Give Judy my notice

Countdown to Ben folds: 4 days
I’m so excited I just might pee in my pants.

Attention K-Mart shoppers...

Hey boys and girls…mark your calendars.
Jenn-sensei will be deep in the heart of Texas on December 16th until January 4th. On a side note, I have a 7 hour layover in San Francisco, so if you know anyone there or just something to do, let me know. I imagine I’m going to be bored off my rockers and annoyed that I’m stuck in California. Maybe, I should try and enjoy it since I’ve never been there before…

Funeral flowers

On our way to Brett and Bong’s house, we wanted to get them flowers. There is a small flower shop down from our apartment, so we just stopped in real quick. We noticed a nice bouquet already put together as we walked in the door. It wasn’t anything fancy, but it was nice enough so we picked it up and handed it to the man working there. He began saying something in Japanese and we were able to understand that he didn’t think those flowers were a good choice. We thought it might be because he wanted us to get a more expensive spread, so we just handed them to him. He took them, but then asked what they were for. We told him they were a gift and he said then proceeded to tell us that we had picked out the traditional Japanese funeral flowers. Nice, huh? Of course, it wouldn’t have really mattered because neither Brett nor Bong is Japanese, but there would have been plenty of Japanese people there, so it was best to not offend anyone. I love the confusion that comes with living in a foreign land…

More random pictures for your viewing pleasure...

This is udon. It's basically a bunch of stuff with noodles. This one was spicy and I liked it a lot...good stuff.



Here is the TexMex place we found in Tsudanuma. No, it's nothing like TexMex, but it wasn't too bad considering we were eating Mexican food in Japan. And yes, that's me in the picture being a complete dork.



Here are some school boys waiting for the train. Lauren took this picture and they definitely noticed. They probably think we're in love with them...or that we're just stupid foreigners.



In Japan, they have game centers EVERYWHERE. Apparently you're never too old for these game centers. I honestly don't understand the draw to waste your money on stuffed animals, but whatever...
Here is Yuya after he won a Halloween Stitch doll. Yes, he is about to be 28...and he still loves game centers....probably as much as my junior high students.

Lauren's birthday-continued

Well, I already posted pictures from when we went to Outback for Lauren's birthday. That was actually on Sept. 2nd and her birthday is on the 3rd, so on the 3rd, we had a little party on our own at my apartment.

Here is the nice spread we put together...haha.


See-Lauren even managed to make guacamole!

After dinner, Lauren opened her presents from Liz and I. Here she is holding up my presents decorated in Buzz Lightyear stickers. (sorry-inside joke)



After the presents, we had cake and wine. Yum yum...



Lauren wanted a picture with all of us holding our cake and wine. This is what happens when you think you have the timer on, but you don't...



If you ask me, it looks like they had already had too much to drink...

Too many pictures...

Ok, here are just a few random pictures from the past few weeks. Sorry I've been so bad at updating this site, but I'll try and get better at it...and in the mean time, you guys can get better at leaving comments!

Every so often, there is a festival going on in the street. They close the streets off and have lots of food and entertainment. There are always games for the kids to play too. In one game, the kids get to catch goldfish and bring whatever they catch home. I thought it was cute, so I took a couple pictures.






Here is something you never see Americans doing--waiting in line for a train.



Even when I was in New York, no one was waiting in line, that's for sure.

Here's a fun little car that I saw one day while we were out.



Ok, that's it for now...I'll add more stuff soon. Sorry for the lack of writing and abundance of pictures.

Can you play the glasses? No? Well, I'm going to learn!

Last Saturday we went to the Kanda's house. Once a month they have people over for bible study and some sort of entertainment. The first time we went there were fireworks. This time, we were so excited because someone would be playing the glasses...just like on Mrs. Congeniality!



This guy was awesome. Oh, and the girl in the background was playing a note on the piano for him to tune the glasses! I'm going to start practicing--maybe I'll perform for you guys when I'm home at Christmas.

Next month there is a girl that will do magic...I can't wait.

Don't forget what you've left behind...

Who knew that the Japanese people didn't eat turkey? Anyone? Well, I sure would have liked to know this little bit of trivia before moving all the way here! Now that I've got myself in a country that lacks in the sweet goodness of turkey, I have to resort to my survival skills.

Step #1-Locate turkey
Lauren and I have looked at many grocery stores (in vain, no less) for turkey. We have always come up empty handed. We were getting desperate. This lead us to the foreigners store at Aeon mall. We went there one evening and found this:



As you can see, the can boast "100% White, Lean Turkey". It had to be good, right?
We decided to forget our reservations and preconceived ideas about spam, and just go for it. We both bought a can at 522 yen a piece. (that's like $5.22)

Of course neither of us had any experience with spam, so we had to read the directions.



Seemed easy enough...let's see here--Step #1: Lift and pull



Alright, got it. Dang, this stuff stinks! Ok, now we just squeeze until it pops...



Ok, that's done. Now it's the tricky part-squeeze it and tap it on the bottom so it will come out.



Presto! Oh man, this is so gross. I can't believe we bought this!
This is me when I was grossed out at the sight of the spam falling out of the can.



Ok, now I've got to get a hold of myself. I all I have to do is slice it, because I'm sure not frying this stuff!



There you have it...the adventures of turkey spam. How does it taste you ask? Well, it's not the worst thing I've ever eaten, but I don't plan on buying it again. That should tell you plenty...

Meet Jeremiah

Isn't he just so cute and tiny?

Ok mom, I know what you're thinking: 'Why does she need another iPod?" Well, I promise that I have several good reasons.
Here they are, in no particular order:

1. Gary keeps messing up and I thought if I bought a 'replacement' he might shape up and get his act together.
2. Everything in Japan is smaller. Jeremiah helps me fit in. Gary is really too big for this country (but I still love his husky self).
3. Jeremiah keeps me guessing, unlike Gary, who is predictable. Everyone needs a little excitement in their life from time to time.
4. Ok, forget this list...I wanted Jeremiah, so I got him. That's it--and so far, he's been a great asset.
He's been very helpful on the train. He always drowns out the sound of the Japanese all around me that I don't understand. Oh wait, maybe I should be listening to that and trying to learn more Japanese...

G'day mate...

Well, you all know that I'm really behind on my blog, so excuse me while I try and recall the events of Sept. 2nd.
We were having a surprise party for Lauren at Outback Steakhouse. Everyone was scheduled to be there at 8:00, but Lauren thought it was just us meeting Yukina and Matt. haha...we're so sneaky. Anyhow, Daisuke drove us and for some strange reason there was no traffic. We made it to Makuhari in record time. We were there at 7:45, but decided there was no where to waste time, so we just headed to the restaurant. We didn't want Lauren to suspect anything, plus we knew that Yuya was there already, so there would be at least one person to surprise her. We walked in and she spotted him at a big table. Lauren said, "What are you doing here?" to Yuya. It was great. We were glad we could surprise her.
Here are some random pictures from the fun-filled evening.

Top:Megan, Liz, and Reiko
Bottom: Mandy, Lauren, and me


Daisuke eating a bowl of grilled onions. (Mom, you'd have loved that!)


Matt and Yukina (Their engaged--Matt just moved back here. Yukina is an English teacher at Katsutadai, a school I'll be working at in January.)


Bong, Daisuke, and Amy


Lauren opening a gift, while I'm playfully swinging a knife above her head.


The whole happy group--can you believe we already have this many friends in Japan?!


Mine and Lauren's cheese fries...after we've devoured most of them.


My yummy chicken...they don't make it like this in Yachiyo!


We all had a great time and really enjoyed the American food, err, umm Australian food?

I'm a teacher??

Ok, I'm way behind on updating here. I'll try and work on this the next few days and get caught up, but I can't make any promises.

first day-I had to be at school at 8:00, but only for the first day. Normally we have to be there at 8:30. Since my school is literally a 2 minute bike ride away, I just left a few minutes before 8. I got there right on time and was met at the door by Mrs. Sato, who is one of the English teachers I'll be working with. I had to give a short speech to the teachers, then in the opening assembly time I had to give a short speech to the students. It was easy because it was really short and I just said a few facts about myself. I had to use really easy English since it was all being translated for them. There was also a student teacher that had to be introduced. He's pretty cute too...ha. After the assembly was over, I was told to go 'rest' in the teachers room because I don't have a homeroom. I was literally sitting there for about an hour and half. Luckily, Liz had warned me that would happen, so I had a book with me. The students got to leave at noon, but the ones for the speech contest were there from 1-3, so I worked with them. I left at 3 and came home. It was a good day overall.

Now, as for my first real week of teaching (sept. 5-8), it went well. I had to do my introduction lesson for all the classes. It basically consisted of me giving a short speech about myself, then letting the kids ask me questions. After that, we played a game where they had to remember stuff I had told them about me earlier in my speech. The way the grades work here is a little different than in the states. For all practical purposes, you could say I teach 7th, 8th, and 9th grade. However, here it is called 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grade, because when you come to a new school, you start over. I absolutely love the 1st graders. They are so adorable and love to participate. One of the boys loves giving me high fives already...I love it. They are all really eager to learn so it's really great. Now, I can't say the same about the 2nd graders. They actually are the exact opposite for the most part. There are some that really care, but mostly they hate learning English. Of course that makes my job a little difficult, but I'll survive. The 3rd graders are pretty fun and actually aren't scared to try and speak English, so it's good. I love Mrs. Sato, the 3rd grade English teacher, so that helps with those classes too.
Week 2-(so far) Monday I had all 1st graders and I loved it. They are my favorite for so many reasons...so dang cute. Today (Tuesday) I had two 2nd grade classes and one 1st grade class. Overall, it was an alright day. I got to play a game with the 2nd graders and they actually participated, so I was content. Maybe they won't be so bad after all...
Now, the downside of the job is that I have TONS of down time. I know...I shouldn't complain. I mean, I am getting tons of reading done, but it gets pretty boring at times. However, once September is over and the speech contest is over, things won't be quite as bad since I'll be able to leave at 4:30 everyday, instead of 6.
The upside? No school on Fridays...

Anyway, sorry this isn't much, but I'll write about other things that have happened soon.

I promise I haven't given up on writing here. I'm just really busy right now. (and maybe if I got more comments, I'd be inclined to write more often!)

Anyhow, I'll try and give a report soon on how school is going so far.

I got my haircut today...scary. It's strange when you tell one person what you want, then they translate it into Japanese for the person that will actually be cutting your hair. However, it was fine. I got about 2-3 inches off, but it's still so long that I probably won't notice in a few days.

It's Thursday night, so we're going to watch a movie...I love having Friday's off.

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!

I love you guys. I know you'll have many more years of happiness together. I'm lucky to have such awesome parents. Thanks for all you've done and all you continue to do.

Happy 27th!

2 1/2 hours and 6,000 yen later...

This is my account of Tuesday, August 30th.

The day started early. We had to catch the train at 8:16. We were headed to Chiba, so we could get a multiple re-entry stamp for our passport. You know, so I can get back in the country if I leave, like at Christmas. After taking the wrong train (it's ok Liz-really!), we finally made it to the immigration office. We arrived at 9:30. The place was packed.

(also notice how incredibly stained the carpet is...so disgusting)

We went up to the counter and got a number. Lauren was 332 and I was 333.



Current number when we arrived: 313


By now you are probably wondering why we bothered to document this process with pictures. Well, initially we weren't taking pictures, but around 10:13 boredom had set in and and we began taking A LOT of random pictures. For your viewing pleasure, here are some of those pictures.



Obviously this picture was staged, but I assure you that it is an accurate portrayal of how we really felt.


Seriously-we were bored. What else were we supposed to do?


Here is the form for the re-entry stamp. (I have NO idea why we took pictures of this. I'm telling you, that place is like the twilight zone. You can go in, but you never leave--until waiting at least 2 hours.)


Around 10:45 the number jumped from 319 to 326 within a matter of 5 minutes. I ran to get Megan and Liz, because they had been waiting upstairs. I got back and it was still on 326...dang. It changed to 327 around 10:55 (finally)...and then proceeded to stay on 327 until 11:40...ack! (What was really going through my head?--Never pray for patience, never pray for patience...)
At 11:55, it finally changed to 332, Lauren's number. This was when I noticed the sign that said they close from 12:00-13:00 for lunch and you may have to come back after lunch if your number hasn't come up by this time. WHAT?! This had to be a joke. I just knew that Megan and I weren't going to get to do it and we'd have to come back after lunch. (Megan was 334)
Time when Lauren was finished: 11:59
Wait-there is my number. YES! I gave the guy my paperwork and passport.


He told me to wait a minute. Megan was waiting right next to me. They had already begun shutting down the other counters. It wasn't looking good for Megan. The guy gave me my stuff and I said thank you. Megan stepped up, showed him she was the next number and he asked her if she was doing the same thing as Lauren and I had done. She said yes, so this very nice Japanese man did hers too, even though it was after 12:00. Oh man, that was stressful, but it was finally over!

After we left purgatory, err umm, the immigration office, we went to meet Yoko and Daisuke for lunch at the indian restaurant. So good...
Yoko had to go back to work after that, and the rest of us headed to Tokyo for the day. We got to eat turkey at dinner so Lauren and I were happy. Yeah, that's right...they don't have much turkey here. We have to search for it and so far it can only be found at 2 places: Subway and Kua'aina. Kua'aina is so good. I'm going to work on getting one in whatever city I move to next. On the train ride back home that evening, there was a fight between 2 Japanese men. This was the first act of violence I've seen since I've been in Japan. I was so shocked! Daisuke said that was the first time he had ever seen anything like that. Of course, I told him that if he had gone to high school in America, or just hung out at a bar in America, he could see fights anytime he wanted...

Bonus: See if you can find the mistake on this sign.

Party time

Well, I'm late on posting this, but how does that saying go..."better late than never"? yeah...
So last Friday, Aug. 26th, we went to Brett and Bong's house for 2 purposes.
1. To say goodbye to John, our friend from Connecticut
2. To say happy birthday to Dave, our surf coach

There were tons of people there and it was so fun, even if we were all sweating from the massive heat wave. We had tons of good food (grilled chicken, done right...a.k.a not japanese style with the skin and fat on it). Brett also made some darn good cheesecake.

Lauren, John and I


Maury, Dave, and umm I forgot that other guy's name (sorry!)


Jerri (Brett & Bong's girl), Joshua (Dave and Shinko's son), and Shinsuke

Joshua is so cute! He was fascinated by Shinsuke's phone.

Here is Daisuke cooling off, or hogging the fan-however you want to look at it.


Lauren, Akiko, and me


Maika wanted to show off her Yukata. Soon after, Jerri came down with hers on too.


(top to bottom) Daisuke, Shinsuke, guy that I can't remember the name of, and John


Well, I know I didn't give much detail, but this is what you get when I wait a week to write about something. Too many other things have happened now. I'm way busier in Japan than I was at home, but it's great. I love it here and I'm so happy.

Japanese dogs are MEAN!

Let me explain...
It all started when Lauren and I had just left Starbucks. (big shock...) We were riding our bikes towards the intersection to go home when I spotted a dog tied up. It looked a little like a golden retriever and was really pretty. I said to Lauren, "Oh, I want to stop and pet it." She said ok. Of course she wasn't interested since she hates dogs. I hopped off my bike and put down my kickstand. I walked over to the dog and put my hand by its nose so it could smell me--you know, that's how dogs get to know you. It didn't seem to mind and acted uninterested in me. So, I went to pet the devil, umm I mean dog, on the head. I had just touched it when BAM! That dog went into attack mode. I quickly backed off, but not before I was left with a few reminders of my naivete.

It's a little hard to see, but the red spots are bite marks. I have a total of 9 teeth marks on my arm. There is also a knot forming...nice, huh?