Here is a great anecdote for you today.  My friends, Ruthie (teacher from Iowa, working at Baiko HS) and Jen (teacher from Canada…used to work here at the Center but now teaches in Kumamoto) and I went to Hikoshima beach this afternoon.  We were going to take the bus, but when Ruthie asked if the bus stopped by the beach, the driver shook his head vigorously and said loudly, “NO!” and shut the doors, driving off.  Ruthie was angry.  So we took a cab and split the fare.  When we got into the taxi, Ruthie (whose Japanese is incredible for only living here for 2 yrs) told the driver what had happened and he said that it was ridiculous…that bus stops almost directly in front of the beach.  Even more angry now, we sat on our way to the beach, when we passed the very bus that would not take us, stopping just one block short of the beach.  It was pretty funny for Jen and me as we didn’t really care what mode of transportation we took, just so long as it was fast and air conditioned.

  As soon as we stepped onto the parking lot, a man picking up garbage stopped us and asked where we were from.  Ruthie and I answered we were from America.  Jen said she was from Canada.  He then told us that he was glad we came to this beach and that if we wanted to use the showers, they were 100 yen per person, and they were only open until 6pm, like the beach (mind you, it was about 3pm at this moment).  We nodded and thanked him and went to stake out a spot on the sand.  It’s a man-made beach, so the sand is still pretty rough and there’s not a lot of wildlife.  In fact, the most wildlife we saw was amongst 6 teenage boys who had decided to cover one of their fellows to his neck in sand and leave him there…occasionally pouring water on his head to cool him off as he yelled out.  We were powerless.  I brought no swimsuit to Japan, but was content to wade along the edge with my jeans rolled up past my knees.  After a while, the other two got tired of the water and we went to our towels to dry off and eat potato chips (pizza flavored, and then salt and lime flavored…the second kind is a new favorite for me…they are called Sicilian chips, hah).

  They were playing some great mood music, some of which added to the Sicilian feel, on the intercom across the beach (again…it’s a man-made beach, with all the luxuries).  Out of nowhere, the music cuts off and a man’s voice comes on the speaker.  It says, “This is contact to the Canadian (awkward pausing).  The beach will be close at 6 o’clock. (awkward pausing)  If you want use shower please be careful of time. (more awkward pausing, with the general noises one makes when searching for the next words to say)  It’s ok? (really awkward pausing)  Thank you.”  Needless to say, it was obvious we were being watched.  Badly holding our laughter in, we look to the office building and see someone standing at the window, probably holding binoculars to their eyes.  We were in histerics at this point.  We had our own personal intercom announcement.  What made it more awkward was that we were the only non-Japanese on the beach, and there was no Japanese translation given, so it was obviously meant for us. 

  Not only that, but maybe 30 minutes later, the same man, with a friend came to our towels to tell us that the shower would close at 6pm, just like the beach, and that it was now 4:30.  We sat for a little while longer, then went back to the water to wash the sand off and cool down…then we decided to go.  We went up to the building to use the free faucets to wash our feet off, and suddenly the man poked his head out of the window to ask if we would use the showers now.  We politely declined and took off for the bus stop.  It was one of the most awkward moments I’ve had here in Japan, but one that I hope to treasure for the rest of my life.

Ok, so Promise_Sing tagged everyone she knows to list 6 random things about themselves…and since she knows me…I thought I better do it too.  So, here we go:

1.  I love strawberry rhubarb pies…but more than that, I love to munch on a raw rhubarb shoot…yummy.

2.  I wear flip flops as long as I can all year round.

3.  I just made a list of some of the cities I want to see from around the world…most of them are obscure:  ie. Muktinath, Nepal; Sepik Iwam (river valley), Papua New Guinea; Irkutsk, Russia; Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso; Djibouti, Djibouti; Dohnavur, India; Abidjan, Ivory Coast; and Yangshuo, China.

4.  Like Pam, but not really…I sang a duet with my mom in church when I was 2, and have been singing ever since.

5.  I can’t stand the texture of certain foods, but I love the taste of them…like shrimp and mushrooms.

6.  I can say “hello”, “thank you”, and “goodbye” in about 10 different languages (the ones below plus German, Italian, Korean, and Tagalog)…and I can hold a short conversation in 6 languages (English, French, Spanish, Hindi, Mandarin, and Japanese) 🙂  Proficient in only one: English heh. Oh, and I can read New Testament Greek

There you go…hope that was random enough for you 🙂

I really don’t like rain.  I don’t like being in it.  I don’t like it when it’s going on around me…but I love thunderstorms and lightning…and the smell of rain.

  Today, it rained for the first time in a week or so, and it’s been so hot, that I welcomed it.  Walking in the somewhat cooler morning, watching dragonflies dart and flit all around me, it started to sprinkle.  And then, it was a steady shower of rain.  I have begun carrying my umbrella with me at all times, not just because of the rain, but for sun protection as well.  I quickly pulled it out and was sheltered for the rest of my walk.  After a few moments, when the newness of the rain had just worn off, it hit me.  A sweet fragrance snuck into my nose and it was new all over again.  It’s like the ground itself sighs, and the sweetness from the roots of all the flowers and plants comes bursting out and dances with the drops of rain.  Before too long, the rain lost its intensity and then became but a memory.  But the smell was still fresh and aromatic…compounded by the melody of some pigeons surrounding a haphazardly-formed puddle…it was a special morning; as gentle and precious as God reaching down and holding my hand while we took a stroll.  Soon afterwards, the clouds split apart and were followed by the deep blue sky.

  Sometimes I’m blown away by the facets of living in a foreign country where the people look so different from you.  Sometimes it’s annoying, others endearing…and others just, interesting.  Recently, I’ve been interested in how friendly people become, simply because I’m a foreignor…a blonde gaijin.  I had dinner at a Korean restaurant last night with Mika-chan, and as we were waiting to be seated, people would walk in the door, or out the door…but they would always stop and bow a little, or smile, or say hello to me, before going on their way.  A few times, Mika said, “Do you know them?”  I just say nope…they are a new friend.  She’d laugh and we’d go on with our conversation, only to be interrupted by another nod and “konbanwa”.  She’s starting to ignore it almost as much as I do.  Even as we sat down, we were laughing about something…and our table was Japanese-style, where you sit on the ground, and the table is low.  We had our own little room, separated from other parties by a sliding paper wall divider.  I leaned back in my exhaustion from laughing, glanced to my right and saw the party next to us staring at me…grinning ear to ear.  Next thing we know, a child pokes her head from the other side, just to get a glimpse of the gaijin.  Apparently she didn’t get a good enough look because she disappeared and ended up on my side.  As soon as I smile wave her, she ducks away and hides from me.  Such is life…we finished our dinner.  It was oishii!!!

  I’m getting in with my Quixote restaurant people.  Yesterday I had lunch there and they were in really good spirits.  There were three other customers in there already…one being Shirayama-san and the Too-Tired-Teacher-Who-Used-To-Be-In-Yakuza, and the last being a gentleman who I have seen before but have never really been introduced to, so I can never remember his name…his English is better than the owners though.  Mr. Too-Tired-Teacher was sitting in my usual seat, and he knew it, so he invited me to sit opposite of him.  As soon as I accepted, he began quizzing me on my Japanese and telling me new words.  I couldn’t write, order, and catch-up with my friends fast enough.  But he finally calmed down.  At last, Mitsui-san was free to talk with me, and he has begun to treat me a lot like a dad.  He put my food down and said, “Please eat all of it.”  🙂  But it was with an authoritative voice and he stepped back into he kitchen area, and leaned on the swinging gate, looking straight at me.  After some time, Mr. Too-Tired-Teacher said some things that I didn’t understand…but he expected me to…and Mitsui-san called him “hene ojiisan” (crazy grandpa)…and everyone burst into laughter…even Mr. TTT.  They have tended to be somewhat straight-laced with me, and this was refreshing as they let go of some reservations.  Mr. T3 left, and they all suggested that I take my usual seat…Mitsui-san even moving my notebook and pen for me as I spun my tray around to my proper place.  Another man pulled up in his car, and they began chattering about who it was.  They motioned to me and then to the window and said, “hene ojiisan”.  I thought it was the same man returning, but it was a new man.  When he had sat down and was waiting for his coffee, he asked me if I knew about Dixieland…and I regretfully replied in the affirmative.  Then, Mitsui-san said that this was hene ojiisan 2!  heh.  Everyone laughed again, and we went on with our food and chatter and then I left for the post office.

  To note, the post office workers were also in their own good humor.  “Itsukurisama” means something like…”ok, I’m leaving now”…or something along those lines…I’ve been told the meaning several times but still haven’t captured it.  Taka and Samantha had been there before I had gone, and when the manager has seen her name, he said, with a big grin, “Itsukurisamansa“.  He chuckled, as did Taka…but when he looked at the ladies working there as well…they had a look of “Oh, not that joke again?!”  Heh.  I guess it’s kind of an older style of joke…the name Samantha is popular from Samantha on Bewitched!.  Just goes to show you…there are groaners in every language.  And I leave you for the day.  Have a great one!