Our new home

I just wanted to fill those of you who give a hoot in on my new life. My living situation. My daily routine. How things have changed. How I now realize how many things I took for granted in the US. How I love the things I've learned here...
I will begin with a list of the things that I miss. In no particular order.

• Leather car seats with a/c that cools my butt in the summer and warms it in the winter.
• Roads wide enough for 2 cars to fit without creeping by one another.
• Shopping. Target. Ross. Bed Bath and Beyond. Marshall's. Malls. Walmart even.
• Large vehicles.
• Friends and family.
• Restauants. But not many, actually.
• Talking on the phone at any time of the day.
• Knowing how to work my cellphone.
• Getting gas at any ol gas station.
• A normal sized oven and a 4 burner stove.
• A dish washer.
• An air conditioned bath room... or 4.
• Carrying my groceries from the car in the garage 20 feet to the kitchen.

Ok, so that's not too long, is it? When I first got here, I went to the commissary and noticed there were so many of our staples that they didn't carry. Just a month later, I tried to remember those staples, and I could only remember 2. Guess they weren't very life-sustaining after all. It's amazing how we get so used to the little things that we lose appreciation for them. Or how we think that we just absolutely can not live without them. In reality, we forget about them shortly after they are gone and live our lives in a new way. Not replacing those old things with new things, but living a more simple life. The kids don't need certified organic crackers. I don't need those super extra dark chocolate chips. You get me?

So now I'm on to the list of things that I love. And I mean l-o-v-e.

• Sitting on the floor at restarants.
• Taking off my shoes everywhere I go.
• Smiling people in stores ready to assist.
• People loving their jobs.
• No tips.
• Sunshine every day.
• The beach.
• The pool.
• Diving.
• My small 3rd story apartment.
• My old beater car... as long as I don't have to put any more money into it.
• The people.
• Learning Japanese.
• Karate.
• 100 Yen stores.
• Food. Cheap. Delicious. Everywhere.
• Vending machines. Everywhere.
• Japanese money.
• Farmers markets.
• Fresh fruits.
• The smell.
• Old people running and being in shape.
• Little old ladies cutting veggies on the corner every single day.
• The Japanese work ethic.
• Island pace.
• The lack of stop signs.
• Kids running amuck everywhere.
• The list goes on and on.