Suiei

On Saturday on Yokosuka Naval Base there was a Captain's Cup Swim meet... there are events all year long that the different commands from the base can take part in including 5K races, bike races, and yesterday the swim meet. This is a good opportunity for the commands to get together and work as a team to win points towards the "Captain's Cup" at the end of the year. The George Washington command is unfortunately not very active because they work so hard when they are here in port and because they miss half of the events when they are out at sea for a good part of the year! Even yesterday there were only 4 guys from the GW taking part in the swim meet. It was the first swim meet I have ever been to and it was pretty fun. There weren't that many people there considering it was on a Saturday AM, but there was quite a few events, mens, womens, mixed and they even had 2 different age brackets!


Damian participated in 8 events, including 2 relays during the meet! In all of the individual events, Damian took 1st place and came home with 6 shiny gold medals around his neck!!!!!!!! He did really great and I think he had a good time too. I know he is happy being able to be back in the water so much and swimming a bunch of times a week. In the picture to the right it looks like he is in the Olympic size pool all by himself but I assure you he is just ahead of the other competitors... haha It was a fun Saturday morning and a good way to spend a rainy day!


This Olympic size swimming pool is located on the second floor in one of the gyms here on base. The BIG earthquake last year (March 11th) shook so hard that water was pouring out of this pool and down the stairs of the gym.... crazy right?!?! It has almost been a whole year since that earthquake and there are going to be many memorial/remembrance events going on in the next few weeks. Many of the people currently stationed here were here for the earthquake and everyone has their own story about where they were or what they were doing... I am very thankful that we didn't come until after. If you REALLY want to see this video check it out on YouTube (put in "Purdy Gym Flood").

Japanese Word of the Day:
Suiei (sue-yay): Swimming

Adventures in Babysitting... errrrr Substituting....

So this past week I was scheduled to sub at the high school only one day which was fine but I ended up subbing for 3 days... this will definitely keep me busy! So on Friday I was the substitute for only half the day for "Japanese 3" and "Japanese 4" ummmmm yeah I obviously was no help there... Thankfully the students were all really good about staying on task and didn't ask me for any help with their Japanese homework... hahaha The reason I am even mentioning this is because I think it is really cool that these student have the opportunity to learn the language of their host country (Japan) and also because they learn to read and write it as well... and good for them because that is super difficult!

Anyway, in the classroom I had their was a little tatami room and I thought I would use this blog to teach you a little bit about that. It was kind of neat to see a big piece of Japanese culture right there in the school. The room was pretty big, but not nearly as nice as the one in the picture above. A tatami is a type of mat used as a flooring material in traditional Japanese-style rooms and traditionally made of rice straw to form the core. The word tatami means to "fold" or "pile" because the early tatami mats could be folded or piled when not in use. Tatami were originally a luxury item for the nobility and finally made it to the commoners by the end of the 17th century. Very often even in modern day Japan, rooms are described by how many tatami mats fit... for example instead of saying a room is 9 x 12 feet, they might say this room is 6 tatami (saying you could fit 6 tatami mats in it). This is what most Japanese families sit on instead of couches and dining tables... they are pretty comfy, but I think I'll keep our big plush couch for now!

Japanese Word of the Day:
Tatami (ta-ta-me): To fold or pile

PROM 2012

OK, so it wasn't really prom, it was the U.S.S. George Washington Birthday Ball... held last Thursday night at one of the clubs here on base! We started with a pre-party at our friends place and then headed over to the main event. There was lots of food (mostly meat... see below) and lots of desserts and of course birthday cake... although none of us seemed to get any of that! There was also DANCING....which was super fun!!!They gave away a bunch of prizes but we didn't seem to win any... and there was a good size group there together from the Medical Department so we of course had good company! Mostly it was nice to get all dressed up and go out... instead of hanging around in my Navy sweatpants all day (and night) haha! There were a few hundred people there (at least) and the party was held on 3 different floors which gave it a weird feel and it seemed like there were multiple parties going on. We spent a lot of time going up and down the stairs.... in wicked cute high heels too, so my feet were a little tender the next day.... I couldn't even remember the last time I put heels on!!! haha!

The good thing was if you attended "prom" you didn't have to go to work the next day... although Damian was on leave anyway, it was nice to sit home the next day and do nothing! I also want to give a BIG shout out to Katherine who is pretty awesome and went to the store in Boston to try on this exact dress so she could tell me what size to order online so I could have it shipped to Japan... Thanks tomodachi!!!!!

Japanese Word of the Day:
Sho (show): Prize

Valentine's Day & Substitute Teaching

VERY low key Valentine's Day for us this year... but that's exactly what we wanted! It was our first married Valentine's Day but it has been such a crazy busy year! Damian was on leave all week and we just hung out and didn't do much. It was a cold week last week and it rained a few days, so when Valentine's Day came around we just wanted to have a quiet night. We had planned to go out to dinner but it was pretty rainy that night so we got take-out sushi at the grocery store earlier in the day and then made some miso/udon soup at home... It was super oishii and it was nice to just stay home! As you can see we had waaaaaaaaaaaaay too much for just the two of us but it is just so delicious we couldn't resist!

The day after Valentine's was my first day substitute teaching at the high school... I was wicked nervous because honestly the high school kids scare me a little not to mention I haven't "worked" in almost an entire year.... crazy right?!?! I was subbing for Biology which I can totally handle considering my first college degree is Biology and then in the afternoon I did Physics which really challenged me considering I had a tutor and struggled with Physics back in the day! Some of the kids really pushed my buttons to see what they could get away with and I think I sort of stood my ground... Let's be honest I never in a million years thought I would be teaching so this is a new adventure for me. I survived the school day and that's all that matters! I am going to sub again this week...already signed up for 2 days and we'll see if they call me for more... I'll take the $$$ and it keeps me busy for the day while Damian is at work!

Japanese Word of the Day:
Ai (eye): Love

Turning Japanese... I think I'm Turning Japanese

Reasons why I am turning Japanese...

1. I prefer to eat with chopsticks (I eat much slower this way and get full faster)
2. I love green tea more than coffee
3. I wear headbands with bows/flowers that Damian says make me look like a local
4. I eat white rice and miso soup for breakfast and think it's normal
5. No shoes in the house!
6. The word "yes" has left my vocabulary... I only say "hai"
7. I got my hair cut to look more Japanese... thick bangs!!!!
8. I buy clothing at Japanese stores and try to copy the looks I see when I'm off base... key word is TRY...
9. I prefer to shop at Japanese grocery stores as it's always an adventure
10. I've mastered driving on the left side of the road and parking Japanese style...


The video I posted is the song "Turning Japanese" by The Vapors and was a big hit in the early 80's... I too was a BIG hit in the early 80's so I felt this was an appropriate video to post on this blog!!! This song actually has nothing to with "turning Japanese" but is actually about a guy who is crazy in love!!! hahaha I however am crazy in love AND am actually turning Japanese ;) enjoy!


Japanese Word of the Day:
Irasshaimase (ear-rah-shy-mah-say): It means "welcome" and is always said when you enter a store or restaurant

Super Bowl.... Monday???

Yup, that's right... Super Bowl was watched here in Japan on Monday AM... around 0800!!!! Definitely a different kind of Super Bowl than we were used to. I'm used to having all day to prepare and watch the pregame etc... but nope, we basically got up Monday morning and then our guests arrived to watch the game... good thing we had everything ready the night before! Damian even supported the right team... PATRIOTS.... kind of... he at least supported Danny Woodhead by sporting his jersey and humoring me for the day! We had a Super Bowl breakfast with LOTS of food and fun! It was a pretty nasty day here.... cold and rainy so not too many people came over, but we made the best of it.... even though the Patriots didn't win and we had a few LOUD Giants fans in the house- I think everyone had a good time!

I know I haven't reported much on our daily stuff lately since we have been having so many fun adventures I thought I would try not to bore you with the boring stuff! Damian is busy back at work and I am still not busy hanging out at home. The Red Cross volunteer thing is the biggest waste of time since they are still working on my credentialing and I have pretty much put it on the back burner as I don't even care anymore, and I have been approved to substitute teach at the schools here on base... I just haven't actually been called yet... I've been working out and reading a lot lately and I try to fill my days the best I can! Damian is taking leave again next week, but we don't have too much planned... I'm sure we will find something fun to do... and then in March we signed up for a few more trips through the base for some sightseeing! Hopefully we have some new adventures to tell you about soon... until then...

Japanese Phrase of the Day:
Ureshii desu (ew-resh-ee des): I'm happy :)

Seven Lucky Gods

The seven lucky gods of fortune are a BIG deal here in Japan. You can see carvings, figurines, and pictures of these 7 lucky gods in almost every Japanese home. On Wednesday I went on a free (gotta love FREE) tour with a great group of women in Kamakura to visit 7 different temples/shrines that are home to the 7 Gods!!! This is a full day event as each one is not right down the road from each other, we took the train and walked until we went to all 7. We bought a stamping sheet with a picture of the 7 Gods in the middle and had it stamped at each location.... this is going to be great when it is all framed! My favorite as the first one we went to (to the right), Hotei, he is the god of contentment and happiness! I liked him the best because he was life size and we got to rub his belly for good luck. Many of the others were off limits to pictures and definitely to touching! There was even one that we couldn't see at all because it was behind closed doors!!!

The 2nd one we went to was Fukurokuju, and it was literally a head in a box... He is the god of longevity and wealth and has a long beard and a abnormally long head. The 3rd one is pictured to the left and his name is Daikoku. You're not supposed to take pictures of this one, but we had already taken this when we saw the sign that said no pictures.... oops! Anyway, he is the god of wealth, agriculture, farming and commerce, and sits upon bales of rice which is very important in Japanese culture. He has a mallet in his hand which symbolizes good luck so we rubbed the string attached to the mallet. Daikoku was located at the Hase-dera Temple which has gorgeous views of Kamakura and the ocean! We had lunch up there... it was pretty cold with the wind but the view was priceless! The 4th one we walked to was Ebisu, the god of fisherman, the ocean, sailors, commerce and fair dealing. He was so tiny and off limits that you couldn't even see his fishing pole or fish that he carries!

Seven is an important number, not only in Japanese culture, but in many cultures all over the world. Seven can be seen in many different ways... there are 7 principles in the Samurai's philosophy, The Japanese Star Festival is on the 7th day of the 7th month, when a baby is born they celebrate it on the 7th day, and when someone dies, they mourn for 7 days and then again after 7 weeks, and in Buddhism they believe in 7 reincarnations.... all very interesting! Sometimes these 7 gods are found in pictures where they are all in a treasure ship as each one represents a different kind of fortune! It is common for people to visit all 7 gods right after New Year's to ensure they have all sorts of good luck for the new year!!!

The 5th one we went to was Jurojin and he is the god of longevity and wisdom... super important to see him- especially because I want to live forever! The 6th one we visited was Bishamon, the god of war, treasure, defender of Buddhist faith and patron of warriors. He was so tiny I couldn't even see him, plus he was inside a temple that was really dark! The 7th and final god of fortune we visited was all locked up and only is brought out on special occasion, but her name is Benzaiten, the only female in the group! She is the goddess of eloquence, the arts, wisdom, and beauty! In the pictures we saw she would be really neat to see... AND the thing with this 7th one is that there is actually ANOTHER statue of Benzaiten that is a little different located at another shrine and as you can see our stamp sheet has one more open spot... soooooooo hopefully soon we will make it to the 8th place to get the stamp and complete the page! I like getting the stamps because they are all hand done... first they use the red stamps, then they do the writing by hand and it is so beautiful to watch! A very awesome day!!!! Can't wait to get the 8th stamp and then frame this for our home!!!

Japanese Word of the Day:
Nani Nani (nonny nonny): What is it??? (slang)