Waking up each day...

We just got back from dragon boat training.
These people may train for a shorter amount of time with more frequent breaks, but they sure go hardcore each time we take the boat out.

To describe the pain I'm experiencing now:
I hurt most around the armpit area... like if you were lifting someone up by under their arms, that general area where you put your hands is where I'm feeling the pain.
I think I might have pulled my right triceps a little though. It hurts when I lift raise my arm.

I have to leave for work in about an hour. 3 classes today... we'll see how well work can mesh with dragon boat.

We just came back from dinner with the dragon boat people.
Got a call from the guy we talked to at the boat ramp last weekend, and he asked us to go out to this restaurant place quickly and eat with the team members.
They were fun to hang out with, I'm glad we went, and I am really, really, really looking forward to going out in a boat with them!

... but maybe in ANOTHER 2 weeks

Well I set the alarm and got up early to go to dragon boat.
Just when I think: "Nothing could possibly go wrong this time..." We get there, and there was no boat, no people, no sign of any action at all. Even the water looked shallow. Great!

( Read more... )

I sat there for a while because in an attempt to comfort me in my dispair, Paul said we're like 5 minutes early. So we waited. Still nothing.
Then some guy walked down the ramp and looked around checking the water etc. On his way back up the ramp, I asked if he was one of the dragon boat people and he was. Sadly I couldn't train with them today as they are preparing for the Kagoshima Prefecture race that's gonna be held next weekend, plus nobody seemed to have shown up for training anyway so... I will have to wait another 2 weeks.

I was rather bummed, but I guess having at least talked to someone in more detail about it and exchanging phone numbers with them is a promising start.

On the plus side, Paul came home with Pokemon Platinum (new DS game released today,) and is now happily
playing away. I on the otherhand have just finished weaving the second basket (a red one this time,) and am now just making the handles.

I was gonna finally make a trip out to the onsen in Hinata Yama (about a 25 minute bike ride away) but it's started to rain and hasn't really stopped yet so I'm not sure if it will actually eventuate today.

Yep, that's exactly how I feel now.
Very relaxed and refreshed after my shower-bath-shower routine.
Then I tried a chamomile face mask (haven't done that in aaaaaaaaaaaaaaages.. last time I used a mask must have been in Okazaki with Samet...)
Then I put lots of moisturizer on so my skin's all soft and nice now.

Paul and Moira and Graeme went to Tokyo yesterday so I was left to guard the place all by myself. Had the whole day to myself today too.
Overall I had a pretty relaxing day today, even though I did do some work (the subway lesson materials), and went out to the ward office to have my gaijin card updated.

Another thing of note, is that I went out for a run by myself after dusk, and I did two laps around the park (about 3.2kms) without stopping. That's a new record for me. Paul would be proud!


Now a little bit of back tracking...

Dragon Boat
- I did some steering at dragon boat practice a few weeks ago, I really enjoyed that. (I really enjoy dragon boat, full stop.)
- Then I did some taiko (drumming) at the front the of the boat the week after that. That was pretty cool too.
Ah, I love dragon boat!

Family
- Turns out, dad's lost his job... hope things turn out for the better soon...
- More on the happy front, Moira and Graeme arrived on Sunday morning and we went out to pick them up from the airport.
- On the same day they arrived, we finally visited the fireworks shop nearby. Needless to say, we had a lot of fun playing with the fireworks that evening.
- Then on Monday (public holiday here), we went out to Himeji and visited the Castle. It was a bit disappointing that we only just missed being able to go inside by about 10 minutes, but we soon got over it as it was quite lovely to just look around the outside. At first I was really disappointed because the stamps were in the bit where they sell the tickets, and it was sectioned off with ropes... but fortunately a kind lady let me through ^-^

Other Stuff
- I sent out the snack pack to Miami last Saturday! I had to take some stuff out at the post office (lucky I didn't tape it up beforehand. I took enough out so that it's just slightly under 2kg, then I taped it up and wrote the address and everything... and as luck would have it, it was over by 5g!!!... so I ripped off "extra protection" tape, until it was exactly 2kg *sigh*
- Tuesday was a bit tiring, felt rather sleepy at work, and didn't have much motivation to do much work.
- Wednesday (yesterday)... well, you know the rest..

Rather happy with the look of our website now... it's really cool!

http://risedragon.wordpress.com/

I went for a 15min run-walk routine today.. and then came back and got my wallet and walked around the block cool down before getting calipo-like ice confection from the supermarket.
Was meant to have started my run-walk training quite a while ago, but I keep putting it off: too hot... too tired... can't be bothered... too busy... my body hurts... too late... etc etc

That's not to say I haven't done any exercise though.
My shoulder still hurts from intense dragon boating last weekend.
Went out to Himeji early Saturday morning (got on the first train in the morning!) then ferried out to Iejima (with Bachiko-san, G-san, Yama-san, Tama-san and Mika-san). I paddled in 4 races.. 2 of them were back-to-back.

Headed back to Kobe afterwards and stayed at Tama-san's house (12 of us).
Another 4am start on Sunday. Left the house at 5 and arrived somewhere on the Japan Sea coast north of Kyoto. Was in all 3 races where we came 3rd in all.
In the 2nd race we went a little out of course, and my paddle struck the buoy so I almost lost the paddle but thankfully I was able to continue paddling despite having to hold it in a strange way for a few seconds.
Nagisa-san (our boat steerer) was crying after that race. She said she couldn't see the goal and couldn't steer the boat properly.
We thought we were out of the game after the 2nd race thinking that only 2 teams from each race would qualify for the finals. Everyone walked back to the tent feeling defeated, and Tama-san started packing but fortunately Bachiko-san and I decided to go check our times and found out that we actually got in the finals.
Took us ages to get Nagisa-san to stop crying and agree to get back in the boat for the final race.

So happy we came 3rd. Coming 3rd in this race felt so much better than the Ten-jin one (the one that Paul went to watch.) Why? Because 3 of the boats that went in the race were from the same team: the team that came first in the Ten-Jin race (No. 1 Girls' team in Japan) and they beat us by miles in that race where there were only 5 girls' teams. This time, there were 3 boats from their team (all under different names for some reason) and 15 or so other girls' teams, plus it was a really really close race to the finish line not miles and miles apart.

Anyway, I should go brush my teeth and get ready for bed soon.

Kinda slowly getting used to my new job... (still lots of new random stuff to learn though)
I was so happy about finally leaving on time on Wednesday, so happy!
Then back to staying back again, and I hit a new high yesterday, I was working till 8:15!! OMG, I sound like a workaholic.... noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
In the my first week, I even had dreams where huge kanji, or long complicated words come flying at me... that's how intense it was...
Anyway, that's all I'm gonna talk about work stuff for now.

Went to Notogawa for this strange dragonboat race last sunday (why's it strange? because it's a 300m race where you have to do a u-turn after 150m then paddle back... quite fun though)
We won by miles in the prelims, actually got the 2nd fastest time out of all the women's teams...
but sadly in the semi-finals our team got disqualified!!! (T-T)
We were all really looking forward to racing in the finals... ah... such is life.
Hopefully, we do well in next week's race too (can't remember where it is... somewhere north of Kyoto I think..)


plans for today:
- house chores (did some washing and will do some more tidying and vacuuming in a bit (boring!)
- go send the package of goodies to Samet
- take stuff to the drycleaners
- take the PET bottles and milk cartons to the recycling bins at the supermarket
- meet some friends in Umeda and go bowling
- Paul comes back from camp, yay!

plans for tomorrow:
- dragoboat training
- go out and meet amy, (maybe go to karaoke too??)
- come home and bludge

plans for next week (a whole week off, yay!):
- go and apply for a visa renewal
- check out some possible accommodation arrangements
- go to PL fireworks (not sure if we're still camping out for it... would be nice though)
- bludge as much as I can

It's Yama-san's birthday today... "Happy Birthday!" (I don't think she knows about my blogs though...)
Anyway, we went and "tried" to have a surprise party, but she found out, just before Bachiko-san and I arrived. Still good fun though.

G-san and I-forgot-her-name-san made decorations
A really cool pop-up birthday cake poster and streamers.. as well as "Tanabata" decorations: branches of bamboo with wishes written on little pieces of paper hanging from them. I didn't get the chance to write one as I was too busy in the kitchen! (T-T)
I was given the responsibility of making the cake, and Bachiko was given the responsibility of preparing the sushi stuff.
It was a "temaki" (hand-roll sushi) party, where you just get a small piece of nori and put a little bit of rice and anything you want in it, then roll in up and eat it.
As usual, I ate too much... I also drank too much green tea... didn't feel too good afterwards.

( the cake I made )


Before the party, we went to Kobe and met up with Tama-san to go and visit Sumi-san who is in hospital. (She had some operation done on her right arm and would be in the hospital till next Friday.)
The four of us chatted and chatted, and ate chou cremes, and chatted for ages...
I was talked into running a marathon with them in November ... RUNNING! for crying out loud...
only 10km though... "ONLY"?! (they're doing the 20km one)

Everybody knows that: I can't run. Full-stop.
I guess it's time to give myself a new challenge...
but *GULP* 10kms is a lot to ask for, when I don't even think I can do 1km right now. Probably not even 500m...