantee that I will get accepted.

Needless to say, this is incredibly frustrating. It incredibly frustrates my job situation. Right now, I’m working part-time as an assistant webmaster at UT, in the ME department. They love me down here and there has been some serious discussion about making me full-time. Unfortunately this is a very involved and difficult process, because it involves creating a new position for me, so they’d have to entertain other applicants for the position, yada, yada, yada. And with recent budget cuts, it becames even more difficult, but even still, my boss, and my boss’s boss want to try to make it happen. But if I’m leaving for Japan later this year, it’s not worth it to them. I can’t tell them I’m going to stay, and a week after I’m made full-time tell them I’m going to leave.

The hardest part of this whole thing for me is that I prayed long and hard about this program before I applied, and He told me to go for it. I knew from the get-go that I should apply to this program. Unfortunately, He never told me I would get accepted, just that I should apply. That’s been really hard for me to accept. I had a long talk with Him last night. There were many tears and some angry voices (from me, not Him, of course). Eventually I came to realize that whatever happens, somehow this will all be for my good. Whatever He has in store for me, I know He loves me, and wants the best for me. So I just have to move forward, without seeing the path ahead, and trust in Him to lead me to a good place.

My interview was in the morning at 10:40. They asked that, because of space constraints, we not arrive more than 25 minutes early. I didn’t know exactly where the Allen Center was, and I’m not that familar with downtown, so I left an hour ahead of my appointment. I figured, if I got there early, I could hang around downtown until my appointment. I had already printed out directions from Google Maps. So, I got on my best suit, and headed out about 9:30.

When I’m on my motorcycle, I tend to talk to myself, or sing. As I was going to the interview, I considered practicing the answers I intended to give, but I had already practiced those to death, and figured that would just make me more nervous. So instead, I decided to sing hymns to myself. This helped calm me a lot. Especially as I sang my favorite children’s hymn A Child’s Prayer. It also helped me from getting frustrated at the poor drivers on the road. (Seriously, do they teach in Houston Driver’s Ed that the turn signal is for initiating the car’s self-destruct sequence?) Anyway, I found the building and nearby parking really easily. As I expected, I was early. So I took the time to fix my hair (stupid helmet hair), make sure I looked dang good, and when it was 10:15, I headed up.

I had to wait a little while since I was early. They had a waiting room prepared for us. There were a couple other interviewees already there. They had a JET alumnus, who worked at the consulate, there as well to answer any questions we might have about the interview or the program. He was really helpful, and it was nice to have him there to explain exactly what was going to happen.

When it was my turn, another JET alumnus showed up to call me back. I was being interviewed by three people. The JET alum who brought me back, who was an American about my age, and two older Japanese gentlemen. One of them, who had a very thick accent and was a bit difficult to understand, looked about in his mid-40s, while the other looked to be in his mid- to late-50s.

They took turns asking questions. They would each ask a few, and then let someone else ask some more. The JET alum started, and he asked some of the basic questions I was expecting, like, why do I want to be an English teacher in Japan. For those questions I felt I was very prepared, but I ended up only saying a few of the many things I had prepared to say. I think part of the reason for that was that I had to adapt my answers to the specific way they were asking the questions, but part of it was just nerves making me forget some of the stuff I had practiced. Even so, I felt I answered most of those questions pretty well.

The oldest guy there had several questions that I wasn’t expecting at all. They knew that I’m Mormon, since I talked about serving a mission for the church in the application. I expected that they might ask some questions about my mission, but I wasn’t sure what. They didn’t ask any, but the older guy did ask a couple questions regarding religion. For example, he mentioned that, as I probably already knew (I did), Japan is not a Christian country, but is primarily Buddhist. He wanted to know how I, as a Christian, would cope with living in such an environment. I’m not entirely sure if the answer I gave was very good, but I talked about how a person’s religion doesn’t affect how I interact with them. I mentioned that I’ve had a Buddhist roommate in the past, and that never was a problem. After the interview was over, I realized I should have pointed out that while I am a Christian in a Christian nation, as a Mormon, I’m not unaccustomed to being in the minority, so that wouldn’t change that much.

He also mentioned that drinking is very common in Japan, and wondered how I would feel if I were expected to go out with my co-workers to have some drinks and go to karaoke. I think my answer was pretty good. I talked about having plenty of experience (in college) of going to partys where the primary activity was drinking, and that it was never a problem for anyone (myself or others) that while they were drinking beer, I was drinking soda, or water. I should have also mentioned that I love karaoke, so I would jump at the opportunity to go to karaoke with my co-workers. He also talked a bit about me being an ambassador of the United States, and how I felt about that.

All in all, I feel that I gave good answers, and that they were fairly satisfied with my responses. Of course, the decision isn’t up to those three. They send their impressions of me on to the foks in Tokyo, who make the final decision. Now I have to wait until April to find out if I got accepted. Keep watch here for updates when they come, and keep me in your prayers.

Edit, P.S.: I forgot to mention the most surprising part of the interview. On my application, I stated that I don’t know any Japanese. Even so, the older guy asked me to introduce myself in Japanese. Luckily, I was able to muster up a very short introduction (Hello. My name is Dan Jones. Nice to meet you). I definitely wasn’t ready for that!

So, in a few days, I should hear from the Japanese consulate in Houston. I don’t know if they’ll call or email, but they’ll schedule a time for me to go down there for my interview.

Now, I have to prepare. I might get a new suit for the occasion. I need to prepare answers to at least some of the basic questions. I know they’ll ask me why I want to go to Japan, and why the JET Program. I’m not really sure what else. I’ve read from a couple other people’s blogs about their interviews in past years, and the interviews are all different. They might ask me about my time as a missionary, and about my faith. They might not. It’s all a little nerve-wracking, but I won’t let it get to me too much. As an actor, I tend to approach an interview as just another performance, only I don’t have to act out a character.

Well, I’ve got preparation to do. Plus, I should probably get back to my job. I have a feeling I’m not going to be very effective at work today.

This morning, I was heading to work. I was on MoPac, in the far left lane. I decided to move to the center lane, so I carefully checked that it was clear, and then moved over. Shortly after I move over, I hear a loud honk rather close to me. I look to my right and see a big ‘ole SUV just behind me trying to push into my spot, or more accurately, trying to run me over. I speed up, and swerve slightly to the left to avoid being flattened by this behemoth.

So, how do I know it was his fault and not mine? Very simple. When I change lanes, after making sure the lane is clear, I move quickly into the nearest part of the lane: in this case, the left side of the lane. Then I slowly slide to the center of the lane. When the gas-guzzling maniac this morning honked at me, I was already in the center of the lane. I had been in the lane for a few seconds already. This dorkus barely had his front left wheel in the lane, although that was changing rapidly, as he barreled into my place. There was no way he started to change lanes before I did, and since I was in front of him, if he had pulled his face from the interior of his rectum for a moment, he would’ve clearly seen my bright yellow motorcycle in the very space he was attempting to enter.

Now, I’m sure it wasn’t maliciousness on his part, but rather carelessness. My vehicle, while bright, is small. Surely anyone with two eyes and half a brain cell would have seen that I was definitely in the center lane when he began to move into it, but perhaps he only has a quarter of a brain cell. In that case, I surely can’t hold him accountable.

Now, just in case that failure of a person is reading this right now, I have a suggestion for you. Before you get in your car again, I think you may want to see your doctor. It’s possible there’s a surgical procedure that can remove your head from your anus, which would definitely help when you’re on the road next time. Barring that, maybe you should become familiar with Capital Metro. They provide a great service, and would definitely help you avoid any more problems like the one we had this morning.

If you notice missing numbers, it’s because that one was too personal to publicly share.

So, here’s my list so far.

The job is part-time: 19 hours a week. Why 19 and not 20, I’m really not sure. I’m glad it’s part-time, because that means I’ll have time to devote to be able to do movies and plays (my real passion), and work on the new web design company my friend Abinadi and I are starting. Also, since they let me decide on my schedule, I put all my 19 hours on Tuesday through Thursday, so I always have a four-day weekend.

I found the job through my friend, Bryant Moscon. It was actually his job before, but he just got a better job, and they needed someone to replace him. He recommended me, and they jumped at it.

This job probably won’t be the most interesting thing for me to do, but at least it’s something for me to do. I’m glad it didn’t take me long to find it, and that I found it so easily. It’s really nice when things just work well.