10.13.06
Things I Like Here
To counter my last list, here is a list of things I find that I really like here:
- Bike riding (yes, I can do this in the states I know, but…I never did.)
- My pretty easy job (yes, I am writing this at work now…)
- Mochi!!! (no Lucy, not Mochi in the Forest 
) Who knew a chewy-gooey rice cake filled with bean paste would be so delicious? Oddly enough, considering the ingredients, my only complaint is that sometimes they are TOO sweet. (An odd enough complaint anyway coming from the queen of sweets eating.)
Things I Miss
Here is a list of things I miss so those of you in the states can appreciate what you have.
-Cheap fruit. A package of three apples costs about $5. A bag of grapes: $7. Peaches (when they were in season and you could find them at the store): $10 a pound.
- No bugs (or for Texans at least, no bugs in the house). I miss bug-free living in California, where I never saw a critter and never got a mosquito bite.
- TV that I can understand. and more than five channels. I guess you could say its my fault for not speaking Japanese…
So, other than friends and family, there are not a lot of things that I really really miss. Its only three things but I REALLY REALLY REALLY miss them!!
10.11.06
Update!!
Well, I`ve been having some email/internet hiccups but I think I`ve sort of solved it. I have a new email address now…ready?
Please use this email address for now and maybe next week you can use this one or gmail. Thanks!!
09.27.06
I Have a New Home!!!
Well, its still in the same town but I am moving this weekend into an infinitely better place than my old, nasty, yucky apartment.
By a stroke of good fortune I have found a fabulous, BRAND NEW house—and I can afford it! This weekend I will move and I have never been so excited!
Will post some pics very very soon.
09.13.06
Sorry California
I decided to tell everyone I am from Texas because it is much too hard to explain that I grew up in Texas but lived in SoCal for the last three years. So I did a million introduction lessons and had to leave out anything to do with California. I can`t make a passing comment about it without having to give a 15 minute explanation of why the hell I`m talking about California not Texas. So I`m sorry California–aside from the few people I already told (before I figured out that EVERYONE would require a lengthy explanation)–I have had to temporarily disown you. 
09.09.06
Welcome to Japan
I live in Japan now. I teach at a junior high. So far I have done twelve lessons of a self-introduction. I know myself very well now and about 375 students know what my family looks like and that you say “howdy” in Texas.
So this blog has three main purposes: 1) help me pass time at work 2) give me an outlet to talk about all these “crazy” Japanese customs and 3) maybe hopefully help me stay in touch with my friends and family so you will remember who I am when I show up at your house with a back pack and ask if I can stay with you for a while. 
