Today is insanely windy. I woke up in the night and had to slide my windows shut because it was so noisy. My bedroom is usually really comfortable: I sleep on a futon on the floor (in Japan, futon just means the cushion, not the frame) about even with the bottom of my sliding glass door out to the balcony. When it gets hot, the breeze coming in is fabulous. Last night though, I was concerned that the wind was going to blow right through my paper window screens (and they already have enough holes!). There is apparently another storm blowing in... we are obviously not quite done with the rainy season yet.

This week has gone really quickly. Tuesday night I had another adult English class and it went really well. I only have 3 left! My class is up from the 12 person limit to 17 students! It kind of makes casual conversation a bit difficult. We had fun practicing pronounciation this week: Japanese speakers really struggle with hearing and producing the difference between L and R, V and B. I had them holding up their top lip to pronounce V and contorting their tongue to make sure they were getting L correct. The adults looked even funnier then my students here do!

I haven't had a single other class this entire week. Tuesday was the big test day, so my classes before, during, and after Tuesday were all canceled. Today I finally have ONE class of my own, and perhaps another planned by another teacher, unless its canceled.

Yesterday, Robert, the JET from a year before I got here, showed up at school. I've heard bits and peices about him all year so it was interesting to actually meet him. He'd been back in Japan to visit for a couple of weeks and only had about 30 minutes to see school before being whisked off to an onsen overnight by one of the students in my adult class (nothing changes around here... they just don't really get "hanging out"). He did apologize for the state of the "garden", claiming that the woman before him (the one I have always blamed for the mess) had indeed created the most tastless and out of control English garden something or other, and when he arrived he just destroyed it. So... at least I finally got something of an explanation. He apparently likes Misato so much (he's from Ohio and currently living in New York), that he wants to come back here to live. Both of us acknowledged that it would be a cool place to be if there were jobs other than teaching English... who knows, maybe he'll be hired back here at school when I leave?

Misato really is just a fabulous place to live. I don't know if I feel more normal and comfortable living here compared to Wakayama simply because I'm not an exchange student... but I think there's more to it. This feels like one of the last "sane" corners of Japan. There are still tractors rolling down the streets, there are fields everywhere and not just ugly buildings. Speaking of buildings, there are plenty of beautifully constructed, traditional Japanese homes here, instead of the ugly pink or green concrete ones of the big cities. The mountains are gorgeous- every-day. People here spend mass quantities of time enjoying the outdoors (case in point: my English class was working on future tense this week so we discussed our plans for the summer: half the class was traveling within Japan or climbing mountains!). I can bike around at night and not hear anything but insects and the water rushing along side the road. It doesn't hurt that lately it has been the perfect temperature outside. After arriving in and surviving the brutal heat of last summer, I was certain summer was going to be awful... so far it has been wonderful! I guess if I've enjoyed this much of it, I can handle it getting ugly in August (I will just head to the hills!). Adding to my new found love for Japanese summer: I am also, for once, already excited for winter, too! Now that I have skis and I know how to use them... BRING ON THE SNOW!!! Even Jaclyn (who hails from Southern California and hears that it is currently over 100 degrees at home regularly and when applying for JET just asked for someplace warm), is armed with a new snowboard and is psyched to head back into the snow. In short, I love it here. I feel sorry for those of you who can't enjoy it with me!! (and sorry for myself because now that I've lived here I will always miss it when I leave). (and I will leave).

ps. don't forget to glance at the picture page everyonce in awhile... I'm having lots of fun sending out new shots from my phone.. I can add to the page whenever I want to, simply by shooting off an e-mail & picture no matter where I'm at. Enjoy! (link is on the left margin if you scroll).