Bucket List 2

The Bucket List.

Place an 'X' by all the things you've done and remove the 'X' from the ones you have not. At the bottom of the list, add something you've done that's not already on the list. NO EXPLANATIONS! If someone asks you about something, then fine - explain away. Tag 20 friends (including me) and then publish.

Things you have done during your lifetime:
( ) Gone on a blind date
(x) Skipped school
( ) Watched someone die.
(x) Been to Canada
(x) Been to Mexico
(x) Been to Florida
(x) Been to Hawaii
(x) Been somewhere tropical
(x) Been on a plane
(x) Been on a helicopter
(x) Been lost
(x) Gone to Washington, DC
(x) Swam in the ocean
(x) Cried yourself to sleep
(x) Played cops and robbers
(x) Recently colored with crayons
(x) Sang Karaoke
(x) Paid for a meal with coins only
( ) Been to the top of the St. Louis Arch
(x) Done something you told yourself you wouldn't.
(x) Made prank phone calls
( ) Been down Bourbon Street in New Orleans
(x) Laughed until some kind of beverage came out of your nose & elsewhere
(x) Made a snowman
(x) Caught a snowflake on your tongue
(x) Danced in the rain
(x) Written a letter to Santa Claus
(x) Been kissed under the mistletoe
(x) Watched the sunset with someone
(x) Blown bubbles
( ) Gone ice-skating
(x) Gone to the movies
(x) Been deep sea fishing
(x) Driven across the United States
( ) Been in a hot air balloon
( ) Been sky diving
( ) Gone snowmobiling
(x) Lived in more than one country
(x) Lay down outside at night and admired the stars while listening to the crickets
(x) Seen a falling star and made a wish
(x) Enjoyed the beauty of Old Faithful Geyser
(x) Seen the Statue of Liberty
(x) Been on a cruise
(x) Traveled by train
(x) Traveled by motorcycle
(x) Been horse back riding
(x) Been to Disneyland --- or Disney World
( ) Truly believe in the power of prayer!!!!!
( ) Been in a rain forest In baltimore...aquarium
(x) Seen whales in the ocean
(x) Been to Niagara Falls
( ) Ridden on an elephant
(x) Swam with dolphins
( ) Been to the Olympics
(x) Walked on the Great Wall of China
(x) Been water-skiing
(x) Been snow-skiing
( ) Been to Westminster Abbey
( ) Swam in the Mediterranean
(x) Been to a Major League Baseball game
(x) Been to a National Football League game
(x) Thrown up after riding a roller coaster or other carnival ride
(x) Buried a pet
( ) Auditioned for a television show
(x) Peed in the woods
( ) Visited the Taj Mahal
( ) Been to Iran
( ) Given birth
( ) Walk on the bridge at Royal Gorge
( ) Been knocked out
(x) Been to a National Hockey League game
( ) Been to Jamaica
(x) Won a school spelling bee
(x) Been on TV
( ) Hit a 'hole in one' in golf (i.e. not miniature)
(x) Spoke with someone over 100 years old
( ) Been to all 50 states
(x) Been to the top of the Empire State Building
(x) Fallen asleep in church
( ) Been to a World Series Game
( ) Been to a High School Football State Championship Game
(x) Wet your pants
(x) Lied to your mother
(x) Rode the NYC Subway
( ) Been to Africa
(x) Stood at the Continental Divide
(x) Been rock climbing
(x) Spoken more than one language
(x) Eaten fried grubs from a vendor in Bangkok
(x) Went scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef
( ) Ridden a gondola in Venice
(x) Saw the Vegas lights from above
( ) Been to the Alps
(x) Gotten married
( ) Seen a play on Broadway
(x) Been Tailgating
(x) Found the love of your life
( ) Been to a Bob Dylan Concert
(x) Gotten a tattoo that really meant something
( ) Been to CREATION!
(x) Stood on top of a mountain
( ) Found Jesus
( ) Appeared in a play outside of school
(x) Danced like nobody is watching
( ) Ran a full marathon
(x) Egged someone's house
( ) been to the Vatican
(x) Dissected a human
( ) Ran into someone famous
(x) Made a difference (for the good) in a someone's life
(x) Found the value of the friendships you have
(x) Been on a sailboat
( ) Been to a game at Fenway Park
(x) Had a song or poem written for you.
( ) Had a book dedicated to you
( ) Been to Apple Studios in London
(x) Been to Mt Saint Helens & Mt Ranier in the same day
(x) Been to the top or the world trade center
(x) Rode in a boat along the Mekong Delta
(x) Been to the top of the Taipei 101 building
(x) Been in the tallest hotel in the world
(x) Gave back more than you took
(x) Camped near Denali
( ) Been to Mile ZERO
( ) Biked down a volcano
(x) Been scuba diving
(x) Been on a jet ski
(x) Saved an animal
(x) Been to a pow wow
( ) Been to the top of Eiffel Tower
( ) Caught bird poop in your hand more than once
(x) Eaten sushi in Japan
(x) Watched the sunset from inside Angkor Wat
(x) Been snowboarding
(x) Eaten at Pho 2000 in Saigon

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Last Year on In My Words...Kitty Land

AP picture of wounded Marine sparks debate - Yahoo! News

I am sorry, this picture should not have run if the family asked for it to not be used (unless the Marine had previously signed an agreement with the embedded journalists to include pictures and quotes).

It doesn't matter to me what the AP feels needs to be expressed in the news or not, what matters is what that family wants. Why is it that their privacy can be invaded in the name of news, when you have to get permission from everyone else to use their likeness in the media?

Sure, I would agree that most Americans probably don't have a clue how much the servicepeople sacrifice so they can shop at Walmart and bitch about gas prices and that showing bodies in the news would help to clarify that issue, but they were specifically asked by this family to not use this specific photo...several times in fact, and they still did it anyhow.

It is appalling to me their complete lack of compassion and taste in this case.

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Two Years Ago on In My Words...Sentimental: Good or Bad

Sen. Ted Kennedy Dies At 77 : NPR

I knew he was struggling against the cancer, but I didn't know it had already won....so sad to hear.

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Three Years Ago on In My Words...Unsatisfying

Looking Back

This weekend has been a walk down memory lane...

When we were still in the States, I started on a project to convert my journals (that I have kept since 1981) to electronic versions before the spiral binders all completely fall apart. I got quite a bit done during that time, in between school, volunteering for Google and maintaining our household. Then of course we moved to another country and projects were put on hold (yes, there are more than just one).

It has been nagging me for a long time but I just haven't be able to convince myself that I have the time to deal with it, so I haven't. But I have decided that none of these projects are going to get done if I don't make time for them and it is just a matter of managing my time into little bits...doesn't matter if I get them all done in one sitting, I just need to take little bites out of them until they are done.

So, for some reason, yesterday (Saturday here), I decided to at least figure out where I was with the journal project and get it organized. I went through them all (I brought them this time around so I could continue this project, last time I left them in storage) and figured out exactly where I was. Turns out, I am in the middle of 1985.

So I grabbed the one I was working on and the next one and decided to get to work. Now converting them to electronic copy entails actually typing them all in to my computer (spelling and grammar errors included). This is actually time consuming for several reasons, mostly though, it is due to the fact that a lot of it is in pencil and hard to read so I have to actually go over things before I can start typing.

Okay, so I told myself as a goal for the weekend, I wanted to get the two notebooks done (the one I was already in and the next one). I worked on it last night while watching a movie and then this morning while watching a movie.

The funny thing is that during this time in my life, I was REALLY into Prince....loved the 1999 album and the Purple Rain albums...and listened to them constantly. So you know what comes on the movie channel as I am finishing up the second notebook this afternoon? PURPLE RAIN!!! Wow, what a flashback...nothing takes you back like music can.

One thing that really struck me is that (at least at this point in my writing), I dont't really talk about what I am doing or listening to or watching at the movies...I am purely focused on crushes, and friends....I guess at that age, nothing else much matters. In most of the journals, I don't even have the year listed so I had to figure out some if on my own yesterday. I guess you also don't think that 25 years down the road, you will be reading what you wrote when you were in highschool.

I wish now that I had written more about what was going on around me, what music I was listening too (I only know about Prince because I remember it), what movies I was watching, where we were living, what my sister was doing (besides annoying me)...I will start paying more attention to what I write in my journal currently so that I do cover some of those things....it seems like otherwise it is just the ramblings of my mind rather than an actual account of my life at that time. Although now that I blog my everyday activities, I guess it might be okay for my journal to just be the ramblings....who knows.

I also noticed that I can spend several notebooks in one month because I was writing it in several times a day depending on what was going on in my life at the time. But as an adult, I have smaller handwriting and I don't write as frequently, so one notebook (I have switched to bound Mead notebooks) lasts me at least a year if not longer. I guess I have other outlets for my feelings and thoughts and that is part of it as well.

It is so funny to read my journals and realize what a teenager I was and how every thing that happened was so important and life or death. I was convinced that whomever I had a crush on at the moment was forever (which we all know is not the case) and that my life would never be right if Mom and Dad didn't let me do something, or my friends at school didn't like what I said or wore that day. It is amazing how small your world is when you are a kid and how easy life really is even though you don't realize it at the moment.

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Four Years Ago on In My Words...Little League World Series

Making A Cup Of Coffee

I have fallen in love with the one serving coffee filter you can find here....it makes coffee for me so quick, with less work, and definitely less mess...

First I turn on the hot water pot, this one is from Taiwan and makes a pot of hot water in the time it takes me to brush my teeth. It is great for tea, the French press, cups of soup, or my individual coffee filters.

This is the individual pouch...I get 30 of these in a bag for about 10 bucks.

This is what the filter looks like when out of the bag. It has directions for opening printed on the side of the filter.

You open the filter by tearing along the line...making sure to knock all the grounds to the bottom first.

Fold the side handles out and then pop the back piece in to make a little hook.

You fit the now open filter pack on the top of your cup with the side handles and the little back handle.

You pour the hot water in, and let it drain. You have to do this several times to get the cup full but it still only takes a few minutes total.

It is actually handy to use the wrapper as a holder for the spent coffee filter.

And finally, my finished cup (waiting of course for a teaspoon of sugar and some milk).

I hope that someday when we live back in the US, I will be able to find these somewhere...they do not taste like instant coffee, but like freshly brewed drip coffee and the hard thing about getting addicted to something from a new place is that you might not find them later on when you live somewhere else.

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Three Years Ago on In My Words...Rolling, rolling, rolling

Round 1

Yesterday was my first time at Round 1...an indoor play area for adults and kids alike. We had a girls night there and I thought it was a great opportunity for me to find out if it was the kind of place I would want to go to more than once and perhaps even bring the better half and some friends to.

I HAD A BLAST...and we only saw a portion of the place. It has 7 floors total. The top one is an open air area that allows for playing team sports against/with other people. Then the 5-7th floors are part of the Spo-cha which is a "pay an entrance fee and play all you want during the time limit" kind of place. It has arcade games, athletic games you play against a computer, roller skating, pocket bike racing, massage chairs, food, karaoke, and tons of other things to do.

I managed to do the following in the short time I was there last night:

-played a few rounds of computer golf (just one hole each time)...it was kind of like the instructors driving simulator you see at golf stores
-played a game of tennis against the computer, which I am determined to do better at next time
-kicked boxed this computer bag that yells out numbers in Japanese and you have to hit the right number to score...Heather beat my score
-watched a pocket bike race
-sat in an awesome massage chair
-checked out the karaoke room (although we didn't karaoke while we were there)
-rode a bull and practically got thrown off it...note to self..don't wear shorts on the bull
-kicked a soccer ball against a computer (need to have shoes on for this one next time)
-shot an air gun at targets
-tried to get a prize out of an arcade game but didn't

Floors 1-4 have bowling, an arcade, darts, karaoke, relaxation and food for individual prices. We paid for 90 minutes in the Spo-cha part and it was a ton of fun...and in the summer, this was a great way to spend some time in the AC too...of course, we went on a Tuesday night so it wasn't super busy but I bet the weekend nights and days are crazy.

You can get membership for 500 yen a year (about 5 bucks) and that gets you 200 yen off the Spocha each time you go and discounts of the other paid floors if you chose to do them.

I looked for a website for the company but I don't see one. I can't wait to go again...I need to practice up on some of the stuff so I can give J a run for his money...heehee...

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One Year Ago on In My Words...Astronomy Picture of the Day

NASA - The Perseids are Coming

It is that time of the year again. This brings back wonderful memories of long hours spent staring at the night sky with my parents in our backyard when I as a kid.

The August meteor showers were always so beautiful and a great reason to just sit back, relax and watch the stars (not that we don't have a good reason to do that everyday).

So I am thinking that perhaps between 9pm and 11pm tonight (Wednesday for me), I might give it a go and see if I can see any of the "Earthgrazers" as well. Since we have had some cloudy skies the last few nights and it is supposed to be the same tonight we might not get a decent "full showing" but I can keep my fingers crossed that I might get a few. I know the moon will be bright and beautiful later on, and that might interfere with early morning viewing (since it seems to be coming up rather late at night), but from 9pm to 11pm, (if I can find a dark spot) might just be worth it.

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Two Years Ago on In My Words...Back On Island

Typhoon pummels China, forcing nearly 1M to flee - Yahoo! News

It is always amazing to me to read the destruction that these storms cause other places. I guess we are just built for the storms here because we really do not have much damage other than trees even in the strongest of storms.

I have only lost power on one occassion and that was a super typhoon (cat 5) in all of the typhoons I have been in. I guess the smaller villages and low lying areas are what get hit the most in these other countries. We are pretty urban here but I know that some of our smaller islands that only have bamboo and nipa huts do suffer.

It is so sad to see that something I get excited about experiencing is so detrimental to so many others...

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Four Years Ago on In My Words...Led Zeppelin

Goodbye Typhoon

Today was the last of the wind from the typhoon that almost was...I shouldn't say that since Taiwan is being pounded by it right now, but it almost was for us.

We did get some decent rain and wind from it but no mayhem or disaster...and of course, no days off...in fact I volunteered one day at the giftstore and the weather kept customers away but was not bad enough for me to close early and head home...haha.

I am keeping my fingers crossed that there will be another storm out there on the horizon. I probably should get some of my yardwork done (why is it so hard for me to get out and do yardwork these days?) before we do get another, but I have so many other "projects" calling my name...

Oh well, on to the next storm we go and hopefully some opportunities for photos and video will present themselves.

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EIGHT Years Ago on In My Words...Seawall

Typhoon Morakot Update

Typhoon Morakot is not going to come close enough for us to worry too much at this point, but we are still getting some nice wind and rain from it. You can see from this satellite image why we are getting weather even though we are out of the target zone. Our island is the one right on the center line above the storm. Taiwan is the one to the left in the path of the storm.

I have heard reports of objects flying around, so I recommend stowing anything that is light just to be safe. I put away a few things last night that were loose in our backyard.

From this other picture, you can see that this storm that everyone thought was going to stay small is supposed to get up to Cat 4 strength later today....if this were to turn and hit us, we would be in for some great weather for sure. I need to get down to the seawall today sometime, because I am sure the surfers are out in this for sure.

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Four Years Ago on In My Words...Microsoft BS

Typhoon Morakot

Well, it is cranking up a bit and will be a Cat 2 storm as it passes us but it is not going to pass us as close as it was going to yesterday. It will only be within 130 miles of us at 3pm on Thursday but it will be gusting up to 126 mph near the center.

I guess I will keep watching it to determine if I am going to put everything away or just the light stuff. Right now on the radar pictures, the storm is not very defined...kind of just looks like a spray of clouds rather than a definite hurricane...I guess we will see what the day holds...the reading I am posting here is from 3am this morning so we should get an update at 9am.

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Two Years Ago on In My Words...Back On Island

TS Morakot

So we have this little tropical storm sitting out there churning up. Right now it is not forecasted to be higher than Cat 1 by the time it hits us, but I am keeping my fingers crossed that it will ramp up a bit and give us a good storm.

If you look at this picture, where the last little marker is, is where we are...so we are looking at Thursday night/Friday morning right now. I am trying not to get too excited about it, although I did send out a word of caution and advice to some of my friends here that haven't been in a decent storm yet...just to be on the safe side.

I will see how things go tomorrow before I start getting too busy with strapping stuff down and the like...I have cargo straps for anything I plan to leave outside and then we have a garage area for protection for the car. I don't really have a lot outside right now...and the teak table and chairs are pretty heavy but I usually collapse them and strap them together to be safe...last thing I need is for a chair to get smashed through one of my wall-sized plate glass windows.

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Three Years Ago on In My Words...Now You See It, Now You Don't

Bring On The Heat

So it is 7am and these are our current conditions. It will only get hotter today and if we do get the 30% chance of rain, more than likely, it won't cool things down, it will just increase the humidity.

I really don't mind the heat here...I even enjoy the humidity too, but you do get used to sweating a lot, all the time. I guess I am just used to the fact that summer means sweat and I try to plan for outdoor things first thing in the morning or in the evening when the sun is low (or gone).

We had a picnic the other day at the beach and even in the shade, we were all sitting there sweating. Of course we didn't have any wind either and that is a huge factor here. We need wind.

Currently, there are no typhoons on the horizon and we could really use one. I love them and we haven't had a decent one in ages.

Anyway, I better get off here so I can get a couple of things accomplished outside before it gets too warm.

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Two Years Ago on In My Words...Hitting Bumps But Living Through It

Marking The Day

Happy Anniversary my love!!! These really have been the best years of my life and I am thankful everyday that we found each other. You are the best!!

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Three Years Ago on In My Words...My Love

Solar eclipse shrouds Asia in daytime darkness

It was so cool to be so close to the total solar eclipse today. We only had a 92% total here but it was still very cool. The sun was only a tiny sliver (much like the moon looks when it is just starting out for the month). My sister and I always called it a fingernail moon. This was a fingernail sun at the fullest part.

The sky was darkened like we were in a shadow and the temperature definitely dropped. We had some thin cloud cover but the camera and welding glass still allowed me to see through it to the sun. It seemed like it lasted a long time but it was really only a bit over 6 minutes.

I was kind of suprised that I couldn't see the moon at all as it approached the sun or even as it covered...it looked just like a circular shade was being drawn.

I found that the welding glass was the best for taking pictures and the reverse binoculars worked best for watching the progress when I wasn't taking pictures. I didn't want to watch it much through the glass because I didn't want to hurt my eyes even a little bit.

I think I actually got a few decent shots even if the sun looks green in them. I would like to get a solar filter for my telescope so I can check out the sun more often with it and perhaps get some shots of solar flares or spots sometime.

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Three Years Ago on In My Words...Catch Up

My Only Recourse

This may be it...I will be experimenting with different options for a pin hole viewer for the eclipse since the eclipse glasses seem to be sold out here on the island...I found this blog post that has directions for a pretty simple one...we'll see if I can get one that works for me...

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Two Years Ago on In My Words...Still At The Open

Solar Eclipse

Looks like I might get to see a "very close to full" eclipse of the sun on the 22nd of July around 10:50am. The full eclipse will be just north of us so we won't get the full meal deal but pretty darn close, which is cool since I haven't been in a location to see a solar eclipse in forever.

I remember when I was a kid, my dad went off to see one, I am not sure where he went for it but he brought back some cool pictures. I thought it was prett interesting. As kids, our parents were always pointing out the unique things in the skies to us. We would watch lightening storms from under the picnic table in the back yard. We watched for days and days for Skylab to fall in the 70s and we always watched the meteor showers in the August skies.

I have a pretty decent telescope now but I need to see if I can find some solar eclipse sunglasses here somewhere. I would like to get some pictures and even some video if I can through the telescope but I don't want to chance hurting my eyes. According to Wikipedia's website, you can watch it through a video camera or digital output without hurting your eyes but just going through the telescope, viewfinder on a camera or looking at it directly could be very bad. If I were to get the full eclipse, I could watch that but since we will be a bit off, it will never be complete and therefore dangerous at all times during the event.

This site has a lot of info on the eclipse as well as the links for webcasts from my part of the world if you want to check them out.

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Two Years Ago on In My Words...Lunar Eclipse

Update to Mishka's Reading

I updated my reading blog today with my reads from February thru June 2009. Check them out if you have a chance...

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Three Years Ago on In My Words...Bogged Down

Suicide bombers kill 8 at Jakarta Marriott, Ritz - Yahoo! News

This is why my mom gets nervous when we travel...

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Four Years Ago on In My Words...Grand Theft Auto

Cicada Time

July is a big month for cicada here in Southern Japan...they are called semi. They are very big and noisy here. We had them when I lived in Texas as a kid but I don't remember them being this huge or loud.

Anyhow, this year has been particularly loud...apparently some years there are lots more than others so perhaps this is a busier year. They seem to like the little tree in the middle of our pond so we are forced to be audience to their loud song each day during "semi season". Soon they will be gone.

This morning, I decided to get out and video tape some so I could have the sound as well as the pictures. I also took this picture with our video camera so you could see the detail of one and also see how big they are here. This one was about 3 inches from the top of the head to the edge of the wing.

I know I will miss them when they are gone as they are always a reminder that summer is finally here.

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Two Years Ago on In My Words...Heading Out

Me, Myself and I

Over the last few years I have noticed that the verbal (and now written) use of the word "myself" has evolved into something that is slowly driving me crazy. I do not claim to be an expert in grammar but this one is a peeve I just can't ignore. I have heard this incorrect usage spill from the lips of Americans in all spectrums of society (educators, sports figures, journalists, politicians, movie stars, students....etc). I don't watch enough international television to notice whether it is worldwide or not, so for now I am limiting my peeve to Americans. Now I am starting to see it in written word as well and that is very scary...

I think it stems from the fear of when to use "me" and "I" correctly. This is something that is drilled into all of us at a very early age. Regardless of the trama, substituting "myself" does not correct this or ease this confusion. It is becoming so commonplace that I expect that Webster's will adopt this new use and there will be no going back. Therefore, I am announcing my issues with it again, so I can say I made an effort.

Okay, so here it is. You CAN say "She bought the cake for my wife and me." You CAN NOT say "She bought the cake for my wife and myself." It just doesn't work that way, because if you were to take the wife out of the sentence (the true test if something is grammatically correct), it would be "She bought the cake for myself" and that just doesn't make sense. You can also say "Jack and I were married yesterday." You can not say "Jack and myself were married yesterday." I don't tend to hear the use of "myself" substituted for "I" as often as for "me" but it does happen on occasion.

Now that I have mentioned it, all of you will hear it all the time and it will drive you crazy too....so you can thank me later...ha ha. Great, I feel better now, getting that off my chest. Please remember that I am not an expert, and I am sure there are 47 other grammatical errors in this little blurb that someone could point out. I just had to get my particular peeve out in the open again (and now that I have, let us hope that I don't ever use "me, myself, and I" incorrectly or I will have hell to pay).

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Four Years Ago on In My Words...Me, Myself, and I

Chirping Madness

Okay, a similar little guy to this image almost drove me crazy last night. He was in our bedroom and would chirp super loud pretty much once an hour. Finally this morning, I was able to figure out where he was and chase him until he got tired and shooed him out the door. I knew I couldn't do another night of him in my room chirping for a girlfriend...it would have driven me insane.

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One Year Ago on In My Words...Irritation

New Friend....Not

It is a good thing that I am not the one in the family that hates spiders because this dude decided to take a little cruise out from the side of my desk while I was here on the computer earlier and at first I just saw it out of the side of my vision and thought it was our cat...then I remembered that she was outside so I looked to see and he was just hanging out next to the office trash can.

Of course, I can't let something that big crawl around in my house while I am sleeping so I had to get the Raid out and kill it but at least it didn't give me the heebie jeebies like it would have someone else I know.

Anyhow, this guy had a pretty decent wingspan so I tried to spread him out a bit after he was dead and put the thumbtack in there for perspective. He was easily 3 inches from leg tip to leg tip if not a bit bigger than that. This is the second big one like this I have seen in or near the house this week....must be spider season again.

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Three Years Ago on In My Words...Family Reunion

Flashback

Okay, I know this is a late post but I was in another country without Internet access when I found out about Michael Jackson's death. I was getting ready to hit the hotel gym and just turned on the BBC news for a second when I saw the "breaking news" story. At first, I thought it had to be a joke...I guess I didn't realize he was in bad health at all and I found it so hard to believe he was actually dead.

Anyhow, I am not a celebrity kind of person...yes, I have artists or actors that I like but I don't go all crazy over them and I don't feel like they are a member of my family when they die. So while I was completely shocked to hear of his death, and I did shed a tear, it wasn't so much for him or the loss of his talent on the planet as it was for more selfish reasons.

As my mom pointed out in her post Michael was a bid deal in my house when I was in junior high school. He was one of the first artists that I found on my own (most of my music interests up to that point were influenced by my parent's great taste). At the time, I didn't know his past, all I knew was that this great album came out with this really cute guy on it and the music made me want to dance. I grew up in a small town and we were a bit behind on trends but I did get the "Top 40" on the weekends and we had just gotten cable so I was glued to MTV. I remember when the Thriller video came out and it was such a huge deal. I "loved" Michael Jackson and did wear a single white glove at my junior high graduation (I wish I had the picture here with me to post but it is in storage). I learned to moon walk and taught my dad how to as well during that year of MJ. I loved all the songs on that album and I have it on CD now.

I stopped listening to MJ after the Bad album as my tastes changed but whenever I hear a song from the Thriller album, it takes me back to that year. It reminds me of being in between being a kid and being a grown up and not really being aware of anything outside my little world of school, friends and family. So I guess when I saw that he was dead, I was sad for his family and the loss of his talent for those generations that won't get to know how great of an artist he was, but I was a little sad for the loss of the icon of my preteen years and how much his music influenced my life and brings back those memories for me.

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One Year Ago on In My Words...Ocean

Typhoon Linfa

This may be the only day we can call it that...right now it is at Typhoon Category 1 but it is not forecasted to stay that way...we will definitely get some weather from it but mostly just more rain....

Today the sun is actually out and so is the humidity...so all that complaining everyone has been doing about the rain will be about how hot and humid it is today...haha. But we'll be back to rain probably within a few days.

Hope all this is not going to affect our attempt to fly out on a long weekend vacation next week...

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Two Years Ago on In My Words...Recycling

TS Linfa

Our first storm of the official season...isn't typhoon strength yet but might get there if conditions allow. We have had a few weeks of rain here (which is great for the area but not so great for outdoorsy fun). This storm is coming up near the tailend of that so we are looking at some more rain even if it doesn't hit typhoon strength.

We'll see if it turns, or pittles out before it gets near us....this second picture is from the Weather Underground and they only have it forcasted through Sunday with Taiwan as its target...we'll see how things progress.

In the meantime, I have been enjoying the thunderstorms but if we could get a hold on the rain for the evening time so we can enjoy the Salsa festival, it would be great!!!

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Three Years Ago on In My Words...Family Reunion

Why It Is Hard

My Mom just emailed me and my sister that our Grandfather is having problems. It is to be expected that as a person gets older there are various things that crop up but when you live far from home, it is hard to hear and imagine because everyone pretty much freezes (in your mind) at the time you left.

We have not lived in the same town with the majority of our family since we have been married...work and school just wouldn't allow it, but we were able to stay on the West Coast for a long time (which is where most of our family lives) so that was okay...we were only a car ride away.

For the last few years though, we have been a plane ride away and right now I am a very long plane ride away...it makes me feel terrible because I am not there, and I feel disconnected from my family.

I am hoping that the news we got is "worse case scenario" and things are not as bad as it sounds but I guess I need to prepare myself for the worse. I HATE that I am not there (although I don't know how much I would be able to help). I know it is hard on my Grandma to see him get older so much faster than he was before.

He will be 98 in September this year. I hope he knows I love him very much even from this distance.

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Four Years Ago on In My Words...Lights Out

BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | North Korea in plutonium threat

Is this guy just stupid? Does he not see that his little bit of power over his unfortunate country could be gone in a flash if he doesn't start to deflate his ego a bit? I feel sorry for the North Koreans having to deal with this guy and any of his relations.

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Four Years Ago on In My Words...Weight Loss

Darkness

Okay, it is so dark in my house right now that I need to turn lights on even though it is 9am...this is because we are in the midst of several days of thunderstorms. I love the storms...don't get me wrong but the waves of clouds do have me turning lights on and off periodically....haha.

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Four Years Ago on In My Words...Father's Day Trials and Tribulations

Elderly gunman kills guard at Holocaust Museum - Yahoo! News

Good grief...human beings never cease to astonish me...and in this case it is not a good thing. How do we even get crazies like this in the gene pool?

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2 Years Ago on In My Words...Recycling

15 Books

Don't take too long to think about it. Fifteen books you've read that will always stick with you. First fifteen you can recall in no more than 15 minutes. Tag 15 friends, including me because I'm interested in seeing what books my friends came up with (I'll tag people once this goes to Facebook from Blogger).

1. Hitchhiker's Guide the Galaxy Trilogy - Douglas Adams Discovered these in high school and immediately fell in love with his humor and way of thinking...helped me to start thinking outside the box and fueled my desire to write myself.

2. Last Chance to See - Douglas Adams
Read this one after college and it grabbed me from the start. His humor and horror at the way humans treat the world and the other beings in it helped me to see how much we need to change our ways.

3. Where the Wild Things Are - Maurice Sendak
This book just sticks in my brain from childhood...I think it was one of the first times I realized you can get a bit scared by a book.

4. Ishmael - Daniel Quinn
This book helped me to visualize and express all the things I already knew about the world and just hadn't be able to put into words or pictures. It changed my life and I highly recommend it to anyone.

5. The Shining - Stephen King
I am a huge Stephen King fan, have been since jr high, and this book will always hold a place in my mind because it was really the first full novel I read of his and it scared me to death.

6. The Chronicles of Narnia - C.S. Lewis
Was turned onto this series in 3rd grade and loved everyone one of them. Own them and read them over and over again.

7. The Griffin and Sabine Series - Nick Bantock
Discovered these books the night before heading to Japan the first time and they started me down a postcard road that I have not returned from, thankfully.

8. The Color Purple - Alice Walker
Read this in highschool and just felt like the author knew what was in my heart.

9. A Wrinkle In Time - Madeline L'Engle
Had this book read to me in 4th grade by Ms Capp and couldn't stop until I read the entire series...I think it inspired the science side of me as well.

10. Three Cups of Tea - Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin
Read this book a few years ago and decided that one person can make a difference.

11. Contact - Carl Sagan
Another one that inspired me to look at the world differently and also pushed me towards science.

12. Where the Sidewalk Ends - Shel Silverstein
Read this in jr high, I believe, and fell in love with his version of the world.

13. Are You There God, It's Me, Margaret - Judy Blume
My favorite young adult author, read everything she wrote and really related to the characters at a time when all girls are feeling very awkward.

14. The Lorax - Dr. Seuss
My first inkling of environmentalism...I was so saddened by the destruction of the land and trees.

15. The Salmon of Doubt - Douglas Adams
Finished after Douglas Adams died, but has some great insight to his life and beliefs, and made me think outside the box once again.

So there you go, they aren't all the deepest books but they all affected who I am today and the interests I have in science, the environment, volunteerism, and in writing.

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Three Years Ago on In My Words...Final Draft

US, SKorea militaries gird for NKorean provocation - Yahoo! News

This is just a little too close to home for me...hopefully egos will calm and wisdom will prevail...as much as North Korea's ruler is a pain in the butt, I don't think any of us want to deal with nuclear fall out...

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Four Years Ago on In My Words...Guilt

Caught Up To Me

Well, I have been going full throttle for some time now and last night it caught up with me. I have the startings of a head cold. I am going to try to lay low today (it is already 2:30pm and I just got home from running errands for a friend), and see if I can kick this thing.

I scalded my tongue at lunch when I was trying to be good and eat soup....very hot soup. Now I can't taste anything and the whole top part feels kind of numb....oh well, when I have a head cold, I can't taste much anyhow...haha. I guess the plus to being sick is that I don't eat much and that might help me in the whole weight loss thing...

The weather turned out to be gorgeous today and I had windows open for much of it...now it is time to close them down and dehumidify some just so I don't get any moldies...Chase was laying out on the deck in the shade.

I am supposed to be volunteering at the gift store tomorrow for 4 hours...fortunately, I can sleep in and still do that so that is what I plan to do, and I am hoping I will be feeling better....getting a cold is really not what I need right now...so many things on the To Do list and already not enough time...but I guess this is my body's way of forcing me to slow down....grrr.

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Three Years Ago on In My Words...Weekend at the Beach

Gotta Love This

I love this rice...it is Japanese rice (and if you have ever lived in Asia, you will know that all rice is NOT the same). These little packs come as two connected which you can break apart for just one serving. It is 100 grams of rice (about 150 calories) and is perfect if you want to make something with some rice in it but don't want to overdo it. I am trying hard to be more fit and portion size is always important so I love these little guys, and I love the fact that they warm up in the microwave in 1 minute.

There are different brands out there and some of my local friends have pointed out the ones that actually have really good rice in them. Some of the other brands are bigger portions though, so I like this mostly. It comes as a three pack (so 6 servings total) and it makes for quick little meals when I am eating on my own.

When I am cooking for more, I just cook rice in my rice cooker and I have three different types of rice on my counter....which one I use depends on the meal I am making.

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Two Years Ago on In My Words...Wait'Em Out

May Beach Cleanup

I went on a beach cleanup today. It was with a group I found in an article about the "green" efforts here on this island. I tried to go last month but was just not able to swing it so I was glad to be there today.

The heat and humidity have finally hit here, and that made for a hot morning working on the sand but I was glad I decided on flip flops and shorts instead of long pants and tennies...I did have lots of sunscreen on and that always makes me feel warmer.

Anyhow, we did a whole section of beach near one of the beautiful points (Maeda) here on the island. While we each only did a little part, altogether we picked up quite a bit of trash up from this area. I was proud to feel like I was giving back and I met some new people that care about the Earth like I do.

Edo, one of the guys in charge, was explaining to us about these little balls of oil that end up on the beach because the seatankers still use saltwater to clean out their tanks after they are emptied. I didn't find any today but I will have my eyes out for them for now on...I am sure that they are terrible for anything that comes in contact with them.

We also learned about these little resin balls that are very small and are raw material from when plastic is made. The birds and fish will injest them sometimes. Apparently they are doing testing on those in Tokyo because they can tell how much toxins have been picked up by the plastic in its travels in the ocean.

Overall, it was a beautiful morning for a beach clean up and really made my day!!

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Just Last Year on In My Words...Determined

Just Me?

I find that each day, I do not have enough time to do the things I need to do along with the things I want to do. Is this just me? Do I just have too many balls in the air? Do I want to do too many things? Should I just be concentrating on one or two "want" things and not the many that I have?

Obviously, I have to do the "need to do" things no matter what and this currently entails (in a nondetailed fashion): keeping my living space clean, doing all finances, keeping outdoor living space neat, maintaining car, shopping for living space and digestion, maintaining cat and fish, exercise (which hasn't been done this week, but needs to be at the top of the list) and any volunteer work that keeps me current on computers (Google for now). A job should be in the list and is probably on the horizon as well.

Now the "want to" list is broken into two categories...there is the stuff I wish I had time for and then the stuff that almost falls into the "need to" category above and mostly gets done, but only in little chunks of time. "Need to" stuff is helping friends in various ways, volunteering opportunities that don't necessarily keep me current on computers (but still might help my resume at some point), practicing/learning Japanese, blogging and other computer activities, and time with friends (necessary when you are far from home).

Lastly the "wish I had time for" list which sometimes gets attention but mostly doesn't. This includes learning guitar, practicing my flute, having friends over, watching movies, writing more, be creative, traveling, tutoring and exploring the area.

Oh, and I can't forget that with this economy, I really need to get something that pays something...so I am not really sure where to fit that one in...I know the basics of time management and I feel that I am always multitasking (watching a movie while doing bills or folding laundry...etc), so I don't know if I would learn much from going to a class (that I don't have time for anyhow). I just don't know how it all fits...do most people set aside time for those things they really want to do and the others are just passed on? Should I be trying to do a little of everything (for one hour) each day or should I say, study Japanese just two hours twice a week and then do other things in other blocks of time?

Obviously, none of this should be causing me stress...there are people in the world who have to worry that the bus they are getting on each day might blow up...compared to my "should I wash the car or study Japanese" quandry, I sound pathetic. But as I was making the bed this morning, already ticking off in my brain the things I wanted to get accomplished in the day, I had to wonder if I am the only one that feels like the days are getting shorter and the lists just keep getting longer...

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Four Years Ago on In My Words...Father's Day Cards

First Storm

We are not in typhoon season officially yet but we have a little guy churning out there. Right now it is not supposed to come close to us but it always helps to keep an eye on these things because they can do some crazy turns when they want...I am sure we will get some clouds, maybe some rain and some wind from it, even if it doesn't get close.

This one's name is Chan-hom, and I am sure we will see plenty of its brothers and sisters throughout the summer since we do live in Typhoon Alley...

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One Year Ago on In My Words...Perspective

Can't Be A Good Thing

I heard some loud noises today...thought it was construction down the street....it wasn't. This is the view out my back window....my house owner owns the land between my brick wall and the pile of dirt but if they are building on that lot behind me, that will truly suck...especially if it is going to be apartments....grrr.

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Four Years Ago on In My Words...Squirrels, Squirrels, Squirrels
Thought our Rufus trials and tribulations might be a bit fun to remember...

Trying New Things

While out to lunch with friends the other day on a scheduled visit to several facilities (I'll have a separate post for that), I was able to once again try something new that I have not eaten.

We were at a traditional Okinawan restaurant (which can be very different from a Japanese restaurant, mind you). I ordered the fried shrimp set (which was very yummy by the way). Along with it came a small side dish of snails (just two). I had never eaten snails before. These were not the round type like I believe escargo is made from. These ones almost looked like hermit crab shells (only smaller). They were less than an inch long.

They had been steamed and then flavored with soy sauce but were served chilled. The idea was to pick up the shell, pick at the meat with a toothpick and pop it all out at once and then eat it. I was suprised at how good it was....tasted a bit like any other mussle or clam you might eat from the ocean. I think the ladies were suprised that I wasn't grossed out but I am usually willing to give anything a try once.

Here is a picture of my set. It has the fried shrimp with tartar sauce, some rice, some miso soup, some seawead salad, some american style salad, an egg pudding (that is not sweet and have meat hidden down in it), some pickled radish, and the snails are in the top right hand dish.


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Two Years Ago on In My Words...Mom Visit

We Have New Fish

I finally cleaned the tank from top to bottom the other day and then waiting the prescribed week for it to balance again and picked up some new fish yesterday. Last time I cleaned it up, I just didn't get any new ones quickly enough and I hate putting new ones in a tank that is not clean...

So here are the new guys...I picked up 3 of the little red guys (being that they were in Japanese), I am guess that they are a platy mollie mix. I also got a cool koi colored goldfish, to go with the black one I got a few months ago.



I also don't think I ever took a picture of the little bali sharks I have (they arne't really sharks and they get along with everyone in the tank) so I have included them.


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One Year Ago on In My Words...Art Purchase

Chase's First Cut

I know I already posted before and after pics of her on Facebook but I wanted to get a blog post written about it too before I forgot and it ended up on the pile of "to do" in my life.

This was her first cut for the season, I was waiting for the weather to warm up so she wouldn't be cold outside during the day. It is amazing how much lighter she is just without all that hair. She had so much hair on the floor at the groomers. She got a shower while she was there too and she still smells like the shampoo...which is nice. Now if only I could do something about the fish breath...haha.

All the rest of the cuts will be faster than this one since she will already have short hair. She will stay cut until it gets cold here again...it is actually so much better to keep her this way in the summer. She doesn't shed, or get hairballs, which means I don't have to clean up hairballs. And she stays cooler which is always a plus since it is very hot and humid here and she spends a fair amount of time in our backyard (enclosed so she can't get out).

She did really well at the groomers...purred through most of it because I always stay to help and make her feel comfortable. She doesn't like the underarm parts since she has to be contorted into a weird position and she is also not too thrilled with the rear end being clipped but I think that is just an instinctual thing...

So here she is...before and after...

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Three Years Ago on In My Words...Not What You Want To Hear

Blogging Community Sadness

I found this blog through another blog that I read (reed) or at least read (red) frequently. I have been slacking on my blog reading for ages but that is due to being very busy in other aspects of my life. Anyhow, Chatty's blog mentioned this blog and I went there, and I got caught up in the story. This was around March of 2008. I read consistently for some time but at some point decided to stop following it as close.

For a while now, I have been meaning to check in. Today, I did. Seems it was too late...she passed away in February....so hard to read and think about what her family must be going through. She was only 42. One of her great posts touched on something that really hits home for me...life is too short and you need to tell those that you care about how you feel NOW!!!

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Three and 1/2 Years Ago on In My Words...Epiphany

Amazing Skies

We have had some amazing looking skies lately. I have always been a bit of a storm hound and these clouds just grab my attention everytime. This shot is of one of our many sugarcane fields in my neighborhood with some tremendous clouds behind it. I was on a walk and just couldn't resist. It started to pour the second I put my feet in the door too...very lucky indeed.

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Four Years Ago on In My Words...Me, Myself, and I

Amy's Vegetable Lasagna

I just had this for dinner...mighty tasty for something I was able to make in 7 minutes...highly recommend and only 360 calories too!!! I am a huge fan of all the Amy's tasty treats...especially the Mexican food.

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Three Years Ago on In My Words...Five Chicks

She Figured It Out

It has been months since we moved Chase outdoors (limited to our back deck area). We live in a tropical climate which means that during rainy season, it rains once a day but isn't necessarily cold. She has been an indoor kitty long enough now that she is not particularly fond of getting caught in the rain.

Until this week, if it started raining while she was out there, she would sit next to the door in the rain and meow...even if no one was home, and manage to get soaked in the mean time. This week she had a breakthru.

In this picture, you can see her lounging in the sun on the deck absorbing the rays amongst the puddles of water from the night before. It was beautiful out and I envied her the time and inclination to soak up the sun.

Not ten minutes later, it darkened up and started to pour. I went over to the glass to see where she was....she FINALLY figured out that if she got under the table with the umbrella on it, she wouldn't get wet. This did not stop her from meowing at me through the glass but at least she finally figured it out.


I went over and opened the door for her, she bitched at me for a minute and then went about her day. I am proud of her for figuring it out and it relieves me that I don't have to worry about her quite as much if a storm should pass through while I am gone and she is stuck out there.

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Two Years Ago on In My Words...Mystery Bump

Sunday Accomplishments

I had the urge to be lazy this morning but I managed to fight it off and here are the things I was able to accomplish...some of them have been lingering on my list for too long...I feel great that I checked some of them off and will be guilt free tomorrow at an all day event...

Completely dismantled and cleaned big fishtank (so I can get some new fish soon)
Cleaned fish vase (smaller tank with plants in it)
Vacuumed entire house
3 loads of laundry (washed, dried or hung, folded and put away)
Bills and a few other financial tasks
Ordered a few things that I have been meaning to
Dishes (twice)
Brushed Chase
Cleaned drains in shower (big huge drains that trap everything in them)
Updated rosters
Wrote 4 blog posts
Downloaded pics off camera and organized them
Cleaned up creative table so I can get started on Mother's Day cards
Watered houseplants

Sometimes it is a good thing to not leave the house on Sunday.

And now off to get some Wii Fit in before bed time...

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Last Year on In My Words...I Found Them

Card Making and Socializing

I went to a friend's house the other night to take one of her monthly card making classes. It is a great deal...food, cards and friends all for a few dollars in supplies. We made some beautiful cards (a few of which I will copy for Mother's Day cards this year), and ate some great food as well (too much food probably). She even made some banana pudding like my grandma makes with Vanilla Wafers...took me right back.

I can't wait to see what she comes up with for our next class...

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Three Years Ago on In My Words...Technical Difficulties

ABCs of Me

A - Age: 39

B - Bed size: Queen

C - Chore you hate: Litterbox

D - Dog's name: No dog currently but hopefully in the future

E - Essential start your day item: Contacts

F - Favorite color: All earthtones

G - Gold or Silver: Both

H – Height: 5' 6.5"

I - Instruments you play: Flute and trying tolearn guitar and piano

J - Job title: None currently, but that doesn't mean I don't work my butt off most days

K - Kid(s): No kids but one fiesty cat

L - Living arrangements: Renting while here

M - Mom's name: Valerie

N – Nicknames: Mishka

O - Overnight hospital stay other than birth: Hernia surgery when I was 9

P - Pet Peeve: Inconsiderate and ignorant people

Q - Quote from a movie: "Standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her"

R - Right or left handed: Right

S - Siblings: My wonderful little sister

T - Time you wake up: 7am or earlier

U- Underwear: Thong

V - Vegetable you dislike: Overcooked limabeans

W - Ways you run late: Traffic

X - X-rays (defined broadly) you've had: Only one on my arm when I was in Jr High

Y - Yummy food you make: Guacamole and Thai food

Z - Zoo favorite: Not too fond of zoos as a whole...the whole cages thing...

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One Year Ago on In My Words...Losing Its Appeal

NASCAR.COM - Lap-by-Lap: Phoenix - Apr 18, 2009

My favorite driver won the Phoenix race today....it was awesome!!!

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Four Years Ago on In My Words...Cell Phone Free Zone

Afghan Women Protest New Restrictive Law

I am glad to see that they are protesting...that is a step in the right direction, but I am sad to see that the government is currently caving to politics as usual. I hope that the Afghan president does appeal most of this for the sake of the people of his country.

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Four Years Ago on In My Words...Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

Goodbye Amazon Again

Okay, I am reposting my peeve from last year because this really pisses me off. I started to use them again because it seemed that they had changed their ways but they have not...I have complained to them until I am blue in the face about how I can get the same products from their competitors that they refuse to send to me. I am done with them...so tired of it. I will just continue to use their competitors.

I am recommending to everyone if you live out this way or if you have family that uses them that you stop doing so. What a disservice they are doing.

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They are on my sh1t list right now. They have changed their shipping policies (for the hell of it, it seems) and most of the stuff you can get from them can no longer be shipped to me. This sucks because when we lived here before, they were one of the few companies I did business with because shipping here was so easy.

So I have made my wishlist private so no one will buy me anything from them and I am not doing business with them again until they change their ways. In the last two months I have tried to order three different items to be shipped to me and none of them could be shipped but I was able to order the item from other sites and they were shipped with no problem.

So goodbye Amazon, until you can get you sh1t together!!!

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18 Months Ago on In My Words...Goodbye Amazon

Tasks, Tasks, Tasks

Okay, I know that I have done nothing but post about my To Do list on my Facebook status for weeks now...that is because I gave myself a month to get a few things done that have been on the back burner for a while and just needed to get off my list.

Thing is, I haven't been making actual lists for a while, so I figure, in celebration of the fact that I have been making a ton of headway in the last few weeks, I would make myself a list and then strike out all the tasks I have completed...this does not in any way void my list of things to do that is semi-permanently attached to the top of my blog, but it does give me some gratification and that is ultimately what this is about...haha.

1. Dust, vacuum, swift entire house (done biweekly)
2. Put out green mesh to keep cat off tree garden in pond
3. Replace motherboard, video card, and DVDRW drive in PC
4. Uninstall Norton and install Avast on both computers
5. Attend board meeting and luncheon for OIWC (done monthly)
6. Attend steering committee meeting (done quarterly)
7. Volunteer at giftstore or for ACGO more than 40 hours
8. Practice with Magic Sing, and Wii when time allows
9. Make many sets of wine glass markers to sell at giftstore
10. Take 3 carloads of stuff to the thriftstore
11. Organize and overall simplify the house
12. Attend various small get togethers and meetings
13. Troubleshoot and fix 3 friends computers or peripherals
14. Volunteer on the Google help boards for Blogger
15. Everyday housework of dishes, trash, bathroom cleaning and laundry
16. Exercise and try to eat right
17. Read three books
18. Plant herbs
19. Take one more carload (at least) of stuff to the thriftstore
20. Give Jocelyn the rest of the liquor that is taking up space in our storage shed
21. Regrip golf clubs
22. Install rear stereo speakers in car
23. Practice Japanese
24. Hit golf balls and play when time allows
25. Play tennis with Lara and Heather
26. Stay on fitness program
27. Do front bed yard work and clean out leaves from pond
28. Plant flowers
29. Finish troubleshooting friend's external harddrive

I guess those that are not crossed out will keep me busy for a while...

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One Year Ago on In My Words...I Found Them
This post is so appropriate right now because I can't find a Netflix movie we just got in the mail.

Observations

Why do all spray bottles of cleaning products stop spraying before the bottle is empty? Shouldn't the manufacturers have figured out by now how to make that work?

How come Fox News has a slogan of "fair and balanced"? If they really were fair and balanced, would they have to tell us?

Why is it that now that I have white towels, I nick myself shaving in the shower everytime?

If arguing with you to get an appointment, when you say I can't have one is not the way to approach the situation, then why did it work? Would you have given me one if I had just asked nicely and then went away?

Is putting seaglass that is not completely finished back at the beach littering or just refining?

How is it that in the process of spring cleaning, I can't find items I know I have seen in the last 24 hours, when I haven't seen them in months and would have been able to locate them without even thinking about it?

When does a slow leak really become just a perpetually flat tire?

Why do I have to take the labels off recycled glass bottles and jars? Aren't they going to get melted anyway...wouldn't the paper go away then before the glass would even melt?

How does my cellphone go from three to one bar in one day, sit at one bar for days and days and then only finally die when I need to make a call?

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Three Years Ago on In My Words...Getting There I wonder what it looks like now...if the new owners have maintained it

It Is Not That

...I don't have anything to say, it's that I do, but all of it is little bits...I need to start writing some of it down and can just make a post of all my weird observations.

I have been busy...trying to get some things accomplished while I am feeling motivated to do so, and actually making progress. I also have some things on my mind which have kept the writing side of me occupied lately.

I have been volunteering like crazy, which takes up a lot of my time but feels so worth it, so I can't complain. Google/Blogger has been getting a fair amount of my volunteer attention over the last few days.

I have been clean sweeping the house and feel great about getting some of the stuff we don't use out of here and over to the thrift stores.

I have been playing my Wii (Fit and Rabbids TV Party) and singing a bit on my Magic Sing mic...but I really need to get back to my Japanese. In fact, I am planning to spend some time today focusing on doing just that.

I have been to a couple of cool things, and I need to blog about them as well as upload some pics, but that seems to fall to the back burner some. I did upload some pics from the Kimono show to my Facebook account but I need to get the blog up to date too....

So as you can see, there is not enough time in the day for the size of my To Do list...haha.

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One Year Ago on In My Words...Seventh Generation