Close to Desperation
I need help, and I’m open to ideas. I’m hoping there may be some lurking readers out there with connections, biding their time until the blogger presents a call.
My current visa expires June 9th, 2007. My last day of work is May 24th. I want to stay. Simple as that. Why?
– Back in Austin, I was merely surviving, not thriving. Eating the same meals, running the same paths, talking to the same (albeit few) people. In Japan, I am traveling, studying the Nihongo, writing more, learning more, staying up to date with current affairs, and meeting more people.
– Japan has been good to me, despite certain employment conditions.
Now, before you go thinking, “It’s almost April! You should have done something before now! Search for jobs, tap every connection,” I should tell you: I have. I know all the best job search websites in Japan (see my link bar under Living in Japan), and I have been searching daily and applying for many positions. So why haven’t I found a job yet? Well, it’s not because I’m an inexperienced idiot (mostly not):
1. Number one, numero uno, and I cannot stress this enough: I DO NOT WANT TO TEACH ENGLISH for another year. My conflicts with my current employer nonwithstanding (I’ll have to write about them after May 24th), the fact remains I’m sick of the stereotypical foreigner in Japan only teaching English. It feels like the majority of us. I want to see the other options, and have a different answer for people besides “ego no sensei des.” No, I’m not doing this for public perception – although it would be a perk; I want to see the rest of the job market in Japan. But mainly, my qualms are with the eikaiwa; I have to find something else.
Sidebar: I am willing to edit technical English, and possibly do some English language consulting for a professional business; as long as it’s away from the school system and the private language schools, I have no problem.
2. My Japanese is between JLP 4 and 3, which isn’t very good. Many companies hiring foreigners expect at least JLP 2, and they have every right to; I’m studying, but it’ll take time.
3. I need a visa sponsor. I have no intention of staying here illegally and later being deported. I can’t apply for a part time position and work freelance the rest of the time. I need a full time job with a company willing to sponsor my work visa. Although… if someone has gone through the experience of self-sponsoring himself, please tell me about it.
4. Another big reason, if you haven’t picked up on it yet: I’m picky. It’s easy to find an English-teaching job in Japan without knowing any Japanese, but if I’m not willing to do that, bartend, work as a male hostess, sweep floors, or recruit for corporations, the options are limited.
Any thoughts? Send them my way. I am waiting to hear from a very promising job based in Kagoshima and Wakayama… send your hope in my direction.
Apparently some of my pictures from the Sake Festival and Miyajima have been posted on Made of Japan; I can’t find them, but if anyone discovers where on the shoe I am (see link), please tell me.
