Why, what is this?

Nothing special but, just playing around with my phone and computer.

Today I am at Suisan

Today I am at Suisan Highschool. The semester and school year are pretty much done and after a few weeks of school being off we will start again the second week of April. It has finally started warming up here and just as quickly as it had become cold in the fall, the same kind of transaction has happened here for spring; one day freezing cold, the next incredably warm. It has been pretty constant too. This week we have seen quite a lot of rain and wind. Yesterday, while walking home from the train station, the wind took my umbrella and turned the thing completly inside out. I knew it was bad when I heard snapping aluminum. The thing was shot, no chance of fixing it. I guess that is what you get when you pay around $2.50 for an umbrella.

Ayumi is in Gifu for the weekend. Her mom wanted some help learning how to use Microsoft Powerpoint and with her little sister being home for a few days from college she thought this would be a good time to go. I am home cat-sitting.

Our cat Hershey has started with the most obnoxious hobby lately. She likes to sleep and be lazy all day long but, as soon as it gets dark and we start winding down for bed she thinks she needs to run around and play. It wouldn't be so bad if we lived on the bottom floor but, I can only imagine the poor person benieth us. I am sure she is awoken by Hershey jumping off her kitty-condo and then chasing the mouse on the wooden floor. We shut her up as quickly as we can but, I guess we are lucky whoever is beneith us is really patient... or just deaf.

I went to the gym on Tuesday and my chest and arms still hurt. I guess that happens when you exercise only once every three months. :P

Raw Lobster

This blog is long overdue for a makeover. For the first time in a long time this past weekend I thought about my blog and the serious lack of anything going on with it. Winter has come and gone and with that being said, I can probably get rid of that 'winter button' I have on here. Pictures are a little out of date too.

This month marks the beginning of my eighth month here in Isobe. I got here in the middle of a humid summer and with Spring now just beginning, before too long will have experienced all four seasons. Ayumi has been working at a English school three times a week since the beginning of November which ends at the end of this month. We are both excited to have her home in the evenings but, now the inexcapable feeling of her needed to find something else comes back to haunt us. The extra money is nice but, with student loans and rent due every month, in spite of her working leaves us little to play with anyways.

This past Friday I had a company party which I attended. It was at an inn in a nearby town. We were given the choice to stay the night or just go for the food. I chose not to stay the night (price is a lot more expensive than I was willing to pay). It was pretty much all you can eat seafood and drink expensive alcohol. Me not being a drinker indulged myself in watching everyone get trashed, and knowing I was helping to pay for it in the end. Funny how alcohol brings out a different side of people you don't usually get to see.

One particular thing we ate which I thought was interesting was fresh lobster. We each had our own plate. So fresh indeed that it was still moving around when they brought it out. From what I could tell they had done was they had cut the lobster in half width-wise, they turned the now disembodied tail over, split it in two and pulled out all the meat and displayed it now in the split open tail. They threw all this back on the plate, both halves of the lobster, and brought it to me to eat raw. I get this lobster on my plate and can see all its legs are still moving, his eyeballs are still rolling around, his antlers are still feeling around. He wasn't going anywhere, probally due to the fact that his guts were being chewed in my mouth at that very moment. Well, I am not sure if he was dead or dying but, he sure tasted good- raw lobster!

So last week at school we had the all the students taking tests. With that all done and out of the way, we now have a few weeks of abolutley nothing going on at school. I could start to plan lessons but, don't know what I am facing for next year so until I do, am just making general use games.

I will try to spice up this blog!

Ayumi's new blog

http://www.iroha-123.blogspot.com/

Fotos From my Fone

So, I have some photos from my phone that I decided tonight is as good as any to upload to my blog. We were in Hokkaido last week for the wedding of Ayumi's cousin and because we didn't have a camera our father in law took lots of pictures for us. Until I get those uploaded, enjoy these random shots from my phone.

The International Interaction Society of Shima-Isobe

So a few weeks ago I was invited by a teacher who I work with at Suisan Highschool to teach a traditional American dish at an upcoming cooking seminar the above mentioned society was holding. With a little brainstorming Ayumi and I thought it would be fun to do Hawaiian Haystacks, Potato Salad and my mom's famous Jello with bananas and whipped cream. Here are a few photos of the activity! Enjoy!

Wednesday Night

So, I thought I was off to a great start with those two entries, and then logging on today to write a little something I find that it has been a week since I last wrote. Anyways, New Years has come and gone and come to think of it, right now is the first time that I think I have written the numbers 2008. What is weird is that I can remember it turning 1990 and thinking to myself, "Wow, only ten more years until 2000", that was 18 years ago. I can remember New Years 1998 being at my good friend Joey's house and playing Prince's 1999 on his Jukebox... actually, I don't know if I remember that or not and am just thinking it happened. Anyways, time flies.

So here we are back in Shima. Ayumi is off at work tonight leaving me alone and instead of coming home to an empty house (which indoubtadbly happens anyway) I decided to hang around school a bit longer and go watch some of the school clubs practicing. After that got old, and I got cold, I decided to head home. I got home around five and after checking my e-mail decided to go jogging and look for the local gym. I got my running clothes on and headed out. I had been to the gym once on my own (I have been driven there a few times for tennis) and that one time was in the day, on my bike and was the difficult, straight up hill route. It wasn't until a few weeks ago that I found that the gym had a back entrance which a less threatning road lead up to. Finding that road, and ultimatley the gym was my goal. Well, I took off and fifteen minutes later I arrived, sweat soaked and probally pretty stinky. All it costs to use the exercise facilities here is about a dollar. There were a few nice guys that I chatted with for a while and the gave me some pointers on how to use the machines thay had. Well, I ran home and am determined to try and be a little more fit this year so, lets see what happens.