Happy Chaos: Innoshima

など。。。・Etc...

I have never hated going to the bathroom, until I came to Japan.  It has really nothing to do with the squatting.  Its just that going to the bathroom here is too troublesome, that I often wish I could avoid it at all costs. So, I will have to outline the process of using the bathroom here, as I encounter it in my daily life.  The first few hours of the day are spent drinking tea (from a starbucks tumbler, preferably), and as much as possible, you should wait until noon to go, as to only make one trip while at school.  Step one is the walk to the bathroom.  First it is necessary to wear a jacket, and often a scarf  (use later).  And the journey begins.  About 7 feet away from the bathroom door, the ming begins.  As if hell itself is using the bathroom.  So, at this point it is necessary to use the jacket to cover your nose.  As to soften the smell.  Enter the bathroom. Of course it will be uncomfortably cold.  Now it is time to switch from your indoor shoes (separate from that of the shoes you wear regularly) into the bathroom slippers provided (freezing cold).  Quite often these slippers are plastic and have been at the school since it opened.  Most likely everyone that had used them, also peed on them.  So, now that the slippers are comfortably on, it is time to step into the stall.  More often than not, you will be faced with the squat toilet. It wouldnt be half as bad if you didnt have to hold your nose while using it.  But usually, you just cant be arsed to squat in the first place.  The next step is to quickly take the scarf, and tie it around your face, as to block any air passage to your nose.  The stall mings worse than the surrounding area of the bathroom.  (There is one school where it pretty much smells like three day old garbage from a korean restaurant...no lie...its just not fair.)  At the same time you must keep holding the jacket over your nose.  And since you are squatting, you are also holding on to a wall, or a lever or a window. Now...once done, it is time to run like hell out of the stall without dropping the slippers (or in my case, sunglasses) in the toilet.  The next step is to wash your hands in the icy water with no soap, swtich back into your indoor shoes, and run out of the bathroom until you are safely at least 7 feet away.  Finally you can take your scarf off, and let go of your jacket.  And pray that you wont have to wizzle until at least 4:30.

A few weeks ago, I went to Osaka for the day with some friends (Yukari Yasu and Misako), to go to Universal Studios.  It was very weird to see Universal in Japan. Because I associate it so much with Florida and CA.  Disney is not so weird.  Disneyland is more Japanese than Sony.  But Universal.  That is something.  Because it was a weekend, it was kind of crowded.  And we were only in the park from 11-345.  In that limited time we rode ET (same smell as the one in Orlando), Spiderman, Jaws, and saw Waterworld.  Then we shinkansen-ed back to Hiroshima. (Before we got on the train, we met some of the players from the pro-volleyball team from Hiroshima...see photo) Back in Hiro, the group of us had a huge steak dinner.  Which is very unusual.  So after this huge steak dinner, I ran into my house as if I hadnt eaten in days, and proceeded to eat two pnut butter and jelly sandwhiches, and other things that were in the way.  In Japan I am always always hungry.  And since I gave up kaki-pi for lent, I have nothing satisfying to eat, at the most critical of times.  Although lately I have been trying to cook things.  Two weeks ago was Hina Matsuri, a festival for girls. People decorate their houses with little dolls, that have to get put away the day of the festival, or else the daughters in the house wont get married.  Anyway, we had a party at Misako's house, and for the event I decided to make something.  Egg salad.  Easy enough.  You boil eggs.  Add mayonaise.  And then put it on the bread.  If daring you could add celery (I did, btw).  Well, for some this process might be easy, but for me, it was a challenge.  I remembered Mrs. Perrone boiling eggs, and I remembered something about eggs floating.  So I put the eggs in the water and they sank.  So naturally, I thought that since they were sinking to begin with, they must be done when they float.  Okay.  45 minutes to an hour later, there was no sign of any floating in the kitchen.  So I sent an email to misako asking how long it should take.  She said five minutes.  Oops. Conclusion: Japanese eggs never have and never will float.  Needless to say the white eggshells turned brown.  And the next day I had to do the whole thing again.  Also, keeping with the topic of food, I had an unfortunate experience the other day with a dessert.  Usually before, during, and after I am eating, I am hungry, so on the way back to my office, I stopped to get a parfait like thing from the combini.  In honor of the sakura season, I got a sakura parfait.  It looked so great...layers of different things, and a pretty little edible flower on top.  Sold.  Back at the office....I avoided the flower at first, just to keep it as a decoration. So far so good.  Yoshida was buzzing around me.  But I didnt care, I had tea, and sugar.  Suddenly the room became quiet.  And I knew it was time to sacrifice the flower decor on my dessert. I didnt really think twice about it.  I had eaten flowers before (that were part of the food...not in the wild), so I figured, it wouldnt be any different than in times past.  How could it be?  And then I attempted to eat it, and spit it out so far and so fast.....It was pickled.  A pickled flower.  There was a pickled sakura flower on the top of a seemingly perfect food.  A pickled flower.  What the hell is a flower doing, being pickled? And who decided to pickle a flower.  Then I remembered.  Oh, Im in Japan.  And with that, I knew it therefore made sense. 

Recent encounters with the Japanese.......The other JET on my island, Gen(evieve), spent an absurd amount of time on the phone with a travel agency trying to book a japanese tour to China.   And then I got on the phone with the Japanese lady she was talking to.  And the woman, after asking all of the necessary information, address etc, started to get concerned:
Her: "Does the person who is going on this trip speak Japanese." 
Me: "Enough.  She will be fine." 
Her: "Well, maybe it will be difficult for them to find the meeting spots in China.  Since the tour guide will most likely not speak any English, just japanese and chinese."
Me: "They will be fine."
Her: "Hmmm, please hold on.  I am going to talk to my boss......."
Translation: "We prefer you not take our tour because we cant be arsed to be responsible."
Anyway, Gen leaves on the 24th for China.  She will be fine. 
Way back in August, an obaachan kidnapped Gen and I and brought us to a little karaoke place in Habu.  In February, I returned there with a few friends for karaoke and cream soda.  As usual, Scottish Jen and I put in more songs than everyone else in the group, including Disney songs we planned to do as a duet.  S. Jen and I dont sing karaoke, we perform.  And that was the plan.  So our number came up.  We grabbed the mics.  Stood in the middle of the place, and two old women, who apparently thought they were the be-all-end-all of karaoke started yelling at us in Japanese..."NO NO, that is BAD.  You cant do that together...."  And they were so pissed.  Anyway, we duet-ed about 4 times.  And they left before the first one was over I think.   

2月ランダム・February Randomness

There is always that person who manages to get themself in some sort of trouble that you always wonder...HOW IN THE HELL DID THEY DO THAT?  Something unimaginable, or stupid or just so hard to do its baffling.  Well, here, that person happens to be me.  A while ago, my Daniel Powter Cd went missing from my car.  I admid, since the move, okay even before that, my car was/is kind of messy. So I figured, it most likely fell out of the car, oh well, move on.  Then last week, I rented a CD from the store down the street.  And Im driving.  And I switch the CD out.  And then I went to put the rental CD in the little shelf/holding area below the CD player.  The CD did sit there, it slid quickly and disappeared.  So as Im driving...Im wondering...where did my CD go???  What?  Am I hallucinating? It disappeared before my eyes.  For the 40 minute drive home I looked for a magic hole or a trap door in the little shelf, and I did not find one.  By process of elimination, I realized that I had somehow managed to slip the cd into a space between the CD player, and the frame of the dash board.  So my RENTAL cd that I had to return in 4 days, was somewhere floating in the dashboard in my car.  Shit.  So.  I Brought it to the car place.  This wasnt the first time I went to them with some strange problem, so they could tell something was up.  They laughed at me and told me this was the first time something like this had ever happened.  A crew of two had to dismantle the CD player area and they were able to extract THREE cds.  3!  As it turns out I had lost another CD along the way too.  Anyway.  I returned the rental cd last night in perfect condition. 

If asked how to spell "Hell, " I would answer H-A-B-U, which is the name of an area and school on my island in which I have to teach.  So yesterday, I was pretty much there doing nothing.  Sitting at the PC for hours.  Around 9am, there is loud screaming and crying outside the teachers room, like as if someone were being possessed.  That kind of loud screaming.  About 3 minutes into the fit, several teachers ran out of the room to  get the girl.  The sounds were getting closer.  And then the screaming was right outside the door.  And...the screaming girl proceeded to kick in the thick wooden sliding door to the teachers room.  WHAT?!  Then two men were carrying her in kicking and screaming.  One guy on each arm.  And this woman was yelling at her.  "you should be embarrassed...everyone can hear you." And they stuck her in a room for 2 hours.  Unfortunately the teachers room had no door for that time, until a few teachers figured out how to fix it, but 11.  That bitch was crazy.  And a 7th grader.  And then Im supposed to tell everyone that I like going to my schools.  Id almost rather have this kind of incident, than have the Yawn Sgt. telling me how to behave.  I  feel like yawning is a worse crime than causing a scene as the 7th grader had. 

I live in the middle of mikan fields, yet there still managed to be a loud altercation outside my apartment at 1am the other night.  People were screaming and doors were slamming.  And I was reminded of the time at Mustard, when someone peed on my door at 2 in the morning.  Absolute chaos. 

At the beginning of the week the greatest thing did happen though.  I was home (which is rare) and I was practicing shamisen, singing along...because my teacher says I should.  Now the singing...has to be off key...and sounds bad, at least that is the protocol.  As I understand it.  So Im singing, and playing and the doorbell rings.  My first thought was that it was the land lord coming to tell me that I am being to loud (pianos are not allowed at the apt, so perhaps the shamisen is not either).  I answered the door, and like in most cases, it was this old man with a puzzled look on his face.  I said hi.  And he informed me that he was the delivery man with 3 packages for me.  I asked who they were from...and why. He had no idea and was confused.  I was confused.  I thought the BOE was playing a trick on me and sending me garbage from my old apartment out of spite.  Apparently the delivery man had asked my landlord what to do with the packages....Give them to me...thanks.  So he brought package A in.  Which was taller than me almost.  And I read the label.  NASA...as in the space NASA.  The amazing Elaine B.W. sent me 3 packages from NASA, with materials, toys, and educational materials for my students.  So I started yelling at the delivery man "NASA NASA NASA!" and he started getting excited. Then the landlord came over.  And she got excited....and everyone was saying..."Hmm I wonder whats in the packages...." So I said, "Okay, lets open them up together...."  And everyone was excited.  Me.  My land lord.  And the delivery guy.  Together we opened the packages and got excited because there were little foam spacemen, stamps, patches, posters...etc.  I sent them each off with a few things, called Misako and made her come over to see the packages.  It was crazy.  And Elaine is AMAZING.

まだおるよ・Still Here....

I am now 100% moved.  There is less noise, less old men in my bathroom, and a hell of a lot less smells coming from the closet.  But, of course, the same problems always seem to follow me.  At mustard there were gas leaks all the time, and being that the door lock didnt work, there was always the fear of someone breaking in and killing me.  At the old apartment, there was the gas leak that almost killed Gen, the toilet consistantly on vacation, and the threat of less than sane people in the area.  So, post-lease signing, my landlord came into the apartment to turn the water on and said to me, "Oh, this toilet.  yeah.  There was this one time that it didnt stop running.  But that was a while ago.  Anyway, if there is a problem, call me." Great.  Then, day one, when Gen and I brought some stuff over, a man in the building next store peeped at us from his window. Then when we moved around the building...he ran to his other window and followed us with his eyes.  Pretty obviously.  The next day, trying to avoid him, I turned my music and lights off on my car as I turned into the apartment. And I swear he was looking at me from his bathroom window.  Next day-ish.  I get back....bringing stuff in and out of my apartment from the car.  And literally he is all but hanging out of his window.  His whole body looked like it was going ot fall out. Anyway.  Looks like things have not changed much.  But at least I am not near a metal shop.

Because of the move, the BOE does not seem very happy.  They had to go to the old apartment and clean in for a day.  because there was stuff still there from 1999....pretty much I had to clean out shit from JETs from 8 years ago.  Not fair.  But they had to too.  And they had to shove a refridgerator into a storage closet.  Needless to say, they arent happy.

Last weekend I went to Tokyo for several reasons.  1. To see a concert...Corinne Bailey Rae...amazing.  She has the greatest music of this decade (and she is up for a grammy). 2. To go to Disney Sea (yes I know I just went) 3. To see my friends in Tokyo (Fumi, Tomoko, Amy, Kanako...) 4. To spend time with Misako in the big city.  So, we got on the night bus and arrived at Tokyo Disneyland 12 hours later (note: I only got out to pee twice...prolly because amy was not there.)  We got into Disney Sea, about my 20th time, and Misako*s first, so it was nice to go with someone who had never seen it before.  Pretty much we went on almost every ride, and saw almost every show.  There is one show in the New York area, called, *Over the Wave.*  In this story set back in the early 1910s, two "Italian" kids, Maria and Tony, try to sneak aboart a cruise liner bound for Italy to save their "sick" mother.  Okay...im stopping here.  Number one, the "italian" kids are played by two Japanese adults.  Maria and Tony....Um, how about not really.  Anyway, so they try to go to italy to get to their allegedly "sick" mother.  Now, being Italian, I know the bitch isnt "sick."  She is merely using Italian guilt to get her kids back Italy.  Shes most likely just pissed, but telegrammed them saying she was near death.  See, these are the back stories that Disney just doesnt clearly portray in the show.

Disney Sea was awesome.  And then we hauled ass back to the city to do a nomikai in Shibuya.  It was Misakos first time in Shibuya too.  And the nomikai was the first nomikai without even drinking....had some healthy tea.  But we ate everything on the menu.  The rest of the weekend was nice. We met Misakos friend and I finally met Fumis twin sister.  Sunday night was the concernt....and although we got their early, because our tickets were 729 and 730/750, we had to go aaaaaall the way to the back and get in after all the other people...Call me crazy, but standing room only means you wait in line for a few hours or longer, to fight to the front row.  It was okay.  We ran into the theater and were forced to buy a $5 bottle of water.  And then when the concert started, some bitch stepped in front of my, and literally every time I moved my head to get away from her blocking me....she moved in the same direction.  All the people around me were laughing because it was so absurd.  The concert was really really nice and SHORT....so short, I can not remember it all too well.  After that I took Misa to Harajuku and we found a sick little hawaiin restaurant.

WORK:
Okay, so at one of my schools, there is a first grade teacher who has made it her job to crawl up my ass and bother me....about yawning.  A few months ago, she said to me, "Yawning is not good." and then made the sign of getting a throat cut.....I mentioned this before.  Well Yawn bitch has been on rampage...must be her New Years resolution.  So at the beginning of the year she mentioned it again.  Then apparently she told the principal and vice principal.  and they told me not to yawn.  Thanks.  Then......THEN...Im in Onomichi...doing a special English class event at one of Brandons schools.  And the yawn sergeant comes up behind me...."Oh, remember, dont yawn...."  Umm....number one, you shouldnt have been there, number two i wasnt yawning, number three, say hi first, bitch.  Anyway, I went back to yawn sgt.'s school this week.  And and when I was cleaning (because she forces me to clean the school during cleaning time), she kept talking to me so I couldnt even clean.  And asked me when I was leaving.  I told her I was extending for another year.  And then, she gave me a speech.  "If you are going to be here for another year, you need to be serious about this, and you cant yawn.  Have fun.  Dont yawn.  Be serious, but be fun.  And you cant be using your cell phone all the time.  This is work time.  We can call you boss and tell them you are yawning.  People get fired after one year because of that."  My reaction...."Lol."  Well, if you gave me some work to do, I would have other things to do besides email.  Anyway.  I hate her. 

引っ越し・Moving

A few weeks ago my toilet decided to break for the third time.  I must mention that each time, it breaks in a new and special way.  This time, the handle disconnected.  I noticed that when I flushed it, the handle moved in an all to free kind of way.  But paid no attention to it, until the next time it would just not flush.  So I, having just cleaned the damn bathroom from the last traumatic experience, decided I would fix it myself.  So I ripped the lid off, stuck my hand in a plastic bag, and dove in through the top.  So I was able to flush it.  But I wasnt able to stop flushing it.  Luckily Yoshida was in the building, so I called her up.  And we called *the man,* the same man who we always call.  So within 10 minutes, three old men were back in my bathroom trying to fix the toilet. again.  And all they said to eachother was, "Oh, this is a difficult situation."  So, fix it...thanks.  This was the last straw. 

Within 2 days, Misako's father had talked to a realtor and set up an appointment for me to look at apartments on the island.  So, less than two weeks later, I have keys, and already started moving.  Not to say it wasnt completely problem free...if it had not been for Misako and her family, I would not have survived the old apartment...or life on the island.  The Board of Education is quite unhappy that I am moving.  I am the 3rd JET in onomichi to break from housing that was given to us, but Im the first one in Innoshima to do so.  They tried to make it so I wouldnt move. "You will have to pay for everything.  Key money, rent.  And if there is a problem, you have to handle it on your own, we wont help you."  Okay, so let me think this through....The apartment is new, so the toilet wont break.  I dont have to heat my tub with gas, so there is less of a chance for a leak.  And no old men dragging toilet water throughout my house at least once a month....what a decision.

Anyway.  I am moving. 

 

あけおめ・Happy New Year...

Im going to try to write about the last month as efficiently as possible.  Last I left, there was a gas leak in the apartment...Christmas dinner was cold, and disgruntled emails were sent overseas.  Now, as it turns out, that gas leak was actually a leak that happened spontaneously, and perhaps was leaking in Gen's apartment for several months.  Unfortunately the board of education refuses to believe us, so that is another battle we are taking on in the upcoming months.

On December 27th, the girls and I headed back on the night bus to Tokyo.  And of course our bus driver had a wicked cough the entire trip.  But we landed safely in Shinjuku by 730am.  Amy and I had special event tickets for Disneyland that night, so on no sleep, we went to Tokyo Disney.  The event began at 7, but they made hundreds of us stand in the parking lot until 8, and then magically the line hit a vortex and we ended up in the park.  And then the new years event special fireworks were cancelled due to wind.  So pretty much we saw a parade.  And ate popcorn.  For $40.  But it was fun. 

The next day I spent with Meghan's old host family in what I used to think was the inaka.  And then on teh 30th I made it to Kanako's house, where I moved in for 5 days.  In Japan, the new years holiday is like Christmas in the states. It is supposed to be spent with families.  So for 5 days I became part of the Murata family and sat under the kotatsu and ate.  On new years eve we ate Soba and watched the NHK yearly special, and prepared the sechi ryouri (new years food), that we ate for the next three days.  On the first, we went to do hatsumode (visiting the temples/shrines in the neighborhood), and we played KARUTA, and ran all over the house looking for cards. Kind of like the game memory, except the cards are face-up.  And then we spent the rest of the night on the floor taking obnoxious videos with the cell phones.  One day we all went ice skating, and one day I went to Disney Sea with Allison, Michi and Marion! On the 2nd, I went to 109 in Shibuya for the first time, on a day in Japan that is like the day after Thanksgiving in the states.  And imagine the shoppers having pink hair and high heels, with no waists and high pitched voices.  It scared me.  In the between times I got to see my little Natsuko in Yokohama!  My next stop was Futagotamagawa, where I spend some time with Shintaro and his family.  We had a HUGE georgetown reunion on night, and I was finally reunited with my Eddie Mears after a year and a half.  Also, Shintaro dragged my ass out for an all-nighter with Eddie and Fumi. We went to a club where lazers were shooting out from the front (that can't be safe) and the stylish dance was to run in place. I couldnt drink enough, although I tried.  The next day I had to ship my suitcases back to the island because I shopped to much, got on a Shinkansen, and went home.  After 10 days in Tokyo, I realized that I had spent more time in the Inaka in tokyo, than in the actualy city.  So, it was good to be home.  For the time being.

But once back at home, work started.  And the board of education started assigning us rediculous tasks that involved sending us to an elementary school, not telling us what to do.  So Scottish Jen and I had to teach a class together, without a lesson plan.  We get to the class of 5th graders and are told, "Yes, just use these tomatoes and this poster."  Us, "And do what?"  So, needless to say it was a waste of time. The other day I went to pick up Scottish Jen at her apt, and as I am pulled over on the side of the street, with music blasting and ear muffs on, I see this old man swiveling on a bike toward me, with his mouth moving.  Whatever. Right.  So Jen gets to the car and says, "What the hell just happened with that man?" Turns out she heard him from the fifth floor, with headphones on, yelling at me.  I guess he was yelling at me not to drive in the street....hmm. Okay. So then where do I go?

So there is this pointer stick I bought a few months ago, with a little cartoon poop at the end of it.  I barely use it at school because perhaps its kind of offensive.  But I did bust it out at one school and it went over pretty well.  The next time I went to that school, the teacher proudly pulled his own shit stick out to show me.  He had gone to the same store and bought the same thing.  Except it was pink in color. So one can argue that it is actually soft cream.  Anyway, nice to see that I am having an impact on Japan.

ジングルベルなし・No Jingle Bells

Instead of the sound of jingle bells this Christmas, my Christmas was filled with a different kind of ringing....and nothing jingly about it.

Saturday morning....Misako and I left the island at 630 am to pick up Allison Michi and Amy in Fukuyama.  I drove for the first time to Hiroshima City which was awesome.  City driving.  So fun.  We parked and spent the entire entire entire day in the city. Peace Park, 原爆ドーム、the museum, miyajima.  Pretty much everywhere.  When we arrived in Miyajima, I became quite involved with a poster of a penguin in a Santa hat, and ended up toppling over the ONLY cement/metal walkway divider....falling over with it, and bruising both knees.  Things picked up at dinner.  We all met up with Dana in the city and went to an Argentinian kind of restaurant.  And lo and behold....they had a lamb chop on the menu.  It definately had been  a while since I had eaten lamb, so I jumped at the occasion to order it.  The food came out slowly, and mine was last.  You know, takes time to cook the lamb.  And then it was brought to the table.  And placed in front of me.   I waited for the waitress to leave before I slit open my side from laughter.  Literally the lamb chop was the size of an ironed out chicken wing.  I had never seen something that small in my life.  I also had to split it with my friend. Anyway, Im still hungry, and its 2 days later. 

Christmas Eve----Allison Michi Amy Misako and I drove around the island and visited Yukari and Yuka....before cooking Christmas dinner....party started at 6....turkey went into the oven at ten of 4.  And we prepared everything in under 2 hours.  Allison stayed with Misako to mind the turkey, while the rest of us met up with Scottish Jen and decorated and made the final preparations for dinner at my apartment, before the rest of everyone got there.  638.  My door bell rang.  It was the neighbor.  Saying that the GAS LEAK bell was ringing in Gen's apartment right under mine.  In other words, Gen is in Canada, no one can get into her apartment, and the gas is either on and leaking...or just on...or just leaking.  In other words from that, we had to evacuate the building....and leave Christmas dinner sitting on the table.  As we all gathered in the metal factory accross the street, people started showing up for the party.  Including the turkey.  The gas man arrived and he really didnt know anything about gas.  I believe he said *Yeah, it doesnt smell like gas in your apartment.  So I guess you can go in.*  Ummm....and die?  Okay.  So an hour after standing in the cold with our hot food (now cold) inside, and the hot turkey (now cold) outside....we made our way up...threw everything in the microwave, including our Christmas spirits....and had a Christmas dinner.  Christmas should not have been like that.  I have never been so inconvenienced on what was supposed to be such a Happy and enjoyable holiday.  Merry Christmas.

そろそろクリスマス・Almost Christmas

In Japan, Jack Frost doesn't nip, he chews.  And he started chewing last week.  As a result, all of my fellow teachers say with a smile, "Oh, is Japan cold?"  No, not especially.  But since there is no heating, yes.  The cold in Connecticut can kick my islands ass hands down.  Yet somehow, I never felt that the cold there intruded on my daily life as does here.  1. The school children have to wear shorts....and if I am caught in a scarf, I get in tons of trouble.  I dont know what a teacher was trying to tell me because for some reason she signed half of the conversation.  She either said if I yawn or wear I scarf, my boss will fire me or slit my throat.  Anyway, I stopped wearing a scarf.  So most likely soon I will get really sick.  Then I will get asked questions as to why and how, and if people get sick in America.  Cant I just wear a scarf to avoid that?  2.  I should not be able to see my breath indoors.  3.  I cant go into my kitchen because its so cold.  I have also stopped peeing because the bathroom is much too cold to allow for that.

But on a good note, things did pick up after my bathroom gave me hell last week.  Everyone on my island not only has the same name, they also share the same birthday week.  So last week, was the week where it was birthday crazy.  Mr. Joe McReynolds came down from Nagoya for the weekend, so I showed him around the inaka.  Joe, Misako, Yuki, and I went to a fancy restaurant (that reminded me of this sick place in Charleston in the middle of some sort of islolated island area), to celebrate Suzukas birthday.  It was super fun, and then we all went to visit the baby.  Joe has absurdly large hair, and luckily there was a wig at the house, so my friend's father was able to feel comfortable with equally big hair.  The next day before Joe left, we went out to lunch.  I will preface this with a Japanese law, I have mentioned before.  Tolerance is 0.  In America we can have a drink and go...but here...that is very illegal.  Anyway, Joe orders us Kahlua Milks as a surprise.  I said. *I can't drink this, there is alcohol in it.*  To which Joe responds *No there isn't.*  Then perhaps it was just brown milk.....Needless to say, the woman who made the drinks agreed with me, and I let Joe enjoy them both.

So birthday extravaganza 2006 continued.  After Joe left I ran to Holly*s house to wish her a happy birthday.  Luckily this time the cops didnt show up.  Monday night, not quite the 12th, Suzuka, Yuki and I surprised Misako with a cake at her house, and stayed until it turned midnight....after two rounds of cake, we went home.  The next day I snuck over to Misako's house early to put balloons on her car before she got to it.  And as I was leaving I see one of my elementary school students walking.  She looked at me strangely. And I tried to explain what I was doing, but I think she believed that I was either stealing something or vandalizing something.  Oh well.  I tried.  After work I had shamisen, and then picked up Misako.  We met up with Scottish Jen and Holly in Fukuyama for a fabulous dinner.  And then Jen and I sucked it up and went to the onsen.  There was this amazing place in fukuyama.  And perhaps I like onsen even better this time.  There was a tea bath, a red dragon thing bath.  The birthday extravaganza ended here, as we played Corrine Bailey Rae's sone *Put Your Records On* about 12 times, on the way home.

The rest of the week was quite nice.  I had two bonnenkais (end of the year parties).  In calligraphy...we made this huge dinner.  And with pottery we went to this soba place, where everything including the tea and ice cream, was made from Soba.  Which brings me to Saturday....If I havent already mentioned it, Misako (birthday number 3), is one of the most amaaaazing people ever.  So I really appreciate any time that we get to spend together.  The only word I can use to describe this last weekend, is Adorable.  The last time I had an adorable weekend like this was when I was 7, and my cousin Price and I tried to sell snapple at the end of his driveway (that was about a mile long).  We made a gingerbread house, baked cookies, searched for Christmas lights on the island.  We went to karaoke with Yuki Suzuka and Misato (Masu-kun also came, but he was not very enthusiastic about making an appearance).  One of the highlights of the weekend, other than it being adorable, was being able to use the shower at Misako's house.  It was the most glorious shower area I have seen in my life, and what a pleasure it was, to not have to turn on the gas to get hot water.  Anyway, It was a really great weekend, and I got to shower somewhere that wasnt old and didnt smell like an old man.  And Misako rocks.

 After last week, I thought my string of bad luck at the apartment had ended, but it still being the same apartment, and me still having the same luck, I was thrust into another situation.  Inspired by Misako's shower area, I decided to buy yet another portable heater...this time one that heats up orange and kind of looks like a barbeque grill.  It also rotates and has a remote control. I am now using it in front of the shower door, so when I come out, Im not entering a room colder than ice in hell.  So I plug it in.  And attempt to use the ofuro (tub) again....and no more than 3 minutes after initial plug in I hear, "ZZZZZzzzzz....." And with that, the power throughout my apartment, disappeared.  I laughed because I was sooooo pissed.  Gen came up and to my apartment (primarily made of paper-ous materials) and searched for my flashlight with lighters....maybe not the best idea.  But I did try to put the flash light in an easy-to-find location...Guess not.  After a while, we located a fuse box, and power was restored.  At the expense of my temper and calmness. (I lost power again last night by using my blow dryer. And after screaming a few choice words, Gen knew to come up to either kill a bug, or to switch back on the fuse....)  I did end up taking a bath though.  Unfortunately I turned the gas on too late to heat it, so I had to see freezing wet in front of my grill heater for 30 minutes or so waiting for the ofuro to boil.

The other day I was using a Japanese style squat toilet at school.  When I stood up, I heard, *click click click.*  My sunglasses had fell in.  Great.  And I was in no position to dive in after them.  Luckily, the toilet was too old to have running water and a plumbing system.  So I just pressed a button and they were flushed.  Sometimes, sacrifice is worth it.

Finally...today....I had to go to a preschool dressed up as *Ginger,* Santa Claus' daughter.  It took a lot of haggling with the woman at the preschool to get that position. Initially they wanted me to be Santa.  I said no.  Then I was to be Mrs. Claus...we realized I was too young...then I was going to be his younger sister.  And after all that, I ended up as his daughter.  Last week when the woman came to discuss todays event, the conversation went something like this:
The Woman: "Oh, when you said you would not be Santa, we were wondering what kind of person you would be.  The kids would be disappointed.  Then now I meet you and you are different.  So I am happy."
Yoshida (the lady responsible for me): "Yes, yes."
The Woman: "Yes.  Before I had only seen you several times in the morning throwing your garbage out.  And you definately seem like a different person here, than when I saw you."
Yoshida: "It must have been because it was the morning."
Ummm...WTF?  Anyway so we were eating with the preschool kids....and the parents had made an amazing lunch....inlucding egg-salad sanwhiches.  And Yoshida leaned over to me and asked, "Do they have food like this in America?"  Me, "Sandwhiches?"  Yoshida: "Yes."  America owns the sandwhich.  But apparently it comes from Japan.  Also, on that subject...i keep getting asked, "In America, do they put lights on their houses for Christmas?"  That is like asking if they celebrate Christmas in Rome.....But again, apparently like sandwhiches, Christmas lights also find their origin in Japan.

In other news, my baby Sammy had a little problem with his ass last week.  He was brought to the emergency room for a swollen anal gland, and is now currently on three medications and my mother has to apply some sort of cream to his butt.  And he has to wear a lampshade on his head.  The vet calls it a swollen anal glad, but in the people world, don't we call it a hemorrhoid?  Apparently dogs are supposed to have their anal glands cleaned everytime they go to the Vet or groomer.  I just can't imagine my doctor or hairdresser having to check my ass every time I went for a check-up or haircut.  I do feel bad for Sammy.  But I can not help but laugh at the image of Sammy pissed, wearing a lamp shade, as my mother holds him on his head and applies cream to his ass.  And then him dragging his butt on the carpet.  Oh, to be home.

ちょっと。。。・Yeaｈ...

On my island and the surrounding areas, the famous fruits are oranges, and various citrus.  It makes sense though, that these acidic bitter fruits grow so abundantly here. The islands have filled my temperment with bitterness and acidity.  Last weekend I left the island on Saturday to go to Saijyo, the hellish country-side city, to take the Japanese Proficiency exam.  The night before the test I stayed with my friend Yuki who goes to Hiroshima University.  She lent me her bike to ride to campus to take the test.  It took me about 5 minutes to play with the lock on the bike, until I asked some random old woman who walked by, for help.  We unlocked it...and then for a few minutes I tried to take the key out.  So...I gave up and walked.  And during this walk I thought I hallucinated snow, but in fact there were little specs in the air, it was that cold.  The test was absurdly hard, but luckily Brandon was in my room.  So between test sections and wait times, we were able to communicate via hand signals.  Onomichi city actually represented a lot at the test.  So afterward we all hung out.  Babs, Tanya, Matt and I ended up stumbling into a sake brewery to taste some locally made sake.  After that it was yaki niku.

The next day, I worked in Onomichi.  My boss told me, "You shouldnt say that you dont like Innoshima.  Its not nice.  What if I said I hate America?  You just shouldnt say it, its not good....Also, you shouldnt say that the schools smell either..."  Okay, so, its okay for the kids to yell at me "fuck you."  Thats fine.  I have to like that.  And, when the sewage trucks come around and I almost throw up in my tray, Im not allowed to say it smells.  Okay.  Got it.  Maybe ultimate happiness will come if my students punch me, and someone shits on me.  (side note....Genevieve was on the bus and an old woman lost a few stools during the trip.  Then, at a temple on the island, a man dropped pants in front of her, and did a little shitters....yes.  What a classy place.)  Anyway....this started the downward spiral of this week.

Monday night I got home after a great few weeks.  Good things dont last forever.  And I realized that Monday night.  After dreaming of a fire in my apartment, I woke up to a flushing toilet.  In other words, my toilet had been flushing for 7 hours.  Because, should the flusher handle be off by a hair, it continues to flush.  So, I expect a nice water bill next month.  Great.  I went to work, business as usual.  At Habu elementary school, where my fifth grade class is horrible.  As the principle slapped around a kid on the side of the room, a bully chased a poor little scared boy around the room, as the little boy kept hiding behind us, the desk, and ran out of the room.  Followed by the bully hitting the teacher.  Meanwhile no one was getting punished. I asked why the bully was such an asshole, and the teacher (who had just been slapped at) replied, "Because he is more mature than the other kid."  Oh.  Okay.  That must be it. Apparently after lunch there was an altercation with the bully and the little boy.  And I feel like the little boy kept getting punished when it was the bully's fault.  Call me crazy.

Tuesday night I decided to take a bath.  2nd time this year.  So I fill up the ofuro (j-bath) and realize that the water is merely luke warm.  So I get out and decide to shower. And the water is cool.  So I drain the tub and try again.  After only lather and partly rinsing (forget about repeating), I try the gas again (i heat the water with a gas tank).  And inside the gas thing I see a huge flame come up and hear a bang...so I cut the gas...meanwhile the water is cold, and the water from the ofuro is up to my ankles, not draining.  Great.  So in a towel and flip flogs, I go to Gen's apartment to use her shower.  Interestingly, it was warmer outside, than inside my house.  Reverse insulation is great in the winter. (I feel like my tenses are wrong in this paragraph.)

Wednesday.....Yoshida, the lady in charge of me at the BOE, decides to help me out with my broken bathroom.  She comes over with the little man from work, who apparently knows how to do everything.  You know those kinds of men who can do plumbing, fix cars, cook, and do any odd job.  Well he comes to "fix" the toilet.  They show up.  The man has a long metal stick and a plunger.  So....yeah.  Not that king of problem dude.  The handle is broken.  So...he touches the handle.  Opens up the top of the toilet because that is somewhat not working. Finds something.  Touches it.  And then leaves to go drive a bus.  Yoshida leaves too.  Before returning to the BOE, I decide to wizzle.  And...as I flush, I hear some sort of river.  And for a second I think I am imagining the water flying out of the top of the toilet.  Like a river.  Onto the floor.  But no, I was not imagining anything.  It was for real.  Thanks man, for fixing the handle.  So I went to work, full of hate, and soon enough I had to come home with Yoshida to meet the plumber.  I accidentally left my nice felt slippers by the bathroom door.  So this plumber man, puts on the CLOTH/FELT Slippers....and steps into the bathroom, into the toilet water piss on the ground.  You could hear my nice slippers (made of cloth) absorbing the water and slushing around.  I was beside myself.  Twice. On both sides.  I almost cut him.  And he left.  And then another man came.  The apartment manager.  I think.  And told me I need to clean the drain.  Which probably has not been cleaned for about 7 years.  Its gross.  I feel like the whole bathroom being broken is my fault.  And according to my boss, I should probably not say I hate the apartment.  I didnt think I could hate a place more than Mustard.  But yeah, Id rather be in the basement with the reckloose spiders, than in this 4th floor apartment of relentless problems.  Thanks to Jen, Brandon and my little Amy, I was able to survive the rest of the day.  Obviously I had to leave the island.  So I escaped to Onomichi.  (*Ammendment 1:  On Thursday, man #3, apartment guy, came to look at the toilet.  Just as my floor had finally dried...he took the lid off the toilet, didnt align it correctly.  So the river came back...and now I have to wait a few days for the floor to dry.  Please stop helping)

Other things happening....Two weeks ago, a 90 year old woman was strangled to death in Habu, the area that I teach in, with the bully 5th grader and the middle school from hell.  Her neighbor did it...32 years old....because he needed $120 to pay his water bill.  Ummm last month on the next island over, a man killed his wife (I hear that there were other instances like this around the Onomichi-Mihara area in the last few months).  Not to mention the suicide on the other island, in September. 

Good things, although few and far between, I started taking Shamisen lessons...a japanese stringed instrument (in Habu).  Last week, like always, before getting into my car after school, I put my inside-only shoes on the roof of my car, while I unlocked it and threw my other things in.  This time, I forgot to put the shoes back in.  Needless to say, that when I reached the next school my shoes were gone.  Not long after the first school called the other school, to tell me to come pick up my shoes.  The next day, I noticed tire marks on them.  Oops.  Naturally I did not learn my lesson, so at that second school, where I was at today, as I drove away, a teacher came running at my car, and handed me my shoes from the roof.  Oops.  Oh one last thing.  When I stopped to pay the toll man tonight, he looked at me like I had two heads.  And then informed me that my skirt was hanging out the car door.  Yeah.  Not the first time.  Certainly wont be the last.  But thanks man. 

Anyway, I hate the island, it smells.

二番目のサンクスギビング・Thanksgiving, Take 2

So, it was supposed to be a relatively quiet weekend.  And it was....almost.  I guess a visit from the cops can confirm just how crazy things can be....

Friday night after a 2 week break, I made the treck up through the mountains to an unheated building, down dark streets, to pottery.  On the way Misako and I stopped at Kaoru-san*s house to see her Christmas tree.  It was HUGE, in her living room.  Lights, wreaths, and everything.  You could see it through the front window.  Like real Christmas.  Then near the hidden building on the mountain, there was a house all lit up with crazy decorations on the outside.  And in my neighborhood there was also a house with comparable decor to that in Celebration.  So...Im on the mountain, doing pottery.  And start emailing with Brandon.  Turns out hes bored.  Post pottery I was bored.  Conversation goes as follows.  Me: Good thing I have baileys.  Brandon: Good thing Jackie and I are coming over.  Now I thought this was a joke until I got an email from Scottish Jen saying that she wished she could come too.  And then they were at the door.  Blankets, food, and Upwards in hand.  It being near midnight upon their arrival, we began our night was strict upwards playing while watching random english movies.  (Im going to point out that Jackie and Brandon traveled to my house from onomichi...which is quite the treck, and mad nice of them to visit me here in the middle of nowhere).  Saturday....we slept for a few hours, got up at 845, and made a huge breakfast.

Then I left the house and headed to Misako*s to cook for Holly*s Thanksgiving dinner.  This was my 4-5th domestic activity of the week.  Weird.  So I made eggplant parmesian, in cute miniature tins, with miniature eggplant....about 1/3 the size of US eggplants...same taste.  Misako made sushi with a flower shape in the center.  Then we hit the road to Fukuyama, where we landed at Holly*s apartment.  Guest Count: 5.  2 Americans 3 Japanese.  Yuki from Saijo (annoying 1 week orientation thing) was also there, so it was sooooo great to see her.  Holly played movies in the background as the baby turkey cooked in the oven. The mashed potatoes were covered....kabobs grilling outside, while the Christmas tree twinkled colored lights.  When the turkey came out and the tako yaki was half eaten, we all sat down to a great Thanksgiving dinner.  The triptophan caused Yuki to pass out, while the rest of us suffered from severe food coma.  The movies continued and the talking quieted down..  Two desserts later, Yuki and Eri left.  Pirates 1 was playing at this point.  Holly and I created a mock listening TOEIC test for Misako, and painted lovely glitter pen drawings on eachothers foreheads.  I drew an exquisite golden turkey on Holly. ANYWAY, over an hour after the others left, Misako and I decided to head home.  We were standing in the genkan (doorway area) when the door bell rang.  Ding dong.  Hello...?  and there were three j-cops, standing in their purple outfits.  *Umm, excuse me, are you having a party?*  My reaction was to laugh.  There were three of us.  There was no music.  There had been no alcohol. There had been 5 of us, three who were Japanese, and one who had passed out.  And you know they had been standing out there for at least 20 minutes contemplating how to approach us in an indirect manner.  They continued to ask Holly for her name, birthday etc.  I was like *why do you need this information?* Misako was confused, and Holly was pissed (as was I).  Meanwhile, Holly had the golden turkey on her forehead, Misako a mickey head, and me glittery blue tears.  They told us to keep in quiet, people had complained. BACKGROUND:  This is the same apartment where I fought with the man in pajamas about the car.  The same place where people give Dana and I dirty looks whenever we leave.  The same place that two weeks ago, a neighbor complained to the apt. manager who complained to Hollys boss about the parking situation.  The same place that has it in for Holly. And indirectly me.  This is war.  And Im more than ready to sit at the front line.  With my car. Parked.  Blocking the way.  Turkey leg in hand.  There is no room for this behavior in Japan.  Its a shame such people have to exist. Welcome to war Fukuyama. You picked the wrong two people to fight with.

Sunday, I drove Misako and Suzuka to Fukuyama where they took the TOEIC exam.  I went shopping all around the city (in particular Toys R Us) to get Christmas decorations.  I bought the hell out of the store, and we ended our Fukuyama visit with toffee nut lattes and coffee, at no where else but Starbucks.  Oh, and now I have a Starbucks Passport, where if I buy coffee beans, I can stamp it, and write about it in my passport.  I feel so part of a group.  Meanwhile almost all of the Starbucks Club members (minus Yukari, who is raising a new born) drank together today. 

Post Fukuyama, the three of us brought a bag of Christmas blend cofffee, over to Yukari, and met Yuuka for the first time. Ive never seen such a beautiful, healthy, calm little baby.  She didnt wake up at all, but she was so itty bitty.  So little.  And so beautiful.  I remember when sammy was a little puppy.  He was so perfect just the same.  And then he grew up to be an asshole.  I mean, I would be too. If I were male, and looked like a poodle.  Anyway, Yuuka is such a little lady, and I cant wait to learn her personality.

Next, Suzuka, Misako and I made pancakes at my house and put up the Christmas decorations.  It was a nice way to end the rainy Sunday, and the weekend.  Now it is my last week to study for the Japanese Proficiency Exam.  Not going to lie to myself, probably wont study.  Oops.

 

１１月＆サンクスギビング・November and Thanksgiving

Happy THANKSGIVING!!! Its almost December already.  I remember how awesome last thanksgiving was.  I actually just saw pictures of the food from it....wow.  This year was not too bad either....But let me jump back a few weeks before I mention what I did last night.

Recently I have been leaving the island at least 4-5 times a week (including weekends).  This month my friends and I are preparing for a big japanese exam on Dec. 3.  We decided to take a little drive to one of the other 4 main islands of Japan, Shikoku.  (I dont live on any main island...I live between them, but I am part of Honshu, the same island that tokyo is on...)  That being said, we were planning on driving down and doing some studying and relaxing.  And of course we did just the opposite.  The drive took less than three hours....it took longer to find our hotel in the city.  We drove through four prefectures and over at least 5 bridges.  By *we* I mean myself, Scottish Jen, Jackie and Brandon.  Other Jets from Onomichi.  So....we get to Shikoku and get on a highway, and drive to the other side of the island, to a city called Takamatsu.  When I went to the front desk I asked for the hotel room we booked.  The Triple.  And they informed me that we had a single, and that triples dont exist.  Ummm....but I booked it.  Luckily we were able to get two doulbles.  Now when they said double, I thought they meant two beds.  So when I got to the room I looked all over for that second bed.  Turns out they just meant a double bed.  Double-sized bed.  Japanese-double-sized bed.  Takamatsu was really awesome.  There was a random car show.  The ocean current was strong and the waves were going crazy. We had sick pizza and coffe at a random Italian cafe.  We went shopping and found a Starbucks.  And I got to have the holiday drinks....Gingerbread LATTE.  So delicious.  The night ended with yaki niku....where you cook you own meat in front of you.  We ordered a lot.  Two orders of everything....about 4-5 things...thats 10 orders.  And two plates came out.  And we ate it...not very much.  And waited.  And waited.  And then were told that those two plates were actually everything that we had ordered.  Thanks Japan.  So we ordered more.  About 4 things of sake later, we were at a karaoke bar.....and lets just say waking up at 9am was not happy.  Now it was Sunday...and we went to a castle.  Only the castle wasnt there...it was where the castle used to be.  I dont understand.  And then we went to a park.  It was so big, and it took so long to go through it that I swear we experienced all four seasons in one hour.  Post park we hit the road and drove south to Tokushima prefecture to find a waterfall.  And we did.  Except to get there I had to drive up a mountain on a street designed for a bicylce, used as a two way street for cars(see photo).   Typical.  The road was huge....and all of a sudden it shrunk to the size of a sidewalk.  And cars were going on it.  Both ways.  I dont understand.  When we got to the top I parked, turned around, and posted to a tree was a sign with the Grim Reaper saying *Dangerous.*  Thanks.  Figured that much.  We had to climb through a forest to get to the waterfall, but we made it. And the car made it safely out.  This pretty much ended our two day *study* trip to Shikoku...minus the studying.  And we drove home from there....obviously missed our exit the first time,  and had to pay lots more money on the highways to fix it.  But worth it.

Tuesday....November 14.  My friends and I threw a surprise baby shower for our friend Yukari, who at that point was ready to bust out the baby.  In Japan they never do showers let alone surprise showers.  Suzuka Misako and I decorated the tatami room in Misako*s house.  And it was so cute.  We had balloon animals, we made a sign, and there was sooooo much food.  When everyone got there we had a few practice runs of saying surprise....but we failed to lock the front door.  So all of a sudden we are chatting away and hear Yukari come in the house saying hello....OOPS.  So we shut the lights shut our mouths, and ended up surprising her.  The party went well, and less than a week later, she had the baby....November 19th.  Little Angelina, now named Yuuka. 

Last weekend I finally did the touristy things in Hiroshima city.  On friday night I had the best time with my friend Misako.  We escaped the hell that is Innoshima, and ran to Fukuyama for the evening....dinner...typical Japanese movie about Christmas...STARBUCKS (Misako just joined our Starbucks club, so she is learning to drink coffee).  So much fun.  The next day, I met up with my friend Maggie....we studied together at Harvard before senior year of High School and havent seen each other since. So it was a little reunion.  Mad fun.  We arrived ass early in the morning to Hiroshima, coming from opposite directions.  And the first stop was Starbucks.  Obviously.  At this point it wasnt raining.  We walked over to the peace park 原爆公園、saw the famous Atmoic Bomb Dome.  And then got on a trolly car in the rain and headed to Miyajima, the island off the coast of the city, with the famous red gates in the water (see photo).  Miyajima, like Nara, is full of deer. Only these deer are less aggresive and a lot friendlier.  Maggie let one eat her hand.  Before we went to Miyajima, we waited at the ferry port for about an hour to eat okonomiyaki.  And while we were waiting to eat lunch, we ate oysters...since it is oyster season. SO all over hiroshima, people are grilling oysters in the shell.  Amazing.  Then we walked the island in the rain.  But had great momiji manju, so it was worth it. When we got back to mainland Hiroshima, we tapped starbucks again (time 3 for me this weekend) and then ran around the city shopping and doing whatever.  The next day was our *city* day, since we both live in the inaka.  Also, we went to starbucks twice....In other words I starbucks-ed 5 times from Friday to Sunday.  Im proud of myself.  I ended up on an early bus back home, at about 5pm.  The trip Hiroshima was so smooth. Everything went right, that I knew somehow, although I was home free on the bus...something was bound to go wrong.  It was still pouring rain by the time my bus pulled into the island.  I had thrown my bags in the back of the bus because there was no room on my seat.  In order not to forget them, I moved them back up when the guy next to me got off the bus in Onomichi.  Anyway...my stop comes.  I grab my things and fly off the bus before it drove away.  And Im walking. And Im in front of my building...and I realize my backpack was on the bus.  SHIIIIIT.  (Meanwhile its still raining....pouring).  I get in my car and drive to the last bus stop on the island.  Of course there was no bus office. Of course.  But a police man helped me call the company.  And then I had to call back. And the number didnt work so I had to go all the way back to the police guy, and I called again....they had my bag.  On the other side of the island.  In a building I had no idea of...in the rain....in the dark...with no gas.  So I got back in my car.  Drove through the island.  It was so dark and rainy...that the only light at this point was the fire in my eyes.  I managed to find the Chuugoku bus office.  And they did have my bag.  An hour after I got back.  I guess nothing can be perfect.  But that is how the weekend ended.  I would have gone to starbucks again, had there been one on the island.

This brings me to last week...I helped kick a kid out of class.  I took a wooden stick knife from another student.  Ummmm, recently I have started to become quite domestic in the kitchen.  I accidentally promised my friend Brandon I would make him eggplant parmesian.  I never had made it before.  Gilda sent me breadcrumbs.  The problem is that we have no ovens and parmesian cheese.  So....that being said.  It was edible.  Then the other day Misako came over and we made steak (rare thing to do in Japan), and as I am cooking a fire comes up on my stove thing underneath the steak.  I was scared.  And if there is anything I learned from this week, is that there are NO fire detectors in my house.  Yeah.  Yesterday (Thanksgiving) Scottish Jenn and I decided to make minature pumpkin pies (no ovens big enough for full sized ones).  Being that there is no pie crust in Japan, we made home made crust....without an electonic beater/mixer.  And some how, by the grace of God, we made delicious pies in under two hours....meanwhile we had to carry them up a mountain in the rain.  And we did make it...to Thanksgiving.  about 30+ people filled Jackie and Rob*s, which was full of food and signs reading 「豊かな生活」.  Scottland drank a bottle of wine, and I had about two mini pies before calling it a night and driving back to the island.  I will admit, I enjoyed the party. 

That is pretty much what has been happening in November.  Havent seen Holly since Kyoto (さびしい！）　Misako is the most amazing person ever.  Jen is still teaching me Scottish.  I met with an 82 yaer old woman in the 2nd floor of her old traditional house, to discuss how and when and why I will be taking shamisen lessons from her.  Oh and I got lost driving in the cities on Tuesday...and was in my car for two hours on the same street.  Never found the international store until friday.  And got lost then too.  Im not surprised.  You have to think though,  if everything is always found, finding would not be so rewarding. So when I finally found the store, I bought the hell out of it. Anyway, this coming weekend should be relatively calm.