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NEWSROOM * CIRCULATION * ADVERTISING
Tuesday
February 2010
9
Community Blogs
Jeff is a 25-year-old Brookfield East grad. living and working as an English teacher in rural Japan. He attended UW-Madison where he received a degree in secondary education and enjoys writing about current issues through the scope of popular culture. He is a music and film lover and believes that no issue is too trivial for discussion.
Greetings from afar
Hello Brookfieldians! It's a pleasure, albeit a daunting one, to be able to add a new blog to this wonderful network of news and opinions. I ask you, as you have quite evidently found your way here, only for your audience and also for your feedback, should you be so kind to give it. First, an introduction.
My name is Jeff Oloizia, and for the first 18 years of my life I was fortunate enough to call Brookfield home. I am now a 25-year-old English teacher living in Tokushima, a town of roughly 250,000 people on the small island of Shikoku in the south of Japan. I have lived here for just over two years and enjoy both my work and leisure in Tokushima, though I find myself looking more and more these days back to the States and the life that may await me there before long.
In some ways, Brookfield and Tokushima are mildly similar. Both are fairly conservative towns with strong support in their local schools. Both are largely homogeneous, with Brookfield being 94% White and Tokushima almost wholly Japanese. The two communities share many of the same virtues, as well as (in my opinion) common pitfalls.
Like their home countries, however, the two cities are also strikingly different. Tokushima, with its gridwork of rivers and looming mountains, cuts a stark figure in contrast to the flat suburbs of Brookfield. With an average of age of 42 years, the citizens of Brookfield are also much younger than their Far East counterparts, who share a median age of roughly 142 years. Also, Brookfield's former mayor invented Shrinky Dinks; Tokushima's did not. I say these things not to create a barrier between the two places, but rather to give some context for my writing to come.
What I hope to give you in subsequent entries is a view of local issues from my perspective - literally, from the East. I can't pretend to be an expert on such issues, and admittedly by position as a liberal 20-something living on the other side of the world doesn't make me a prime candidate for commenting on the everyday happenings of Brookfield, but I expect with optimism that at least the view I can provide will be a unique one. I hope you'll enjoy reading and interacting, and please check back soon.
Wow! What a treat. I want to know everything. Are you folks still here? How do they feel about your being so far away? If you need a doctor is it easy and similar to home or different and hard to find? Does Tokushima feel like home yet? What do you miss the most from the states?
I've always had a bit of a wandering streak, but I can't imagine picking up and moving to Japan. Can't wait to hear more.
There is not a chance that the median age of the people of Tokushima is 142 years! Who are you employed by?
Sorry Jeff, but I'm forced to agree with my good friend El coño. 143 does sound a bit old, especially as the median age. Not even Okinawa makes such claims, and they are one of seven 'blue' spots in the world. What do these people eat?
Oh and welcome to the club!
Sorry Jeff, but I'm forced to agree with my good friend El gatito (correction!). 143 does sound a bit old, especially as the median age. Not even Okinawa makes such claims, and they are one of seven 'blue' spots in the world. What do these people eat?
Oh and welcome to the club!
I think they eat a lot of fish. If you're in your 20's it probably seems like those around 120 just look like 142.
Welcome, Jeff
I look forward to hearing from a fresh, international, and yes, a younger voice than the rest of us. I have had the good fortune of traveling to Japan twice; a series of beautiful islands. What a fabulous opportuntiy and adventure you have carved out for yourself. Well done.
Hi Jeff,
Congratulations at finding a truly interesting position!
It will be interesting to hear the perspective from afar...
One thing, this is Brookfield, WI that you are talking of and not Brookfield, IL? I would say Brookfield, WI is anything but a 'flat' suburb. Not mountainous for certain, but we sit on a large terminal moraine that cuts right through the city.
Based on my experience, it is hard to find a 2 block stretch of flat land here.
Hello Jeff,
Glad to see you have joined the Brookfield Bloggers, and I look forward to reading your posts.
I am curious what made you choose Japan. The love of sushi? ;-) I would be interested in knowing more about how a typical Japanese education compares to your experience in Brookfield--class size, length of school day, homework, class offerings, sports, etc. Comparing the two systems from the teachers' point of view would be interesting too--benefits, wages, hours, etc. (Nothing too personal, just in general terms.)
Seriously, what is the median age there?
Alright alright...I suppose 142 is a bit of a stretch.
Truthfully I'm not entirely sure what the exact median age is here, but I can say confidently that it's a fair bit higher than Brookfield's. The truth is that this is an old country - not just in terms of its history but the population as well. Birth rates have dropped significantly to the point where initiatives have been discussed for encouraging couples to have more children. I can touch on this more later, but certainly it's something interesting to think about.
And Mikey - you're absolutely right. I hadn't considered Brookfield topography as much as what I was seeing out my windows here. Thanks for the correction.
Keep the good comments coming!
Jeff, you must not be computer literate! There are so many ways to find out facts. Google is just one of them. This site:
http://www.indexmundi.com/japan/median_age.html give the median age of Japan as 44.2 years. You also should not compare "average" age with "median" age. It's a good thing you teach English and not Math! I hope your teaching skills are more thorough than this particular blog indicates your lack of attention to details. Sorry to "rag" on you, but sloppy reporting is not tolerated here.
What a pleasant surprise! Another Brookfield native teaching English in Japan? And in beautiful Tokushima too, home of Awaji style bunraku puppetry, super fantastic beaches, and one really helpful cab company!
Got linked your blog by my folks Jeff. Unless I miss my remembering, you and I may actually have gone to EMS together back when it was EMS.
Are you on JET or are you with a private ALT company?
- Steppin' out
- Watching from the cheap seats
- Contemplating the holidays
- Your attention, for a mo
- Kickin' it with swine flu and xenophobia
- A vote of confidence for Nora Collins
- Can't miss music
- A jumping-off point for comparison
- Checking in on school renovations
- International experience and the economy
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