WEBVTT

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Welcome to the Valley
College Connection

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for John Kawhi and Scott wagon,

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two Valley professors
engaged in a conversation

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about success with educators
and students each week,

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they'll sit down with a
different guest to find

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out ways each of us
have had to plan,

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persevere, and overcome
to where we are now.

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The show will also highlight
resources and services

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that are working to make a
difference at Valley College.

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We are joined today
by Dr. Eric miss ACO,

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Associate Professor of reading
at Los Angeles Valley College.

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Thank you so much for
joining us today, Eric.

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It's a pleasure to be here.

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Thanks for having me.

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We wanted to hear
your story and journey

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that led you to Valley College.

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So please take us back,

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go as far back as you'd like to

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and let us know the steps
along the way that RACI here.

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For me. One One thing that
got me to Valley College,

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it was a very important
motivation was I'm

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a first-generation
college students

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and I went to community college.

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That was my first
contact with college.

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My sister is also
a first-generation

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college student.

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She's older than me and she
had gone to a four-year school.

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When I was in high school,

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I didn't really have
much of a plan and

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my parents didn't really
have much of a plan in terms

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of me going to college.

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I had no plan at the end
when I graduated high school

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and I went to a community
college in Orlando,

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Florida, Valencia
Community College.

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Now it's called Valencia
College.

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And it was just such a
life-changing experience

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for me in a positive way.

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I had kind of gotten
I'd always punished

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in learning and new things,

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but kind of gotten off track
with learning at school

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when I was in high school.

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It was at that college, at my,

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in my community college
experience

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that I really rediscovered
the joy of learning.

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And I kind of found
my way after I went

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through different things
I've done in my life,

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especially in my PhD program,

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which i'll, I'll fill in the
gaps up to there in a minute.

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I really made a conscious
decision that I would

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like at some point in my
life to be able to teach at

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a community college and
give back in a way that

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in the same way that
I got in so much

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to my own community
college experience.

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So Eric, let me remind
you a little bit.

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Are you a good student
in elementary school?

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So I was actually one

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of the first two kids
in the Orange County,

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Florida Orange County Public
School System gifted program.

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I was a very smart little
kid and I loved school.

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I did very well in school
up until high school.

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High school was not easy for me.

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Had a lot of problems at home.

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My parents, my family had moved
and I I as I said earlier,

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I kind of lost interest
in learning

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and things to do with school.

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But prior to about tenth grade,

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I was a very good
student in school.

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In tenth grade.

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I kind of lost my way and I
didn't really I didn't do well

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in one of my math classes.

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I didn't know how to ask
for help and the help

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that I received wasn't
really helping.

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I didn't realize I could
have or should have been

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more proactive to seek
out the help I needed.

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So I just went into

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an academic downward
spiral from that point

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on to the end of high school.

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By the time I got
to my senior year,

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I kinda bluffs my way
through my classes.

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I learned how to
cheat really well.

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I think that's why I've
always been a good teacher

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because if a kid's
going to cheat,

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I know exactly what
they're going to do.

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This. I probably did it myself.

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I was always very
interested in school.

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I did very well in school
up until that point.

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So going to community college,

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it was really reinvigorating
for my soul and in terms

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of intellectual pursuits
as well.

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So Eric, when, when you
got to go to college,

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which now everyone see you
for the last decade or so,

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is this always heralded as a
community college in the nation?

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And whenever the
Institute Award in school

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that you had a chance to go
there back when you started off?

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I'm not sure.

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Sure lot a lot has changed,

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but for for you and
your experience there,

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what was pivotal or
transitional moment

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at the community colleges and

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a particular instructor
or class or what sort of

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rekindled the desire
for learning

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within the academic context?

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That's a good question and I,

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I've often asked myself
that same question, like,

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what inspired me
and what should I do

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as an instructor
for my students,

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if I can connect in that way.

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And I think some
of the big things

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for me were passed
sizes weren't too large.

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I'd say there were 20 to
30 students in a class.

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In most cases, sometimes
a little smaller.

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I really felt like all my
professors, not just one,

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but all of them were
very connected

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with all of the students.

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And especially in my,

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I was very important
that I had professors

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who knew my name and tried

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to make an effort to
get to know me and

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other students and find
out what our strengths

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or weaknesses were.

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And they were they were, they're
like, well, we needed help.

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In my case.

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I needed help.

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I could go to their office
during office hours and I can

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ask questions and I was
very scared at first.

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They made me feel very
comfortable with learning.

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I think that was very important.

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And it also felt like
the campus community

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of other students being

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able to see people from so
many different backgrounds

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and different age ranges.

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For example, it was really
inspiring to me to see people

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because I was 18 years old.

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You see people in
their 50s, 60s,

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and 70s back at school,

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I was like, Wow,
that is so cool.

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I enjoyed hearing
situation people who had

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more life experience than me
or different life experience.

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And it was that kind

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of diversity really was a
big thing for me as well.

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Getting to know other people,
not just my professors,

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but you know, the other
students and people on campus.

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It was a very welcoming place.

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So when you walked on the
campus, what was your intention?

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You have a major in
mind or a career path

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that you're thinking about.

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Had no idea when I
was in high school,

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I actually had a very
good English teacher.

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I was in the gift that English
program and high school.

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And he tried to get all
of the students that

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he taught ready for
college in those a state,

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the SAT apply for a
scholarship money.

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I got very different
messages at home.

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I I wasn't really
encouraged to go to college

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and I didn't get
a lot of support.

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And I actually got some
animosities often with my father

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about going to college,

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so I didn't really take
advantage of that opportunity.

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So when I went into
community college,

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I had no idea what
I wanted to do

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because my father kept
saying you need to

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join the army or you need

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to like one time I had found
an ad for a lock smith.

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Like be a lock smith on your
own in the Farmer's Almanac

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or something He's like our,

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I thought you're
going to lock Smith's,

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so I had no idea.

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And I think answering
Scott's question,

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I think this is part
of it is the ability

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to discover what I wanted to do,

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like to have that space
where I could move

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at a comfortable pace,

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was also a very important
part of

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my community college
experience for me

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because that was there that
I realized I love language.

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I take a lots of
English classes,

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creative writing,
poetry literature,

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and I studied Spanish
and I realized,

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wow, this is, I really love
learning other languages.

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And my mother's originally
from Holland, via Germany.

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And so her family had
emigrated from Germany

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to Holland after World War II.

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Her mother was Dutch,

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so they were able
to move to Holland.

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I spent a good chunk of my
early years actually living

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in Holland.

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Very normal that my
uncles and my relatives

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to speak many languages.

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I always had a fascination
with language,

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I think because of that.

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And so being able to study other
languages at community college,

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like I was able to find my
way and into things that I

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enjoy and I realized that was
the direction I wanted to go.

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I took business classes and
I realized that just wasn't

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the right fit for me being able

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to find what was
a good fit for me.

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I think that was very integral
for me to have that space

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to discover what I enjoyed.

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I find every semester
that I have.

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But one or two students who have
shared with me the same kind of,

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I guess, frustration they
have at home with parents.

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Usually for usually is
the father is frustrated

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with the amount of
colors you're doing,

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but just having a conversation
with a student just last week.

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So it's been forefront
of my mind.

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How did that ever resolve
for your hazard ever

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resolved in terms of of your
choosing this academic path?

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High. That's a whole other
conversation and podcasts.

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John say the short answer
is no, perfectly resided.

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And, and I would say,

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I don't care I because I I
loved the path that I followed.

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It wasn't the path that
I would have thought

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about following myself.

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You know, I mean, as I said,

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I had no preconceived notion.

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I wanted to play rock
music and be in a band.

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I played music at
different points in my life.

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I've ended up mainly in
academia and teaching.

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I got my AAA and
then I transferred

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to Florida State University.

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Actually, I transferred to the
University of Central Florida,

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which in those days
was, you know,

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it's UCF, it was known
as You can't finish.

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Among a lot of students like
me because a lot of students,

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a local kids like me had
transferred with an AAA like,

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you know, by by law,

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we we had to be admitted
into the school,

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but the problem was there were

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so many other students
ahead of me

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who had transferred in from
Valencia Community College

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or other schools.

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But there was a waiting list,

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so I was accepted and
I had a double major

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in English and Spanish.

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But I can only get one
or two classes a semester

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because there was a waiting list
of people who were ahead of me.

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I was getting one or
two classes a semester.

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I wasn't it was going to
take six or seven years

00:08:38.116 --> 00:08:39.076 A:middle
to finish it look like.

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So I found a way to transfer

00:08:41.476 --> 00:08:43.206 A:middle
to Florida State
University in Tallahassee.

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And what really excited me there
is they had a Japanese program

00:08:46.286 --> 00:08:48.036 A:middle
and it was at that time,

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I think it was I don't know,

00:08:49.606 --> 00:08:51.176 A:middle
Florida State had
a Japanese program,

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but it was either to Florida
State or the universe,

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I'm sorry, University
of Florida.

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So it's either going
to be Florida State

00:08:56.306 --> 00:08:57.556 A:middle
of the University of Florida.

00:08:57.846 --> 00:09:00.326 A:middle
I went to fs, you
and I study Japanese.

00:09:00.616 --> 00:09:01.946 A:middle
I ended up finding a job

00:09:01.946 --> 00:09:03.586 A:middle
with the Japanese
government teaching English

00:09:03.686 --> 00:09:04.396 A:middle
as a second language

00:09:04.396 --> 00:09:06.506 A:middle
in a Japanese junior high
school right out of undergrad.

00:09:06.806 --> 00:09:07.926 A:middle
And that's where the next part

00:09:07.926 --> 00:09:10.236 A:middle
of my story kinda picks
up how I kind of went

00:09:10.336 --> 00:09:12.976 A:middle
into an academic
career path as you went

00:09:12.976 --> 00:09:14.756 A:middle
through these different
colleges,

00:09:14.986 --> 00:09:17.266 A:middle
whether any professors
in particular stood out

00:09:17.266 --> 00:09:20.376 A:middle
and why the professors
in my major,

00:09:20.446 --> 00:09:21.866 A:middle
I felt very close
to many of them

00:09:21.866 --> 00:09:24.006 A:middle
because they had shared their
life experience with me.

00:09:24.206 --> 00:09:26.366 A:middle
And some of them,
they would say, Well,

00:09:26.656 --> 00:09:28.976 A:middle
I don't know if this is
pedagogically the right way

00:09:28.976 --> 00:09:29.606 A:middle
to explain it,

00:09:29.676 --> 00:09:30.976 A:middle
but visually worked for me.

00:09:31.176 --> 00:09:33.376 A:middle
So why don't you try this
and see if it worked for you?

00:09:33.666 --> 00:09:35.536 A:middle
And I thought that was
a great way to approach

00:09:35.606 --> 00:09:39.236 A:middle
teaching because they kind of
gave us the option of, well,

00:09:39.406 --> 00:09:41.476 A:middle
you can try this and if it
fits your learning seller,

00:09:41.476 --> 00:09:41.976 A:middle
who you are,

00:09:42.056 --> 00:09:44.276 A:middle
that's fantastic if it
doesn't try something else,

00:09:44.346 --> 00:09:45.896 A:middle
but this is what I did
and it worked for me.

00:09:46.376 --> 00:09:47.106 A:middle
Those were professors.

00:09:47.106 --> 00:09:49.916 A:middle
I felt very close to the
people I could talk to.

00:09:50.076 --> 00:09:51.376 A:middle
They talk to me like
people I felt

00:09:51.376 --> 00:09:53.076 A:middle
like they were were
talking to me

00:09:53.236 --> 00:09:56.936 A:middle
as as someone in a superior
position down to a subordinate,

00:09:57.006 --> 00:09:58.256 A:middle
but someone who looked at me,

00:09:58.576 --> 00:10:01.636 A:middle
looked at me and other
students as future colleagues,

00:10:01.706 --> 00:10:03.556 A:middle
if that makes sense,
you know, or, or peers.

00:10:03.876 --> 00:10:06.226 A:middle
And I really appreciated
that level of respect.

00:10:06.346 --> 00:10:08.206 A:middle
My Japanese were dissenters.

00:10:08.296 --> 00:10:10.536 A:middle
To your experience
or affinity form.

00:10:10.606 --> 00:10:13.246 A:middle
Prior to transfer
the data program?

00:10:13.476 --> 00:10:16.376 A:middle
Well, I'd like to say that
I had lofty ambitions,

00:10:16.856 --> 00:10:19.656 A:middle
but it was the early
nineties at that time,

00:10:19.746 --> 00:10:21.276 A:middle
the Japanese economy was,

00:10:21.346 --> 00:10:24.836 A:middle
was the second strongest
in the world after the US.

00:10:24.906 --> 00:10:25.886 A:middle
There were many people,

00:10:26.006 --> 00:10:27.286 A:middle
other students I
knew who said, wow,

00:10:27.396 --> 00:10:28.936 A:middle
if you learn Japanese
and go to Japan,

00:10:29.016 --> 00:10:29.936 A:middle
you'll make a lot of money.

00:10:30.266 --> 00:10:31.286 A:middle
And so I again,

00:10:31.556 --> 00:10:33.336 A:middle
I said I had no guidance at home

00:10:33.336 --> 00:10:35.006 A:middle
or from most other
source saw that,

00:10:35.076 --> 00:10:36.906 A:middle
well, I'll learn
Japanese at all,

00:10:36.986 --> 00:10:39.206 A:middle
although I'll study business
and it'll make a lot of money.

00:10:39.486 --> 00:10:41.376 A:middle
And I had no idea what
any of that entailed.

00:10:41.516 --> 00:10:42.476 A:middle
That's one reason.

00:10:42.566 --> 00:10:43.816 A:middle
And if I'm really being honest,

00:10:44.036 --> 00:10:46.656 A:middle
I was always fascinated
by Japanese because

00:10:46.806 --> 00:10:49.246 A:middle
my sister and she's
seven years older than me

00:10:49.246 --> 00:10:50.226 A:middle
when she went to college,

00:10:50.446 --> 00:10:53.136 A:middle
she left me her record
collection and she had a lot of

00:10:53.216 --> 00:10:55.906 A:middle
records that were they
were American bands

00:10:55.906 --> 00:10:57.136 A:middle
but they had been,

00:10:57.206 --> 00:10:59.216 A:middle
they were albums I
hadn't pressed in Japan.

00:10:59.486 --> 00:11:01.936 A:middle
So all of the cover
and like liner notes,

00:11:02.006 --> 00:11:02.936 A:middle
they were all in Japanese.

00:11:03.106 --> 00:11:04.936 A:middle
There was a band
called Cheap Trick,

00:11:05.086 --> 00:11:07.426 A:middle
and she had won all
of their albums Up to

00:11:07.426 --> 00:11:09.146 A:middle
that point, like a 982.

00:11:09.336 --> 00:11:12.486 A:middle
And she had their legendary
and live a Buddha con album.

00:11:12.686 --> 00:11:15.166 A:middle
And everything inside
was in Japanese.

00:11:15.406 --> 00:11:17.766 A:middle
And I thought I knew
different bands that I

00:11:17.766 --> 00:11:19.136 A:middle
like had played in Japan.

00:11:19.216 --> 00:11:21.976 A:middle
Like why that would be
so cool if one day could

00:11:22.056 --> 00:11:24.766 A:middle
read this and I could
actually play music in Japan.

00:11:25.016 --> 00:11:27.436 A:middle
And that, that was
actually if I mean,

00:11:27.506 --> 00:11:30.066 A:middle
something that really interested
me way more than the idea

00:11:30.146 --> 00:11:32.836 A:middle
of doing business
or anything else.

00:11:33.016 --> 00:11:34.736 A:middle
But I was fascinated by the,

00:11:34.806 --> 00:11:36.906 A:middle
the script, the writing
system in Japanese,

00:11:37.106 --> 00:11:38.576 A:middle
like I said, in community
college,

00:11:38.646 --> 00:11:40.796 A:middle
That's where I discovered
that I really love languages

00:11:40.796 --> 00:11:42.606 A:middle
and I had a bit of
a knack for it.

00:11:42.706 --> 00:11:44.276 A:middle
So when I got to Florida State,

00:11:44.346 --> 00:11:45.736 A:middle
it was great to meet
other people

00:11:45.736 --> 00:11:46.906 A:middle
who had similar interests.

00:11:46.976 --> 00:11:47.816 A:middle
Yeah. And then I got it.

00:11:47.816 --> 00:11:48.596 A:middle
That's how I ended up in

00:11:48.726 --> 00:11:50.946 A:middle
Japan and the Japanese
government has a,

00:11:51.186 --> 00:11:52.266 A:middle
It's still in existence.

00:11:52.406 --> 00:11:54.086 A:middle
It's a, it's a program
by the higher.

00:11:54.296 --> 00:11:58.006 A:middle
Usually college graduates are
just fresh out of college and

00:11:58.096 --> 00:12:00.526 A:middle
they teach in a Japanese
junior high or high school

00:12:00.526 --> 00:12:01.906 A:middle
for one to three years.

00:12:02.546 --> 00:12:04.586 A:middle
This program, the
jet program was yeah,

00:12:04.756 --> 00:12:06.116 A:middle
that Japan Exchange
teaching program.

00:12:06.296 --> 00:12:08.516 A:middle
I don't think I've been so
happy when my friends go.

00:12:08.826 --> 00:12:11.206 A:middle
There was a little disappointed
because the students are like,

00:12:11.276 --> 00:12:14.436 A:middle
Oh great, we learned English
from another Asian person.

00:12:15.096 --> 00:12:17.006 A:middle
Like a white teacher
there again,

00:12:17.096 --> 00:12:18.036 A:middle
it's just like English,

00:12:18.106 --> 00:12:19.106 A:middle
but whenever my friends go,

00:12:19.196 --> 00:12:22.006 A:middle
they go like I got someone like
do you like right over here?

00:12:22.346 --> 00:12:24.176 A:middle
I wanted real English.

00:12:24.386 --> 00:12:27.176 A:middle
That is something that I
did encounter in Japan.

00:12:27.376 --> 00:12:28.966 A:middle
And I, I lived in Japan

00:12:28.966 --> 00:12:30.436 A:middle
for about six years
and then I lived in

00:12:30.526 --> 00:12:32.466 A:middle
Taiwan for about nine
years after that,

00:12:32.466 --> 00:12:33.506 A:middle
I didn't encounter that,

00:12:33.596 --> 00:12:36.776 A:middle
that some Japanese people
did not want to learn English

00:12:36.776 --> 00:12:37.836 A:middle
from someone who they did not

00:12:37.936 --> 00:12:40.076 A:middle
perceived to be native speaker

00:12:40.146 --> 00:12:41.576 A:middle
of English because of
the color of their skin

00:12:41.576 --> 00:12:42.306 A:middle
or the way they looked.

00:12:42.376 --> 00:12:44.436 A:middle
And I, I encountered
the same thing in Taiwan

00:12:44.436 --> 00:12:45.476 A:middle
where some people didn't want

00:12:45.546 --> 00:12:48.626 A:middle
to learn English from
someone who look Asian.

00:12:49.006 --> 00:12:51.206 A:middle
You can never tell what
language a person speaks

00:12:51.206 --> 00:12:52.206 A:middle
by looking at them.

00:12:52.296 --> 00:12:53.896 A:middle
And that's what I would
always tell my students.

00:12:53.996 --> 00:12:55.876 A:middle
I was like, Don't,
you have no idea?

00:12:56.046 --> 00:12:57.396 A:middle
So if someone's your teacher,

00:12:57.496 --> 00:12:58.766 A:middle
just listen to them
and they have something

00:12:58.766 --> 00:12:59.556 A:middle
to teach, I'm sure.

00:12:59.776 --> 00:13:01.836 A:middle
Well, I want to hear about
your path before you get there.

00:13:01.936 --> 00:13:04.826 A:middle
I got to know 90 Florida
State or the football game.

00:13:05.046 --> 00:13:08.406 A:middle
John, I maybe one of only
like three people who've ever

00:13:08.476 --> 00:13:11.486 A:middle
graduated from Florida State
who doesn't watch football?

00:13:11.486 --> 00:13:12.486 A:middle
Oh, wow.

00:13:12.646 --> 00:13:12.836 A:middle
Yeah.

00:13:13.186 --> 00:13:15.676 A:middle
I've I've never, I've
never gotten into football.

00:13:15.866 --> 00:13:17.536 A:middle
You're Omeka.

00:13:17.606 --> 00:13:21.206 A:middle
In the moment that the time
in I would be in my apartment,

00:13:21.286 --> 00:13:23.526 A:middle
that the town and the
campus will be empty.

00:13:23.706 --> 00:13:25.666 A:middle
Literally pick up my
whole time of forest

00:13:25.666 --> 00:13:26.746 A:middle
and I went to one game.

00:13:26.906 --> 00:13:29.596 A:middle
Yeah, I'd I I used to love
the campus during games

00:13:29.596 --> 00:13:30.906 A:middle
because it was so quiet.

00:13:30.976 --> 00:13:33.716 A:middle
It was like it was like
the end of the world

00:13:33.716 --> 00:13:35.576 A:middle
and I was the last
person in the world.

00:13:35.646 --> 00:13:36.686 A:middle
It was very calming.

00:13:36.826 --> 00:13:39.126 A:middle
And then every now and then
you'd hear this loud roar

00:13:39.126 --> 00:13:40.836 A:middle
from the crowd and then,

00:13:40.906 --> 00:13:43.376 A:middle
you know, except for that it
was you couldn't hear anything.

00:13:43.496 --> 00:13:45.636 A:middle
I'm Japanese, so I had a
lot of friends who who did

00:13:45.736 --> 00:13:49.636 A:middle
the Japanese language route and
the people who did really well,

00:13:49.776 --> 00:13:52.006 A:middle
or the people paired it
with one of the skill.

00:13:52.076 --> 00:13:52.376 A:middle
Uh-huh.

00:13:52.686 --> 00:13:55.706 A:middle
So my uncle, he did Japanese,

00:13:55.776 --> 00:13:57.326 A:middle
but he also international
banking

00:13:57.326 --> 00:13:58.536 A:middle
and he he didn't really well.

00:13:59.006 --> 00:14:02.986 A:middle
My Brother-in-law did a
graphic design in Japanese.

00:14:03.146 --> 00:14:04.926 A:middle
But I think the people
who just to

00:14:05.046 --> 00:14:06.896 A:middle
Japanese hard career path

00:14:06.896 --> 00:14:09.066 A:middle
because they didn't
really need translates.

00:14:09.146 --> 00:14:10.706 A:middle
Yeah. And that's
that's one thing

00:14:10.706 --> 00:14:13.536 A:middle
that I learned early
on after I had I

00:14:13.666 --> 00:14:16.736 A:middle
got to Japan and Taiwan
is that I heard voices

00:14:16.736 --> 00:14:18.236 A:middle
of other people in
my head saying,

00:14:18.406 --> 00:14:19.506 A:middle
Oh, just learn japanese,

00:14:19.576 --> 00:14:20.826 A:middle
going to Japan, you'll
make a lot of money.

00:14:21.046 --> 00:14:23.176 A:middle
It never occurred to me that
there's millions and millions of

00:14:23.276 --> 00:14:25.786 A:middle
Japanese people who
are perfectly bilingual

00:14:25.786 --> 00:14:27.016 A:middle
in English and Japanese.

00:14:27.926 --> 00:14:29.576 A:middle
Leakage English in the school?

00:14:29.806 --> 00:14:32.606 A:middle
Yes, everyone can learn
English and Japanese

00:14:32.676 --> 00:14:36.136 A:middle
so that what we needed
was Japanese and English.

00:14:36.246 --> 00:14:39.006 A:middle
Although I think the thing
that was this was back

00:14:39.006 --> 00:14:40.676 A:middle
when Japan was bloodstream.

00:14:40.786 --> 00:14:42.096 A:middle
The way to make money was worked

00:14:42.096 --> 00:14:43.806 A:middle
for an American company
in Japan.

00:14:43.976 --> 00:14:44.766 A:middle
I heard that too.

00:14:44.766 --> 00:14:45.856 A:middle
And that's why I kind of,

00:14:46.106 --> 00:14:47.706 A:middle
I was thinking I would
do something like that.

00:14:47.846 --> 00:14:49.026 A:middle
Show how was the Jacobian.

00:14:49.206 --> 00:14:51.906 A:middle
I I I really enjoyed
the jet program.

00:14:52.116 --> 00:14:54.696 A:middle
I had a very unusual
job for the jet program,

00:14:54.846 --> 00:14:56.336 A:middle
most jobs in those days

00:14:56.336 --> 00:14:58.966 A:middle
and I think even today
on the Geoff program,

00:14:59.206 --> 00:15:02.076 A:middle
most people that get hired to
teach generally get assigned

00:15:02.146 --> 00:15:05.016 A:middle
to a public school or a
school a public school board.

00:15:05.196 --> 00:15:07.586 A:middle
I actually got assigned
to a private

00:15:07.586 --> 00:15:09.236 A:middle
at the time, private
boys school.

00:15:09.306 --> 00:15:11.296 A:middle
It was a junior high and
high school, one building.

00:15:11.676 --> 00:15:14.686 A:middle
When you get hired for the job
program, at least in those days,

00:15:14.916 --> 00:15:16.716 A:middle
they ask you to list
three preferences

00:15:16.716 --> 00:15:18.016 A:middle
where you'd like to be sent in.

00:15:18.146 --> 00:15:19.726 A:middle
I didn't know many
people in Japan.

00:15:19.816 --> 00:15:21.006 A:middle
So I said, why know
someone in Tokyo?

00:15:21.076 --> 00:15:21.676 A:middle
I'll say Tokyo.

00:15:21.676 --> 00:15:22.686 A:middle
I know somewhere in Osaka.

00:15:23.236 --> 00:15:25.196 A:middle
I know someone in Sendai up in

00:15:25.276 --> 00:15:28.506 A:middle
the North the eastern seaboard
and they sent me to either Aki,

00:15:28.616 --> 00:15:29.676 A:middle
which is none of the above.

00:15:30.136 --> 00:15:31.656 A:middle
I was in a town called Nieto,

00:15:32.186 --> 00:15:34.476 A:middle
Which is the capital of
evil rocky prefecture,

00:15:34.586 --> 00:15:36.006 A:middle
which is about, I don't know,

00:15:36.076 --> 00:15:37.866 A:middle
about 75 miles directly north

00:15:38.056 --> 00:15:40.356 A:middle
on the eastern side,
Japan from Tokyo,

00:15:40.506 --> 00:15:43.536 A:middle
there was a tsunami that the
nuclear reactor incident,

00:15:43.536 --> 00:15:44.216 A:middle
unfortunately,

00:15:44.416 --> 00:15:48.476 A:middle
and Fukushima Prefecture, Iraq
either directly south of there.

00:15:48.736 --> 00:15:50.406 A:middle
So unfortunately actually
when that happened,

00:15:50.516 --> 00:15:52.236 A:middle
I knew a lot of people
that were affected

00:15:52.316 --> 00:15:54.366 A:middle
because actually a lot of
the kids that I taught,

00:15:54.646 --> 00:15:56.616 A:middle
they will commute
in from Fukushima.

00:15:56.776 --> 00:15:57.926 A:middle
That was really unfortunate.

00:15:58.146 --> 00:16:00.136 A:middle
I didn't know anyone
directly who is,

00:16:00.206 --> 00:16:01.266 A:middle
who is hurt or killed.

00:16:01.866 --> 00:16:03.996 A:middle
But a lot of people I know
were displaced or they

00:16:04.116 --> 00:16:06.316 A:middle
had to deal with a lot of
problems because of that.

00:16:06.496 --> 00:16:08.876 A:middle
Yeah, I ended up in Iraq in
meter though, and it was,

00:16:08.976 --> 00:16:11.766 A:middle
it was a fantastic
experience in Japan.

00:16:11.846 --> 00:16:13.576 A:middle
You Baraka is called
the countryside,

00:16:13.646 --> 00:16:16.116 A:middle
but I had never seen that
much concrete before my life.

00:16:16.296 --> 00:16:17.906 A:middle
It was a fantastic experience.

00:16:18.186 --> 00:16:20.516 A:middle
I learned a lot about,
not just about Japan.

00:16:20.966 --> 00:16:23.126 A:middle
I grew up in Orlando,
Florida mainly

00:16:23.126 --> 00:16:24.586 A:middle
from kindergarten forward.

00:16:24.756 --> 00:16:26.836 A:middle
I had never really
lived in a cold climate.

00:16:27.046 --> 00:16:30.056 A:middle
So like a lot of things that I
thought where you need to Japan,

00:16:30.326 --> 00:16:32.276 A:middle
I didn't realize were just

00:16:32.346 --> 00:16:34.506 A:middle
simply common in cold
climates like I'm

00:16:34.506 --> 00:16:35.576 A:middle
like look at these gloves.

00:16:35.646 --> 00:16:37.456 A:middle
You put the money before
you put your gloves

00:16:37.456 --> 00:16:38.496 A:middle
on to keep your hands warm.

00:16:38.756 --> 00:16:40.316 A:middle
And like all my, you
know, the people I met

00:16:40.316 --> 00:16:41.836 A:middle
from England and Michigan,

00:16:41.906 --> 00:16:43.606 A:middle
Washington, they're like, No,

00:16:43.676 --> 00:16:45.476 A:middle
we have that where we live
too because it's cold.

00:16:45.606 --> 00:16:48.376 A:middle
Like, Oh, well, I feel
like you like that,

00:16:48.446 --> 00:16:50.406 A:middle
like when you're listing
them out thinking, Oh,

00:16:50.506 --> 00:16:51.906 A:middle
I hope that gave
you the countryside

00:16:51.996 --> 00:16:54.396 A:middle
because the people are just
nicer in the countryside.

00:16:54.506 --> 00:16:56.276 A:middle
Bi, I met a lot of great people.

00:16:56.516 --> 00:16:58.986 A:middle
It was really interesting
because I think that

00:16:59.176 --> 00:17:01.006 A:middle
English education is
part of the curriculum

00:17:01.006 --> 00:17:02.276 A:middle
in Japanese junior high schools.

00:17:02.386 --> 00:17:05.706 A:middle
In high school, I kind of equate
English education in Japan

00:17:05.876 --> 00:17:07.776 A:middle
to like Spanish as a second,

00:17:07.866 --> 00:17:09.726 A:middle
as a foreign language that
people study in the US,

00:17:09.906 --> 00:17:11.876 A:middle
like a lot of people who
aren't native speakers

00:17:11.876 --> 00:17:12.546 A:middle
of Spanish and say,

00:17:12.646 --> 00:17:14.276 A:middle
well, I'll study
Spanish in high school

00:17:14.276 --> 00:17:15.356 A:middle
and take two years in college.

00:17:15.546 --> 00:17:18.476 A:middle
But these people can
read, speak a few words,

00:17:18.566 --> 00:17:19.486 A:middle
but if they don't use it,

00:17:19.576 --> 00:17:21.706 A:middle
they don't really, they
can't speak to fluently.

00:17:21.776 --> 00:17:23.766 A:middle
And I think a lot of Japanese
people are the same way

00:17:23.766 --> 00:17:24.786 A:middle
with English.

00:17:24.946 --> 00:17:26.546 A:middle
Communicate if you write,

00:17:26.696 --> 00:17:28.426 A:middle
you're ever in and you travel,

00:17:28.576 --> 00:17:31.296 A:middle
just keep a pad of paper
with you and just write.

00:17:31.606 --> 00:17:34.006 A:middle
My Japanese is broken.

00:17:34.116 --> 00:17:35.906 A:middle
Fulfill, look at
you like or nato.

00:17:36.026 --> 00:17:38.086 A:middle
And then when I speak Much have

00:17:38.386 --> 00:17:39.506 A:middle
terrible or I'll have

00:17:39.616 --> 00:17:41.756 A:middle
to ask them what could
you read that for me?

00:17:41.886 --> 00:17:42.506 A:middle
I can't read.

00:17:42.506 --> 00:17:44.226 A:middle
And they'll look at me like, oh,

00:17:44.346 --> 00:17:47.626 A:middle
you poor man, throwing
little cubes will run away

00:17:47.626 --> 00:17:49.526 A:middle
from me cause I'm
like, What did I say?

00:17:49.986 --> 00:17:50.236 A:middle
Yeah.

00:17:50.306 --> 00:17:52.506 A:middle
Because they just expect
me to be able to read.

00:17:52.616 --> 00:17:54.436 A:middle
Well, I'll have old
maybe you hold my hand,

00:17:54.506 --> 00:17:55.756 A:middle
go, let me take you
to your tree.

00:17:55.966 --> 00:17:57.696 A:middle
Well, that was my experience

00:17:57.696 --> 00:18:00.036 A:middle
in the countryside was
I would meet people,

00:18:00.106 --> 00:18:02.436 A:middle
especially older
Japanese people who at

00:18:02.436 --> 00:18:04.206 A:middle
that time like in the mid 90s,

00:18:04.276 --> 00:18:06.016 A:middle
they would have been
in their 80s or 90s.

00:18:06.316 --> 00:18:08.446 A:middle
And they, they hadn't
gone through

00:18:08.546 --> 00:18:10.286 A:middle
English education
in the school system

00:18:10.286 --> 00:18:12.106 A:middle
and they really spoke
no English.

00:18:12.266 --> 00:18:14.946 A:middle
Those P4, awesome because they
would talk to me and there was

00:18:15.076 --> 00:18:18.106 A:middle
no pretense about being worried
about forgetting the English,

00:18:18.176 --> 00:18:20.536 A:middle
say learned in school or
trying to practice English.

00:18:20.716 --> 00:18:21.716 A:middle
They didn't know any English.

00:18:21.906 --> 00:18:23.546 A:middle
It was great to me,
like you said,

00:18:23.646 --> 00:18:26.806 A:middle
people from the countryside
and just to have conversations

00:18:26.806 --> 00:18:28.396 A:middle
and most people were just so,

00:18:28.546 --> 00:18:31.496 A:middle
they were so delighted to meet
someone who they perceived

00:18:31.496 --> 00:18:32.586 A:middle
as not being Japanese,

00:18:32.686 --> 00:18:33.756 A:middle
who spoke some Japanese,

00:18:33.846 --> 00:18:35.146 A:middle
and I really enjoy that.

00:18:35.326 --> 00:18:37.426 A:middle
And coming back to what you
said, I had a good friend,

00:18:37.506 --> 00:18:40.376 A:middle
his as parents, I met
him on the jet program.

00:18:40.446 --> 00:18:41.936 A:middle
He was from Richmond, Virginia.

00:18:42.106 --> 00:18:43.286 A:middle
His parents were from China,

00:18:43.556 --> 00:18:44.496 A:middle
so he was Asian.

00:18:44.676 --> 00:18:46.206 A:middle
I would hang out with
him on the weekends.

00:18:46.276 --> 00:18:48.726 A:middle
Sometimes you come to my city
and go shopping because he,

00:18:48.846 --> 00:18:51.206 A:middle
he literally lived in the
rice among the rice fields

00:18:51.206 --> 00:18:52.206 A:middle
in the countryside.

00:18:52.286 --> 00:18:54.426 A:middle
We go shopping and a lot of
Japanese people would look

00:18:54.426 --> 00:18:55.896 A:middle
at him and start talking to him.

00:18:56.146 --> 00:18:58.706 A:middle
He spoke no Japanese
and then I would speak

00:18:58.776 --> 00:19:01.496 A:middle
Japanese but they would
turn in him again because,

00:19:01.686 --> 00:19:03.226 A:middle
you know, I'm I'm
white and he's asian.

00:19:03.446 --> 00:19:06.046 A:middle
It was very interesting
for me to see how,

00:19:06.206 --> 00:19:08.816 A:middle
how people are often
cued by what they see

00:19:08.886 --> 00:19:10.106 A:middle
and what they perceive.

00:19:10.366 --> 00:19:11.446 A:middle
I had the same bias.

00:19:11.586 --> 00:19:13.106 A:middle
I thought, well, a lot of
Japanese people, you know,

00:19:13.206 --> 00:19:14.886 A:middle
they don't really speak
English, you know, whatever.

00:19:15.086 --> 00:19:17.076 A:middle
And then no, I never
said bad things

00:19:17.166 --> 00:19:19.306 A:middle
about anyone in English in
front of their Japanese people.

00:19:19.376 --> 00:19:21.116 A:middle
But one time I went
to a friend of mine.

00:19:21.206 --> 00:19:23.516 A:middle
He's also from the
United States.

00:19:23.606 --> 00:19:25.636 A:middle
He's from Virginia as well,
either to a small town.

00:19:25.706 --> 00:19:26.596 A:middle
We went to a bookstore

00:19:26.596 --> 00:19:28.576 A:middle
and it was we took
the bus and, you know,

00:19:28.646 --> 00:19:30.116 A:middle
through the rice fields,
we went to a bookstore

00:19:30.116 --> 00:19:32.536 A:middle
and we want to, to
buy some books.

00:19:32.606 --> 00:19:34.406 A:middle
We went to the counter,
but the postman,

00:19:34.476 --> 00:19:35.486 A:middle
the countered in the same thing.

00:19:35.516 --> 00:19:36.736 A:middle
She just looked at us.

00:19:36.806 --> 00:19:38.566 A:middle
She went back through
the curtains and then

00:19:38.646 --> 00:19:41.656 A:middle
this gentleman came out and he
could have been 90 years old.

00:19:41.906 --> 00:19:42.536 A:middle
And he looked at us

00:19:42.536 --> 00:19:45.576 A:middle
and he pulled his
glasses down and he said,

00:19:45.746 --> 00:19:47.536 A:middle
say, you from the States,

00:19:47.836 --> 00:19:49.336 A:middle
where are you from in this day?

00:19:49.446 --> 00:19:54.176 A:middle
And I had to admit that I had
this bias or this idea that I,

00:19:54.256 --> 00:19:56.076 A:middle
I wouldn't have expected
that in that,

00:19:56.146 --> 00:19:59.436 A:middle
especially in that little town
that this guy will come out.

00:19:59.506 --> 00:20:01.266 A:middle
He's clearly a native
speaker of English.

00:20:01.556 --> 00:20:03.476 A:middle
I mean, obviously a balanced
bilingual because he spoke

00:20:03.546 --> 00:20:05.786 A:middle
Japanese as well and
I learned that day.

00:20:05.946 --> 00:20:08.706 A:middle
You never judge a book by
its cover because I would

00:20:08.786 --> 00:20:11.596 A:middle
always tell my students I taught
ESL for many years and say,

00:20:11.776 --> 00:20:14.106 A:middle
if you speak a language
or any language you speak,

00:20:14.266 --> 00:20:16.186 A:middle
you should assume that
everyone else around you speak

00:20:16.286 --> 00:20:19.206 A:middle
that language because
Be careful what you say.

00:20:19.616 --> 00:20:22.616 A:middle
There's always someone who will
understand where the jet program

00:20:22.616 --> 00:20:23.676 A:middle
for the full six years.

00:20:23.846 --> 00:20:26.376 A:middle
No. So I wasn't the Git
program for three years.

00:20:26.546 --> 00:20:28.236 A:middle
This was right before
the internet.

00:20:28.306 --> 00:20:32.266 A:middle
So I arrived in 1994 and I
was on my job through 997.

00:20:32.346 --> 00:20:33.736 A:middle
So it was right during the time

00:20:33.736 --> 00:20:35.496 A:middle
with the Internet really
started taking hold.

00:20:35.716 --> 00:20:37.476 A:middle
I used old-school dictionaries.

00:20:37.656 --> 00:20:40.076 A:middle
Someone had told me If you
could read a Japanese newspaper,

00:20:40.276 --> 00:20:41.636 A:middle
you're Japanese is really good.

00:20:41.636 --> 00:20:42.556 A:middle
But what does that mean?

00:20:42.676 --> 00:20:44.586 A:middle
I had no I I had but I had
no idea what that meant.

00:20:44.796 --> 00:20:47.276 A:middle
I every day I would
photocopy a news article

00:20:47.446 --> 00:20:50.206 A:middle
and I painstakingly look up
every word in my dictionary.

00:20:50.506 --> 00:20:52.106 A:middle
And I was traveling
with the articles.

00:20:52.176 --> 00:20:53.866 A:middle
Then after a while I
got pretty good at it by

00:20:54.006 --> 00:20:56.526 A:middle
colleagues they would speak
Japanese with one day.

00:20:57.226 --> 00:21:00.086 A:middle
I worked in the English
department and one

00:21:00.086 --> 00:21:01.236 A:middle
of the English teachers there,

00:21:01.356 --> 00:21:04.486 A:middle
she said, My my German
professor in college

00:21:04.486 --> 00:21:06.416 A:middle
at EPA Rock University
down the street.

00:21:06.556 --> 00:21:09.686 A:middle
He now teaches, I guess you call
like a Japanese affairs class,

00:21:09.776 --> 00:21:11.536 A:middle
you know, Japan today
kind of class.

00:21:11.606 --> 00:21:13.706 A:middle
A lot of the international
students from

00:21:13.776 --> 00:21:16.566 A:middle
the University attend the class
along with Japanese students.

00:21:16.816 --> 00:21:19.016 A:middle
But there aren't any Western
students in the class.

00:21:19.146 --> 00:21:20.936 A:middle
And one of the points
the classes do here,

00:21:21.006 --> 00:21:23.066 A:middle
different cultural
perspectives about Japan.

00:21:23.276 --> 00:21:25.186 A:middle
Would you be interested
in going to this class?

00:21:25.446 --> 00:21:26.606 A:middle
And I said I would
have, I don't,

00:21:26.676 --> 00:21:29.176 A:middle
I don't know if I can read well
enough or if my Japanese bit.

00:21:29.246 --> 00:21:30.806 A:middle
Now she's like No, that
that should be fine.

00:21:31.076 --> 00:21:33.036 A:middle
And so she talked to the,

00:21:33.316 --> 00:21:35.076 A:middle
the English department
chair and he said,

00:21:35.246 --> 00:21:36.346 A:middle
that's a fantastic idea.

00:21:36.546 --> 00:21:38.186 A:middle
And he talked to the principal.

00:21:38.246 --> 00:21:39.476 A:middle
And the principal said.

00:21:39.556 --> 00:21:41.656 A:middle
Eric can keep improving
as Japanese,

00:21:41.876 --> 00:21:43.246 A:middle
that will really help the school

00:21:43.246 --> 00:21:44.536 A:middle
because then he can
communicate with

00:21:44.646 --> 00:21:46.506 A:middle
the students better
and their parents

00:21:46.506 --> 00:21:47.726 A:middle
and it's good for the school.

00:21:47.946 --> 00:21:49.626 A:middle
So on Wednesdays you're
just going to teach

00:21:49.706 --> 00:21:51.526 A:middle
one class in the
morning and then the rest

00:21:51.526 --> 00:21:52.436 A:middle
of the day is all yours.

00:21:52.506 --> 00:21:54.606 A:middle
Just go to the university
and sit in this class.

00:21:54.696 --> 00:21:57.706 A:middle
So I sat in on that class for
a year and I could barely,

00:21:57.796 --> 00:21:59.286 A:middle
I would listen, I
could understand.

00:21:59.486 --> 00:22:01.556 A:middle
And it was very frustrating
because I couldn't really speak.

00:22:01.706 --> 00:22:03.696 A:middle
And all the other students
who read the articles

00:22:03.696 --> 00:22:05.626 A:middle
or whatever and I
was struggling.

00:22:05.946 --> 00:22:09.836 A:middle
I did that for a year and I was
able to I was able to keep up.

00:22:09.946 --> 00:22:12.606 A:middle
And then one day I spoke
and then it didn't stop

00:22:12.606 --> 00:22:15.236 A:middle
and I met my ex-wife that class.

00:22:15.306 --> 00:22:18.066 A:middle
So she's from Taiwan originally
and she was getting her

00:22:18.236 --> 00:22:20.166 A:middle
bachelor's in education
and then she went

00:22:20.166 --> 00:22:21.786 A:middle
on to get her master's
in education.

00:22:21.986 --> 00:22:24.166 A:middle
We met there and
through knowing her,

00:22:24.456 --> 00:22:27.836 A:middle
I entered my master's program in
education at Brock University.

00:22:27.906 --> 00:22:29.446 A:middle
So in my third year
of the program,

00:22:29.666 --> 00:22:32.016 A:middle
I knew that I was going
to take the entrance exam

00:22:32.016 --> 00:22:34.596 A:middle
for my program, my
master's program.

00:22:34.766 --> 00:22:39.506 A:middle
And so yes, everything was in
Japanese and I had the blessing

00:22:39.506 --> 00:22:40.906 A:middle
of my school behind me.

00:22:41.006 --> 00:22:42.526 A:middle
They actually wanted
me to stay longer,

00:22:42.676 --> 00:22:44.276 A:middle
but face so yeah, that's
a great opportunity.

00:22:44.366 --> 00:22:45.036 A:middle
You should do it.

00:22:45.036 --> 00:22:45.596 A:middle
And so I,

00:22:45.776 --> 00:22:47.736 A:middle
I was a grad student
in Japan for two years.

00:22:47.936 --> 00:22:50.606 A:middle
Just for people understand
what they're talking about.

00:22:50.706 --> 00:22:54.116 A:middle
Newspaper, it takes
16 thousand characters

00:22:54.116 --> 00:22:55.576 A:middle
to read a Japanese newspaper.

00:22:55.906 --> 00:22:57.256 A:middle
You start thinking
about how do I,

00:22:57.516 --> 00:22:58.876 A:middle
and it's hieroglyphics, right?

00:22:58.946 --> 00:23:02.036 A:middle
It's not. Letters is 16
thousand unique characters.

00:23:02.106 --> 00:23:03.376 A:middle
And then you start saying, well,

00:23:03.546 --> 00:23:06.126 A:middle
what if I learn ten a day and
then don't forget any alert.

00:23:06.206 --> 00:23:09.506 A:middle
And before That's still five
years before you could read a

00:23:09.506 --> 00:23:10.206 A:middle
newspaper for it.

00:23:10.276 --> 00:23:13.796 A:middle
So for you to be able to do that
in the short term is incredible.

00:23:14.026 --> 00:23:15.556 A:middle
I have a friend who did

00:23:15.686 --> 00:23:20.176 A:middle
the Japanese entrance exam
and was given a similar type

00:23:20.176 --> 00:23:22.226 A:middle
of scholarship to she's okay.

00:23:22.376 --> 00:23:23.076 A:middle
University.

00:23:23.076 --> 00:23:24.376 A:middle
I know what it takes to do that.

00:23:24.526 --> 00:23:26.636 A:middle
I buy and to live to
Japan for 20 years.

00:23:26.736 --> 00:23:28.436 A:middle
She has a master's in

00:23:28.576 --> 00:23:32.806 A:middle
Japanese literacy womb and
she told me I can't read it

00:23:32.806 --> 00:23:33.416 A:middle
and speak openly.

00:23:33.556 --> 00:23:36.416 A:middle
So she actually sat down and
explain the math to be like,

00:23:36.576 --> 00:23:39.046 A:middle
if you're going to be someone
who can work in business

00:23:39.046 --> 00:23:40.786 A:middle
over here and read a newspaper.

00:23:41.036 --> 00:23:42.766 A:middle
This is what a tasteful
she actually broke

00:23:42.766 --> 00:23:43.616 A:middle
down the math to be.

00:23:43.806 --> 00:23:45.376 A:middle
So whenever people
come up to me and go,

00:23:45.606 --> 00:23:47.036 A:middle
Oh yeah, I'm just going
to learn Mandarin people.

00:23:47.146 --> 00:23:48.156 A:middle
I'll just give job in China.

00:23:48.306 --> 00:23:50.516 A:middle
I'm like, it's the
same alphabet, right?

00:23:50.716 --> 00:23:52.656 A:middle
I explain the naphtha and
like just so you know,

00:23:52.776 --> 00:23:55.176 A:middle
there are probably easier
ways to create a career

00:23:55.176 --> 00:23:56.596 A:middle
than to learn Mandarin or Jeff.

00:23:56.756 --> 00:23:59.976 A:middle
Well, it's interesting that you
bring up Mandarin because I got

00:24:00.046 --> 00:24:00.966 A:middle
my master's degree

00:24:00.966 --> 00:24:03.486 A:middle
and everything was it
was, it wasn't Japanese.

00:24:03.676 --> 00:24:05.816 A:middle
A lot of Japanese graduate
programs don't have

00:24:05.936 --> 00:24:08.006 A:middle
the same rigor that certain
American Masters programs

00:24:08.006 --> 00:24:08.436 A:middle
might have,

00:24:08.756 --> 00:24:10.066 A:middle
but there are rigorous
and other ways.

00:24:10.296 --> 00:24:12.576 A:middle
So it's like a, it's a trade
off in different areas,

00:24:12.676 --> 00:24:14.336 A:middle
but it was a real
struggle for me.

00:24:14.406 --> 00:24:16.546 A:middle
And I think one of the
biggest things that I

00:24:16.696 --> 00:24:19.106 A:middle
took away from that is
mothers and immigrants.

00:24:19.246 --> 00:24:20.926 A:middle
She's she's originally
from well,

00:24:21.006 --> 00:24:22.476 A:middle
she's been an immigrant
many times.

00:24:22.546 --> 00:24:23.906 A:middle
She lives and she's
born in Germany,

00:24:23.976 --> 00:24:25.696 A:middle
went to Holland and
then she came to us.

00:24:26.046 --> 00:24:28.926 A:middle
And my mom actually became a US
citizen on my first birthday.

00:24:29.296 --> 00:24:33.126 A:middle
I've always had some sense of
what it's like to people come to

00:24:33.206 --> 00:24:34.716 A:middle
United States to learn English

00:24:35.146 --> 00:24:37.536 A:middle
and just the different things
they have to go through.

00:24:37.606 --> 00:24:40.376 A:middle
But having been a student
in Japan, and again,

00:24:40.506 --> 00:24:42.206 A:middle
I'm not trying to
equate what I went

00:24:42.206 --> 00:24:45.276 A:middle
through as a white
American man in Japan

00:24:45.346 --> 00:24:47.876 A:middle
to the hardships that
many people face coming to

00:24:47.946 --> 00:24:50.906 A:middle
the US because it's not
quite the same in many cases,

00:24:50.976 --> 00:24:54.036 A:middle
but just having to deal with
the constant hassles of a visa,

00:24:54.346 --> 00:24:56.876 A:middle
constantly feeling like
I'm not good enough

00:24:56.876 --> 00:24:58.596 A:middle
because I don't know
enough Japanese are

00:24:58.706 --> 00:25:00.856 A:middle
having to spend hours
trying to figure

00:25:01.016 --> 00:25:03.246 A:middle
out how to read an article so
that I can get my work done.

00:25:03.426 --> 00:25:05.386 A:middle
It gave me such a
great appreciation

00:25:05.386 --> 00:25:07.916 A:middle
of how amazing people
are to come to the US.

00:25:08.146 --> 00:25:09.486 A:middle
It's often taken for granted

00:25:09.486 --> 00:25:10.876 A:middle
that will everyone
just speaks English,

00:25:10.976 --> 00:25:13.236 A:middle
you learn English, but
that is not the case.

00:25:13.446 --> 00:25:15.906 A:middle
I tried to advocate for
everyone who learn English

00:25:15.906 --> 00:25:17.506 A:middle
as a second language in the US.

00:25:17.576 --> 00:25:20.216 A:middle
Because I think they're
amazing because I don't know

00:25:20.216 --> 00:25:21.126 A:middle
if I always felt like I

00:25:21.256 --> 00:25:24.406 A:middle
succeeded compared to other
English-speaking Americans who'd

00:25:24.406 --> 00:25:25.076 A:middle
been in Japan?

00:25:25.166 --> 00:25:26.236 A:middle
Yeah, My Japanese pretty good.

00:25:26.506 --> 00:25:29.456 A:middle
I've always felt like I wasn't
I I could've learned more,

00:25:29.456 --> 00:25:30.076 A:middle
I done more.

00:25:30.146 --> 00:25:32.176 A:middle
But you're right
though about the script,

00:25:32.246 --> 00:25:33.436 A:middle
the kanji in Japanese,

00:25:33.506 --> 00:25:36.606 A:middle
the Chinese characters are
also used in, in Mandarin.

00:25:36.676 --> 00:25:38.976 A:middle
In mainland China, they
use simplifies characters,

00:25:39.126 --> 00:25:42.006 A:middle
but I went to Taiwan where
traditional characters are still

00:25:42.146 --> 00:25:45.606 A:middle
used and they are closer and
forum to the conjugate Japanese.

00:25:45.906 --> 00:25:47.606 A:middle
So when I first arrived
in Taiwan,

00:25:47.776 --> 00:25:49.636 A:middle
I knew I was going to move
the Taiwan like I talked

00:25:49.636 --> 00:25:50.856 A:middle
to my ex-wife and I said,

00:25:51.046 --> 00:25:53.016 A:middle
You know, she finished her
master's a year before me.

00:25:53.156 --> 00:25:54.336 A:middle
I said do you want
to go to Taiwan?

00:25:54.446 --> 00:25:55.916 A:middle
She's like, Yeah, I would
I would love to go to

00:25:56.056 --> 00:25:58.916 A:middle
Taiwan as we had traveled,
visited many times.

00:25:59.106 --> 00:26:00.536 A:middle
And so I started
learning Mandarin

00:26:00.536 --> 00:26:02.576 A:middle
like a year before we
went likely to last year,

00:26:02.646 --> 00:26:03.936 A:middle
my my master's program,

00:26:04.146 --> 00:26:05.516 A:middle
when I got to Taiwan, it was,

00:26:05.676 --> 00:26:09.906 A:middle
it was very weird because I
could have read 85% of anything.

00:26:09.976 --> 00:26:11.676 A:middle
I could tell where the
bathroom was and I could

00:26:11.746 --> 00:26:13.696 A:middle
tell where the train
station was a whatnot,

00:26:13.976 --> 00:26:15.386 A:middle
but I had no grammar.

00:26:15.606 --> 00:26:19.506 A:middle
Japanese uses is unique and
that it uses three scripts.

00:26:19.576 --> 00:26:21.186 A:middle
You have the Chinese
characters, you know,

00:26:21.326 --> 00:26:23.186 A:middle
75 to 80 percent
of those are used

00:26:23.186 --> 00:26:24.956 A:middle
in sentences for content words,

00:26:25.046 --> 00:26:27.006 A:middle
nouns, ideas, and then the,

00:26:27.076 --> 00:26:30.056 A:middle
the Hiragana, which performs
a grammatical function.

00:26:30.146 --> 00:26:32.476 A:middle
It makes a word, an
adjective or a verb,

00:26:32.546 --> 00:26:34.736 A:middle
or whatever you can tell, and
then there's the topic on it.

00:26:34.806 --> 00:26:38.936 A:middle
It's often used to transliterate
words that are not from Japanese

00:26:38.936 --> 00:26:39.956 A:middle
or Chinese originally.

00:26:40.246 --> 00:26:42.506 A:middle
It's like McDonalds be
Mach, little motto though.

00:26:42.696 --> 00:26:44.136 A:middle
And so, and I'm Eric,

00:26:44.246 --> 00:26:46.436 A:middle
So I'm caught that
will be used to write

00:26:46.436 --> 00:26:48.066 A:middle
that word where the Katakana,

00:26:48.216 --> 00:26:50.646 A:middle
Hiragana were used in
Japan to connect the kanji.

00:26:50.966 --> 00:26:52.946 A:middle
There were Chinese
characters in Mandarin

00:26:52.946 --> 00:26:54.646 A:middle
and that would just
throw me off.

00:26:55.026 --> 00:26:57.176 A:middle
So I had to figure
out what the graph

00:26:57.176 --> 00:26:59.346 A:middle
of the grammatical
markers were in Chinese.

00:27:00.206 --> 00:27:01.956 A:middle
But by then I put, I didn't have

00:27:01.956 --> 00:27:03.476 A:middle
to learn the characters
from scratch.

00:27:03.586 --> 00:27:04.046 A:middle
I knew them.

00:27:04.346 --> 00:27:07.656 A:middle
I just needed to figure out
the sound correspondence.

00:27:07.776 --> 00:27:10.506 A:middle
Like if this character's
pronounced this way in Japanese,

00:27:10.776 --> 00:27:12.756 A:middle
it's almost always
pronounced this way, Mandarin.

00:27:12.856 --> 00:27:14.746 A:middle
And I figured out pretty
quickly how to figure

00:27:14.746 --> 00:27:15.606 A:middle
out the pronunciations,

00:27:15.676 --> 00:27:17.506 A:middle
the tones were challenging
for me.

00:27:17.686 --> 00:27:20.206 A:middle
But yeah, that I
was unusual in being

00:27:20.306 --> 00:27:21.556 A:middle
a native English speaker to have

00:27:21.556 --> 00:27:23.636 A:middle
that background going
into Mandarin first.

00:27:23.826 --> 00:27:25.286 A:middle
I forgot we're talking
about I'm sorry.

00:27:25.786 --> 00:27:26.396 A:middle
With me.

00:27:26.506 --> 00:27:29.936 A:middle
I said, How did you end up at
Valley College that yourself,

00:27:30.036 --> 00:27:31.056 A:middle
if you like James Bond,

00:27:31.146 --> 00:27:33.346 A:middle
just going from country
to country.

00:27:33.606 --> 00:27:35.576 A:middle
Just learning language
after language.

00:27:35.706 --> 00:27:36.396 A:middle
No, no, no.

00:27:36.626 --> 00:27:37.946 A:middle
There's there's there's ones

00:27:37.946 --> 00:27:40.036 A:middle
that weren't there
before we go there.

00:27:40.106 --> 00:27:40.636 A:middle
I got here.

00:27:40.706 --> 00:27:42.026 A:middle
Let's rip up a little bit more

00:27:42.026 --> 00:27:44.316 A:middle
about your experience
in Tijuana.

00:27:44.606 --> 00:27:46.256 A:middle
So how long were you
there for you so there's

00:27:46.396 --> 00:27:50.066 A:middle
that persecute I wasn't I
wasn't Japan for six years.

00:27:50.176 --> 00:27:52.726 A:middle
I worked for three
years in the program.

00:27:53.076 --> 00:27:54.236 A:middle
I taught it at a high school.

00:27:54.616 --> 00:27:56.926 A:middle
And then I I took mansions exam

00:27:56.926 --> 00:27:58.626 A:middle
and I was my masters
for two years.

00:27:58.926 --> 00:28:01.406 A:middle
And then I moved to
Taiwan size six years in

00:28:01.476 --> 00:28:03.486 A:middle
Japan and Taiwan for
about nine years.

00:28:04.196 --> 00:28:04.976 A:middle
8.5 years.

00:28:05.346 --> 00:28:09.106 A:middle
Yeah. And so for most
of my time in Taiwan,

00:28:09.246 --> 00:28:13.256 A:middle
I worked the Taipei World Trade
Center and I taught English

00:28:13.256 --> 00:28:14.906 A:middle
for specific purposes.

00:28:15.786 --> 00:28:18.936 A:middle
I worked for a government
run International Trade

00:28:18.936 --> 00:28:19.686 A:middle
Training Program.

00:28:20.026 --> 00:28:23.146 A:middle
And so I mainly worked
with people who had MBAs.

00:28:23.486 --> 00:28:25.576 A:middle
And they, they spoke
great English,

00:28:25.656 --> 00:28:27.266 A:middle
but they needed to
go to the next level.

00:28:27.706 --> 00:28:30.316 A:middle
That international trade
really drives Taiwan's economy.

00:28:30.476 --> 00:28:33.136 A:middle
And most of these people
worked in the IT industry.

00:28:33.246 --> 00:28:35.666 A:middle
It is the lifeblood
of Taiwan and some of

00:28:35.806 --> 00:28:37.956 A:middle
the biggest IT tracers
in the world are

00:28:37.956 --> 00:28:39.836 A:middle
at the Taipei World
Trade Center.

00:28:40.086 --> 00:28:41.566 A:middle
I didn't know any of this.

00:28:41.566 --> 00:28:42.416 A:middle
I learned along the way.

00:28:42.926 --> 00:28:45.976 A:middle
I taught English for specific
purposes like business English.

00:28:46.186 --> 00:28:49.106 A:middle
And so my business
my business minor in

00:28:49.176 --> 00:28:50.706 A:middle
college came came in handy

00:28:50.976 --> 00:28:52.906 A:middle
because I was able
to get this job.

00:28:53.216 --> 00:28:55.336 A:middle
And so I taught ESL part-time.

00:28:55.406 --> 00:28:57.366 A:middle
And then one day
someone upstairs called

00:28:57.766 --> 00:28:59.106 A:middle
and I answered the phone.

00:28:59.176 --> 00:29:01.556 A:middle
And Isaac way taking
dosing anyhow

00:29:01.726 --> 00:29:03.936 A:middle
and they started talking
to me and they said,

00:29:04.066 --> 00:29:06.056 A:middle
Oh yeah, Can you send one
of the teachers up to look

00:29:06.056 --> 00:29:07.276 A:middle
at an English document
to edit it.

00:29:07.356 --> 00:29:08.616 A:middle
I said No, I'll go do it myself.

00:29:08.876 --> 00:29:10.836 A:middle
And they said no, no, we want
one of the English teachers.

00:29:10.946 --> 00:29:12.036 A:middle
I said I am one of
the English teacher.

00:29:12.106 --> 00:29:13.076 A:middle
They'd like you speak Mandarin.

00:29:13.306 --> 00:29:14.786 A:middle
Click well, I speak a little

00:29:15.006 --> 00:29:16.276 A:middle
and they're like,
Can you read on Mike?

00:29:16.626 --> 00:29:17.946 A:middle
Yeah. And so they gave me a job

00:29:17.946 --> 00:29:19.526 A:middle
and the market development
department.

00:29:19.786 --> 00:29:22.246 A:middle
And so I would teach
in the mornings.

00:29:22.596 --> 00:29:24.376 A:middle
And then a few days
a week I go up to

00:29:24.466 --> 00:29:26.606 A:middle
the seventh floor and the
market development department.

00:29:26.776 --> 00:29:27.996 A:middle
I worked with a team.

00:29:28.086 --> 00:29:30.256 A:middle
I did editing, English editing,

00:29:30.396 --> 00:29:32.136 A:middle
I did writing, I wrote copy,

00:29:32.226 --> 00:29:34.926 A:middle
I did all kinds of
things and I got to work

00:29:34.926 --> 00:29:36.926 A:middle
with the marked development
department was

00:29:37.026 --> 00:29:39.756 A:middle
this huge room with
rows of desks

00:29:39.836 --> 00:29:42.136 A:middle
and in each row was
a different section.

00:29:42.206 --> 00:29:43.796 A:middle
There was like the
West Asia section,

00:29:43.876 --> 00:29:45.076 A:middle
the East Asia section,

00:29:45.596 --> 00:29:47.966 A:middle
South Africa, north Africa.

00:29:48.146 --> 00:29:51.496 A:middle
And so all of these people
could speak the languages

00:29:51.696 --> 00:29:52.746 A:middle
or they had to,

00:29:52.876 --> 00:29:54.616 A:middle
because they had, they
had traveled to all of

00:29:54.706 --> 00:29:57.036 A:middle
these countries or had
been a sign posted there.

00:29:57.276 --> 00:29:59.036 A:middle
And so I work with
these in a room full

00:29:59.036 --> 00:30:01.246 A:middle
of Taiwanese people
who were just,

00:30:01.376 --> 00:30:02.956 A:middle
they were multilingual
and they'd,

00:30:03.046 --> 00:30:04.366 A:middle
they'd been all around
the world.

00:30:04.556 --> 00:30:05.806 A:middle
I mean, brilliant people

00:30:05.806 --> 00:30:09.526 A:middle
and they all spoke Mandarin
English has so many languages.

00:30:09.656 --> 00:30:14.076 A:middle
And what's really
funny is I was,

00:30:14.146 --> 00:30:16.576 A:middle
I actually at that
time had the strongest

00:30:16.716 --> 00:30:18.996 A:middle
Japanese that the few
people that spoke Japanese.

00:30:19.326 --> 00:30:21.206 A:middle
So sometimes when
they had, you know,

00:30:21.306 --> 00:30:23.746 A:middle
Japanese groups come

00:30:23.746 --> 00:30:25.906 A:middle
for whatever reason
they would bring me

00:30:26.046 --> 00:30:29.496 A:middle
in to do interpreting or
to translate documents

00:30:29.496 --> 00:30:31.316 A:middle
because a lot of the Taiwanese,

00:30:31.406 --> 00:30:35.176 A:middle
a lot of the Taiwanese people
could speak English very well,

00:30:35.176 --> 00:30:36.196 A:middle
or they were bilingual.

00:30:36.496 --> 00:30:39.706 A:middle
But not many could really
speak Japanese very well.

00:30:40.006 --> 00:30:41.136 A:middle
And there was always someone

00:30:41.136 --> 00:30:43.526 A:middle
on the Japanese scientist
spoke English but not Mandarin.

00:30:43.806 --> 00:30:45.426 A:middle
So I was in-between it.

00:30:45.506 --> 00:30:48.146 A:middle
So it was just such an
unusual space to be in

00:30:48.466 --> 00:30:52.006 A:middle
to be that white guy
from America in his 30s,

00:30:52.076 --> 00:30:53.206 A:middle
be in the go-between,

00:30:53.276 --> 00:30:55.576 A:middle
between these two
different groups of people,

00:30:55.646 --> 00:30:57.036 A:middle
mainly Taiwanese in Japanese.

00:30:57.186 --> 00:30:58.606 A:middle
And I thought that was so cool.

00:30:58.736 --> 00:31:01.556 A:middle
And I, and I worked with other
people who did the same thing.

00:31:01.646 --> 00:31:02.686 A:middle
There was a woman I worked with.

00:31:03.006 --> 00:31:04.606 A:middle
She gets she had
lived in Holland.

00:31:04.946 --> 00:31:05.946 A:middle
She spoke Dutch.

00:31:06.246 --> 00:31:08.206 A:middle
I mean, and of course,
the Dutch business people

00:31:08.206 --> 00:31:09.256 A:middle
that came all spoke English,

00:31:09.476 --> 00:31:12.076 A:middle
but they loved having her
there because it was just

00:31:12.156 --> 00:31:14.856 A:middle
nice to connect with someone who
spoke their language fluently.

00:31:15.046 --> 00:31:17.506 A:middle
And it was it was it was
just such a neat place.

00:31:17.746 --> 00:31:19.546 A:middle
Sounds like an incredible
experience.

00:31:19.646 --> 00:31:24.756 A:middle
Her it was as you were telling
us the beginning of this,

00:31:24.846 --> 00:31:25.866 A:middle
one of the reasons

00:31:25.956 --> 00:31:27.436 A:middle
that initially sort
of got you interested

00:31:27.526 --> 00:31:30.406 A:middle
in Japanese this music and
your sisters record collection.

00:31:30.486 --> 00:31:32.706 A:middle
For the time that you
were in Japan and Taiwan,

00:31:32.776 --> 00:31:35.036 A:middle
was there any circle back
to music at all for you?

00:31:35.376 --> 00:31:38.796 A:middle
Yes. So in Japan,

00:31:39.276 --> 00:31:42.476 A:middle
so most, most school high
schools in Japan will have

00:31:42.476 --> 00:31:44.216 A:middle
like a school festival day.

00:31:44.626 --> 00:31:47.036 A:middle
And I don't know how
it is now with COVID,

00:31:47.176 --> 00:31:48.746 A:middle
but but you know,

00:31:48.916 --> 00:31:50.996 A:middle
there's like a day
or a weekend where

00:31:51.206 --> 00:31:54.976 A:middle
the difference clubs the
kids belong to will put on,

00:31:55.046 --> 00:31:57.366 A:middle
they'll have like a stall or
a booth and do something fun.

00:31:57.446 --> 00:31:59.786 A:middle
Like a chess club might
have a chess board

00:31:59.786 --> 00:32:01.326 A:middle
and peoples had found
him play games.

00:32:01.986 --> 00:32:05.246 A:middle
There might be like the chorus
and people sing songs, whatever.

00:32:05.506 --> 00:32:07.436 A:middle
And there's always
like 20 different kid,

00:32:07.566 --> 00:32:08.616 A:middle
20 different rock bands.

00:32:09.196 --> 00:32:11.876 A:middle
And so, so I,

00:32:12.046 --> 00:32:14.306 A:middle
I started playing
guitar when I was 15.

00:32:14.426 --> 00:32:16.506 A:middle
And like I said, my
ambition early on was

00:32:16.506 --> 00:32:18.306 A:middle
to be a rock guitarist.

00:32:18.636 --> 00:32:20.696 A:middle
I listening to my
Huey Lewis records

00:32:20.696 --> 00:32:22.136 A:middle
in the early eighties and on.

00:32:22.706 --> 00:32:27.036 A:middle
And I got the song book and I
had a guitar and, um, and so.

00:32:28.276 --> 00:32:29.736 A:middle
I heard, well, this
is really interesting.

00:32:29.816 --> 00:32:33.416 A:middle
One day I was I was staying
late and everyone had gone.

00:32:33.916 --> 00:32:35.186 A:middle
And it was at night.

00:32:35.366 --> 00:32:37.756 A:middle
And I I heard Leonard
Skinner coming

00:32:37.756 --> 00:32:39.376 A:middle
from the high school
and I was like this.

00:32:39.446 --> 00:32:40.716 A:middle
I grew up in Florida.

00:32:41.176 --> 00:32:43.766 A:middle
There's a lot of Southern
Rock I'd never expected here

00:32:43.766 --> 00:32:44.266 A:middle
in Japan.

00:32:44.416 --> 00:32:46.906 A:middle
And I, i, and look, what does
this I heard these guys singing

00:32:47.006 --> 00:32:48.446 A:middle
and I go and then there's

00:32:48.576 --> 00:32:50.796 A:middle
the Allman Brothers that I hear
all this kind of like, you know,

00:32:50.906 --> 00:32:52.996 A:middle
southern rock and
things, you know, And I,

00:32:53.176 --> 00:32:55.206 A:middle
I go into this classroom
and it's like

00:32:55.276 --> 00:32:57.296 A:middle
five of the high school
kids and they're in a band.

00:32:57.816 --> 00:33:01.006 A:middle
They were really tight and
they loved to play blues.

00:33:01.076 --> 00:33:02.486 A:middle
The one kid had a harmonica.

00:33:02.936 --> 00:33:04.676 A:middle
And so they weren't my students.

00:33:04.746 --> 00:33:05.886 A:middle
I taught mainly a
junior high school

00:33:05.886 --> 00:33:06.976 A:middle
by started talking to them.

00:33:07.076 --> 00:33:10.076 A:middle
And that one kid had a
really cool Les Paul guitar.

00:33:10.146 --> 00:33:11.516 A:middle
And I said, You mind
if I give it a try?

00:33:11.516 --> 00:33:12.366 A:middle
I've never played one.

00:33:12.646 --> 00:33:16.136 A:middle
And, um, and so we started
jamming and I would bring

00:33:16.206 --> 00:33:18.106 A:middle
my guitar and we'd hang
out on the weekends and

00:33:18.176 --> 00:33:20.276 A:middle
go to like a practice
studio and beautiful.

00:33:20.346 --> 00:33:22.426 A:middle
But Japan is I'm in
Taiwan the same thing.

00:33:23.206 --> 00:33:24.796 A:middle
There's a lot of studios

00:33:24.796 --> 00:33:26.596 A:middle
like whether there's
already like the drums,

00:33:26.706 --> 00:33:29.026 A:middle
keyboards, amps,
everything set up.

00:33:29.106 --> 00:33:32.176 A:middle
You just bring your own guitar
and the microphones are all set

00:33:32.176 --> 00:33:33.216 A:middle
up and there's a mixture.

00:33:33.386 --> 00:33:34.866 A:middle
And you pay like 10,

00:33:35.076 --> 00:33:37.996 A:middle
$20 an hour just to
jam with your band.

00:33:38.136 --> 00:33:40.936 A:middle
And so I would hang out with
these kids the weekends,

00:33:41.006 --> 00:33:43.266 A:middle
like not just that group
of kids, but other kids.

00:33:43.576 --> 00:33:45.926 A:middle
And so every school festival,

00:33:46.206 --> 00:33:48.886 A:middle
I will be playing with like five
or six different bands because

00:33:48.986 --> 00:33:51.776 A:middle
most of the kids couldn't
play the lead guitar parts.

00:33:52.416 --> 00:33:54.166 A:middle
And I couldn't because
I had more experience.

00:33:54.246 --> 00:33:56.466 A:middle
So they would always
hire me as their

00:33:56.466 --> 00:33:58.566 A:middle
as their lead guitarist
for the day.

00:33:58.906 --> 00:34:01.526 A:middle
And so I did that and
when I lived in Taiwan,

00:34:01.706 --> 00:34:03.946 A:middle
I ended up playing
music as well.

00:34:04.226 --> 00:34:08.636 A:middle
At 1, I paired my day job
down just to my teaching.

00:34:08.896 --> 00:34:10.096 A:middle
In the afternoons and evenings,

00:34:10.246 --> 00:34:12.006 A:middle
I play in several bands.

00:34:12.096 --> 00:34:13.546 A:middle
I worked in a recording studio.

00:34:13.706 --> 00:34:17.726 A:middle
So if you hear some bad
pop music from around 2002,

00:34:17.816 --> 00:34:20.036 A:middle
2003 from Taiwan,
it maybe my guitar.

00:34:21.026 --> 00:34:22.506 A:middle
And I play with different bands.

00:34:22.606 --> 00:34:24.986 A:middle
And I met this guy and he
said we should play all the

00:34:24.986 --> 00:34:25.646 A:middle
big shows,

00:34:25.906 --> 00:34:27.486 A:middle
all the big venues in Taiwan.

00:34:27.816 --> 00:34:29.506 A:middle
And I'm Mike, how are
we going to do that,

00:34:29.576 --> 00:34:31.176 A:middle
isn't oh, no, no,
we'll figure that out.

00:34:31.526 --> 00:34:32.706 A:middle
And he did he said, Well,

00:34:32.776 --> 00:34:34.136 A:middle
Wilson, press release any dead,

00:34:34.206 --> 00:34:36.706 A:middle
he showed me how to do
it and we went around

00:34:36.706 --> 00:34:38.736 A:middle
and played all the big
venues on the island.

00:34:38.846 --> 00:34:41.176 A:middle
And I got to meet a lot of,

00:34:41.246 --> 00:34:42.776 A:middle
a lot of Taiwanese musicians

00:34:42.776 --> 00:34:45.496 A:middle
like celebrity isn't
quite the same.

00:34:45.576 --> 00:34:47.436 A:middle
And Taiwan as it is in the US.

00:34:47.546 --> 00:34:51.306 A:middle
And I met some really
well-known, not just Taiwanese,

00:34:51.446 --> 00:34:53.606 A:middle
Mandarin pop stars are
like a lot of people from

00:34:53.676 --> 00:34:56.276 A:middle
Hong Kong who came to
the studio where I work.

00:34:56.486 --> 00:34:59.476 A:middle
And it was just amazing
to be able to like

00:34:59.546 --> 00:35:01.646 A:middle
sit and then jam with
these people on the guitar

00:35:01.646 --> 00:35:02.896 A:middle
and the bass or whatever.

00:35:03.566 --> 00:35:05.936 A:middle
So I did that off and on and I

00:35:05.936 --> 00:35:08.236 A:middle
as music has always been
a big part of my life.

00:35:08.456 --> 00:35:11.486 A:middle
And when I at Valley College,

00:35:11.806 --> 00:35:13.086 A:middle
one of my colleagues

00:35:13.786 --> 00:35:16.136 A:middle
in the psychology
department, he's retired now.

00:35:16.206 --> 00:35:20.956 A:middle
Peri think he he's been
playing music locally

00:35:20.956 --> 00:35:22.576 A:middle
and Southern California
for years.

00:35:23.126 --> 00:35:24.836 A:middle
And he's got he, you know,

00:35:24.906 --> 00:35:26.786 A:middle
he plays and in a blues band,

00:35:27.276 --> 00:35:28.566 A:middle
the bulldog blues band.

00:35:29.226 --> 00:35:32.506 A:middle
And and we were talk
and he has a guitar,

00:35:32.606 --> 00:35:33.976 A:middle
has episodic a trauma office.

00:35:34.076 --> 00:35:37.036 A:middle
And and then one day I said,
you know, I live in Long Beach.

00:35:37.106 --> 00:35:38.306 A:middle
He said what we're going
to be playing Long Beach

00:35:38.476 --> 00:35:39.796 A:middle
want you to come in
and sit him with us.

00:35:39.876 --> 00:35:42.006 A:middle
I said, you know, you've
never heard me play Harry,

00:35:42.076 --> 00:35:43.506 A:middle
he is, I'm sure your font.

00:35:43.746 --> 00:35:47.316 A:middle
And stoa brought my
guitar down to them arena.

00:35:47.846 --> 00:35:51.566 A:middle
And they were setup outdoors
and they all wear Fedora.

00:35:51.566 --> 00:35:52.206 A:middle
Isn't that bad?

00:35:52.296 --> 00:35:53.856 A:middle
You like the Blues
Brothers, I guess, and down.

00:35:54.276 --> 00:35:55.936 A:middle
And I remember plugging
my guitar and I was

00:35:55.936 --> 00:35:57.576 A:middle
like so I'm just
going to synonym for

00:35:57.646 --> 00:36:00.176 A:middle
the one number and then
I hear the drum or a 123

00:36:00.176 --> 00:36:01.956 A:middle
and then it was a whole set.

00:36:02.046 --> 00:36:05.276 A:middle
So I'm very thankful to Harry
because I've been able to

00:36:05.346 --> 00:36:09.186 A:middle
jam with their band on and off a
few times in the last few years.

00:36:09.276 --> 00:36:12.366 A:middle
And I hadn't played
live music for years.

00:36:12.586 --> 00:36:14.976 A:middle
Because after I came
back to us by,

00:36:15.046 --> 00:36:16.936 A:middle
I came back to the
US to get my PhD.

00:36:17.236 --> 00:36:18.356 A:middle
And then pretty much everything

00:36:18.356 --> 00:36:21.006 A:middle
in life except the
PhD kind of stops.

00:36:21.076 --> 00:36:23.386 A:middle
So it was great to be
able to play music again.

00:36:23.676 --> 00:36:25.206 A:middle
That's just an incredible,

00:36:25.276 --> 00:36:27.436 A:middle
incredible experience and story.

00:36:27.746 --> 00:36:32.236 A:middle
Is your wife sort of unfolded
there and Japan, Taiwan.

00:36:32.486 --> 00:36:35.636 A:middle
So, so you left there and then
you came back for your PhD.

00:36:35.706 --> 00:36:36.336 A:middle
Where did you go?

00:36:36.406 --> 00:36:36.896 A:middle
Go to school?

00:36:38.466 --> 00:36:42.016 A:middle
So so I think John ask a
question about this earlier

00:36:42.016 --> 00:36:43.176 A:middle
and I said I'll answer that.

00:36:43.246 --> 00:36:44.766 A:middle
And then I talked
about 20 other things.

00:36:45.426 --> 00:36:49.656 A:middle
So so when I after I was
in Taiwan for a few years,

00:36:50.846 --> 00:36:54.756 A:middle
like I had a great I love
my I live my life in Taiwan.

00:36:54.986 --> 00:36:55.796 A:middle
I, I got to,

00:36:55.936 --> 00:36:59.486 A:middle
I got to teach which I loved
and I didn't talk about that.

00:36:59.666 --> 00:37:02.566 A:middle
But one thing in my first
job in and I'm going

00:37:02.566 --> 00:37:04.076 A:middle
to ask your questions
kinda promised,

00:37:04.156 --> 00:37:07.126 A:middle
but um, I am I remember my eyes.

00:37:07.376 --> 00:37:09.636 A:middle
You asked me What what
did I have a plan?

00:37:09.776 --> 00:37:10.986 A:middle
I and I never really had a plan.

00:37:11.106 --> 00:37:13.816 A:middle
And for me going to
Japan to teach English

00:37:13.816 --> 00:37:15.096 A:middle
as a second language at a,

00:37:15.226 --> 00:37:16.866 A:middle
at a junior high school.

00:37:17.346 --> 00:37:18.536 A:middle
That was not my plan.

00:37:18.766 --> 00:37:20.936 A:middle
That was like a stepping
stone in my mind to learn

00:37:21.006 --> 00:37:23.446 A:middle
Japanese and become fluid and
then do something really great.

00:37:23.706 --> 00:37:25.176 A:middle
I mean, that's where
I was at that time.

00:37:25.276 --> 00:37:26.146 A:middle
I was 23 years old.

00:37:26.456 --> 00:37:28.266 A:middle
But I remember

00:37:28.346 --> 00:37:30.026 A:middle
my very first day in the summer.

00:37:30.386 --> 00:37:31.396 A:middle
There was no one there.

00:37:31.706 --> 00:37:32.886 A:middle
And I was an English department

00:37:32.886 --> 00:37:34.506 A:middle
of one teacher came
in and he's like,

00:37:34.896 --> 00:37:37.116 A:middle
Here's the textbook and here's
the stick like a pointer

00:37:37.116 --> 00:37:38.216 A:middle
to point to the board.

00:37:38.686 --> 00:37:39.936 A:middle
And he said, well, yes, yes.

00:37:39.936 --> 00:37:40.586 A:middle
And then he left.

00:37:41.096 --> 00:37:43.196 A:middle
I'm like, What?

00:37:43.196 --> 00:37:44.306 A:middle
I'm like, What do I teach?

00:37:44.376 --> 00:37:45.486 A:middle
He's like, Well,
here's the textbook

00:37:45.486 --> 00:37:46.616 A:middle
and then here's your
pointer stick.

00:37:47.176 --> 00:37:51.066 A:middle
Like and I had no
training in anything.

00:37:51.216 --> 00:37:54.586 A:middle
And again, I feel very
fortunate that I was

00:37:54.586 --> 00:37:55.726 A:middle
in an environment where I was

00:37:55.846 --> 00:37:59.086 A:middle
able to I was able
to make some mistakes

00:37:59.086 --> 00:38:00.496 A:middle
and nobody held it against me.

00:38:00.926 --> 00:38:02.236 A:middle
I mean, I was doing my best,

00:38:02.306 --> 00:38:04.836 A:middle
but I had to learn a lot
on the job as I went along.

00:38:05.336 --> 00:38:11.006 A:middle
But I remember like my first day
of class in Japan was 43 boys.

00:38:11.076 --> 00:38:12.966 A:middle
They all had short
cropped black here,

00:38:13.336 --> 00:38:16.016 A:middle
and then they had black uniforms

00:38:16.016 --> 00:38:17.666 A:middle
and I couldn't really
read the Japanese.

00:38:18.136 --> 00:38:20.286 A:middle
And I walked in and it
was just dead silence

00:38:20.866 --> 00:38:22.296 A:middle
and no one said anything.

00:38:22.956 --> 00:38:25.066 A:middle
And I but I remember

00:38:25.066 --> 00:38:28.556 A:middle
like I wasn't really
nervous and, you know,

00:38:28.676 --> 00:38:29.986 A:middle
that boys would change seats

00:38:29.986 --> 00:38:31.526 A:middle
because everyone has
an assigned seat,

00:38:31.606 --> 00:38:33.496 A:middle
1234 and they would switch

00:38:33.496 --> 00:38:35.876 A:middle
because like he doesn't
speak Japanese will fool him.

00:38:36.206 --> 00:38:37.806 A:middle
And so I stayed home that night.

00:38:37.886 --> 00:38:38.736 A:middle
I stay up that night.

00:38:38.736 --> 00:38:40.426 A:middle
I learned all of their
names and Japanese.

00:38:40.946 --> 00:38:43.616 A:middle
Like I knew what they were doing
but I didn't have the skills

00:38:43.616 --> 00:38:44.556 A:middle
to call them out on it.

00:38:44.656 --> 00:38:48.416 A:middle
So the next day, I said I'd
be like, she needs a can.

00:38:48.786 --> 00:38:50.706 A:middle
And then the one k
would giggle over here,

00:38:50.776 --> 00:38:52.086 A:middle
but he should be
in the seat here,

00:38:52.416 --> 00:38:54.556 A:middle
that the seating chart,
I knew who they were.

00:38:54.676 --> 00:38:57.366 A:middle
And so when they realize that
I knew what they were doing,

00:38:57.606 --> 00:39:00.216 A:middle
they got really scared because
they thought I was going

00:39:00.216 --> 00:39:00.946 A:middle
to I was going to

00:39:01.076 --> 00:39:05.586 A:middle
tell the school disciplinarian
and I didn't.

00:39:06.056 --> 00:39:08.176 A:middle
I just kinda hassled
them back and,

00:39:08.246 --> 00:39:10.966 A:middle
you know, and and
they were wonderful.

00:39:11.066 --> 00:39:14.126 A:middle
And I never and I remember
like early on that first week,

00:39:14.806 --> 00:39:16.806 A:middle
I thought this is
fun and I never felt

00:39:16.806 --> 00:39:20.406 A:middle
like I never felt
like I didn't know

00:39:20.486 --> 00:39:21.476 A:middle
what I was doing or that I

00:39:21.606 --> 00:39:24.586 A:middle
didn't that I wasn't
doing something

00:39:24.586 --> 00:39:26.106 A:middle
to help them because
beyond that,

00:39:26.176 --> 00:39:28.376 A:middle
I've figured out how to
teach them some English,

00:39:28.456 --> 00:39:30.786 A:middle
you know what I supposed
to do and it just

00:39:30.976 --> 00:39:33.586 A:middle
it didn't feel unnatural,
always felt like breathing.

00:39:33.756 --> 00:39:36.106 A:middle
And I I think I took that
for granted for many years.

00:39:36.186 --> 00:39:37.906 A:middle
What I'm saying is
that I realized,

00:39:37.976 --> 00:39:39.566 A:middle
I realized that I love to teach.

00:39:40.086 --> 00:39:42.306 A:middle
I think from that job I
realized that I love that.

00:39:42.376 --> 00:39:43.436 A:middle
So when I was in Taiwan,

00:39:43.806 --> 00:39:45.026 A:middle
I taught for many years

00:39:45.026 --> 00:39:46.936 A:middle
and I thought this touchstone,
what you were saying,

00:39:47.006 --> 00:39:50.916 A:middle
John Cyril is that spent all
of his time in Japan trying

00:39:50.916 --> 00:39:52.596 A:middle
to figure out how to read,

00:39:52.676 --> 00:39:53.896 A:middle
speak, and write Japanese.

00:39:54.316 --> 00:39:55.516 A:middle
And since that wasn't enough,

00:39:55.606 --> 00:39:57.886 A:middle
I went to Taiwan and did the
same thing all over Mandarin.

00:39:58.406 --> 00:40:00.836 A:middle
And I thought there's got to
be an easier way to do this.

00:40:00.906 --> 00:40:04.256 A:middle
And I started reading
academic journal articles

00:40:04.256 --> 00:40:05.626 A:middle
about how to learn.

00:40:06.226 --> 00:40:07.726 A:middle
Not just Japanese or Chinese,

00:40:07.936 --> 00:40:09.486 A:middle
but the Chinese characters.

00:40:09.676 --> 00:40:12.576 A:middle
If he, if you don't have a
Chinese character background

00:40:12.576 --> 00:40:13.466 A:middle
and your first language,

00:40:13.726 --> 00:40:14.806 A:middle
how do you acquire them?

00:40:14.876 --> 00:40:16.096 A:middle
Is there an easier way to do it?

00:40:16.536 --> 00:40:19.506 A:middle
And I thought I'd like to go
back to school and get a PhD and

00:40:19.576 --> 00:40:22.376 A:middle
be able to teach Japanese and
Chinese at the college level.

00:40:22.446 --> 00:40:24.076 A:middle
And I knew I had a PhD,

00:40:24.276 --> 00:40:25.476 A:middle
but I don't want to abandon ESL.

00:40:25.576 --> 00:40:27.726 A:middle
I want to keep teaching
something related ESL.

00:40:28.136 --> 00:40:30.216 A:middle
And so that's, that's
what motivated me

00:40:30.216 --> 00:40:32.266 A:middle
and I started looking at

00:40:32.356 --> 00:40:35.996 A:middle
different PhDs and I realized
what I wanted was a PhD

00:40:35.996 --> 00:40:37.656 A:middle
in second language acquisition.

00:40:38.366 --> 00:40:40.916 A:middle
And so there's only a
handful of schools in the US

00:40:40.916 --> 00:40:42.726 A:middle
that offer a PhD in that.

00:40:42.936 --> 00:40:44.696 A:middle
And I applied all of them.

00:40:45.036 --> 00:40:47.666 A:middle
And I got rejected by
the University of Hawaii.

00:40:48.026 --> 00:40:49.706 A:middle
And and I, I,

00:40:49.776 --> 00:40:51.476 A:middle
you know, and as
it come on, man,

00:40:52.276 --> 00:40:55.236 A:middle
but I had no hard feelings but

00:40:55.236 --> 00:40:57.796 A:middle
and then I was tentatively
accepted to all others.

00:40:58.036 --> 00:41:01.176 A:middle
But and the end only
three offered funding.

00:41:01.576 --> 00:41:03.376 A:middle
And that was the
University of Maryland.

00:41:04.226 --> 00:41:06.086 A:middle
Here at the University
of South Florida

00:41:06.086 --> 00:41:08.816 A:middle
and Carnegie Mellon
University in Pittsburgh.

00:41:09.186 --> 00:41:12.946 A:middle
And I chose Carnegie Mellon
more than anything because

00:41:13.176 --> 00:41:14.156 A:middle
that was the one school

00:41:14.156 --> 00:41:17.366 A:middle
of the three why I was
guaranteed teaching position.

00:41:17.846 --> 00:41:21.306 A:middle
Japanese. And to reassure some
Japanese and Chinese characters.

00:41:21.976 --> 00:41:24.776 A:middle
I love, I love, I love.

00:41:25.246 --> 00:41:25.516 A:middle
Yeah.

00:41:25.686 --> 00:41:27.376 A:middle
It was, it was a
great experience.

00:41:27.446 --> 00:41:28.896 A:middle
It was a grueling experience.

00:41:29.146 --> 00:41:31.076 A:middle
But what's the creative
experience?

00:41:31.506 --> 00:41:34.136 A:middle
But so I went to Carnegie
Mellon in Pittsburgh and

00:41:34.226 --> 00:41:36.746 A:middle
like so many other places I'd
never been, I just chose it.

00:41:36.856 --> 00:41:39.136 A:middle
I went there and I
lived in Pittsburgh

00:41:39.136 --> 00:41:41.716 A:middle
for about about five years.

00:41:42.656 --> 00:41:44.706 A:middle
Another great experience.

00:41:44.956 --> 00:41:46.796 A:middle
So that's how I ended
up back in the US

00:41:46.796 --> 00:41:47.906 A:middle
and I went to Carnegie Mellon.

00:41:48.246 --> 00:41:50.606 A:middle
And so my PhD is in second
language acquisition.

00:41:51.956 --> 00:41:53.836 A:middle
And because of the
nature of my research,

00:41:53.906 --> 00:41:56.886 A:middle
I'd originally, I focused on
reading and writing system.

00:41:56.976 --> 00:41:59.976 A:middle
So my background was
very reading focused.

00:42:00.836 --> 00:42:04.996 A:middle
So a lot of theory and the
underpinnings behind a lot of,

00:42:05.426 --> 00:42:08.176 A:middle
you know, teaching techniques,
methodologies, whatever.

00:42:09.436 --> 00:42:13.806 A:middle
They, they get pulled in from
not one specific language,

00:42:13.906 --> 00:42:16.476 A:middle
but across different languages
and you can apply it so you know

00:42:16.546 --> 00:42:18.756 A:middle
whatever language
you're teaching

00:42:18.756 --> 00:42:20.206 A:middle
and I'm oversimplifying,

00:42:20.846 --> 00:42:23.956 A:middle
but so I knew that that would
give me the background I

00:42:24.046 --> 00:42:26.666 A:middle
needed to if I wanted to
continue on the three languages

00:42:26.666 --> 00:42:27.686 A:middle
that I hope to work on and,

00:42:27.866 --> 00:42:31.456 A:middle
um, and so that also position
me as a reading specialist.

00:42:31.996 --> 00:42:33.666 A:middle
So that that's that's kind

00:42:33.666 --> 00:42:35.776 A:middle
of how I got my job
at Valley College.

00:42:35.846 --> 00:42:40.636 A:middle
So I was actually originally
looking for I was thinking

00:42:40.706 --> 00:42:44.276 A:middle
to to work in ESL
or Japanese or both

00:42:44.276 --> 00:42:46.176 A:middle
and I taught Japanese Actually,

00:42:46.346 --> 00:42:48.846 A:middle
I'm at the University
of Virginia for a while.

00:42:49.286 --> 00:42:52.706 A:middle
After my actually, I was
still in my PhD program,

00:42:52.776 --> 00:42:55.146 A:middle
but I moved to Charlottesville
because

00:42:55.376 --> 00:42:59.796 A:middle
my wife her she she got her PhD
from the University of Virginia.

00:43:00.246 --> 00:43:03.986 A:middle
So we met in Pittsburgh
and and we got married

00:43:03.986 --> 00:43:06.026 A:middle
by some people's
standards rather quickly.

00:43:06.306 --> 00:43:08.046 A:middle
I don't think so, but, um,

00:43:08.246 --> 00:43:10.236 A:middle
you know, eight years,
eight years this year,

00:43:10.426 --> 00:43:11.706 A:middle
and for the naysayers,

00:43:11.786 --> 00:43:14.346 A:middle
but I'm die, I love
my wife and I end.

00:43:15.196 --> 00:43:17.476 A:middle
It's, you know, I'm
very thankful for it

00:43:17.476 --> 00:43:19.306 A:middle
because we both met mid PhD.

00:43:19.746 --> 00:43:22.016 A:middle
And she's also a
first-generation

00:43:22.016 --> 00:43:22.906 A:middle
college student,

00:43:22.976 --> 00:43:24.126 A:middle
a working class kid.

00:43:24.486 --> 00:43:27.206 A:middle
And she teaches at
Cal State Long Beach.

00:43:27.276 --> 00:43:30.566 A:middle
And I, she's linguistic
anthropologist and she,

00:43:31.186 --> 00:43:33.256 A:middle
when we talk to students,
we often think,

00:43:33.846 --> 00:43:35.676 A:middle
I wish someone would
have told me this because

00:43:35.746 --> 00:43:37.526 A:middle
this would have made my
life easier as a student.

00:43:37.986 --> 00:43:41.466 A:middle
And so I think that we both
kind of approach teaching

00:43:41.466 --> 00:43:42.416 A:middle
from that perspective.

00:43:42.886 --> 00:43:48.336 A:middle
But anyway, I taught Japanese at
UVA and then the work dried up,

00:43:48.416 --> 00:43:49.526 A:middle
but I need to look for a job.

00:43:50.296 --> 00:43:52.026 A:middle
And so she thought she
was going to get work.

00:43:52.106 --> 00:43:54.316 A:middle
And if you're in Charlottesville
and you're in academia,

00:43:54.906 --> 00:43:56.756 A:middle
you either work at
UVA or you're broke.

00:43:58.346 --> 00:44:01.086 A:middle
And so I started looking
for work down the road.

00:44:01.576 --> 00:44:05.656 A:middle
I tentatively I went to
Lynchburg college an hour away,

00:44:05.746 --> 00:44:08.096 A:middle
Richmond, Virginia
with a DC, nothing.

00:44:08.246 --> 00:44:12.116 A:middle
I was like, well, our original
plan was we'd stay in Virginia

00:44:12.116 --> 00:44:13.636 A:middle
until she finished her PhD.

00:44:13.736 --> 00:44:14.746 A:middle
Then we both looked for work.

00:44:15.386 --> 00:44:17.806 A:middle
Life is like hahaha,
it's not going to happen.

00:44:18.076 --> 00:44:20.046 A:middle
So I applied all
over the country

00:44:20.046 --> 00:44:22.566 A:middle
and I saw there were lots
of jobs in California.

00:44:23.176 --> 00:44:26.726 A:middle
I probably applied to like
30 community college jobs,

00:44:27.266 --> 00:44:31.536 A:middle
then get one callback and
not Valley cogito day.

00:44:31.656 --> 00:44:32.826 A:middle
There was nothing
available at that time

00:44:32.826 --> 00:44:34.316 A:middle
and ionize applying
for anything I

00:44:34.446 --> 00:44:37.276 A:middle
was qualified for that was
related to what I enjoyed like,

00:44:37.346 --> 00:44:38.836 A:middle
you know, teach English
as a second language.

00:44:38.906 --> 00:44:41.056 A:middle
Is English, even a
reading position?

00:44:41.186 --> 00:44:45.706 A:middle
And, um, and I ended up
getting a job at UCLA,

00:44:45.776 --> 00:44:50.526 A:middle
UCLA Extension, where I was
an ESL program coordinator.

00:44:50.986 --> 00:44:52.606 A:middle
And I did that for
a couple of years.

00:44:52.946 --> 00:44:56.526 A:middle
And and so I was it was an
administrative position.

00:44:56.606 --> 00:44:58.326 A:middle
So I supervise other
instructors,

00:44:58.406 --> 00:45:03.006 A:middle
ESL instructors, design
curricula, things like that.

00:45:03.276 --> 00:45:06.526 A:middle
But I I told the
the hiring manager

00:45:06.526 --> 00:45:07.766 A:middle
at the time, the director.

00:45:09.046 --> 00:45:11.306 A:middle
He was a great guy and I
said, I'll be honest with you.

00:45:12.056 --> 00:45:13.736 A:middle
I really like to teach.

00:45:13.806 --> 00:45:15.516 A:middle
He's like, No, just do
this for a couple of years

00:45:15.516 --> 00:45:17.106 A:middle
and get some experience.

00:45:17.316 --> 00:45:20.076 A:middle
And if you want to still teach,

00:45:20.146 --> 00:45:21.506 A:middle
you should, you should
go wanna do that.

00:45:21.846 --> 00:45:24.376 A:middle
He was, he was always very
supportive and so I did that.

00:45:24.446 --> 00:45:29.036 A:middle
I started looking for for
teaching jobs and I apply

00:45:29.036 --> 00:45:30.236 A:middle
for my current position.

00:45:30.746 --> 00:45:35.796 A:middle
And and I got a call back and
the rest as they say is history.

00:45:36.326 --> 00:45:40.146 A:middle
So I I'm actually officially
in the Psychology Department.

00:45:40.526 --> 00:45:43.176 A:middle
And the courses I
teach are developmental

00:45:43.176 --> 00:45:44.236 A:middle
communication courses,

00:45:44.306 --> 00:45:46.136 A:middle
which are reading and
study skills courses.

00:45:46.286 --> 00:45:47.616 A:middle
And so I do,

00:45:47.746 --> 00:45:50.006 A:middle
I do that because
like I said, I,

00:45:50.336 --> 00:45:53.026 A:middle
by the virtue of my PhD
coursework and research,

00:45:53.206 --> 00:45:54.626 A:middle
I'm a reading specialist,

00:45:54.916 --> 00:45:56.156 A:middle
but I'm also able to teach

00:45:56.156 --> 00:45:58.376 A:middle
in the credit ESL
department at Valley College.

00:45:58.736 --> 00:46:00.976 A:middle
So I, I, I get I
get to do again,

00:46:01.046 --> 00:46:02.406 A:middle
lots of things that
I enjoy doing,

00:46:02.476 --> 00:46:03.486 A:middle
so I'm very thankful.

00:46:05.106 --> 00:46:10.236 A:middle
Yeah, I remember there had
been a decades long battle

00:46:10.896 --> 00:46:12.836 A:middle
to have a reading specialist.

00:46:12.906 --> 00:46:16.806 A:middle
There seem to be a fight
between English and NRI and

00:46:16.896 --> 00:46:20.326 A:middle
dev com reading where the DEF
CON people are saying they're

00:46:20.326 --> 00:46:21.246 A:middle
not the same thing.

00:46:21.916 --> 00:46:24.056 A:middle
Now at the map first and
then all these meetings,

00:46:24.176 --> 00:46:25.176 A:middle
I never really understood it.

00:46:25.246 --> 00:46:25.746 A:middle
Like I don't know.

00:46:25.746 --> 00:46:27.996 A:middle
I don't understand that the
difference between the two.

00:46:28.446 --> 00:46:31.796 A:middle
But now that you explain your
your background and history,

00:46:32.016 --> 00:46:34.166 A:middle
I've just humble
by what it takes

00:46:34.166 --> 00:46:36.176 A:middle
to to be a reading specialist,

00:46:36.466 --> 00:46:37.716 A:middle
like what that entails.

00:46:37.816 --> 00:46:39.136 A:middle
But what you're trying to do,

00:46:39.216 --> 00:46:40.516 A:middle
who you're trying to impact,

00:46:40.776 --> 00:46:43.706 A:middle
how you have take people from
many different languages.

00:46:43.776 --> 00:46:45.066 A:middle
Because your starting point was

00:46:45.066 --> 00:46:46.646 A:middle
with each person is
in a different place.

00:46:46.746 --> 00:46:50.906 A:middle
I'm just sort of humbled by
shorter the sheer complexity

00:46:51.196 --> 00:46:53.026 A:middle
of the job that you have.

00:46:53.466 --> 00:46:56.396 A:middle
Well, I think what are the
so the classes I teach,

00:46:56.506 --> 00:46:57.046 A:middle
the development

00:46:57.046 --> 00:46:58.626 A:middle
of communications
classes that I teach,

00:46:58.916 --> 00:47:00.186 A:middle
they're open to any students

00:47:00.186 --> 00:47:01.576 A:middle
at Valley College you
want to take them.

00:47:01.776 --> 00:47:03.246 A:middle
So what that means is,

00:47:03.426 --> 00:47:05.686 A:middle
I often work with
students with varied,

00:47:05.776 --> 00:47:07.276 A:middle
as you said, very
different backgrounds.

00:47:07.346 --> 00:47:08.476 A:middle
Many of my students,

00:47:08.546 --> 00:47:09.906 A:middle
I mean all kinds of backgrounds.

00:47:09.976 --> 00:47:12.616 A:middle
So it's one of the biggest
challenges is trying to

00:47:12.776 --> 00:47:15.866 A:middle
figure out how to meet
the course objectives,

00:47:15.976 --> 00:47:17.216 A:middle
the student learning outcomes,

00:47:17.686 --> 00:47:19.926 A:middle
while making the class
accessible to students

00:47:19.926 --> 00:47:22.016 A:middle
at the lower end or
with less experience.

00:47:22.206 --> 00:47:23.596 A:middle
Especially, I worked with a lot

00:47:23.596 --> 00:47:25.496 A:middle
of students whose first
language is not English.

00:47:25.716 --> 00:47:27.596 A:middle
Brilliant, hardworking
people, but they're still

00:47:27.596 --> 00:47:28.966 A:middle
on their learning
curve with English.

00:47:29.276 --> 00:47:31.706 A:middle
So make the class
accessible to students like

00:47:31.776 --> 00:47:34.876 A:middle
that while also working
with students who might be,

00:47:34.996 --> 00:47:37.176 A:middle
for example, returning
to college later in life.

00:47:37.266 --> 00:47:38.866 A:middle
And English as their
first language.

00:47:39.106 --> 00:47:41.666 A:middle
And they're actually, they're
very accomplished readers,

00:47:41.946 --> 00:47:43.436 A:middle
but they need a little
more practice,

00:47:43.606 --> 00:47:44.956 A:middle
help with study skills and how

00:47:44.956 --> 00:47:47.076 A:middle
to focus what they
already know and,

00:47:47.176 --> 00:47:48.906 A:middle
and apply that to
a college format.

00:47:49.246 --> 00:47:51.636 A:middle
So that is probably
the biggest challenge

00:47:51.636 --> 00:47:53.806 A:middle
on the ESL classes that I teach.

00:47:53.876 --> 00:47:55.036 A:middle
There are different levels.

00:47:55.106 --> 00:47:58.056 A:middle
So like if I teach reading
class and credit ESL,

00:47:58.246 --> 00:48:02.226 A:middle
those students are closer range
of skills and proficiency.

00:48:02.476 --> 00:48:06.006 A:middle
And so it's, those courses
are easier in that respect.

00:48:06.316 --> 00:48:08.796 A:middle
There are other challenges,
but that's not one of them.

00:48:08.966 --> 00:48:11.346 A:middle
Wow, I think John's description

00:48:11.346 --> 00:48:13.636 A:middle
of humble certainly
fits me to you.

00:48:13.706 --> 00:48:19.076 A:middle
You have an incredible story or
the experiences that you've had,

00:48:19.146 --> 00:48:20.676 A:middle
the education that
you have behind you,

00:48:20.746 --> 00:48:22.636 A:middle
and all of that that you
bring to Valley College

00:48:23.556 --> 00:48:27.466 A:middle
and working across two different
areas helping students.

00:48:27.576 --> 00:48:30.326 A:middle
I'm lucky my offices down
the hallway from Eric's,

00:48:30.406 --> 00:48:31.676 A:middle
are we going to see each
other here and there,

00:48:31.746 --> 00:48:33.216 A:middle
and it's that committee
meetings together.

00:48:33.836 --> 00:48:37.036 A:middle
And it's been a real pleasure
to sit down and to dig

00:48:37.036 --> 00:48:38.476 A:middle
into them, the real story.

00:48:38.936 --> 00:48:42.496 A:middle
Really see how it was it You
made it to them in college.

00:48:42.666 --> 00:48:44.206 A:middle
I just want to say
thank you so much

00:48:44.206 --> 00:48:45.576 A:middle
for sitting down and sharing

00:48:45.646 --> 00:48:48.396 A:middle
everything with us today
are much Appreciate it is

00:48:48.396 --> 00:48:49.106 A:middle
my pleasure.

00:48:49.296 --> 00:48:52.176 A:middle
And I Scott, I should thank
you as well because you

00:48:52.246 --> 00:48:55.296 A:middle
are because you're offices
down the hall from my office.

00:48:55.406 --> 00:48:57.636 A:middle
I know that I went into your
office many times and said,

00:48:57.806 --> 00:48:59.216 A:middle
I have a question
about Valley College.

00:48:59.346 --> 00:48:59.956 A:middle
What should I do?

00:48:59.956 --> 00:49:00.956 A:middle
Thank You.

00:49:00.956 --> 00:49:01.426 A:middle
Are holy.

00:49:01.646 --> 00:49:03.156 A:middle
And no matter how busy you are,

00:49:03.276 --> 00:49:05.246 A:middle
you are always there to
lend an ear or to help me

00:49:05.246 --> 00:49:06.506 A:middle
out in the right direction.

00:49:06.576 --> 00:49:08.566 A:middle
And I, I do appreciate that.

00:49:08.766 --> 00:49:10.626 A:middle
I've worked with so many
great people at valley.

00:49:10.966 --> 00:49:11.916 A:middle
And you know, John
and I have been

00:49:11.916 --> 00:49:13.666 A:middle
on different committees
together and, you know,

00:49:14.336 --> 00:49:16.576 A:middle
he's he's been around
longer than I have and

00:49:16.796 --> 00:49:19.306 A:middle
I've learned a lot from
working with people like

00:49:19.376 --> 00:49:21.776 A:middle
both of you who've had
more experience and I

00:49:21.846 --> 00:49:23.466 A:middle
really do appreciate
that and thanks so much

00:49:23.466 --> 00:49:24.436 A:middle
for sharing your story.

00:49:24.506 --> 00:49:25.406 A:middle
It's really amazing.

00:49:25.676 --> 00:49:27.056 A:middle
I think when we started
picking at it,

00:49:27.146 --> 00:49:28.486 A:middle
I don't know where
it was going to go.

00:49:28.746 --> 00:49:31.966 A:middle
And it's really exciting
to see where you've been.

00:49:32.076 --> 00:49:35.386 A:middle
And I'm sure this adventure
you're going to continue.

00:49:36.276 --> 00:49:39.716 A:middle
I don't think I don't like
having an adventure in life.

00:49:40.546 --> 00:49:40.666 A:middle
You know.

00:49:41.176 --> 00:49:44.126 A:middle
What's the best way
for students or faculty

00:49:44.126 --> 00:49:45.576 A:middle
or someone to get a hold of you.

00:49:45.646 --> 00:49:47.336 A:middle
If they want to follow
up, visit,

00:49:47.406 --> 00:49:50.336 A:middle
visit the website, send you an
e-mail, stop by your office.

00:49:50.406 --> 00:49:51.886 A:middle
What would you prefer?

00:49:52.276 --> 00:49:54.226 A:middle
Email is always good.

00:49:55.056 --> 00:49:58.326 A:middle
I the last name mysql
is not very common.

00:49:58.696 --> 00:50:00.376 A:middle
So it's easy to find me.

00:50:00.646 --> 00:50:03.306 A:middle
Just type erythema
Seiko and it will be me

00:50:03.306 --> 00:50:04.986 A:middle
or some other person in Arizona.

00:50:05.286 --> 00:50:07.396 A:middle
And I'm not I'm not
the person Arizona.

00:50:08.636 --> 00:50:11.026 A:middle
And here in Los Angeles,
to my knowledge,

00:50:11.146 --> 00:50:12.296 A:middle
there are three I mean,

00:50:12.476 --> 00:50:13.936 A:middle
in Los Angeles County,

00:50:14.226 --> 00:50:16.066 A:middle
LA area, there are only three.

00:50:16.176 --> 00:50:17.086 A:middle
Dr. miss. Akos.

00:50:17.636 --> 00:50:21.786 A:middle
There's there's a dermatologist
and then there's me and my wife.

00:50:22.106 --> 00:50:25.336 A:middle
Just type doctor missed Seiko
and you'll probably find us.

00:50:25.406 --> 00:50:26.216 A:middle
So there's no hiding.

00:50:26.626 --> 00:50:26.856 A:middle
Yeah.

00:50:28.026 --> 00:50:28.606 A:middle
Perfect.

00:50:28.686 --> 00:50:29.336 A:middle
Thank you so much.

00:50:29.406 --> 00:50:30.606 A:middle
Sure. Thank you.

00:50:30.676 --> 00:50:32.036 A:middle
It's been a great conversation.

00:50:32.036 --> 00:50:32.546 A:middle
Thanks, guys.