Dartboard

Today I received my winter box—a much anticipated package of clothes, foods, and goodies from home. Some of it I had set aside before I left for Japan, but most of it was random goodies complied by my wonderful and loving sister, Joelle. Of course, she’ll never know just how wonderful and loving I think she is because she hasn’t ever been to my website before (shame on you, Joelle!) but now you all know! She’s a great sis!

The poor delivery man! He carried all 60+ pounds of the box up to my second floor door and looked absolutely exhausted, but I’ve spent the morning opening the biggest Christmas present ever! My kitchen is full of western food, my closets are full of warm winter clothing, and my medicine cabinet is full of fluoride toothpaste and illegal drugs (we’re just talking Sudafed here, but it’s illegal in Japan). There were even some extra surprises: DVDs and movies, books, magazines, blankets (that I’m used to cuddling up with at her house), a blow-dryer clothes dryer, an “I love you” Teddy bear and more!

When it didn’t all fit on my kitchen table I moved it to the living room floor!

Okay, and now my stomach hurts so I’m going to post these other pictures and cuddle up with the movie "Pretty Woman." I still have to pack for the JET Mid-Year Conference which is this Monday and Tuesday and tonight I’ve agreed to playing basketball with Satomi again… if I’m feeling okay.

So, I had dinner with Catherine and Shingo on Thursday night. Pictures from that event:

The flowers Shingo gave Catherine as her “Welcome Home (out of the hospital)” gift.

We had spaghetti bolognaise, garlic buns, salad and lots of fruit.

And last night I spend the evening with my neighbor Koichiro. We went to Aqua Blue to go swimming, but he forgot his swim suit in his car and so we did purikura and ran some errands instead.

On this one Koichiro wrote “It’s hot” in Japanese (and I started to in English but ran out of time) because he was wearing this huge swimming jacket in my car and kept taking it off and putting it on everytime we got in and out of the car. It was kind of the theme for the night. Atsui ne?

And this one has Koichiro bundled up like it’s below freezing outside, but it’s actually been in the 70s all week. In Japan, if it’s the winter season then it doesn’t matter what the temperature actually is, you should be wearing long sleeves and a jacket. I got many comments on my short sleeves this week at school—but it’s 70ºF, I insisted!

And recently I have been chatting with a Linfield friend, Josh, who gave me some pictures of what he’s been up to since starting graduate school in Michigan this fall.

Playing with puppies.

Making elaborate lego boats.

And a little gardening on the side. Isn’t he a cutie? Sorry, he's taken!

That’s all from me for a while. I’ll be gone until next Wednesday, but hopefully I’ll have pictures to share from the conference!

Love, Sierra