gross

so apparently there is a trash strike in marseille. thats pretty gross. click on raquels blog from my site and then click on rachels blog from her site. you can see how they throw the trash away...

WHOOOHOOOOO

ok! so heres a few updates. i think we found an apartment, and i think we move in the 15th. im not sure, theres some stuff we are waiting for and stuff to be done. but if we do get this apt, its a good one. 3 bedrooms, good location (in between the school and the trainstation) big, nice, clean. so thats cool!

but the great news is....today, i went and met kanako in nagoya alone. i bought my ticket, i got on the train and met her there. then on my way back i had to take 2 different trains (well i thought 2) and i was doing great until the one i thought i was supposed to stay on ened 2 stops before my stop... so i was really confused. and i asked someone-in japanese kinda- where to get the train to my stop. she pointed and said something. so i got off the train and went around to the other side. there i asked another question, is this the train that goes to my stop. she said yes! so i got lost and found my way!!!!! horay! i got on the train, and 2 stops later i was at my stop. then i walked about 20 min to the house! so today i was independant and get where i needed to be and didnt get (too)lost. i am so excited.

it was fun seeing kanako in japan. we had coffee and talked then went to a 100 yen shop (dollar store) and looked around. then she had to meet someone else. so i came back. we will probabl hang out saturday also.

tonight i am going to study japanese, and maybe watch a movie.

i found some good cereal here. theres not a huge selection like the US, but i found a granola cereal that i love. and now the rest of the family all eats cereal each day too!

i am starting to be able to read things more and more. reading is the easy part, understanding what i am reading is the hard part. haha. but slowly i am learning stuff! good!

basically i am really thankful for yuki and her family, becuase they are so nice and supportive and helpful! they have helped make this transition easier than i anticipated. good good good!

ok thats all for now, i think ill go have a bowl of cereal!

saturday morning

today i got up and went running. it was HOT HOT HOT! but i am so happy to have a running partner! we ran 40 min today! and we decided we want to run the hawaii marathon in december! whoo hoo! and soon we will go look at some appartments! i am excited! yesterday i taught 2 classes and then i had free conversation for 1 hour (the last hour was at the school ill be teaching at) so it was good! i think i am really going to like it here.

i have been making lists of places i want to visit while im on this side of the world. here they are:

1. china
2. s. korea
3. taiwan
4. australia
5. hawaii
6. guam
7. india
8. anywhere else i decide to go

so basically i will probably have to work here for a few years to go to all this places! awesome!

ok thats all for now.

keeping busy!

hey everyone! sorry i havent updated in a few days. i am just getting adjusted. its goign well here. ive been helping another english teacher with her students, and they are so cute. also, yuki and i have been keeping busy looking for a place to live and going around town and eating together. i have been studying japanese a lot. and its hard. hmmm what else... oh yeah, every morning, yuki and i have been getting up and running. its good to start the d ay with exercise! its really humid here, and i didnt realize it so much until i started running.

lets see what else can i tell you all. i go to korea july 3, 4 and 5. so we will get to spend a few days there and visit and hopefully everything with my visa will go smoothly. i am learning how to read. so sometimes when i am outside, i see a sign and know all the characters, so i stop, point and then it takes me like 2 min to think and sound out the words -only to have no idea what the word actually means. its kind of a fun game. but when i realize i know the word, i get really excited, and say "i can read" i think i am like a 3 year old.

well i think thats all for now,
have a good day

day 2 in japan

so yesterday was a good day. i went for a walk with yuki, then we went and i saw the english school where ill be teaching. then i was picked up by another woman who i helped teach her english classes. it was fun. the little kids are really cute! then i came back, ate, and studied, fell asleep at 9;30. today i got up and went for a walk with yuki and her sister, they showed me the train station. then came back, showered, studied, and then we called around and found a church in nagoya!!! in english!!!! so i am really happy. tomorrow i will go check it out! i think later today yuki and i will start our search for a place to live. maybe.

hmm what else. soon i will get to hang out with some other japanese friends.

thas about it. i can read some things, not many, but when i can, i am so stinkin happy. even if i have no idea what things mean, i can just sound out the word. haha.

im here

just a little note to let you all know that i am in japan and i am getting ready to go to sleep. i feel pretty good after the flight, but i need to get a goodnight sleep. sometime soon, i get to go to south korea. ill get a cell phone eventually and tomorrow, friday i teach for 2 hours. so thats all i know.

i dont understand anything. man, living in france was easy compared to this... but im going to learn!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ok off to bed.
send me some love

leaving on a jet plane, dont know when i'll be back again!

ok so i am sitting at the airport. waiting to go through security and just wasting time on the free internet that columbus airport offers!

so next post will be from japan. give me a couple days!

fun times

fun times in athens ohio. its been a good week. i have seen a ton of people. been all over town. eaten some good food. hung out a lot. laughed a lot. had a slushy. socialized a lot. bought a "i love facebook" shirt. and slept very little.

ill put some pics up soon, but i am not motivated tonight. i am tired. but maybe tomorrow. i leave for japan wednesday. wow. i spoke some japanese today with kanakos family. haha.

i jus wanted to update a little to let you know im all still alive.

its been really good to be back in athens. i love it. is so great to walk down the street and know everyone. i love meeting randomly around town and then spending the next few hours with that person. i love hanging out with cara. i love yelling out some ones name across the street and being loud and it being perfectly ok. i love dressing like a bum.

ok thats all for tonight. ill put pics up soon.

blood

I GAVE BLOOD TODAY for the first time in my life! my mom called me up to her store becuase there was a bloodmobile outside and we wanted to go, although we werent sure if i was allowed since just got back from france. so i talked to the guy outside recruting people for awhile. he was really nice. he grew up in kenya and then studied in the UK and now he is in florida.

so my mom and i went into the bus. i was nervous, but i filled out the paperwork. then the lady took me into the little room to check my blood pressure and other stuff. i was scared. i had no idea when they were goign to start taking my blood. so the whole time i am jumping whenever they make a sudden motion.

well they dont draw your blood in the little room, you lay on one of the chair things. (i always though that those were for those who pass out) and the guy who is drawing my blood is really funny. he is telling jokes the whole time, putting me at ease. well then my mom is in the little room and she cant hold my hand for the needle entering my body part, so her boss comes over and holds my hand and talks to me. that helped a lot.

so finally the needle is in, and the guy is telling me to keep squeezing the thing he put in my hand, and so i am squeezing a ton. and i am getting tired of doing it. well like 3 min later i ask if i have to keep pumping this thing and he looks at the bag thats almost full and says " no! haha only every 5-10 seconds." so there i am working out, pumping my blood out like its my job. and then its finished.

the guy takes the blood bag and leaves the rest in my arm. "thanks for coming! come back in 3 months..." and walks away. and so i started joking about how i was going to tell everyone that i really just wanted a sticker to proove that i gave blood but they ran out, so i just kept the needle inside my body.... haha. so at this point we are all laughing and me and the guy taking my blood keep making jokes and my mom is laughing really hard.

so i gave blood and i am really happy. it was something on my list of things to do before i die.

tonight is my last night in florida with my mom :( so we went with some of her friends and had a drink at ruby tuesdays. then we came back and she made me pancakes! i love my moms pancakes. then she helped me hem my pants! thanks mom.

so this is my last post from florida. tomorrow i'll be in virginia beach!


oh yeah i forgot to mention that my bandage on my arm after giving blood was pink! yeah that was great!

i have 2 more books to finish tonight.. a nicholas sparks book and a dostoevsky book. could they be any more different?

update for the update wanters

my sunburn is getting better. thats good news. just need a few more days and i'll be back to my old self.

only 1 more day in florida. times flies by! crazy.

12 more days till i move to japan. be thinking about sending me packages and cards.

as i write this blog, i am watching golden girls and it is like 1:30 in the morning.

i really want to see Xmen 3 and the davinci code.

i'm afraid of fish and other animals in water.

michael moore is getting sued.

i highlighted my hair.

i wish i had a running partner...

thats all i have to say.