School

We started school today. Because we are in TLF's and all of our household belongings are in boxes, we are sort of limited to what we can do. Friends from the States are sending math and science for me. We have stuff to start working on Japanese culture, and we still have our language Cd's so we can learn Japanese. I have a book on Kanji that I'm trying to learn...so far I can draw 1-10 in Kanji, that's a start! I was going to say spell, but it's more of drawing!

Dad is working a night shift and so we needed to stay out of the TLF.

Here we are outside of our door...tired, dazed, sort of confused...yep that's me in the morning!
I'm really tired, so I'm not really smiling in a lot of these...I tried though!

We went to the library to get books. Then we went to the Weasels Den. This is a inside park here on base...it seems appropriate to name a joint for kids The Weasels Den...but it's named for some airplane.

The Tree House in the Weasels Den


It was to noisy at the Weasels Den, so I walked back to the library to get some work done. I got a lot done. There really isn't much that I can get distracted with while at the library. That was something i always had trouble with in TX. so many shiny things on my desk to look at!

We got dinner and then I went back to the library.

Our house again!

We went to the house again. It's about 4 miles from the side gate, but it takes about 15 minutes to drive to it...the traffic is very slow. The fastest I've seen the speed limit is about 70 KM....the only place you drive that slow in the States is Oregon. Texas speed limits vs Japanese speed limits...hmmm, let's go with the 80 mph!

The field behind the house had been plowed. I hope it isn't more houses going up. I'm hoping the farmer is going to plant some cabbages or something!

The ride fields (I give up trying to spell what they are called!) at the opposite end of the street from us.

It is the most beautiful place I've ever seen

This is us on the "back porch"

This will be the kitchen/dining room

It has everything I want...wide open fields, mountains, trees, and snow in the winter!


This has nothing to do with the house, but I need to say it! Riding shot-gun on the left side of the road is one of the scariest things I've ever done! The roads are tight and there isn't very many places to go. There isn't a shoulder, and it will cost you everything you are worth if you drive into the farmers crops. It seems like everything is going to smash into you. Every time you take a turn it feels like you're going to crash into the curb. I'm sure the driver feels the same on the right side with all of the traffic! I'm not sure I want to learn to drive here....we'll see.

The Park

On the same day that we went to the Sukiyas, the Japanese restaurant, we went to the park. The errands that I mentioned was trying to get cell phones for Mom and I and putting down money for a house for some people coming into town in Sept.

These guys are up there trimming the trees with little, little, clipping sheers

We found a park right outside the man gate



She's so cute!

It's the same one we went to earlier in the week...the one with the zip line

Chopsticks, part II

We ran errands off base and decided to get lunch off base. It was funny. The waiters brought me a menu, I thought it was because everyone else had one and we ran out. My menu was in English and so I knew what I was ordering. Everyone else's was in Japanese...I didn't know.

The waitress came after we pushed a button that ringed throughout the whole restaurant. Mom ordered. After the waitress left Mom said, "I don't know what I ordered, but it looks good."
"Oh, that's the mega beef bowl. It has rice." Mom was really impressed, she thought I was reading Japanese.

They then brought ME the water, and the food, but took Mom the bill. I guess it was because I was the man of the group that they brought me everything, including the English menu.

It was cool. The lady had a little cell phone looking thing that she used to type in our orders...like a hand held register. Pretty cool!

Eating rice with chopsticks is sort of hard!

The less adventurous got ice-cream



It was sticky for the little ones, but mine wasn't real sticky.

"Our House"

After church we went to the site of where they are building our house. It will be ready at the end of September....it is going to be very pretty!

Looking down the street

The horse corrals

our view on one side of the house

The front


The neighbors on one side

The view on the other side

All we need is a lion by the vending machine and it would look like a scene from the Safari

Surveying the land


Even though we aren't living there right now, it felt really good to be there. It's a taste of what our new life is going to be like. It really cheered me to think, "this is where I reside," it's not a camp site in S. Dakota, it's our house. It also helped me to think how life will be normal again....we've been living out of a suitcase since mid-May, and have been running like crazy people since mid-March. I can't wait!

The Obon Parade, part III

More of the float carrying action...there were some Americans in there!

These guys were really wild...I'm not sure who they are though.

And then the JR. Sumo wrestlers went by. From the front they seemd alright...wearing a tunic from the waist down to the ankles. But once they passed us....I reached over and put my hands over Arielle's eyes. Dad and blacked out the bad stuff...that way my blog doesn't get picked up for porn or anything.



This guy jumped out of the parade and sat down next to Alex...priceless

I'm not going to lie, this picture scares me

The Obon Parade, part II

Here is some more pictures.

This picture has gone international!

We found a park with a train and zip line. The zip line was a lot of fun...something you don't get in America!



I had no idea they were fans of Michael Jackson. I saw them coming and was like, "There's a whole herd of 'em!"

They were doing Michael Jackson dances and moves...it was really funny, actually!

And then they had dancers in kimonos. There were male/female/Japanese/Americans doing this.

And then musicians came by

More of the sword fighting


There were booths set up all up and down the street. There was a lot of stuff to look at...and to take in. Talk about feeling overwhelmed!

The Obon Parade, part I

I am putting a disclaimer on this post!

There was a big parade right outside the main gate and so we went to see it. You always see pictures of these sort of thing's in books; so it was strange to be living it!

This was the largest float. This was the only one that I saw that wasn't being carried on peoples shoulders! They actually carried them. The Americans went by with a float...it was sort of amusing looking at the difference between the Japanese and the Americans. The Japanese were concentrated and almost solemn. But then here came the American crowd! A beer in one hand, and holding the float with the other...while throwing it in the air!

Everyone was throwing their floats in the air and yelling something that almost sounded like, "Russia!"

This is a guy...I'm not really sure what was with all of the cross-dressers. If this was in America, I would left long before this guy showed up!



Your guess is as good as mine!

This just looked so..."Japanesey," it's the picture you see in all the books about Japan..so I took a picture!

This is that first one, only in the dark. This one was so big it was having trouble with the narrow roads. It actually hit a light post once.



I'm not 100% sure who they are...but they had bamboo swords and were fighting, so here it is!


There is a LOT of pcitures, so I needed to do it in two parts. I may even need to do it in 3! I loved the parade. As they would say in Aladin, "It's just so magical."