Eating Habits

The other day, Joey and I were eating pizza and he was laughing at the way I eat. Yes, I'm confessing I have strange eating habits. He asked me if anyone other than my family knows about how I eat, and I told him some friends back home do, but no one here in Okinawa. I should also add that every week I go out to lunch with friends, and every time I try very hard to eat "normal". Wondering about how I eat? Well, I eat in layers. Yep, layers and I always save the best for last.

Some examples:
PIZZA: Toppings and cheese first, the body next, then the crust last.
BURGERS: Veggies first, the bread next, then the meat patty last.
SANDWICHES: Same as the burgers.
TWIX: Chocolate sides first, the caramel next, then the cookie last.
LUMPIA: Wrapper first, then the meat inside.

Anything with distinct layers, I'd eat it weird. Whew, now I have nothing to hide when I go out to eat! You'd laugh at me, but I won't care.

Eggs on my Back

I've been laying in bed for the past 45 minutes and can't go back to sleep. So I'll blog.

While I was laying there, Joey woke up. I smiled at him, and he saw my eyes wide open as I told him I couldn't sleep. Then he said, "Is it because you have eggs on your back?" Um, what? He closed his eyes, rolled over, and said, "Why do you have the eggs on your back?" I giggle, and tell him to go back to sleep.

Mr. President

Barack H. Obama

44th President of the United States

Commander-in-Chief

Just My Luck

I wake up with Joey every morning to pack his breakfast and lunch while he gets ready for work. Yes, I know, I'm a good wife. But it also gives him extra sleeping time in the morning.

This morning, I get up half awake, walk toward the hallway, and what do I see? A beetle. A huge beetle! A huge, black, fat beetle upside down! I haven't even seen these beetles since the summer time, so what in the world was it doing in my hallway? I scream and Joey comes to the rescue with a half shaven face.

After, he starts to check the other rooms. He turns on the lights in the computer room, searches it, and turns off the lights 2 seconds later. I see a discrepancy behind the curtain rod, thinking it's just a bolt, but I check anyway. Yup, it's a spider! I just had one last week, won't these things go away! It's even bigger than the infamous door spider. I scream again, and Joey comes to my rescue ... again.

I'm thinking that the bugs were hiding in our water boots that Joey brought in from the outside, which he assured me he checked before bringing it in. So here I am, on my laptop in the family room, because I'm too afraid to be alone in the computer room on the desktop. Now, only if I can think of a fast way to shower and leave the house without bugs sneaking inside.

I guess today was supposed to be my extra lucky day. Too bad.

Ryukyu Mura

Went to Ryukyu Mura yesterday and had a lot of fun! I'd describe it as a place you would visit if you want to see and experience the simplicity of Okinawan culture - pottery, shisa, traditional music and dances, tea ceremonies, and etc. For a Sunday, it was pleasantly less busy.

Joey was the King and I was the Queen.

Entrance to Ryukyu Mura.

There's a small feeding pond with tons of carp. Can you tell they're hungry?

Smile.

Yummy coconut drinks! We had the mango-coconut.

Shisa are popular here.
The left, closed mouth keeps in good spirits and the right, opened mouth wards off evil spirits.
I want a pair, but I can't decide which colors and/or style.

They have shows throughout the day.
One was with traditional music and singing, along with traditional dances.

We missed out on the virtual fight between the Habu snake and the mongoose - that's another ticket. But we did get to see the snakes and mongoose in their cages, so I'll just imagine it.

Awase Fish Market

Went to the Awase Fish Market yesterday! Mainly to try the lobster set at their mini restaurant. I don't remember the last time I had lobster, but it was yummy! Joey and I shared this dish set, as well as some fried tempura fish which they sold outside.

The market was smaller than I expected. Basically they have different kinds of fish thrown in large bins for you to choose from. Everything is in Japanese, but there was a handy dandy fish chart (forgot to take a picture) to identify whatever you choose.

We would have gotten the 3 foot long mahi-mahi, but I have no room for it in our freezer, and we sure weren't going to eat that much fish this weekend! And I didn't know how to cook the other kinds of fish, so we got blue crabs! I steamed them that night for dinner! Delicious!

Right outside the fish market there's a dock, go figure! We spent a little while out there taking pictures of the fishing boats. I tried to be artistic and take good photos. I failed. Once I know how to use Photoshop, I'll post them!

Twilight

A few months ago I told my family that I was reading books for leisure, and they laughed. Laughed out loud. Then my mom asked me, "Are you ill?" I'm sure if she were physically present, she'd feel my forehead to see if I have a temperature, which she has done in the past.

I should explain that I never read leisurely, until now. I just didn't like to read. I thought that I already had to read textbooks, why punish me more. But with all my free time now, I realized that I don't mind reading.

I heard about the Twilight Saga books a few months ago, and knew a movie was coming out. I read them. And I loved them. Today, they finally showed the movie here in Oki after being released in the States two months ago. I watched the movie online, but the copy wasn't good.

So Joey and I went for the first showing at 6pm. What a mistake! The theater was packed with pre-teen girls who screamed every 30 seconds, even after many, many people not-so-kindly told them to be quiet. It was my fault. I knew they were going to be there, but I had to watch it today, and it was more convenient for Joey and I to watch it at 6pm, rather than 9:30pm.

I know it was only a few years ago when I was that age, but I was never that annoying! I'm off to get a drink ... maybe two drinks!

Mexican Food in Japan?

I miss my Mexican food. I miss the Super Nachos at Cotixan, carne asada fries, and the Berto's Burrito at Super Sergio's on Sweetwater. So this week, some friends and I were on a mission to find good Mexican food, other than Taco Rice - which are all the ingredients of a taco over rice. Japan has good Mexican food, you ask? Obliggato/Oblee is the only place that I knew of, and it was good ... until we went to Mike's Tex Mex! They had really good Mexican food and I finally got my guacamole I've been craving for two months now!

My taco salad.

Heather N. and Any's tacos.

Jeanine's enchilada combo.

Charity and Heather H. got the Chicken/Beef quesadilla (which were HUGE by the way) and Bekah had the kids cheese quesadilla.

Just had to show the pictures so you can see - thanks for the pictures by the way Charity! I know I'll be back soon because 1) Joey gets jealous that I try out new places to eat without him and 2) they have mango and pineapple margaritas!

Wii at the Library

Just want to let everyone know that Torii Station Library now has Wii games to borrow - two games per week. I'm not sure if Kadena or Foster is doing the same thing. I got Sims 2 -Castaway and Jenga. Off to go play now!

UPDATE at 11:42pm 01/14/09:
Jenga on the Wii isn't fun. I don't have a steady hand using the controllers. Just play with the actual blocks! If you don't have Jenga, come on over to my place and I'll challenge you to a duel - I rock at Jenga, but apparently not virtually!

Another Crawler

I hop out of the shower, and go to grab a tissue which is on the shelf above the sink. I haven't put on my glasses yet, so I'm partially blind, but I see a dark colored blob above the tissue box. It immediately registers in my head that it's either a gecko or spider. I hate both! I grab my glasses, and see that it's the worse of the two, a spider!

However, this spider is smaller than this spider, but still big enough to see its defined dark brown legs and body. I call Joey, who's on his way home, and ask how long until he gets home ... 15 minutes.

So I sit on the corner of my bed, with dripping wet hair, in full view of the bathroom and the spider, waiting for Joey. And waiting. And waiting. I hear Joey's car ... 9 minutes! He takes another minute to come upstairs. He grabs the Swiffer broom and BAM, it's dead! That was 10 minutes of agonizing spider watching, and now my left eye is twitching ... literally twitching.

Our Japanese agent told us a while back that a spider entering one's home is a sign of good luck and money to come our way. Well, I guess we just squashed our luck today!

X-Man

I just watched the X-Men trilogy in the past couple of days. I never really knew much about the comic characters ... okay, okay, I didn't know anything about the comic characters until I watched it. It wasn't until the second movie, X2, that I realized why they were called X-Men.

They were mutants.
Hence, mutant X-genes within humans.
X-man. Duh!?

Flew right over my head. And I took a year and a half of college biology. I've only been out of school for seven months and I can feel my brain already shrinking.

Girl Scout Cookies

It's around 3am. I can't sleep, and I haven't been the past few nights. I have no idea why. But I have been taking one hour naps ... four to five times a day.

Anyway, Joey called me from the BX and asked if I wanted him to buy some Girl Scout cookies. "Uh, YES!" I don't know what makes these cookies so good. Maybe it's cause they're only sold once a year? And did the price go down? Joey paid $3.50 a box, and I swear I paid $5 once!

He came home and we opened up the Shortbread right away. But, since I'm sick I barely tasted it! Ugh, I better get over this cold by this weekend considering how much medicine Joey shoved down my throat!

Ugh, I Hate Being Sick

I'm sick right now. I caught a cold and sore throat from Joey yesterday, and I feel even worse today. Usually I just shrug off my sickness and do whatever it is I need to do. But all I want to do right now is stay in bed and watch The Joy Luck Club which is showing on TV right now. Is it possible to not get sick when someone in the same house is sick?

I find it ironic that I was a Pre-Pharmacy major, and I hate taking medicine - unless of course I had a migraine or cramps. When I was younger, it took the strength of two parents and my older sister to hold me down and force medicine down my throat ... literally.

It wasn't until I started dating Joey that I started taking medicine. And if I had a sore throat or cough, he'd make me take the liquid form because it coats the throat. Bleh! I hate tasting my medicine! And now that we live together, he sits there watching me take it! Ugh. I hate bring sick!

I'm a Mrs.

When I went to Kadena today, the security guard checked my ID at the gate, acknowledged me by my last name, and told me to have a nice day. First, I didn't know that they actually check the names on the ID, I thought they just look at the picture and make sure it's not expired. Second, I thought it was nice that she actually acknowledged me by name - I've never had that done before by the security guards. Third, I realized that I've been married for almost 11 months, and it is just now that I'm getting used to my new last name.

For a while after I got married, I still used my maiden name at school - which confused me even more. I changed my name legally the week after Joey and I got married, and when it came down for my signature at the Social Security office, I realized, I didn't know how my new signature would look like. I sat for 5 minutes before I was called just scribbling new ways to write my new name - I still don't like my signature.

I remember getting my medical clearance done in May to come over to Oki, and the nurse practitioner kept calling me by my new last name. After many failed attempts, she called me by my maiden name - she had my immunization card with my old name - and I promptly responded. "Just married, huh," she asked when I came up and explained her reasoning. Oops!

Hello 2009

Happy New Year! We didn't do anything fancy New Year's Eve. We stayed home, I made a feast, we drank wine, and watched movies. We were able to watch fireworks from our window which look about a 15 minutes drive away - it's where we would see fireworks practically every night in the summer during the festival season.

For the past couple of years, I haven't made any resolutions. No reason, just cause. I figure this year, I'll make some, because I don't have the stress of work or school to use as an excuse. So here are mine and Joey's New Year Resolutions.

1. (Joey) Take college courses - just the general stuff for now.
2. (Liza) Find a job or volunteer work - at least part-time.
3. Travel Asia - outside of Okinawa.
4. Stay in touch with friends and family - how can we not?
5. Learn conversational Japanese - enough to get by.
6. Eat healthier - portion control and eating all the food groups daily.
7. Exercise at least 3 times a week - I'll hate it, but it's necessary.
8. Laugh daily - I'm talking stomach pain laughing.
9. Never go to bed angry - we never do, but it's always a good rule to live by (and when is Joey ever mad anyway?).
10. Save money - which might be hard, especially if we want to travel.

Have you made your resolutions?