Strep Weekend...

Man what a weekend it was. From Ureshii extreme to depression major! Anyway so Lisa came Friday night as planned but not planned was how drunk I was gonna be when we met her at the train station. Krystal and I went to an enkai with my school on Friday before we went to see Lisa and Kristen. And let me tell you what I got pretty drunk. Not drunk sick but drunk happy. the kind where you think everything is funny and that the world seems to be constantly wobbling under your feet. But we made it on time and everything was ok. Actually we were about 30 minutes late but Lisa had missed their original train and arrived 1 hour later than usual. This made us 30 minutes early.

Anyway that night we had a late dinner, mostly for me to get some food into me so I could soak up all the alcohol. After the midnight dinner we were off to the apartment to cruise for the rest of the night. We were supposed to go to sleep early but that never happened.

The next day was an exciting field trip to Osaka. They had a really good aquarium that was supposed to be a really big tourist thing. Anyway Saturdays in Japan are not as crowded as home since many peope still go to school and work on Saturdays. Anyway we got there and the aquarium is huge. You start off like on the fifth floor of a building and slowly wind your way down to the first floor that has the deep sea stuff. The main attraction for this particualr aquarium is the whale shark in the main tank. he sight of a whale shark being in a tank as very cool but honestly I thought it was gonna be a "whale shark". It was more like a dolphin shark. Well it was bigger than a dolphin but the whale shark was not as big as I thought it would be. But all in all it was fun and interesting. They also had the a sun fish, which is got to be the ugliest fish I had ever seen. If you guys know X-Files, do you remember the episode where there were was a monster living in the sewers and it would get around by swiming through setic tank trucks and stuff? Well it had a mouth that looked like giant suction cup. Kinda nasty. But from a whale shark to penguins, and spider crabs the aquarium was really fun.

After that we went on a trek to find an authentic mexican restaurant. I got some directions from my friends in Kyoto and some how found the place. Oaska was huge a filled with some very interesting characters. I guess you can say that Osaka is the Waikiki of Japan. So we found the Mexican restaurant but the service there was kind of crappy. It took forever for the lady to come and take our order and Krystal had to ask for a new water two times because something was floating in it. And the restaurant as so dim we could barely see what we were eating. I didn"t even notice that I had spilled guacamole all over my shirt until we got outside. Then I could see the huge ugly stains of green. From 1-10 I would give the restaurant 7. Food was really really good but the serivce dropped their score. Not like my score really matters though...

The next day way was all Kyoto stuff like Nijo castle and Kinkakujin. Nijo castle was really cool. I though it was gonna be a a building tha you just walk through but you can basically go all over in the mian building, and the oustide has really cool gardens and landscaping. It easily took a couple of hours to really enjoy the castle. Afterwards we grabbed osm elunch and headed towards Kinkakujin, the golden temple. It was a good 30 minute bike ride and all uphill. But when we got there I believe that we were all relieved to find that the bike ride was well worth it. The golden temple is everywhere, in all the tourist traps but until you actually see it, you haven't really seen it. Plus all the leaves were changing and it made a beautiful backdrop for the temple. Awesome...

On the way home something weird happened... I got sick. From the time it took to go from the golden temple to home I got really sick. I was having the chillas and my throat was very raw and sore. When I got home I was so dizzy I could barely walk up the stairs and get into bed. That night was the worst. When I woke up to use the bathroom I must have falle twice and knocked at least 2 things over. And my apartment isn't even that big. Man I was so sick. the next day the girls were planning to go to the monkey park but I was too sick and stayed in bed all day. I dunno what it was but I was weak when I was laying down and when I stood up I was dizzy. All I know is that I hate being sick.

Lisa left and I couldn"t make it to the train station. I was out pretty bad. But today I forced myself to stay home (wink wink) and went to the doctor's. He did a quick examination and said I had strep throat. I hadn"t had strep throat since high shool so I was pretty surprised. Krystal thinks I got it from one of my kids on Friday but the symptoms didn"t come out until Sunday night. Bastard kids I tell you. First they give me stress and now strep throat. Anyway I made it half way through another week without even trying.

Oh yeah it was my birthay weekend too. You'll never guess what Krystal got me for my birthday?? She got me a Naruto PS2 game!!! Isn't that crazy??!?! Oh yeah and the PS2!!! I can't believe she got it. She doing a fine job in feeding my deliquencies though...

BREAK IT DOWN!!

ACTION PACKED WEEKEND!!

The title to this weekend's activity and food super saturated celebration of .... Lisa? Well its supposed to be for my brithday but it seems like a pre-planned agenda has already been set by our guests... Anyway it's cool... I guess.

Yes, Lisa and Kristen are coming down (up) to Kyoto in celebration of my birthday. Which I'm sure you guys all remember... But yeah supposed to be filled with something to do everyday. Will the cold stop us? HELL NO!! Inot the night we will eat, drink, and be Merry or Pippin, or Frodo or whoever your favorite LOTR character is. Anyway they come in tonight and already we have a late dinner planned, where I don't know. Here's what the pre-planned list might look like:

Friday
- Arrive in Kyoto @ 9:07 p.m. yay!
- Eat dinner

Saturday
- Eat breakfast
- Go to Osaka Aquarium
- Eat dinner at Mexican restaurant

Sunday
- Eat Breakfast
- Go to Nijo Castle
- Eat lunch at Kura sushi
- Go to Ginkakujin
- Grab a famous Kyoto Snack
- Go on Philosopher's Path
- Eat @ Korean restaurant

Monday
- Eat breakfast
- Go to Arashiyama, Monkey Park
- Eat Lunch
- Go to naruto/bleach fair
- Eat dinner
- karaoke and drinks and food

Tuesday
- Eat breakfast
- Go shopping
- Eat Lunch
- get ready to go home

As you can see we have all the three important meals of the days covered. It sounds like its gonna be super super fun!! But first things first, I need to get through Friday...

I have the fourth graders today. They can either be totally into my lessons or get bitten by the "I'm too cool bug" passed around by the six graders. I have "weather" on my lesson plans today. Seems pretty easy... but that can always change. My safety net are the third graders that I have for my last period. Animals are the subject for that class. third graders rock in JAPAN! Hopefully I can make it through the day without throwing a kid out the window. Wish me luck!

TO DO LIST BEFORE LISA AND KRISTENS' ARRIVAL
1- Gome home ASAP!
2- Clean the apartment
3- Clean the bathroom
4- Throw a loud of laundry in the washer
5- Organize snack shelves
6- Vaccuum floor
7- Buy a bike
8- Find a bike to borrow
9- Root for our Sumo Wrestlers
10- Get some Rest

Is it possible? Of'course not, this is Mission: IMPOSSIBLE ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- つ

Break it Down!!

Hey Sanka, whatcha smokin??

I'm not smoking, I'm breathing. Every morning it seems to get colder and colder. This morning when I stepped out of my apartment, I could see my breath. That's fricken cold. All the way to school I saw myself huffing and puffing. I could even see my breath when I was breathing through my nose. I don't know how I'm gonna make it through the winter...

Anyway the week is at it most dullest, Wednesday. So close to the weekend and yet so far. The only thing keeping me going is the fact that Naruto is on, on Wednesday. Also Lisa and Kristen are visiting us this weekend and its gonna be a long weekend too. I finally got to use one of my nenkyu's (paid leave) days. I never had those before so it pretty cool. Not going to work but still getting paid. The fall season is in total effect so all the leaves are changing here in Kyoto. The shades range from bright red to a yellow-greenish. Pretty awesome. So this is what Fall looks like...

Anyway Krystal and I were approved for Monday to be a paid leave day so we have until Tuesday off. Tuesday happens to be a holiday of some kind. It's weird how all the hoildays here fall on a specific day. Like if the holiday is in a Wednesday that's when you have off not the "observed on Monday deal" we have in the U.S. Sometimes its a good thing but sometimes having a holiday in the middle of the week just slows you down. Anyway we're planning on taking Lisa and Kristen to Arashiyama which is famous for its folliage and picturesque veiws of mountain, forest, and rivers. It's weird having four seasons.

This weekend is gonna be awesome, yet costly. I wonder how much I'll spend this weekend. Krystal has already asked me for a loan. But we get paid this weekend so I guess its not so bad. Anyway until later...

Break it Down

New stuff!

Ok so I'm at my school with the personal laptops so I decided to invest some time into my blog. Everyone else's page seems more full then mine so I decided to upgrade it the best I can. I don't really know how this html stuff works so I'm gonna do a lot of experimenting. So if something doesn't work properly do not blame me but yourselves for pointing out my mistakes. Thank You... nah just joke! Have fun!!

Ankle Rollage...

That's right,I rolled my ankle again. I'm really starting to hate my ankles becasue they're so weak. Anyway I was playing basketball wih my sixth graders (which I love because I have no basketball skill but when you play in Japan, the nets are lower so I can do alley loops, dunks, and other skills.) So anyway I went for a rebound when I landed on top of a kid's foot. I landed wrong and then there went the ankle. It was pretty sore but I thought I could walk it off, which I did but once I got home and sat down the ankel really started to hurt. I think it was most painful this morning. I tookso an advil and put a medicated strip on it and I was out the door.

Anyway back to yesterday, on my way home the chain of my bike fell off. I don't know when and why it happened but I've come to the conclusion that the chain comes off when I put a lot of pressure on it. For instance when I have to pedal hard to keep a safe distance from cars coming from behind. So anyway I was trying to cross teh street before a car rear ends me when he chain comes off. I slip off the pedal and I really thought I was gonna go down and leave my knees and palms all over the concrete. But I eneded up riding on my hndle bars with my feet off the sides on the ground. If you saw Mission Imposible 2 where Ethan Hawk is riding his motorcycle and has both feet on one side and kind a of like coasts it over the street, that's what I was doin and managed to stay on the bike. I eventually came to a stop safely on the other side just before hitting pedestrian. As I was hydroplaning on the street I heard a few gasps from bystanders. Good thing I didn't fall. That would have sucked major. Anyway I made it and walked my bike to a repair shop where it costed me 10 dollars to put the chain back on and tighten it. Really debating on getting a new bike...

Last nigth was day two of teh sumo tournament. Krystaland my wrestlers did pretty good an managed another day of 3-3. This brings up to 6 wins total. There is a three way tie amongst the 6 players and we're one of the three. Hope we can come away with the wins today.

Today was pretty cruise. The school has a new students' orientation so after lunch the current students are sent home and that means no class for me. But what to do until 4:30 is the real hard part. Already blogged, played bubble bobble on my phone, and got ready for next weeks lesson. Hmmmmm....


Break it down!

Wheels on the Bus go round and round...

Friday was our trip to Yamaguchi. Krystala nd I went to visit her religion headquarters, Honbu. There was a dedication of a new "dojo" and we had teh previlege to go with the Kyoto group. We started at about 10 on Friday night. They picked us up by a charter bus onlythis bus was about half the sizr of a charter bus. Lets call it the mini bus. Anyway we rode a bus from Kyoto all the way to Yamaguchi which is in Hiroshima prefecture. Pretty south... Anyway the ceremony was pretty cool. It was the first time I saw so many "doshi's" or members ever. There wer thouseands of people I would say. We got to see them cut the tape and everything. It was a very spiritual experince. The whole time I was so nervous and I wasn't sure what I was doing was correct but I tried to be on my vest behavior and basically follow exactly what Krystal was doing. Teh bus ride back home was pretty long but enjoyable. We made friedns with the kids of the Kyoto group and played games to pass the time away. We left the dojo around 4 and only got home at about 11. Man that was a long ride....

So Sunday we slept in as usual and decided taht we were gonna rest up for the new week. Krystal had taken pictures with her new camera and was adamant on uploading her pictures onto her blog. She was basically on for about 4 hours. But it looked like she was having fun.

I on the otehr hand watched Sumo. The sumo pool we entered last week started yesterday. And when you have money on the game it never gets more interesting. Krydstala nd I were shouting our heads off in our tiny apartment to encourage and congradualrte our winning wrestlers. Out of the 6 wresters only 3 won. We were hoping that our best guy would win but he ended up losing. Its ok there are 14 more days in the tournament so we should come out on top. It was pretty intereting, with all or our cheering adn booing, the other people in the pool got the same record as us, 3-3. Never thought that sumo would be this interesting.

We finished off the night watching Mission Impossible. I had forgotten how much I liked the movie. There were twists and turns but you knew that Ethan Hawk aka Tom Cruise was gonna come out on top. And now another week to survive. At least Lisa is coming at the nd of the weekend. Should be very..... cultural.

Break it Down.

Tatsukette KURE!!

HELP ME! Anyone? Help me....

OK so I'm back at my Friday school (the one with the little fuckers that say "fuck you") Anyway today was my personal deadline to whether or not I was gonna go to the higher powers to talk abotu this one class. And the survey says... BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU! The rokunensei no ichikumi ( 6th grade, first class) were down to their last out and strike when they totally missed and failed in my eyes thoroughly. As a teacher you tend to question yourself first, "did I fail them because I wasn't a strong enough teacher?" Actually I 1would feel totally resposnible if I actually taught them anything?!?! It can't be my fault because i haven'tr taught them anythng yet! They never listen to anything I or their teacher has to say. So what to do? Who do I talk too? William, Mr. Takemoto, Principal, or Mr. Yano? Where do I start to better this situation. I honestly feel that this class doesn't want to learn English. So why force them? they don't wanna learn and I don't want to teach.

Anyway the weekend is here. Maybe a I can breathe a little easier now that the week is over and Friday class will be over soon. This weekend seems to be pretty filled already. I hope I can get through the day.

This Friday @ 7 is another Oyabu enkai. I don't know if I'm gonna go. Tonight we leave to go visit Honbu (Krystal's religion headquarters). They have just finsihed an addition to the original "dojo" and this Saturday is the opening ceremony. Krystal seems really excited to go. I'm kind of excited but more on the scared side. I dunno if I'm "worthy" enough to be there. I have to keep up with the people that have been practicing since they were born. I have barely a year under my belt. Anyway we leave at 10 tonight and get there sometime in the morning. We are to come back around 9 Saturday night. So anyway back to the enaki. Krystal and decided not to go since its probably not a good idea to booze it up before we go to a religion headquarter. Not to mention the long bus ride that might aggrivate our skill to hold down our liquor.

But Saturday night, we're supposed to have a Kill Bill night at Kevin and Val's. I got both DVDs so it should be pretty awesome. There might be some drinks too.

Sounds like I got both extremes of sin and piety.

Break it down... hopefully not the bus.

Yet another accident...

Yes, yes, yes another biking accident. I swear that people here don't watch where they are going!! So its about 95% ok to FUCKING HIT THEM!!! This time it was anold man checking out a high school girl on her bike. (I'm so serious) She was about three bike's distance in front of me and crossed the street. The old FRICKEN SUKEBE man was coming towards the intersection perpendicular to us. So as the girl passes he is totally checking her out. So he plows into the corner and with me right in front. He slams into the front of my bike and THEN HAS THE FUCKIN' NERVE to look at me as if it was my fault!!! I was so pissed I totally swore at him. MY exact words... "What the fuck is your problem, ojii-san?!" He looked at me funny and causally moved his bike from out of mine and strolled off across the street muttering to myself. I should have rode my bike straight into him and walk away. SERIOUSLY what the hell is wrong with people here? Actually I guess I wouldn't be this pissed but as he rode away I looked at my bike to see if there was any damage and the old fucker managed to break my front brakes. Well not break but the wire snapped so I have no front brakes. SO FUCKING PISSED! So gonna see if I can get it fixed or if it costs too much maybe a new bike. I wish I had a rock to throw or maybe my SPYDER WITH THE 200 vl FULLY LOADED, WITH MOTORIZED FEED, MY 16 oz. STUBBY AND SOME FREAKIN' EVIL PAINT.... who's walking away now...

OK all hatred aside, today was a pretty awesome day. It was my school's Gakugeikai. I think the translation is school peformance festival. Its a two day even t where each class and grade do some sort of performance for the school. Unfortunately I won't be able to see the second presentation tomorrow but all the presentations today were very "cute". Two sixth grade classes did a play about making friends. The third graders did a performance of Mexican/Hawaiian/Korean song and dance. Very very funny. Then the first graders did a skit and song about what they like to do on their free time. It was almost too cute. Anyway no time for English today... which I was a little disappointed because I really like this school. Well anywway there's always next week.

The same school is having an Enkai (party) again this Friday. I believe its to drink away the stress from the Gakugekai. Krystal and I have church at about 10 that night so maybe she would want to go for a little while since the party starts at 7. I haven't drank in a while and I think a beer or two would taste really good. Anyway I hope I can find a place that could fix my brakes. Maybe I might have to go to the place I bought it from... crap, fuckin old man...

Brake it DOWN!!

You Love Me, You Really Love Me...

I never knew you guys guys cared so much!! To my surprise when I opened my blog today and found that 6 treasured friends had come to my aid in the "foul mouthed sixth grader inicident." So then I got to thinking where the hell is everyone else?! Nah I guess I have to take into consideration that somepeople might have been busy this weekend, or don't check their email as often, or never made it to my blog. I understand, Your Chris is very forgiving...

Anyway, what a weekend it was. Can't really count Friday night. Krystal and I were so tired we fell alseep by 10 or so. But Staurday was a good day. We woke up late as usual, and I MADE BREAKFAST!! Damn Skippy! It was like, Breakfast at Tiffany's if Tiffany's had individual sized frosted flakes and cocoa krispies, toast w/ your choice of jam, peanut butter, butter, or laughing cow spreading cheese. It was a breakfast of champions. Nothing much happened in the day but at night we went to church and found a new hobby.

SUMO. That's right sumo. We entered a sumo pool. Never thought that the sport would be so complex and layered like an onion or parfait (Shrek Reference). Basically you pick 6 wrestlers and whoever has the most wins, wins. I had no clue what I was doing but hopefully I get a better understanding as more tournaments go on. Anyone for some sumo?

Sunday was a nature day for me and Krystal. We were just talkng about how we stay home so often because of the new TV we haven't really seen autumn like it was meant to be seen. So we went to a loverly picnic by the river. It was the first time I could tell it was fall by all the trees being multi-colored. What a nice day to be out. But the day was not done. We also went to the Fushimi-Inari temple. It supposedly famous for the thousands of Tori's (shrine gates) and the spectatcular mountain view of southern Kyoto. It was a pretty awesome sight to see all the toris and foxes everywhere. We got there about an hour before sunset so the sky was nicely turing orange and pink as were some of the leaves. But I tell you what, talk about a hike. Well not exactly a "hike" hike, but one with uku-billion stairs. There were stairs everywhere. You knew it got re bad when going down the stairs you're knees would wobble because of all the shock. But the nice, peaceful, cool, and friendly "hike" with friends were well worth it.

So what do I get for being a nature person? My calves were as tight as _____________ (how raunchy can you get?!) muscles could be if you exercised them. And to make matters worse it was a day of school where I needed to do a lot of running and climbing of stairs. So now the biggest debate right now id whether I want to catch the train tomorrow or ride my bike. Haven't rode the bike down for a while but the muscles can use another day of rest. Hmmmm what would Brian Boitanno do?

He'd make a plan and follow through, that's what Brian Boitanno'd do.

Break it Down!

Battle Wounds...

Ok so I just got back from my first and last 6th grade class today. My favorite grade to teach has always been 5th and 6th. I remember when they were easy to talk to, joke around with, and have a sense of understanding. I don't think the rule applies to 6th grade in Japan. At least not until I can understand and speak their language.

So I finally figured out what they were saying all along. For the past month or so there is a kid at my base school that kept saying "fat you". I don't necissarily call myself a thin person so I guess I can understand that its their first weapon against me using what little english they have. So my first reaction is to act like I don't understand them. 80% of the time they give up and things are back to normal. The other 20% are the real punks being persistant and really trying to get under your skin. That's when I chase them off laughing it off as if it didn't bother me to the point where I don't need to get angry. But then out of that 20% about 5 % are really out to get you. That's when I get angry and totally stare them down and try to explain to them in my worst Japanese that what they said or did is/was really really bad.

So anyway back to "fat you." I figured that it doesn't really bother me until just now. In the sixth grade class they were cutting out the alphabet and they had to put them back in order. The activity was timed so the teacher told the class to mix up the letters. As I went around I noticed that one of the students were cutting them nicely and putting them in order. I walked over and told him to mix it up. I getsured it and still he gave me a confused expression. So I went to his pieces and swished the around (not violently) and repeated "mix". He looked at with this expression that I have seen many times before. Like, "what the hell are you doing?!" I've seen this face in Hawaii and here. Then he says "Fat you". Then as I'm about to walk away I look back and I could see him staring at me with a sense of hate. Then I realized what the kids are trying to say. I finally realized that all these kids are trying to say "fuck you". "Fat You" I can deal with but "Fuck You" from a student to a teacher? A sixth grader?! I wanted to take the kid outside and show him what happens when you say "fuck you" to a person not willing to accept it. As I looked back at him a friend next to him distracted him from staring me down and I was able to walk away. So for the rest of the class I thought about all the kids who had been calling me "fat you" in all my schools. A real sense of anger came over me. I really don't want to teach these 6th graders. Well at least the ones that don't want to learn. Heavily debating whether or not to bring this "issue" up with the teachers or even the prinicpal... Do sho kan na...

Just for the record I have never heard a sixth/fifth grader tell a teacher fuck you to his/her face. I'm sure that if they said an equally insulting phrase to a Japanese teacher that Japanese teacher would give them a new asshole. But for me to do something? Nothing much I can do other than refuse to teach the class... but then new issue comes up. The students in sixth grade will know that I couldn't handle and walked away. I want to pick my students to teach.

Just a Quickie...

Sorry didn't have too much time but I'll see how much I can write. First of all going over my other blogs I noticed that I have an obscene amount of typos. So for those of you who can't read what the hell I'm typing... SUMIMASEN.

OK anyway, on my list of links I added two buddies of mine from Kyoto. They seem to have similar situations as gaijin in Japan but equally as entertaining, so check it out.

1) The dude's name is Kevin Allgood, I shit you not. Of all the names I've heard in my life time, I feel this dude's got a name that I'm sure one day will lead him to be a very professional politican.

2)The dudette's name is Valerie Marshal. (I can't remember if it's one "L" or two.) But anyway I had a hard time giving her a name that would be querky but all I could think of is "Dirty Bird". Not that she's obscene, vulgar, or lewd but because she's from Atlanta, which makes her an Atlanta Falcons fan, and thus the name "Dirty Bird" comes from the nickname of the Atlanta Falcons. Ok....

Still have some time...

Back by popular demand... Chris' List 'o Achievement/Accomplishment!

1) Managed to get to work on time.
2) Degraded a well deserved 5th grader.
3) Figured how to use the bilingual button on T.V.
4) Watched, Enjoyed, and Finished first season of 24... within one week.
5) Ruled on the dodgeball field.
6) Saw his breath on the way to school.
7) Cleaned the fridge.
8) Housed my new figurines in their display cases.
9) Managed to stay away from the ATM for a week.
10) Winning Krystal's affection for more than two years now.

Break it DOWN!

Mission Japanese Acclamaion Status:proceeding...

Ok that was werid... I was typing and the damn thing went ot the dashboard and I have to start over again. I'll try to keep this one a similar as possible. Anyway I hada d ream teh otehr day that Jake came to visit us in Japan and when he came into my room he said, "damn what is with all this stuff?" Which I responded, " being into all this stuff and living in Japan,　wouldn't it be weird if I didn't have all this stuff?" He agreed and I can't remember the rest of the dream but it's true, I do have a lot of stuff in my room. From stuffed animals (dragonball Z) Neon Genesis Evangelion figurines, Kenshin stuff, and Naruto everywhere in my room I have acheived the feat of bringing my room from Hawaii to Japan. I guess I just feel comfortable with all these "eyes" looking at me. Its the same as Krystal, she feels more comfortable in pink so guess what? Her whole apartment is pink. So getting used to the weather, japanese people, and language I guess one can say that I am becoming acclamated to the Japanese culture, not to say that Hawaii has lots of Japanese culture.

So anyway I received a care package from home the otehr day. It had DVDs, anti-virus program, spyware blocker, clothes, and soem li hing powder. What I didn't expect was to fidn that my mom threw clothes in that I ddin't take to Japan. So when I opened the box is smelled like home. Not being home home for over 3 months makes you realize this. Among the DVDs was the Star Wars Trilogy. Finally came!! One thing that was a little disappointing was that I asked for FRIENDS season 1 and 2, and what I got was the best of FRIENDS seasons 1 and 2. I was expecting the whoel season but Krystal told me not to omplain, which she was right. I AM VERY GRATEFUL FOR THE CARE PACKAGE. I might have to send the DVDs back but I thought that they would make really good Christmas gifts.

I figured out what holiday was yesterday... it's CULTURE DAY!! Isn't that cool? We don't got to work because the whole country is embracing their culture. Which is kind of weird to me because I haven't been anywhere in my life where it's been this cultural. They freak out when I tell them that I can use chopsticks. "Wow, you can use chopsticks? You eat rice everyaday? You know how to write Japanese? You know how to eat Japanese food?" The many questions that I get on a daily basis. WEIRD...

Other than that nothing much happening on "this" island. Update on 24, we've gotten to hour 21 in about 5 days. Do we watch a lot of T.V. or what? No more or less than back home...

BREAK IT DOWN!

Medic!!

That's how I feel about the cre package that my mom sent. Supposedly it came yesterday at 12:20 butI was at work. I kind of don't understand why any mail with tht sort of size would be delievered in the mid-afternoon. Instead of having someone go all the way to your house to find that no one is home, why don't they send ot staright to the post office? Then again if I say that then the post man would come on a day that I just happen to be home and and have to make my way down to the post office. Maybe I just feel like complaining.

Anyway the care package is a total life saver. It was Kill Bill 2, Star Wars Trilogy, Hocus Pocus (kind fo fell gyped about this year's Halloween), and I believe FRIENDS seasons one and two. My mom was also worried about the cold and kept insisting that I get a acket or coat but Itold her lng sleeve shirts would be fine... for now. What esle is in the package I'm not sure. I don't remember what else I requested but dad said said everything would bein there. But as this package comes I feel like I'm in need of a new package. For instance Aladdin and Mulan came out on DVD, Harry Potter and teh Prizoner of Azkaban is coming out soon, Spiderman 2, and a couple of others I can't remember at the moment. Might have to ask my buddy Jake for a new DVD list.

I finally stopped raining and he weather seems to look pretty decent. I think Krystal and I need to take advantage this and go see the trees and stuff. I'm finally in an area that has all four seasons. The leaves are supposed to be changing color now, so I guess me and krystal can do some nature stuff...

Lastly we have a holiday on Wednesday. I have no idea what day it is but we don't have to go to work. So what happens? One of my school's is throwing another party so we're gonna go. This is the same school that threw my first party and I'm surprised that they want to do it again. None of my other schools even had one. WE GONNA DRINK TONight!!

BREAK it DOWN!!