Blades of grass

Back Home...Make a Home

2007-06-08T09:00:00.000-07:00

So, here are some random photos of the work I have done so far. I've painted some of the white walls, with my dad changing out the light fixtures (the bamboo fan, not pictured, but in the living room is the best!), as well as adding new, European style faucets and bamboo blinds. Eli's room is in the early stages for a beach, surfing theme. I'm starting from scratch, almost every piece. It took me almost a full day just to put Eli's new bed and dresser together. Pretty sad! My favorite pieces include the wall art above the couch on the wall, the oar as a make-shift curtain holder, and the chinese piece above the entertainment center that I purchased for 30 dollars at an antique shop.

We'll Always Have Florence

2007-06-08T06:26:00.000-07:00

Rome for a Day

2007-06-08T06:19:00.000-07:00

My former running coach always said, "Anything worth doing, is worth doing well." I feel like I am betraying my experience by just slapping these photos together, especially the ones that are sideways.

More Athens...

2007-06-08T05:51:00.000-07:00

Santorini Island

2007-06-08T05:33:00.000-07:00

Off to Athens!

2007-06-08T04:47:00.000-07:00

Magazine Interview and Running Ramblings

2006-11-04T06:05:00.000-08:00

Interviewed for the Japan Fulbright Memorial Fund. Here is an online article from a nice, local magazine. http://www.imagesmaury.com/education/
Maury_County_Literacy_Coach_Observes_Japanese_Teaching_Methods_Through_
Fulbright_Program.php

Inaugural Harpeth Hills Flying Monkey Marathon, November 19, 2006

Okay, so what was I thinking?? I signed up for yet another marathon (26.2 miles) next month. The first is on November 19 and the second is on December 9. But really, I have a plan. The first marathon is so insane that I will feel perfectly okay running the first 22 miles slowly and walking the rest. That weekend calls for a 20 mile run, in prep for the Huntsville, Dec. 9 marathon. So, call this an expensive, painful marathon tune-up. And check-out the course elevation! At least we get a super cool award medal and a technical shirt with our name on it. Nice!
Anyway, I have run the 11.2 and 5.8 (both in there) several times. I should be afraid, very afraid. Which is good, because I'd like to get those feelings out of the way before heading to Huntsville. Actually, I am off to Huntsville in a couple of hours. I'm going to run 18 miles of the course....get familar with it.
15 Minutes Late for a 5 Mile Race- Still Earned First Place for My Divison

To be honest, I just woke up with the itch to run in a race. Bad thing was this was 6:35 and the race started at 7 in the next city. I was a little late, but thank goodness for chip timers. This was a 5 miler course, and I still came in with a 7:49 race pace and a first place in my division spot.

Back Home

2006-10-22T06:00:00.000-07:00

From Tokyo to Chicago was a smooth ride, landing a full 30 minutes early. Sadly, the quick layover turned into hours as my flight to Nashville was delayed from 1:20 to 4:20.

I'm adding one home photo for my host family and planning on ending this blog site here. It was created for Brayan, my husband, after all. It was never deep, and was in fact, rushed as I was going from one location to the next. For those adding this to their school links, I hope mu site adds something :)

I missed my restroom (2 sinks, a bathtub, seperate shower room, and toilet).
I managed to find Western style toilets everywhere, so I never used the Japanese style version above. Pheww.

Goodbye Japan...

2006-10-17T18:20:00.000-07:00

With 10 minutes between a meeting, here is a quick picture tour of my trip...

Parents come to read to the kids every other week.

Kids riding unicycles to school!

The Ryokan. Beautiful beyond belief.

View of from our outdoor shower.

Okay, the sun was in my face. This was my host mother. Very fashionable!

Chigasaki. Sigh.

Our room at the Ryokan. All the windows opened all around.
See you all soon :) Gotta go!

Catch Up and Make-Shift Photos

2006-10-15T07:00:00.000-07:00

Another beautiful view in Fujisawa. The waves today were incredible and brought out tons of surfers. Maybe it has something to do with a typhoon coming in... :)

Chigasaki

In case you have missed it. I lost my camera. Yeah. It hurts. Bad. So, sadly I have many pictures, they just happen to be on other people's cameras. Even at the elementary, I borrowed the teacher's camera, and she is being kind enough to send them to my home on a CD.
So, here are my updates with random photos to brighten up the dialogue :)

A Trip Back to Find the Geo Catche: Clare got another hint and we headed out for a second trip. This time 6 in total left. We, once again, climbed the steep mountain and searched frantically during the night. Clare found it! She decided to take the money from India. We all went back and ate at the same Hawaiian resturant. It was a total blast and it felt like home for just a short time.

The Elementary School: Loved it, but I would prefer to post pictures first. I'll summarize. The kids entered the school to a principal and teachers inviting them in, they had a choice to either play outside, water plants, read, or write. There was a mix of all of the above. Huh, that makes sense. This seems to complicated for Americans...doing things that are developmentally appropriate for kids. Start the day with movement and free reading and writing.
I took near a million photos. Poor teacher. It was great.

Kids with knives and boiling objects. Wow.

Everyone pitches in for lunch. Very efficient...

Clean up time is taken seriously...
My Long Run and a Missed Earthquake: So, I go out for my 15 mile run this morning. I get to run by the beach and the weather is just perfect. The run was so easy because everything was flat. I was even able to end the last 4 miles at a 7:30 pace (impressive by any standards). The last mile was closing in on the 6:40 range. I could have gone longer. I was pumped (Brayan, think Jon Richardson)! I walk in to being asked, "Did you feel the earthquake?" What!? I missed a 5.3 earthquake. I guess I was moving faster than the speed of light and it superceded the earthquake or something like that.

Hey, Brayan...check it out. I am on the main page of the running site in Tennessee. Okay, Donna looks better than me, but doesn't it look effortless for me (like I'm jogging)? We were averaging 7:28 at this point and this was at mile 5. I make a 15 K look easy :)
My Host Family Visit: I stayed with Sumiko and Tamotsu this weekend. I was the one telling everyone that it wasn't a big deal. "Don't worry, it's only a day!" I said. As we pulled up into the parking lot, I got so nervous. Very nervous. Luckily, my nerves were eased as I met Sumiko who shared a common interest of walking a lot. She also had great taste and helped find good places to shop and visit. I got to China Town, something I didn't think I would fit in my schedule, along with a trip to Kamakura (another area) and the beach. In Kamakura, she helped me pick the coolest Japanese shoes. She and her husband gave me the prettiest hand-made purse and tea set. The purse was exactly something I would pick, and Sumiko was nice enough to throw in a small money purse that was equally beautiful.
I think the thing I enjoyed the most was our talk on American culture. If anyone has read or watched Gulliver's Travels, this would summarize it all. I never really stopped to wonder why our society does what it does. Example, "Why do so many Americans get divorced?" It becomes a domino effect of more whys. Because they marry young...why. Because they don't really know each other and/or we focus on ourselves...why. You see what I mean? If not, it was really important to me and I'll try to explain later. It also made me think that our way of life is based on the Darwin method. Every man/women for themselves. We life without purpose, merely going along with things. Japanese life seems to have a meaning and purpose, and it reminded me that I need to be more reflective on my decisions and day to do interactions.
So, I got off on a tangent, but this is what is on my mind...and I am tired. Anyway, it was wonderful and I think Sumiko is well on her way to becoming an interpretor. Something I think I helped her with this weekend. :)

One of the shopping areas I visited with my great host family. I LOVED the mall close by. So neat!
Out of Money: So, I ran out of cash hoping to get money out of an ATM machine. Then nothing. It wouldn't read it. I was so embarresed! Sumiko ended up paying for some of my food as I promised to send her money once I got to Tokyo. Just to check out whether it worked at all, I stopped by a grocery store and bought Thomas the Train bubble gum and some crackers. It worked. Julie was kind enough to pay for not only dinner but Baskin Robbins after that.
Komono Dress: Julie went Komono shopping and somehow I became the genie pig to try an outfit on. I hate to admit this, but I loved it and felt so pretty. There is so much to put on, and I felt bad not being able to understand her as I know there is so much significance in each piece, etc. I plan on reading up soon. We also stopped by some American used clothes/item stores. I personally loved the Jolly Green Giant phone, but felt the 125 dollar price tag was a tad on the crazy side. But, I could make a killing! An average t-shirt went for 40 dollars or so and super cheap, nasty looking items went for 5 dollars. I saw the cheapest little buttons like Krogers or Home Alone 3 for this price. Crazy!
Out of Touch Until I Return to Tokyo: Just a warning that I will not have email or phone access until Tuesday in Tokyo. Time is going so quickly!!!

A Quick Photo Tour

2006-10-12T14:09:00.000-07:00

After school ends MANY students stay after to stay in club activities (and there are a lot of different clubs). A visit to the art club revealed no teachers. The children were getting supplies on their own and working on projects. One boy was paiting Starry Night (Van Gogh, I hope you know that Brayan). These girls were carefully picking weeds from the roots. Not in the school garden, but everywhere. As you know, children clean up after themselves. A teacher was found after school cleaning the restroom floors with the children.

Kendo. A traditional sport in Japan.

What can I say? I'm lucky. This is, of course, Mount Fuji. This is the view from Enoishma Island. 2 miles away...15 minutes running distance.

The peace signs...it is the number one thing Japanese children do when they see us. Go figure!

To explain this picture and this photo would take me an hour. Here it is in a glimpse. I went on a treasure hunt in Zushi for an ancient keyhole tumulus (look that up- It's a place where very important people are burried). It involved a 3 mile hike to this town, several tunnels, a sweet Hawaiian resturant, flashlights, a Garmin GPS system, the writer of Sesame Street (in Japanese) who attended UT Martin, who helped us climb the 100 m (football field) hill that never seemed to end, who had his dog Love to keep us company, that helped us look for a treasure hidden in the hole of a tree, who helped us give up but helped us realize it wasn't the treasure, it was the adventure that was worth it, who invited us to his house (Mom, don't freak out. This is normal), who had a mansion, who then took us back to the train station in his BMW. I did NOT run the next morning. The 100 meter hill alone was a MAJOR workout.

Oh. Now, I am running out of time. Here I go.

This is our tour guide. I LOVE HER!!! I couldn't imagine anyone not liking her. She is so sweet!

How could I not add this one?

Lost Camera, Lost Time

2006-10-12T04:36:00.000-07:00

Two days ago my cheap digital camera was left on a subway system. I had read, and I quote, "It is common...for Japanese in all walks of life to go out of their way to locate the owners of lost or forgotten property and return it to them." (Japan Made Easy, by B. DeMente). This happy optimisim (double positivism) lead me to be overly confident that my camera would safely be awaiting my return soon after I reported it missing. It's gone. Adios 69 photos a day. Julie was nice enough to let me follow her around like a peasant asking for picture needs. Too nice.
Todays ramblings are dedicated to her and in full Japanese style, I write a Hakui, minus a theme of nature.

Lost camera, I'm sad

gone away, another town

I hope you feel bad

Okay, so given that I have successfully bummed off many photos from Julie...here it goes!

Mayor and Superintendent of Chigasaki and Yokohama National University: Quick version. Yeah, we meet with them and went there. The university involved a talking dinosaur for its promotional video on the school. A real winner for all interested and viewing.

Next.

Alethia Shonon High School: The pictures tell it all. Kids will be kids. This school was a private Christian school. It was quite shocking to see some of the same problems as we see in America. The things that baffle me: Where are the teachers during class changes and during the first few minutes of class? I walked in to an integrated study course, essentially a study hall, to find kids bouncing off the wall. No teacher in site, even after class started. Another shocker. Kids sleep in class, and this doesn't seem to be a concern.

69 Photos and a Tribute to Hawaii

2006-10-09T01:19:00.000-07:00

With my ultra cheap memory card, 69 photos a day is what I can cover. I have maxed out every day that I have been here. My ritual is to save and store the photos on my computer, delete the old ones on the memory card, and then proceed to do it all again the following day. So, last night I noticed some themes around here. One was Hawaiian stores and the other was Pachinco (sp?). A small trip to the Southern Beach in Chigasaki (named after a famous Japenese band Southern Ole' Stars) and Kamakura made this abundantly clear. The stores screamed, "We like Hawaii!" as the streets were littered with stores like Rikki Rikki Deli, Hawaiian resturants, and Hawaiian music filtered their way out of small business stores. When asked, "Why all the Hawaiian themes?" a young man said that they believed this area had many commonalities as it is known for surfing, is laid back, and looks similar. I agree. So here is how my day started when we meet today.
Jokenji Temple: A trip down the backroads did remind me of the remote areas of Hawaii. Small streets lead us to an alley where we had to make way towards the temple. Here are some photos. I had to include the little girl. She was just precious.

The owner of this historic Japanese home was eager to let us into the house to view and take pictures. Our tour guide said these are very rare, and we were very lucky to go inside. The outside roof was made out of straw (Hawaiian hut looking).
Chigasaki City Museum of Art: We couldn't take any photos, but the museum workers took out old posters and offered them to us free of charge. I grabbed all the posters related to children's literature. I believe they had an exhibit on this.

Southern Beach: Photos speak for themselves. I had to do the corny thing and take this picture...

The whole surfing vibe was well represented including an appropriate amount of fit, active runners making their way down the sandy path. There were more people surfing here than witnessed in California and Hawaii. All were men and they seemed to have a better handle on it.

Lunch: Here's a picture. You got a ticket for your shoe placement, and this was the kind of establishment where you sat down on the mats. This is a typical meal and typical arrangement you might find in a resturant. The rice had seaweed in it. It had a salty taste and was quickly eaten first. I've almost gotten to the point where I have stopped asking, "Now, what is this?" Just eat it.

Kamakura/Great Buddah: Next we were off to Kamakura to see the second largest Buddah. To demonstrate its size, imagine that the head has 636 hair ringlets. Each one is much bigger than your head. Pictures can't capture its size. It was much bigger than I was anticipating. Here again is a picture. Their were "famous" dove cookies that we were told we must try. I thought the random ice cream flavors like chestnut, cherry blossom, and sweet potato were more intriging.

Hase Temple: I was thinking, "Not another temple," but this turned out to be the most beautiful and resulted in the most photos. Of interest were two men who were straight out of high school who decided they would travel around the world for a year. These were not elite, rich kids. They used an internet site to locate people who essentially let them "bum" at willing homes for short periods of time. They were on month three. As the list of places they had been and are planning to visit was relayed, I just couldn't imagine being brave enough to attempt this right after high school. I bet it makes college look like baby work after an experience like that for a year.

Pictures of the actual temples did not allow photos. I think this one was okay because I didn't see any signs (and it was far away). There was one that I could have stared at all day. It was something out of Indiana Jones. So beautiful. I watched as a mother taught her son how to properly pray.
Tomorrow: Meet the Mayor of Chigasaki, Superintendent of the Board of Education, and a visit to Yokohama National University.

One Day, 28 Hours, Sore Feet...

2006-10-08T03:58:00.000-07:00

I'm not kidding. This was seriously the norm in Harajuku. In fact, this was very mild compared to most!

Agenda for Our Free Day- Saturday:

I swear I squished 28 hours into the 24 yesterday. Here it goes...
Long Run: 2 hours and 40 minutes. I meet with another JFMF teacher, Lisa, and we ventured out around the Imperial Palace and anywhere and everywhere. It made the run seem short. It was probably the easiest run I have had in at least a year or so. Once I get back to Tokyo, we plan on meeting up then.
Shibuya: After breakfast and a much needed shower, it was time to head out with Shannon, a teacher in our Chigasaki group. Our first stop was Shibuya, which is known for having the busiest train station stop in the world. It is also known for a famous little dog named Hachiko. A professor brought his dog to this Shibuya station every day, so when the dog's master passed away the dog continued to wait at the station for him to return. From what I gathered, the dog remained there for over 7 years, faithfully waiting. The locals feed him and took care of him. Below is a picture. I heard an American children's book is based on this story.

Harajuku: There are two fashion districts in Tokyo. The first is Ginza (high end, top model type stores) and the second is Harajuku. The latter is known for its teen appel. It is wild, bizzare, and fascinating. It almost borders on role playing/halloween dress up. Fashion here is all about shock value. Extreme shoes, hair, combinations...even the stores had the oddest names. This was definetly the sort of place you want to buy an outfit just to say you got something there. Of course, I found the most conservative dress in the area.

Disney Sea: Harajuki took up a good portion of the morning. In fact, I am thinking I will return there next Tuesday when we return to Tokyo. But closing in near 4 pm, Shannon and I headed to Disney Sea where the price is discounted after 4. Several train connections, including a special one (the JR) lead us to Disney Sea, which is actually just outside of Tokyo although everything says likewise. To our sad, sad surprise, the 3,100 yen (about 30 dollars) was more like 4,800 (50) as the weekend is a different discount. This was a bad omen. Inside, we were quickly fascinated with the scenery and detail. Being that it was celebrating its 5th anniversary, I was very impressed with the cleansliness and authenticity in replicating Venice, Morroco, and Maine. All themed areas were based on the water (hence the title). Within a few minutes I was watching a worker sing something kin to "Mama Mia" in Japenese on the gondola. Minus that, you would think you were in Italy somewhere. Two amusing things about visiting a familar American icon in another land. One. Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse sound oh so funny when they are speaking Japanese (especially Donald Duck). Two. Riding familar rides with Japanese dialogue makes this trip worth it autmatically and wins brownie points for proving I am easily amused. Long story not explained, we ended up leaving pretty early. I was pretty beat and was quite confident I had logged in at least a marathon (14 by 8:30 for sure). We left purchasing NOTHING, including no dinner, in protest to the steep entrance price. Bedtime- 11 pm.

Monrail, not free. About 2 dollars one way. This ride lasts 2 minutes or so. I will admit that the handle bars and windows were cute. There were neat display cases also, but I'm going overboard on photos already.

The Next Morning/Treasure Hunting:

Before departing for Japan, I thought I'd take another trip through the city. I was so glad to have bumped into Clare, a member of our group who is an avid sailor. She was messing around with her Garmin (GPS navigator). I asked her what she was doing and she said she was seeking gem catches. I asked her what the heck that meant and without understanding what she was talking about, she convinced me to go along. At first, I kept thinking, "Why are you doing this? This is weird," but she quickly impressed me by hopping on and off subway lines landing us in a remote location. She explained that there are international treasure spots around the world, and using your GPS navigation system, it is a little like going treasure hunting for these remote, random spots. She hits the location on her system and a digital compass leads us north. We go down small alleys and streets, not even caring about street names or how to get back. It leads us into a cemetery. I am still thinking at this point, "What a mistake! What am I doing?" But the cemetary fascinated me. It was so tranquil and peaceful. Clare declares we are within .3 miles of the spot. It leads us to a large tree. She finds a stick and locates a small box in the branches. Upon opening it up, there is a log, a trinket present, and some stickers. She enters our name in the logs, takes a boomerang key chain and replaces it with an item, and then places it back in the tree. I was sold at this point. We were treasure hunters! She then notices that her system locates another catche. We head off in that direction and have problems when it stops and says the spot is within 20 feet. Clare then opens her laptop for one clue, which tells us, of all things, that the spot is next to the dog Habichi. The clues also included some descriptions: a maple leaf on the headstone, a gate (found around some of the plots) and the word Mon. Considering there were hundreds of plots and they were all in Japenese, we still struggled to find it. A cemetery worker passes by and we ask, "Arf, arf?" and rest our hands on our face like we are sleeping. The man acknowledges what we are asking and tries hard to tell us that, yes, it is close by, but he is not sure where. We gave ourselves 5 minutes to find it. We lost. Oh well. It was really fun. This was all before 9 am. We made it back in time to get on the bus for Fujisawa.

Fujisawa/Chigasaki: Instead of staying in Chigasaki, our hotel is in Fujisawa. I lucked out and got the big room. It is a great size compared to the others. It even has additional furniture and storage room. But is nothing compared to the Hotel Otani with its Versace and Gucci stores as norm. Our tour guide said it is very, very rare to be able to see Mount Fuji in Tokyo, but on our way out it was very easy to see it. My camera couldn't capture its image very well from the moving bus though. Below is a sad attempt, but we are going to another location this week (compared to the Swiss Alps, including the cable cars on the wires) where we should be able to see it easily and up close. Another neat thing we did during the trip was travel in an underwater tunnel. I thought of Eli, thinking he would just love it.

My first glimpse at Mount Fuji!

First impressions: Oh, you mean not everyone dresses to the nine all the time? I was really under the impression that everyone in Japan dresses extremely sophistacted all the time. Even at Disneyland, the majority wore expensive, elaborate outfits with HEELS! High ones. Although rural, it has more of a rural European feel lined with shopping stores. Two themes for stores. Games and Hawaiian stores. Within a block there were two Hawaiian stores and one Hawaiian resturant. I'll have to find out why. I think I prefer it here over Tokyo. I didn't realize how fast my life had adjusted to the craziness here. It feels nice to have a slower pace of life, with bikes strolling the streets. More info. to come!

Tomorrow: Jokenji Temple, Chigasaki City Museum of Art, Southern Beach, Kamakura, the Great Buddah (if you saw the picture, you'd know it), and Hase Temple.

Fish, Fish, and Fish-A Rainy Trip to the Fish Market

2006-10-05T16:54:00.000-07:00

Live, live, live. Most things were living. I think I saw leeches being sold, and I swear some got out and were crawling around on the floor. No, I don't know what the red thing is, but I assure you it is not a tongue and it came from the sea.

So...I make way into the lobby to meet for a trip to Sumo Wrestling practice. We are then told that reservations must be made before going. So here is a group of people up at 5am for no reason at all. Luckily, I overslept for the Fish market trip the day before. And luckily another girl, Patricia, also hadn't gone. We quickly left for an adventure to the fish market. Bad news was that because it was unplanned we left with NO IDEA on how to get to the market at all. But things worked perfectly, down to the lack of an umbrella by Patricia (an elder lady came and said, "Here," and handed her a nice umbrella, to the taxi cab I caught when giving up on the way back. I really enjoyed taking and bath before going with her for breakfast after returning. She moved from Chile in her late 20s. Very spunky lady!
The Fish Market:
What's the big deal about fish?!? That was what I was thinking before we ventured on this random trip. But it was amazing. Really amazing. I am still amazed at what I saw. First important tip- WATCH OUT! There are men on little buggies and they will run you down in a heartbeat. Really. They mean business. So, it essentially looked like something from the open air market but mixed with a busy wearhouse. We were told to just go back to find the auctioning. And once we got there, huge crowds of men were bidding for fish. Large fish. Expensive fish. Rhe first went for 137,000 yen. That is about 1,000 US dollars. Here is a picture of what it looked like. Unfortunately my camera battery died shortly after and my trip back meant a lack of photographs of fish I never, ever knew existed. One looked like a made-up item from the prehistoric times.

Why did I take a picture of a lobster before my battery died? I don't know. It was huge. You can't tell in this picture. I got another photo of some eels, but figured there are only so many fish photos one needs in their life.

Tommorow's plan: A run by the Imperial Palace with Lisa (she needs 18 miles, I need 14), a trip to the Harajuku and Ginza district (fashion districts) and maybe Disneyland in the evening. Just playing it all by ear. Will post later :) I may not have access to a computer for a few days as we will be leaving for Chigasaki soon Sunday morning. Note: Sumo wrestlers was reserved but I passed for my running commitment to Lisa. I am so dedicated.

For Eli

2006-10-05T12:26:00.000-07:00

As requested by one small toddler, here is the anticipated Thomas the Train board game in Japenese. It cost too much, but has been the first present I bought. It was wrapped without asking. I'm debating Sumo wrestling practices or running. I think running might win, and I am okay with that.

FYI- If you click on the photo a larger image is available...get a close up for my babykins :)

Tokyo Lights, Sumo Wrestlers, Shrines/Temples, and Kabuki Dancers

2006-10-05T03:30:00.000-07:00

Left to right: Resturant entrance; typical food display for a resturant; a Kabuki dancer (I have photos of her getting ready-lots of make-up, and the lead and mercury make-up history was interesting).
Route to Japan:
Well, I guess I'll start with my one disappointment. I didn't realize there was an In and Out Burger close to the hotel in San Francisco. How could I have let that slip by in my mind? So maybe a quick overview from San Fransico on before proceeding...
The good news was that I found a Tennessean early on for the trip. To be exact, directly in front of me while checking in at the Nashville airport. We even ended up being roomates in San Francisco, which is odd because there were 200 people to pair up together. Anyway, here is a photo of her-Jennifer- and me at the House of Representives building.

First taste of being a celebrity: At this tour, many school age children were visiting for fieldtrips. They were eager to share peace signs and pose for pictures. This is what we were told to expect during our school visits.
Food:
Lots of it. Fresh. Rice. Rules. Raw. Beautiful. Presentation. Eating is such an interesting procedure. Our first night in Tokyo included a planned dinner outing with a Fulbright guest. Ours was an elderly man, Mr. Yasukouchi, who I could barely keep up with. His fast pace quickly lead us to the subway where I was able to witness the maximum limit possible-right up to a tiny fraction of an inch from the subway doors. I tried hard to pick up on all of the eating etiquettes (e.g. chopsticks stuck in the rice symbols death). Anyway, the food continued to come for two hours, and I found many places to be similar to this experience. Small, tiny bowls with beautiful presentations. I have been very surprised to find the food not only good, but satisfying, and flavorful.

On left: A resturant near the shrine. On the middle: Typical view from the many breakfast locations in the morning. Pictures don't do it justice. On the right: A GIANT blowfish with fish tanks around the entrance.

Senso-ji Temple and Asakusa Shrine:

My mind is getting tired. I'll explain later how the two were mixed together in Japan. I'll explain the fortune telling quickly. You grab a stick, find your match in a box, pull out your fortune. If you like it, keep it (and they are ranked 1-100 for best and worst). If you don't like it, tie it up to get rid of it. Our tour guide let us know the many rituals that are observed. The two below include cleansing your hands in the fountain (pour in right hand, rub together outside the bin) and cleanising your soul and problem areas (e.g. knees) with the smoke. It took me a minute to realize the elderly took this very serious. It made the 90+ stores nearby (literally) seem cheap and wrong. But I bought Eli a cool Thomas the train game, although the man tried warning me it's in Japenese. But Eli can't read English or Japenese. He'll love it.

That's Bush on the left. Politically, relationships are good and this poster can be found in many areas, post-cards, etc.

Bed:

I need to get to sleep. I have sumo wrestlers to check out at 5 am! Yeah, I know. I can't believe it either. I didn't even start yet. I could write a small novel. Good night...

I'm Ranked. Okay, Barely.

2006-09-24T20:02:00.000-07:00

Cute photo of the day-Eli! So the 5K was cancelled, and I saved myself 25 dollars. Lightning, smmf. Where's the danger in that? Who doesn't like to run in terrential rain with gusting winds headed at you? It adds a little fun to it all. Seriously, I'm okay; my 12 mile run today was just as fun. I casually finished it in 1:44, with an 8:40 pace.

So my make-up plans include an upgrade next weekend to a 15K (7:40 pace goal), followed by a 4 mile run. My old coach and team will all be there. Here's hoping I don't look like the washed up runner that got injured and can't run anymore.

Which reminds me of a bit of good news. My pitiful time at Moon Pie (from 1:17:00 to 1:20:39) still earned me an open state wide ranking. I am 50th overall at the 10 mile distance. Also to boot, there is only one other Spring Hillian in the state that got ranked at any distance. She just happens to be the 3rd in the state at the 5K distance (at my last 5K), and her husband is a professional bicyclist. Well, here it is in ALL its glory:

2006 Tennesssee Road race Rankings
open (that means ALL the ladies)
50 Angela Bunyi Spring Hill 28 1:20:39
06.17.06
Bell Buckle (Moon Pie)
TN97006RH

Reunions and Shoes (Good combination for conversation)

2006-09-20T19:08:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture of the man I love and cherish, the one who gives me daily massages, even when I don't deserve it, Brayan Bunyi.
Photo of the day-This is a picture from Brayan's ten year reunion in Knoxville. Why he wanted to go through that tortue, I don't know. Yuck.

I thought the best part was leaving the reunion for a trip into one of those hippy bars with a Jamaican band. We danced like we were jumping on our bed, and I didn't care one bit. It was a total blast!

Cookie fortune count-down: 11 more days until I leave for Japan. My first line of order for the trip-shoes. Shoes, shoes, and more shoes. First the slippers for the classroom. Then the pair of black and brown shoes that go with everything so you don't have to pack a lot of shoes. And to top it off, the piece de resistance...new running shoes. I think I have 20 pairs of Asics 2110 and 2100s. My new ones are green and gray and so good for support. I'm ready to break them in on the streets of Tokyo. Doesn't that just sound good?

PB and J for my 20 a day!

2006-09-19T20:56:00.000-07:00

So I'm eating at Spring Hill's finest, and only, sit down Chinese resturant as I open up my magic fortune cookie. It reads, " You will soon be crossing the great waters." I gaze in amazement as I notice that oil has seeped into the fortune cookie's paper (nasty). My astonishment fades as I calculate the number of fortune cookies read by the number of events that came true. I quickly determine, without the assistance of StatView or Dr. Wiemers, that fortune cookie reliability is found to be statistically insignificant (see, doctoral level stat classes that end at 10:30 at night really do work!). Anyway, I make my great crossing of the ocean on October 1-19. I am heading to Tokyo and Chigasaki in Japan. One for the fortune cookie!

So many things to be excited about considering it is a paid trip. But being a person of very little means, I was most excited to hear we each receive approx. 20 dollars a day for dinner. Are they kidding me? Don't they know I can remain a happy and sustaining being of life from PB and J every night? Again, I'm going to Disneyland (read previous post)! No, seriously, you can get there for half price after 4 pm, for about the same price. Food for thought...or is that food for Disneyland?

Hotel Images

So here is the image that specifically calls for me after searching sites from my email counterparts. I've never been so excited about a hotel in my life! With a bit of a running, I know just what I'll be doing after I scrub down and need a rest!

And a running update for those who care. I finished my last 5K in 22:22, which isn't that bad considering my body doesn't warm up until mile 2 and my former coach just gave me the official go ahead on entering races regularly (I hate injuries!). 1500 runners, and I was still 4th for my division and 25 female overall. Eli, age 3, was the first official toddler across the line in the 1/2 mile race! It's in our genes.

The Quest for First Place...

2006-06-29T18:47:00.000-07:00

THE STRAWBERRY STRIDE FESTIVAL-PORTLAND
I'm no elite in the racing world, but I do earn a place in my division in nearly every race I run. And I do have the quest of qualifying for Boston on my to do list this December. I bring to you a random story with a bad beginning and ending.
After returning from an injury I found myself earning 2nd place. 2nd place. 2nd place. Like a broken record. When I came directly behind the first place winner, in yet another 5k, I headed home with my medal determined to earn a coveted trophy like the 1st place winner received.
I barge into the bedroom and tell my husband, "That's it. I don't care where that next stupid 5k is, because I am going to run it and I am going to get first place." I jump on the web and find the nearest 5K, the Strawberry Festival, 1 1/2 hours away in Portland, Tennessee. Apparently, Portland has been declared the strawberry capital of the world. You will notice a theme of this througout Tennessee. Situated below Spring Hill, the current city that bears my being, is Columbia-the mule capital of the world. My other post is on Bell Buckle, the moon pie capital of the world. Is this weird or what?
So, that weekend I drive myself down to Portland, where there are indeed TONS of places that sell Strawberries. About 330 runners, and some of the top runners are present. I turn on my trusty Garmin with GPS capibilities, eat my magic beans (which is silly for a 5K, but desperate times call for magic beans), and I'm ready.
The race begins. Feeling great. Split one, 7:05. Perfect. I usually start off to fast (6:40) and die out by mile 2 1/2. Split 2, 7:05. Perfect pacing. Slowed down in mile 3 a little, but enough to know I was the top 5 females overall, and I could hear them say I was 20th overall as I came in with a time of 22:36. Enough to earn me 1st place in the largest competing division. And it's not even my PR (which was earned on my first 5K ever on a hilly course that I ran after doing a 10 mile run the previous day-boogling).
So award time comes. I can almost touch the trophy in my mind. I'm ready to bring this one home. "Look at this Brayan!" And the award for this first place win.....drumroll....

Oh yeah. Strawberries in a crate just like this photo. Oh, and a mug. My award meet its death in a banana/strawberry smoothie blender. The pain... all in vain.

All over the place today...

2006-06-29T11:42:00.000-07:00

Before-Me, Anisia (my niece) and Eli (age 3)

After-Donna, the grandmaster champ, passed me at mile 4 (on left), and Emily passed me at mile 2 and came in 2nd for our age division. Yes, they are both wearing their Boston gear. I'll get there soon...

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I ran the Moon Pie 10 mile race in Bell Buckle, TN two weekends ago. Last year I ran it in 1:17:00 flat. Being the confident person I am, I thought, "1:16, no problem." On mile two I already knew I was toast. Toast with jello legs. The weather was unbearable (94), I couldn't breath properly, and to make it worse I started getting passed by runners with headphones (this is usually a bad sign) and my former running partner .
The first 5 miles were ROUGH and much hillier than I cared to remember. The 4 1/4 mile hill was so painfully elevated that I made my first ever stop in a race. This lasted approximately .2 seconds as a lady screamed, "Come'n! Don't stop." Her tone let me know that if I didn't listen to her, she was going to hurt me. From mile 5 on I picked up the pace and started passing runners. If there was a female in sight, I focused on them and made sure I passed them. Then another. Then another. On mile 9 I passed a very athletic runner, but that took all of my mental powers to make that pass . But it was all in vain. There wasn't enough time to make up the slower pace from mile 1-4 1/2. The athletic female that I worked so hard to pass, passed me again on the last .10 of the mile. Encouraging as she was, "Come on. You can do it," just wasn't enough... and I came trudging in with a time of 1:20. That is an 8:04 pace vs. my 7:42 the previous year. Oh well. Can't win them all.
6th women in my division, 26th female overall. 850 runners.

Yeah, that's me third back. Okay, my competition doesn't look to tough,

but I did pass these two.

Fan of random photos

As I crossed the Moon Pie line...."I'm going to DisneyWorld!" Okay, I didn't scream that, but I really am going to DisneyWorld and Epcot next week. I'm even skipping a doctoral level course. I astound myself sometimes!

More random photos. This is my bedroom. This is what my bedroom should look like. This is not what it currently looks like. Being jobless for the summer, I have an obligation to be housewife-like at least twice a year.

Speaking of random...let us take a trip down random picture lane.

Maria, Brayan's sister, visiting us from her current home in Hawaii.

Home sweet home. Actually, I'm not too attached. We are planning on selling this soon. Anyone interested?

A moment on the beach...darn global warming. It's ruined any attempt at living near a beach.

2006-06-28T09:48:00.000-07:00

The world really is flat...

2006-06-28T09:36:00.000-07:00

I can't help but think about this book that I am reading at the moment, The World is Flat. I often do writing workshops and talk about some of the things good writers do. One of the things good writers do a lot is wonder. Life after death, supernatural events, where is that ant going? As a child, it was the thought of infinity that kept me up at night-restless. Could something really go on forever? How was that possible? My current fascination is how easy it is to create pointless, rambling website, such as this one. Why are there so many free sites? How many websites are there at the moment. This is my adult version of battling the concept of infinity. The prehistoric ages, pre 1995, where have you gone?
Anyway, enough babble. Here are some pictures for you Andrea. :)