Week One

I never got an address for costumes.... But somehow God got me through. =D The guy at immigration wanted to know why there was no address, I told him I didn't have one... bad.... He asked what city I'd be in and the names of the people I'd be living with (thankfully, I knew that much). And that was enough... or else the old tear trick works here too. :P I was SO tired!! Oh, and I look like such a threat, blue eyes, blond hair....

Carol Iverson was there when I finally got though costumes and immigration. I had no idea what she would look like... Except when I saw her she looked America and screamed safe person, and mom (in the good way).... :)) She is the mom of 9 kids, the youngest 2 are the only ones still living here. They have several grandkids and her son-in-law is actually the one that recruited me to MTW. I got the creeps when I found that out. Oh, and apparently I resemble him... Right now I'm living with a lady called Debbie. Single, teaches English. The lady that she shares a home with is state side for a year.

My first night here, I slept like a baby. Awake every 2 hours. I went to Church that first Sunday at a church plant called Honda. Dan Iverson (Carol's husband) preached. I got to meet their 2 youngest boys, Micah and Seth. I also got to meet Melanie (one of the interns)!! We are totally going to hit it off!!!! She doesn't know any Japanese, so she was excited that I don't either. Jenna, the other intern (hadn’t met her yet) studied Japanese for 2 years intensively in high school....  

I hung out with the Iverson’s and Melanie that Sunday afternoon/evening. Went to my first movie here!! Tron, in 3D. It was in English, with Japanese subtitles. The seats in the theater were really comfy, except kinda close to the ground and the rows were kind of close together; you’d think they were short here or something. :P My knee cramped up and I butt hurt (and I couldn't strech out due to the tight seats!) hadn't recovered from the flight yet. :)

I rode my bike to school for the first time Wednesday!! Actually, I took the bike for a walk. :P It was tragic!!! Yes, tragic. Oh, and I didn't get lost, very important!! I can't wait till my leg muscles remember how to ride. Sigh. It's kind of small town here. I think it's like what Huntsville would be if everything wasn't so spread out, and you could really walk everywhere. I rode my bike again to school on Thursday… I think they take the city in at night and put it out different in the morning. I did not get lost. Just turned around… and late for school.

When I was filling out that application to intern all those months ago, one of the things was 3 different gifts I'd be bringing to the field. I put childcare... Organizing and cleaning? I don't remember for sure. I'd actually forgotten all about that till Carol asked me about it, and said she had a project for me to do...!! The 3rd story of the school is the catch all.... and yeah, need I say more? Carol and I started working on it Thursday afternoon. I felt so fulfilled!! I never would have dreamed that that random gift could be used on the field!! I know I haven't been here very long yet, but...

Its warm here, compared to at home. :) It's just the houses that are FREEZING!!!! Nothing I can't handle of course. The other morning I was in my room, I think I was reading in my Bible or something. Anyways, it was a little cool, and then I realized I was seeing my breath!!! Maybe it was cooler then I realized...!! It "snowed" for the first time here Sunday. Apparently I brought the snow with me. :P It was only a little bit though. It was like little balls of Styrofoam...

Oh oh!!! The math they use here is the same I used in high school!!!! So exciting!!! I am teaching Algebra 1 to the 7^th and 8^th graders... ::scary:: On Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Carol did it Tuesday while I "observed". I’ll get my chance to try it next week when she’s out of town. There's only 6 students (in middle school), and they’re really sweet. I'll also be doing jr. high Language Arts (really excited about that), and Elementary Bible.  So far, that's it. Oh and the history they use is the same I used when I was in school too!!! I thought I was in heaven when I saw all the book. :P

I sleep on a futon. At Debbie’s I’m on a wood frame… Normally I would just be on the floor. Doesn’t sound comfortable, but it really is!! The toilets are really cool, literally and figuratively. When you flush the toilet the back's open so you can wash your hands in it… So cool!!  

The food here is really good!! I love getting to try all the new foods. It’s kinda funny; they eat a lot of Chinese and Korean here. If you ask them about it, they’ll be like, “in America you get that…” but then you just have to tell them that America doesn’t have it’s own food, like Japan does. :P Personally, I can’t stand curry. Well, there is curry in Japan, Japanese curry. Not the same thing as Indian curry. IT IS SO GOOD!!!!! I've been eating everything with chop-sticks (hoshi?) since day one. Well, except when I'm at home.... It's fun getting to eat the solid stuff out of soup and then drinking the liquid. :) Oh, and I learned that you don't stand your hoshi up in your food, because that means that someone has died. Random. They like pizza here. But it's their pizza. I haven't actually gotten to try any, but they but mayo, and corn and something else really random on it... doesn't sound too good. Naturally I want to try it. One of the Japanese teachers here loves beans. One day for lunch she was eating this sweet bean thing and offered some to me, I thought it tasted amazing!!!! Later they (the American teachers) asked me if I really did like it, or if I was just being polite. Apparently that wasn't something I should have liked. :)

I got to spend Friday night at the Iverson’s, which was really fun because it was very spontaneous. After Bible study Friday at Starbucks (yes, they have that here too), Carol just took me home with them for dinner. So I wouldn’t have to eat by myself that night. Somehow it came about that we’d have a girls night, and I’d just spend the night. It was so much fun!! After watching Miss Congeniality, Melanie and I stayed up half the night talking. :) Then Saturday Melanie spent the night with me at Debbie’s, (so she could go to church with us Sunday). A much better way to spend a weekend then an overnight flight to Japan.  

Sorry for such a long post, hope you didn't get too bored. :P