Monday January 16 5:03 p.m.
It's back to balmy...or at least above zero here in the GTA. And luckily, it's been pretty clear, too. But we're expecting some precip later tonight in the form of either snow or rain....or a hybrid of sleet.
Well, here I was yesterday lamenting that I was in this existential limbo when I got a call from my old friend, Sam, asking me whether I would be willing to give an informal seminar at his church sometime in a few weeks for some people who may be interested in doing what I did...work in Japan. Of course, this is purely voluntary...I can't really charge folks a consulting fee for what I have to offer, and I made that crystal clear to my friend. He was asking whether I was knowledgeable about PowerPoint and yada, yada yada. I've just been back for a month; a bit too early for me to throw out the dog-and-pony show. At this point, I can make it a pleasant little Q-&-A with some photos and then some samples of my grammar exercises. I've already asked my former boss in Tokyo, Speedy, to send a few sheets over.
Speaking of Speedy, he only wrote a few lines before he started launching into shop talk with me (yup, he's truly an entrepreneur). He asked me whether I had my Skype set up (that would be a yes), and if I would be willing to do some proofreading and maybe even some Skype English lessons. Hey, anything to pay the bills. I've sent a message over to my brother to see if we can give the Skype a dry run sometime this week.
As part of my "formal"blog training, I've been reading that I should look for similarly-themed blogs that I could possibly link up with. I came across some English-language ones, including one by a native Japanese who had been living in Toronto. However, they all had their most recent entries all the way back in 2009. The Japanese-language ones are up-to-date, though I'm not sure about linking up with them. I'm now wondering if I should start up a Japanese-language blog. It would be great practice for my second language, although I think any readers would have a field day with my skills...or lack of them.
Still, it is reassuring to come across these buds of opportunities.
