Catching Up

I'm a little behind on blogging (sorry). I have some catching up to do.

First, the weekend....

I finally remembered to bring my camera to this unusal Okinawan restaurant called Jet City Burgers. We went there on Saturday night with some of Noa's coworkers. This place is so unique - at least I've never been to a place like it. Some of the really cool things about the place:

• right on the water, near Araha Beach and really small, quaint
• creative menu items - I like the terriyaki curry wrap
• signature item: avacado - they put it on everything
• the decor! Check out the outside:
  

The service is great (of course, this is true in most Japanese establishments). Here is the nice girl who took our orders. I think she thought we were nuts for wanting to take her picture.

More reasons to love this place: these signs. They make me smile.

After dinner, we met up with Meg and Joe (who are in the process of moving) to grab dessert at the local Lawsons (it's like a convience store) and then take a look at their new apartment. Meg and I stumbled upon some cute Japanese goodies. Look at this adorable Haagan Daas!! It was a perfect serving size. The flavor is Kokuto & Kuromitsu (I have NO idea what that is and I wasn't ready to try it....yet).

On Sunday we went furniture shopping with Meg and Joe. One store we visited carried these HUGE mirrors (which baffles me because Japanese homes and apartments are tiny!). Anyway, I had to take a photo because I was quite amused.

Normally, I walk right by candy machines (although I am a big sweets person), but this one had something called STONE CHOCOLATE in it. I had to try it.

It was indeed chocolate, and pretty good chocolate at that. Meg decided to go for the pink candy that had a very sweet strawberry flavor. I loved how the store provided little cups to put the candy in.

On to today....let's just say that today didn't start well. Mostly because I got a flat tire on the way to work. Thankfully, Noa and I changed many flats back when we lived in Massachusetts, so we knew what we were doing. I feel bad for the Turtle (that's what I call my car - I think it kinda looks like a turtle) but hopefully the situation will be completely taken care of by tomorrow. For now, I'm driving around with a golden donut on there.

Don't ask me why I look so happy in this photo. I was actually pretty bummed about the flat.


Finally - HAPPY BIRTHDAY to JESS!! Today's her day! Happy Birthday to you all the way from Okinawa, Japan. Wish you were here!

The "New" Dog Park

Okay, so technically speaking, it's not a dog park. It's a completely fenced in old baseball field without a "no dogs" sign.  Now it will be referred to as "the dog park" by me, since Okinawa nor the military here have embraced these wonderful places yet and it's the only place I can let the dogs run safely.  Jenn and Perry showed me this field today and the dogs had a blast. It was great to see them running again with doggie friends again.

Nala shows off her great big tongue after running after the tennis ball.

Miko, Nala's sister, tried to keep up with the pack, but she wasn't quite up to their speed.  She's awfully cute though!

Sadie, Gunnar, and Nala decide to play right by Jenn.  It was great to have my two socialize with a bigger dog since they don't get much interaction with other dogs nowadays.  Also, I love doing dog stuff with Jenn and Perry because they hold similar views as I do when it comes to raising and training dogs.

Sadie by the fence.  

Nala loves tennis balls.  She and Sadie sometimes raced to see who would get it first and Nala usually won since Sadie doesn't want the ball THAT much.  Nala, on the other hand, likes to also play keep away with the ball in her mouth in addition to fetch.

Sadie did get her turn with the ball.

Gunnar hanging out with Perry, the only other guy around.  

Going Green

Although the BX/PX and Commissary offer many things you'd find in the states, there is a lack of "green" products.  I have a strong desire to use safer products in my home, especially with the dogs living in a small apartment.  So, I was so pleased to find that drugstore.com delivers some of my favorites!  Anyone who would like to switch to greener products should try Caldrea or Mrs. Meyers.

Well, I'm off to go scrub the tub!

Freedom!

Good news!

Okinawa Restrictions Eased

Weekend Fun

In spite of the lockdown, we were still able to find fun things to do this weekend.  We had the opportunity to see the off-Broadway play "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change" with a bunch of our friends.  And, not only was it a musical (you may remember that I'm quite fond of musicals), but also a dinner theater setting, complete with cheesecake for dessert!  I loved it!

Our friends had connections with the director, so we also had front row seats.  

Sorry for the bad photo, but look how close we are to the stage!

Here we are looking very happy!

Also, we had some beautiful weather on Sunday.  I happened to catch this picture of the sun's rays coming through the clouds while we stopped at the shoppette briefly.  I've been meaning to post a picture from this angle of Camp Foster.  You can see a bunch of the military buildings, some buildings past the confines of the base, and then the ocean.  I love being able to see the water, especially when it's under a brilliant looking sky such as this.

Lockdown Lowdown

Sorry for the boring post (no photos), but I thought I'd give some more info as to what life is life in lockdown mode.  First of all, the recent incidents off-base involving military members can be found at Japan Update.  

Here's the rest of the scoop on life on lockdown:

What can you do?  What can't you do?

The lockdown (also called "the period of reflection") really only affects me on the weekends, since my weekdays are pretty simple: work, gym, and then home.  However, on weekends I am limited to doing things only on base.  However, I recently received notice that we can go to other people's houses off base (yeah!).  But, there's no going "out" in town:

• no going up north to check out the cherry blossoms
• cancelling an upcoming Cocok's appointment
• no 100 Yen shopping
• no Starbucks runs
• no eating out in town
• no karaoke 
• no grabbing a drink out of the corner vending machine (if you've been here before, you know that there's hundreds of those around)

How will the military know if you do these things?

The locals know about the lockdown and have been known to call the police when an American has shown up at the corner Lawson's or some other off base locale.  There's a rumor going around that Americans have been caught off base and were given 48 hours to evacuate the island for going against the order.  But, I don't really know if that's true or not.

What about church?  School?  Work? Taking care of business off base?

You can get a special waiver signed by the command that allows you to take care of previous engagements (for example, the Okinawa Marathon was this past weekend and all the American runners had to get waivers to participate in this off base activity).  If you attend church, school, or work off base, you do not need a waiver.  If caught off base without this, that's when you'll be in hot water.

How long is this going to go on?

No one really knows.  The person who decided to put Okinawa on lockdown, has not given any indication as to how long this is going to go on.  However, many of us speculate that after the lockdown, they'll be curfews in place so it won't be completely back to normal.  I'm not really sure how that's going to work.

Handstand Sadie

What do you do during a lockdown*?  Use your dogs for entertainment, of course!

We love how Sadie "protests" wearing clothing by doing handstands.  I'm trying to turn this into a teachable moment and trying to get her to do this upon command.

*Yup, you read that right - we're on lockdown status over here.  Due to recent events involving service members making poor choices in the local community, the head honcho has put all SOFA status folks (us) on lockdown.  That means we are limited to the bases, places of worship, residence, and education.  So, we can't go shopping off-base, get our nails done, walk the seawall, etc.  So, we're getting creative in finding things to do.  

Animé Addict

Another "classic" example of Japanese car decor:

I wish I could say this is unusual, but I see this often.

100

Today was "100 Day" at school.  It's the day that we celebrate 100 days of Kindergarten this school year.  For the 5- and 6-years olds in my class, it's a big deal.  It's a celebration that is up there with Christmas and Valentine's Day.

One of the fun things that we do to make this day fun for the students is to rotate the three Kindergarten classes.  Each class visits another classroom and participates in 100 Day activities.  In one class, the teacher read a book and then the kids had to help draw a picture of me (their teacher) when I am 100 years old.  Here's their "masterpiece:

Notice that they think I'm 34.  Their first response when asked how old they thought I am right now, was 99.  When the teacher said, "no, she's younger than that - much younger," they said that I must be 9 or 11.  Cute.  

WOOOT weekend

"What is WOOOT," you may ask.  WOOOT stands for Women On Our Own Time.  It's our new annual retreat where the girls head somewhere (this year we went up north to Okuma*) and hang out without husbands, children, or pets.  It was a blast and Okuma was beautiful.  It was my first time there.

Here are the girls who participated in this year's WOOOT retreat: (R to L, top to bottom) me, Melinda, Tritia, Mary Ann, Liz, Laura, Emily, and Jennifer

Giving our WOOOT shout out:

V-Day

Valentine's Day is a big holiday when you teach in elementary school.  This is one of the perks of the job; not only do you get candy and goodies, but you get handwritten notes from current and former students.

Notes like this make my day (this was a Valentine gram sent from one of my former students).

Twins

So Noa and I have been meeting after work to go to the gym.  We've been doing this for over a month now and haven't run into this problem yet...

SHOWING UP IN THE SAME CLOTHES!

And of all the days, I ran into some of my colleagues who saw us together.

Nice.

A Must See

I've aways been a sucker for musicals.  Maybe it's because I was an aspiring Broadway star as a 9-year-old.  Maybe it's because I can be a hopeless romantic.  Or, I just like to have material to sing in the shower.  For whatever reason, I love 'em.  

Which brings me to the topic at hand: you've got to see this movie.  Once is a low-budget, modern day musical that is not your everyday love story.  It even has a "Lost in Translation" feel, as one of my friend's put it.  The buzz for this movie started at the Sundance Film Festival, but I got wind of it this weekend while viewing it at a friend's house.  

Two things to know before watching this flick:

1 - There is language in it, especially at the beginning.  Be forewarned.

2 - I think it's best with the subtitles on.  It's a foreign film and although the characters speak in English, the accents can make it hard to understand.

Now I just have to get my hands on the soundtrack.

AM Resurrected

I was outside of school with one of my colleagues today and she was telling me about the AM tower that was getting installed outside our building.  This made me very happy because I used to be an avid listener of NPR - until I moved to Okinawa.  The amazing thing about the tower isn't the tower itself, but the 3 guys who climbed it in order to work on it.  You can barely even tell they are there in the first photo.

I would NEVER have the guts to do this.

And - KUDOS to Kate for helping me blog for the first time from my new little Mac - pictures and all.  Thanks, Kate!

Technical Difficulties

Sorry for the lack of blogging.  Our desktop PC is still very slow with some tasks and I'm trying to figure out how to use iPhoto with Blogger.  Keep checking back - I'll figure this out soon enough.

Killer Coffee & the Radio

I nearly bumped into the car in front of me tonight from laughing so hard at this radio clip.

Killer Coffee

Here's an interesting thing about the radio here in Oki. We really can only get one English radio station (from American Forces Network). Sometimes I can get a Japanese station, but it has some pretty crazy stuff on it. We used to at least get AM so I could listen to NPR, but that's been down for a year now.

So, it's usually a gamble what you're going to get on the radio, but tonight it was pretty good!

Connected!

Perry came over and helped Noa set up a wireless connection for my new toy.  Here I am with Gunnar for my first picture taken with the MacBook camera - in my dining room!  Woohoo!  I'm connected!

Japanese Innovation

Noa and I decided to have breakfast for dinner. Just as I'm about to open the egg package, I realize that once again I am looking at innovative Japanese packaging. The eggs are in a clear, plastic container, which you don't have to open to see if any eggs are broken. I know that a few of the more expensive brands in the states do this, but are they sealed?? It's nice to know these eggs haven't been touched by who knows who. Also, there's a paper in there on the top with the date clearly labeled so that you can see how fresh the eggs are.

Another example of simple, but careful, deliberate quality in Japanese culture. Brilliant!

Oh, and they tasted good too.

Weekend Highlights

It's been a great holiday weekend! Gotta love those 3-days off! Here are some of the recent events for Team Juloa:

Puppy Playdate:

Sadie and Gunnar got to stretch their legs with Emma, a golden retriever, who didn't know what to think of these two stick dogs who move faster than the 2 year-old boy she currently has to keep up with. Needless to say, after all the running around, my dogs were pooped out for a day straight afterwards.

Sorry for the pet eye in the photo - I only had my little camera with me.

Lunch on the Sea Wall:

We joined some friends for a curry buffet on the sea wall after church on Sunday. The weather couldn't have been better. Here's a picture from my seat.

Football Monday:

Tom and Laura hosted a football party Monday morning. Noa and I had to get up at 4:15 am in order to drive over there and catch the first game, which started at 5:00 am. Thankfully, the Pats won, but sadly, they'll be playing the Giants in the Superbowl (wished it could have been Green Bay). Oh well - the party was fun anyway. Even if I did fall asleep for part of it.

Welcome to Mac World:

After much debate, I joined "Mac nation" today by purchasing my first Mac, thanks to my grandfather. I can't wait to start putting photos on there and learning the ropes. I know everyone is so excited for the MacBook Air, but I need more than that could offer (such as a DVD burner). Besides, knowing my luck, I'd break it in half. I'm really happy with my choice.

And for those of you craving some Japanese culture, here's a sign I pass often on the way home from my friend's house. Did you know that crime preventic begins in the home??

The Cave

I often get grief about working on weekend days. I know, I know - weekends are supposed to be for fun and relaxation, but the demands of a Kindergarten teacher these days are numerous.

This weekend, in addition to cleaning out a spare classroom with my co-workers, I built a cave* with Teresa. We are doing a unit on winter and hibernation, so a cave is a nice addition to the classroom. We built a frame with 2X4s and then covered it with paper. I'll be putting bears in there and brown blankets and pillows to make it cozy. Cute, huh?

*Yes, I know that caves generally are not square, but due to time and money constraints I had to go with a simple design.

For Charlie

As a tribute to one of my favorite websites, which is no longer getting published, I wanted to post a cute picture of Sadie and Gunnar together. Instead of "cute," this is what I got:

Guess I don't have any photogenic Charlies in my house! Gunnar even stuck his tongue out afterwards! The nerve!

New Year, New Look

I've been making a few changes to the blog for 2008. I've got a new color scheme going, although I'm not sure that I like it yet. I'm hoping to add an album on here as well, so check back for updates!

Family Fun, Part 2

The Bragdon family adventures in Okinawa continued:

A visit to the Nago Pineapple Park - loved the fresh pineapple!!

Eating at Pizza in the Sky (it was really cold - we had to use blankets to keep warm during the meal, but it was still really fun).
Anoli and myself
Bowling at Foster - my dad almost got recruited to join some Marines in the bowling tournament that night.

Anoli, who's not too shabby herself when it comes to bowling, gave me pointers since I'm not very good.
We visited the Ryukyu Glass Village.
Beautiful!

My dad insisted we find the Ginowan Bell (which I had never heard of before). He and Noa found it one day and brought the rest of us to see it. The bell is located on the grounds of the Convention Center and Tropical Beach. It is a symbol of the "bridges" made by Okinawan ancestors of the Ryukyu kingdom to the rest of the world. This bell is a replica of one from 1458 in Shuri Castle.

Noa, dad, and Anoli posing with the bell.
It was in the high 50s/low 60s that day but the strong winds made it awfully cold. We walked the Convention Center grounds and enjoyed seeing the waves crash against the jacks, although we did get slightly wet in the process. Usually this water is pretty calm so to see these it so active is a real treat.
Spectacular!
On New Year's Day we saw a performance of Tops in Blue.
And, of course, we couldn't have the family leave without some karaoke! It was a blast!

Sadly, my family had to go back to the states yesterday. We'll miss you guys!