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Our first year anniversary!

Our Dessert

Well, on May 6th we celebrated our one year anniversary. Believe it or not, we've been married for a year now. Our total time of knowing each other is around six years or so now.

To celebrate, we left our church groups early and headed out to Okubo, where we saw Rocky the Final (the movie). Before that, however, was the main part of our celebration: question and answer time. We sat together at dinner at an Italian restaurant in Okubo and asked each other questions about our first year together. Some of the questions we asked were, "What was your best memory of our first year?" and "What was your most embarrassing moment?" We also talked about less cheery topics, like "What one thing do you wish you could go back and change?" We learned a lot about how we each viewed our first year together.

The picture is of our dessert tray at the Italian restaurant. Not only did we have three small desserts, but we each had a pasta of our choice and unlimited pizza slices (each slice could fit in my hand without hanging over it, so they were small and thin). It was still good, of course!

Now, as if dinner and a movie weren't enough for one evening, we also did some shopping. Okubo has a large shopping area right next to the train station, and it interconnects through a series of covered walkways. There are two department stores as well as several smaller shops. We visited a shop called Pet City. We saw lots of cute animals, including one that put two holes in Kim's coat (don't worry, it wasn't her expensive leather jacket).

However, the highlight of that visit was finding a reasonably priced and nice hamster cage. Because Kim had always wanted something better for our hamster, I decided that I would purchase the cage; it was a sort of anniversary gift. I've included a photo so that you can see our little guy enjoying the wonderful new cage! Look for a special post all about our little guy, coming soon!

The new cage

GNutella's Cage

Gnutella has a mansion instead of a fish tank. The cage has 2 floors....to get to and from the floors, there is a yellow tube that he can crawel in. At first, we had to push him to go through the tunnel to get to the next floor and to his food. Eventually, he used it and made it. Ok...on the top floor is a wheel that he can run in for exersize. It's quiet and easy until he brings in some food with him.

On the main floor, he has his food, water and a PT tube to chew on. He likes the huge space and now he can run off some fat....lol Even though he has more space and a ball to run in, we still get him out once in a while.

We were talking last night about actually breaking down the cage and bringing it back to America in 2009! It's a really neat cage and a good purchase.

The weather is definitely warmer now. We are no longer using our heaters, and getting out the shower doesn't cause extreme goosebumps. Biking long distances now produces sweat, and you sometimes find yourselves wanting to get out of the sunlight.

A new school year began this month. New students with a different schedule for me (Marc). This year looks like it'll be busier, as I've inherited an extra two classes, as well as the fact that my schedule is organized so that it leaves me less long periods of open space. Additionally, we have a meeting every week instead of once every two months.

Kim and I will have been married one year on May 6th. To celebrate our first year anniversary, we're heading over to Universal Studios Japan in Osaka. We have a pair of free tickets that Kim won during a sports competition at the church. Additionally, the week happens to be Golden Week, one of the longest strings of holidays in the Japanese calendar. Unfortunately, these 5 days of holidays are broken up by two days of school that I have to teach; seems so silly to have school in the middle of a week of holidays.

We have a special event at the church coming up in two weeks. Apparently, a jazz band is coming, and they are playing requested songs (with a jazz style). Other than that, life is continuing as normal. We are still finding lots of new things, but experiences are starting to level out to where we feel we are doing "the usual." It's fine by me, since always feeling like a newbie and an outsider is not a good thing after a few months.

Feel free to leave comments on here for us, or e-mail us. Look us up on Skype if you want to chat!

Trip to America

America: Land of the Pizza
I've chosen this photo of a portion of the pizza selection at a local Meijer as a representation of our trip to America. Although we ate very little pizza, it was definitely one of the things that we missed while in Japan (Japanese pizza, although unique in its own right, just doesn't seem as good with all the squid, mayo, and corn).

While in America, Kim and I were together for around 3/4 of the trip. the other 1/4 we spent separately, hanging out with our own friends. I (Marc) spent a few nights in Ypsilanti with my friends Jeremy and Dave, and Kim & I both spent a night at the Gubbini household (Nick and Kelly). We visited Kim's church once, my church once, and then that was the end of our Sundays.

One of the most comfortable and relaxing parts of being back at home was the fact that I didn't have to struggle at all to understand what was going on, what was what in the grocery store, or try to form language for my peculiar desires (and no one argued with me at the fast food restaurant when all I wanted was a water).

Kim and I also spent 4 days taking a trip down to see her brother and his wife along with their not-yet-one-year-old baby. Unfortunately, Kim's mother ended up catching a flu-like virus from Kim's brother, and then Kim ended up catching it from her mom (or perhaps from the baby, who ended up getting sick). I have yet to catch anything, thankfully. Kim is still recovering even now.

I am not so sure about staying in Japan for the long-term, even if a job is offered to me. With the economy in Michigan, however, it doesn't seem that staying close to family and friends is an option, either. Regardless of wherever we move, if it's not in the immediate Southeastern/Mid-Michigan area, we will only see our family and friends on special occasions (and I think Kim and I were both hoping to return to the previous days of being able to see everyone we wanted to within an hour drive or less).

Speaking of driving, that is one of the things that we both missed a great deal! We loved being able to drive while in America; it gives us a lot of freedom and sense of control. I noticed that the lack of that sense of freedom dampened my experience in Japan; hopefully now that I am aware of that, it won't have so much effect.

In addition to all of this, Kim and I also enjoyed Mexican food (especially Taco Bell), Meijer, American milk, Icescapes (a specialty ice cream spot in Ypsilanti), sleeping in a bed, indoor heating, Wendy's, Olive Garden, American salad dressing, pretzels, worshipping at church in English, not having to bike everywhere in the cold and rain, cheap fruit, cheap food, steak, chicken salad sandwich (Marc), a large refrigerator, cheap over the counter medicine, cheap vitamins, wide open spaces, spacious rooms, DVD players that play our region 1 DVDs, radio stations that actually play music (and more than two of them), listening to music while cruising in the car with the windows down, talking to everyone in our native language, driving on the right side of the road, cars that actually stop for red lights, seeing familiar faces and places, and more.

Things we didn't enjoy, however, include: drivers who have no restraint in showing their disapproval of other drivers' behavior (including hand gestures), groups of Americans who can't make the simple decision on where to eat because everyone wants their own thing, long distances to the nearest anything (stores), not having mobile phones, and a few other minor things. Overall, however, the things we liked are more than the problems we had, especially since "not having mobile phones" was not an issue before we left for Japan.

We'll post again soon about our feelings on being back in the big J (Japan).

Coming Home for Vacation

Hello,

As you may know Marc and I moved to Japan in August of 06. We both have English teaching jobs in the Hyogo (state) Prefecture. We are currently living in Kakogawa, Japan and we are involved in the local church and our friends there. We are planning on staying here for 2-3 years.

It looks like we both are coming home in March from 15th thru April 2nd. We are hoping to see our families and friends. On Monday the15th, Marc and 2 teachers were looking for "cheap" tickets for us. The computer did have them open ut now we are waiting for a response from the business. I will keep you posted!! Well, we got a response and we are definately are coming back but we have 2 weeks to visit with the Revoir and the Henderson side as well as our friends in the Flint, Ypsilanti, and Ann Arbor area.

We are flying in on Northwest in Detroit around 12pm. We hope to see you all in Michigan.

Hairtcut....Very short this time

Today (December 22) I am getting my haircut by Stacie form the Kakogawa Baptist church. I met her at our train station and then she came over to our place. I still wasn’t sure what kind of hairstyle but I managed to find one that Marc and I liked. I know that it’s my hair and I get to choose but I thought to ask and see what he though. Anyways, when she came over I showed her a few hairstyles that I liked and then chose one. I told her I want my longest layer just touching my shoulders and the layers from the cheekbone down. Well, as she was cutting away, I noticed that the back of the head felt a lot lighter than before. I proceeded to ask her what she was doing because I saw a lot of my hair on the ground. I trusted her that she knew what she was doing and she did. In the end, she didn’t want me to look in the mirror because she wanted me to be surprised. She also styled it…I mean put hair wax, hair spray and she randomly curled it.

During all of this, Marc comes home very early buzzing the door. He came home to go to the doctor for some acid reflux pills. Same story again…he went in the office and waited to be called back. When he did he asked the doctor for a refill but this time for more pills. The doctor thinks that acid reflux is just something that can go away in like a month. The doctor only wants to give him 14 pills. Marc says no I need more. The doctor doesn’t understand that this is an ongoing thing. It just doesn’t stop after 2 weeks!

Later we went to MaxValu that is 15 minutes from our place. We bought a few items that we needed. Then we decided to eat at good old McDonald’s. It tasted ok. I kept playing with my hair because it is so short.

BE-ING Christmas party

Today (December 20) is a Christmas party at the church. Our individual cells are putting one on. I rushed around to make my costume and get my food ready to take. If you want to know I am going to be a candy cane. What I did was I used Marc’s old white t-shirt and placed red tape as stripes on it. I also used an old mop handle as my candy cane stick. I also put red and white tape around it. For my costume I had to look around for anything that was red and white. I know that my high school colors were the same. I am wearing my senior shirt with the red and white striped shirt over it. I also found my varsity volleyball socks, which are Dr. Seuss red and white striped. I am not quite sure how I am going to wear those but we shall see. Oh I forgot another part of my costume…I bought a Santa hat that lights up for like $5.00.


With the entire morning running around today, I still need to make my food (Bacon Wraps) and finish vacuuming this place. I need to make sure I get the gift and the personal size cake of some sort. Yes, I sound excited about tonight! Anyways, Stacie and Yuko are picking me up around 6:15pm for the party. Now I know how my mom feels when she is getting ready for a party. It’s like running around like a chicken with your head cut off. Then you have someone bothering you like kids or your spouse. Speaking of which…….Marc wants to know what he should take for his group. I am not sure and I think if I have them time today, he wants me to make something ☹ I think he is going to go to SATY’S to buy the cake item, gift, and food. Talk about last minute huh? He just found out last night.

I received my family’s Christmas box yesterday. It had many snacks in it that we can’t get over here. We also received some gifts but mom said to wait until Christmas. I can already guess what a couple are by the shape and feel. I know that sounds bad doesn’t it?

The party was great. Everyone liked my costume and how unique it was. I am going to keep it for next year. I got some pictures of the party and my cell group. Also we played some games, exchanged gifts, had dessert and ate food. We had some fun times there at one of the girl’s houses. Inside of the house looked like a regular house. It wasn’t too small but it was a decent size for her and her husband. The costumes included, a star, 2 trees, 2 angels, a gift, a Santa girl outfit (almost like a elf), and a few more. I can’t remember them though. I think there were about 15-20 people.

This Friday I am going to get my haircut. I am not sure whether to get a trim or a cut cut. The last time I got my hair highlighted and cut was in July by Destiny. Marc told me that since we are living here for 2-3years, why not try something new? But make sure it is something that you are going to want. I thought I would like some of them in this magazine on me but I really wasn't sure. I took his advice but I chose a different style. I placed a picture up on the website but right now we have too many on there, so I will have to go through it and delete some. Sorry if you haven’t seen all of them.

USJ or Universal Studios

Today (December 16) we went to USJ or Universal Studios with 2 other women (Stacie and Ai-Chan). Even though it was overcast we still enjoyed our day. We are meeting them at 11am at the Kakogawa station. It’s one station over (we live in Higashi Kakogawa) The train that we took to get there was a special one and it had USJ rides on it.

One of the first rides that we rode was called Spiderman. It wasn’t your typical ride but it was like a simulator but you’re on the coaster inside of the building. The car looked like a Lamborghini because of the structure of the car and the doors. Each car can fix about 12 people. When you ride you have to wear the “special glasses”. They are 3D ones to make the characters pop out. All 4 of us were split up so that was a bummer. The ride was like you were watching a cartoon on the ride. Man oh man that was a great ride. When there was water or fire you could feel it either sprinkle on you or there was a heater above you.

Some of the rides were like this and some were just shows. We went into the Terminator and that was totally different from Spiderman. This one was in the theater so yes it was s show. We wore the 3D glasses for this show. At first, someone was talking and people were fighting. Then a motorcycle rode in and then vanished into the screen. Well, that is what it seemed. Even the chairs moved at the end and all of us screamed…ahhhh. We liked this even though it wasn’t a ride. While we were waiting for this we were playing cards. That was interesting because many people around us were staring at us. Sometimes you just want to tell them off.

At times we would get something to eat or drink. Oh at lunch we went to a pizza place and guess what? It was real pizza not this Japanese way of making pizza. It was so good. Both Marc and I got a slice and then creaser salad. Stacie and Ai-Chan got a drink and a slice. The pizza was either pepperoni or sausage and egg. Believe it or not the sausage and egg looked good. I think it was because I was hungry. Also when we went on the Jurassic Park water ride, it was almost like the Snake River Falls at Cedar Point but you didn’t get soaked. I remembered some of the scenes on the ride from the movies. It was cool.

Every year at USJ there is a special tree lighting show…The tree is fake but it was so neat to see the lights. We took some pictures of that was well at a short video of the fireworks. Many I mean hundreds and hundreds of people came to see this. USJ was crowded that we had to make a train to get through the crowd. At times when people weren’t looking they would just run into us. Mainly watch out for wheelchairs and children. Anyone else is up for pushing…

After the ride Marc noticed a food stand that had turkey legs. Yes, real turkey legs but they tasted very dry. They were very expensive but Marc didn’t care. Both Stacie and Marc said it was our Thanksgiving turkey. It tasted very good since we haven’t had any since when we were at home.

Before we left the park I wanted to get something that said Universal Studios Japan (USJ). I got something small and not too expensive considering it was a theme park. We also ate dinner at the Hard Rock Café right outside of the park. We all ate American burgers. Oh they tasted so good!! We also shared a brownie sundae. All 4 of us couldn’t eat it but in the end Stacie and I finished it off.

On the way home we wrote another special train but this time we were on the Sesame Street train. It was quite neat. Then we got on the JR train line. There we were so tired that Ai-Chan just wanted to sleep. Stacie wanted to stay awake and play cards. We played a old one. When we played we would laugh and get loud. Since we were foreigners, the Japanese people around us would stare. We played like 3 rounds. So during our trip we played 4/5 different card games either waiting in line or on the train. We were all so tired that during the card game on the way home, I noticed that a business man was making faces at his cell phone. I just cracked up laughing and since I was laughing hysterically Stacie did too. I was tired that’s what happens when it’s passed your bedtime. It takes a little over an hour to get back. When we got back we crashed.

In the morning, we have to get ready for tomorrow (Sunday) for the Luminary in Kobe. But this time we didn’t have to get up so early. We were dreading on going because Matsamura was very pushy when we were at USJ. She would call us and ask “when are you going to get done?” She asked us because she made plans so we could stay the night at a stranger’s house. It was an elderly lady. Personally, we both didn’t feel comfortable and secondly she calls us and tells us what we should be doing when we already had made plans. About staying the night thingy…she called us the night before and tells us that we are staying at some lady’s house for the luminary thing. The thing was, was that the Luminary didn’t turn on until 5:30pm and we were meeting Matsamura at 1pm. Why would we stay at someone’s house we don’t even know? She says because we can experience a larger house.

Anyways, enough of the frustration…..we crashed when we got back. But before that I checked my email and my brother Ray has a heart catheter on Jan. 3rd and he has blood work that needs to be done on the 28th. A heart catherization is where they put a camera up your arm and into your heart and it takes pictures of what's going on with the heart. Heart caths are considered surgery.