JET Coaster: Outgoing JET Conference Video

A few years ago I had the opportunity to teach English in Japan through the JET Programme, and recently one of my friends from the program asked me to make a video for the JET participants returning home this summer. I was asked to address the following points in my video:

"Basically start by saying where you were in Akita and for how long, and then talk about the following questions:

1) How was the reverse culture shock when you moved back home? Did you feel any, and how did you deal with it?
2) What are you doing now, where are you living?
3) How did your JET experience help you professionally?
4) Do you have any regrets about not doing something on the JET Programme?
5) Do you have any message for the JETs leaving this year?"




These are the verses I wrote in response, entitled "JET Coaster":

hey everybody my name's JournalRhythm no I mean Eyjilla no I mean AJ
these days I answer to the names of these three folks
it's no joke what I spoke you we goin' for broke
I had an overdose of flow and opened up to music
paired it up with the daily news and infused it
cruised in on the JET Programme and used it
to build another library of words to choose
imbuing myself with bicultural influence
got no regrets. here's my summary and 2 cents:

ジェットコースターみたいにups and downs
you feel kinda like a hero yet a sidekick somehow
この乗り物は確か楽しい
けど乗っているうちにwatch out for your calling

日本語flow now

現在住んでる場所はイリノイ州
帰国してもショックはある
サービスは比較的に最低
たとえばマックの注文受ける相手
雰囲気だけでいらつくぐらい
何度もsigh「このバイト要らない」
と言ってるみたいに笑顔もない
「日本よかったな」と思わざるを得ない
こんな時。that ain't no joke, see.
that's my video... you can proceed.

The mp3 can be downloaded here:
JET_Coaster.mp3

Below is the video as it was shown at the JET conference: