Nonsensical Nothingness

2006-09-25T01:33:00.000+09:00

So here she is, the newest addition. Allez.

2006-07-09T14:30:00.000+09:00

Karaoke, nuff said.

2006-07-09T14:28:00.000+09:00

Vavy Darling, who is playing bartender.

2006-07-09T14:27:00.000+09:00

The paparazzi

2006-07-09T14:25:00.000+09:00

Getting down with karaoke.

2006-07-09T14:24:00.001+09:00

Patrick and Amy

2006-07-09T14:24:00.000+09:00

My supervisor who has helped me so much this year.

2006-07-09T14:23:00.000+09:00

Friday's night sayanara party. I had to sit at the front of the room, next to the VP, and give a speech. Pressure!

2006-07-09T14:22:00.000+09:00

Mid-week beer garden going well.

2006-07-09T14:21:00.001+09:00

Adam getting the birds eye view of the dance floor.

2006-07-09T14:21:00.000+09:00

Alex, Betsy and Jess. This picture was taken after a very serious discussion that needed to be documented.

2006-07-09T14:20:00.001+09:00

da party and the grill.

2006-07-09T14:20:00.000+09:00

Here is the AJET sayonara party. These are the old AJET committee leaders. Up to their old shenanigans.

2006-07-09T14:19:00.000+09:00

In Naoshima, Adam and I have found some back trails and are exploring the island. We thought we would need all day to explore, but the 3 kilometer island was easily covered in 20 minutes.

2006-07-09T14:17:00.000+09:00

the most intresting bathroom I've ever used.

2006-07-09T14:16:00.000+09:00

humm... This was the lunch of the day. Ham, raisen bread, mustard and chips.

2006-07-09T14:15:00.001+09:00

On of the best museums that I've been to in Japan.

2006-07-09T14:15:00.000+09:00

A restaurant with atmosphere! wahoo! all you can eat Italian food. soooo good. all for $25.

2006-07-09T14:09:00.000+09:00

The mickey-d's in kyoto. They're lovin' facing the wall?

2006-07-09T14:07:00.000+09:00

Loven it!

2006-07-09T14:06:00.000+09:00

I had to plead with these girls, but they allowed me just one picture.

2006-07-09T14:04:00.001+09:00

night party in kyoto

2006-07-09T14:04:00.000+09:00

entry way in kyoto

2006-07-03T22:15:00.000+09:00

Here we have the generations of Japan. First is the older traditional geisha; the performer, the professional flirter. Paid to entertain. Behind her is a woman on a bike. Women in today�s society are breaking through their repression and fighting for their equality. However, they still have a long, long way to go. And behind them both the omnipresent vending machines. Vending machines could be likened to a god. They are everywhere in Japan, they can deliver anything you want, all you have to do is pay the price. Convenience is at your service. From soft drinks, beer, fags, t-shirts, used high school girl�s panties� by god - vending machines must be god. Either that or one really smart businessman.

2006-07-03T22:05:00.001+09:00

a famous bridge and river was in some movie.... dont remember the name.

2006-07-03T22:05:00.000+09:00

LOok! I see her in the taxi, and wow - what a crowd she has. Just to see her. I wouldn't mind this job. You are the life of the party. everyone wants to be around you! People wait hours to take pictures of you... this girl is under 21 because she is wearing the white face makeup.

2006-07-03T22:03:00.000+09:00

Here is really nice wood that he being covered up by bamboo. The bamboo is here to divert dogs from peeing on the really nice wood. Also the lanter is a symbol of the street we are on, another famous street where geshas hang out and play!

2006-07-03T22:02:00.000+09:00

Here is one of the famous streets that the gesha work on. In the corner of the screen you see a red shrine gate. They put that there so that the owner of dogs don't let their dogs pee on the side of the building, b/c you wouldn't let you dog pee on anything that's holy would you?

2006-07-03T22:00:00.000+09:00

Kyoto subway. The lady behind them has blue hair. It didn't come out as well as i wanted it to, but she does. It's a fad here. The older women are into dieing their hair purple, blue, pink, white with strips of black. It's shocking to say the least.

2006-07-03T21:58:00.001+09:00

Look, I see nihonjin!

2006-07-03T21:58:00.000+09:00

On the way to school in the morning

Burried alive! WDF!?

2006-06-30T12:47:00.000+09:00

So big news in Tamano. Here's the link http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20060628a3.html

Yes, here in my sleepy little town two men were buried alive because of an argument over a girl. Shock and horror. All of this was less than 5 miles from my house. I run in the park adjacent to the industrial waste disposal site where they were buried.

(Yes, did you catch that -- the park adjacent to the industrial waste disposal site)

Vavy Darling works at the school where the boy graduated from that admitted to the murders. She also said the incident was sparked by the victims threaten that they had connections to the Mafia and that they were going to beat and burry the alleged murder!

So which is the correct conclusion?

a) Poker bluff called and one party went all in. Wonder what he's pay out will be?

b) Who could blame them? If our governments can react violently to threats, so can we: Shoot first, less you be shot!

c) Take heed the advice of Dr. Seuss "You ought to be thankful a whole heaping lot for the people and places you're lucky your not!"

d) I have become a nerd/teacher, because I'm making multiple choice questions for conclusions for my blog entrees. humm...

Vote now and I promise you your vote won't matter at all! However, the time you spend on this website will be documented for statistical purposes, which will be used later to develop marketing strategies to convince you that you really need to buy that trendy coat that Willie Nelson is so stylishly flaunting.

2006-06-23T22:35:00.001+09:00

On Monday and Thursday I visit Yogo Gakko, my special needs school. Thursday I hung out with Naoshi-kun, a 17 year old D.S. boy. We practiced English, had a BBQ and enjoyed "Nagashi Somen!" Thin cold noodles are placed in a long thick bamboo and the noodles flow down the bamboo like a slide. You have to pluck the noodles at the end and then dip them in tsuyu (sauce) to get your dinner! It's hard! The following pictures are the preparation and attempted catching of the slippery noodles.

This practice is popular with restaurants and children in the summer months. Some of the restaurants even put the somen in a real stream. I preferred the real bamboo.

2006-06-23T22:35:00.000+09:00

cleaning the bamboo

2006-06-23T22:34:00.000+09:00

Naoshi-kun and me trying not to burn the meat.

2006-06-23T22:33:00.000+09:00

This is Hamada sensei and Naoshi-kun eating some of the BBQ.

2006-06-23T22:32:00.000+09:00

The somen is dropped at the top of the bamboo and it runs down the bamboo with the water and you try to pick up the noodles with forks and chopsticks. It's really fun and really hard! All of these kids are in my English classes.

2006-06-23T22:29:00.000+09:00

Here we are eating our Somen. Yummy!

2006-06-20T21:54:00.000+09:00

Welcome to my home.

2006-06-20T21:53:00.000+09:00

Tamano is known for it's maffia. Looks like a gaijin was caught out of line. ::glups::

2006-06-20T21:52:00.000+09:00

Oh - and my lovely apartment. Makes you want to cringe huh?

2006-06-20T21:51:00.000+09:00

So, here is my brown wall and my attempt to mask it with bamboo.

2006-06-20T21:42:00.001+09:00

Living room. With mini fuji hanging out on the couch, thanks Claire!

2006-06-20T21:42:00.000+09:00

my entertainment center. yes, i watch TV a lot.

2006-06-20T21:38:00.001+09:00

My HUGE bathroom

2006-06-20T21:38:00.000+09:00

my huge tub!

2006-06-20T21:37:00.000+09:00

tub with stain glass reflections

2006-06-20T21:36:00.000+09:00

Oh - and my dirty balcony. I haven't made use of this space well. I'm trying to revive my mint plant, but i think it's a lost cause. :(

2006-06-20T21:35:00.000+09:00

Southern view. On top of the mountain there is a traditional shrine. During the winter season it had blue xmas lights.

2006-06-20T21:34:00.000+09:00

This is my southeastern view. Vending machine in sight, score.

2006-06-20T21:24:00.000+09:00

Here's the bamboo lit up.

2006-06-20T21:23:00.000+09:00

When I'm feeling fancy I light my bamboo. I drilled wholes in it and then put candles in it. It took a long time and well... I gave up because it wasn't producing enough light and I ran out of steam. I�m happy enough with the result. It creates a fun atmosphere for dinner parties.

2006-06-20T21:19:00.000+09:00

My living room at night time

2006-06-20T21:18:00.000+09:00

This is my dinner. Miso soup, fresh salmon that fell apart in mouth and didn't have to chew, carrots with ginger, spinach with sesame seeds and garlic, soba noodles with raw egg and sea weed and water with mint.

2006-06-20T21:13:00.001+09:00

Humm... dinner was good!

2006-06-20T21:13:00.000+09:00

My dinning room and kitchen.

2006-06-20T21:12:00.000+09:00

Oh the strange statue of boobs and the strange(r) building over looking the ocean. It's a nice looking building, but there isn't much in it. Some of the people in the cars were watching on my bike. When I whipped out the camera, they sure turned their heads fast!

2006-06-20T21:10:00.000+09:00

Just chilling. I guess they're warming their buns off of the road. I don't know why because it was 30 C today. Funny ducks.

2006-06-20T21:08:00.001+09:00

A lake within Miyama Park. Behind is teh mountain that caught fire last year.

2006-06-20T21:08:00.000+09:00

a rest spot in Miyama Park.

2006-06-20T21:07:00.001+09:00

Miyama Park

2006-06-20T21:07:00.000+09:00

A little winding trail along the stream

2006-06-20T21:06:00.001+09:00

A little bit of Miyama park

2006-06-20T21:06:00.000+09:00

a road with my shadow and my bike.

2006-06-20T21:05:00.000+09:00

At the very top of Miyama Park there is a huge cemetery that looks out over the mountain that caught fire last year, and then in the valley there is the city. Just beyond the city is the ocean.

2006-06-14T21:35:00.000+09:00

Need some soy sauce?

2006-06-14T21:24:00.000+09:00

Tamano's little theatre. Red velvet reclining seats. I had the room to myself Sunday night. I would recomend The Producers. I really enjoyed it.

2006-06-14T21:22:00.000+09:00

Clean your house with pastel colors!!

2006-06-14T21:17:00.001+09:00

Place orders now. Here are the choices of sake, and shochu and some other stuff.

2006-06-14T21:17:00.000+09:00

Could you buy a camera that was smaller than your arm?! I dont want to buy this camera, I want to buy this girl some food! I hope she doesn't fall - she'd snap.

2006-06-14T21:16:00.000+09:00

Sweet stuff. Could, would you eat it?

2006-06-14T21:15:00.000+09:00

This is what you bring to friends or co-workers when you visit other places. Sweet stuff. humm...

2006-06-14T21:14:00.001+09:00

Dinner part 2

2006-06-14T21:14:00.000+09:00

Dinner part 3

2006-06-14T21:13:00.000+09:00

Kimono, don't leave home without one!

2006-06-14T21:12:00.000+09:00

oh - Toto can't get wet!

2006-06-14T21:08:00.000+09:00

Comon you know every boy wants lace. Not sure he had this much in mind.

2006-06-14T21:06:00.000+09:00

me too. I love nudy, too!

2006-06-14T21:04:00.000+09:00

Body Wild for men. WILD but COOL. Gosh - is it me, but is it getting hot in here?! Wowers, if that doesn't sell undies, well... I guess they're out of luck because it looks like their scrapping the bottom of the barrel!

2006-06-14T21:02:00.000+09:00

This is in Happy Town. I'm not sure what kind of game this is, but OMG - there is always a line of girls waiting to smack the buttons. i think you get stickers and they put them in the books they're holding. Walking by this place is a complete over whelming of sounds. Dings, whistles, kids running laughing, lights flashing. It's all of Las Vegas condensed into this section of my little mall. I have to remind myself to breathe when I walk past sometimes. lol - seriously.

2006-06-14T20:58:00.000+09:00

Here is a picture from our latest excursion to Takamatsu. We're on the berry. Hitomi is in the window and Ken-chan is scaling the wall. Brilliant night. My poor mother called me at 2 am and well... got a drunken daughter on the other line. Oop's

The Long Awaited Post about Our trip to Skikoku.

2006-05-17T00:07:00.000+09:00

Well, we made to 88 temples in less than 9 days, much to my surprise. In total we went 1400 kilometers (and change) to visit 88 temples. To complete that, we averaged 8 hours a day of riding and covered 156 Kilometers per day, (100 mpd). Hindsight, there were only two things that were easy about this trip. 1. Going down the mountains (but of course that was after climbing it) and 2. Falling asleep at night. Other than that this trip was extremely grueling, challenging and well quite possibly the most amazing thing that I've done thus far, and I can't say that I've been prouder of myself.

So why did I sign myself up for this? I asked myself that question a lot while climbing 1000-meter mountains. My initial response was stupidity, and then after reflection I realized it was ignorance that got me in it. Did I have any experience going 100 kilometers a day? No. Had I ever been camping for more than one day at a time? No. And for that matter, did I know anything about Japan before I came here. Well, in my interview I seemed to have portrayed minimum knowledge about Japan, but in actuality, I knew nothing. No, I had never changed a flat tire before. No, I didn't know how to say temple in Japanese, let alone know proper etiquette while visiting one. So, yes I can say my answer was, without doubt, ignorance doubled over with an insatiable thirst to relinquish it with experience. And baby, I got it.

I got all the experience I could handle. I am still trying to process the significance of our journey and figure out some way to babble it out to share with you. The last couple of days the teachers have asked me to show the students pictures of my trip and explain. So, I've condensed my experience to baby English, accompanied with diagrams, pictures, maps, and the JTE translates the jargon words, and somehow I think the some students understand. Well, let me clarify, the students who actively nod their heads and the occasional applause let me know they understand, however the ones drooling on their desk couldn't be bothered (but I've been that student before, and figure that Karma's a witch).

I use gestures; I hold up three fingers and say I went to Shikoku for 1. Japanese culture 2. My grandparents and 3. Cultural exchange

I spent my Golden Week touring one of Japan's most beautiful isolated islands on my bicycle stopping ever so often at temples to take pictures, see people dressed in their Kobo Daishi attire, hear them say their mantas, and to breathe the euphoric smell of incense. The temples were beautiful and all were different. Some of them had more funding than others, some were more simplistic, and others had impeccable landscaping. All were well taken care of, the wooden brooms always tucked behind a corner. There were various groups of people visiting the temples. The majority of people we saw were retired Japanese on chartered buses dressed from head to toe in starched white K.D. attire. When they unloaded from the bus their walking stick hit the ground like it had always been there. Some of the bigger charter busses were full of the genki-est people in the morning. On my grouchier mornings I questioned their sanity and where they had acquired the crack.

In the mornings before the stamp office would open up we would meet Henro (the walkers). Their personality's varied. Some were on a mission walking into the temple, said their mantra got their stamp and walked out in a whirlwind, which made our pace look as slow as molasses. Other Henro were contemplating life and from the look of their content smiles were succeeding. Walking route gives you a lot of time answer the questions like why the sky is blue. I spotted other Henro nursing their battle scars and blisters the uneven mountain paths had bestowed on them. I admired the Henro. Wished I was one, but then realized that path wasn't for me. I just admired them.

We met three Gaijin Henro. The first boy from North Carolina, missing his accent he discarded the issue of transportation and added ‘we do what we can with the time we have’. True, True. We ran into one other group of foreigners. Two girls one from New Zealand who had found our website before she had set off on her journey. The other girl had just finished her study abroad in Japan and was from.... Big D! Such a small world that two gals from Tejas would be walking the same 88 Buddhist Temple Route in Rice-ville, Japan. If any of you Gaijin read this... congratulations to you! Please drop me a line! Would love to catch up.

The other main groups of travelers were by cars and motorcyclist. A lot of the car travelers were with families. The motorcyclist were either alone or braving the highway with a soul companion. All were male with new bikes decked out with all the newest leather packaging. I confess to coveting an engine between my two wheels once or twice on our trip.

As for the second reason why I came on this trip, my grandparents. This one is a little more personal and difficult to explain. This year both my maternal grandparents passed away with Alzheimer’s, one in March and the other in April. I was able to go home for my grandmother’s funeral, but not for my grandfather’s. It is hard to deal with death and be away from the rest of the family. So, I thought it would be good to remember them and their memories while on this trip. I wanted to give my reflection a direction. While they were dissipating with the disease I was struggling with the situation and consulted one of my professors. He responded with some of the best advice and said “If your grandparents were able to communicate such things, they would want the best for you. They wouldn’t want to hinder you because of pain or hurt. Go do what makes you happy and do it well. That would make them happy.” He hit the nail on the head and sent me off. I doubt he had biking 1400 kilometers in mind, but I figure proving my health and determination would be sufficient.

I also realized that sharing my story with my friends, co-workers and family would be beneficial for everyone. So I rallied everyone and asked for their support for Alzheimer’s Society in memory of my grandparents. This was my first large undertaking of fundraising by myself. Let me tell you, it’s hard to raise money. Especially when you’re in another culture. Thankfully though I ran into some overly zealous supporters who carried, convinced, and coerced other people to donate money to Alzheimer. Ooe sensei took me under his wing and ran with the idea. He helped me make morning speeches about my journey and Koyama Sensei broadcasted my ‘challenge’ to one side of the teacher’s room to the other. Thank you guys, I could not have raised as much money with out your help.

Part of the fundraising was you could pledge per kilometer or per temple. I’m not sure anyone else thought we would finish so this was a gamble and a motivational tool to keep us going. I must admit, there were times when I wanted to quit, catch the train and go home. I waited at the train stop for 30 minutes at one time, but I road away before I could let myself board.

So all in all, I haven’t collected all the money just yet, but… I will collect 130000 yen for Alzheimer’s Society. Which is $1300 American Dollars. I am so elated and happy. I can’t believe that so many people were willing to support the cause. I am really overwhelmed and extremely thankful. If it hadn’t been for your thoughts, words of encouragement, and support there is no way I could have done it. No way. Thank you for helping me achieve my goal.

Finally, the last bit of why I went on this trip: the cultural exchange. Admittedly, I didn’t realize the significance of this whole deal until afterwards. Neil, Barbie and I are having newspapers and TV reports wanting to meet with us to share our story with more people. My mother and my aunt are teaching their students about Japan and about Shikoku and when I tell my students about all this in my broken baby English and gestures. I take one of my hands and say this hand is America, these students learn about Japan, Shikoku and Japanese cultures! Then I take the other hand and say this hand is you. Here you learn about my culture and new fundraising ideas. Then I take my hands and interconnect them in front of the classroom and I realize while I’m teaching that this is what my job is. This is it. I’m connecting cultures, building bridges, and staring at my hands in front of a classroom, smiling. Maybe that’s why they’re clapping? Maybe all my diagrams, maps, and pictures and JTE helped explain what this journey was about. I wish that they could understand what I’ve written here. Furthermore, I hope that you’ve got fair grasp on our journey.

I used to think that memories were the most important things one could own, but even that you can be robbed of. Instead, I have realized it is much more important to enjoy the moment for what it is. Whether it be happy or sad, a mountain, a sunny or rainy day just because it is a day that you can do and be. My wish is that you’ve enjoyed my journey for whatever it is for you. Thank you for letting me share it with you.

2006-05-13T15:43:00.002+09:00

Me on the ferry to Takamatsu!

2006-05-13T15:43:00.001+09:00

wow - i want to take that ferry!

2006-05-13T15:43:00.000+09:00

best love hotel ever

2006-05-13T15:42:00.000+09:00

At the first temple you could purchase everything you needed to visit temples. Just look at how HOT you can be when wearing Kobo Dashi name brand! One size fits most.

2006-05-13T15:38:00.001+09:00

let there be light!

2006-05-13T15:38:00.000+09:00

Now - is this just a huge statue of a bunny or a huge pink bunny headstone?

2006-05-13T15:36:00.000+09:00

One of the 1st temples we visited. There's our hero, Kobo Dashi! The statue with the hat.

2006-05-13T15:35:00.001+09:00

Don't know if Kobo Dashi was such an entrepreneurial genius, but other people caught on to his idea. For your convenience there were FLAT SCREEN TVS that were more than helpful in directing you to hotels, spas, restaurants, and other venues of interest. Have lexicons added to the definition of convenience: an easier way to spend more money?! So, so, so, so, so, so, so.

2006-05-13T15:35:00.000+09:00

Kawaiiii!

2006-05-13T15:24:00.001+09:00

I see you, too! But you're stare is a little more intimidating.

2006-05-13T15:24:00.000+09:00

I love this picture.

2006-05-13T15:23:00.001+09:00

Some people who wanted their picture with us.

2006-05-13T15:23:00.000+09:00

Tulips

2006-05-13T15:22:00.001+09:00

translation anyone?

2006-05-13T15:22:00.000+09:00

What are these called?

2006-05-13T15:21:00.000+09:00

This poor girl was being dragged up the steps. Her grandparents were counting all the steps covering up her whimpers. Suck it up! Hard lesson learned when your 3! On the way down one of the mountain Neil overheard a small girl talking to her grandfather. She was complaining about her ankles hurting. The grandfather replied, well that's what happens when you climb a mountain! True, true.

2006-05-13T15:16:00.000+09:00

On the way up the hill to temple 12. I found this extremely trusting of the owner to expect money would be left behind and that the money wouldn't be stollen. I wish that I could have such faith in my hometown, America.

2006-05-13T15:13:00.000+09:00

Highway 19 - Highly recommened! This little road was less than 3 meters wide and on the other side you could see the river winding down the mountain side. One of my favorite roads and moments on our trip (probably because we were going down hill).