My Roommate and I

Here are some lovely pics of me and my great roommate.



We like to snuggle in the morning. . .or night :)



Recently my green glasses broke but they were under warranty so I got them replaced. We were waiting for them to be ready and Bernice grabbed a lemon out of her purse so we took a pic with it. . . .the pic didn't come out though with us both. In the middle of it the salesman came up and interupted us :)



Waiting on the train



The scarf I made Berns for Christmas



A b'day pic

"A Silly Thing, My Heart Is."

"A Silly Thing, My Heart Is."
by Unknown


My heart is like a fickle feeling,
Fancying whoever or whomever comes a long.

To rest on those thoughtless words,
That were so carelessly spoken.

At which my heart reached out,
And took hold of these silly words.

Inhaling them
as if it hadn't heard a pretty word in ages.

Basking in it's 'emotions'
Allowing it's arms and legs to stretch out.

To soak itself like a child,
In a lake on a hot summers day.

What a silly thing to do,
A heart.

To open itself up
with the slightest of touch.

For the waters can chang in an instant
And the tide will go out in the end.

But the hope of happiness is there,
None the less.

Willing to chance and to bet it all.
What a silly heart, I have.

Yet it is the heart I was given,
The one He saw best fit for me.

In everything I do and did
my heart followed a long.

Reminding me that He is always with me
And that the Love I seek is always with(in) me.

In love or out of love,
Love will never leave me.

And in that I can rest.

Again this poem spoke to me. Not the best well written. . hey, it doesn't rhyme :) but It spoke to the "girly" in me. Thanks for indulging me in my emotional antics.

But Not to Me by Sara Teasdale

But Not to Me
by Sara Teasdale

The April night is still and sweet
With flowers on every tree;
Peace comes to them on quiet feet,
But not to me.

My peace is hidden in his breast
Where I shall never be,
Love comes to-night to all the rest,
But not to me.

So I love Sara Teasdale's poetry. I know it rhymes and may not seem deep but I enjoy them and they speak to me and that's what poetry is suppose to do, right? I just found this one and wanted to share it. I know you all know I'm a hopeless romantic.

Recently, I've decided that the best state of mind is one without any "interests" in mind. I like the smooth and calmness of a heart without the pains of love unrequited or unknown. People say solitude is lonely yet I welcome the consistancy and peace of mind of being in a place where love and things like it are amiss.

I have so much love in my life as it is, this life that I live. I have great friends and great family who love me and cherish me. I am 26 and loving every year that the Lord has blessed me with.
I have experienced romance and fancying. I've known heart ache and longing. I'm sure there will be more of these to come but for now, where I am now, I can appreciate the lightness that comes with a mind void of these things. For I hate the race around the table that comes with the wondering and unknown of another's feelings and thoughts. My mind is too weak and needs to be beaten into control. Too easily do I let it chase it's thoughts like a cat with it's tail. Better that it have no tail at all, really.

Passing time is welcomed like a friend who helps me let go of those thoughts and let go of the words and promises that were never there. But only imagined. For I am the worst magician and mind reader. Oh, the fool am I. But in my foolishness His wisdom and love came forward. Pressed into me. Wrapped around me. Engulfing me.

These are ramblings and my mind's wanderings.

I love knitting

I LOVE KNITTING

If you didn't know this but I love to knit. I've been on a role. I knit a teddy bear for my dad's b'day and here is my latest project



They are a bit big but I love them and really easy to make.

I am working on a sweater now. Button up and a dark brown almost black color. I hope it comes out well :)

Photos

I realized that I haven't been taking many pics. . . mostly because I felt pretty out of shape after Christmas. But since my time is winding down I'd like to record more of my time here and Japan in general. It's a small step but here are some pics. Hee hee. . .a very small step.

me and my roommate, Bernice.

My b'day present from Bernice.

My new sweater from Uniqlo. I love it. Hee hee hee.

11 WEEKS TO GO!!!

I can't believe that it is only 11 more weeks till I'll be in America again.


It's that time of year again. . . It has almost been 2 years since I first came to Japan. Last Saturday it was abnormally warm. . . something like 24 degrees in Tokyo (that is 75 degrees F). We opened the windows and let the sounds of Saitama sweep through our humble abode. Maybe it was the warm day, the wind through our house, the smell of sun through the windows but I was suddenly sent back 2 years when I first came to Japan. I easily remembered how it felt to first be in Japan and all the romance and thrill of being in a foreign country. As I say goodbye to this wonderful country I realize how lucky I've been to get to live here in Japan for 2 years. I wonder how I'll look back on these 2 years. . . will I stay in touch with the people I've gotten to know here? Will I remember the smell of tatami mats? Will I forget about the amazing little fruit and vegitable stand, in Warabi, I'd bike to every Saturday and Monday? Will I lose my litte British accent I've apparently aquired by living with a British roommate? Will these memories fade?

Probably some but not all and the exciting thing is that I'm always making new memories and that it's okay to forget some stuff. As they say when God closes a door He often opens a window. Well, I don't necessarily feel like He's CLOSING a door but He's just ushering me into another room in this HUGE house called life.

Just turning 26 (and loving it) time is wizzing (great word) by. With little time spent with my youngest niece and my first nephew on his way (yes, it's a boy! I firmly believe this. :)) I just realize that being near my family and being a part of their lives is sooo important. I'm just wondering how the Lord is going to help me with my 3 year itch becuase I'm pretty sure that heading home is for a good while. He heard the cry of my heart and is sending me home. Sometimes. . .nope, scratch that. . .all the time He knows what is best for us and knows our hearts better then we do.


But what I'll miss most about Japan a List

1. Bernice (also Charlene's faces)
2. Yukiko (even if we live far apart)
3. My school and students
4. My fruit and vegitable stand
5. My hairdresser
6. My old lady bicycles/ public transportation
7. Starbucks at the Shinjuku Southern Terrace exit/ Starbucks in Omiya.
8. Bumming with Bernice. . we're very good at it.
9. Indian food
10. My bedroom. . .it has been my sanctual and hide-hole. I love it and it is a great room. Minuse the easily steamed up windows but easily taken care of when you open the curtains during the day.

What I look forward to moving to Oregon

1. Being near my family
2. Being near Aubrey
3. Being near my friends ( Bean, Katie, the Hughes, the Wieggands, my parents old time friends, etc)
4. Watching my nieces and nephew grow up
5. Starting my photography business
6. Living in the North West again
7. Finding a good home church
8. The convenience of American grocery shopping
9. Watching new Harry Potter with Aubs and or my mom.
10. Starting new hobbies when I come home; back packing with my sister and her husband (don't know if they know this) and Glen, biking with my brother, Jason (again he doesn't know this), learning more arts and crafts stuff other then knitting, and etc.


Again, both of these lists are just short 10 point lists. . .there are many more things I will miss and many things more I'm looking forward too. Just because I didn't list it doesn't mean I'm not thinking it or feeling it.

Well, there is my 2 yen. Thanks for following this blog for 2 years. I know it's not the most exciting and I keep up with it very poorly but I've enjoyed our time together. I pray you all are doing well and I can't wait to see you if you're State side and I hope we can say goodbye if you're here in Japan. Loves.

February 11, 2009. . . It's the Age of Aquarius.

So I am officially 26 years old and am already loving it. :) Seriously love getting older.

Today I had a total sloth day with my roommate and my friend, Joy, from CA. We all watched the good Pride and Prejudice (BBC version) and then Bridget Jones. We had Pizza and loads of snacky food. I am in pain. We are all in pain. Ugh. . . . here are some nice pics.



The night before :) We started early actually



We made Puppy Chow for the cake instead of a traditional cake.



Bernice has never had Puppy Chow before.



Me opening my presents.



Me and Joy in the morning.



She caught me



Yay, for shakes in the morning





This is a special cake thing that Aubs, a friend from Paraguay, sent me. Sorry Aubs. . . I didn't really care for it :*(





Relaxing and digesting



Okay, funny thing with these pizzas. . .we ended up with 3 medium pizzas and a large because they kept messing up our order (being delivered for free). They had to come to our place 3 times. Sad but we had a lot of pizza in the end.



I love my Roommate :) She's sooo cute. Even if she's eating a pizza with bacon, potatoes, and mayo on it. Weirdo. :)


Well, that was my b'day in a nutshell. Oh, I finished knitting a slipper set and did some more on my sweater. It was very productive feeling on that side of it all but we did just bum around in my room with futons layed out across it.

I'm soooo excited about coming home soon!!!! Yayayyayay.

May 4th

I am coming home MAY 4th!!!!!

Yup, my ticket is bought and I am heading home May 4th and will arrive at PDX around noon. I am soooo excited and can't wait. I know I'll miss things about Japan and it will be hard to adjust to life in America but I am also looking forward to being near my family, starting my business, and finding a good home church. Yayyayaya!!! I will miss the food here, the public transportation, the bicycles, and the hair dressers here :) But it will be great to be at home and be able to celebrate birthdays, holidays, etc with my family and to be near my nieces and soon to be nephew (well, I think that Wendee's and Paul's newest one will be a boy) as they grow up. So . . .yayayyayy to new things and changes in life. I love you all and am sooooo grateful for your prayers and support!!! Blessings and if you're an Oregonian. . .see you soon.



My new haircut