One month in Paradise

Wow, have I really been on island for one whole month now?  I've been so used to saying that "we just got here," but I guess I can't really say that anymore, can I?  It's been an experience, for sure.  It has been an amazing experience so far, but it hasn't been all roses and sunshine.  Here's my take on the pros and the cons of island living in the Beautiful Okinawa, Japan.

Pros:  Umm...this Midwesterner is no longer land locked!  It is less than a ten minute drive to the ocean.  The ocean!!  I have never experienced being this close to the water before.  I am such a beach person, and although we've been busy doing other things, I have really enjoyed being able to take an impromptu beach trip.

Cons:  The tides and crazy weather!  So, I had no idea the tides and such could be chimed, so Joel and I had a beach fail last weekend.  We went, literally, at the lowest tide of the day.  It was barely to our ankles!  We decided to wait and try again another day, obviously.  The next day, it was gorgeous!  We ran errands to escape low tide again, and then went home to pack up and it started storming.  For hours.  It's hard to plan for beach days sometimes.  Or anything, really.  When the rain really falls, no umbrella or rain jacket will keep you dry.

See the people wading in their ankles?

Pros:  The delicious food!  Ramen takes on a whole new name here, and it is so delicious.  We also have tasty Hawaiian restaurants,  sushi places (for Joel, not me), and many, many other delights.  I am going to have to hit the gym hard here.  Plus, dining with a view isn't too shabby.

Cons:  They Japanese aren't always the best when choosing things to eat.  They sure have some disgusting things on the menu.  I am so happy when they have pictures on the menu to help us figure things out, because I sure can't read Japanese.  It's been a very hard hurdle, and I'm still pretty uncomfortable with not knowing the language, although I have learned a few key phrases.

I'll definitely have more observations as time goes on.  Right now, it feels like I am just on a really long vacation.  We have a house, but not our stuff (still have another month on that) and I haven't started work yet (tomorrow is the big day).  The weather is always hot and humid, which is a pro and a con (my poor curly hair!), and Joel's working weird shifts at the moment.  It's not our "new normal" yet, but I'm enjoying it for the most part.  I think month two is going to be very different.

Monday, Monday...

I realize that it is still Sunday for most of my friends back in the states, but it is Monday morning here in Okinawa.  I am still trying to fully adjust to the time, but the real test will be next week when I have to start back at work.  Right now, I'm sleeping until about 0830, and it is truly glorious.  Next week?  Back up at 0545.  I'm rather enjoying my life of luxury at the moment, but I know it won't be long until I go stir crazy, so I am happy to be rejoining the workforce less than a month after I left it.

We have started to make our "home" feel as much like home, without our stuff, as we can.  After so long living in a hotel, I am thankful to have a home to go to.  As I said before, I'm not super excited that it's on base.  Right now, they have a "live where you work" policy.  What that means is, that if the base you are stationed at (for Joel it is Kadena AB) is less than 98% full, you have to live on base.  If it's over that, then they look at a secondary location and it has to be below 98%.  If they are both above, then you are able to move off base.  For us, Kadena was pretty full, but our secondary base was only at, like, 70%.  We were told at first we would be placed there, and then magically they found a place for us to live on Kadena.  I would have rather gone to the other base, because it is closer to where I will be working, but there's no arguing here.  It is what it is, much to my dismay.  So, may I present our home to you during our time here.  It's not much to look at, but it does offer a view of the beautiful sunsets from the living room.  Inside photos to come when we have our stuff.

Konichiwa!

Hello, everybody!  I've officially been in Okinawa now for a little over two weeks, and a lot has happened in that time.  We have new cars, a new house, and new jobs.  Eek!  Yes, you're officially looking at the newest Special Educator on the island.  That job that I interviewed for and was less than confident about worked out for me.  I little shout out to the Man upstairs on that one.  He was really looking out for me.  And look at my new car!  Isn't it fun?  Where else then Japan, no?  I named her Rizzo, as she is a pink lady.

While we are all moved into our house, and although I am glad to have a place, I didn't exactly go willingly.  Currently, the base we are at has a mandatory "on base first" policy, and anyone that knows me knows I am not a fan of base living.  When we were in Germany, I really feel that the main reason that I became immersed in the culture and learned so much of the language is because we lived in the local community and NOT on base.  Here in Japan, I wanted the same kind of experience, but because there was availability on base, we had to take it.

We got the choice of a newly renovated four-plex, or a single family home stuck in the 70s.  While I loathe the interior of the single family home, it made much more sense to take it versus the town home.  It is much larger and has an open floor plan, plus the dogs will be able to make as much noise inside as they want without bothering anyone.  And, we have a nice patio and yard for them.  Oh, did I mention the home we didn't choose backed up to the youth center?  Yeah, it was pretty much a no-go at that point, anyways.

We still don't have our stuff, but we have a loaner couch and bed from the base until it arrives.  Which is hopefully sooner rather than later.  And, of course, Joel found the move a perfect opportunity to upgrade to a bigger and better TV.  Other than that, we are pretty empty in this house, but I am doing my best to make it "home."

I have so much more to say, but I'll save it for a different post.  I took my first Japanese lesson yesterday courtesy of the base, and have a lot of studying to do!  My German is pretty good, but my Japanese?  Not so much.  Back to the language drawing board, so to speak.

Moving Madness

As we speak, everything we own, minus two suitcases each, is getting packed up and loaded into a truck, and will soon make it's way to Okinawa!  We will see all of our stuff in approximately three months.  That time always feels like Christmas to me.

We checked into our hotel last night, and will be "homeless" until we arrive in Japan.  God willing, we will close on the house next week, and then we'll have nothing else to do (ish) until we fly out.

This is our cat's first time in a hotel with us, and he is none too pleased.  He likes having the house to roam, and all of his good hidey spots are gone.  But, he'll be fine.  Poor Pugsley, in his old age, gets the nervous trots, and had pretty bad diarrhea last night, but some medicine made him much better this morning.  Gomez is faring the best, but he's none too pleased about the random hallway noises.  He often, literally, voices his displeasure.  Thank God for thick walls.

I'll be sporadic for the next few weeks, so hang in there with me!  I'm super excited to do some PCS recaps, and to start exploring and sharing our new home.  The moving madness has started!!

Five on Friday

 

 1.  Happy Friday folks!  Wow, I don't know how it's continually possible, but I am more elated for this Friday than I have been lately.  We have had so much going on, it's been crazy.  This week we had our house inspection, appraisal, radon test, and termite check.  It hasn't been hard for us, but we're still waiting for the all clears, so that's been a tad stressful.  But, we may have some great news...

2.  Instead of going to Korea, there's a chance we will be moving to Okinawa, Japan instead!  Long story short, we had an assignment there back in February for a whole day.  Then, the Air Force switched us to Korea.  Now, the guy they switched us with can't go for whatever reason, so there's a good possibility that we're getting switched back!  Nothing is set in stone, of course, but I much prefer this location over Korea.  I mean, come on...wouldn't you?  Look at it!

3.  Tomorrow, I was invited to spend the day at a co-worker's houseboat on the Lake.  Umm...yes please!  That lovely tan I had while in Mexico is sadly no more, and this pasty girl needs some color!  So, there will definitely be a lot of this going on tomorrow.

4.  Also, next week is my girls' trip to Seattle!  I am so stoked.  I need some girly time away.  And although I'll miss Joel, I'm glad he'll be home to watch the boys.  I hate when we have to kennel the pups, and our normal dog sitter is unavailable due to being 7 months pregnant with twins.  Selfish!!!

5.  I don't really have a five for today.  There's just been so much going on, and so little free time, and now I might be moving sooner than anticipated.  I will greatly miss the St. Louis area, even more so than I thought when I first found out we were moving.  It's getting "real" now that I may never be back here, so I have so much to do to in the next six weeks so I can experience as much of what this great city has to offer as I can.

The only thing constant is change

 

It has been quite the week for me here.  We scheduled our HHG shipment (to send our stuff to Korea), we looked into Extended Stays for when our house closes, and we I also had my job interview (of which I have not yet been told the outcome).

Well, ladies and gents...they say to never count on anything in the military until you get orders.  Without going into any detail, because we don't yet have a 100% solution (as if we ever do), that saying might not be true.  We have orders, and things still might be changing.

More to follow soon (I hope)...

Weekend Update

Happy Monday!  Well, maybe it's a happy Monday.  I haven't decided yet.  Gomez, who has been fully crate trained since he was 5 months old (so for almost three years), has decided that sleeping in the crate isn't what he wants to do anymore.  So, for the past three weeks, he has decided it would be fun to bark from about midnight until we let him out of his crate.  We tried the "cry it out" method (didn't work) and the "we'll let him sleep in bed just tonight" method (also failed).  I don't know what to do.  He doesn't have to go to the bathroom, he didn't miss dinner, and the vet said there's nothing physically wrong with him.  But there will be, if I don't get some sleep soon...  Any advice?

Anyway, moving on.  Friday night, Joel and I went to go see Sheryl Crow and Rascal Flatts in concert.  It was at an outdoor theater, and since a cold spell decided to hit the Midwest, we had quite the chilly night.  It was a great show, although s little short for RF.  Their last concert was at least an hour longer.

Gloves, scarf, and jacket...check!  And also a blanket.

Sheryl Crow.  Crappy phone pic, but we had great seats!

Rewind tour!

Saturday we went to the Belleville Art Show which, believe it or not, is actually rated #2 in the country.  It was still kind of cool out, but it was a really beautiful, sunny day.  We had such a blast.  I'm not really one for art museums, but I love me some art fairs.

Sunday, we had a house showing, which means taking the dogs to the dog park for an hour.  The people that toured the house really liked it, but they found a newer home that they wanted, more.  The realtor did say if the other house fell through they were interested, so fingers crossed that something works out.  It makes me sad that we've had so many showings, and no real interest yet.  I love our house, and we put a lot of sweat equity into it.

Anyways, the boys had a blast at the park.  I think our foster appreciates it the most.  He's such an easygoing boy.

Life is a Funny Thing

Remember when I posted about some decisions I had to make?

God works in mysterious ways.  Seriously...

I had a mini panic attack this week.  I had basically decided that I would move to Korea on my own.

Just me, the dogs (and cat, of course), and a suitcase (or two).  And then, one of the Facebook groups I was one stopped me dead in my tracks.  An AF guy posted a letter he got from housing, saying that they were halting Overseas Housing Allowances (i.e. military rent for living overseas) for spouses that aren't sponsored (like me who was just going there on my own) until they can figure out some legal issue.  Losing my job, paying for me and the pups to fly there, and now having to pay for Korean housing all on my own?  Not sounding so appealing.

So, I had my mild panic attack, and told Joel that I probably wouldn't go with him, unless by some miracle my command sponsorship went through.  I cried, I stressed, I went to sleep feeling lost.

The next morning?  Got a call that my paperwork was approved.  We were pretty much told that was an impossible mission, yet it got approved.  W.T.F.  All that stress?  Pretty much for nothing.  So, it looks like I'm going.  The decision was pretty much made for me.  It will be the two years, but I still have my application in for a few jobs, so fingers crossed that something works out on that end for me.

To summarize...I'm moving to Korea.  Holy Cow!  Third I will have lived a third of my live overseas.  Three different countries.  Heck, three different continents.  Holy new adventures, Batman!

Coming to the year's end...

Oh my goodness, is it December already?  I mean seriously, where has this year gone?  I know where the last 16 weeks have gone.  To finally finishing up this crazy degree of mine.  This is my last week, and then I will officially be a graduate of graduate school.  Seems so unreal.  I have so many thoughts circling my head about what exactly finishing will mean for me and to me, but they deserve their own little post.  But for now, I have four days and counting...

Thanksgiving was (mostly) nice.  I miss my sister so much, so it is always good to see her.  I wish I could steal her away sometimes and keep her with me always, but I'll have to settle for seeing her as much as I can.  My step-dad (the only real dad I have known, so he is "dad") is a simple man of few words, but he is always a pleasure to be around.  He's a big goofball, but such a caring man.  My mother, on the other hand...her and I have always had a bit of a difficult relationship.  Let's just say we are very different people, and she pretty much disagrees with everything I have ever done and will ever do.  So seeing her, as much as I love her, stressed me out.  Anyways...  We had a big, delicious spread of food, but I was too busy trying to enjoy the moment that I didn't snap any photos.  In fact, the only picture I got the whole weekend was of my sister and I at IKEA.  Oh, St. Louis...the rumors better be true about an IKEA coming.  I've missed it.

Hello, Swedish meatballs!

In other news, while we don't have official orders in hand, we got sort of a "heads up" on our next duty assignment.  It looks like we are headed to South Korea this summer, and I am so torn about it.  While I loved my experience in Germany, I am not looking forward to this move.  Joel had ten bases on his wishlist, and suffice it to say this was not one of them.  I had dreamed of every base on that list, but I just can not imagine myself living here.  I'm so taken aback.  I haven't fully digested that we are leaving for Asia yet, and I'm not sure I will until he gets the orders in hand.  But, I can tell you I've cried the ugly cry about it already.  I feel like Joel worked so hard to get a good assignment, and even took a highly coveted crappy assignment here that he didn't want just to improve our chances.  The Air Force laughed and said "too bad, we know what's better for his career," and so everything he did was for nothing.  I am not a happy military wife these days, and I'm just hoping the experience will be better than what I am imagining.  The only thing I can think that it will be good for is curing some of wanderlust.

Made it! An update...

Well, after much stress and chaos, we finally made it to our new home here in Illinois.  I believe this will go down as one of our worst PCS'es during Joel's career.  First of all, our flight got delayed about 36 hours in Germany.  That was bad for multiple reasons.  One, we had a connecting flight that we procured ourselves, so since it was just a 12 hour delay to start with, well...let's just say that we paid a few change fees out of pocket.  Then we were stuck at the airport for what seemed like forever.  We also had screaming kids on the plane.  Not crying or upset, just screaming!  And parents that decided they would rather ignore their child for the ten hour flight then actually parent.  Yay.  So with the delay, we lost our day of rest that we had planned on and I didn't get to see my bestie.  But, we finally made it to the states.  We were grateful for the small miracle.

The very next day we packed up a U-Haul of my stuff from Indiana, which went pretty well, and headed out for our five hour drive to our new home.  Things were going great!  I was driving behind Joel in my car, and about an hour away from our destination, the drive shaft on the U-Haul literally broke off in the middle of the interstate, which I subsequently ran over.  It busted not one but two tires, and bent both of my rims.  This was at 7pm on a Sunday.  After an hour on the side of the road and pulling multiple ticks off of us (eww!) we were finally taken to a Holiday Inn until the morning when both the U-Haul and my car would be repaired.  Monday evening around 7pm, we were back on the road.  We made it to the house that night, unloaded a mattress, and passed out!  The next day we unloaded the U-Haul, which gave us enough stuff to survive until early August when we get our Household Goods from Germany.  Hopefully, then, we can get this house in order and get this hellish PCS put behind us!

Reflections on home.

First, just a disclaimer that I am not knocking any other parts of the country.  The Midwest is what I have always known as home, and I just really feel comfortable with where I come from.  That being said...

I can't believe that the time has come for me to leave Germany.  Seven years I have spent my life in this wonderful country.  It has been my second home, as I (so far) have only lived in Indiana and here.  I have loved my time in Europe.  L-O-V-E-D it.  All of the traveling, the experiences, the people, and the uniqueness of each and every nook and cranny of Europe.  But, it never felt like "home."  Sure, I have always had a roof over my head.  But, I never felt very comfortable in my own skin here.  The blue eyes and blond hair helped me fit in, and learning a bit of German made a world of difference, but there were still things I didn't understand and frustrations with things not coming as easily as they should.

In ways I can't really explain, I am so glad to be moving back to the Midwest.  Sure, it isn't Indiana, but when I look at the area of our new home and the surrounding areas, it sure feels...comfortable.  The farmers markets on the weekends selling fresh corn on the cob and going apple picking in the fall, Fourth of July fireworks in the park, the local county fair, horse stables, going to the local markets, mom and pop BBQ joints at every corner, and, probably one of the things I missed the most, a cold glass of sweet tea.  NOT tea with sugar.  It is nearly sacrilegious to call that sweet tea.  I am finally getting a front porch again.  With a yard.  I am going to play catch with my dogs in the back yard and swim in our pool (that's right, our new place has a pool!) on hot summer days, have cook-outs on Sundays while watching football in the afternoons (well, if there's a season) versus the middle of the night.  In the winter I will go look at the houses all lit up for Christmas and then go to my local Starbucks and enjoy a Peppermint Latte...the list goes on and on.

I have treasured my time spent overseas.  I know I am very fortunate to have had such experiences and to have seen such things.  But, for just a little bit, at least, in a matter of weeks I will be "home."  You will probably find me on the front porch swing with a glass of sweet iced tea reading a book and listening to the sounds of the neighborhood, smelling the charcoal all around me.  Sounds like home to me.

Recap

So the past month has been crazy!  Just to recap, we took our week long trip to England, to include places like Dover, Canterbury, London, Leeds, and many, many more!  I then came back, finished up at work, graduated from college (yay!), and then we left on our two week cruise to Italy, Greece, Turkey, and Croatia.  We came back on Sunday, and now the movers are scheduled to arrive this week to pack up our stuff and ship it over the ocean because we are officially moving back to the states at the end of this month!  Whew!  That is a ton!  Now you can see why I have been slightly absent for blogging.  I lost a few followers along the way, which is sad, but I really appreciate all of you that stuck in there.  I am very happy for you all!  I love blogging, and would do it just for me, but I feel more connected to the world to know that I have actual followers, and I hope that I have posted about something that has helped you somewhere along the way!

So, without further ado, I will start on my English adventure!  It was great.  We started out the first night in London to see Phantom of the Opera at Her Majesty's Theater.  I have seen the show a few times, including in NYC, but it was Joel's first time.  We saw Love Never Dies in London back in September, which was the sequel, so I figured that I would show Joel how the story began.  It was good, but I wasn't too impressed with the woman that played Christine.  I didn't think she could carry the role the way it needed to be carried.  Oh, well.

So, we strolled around London a little taking the Royal Wedding in.  It was a couple of days before the actual Big Day, but people were already camped out around Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey.  Which, if you think about it, doesn't make much sense, because if they don't catch a glimpse of anything, there were no screens showing what was going on!  It was really nice, though, because the Brits became so patriotic, and even though they swore they couldn't care less about the event on tv, everyone was talking about it.

Chinatown, London Style

Bangers and Mash

The Obligitary Phone Booth Picture

Joel has the fever!

So many great things in one shot!

The wedding venue for the (now) Duke and Duchess of Wales

I'm moving on...

So, after seven years in Germany (yes, you read that right, seven years!) I am finally moving back to the good ole U.S. of A. this summer.  This is a bittersweet move for me, because I absolutely love living in Germany, but I know it is time for a change.  I really want to start on my Masters Degree, and I can't do that while I am here, and I am kind of stagnant at work, since how I am too "invaluable" to actually get any additional training.  So, while I am sad to go, and will be boo-hooing all the way to America, I am looking forward to this new adventure in my life.  So yes, now that I have teased you long enough, I will spill where I am going...

Scott Air Force Base!  It is in Southwest Illinois, about 45 minutes east of St. Louis.  I get to go back to the Midwest!  My honey definitely made some sacrifices for me with this one, because he is a West Coaster born and bred, but I really miss my roots back home.  I grew up a Hoosier, and miss the land of BBQ, Southern (or Midwestern) hospitality, and sweet tea!  He placed Scott as his number one assignment because he knew that I needed it to feel like home, even for just a little bit.  But, after the Scott assignment is done, we plan to go right back overseas.  We are thinking Japan this time.  Joel was in Okinawa before, but he would love to go back to mainland Japan.  We'll see!  Life is always up in the air when it comes to the military.  Now, fingers crossed that this assignment will stick!