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!

Family Fun

It's been a lot of fun having my family around for the holidays. I'm actually able to relax and use my vacation time as a vacation (fancy that!). However, it hasn't simply been days of lounging around. We've been busy...

baking lots and lots of cookies with mom (although I prefer eating them),
checking out the humongous jacks and walking the dogs,

getting beautiful pedicures (mine is the blue and white one),
eating new foods and using chopsticks,

trying Okinawan sake for the first time (response: "Not bad, I like it."),

posing in the traditional Okinawan dress at Ryuku Mura (this one's for you, mom),

braving the crowds at the aquarium,

enjoying the treats on Kokusai Street,

and viewing Maeda Point.
More to come!

Family!

We are so fortunate to have my family (who taveled all the way from New Hampshire) out this year for Christmas. Yesterday, we braved the rainy weather to see Shuri Castle. Although the weather was blah, we still had fun seeing the sights and attempting to stay dry.

Kinder Tradition

In addition to hosting a classroom party, surprising the students with filled stockings, and decorating the whole classroom, Teresa and I have made it a tradition to have the kids make "gingerbread" houses on the day before winter break. The houses are actually graham crackers and we spend the night before making all the houses so that all the students have to do is put on the decorations. It's a big hit - the kids love it! I'll certainly continue this tradition next year!

Here I am with one of the decorated houses. They are really cute!

Like the gingerbread apron? Teresa made them with some kits we bought from Oriental Trading. Gotta love Kindergarten - you can get away with wearing something like this.

Here I am with Teresa in our matching hats and aprons. We are both exhausted in this photo due to all the work and preparation for this last day before the break. It's a well deserved break after all this!

Gone to the Dogs

Even the dogs are getting into the holiday spirit - check out their new collars from Shaka Dog.

Hampostle Elves

Jess sent me the funniest Hampostle-themed thing yet! Check it out: Hampostle Elves

Watch Noa's character - we think it's a riot!

Trees!

One of my favorite things about living here during the Christmas season is our church's Christmas decorations. A bunch of church members spend a day decorating our little church and I think it looks so beautiful. My favorite part is the sanctuary where they put all the Christmas trees. I love how festive and warm it feels. I think they use over 10 trees on the stage.

White Trash Party

Last weekend we went to Tom & Laura's annual "White Trash Party". It was a new idea to us: dress like your part of the Jeff Foxworthy Show (think, "you know you're a redneck if...."), eat, drink, and be merry. It was more than a costume party, though - there were games, such as a seed spitting contest and a large bonfire in a rusted garbage can. We had a blast and I'm already planning my "look" for next year.

I had an 80's bang look going for me (well, at least my bad haircut was put to good use) with a denim ensemble and Noa was "trashy doctor". He had on a name tag that read, "Docter Hammer" and had a pack of cigarettes in his pocket.

Tom creates the fire. Their new house has a beautiful view of their prefecture and the ocean. You can see some of the lights in the background.

Some of the guys. The guys in flightsuits won for the overall costume contest, although with these looks, it's hard to define a real winner. You gotta love them all.

I [Heart] Tokyo!

Jess and I joke that we want "I [heart] Tokyo t-shirt because we had so much fun there! I would have posted sooner, but our picture-sharing has not gone as planned (darn that technology). Anyway, since Jess covered our trip fairly well, I'll post a few pics to add to her blog about our time in the city.

The Hampostles on the plane from Okinawa to Tokyo. It's about a 2+ hour flight.

Here's a map of the subway system. Although most of the maps are written in Japanese, there were a few in English and the system was surprisingly easy to maneuver.

Mike buying tickets for the subway.

Jess and I ready to take the city by storm!

A view of Rappongi, an area with an active night life.

Stumbled upon this little gem while walking through the city.

We did some sightseeing and shopping in Ginza (where we went to the Gap!). I was surprised to see lots of holiday decorations, Christmas trees, and signs in neighborhoods about the holiday season. Okinawa has some of that, but a lot of it is pretty tacky and I assumed that it was only put up because of the heavy American presence here.

Team Juloa in Ginza.

We drank coffee in the first Japanese Starbucks store.

I was so happy that I got to see foliage this year. I've missed this since leaving New England.

Here is a blurry picture of the busiest intersection in the world. It's in Shibuya. I was able to take this while eating dinner on the 5th floor of a restaurant located right on the intersection. It was pretty cool.

This sign cracked me up. Talk about bad family dynamics.

Here a mother and daughter at the Meiji Shrine in Harajuku. We were also able to see several wedding processions here. It was beautiful.

Later, in Harajuku, Noa volunteers to get free hugs.

He realized too late, that it was actually a guy who was giving out the hugs. Whoops!