帰る〜ぜ！

十月十九日から二十七日まで，ハワイに帰るよ！やっと！
(From October 19-27, I'm returning to Hawaii! Finally!)

As my Japanese is getting better, reading and writing becomes easier - so I'm going to be trying to write more in Japanese in my blog.

ANYWAY, I'm finally going home after 4 months in Japan... I can't wait to surf, eat, see family and friends, play in the sun. There's so much I want to do and I'm only home for a week so I'm definitely going to make the most out of it! I want to get myself out of this almost boring routine I have here in Japan (wake up, ride the train, work, ride the train study Japanese, etc.)... but I'm afraid that if I have too much fun and enjoyment in Hawaii, I'm not going to want to return to Japan! やばい！

I'm slowly missing the little things that I love about Hawaii. But, seriously its not the right timing as Japan's just going to get worse from here -- its going to be super cold, bad weather, etc. Nonetheless, I'm going to still try to stay as positive as I can and spread aloha everyday!

PEACE!

I'm not going to worry ( ^_^ )!

From an article I found on yahoo today:

"There is nothing positive about being a worry wart."

Do you worry too much?

Some worrying is good. It warns us of error and helps with decision-making. But if you find yourself worrying all the time, you are robbing yourself of precious energy and happy hours.

When you worry, your body tenses, your mind races and your heart stresses. Focusing on negative future outcomes or past failures is an unhealthy way to spend your time.

Resolve to regain this lost energy. Focus on today and handle things as they occur. Know that what’s happened in the past is water under the bridge. Remember that what may happen in the future is, for the most part, out of your control. Live, happily, in the “here and now.” It’s the only way to thrive!


I feel like I've overcome so much since my panic attacks and days of worrying... but its always a nice reminder to keep on doing what I'm doing and worry as little as possible!

LOVE!

敬老の日 (respect for the aged day - 09/21/09)

I went to my Japan grandma & grandpa's house in Chiba for Keirou no hi (敬老の日). It was also gramp's birthday so we celebrated that as well. Lots of good home cooked food and yummy cake!

じいちゃんのケーキ！

Shrimp and fish, fresh off the barbie.

Seriously, I don't know what this was... snail? I didn't eat it!

Looks yummy, huh Dad?

Birthday beer!

Me & my Japan family who I'm so thankful for!

青山テルマ！

Thelma Aoyama

今日，青山テルマのライブに行った！南越谷のサンシティで。。。楽しかった！私の初めての日本のライブだよ！

Today I went to Thelmas Aoyama's live concert! It was at Minami Koshigaya's SunCity... it was fun! It was my first live concert in Japan!

青山テルマのツアのT−シゃツを買った！

I bought Thelma Aoyama's Tour T-shirt!

WOW.

I went around Chiba last week and stumbled upon this piece of magic at a temple near the beach. It was hidden behind the curtains and at first I didn't know what it was. I Moved the curtains and BAM! The largest penis I have ever seen appeared before me. I hope you all enjoy!

PS: Aunty Bobbie & Uncle Jiro, lets go to the matsuri in March! This was so exciting to see - I can only imagine the real festival :)

Earthquakes

Today I experienced my third earthquake since I've been here. That means, in 2 and a half months I have experienced 3 earthquakes! It worries me because I know Japan is on the edge of the Pacific Plate and earthquakes tend to happen near places that are close to the tectonic plates.

The first earthquake happened last month - August 9, 2009 with a magnitude of 7.1 and the epicenter near Tokyo.

The second earthquake happened - August 11, 2009 with a magnitude of 6.6 and the epicenter in Chiba.

And today's earthquake - September 4, 2009 with a magnitude of 4.5 and the epicenter in Chiba.

*Just FYI, my prefecture and Chiba are neighboring prefectures so I have been feeling the intensity of the earthquakes!*

Picture of today's earthquake:

My Roller Coaster Ride.

It's been a little over 2 months since I've been here and I have been thinking a lot about my experience so far. For my emotions, its truly been like a roller coaster ride - with many ups and downs - but in the end I come out smiling.

Moving here alone, I knew I would have a limited number of friends and family. I thought I could handle it and that I could make friends quickly, but its like transferring high school in the middle of the year - everyone has their own friends and cliques and no one wants the newbie to join their group. Going from having a good group of friends to a few friends has been hard for me. In Hawaii and LA, I could call my friends at any time and enjoy their company whenever. Here, I know very few people and they all have their own friends and lives, so I can't just put myself out there and intrude on their lives. Not only friends, but in regards to family too. In Hawaii and LA, I could go to my house and any aunty or uncle's house at my leisure, without being invited. Here, I have 2 older sets of relatives who are very hospitable, but its not like I can just pop in when I want to and feel so comfortable to take a nap or open the refrigerator. This change has been very tough for me and I'm not sure how I'm really accepting this fact yet... some days I'm alright with it, other days I'm a wreck.

There's so much emotions stirring in my heart and mind right now, but I can't find the words to spit it out.

The main thing is - I miss all of my friends and family both in Hawaii and in LA soooo much. But, I'm going to try my best to continue my life here and experience all that I can with an open heart and a positive attitude.