Wednesday, December 24, 2008

The Christmas Tree and more Christmas fun!


Freshly cut, Alaskan Christmas tree!



We have a very tall ceiling - calls for a tall tree! This is before we officially decorated. Just the lights are on.


Here's one small segment of the tree - ornaments and all!



My brother (Brendan) trying to be happy about helping!


Here I am baking. Notice the huge oven behind me!!

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Fun Christmas prep!


The view from out our dining room window!



Hungry MOOOOOOSE!



Nice skating at last night's Nanook game - they won 6-3!



After the first Nanook score!



The nutty "we think we're pro" scoreboard!

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

UMI no HI - Marine Day!

This weekend was a nice, much needed three-day weekend! Monday was a national holiday so there were lots of people getting out of Tokyo and enjoying nature. And I was one of those people!! :-)

I went to a place called Kawazu on the Izu peninsula. It was great! Onsen (hotsprings) and waterfalls made it even nice. The fact that it was also NOT Tokyo was a major bonus as well. ;-) And I took lots of pictures.

This is a red bridge near Shuzenji Temple. It was much cooler anywhere there was water!


Grove of bamboo... very peaceful...



Here's the real cameraman on the expedition! :-)


Scary loopy-loop road! Did NOT like that one!!

One of seven beautiful waterfalls in Kawazu. I love waterfalls! And what's more, the temperature was nice a cool near the waterfalls... I didn't want to leave!! :-)

Jun: Where did I go over the weekend? What was nice about that place? Did I take lots of pictures?

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Crumble and Puppy!

Today I made blueberry-rhubarb crumble! It was really easy and very delicious. Sweet and tangy all at the same time. YUM!! :-)

Doesn't that look tastey?

I also took a BUNCH of pictures of my puppy dog, Molly. She was laying and relaxing in the living room so it was very easy to take her picture. She's such a cutie!!

I think she was a little tired. ;-)



Jun: What kind of dessert did I make? What kind of dog do you think that Molly is?

Monday, June 23, 2008

A Wedding!

Yesterday was a really happy day. A boy who is like a brother got married to a wonderful girl. My brother was the best man and did a good job and the weather turned sunny and made me realize why Alaska is such a great place. AND I wore a dress! :-) So, here are some pics...


The groom (in white) and his posse... a bunch of handsome dudes.


Ben, looking a little nervous, but otherwise he's ready!


The Bride, Jenny, and her Daddy. What a beautiful June bride!

The siblings! Me and my bro bro. We both clean up pretty good. And, yes, I do own and occasionally wear dresses! Haha.


Jun: What event did I attend? How was the weather? What did I wear?

Thursday, June 19, 2008

A new 'do!

Today I got a haircut AND I dyed all the grey out of my hair! :-) Now I can look as young as I feel. Whee. ;-) Here's a look at my hair...


This isn't the greatest picture (this is about the 7th or 8th try!), but you get the idea of what I did.

I also watched My Neighbor Totoro (隣のトットロ) with my brother and his girlfriend. It was great fun and after the movie we messed around with my camera a bit...

Yep, my brother is fired as a cameraman!

But I got him back...

Hahaha... I got him good, didn't I??

Then I wandered around outside and took a few random photos...



For Jun: 1) What did I do to my hair? 2) Which picture do you like best and why?

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Back in Alaska!



When I arrived in Fairbanks at 12:15am, I walked out to see this lovely sky. I can't imagine a better view... however, it would have been a bit nicer is warmth. It is a bit chilly and it has rained off and on all day today. I can't control the weather, but I can still enjoy bening home.

But before getting home I was able to get back to Fairbanks, I got to hang out in Seattle with my friend Michael. I saw Mt. Rainier, went to Pike Street Market and just enjoyed the summer weather.


Mt. Rainier and the Stadiums in Seattle. The mountain was visible all day long. So gorgeous. The temperature was about 78 degrees and amazing!


Alaska salmon in Seattle! Looks tasty right?



At the original Ivars on the water in Seattle. I Had to take a silly picture in the chair in front. Everyone needs silly pics!

Hope everyone in Japan is ok... everyone else too!


Jun: Where did I go before Alaska? What time did I arrive in Fairbanks? Was it dark when I arrived in Fairbanks?

Friday, June 13, 2008

T-minus 4 days

SO... I haven't been home in a year and 3 months+. I'm looking forward to enjoying all the things I love about being in Alaska. Mostly the quiet and the nature... oh, and the family! Haha.

What I'm not excited by? The weather in Fairbanks has apparently been quite chilly for being "summer." Granted I am coming from the blazing heat and humidity of Tokyo, so I don't want to enter a heatwave, but I would like my nice Fairbanks summer so I can enjoy all of the fun without having to wear a sweatshirt. :-)

One thing blogs are good for is making your English students check and answer questions about what I've been doing on vacation. So, my question for my students is in two parts. 1) What are the reasons I'm looking forward to going home? 2) What am I not looking forward to?

yoroshiku!

Friday, May 30, 2008

Overwhelmed!

This has been a LONG week! Why?
I begun the week having gotten very little sleep over last weekend (it's complicated, but it wasn't avoidable). So, starting on Monday I developed a lovely cold. The rest of the week seemed to drag by... Tuesday I headed to immigration to figure out paperwork only to realize I'd forgotten my passport so had to make a return trip, with documents, on Thursday. It began raining Thursday morning and has been grey ever since. Anyone who knows me knows that I hate rain and it puts me in a great mood (read the sarcasm). Then, today, Friday, I had plans with two different people and BOTH of them cancelled on me. I'm not really feeling the love right now. Neither of the cancellations could have been helped, but it doesn't make a person feel any better to be cancelled on twice. *sigh* Next week has got to go better!

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Typhoons, Frizbee, Thesis, Life...

1. So far Japan has been "hit" by 4 typhoons this year. We are in the middle of the fourth as I type this. I only dislike typhoons because they generally mean loads of wind and rain. As many people may know, I don't really like those things in combination. It also means that I develop "yaruki ga nai." Which basically means that I don't really want to do a whole lot. Therefore... boo on the typhoons! ;-)

2. Frizbee. This past weekend was the first time in AGES that it's been really nice at the weekend. And so I went to a park in Yokohama and played frizbee with my boy. :-) We ran around (or rather, I made him run because I'm really NOT very good at frizbee!) and had a blast. There were tons of kids and dogs in the park (gaki to inu) and I some something amazing. For the first time ever I saw and Irish Wolfhound! It was HUGE!!! What a cool dog! I just feel bad because the dog is SO big and back yards don't really exist in Japan. :-(

3. Yes, thesis stuff is quickly becoming something I have to think on, write up and start acting upon! Eeek! I have my thesis presentation in my seminar next week. I have begun writing up what I need to for the presentation, but I have a feeling that it is going to be a bit rough overall. Wish me luck!

4. Life has been hectic and really great all at the same time. The only rather unfun part has been the lack of monetary reserves recently. I'm hoping to be fine on that front soon, but it's still not fun all the same. For awhile I was really on edge and not super happy... and the worst bit was that I didn't have any idea why I was experiencing such a horrible mood swing. When it finally dawned on me that the stress of worrying about money was doing it I felt as though a TON of weight had been lifted from my shoulders. I've got it worked out now and I've been working super hard to keep my daily expenses down. And things seem to be going well now. YAY!!

Well... that's the update... I often wonder as to whether anyone is REALLY reading this... but I keep it up because someday when I'm old and grey I'll look back at the goofiness and smile.

A x

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Hiking in Heaven!

Sometimes, heaven is not so far away as we may think. In fact, when you live in Tokyo... heaven is ANYWHERE outside of Tokyo. Haha!
So, I went to a place called Okutama... which is TECHNICALLY Tokyo, but looks as if you've been transported to another planet... or at least another part of the world.

This lone fisherman looked especially magical when I was gallumphing around taking pictures. There's hardly anyone around... and it's a man, his fishing rod and the wilderness. :-) Could almost be Alaska!

One man, on a quest for really cool pictures... ended up at the end of a stairway to nowhere... or at least to nowhere that would allow him to stay dry.


What is SO fascinating about the river bed?


The ROCKS of course!!!


And by the end of the day, I was so tired that the trees even seemed to lean sideways. Haha... well, it made for a good picture anyway!

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

The Week Long Birthday Celebration...

Last Monday, April 14th, I turned the illustrious age of 28. Now, I was a bit apprehensive going into the birthday. Why? You may ask... well, mostly I've not really gotten to where I thought I'd be by 28. Now, that's not to say that I thought I'd be married and settled down (well, in high school I did, but who didn't think that when they were in high school??) or anything, but more along the lines of thinking I'd be DONE with school. Yeah, basically I was hoping I'd have my masters my now... but somehow other things happened instead.
Now, you may ask how my birthday (DAY being an integral part of the compound word) became a week-long affair. Well... you are about to find out!
Sunday, the 13th, I went to see a very special someone in Yokohama. We spent the afternoon being very lazy and then went and "played" in the department store in Yokohama (play = window shopping) and chose cake. Then we headed back to a great little pizza place near his place. We ate delicious (and that's saying a LOT!) pizza and headed to his place. We had cake and did presents. I am a very lucky/good/fortunate girl because I got an iPod nano for my birthday. Silver, but with a very sexy green case! ;-)

It was a great start to my birthday. :-)

Monday, I had my first class of the new semester, zemi. That went well. I jetted out of there for a very nice lunch with my friends Kassandra and Taka (aka brother). We had a great lunch at my favorite restaurant in Takadanobaba, The Cotton Club. Kassandra gave me some great gifts: funky socks, a HUGE (and awesome!!) Starbucks coffee mug, and a green pouchy thing from Uniqlo!
That day I also started my new job teaching at a boys high school in Ikebukuro. The teacher that I teach with, Ishii-sensei gave me a copy of the new Utada Hikaru album, Heart Station. :-)

Tuesday was my birthday in the US. I woke up to a bajillion messages and cards from folks back home. When I got home that night there was a notice that my parents birthday package had arrived. However, I had to wait until the next day to have it be delivered. And I got what I've been waiting for for ages: a watch!!! And not just any watch, but a cool Ironman...


Cool, eh??

Wednesday came and I taught classes and got to spend time with that special someone. Every class that I taught people wished me happy birthday!

Thursday, I got a super funky, cool gift from my friend Shivani. A really cool purse/wallet. It's kind of a mix between the two... and you'll be able to tell exactly why she picked it too!

Now, I may not be the most fashionable person in the world... but that is one cool purse! I love it. I haven't used it because I want to use it sometime when I'm doing something cool and fun. Hmmm... not sure when I'll be able to afford that kind of thing in the near future... but I'm going to try. ;-)

Then came Friday, the end to my birthday week. And what should come as I'm making dinner!?! My present from my best friend, Melissa. She sent me two books (am thoroughly enjoying The Time Travelers' Wife) and a scarf she knit (beautiful), running shorts (still haven't used them), and... gummies and Milky Way Midnights (why did they change it from Dark??). I was so tickled!

Even though I talked about lots of gifts (and posted pictures to make my blog more interesting...) the more important thing is that I stopped to remember all of the people who I care about and who care about me. Thank you to everyone who sent me birthday wishes, gifts or just said happy birthday when you saw me! I really felt happy and loved last week!!

Monday, April 07, 2008

Nearing a close...

As sad as it is to admit, my spring vacation is nearly over. :0( It's really sad because this year classes begin on my birthday. How lame is that? VERY LAME!!

But this past weekend I got to get away from Tokyo and enjoy nature and historical sites and have an all around great time. We went to Nikko on Saturday and then to Shiobara onsen (hot springs) area. There was a foot washing bath that felt amazing. The regular bath was nice too!

I took some pretty good pictures and there were even some pretty good pictures taken of me. :-)

These are the famous monkeys at Nikko. How cute are they??


This is me being a dork coming through a gate at Nikko. Someone I know makes fun of me when I make that kind of rather "unnatural" smile. Sometimes a goofy picture is just necessary. ;-)

This is probably one of the best pictures that has been taken of me in a LONG time. No fake smile, no weird dorky grin... just me having a really great weekend!



Sometimes I can even take a pretty good pic... this is of a certain someone... I think the pose is a mixture between dancing and being WAY too cool for school! Haha.

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

The miracle of Disney...

Monday I went to Tokyo Disneyland. I went with a kendo sempai and two of her workmates. It was a blast... the only things that made it hard?? Rapid fire Japanese and energy that doesn't end (their parts not mine!). Despite all that, we had so much fun. Ate the chicken legs (they might have been turkey!?), went on the Star Tour ride (it was SO fun!!), and screamed my head off in Space Mountain.
At Disneyland they now have these clip on ears of all sorts of characters, not just Mickey and Minnie. I got a nice green Mad Hatters hat! :-) And apparently it really suits me... haha!

Mami, me and Andy!! There's the green hat... how do I look?? Haha!

Kyoko, Andy, me, and Mami! You can't see Cinderella's castle in the background, but it's there too!

All in all, it was a fun day... but I won't be rushing to do it again anytime soon!! Haha!

Saturday, March 08, 2008

It's been awhile...

Now, the semester has been over for more than a month and I've neglected posting anyything. Why? (you may ask) Well... is it because I'm busy and important? is it because I've picked up SO much extra work that work has replaced school in my busy schedule? is it because I'm a lazy git that can't seem to make time to do anything? Erm... I'll let you speculate as to which of the aforementioned reasons it is... :-)
Then there's the fact that I've been spending a lot of time outside doing fun things like trekking around Kamakura and walking around parks and things like that. It's been really nice! Especially as the weather starts getting nicer and the temps are warming up. (I went to kendo today and the floor was no longer COLD!! Simple pleasures folks, simple pleasures!)
Next week I get to teach in elementary school for two days. I'm really looking forward to that. I do love the kids! They are so fun and enthusiastic about everything. I LOVE it. I feel young when I get to spend time with the kiddies. And I need that sometimes.
This update is incredibly short... but when it's a vacation and you don't have money to travel the extent to which I am having adventures is quite limited.
I'll leave you a few pics from my Kamakura trip!

Me... not so horrible picture. Why am I SO unphotogenic? Please tell me!!


I'm not sure if I took this picture or not... I'd like to think I did... because it's cool... but I'm not sure! Pretty cool eh?


This pic was not taken by me... it's an awesome picture though... so I had to add it! Enjoy a little bit of Japan. :-)

Tuesday, February 05, 2008

Snow!

Tokyo isn't known for getting tons of snow... but we've had it twice this year!! And it made for some real fun the other day... walking around in the snow always makes me happy.


I love footprints in the snow... I also love the crunching of the snow under your feet. It just makes me happy! Hope that all the snow everywhere else is making you happy!

Monday, January 28, 2008

Stress, school and the skinny jeans!

Recently my life has consisted of a lot of stress and a lot of school work. The stress comes from all the part-time work that I have to do in order to have some sort of life here in Japan and then add that to the school stress and you can imagine my stress levels are a bit high. :-) Then add the fact that I almost never have time for full meals.... imagine all that in one person's life and you have imagined my life. For the most part, my life has been an impossible whirlwind that is really not very much fun... but there is an added benefit (if you really want to call it that): I can fit into my skinny jeans! Yes... the fabled skinny jeans, the ones every girl has in hopes that SOMEDAY we can fit into them again. I bought my skinny jeans during college... they're Silver Tabs. And they are LOOSE! ;-) The picture is just for proof...