One of my students said I looked like Michael Jackson today…

Due to the language barrier, I didn’t ask him if he meant Michael Jackson circa Jackson 5, Michael Jackson circa Off the Wall, or Michael Jackson circa child molestation trial. For my sanity and self-esteem, I am going to assume that he compared me to MJ because we are (were) both Black and because they don’t know of any other Black woman to compare me too. But Beyonce would have been nice…

I’ve opted to rock a new hairstyle for a little while in an attempt to give my hair a break from all the combing and brushing. Though I love this style, I was hesitant to do it because I knew I’d receive a lot of attention. From kocho-sensei exclaiming “BIG CHANGE!!” to yon-nensei gakusei (4th graders) petting my hair, yesterday and today were hair focused. We’ll see what happens when I rock da braids!

My weekend in Takamatsu, Kagawa-ken, on the island of Shikoku was a blast. Mel was the hostess with the mostess and we had a great time drinking, eating, talking, laughing and gossiping. On Saturday, she a threw a birthday house party and about a billion people came over, and about a million slept over. At the end of the night, I had to put together a makeshift “bed” on the kitchen floor because I was too slow in claiming a space. Ok, maybe not too slow, but definitely preoccupied…



I got to put a lot of faces to the names and they were all great people. Shout outs to: Jim, Teresa, Jeremy, Liz, Grant, Erica and Dee! (That weird looking instrument in the pic is called a pianaka and Jeremy took great pleasure in playing it to Liz as she prayed to the porcelain god).

I even got to try the prefecture-famous udon noodles. They were tasty and carb-irific! I also had Indian food not once, but twice. I had chicken tikka masala both times (at different restaurants), and Spice Kingdom (?) was the clear winner for me.

On Sunday, we took a long walk around town and she brought me to the harbour where we looked out into the sea and the surrounding islands. It was so beautiful that I actually started to tear up. It was a combination of the natural beauty and a sense of peace I have inside me. I wish I could just bottle up the sights, sounds and smells and ship it to all of you back home. I guess you are just going to have to visit me to check it out for yourselves.

I had a great time on "The Rock", and missed Melissa-san the next day, but I will go back soon and rock the place again!

Mel and I also got info about China and she actually booked her ticket. I still have to confirm my schedule with my schools but if everything works out, I will be departing on December 23. Mel and I will be spending Christmas in Beijing and New Year’s in Shanghai and possibly a few days in Hong Kong. I’m so looking forward to it.

Autumn has definitely come to Neo and some of the trees are changing colours. Today was an absolutely gorgeous day: fluffy white clouds, crisp blue skies, a brilliant sun, and just a hint of wind. It’s the perfect time to fall in love or to be in love. **Sigh** Too bad that won’t be happening anytime soon. Don’t worry, I’ll post some pics soon. Unfortunately, along with the beautiful weather, autumn also brings along some unwelcome visitors, i.e. the dreaded mukade:

It was honestly disgusting, but I handled myself well. I got up and ran to the kitchen in one swift move and got a plastic container. After I trapped it, I did what any other blogger would have done: I photographed it. After the shoot, I found some cardboard paper and swiftly flushed it down the toilet. FACK! I hope I never see one of those again. Not only are they poisonous, their bites hurt like a mofo.

Oh yeah, I tried kendo today. It was fun and I worked up a sweat, but my forearms will be sore tomorrow. This is in addition to the sore thigh muscles I received from a game on Saturday night and trying to kick a suspended volleyball above my head. What can I say? Pain turns me on!

Oh, and Swel, I will mail you your 5 yen right away for guessing CB4 correctly. Sorry Dan, you were too slow.

Shenehneh – hope that everything is going well with Jr. I will call you this weekend!

Kisses.