Matthew Jones
Nivedh Sreejit
Table of Contents 目次 Editor’s Note 5 Prez Talk 6 Note from your First Year Rep 8 Learning to Blow 10 Sapporo 発泡酒 Review 14 HEC Important Info 23 Poem: Ocean’s Recipe 24 Comic 26
Haley Hollen
Happy Holidays, fam. If you’re going somewhere, travel safe. If you’re sticking around, enjoy your Christmas KFC and New Year’s shrine visit. As a side note, the Polestar will be looking for a new editor in the coming election. If you think you’ve got what it takes, don’t hesitate to apply. Also feel free to reach out to me by email (editor@hajet.org), on Facebook, or in person if you have any questions. The position of designer will also be changing over too in the new year, so keep an eye out for that as well. The next submission deadline is January 8.
Editor’s Note
Betrice Yambrach, President
O
nce all of the Welcome Parties and Fall Meeting are over, things seem to quiet down quite a bit within the HAJET community during the winter months. After all, the next official HAJET event after Fall Meeting is typically the SDC Enkai in December, followed by the HAJET Winter Meeting at the end of February. Though comparatively the HAJET community may seem quieter now than it was throughout the summer and fall, we’re still just as busy as ever. Since October, the PC has been working through an influx of International Event Funding applications. With the Holiday Season in full force, this is the perfect time for our members to hold cultural events in their communities. Even for myself, after holding a Halloween event at my high school at the end of October, my principal quickly followed up by asking about the details of my Christmas event (I didn’t even know I was planning a Christmas event…). Needless to say, it’s amazing how many events our members have coordinated this year, the success they’ve had, and the numerous ways they have inspired our schools and communities. The volunteers at most, if not all, of our member-held international events mainly consist of other HAJET members who travel all over the island just to help out. It always surprises me that our members can create a Facebook event for a community cultural event they’re planning and receive a significant amount of interest from other members who genuinely want to join and volunteer. It really goes to show just how supportive the HAJET community is. I think this is one of the reasons why HAJET is
so unique and valuable. Apart from reviewing and approving Event Funding Requests, the HAJET PC has been quietly preparing for the new HAJET year and the PC changeover at the upcoming Winter Meeting. Over the last couple weeks you’ve probably seen quite a few posts about the PC election season and which positions are open for application. Chances are if you’re reading this, you’re like me and think that HAJET is a pretty cool organization. But why specifically should you run for a position on the PC? The reasons are different for each of us. Simple enough, perhaps you like what HAJET does and want to give back to the community and/ or make it better. Maybe you find yourself with a lot of free time at your school or BOE. Though you’re planning to stay on JET for another year, you’re wondering how you’re going to survive the constant desk warming. Working on the HAJET PC is a good way to counter all of that free time and give you something meaningful to do that still involves English education and your students. Or, perhaps you want to add a unique work experience to your resume that stands out to future employers and graduate schools. Regardless of the reason why you choose to run, through my own involvement with the PC over the last two years I can tell you that it is a rewarding and worthwhile experience. It helps you grow professionally and personally while working with various groups around Hokkaido, as well giving you the opportunity to build better relationships with your own community, schools, and students. The HAJET election season is currently underway. If you’re interested in running for a position on the HAJET PC, applications and nominations are open until January 1st at midnight. Please contact me at president@hajet.org or our Elections Coordinator, Fiona Dunton, at elections@hajet.org if you have any questions.
Karisa Whelan
Nivedh Sreejit
Gird up your loins, Winter is here!
Nivedh Sreejit | 1st-Year Rep. | Whaddup. A
s you’re sitting here reading this, you might be in a staff room (like the author of this piece) finding ways to meaningfully spend your office hours and lesson plan for the classes ahead. You may be at home, pressing pause on your ALT grind by binging Stranger Things while under your kotatsu. Whatever be the case, winter is here and our days have gotten shorter and colder. So it’s easy to mentally short out, take a knee, and feel the winter blues settling into your everyday routine. Believe me, I know the feeling, and I spend much of the winter months filling my time with things to keep me moving and working when the bear-ish part of me just wants to eat and sleep til it’s summer again. I think it is exactly at this point that adopting a proactive mindset becomes especially essential. Staying upright in the winter can be
accomplished by a myriad of ways, and for me it includes a healthy balance of self-care in the way of eating hearty portions of delicious foods, going outside and braving the cold for short trips around town, and keeping up with my hobbies. Beyond that, I remind myself constantly that the cold winterscapes of Hokkaido are something of a natural wonder and that my favourite photographer (Michael Kenna) captured some of his best images here. In that spirit, i’d like to spend the winter months getting out and experiencing the epic winter out here and taking advantage of the prime skiing/snowboarding opportunities that many of you have already taken to enjoying. As always, keep me in the loop with what you guys get up to and i’ll see the lot of you later! ~ Nivedh
Getting about in Winter.
Christmas Playlist! Coming to you from the 2017 First-Year Cohort is this off-beat playlist that I quite enjoy. There’s a healthy mix of nostalgia and hilarity in this one and the music recommendations are coming to you from ALTs from Hokkaido and beyond. 1. “Oh Come All Ye Faithful” - Twister Sister 2. “Last Christmas” - Wham! 3. “Everyday is Christmas” - Sia 4. “Sleigh Ride” - Ying Yang Twins 5. “Hannukkah Song” - Adam Sandler 6. Christmas in Hollis - Run-D.M.C 7. “Santa Baby” - Eartha Kitt 8. “White Christmas” - Michael Bublé & Bing Crosby 9. Christmas Time (Don’t Let The Bells End) - The Darkness 10. Fairytale of New York (feat. First MacColl) - The Pogues
If you’re like me and car-less, learn the ways of bribery and pay people gas-money for a lift up to whatever libations are being held nearby. I’m lucky enough to live around a rowdy bunch of kids who take the weekends to travel across the north and get plastered together, so pitching in for gas and being good company goes a long way to merrymaking in the winter. What did people do to stay warm before heat-tech?
Layer, layer, layer. Just do that all the time in the winter and make sure whatever ensemble of clothing you’re wearing is properly sealed from the elements by cutting off open pockets that compromise your insulation. A good base layer *long johns ftw* and a proper set of gloves goes a long way. Also, wear a hat and own the winter look with a pair of boots with a sizeable tread. How does one gird up ones loins?
Of ancient origins, the term “gird up your loins” comes from the action of tying ones long tunic into ones belt in preparation for battle. Although its use here is more in the line of a “symbolic expression for strength and vigorous intervention” in regards to the attitude with which we face winter (Botterwick & Ringren, 442).
Learning to Blow My time in a Japanese community band A. Jarrett Wheatley
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n real life, I’m a euphoniumist. That means I got a Master’s degree in classical music with a focus on the euphonium, or “baby tuba.” I grew up playing instruments and I was in college and community music groups. So when I came to Japan, I wanted to keep that up.
the morning before each concert. Again, I was floored: the consensus among brass players in the USA is that you MUST rest before concerts, so you can play at your peak level. Otherwise, you sound tired and risk getting injured.
Japan, as you may not know, has a HUGE wind band culture. The All-Japan Band Contest is the largest non-pop music competition in the world. I was able to find a good local band in Takikawa, about 20 minutes away. I joined the band, “Takisui,” for about 2 years. The Japanese was a struggle someI had my biggest times, but we had a common musical ‘lan- shock right before guage.’ It was a rewarding experience, but it the first big concame with some surprises. cert. Earlier, everyone in Takisui was As soon as I joined I asked for the perforhanded out some mance schedule. I was stunned: there were tickets to give or only three concerts scheduled for the entire sell to their friends year. In college, I played three concerts in a and family. We were term. Usually more! I’d learn new music for told to bring back all of them, too. (I loved it.) the unused tickets Takisui worked on the same music for a the day of the conlong, long time. It wasn’t for lack of practice, cert. I don’t have since most of Takisui’s rehearsal time was any friends or famiset aside for individual practice. I’m used to ly here, and another practicing by myself at home, free from dis- player had already tractions and noise. Takisui’s players prac- set my schools tice by themselves as well: all in the same up with tickets; so room, with 50 other people also practicing I had nowhere to by themselves. It’s unlike anything you’ve hand them out. I assumed that was ever heard. fine, but that mornWhen I say they practiced for a long time, I ing I had the following conversation: mean it. My bands in the US never practiced “Okay, here’s the tickets back. Sorry, but I for longer than 2 hours at a time, but Takisui would rehearse for six hours on a Sunday couldn’t sell any.” night (until 11 pm sometimes) as well as “Right. 5000 yen, please.” once or twice during the week. With no break for dinner. Uphill in the snow, both ways. “…WHAT?” What’s more, we practiced for hours
I discovered only then that I was required
to sell at least five tickets or make up the difference myself. I was flabbergasted. (You’d think having no friends or family would be punishment enough.) Luckily the band staff were patient and understanding with my mistakes, and they waived the fine (that time).
a level that caught me off guard. Everything they did was so different, but it worked! We played a great concert for a great audience.
In the end, it was absolutely worth the challenges and surprises. I learned a lot, and I’m grateful I met these people… but I don’t miss driving home hungry, at midnight, in That first concert was surprising, too - January. and humbling. All the players had reached
Sapporo 発泡酒 Review This month I’m tackling the happoshus (発泡酒)! More accurately, there’s only three true happoshu here—the Ruby Belg, Sapporo Goku Zero, and the Hokkaido Nama-Shibori—the rest are classified as “liqueur” (リキュール). Additionally, there’s one pea-protein based drink and two alcohol free beers as well! The down side of this month is that there’s not a lot to recommend here. The upside is that there’s extra sass this time around! Next month will be Sapporo beer’s Yebisu line of products, and the month after that will be the last in this series, exploring the exclusive brews only available at the brewery itself.
Edwin Arce II
“E
xtra Rich”. Okay. Suuuure. Not much to say here. It’s slightly sweeter and towards the more savory end of the flavor spectrum, at least relative to the standard Sapporo beer. It has a light body that goes along with the general gentleness of the beverage all around. I see gold and wheat on the can, but the only thing that stands out is a hint of hops. For a brand that has enough hop-based bevs on offer, I’d expect the one with “mugi” leading the name to do more to put its wheatiest foot forward. Oh well. It’s an inoffensive beer, perfectly drinkable and fairly refreshing.
F
airly happy with this one, as far as happoshus go. They managed to balance the flavors in this one, hiding well the somewhat chemical taste that comes with many of their other happoshus. It’s basically an off-brand stout. If you took a Guiness and diluted it with an eggcream, you’d get this.
T
his one’s definitely more citrus-forward than I’d expected from a beer with 麦 (“mugi”, or “wheat”) in the name. It might have the “aroma” of Autumn wheat, but it has the taste of seltzer flavored with a stale lemon rind that’s been soaking in a puddle of spilled Coors at the end of the bar. That said, it’s not bad per se, and it’s perfectly drinkable. It’s even a bit sweet, like maybe it was brewed in a room where they were toasting toffee or something. Not my first choice by any stretch, but I won’t be leaving any in my cup either.
T
his is a strange one. If I had to give it a single word: Rushed. It feels like they had a good idea going in, but they never took the time to get the flavors to properly blend and flow. Everything feels like it was tossed in a pot haphazardly and pushed out to market. Yes, there’s a nice roasted, malty flavor carrying the whole thing through. Yes, there’s a caramel sweetness. Yes, there’s an undercurrent of gentle hops. Had these all been woven together to support each other, it would have been an excellent bev. Instead, there’s an awkward fumbling of flavors, each trying to claim dominance from the other. It ends up a confused mess. So, yeah, it’s flavorful, but those flavors have no coordination, and that makes it very difficult to enjoy this one.
W
ell, there’s no mistaking the hops here. They burst out with the first crack of the tab. They’ve done a pretty good job with this one, all things considered. Considering the preceding disappointments, I wasn’t expecting much, but, either through decent craftsmanship or a cynical application of hop flavoring to cover up the faults, this particular low-malt bev tastes on par with typical mass-produced Japanese beers. I’m gonna go with “cynical”, but when you’re right, you’re right. It works. This fizzy concoction conjures up the idea of drinking a mid-level IPA. And, you know what? At this price point of well less than a buck’n’a’half USD, I’m okay with that. Plus, you get all that nice hoppy goodness without almost any aftertaste, which is a feat I’ve never seen before. So, yeah—cheers. Or kampai. Whatever, I’m drinking.
I
’m beginning to sound like a broken record here, but when it comes to the Sapporo happoshus there’s little to draw you in. Ever so slight variations on a flawed theme, and this one is no different. Not much sets it apart except for the generally milder nature of its flavor profile, absent bitterness, and slight peppery aftertaste. Don’t turn it away if someone hands it to you, but don’t pick it up at the store either.
W
ow, a happoshu that I actually, unequivocally like. This is another one that manages to taste like an actual beer, avoids the typical happoshu nastiness, and for real offers a good taste. It says it, right on the can: “Refreshing Fruity Flavor”. I almost ate to say it, but they’re not kidding. The only point I’d take an issue with is that it’s not really fruity. It’s more like a refreshing herby flavor. Refering back to the can through a haze of alcohol, it says it’s created using coriander seeds and orange peel and… yeah. That sounds about right. If you
W
ell, Ruby is right. This happoshu pours out like fruit punch, and even the foam is tinted red. And it tastes like fruit punch. Fizzy fruit punch. It’s tasty. No more, no less. If you want fruit punch with a touch of alcohol, this is the libation for you.
A
mostly inoffensive drink. Low carbonation, low flavor. There’s a harsh sweetness when you first take a sip—almost like raw molasses—that turns into a lingering aftertaste of honey. There’s a nice accompaniment of pine and Earl Grey as well. Not my personal favorite—not even something I’m likely to ever drink again—, but it has enough going for it that I wouldn’t actively dissuade anyone from trying it themselves.
I
haven’t even cracked this one open yet, but lemme just say that I’m a little wary of any beer with footnotes on the can, much less three footnotes. Okay, with that out of the way… ::pull, crack, fizzzzzz, glurbglurb-glurb… slurrrrp:: Oo. Eeyeh. Not… uh, not my cup of tea. Er, beer. I will tell you exactly what this tastes like. This tastes like someone had a bottle of sparkling rose that got left out too long and went
T
his tastes like a skunked Heineken. With pepper. Blyech. Dear goodness, avoid this one. Smells terrible, tastes terrible, and the afterburn lingers and lingers and lingers.
I
t’s not great, it’s not terrible. In fact, it’s got a fair bit of pleasant flavor for a class of “beer” I’ve come to generally disdain. More to the point, there’s hoppiness, a breath of candy-sweet, and the ugliness of typical happoshu aftertaste is neatly forgotten, like a noontime shadow. Here’s what it’s got going for it: It tastes almost like regular beer, especially if you don’t think about it, and it provides a whopping 7% of alcohol. All in all, a pretty fair deal.
S
ooo, according to Wikipedia (English version—I’m too far into these reviews to be putzing around the Japanese version) this beverage is made with no malt and instead uses a pea protein. I am sad to announce: It does not taste like peas. There’s a pee joke in here, but I’m still sipping, and don’t want to ruin this any further. What it does taste like is every shitty piss-water you mindlessly chugged in college. It’s a Rorschach test of your fondest blackouts—for some it was Miller, other Natty, for me I’m drawn back to Keystone. Taking this mildly seriously for a second, I’ll say that it has the consistency and general flavor of seltzer with the faintest hint of stale beer on the backend. Which is as much consideration as this unfortunate drink deserves.
O
kay, my liver needed a break. So here we are. This. Uh. This is a … drink. With carbonation. And fruit juice? I have no idea. If you want something sweet, fizzy, and (probably) hydrating, grab a can. It’s tasty. Like, I’m not saying it’s not, but it’s tasty like a bottle of Stop & Shop seltzer is (for those keeping track, I consider Stop & Shop seltzer to be leagues above “Great Value” seltzer. Exactly 2.8 leagues, in fact). What fruit? I dunno. Tangerine? Green apple? Green tangerine?
I
f this one didn’t carry such an aftertaste of straight-up vomit (not being hyperbolic—the aftertaste literally feels like you just finished barfing), it’d actually be pretty good for what it is. It doesn’t do a great job of emulating a real beer—it’s too sweet, with no bitterness—but it has just enough maltiness to make it something you could put down without giving too much thought to. Unfortunately, that mostly inoffensive, occasionally interesting wheaty-malty flavor quickly gives way to… barf.
Karisa Whelan
Ocean’s Recipe Brine-lathered shoes make loud steps. Clothes stiffen from sea sweat cradled by wind, tickling rust on cars’ bellies. Gulls chat near sandy run-offs, pristine feathers smoothing out the sunny glare of the tide’s ripples. Waves broom seaweed along kilometers of shore, pitching black knee-high forts for crabs and bugs. The ocean’s recipe of bonito, kombu, and salt dilates slowly through my head and romances my tongue, a nostalgia only conceived by inexperience. Haleigh Chasteen
Karisa Whelan