Hope {Nozomi}

3 years ago exactly (at the time of this post) my world changed forever.  I was home alone in our house in Japan when the ground started shaking.  I assumed it would be like all the rest, causing brief pause, then I would go about my day.  I had just returned from an outing with some of my Japanese friends and was working on a blog post.  I remember like it was just yesterday.  You can read some of my posts here and here and here and here.  The days immediately following were chaotic, confusing, alarming, stressful, the list goes on. My emotions pale in comparison to those who lived near the epicenter and in the path of the tsunami.  After months spent in that area after the event with All Hands and on mission trips, I still cannot begin to grasp the fear and despair that ripped through the area.

While it is important to remember to remember the past, it is also crucial to have hope in the future.  On one of my many trips to Tohoku I had the great pleasure of working with a group of women on the Nozomi Project.  Today, while remembering the past, I'm also finding hope in the future.  Hope I see in those who sacrifice(d) their time, money and talents to help the people of Japan heal.

#ilovejapan

Exactly two years ago today, Japan was shook by the great Tohoku earthquake and a tsunami that wiped out miles of the northern coast.  Looking back on that day I had no idea, at the time, the impact those event would have on my life.  Today's #ilovejapan post is dedicated to the people who were impacted by the events that took place on March 11, 2011.

Today's 5 things I love about Japan (specifically the Japanese people) are

1. Their determination.

2. Their graciousness (cheap hair cuts for volunteers).

3. Their creativity (the Nozomi Project turning trash into treasures)

4. Their resiliency. 

 5. Their patriotism.

Please take a moment out of your day to pray for the people of Japan!

recovered?

I might have kicked this jet lag thing in the butt for the 2nd time in the past month....maybe...hopefully!

My trip home was significantly less painful than my trip to the US.  My total travel time was 24 hours instead of the 36 it took me to get to the US and I only had one lay over instead of 2.  That one lay over was a bit of an adventure though, I had a 45 minute connection in DC which, for those of you that don't travel very often, is not a lot of time.  It didn't help that my flight left Cincinnati 15 minutes late.  I literally sprinted through the airport, knocking people out of the way (sorry old dude, you were moving too slow for me and no matter how many times I said excuse me, you just wouldn't get out of my way) and hurdling luggage to make it to my flight on time.  I'm sure I was a sight to see, but I was determined not to get stuck there.  I made my flight with only a few minutes to spare and luckily there was no one in the seat next to me so it was a pretty comfortable 14 hour flight.  I made it home just in time to be shaken into a deep sleep by pretty good aftershock.  Nothing says welcome home like an aftershock huh?

I have been waking up really early in the mornings (0700 is really early for me) but I don't mind too much because I've been waking up feeling rested and just in time for NHL playoff hockey puck drop on this side of the world.  The strangest part of this episode of jet lag for me has been CRAVING dinner in the morning instead of breakfast foods (get your minds out of the gutter, I'm not prego).

I tried not to waste any time getting back to my "normal" life. Lunch with friends. Social time with my awesome neighbors.  PWOC Bible study.  Teaching English lessons.  COOKING!  Gym.  I figure if I'm busy, I'll stay awake. 

I also made time to finish a craft project that has been in the works for months now

 I am IN LOVE with my menu board! 

(and yes, I realize I spelled Kielbasa wrong...I may or may not get around to correcting that)

To top it all off, Jason returned safely from Sendai last night.

  He is currently out wearing a clown suit getting some tests done to make sure he isn't radiating is as healthy as when he left

It's so nice to have our family together again without any TDY's in the near future.

straight up

Ok ladies (and gents, if there are any out there that read this).  I spoke about 30 minutes too soon yesterday.  Depending on what blogs you read, you may have heard this or that.  Things seem to be quite different depending on who you ask or what news you watch.  I'm going to tell you how things are going here and what I say applies to our base and our base only.

Yesterday we had a FRG meeting scheduled at 1530.  I blogged about our rolling blackouts then stopped by my husbands office before heading to the meeting.  In the time between my post and the meeting, shit hit the fan.  The word "evacuation" was flying EVERYWHERE, friends from other bases were posting things on FB and lots of people were starting to panic.  At the meeting, our Battalion Commander got up and told us pretty straight up how it is.  The President signed an order for Military Assisted Voluntary Departure of Dependents.  THIS DOES NOT MEAN WE ARE BEING ORDERED TO LEAVE!  It means we have the OPTION to depart if we feel necessary and the government will provide transportation to and lodging at a "safe haven".   We were told to pack a bag with clothes for 3-4 days and be prepared to leave with in a couple of days if we choose to.  At this point, we do not know when we will leave, where we will go or how long we will stay.  The plan is changing by the hour and I won't be confident in the plan until the wheels are up on the plane and even then, I'll probably still have some doubts.  At this point it is also unclear whether or not pets are going to be able to travel under this voluntary departure option.  As you can imagine there is a LOT of confusion and speculation going on right now.  It may not seem like I'm giving you much that you haven't already heard but I'm simply being smart about what I say, the last thing I want is this blog starting more rumors.

Ok, so what about me?  What is my plan?  Well, without saying too much and breaking opsec rules, due to my husbands job and what that means for him, we have decided that it's best if I go.  Hopefully soon, I'll be able to elaborate a little more on that but for now, that's what you get.  I will say that I am NOT leaving because I am worried about anything here.  I feel completely safe here and don't feel like there is any need to leave.  We just feel I can do more good by traveling with friends who are departing the area with small children.  Plus, I'm up for an adventure and this is sure to be one!

Stay tuned.  The lap top is coming with me where ever I go, so I'll do my best to blog as things move along.  And please please please keep sending prayers to Japan!

rolling blackouts

Update from Japan:

Since Monday we have been experiencing "rolling blackouts" which are basically scheduled power outages that last 3-4 hours and rotate through the cities of Japan.  Day 1 was great, we were able to keep our power use to a minimum and the scheduled black out was cancelled.  

I sat out and enjoyed a cold drink and a good book on a warm spring day instead of watching Grey's reruns

Tuesday we weren't as lucky and around 4 pm (right in the middle of a community briefing from our Garrison Commander) they shut off our power.  We knew this was coming and if you listened to the warnings, you were prepared.  After the briefing, we still had about an hour of day light time left but after the sun went down it quickly became apparent that there is only so much you can do in the dark.

Using a flashlight, I was able to finish laundry

and make my husband dinner

which he quickly ate before getting back to work.

When I showed up with his dinner, he was sitting in the parking lot with 2 generators going, testing out some equipment in the dark.  I pulled the car up and he worked while I read in the light from the headlights.  Not the most romantic dinner we've ever shared, but it was nice to spend a little time with him.  They've been working 14 hours shifts 24hours a day all week and there is no sign of things slowing down in the near future, so I'll take what I can get at this point!

Today we had our power turned off from about 10am-1pm so I resorted to a "lunch" I haven't has since I was a child.  Cheese and (turkey) pepperoni on crackers

It's scheduled to be off again this evening from 5-830, so I've planned grilled chicken Caesar salad for dinner.  Tomorrow we are scheduled to be in the dark from 6-10am and again from 2-530pm.  These blackouts could potentially go on for up to 3 months.  I'm running out of creative ideas for meals already and I can see us getting tired of PB&J and tuna after a few week.  Any suggestions?!?!?

All in all, I'd say we have a it pretty good considering the circumstances.  I'm more than happy to give up my electricity for a few hours a day if it helps the people who are suffering up north.

I will continue to blog as much as possible about the conditions and ongoings over here.  If you are concerned about us, I suggest you stop watching CNN/Fox News.  We are far enough away from the nuclear power plant that even if it went into complete meltdown and the winds were blowing directly at us, we would be 100% safe.  We're far enough inland that tsunami's are not a threat to us.  Our base has assured us that there is a 6 months supply of food here so we're not going to starve.  If you have any questions please feel free to email me directly.

more videos

if you don't watch any of the others, you should definitely watch this one all the way to the end....it just blows my mind




this one is from Yokosuka Navy Base about 30 miles south east of me

crazy!

this video is in the shoppette on our base