Typhoon? What typhoon?...i don’t feel no typhoon here.

After all the hoolahoo about a big typhoon heading this way (school was even cancelled!!), it was a bit of let down to have nothing more than very light rain and some wind. Although the typhoon made itself felt in Oita and Kochi prefecture, it just skimmed over Nagasaki. Had there been no warning, I wouldn’t have thought anything was out of the ordinary!

So instead of going to Oita, we went out for Indian food, and hung around Isahaya.

Alex came over for a networked game of StarCraft, we took David for his first onsen experience, and drove around in the hopes of spotting a tanooki, these really creepy looking creatures that can sometimes be seen around the airport.

We met up with a friend and went out for a late night snack, at a place called bikkuri donkey (surprised donkey). What a name...!

Typhoon on its way

We had planned a road trip for the upcoming long weekend. Alex, David and I were going to drive up to Oita where we would meet up with Sheila and Miho who would be taking a ferry over from Kochi. I was looking forward to it so much….and since Sheila will be leaving Japan soon, this would have been the last time I see her before she leaves!

But, it was not meant to be….a typhoon was expected to hit this weekend, the worst of it expected for Saturday. Smack dab in the middle of the long holiday. You know it's bad when the school decides to cancel classes.

If there was any doubt that when Miho, Sheila and I get together we bring bad weather, it’s now settled. When in Korea, one of the storms broke in the ceiling of the place where we were staying. When in Australia during the summer, it snowed. And the day that we confirmed that they would meet up in Oita, the typhoon warning was broadcasted. I can’t believe it….the three of us put together brings about violent weather. If only we could harness that power and make it work in our favour….

So no road trip this weekend.

But on the bright side, David’s excited because he’ll be able to experience what a typhoon is like!

David’s in Nagasaki! (July 9-Aug 15)

Davidie has arrived! I can’t believe how big he has gotten!

Some friends were having a dinner get-together at a restaurant that happened to be nearby the airport, and I thought I would have time to have dinner with them before picking up David at 9:50pm, but as it turned out, David arrived a couple of hours earlier than expected, and was starving. So we were all able to have dinner together! It happened to be a Chinese restaurant.. after spending 2 months in China, David arrives in Japan to have his first meal be...Chinese food!

When we got home, Yamaguchi sensei came over, bearing a watermelon. She also commented on how much bigger he’s gotten.
David is so tall that he does not fit through the doorways in the house without having to slouch. I think it'll only be a matter of time before he bangs his head on the doorframes.

I'm so happy to have him stay here, it's so good to see him again!!!

Space World (July 6-7)

I spent most of today trying to get through marking a ton of journals, some of which just don’t read very well:

I heard it with Japanese traditional culture, and I associated fireworks in the first. The reason is because it does a bakuchiku or fireworks in a grave for some reason when it is obon in Nagasaki when I say. Because I have played fireworks on a tray in a grave, I understand it. Actually, I am really happy.

Hmm.

I was hoping to get most of the journals finished, but there was still about a third left at the end of the day. Oh well, it'll be for when I get back next week.

We drove up to Fukuoka to stay the night at Ayumi’s place. I knew she was staying in a rokujyo (6 tatami mat room), but was still surprised at how small it is! The entire apartment is comprised of this room and a bathroom.


Once we folded up the table and pushed bags to the side, there was room for each of us to lie down for the night.

I don't think the idea of rokujyos would ever fly in Canada, but in a country where space is so limited, they are pretty convenient for a single person. Ayumi's is located right downtown in Fukuoka, and the rent is reasonable.


Bright and early the next morning, we got ready for our drive up to 'Space World', an amusement park up in KitaKyushyu.



We met up with Erica downtown, then made our way up to the park. Because there had been strong storms happening across Kyushyu this weekend, the park wasn't very crowded which meant we didn't have to wait for any of the rides!



I had a massive headache on the drive back to Nagasaki, and wasn't sure I'd be able to make it..it's a good thing there was good company in the car to get us back in one piece!

Close encounter with a mukade (poisonous centipede)

I just had the most terrfying experience.... while taking a shower, I found I had (unwanted) company.......a mukade in the shower!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I dont think I've ever jumped out of the shower that fast in my life.

It climbed up near the knob, so I couldn’t turn off the water.

I didn’t know how to kill it. I’ve never had to kill a mukade before. I was afraid of it moving away, because then it would be somewhere in my bath, and I don’t know where...maybe coming out when I least expect it....*shudder*

I guess it felt comfortable by the knob because it hung around the knob for the longest time. Over the next hour, while getting advice from people on what I should do, I kept checking on it to make sure I knew where it was. If it had wandered out of the bath, I don’t think I could have ever slept in my apartment again.

A friend said I should try to kill it. I finally got the courage to try, went back to the bathroom, only to find that it was not there anymore!!!

I panicked.

But then I found it UNDER the knob.
How to kill it when it's UNDER the knob?....

A friend suggested using chopsticks to get it out in the open. These things move fast, there's no way I was going to poke it with chopsticks and have it possibly drop to the ground and run towards me.

Looking around my desk, cluttered with computer paraphernalia, wondering where I’m going to sleep tonight, my eyes fell on a can of compressed air

Using compressed air while holding it upside down is very dangerous, so I thought I would give it a try. Armed with my can of compressed air, I went back to check on the mukade in the bath.

He was still there.

Making sure I could easily make a run for it should the thing fall to the ground and start running towards me, I fired away.

I didn’t stop till half of the can was used.

It worked!!!!
Then using chopsticks, I detached it from the frozen knob and flushed it down the toilet.

I dont ever want to see another one of those things again!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'll sleep much better knowing it's dead.