Playing chase

Nothing makes Jude happier than playing chase with his daddy.

Dragonfly

So, a couple of months ago, one of my Japanese students gave me 3 dragonfly nymphs (babies). We bought a bug box, worms, an aerator and few other things for our new babies. Unfortunately, only one survived long enough to actually become a dragonfly. Here he/she is being set free.

Getting ready to set him/her free. Jude taking one last look.
Jude watching as Husband removes the dragonfly from the bug box.

The nymph, as we found him/her, swimming in the bug box--no longer a nymph!

Happy Birthday!

Welcome to the world, Shepard Azul! I can't wait to meet you. It may be some time before we can actually meet, though, but know that I'm thinking of you and your family.

Now, this world may not be a perfect place, but that's okay, because your mommy and daddy will protect you from all the bad stuff and keep you safe. They will give you everything you need and more.

So, welcome to this wonderful world. It's grand!

My new ride

Here is a picture of my new, used 1998 Toyota Raum. It's a five seater with 2 sliding doors, which is awesome for Japan's teeny-tiny parking spots. The vehicle is a car/mini-mini-van. It's a typical Japanese car, and I love it.

Hopefully, I won't wreck this one!

The Sake Brewery

On Wednesday, my Ome class took me out to lunch to the local Sake Brewery. We had a great lunch with great conversation and great food. Here are some pictures from the event:

This is the second course.
This is the table where we sat.

Me with Ogawa-san. I think he's so cute, for an old guy!

Me and Tsom-san. He's the oldest one in the class, but he's so cute!

Tsom-san!

The Sake Brewery.

Mr. Number 1.

Ichikawa-san.

Me and my class.

Sake!

My little fish

Jude has been taking swimming lessons for the last year or so, and he is doing great. He can swim well and is getting better everyday.

He loves swimming!

Cooking Gyoza

About a month ago one of my favorite students came over to my apartment, and we had a cooking class. I taught her and her daughter how to make chicken tacos, and they taught me how to make Gyoza (dumplings).

So, now I'm a midget, Mexican momma who can make the shit out of some dumplings!

Fungus Among Us

The most wonderful thing about the rainy season is the fungus that sprouts up everywhere. I took these pictures when we were cabin-ing a few weeks ago.

My Karate Kid

Jude and his buddies stretching in karate class.

"The Balling Party"

Last Friday we attended a bowling party for one of Jude's classmates. Since the kid's mother is Japanese and doesn't speak English well, she misspelled the word bowling every time it was written on the invitation, and she kept saying it wrong, too. I tried not to laugh, but it was really hard to keep silent. After all, I am me!

So, we had a great time at "The Balling Party", and I can't wait to do it again! Balling is so much fun!

Ha, it's not vertigo!

While I was writing my last blog post, I felt a little off, like the world was moving and shaking. Turns out it was an earthquake!

So, no damage to report. Everything is just peachy here in the land of the rising sun.

Which one?

Okay, so I already told you about my car accident 2 weeks ago. I told you how I stupidly crashed into a work truck because some jack-ass in a hurry honked his horn, and like a dumb-ass, I pressed the accelerator, never taking the time to see if someone was in front of me. Okay.

Well, during the investigation and questioning part, where the police, the investigator, the boss, the owner of the vehicle, the driver and God asked me what happened, I told them, kindly. Then, we walked over to my $900, 1995 Honda Civic and looked at the damage.

Well, in case you forgot, I paid $900 or 90,000 Yen for my car. It's a cheap, old car with scratches and dents all over it. Each corner of the car has been scraped, crashed or misshapen from the previous owners bad driving, hence the $900 price tag. When I bought the car, I was totally fine with its character. I felt I would never have to worry if someone hit it, or if I hit a wall or fence or post or anything for that matter. Considering most Japanese streets are the width of a king size mattress, I knew, inevitably, I was going to hit something. In fact, I gently hit fences on a regular basis, scraping my side mirrors. Because the streets are so narrow, I usually scoot all the way over to allow larger, commercial trucks the room they need. I'm not about to get in their way!

So, yes, my car has character, as I like to call it. Not to mention, both bumpers have seen better days, and they aren't actually attached as they should be, courtesy of a few inattentive gaijin (foreigners) crashing into me while I was not around. So, before the accident, I was only responsible for a few additional scratches to the car, nothing serious.

So, when the accident investigator wanted to know what damage was caused by the accident, he had to go on a treasure hunt. This was our conversation as we walked around my car looking for the damage caused by the day's accident:

Investigator: "Is this the damage?"

Weenie: "No, not this one."

Investigator: "Is this the damage?"

Weenie: "No, not this one."

Investigator: "Is this the one?"

Weenie: "Nope, not that one, either?"

Investigator: "What about this one?"

Weenie: "Nope, still not the one."

Investigator: "This one?"

Weenie: "No, sorry, not that one, either."

Investigator: "How about this one?"

Weenie: "No, not the one."

Investigator: "Okay, could you please show me the damage that was done today, only today!"

Weenie: "Oh, okay, no problem. Here it is."

After the search for the day's damage, I'm sure the driver, the police, the investigator, the owner, the boss and Allah, thought I was the worst driver in the world. I reassured them over and over I was not responsible for all the damage done to the car. I tried to tell them I bought the car that way. However, I don't think they believed me.

Just another day in Weenie's world!

Busy Beaner

Sorry for ignoring you, Internet, but I've been consumed with everything going on on this side of the planet. And to top it off, Husband is away on business in Texas. So, basically, Husband is hanging out with my friends, enjoying bar-b-ques, Texas beer, and good stories, while I'm here in Japan melting and being covered in mold. Yes, mold! The green, hairy kind that at first you think is dust until you get hives, start sneezing and have an asthma attack.

Mold, you suck!

Yes, I am officially waging war on the mold that has decided to live in my apartment. So, all you little son's of bitches (the mold spores) better start moving on, because I'm on the hunt to get you!

I discovered it this weekend, and I've been dealing with it ever since. I've been throwing away all things covered in mold, like picture frames, shoes, clothes, important papers, etc. The shit is everywhere, and I'm determined to find it and kill it. I also just spent a million dollars on 2 huge industrial sized de-humidifiers. If those things don't help, I don't know what will.

So, forgive me for my recent silence, the mold has gotten to my brain and taken over, leaving nothing but a mold covered bean!

Hometown Hero Remembered

I didn't know him, but my heart goes out to his family during this difficult time.

Shane, I am so incredibly sorry for your loss.

Dying to Know

Okay, I mentioned to you, Internet, that I'm working on a new project, and I failed to give you all the details, right? Well, don't worry, when my project is complete, you'll be the first to know. Or, when I'm ready and satisfied with what I've done, I'll tell you.

And for all you people out there dying to find out what it is, I promise I'm not pregnant, I'm not plotting Husband's death, I'm not selling my soul to the devil, nor am I moving. Let's just say that I was encouraged by you fine folks to start this thing. So, if it turns out to be a success, I have you to thank.

Don't worry, soon the time with come and you will be in the know.

Turbulent Times

Sorry I've been MIA for the past week. I've been busy working, playing mommy and working on my new venture. There just doesn't seem to be enough time in the day to get it all done to my satisfaction.

But, I keep chugging along, slowly making progress.

This week was an especially busy week, and my car wreck didn't help. That's right, I had a minor car accident. Don't worry, I'm fine, and I didn't kill anyone. It was a silly accident and this is what happened:

I was coming home from work and stopped at a stop light, and there were several cars in front of me. As I was stopped, I reached into my purse to grab something. When I reached in my purse, searching, the person behind me honked. So, like Pavlov's dog, I stepped on the gas. Unfortunately, there was a small, work truck in front of me, and I crashed right into it. I know, I should have been paying more attention, and I shouldn't have been fumbling around in my purse. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I already got the lecture from Husband. Any who, after I hit the guy in front of me, we parked and exchanged information. Since the driver was in his work truck, and didn't actually own the vehicle, he had to call his boss. And then his boss called the owner, the police, an accident investigator, the Pope, Jesus, and Allah. Just kidding about the Pope, Jesus and Allah, but I'm sure they were there in spirit, watching over me. So, there I was surrounded by Japanese men speaking Japanese, feeling like a jack-ass for ramming my car into the truck. I apologized repeatedly and begged for mercy, praying I wouldn't be thrown in jail, bent over and caned for my stupidity. Luckily, I was not charged with a crime nor did I break any laws. But, I had to fill out a bunch of paper work, go to my insurance company, beg for forgiveness, and reassure the police, the investigator, the driver, the boss, the owner, and God that I would always, always, always stay focused and never, ever push the gas pedal just because some impatient ass hole honked his horn.

So, yes, this week pretty much sucked. I hope the suckage is over.

Cabin-ing

I'm not sure if cabin-ing is a real word, but that's what we were doing for the last 3 days. Not camping but cabin-ing. We had a pleasurable experience hosting the weekend with approximately 5 zillion mosquitoes and 8 gazillion spiders. Let's just say that nature is great as long as you get to experience it behind a window. I usually enjoy these kinds of adventures, but the constant hum and buzz of the swarm of mosquitoes following me for 3 straight days was enough to drive an already crazy person even more crazy. There were a few times where I almost jumped off a cliff just to avoid the damn buzzing.

But, we're home, mosquito bitten, but home.

The Winning Performance

Yesterday Husband performed for the last time. It was the finals for the Karaoke contest he's been competing in for the last 2 months. They competed against one other team. But Husband's kick ass vocals (around minute 3 of the video), showed everyone that they were the winning team.
Warning: the audio on the video is kinda of crappy! My iPhone was having a hard time because it was really, really loud.

Congrats to Husband and his group for a job well done. (They won $1,000 for their performance.)