gobble gobble gobble...

So...I learned something today: 

when you call your mom to wish her a Happy Thanksgiving and to get the scoop and report on the dinner that she had just finished eating with the rest of your family,

but...she's not home so you leave a message to call you back,

and then when the phone rings a little bit later,

you think it's her so, being the incredibly funny person that you are,

you answer the phone with a

"Gobble, gobble, gobble"......

you really need to keep in mind

that maybe....just maybe....

there is a good chance it won't be your mom,

instead a really shocked Japanese person who has no clue as to what you are doing will be on the other end.

Hey.

It could happen.

I'm just saying.

heh heh heh

I hope that, if you celebratedthe American holiday, you had a great day and that you were surrounded by the ones you love the most....

or at least by the ones you can stand to be with for the duration of the afternoon without

wanting to take one (or two!) down and put them in a headlock!!

Man.  I'm really kind of homesick now!!

(^_^)/*

And for the record....I'm very thankful for you...yes, you!!

Flattery.....Flamingo Friday style

I'm a huge fan of Eric Carle.

I mean, really....that whole Brown Bear thing?

Just wonderful.

And don't even get me started on that Hungry Caterpillar!!

The illustrations he uses in all of his books are just so very nice.

This...is one of my all-time favorite pictures:

*Google pictures*

The picture is so simple, yet.....I love it.

A few weeks ago, we went to the local museum and walked through the annual exhibit by the students at the area Art & Design High School.  I was incredibly impressed by the level of art that these high school kids did.  But...the one set of pictures that really got my attention had this particular picture.... right in the middle:

I love this.

I wrote on the questionnaire I filled out about our visit that I thought the artist

"captured the true feeling of Eric Carle and made it her own".

I may have written that I'd love to have a copy.  (^-^)/*

I'm not sure if the girls who read the questionnaire actually understood what I wrote, but....

I'm hoping that they did and that Karma is still on my side, because

that painting? Oh yeah...just one more thing that has MY NAME written all over it!!! 

Have a great Friday.

May you find something that you really, really  like....and if can't have it for yourself, I hope

you have your camera with you!!!

oh...and karma? yeah...debbie and earl believe in ya.....

Karma....

is the the belief that (according to various people over at the the coolest on-line dictionary ever) 

"all of your actions will have equal repercussions, affecting you".

Someone also said that

it is the "the law of cause and effect. From good living, we become a better person, gain greater inner peace and enjoy a good life".

And though  "what goes around comes around" is a great way of saying it,

one of my favorites is

 "smackdown of the Gods".

Karma.

She can be a bitch.

But.....

though we may not understand the way karma truly works, it's good to believe in her.

And if you believe in her, she will be nice....of this I am convinced.

I work hard.

I teach many classes all over the frickin' town and more often than not, with a smile on my face and a kind word for even the ones who piss me off the most.

I'm a good teacher and I know what I'm doing when it comes to doing my job.

I try to be a good wife, mom and friend...and though my house is about as far from perfectly clean as you can get...it's a nice place to visit and all are welcome.

I love my family (here and there) and my friends (both face-to-face and on-line).
(and various flavored coffees that come in sizes with Spanish names.)

The last few ten months have not been easy.  Due to circumstances beyond my control, life has been a bit difficult....challenging. 
Here in Japan, we have not been exempt from the daily woes and troubles that seem to be plaguing most of the world today. 

But....everyday...I'm smiling...doing my job...taking care of my family....doing the best I can...for I have faith that one day, this will all be worth it and the stress level that I seem to be stuck at, will be less.

Today was the last class of a short term...only 5 lessons.

The students were great and have decided to continue studying together.  A few weeks ago, one of my smaller classes, for one reason or another, decided to take a break and I found myself with a morning free and no students to teach.  (no students = no money.  ugh!)  Today, the new class decided that the morning I have free (the only time I have free) would work great for them for class.

When a door closes,

Karma (or God or Buddha or whoever you believe in)

opens another door...or in this case, a window.

And sometimes....

she brings good things to eat and enjoy!!!

*Steamed buns filled with delicious meat, pansies from someone's garden, a loaf of fresh-baked-still-warm raisin bread, and

some chocolate-vanilla swirled cakes (in a plastic bag that had me smiling all day!!) from some of my students today.*

Oh yeah.
Karma.
She does have a way of surprising a person.

Here's hoping that karma smiles upon you today!!

SHE'S ALIIIIIIIIIIVE!!!

Yes, friends.

I am.

But....

due to a variety of reasons,

(some I might talk about

at a later date, others we will just "sweep under the tatami mat" and never

think/angst about again)

my blogging mojo has gone MIA.

So....until all is back to normal  (^-^)/*,

take a listen to this...

I think it's my new theme song.

I've missed you, my friends.
I hope all is good and groovy with you and yours.

I'll be back soon.
Very soon.

the one where debbie popped by her blog to say "hey"....

Yes....I'm still here.

Yes....I know that it is no longer September.
(will change the header soon...I promise!)

Here's what's been going on....

No. That's a lie.
There has been stuff going on...
just not anything I really felt moved to blog about.....
PTA meetings,
new classes,
prepping for culture festivals with various classes,
new hula class (yes, now I'm in 2),
more PTA stuff,
autumn allergies that have kicked my ass,
getting stuck in a parking lot exit line for 3 hours
(I'm still a little traumatized...can't really talk about it now),
cooler weather here in Nagasaki...it's lovely,
cleaning my house that has gone to "the dark side" to prepare for my Dad's visit at the end of this month,
more angsting and monosyllabic conversations with my 12-year-old,
and yes, a little bit more PTA stuff,
helping Issei study for an English proficiency test that is next Friday that he doesn't really want to take,
pushing Issei to study for mid-terms that are on Tuesday,
a pain in my butt (no, really...it IS a pain...not just saying that!) that I think is a pinched nerve
(must learn how to say that in Japanese so i can go to the doctor next week),
...........
I'm sure there's more, but.....those before mentioned allergies are making me sneeze
my eyeballs out and it's hard to type...plus, it's late and we are getting up at the butt-crack of dawn tomorrow.  It's Okunchi here in Nagasaki (one of THE biggest festivals for our city....and one of the Top 3 in Japan...clink on the word "okunchi", it's a link to a short explanation)...anyway, we have tickets to watch the performances at the main shrine and we need to be there by 7:30.  This will be the first time that all four of the Kuroiwa's will be going....it will be interesting, if anything...I'm just hoping that it doesn't rain.

There is a lot going on right now....some good, some great, some....meh...not so good but nothing we can't handle.  October and November have turned into probably the busiest months for me...
it seems that I am truly living that whole
 "when it rains, it pours"
way of thinking.

I just sometimes wish that
life had a huge flamingo umbrella that we could carry around.
It wouldn't make things easier but....it would make it more fun.
(^-^)

Happy Friday, everyone.
I hope your weekend is fabulous!!

Flamingo Fri~~~turday!!

Is it possible to have 'spring fever' in the fall??

Mother Nature, quite suddenly, decided to cool things down a bit and it has been absolutely wonderful here in Nagasaki.  We have had a bit of rain (squalls, if you will) but nothing that would cause any trouble.

Plus, the rain allowed me to use my new umbrella...my new FLAMINGO UMBRELLA, thank you very much...and I felt oh so very special walking down the street with it, not-so-oblivious to the envious stares of those I met. 

For years, I said that the springtime was my favorite part of the year, but that opinion is slowly changing.  The fall here is lovely....the afternoon sunshine is still quite warm, but not that "oh my God, I can't breathe!" hot and humid we have in the summer (though Wednesday was quite steamy, that particular adjective hasn't returned...knock on wood.).  The fall flowers are so pretty and the festivals that are soon upon us are ones I look forward to (one more than others!!)

So...on Friday...
having a really good "good hair day"
(thank you dry weather...my hair loves you!)

....driving in my car with the window down letting the cool morning breeze come in....

 having a day full of bright sunshine with not a cloud in the sky....

 ...I ended up at "one of my favorite java joints" ...

I took my new shoes out for a chai latte.
It was delicious and the shoes? Oh...they were down right giddy with happiness.

***********

A special note to my friends:

Thank you so much for the words of advice, support and even better...the words of "you are not in this alone" from my blog post earlier in the week.
We have not had another "episode" (again...knocking on wood) with the 12-year-old, but it hasn't been perfect...just a little better.  I guess, I truly do have to just deal with this one day at a time...and keeping myself calm is of most importance.  (Hence, the trip for that chai latte!!)
It's nice to know that you (yes, you!!) are in my corner...
Mahalo, my friends, maholo.

Thumbingo

Did the Jonas Brothers' mom and Justin Bieber's mom have to put up with this shit, too?? I think I'd feel a little better if they did.

angst:  a feeling of anxiety, apprehension, or insecurity

As the mother of a 12-year-old boy, this word has become a major part of our vocabulary.

And just for the record, before I go any further, let me just say this: 

I am NOT liking this stage...not. one. bit.

We've all had it....the angst.  I'm pretty sure that it was recommended as a 'life study' in junior high.

Some of us survived surprisingly well....and my mom our parents should be commended for not sending us up the river at first chance.

I am, at this very moment, sitting across the table from one very mad, very frustrated 12-year-old.  He is doing homework that should have been done during the summer holiday.  It is homework that he told me was done.  He looked me straight in the eye and assured me he was finished.  Guess what?  He wasn't.  But, he thinks that he should still be able to play his Nintendo AND buy a new game (to the tune of about $45!!  Not just "no", but "hell, NO!!") 

It doesn't matter how many times I remind him that the situation he finds himself in now is his own doing....no, I am the enemy.  I don't know what I'm talking about.  And if he knew how to use the word bitch correctly, I'm sure it would have been mumbled countless times under his breath.

~sigh~

I'm not really sure how we got to this point in our lives.  The hardest thing is that most everything that comes out of his mouth of late?  The feeling of "oh....I remember that" comes over me like an ugly,

pre-teen tidal wave.

I know what it's like to feel as if he is the only person in the world to not have something.

(In his case, a particular DS game...in mine, I'm remembering a pair of saddle oxfords in 6th grade, among other things).

I know what it's like to fall behind in a class (or three) and feel like there is no way that everything is going to get done.

I know that there will always be smarter kids, but that doesn't make me dumb.

I know what it's like to have kids in class that seem to get everything that they want and they never really seem to have to work for it...all they do is ask and voila! it's in their hands.

I know.

But, in the process of growing up and becoming the adult, I am now the one who doesn't understand...the one who is being unreasonable....

the one who is partially responsible for the angst, it seems.

So, my friends, here is where I ask for your help...your input...your advice....words of support or...escape routes. (Just kidding about that last one...I'm trying to find some humor here.)

Have you gone through (and survived!) something like this?

As I am the main "parental unit" in situations like these (And please, don't ask why, the explanation is too  hard to understand for anyone not in a relationship with a Japanese man), I'm finding myself at more of a loss than I have ever been....which is causing my own angst.

And as I have been told for many years and firmly believe:

If momma's not happy, nobody's happy.

Thanks for "listening"....I feel a little better just typing this all out.

some special thoughts...Eat, Pray, Love...and God bless Chuck Taylor

A long time ago, I remember my grandmother telling me that she really hated the fact that as she got older, time seemed to be going by much faster than what she would like...and sometimes she felt as if, when she woke up, she had slept through more than one night.  I laughed and she said "Just you wait and see...it'll happen to you", which made me laugh even more.

Well, guess what?  She was right.

Holy crap. 

 Here it is Sunday afternoon and really, I'm not absolutely positive what happened to
Thursday, Friday or Saturday.

~~sigh~~

I looked at my schedule for the rest of the month and then for October and November and I don't see it getting any better. Between classes, festivals at both of the boys' schools and the two community centers I am associated with and just trying to keep this house from going completely to the dark side, I'm thinking that one day very soon, I'm going to wake up and I will have completely missed Christmas

and the New Year holidays altogether.

(Oh great...that reminds me that I need to get started here in the next few weeks planning my annual Christmas party for my students!)

Thank goodness I have things (like this blog and a certain social networking place) to help me keep my life in balance...which means all of you are helping, too.  I appreciate that oh so very much!!

***************
Dear Janet,
I was thinking about you today.
I know that things are not going exactly the way you'd like them to, but..rest assured, those of us out here who love you, are sending you our warmest thoughts of the
i hope you are feeling better soon kind.
On Friday, I wore your mother's pin you sent me....with the hope that the sunshine we had happening here, my good thoughts and most of all....the incredible good hair day I had going on..were all somehow getting to you.
Much love,
Debbie

***************

Eat, Pray, Love....a great book and a pretty wonderful movie, but....
even though you may not have had a 'movie date' with you husband in a really long time, this probably isn't the best movie to go and see with him.
Granted, you will both enjoy it but....you're gonna want to talk to a friend about parts of the movie and he won't really understand what you're talking about because, well, you know why....and that friend knows why, so.....be prepared to probably go and see it again....the next time with a really good friend (who just got back from Australia and needs to get over her jet lag quickly as I'm in dire need of some java time.
 I'm just saying.)

********
After watching the before mentioned really good movie, the K-man and I were wandering around the shopping mall, meandering about the shops (much of them too young for us, but still...it was
like a real date, ya'll), when we finally found ourselves at the shoe store.
(I didn't even know we were lost! heh heh heh!)
Now, let me stop right here and tell you that I very rarely never buy shoes in Japan...unless they are mens' shoes.  I wear a size 25.5-26 (which is 8 1/2-9) and those sizes are almost impossible to find, if you're looking for a nice pair of pumps or heels or hell, even a pair of ugly flats.
I would have loved to have found a cheapy pair of plain white Keds but, again...no such luck.

Buuuuut......suddenly a pair of pink/yellow/green plaid VAN'S caught my eyes...they were just almost what I didn't know I was looking for!!  And because they were Mens'/Women's....they had my size.
I was looking for a bench to sit down and try them on when....yoohooo...again, with the eye-catching-shoes....
but this time....Converse...and, oh yeah...these...I wanted...definitely.
Oh please, oh please, pleasepleaseplease let them be in my size.....
because really...
this little piggies

...definitely need to be spending some time
in these...

Oh yeah...

My week month just a got a whole lot easier to handle, me thinks!!

***********

Monday is a holiday here....Respect for the Aged day.  We will  treat Grandma K to dinner at a restaurant of her choice....we'll also probably buy her some flowers.  She doesn't really need for anything and flowers are good in any situation for anyone...shoot, I might pick up some for me, too.  I'm not aged yet, but....I may need some flowers to match my new shoes!!!

Have a great week, everyone.