Well duh...

So I'm listening to this lady on the radio this morning talking about I'm not sure what but the one comment that caught my ear was her saying she just can't understand blogging. "Why would anyone want to read about the boring details of my life?" she said, or something to that effect, "Unless it was a friend of mine...." blah blah blah.

And I thought, well, duh...

That's who I blog for, especially friends I don't see much but still think of, and I've even managed to connect with a cousin I haven't seen in 15 years or more. I don't expect many people to read my blog, I know it's pretty humdrum. But for those who care, it's a little more info than they would get waiting for a letter!

so there, radio lady.

halloween

It snowed again. I'm not so cold this time. It's all in how you dress!

I'm actually enjoying being outside. The weather is not as horrible as I used to think it was as I ran from my house to the car and in to work then back. I feel like I'm connecting more with nature as I take in the wind and the snow and the sky.

Brrrrr

It's cold. It snowed. The snow is mostly gone. But it's still cold.

Tonight I'm at the library. I'm going to go to a seminar with friends about eating well and saving money while shopping for healthy food. I wonder if it's organic and fair trade.

It is amazing how many enviro-friendly, fair trade things are already available. I've been wondering about it for months, and in the 8 weeks since I actually started talking to people about it, I've found loads of resources right here in my city, or surrounding it. so it will be pretty easy to put together a blog list of these things, if I can get the computer time. I guess I'll have to make time.

I was all proud of myself earlier in the year for going without a car. Saving money and the environment, I figured. Boy did I change my mind fast once the cold hit. I can't afford one right now, but I'd get one right quick if I could. so I guess I'm not the ideal enviro crusader. I never claimed to be perfect.

I'm no longer living in a home with a computer, so I only get to the computers at the library, and sometimes they're not available and even if they are I'm really pressed for time. So this blog is going to be somewhat neglected for a while.
Just warning you.

My suitcases are unpacked!

Yeehaa! Woohoo! Yeah! Alright! YES!

'nuff said.

Moving

Got the key to my new place, phone hooked up tomorrow, looking forward to finally unpacking my suitcases (after 5 months).

Watching Dateline on TV. They're doing another sting on men who hook up with teens online and then go to their homes expecting sex. The guy they just caught even admits he's seen these sting shows before, where the predators are basically set up and go to houses where the TV cameras are waiting for them. And he didn't get the message that this is not OK?!? There are some really sick people in this world. Guard your children, people.

Enviro Cleaning

One of my friends emailed me asking what products I had found for cleaning the home that are enviro friendly. The answer, not much. I haven't really been looking, thinking it was a project I'd give more time to after moving. Which I'll do soon. So, wait and see. But in the mean time, I have been told that baking soda, vinegar, and tea tree oil are all you really need to clean a house. I also noticed that there's a cloth called the Natura Cloth which the TV ads claim is always antibacterial without needing anything more than a rinse with regular water. And the friend with the inquiry sent these links:
http://www.seventhgeneration.com http://www.methodhome.com


I did find, through a friend, a store called Lush that sells earth-friendly personal care products, shampoos, deodorants, facial masks, soaps, and more. You can check them out at their website, which you'll have to google. Or you can go to Polo Park, or see if there is an outlet in a store near you.

One more. I found a company called Irene's Soaps that makes a fantastic laundry soap. Her shaving and the one body soap I tried are also great.

Fun for me!

Did you notice my new visitor counters and map? You have to scroll down, waaay down, and you'll see them on the right. I think they're funky. The map will change in a couple of weeks. It's a trial version, and I'm not going to pay so they'll change me to the free version. But I like seeing where the sun is shining at any givin moment.

Baby Steps

Have you ever seen the movie What About Bob? It's old. [Which reminds me. Raiders of the Lost Ark is 25 years old this week. I can hardly believe it. I enjoy Indiana Jones so much I still think of him as current and cool. And to think I can remember anything that is 25 years old is terribly aging. I guess seeing Harrison Ford age should have given me a clue.]

Anyway, back to Bob. I don't think it's as old as Jones. That's not my point. In that movie the Bob character is trying to get to a better state of mental health, and he keeps talking about baby steps; ie. the change won't come fast or all at once. And the last time I was watching that movie, a year or more or go, that concept of baby steps really stuck in my head, and I thought I should apply it to the changes that need to happen in my life, mostly connected to weight loss.

Anyway, I gave up Coke a couple of months ago, 'cause I love the stuff so much that there just doesn't seem to be any middle ground for me. Either I'm drinking it too much, or not at all. "Goodbye to Coke" was my first baby step. I soon after decided I have to give up all pops because of the sugar, and I don't really like them anyway, and for me they're like a gateway drug (leading back to Coke.) So that was baby step 2. Then I gave up MacDonald's, then most fast food burger joints (actually, just the big chains like Burger King and Wendy's. I got to have a burger sometimes, so I saved my fave spots, like George's and Burger Factory). Last week I decided eating ice-cream when I'm alone has to stop (which leaves a few loopholes I can sneak through occasionally), and yesterday eating out alone got cut. Well, in theory. I usually stumble a few times before I really adopt my new lifestyle changes. Like last week I had ice-cream a couple of times when I shouldn't have. But I'm not going to hell for it.

So I was inspired to blog about all this today because when I put on a pair of pants this morning that I haven't worn for a week or two, they fit better. And I feel good about that. And now you know.

Yeah for me! Baby steps.

Back to Life

It's been almost 5 months now that I've been living out of my suitcases, literally. It's been good actually. I've learned a much truer definition of the word "need". Everything, and I really mean everything, I need to live fits in my suitcases, with room left for extras. Not everyone I need to live is in there, but they're probably grateful for that anyway.

In a week or two I will be out of the basement and into a suite I hope to call my own for a long time to come. In 7 years I've lived in eight different places (just in Winnipeg) and house sat a couple. I am so sick of moving around I could scream. However, I will kind of miss this particular basement. I've found some friends that are good to live with (not all friends fit that description). But I want to have a place I can decorate with my things and fill with my friends, basically a home. Right now, lovely as it is, I'm in someone else's home. So I'll leave the basement, even if it is comfortable.

I am looking forward to taking all the things I've collected, many of them gifts attached to memories and love, and turning them into objects of art, or at least using them to make the suite feel like a home. And, I'll have an extra bedroom, so y'all can come visit and stay if it strikes your fancy. (not at the same time)

For about 5 months, I have felt like I'm camping. Even now, my new job is new enough and my time is free enough that I don't feel like I'm into any kind of routine. I'm thinking routine and a new place will make me feel like my nomadic existence has come to an end.

Yesterday I had my first bellydance lesson. We mostly stretched. The instructor warned us that we'd find and use muscles we never knew we had. And she wasn't kidding. Who'd have thought a few stretches and a little wiggling could make a person so sore! But I think it's going to be a lot of fun.

The girl who loved Sniff

My last entry drew a comment from an old friend I haven't heard from in a while. She found me via the blog of another old friend who found me online. So I am definitily motivated to keep up this blogging thing. Anything that attracts friends is a good thing.

Anyway, Rachel is the latest old friend to show up. She can explain this entry's title on her blog, if she so chooses. She brings a lot of joy and laughter in to people's lives--great sense of humour. She probably doesn't know, but is about to find out, that she is one of the people I most respect in the world for her wonderful, sincere heart for justice. And she's not just wishing for world peace, she does what she can to bring it on. She also introduced me to the Winnipeg chapter of Mother Teresa's Sisters of Charity (isn't that their name? I may have it wrong.) Beautiful women, oozing Jesus. I should have kept in touch with them. Anyway, nice to "see" you Rachel. Hope you don't mind if I link to your blog.

By the way, check her blog out. It's got some great quotes, and it's still small enough at this point that it won't take long to check out.

New News

New in Manitoba. The Amish. Don't know the details, but they're coming. Am listening to the radio about them now. Will fill you in.

Also new. A white bison. Sacred to the First Nations. Brought to Winnipeg from a ranch in Montana. Currently living in Winnipeg zoo and going by the name "Blizzard". Why didn't they let the natives name him?

Ok, back to the Amish. An as yet undetermined number moving in somewhere near Gladstone from Ontario. The Gladstone area municipality had to lure them in somehow. Apparently they were looking at a few places in Manitoba. Now the reporter is just asking about their lifestyle. You can google that info. I'm not going to type it all out.

And finally, also new to the zoo, a white black bear. Yes, you read that right, a white black bear. The one that was found north of Winnipeg this spring when a car killed it's mother. It's not albino, I don't think, but some sort of recessive gene like with Blizzard, who is not an albino bison, by the way. His eyes are brown.

The natives believe a white bison represents the beginning of an era of peace....

Going granola

Didn't mean to imply that all bloggers don't have lives. Sorry, rj. I did get a great laugh out of your comment though. But in defense of my comment, I'm not a person who really likes computers, so I only tend to blog when I haven't much else to do.

So I'm really getting into a "clean the house without killing the environment-or myself" mode. Did I already mention that this has been spurred on by the precautions the government is requiring my workplace to take with common household cleaners? I have found out at work that substances we use everyday are suspected of causing cancer and doing other nasty things too. I'll have to do more research to get all the details. But I feel lied to and conned. Ever since I was a kid, various chemicals have been the way to clean, and I just assumed they were safe (I know, I know, never assume, it could kill you), with the logic that people wouldn't sell stuff that was going to harm other people. (What was I thinking!? I know about arms dealers!) And of course the manufacturers would claim their products are safe, but it turns out "safe" is a relative term. Like, using household cleaners is safer than jumping out of a plane without a parachute, but not "safe" as in these-things-could-never-hurt-you-cause-they're-absolutely-harmless "safe".

So, I experimented today, and I learned something amazing. A mirror wiped with a wet cloth and then dried and buffed with a dry cloth COMES JUST AS CLEAN AS A MIRROR CLEANED WITH WINDEX!!! Who'd have thunk it. The proof is in my bathroom. Come on over and I'll show you. So why spend my money on a glass cleaner? And why risk my health?

By the way....

...thanks for the cleaning tips. I will be sure to use them.

Who needs to blog when you've got a life? Funny how my blog has lost its attraction since I got back home. I can find so many things here I'd rather do. I've been reading and exploring the city, working, taking care of some things I have to do in order to move, and lots of other bland, boring stuff no one cares to read about on a blog. I signed up for belly dancing lessons. That'll be fun. And I might sign up for a French course. I got a full time job. I'll be paid to sleep! And I found a place to live, but I'm not moving in until October.

So what can I entice my blogging audience with? Not much. I'd love to entertain you, but I'm just plum out of entertaining tidbits. Japan was good for entertaining tidbits.

Help, please

I am looking for environmentally friendly household cleaners, especially since hearing and reading about how caustic and cancer causing our regular commercial cleaners are. I want to find a Canadian supplier, and preferably a Canadian manufacturer. Anybody out there know of any such place? I have just started my internet search. So far I have found a supplier called Ecover, but I don't know where their products are made. Here's their website if you're curious.

www.ecover.com/ca

Thanks.

Perspective

I went to Kildonan Place today. Had to go by bus, so walked from Johnson and Henderson to the Louise Bridge. And when I got to the bridge, I was surprised at how little time it had taken to get there. See, for the past 7 years I've been driving everywhere in my car, and to walk that far seemed AWFULLY far. Even walking across the parking lot at Superstore seemed a long way. But in Japan I walked a lot for lack of car, and I guess I've gotten used to it. Anyway, distances that once seemed horrendous are no longer a problem. Isn't that good?

Sunday

It's Sunday.

I'm still staying with friends til I find a place to live. Been back in Winnipeg for 2 weeks now. The weather is great. I am even loving the rain. Thought the rain would remind me of Japan, but it's different somehow. Am back to work. Have enjoyed seeing the people again. I work with some great people. Have a great job that way. Never dropped in on a supervisor and ended up chatting for an hour and a half before!! And everyone acts like they're glad to see me. I'm beginning to feel as loved as I did in Japan. Anyway, it's been a good week.

Alright, it was me

OK, I'm fessing up. It was me. I made it rain. I prayed for it, I was heard, it came. Sorry to all the golfers whose tee times were messed up. But hey, next time you head out, the greens will really be green. But I'm not really sorry. We need some rain around here. And it didn't rain on my beach day, so it's all good for me! :)

And by the way....

I feel like I haven't finished my blogging about Japan. My last day was nice, just hanging with the family, and I had absolutely no hassles at any airports on the way home, and my baggage was well under weight, which I'd been worried about. So all that stuff was good. I went back to the train station in Toyohashi, where I'd lived, in order to catch the train to the airport. From the train I could see 2 major landmarks that are close to my apartment and were part of my Toyohashi life. And I cried. I was surprised at that. But as I looked at them in the distance, and realized that I don't know when I'll see them again, I bawled my eyes out. I'm tearing up now. So, as much as I still think I don't want to live there, I love that place. But mostly the people in it. And I miss them.

I'm Back

I'm not in Kans...er, Japan, anymore. I'm back home. Landed at my old apartment for a couple of nights (thanks Cheryl), and now I'm with the friends I had planned to stay with. So many things are relative. I'm laughing at myself this week because before I left when I was talking to these friends about moving in, I thought the basement I am staying in looked so small. Now I'm there and it feels just fine after the place I stayed in in Japan. Quite roomy and comfortable. I have my own bathroom, and even my own TV so I can watch my DVDs when I feel like it. So my perspective has been altered. It's good to go through a little perspective altering once in a while. All my worldly possessions except what's in my suitcase (and my electronics, DVDS, and CDs) are in storage. For the last 3 months I have lived out of my suitcase, which has been a lesson in how much stuff I really need to live. Even now, at least 50% of my suitcase room is taken up with gifts and stuff I don't need (like the pottery I bought in Japan, or the shoes I bought because I thought I'd need them but which to date I've never worn once. I've got 2 pairs like that, actually). After reading the latest issue of Geez magazine I was thinking a lot about living simply. I've certainly seen how simply I can live. Most of the stuff I hold on to that I don't "need" is either of sentimental value, or it is for serving people on occasions when I choose to show some hospitality. So maybe I should just cut friends out of my life, or never invite them over. I'd save a load of cash on stuff I wouldn't need.

See You Later

How can you love and hate a place at the same time? I`m doing it, and I don`t even know how it works. Today is my last full day in Japan, for a while. Tomorrow I get on the plane. I am both relieved and sad. Part of me doesn`t want to go, the other part has been looking forward to tomorrow for 11 weeks (one less than I`ve been here). I guess it`s not so much that I want to stay in Japan as getting back to it is so hard. I wish it were close enough that I could visit every weekend.

Anyway, my second visit to Fukushima was like old times, visiting a couple of the teachers I worked with and who took care of me last time I was here. Mr. Yoshida has grandchildren, so it was fun playing with them. Like the other kids I met, they all think I`m super cool. Nice to be foreign sometimes.

I`ve been hanging out with family in all my free time. Non-free time has been spent packing and cleaning. I`m pretty much done. Then I`m off to spend my last day with the family again.

You know, maybe it`s just as well that Japan is far away. I was just thinking of all the things I want to do and people I like to spend time with back home that I never do or see because they`re close by, or at least closer than Japan, and I always figure there`s time. I think I need to quit taking time for granted. It does run out eventually, sometimes shockingly sooner than you figured.

Umm, I don`t have many interesting quips from Japan today. I`m feeling pretty reflective and kind of tired. But I`m gonna try to make my last day a good one.

I Blog, Therefore I Am

I put myself under a lot of pressure to come up with cool blog entry titles. I want to be considered witty and cool. But I should just let it go. Y`all know better anyway.

I wasn`t going to blog tonight, then noticed it`s been a whole week! And what a busy week.

Went to Fukushima, my home in Japan, last weekend. Like most small towns, it has hardly changed a lick in 7 years, and I`m so glad. It was SOOOO good to see it all again, a little like finding out a great dream　I once had is actually a reality! I remember my time in Japan fondly but through a culture-shocked fog. I am glad that fog is finally clearing.

It was wonderful to see my friends again. They look exactly the same too, except for the kids who grew and the friend who`s fighting cancer and looks a bit haggard. I have come to the conclusion that I don`t just want to, I need to get over there more often. Some of the most precious people in my life are over there, and you can`t have a relationship without contact, though you can remain friends over a distance. I need to see them more. God willing, I`ll head over there yearly.

The kids blew me away. There was only one who I thought might remember me. She is 12 now. Her little brother is 9 and last saw me when he was 2. Their little sister is 7. Anyway, they welcomed me like I was a long lost aunt (same amount of enthusiasm I get from Simon, actually). One of the benefits of being a foreigner in Japan. People are quick to like you (usually).

Last weekend I visited my church friends. Was nice to fellowship with them again, and am encouraged by how much Japanese I know. That place was the site of a lot of hard days when I was just sick of not understanding anything or anyone, so it was good to go back and see how far along I`ve come. Still have a loooong way to go though before I can claim fluency.

Tonight I`m off to Fukushima again to visit my Japanese family and other friends I made through work.

This week was very busy. Y`all are going to get tired if you read this in one sit.

Monday I went to a nearby city to visit another English teacher I met on the train. She is finishing 3 years on the same program that brought me to Japan the 1st time. We just had a nice chat at a good restaurant she knows. It was interesting to talk to her. She`s a trained teacher who came to Japan out of university. She`s in a similar place in life to where I was 7 years ago. Therefore, interesting chat.

Tuesday some of the ladies who work in the office at the university took me out for a farewell dinner at an okonomiyaki restaurant. It`s a place where you sit at a table with a built in grill and prepare your own food. I`ve had okonomiyaki before, but only from a vendor at a festival. Anyway, delicious!! It`s a kind of pancake with cabbage in it and a variety of other delicious things you can choose. Then we went to a cafe that is known for it`s over sized desserts and finished off a parfait made in a juice pitcher. It was called "Never give up". I did, they didn`t. We decided we`ll go for the bucket-sized one next time I`m in Japan.

Wednesday night was a party with friends at an izakaya, a traditional Japanese bar. When you reserve a party room, you pay a set amount for all you can eat and drink, within a time limit. We were there for 3.5 hours. I think that we were cut off at 3 hours, though they didn`t kick us out. Anyway, that`s how Japanese party. They don`t often host big parties in their homes. Can`t really. It cost us $30. Worth every penny. Good food(except the raw horse meat and the octopus), good times. Can`t afford it all the time though.

Thursday, another izakaya with Diana`s friends at a place that serves killer wings. More good food, good times.

Friday, today, class party. I wasn`t quite sure how it would go, but we had a great time. There were a few drinks and snacks, and the students started coming at 11am and the party ended at 5:30pm. We played games, talked, and took a lot of pictures. I already got 3 emails from students, and it sounds like they had fun. Good.

So that`s about it. After school I packed then came to the internet cafe and now I`m off to catch the train to Fukushima.

Have a nice weekend.

By the way

I`M GOING TO FUKUSHIMA TONIGHT!!!!! YEAH!

Princess Becky Does It Again

My friend Becky has a knack for making people laugh. And not just giggle either, but side-splitting, pee-your-pants, rolling on the floor laughter. She did it again, and I love this so much I got to share.


These are taken from papers turned in by high school students.

1. Her face was a perfect oval, like a circle that had its two sides gently compressed by a Thigh Master.
2. His thoughts tumbled in his head, making and breaking alliances like underpants in a dryer without Cling Free.
3. He spoke with the wisdom that can only come from experience, like a guy who went blind because he looked at a solar eclipse without one of those boxes with a pinhole in it and now goes around the country speaking at high schools about the dangers of looking at a solar eclipse without one of those boxes with a pinhole in it.
4. She grew on him like she was a colony of E. coli and he was room-temperature Canadian beef.
5. She had a deep, throaty, genuine laugh, like that sound a dog makes just before it throws up.
6. Her vocabulary was as bad as, like, whatever.
7. He was as tall as a 6'3" tree.
8. The revelation that his marriage of 30 years had disintegrated because of his wife's infidelity came as a rude shock, like a surcharge at a formerly surcharge-free ATM.
9. The little boat gently drifted across the pond exactly the way a bowling ball wouldn't.
10. McBride fell 12 stories, hitting the pavement like a Hefty bag filled with vegetable soup.
11. From the attic came an unearthly howl. The whole scene had an eerie, surreal quality, like when you're on vacation in another city and Jeopardy comes on at 7:00 p.m. instead of 7:30.
12. Her hair glistened in the rain like a nose hair after a sneeze.
13. The hailstones leaped from the pavement, just like maggots when you fry them in hot grease.
14. Long separated by cruel fate, the star-crossed lovers raced across the grassy field toward each other like two freight trains, one having left Cleveland at 6:36 p.m. traveling at 55 mph, the other from Topeka at 4:19 p.m. at a speed of 35 mph.
15. They lived in a typical suburban neighborhood with picket fences that resembled Nancy Kerrigan's teeth.
16. John and Mary had never met. They were like two hummingbirds who had also never met.
17. He fell for her like his heart was a mob informant and she was the East River.
18. Even in his last years, Grand pappy had a mind like a steel trap, only one that had been left out so long, it had rusted shut.
19. Shots rang out, as shots are wont to do.
20. The plan was simple, like my brother-in-law Phil. But unlike Phil, this plan just might work.
21. The young fighter had a hungry look, the kind you get from not eating for a while.
22. "Oh, Jason, take me!" she panted, her breasts heaving like a college freshman on $1-a-beer night.
23. He was as lame as a duck. Not the metaphorical lame duck, either, but a real duck that was actually lame. Maybe from stepping on a land mine or something.
24. The ballerina rose gracefully en pointe and extended one slender leg behind her, like a dog at a fire hydrant.
25. It was an American tradition, like fathers chasing kids around with power tools.
26. He was deeply in love. When she spoke, he thought he heard bells, as if she were a garbage truck backing up.
27. She was as easy as the TV Guide crossword.
28. Her eyes were like limpid pools, only they had forgotten to put in any pH cleanser.
29. She walked into my office like a centipede with 98 missing legs.
30. It hurt the way your tongue hurts after you accidentally staple it to the wall.

Blogger Love

I started blogging very reluctantly, but today I`m really glad I took it up. I`m horrible at keeping a regular journal, online or otherwise. So, I have very little written from my first trip here, in spite of being here 3 years that time round. This time, in the name of keeping in touch with y`all back home, I have collected a few interesting memories and thoughts. Interesting to me, anyway.

And I keep on thinking of more things to blog as I go around Japan, and then I sit down at the computer and don`t feel like typing (those are my game days) or get blogger`s block.

Anyway, today is the first day of my last two weeks of classes. I really like my students, but I`m so glad it`s almost over. I have been having such a negative reaction to teaching this time round that I`m thinking it`s time to give teaching up. I mean, I have THE PERFECT job here. The students are cooperative, willing to participate fully and well, and self-motivated. The course work is all set out for me so that planning is pretty much done and prep time is to a minimum. Teaching`s 2 biggest challenges, classroom management and curriculum, are both well taken care of here. And still I can`t stand this job!! Having the perfect teaching position and still not liking the job is a big hint to walk away and find something else to do, right?

In other news, I booked my tickets to Fukushima today, where I used to live. I am so looking forward to being there. I`m going to love it.

Lonely in Cyberspace

Where`d everybody go?

Still In Japan

Some of the great sites...

Trains in the night as they seem to glide through the sky and all you can see is the interior lights through the windows. Like some wonderful electric snake.

Green trees. I mean, really green.

Did I mention the fountain of youth? You can`t actually see it, but I`m sure it`s here, dispersed in the atmosphere. (Actually, the humidity here, uncomfortable as it is, does wonders for the skin. My skin got softer within a week of being here. I`m sure it`s why the Japanese look so young.)

Sunsets through the smog (surprisingly beautiful, though no comparison to a prairie sunset. And yes, I`m biased.)

The butterflies. Big, bold, beautiful.

My nephews` smiles. They`re so cute!!

There`s so much more. I`ll blog about it if I can recall it all.

Off the top of my head

There are various random things that I see around here that I think I should blog about. I don`t write them down, so I don`t always remember them. But I`ll see how many I can come up with.

You know you`re in a safe country when....
the security guys who service the campus atm`s WALK up to the machine, and only one bothers to keep "watch" (with his back to potential danger!) while the other gets the cash. They could drive their armoured vehicle up to the machines (other service vehicles drive past them), but they don`t seem to have one!! But they dress like a S.W.A.T team. I guess if you look scary you`re safe around here. Except on a bicycle.

Ummmm.....I guess that`s all I can come up with.

I am trying to plan a trip to the place I formerly lived, to see old friends, but it`s come down to getting up there for a couple of weekends, since I couldn`t extend my ticket. It`s kind of tricky getting that far in one evening, which I`d like to do after work on a Friday, but I will find a way. At least one of the weekends is a long one.

So I`m down to thinking in terms of going home. I`m starting to plan my shopping to pick up the things I wanted to take home with me, and I have to do report cards at work, and a final report on my semester, and I`m trying to get to see the people I came to see. The count down is on. Just 3 weeks ago I was musing how fast my first 4 weeks had gone, and that in only 2 weeks I`d be counting down the last 4 weeks. Now I`m down to just over 3 weeks left (of work. I have one more than that in the country). Anyway, the days are going fast, boring or not.

Bored

I`m bored. Bored, bored, bored. And there are probably a million interesting things to do. But I`m also broke. So maybe after I get paid tomorrow I can stir up a little more fun.

I keep thinking I should blog about Japan, but the thought of it bores me.

Pics

One or two of you, or maybe the same person twice, said you were looking forward to seeing pics. That is actually one of the big differences between this visit and my last, I`m not taking pics. Not many, anyway. Last time I was actually snap happy. But if you`re interested in seeing Japan, I can show you the 7 year old pics. They`re mostly of historical stuff, so are actually still up to date. Pics from this time will be mostly of friends and family, and maybe the occasional sight that strikes my fancy. Like the field of cabbages outside my apartment. I`ve never seen a field of cabbages before. I`m going to snap it. Anyone want to see my pic of the field of cabbages? You can come to my house and enjoy some fresh green tea while you gaze at the cabbage picture. Sounds like a great night, eh?

Perfect

Today has been a perfect day. I got to see some sites I`ve been meaning to see and spend time with an old friend. One of my students from the first time I was in Japan, the only one I`ve kept in touch with, came to see me today. We went to see the local museum and park that I`ve been meaning to get to. I really liked it. It really gave me a feel for what old Japan was like. I walked along a highway that is hundreds of years old. Except for some old houses, I`m sure it barely resembles its old self. Then I was in a 200 year old hotel. Very rare in this country of wooden houses. It`s now a museum. Went to the zoo, which is in a great park. It was a cool day. Enjoyed chatting with an old friend, and just relaxed and had fun. Then we did the dollar store tour. They`ve got some good dollar stores here. Anyway, she has to work tomorrow, so she`s gone home. I`ll go into Nagoya to see family tomorrow. Today marks the half way mark of my time here. I can hardly believe it. I more or less still feel like I`m settling in.

The rainy season is supposed to be starting this week. From here on in it should get humid and hot. I just hope it doesn`t get too bad. We`ll see.

More Japanisms

Words that DO NOT belong together.


WashAmuse and Shower Toilet





I am taking my life into my hands biking around here, and that`s on the sidewalks!! Everyone bikes there, but some of the sidewalks are sooooooo narrow. The teens just about knock me over. I`m going to start staring them down. A nasty looking foreign chick should easily scare the bravado out of `em. Thing is, I see them coming, and I get scared. I`m just not as used to brushing past people and keeping my balance as they are.

OK, lurkers, today`s your day. If you`ve been dropping in to visit and have never commented, stand up and be counted. I`m just curious as to who might be out there.

Have a great day.

Tokyo

Went to Tokyo. Enjoyed it. Stayed in a nice little hotel in a Japanese style room. Slept on a tatami floor. Don`t have any tatami in my apartment, so I`m glad I got to see the stuff again. I love it (it`s a flooring made of woven straw or reeds or something. very aromatic). Stayed near the majorly touristy Sensoji Shrine in Asakusa (remember it, Stacey?). Nice place to walk around. Just spent my time walking and looking with my sister. Saw a Louis Vitton store in Harajuku! Never been so close to luxury before. Didn`t go in. I`m neither that rich nor that interested. The high light actually was meeting a friend of mine before my sister arrived. Haven`t seen this friend in 7 years. She took me to the Edo-Tokyo Museum, which traces Tokyo`s history back 500 years (to when it was called Edo). I LOVED it. Diana`s friend showed us around by car. Thought that would be interesting, but it turns out Tokyo`s just a place like any else, lots of concrete and shabby buildings, and all the interesting places look the same on foot or from a car window. I think I`ve just done enought touristy things in Japan that nothing is really novel any more. Maybe that`s normal, but Japan is the only travel experience I really have, and I`m used to the feeling of high adventure I used to associate with it. But I guess that was a feeling more attached to circumstance than location, `cause I can`t seem to find it now. Too bad. Adventure is fun.

Fortunately, I actually like Japan and Japanese people, so even if the sense of high adventure is gone, I`ll enjoy being here. I guess I`ll just focus more on catching up with old friends than site seeing.

One more hi-lite. In our wandering, my sister and I came across this little store full of beautiful boxes with silk designs worked into them. The were expensive, but so beautiful I had to buy myself a little one. I`d buy a lot more if I could. Anyway, you can see it when I get home.

atto de ne

Chicken Pox

It`s been 3 weeks since I was exposed to THE POX by my nephew. My parents and I both think I`ve never had them, though my brother did. And maybe my sister. So if I haven`t had them before, and I don`t have them now, I think I can conclude that I`m naturally immune. Yeah. At least I didn`t get them here. I was really scared I might. If I have to get the pox, fine, but not when I`ve got limited time to enjoy Japan and I`m far away from anyone who could care for me!

I`ve only been here a month, and I am running out of things to blog about. I keep thinking about what interesting tidbit I could share. But the fact is, life is life where ever you live it. Once one gets over culture shock and the novelty of a place, you just get down to the rythm of life. My rythm is get out of bed on Monday, check the weather, read, get ready for work, go to work, spend the day prepping lessons, talk to students, wonder if anyone thinks I`m dressed inappropriately, compare my wardrobe to the other female professors, decide if I`m eating ethnic (a sandwich) or local cuisine for lunch, go home, find a way to kill a couple of hours before bed so I don`t have to sit too long in my rabbit hutch apartment, then go to bed early so I`ll have had a good night`s sleep before my jerk neighbor [I`m sure he`s really very nice, but I`m annoyed] starts stomping around at 4:30am, or before the sun wakes me (at about the same time). Then I repeat that until Friday night, when I hop on a train after work and head for John or Diana`s place. This weekend I`m going to shake up the routine with a trip to Tokyo, and I`ll be going to more places on other weekends. But the weekdays in Japan ain`t so exciting, unless I take a bike ride that leads to a cool discovery. Thank goodness I like my students. They're fun.

But at least I`m enjoying it, for the most part. My days and weeks are busy and enjoyable enough that they`re flying by. That`s way better than hating where I`m at and having time drag.

me again

I give up. I try. Really, I do. Tried again tonight. But the plain fact is all y`all won`t be getting individual emails. I can only type a couple before it seems my time is running out. I`d like to connect with each one of you, say hi, and I`ll keep trying to do a few here and there, but this blog is going to be your best bet for news about me. I just can`t afford the computer time. Nor do I want to spend all my free time here in front of a computer.

Discovered a wonderful new thing yesterday, Brazilian bbq. WOW. If there`s one near you, get to it now. If not, grab the closest Brazilian and beg him to get into the restaurant biz. WONDERFUL. Unless you`re a vegan or a cow. I even ate, and enjoyed, the chicken hearts. And I`m not a giblet eating type of chick. Tried a Moroccan restaurant a few weeks ago. Also WONDERFUL. Got to go to Morocco.
The Japanese food, on the other hand, I`m finding kind of boring. The Coke`s OK;)

Going to Tokyo on Saturday. Couldn`t get my ticket extended, so I`ll be coming home July 21, as originally planned. Won`t be going to Okinawa, as it would cost about $800 to get there. I can get cheaper tickets from here to London!

Found It!!!

On my latest bike adventure I found out I`m only minutes from the countryside. Turns out those first fields I found weren`t just a fluke, they indicate the southern end of the city! It was so lovely to go for a country ride! And to think I was looking for Jusco (Japan`s Walmart)

Have you ever...

...bought a meal at McDonald's with a $100 bill? I did, just this morning. And as I did it I thought how silly it would seem back home. But the guy in front of me did it too. Over here, everything lower than $10 is a coin, and the common bills are $10 and $100. I don't think any other bills exist under $100. Haven't seen any. It makes spending money way too easy for me, 'cause I haven't quite gotten over treating a $100 with the casual-ness of $20. Yikes.

I Love Japan

The rain finally stopped on Wednesday, though it returned Friday, and I went for a walk in my neighbourhood. I was curious about where I live. I went for a bike ride the following night. The walk was beautiful. I started out as the sun was going down, and as I walked in the dusk I was joined by several flitting bats. I love the bats. They're harmless, and to me that's one of the things that makes Japan Japan. Not that there aren't bats at home, just that I never see them there. So the bats entertained me as I ogled my neighbors' homes. Most of them look to be quite new. Some of them also have very nice yards. The neighborhood is quite eclectic. Houses of all ages, apartments, gardens, fields, and shrines all meshed together. The shrines are surrounded by trees, and therefore add spots of nature to the area. The gardens had corn, pumpkins, onions, potatoes, and other things I didn't recognize. There were a few places with corn in them. The shortest corn was a foot tall, and the tallest maybe 4 feet, so that'll give you gardeners some idea of when they plant around here.

As I walked, I came to some rice fields. I was so glad. I love rice fields. Now I feel not so "trapped" in the city. I heard a couple of bullfrogs. They have the neatest voices, and I haven't heard them since last in Japan. When I lived here before, I had rice fields off my balcony, and I would often enjoy listening to the choruses of the bullfrogs and other frogs. So the sound took me back a bit. When I headed home, I tried a different route and managed to find the road my closest supermarket is on. So now I know my neighborhood a bit better.

On my bike ride, I started following the same little river I'd been following during my walk, but decided to go farther. I was sure I had to be close to the bay, and figured the river would lead me to it. I was right. The little river (more of a stream) led to a huge river which I followed to the port. Apparently that port is the one where most of the imported cars arrive. It's very industrial, at least the part I found. But if I keep looking I might find a beach. However, I'm not sure I'll have time since I need to use my weekends to visit the various friends I want to see around the country, and between rainy days and a 7:30pm sundown, I won't have much time to explore during the week. I should have come in fall.

Anyway, as I walked and rode, I totally reconnected with my love for this place. I love the natural beauty of this place. It's a little harder to find here than where I was before, but it's here. I wondered what it is about the nature that captivates me so. And then this thought came to me. Maybe it's because nature here is singing, even screaming, out God's praises. That's what always got me growing up in the Canadian prairie, maybe that's what's attracting me to nature here. And perhaps, since when man is silent the rocks will cry out to praise the Creator, nature is singing God's praises even more loudly in this country than in my own. There aren't many people here who will even acknowledge the Creator, nevermind praise him. Perhaps nature is stepping in to fill the gap.

Whatever the case, this place is beautiful. I love it.

Karma

As seen on a student's sweater:

KARMA Knowledge And Recognition My Ass


Eeee?

The Wonders of Technology

I bought a bike yesterday. $50. Now I can get to work in 10 min, the supermarket in 5, and the theatre in 10-15. Ya gotta love technology!!!

It`s raining. It`s not even rainy season yet and it`s raining. Do me a favor and join me in praying for the coolest and most comfortable summer in Japan`s recorded history.

My nephew had chicken pox. I`m praying I don`t get them.

What else.... I`d love to be able to regale you with fabulous stories of life in Japan, but life is life. Japan`s cool, but it`s not constantly amusing. But then, neither am I.

I turned 33 on the weekend. Got an Ipod Shuffle for my birthday. Gotta love siblings!! Thanks again, guys.

Later

The Other Side of It

After my last blog, I thought I can't just present the bizarre or annoying aspects of this place. That would be to misrepresent. All in all, it's a great place, for so many reasons.

One being, taxi drivers who wear white gloves and keep their cabs immaculate. Comfortable and safe. At least, it feels safe.

I know my watch is fast because every train I've gotten on lately has been a minute or two late. Back home, if that happened I'd assume the problem was with the public transport. Here, I know my watch is wrong. Reliable public transport is such a wonderful (and novel) thing.

There are escalators that only move when someone is actually on them. Such an energy saver! These guys are really committed to the Kyoto accord. We could learn from them.

Amazing green vegetation. The humidity may be uncomfortable, but it makes for a lot of beauty.

Bank machines that print a perfectly neat line in your bank book, even if it slips and goes in crooked. Drink machines that never keep your change or rip you off at all. Machines in general that seem to be better than ours. If the technology is available, and we're such a rich country, why don't we have it?

I am absolutely in love with the nature in this country. It captivates me, when I can find it.

The history and all of the relics still around to represent it is amazing.

Internet cafes that are cheaper than any I've seen back home, and serve all-you-can-drink free drinks. But no alcohol (no where is perfect)

Well, that's a start. I'm sure I'll think of more.

Japanisms

But first, before I get to Japan, I must direct you to this video. You can thank me when you`re done laughing. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMH0bHeiRNg%20


A few things unique to Japan:

I don`t find myself rehearsing what I`m going to say to the clerk before entering stores at home. At least, not as much as here:)

Camouflage trees. At least, I`ve never seen them anywhere else. There are these trees here that shed their bark in such a way that they look exactly like army camouflage, in green. And with the varied shades. I wondered where the idea for that pattern came from. (sorry I don`t have a digicam)

Twenty-two year old men who giggle. Well, I`ve only met one here (a student), but a giggling guy in Canada would surprise me.

Shortening words to make new words. We come up with slang and nicknames sometimes, but we wouldn`t change "personal computer" to "pasocon" or "convenience store" to "combini", would we?

Bicycle parking lots. (very common)

Car parks that rotate like ferris wheels so your car is up in the air as it waits for you. Probably deters thieves.

UMM, shrines. Pretty boring to me by now, they`re so common and I saw so many last time. Their like churches in Canada, I guess. Once you`ve seen one, you`ve seen one. But the worship would be totally different.

Shinkansen. Pretty freakin` cool train.

Postal money accounts. Same as bank accounts, but at the post office. I don`t know if there is any difference. Easier to send money home from, maybe.

Japanese English. A constant source of amusement and bewilderment. For example, I copied this off a vending machine:

COFFEE and SOFT DRINK Freshly brewed coffee and delightful fresh our mind and soften our heart. They are indispensible to us

Yeah, coffee and soft drinks are indispensable. A good grammar text apparently is not.

J and A

I'm at John and Andrea's home right now. It's a lovely day, a nice breeze, cool by Japan standards, and warm by Canadian ones. Either way, very comfortable. J&A live in a very residential area, not close to a convenience store or anything. Apparently it was developed 30 years ago or so, so all the houses are modern. John and Andrea have a lovely back yard, a rarity in Japan. It's a nice size for the kids to play in, and not really small as Winnipeg yards go either. They have a beautiful Japanese garden, and even a corner where they "make vegetables", as Simon says.

I had a great first week at work. All of my students are very interested and self-motivated. Maybe I said that in my last entry. Anyway, yesterday A and the boys and I went to an aquarium. It was my first time to one. I loved it. Never seen sea animals so close up. They're beautiful. Would love to go back without the kids and just sit and stare for a while. Maybe I'll check Vancouver's out some time.

A Little Price Comparing

Last time I was in Japan, everything seemed so expensive. When I did calculations in my head to price compare, I added 30-40% because of where the Canadian dollar was at. Now the difference is only about 10%, so I actually don`t bother to calculate exchange. And some things really aren`t so horribly expensive at current exchange rates. My apartment is expensive ($800), considering it`s only a bachelor pad. But my sister is paying the same as me for a place with 3 bedrooms. I don`t know if that includes utilities, but it`s a nice place and if it were in Fort Garry place or some other nice Winnipeg location you could probably expect to pay $700 for it. So, it`s not that over priced, I think. I was talking to a guy who lived in Sendai, way up north, for a while. He said he could get a room for $250. It was nothing special, but you can`t get much more than a room for that in Winnipeg. So if you know where to look, I guess you can find affordable living here.

Coke prices can vary between vending machines, but you can get 300ml for about $1.20 and 500ml for $1.50

Parking in one lot I saw in Tokyo was $2 for 15min from 8am to 10pm and $1 an hour overnight. Don`t buy a car if you plan to live in Tokyo. Gas went up to $1.35/l this week, a 15 year high for Japan. What bugs me is 7 years ago the Japanese were paying twice as much as us for gas. Now we`re only a few cents behind.

So that`s a little bit about prices for those who are curious. Overall Japan is probably still more expensive, but it ain`t as bad it was. (Good time to visit)

AAAHH! Even blogger is in Japanese!

Good thing the buttons all look the same, or I`d be screwed.
Well, I`m not so homesick as I was. My first 2 days of work have gone well, my students are nice, interested, and self-motivated, which makes　my life easier and more fun. And I don`t feel so alone as I had a good conversation with some of the office workers today, a good laugh and some fun. I just have to find things to keep me busy so I don`t spend all my evenings alone cooped up in the rabbit hutch. I`m looking for a Japanese teacher or 2. I figure that`s a good way to spend a couple of evenings. And I expect to fill my weekends visiting various friends and family around the country. So here I go, the adventure begins!

In Japan

Today is my sixth day in Japan. I arrived on Monday after an uneventful but relaxing flight. It was nice to have nothing to do after days of madly packing. I got to my apartment around 10pm Japan time. The next day I had to open a bank account and run other errands, Wednesday I spent with Andrea and the boys, Thursday and Friday I was in Tokyo at orientation, and today I'm back at John and Andrea's place. It's been a busy week. I start work on Monday.

I've been placed in a city called Toyohashi. It's about 60 minutes from John and Diana's places by train if I catch the express trains. It can take longer to get there. I live about a 30 minute walk from where I work. My apartment is one of the infamous Japanese rabbit hutches, although some people live in smaller ones than mine.
It is probably the size of an average Canadian living room. It's definitely smaller than the Comfy Couch room at WCV. {I know that means nothing to some of you}

I wasn't really excited about this trip until I got on the train that runs from the airport to Tokyo. I've taken it a few times, so to see the familiar sites was great. As I rode I became more and more excited. Through the week I was at first surprised but pleased to find that I feel much more relaxed here than I did 10 years ago. I was happy to realize on Wednesday night that I'd completely forgotten about my dictionary: last time I was scared to go anywhere without it. It seems I remember much more Japanese than I thought I would, although my communication level is still very basic. Wandering around Tokyo on Thursday and Friday {still without a dictionary} was fun. I saw a couple of the places, book stores, I used to head to when I spent a weekend in the city. It was nice to feel confident in my ability to navigate and communicate, but as I wandered I realized that Japan has lost its glamour for me. Years ago one of the things I loved most about the place was the incredible sense of adventure I had in being here. Now familiarity has bred, well, not contempt, but it has made Japan less "sexy". I laughed at myself when I thought about how I used to tell people Japan, for me, is like a first boyfriend, even when it's over you never forget, and it's always extra special because it's the first. This week I find myself wondering if perhaps my relationship with Japan is not over, it's just moving into a stage where the "spark" is wearing off. Anyway, it is still a very interesting place, I'm just not so fascinated with every little aspect of it as I used to be.

In fact, this morning I found myself thinking "OK, that's enough. I could go home now". I think that's more about me not being excited about the teaching part of my time here, and I miss the place where I lived before. I'm in a city now, and I'm not particularly fond of cities. My first Japan experience was in a lovely, rural environment, which I will visit before I leave.

Enough for now. I'll try to get to a computer again soon.

I'm Here

I'm here. I do have internet at my house, but somehow it comes over the tv and doesn't fit the screen properly, and I don't have a keyboard, and the "type with the remote" method is tedious, so I'll be trying to find an internet cafe, or use my sister's computer, as I presently am. Will blog more later. We're going to her church's barbecue.

One More Sleep

So I've bought everything I need, bought everything I want, packed 'em, been to Calgary and back and got my passport and visa (and a lovely leather bag I likely should have left there), and I think I'm all ready to go. Flying to Calgary was the right thing to do. As soon as I got through security on the way there my sense of adventure kicked in. I love airports 'cause for me they've always been the first step on an adventure. Then the plane took off. I LOVE that feeling. Then I got all my Calgary errands done in no time and spent the day relaxing. It was good. Now I feel refreshed and ready to go. Up and at 'em.

So this'll be my last blog before going to Japan. Don't know when I'll get computer time again, but see you then.

The Times They Are a Changin'

So I go to the gas station this morning, MY gas station, the one I've been going to for as long as I've owned my car, to fill up for the last time before my dear Sporty is no longer mine. And IT'S CHANGED. Same owners, but they've become Petro Can. They used to be Mowhawk. I was actually a little stunned.

This may seem to you like a small, silly thing to stun a person. But this place has been one of the few constants in my life in Winnipeg. Everything has been changing around me, the crowd I hang with (cause people keep moving), the people at church, the location of the church, where I live. It's been a blessed but unstable existence for the past 7 years. And now my trusty gas station has left me too! I've felt for a long time change was coming through for me, and I think this is another sign.

Almost There

5 sleeps until I get on the plane to Japan.

So a friend of mine reprimanded me for not updating my blog often enough, and then proceeded to share how she couldn't keep one going herself (you know who you are). Anyway, I always thought I'd be a bad blogger. I'm just living up to my expectations.

While in Japan, I don't know how much computer access I'll have. Even if there are computers at work, it's possible I'll be banned from using them for personal use. Japanese can get very sticky about such matters. I will try to find an internet cafe, if nothing else, and blog occasionally.

Preparations are coming along. Packing up my stuff hasn't been quite as awful as I'd feared, but I do wonder if I'll have enough time to do everything. I have to run back and forth to Calgary twice in order to get my visa. This really irritates me since it's the company's bad timing that's forcing the second trip. On the bright side, I can count on that being a more relaxing day. I'll fit in some leisure activity somewhere.

I am too busy thinking about all I have to do to really concentrate on blogging. Later.

Your Japanese Name Is...

Naoko Anenokoji

What's" your Japanese Name?

I thought this seemed appropriate. Click the link to find your name.

The Whole Sordid Tale

For anyone who's been wondering, an update on preps for going to Japan. I received an email about my placement. It was the city furthest from my family and closest to where I used to live. This is OK but not great. 5 days after that email I got one saying a position had opened and would I mind being re-assigned to the area closest to my family. I said "please assign me there if you can". Final word on postings won't be released for another 2 weeks or so, so I won't know exactly where I am going until days before I get on the plane.

So I've been making arrangements for travel, working, and spending some time wondering where I'll live come August. I found a place to "land", so I'll be OK until I find an apartment. I want to find something as permanent as possible, so I don't have to move again. Actually, what I was thinking about today is that what I really want is a home. Does a single person ever really find a home?

Well, that's my story. And I'm stickin' to it.

Hey Andrea

Happy 29th birthday!!
Hope you have a great day. ;)

AAAAAH! What have I done?!?

Today I gave my car away. Two days ago I called a local charity to find out how I'd have to prepare the car for them, ie. safety check, whatever. I left a message, but spoke to them today. There's nothing to do, they just take the car as is. They were going to pick it up Monday (until I told them I'm keeping it until I go to Japan.) I hung up the phone and was like, "Well, that was easy". Half an hour later as I was getting into my car, it hit me. AAARGH, WHAT HAVE I DONE!!! You see, I LOVE driving, I won't likely be getting another car any time soon, and this is my first car. It's not a very special car, except to me. So I'm getting a little sentimental. In fact, this actually hurts a little bit.

I might have called the guy back and said "forget it" except I reminded myself of all the good things about not having a car, especially the reasons I decided to let it go in the first place ie. I can barely afford it on the salary I choose to make; it's getting to that point in its life where repair bills will increase; and if I give it up I'll have more money for study and travel. So I won't call back and cancel the deal. But I might cry myself to sleep tonight.

Happy Birthday John

It's a little early over here, but it'll likely be right when you read this.

Have a great day.

I Knew I'd Learn Something

So when I took my present job way back in May, I knew it would be a season of learning, as I have never really known, never mind ever worked with, disabled people before. And I have learned lots of things, the most interesting I think is about myself. I have learned that I would rather wipe a feces filled butt than deal with a selfish, whiny personality. Which means, I think, that I can no longer with integrity tell anyone that I won't "take their crap", because under the right circumstances, depending on the options, I just might.

Anyway, I can deal with the physical issues without flinching. It's the emotional and personality issues that conjure thoughts of murder in my head.

That's something I've learned.

whatever

So, I sent my contract off yesterday, so it's official, I have a job in Japan. I will have to go to Edmonton sometime to get the visa, that's the closest consulate to us. Went shopping yesterday for a "professional" wardrobe. They insist on that in Japan, and can be much pickier on that than we are. So I think I've got one now. Had a few pieces before, now I think I have all I need, except I might buy some more shoes. Had to pick light clothes too, cause the heat and humidity over there are going to kill me. Just thought of something, I don't have many summer clothes at all!! So now I'll have to shop for a couple of casual things. Actually, I have tops. So just some shorts, I guess. There goes any savings I thought I'd have!! But this is fun!!

Anybody need a ride to Edmonton?

What else... I've been working more than usual this week, so I feel a bit over loaded. But next week will slow down. Am planning to move again. North Henderson is just way too far from the North End, which feels more like home, and if I get rid of my car the bus connections are better back "home" anyway. I just hope I can work something out that I don't have to move again for a few years. For the last 7 years I've moved mostly every few months, and it gets old.

That's all I'll bore you with today.

Tagged

FOUR JOBS I'VE HAD:
1. Waitress
2. Librarian assistant.
3. Highways Department "checker" (very lucrative).
4. Teacher (sometimes lucrative).

FOUR MOVIES/SHOWS I'VE BEEN ADDICTED TO:
1. Star Trek (original and TNG).
2. Survivor Season 1.
3. The Amazing Race.
4. Lost.

FOUR PLACES I'VE LIVED:
1. Killarney, Manitoba, Canada
2. Futaba, Fukushima, Japan
3. Fort Garry, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
4. North End, Winnipeg

FOUR COUNTRIES I WOULD LIKE TO VISIT:
1. Ireland!
2. China
3. Australia
4. Israel

FOUR POPULAR FALSE ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT ME:
1. That I'm really nice.
2. That I'd never hurt anyone.
3. That I'm always happy.
4. ???

FOUR PEOPLE I LOOK LIKE (according to some people):
1. my mom
2. my brother
3. my sister
4. some random person in Winnipeg. I've had people say to me a few times, "Hey, I saw you last (whenever) at (whereever)" and I'm all like "Wasn't me, dude" and they're all like, "but it totally looked like you" and I'm still all like "Wasn't me, dude" . And this has happened often enough when my sister is out of town that I'm sure I have a double.

FOUR THINGS (I HOPE) TO DO BEFORE I DIE:
1. Conquer the Japanese language (and maybe the Japanese, just for a little excitement)
2. Write a book
3. Perform miracles.
4. Go to Bible school.

PEOPLE I TAG NEXT:
1. Joseph Reville
2. Andrea Van Vliet
3. Lanney Badham
4. Beckie Wood

Furthermore...

Then is white hair a halo of honor?

Honto Ni?

And if it's true, why does everyone go grey?

Proverbs 16:31

"Gray hair is a mark of distinction,
the award for a God-loyal life."



So why dye it?

Taking Issue With Myself

I have to object to, or at least clarify, something from my last blog. My life didn't change the moment I got home from Japan in 1999, not instantly anyway. That moment was a moment of change, one country to another, and it signified change to come, all the implications of being in a different culture and starting a new job and making new friends, etc. etc. But my life didn't take a dramatic twist, it morphed in steps and stages, and the change in me came gradually as I moved with the flow.

So maybe you're reading this and you're thinking "duh! Why bother taking issue with such an obvious point?" Well, because I think for lots of people it's not so obvious, and I want anyone reading this to understand. The most profound, significant, life changing things are not usually the fast, dramatic things, at least they haven't been for me. Not that fast/dramatic and profound/significant are mutually exclusive. They can fit together. But life is made up of a sequence of choices that shape our futures, and often we don't understand the significance of the choices until we have the power of hindsight.

For example, before I left Japan I decided I was not going to choose a house group based on how many people my age were in it. I'd done that before, and had a less than satisfying fellowship experience. This time, I was going to look for God, go where he led. And I did. And he hooked me up with the best fellowship group I've ever been a part of, in that it was a bunch of people with enough similarities that we "got" each other, enough differences that I learned a lot of good stuff from each of them, and everyone was focussed on God, not anything else. Amusingly, they all happened to be people about my age. Then I entered a training program called the School of Justice where people from our church tried to open our eyes to the realities of those living in poverty. They managed that while God radically changed my way of thinking and looking at the world.

These two choices, the ones that led me to the house group and the school, have had major effects on who I am right now. When I look back, I am amazed at how far people who entered my life and experiences I've had in these two contexts have taken me from who I was. And I'm glad, because I'm better now. It has been a trial-by-fire experience at times, but I'm better now than I was, and have hope that God will continue to work on my bad parts.

So I'm looking forward to fall 2006, because I think it will be good. I probably won't understand how good until I have hindsight working with me. But I'm willing to wait for the insight as I enjoy the moment.

And before that, I'm partying in Japan. [In fact I'll even be arriving there during hanami season, a major party event across the country]

Yes, Bev, I got the job!!

I just found out half an hour ago that the job I applied for in Japan is now mine!!! WOOHOO, YEEHAA, and all the other celebratory noise we make in the English language. I'm going to Japan, I'm going to Japan, I'm going to Japan. [read with all the excitement you can muster]


And to add to the excitement, the contract starts at the same time I changed jobs last year, May 1, and ends on the exact same day as my JET programme contracts, July 21.

This is significant to me because God has been speaking to me of some kind of a change that's coming through, and though my life is constantly changing one way or the other, I think there's something of great importance coming through, though I don't know exactly what. I don't know the timing, and I'm not expecting anything dramatic, but I am expecting something significant, and these contract dates are interesting. Last year I spent seven months wanting to quit, and a week AGONIZING over the date, and decided not to quit until the spur of the moment, which turned out to be very God, if unorthodox. And I knew I was entering into a season of change then.

Seven years ago I came back to Canada after 3 years in Japan, arriving on July 21. My life really changed in that moment, and I have changed over the years as God brought different people and situations into my life. This has been a very significant season in my life, and as of July 21, 2006 it will be exactly 7 years long. I'm told 7 is a Biblical symbol for completion.

This term in Japan is just a vacation as far as I'm concerned, a sort of working holiday. I'm really looking forward to having ALOT of fun. And God likely has more to add to that, which I'll gladly take. But now I'm really curious as to what fall 2006 is going to be like.

Winter Came

So from the warmest January on record, we jumped to the coldest February. Actually, I don't know if this will be a record breaking month, but we jumped from abnormally warm temps to some of the coldest temps and wind chills you can get. What a place!! It's just as well. I probably would have missed winter if it hadn't come at all.

So Lanney commented on my last entry that it sounds like I've got a lot going on. I guess she's right. It's just no one of those things takes a lot of time, so I feel like I'm not doing much. I still have way too much time to spend in front of the TV.

Which reminds me, I have an episode of Lost to catch up on. See y'all later.

Whazzup?

Whoa, February is slipping away on me. It's already the 13th. Well, I haven't much news to share. My sister was here to visit with me, and she brought along a couple of Japanese friends. I found out I remember more Japanese than I thought. That's still not much. My application to work in Japan is coming along. I just have one more reference to submit. I've got two more weeks of house sitting and then I'm back home. Not doing much reading lately. Started a night course related to my work and am rather enjoying it. Found that it has re-energized my desire to do some theology studies. I'd really like to be a student again for a time. That's about it. What's up with you?

Ireland, a novel

I recently read a novel called Ireland. It is written by Frank Delaney. I highly recommend it. It's a great piece of storytelling. It is making me want to be a story teller myself, but I'm not sure I could weave the blarney together as well as he does. If I could, I'd be rich, I'm sure.

Mildest January in Recorded History

This has been the mildest January around here since 1873, when the white man started recording such info.

Global warming, or natural cycle of earth's weather? You tell me.

How to Live

I've spent a lot of time over the years wondering how life is supposed to be, what it's meant to look like and how it's best lived, and specifically how my life is meant to be lived. Well, Ecclesiastes has lead to Proverbs, which describes itself as a manual for life. I've read the book before a few times, well not the whole thing, but parts, and it never really seemed like much to me. Now I guess my eyes have been opened. This time I'm listening.

The first 9 chapters are all about wisdom. Solomon figured wisdom was the most valuable possession anyone could acquire. He goes to great lengths describing its ways and virtues. Then the two liner Proverbs start. I haven't read far into them. Just started actually. But there's one that struck me today. I don't remember it exactly, but it basically says that God won't let the righteous starve, but he will frustrate the appetites of the wicked. And I thought that what I can draw from that is to stop fearing poverty. Even if I'm never rich, I can trust I'll always be OK. I think if I can really learn to live in the truth of this proverb, it will impact the risks I'm willing to take in the name of God's kingdom on earth. Anyway, I think a big difference between now and the last time I read this book is somewhere along the way I acquired some faith. Now I read the book knowing Solomon was a wise man who respected the Creator and knowing that he had insight into the human condition that stands through the ages. So I'm reading his books like a how to manual.

Yesterday I got my interview appointment set up with the company in Japan. So I've got a telephone interview for next Monday. I'm a little in shock that things are moving along with this. I've been wanting to go back for so long, actually facing going seems a little surreal. Maybe part of me had given up on the possibility. Anyway, here's hoping for a good interview!!

Enjoy Life, Fear God, Go Fishing

I've done it. I've become one of those bloggers that irritate me so, the ones that rarely update and don't say much when they do. Oh well. I started blogging to keep in touch with people more than anything else, and they're still getting more info out of me this way than if they waited for letters.

I've read through Ecclesiastes twice this week. It's probably my favorite book in the Bible, and now I like it even more. I read it in The Message, and instead of "vanity" it uses the word "smoke". I like that. Smoke, smoke, all is smoke. Anyway I've been thinking a lot about how to live life and Eccl. read real practical for me this time around. Solomon is one of the wisest people in history, if not the wisest, and added to his wisdom he had great wealth, which afforded him the opportunity to explore all aspects of life. And he came to the conclusion that everything is a bloody waste of time, that there's nothing in life that doesn't come to nothing in the end. (And that a voluptuous maiden for your bed is "the most exquisite" of pleasures. But even pleasures don't add up to much.) Wealth is made but can't pass with you, and may be left to someone who doesn't deserve it. The righteous and wicked all end up dead, the sun shines on both, yadda yadda yadda. He says a lot. But he also concludes that the only good things to do with life are to find pleasure in it, enjoy it while you can, basically, and fear (honor, respect) God. He didn't say exactly what he saw that made him think fearing God was worth your time, except if I remember correctly he did say that God makes sure the wealth of the wicked passes to the righteous. Yeah, I think that's how he said it. I remember that because when I read it I thought I'd like to see that truth in action, cause it doesn't seem to me it's coming true. (or maybe Donald Trump ain't so wicked!! hee hee)

Anyway, back to me. So, if I'm reading Eccl. right, the way to live life well is to enjoy it as much as possible while honoring God. I like that. Helps me get my head around things, and it jives with what I'd already been wondering. I was wondering about what life would be like if sin had never entered the world. What would there be to do? Maybe there would have been much more, but I'm now convinced that just enjoying creation and God's presence is enough, that I really don't need to do much more with my life.

One difference between Solomon and I is the "Great Commission". In Solomon's time I don't think that godly people (the Jews) were instructed to go out and invite others into Judaism. If others came on their own they were welcomed, but if I understand correctly the Jews weren't expected to be missionaries.

But in my time, as a Christ follower, I am expected to go out and tell everyone about this big, wonderful Kingdom of God that we're all invited to enter. So enjoy life, fear God, and go fishing.
That's [part of?] the meaning of life on earth. :)

Another Elijah List Word that Speaks to Me

January 5, 2006

"We Are Being Given Another Chance To Seek His Kingdom First--Get Free!"

Rick Joyner


This word is about how we will take the Promised Land, as the Church and as individuals. I want to focus on how we can individually begin to practically cease from our wanderings, mostly in circles in the wilderness, and begin to walk in our purpose, our Promised Land from God. It is no accident that this year's Feast of Dedication, or Feast of Lights, celebrated by the Jewish people, began on what Christians celebrate as Christmas Day, and ends on New Year's Day. On Christmas Day, the first candle of this feast is lit, and on New Year's Day, the eighth, the last candle of the feast is lit. Prophetically, eight is the number of new beginnings. This year, there is a grace from God for dedications that will bring forth a new beginning.This feast was not one of the original feasts mandated through Moses, but it is one that even the Lord Jesus celebrated when He walked the earth, and it does have special importance for Christians, just as all of the Jewish feasts are prophetic. The Feast of Dedication is the celebration of the victory of the Maccabees over their Greek oppressors, who sought to destroy the Jewish people by defiling the land of Israel and the heart of the land at that time: its temple. They did this in the most insulting ways, even smearing pig's blood over the altar.

There has likewise been a similar defiling of the temple of the Lord in our time: the Church. And it, too, is being done in some of the most insulting ways. However, just as the insults of the Greeks aroused the Maccabees to determine that it would be better to die than to tolerate anymore defilements, a similar courage and resolve is going to come on many Christians now. They will embrace death--the death to self--to drive every form of oppression from their lives, and God will meet those who rise up with such resolve with His grace to accomplish the victory.

Cleansing the Temple
The Maccabees arose and faced what appeared to be impossible odds when they challenged the most powerful empire in the world at that time. However, they believed God more than they believed the odds. It will take a faith like theirs for us to turn back the onslaught of the Greek mentality of humanism and the other offensive defilements of the temple of the Lord in the most insulting ways. It will take a faith like theirs for us to prevail to reclaim the land and cleanse the temple. But it will be done. Why not be a part of this and take your stand now?I know that many, if not most of us, have made many previous New Year's resolutions, but this year, there is a special grace for those who will humble themselves once again and dedicate themselves to do what is right. It will take a dedication, a discipline on our part which is both obedience and faith, but He will add a special grace to help us this year. It has come to light through a number of studies that most Christians are living in serious defeat in at least some areas of their lives. This does not have to continue any longer, but it will require our dedication to overcome the strongholds. If we will dedicate ourselves again, resolving to obey, this can change this year, beginning today, and turn into a lasting victory.
True Faithfulness With Our Life Is Evidenced By Obedience

There is an ultimate dedication that we are called to have as Christians, which many have forgotten, causing much of the defeat and disorientation of Christians. True faith is always evidenced by obedience, which is why the word in the New Testament that is usually translated as faith also means faithfulness. True faithfulness with our life is evidenced by obedience to one of the ultimate mandates that the Lord gave to us in Matthew 6:33-34:
"But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore, do not be anxious for tomorrow, for tomorrow will care for itself."
Many Christians have spent too much of their lives in disorientation and defeat because they have not obeyed this. They have made major decisions based first on professional opportunities, their own desires, and other earthly, temporary matters rather than seeking first the purposes of the kingdom.
If we were to base all of our decisions on seeking the purposes of His kingdom first, everything else would be added to us. If our lives were based on this, we would have nothing to be anxious about, knowing who our Source and Protector is. There is no greater freedom, no greater peace, than that which is the result of living our lives dedicated to the Lord in all things. We are being given another chance to do this now. Do not let this year pass like the others. Get free!We should all have a special appreciation for the Maccabees because if they had not arisen to take their stand, there would have been no Israel for the Messiah to be born in. Likewise, it is such a resolve that arises in His people that enables Him to come forth in our lives. It is time to arise and fight against every form of the oppression of sin and humanism that has been defiling the temple of the Lord, and the Lord will be with us.

By Rick Joyner Morningstar Ministries www.morningstarministries.org