Kicker

Well, as you might recall, I took a long while to decide what to do about my last name after my wedding. My dear friend Fr. Joel suggested (jokingly?) that I try a combination name like "Kicker". Nick couldn't be convinced to change his name to something so silly, and, well, that wasn't the answer I settled on.

But now, there really is a Kicker in the family! First we named it"Izzy" after the Saint Paul ice cream shop that serves delicious little mini-scoops called "Izzies" on top of your primary flavor. At the time, that was about the size of the little one. But now that I'm really feeling his/her rambunctious movement, Kicker is the name we'll stick with for a while. Expect more news in April.

The Big News

Nick and I are engaged! It became "official" Tuesday, May 6 at the Goto Sumio Museum near Furano. http://www.gotosumiomuseum.com
He asked me in front of the painting of the "Golden Pavilion", a famous temple in Kyoto which we visited this past week. This photo was taken outside of the museum, with the Tokachidake mountains in the background.

We hope to throw a homecoming/birthday/engagement party in August!

Suprise!

びっくりしました！
I may have been chosen for an amazing gig!

In the summer of 2008, Japan will host the G8 Summit in Hokkaido at Lake Toya. G8 is an international conference of the eight most powerful/wealthy countries on the planet. This year`s focus is on the environment. I recognize there are divergent views of the existence of this conference, but I hope that my involvement in it can somehow inspire greater environmental sensitivity.

http://www.mofa.go.jp/policy/economy/summit/2008/index.html This, I believe, is the official website of the summit.

My roles are threefold.
1) I will help to translate a/the themesong for the Summit into English lyrics. The song, "To Make a Forest" was written by a local Yamabe/Furano composer. He saw my performance with The Horse Bones in November and chose me for this opportunity.
2)I will record the song for distribution at the Summit, although I am unsure of the details about the publishing.
3) In June I will perform the song onstage at a HUGE Furano music show. http://www.furanofes.com/

All of this is rather overwhelming and exciting! My first plan is to seek a good vocal teacher get my chops into shape. Next, learn how to write lyrics. . .

Snow!

Good thing they do all that pruning ahead of time. We got our first significant snowfall this week, and they expect more soon.

The big tree you see in this pic WAS a lovely willow, but during winter we'll have to look at its naked trunk. I'm unsure why they bother to bundle the lavendar, as it could grow back on its own next year. But they sure do prioritize these prunings. . .





The pics of the ski slopes were taken from our office window at the Board of Education. I can only anticipate the pain we'll experience, staring wistfully at the slopes while stuck in the office.

Internet: Coming Soon

Just a quick update: we expect to get internet at home soon. When that happens, I can finally add photos to this blog and to our KodakGallery. Hooray for technology!

There are some amazing pics of harvesting grapes with my students, river walks in our town, and the incredible hike we took this weekend in Daisetsuzan National Park. Check back soon!

Homemaking

"My cup overflows. Surely goodness and kindness will follow me all the days of my life."

Nick and I are extremely grateful for our setup in Furano. Our predecessors left us with nearly everything we could need: bedding, dishes, spices, hangers, furniture, a bike, a car, skis for Nick, art supplies, tools, sleeping bags, etc. Thus far, my two favorite new posessions are:
1. My orange bike. I will definitely take this baby home with me, as it FOLDS IN HALF. No kidding. I can fold Orangey up and fit it in a duffel bag to easily transport on train/plane/car. A special note of thanks to Mom and Amalia for teaching me to ride, and to Elizabeth for providing bicycle-inspiration.
2. I`ve already managed to amass a beautiful set of matching ceramic dishware. There is so much lovely (and affordable) pottery in Japan.

Our supervisor is an amazing, helping us negotiate the extensive paperwork necessary for my car, mobile phones/robots, bank cars, government paperwork, etc. He is also generous enough to include us in his family outings to the seemingly endless weekend festivals taking place in Furano. On previous weekends we attended a Shinto religious festival (with loads of free food/drink) and the Furano Food Festival (best tasting milk ever). This weekend we attended a neighborhood BBQ that lasted 9 hours and included games for the kids and lots of food/drink. Yesterday at the ski resort there was a huge flea market with food, music, hot air balloon rides, moon walking for the kids, and amazing views of the mountain valley from the gondolla.

Next weekend is a long weekend in celebration of `Respect for the Aged Day`. There will be a (assumedly unrelated) Furano Wine and Cheese Festival. We will, sadly, miss this festival as we`ll be on a 2-3 day hike in Daisetsuzan National Park with my new/dear friend Catherine. Fun!

I live in gratitude.

"We have one solid comfort amidst all this little tripping about. Our hearts can always be in the same place, centered in God, for whom alone we go forward or stay back." - Catherine McAuley, Foundress of the Sisters of Mercy

Furano, Hokkaido, Japan!

Hurrah! We were notified of my assignment from the JET Programme!

We were given our first choice -- Nick & I will be living on Japan's northernmost island, Hokkaido, in a town called Furano. OMG!

The hilights from my research this morning:

- average 8 meters powder snow each winter (best skiing in the country)
- lavendar fields
- local cheese and wineries
- nicknamed 'the navel' because it's right in the middle of the island
- 2.5 hours from Sapporo, which has BEER! (Sapporo and my favorite -- Oregon's Rogue Brewery)
- the name "Furano" actually originates from the Ainu (Hokkaido's natives) word furanui - fragrant flame

http://www.outdoorjapan.com/features/ojfeature-furano.html cycling around the area
http://hometown.infocreate.co.jp/en/hokkaido/furano/furano-e.html town homepage
http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/location/regional/hokkaido/furano.html tourist website about area

To review our plans, I will leave Portland this Sunday 5/27, be in Omaha for 2 months, and we'll leave for Japan on August 4.

We're moving to Japan!

In June Nick and I are moving to Japan! We will be teaching English at Griff School in Numata City, in Gunma Prefecture. Numata is north-west of Tokyo in the mountains. We will be surrounded by mountains on three sides, with many nearby ski slopes, hot springs and wetlands to explore. The kanji character for Numata approximately mean "boggy field."

Here is the link to the Prefecture (like a state) website: http://www.pref.gunma.jp/english/index.htm

And to the city webpage: http://www.city.numata.gunma.jp/english/outline.html

Come visit! Seriously! (c'mon, when else will you be able to travel to Japan so inexpensively and comfortably as when you have two charming and good-looking hosts to show you around?!)

On the Journey

My time, my mind is filled with the possibilities of my journey. This year will be remarkable; whether it will be *good* is yet to be seen. I'm applying for schools in the Netherlands, in order to possibly live with/near my best grrl Amber and her beefy/smartypants husband Adam. We're also applying to multiple programs and schools to teach English: Japan, Thailand, Middle-East, who-knows-where. Nick (my beefy/smartypants boyfriend) and I are busy each day in communication with various schools or teachers in Asia. Some days I feel drunk, my head swimming with the possibilities.

Meanwhile, back on the ranch, I'm busy resigning from my Portland activities: Unitarian Universalist Service Committee http://www.uusc.org/, UU Connections Committee, UU Chamber Choir, my little folk music group 'Mo Mack & the Peacemakers', Hands to Hearts International http://www.handstohearts.org/, TND, and my job http://www.edgelink.com/. Goodbyes are exhausting and sad. Just over 2 months till take-off!

And oh! The trees are glorious this week. Each a goddess, dressed in her pink or white ballgown, her lovely perfume wafting down to those who pause to smell her gift. Spring is such a joy. First come daphne bushes with their unassuming blossoms and their sweet orange-ginger scent. Daphne is my favorite flower to give me Hope in this long grey Pacific winter. Next are crocuses, which in the Midwest can be seen poking through snowdrifts at the end of a long winter. Shortly after are the daffodils, cherry blossoms, green grasses, blue skies, suntans. . .

I've been intending to get on the bandwagon and blog for some time now. Lord knows I have some soapboxing (is that a verb?) to do. My goals for this blog: 1) to be in communication with friends/family while we travel. 2) to reflect what it means to be Woman - Midwestern - American - Western, while I explore other ways of being. 3) to improve my writing voice. Yikes. 4) this one tagged on at the end: to be more tech-savvy. How the hell do I post the photos so they are in the right spot on the page?!