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Most of the time when I’m on the streets of Osaka and am trying to make my way through the crowds I probably look like an angry emu ready to attack anyone who bumps into me, cuts my way, or walks carelessly and needs boxes on the ears.
I mean, who comes out of a shop onto the road like a Jason Bourne without looking right and left? Who stops right after they get off an escalator and contemplates where to go next? And though I understand how uplifting it is to listen to music while you’re walking, I get furious at people who listen to music with earphones while riding their bicycles as if they were on their way back from a pub on a remote road somewhere in Ireland.
Just recently one of my Japanese students, who I had been teaching English on a regularly basis for over a year, quit her lessons with me without explaining anything to me.
I was sad about it because I had really enjoyed our lessons and liked her very much.
About three months ago I had told her about the new part time job in a kitchen I started working at and asked her if there was a chance we could rearrange our lesson time. She seemed very supportive and flexible with the schedule.
Looking back at everything now though this little episode could have been the trigger for her, which snowballed into the "messy" end of our English lessons.