Episode 4: Nothing normal under the sun.

Normal?! Did I really end my last update declaring that things were back to normal?

Since January 7 we have all four had a flu bug of some sort. Kobe had it’s first real earthquake since the devastating one of 1995. I made a quick trip to the US for my aunt’s funeral. Upon returning to Japan I found myself in the middle of a freak snowstorm. And, Chicken pox was just announced at preschool!

As I said we were all sick. I was the first to fall ill, only a 24 hour bug, thankfully. Caden was next in line followed by Nathan, then Darin.

A trip to the doctor yielded positive influenza A results for Nathan along with a diagnosis of sinus infection and bronchitis. The doctor visit, antibiotics, expectorant and a lab test only cost about $71. Unbelievable!

While Nathan’s ailments were being confirmed at the clinic, Darin arrived home early from work with a fever and body aches. Because of Nathan’s diagnosis and his symptoms, Darin worked from home in case he, too, had acquired flu A. In Japan, it is strongly discouraged to go to work, school, or anywhere if you have flu A. Nathan was instructed not only to stay home three days after his fever was gone, but to wear a mask…at home. Really? He had the virus and the germs were already spread long before he was a confirmed victim.

Then we had an earthquake. Epicenter located in Kobe. Only a 3.6 magnitude, but it doesn’t really matter the intensity of the earthquake when you are right on top of it. Nope, it’s the experiencing an earthquake in a high-rise apartment building as it is shaking up and down that really matters. Woke me out of a dead sleep. Darin was awake watching tv. The kids, of course, slept right through it. No damage, no injuries, just a rush of adrenalin followed by difficulty getting back to sleep.

Finally, as my family was getting back to health I began seeing visual disturbances than can only mean one thing. No, not excessive recreational drug use. A migraine. Typically they are just annoying. This one, however, kicked my butt. Just one of those weeks…

The worst possible time to be 6000 miles away from home is when a loved one passes. This time it was my Aunt Betty. It didn’t take me long to decide I wanted to be back for the services. I left on Thursday afternoon my time and returned Monday evening my time. Amazing what can happen in such a short time…22 hours of travel to my destination, three nights in three different locations, a visitation, a funeral, and another 22 hours of travel. Good times. No wonder I was tired. But it was worth it. Can’t begin to express how good it was to reconnect with my family. I love you all! I did put in a request that no one else die until we move back. It just isn’t convenient for us. On the upside, I won the door prize for coming the farthest.

I flew through Seattle, Minneapolis, Peoria, then drove on to Champaign. I saw plenty of snow but mostly all in nice neatly shoveled piles. Absolutely no precipitation delayed my travels. I was extremely fortunate considering the weather only a week or two prior. When I landed in Japan, however, a freak snow storm was in progress. All that time in the US and no weather delays. I get back here to find my bus to Rokko Island is delayed because of snow. It doesn’t snow much in Kobe. And when it does it doesn’t stick. According to Caden’s teacher, he has never seen snow like this. And, he has lived here for eleven years. Some expressways were even shut down because of the accumulation.

Snow in Minnesota...

Snow in Kobe...

May not compare to the size of current midwest snow piles, but it is by far, more rare.

In the midst of all our “challenges”, however, we managed to accomplish a few things. I was able to schedule ALL our home visit doctor appointments. We tentatively planned out our home leave schedule and requested the tickets.

Another very necessary task checked off our to-do list was the Shaken for our van. A Shaken (pronounced “shock-en”) is a legally required motor-vehicle inspection for Japanese vehicle owners. During a Shaken a licensed mechanic must do an inspection of the vehicles’ exterior, wheel alignment, speedometer, headlamp, brake, exhaust gas/muffler, and suspension. Vehicles that don’t pass the inspection are not drivable. They need to be repaired before they can be legally driven on public roads. Apparently many used vehicles are exported just before their Shaken comes due. I have wondered what happens to all the substandard cars.

The kids have been entertaining…

Caden’s latest funny occurred when he was in the bath. He said, “I got water in my eye.” I asked, “Which one?”. He answered, “The second.” Okay. Not really sure I understand that.

Came home from my trip, sat down at the computer to check email and I see a swastika on my desktop. My first thought was, “What happened when I was gone? It was only five days!” I knew Nathan was involved because he is infatuated with WWII. Turns out he downloaded the clip art to email to a friend. Whew. Dodged that bullet.

Caden was crying the other afternoon shortly after Nathan arrived home from school. I thought I heard some distress but was trying to ignore them. Then the door slammed. Not allowed in my house. I went to check on it to find Caden crying, and Nathan with a suspicious smirk on his face. When asked, Nathan denied doing anything offensive. Caden however offered, “Nathan woke up my animals!” Okay, then. I figured I’ve already entered “absurd” why not have a little fun with it. I pointed my finger at Nathan and firmly instructed that he get all Caden’s animals back to sleep. I walked out as he was cradling the first sleepless victim in his arms. It wasn’t long before everyone in the kingdom was happy again.

Found some gum in the grocery store. Not sure ANY combination of these flavors is right.

Season 3, Episode 3: Happy New Year!

Akemashite Omedetou Gozaimasu! Happy New Year from Japan!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas holiday and a happy start to 2011!

Our life through December and beginning to the new year…

International potluck at church… Each year our church has an international potluck. This year the food tables were divided up like this: Korean, Japanese, Asian, and the rest of the world. Just a little reminder that America is not the only country in this world. It’s good to turn our heads once in a while and appreciate those differences. My favorite food was the authentic Korean beef bulgogi.

Caterpillar’s American football vs. the rest of the world’s football (soccer) game... I didn't attend because I happened to be in charge of the “Rest of the World’s” food table at church that day. But Darin and the boys did and had a fun time.

FedEx Frustrations… At the beginning of December, Japan put a 1 lb. weight restriction on all outgoing packages to the U.S. (per U.S. insistence). So instead of using the Japanese post, I decided to ship two packages FedEx. Easy enough, right? Nope. I learned one cannot successfully send a package containing food via FedEx from Japan to the US. At least not without a huge deficit of yen, patience, and time. Thank goodness the ban was lifted. Unbeknownst to me however, it was lifted during the very time I was filling out paperwork for my soon to be doomed FedEx shipment. Silly me. Had I waited just one more day I could have avoided the obscene amount of money I had to pay to have the package sent to the U.S, then back again. The package containing food got stuck in US Customs. And I mean stuck. They wouldn’t send it on without information from the food manufacturer. Now, how on earth was I going to contact a Japanese food manufacturer and request that information? Really? I had to consider the cost of having the package returned versus the cost of my admittance into a Japanese mental facility. I chose to have the package was returned. (Mostly because the institution meals likely consist of fish.) Once I received the package from the US, I was then able to successfully send it out (again) via EMS, the Japanese express mailing service. Not sure if that is really what is stands for, but that’s what it means to me.

Christmas program at church... It is always early in December since most people leave mid-month for holiday. Nathan took part in reading Luke 2:8-11 in English along with his American-Korean friend. The same verses were then read in Korean and Japanese. Again a nice little reminder there is a big world out there, and the word of God can unite us all.

Christmas goodies… I got together with friends one afternoon to make a Christmas goodies for all Caden’s preschool teachers. The teachers loved it of course. All but one are Japanese. They do enjoy American treats!

Kung Fu sifu (teacher) returned… Nathan’s Kung Fu instructor who had left for the US in October returned to Japan with an announcement that his classes would resume in January. Can’t even begin to describe the void that was created when he left. Not just with Nathan but with the other kung fu students as well. There were a bunch of happy kids when we got that email!

Christmas shopping with friends… We went to through the mountain…not kidding, through the mountain, to Sanda Outlet Mall. Unfortunately this is a high-end outlet mall with prices too steep for me, but still fun to visit. When we arrived the first thing we heard as we stepped out of the van was “real” Christmas music. Certainly helps with the Christmas spirit when one is so far from home to hear “Away in a Manger”, “O Holy Night”, and “What Child is This?”. Not just the superficial, religion-neutral holiday fluff. Believe it or not, I’m going to miss Japan during the Christmas holiday.

Grandma and Grandpa McCleery… Darin’s parents arrived December 16. They were here for three weeks. Darin was able to be off work for most of their visit. They saw many sights…Osaka Castle, Bird and Flower Park, Nara, Hiroshima, Miyajima, Mt. Rokko, Akashi bridge, Harborland and even a tour of the CAT facility. It was a little difficult to find activities during the last few days of December and first few days of January. In Japan, New Year’s is the holiday of the year, not Christmas, so many businesses are closed during that time.

They enjoyed many dinners with our friends… The first at our Japanese friends, Teruko and Kenzo, where real authentic Japanese food was served. Yes, Grandpa did try it and even liked some of it. Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve dinners were at our friends, Gloria and Oliver, here in our building. And we also hosted a dinner with Larry Rodda and his family. Larry is a man we met at church. He is a retired college professor who has lived in Japan for over 20 years. Turns out, however, he used to live in our hometown of Bushnell, IL many moons ago. Small world.

Christmas Day… Not only did we have Grandpa Lloyd and Grandma Susan visiting to make the day special, but we also had Christmas snow! Big fluffy flakes! No accumulation here on the island of course, but some on Mt. Rokko which the kids later enjoyed on New Year’s Day. Our Christmas feast consisted of turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, sweet potato casserole, and pumpkin pie. Yummy!! Turkey is a bit pricey here so it is a special treat. Many Japanese people have never even tasted turkey. Some of our front reception staff came to the Christmas Eve dinner and experienced turkey for the first time.

Winter break… Nathan’s break from school began December 17. Classes resumed January 11. That is a very, very, very, long break!! Caden’s break was a bit shorter, only December 23 through January 6. The kids had a lot of togetherness. They are amazing though. I love to watch them interact (most of the time). Nathan is so gentle and patient with Caden (most of the time) and Caden loves hanging with his big brother (most of the time). One day (an exception to most of the time) Caden ran in to my room and shouted out how Nathan had wronged him. I told him to tell Nathan to stop. It wasn’t a minute later Caden came running back and said, “Mom! Nathan said I am a tattle tale!” He is obviously unclear about the definition.

Our break was enjoyable, but thankfully now all normal schedules have resumed!