Have you ever heard a deer's mating call?

Well, I have! It's actually quite pathetic and wimpy for such a large, graceful (even when they're rolling off your windshield) animal. Today I went to Nara, a nearby town and the original capital of Japan (apparently Kyoto was 2nd). It was gorgeous and it helped me lay to rest a bit of my jealousy toward Kelly (her pictures are amazing). Kanai san and Fuyuki san took me for a great lunch (okoge) and a tour of all the temples, shrines, and parks. The leaves were amazing - Japanese maples blow New York's out of the water - and the weather was perfect and the crowds were minimal. I even got to feed and pet a few of Nara's famous tame deer.

On Friday and Saturday (that's right, I'm working backwards...try to keep up), OCC held a school festival. The girls competed in a talent show (except here that means the entire class competes in a group, more of that communal culture showing itself) and had carnival booths. I spent a lot of money on junk, but got to hang out with a lot of the girls outside of class, which is always encouraging. I also ate a giant squid tentacle.

On Friday night, I went with the Seike family to their church's performance of Handel's Messiah (in Japanese). It was great, but 3 hours. So, that's a once in a lifetime endeavor.

Thanksgiving was horrible. On top of issues at home, it was lonely and boring.

Wednesday we had a Thanksgiving party for the girls. It was crazy busy, and while only about 20 showed up for dinner - by the end of the event, there were probably 70 girls packed in. It was great to see them getting involved when I know they were incredibly busy preparing for the festival. I like to think that they are more and more interested in English, which makes me feel like my job is not in vain.

Well, that's where I will have to end because I can't remember anything before. You can only pack so much in before the rest starts to leak out. That's why I take so many pictures.

As homesick as I am today...

I am still thankful.

*For technology (which makes distance seem bearable)
*For universal emotions (like crying when your friend tells you she finally got a teaching job...now that is friendship)
*For extra moms (as crazy as they are, my Japanese co-workers sure do take good care of me)
*For wool socks (cheap at Walmart)
*For an elementary school right outside my window (despite and because of the noise)
*For Christmas lights (and all of the other western trends that pop up now and then and remind me of home)
*For really long letters and emails (that make me miss late night talks with my girls)

*Arigato*

Tonight Shigetomi sensei never called and wasn't at his office at 7:15pm. So I made my way back home, depressed because I couldn't really go alone (I've only ridden there once and it was a blur). But as I put my key in the lock, I was ashamed...because no one was making me go, I was going to stay home. UGH! That's how I have always been when it comes to church or volunteering...When no one is going with me to hold me accountable, I have no motivation. So, I rode...without thinking....I didn't know where I was going! But, by the grace of God or repressed memories, I kind of just ended up there...

Tonight was the wrong night to come without an interpreter. Kanai sensei, 76, died on Monday. He was the founder of the center. So everyone was solemn and reserved, and I doubt they enjoyed having to try to explain everything to me by writing down broken English on paper. He had been sick (a smoker and drinker until changing his life around in the 80's) for a while and had been writing the church regularly until November 12, 2003. By then, he was too sick to continue writing, so he sent his final letter. Exactly 4 years later, he died. They said (as far as I could derive) that when he died, he kept saying "Arigato, arigato" and "his face looked like peace" ("like Cassie," she said!...maybe I misunderstood that part...). They read his letter aloud, but no one tried translating it. However, one girl (Junko..who never introduced herself to me and seemed a bit unfriendly), studied it by herself for a long time.

As we began distributing the food, Junko pulled me aside. She said (in great English!), the letter said: (paraphrase) "Thank you for everything. Please do not have a funeral for me. People die here everyday, so instead give back to them." Turns out unfriendly Junko had been focusing on translating the letter for me all that time! She was very sweet, but kept whispering when we talked and said "shh!" when I asked how she learned English (Very secretive about it?!!? Maybe she didn't think she was good enough? I couldn't figure it out).

Anyway, tonight, for the first time, we had leftovers. I was SO excited. On my way home, I always pass several homeless and always feel sad that I didn't sneak any back for them. So tonight I asked (through Junko) if I could take some of the leftovers. They gave me a lot and said I could eat it if I had extra  (or maybe they said don't eat it? I just heard the verb "Eat"). So on my way back I gave some out, but held on to the last two rice balls for a man I see every day (Kelly should remember him...he has the longest dreads ever and is usually chilling at 7eleven). After searching a few blocks (I was determined), I finally found him picking up cigarette butts on the sidewalk down the street from 7eleven. I gave him the food and he said, "Thank you very much!" He spoke better English than most of my students!

I love Wednesday.

Quick update

>Monday I got a spankin' new ride (see below), and took her for a test drive as soon as possible.
>Tuesday I experienced my first earthquake (however brief...a room shaking is still scary as all get out).
>Wednesday I went back to the feeding group and continued my training as a professional rice ball roller. This time Yoshi was not there, so I had no English speakers except Shigetomi sensei (the chaplain who brought me). It was good, because I had to strain even harder to try to pick up any of the language.
>Thursday I did nothing but teach ESS (English Club) how to play Psychiatrist (made me miss the quads...). But that's when I had a revelation that I need to get off my butt, learn some Japanese, and make some friends.
>Friday my adult classes went great, though I slipped up and told my beginners that they were old women (in all due respect...). They laughed (besides, they are old women). I also got an invite with two staff to go to Nara soon! (It's a cute tourist town, but the extent of my interest is in the rumor that deer are tame and hang out on the sidewalks...).

This weekend I've been a bum, just trying to find a wedding photographer and keep up on Prison Break. Nothing ground breaking or breathtaking this week, so stay tuned...

Christmas in November

I GOT A NEW BIKE!

I ate at McDonalds!

The most unprofessional news crew ever.

Kelly, a tourist in denial.

James the Hedgehog.

Kanami, one of my favorite witches ever.

I haven't written in a while, so I will quickly run through my last week or so (if that's possible for me).

>The Halloween party was fun. But no one actually dresses up here, they just put on Halloween-esque accessories, so my basketball player costume wasn't that impressive. But the hot dog roast and apple pie a la mode made my day!

>Classes are ok. I am beginning to like the adult classes more and more, even if they are rushed and stressful. I enjoy the pressure and feel like a real teacher. Not to say I don't enjoy my girls. I need to invest more time into planning each tutoring session, because each group is at a different level and one lesson plan isn't cutting it.

>Kelly came down this weekend and we visited Kyoto on Saturday. Thank goodness we went with laid back attitudes and short to-do lists, because we got terribly lost and everything was so hard to find. My preconceptions were really off base. Kyoto is indeed an actual city with buildings, people, and traffic. It was not a street of shrines, temples, castles, and souvenir shops. Darn it. As soon as we arrived, we were interviewed about our experience in Kyoto....maybe that was a hint that we were running behind schedule? We did succeed in accidentally finding a McDonald's, visiting 3 or 4 beautiful shrines/temples, and checking out a cute craft store where I picked up my first deck of Japanese playing cards. :) I plan to get one in every city. Of course, Kelly's stay was all too short, but I enjoyed the adventure and staying up way too late to talk about college and our future trip to Thailand. ^_^

>Today I visited Johanna and Kyoko in Yoa again. I went to their church for an outreach event (we watched Night at the Museum and ate really good sweets). I didn't plan on staying long, but they invited me to eat, so I said ok. I'm so glad I did. I forgot how much fun it is to hang out with them. Kyoko speaks perfect English, and they act like sisters, and they always teach me good inside facts about Japan and teaching. We went out to a barbecue place (which I expected to be like Dinosaur BBQ...silly me). There was a stove/grill right on the table. They bring you an [almost] entire cow and you grill it up. It was fantastic. Then we went shopping/exploring at their huge mall and I bought a Disney puzzle and an ice cream cone at a place much like our Cold Stone. mmm.

Now I am home and terribly behind on lesson plans, but of course blogging is more important. ;)