ahoy.

My dear blog-readers,
I have had a busy, yet amazing, past few weeks.
It has been combined with:
Locker contests,
Bible Clubs,
Movies,
Bonding,
Amazing meals.
But I mostly want to blog about my adventure to Tokyo.
---
I traveld to Tokyo last weekend.
For some reason,
the bus was full of elderly people.
Seriously.
I was the only young,
let alone English-speaking, person.
BUT, they all loved me.
I'm not kidding.
I was given free candy,
a lot of "hellos",
failed conversations due to language barrier.
Millions of head nods.
It was an interesting experience,
but a enjoyable one.
:}
---
Amy, Kazu and I watched Toy Story 3 this past Friday.
IT IS SO GOOD!
If you haven't seen it,
rent it.
Right. Now.
I'm so serious.
Don't continue to read the rest of this post until you have,
in some way,
remembered or actually "netflix"ed it's arrival.
Anyways, at the end of the movie,
we watched all of the bonus things.
When Amy and I were thoroughly enjoying ourselves,
Kazu suggested we go to Tokyo Disney Land the next day.
That was the most amazing suggestion.
Ev.er.
---
We went to the Park at 3pm on Saturday.
My parents took me to Disney World when I was just young enough to not remember anything.
I'm not bitter.
:}
My dad took himself, Mr.&Mrs.Kato and I to Tokyo Disney Sea 2 years ago, and that was a lot of fun.
(That is a memory I will never forget.)
But at Tokyo Disney Land...
You have the castle, most of the main rides, all of the characters, the famous parades.
It was amazing!
If you haven't already,
I have an album on my Facebook with pictures.
Basically, I loved it,
and I'm so thankful to have gone.
---
I loved waiting in lines!
I was so excited,
full of energy
and did a happy dance when the line didn't move for 15 minutes.
:}
Captain EO- this was so good, and so funny! I loved it.
Space Mountain- I could've ridden this all night
Star Wars- It was good, but made me dizzy.
We only went on 3 rides because
1) it was really busy
2) the lines were 120+mins
We had fun walking around and looking at things.
ARound 6 we decided to get in line for Captain EO.
This was when my patience of waiting in line really shined.
It was only a 90 minute wait.
:}
After that, we got the middle/tail end of the electrical parade.
Right after that ended, we rode Space Mountain and Star Wars.
The lines were shorter.
---
The whole weekend I was with Amy,
I was laughing 85% of the time.
:} It was a really good weekend.
---
I have a new hobby!
I'm about to upload new pictures with it.
I'm not going to tell you what it is,
because perhaps you will be curious enough to adventure over to my Facebook..
to look at my
1) Disney pictures
2) my new hobby.
3) what I am going to talk about next..
---
Junko and I baked for 7 hours last night.
Today I made cards for 3 hours.
It was all for the students.
They have worked SO hard,
that we wanted to do something special for them.
They were the best sugar cookies I have ever made.
And Junko and I had so much fun decorating them.
Oh my soul.
It was so fun and funny!
7pm-1:45am.
The pics are on Facebook, if you want :}
But it so much fun,
and I hope the students enjoy them!
---
Well I'm going to go and make another...
thing...
(my hobby)


Please pray for Mrs.Kato and the family.

:} hello

What to blog about!

I'm so sorry it's been so long!

I was talking to somebody the other day, and said it has gotten harder and harder each day to find a good amount f time to sit down and write! I really feel bad!

But here we go!

---

We went on a school trip high into the mountains..

like REALLY high..

After a long drive,

After a delicious lunch and a fun chapel,

and after a long walk..

We finally reached this:

beautiful, right?

It was a glowing blue/green color.

Absolutely incredible!

---

Yup, that's me with a real, wild, baby monkey.

Not photoshopped in.

It's real.

Super cute, right?

Oh, you can't really see him that well.

Here's a better picture:

Yup! You know what I'm thinking..

I'm taking one home!

Don't worry, they grow up cute too!

If you want to see more pictures, click the following link:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=287168&id=682719992

This trip to see the monkeys was a sightseeing highlight!

One monkey grabbed my boot :}

Cute!

I have videos I will post on my Facebook later!

---

The pictures uploaded funny,

so it's out of order.

But the same day I saw the glowing sulfur lake,

we went to a town that is famous for onsens.

And it smelled like eggs!

But it was beautiful and warm.

---

The day I got my visa extended,

:D

,we were in this town!

Pretty much most of Japan looks like this.

Not in the mountains,

but where there is flat land,

there is houses..

and more houses..

Kinda pretty though, right?

---

I worked on this poster one Saturday.

Stacey gave me a few ideas,

but those who know me

KNOW

this was right up my alley!

The streaks on the mountain is hot cocoa powder.

The spider webs are q-tips.

The ghost is the lid to a pringle can with nail polish.

The roofs are crushed pine cones.

The fence is toothpicks.

AND WE WON!!! FREE ICE CREAM!!

Cute?

I shink sho.

---

I was Japanese for one night!

At the harvest festival!

**shout out--I'm smiling with my EYES!
Anyways.

They teased my hair.

And I MAY be wearing fake eyelashes.

Okok, don't freak.

I know that sounds CRAZY(!)

But everybody

(mostly)

(and everybody as in women)

(lol)

wear them!

At first, I felt like I was high-maitenence.

But actually, they're fun.

And I like them :}

Hey, I'm just diving into the culture.

No harm in that :}

---

This was our group at the Harvest Festival:

My Japanese family!

---

Time for bed,

hope you enjoyed!

<3

Oh,

btw,

I made whoopie pies today.

They loved them

**thanks Amy!

JENGA!!!

Today I taught how you can say

"hello, goodbye, how are you, what are you doing"

in different ways

to mean different things.

so fun

and super funny.

My co-teacher Josh and I acted somethings out.

He was the creeper man,

and I was the annoyed girl.

And then the students acted things out too.

SO FUNNY!

I laughed so hard.

They are amazing!

Love them!

---

Played Jenga in class again.

But before that they all did super well on the 4 week-review-quiz.

Proud of them :]

And this Jenga game lasted for 10-15 minutes!

We're all pros.

Since there are 4 our us all together,

3 students

1 teacher,

I had 3 candies left for the winners.

But I ate one early.

And Noah was determined to make me lose!

Guess who lost?

Me! haha :]

Guess I owe them big time!

3 candies a day instead of 2 :]

---

On Friday is a school-trip!

I'm super excited!

Okay, but right now I'm freezing so I'm goin to bed!

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Yesh, please say kitchen

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!

---

My parents are my heroes.

Honestly, I have the best parents in the world!

---

This week is the last week of semester 2.

Semester 1 went by fast,

semester 2 went by faster,

and I hope semester 3 goes by the slowest!

This Friday we are going on a school trip

:} and I am so excited!!!

---

Today, in conversation class,

I wrote on the board "This term of SYME is almost over."

(we were reviewing for a quiz tomorrow)

But, I got a tad sidetracked and

I told them that I am going to miss them when I left.

>no response<

I asked them if they were going to be sad.

>no response<

"Well I really am going to miss you! I will only see you again if you come to WOLBI in New York, which I hope you do!"

"Miss Nicole, are you going to be our teacher for next conversation class [meaning for the last semester]?"

"Yes, I am..unless you want a new teacher......and if you do, don't tell me, but ask Miss Jodi to switch the teachers around if you want somebody new."

>no response, however Jim starts smiling<

"Jim, talking about my leaving or not being your teacher shouldn't make you smile!"

(please know that I myself am smiling through out this conversation)

"I'm kidding" Jim replies, but began to smile bigger.

"Well I am going to miss you." I said.

"Miss Nicole, you are the best teacher! I love this class!" said beautiful Unity.

"Yes, best teacher. I love this class too." said smiling Jim.

Noah nodded and smiled.

With all of that said, I got out Jenga and we played.

We got out the vocab words for this week--

and you had to say a sentence with a word before you could make a move.

Are you a skeptic that Jenga is a good tool to learn English?

Well, on the way up from class I heard

"SUCCESS!!!!!!!" from Jim who did not lose in the game :]

[success was a vocab word :]

---

"I'm going to miss Japanese snacks" -N

"Yes. That is why I am going to buy some and put it in the little container Miss Jodi gave us" -S

"....I have zip-block bags I've saved too...." -N

"...and I am saving boxes that my crackers come in...we can store things there too!" -N

"My plan is we go out a few days before we leave, pop open the bags of snacks, load them into the zip-block bags and boxes we've stored, and fill our suitcases with snacks!" -N

---

Sunday night, the day before the teacher's day off,

I decided I wanted to watch a movie.

I haven't watched a movie since I was at Amy's house--and I LOVE movies..

(Especially involving the ever-so-charming-and-handsome Tom Hanks)

Well, Stacey came in the room,

and I said "let's watch a movie"

So we sat down underneath my top bunk

-that I made into a couch-

and began to watch a movie.

It was really fun.

:]

---

Today in pronunciation,

I melted.

Because when they said the word "kitchen"

it was the.cutest.thing.I.have.ever.laid.ears.on.

Hehe.

So when I would say a list of words to repeat after me,

I would throw the word 'kitchen' in there...more than 2 times..

Only few knew why, and they laughed at me.

:] but honestly, cutest thing ever!

---

This coming Monday,

I am going to the Embassy (I think that's where I am going)

and I will try and renew my visa.

If they say yes, I'm good as gold to come home the day my ticket says.

If they say no, I am going to have to call American Airlines and figure out when I need to come home.

So, please (!) pray for Mr.Man who will be deciding if I can stay or not..pray that he will be just as intrigued in my sad, sorry American face (just like the ice-cream man) and have pity on me (again just like the ice-cream man)

---

Speaking of ice-cream man..

I went back this past Sunday.

One of the teachers Josh was with me...

And so Mr.Ice-cream man thought we were sharing.

CLEARLY he doesn't know me.

After Josh got his ice-cream,

I proceded to order my ice-cream.

After I was done,

Mr. Ice-cream man looked at me and said "present, pick"

(meaning he was giving me a present)

I was estatic!

I said "Rose"

And he put a huge whopping scoop of rose ONTOP of my already over-flowing cup filled with Milk Ice-cream.

<3>

Which means "So good, delicious!"

---

Alright, time to go to bed!

Hope you have a wonderful day!

The Ice cream man can!!

KIF Festival
^please, please, please check my pictures on facebook!

(My life in Japan (3))
It was such a fun day, and I captured a small bit of it.

---

What KIF Festival is:
The church that I attend in town puts on a little festival for the community,

and its F R E E !

Games, Music, Books, Food,

all for free.

---

It was raining, but it was still a blast!
We got quite a few visitors that stopped in.

We were a light on this rainy day!

---

I was an Elf,

along with 4 other girls.

And there was 2 Santas.

That was so much fun!
Little kids coming up, waving and saying "Hello! Thank you!"
(they said thank you because we were passing out tracks with candy canes on them :])

cute cute cute cute Japanese little babes.
---

I went up to an ice cream shop with Junko.

I only had 250 yen on me,

and the ice cream was 400 yen.

I put a big, whopping frown on my face as I looked at my hand with too little change in it.

The ice cream man smiled and whispered to me

"Secret. I will give you ice cream for the money you have!"

(Junko was translating).
He said something to her about me being cute (I was in my elf costume) and he just felt sad for me!! HAHA I can only imagined what I looked like when I was looking at the ice cream and my pathetic hand full of little change.

Oh my goodness.

So he generously filled a cup full of milk ice cream (my new fav) and then threw on some strawberry ice cream to top it off.
It was so kind!

His ice cream is home made, and natural.

It was delicious and amazing!

I am going back this coming Sunday and buying more ice cream- but for 400 yen this time and a tip!!
Thank you, kind, little Japanese ice cream man.. for you blessed me and my belly.

Who can take a sunrise
Sprinkle it in dew
Cover it in chocolate
and a miracle or two?

The -ice cream- man
The -ice cream- man can
The -ice cream- man can cause he mixes it with love and makes the world taste good

Who can take a rainbow
Wrap it is a sigh
Soak it in the sun
and make a strawberry lemon pie?

The -ice cream- man

The -ice cream- man can
The -ice cream- man can cause he mixes it with love and makes the world taste good

-Japanese ice cream man- makes
Everything he bakes
Satisfying and delicious
Talk about your childhood wishes
You can even eat the dishes

Who can take tomorrow
Dip it in a deam
Seperate the sorrow
And collect up all the cream?

The -ice cream- man

The -ice cream- man can cause he mixes it with love
And makes the world taste good
And the world tastes good cause the candyman thinks it should

---

Please, right now,

take a moment and think of a Reese Cup package.

Are you picturing it?
Okay, good.

Now x's (times) that by 400,

the whole package,

and that is what my Aunt Pam sent me in the mail!
So cute!
It was a giant package of Reese Cups!
Oh, do not be confused!
It was literally 2 resee cups-

1/2 pound EACH!

WOW!
***shout out Aunt Pam! THANK YOU!!!***
I decided to eat one, and share the other.

:/ poor Giant Reese Cup of mine,

you lived such a short life.

RIP my kidneys.

---

My conversation class=amazing.

I love it,

and I love the people in it.

Pronunciation class=amazing.

It doesn't top conversation,

but it's pretty close.

Seriously, God has blessed me with the best job Ev-er!

And their English is improving so much!
So proud of all of them!
---

SYME Japan desperately needs a female teacher for Jan-Mar2011 term!

If you feel like you would like to do it,
facebook message me!!

It will be the BEST experience of your life

(Well, at least one of the best experiences :])

---

Time for bed!
Have a wonderful Wednesday!
Mine was awesome!
It was full of laughter <3

Sleepy Fridays.

Today was a really busy day.
I don't have much to blog about,
but tomorrow I will!
<3 goodnight world

Because days are busy and life is fast..

Know what is one thing I've learned?
Life is fast!
Who knows what the NEXT MINUTE can bring?
Strange thoughts.
But--you never DO know, you know?
---
I forget if I posted yesterday,
but I feel like I did..
Because I told you the acting story of my students.
It happened again today, and it was awesome!
I love it.
---
Know what I miss?
Schroon Lake Octobers.
Really. I miss it a lot.
I want to go pumpkin picking so super bad!!
It's not even funny.
But it's okay :]
There is always a time for pumpkin picking,
looks like next year is my next time!
And I will experience a little bit of November in Schroon Lake,
So it's okay!
The bright side is...I'm spending 2 of my 3 favorite months in JAPAN!
Praise the Lord.
---
I have 2 letters I need to send to America.
I'm really nervous I've misspelled something on the envelope
Or have addressed the envelope wrong.
I hope thats not a silly statement,
I just really don't want my letter to get lost.
I am so worried about it, I might just keep it with me and send it when I go home.
Problem with that is- I'm worrying and there is no point of the letters once I'm home.
>>sigh<<
I'll probably end up sending them.
Let's pray Tom Hanks isn't on the plane

:]
---
If I cut my hair short,
nobody can get THAT upset with me,
since I did it because I'm in Japan.
And by the time I got home everybody would be used to the idea, right?
....right?
---
OH MY WORD!
Today was the best lunch EV-ER!
Pancakes.
Cretes(?) hah! oops. Crapes. (I left my error for you mom :])
Fresh fruit.
Fresh whipcream.
Fresh tuna sauce.
Fresh cream cheese sauce.
Sausage.
Oh MY!
It was amazing!

(Dear parents,
I will be making our own whip cream
for it happes to be, my new fa-vor-ite thing)
^Dr. Suess moment^

But one of the students here said "I want my rice"
:] cute
---
Okay, I have to finish my laundry,
pick up my room,
and finish prepping for tomorrow's classes.
Have a wonderful Thursday!
Hope it wasn't as busy as mine :]

Guess what?

Today is my half way point.
48 days here
48 to go.
Again-- reflecting, not wishing it away.
Just..It's crazy!
Me.
Scared, home loving/adoring girl-
away in Japan-
for this long?!
Wow.
Surely there is a God up there watching out for me..
Protecting me.
Comforting me.
;)
I serve a great God!
---
Pray for my health!
---
Today, I laughed so hard,
that here was almost an accident.
HAHA!
So Japanese have no intonation or anything when they talk.
It's compared to a gun that continually shoots out bullets.
>>i forget the name of that gun<<
>machine gun?..probably am embarrassing myself..<
But today in Conversation class,
I had them read this little dialoge.
THEY DID SO GOOD!
I was laughing the whole time.
I was completely in shock.
They did so good.
It wasn't a "HAHA" laugh.
My face was one giant smile.
Really.
It was huge.
I looked like a walmart sticker.
They knew I was proud and cheering them on.
Different kinds of laughs :]
But absolutely,
These students,
are amazing.
Each one.
I love them all so much.
It's wonderful.
I have the best job right now.
---
Sunchip bag has crumbs left in it.
But did I throw it out?
No way.
I'm saving the crumbs for tomorrow.
I'm like that mouse on Cinderella.
You know which one I'm talking about..
---
I cried when I heard the mamabear's voice today on skype.
But shortly laughed when her skype video got frozen :]
She always knows how to cheer us kids up.
<3 she's the best
---
Okay, Time to go!
Hope you enjoy your Tuesday,
because mine was sure enjoyable..

Monday

I thought I posted yesterday.
But seems like I didn't.
Strange.
---
Yesterday was my day off.
I basically did nothing important.
I haven't been feeling that well,
so I've been trying to allow my body to rest!
---
Today I teach.
:] i love teaching..
I'll write tonight (morning for you) to tell you how it goes!
But sorry that yesterday there was no post!
<3

Sunchip&Sprinkle Sunday

Breakfast: sunchips and a few sprinkles
Lunch: GingerAle and plain rice [using hashi (chopsticks)]
Dinner: Oden

Snack after dinner: sunchips and sprinkles...
I can't help it :/
---
Today was a lot of fun.
Woke up at 10.
Got ready for church.
SANG WITH PRAISE TEAM!
Ohhhhh my!
It was so good to sing with a team again!
I loved it so much!!
It's one of my favorite ways to worship!
And then Tobi, Junko and I did special music.
That was a lot of fun too!
And then, my "sister" was at church today.
There was 2 girls without a big sister...
I adopted them.
It was fun.
We walked around the Ginza together,
ate some icecream
and talked about really random things.
Love them.
---
Today in teen church,
Mr.John asked us to take paper and illustrate the person:
who you looked up to.
who you admired.
who was a great example.
I took the brown paper and made a gotee.
I took black paper and made glasses.
And when asked who I was,
I replied "My dad."
<3 Love you daddio!
---
I'm addicted to Sprinkles
---
Today at church Junko played a video of her missions trip.
There were testimonies on the video,
and the people talked so fast!
Those who know me KNOW I talk really fast and mumble.
(My parents even save answering machine messages for me to interpret for them...THAT I LEFT!)
My head kind of hurt trying to listen and understand the people today.
I'm so used to speaking clearly and slow,
and listening to the same in reply..
or listening to Japanese on the weekends.
That I think my mind is getting used to it!
Utoh :]
---
Well, that's it for now!
God bless your Sunday!

50 days

Yes. The title of this post is how many days until I go home.

No, I'm not wishing my time gone..

But reflecting on the time here!

46 days I have lived in Japan.

Wow!

A few days ago, I was in Japan for 40 days.

It made me think that Jesus was tempted in the wilderness for the same amount of time I have been in Japan.

Wow!

---

Today, I was by myself.

I was supposed to climb a mountain today with a group of people,

but my sickness flared up a few days ago.
So the wise decision was for me to plan on not going.

Which was wise.. it took them 7 hours to climb!

However, I still am a little disappointed I couldn't go.

But clearly I wasn't supposed to go on that trip :]

Another group went to Saku to shop.

I was going to go,

but I felt really sick this morning again.

So I spent the afternoon in my room.

It was relaxing,

which is allowing my body to heal itself.

There will be other trips and fun things to do!

So I'm not that bummed!

---

I got a package today!
Sunchips, gummy bears, dove chocolate, german chocolate, sprinkles, and something special. It was so sweet and thoughtful! I wasn't expecting it, and it totally made my day! I was inside alone for most of it, so for a package to come....just really made my day amazing.

---

I rearranged our room.

At home I normally rearrange my room either every month or every other.

You can ask my mom about that, she loves when I do it.
haha.

Anyways.

I made my bottom bunk into a couch,

so I sleep on the top bunk.

Heat rises!

And so do spiders.

Last night, I saw a mammoth black spider.

I grabbed a book and squished it.

This afternoon,

I got my book down,

and noticed a black ball on the corner of it.

Clearly I forgot about the night before.

I picked the black ball up to examine it

(why anybody would do such a thing, is beyond me)

and I almost died.

There in my hand, laid the very deceased mammoth spider.

G-ross.

---

Hopefully I can go to Tokyo this month to see Amy!
I miss her!

---

Sorry I haven't been faithful to this blog.

It's been hard the past few weeks.

Not hard as in life at SYME,

but hard as in not enough time to sit down and write.

But I promise to write every day this week.

=]

---

Okay, well I'm going to go eat some Sprinkles.

<3

Have a wonderful Saturday!

Mine was wonderful.

Miss you all!

small post. (please see the post below for the update on my life)

the past 20 minutes.........
--
My lovely package givers forgot to send me reese cups..
..it's not like they are fattening/high in sugar or anything..
but they did bless me with peanut butter.
And a few days ago, I got a delicious bar of dark chocolate,
and I had about 2/5ths of that beloved snack left.
But tonight,

while jumping up and down in circles

singing with Peter, Paul and Mary
"I'm leaving on a Jet Plane,"
I dunked the rest of my chocolate bar

into the peanut butter that my beloved package giver gave me.

Bad idea for 9:30pm on a Monday night,
the night before I start teaching again,

30 minutes until >my<>

The end!

**below this post is the real update!! PLEASE read =]

Hello 40-50 degree weather!

Konichiwa!

---
This weekend was the best!
On Saturday I got a love package.
"What is a love package?" you may be wondering.
Well, it is when one gathers things with love and puts it into a box,
and then sends that box to somebody who is in need of some good'ol lovin.
Thank you <3
(shout out*** Ah, how shall I do it? Oh, I know. I'll turn him into a flea, a harmless, little flea, and then I'll put that flea in a box, and then I'll put that box inside of another box, and then I'll mail that box to myself, and when it arrives... I'll smash it with a hammer! It's brilliant, brilliant, brilliant, I tell you! Genius, I say!)

---
We went to Swan Lake!
To really see its beauty,
Please go on my facebook and check out my album:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=240557&id=682719992&page=7

---
On Saturday night we had
"throw your favorite Japanese food into a pot, and cook it."

(Mr.Tobi's picture)

Let me tell you,
It was delicious!
And that hot dog thing you see,
although it wasn't a hotdog,

lessened my desire for one.

---

I ate nato tonight.

Probably will never eat that again.

I ate eel tonight.

Probably would eat that again.

---

So I found some objects to make Stacey and I's room more homey.

I'll take picture when my camera is alive again.

---

Pronunciation class tomorrow!

---

I am currently babysitting Ponta (see picture at top of blog).

He's eating something peculiar,

so I must go rescue him.
Have a wonderful Monday!
OH! That reminds me!
Today I ate at a real ramen shop.

No English.

We had to take our shoes off,

and we sat on the floor.
It was awesome!
And so good.
When somebody posts a picture,
I'll let you know!
Okay..
<3>

the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom!

Sorry..

Tokyo was great!
I had so much fun with Amy.
I wish I could go back soon =]
I am now addicted to Seaweed and Salt Chips! YUM!
And while in Tokyo, I went to the busiest intersection in the world due to people, and drank at the most-served Starbucks in the world (which was at a corner of the intersection).
Cool =]
But her and Kazu are the best!
The ministry the are doing is amazing.
And they are great host's!
I'm so lucky to have spent more time with them!
---
This week is the last week of the 1st semester!
WOW!
Time if flying!
I can't believe it.
---
Today in class we are going to play
"who wants to be a millionaire"
And the prize will be food--
but the secret is,
they all get food =]
---
I've started my 4th book.
It's good so far..
It takes me some time to get into a book,
and once I'm 50-70 pages in,
I'm addicted.
---
My mom sent me a package,
and a letter from a friend.
I haven't gotten them yet,
but hopefully soon!
I can't wait =]
It keeps me goin.
---
Sorry this post is weird,
and late.
I've been trying to get organized.
Eek! Speaking of organized.
I have a list of what I need to do every day,
and I just remembered I need to do my list!
Gotta go =]
Have a wonderful Friday! Mine has been awesome.

3rd week of classes...

I love conversation class!
By far, it is my favorite.
Every day we laugh,
and it's just simply fun.
---
4. Did you know that fish can make noises? There are many ways for them to do this. For example some kinds of fis use their teeth to
a. move around
b. bite people
c. get food
d. make noises.

Now, correct answer is D...
but Noah
(who makes me laugh ALL THE TIME)
put answer b....
hahaa, still makes me laugh =]
---
I'm heading to Tokyo today to hang out with Amy until Sunday.
excited! <3
---
There are "3 semesters" in this term of SYME
(that is what I call them...)
4 weeks
4 weeks
4 weeks..
Next week is the last week of the first semester!
Crazy!!
---
New favorite snack:
Rice ball
(basically, rice from the previous meal in a ball surrounded by saran wrap)


...no I'm not kidding.
I love it.
---
The weather is getting so much cooler!
I love it!
(*shout out to my mom* layering is my fav)
---
Oh! Oh! Oh!
I made chocolate chip banana cookies!
It was my first time ever (obviously :/) to bake in another country.
Now, if you know me well, baking is my favorite thing to do.
There was no kitchen aid, hand mixer, measuring cups, measuring spoons...
I had a scale, a bowl, and tea spoon (literally).
I thought "How am I supposed to cream my butter and sugar?"
I thought "How am I supposed to get 180g (or 250g..i forget) of butter?"
But! It was an AMAZING success!
It was such a fun adventure!
And everybody LOVED them!
Which makes me so happy- I bake so other people can enjoy!
<3
---
Alright, I have to pack for Tokyo.
Have a wonderful Thursday!



The beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord!!



=]

What is the date today?

Ever since I arrived in Japan,

It seems that I have neglected to find out what the date is!
Not purposefully, but it just.. happened!

Today, in family time, Julie asked for the date.
When Mrs.Kari told her,
I was shocked.

SEPTEMBER 14th!
Seriously?

In 4 days I will have finished my 1st month in Japan!
AMAZING!

---

"I have been the SYME about 3 months"
"Noah, something is wrong with that sentence."
"..what.."
"Well, when did YOU become The SYME?"
His face expression hadn't changed,
nor his monotoned voice,
and said,
"..3 months ago..I am The SYME."
Ohhhh my word! He makes me laugh every single day!
(Then we figured out he meant:
I have been at SYME for about 3 months)
(cute cute cute!)

---

I love these people!
---

The bell rang about 40 minutes ago,

and an announcement was made.
Stacey and I were in our room,
the dehumidifier was going,
and Enya was singing,

so we didn't quite hear it.
"What did it say?"-S
"Something about Peach Pie..."-N
"Peach Pie?"-S
"Yes. I think so. And when you go upstairs, call me if there really is any."-N
Stacey walks out the door,
and then turns and says "Are you sure he didn't say free time?"
"Mmm, maybe?"-N
20 seconds later...
"There was announcement for Bible Club #2..that's it"-S
:/ I'm still a litte disappointed that there was no Peach Pie
and perhaps we both need our hearing checked.

---

There is a zoo in our room.

(*shout out to my love-a-ly sister Ashley)
There is:
pretty stink bugs,

A Moth (that I thought was a slug),
Another moth (but Stacey claims it is the same one),
Big black spiders,
Baby black spiders,
Dead tiny, minuscule spiders,
Dead baby knats..

Mmm, It's an adventure.
(Kinda like Sunny Sunday)
---

What do you get with:
a clothes line in the middle of your room,
a nice roommate who makes your table/desk experience more enjoyable,
a tall Australian who is now unable to get out of her bed,
and a short American who hung her clothes on the higher end of the rope?
This picture:

<3 We have fun.
---
have a wonderful Tuesday!
Mine was awesome,
So yours will be too!

Something Refreshing..

Today was my day off.

It was Wonderful!
I relaxed, ate, painted my nails, prepped for classes, babysat Ponta (see picture on the right for reference), and just meditated on the Lord =]
I wasn't going to post tonight, but I really wanted to share this!

In quiet time I personally have been learning about joy in the Lord.

Just singing praises to Him in the midst of a storm, in the heart of the storm, or on the tailgate of the storm.

And tonight, as I was brushing my teeth,

this song popped in my head!
Please, read!
Or at the end, is a youtube clip of the song!!
May this song be stuck in your head today =]
---

Weak and wounded sinner
Lost and left to die
O, raise your head, for love is passing by
Come to Jesus
Come to Jesus
Come to Jesus and live!

Now your burden's lifted
And carried far away
And precious blood has washed away the stain, so
Sing to Jesus
Sing to Jesus
Sing to Jesus and live!

And like a newborn baby
Don't be afraid to crawl
And remember when you walk
Sometimes we fall...so
Fall on Jesus
Fall on Jesus
Fall on Jesus and live!

Sometimes the way is lonely
And steep and filled with pain
So if your sky is dark and pours the rain, then
Cry to Jesus
Cry to Jesus
Cry to Jesus and live!

O, and when the love spills over
And music fills the night
And when you can't contain your joy inside, then
Dance for Jesus
Dance for Jesus
Dance for Jesus and live!

And with your final heartbeat
Kiss the world goodbye
Then go in peace, and laugh on Glory's side, and
Fly to Jesus
Fly to Jesus

Fly to Jesus and live!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_4g8_e16dc

Sunny Sunday.

What did I do today?

Wait,

I have to involve Stacey (roommate).

What did we do today?
Stood outside with flags,

big, tall flags,

advertising the grand opening of the English school behind us.

---

It was cool at first (weather).

Then Mr.Sun had some fun.

I currently have been laughing for about 7 minutes.

Stacey and I are sunburnt.

My poor, red-headed roommate wasn't as lucky as me.

She is the color of her hair...or redder.

I hurt, but my daddy gave me some good, good skin.

---

We signed up for this modeling gig,

without knowing too much about it.

Hey, it does look good.

Japanese people seeing 2 American (good) looking girls.

Who wouldn't want to learn English!

(even though Stacey is an Aussie)

(that's besides the point)

---

10am-6pm shift with breaks here and there

The job was fun.

The people were SUPER SUPER nice!
They fed us well!

And they had 3 adorable boys.

(*shout out to gramma. The people who asked us to do this are friends of staff at SYME.. don't be nervous, we were in good hands :)

---

All of the Japanase kids LOVED to wave to us,

the parents even got their kids attention to look our way.

We felt popular.

We felt like great models.

People were so happy waving at us,

rolling down windows,

saying hello..

---
An Aussie came to visit Stacey.
They didn't know each other.

But the kangaroo inside them two,

brought them both together somehow.

*cue twilight music
Anyways...

He was REALLY nice.

Came back and brought us juice.

100% juice.
"I wonder how many apples are in here.."
"Inside your juice box?"
"...yes..."

---

Some elderly man pulled over on his motorbike

and asked Mrs.Brown for some information.

When she was inside, he came up to me and started talking.

"How many in Japan"
He asked.

"3 months"

I answered

"wow" he said smiling.

Then Mrs.Brown came out and gave him information.

He stood there, looking at us (Stacey and I)

Then drove away.

A little later Mrs.Brown told us:
"He was more interested in taking to you two,

then our school."

---

Stacey just came in.

Must say,
She is sporting some pretty good tan lines.
Advertising a new look.
I think the model life might work out after all.

Or....Let me teach you a Japanese word.

Ko-y-e
That is sounded out for "scary"

------The rest of this blog is just funny moments, read if you want.

.... Sorry if they are silly to you!!

What time is it?-N

3:00. -S
Now what time is it?-N
3:04-S
.....Noooow what times is it?-N
3:07-S

mmmm-N
Now what time is it?-N
3:15-S
Better than before-N

How long have we been sitting in here?
(guess who asked that question)
Uhm about 20 minutes.

Really?
Yes, at least we are in here instead of out there.

Mmm..agreed.
What are the chances that we leave in the next 10 mins?
........what movies do they have?

"clurk-de-booble-clunk-sprrrrrrt"
WHAT is that sound??!?-N
My metal water bottle....-S
....strange...-N

Want some chocolate?-S
NO! I just brushed my teeth...
Wait! Didn't you say brushing my teeth with chocolate was okay???-N
Uhm......no.......Josh said something about Cocoa toothpaste..-S
..........oh..........-N

I handed stacey my "Melt away stress lotion".
(*shout out* Ashley, do you remember owning this lotion? haha)

"I hope this melts away my sunburn"-S

---

Hope you have a less burnt-ful day than we did!!

:)

"Oh. My. Word. Stacey. Try these crackers, they are my new favorite!"
-Stacey tries Cracker-

-all I hear is a slow *crunch* *crunch* *crunch*-

"I expected it to be sweeter....."
and I simply replied,
"Hmmmm... Try again."

---

Did I mention there are wild monkeys here?

---

Stacey and I are models on Sunday.

No, I'm not joking.

No, It's not a scam.

No, it's not for my Hollywood figure (hahahaa...)
But, Yes, it is for my face.

...only because I have an American looking face.

Still counts for something, right?

---

So I used to be kind of picky with the food I ate.

Not anymore.

I eat bean paste in my dessert now.

I eat rice for almost every meal.

I love the taste of seaweed.

Cabbage soup = favorite.

Melon bread is so good.

Spicy spicy chips are Ahhhhmazing

---

I had a lot of fun today!
I love Conversation class!
It's teaching grammar and such.

But today, we were learning present perfect tense..
and asking questions like "Have you ever..."
SO guess what we played?
=D the have you ever game!
It was so fun!
We were laughing basically the whole time.

Ugggggh I love it!

Then we had a quiz...
And their answers always make me crack up!
It's my fav.

Then 3 girl students, 3 staff members, and I played dominos tonight for...

mmm...

maybe 2 hours?
haha, it was fun.

I love it that game now!
---

I am on my 3rd book in 1 week!
1) North of Tomorrow--- Highly recommended

2) Uncharted--- Mmm, Highly recommended if you want to be reflect on the opportunity we have being alive and a follower of Jesus Christ!! I was speechless at the end.

3) Presumed Guilty--- just started it, but really good so far!
**All of these books are Christian! So they are clean and just super good!
Get your nose in a book =]

---

That's it for now!
Have a wonderful weekend!

Once upon a time...

there was a short, young, American girl,

changing her sheets from her bed.

The first sheet was a pillow case,

The second sheet was a square,

And the third sheet was just right.

However, there was a problem.

It seemed as if a man had sewn 2 top sheets together,

leaving a hopeless small hold on the side.

The American adventured into the sheet,
to try and see how the angles worked.

Was this American girl now supposed to stuff her mattress in the hole?

Yes. Yes she was.

She tried,

and tried,

and tried.

Until her mattress got her blankies in a bunch....

Instead of a nice, flat mattress,

This little American had succeeded to twist her mattress into a mountain with miles of sheet around.
Then, her friendly Australian friend came to help.
With her smarts and the American's smarts,

They brought the distressed mattress into the hallway.

Slowly BUT surely, the mattress became horizontal again.

I tied up the the hole with the strings that closed the poor sheets, the poor American girl cried into the atmosphere, "I am never changing my bedding again! If there was only 1 thing I miss about America, it would be the simplicity of it's bed sheets!!"
The American Dean came in, and quietly said, "...I think a man must have made them."
Funny thing that the Dean did not know, was the American's friend the Australian had said the same thing prior to the American crying into the atmosphere.
After that little escapade, the Australian and the American needed some place to dry their wet clothes. The American began to hang her clothes around the room while the Australian decided to go find a rope.
And find a rope she did!
A ginormous rope,

to be exact.
First, they untangled it.
Second, they started stringing the rope around the room,
as if they were pretending to decorate a Christmas tree.
Third, the re-untangled it.
Fourth, some more un-tangling.
And finally, The Big Tie Off.
And it was finished!

They hung up their clothes, and looked at their creation as if they were Picasso himself!

Trouble laid ahead though.

The 5'1 American has only a little trouble getting to and fro in her room,
Yet her 6'2 Australian friend had a little more trouble.
The story ends with the rumor that the rope was never taken down again.
Truth or fiction?
Too soon to tell.

---

have a good day!

Sorry!

My apologizes to my faithful readers,
because I have not been faithful this weekend,
to my beloved blog.
---
Story 1:
I am a big sister!
No, my mom is not pregnant.
And, no, my parents are not adopting.
The church we SYME'ers attend has a program where the kids in the church get a "big brother" or a "big sister".
Yay!
Super excited.
I think I get to meet her this coming Sunday.
I can't wait!!
---
RIP.
To my beloved, cherished, and well-fed sweet tooth.
You have been spoiled to the brink of death the past few days.
I fear to announce,
you have lost your sugar eating privileges for some time
---
I went to a super market on Saturday.
I forgot I was in Asia.
Isle 1: fish
Isle 2: fish things
Isle 3: fish things
Isle 15: fish things
Isle 30: fish
Mmm, now...
Where would I find peanut butter?
Conclusion: I didn't.
But the trip was successful when I found blueberry bread
(and I realized blueberry bread has nothing to do with peanut butter,
but it made me forget why I was there)
(and later I found out there was a foreign Isle)
(probably between Fishy Isle 5 and Fishy Isle 7)
(Don't get me wrong,
the grocery store is AMAZING,)
(I love fish and things)
(but when a foreigner wants her peanut butter,
a foreigner wants her peanut butter.)
(I will post the pictures of the blueberry bread when I find my camera)
(....heh)
---
>>>"Is God happy with your thoughts?"
has been my meditation for the past week<<<

---

Who thinks climbing an active volcano in Japan would be super amazing?

Oh, wow, Look at that!!

(looks out my window)

Conveniently, there seems to be a volcano in my town!

(**shout out** don't worry gramma metthe, gramma peterson, mom, ashley, and other relatives... I won't go alone)

---

Cute story:

Since I look like a total English-speaking American

I often get stopped by random Japanese people

and have the most adorable little English conversations.

Saturday, I was crossing the road.

And this elderly man was driving his cute baby truck.

He looks at me, slows down, got the THE BIGGEST smile on his face,

and says to me (rather loud and super confident),

"HELLO!"

And I smiled, waved, and said, "hello!"

And he nodded his head (having nothing more to say)

and smiled as he drove away.

Hah! Super random, yet SUPER cute!

---

I am blessed to be in this country.

Thank you!!!

A special post.

I have 2 things to say in this post.

Bring a helmet..

Buckle up..

and have oxygen tank ready...

---

I'll start with the news that almost made me....up-chuck.

Did you know that..

Australians eat KANGAROOS?!?!?!??!

YES!

THOSE CUTE ANIMALS WE SEE IN THE ZOO

INNOCENTLY HOPPING AROUND

WITH CUTE LITTLE BABIES IN THIER POUCHES?

And......the Japanese eat horse.

I seriously might be come a vegetarian.

---

Really Australia?

Kangaroos?

---

I am obsessed with nature!

These photos were taken from tonight's sunset.

(look at fb for a better quality maybe?

Enjoy =]

Have a wonderful day!

How much traffic is there?

So yesterday, my first day of teaching,
was...harder than I thought.
It was stretching for me!
Which is super good!
And it pushed me to work even harder on prepping my classes for the next day.
---
And today was wonderful!
My Bible class was over 20 minutes early.. again
But we had a really good discussion about Japanese culture!
We were reading about Pilate today, and I brought up the fact that he was experiencing the fear of man (because he was scared that a riot would occur if he didn't let Barabas go instead of Jesus). I went to Galatians 1:10 and after we talked about the correlation of the fear of Pilate and the verse, Japanese culture was brought up. It was so intriguing.
---
You can't walk up to a Japanese person and ask about faith, the gospel, or anything.
You just can't.
The best way is to have friendship.
The Japanese people want peace--
they would never do something to interrupt one's peace.
They are so polite...
I think America could use a little politeness.
---
During class, sometimes it would get quiet and I was thought maybe I was being boring or they didn't understand... but at end of class I asked how I did, and they told me that Japanese don't show expression- so for me not to worry :)
---
I missed lunch today :(
---
In due to this 93 degree weather,
I made up (changed words to) a song.
Oh Frosty the snowman,
Can you hurry up this way?
Can you wave hello saying,
"Don't you cry,
I told you I'd be back someday."
(alternative ending: I will never leave your side)
---
I don't think I've ever slept as good in my whole life as I do here!
I haven't dreamt every night in a long time...
---!
AHhhh,oh yes!
I have a challenge for you:
For one week, write down 1 thing that God has blessed you with THAT day.
After that one week, try to do another week.
=] Even in the hard times, there is still something to be thankful for!
<3 bbbye

Yes, I am a teacher (almost)

Hello!
Today I watched somebody teach my classes,
and tomorrow I am on my own!
I am so excited!!!!!!
---
Dear readers,
Do YOU know the difference between count and non-count nouns?
How many traffics are there?
How many traffic is there?
How many a traffic are there?
How much traffic is there?
How much a traffic is there?
Which one is correct?
Stayed tuned (in the NEXT blog) for the answer.
---
Tonight they passed around a special treat.
You have 6 clues:
Clue 1: it wasn't sugary
Clue 2: it wasn't pretty
Clue 3: it's a little smaller than My pinky
Clue 4: its brown
Clue 5: it used to be alive
Clue 6: it probably was crunchy
:) yes! you ARE right!!
It WAS not appetizing!!!
And I think it looked kinda... disgusting That is why I didn't eat
:drum roll please:
a locast!
---
Alright, going to bed.
Have a wonderful day!

Monday

Today I prepared for my classes.

I’m really excited,

and really nervous.

Honestly, I look at these amazing students

and think,
“I really just want to serve them,

help them,

and be a GOOD teacher.”

But I can’t do that if my fear and nerves are getting in the way.

In quiet time,

what I’ve been getting out of Psalm 104,

is God provides.

He is going to provide what I need for this!
After all, He is the one who got me here :)
(THROUGH those who have supported me financially/prayerfully.)

I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t supposed to be,

Praise the Lord!

---

This term is not only going to grow the students, but the teachers and staff as well! I am BEYOND blessed with this opportunity!!!

---

***stayed tuned on facebook for a movie I made of my bike riding experiences

(Sorry for the random comment)
(I didn’t know where to put it though)
(But you really should look for it.. it’s really REALLY special)

---

I have taken pictures of the SYME building.

I will post them sometime today when I get a spare minute :)

---

Funny conversation:
“do you not like your face?”-friend

“i guess...idk...not really?”-me
“So you say you do not like funny faces?”-friend
“mmm, (laughing), are you saying I have a funny face?”-me
“Oh! no...no, no, no.”-friend

---

<3>

2nd post (so lower for 1st)

Today I am going to teach one of my students (friends) how to pray in English.
Mmm, I just think thats beautiful!
---

Yesterday (Sunday)
Breakfast was at 9,

and then some of us listened to a sermon online.

Then we went to Ginza- ate lunch and walked around.
Church was at 3.

And then potluck(?) afterwards.

It was a long day, but a good day.
A lot of fellowship with people.
It was really good.

---

Saturday....I forget :)
---
Friday we went shopping.
Dollar stores here are AMAZING!
I wish we had them in America!!!!
They have everything from socks, dishes (cute cute dishes), silverware, food...

MMMM so good.
**shout out to my dad
---

okay time for lunch!!
Sorry these posts were weird.

I'll be back on track tonight!!
<3

1st post

Sorry I haven't posted in a few days.
It's been hard to find enough time to actually sit down and write out my thoughts!
---

Most of the students have arrived!

There are 11 all together:

7 boys 4 girls.

There are 3 interns:

1 boy 2 girls.

It has been really fun so far!
A lot of laughing, random picture taking, music, lots of conversations..

---

My room is wonderful.

It's spacious and is cool (like the weather, haha).

A lot of room, nice storage, a table, a desk, a huge window,

it's amazing.

---

The bathrooms are neat.

The first area of the bathroom is the sink area
The second area is divided into 2 parts with a walkway in the middle.

Toilets on the left and showers on the right.
Each toilet has their private little area.

The shower has 2 parts.
The first part is the changing area,

and the second part is the shower room---

literally all 4 walls and floor to ceiling is the shower.

---

I'll take pictures of all of this tonight so you can better understand!
---
I have started this weeks planning for classes.

I will have a sub for me the first day or two to see what I'm supposed to do.

That makes me feel really comfortable :) and not so overwhelmed!
---

Tuesdays look like this:
(tomorrow might be different because of the first day)

7:40-8:10- quiet time
8:20-8:50- breakfast

9:00-9:35- family time

9:45-10:35- Life of Christ (my class)

10:45-1135- Reading Power 1 (my class)
11:45-12:30- chapel

12:40-1:20- lunch

1:30-2:20- Conversation (my class)

2:30-3:20- WOL club prep
3:30-5:20- free time

5:30-6:20- dinner

6:30-8:20- study hour
>>exciting, yes?!
---
the next post will be about things i've been doing.

Written on the bus to SYME.

I keep getting a little weepy.
Is this really happening?
Am I finally going to the place that I’ve dreat and prayed about for so long?
Honestly.
God is amazing.
In just a few minutes I will be picked up and brought to my new home for 3 months.
Thank you, Lord.. for bringing me here safely!
Thank you, Lord.. for this opprotunity!
Thank you, everybody who has supported me prayerfully and financially.. for brining me here!
Thank you!!
---
Pretty sure this is one of the most beautiful scenery bus rides I have ever experienced.
I wish my eyes were video cameras that streamed to the computer so everybody could experience it too!
Oh my goodness!
I wish everybody could see this!
And you know what makes this bus ride even more amazing?
I am listening to “sleepless in seattle” on my ipod.
One of my most favorite movies on the planet
(tied with Cast Away and You've Got Mail.)
---
One thought..or two:
There are electrical wires millions of feet in the air throughout the mountains. I almost passed out thinking about the men that had to create those things and hang the wires. Eee.
---
Alright, I've arrived here safely! I need to finish unpacking :)

Read the post underneath this if you want, it's new too.

Bye!!

A biker's tale

Something tragic happened yesterday.
I was minding my own business,
riding my bicycle on the road,
and this bus came up aside of me.

Now, to not lose Amy who was ahead of me, I decided to pedal really, really fast and try and pass the bus.
However, Mr.Bus has a different idea.

He decided to park.

He decided to park right where I was riding.

I grabbed my break handles super fast,

tippy-toed my bike backwards,

looked behind me,

and frantically passed Mr.MeanBus on the right.

Yes, I did ‘ding’ my bell when I passed him.

If a Japanese person was in the way of somebody else, they would say “sorry” or “excuse me” (clearly in Japanese). (In America, we grunt. Or if driving, we honk. Nobody ever honks in Japan. The only time I heard a honk was when I was riding in a bus and we almost got hit by another bus....which is rare.)

When riding a bike, it’s nicer to “ding” your bell to let people know you are coming rather than get into a collision or scare somebody.

So for my “ding” to be appropriate,

I should’ve ‘dinged’ my bell when I was almost crushed between guardrail and Mr.MeanBus.

But, being my American-tourist self, I dinged my bell as I passed him.
---
Sorry I didn’t post this sooner. 
That just means you’ll be blessed with 2 blogs today.

---
bye!